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REPORT

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF OHIO.

ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY,

PART I. ZOOLOGY.
Fart T. never faublished i

OFFICERS OF THE SURVEY.

CHIEF GEOLOGIST.

J.8. NEWBERRY,

EDWARD ORTON, F ‘i a 2 . a 2 2 ASSISTANT GEOLOGIST.
E. B. ANDREWS, 3 ‘ 5 * ‘ : : . ASSISTANT GiOLOGIST.
T. G. WORMLEY, 2 i & 5 r : ‘ ‘ . CHEMIST.

F. B. MEEK, P 5 3 N x e r ‘ & ‘ PALEONTOLOGIST.

SPECIAL ASSISTANTS IN ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY.

J. M. WHEATON, A. W. BRAYTON, H. C. BEARDSLEE,
D. 8. JORDAN, W. H. SMITH, R, M. BYRNES.

PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY OF THE LEGISLATURE OF OHIO.

COLUMBUS: |
NEVINS & MYERS, STATE PRINTERS.
1882.

GAL +.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PART I.—ZOOLOGY.

PAGE.

Prerace. By J. S. NEWBERRY... ... 2 2 NE rn v
SECTION I.

REPORT ON THE MAMMALIA OF OHIO. By A. W. Brayton. . . . 1-185
SECTION II.

REPORT ON THE BirDs OF OH10. By J. M. Wheaton, M.D... . 187-628
SECTION III.

REPORT ON THE REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS OF OnIO. By W. H.
Smith; M:Di, Pu. D: 0 oe we eR 629-734

SECTION IV.
REPORT ON THE FISHES OF OHIO. By David L. Jordan, M.D. . . 735-1002

PREFACE.

The plan for the publication of the reports of the Geological Survey, sub-
mitted to and adopted by the Geological Board, contemplated the publication
oftwo volumes on Geology, two on Paleontology, one on Zoology and Botany,
one on Economic Geology, and a Geological Map of the State.

The Geological Corps were required by the organic law of the Survey to
investigate the general geological structure of the State; to collect, study, and
describe the fossils contained in the rocks, and to make surveys and reports
upon the Geology and resources of each one of its eighty-eight counties. As
the material was gathered in obedience to these instructions, it was soon found
that the report would exceed in dimensions the estimate made for it. The
preparation of a third volume on Geology, and a third on Paleontology was,
therefore, authorized by the Geological Board.

Of the series of publications enumerated above, two volumes on Geology and
two on Paleontology only had been finished when the appropriations for the
continuance of the work of the Geological Corps were suspended by the
Legislature. Since that date Vol. III, Part I, Geology, and the Geological
Map of the State have been finished by the gratuitous labor of the Corps, and
with an expenditure of several hundred dollars from the private resources of
the Chief Geologist. They also have been published by the authority of the
Legislature.

The volume on Zoology and Botany was also prepared, and its publication
was authorized in 1878. The reports written for this volume were as follows:
On Mammals, by Prof. A. W. Brayton; on Fishes, by Dr. D. S. Jordan; on
Birds, by Dr. J. M. Wheaton; on Mollusks, by Dr. R. M. Byrnes; on Rep-
tiles and Amphibians, by Dr. W. H. Smith; and a catalogue of the plants of
the State was compiled by Dr. H. C. Beardslee. The manuscripts of some of
these reports, recalled by their authors for changes or additions, were retained
by them so long that the publication of the volume has been much delayed.
They also have been expanded to such a degree that it has been found impos-
sible to include them all in one cover. In the hope of doing this, however,
the volume was enlarged to somewhat undesirable dimensions. Of the manu-
scripts prepared, those on the Plants of the State by Dr. Béardslee, and on the

vi PREFACE.

Mollusca by Dr. Byrnes, have not been included, but are left to form, with
such additions as may be made to the Zoological and Botanical material, a
second part of this volume, of which it is to be hoped the preparation and
publication will be accomplished at an early date.

In order to make the review of the Botany and Zoology of the State com-
plete, Part II of the volume should contain, in addition to those already
written on Botany and Conchology, a report on the lower forms of plant life,
especially the Fungi, and others on the Articulates—Crustacea, Insects, etc.—
including descriptions of all those which ‘are injurious or beneficial to man.
These, if properly prepared, will have much scientific value, and especially
those on Economic Botany and on Economic Entomology, will be of great and
immediate practical value.

Some impatience has been expressed at the slow progress of the preparation
of the volume on Zoology and Botany, and the late appearance of the part
now issued. But it should be remembered that all time and thought which
have been expended upon these thorough and voluminous reports, destined to
be so creditable and useful to the State, have been gratuitously bestowed. Not
a dollar has been paid to the authors for the years they have spent in this work,
and justice as well as courtesy demands that the invaluable gifts now made to
the people of Ohio by the eminent naturalists who have prepared these reports,
should be gratefully acknowledged. Probably no where in the history of scien-
tific publication can be found more honorable examples of the gratuitous con-
secration of time and learning by men of science to the higher interests of the
public. R

It is possible also that there are some who will fail to appreciate the value of
these detailed reports on the Natural History of the State; but with the excep-
tion of some scattered newspaper or magazine articles, nothing has been
published in regard to the Zoology of Ohio since the catalogue prepared by
Dr. Kirtland was issued in 1838, and in that interval there has been felt a
constant want in every town, village, hamlet, and farmhouse of a better knowl-
edge of the surrounding objects of nature. In every district school questions
are constantly arising, inspired by the natural curiosity of the child, which the
teacher has not been able to answer, from the want of means of information in
regard to the animals and plants of the State, An interest in nature is almost
universal, and its development wholesome and happifying. Hence, the distri-
bution of documents that will enable every one to learn the character and
history of the objects that surround him, will prove not only a gratification but
a benefit to a great multitude. All this for the educational influence of such
reports. Their bearing upon the practical life of our people is not less real,
since a knowledge of the habits of the animals that contribute to the support
of man, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, the fishes of the waters,

PREFACE. vii

will be of great service as a guide in all efforts to increase the productiveness
of these sources of aliment. So a knowledge of the plants that serve for beauty
or use will make a man a better farmer, a happier and more useful citizen.
These considerations are so obvious that no labored argument should be neces-
sary to demonstrate the utility of volumes like this now presented to the
public, and the economy of the expenditure of the small sum which it has cost.
The avidity with which it will be sought by thousands of our citizens will soon
attest their high estimate of its value.

For the care and accuracy with which the volume has been edited, credit is
to be given to Dr. J. M. Wheaton, who, in addition to the preparation of the
most voluminous report contained in it, assumed the onerous position of editor,
has read all the proof, and has decided all the difficult questions of typography.
For the mechanical execution of the book we are indebted to the courtesy and
cooperation of the Supervisor of Public Printing, Col. J. K. Brown, and to the
technical skill of the Public Printers, Messrs. Nevins & Myers.

Of the other volumes contemplated in the original plan of publication of the
results of the Geological Survey, only the Second Part of Vol. III, on
Paleontology, and Vol. V, on Economic Geology, yet remain unpublished ; but
the work has progressed slowly, since it has been done without aid from the
State. It would before this have been presented to the Legislature for publi-
cation, bnt the opinion has been expressed by the friends of the Geological
Survey that it was not at present wise to request appropriations for a volume
regarded by some as ornamental rather than useful, and that it should wait the
completion of the volume long half done, on Economic Geology. The delay
in the pubiication of this latter volume has been dependent upon a failure to
make the appropriation of the small sum necessary to finish the field work and
the maps that should accompany it. For this money was absolutely necessary,
and the sum of $5,000 was asked some years ago. During the last session the
Legislature appropriated the desired sum, placed the work in charge of Prof.
Orton, and it is in a fair way to be completed. When that volume shall have
been issued it is to be hoped that measures will be taken to secure the publica-
tion of the two half volumes, one on Botany, etc.; the other on Paleontology,
which will render the series symmetrical and complete.

Enough has been said in regard to the Botanical and Entomological reports
to show their utility and the importance of having them published and distrib-
uted. This is not the place to advocate the completion of the reports on the
Paleontology of the State; but it is permissible to say that the prejudice that
opposes the publication of figures and descriptions of the fossils contained in
our rocks is a narrow and unwise one. Aside from the wide-spread interest
felt in these extinct forms of animal and plant life, their practical value is un-
deniable and great. Every geologist knows that fossils constitute his most

Vill PREFACE.

reliable guides. They are the criteria by which he judges of the ages and
relative positions of the rocks containing them, and thus are labels written upon
these rocks, which to one who has learned the language are easily read, and are
infallible. All over the world governments, societies, and individuals are
spending large sums of money for the diffusion of just such knowledge as is
contained in our paleontological reports, and there is little doubt that sooner or
later the extremely interesting material which has been gathered for the third
volume on Paleontology will be asked for and given to the public by the

authorities of the State.
J. S. N.

SHEUTION E

REPORT ON THE MAMMALIA OF OHIO.

BY A. W. BRAYTON.

To Pror. J. S. NEWBERRY, Chief Geologist:

Dear Sir: The account of the Mammals of Ohio herewith submitted is mainly com-
piled from the standard authorities on North American Mammals. The descriptions of
the Rodents is largely drawn from the ‘Monograph of North American Rodentia,” by
Coues and Allen; of the Mustelid, from the ‘‘Fur-bearing Animals of North America,
by Dr. Coues.

The works of Prof. Baird, Dr. Gill, Audubon and Bachman, and Robert Kennicott
have been freely used, and such extracts made from them as seemed jadicious and neces-
sary.

I am also indebted to Mr. Frank W. Langdon, of Madisonville, Hamilton county, Ohio,
for valuable lists, field-notes, and other information, drawn chiefly from early histories
of Ohio; to Mr. E. W, Nelson, U.S. A., of Chicago, for notes on distribution; to Dr. D.
8. Jordan, whose Manual of Vertebrates has been followed in the serial arrangement of
the species, for use of books and specimens, and for the revision of proof-sheets, and for
other favors.

Itis deemed best to include, in this Monograph, not only the wild animals still living
in the State, but also those exterminated within the period of settlement.

Very respectfully,
A. W. BRAYTON.
Irvington, Ind , Oct. 3, 1878.

REPORT

ON THE

MAMMALS OF OHIO.

BY A. M. BRAYTON.

4

The Mammals are air-breathing, warm-blooded vertebrates, having the
skin more or less covered with hair; respiration never by branchiz, but
after birth by lungs; heart and lungs in the thorax, separated from the
abdominal viscera by a muscular diaphragm; the blood with red non-
nucleated blood-corpuscles; blood undergoing a complete circulation,
being received and transmitted by the right half of the quadrilocular
heart to the lungs for aeration, and afterward returned by its other half
through the system; aorta single and reflected over the left bronchus.
The cerebral hemispheres are connected by an anterior commissure,
and a transverse superior commissure, the corpus callosum, the latter more
or less roofing in the lateral ventricles; skull with two occipital con-
dyles, one each side of the foramen magnum; lower jaw composed of a
pair of simple rami, and articulated directly by convex condyles with
the squamosal bones. Viviparous; foetus developed from a minute egg,
and provided with an amnion and allantois; young nourished for a time
after birth by milk secreted in the mammary glands of the'mother.

ORDERS OF MAMMALIA.

* Young'not born until of considerable size, and nearly perfect development, deriving
its nourishment before birth from the blood of the mother through the intervention
of aplacenta; vagina a single tube, sometimes with a partial septum ; cerebral hemi-
spheres connected by a well-developed corpuscallosum and a reduced anterior com-
missure. (Sub-class Monodelphia.)

t Brain with a relatively large cerebrum, behind overlapping much or all of the cere-
bellum, and in front much or allof theolfactory lobes ; corpus callosum continued
horizontally backwards to or beyond the vertical of the hippocampal sulcus, develop-
ing in front a well defined recurved rostrum. (Super-order Educabilia.)

Anterior and posterior limbs and pelvis well developed; legs with the proximal joints
(humerus and femur) not exserted beyond the common integument of the body.

a. Digits with corneous appendages developed as claws; teeth of three kinds;
canines specialized and robust; molars, one or more in each jaw, sectorial,
adapted for cutting; incisors & ; scaphoid and lunar bones consolidated,

placenta deciduate and zonary. . R a R . CARNIVORA.

aa. Digits with corneous appendages developed as hoofs; teeth of three kinds;
incisors various, often reduced or wholly suppressed, especially in upper
jaw; no developed tusks; scaphoid and lunar bones separate; placenta
non-deciduate (diffuse or cotyiedonary.) . ‘ . « UNGuLaTa.

tt Brain with a relatively small cerebrum, leaving behind much of the cercbellum ex-
posed, and in front much of the olfactory lobes; corpus callosum extending more or
less obliquely upwards, terminating before the vertical of the hippocampal sulcus;
no well defined rostrum in front. (Super-order Ineducabilia.)

b. Incisors (very variable in number without persistent pulps) never $ or;
canines present; molars with sharp and pointed tusks; lower jaw with
condyles transverse, received into special glenoid sockets.

c. Anterior limbs adapted for flight; ulna and radius; united’; bones of hand
and finger much elongated, supporting & thin, leathery skin extending

along sides of body to the posterior limbs; mammz pectoral.
CHEIROPTERA.

ce, Anterior and posterior limbs adapted for walking or grasping; ulna and ra-
dius entirely or partially separated; bones of hand and fingers normally
developed; mammez abdominal. N : . A INSECTIVORA.

bb. Incisors zrarely 4 ; continually produced from persistent pulps, and growing
in a circular direotion; canines none; molars with ridged surfaces; lower
jaw with condyles longitudinal, not in glenoid cavities, but gliding freely
backwards and forwards in longitudinal furrows. . . RopEntia,
** Young born of very small size, and imperfectly developed, never connected by a
placenta to the mother; when born, attached by her to the nipple, from which the
milk is forced by the mother into the mouth of the young; cerebral hemispheres
chiefly connected by a well-developed anterior commissure, the corpus callosum
being rudimentary; vagina more or less completely dividing mto two separate
passages. (Sub-class Didelphia.) 5 A F e - a MAR3UPIALIA.

5
SUB-CLASS MONODELPHIA.

SUPER-ORDER EDUCABILIA.
ORDER CARNIVORA.
FAMILIES OF CARNIVORA.

* Intestinal canal provided with a cecum; feet digitigrade ; toes 5-4.
t Teeth, 28 to 30; dentition, M m.+ pm. 3,0. +, i. 3X 2; head broad; snout short,

decurved ; claws sharp, compressed, retractile. . 7 7 . FELIDE.
tt Teeth, typically 42; varying en 38 and 46 as en sei being the varying
element.) Dental formula, m.3 (5-3), Pm.4,0.1,1.5%X2. . . . Cana.

* Intestinal canal without a c»cum; feet usually plantigrade, if not, toes 5-5.

t Teeth less than 40; body rather slender; feet often more or less perfectly digitigrade ;

toes 5-5. « R 7 “ a r . ‘ P : c . MUSTELIDZ,

tt Teeth 40 or 42; body stout; feet completely plantigrade.
a. Tail rudimentary teeth 42; lower jaw with three true molars; body very

large and heavy. . E 7 . . E ‘ URSIDE.

aa. Tail well developed; teeth 40; = jaw Snake, with two true molars;
body moderately stout. . . a . B ‘ . PROCYONIDA,

FAMILY FELIDE.

The Cats are digitigrade carnivora, with the toes 5-4. They are read-
ily known from allied families by the retractile and very sharp, com-
pressed claws. The palms and soles are densely hairy, with naked pads
under each toe and the ball of the foot. The dentition is reduced to its
simplest elements among all pat a ne ineisors, canines,
and molars. Formula, i. 373; c. 41; pm. 33, or 22; m. 41—300r28. The
canines are long, sharp, more or less curved, usually slightly compressed,
and in existing cats possess two longitudinal furrows on the outer side.
The posterior molar of the upper jaw, the only permanent one, is very
small, and its crown transverse; in front of this is a large sectorial pre-
molar, with a smaller tricuspid one in front of it. The first premolar is
very small—absent in Lynx. In the lower jaw the posterior molar is
sectorial, with two smaller compressed premolars anterior to it. The
second upper and first and second lower premolars are trilobed, the cen-
tral lobe highest, and the lateral sometimes with accessory notches or
lobes.

KEY TO THE GENERA OF FELIDE.

* Four molars above on each side (pm. 25); tail at least half the length of trunk; fur
compact and glossy; shoulders high; ears not tufted at tips. . . . FELIs.
**Three molars above on each side (pm. 37) ; short truncated tail; ears triangular,
tufted. a . . . . 2 : . s . . . B . Lynx.

6

Genus Feris. Linneus.

4

Etymology—Latin, Felis, a cat.

1735. Felis, Linnzus, Sytema Nature, I.

The Cats are readily known from the Lynxes by the generic marks
given above. They are marked externally by the long tapering (some-
times tufted) tail, always as long as half the body, exclusive of head and
neck. The fur is compact, close and glossy, often with symmetrical pat-
terns of coloration. The ears have no pencil of hairs at the tip. The
general aspect is cat-like.

Besides F. concolor, the Panther, the type of the American species,
four representat*ves of this well known genus are found in the United
States: F. onca (Linneeus), the Jaguar, or American Tiger, from the Red
River of Louisiana south to Patagonia, the largest of the American cats;
F. pardalis (Linneus), the Ocelot, or Tiger Cat, from the Red River
throughout the lower country of Texas; F. eyra (Desm.) the Tiger Cat,
a uniform brownish-red cat of the size of the house cat, from the Rio
Grande of Texas through Mexico and Central America to Guiana;
F. yaguarundi (Desm.), a grizzled, brownish-gray cat, larger and more
elongate than the common cat. It ravages from the Rio Grande to Par-
aguay.

Friis concotor. (Linneus).
PANTHER; CoUGAR; Rocky MOUNTAIN Lion; PAINTER; Puma; Black Puma.
1771. Felis concolor, Linn., Mantissa, 1771, 552.—Erxl., Syst. Reg.
Anim., 1777, 511, sp. 17.—Bodd., El. Anim., 1784, 90.—Gmel.,
Syst. Nat., 1788, vol. i, pt. i, 79, sp. 9—Schreb , Säugth., 1778,
th. iii, 394, tab. civ.—F. Cuv., Hist. Nat. Mamm., 1829, vol. ii,
pl. 143.—Cuv., Ossem. Foss., 1825, vol. iv., 40.—Temm., Mon.
Mammif., 1827, 184.—Wils., Illust. Zoöl., 1831, pl. i—Maxilian,
Beitr Naturg. Brasil., 1826, band ii, 358. Reug., Zoöl. Journ.,
1835, vol. v., 476.—Fuller, P. Z. S., 1836, 62.—Azara, Nat. Hist.
Quad. Parag., 1838, 207.—Swains., Anim. Menag., 106.—Rich.,
Zool. Beechey’s Voy., Mam., 1839, 6.—Griff, Anim. King. 1827,
436.—Burm., Weber. Thier. Bras., 1854, 88.—Murr., Geog. Distr.
Anim., 1866, 100.—Gerv., Nat. Hist. Mam., 1855, 89.—Blainv.,
Osteog., 1839-64, vol. ii., atl. vi, pls. xi, xiv.—Fisch., Zoogu.,
1814, 223, sp. 6.—Id., Syn., 1829, 197.—Jard., Nat. Libr., vol.
xvi, 124, pls. iv, #— Dem, Mammal., 1820, 218, No. 336, ol: 94,
fig. 102.—D’Orbig., Voy. Amen Merid., 1847,21, Mamm. —Barth.,
P. Z. S., 1861, 141.—Cunningh., P. Z. 8 1868, 185.—Sclat., P. 2.
S., 1868, 62 —Temm., Mon. Mamm., 1827, vol. i, 134, et App

1777.
1788.
1827.
1830.
1867.

1869.
1869.

1874.

7

256.—Less., Man. Mamm., 1827, 190, sp. 507.—Ccop. & Suck.,
Nat. Hist. Wash. Terr., 1859, 74, 108.—Baird, U. 8. & Mex. B.
Sur., 1859, 5.—De Kay, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1842, 47.—Baird, U. 8.
P. R. R. Expl. Ex., 1857, vol. viii, 83—Harl., Faun. Amer.,
1825, 94.—Wagn., Suppl. Schreb., 1841, 461.—Aud. & Bach.,
Quad. N. Am., vol. ii, 1851, 305, pls. xevi, xevii, (8vo. ed.)—
Less., Nouy. Tab. Regn. Anim., 1842, 56, sp. 512.—Newb., P.R. R.
Rep., vi, 1857, 36.—Marcy, Rep. Expl. Red River, 1852, 200.—
Woodh., Sitgr. Rep. Zufii & Colorado, 1854, 47.—Coues, Am. Nat.,
i, 1867, 286.—Id., Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 133.—All.,
Bull. Essex Inst., vi, 1862, 53, 58.—Id., Bull. M. C. Z., ii, 1871,
168.—Jordan, Manual of the Vertebrates, 1878, 16, 2nd ed.

Felis nigra, Griff., Syn., sp. 444 (?).—Erxl., Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777,
512, sp. 8.

Felis discolor, Gmel., Syst. Nat., 1788, vol. i, pt. i, 79, sp. 12.—
Schreb., Säugth., 1778.—Fisch., Zcogu., 1814, 223, sp. 6.—Less.,
Man. Mamm., 1827, 190, sp. 509.

Felis unicolor, Less., Man. Mamm., 1827, p. 190, sp. 508.

Felis puma, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., 1830, vol. i, 858, pl. cxxxix.—
Molina, Saggio Stor. Nat. Chilo, 1810, 245, sp. 8.

Leopardus concolor, J. E. Gray, P. Z. &., 1867, 265.—Id., Cat. Carn.
Mamm., 1869, 12.—Id., Cat. Mamm. Brit. Mus., 1842, 41.

Panthera concolor, Fitzin., Ditzg. Akad, Wiss. Wein., 1869, lix, 629.

Panthera concolor niger, Fitzin., Ditzg. Akad. Wiss. Wein., 1869,
lix, 634.

Puma concolor, J. E. Gray, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., 1874, p. —.

The panther is the second in size of the North American cats. It is
larger than the common sheep or largest dog, weighing sometimes one
hundred and fifty pounds.

A full sized female, as recorded by Dr. Coues, weighed, without the
viscera, eighty pounds; gross weight, estimated, one hundred pounds.

The measurements of the same specimen, taken in the flesh, indicate a
fair average:

INCHES,
From nose to end of tail.----. 00. ences cece cane cen nun nennen mann 82.00
Head over frontal Curve... -.. 12-2 e cece ee ences cence ecm a ewes cane 9.50
Head and body to root of tail..-22.-.- 22. cece en cece e cee ene nano nenne 50.00
I VEN ENTE REEREREERNS eh let ANRCHANEEN 32 00
Stature at shoulders.......----- --uunnenonansanunenannnn ce anne namen 29.00
Fore leg and foot, from elbow..--.. „eu... 0-0-6 coeses ceecee enenes enna 15.50
Sole: of hind: foob. -eisiaseeas nase ee ae 11.00

8

The panther, though smaller than the jaguar, F! onca, stands higher,
owing to the greater relative length of its legs. ,

In color the panther is not unlike’ the Virginia deer. The back and
sides are of a tawny brownish color, darker on the dorsal line, the under
parts dirty white. The only dark markings are a black patch on the
upper lip, and on the convexity of the ears; the tip of tailisdusky. The
body of the kittens is densely spotted, as usual in this family, and the
tail is ringed.

The hair is short, compact, close pressed to skin. The head is small,
the ears large, and rounded above; the whiskers are in four horizontal
series.

This species is common in Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, and
ranges from fifty to sixty degrees north latitude to the south extreme of
the American continent.

In certain localities of New Mexico and Arizona it wages a terrible
warfare upon wild turkeys, destroying hundreds of them, and depopulat-
ing their former breeding ‘places to such an extent that in a few years
the race will have become almost extinct in this region if measures are
not taken to prevent the wholesale slaughter.—[Coues and Yarrow. ]

In Dr. Kirtland’s list of mammals (Ohio Geological Survey for 1838) is
the following :

“Felis Concolor” and ‘Felis Montana,” Mountain Tiger and Mountain Cat, both
known to hunters under the name of ‘Catamount.’ They both formerly inhabited the
State, but have now disappeared. Mr. Dorfeuille has in his museum at Cincinnati well
prepared specimens of both species that were taken in Ohio.”—[Italics mine. Dorfeuille
and his museum are not in existence now, and have not been for years.—LANGDON. ]

Mr. Frank W. Langdon, of Madisonville, Hamilton county, Ohio, has
given me a series of notes on the mammals of Ohio, chiefly selected from
the early histories of the State. From them I select the following:

“The first board of county commissioners offered a bounty of three dollars for wolf
and panther scalps under six months old, and four dollars on those over six months
old. This bounty was discontinued in 1818.” [History of Athens county, Ohio, page
130.—C. M. Walker, 1869.]

The following panther anecdote is taken from the Centennial History
of Licking county, Ohio, published at Newark, Ohio, by Isaac Smucker:

“In the autumn of 1805 Jacob Wilson, living within a mile of Newark, was suddenly
called to the door of his cabin by the commotion among his swine and pigs. A huge
panther had just seized a pig, and when in the act of making off with it was pursued and
treed by the dogs not far from the cabin. The pioneer at once seized his trusty rifle and
brought it to bear upon the ferocious beast, which at the first fire fell at the root of the

tree among the dogs.”

9

Genus Lynx. Raf.

Lynz, Rafinesque, Amer. Month. Mag., I, Oct., 1817, 487.—Ib., IJ, 1817,
46.—Aud. & Bach., N. A. Quad., I, 1849, I.

Lyneus, “Gray,” DeKay, New York Zool., I, 1842, 50.
Generie Marks —Molars 33 (the small anterior premolar of Felis absent.)
Tail considerably less than half the body, exclusive of head and neck,

generally not much longer than head, abruptly truncate at tip.

There are four species of Lynx in the United States: the Canada Lynx,
Lynx canadensis, largest of the genus, ranging north, the pads of the feet
overgrown with hair so as to be concealed in winter; the other three, L.
fasciatus, the Red Cat, L. rufus, the American Wild Cat, and L. maculatus,
the Texan Wild Cat, are smaller, have more naked soles, and are more
southern in their distribution.

Lynx CANADENSIS, (Desm.) Raf.
CANADA Lynx.

1793. Lynx, Penn., Hist. Quad., 1793, 301, sp. 203.

1816. Felis canadensis, Desm., Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., 1816, 108.—Id.,
Mam., 1820, 224, No. 346.—Gapper, Zoöl. Journ., 1835, vol. v.
203.—Swains. & Rich., Faun. Bor. Am., vol. i, 1829, 101.—Murr.,
Geog. Distr. Mam., 1866, 101.—Jard., Nat. Libr., vol. xvi, 259,
pl. xxxiii—Less, Man. Mam., 1827, 191, sp. 513.—Harln.,
Faun. Am., 1825, 98 —Griff., Anim. King., 1827, vol. v, 174.—
Fisch., Syn. Mam., 1829, 213, sp. 31.—Less., Nouv. Tab. Regn.
Anim., 1842, 57, sp. 548.—Gerv., Hist. Nat. Mam., 1855, 92.

1842. Lyncus borealis, De Kay, Nat. Hist. N. York, 1842, 50, pl. x, fig 2.

1842. Lyncus canadensis, Gray, Cat. Mam. Brit. Mus., 1842, 46.—Id., P.
Z. S., 1867, 276.—Id., Cat. Carn. Mam., 1869, 37, sp. 3.

1847. Felis borealis, Temm., Mon. Mam., 1847, vol. 1, 109, App., 251.—
Less., Man. Mam., 1827, 184, sp. 490.—Id., Comp. Buff, 1839, vol.
i, 411.—Wagn., Supp. Schreb., 1841, vol. ii, 519.—Blyth, J. A. 8.
B, 1842, vol. xi, pt. ii, p. —.

1857. Lynx canadensis, Baird, U. 8S. P. R. R. Expl. Exp., 1857, vol. viii,
99.—Raf., Am. Month. Mag., 1817, vol. ii, 46.—Aud. & Bach.,
Quad. N. Am., 1849, vol. i, 136, pl. xvii—Jordan, Manual of
the Vertebrates, 1878, 16, 2nd ed.—Le Lynx du Canada, Cuv.,
Ossem. Foss., 1825, vol. iv, 443.—Buff., Suppl., vol. iii, pl. xliv.—
Le Lynx de Mississippi, Buff, Supp., vol., vii, pl. liii.

Specific Marks—This lynx is the size of a setter dog. The tail is as
short or shorter than the head, its last fifth black above, and extreme end

10

black all round. The feet are large, densely furred in winter so as to con-
ceal the pads. Hind feet about nine incheslong. General color grayish
hoary with concealed pale rufous, and waved with black, especially on
the back; obsolete dark markings on the head; ears with narrow black
margin on the convexity, and black pencil of hairs; whiskers chiefly
white.

This species may be known from the others by its larger size, and
relatively longer hair and feet, independent of color marks. It is nearer
L. rufus than other American lynxes, but may be at once known by its
larger size, fuller fur, larger and densely furred feet concealing the soles.
Its relationship to certain European species, Felis lynz and Felis borealis, is
by no means clear.

In the summer pelage the fur is much shorter and less dense; the
colors are much the same, with, however, more rufous and less gray.
The pads on the feet are distinctly visible in summer, not being over-
grown as in winter specimens.

The following measurements were taken from a specimen in the flesh.

INCHES.

En DOL BAAR WE aS REE Eee 64
Head and “body sas. esas ccd eecenigacess aoe ange aeesheesisceesesae cee sees BAF
Tail, vertebrae > ee Be ko see ioes NEN an 44
Tail, hairs- ass sions: eek DE
Hindfeot es: Ss ana ie ee nee nee ee Ban 9

Lynx Rurus, (Gm.) Raf.

Bay Lynx; WILD CAT; MOUNTAIN CAT; TIGER CAT.

1776. Felis ruffa, Guldenstädt, Nov. Comm. Petrop., xx, 1776, 499.

1788. Felis ruffa, Gmel., Syst. Nat., 1788, vol. i, pt. i,82, sp. 19.—Schreb.,
Säugth., 1788, th. iii, 412, tab. cix. B—Desm., Nouv. Dict. d Hist.
Nat., 1816, 107.—F. Cuv., Hist. Nat. Mamm., 1828, vol. ii. pl.
141.—Blain., Osteog., 1839, 64, vol. ii, pl. xi.—Desm., Mamm.,
1820, 225, No. 347.—Guldenst., Voy. de la Venus, t. 9, fig. 2-4
(skull)—Temm., Mon. Mamm., 1827, vol. i. 141.—Less., Man.
Mamm., 1827, 192, sp. 514.—Id., Compl. Buff., 1839, vol. i, 411.—
Geoff. St. Hil., Voy. Venus, Zoöl, 1855, 150, pl. ix —Fisch.,
Syn. Mamm., 1829, 212, sp. 32.—Less., Nouv. Tab. Régn. Anim.,
1842, 57, sp. 549.—Gerv., Hist. Nat. Mamm., 1855, 91.—Blyth,
Journ. Asiat. Soc. Beng., 1842, vol. xi, pt. ii, 752.:

1829. Felis maculata, Vig. & Horsf., Zoöl. Journ., 1829, vol. iv, 880.—
Less., Comp. Buff, 1839, vol. i, 411.—Id., Nouv. Tab. Régn.
Anim., 1842, 58, sp. 553.

1817.

1817.
1859.

1817.
1867.
1817.

1817.

1820.

1820.

1825.

1827.
1827.
1827.

1859.

11

Lynx rufus, Raf,, Am. Month. Mag., 1817, vol. ii, 46.—Aud. &
Bach., Quad. N. Am., 1849, vol. i, 2, pl. i—Marcy, Expl. Red
River, 1852, 200.—Newb., P. R. R. Rep., vi, 1857, 36.—Bd., Mam.
N. A., 1857, 90.—Coues, Am. Nat., i, 1867, 287.—All., Bull. M. C.
Z., ii, 1871, 168.—Jordan, Manual of the Vertebrates, 1878, 16,
2d ed. j .

Lynx floridana, Raf., Amer. Month. Mag., 1817, vol. ii, 46.

Lynx rufus var. maculatus, Baird, U. 8. and Mex. B. Sur., 1859,
13.—Id., U.8.P.R.R. Expl. Exp., 1857, vol. viii, 93.—Aud. &
Bach., Quad. N. Am., 1851, vol. ii, 293, pl. xlii.

Lynx montanus, Raf., Am. Month. Mag., 1817, vol. ii, 46.

Lyncus maculatus, Gray, P. Z. S., 1867, 297.—Id., Cat. Carn. Mam.,
1869, 38, sp. 8.

Lynx aureur, Raf., Am. Month. Mag., 1817, 46, sp. 6.—Less., Comp.
Buff., 1839, vol. i, 412.

Lynx fasciatus, Raf., Am. Month. Mag., 1817, vol. ii, 46.—Baird,
U.S. P. R. R. Expl. Exp., 1857, vol. viii, 96.—Suckl., U. 8. P.
R. R. Expl. Exp., 1860, vol. xii, 109.—Desm., Mamm, 1820,
vol. i, 225.

Felis montana, Desm., Mam., 1820, 225, No. 349, pl. 98, fig. 2.—Less.,
Man. Mam., 1827, 194, sp. 522.—Id., Compl. Buff., 1839, vol. i,
411.—Harl., Faun. Amer., 1825, 101.—LeConte., P. A. N. 8.
Philada., 1854, 9.—Gerv., Hist. Nat. Mamm., 1855, 92.

Felis floridana, Desm., Mam., 1820, 225, 350.—Less., Man. Mam.,
1827, 194, sp. 523.—Id., Comp. Buff, 1839, vol. i. 412.

Felis fasciata, Harl., Fn. Am., 1825, 100.—Swains. & Rich., Faun.
Bor. Am., 1829, Mamm., 104.—Murr., Geog. Distr. Mam., 1866,
101.—Cuv., Ossem. Foss., vol. iv. 441.—Buff., Suppl., vol. iii, pl.
44.—Less., Man. Mam., 1827, 193, sp., 520.—Coop. & Suck., Nat.
Mist. Wash. Ter., 1859, 109.—Less., Comp. Buff., 1839, vol. i,
411.—Fisch., Syn. Mam., 1829, 212.—Less., Nouv. Tab. Régne
Anim., 1842, 57, sp. 550.

Felis mexicana, Desm., Mam., 225, sp. 351.—Less., Man. Mam., 1827,
194, sp. 524.—Id., Nouv. Tab. Régn. Anim., 1842, 57, sp. 357.
Felis mexicana, Desm., Mam., 325, sp. 359.—Less., Man. Mam., 1827,

194, sp. 525.—Id., Comp. Buff., 1839, vol. i, 411.

Felix carolinensis, Desm., Mam., 231.—Less., Man. Mam., 1827, 195,
sp. 527.—Id., Comp. Buff, 1839, vol. i, 415.

Lynx rufus var. maculatus, Baird, U. S. and Mex. B. Sur., 1859, 13.—
Id., U. 8. Pacific R. R. Expl. Ex., 1857, vol. viii, 93.—Aud. &
Bach., Quad. N. Am., 1851, vol. ii, 293, pl. xcii.

12

1867. Lyncus fasciatus, Gray, P. Z. S., 1867, 276.—Id., Cat. Carn. Mam.,
1869, 38, sp. 6.

1869. Panthera concolor maculata, Fitz., Ditzg. Akad. Wiss. Wein, 1869,
lix, 636.

Specific Characters.—Fur moderately full and soft. Above and on sides
pale rufous overlaid with grayish, the latter color most prevalent in
winter. A few obsolete dark spots on the sides, and indistinct longitu-
dinal lines along the middle of the back. Color on the throat like the
sides, but paler. Beneath, white spotted. Inside of fore and hind legs
banded. Tail with a small black patch at the end, with indistinct sub-
terminal half rings. Inner surface of ears black, with a white patch.

This species has a very wide range, and varies much both with place
and season. Those from different localities vary much at the same time.

The synonomy of Lynx rufus covers the three sub-species into which
Dr. Coues thinks this species is separable—Lynz rufus, var. rufus, the
common bay lynx, which reaches from the Atlantie to the Pacific coast |
throughout nearly the whole breadth of the United States; Lynx rufus,
var. fasciatus, of the moist north-west coast of Oregon and Washington
Territory, is a heavily colored red form; lastly, var. maculatus, the pro-
fusely banded and spotted form from Florida, described by Prof. Baird.

In one specimen the length of head and body was 28? inches, tail 7
inches. Another, 27 inches in length, was 154 inches high at the shoul-
der, and 64 inches from heel to end of hind foot. With reference to the
variation of L. rufus in size and color, Prof. Baird states that in many of
our animals of wide distribution there appear to be, as in this case, sev-
eral races as far as color and dimensions are concerned, in particular
species; skulls of the same sex and relative age being different in size.
This is particularly true with the cats, deer, bears, and raccoons, and as
a general rule the farther south we go the smaller the species. Northern
skins of wild cats have the hair longer and softer through the year than
southern, while, as in the deer, the hair will have a reddish or bay tinge,
replaced by grayish in the winter.

Judge Burgoyne informs Mr. Langdon that wild-cats were occasionally
taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati as late as 1814. It is scarcely likely
that any remain to the present time, although they are often found in
Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee.

FAMILY CANIDE.

The Dogs are digitigrade Carnivora, with blunt, non-retractile claws.
The feet are, apparently, all four-toed, but the foremost ones have a rudi-
mentary thumb higher up, to which a claw is attached (sometimes want-
ing). The dentition is typically i. 3:5; c. 1; pm. 33; m. 3.342.

13

This family is connected to the eats by the hyenas, of which no species
occur in North America. Indigenous species of dogs occur in all habita-
ble regions, and the domestic dog thrives wherever man has a foothold.

The dogs are separated from the cats externally by the long, sharp
muzzle, small eyes, long hair, bushy tail, contracted belly, and pointed,
erect ears; they are related to-the hyenas by the blunt, non-retractile
claws, by their digitigrade feet, and general appearance.

The Canidx vary much in size from the largest wolves to the California .
coast fox, scarcely larger than the domestic cat.

There are two groups or sub-families of North American Canidz, the
wolves, including the domestic dog, and the foxes. These groups are
related by the South American foxes—a fox-like wolf directly interme-
diate between the fox and wolf forms of Europe and North America.

In the wolves the tail is short, the pupil circular, and the median upper
incisors very distinctly lobed on each side; the post-orbital process of the
frontal bone is triangular, convex on its upper surface, with its point
below the plane of the inter-orbital space. Sub-family Lupine.

In the foxes the tail is bushy, the pupil elliptical, and the whole form
more slender; the upper incisors are scarcely lobed, and the post-orbital
process of the frontal bone bent but little downward, the anterior edge
turned up; a longitudinal shallow pit or indentation at its base. Sub-
family Vulpine. —

The South American fox-like forms (Lycalopex and Pseudalopex of Bur-
meister) have the circular pupils and wolf-like character of the post-
orbital process, but their tails are even larger than those of the true foxes,
reaching to the ground. Prof. Baird, therefore, includes them in the
sub-family Lupine.

KEY TO THE GENERA OF CANIDE.

* Post-orbital process of the frontal bone very convex and curving downwards, with
little or no depression or indentation in its upper surface; pupil circular ; tail com-
paratively short; upper incisors distinctly lobed on each side. . . . Canis.

** Post-orbital process bent but little dowuwards, the anterior edge turned up; a longi-
tudinal shallow pit or indentation at its base; tail long and bushy: pupil ellipti-
cal; body more slender; upper incisors scarcely lobed. ,

t Tail with soft fur and long hair uniformly mixed; muzzle long; temporal crests com-
ing nearly in contact. F A a a R . VULPES,

tt Tail with a concealed mane of stiff ini weitliont soft fur intermixed ; muzzle shorter;
temporal crests always widely separated. 2 7 a. UROCYonN.

14

Genus Canis (Lin.)

Canis, Lin., Systema Nature, I, 1735.

The generic characters of Canis are included in the description already
given. To separate Canis from the South American fox-like wolves,
Lycalopex and Pseudalopex, of Burmeister, we have the completely cir-
cular pupil, large size, and short tail, as opposed to the smaller size,
longer tail, slender muzzle, and pupil varying from round to elliptical of
the South American genera.

CANIS LUPUS OCCIDENTALIS. (——.) ——.

AMERICAN WOLF; TIMBER OR BUFFALO WOLF; LOBO OF THE MEXICANS; WHITE,
GRIZZLED, GRAY AND BRINDLED, RED, Dusky, AND BLACK WOLVES OF AUTHORS.

a. White Wolves.

1829. Canis lupus albus, Sabine, Journ., 652 —Rich., F.B. A., i, 1829, 68.—
A. & B,, ii, 156, pl. 72. White, pure or washed with yellowish,
with or without black-tipped tail. Among the largest of the
species. Northerly and alpine.

b. Grizzled Wolves.

1857. CO. occidentalis, var. griseo-albus, Newb., P. R. R. Rep., vi, 1857, 37;
Coues, Am. Nat., 1867, 288.—C. variabilis, Maxim.—C. griseo-albus,
Baird, 104. White, more or less grizzled with gray; large, and
rather northerly. An intermediate link between a and

e. Gray and Brindled Wolves.

C. lupus, of authors.— Lupus occidentalis, Peale, U. 8. Expl. Ex., 1848,
26.—Marcy, Expl. Red Riv., 1852, 200.—Lupus gigas, Townsend,
Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1850, 11,75. Gray, of variable shade
and pattern, generally brindled; darker along the dorsal aspect,
paler or white below; little or no rufous; medium size, most
general distribution.

d. Red Wolves.

C. lupus, var. rufus, A. & B., ii, 240, pl. 20.—C. occidentalis var. rufus,
Bd., 118. Mixed reddish and black, paler below. Small, south-
erly, especially Texas.

e. Dusky Wolves.

C. nobilis, Say., Long’s Ex., 1823, i, 168.-—C. occidentalis, vars. nobilis
and mexicanus, Bd., 111,113. Dusky or plumbeous brown, with
or without darker muzzle band and leg stripe. Small, chiefly
southerly. %

f. Black Wolves.

C. lupus ater, Rich., F. B. A., 1829, i, 70.—A. & B., ii, 126, pl. 67.—
C. occidentalis, var. ater, Bd., 113. Black or nearly so. Small,
chiefly southerly, especially Florida.

15
ef

Specific Character. —This wolf is the largest of the genus, from 3 to 5
feet long, average about 4; tail 12 to 18 inches; skull 8 to 11 inches,
usually 9 to 10; width of skull 42 to 52, generally about 54 inches. Color
indeterminate, varying from pure white to grizzled gray and brindled
wolves, through mixed reddish and black forms to dusky or plumbeous
brown, and even black.

The coiors are indicated in the accompanying synonymy by Dr. Coues,
who has made six groups of the American wolf, based on the color. The
distribution is given in the synonymy. The more usual color, it will be
noticed, is the gray, a form of medium size and most general distribu-
tion. Should a stray wolf still remain in the hills of Southern Ohio, or
occasionally stray over from the mountainous regions of Kentucky, this
would be the probable form.

The gray wolf is found all over North America to the arctic regions,
the others are more local in their range. A pure white is found in the
Upper Missouri and in alpine regions, a dusky, blackish, plumbeous
wolf in the Lower Missouri region, an entirely red or rufous in Texas,
and an entirely black wolf in Florida and the Southern States; these
varying conditions of albinism and melanism, from arctic to southern
regions, and the diminution in size toward equatorial latitudes, are well
marked in this species. The study of the synonymy is instructive, show-
ing that a species cannot be properly named and defined until collections
have been made from all parts of its range, and careful comparisons made
between apparently distinct species.

Since the above was written I have the following notes from Mr.
Langdon:

In a “History of Seneca County, Ohio,” by C. W. Butterfield, published
at Sandusky in 1848, I find the following remarks on wolves:

«Wolf Creek, another tributary of the Sandusky, rises in the south-west part of the
county (etc. * * * *). This stream, running through a level country, is somewhat
sluggish. It received its name from the circumstance of a great number of wolves for-
merly inhabiting the swamps near its source, and the thickets around the wet prairie a
little west of its mouth.”

The following extract is taken from the “Pioneer History of the Ohio
Valley,” Hildreth ; 1848, Cincinnati:

“ The wolf for thirty years was a great hindrance to the raising of sheep, and for a
long period the State paid a bounty for their scalps. Neighboring farmers often associ-
ated and paid an additional bounty of ten or fifteen dollars, so as to make it an object
of profit for certain old hunters to employ their whole time and skill in entrapping
them. At this period (1848) the race is nearly extinct in the Ohio Company’s lands.”

Dr. Kirtland speaks of the wolf as “‘becoming very rare”—Ohio Geol,
Survey, 1838. List of mammals of Ohio.

16

Genus VuLpes. Brisson.

To the Sub-family characters already indicated may be added: tail with
soft fur and long hair, uniformly mixed; muzzle long; temporal crests
coming nearly in contact. These, with the “dissimilarity in color, and
a difference in build, easier to remark upon comparison then to express
in words, readily distinguish the red fox in any of its pelages from the
gray fox.” (Urocyon virginianus.)

The American foxes included in this genus are the Arctic Fox (J. la-
gopus, Rich); the Swift Fox (V. velox, Aud. and Bach.) of the plains west
of Missouri to Oregon; the Large Prairie Fox (V. macrurus, Baird) of the
Upper Missouri to plains of Oregon, and the American Red Fox (V. vul-
garis pennsylvanicus, (Bodd.,) Coues), which in three well marked color
varieties is distributed from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

VULPES VULGARIS PENNSYLVANICUS. (Bodd.) Coues.

AMERICAN Rep Fox.

1784. Canis vulpes, var. pennsylvanicus, Bodd., Elenchus Anim., 1784,
96 (from Pennant.)

1820. Canis fulvis, Desm., Mamm., i., 1820, 203 (from Pal. de Beauv.). Fr.
Cuv., Diet. Sci.

1829. Vulpes fulvus, Rich., Fn. Bor. Am., i., 1829, 91.—Fischer, Syn., 1829,
191.—De Kay, N. Y. Fn. i. 1842, 44, pl. 7, f. 1—Aud. & Bach.,
Quad. N. A., ii. 1851, 263, .pl. 87.—Baird, Mamm. N. A., 1867,
123.

1841. Canis (Vulpes) vulgaris, var. fulvus, Wagn., Suppl. Schreber, ii. 1841,
4138.

1875. Vulpes vulgaris pennsylvanicus, Coues, Geolog. and Geog. Surveys
West One Hundredth Meridian, Chap. IL, Vol. V. 1875, 52.—
Jordan Manual Vertebrates, 1878, 17.

The ordinary variety of the Red Fox (V. pennsylvanicus) may be known
from its melanotic forms, the Cross Fox (V. deeussatus) and Black or Silver
Gray Fox (V. argentatus) by its prevailing color: a bright, clear, yellowish
rufous, darker on the shoulders and flanks. The pelage of the Red Fox
is long, fine and lustrous. The hair is much silkier and softer than in
the Red Fox of Europe (V. vulgaris). The convexity of the ears and out-
side of the legs below are of a glossy black; space around the black snout,
edges of upper jaw, chin, throat, breast, and narrow belly-line more or
ess purely white, as is usually the tip of the tail. The feet are so clothed
with long, soft hair that the claws and balls are nearly hidden. The

17

brush is large and full, the distance between the ends of the outstretched
hairs 6 to 7 inches.

In Northern Ohio, according to Prof. Baird, a variety of the Red Fox is
not uncommon in which the long hairs of the body and tail are entirely
wanting, leaving the soft, silken fur freely exposed. The colors do not
vary from the common variety, except that the red is lighter; there is no
black on the tail, or grizzling on the hinder back. Prof. Baird states
that this condition of the hair has been observed by him ın skins of
Canis griseus, from Chili, as well as in many other species. Regarding
this peculiar condition of the pelage, Mr. Allen is of the opinion that it
is the result of a disease which produces a crisp, woolly condition of the
fur much as though it had been singed; hence the common name of
“Sampson” or “Samson” foxes. The same author states that in Van
Buren and Allegan counties, Michigan, about one-third of all the foxes:
taken are of this varicty, and that their skins bring much less in market
than those of the common Red Fox; the animal, moreover, is represented
as less cunning, and more easily trapped, and has slightly different hab-
its from the normal variety. The specimen observed by Prof. Baird was
sent him by Dr. Ackley. Whether this variety is still found in the State
is not known to the present writer.

Dr. Coues regards the Cross Fox as a “special state of semi-melaniem ”
of the couımon fox. This variety, common in northern New York, and
sometimes as far southward as Pennsylvania and Ohio, receives its name
from the presence of a black cross forwed by a black band along the back
crossed by anotheron the shoulder. It shades by varying and almost in-
sensible degrees in‘o the Black or Silver-Gray Fox.

Complete, or nearly complete, melanism distinguishes the Black or
. Silver-Gray Fox, (Canis or Vulpes argentatus, or fulvus var. argentatus of
anthors.) The color is auniform, lustrous black, with conspicuously white-
tipped tail; more or less of the long hairs of the back and flanks, top
and sides of head grayish, silvery at the end, giving a silvered appear-
ance to the pelage. The perfectly black pelts are found, chiefly, iu high
latitudes.

Such pelts are extremely rare, and command a high price in the
market; indeed the varying colors determine the value of the pelt, and
so are of great commercial importance; they have, however, no classifi-
catory significance.

“While the Cross and Black or Silver Foxes are usually considered as different ‘ varie-
ties,’ they are not such, in the classificatory sense of that term, any more than are the
red, black, or white wolves, the black marmots, squirrels, etc. The proof of this is in
the fact that one or both of the ‘varieties’ occur in the same litter-of whelps from nor-

2

18

mally colored parents. They have no special geographical distribution, although, on
the whole, both kinds are rather northerly than otherwise, the Silver Foxes especially
so. It does not appear to be ascertained exactly how far the styles of pelage tend to
perpetuate themselves; that is to say, in what proportion of cases a cross will produce
a cross litter, or a black a black litter; but the inter-breeding of the several varieties,
and their purely accidental origin, from parents of the normal coloration are incontest-
ible.”—[Coues and Yarrow, Zoöl. Ep]., W. 100 Merid., V. 1875, 53.]

The same authorities state there is no reasonable question of the
specific identity of the American and European Red Fox. The same
color variations occur in both. Prof. Baird (Mam. N. A., 1857, p. 130)
surmises, from the absence of any fossil remains of the Red Fox in the
Carlisle (Penn.) and other bone caves, in which the Gray Fox is abund-
antly represented, that there is basis for the somewhat prevalent belief
that the Red Fox of Eastern America is the descendant of the European Fox
imported and run wild many years ago, as did the horses imported and
set at liberty by the Spaniards. This might account for its abundance
in settled districts, but scarcely allows time for its universal distribution
over a continent. Coues and Yarrow (Zoöl. Expl., W. 100 Merid., V. 1875,
54) think it a more reasonable hypothesis that, with many other Ameri-
can mammals, it had an original circumpolar distribution in warmer
times, and has spread southward in both hemispheres, developing geo-
graphical distinctions of race, but not distinct species. The differences,
as observed by Audubon, are all comparative, and not positive. With
ample opportunity for comparison, he says the American Red Fox ‘‘is a
little the largest; its legs are less robust; its nose shorter and more
pointed ; the eyes nearer together; its feet and toes more thickly clothed
with fur; its ears shorter; it has a finer and larger brush; and its fur is
much softer, finer, and of a brighter color.” -

DIMENSIONS OF ANY OF THE AMERICAN VARIETIES.

N0686:t06;7006. OF ball... una 2-24 feet.
Tail to end. of bones:=.. cana vswices cece s cn au os mcs cess 12-16 inches.
Pail tO enol, Nass cc ceudecweaa sions vawciec cemoadsciesind cays dere 15-19“
Height Of Gabsace sesen seen are een 2-28 =
Height at shoulders ......-22. -202 1-2 eee cece cee eee cence ene ee eee 12-13
Skull, in length and width....-.----...---2. 2-2-2 2-20. see eee 54x3 ee

Regarding the occurrence of the Red Fox in Ohio, and its taking the
place of the Gray Fox, Dr. Kirtland writes as follows:

€. (Vulpes) fulvus.—“ The Red Fox was unknown in this region of conntry until the
introduction of the white population, and is supposed by many not to have been originally
a native of America. It has now become a common and troublesome inhabitant.”

19

U. virginianus.—‘‘The Gray Fox was formerly very abundant, but it rapidly disap-
peared before the advancement of cultivation, and its place is now generally filled by a
more cunning and sagacious successor, the Red Fox.”—[Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838.]

Of this beautiful animal, Thoreau says:

“ His pace is a sort of leopard canter, as if he were in nowise impeded by the snew,
but were husbanding his strength all the while; when the ground is uneven the conrse
is a series of graceful curves, conforming to the shape of the surface. He runs as though
there were not a bone iu his back, occasionally dropping his muzzle to the ground for a
rod or two, and then tossing his head aloft when satisfied of his course. When he comes
to a declivity he will put his fore feet together and slide swiftly down it, shovjng the
snow before him. He travels so softly that you would hardly hear it from any distance.
‘Sometimes you will see the trail (in the snow) of many together, and where they have
gambolled and gone through a hundred evolutions, whieh testify to a singular listless-
ness in nature.”—[Thoreau’s Excursions—Natural History of Massachusetts. ]

Genus Urocyon. Baird.

Urocyon, Baird. Mamm.N. A., 1857.— Vulpes, Brisson.

Etymology, Greek, oura—tail, and kuon—dog.

Type, Urocyon cinereo-argentatus, (Schreb.) Coues.

Generic Characters.—Tail with a concealed mane of stiff hairs without
any soft fur intermixed; muzzle short; temporal crests always widely

separated. A supplementary tubercle on the lower sectorial tooth ; under .

jaw with an angular emargination below. “Mane-tailed foxes.” Two

species; the type and U. litoralis (Baird) of the island of San Miguel, Cal-

ifornia.

ÜROCYON CINEREO-ARGENTATUS. (Schreb.) Coues.
GraY Fox.

1778. Canis cinereo.argentatus, Schreber, Säug., ili, 1778, 360, pl. 92 (has
actual priority over Erxlebin.)—Erxl., Syst. An., 1777, 576.—
Gm., Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 74.—Shaw, Gen. Zodl., i, 1800, 324.—Desm.,
Mamm., i, 1820, 204 (partim).—Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 90,—
Griff, An. Kingd., v, 1827, 148.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., i,
1831, 280.—Fr. Cuv., Suppl. Buffon, i, 1831.—Doughty’s Cab.
Nat. Hist., ii, 1832, 145, pl. 14.—Wagn., Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841,
436 (partly).—Woodh., Sitgreave’s Report Expl. Zuni and Col-
orado, 1854, 46.

1778. Canis virginianus, Schreb., Säug., iii, 1778, 361, pl. 92.—Erxl.,
Syst. An., 1777, 567.Gm., Syst. Nat., i, 1778, 74.—Shaw, Gen.
Zoöl., i, 1800, 325.--Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 89.—Griff., An.
King., v, 1827, 150.—Rich., F. Bor. Amer., 1829, 96 ( Vulpes.)

1784. Canis griseus, Bodd., Elench. Anim., i, 1784, 97 (Ex Penn.)

1357. Vulpes (Urocyon) virginianus, Baird, Mamm. N. A., 1857, 138.

4

20

1875. Uvrocyon cinereo-argentatus, (Schreb.) Coues. Report Geolog. and
Geogr. Expl. and Surveys West 100dth Meridian, 1575, 56. Jor-
dan, Man. Vert., 1878, 17, 2d edition.

Specific Characters—Head and body a little over two feet in length:
tail rather more than half as long; stiff, with a concealed mane of bristly
hairs. Prevailing color mixed hoary and black; convexity and base of
ears, side of neck and edges of belly, and more or less of the outer sur-
faces of the limbs, rich fulvous or cinamon brown; muzzle banded with
black, extending on the chin; lower half of head, tip of chin, and sides
of muzzle at end white; tail hoary on the siles, a stripe above, and the
tip black ; rusty beiow.

The Gray Fox is about as large as the Red Fox. The length is about
twenty-eight inches; tail, to end of vertebra, thirteen to sixteen inches,
to end of hairs, fourteen to eighteen inches; ears two and a half inches
high ; hind foot five inches; skull four and a half to four and two-thirds
by two and a third to two and two-thirds inches.

This fox is not subject to the remarkable variations of color’already
observed in the Red Fox. Different specimens vary in the shade of the
grizzled grayish back, exact color-pattera of the black and white on the
head, extent and inteasity of the fulvous cn the neck, flank and limbs;
it is always distinzuissable by its colors, however, aside from the differ-
ences in build, cranium end general appearance.

The Gray Fox occurs in Oregon, Texas, and California, and with the
Red extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific. It is not common in New
England, and only accidental in Maine and Canada. It is more southern
than the Red Fox, being the prevailing species from Virginia south ward.

Taking naturally to the woodlands, and shunning the plains, there
are, of course, extensive areas on its ordinary parallels where it mar
never be met, although prevalent on either side of such treeless regions.
Coues and Yarrow (Zeül. Expl. W. 100dth Meridian), from whom the
subsequent note on the comparative habits of the Gray and Red is quoted,
consider the present species the characteristic fox of Arizona, being
much more abundant than the Red.

“Sharing vulpine traits with its kind, the Gray Fox has, nevertheless,
its peculiarities. It is not a burrowing animal, at least to any great ex-
tent; and when it digs, the burrow is simple, with a single entrance. It
lies concealed in rank herbage, beneath or inside fallen logs, under par-
tially excavated stumps, and similar retreats. This habit is in evident
correlation with its woodland range, for, having no such protection as
the Red Fox, which takes to the earth any where, it is forced to abide
where there are the natural means of concealment just mentioned. This

21

same habit, moreover, causes a certain modification of the animal’s range
with the settling of a country; in clearing off forests the Gray Fox
is forced to seek elsewhere; although in effect the circumstances that cause
removal of one species are precisely those that invite the other, the Red
Fox being able to exist in settled regions where the other could find no
suitable resorts. It is this that makes the Red a greater nuisance to the
farmer: it sticks close to the farm-yard, being forced, in a measure, to
thus supply itself, owing simply to its being in more cultivated districts.
The Gray Fox subsists more extensively upon the wild game of his habi-
tat. Another distinctive feature is the climbing powers of tha Gray Fox,
much greater than would be expected from an animal with non-retractile
claws, and no great ‘‘ hugging” powers. When hard pressed the Gray
Fox is treed as regularly as the Red is earthed. The climbing seems
to be simply an agile leaping along an inclined trunk, or from bough to
bough, though it has been noted that the animal can climb a small
trunk ‘by clasping, or even with its claws like a cat or raccoon.”

FAMILY MUSTELIDE.

The Mustelide are a strictly defined family of carnivorous mammals,
of which the Weasels and Martens are the typical representatives. It
includes, also, the Skunks, Badgers, and Otters. Species of the family
are found in all parts of the earth, excepting the Australian region.
The genera’and species are most abundant and differentiated in the
Northern Hemisphere (Arctog&a), where the group attains its most per-
fect development. The most generally distributed and inclusive genus
in both hemispheres, is Putorius, the tıue Weasels, although some twenty
genera are recognized altogether.

The esmmereial importance of the family is indicated by the high
price set on the pelt of the Otter, Sable, Ermine, and others.

In 1868. the Hudson’s Bay Company sold over 100,000 Sables, 73,000
Mink, 14,000 Otters, 6,000 Skunks, 1,100 Wolverines, 1,500 Badgers, 123
Sea Otters. Beside these, many were handled by other companies.

They possess other relations to man worthy of observation. Mink
and Weasels are destructive to poultry. The fetid liquid secreted by
the anal glands of most Mustelinew, is the means of offense and defense
in the Skunks, ranking them among the most disgusting and offensive
of animals; and they may, moreover, by their bite, occasion one of the
most horrible diseases (Rabies mephitica) to which the race is liable. The
Wolverine is the worst enemy of the fur hunter, destroying his traps
and game. The cruel method of hunting the Badger has added a verb
to the language; indeed, it may be said there is scarcely a family of un-

22

domesticated animals of more importance, or whose habits have been
more carefully observed. j

The closest affinities of the Weasels are with the Bears, next with the
Cats. They stand in the carnivorous series between the Canide and the
Urside. In size they are medium or small, ranging from the Wolverine,
weighing thirty to forty pounds, to the least Weasel, but six or seven
inehes long, and weighing three or four ounces. The feet may be either
plantigrade or digitigrade, and, in the Otters, with the toes palmate,
adapted forswimming. The feet may be naked or hairy, with or without
naked pads; but this does not indicate whether the animal is digitigrade
or plantigrade. (Wagner.)

Some are strictly carnivorous; the Otters are piscivorous, while others
are omnivorous. The anal glands, with which most species are supplied,
secrete a feetid liquid, which reaches the maximum of offensiveness in
the American Skunks.

The diagnostic characters of the family are taken mainly from the
molar teeth, and are as follows:

Family Characters.—Carnivora, with a single tubercular molar tooth
only, on either side of each jaw; the sectorial pre-molar of typical shape
(rarely, in Enhydrinz, with blunt tubercles). Molars 3:3 (in Old World
genus Mellivora 57). Feet five-toed plantigrade or digitigrade. Caecum
wanting, as in Urside.

Sub-families and Distribution —The Mustelide include, according to Dr.
Gill, eight sub-families, three of which, namely, Mellivorinz, Zorilline, and
Helictidinz, are confined tothe Old World. The remaining five sub-families
Musteline— Wolverines, Martens, and true Weasels; Mephittne— the
Skunks; Meline—the Badgers; Lutrine—the Otters ; Enhydrineg—the Sea
Otter, are neither of them peculiar to North America. Musteline and Lu-
tring are of general distribution in both hemispheres; the lone repre-
sentative of Enhydrine, the Sea Otter, is found on both coasts of the
North Pacific. The Badgers do not occur in South America, but are com-
mon in the Old World. The three genera of Skunks found in North and
South America are absent from the Old World, but are replaced by the Afri-
can Zorilline.

Four of the sub-families are represented in Ohio— Mustelinz, by
the Martens and Weasels; Mephitinz, by the Skunks; Melinz, by the
Badgers ; and Lutrinz, by the Otters. Of the seven genera and twenty-
three species recognized by Professor Baird (Mam. N. A., 1857), Dr. Coues
(Mon. N. A. Mus.) admits sixteen species distributed in eight genera.
Six species of this family, representing five genera—the Fisher, Mustela
pennanti ; the Common Weasel, Putorius erminea ; the Common Mink, Pu-

23

torius vison ; the Badger, Taxidea americana ; the Common Skunk, Mephitis
mephitica ; and the Otter, Lutra canadensis—may properly be considered
as belonging to the mammalian fauna of Ohio. It is quite possible the
Little Striped Skunk, Mephitis putorius, of the southern and south-western
States, should be added to this list of Ohio Mustelide. The same may
be said of the least Weasel, P. vulgaris, of the northern United States,
and North, although the lack of citations from the middle States is nega-
tive evidence of the distribution at present accepted.

SUB-FAMILIES AND GENERA OF OHIO MUSTELIDE.

.* Skull with the cerebral portion comparatively compressed backwards; and with the
rostral portion comparatively produced, attenuated, and transversely convex above;
anteorbital foramen small and opening forwards; feet with little or no inter-
digital membrane (and the species, with few exceptions, not aquatic).

+ Auditory bulla much inflated, undivided, bulging, and convex forwards; periotic re-
gion extending little outwards or backwards; palate moderately emarginated.
+ Last molar of the upper jaw (m. 1) short, small, transverse (with the inner edge in-

flated at its inner angle); sectorial teeth with a single inner cusp; m. 4; first true

molar (seotorial) of upper jaw, followed by a second (tubercular) one; toes short,

regularly arched, with last phalanges bent up, withdrawing the claws into sheaths.

(Sub-family Musteline.)

a. Teeth 38; pm. 44; body slender; feet and progression digitigrade; sole
densely furry with naked pads; lower first molar with an internal tubercle;

pelage long an soft. . . 2 . MUSTELA.
aa, Teeth 34; pm. 3 3 ; body slender; feet digitigrdite; sectorial tooth without
intezual tubercle; pelage close and short. . . . . Purorius.

tt Last molar of upper jaw (m. 1) enlarged and more or less extended longitudinally ;
m. 4; toes straight with the last phalanges and claws extended ; claws non-retractile
(Sub-family Meling). Body short and stout; tail very short; teeth 32. TAXIDEA.

+ Auditory bulla little inflated, transversely constricted behind the meatus auditorius
externus, and thence inwards; in front flattened forwards; periotic region expanded
outwards and backwards; palate deeply emarginated (Sub-family Mephitine).
Snout pointed ; nostrils lateral; tail long and bushy; fetid perineal glands highly
developed ; colors black and white, massed in large areas; teeth 32; PM. £3

MEPHITIS.

** Skull with the cerebral portion swollen outwards and backwards; and with the ros-
tral portion abbreviated, high and truncated forwards, and widened and depressed
above ; anteorbital foramen enlarged and produced downwards and backwards ; feet
with well developed interdigital membrane, and adapted for swimming. (The spe-
cies highly aquatic, one—the Sea Otter—marine.)

Teeth, normal, 36 (m. 4; pm. 5 c. 1; i, 3x2) ; sectorial tooth (pm. ‘) normal, ef-
ficient, with an expanded inner ledge; the other molars sub-musteline ; posterior feet
with normally long digits. (Sub-family Lutrine.) True molars large, quadrate ;
body stout, elongate, cylindrical; feet full-webbed; muzzle obtuse ; ears small.

LUTRA,

24
Gexus MvsteLa. Linn.

Etymology—Latin, Mustela, a Weasel.
Type, Afustela martes, Linn.
< Afusteie, Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 10th ed., 1758.
< Venerr, Shaw., Gen. Zoöl., 1,°1800; not of authors.
< Galo, H. Smith (fide Gray); not of Storr.
= Nartes, authors after Ray.
> Pekania, J. E. Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1865. 107. (Type, M.
pennanti.)

> Foina, J. E. Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1865, 107. (Type, M. martes
fugorum.)

> Charronia, J. E Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1865, 108. (Type, M.
flavigula. Bodd.)

Generic Characters—Dentition: 1.23; ce. LY; pm. $$; m. 33 —38.
(Same as Gulo; one more pre-molar, above and below on each side than
in Putorius.) Sectorial tooth of lower jaw usually with an internal cusp;
form moderately stout; claws strong, curved, acute; tail lonzer than
head, bushy, cylindrical, or tapering; soles deasely furry, with naked
pads ; pelave long nd soft, but not shaggy; whole-colored, never whiten-
ing in winter; progression digitigrade; habits highly arboreal as weil
as terrestrial ; not aquatic.

The Martens form the connecting link between the Wolverines and
Weasels, in the sub-family Mustelin. Two species are confined to North
America—the Fisher (M. pennant?) and the American Sable or Marten
(M. americana) ; three species belong to the Old World. All yield furs of
great value, and slizht shades of color, having no classificutory value,
are recognized by the furriers as distinct species, and the pelts sold at
high prices, the most fashionable shade, of course, commanding the
highest price.

The Martens are agile and graceful in their movements, spend much

of their time iu trees ; they are strictly predacious, destroying many small
mammals and birds, and even porcupines and raccoons; but are not so
ferocious and bloodthirsty as the Weasels, which seem to destroy life
without apparent object.

MUSTELA PENNANTI. Erxl.

PEKAN; PENNANT’S MARTEN ; FISHER; BLaeKk CAT.

1777. Mustela pennanti, Erxl., Syst. An., 1777, 470, No. 10 (based on the
Fisher of Pennant; for discussion of name, in question of priority
ever canadensis, Schreber, cf. Bd. op. infra. cit. p. 151).—Zimm,,

1777.

25

Geogr. Gesch. ii, 1780, 310, No. 208.—J. Sab., Frank. Journ., 1823,
651.—Griff,Cuv. R. A., v, 1327, 125, No. 354.—Less., Man., 1827,
150, No. 405.—Fisch., Syn. Mam., 1829, 217.—Godm., Am. N. H.,i,
131, 203.—Bd., M. N. A., 1857, 149, pl. 36, £. 1.—Newb., P. R. R.
Rap, vi, 1861, 24 —Gilpin, Tr. Nov. Scot. Inst., ii, 1870, 959. —
All., Bull. Mion. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1874, 69.—Jordan, Manual of
Vertebrates, 1878, 18.

Mustela canadensis, var. alba, Rich., op. cit., 54 (“White Pekan” ;
albinism.).

1778. Mustela canadensis, Schreb., Siiug., iii, 1778, 492, pl. 134 (based on

1784.

1800.
1800.

1806.

1827.

on the Pekan of Buffon; not M. canadensis of Erxl., which is
Putorius vison).—Zimm., Georg. Gesch., ii, 1870, 309, No. 207.—
Bodd , Elench. An., i, 1874, 86.—Gm., S. N., i, 1778, 95.—Turt., S.
N., i, 1806, 59 (nut same name as on p. 57, which is the Ameri-
can Oster).—Kuhl, Beitr., 1820, 74.—Desm., i, 1820, 183, No. 284;
Eney. Meth., pl. 80,f. 4; Nouv. Dict., xix, 379.—Harl., Fn. Amer.,
1825, 65.—Less., Mam., 1827, 149.—Griff., Cuv. R. A., v, 1827, 124,

. No. 353.— Fisch , Syn., 1829, 216.—Rich., F. B A., i, 1829, 52, No.
18.—Rich., Zoöl. Voy. Blossom, 1839, 10*.—Fr. Cuv., Dict. Sci.
Nat., xix, 256,—Martin,, P.Z.S , 1833,97 (anat.).— Emmons, Rep.
Quad. Mass., 1840, 38.—Wagn., Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841, 223.—De
Kay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 31, pl. 13, f. (skull).—Aud. & Bach., Q.
N. A., i, 1849, 307, pl. 41—De Kay, Fifth Ann. Rep. Reg. Univ.
N. Y., 1852, 33 pl. (orig. fig.) —Thomps., N. H. Vermont, 1853,
32.—Kenn., Trans. Ill. State Agric. Soc., vi, 1853-4, 578 (Ill.).—
Kneel., Proc., Bost. Soc., vi. 1858, 418.—Giebel, Odontog., 36, pl. 12,
f. 1; Säug., 1855, 773.—Maxim., Arch. Naturg., 1861, 229.—Bill-
ings, Canad. Geol. and Nat., ii, 1857, 116.—Kneel., Proc. Bost.
Soc , vi, 1859, 418 (skeleton).—Hall, Canad. Nat., vi, 1861, 296.—
Muxim., Verz. N. A. Siiug., 1862, 43.

Mustela melanorhyncha, Bodd., Elench. An., 1784, 88, No. 13 (based
on Fisher of Pennant).—Zimm., in Penn., Arkt. Zoöl., 1187, 83.

Viverra caadensis, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., i, 1800, 429. \

Viverra piscator, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., i, 1800, 414 (based on Fisher of
Pennant).

Mustela nigra, Turt.,ed. L. S. N., 1, 1806, 60 (Fisher Weasel of Pen-

nant.)

Mustela piscatoria, Less., Man., 1827, 150, No. 403 (quotes Pennanti,
Erxl. with query). 2

26

Distribution. —The habitat of the Pekan is approximately between 35°
and 65° in wooded districts throughout the greater part of North
America. East of the Mississippi it does not occur throughout its
prescribed range. As the country has been cleared it has been forced
to the distant torests, and is now almost unknown in the Middle States.
It was abundant and troublesome in New York as late as 1840, but
is now restrictea to the mountains of the State, and to the thinly settled
portions.

Its remains are found abundantly in the bone caves of Pennsylvania
(Baird), and the animal still exists in the mountains of Perry county,
north of Carlisle—(Coues). It is rare in Canada, and but two hundred
are taken yearly in Nova Scotia. It probably occurs in the Hoosac Moun-
tains (Allen), and, according to Dr. Emmons, was found near Stamford,
Vermont, as late as 1840.

Description.—In its long head, bushy tail and large size the Pekan
is more fox-like than musteline in general appearance. It ranges in
weight from eight and a half to eighteen pounds, and is often as large
as a fox two-thirds grown. The males are larger than the females.
When full grown they measure thirty inches from nose to root of tail.
Many are but twenty-four inches long, and others are even a third longer.
The tail-vertebre are fourteen inches (12 to 16); nose to eye two inches;
nose to occiput over curve of head, sixteen and a half inches; distance
between tips of ears, seven inches; hind foot, four and a half inches;
fore leg, from elbow, six or seven inches; hind leg, from hip, nearly
twelve inches.

Specimens vary in color with age and season. The belly, legs, and tail
are black or blackish brown; the hinder part of the body above is much
the same. On the rest of the upper parts there is a mixture, first of
of brownish, then of yellowish gray, conspicuous on the shoulders and
nape, growing still lighter on the top and sides of the head. These vari-
ations are due, mainly, to the long, coarse hairs, which are lustrous black
on the tail, except a reddish-gray tinge at the base. This shade extends
further along the hair, becoming purer and lighter on the middle back,
until, on the shoulders, the hairs have smoky-brown bases and blackish
tips, which are overpowered by the intervening brownish-white. The
soft under fur is brownish-plumbeous, lighter at the base. Irregular
white blotches, even in the darkest specimens, are found on the chest,
arm-pits, and between the thighs; the throat may show a few white
hairs. The animal is darker below than above; an exception to the
usual coloration in this group..

27

The eyes are large for the genus; the ears are low, but very wide; the
muzzle large. The tail is but little shorter than the trunk, bushy at
base, tapering rapidly and evenly to an acute tip.

The feet are short and stout, armed with sharp claws. There is a
naked ball under the end of each of the five digits, and a V-shaped cal-
losity on each palm and sole. A tenth pad is found near the outer bor-
der of the wrist, far back from the others. This pad is wanting on the
hind feet.

History and Habits—The name Fisher, applied to this species, as sug-
gested by DeKay, may have been given from its propensity to steal the
fish used by trappers for bait, or frozen fish laid up for food. It is an
appellation of uncertain origin, inapplicable, as the species is not
aquatic, and does not fish or eat fish habitually, therefore, Dr. Coues
thinks Pekan a better common name, as it does not mislead or perpetu-
ste the existing confusion,

The Pekan is carnivorous and predacious; prefers meat to fish. If its
natural food fails, it takes to a vegetarian diet, feeding freely on beech-
nuts. Richardson was informed that “its favorite food was the Canada
Porcupine, which it kills by biting on the belly;” also, that it preys
much upon Frogs in the summer time.

The smaller quadrupeds—Mice, Moles, as well as the Hare, Rabbit, and
Grouse—fall a prey to the Fisher; and the closely allied Pine Marten
does not always escape. It successfully assaults the Raccoon, so that in
some localities the abundance of Raccoons would seem to be dependent
on the scarcity of the Pekan.

They are nocturnal in their habits, but not so much so as the Foxes.
They are very strong for their size; they tear down the wooden traps of
the hunter, visiting them regularly, as do the Wolverines, to get the
bait. :

Unlike the Wolverine, they do not drag off and bury the sticks of the
trap, nor are they as cunning, being readily taken in steel traps. When
taken young, it is easily domesticated, grows fat, and is as playful asa
kitten.

The Pekan is stated to breed but once a year, producing two to four
young ata litter. It selects for its breeding place the hollow of a tree,
having its entrance some thirty or forty feet from the ground.

It defends its young savagely.

28

GENUs Purorıvs. Cuvier.

Ety mology—Latin, putor, a stench.
<_ Mustela, or Martes, of some authors.
= Putorius, Cuvier, Regne Anim., i, 1817, and authors.
= Festorius, Keys & Blas., Wirbelth. Eur., 1840.
> Gymnopus, Gray, Cat. Mamm. Br. Mus., 1842.
> Lutreola, “ Wagner,” Gray, P. Z.S., 1865, 117. Type Mustela lutreola,

Linn.)
> Gale, “ Wagner,” Gray, P. Z. 8., 1865, 118.
> Neogale, Gray, P. Z. 8., 1865, 114. (Type P. brasiliensis.)
> Vison, Gray, P. 2. 8., 1865, 115. (Type P. vison.)

Generic Characters—Dentition: teeth 34; i. 23; ec. LT; pm. $$; m. 35
sectorial tooth of lower jaw without an internal cusp; size moderate (in
it are the smaller musteline species); body slender, cylindrical ; legs
short; tail long, terete; ears long, orbicular; pelage usually close and
short; usually white in winter in northern species.

This genus contains the true Weasels or Stoats (sub-genus Gale), the
Ferrets or Polecats of the Old World (sub-genus Putorius proper), the
American Ferret (subgenus Cynomyonaz), and the Minks (sub-genus Lu-
treola).

The most notable difference between this genus and Mustela, is in the
dentition, Putorius having one less molar on each side above and below.

The size is usually not as great, and the body typically slenderer.

PUTORIUS (SUB-GENUS, GALE) ERMINEA. A. & B.
STOAT OR ERMINE; COMMON WEASEL.

Etymology of specific name—“ This is alittle beast, lesse than aSquirrell,
that hath his being in the woods of the land of Armenia, whereof hee
taketh his name.”—Gwillim, “ Display of Heraldrie.”

Synonymy—General References.

1748. Mustela candida, s. ermineum, Linn., Syst. Nat., eds. 6th and 7th.

1751. Mustela armellina, Klein., Quadrupeds, 63.

1754. Mustela erminea, Linn., Syst. Nat., 12th ed., i, 1766, 68, No. 10.—
Erxl., Syst. An., 1777, 474, No. 13.—Schreb., Siiug., iii, 1778, 496,
pl. 137.—Fr. Cuvier, Dict. Sci. Nat., xxix, 1823, 250.—Fisch.,
Syn., 1829, 222.—Bell, Br. Quad., 1837, 148.—Gray, List. Mamm.
Br. Mus., 1843, 65.

1788. Mustela erminea, a. xstiva, b. hyberna, Gm., 8. N., i, 1788, 98, Nos.
10 2.,10b.

1800. Viverra erminea, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., i, 1800, 426, pl. 99.

1827. Putorius erminea, Griff, An. King., v. 1827, 122, No. 345.

29
American References:

1772. Mustela erminea, Forst., Phil. Trans., lxii, 1772, 373.—Harlan, Fn.
Amer., 1825, 62.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 193.—Hall,
Canad Nat. and Geo!,, vi, 1861, 295.

1851. Mustela erminea, var. americana, Gray, P. Z. 8., 1865, 111.

1851. Putorius erminea, A. & B., Quad. N. A., ii, 1851, 56, pl. 59.— Allen,
Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1869, 183.—Jordan, Man. Vert.,
1878, 18, 2d ed.

1840. Putorius moveboracensis, DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl.; ii, 1842, 36, pl. 12, f. 2
(winter), and pl. 14, f. 2 (summer). —Emmons, Rep. Quad. Mass.,
1840, 45.—Baird, M.N.A., 1857, 166, p1.36, f.3,<kull —Kennicott,
Tr. Ill. Stats Agr. Soe., 1853-4, 578-—Sam., Ann. Rep. Mass.
Agr., for 1861, 1862, 156, pl. 1, f. t.

Distribution. — The Ermine inbabits Europe, Asia, and America, ex-
tending north to the limit of existence of terrestrial mammals. It ex-
tenda south to very nearly the southern border of the United States; no
specimens, however, are recorded from the Gulf States, or from New
Mexico, Arizona, or Southern California. The range south meets that
of P. brasiliensis, which conducts the genus into South America.

Specific Character.—The Ermine is about tea inches (8-11) to root of
tail; the tail vertebra, two to five, averaging three and a half to four
inches. Tail at all seasons bushy, conspicuously black tipped for about
two-fifths, generally, of its length. Outstretched hind feet do not quite
reach to the middle of the vertebree. In summer, dull mahog»ny or chest-
nut brown alone; fall, sulphury-yellow or whitish beneath; edges of
upper lip white; in winter, pure white all over, except tinges of sulphur-
yellow, patticularly on the belly and hind quarters, and end of tail
black. Weight of male, five to eight ounces ; of the female, scarcely four.

Relationship.—Dr. Coues, in the “North American Mustelide,” ad-
mits six species of Putorius ; P. vulgaris, Least Weasel; P. longicauda, Long-
tailed Weasel; P. brasiliensis frenatus, Bridled Weasel; P. nigripes, Black-
footed Weasel; P. vison, Common Mink; and the present species,
P. erminea. Extralimital species are P. fetidus, the well-known “ Fitch ”
of commerce, or “ Polecat” (Polish Cat?) of Europe; P. fetidus var. furo,
the well-known Hunting Ferret. only recognized in a state of domes-
tication ; P. fatidus var. eversmannt, the Asiatic Polecat, possibly the same
as P. fetidus.

The Ermines of Europe, Asia and America are specifically identical.

The author above cited, after a careful review of the three currently

30

recognized species of American Ermines, P. noveboracensis, De Kay, P.
richardsoni, Bonaparte (=agilis Aud. & Bach.), and P. cicognani of Bona-
parte (= fuscus A. & B.), concludes that the American Ermines are of
two forms in size alone, and these grade insensibly into each other; also,
that no question of coloration, stoutness of body, shape of ear, furriness of
feet, character of pelage, can be considered with reference to specific va-
riation, these details depending on fortuitous circumstances of sex, age,
season and locality, as merely normal individual variability ; moreover’
that within certain defined limits neither the length of the animal, of
the tail absolutely or relatively to the body, nor length of the black por-
tion absolutely or relatively to length of tail, have any value in specific
diagnosis.

Description of External Characters—The extreme length, cylindrical
body, shortness of the limbs, exceptionally long neck, suggests a group
of carnivores, fitly called “vermiform ”; these features, taken with the
low forehead, flat, triangular head, bent forward upon the uplifted and
outstretched neck, and small, penetrating eyes full of cunning, suggests
the serpent almost as fully as they do the quadruped.

The greatest circumference of the body is little more than half its
length; the head is shorter than the neck, bulged at the sides by the
masses of temporal and masseteric muscles ; the head, across the ears, is
two-thirds its length; the small eyes, glittering with changing hues, are
midway of the nose and ear; the nostrils are small and circular ; the gape of
the thin-lipped mouth extends to below the eyes; the earg are high above
the fur, rounded, furred inside and out; the whiskers are few, the longest
exceeding the head; a few siender bristles grow over the eye and on the
cheek. The limbs are stout, tapering to the wrist and ankle; the digits
are all clawed, the claws sharp, slightly curved, and moderately stout,
adapted for climbing, but not effective in the chase; the feet are densely
furred or not, according to the season and latitude; the foot is so densely
hairy, in boreal specimens, that, as in the Hare, or Ptarmigan, the palmar
tubercles are invisible; the pads are ten on each foot, under each toe are
(5), four palmar (9), and one at the wrist (10); these may be readily
seen in summer or southern specimens. The extremely variable tail ig
furred throughout, and has a terminal pencil of black hairs.

As to its fur, like that of its group, it increases in softness, fineness,
and density toward the north, and in winter in all latitudes. In the
summer, and southward, it is thinner, stiffer, and harsh from admixture
of long, bristly hairs. In its summer dress, the Ermine illustrates the
“bicolor” pattern, the upper parts ranging from a uniform dull yellow-

31

ish-brown to a rich mahogany brown, or mink color. Below, the animal
is white, tinged with sulphury-yellow, the chin, throat, and insides of
the legs excepted; these being white; the lineof separation between the
upper and lower colors is strict, and the shades nearly uniform.

Skins taken in spring and autumn show every possible step of the
transition, from the perfect winter to the summer pelage, and vice versa.
In the winter the animal becomes (with the exceptions already men-
tioned) so pure a white as to be’emblematic. Professor Baird, in his
description of an arctic form of this group, says, “as an ermine, the em-
blem of spotless purity and integrity, I propose to call it (i. e., P. kaneis,
Baird) after Dr. Kane.”

Much has been written as to the mode of the change from one pelage
to the other, both in the Ermine, Arctic Fox, Northern Hare, Hudson’s
Bay Lemming, and other animals, some contending that it is by the ac-
tual change of color of the existing fur, and that this transition from the
summer to the winter color is the result of actual change of temperature,
and not merely by the advance of the season. Audubon and Bachman
observed a captured specimen, from March 6th to 28th, which, in this
period, nearly completed the change from white to summer colors. They
report: “We have arrived at the conclusion that the animal sheds its
coat twice a year; i.e, at the period when these semi-annual changes
take place.” Dr. Coues concludes that the change is not altogether co-
incident witb, nor independent of, the change of coat, but occurs in both
ways, temperature being the immediate controlling agent in the trans-
formation. Northern animals invariably change color semi-annually ;
southern species do not change at all; in intermediate regions the
change is partial. Autumnal skins, having the hair white at base and
brown at tip, demonstrate the change in existing hairs.

“We may safely conclude that if the requisite temperature be expe-
rienced at the periods of renewal of the coat, the new hairs will come
out of the opposite color; if not, they will appear of the same color, and
afterward change.” (Coues.)

The changes in color screen the Ermine from enemies, and from its
prey also, by assimilation of its appearance with the surroundings;
moreover, the animal heat from within is more completely retained by a
white than by a dark covering, although not so much warmth is received
during direct exposure to the sun’s influence.

Winter specimens are white, as a rule, in the northern line of States,
and northward. From the southern States no white specimens are
quoted. In the inter-region, some may change and others not; and the

32

varying character of successive winters in temperate regions may deter-
mine the degree of variance.

The generic name of the Ermine (from puteo, to stink) is very appro-
priate. Under the influence of fear, anger, or of sexual passion, either
sex may emit at pleasure an odor only excelled in extent and penetra-
tion by the skunk itself. Special glands; as in most of the family, on
either side of the anus, just within the verge of the opening, secrete
and emit a fluid which, when the anus is slightly everted and the pa-
pille in which the ducts of the glands terminate erected, may be spirted
several inches in a fine spray. The savages will not eat the flesh, so
thoroughly impregnated is it with the foetor.

The female is smaller than the male. She brings forth her young, four
or five as an average number, from March to June, according to the cli-
mate, but ordinarily in April or May. The breeding places are under
logs, in piles of rocks, tree stumps, or hollows. A nest described by Pal-
las, was in the hollow of a tree. It was very foul. In one compart-
ment was a heap of fresh mice and shrews; in a second, a quantity of
rejected skins, feet, and tails of these animals. The mother fought
courageously for her two little ones, followed the captor, and could scarcely
be repelled. j

The pelt was formerly one of the exports of Canada. It is in but lit-
tle demand at present, not repaying the Hudson’s Bay Company the
expense of collecting them. Those taken in Siberia have been chiefly
sent to China, Turkey, and elsewhere for vestments, the tails being re-
served by law as the exclusive perquisite of royalty. Some Indian tribes
on the Missouri decorate the regalia of ceremony with the tails, in imi-
tation of royal fashion.

A vivid idea of the character and habits of the Ermine may be found
in the following from Audubon:

“Graceful in form, rapid in his movements, and of untiring industry,
he is withal a brave and fearless. little fellow. Conscious of security
within the windings of his retreat among the logs or heaps of stones, he

- permits us to approach him within a few feet, and then suddenly with-
draws bis head; we remain still for a moment, and he once more returns
to the post of his observations, watching curiously our every motion,
seeming willing to claim association as long as we abstain from becoming
his persecutor.

“Yet, with all these external attractions, this little Weasel is fierce
and bloodthirsty, possessing an intuitive propensity to destroy every an-
imal and bird within its reach, some of which, such as the American

33

Rabbit, the Ruffed Grouse, and domestic fowl, are ten times its own size.
It is a notorious and hated depredator of the poultry-house, and we have
known forty full grown fowls to have been killed in one night by a single
Ermine. Satiated with the blood of probably a single fowl, the rest,
like the flock slaughtered by the wolf in the sheepfold, were destroyed
in obedience to a law of nature—an instinctive propensity to kill. We
have traced the footsteps of this blood-sucking little animal on-the snow,
pursuing the trail of the American Rabbit, and although it could not
overtake its prey by superior speed, yet the timid Hare soon took refuge
in the hollow of a tree, or in a hole dug by the Marmot or Skunk.
Thither it was pursued by the Ermine and destroyed, the skin and other
remains at the mouth of the burrow bearing evidence of the fact. We
observed an Ermine, after having captured a Hare of ‘the above species,
first behead it and then drag the body some twenty yards over the fresh
fallen snow, beneath which it was concealed, and the snow lightly
pressed down over it, the little prowler displaying thereby a habit of
which we became aware for the first time on that occasion. To avoid a
dog that was in close pursuit, it mounted a tree and laid itself flat ona
limb about twenty feet from the ground, from which it was finally shot.
We have ascertained, by successful experiments repeated more than a
hundred times, that the Ermine can be employed, in the manner of the
Ferret of Europe, in driving the American Rabbit from the burrow into
which it has retreated. In one instance, the Ermine employed had been
captured only a few days before, and its canine teeth were filed in order
to prevent its destroying the Rabbit; a cord was placed around its neck
to secure its return. It pursued the Hare through all its windings in its
burrow, and forced it to the mouth, where it could be taken in a net or
by the hand. In winter, after a snow storm, the Ruffed Grouse has a
habit of plunging ato the loose snow, where it remains at times one or
two days. In this passive state the Ermine sometimes detects and de-
stroys it.

“ Notwithstanding all these mischievous and destructive habits, it is
doubtful whether the Ermine is not rather a benefactor than an enemy
to the farmer, ridding his granaries and fields of many depredators on
the product of his labor, that would devour ten times the value of the
poultry and eggs which, at long and uncertain intervals, it occasionally
destroys. A mission seems to have been assigned it by Providence to
lessen the rapidly multiplying number of mice of various species, and
other small rodents.

“The White-footed Mouse is destructive to the grains in the wheat-
fields and in the stacks, as well as the nurseries of fruit-trees. Le Conte’s

3

34

Pine Mouse is injurious to the Irish and Sweet potato crops, causing more
to rot by nibbling holes in them than it consumes, and Wilson’s Meadow-
mouse lessens our annual product of hay by feeding on the grasses, and
by its long, tortuous galleries among their roots.

“Wherever an Ermine has taken up its residence, the mice in its
vicinity for half a mile around have been found rapidly to diminish in
number. Their active enemy is able to force its thin, uniform body into
burrows; it follows them to the end of their galleries, and destroys whole
families We have, on s2veral occasions, after a light snow, followed the
trail of this weasel through fields and meadows, and witnessed the im-
mense destruction which it occasioned in a single night. It enters every
hole under stumps, logs, stone-heaps and fences, and evidences of its
bloody deeds are seen in the mutilated remains of the mice scattered on
the snow. The little Chipping or Ground Squirrel, Tamias lysteri (sc.
striatus) takes up its residence in the vicinity of the grain-fields, and is
known to carry off in its cheek-pouches vast quantities of wheat and
buckwheat to serve as winter stores. The Ermine instinctively discovers
these snug retreats, and, in the space of a few minutes, destroys a whole
family of these beautiful little Tamix; without ever resting awhile until
it has consumed its now abundant food, its appetite craving for more
blood, as if impelled by an irresistable destiny, it proceeds in search of
other objects on which it may glut its insatiable, vampire-like thirst.
The Norway rat and the common house mouse take possession of our
barns, wheat-stacks and granaries, and destroy vast quantities of grain.
In some instances the farmer is reluctantly compelled to pay even more
than a tithe in contributions towards the support of these pests. Let,
however, an Ermine find its way into these barns and granaries, and
there take up its winter residence, and the havoc which is made among
the rats and mice will soon be observable. The Ermine pursues them to
their farthest retreats, and.in a few weeks the premises are entirely free
from their depredations. We once placed a half domesticated Ermine
in an out-house, infested with rats, shutting up the holes on the outside
to prevent their escape. The little animal soon commenced its work of
destruction. The squeaking of the rats was heard throughout the day.
In the evening it came out licking its mouth, and seemed like a hound
after a long chase, much fatigued. A board of the floor was raised to
enable us to ascertain the result of our experiment, and an immense
number of rats were observed, which, although they had been killed in
different parts of the building, had been dragged together, forming a
compact heap.

“The Ermine is, then, of immense benefit to the farmer. We are of

35

the opinion that it has been overhated, and too indiscriminately perse-
cuted. If detected in the poultry-house there is some excuse for destroy-
ing it, as, like the dog which has once been found in the sheep-fold, it
may return to commit farther depredations; but when it has taken up
its residence under stone-heaps and fences in his fields or barns, the
farmer would consult his interest by suffering it to remain, as by thus
inviting it to a home, it will probably destroy more formidable enemies,

relieve him from many petty annoyances, and save him many a bushel
of grain.”

Pourorius (LUTREOLA) vison. (Brisson), Gapp.

AMERICAN MINK.
Etymology: specific name from Weasel through veso. (Von Martens).

1756. Mustela vison, Briss., Quad., 1756, 246, No. 6 (from Canadian speci-
mens, same as described by Buffon and Pennant).—Schreb., Siug.,
iii, 1778, 463, pl. 1276.—Gm., S. N., i, 1788, 94.—Turt., S. N., i,
1806, 58.—Cuv., R. A., i, 1817, 150 —Harl., Fn. Amer., 1825, 63.—
Less., Man., 1827, 148.—Maxim., Reise, i, 1839, 213.—Blainv.,
Ostéogr., Mustela, pl. 13 (teeth).—Thomps., N. H. Verm., 1853, 31.

1772. Mustela lustreola, Forst., Phil. Trans., Ixii, 1772, 371.—Sab., Frank.
Journ., 1823, 652.—Fisch., Syn., 1829, 221 (partly).—Godm., Am.
Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 206.—Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861,
295.

1777. Mustela canadensis, Erxl., Syst. An., i, 1777, 455 (mixed with syn-
onymy of another species, but clearly referable here from the
description, which can only apply to the mink. See Bd, M.N.
A., text on p. 151.)

1784. Mustela canadensis var. vison, Bodd., Elench. An., i, 1784, 86 (after
Buffon.)

1809. Mustela winingus, Barton, Am. Phil. Tr., vi, 1809, 70 (no deser.; St.
Louis, Mo.).

1830. Putorius vison, Gapp., Zoöl. Jour., v, 1830, 202.—Emmons, Rep.
Quad. Mass., 1840, 43.—De K., N. Y. Z., i, 1842, 37, pl. 11, f. 1.
(animal), pl. 8, f. 38, A. B. (skull).—Aud. & Bach. Q. N. A,i,
1849, 250, pl. 33.—Kenn., Tr. Ill. State Agric. Soc., 1853-4-5,
578.—Beasley, Geol. Cape May, 1857, 137.—Baird, M. N. A.,
1857, 177, pl. 37, f. 2, 3 (skulls).—Newb., P R. R. Rep., vi, 1857,
42.—Coop. and Suckl, N. H. W. T., 1860, 93, 115.—Billings,
Canad. Nat. and Geol., ii, 1857, 448.— Ross, op. cit.. vi, 1861, 29.—
Maxim., Verz. Am. Säug., 1862, 62.—Sam., Am. Rep. Mass. Agric.
for 1861-2, 157, pl. 1, £. 8.—Gilpin, Tr. N. Scotia Inst, ii, 1870,

36

12, 59.—Ames, Bull. Minn. Acad. Nat Sci., 1874, 69.—Coues and
Yarrow, Zoöl. Expl. W. 100 Merid., v. 1875, 60.—Allen, Bull. U.
S. Geol. Sur., vol. ii, No. 4, 1876, 326 (skull.)—Jordan, Man.
Vert., 2d. ed, 1878, 18.

1806. Mustela minz, Turt., S. N., i, 1806, 58.—Ord, Guthr. Geog., 2d Am.
ed, ii, 1815, 291, 298.

1825. Mustela lutreocephala, Harl., Fn. Amer., 1825, 63.

1843. Vison lutreola, Gray, List Mamm. Br. Mus., 1843, 64 (partly).—Gerr.,
Cat. Bones Br. Mus., 1862, 92 (partly.)

1844. Mustela (Lutreola) lutreola var. americana, Schinz, Syn. Mamm., i,
1844, 347.

1869. Putorius intreolus [Cuv.], Allen, Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1869, 175 (critical) ;
ii, 1870, 169 (Florida).—Allen, Pr. Bost. Soc. N. H. ‚xl, 169,
183.— Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876.

1874. Putorius lustreolus var. vison, Allen, Bull. Ess. Inst., vi, 1874, 54,
59, 62.

1877. Putorius (Lutreola) vison, Coues, Mon. N. A. Mus., 1877, 160.

Habitat —North America at large. North to the Arctic coast, but not
abundant north of Fort Resolution.

Specific Characters.—Larger and stouter than the Stoats; ears shorter ;
tail uniformly bushy, nearly as in Mustela; feet semipalmate; color
dark chestnut-brown; tail, and usually a dorsal area, blackish; chin
white; the edges of the upper lip rarely also white; the throat, breast,
and belly often with irregular white patches; length fifteen to eighteen
inches ; tail-vertebre six to eight inches.

External Appearance.—The Mink differs from the Stoats and true Wea-
sels in its larger size, stouter form, and lower ears. It is adapted to its
eminently aquatic life, and, indeed, related to the Otters by its close-set
and felted under-fur, which readily resists the water, by its half-webbed
toes, short ears, and bristly, glossy pelage. Indeed, the specific name
Lutreola, or “ Little Otter,” given to the European species by Linnzus, is
especially appropriate. The dentition is essentially that ot the genus
Putorius. It shares with the Martens the uniformly enlarged, bushy, and
somewhat tapering tail, in place of the slender terete tail, with enlarged,
bushy tip of the Stoats. It is a true Weasel, however, with thirty-four
teeth—not a Marten, which has thirty-eight. The pelage consists of a
dense, soft, matted under-fur, intermingled with long, rigid, shining
hairs. The gloss is greatest above; on the tail the pristly hairs are in
excess. The whiskers are in four or five series, the longest reaching op-
posite the occiput. Bristles grow also on the middle of the chin, on the
cheeks, over and behind the eyes, and usually on the wrists and ankles.

37

The extremity of the snout is naked and protuberent. The feet are
broad, the pads, as in all of the genus, ten on each front, and nine on
each hind foot (five isolated pads, one at the end of each digit, five
palmar and four plantar). These may or may not be covered with hair,
according to season and latitude; ordinarily they are naked.

The digits are webbed at base for some distance, particularly the mid-
dle ones. The third and fourth fingers are nearly equal, and are the
longest ; the second and fifth not so equal, and much shorter ; the first is
quite short. The toes of the hind feet have about the same relative pro-
portions. \

The color runs from a light, dull, yellowish brown to a rich, blackish,
chocolate brown. The ordinary color is a rich, dark brown, scarcely or
not paler helow than above. The tail is quite blackish ; the white chin
is rarely absent. Not positive in extent, but usually present, are the
white patches of the under parts, particularly on the chest between the
fore legs, and on the belly between the hind legs. The tail is rarely tip-
ped with white.

Variations in “xternal Appearance.—T wo species of the Mink have been
recognized in North America—P. vison, Gapp., and P. nigrescens, Aud. &
Bach.: the “ Brown Mink,” and “ Little Black” or “ Mountain Mink,” of
hunters and trappers.

Audubon and Bachman based nigrescens on the smaller size and darker
colors, less deeply palmated feet, and softer and glossier pelage. This is
the variety that furnishes the most valuable pelts, formerly often yield-
ing to the hunter from three to, five dollars. There is probably no fur
which so nearly approaches the famous Sable of Russia, as the northern
Black Mink. As with most furs, the caprice of fashion determines the
value, the price of this skin increasing tenfold in a decade.

Professor Baird admitted the Little Black Mink as a distinct species
“with great hesitation,” not being able “to make such examinations and
comparisons as satisfy me of the difference.”

Professor Coues concludes, from results of the examination of numer-
ous specimens in the Smithsonian Institution, from all parts of North
America, that the Black Mink does not require formal recognition, being
simply one stage of individual variation, shading by insensible degrees
into the ordinary form, so that it is impossible to set any line of demar-
cation between “ P. nigrescens” and the Common Mink.

That the small blackish varieties are found breeding, has no weight
in specific diagnosis, as they grow in stature some time after being sex-
ually mature. Under three years old, the fur, in season, is very hand-
some, often almost a pure black, with a thin and pliable skin of almost

38

papery texture. With age the skin thickens and toughens, and the
_ pelage grows rusty.

The “Little Black Mink,” moreover, is not characteristic of any cir-
cumscribed faunal area.

With reference to the specific difference between P. lutreola, of the Old
World, and P. vison, Dr. Coues has given the following comparative diag-
nosis :

P. lutreola—Back upper molar small, quadrate, transverse, the inner moiety scarcely
longer than the outer (fide Gray); averaging smaller; upper Jip normally white.

P. vison.—Back upper molar large, with great constriction across the middle, making

an hour-glass shape, the inner moiety of which is nearly twice as large as the outer
[forty specimens seen]; averaging larger; upper lip normally dark.

Mr. Allen (Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, pp. 175-177) asserted, re-
garding the sub-genus Lutreola, that “ we have again but one circumpolar
and widely dispersed species, with possibly two continental or geograph-
ical races.” Examination of the molar teeth and skull afterward
satisfied him that, while externally the form cannot be specifically dif-
ferentiated, they are in fact distinct species. The Siberian Mink, P.
sibericus, is the remaining Old World species.

History and Ha-its—The history of the Mink begins prior to the bien-
nialnomenclure. Itis noticed, in Smith’s Virginia, 1624, as the “ Mink”;
as the “Minx ” (Lawson, Carol, 1709); as the “Otay” (Sagard-Théodat,
Hist. Canad , 1636); asthe Foutereaux (La Hontan, 1703, and of the French
Canadians).

The term vison, generally used since Buffon as its specific title, was
applied by him in 1765 toa Canadian specimen in M. Aubry’s museum,
probably the same on which Brisson and Pennant based their descrip-
tions. Dr. Coues ingeniously suggests that the identity in form of Mink
and Minz, may be more than fortuitous; Minx, formerly the name of a
female puppy, subsequently signified a pert, wanton girl, the forward,
prying, and spiteful nature of the animal in question gives a color to the
relationship of the terms.

Since the early authors mentioned, the Mink has appeared in the
writings of systematic authors, and has furnished material for several nom-
inal species (see synonymy), which have occasioned but little confusion
so definite are the zodlogical characters of the animal. Authors, mistak-
in; the number of its teeth (34) have placed it in Mustela, teeth 38. Its
peculiarly aquatic nature leads it to seek well watered regions; hence in
the dry interior regions they are collected in a few places instead of being
uniformly dispersed, so, where found, their numbers are exaggerated.

Richardson found the Mink on the Mackenzie at 66°, and Audubon
states that he has seen it “in every State in the Union.”

39

Its prime character, as compared with its congeners, is its amphibious
mode of life. Itisasabsolutely aquatic in its nature as the Otter, Beaver
or Muskrat. It is perfectly at home in the water, which it frequents as
much as the land, imitating so perfectly the motion of the Otter as to
suggest a small specimen of that species. The body is submerged, the
end of the nose appearing at times. It remains long under water, seek-
ing its favorite food, frogs, molluscs, crawfish, fish and reptiles. It has
not the insatiable propensity to destroy life so characteristic of the Er-
mine, not killing, as a rule, more than it eats. Unlike the Ermine, the
Mink is not a good climber, and most birds are safe from its attacks. It
is detested by the farmer because of its frequent visits to the poultry-
yard in search of eggs and chickens. It visits the same yard repeatedly,
killing one or two fowls, and sometimes making off with an entire brood
of young chickens; it is not given, however, to the wholesale slaughter-
ing common with the Ermine. It destroys the Rabbit, and not unlikely
the Muskrat; it is the enemy of our native rats and mice, the Arvicole,
Hesperomys, Sigmodon and Neotoma, and when tamed the Mink is an ex-
cellent ratter, rapidly exterminating these troublesome pests; rats will
not fight them, but flee at their scent, and if caught yield at once to the
Mink, which severs the vessels of the throat so quickly and perfectly as
to be scarcely observable.

The Mink is easily taken, in either steel-traps or dead-falls; it is very
tenacious of life, living many hours under the pressure of a log which
presses its body nearly flat. Caught by the leg, it makes no intelligent
effort to free itself, but in its senseless fury bites and lacerates the part
beyond the grip of the trap. It champs the iron in its rage until its
teeth are broken. “ The countenance of the Mink, with its short ears,
small eyes, piggish snout and formidable teeth, is always expressive of
the lower and more brutal passions, all of which are intensified at such
times.”

The Mink is frequently tamed, and becomes ordinarily gentle and
tractable, but is given to outbursts of anger; at such times it is no re-
specter of persons, but bites miscellaneously. Accounts of their quasi-
domestication may be found in “Forest and Stream,” (October 22, 1874,
and July 2, 1874.)

Mr. Resseque, of Verona, Oneida county, N. Y., ee a wild, female
Mink in 1867, which proved so prolific that his stock has, on some occa-
sions, amounted to ninety individuals, besides many sold from time to
time for “ratters.” He finds a ready market for them at $30 per pair.

Messrs Phillips and Woodcock, of Cancadea, N. Y., breed the Mink for
its fur. The expense of feeding is but nominal, and the profits are con

40

sidered lucrative; one Mink, with her increase, is regarded by these
parties as equal to the avails of a cow.

These “ Minkeries” are interesting to the Zoölogist, aside from their
novelty, as from them is gained some positive information regarding the
reproduction of the species. In the minkery the sexes are kept separate,
except in March, the rutting season in a state of nature. The females
all come in heat within ten days, and continue about four. The females
reproduce when one year old.

The gestation scarcely varies twelve hours from six weeks, and occurs
but once each year. The litters run from three to ten; the young are
blind for the first five weeks. They are light colored, hairless, and about
the size and shape of a little finger. One or the other sex predominates
in number in each litter. The females attain their growth in ten months;
the males require a year and a half. Taken when the eyes are open,
kept from the mother and their mates, they are easily tamed; they are
mischievious, finding food by their sharp scent not intended for them ;
they are inordinately fond of bathing, entering any open vessel about
the house, and drying themselves by rolling in the nearest fabric at
hand.

Minks do not burrow, but avail themselves of the holes of the Musk-
rat and other animals. In the ‘‘Minkery” the nest of the female was
formed of grass, leaves or straw, with a lining of her own fur firmly com-
pacted. The opening just admits the dam, and is provided with a de-
fiected curtain which covers the entrance. They do not climb a smooth
surface but ascend where it is rough enough for a nail-hold.

The effluvium of the scent-bags is not baneful enough to rout a deter-
mined enemy, as in the case of the skunk; it belongs to the class of
the musky odors not disagreeable in small quantities to most people.
Its service is, evidently, to attract the sexes; both sexes possess the
secreting glands. Like the castoreum of the trappers, it is used to in-
crease the efficacy of their bait. Its full strength is tested in taking the
Mink from the trap; at such times the degree of fetor is only surpassed
by that of the skunk.

Genus TaxipEa. Waterhouse.

X Ursus, pt., of Schreber.
< Meles taxus, of authors referring to Am. Badger.
= Taxidea, Waterh., Proc. Zoöl. Soc. London, vi, 1838, 154; Transac-
tions Zoöl. Soc. Lond ‚ii, pt. v, 1841, $43.—Baird, Mamm. N. A , 1857,
200; and of late authors generally.
Generic Characters.—Dental formula: i. $3; 0.57; pm. 23; m. i—1é—

41

34; body extremely stout, squat, and clumsy, owing to great depression ;
tail short, broad, and flattened ; pelage loose ; coloration diffuse ; fore claws
extremely large, highly adapted for digging; habits thoroughly terres-
trial and fossorial; back upper molar a right angle triangle, with hypo-
thenuse postero-external ; back upper pre-molar similar in sizs and shape,
but the hypothenuse postero-internal; back under pre-molar with two
tubercles ; anterior under molar comparatively small, not dilated behind,
mostly opposing the back upper pre molar (instead of the upper molar
as in Meles) ; cerebral portion of skull depressed, cuneiform, very wide
across the flaring occipital crest; the inter-mastoid diameter nearly
equalling the inter-zygomatic; sides of the brain case straightened and
strongly convergent anteriorly; bony palate, reaching half-way to ends
of pterygoids; bulle auditorie at a maximum of inflation, impinging
behind upon paroccipitals; condyles of jaw often locked in the glenoid;
coronoid of jaw erect, pointed, its posterior edge angulated by the meet-
ing of two straightish lines. :

This genus is confined to North and Middle America. There are three
other well marked genera in the sub-family Meline : the European Meles,
the Asiatic Mydaus, and Arctonyx. In all the genera the perineal
glands are moderately developed, and there is a peculiar sub-caudal
pouch.

TAXIDEA AMERICANA. Baird.
AMERICAN BADGER.

1778. Ursus taxus, Schreb., “Siug.; iii, 1778, 530, f. 142, B. (After Buffon).”

1784. Meles taxus var. americanus, Bodd., Elench. Anim., i, 1784, 136.

1787. Meles americanus, Zimm., Penn. Artische Zvöl., i, 1787, 74. (Quotes
Boddaert.)

1788. Ursus labradorius, Gm., 8. N., i, 1788, 102, n. 7.—Kerr., 8. N., i, 1792,
187.—Shaw, G. Z., i, 1800, 469, pl. 106.—Turt., S. N., i, 1806, 63.

1796. Meles labradoria, Meyer, “ Zoöl. Arch., ii, 1796, 45.”—J. Sab., App.
Franklin’s Journ., 1823, 649 (compared with European).—Harl.,
Fn. Amer., 1825, 57.—Griff., An. Kingd., v, 1827, 116 (“ labra-
dorica”’).—Less., Man., i, 1827, 141, No. 372 (“ labradorica ”).—
Fisch., Syn., 1829, 151.—Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829, 37, No. 12, pl. 2.
—Godm., Am. Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 179.—Rich., Zoöl. Beechey’s
Voy., 1839, 4.—Wagn., Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841, 182 —DeKay, N.
Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 27.—Schinz, Syn., i, 1844, 315 (“labradorus”).
—Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A, i, 1849, 360, pl. 47.—Bd., Stansbury’s
Rep., 1852, 311—Kenn., Tr. Illinois Agric. Soc. for 1853-4-5,
578.—Giebel, Säug., 1855, 761 (‘‘labradorius”).—Hall, Canad.
Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861, 294 (“labradoricus’’).—Maxim., Arch.
Naturg., 1861, —; Verz. Säug., 1862, 33.

42

1823. Taxus labradoricus, Say, Long’s Exp., i, 1823, 261, 369.

1838. Taxidea labradoria, (?) Waterh., P. Z. S., vi, 1838, 154; T. Z..8., ii,
1841, 343, pl. 59 (may be the other sub-species).

1842. Taxidea labradoria, H. Smith, Nat. Lib., xiii, 1842, 310.—Gray, List.
Mamm. Br. Mus., 1843, 70.—Baird, M.N. A., 1857, 745 (Expl. of
pls.).—Gerr., Cat. Bones Br. Mus., 1862, 99.

1857. Taxidea americana, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 202, pl. 36, f. 2—Newb.,
P. R. R. Rep., vi., 1857, 45 (habits). —Coop, N. H. W. T., 1860,
77.— Suckley and Gibbs, ibid., 117.—Hayd., Trans. Am. Philos.
Soc., xii, 1862, 134 (upper Missouri country).—Gray, P. Z. S.,
1865, 141; Cat. Carn. Br. Mus., 1869, ——Coop., Am. Nat., ii,
1868, 529 (Montana).—Stev., U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr. for 1870,
1871, 461.—Allen, Pr. Bost. Soc. N. H., xiii, 1869 (published
February, 1870), 183 (Iowa, still numerous) ; Bull. Ess. Inst., vi,
1874, 46 (Kansas), 54 (Colorado), 59 (Wyoming), 63 (Utah); Pr.
Bost. Soc., xvii, 1874, 38—Ames, Bull. Minn. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
1874, 69 (Minnesota).—Coues and Yarrow, Zuöl. Expl. W. 100
Merid., v, 1875, 63.— Allen, Bull. U. S. Geol. and Geogr. Surv.
Terr., vol. ii, No. 4, 1875, 330 (skull).—Jordan, Manual of the
Vertebrates, 1878, 19.—Coues, Mon. N. A. Mus., 1877, 263.

Distribution.—In 1858, Professor Baird gave the habitat of the Badger
as Iowa and Wisconsin to the Pacific coast, and from Arkansas to 49°
North latitude. There is now no doubt that the animal formerly ex-
tended eastward to Ohio. Says Dr. Coues (North American Mustelid®) :
“A letter addressed by Mr. Edward Orton, not long since, informs me of
its occurrence near Toledo, in that State, about twenty years previously,
and of its extinction there.”

The fact of the former occurrence of the Badger and the present occur-
rence of the Gray Gopher (Spermophilus franklini), is of no little interest,
as it extends the distribution of these strictly prairie mammals to the
forest regions of the eastward. The writer recalls the capture of a
Badger, in 1857, in Kankakee county, Illinois. Mr. Kennicott has the
species among the Mammals of Illinois, in 1853-54; and Mr. Allen,
writing in 1866, says this species is probably nearly as numerous as for-
merly.” The prairie-like character of Northern Indiana is continued
into Ohio, and should be favorable to the existence ot the Badger and
Spermophiles ; and while these animals are eminently characteristic spe-
eies of the central, treeless regions of the United States, where they
attain their greatest abundance, there is no apparent necessity for doubt-
ing the former occurrence of the Badger and present habitat of the Gray
Gopher in Northern Ohio. It is scarcely likely that the Gopher was ac-

43

cidentally introduced about Middletown, Ohio, as it has been in New
Jersey; or that the Badgers reported to Dr. Coues by Mr. Orton, were
escaped members of some traveling menagerie, as in the case of the
Texas Civet Cat, Bassaris astuta, recently reported from a locality in Ohio,
On the contrary, the eastward range in the United States, to Michigan,
Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, of such prairie species, may naturally be
accounted for by the general similarity of soil, altitude, and flora of the
various regions considered.

Specific Markings —The badger is about two feet to root of tail, which is
six inches; the head is about five and a half, and the longest fore-claw
one and a half inches.

The body-coloration above is a grizzle of blackish, with white, gray,
or tawny, or all of these; below, uniform whitish, shaded, or not, with
gray or tawny. Top of head darker than other upper parts, with a me-
dian white stripe; sides of head below the eyes, and its under surface
white, with a dark patch below the ear; limbs blackish.

This animal is at once recognized by its stout, thick-set form, flattened,
conoidal head, short limbs and tail, broad, flat feet, and enormous fore-
claws. The head has short, close, coarse hair, except the black nasal pad.
The ears are low, rounded and broad. The eye is small, and high up;
it is a little back of the angle of the mouth. The digits are short, and
apparently consolidated above, but showing five closely, appressed oval
pads below; they are shorter than the claws they bear. The second and
fourth are sub-equal, and longer than the first and fifth, which are mere
claw-bearing balls. The back of the hand is hairy to the claws. There
is a single large, irregular palmar pad, separated by a deep furrow from
the closely apposed digital naked bulbs. The claws are compressed,
arched, with rounded ridge and short edge underneath, blunted with use.
The three middle ones are about equal in length, longer and stouter than
the lateral ones; these last are sub-equal, and reach about half-way to
the ends of the middle claws; they are more compressed and weaker;
the inner is quite short, thin, and falcate. Their strong-clawed fore-feet
adapt them to their eminently fossorial habits.

The hind-feet are much like the front, but are. decidedly smaller, par-
ticularly the claws. The foot is about four times as long as broad, hairy
above and below more than half-way from the heel to the ends of toes.
The claws are less compressed than in front, and are not, like the fore-
claws, sharp edged along the median line, but are deeply excavated be-
neath, sometimes so much as to be simply a thin shell of horn, the edges
of which unite only at the base of the claw. The short, broad tail
meets the tapering body much as in the Porcupine, not being sharply

44

separated at its base from the body; the long, coarse hair of the body
covers it thickly; the end is obtusely rounded. The colors vary greatly
‚with age, season or condition of pelage, from the pattern already given;
this variation is mostly in the relative amounts of the whitish and
grayish shades which produce the grizzle. The color-markings of the
head are quite uniform; the top is dark-brown, or blackish, decreasing
‘in intensity and purity from the snout to the nape, where it blends with
the grayish from behind. This dark top area is split by a sharp white
or whitish median stripe from snout to nape; this stripe is constant,
though varying in length and width. The extreme muzzle is dark on
the sides; the white of the chin and throat extends up opposite the
canines to the white ears, only interrupted by a dusky patch anterior te
the ear. The feet are dark brown or blackish, the claws, especially the
front, light colored. The body-colors vary under climatic influences
from the whitish or dirty, yellow-tinged specimens from the dry, inte-
rior region, to the fulvous or tawny-tinged specimens, mixed with much
nearly pure black, from the well watered regions of the Pacific slope and
. eastern border of the great central plateau; these two forms grade in-
sensibly intv each other.

None of the specimens here described have the median white stripe
continued back of the nape, as in the Mexican badger (T. americana, var.
berlandieri, Gray), which has the white dorsal stripe extending, tuough
sometimes interrupted, from the nose to the tail.

History —The early history of the Badger is involved with the Euro-
pean species, Meles taxus, and with the Woodchuck, Arctomys monaz, by
Kalm, and with an Albino Raccoon, the Meles alba of Brisson. Buffon
doubted if the Badger inhabited America. Boddaert, in 1784, designated
it as Meles taxus, var. americana. Zimmerman adopted the name M. ameri-
canus, which bas priority, although not generally used until formally
adopted by Prof. Baird, in 1857. The Badger was described by Say, in
1823, as Taxus labradoricus. Sabine called attention to the difference be-
tween the European and American species the same year, although the
establishment of the American genus, Taxidea, was lett to Waterhouse,
in 1838.

Perinzal Glands—The peculiar organs of the perinzum and sub-
caudal region have not been specially studied in the American
Badger, but have been in the European species; it is not likely there is
any essential difference in these features between the two. I give here
the results of M Chatin’s investigations, as compiled by Dr. Coues:

“The anal glands are of the normal, musteline type, secreting a viscid,
and extremely fetid liquid, of a rosy-yellow color. The secretory portion

45

is as in allied species, the center having a large reservoir lined with
a brownish membrane, as in other carnivores.

“The Sub-caudal Glands and Pouch.—In front of the insertion of the
muscular band, which attaches the rectum to the sacro-cocygeal bones,
is a deeply bilobate mass, really a single gland, having but one recepta-
cle for the follicular secretion. This large, central pouch is abundantly
provided throughout its surface with short, stiff, brownish hairs. This
sac is distended with a yellowish, fetid substance, mixed with numerous
hairs, like the viverreum of the Civet; this pouch is continuous, with
the pocket-opening under the tail, being, indeed, part of one and the
same cavity. In the possession of the central cavity clothed with hairs,
and the bilobation of the gland, the sub-caudal glands are analogous to the
scent-bags of the Civet; but in the Badgers the gland is always between
the tail and the anus, and not between the genitalia and the anus, as in
the Viverra. They differ, moreover, in the nature of the secretion, and,
to a certain extent, in histological structure.”

Habits.—The Badger lives altogether in burrows in the ground. The
continued excavation of the earth by these animals, in search of food,
and in forming its burrows, undermines and honeycombs the ground so
completely, in many regions, as to form the chief obstacle to progression
by wagons or on horseback.

Its. whole structure adapts it to a subterranean life, which it follows
so closely and secretively that many points in its economy are not yet _
fully known; others are inferred rather than proved. One may travel
for weeks in the Badger country and rarely see one, or at the best catch
a glance as they scramble into the nearest hole.

The Badger has few enemies, and, as a consequence, is very abundant.
They are stout enough to ward off Wolves and Foxes. No indiginous
animal is known to prey habitually upon them. Their immunity from
danger, dependent on their physical prowess, impregnable nature of
their retreats, and abundance of their food insures the perpetuation of
the species in all unsettled portions of their range. They prey upon
small quadrupeds for their staple diet; the nimble Rodents are driven
to their retreats, which the Badger quickly enlarges and enters, following
their unfortunate tenants to the deepest recesses. They also eat insects,
snails, and the eggs of the numerous small birds which nest upon the
ground in prairie regions. It may, like the European Badger, prey upon
the :inres of the wild bees, eating honey, wax and grubs; this habit,
however, of our Badgers needs confirmation.

With regard to its character and disposition, I transcribe the follow-
ing from Dr. Coues: “The Badger has been called a ‘timid’ animal.

46

So it is, in the sense that it avoids, rather than confronts, impending
danger; but this is simply the instinctive prudence and discretion of a
creature which prefers the absolute immunity of its subterranean resorts
to the chances of unequal combat in which it is at disadvantage. Cer-
tainly no lack of courage, determination, and physical endurance is seen
when the creature, captured or cut off from its retreat, is brought to bay.
Its pluck then is as conspicuous as its really formidable strength. The
cruel sport of ‘Badger baiting” is sometimes indulged in the West; and
if the animal be given a barrel or similar retreat, in which it is secure
from attack in the rear, it may prove more than a match for a strong
dog. Indeed, the fighting qualities of the Badger, and stubborn resist-
ance it offers at whatever unfair odds, have supplied our language with
a verb of peculiar significance: ‘to badger” is to beset on all sides, and
harrass and worry. The stout, thick-set and depressed shape of the ani-
mal is greatly in its favor, combining, with its long, loose hair, to pre-
vent a dog from reaching vulnerable parts, and to embarrass it in at-
tempting to take hold; the snap o: the jaws inflicts a serious wound;
and finally the tenacity of life is at a high rate.”

The Badger is not readily trapped; he will sometimes turn a trap over
and spring it from the under side before attempting to remove the bait.
With an earth-covered trap, dead fall or garrote, he may be taken; in
early spring, while the ground is still hard, they may be easily captured
by flooding their retreats.

The habits of the animal in confinement have been carefully studied
by Audubon and Bachman. They observed that in running, the fore-
feet cross each other, and the body nearly touches the ground; the heel
does not press the ground as in the bear, but is slightly elevated above
it. In digging, the fore-feet are used for excavating, and the hind-
feet, like paddles, to expel the earth from the hole; the animal buries
itself in the ground in a minute, and very soon advances to the end of a
ten-foot chain, then returns and excavates a fresh gallery, and so amuses
itself until dragged away by main force. Their specimen was active and
playful at night, but was dull through the day, lying rolled up like a ball
with its head under the body for hours at a time. The animal did not
refuse bread, but preferred meat, eating a half pound each day. The
animal did not seem at all sluggish or inclined to hibernate, even when
the weather was so cold as to freeze, continually, the water given him
to drink.

The reproduction of the species is not fully known. Dr. Coues has
seen a still ungrown specimen in Colorado during the latter part of
August. The periods of gestation and lactation are probably unknown.

47

Mr. Gibson, author of the “Complete American Trapper,” states that the
nest is in the burrow, and the young are three or four in number.

Richardson, in speaking of its hibernation from November to April, in
British America, states that, like bears, the animals do not lose flesh
during the winter, but come out fat in the spring; he adds that, as they -
pair at once, they soon become lean.

The Badger yields a valuable, and at times, a fashionable fur; it is
used for robes, muffs, tippets and trimmings.

The London sales of Badger skins in 1873 were 2,700, bringing from
one to seven shillings, averaging 18.6d. In 1875, they sold in this
country for from $1 for best, to fifty cents for “seconds” and ten cents for
“ thirds.”

Thousands of shaving brushes are made from the long hairs; they are
also used for artist’s brushes; one is known as the “ Badger blender.”
“ The fur,” says Audubon, speaking of his tamed specimen, “had become,
by the month of February, the most effectual protection against the cold
that can well be imagined.

The coloration is not striking, but the intimate blending of gray,
tawny, black and white is pleasing. The general tone, however, isa
grizzled gray, from which arises the common expression, “as gray as a
badger.” The flesh is eatable; so is that of the skunk, but neither are
inviting, scarcely palatable.

Genus Mepaitis. (Cuvier.)

Etymology: Lat. Mephitis, a foul or noxious exhalation.

x Viverra 8)., of early authors.

< Mephitis, Cuvier, “Lecons d’ Anat., i, 1800” (coextensive with the sub-
family), and of authors generally.—Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 191.

< Chincha, Less., Nouv. Tab. R. An., 1842.

> Spilogale, Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc., 1865, 150. Type, S. interrupta=M.
putorius.

> Mephitis, Gill, Arrang. Fam. Mamm., 1872, 66.

Generic Characters—Teeth 34; pm. 33; end of muzzle truncate verti-
cally ; palate ending about opposite last molar; coronoid process of jaw
conical, erect, its fore and hind borders converging to a vertical apex,
in advance of condyle; angle of mandible not exflected; nostrils lat-
eral; tail very long and bushy; soles comparatively narrow, hairy, at
least in part; body elongated; snout prominent, not depressed.

The Skunks are terrestrial animals, closely related to the Badgers in
external conformation; the walk is plantigrade; the habits more or less
fossorial ; the fore-claws are large, straight, and well fitted for digging.
The Skunks neither climb nor swim; they are slow and lumbering ;

48

their homes are burrows in the ground or dens in rocks and logs; the
form is stout,.the legs short, and the body low; the tail is bushy, and the
Qelage loose; the produced and enlarged snout gives them a somewhat
hog-like physiognomy. They agree with the Badgers, and are unlike
other Mustelidz in having a complete, bony septum separating the poste-
rior nares. j

Phe leading feature, however, of the Skunks is the anal glands, com-
mon to the Mu telide, but in this group reaching the maximum of
development, and secreting a fluid which is the most penetrating,
diffusible and intolerable of animal effluvia, affording to these otherwise
inoffensive, and almost defenseless creatures a means of self-preservation
as unique as it is effectuai, habitual reliance upon which modify the
physiogomy of the entire genus, and impresses its whole nature.

MEPHITIS MEPHITICA. Baird.
COMMON SKONK.

1792, Viverra mephitica, Shaw, Mus. Lever., 1792, 173, No. 4, pl. 6; Gen.
Zoél., i, 1800, 390, pl. 94, middle fig.

1808. Mephitis chinga, Tied., Zoöl., i, 1808, 362 (partly).—Licht., Darstell.
Säug., 1827-34, pl. 45, f.1; Abh. Akad. Wis. Berl. for 1836, 1838,
280.—Maxim., Reise N. A., i, 1839, 250; Arch. f. Naturg., 1861,—;
Verz. N. A. Säug., 1862, 42.—Wagn., Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841,
198.—Schinz, Syn., i, 1844, 323, No. 13.—Aud. & Bach., Q. N.
A., i, 1849, 317, pl. 42.—Giebel, Säug., 1855, 766.—Fitzinger,
Naturg. Säug., i, 1861, 315, f. 63.

1820. Mephitis americana, var. K, Desm., Mamm., i, 1820,186. (“ Mustella”,
lapsu. Includes all the American Skunks, vars. A—R); Nouv.
Dict., xxi, 515 (var.7).—J. Sab., App. Frankl. Journ., 1823, 653.—
Harl., Fn. Am., 1825, 70.—Griff., An. Kingd., v, 1827, 127, No.
358 (partly).—Less., Man., 1827, 151, No. 406.—Godm., Am Nat.
Hist., i, 1831, 218, pl.—, f. 1—Doughty’s Cab. N. H., ii, 1832, 198,
pl. 17.—Rich., Zoöl. Beechey’s Voy., 1839, 4—Emmons, Rep.
Quad. Mass., 1840, 49.—De Kay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 29, pl. 12,
f. 1— Wyman, Pr. Bost. Soc., 1844, 110 (anat.).—Warren, Pr.
Bost. Soc., iii, 1849, 175 (anat.).—Thomps., N. H. Vermont, 1853,
33.—Woodh., Sitgr. Rep., 1853, 44.—Kenn., Tr. Illinois Agric.
Soc. for 1853-4, 1855, 578.—Beesley, Geol. Cape May, 1857, 137.—
Billings, Canad. Nat. and Geol., i, 1857, 360.—Hall, Canad. Nat.
and Geol., vi, 1861, 296.

1829. Mephitis americana var. hudsonica, Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829, 55, No.
19.

vv

49

1829. Mephitis chinche, Fisch., Syn., 1829, 160 (includes other species;
quotes Tiedemann primarily.)

1842. Chincha americana, Less., Nouv. Tabl. R. A., 1842, 67.

1857. Mephitis mephitica, Bd., M. N. A., 1857, 195.—Coop. and Suckl., N
H. W. T., 1860, 94.—Hayd., Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., xii, 1862,
143.—Samuels, Ninth Ann. Rep. Mass. Agric. for 1861, 1862,
161.—Gerr., Cat. Bones Br. Mus., 1862, 97.—Allen, Bull. M. C.
Z., i, 1869, 178; ii, 1871, 169 (eritical).—Allen, Pr. Bost. Soc., xiii,
1869, 183.—Gilpin, Proc. and Tr. N. Scotia Inst., ii, 1870, 60.—
Stev., U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr. for 1870, 1871, 461.—Parker, Am.
Nat., v, 1871, 246 (anat. of anal glands, etc.)—Alen, Bull.
Ess. Inst., vi, 1874, 46, 54, 59, 63.—Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc., xvii,
1874, p. 388.— Ames, Bull. Minn. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1874, 69.—Coues,
Bull. U. S. Geol. and Geogr. Surv. Terr., 2d ser., No. 1, 1875, 8
(skull and teeth).—Coues and Yarrow, Zoöl. Expl. W. 100dth
Merid., v, 1875, 62.— Allen, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv., vol. ii, No.
4, 1876, 822 (skull).—Coues, Mon. of Mus., 1877, 195.

1744. Enfan du Diable, Charlev., N. France, v, 1744, 196.

1772. Skunk, Forst., Phil. Trans.,lxii, 1772, 874.—Penn., Arct. Zoöl., i,
1784, 85, No. 33.—Hearne, Journ., —, 377.

Stinkthier, German. Béte puante, French.

Description of External Features. —The Common Skunk is a heavily-built

‚animal, with short limbs, low ears, small head, and long and bushy tail.

The thick-set trunk is large behind, and the broad back naturally curved.
The head is conoidal; the eye small and nearer the nose than the ear;
the naked nasal-pad is large and protuberant; the nostrils are lateral.
The bushy tail has no fine under fur; the long, coarse, almost tow-like
hairs, when extended sideways, make the width of tail, in some speci-
mens, greater than the length. The feet expose large plantar and pal-
mar surfaces, usually naked, except that the soles are generally hairy
about a third of the way from the heel. The claws of the hind-feet are
stout and obtuse; they are covered with hairs; the middle three are
about equal in length; the fifth is shorter, and the first does not reach
the base of second. The plantar-pads are imperfectly separated into
three,.to which the terminal toe-balls at once ta the toes are very
short, and extensively united.

The toes of the front feet are quite different, The third and fourth
are sub-equal and longest; the second a little shorter; the fifth reaches
scarcely half-way to the fourth, and the first not quite to the base of the
second. The three middle claws are even longer than the digits that

4

50

bear them; they are acute and adapted to digging, strong, comjpressed,
and little curved.; the palmar ‘padded area is indifferently separated into
three'or four smaller pads.

The white marking exists in almost endless diversity of extent and
detail; the most constant pattern is a sharp, narrow frontal stripe, and a
broad nuchal area, from which diverge obliquely a pair of stripes toward
or to the tail. The hairs of the tail are usually.all white at the base;
there is a white tuft at ‘the base of coarser and looser hairs than the gen-
eral cover of the tail. The same coarse white hairs are disposed in irreg-
‘ular bundles in various places along the tail, exceeding the softer dark
hairs in length; they are sometimes seven or eight inches in length.

Dr. Coues is of the opinion that there is a tendency to increase of
white according, in a measure, to specifi d geographical areas. In the
south Atlantic and Gulf States, the white is at.a minimum, the stripes
almost wanting, frontal stripe a mere trace, and the nuchal spot reduced
‘or broken. Throughout the west, and in British America, prolongation
of the stripes to the tail, or even to its end, is the rule, the stripes grad-
ually separating from a vertebral stripe into which the nuchal stripe is
prolonged. -Accompanying this color of the western forms, is a bushier -
tail, its width equal to or greater than its length.

Various cases of this kind have been recognized as species under the
specific titles mesomelas, varians, macroura, etc.

A decrease of size with latitude is-observable. Florida specimens, full
grown, are notably smaller than New England Skunks, some not exceed-
ing thirteen or fourteen inches.

Distribution:—The Skunk is found in entire temperate North America,
north to Hudson’s Bay and Great-Slave Lake, scuth into Mexico, where
its range overlaps that of the White Backed Skunk, ‘Conepatus mapurito.
It is usually common, and in some districts abundant. From the nature
of the animal, they are obviously less affected by the settlement of the
country than their inherently wary and secretive carnivorous allies,
which are often nearly exterminated as civilization advances. The
Skunk, however, is often more abundant in frontier regions than in the
unsettled parts of a country. Throughout British America, New Eng-
land, the middle States, and come of the southern States, M. mephitica is
the only species of the sub-family Mephitine known to occur. In most
of the west and part of the south, it ranges with Syilogale putorius. The
extreme south-west may possess the three’species found iu the United
States.

History.—Under the name of “ Polecat,” “Chinga,” “Skunk,” “ Weasel”
(Pennant), and even “ Enfan du diable” (Charlevoix), the Skunk ap-

51

peared in zodlogical literature over one hundred years before the Lin-
naean system. Gabriel Sagard-Theodat quaintly describes it in his his-
tory of Canada, 1636, as follows:

“Les enfans du diable, que les Hurons appellent Scangaresse, & le commun des Mon-
tagnais Babougi Manitou, ou Ouinesque, est un beste fort puante, de la grandeur d’un
chat on d’un ieune renard, mais elle a la teste un peu moins aigué, & la peau couuerte
d’un gros poil rude & enfumé, et sa grosse queue retroussée de mesnie, elle se cache en
Hyuer sous la neige, & ne sort point qu’au commencement de la Lunedu mois de Mars,
laquelle les Montagnais nomment Ouiniscon pismi, qui signifie la Lune de la Ouinesque.
Cet animal, outre qu’il est de fort mauuaise odeur, est tres-malicieux & d’un laid regard,
ils jettent aussi (A ce qu’on dit) parmy Jeurs excremens de petits serpens, longs & deliez,
les quels ne viuent neant moins gueres long temps. Ven pensois apporter une peau
passée, mais un Francois passager me l’ayant demandée ie la Juy donnay.”

This passage contains the earliest account of the Skunk known to
Richardson or Dr. Coues. The present species was not clearly indicated
by Linnaeus and his early supporters. The Viverra putorius L. was based
on Kalm’s “ Fiskatta,” no doubt the present animal, but the primary
reference is to Catesby’s Polecat, and the description rather suits the
Spilogale. Later (1736), Linnaeus rested his species on Catesby and Kalm
(as in 1758), and involved the history by citing Hernandez, Ray, Seba,
and Brisson, thus including animals generically as well as specifically
distinet. Not until 1792 was the species described with sufficient perti-
nence and exclusiveness (Viverra mephitica, Shaw) to warrant a tenable
specific name.

On account of its literal resemblance to the genus Mephitis (Cuvier),
the specific title mephitica was suppressed until revived by Baird, in 1857,
in accordance with the law of priority.

M. chinga (Tiedemann, 1808), is undoubtedly the same as the present
species, and was adopted by Tiedemann, Audubon and Bachman, and
others, until 1857. Since this date the alliterative name, Mephitis me-
phitica has become current.

Habits.—The disposition, habits, and possibly the structure (as far as
this may be conditional on its mode of life) of the Skunk, are modified
so completely, as compared with other Mustelidx, by its unique and efh-
cient mode of defense and offense, continual reliance upon which has
changed its entire economy, that no correct outline can be portrayed,
unless the nature and use of its peculiar armament are understood. “ The
physiological réle of this special secretion is obvious. Its relation to the
perpetuation of the species, though overshadowed by its exageration into
a powerfully effective means of preservation of the invidual, is evidently
the same as in other species of Mustelidx, each one of which has its own
emanation to bring the sexes together, not only by amply indicating
their whereabouts, but by serving as a positive attraction. In the case

52

of the Skunk, it would seem that the strong scent has actually tended to
result in a more gregarious mode of life than is usual in this family of
mammals; and it is certain, at any rate, that the occupancy by one ani-
mal of a permanent winter abode, serves to attract others to the same
retreat. Burrows are sometimes found to contain as many as a dozen in-
dividuals, not members of one family, but various adult animals drawn
together. One other effect of the possession of such unique powers is
seen not so much in mode of life as in the actual disposition of the crea-
tures. Its heedless familiarity, its temerity in pushing into places which
other animals instinctively avoid as dangerous, and its indisposition to
seek safety by hasty retreat, are evident results of its confidence in the
extraordinary means of defense with which it is provided. In specula-
ting upon the development of this anal armature to a degree which ren-
ders it subservient to purposes for which the glands of other Musteline,
though of similar character, are manifestly inadequate, it may not be
amiss to recall how defenceless the Skunk would otherwise be in com-
parison with its allies. A tardy terrestrial animal, of no great strength
or spirit, lacking the sagacity and prowess of the Wolverine, the scanso-
vial ability of the Martens, the agility, size, and prowess of the Ot-
ters, and even much of the eminent fossorial capacity of its nearest
relations, the Badgers—lacking all these qualities, which in their several
exhibitions conduce to the safety of the respective species, it is evident
that additional means of self-protection were required; while the abun-
dance of the animal in most parts of the country, and its audacity in the
face of danger, show that its confidence in the singular means of defense
it possesses is not misplaced.”

As long as the Skunk has been known, it is but a few years since the
anatomy of its peculiar defensive organs has been known. The first re-
liable retord is that of Dr. Jeffries Wyman, in 1844, which are here
sranscribed: “The anal pouches are two glandular sacs of an oval shape,
about three-quarters of an inch in diameter, covered with a muscular
envelope, and opening into the rectum quite near to the anus by two
papille. These last, when not protruded, are surrounded by a feld of
mucous membrane, and very nearly concealed by it. The fluid is ejected
by the contractions of the muscular covering. A small band passes from
each sac to the ischium, which rotates these bodies on themselves, and
serves to bring their orifices to the anus. The fluid is a peculiar secre-
tion like that of the civet, and not the urine, as is commonly supposed.
The common opinion, that the animal scatters it with its tail, is erro-
neous. The fluid is limited in quantity, and having been discharged,
the animal is harmless until the sacs are again filled by gradual secre-

53

tion.” The discharge is not visible, ordinarily, in the daytime; several
competent observers state that it has a phosphorescent glow at night.

When the animal is pursued, it leisurely arrests its course, raises the
hinder parts, lifts the tail, the nipple-like eminence of the glands appears
through the anus, the constrictor muscles of the glands are contracted,
and the golden acrid fluid is suddenly ejected several feet upward and
backward in two streams.

The scent is almost indestructible. Audubon mentions it as being
tolerably strong at a place where a Skunk had been killed in autumn,
even after the snow had disappeared the following spring. The acrid
discharge often renders dogs permanently blind; there are authentic
cases in which men have lost their eyesight in consequence of the severe
inflammation induced by the fluid. It is also extremely nauseating,
often producing sickness of the stomach and violent vomiting. Like
most foul odors, it is decomposed by chloride of lime. Burying affected
clothing in the earth removes the odor. That the pelt may be absolutely
purified of the scent, is shown by furriers disinfecting them by the same
processes used for the skins of Wolves, Foxes, and other Mustelidz.

Like most carnivorous animals, the Skunk is somewhat nocturnal,
though often out in the daytime. In northern latitudes it hibernates
imperfectly, arousing itself occasionally, perhaps for the evacuation of
its anal pouches. In the south it ranges freely at all seasons. It some-
times takes up its winter dwelling oddly enough under barns or tene-
ments, and the cessation of its torpidity during mild periods of weather,
is very evident.

Unlike other wary members of its family, it has no fear of man’s abode.
It sometimes robs poultry, eggs, and milk, committing its depredations
in the most awkwardly open manner, scarcely attempting escape when
discovered, as though it relied upon the impenetrable atmosphere with
which it surrounds itself; hence it often falls a victim to its own cupid-
ity. Away from settlements, it makes its nest in decayed logs and
stumps, fence rows, crevices in rocks, or in fact any natural shelter it can
secure. Sometimes it excavates burrows near the surface, six or eight
feet long, ending in a chamber lined with leaves, where as many as fifteen
are found packed together. They are more gregarious than others of the
family. Those in a burrow are not necessarily of the same family.

They are extremely productive, bringing forth, in May, eight or ten
young. The time of gestation is probably not known.

Were they not so stupidly reliant upon their defensive armor, and so
offensive, they might become too abundant; as it is, their natural means
of preservation prevent their undue increase. Dogs and Wolves destro

54

and eat them in spite of their odor, as do also some of the preying birds.
Insects, birds’ eggs, and young, small mice, and frogs are their ordinary
food ; occasionally they secure a rabbit in his burrow.

Uses —The Skunk yields a handsome fur, which is put on the market
under the name of “ Alaska Sable.” The Hudson’s Bay Company handle
a thousand or more yearly. The pelt is one of the staples of American
furriers, thousands being yearly exported to Europe. The black furs are
the most valuable, often selling for a dollar each.

No special skill is required for their capture; they are easier trapped
than disposed of. They are taken readily in fox-traps carelessly set.
It is customary to clear them off the range before attempting to take the
Fox. The Fox is fond of the Skunk’s flesh, and it is often used to bait
the fox-traps. The Skunk, once trapped, is easily choked by a running
wire noose attached to a long pole in the hands of the trapper, who thus
escapes defilement.

Mr. Maynard states that, in Florida, the Little Striped Skunk is do-
raesticated and used as Cats, the scent-glands being removed at an early
age. Dr. J. W. Warren has put the Common Skunk under the influence
of an anesthetic, and severed the ducts of the anal glands by cutting
down on the outside of the intestine, suffering the glands to remain in
their normal position. The adhesive infammation resulting deprives
the animal effectually of its meens of annoyance.

Regarding the domestication of the Skunk, Dr. Coues discourses, face-
tiously, as follows: “The different species of Skunks, in fact, seem to
be susceptible of ready semi-domestication, in which state they are, like
the Fitch or Ferret, useful in destroying vermin, if they do not also make
agreeable pets. Writers speak of the removal of the anal glands in early
life, to the better adaptation of the animal to human society, and such
would appear to be an eminently judicious procedure. For, though
Skunks may habitually spare their favors when accustomed to the pres-
ence of man, yet I should think that their companionship would give
rise to a certain sense of insecurity, unfavorable to peace of mind. To
depend upon the good will of so irritable and so formidable a beast, whose
temper may be ruffled in a moment, is hazardous—like the enjoyment of
a cigar in a powder magazine.”

Hydrophobia from Skunk-bite—It has long been known that a disease
like hydrophobia often results from the bite of the Skunk. This subject
has been investigated and presented by the Rev. Horace C. Hovey, in
the American Journal of Science and Art, for May, 1874, and by John G.
Janeway, M.D., Assistant Surgeon U.S. A., in the New York Medical Jour-
nal, for March 18, 1875.

55

Mr. Hovey contends that hydrophobia from Skunk bite is different
from Rabies canina, and proposes for it the term Rabies mephitica. He
suggests there may be a causative connection between inactivity of the
anal glands and the generation of a special hydrophobic virus generated
in the glands of the mouth. He also thinks that the mephitic secretion
may be the natural antidote to the salivary virus. Mr. Hovey collected
the particulars of forty one cases of Rabies mephitica, all of which proved
fatalexceptone. He also proposes the theory that hydrophobia originates
with the allied genera of Mephitis, Putorius and Mustela, and it is trans-
ferred from them to the Felide and Canidz, and other families. The ac-
tual importance of the subject, and the novelty of the views entertained,
attracted considerable attention.

Dr. Janeway replied in an elaborate article, detailing cases, and coming
to the conclusion that ‘ Rabies mephitica” is essentially hydrophobia; that
the rabid wounds of the Skunk are fatal in so great a majority of cases,
because the animal seizes unprotected parts, usually the face or hand,
where there is no clothing to wipe off the virulent moisture of the teeth.

Besides the present species, it is possible that the Little Striped Skunk,
M. ‘puorius, may occur in Ohio. It is a southern and western species,
abundant in Iowa, and possibly occurring in central New York, although
the evidence is very unsatisfactory. “Dr. 8. J. Parker, of Ithica, New
York, has twice seen, by the road-side in that region, a small many-
striped Skunk, very different from the common one.” The Long-tailed
Skunk, of Mexico. M. macrura; the White-backed Skunk, Conepatus ma-
purito, of the south-western border of the United States into South
America, are the remaining species recognized by Dr. Coues, inhabiting
North America.

Genus Lutra. Linn.

Generic Characters.—The genus Lutra includes musteline animals having
a stout but cylindrical and lengthened body; obtuse muzzle ; small ears ;
short, broad feet, with the digits full-webbed ; feet naked or partly hairy
on the palms and soles; claws small but well formed ; tail without special
lateral dilatation, long, tapering, nearly cylindrical; pelage without
striking color contrasts. Dental formula: i. 23; ¢ E+; pm. $$; mE}
=}4—=36. The upper pre-molar has a large internal shelf, making the
contour of the whole crown triangular; skull depressed and flattened on
top, the dorsal outline more or less nearly straight and horizontal; ros-
trum extremely short, bringing the fore ends of the nasals opposite the
anterior root of the zygoma, the sides of the rostrum erect, the top flat ;
cerebral portion of the skull swollen backward, with strongly convex
lateral outline ; anteorbital foramen very large, bounded above by a slen-

56

der bridge of bone; posterior nares thrown into one conduit; palate
extending far back of molars; pterygoids strongly hamulate.

Many of the above expressions are applicable to sub-family Lutrine as
a whole.

Particular points of Lutra proper, are the presence of perfect claws, as
opposed to their rudimentary condition in some of the Old World Otters
(or even wanting, as in Leptonyx and Aonyx), and in the lack of special
dilatation of the tail, as in the South American Pterwra or Pteronura.
The Lutrine, as designated, formerly included the Sea Otter, Enhydris
lutris, which has the general aspect and cranial features of the ordinary
Otter. Its hind limbs, however, are flipper-like organs, not very unlike
those of some Seals; the teeth are pebble-like, moreover, instead of sharp
and angular, as in ordinary carnivores; indeed, the whole dentition is
adapted to a piscivorous diet. While the Sea Otter has, like the Common
Otter, the same number of teeth above and below, it lacks one pair of
incisors below, and one pair of pre-molars above, reducing the dentition
to thirty-two. These differences are the basis of the sub-family Enhy-
drin, with the Sea Otter as its only representative. :

Besides Lutra canadensis, there is a Mexican species, Lutra californica,
Gray, which Dr. Coues thinks distinct from L. brasiliensis. These, with
Lutra vulgaris, are the distinct, or probably distinct, species with which,
as will be seen by the synonymy, the widely distributed Lutra canadensis
has been confounded.

LUTRA CANADENSIS. Sabine.

CoMMON OTTER; LAND OTTER; AMERICAN OTTER.

1806. Mustela canadensis, Turton, 8. N., i, 1806, 57 (not Mustela canadensis,
_id., ibid., 59, which is M. pennanti, the Pekan; not of Schreber,
nor of Erxleben, nor of authors).

1816. Lutra gracilis, Oken, Lehrb. Naturg. Th., iii, Abth., ii, 1816, 986

-(“Staatenland, Insel. an Amerika, bei New York”).

1823, Lutra canadensis, “ F. Cuvier, Dict. Sc. Nat., xxvii, 1823, 242.—Is.
Geoff., Diet. Class., ix, 520.”—J. Sabine, App. Frankl. Jour., 1823,
653.—Less., Man., 1827, 154, No. 414.—Griff., An. King., v, 1827,
130, No, 362.—Fisch., Syn., 1829, 225.—Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829,
57, No. 20.—Emmons, “Rep. Quad. Mass., 1838, 25 ;” Rep. Quad.
Mass., 1840, 46.—Rich., Zoöl. Beechey’s Voy., 1839, 4.—Maxim.,
Reise N. Am., i, 1839, 211; Arch. Naturg., 1861, 236; Verz. N.
A. Säug., 1862, 60, pl. 8, 6 (os penis).—DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl., i,
1842, 39, pl. 3, £. 1, pl. 33, £. 1, 2, 3 (skull).—Linsley, Am. Jour.
Sci., xliii, 1842.—Schinz, Syn., i, 1844, 349, No. 5—Aud. &

1820.

1823.

1831.
1837.
1841.
1843.

1847.

1853.

1857.

1863.

1865.

57

Bach., Q. N. A., ii, 1851-2, pl. 51—Woodh., Sitgreaves’s Rep.,
1853, 44.—Kenn., Tr. Illinois Agric. Soc. for 1853-4-5, 578.—Gie-
bel, Säug., 1855, 789.—Beesley, Geol. Cape May, 1857, 137.—Bd.,
M. N. A., 1857, 184, pl. 38, f. a, b, c,d, e—Billings, Canad. Nat.
and Geol., i, 1857, 228.—Samuels, Ninth Amer. Rep. Mass. Agric.
for 1861, 1862, 60.—Hayd., Tr. Amer. Phil. Soc., xii, 1862, 143.—
Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861, 297.—Ross, Canad. Nat.
and Geol., vi, 1861, 35.—Barnston, Canad. Nat. and Geol., vill,
1863.—Gerr., Cat. Bones Br. Mus., 1862, 101.—Allen, Pr. Bost.
Soc., xiii, 1865, 183; Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1869, 178; ii, 1871, 169
(Florida).—Gilpin, Proc. and Tr. N. Scotia Inst., ii, 1870, 60.—
All., Bull. Ess. Inst., vi, 1874, 46, 63 (Kansas and Utah).—Ames,
Bull. Minn. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1874, 69.—Coues and Yarrow, Zoöl.
Expl. W. 100 Merid., v, 1875, 63.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 19,
2d ed.—Allen, Bull. U. S. Geol. and Geog. Surv. Terr., vol. ii,
No. 4, 1876, 331 (skull).—Coues, Mon. of N. A. Mus., 1877, 295.

Lutra brasiliensis, Desm., Mamm., i, 1820, 188 (in part).—Harl., Fn.
Amer., 1825, 71 (in part).—Godm., Am. N. H., i, 1831, 222, pl.
—, f. 2 (in part).—Thomps., N. H. Vermont, 1853, 33.

Lutra lataxina, F. Cuv., “ Diet. Sc. Nat., xxvi, 1823, 242;” Suppl.
Buffon, i, 1831, 203.—“ Is. Geoff., Dict. Class., ix, 520.”—Griff,
An. Kingd., v, 1827, 131, No. 364.—Less., Man., 1827, 154, No.
416.—Fisch., Syn., 1829, 226, No. 4.—DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842-

4.—Schinz, Syn., i, 1844, 350.

Lutra hudsonica, (?) F. Cuv., Suppl. Buffon, i, 1831, 194.

Latax lataxina, Gray, Ann. & Mag. N. H., i, 1837, 119.

Lutra vulgaris var. canadensis, Wagn., Suppl. Schreber, ii, 1841, 256.

Lataxina mollis, Gray, List. Mamm. B. Mus., 1843, 70 (type fig. by
Aud. & Bach., 1. c.).

Lutra americana, Wyman, Pr. Bost. Soc., ii, 1847, 249 (on articula-
tion of mandible).

Mustela hudsonica, “ Lacepéde.”

Lutra canadensis var., Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1853, 97, pl. 122
(fig. by Gray, type of Latawina mollis).

Lutra californica, Bd., M. N. A., 1857, 187.—Newb., P. R. R. Rep.,
vi, 1857, 42.—Coop. & Suck., N. H. W. T., 1860, 115. (Probably
not of Gray.)

Lutra destructor, Barnst., Canad. Nat. and Geol., viii, 1853, 147, f. —
(Lake Superior).

Latax canadensis, Gray, P. Z. 8., 1865, 123; Cat. Carn. Br. Mus.,
1869.

58

Habitat.—North America at large, being somewhat sparingly distribu-
ted over most of the waters of the continent; said to occur in Central
America.

The Otter appears to be nowhere in great abundance, nor yet wanting
in few if any localities adapted to its habits. Its wildness, wariness, and
sagacity, and the nature of its haunts, all conduce to its existence even
in well settled districts. Mr. Allen speaks of it as not rare in Massachu-
setts in 1869. One was brought to the Smithsonian Institution in 1874,
taken from the Potomac near Washington City. It is still abundant in
Florida, where the natural thinness of its fur tends to its preservation.
The “Eastern Shore” of Maryland seems to have always been a favorite
resort of the Otter. It is abundant northward, 11,000 skins being set
down for 1873, in the Hudson’s Bay Company’s London quotations. The
southern limits of distribution are not settled; no unquestionable evi-
dence is at hand of its occurrence in Mexico.

Specific Characters—Orbits well defined by prominent conical post-
orbital processes, the distance between the tips of which is one-half or
more of the intermastoid width of the skull; inner depressed moiety of
posterior upper premolar as large and nearly as long as the main outer
moiety; general dentition strong; naked nasal pad (an inch long or
broad in full-grown individuals) extending back above the nostrils in a
\/-shaped outline, reaching below the nostrils with a straight transverse
border, which sorhetimes sends a slight spur part way down the median
line of the lip; palms hairy between the digits isolating the individual
bald digital bulbs, and having an isolated patch or carpal peninsula of
hair posteriorly ; soles hairy between the digits, isolating the individual
digital bulbs, much encroached upon by hair from behind, and having

_ three or four peculiar, small, circular, elevated callosities arranged around
the posterior border of the main bald plantar surface ; (form, stature, and
coloration not diagnostic ;) finally attaining a length of four feet or more;
liver-brown, with purplish gloss, paler on the under surface of the head,
throat, and breast.

External Characters—The massive columnar body without constricted
neck ; small, round head; small eyes and ears; long, taper tail; short,
stout limbs; broad webbed feet; close-set, glossy hair, and abundant
wooly under-fur, common to the genus, are shared by the Otter. The
nasal pad is well developed, bald, in general shape an equilateral penta-
gon; the whiskers are short, stout, stiff bristles, in several series; the
eyes are small, nearer the muzzle than the ear; the ears are small, with
a thin, pointed conch, about as long as the adjacent fur; the entrance is
covered with fur ; the short, front limb has a stout wrist, and broad, flat

59 =

hand, bearing the toes which, distended, form nearly a semi-circle about
the palm; the toes are webbed to about the middle of the conspicuous
digital bulbs ; the hand is hairy above; the digital bulbs are bald below,
but the webbing is more or less completely hairy, isolating the naked
bulbs from each other, and from the palmar surface; the main palmar
pad is naked, except a posterior scanty patch of hair, which may, by an
isthmus, connect with the fur on the wrist ; the soles resemble the palms
in the webbing—the shape is different; the fourth digit is much
elongat :d, the third shorter, second and first rapidly graduated, and the
fifth intermediate between the third and second; all the bald partso the
palm and sole are tesselated with minute papille; on the back margin
of the naked portion of the plantar pad, are three or four small, definite,
elevated circular papille, peculiar to this species as far as known, and
which Dr. Coues suggests may be the excretory pores of a glandular organ
beneath the skin; the claws, back and front, are short, stout, arched,
compressed, tapering to an acute point from a thick base; the front claws
are larger, sharper, and more arched than the hind ones. The variations
in stature are extraordinary; some are twice as large and heavy as
others apparently as mature—sexually so, at least. An average length
is four to four and one-half feet ; nose to root of tail, three feet; nose to
eye, one and three-quarters to two inches ; nose to ear, three and one-half
to four inches; ear less than an inch high, and about as broad; fore foot,
three and one-half inches; hind foot four inches ; girth of body about one
and one-half feet; stature a foot or less; weight twenty to twenty-five
pounds. The general color is a highly lustrous, rich, dark liver-brown,
but little lighter on the belly. The longer hairs are stiff, and glistening
when viewed with the lay of the hairs; this it is that gives the fur its
beautiful lustre. The under-fur is a yellowish white at the base, and
light liver-brown at the tip; the former color is in excess on the back, the
latter on the sides and belly ; the transition is imperceptible. There are
no special markings anywhere ; the darkest part of the pelage is the top
of the tail; the soles, palms, and nasal pad are dark.

History of the Species —Systematic authors of the last century either
confounded the present species with the European L. vulgaris, or with
South American species Until quite recently this species has been con-
founded with the Brazilian Otter, by some French and even American
authors. The specific characters already given are drawn by Dr. Coues,
with special reference to antithesis with L. vulgaris. Mustela canadensis,
of Turton (Systema Nature, 1806, p. 57, English version), has priority
over Lutra canadensis, of Sabine (1823), usually quoted as authority for

60

this species. Turton oddly enough allowed the same name, Mustela cana-
densis, for the Pekan or Fisher, M. pennanti (Systema Nature, p. 59).

Professor Wyman, in 1847, named our species Lutra americana. Lutra
californica, Baird, and Lutra destructor, Barnst., are undoubted L. canadensis.
The first has the palms and soles less hairy than is usual in L. canadensis,
and was reluctantly admitted by Professor Baird, he erroneously sup-
posing it to be the true L. californica, of Gray. The second is smaller
than the average, but as L. canadensis grows for several years after sexual
maturity, Mr. Barnston’s specimens may not be full grown. Neither of
these species depart, however, from the normal variations of L. canadensis.

Habits—The general structure of the American and European
Otters is so nearly identical, their movement and general attitudes can-
not be very different.

Speaking of the European species, Bell has remarked that evidently
every facility consistent with the preservation of its structural relations
with the rest of the group, is given to the Otter for the pursuit and cap-
ture of its proper food. “It swims and dives with great readiness, and
with peculiar ease and elegance of movement; and although its action
on land is far from being awkward and difficult, yet it is certainly in the
water that the beautiful adaptation of its structure to its habits is most
strikingly exhibited. It swims in nearly a horizontal position, and
dives instantaneously after the fish that may glide beneath it, or pursues
it under water, changing its course as the fish darts in various directions
to escape from it. When the prey is secured, the Otter brings it on shore
to its retreat to feed.” The Otter is intelligent and docile, easily domes-
ticated, coming like the dog when whistled for. Several, which Audu-
bon took when quite young, became gentle as puppies, romping with
their master about his study. These ate milk and boiled corn meal, re-
fusing fish or meat until several months old. They may be taught to
catch fish from the streams for the table. There is no record of the
American Otter serving as a purveyor, but instances have been narrated
of the fishing habits of the domesticated Old World species, from the
time of Albertus Magnus to the late Bishop Heber. This prelate relates
that on the banks of the Malta Colly he saw ten large and beautiful Ot-
ters (probably the Asiatic species, Lutra nair, Fr. Cuvier) tethered to
bamboo stakes by the river, some playing in the water, others rolling in
the sand. He was told that the fishermen kept one or more Otters to aid
in fishing, the. Otters sometimes driving the shoals into the net and '
bringing out large fish with their teeth. The good bishop was so much
pleased as to conclude that “the simple Hindoo shows here a better taste
and judgment than half the Otter-hunting and Badger-baiting gentry of
England.”

61

The fossorial ability of the Otter is not of a high order. Its under-
ground retreats are not as ingeniously constructed as those of the Musk-
rat. It avails itself of any convenient excavation, as the hollows under
the overhanging roots of trees. Audubon found three Otters on a bed
composed of the inner bark of trees and soft water grasses. This nest
was in a hollow tree, with the entrance under water. The Otters were
captured in the morning, by cutting a hole into the tree above the nest.
and securing the neck of each animal between the halves of a split sap-
pling. They generally keep near their fishing haunts, but may be
driven by a scarcity of fish to resort far inland to the farming lands, at-
tacking lambs, sucking pigs, and poultry; at least this is the habit of the
British species.

Richardson speaks of the Canada Otter frequenting rapids and falls in
the winter season, to be sure of open water, often traveling long dis-
tances in search of unfrozen rapids. Pursued by the hunter on these
journeys, it runs so rapidly that a swift runner on snow-shoes can
ecarcely overtake it. It runs swiftly, and throws itself forward on its
belly, sliding several yards through the snow, leaving a deep furrow be-
hindit. This movement is rapidly repeated; it doubles on its track, and
dives under the snow to evade its pursuers; if closely pressed, it turns
and defends itself with great pertinacity.

The same author states that in the spring of 1826, at Great Bear Lake,
the Otters often robbed the nets set under ice, taking off the heads of the
fish and leaving the bodies in the net.

The period of gestation of our species is undetermined. The European
species, according to Bell, carries her young nine weeks, bringing forth
three to five in March or April. The American Otter, according to Rich-
ardson, has one litter annually, about the middle of April, of from one
to three young. Audubon observes that in the middle and southern
States they are about one month earlier.

Uses —During the century, 1769-1868, the Hudson’s Bay Company sold
in London 674,027 Otter skins; the Canadian Company sold, from 1763
to 1839 inclusive, 895,832 pelts. The first mentioned company sold
14,966 skins during 1868; the same autumn other companies disposed of
22,000 skins. These figures will give some idea of the commercial rela-
tions of this species. The skin is removed by a cross slit down the hind
legs, and withdrawn entire. It is stretched with the hair inside, the tail
only being slit on the under side and spread out flat. The pelt is of such
beauty and value, on account of its rich, warm color and exquisite soft-
ness, as well as its large size, that the animal is systematically followed
by the professional trapper. Heavy double-spring steel traps are em-

62

ployed, baited on the pan with fish, or hidden in the snow path, or at
the top of the slide; the trap is scented wıth various animal odors, and
care is taken not to handle the trap with bare hands. The sight and
smell of the Otter are so acute, and his wariness and sagacity of so high
an order, that the utmost caution is required to insure his capture.

Audubon’s observation of the “sliding” of the Otter is as follows:
“The Otters ascend the bank at a place suitable for their diversion, and
sometimes where it is very steep, so that they are obliged to make quite
an effort to gain the top. They slide down in rapid succession where
there are many at a sliding place. On ene occasion we were resting
ourself on the bank of Canoe Creek, a small stream near Henderson,
which empties into the Ohio, when a pair of Otters made their appear-
ance, and, not observing our proximity, began to enjoy their sliding
pastime. They glided down the soap-like, muddy slope of the slide with
the rapidity of an arrow from a bow, [ft] and we counted each one making
twenty-two slides before we disturbed their sportive occupation.

“This habit of the Otter of sliding down from elevated places to the
borders of streams, is not confined to cold countries, or to slides on ice or
snow, but is pursued in the southern States, where the earth is seldom
covered with snow, or the waters frozen over. Along the reserve-dams
of the rice field: of Carolina and Georgia, these slides are very common.
From the fact that this occurs in mest cases during winter, about the
period of the rutting season, we are inclined to believe that this propen-
sity may be traced to these instincts which lead the sexes to their peri-
odical associations. ;

“The Otter is a very expert swimmer, and can overtake almost any
fish ; and as it is a voracious animal, it doubtless destroys a great number
of fresh water fishes annually. We are not aware of its having a prefer-
ence for any particular species, although it is highly probable that it
has. About twenty-five years ago, we went early one autumnal morning
to study the habits of the Otter at Gordon and Spring’s Ferry, on the
Cooper River, six miles above Charleston [S. C.], where they were rep-
resented as being quite abundant. They came down with the receding
tide in groups of families of five or six together. In the space of two
hours we counted forty-six. They soon separated, ascending the differ-
ent creeks in the salt marshes, and engaged in capturing mullets [Mugél].,
In most cases they came to the bank with the fish in their mouths,
dispatching it in a minute, and then hastened back again after more
prey. They returned up the river to their more secure retreat with the
rising tide. In the small lakes and ponds of the interior of Carolina,

t “A statement certainly too figurative for literal acceptation.” (Coues.)

63

there is found a favorite fish with the Otter, called the fresh-water trout
(Grystes salmoides).

“Although the food of the Otter in general is fish, yet when hard
pressed by hunger it will not rejeet animal food of any kind. Those we
had in confinement, when no fish could be procured, were fed on beef,
which they always preferred boiled. During the last winter we ascer-
tained that the skeleten and feathers of a wild duck were taken from
an Otter’s nest on the banks of a rice field reserve-dam. It was conjec-
tured that the duck had either been killed or wounded by the hunters,
and was in this state seized by the Otter.”

FAMILY URSIDE.

The family Ursidx formerly included the Raccoons, to which they are
‘allied by the tuberculate premolars, plantigrade walk, and stout body;
the group is now restricted to the Bears proper, of large size, clumsy
form, and very short tail. The cutting and compressed crowns of the
sectorial teeth characteristic of the Cats and Dogs, are here replaced by
broad teeth, with the crowns studded with tubercles, adapting the Bears
to the more varied nature of their food. The species are not numerous,
and, with the exception of one species, Ursus ernatus, which occurs in the
South American Andes, are only found in the northern hemisphere.

Genus Ursus. Linnzus.

Generic Characters.—Body thick, clumsy, and large ; feet entirely planti-
grade; soles naked; eh One tail very short; head very broad. Denti-
tion: i. 23; c. Ed; pm. 44; m. $3 — 25-42.

The skull of the Bears is larger, and the muzzle longer and broader
than in th.: Dogs and Cats ; the lower jaw is massive and high ; the bony
palate extends behind the molar teeth.

In the bears the molar teeth (seven) attain the maximum found in
placental mammalia; some of the premolars are very small, and early
deciduous, particularly the second and third. The first three premolars
above and below are small; they have a single fang, and at their crowns
are occupied by a single compressed tubercle. The fourth upper premolar
represents the sectorial tooth of the carnivora; its shape is triangular
with the base posterior instead of anterior, as in Dogs. The first true

molar has an oblong crown, with four principal cusps.

There are in the United States two perfectly distinct species; the
Black Bear, Ursus americanus, and the ‘Grizzly, Ursus arctos horribilis, the
“ Cinnamon Bear” of mountaineers (not the Cinnamon Bear of authors,
which is U. americanus var. cinnamoneus). The Grizzly is probably not
specifically different from U. arctos of Europe. The two occur under al-
most every variation of color, but retain their specific characters through-

64

out. The Barren Ground Bear, Ursus arctos, Richardson (Fauna Boreali-
Americani), may require to be added to those cited.

The Black Bear must have been early driven from the woods of Ohio.
It still inhabits the mountain regions of Tennessee and Kentucky.

Ursus AMERICANUS. Pallas.
BLACK BEAR.
Var. americanus.
1780. Ursus americanus, Pallas, Spic. Zoöl., xiv, 1780, 6.-—Bodd., Elench.
Anim., i, 1784, 79.—Gmel., Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 101.—Desm.,
Mamm., i, 1820, 165.—Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 51.—Rich., F.
B. A., i, 1829, 14.—Fisch., Syn., 1829, 143.—Godm., Am. Nat.
Hist., i, 1831, 114.—DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 24.—Aud. &
Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1853, 187, pl. 141.—Bd., M. N. A., 1857, 225. ~
—Jordan, Manual of the Vertebrates, 1878, 20.—Coues and Yar-
row, Geolog. and Geog. Exp. and Surv. West 100 Merid., 1875,
vol. v, 69.
1827. Ursus niger americanus, Griff, An. Kingd., v, 1827, No. 318.
Var. cinnamomeus.
1853. Ursus americanus var, cinnamemum, Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., iii,
1853, 125, pl. 127.
1857. Ursus americanus var. cinnamomeus, Bd., M. N. A., 1857, 228.

Distribution. —The Black Bear is widely distributed throughout North
America. The var. Oinnamomeus occurs in the Rocky Mountain region,
and in Oregon.

Specific Characters—The size is small; feet moderate; fore claws not
twice as long as the hind claws; color entirely uniform throughout, either
black or brownish; hairs darkest towards the tips.

The above characters serve to separate the Black Bear from the Grizzly,
which is very large; feet large, with the fore claws twice as long as the
back claws. The dark dorsal and lateral flank stripes of the Grizzly are
opposed to the uniform coloration of the Black, as are the brownish,
yellow, or hoary tips of the hairs in the former to the black tips of the
latter. The hair of the Black is much softer than that of the Grizzly,
and has not the wiry wool at the base of the long hair as in the Grizzly.

The Bear continued in considerable abundance in parts of Ohio—in
Athens county, according to local history (E. Cutler, authority quoted, in
history of Athens county, 1869). Taylor, in ‘ History of Ohio, 1854,”
quotes from the journal of Major John Rogers, January, 1761: “We
traveled eleven miles and encamped, having killed in our march, this
day, three Bears and two Elks.” (Voyage along coast of Lake Erie.)

From the “ Pioneer History of the Ohio Valley (Hildreth, 1848, I quote

65

the following anecdote, as it shows the prevalence of Bears as late as 1805:
“One day during the same year (1805), two of the children of John
Spencer were playing in the yard of the cabin at the ‘Big Spring,’
when a huge Bear came along, and seized a pig near them and made off
with it. Had Bruin selected the youngest of those children, instead of
the pig, the career of the late Colonel William Spencer would have been
cut short.”

FAMILY PROCYONIDE.

The characters of this family, as distinguished from the Bears, are
sufficiently indicated under the genus Procyon. There is one upper true
molar less on each side than in Urside. The last premolar of upper jaw
and first molar of lower jaw are tubercular. The tail is moderately long,
and the muzzle pointed. Aelurus, F. Cuvier, and Cercoleptes, Illiger, are
the typical genera of the closely allied families formerly included with
the Raccoons, in Ursidx, but now separated, with the family names Aelur-
ide and Cercoleptide (Arctoidea procyoniformia, Gill).

Genus Procyon Storr.

Generic Characters.—The Raccoons have the body stout; tail well devel-
oped (as opposed to Ursidx); muzzle somewhat pointed. Dentition:
1.33; ¢ 77; pm. 44; m. $3—40.

The smaller size, longer tail, more pointed muzzle, less number of teeth
readily separate the Raccoons from the Bears, to which they are allied’
by the tubercular teeth, plantigrade walk,.and naked soles. The
gen:ral shape is not unlike that of the badger; it is higher on the legs.
The head is broad and depressed, the muzzle pointed to the truncate end.
The whiskers are in four principal series, of five or six in each; there is
a tuft ever the eye, one at the angle of the jaw, and one under the mid-
dle of the chin. The ears are rather large; rounded above. They are
covered with hair, except about the meatus. The tail is covered with
hair and marked with alternate rings of black and whitish ; the verte-
bre of the tail are about half the length of the head and body. The
toes are without webbing, and are cleft nearly to the bases of the hand
and foot. The five-toed feet have naked soles from the wrist and heel ;
the skin of the sole is highly papillose, and doubtless highly tactile.
There are no raised pads; narrow, deep furrows, however, cross the under
surface, as in the cats and weasels. The claws are curved, non-retractile,
moderately sharp; they are nearly equal in all the feet.

In our species, the third and fourth toes are sub-equal, and longest

5

66

in the fore foot; the claw of the second reaches to end of third; the
thumb is shortest. On the hind-foot, the first toe is much shortest ; third
and fourth, sub-equal and longest; the second and fifth are about equal,
their claws reaching to the bases of the claws of third and fourth.

Two North American species are recognized, ours, and Procyon hernan-
dezit of Texas, and west to the Pacific.

Procyon Lotor (Linn.) Storr.
Raccoon; *‘ Coon.”

1758. Ursus lotor, Linn., Syst. Nat ; i, 1758, 48; 1766, 70.—Schreb., Säug.,
iii, 1778, 521—Erxl, Syst. Nat., 1777, 165.—Gm., Syst. Nat., i,
1778, 103.—Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 53.

1780. Procyon lotor, Storr, Prod. Meth. Anim., 1780.—Desm., Mamm., i,
1820, 168.—Griff., An. Kined., v, 1827, 114.—Fischer., Syn , 1829,
147.—Rich., Fn. Bor. Amer., i, 1829, 36.—Doughty’s Cab. N. H.,
ii, 1832, 73, pl. 7.—De Kay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 26—Aud. &
Bach., Q. N. A., ii, 1851, 74, pl. 61—Baird, Mam. N. A., 1857,
209.—Allen, Bull. M.C. Z., i, 1869, 181; ii, 1871, 170—Coues
and Yarrow, Expl. and Surv. West 100th Merid., vol. v, 64, 1875.

1784. Meles lotor, Bodd., Elenchus Animal., 1784, 80.

Specific Characters —General color grayish-white; the tips of the long
hairs are black, and impart this color to the back; under fur dark-
brown. A large, oblique, black patch on the cheek, continuous with a
paler one beneath the jaw; another behind the ear. End of muzzle, ex-
‘cept the upper line, together with the posterior border of the cheek-
patch whitish. Tailslightly tapering; tip and five rings black; these rings
as broad as the rusty-white interspaces. Hind feet not exceeding four
inches; above, dirty-whitish. Fore feet not exceeding above 2? inches.
Varies in being nearly black, with the markings obscured; sometimes
more or less yellowish or white, with obsolete markings or none. A de-
cided tendency to albinism.

Measurements—A specimen in the flesh had the following dimensions
in inches: Nose, to root of tail, 224 inches; nose to end of outstretched
legs, 234 inches; nose to eye, 24; to ear, 44. Tail, from root to end of
vertebra, 103; to end of hairs, 124 inches. Ears, height in front, 2};
height behind, 24; width, 1. Arms, between claws, across shoulder, 27;
length of fore-arm, 4%; longest claw, 4 inch. Leg, from knee-joint to
end of claw, 82; hind foot, from heel to end of claws, 4 inches.

The colors of the exterior are due to the long, stiff hairs interspersed
among the basal hair. Along the back these hairs are black at the end,
and usually elsewhere. Sub-terminally the hairs are broadly whitish;
then follows a ring of light-brownish, and the base is whitish. The ha’r

67

in the annuli of toe tail is nearly corn-colored throughout. The under-
fur is of a light, sooty tinge, growing much darker on the hind legs.
The eats are grayish-white. The result of the sub-terminal whitish
annulation of the hairs is a light gray, which is the prevailing color.
The under parts are a similar gray, without the tips; here, as in the rest
of the body, the dull-brown under-fur shows through. The intervals
between the black rings of the tail are grayish-white; they are usually
a trifle wider than the black rings. The tail is uniform (about 23 to 3
inches); the end rounded.

Distribution and Habits—This well known animal is abundant in the
eastern United States, and has been observed in Colorado. It is common in
Ohio, usually found in the vicinity of water. It is said to be an expert at
catching crayfish and minnows. It is very destructive to green corn,
especially the sweet varieties. When once “treed,” they are readily
taken—if in holes, by a wire hook driven into a long pole and thrust
down to the bottom of the nest. In their blind rage they seize the
hook and are easily drawn out, thrown to the ground, and dispatched.
The animal is often domesticated; but they make rather savage and
treacherous pets, stealing chickens that venture near their chain.

A western form takes its place on the Pacific coast, P. hernandezü, Wag-
ler, the California or Black-footed Raccoon.

ORDER UNGULATA.
SUB-ORDER ARTIODACTYLA.

Toes paired; the third and fourth sub-equal and exserted; fifth and
second about equal in size and position, and developed or atrophied in
nearly equal degree ; dorso-lumbar vertebree usually nineteen ; intermax-
illaries flattened toward the symphysis ; incisors, when present, diverging
toward their roots; stomach more or less subdivided or complex; cecum
comparatively small and simple. ,

FAMILIES OF ARTIODACTYLA.

Molars with two doubie crescentiform folds, with the convex surfaces internal; canines
resembling and parallel with incisors (different in Camelide); digestive system
adapted for rumination; stomach quadripartite; axis with odontoid process like a
spout or hollow half-cylinder, and with a sharp, prominent semi-circular rim,
(Flower.) (Pecora; or Ruminantia.)

Hind limbs with femur inclosed within the integument; incisors deciduous from
upper jaw, persistent in lower; cervical vertebra normal (not elongated as in
Girafide) ; hinder limbs longer than fore limbs.

a. Horns persistent (common to both sexes), and developed as sheaths of true
“horn” on osseous cores originating from the frontal bones. Bovipz.

aa. Horns solid, deciduous, peculiar to the rutting season, not encased in horn,
more or less branched ; usually wanting in females. . . CERVIDE.

68

FAMILY BOVIDE.

The characters of the family are sufficiently indicated in the above
Key.
Genus Brson Smith.
Form wassive ; head declined ; neck short ; legs stout ; molars compara-
tively broad, without supplemental lobes; end of muzzle very broad,
naked ; nostrils widely separated ; hoofs broad; ears large ; tail long.

BisoN AMERICANUS (Gmelin.) Smith.

AMERICAN BISON, OR BUFFALO.

1788. Bos americanus, Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 204, 1788.—Desmarest, Nouv.
Dict. Hist. Nat., iii, 531, 1816; Mammalogie, 496, pl. xliv, 1820.
—Harlan, Fauna Amer., 268, 1825.—Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist.,
iii, 4, 1826.—Desmoulin, Dict. Class. Hist. Nat., ii, 365, 1822.—
Richardson, Fauna Bor. Amer., i, 279, 1829.—Fischer, Synop.
Mam., 495, 653, 1829.—Cooper, Month. Amer. Journ. Geol. and
Nat. Hist., 1831, 44, 174, 207 (remains at Big Bone Lick, Ky.) ;
Amer. Journ. Sci., xx, 371, 1831; Edinb. New Phil. Journ., xi,
853, 1831.—Doughty, Cab. Nat. Hist., ii, 169, pl. xiv, 1832.—
Sabine, Franklin’s Journey, 668, 1833.—Wagher, Schreber’s
Säug., v, 472, 1855.—Giebel, Säug., 271, 1855.—Baird, Mam. N.
Amer., 682, 1857; U. S. and Mex. Bound. Survey, pt. ii, 52, 1859.
Newberry, Pacif. R. R. Expl. and Surveys, VI, iv, 72, 1857.—
Suckley and Gibbs, ibid., XII, ii, 138, 1866.—Xantus, Zoöl. Gar-
ten, i, 109.—Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 186, 1869;
xvii, 39, 1874.—Coues and Yarrow, Expl. and Surv. West 100th
Merid., vol. v, 67, 1876.

1748. Bison americanus, Catesby, Nat. Hist. Carolina, ii, App., 20, xxviii,
1743.—Brisson, Reg. Anim., Quad., 1756.—Smith, Griffith’s
Cuv., v, 374, 1827.—DeKay, Nat. Hist. New York, Zoöl., pt. i,
110, 1842.—Sundevall, Kong. Sv. Vet. Akad. Handl. for 1844,
203, 1846.—Gray, Knowsley’s Menag., 49, 1850; Cat. Mam. Brit.
Mus., iii, 39, 1852; Hand-List of Edentate, Thick-skinned, and
Ruminant Mam., 85, 1873 —Girard, Cat Bones of Mam. Brit.
Mus., 230, 1862.—Turner, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. London, xviii, 177,
1850.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Amer., ii, 32, pls. lvi, lvii, 1851.
Baird, Rep. U. 8. Pat. Off, Agricult., 1851, 124 (plate), 1852.—
Leidy, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1854, 200, 210; Extinct Mam.
Faun. N. Amer., 571, 1869.—Allen, Bull. Essex Institute, VI,
iii, 1865; Versuch einer natiir lichen Geschichte des Rinder,
ii, 58.

69

1766. Bos bison var. b., Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 99, 1766.—Kalm, Travels in
N. Amer. (Forster’s Trans.), i, 297.

1784. “ Bos wrus var., Bodd., Elen. Anim., 1784.”

1845. Bos bison, Schintz, Synop. Mam., 482, 1845 (in part only).

1867. Bos binasus, Brandt, Zoögeographische und Paleontologische Bei-
träge, 105, 1867 (in part only).—Lilljeborg, Fauna 6fers sveriges
och Norges Ryggrad., i, 877, 1874 (in part only).

Taurus mexicanus, Hernandez, Mexico, 598.
Taurus quivirensis, Nieremb., Hist. Nat., 181, 182.

1819. Le bison [d’Ameriqu&], Buffon, Hist. Nat., xi, 284, Suppl.,iii, pl. v.—
F. Cuvier & Geoffroy, Hist. Nat. des Mam., I, livr. xii, 1819;
II, livr. xxvii; III, livr. xliv.—G. Cuvier, Reg. Anim., i, 170,
1817 ; Oss. Foss., 8d ed., iv, 117, 1825.

1867. American bison, Agassiz, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xi, 316, 1867.

Buffalo, Cooper, Month. Amer. Journ. Geol., 1831, 174, 207 (remains
at Big Bone Lick).—Knight, Amer. Journ. Sci., xxvii, 166, 1835
(remains at Big Bone Lick).—Lyell, Proc. Geol. Soc. London,
iv, 36, 1843 (remains at Big Bone Lick).

Description.— An adult measures about nine feet (two and three-fourths
metres) from the muzzle to the insertion of the tail, and thirteen and
one-half feet (about four and one-sixth metres) to the end of the tail, in-
cluding the hairs, which extend about fifteen inches beyond the vertebra.
The female measures about six and one-half feet (about two metres) from
the muzzle to the insertion of the tail, and about seven feet (two and one-
sixth metres) to the end of the tail, including the hairs, which extend
about ten inches beyond the vertebre. The height of the male at the
highest part of the hump, is about five and one-half to six feet (about
two metres); of the female at the same point, about five feet (one and
one-half metres). The height of the male at the hips, is about four and
two-thirds feet (nearly one and one-half metres); of the female at the
same point, about four and one-half feet (about one and one-third metres).
Audubon states the weight of old males to be nearly two thousand pounds,
that of full-grown fat females to be about twelve hundred pounds.

The horms of the males are short, very thick at the base, and rapidly
taper to a sharp point, which, in old individuals, becomes worn off on the
lower side, and the end is often shortened by the same process, and .occa-
sionally much splintered. Their direction is outward and upward, finally
curving inward. The horns of the females are much smaller at the base,
but nearly as long as in the males; but they taper very gradually, and are,
hence, much slenderer, and are rather more incurved at the tips, where
they are rarely abraded as in the males. The hoofs are short and broad,

70

those of the fore feet abruptly rounded at the end; those of the hind feet
are much narrower and more pointed. The muffle is broad and naked,
having much the same form as in the domestic ox. The short tail has
the long hairs restricted to a tuft at the end.

In winter the head, neck, legs, tail, and whole under parts are blackish
brown; the upper surface of the body lighter. The color above becomes
gradually lighter towards spring; the new, short hair in autumn is soft
dark-umber, or liver-brown. In very old individuals, the long, woolly
hair over the shoulders bleaches to a light yellowish-brown. Young
animals are generally wholly dark-brown, darkest about the head, on the
lower surface of the body, and on the limbs. The young calf is at first
nearly uniform light chestnut-brown, or yellowish-brown, with scattered
darker hairs on the belly, where are also occasionally small patches of
white. Toward autumn the light yellowish color is replaced by a darker
brown that characterizes the older animals. After the first few months
the younger animals are darker than they are later in life; at middle
age the coat, especially over the shoulders, becomes lighter, and pre-
sents a bleached or faded appearance, which increases with age. The
horns, hoofs, and muffle are black, the hoofs being sometimes edged or
striped with whitish. The woolly hair over the shoulders is much longer,
and more shaggy than elsewhere on the body; it increases in length on
the neck above, gradually losing its woolly character, and between the
horns attains a length of ten to fourteen inches, nearly concealing the
ears and the bases of the horns, and often partially covers the ears. The
long hair advances also on the face, where it decreases in length and
becomes more woolly again, extending far forward in a pointed area nearly
to the nose. The chin and throat are also covered with long hair, which
under the chin forms an immense beard eight or ten inches to a foot or
more in length. Thick masses of long hair also arise from the inner
and posterior surfaces of the upper part of the fore legs, where the hair
often attains a length of six or eight inches. A strip of long hair also
extends along the crest of the back nearly to the tail. The tail is cov-
ered with only short, soft hair till near the tip, from which arises a tuft
of coarse, long hair, twelve to eighteen inches in length. The hinder
and lower portions of the body and legs are covered with a short, soft,
woolly hair. This is moulted early in spring, aftér which, for a few
weeks, the hinder portions of the body are quite or nearly naked. The
shoulders retain permanently the long, shaggy covering, which, with the
long hair of the neck and head, gives them (especially during the moult-
ing season) a singularly formidable aspect.

The female, as already stated, is much smaller than the male, with a

71

less elevated hump; much smaller, slenderer, and more curved horns;
less heavily developed beard; less shaggy head, etc.; but presents no
essential difference in color.

Albinism and Melanism.—Pied individuals are occasionally met with,
but they are of rare occurrence. I have seen but a single specimen, the
head of which, finely mounted, is now in the Museum of Comparative
Zoölogy.

I obtained it from Fort Hayes, Kansas, near which place it was taken
in 1870, where it was regarded as a great curiosity. In this specimen (a
female), the whole face, from between the horns to the muzzle, is pure
white, but in other respects does not differ from ordinary examples.
White individuals are still more rare, but are not unknown. A former
agent of the American Fur Company, who had unusually favorable
oppoitunities of judging, informed me that they probably occur in the
proportion of not more than one in millions, he having seen but fivein
twenty years, although he had met with hundreds of pied ones. Black
ones are rather more frequent, but can only be regarded as rare. The
fur of these is usually much finer and softer than that of ordinary indi-
viduals; and black robes, from this fact and their. great rarity, bring a
very large price. They seem to be more frequent at the northward than
elsewhere.

Varieties.—There are two commonly recognized varieties of the buffalo,
known respectively as the Wood Buffalo and the Mountain Buffalo. The
Wood Buffalo is described by Hind as larger than the Common Bison of
the plains, with very short, soft pelage, and soft, short, uncurled mane,
resembling, in these points, the Lithuanian Bison, or Auroch. It is
said to be very scarce, and to be found only north of the Saskatch-
ewan, and along the flanks of the Rocky Mountains, and to never ven-
ture into the plains. A supposed variety of Bison, referred to by some of
the northern voyagers as occurring north of Great Slave Lake, and
known only from vague rumors current among the natives, is, in all
probability, the Musk Ox (Ovibos moschatus). (J. A. Allen.)

Synonomy and Nomenclature—The American Bison has been known by
the specific name americanus, adopted from Catesby in 1743, coupled with
the generic name of either Bos or Bis nm. It thus forms almost the only
example among North American Mammals of a species that never had
a prominent synonym.

In the United States this species is usually called the Buffalo, and
this term will doubtless never be supplanted. Its correct English name
is doubtless American Bison, the name Buffalo being strictly applicable
only to the genus Bubalus of Africa and India. The English colonists,

72

however, following after Lawson and Catesby, adopted the term Buffalo,
which is now its accepted common name, and no more a misnomer than
is “Rabbit” for the American Hare, or “Robin” as applied to Turdus migra-
torius.

Distribution. —The range of the Bison formerly extended from Great
Slave Lake, latitude 62°, to the north-eastern provinces of Maine, and as
far south at latitude 25°.

In British North America the range extended from the Rocky Moun-
tains to a line running south-eastward from Great Slave Lake to the
Lake of the Woods.

In the United States it extended west of the Rocky Mountains, even
to the Sierra Nevada ranges. Within fifty years it occupied the country
about the headwaters of the Green and Grand Rivers.

East of the Rocky Mountains its range extended southward far beyond
the Rio Grande, and eastward throughout the region drained by the
Ohio River and its tributaries. Its north rn limit east of the Mississippi
was the Great Lakes, along which it extended east ward to near the eastern
end of Lake Erie. It is known to have occurred south of the Tennes-
see and east of tbe Alleghanies, chiefly in the upper districts of North
and South Carolina.

The present range of the Bison is in two distinct and comparatively
small areas—the northern, from the sources of the principal southern
tributaries of the Yellowstone, northward into the British possessions,
embracing an area not much greater than the present territory of Mon-
tana; the southern district is chiefly limited to Western Kansas, a part
of the Indian Territory, and North-western Texas—a region about equal
to the present State of Texas.

The Bison in Ohio.—Mr. J. A. Allen has in his memoir a very detailed
account of the distribution of the Buffalo and the history of its extermi-
nation in the region of the Mississippi, drawn from the early histories
and explorations. Vaudreuil, writing about 1720, in his “Memoirs of
the Indians between Lake Erie and the Mississippi,” speaks of the
abundance of Buffalo on the Sandusky and Onio Rivers. La Hanton, in
his description of Lake Erie, about 1687, says :

““I can not express what quantities of deer and turkeys are to Le fuund in these woods
and in the vast woods that lie upon the south side of the lake. At the bottom of the

lake we find beeves upon the banks of two pleasant rivers that disembouge into it with-
out cataracts or rapid currents.”

Vaudreuil, in 1718, says of Lake Erie :

“ There is no need of fasting on either side of this lake, deer are to be found there in
such abundance. Buffaloes are found on the south, but not on the north shore.”

73

And again:

“Thirty leagues up the river (Maumee) is a place called La Glaise (now Defiance,
Ohio), where buffaloes are always to be found; they eat the clay and wallow in it.”

The eastern limit along the Lakes was probably in Western New York,
in the locality of Buffalo Creek, which empties into Lake Erie. There
are, however, doubtful allusions in earlier writings of its occurrence
along the southern shore of Lake Ontario.

There is ample evidence of the former existence and abundance of the
Buffalo in Northern Ohio; it occurred in other parts of the State. Colonel
John May met with it on the Muskingum in 1788, and Atwater says
“we had once the bison and the elk in vast numbers all over Ohio.”
Hutchins says that in the natural meadows, or savannahs, “from twenty
to fifty miles in circuit,” from the mouth of the Kanawha far down the
Ohio the herds of Buffalo and Deer were innumerable, as also in the region
drained by the Scioto.

Mr. George Grabam, writing Mr. Allen, under date of “Cincinnati,
April 11, 1876,” states:

“ That the last reliable killing of buffalo is taken from the Lacross manuscripts, and
partly from tradition from the lips of the children and grandchildren of those who
were present. Of the French who settled at Gallipolis, Ohio, in 1790, but one person
ever killed a buffalo. This man’s name was Duteil. He was out hunting in the summer
of 1795, about two miles west from Gallipolis, and saw a herd of buffalo. He fired with-
out aiming at any particular one, and luckily killed a large one. He was so elated with
this feat that, without stopping to examine the animal, he ran as fast as he could to the
town, and, having announced his luck, came back followed by the entire body of colon-
ists, men, women, and children. They quickly formed a procession, with musicians
playing violins, flutes, and haut-boys in front of the fortunate hunter, proudly marching
with his gun on his shoulder, and the animal swiuging from poles thrust through between
his tied feet, followed by the crowd, singing and rejoicing at the prospect of good and
hearty fare.

“The animal was quickly skinned and dressed on its arrival at the town, and for sev-
eral days there was feasting, as the first and last buffalo of Gallipolis was served up in
such a variety of ways and means as none but the French could devise; Charles Francis
Duteil remaining until his death the renowned marksman who killed the first and last
buffalo, of all the emigrants from France, who settled the town of Gallipolis.”

In a later communication to Mr. Allen, Mr. Graham adds:

“From all that I know of the early settlement and history of the West, I am under
the impression that the buffalo disappeared from Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky
about the year 1800.”

Hatirpation of the Bison.—The Buffalo was not driven to the westward
by the encroachments of settlements; a few herds may have migrated,
but it is more probable it was exterminated, rather than driven from the
central States.

74

It existed in West Virginia and eastern Kentucky as late, or even
later, than on the prairies adjoining the Mississippi. The animal sur-
vived at most points only a few years after the first permanent settle-
ments were made. Its history east of the Mississippi is not different
from its history in the two small areas to which it is now confined—“a
shameful record of wasteful and wanton destruction of life, like that
which ever marks the contact of man with the larger mammals.”

Mr. Thomas Ashe, in his “Travels in America,” performed in 1806,
speaks of the great abundance and wanton destruction of Buffalo in the
vicinity of Oil Creek and Clarion Creek, Pennsylvania. An old man
informed Mr. Ashe that he and his companion killed several hundred
near a salt spring for the sake of their skins, worth but two shillings
each. The stench was so great they were compelled to leave the place
until the carcasses were devoured or abandoned by wild beasts and birds.

“The simple history of this spring,” says Mr. Ashe, “is that of every
other in the settled parts of this Western World; the carnage of beasts
was eyerywhere the same. I met with a man who had killed two thous-
and Buffaloes with his own hand, and others, no doubt, have done the
same. In consequence of such proceedings not one Buffalo is at this
time (in 1806) to be found east of the Mississippi, except a few domesti-
cated by the curious, or carried through the country as a public show.”

This last statement refers, doubtless, to the Mississippi below latitude
40°; the Buffalo did not retire to the northward of the Illinois River,
according to Breckenridge, until in 1814, and Sibley states, in School-
craft’s Indians, that two individuals were killed in 1832 by the Sioux
Indians on the Trempeleau River, in Upper Wisconsin, and adds:
“They are believed to be the last specimens of the noble Bison which
trod, or will ever again tread, the soil of the region lying east of the
Mississippi River.”

Inasmuch as all the larger species of mammalia are everywhere disap-
pearing as civilization progresses, and as large areas are brought under
cultivation the faunal and floral character of a country are essentially
modified, it seems essential to preserve in the State reports and archives
as full and accurate reports as can be obtained of the earlier conditions
and distribution of animal life in each great faunal area, so that com-
parisons with present conditions and limitations may be instituted, and
the history of the successive changes noted.

With this object in view, I have quoted freely from Mr. J. A. Allen’s
history of the American Bison, and shall introduce here Prof. N. 8.
Shaler’s observations on the age of the Bison im the Ohio Valley, which
constitute Appendix II. of Mr. Allen’s history:

75

“The springs at Big Bone Lick, as at all other licks of Kentucky, are sources of saline
waters derived from the older Palwozoic rocks. The saline materials, as has been sug-
gested by Dr. Sterry Hunt, have their origin in the imprisoned waters of the ancient
seas, cr in the salts derived therefrom, which have been locked in the depths of the
strata below the reach of the leaching action of the surface water. Whenever the rocks
lie above the line of drainage, these salts have been leached away. As we go below
the surface they increase in quantity until we reach the level, where these waters
remain saturated with the materials which existed in the old sea waters. The displace-
ment of these old imprisoned waters is brought about by the sinking down of water on
the highlands through the vertical interstices of the soil and rock and the consequent
tendency of the water below the surface to restore the hydrostatic balance. This action
is ‚particularly likely to occur when the rocks above the drainage are limestones or
shales; while a bed of rock at some distance below the drainage is of sandstone, and
permeable to water.

“This is the case at Big Bone Lick, where, at about two hundred feet below the sur-
face, we have the calciferous sandstone, with a structure open enough to admit the free
passage of water in a horizontal direction. That some such process is at work, is shown
by the fact that the water will rise ten feet or more above the surface of the soil if en-
closed in a pipe. The fact that the reservoir of these waters is below the general sur-
face, causes them to appear in the bottom of the valleys, and the considerable abstrac-
tion of matter from the underlying beds probably amounts to some hundred cubie feet
per annum in the case of Big Bone Lick, causes a depression at the point of escape, and
brings about pretty generally the formation of a swamp in a depressed and constantly
lowering basin, through which the spring water seeps away, and where a large part of
it is usually evaporated. This swamp forms a natural trap for all the higher mammalia
init. When excavations are made near the existing outlets of the springs, we find the
remains of large mammals brought by man, the horse, cow, pig, and sheep.

“In the frequent change of outlet of these springs, it comes to pass that at many
points near the snrface of the thirty or forty acres that lie in the little basin where Big
Bone Lick is found, there are old spring vents, about which bones are found, that no
longer give forth saline waters. It is a fact bearing on the history of the Buffalo, that
their remains about Big Bone Lick are, when found, away from the purest springs, and
never at any depth beneath the surface. In the recent springs they are very abundant,
but not much more ancient in their appearance than the domesticated animals. The
evidence obtained at this point leads to the conclusion that the first appearance of this
species into the country was singularly recent, and also shows that their coming was
like an irruption in its suddenness. These Buffalo bones are wonderfully abundant in
some of the shallow swampy places of this neighborhood. I have seen them massed to
the depth of two feet or more, as close as the stones of a pavement, and so beaten down
by the succeeding herds as to make it difficult to lift them from their bed.

“ As will be seen from the accompanying diagram, there seems to have been some de-
gradation of the surface of this swamp after the deposition of many of the Mastodon
remains, and before the coming of the Buffalo. ;

“This lowering of level was apparently consequent on the down-cutting of the bed
of the small creek that drains the valley. The old elevated beds had probably washed
@ good deal when the Buffalo came, but it was principally by its wallowing and stamp-
ing that the bones of the Mastodon, Elephant, etc., were exposed to the air. At no
point in this old ground did I find a trace of the Buffalo, though in some of it the bones
identified by Mr. Allen as belonging to Ovibos were found. There, too, were found the

76

bones of the Moose and Caribou. I am inclined to believe, from these investigations,
that the Bison americanus did not appear at Big Bone Lick, until a very recent time.

“All the observations made by the Kentucky Survey, in the caverns of the State and
the neighboring district of Tennessee, have led to the discovery of no Bison remains in
these subterranean receptacles, where the bones of the Beaver, Deer, Wolf, Bear, and
many other mammals have been discovered. The observations of the officers of the
survey to be published hereafter, will show that our caves have been used as the homes
of the living and the receptacles of the dead, by more than one of the earlier tribes of
this region, bat they seem never to have brought the bones of this animal to the caves.

“Some years ago, I ventured to call attention to the general absence of the remains
of this animal in all the mounds of the historic races, and to the fact that on their pipes
and pottery, though they figure every other indigenous mammal and some of the birds
of this region, seeking their models even in the Manitee of Florica, 1 have never been
able to find any trace of Buffalo bones in any of the mounds which so often contain
bones of other animals, nor have I been able to ascertain that they have ever been
found in such places. At an ancient camping-ground on the Ohio River, about twelve
miles above Cincinnati, where the remains are covered by alluvial soil of apparently
some antiquity, and where the pottery (hereafter to be figured in the memoirs of the
survey) is rather more ancient in character than that made by our modern Indians, I
found bones of Deer, Elk, Bear, Fox, etc., but none of Buffalo. At a number of other
old camps on the Ohio River, there is the same conspicuous absence of the remains of
this animal. These evidences, negative and incomplete as they are, make it at least
probable that the Buffalo was unknown to the people who built the mounds and pre-
ceded the tribes which were found here by the whites in the seventeenth century. The
same argument warrants us in supposing that the Bison latifrons, with its contempora-
ries, the Musk Ox, the Elephant, and the Mastodon, had vanished before the advent of
this race, or at least before the time of which we have evidence in the fossils already
found.

“T have long been of the opinion, without claiming originality therein, that the
tribes which built the mounds, and shapely, measured forts of this region, were driven
to the southward, by an invasion of other tribes coming from the northward and north-
westward.

“In the memoirs now in preparation concerning the ancient peoples of this region, it
will be claimed, on what seems to Me Lucian Carr, Ethnologist of the Survey, and to
myself, sufficient evidence that these mound-building people were essentially related to
the Natchez group of Indians, and were driven southward by the ruder tribes of the
somewhat related tribes which occupied the northern part of the Mississippi Valley when
we first knew it. All this seems to me to have a possible significance in the problem of
the coming of the Buffalo. When we remember that the Indians north of the Ohio
were much in the habit of burning the forests, and so making open plains or prairies,
and that, as Mr. Allen has well pointed out, the Buffalo cannot penetrate far into the
denser forests, it may be that it was this destruction of forests that laid the way open
to their entrance. The so-called barrens of Kentucky—the southward extension of the
Wabash prairies—give us evidence on this point. As soon as the Indians were driven
away, these Kentucky prairies sprang up in timber, and are now densely wooded. The
same is in part true of other prairies of the Ohio Valley. I am inclined to think that
the forcing back of the timber line from the Mississippi, is principally due to the burn-
ing of the forests by the aborigines in their eastward working, aided by the continual

71

decrease of the rain-fall, which I believe to be a concomitant of the disappearance of the
glacial period.

“The question of the origin of the Buffalo, and its relation to the earliest tribes of
people in this district, is made still more complicated by the fact that there is no doubt
that there was an earlier and closely related species of Buffalo in this district, probably
coeval with the Mammoth and Mastodon, and probably with the Caribou and Elk,
which had doubtless disappeared before the coming of any race of men that has as yet
been identified in this country.

“The succession of events in this region, as far as the species of Bison are concerned,
seems to have been somewhat as follows, viz.

*1. The existence of the Bieon latifrons with the Mammoth and its contemporaries,
the Mastodon, Musk Ox (Boolherium cavifrons, Leidy), etc: This species, like its con-
temporaries, by its size gave evidence of the even climate and abundant vegetation of
the time just following, and probably in part during the glacial period.

“2. The disappearance of this fauna, followed by the coming of a race (mound
builders) that retained no distinct traditions, and have left no art records of the presence
of any of the large animals of the preceding time.

“3. The disappearance of this race from the region north of the Tennessee, proba-
bly leaving representatives in the Natchez group of Indians, followed by the occupation
of the country by a race that greatly extended the limits of the treeless plains to the
eastward, and so permitted the coming of the modern Bison into this region.

“T have long been disposed to look upon the succeeding glacial periods as the most
effective causes of the changes that led to the determination of new specific characters
among animals; and I am strongly disposed to think that in the Bison americanus we
have the descendant of the Bison latifrone, modified by existence in the new conditions
of soil and climate to which it was driven by the great changes closing the last ice age.

“When the exploration of Big Bone Lick is completed, it will doubtless show that
there was an interval of some thousands of years between these two species.”

FAMILY CERVIDE.

These are herbivorous animals, having the stomach in four compart-
ments, of the ordinary ruminant pattern. Dentition: i. $3; c. 47; pm.
3-3; m. 33. Horns deciduous, solid, more or less branched, developed
from the frontal bone, covered, at first, by a soft, hairy integument (velvet).
When the horns attain their full size (which they do in a very short
time), there arises at the base of each a ring of tubercles known as the
“burr”; this compresses, and finally obliterates the blood-vessels supply-
ing the integument, which dries up and is stripped off, leaving the bone
hard and insensible; the horns are sexual characters, wanting in the
female, excepting in the Reindeer (and very rarely in the Common Deer,
C. virginianus) ; they are usually present in the male; they are shed an-
nually, the separation of the beam from the pedicel taking place just
below the burr.

The Cervidz are a widely distributed family, few regions being without
one or more peculiar species; a notable proportion are found in the New

78

World. Eight or nine species are found in North America alone. There
are three sub-families recognized, the Cervinz,with canines small or none
including tiae Moose, Reindeer, and Common Deer, and constituting the
greater partof the family; the Cervaling, with the canine tooth of the male
enlarged and tusk-like, and the Moschin&, or Musk Deer, of the Old World.
without horns. The two species, here treated cf, fall in the first ot
these three sub-families.
KEY TO GENERA OF CERVIDS.

* Horns, in males only, large, curving backward, with the snags all directed forward,
one of them immediately abeve the burr; tail very short; hoofs broad and rounded :
size very large; muffle very high, and not separated from the lip by a hairy band;
a tuft of hair on outside of hind leg above middle of metatarsus. . . CERVUS.

“* Horns in males—rarely found in females; muzzle broadly naked. Horns rather small,
curving forward; first snag short, some distance above the base, and like the others
curving upward. Tail rather long; hoofs rather elongate. Fur shorter and fulv-
ous in summer, longer and grayish in winter. A narrow, short, naked, glandular
space on the outer side of the metatarsus. . R ‘ B ‘ » CARIACUS.

Genus Cariacus Gray.

This Genus includes the Mule Deer, or Black-tailed Deer, C. macrotis
(Gray), of the Rocky Mountain region, C. virginianus macrurus (Raf.)
Coues, the White-tailed Deer, of general distribution in the West, associ-
ated in most of its ranges with the Black-tailed Deer, the Dwarf Deer
of Arizona, C. virginianus, var. cowest Rothrock, MSS., and the true C
virginianus, east of the Missouri, and north to Maine.

CARIACUS VIRGINIANUS (Bodd.) Gray.
VIRGINIA DEER; Rep DEER.

1784. Cervus virginianus, Beddaert, Elench. An., i, 1784, 136.—Zimm,,
Penn. Arkt. Zoöl., 1787, 31.—Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 179.—
Kerr’s Linn., 1792, 299.—Schreb., Säugt., v, 1836.—Shaw, Gen.
Zoöl., ii, 1801, 284.—Desmarest, Mamm., ii, 1822, 442.—Harlan,
F. Am., 1825, 238.—Godman, Am. N. H., ii, 306.—Doughty’s Cab.
N. H., i, 1830, 8; pl. i, male, female, young.—De Kay, N. Y.
Zoöl., i, 1842, 113; pl. xxviii, f. i—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb.,
iv, 1844, 373.—Aud. & Bach., N. Am. Quad., ii, 1851, 220; pl.
lxxxi,cxxxvi—Pucheron, Mon. Du Cerf., Arch. du Mus,, vi, 1852,

305.
Distribution.—This is the best known and most abundant of the Ameri-
can Deer. According te Audubon and Bachman, it is not found north of
Maine, from which limit it extends over the whole United States east of

the Missouri river.
Ti ig sti) Sund in+he mocntains of New York, Pennsylvania, Mary-

a 79

land, Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky, and even further south. On
the Upper Missouri, and west, the Virginia Deer is replaced by an allied
race, the White-tailed Deer, Cariacus virginianus macrurus (Raf.) Coues.

More northern specimens of the Virginia Deer are larger than those
further south ; the Deer of the southern seacoast and its islands are smaller
than those of the uplands and mountains of the same latitude.

The Virginia Deer is rarely met with in Ohio at present, except as
domesticated in parks.

Description of this well-known animal seems unnecessary here, especi-

ally since the publication of Judge Caton’s treatise on the Antelope and
Deer of America.

Genus Cervus Linneus.

Generic characters as given in the Key to Genera,

CERVUS CANADENSIS Erxleben.
WaPITI; OR AMERICAN ELK.

1756. Cervus canadensis, Briss., Quad., 1756, 88.

1777. Cervus elaphus, var. canadensis, Erxl.,Syst., 1777,305.—Bodd., Elench.
Anim., 1784, 135.

1809. Cervus wapiti, Barton, Am. Philos. Trans., vi, 1809, 70.

1815. Cervus major, Ord, Guthrie’s Geog., 2d Am. ed., 1815.

1827. Cervus (Elaphus) canadensis, Griff, An. King., v. 1827, 308.

1835. Cervus canadensis, Schreb., Säugt., v, 1835, 990, pl. 246, A.—Desmar.,
Mamm., ii, 182, 433.—Harlan, Fn. Amer.. 1825, 236.—Godman,
Aw. Nat. Hist., ii, 1831, 294.—Maxim.. Reise, ii, 1839, 24, 84.—
Gray, P. Z. S, 1850, 226.—Giebel., Säugt., 1855, 348.-—Baird,
Mamm., N. A., 1857, 338, f. 9 and 10.

1836. Cervus strongyloceras, Schreb., Säug., v, 1836, pl. 247, F, G.—Rich.,
Fn. Bor. Am., i, 1829, 251.

1842. Elaphus canadensis, De Kay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 118, pl. 18, f. 2—
Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., ii, 1851, 84, pl. 62.—Baird, Agric. Rep.
U.S. Pat. Office, 1851-2, 116.

Specific Characters.—Hoofs short, broad and rounded. Tail short and
depressed. Larmiers nearly as long as eye; naked portion of the muz-
zle inferiorly only half as wide as the septum of the nostrils. No naked
glandular space on the outer edge of the hind-legs, but a short, whitish
patch of hairs near the upper part of the metatarsus.

In summer, ground color light chesnut-red, darkest on the neck and
legs; throat and median ventral line dusky, almost black. Chin dusky,
with a narrow patch of light-yellowish on either side; a broad, median,

80

yellowish patch under the head. Rump yellowish+white, bordered by a
dusky band, which extends down the posterior face of the hind-legs;
winter colors more gray.

The Elk ranges in northern latitudes from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
Northward, it extends, according to Richardson, as far as the 57th par-
allel. Baird remarks (1857) that the only well-ascertained eastern locali-
ties are the Allegheny regions of Pennsylvania and Virginia; the fact
of its occurrence in New York being very uncertain. It is still found
in the vicinity of Green Bay, Wisconsin (B. H. Van Vleck), in Minnesota,
the Yellowstone region, and west. ‘Their occurrence in Ohio, and also
their comparative abundance, is attested by their remainsand by authentic
parties. From “History of Ohio,” by C. Atwater, 1888, I quote: “ When
Circleville was first settled the carcasses, or rather skeletons, of fifty in-
dividuals of the family of Elk lay scattered about on the surface.” Also,
by same author: “We had an abundance of Deer, and they are common
yet in the newer parts of the State. They are the common Red Deer.”

The prevalence uf Elk is noticed in 1760, in what is now Clark county.
“Historical Collections of Ohio,” by Henry Howe, Cin., 1848,” Also,
in the History of State of Ohio, Taylor, 1854, Journal of Maj. John
Rogers, Jan./ 1761, is found: “Killed in our march this day three hears
and two elk.” (Voyage along Coast of Lake Erie.)

As to their extermination the following is taken: “A History of
Athens County, Ohio—Walker, 1869,” page 112: ‘The buffalo and elk
were not exterminated until about the year 1800.”

Hildreth states that “the Indians had not quite exterminated the
buffalo and the elk,” (1797.)

And from Dr. Kirtland’s Report on Mammals, in Geol. Survey of Ohio,
1838: “The Elk was frequently to be met with in Ashtabula county
until within the last six years. I learn from Col. Harper, of that county,
that one was killed there as recently as October of the present season.”

SUPER-ORDER INEDUCABILIA.
ORDER CHIROPTERA.

The Bats have the anterior members adapted for flight ; the humerus
is long and slender, the ulna rudimentary, attached to the curved radius,
which constitutes the bulk of the forearm ; the carpus is composed of six
bones ; the metacarpal bones, five in number, are much elongated, as are
the phalanges, which are two to five in number—usually two. The
bones of the arm and hand support a thin, leathery skin, arising from
the sides of the body and extending backwards on the hind members
down to their tarsi, and including the tail. Tail usually of nine joints;
the interfemoral membrane may or may not include the tip of the tail.
The nervous system is highly developed, especially the special senses of
hearing and touch. The ears, externally and internally, are highly per-
fected. The auricles of the insectivorous Bats are frequently much larger
than the head, and of great variety of shapes, their variations in form
being of great importance in classification. The nose is, in many Bats,
the seat of extensive dermal growths, composed of reduplications of the
skin, which probably act conjointly with the wing-membranes to aug-
ment the sense of touch. The skeleton is noted for its lightness and
tenuity, the bones of the Little Brown Bat weighing but eleven grains.
The teeth vary from thirty to thirty eight, which, combined with the
marked differences in their contour, furnish important characters in
classification. The sternum is of great strength and excessive develop-
ment, the immense power employed in their active flight necessitating
the presence of stıong osseous points for the attachment of muscles. The
whole structure is adapted to the habits of the animal. The great devel-
opment of the ribs, sternum, and scapula, for the attachment of muscles
of flight; tne length and strength of the clavicle, and the long bones of
the anterior extremity fulfill an obvious purpose. The digestive appa-
ratus is simple, corresponding to their animal regimen. Some foreign
species are strictly frugivorous; our species subsist on insects, mainly
the crepuscular and nocturnal kinds, as Gnats, Moths, Mosquitoes, and
even the heavily mailed Coleoptera.

“The disappearance of the birds of day,” says Dr. Allen, “is a signal
for the advent of the dusky host, which, as it were, temporarily relieve
from duty their more brilliant rivals in guarding the interests of Na-

ture.”
6

82

The relations of this order.of mammals to superstition, while no legit-
imate part of the present history, is very interesting, and is here tran-
scribed from the facile pen of Dr. H. Allen:

“Attendant as they are upon the quiet hours of twilight, when the thickening gloom
is conducive to the development of superstitious feeling, Bats have always been associ-
ated with ideas of the horrible and the unknown. In olden times, when the imagina-
tion of the people exceeded the aceuracy of their observations, it was one of the
numerous monsters inhabiting their caverns and forests. It has done service in many a
legend; its bite was fatal; it was the emblem of haunted houses; its wings bore up the
dragon slain by St. George; its image is-rudely carved upon the tombs of the ancient
Egyptians; the Greeks consecrated it to Proserpine; it is part of the infernal potion of
the witches of Macbeth, while Ariel employs it in his erratic flights. In art, its wings
‚have entered largely into the creation of those composite horrors—evil spirits ; nor have
modern artists escaped the absurdity of encumbering the Satan of Holy Writ with like
appendages. Bat of this association with the monstrous, the intelligent observer ceases
to take note, when the finer beauties of structure develop themselves under his gaze.
Upon acquaintance, he learns that in anatomical and physiological peculiarities, and
zoölogical position, the Bat is a subject for study worthy the attention of the most con-
‘emplative.”

FAMILIES OF CHIROPTERA.

* Bats without upright appendage on the nose. (Gymnorhina.)
t Nostrils sub-elliptical; wing-membranes ample ; tail completely enclosed in the in-
terfemoral membrane, or the final joint only in some instances exserted.
VESPERTILIONIDE.

FAMILY VESPERTILIONIDA.

The above characters separate our largest family of North American
Bats from the free-tailed Noctilionide, which have the nostrils circular,
the alar membrane narrow, and the tail either much longer or shorter
than the interfemoral membrane; also, from the single North American
species of the Leaf-nosed Bats, Phyllostomatidx, which are readily recognized
by the upright appendage surmounting the rostrum. The latter family
is represented by the Leaf-nosed Bat, Macrotus waterhousii, Gray, of the
West Indies, Mexico, and the southern border of the United States.

GENERA OF VESPERTILIONIDE.
* Cheeks without excrescences; ears moderate.

2

. 2
+ Incisors =. . ‘ ‘ ‘ 2 R Fi ‘i . VESPERTILIO.

-3
. 1-1
tt Incisors 5-5 - ¥ ; ä 4 ¥ s 4 ä ‘ ATALAPHA,

Genus VESPERTILIO (Linn.) Auct.

Vespertilio, Linn., of authors.

Scotophilus, Leach, Trans. Linn. Soc., xiii, 1822, 71.—Allen, Monog., 27.
Vesperus, Keys. and Blas., Wirb. Eur., 1840, 49.

Vesperides, Coues, antea.

83

Generic Characters. -Dentition: i. 3%; c. 1-4; m. 4:4, or 3:3, or 33, or £:8
teeth in all, 32, 34,36,or38. Known from all othersof the family by the four,
instead of two, upper incisors. Four sub-genera are based on the vary-

ing molar dentition. Our species fall in the sub-genus Vesperus (m. 2-8),

VESPERTILIO SUBULATUS Say.
LitTLE BROWN Bar.

1828. Vispertilio subulatus, Say, Long’s Expl R. Mts., 1823, 65.—Harlan,
Fn. Am., 1825, 22.—Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829, 3.—Godman, Am.
Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 71.—Cooper, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., 1837, iv, 61.—De
Kay, Nat. Hist., N. Y., 1842, 8—LeConte, Proc. Phila. Acad.,
1855, 436.—H. Allen, Monog., 51.—J. A. Allen, Bull. Mus. Com.
Zoöl., i, 210.—Id., Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xvii, June, 1874.—
Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 22.—Coues and Yarrow, Geog. and
Geolog. Exp]. and Surv. West 100th Merid., v, 1875, 96.

1835. Vespertilio cavoli, Ten. m., Monog., ii, 1835, 236.

——. Veszertilio domesticus, Greene, Cab. Nat. Hist., ii, 290.

Specific Character. — Length 3 inches, often less; expanse of wings, 8 to
9; tail about 1.50; fore-arm equal tail; longest linger 2 to 2.56; ear usu-
ally .40, but from .30 to .75. Molars $-$; teeth 38 in all; upper incisors
paired off close to canines, a median space intervening; middle pair
markedly bifid, the lateral ones obscurely or not so; lower canines with
small basal cusp posteriorly; first two upper premolars small, last one

arger, compressed, and bicuspid, the large outer cusp longer than any
point of the true molars; lower premolars small, especially the two front
ones. Skull thin and papery, crestless, with inflated cranial, and prolonged
rostral part, giving a small face, high forehead, pointed muzzle, and foxy
or terrier-like physiognomy. Face moderately whiskered. Ears rather
large, oval in general contour. Tragus about half as high as auricle;
upright, or nearly so; lanceolate. Extreme tip of tail more or iess obvi-
ously exserted. Interfemoral membrane naked on dorsal surface, except
a triangular patch of fur at its base, continuous with the covering of the
back. Wing-membranes naked, very delicate, thin, almost diaphanous;
usually rather brown than blackish. Fur dark plumbeous at base; at
tip varying from quite dark to yellowish-brown, usually palest on the belly.

The Little Brown Bat is one of the two most abundant North Amer-
ican Bats. Dr. Coues states that as many as ten thousand, by actual
count, have been destroyed in one building. The same author in-
cludes in this species several forms described either by Dr. Allen, Le-
Conte, or others, as distinct species. Two varieties of ordinary subulatus,
however, are recognizable: one, evotis, slender, with large ears and pointed
snout ; the other, lucifugus, stout, with smaller ears and blunted snout.

84

VESPERTILIO NocTIVAGANS. LeConte.
SILVER BLACK Bar.

1831. Vespertilio noctivagans, LeConte, McMurtrie’s Cuv., i, 1831, 33.—
Cooper, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., iv, 1837, 59.—De Kay, Nat. Hist. N. Y.,
1842, 9, pl. i, f. i—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., v, 1855, 754.—Jor-
dan, Man. Vert., 1878, 22.

1831. Scotophilus auduboni, Harlan, Month. Am. Jour., i, 1831, 220, pl. 2.—
Med. and Phys. Res., 1835, 30, pl. 4.

1835. Vespertilio pulverulentus, Temm., Monog. Mamm., ii, 1835, 235.—
LeConte, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1855, 435.—Maxim., Arch. Naturg.,
1861, 192

——. Scotophilus noctivagans, H. Allen, Monog., 39.—J. A. Allen, Proc.

Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xvii, 1874.

1857. Vespertilio (Vesperides) noctivagans, Coues and Yarrow, Geog. and
Geolog. Expl. and Surv. West 100th Merid., v, 1875, 95.

Specific Characters.—_Length 3; extent 12; tail 1.25 to 1.50; shin 50;
arm 1.50; longest finger 2.75; ear .50; tragus about .16. Molars 2% (only
species with 36 as the total number); central upper incisors bicuspid.
‘Skull flat; not crested; two shallow depressions anteriorly. Base of foot
without the rounded lateral swelling of Vesperus. Tragus short, broad,
and blunt; hardly or not one-half as high as auricle. Ear irregularly
oval, inner border running upward and inward to level of head, then
upward and outward, ending obtusely ; outer border below folded irregu-
larly, bending inward so as to touch the tragus. Snout naked; nostrils
wide apart; opening sub-laterally; space between emarginate. Fem-
oral membrane entirely, though scantily, furred on dorsal surface, with
numerous minute tufts arranged linearly on central surface. Thumb
small, slightly furry. Fur long and silky; black, or nearly so; the
ends of the hairs usually white or whitish, giving a peculiar powdery
aspect ; sometimes entirely black.

This species inhabits North America at large. It is said to be related
to V. discolor, of Europe. Its dentition and peculiar coloration charac-
terize it distinctly. Mr. J. A. Allen gives it as common in Massachu-
setts; Dr. Allen limits it to the middle regions of North America. Like
most of the family, however, it is doubtless of general and extensive
‘distribution.

VESPERTILIO (VESPERUS) FUSCUS Beauvois.
CaROLINA BROWN Bar.

1796. Vespertilio fuscus, Palisot de Beauvois, Cat. Peale’s Mus., 1796, 14.—
LeConte, Proc. Phil. Acad., 1855, 434.—Jordan, Man. Vert.,
1878, 23.

85

1806. Vespertilio carolinensis, Geoffroy St. Hilaire, Ann. du Mus., 1806, viii,
193, pl. xlvii, f. 7.—Harl., Fn. Am., 1825, 9—Godman, Am.
Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 67.—LeConte, McMurt. Cuv., i, 1831, 431.—
Cooper, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., iv, 1837, 60.—DeKay,N. Y. Fn., i, 1842,
pl. 2, f. 1.—Desm., Mam., i, 1820, 136.—Temm., Man., ii, 1835,
237.—LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1855, 434.—Wag-
ner, Suppl. Schreber, v, 1855, 753.—Woodhouse, Sitgr. Rep.
Zufii and Col. Rivers, 1854, p. 43.

1818. Vespertilio phaiops, Rafinesque, Am. Month. Mag., 1818, 445.—Le:
Conte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1855, 434.—Wagner, Suppl.
Schreber, 1855, 756.

1823. Vespertilio arcuatus, Say, Long’s Exped , 1823, 167.

1835. Vespertilio ursinus, Temm.. Mon. Mamm., ii, 1835, 235.—LeConte,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1855, 434.

1875. Vespertilio (Vesperus) fuscus, Coues and Yarrow, Geog. and Geolog.
Expl. and Surv. West 100th Merid., v, 1875, 92.

Scotophilus carolinensis, Allen, Monog., 28.

Specific Characters—Length 3 to 4; tail 1.33 to 1.50; extent 10 to 12;
longest finger 2.66 to 3; arm 1.50 to 2; ear about .50 in height; molars
37-Sront upper one narrowest, the front lower ones smaller than the
other three ; incisors $3—lateral upper pair smaller than central pair;
base of foot with a rounded swelling; tip of tail exserted; wing-mem-
brane reaching base of toes; no extension of fur on the wing membrane;
leg membrane furred at basal fifth on upper side, elsewhere more or less
perfectly naked ; ears moderate, furred one-half to one-third up the back,
turned more or less outward, with convex inner and straight or slightly
emarginated outer border, and well developed basal lobe; tragus nearly
half as high as auricle, its tip never pointed, outer border notched near the
base; nostrils emarginate; head flat; hairs dark-plumbeous, or dark-
cinereous on the basal part, a variable shade of brown at the ends, and
usually lighter on the under surface of the body than on the upper.

Distribution —Reported from widely separated localities in the United
States; from Cincinnati by Mr. F. W. Langdon. -

Genus ATALAPHA Rafinesque. ,

Atalapha, Nycticejus, Lasiurus, Rafinesque.

Nycticejus et Lasiurus, Allen, Monog., 11.14.

Generic Characters—Adult dentition: 1. 3.5; ¢ 72; m. $3 (subg. Nycti-
cejus), or 3:3 (subg. Zasiurus)=30 or 32 teeth. The variable tooth is the
anterior premolar, absent in Nycticejus, present in Lasiurus, but minute
and liable to be overlooked, as it is hidden by the approximation of the
next premolar to the canine.

€

86

The above characterization, by Dr. Coues, includesja group of bats
agreeing in the absence, when alult, of median upper incisors, and so
differing from the species of Vespertilio. Regarding the name Atalaphe,
the same author says: “Among Rafinesque’s names we adopt Atalapha,
which he says contains ‘bats without fore teeth” (i. e., lacking the mid-
dle upper incisors)—an expression, it is true, not accurate, but still in-
telligible; and, in the case of this writer’s work, we have generally to
choose between inaccuracy and unintelligibility, excepting when what
he says is both erroneous and enigmatical.”

ATALAPHA (LASIURUS) NOVEBORACENSIS (Erxl.) Coues.
Rep Bat; New York Bar.

1777. Vespertilio noveboracensis, Erxleben, Syst. Anim., 1777, 134.—Har-

lan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 20.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 68.
— Cooper, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., 1837, 57.—D2Kay, Nat. Hist. N. Y..
1842, 6, pl. ii.—LeConte, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1855, 432.

1788. Vespertilio lasiurus, Gmelin, S. N., 1788, 50.

1796. Vespertilio rubellus, Beauvois, Cat. Peale’s Mus., 1796.

1806. Vespertilio villossisimus, Geoffroy, Ann. Mus., viii, 1806, 478.

1817. Vespertilio monachus and tesselatus, Raf., Am. Month. Mag., iv, 1817,
445.

1825. Taphyzous rufus, Harlan, Fo. Am., 1825, 23.

1829. Vespertilio blossevillii, Less. et Garn., Bull. Sc. Nat., viii, 95.

1831. Nycticejus noveboracensis, LeConte, McMurtrie’s Cuv., 1831, 432.

1835. Nyeticejus varius, Poeppig, Reise Chili, i, 1835, 451.

1842. Lasiurus rufus, Gray, List. Mamm. Br. Mus., 1843, 32.

1855. Nycticejus lasiurus, Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., v, 1855, 772.

1857. Lasiurus noveboracensis, Tomes, Proc. Zodl. Soc., 1857, 34—Allen,
Monog., 16.

1875. Atalapha (Lasiurus) noveboracensis, Coues and Yarrow, Geog. and
Geolog Expl. and Surv. West 100th Merid., v, 1875, 87.

- Red Bat, Wilson; New York Bat, Pennant.

Description.—Length about 3.75 inches; tail 1.75 to 2.00; extent of
wings 1050 to 12.00; shin .75; arm 1.66; longest finger 3.88 ; ear .33 to .50
high. Teeth 32; molars $; front upper premolars hidden by being
wedged between the next and the canine ; upper incisors small, strongly
convergent ; lower ones crowded ; lower canines pointing backward. Tail
entirely included in femoral membrane ; head and face hairy ; nose blunt,
rounded, with semı-lateral nostrils. Ears nearly circular ; tragus half as
high as auricle, straight on inner border, the end obtuse and abruptly
tuıned. Wings furry in patches; body fur extending to base of third

87

finger ; a conspicuous white tuft at the shoulder, and another at the base
of the thumb. Femoral membrane above densely furry, like the back;
under surface one-half furred. Fur long and silky; each hair plumbeous
at base, then yellowish-brown, passing to reddish or chocolate, and usually
white at the tip. Males bright yellowish-red; females have the light
red replaced by dark russet, with the whitish tips longer than in the
males. .

Regarding the abundance, movements, and general appearance of the
Bats in general, and particularly of our two most abundant species, I
transcribe the following, evidently from the pen of Dr. Coues, in Chapter
II, Volume V, of the Explorations and Surveys West of the One Hun-
dreth Meridian:

“Tn most portions of the United States the Red Bat is one of the most abundant,
characteristic, and familiar species, being rivaled in these respects by the Little Brown
Bat alone. It would be safe to say that in any given instance of a Bat entering our
rooms in the evening, the chances are a hundred to one of its being either one or the
other of these two species. The perfect noiselessness and swiftness of its flight, the ex-
traordinary agility with which it evades obstacles, and the unwonted shape, associated
in popular superstition with the demons of the shades, conspire to revulsive feelings
that need little fancy to render weird and uncanny. But the Bat is no ghost; on the
contrary, a substantial, compact little creature of flesh and blood, much like a Mouse
with wings, completely animal to the tips of its ears and tail; an erratic, yet busy little
hunter for insects out on the fly after bugs attracted to our apartments, not by the light
as some suppose, but simply in pursuit of its prey, which is attracted by the light.
When captured, which may not be until far on in a breathless attack with brooms, tongs,
and hats, duriug which the furniture is upset and the lamp, perhaps, put out, the little
animal will be found a reddish, furry, flat creature, with membranes of exquisite deli-
cacy, folded on each side like half of a tiny umbrella, of which the tremendous long
fingers’are the stick ; humpy about the shoulders, sloping down to a furry expanse be-
hind, with a piggish little head, twisting all ways at once, on a stumpy neck; mouse-
like ears, standing straight up; funny, little, snapping, black specks of eyes; and an
open countenance indeed—for the mouth is deep, bristliag with fine, needle-like teeth,
while from the throat comes a sharp, squeaky barking of anger, and perhaps defiance, if
we can suppose such a pigmy to have so great a soul. Such is the simple creature that
excites emotioual persons to fancies not wholly lacking an element of terror; and the
utmost damage it could do the clumsy giants, its captors, would be a prick from its tiny
teeth—pretty sure to be given to an incautious finger tip.

“An anecdote, illustrating a tender trait of this animal, has been related by Mr. Titian
Peale. A person had caught and taken home a young Red Bat. ‘Three hours after-
ward, in the evening, as he was conveying it to the museum, in his hand, while passing
near the place where it was caught, the mother made her appearance and followed the
boy for two squares, flying around him, and finally alighted on his breast, such was her
anxiety to save her offspring. This faithful creature lived two days in the museum, and
then died of injuries received from her captor. The young one, being but half grown,
was still too young to take care of itself, and died shortly after, ”

88

ATALAPHA (LASIURUS) CINEREUS (Beauv.) Coues.
Hoary Bar.

1796. Vespertilio cinereus, Palisot de Beauvois, Cat. Peale’s Phila. Mus.,
1796, 14.—LeConte, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1855, 433.

1823. Vespertilio pruinosus, Say, Long’s Expl. R. Mts., 1823, 67—Harlan,
Fn. Am., 1825, 21; Med. and Phys. Res., 1831, 23.—Godman,
Am. Nat. Hist., i, 1831, 68, pl. 2, f. 3—Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829, 1.
—Coop., Ann. Lye. N. Y., iv, 1837, 54.—DeKay, N. Y. Fn., i,
1842, 7, pl. 2, f. 2.

1835. Nycticejus pruinosus, Temm., Mon. Mamm., 1835, 154.—Wagn.,
Suppl. Schreb., i, 1840, 544; v, 1855, 70.

1838. Scotophilus pruinosus, Gray., Mag. Zool. Bot., ii, 1828, 498.

1857. Lasiurus pruinosus, Tomes, P. Z. S., 1857, 37.

Lasiurus cinereus, H. Allen, Monog., 21; J. A. Allen, Bull. Mus

Comp. Zoöl., ii, 208.

1875. Atalapha (Lasiurus) cinereus, Coues, Report upon Geog. and Geolog.
Expl. and Surveys West of 100th Merid., chap. ii, vol. v. 1875,
90.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878.

Dentition as in A. noveboracensis. Size larger; length 4 to 5.50; tail 2
2.33 ; extent 10 to 15 inches, averaging 12 to 14; ear .33 to.50. Lips and
ears marked with black ; body colors rich chocolate-brown, or smoky-fawn
color, overlaid with white, giving a brilliant, hoary appearance.

This is the only Bat known to inhabit the northern regions, as ob-
served hy Kennicott. It is distributed over North America at large, but
is most abundant in elevated regions and northern latitudes. Since
1823, it has generally been known by Say’s name, V. pruinosus. Major
LeConte showed it to be identical with V. cinereus, Beauvois, and restored
the prior name.

Mr. F. W. Langdon informed me that a specimen of this Bat, in the
collection of the Cincinnati Society of Natural History, was captured at
Coal Springs, Kentucky, three or four miles from Cincinnati.

Atalapha (Nycticejus) crepuscularis, (LeConte) Coues, may occur in southern
Ohio, as it is reported from Pennsylvania to Missouri, and south-west.

ORDER INSECTIVORA.

Key TO FAMILIES OF INSECTIVORA.

* Molar teeth multicuspid, with the cusps connected by deep re-entering ridges, which
describe two elongated triangles, and with at least one extensive antero-internal
ledge. Skuli with the calvarium wide; broadest about the periotic region, with
the foramen magnum sub-circular or oblong; the occipital condyles variously di-
vergent, with the par-occipital processes obsolete or wanting. Pelage very soft.
(Soricoidea as opposed to Erinaceoidea.)

89

+ Skull with the posterior ridges obsolete ; foramen magnum oblong, and inclined far
forwards below; with no distinct post-glenoid process; with the tympanic element
forming a bulla; intraorbital canal an extensive transverse aperture, arched over
by a very narrow, osseous bar; zygomatic arch aslender rod; lower jaw with the
ascending rami erect, and without cavities at the bottoms of the coronoid processes.
molar teeth with the postero-internal ledge obsolete or wanting. Cervical vertebrae
with no hypapophyses; dorsal and lumbar with no hyperapophyses. Sternum with
manubrium broad and keeled. Anterior members developed more than the poste-
rior; with carpus more or less enlarged, and at least with an os intermedium.
Scapula long and narrow. . . . . . . . . . TALPIDE.

rt Skull with the posterior ridges well developed; the foramen magnum sub-eircu-
lar, and inclined little forwards below; with a well developed post-glenoid process ;
with the tympanic element ainular, not forming a bulla; infraorbital canal a rather
long sub cylindrical tunnel, covered by a very broad, osseous wall; zygomatic arch
not developed. Lower jaw with the ascending rami deflected outwards, and each
with a cavity at the bottom of the coronoid process. Molar teeth with a postero-
internal ledge armed with a cusp at its antero-internal angle. Vertebre charac-
teristic ; cervical with weli developed hypapophyses; dorsal and lumbar with dis-
tinct hyperapophyses. Sternum with the manubrium broad but ecarinate. Ante-
rior members more slender than the posterior; with carpus normal, having no sickle-
shaped bone or os intermedium; scapula short and broad. . j SORICIDE.

FAMILY TALPIDE.

In addition to the dental and skeletal characters already given in the
Key to the Families of Insectivora the following external characters are
added: Body stout, thick, and clumsy, without visible neck ; limbs very
short; the anterior much broader and larger than the posterior ; provided
with strong claws, adapted for digging. Scapula as long as the humerus
and radius together. Eyes small; sometimes concealed by the integu-
ment. No external ears; the meatus sometimes minute, and sometimes
of ordinary size. Nostrils at end of snout, lateral or superior. Tail
usually short; sometimes as long as the body. Fur usually soft, com-
pact and velvety.

A family of general distribution, except in tropical regions and in
South America. Each region has its characteristic genera. Talpa is
found in Europe and Asia; Scalops, Scapanus, Condylura, and Urotrichus,
in America; the last named genus occurs, also, in Japan, and is the only
insectiverous genus known to be common to both hemispheres. Talpa is
not found in America, although Scapanus brewert has been mistaken for
Talpa europea.

Genus ScaLops Cuvier.

Etymology: Skalops, mole, from Skallo, to dig.

Scalops, Cuv., “Legons d’ Anat. Comp. i, 1800.

This genus, as characterized by Cuvier, included Moles, with the nose

90

elongated, and not fringed; the nostrils superior or lateral; eyes hidden;
tail short ; teeth 36 or 34; the two anterior upper on3s unusually large,
and somewhat like those of a rodent.

Pomel, in 1848, separated a genus, Scapanus, the claims of which to
generic rank are now fully conceded, for the group with 44 teeth, retain-
ing the name Scalops for the species with 36 teeth. In Scalops the two
lateral incisors on each side above are small, thread-like, and often de-
ciduous; in Scapanus all the teeth in both jaws in front of the last pre-
molar, except the broad anterior upper incisors, are of nearly equal size,
conical, the upper with the points rounded off, the lower more compressed
and with the points more acute. In Scalops the tail is nearly naked; in
Scapanus the tail is densely hairy.

Prof. Baird, in 1857, admitted three species of Scalops; S. argentatus,
Ohio, and west; S. aquaticus, the weli-known species of the eastern United
States, and S. latimanus of Mexico. The latter is shown by H. Peters as
equivalent to S. aquaticus, or to the western form, S. aquaticus, var.-argen-
tatus (Aud. and Bach.), so Scalops stands represented by one species and a
geographical race. In the genus Scapanus, Pomel, are two well-defined
species; S. townsendi the Oregon Mole, and S. breweri, the Hairy-tailed
Mole of Connecticut and New York to Cleveland, Ohio. Condylura cris-
tata (L), the Star-Nosed Mole, and Urotrichus gibbst of-the Western Coast,
complete the series of American Talpide.

ScaLops Aquaticus Fischer.
COMMON EASTERN MOLE.

1758. Sorex aquaticus, Lin., Syst. Nat., 10th Ed., i, 1758, 53.—Erxleben,
Syst. Reg. Anim., 1771, 123.—Schreber, Säugt, iii, 566, table
108.—Boddaert, Elenchus Anim., 1784, 124—Gmelin, Syst. Nat.,
i, 1788, 112.

1771. Brown Mole, Penn., Syn. Quad., 1771, 314.

1777. Talpa flavescens, Erxleben, Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777, 118. (From
Pennant.)

1800. Talpa purpurascens, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl. Mamm., i, 1800, 521.

1820. Scalops canadensis, Desmarest, ‚Mam., i, 1820, 155.—Harlan, Fauna
Am., 1825, 32.—Woodruff, Am. Journal Sc., xxviii, 1835, 168.
(Habits.)

1829. Scalops aquaticus, Fischer, Syn., 1829, 249, —Bachman, Bost. Jour.
Nat. Hist., iv, 1843, 28 —Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841, 103.—
Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. A., i, 1849, 81, pl. 31.—Jordan, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 25.

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1842. Scalops argentatus, var. argentatus, Aud. and Bach., Journal Acad.
Nat. Sci., Phila., viii, 1842, 292; N. A. Quad., iii, 1653, 252, pl.
el., ££ 4—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., v, 1855, 573.—Kennicott,
Pat. Of. Rep. Agric.. 1857, 97”. (Description and habits.)

Specific Characters Average length from nose to root of tail 44 inches;
of tail to end of vertebra .95 inch; hand .85 inch; foot .75 inch; width
of palm exceeds its length, and varies from .60 to .90 inch as the extremes.
Eyes and ears excessively minute; the eyes not covered with integu-
ment, a minute orbital opening being apparent. Muzzle long and de-
pressed; snout truncate at an angle of about 45°; on this surface are the
antero-superior nostrils; the flexible snout extends nearly three-eighths
of an inch beyond the upper jaw. The tail is nearly naked. Color dark
plumbeous, with occasionally a brownish tinge; feet, tail, nails, and
snout are of a light flesh-color. The hind feet are rather slender and
weak, but this is made up by the great size of the spade-like hands,
nearly an inch in breadth, attached by short, strong arms to robust
shoulders. Feet not under the body, but standing out at the sides edge-
wise with the palm. In short, the whole form—the set of the limbs,
great ahodidiern, short arms, broad hands and fossorial claws, united with
the extraordinary muscular strength of the animal—adapt it to its
method of ploughing through the soil, where it seems to travel as easily
ason the surface. The earth seems scarcely less dense when one of
these animated little ditchers is seen ‚gliding along, not over, but literally
through, the meadows, leaving his well-arched viaduct behind him, than
does the water in the adjacent streams before the thrust of some sharp-
nosed and large-finned darter or sun-fish.

Variety argentatus.—T his form was established by Audubon and Bachman,
“after some hesitation and doubt” (Quad. N. A., iii, p. 253), and admitted by
Baird, who, however, questions “whether the two can, with entire pro-
priety, be separated.” Dr. Coues, as already stated, regards it as no more
than a geographical race of S. aquaticus, and states that “none of the
ascribed characters are diagnostic.” Among the assigned characters of
this form are the greater size, slenderer head, more elevated nostrils,
eyes entirely covered by the integument, proportionally larger ears, and
especially the soft, dense, and glossy silvery grey fur, which reflects, in
different lights, “ tints of silver, purple, and bronze.”—Kennicott. Both
forms are to be found in Ohio, as I am informed by Mr. Langdon. Prof.
Baird gives the habital of argzntatus as from Detroit west.

History and Habits —The most noticeable feature of this animal is its
fore feet, short legs, and robust shoulders, adapting it to plough through
the soil.

92

“In motion the fore feet are thrust forward at the sides, with
the edges answering to the thumb of a man’s hand, placed downward,
and the nails taking hold in the earth; the body is drawn along with
ease and rapidity, as a row-boat is propelled by oars, the hind legs carry-
ing the posterior parts. Those I have observed burrowing through un-
broken soil appeared to loosen the earth in front with the long snout,
and then to thrust it aside with the fore feet by the same movement
which carried the body forward, the ground being raised above by the
upward pressure of its powerful head and shoulders. The snout was
kept in constant motion, undoubtedly as much in search of food as to
loosen the particles of earth for the passage of the body.”—Kennicott.

The mole constantly furrows the ground in search of insects which it
usually finds within two or three inches of the surface. It rarely goes
deeper, unless in winter or very dry weather, when the insects are deeper.

It is not known that this mole departs from its insectivorous habits
Kennicott observed that specimens kept in confinement ate sparingly of
potatoes and lettuce, but died in three days, while others, kept in barrels
of earth in which both vegetables and softened and dry corn were abund-
ant, died- without eating them.

It is not probable that this species does any injury to vegetation ; they
rather protect it by destroying noxious insects, and much of the mis-
chief attributed to them is done by the various Arvicole and Spermophiles.
On certain English farms the Mole (Talpa europea) is regarded as a ben-
efit, especially to grass lands and pastures. Our species is usually noc-
turnal, sometimes found moving on cloudy days, and very early or very
late on pleasant days.

The nest is of soft grass or leaves, usually under a log or stump, nearly
a foot, or even more, below the surface. From five to nine young have
been observed; the gravid female has been observed in February; young
have been observed the last of May, and also in July. It is active in
winter, and if the above statements are exact, there are probably two
litters produced annually.

Genus Scapanus Pomel.

Scalops, Cuvier, Lecons d’ Anat. Comp., i, 1800.

Scapanus, Pomel,* Archives Sc. Phys, et Nat., ix, 247, 1848.—Gill,
Synop. Insect. Mamm.—Bull, U. 8. Geol. Surv., 2d Ser., No. 2, pp. 91-
120.—Jordan, Manual Vertebrates, 1876, 25, First Edition.

*Nora.—Ce troisiéme genre diftére des scalops par la position laterale et non supérieure
de /’ouverture des narines, et par la formule dentaire comprenant une intermédiaire
supérieure et trois inferieures de plus. Les especes sont: Scapanus Townsendii et Bre-
wert (Seal. Townsendü et Breweri, Bachm.)” Archives sc. Phys. et Nat., ix, 247, 1848,

93

Generic Characters.—Dental formula: i. 32; c. 4-4; pm. 44 ; m. Ig—=2!=
44. Teeth of both jaws, anterior to last premolar (excepting the broad
anterior upper incisors), are of nearly equal size, conical, the upper ones
with the points rounded off; the lower more compressed, and with the
points more acute. The premolars increase in diameter from first to
third, though of equal length; the fourth is much larger, and triangular in
section. Externally, there is a small acute lobe on the anterior edge of each
premolar, and on all the molars close to the base of the crown; a similar
lobe on the inner edge of the cortesponding tecth of lower jaw. The
molars are in close contact ; the teeth of upper jaw anterior to molars are
separated by diastemata. Lower incisors nearly equal; second not larger
than the first. The nostrils are near the end of the muzzle, either lateral
or superior. The tail is more or less hairy.

SCAPANUS BREWERI (Bach.) Jordan,
HAIRY-TAILED MOLE.

1843. Scalops breweri, Bachman, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1841, 41.—
Ib., Bost. Journal Nat. Hist., iv., 1843, 32.—Wagner, Weigman’s
Archiv., 1843, ii, 31.—Ib., Suppl. Schreb., v, 1855, 573.— Aud. &
Bach., N, A. Quad., ii, 1851, 173, pl. i, xxiv.

1857. Scalops (Scapanus) breweri, Baird, Mamm., N. A., 1857, 68.

1876. Scapanus breweri, Jordan, Manual Vertebrates, 1876, 25; 2d Ed.,
1878, 25.

Specific Markings—A specimen in alcohol measured 1,65 inches from
tip of nose to occiput, 4 inches t« root of tail; tail 1.05 inches; tail to
end of hairs 1.25 inches; length of hand .72 inch; of foot .75; breadth
of palm .55 inch. The body is rather more slender than Scalops aquaticus.
The head is rather pointed and elongated, owing to the great develop-
ment of the muzzle, which projects about one-third of an inch beyond
the incisors. The muzzle is depressed, tapering to a rounded truncate
tip. There is a broad groove on the under side from the incisors to the
bulb of the nose, which is terminal and smooth. The remainder of the
muzzle is wrinkled and corrugated. Nostrils open on the sides of the
terminal bulb; they are slightly visible from above, but not from be-
neath. The eye is minute and covered with skin; it is a little back of
the angle of the mouth, and midway between the tip of the snout and
the occiput. There is no external ear; the auditory opening is an oval
cavity about one-twelfth of an inch in diameter, situated just above the
insertion of the arm. The tail is thick and blunt at the end, entirely
and densely covered with rigid hairs about one-sixth of an inch long.
The third finger is longest; the second about the same size, but not as

94 |

long; the fourth smaller and shorter; the first is larger than the fifth.
The palms are about as broad as long, exclusive of the claws; these are
long and fossorial, and much larger than those of the hind feet. The
hind feet are narrower and weaker than the fore, although about the
same length. The under surfaces of all the feet are perfectly smooth,
the upper with scanty hairs; there is a ciliated border of short hairs
about the posterior and lateral margin of the palm. The fur is long and
full, the longest hairs on the back measuring .35 inch. Above the fur is
a dark ashy, plumbeous from the roots, glossed with ashy brown; this
ashy brown tinge is more decided beneath, and extends more towards
the roots; towards the chin there is a slight tinge of reddish brown. The
hairs on the sides and extremity of the tail are tipped with silvery.

Prof. Baird mentions a specimen from Cleveland, presented by Prof.
Kirtland, which had the tail almost entirely white, and the fur with
whitish patches distributed irregularly over the body. Prof. Baird gives
the distribution of this species as from Connecticut and New York to
Cleveland, Ohio. Mr. F. W. Langdon has a specimen in his collection,
taken by J. W. Shorten, at Rome, Adams county, Ohio, in May, 1877.

FAMILY SORICIDA.

In addition to the characters already given, based principally on the
teeth and skeleton, the following more appreciable external characters
are selected:

The Shrews are Mouse-like Insectivora, distinguished by an elongated
and pointed muzzle, extending some distance beyond the incisor teeth,
and ending in a naked cartilaginous muffle, with the nostrils pierced in
the sides. The eyes are minute, and usually hidden in the fur, but are
apparent on close examination. External ears are developed, with two
inner lobes protecting the meatus; one lobe is formed from the antit-
ragus, the other by the helix. The feet are five-toed, each toe with a
distinct claw;.the fore feet are little, if at all, broader than the hind feet ;
feet nearly plantigrade, and naked beneath. The external cars and
smaller anterior feet readily separate the Shrews from the Moles.

Besides the above, the stomach is simple; the cecum wanting; liver
five-lobed, with a gall-bladder ; the right lung four, and the left one-lobed.
There is a peculiar glandular organ near the fore legs, on each side,
wanting or small in the female or young, and much developed in the
male during the breeding season. “The peculiar odor, more or less
musky, of Soricide, is due to the secretion of these glands, and makes
the Shrew-Mouse unacceptable as food to the cat that may have killed
it.” (Owen.)

The teeth vary from 28 to 32; there are two large incisor teeth in each

95

jaw, directed nearly horizontally forward; the upper much curved, and
forming a hook; the lower straighter, and with the cutting edges lobed.

They are an abundant and widely distributed family, remarkably vora-
cious, feeding on worms, insects, and mollusks, sometimes destroying
small vertebrates and readily devouring each other. They are chiefly
nocturnal; some species of Neosorex are aquatic. The young, at birth,
are naked and blind. None hibernate, but all are about in the coldest
weather.

The Shrews are represented in America by three genera; Sorex (L ),
the most generalized type, also occurring in the Old World; Neosorex
(Bd.) includes the Water Shrews, and is peculiar to North America,
where it replaces Crossopus, of the Old World; Blarina, the most charac-
teristic American genus, bas no exact Old World analogue.

All are small and difficult to study. Measurements of such small ani-
mals are often fallacious. Color variation , due to age, sex, season, or
geographical distribution, have furnished data for worthless species;
moreover, the tail and lips, and possibly the feet, undergo extraordinary
changes at the rutting season, so that such terms as “ pachyurus,” “ longi-
rostris,” “ platyrhynus,” are of doubtful implication. Perhaps no family
of North American mammals, of equal abundance, is so little known.
Their nocturnal and subterranean life, combined with a shy and wary
disposition and diminutive size, often baffles the attempt of the natural-
ist to study.their habits, or even to secure specimens of the known
species.

Contributions to our knowledge of American insectivora, since Profes-
sor Baird’s treatise in 1857, are mainly due to Dr. Gill—“ Synopsis of
Insectivorous Mammals,” < Bull. U.8. Geol. and Geog. Surv., 2d ser.,
No. 2, pp. 91-120, May 14, 1875; to Mr. J. A. Allen—* Catalogue of the
Mammals of Massachusetts, with a Critical Review of the Species,” Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zoöl., Cambridge, i, No. 8, pp. 143-252, 1863; to Dr. Elliot
Coues—“ Precursory Notes on American Insectivorous Mammals, with
Descriptions of New Species,” in which several new sub-genera and
species derived from Professor Baird’s MSS., written in 1861, are brought
out, and other species described by Dr. Coues, based on material not at
that time available.

Genus Barina Gray.

1851. Blarina, Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1851. (Type Sorex talpoides,
Gapper.)

Generic Characters.—Teeth 82 or 80 (73 sub-genus Blarina, Gray, emend. ;
18 sub-genus Soriciscus, Coues). Ears small, the parts directed forward so

96

as to show no opening or appearance of a concavity of auricle. Tail
short; scarcely or not as long as the head; haired, with a small terminal
pencil. Fore feet broad, palms naked, claws enlarged. Body stout; the
species ranging from the largest to the smallest of American Shrews.

In the sub-genus Soriciscus occur most of the species, and among them
the smallest Shrews in America. Sorex parva, Say, the type species, and
Blarina exilipes, Baird, extend north to the Ohio, and possibly may occur
in Ohio.

Biarins (BLARINA) BREVIcAUDA Baird.

SHORT-TAILED SHREW:

1823. Sorex brevicauda, Say, Long’s Expd., i, 1823, 164.—Harlan, Faun.
Amer., 1825, 29.—Bachman, J. A. N. Se. Ph., vii, 1837, 381.—
Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., iii, 1854, 335.

1836. Sorex talpoides, Gapper, Zoöl. Jour., v, June, 1830, 208.

1837. Sorex dekayi, Bach., J. A. N. Sc. Ph,, viii, 1837, 377.—Aud. & Bach.,
Q.N. A., iii, 1853, 246 (original description).

1857. Blarina talpoides, Baird, Mam. N, A., 1857, 37.

1857. Blarina brevicauda, Baird, Mam. N. A., 1857, 42.

1877. Blarina (subg. Blarina) brevicauda, Coues, Precursory Notes on
American Insectivorous Mammals.—Jordan, Manual of Vertes
brates, 1876, p. 26, 2d ed., 1878, 352 (addenda).

Description of Species.—Size large; 34 to 4 inches from nose to root of
tail; tail 1 inch; tail to end of hair 14 inches; hind foot ~,; extent of
snout beyond teeth 7. Form compact, with the head broad and massive.
Tail short, about as long as the head, cylindrical, slightly depressed, naked
at root, flesh-colored, thinly clothed with short, brownish-drab hairs, ter-
minated by a pencil. Fur dense and soft, plumbeous at the base, tipped
with glossy leaden-brown on the back, and lighter on the belly. Teeth
tipped with brown, becoming glossy dark-brown at the points uf the in-
cisors. The snout is flesh-color, the lobes brown. The minute black eye
is visible in life, the opening through the skin being the size of a small
pin-hole. The auricle is directed entirely forward, and fits exactly against
the opening of the ear; on lifting it the other parts are seen well devel-
oped. The hands are as wide or wider than the feet; palms and soles
naked and sextuberculate.

Geographical Distribution.—Range great—from eastern Nova Scotia to
Lake Superior, and west to Nebraska ; southward, through Pennsylvania,
to Columbus, Georgia. South of Pennsylvania it is replaced by the
smaller B. carolinensis, if, indeed, the two species are not identical, in
which case its southern range is extended from South Carolina to Missouri.

97

Specimens 817-8 in the Smithsonian Institution were collected by Dr.
Kirtland, at Cleveland, Ohio, and 2,140-3 by E. Newton, at Salem, Ohio.
(Blarina talpoides, Baird, Mamm. N. A., 1857, 42.)

History and Habits.—This is the largest, or one of the largest American
Shrews; it is active and strong; the snout and head are powerful, and
apparently much used in burrowing. It does not burrow under the
ground continuously, as does the Mole, but passes along under the grass
or leaves, seeking its food, occasionally inclining downwards under the
soil, for a foot or more, and then coming to the surface. It does not dig
out the earth, but presses it aside, descending beneath obstructions that
come in its way, rather than going around them. This is the most
abundant of our Shrews, abounding both in woods, meadows, and prairies.
In some large areas it is impossible to find a foot-square not crossed by
the net-work of well beaten, leaf-covered galleries made by this Shrew
in its search for slugs, earth-worms, and the like. They are difficult to
get, escaping quickly when once unearthed. They are found at any
season lying dead on the earth, left uneaten by birds or carnivorous
beasts on account of the disagreeable odor emitted from the body glands.
Its traces are not found in swamps or sloughs; it prefers high ground,
and is in no sense aquatic. It it active in the coldest weather in winter,
like others of the family in the north. From Mr. Kennicott’s interest-
ing notes on the habits of this species in confinement, I quote the fol-
lowing:

“While alive, the minute black eye is distinctly seen, and always open; but, though
the sense of sight may be possessed in the dark, it certainly is not used in the full light.
Upon waving different objects before one, or thrusting my finger or a stick close to its
face, no notice was taken of it whatever; but if I made any noise near by, it always
started. If the floor were struck, or even the air disturbed, it would start back from
that direction. I observed no indication that an acute sense of smell enabled it to
recognize objects at any considerable distance, but its hearing was remarkable. An ex-
ceedingly delicate sense of touch was exhibited by the whiskers, and if, after irritating
a Shrew, I placed a stick against it in even the most gentle manner, the animal would
instantly spring at it. I could see that in running along the floor it stopped the moment
its whiskers touched anything; and, often when at full speed, it would turn aside just
before reaching an object against which it seemed about to strike, and which it certainly
had not seen. Unless enraged by being teased, it endeavored to smell every new object
with which its whiskers came in contact, turning its long flexible snout with great fa-
cility for this purpose. My caged specimens, both male and female, exhibited great
pugnacity. When I touched, one several times with a stick, it would become much en-
raged, snapping and crying out angrily. When attacked by a Meadow Mouse confined
in a cage with it, one fought fiercely; and though it did not pursue its adversary when
the latter moved off, neither did it ever retreat; but the instant the Mouse came close,
it sprang at him, apparently not guided in the least by sight. It kept its nose and
whiskers constantly moving from side to side, and often sprang forward with an angry
ory, when the mouse was not near, as if deceived in thinking had heard or felt a

98

movement in that direction. In fighting, it did not spring up high, nor attempt to leap
upon its adversary, as the Mouse, but jerked itself along, stepping firmly, with the fore
feet well forward and the head high. On coming in contact with the Mouse, it snapped
at him, and, though it sometimes rose on its hind feet in the struggle, I did not observe
that it used its fore feet as weapons of offense, like Arvicola. Its posture, when on
guard, was always with the feet spread and firmly braced, and the head held with the
snout pointing upward and the mouth and chin pointing forward, in which position its
eyes would have been of no use could it have seen. The motions of the animal, when
angry, are characterized by a peculiar firmness; the muscles appear to be held very
rigid, while the movements are made by quick, energetic jerks. Short springs, either
backward, forward, or sideways, appear to be made with equal readiness.”

None of the specimens kept captive lived more than a day or two, al-
though well cared for. They would not leave the sides of the wall or
cage and cross the middle, but run around the sides; unless sharply
chased, they would not jump over an ear of corn in the way, but ran
around it. When hurt, this Shrew utters a short, tremulous note ; when
much enraged, this note becomes longer, harsher, and twittering, like
that of some sparrows. Occasionally, a short, clear cry is uttered, softer
and lower, but not unlike that of the Common Mink.

BLARINA (SORICISCUS) PARVA Say.
LEAST SHREW.

1823. Sorex parvus, Say, Long’s Expedition, i, 1823, 164.—Harlan, Fauna
Am., 1824, 29.—Bachman, J. A. N. Sc. Ph., vii, 1837, 394.

1887. Sorex cinerea, Bachman, J. A. N. Sc Ph. vii, 1837, 378; pl.
xxiii, f. 3.

1878. Blarina (Soriciscus) parva, (Say) Jordan, Manual of the Vertebrates,
2d ed., 1878 (addenda, page 353).

Specific Characters—Body rather stout; feet small; head two-thirds the
length of the foot; foot little more than half the length of skull; tail
thin, shorter than the head. Head and body about two and one-half inches
long; tail .75 inch; hind foot about .42. Color above, iron-gray, glossed
with dark olive-brown ; beneath, light-ash, or brownish-gray ; tail bicolor,
in harmony with the bodyareas. Dentition: 1-7; pm. 5:3; m. $3—1$—80,

Distribution.—Southern States; north to Pennsylvania; also, at Irving-
ton, Indiana (Dr. D. 8. Jordan). Occurring at Carlisle, Pennsylvania,
‚and in central Indiana, this species most probably is found in southern,
or even central Ohio. I give it not asa known resident of Ohio, but as
‚a species without reasonable doubt occurring there.

The specimen in Dr. D. S. Jordan’s collection, taken at Irving
ton, Marion county, Indiana, is somewhat flattened by pressure, and
has the back part of the skull crushed. The body is rather slender,

99

the muzzle elongated, the snout distinctly bilobed, and the nostrils
lateral; the openings are nearly circular, and not visible from above.
The whiskers are white; the longest are half an inch; there are about
thirty on each side. The muzzle and chin are nowhere naked, but are
covered with whitish, rather rigid hairs, less than one-sixteenth of an
inch long. The ears are short, and concealed in the fur. The auricl3
covers the opening; on lifting it the edges of the antitragus and anti-
helix are seen to be ciliated at the edges with appressed, white, short
hairs; anterior face of ear naked, posterior covered with fur. The body-
fur is rather loose and short; on the back the longest hairs measure a
little more than two and one-half lines. The tail is one-half inch to end
of hairs ; about five lines to end of vertebre; it is slender, nearly terete,
well clothed with hairs, has no distinct pencil. ‘The tail is darker above
than below; on the anterior side the hairs are granular from an ap-
parently white substance resembling dried gum arabic, which is attached
to the ends of many of the hairs; this is evidently an abnormal condi-
tion of the specimen. The feet are rather broad and full; the hinder
are once and a half the length of the front. The feet and hands are well
covered above with white, shining, appressed hairs; both are naked be-
low; all the toes and fingers have well developed claws, at the bases of
which are red spots, formed, evidently, by the accumulation of blood af-
ter death. The three middle fingers are longest, and nearly equal ; the
same is true of the toes. The first finger is larger than the very small
thumb; the end of its claw extends to penultimate joint of second finger.
The feet have six tubercles; on the hands I can discern but five.
The fur is lead color at base, then light iron-gray, and tipped with olive-
brown; the under parts are of a lighter tint of brownish-gray or light-ash ;
the feet and hands are white, and the tail indistinctly bicolor. Length
of head and body 2} inches, hind feet .40 inch, tail a little less than 4
inch. The teeth have black tips; the upper anterior incisor is hooked ;
it has a second hook on the cutting edge, a little in front of the base, its
point even with the succeeding teeth. The large upper and long front in-
cisors approach each other at an angle to near the tips, but do not touch;
they have no internal lobe. The first and second premolars are about
equal; the third is about half the length and size of the two anterior.
There is a slight diastema between the third lateral tooth and the first
molar. The last molar is scarcely visible from the outside. The lower
anterior incisors have each two slight crenulations; they are stout,
curved for the anterior third; the front two-fifths are jet-black, and are
united to the ivory-white posterior portion by a reddish-brown band;
their bases extend back under the bases of the first two lateral teeth.

100

The small reddish-black tipped cusp, plainly seen on the inside of each
molar, is very small on the first three lateral teeth. As the specimen
becomes thoroughly dry, the line of demarcation between the lower and
upper fur of the animal is plainly visible.

ORDER RODENTIA.

Incisors 3; (exceptionally 3, there being two supplemental posterior
teeth); teeth encased in N and continually reproduced from per-
sistent pulps, and growing in a circular direction ; canines none; molars
attypically with ridged surfaces. Lower jaw with condyles in longitu-
dinal furrows. Members and feet adapted for walking. Placenta dis-

coidal deciduate.
Kry To FAMILIES OF RODENTIA.
* Incisors 3; tail well developed.
t Hair forming a fur without spines.
a. Tail broad, fiat and scaly; feet webbed; molars + 3%; body stout and

heavy. . R 5 . x CASTORIDE.

aa. Tail and hind a oe a the latter adapted for leap-
ing; molars 3%. R : 7 : P R ZAPODIDE.
aaa. Tail usually long and hairy; molars 23, or 42. F SCIURIDE.

t+ Fur with stiff spine-like bristles; toes with long curved claws. SPALACOPODIDZ.
* * Incisors 3 ; the middle upper incisors large, grooved, the outer ones small; teeth 28;
tail very short; ears long. ; & n “ a 3 8 ‘i LEPORIDE.

FAMILY SCIURIDE.

Family Character. —Dental formula: i. 34; pm. 32 or Ek}; m 38 = 4
or 43. Upper front premolar often deciduous; the last four grinding
teeth of nearly equal size. Post-orbital process well developed, either
short, pointed, and triangular, or long, slender, and much decurved.
Palate broad and flat, extending back of last molar. Feet scansorial or
fossorial, body generally elongate, tail always well haired.

The variations in color, size, and general form, are very great, and the
number of well-defined species is very much less than was once supposed.

Species of the family are found in all continental lands except Aus-
tralia; they are most numerous in the Northern Hemisphere.

Of the eight genera admitted by Mr. J. A. Allen, Sciurus is nearly cos-
mopolitan, Cynomys is restricted to the parks and plains of the Rocky
Mountain plateau, Pteromys to the tropical portions of Asia, and Xerus to
Africa. Arctomys, Tamias, Spermephilus and Sciuropterus are found through-
out the temperate and cold-temperate regions of the Northern Hemis-

phere.
Representatives of five genera are found in Ohio, as is shown in the

accompanying key.

101

The Squirrels as a group are arboreal; they nest in trees, eat the fruits
and buds of trees, and rarely go to the ground except for food. They
have a light and graceful but muscular form; their nails are strong and
sharp; they climb and leap with the greatest ease, aided by their large
and bushy tails, which support and steer them while in the air. The
fore feet are prehensile, the Squirrel seizing and holding its food with
its hands, standing on the hind feet while eating. Except the Flying
Squirrels, they are diurnal, keeping in the trees at night, and usually
for a few hours in the middle of the day. The fur is nearly valueless;
the flesh properly cooked is excellent food. As a group they are timid,
readily domesticated, active in confinement, becoming agreeable and in-
telligent pets. Their main food is nuts, although they take insects at
times, and are often so fond of the cereal grains as to be a nuisance to
farmers. Indeed in 1749 Pennsylvania paid $40,000 from the public
treasury in premiums for the destruction of Squirrels. From the nature
of their retreats, and natural activity, they evade the attacks of rapacious
animals. Preying birds, reptiles, Wild Cats, and Martens at times cap-
ture the young, ana rarely the old. Man is their worst enemy, although
some species are most abundant in the nioneer settlements.

Key TO THE GENTE A OF SCLURIDA.

» A densely furred membrane along tr+ sides between anterior and posterior limbs;

tail depressed, flattened, densely ‘urred; perman@nt molars 5-5 above.

: SCIUROPTERU
* * Sides without membrane specially modified.
t+ No cheek pouches; tail bushy, at least as long as body; ears long; no black
stripes along the back.. 5 5 - P a 5 5 5 SCIURUS.
+ t Cheek peuches present.

t Back with three to five distinct black stripes; tail shorter than body, not

bushy ; cheek pouches well developed. B : . . Tamias,
tt Not as above; body rather slender, squirrel like; cheek pouches well de-
veloped; claw of thumb rudimentary or wanting. SPERMOPHILUS,

t tt Body large, thick-set, depressed ; cheek pouches shallow; thumb rudimen-
tary, armed with a small flat nail, not a claw; soles naked.
: ARCTOMYS.

GENUS SCIUROPTERDS. F. Cuvier.

Etymology: Greek, Skiouros, a Squirrel; Pteron, a wing.

Sciurus, Linn., (in part) and of early authors generally.

Pteromys, G. Cuvier (in part), and most recent authors.

Sciuropterus, F. Cuvier, Ann. du Mus., x, 1825, 126, pl. x. (Type, Sci-
urus volans, Linn.)

Generic Characters.—Skull short, broad, highly arched, in general form,
a miniature of Sciurus hudsonius, but the supra-orbital notch deeper,

102

and inter-orbital region more constricted, the orbital fosse, auditory
bulle, and ears longer. Premolars, two; the first minute. Limbs united
by a furred membrane, which is an expansion of the skin of the sides of
the body, supported in front by a slender bone articulating with the
carpus, and directed backwards. Tail two thirds as long as head and
body, broad and flat, longer hairs directed laterally, thus serving as a
rudder in their flight-like leaps, and with the special membrane support-
ing the body in air in their short flights from tre to tree. Sciuropterus
may be regarded as a modified form of Sciurus, possessing rudimentary
powers of flight, through the support of the parachute-like expansion of
the skin of the sides of the body and the broad, flat tail. Pelage dense,
soft, and furry; ears large, in conformity with their nocturnal habits.
Colors, some soft, dull shade of brown above, and whitish beneath.
Animals of small size, and crepuscular or nocturnal habits.

This genus is represented in North America by a single species of wide
distribution; Sciwropterus volans takes its place in Europe; several species
occur in Asia.

SCIUROPTERUS VOLUCELLA (Pall.) Geoff.
Var. volucella Allen.
SOUTHERN FLYING SQUIRREL.

1743. Sciurus volans, Catesby, Carolina, ii, 1748, 76, 77, pl. lxxvi, lxxvii.—
‘Brisson, Quad., 157.—Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 88 (in part).

1788. Scvwrus volucella, Pallas, Nov. Spec. Glires, 1788, 351, 353.—Gmelin,
Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 153;—Schreber, Säugt., iv, 1792, 808, pl.
ccxxii.—Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., ii, 1801, 155, pl. civ.

1818. Pteromys volucellw, Desm., Nouv. Dict. Hist. Nat., xxvii, 1818, 406;
Mamm., ii, 1822, 343.--Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 187.—Griff,
Cuv., v, 1827, 259.—Fischer, Syn. Mamm., 1829, 365.—Godman,
Amer. Nat. Hist., ii, 146.—Yarrell, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond.,
1830-1, 38 (anatomy).—“D. W.C.,” Loud. Mag. Nat. Hist., ix,
1836, 569 (habits).—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840, 69.—Thomp.,
Hist. Vermont, 1842, 47.—DeKay, Zoöl. N. York, i, 1842, 65, pl.
xvi, fig. 2—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., iii, 1843, 231—Schinz, Syn.
Mamm., ii, 1845, 54.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., i, 1849, 216,
69, pl. xxviii—Kenn., Pat. Off Report Agric., 1856-57, 69, pl.
viii.—Baird, Mamm. N. A, 1857, 286—Thomas, Trans. Ill.
Agric. Soc., iv, 1860, 657.—Hall, Canadian Nat. and Geol., 1861,
292 —Cooper, Proc. Cal. Acad., ii, 1861.—Tomes, Proc. Zoöl. Soc.
Lond., 1861, 281 (Guatemala). — Maximilian, Wieg. Arch. f. Na-
turgesch., 1861, 77.— Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 224.—
Gilpin, Proc. and Trans. Nova Scotia Inst. Nat. Sei., ii, pl. ii ,

103

1870, 12.— Adams, Field and Forest Rambles, 1873, 99, 296 (New
Brunswick).—Perkins, Amer. Nat., vii, 1874, 132 (habits in con-
finement).

1828. Sciurvpterus volucella, Geoffroy, Dict. Class. Hist. Nat., xiv, 1828,
132.—Jordon, Man. Vert., 1878.

1874. Sciuropterus volucella, var. volucella, Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist ,
‘xvi, 1874, 189; Bull. Essex Inst., vi, 1874, 66; Mon. N. A. Ro-
dentia, 1877, 655.

Specific Characters.—Size varying with locality; head and body ranging
in adults from 7.50 to 4.75 inches; tail vertebre from 5.00 to 3.50; tail,
with hairs, from 6.50 to 4.25, and even less.

Yellowish-brown to pale reddish-brown above, white to creamy white
below, with sometimes pale rufous; tail above usually darker than back—
decidedly blackish in some northern forms.

History and Varieties of Species—The Flying Squirrels were separated
from ordinary Squirrels in 1800, by G. Cuvier, under the generic name
Pieromys.

In 1825, F. Cuvier separated the small Flying Squirrels of Europe and
North America from the others, under the name Sciuropterus, calling
attention to the cranial and dental differences, as well as to the evident
difference in size and shape of tail.

The wide geographical variation in size has led to the recognition of
several species in North America. Prof. Baird, in 1858, with few speci-
mens at hand, hesitatingly admitted four species—volucella, hudsonius,
alpinus, and oregonensis.

Mr. J. A. Allen, in Monographs of North American Rodentia, recog-
nizes one species with two varieties. The synonymy of var. volucella is
given above.

Sciuropterus volucella, var. hudsonius, Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xvi, 1874, 289, is the northern form known as Sciurus hudsonius, Gmelin,
1788; Pteromys hudsonius, Fischer, 1825; Sciurus sabrinus, Shaw, 1801;
Pteromys sabrinus, Rich., 1828; Pteromys alpinus, Wagner, 1843; Greater
Flying Squirrel of Forster, 1772, etc.

The northern form is large, with the tail dusky to dark, and the gen-
eral color of the body above less yellowish ; it grades insensibly into the
Southern Flying Squirrel. “There is,” says Mr. Allen, “no break in the
sequence from north southward, either in size, color, or other characters,
by which the group can be subdivided either specifically or varietally.”
The recognition of a northern and southern sub-species is almost entirely
arbitrary.

The alteration in average size with the latitude already referred to in
the case of the Virginia Deer, nearly all species of extensive north

104

and south range becoming smaller to the southward, prevails decidedly in
the Sciuride, and the Flying Squirrel is no exception.

Description and Habits.—The following description and measurements
are from Robert Kennicott’s Report on the Quadrupeds of Illinois, in the
Report of the Commissioner of Patents, 1856:

“Length of old male in March, from nose to root of tail, 44 inches; vertebra of tail, 3
inches; tail to end of hair, 374 inches; breadth of tail in natural position, 14 inches ;
width across back, including fur and flying membrane, 4 inches; length of supplemental
bone supporting membrane, $ inch,

“This is certainly the most beautiful of our roients In the specimen before me, the
long and exquisitely soft fur is slate colored, tipped with creamy-yellowish drab on the
back ; the top of the tail brownish drab; on the under surface milk-white, tipped with
cream color at the outer edges of the membrane and toward the tail, the under surface
of which is very light brownish-yellow, tinged with cream.

‘The large, prominent eyes are black and lustrous; the whiskers long, and the nearly
naked ears rather large. ‘The tail is densely clothed with soft hairs, and smoothly flat-
tened ; the feet are slender, with small, arched nails. The skin on the side is extended
outward to form a membrane, which is attached to the legs, and to a supplemental slen-
der curved bone, articulating with the joint of the foot. When this membrane is
stretched, the animal is enabled to sail throngh the air to some distance by the force
gained in descending from any elevated position, being aided in this by the flattened
tail, which also serves as arudder. It is not to be supposed, however, that the flying
squirrel can propel itself through the air like a bird or bat. The tail and membranes
only form a sort of parachute to buoy it up, while the force gained by the descent, and
by the spring made, carry it forward. When it is about to light it sails upward by using
the tail and hinder parts as a rudder, the momentum acquired being sufficient to raise it
for some height at a considerable curve.”

The habitat of the Flying Squirrel fs strictly among the trees; it does
not move about by day, except in cloudy weather. I have seen them in
the late evening sailing from the top of one tree trunk to the base of
another, but never on the ground. It is gregarious, assembling in hol-
low trees, from which as many as a dozen will dart when the sides of
their retreat is thoroughly thumped. Its food is similar to that of other
squirrels. A pair, kept in confinement under the observation of the
author, made their nest in a crayon-box placed over a bay window. In
the evening they would come to the floor and take up any kind of nuts,
ends of ears of pop-corn, and similar food, which was packed away in the
box in excess of their daily meals. Their favorite amusement was to
jump from the highest point of the transoms directly toward occupants
of the sitting room, suddenly veering to the right or left when almost in
one’s face, and alighting on the floor or furniture at the opposite side of
the room. The female joined with the male in these amusements until
in April when, heavy with young, she became sluggish. The young,
four in number, were brought forth in the drawer of the library table, at

105

which some of the family sat every evening. The mother was very
much annoyed, and even alarmed when the drawer wasclosed during her
temporary absence. The male was not admitted to the drawer, but kept
to the box. Finally, the whole family escaped from an open window
and took to the woods, or fell a prey to their natural enemies; although
Kennicott relates that the species has been known to take up its resi-
dence, voluntarily, in and about human dwellings. Be that as it may,
we never saw our gentle and beautiful pets again.

Genus Scıuruvs Linnzus.
Etymology: Skiouros, a squirrel (Ski—shade ; oura—tail.)
Sciurus, Linnzus, Syst. Nat., 10th ed., 1758, and authors.
Maeroxus, F. Cuvier, Dict. Sci. Nat., x, 1818.
Rhinosciurus, Gray, Cat. Mamm. Brit. Mus., 1843, 195.
Rheithrosciurus, Gray, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d ser., xx, 1867, 272.
Maercaus, Gray, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d ser. xx, 1867, 275. (Not
Macroxus, F. Cuvier.)

Generic Characters—Skul short, very broad between the orbits; cranial
portion greatly expanded; post-orbital processes long, slender, decurved ;
malar-bone slender; ante-orbital foramen a narrow, vertical slit, opening
far in advance of first pre-molar; upper grinding teeth four or five; first
pre-molar, when two are present, very small; muzzle short; ears well
developed, well clothed, sometimes tufted; tail generally as long or longer
than the body, broad, with the long hairs drooping laterally ; nail of pol-
lex rudimentary; pelage full and soft, but sometimes more or less rigid;
coloration variable, but never with well-defined stripes on the dorsum ;
size generally large; no cheek pouches or lateral membrane. The group
above characterized are so homogeneous as not to be readily separated.
Some thirty or more nominal species are described, which Mr. Alien re-
duces to one-third that number. The genus reaches its fullest develop-
ment in Southern Mexico and Central America, the metropolis of the
group, where several species occur. The most obviously variable charac-
ter is the tail, which varies greatly in length, fullness, and breadth.

ScIURUS HuDsonius Pallas.
Var. hudsonius Allen,
EASTERN RED SQUIRREL; PINE SQUIRREL; CHICKAREE.
1772. Seiurus vulgaris, Forster, Phil. Trans., lxii, 1772, 378.
1777. Sciurus vulgaris, e, hudsonicus, Erxleben, Syst. Anim., 1777, 416.
1778. Sciurus hudsonius, Pallas, Nov. Spec. Glir., 1778, 376.—Gmelin, Syst.
Nat. i, 1788, 147.—Schreb., Säugt., iv, 1792, 777, pl. cexiv.—

1815.
1822.
1827.
1843.
1874.

106

Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., ii, 1801, 140.—Kuhl, Beiträge zur Zoöl., 1820,
66.—Desm., Mamm., ii, 1822, 340.—Sabine, Franklin’s Narr.,
1823, 663.—Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 185.—Godman, Am. Nat.
Hist., ii, 1826, 138.—Rich., Fauna Boreali-Amer., i, 1829, 187,
pl. xvii.—Fischer, Synop. Mam., 1829, 349.—Gapper, Zoöl. Jour.,
v, 1830, 205.—“ F. Cuvier, Suppl. Buff. Hist. Nat., i, Mam., 1831,
303.”—Bachman, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., vi, 1838, 100; Charles-
worth’s Mag. N. H., iii, 1839, 383.—Thompson, Nat. Hist. Ver-
mont, 1842, 46; App., 1853, 14 (albino).—DeKay, New York
Zoöl., i, 1842, 61, pl. xvii, fig. 2—Wagn., Suppl. Schreber’s
Säugt., iii, 1843, 178.—Schinz, Synop. Mam., ii, 1845, 12.—Aud.
& Bach., Quad. N. Am., i, 1849, 125, pl. xiv—Woodhouse, Sit-
greave’s Expl. Colorado and Zufii Rivers, 1853, 53 (Indian Ter-
ritory).—Kennicott, Pat. Off Rep., Agr., 1856 (1857), 67, pl. vii.
—Bd., Mam. N. Am., 1857, 260, pl. xlvi, fig. 1.Thomas, Trans.
Ill. State Agric. Soc., iv, 1860, 656.—Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol.,
1861, 290.—Maximilian, Wiegm. Arch. f. Naturg., 1861, 73.—
Ross, New Edinb. Phil. Journ., xiii, 1861, 162; Nat. Hist. Rev.,
1862, 274 (to Arctic Circle).—Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist.,
3d ser., xx, 1867, 418.—Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869,
223; Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 3d ser., xx, 1867, 418.—Allen,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1859, 223; Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xiii, 1870, 188; ib., xvii, 1874, 43; Bull. Essex Inst., vi, 1874,
57.—Gilpin, Proc. and Trans. Nov. Scot. Inst. Nat. Sei., pt. iii,
1870, 12.— Stevenson, Hayden’s Rep. U.S. Geol. Surv. Wyom.,
1871, 461.—Adams, Field and Forest Rambles, 1873, 78, 295.—
Merriam, U. 8. Geolog. Surv. Terr., 6th Ann. Rep., 1872, 663.—
Grinnell, Ludlow’s Black Hills of Dakota, 1874, 81.—Jordan,
Man. Vert., 1878, 28.

Sciurus carolinus, Ord, “Guthrie’s Geog.” (2d. Am. ed.), ii, 1815, 292.

Sciurus rubrolineatus, Desmarest, Mam., ii, 1822, 333.

Tamia hudsonia, Lesson, Man. Mamm., 1827, 231.

Tamias rubrolineatus, Schinz, Syn. Mam., ii, 1843, 48.

Sciurus hudsonius var. hudsonius, Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xvi, 1874, 288; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 672.

Varieties and Distribution—Of the present species, four geographical
varieties are recognized, namely: hudsonius, richardson, douglassi, and
fremonti. These are sufficiently distinct in their extreme phases, but are
very much blended wherever their respective habitats weet; the sub-
species are readily separated by their coloration, especially the tail
markings.

107

S. hudsonius, including its varieties, is found over most of North Amer-
ica, extending north to the limit of forest vegetation, and south over the
northern two-thirds of the United States.

Our variety has a more extensive range than all the others; its habitat
embraces nearly all of North America north of about latitude 34° east of.
the Rocky Mountains, and extending northward over most of Alaska.
Its southern limit in the States is irregular, terminating on the Atlantic
coast near Delaware Buy, but occupying the highlands of the interior as
far southward as northern Georgia and Alabama, and even Monticello,
Mississippi. It is not common south of central Illinois and northern
Missouri, although Woodhouse notes its occurrence in the Indian Ter-
ritory.

Description of var. hudsonius.— Average length, from nose to base of tail,
six and three-fourths inches; tail to end of vertebre, four and one-half
inches, to end of hairs six inches. Above, pale, grayish, fulvous, each
hair once or twice ringed with black; below, pure white, or white with
faint annulations of black; generally a rather broad dorsal stripe of yel-
lowish red ; in many specimens, a short, conspicuous black lateral line.
Ears blackish toward and at the end, with, in winter, a short, bushy
pencil or tuft. Middle of tail dorsally of the same color as the middle of
the back ; the central reddish portion bounded with black, the latter be-
ing fringed with pale yellow. Upper surface of feet more or less tawny,
often bright golden. The soles of the feet are naked in summer; in win-
ter thickly furred, except the tubercles at base of toes. Winter speci-
mens are, as a rule, redder than summer ones, with the genéral pelage
much fuller, longer, and softer than in summer. Northern specimens
are generally longer than southern ones, as usual in species with wide
latitude. The brightest or reddest specimens, with whitest under parts,
are from New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.

Habitat and Habits—The natural home of -this beautiful and active
little Squirrel is in heavy timber, on dry, elevated land. It is also
very abundant in northern Ohio and Indiana; it may occur sparingly
in the southern parts of these States. Mr. Langdon states that it is
common at St. Mary’s, but is not identified in the vicinity of Cincinnati.
It is often found among evergreens, particularly the black spruce, the
cones of which form its favorite food. —

Mr. Kennicott gives, in Patent Office Report for 1866, interesting notes
on its habits, from which the following is abridged:

‘Unlike most Squirrels, this species sometimes, but not often, lives in holes in the

ground. Unlike others, too, it collects into its hole, in autumn, ample provision of the
good things of squirrel life, wherewith to console and sustain itself in the uncomfortable

108

season of frost and snow. It makes large hoards of nuts, acorns, and seeds; and, in
consequence of this good cheer, this Squirrel is seen actively scampering about in cold
weather, when his hungry cousins cannot pluck up courage to leave their warm abodes
even in search of food. This Squirrel runs with great swiftness, and, though it cannot
leap as far as the migratory species, it darts along the trunk of a tree much more rap-
idly. Its note is a merry, shrill chir-r-r-r-r, very unlike the migratory and Fox Squirrels.
Like the Red Fox and some other animals, the Chickaree appears in some instances to
follow the settlements of the white man. Dr. Kirtland speaks of its having made its
appearance, about the beginning of the present century, on the Western Reserve, where
it is now, 1856, exceedingly abundant. It may be that this appearance of the Red
Squirre] is the result of the destruction of certain enemies.”

It is stated, in the Geological Survey of Ohio for 1888, that this species
“destroys the Black and Gray species, and also the young of birds. I
have myself seen it committing its depredations on a brood of young
Robins.”

ScIURUS CAROLINENSIS Gmelin.
Var. leucotis Allen.
NORTHERN GRAY SQUIRREL.

1792. Sciurus cinereus, Schreber, Säugt., iv, 1792, 766, pl. cexii (nec S.
cinereus, Linn., 1758).—Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 173.—H.
Smith, Griffith’s Cuvier, v, 1827, 254—Fischer, Synop. Mam.,
1829, 852.—Thompson, Hist. Vermont, 1842, 45.—Maximilian,
Weigm. Arch. f. Naturg., 1861, 66.

1815. Sciurus pennsylvanicus, Ord, “Guthrie’s Geog. (2d Am. ed.) ii, 1815,
292” (dusky phase).

1826. Sciwrus niger, Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 133 (melanistic
phase) (nec S. niger, Linn., 1858).—Richardson, Faun. Bor.
Amer., i, 1829, 191.—Gapper, Zoöl. Journ., v, 1830, 206.—
Bach., Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1838, 96; Charlesworth’s Mag
Nat. Hist., ili, 1839, 335; Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts., xx xvii,
1839, 307.—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840, 67”.—DKay, N.Y. Zoöl.,
i, 1842, 60, pl. xvii, fig. 1—Thompson, Hist. Vermont, 1842,
45.—Wagner, Suppl. Schreber’s Säugt., iii, 1843, 172.—Schinz,
Synop. Mam., ii, 1845, 9.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., i, 1849,
261, pl. xxxiv.—Maximilian, Weigm. Arch. f. Naturgesch, 1861,

76.—Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol., 1861, 301.
1826. Sciurus carolinensis, Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 131.—

Doughty’s Cab. Nat. Hist., ii, 1832, 240, pl. xxi.—Baird, Mam.
N. Amer., 1857, 256, pl. xlv, fig. 2 (skull) (in part; “larger
northern, and black and dusky” varieties only) — Thomas, Tr.
Ill. Agr. Soc., iv, 1860, 656.—Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol., 1861,
301.—Hayden, Trans. Am. Phil. Soc., Phila., xii, 1863, 144.—
Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 222 (Massachusetts); Proc.

109

Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1870, 188 (Iowa).—Gray, Ann. and
Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d ser., xx, 1867, 426 (vars. “major” et “niger”).
1830. Sciurus leucotis, Gapper, Zoöl. Journ., v, 1830, 206, pl. xi (based on
Canada specimens).—Bachman, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1838,
96; Charlesworth’s Mag. Nat. Hist., iii, 1839, 335 ; Amer. Journ.
Sci. and Arts, xxxvii, 1839, 298.—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840,
66.—DeKay, New York Zoöl., i, 1842, 57, pl. xviii, fig. 1.—
“ Wagner, Suppl. Schreber’s Säugt., iii, 1843, 160.—Schinz, Synop.
Mam., ii, 1845, 8.
1842. Sciurus vulpinus, DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl., 1842, 59 (winter pelage).
1849. Sciurus migratorius, Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Amer., i, 1849, 265, pl.
xxxv.—Kennicott, U.S. Patent Office Rep., Agr., for 1856-57,
62, pl. vi.—Adams, Field and Forest Rambles, 1873, 296 (west-
ern and south-western parts of New Brunswick).
1874. Sciwrus carolinensis var. leucotis, Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xvii, 1874, 287; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 700.

Description.—The Northern Gray Squirrel, varies in length of body,
from nine to eleven and one-half inches, average length ten and one-half
inches; tail vertebre, eight inches, varying from seven to nine; tail to end
of hairs: eleven and one-half, varying from ten to twelve and one-half
inches. It is whitish-gray above, with a dorsal area and lateral line
brownish-yellow, with a more or less fulvous suffusion beneath the sur-
face of the pelage, which shows somewhat through the surface tints;
beneath, white. Varies through dusky and annulated phases to intense
glossy-black. Tail with the hairs yellowish-brown basally, with narrow,
black annulations, and a broad, conspicuous sub-terminal black bar, the
hairs all broadly tipped with white, giving a white surface tint, through
which the colors above mentioned may be seen. Ears not tufted, with
or without a conspicuous woolly tuft of white at the base posteriorly.

The above characters separate var. leucotis from carolinensis, the Southern
Gray Squirrel, which is smaller and has the general color of dorsal sur-
face yellowish-brown, instead of whitish-gray.

The general colors above, give, in var. leucotis, a whitish-gray tint,
especially marked northward and in winter specimens; while the
general color above, of var. carolinensis, is mixed yellowish-brown and
black.

Tue dusky phases of carolinensis are local in their occurrence, often
wholly unknown over wide areas; they occur more frequently near the
Great Lakes than further southward. Where the pure black phase oc-
curs, usually every intermediate stage may be found, from the ordinary
type to the glossy-black.

110

Distribution.—The present species ranges eastward along the Atlantic
coast to New Brunswick, thence westward over the southern half ot
Maine, most of the St. Lawrence Valley, southern portions of Canada,
Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, and up the Missouri at least to the mouth of
the Platte, and south to the Gulf. It ranges west to the eastern border
of the plains, from Nebraska to Texas, and apparently far into Mexico.
Its northern limit coincides nearly with that of the Alleghanian fauna,
that is to the isotherm of 44° F. Var. leucotis ranges southward over
both the Alleghanian and Carolinian fauna, or about to the isotherm of
56° F., where the two sub-species blend, carolinensis extending the range
of the species southward to the Gulf coast, into Mexico, and perhaps
even to Guatemala.

Besides the above, Mr. Allen recognizes a third variety, which may
prove a distinct species. Var. yucatanensis is founded on four specimens
from Merida, Yucatan; more specimens are requisite to fix its relations
to the series.

Habits—This is the most abundant of American squirrels; it has a
wide range, is extremely prolific, and in certain localities exists in
almost incredible abundance. Dr. Hoy, of Racine, Wisconsin, relates
that he has known a hunter in northern Ohio to kill 160 ina day. The
species apparently increases in numbers in certain districts after their
settlement. Kennicott speaks of the prevalent report that persons have
been compelled to watch the fields during their migrations, probably, to
prevent destruction of the crops. Dr. 8. P. Hildreth, in the “ Pioneer His-
tory of the Ohio Valley,” 1848, quotes from manuscript of Col. James
Barker, of the gray squirrel “coming in millions from the north to the
south, destroying whole fields of corn in a few days.”

Mr. Frank W. Langdon, Madisonville, Ohio, to whom the writer is
principally indebted for notes on Ohio mammals, drawn from the early
history of the Ohio country, writes that the gray squirrel is common a
hundred miles north of Cincinnati, but is rather vaguely reported in
that locality.

The remarkable migrations performed at times by this species consti-
tute a most interesting feature in their history. They congregate in the
autumn in immense numbers, and move off in the same general direc-
tion, not turning aside for the largest streams, though usually averse to
water. Dr. John A. Kennicott relates that during one of these migra-
tions innumerable squirrels swam across the Niagara near Buffalo, New
York, landing so exhausted as to be easily taken by hand or knocked
down with sticks. Mr. Kennicott has the following notes in regard to
these migrations :

111

“The reason for these migrations is not satisfactorily explained. That
they are caused by want of food is hardly probable, as the squirrels are
found to be fat at the time, and as often leave localities abounding with
food as otherwise, After one of these grand migrations, very few of the
species are found in the localities from which they have moved, and
these, as if alarfned at the unusual solitude, are silent andshy. They
rapidly increase in numbers, however, and in a few years are as abun-
dant as before. I am not aware that they ever migrate except when
exceedingly abundant. Of these immense hordes but few probably sur-
vive. Nosudden increase in their numbers was heard of in southern
Wisconsin after the several migrations from northern Illinois. Many
are drowned in attempting to cross streams; not a few are destroyed by
man; some die from utter exhaustion, and when forced to travel in an
unnatural manner, upon the ground, they fall an easy prey to rapacious
birds and mammals, all of which feast when the squirrels migrate.”

I learn from Dr. Hoy that one of tnese migrations is said to have
taken place in 1842; he witnessed another in 1847, and a third in 1852.
From these facts, and from observations made in Ohio and elsewhere, he
is of the opinion that the migrations, in most cases at least, occur at
intervals of five years; and if he be right, the squirrels, which are now
exceedingly abundant again in southern Wisconsin, may be expected to
migrate in the autumn of 1857.* He further says that the migrations
observed by him in southern Wisconsin occurred when the mast was
excecdingly abundant and the squirrels in good condition. Near Racine
they were observed passing southward in very large numbers for about
two weeks, at the end of September and the beginning of October, and
it was a month before all had passed. They moved along rather leis-
urely, stopping to feed in the fields, and upon the abundant nuts and
acorns of the forests. So far had they departed from their accustomed
habits that they were seen on the prairie, four er five miles from any
timber; but even there, as usual, they disliked to travel on the ground,
and ran along the fences wherever it was possible.

* Since writing the above I have received the following letter from Dr. Hoy:

Racine, April 2, 1878,
DEAR Sır: Black and gray squirrels did migrate in 1857, as predicted. Whether
there is a precise interval between their migrations I will not pretend to state, yet they
did migrate in this section in 1847, 1852, and 1857, since whieh they have become so
scarce that I could not determine whether there was an attempt to migrate or not, as
they are nearly exterminated now in this vicinity. In 1857 I knew one negro who stood
by a tree, in an open space on the line of a fence, and shot over twenty in one after-
noon. In other years one might stand at the same place six months and not see one

individual. Yours, P. R. Hoy.

112

The food of the gray squirrel is like that of most of the family. They
are very fond of blackhaw berries and mulberries. Four to six young
are brought forth at a birth; two and three litters are produced annu-
ally, the first usually in March. They are somewhat social, several
sometimes feed together, and many will take up with the same tree

»

in winter.
Various species of Squirrels are infested with the larval forms of a

species of wstrus. These grubs are found growing in the skin, in the ab-
cesses formed by the irritation of the growing grub. They are most fre-
quent about the shoulders and buttocks, where the Squirrel cannot destroy
them with its teeth. The writer has observed them in the buttocks of
about eve-y fifth Ground Squirrel, collected in the vicinity of Menomonee,
Wisconsin. “That a fly really emasculates the Striped Squirrel (Tamias
striatus), seems certain from Dr. Fitch’s observations. The Doctor reared
the fly from the grubs found in the testes, which were completely eaten
out.” Professor A. R. Grote, on Squirrels and Emasculation, in “ Forest
and Stream, March 21, 1878, says: “There is a belief prevalent among
hunters that the Red Squirrel habitually castrates the Black and Gray,
also, that the old Gray Squirrel emasculates the young of the same spe-
cies. This popular but fallacious opinion, is based, doubtless, in part,
on errors in examination of supposably emasculated individuals, mainly in
overlooking the testicles, which are small, except in the breeding season,
as well as destroyed by the undoubted work of the larve of estrus, and
accidental castration in the combats of pugnacious individuals.”

SCIURUS NIGER Linn.
Var. ludovicianus Allen.

WESTERN Fox SQUIRREL.

1806. Seiurus ludovicianus, Custis, Barton’s Med. and Phys. Journ., ii,
1806, 43.—Harlan, Fn. Am., 1825, 186.—H. Smith, Griff. Cuv.
An. King., v, 1827, 254.—Lesson, Man., 1827, 234.—Fischer, Syn.
Mam., 1829, 351—Baird, Mam. N. Am., 1857, 251.—Hayden,
Trans. Am. Phil. Soc. Phila., xii, 1863, 144.—Allen, Proc. Bost.
Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1869, 188.

1822. Seiurus rufiventer, “Geoffroy, Mus. Par.;” Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat.,
x, 103.—Desmarest, Mam., ii, 1822, 332 —Harlan, Faun. Amer.,
1825, 176 (New Orleans).—Lesson, Man. Mam., 1827, 233.—
Fischer, Synop. Mam., 1829, 351.—Schinz, Syn. Mam., ii, 1845,
6 (specimen. from Missouri). —Maximilian, Weigm. Arch. f.
Naturg., 1861, 70.

1823. Sciurus macroura, Say, Long’s Exped. R. Mts., i, 1823, 115 (Kansas).

113

1825. Sciurus magnicaudatus, Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 178.—H. Smith,
Griffith’s Cuvier’s An. King., 1827, 225.—Lesson, Man. de Mam.,
1827, 235.—Fischer, Synop. Mam., 1829, 351.—Bachman, Proc.
Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1838, 88; Charlesworth’s Mag. Nat. Hist., iii,
1839, 156; Silliman’s Amer. Jour. Sci. and Arts, xxxvii, 1839,
296.—Wagner, Suppl. Schreber’s Säug., iii. 1843, 166.—Schinz,
Syn. Mam., ii, 1845, 11.—Kennicott, U. S. Pat. Off Rep. Agr.,
1856 (1857), 56, pl. vi.

1826. Sciurus macroureus, Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 134.—
Woodhouse, Sitgreaves’s Col. and Zufii Rivers, 1853, 53.

1838. Sciwrus subauratus, Bachman, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1838, 87;
Charlesworth’s Mag. Nat. Hist., iii, 1839, 155; Silliman’s Amer.
Jour. Sci. and Arts, xxxvii, 1839, 295.— Wagner, Suppl. Schre-

‘ ber’s Säug., iii, 1843, 164— Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am., ii, 1851,

67, lviii.

1838. Siurus auduboni, Bachman, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., vi, 1838, 97
(Louisiana; dusky variety); Charlesworth’s Mag. Nat. Hist., iii,
1839, 378.—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb. Säug., iii, 1843, 182.—
Schinz, Syn. Mam., ii, 1845, 12.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am.,
iii, 1854, 260, pl. elii, fig. 2.

1842. Sciurus occidentalis, Aud. & Bach., Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., viii,
1842, 317.

1851. Sciurus rubicaudatus, Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am., ii, 1851, 30,
pl. lv.

1851. Sciurus sayi, Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am., ii, 1851, 274, pl. lxxxix.

1855. Sciurus limitis, Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1855, 331;
Mam. N. Am., 1857, 256 (Texas; immature).

1867. Macroxus ludovicianus, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d series,
xx, 1867, 426.

1874. Sciurus cinereus, var. ludovicianus, Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xvi, 1874, 287.—Jordan, Manual Vertebrates, 1878, 28, 2d ed.

1877. Sciurus niger, var. ludovicianus, All.,.U. S. Geolog. Surv. Terr., vol.
xi, p. 718.

Varietal Characters—Length of body 12 to 13 inches, ranging from 11
to 14; tail vertebrae 92, ranging from 84 to 104; tail to end of hairs 12%,
from 11 to 134. Above dusky-gray, with a strong rufous suffusivn ; ears,
feet, and ventral surface fulvous, varying to bright ferruginous. The
whole under parts are occasionally black, or mixed black and rufous—
never apparently wholly black, or with the under surface pure white.

Known from var. niger by its smaller size; besides, niger is gray above
and whitish beneath, and occurs only from Maryland to Louisiana.

8

114

Known from var. cinereus by its coloration; the nose and ears in cinereus
are usually concolor with dorsal surface; the ears are short, scarcely
longer than the fur. Var. cinereus is found from Virginia northward to
southern New York and New England, and possibly may lap over into
eastern Ohio.

Geographical Distribution and Variation—The Western Fox Squirrel
occupies the whole region drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries
and the Missouri River north to southern Dakota, extending westward
along the wooded streams to the plains. The geographical varia-
tions attending its wide range of climatic conditions consist in color of
an increasing pallor northward and toward the dryer portions of the
plains, and in the country adjacent to the Mississippi River is observed a
strongly marked increase in color southward. The diminution in size
from the north southward is not marked in this variety.

The color variations of this form have led te eight or ten different
specific names; the animal was first described, however, by Custis, in
1806, under the name ludovicianus.

The Fox Squirrel takes more naturally to groves of oak trees or edges
of timber belts than to.deep woods; in these places he has ready access
to corn fields, which they often rob from the time of roasting-ears until
the corn is harvested. e

Besides the nuts of trees and seeds of plants, it eats the buds of the
basswood, elm, and maple. In autumn they eat the fruit of the thorn-
apple. They have been seen to gnaw the bark from dead trees to pro-
cure beetles and their larve, and, like other Squirrels, to girdle trees in
spring to taste the flowing sap. Unlike the Red Squirrel, the Fox and
Gray Squirrels do not store up hoards of nuts for winter use in hollow
trees, but bury them singly under the leaves in autumn.

Dr. Hoy is of the opinion that they are guided to these solitary caches
by the sense of smell, unless the snow is very deep. They do not fail,
but scratch away the leaves and snow from the right place and retire to
a log or low tree to eat the morsel found. When the snow is deep they
feed on buds and such nuts and berries as are left on the trees.

Unlike the Gray Squirrel, this species is not gregarious; more than
two adults are rarely found together. Usually this species is not polyga-
mous; it is less prolific than the migratory species, bringing forth
- usually three young at a birth, and probably producing two litters each
season.

Like those of most animals in this order, the young are misshapen,
unsymmetrical little creatures, with large heads and closed eyes. They
are brought forth in a hole, the nests of twigs and leaves, of which this

115

species build so many in the forks of trees, being used only as tem-
porary summer-houses. This Squirrel is not known to migrate in com-
panies; they sometimes cross open country, like other Squirrels, in
search of food.

It is the shyest of our species; if chased it does not stop on branches
or take to the nearest tree, but runs at once to its hole. They are ex-
tremely active, rarely lying lazily sunning themselves, as does the Gray
Squirrel. Their long bushy tails are in constant motion, as they spring
from limb to limb apparently for mere sport.

Genus Tamıas Iiger.

Sciurus, in part, of most early authors.

Tamias, Illiger, Syst. Mamm. et Avium, 1811, 83 (type Sciurus striatus,
Linneus).

Tenotis, Rafinesque, Amer. Month. Mag;, i, 1817, 362.

Generic Characters—Skull narrowed anteriorly; postorbital processes
long, very slender, directed downward and backward; plane of malar
bone more oblique, and zygomatic process of maxillary more expanded
and depressed than in Scéurus, but rather less so than in Spermophilus ;
anteorbital foramen oval, situated in the base of the zygomatic process
of the maxillary; upper premolars two or one—when two, the first usually
minute; ears of medium size or small, well clothed, but never tufted;
cheek pouches large; pollex with a well developed nail ; tail shorter than
the body, flattened and rather broad, shorter and much narrower than in
Sciurus; pelage generally full and soft; dorsal surface with two (usually
four) longitudinal whitish stripes bordered on each side with a stripe of
black, and with, except in one species, a central dorsal stripe of black,
known from the smaller species of Spermophilus by the absence or
rudimentary character of first upper premolar; weaker and relatively
smaller dentition; more delicate and papery skull and more flattened
tail; known from Sciwrus by the more slender lower jaw, capacious cheek
pouches, and shorter and narrower tail.

As above defined, Zamias includes four species, T. striatus, T. asiaticus,
with several localized sub-species, 7. harrisi, and T. lateralis. All are
confined to North America except asiaticus, which ranges also over a
large part of northern Asia and eastern Europe.

Tamias stRIATUS (Linn.) Baird.
STRIPED GROUND SQUIRREL; CHIPPING SQUIRREL; CHIPMUNK; also CHIPMOCK.

1731. Sciurus striatus, Catesby, Carol., ii, 1731, 75, pl. 1xxv.—Linnzus,
Syst. Nat., 1758, 64.—Schreb., Säug., iv, 1791, 791.—Erzleben,

a

116

Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777, 426.—Desm., Mam., 1822, 339 (in
part).—Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 183 (in part), —Godman, ii,
1826, 142.—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840, 68.—Thompson, Hist.
Vermont, 1842, 46.—DeKay, New York Zoöl., i, 1842, 62, pl.
xvi, fig. 2.

1756. Sciurus carolinensis, Brisson, Quad., 1756, 135.

1784. Myoxus striatus, Boddert, Elenchus Animal., i, 1784, 122.

1788. Sciurus striatus americanus, Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 150—Fischer,
Synop. Mam., 1829, 348.

1820. Tamias americana, Kuhl, Beiträg» zur Zoölogie, 1820, 69.—Gray,
Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 8d series, xx, 1867, 436 (—T. striatus,
Baird).

1829. Sciurus americanus, Fischer, Synop., 1829, 349 (=T. americana,
Kuhl).

1829. Sciurus (Tamias) lysteri, Richardson, Faun. Bor.-Amer., i, 1829, 181,
pl. xv.—Doughty’s Cab. Nat. Hist., i, 1830, 169, pl. xv.

1843. Tamias lysteri, Wagner, Suppl. Schreber’s Säug., iii, 1843, 232, pls.
cexiv, ccxix.—Schinz, Synop. Mam., ii, 1845, 47.—Aud. & Bach.,
Quad. N. Amer., i, 1849, 65, pl. viii.—Giebel, Säug., 1855, 639.—
Maximilian, Archiv. f. Naturgesch., 1861, 79.

1857. Tamias striatus, Baird, 11th Ann. Rep. Smiths. Inst., 1857, 55,
foot note; Mam. N. Am., 1857, 292, pl. xlvi, fig 2—Kennicott,
Rep. U. S. Pat. Off. Agric, for 1856 (1857), 70, pl. viii.—Thomas,
Trans. Ill. State Agr. Soc., iv, 1860, 657. —Gilpin, Trans. Nova
Scotia Inst. Nat. Sci., ii, pt. 3, 1870, 15 (Nova Scotia).— Allen,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 225; Proc. .Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xvi, 1874, 189; Mon. N. A Rodentia, 1877, 782.—Jordan, Man.
Vert., 1878.

1861. Sciurus (Tamias) strintus, Hall, Canad. Nat. and Geol., 1861, 290.—
Adams, Field and Forest Rambles, 1873, 100 (New Brunswick).

Specific Character. —Length of head and body, 5.75; tail to end of ver-

tebree, 3.65, to end of hairs, 4.25; middle of dorsal region gray, passing

into rufous posteriorly, with five longitudinal stripes of black, the two

outer on either side separated by a line of white; sides washed with

yellowish; head above, brownish; whole lower surface of body white;

tail blackish above, edged with white, centrally below yellowish-rufous,

bordered with black and edged with white; a light superciliary line

from nose nearly to ear, which above the eye is nearly pure white; a less

distinct light line below the eye, which is nearly white on the lower

eyelid ; below this a faint stripe of reddish-brown, and another somewhat

darker behind the eye; nose whitish; feet like the sides of the body.

Unlike most squirrels, the present species preserves great constancy

117

of coloration ; the stripes vary somewhat in width and purity of color.
Southern specimens are a little smaller and somewhat brighter colored ;
melanistic examples are rare in this species.

Distribution. — This squirrel is found from Pembina, Minn., east to the
Atlantic coast and south to Georgia and western Missouri. It is not
found on the lowlands of the Gulf coast or southern seaboard.

Habits and Habitat —This common and beautiful little squirrel livesin
burrows in the earth, usually under stumps, logs, or about fences, in cul-
tivated land; it does not habitually climb trees, nor does it leave the
woods.

Like other ground squirrels this species has capacious cheek-pouches;
they are by habit nut eaters, although they take readily to corn, even at
times following the rows of corn like crows, blackbirds, and gophers,
and dig out the planted grains, carrying them off to their burrows.
have counted as high as sixty grains of dry corn in the cheek-pouches
of asingle specimen. A half bushel of hickory nuts and acorns, stored
in single burrow, was found in November by Mr. Kennicott.

The call isa short, deep “ clock,” constantly repeated ; sometimes a shrill
chip-chip is uttered, whence the common name “Chipping” Squirrel.
When frightened he utters a low chatter.

This animal can not be regarded as an enemy to the farmer; it is not
suspicious, is readily shot or trapped, and driven off by cats and terrier
dogs. It increases in numbers as its native forests are cleared for culti-
vation, as it is then protected from its natural enemies, the Weasels,
preying birds, and even the Mink and Fox.

The Chipmunk, wherever it abounds, attracts attention by its beauty,
industry, and cheerful activity, and J can not do better than to tran-
scribe here from Mr. Kennicott’s article in the Agricultural Report for
1856, a pleasant paragraph descriptive of their habits:

“In spring and summer chipmunks make love, rear their young, chase each other
over stumps and logs in play, and enjoy themselves in various other ways; and with
autumn and its harvest time comes their season of hard work. Weare not to suppose,
however, that this work is at all disagreeable to them as a man’s duties are to him,
when he will not cheerfully obey the laws of creation. They may now be seen hasten-
ing to and from their holes, their cheek-pouches distended with nuts, acorns, and seeds,
or with grain stolen from the neighboring fields. These they continue to collect until
cold weather has set in, when they retire to their burrows, where, with well-filled lard-
ers, they pass the winter comfortably, regardless of the cold winds which rage about
them.

“This species closes the entrance to lts burrows late in autumn, and appears to pass
the winter in a state of semi-hibernation ; for, though taking nourishment and not tor-
pid, it never comes out, except very rarely in long-continued mild weather.”

118

Genus SpERMOPHILUS. F. Cuvier.

Etymology: Sperma—seed ; Philos—lover.

Spermophilus, F. Cuvier, Mém. du Mus., ix, 1822, 293; Dents des Mamm.,
1825, 161, 255, pl. iv (Type “ Mus citillus, Linn.).”

Spermophila, Richardson, Parry’s Second Voyage, App., 1825, 313
(= Spermophilus, F. Cuvier.)

Spermatophilus, Wagler, Syst. Avium, 1830, 22.

Citillus, Lichtenstein, Darst. never oder wenig bekannt., Säuget.,
1827-34, pl. xxxi, fig. 2.

Colobotis, Brandt, Bull. Classe Physico-math. de l’Acad. Imp. des Sci. de
St. Petersb., ii, 1844, 360.

Otocolobus, Brandt, 1844 (—Colobotis).

Olospermophilus, Brandt, 1844.

Generic Character. —Skull very variable in form; postorbital pro-
cesses generally triangular, strong, and directed downwards; plane of
malar turned outward; position of ante-orbital foramen more forward
than in Tamias ; upper premolars always two, the first variable in size,
generally much larger than in Seiurus or Tamias ; grinding-teeth vari-
able in strength and size; cheek-pouches well developed; body slender
or thick set; tail long, moderate, or short, cylindrical or flattened; ears
large, medium, or rudimentary, never tufted; nail of pollex generally
undeveloped; pelage and color patterns variable.

The above diagnosis includes three sections, in their extreme phases
as wide asunder as are most allied modern genera, but well connected
through various intermediate specific forms. One of these sections pro-
visionally recognized by Mr. Allen as sub-genus Otospermophilus Brandt
(emend.), including S. grammurus and 8. annulatus ?-of Colorado and
Mexico, tends strongly toward Sciurus. Sub-genus Colobotis, same author,
includes S. richardsoni, S. empetra, S. mollis, S. spilosoma, and S. obsoletus, with
their several varieties, all northern and north-western forms; this group
deviates in the direction of Cynomys.

The third sub-genus Ictidomys, as characterized by Mr. Allen, inclines
toward Tamias; having the ears small, sometimes rudimentary, tail vari-
able, skull long and narrow, first upper premolar usually small, and the
dentition not heavy; it includes S. tereticaudus of southern California, S.
mexicanus from Texas into Mexico, S. tridecemlineatus of the prairie region
. north to the Saskatchewan, and lastly S. franklini, whose habitat has
heretofore been given from northern Illinois and Missouri northward to
latitude 64°; this animal is certainly found, however, in the prairie
region of northern Indiana, and the following note from Mr. Langdon

119

settles undoubtedly the fact of its occurrence in Ohio: “Dr. R. M. Byrnes
informs me that he captured a specimen of this species near Middletown.
Ohio; others were seen at the same time. The prairie-like character of
that portion of the State ought to be favorable to their existence. It is
also reported to occur at Mt. Vernon, Ohio, Dr. Byrnes says, on good au-
thority.” From Atwater’s History of Ohio, 1838, we have the following
note: “We have the Gopher, which lives in our wet barrens.”

SPERMOPHILUS FRANKLINI (Sabine) Lesson.

GRAY PRAIRIE SQUIRREL; GRAY GOPHER; GRAY-HEADED SPERMOPHILE; FRANKLIN’S
SPERMOPHILE.

1822. Arctomys franklini, Sabine, Trans. Linn. Soc., xiii, 1822, 587, pl.
xxvii; ibid, Narr. Franklin’s Journ., 1822, 662.—Harlan, Faun.
Am., 1825, 167.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 109.—Fischer,
Syn. Mam., 1829, 343.

1827. Spermophilus franklini, Lesson, Man. Mam., 1827, 244.—F. Cuvier,
Suppl. Buffon, i, 1831, Mamm., 328.—Wagner, Suppl. Schreb.,
iii, 1843, 244, pl. cex (“ Arctomys franklini, Sabine,” on plate).—
Brandt, Bull. Physico-math., Classe Acad. St. Petersh., ii, 1844,
379. —Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am., ii, 1851, 248, pl. lxxxiv.
Schinz, Syn. Mam., ii, 1845, 67.—Kennicott, Pat. Of. Rep.,
1856, Agric. (1857), 79, pl. ix.—Baird, Mam. N. Am., 1857, 314,
pl. xlvi, fig. 4 (skull).—Thomas, Trans. Ill. State Agr. Soc., iv,
1861, 657.—Hayden, Trans. Am. Phil. Soc., Phila., xii, 1863, 145.
—Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1870, 189 (Iowa), xvi,
1874, 291; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 881.—Bishop, Forest and
Stream, vii, 1877, 342 (its introduction into New Jersey).

1829. Aretomys (Spermophilus) franklini, Richardson, Faun. Bor. Am., i,
1829, 168, pl. xii. :

Specific Characters.—Length to base of tail, 9.00 to 10.50 inches ; of tail to
end of vertebrae, 5.00 to 6.50 ; to end of hairs, 6.25 to 8.50. Yellowish-brown
above, varied with black, the black chiefly in the form of small squarish
spots; eyelids white; front and sides of head and neck, the thighs and
buttocks pure gray; top of head gray, sometimes varied more or less with
yellowish brown; below grayish white; tail grayish white with three
lines of black, the outer quite broad and broadly edged with white. Ear
small, about .20 high; tail vertebr& about one-half the length of head and
body; tail distichous, hairs long and abundant; form rather slender;.
pelage harsh, consisting of coarse, stift hairs, without under fur.

History and Distribution.—This very interesting Spermophile is one of
the most strongly marked and unmistakable of the genus. It was firs

120

described by Sabine in 1822, and afterwards by Richardson, Kennicott,
and Prof. Baird; as the earlier descriptions were based on the accounts
given by Sabine and Richardson, it has, as Mr. Allen observes, “fortu-
nately escaped synonyms.” It was unknown to Audubon and Bachman
until as late as 1851. It is a species of limited range; Dr. Coues found
it abundant in the vicinity of Pembina; it occurs in Minnesota and
over the prairie region of Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, and Iowa. Dr.
P. R. Hoy met with it in Eastern Kansas; it extends further south, but
is not near so common as 8. tridecemlineatus.

The species, oddly enough, has been introduced into New Jersey, where
it is rapidly increasing and becoming thoroughly naturalized. Regard-
ing its introduction to the sea-board, I quote from Dr. Allen:

“T learned of its introduction there from Mr. Samuel Jillson, who first wrote me
about it some three or four years since. Writing him recently for further information
respecting the date and manner of its introduction, as well as for information respecting’
its present numbers, and the area of-its range, he has kindly replied as follows, under
date of Tuckerton, New Jersey, May 6, 1877: ‘The date of its introduction is May, 1867,
when a single pair was brought here from Illinois by Mr. Sylvester Mathis. This pair
soon gnawed out of their cage and escaped. This was in the village of Tuckerton.
They are very common on all the farms here, three miles from the village of Tuckerton.
They seem to always keep in the fields, as I have never seen them in the woods. I find
very little dirt at the mouth of their burrows—sometimes none. From one to two buck-
ets of water poured in their holes will bring them out. We kill all we can on our farm.
They destroy young chickens and turkeys, and the dogs dig large holes in our fields in
trying to get at the gophers. l once found-one in a salt-hay stack, in spring, dead and
coiled up in the smallest ball possible. I also found one dead in my barn well. I think
many of them winter in stacks and out-buiidings, for I never could drown out any late
in the fall in the flat fields. They are never seen here in winter, and no doubt are then

dormant.”

Thus, from this single pair, accidentally introduced in New Jersey
only eleven years ago, the species has spread over a belt some thir-
teen miles long and several miles in breadth. Its numbers already ren-
der it a farm pest which will not be soon, if ever, eradicated. That the
species is capable of reproducing itself so abundantly in a region so dif-
ferent and so distant from its original habitat, is also suggestive. Their
sudden distribution over so large an area is due in part to their disposi-
tion to migrate from one field to another. Not less than a dozen have
been known to appear in a region where none were seen the previous
summer.

Mr. Kennicott, in his interesting and detailed account of the habits of
‘this species, in the Agricultural Report of the Patent Office, states that
the males lead a wandering life in the summer, and that pairs appear to
frequently change their quarters, leaving their winter burrows to breed

121

in others, and then perhaps hibernating in a third at some distance from
this.

Several species of Spermophilus are remarkable among North American
Rodentia for their carnivorous habits. Dr. Hay has satisfied himself
that the Striped Gopher (S. tridecemlineatus) acts as a useful check upon
the increase of various Arvicole and other Field Mice, and says that
Ground Squirrels cannot inhabit the same locality.

In confinement it kills small Squirrels and Mice presented to it, utter-
ing a low, snarling growl, and emitting a musteline odor. Like the
Weasels, it sucks the blood, eats out the brains, and devours the carcass
as it needs it. The present species is also carnivorous, but less so than
the Striped Gopher. One kept in confinement by Prof. Baird was decid-
edly carnivorous, and one observed by Dr. Hoy killed mice put in its
cage.

This Squirrel inhabits thickets and edges of timber, banks of ditches,
and grain-fields. It takes up newly planted corn, as does the Striped
Gopher and Chipmunk.

It is not sufficiently carnivorous, however, to warrant its protection
when the accounts of benefits and injuries are balanced. The Striped
Gopher destroys so many Meadow Mice that it is worthy of protection
rather than destruction.

The following account of a colony of this species is transcribed from
Mr. Kennicott’s article already cited :

“In the early part of summer tweaty or thirty of these animals suddenly made their
appearance, and burrowed in an old embankment within three or four rods of my fath-
er’s house. They seemed to have lost the shyness exhibited when leading a solitary
life, and were not alarmed at the near approach of man. They even came about the
kitchen door to pick up crumbs, and disputed with the chickens for their food. Like
the Striped Spermaphiles, they glided silently to their burrows when alarmed, uttering,
as they entered, a remarkably clear whistle twitter, more musical than the voice of any
other mammal I ever listened to, and as clear as that of a bird. The same note was
uttered when the animal was much hurt or frightened. They fed upon June grass,
clover, timothy, and the bread-leaved plantain. * * * A number of young chickens -
disappearing, and the eggs being eaten in several hens’ nests near the burrows of the
Spermophiles, suspicion rested upon them, probably unjustly, and a war of extermination
was commenced. Several were shot, while others were killed with clubs, whereupon
the survivors left in a body, as suddenly as they had come, and were never seen again,
nor could they be found on any part of the farm.”

This Gopher is regarded by the farmers of Iowa as far more destructive

than the Striped Gopher, sometimes destroying acres of newly planted
corn by eating the seed. The burrows run to the depth of three to four

feet, and are quite extensive.

122

Gents Arcromys Schreber.

Etymology: Arktos—bear ; Mus—mouse.

1758. Mus, Linn. (in part), Syst. Nat., i, and early authors.

1777. Glis, Erxl., Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777, 358 (in part).

1778. Mures soporosi, Pallas, Nov. Spec. Glires, 1778, 74.

1792. Arctomys, Schreber, Säugt., iv., 1792, 720 (in part).

1825. Arctomys, F. Cuvier, Dents des Mamm., 1825, 159, 254, pl liv (based
on Arctomys alpinus, Linn.,” and “ Arctomys empetra,” Pall.

Generic Characters —Skull with dorsal outline nearly straight; frontal
region flat or depressed ; post-orbitals triangular at base, with a long, de-
curved point; zygomatic arches moderately extended, not widening and
diverging posteriorly; grinding teeth rather small, the transverse and
antero-posterior diameters about equal, and the molar series very nearly
parallel; ante-orbital foramina sub-triangular under and below, but not
thrown outward. Size large; body thick set, depressed ; cheek pouches
small; tail rather short, bushy, and flattened; ears small; nail of pollex
broad, flat, or wanting; pelage with long, coarse hairs and thick under
fur. Coloration generally yellowish-gray, without either distinct spots
or stripes. This genus includes the largest members of the Sciuride, and,
excepting the Beaver, the largest of existing North American rodents.

Besides the species belonging to the fauna of Ohio, two species, A.
flaviventer and A. prwinosus, occur in the west and northward. The latter
is twice the weight and bulk of A. monax; the former is more nearly
allied to A. monaz, but has smaller ears and larger tail, aside from strongly
marked skeletal differences.

The habitat of Arctomys monax extends from the Carolinas northward
to Hudson’s Bay and Liard River, and westward from the Atlantic coast
to western Missouri, Iowa, and Minnesota.

ARCTOMYS MonAx (Linn.) Schreb.

WOODCHUCK ; GROUND Hoe; MARMOT.

1758. Mus monax, Linn. Syst. Nat., LOth ed., i, 1758, 60.—Pallas, Nov.
Spec. Glires, 1778 (in ‚part only). —Boddaert, Elench. Anim., i,
1784, 105.

1777. Glis monaz, Erxl., Syst. Anim., 1777, 361.

1792. Arctomys monax, Schreber’s Säugt., iv, 737.—Shaw, Gen. Zöol., ii,
1808, 117.—F. Cuvier, Dict. des Sci. Nat., xxix, 1823, 162.—
Sabine, Trans. Linn. Soc., xiii, 1822, 582.—Harlan, Fauna
“ Amer., 1825, 158.—Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 100.—

1777.

1778.

1820.
1822.

1869.

123

I. Geoffroy, Diet. Class. d’Hist. Nat., x, 1827, 186.—Hamilton
Smith, Griffith’s Cuvier’s An. King., iii, 1827, 170 (with plate);
v, 1827, 244.—Richardson, Faun. Bor. Amer., i, 1829, 153.—
Fischer, Synop. Mamm., 1829, 342.—Emmons, Quad. Mass.,
1840, 64—DeKay, New York Zöol., i, 1842, 68, pl. xxi, fig. 4—
Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vermont, 1842, 44——Wagner, Suppl.
Schreb. Säugt., iii, 1843, 259 (in part).—Schinz, Syn. Mam.,
ii 1845, 61—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Amer., i, 1849, 17, pl. ii—
Kennicott, Trans. Ill. State Agr. Soc., i, 1855, 579; U. S. Patent
Office Rep. Agr., 1856 (1857), 82, pl. x —Baird, Mamm. N. Amer.,
1857, 339, pl. xlix, fig. 1 (skull).—Thomas, Trans. Ill. State
Agr. Soc., iv, 1860, 657.— Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zöol., i, 1869,
226 (Mass.); Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1870, 190 (Iowa);
xvi, 1874, 294.—Cope, Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., Phila, xi, 1869,
173 (fossil; bone caves, Virginia).—Gilpin, Proc. and Trans.
Nova Scotia Inst. Nat. Sci., ii, pl. iii, 1870, 16.— Adams, Field
and Forest Rambles, 1873, 100, 296 (New Brunswick). —Jordan,
Man. Vert., 1878.

Glis canadensts, Erxl., Syst. Anim., 1777, 363 (in part) ;=Quebec
Marmot, Pennant + Quebec Marmot, Forster).

Mus empetra, Pallas, Nov. Spec. Glires, 1788, 74.—Boddaert, Elench.
Anim., i, 1784, 105.

Arctomys melanopus, Kuhl, Beitriige, 1820, 64 (Canada).

Arctomys empetra, Sabine, Trans. Linn. Soc., xiii, 1822, 584; (not
Mus empetra, Pallas; nor Arctomys empetra, Schreber, and pre-
vious authors).—Richardson, Parry’s Voyage, App., 1825, 315;
Faun. Bor. Am., i, 1829, 147, pl. ix (=empetra, Sabine, and
hence mainly A. monaz.

? Stereodectes tortus, Cope, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1869, 3;
Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., Phila., 1869, 172, pl. 3 (fossil; bone caves,
Va.; probably based on an abnormal incisor of A. monaz.

La Marmotte d’ Amerique, Brisson.
Maryland Marmot, Pennant.
Monax gris, F. Cuvier, Hist. Mamm., xxxvii, 1822.

Specific Characters—Longth to base of tail 14.50, varying from 13.00 to
15 50; of tail vertebra about 4.50; of tail to end of hairs about 6.75. Color
above generally mixed fulvous, brownish-black, and gray; below, yellow-
ish-rufous, varying to brownish-rufous. Top of head, upper surface of all
the feet, and the tail usually black or brownish-black, varied slightly with
pure gray or rusty gray, and even to nearly uniform intense black. The

Lt

ears are large, rounded, thinly haired, generally gray, but varying in the
darker specimens to brownish-gray, passing into black at the extremi-
ties. Tail full, rounded, and bushy, with the hairs generally eonsidera-
bly less than half the length of the head and body. Specimens from the
same locality vary greatly in color, the gray above from witish to yel-
lowish, the black from brownish-black to pure black, and the fulvous
from pale to yellowish. The abundant soft under fur is black or dusky
at base, then fulvous, passing into brownish-fulvous. Young specimens
are much lighter colored than adults, and the pelage generally thinner.

Habits and Habitat—The Woodchuck is a strictly herbivorous animal.
Of cultivated crops it is particularly fond of peas and clover, sometimes
making its burrow in aclover field. It is also foud of corn and other
grain, leaves and buds. It naturally inhabits woods, as the Spermophiles
do open prairies; like these it leaves its burrows with great caution, and
only for a short distance. Althongh burrowing at times in open fields,
its favorite resort is in wooded rocky bluffs along the banks of streams ;
often it burrows under logs, brush heaps, or old fences. It produces from
four to six young in the early part of summer; these leave the mother
before fall, dig their burrows, and shift for themselves. They are not
gregarious; they hibernate through the winter. Mr. Kennicott, from
whose writings this account of their habits is mainly drawn, states that
he has often found a number of them taking refuge in hollow trees, enter-
ing a hole at the ground, and climbing up the cavity after the manner of
the gray rabbit. Their gait is a series of short and awkward jumps, much
like that of a clumsy pig; a man can readily overtake them. They are
cautious while feeding, often standing erect, with out-stretched neck, on
the alert for danger.

The fur is of no value; the hide is tough, and used for lashes, pouches,
and thongs among the backwoodsmen.

Mr. Kennicott states that when fat, which they usually are in autumn,
Woodchucks are esteemed by some good eating. Such an one, I take it,
was Thoreau’s Canadian woodchopper, “a true Homeric or Paphlagonian
man,” he tells us, who “can hole fifty posts a day, and make his supper
on a woodchuck which his dog caught.” “Frequently he would leave
his dinner in the bushes, when his dog had caught a woodchuck by the
way, and go back a mile and a half to dress it, and leave it in the cellar
of the house where he boarded. He was so gentle and unsophisticated
that no introduction would serve to introduce him, more than if you in-
troduced a woodchuck to your neighbor.”

How this Walden neighbor cooked his Woodchuck, Thoreau does not

125

tell us. Mr. Kennicott says they are sometimes baked whole, or are bet-
ter, parboiled in milk, and afterwards “ fatted down.”

Regardihg the occurrence of this animal in Southern Ohio, I have the
following note from Mr. Langdon :

‘‘Not very Common, but can not be called rare. Burrows usually found in the banks
of small creeks. On June 11th, 1876, I noticed a Woodchuck climbing down a tree in a
piece of woods, near Madisonville. He was about thirty feet from the ground when I
first saw him, and was coming down head first, although the tree was vertical or nearly
so, and about fifteen inches in diameter. As I was not aware that this species was in the
habit of climbing trees, I made a note of the circumstance at the time. The identifica-
tion of the species was complete, as I approzched within twenty feet of the animal be-
fore it reached the gronnd, and found its burrow within a few yards of the tree. It suc-
ceeded in getting thers, however, before I did, on acccunt of the dense undergrowth.”

The above observation of this species climbing trees is interesting. Mr.
Kennicott states that it sometimes crawls up a leaning tree, or into thick
clusters of bushes overgrown with vines, on which it is fond of lying in
warm summer days.

FAMILY CASTORIDE.

This family has been associated with the Sciuride, as also has Haplo-
dontide. The three families are so nearly allied as to be placed by Al-
ston in the same series—Sciuromorpha.

The Beavers differ from the Squirrels in being adapted to an aquatic
mode of life ; they also lack the strongly developed post-orbital processes
of Sciuride. Instead of truly rooted molars, with multiple fangs, short
crowns, and tuberculated triturating surface, undergoing much change
by attrition, as in Sciuridz, the molars have, in Castoride, a long, persist-
ent, dentinal pulp; the teeth continue to grow for a long perios, becom-
ing truly rooted only late in life. The teeth, moreover, are single-rooted ;
have no well d:fined coronal portion, and change little by attrition. The
lower jaw is massive, and its sympbisial surface long. The long incisors and
general structure of the skull indicate great incisive power—the Beavers
being gnawers “ par excellence.”

The living representatives of the family belong to the genus Castor.
Other genera are represented by fossil forms.

Castoroides ohioensis, Foster, the “Fossil Beaver” of North America, as
large as the full-grown Black Bear, exeeding even the Capabara, the
largest of existing Rodents, has been referred to this family, but is now
the type of the family Castoroididz, Allen. This interesting animal was
first described by Mr. J. W. Foster, from two mandibular rami and a radius
ten inches long, two inches across the head, and an inch and a half across
the distal extremity.

126

Genvs Castor Linn.

Etymology: Latin, Castor—a Beaver.
Castor, Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 178.

Generic Characters —Feet four-toed ; hind feet palmate, with the second
toe double-clawed, Tail broad, flat, and scaly. Body stout and heavy,
most strongly developed posteriorly. Grinding teeth 3:4, single rooted,
dentinal pulp persisting to a late period in life. General form of skull
sciurine, but lacking post-orbital processes.

Represented by a single living species, formerly distributed over most
of the northern hemisphere. Two well-marked subspecies are recognized :
var. fiber of the Old World, and the New World form, var. canadensis.
Fossil remains scarcely distinct from the present species are found in the
Quarternary deposits of Europe and North America.

Castor FIBER Linn.

BEAVER.

1766. Castor fiber, Linn., Syst. Nat., ed. 12th, i, 1766, 78.—Forster, Phil.
Trans., lxii, 1772, 375.—Erxleben, Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777, 440.—
Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 124.—Schreber, Säugt., iv, 1792, 623,
pl. clxvi (skull), pl. clxxv (animal).—Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., ii, 1801,
30 —Tiedemann, Zoöl., i, 1808, 481.—Pallas, Zoögraphia Rosso-
Asiatica, 1811, 412.—Oken, Naturgesch., iii, 2, 1816, 879.—Cu-
vier, Régne Anim., i, 1817, 186.— Desmarest, Mamm., 1822,
277.—Knox, Mem. Wern. Nat. Hist. Soc., iv, 1823, 548 (anato-
my).—J. Sabine, Franklin’s Joun. to the Polar Sea, 1823, 659.—
Say, Long’s Exped. R. Mts., i, 1823, 464.—Harlan, Fauna Amer.,
1825, 122.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 21.—Griffith’s Cu-
vier’s An. King., v. 1827, 207.—Brandt and Ratzeburg, Mediz.
Zoöl., i, 1829, 13, pl. iii, iv, iva.— Owen, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond,
1830, 19 (anatomy).—Bennett, Gardens and Menag. Zoöl. Soc.,
Quad., i, 1835, 153.—Doughty, Cab. Nat. Bist., iii, 1839, 598, pl.
1.— Waterhouse, Charlesworth’s Mag. Nat. Hist., iii, 1839, 598
(figure of skull).—Schinz, Europ. Faun , 1840, 57.—Keyserling
and Blasius, Wirbelt. Europ., 1840, 31.—Emmons, Quad. Mass.,
1840, 51.—Thompson, Hist. Vermont, 1842, 38.—De Kay, Nat.
Hist. N. York, i, 1842, 72, pl. xx, fig. 1, pl. viii, figs. a, b.—Nils-
son, Skand. Faun., 1847, 409.—Woodhouse, Sitgreave’s Exped.
down the Zuni and Col. Riv., 1853, 47 (New Mexico).—Giebel,
Säug., 1855, 619.—Blasius, Naturgesch. Säug. Deutschl., 1857,
405.— Wilson, Edinb. New Phil. Journ., 2d ser., viii, 1858, 1 (fossil,

‘2.

1829.

1836.

1846.
1855.

1868.

127

Scotland; and geog. distr.).—Theirot, Verhandl. Ver. f. Naturk.
v. Presburg, 1860-61, 21.—Holzl, ib., 96.—Zeittles, ib., 16—
Smith, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1861, 146 (habits Amer.
Beav.).—Fitzinger, Zoöl. Gart., 1864, 273 (habits Europ. Beav.).—
Reeks, Zoölogist, 2d ser., 1869, 1953 (Newfoundland).—Cope,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1869,173 (fossil, Virginia). — Allen,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 226, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xiii, 1869, 190; xvii, 1874, 48; Bull. Essex Institute, vi, 1874,
49, 56, 61, 65.—Lilljeborg, Fauna öfver Sveriges och Norges,
1871, 346.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 29.—Allen, Mon. N. A. Ro-
dents, 1877, 483.
astor canadensis, Kuhl, Beitr. z. Zoöl., 1820, 64.—Fischer, Synop.
Mamm., 1829, 288.—Newb., Pacific R. R. Expl. and Surv., vi, iv,
1857, 62 (California and Oregon).—Baird, Mam. N. Amer., 1858,
355, pl. xlvili, fig. 1 (skull); U. S. and Mex. Bound. Surv. ii, ii,
1859, 40.—Cooper, Pacif. R. R. Expl. and Surv., xii, ii, 1859, 82
(California, Oregon, and Washington Territory): Amer. Nat.,
ii, 1868, 533 (Upper Misrouri).—Suckley, Pacif. R.R. Expl. and
Surv., xii, 1859, ii, 100 (Milk River).—Leidy, Holmes’ Post-plio-
cene Fossils, South Carolina, 1860, iii, pl. xxi, fig. 2 (fossil; Ash-
ley River, 8. C.); Journ. Phil. Acad. Nat. Sci., 2d ser., v, 1869,
405 (fossil.„—Hayden, Trans. Amer. Phil. Soc., xii, 1862, 146
(Upper Missouri). —Coues, Amer. Nat., i, 1867, 362; Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 135 (Arizona).—Gilpin, Proc. and Trans.
Nova Scotia Inst. Nat. Sci., iii, 1872, 152 (Beaver dams),— Green
and Brown, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zoöl., x, 1869, 361 (nat. hist. and
hunting; Pacific Slope of Rocky Mountains).

Castor fiber var americanus, Richardson, Faun. Bor. Amer., i, 1829,
105 —Wagner, Suppl. Schreb. Säug., iv. 1844, 7.—Aud. & Bach.,
North Am. Quad., i, 1849, 347, pl. xlvi.—Wyman, Am. Journ.
Sci. and Arts. 2d ser, x, 1850, 61, fig. 4 (fossil; Memphis
Tenn.).—Morgan and Ely, The Beaver and his Works, 1878, 44,
pl. i—xxiii, and 26 wood cuts (general history and anatomy.) *

Castor americanus, Richardson, Back’s Arctic Land Exped., 1836,
494.—Brandt, Mém. Acad. St. Petérsb., 6th ser., Sci. Nat., vii,
1855, 64, pls. i, ii, iii (tail and skull).—Maximilian, Weigm.
Arch., 1862, i, 182.

Castor europeus, Owen, Brit. Foss. Mam., 1846, 190.

Castor fiber seu europeus, Brandt, Mém. Acad. St. Petersb., 6th ser.,
Sci. Nat., vii, 1855, 63.

Castor fiber var. europeus, Morgan, Amer. Beaver and his Works,

1878, 44.

128

1875. Castor (fiber var.?) canadensis, Coues and Yarrow, Wheeler’s Expl.
and Surveys west 100th Merid., v, Zoöl., 1875, 123 (Colorado,
Utah, and Arizona).

Geographical Distributton—The Beaver formerly existed along the sea-
board to northern Florida, and in Texas tothe RioGrande. Its northern
limit is apparently that of the forests; it extends to the Barren Grounds
and is abundant in Alaska.

Its present range is much less extended; few are found east of the
Mississippi south of the Great Lakes. They remain in northern Maine
and New York, and according to an article in “Forest and Stream,”
November 2, 1876, they are trapped profitably in portions of Virginia.
Their former abundance through the Ohio region and west to the Pacific
is well attested ; the names Beaver Creek, Beaver Dam, etc., are sugges-
tive of their occurrence in Ohio and Indiana. Mr. Langdon says in his
notes: “Indefinitely reported from the north-west portion of the State.”
From “ Atwater’s History of Ohio” (1838), the following: ‘ Beavers
were once here in large numbers on the high lands at the heads of our
rivers, but, with those who caught them, they have long since disap-
peared from among us.” From the ‘‘ Pioneer History of the Ohio Valley,”
Hildreth, 1848: “The Beaver disappeared in a great measure from this
part of the country with their friends and admirers, the Indians.” From
“History of the State of Ohio,” Jas. W. Taylor, 1854: “Beaver Creek,
near a little lake two miles long and one mile wide, and a remarkable
place for Beaver.”

Prof. M. V. B. Knox states that this species is becoming scarce in East-
ern Kansas. In that State it seldom builds dams, but lives under over-
hanging banks and roots, and does much damage to timber along the
streams.’

The writer has observed their work on the margin of Drummond
Island and in the Sault St. Mary, where soft timber trees like the cotton-
wood and willow were gnawed smoothly off just above the level of the
-ground. Occasionally a tree had fallen to the land instead of into the
water, although trees leaning to the water are usually selected. In such
cases the bark was not gnawed from the trunk or branches, as is done
when the trees fall into the water. Pieces are found gnawed into cord-
wood lengths, evidently that they might be readily dragged away to the
underground burrows.

Description.—Body thick, heavy, depressed, enlarging posteriorly, broad-
est near the hips; head large and broad; nostrils lateral, divided; ears

* Transactions Kansas Academy of Science, vol. 4, 1875, p. 21.

,

129

short, rounded, furred, and nearly hidden in the pelage; tail broad and
flat, covered with horny, blackish scales; fore feet short and weak, un-
webbed; hind feet large, fully palmate; soles of all the feet naked, upper
surface hairy; second toe of hind foot usually furnished with a double
claw, the supplemental one being placed transversely beneath the true
one; under fur soft, dense and grayish; overlying hairs coarse, shining,
chestnut. Length of body about thirty inches; of tail about ten; weight
of adult, about forty-five to fifty pounds, ranging to upward of sixty
pounds. General color above reddish brown, lighter or darker in different
specimens; below lighter, approaching grayish. The Beaver is usually
darker to the northward, occasionally even nearly black ; albinistic spe-
cimens creamy white to wholly whit:.

The Beaver is several years attaining its growth, even increasing in
size long after mature dentition. Two-year-old Beavers average thirty-
five to forty pounds; old ones sometimes attain a weight of sixty and
even sixty-three pounds. The skull increases in size apparently nearly
through life, and in weight by the thickening and increased density of
the bones.

The Old-World form has the basilar cavity deeper and larger, nasalg
extending farther backward, and dorsal surface of interarbital region
broader than in var. canadensis; these variations probably result from
long separation of the race and accidental causes rather than to original
diversity of the stock ; the same conclusion oes to their habits and
instincts.

The carminative substance, castoreum, exuding from two pairs of
glands, one in each groin, into the preputial and ano-preputial pass-
ages of this animal, is a somewhat complex substance, composed of the
grayish-colored and somewhat offensive secretion of the upper glands,
mixed with the yellow, viscid, and musky matter from the lower glands;
these mixed and dried secretions constitute the castor of commerce, which
evidently varies with the climate, food, etc. The castor from the Amerı-
can Beaver has a much lower commercial value, and on chemical analysis
is found to contain less volatile oil, castorin and resin, and much more
carbonate of lime than that of the Russian Beaver.

FAMILY ZAPODIDE.

1857. < Sub- family Dipodin®, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 428 (Muride).
1868. = Group Jaculina, Carus, Handb. Zoöl., i, 1868, 101.
1872. = Family Jaculide, Gill, Arrang. Fam: Mamm., 1872, 20.
1875. = Family Zapodidz, Coues, Bull. U. S. Geolog. and Geogr. Survey
Terr., 1875, 2nd ser., No. 5, 253.
9

130

1876. = Sub-family Jaculine, Alston, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. London, 1876, 59
(Dipodide).

Family Character. —Teeth 18; i. 4; pm. 3%; m. 53. Superior inci-
sors compressed, sulcate; premolar small; molars rooted. Cervical verte-
bre unanchylosed (cf. Dipodidz). Cranial portion of the skull shorter
and broader than in Muride. Auditory bulle transverse (cf. Muride),
without special development (cf. Dipodide). Anteorbital foramen large,
rounded, with a supplementary nick, or additional foramen, at its lower
portion. Malar mounting the zygomatic process of the maxillary to
effect suture with the lachrymal. Zygomatic- arch styloid, much de-
pressed. Trunk enlarged posteriorly, in correlation with the shortness
of the forelimbs and great elongation of the hind ones, especially of the
pes (cf. Muridz, except Gerbilline) ; nevertheless, the pes with five per-
fect and separate metatarsals, and five functionally developed digits (cf.
Dipodide, Pedetidz). Tail greatly exceeding the trunk in length (cf. most
Murid&), very slender, scant-haired (cf. Dipodide, Pedetidx). . Progression
saltatorial.

Genus Zapus Coues.

1825. Meriones, Fr. Cuvier, Dents des Mamm., 1825, 187 (type. Not
Meriones of Illiger).

1830. Jaculus, Wagner, Natürl. Syst. Amphib., 1830, 23 (type. Not of
Jarocki, 1821, nor of early authors). —Baird, Mamm. N. Am.,
1857, 429.— Alston, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond , 1876, 89.

1875. Zapus, Coues, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Survey Terr.,.2nd ser., No. 5, 1875,
253 (type).

Generic Character. —Well developed cheek pouches, internal. Digits
of the hand five, the first rudimentary, with a flat, blunt nail; palms
naked, granular, and tuberculate. Digits of the foot five, all functional,
and with perfect claws and basal webs; sole naked throughout, the heel
smooth, the rest granular and tuberculate. Meatus of the ear capacious,
closed with large antitragal and tragal flaps. Pelage coarse and hispid.
Size small; configuration modified from an ordinary murine shape;
physiognomy peculiar.

ZAPUS HUDSONIUS Coues.
LonG-TalLeD JUMPING MousE.

1780. Dipus hudsonius, Zinmermann, Geog. Gesch., ii, 1780, 358, No. 268
(based on the long-legged mouse of Hudson’s Bay, of Pennant).—
Boddaert, Elench. Anim., i, 1784, 115 (based on Zinmermann).—
Schreber, “Säug., 861, No. 6.”—Fischer, Syn. Mamm., 1829,
340 (b-s-d on %’=mermarr\,

1787.

1798.

1799.

1823.

1818.

1822.

1823.
1825.

1825.

1827.

1829.

1829.

1830.

1843.

1845.
1851.

131

Mus longipes, Zimmermann, Penn. Arkt. Zoöl., i, 1787, 181 (erron-
eous identification with Mus longipes auct.).

Dipus canadensis, Davies, Trans. Linn. Soc., iv, 1798, 157, pl. 5,
f.5,6 (“Jumping Mouse of Canada”). —Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., ij,
1801, 192, pl. 161 (after Davies) —Turton, Syst. Nat., i, 1806,
100.—Ord, Guthrie’s Geog., 2nd Am. ed., 1815, 292.—Fischer,
Syn. Mamm., 1829, 339.

Dipus americanus, Barton, Amer. Philos. Trans., iv, No. xii, 1799,
115 (plate not numbered, opposite p. 124).—Barton, op. cit. vi,
1804, 143 (habits).—Ord, Guthrie’s Geog., 2d Am. ed., 1815, 292.

Dipus labradorius, Turton, Syst. Nat., i, 1806, 99 (Labrador Rat, of
Pennant).—Ord, Guthrie’s Geog., 2d Am. ed., 1815, 29%.

Gerbillus hudsonius, Rafinesque, Am. Month. Mag., 1818, 446.—
Lesson, Man., i, 1827, 257.

Gerbillus canadensis, Desmarest, Mamm., ii, 1822, 331.—Harlan,
Fn. Amer., 1825, 155.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, lst ed., 1826,
p- —; 2d ed., 1831, 94, pl. —; 3d ed., 1861, 94.—Griffith, Anim.
Kingd., v. 1827, 240, No. 624.—Emmons, Rep. Quad. Mass., 1840,
69.—Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vermont, 1853, 44.—Hall, Canad.
Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861, 304 (Montreal).

Mus labradorius, J. Sabine, App. Frankl. Journ. 1823, 661.

Gerbillus labradorius, Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 157 (after Sabine). —
Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, Ist ed., 1826, p. —; 2d ed., 1831, 97;
3d ed., 1861, 97.—Griffith, Anim. Kingd., v. 1827, 240, No. 625.

Meriones umericanus, Fr. Cuvier, Deuts des Mamm., 1825, 187, No.
and plate 15, figs. a,b; teeth: names not formally presented,
but inferable from the context).

Meriones canadensis, Less., Man., i, 1827, 258.—Schinz, Syn. Mamm.,
ii, 1845, 91.

Dipus labradoricus, Fischer, Syn. Mamm, 1829, 338.

Meriones labradorius, Richardson, F. B. A., i, 1829, 144, pl. 7.—
Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., iv, pl. 226 B (after Richardson). —Daw-
son, Edinb, N. Philos. Journ., new ser., iii, 1856, 2.

Jaculus americanus, Wagler, Natiirl. Syst. Amphib., 1830, 23.

Jaculus labradorius, Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., iii, 1843, 294.—Giebel,
Säug., 1855, 599; Zeitschr. gesammt. Naturw., xxv, 1865, 272
(osteology).—Kennicott, U. 8. Patent Office Agric. Rep. for 1856,
1857, 95, pl. 11 (habits)—Maximilian, Arch. Naturg., 1861, p.
—,; Verz. Reise N. Am., 1862, 146.

Meriones labradorus, Schinz., Syn Mamm., ii, 1845, 92.

Meriones hudsonicus, Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., ii, 1851, 251, pl. 85.

132

1357. Jaculus hudsonius, Baird, M N. A., 1857, 430, pl. 21, f. 5 a~e.—Newb.,
P. R. R. Rep., vi, 1857, 59 (California) —Baird, P. R. R. Rep.,
x, 1859, Gunnison’s and Beckwith’s Routes, Mamm., p. 8.—
Cooper and Suckley, Nat. Hist. Wash. Terr., 1860, 83, 101, 127.—
Hayden, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., xii, 1862, 147 (Fort Union).—
Samuels, Ninth Ann. Rep. Mass. Board. Agric., 1862, 178 (hab-
its.—Gilpin, Proc. and Trans. Nova Scotia Inst, ii, 1870, 60
(Nova Scotia).—Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1870, 226 (Mas-
sachusetts.—Tenney, Am. Nat., vi, 1872, 330, f. 101 (habits).—
Merriam, Ann Rep. U.S. Geol. Surv. Terr. for 1871, 1872, 665.—
Ames, Bull. Minn. Acad., i, 1874; 70 (Minnesota).—Allen, Bull.
Ess. Inst., vi, 1874, 60, 65 (Wyoming and Utah).

1875. Zapus hudsonius, Coues, Bull. U. 8. Geol. and Geog. Surv. Terr., 2d
ser., No. 5, 1875, 254; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 467.—Coues
and Yarrow, Zoöl. Expl. W. 100th Merid., 1875, 99.—Jordan,
Man. Vert., 1878, 2d ed.

Geographical Distribution. —This species inhabits the greater part of
British America and the United States. Its exact northern and south-
ern limits are not yet determined. Specimens are reported from Great
Slave Lake, latitude 62, by Dr. Coues. The same author has observed it
personally in Virginia. Mr. Langdon has “recognized it satisfactorily ”
in Ohio, where, indeed, we should naturally expect an animal whose
dispersion is probably not less than that of Hesperomys leucopus, particu:
larly as it shows a strong preference for woodlands, and as there are no
very extensive treeless areas in Ohio. .

Description —This animal has a general murine form, modified by the
extreme development of the hind limbs, particularly. of the feet; the
legs and thighs are large and muscular ; the body tapers from the fore-legs,
and is large posteriorly, in correlation with the greatly developed hind-
legs. This kangaroo-like structure enables this little animal to take
enormous leaps, of even eight to ten feet when alarmed, and has given
rige to the common names, “ Kangaroo-mouse,” Jumping-mouse.” The
tail, in relative length, exceeds that of any other of our rodents; it is
always longer than the head and body, sometimes nearly twice as long.
This feature has suggested the vernacular prefix: “ Long-tailed,” by which
it is distinguished from the “ Wood-mouse,” and other names common to
Hesperomys leucopus. The head is conoidal, with a prominent and some-
what blunt snout, and retreating under jaw. The muzzle is small and
naked, inferior in position; over it the skin crosses with a deep, trans-
verse fissure, making an imperfect, overhanging flap, freely moveable
bıck aad forth. The nose-pad has two median, vertical grooves; the

133

nostrils are lateral, the whiskers sparse, but some of them nearly half as
long as the body. The cylindrical tail tapers uniformly to a fine point,
with a slight pencil of hairs at the tip; it is covered with verticillate
scales, with short hairs springing from beneath the whorls, but not con-
cealing them. The eyes are small, situated midway between the nose
and ear. The ear is remarkable among rodents for the development of
the antitragus in the form of a circular, thickened pad, completely re-
versible, and capable of beingjapplied against the meatus; the tragus
expands into a thin, free, rounded border, which may lie in apposition
with the opposite antitragal lobe, thus providing for the perfect closure
of the meatus. The hands are large, the thumb rudimentary, covered
with a broad, truncated nail; the third and fourth fingers longest. The
lengthening of the hind limbs, which determine the saltatorial habits
of this species, is effected by the elongation of both the cras and the pes ;
the former is longer than the latter. The toes are five, the second, third,
and fourth sub equal, and much the longest; all have claws. The meta-
tarsals are five, complete from end toend. (Coues.) The foot is covered
above with short, silky hairs, below naked; the sole is smooth about half
way, then grauular; the digits are transversely scutellate below. The
general pelage is coarse and hispid, with but little gloss; bristly haiis
are mixed with the soft, under fur. The under parts are snowy white,
sharply separated from the sandy-yellowish of the sides and outer sur-
faces of the limbs. There is a dorsal strip of brownish-yellow, heavily
shaded with brownish-black ; this is about as wide as the lateral stripes
already described. The tail is bicolor, corresponding to the body-areas ;
the ears have a light-colored rim; the backs of the hands and feet are
whitish ; the whiskers are mostly black.

FAMILY MURIDZE.

The family Muridx includes Rodents, which have the incisor teeth Y-} ;
canines and premolars absent; molars 33; equal sixteen teeth in all.
Tibia and fibula united below. The coronoid, condylar, and descending
processes of the mandible are well developed and distinct. The ante-
orbital foramen is a large pyriform slit, bounded exteriorly by a broad
plate of the maxillary; this character is probably diagnostic of the fam-
ily. The American genera are incluaed in two sub-families :

Murine.— Animals which include and resemble the comı.on Rats and
Mice. The molars are rooted, tubercular, and with crenate periphery.
Incisors compressed, narrower than deep; root of outer incisor causing a
protuberance on outer side of mandible ; descending process of the man-
dible, a broad flattened plate, wholly below the plane of the molars; pal-

134

ate nearly plane; nasals projecting anteriorly. Animals of lithe and
supple form, quick in movement, with large, bright eyes, pointed, mobile
snout, prominent ears, and lengthened limbs and tail. Abundant in
temperate and warm climates, not reaching the Arctic Seas. Found
throughout South, Central, and most parts of North America.

Arvicoline.—Molars normally rootless (except in Hvotomys), prismatic,
with flat crown and serrate periphery. Incisors often broader than high,
root of under incisor causing a protuberance, if any, on the inner side of
the mandible, at or near notch between condylar and descending process ;
descending process of uiandible hamular, the apex of the hook attaining
the level of the molars; palate highly arched; nasals not projecting be-
vond pre-maxillaries. Animals with squat and heavy shape, slow move-
ment, small eyes, blunt snout, inconspicuous ears, and shortened limbs
and tail as compared with Murine. Not known to occur further south
than Mexico; most numerously represented by individuals in high lati-
tudes; some of them are among the most arctic of mammals.

SUB-FAMILY MURINE.

The genera of this sub-family are, by Dr. Coues, separated into two
groups: tribe (1) Mures, of the Old World, with the tubercles of upper
molars in three series, and the palate extending back of the molars; and
(2) Sigmodontes, New World genera, with the tubercles of upper molars
in two series, and the palate ending opposite last molars.

Of the tribe Mures, four species of the typical genus, Mus, are found in
North America, viz.: M. decumanus, Pallas, the Brown or Norway Rat,
introduced into North America about 1778, and now the commonest
species; M. rattus, Linnzeus, the Black Rat, introduced about 1544, but
now being supplanted by the preceding; AL. alexandrinus, Geoff., the Roof
Rat, or White-bellied Rat, introduced in the southern States; and M.
musculus, Linneus, the cosmopolitan House Mouse. These pests are
among the best known of mammals, but, not being indigenous to the
fauna of Ohio, are not treated in the present report.

The tribe Stgmodontes, Coues, includes all the indigenous American
Murine. Four genera are recognized; Neotoma, Sigmodon, Ochetodon, and
Hesperomys—the last with three sub-genera.

Genus Neotoma Say and Ord.

Mus, sp., Say and Ord, 1818-23.—Desmarest, 1822.
Arvicola, sp., Harlan, 1825.
Lemmus, sp., Fischer, 1829.

135

Neotoma, Say and Ord, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., iv, pt. ii, 1825, 346
(type N. floridana).

Myoxus, sp., Richardson, Zoöl. Journ., iii, 1828, 517 (N. cinerea).

Teonomr, J. E. Gray, Proc. Zoöl Soc. Lond.

Generic Characters —Snout pointed, mobile; whiskers long—to or beyond
shoulders; eyes large and full; ears large, orbicular, nearly naked; tail
long, either scanty-haired or bushy; feet small, broad ; toes short; thumb
with an abortive nail; palms naked, with five tubercles; soles naked for
the anterior two-thirds, with six evident tubercles; pelage soft, lustrous,
white below; skull elongate, twice as long as wide; posterior aspect
truncate ; no definite bead on upper margin of orbits; under jaw with
long, acute coronoid process, overtopping condyle; upper molars mostly
three rooted, under with two roots each; upper teeth with usually two
external and one internal re-entrant loops of enamel ; last tooth in lower
jaw conspicuously smaller than either of the other two.

Dr. Coues recognizes three North American species—N. fuscipes, N. cine-
rea, of British America and Western United States; N. floridana, of
United States and Mexico. Besides the above, one is known from Guate-
mala, N. ferruginea.

NEOTOMA FLORIDANA Say and Ord.
Woop RAT.

1818. Mus floridanus, Ord, Bull. Soc. Philom. Phila., 1818, 181.—Desm.,
, Mamm., ii, 1822, 307.—Say, Long’s Ex. R. Mts., i, 1823, 54.

1825. Arvicola floridanus Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 141; Med. and Phys.
Res., 1835, 53, pl. x, f. 1, 2, 3, 4.

1825. Neotoma floridana, Say and Ord., Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., iv,
1825, 352, pl. x, f.1,2,3,4; Zoöl. Journ., ii, 1825, 294, pl. x, f.
1, 2. 3, 4; Isis, 1827, xx, 1035.—Griffith, Anim. Kingd., iii, 1827,
160, pl. —.—Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., i, 1849, 32, pl. iv.—Geoff.,
Zool. Voy. Venus, 1855, 154, pl. xiii.—Kennicott, Agric. Rep. U.
S. Patent Office for 1856 (1857) (no text), pl. xiv.—Baird, M.N.A.,
1857, 487.—Maximilian, Arch. Naturg., xviii, 1862, p. —; Verz.
N. Am. Säug., 1862, 165 — Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., ii, 1871,
182.—Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1874, 175; Mon.
N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 15.—Coues and Yarrow, Rep. Expl. and
Surv., W. 100th Merid., 1875, 100. —Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 31.

1829. Lemmus floridanus, Fischer, Synopsis, 1829, 299.

1854. Neotoma mexicana, Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1855, vii,
333; M. N. A., 1857, 490; U. S. and Mex. Bound. Surv., ii, pt.:
ii, 1859, Mamm., p. 44, pl. 24, f. 1, a to g (skull).—Coues, Am.
Nat., i, 1867, 399.

136

1855. Neotoma "micropus, Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1855,
333; M. N. A., 1857, 492; U. S. and Mex. Bound. Surv., ii, pt.
ii, 1859; Mamm., p. 44.

Specific Characters.—Length about 6 inches ; tail about 6; hind foot 1.50;
skull averaging 2 inches. Tail scant-hairy, bicolor, grayish and whitish.
Adults with general body colors of Norway Rats, but more fulvous on
the sides; white below; young gray or slate color. Tubercles blackish ;
toes and palms flesh-colored; tips white; back of hands and the feet
snowy white.

Distribution. —Found in southern United States and northern Mexico;
north to Maryland (Audubon), New York (Bell), Massachusetts (Gibbs),
Dakota, Illinois, Kansas, and Arkansas (Coues); identified in Ohio by
Dr. Byrnes, who, as I am informed by Mr. Langdon, “captured a speci-
men that was abandoned near New Philadelphia, Ohio.”

Professor M. V. B. Knox, of Baker University, Kansas, states that the
species is common along streams in middle and western Kansas, where,
they build nests by piling up sticks and pieces of bark to the height of
two or three feet, often about the base of a tree orstump. In these piles
they construct a nest of dried leaves and grass.

Genus Hresperomys Waterhouse.

Hesperomys is a tribal rather than a generic name, including, according
to Dr. Coues, in North America, Vesperimus, Onychomys, Oryzomys, Ocheto-
don, Sigmodon, and Neotoma, with as many South American genera or
sub-genera besides. The same author says: “In our comparative ig-
norance of South American forms, we shall not venture upon any diag-
nosis or description of the full genus Hesperomys.”

SUB-GENUS VESPERIMUS Coues.

— Musculus, Raf., Am. Mohth. Mag.. iii, 1818, 446.

— Hesperomys, Baird, Mam. N. A., 1857, 458.

— Vesperimus, Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.. Phila., 1874, 178 (type Mus
leucopus).

< Hesperomys, of North American writers.

> Calomys, Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., ii, 1851, 303.

Sub-generic Character. —Of medium and small size, lithe form, and
quick movement; eyes large and prominent; ears rounded, large, thin,
scant-pilous, antitragus evident but not valvular; claws weak; hind legs
and feet long, the latter with six large conical tubercles; hind feet naked
or scant-furred on posterior third; tail terete, slender, closely hairy,

137

ranging in length from length of body to a little longer than head and
body ; pelage soft, clear, glossy, with but few bristly hairs; feet and under
parts white or whitish ; body and tail more or less distinctly bicolor ; up-
per margin of the orbit sharp, but not extended into a crest.

1775.

1792.

1818.
.1822.

1829.
1830.
1839.
1849.
1843.
1843.

1852.

1853.

1853.

HEsPERoMYs (VESPERIMUS) LEUCOPUS Coues.

WUITE-FOOTED Mouse; DEER MOUSE.

Mus sylvaticus, var., Erxleben, Syst. An., i, 1775, 390 (based on
New York var. of Pennant).

Mus agrarius var. americanus, ‘‘ Kerr’s Linneus, 1792, 231” (based
on Pennant).

Musculus leucopus, Rafinesque, Amer. Monthly Mag., iii, 1818, 446.

Mus leucopus, Desmarest, Mamm., ii, 1822, 307.—Harlan, Fn. Amer.,
1825, 151.—Griffith, Anim. Kingd., v, 1827, 223.—Fischer, Syn-
opsis, 1829, 326 —DeKay, N. Y. Zodl., i, 1842, 82, pl. 23, fig. 1.
—Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., i, 1849, 300, pl. 46.—Thompson, Nat.
Hist. Vermont, 1853, 13.—Kennicott, Agric. Rep. U. S. Patent
Office for 1856 (1857), 99, pl. 10.

Mus sylvaticus var. noveboracensis, Fischer, Synopsis, 1829, 318 (New
York variety).

Cricetus myoides, Gapper, Zoöl. Journ., v, 1830, 204, pl. 10 (Canada).

Mus noveboracensis, Selys-Longchamps, Etudes de Microm, 1839, 67.

Arvicola emmonsü, DeKay, Rep. Quad. Mass., 1840, 61.

Hesperomys maniculatus, Wagner, Weigmann’s Archiv., 1843, ii,
141, and 1845, ii, 148; Abhand. Akad. Wissensch., v, pt. ii,
1848, 316 (Labrador).

Hesperomys polionotus, Wagner, Weigmann’s Archiv., 1843, ii, 52
(Georgia).

Hesperomys leucopus, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1852,
413.—Baird, M.N. A., 1857, 459.—Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl.,
i, 1869, 227 (Massachusetts), and ii, 1870, 178 (Florida).—Dall.,
Alaska and its Resources, 1870, 577.—Maximilian, Arch. Naturg.,
xviii, 1862, pl. 4, f. 4 (penis-bone); Verz. N. Am. Säug., 1862,
156.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 31; and of most late writers.

Hesperomys campestris, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi,
1853, 413 (New Jersey; type, No. 4726, Mus. Smiths.)—Aud. &
Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1854, 295 (after LeConte).—Baird, M. N. A.,
1857, 485 (after LeConte).

Hesperomys texanus, Woodhouse, Proc. Acad. Nat. Ak, Phila., vi,
1853, 242; Sitgreave’s Rep. Expl. Zufi River, 1853, 48, ph 2
(El Paso, Tex. ; type, No. 2559, Mus. Smith) — Add, & Bach.,

138

Q. N. A., iii, 1854, 319 (after Woodhouse).—Baird, M. N. A.,
1857, 464, pl. 8, fig. 1, pl. 52, fig. 5, a, b (Texas and New Mexico);
U.S. and Mex. Bound. Surv., ii, pt. ii, 1859, 43.—Kennealy, P.
R. R. Rep., x, 1859, 14, pl. 8, fig. 1.

1855. Hesperomys cognatus, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii,
1855, 442 (southern States; types, Nos. 4708, 4709, Mus. Smiths.).
—Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 469 (southern States).

1855. Hesperomys gracilis, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii,
1855, 442 (Ohio or Michigan, and Wisconsin; types, Nos. —,

. 4710, Mus. Smiths.).

1855. Hesperomys austerus, Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1855,
366 (Wash. Terr.); M. N. A., 1857, 466.—Cooper and Suckley,
Nat. Hist. Wash. Terr., 1860, 102, 127.

1855. Hesperomys boylit, Baird, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1855,
335 (Eldorado county, California ; type, No 356, Mus. Smiths.) ;
M.N. A., 1857, 471, pl. 8, f. 3, pl. 52, fig. 3, a-e (California, Ore-.
gon, and Washington Territory).

1857. Hesperomys gambeli, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 464 (Pacific coast, U. 8.).
—Newberry, P. R. R. Rep., vi, 1857, Zoöl., 60 —Baird, P. R. R.
Rep. Cal. Route, 1859, No. 3, 82.—Cooper and Suckley, Nat. Hist.
Wash. Terr., 1860, 102, 127.

1857. Hesperomys myoides, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 472 (Vermont, based on
Gapper).

1860. Mus agrarius, Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., i, 3d ed,, 1860, 316 (also in
the earlier editions).—Linsley, Am. Journ. Sci, xlii, 1842, 351.

1874. Hesperomys (Vesperimus) leucopus, Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., 1874, 178; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 50.

1875. Hesperomys (Vesperimus) americanus, Coues and Yarrow, Rep. Expl.
and Surv., W. 100th Merid., 1875, 102.

Specific Characters.— Average length about 3 25 inches; of tail vertebra
3 inches ; nose to eye, $ inch; length of head 14 inches; soles, with nails,
four-fifths of an inch; cars little more than half an inch. Feet’ and
under parts of adult snowy white; upper parts light brownish-yellow or
fawn-color, with a darker stripe along the back: ‘The colors of upper
parts vary in different specimens and at different seasons. Some sum-
mer specimens are bluish-gray on the back. The yellow color is clearest
on the cheeks and along the sides. Upper parts of a young specimen
were of a uniform blackish ash-color, without any yellow.

While this animal does not vary in absolute size or relative proportion
or in character of pelage with latitude, as one might expect, there is
some color variation, which, Dr. Coues observes, is “ indescribable

139

in words, but which strikes the eye familiar with the subject. We ven-
ture to assert that we can distinguish, in North America, about twenty
kinds of Hesperomys leucopus, upon characters at least as constant, relia-
ble, and tangible as those hitherto held to define the greatest part of the
‘species’ that have been in vogue of late years.”

It will be seen in the preceding synonymy, that many of these species
are abandoned. Dr. Coues, after an exhaustive review of this species
and the nominal species referred to it (Monograph of North American
Rodentia), admits three geographical races or varieties, gossypinus, sonori-
ensis, and eremicus, which, however. grade into each other insensibly.

Distribution and Habits—This species ranges from the Atlantic to the
Pacific, and from the Arctic regions south to Mexico.

This mouse is decidedly a lover of timbered lands. Mr. Kennicott
says he has never observed it on the prairie. It is found on wooded
farms, but not in large fields clear of trees, stumps, and logs. Its nest is
usually in an old stump or hollow log, and occasionally in hollow trees
some distance above the ground. It even occupies deserted birds’ nests.
Dr. Hoy has observed it nesting in the thick branches of thorn trees
eight or ten feet above the ground. These nests were of grass, spherical
in form, the entrance being a small hole at one side.

This species is active on the ground and climbs readily. It docs not
burrow. It is sometimes gregarious; a dozen have been found together
in winter. It does not hibernate, but travels about either on or under
the snow. This species is nocturnal, and so escapes hawks. Owls and
Weasels prey upon it; and Mr. Kennicott has found the Milk Snake
(Ophibolus doliatus) under logs near its nests. Its numerous enemies keep
it from increasing rapidly, although it is a prolific species, producing
two or three litters annually, of from four to six young. The young are
dragged away from the nest, attached to the teats of the mother, when
disturbed. The female shows much affection for the young, moving with
great caution, and, in one instance, was cbserved to return and remove
one which had lost its hold and been brushed off.

This species is not at all carnivorous; it feeds on seeds and leaves of
grasses and trees, also on acorns and nuts. It lays up stores for winter,
stripping off the shells of beechnuts and other seeds with no apparent
reason. Several quarts of clean Red Clover seed have been found in a
stump, stored away by this Mouse.

The White footed Mouse is a pretty little animal, delicately colored
and neatly formed. It occasionally gnaws the bark from fruit trees, but
sticks to wooded lands so persistently that it cannot, on the whole,jbe
considered injurious to the farmer. It is timid in captivity, not at all

140

pugnacious, and when given room, moves by sudden springs, holding
high its long tail.
Sus-cenus Oryzomys Baird.

< Mus sp., Harlan, Am. Journ. Sci., 1837.

< Hesperomys sp., Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., 1843.
x Arvicola sp., Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1853.
= Oryzomys, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 458.

Sub-generie Characters —“ Superior margin of orbit with a prominen
sharp edge or bead, anteorbital foramen nearly circular above and con-
tinued below as a narrow slit. Maxillary plate forming outer wall of
foramen not produced anteriorly into a pointed "process (cf. Sigmodon).
Posterior border of palate produced behind last molars, a deep pit inter-
vening on either side; post-palatal notch narrow, with parallel sides, and
nearly straight, transverse, anterior border. Hind legs short, but feet
very long and large (much as in Fiber), with obliquely-set long toes,
densely pilous above, but soles perfectly naked, granular, with one long,
narrow, postero-internal tubercle (as in Mus), and five small ones. Lat-
eral toes very unequal in length, the fifth reaching to the penultimate
joint of the fourth (cf. Sigmodon); all the toes bave a slight but evident
basal webbing. Fore feet small, not half as long as hinder, pilous above;
palms perfectly naked. Ears small, little overtopping the fur, hirsute
both sides, with a fluffy tuft on the concavity. Nasal pads more notice-
able than in other sections. Tail long, about equalling head and body,
scant-haired, especially above where the dermal scales as well as the ver-
tebral annuli are visible. Fur glossy, but coarse from the number of
bristly hairs. Whiskers sparse and short, exceeding, however, those of
Sigmodon, though falling short of those of Hesperomys proper. Exceeding
in size any other known North American species of Hesperomys, and with
the general appearance of Sigmodon or even Mus.” (Coues,)

Hesperomys (OryzoMys) PALustrıs (Harl.) Wagner.
RICE-FIELD MOUSE.

1837. Mus palustris, Harlan, Am. Journ. Sci., xxxi, 1837, 386 (New Jer-
sey).

1843. Hesperomys palustris, Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., iii, 1843, 543.—Le
Conte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 410.—Allen, Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zoöl., ii, 1870, 182 (Florida).

1853: Arvicola oryzivora, Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1853, 214, pl. 144,
fig. 3.

1857. Hesperomys (Oryzomys) palustris, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 482 (Georgia
and South Carolina). —Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1874,
184; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 118.

141

Specific Oharacters. — As this is the only representative of its. genus, and
as the above enumeration of generic eharacters is unusually full and
minute, it is only necessary to mention a few other characters which are
taken from Dr. Coues’s Monograph above cited. i

The length, from nose to end of tail vertebrse, is from 74 to 104 inches,
averaging about 8 inches. The body and tail are usually about equal.

The color is‘mixed yellowish and grayish-brown, and black; darker
along the back, shading on the rump and sides into the whitish of the
under parts. The hands and feet are densely or scantily covered with
satiny, whitish, appressed hairs. The palms and soles are flesh-colored
or blackish. The palma are 5, the soles 6-tubereulate. The third finger
is longest, the fourth a little shorter, and the second and fifth diminish
rapidly. The second, third, and fourth toes are very long and nearly
equal; the fifth reaches nearly to the middle of the fourth, the first
scarcely beyond the base of the second. The claws are short, thick, little
curved, not very sharp. The size of the foot is in striking contrast with
the shortness of the leg.

The habitat of this species is the south Atlantic and Gulf States, es-
pecially in maratime portions, and in rice fields. It has also been
reported from Kansas and Mexico.

This large, rat-like species is the type and only representative of the
sub-genus Oryzomys. It is eminently aquatic, only surpassed in this
respect by the Muskrat.

It has been identified by Mr. Frank W. Langdon, “with some hesita-
tion, on the strength of the posterior half of a small Rat found in the
stomach of a Red-shouidered Hawk, killed December 24, 1876,” at Mad-
isonville, Ohio. The writer has since examined Mr. Langdon’s specimen,
and finds that the feet and tail agree, in the minutest details, with the
very full description given by Dr. Coues, in the Monographs of North
American Rodentia.

— Hesperomys (Vesperimus) aureolus (Aud. & Bach.) Wagner, the Red
Mouse, inhabits the central and southern States (Coues), but there is no
record of its residence in Ohio known to the present writer.

Genus ArvıcoLaA Lacépéde.

This genus, as defined by Dr. Coues, is equivalent to the sub-family
Arvicoling, excluding the Lemmings, the Synaptomys, Di, Baird, and the
rooted-molar group, Evotomys.

Generic Characters —Molars 2:3, rootless, perennial, and prismatic;
crowns of molars divided into several elosed islands of dentine by folds

142

of the surrounding sheets of enamel that meet from opposite sides and
fuse along the median line; upper molars sub-equal in length and
breadth; anterior lower molar nearly as long as the other two together.
Skull solid, massive. Size medium for the sub-family ; form stout ; mem-
bers short; neck indistinguishable; head broad, with convex forehead ;
muzzle obtuse; lips fairly cleft, hirsute; eyes small, midway between ears
and snout; muzzle furry, except nasal papille; whiskers 5-seriate;
ears well developed, not usually overtopping the fur, orbicular, more or
less hirsute both sides, with valvular antitragus; fore feet with mostly
naked, tuberculate palms, 4 digitate; thumb obsolete, with abortive,
obtuse, flattened, sessile nail; fingers unguiculate, inferiorly scutellate ;
hind feet with soles neither entirely naked nor entirely furry, 5 to 6 tuber-
culate, 5-digitate; three middle toes longest and sub-equal, fifth and first
successively much shorter; tail terete, always hairy enough to obscure
its annuli, and with terminal pencil, sometimes densely hirsute, always
longer than the sole, usually longer than the head, but ranging in length
from as long as head to nearly half as long as trunk; pelage thick, soft, of
ordinary fur mingled with longer bristly hairs; fur uniformly plumbeous
at the roots, colored at the tips; general color subdued, the shades diffuse,
under parts lighter than upper, tail bicolor.

Four groups of Arvicola are recognized by Professor Baird, and charac-
terized by Dr. Coues on dental and external characters: A—Myonomes,
B—Chilotus, C—Pedomys, and D—Pitymys.

Sus-Genus Pepomys Baird.

Pedomys, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 517 (type, Arvicola austerus, LeConte).—-
Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Science, Phila., 1874, 190.

Sub-generie Oharacters.—Back upper molar with one external triangle

and a posterior trefoil; middle upper molar with one internal triangle;
front lower molar with one external and two internal triangles; ear un-
rimmed; sole 5-tuberculate; fore claws not larger than hinder ones; tail
about one-third length of head and body, or a little less; pelage ordinary,
grizzly, and rather “austere,” the under parts usually with a peculiar,
muddy tinge.
’ The above section is based, by Baird, on A. austerus, LeConte. The
same author added to the group two other species—A. haydeni and A.
cinnamomeus—neither of which are regarded by Dr. Coues as specifically
distinct.

143

ARVICOLA (PEDoMys) Austerus LeConte.
PRAIRIE MEADOW-MOUSE.

1853. Arvicola austerus, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853,
405 (Racine, Wis.; type, No. 2249, Mus. Smiths.).—Aud. &
Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1854, 289 (based on LeConte’s description).
Kennicott, Agric. Rep. U.S. Pat Office for 1856 (1857), 97, pl.
xii, upper fig. (Illinois). —Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 2d ed.
1857. Arvicola (Pedomys) austerus, Baird, Mamm. N. A., 1857, 539.—Coues,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1874, 190; Mon. N. A. Rodentia,
1877, 210.—Coues and Yarrow, Rep. Expl. and Surv., West 100th
Merid., 1875, 108.
Arvicola (Pedomys) cinnamomea, Baird, op. cit., 541 (Pembina Da-
kota).
Arvicola (Pedomys) haydeni, Baird, op. cit., 548 (Fort Pierre, Da-
kota).

Specifie Characters.—Total length 4 inches; tail 1 25; feet seven-tenths
of an inch. “ Above, the hairs are deep black at the base, then ringed
with cinnamon-brown, and tipped with blackish ; a few long hairs, en-
tirely black, are interspersed; on the head and along the back, the color
is darker. Low on the sides and cheeks, the hairs are all tipped with
cinnamon-brown, without rings; belly bluish-gray, tinted with cinna-
mon.” Tail bicolor, showing the colors of the upper and under parts of
the body respectively ; the young are darker above. The pelage is rather
coarse, thick, and stout, not lying smooth enough to be very glossy, and
so suggesting the fit name “austerus.” Seemingly stouter and clumsier
than riparius; tail shorter, head apparently broader, with obtuse muzzle
and rather short and spare whiskers.

Habitat—Western States and adjoining territories, Kansas and Louis-
iana, especially Illinois, Missouri, and Michigan In northern Illinois
and southern Wisconsin, this is the most abundant native mammal, pre-
ferring wet prairies, according to Mr. Kennicott, and never observed by
him in the woods. The species is reported by Mr. Langdon, from Madi-
sonville, Ohio, and from Brookville, Indiana. Mr. Langdon reports this
species as found in woods, under logs, so it is plainly common to both
woods and prairies.

Habits.— A. austerus is a prolific species, commonly producing five young
at a birth, from April to October. The males do not live with the females
and young in summer.

The writer has unearthed many of this species in prairie meadows,

‚when leveling hills, in order that the grass might be cut with the

144

grain-reaper divested of its grain-apron—a machine often used before
the day of the light mowing machines. These burrows are not very
deep, rarely extending to the bottom of the hills, which were from twelve
to fifteen inches high, and from three to six feet across. The nest is of
fine grass, placed in one of the enlarged, numerous channels of which
the burrow is composed.. The nests are round bunches of grass, with a
small cavity in the center and a small passage leading to it. Here the
first litter, at least, is produced. Similar nests are found in the grass,
however, containing young, in the summer and fall.

Burrows, nests, and runways are mad: by this species under the snow
in winter. These runways are aleo made on the ground, from burrow to
burrow. They are scarcely noticeable, as they aré covered with the
overarching grass, and yet they are more abundant, proportionally, than
the streets and alleys of a populouscity. Along these runways they seek
their food, which consists of seeds, roots, and grasses. Mr. Kennicott
found in the deepest part of one of the excavations, in November, five
or six quarts of the round tubers of two species of Blazing Star (Liatris),
roots of Helianthus, grasses, and several bulbs of wild onions. ‘The
fleshy roots of the upland Rosin weeds, or Compass plant (Silphium laci-
natum), are freely eaten by this species. These roots are often four or five

inches in diameter, and yet tender enough to be easily cut by a good
ploughshare. I have often found them gnawed into irregular sh. pes,
probably by this species.

When corn is cut in the autumn, a pair of these Mice will inhabit a
shock, making a burrow under it, and collecting quantities of corn in
the butrow. This is done in winter and spring, as well as in autumn.
They are not gregarious; two pairs are never found in the same hole.
They soon become reconciled to confinement, rarely attempting to gnaw
out. Those kept by Mr. Kennicott were omnivorous, eating raw fresh
meat, hickorynuts, leaves, and roots of garden plants, grain and vegeta-
bles, in enormous quantities. Three ate, in one day, besides other food,
the germs from all the kernels of a good-sized ear of corn. In eating,
they grasped the food in their fore paws, which are used as hands, with
all the facility of a Squirrel. The food is cut in small pieces by the in-
cisors, and then ground by the molars. In digging, the earth is exca-
vated with the fore feet, and thrown back by the hind feet; the dirt is
pushed aside with the nose, and also frequently loosened with the teeth.
They sometimes dug horizontally, lying on the back, and in removing
the earth from an extended burrow, would come out backwards, throwing
back the earth with both front and back feet.

Regarding the carnivorous propensities and ferocious habits of this
species, I copy the following from Mr. Kennicott’s personal observations:

145

‘ Adult specimens recently captured and placed together often kill and devour each
other, mothers even eating their young.

“ One evening I placed in a large cage two old males taken in different burrows. In
the course of the night much fighting and crying was heard, and the next morning one
was found to have been killed and partly devoured by his companion. The other was
supplied with corn and fresh beef, both of which he ate; and in the course of the fore-
noon a half grown house mouse was placed alivein the cage. This, without provocation,
he at once attacked, as if in great rage, uttering his usual cry of anger, with his hair
erected and bristling. In fighting he sprung upon the mouse, striking with his fore-
feet, at the same time snapping quickly with his teeth, and then springing nimbly back.
Finally he seized the mouse by the rump with his incisors, and thus broke his back bone.

ter this the latter, which had fought as well as he could, ceased to resist, when the
meadow mouse, catching him in his teeth, threw him forcibly to some distance, and con-
tinued to strike, bite and toss him about until he was dead. His anger then appeared
to subside as quickly as it had risen, and in a few minutes he was observed placidly
eating corn. The old males were always very pugnacious, biting and striking at any
thing thrust at them.

“When much teased in this way, they sometimes turned on their backs, snapping
with their teeth and striking with all their feet.

‘When enraged they uttered a low, harsh, creaking note, resembling very much that
of a young puppy. If hurt, their voices were clearer and sharper. Sometimes they
chattered their teeth in anger. The females were not so pugnacious, and were more
silent; seldom crying out in anger, or fighting when teased. They were equally as car-
nivorous, however, as the males.

“Like most Arvicole, this species takes to the water boldly, and swims and dives
readily.”

Sup-Genus Myonomzs Rafinesque.

<< Arvicola of American writers.

= Arvicola A, Hemiotomys, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 515 (type, A. riparius,
Ord. :

== Mynomes, Rafinesque, Am. Monthly Magazine, ii, 1817, 45.

== Myonomes, Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1874, 189.

In Myon«mes the back upper molar has two external triangles and a.
posterior crescent. Middle upper molar with two internal triangles.
Front lower molar with three internal and two or three external lateral
triangles. Ear unrimmed in front. Sole, 6-tuberculate. Fore claws not
longer than hinder ones. Tail, about one-third the head and body, or
more. Pelage, ordinary. Of maximum and medium size.

Arvicota (MyYoNOMES) RIPARIUS Ord.
Common AMERICAN MEADOW Mouse.

1815. Arvicola pennsy’vantca, Ord, Guthrie’s Geog., 2d Am. ed., ii, 1815,
292 (based on Wilson, 1. c.)— Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., viii, 588.—
10

1825.

1825.

1825.

1840.

1840.
1842.

1842.

1842.

1848.

1848.

1848.

1853.

1853.

1856.

1857.

1857.

146

Schinz, Synopsis, ii, 1845, 247.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A.,i,
1849, 341, pl. xlv. fig. -—Le Conte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila.,
vi, 1853, 407.

Arvicola palustris, Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 136; Med. and Phys.
Researches, 1835, 47.

Arvicola riparius, Ord, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., iv, pt. ii, 1825,
305 (Philadelphia).—Aud. and Bach., Quad. N. A., iii, 1854, 302
(not figured; in text under “montana”).—Le Conte, Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci., Phila. vi, 1853, 406.—Baird, M. N. A, 1857, 522 (east-
ern United States) —Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist., 3d ed., 1860, i,
301.—Allen, Mamm. Mass., Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. No. 8, 231.—
Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 33, and of late authors generally.

Arvicola canthognatha, Harlan, Fn Amer., 1825, 136.—Godman, Am.
Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 65.

Arvicola alborufescens, Emmons, Rep. Quad. Mass., 1840, 60 (Massa-
‚chusetts; partial albino).

Arvicola hirsutus, Emmons, Rep. Quad. Mass., 1840, 60.

Arvicola nasuta, Bachman, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., viii, pt. ii,
1842, 296 (Mass).

Arvicola oneida, DeKay, N.Y. Zool., i, 1842, 85, pl. xxiv, fig. 1 (young,
New York).

Arvicola rufescens, DeKay, N. Y. Zool., i, 1842, 85, pl. xxii, fig. 1
(northern New York).

Arvicola occidentalis, Peale, Mamm. U. 8. Expl. Exped., 1848, 45
(Puget’s Sound).

Arvicola californica, Peale, Mamm. U. S. Expl. Exped., 1848, 46
(California).

Arvicola montana, Peale, Mamm. U. 8. Expl. Exp., 1848, 44 (Mount
Shasta, Cal.)

Arvicola edax, Le Conte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 405
(California).

Arvicola borealis, Le Conte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853,
407.

Arvicola riparius longipilis, Kennicott, Agric. Rep. U. 8. Patent
Office for 1856, 304 (specimen in heavy winter pelage, from West
Northfield, Il.)— Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 524 (in text; same as
Kennicott’s).

Arvicola trowbridgei, Baird, M.N. A., 1857, 529, in text (name sug-
gested from some dental peculiarities of No. „54%, Mus. Smiths.,
from Monterey, Cal.)

4rvicola longirostris, Bair’, M. N. A., 1857, 500 (bs d en supposed

147

cranial peculiarities of No. 333%, Mus. Smiths., from California).
—Newberry, P. R. R. Rep., vi, 1857, Zool., 61.

1857. Arvicola modesta, Baird, M.N. A., 1857, 585 (based on No. #7‘, from
Rocky Mountains; very young).

1857. Arvicola rufidorsum, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 526 (Holmes’ Hole, Mass ;
a very red specimen).

1857. Arvicola brewert, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 525 (bleached breed from
Muskeget Island, Mass).

1862. Hypudeus riparius, Maximilian, Arch. Naturg., xviii, 1862; Verz.
N. A., Säug., 1862, 174.

1874. Arvicola (Myonomes) riparius, Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila.,
1874, 189; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 156.—Coues and Yarrow,
Zool. Expl. W. of 100th Merid., 1876, 106.

Description of the Species—Average length, 435; tail, 1:5; fore foot, 3
lines; hind foot, from tuberosity of heel to end of longest claw, four fifths
inch.

Gray-brown, darker along the middle of the back, especially toward
the tail. Beneath, the plumbeous hairs are tipped with white, resulting
in a hoary-ash, whitest on the breast and belly, darkest on the throat.
There is no line of demarcation between the upper and under parts.

The typical coloration given above is departed from in three directions:
(1) toward red, the extreme of which is reached in the type of “‘rufidorswm,”
(2) toward black, including certain northern Illinois specimens, having
long, dense, and almost fluffy pelage, forming the variety “longipilis,”
but the fur of this species varies so much in these points with age, health,
season of the year, and climate, that “longipilis” can not be regarded as
even a permanent variety; (8) lastly, the color tends to gray, the ex-
treme of which has passed as “brewert.” This form has only been found
on a low, sandy island, between Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, and
is believed by Mr. Allen to be only a thoroughly sun-bleached form of
riparius, the scattered grass of the island giving but little shelter from
the sunlight from above, and the hot, light-colored sands finishing the
bleaching of the under parts. The mice living in the sand dunes of
Ipswich show the same half-white appearance of the Massachusetts speci-
mens. Indeed, the present species is, according to Dr. Coues, subject to
almost endless variation of size, color, and proportion of parts. The same
authority closes an elaborate survey of this species, extending over thirty
quarto pages, and including results of examinations of over one hundred
and fifty specimens: “We have no alternative, then, but to throw all
the names together as indistinguishable synonyms of riparius. In 1857
many names, all doubtless supposed by their several proposers to indicate
valid species, were either formally or virtually suppressed ; and a further

148

reduction of eight is simply an advance, pari passu, with the incrvase of
our knowledge on the subject. We trust that we have proven the posi-
tion we take, and that we have seen the last of nominal species, based
upon the endless variations of Arvicola riparius.”

Distribution and Habits.—This species is generally abundant in the Uni-
ted States. It is numerous in Ohio, according to Mr. Langdon, who has
specimens from Madisonville, Ohio, and Brookville, Indiana.

Dr. Hoy states that near Racine, Wisconsin, they-are found in woods,
burrowing under stumps and trees, also in meadows. It shows no prefer-
ence for low lands, as does A. austerus, but. inhabits both high and low
lands. The burrow is simple, and of slight extent.

The animal is gregarious, half a dozen or more inhabiting the same
nest in corn-shocks and potato heaps. Mr. Kennicott states that the
present species is not as pugnacious as A. austerus, which probably drives
it off. The voice is a harsh, creaking squal; the animal is noisy in cap-
tivity, crying out almost continually when several are eating together,
or at all disturbed.

SUB-GENnvs Pirymys McMurtrie.

Arvicola sp., Auctorum.
= Psammonys, LeConte, 1829 (pinetorum), (not of Rueppell).
= Pitymys, MeMurtrie, 1831 (same type).
== Pinemys, Lesson, 1842 (same type).

Sub-generic Characters.—“ Below medium size; body cylindrical and
otherwise shrew-like in closeness and glossiness of plumage; tail very
short—less than the head, little more than the hind foot; ears small,
mostly congealed, sparsely pilous, with flat edges, and border of meatus
_ plane in front; feet small, both 5-tuberculate ; fore claws not shorter than
hind claws; palms more than half as long as soles; teats only four, in-
guinal; skull relatively broader than usual; muzzle short, very blunt;
nasal branch of intermaxillary reaching beyond ends of nasals; distance
from tips of lower incisors to apex of descending process no greater than
distance from same point to back of condyle; first under molar with only
one external closed triangle and two internal ones; mo spur on last tri-
angle of second upper molar; back upper molar with only one exterior
triangle and a posterior trefoil.” (Coues.)

ARVICOLA (Pırymy8B) PINETORUM LeConte.

Pınz Mouse,

1825. Arvicola pennsylvanıca, Harlan, Fn. Am., 1825, 144 (in part; the
description, but not the synonomy ; not of authors).

149

1829. Psammonys pinetorum, LeConte, Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y., iii,
1829, 132, pl. ii. (Name inept.)

1831. Pitymys pinetorum, McMurtrie, Am. ed. Cuv. R. A., i, 1831, 434.

1842. Pinemys pinetorum, Lesson, Nouy. Tab. R. A., 1842, 12.

1842. Arvicola scalopsoides, Aud. & Bach., Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila.,
viii, 1842, 299 (Long Island). — Wagner, Wiegm. Archiv., 1843,
53.—LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 409.

1851. Arvicola pinetorum, Aud. & Bach,, Q. N. A., ii, 1851, 216, pl. lxxx.
LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 409.

1853. Arvicola apella, LeConte, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila , vi, 1853, 405
(Pennsylvania). —Aud.& Bach., Q. N. A., iii, 1854, 289. (Same
as LeConte’s.)

1857. Arvicola (Pitymys) pinetorum, Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 544.—Allen,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, No. 8, 234 (Massachusetts ; rare; pro-
bably its northern limit”) ; op. cit., ii, No.3, 184 (Florida.—Coues;
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 1874, 191; Mon. N. A. Rodentia,
1877, 219.

Description—In length of head and body this Mouse ranges from 3.25
to nearly 4 inches, averaging about 3.50; the tail is from .60 to .95 inch
to end of vertebra, and is shorter than the head, and but little longer
than the hind feet. The fore feet are longer, comparatively, than those
of other Arvicole, and are broader than the hind feet. The claws of fore
feet are long, and the whole foot “ fossorial” in character. There are five
callosities on both palms and soles. The ear is short, hidden in the fur;
the whiskers are sı orter than usual ; the muzzle is obtuse and nearly
covered with fur.

The color varies from rich, glossy chestnut or light bay to a dull brown
above; deep plumbeous below. Very young animals are plain mouse-
gray.

The general aspect of the animal is quite mole-like, suggesting to
Audubon and Bachman the name Mole Arvicola (Arvicola scalopsoides) -

Distribution and Habits——-This little animal is found throughout the
eastern United States, from Massachusetts to Florida, east of the Missis-
sippi River. It has also been identified from Kansas and Oregon. It is
very abundant in some of the southern States, and said to commit depre-
dations on vegetables, seeds, and grain. While it derives its specific and
common name from the fact that it is found in pine woods, Audubon and
Bachman state that it is not particularly partial to woodland, nor found
in the low situations frequented by the Common Meadow Mouse, but
affects chiefly high, level fields with dry soil.

150

It is said to be very prolific, bringing forth three or four litters during
the summer, and, according to Audubon and Bachman, sometimes as
many as nine young have been found in one nest. They furnish an
important article of diet for the smaller carnivorous quadrupeds and
owls.

Two Ohio specimens of this Mouse are in the museum of the Smith-
sonian Institution, one (young, No. 978) collected by Robert Kennicott.
I am ignorant of the exact locality where they were taken.

— Another Genus of this sub family, Synaptomys, represented by a single
known species, S. cooperi, will probably be found to occur in Ohio, as it
has been discovered in an adjacent county (Franklin) of Indiana.

It has the general appearance of an Arvicola, but the dental characters
differ, especially the incisor teeth, which have a longitudinal groove
near their outer edge.

Genus FIBER Cuvier.

Etymology: Latin—a Beaver.
1766. << Castor, Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 78.
1788. < Mus, Gm., Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 125.
1792. Myocastor, Kerr, “L. S. N., 1792 (type Myopotamus coypus).”
1800. = Fiber, Cuv., Legons, i, 1800 (type Castor zibethicus).
1829. < Lemmus, Fischer, Syn., 1829, 289.
1827. = Ondatra, “ Lacepede.”—Less., Man., 1827, 286 (type, Castor zibethi-
cus.

Generic Characters.—Largest of the family. Form arvicoline, but tail
nearly as long as body without head, compressed, nearly naked, reticulate.
Hind feet set obliquely; soles naked, quadri-tuberculate; toes incom-
pletely webbed. Fore arm bristle-fringed. Muffle hairy, except the
‘nasal pads. Ears small, with prominent angular antitragus. Whiskers
short. Pelage lanuginous, beset with numerous long, glossy hairs.
Mamme, six. Perinsal glands highly developed. Dentition and skull
strictly arvicoline. Angular process of squamosal bone overhanging
orbit behind; jugal, a mere splint, the squamosal and maxillary spurs
actually in contact.

FIBER zZIBETHICUS (L.) Cuvier.

MUSKRAT.

1766. Castor zibethicus, Linn., Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 79, No. 3 (quotes Bris-
son, Kalm, Sarrazin).—Erxl., Syst. Reg. Anim., i, 1777, 444, No.
2.—Bodd., Elench. Anim., i, 1784, 166.

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1792. Mus zibethicus, Schreb., Säug., iv, “1792,” 638, pl. 176.—Gm., Syst.
Nat, i, 1788, 125, No. 2 (quotes Schreber).—Shaw, Gen. Zoöl.,
ii, 1801, 44, pl. 129 (lower fig.).

1792. Myocastor zibethicus, “ Kerr’s Linnzus, 1792.”

1817. Fiber zibethicus, Cuv., R. A., i. 1817, 192.—Desm., Mamm., ii, 1822,
279; Encyc. Méth., pl. 67, £.6; Nouv. Dict., xxiii, 506—Sab.,
Franklin’s Journ., 659.—Harlan, Fn. Amer., 1825, 132 —Griff.,
Anim. Kingd., v, 1827, 208.—Godman, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, 2d
ed., 1831, 58.—Rich., F.B. A., i, 1829, 115 (describes black, white,
and pied varieties —DeKay. N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 75, pl. 20, f. 2,
pl. 82, f. 3 (skull).—Schinz, Syn., ii, 1845, 257.—Aud. & Bach.,
Q. N. A., i, 1849, 108, pl: 18 —Kennicott, Agric. Rep. U. S. Pat.
Office for 1856-57, 105, pl. 14.—Baird, M. N. A., 1857, 561.—
Bulger, P. Z. &., 1865, 682 (habits).—Coues, Proc. Acad. Nat.
Sci., Phila., 1874, 196; Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 254.—Coues
and Yarrow, Zoöl. Expl. W. 100th Merid., 1876, 108.—Jordan,
Man. Vert., 1878, 33; and of authors generally.

1829. Lemmus zibethicus, “ Fr. Cuvier, Dict. Sc. Nat., vi, 310, fig. —.”—
Fisch., Synop , 1829, 289, No. 1.

1827. Ondatra zibethicus, Less., Man., 1827, 286, No. 793.—Waterh.,
Charlesw. Mag., iii, 1839, 594.

Description.— A full-grown specimen is about fifteen inches in length,
from nose to root of tail, and the tail ten inches; the body is heavy, eyes
small, and incisor teeth Jarge; the ears are small, furry, and deeply im-
bedded in the general pelage, adapted to exclude water ; the tail is mod-
ified into the semblance and for the purpose of a rudder, being flattened
sideways nearly throughout its length, permitting free lateral, but little
vertical flexion. The oblique set of the feet enable the animal to
“feather the oar,” as Professor Baird puts it, or bring the feet forward in
swimming. The sides of the hands and feet are fringed with hairs; the
soles and palms are perfectly naked ; the hands and feet above are closely
pilous, with very short adpressed hairs; the palms have five tuberrles,
the soles four; the vertical width of the tail is increased by a f.inge of
stiffish hairs. The color of the body is ashy-brown above, ashy on the
under parts. The hair is of two distinct sorts; the basal, long, silky,
fine, and slightly wrinkled; this is closely compact, especially on the
belly. The basal hair is light, rusty-brown. Mixed with the basal hair,
and concealing it on the upper surface, are longer, coarser hairs, of a rich
chestnut brown, on the belly and sides of head and body.

Habits.—The Muskrat inhabits North America at large, it is eminently
aquatic; on land its movements are as awkward as a duck’s. They are

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principally nocturnal and somewhat gregarious, several pairs construct-
ing and occupying the same houses and burrows. These latter are nu-
merous and extensive galleries in the banks of ponds, marshes, or
sluggish streams. In the burrows the young are usually brought forth,
and to them the animals resort when driven from their houses in winter.
The ntrance to both the burrows and houses are under water.

The houses are built in water three or four feet deep, out of the cur-
rent. They are principally of rushes, although coarse grass, sedges,
sticks, and leaves are piled up with the rushes, and the whole well
plastered together with mud. These houses are built in the fall and oc-
eupied through the winter.. Sometimes, in wide prairie marshes, the
young are brought forth in the houses ;*in that case, but one female occu-
pies a house. If the water course has dry banks, the burrows are usually
at the edge of the water; but in some wide sloughs the burrows are
several rods from the water-mark, in some elevated spot; in such cases
they are approached by a gallery excavated the entire distance from the
water to the burrow under the soil. In the piles of rushes—which some-
times are so abundant in a marsh as to suggest, by their large size and
well-rounded tops, a crop of marsh grass thrown into bunches ready for
the hay wagon—are the chambers occupied by the animal. The entrance
may be in the center, when there is a shelf completely around it and
above water, on which the Muskrats sleep; again, the entrance is at the
side—but under water in either case. Often, in winter, in the large
marshes about Chicago, the hunter, sometimes on skates, takes them by
thrusting sharp-pronged spears through the top and sides of the houses
into the nest. Two, and even three, are taken sometimes in this way at
one thrust.

Muskrats are not suspicious; they are easily trapped in steel-traps
placed in their runways. In former years, when the fur was used for
napping “beaver hats,” Muskrats were worth more than Mink, the skins
selling for from forty to fifty cents. Like other furs, their value depends
on the caprice of fashion. The introduction of silk hats, according to
Mr. Kennicott, reduced the price of the skins to from six and one-quarter
to fifteen cents, and trapping them was almost abandoned as unprofit-
able. Of late years they have been in demand for gloves, caps, and some
articles of ladies’ furs, and have sold at from fifteen to thirty cents.

The Muskrat comes out on the ice, at times, to sun itself, and in spring
may often be seen swimming about, or, like turtles, basking on logs in
the sun. The author has seen them shot by duck-hunters, when thus
exposed, on the Calumet River, in Illinois.

The winter food of this species is, according to Mr. Kennicott, the roots

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of aquatic plants. It seeks its food under the ice, and evidently carries
it to its burrows. No large stores are observed in its burrows, however,
but only roots recently carried in. The summer food consists of leaves of
various aquatic plants, and different species of river muscles. Every one
at all familiar with the shallows of our streams, will recall the immense
heaps of muscle shells, often a bushel or more, by the side of some large
stone or log, midway perhaps of the river, and furnishing easy collecting
grounds for the conchologist. These are the ‘oyster restaurants” of the
Muskrat. Collecting the muscles from the river bottom, the Muskrat
mounts the log or stone, sits up on its haunches like a Squirrel, and
opens the shell with its strong incisor teeth, as neatly as a Squirrel
opens a nut. Most of the shells are left with the ligament intact. Mr.
Kennicott has found massive shells, like those of Unio plicatus, left un-
opened, or with the valves gnawed apart at the back.

The Muskrat is pugnacious, fights when captured, and the males often
have fierce battles among themselves. The Mink is its worst enemy, en-
tering its houses and burrows, and pursuing it in the water.

From five to seven young are produced in April or May.

Muskrats are seldom injurious to crops; sometimes they take to vegeta-
ble gardens, showing a commendable weakness for parsnips and muskmel-
lons. They are sometimes destructive to growing corn, which they cut
off and sink into the water, probably to eat at their leisure. With the
exception of the mollusks already referred to, and the occasional eating
of a dead fish, they do not depart from a vegetable diet.

Their depredations on canal banks, mill dams, and ice ponds are well
known. Along the line of the Illinois and Michigan canal, the “canal
walkers” are compelled to keep a sharp eye to the Muskrats, lest they
burrow through the bank, and trappers, with their boats, are passed
through the locks and given the right of way along the tow-path.

Mr. Kennicott states that “hunters and trappers consider the hind-
quarters cf the Muskrat very palatable, when roasted on coals ; and they,
as well as the Indian, esteem the tail a great delicacy.

FAMILY HYSTRICIDA.

The American Porcupines, sub-family Synetherinz, differ from the Old
World Porcupines, sub-family Hystrieine, in the form of skull; in having
the clavicles perfect, the tail (except in Erethizon) more or less prehen-
sile, the molar teeth fully rooted; in not having five toes toall the feet
(usually four, both before and behind); in the tuberculated, instead of
smooth soles; in the upper lip being undivided by a vertical groove;

154

and in modifications of structure, adapting them to an arboreal, rather
than to a terrestrial life.

The molars are 4-4; body more or less armed with spines. Three of
the New World genera are South American; the fourth, #rethizon, is
found north of Mexico.

Genus Ereruizon§ F. Cuvier.

Etymology: Hrethizo—to irritate.
Hystriz, in part of early authors.
Erethizon, F. Cuvier, Mém. du Mus,, ix, 1822.
Echinoprocta, Gray, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., 1865, 321.

Toes four in front and five behind, all armed with strong, curved
claws. Tail short, thick, depressed, non-prehensile; covered above, at the
base, with stiff hairs and spines, and on sides, at apex; and beneath,
with thick, rigid bristles. Size large. Limbs short and strong.

The genus Erethizon is represented by a single species, divisible into.
two geographical varieties—the Canada Porcupine, E. dorsatus var. dor-
satus, and the Western Porcupine, var. epizanthus.

ERETHIZON Dorsatus (Linn.) F. Cuvier.
Var. dorsatus.

CANADA PORCUPINE.

1758. Hystrix dorsata, Linn., Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, 1758, 57, ed. xii, i, 1766,
76.—Forster, Phil. Trans., lxii, 1772, 374.—Erxleben, Syst. Reg.
Anim., 1777, 345.—Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 1784, 119.—Schreber,
Säugt., iv, 1792, 605, pl. clxix.— Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., ii, 1801, 13,
pl. cxxv-—Kuhl, Beiträge zur Zoölogie, 1820, 70.—Desmarest,
Mam., 1822, 345.—J. Sabine, Franklin’s Journey to the Polar
Sea, 1823, 664.—Cozzens, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist., i, 1823, 191.
—Harlan, Fauna Amer., 1825, 190.—Godman, Amer. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 1826, 50.—Griffith’s Cuvier, iii, 1827, 206; v, 1827, 263.—
Fischer, Synop. Mam., 1829, 368.—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840,
71.—Thompson, Hist. Vermont, 1842, 47.—Aud. & Bach., i, 1843,
277, pl. xxvi.

1731. Hystria pilosus americanus, Catesby, Nat. Hist. Carolina, i, 1731, xxx.

1756. Hystrix hudsonis, Brisson, Régn. Anim., Quad., 1756, 128.

1842. Hystrix hudsonius, DeKay, New York Zoöl., i, 1842, 27, pl. xxv, fig.
1 (animal), pl. viii, figs. 2, a, 6, ¢ (skull).

1835. Erethizon dorsatus, F. Cuvier, Mém. du Mus., ix, 423, pl. xx, figs. 1,
2,8 (skull and molar).—Brandt, Mém. Acad. St. Petersbourg,
1835, 387.—Waterhouse, Nat. Hist. Mam., ii, 1858, 488.—Giebel,
Säuget., 1855, 478.— Wagner, Suppl. Schreber’s Säuget., iv, 1844,

155

27 (in part).—Baird, Mam. N. Amer., 1858, 568.—Allen, Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 235; Mon. N. A Rodentia, 1877, 388.
— Jordan, Man. Vertebrates, 1878, 34, 2d ed.

1771. Canada Porcupine, Pennant, “Syn., 1771, 266; Hist. Quad., 1781,
No. 257 ;” Artic Zoölogy, i, 1784, 109.—Gilpin, Proc. and Trans.
Nova Scotia Inst. Nat. Sci., ii, 1870, 89.

Description.—General color brownish-black, varied above with yellowish-
white. Body above densely clothed with long, soft, rather woolly hair,
intermixed with straight, coarse hair and bristles. The latter are four
to six inches long, usually tipped with yellowish white, the light tip
from one-fourth to seven-eighths the length of the hair—rarely obsolete
or extending to the base. Beneath this, and usually concealed by the
pelage proper, on the dorsal surface, are erectile barbed quills, from one
to four inches in length. These are usually white at the base and black
at the tip, the black varying from one-tenth to one-fourth the length of
the quill; a few are entirely black, and others occur entirely white. The
quills begin on the nose as short, stiffened, pointed hairs, pass into short
spines between the eyes, and so continue to increase in size posteriorly,
becoming longest over the hips, on the lower part of the back, and upper
side of base of tail; toward the end of the tail they pass again into long,
thick bristles and stiff hairs. The young are born without quills, and of
auniform black color. Adults average thirty-five to forty inches in total
length ; the head is about six inches, and tail vertebra about the same.

Distribution.—The Eastern Porcupine formerly ranged through most ot
New England and New York, and over most of the region south of the
Great Lakes and north of the Ohio. Northward it extends to the limit
of trees, and to the westward probably to the great Saskatchewan Plains.
where it merges into the western form. Being a forest animal, it has
disappeared with the forests. In 1840, Dr. Emmons gave it as common
near Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is found on Mount Monadnock,
southern New Hampshire, central and northern Maine, and in portions
of Pennsylvania. Godman (Amer. Nat. History, 1826) states, on the
authority of Dr. Best, that the “ Porcupine is seldom found in Ohio south
of Dayton ;” but that they were still numerous on St. Mary’s River (1826).
Mr. Allen states (Monographs of North American Rodentia, page 393),
on the authority of Dr. J. M. Wheaton, that a few still survive in Clarke,
Champaign, and Ross counties, and that it was common ten years ago in
Putnam county. Dr. Wheaton informs me that one was killed in No-
vember, 1878, on the line of Wood and Hancock counties, by Mr. H. L. Dunn,
of Columbus, and that in that locality they were not uncommon, though
lessnumerous than formerly. Mr. E. W. Nelson, of Chicago, informs Mr. Al-

156

len that the animal was formerly rather common, though never abundant,
in all the wooded region north of the Ohio, but is not now found (west of
Ohio) south of the forests of northern Wisconsin and southern Michigan.
Dr. Rufus Haymond, in Indiana Geological Survey, 1869, gives the Porcu-
pine as an inhabitant, “now very rare,” of Franklin county, Indiana,
adjacent to Butler county, Ohio.

FAMILY LEPORIDE.

The Hares are a strictly congeneric group, constituting “one of the
most natural and best defined groups among mammals.”

Dental formula: i. 3:7; pm. $3; m. 33. Molars rootless; hind legs
and feet elongated; ears large and long; tail erect, bushy, short (some-
times rudimentary) ; far usually soft, thick, and loose; rami of lower jaw
large, deep, and flattened ; orbits large ; optic foramina confluent; palate
reduced to a mere bridge between the premolars. The vertebral pro-
cesses are long and slender; acromium process of scapula provided with
a spine at right angles to the axis of the scapula.

Genus Lepus Linnezus.
Etymology: Latin, Lepus—a Hare.
The generic characters are indicated in the description already given
of the family.
Lepus syLvaticus Bachman.
Var. sylvaticus.
Woop Hare; Gray RABBIT; Woop RABBIT.

1792. Lepus nanus, Schreber, Säuget., iv, 1792, 881—DeKay, New York
Zoöl., i, 1842, 93, pl. xxvii.

1822. Lepus americanus Desmarest, Mamm., ii, 1822, 351.—Harlan, Faun.
Amer., 1825, 193.—Audubon, Birds of Am., pl. 51.—Fischer,
Synop. Mam., 1829, 376 (in part only). —Bachman, Journ. Acad.
Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1837, 326, pl. xvi, figs. 3,4 (ear and foot).
—Emmons, Quad. Mass., 1840, 56.—Thompson, Nat. Hist. Ver-
mont, 1842,48.

1887. Lepus sylvaticus, Bachman, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., vii, 1837,
403 ; viii, 1839, 78.—Waterhouse, Nat. Hist. Mam., ii, 1848, 116.
—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am., i, 1849, 173, pl. xxii —Wood-
house, Sitgreave’s Col. and Zufii River Exp., 1853, 55 (eastern
Texas and Indian Terr.).—Maximilian, Weigm. Arch., 1861, i,
144.—Baird, Mam. N. Am., 1857, 597, pl. viii, fig. 1 (skull); U.
8. and Mex. Bound. Surv., ii, 1859, ii, 47 (Indianola, Texas).—
Hayden, Trans. Am. Phil. Soc., Phila., xii, 1863, 148,— Abbott,
Cook’s Geol. of N. J., 1868, 759.—Allen, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat.

’ 157

Hist., xiii, 1869, 194; Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., ii, 1871, 184;
Mon. N. A. Rodentia, 1877, 327.—Coues and Yarrow, Expl. and
Surv., W. 100th Merid., 1875, 128.—Jordan, Manual Vertebrates,
; 1878, 34, 2d ed.

1838. Lepus bachmani, Waterhouse, Proc. Zoöl. Soc. Lond., vi, 1838, 108 ;
Nat. Hist. Mam., ii, 1848, 124.--Bachman, Journ. Acad. Nat.
Sci., Phila., viii, 1839, 96—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. Am, iii, 1853,
85, pl. eviii (based on Waterhouse’s specimens).—Baird, Mam.
N. Am., 1857, 606; U. 8. and Mex. Bound. Survey, ii, 1859, ii, 48
(Brownsville, Texas).

1867. Sylvilagus bachmani, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d series, xx,
1867, 222.

1867. Sylvilagus nanus, Gray, Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d ser., xx, 1867,
221.—Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., i, 1869, 239.

Specific Characters-—-Length from nose to tail 13.50 to 17.00 inches;
hind fcot 3.10 to 4.20; ear 2.10 to 8,00; ear two-thirds length of head;
head a little shorter than the hind foot. Pale yellowish-brown above,
varied with black; sides and rump grayer; nape and limbs yellowish-
rusty, fading into whitish on the anterior surface of the hind legs; head
above less varied with black than the back; beneath white, except the
breast, which is pale yellowish-brown. The hairs of the upper surface
have long shining black tips, succeeded by a broad bar of pale yellowish-
brown, then a narrower zone of black, and thence to the base grayish-
plumbeous. Under fur dark plumbeous, nearly black, often tipped with
pale brown.

Distribution.—Lepus sylvaticus, including its several varieties, occupies
the greater part of the southern half of the continent. Its northern limit
corresponds nearly with the isotherm of 45°. Variety sylvaticus extends
from Southern Maine southward to Florida and the Gulf Coast, and west-
ward to the eastern portions of Kansas, Nebraska, and the Indian Terri-
tory, throughout eastern Texas, and southward to Yucatan. Westward,
in middle Kansas, it passes into var. nuttalli, in Arizona into var. arizona,
and on the Pacific slope it is represented by variety auduboni.

Description and Habits.—The natural habitat of this animal is dry level
ground, rather thinly wooded, and interspersed with dense thickets and
occasional openings. It is usually less abundant in hilly and heavily tim-

bered regious. On the prairies and in settled country, the Rabbit takes |

shelter about fences and stacks. In open lands it is preyed on by rapa-
cious birds; large snakes often get the young. Among mammals the
Weasels are their worst enemies; the White Weasel and Mink follow
them under logs, into trees and burrows, and often in cultivated regions

|

158 ry

drive them from under barns and stacks. The Great Horned Owl and
the Red-tailed Buzzard are successful rabbit hunters. As with the squir-
rels, the larve of a large gad-fiy infest them, and in the summer fleas are
abundant in theirfur. The Rabbit is very prolific, producing four to six
young at a birth, and having three or four litters each year. The young
are born clothed with hair and with the eyes open. In open ground the
nest is of leaves aud grass, finished with fur from the pelage of the
mother; the nest is usually in a hollow scratched in the earth. The
young leave the nest at an early age, and easily fall a prey when too small
to escape by flight. In cultivated districts where the Hawks, Owls,
Weasels, Minks, and other natural checks te their increase have been
destroyed, Rabbits increase in vast numbers. They sometimes girdle
young trees, although no doubt much of the injury to trees charged to the
Rabbits, is the work of Field Mice. The Rabbit is easily trapped or
snared; sometimes they are poisoned. As the flesh is good in winter,
the most natural method of exterminating them is toencourage hunting
them for the market. They are worth on the Chicago market from five
to fifteen. cents apiece, according to the abundance or the state of the
weather. I have seen them, when frozen in large boxes, sold by the
cubic foot, and shipped from Chicago to New York City.

As with the Northern Hare, Squirrels, and Deer, the Rabbit is subject
to epidemics which sweep off numbers of them. Mr. J. A. Allen (Mono-
graphs of North American Rodentia, pages 371-2) states that he has re-
peatedly met with their dead bodies in the woods and thickets, and. has
noted the scarcity of the Rabbit during the years immediately following.

The food ef the Rabbit is grass, tender shoots of shrubs, buds, twigs,
and sometimes the bark of trees. The main damage to orchards and
nurseries is the severe pruning of the young trees. When the snow is
deep, they reach the branches of fruit trees, and cut them as clean as
with a knife. In winter, according to Mr. Kennicott, they may be
tracked to forest trees recently felled, where they resort to feed upon the
buds.

In disposition the Rabbit is timid, not resisting when seized. It eludes
its enemies by speed and stratagem, doubling on its track when pursued,
taking to water which it dislikes, springing to a log and sitting motion-
less, while the dog passes or is beating about for it. They often return
to their forms when chased ; sometimes they crowd up a hollow tree by
bracing against the sides. It has an acute sense of sound, and often stops
when running to listen to any unusual sound, as of a person calling or
whistling loudly.

The Rabbit cannot run long, but for a short distance it can outstrip

159

most dogs. Its powerful hind legs and strong dorsal muscles enable it to
take leaps of ten to fifteen feet. It hops along when feeding, a foot or
two atatime. The position of the feet in ruuning is peculiar; the fore '
feet strike the surface near each other ; the hind feet are widely separated
and come to the earth some distance in front of the fore feet; the fore
feet touch the ground but lightly ; they are at once raised, and the bound
is repeated with the hind legs only. The impression, at first sight of the
track in the snow, is that the animal has been running backwards. In
making the longest leaps, the front feet come down in the same line, and
at some distance behind the back feet.

In winter I have seen them burrowing in the deep snow in the same
drifts with the Prairie’ Hen, and for the same reason, to get shelter from
an unusually severe storm. The Wild Rabbit is not naturally, however, a
burrowing animal, as is the European Rabbit, often domesticated in the
country.

As to the common name, Rabbit, so often given to the present species,
it is not properly applicable to any of the American Hares. Lepus
cuniculus, the Burrowing Rabbit of Europe, is the Rabbit proper, differing
from other Old World and from American forms in the shortness of its
hind legs. Hare is the proper generic or family name, Rabbit originally
being the distinctive name of the particular species cuniculus, the Rabbit
of Europe. But the two terms have now come to be interchangeable in
this country, and, “however philologically or technically wrong it may
be to apply the term Rabbit to any of our wild species, the custom of
doing so among the generality of our people, is doubtless as ineradicably
fixed as is that of calling the American Bison a Buffalo.” (Allen.)

LEPUS AMERICANUS Erxleben,
Var, virginianus Allen.
SOUTHERN VARYING HARE.

1825. Lepus virginianus, Harlan, Fn. Am., 1825, 196.—Fischer, Syn., 1829,
376.—Doughty, Cab. Nat. Hist., i, 1830, 217, pl. xix.—Bachman,
Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1837, 301 (mainly ; somewhat
mixed with L. campestris) Emmons, Quad. Mass, 1840, 58.—
Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vermont, 1842, 48.

1337. Lepus americanus, Bachman, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii,
1837, 408:; viii, 1839, 76 (in part only).—DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl, i,
1842, 95, pl. xxvi, fig. 2 (in part only).— Wagner, Suppl. Schreb.
Säug., 1844, iv, 104 (in part only).—Aud. & Bach., Q. N. A,, i,
1849, 73, pl. xi, xii (in part only).—Baird, M. N. A,, 1857, 579
(in part on’y).—-Cray, Ann. and Mag. Nat, Hist. ?d eer, xx,

160

1867, 224 (in part only). —Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl.,i, 1869,
237.—Hall, Can Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861, 306.

1877. Lepus americanus var. virginianus, Allen, Mon. N. A. Rodentia,
1877, 304.

Distribution and Varietiés—Lepus americanus is found throughout the
wooded portion of the northern half of North America, its southern limit
corresponding very nearly to the isothermal line of 50°. It is found in
four well marked geographical varieties. Var. americanus is found in the
more arctic regions of the continent, and shades imperceptibly into the
three more southern forms. Ver. batrdi is an alpine form, found in the
Rocky Mountains. Var. washingtoni is from the region about Puget’s
Sound. Var. virginianus is found in eastern North America, from Minne-
sota through the northern tier of States, south to Connecticut, and in
the Allegheny Mountains to Pennsylvania and even Virginia. :

Habits. —The Varying Hare frequents dense woodland, being seldom or
never found in open country. It trusts to fleetness with more confidence
when pursued than does the Gray Rabbit, and never seeks shelter in
holes or stumps’ It is often known to escape from pursuing dogs, and
when captured resists by kicking and biting. It probably has but one
litter in a season. Otherwise its habits do not particularly differ from
the Gray Rabbit.

Description.—-Lenth of body averaging a little over 18 inches; hind foot
about 5} inches ; ear a little over 3 inches; weight about 5$ pounds.

Var. virginianus differs in color from var. americanus, as might be ex-
pected from its more southern range. The former, in summer, on the
upper and cuter surface is pale yellowish-brown, varied with black,
giving to it a dark umber-brown appearance.. On the under surface, the
breast and neck are yellowish-brown, chin, throat, and other under parts,
white. Ears yellowish-brown mixed with black; apical fourth of ante-
rior border black ; posterior border white or yellowish. In winter, white,
except the extreme tips of the ears, which are narrowly tipped with
black.

Var. virginianus, in summer, is mote rufous than var. americanus, the
general color above being a rich reddish-brown or einnamon-brown. In
winter, the seasonal change is less complete and is worn for a shorter
time.

The references and synonomy above given apply to var. virginianus.

In Ohio it is found only in the north-eastern portion, being confined
to those counties knuwn as the Western Reserve, which are embraced in
the Alleghenian fauna. Of its occurrence there I am informed by Dr.
Wheaton, who states that it is never common, but that he was informed

161

a few years since by Mr. M.C. Read, of Hudson, Ohio, that they appeared
to be increasing ın numbess. Dr. Kirtland, in his catalogue (1838) gives
it as rare.

—Two other Hares, Lepus palustris and aquaticus, are in one place ac-
credited to Ohio by Mr. Allen (Mon. N. A. Rodentia, p. 276), as follows:
“These species extend northward over the lowlands of the Lower Mis-
sissippi, having been found as far north as southern Ohio.” As he in no
other place or manner refers to either of them as Ohioan, it is probable
that ‘southern Ohio” should read “ southern Illinois.”

SUB-CLASS DIDELPHIA.
ORDER MARSUPIALIA.

These are implacental mammals, which are born of small size and im-
perfect development. They are transferred by the mother to the interior
of the marsupial pouch or bag, which is present in most species.

This pouch cons sts of a fold of the abdominal integument, which, in
the males, is everted, forming a pendulous bag containing the testes,
and, in the females, is inverted, forming a hidden pouch containing the
nipples, and usually sheltering the young for a certain period after their
birth. The young are attached to the teats, which grow from the upper
surface of the pouch, and are sustained by milk which is forced down
the throat of the young by the contraction of the cremaster muscle,
which is largely developed and extended over the surface of the mam-
mary glands. The teat exactly fills the mouth. The danger of suffoca-
tion is averted by the elongation of the upper extremity of the larynx,
which is embraced by the soft palate, as in the cetaceans, thus allowing
respiration to go on freely, while the milk passes on each side of the
laryngeal cone into the cesophagus.

The pelvis of both sexes is furnished with two semaines supple-
mental bones—ossa marsupialia. These are elongated, flattened, and more
or less curved bones, of the sesamoid series, developed in that tendon of
the external oblique which forms the mesial pillar of the abdominal ring.
These bones are attached to the pubis; they are directed forward, and are
so long that the cremaster muscle winds round them in its passage to the
testicle or mammary gland. The marsupial bones are equally developed
in both sexes; their position and attachment add power to the com-
pressing action of the cremaster muscle; they also give origin to the
pyramidalis muscle. The cerebral hemispheres are chiefly connected by
a large anterior commissure, the corpus callosum being rudimentary.

11

162

The cerebrum does not overlap the cerebellum; the olfactory lobes are
large. ®

The characters given above are diagnostic of a remarkable order of
mammals, confined at present to the Australian and Austro-American
provinces. About twenty species are recognized in South America;
one widely-distributed species is found in North America.

The order Marsupialia contains a great variety of forms, representing
most orders of mammals—the Primates by the Phalangers, the Carnivora
by the Dasyurians, the Ruminants by the Kangaroos, and the Edentates
by the Monotremes.

No Marsupial Bats are known, and the Rodents are represented among
Marsupials by a single species

Aside from the pouch and marsupial bones, the most notable feature of
the order is the premature birth of the young, as compared with other
mammals. The young of the Great Kangaroo (Macropus major), observed
by Owen, in 1833, did not exceed an inch and a quarter, from nose to
end of tail, twelve hours after birth, and the skin had the color and
semi-transparency of the Earth- worm.

The dentition is unlike that of any placental mammals; in these the
normal number of incisors is six in each jaw, but in the marsupials they
vary from ten above and eight below, to eight above and six below, or
even six above and two below. Ordinarily there are four true molars.

Several families of marsupials are recognized. The Didelphide are pe-
culiarly American, and the only family to be here considered.

FAMILY DIDELPHIDE.

Family Characters—Incisor teeth 3-3; canines 44; premolars 3-3; mo-

lars 44. The great number of incisors—ten above and eight below—
readily separate the Didelphide from all other families of mammals. The
prehensile tail is usually very long, nearly naked, and covered with a
scaly skin, from which grow a few scattered hairs. The feet are five-toed,
and plantigrade.

The Opossums are small; the largest is but little larger than a large

Cat, while the smallest is but little larger than a small Mouse.
Genus DipetrHys Linneus.
Yidelphys, Linneus, Systema Nature, i, 1735.

Yeneric Characters—The generic characters of Didelphys are essentially

given under the family heading.
genus is restricted to the species having the toes free, and the fur
ack thickly interspersed with long, coarse hair. Of this partic

163

ular group but one species belongs to the United States; this is Didelphys
virginiana, the ’Possum, the only North American representative of the
family.
DIDELPHYS VIRGINIANA Shaw.
OpossuM ; ’PossuM.
1778. Didelphys marsupialis, Schreb., Säugt., iii, 1778.
1800. Didelphys virginiana, Shaw, General Zoölogy, i, 1800, 473, pl. evii
—Desm., Mamm., i, 1820, 255.—Harlan, F. A., 1825, 119.—Griff.,
Cuv., ili, 1827, 24.—Temm., Mon. Mamm., i, 1828, 27.—Fischer,
Syn., 1829, 263.— Wagner, Suppl. Schreb., ii, 1841, 37.—DeKay,
N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 3, pl. xv, f. 2.—Waterhouse, N. H. Mamm.
i, 1846, 165 ~-Bachman, Pr. A. N. S., 1848, 40 (development).
. Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., ii, 1851, 107, pl. lxvii—Giebel, Säugt.,
1855, 708.—Burmeister, Erlaut. Fauna Braziliens, 1856, 60, tab.
v, vi, f. 1 and 3 (skull).—Jordan, Manual of the Vertebrates,
1878, 35.
1833. Didelphys californicus, Bennett, Pr. Zoöl. Soc., i, 1833, 40 —Wagner,
Suppl. Schreb. iii, 1843, 40; ib., v. 1855, 223 —Waterhouse, N.
H. Mamm., i, 1846, 476.—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., 1854, 331.
—Burm., Erlaut. Fauna Braziliens, 1856, 63.
1833. Didelphys breviceps, Bennett, Pr.. Zoöl. Soc., i, 1833, 40.—Wagner,
Suppl. Schreb., iii, 1843, 40; ib., v, 1855, 224.—Waterhouse, Nat.
Hist. Mamm., i, 1846, 478—Aud. & Bach., Quad. N. A., iii,
1854, 224.
1843. Didelphys pruinosa, Wagner, Suppl. Schreb. iii, 1843, 40 (note); ib.
v, 1855.—Waterhouse, N. H. Mamm., i, 1846, 477.
Virginia Opossum, Penn., Quad., ii, 1781, 801; pl. xxxiv; ib., Arctic
Zoöl., i, 1784, 73.
Opossum, St. Hilaire and Cuvier, Hist. Mamm., iii, 1819 (two
plates.)

Specific Characters—The Opossum averages twenty inches in length
from end of snout to root of tail; the tail averages fourteen and one-half
inches; the head from end of muzzle to occiput is about five inches. The
body fur is interspersed with long white hairs. The hairs of the general
pelage are whitish, with brown tips, imparting a dusky shade. The legs
and feet are uniformly dark brown or black; the fingers and toes are
white. The general color of the head is yellowish-white, the chin and
top of head being scarcely darker. There is a dusky suffusion around
the eye.

The above are the characters which mark the Eastern form of the
Opossum. The Western variety, or, nerhere more prap~ly, zeorraphiral

164

race, is, according to Professor Baird, smaller and darker, with the head
dusky above and below, and the tail as long as the trunk and head. This
form replaces the eastern in Texas and California, and south to the city
of Mexico.

Description and Habits.—One’s first impression of the Opossum is so
graphically described by Audubon and Bachman, that I transcribe them
at length:

“We can imagine to ourselves the surprise with which the Opossum was regarded by
Europeans when they first saw it. Scarcely anything was known of marsupial animals,
as New Holland had not as yet opened its unrivaled stores of curiosities to astonish
the world. Here was a strange animal, with the head and ears of a pig, sometimes hang-
‘ing on the limb of a tree, and occasionally swinging like the monkey by the tail. Around
that prebensile appendage, a dozen sharp-nosed sleek-headed young had entwined their
tails, aud were sitting on their mother’s back ! .

“The astonished traveler approaches this extraordinary compound of an animal, and
touches it cautiously with a stick. Instantly it seems to be struck with some mortal dis-
ease; its eyes close, it falls to the ground, ceases to move, and appears to be dead! He
turns it on its back, and perceives on its stomach a strange and apparently artificial
opening. He puts his finger into the extraordinary pocket, and lo! another brood of a
dozen or more young, scarcely larger than a pea, are ‘hanging in clusters on the teats.
In pulling the creature about in great «mazement, he suddenly receives a grip on the
hand—the twinkling of the half-closed eye and the breathing of the creature evince that
it is not dead, and'he adds a new term to the vocabulary of bis language, that of ‘play-
ing possum.’

“The whole structure of the Opossum is admirably adapted to the wants of a sluggish
animal. It possesses strong powers of smell which aid it in the search for food; its
mouth is capacious, and its jaws, possessing a greater number and variety of teeth than
any other of our animals, indicate its omnivorous habits; its fore paws, though not
arzıed with retractile claws, aid in seizing its prey, and conveying it to the mouth. The
‘coustruction of the hind foot, with the soft yielding tubercles on the palms, and its long
uailless opposing thumb, enable it to use these feet as hands, and the prehensile tail aids
it in holding on to the branches of trees, whilst its body is swinging in the air; in this
manner we have observed it gathering persimmons with its mouth and fore paws, and
devouring them while its head was downward, and its body suspended in the air, hold-
ing on semetimes with its hind feet and tail, but often by the tail alone.”

The Opossum is nocturnal like most predacious animals. Where it
abounds, it may nearly always be found, on bright starlight or moonlight
nights, when the weather is warm and calm, hunting its nightly range
in search of food. Its gait is rather slow, heavy, and awkward, truly
plantigrade, an amble or pace, advancing the two legs on the sanie side
at the same instant. It travelsno more than its appetite demands, rarely
making a circle of more than a mile in a single night. The Opossum is
not often met in cold or stormy nights. In spring and summer it is
sometimes met with by day, especially is this so in places where it is not
often molested.

165

As to its omnivorous character, the Opossum may be compared with
the Raccoon. In th>summer and autumn it breaks down the corn, espe-
cially sweet corn, of which, like the Raccoon, it is very fond. They eat
chestnuts and sweet acorns, beechnuts, and the like, and most wild ber-
ries and cherries. Its resort to the persimmon tree in the season of the
fruit is proverbial. Worms, insects, roots, and tender shoots of various
plants are scratched from the leaves and earth, and serve as food, espe-
cially in the early spring. Young ground birds, eggs of quails and par-
tridges, marsh robins, and other birds which build their nests low, are
readily devoured, as are mice and other rodents, and especially broods of
young rabbits.

The nest or den of the Opossum is variously situated. Sometimes they
occupy the hollow of a fallen tree, but oftener under the roots of trees or
stumps.

The animal excavates a cavity and lines it with whatever material
is at hand—grass, leaves, or rubbish. Often, in the South, the long,
hanging moss (Tillandsia) forms the bed.

The Opossum does not take to its den when pursued, but to the near
est tree, where it calmly sits in some comfortable crotch, perhaps not
twenty feet from the ground, where it solemnly watches the dogs. until
the hunter comes to their aid, when, if the tree is a small one, the animal
is readily shaken down, doubled up like a ball, into the jaws of the dogs.
It does not offer much resistance, but sullenly growls and gives up the
unequal combat. If no dogs are present the Opossum doubles up into a
heap, and feigns death so artfully that boys have taken them up and
carried them home for dead.

This protective device seems to exhaust the wit of the Opossum, as it
does not avoid the ordinary means of capture, readily entering any kind
of trap set for it. Captured young, they are easily domesticated, relin
quishing their nocturnal habits, associating with dogs and cats, and be-
coming troublesome by their mischievous habits.

The Opossum possesses an unusual interest to the student of our fauna,
as being our typical and only North American representative of Marsu-
pials. Its curious appearance and habits have claimed the attention of
naturalists and historians from the time of the early settlement of the
country.

Lawson says, in his History of Carolina: “She is the wonder of all an-
imals. The female doubtless breeds her young at her teats, for I have
seen them stick fast thereto when they have been no bigger than a small
raspberry, and seemingly inanimate. * * * If acat bas nine lives,
this animal has nineteen; for if you break every bone in their skin, and

166

mash their skull, leaving them for dead, you may come in an hour after,
and they will be gone quite away.”

This gemmiparous theory of Lawson that the “female doubtless breeds
her young .at her teats,” illustrates the superficial nature of the first
observations on Marsupial reproduction.

Early authors—among them Pennant—contended that “the pouch
was the matrix of the young Cpossum, and that the mamme are, with
regard to the young, what stalks are to the fruit.”

De Blainville speaks of two sorts of gestation, one uterine, the other
mammary.

In 1819 Geoffrey St. Hillaire inquired of naturalists: “Are the pouched
animals born attached to the teats of the mothers?”

Godman, in 1826, admits, in his otherwise complete history of the an-
imal, that ‘the peculiarities of its sexual intercourse, gestation, and par-
turition, are to this day involved in profound obscurity.”

DeKay, in 1842, states: “ The young are found in the external abdom-
inal sac, firmly attached to a teat in the form of a small gelatinous body
not weighing more than a grain.”

This was nine years after Owens’ observations on the development
of the Great Kangaroo. DeKay, however, simply quoted such natural
history literature as was nearest to hand; and, as is remarked in the
Biblicgraphy of North American Mammals (Gill & Coues), DeKay’s
Fauna of New York “has not been recognized as of high authority, nor
has it exercised much influence upon the progress of science.”

It was long believed that there existed a direct passage from the uterus
to the teat, but this, of course, was disproved by dissection. Another
opinion was that the embryo was formed where first found.

It is at once seen that the tacts regarding the reproduction of this
common animal have been developed very slowly, and not until Owen
gave an exact description of the corresponding organs in the Kangaroo
and discovered the foetus in utero, could naturalists conclude the discus-
sion of reproduction in the Opossum. '

Audubon and Bachman attempted for several years to secure gravid
females, but were baffled, as also were various French and English nat-
uralists, by the fact that the Opossum does not breed in confinement.
Another difficulty was that the females retire to their burrows during
the period of utero-gestation, which, in North Carolina, the seat of
Audubon’s observations, is about the last of February and first week
of March Of thirty-five taken at that time (1847), in three successive
nights, there was not a single female; but a week later, when the young
were in the pouches, more females were taken than males. In February,

167

1848, gravid females were secured by searching hollow logs, trees, and
burrows. :

Three females were dissected at different stages of gestation. The
young of one weighed two and one-half grains each; of another, three
grains; and one specimen of the young of a third female, secured by a
Cesarian operation at the moment when all the rest had been exuded,
weighed four grains. The average weight is between three and four
grains.

The same author describes the young opossum as “little creatures that
are nearly as well developed as the white-footed mouse and several other
other species of rodentia. They are covered by an integument, nour-
ished by the mamma, breathe through nostrils, perform the operations
of nature, are capable ef a progressive movement at the moment of their
birth, and are remarkably tenacious of life, moving several inches on the
table by crawling and rolling, and surviving two hours with the ther-
mometer at 66° Fahrenheit.”

The period of gestation is from fifteen to sixteen days—exactly tifteen
in the case of one female under the pergonal observation of Dr. Michel,
as recorded in the transactions of the Academy of Natural Science for
April, 1848.

The young are naked and flesh-colored, the eyes and ears covered with
skin, through which the organs are visible. The mouth is a small orifice,
just large enough to receive the teat, which is not much, if any, larger
than the body of a pin.

The body is half an inch long; the tail about one-fifth inch. The
growth is rapid, the young increasing in a week from four to thirty
grains, and in length nearly two inches. The teats of the mother, at this
age of the young, are an inch long, much distended, and apparently
drawn into the stomach of the young.

At twelve days the eyes are not yet open; the ear-holes are apparent,
and the nails visible and sharp. At four weeks the young at times let
go the teat and protrude the head from the pouch, and a week or so later
may be seen on the mother’s back, secuted by winding their tails about
their mother’s.

The mother defends them with courage, growling or snapping at dog
or man she may meet with while traveling with her family in search of
food. Some attach themselves to her back; others wind their tails about
her legs; and so the family is dragged along.

At this stage the young are well furred, and have a “mild, innocent
look, and are sleek and in fine condition. This is the only stage in which
the word pretty can be applied to the Opossum.”

168

The Opossum is very prolific, bringing forth two and sometimes even
three litters each year. The female produces young when a year old.
The first litter remains with the mother about two months, by which
time a second brood is in the pouch. Both litters remain in the vicinity
of the mother until autumn,.by which time they are old enough to care
for themselves. The number of young found in the pouch is usually less
than the number born. Six is the smallest and thirteen the greatest
number observed by Audubon and Bachman, whereas fifteen were found
in the uterus of one female. Of course those in excess of the number of
teats must perish, as those first attached seem incapable of losing their
hold.

The same authors conclude that the young are licked or shoved into
the pouch by the mother. The pouch is distendéd by the jaws at times,
the female lying on one side, with the body drawn into the shape of a
ball, so that the parts of the genital passage reach the edge of the marsu-
pial pouch ; then, as the young appear, they are licked into the pouch.

Experiments made by Audubon and Bachman indicate that the young
instinctively find and seize the teat. The young, when taken from the
uterus and rolled in warm cotton, drew the fibers into the mouth. More-
over, when six of a brood of ten were removed from the teats, and three
young of another litter, and double the size, were put back in the pouch,
they were found the next morning attached to the teats, together with
two of her own which were returned with them.

The following abstract by Prof. Owen from Dr. Chas. D. Meigs “On the
Reproduction of Didelphys virginiana,” in American Philosophical So-
ciety, April, 1847, I transcribe, as adding to our knowledge, of the peculiar
mode of reproduction in this species:

“ Dr. Meigs reckons the utero-gestation of a female Didelphys virginiana, which bred
in captivity, as extending from the 18th February to the 7th March—a period of seven-
teen days—when she brought forth thirteen young, which were found attached to as
many nipples. The mamme began to enlarge four days prior to birth. Oa the 6;b of
March she was observed to lay on her side, with her nose turned inward between her
legs towards her belly, and took scarcely any notice of the keeper’s hand when intro-
duced into the box. The transit of the fostuses was probably in preparation or operation
at this time. The young, observed on the 7th, and which were certainly not in the
pouch on the 5th, and probably not until the night of the 6th, were naked, of a rose
tint, each three and a half grains in weight, and eight-ıenths of an inch in length to the
end of the tail; adhering strongly to the nipple, sucking actively, and clinging to the
fur by the unguiculate digits of their fore limbs, which they freely used. One survived
separation from the nipple one hour and twenty-nine minutes, turned itself over and
moved round the glass in various directions, respiring by the nostrils twenty-two times
per minnte, and ejecting bubbles of milk from its mouth. The hind limbs were each a
mere bud, with feeble indications of toes without claws. The tongue is very large—one-

169

third the entire weight of the head. The power of suction is such that the point of a

pencil applied to the oral pore is held so strongly that the young can be partially lifted

up by it. On March 14th the young weighed twelve grains, showing an increase of
weight at the rate of two hundred and fifty per cent. in seven days; it was now one and

one-tenth inch long. On March 18th weight was eighteen grains; the claws appeared

on the hind toes; the testes had descended into a large scrotum; the eye-lids were still

sealed, but movements of the eye-ball were visible beneath the skin. On May 22d Dr. -
Meigs found one of the young crawling on the body of the dam; its weight was forty-

two grains; the eyes were open. This gave a term of gestation of seventy-four days.
But the young return to the pouch for food and shelter until near the time for reception

of a succeeding litter.”

Distribution —The Hudson River, according to Audubon and Bachman,
is the eastern limit of the Opossum ; in Texas and Mexico, and west to
the Pacific, the western form replaces the Common Opossum.

This animal is not uncommon in central and southern Ohio, Indiana,
and Illinois; the northern portions of these States are not so congenial
toit. Like the negroes, with whom the Opossum is associated in song
and story, while it can thrive in the northern portions of the United
States, its natural home is in the south. Opossums are not unfrequently
captured in Marion county, Indiana. The writer has seen the carcasses
and one live specimen exposed for sale the present month (December,
1878), in the Indianapolis market.

They are readily sold to the negroes, who, doubtless, remember the
’Coon and ’Possum hunts of tre old plantation days, and the feast of
’coon-grease and ’possum-meat that was almost sure to follow. The meat
is too fat and rank to suit a refined, or, at least, an uneducated taste; yet
they readily sell for from fifty to seventy-five cents to their equally strong-
scented and dusky purchasers.

Irwin Russell, in “Christmas Night in the Quarters,” Seribner’s Monthly,
January, 1878, gives the only explanation the writer has noticed of the
nakedness of the Opossum’s tail. This subject, to be sure, belongs to |
speculative zodlogy, but the Opossum is so unique among our mam-
malian fauna, that I see no reason why bard and minstrel should not
contribute their legends and speculations, as well as anatomist and nat-
uralists their facts and observations. To those grave and sedate readers,
who do not know

‘¢ A little nonsense, now and then,

Is relished by e’en the wisest men,”

I would say, “ pass this by, but in so doing you will miss a good thing.”
To the transcendental zoölogist, I let it go for what it is worth.

170

Way pe Ha’r Is MISSIN’.
Go ’way fiddle !—folks is tired a-hearin’ you a-squawkin’.
Keep silence for your betters—don’t you heah de banjo talkin’ ?

About de ’possum’s tail she’s gwine to lecter—ladies, listen !—
About de ha’r what isn’t dar, an’ why de ha’r is missin’.

I omit the flood, and the loading and launching of the ark, and pass
on to the final denoument:
De ark, she keep’ a sailin’, an’ a sailin’, an’ a sailin’;
De lion got his dander up, an’ like to bruk de palin’—

De sarpints hissed—de painter yelled—tell, what wid all de fussin’,
You c’u’dn’t hardly heah de mate a-bossin’ roun’ an’ cussin’.

Now Ham, de only nigger what was runnin’ on de packet,
Got lonesome in de barber shop, an’ c’u’dn’t stan’ de racket ;
An’ so for to amuse he-self, he steamed some wood an’ bent it,
An’ soon he had a banjo made—de fust dat was invented.

He wet de ledder, stretched it on, made bridge, an’ screws, an’ apron ;
An’ fitted in a proper neck—’twas very long an’ tap’rin’.

He tuk some tin, an’ twisted him a thimble for to ring it;

An’ den de mighty question riz, how was he gwine to string it?

De ’possum had as fine a tail as dis dat I am singin’;

De ha’rs as long an’ thick an’ strong—des fit for banjo-stringin’;
Dat nigger shaved ’em off as short as wash-day dinner graces ;
An’ sorted ob ’em by de size, from little e’s to basses.

He strung her, tuned her, struck a jig—twas ‘‘ Nebber min’ de wedder ;”
She soun’ like forty-leven bands, a-playin’ all togedder;

Some went to pattin’, some to dancin’; Noah called de figgers,

An’ Ham, he sot and knocked de tune, de happiest ob niggers!

Now, sence dat time—it’s mighty strange—dere’s not de slightest showin’
Ob any hair at all, upon de ’possum’s tail a-growin’;

An’ curi’s, too—dat nigger’s ways; his people neber los’ ’em—

For where you finds de nigger, dar’s de banjo an’ de ’possum !

But the Opossum’s tail, shorn as it is of its musical strings, still has,
according to some of the older writers, wonderful medicinal virtues.

In Godman, occurs the following quotation from Marcgrave’s Natural
History of the Spanish American Colonies: “The tail of this animal
is a singular and wonderful remedy against inflammation of the kidneys;
and if it be chewed and placed on a part into which thorns have been
thrust, it extracts them, and I believe in all New Spain, there is not to
be found another remedy as useful in so many cases.”*

The above is an instance of the credulity and disposition to deal in the
marvellous, which, in days of “Lang Syne,” and, occasionally, in the
present, is deemed an almost essential quality of the natural historian.

* “Excitat venerem, et generat lac, medetur colicis doloribus prodest parientibus, et
accelerat partum promovet menses.”—Godman, i, page 365.

ADDENDA.

The writer expected, as will be seen from the letter of transmission,

to have read the proof-sheets of this report, with the assistance of Prof.
'D. S. Jordan. An arrangement had, however, been made by Prof. New-
berry, for the reading of the proof at Columbus, by Dr. J. M. Wheaton.

For this reason some portions of the report, which had been retained
for additional information, and others for which I have but recently suf-
ficient authority for inserting, failed to find their proper place, and are
here inserted.

A change is necessary in the nomenclature in some cases, and it is
here indicated.

Important notes from other observers have been received too late for
insertion in the proper place, and will be found here.

Dr. Wheaton desires me to say that the responsibility for typographical
errors rests with him; and I take this opportunity of returning thanks
to him for corrections made and omissions supplied.

Page 14. CANIS LUPUS OCCIDENTALIS (—.) —.

should stand as
Canis Lupvs Linnzus.

Var. occidentalis (—) Coues.

Page 16. VULPES VULGARIS PENNSYLVANICUS (Bodd.) Coues.
should stand as

VULPES VULGARIS Fleming.
Var. pennsylvanicus (Bodd.) Cotes.

Page 28. Purorius (SUB GENUS, GALE) ERMINEA A. & B.
should stand as
Purorius (GALE) ERMINEUS (L.) Aud. & Bach.

To precede Putorius vison, page 35:

Purorius (GALE) VULGARIS.
WEASEL; LEAST WEASEL.

1645. Mustela vulgaris, Aldrov., Quad. Digit., 1645, 307.—Klein, Quad.,

1751, 62.—Briss., Quad., 1756, 241, Nd. 1.—Erxl., Syst. IM

1761.

1788.

1800.
1827.

1829.
1831.
1840.
1842.
1851.

1877.

172

1777, 471, No. 12.—Schreb., Säugt., iii 1778.—Gm,, S. N., i, 1788,
99.—Desm., Mamm., i, 1820, 179, No. 275.—Fr. Cuv., Dict. Sci.
Nat., xxix, 1823, 251, No. 7.—Is. Geoff., Dict. Class., x, 213.—
Less., Man., 1827, 146.—Fisch., Syn., 1829, 223.—Flem., Br. An.,
1828, 13.—Jen., Br. Vert., 1835, 12.—Bell, Br. Quad., 1837, 141.
Gray, List Mamm. Br. Mus., 1843, 65.—Gieb., Säugt., 1855, 782.
Farwick, Zool. Gart., xiv, 1873, 17 (albino).—Harlan, Faun.
Amer., i, 1825, 61.—Maxim., Reise, ii, 1841, 98.—Thomps., Nat.
Hist. Vermont, 1853, 30.—Hall, Canadian Nat. and Geol., vi,
1861, 295.—Kirtland, Ohio Geolog. Survey, 1838, 160, 176.

Mustela nivalés, Linn., Fn. Suec., 2d ed., 1761, 7, No. 18; S. N., i,
1766, 69, No. 11.—Müll., Zoöl. Prod., 1776, 3, No. 15 —Erxl., Syst.
Anim., 1777, 476, No. 14.—Schreb., Säugt., iii, 1778, pl. 138.—
Less., Man., 1827, 146.—Forst., Phil. Tr., lxii, 1772, 373.

Mustela vulgaris, a. zstiva, b. nivalis, Gm., 8. N., i, 1788, 99, Nos. 11
a, 110. ,

Viverra vulgaris, Shaw, G. Z., i, 1800, 420, pl. 98.

Putorius vulgaris, Griff., An. Kingd., v, 1827, 121, No. 344.—Brandt,
Wirb. Eur. N. E. Russl., —, 26.—Emm., Rep. Quad. Mass., 1840,
44.—All., Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xiii, 1869, 183; Bull.M.C.
Z., i, 1870, 167.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1878, 18.

Mustela (Putorius) vulgaris, Rich., F. B. A., i, 1829, 45.

Mustela gale, Pall., Zoög. R. A., i, 1831, 94, No. 32.

Fetorius vulgaris, Keys. & Blas., Wirb. Eur., 1840, 69, No. 147.

Mustela pusilla, DeKay, N. Y. Zoöl., i, 1842, 34, pl. 14, f. 1.

Putorius pusillus, Aud. & Bach , Q. N. A., 1851, 100, pl. 64.—Baird,
M. N. A., 1857, 159.—Suckley, N. H. W. T., 1860, 92.—Sam.,
Rep. Mass. Agr. for 1861, 154, pl. 1, f. 2, 4—Maxim., Arch.
Naturg., 1861, —.—Ross, Canad. Nat. and Geol., vi, 1861, 441.—
Merriam, Rep. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr., 1872, 661 (Idaho). —
Ames, Bull. Minn. Acad. Nat. Sei., 1874, 69.

Putorius (Gale) vulgaris, Coues, Mon. N. A. Mustelide, 1877, 102, pl.
vi, figs. 2, 4.

Common Names. —Common Weesel, Penn., Hist. Quad., 1781, No. 192;
Arctic Zoöl., i, 1784, 75, No. 25.— Wiesel, Kleine Wiesel, German. — Wezel,
Belgic.— Vazsel, Danish. —Sneemuus, Danish (white). —Swömus, Swedish
(white). —Ballattula, Italian.— Comadreja, Spanish.

Specific Character. —General body colors substantially as in P. ermineus ;
under parts white, very rarely tinged with sulphury yellow. Size small;
length of head and trunk six or eight inches; tail slender, cylindrical,
pointed at tip; tail concolor (sometimes blackish at tip in western speci-

173

mens); tail vertebr& fifteen (Gerrard), varyitig in length from one to two
inches.

Description and Habits.—-This Weasel differs from its ally, P. ermineus,
in its smaller size and the general dimensions of the tail. In the érmine
this member is at all seasons brushy, and conspicuously black-tipped for
about two-fifths of its total length. ;

The mahogany-brown of the Weasel turns to white in winter in
northern New England; but this change, according to Mr. J. A. Allen,
does not occur as far south as in Massachusetts, where it sometimes takes
place in the Ermine.

Of the habits of the Weasel in America little is known; they proba-
bly do not differ essentially from the same species in Europe or Asia.

Although not common in collections, and rather rarely taken at ptes-
ent, Audubon represents it as a common animal, feeding on small
rodents, insects, eggs, and young birds.

The accompanying account of its habits is drawn from the writings of
Thomas Bell, and is at the same time interesting and reliable:

“The Weasel climbs trees with great facility, and surprises birds on the nest, sucka
the eggs, or carries off the young. * * *

‘I have observed that when the Weascl seizes a small animal, at the instant that the
fatal bite is inflicted, it throws its long, lithe body over its prey, so as to secure it should the
first bite fail; an accident, however, which I have never observed when a Mouse has
been the victim. The power which the Weasel has of bending the head at right angles
with the long and flexible, though powerful neck, gives it great advantage in this mode
of killing and seizing its smaller prey. It also frequently assumes this position when
raising itself on its hinder legs to look around.

“ The disposition which has been attributed to the Weasel of sucking the blood of ite
prey, has, I believe, been generally much exaggerated. * * * The first gripe is given
on the head, the tooth, in ordinary cases, piercing the brain, which it is the Weasel’s first
act of Epicurism to eat clean from the skull, The carcase is then hidden near its haunt,
to be resorted to when required, and part of it often remains until it is nearly putrid.

“The Weasel pursues its prey with facility into small holes, and amongst the close
and tangled herbage of coppices, thickets, and hedge-rows. It follows the Mole and the
Field Mouse in their runs ; it threads the mazes formed in the wheat-rick by the colonies
of Mice which infest it; ard its long, Nexible body, its extraordinary length of neck,
the closeness of its fur, and its extreme agility and quickness of movement, combine to
adapt it to such habits, in which it is also much aided by its power of hunting by scent—
a quality which it partakes in equal degree with the Stoat. In pursuing a rat or a
mouse, therefore, it not only follows it as long as it remains within sight, but continues
the chase after it has disappeared, with the:head raised a little above the ground, fol-
lowing the exact track recently taken by its destined prey. Should it lose the scent, it
returns to the point where it was lost, and quarters the ground with great diligence
till it has recovered it; and thus, by dint of perseverence, will ultimately hunt down
a swifter and even a stronger animal than itself. But this is not all. inthe pertinacity
of its pursuit it will readily take the water, and swim with great ease after its prey.

174

*: Tt is, however, sometimes itself the prey of hawks, but the following fact shows that
violence and rapine, even when accompanied by superior strength, are not always a
match for the ingenuity of an inferior enemy. As a gentleman of the name of Pinder,
then residing at Bloxworth, in Dorsetshire, was riding over hig grounds, he saw, at a
short distance from him, a kite pounce upon some object on the ground, and rise with it
in its talons. In a few minutes, however, the kite began to show signs of great uneasi>
ness, rising rapidly in tho air, or as quickly falling, and wheeling irregularly around,
whilst it was evidently endeavoring to force some obnoxious thing from it with its feet.
After a short bnt sharp contest, the kite fell suddenly to the earth, not far from where
Mr. Pinder was intently watching the manwuyre. He instantly rode up to the spot,
when a Weasel ran away from the kite, apparently unhurt, leaving the bird dead, with
a hole eaten through the skin under the wing, and the large blood-vessels of the part
torn through.” ‘

According to the same author, the female Weasel brings forth four or
five young, and is reported to breed more than once each year. The nest
is a hole in a bank, or perhaps in a hollow tree, lined with leaves and
herbage. She defends her young’ even to the sacrifice of her own life,
rushing from her nest and fastening upon the nose or lips of whatever
animal may as¢ail her.

Dr. Coues remarks that the name “ Weasel” should, in strictness, be
given to the present species, as distinguished from its allies, the Stoats
and Ferrets, although it has come to have rather a generic application
to the various species of the same immediate group. The derivation
is obscure. Webster does not give the meaning, but suggests that the
‘German Wiese is a meadow. The vernacular names of this species are
fully given in the synonymy.

Geographical Distribution.—This animal is of circumpolar distribution.
It is found in the northern parts of the United States, in British Amer-
ca and Alaska, and the northern parts of the Old World.

Dr. Coues remarks, in his Monograph of North American Mustelidee,
that “the total lack of citations of this species from southern or even
Middle districts in the United States, is an evidence, though of a nega-
tive character, of the geographical distribution at present assigned,”
evidently not having seen Dr. Kirtland’s Report of the Mammals of Ohio,
in which the Weasel is included under the name Mustela vulgaris, and
with the note that “the Weasel is becoming more common as the country
becomes populated.” In the same report, Dr. Kirtland, speaking of the
Ermine, under the name Mustela erminea, says: “This beautiful animal
is occasionally met with, but is mistaken for a White Weasel.”

Dr. Wheaton killed an animal of this genus in May, 1860, at Black
Hand Rock, on the borders of Licking and Muskingum counties, Ohio,
which he was not able to preserve, and which at the time he took to be
the Least Weasel. He describes it as “smaller than the Chipmunk,

175

brown above, whitish below, with a shorter tail, black toward the end.”
The tail, black toward the end, is not entirely inconsistent with P. vul-
garis, although an almost constant character of P. ermineus, while the
short tail and small size favor Dr. Wheaton’s opinion, formed at the time,
that the specimen was the Least Weasel, P. vulgaris. The peculiar cir-
cumstances under which the specimen was found—a Weasel asleep, con-
trary to the old adage-—-and the vigorous defense it made by use of its
anal glands, are full of interest, and warrant the introduction, in this
connection, of the faithful account Dr. Wheaton has given me of the
capture and loss of the specimen under consideration :

“Five students, of Denison University, Granville, Ohio, among whom was myself,
were so fortunate as to secure the company of five young ladies from the seminary, for
a picnic at Black Hand Rock. The ascent to the top of this rock is somewhat difficult,
and was made single file. I was ahead, followed by a now eminent attorney, a late Briga-
dier General, and the young ladies, all of whom are now ornaments to society and mothers
in Israel. Suddenly I noticed a little animal apparently a-leep at my feet. I instinct-
ively grabbed it, and as instinctively the General hit it with a stick so hard that
it was somewhat stunned. I held up my trophy to the view of the young ladies, much
gratified that I was able, so early in the day, to prove myself a hero. Greatly to my sur-
prise, they turned their heads away in shame, crying ‘Put it down! putit down!’ At
the same time my nose took the general alarm, and turning to the beast, which I still
held in my hand, J discovered a miniature volcano on either side of its anus, sending
forth sulphurous fire and smoke. I felt that 1 had better die than surrender just then,
and held on to it, in spite of my immediate iuclinatious, insisting that I was going to
skin it and take it home. The young ladies insisted, declared, and almost cried, until I
thought the cruel joke was turned from me, when I surrendered and dashed it against
the rock. The animal certainly was an adult, as far as the anal glands were concerned.

Whether Weasel or Ermine, one is certainly excusable in dropping,

under such circumstances, an animal whose odor “is only less penetra-
ting and more fugitive than that of the Skunk itself.”

Page 41. TAXIDEA AMERICANA Baird.
should stand as

TAXIDEA AMERICANA (Bodd.) Baird.
Page 48. MEpuHITIs MEpHITICA Baird.
should stand as
. MepuHitis MEPHITICA (Shaw) Baird,
Page 56. LUTRA CANADENSIS Sabine.
should stand as
LUTRA CANADENSIS (Turton) Sabine.
Page 93. ScaPANUS BREWERI (Bach.) Jordan.
should stand as |
ScAPANUS BREWERI (Bach.) Porcl,

176

To precede Family Soricide, page 94:

Gents Conpytura Illiger.

Condylura, Illiger, Prodromus, 1811, 125.
Astromycter, Harris.

Talpasorex, Schinz.

Rhimaster, Wagner, Stippl. Schreb., ii, 1843, 118.

Generic Characters—Moles having a fringe of elongated caruncles encir-
cling theendof thenose. The nostrils are circular and terminal; theaudi-
tory openings are large; the tail is nearly as long as the body, and is
covered with hair. Dentition: i. 3:3; ¢ tc}; pm. 44; m. 33—33—44.

This genug was founded by Illiger, who based the inappropriate name
it bears on a supposed peculiar series of nodes on the tail, caused by its
shrinking most around the middle of the vertebree.

There is but one species of this remarkable genus, and it is limited to
the northern portions of North America. The difference between Scalops
and Condylura are notable. As in the Common Moles, the fore feet are
large and flattened, but longer and narrower; the tail is much larger
than in either Stalops cr Scapanus; the eyes are larger and the ear much
more fully developed. But the most remarkable characters of Condylura
are found in the ciliated extremity of its nose, from which its specific
name is derived, and in the laciniated processes on the under surface of
its fingers. The teeth, also, are entirely unlike those of the Common
Mole. ,

Its nearest relationship is with the Genus Urctrichus, which, with it,
may be considered, according to Prof. Baird, as forming a connecting
link between the Moles and the Shrews,

ConpYLuRA cristata (Linn.) Desmarest.

STAR-NOSED MOLE,

1758. Sorex cristatus, Linn., Syst. Nat. (10th ed.), i, 1758, 53 ; ib. (12th ed.),
i, 1766, 73,--Erxleben, Syst. Reg. Anim., 1777, 121.—-Schreber,
Säugt., ili, 1778, 566.—Bodd., Elenchus Anim., i, 1784, 124.—
Gmelin, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 112. ,

1777. Talpa longicauda, Erxl., Syst. Reg. Anim., i, 1777, 118 (from Pen-
nant).—Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., Mamm., i, 1800, 523.

1800. Talpa radiata, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., Mamm., i, 1800, 523.

1800. Sorex radiatus, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl., Mamm., i, 1800, 531, pl. exxx.

1819. Condylura cristata, Desmarest, Journ. de Physique, lxxxix, 1819,
230; ib., Mamm., i, 1820, 157.—Harlan, Fauna Am., 1825, 36.—
Godman, J. A, N. Sc,, Phila., V, i, 1825, 169.—Griffith, Cuv., ii,

147

1827, 210.—Ib. v. 1827.—De Kay, New York Zoölogy, 1842,
12.

1820, Condylura longicauda, Desmarest, Mamm., i, 1820, 158.—Harlan,
Fauna Am., 1825, 38.—Griff., Cuv., V., 1827, 110.—Rich., F. B.
A., i, 1829, 13.—Fischer, Syn., 1829, 248.—Giebel, Säugt., 1855,
891. ;

1825. Condylura macroura, Harlan, Fauna Am., 1825, 39.—Fischer, Syn.,
1829, 248.—Thompson, Nat. Hist. Vt., 1842, 28.

1841. Rhimaster cristatus, Wagner, Suppl. Schreb. ii, 1841, 117.—Ib. v.
1855, 575.

1771. Radiated Mole, Pennant, Syn. Quad., 1771, 313.—Ib. Hist. Quad.,
1781, No. 351.—Ib. Arctic Zoöl., i, 1784, 140.

1771. Long-tailed Mole, Pennant, Syn., 1771, 313.—Ib. Hist. Quad, i,
1781, 486.—Ib. Arctic Zool. (2d ed.), i; 1784, 140.

“ Haarnase Spitzmause. Taupe du Canada; Delafaille, Ess. sur

L’hist. Nat. de la Taupe, 1769, fig.

Description.—The general contour of this species is as in the Common
' Moles, Scalops and Scapanus, a thick-set and clumsy body, with large
palms, and no distinction of neck.

The head tapers rapidly from the occiput, then gently to the elongated
snout. The muzzle is thicker than in the Common Mole; its tip trun-
cated, and the margins extended into a fringe of elongated and radiating
fleshy processes, eleven on each side, arranged symmetrically around the
circumference of the snout.

The longest of these caruncles are at the sides; they measure one-fifth
of an inch, and are distant about one-third of an inch from the center of
the nose. The upper lacinations are attached a little nearer the nostrils
than the rest. The nostrils are circular, terminal, and central, and
separated about one-tenth of an inch. The muzzle is naked in front of
the fringes, and has a short and deep furrow on its under side.

The eyes are small and distinct, with palpebral openings nearly one-
twentieth of an inch in diameter; they are midway between the end of
nose and centre of meatus. They are probably functional. The ear does
not project above skin; the oval meatus is nearly parallel with the top
of the head; the antitragus and antihelix are distinct, and serve as
valves to close the meatus.

The tail is as long as the trunk; it is annulated with coarse scales,
scarcely to be seen among the long, bristly hairs which grow between the
scales; it is constricted at the base, enlarged at the basal fourth, from
which it tapers to the end; has about sixteen joints or vertebra, show-

12 ,

178

ing no nodes or irregularities caused by the vertebr&, as the name Con-
dylura would indicate. Ordinarily, it is about one-fifth of an inch in its
greatest thickness, but during the breeding season it grows to half an
inch or more in diameter, owing to the deposition of fat under the
skin.

The pelage is of two kinds of hair; a dark plumbeous basal ur, with
sooty tips, giving the animal a uniformly dark-brown or blackish tinge,
and coarser hairs, the longest measuring half an inch, thickly inter-
spersed with the basal hair. The fur is not as fine as in Scalops, and is
without the lustrous gloss of the Common Mole.

The hands have a fringe of hair encircling the entire palm; the whole
of the under surface and most of the upper is without hairs and closely
covered with a pavement of plates, of a brownish color, larger near the
outer margin above, but of nearly uniform size below. Both surfaces of
the hind feet have a similar coating of plates.

The hind feet are narrower than the front, but are considerably longer.
On both fore and hind feet the fingers and claws decrease regularly from '
the fourth to the first. The front feet are webbed between the basal
joints.

The outer edge of the under’surface of each front toe is produced, form-
ing lacinated horny processes; these are not found on the hind feet;
the exact use of these peculiar processes, as of the nasal fringes so char-
acteristic of this genus, are not at present known.

The skull is longer and slenderer than in allied moles; the cranium is
almost as high as broad; the auditory openings large and conspicuous as
in the shrews; the posterior edge of the palate has a notch extending to
the per ultimate molar.

The upper incisors are axelike, and project nearly horizontally; those
of dpposite sides lie near together, forming the two halves of a kind of
spoon. After these comes a slender, vertical, thread-like incisor, which
has in immediate contact a long, canine-like incisor, having asmall spur
on its outer back edge; this is followed, after a considerable diastema, by
a diminutive canine with a single fang, to which succeed three com-
pressed molars having double fangs, a large-pointed central lobe, and
two basal ones. There is no interval between the last premolar and the
molars; the anterior premolars, the canine, and the third incisor are
separated from each other.

In the lower jaw, which is very delicate, the premolars are nearly
similar to the upper ones in form and position; the canine is large and
distinct, with posterior basal fang; the three incisors are directed longi-
tudinally forward, the two inner ones with their fellows of the opposite

179

ramus forming a continuous spoon-shaped projection, allied to that of the
upper jaw. The posterior filiform incisor lies against the second, and is
so small as to be scarcely discernible.

Habits and Habitat. —This species ranges from latitude 40° to 46°. It
is found in the eastern and northern States, and west to Minnesota. It
has been taken in Michigan and in parts of northern and central Illi-
nois. Professor Baird examined specimens from Halifax, N. S., Carlisle,
Pa., Ft. Ripley, Minnesota, and Essex county, New York. Mr. Kenni-
cott reported it as not very rare in Edgar county, Illinois, where it was
observed inhabiting the prairie.

The Star-nosed Mole is at present nowhere a common animal, at least
few collectors have specimens in their museums. Godman, however,
speaks of them as being so abundant in soft meadows and river bottoms
that in many places it is scarcely possible to move without breaking
down their interminable galleries. (Godman’s Natural History, Vol. L.,
page 72.)

I find no account of the occurrence of this mole in Indiana, although
it probably inhabits the northern part of this State, as well as Ohio and
Dlinois. Specimen 282 of the National Museum was collected by Pro-
fessor J. P. Kirtland, at Cleveland, and is, I believe, the only specimen
known from Ohio.* ,

Dr. J. M. Wheaton kindly called my attention to Dr. Kirtland’s list of
the mammals in Ohio, published in the Geological Report of the State
for 1838, (now very rare) in which this specimen is mentioned; other-
wise this species would have been omitted from the present report.

This species, as to food and general habits, resembles the common mole,
preferring, however, low, swampy grounds, and not excavating its gal-
leries to so great an extent. According to Godman its most frequent
runways are on the margins of small streams, which are followed in
their minutest windings. In confinement it feeds on flesh, raw or cooked,
refusing all vegetable foods. Their natural food is the larve of insects
peculiar to wet meadows.

The chamber, or nest, is a space of several inches extent, dug in some
spot where the soil is. tenacious and the cell not exposed. A nest con-
taining three young has been found under a stump. Like most species

of American moles and shrews, of its breeding habits little or nothing
is known.

* Dr. Wheaton writes me October 28, 1879, as follows: ‘‘Mr. C. C. McLaughlin tells

me that Mr. A. C. Freeman, of Butler P. O., Richland county, Ohio, captured a Star-
nosed Mole at that place in the spring of 1879. This is reliable.”

180

BLARINA (Soriciscus) PARVA. (Say), Jordan.

LEAST SHREW.

On page 98 of this report I have given this species, “not as a. known
resident of Ohio, but as 2 species, without reasonable doubt, occurring
there,” basing this assumption on its occurrence at Carlisle, Pennsylva-
nia, and at Irvington, Marion county, Indiana, where Dr. D.S Jordan
took a specimen in 1874, which is now in my possession.

Since then I am enabled, through Mr. F. W. Langdon, to verify the.
range ascribed in the body of the report. Under date of Madisonville,
Hamilton county, Ohio, January 19th, 1879, Mr. Langdon writes me that
among some shrews forwarded by him to Dr. Coues for examination was
a specimen of the Least Shrew, also two specimens of the Short-tailed
Shrew, all from Madisonville. Of the Least Shrew Mr. Langdon says:
“This is a species of considerable interest, having been originally de-
scribed by Say as Sorex parvus. Dr. Coues writes me in regard to it.”
“*Sorex parvus, Say, has never been identified, but for years has been
kicked around promiscuously among all the northern species of the fam-
ily. * * [have not the slightest doubt that you have the veritable
animal of Say, in the specimen you send.”

The opinion of Dr. Coues is based on the examination of both the
skin and skull of Mr. Langdon’s specimen. The skull of the specimen
secured by Dr. Jordan was, unfortunately, mutilated by the cat who
caught it, but the species is identified beyond question.

The occurrence of the Least Shrew in both Ohio and Indiana is
worthy of note, as the geographical distribution of the species of Sores
and Blarina has been but little studied, and indeed the number of spe-
cies of these genera is yet uncertain. Harlan describes a female speci-
men, and gives the habitat as “Council Bluffs, Missouri.”

Mr. Langdon’s specimen of the Hairy-tailed Mole, Scapanus breweri,
taken in Adams county, Ohio, carries the distribution of this species
farther south than has.been previously recorded.

Tue WouLr and WILD Cat.

Regarding the occurrence of the Wild Cat and Wolf at the present
day in Ohio, I insert a paragraph from the Ohio State Journal of Decem-
ber 20th, 1878. I have written to the parties, but as yet have no confir-
mation of the circumstances as stated :

“Wolf in the Woods.—At this season of the year fox hunts and other sports of the
forest are in vogue in the country, but even in this thickly settled part of the country

savage beasts that have more than fun in their prowling around are occasionally met. It
will be remembered that about this time last year there was great excitement in Union

181

county about a leopard that had been seen in the vicinity of Richwood, aud traced by
its depredations aud different contests with adventurous hunters. That wild beast was
finally caught, stuffed and put on exhibition in tbe towns of Union connty to satisfy the
euriosity of those whom it had kept in terror for some time. In Union county there are
very large forests, perhaps the largest in the State, and it is known as a great region for
haoters. Last week a man was attacked by a wolf in Jerome township, Union county,
about four miles from Plain City. The eircumstances are as follows: John Robinson
was out in the woods cutting wood, and in the evening had started for his house, when
he was suddenly attacked by a ferocions wolf. He raised a terrific yell and with his
weapons at hand ın nagedl to. keep the savage beast at bay until a neighbor, named
John Boner, came to his relief and shot the wolf. It measured five feet in length, and
was a heavy, strong beast of its kind. It is not ascertained whether it is a wild inhab-
itant of those woods or one that escaped from some cage, but it is thought to be a wild
native of those forests. The wood-cutters in that county meet with wild beasts almost
every winter.” R

SPERMOPHILUS RIDECEMLINEATUS (Mitchell), Audubon and Bachman.
Var. tridecemlineatus. Allen.

STRIPED GOPHER; STRIPED PRAIRIE SQUIRREL; EASTERN STRIPED SPERMOPHILE.

1821. Sciurus tridecmlineatus, Mitchell, Med. Repos., xxi, 1821, 248.—
Desm., Mamm., iı, 1822. 339 (from Mitchell).

1822. Arctomys hoodi, Sabine, Trans. Linn. Soc., xiii, 1822, 590, pl. xxix;
Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 663 (Carlton House).—Fisher, Synop.
Mamm., 1829, 544 (from Sabine). —Wagner, Schreber’s Sauget.,
pl. ccxe. (name on plate).

1825. Arctomys tridecemlineatus, Harlan, Faun. Amer., 1825, 164.—God-
man, Am. Nat. Hist., ii, 1826, 112.

1829. Arctomys (Spermophilus) hoodi. Richardson, Faun. Bor. Amer., i,
1829, 177, pl. xiv.

1849. Spermophilus tridecemlineatus, Audubon and Bachman, Quad. N. A.,
i, 1849, 924.—Hoy, Pat. Off. Rep. Agr., 1853 (1854), 68 (habits).—
Kennicott, ib., 1856 (1857), 74, pl. viii (general history).—
Baird, Mamm. N. A., 1857, 316 (in part).—Thomas, Trans. Il.
State Agr. Soc., iv, 1860, 657.—Allen, Proc. Bos. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
xiii, 1870, 189 (Iowa).—Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d ed., 1878.

1874. Spermophilus tridecemlineatus, var. tridecemlineatus, Allen, Proc.
Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xvi, 1874, 291; Mon. N. A. Rodentia,
1877, 871.

Leopard Ground Squirrel, Schoolcraft, Travels, 1821, 331.

Striped American Marmot, Sabine.

Striped and Spotted Ground Squirrel, Say, Long’s Ex., ii, 1823, 174.
Hood’s Marmot, Sabine.

Leopard Marmot, Richardson.

Leopard Spermophile, Aud. and Bach.

182

Specific Character. —Length 5.50 to 8.50; tail vertebre 2.75 to 4.00;
tail to end of hairs, 3,75 to 5.50. \

General form slender and musteline; ears small; tail with hairs
usually more than ‚half the length of body. Color above deep chestnut
brown, varying with locality from pale reddish chestnut to nearly
black, with seven nearly uninterrupted lines of yellowish-white, ex-
tending from forehead to tail, and alternating with six longitudinal
rows of sub-quadrate yellowish-white spots; below yellowish-white
varying to tawny, strongest on the sides; buttocks more ferrugineous ;
eye-ring yellowish-white; upper surface of muzzle gray, sides and front
yellowish ; tail narrow, black above and below, varied somewhat with
chestnut, and whitish-edged.

The hairs are reddish-yellow at the base, crossed by a broad band of
black and light-tipped. ;

The above characters are intended to cover both the extreme western
form, var. pallidus, and the eastern or Mississippi Valley form, var. tride-
ceulineatus. The latter averages larger, above is deep chestnut brown,
varying to almost black ; it has the white lines rather narrow, about
one-third the width of the interspaces; the sides are strongly yellowish,
varying to yellowish-rufous.

History and Habits.—This species was described in June, 1821, by Dr.
Mitchell, from specimens taken on the Upper Mississippi, under the
name of Sciurus tridecemlinealus, and by this specific name most American
writers have designated it. Hight months later Sabine described it to
the Royal Society of London as Arctomys hoodi. This appellation has
been almost uniformly adopted by European authors. Scarcely any two
authors have used the same common name.

In Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois it is universally called “gopher,”
being confounded with the true gopher, Geomys bursarius.

This species, like the Gray Gopher, is decidedly a prairie animal. It
is often met with {n oak openings and sparsely wooded ridges, but never
in heavy timber; its favorite habitation is on dry prairie knolls.

It is found singly, in pairs, and where the soil is dry and food abund-
ant as many as forty or fifty may inhabit a single acre; each pair keeps
to its own burrow.

Probably few Ohio farmers’ lads ever saw this species; it is described
here, on the authority of Dr. Kirtland, Hood’s Marmot, being included
in that list. It is not probable that so accurate and excellent a natur-
alist as the lamented Professor Kirtland would be in error as to the
oceurrence of so positively marked an animal as the striped Spermophile,
and I introduce it in this addenda without the least hesitation, only

183

regretting that an earlier knowledge of its occurrence in Dr. Kirtland’s
list had not permitted its appearance in the body of this report.

‘The writer can recall a common pastime of the school boys in North-
ern Illinois. During the long noon intermissions of the spring or sum-
mer term, several of the larger boys, with a couple of pails, would resort
to some adjacent field and “drown out gophers,” by pouring water into
their burrows; the nearly strangled animals came more dead than alive
to the surface and were readily caught alive, or more probably caught by
the dogs, who understood the sport as well as the boys. No mercy is
shown them, as they have a bad reputation among the farmers, mainly
because of their injuring cornfields by digging up the newly planted
seed. I have known farmers, residing on newly broken prairie, to feed
the gophers abundantly by scattering corn on the fields and about the
burrows so that the planted corn might not be molested. The corn thus
fed had been previously soaked in poisoned water. This, with shooting
and “drowning out” usually proved an effectual safeguard for the plant-
edcorn. This species, like the prairie rattlesnake Caudisona tergeminus,
rapidly disappears before the plough, rarely invading fields not adjacent
to meadows or wild prairies.

The carnivorous habits of this species have been mentioned in con-
nection with the Grey Gopher.

Dr. Hoy, of Wisconsin, has shown that this animal feeds upon mice
and insects when captive, killing and devouring mice with all the dex-
terity and ferocity of the weasel. Dr. Hoy found the skins of meadow
mice in the burrows of this spermophile, and, as Mr. Kennicott suggests,
it is quite likely that their good offices in the destruction of mice and
insects more than compensates for any mischief they may do in corn-
fields.

This is the most beautiful inhabitant of the prairie. Lithe and grace-
ful, beautifully striped and spotted, it takes the place on the prairie of
the common chipmonk or striped squirrel of the wocdlands.

Their droll manner, under observation, is described by Kennicott:

“In passing near a knoll inhabited by them, numbers may be seen standing upright
at the entrance of their burrows, so straight and motionless as to be easily mistaken for
as many sticks. But as you approach one he will disappear by a movement so rapid
that he can searcely be followed by the eye; and if it were not for the whistling chatter
accompanying his disappearance you might think your vision had deceived you, and
that nothing had been there. But, upon stepping back several rods, it is more than
likely he will have resumed his pcsition before you are aware of it. If yon remain
close to his hole, he will only thrust out his head and eye you suspiciously.”

Five to nine young—usually six or seven—are brought forth at the
end of May or first of June; they are naked, blind, and remarkably em-

184

bryonic, even for rodents, having no hair until the twentieth day, and
not opening the eyes until the thirtieth day. One litter is produced
each year. g

There is a summer and a wiater burrow. The first is temporary, often
excavated by the male, who leads a solitary, and more or less roving life
during the time of gestation. The pair hibernates, and the female
brings forth the young in a more complicated burrow, having at least two
entrances, and a large side chamber dug above the level of the burrow
and lined with soft grass. These nests are sometimes a foot in diameter.

Geographical Distribution—Richardson found this species abundant
about Carlton House, on the Saskatchewan. It is abundant at Pembino
and on the Red River settlements. In the United States it is found
from Minnesota westward to the Rocky Mountains, and southward to
Missouri and Western Texas,

Through the prairie region it extends castward to Northern Ohio. I
do not know in what part of Ohio Dr. Kirtland observed it. Robert
Kepnicott states that its range in Illinois does not extend southward
beyond latitude thirty-nine degrees.

Judge Potter, of Toledo, has furnished notes since the report was in
press on the time of disappearance of certain mammals now extinct in
Ohio. These we give almost without alteration or rearrangement:

Ouro Stare Fisn HATCHERY,

ToLE»o, OHIO, December 21, 1873.
ALEMBERT W. BRAYTON, Esq,,

Dear Sir: I am this moment in receipt of yours of lth instant, in reference to the
Mammals of Ohio. I send you a few notes, of which you can make use in your general
description of the animals named.

F. concolor, or American Panther, can scarcely be said to have inhabited Ohio for the
last fifty years. From 1835 to 1845 they were occasionally found in the northern part of
the State. In the latter year, two were killed near Toledo, one of which I saw, a very
large one. Since then there has, probably, none been found in the State.

The Lynx (7. canadensis) has seldom been seen in Ohio. I killed one near Toledo in
1848, the last I have had any aeconnt of, One was killed the same year in the same
neighborhood by a hunter.

Lynx rufus,common Wildcat, was once quite common in Ohio, and is still frequent in
the northern counties of the State.

Canis lupus, the Wolf, is still occasionally found in the northern part of the State, but
not common. They are ‘ast disappearing.

Vulpes, the Red, Black, and Cross Foxes are still abundant in most parts of the State.
They prefer a higher latitude than ours,

18

Urocyon cinereo-argentatus is a very long name for the Grey Fox, still common through-
out the State.

Mustela americana, the Pine Marten, is extinct in Ohio.

Putorius vulgarius, aud P. ermineus, the Brown and White Weasles, are still commou in
Ohio.

P. Vison the Mink, is still common in all portions of the State.

Gulo luscus, the Wolverine, is probably extinct in the State. I wasin at the death of
one in 1442, near Toledo, but have heard of none since.

Lutra canadensis, the Otter, is still occasionally found in most parts of the State.

Taxidea americana, American Badger, is, probably, extinct in the State. There was a
eolony of them in Lucas county as late as 1333; since then I have heard of none being
taken.

Mephitis mephitica, the Skunk, is quite abuodant all over the State.

Ursus americanus, the Black and the Brown Bear, are still, occasionally, found in the
nerthern tier of counties of Ohio.

Procyon lotor, the Raccoon, is still abundant.

Of the Marsupiale, the Oppossum is still found in most parts of Ohio.

The Cervus canadensis, Elk or Wapiti, and Cariacus virginianus, the Red Deer, were
the only members of the Cervid common to the State. Elk disappeared about fifty
years ago. The Red Deer is found in the northern part of the State, though not in great
abundance.

The Moose and Caribou, I believe, never inhabited Ohio.

Of the Rodents native to Ohio, the Beaver, I believe, is the only one entirely extinct

in the State.
Very truly,

Emory D, POTTER.

Arctomys Monax.

Regarding the arboreal habits of the Woodchuck I quote the following

interesting note from a letter received from Dr. J. M. Wheaton, under
date of Columbus, Ohio, November 29, 1878:

“I can confirm all that Mr. Langdon says of the Woodchuck climbing trees. The
first one I ever killed (about 1855) I shot from an oak tree, about twenty feet from the
ground. It had started down head first, in the endeavor to reach the ground, when my
dog discovered it and called a halt. I shot at it with fine bird shot, and it fell to the
ground, and with the dog rolled tothe bottom of a steep hill, about twenty feet—arrived
at the foot of the hill it was dead ; and “if anything more is necessary,” as the Irishman
said, I can show you the place and the skull. The last one I saw was about May 1,
1878. It tumbled about five feet from a beech tree to the top rail of a fence and
thence to the ground, and soon disappeared in its hole in a fence corner of a clover
field, near the wooded bank of a stream.”

SECTION IT.

REPORT ON THE BIRDS OF OHIO.

BY J. M. WHEATON, M.D.

Prov. J. S. NEWBERRY, Chief Geologist :

Dear Sir: I have the honor to submit herewith report on the Birds of Ohio. During
the six years it has been in preparation, I have collected in this vicinity more than two-
thirds of the birds here enumerated. No species has been admitted to the list which
has not been personally identified, except on unimpeachable authority.

In the preparation of this report I have received valuable assistance from yourself,
Dr. Elliott Coues, U. 8. A., Washington, D. C.; Messrs. Frank W. Langdon, Cincinnati;
R. K. Winslow, Cleveland; M.C. Read, Hudson; and others, to whom acknowledgments
are made in the following pages.

Very repectfully,
Your obedient servant,
: J. M. Wazaton.

Cohumbus, Ohio, November 1, 1879.

be PO Ro

ON THE

bine OR OLLEO.

BY J. M. WHEATON, M.D.

The State of Ohio is situated between 38° 25’ and 42° north latitude
and 80° 30' and 84° 5’ west longitude from Greenwich, or 3° 30’ and
7° 50’ west from Washington. It is thus the most southern of the
northern tier of States, its northern border corresponding in latitude
with the southern border of Michigan and New York. Its extreme
length is, from east to west, about 220 miles; its greatest width from
north to south about 210 miles. Its area is approximately 40,000 square
miles. Abont two-thirds of the State is under cultivation, and of the
remaining third nineteen-twentieths is woodland. Before cultivation a
few small prairies in the western and central portions of the State inter-
rupted the general woodland.

Two-thirds of the State may be considered as forming a part of the
great Mississippi Valley, while about the northern third is in the basin
of the great lakes. The water-shed which divides the streams flowing
into Lake Erie from those tributary to the Ohio, traverses the State
from near the north-east corner in a south-westerly direction as a low
ridge, the greatest elevation of which is nowhere more than 1,400 feet
above the sca. This water-shed is lower in Ohio than in Pennsylvania
and New York. :

The variations in the genera! surface of the State are not great. The
elevation of Like Erie is 5654 feet, and that of Cincinnati, the lowest
point, 429 feet above tide water,, or 135 feet below the Lake.

The section of the State lying between the water-shed and the Lake
is generally level, presenting a gradual slope to the north. The central

190 BIRDS—PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY.

and western portion is also level, while the eastern portion is rolling,
and the southern becomes hilly as the Ohio River is approached.

The average temperature throughout the year varies about five de-
grees; that of the vicinity of Cincinnati being 54° and of Northern
Ohio between 49° and 50° Fahrenheit. The difference between the tem-
perature of the winter is greater than that of the summer months. In
Northern Ohio the average temperature during winter is from 27° t0 28°.
In Southern Ohio it is about 35°. In summer the average for Northern
Ohio is about 71°, for Southern Ohio 75°.

There is a variation of about 14 inches in the mean annual rain-fall
in different parts of the State, that of the extreme south-west corner
being 46 inches and that of the Lake shore 32 inches. With the excep-
tion of a few localities, of limited extent, the decrease in rain-fall is
gradual, and about one inch for every twenty miles ascent in latitude,
and bears a direct ratio to the annual temperature. The prevailing
winds are from the west.

Otherwise than above stated, the topography of the State is uniform.
No large bodies of water are found, the largest being artificial reservoirs
constructed in connection with the various canals for the purpose of
securing a uniform and regular supply of water for the same. The
largest of these is the St. Mary’s reservoir, situated in Mercer and Au-
glaize counties, which covers an area of 17,000 acres, to a depth of ten
feet. Three others, of smaller dimensions, are the Lewistown, in Logan
county, Loramie, in Shelby, and Licking, in Licking, Fairfield, and
Perry counties, all, except the latter, which is nearly central, are in
Western Ohio. In the north-eastern portions of the State numerous
small lakes are situated.

The rivers of the State are numerous and many of them are large.
Those emptying into the Ohio flow through the wide valleys formed by
the action of their own waters. These diverge somewhat in their course
to the Ohio. Those emptying into the Lake are fewer in number, and
converge towards the Lake.

The Ohio River separates the southern, and more than half of the
eastern border of the State from the adjacent States, and is one of its
natural boundaries. In its course westward it forms a considerable
curve to the south, the lowest point of which is near the middle of the
southern border of the State.

Lake Erie extends into the northern border of the State at its middle,
causing a curvature of that border corresponding with though less
well marked than the convexity formed by the Ohio. In the western
portion of the Lake are several islands, which have afforded breeding-

PECULIARITIES OF CLIMATE. 191

places for some birds not known to breed in other localities in the State.
The Lake exerts an emphatic influence on the climate, zoölogy, and
botany of Northern Ohio, as has been well shown by Dr. Kirtland, whose
article on that subject I insert here as showing the peculiarities of this
region and a general view of the climatology of the State :*

‘Very erroneous opinions are entertained by even intelligent people, respecting this
section of country, so far as its climate and the species of the animal and vegetable
kingdoms are concerned. A series of observations, embracing a period of ten years,
have disclos: d some very interesting facts upon these points.

“The locality where these observations were made, is situated five miles west of
Cleveland, half a mile from the lake, one hundred and fifty feet above its surface, and
fully exposed to its influence. During the ten years, the temperature has in no instance
fallen below zero; while at Columbus, Marietta, and Cincinnati, situated from 120 to
150 miles to the sonth, it has frequently sunk to 5°, and has occasionally fallen to 10°,
at some of those places. There latitudes are as follows, to wit:

‘Point of observation near Cleveland—

“North 41° 31°.
“Columbus, 39° 57'.
“Marietta, 39°.
‘Cincinnati, 39° 5° 54”.

“ The more tender vegetation is usually cut down in all Northern Ohio—a few locali-
ties excepted—within tive days of the 25th of September. The lake shore is an excep-
tion. Dahlias, maize, and sweet potatoes are generally killed simultaneously here and
at Cincinnati—never before the 26th of October, and sometimes not until late in Novem-
ber. In one instance, at least, the lake shore escaped two weeks later than did Cin-
einnati.

“At the present moment, October 25, vegetation is as verdant and thrifty as it has
been‘at any time during autumn, though it was cut down throughout the West gen-
erally several weeks since.

“The foliage of the fruit and forest trees, having subserved its purposes, is falling
without the intervention of frost, and the wood of the more tender trees, such as the
peach and cherry, has attained a maturity that will render it sufficiently hardy to with-
stand the impressions of cold during winter. This occurring annually, gives to these
trees a degree of vigor, health, and productiveness not to be met with in localities
where their growth is suddenly arrested by frost, at a period when they are immature.

“In the middle and southern sections of Ohio, spring sets in during the month of
March—perhaps earlier. The warm winds blowing up the valleys of the Mississippi
and Ohio, in conjunction with others causes, bring forth vegetation earlier; but cold
weather and disastrous frosts too often follow.

“While these changes are progressing in those parts of the State winter will remain
steadfast at this point. Little advancement will be made by spring, so long as any
considerable bodies of ice float upon the lake, even.as low down as Buffalo. No sooner

do they disuppear than spring sets in with a reality, and vegetation puts forth with sub-
arctic rapidity.

* Peculiarities of the Climate, Flora, and Fauna of the South Shore of Lake Erie, in

the Vicinity of Cleveland, Ohio; by J. P. Kirtland. Am. Jour. Sci. and Arts, 2d Series,
xii, 1852, pp. 215-9. ®

192 BIRDS—PECULIARITIES OF CLIMATE.

‘‘Tha lake rapidly imbibing heat at this season, becomes a safeguard against any
sabsequent vernal’frost. Its influence was manifested in a satisfactory manner early in
the present season. On the Ist of May, spring seemed to be fully established; fruit
trees had blossomed and in some localities young fruits had formed. The morning
was cold and the temperature declined during the day and evening. At 2 o’clock P.M.,
it was 48° Fahrenheit; at 7, 34°; and at 9, 32°. The atınosphere was calın and clear,
indieating to an experienced observer the approach of a destructive frost, At 10 o’clock
P.M., it had risen to 40°; a heavy cloud of haze hung about twenty degrees above the
lake and soon overspread the whole horizon. The morning of the following day was
warm and misty: by 12 o’clock A.M,, it was clear and spring-like. Not a fruit germ was
injured on the lake shore. A different state of things occurred throughout the west and
south-west, where no local influences interfered. The temperature steadily declined,
without intermission, during the day and night, down to about 26°. The day following
was cold and blighting, and fruits were generally destroyed.

“ The modes by which the lake exerts its influence on such occasions do not appear to
be uniformly the same at different times.

“On the approach of a cold night, as in the instance above noticed, the warm emana-
tions condensing may give off caloric, and obscure the atmosphere with haze, mist, or
clouds, when no frost will occur.

“Under circumstances apparently similar, on the approach of a cold night, neither
haze, mist nor clouds may form, but a stiff breeze springs up, and the stars become un-
usually brilliant. The thermometer vacillates between 30° and 38°, rising with gusts
of wind, and falling during the intervals of calm. Then no frosts will appear.

“Again, none of those modifying causes may intervene, but the temperature may fall
below freezing-point, ice form on the surface of the water, and the expanded fruit,
leaves, and blossoms congeal. Under such circumstances, the first rays of the rising
sun, the next morning, will be arrested by a haze, which will soon thicken, and before
noon a warm rain will probably fall. The frost will he abstracted so gradually from
frozen vegetation as not to impair its yitality,

“These contingences have all occurred within the period of our observations. The
year 1834 proved an exception. The general cold prevailed over the local warath of
the lake; freezing weather cuntinued two or three days, and fruits were cut off, even to
the shure of the lake.

“Tn autumn, this great body of water begins to part with its warmth to the colder
incumbent atmosphere, and the process continues during the winter. While its prog-
ress is most rapid strong westerly winds prevail at the earth’s surface, while volumes of
clouds, at a high elevation, may at the same time be moving rapidly in an opposite di-
rection.

“These counter-currents have sometimes given origin to a phenomenon in the city of
Cleveland, not well anderstood by all of its good citizens. The vane of the lofty spire
of the Baptist church, standing on a high ridge of ground, may point steadily to the
north, while that on the low cupols of the First Presbyterian church, situated on a less
elevated platean, may be directed to an opposite point of the compass, with a stiff
southerly breeze at the same time, Cold north winds begin to prevail about the middle
of October. The emanations from the lake then begin to condense and pass off to the
south, in the form of thick clouds, without discharging, at first, much rain. About the
20th of October the cold from the north seems to gain the ascendency ; squalls of rain,
hail, and rounded snow appear alternately, with intervals of clear and warm weather,

FAUNA OF LAKE SHORE. 193

These squalls always precede the antumnal frosts. Our gardeners feel no apprehension
for their tender vegetables till these premonitions have appeared.

‘Common observations, as well as the more sure test, the rain-gauge, show that
larger amounts of vapor from the lake are carried south, condensed in the form of rain
or snow, than fall in this vicinity.

“During winter comparatively little snow falls, and still less accumulates here,
though it may be abundant on the higher grounds in the interior.

“ This region is also not so frequently favored with showers in summer as the central
portion of the State. Long and severe droughts often prevail, but they are in part coun-
teracted by moisture in the atmosphere. This qual,ty sustains vegetation, and also im-
parts a blandness and freshness to the atmosphere during the hottest days of summer,
very observable on approaching the lake from the interior. During that season it is
peculiarly pleasant and invigorating to invalids, and equally harrassing to them during
the spring season.

‘“ The indigenous vegetation of this vicinity is of rather a southern type—shown by
the absence, in a great measure, of evergreens, and the occurrence of more southern
genera, as the Cercis, Ilex, ZEsculus, Nelumbium, Gleditschia, Magnolia, etc. Elliott’s
Botany of South Carolina and Georgia has been found to be a convenient hand-book for
investigating our flora. On the other hand strange hyperborean plants are frequently
found, which have been washed down from the far northwest, through the chain of
great lakes.

“Many of our birds are species whose most northern ranges of migration have been
assigned many degrees south of this by ornithologists. The hooded, Kentucky, yellow-
throated-wood, cosrulean, and prairie warblers annually rear their young in this vicinity.
Trail’s fly-catcher and the piping-plover have been repeatedly seen here, and the purple
ibis is an occasional visitor. The list might be greatly extended.

“ Great numbers of the Sylvicolide annually congregate here during their migrations,
and seem to make it a resting place, both before and after passing the lake. More
northern species occasionally resort here during winter, for the purpose of obtaining
food, or are driven here by storms, such are the pine grosbeak and the white owl. The
Bohemian wax-wing visits us almost every winter, and sometimes in large flocks. The
pine finch is described by some ornithologists as resorting to the United States only at
long intervals, and during winter. It visits our gardens and grounds in numerous flocks,
every season, early in July, and remains here till the ensuing spring. The young, at
their first appearance, still retain much down about their plumage, and can not have
been long absent from their nests. The food of these birds is Aphides during summer,
and at other times small seeds of grapes and other vegetables.

“The insect tribes show still more strikingly southern affinities. The Papilio Cres-
phontes, figured and described by Boisduval and LeConte, as the Payilio Thoas,, has been
repeatedly taken here, though it has been considered as exclusively southern in its re-
sorts, In the south, the larva feeds on the orange and lemon ; here, Major LeConte in-
forms me, it lives on the Hercules-club.

“The Papilio Ajax and P. Marcellus have also been described as southern insects;
and the late Mr. Doubleday located the former exclusively in Florida, and fixed the
most northern limit of the latter in Virginia. Still they are common at this point, and
subsist in the lırva state on the pawpaw. An undescribed species of Libythea has been
taken in northern Ohio; it has been found, also, in South Carolina, and is without doubt
legitimately a southern species,

13

194 BIRDS—LATITUDINAL VARIATION.

“The Cherocampa tersa, an elegant miller, was taken in our garden, in the month
of May last. Dr. Harris describes it as a native of South Carolina, where ıt feeds on a
species of plant which does not grow at the North. The food it finds as a substitute
has not been discovered.”

From this description of the peculiarities of the climate of the southern
shore of Lake Erie, we may not only understand, why many birds,
usually considered as more southern in’ their breeding range, should
choose that region for their summer residence, but also why some north-
ern birds should find suitable winter quarters there, and for that reason do
not visit, in numbers, the central and southern portions of the State.

In other States, localities have been recently discovered which are
peculiar in their bird fauna, probably for similar reasons.

Differences in the fauna of the eastern and western portions of the
State are not marked, and consist chiefly in a difference in the relative
abundance of some species. There are a few species, however, which are
not found in the eastern portions of the State.

By far the largest part of the State is strictly Carolinian in its faunal
characters; a small portion, the north-eastern corner, is as emphatically
Allegbenian.

LATITUDINAL VARIATION.

In deference to the authority whose nomenclature I adopt, and on wiom
I have drawn for descriptions, several Ohio birds are described as varieties
of species which also are given as Ohioan.

To those who have never made the science of ornithology a study, or
who are unacquainted with its recent progress, this may require
anexplanation. Itis tobe found in the fact that many birds inhabiting or
breeding in widely separated regions, and once considered different species,
are found to gradually lose their distinctive characters, as individuals
from intermediate localities are examined. In some instances, an ex-
amination of members of the same species from different localitieshasshown
a constant and uniform difference in characters, which difference is ex-
pressed in calling one group a variety of the other.

As the variation between virds of the same species must follow some
law or laws to be of any scientific interest or value, the determination of
these laws has engaged the atteution of the most eminent American orni-
thologists in late years. Among these investigators none have been
more prominent than Prof. J. A. Allen, of the Museum of Comparative
Anatomy, from whose writings I quote the following on the subject of
latitudinal variation :* ;

“In North America, a geographical variation exhibits two marked phases (as has
already been stated), a differentiation with differences of latitude and elevation; and,

* Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural History, Vol. XV., June, 1872,

LAWS OF VARIATION. 195

secondly, differentiation with differences of longitude, which, for convenience, may be
termed respectively latitudinal and longitudinal variation. In respect to both, differ-
entiation occurs in different degrees in different groups, in accordance with their gen-
eral tendency to variation, or, as it were, in proportion to their normal degree of plas-
ticity. In regard to variation with latitude, the modifications are apparently more
general than in what I have termed longitudinal variation: the differentiation affects
not merely color but size and the details of structural parts, whereas color appears to
be the main element affected by longitudinal variation. The fact of variation in size
has been conceded as a general law by the majority of at least American ornithologists
and mammalogists, since it was so fully established by Prof. S. F. Baird, in 1857 and
1858, in his admirable reports on the Mammals and Birds of North America, published
in the series of the Government reports on the exploration and survey of the various
Pacific Railroad routes.

“ Latitudinal variation presents the following phenomena, which are of such general
occurrence that even the exceptions, if such there really be, are exceedingly few:

“1st. As regards size: There is a general reduction in the size of the individual,
from the north southward, amounting not unfreqaently to as high as 10 to 15 per cent.
of the maximum size of the species. The reduction is much yreater in some species,
and in some groups of species, than in others, but is almost invariably considerable and
easily recognizable.

‘62d. In respect to the bill: The variation of the bill is somewhat inverse to that of
the general size; as a rule the southern forms having generally relatively, and often
absolutely, larger bills than northern ones, the increased size taking different propor-
tions in different species and different styles of bill. Those of a stout, thick, conical
form generally increase in size, but especially in thickness. Those of a slender or terete
form become slenderer and relatively longer at the southward, with a decidedly greater
tendency to curvature.

‘3d. In respect to the claws: A similar increase in size is apparent in the claws,
especially in that of the hallux, at southern localities, perhaps less marked and less
general than the increase of the bill, with which it evidently correlates.

‘Ath. In respect to the tail: A marked elongation of the tail at the southward has
been noticed in many cases, both in Cape St. Lucas birds (Baird) and in those of Florida.

‘5th. In respect to color: The differences in color are especially obvious, and may
be reduced to two phases of modification: (a) a general increase in intensity at the
southward; and (b) an increase in the extent of dusky or black markings at the expense
of the intervening lighter or white ones, or, conversely, the reduction in size of white
spots and bars. Under the general increase in intensity, the iridescence of lustrous
species becomes greater, and fascous, plumbeous, rufous, yellow, and olivaceous tints
are heightened in species with, the color continuous in masses.

“ Under the repression of light colors, the white or yellowish edgings and spots on the
wings and tail become more or less reduced ; and frequently, to a great degree in spe-
cies barred transversely with light and dark colors, the dark bars widen at the south-
ward at the expense of the white or lighter ones, sometimes to such an extent as to
greatly change the general aspect of the species, as is the case in the Ortyx virginianus
of the Atlantic States, and in other well known species; also, under the tendency to
the increase of dark colors, longitudinal streaks and blotches in a light ground increase
in extent and intensity of color.”

Prof. Allen, after mentioning the coincidence of pale colors with dry

,

196 BIRDS-—LAWS OF VARIATION.

atmosphere and high latitudes, as well as the converse, suggests that
there may be laws governing variation between the members of higher
groups similar to those which he considers as varietal. He says:

‘(Whatever may be the cause of the above modifications of structure and color, at
different localities, we certainly find the following coincidences :

“Ist. In accordance with the increase in the intensity of color in individuals of the
same species from the north southward, in the northern hemisphere, the brighter colored
species in general represented in both the temperate and tropical regions occur, a8 a
general rule, at the southward; the same fact holding good also for sub-families. In
cosmopolitan genera, families, etc., the tropical species are almost always brighter col-
ored than the extra-tropical ones. All the most gorgeously colored families of birds are
either exclusively tropical or semi-tropical, with generally the outlying species more
plainly colored than the average for the family.

“2d. In accordance with the increase in the size of the bill at the southward, all the
species that have this member enormously developed are tropical or semi tropical; not
only such families as have the beak at its maximum of development, as the toucans and
hornbills, but in all groups in which it is unusually large, the extreme development is
reached in the inter-tropical regions.

“3d. In respect to the tail, with very few exceptions, all long-tailed forms reach
their highest development within or near the equatorial regions.

“The facts indicated above in respect to the inosculation of forms formerly regarded
as specifically differentiated will evidently require modifications of the hitherto ac-
cepted pomenclature. Evidently, many of these forms are so strongly marked that
they should be, in some manner, recognized in nomenclature, though admittedly of less
than specific rank. Most naturalists now practically recognize as species such groups of
individuals as are not known to graduate by nearly imperceptible stages into any other
similar group, and as varieties such groups of individuals as occur at certain localities,
or over certain areas, which differ more or less from other groups inhabiting other (gen-
erally contiguous) localities, with which there is evidence that they do more or less fully
intergrade. Convenience seems to demand such a course, in order to enable the natu-
ralist to specify what particular variety or race of a species inhabits a given section of
country: a method, in fact, already more or less generally practiced.”

As the State of Ohio presents no marked elevations of surface and its
area is too limited to admit of any marked geographical variation in spe-
cies, | have found it interesting to follow the suggestions con'ained in
the concluding paragraphs above quoted, and have compared our resi-
dent and summer resident birds with migrants, as regards the variation
in those of a similar type or pattern of coloration. This comparison
and its results, in which I attempt to show that southern species (resi-
‘dents and summer residents) differ from northern species (migrants and
winter visitors) in being more highly developed in coloration and pat-
tern of plumage, northern birds remaining in a condition, in these re-
spects, resembling the young of the southern forms, was made the sub-
ject of a paper read before the Columbus Natural History Society, August
29, 1874, This paper will be found in the appendix to this report.

BIRDS—NOMENCLATURE, ETC. 197

In the following pages I have made free use of the writings of several
authorities. The descriptions of species are almost without exception or
alteration from Dr. Elliott Coues’ Key to North American Birds,*, The
Keys to the Genera are from Prof. D. S. Jordan’s Manual of Vertebrates,f
the definitions of the higher groups are by Dr. Coues, and taken from
the introductory chapter of North American Birds ¢

The nomenclature adopted is that of Dr. Coues in his Check List of
North American Birds,|| with such modifications as changes, made since
its publication, require. This is followed by references to all writers,
whether general or local, who have mentioned that species as Ohioan.
This is followed in most cases by such synonyms as will enable changes
in the nomenclature to be traced. Following the description, I give, as
briefly as possible, an account of its general and breeding habits,
together with such biographical observations as seem to me interesting
or valuable.

In the appendix I have inserted a list of the birds, with the dates of
their appearance and disappearance, as observed by me in this vicinity ;
a list of the birds identified by me in my garden in this city; a Biblo-
graphy of Ohio Ornithology, and a Glossary of such scientific words as
require definition.

* Key to North American Birds, containing a concise account of every species of liv-
ing and fossil Bird at present known from the Continent North of the Mexican and
United States Boundary. Illustrated by six steel plates and upwards of 250 woodcuts.
By Elliott Coues, Assistant Surgeon United States Army. Salem: Naturalists’ Agency,
1872.

t Manual of the Vertebrates of the Northern United States, including the district
east of the Mississippi River, and north of North Carolina and Tennessee, exclusive of
marine species. By David Starr Jordan, Ph. D., M.D. Professor of Natural History in
Butler Universty. Second edition, revised and enlarged. Chicago: Jansen, McClurg
& Co., 1878.

} A History of North American Birds, by S. F. Baird, T. M. Brewer, and R, Ridgway.
Land Birds. Illustrated by 64 plates and 593 woodcuts. Boston: Little, Brown & Co.,
1874.

|| Field Ornithology, comprising a Manual of Irstruction for procuring, preparing,
and preserving Birds, and a Check List of North American Birds. By Elliott Coues,
United States Army. Salem: Naturalists’ Agency, 1874.

198 BIRDS—DEFINITION OF CLASS.

AVES—BIRDS.

“ Birds are abranchiate vertebrates, with the brain filling the cranial
cavity, the cerebral portion of which is moderately well developed, the
corpora striata connected by a small anterior commissure (no corpus cal-
losum developed), proscencephalic hemispheres large, the optic lobes
lateral, the cerebellum transversely multifissured ; the lungs and heart
not separated by a diaphragm from the abdominal viscera; aortic arch
single (the right only being developed); blood with nucleated red corpus-
cles, undergoing a complete circulation, being received and transmitted
by the right half of the quadrilocular heart to the lungs for aeration
(and thus warmed), and afterwards returned by the other half through
the system (there being no communication between the arterial and
venous portions); skull with a single median convex condyle, chiefly on
the basi-occipital (with the sutures for the most part early obliterated);
the lower jaw with its rami ossifying from several points, connected
with the skull by the intervention of a quadrate bone (homologous
with the malleus); pelvis with ilia prolonged in front of the acetabu-
lum, ischia and pubes nearly parallel with each other, and the ischia
usually separated; anterior and posterior members much differentiated ;
the former modified for flight, with the humerus nearly parallel with
the axis of the body and concealed in the muscles, the radius and ulna
distinct, with two persisteut carpal bones, and two to four digits; the legs
with the bones peculiarly combined, (1) the proximal tarsal bones coales-
cing with the adjoining tibia, and (2) the distant tarsal coalescing with
three (second, third, and fourth) metatarsals (the first metatarsal being
free), and forming the so-called tarso-metatarsus; dermal appendages de-
veloped as feathers; oviparous, the eggs being fertilized within the
body, excluded with an oval calcareous shell, and hatched at a tempera-
ture of about 104° F., (generally by the incubation upon them by the
mother).’”—(GILL.)*

There is little to add to this almost exhaustive definition of the class.
All of our birds, at least, have the jaws more or less covered with a horny
membrane, and all have air spaces connected with the lungs, and the
skeleton itself is more or less pneumatic.

All existing birds may be placed in two great groups or sub classes—
Ratitz, birds without a keeled breast-bone, ostriches, etc., and Carinatz,
those with a more or less well developed keel to the sternum. All North
American birds belong to the latter group.

* North American Birds, Vol, I, xi.

ORDERS OF BIRDS. 1

This sub-class is divided into fourteen orders, all of which are repre-
sented in Ohio except the last—Sphenisci, Penguins, which are confined to
the Southern Hemisphere. It is, however, to be understood that these
orders do not take equal rank with the orders in other classes of animals,
for the reason that birds want, in common, many of those charac-
ters, the possession or lack of which constitute orders in other ani-
mals. In other words, they want the characteristic differences which
constitute orders elsewhere, and have no other differences of equal value
or importance.

The following is Dr. Coues’ arrangement and definition of the orders:

A, PASSERES. Hallux invariably present, completely incumbent, separately
movable by specialization of the flecor hallucis longus, with enlarged base and
its claw Jarger than that of the middle digit. Neither second nor fourth toe
versatile ; joints of toes always 2, 3, 4, 5, from first to fourth. Wing coverts
comparatively short and few; with the exception ot the least covers upon
the plica alaris, arranged in only two series, the greater of which does not
reach beyond the middle of the secondary remiges. Retrices twelve (with
rare anomalous exceptions). Musical apparatus present in greater or less de-
velopment and complexity. Palate egithognathous. Sternum of one particu-
lar mould, siugle-notched. Carotid single (sinistra). Nature highly altricial
and psilopedic.

a. Oscines. Sides of the tarsus covered in most or all of their extent with
two undivided horny plates meeting behind in a sharp ridge (except in
Alaudide ; one of the plates imperfectly divided in a few other forms).
Musical apparatus highly developed, consisting of several distinct
pairs of syringeal muscles Primaries nine only, or ten with the first
freqnently spurious, rarely over two-thirds the length of the longest,
never equaling the longest.

b. CLAMATORES. Sides of the tarsus covered with divided plates or scales
variously arranged, its hinder edge blunt. Musical apparatus weak
and imperfect, of few or incompletely distinguished syringeal muscles
(as far as known). Primaries ten with rare exceptions, the first usually
equaling or exceeding the rest.

B. PICARIA. Hallux inconsiderable, weak or wanting, not always incumbent,
not separately movable by distinction of a special muscle, its claw not
Jonger than that of the middle toe unless of exceptional shape. Second
or fourth toe frequently versatile; third and fourth frequently with decreased
numberof joints. Wing-coverts forthe most part larger and in morenumerous
series than in Passeres, the greater series reaching beyond the middle of the sec-
ondary quills (except in many Pici, and some others). Retrices commonly ten
(eight to twelve). Primaries always ten, the first only exceptionally short
(as in Pici). Musical apparatus wanting, or consisting of a muscular mass, of
not more than three pairs of syringeal muscles. Palate desmognathous or
egithognathous. Sternum of non-passerine character, its posterior border
entire or doubly notched or fenestrate. Carotid single or double. Nature
completely altricial, but young sometimes hatched with down (e. g. Caprimu}-
gide).

200 BIRDS—ORDERS OF BIRDS.

a. CYPSELI, Palate egithognathous. Wings lengthened in their terminal
portions, abbreviated basally, with the first primary not reduced.
Tail of ten retrices. Bill fissirostral or tenuirostral. Feet never zygo-
dactyle nor syndactyle, small, weak, scarcely fitted for locomotion ;
hallux often elevated or lateral or reversed, front toes usually webbed
at base, or with abnormal ratio of phalanges in length and number, or
both, Sternum deep-keeled, usually entire or else doubly notched or
perforate. Syringeal muscles not more than one pair.

b. CucuLt. Palate desmognathus. Wings not peculiar in brevity of prox-
imal or length of distal portions, and with first primary not reduced.
Tail of eight to twelve retrices. Bill of indeterminate form, never
cered; tongue not extensile. Feet variously modified by versatility or
reversion of either first, second, or fourth toes, or by cohesion for a
great distance of third and fourth, or by absence or rudimentary con-
dition of first or second; often highly scansorial, rarely ambulatorial.
Syringeal muscles two pairs at most.

e. Pict. Palate ‘‘exhibiting asimplification and degradation of the »githog-
nathous structure” (Huxley); wings bearing out this passerine effinity
in the common reduction of the first primary and the restriction of the
greater coverts. Tail of ten perfect retrices and usually a supplement-
ary pair. Rostrum hard, straight, narrow, sub-equal to head, with
commonly extensile and vermiform but not furcate tongue. Feet
highly scausorial. Fourth toe permanently reversed ; basal phalanges
of toes abbreviated. Sternum doubly notched. Salivary glands highly
developed. Hyoidean apparatus peculiar.

C. PSITTACI Bill enormously thick, short, high, much arched from the base,

‘ the upper mandible strongly hooked at the end, cered at the base, and freely
movable by complete articulation with the forehead, the under mandible
with short, broad truncate symphysis. Feet permanently zygodactyle by re-
version of the fourth toe, which articulates by a double facet. Tarsi reticu-
late. Syrinx peculiarly constructed of three pairs of intrinsic muscles.
Tongue short, thick, fleshy. Sternum entire or fenestrate. Clavicles weak,
defective, or wanting. Orbit more or less completed by approach or union of
postorbital process and lachrymal. Altricial, psilopzdie.

D. RAPTORES. Bill usually powerful, adapted for tearing flesh, strongly de-
curved and hooked at the end, furnished with a cere in which the nostrils
open. Feet strongly flexible, with large, sharp, much curved claws ‚gradu-
ally narrowed from base to tip, convex on the sides, that of the second toe
larger than that of the fourth toe, and the hinder not smaller than the second
one. Feet never permanently zygodactyle, though fourth toe often versa-
tile; anterior toes commonly with one basal web; hallux considerable and
completely incunibent (except Calhartide). Legs feathered to the suffrago or
beyond. Retrices twelve (with.rare exceptions); primaries sinuate or emar-
ginate (with rare exceptions). Sternum singly or doubly notched or fenes-
trate. Palate desmognathous. Carotids double. Syrinx wanting or devel-
oped with only one pair of muscles. Altricial; the young being weak and
helpless, yet ptilop@dic, being downy at birth.

E. COLUMBZM. Bill straight, compressed, horny at the vaulted tip, which is sep-

ORDERS OF BIRDS. 201

arated by a constriction from the soft membranous basal portion. Nostrils
beneath a soft, tumid valve. Tomia of the mandibles mutually apposed.
Frontal feathers sweeping in strongly convex outline across base of upper
mandible. Legs feathered to the tarsus or beyond. Hallux incumbent (with
few exceptions), and front toes rarely webbed at base. Tarsus with small
scutella in front, or often reticulate, the envelope rather membranous than
corneous. Head very small. Plumage without after shafts. One pair of
syringeal muscles. Sternum doubly notched, or notched and fenestrate on
each side. Carotids double. Palate schizognathous. Monogamous, and
highly altricial and psilopsedic.

F. GALLIN®. Bill generally short, stout, convex, with an obtuse vaulted tip,
corneous, except in the nasal fossa, and without constriction in its continuity.
Nostrils scaled or feathered. Tomia of upper mandible overlapping. Frontal
feat;ers forming re-entrant outline at base of upper mandible. Legs usually
feathered to the tarsus or beyond. Hallux elevated, with few exceptions,
smaller than the anterior toes, occasionally wanting (as in the Hemipods).
Tarsus, when not feathered, generally breadly scutellate. Front toes com-
monly webbed at base. Claws blunt, little curved. Wings strong, short, and
concavo-convex. Retrices commonly more than twelve. Head small, plu-
mage generally after-shafted. Carotids double (except Turnicide and Mega-
podide), No intrinsic syringeal muscles. Sternum very deeply, generally
doubly, notched. Palate schizognathous. Chiefly polygamous. Preecocial
and ptilopadic. :

G. LIMICOL. Tibia bare of feathers for a variable, sometimes very slight dist-
ance above the suffrago. Leys commonly lengthened, sometimes excessively
so,ard neck usually produced in a corresponding ratio. Tarsi scutellate or
reticulate. Toes never coherent at base; cleft or united for a short distance
by one or two small movable basal webs (palmate only in Recurvirostra
lobate only in Phalaropodide). Hallux always reduced, obviously elevated and
free, or wanting; giving a foot of cursorial character. Wings, with few ex-
ceptions, lengthened, pointed, and flat; the inner primaries and outer second-
aries very short, forming a strong re-entrance on the posterior border of the
wing. Tail shorter than the wing, of simple form and of few feathers, except
in some ceıtain snipes. Head globose, sloping rapidly down to the contracted
base of the bill, completely feathered (except in Philomachus, male). Gape of
bill short and constricted; tip usually obtuse; bill weak and flexible. Ros-
trum commonly lengthened, and more or less terete and slender; membranous
wholly or in great part, without hard, cutting edges. Nostrils narrow, placed
low down, entirely surrounded with soft skin; nasal fosse extensive. Palate
schizognathous. Sternum usually doubly, sometimes singly, notched. Caro-
tids double. Pterylosis of a particular pattern, Nature peecocial and ptilo-
redic.

H. HERODIONES. Tibiw naked below. Legs and neck much lengthened in cor-
responding ratio. Toes long, slender, never coherent at base, where cleft,
or with movable basal webbing. Hallux (as compared with that of the pre-
ceding and following group) lengthened, free, and either perfectly incum-
bent or but little elevated, with a large claw, giving a foot of incessorial
character. Wings commonly obtuse, but broad and ample, without marked
re-entrance on posterior border, the intermediate remiges not being much

202

BIRDS—ORDERS OF BIRDS.

abbreviated. Tail short and few-feathered. Head narrow, conico-elongated,
gradually contracting to the large, stout base of the bill. Gape of the bill
deeply fissured: tip usually acute; tomia hard and cutting. Bill conico-
elongate, always longer than the head, stout and firm. Nostrils small, placed
high up, with entire bony and horny, or only slightly membranous, surround-
ings. Pterylosis nearly peculiar in the presence, almost throughout the group,
of powder-down tracts, rarely found elsewhere; pteryle very narrow. Palate
desmognathous. Carotids double. Altricial.

I. ALECTORIDES. Tibiz naked below. Neck, legs, and feet much as in the last

group, but hallux reduced and obviously elevated, with small claw, the result-
ing foot cursorial (natatorial and lobate in Fulica). Wings and tail commonly
as in Herodiones. Head less narrowed and conic than in the last, fully feath-
ered or with extensive baldness (not with defihite nakedness of loral and orb-
ital regions). Bill of various shape, usually lengthened and obtuse, never ex-
tensively membranous. Rictus moderate. Nostrils lower than in Herodiones.
Pterylosis not peculiar. Palate schizognathous. Carotids double. Nature
precocial and ptilopedic. ,

J. LAMELLIROSTRES. Feet palmate; tibia feathered (except Phenicopterus).

Legs near the centre of equilibrium of the body, its axis horizontal in walk-
ing; not lengthened except in Phanicopterus. Knee joint rarely exserted be-
yond general skin of the body. Wings moderate, reaching, when folded, to,
but not beyond, the usually short and rounded (exceptionally long and cune-
ate) tail. Feet tetradactyle (except sometimes in Phenicopterus); hallux re-
duced, elevated and free, often independently lobate. Bill lammellate, i.e.,
furnished along each commissural edge with a regular series of mutually
adapted laminz or tooth-like processes, with which correspond certain lan-
cinate processes of the fleshy tongue, which ends in a horny tip. Bill large,
thick, high at base, depressed towards the end, membranous to the broad, ob-
tuse tip, which is occupied by a horny nail of variousshape. Nostrils patent,
never tubular, nasal fossz slight. No gular pouch. Plumage dense, to resist
water. Eyes very small. Head high, compressed, with lengthened, sloping
frontalregion. Palate desmognathous. Reproduction precocial; young ptilo-
pedic. Eggs numerous. Carotids double. Sternum single notched.

K. STEGANOPODES. Feet totipalmate; hallux lengthened, nearly incumbent,

semilateral, completely united with the second toe by a full web. Tibia
feathered; position of legs with reference to axis of bodr variable, but gen-
erally far posterior; knee joint not free. Wings and tail variable. Bill of
very variable shape, never lamellate, wholly corneous; its tomia often ser-
rate; external nares very small or finally abortive. A prominent gular pouch.
Tarsi reticulate. Sternum entirely or nearly so; furculum confluent with its
keel. Carotids double. Palate highly desmognathous. Reproduction altri-
cial; young psilopzedic or ptilopedic. Eggs three or fewer.

L. LONGIPENNES. Feet palmate. Tibi feathered. Legs at or near the center

of equilibrium, affording horizontal position of axis of body in walking.
Knee scarcely buried in common integument; tibia sometimes with a long
apophysis. Hallux elevated, free, functionless; very small, rudimentary or
wanting. Rostram of variable shape, usually compressed and straight to the
hooked end, sometimes entirely straight and acute, commonly lengthened,
always corneous, without serration or true lamella. Nostrils of various

ORDERS OF BIRDS. 203

forms, tubular or simply fissured, never abortive. No gular pouch. Wings
very long and pointed, surpassing the base, and often the end of the large,
well formed, few-feathered tail. Carotids doubla. Palate schizognathous.
Reproduction altricial; young ptilopedic. Eggs three or fewer. Habits
highly volucral. i

M. PYGOPODES. Feet palmate or lobate. Tibi feathered, often with a long
apophysis, always buried in the common integument neaily to the heel joint,
necessitating a more or less erect posture of the body on land, when progres-
sion is difficult. Hallux small, elevated or wanting. Bill of indeterminate
shape, wholly corneous, never lamellate or serrate, nor with gular pouch.
Nostrils not abortive. Wings very short, reaching scarcely or not to the base,
never to the tip, of the short, rudimentary tail. Palate schizognathous.
Carotid usually double, sometimes single (in Podiceps and Mergulus.) Nature
altricial or precocial; young ptilopedic. Highly natatorial.

These orders are divided into families With few exceptions, Ohio has
representatives of all families of North American birds. The exceptional
families are—in Passeres, Cinelide, which has a single North American
species, Cinclus mexicanus, the Dipper or Water Ouzel, of the Rocky Moun-
tain region; Chameidz, consisting of a single species, Chama fasciata, the
Ground Tit of the Pacific coast region ; Oxrebide, represented by a single
species, Certhiola flaveola, of rare occurrence in Florida only; in Galline,
Cracidz, represented by a single species, Ortalida vetula, Guan or Chiacalaca
of Texas; in Lammellirostres, Phenicopteride, a single species, Phoeni-
copterus ruber, American Flamingo, found in Florida and on South Atlan-
tic and Gulf coast; in Steganopod.s, Plotide, a single species, Plotus an-
hinga, the Water Turkey, southern, north to Illinois; Sulidx, the Gan-
nets, two species; Tachypetidz, one species, Tachypetes aquila, the Man-
of-War Bird; and Phaéthonide, also one species; Phaethon flavirostris, the
Tropic Bird, all marine, and mainly southern; in LongipennesgProcel-
laride, Petrels, strictly marine; in Pygopodes, Alcide, the Awks, also
strictly marine. =

ORDER PASSERES. PERCHERS.

SUB-ORDER OscINEs. Singers.

FAMILY TURDIDZ. THRUSHES.

Primaries ten. Nostrils oval. Bristles or bristly points around the mouth. Wings
moderate, not reaching, when folded, beyond the middle of the tail, and not over one
and “ne-third times as long as the latter; tip formed by third to sixth quill; outer
secondary reaching in closed wing three-fourths or more the length of the longest pri-
mary. Spurious quill longer, sometimes one-half the second.

Sub-family TURDINK. Typica, THRUSHES.

Tarsus covered anteriorly with a continuous plate without scales.

Genus TURDUS. Linnsus.

Bill rather stout, both outlines curved, commissure straight to the tip, then abruptly
decurved. Tarsus longer than middle toe. Tail nearly even or emarginate.

5 TURDUS MIGRATORIUS. Linn.

Robin.

Turdus migratortus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1832, 163.—READ, Family Visitor (news-
paper), iii, 1853, 399; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1853, 395 —WHEATOoN, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860 (1861), 363; Reprint, 5; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric, Rep.
for 1874 (1875), 562; Reprint, 2.—GARLICK, Am. Nat., ii, 1868, 492.—LANGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 169; Re-
print, 3.

Robin, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, 1, 1850, 1.—BALLov, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Turdus migratorius, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 292.

Turdus (Planesticus) migratorius, BAIRD, Birds North Am., 1858, 218.

Turdus migratorius var. migratorius, BAIRD, BREWER, and RIDGWAY, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 25.

Above dark olive gray, blackish on head and tail; below reddish brown, throat, vent
and under tail coverts white, throat with black streaks. Outer pair of tail feathers
white tipped. Bill dusky above, yellow below. Feet dark. Very young birds spotted
above and below. Length 9% inches; wing 5}; tail 44.

Habitat, North America at large. Greenland. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. In Southern Ohio the Robin
arrives about the middle of February and remains till November. In
Central O..io they arrive a week or two later and depart earlier. Nest-
ng commences soon after arrival. The nest is usually placed on trees,
sometimes on fences. It is composed externally of grass, moss, leaves

WOOD THRUSH. 205

and twigs, within which is a lining of mud, which is more or less com-
pletely lined with a thin layer of fine fibres. The nest is about five inches
in outside diameter, and of the same height. The inside diameter is
usually avout two and one-fourth inches, the depth a little greater. The
eggs vary from four to six in number, are of a uniform light bluish
green, and their average measurement is 1.18 inches by .81.

Little needs be said of this welcome and well-known bird. The earliest
to arrive in spring are solitary birds, but they are soon followed by scat-
tering flocks which make their way along the warm banks of streams.
In the fall they congregate in places where their favorite food is abund-
ant in large companies. They feed upon insects and worms, small fruits
and berries. Although sometimes destructive to cultivated fruits, they
make ample payment for their raids by the destruction of noxious in-
sects.

The Robin is justly celebrated for its song, but I do not think it is gen-
erally known that it possesses much capacity for mimicry. A young
lady friend of mine obtained from some boys a young Robin which they
had just removed from its nest in this city. She cared for it, and was
rewarded by a varied song. Before it was a year old it was perfect in the
execution of not only its own proper notes, but those of several other |
birds. Among those I recognized the notes of the Loggerhead Shrike
and Yellow-breasted Chat, birds which do not visit the city, and which
it could not have heard. It undoubtedly learned these notes from a
neighboring caged Mocking-Bird.

t
TURDUS MUSTELINUS. Gm.

Wood Thrush.

Turdus mustelinus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
399; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., vi, 395, 1853.—WHEATON, Ohio, Agric. Rep. for 1860,
363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint,
1875, 2.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist , i, 1879, 169; Reprint, 3—JonEs and SHULTZ, Illustrations of Nests and Eggs
of Ohio Birds, Part 1, 1879, plate 2.

Turdus mustelinus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 817.

Above bright tawny, shading into olive on rump and tail. Beneath white, every-
where except throat and belly, with large distinct spots of dusky. Bill dusky above,
yellowish below. Legs flesh-colored. Length 74 inches; wing 4; tail 3.

Habitat, United States east of Missouri plains, south to Guatemala. Mexico, Bermuda,
Cuba.

Common summer resident. Arrives in Central Ohio the last week in
April or the first in May. Frequents woodland, and is not often seen in
cultivated places, at least during the breeding season. In some locali-

206 BIRDS—HERMIT THRUSH.

ties they are very abundant. Towards the close of summer afternoons
theyseem to delight in mounting the higher branches of trees and join
in an extemporaneous concert. Their song is short, their notes exceed-
ingly liquid and sweet.

I am indebted to Dr. Howard E. Jones, of Circleville, for an albino of
this species, which he killed in August, 1879. The entire upper parts
are white, washed with pearl gray. The lower parts were pure white,
the spots of the breast obsolete, the breast washed with delicate cream
color.

The nest is built in saplings and low trees, seldom more than twenty
feet from the ground. It is constructed of leaves, sticks, and moss, min-
gled and cemented with mud, with which it is also lined. The eggs are
usually four in number, of a deep greenish blue color, and measure 1 by
.75 inch.

Misses Genevieve E. Jones and Eliza J. Shultze give an exquisite
figure of the nest and eggs of this bird in the first number of their ad-
mirable “ Iilustrations of the Nests and Eggs of Ohio Birds.”

TuRDUS PALLASI. Cab.

Hermit Thrush.

Turdus minor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Turdus solitarius, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1863, 399; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., vi,
395, 1853.

Turdus pallasi, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 213 —WHEAToN, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1874, 562; Re-
print, 1875, 2—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 3: Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1878, 111; Reprint, 2; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1, 1879, 169; Reprint, 3.

Turdus solitarius, WILSON, Am. Orn., v, 1812, 95.

Turdus minor, BONAPARTE, Jour. Phila. Acad., iv, 1824, 33.

Turdus pallasii, CABANIS, Arch. f. Naturg., 1847, 595.

Above olive, shading into rufous on rump and tail. Below white, olive shaded on
sides. Sides of head, eyelids, neck and breast strongly tinged with buff. Throat and
breast marked with large dusky-olive spots. Length about 74; wing 34; tail 3.

Habitat, Eastern North America.

Spring and fall migrant in Central Ohio, possibly summer resident
in some portions of Northern Ohio. Mr. Langdon states on the authority
of Mr. Dury that the nest and eggs have been taken in the vicinity of
Cincinnati. The Hermit Thrush is a common migrant in April and
October. It arrives before the other small thrushes, and frequents sparce
woodland, brush-heaps, and the wooded banks of streams. In its summer
home it is said to have a sweet song, but with us its only note is a short

OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH. 207

low cluck or chirp. The nest is placed on the ground. The eggs are of
a uniform bluish-green color, and measure about .90 by .63 inch.

Turpus SWAINSONI. Cab.

Olive-backed Thrush.

Turdus swainsoni, WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860 (1861), 379 (probable); Reprint,
5; in Coues’ Birds of N. W., 1874, 233: Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874 (1875), 562; Reprint, 2.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Jour. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 111; Reprint, 2; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
169; Reprint, 3.

Turdus swainsoni, CABANIS, Fn. Peru, 1845-46, 187,

Above uniform greenish olive. Below white, olive shaded on sides. Sides of bead,
throat, neck and breast strongly tinged with buff; breast and throat thickly marked
with large dusky olive spots. Length about 7; wing 3%; tail 3.

Habitat, Eastern North America. Ecuador. Brazil.

Abundant. Migrant. The Olive backed Thrush is the most numer-
ous of our migrant thrushes. It arrives about the first of May, and may
be seen until the first of June. They frequent woodland, are less often
seen along the open banks of streams than the Hermit Thrush. They
usually appear in scattered flocks and search for food on the ground.
When disturbed they alight upon the lower branches of neighboring
trees, where they sit nearly motionless and are frequently quite success-
ful in concealing themselves.

They make their appearance in the fall, about the middle of Septem-
ber, and the migration continues about a month. At this period the
companies are more compact, and they are to be found in abundance
feeding upon poke-berries (Phytolacca) and other small fruits. In some
localities, I have noticed a variety of this bird which averages consider-
ably smaller, extreme individuals being only 64 inches in length, and
have the buffy tint emphasized, the back even being slightly suffused
with tawny, and the buff of breast continued as a median yellowish line to
the vent. These birds were confined to open, wet woodland with stumps
and piles of brush. They appeared to be more terrestrial in habit, re-
minding one somewhat of the Water Thushes. They were the last to
appear in the spring and remained later. In fall they were the first to
appear and to depart. I think they probably were of comparatively
southern or local breeding, not entited to be recognized as a distinct
variety. j

While with us the Olive-backed Thrush has no song, only the short low
note of alarm common to others of the genus. At its breeding-places,
which in the East are from Massachusetts and, perhaps, Connecticut

208 BIRDS—GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH.

northward, it is said to have a singularly pleasing song. Jt may possibly
be found breeding in north-eastern Ohio.

The nest is placed in a tree and contructed largely of dark moss; the
eggs are greenish-blue, spotted with reddish-brown and other tints.
They are four or five in number, and measure .88 by .66.

TURDUS SWAINSONI. Cab.
var. ALICIA (BD.), Cs.

Gray-cheeked Thrush.

Turdus alicia, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1864, 23; Lanepon, Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat, Hist., 1879, 169; Reprint, 3.

Turdus swainsoni var. alicie, WHEATON, in Coues’ Birds of N. A., 1874, 233; Food of
Birds, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 3; Reprint, 2.

Turdus (swainsoni var.) alicie, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin Soc. Nat. Hist., 1874,
169; Reprint, 3.

Turdus aliciw, BAıLRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 217.

Turdus swainsoni var. alicie, CoUES, Key, 1872, 73.

Similar to the preceding, but without any buffy tint about head, nor yellowish ring
around eye; averaging a trifle larger, with longer, slenderer bill.

Common spring and fall migrant. Arriving a few days earlier in spring
and fall than the preceding. Ornithologists differ as to whether it should
be considered as named above, a variety, or constitutes a good species.
There is but little difference to be noted in their habits. With us the
Gray-cheeked Thrush is less numerous, and apparently more solitary
than the Olive-backed. Both frequent the same locations and have the
same food, but the Gray-cheek Thrush is less active, and, if the expres-
sion can be used, more stupid than the Olive-back, making sometimes
scarcely any effort at concealment except to turn his back to you, or if
really frightened, flying wildly. The nest, eggs, and manner of breeding
are said to be similar to those of the Olive-back, except that their breed-
ing range is more northern. From my own observations, I incline to the
opinion that the Olive back and Gray-cheek Thrushes are distinct species.
I have never seen a bird whose markings left any doubt as to its place,
but I retain the above nomenclature for the sake of uniformity.

TURDUS FUSCESCENS. Steph.

Wilson’s Thrush. Veery.

Turdus wilsonü, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—ReEAD, Fam. Visitor, iil, 1853,
399 ; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 395, 1853.

Turdus fuscescens, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Lanapon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877; Rev. List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 169 ; Reprint, 3.

MOCKINGBIRD. 209

Turdus fuscescens, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., x, 1817, 182.
Turdus wilsonti, BONAPARTE, Journ. Phila. Acad., iv, 1824, 34.

Above uniform tawny. Below white, olive shaded on sides and strong fulvous tint on
breast. Breast and sides of neck with small dusky spots. Length about7; wing 4;
tail 3.

Habitat, Eastern North America. Colorado. Utah. Brazil. Panama. Cuba.

Spring and fall migrant in Soutkern and Central Ohio. Summer resi-
dent in Northern Ohio. Possibly breeds in all sections of the State. Mr.
Langdon has met with it a3 late as June. J have never seen it here in
July. It arrives in Central Ohio about May 1, and remains through the
month. Begins to return in August. The fall migration is over by the
middle of September. Is found in small companies and couples in wood-
land and undergrowth, and is rather partial to low places. In this vicin-
ity it seldom or never is in full song; but I have heard them occasionally
singing a sweet continuous song in suppressed notes. At their breeding
places their song is rich and varied, said to bear considerable resemblance
to that of the Wood Thrush. The nest is loosely constructed, and placed
on or near the ground. The eggs are light greenish-blue, unspotted,
measuring .94 by .66. 2

Sub-family MIMIN 4. Mocxine THRUSHES.

Tarsi scutellate in front. Tail longer than wings.

Genus MIMUS. Boie.

Bill shorter than head, distinctly notched near tip. Tarsus longer than middle toe
and claw.

Mimus poLysLoTTus (L.) Boie.

Mockingbird.

Turdus polygloitus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 181.

Mimus polyglottus, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 3383; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7, 17; Food of
Birds, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—CouEs, Birds of N. W.,
1€74, 8; Birds of Col. Val, Part First, 1878, 56—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,
3; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 111; Reprint, 2; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soe.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 169; Reprint, 3.

Turdus polyglottus, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 169.

Mimus polyglottus, Born, Isis, 1826, 972.

Wings considerably shorter than tail. Above ashy gray. Below whitish; wings and
tail blackish, the former with two white wing bars, and large white spot at base of
primaries, latter with 1 to 3 outer feathers more or less white. Length 9-10; wing about
4; tail about 5. Nest in bushes, of briars, leaves, ete ; eggs 3-6, greenish blue with

brown spots.
Southern United States, north casually to Massachusetts, rare north of latitude 38»,

14

210 BIRDS—TURDIDA.

Rare summer resident. Accidental in winter. The Mockingbird so
well known and admired as a cage bird and songster is of very rare
occurrence in summer of late years in this State. J took one in 1855 in
this vicinity. Mr. Charles Dury took two, a few years since, near Cin-
cinnati. Mr. Langdon record; a pair as breeding in Hamilton county in
the same location for three successive years. He captured a specimen at
Madisonville, January 1, 1877, when the ground was covered with snow.
Dr. Kirtland stated that it was a frequent visitor in Southern Ohio. Mr.
Read states that it is “rarely seen in Northern Ohio,” but that “single
pairs nested in particular localities nearly every season.” Dr. Jno. Dar-
by, of Cleveland, informs me that a pair of these birds built their nest
and raised their young for several years near the residence of Dr. Kirt-
land, at Rockport. I have heard of a single specimen being in the
vicinity of this city within a couple of years. Reports of the occurrence
of this bird are generally to be received with caution. The name
“Mockingbird” is often applied to the Brown Thrush, and the Logger-
head Shrike is often mistaken for it by the uninitiated, and its young
sometimes brought to our market by the ignorant or designing, and sold
for young Mockingbirds.

Mimvs CAROLINENSIS (L.) Gr.
Catbird.

Turdus felivox, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 163.

Mimus felivox, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 399; Proc, Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi. 1853, 395.

Mimus carolinensis, Barrp, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 346.—WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for
1860, 365, 375; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562 ;
Reprint, 1875, 2.—Lanapon, Cat Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc
Nat Hist., i, 1879, 169; Reprint, 3. "

Catbird, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1 —BArLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Turdus felivox, VIELLOT, Ois. Am Sept., ii, 1807, 10.

Mimus felivos, BONAPARTE.

Mimus carolinensis, GRAY.

Galeoscoptes carolinensis, BAIRD, BREWER, and Ripe@way, North Am. Birds, i, 1874, 52.

Wings but little shorter than tail. Dark slate color somewhat lighter below ; crown
of head, and tail black; under tail coverts dark chestnut. Length 8 to 9; wing 33,
tail 4.

Habitat, Nearly all the United States and British Provinces. North to 54°. West to
Washington, Oregon, Wyoming, and Utah. South in winter to Panama, Mexico, and
Cuba. Breeds throughout its range in North America.

Abundant summer resident from April toOctober. Breeds abundantly.
This is one of our best known birds, but unfortunately he is notorious

BROWN THRUSH. 211

rather then popular. Of unattractive colors and unpleasant note, his
name seems to bring upon him only contempt. Although the nearest
relation to the prized Mockingbird, and possessing many of his attrac-
tions, with those who know of the relation, he seems only to lose
by comparison. Few who listen to his sweet and powerful song, as he
sits almost erect on the highest branch, can feel the admiration which it
inspired, when it closes with the mocking cat-call note, and with a saucy
flirt of his tail he disappears in the deepest thicket. But little he cares
for public opinion. He does not ask if his society is welcome, but
unasked takes up his abode in our dooryards and helps himself to our
berries and cherries. The good he does is untoid, for he is always
busy and not always in mischief. Worms, insects, and spiders form
most of his daily fare. He has no favorite dwelling place, but in thickets,
orchards, woods, and along streams of water his note is heard every
few yards. His nestis built in some thick bush, constructed of coarse
materials, mainly dead twigs. The eggs are usually four, light bluish-
green, unspotted, and measure .99 by .75.

Genus HARPORHYNCHUS. Cabanis.

Bill about as long as the head, unnotched ; tail moderately longer than wings, Outer
lateral toe a little longer than inner.

HARPORHYNCHUS RUFUS (L.) Cab,

Brown Thrush. Thrasher.

Turdus rufus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Mimus rufus, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 399; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi. 1853,
395.

Harporhynchus rufus, WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1874, 562 ; Reprint, 1875, 2.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 3; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 169; Reprint 3.

Thrush, KırTLAnD, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1—Ba ou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Turdus rufus, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat. i., 1758, 169.

Mimus rufus, GRAY.

Harporhynchus rufus CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1850, 82.

Above reddish brown; below-white, with more or less tawny tinge. Breast and sides
spotted with dark brown. Throat and belly unspotted. Bill black above, yellow be-
low, feet pale, iris yellow. Length 11; wing 4; tail 5 to 6.

Habitat, Eastern United States.

Common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives usually about the 10th
of April and remains until September. The Brown Thrush or, as he is
‘sometimes called, French Mockingbird is well known throughout the
State. Though never so abundant as the Catbird, his size and eccentric

212 BIRDS—SAXICOLIDZ.

motions, together with his lofty position while singing, render him con-
spicuous and familiar. When on his northward migration he steals
along cautiously through thickets and undergrowth, frequenting logs,
brush heaps, and the banks of streams. At such times he is usually
silent and shy, but arrived at his breeding grounds with his mate, he
pours fourth his loud and rollicking notes from the tops of the highest
trees. He sings sometimes by the hour with a volubility scarcely equalled.
Morning and evening are his chosen hours for this exercise.

His nest is built on the ground, in brush heaps, on stumps, in bushes
and trees almost indiscriminately. In the vicincity of Columbus the
nest is rarely found on the ground, and then only at the first of the season,
when, it would appear, other suitable spots did not furnish sufficient con-
cealment. The'eggs in these nests are frequently addled. I have never
known a brood raised from a nest on the ground. In all cases the soil
was cold, clayey and wet. Most commonly the nest is placed in a deep
thicket, in the fork of small tree from three to six feet from the ground.
The female frequently betrays its location on the approach of man bya sharp
mournful “cluck” of alarm and warning. No birds are more brave in
defense of their young, following their captor for a long distance with
threats of violence accompanied with screams of distress. The nest is
large and loosely constructed of leaves and small twigs and lined with
leaves, fibres of bark, and rootlets. The eggs are usually tour, sometimes
five, having a ground color varying from white to light blue, thickly and
uniformly speckled with reddish brown. They measure 1.05 by .81.

FAMILY SAXICOLIDA. BLUEBIRDS.

Primaries ten. Nostrils exposed, oval. First primary less than one-half the second.
Wing long and pointed, reaching, when folded, beyond the middle of the short, square,
or emarginate tail, and one and a half times or more the length of the latter ; tip formed
by the second, third, and fourih quills; outer secondary reaching only about two-thirds
‘way to end of longest primary ; spurious quill very short. Tarsi booted.

Genus SIALIA. Swainson.

Bill short, stout, somewhat depressed at base, compressed toward tip, slightly
notched. Rictus with short bristles. Tarsus about equal middle toe; claws consider-
ably curved. Tail emarginate.

SIALIA statis (L.) Halderman.

Eastern Bluebird,

Saxicola sialis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Surv., 1838, 163.
Sialia wilsonii, READ, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi. 1853, 395.

BLUEBIRD. 213

Sialia sialis, BaırD P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 222.—WnxATon, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860,
363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint,
1875, 2.—INGERSOLL, Am Nat. iii, 1809, 391.—LANGDON, Cat. of Birds of Cin., 1877,
3; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 169; Reprint, 3.

Bluebird, KıIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1, 55.—BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1876, 136.

Motacilla sialis, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 187.
Saxicola sialis, BONAPARTE, Aun. Lye. N. Y., ii, 1826, 98.
Sialia wilsonii, Swainson, Zool. Journ., iii, 1827, 173.
Sialia sialis, HALDERMAN, Trego’s Geog. of Penna., iii, 1843, 77.

Male, uniform sky blue above, reddish brown below, belly white. Female, duller.
Young, spotted,

Habitat, Eastern United States, Canada, Nova Scotia, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado,
New Mexico, Bermudas, Cuba, Guatemala.

Very common. Summer resident in Middle and Northern Ohio.
Resident in small numbers throughout the year in vicinity of Cincin-
nati. (Langdon.) Breeds.

The Bluebird is one of the best known birds, and a general favorite.
It is generally the first of our summer birds to arrive, and is often seen in
February when the ground is still covered with snow. At such times,
flying high overhead, and almost invisible in the dazzling sun-light, it
attracts attention by its familiar notes. The first comers are usually
solitary birds, and are often forced to seek a refuge from succeeding storms
or even to return southward. So soon as there is a prospect of continuous
milder weather, these birds appear in pairs and small flocks, and
are generally dispersed over the country. They make themselves equally
at home and welcome in city andcountry. In many towns in this State,
as elsewhere, they build their nest in boxes provided for birds. This is
seldom the case in this city, though their frequent twitterirg warble
is heard everywhere. In former years they were more abundant
during the breeding season than at present. This was doubtless owing
to the greater abundance of suitable breeding places. The nest is placed
in a hole, either of tree, stump, or post, sometimes in crevices of houses.
Sometimes queer places are chosen ; a nest was found by Mr, Oliver Davie
of this city in the interior of a wheel of a railroad car, during the strike
a few years since. It is usually scantily constructed of grass. The eggs
are four or five in number, light blue, unspotted, measuring .81 by 62.
Very rarely they are white. An instance is recorded at Oberlin, Ohio,
by Mr. Ingersoll (1. c.) as follows: “I found on the 17th of May a nest of
eggs so peculiar that I wish you could know of them. I was hunting
east of here when I saw a bluebird enter a small hole in an old stump.
I noted her carefully, and also recognizeda male near by. I found my
hand would not enter, and that the bird would not come out, I pushed

214 BIRDS—SYLVIIDE.

the stump over, tearing away a part, and not till then did the bird come
out. Iam certain that it was a female bluebird, but every one of the five
eggs were pure white. Ialso noticed that, unlike the Woodpecker’s, the
bottom of the cavity was well bedded with grass; strictly a bluebird’s
nest. The eggs were nearly ready to hatch, and I could save but four,
poor specimens. I examined the embryos, however, carefully, and they
had the bill and feet of a sialta. It is a variation entirely new to me,
although I have seen hundreds of bluebird’s eggs. I have no doubt,
whatever, of its identity.”

FAMILY SYLVIIDA. THESYLVIAS.

Primaries ten; the first about half the length of second. Basal joint of middle toe
shorter than that of the inner toe, united to the outer for about two-thirds, to the
inner for about one-half its length. Tarsus louger than middle toe and claw Gonys
more than half the length of the under jaw. Bill very weak and slender, little decurved
or notched at tip. Nostrils exposed. Very small—under six inches long.

Sub-family REGULINA. KıneLers.

Tarsus booted. Wings longer than the emarginate tail. Nostrils overhung by bristly
feathers.

GENUS REGULUS. Cuvier.

Rictus well bristled Tarsi elongated, exceeding consilerably the middle toe. Lat-
eral toes about equal. Claws much carved. Tail feathers acuminate.

REGULUS CALENDULA (L.) Licht.

Ruby-Crowned Kinglet,

Regulus calendula, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 143.—Rzap, Proc. Philad.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHeaATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Re-
print, 1861, 5; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 562; Reprint, 1875,
2.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

Motacilla calendüla, LINN.&US, Syst. Nat. i, 1776, 337,

Regulus calendula, ‘* LICHTENSTEIN, Verz, 1823.”

Above greenish olive, below whitish, wings and tail dusky, edged with greenish or
yellowish, wing coverts whitish tipped. Crown with a rich scarlet patch in both
sexes (but wanting in both the first year), no black about head, bill and feet black.
Length 4-44; wing 24-2¢; tail 14-12.

Habitat, North America.

Abundant. Spring and fall migrant. Said to remain in small num-

bers in Northeastern Ohio through the summer.
The Ruby-crowned Kinglet, or Wren as it is most frequently though

GOLD-CRESTED KINGLET. 215

incorrectly called, makes it appearance from the south about the first of
April and remains until the first week in May. It reappears the
first of Octuber and remains through November. Its food consists of
hybernating insects and their eggs which it gleans busily from the tops
of the highest trees and lowest bushes. It is one of the tamest and most
unsuspecting of our birds, allowing the presence of man within a few feet
of it without manifesting any fear or annoyance. While thus engaged it
frequently utters a short wheezing note resembling the syllables “weese-
weese-weese.” More rarely it sings a continous song, which is noted for its
clearness, sweetness and variety.

Mr. Read, speaking of their occurence in Northern Ohio, says he
has “shot them in pairs in the middle of summer, one answering the
discription of the male, the other plainer and without the ruby crown.”

No authentic account of their nesting in Eastern North America is
given, although they have been found through the summer in several
localities in the Eastern States. Mr. Henshaw found them breeding in
Colorado.

ReeuLus SATRAPA Licht.
Golden-Crested Kinglet,

Regulus cristatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Regulus tricolor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv, 1838, 163.—READ, Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sei. vi. 1853, 395.

Regulus satrapa, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 33; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 3; Revised List, Journ. Civ. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

Regulus cristatus, BARTRAM, Trav. Fla., 1791, 291.

Regulus satrapa, ‘‘ LICHTENSTEIN, Verz., 1823.”

Regulus tricolor, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1832, 420.

General color as in the preceding. Crown bordered in front and on sides by black,
inclosing a yellow and flame-colored patch (in the male; in the female the scarlet is
wanting.) Extreme forehead and line over the eye whitish. Young, if ever without
traces of black on the head, may be told from the last species by smaller size and the
presence of a tiny bristly feather overlying the nostril; this wanting in calendula. Size
of the preceding.

Habitat, North America.

Abundant. Winter Resident. Appears late in October or early in
November and remains until April. The description given of the habits
of the Ruby-crowned Kinglet applies equally to this species. On the
whole it appears to be more northern in its distribution both in summer
and winter, though Mr. Read says of them, “like the preceding, remains
in pairs throughout the summer.” The nest and eggs are undescribed.

Dr. Kirtland describes the occurence of another member of this family

+

216 BIRDS—SYLVIIDZ.

(Sylvia trochilus), a bird which Dr. Coues says has not been seen in Am-
erica, and that all American references to it are “ doubtless more or less
exclusively pertinent to Dendreca zstiva.” It is difficult to understand
how so close an observer as Dr. Kirtland should have failed to identify
the Yellow Warbler in any plumage, and the description which he gives,
hardly conforms to the Yellow Warbler in habit. Be this as it may, Dr.
Kirtland’s note is probably the last reference to the occurrence of “ Sylvia
trochilus” inthis country. As the article in which it appears is especially
interesting to ornithologists, and rich in valuable facts, I reproduce it
here entire.*

*Am, Journ. Sci. and Arts, XL, 1841, 19-24. Art. II. Fragments of Nataral History, by
J. P. Kirtland, M. D., Prof. Theo. and Prac. Phys., Medical College of Ohio.

“ I write that which I have seen.”’—LE BAUM.

No. IL. —ORNITHOLOGY.

The feathered tribes of our country have been so thoroughly investigated by
Wilson, Bonaparte, Nuttall, Audubon, and Towasend, that the young ornithologist
can hardly expect to meet with a new species, unless it be some straggler or accidental
visitor from other parts of the world. An ample field is, however, farnished him in
which he may snecessfully employ his talents. The habits of some of our most interest-
ing birds are but very imperfectly understood. If we take for instance the Migratory
Sylvias, we can obtain bat little more than their names and scientific characters from
those authors—and in regard to their habits, less than we have been able to discover by
our own observations,

On investigating the subject, it may perhaps be discovered that in some instances,
errors have been imbibed and perpetuated by mistaken accidental movement of in-
dividual birds under unusual circumstances, for the common habits of the whole
species.

The term of life of no one person is of sufficient duration to allow him to complete a full
history, even of our American species, from his own researches and observations; such
a work must be the production of the joint labor of several ages and many individuals.
Many facts remain to be supplied before it can be successfully completed. The oppor-
tunities for observing the movements, and obtaining a correct history of the habits and
characters of the rare birds, are only occasional and fortuitous, and are as likely to fall
in the way of one who knows not how to improve them, as of one who possesses the talent
for correct observation that distinguishes the author of the “ Birds of America.”

It is not t» be expected that the public generally will ever turn aside from their usual
pursuits to make observations on matters relating tu natural science. The energies of
some idle gunner may, perhaps, be aroused sufficieutly by the appearance of a new or
rare bird to induce him tv destroy its life; the carcass will be gazed upon with a momen-
tary curiosity and then cast underfoot.

In every community their are, however, some individuals who have a nataral taste
for matters of this kind. If they would improve the opportunities as they occur for
making themselves familiar with the rare birds, and would communicate the results of
their observation to the public through the medium of some suitable publication, any
deficiency inthe history of our American birds would soon be supplied. Entertaining this

GNATCATCHER. 217

Sub-family POLIOPTILIN A. GNATCATCHERS.

Tarsi scutellate. Wing not longer than the rounded tail.

Genus POLIOPTILA. Selater.

Bill attenuated, nearly as long as the head, depressed at base; rictus well bristled.
Tarsi longer than middle toe; toes small, outer lateral longer than inner. Tail grad-
uated, the feathers rounded at tip.

PoLIOPTILA C#.ULEA (L.) Sel.

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher.
t

Sylvia coerulea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 163.
Sylvania cerulea, NUTTALL, Man., 2nd Ed., i, 1840, 337.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 367 ;
Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

view, I am induced to offer fur the pages of the Journal of Science, the following ex-
tracts from my notes and memorandums, made during the last three years.

A flock of Bohemian wax-chatterers (Bombycilla garrula,) consisting of fifty or sixty
individuals, was frequently seen in a mareh at the old mouth of the Cuyahoga river, near
the city of Cleveland during the month of March of the present year. They were usually
engaged in feeding on the pulps and seeds of the swamp rose, and as they were mistaken
by the sportsmen for the common cherry bird (B. carolinensis) they were permitted to
pursue their occupation without interruption. ’

I procured a fine specimea which is preserved in my cabinet; another isin the cab-
inet of Prof. Ackley of this city.

We believe this to be the first instance in which this bird has been taken within
the United States, or has been known to visit us in any considerable numbers; though
we learn from the appendix to Nuttall’s Ornithology, and also from Peabody’s Report on
the Birds of Massachusetts, that the younger Audubon once pursued au individual ot
this species in that State.

Nuttall says, ‘‘ the wax-chatterer, hitherto in America, seen only in the vicinity of
the Athabasca river, near the region of the Rocky mountains in the month of March, is
of common occurance as a passenger throughout tie colder regions of the whole northern
hemisphere. Jn spring and late in autumn they visit Northern Asia or Siberia and
Eastern Europe in vast numbers, but elsewhere are only uncertain stragglers.

Their size, markings, and habits readily distinguish them from the cherry or cedar
bird. Justice is by no means done to their colors and beauty of form, in the figure
given of the species by Bonaparte, in the third volume of his American Ornithology.

An hyperborean phalarope (Phalaropus hyperboreus) was shot on Lake Erie, near the
pier of Cleveland harbor, last November, by a young man in my employment, while pur-
suing a wounded gull. .

The phalarope was a young bird in winter plumage. It is preserved in my cabinet,
Little could be learned of ita habits. It was a solitary individual, and when first dis-
covered was resting on the water, where it seemed to be as much at home as any of the
gulls with which it was associating.

The yellow throated gray warbler (Sylvia pensilis) must be considered not a rare an-
nual visitor, even to the northern parts of Ohio, though Mr. Andubon informs his readers
that ‘‘ they confine themselves to the southern States, seldom moving further towards
the middle district than North Carolina,” and ‘‘do not ascend the Mississippi farther

218 BIRDS—SYLVIIDE.

Polioptila cerulea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—BAIRD, BREWER,
AND Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 78.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 3; Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist. i, 1878, 111; Reprint, 3; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

Motacilla cerulea, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 337.

Sylvia cerulea, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 540.

Polioptila cerulea, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1855, 11.

.

Above, ashy blue, bluer on the head, lighter on the rump. Forehead and line over
eye black, wanting in the female. Ring around the eye and under parts whitish. Outer
tail feather, except at base, two-thirds the second and tip of third, white, rest of tail
black. Length 44, wing 2, tail 2}.

Habitat, United States north to Mass.

than the Walnut Hills;” and Mr. Nuttall says, that they “ very rarely venture as far
north as Pennsylvania.” I have in my possession a specimen that I shot on the banks
of the Mahoning river, in Trumbull county, on the 5th of May, 1839; and during the
last week in April of the present year, I killed three near the Cuyahoga river, three
miles from Lake Erie. Early in July I saw an old one feeding her young on the banks
of the Mahoning. They were two-thirds of their full size, and were perched on a small
bush over the water. A full-grown individual was seen on the first of August on the
shore of the Lake within the limits of the city. In every instance in which I have met
with them, they seemed to have a strong predilection to the vicinity of water, and were
generally engaged in capturing insects.

The Sylvia rara is common in the woods about the banks of the Cuyahoga, during
spring and summer. Its habits are accurately described by Audubon.

The same locality is a favorite resort and breeding place for the purple breasted gross-
beak (Fringilla ludoviciana).

A flock of unusual birds, which I suppose to be the willow wrens, (Sylvia trochilus),
was discovered in September, 1839, on the shore of the Lake, near this city. They made
only a momentary stop, for on firing at one of their number as they were settling down
upon a bunch of thistles, the remainder suddenly darted away over the Lake and dis- *
appeared. The characters of the specimen taken, agree with the description of the
Willow Wren. They are said to be far more common in Europe than in the United States.

The Florida gallinule (Gallinula chloropus) is not described by ornithologists as a west-
ern bird. Mr. Audubon says, ‘‘ none are to be seen in the western country.” Bonaparte
informs his readers that ‘‘in the middle and southern United States it appears to be quite
accidental; for, although a few well authenticated instances are known of its having
been seen and shot even as far north as Albany, in the State of New York, it has escaped
the researches of Wilson, as well as my own.”

Mr. Nuttall gives us to understand that ‘‘in the middle and northern States, it appears
to be quite accidental.” Notwithstanding this weight of authority to the contrary, I am
disposed to consider this bird as one of our annual visitors, and not as a mere straggler
in these parts.

I have the best authority for saying that several pairs reared their young in a marsh
not more than a mile from this city, during the last summer, and I know of at least
half a dozen specimens that were shot there during the last spring. Broods of the young
have been repeatedly seen during the summer.

GNATCATCHER. 219

Common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about the middle of
April and leaves about the middie of September. This interesting
bird, the smallest of all our birds excepting the Hummingbird, is
found throughout the State in woodland. On its first arrival it is
seen in small companies, often in company with Titmice, Kinglets,
and Nuthatches. They frequent the tallest trees, and are very active
in search of food. A company of these birds thus engaged are a
very attractive sight to the ornithologist. But little more shy and
suspicious than the Kinglets, their titmouse like attitudes, as they
trip from bough to bough, or, flying with expanded tail, sieze some

A mature male and female were recently sent me from Fairport, Geauga county, by
the Hon. Ralph Granger, and I am assured by a gentleman that one bas been taken alive
in the vicinity of Buffalo, in the State of New York. Another was taken at Warren, in
Trumbull county, two years since, and became so far domesticated as to run abont the
barnyard in company with tbe fowls during the summer, but at the approach of autumn
suddenly disappeared.

The late Dr. Ward informed me that he had occasionally met with them in Roscoe,
Coshocton county, and Dr. Sager assures me that they visit Michigan. I have repeatedly
heard of them in other sections of the western States.

In their habits they are so retiring and secluded that they may escape even the most
active and sagacious observer.

The buff-breasted sandpiper (Tringa rufescens), which seems to be a rare species in
most parts of our country, was seen in the vicinity of this city in three different instances
during the last autumn. I secured two specimens, one of which I presented to the New
York Lyceum of Natural History; the other is retained in my own collection. This bird
was unknown to Wilson and Bonaparte, and also to Mr. Audubon, until he received a
specimen from England. It seems to be extremely shy and wary in its habits, and when
watched by a gunner, will skulk behind some little hillock or tufts of grass. The indi-
viduals seen by myself were on a sandy flat, not immediately contiguous to water. In
one instance Dr. Terry met with it in the public highway near this city.

The dunlin, ox-bird, or purre (Tringa alpina), visited us in large flocks during three or
four weeks last autumn, and it has again appeared in a few instances the present spring.
I have specimens preserved both in the summer and winter plumage.

Mr. Audubon informs his readers that he has never found one far inland.

The Cape May warbler (Sylvia maritima) visits the northern parts of Ohio in small
numbers every spring. A solitary individual may be seen here and there, busily em-
ployed in catching insects about the cherry and apple trees at the time they put forth
their blossoms.

According to Mr. Nuttall, it “has only been seen near the swamps of Cape May, in
New Jersey, and near Philadelphia.”

The chestnut-sided warbler (Sylvia icterocephala) is not uncommon with us for a
few days in spring, and in one instance I saw a pair in a cranberry marsh in Boardman,
Trumbull county, on the first day of June. The male was warbling its soft notes from
the top of a youvg maple, and the female skipping about the bushes below. I am con-
vinced they were preparing for nesting in that vicinity. Its note is rather loud, but soft
and pleasant to the ear. Mr. Audubon seems to have met with it only in one instance,

220 BIRDS—SYLVIIDE.

minute winged insect, their minature imitation of the Catbird’s well-
known note, and above all their sweetly modulated and well prolonged
song, so rarely heard, combine to form a most delightful picture of
bird life. In the breeding season each pair seems to confine itself to the
immediate vicinity of the nest, and resent the appearance of another of
their species with all the outcry and momentum so small a body is capable
of. For their summer home they chose the side of a ravine, or a glen or
glade in mixed woodland. The nest is placed on the horizontal branch
of a tree usually about thirty feet from the ground, often at the base of
an upright twig which supports it, and frequently overhanging a stream
at the bottom of aravine. It is only a slight exaggeration of that of the
Hummingbird, constructed of vegetable down in which are placed a few
small feathers, and neatly covered with lichen. The eggs are four in num-
ber, measuring but .56 by .44, rather thickly spotted with lilac and sever-
al shades of brown. The nest would oftener escape detection from its re-
semblance to a moss-covered knot, but for the incessant scolding notes
with which the birds resent even an innocent intrusion.

The bay-breasted warbler (Sylvia castanea), is still more common with us in the spring,
and in some seasons protracts its visit for two or three weeks. Its favorite resort is the
tops of the highest beech trees, at the time the buds are bursting into leaves.

The willet (Totanus semipalmatus), Mr. Andubon says, ‘‘ are very seldom met with far
inland,” and ‘I have very little doubt that those seen by Mr. Say on the banks of the
Missouri, had accidentally visited that country.”

This bird is a common visitor to the shores of Lake Erie, both in the spring and
autumn. On the 3d of July, 1838, I shot an old specimen from a flock of more than
twenty individuals, that were in the habit of visiting the marsh in Ohio City, at the
mouth of the Cuyahoga, for a number of days in succession.

The young birds appeared here on the first of July of the present year, and consider-
able numbers have been shot by the sportsmen.

A few years since, they remained here during the whole of the summer, and probably
reared their young in the neighborhood. They are very abundant about some of the
upper lakes.

The marbled goodwit (Limosa fedoa) occasionally visits the shores of Lake Erie and
the Ohio river. The Hon. Mr. Granger has furnished me with a beautiful pair, killed
near his residence at Fairport. Several young specimens were shot in this vicinity about
the first of August of the present season. They were associating with a flock of long-
billed curlews (Numenius longirostris).

The Hudson curlew (Numenius hudsonicus) has been taken in a few instances in Ohio.
I have a specimen in my cabinet that alighted in the garden of Mr. A. Hayden, of this
city, and was shot by him three years since. Another was taken in the vicinity of Cin-
cinnati.

The piping plover (Charadrius melodus) I have seen in two instances on the shore of
Lake Erie, and have specimens in my cabinet both in their winter and summer plumage.

Mr. Audubon informs his readers that they never proceed any distance inland, even
along the sandy margins of our largest rivers.”

CLEVELAND, OHIO, June 4, 1840.

TUFTED TITMOUSE. 221

FAMILY PARIDA. THETITMICE.

Primaries ten. Base of bill with two tufts of antrorse bristly. feathers ending in sim-
ple filaments without lateral branches concealing the nostriis.- Tip of bill mostly un-
notched. Basal joint of middle toe united nearly all its length ‘with the lateral. Sides
of tarsus ungrooved. First primary less than half as long as the second. Small—under
seven inches.

Body compressed. Bill shorter than head. Wings rounded, equal to or shorter than
the rounded tail. Second quill as short as the tenth. Tarsus longer than the middle
toe and claw, which are abvut equal to the hinder; soles of toes widened into a palm.
Plumage rather soft and lax.

Genus LOPHOPHANES. Kaup.

Crown with a conspicuous crest.: Bill conical, both upper and lower outlines conver.
Wings graduated, about equal to tail; first quill very short. Tail moderately long and
rounded.

LopHOPHANES BICOLOR (L.) Bp.
Tufted Titmouse.

Parus bicolor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 183¢, 164.—Rzap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
335,; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Lophophanes bicolor, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365 ; Reprint, 1861, 7 ; Food of
Birds, ete , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—LANGpon, Cat. Birds
of Cin, 1877, 4; Journ. Cin Soc. Nat. Hist , i, 1678, 111; Reprint, 2; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879,
116.

Parus bicolor, LINNAEUS, Syst. Nat, i, 1766, 340.

Lophophanes bicolor, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av., i, 1850, 228.

Above leaden gray, forehead black, below lighter or whitish; sides rusty brown. Bill
black ; feet leaden blue. Young: the crest less developed; little if any trace of the
biack frontlet; sides scarcely washed with rusty. Length, 6-63; wing and tail, 3-34.

Habitat, Eastern United States, from Texas and Nebraska to the Connecticut Valley.

Abundant. Resident. Breeds. This is the common Chickadee of
Central and Southern Ohio. Although of plain colors, its well-developed
crest, busy and sprightly habits, loud notes, and familiarity, make it
rather conspicuous. It is found almost everywhere throughout the year.
In winter especially it visits the city, but I am confident that it some-
times builds its nest in,the holes and niches of buildings. I have seen
them in this city throughout the breeding season, carrying materials for
building, and feeding their scarcely fledged young. Its ordinary note is
a monotonous dee, dee, dee, often repeated, as if from habit. Its song is a
loud whistle, resembling the syllables peto, peto, peto, in addition to which
it has numerous and varied notes, some of which are modifications, both
of the ordinary notes and of the song, others appear to be an attempt to
imitate other birds, the notes of the Blue Jay being frequently recognized.

I do not think it is generally known that the Crested T'itmouse has the

222 BIRDS—PARIDA.

singular habit of amusing itself somewhat as the House Wren is said
to do. On two occasions I have found them employed in filling
holes in trees with the flowers of forest trees, In the first instance
I watched the birds, apparently a pair, for several days, and saw
them carry for a considerable distance the blossoms of the ash, and de-
posit them in a hole in an ash tree about twenty feet from the ground.
At length, tired of waiting, I mounted the tree, and found a dark hole
only. A stick was thrust into it for a distance of four or five feet, and
met no resistance. On the second occasion I met with a similar experi-
ance, except that disappointment was not unlooked for. A lady friend
complained to me that a pair of these birds vexed her much by picking
to pieces and carrying away the moss from her hanging baskets. A gas-
post had been put in position in the vicinity, but no lantern or gaspipe
had been attached. Into the cavity of this the birds carried the moss
and any other articles which they found portable. Conjecture fails to
account for such freaks.

The nest of the Crested Titmouse is placed in some natural cavity of
a tree; a hollow in the fork of an apple tree is a favorite spot. The ma-
terials composing it are few, generally bits of moss, leaves, and grass. I
have found the eggs on the bare floor of the cavity. The eggs are white,
thickly sprinkled with reddish-brown, and sparsely with lilac spots.
They measure .75 by .56 inch.

Mr. Langdon (1. c. Bull.) records two cases of partial albinism in Ohio
specimens of this species.

GENUS PARUS. Linneus.,

Head not crested. Body and head stout. Upper and lower outlines of bill only
slightly convex. Tarsus but little longer than middle toe,

PARUS ATRICAPILLUS L.
Black-capped Chickadee.

Parus atricapillus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—REaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
335 ; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 395, 1853.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860,
365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint,
1875, 2—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds oi Cin., 1877, 4; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878,
111; Reprint, 2; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

Parus atricapillus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 341.

Above brownish ash. Crown and nape, chin and throat black. Beneath white, brown-
ish on sides. Wing and tail feathers more or less whitish edged. Length, 5; wing and
tail, 24.

North America; chiefly northern and eastern.

Abundant resident in Northern and probably Eastern Ohio. Not com-
mon winter visitor in Central and Southern Ohio. Twenty-five years

CAROLINA CHICKADEE. 223

ag) the Black-capped Titmouse was as abundant in Central Ohio as the
Tufted. Since that time it has become quite rare, and a winter visitor
only in the vicinity of Columbus. In some seasons none are seen. I
have seen but two or three individuals in the city limits within ten years.
Their note is the familiar chick a-dee-dee, common to all members of the
family with us, but is less emphatic than that of the Tufted Tit. They
are almost omnivorous in winter, eating the refuse from kitchens
as readily as the eparrows. Their ordinary food consists of the insects
which hide in the crevices of bark, spiders, and tender buds of trees.
They seem to take particular delight in being present at “hog killing
time,” when they are as busy as any, and sieze upon many a titbit, seem-
ingly unconcious of the presence of man.

The nest is built in a dead tree or stump, usually near the ground.
The hole is excavated by the bird. The eggs are white, sprinkled with
reddish brown. They average .58 by .47.

PARUS ATRICAPILLUS L.

VAR. CAROLINENSIS (AUD.), CS.
Carolina Chickadee.

Parus atricapillus var. carolinensis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 4; Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 111; Reprint, 2. j

Parus carolinensis, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Re-
print, 4.

Parus carolinensis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 474.

Averaging smaller than P. atricapillus ; wings and tail less edged with whitish. About
44 long; wing less than 24; tail 2.40.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf region of the United States, north to Washington,
D.C. Texas and the Mississippi Valley ; north to Central Illinois.

Not common summer resident Breeds. Arrives about the middle
of April, apparently departs for the south soon after the breeding season.
‘Resident all the year in Southwestern Ohio. The Carolina or Southern
Titmouse is doubtfully a variety of the Black-cap Tit, although the
resemblance is so great, that a casual observer would fail to notice a
decided difference. In “North American Birds” it is considereda variety
of P. meridionalıs, a species ot Eastern Mexico.

It differs materially in its habitsfrom the Black-cap Tit, although it
has the same note, it islower and suppressedin tone, and less frequently
repeated. In the spring they appear in pairs only, and do not associate
with their fellows, or with other birds to any considerable extent while
with us. In selecting a site for a nest, they seem to prefer a willowy
swamp or the border of a stream, sometimes high ground in the vicinity
of water, and, more rarely, a solitary woodland. Though unsuspicious,

224 BIRDS—SITTID®.

they are much less familiar than the Black-cap, seldom making an ap-
pearance in gardens orin the city limits. The nest, like that of the Black-
cap, is a hole excavated by the bird, generally in a decaying stump, but a
few feet from the ground. The egys are slightly larger than those of the
Black-cap, measuring .LO by .50, I have found the nest in this vicinity
as early as the 18th of April, ready for the reception of eggs. The female
sits very close, and is with difficulty driven from the nest.

FAMILY SITTIDE NUTHATCHES.

The characters of this family agree with those of Paride, so far as they are given in
the first paragraph of that definition. The body, however, is depressed. Bill about equal
or longer than the head. Wing much pointed, much longer than the nearly even tail.
Tarsus shorter than the middle toe and claw, which are about equal to the hinder.

Plumage more compact than in Paride.
\
Genus SITTA. Linneus. ö

Bill unnotched, tail more than one-half the wing.

SITTA CAROLINENSIS Lath.
White-bellied Nuthatch.

Sitta carolinensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—ReaD, Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 395, 1853.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 9;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 2.—Lanapon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1377, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Re-
print, 4.

Sitta carolinensis, LaTaaM, Ind. Orn., i, 1790, 262.

Back, rump and middle tail feathers ashy blue. Crown and nape glossy black, restricted
or wanting in the young and many females, Tail, except as above, black, spotted with
white. Beneath and sides of head white. Flanks and under tail coverts rusty brown.
Wings varied, black, blue, and white. Length 6, wing 34, tail 2.

Habitat, United States and British Provinces; west to the Valley of the Missouri.

Very common. Resident. Breeds. In summer in woodland, and in
winter, almost everywhere. The White bellied Nuthatch and Downy
Woodpecker are both commonly known as “Sapsuckers.” The Nuthatch
may always be distinguished from the Woodpeckers, by the fact that it
decends the trunks of trees, head downward, which the Woodpecker can-
not do. The Nuthatch obtains its focd, which consists of insects in their
various stages, and eggs, by creeping up, down and around the trunks
and larger branches of trees, inspecting fences and other places likely to
afford a morsel. They also devour seeds, and may often be seen hammer-
ing at a nut or acorn which they have fixed in a crevice. They are said
to conceal articles of food in holes of trees; from tnis circumstance their

name is probably derived.

RED-BELLIED NUTHATCH. 225

The nest of the Nuthatch isa hole in a tree generally excavated by
the bird to the depth of a foot or more, sometimes a natural cavity.
It is lined abundantly with down, hair and feathers. Mr. H. C. Benson,
of Gambier, informs me that he has known them to buildin a crevice in the
wall of a stone building. The eggs are from four to six, white, with a
roseate tinge when fresh, thickly covered with spots and blotches of rusty
brown and purplish. The young lack the black on the head.

SITTA CANADENSIS. L.

Red-bellied Nuthatch.

‘Sitta canadensis, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—Reap, Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sei., 1853, 395. —-Wuxaton, Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562; Reprint, 1875, 2.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat Hıst., i, 187%, 170; Reprint, 4.

Sitta canadensis, LINNAEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 177.

Above dark ashy blue, tail as in carolinensis. Below rusty brown. Wings plain.

Crown and nape glossy black, bordered by a white superciliary line. A biack line from bill

through and widening beyond the © ©.

Habitat, wooded portions of Temperate North America.

Rather common but irregulır spring and fall migrant. Winter visitor
in South-western Ohio. The Red-bellied Nuthatch arrives in this vicin-
ity from the south about the middle of April, and may be found until
the middle of May. Usually single birds are seen which accompany ‘the
Titmice, Creepers, and Blue birds. On one occasion, spring of 1874, I
found them in large flocks in company with equally large flocks of Red-
starts. While their habits are essentially the same as those of the White-
bellied Nuthatch, they are more often seen on the smaller branches and
twigs of trees than is the case with the latter.

Mr. Brewster describes (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 20) the breed-
ing plumage of this bird as differing from that heretofore given, and as
having the‘ entire under parts dirty white, tinged very slightly with pale
rusty on the breast, sides, asdomen, and crissum.” In the spring of 1874,
I took a couple of these birds answering this description, but unfortu-
nately having securéd several others at the same time, in what I thought
to be in higher plumage, they were not preserved.

Until lately little has been known of their breeding habits. The nest
is excavated in the stub of a tree and is about eight inches in depth,
with much the appearance of the nest of the Downy Woodpecker.
The entrance to the nest is said to be frequently coated with the balsam
of the fir. The hole is plentifully supplied with down and feathers. The
red feathers from the breast of the bird are said to be especially noticeable.

15

226 BIRDS—CERTHIID A,

It seems difficult to reconcile this with Mr. Brewster’s description of the
bird in breeding season, unless we suppose the birds to commence build-
ing before the completion of the vernal moult. This species sometimes
visits the city, though much less frequently than the White-bellied
Nuthatch. In the fall they are with us from late in September until the
first really cold weather, usually the latter part of November, and fre-
quently accompany the Bluebirds on their southern migration.

SITTA PusILLA Lath.

| =
Brown-headed Nuthatch. 3

Sitta pusilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv , 1835, 164, 183. —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.,
for 1860, 365, 375; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 562;
Reprint, 1875, 2—Batrp, Brew, and RipG., N. A. Bircs, i, 1874, 122.—Cours, Birds
of Col. Val, Pt. Ist, 1778, 140.

Sitta pusilla, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., i, 1790, 263.

Back, wings aud tail, much as in canadensis. Below pale rusty or brownish white.
Crown, clear hair brown; a distinct whitish spot on nape. Length, 4 or less; wing, 24;
tail, 14

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States. Ohio, KIRTLAND; Michigan, ATKINS.

Accidental. The only instance of its occurence in this State, is re-
corded by Dr. Kirtland, who says, “I once killed a specimen in the north-
ern part ofOhio.”” Dr. H. A. Atkins, of Locke, Ingham county, Michigan,
writes me that he took one specimen in 1877, in that vicinity. These
are the only instances where the bird is mentioned as wandering beyond
its prescribed limits. In brecding habits it resembles the other species.
It eggs are described as being so completely covered with fine dots as
to appear “almost of a uniform chocolate or brown color.

FAMILY CERTHIIDA. CREEPERS.

Primaries ten. Nostrils exposed. Tail scansorial, with rigid acute feathers. Whole
bill slender, compressed, acute, decurved, unnotched, unbristled. Outer toe much longer
than inuer.

Sub family CERTHIIN ZK. Typical CREEPERS.

Tarsus scutellate, shorter than the middle toe and claw, with the entire basal joint
united to the lateral toes.

GENUS CERTHIA. Linneus.

Tarsus not longer than outer toe. Hind toe longer than the middle; its claw more

than half the total length. Claws all much curved and very sharp. Bill as long as the
head. Plumage long and lax.

BROWN CREEPER. 227

ÜERTHIA FAMILIARIS L
Brown Creeper.

Certhia familiaris, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv , 1830, 164,—READ, Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874
(1575), 563; Reprint, 3.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 4.

Certhia americana, WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep for 1860 (1861), 365; Reprint, 7.

Certhia familiaris var. americana, LANGDON, Rev. List, Journ. Cin. Suc. Nat. Hist , i, 1479,
170; Reprint, 4.

Certhia familiaris, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1755, 118.

Certhia americana, BunaP. Geog. and Comp. List, 1838, 11.

Certhia familiaris var. americana, RIDGWAY, Bull. Ess. Iust., v; 1873, 150.

Plumage above singularly barred with dusky, whitish, tawny, or falvous brown, and
bright brown—latter chiefly on the ramp; beluw, whi.e, either pure or soiled, and gen-
erally brownish. washed behind ; wings dusky, oddly varied with tawny or whitish bars
and spots; tail plain; about 54; wing and tail abont 24.

Habitat, tewperate North America, in wooded regions.

Common migrant and winter resident; most abundant during its
migrations in April and October. This curious bird seems to mimic in
its mottled dull colors the bark of the forest trees on which it secures its
food. In the proper season it may be seen in the company of Titmice,
Nuthatches, and Woodpeckers, creeping up and around the trunks of
trees, seldom upon the branches. Its progress is always upward or cir-
cling, like that of the Woodpecker, with which i: is brought in close af-
finity by its stiffened tail. It is an active, restless bird, and while climb-
ing often repeats a peculiar, monotonous note, which bears some resem-
blance to that of the Kinglets. At their breeding places Mr. William
Brewster has discovered that “their notes are varied and warbling, and
somewhat confused; some of them are loud, powerful, and surpassingly
sweet, others are more feeble and plaintive. Their sony usually ends
with their accustomed cry, which may be represented by cree cree-cre-ep.”

During its stay with us, it often visits the city in company with its
creeping cousins, the Nuthatches. At such times it shares with these
birds that fearlessness of man, characteristic of many of our small birds
that attend strictly to their own affairs.

The Creeper breeds north of the limits of this State, doubtfully in
Northeastern Ohio. It selects for its nesting place a natural cavity in
or on a tree, or a deserted Woodpecker’s nest, which it lines with grasses
lichens and feathers. The compliment of eggs is said to vary from five
to nine. They are white, rather sparsely sprinkled with reddish brown
dots, and measure .55 by .44 inch.

Some ornithologists claim a constant difference between the Ameri-
can and European Creeper, which accounts for the different synonyms
given above.

228 BIRDS—TROGLODYTIDE.

FAMILY TROGLODYTIDA. THE WRENS.

Primaries ten. Nogtrils wholly exposed, scaled. Tarsus distinctly sentellate. No
rictal bristles, but loral feathers with bristly points Bill slender, not notched nor
hooked. Wings and tail moderately rounded, neither very much shorter than the
other, Size small, cvlor brown, ete. The wings and tail barred or undulated.

First primary not less than balf the second, and ıuner toe united to the middle by at
least half the length of its basal joint.

Genus THRYOTHORUS. Vieillot.

Bill deeurved. T- es vet reaching to the end of tail. Tarsus longer than the midd'e
toe. Wings about equal w i). .*ched, nearly even tail.

THRYOTHORUS Lupovicianus (Lath.) Bp.

Great Carolina Wren,

Troglodytes ludovicianus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Gevlog. Surv., 133%, 168, 183; Family Visitor, i,
1850, 412.—AUDUBUN, B. Aw. ii, 1841, 116—Reap, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 305.

Thryothorus ludovicianus, BAıRD, P.R. R. Rep , ix, 1858, 362.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 18:0, 365, 375; Repriur, 1-61, 7,17; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
563; Reprint, 1375, 3.—Dury, Bull. Nutt. Orn, Club, ii, 1877, 50—Lanepon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Re-
print, 4.

Sylvia ludoviciana, LATHAM, Ind. Orn,, ii, 1790, 548,

Troglodytes ludoviciana, ‘* Licut., \erz., 1823, 35”

Thryothorus ludoviciana, BONAPARTE, Geog: and Gomp. List., 1833, 11.

Tail uot longer than the wings, all its feathers with numerons fine lack bars. Above
clear reddish-brown, slightly grayer ou head, brightest on ramp; below tawny of vary-
ing shade; long conspicuous supercilizry live white or tawny; wings edged with color
of back, and dusky waved; wing coverts usually whitish spotted; un:er tail coverts
usually blackish baried; sides of body uumarked, Length 54 to nearly 6; wings 24,
tail rather less

Habitat, Eastern United States, rather southern, north to New York; Couneeticut and

Massachusetts rare.

Abundant in Southern, common and resident in Middle, rare in North-
ern Ohio. This is the largest of our Wrens. It is to be found almost
everywhere, but prefers the wooded or rocky banks of streams, piles
of logs and brush heaps in woodland, ravines, windfalls, and wherever
nature, accident or design has provided a place where it can make itself
conspicuous one instant, and be entirely concealed the next. Its varied
and powerful notes distinguished it from all others of its family with us.
When busily searching on the ground or in apile of logs for food it utters
frequently alow complaining warble or twitter, as if for its own edifica-
tion or that of its companion. Its ordinary call note or alarm is a loud
chirr-chirr sometimas loud and harsh, sometimes low and soft, often pro-
longed. Its song is really aremarkable peformance. Mounting to the end

GREAT CAROLINA WREN. 229

of a fence raıl, top of a stump, or even to the topmost branch of a solitary
tree, it pours forth a succession of notes more varied And nearly as loud
as those of the Brown Thrush This song is prolonged until he seems
to have silenced «ll the less gilted songsters in the neighborhood; then
with a downward flight he seeks the retirement of his favorite thicket
and the company of his approving mate. It has still another note, loud
and emphatic, the most frequently heard of all, which an acquaintance
renders “ Jäeger cheats, Jüeger cheats, Jdeger cheats.” I can vouch for the
truthfuiness of the paraphrase, the charge is doubtless unfounded. These
notes are heard both in winter and summer, the prolonged performance
is heard only in spring and early summer.

These birds have apparently been increasing in numbers, in this
vicinity, in late years. Certainly more oi them are seen, and breed,
within the city imitstban formerly. The nest is placed in the interior
of a barn, shed or other building, or if in the woods, in the cavity of a log
or stump. Sometimes quite a large cavity is filled with leaves. grass,
feathers and other materials. The nest is frequently roufed over having
an entrance on theside. The female lays from five to seven eggs, reddish
white, thickly spotted with various shades of reddish brown. "They vary,
in size and shape in the same nest, and measure from .75 to .70 by .65 to
.60. Mr. Charles Dury, of Avondale. Ohio, records (l.c ) that one pair of
birds built three nests, each containing five eggs, by the 19th of July, the
male caring for the young while the fem:le was engaged in building,
laying and incubating for the succeeding brood. When breeding in the
woods the old birds manifest considerabie ingenuity in protecting their
young, one of them attracting the attention of the intruder, and by vari-
ous arts endeavoring to draw bim from the spot, while the : ther stealthily
escorts first one and then another of. the fledglings to a place of safety.

The Carolina Wren frequently climbs trees. On the first occasion that
I noticed this habit, a pair of them ascended the trunk of a large oak tree
for more than fifty feet. They accomplished this exactly in the manner
of the Creeper, now moving up and now circling around, only stopping
a moment, now and then, to peer and pick in the crevices of the bark,
and at short intervals uttering a single note like that of the Nuthatch,
but lower and softer. I have several times witnessed the same actions.

There is a marked variation in color ameng these birds. Some have
the brown uf upper parts decidedly suffused with ashy, the under parts
whitish or ashy without a trace of tawny on breast or abdomen ; others
have the upper parts rich dark red-brown with hardly a trace of ashy
even on the head, while the under parts are bright uniform ferrugineous.
Between these extremes every intermediate phase may be found. These

230 BIRDS—TROGLODYTID&. :

differences are not distinctive of age, sex or season. Thave found both
forms in the same brood of young before they were fully fledged, the con-
trast being as decided as in young birds of the Gray and Red varieties of

the Mottled Owl.
Genus TROGLODYTES.

Bill shorter than the head, compressed, decurved. Wings about equal to the tail.
Hind claw shorter than the rest of toe. Toes reaching to the end of tail.

TROGLODYTES DOMESTICUS (Bartram) Cs.
House Wren.

Troglodyles aedon, REaD, Proe. Phila. Acad. Nat Sei., vi, 1853, 396.—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric, Rep. for 1860, 15651, 365; Reprint, 7; Food cf Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 1875, 563; Reprint, 3.

Troglodytes «don, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1477, 4; Toura. Cin. Soe. Nat. Hist., i,
1275, 111; Reprint, 2; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Ro-
print, 4.

Motacilla domestica, BARTRAM, Trav Fla., i, 1791, 921

Troglody tes domestica, Cours, Proc. Phila, Acad., 1875, 351.

Troglodytes «don, VIEILLOT. Orn. Am. Sept., ii, 1807, 52.

Troglodytes aedon, PEABODY, ep. Orn. Mass., 1839, 314. \

Above brown, brighter behivd; below rusty brown or grayish brown er even grayish
white ; everywhere waved with a darker shade, very plainly on wings, tail, flanks and
under tail coveris; breast apt to be darker than either throat or belly. Length 4%;
wings and tail about 2.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces; west to Dakota, Nebraska,
Kansas, ete. ‘

THRYOTHORUS BEWICKIL (Aud.) Bp.
Bewick’s Wren.

Thryothorus bewickü, WukaTON, Ohio Agric. Rep for 1260, 379 (probable) ; Repriut, 1561,
7; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1874, 562; Reprint, 3—Lane@p:.n, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 4.

Thryothorus bewickii var. bewickt, LANGDON, Revised List, Jonrn. Cin. Soe. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

Troglodytes bewickii, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 96.

Thryothorus bewickii, BUTCHER, Proc. Pbilad. Acad., 1868, 149,

Thryothorus bewickit var bewickii, BatkD, Rev. Am. Birds, 1864, 126.

Tail longer than the wings. Grayish brown; below ashy white; superciliary line
white; wings dusky, taintly waved; under tail coverts dark barred; two middle tail
feathers like back, with numerous fine black bars, others black, several of the lateral
ones with white or gray spots or tips. Length 53; wing abuut 2; tail 2h.

Habitat, United States, Southern.

Bewick’s Wren was named as an Ohio bird by myselfin 1861, on the supposed authority
of Dr. Kirtland and Mr. R K. Winslow, of Cleveland. It now seems that this was a
mistake, the bird never having been taken in Northern Chio. Mr. Langdon, very properly
gives it in his list, one specimen having been taken and another seen by Mr. E R. Quick at
Brookville, Indiana, a few miles from the Ohio Jine. It almost certainly occurs in South-
western Ohio, but must be positively identified before it can be considered an Ohio bird.

WINTER WREN. 231

Common summer resident. In this vicinity it arrives about the mid-
dle of April and remains until October. Less common, or rare and mi-
grant in South-western Ohio and in some isolated localities. When on
its migrations it 1s found in woods and on the banks of streams. Some-
times a pair may be found in woodland during the breeding season, but
this is rare. Most of them find a convenient building spot in the vicinity
of man’s habitation, often under the same roof. Their noisy, active, in-
quisitive and combative disposition renders them among the best known
of our semi domesticated birds. His song is difficult to describe, yet
once heard is not easily forgotten. It consists of asharp chatter of waver-
ing notes, so quickly uttered as almost to seem a prolonged and highly
modulated, sometimes squeaky, trill, now soft and now piercing, it seem
to change with every position of the bird. He often executes a pleasing
fantasia on the wing.

The nest is built in „ll corts of odd places; a half peck measure, an
old seive, old hat, or the tattered habiliments o! a scare-crow, all are accep-
table to them, as well as boxes, holes in posts, chinks and crevices under
rafters aud cornices of buildings, and hollow branches of apple trees.

Right manfully does he resent intrusion on his premises, and assails
with impetuous vim beast or bird who ventures near. Pussy herself is
put upon the defense while she is meditating an attack, and when she
raises her paw to strike, is forced to shut her eyes.

The nest is composed of leaves, cotton, feathers, hair and other stuff.
The eggs are from seven to nine, nearly spherical, and so thickly covered
with small spots of reddish brown as nearly to conceal the white ground.
They measure about .62 by .55. The House Wren is very prolific usually
raising three broods in a season.

Genus ANORTHURA. Rennie.

Bill shorter than the head, slender, nearly straight, conical. Wings much longer than
the very short tail. Tarsus reaching to end of tail.

ANORTHURA TROGLODYTES (L.) Cs.

VAR. HYEMALIS (Wils.) Cs.
‚ Winter Wren.

Troglodytes ewropeus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Trogtodytes hyemalis, ReaD, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat.Sci., vi, 1853, 395. WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7.

Anorthura troglodytes var. hyemalis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3—LaNGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin. 1877, 4.

Troglodytes parvulus var. hyemalis, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.iist., i
1879, 170; Reprint, 4. ,

232 BIRDS—TROGLODYTID2.

Sylvia troglodytes, Witson, Am. Orn., i, 1803, 139.

Troglodytes hyemalis, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. xxxiv, 1819, 514.

Anorthura troglodytes var. hyemalis, Cours, Key, 1372, 351.

Troglodytes parvulus var. hyemalis, RipGway, Ball. Ess. Iust., v. 1373, 130.

Deep brown above, darkest on the bead, brightest on the rump and tail, obscurely waved
with dusky and sometimes with whitish also; tail like ramp; wings dusky, edged with
color of back, and dark barred : several outer primaries also whitish barred; a super-
ciliary line, and obscure streaks on sides of head and neck whitish. Below pale brown,
belly, l:uks and under tail coverts strongly barred withdusky. Lengthabuut 4; wing
2 or less, tail 14 or less.

Habitat, United States.

Common winter resident. The little Winter Wren is given in Dr.
Kirtland’s list without comment. Mr. Read givesit as “ mainly a winter
resident, few spend the summer.” Iam of the opinion that it breeds in
Northern Ohio, having taken a young individual in this vicinity, Septem-
ber 9th, 1874, in a plumage which indicated that it had left the nest only
shorily before. In the vicinity of Columbus they are much more com-
mon during their migrations in March and April, October and November,
than in the middle of winter. They frequent woodland thickets and
spend much of their time on the ground and about the exposed roots of
trees. ‚While thus employed either in search of food or seeking conceal-
ment, their actions resemble those of a mouse rather than a bird., The
only note I have heard is a low wren-like chirr, but at their breeding
places they are said to have a remarkably sweet and prolonged song.

Mr. R. Deane describes (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 37) the nest
from Maine, found under the upturned root of a cedar, in the dark. It
was ‘‘composed mainly of very compact green moss, with a few hemlock
twigs interwoven, and lined profusely with feathers of the Canada Jay,
Blue Jay, and other species, which arch over the eggs so as to almost con-
ceal them. The average measurement of these eggs is .65 by .49 of an
inch. The ground color is pure white, and with fine spots of reddish-
brown and a few blotches of a darker shade.”

GENUS TELMATODYES. Cabanis.

Bill nearly as long as head. Hind claw longer than the rest of toe. Wings longer
than the short, much graduated tail. Feet large; toes reaching to end of tail.

TELMATODYTES PALUSTRIS (Bart.) Henry.
Long-billed Marsh Wren.
Troglodytes palustris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Surv., 1838, 163.—READ, Proc. Phila, Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.
Cistothorus palustris, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 565 ; Reprint, 7,—Lane-
pon, Revised List, Journ. Cin, Soc, Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 170; Reprint, 4.

SHORT-BILLED MARSH WREN. 233

Telmatodytes palustris, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
563; Reprint, 3—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 4.

Motacilla palustris, BARTRAM, Trav. Fla., 1791, 291.

Troglodytes palustris, BONAPARTE, Journ. Phila. Acad., iv. 1724, 30.
Cistothorus (Telmatodytes) palustris, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1868, 364.
Telmatodytes palustris, Henry, Proc. Phila. Acad., xi, 1859, 107. 2

Above, clear brown unbarred, back with a black patch containing distinct white
streaks, crown brownisl black, superciliary line to nape white, wings not noticably
barred, but outer webs of inner secondaries blackish; tail brown, dusky barred ;
below, dull white, often quite puro, tie sides alone brownish washed, and under tail
coverts sowewbat barred. Length 4% to 54; wing about 2, tail less, tarsus $ to $;
bill 4 or more,

Habitat, Temperate North America and Mexico; south to Guatemala; accidental in
Greenland.

Common summer resident in suitable places, migrant in others. The
Long-billed Marsh Wren is a common resident in the extensive marshes
about St. Mary’s and the Licking Reservoirs. It doubtless breeds in
many other localities. In the vicinity of Columbus, I known it only as
amigrant. Mr. Langdon givesit as a migrant in the vicinity of Cin-
einnati. It usually makes its »pnearance here shortly after the middle
of April and remains until after the middle of May. Inthe fallit returns
in September and may be fouud throughout October. While with us,
they frequent the b:nks of streams, swamps, low meadows with willows
and swamp roses. Like the Carolina Wren, it frequently climbs trees,
but not to a very considerable height. Their only note is short, harsh,
and unpleasant, so quickly uttered as hardly to denote from what spot it
comes.

The nest is built in bushes, generally quite near the ground. It iscom-
posed of coarse grasses and mud. It is globular in shape, with an en-
trance on the side. The eggs number from six to nine, oval or spherical,
so thickly marked with brown spots as to appear of a nearly uniform
chocolate color. They measure .65 by .50.

GENUS CISTOTHORUS. Cabanis.

Bill much shorter than head. Hiud claw equal to its digit. Other characters as in
Telmatodytes.

CISTOTHORUS STELLARIS (Licht.) Cab.
Short-billed Marsh Wren.

Troglodytes brevirostris, ReaD, Proc. Philad. Acad, Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 395.

Cistothorus stellaris, WHEBATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365, 375 ; Reprint, 1861, 7, 17;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 663; Reprint, 1875, 2.—LANGDon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188;
Reprint, 22.

234 BIRDS—ALAUDIDA.

Troglodytes stellaris, LICHTENSTEIN
Troglodytes brevirostris, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1832, 436.
Cistothorus stellaris, CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1850, 77.

Dirk browa above, crown and middle of ths back blackish, nearly every where conspi
cuously streaked with white; below buffy white, shading into pale brown on the sides and
behind; wings and tail barred with blackish and light brown; flanks barred with
dusky ; throat aud muddle of belly whitish. Length 44; wing and tailabout 12; bill not
+ long and very slender; tarsus, middle toe and claw together 14.

Habitat, Eastera United States in reedy swamps and marshes.

Rare. Summer resident. Not given by Dr. Kirtland in 1838. Given by
Mr. Read as not abundant in Northern Ohio in 1853. It has since been
found breeding in the vicinity of Cleveland. Mr. Charles Dury informs
me that he has taken it at St. Mary’s Reservoir. Mr. Langdon includes it
in his list of birds of probable occurrence. Ithink I have seen it on one or
two occasions in September, but have never positively identified it.

The nest is said to be similarly located and of similar construction to
that of the Long-billed Marsh Wren, but the eggs differ from those of all
other North American birds of the family, in being white, unspotted.

FAMILY ALAUDIDE. LARKS.

Outside of tarsns covered with two series of scutelia, one lapping entirely around in
front, the either entirely around behind, and meeting at a groove on the inside; hind
edge blunt. First primary spurious or apparently wanting. Hind claw much length-
ened, scarcely curved. Nostrils with antrorse bristly feathers. Bill conico-elongate.

Genus ALAUDA, Linaeus.

Crowu with a depressed soft crest of feathers, of normal struciure; a spurious prim-
ary; tail deeply emarginate.

ALAUDA ARVENSISs. Linneeus.
European Skylark.

Alauda arvensis, LANGDON, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 111; Revised List, Journ,
Cin. Soc. Nat Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10:
European Skylark, Harris, Field Notes, i, 1561, 65.

Above grayish-brown, beneath whitish, with a buffy tinge across jugulum and along
sides; every feather above with a medial streak of dusky; sides of throat, sides, and
across jugalum streaked with dusky ; the outer tail feathers partly white. Wiug 4.90;
tail 2.-0 ; tarsas .80; hind claw .50.

Habitat, Europe; accidental in Greenland and the Bermudas.

Introduced. Resident in small numbers in the vicinity of Cincinnati
only. Inserted here on the authority of Mr. Langdon, who states that it
“breeds sparingly in the parks and suburbs of Cincinnati.” It is
doubtful if it succeeds in establishing a residence in this country. Sev-
eral years since, they were introduced upon Long Island, but after a few

SHORE LARK. 235

years became exterminated. Col. Harris says of their introduction in
this eity, (l.c.) “In the autunm of 1851, Mr. Bateham, on his return from
England, brought a cage of the real English Skylarks, whick, after keep-
ing a few weeks at his residence, near the Lunatic Asylum, were set at
liberty in the grove back of thatinstitution. They very shortly disap-
peared entirely, and no doubt perished, either in the severe winter which
followed, or by the hand of the fowler.”

‘

Genus EREMOPHILA. Boie.

Bill shorter than the head, compressed. Nostrils circular. Primaries nine, the first ap-
pareutly wanting. Wings long; tail medium, nearly square. A peculiar tuft of feathers
over ear, like the ‘‘horus” of certain owls.

EREMOPHILA ALPESTRIS (Forst.) Boie.
Horned Lark; Shore Lark.

Alauda alpestris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 183—Rkap, Proc. Philad.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 92.

Eremophila cornuta, Bairp, P. R. R. Rep., ix, le58, 405. —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 355, 175; Reprint, 1361, 7, 17.

Eremophila alpestris, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 563; Re-
print, 1375, 3.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Alauda alpestris, LINNEUS, Sys. Nat., i, 1758, 166.

Eremophil« alpestris, Bors, Isis, 1827, 322,

Eremophila cornuta, Box, Isis, 1828, 322. ;

In spring: Above, pinkish brown, brightest on rump, nape and wing coverts, thickly
streaked with dusky; below white, breasts and sides shaded with the color of the back;
chin, throat, and superciliary line pale yellow, or yellowish-white ; a pectoral crescent,
and curved stripe through the eye, black; tail black, outer feathers white-edged and
middle ones like the back. Winter birds much duller above, the black markings obscure.

Length, 7-74; wing, 4%; tail, 23-3; tarsus, {; hind claw, 4-3; very slender and sharp.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere; in the Eastern United States, sonth in winter to
South Carolina.

Abundant winter resident. Arrives about the first of November and
departs about the first of April. The first Shore-Larks to appear are soli-
tary individuals who associate with the Tit-larks just before they depart
southward. As soon as the first considerable snow appears, they arrive
in force, frequenting fields and barnyards where cattle are fed, meadows,
commons, old brick-yards, and the gravelly shores of streams. When
their ordinary supply of food is cut off by a deep snow, they feed upon
the seeds of the rag-weed (Ambrosia), which projects above it. Should
this fail they gather in the beaten roads, and there obtain a scant sus-
tenance from offal. The flocks vary in size from those of a dozen to those
of a hundred or more birds, usually from thirty to fifty are found in a

236 BIRDS—MOTACILLIDE. |

suitable field. When feeding, one of their number mounts guard on the
top of alow hummock. Usually they are not shy, but when approached
they squat, and remain motionless; if the object of their caution
remains still, they soon resume their feeding, but if too near an approach
is made, first one and then another rises with a sharp note, until the
whole move off in a scattered flock. After circling around for a short
time they again alight. usually at no great distance. When flying over-
head they may be known by the contrast of their white abdomen with
their black tail feathers Sometimes their feet become so“ balled” with
ice that they are unable to walk in their usual manner when feeding,
in which case they progress by jumps, either forwards or sidewise, and
short flights. They frequently perch on fénces.

The Shore-lark breeds irom New York and Wisconsin northward. The
nest is pluced on the ground, and composed of grass. Their eggs uverage
.90 by .65; they are of a light drab color, spotted with various shades of
brown During the breeding season the male is said to have short but
pleasing song.

FAMILY MOTACILLIDA. THE WAGTAILS.

Bill very slender, acnte; culmen rather concave at base. Longest secondary acu-
minate, nearly or quite equal to the prinaries in the closed wing. Hind claw little
curved, abont twice as lung as the middls ciaw. Hind toe and claw longer thau middle
toe and claw.

Sub family ANTHIN.E. Tırnarks.

Tail shorter than the wings, emarginate at end, the two central feathers shorter

than tho lateral; the feathers broadest near the end, rounding at the tip.

Genus ANTHUS. Bechstein.

Wings much pointed and lengthened ; hind toe and claw shorter than the tarsus; out-
stretched toes falling short of tip of tail.

ANTHUS LUDoVICIANUs (Gm) Licht.
Brown Lark; Titlark; Pipit.

Anthus spinoletta, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 182.

Anthus ludovicianus, Reap, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1360, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5, 15; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin. 1877, 5; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. llist., i, 1579, 176, Reprint, 4.

Alauda ludoviciana, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 793.
Anthus Iudoricianus, LICHTENSTEIN, Verz. 1323, 37.
Anthus spinoletta, BoNaPARTE, Ann Lye. N. Y., ii. 1826, 90.

Points of wings formed by the four outer primaries, the fifth being abruptly shorter,
Hind claw nearly straight, nearly or quite equal to its digit. Above, dark brown, with
a slight olive shade, most of the feathers with dusky centres; eyelids, superciliary line

TITLARK. 237

and under parts pale buffy or ochrey brown, variable in aba ; breast and sides of neck
and body thickly streaked with dusky; wings aud tail blackish, inner secondaries pale
edged; one or more outer tail feathers wholly or partly white. Length about 64; wing
345 tail 22-3.

Habitat, North America every where.

Comwon spring and fall migrant. The Titlark makes its appearance
about the first of October and remains until the first really cold weather,
usually about the middle of November. In spring its migration seems
to be peculiar. From the tenth to the twenty-fifth of April a few in-
dividuals are seen, yet in winter plumage; none are then seen until
the end of the first week in May, when smal flocks appear until
May 15; these are in breeding plumage. The winter and breeding
plumages differ more than is usual with birds of so uniform coloration.
In the breeding plumage all the feathers of upper parts-are suffused with
whitish, strongly suggesting that the bird has been dusted \ ith plaster of
Paris; the buff of under parts is decidedly of a pinkish tinge, and the
streaks emaller, fewer and more sharply defined than in the fall plumage.
In the fall they are quite abundant, frequenting the gravelly banks of
streams, often wading in the shallows, in commons, faliow fields and old
brick-yards. In spring they are less common, and found in meadows.
They have many peculiarities; their flight is undulating, irregular and
prolonged, usually high; their note is a plaintive prolonged “ tseep”
uttered while on the wing, ending now with a rising and now witha
falling inflection. It is difficult to resist the impression trom their vac-
cillating flight and plantive note that they are confused or lost. When
on the ground it has a constant habit of tipping its tail, its common
name having probably arisen from this circumstance. It frequently
alights on the dead limbs of trees. During the fall migration they sume-
times visit the city alighting in the streets aud on buildings, but are
usually seen flying high overhead.

They breed in the mountains of Colorado in the west, and from Lab-
rador northward in the East. The nest is large, built of grass, and
placed on the ground. The eggs are four or five, averaging a little over
1d by .60, “of a dark chocolate color, indistinctly marked with numer-
ous small spots and streaks of blackish.”

FAMILY SYLVICOLIDA. WARBLERS.

Primaries nine. Bill variously conico-elongated’aud acute; culmen not concave at
base. Longest secondary not acuminate, falling far short of primaries in the clesed
wing. Hind claw well curved, not nearly twice as long as middle claw; hind toe and
claw not longer than middle toe andclaw. Gape ample ; tongueslightly bifid or brushy,
if at all.

238 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

Sub-family SYLVICOLINA Typrcar WARBLERS.

Bill conoid-elongate, shorter than the head, about as high as or higher than wide at
the nostrils, not hooked, but with a slight notch, or none, at tip, commissure straight
or slightly curved; a few rictal bristles, reaching little if any beyond the nostrils, or
none, wings ointed, longer (except in Geothlypis) than the narrow, nearly even tail.

Genus MNIOTILTA. Vieiilot.

Bill nearly as long as the head, compressed, notched some distance from the tip. Rietus
unbristled. Wings long, much longer than the slightly rounded tail. Tarsus rather
short about equal to the middle toe, and but little longer than the hind toe which is
very long, its digit neatly twice as long as iis claw. :

Mnioriura varia (L.) V.
Black-and-White Creeper.

Sylvia varia, KIRTLAND, Ohiv Gevlog. Surv., 1238, 163, 182.

Mniotilta varia, AUDUBON, B. Am ‚ii, 1241, 103,—Rrap, Proc. Philad, Acad. Nat. Sci. vi,
1853, 395. —WHRATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of
Birds, etc, Ohio Agric Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3 —Lanepon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Motacilla varia, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 333.

Sylvia varia, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790 539,

Mniotilta varia, VIEILLOT, Anal., 1516, 45.

Entirely whits and black, in streaks except on the belly. Tail white spotted ; wings
white bacred. Length, about 5; wing, 24; tail, 24

Hubitat, Easterv North America, Mexico. Bogota. West,Indies. Bermuda.

Common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives in the vicinity of Col-
umbus the last week in Apriland remainsuntil September. During the
migrations generally dispersed in wocdland, but retires to breed to
secluded spots, preferably. second growth, mixed woodland. With few
exceptions those members of this family which breed in this latitude are
the first to arrive in spring and the first to depart in fall. This bird is
no exception to the rule.

The Black-and- White Creeper, as ils name indicates, approaches more
nearly in its habits to the true Creepers than any otber member of the
family. It is generally seen on the trunks of trees, climbing upwards,
downwards, or laterally with ease. In May, August and September, it
is a frequent visitor in the city, and during all these months its song, a
sharp and not very pleasant warble may be heard.

The nest is placed on the ground, constructed of leaves, fibres of bark,
and grass, lined with hair. The eggs are creamy-white spotted and
blotched with reddish. The young are fully fledged the last week in

June.
Genus PARULA. Bonaparte.
Bill covsiderably shorter than the head, depressed at base, attenuated at tip; notch
usually obsolete or wanting. Wings considerably longer than tail. Tarsus but little
longer than its digit. Claw of hind toe nearly two-thirds its digit.

BLUE YELLOW-BACKED WARBLER. 239

PARULA AMERICANA (L.) Bp.

Blue Yellow-backed Warbler.

Sylvia americana, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 132.

Sylvicola americana, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1353, 423; Philad. Acad Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,

395.

Parula americana, BALRD, P. R. R. Rep. ix, 1°53, 239.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1560, 363; Reprint, 1661,5; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Re-
print, 1875, 3.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist.. i, 1379, 171; Reprint, 5.

Parus americana, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 190,

Sylvia americana, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 420.

Parula americana, BONAPARTE, Comp. and Geog. List., 1833, 20.

Male in spring, above, blue, back with a golden brown patch, throat and breast
yellow, with a rich brown or blackish patch, the forme! s metimes extending aloug the
sides; belly, eye-lids, two wing bars and several tall spots white; lures black ; upper
mandible black, lower, flesh colored; fewale in spring, with the blue less bright, back
and throat patches not so well defined; yonng, with these patches obscure or wanting,

but always recognizable by the other marks and very small size. Length 44-42; wing
24; tail 12.

Habitat, Eastern North America, West to Nebraska and Colorado, North to British
America, Greenland casually, South to West indies, Mexico, and Guatemala.

Not common spring and fall migrant in Southern and Middle, summer
resident in Northern Ohio. Mr. Read notes it as“ common in the spring,
afew spend the summer.” Dr. Kirtland says, “I have repeated!y seen
them teeding their young in July.” It may breed in the vicinity of Col-
umbus, as I saw a specimen in my garden, June 30, 1879. Mr. Ridgway
says it breeds in Southern Illinois.

The Blue Yellow-back Warbler arrives early in May and returns in
September. They frequent the tops of the tallest trees in the highest
woods, and are especially noticeable on hickory, ash and oak trees, which,
at the time of the spring migration, have not much foliage. Theyare
actively engaged hoppiug and flying from twig to twig in search of food.
Their movements combine those of the Titmice and Redstart.
is short and feeble.

The nest is constructed of long gray lichens, sometimes simply an ex-
cavation in a bunch of lichen. The eggs measure .63 by .49, are white,
spotted with lilac, slate, and various shades of brown.

Their song

Genus PROTONOTARIA Baird.

Bill conical, compressed towards the end, as long as the head, longer than middle toe,

unnotched. Hind claw but little shorter than its digit; middle toe and claw only three-
fourths the tarsus.

240 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

PROTONOTARIA CITRHA (Bodd.) Bd.

Prothonotary Warbler.

Protonotaria citrea, WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860, 363, 373; Reprint, 1861, 5, 15.—
LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5.

Protonotaria citrea, Cours, Key, 1872, 93 —WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agri. Rep.
for 1674 (1875), 563; Reprint, 3,—LANGDON, Journ Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 112;
Reprint, 3; Rev. List, Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1379, 188; Reprint, 22.

Motacilla citrea, BODDAERT, Tab. Pl. El., 1783, 44.

Protonolariu citrea, Batrb, Birds N. A., 135€, 239.

Protonotaria eitrea, COUES, Key, 1872, 93.

Golden yellow, paler on the beily, changing to olivaceous on the back, thence to bluish
ashy on the rump, wings, and tail; most of the tail feathers largely white on the inner
webs. Bill black. Leugth 53; wing 24-3; tail 24.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States ; north to Ohio, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas.
Accidental 1n Maine and New Brunswick.

The Prothonotary Warbler is. only known in this State as a summer
resident in Western Ohio, especially in the vicinity of St. Marys’ Reser-
voir. It was first noted as an Ohio bird in 1861, by myself on the auth-
ority of Mr. Winslow, but by whom taken, and when, I have no informa-
tion. Since then Mr. Charles Dury has discovered that it breeds in the
above mentioned locality, having found its nest in a deserted Wood-
peckers’ hole in a willow tree.

From Mr. Brewster’s admirable account of this bird, the best yet writ-
ten (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 153), I gather that it is one of the
most abundant and characteristic birds of the low portions of South-
eastern Illinois and Southwestern Indiana. He describes its song as re-
sembling the note of the Solitary Sandpiper, and its alarm note that of
the Water Thrush. The nest is built in the deserted hole of a Wood-
pecker or Carolina Chickadee or in any suitable cavity in a tree or
building. It is built largely of moss, but leaves and twigs are sometimes
added. The eggs are five or six, sometimes seven. They measure about
70 by 58. “ The ground color is clear, lu‘ trous white, with a high polish.
Eggs from different sets vary consideratly in markings, but two types of
coloration seem to prevail. In one, spots and dottings of dull brown
with faint submarkings of pale lavender are generally and evenly distri-
buted over the entire surface. In the other, blotches of bright reddish
brown are so thickly laid on, especially about the larger ends, that the
ground color is in some instances almost entirely obscured.

Genus HELMITHERUS Rafinesque.

Bill large aud stout, compressed, almost tanayrine, nearly as long as the head, un-
notched, unbristled and on a line with the forehead. Wings rather long, considerably

longer than the rounded tail.

WORM-EATING WARBLER.

HELMITHERUS VERMIVoRUs (Gm.) Bp.
Worm-eating Warbler.

Sylvia vermivora, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 163, 182,

Helinaia vermivora, AUDUBON, ii, 1841, 86.

Vermivora pennsylvanica, READ, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., vi, 1853, 395.

Helmitherus vermivorus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1460, 363; Reprint, 1661, 5;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohto Agri. iiep. for 1374, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3.—BAIRD, BREWER,
and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 188.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Vin., 1677,5; Jour.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1,1878, 112; Reprint, 3; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1878, 60.

Motacilla vermivora, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 95.

Sylvia vermivora, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 544.

Vermivora pennsylvanica, ‘‘Swainson,” BONAPARTE, List, 183%, 20.

Helmitheros vermivora, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av., i, 1850, 314.

Helmitherus vermivorus, BAIRD, Birds N. A. 1858, 252.

Above olive, below buffy, paler or whitish on the belly; head buff, with four sharp
black stripes, two along sides of crown from bill to nape, one along each side of head
through the eye; wings and tail olivaceous, unmarked. Bill and feet pale. Length
54; wing 22; tail 2.

Habitat, Eastern United States; north to Connecticut Valley, casually to Maine; weet
to Missouri, Kansas, and Indian Territory ; south in winter to Florida, Cuba, Jamaica,
Mexico, Central America.

Rare summer resident. Arrives the last week in Apriland departsin
August. Ofthe Worm-eating Warbler, there is little to be said. Dur-
ing its spring migration it is sometimes seen in low woodlands, generally
on the ground searching for food. When disturbed its flies to the lower
branches of a tree and remains silent and quiet, much as a Thrush.
Their favorite breeding places are solitary ravines or glens near water,
usually where ferns and moss abound. When at home they may be
seen scratching the leaves on the ground, or rustling the leaves of a
fallen tree in search of worms and spiders. Sometimes they mount to
the higher branches where their actions are much those of the Vireos.
On the ground, or on the lower limbs of trees, they walk, and their appear-
ance is much that of the Water Thrushes, except the tipping of the tail.
They are rather unsuspicious and silent, the only note I have ever heard
was a rather sharp ‘chip.’

The nest is placed on the ground in a depression of a hillside or beside
a fallen log. It is composed of leaves and lined with moss The eggs
are four, white, rather sparsely dotted with reddish-brown, and measure
about .74 by .62.

The young in first plumage are described by Mr. Ridgway (Bull., iii,
1878, 23,) as being of a buff color, with two badly defined stripes of gray-
ish-brown on the head and a narrow streak of the same behind the eye.

Primaries and their coverts, and tail feathers, as in the adult.
16

242 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA. .

After the breeding season is over they sometimes wander about before
departing for the south. On one occasion I took a specimen in my gar-
den.

‘

Genus HELMINTHOPHAGA Cabanis.

Bill slender and exceedingly acute, unnotched, unbristled. Wings long and pointed,
the first quill nearly or quite the longest. Tail nearly even or slightly emarginate, short
aud rather slender. Tarsi longer than middle toe.

HELMINTHOPHAGA PInus (L.) Bd.

Blue-winged Yellow Warbler.

Sylvia solitaria, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 163, 182.

Vermivore solitaria, READ, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1853, 395.

Helminthophaga pinus, WHEATON, Ohio Agtic. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food
of Sırds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 5.—LANGDoNn, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 171; Re-
print, 5. -

Certhia pinus, LINNEUS, Syst, Nat., i, 1766, 187.

Sylvia solitaria, WILSON, Am. Orn., ii, 1810, 129,

Fermivora solitaria, JARDINE, “ ld. Wils., 1832.”

Helminthophaga pinus, BAIRD, Birds North Am., 1858, 254.

Crown and entire under parts rich yellow ; upper parts yellow olive, becoming slaty
blue ou the wings and tail, the former with two white or yellowish baıs, the latter with
several large white blotches. Bill and line thrungh the eye black. Female and young
siunlar. Length5; wing 24; tail 24.

Habitat, Eastern United States; north to Massachusetts and Minnesota; south to
Guatemala; west to lowa, Kansas, Indian Territory, and Texas.

-

Rather common summer resident from May Ist to September Ist.
Breeds. The Blue-winged Yellow Warbler is a bird of the most retired
woodlandandswamps. Though considered by Audubon one of the swamp

.warblers, it is often found on high ground,, but usually in the vicinity
of water. Their ordinary noieis a rather sharpchirp. The song is said
to be a rapid chirrup, forcible and characteristic. I obtained specimens
in the spring of 1874, in my garden, which had evidently spent some
considerable time in pine woods, their plumage being soiled with
pitch. The site chosen for a nest is usually in the edge of soli-
tary woods, often the border of aswamp. The nest is described by Mr.
Ridgway, as composed of thin strips of the inner bark of trees, and quite
bulky. The eggs are white, sprinkled with a few reddish-brown spots,
and measure .70 by .54.

NASHVILLE WARBLER. 243

HELMINTHOPHAGA CHRYSOPTERA (L.) Bd.
Blue Golden-winged Wearbler.
Sylvia chrysoptera, KiRTLAND, Ohio Gevlug. Surv., 1835, 163, 182.
Vermivora chrysoptera, ReaD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Philad., vi, 1853, 395.
Helminthophaga chrysoptera, WHRATON, Ohio, Agric. Rep. for 1869, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3.—Coues, Birds
oı N. W., 1874, 50 (nest).—BAIRD, BREWER and RipGway, N. A. Birds, i, 1574, 193.—

LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Juur. Cin. Soc. Nat Hist., i,
1879, 171; Reprint, 5. :

Motacilla chrysoptera, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 333.
Sylvia chrysoptera, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 541.
Vermivora chrysoptera, ‘‘ SWAINSON.”

Helminthophaga chryssptera, CABANIS, Mus. Hein, i, 1850, 20°

Male, in spring: slaty blue, paler or whitish below, where frequently tinged with yel-
‘lowish; crown and two wing barsrich yellow; broad stripe on side of head through eye,
and large patch on the throat, black; both these bordered with white; several tail feathers
white blotched. Bill black. Back aud wings frequently glossed with yellowish olive in
young birds ia which the black markings are somewhat obscure. Size of pinus,
“ Habitat, Eastern United States and Canada. New Grenada. Central America. Cuba.

Rare summer resident from May to August. This beautiful bird is the
rarest species of the genus breeding with us, and, with the exception of the
Orange-crowned Warbler, the rarest at any time. It is usually found in
swampy places, where the nest is built on the ground, frequently under
the broad leaf of the Skunk Cabbage (Simplocarpus fetidus). The nest
has been taken at Groveport, in this county, by Mr. Wm. R. Limpert.
The eggs are four to five, white, sparsely marked with reddish brown.

HELMINTHOPHAGA RUFICAPILLA (Wils.) Bd.
Nashville Warbler.

Sylvia rubracapilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 168, 182.

Vermivora rubricapilla, Reap, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Helminthophaga ruficapilla, WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3—Lanepon,
Cat. Birds of Cin:, 1877, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171;
Reprint, 5.

Sylvia ruficapilla, WILSoN, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 120.

Vermivora rubricapilla, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1838, 21.

Helminthophaga ruficapilla, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 256.

Above, olive green, brighter on the rump, changing to pure ash on the head; below
bright yellow, paler on the belly, olive shaded on the sides; crown with a more or less
concealed chestnut patch ; lores and ring round the eye pale; no superciliary line; female
and autumnal specimens have the head glossed with olive, and the crown patch may be
wanting. Length 44-43; wing 24-24; tail 12-2. j

Habitat, Eastern North America. Mexico.

&

244 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

Regular spring and fall migrant. Common. The Nashville Warbler
is to be found from the first to the twenty-fifth of May in woodland and
along the banks of streams, sometimes singly at other times in su all
flocks. Its song is a short warble, more varied and less emphatic than
that of other members of this genus. Its note is a sharp chirp, which
Wilson compares to the noise made by striking pebbles together. In Sep-
tember when on its southern migration it is more common, frequenting
weeds in woods and on the borders of streams and swamps. At this time it
is much on or near the ground, and often associates with Tennessee War-
bler=, which exceed them in numbers in the fall. It breeds in the lati-
tude of Massachusetts and northward. The nest is placed on the ground,
com posed of moss and grasses. The eggs measure .59 by .50 and are white,
thickly marked with purplish brown spots.

HELMINTHOPHAGA CELATA (Say) Bd.
Orange-crowned Warbler.

Helminthophaga celata, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363, 373; Reprint, 1861, 5,
15; Fvod of Birds, etc , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3.—LAaNGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188;
Reprint, 22.

Sylvia celata, Say, Long’s Ex. Rocky Mts., 1224, 169.
Helminthophaga celata, BAIRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 257.

Above, olıve green, rather brightest on the rump, never ashy on the head; below,
greenish-yellow, washed with olive ou the sides; crown with a wore or less cuncealed
orange-brown patch (sometimes wanting); eye ring and obscure superciliary line yel-
losish. Size of ruficapilla.

Habitat, North Awerica. Common in the west, r re or irregular in the east.

Rare spring and fall migrant. J can record but three specimens taken
in the State. Mr. R. K. Winslow took a fall specimen in the vicinity of
Cleveland, previous to 161 In May, 1875, I took two specimens. I was
attracted to the first, which was perched upon the top of a vine-crowned
stub, in a woodland thicket bordering.a swamp, by its loud, emphatic,
and rather monotonous song, resembling as nearly as I can describe the
syllables chicky-tick tick tick-tick. This song was louder and more decidedly
emphasized than that of any other member of the genus with which I
am acquainted. Two or three days after, I took a female, in another
locality, near this city. Others were seen in company with this last, but
not secured.

In the State of Illinois they are said by Mr. Ridgway to be regular mi-
grants, and further westward they are abundant. The nest and eggs
were discovered by Mr. Kennicott, in the vicinity of Great Slave Lake.
The nest, like those of all other members of this genus known, is placed
‘on the ground. It is composed of strips of bark, stems and grasses. The

TENNESSEE WARBLER 245

eggs are four to six in number, measuring about .65 by .47. “They have
a clear white ground, marked with spots and blot:hes of reddish-brown
and fainter markings of purplish slate.”

HELMINTHOPHAGA P&REGRINA (Wils.) Cab.
Tennessee Warbler.

Sylvia peregrina, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 132.

Vermivora peregrina, READ, Proc. Phila Acad Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395

Helminthophaga peregrina, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep. ix, 1858, 259.—WueEaton, Food of Birds,
ete , Ohio Agric Rep. for 1374, 1875, 563; Reprint, 3 —LANGDon, Cat Birds of Cin.,
1877, 5; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat Hist., i, 1878, 112; Reprint, 3; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Helminthophaga pereyina (error), WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1860, 1861, 363 ; Re-
print, 5.

Sylvia peregrina, WILSON, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 83.

Vermivora peregrina, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1838, 21.

Helminthophaga peregrina, CABANIS, Mas. Hein., i, 1850, 20.

Olive green, brighter behind, but never quite yellow on the tail coverts, more or less
ashy towards and on the head ; no crown patch ; below white, often glossed with yellowish
but never quite yellow; a ring round tl.e eye, aud superciliary line, whitish, frequently
an obscure whitish spot on outer tail feathers; lores dusky; in the female and young
the olivaceous glosses the whole upper parts Length 44-44; wing about 23; tail2 or less.

This comparative length of wing and tail, with other characters, probably always dis-
tiognishes this species from the foregoing.

H ibitat, Eastern North America.

Rare and irregular migrant in spring, abundant and regular in the
fall. The Tennessee Warbler, so named by Wilson from the place
where he discovered it, as was also the Nashville Warbler, appears in
spring about the middle of May and frequents woodlands and orchards.
At this time I have heard them sing a singularly sharp, rather squeaky
warble, less loud and more varied than the song of the Orange-crowned
Warbler. They return early in September and remain during that
month and part of October. At this time they frequent sparse woodland
on the banks of streams and high weeds in upland woods. Usually they
are associated with the Nashville Warbler and Green Black-cap Flycatcher.

The nest and eggs of this species have been taken in Massachusetts and
northward. There seems to be no characteristic difference between them
and thos of other members of the genus.

Two other members of this genus have, within a few years, been discovered in the
Eastern States, and may be looked for in Ohio. They are—

HELMINTHOPHAGA LEUCOBRONCHIALIS. Brewster. WHITE-THROATED WARBLER.

Adult male; summer plumage. Crown, bright yellow, slightly tinged with olive on
the occiput. Greater and middle wing coverts, yellow, not so bright as the crown.
Superciliary line, cheeks, throat, and entire under parts silky white, with a slight

246 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

Genus DENDRCCA. Gray.

Bill conical, attenuated, depressed at base, compressed from the middle, distinctly
notched. Rictal bristles short. Wings long. First primary nearly as Irng as the sec-
ond. Tail slightly rounded. Tarsus long, slender, decidedly longer than the middle
toe. Hind toe short, as long as the lateral, its claw as lung as the digit.

Denpraca mstiva (Gm.) Bd.
Summer Warbler.

Sylvia wstiva, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 182.

Sylvicola estiva, READ, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 415; Proc. Philad. Acad Nat. Sei, vi, 1953, 305.

Dendroica wstiva, WHFATON, Ohio Agric. Rep for 1260, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendraca wstiva WH AION, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint,
1575, 3.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878,
112; Reprint, 3; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc Nat. Hist., i, 1573, 171; Reprint, 5.

Motacilla estiva, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. i, 17-8, 996.

Sylvia cestiva, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 551.

Sylvicola wstiva, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 211.
Dendroica «stira, BAIkD, Birds N. A., 1858, 282.

Dendreca wstiva, SCLATER, Proc. Zoo]. Soc., 1859, 363.

Golden yellow; back olive yellow, frequently with obsolete bruwnish streaks; breast
aud sides streaked with orange brown; which sometimes tinges the crown; wings and
tail dusky, the Jatter marked wich yellow blotcbes. Bill dark blue; female and young
paler; less or not streaked below. Length 54; wiug 2%; tail 24.

Habitat, Nerth America.

tinge of pale yellow on the breast. Dursal surface, exclusive of nape which is clear
ashy—washed with yellow, as are also the outer margins of the secoudaries. A narrow
line of clear black passes from the base of the upper mandible, through and to a short
distance behind the eye, interrupted, however, by the lower eyelid, which is distinctly
white. No trace of black on the cheeks or throat, even upon raising the feathers. Bill
black. Feet dark brown. Dimensions—length 5.19; extent 7.88; wing 2.45; tarsus .71;
tail 1.86; culmen 53. (Brewster, Bull. Nutt. Club, i, 1876, 1 )

Habitat, Massachusetts. Connecticut. New York. Michigan. Less than a dozen
examples known.

HELMINTHOPHAGA LAWRENCII. Herrick. LAWRENCK’S WARBLER.

Upper parts and rnmp olive green, a sbade darker than in pinus. Wing bluish gray,
with two white bands, the upper not so clearly defined as in pinus. Tai! bluish gray,
the three outer feathers with most of the web white, also a small white spot on the
end of the fourth feather. Crown and under parts, from breast to vent, orange. A broad
black patch extends from the bill through and beyond the eye. Chin, throat, and fore
part of the breast black. A yellow stripe, commencing ur der the bill, extends back
between the black eye-and-breast-patches, and increares in width upon the shoulder.
Length 4.50; wing 2.50; tail 2.00. Measurements from the mounted bird. (Herrick,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1874, 220.)

Habitat, New Jersey.

BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER. 347

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives the last of Apriland
remains until September. The Yellow Warbler or Summer Ye!lowbird,
or, as it is frequently though incorrectly called, Yellow Wren, is the best
known bird of this family. It frequents the banks of streams,
orchards, gardens and groves, and is quite at home in the shade trees of
the city. It is rarely seen in dense woodland. The males are in full
song on their arrival.

The nest is placed in an upright fork of a small branch of a tree or
bush ; in gardens, the pear tree is a favorite situation. It is composed of
vegetable fibers and down, and lined with hair. The eggs are usually
four, white, with a greenish tinge, spotted with different shades of brown
and lilac. Two broods are frequently raised in a season.

DENDR@CA VIRENS (Gm.) Sel.

Black-throated Green Warbler.

Sylvia virens, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog, Surv., 1838, 163, 181.

Sylvicola virens, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 415; Proce Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Dendroica virens, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep, ix, 1858, 268—Wauoraton, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1*t0, 1861, 363; Reprint, 5.—BAIRD, BREWER and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1574, 263.

Dendreca virens, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1075, 5; Re-
print, 8 —LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; R-vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1679, 172; Reprint, 6.

Motactlla virens, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 17#6, 9c5,

Sylvia virens, LaTaaM, Ind, Orn., ii, 1790, 537.

Sylvicola virens, RICHARDSON, Rep. Br. Ass. for 1836, 1837, 172.
Dendreca virens, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1859, 363.

Male, in spring: back and cruwn clear 5 ellow-olive, forehead, superciliary line, sides of
head rich yellow (in very high plumages, middle of back with dusky marks, and dusky or
dark olive lines through eyes, auriculars, and even bordering the crown); chin, throat and
breast jet black, prolonged behind in streaks on the sides; other under parts white
usually yellow-tinged ; wings and tail dusky, the former with two white bars and much
white edging, the latter with outer feathers nearly all white; bill and feet blackish;
male in the fall and female in the spring, similar, but black restricted, interrupted or
veiled with yellow; young similar to the female, but the black more restricted or want-
ing altogether, except a few streaks along the sides, Length about 5; wing 24; tail 24.

Habitat, Eastern United States.

Abundant spring and fall migrant. Arrives in spring about May Ist,
and may remain through the month. Mr. Read says some remain through

i

248 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

the breeding season in Northern Ohio. In the fall, it is here throughout
September and the first two weeks in October. The highest colored
sp-cimens are to be looked for among the first arrivals in spring.

The nest of this bird is usually placed in high treee in dense woods.
It is small and compact, constructed of twigs, grasses and vegetable
down. The eggs are white, blotched and dotied with reddish and pur-
plish brown. They measure .70 by .50.

DENDRECA CHRULESCENS (Gm.) Bd.
Black-throated Blue Warbler.

Sylvia canadensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv , 1838, 163, 182.

Sylvicola canadensis, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 423; Proc. Pbilad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
13873, 395.

Dendroica canadensis, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 271 —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1360, 36%; Reprint, 1861, 5.

Dendreeca cerulescens, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Re-
print, 1875, 3—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

Motacilla canadensis, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 336,

Sylvia canadensis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 539.

Sylvicola canadensis, RICHARDSON, Rep. Br. Ass. for 1836 (1837), 172.

Motucilla ecerulescens, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 960.

Dendroica ewrulescens, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1865, 186.

Dendraca ceerulescens, SUNDUVALL, Oefv. K. Vet.-akad , iii, 1869, 610.

Male, in spring: above, uniform slaty blue, the perfect continuity of which is only in-
terrupted, in very high plumages, by a few black dorsai streaks; below pure white; the
sides of the head to above the eyes, the chin, throat, and whole sides of tha body con-
tinuonsly jet-black ; wing bars wanting, (the coverts being black, edged with blue) but a
large while spot at the base of the primaries ; qniil feathers blackish, outwardly edged
with bluish, the inner ones mostly white on their inner webs; tail with the ordinary
white blotches, the central feathers edged with bluish; bill black; feet dark. Young
male, similar, but the blue glossed with olivaceous, and the black interrupted and re-
tricted. Female entirely different; dull olive greenish, with faint bluish sbade, below,
pale soiled yellowish; recognizable by the white spot ar the base of the primaries, which
though it may be reduced to a mere speck, is always evident, at least on pushing aside
the primary coverts; tail blotches small or obscure; feet rather pale. Size of virens.

Habitat, Eastern United States. West Indies.

Common spring and fall migrant. Arrives the first week in May and
returns inSeptember. Usually seen in small companies of from three to
ten or twelve in woodland, often near the ground in shady wet places.
Mr. Read states that it prefers dark evergreen woods. It is usually more
common in spring than in the fall, and more terrestrial than many of
the genus,

CLERULEAN WARBLER. 249

This beautiful species is aberrant in the decided difference in pattern
of coloration and colors of the sexes, and in the sameness of colors in fall
and spring plumage. In some young males the olive gloss is so marked
as almost to constitute a green patch on the back. The white spot at
base of primaries is not so diagnostic as stated in the above description.
I have seen females in which no trace of it could be discovered on the
closest inspection. While with us in spring the male has a short but
varied song, rather a chant than a warble.

The Black-throated Blue Warbler has been found breeding in evergreen
woods in New York, and in deep woods in Connecticut. In all cases
the nest is placed in the fork of a bush or small tree within a few
inches of the ground. It is composed of grape-vine bark, rootlets and
vegetable down. They measure from .70 by .50 to .61 by .47; they are
white witha“ ring of brown and lilac spots and blotches around the larger
end, and a few minute spots of the same scattered over the entire surface,”
often marked with a large spot of deep umber.

DENDRECA CRRULEA (Wils ) Bd.
Ceerulean Warbler.

Sylvia azurea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 182.

Sylviarara, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sei. and Arts, x], 1841, 21.

Dendroica cerulea, BairD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 267, 250.—BAıRD, BREWER and RıIDG-
way, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 236.—WnaTon, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 364, 374;
Reprint, 6,16.

Dendrecca cerulea, WHHATON, in Coues’ Birds N. W., 1674, 233; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 653; Reprint, 3.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5;
Journ. Cin. Soc., Nat Hist., i, 1878, 113; Reprint, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 191; Reprint, 5. m

Cerulean Warbler, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sei. and Aris, xiii, 1852, 218.

Sylvia caerulea, WILSON, Aw. Orn., ii, 1810, 141.

Sylvia rara, Witson, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 119.

Sylvia azurea, STEPHENS, Shaws’ Genl. Zool., x, 1817, 653.

Dendreca cerulea, SCLATER, Cat. Am. Birds, 1862, 31.

Mule, in spring: azure blue, with black streaks; below, pure white, breast and sides with
plue or blue-black streaks; two white wing bars; tail blotches small, but occupying every
feather, except, perhaps, the central pair; bill black; feet dark. Female and young
with the b!ue strongly glossed with greenish, and the white soiled with yellowish; a
yellowish eye ring and superciliary line. Length 4-43.

Habitat, Eastern United States. Not common in most places.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. The Blue or Cerulean Warbler
is, perhaps, with the exception of the Yellow Warbler, the most abundant
of the genus which remains in Central Ohio through the summer. It
arrives usually during the last week in April and remains until the lat-

ter part of July, perhaps later, They are never seen in large flocks dur-

250 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

ing their migrations, but as isthe case with other warblers breeding with
us, appear in pairs and small companies of six or eight. They are some-
times found in orchards, but usually in high mixed woods. Mr. Brews-
ter, who observed these birds in West Virginia from May 5-9, 1875, gives
the following account*: “They inhabit exclusively the tops of the
highest forest trees, in this respect showing an affinity with D. blackburnie.
In actions they most resemble D. pennsylvanica, carrying the tail rather
high and having the same “smart bantam-like appearance.” Were it
not for these prominent characteristics, they would be very difficult to
distinguish in the tree tops, from Parula americana, the songs are so pre-
cisely alike. That of the latter bird has, however, at least two regular
variations ; in one, beginning low down, he rolls his guttural little trill
quickly and evenly up the scale, ending apparently, only when he
can get no higher; in the other, the commencement of this trill
is broken or divided into syllables, like, zee, zee, zee, ze-ee-eep. The latter
variation is the one used by D. ceru/ea, and I could detect little or no dif-
ference in the songsof adozen of individuals. At bestitis a modest little
strain, and far from deserving the encomium bestowed upon it by
Audubon, who describes it as being “extremely sweet and mellow ;”
decidedly it is neither of them, and he must have confounded with it
some other species. In addition to the song, they utter the almost uni-
versal Dendroicine lisp, and, also, the characteristic tchep of D. coronata,
which I had previously supposed entirely peculiar to that bird.” There
is little to add to this accurate discription of the habits of this bird, ex-
cept to suggest, that had Mr. Brewster observed it a few days later, he
would have discovered such a change in its song as to merit the descrip-
tion, “extremely sweet and mellow,” of Audubon. At the height of the
breeding season the song looses much of its aspirate, and gains in vocal
cbaracter. I have been accustomed to represent it by the syllables
ote, ote, ote, ote, ote, chit, chit, chit, tw-wee, the first part being much like a
low whistling call to a dog, monotonous and rolling but very mellow and
sweet, that following, quickly and sharply uttered, with a lower note and
rising inflection at the end. Sometimes only the first part is given, and
often the last half is repeated.

The Blue Warbler breeds in retired woods in all parts of the State where
TI have had an opportunity of observing them. I have found the young
fledged the latter part of June. Dr. Kirtland states that it breeds in the
vicinity of Cleveland. I have never found the nest, but long before any

*Some Observations on the Birds of Ritchie County, West Virginia, by William Brews-
ter, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., N. Y., xi, 1875, 135.

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER. 251

recent description of it was published, I was convinced that Audubon’s
statement, that it nested on low trees and bushes, was not true of the bird in
this latitude. Three nests of this bird have been described; one, by Dr.
Brewer, from Drummondsville, Ontario, Canada, the others, from East Pen-
field, Monroe Co. N. Y., and Mount Carmel,-Illinois, by Prof. J. A. Allen.
These were all in trees from 20 to 50 feet frora the ground. They
were constructed of grasses and fibres of bark, lined with fine grass,
and more or less completely covered with lichen, bound on with spiders
webs. The eggs are dull creamy white, more or less thickly covered with
blotches of reddish brown. They measure .66 by .47 of an inch.

During the mating season the males have severe and long continued
contests. I have seen them fight for hours, often resting from sheer ex-
haustion. To these contests the female appears to be no: only a disin-
terested but uninterested spectator, and, keeping in the lower branches
of the trees, eats and wipes her bill, and eats and wipes her bill. as if
considerations of celibacy, monogamy or polygamy never entered her
head. The young are fledged by the last of June.

Denpraca coronata (L.) Gr.
Wellow-rumped Warbler.

Sylvia coronata, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Surv., 1838, 163, 181.

Sylvicola coronata, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 407; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.

Dendroica coronata, WHFATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860,363 ; Reprint, 1861, 5.

Dendroca coronata, WHEATON, Food’ of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Re-
print, 1875, 3.—LANGDoN, Cat. of Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1878, 113; Reprint, 4; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171; Re-
print, 5.

Motacilla coronata, LINNMUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 333.

Sylvia coronata, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 533.

Sylvicola coronata, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 216.

Dendroica coronata, GRAY, List of Genera of Birds, App., 1842, 8.

Dendreca coronata, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1859, 362.

Male, in spring: slaty blue, streaked with black; breast and sides mostly black, throat
and belly pure white, immaculate; rump, central crown patch, and sides of breast sharply yel-
low, there being thus four definite vellow places ; sides of head black ; eyelids and super-
cliary line white; ordinary white wing-bars and tail-blotches; bill and feet black;
male in winter, and female in summer, similar, but slate color less pure, or quite brown-
ish. Young, quite brown above, obscurely streaked below. ‘Length 54-52; wing 3;
tail 24.

Habitat, North America, but chiefly the Eastern Province.

Abundaht spring and fall migrant. Arrives the latter part of April

and returns in October. Frequents woodland and the borders of streams,
generally in loose companies. The fall migration is sometimes prolonged

igh

252 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

until considerable snow has fallen. They probably winter not very far
south of us, asthe first birds to arrive in spring are usuallyin winter dress,
or moulting. Mr. Langdon saw them as early as March 4, and as late as
November 29. They are the most hardy of all the warblers, wintering reg-
ularly at Washington, D.C., and occasionally in the Hudson River Valley.

The Yellow-rump Warbler breeds in the extreme northern States and
northward. The nest is placed in a bush; the eggs are white, blotched
and spotted with different shades of brown and purplish. According to
Mr. Brewster, the young in first plumage are very different from the adult,
bearing a considerable resemblance to the Pine Linnet.

DENDR@CA BLACKBURNIZ (Gmel.) Bd.
Blackburnian Warbler.

Sylvia blackhurnie, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 163, 181.

Sylvicola blackburnie, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 415; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
1853, 395. . :
Dendroica blackburni@, BAIRD P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 275.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 1861, 364; Reprint, 6.—BAIRD, BREWER and Rıpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874,

234.

Dendreca blackburnie, WuUEATON, Food of Birds, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 563;
Reprint, 3.—LANGDOoN, Cat Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat,
Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Motacilla blackburnie, GMKLIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 977.

Sylvia blackburnie, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 527.

Sylvicola blackburnie@, JARDINE, “ Ed. Wils. 1832.”

Dendrosca tlackburnie, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1859, 363.

Male, in spring: back black, more or less interrupted with yellowish; crown black, with

a central orange spot; a broad black stripe throngh the eye, enclosing ihe orange under

eyelid; rest of head, with whole throat, most brilliant orange, or flame color; other under

parts whitish, more or less tinged with yellow, and sides streaked with black; wing
bars fused into a large white patch; tail blotches white, occupyiug nearly all the outer
feathers; billand feet dark. Female and young male: upper parts olive and black,
streaked ; superciliary line and throat clear yellow fading ivsensibly on the breast ; lower
eyelid yellow, confined in the dusky ear-patch ; wing patch resolved into two bars; tail-
blotches nearly as extensive as in the adult male, the outer feathers showing white on

the outer webs at base. Size of wstiva. ,

Habitat, Eastern North America. South to Mexico. Central and South America to

Ecuador. Utah. New Mexico. Bahamas.

Regular spring and fallmigrant. Abundant. This beautiful warbler,
by many considered the most attractive of the family, arrives from the
south about the end of the first week in May. The first to appear are
males in high plumage. These frequent the wooded banks of streams and
are usually solitary birds accompanying other species. In the course of
another week females and less highly colored males arrive, often in large

BLACK-POLL WARBLER. 253

flocks. These frequent the tops of trees in mixed woodland; oak and
maple trees seem to be their favorite resorts for food. They remain for a
few days only, though I have seen stragglers as late as the 30th of May,
In the fall they return in flocks of larger size than those of spring, fre-
quenting the same resorts, though keeping nearer the ground. Their fall
migration occupies most or all of September.

The Blackburnian Warbler breeds in the United States from New York
northward. Their nests are ssid to be placed in bushes, constructed of
grass, and lined with fur and feathers; the eggs are white, spotted with
purplish and brown.

DENDR@CA sTRIATA (Forst.) Bd.
Black-poll Wearbler.

Sylvia striata, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1835, 163, 102.

Sylvicola striata, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1053, 423; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. sci., vi, 1853,
395. u

Dendroica striata, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 291.—WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for
1860, 364, ; Reprint, 1861, 7.

Dendreca striata, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint,
1375, 3.— LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Suc. Nat Hist.,
i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Muscicapa striata, FORSTER, Philos. Trans., Ixii, 1772, 406, 428.

Sylvia striata, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., 1790, 527.

Sylvicola striata, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor. Am, ii, 1831, 218.

x

Male, in spring: upper parts thickly streaked with black and olivaceous ash ; whole
crown pure black; head below the level of the eyes, and whole under parts white, the sides
thickly marked with black streaks crowding forward on the sides of the neck to form
two s'ripes that converge to weet at base of the bill, cutting off the white of the cheeks
from that of the throat; wing bars aud tail blotches white; inner secondaries white
edged; primaries usually edged externally with olive; feet aud under maudible flesh
color, or pale yellowish; upper mandible black. Female, in spring: upper parts, includ-
ing the crown, greenish-olive, both thickly avd rather sharply black-streaked ; white
of under parts soiled anteriorly with very pale olivaceous-yellow, the streaks smaller and
not so crowded as in the male. Yvuung, closely resembling the adult female, but a
brighter and more greenish olive above, with fewer streaks, often obsolete on the crown ;
below more or less tinged with pale greenish yellow, the streaks very ebscure, some-
times altogether wanting; under tail coveits usually pure white; a yellowish supercil-
iary line; wing-bars tinged with the same color. Length 54-52; wing 23-3; tail 2-24.

Habitat, Eastern North America; west to Nebraska and Colorado; north to Green-
land; south to New Grenada. Cuba. Bahamas.

ha he ea

Migrant. Irregular or rare in spring, abundant and regular in the fall.
The Black-poll Warbler is considered by Mr. Dury as the rarest of the genus
in spring in the vicinity of Cincinnati. In this locality I have but once
found them in full force, spring of 1874, when they were in company

254 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

with the Bay-breasted Warblers, in beech woolland. Usually but two
or three are seen in spring, mostly males. They arrive from May 15 to
20. In the fall they are equally abundant with, and accompany the
Bay-breasted Warblers, which at this time they so much resemble. The
only difference in habit, that I have been able to notice, isthat the Black-
poll is sometimes to be found in hedges and open places, sometimes on
the ground, while the Bay-breasted Warbler confines itself almost exclu-
sively to the branches of forest trees. These two species are perhaps
the most abundant of the genus in the fall, and they remain during
nearly all of September and October.

The Black-poll Warbler breeds from the State of Maine northward.
The nest is described by Dr. Brewer as placed in thick spruce trees, on
the edges of woods, at a height of about eight teet from the ground. The
nest is large and bulky for the size of the bird, built of twigs of ever-
green trees fastened together with lichens and rootlets, lined with fine
grass. The eggs are five, and measure .72 by .50 They are white,
spotted with lavender, dark purple and reddish-brown.

DENDR@CA CASTANEA (Wils.) Bd.

Bay-breasted Warbler.

Sylvia castanea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 181; Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts,
xl, 1941, 23.

Sylvicola castanea, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 423; Proc. Philad. Acad Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.

Dendroica castanea, BARD, P.R. R. Rep. ix, 1853, 277.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1360, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendreca castanea, MAYNARD, Birds of Coos Co. N. H., and Oxfor.! Co. Me., Proc. Boston.
Soc. Nat. Hist , xiv, 1871, 366; Reprint, 1672, 11.—WHEAToN, Food of Birds, ete., "
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563; Reprint, 1875, 3—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,
5; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Sylvia castanea, WILSON, Am. Orn., ii, 1810, 97.

Sylvicola castanea, RICHARDSON, Rep. Br. Ass. for 1836 (1837), 172.

Dendreca castanea, LAWRENCE, Ann, Lyc. N. Y., vii, 1861, 322.

Male in spring: back thickly streake! with black and grayish olive; forehead and
‚sides of head black, enclosing a large deep chestnut patch ; a duller chestnut (exactly like a
blue bird’s breast) occupies the whole chin and throat, and extends, more or less inter-
rupted, along the entire sides of the body ; rest of ender parts ochrey or buffy whitish
a similar buffy area behind the ears; wing-bars and tail-spots ordinary ; bill and feet
blackish. The female in spring is more olivacious than the male, with the markings
less pronounced ; but always shows evident chestnut coloration ; and probably traces of
it persist in all adult birds in the fall. The young, however, so closely resemble young

BAY-BREASTED WARBLER. 255

striata, that is sometimes impossible to distinguish them with certainty. Castanea is,
however, tiuged with buffy or ucbrey below, instead of ths clear pale yellowish of
striata, moreover, castanea is usually not streaked on the sides at all. Size of striata.

Habitat, Eastern United States; north to Hudson Bay; south to Guatemala and
Darien; west to the Plains.

Irregular migrant in spring, abundant and regular in the fall. I have
found this warbler the most decidedly irregular of all our spring migrants
which can be considered at any time common, having taken it but one
‚season, spring of 1874, when, as stated, it accompanied the Black poll
Warblers in great numbers, and frequented beech aud mixed woodland.
It appears to be less active than most of the genus. Dr. Kirtland men-
tions having secured numbers of them, and does not mention any irregu-
larity. Mr. Read gives it as abundant, and states that he has “seen it as
late as the last of June.”

In the fall they are to be found in September and October, in great
numbers, remaining, with the Black-poll Warblers, later than any of the
genus, excepting the Yellow-rump. Sume fall specimens have the brown
of the sides redder than in spring, though not so extensive; but by far
the greater number of our fall birds cannot be distinguished at any dis-
tance, from D. striata, and a considerable proportion are difficult to dis-
tinguish from the young of striata. In addition to the diagnostic marks
given in the above description, it may be stated that the greenish of the
breast of young striata often shows obsolete streaks, while no streaks
whatever are to been on the brownish or butiy-whitish of castanea, except
perhaps, dusky centres on the under tail coverts. Mr. Langdon, in his
Revised List, gives the following important structural marks of distinc-
tion. “ A comparison of specimens of both species shows that the chin, or
feathered space between the forks of the lower mandible, is considerably
wider in castanea than in striata arguing a greater width of base of bill
in the former spzcies. The bill of castanea is generally the larger in
every way, but its greater width at base is especially evident.”

This warbler has been found breeding only in the most northern Uni-
ted States and northward. The nest is placed in a tree, and is said to be
large for the size of the bird, and to resemble the nest of the Purple
Finch. It is described as composed of fine twigs and moss, lined
with rovtlets, mossand hair. “ The eggs varied in length from .71 to .65
of an inch, and in breadth from .53 to 50. Their ground color was a blu-
‘ish green, thickly spotted with brown, and generally with a ring of
confluent blotches of brown and lilac around the larger end.”

‘

256 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

DENDREcA PENNSYLVANICA (L.) Bd.
Chestnut-sided Warbler.

Sylvia icterocephala, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 181; Am. Jour. Sci. and
Arts, xl, 1841, 23.

Sylvicola icterovephala, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 416; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
vi, 1053, 395.

Dendroica pennsylvanica, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 279. —WEEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep, for 1360, 361; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendreca pennsylvanica, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 563;
Reprint, 1375, 3.—Lana@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin.
Soc Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Chestnut-sided Warbler, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 68.

Motacilla pensylvanica, Linnaus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 333.

Motacilla icterocephala, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 334.

Sylvia icterocephala, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 538.

Sylvicola icterocephala, RICHARDSON, Rep. Br, Ass. for 1836 (1837), 172.

Dendreca pennsylvanica, SCLATER and SALVIN, Ibis, ii, 1860, 273.

Male, in spring: back streaked with black and pale yellow (sometimes ashy or whitish)
whole crown pure yellow, immediately burdered with white, then enclosed in black ; sides
of head and neck and whole under parts pure gohite, the former with an irregular black
crescent before the eye, one horn extending backward over the eye to border the yellow
crown and be dissipated on the sides of ithe nape, the other reaching downward and
backward tv connect with a chain of pure chestnut streaks that run the whole length of
the body, tbe under eyelid and auriculars being left white; wing-bands generally fused
into one large patch, and, like the edging uf the inner secondaries, much tinged with
yellow; tail spots white, as usual; bill blackish; feet brown. Female in spring: quite
similar; colors less pure; black loral crescent obscure or wanting; chestnut streaks
thinner. Young, above, including the crown, clear yellowish-green, perfectly uniforn:,
or back with slight dusky touches; no distinct head-markings; below entirely white
from bill to tail, or else showiug a trace of chestnut streaks on the sides; wing-bands
clear yellow, as iu the adult; this is » diagnostic feature, shared by no other species,
taken in connection with the continuously white under parts; bill light colored below.
Length 5-54; wing 24; tail 2.

Habitat, Eastern United States and Canada; south tou Panama. Bahamas.

Not very common spring and fall migrant in Middle Ohio. Mr.
Langdon gives it as quite common in the fall, in the vicinity of Cincin-
nati. Summer resident in Northeastern Chio, where it breeds. The
Chestnut-sided Warbler is to be found early in May in small numbers in
woods, rarely in the gardens of the city. It is one of the most beautiful
birds of the family. Mr. Read states (1. c. Fam. Vis.) that it remains to
breed in considerable numbers in Northern Ohio, and that he found the
“nest in an almost impenetrable thicket, placed in the fork of a slender
shrub, four or five feet frum the ground,” and that it contained three
eggs, nearly white. It has since been found to breed regularly.

BLACK AND YELLOW WARBLER. 257

Dr. Brewer describes the nest as built of “strips of the bark of the
smaller vegetables, strengthened by a few stems and bits of dried grasses,
and lined with woolly vegetable fibres and a few soft hairs of the smaller
animals.” The eggs are “rich creamy-white, and are beautifully spotted,
chiefly about the larger end, with two shades of purple and purplish-
brown. They measure .65 by .49 of an inch.”

DENDRECA MACULOSA (Gm.) Bd.

Black and Yellow Warbler.

Sylvia magnolia, WILSON, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 63.

Sylvia maculosa, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 181.

Sylvicola maculosa, AUDUBON, B. Am., ii, 1841, 65.—ReEAD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 415;
Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Dendroica maculosa, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 285.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 1861, 364; Reprint, 6.—BAırD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874,
233. \

Dendreca maculosa, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 563 ;
Reprint, 3.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Motacilla maculosa, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 984.

Sylvia maculosa, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 536.

Sylvicola maculosa SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 213.

Dendreca masulosa, SCLATER, Proc. Zoöl, Soc., 1859, 363.

Male, in spring: back black, the feathers more or less skirted with olive; rump yellow ;
crown clear ash, bordered by black in front to the eyes, behind the eyes by a white stripe;
forehead and sides of the head black, continuous with that of the back, enclosing the
white under eyelid; entire under parts (except white under tail coverts) rich yellow,
thickly streaked across the breast and along the sides with black, the pectoral streaks
crowded and cutting off the definitely bounded immaculate yellow throat from the yel-
low of the other under parts; wing-bars white, generally fused into one patch; tail
spots small, rectangular, at the middle of the tailand on all the feathers except the central pair;
bill black; feet brown. Female, in spring: quite similar; black of back reduced to
spots in the grayish olive; ash of head washed with olive; other head markings ob-
scure; black streaks below smaller and fewer. Young quite different; upper parts
ashy olive; no head-markings whatever, and streaks below’ wanting, or confined to a
few small ones along the sides, but always known by the yellow rump, in connection
with extensively or completely yellow under parts (except white under tail-coverts) and
small tail spots near the middle of all the feathers except the central. Small, 5 inches
or less; wing 24; tail 2.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America to Labrador, Hudson’s Bay, Great Slave
Lake, etc.; west to Colorado; south to New Granada. Cuba. Bahamas.

Abundant and regular spring and fall migrant in Middle Ohio; sum-
mer resident in small numbers in Northeastern Ohio. Wilson first
saw this bird on the Little Miami, near its mouth. Given by Mr.
Langdon as a spring and fall migrant; common in September. In this

17

to

58 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

locality the Black and Yellow Warbler arrives during the first week in
May, and frequents woods and banks of streams, and sometimes visits
the gardens of thecity. It is usually found feeding in the undergrowth,
and lower branches of trees, and is very active; its bright colors, and
neat appearance, as it hops from branch to branch, make it one of the
most attractive birds of the family. I have seen it here during the first
week in June, which indicates its breeding at no great distance. Mr.
Reed (l. c. Fam. Vis.) says “some linger with us and doubtless raise
their young here, as I have observed it during the middle of summer,
evidently procuring food for their young, though I was unable to find
their nest.”

They begin to return in August, and usually have all left this latitude
by the 1st of October.

The Black and Yellow Warbler has bsen found breeding from Western
New York northward to Labrador. The nest is usually placed in a low
spruce, but a few feet from the ground. It is constructed of twigs, root-
lets, and grass. The eggs are dull white, sparsely marked with lilac and
umber. They measure .62 by .51.

Denpraca TIGRINA (Gm.) Bd.
Cape May Warbler.

Sylvia maratima, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 163, 181; Am. Jour. Sci. and Arts,
xl, 1841, 23.

Sylvicola maritima, ReaD, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 415; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Dendroica tigrina, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendraca tigrina, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio. Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Ro-
print, 1875, 4.—Lanaq@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 5.

Perissoglossa tigrina, LANGDON, Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1679, 171; Re-
print, 5.

Motacilla tigrina, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 985.

Sylvia maritima, WILSON, Am. Orn., vi, 1812, 99.

Sylvicola maritima, JARDINE, “Ed. Wilson, 1832.”

Dendroica tigrina, BaıRD, Birds N. Am., 1853, 286,

Dendreca tigrina, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Sac., 1861, 71.

Perissoglossa tigrina, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1865, 181.

Male, in spring: back yellowish olive, with dark spots; erown blackish, more or less
interrupted with brownish; ear-paich orange-brown; chin, throat, and posterior portion
of a yellowish superciliary line, tinged with the same; a black loral line; rump and
under parts rich yellow, paler on belly and crissum, the breast and sides streaked with
black; wing-bars fused into a large whitish patch ; tail blotches large, on three pairs of
retrices; bill and feet black. Female in spring: somewhat similar, but lacks the dis-
tinctive head markings; the under parts are paler and less streaked ; the tail spots small
or obscure; the white on the wing less. Young: an insignificant-looking bird, re-
sembling an overgrown Ruby-crowned Kinglet without its crest; obscure greenish olive

PRAIRIE WARBLER. 259

above, rump olive yellow, under parts yellowish-wbite; breast and sides with the
streaks obscure or obsolete; little or no white on wings, which are edged with yellow-
ish ; tail-spots very small. Length 5-54; wing 22; tail24.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British America to Hudson’s Bay; west to the
Mississippi. West Indies.

Rare spring and fall migrant in May and September. But little can
be said of the Cape May Warbler in this State. Dr. Kirtland observed
it picking insects from cherry blossoms. I have taken it on two occa-
sions only. In May a female was secured while on the ground in a grove
of sycamore trees on the banks of the Scioto, and in September a young
male was taken while feeding in low trees on the river bank. Both
were solitary birds. I have seen specimens from Sandusky.

No North American examples of the nest and eggs are described.
Prof. Baird makes this species the type of a new genus, Perissoglossa,
the distinguishing characters of which are the slender, acute, and obso-
letely notched bill, with its commissure gently arched or curved from
the base; the tongue lengthened, narrow, deeply bifid, and deeply lacer-
ated or fringed externally at the end; the edge, along the median por-
tion, folded over on the upper surface, but not adherent.

DENDR@CA DISCOLOR (V.) Bd.
Prairie Warbler.

Sylvicola discolor, AUDUBON, B. Am., ii, 1841, 68.—ReEAD, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 423; Proc.
Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Dendroica discolor, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep for 1860, 364 ; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendreca discolor, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Re-.
print, 1875, 4.—LanGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Jour, Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist.,i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

Sylvia discolor, VIEILLOT, Orn. Am. Sept., iii, 1807, 37.

Sylvicola discolor, JARDINE, ‘‘ Ed. Wilson, 1832.”

Dendroica discolor, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 290.

Dendreca discolor, A. and E. NEWTON, Ibis, i, 1859, 144.

Yellow-olive; back with a patch of brick red spots; forehead, superciliary line, two
wing-bars and entire under parts, rich yellow; a V-shaped black mark on side of head,
its upper arm running through the eye, its lower arm connecting with a series of black
streaks along the whole sides of the neck and body ; tail blotches very large, occupying
most of the inner web of the outer feathers. The sexes are almost exactly alike, and
the young only differ in not being so bright, and in having the dorsal patch and head-
markings obscure. Size small, 43-5; wing 24; tail 2.

Habitat, Eastern United States north to New England; west to Kansas. West In-
dies.

Rare spring and fall migrant in Southern and Middle Ohio. Summer
resident in Northern Ohio. Audubon gives Lake Erie as the northern

260 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

limit of this bird in the interior. It is not given by Kirtland in his
list in 1838, but in 1852 (see page 193) he states that it breeds regularly
in the vicinity of Cleveland. Mr. Read (l. c. Fam. Vis.) includes it in
his list, apparently on the authority of Audubon, and in Proc. Philad.
Acad., says it “occasionally nests here,” probably referring to Dr. Kirt-
land for authority. Mr. Langdon gives it asa “rare migrant in May.”
Dr. Jasper took a specimen in this vicinity several years since. I have
never met with it. It appears to be rare everywhere west of the Alle-

ghenies.

It is said to frequent old fields with cedars and scrub pines, and to be
peculiar in its notes and manners. The nest is placed in a low bush; it
is built of leaves, fibres of bark, and vegetables, and lined with fine
fibres and horse-hair. The eggs are from three to five, white, spotted
with lilac, purple, and umber, and measure .68 by .48.

DENDR&cA DOMINICA (L.) Bd.

var. ALBILORA (Ridgway.)
White-browed Yellow-throated Warbler.

Sylvia pensilis, KIRTLAND, Am. Jour. Sci. and Arts, xl, 1841, 21.

Sylvicola pensilis, READ, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 415; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Dendroica superciliosa, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 290.—WHEAToN, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 1861, 364; Reprint, 6.

Dendroica dominica, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1865, 210.

Dendroca dominica, COUES, Key, 1872, 104; Birds of N. W., 1874, 66.WHEATON, in Coues’
Birds of N. W., 233,—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6.

Dendroica dominica, var albilora, RIDGWAY, Am. Nat., vii, 1873, 606.—BAIRD, BREWER and
Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 241.

Dendroaca dominica, var albilora, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 1875, 564; Reprint, 4.—LANGDON, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 113; Re-
print, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 171; Reprint, 5.

Yellow-throated Wood Warbler, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218.

Motacilla dominica, Linnzzvus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 334.

Motacilla superciliosa, BODDERT, Tab. Pl. El., 1783, 43.

Motacilla pensilis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 960.

Sylvia pensilis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 520.

Sylvicola pensilis, RICHARDSON, Rep. Br. Ass. for 1836 (1837), 172.
Dendroica dominica, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1865, 209.

Dendreca dominica, Cours, Proc. Ess. Inst., v, 1868, 270.

Upper parts ash-gray, without streaks, the forehead and sides of vertex black. A su-
perciliary line extending from nostril to nape, wholly white. Chin and throat yellow,
margined laterally with blackish, the yellow of chin bordered narrowly next to the bill
with white. Cheeks black, separated from the ash of the neck by a white patch. Eye-

WHITE-BROWED YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, 261

lids and infraocular crescent white Other under parts and two bars on wings white,
sides streaked with black. Bill (from nostril) 35, tarsus 60, wing 2.70, tail 2.20.

The above description is Mr. Ridgway’s. Var. dominica differs from albilora in having
the “‘superciliary stripe anterior to the bill wholly bright yellow, yellow of chin and
maxille extending to the bill,” and in the following measurements: bill (from nostril)
45, wing 2.60, tail 2.

Habitat, var. albilora, in summer, Mississippi region of United States, north to Lake
Erie, and Detroit, Michigan; in winter, Mexico, Guatemala, Yuvatan and Colima.
Var. dominica, Atlantic United States north to Washington, D.C. Connecticut. Massa-
chusetts. West Indies.

I apprehend that few of our specimens of var. albilora will be found to
correspond exactly in coloration with the type described by Mr. Ridg-
way. Ihave never seen a spring specimen which had no trace of yellow
in the loral line. Some are entirely white on one side, but have yellow
on the other. Usually the middle of the loral line on both sides is yellow.
The same remarks apply to the white bordering the maxille. Some
young birds in August and September show the loral line entirely white
on both sides. On the other hand, the presence of some white in the
loral line of all our specimens, and the measurements, readily distin-
guish them from typical dominica

Not rare summer resident ; common during the spring migration. This
is the first of the family to arrive in spring. It is always to be seen be-
fore the Yellow-rumped and Yellow Warblers make their appearance,
sometimes before the last snow and ice. I have seen them in consider-
able numbers on the 13th of April, and have known of its occurrence as
early as April 9th. When on their migrations they confine themselves
almost exclusively to the trees which skirt the streams, and move north-
ward by day with considerable rapidity. During the whole day their
characteristic song, tswee-a, tswee-a, tswee a, tswee, tswee, tswee, tu-wee, may be
heard, sometimes at a distance of a quarter of a mile, as the birds feed
in the sycamore and elm trees. At such times their capture isa matter
of some difficulty, as they spend most of their time in the topmost branches
of the tall sycamores or far out over the water. They seem to delight in
baffling pursuit by flying from one clumpof trees to another on the opposite
side of the stream. For this reason, the better plan is to wait for them in
some sycamore grove or under a budding elm. They are seldom seen in
woodland, though they not unfrequently visit the shade trees and gardens
of the city. They are much more abundant during the spring migration
than at any other time. In this locality it is not uncommon to see a
dozen in a morning’s walk, about one-third of which may be captured.
I have had no opportunity of observing the bird elsewhere except at Co-
shocton, where the Walhonding and Tuscarawas Rivers unite to form the

262 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

Muskingum. Here, May 10, 1876, I found them abundant in the same
situations as above described, and think it not unlikely that a consider-
able number of the birds breeding about Cleveland migrate by way of
the Muskingum Valley.

During the breeding season they are to be found on the banks of the
smaller streams and creeks, or if about larger rivers, near the swift
channels forming islands, where the sycamore trees reach far over the
water. In ravines where there is but little water they may also be
found, but the necessary sycamore tree is always present. Though I
have never discovered the nest and eggs, I have seen the parents feed
their young in the latter week in June and first in July. I have no
description of the nest and eggs of var. albilora. Mr. Brewster (Bull.
Nutt. Orn Club, ii, 1877, 102) gives an interesting account of var.
dominica, from which I extract the following description of the nest and
eggs. “This nest was placed at the height of thirty-five feet from
the ground, on the stout horizontal branch of a southern pine, in a
thinly scattered grove or belt that stretched along the side of a densely
wooded hummock. It was set flatly on the limb—not saddled to
it—nearly midway between the juncture with the main trunk and the
extremity of the twigs, and was attached to the rough bark by silky
fibres. It is composed externally of a few short twigs and strips of bark
bound together by Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) and a silky down
from plants. The lining consists of a few hair-like filaments of moss
and soft cottony vegetable down. The whole structure is neatly and
firmly compacted, though essentially simple in appearance, and, from the
nature of the component materials, of a grayish inconspicuous color. It
measures externally 2.80 inches in diameter by 1.70 in depth; inter-
nally 1.77 inches in diameter by 1.30 in depth. The eggs, four in num-
ber, measure .69 by .53 of an inch. They are quite regularly ovate, with
fine dottings of pale lilac scattered thinly and evenly over a grayish-
white ground color. A few spots or blotches of burnt sienna occur about
the larger ends, while occasional irregular pen-like lines of dark brown
diversify the remaining surface.” Other nests are described as being
constructed in a mass of Spanish moss, the cavity being lined with moss,
grasses, and plant down.

Young birds in September resemble adults, but are of a considerably
lighter shade and softer tone in color, the black streaks somewhat ob-
scured and softened by whitish edgings, and the whole bird presenting
a richer and cleaner appearance.

KIRTLAND’S WARBLER. 263

DENDR@CA KIRTLANDI Baird.
a Kirtland’s Warbler.

Sylvicola kirtlandii, BAIRD, Ann. Lye. N. Y., v, 1852, 217, pl. vi.—CaAssın, Illust., i, 1855,
278, pl. 47.—ZUCHOLD, J.f. O., 1854, 355 (copies desc “ip. )

Dendroica kirtlandii, BaırD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 267, 286; Rev. A. Birds, 1265, 206.
KIRKPATRICK (?), Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 179, June 9.—WuHEaTON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 1861, 364, 374; Reprint, 6, 16.

Dendreca kirtlandit, Couns, Key, 1872, 104; Birds N. W., 1874, 753. (Hamilton Co., O.)

Dendroica kirtlandi, BAIRD, BREWER and Riveway, N. A. Birds, i, 1674, 221.

Dendreca kirtlandi, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 564 ;
Reprint, 4; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 58 —LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1677, 6;
Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat: Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.—Coues, Birds of
Col. Val., 1878, 249.—Jorpan, Man. Vert., 1878, 66.—PURDIE, Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iv, 1879, 185.

“Above slate blue, the feathers of the crown with a narrow, tbose of the back with a
broader, streak of black ; a narrow frontlet involving the lores, the anterior end of the
eye and space beneath it, black; the rest of the eyelids white; under parts clear yellow,
almost white on the under tail coverts, the breast with small spots and the sides with
short streaks of black; greater and middle wing coverts, the quills and tail feathers,
edged with dull whitish; two outer feathers with a dull white spot ‘on the inner web H
5.50; wing 2.80; tail 2.67.” (Baird.)

Habitat, Ohio and Michigan. Bahamas. Wisconsin ?

Very rare. Known only as a spring migrant in the United States.
Probably v inter resident in the Bahamas. Mr. H. A. Purdie (Bull. Nutt.
Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 185) records the last capture of a specimen, and
enumerates the examples previously known, as follows:

“Mr. Adolphe B. Covert, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, writes me that on May 16 last he
shot a female of this much desired warbler, his second capture of the species. This re-
cent specimen I make to be the ninth known to science, viz:

“1. Male, caught on a vessel at sea off Abaco, Bahamas, by Dr. Samuel Cabot, of
Boston, the second week in October, 1841. Not identified until several years after the
type specimen was described.

“2, Male taken by Dr. J. P. Kirtland near Cleveland, Ohio, May 13, 1851. Type of
the species.

“3. Male obtained by R. K. Winslow near Cleveland, Ohio, in June (May ?), 1860.

“4, Male shot by Charles Dury at Cincinnati, Ohio, the first week in May, 1672.

“5. Female, collected by A. B. Covert, at Ann Arbor, Michigan, May 15, 1875.

“6and7. Male and female, taken by Messrs, William and John Hall, at Rockport,
Cuyahoga county, Ohio, May, 1878.

“8. Female, collected by Charles R. Corey, on Andros Island, Bahamas, January 9,
1879.

“9, Mr. Covert’s specimen above described.

“Three or four others, I believe, have been noted, but were not secured. This bird
and Helminthophoga leucobronchialis have about an even record.”

264 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

In regard to the first, second, and third specimens known, Professor
Baird says (Rev. Am. Birds, 1865, 207):

“Until recently the only authenticated and known specimen of this species was the
type, No. 4,363, killed by Dr. Kirtland, near Cleveland, Ohio, May, 1851, and prepared
by myself. I have, however, lately found a second skin in the collection of Dr. Samuel
Cabot, Jr., of Boston, taken at sea between the island of Abaco and Cuba. The plumage
is not quite so matured as in the type, and lacks the dark spots on the jugulum; it is,
however, otherwise very similar. A third specimen (female) is reported in the Ohio
Farmer for June 9, 1860, as killed that season near Cleveland, and preserved by Mr. R.
K. Winslow, who states that the late Wm. Case, of Cleveland, also killed a specimen,
but did not preserve it. Dr. Hoy also thinks that he has seen it at Racine. A careful
search in the vicinity of Cleveland, about the middle of May, will probably be rewarded
by the discovery of additional specimens.”

The above reference to the Ohio Farmer, June 9th (ix, 1860, 179), pre-
sumably from the pen of Jno. Kirkpatrick, is as follows:

“A specimen of this rare bird (Dendroica kirtlandii) was shot a short time ago near the
‘old river bed,’ Cleveland, by Mr. Darby, of University Heights. It was identified by
R. K. Winslow, preserved and mounted by him, and proved to be a female. Until now
there was but one specimen of this bird known, that obtained by Dr. Kirtland, now in
the collection of the Smithsonian, at Washington. It was first described by Mr. Baird
in the Annals of the New York Lyceum (1852), aud afterwards in Cassin’s Illustrations.

“The present specimen is more lead-colored on the upper parts than Cassin’s figure,
but clearly resembles the coloring in another plate which we have not seen. Mr. Wins-
low informs us that Wm. Case, Esq , once shot a specimen, but it was so badly injured
as to be unfit for preserving.”

This specimen unaccountably disappeared from the possession of Mr.
Winslow in a few days after its reception, and it has never been heard
of since.

The fourth specimen, Mr. Dury’s, is finely mounted, and ornaments
his choice collection of Ohio birds.

The sixth and seventh specimens were recorded by myself (Bull. Nutt.
Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 58), as follows:

“I have been informed by Mr. R. K. Winslow and other ornithologists of Cleveland,
Ohio, that two specimens of Dendreca kirtlandi were taken at Rockport, Cuyahoga
county, Ohio, by William and John Hall, during the past season. One of these is a fe-
male, the first of the sex taken. Both were captured within two miles of the spot where
the original specimen was taken by Dr. Kirtland. A third specimen is said to have been
taken in that vicinity about the same time, but I was unable to obtain any definite in-
formatioı: concerning it.”

If not mistaken, I was informed that these birds were observed near
the ground, on brush-heaps and undergrowth,

Mr. Corey, in recording the specimen taken by him on Andros Island
Bahamas (Bull. Nutt. Orn, Club, iv, 1879, 118), gives the only deser

YELLOW RED-POLL WARBLER. 265

tion furnished of the female in winter plumage. The only points of
essential difference, compared with the description given above, are,
“above bluish-ash, the feathers of the crown with a narrow, those of the
middle of the back with a broad, streak of dark brown. A narrow semi-
circular ring of black surrounds the eye, touching its anterior part; eye-
lids white. Length, 5.50; wing, 2.75; tail, 2.50; tarsus, 80.”

The place of breeding, nest, and eggs of this bird remain to be dis-
covered.

DENDR@CA PALMARUM (Gm.) Bd.

var. PALMARUM (Ridgway.)
Yellow Red-poll Warbler.
Sylvia petechia, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.
Sylvicola ruficapilla, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 407; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci, vi,
1853, 395.
Dendroica palmarum, BAıRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 289.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6.
Dendreca palmarum, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Re-
print, 1875, 4.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6.
Dendreca palmarum, var. palmarum, LANGDoN, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.
Motacilla palmarum, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 95.
Sylvia pelechia, WILSON, Am. Oro., vi, 1812, 19.
Sylvicola ruficapilla, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1838, 22.
Dendreca palmarum, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1861, 71.
Dendreca palmarum, var. palmarum, Ripaway, Bull. Nutt. Oro. Club, i, 1876, 84.

In spring: brownish-olive, rump and upper tail coverts brighter yellowish-olive, back
obsoletely streaked with dusky, crown chestnut; superciliary line and entire under parts
rich yellow, breast and sides with reddish-brown streaks, somewhat as in the Summer
Warbler; a dusky loral line running through the eye; no white wing-bars, the wing cov-
erts and inner quills being edged with yellowish-brown; tail spots ai very end of inner
webs of two outer pairs of tail feathers only, and cut squarely off—a peculiarity distin-
guishing the species in any plumage. Female not particularly different from the male.
Young, an obscure looking species, brownish above like a young Yellow-rump, but
upper tail coverts yellowish-olive, and under tail coverts apt to show quite bright yellow
in contrast with the dingy yellowish-white or brownish-white of other under parts;
crown generally showing chestnut traces; but in any plumage, known by absence of
white wing-bars and peculiarity of tail spots. Length 54, wing 24, tail 2}.

Very common, sometimes irregular, spring and fall migrant. Ar-
rives with or shortly after the Yellow-rump in spring and fall; usually
departs sooner in the fall. More of them are seen in spring than in
fall. They frequent the borders of streams, weedy fields, and the edges
of thickets, and are frequerttly in company with Yellow-rum:s, Blue-
birds, and Sparrows. They are decidedly terrestrial in their habits, and
have the habit, in common with the members of the next genus, of tip-

266 BIRDS—SYLVICOLID.A.

ping their tails, like the Titlarks and Sandpipers, as they walk. They
are rarely found in woodland, and, though in some localities they are
said to visit towns and cities, I have never seen them except in the open
fields. Another peculiarity is the situation of their nest, which differs
from that of all other members of the genus, in being placed on the
ground.

This species breeds from Maine northward. The site chosen is said
usually to be the edge of a swampy thicket. The nest is small, con-
structed of grass, fibres of bark, and moss, and lined with down and
feathers. The eggs are yellowish- or creamy-white, blotched, chiefly
about the greater end, with lilac, purplish, and reddish-brown. They
measure .70 by .55.

The description of the bird above given is sufficient to identify this
species, but Mr. Ridgway finds certain constant differences between birds
of the Atlantic and those of the Mississippi Valley region. In Bull.
Nutt. Orn. Club, i, 1876, 81, he considers these differences and divides
the species into two sub-species, palmarum and hypochrysea. The distinc-
tive characters which he gives are as follows:

‘‘Sub-species palmarum.—Wing, 2.35-2.65 (2.52); tail, 2,05-2.45 (2.24); bill, from nos-
tril, .27- 32 (.29); tarsus, .71-.80 (.76). Yellow of lower parts interrupted by a whitish
abdominal area; breast streaked uniformly across, the streaks being linear and dusky,
with little, if any, tinge of chestnut; lower eyelid whitish; back dull olive-brown,
Habitat, Mississippi Valley (north to the Great Slave Lake) and West Indies. Casual
in certain Atlantic States.

“Sub-species hypochrysea.—Wing, 2.50-2.80 (2.69); tail, 2.25-2.55 (2.43); bill, from
nostril, .28-.32 (.30); tarsus, .75-.80 (,79). Yellow of lower parts entirely continuous, and
much brighter; streaks‘confined mostly, or wholly, to the sides of breast, broadly tear-
shaped, wholly reddish-chestnut; lower eye-lid bright yellow; back greenish-olive.
Habitat, Atlantic\States, from East Florida to Nova Scotia.”

Dr. Coues gives as a diagnostic mark of this species, in any plumage,
the presence of tail spots at the tip of the two outer tail feathers only,
but this does not hold good with var. palmarum. All specimens of my
collection have the third feather narrowly tipped with white. This
may prove a constant character of var. palmarum.

DENDR&cA Pinus (Wils,) Bd.
Pine-creeping Warbler. .

Dendroica pinus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6.

Dendreca pinus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint,
1875, 4.-LaNGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6. ‘

Sylvia pinus, WILSON, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 25.

Dendroica pinus, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 277.

Dendreca pinus, MCILWRAITH, Proc. Ess. Inst., v, 1866, 86.

GOLDEN-CROWNED THRUSH. 267

Uniform yellowish-olive above, yellow below, paler or white on belly and under tail
coverts, shaded and sometimes obsoletely streaked with darker on the sides; supereiliary
line yellow; wing-bars white; tail blotches confined to two outer pairs of feathers, large,
oblique. Female and young similar, duller; sometimes merely olive-gray above and
sordid whitish below. The variations in precise shade are interminable, but the species
may always be known by the lack of any special sharp markings whatever, except
the superciliary line; and by the combination of white wing-bars with large ob:ique
tail spots confined to the two outer pairs of feathers. Length, 5} to nearly 6 inches.

Habitat, Eastern province of North America, north to Canada and New Brunswick;
west to Missouri and Kansas. Bermudas. Bahamas.

Not common spring and fall migrant. April, May, and September.
Not included in Dr. Kirtland’s or Mr. Read’s lists. Inserted in my list
of 1861 on the authority of Mr. Winslow. Mr. Langdon gives it as a rare
migrant in April. I know of but. three specimens from this vicinity,
taken by Dr. Theo. Jasper, Oliver Davie, and Arnold Boyle, in May. I
have seen it but twice, once in spring in company with Yellow-rumps,
and one individual in September in a garden of this city, on the ground.

This species, as its name indicates, prefers pine woods, which may be
the reason why so few have been found in Southern and Middle Ohio.
It is said to breed throughout its United States range, but no instance of
its breeding in this State has been recorded.

The nest is said to be built in pine trees, and near the top. It is con-

‘structed of strips of the bark of cedar or other trees and fine grasses, and
lined with down, hair, and feathers.

Dr. Brewer describes the eggs as of a rounded oval shape, with an
average diameter of .72 of an inch, and a breadth of .55. “The ground-
color is a bluish-white. Scaitered over this are subdued tintings of a
fine delicate shade of purple, and upon this are distributed dots and
blotches of a dark purplish-brown, mingled with a few lines almost black.”

Genus SIURUS. Swainson.

Bill compressed, distinctly notched. Rictal bristles very short. Wings moderate,
pointed, longer than the nearly even tail; first quill scarcely shorter than the second.
Under tail coverts reaching within about one-half inch of end of tail. Tarsi about as
long as the skull, considerably exceeding the middle toe. Hind toe short, equal to the
lateral, its claw as long as the digit. Wings and tail immaculate.

Siu'Rus AURICAPILLUS (L.) Sw.
Golden Crowned Thrush.

Sylvia aurocapilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 163.

Turdus aurocapillus, READ, Fam, Visitor, iii, 1853, 399; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395. :

Seiurus aurocapillus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4.

268 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

Siurus auricapillus, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

Motacilla aurocapilla, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 334.

Turdus aurocapillus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., i, 1790, 328.

Sylvia aurocapilla, BONAPARTE, Journ. Philad. Acad., iv, 1824, 35.

Seiurus aurocapillus, Swainson, Zool. Journ, iii, 1827, 171.

Siurus auricapillus, MOORE, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1859, 55.—Coues, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, ii,
1877, 29.

Crown orange-brown, bordered with two black stripes, no superciliary line. Above,
bright olive green; below pure white, thickly spotted with dusky on breast and sides;
a narrow maxillary line of blackish; under wing coverts tinged with yellow ; a white
eye-ring ; legs flesh color. Sexes alike; young similar. Length 54-63; wing 3; tail 23.

Habitat, Eastern North America; north to Alaska; south to West Indies and Central
America; west to the Rocky Mountains.

Common summer resident. Arrives during the last week in April,
and remains until September. Breeds. Prefers deep and solitary woods
and ravines for its summer residence, but during the migrations may be
found in almost any woodland. Sometimes during the spring migration
it visits the gardens of the city.

The Golden-crowned Thrush or Oven Bird is noted for its loud, monoton-
ous and emphatic song, which resembles the syllables te cha, te-cha, te-cha,
te-cha, repeated with a vehemence which is almost startling. It is also
said to have a prolonged, finely modulated and very sweet song, but this
I have never heard.

This species, with the other two members of the genus, are the most
terrestrial of the family. They spend most of their time searching for
food on the ground, where they do not hop, but walk, and have the habit
of wagging their tails like the Titlark and Sandpiper.

The nest of this bird,is placed on the ground, and is remarkable in
being roofed over, having an entrance on the side. It is usually placed
beside a fallen log, or in a depression on a hill-side. It is composed of
twigs, leaves, and moss. The eggs are from four to six, creamy white,
spotted with various shades of brown, red, and purple. They measure .82
by .55.

Sıurus nzvius (Bodd.) Cs.
Water Wagtail; Water Thrush.

Sylvia noveboracensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163181 (in part).

Turdus noveboracensis, READ, Family Visitor, iii, 1853, 399, (in part); Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395 (in part).

Seiurus noveboracensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4.

Siurus nevius, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878,
113; Reprint, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

‘ LARGE-BILLED WATER THRUSH. 369

Motacilla nevia, BODDERT, Tab. Pl. El., 1783, 47.

Motacilla noveboracensis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 958.

Sylvia noveboracensis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., 1790, 518.

Turdus (Seiurus) noveboracensis, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1832, 353.
Seiurus noveboracensis, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1838, 21.
Siurus noveboracensis, SCLATER and SALVIN, Ibis, i, 1859, 10.

Siurus nevius COUES, Bull. Nutt. Club, ii, 1877, 32.

Entire upper parts deep olivaceous brown; conspicuous superciliary line yellowish ;
below white more or less tinged with pale yellowish, thickly and sharply spotted with the
color of the back, except on lower belly and crissum; feet dark. Length 54-6; wing
24; tail 24; bill about 4.

Habitat, North America at large. Mexico, West Indies, Central, and much of South
America.

Common spring and fall migrant. Arrives during the last week in
April, and remains about a month. Returns in August and remains.
until October.

This and the following species have been confounded by the older
ornithologists, and in consequence the earlier Ohio accounts of each of
these birds is unsatisfactory. I have no authentic information of the
breeding of this species in the State, and there is a discrepancy in the
statements of the latest authorities as to its breeding range.

In this vicinity it is usually a solitary bird, migrating along the banks
of streams, in swampy woods and open wet places. I have seen them in
plowed fields on the edges of swamp thickets, and in one instance in
my garden. I have never heard the fine song which the bird is said to
have. Its ordinary note is a sharp chirp. and when suddenly disturked
it flies from the ground to the lower branches of a tree or to a fence,
uttering a sharp note not unlike the cry of the Solitary Sandpiper, with
which it frequently associates. Their habits are much those of the
Sandpipers, walking in the shallow water and running upon logs, wag-
ging their tails constantly. This species appears to be the most terres-
trial and aquatic of the genus. The nest, in location and construction,
resembles that of the Golden-crowned Thrush. The eggs are oblong oval,
measuring from .81 to .87 by .65 to .69. They are clear crystal white in
color, with lines, dots and blotches of umber-brown.

SIURUS MOTACILLA (V.) Cs.
Large-billed Water Thrush.

Sylvia noveboracensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838. 163, 181 (in part.)
Turdus noveboracensis, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 399 (in part); Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., vi, 1853, 395 (in part.)
“Seiurus ludovicidanus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363, 374; Reprint, 1861, 5, 16;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4,

270 BIRDS—-SYLVICOLIDA.

Siurus motacilla, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

Turdus movacilla, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., ii, 1807, 9.

Turdus ludovicianus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1832, 99.

Seiurus ludovicianus, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1338, 21.

Siurus motaciila, VouKs, Bull. Nutt. Club, ii, 1877, 33.

Very similar to the last; rather larger, averaging about 6, with the wing 3; bill
especially lounger and stouter, over 4, and tarsus nearly 1. Under parts white, only
faintly tinged, and chiefly on the flanks and crissum, with buffy yellow; the streaks
sparse, pale and not very sharp; throat, as well as belly and crissum, unmarked ; legs
pale.

Habitat, Eastern United States; north to Massachusetts and Michigan; west to Kan-
sas, Indian Territory, and Texas; south to Central America. Cuba. Jamaica.

Common summer resident, but of irregular distribution. Arrives
about the middle of April or earlier, and departs in August.

The Large billed Water Thrush is one of the birds which are not uni-
formly distributed, either when migrating or breeding. In general, it
may be said that as we approach the northern limit of the range of a
species, the individuals representing it become fewer, and, during the
breeding season, are only to be found in such localities as are preémin-
ently suited to their taste and wants. This appears to be true in this
State of the present species, the Yellow-throated, Prairie, and Pine-
creeping Warblers, White eyed Vireo, Whip-poor-will, and perhaps
others. When on their migrations they seem to pass rapidly from one
breeding locality to another, seldom making a stop at intermediate points.

In the immediate vicinity of this city, I know the Large-billed Water
Thrush only as a rare migrant, appearing sometimes as early as April 13,
and, with the Yellow-throated Warblers, the first of the family to arrive.
They are then found in wet woodlands and:along the muddy wooded
banks of streams, never in open places, as is the frequent habit of the
Smail-billed Water Thrush, nor are they as silent as that species.

The Large-billed Water Thrush was first introduced as an Ohio bird
in my list of 1861, on the authority of Mr. John Kirk patrick, who informed
me that it was found in the vicinity of Cleveland. Dr. Kirtland and
Mr. Read had confounded the two species. Mr. Langdon gives it as a
rather common summer resident in the vicinity of Cincinnati, and I
have seen specimens from Sandusky. My first acquaintance with the
bird in the breeding season was made June 19, 1875, in the “glen” at
Yellow Springs. Here I found them abundant, and busily engaged in
feeding half-grown Cowbirds. I atterwards found them in the ravines
above Worthington, in this county, where they were equally abundant,

LARGE-BILLED WATER THRUSH. 271

and making preparations for nesting. Here they were indiscriminately
in trees, on the ground, or wading on the level slaty bottoms of the shal-
low brooks. Frequently they mounted to the upper branches of high
trees overhanging the ravines, from whence their loud and mellow song
echoed along the winding banks with surpassing sweetness. But
whether on the gıound, in trees, or in the water, the constant tipping of
the tail and balancing of the body. is a reminder of the stiff jerk and
nod of the Tatler, which reappears with added grace and style in several
terrestrial and aquatic members of, the higher groups.

I have never seen the nest en of this bird, and copy the follow-
ing from Mr. Brewster’s account, in the Bulletin of the Nuttail Ornitho-
logical Ciub, iii, 1878, 133.

“The nest, taken with the female parent, May 6, contained six eggs, which had been
incubated afew days. The locality was the edge of a lonely forest pool in the depths
ot a cypress Swamp uear White River (Iudiana). A large tree had fallen into the shal-
low water, and the earth adhering to the roots, formed a nearly vertical, but somewhat
irregular wall, about six feet in height and ten or twelve in width. Near tne upper edge
of this, in a cavity amoug the finer roots, was placed the nest, which, but fur the situ-
atiou and peculiar character of its composition, would have been exceedingly couspicu-
ous. Its presence was first betrayed by the female, which darted off as one of our party
brushed by within a few feet. She alighted on a low branch a few rods distant, utter-
ing her sharp note of alarin, and vibrating her tail in the usual characteristic manner,
but otherwise evincing no particular anxiety or concern. The nest, which is before me,
is exceedingly large aud bulky, measuring externally 3.50 inches in diameter by 8 inches
in leugth, and 3.50 inches in depth. Its outer wall, a solid mass of soggy dead leaves,
plastered tightly together by the mud adhering to their surfaces, rises in the form of a
rounded parapet, the outer edge of which was nicely graduated to conform to the edge
of the earthy bank in which it was placed. In one corner of this mass, and well back,
is the nest proper, a neatly rounded, cup-shaped hollow, measuring 2.50 inches in depth.
The inner nest 1s composed of small twigs and green mosses, with a lining of dry grasses
aud a few hairs of squirrels or other animals, arranged circularly. The eggs found in
this nest are of a rouuded-oval shape, and possess a high polish. The ground-culor is
white, with a fleshy tint, About the greater ends are numerous large but exceedingly
regular blotches uf dark umber, with fainter sub-markings of pale lavender, while over
the remainder of their surface are thickly sprinsled dottings of reddish-brown. But
slight variation of marking occurs, and that mainly with regard to the relative size of
the blotches about the greater ends. They measure respectively .75 by 63, ‚75 by .64, .75
by .63, .76 by .62, .76 by .62, .75 by .61.”

GENUS OPORORNIS. Baird.

Wings much longer than tail; the first primary nearly or quite equal the Jon gest. Tarsi
elongated; hind claw as long as its digit. Otherwise, with the generic characters of
Siurus.

272 BIRDS—SYLVICOLID&.

OPORORNIS AGILıs (Wils.) Bd.
Connecticut Warbler.
Sylvia agilis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162, 182. E
Trichas agilis, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 423; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.
Oporornis agilis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.
Sylvia agilis, WILSON, Am. Orn., v, 1812, 64.
Trichas agilis, NUTTALL, Man., 2d ed., i, 1840, 463.
Oporornis agilis, BaıkD, Birds N. Am., 1858246.

Above, olive-green, becoming ashy on the head; below, from the breast yellow, olive-
shaded on the sides; chin, throat and breast grayish-ash; a whitish ring round eye;
wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; under mandible and feet pale ; no decided
markings anywhere. Length 54; wing 2%; tail 2.

Habitar, Eastern United States.

Rare spring and fall migrant, probably summer resident in Northern

‘Ohio.
„The Connecticut Warbler, nearly everywhere considered a rare bird,
has been taken, in varying numbers, from Virginia to Massachusetts in
the east, and from Illinois to Wisconsin in the west, and in nearly all
the intermediate States. It appears to be more common in the western
portions of its range, Mr. Nelson regarding it as equally common in
spring and fall in Northern Illinois. In most places it is particularly
rare in fall, but, for several seasons, was found by Messrs. Henshaw and
Brewater, abundant in the vicinity of Cambridge, Mass. It is usually
found near the ground, in swamp thickets.

It is given by Dr. Kirtland, in 1338, he having taken a single speci-
men. Mr. Langdon mentions a single specimen, taken by Mr. Dury, in
the vicinity of Cincinnati, in the spring of 1876. Dr. Darby, of Cleve-
land, has a specimen which flew in an open window of a house where
he was visiting. I have taken two specimens, both in the same up-
land woods; one, a young male, September 16, 1874, was shot from
a low branch of a young sapling, to which it flew, when alarmed,
from a thicket of blackberry bushes, a few feet distant. Its actions,
during the few moments that I observed it, were remarkably Thrush-
like. It concealed its head behind the trunk of the sapling, and sat
quiet in fancied security, while its body was entirely exposed. This
specimen had the chin and throat soiled whitish-buff, passing insensibly
into grayish on the auriculars, and brownish-olive on the breast, where
it formed a tolerably well defined band; other under parts yellow, with
more olive shading than in the adult; upper parts olive-green, tinged
with brownish on the head, neck, and upper back. The second specimen

KENTUCKY WARBLER. 273

was secured May 22, 1875, within a few yards of the spot where the first
was captured, in a low thicket of young blackberry bushes. It was
catching insects on the wing in a rather awkward manner, its actions
much resembling tho:e of a Bluebird similarly engaged.

Mr. Read seems to have been more fortunate in an opportunity of ob-
serving the habits of this species in summer than other writers. His
statement confirms that of Dr. Turnbull in regard to this species spending
the summer in the latitude of Pennsylvania. He says (1. c. Fam. Vis.):

“This species is described as very rare, but for two summers past I have noticed it as
very abundant in a field of dense brambles, in Andover, Ashtabula county. Ia its
habits it resembles the preceeding (Trichas marylandica), or rather the peculiar habits of
the genus are strikingly exhibited in this species. When first discovered, although
there was no dfficulty in finding it, it was several days before I could obtain a specimen
fit for examination; from its restless, fickle movements it was difficult to shoot, and
the first two or three obtained were torn completely to shreds from being within eight
or ten feet of the muzzle of the gun when shot. This was indeed the greatest difficulty,
for I could scarcely see one, so constantly were they at work beneath the thick foiiage,
unless it were almost under my nose. They undoubtedly nest with us in cousiderable
numbers.”

The nest and eggs have never been discovered.
!

OPORORNIS FoRMusus (Wils.) Bd.

Kentucky Warbler.

Sylvia formosa, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog , i, 1831, 190.

Myiodiocles formosus, AUDUBON, B. Am., ii, 1041, 19.

Sylvicola formosa, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 42; Proc Phila. Acad. Nat Sci, vi, 1853,
395. a!

Oporornis formosus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1661, 5; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564 ; Reprint, 1875, 4.—BairD, BREWER, and
Rıpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 293.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1859, 172; Reprint, 6; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv,
1879, 236.

Kentucky Warbler, KIRTLAÄND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 21z.

Sylvia formosa, WILSON, Am. Orn, iii, 1811, 85.

Sylvicola formosa, JARDINE, ‘Ed. Wilson, 1032.”

Mylodioctes formosus, AUDUBON, Syn., 1839, 50.

Oporornis formosus, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 247.

Clear olive-green; entire under parts bright yellow, olive-shaded along sides; crown
black, separated by a rich yellow superciliary line (which curls around the eye behind)
from a broad black bar running from bill below eye, and thence down the side of the
neck; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; feet flesh color; 52; wing 23-3;
tail 2-23. Young birds have the black obscure, if not wanting; in the fall, the black
feathers in the crown of the adult are skirted with ash.

Habitat, Eastern Province of the United States, especially in the Mississippi Valley;
north ‘to the Connecticut Valley; west to Kansas and the Indian Territory; south through
Mexico and Central America. Cuba.

18

274 i BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

Rare summer resident; in particular localities only. Breeds. Audu-
bon notes it as occurring in Southwestern Ohio. Dr. Kirtiand (l. c.,
quoted on page 193) mentions its breeding in the vicinity of Cleveland.
Mr. Langdon gives it as a rather common summer resident in the vicin-

ity of Cincinnati, frequenting upland thickets from May to September.
I have never met with it in this vicinity.
Mr. Ridgway (l. ce.) says:

“Tt is a very common summer bird in Southern Illinois, where it arrives in the Wabash
Valley towards the last of April. It is a wood-loving ‘species of terrestrial habits, like
the Seiurus aurocapillus, but generally frequents rather different situations from the latter
bird, Jiking better the undergrowth of ‘bottom’ woods than that of dry forests. In all
its wanuers it closely resembles the Seiuri, especially the two aquatic species, ludovicianus
and noveboracensis, having the same tilting motion of the body, and horizontal attitude
when perching, so characteristic of these birds.

“The usual note of this warbler is a sharp tship, almost precisely like that of the
Pewee, uttered as the bird perches on a twig near the ground, continually tilting its
body, or ia changed into a sharp rapid twitter as one chases another through the thicket.
Their song is very pretty, consisting of a fine whistie, delivered very much in the style
of the Cardival Grosback, though much finer in tone, and weaker.”

Mr Langdon (l. c. Bull.) gives the following interesting account of its
nesting:

“Although the Kentucky Warbler bas long been a well-known summer resident of
Southwestern Ohio, its nest and eggs have hitherto eluded the vigilant search of our
local ornithologists, and have, in conszquence, been classed among their especial desid-
erata. As the nesting habits of this species have been recorded in but a few instauces,
and only once in Ohio (Kirtland, 1. c.,), a notice of a nest and eggs recently taken near
Madisonville may be of interest to the readers of the Bulletin.

“The locality chosen for this nest was a gentle slope, well wooded and covered with
undergrowth, situated within a short distance of a small woodland stream on the border
of an open glade. The nest, which was placed on the ground at the root of a small elm
sapling, was concealed by a sparce growth of weeds, and consisted of two distinct por-
tions. The foundation was a saucer-shaped mass of beech and maple leaves loosely in-
terwoven with a few weed stems, and retained its shape sufficiently well to permit
careful handling without injury; surmounting this basal portion was the nest proper, a
rather bulky and inelegant structure, elliptical in shape, composed of dark-brown root-
lets and weed stems, with which were interwoven » few dried leaves. There was also
a trace of an effort at horse-hair lining, a half-dozen hairs perhaps being disposed around
its interior. Its measurements are as follows: Internal long diameter, 24 inches; in-
ternal short diameter, 2 inches; depth vi cavity, 14 inches; average thickness of nest
proper, about $ inch; ditto of foundation, about 1 inch. The eggs, which are four in
number (exclusive of the Cowbird’s egg which accompanies them), are oblong-oval in
shape, spotted and speckled everywhere with reddish-brown and lilac on a glossy white
ground, the markings on two specimens being massed, at the larger end, while those on
the other two form a distinct ‘wreath’ around the rather blunt apex. They were far
advanced in incubation (May 28), and measure, respectively, .72 by .54, .73 by .56, .75

MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT, 275

by .56, .73 by .55. Their identification was perfectly satisfactory, the female being se-
cured instantly after being driven from the nest.”

Genus GEOTHLYPIS. Cabanis.

Bill rather depressed, distinetly notched, rietal bristles very short or wanting. Wings
short, rounded, about equal to the long graduated tail. Tarsi stout, as long as the head.

GEOTHLYPIS TRICHAS (L.) Cab.
Maryland “Y ellow-throat.

Sylvia trichas, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 182.

Trichas marylandica, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 423; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.

Geothlypis trichas, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 24%.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1861, 5; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564;
Reprint, 1875, 4.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat Hist., i, 1879, 172; Reprint, 6.

Turdus trichas, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., 1766, 293.
Sylvia lrichas, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 519.
Trichas marylandica, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 454.
Geothlypis trichas, CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1856, 16.

Male, in spring: olive-green, rather grayer anteriorly ; forehead, and a broad band
through the eye to the neck pure black, bordered above with hoary ash; chin, throat,
breast, under tail coverts and edge of wing rich yellow, fading into whitish on the belly ;
wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; bill black; feet flesh-colored. Female, in
spring: without the definite black and ash of the head; the crown generally brownish,
the yellow pale and restricted. The young in general resemble the female, at any rate
lacking the head markings of the male; but are sometimes buffy-brownish below, some-
times almost entirely clear yellow. Length 43-5; wing and tai) 14-24.

Habitat, United States at large; south through Mexico and Central America. West
Indies.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. . Arrives during the last week
in April and remains until the first of September. Frequents especially
the borders of streams, but is very common in upland thickets. It is
rarely seen in the gardens of the city. The Maryland Yellow-throat is
terrestrial in its habits, comparatively seldom mounting to tbe higher
limbs of trees. It frequents thickets, weeds, and brush-piles, where its
active pert manners, as it hops in and out between logs and fence rails,
resemble those of the Wren. It is rather a voluble bird, the loud, em-
phatic whit-ti-tee-tee of the male, frequently repeated, is well known to all
observers. Besides this song it frequently utters a soft whit, whit, whit,
whit, especially on the wing. It has, however, a prolonged song, which
I have heard from the tops of trees, not loud, but varied and pleasant,
having considerable resemblance in its modulations to the song of the
Brown Thrush.

4

276 BIRDS—-SYLVICOLIDZ.

The nest of the Maryland Yellow-throat is usually placed on the ground,
in weeds, in a grassy place. It is composed mainly of dead leaves and
grass, with a lining of fine grasses. The eggs are white, rather thickly
sprinkled with spots of reddish-brown. They are from four to six, and
vary in size from .55 to .72 in length, by .48 to .58 in breadth.

GEOTHLYPIS PHILADELPHIA (Wils.) Bd.
M. urning Warbler.

Geothlypis philadelphia, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363, 373; Reprint, 1861, 5,
15; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cia., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 172;
Reprint, 6.

Sylvia philadelphia, Wırson, Am. Orn., iii, 1810, 101.

Geothlypis philadelphia, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 243.

Bright olive, below clear yellow ; on the head the olive passes insensibly into ash; in
high plumage the throat aud breast.are black, but are generally ash, showing black
traces, the feathers being black, skirted with ash, producing a peculiar appearance sug-
gestive of the bird’s wearing crape; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; under
mandible and feet flesh color; no white about eyes. Young birds have little or no ashy on
the head, and no black on the throat, thus nearly resembling Oporornis agilis. Length,
54-54; wing and tail, each, about 24. R

Habitat, Eastern Province of the United States and British America; north casually
to Greenland ; west to Kansas and Dakota. New Granada. Costa Rica.

Rather rare spring and fall migrant. Arrives after the middle of May,
and again in August and September. It has been taken in Northern
Ohio by Mr. Winslow, Dr. Kirtland, and Dr. Darby. Mr. Langdon notes
two or three specimens near Cincinnati. Ihave taken six specimens in
this vicinity. When with us it is a shy, retiring, and silent bird, fre-
quenting thickets and brush-heaps in woodland undergrowth. It has
much less curiosity than the preceding species. All which I have seen
were busily engaged searching for food on the ground, and when dis-
turbed, flew but a short distance to a dense thicket for concealment. I
saw one specimen in my garden on the ground beneath currant bushes.
" They very likely breed in this State. The only nest known was found
by Mr. John Burroughs, in the State of New York, in ferns, about a foot
from the ground, on the edge of a, hemlock wood. It was quite massive,
composed of stalks and leaves. The cavity was quite deep, and lined
with fine black rootlets. The eggs were three in number, measuring .75
by .55. They “were of a light flesh color, uniformly speckled with fine
brown specks.” Young birds have the entire under parts yellow.

Sub-family ICTERIINA. Chats.

Bill conical, high and compressed, culmen and commissure much curved, without notch
er bristles; wing much rounded, shorter than the tail.

va

YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT. 277

Genus ICTERIA. Vieillot.

The characters of this genus are those of the sub family given above.

IcTERIA virENS (L.) Bd.
Wellow-breasted Chat.

Icteria viridis, AUDUBON, Orn. Bing , ii, 1834, 223; B. Am., iv, 1843, 160.—KIRTLAND, Ohio
Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—Rzap, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 375; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 363; Reprint, 5.

Icteria virens, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 1875, 564; Re-
print, 4—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin, 1677, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Turdus virens, LINN US, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 171.

Muscicapa viridis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 936.

Icteria viridis, Bonaparte, Journ. Philad. Acad, iv, 1825, 252.
Icteria virens, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1865, 228.

Bright olive-green ; below, golden yellow, belly abruptly white; lore black, isolat-
ing the white under eyelid from a white superciliary line above and a short maxillary
line below; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; bill and feet blue-black.
Length, 7-74; wing, about 3; tail, about 24

Habitat, Eastern United States; north to Massachusetts; west to the Plains, beyond
which it is replaced by var. longicauda.

Very common summer resident; abundant in the southern, not very
common in the northern portions of the State. Arrives in Middle Ohio
about May 1, and remains until the last of August.

When migrating no bird is more shy and retiring than the Chat.
They skulk along silently in thickets along the banks of streams, or on
the edges of upland woods. But no sooner has pairing been effected,
than their whole nature seems changed, and the silent bird becomes the
noisiest of the wood. His shyness gives way to an audacity which is
surprising. If he discovers the approach of a human being, even at a
considerable distance, he prepares to resent the intrusion; and giving
three short, loud whistles, very low in tone, as a warning, he advances
toward him, all the while careful that he should be heard and not seen.
Then follows a medley of sputtering, cackling, whispering and scolding
notes, frequently interspersed with loud whistles, and continued as the
bird runs, hops, or flies in the deepest thicket, with a pertinacity which
knows no fatigue. He-tells you that your gun won’t shoot, that it is a
flint-lock, that your ram-rod is broken, that you shot it at a buzzard, that
you haven’t got a gun; that you are a bald-headed cripple; that there is a
horrid suicide in the bushes, and a big snake and a nasty skunk; that
your baby is crying, your house is afire and the bridge broken down;

at you have missed the road to the reform farm, and that the poo!

278 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

house is over the creek, and he calls the dogs; says that you have gone
to seed; go west and grow up with the country; that you are taking up
too much of his valuable time, that you must excuse him for a moment.
During all this time he remains invisible, or at most, his black eye and
mask, or golden breast, appear for a moment as he peers at you from the
tangled branches of the brambles, or flashes from branch to branch,
dancing an accompaniment to his fantastic notes. At the last, he cud-
denly appears on the top of a bush not ten feet from you, makes a pro-
found bow, and with a derisive whirk of his long tail, exposes his im-
maculate white crissum and dives again into the deepest thicket. You
take a long breath and wipe your face, and he returns to the assault from
the rear. Should you move on, he follows, and if you approach, he re-
tires, and, keeping at a respectful distance, he laughs defiance, shouts
mockery and tantalizing sarcasm. He is a fearful scold, and it is no
wonder the inside of his mouth is black. But this is when he knows he
has the advantage. Sometimes he may be surprised as he sings in the
upper branches of a tree. He then sits motionless, continuing his song
as if unaware of any intrusion upon his privacy, and so resonant and
varying are his notes, that they confuse the ear as to the spot from which
they come, while his yellow breast so completely harmonizes with the
green leaves and sunlight, that he is with difficulty discovered. It is to
his rapid and sonorous notes, quick motions or perfect quiet, with har-
monious surroundings, that he owes the reputation for ventriloquism
which he has obtained; and it may be said of his reputation for mimicry,
that he has no need to borrow notes from any other bird, and does not
knowingly do so.

Before the breeding season is over it becomes as silent as during the
spring migration, and leaves for the south as stealthily as it came.

In ti:is vicinity the Chats are very common, but of somewhat irregular
distribution, showing a decided preference, during the breeding season,
for upland thickets with a southern exposure They are more social
when breeding than most birds. I have found four or five nests on a
single acre in a favorite locality. Usually the eggs are all laid by June
10. The nest is placed in the bushes of a thicket or in the perpendicu-
jar fork of a sapling, from three to six feet from the ground. It is rather
large, but neatly constructed for the materials used, which are mainly
leaves, strips of grape-vine bark, and grass. In this vicinity every nest
has a few brownish-red tendrils of a creeping plant in the lining and
about the rim, apparently for ornament. The eggs are almost uni-
formly four, often nearly spherical, glossy white, with spots of reddish-
brown, usually pretty evenly distributed, but sometimes forming a ring

HOODED WARBLER. j 279

around the greater end, leaving the remaining surface immaculate,
Their average measurement is .90 by .68.

Sub-family SETOPHAGINA. Fry-catcuina WARBLERS.

Bill depressed, decidedly broader than high at base, notched, and usually hooked, at
tip. Rictus with long stiff bristles, reaching beyond the nostrils.

Genus MYIODIOCTES. Audubon. 2

Rictal bristles reaching but little beyond nostrils. Wings longer than tail. Ooter
webs of exterior tail feathers narrow at base, widening at the tip. Middle toe, without
claw, three-fifths the tarsus.

MytopiocTEs MITRATUS (Gm.) Aud.
KHlooded F_ly-catching Warbler.

Sylvania mitrata, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 367; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sei., vi, 1353,
395,

Myiodioctes mitratus, BARD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 292.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1360, 364; Reprint, 1861, 16; Food of Birds, ete., Obio Agric. Rep. for 1774, 564;
Reprint, 1875, 4.—Cours, Birds N. W., 1874, 78 —Barrp, Brewer and Rıpaway,
N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 314.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1579, 173; Reprint, 7.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1878, 69.

Hooded Warbler, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arta, xiii, 1852, 218.

Motacilla mitrata, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 977.

Sylvania mitrata, NUTTALL, Man., 2d ed, i, 1840, 333.

Myiodioctes mitratus, AUDUBON, Syn., 1839, 48.

Clear yellow-olive; below rich yellow shaded along the sides, whole head and neck
pure black, enclosing a broad golden mask across forehead and through eyes; wings un-
marked, glossed with olive; tail with large white blotches on the two outer pairs of
feathers; bill black; feet flesh color. Female with no black en the head; that of the
crown replaced by olive, that of the throat by yellow. Young male with tbe black
much restricted and interrupted, if not wholly wanting, asin the female. Length, 5-54;
wing, about 22; tail, about 24.

Habitat, Eastern United States, rather southerly; noıth to the Connecticut Valley,
casually to Lewis county, N.Y. (Merriam) ; west to Kansas; south to Mexico and Cen-
tral America. West Indies.

Rare summer resident, apparently in restricted localities only. Dr.
Kirtland notices its breeding in the vicinity of Cleveland. Mr. Read tock
a single specimen in Ashtabula county. Mr. Langdon gives it as a rare
migrant in May. Mr. Dury tells me he has taken two or three speci-
mens, and saw others. I have taken but two specimens, a young male
August 25, 1874, and an adult female May 21, 1875. The young male
was in a stage of plumage which has not been described: above, yellow-
olive, concealed yellow from bill to eyes; feathers of crown and occiput
with dark plumbeous bases and centies, some of the feathers of sides of

280 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDA.

crown with scarcely concealed blackish tips; line from bill over and
around eye, bright lemon yellow, separated from the uniform yellow of
throat, breast, and abdomen, by dusky lores and olive-yellow auriculars ;
under tail coverts very light yellow. Tail spots as in the adult. Bill
very pale, dusky shaded.

The description of Dr. Coues, given above, agrees with that of Prof.
Baird in asserting that the female has no black on the head. Mr.C. H
Merriam (Rev. Birds of Connecticut, 1877, 25) describes a specimen of
the female which “thas the crown of the head or ‘hood’ deep black, as
rich as in the male. The lores also in this specimen are black, and the
auriculars lack the olive tinge, being bright yellow.” He suggests that
the female is “several years—at least three—in attaining its fall plum-
age; and that the two sexes, when fully aduit, can only be distinguished
by the fact that, in the female, the throat, though strongly tinged with
black, is never pure black, as in the wale.”

Mr. E. A. Mearns, of West Point, N. Y., (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, ii
1878, 71) endorses Mr. Merriam’s views, and states that “the females of
the second summer are entirely without black upon the head, and I have
frequently found them sitting upon their eggs in that condition. Only
in extreme examples does the black of the head and throat of the female
approach the purity of those parts in the male.” Mr. E. P. Bicknell
(Bull, iii, 1878; 180) mentions a female in which “the black, though
well defined in the region of the occiput, is scarcely detectible on the
throat; while another, though less definitely marked, represents an
almost opposite phase.” My female specimen has the yellow of fore-
head extending to beyond the eyes, slightly obscured by olive tips; the
rest of head and neck behind blackish, partially concealed by olive tips,
but the sides of occiput just above the bright yellow superciliary line
definitely dull black, entire under parts bright yellow, the feathers of
chin and throat with white, those of breast with dusky, bases. It seems
to me probable that females of the same age are not always of the same
pattern, or that they reach their final stage by varying steps.

The Hooded Warbler frequents thickets and undergrowth, and like
other members of the genus, is very active in capturing insee!s on the
wing, in the manner of the true Flycatchers. They have the habit of
spreading out and closing the tail like the Redstart, and are very skillful
in concealing themselves in thickets when pursued. The nest is placed
in a bush or low tree, within a few feet of the ground. It is built of
leaves and coarse grasses, and lined with fine grass and horse-hair. The
eggs are white, tinged with flesh-color, spotted with red. They measure
.70 by .50.

CANADA FLYCATCHER. 281

Myıopiocrtzs pusiLLus (Wils) Bp.
Green Black-capped Fly-catching Warbler.

Sylvia wilsonii, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1333, 163, 182.

Myiodioctes pusillus, BaıRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1868, 294.—WErATon, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, etc, Ohio Agric. Rap. for 1874, 564;
Reprint, 1375, 4 —Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Muscicapa pusilla, Wıson, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 103.

Sylvia wilsonii, BONAPARTE, Journ Phila, Acad, iv, 1824, 179.
Myiodioctes pusilla, BoNAPARTE, Con. Av., i, 1850, 315.
Myiodioctes pusillus, SCLATER, Proc Zool. Soc., 1856, 291.

Clear yellow-olive; crown glossy blue-black; forehead, sides of head, and entire
under parts, clear yellow; wings and tail plain, glossed with olive; upper mandible dark,
under, pale; feet brown. Female and young similar; colors not so bright, the black
cap obscure. Smail; 43-5; wing about 24; tail about 2.

Habitat, the whole of North America, Mexico, and Central America.

Not common migrant in spring; abundant in the fall. Arrives about
the middle of May and returns about the middle of September Fre-
quents woodland undergrowth and willows along streams; in the fall in
weedy woodlands, in company with Nashville and Tennessee Warblers,
often in considerable flocks. Its song while with us is a low, short
twitter, and its note a feeble “chip.” Often takes its food after the man-
ner of tne Vireos, hopping from twig to twig. Fall specimens have the
black patch of the crown more extensive and more definite than in
spring, and the green of upper parts deeper. Not one in ten of the birds
taken by me in the fall has been in the plumage of the young, as above
described ; sometimes the black-cap is entirely wanting in the young.

Little is known in regard to the breeding habits of the Black-cap Fly-
catching Warbler. It is said to breed from the latitude of Massachusetts
northward. The nest is composed of moss and small twigs, lined with
vegetable fibres. The eggs are white, sprinkled around the larger end
with brownish-red and lilac, and measure from .60 to .63, by from .45 to .49.

MYIoDIOCTES CANADENSIS (L.) Aud.
Canada FE ly-catching Wearbler.

Sylvia ‘pardalina, KirRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 163, 181.

Sylvicola pardalina, Rkap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 415; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 335.

Myiodioctes canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric Rep. for 1860, 264; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food
of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep for 1874; Reprint, 1875, 4.—LANnGDoN, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 6; Journ Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 6; Reprint, 4; lievised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1679, 173; Reprint, 7.

282 BIRDS—SYLVICOLIDE.

Muscicapa canadensis, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 327.

Sylvia pardalina, BONAPARTE, Journ. Phila. Acad., iv, 1824, 179.
Sylvicola pardalina, BONAPARTE, Geog. and Comp. List, 1833, 22.
Myiodioctes canadensis, AUDUBON, Syn., 1839, 40.

Bluish ash ; crown speckled with lanceolate black marks, crowded and generally con-
tinuous on the forehead; the latter divided lengthwise by a slight yellow line; short
superciliary line and edges of eyelids yellow; lores black, continuous with black under
the eye, and this passing as a chain of black streaks down the side of the neck, and
prettily encircling the throat like a necklace; excepting these streaks and the white
under tail coverts, the entire under parts are clear yellow; wings and tail nnmarked ;
feet flesh-color. In the female and young the black is obscure or much restricted. and
the back may be slightly glossed with olive. Length about 54; wing 24; tail 2}.

Habitat, Eastern North America; sonth to Mexico, Central America, and Ecuador;
west to the Plains.

Rather common migrant in spring; more rare in fall. Arrives about
the middle of May and returnsin September. The habits of this species
are not essentially different from those of the two preceeding species, ex-
cept that while with usit appears to be more decidedly arboreal. I have
almost invariably found it well up in the branches of trees, and never
about low bushes. I have never seen it in the fall, but Mr. Langdon
records its capture in September. A spring specimen in my collection
has the black necklace very faint or obsolete.

The Canada Fly-catcher breeds from Massachusetts northward. The
nest is described by Dr. Brewer as placed in a tussock of grass in a swamp.
It is large for the size of the bird, and composed of fibres ot bark, leaves,
and rootlets. The eggs are five, white, “beautifully marked with dots
and small blotches of blended brown, purple, and violet, varying in
shades and tints, and grouped in a wreath around the larger end.”

Genus SETOPHAGA. Swainson.

Bill much depressed. Rictal bristles reaching half way from nostrils to tip. Wings
equal to tail. External tail feathers as in Myiodioctes. Tarsi long; toes short; middle
toe without claw about half the tarsus.

SETOPHAGA RUTICILLA (L.) Sw.
Redstart,

Muscicapa ruticilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geclog Surv., 1838, 163.

Setophaga ruticilla, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 367; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.—BairpD, P. R. R. Rep, ix, 1858, 298—Wueraton, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Re-
print, 1875, 4—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soe.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7—Brewer, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 113.

Muscicapa ruticilla, LINNA&US, Syst. Nat., 1766, 326.
Setophaga ruticilla, SWAINSON, Zool. Journ., iii, 1827, 360.

REDSTART. 283

Male: lustrous blue-black, belly and crissum white, sides of the breast, large spot at
bases of the remiges, and basal half of the tail feathers (except the middle pair) fiery
orange, belly often tinged with the same. Female: olivaceous, ashier on the head, en-
tirely white below, wings and tail blackish, with the flame color of the male represented
by yellow. Young male like the female, but browner, the yellow of an orange hne.
From the circumstance that many spring males are shot in the general plumage of the
female, but showing irregular isolated black patches it is probable that the species re-
quires at least two years to gain its perfect plumage. Length 5}; wing and tail
about 24.

Habitat, the greater part of temperate North America, especially the Eastern Pro-
vince; north to Fort Simpson; west to Utah; south in South America to Ecuador.
West Indies.

Abundant summer resident, arriving the first week in May and re-
maining until September. The Redstart is the most abundant arboreal
species of the family, and breeds with us abundantly. Sometimes they
appear in large flocks, composed almost entirely of females and males in
imperfect plumage. Usually they seem to migrate individually or in
company with other species. The first to arrive are full plumaged males.
During the migrations they are irequently seen about the fruit and
shade trees in cities. They are decidedly birds of the forest, and during
the breeding season are seldom seen except in rather extensive or retired
woods. As its structure indicates, it is par excellence the fly-catcher of the
family. As it hops from limb to limb, opening and closing its tail, or
flies from its perch with clicking bill to secure its insect food, its em-
phatic and beautiful colors render it a very attractive sight.

The nest is placed in the fork of a sapling from six to fifteen feet from
the ground. It is constructed of vegetable fibres, strips of grape-vine
Sark, and grasses, with a lining ot fine grasses and horse-hair. The eggs
are four, soiled grayish-white, dotted and blotched with brown, lavender,
and purple. They vary in size, and average .66 by .49.

FAMILY TANAGRIDA. TANAGERS.

Apparently intermediate between Sylvicolide and Fringillide. Abundant in species in
the tropics; in the United States represented by a single genus. Primaries nine; other
faınily characters not well “etermined, but, for our purposes, are sufficiently set forth in
the following description of the

Genus PYRANGA. Vieillot.

Bill nearly straight, sub-conical, cylindrical, notched at tip; culmen moderately
curved ; commissure with a median acute lobe. Wings elongated, the four outer primaries
about equal. Tail moderate, slightly forked.

284 BIRDS—TANAGRIDA.

*

PyRaNGA RUBRA (L.) V.
Scarlet Tanager.

Tanagra rubra, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Pyranga rubra, AUDUBON, iii, 1841, 229.—Barrp, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 301.—
WNHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, ete.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1675, 4.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin , 1877,
7; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Tist., i, 1878, 113; Reprint, 4; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8.

Tanagra rubra, LINNEUS, Syst Nat., i, 1766, 314.

Pyranga rubra, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, iv.

Male searlet, with black wings and tail; bill and feet dark. Female clear olive-qreen,
below clear greenish-yellow ; wings and tail dusky, edged with olive. Young male, at first
like the female; afterward variegated with red, green, and black. Length, 7-74; wing,
4; tail, 3.

Habitat, Eastern United States and southern border of Canada; west to the Plains;

.

south to Ecuador. Cuba. Jamaica,

Very common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives the last week in
April and remains till the latter part of September. This beautiful
bird, often known as the Black-winged Redbird, is chiefly an inhabitant
of retired woods. On its migration it may be seen following the wooded
banks of streams, and in groves. At such times it is usually rather shy,
seeking concealment, if any is afforded, in the young foliage; otterwise
it sits quiet, in a rather stupid manner, and feigns to ignore the presence
of an intruder. Its ordinary note isa sbarp “chue :,” but when breeding
the male has a peculiar song, given somewhat in the manner of the
Robin, but of fewer notes. As a, breeding resort, they prefer mixed,
woodland. The nest is placed on the horizontal branch of a low tree,
from ten to twenty feet from the ground; it is flat, having but a slight
depression, and composed of strips of bark, fibres, and rootlets, and lined
with fine roots. The eggs are four or five, light-bluish, thickly spotted
with brown and purple. They measure .90 by .65.

In the fall the males lose their bright colors, and become similar to
the females, but with us, in August and September, the old males retain
their black wings and tail. In the fall, they sometimes visit the gardens
of the city.

PYRANGA =STIVA (L.) V.
Summer Redbird.

Tanagra estiva, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1°31, 232.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
164, 183.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

SUMMER REDBIRD. 285

Pyranga estiva, AUDUBON, B. Am,, iii, 1641, 222.—WHEAToN, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860,
364, 374; Reprint, 1861, 6, 16; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564;
Reprint, 1875, 4.—LANnGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, Journ, Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1279, 174; Reprint, 8.

Tanagra estiva, GMELIN, Syst. Nat, i, 1788, 889. 4

Pyranga wstiva, VIEILLOT, N. D. d’H. N., 2d ed., xxviii, 1819, 291.

Male, rich rose-red or vermilion, including wings and tail; the wings, however, dusky
on the iuner webs; bill rather pale; feet darker. Female dull brownish-olive ; below,
dull brownish-yellow. Young male like the female; the male changing plumage, shows
red and green confused in irregular patches, but no black. The female, with a general
resemblauce to female rubra, is distinguished by the dull brownish, ochre or buffy tinge,
the greenish and yellowish of rubra being much purer; the bill and feet also are gen-
much paler in wstiva. Size of rubra or rather larger.

Habitat, Eastern United States; north regularly to the Connecticut Valley, casually
to Massachusetts and Nova Scotia; west to Kansas, Indian ‘lerritory, and Texas; suuth
to Ecuador and Peru. Cuba. Jamaica. ö

Common summer resident in southern, rare in Northern Ohio. Dr.
Kirtland notes a specimen taken in Trumbullcounty. Mr. Read gives it
as not uncommon. I have seen a single specimen, several years sınce,
in this locality, and one specimen from Lancaster. Dr. Howard E. Jones
informs me that it is not rare at Circleville, twenty five miles south of
Columbus. Mr. Langdon states that, in the vicinity of Cincinnati, it is
a common summer resident from May Ist to September 25th.

In habits this species resembles the Scarlet Tanager, except that it is
less retiring, frequenting open groves and orchards, axd olten visiting
towns and cities. The nest is placed on the horizontal ur arooping
branch of a tree, and is constructed of various vegetable substances, often
so thin that the eggs may be seen from below.

The eggs vary in size from four-fifths of an inch to an inch in length,
and average about two-thirds of an inch in breadth. “Their color is a
bright light shade of emerald-green, spotted, marbled, dotted, and blotched
with various shades of lilac, brownish-purple, and dark-brown. These
are generally well diffused over the entire egg.”

FAMILY HIRUNDINIDA. THE SWALLOWS.

Primaries nine. Bill triangular, depressed, about as wide at base as long; the gape
twice as long as the culmen, reaching to about opposite the eyes; tomia siraight or
gently curved. No obvious rictal bristles. Tarsi not longer than the lateral toe and
claw. Wings long and pointed, the first primary equal to or longer than the second.
Central tail-feathers not half as long as the wing.

286 BIRDS—HIRUNDINIDA.

KEY TO THE GENERA OF HIRUNDINIDE.

* Plumage above more or less lustrous blue-black or green; no tarsal tuft nor re-
curved hooks on onter primary.
+ Tail deeply forked; outer feathers attenuate and blotched with white.
HIRUNDO,
tt Tail scarcely forked; rump and forehead not colored like back.
PETROCHELIDON.
ttt Tail somewhat forked, unblotched ; rump and forehead colored like back. g
a Lustrous green or violaceous; pure white below ; length less than 6}.
TACHYCINETA.
a a Lustrous blue-black; female paler and whitish below; length more than 6}.
PROGNE.
* * Plumage brownish-gray; scarcely lustrous, and without shades of blue or green.
+ A little tuft of feathers on tarsus at base of hind toe; edge of wing smooth.

COTYLE.
$+ Outer web of first primary more or less saw-like, with a series of minute re-
curved hocks; no tarsal tuft. STELGIDOPTERYX.

Genus HIRUNDO. Linn»us.

Nostrils lateral. Tarsi short, not exceeding middle toe without its claw; the upper
joint covered with feathers which extend a short distance along the inner face of the
tarsus. Tail very deeply forked; the lateral feather much attenuated, twice as long as
the middle. Basal joint of middle toe free for terminal fourth on outside, for half on
inside.

HIRUNDO ERYTHROGASTRA Boddert.
Barn Swallow.

Hirundo rufa, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—ReAD, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1853, 395.— Kirkpatrick, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 227.

Hirundo horreorum, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food
of Birds, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 564; Reprint, 1875, 4.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 7.

Hirundo erythrogaster var. horreorum, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,

-i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Hirundo erythrogaster, BODDERT, Tab. Pl. El., 1783, 45,

Hirundo rufa, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1783, 1018.

Hirundo horreornm, Barton, ‘Frag. N. H. Penna., 1799, 17.”

Hirundo erythrogaster var. horreorum, Cours, Birds of N. W., 1874, 85.

Hirundo erythrogastra, CouES, Birds of Col. Val., 1878, 407.

Lustrous steel-blue; below, rufous or pale chestnut of varying shade; forehead, chin
and throat deep chestnut; breast with an imperfect steel-blue collar. Tail with white
spots on the inuer web of all the feathers except the inner pair. Sexes alike, young less
lustrous, much paler below, tail simply forked. Wing 44-42; tail 24 to 5.

Habitat, America.
Very abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about the end of

the first or during the second week of April, and remains until Septem-
ber Ist.

WHITE-BELLIED SWALLOW. 287

The Swallows are erial Fly-catchers, never taking food except on the
wing, for which their structure especially adapts them. The Barn Swal-
low is the best known, and, on the whole, the most abundant, and most
universally semi-domesticated with us of the family. I have never
known them to nest otherwise than in barns, sheds, under the roof of
bridges or other buildings. In uninhabited regions they build their
nests in caves, and Dr. Coues states that in the Northwest he found them
nesting in small holes and crevices in a perpendicular bank.

The nest, as the name of the bird implies, is usually placed in the in-
interior of a barn, under the roof, attached to the beams and rafters.
Sometimes as many as fifty pairs occupy the same barn. The nest is
composed of pellets of mud and bits of straw, sometimes with a projecting
snelf, which serves as a roost for one or both of the parents. Several
brocds are raised in a season. The eggs are very variable in shape, aver-
aging .78 to .56, white, spotted and blotched with bright reddish-brown.

Genus TACHYCINETA. Cabanis.

Nostrils lateral, overhung or bordered internally by incumbent membrane. Tarsi
about equal to middle toe without claw, with tibial extremity covered with overhang-
ing feathers, adherent a short distance along inner face, Lateral tces equal. Adhesion
of basal joint of middle toe variable. Tail emarginate only, or slightly torked, fork not
exceeding half an inch in depth.

TACHYCINETA BICOLOR (V.) Cab.
White-bellied Swallow.

Hirundo bicolor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sei., vi, 1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 243.—Wuxraton, Ohio
Agric Rep. for 1860, 1561, 364; Reprint, 6.—LANGpon, Revised List, Journ, Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Tachycineta bicolor, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 565 5
‘Reprint, 5.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist.
1878, 113; Reprint, 4.

White-bellied Swallow, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

‚bh

Hirundo bicolor, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 61.
Tachycineta bicolor, CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1850, 48.

Lustrous green; below, pure white. Young similar, not so glossy. Length, 6-64;
wing, 5; tail, 24.

Habitat, Temperate America.

Very common summer resident. Somewhat irregular in its distribu-
tion during the breeding season. Arrives early in April and remains
until September. The White-bellied Swallow is, in the vicinity of Co-
lumbus, rather rare except during the migrations; formerly they were

288 BIRDS—HIRUNDINIDA.

abundant, and nested in the holes of dead trees along the river banks.
As these trees disappeared, the Swallows removed to some more suitable
locality. I have never known them to breed in bird-boxes in this
vicinity, though they sometimes do so in Northern Ohio. In the East-
ern States they have almost torsaken their primitive manner ot breeding,
resorting to bird-boxes for that purpose. In Ohio the White bellied
Swaliows nest in the deserted hole of a Woodpecker, or natural cavity
of a dead tree, always in the vicinity of water. Even during their
migrations the birds are seldom seen far from running streams. The
nest is built of leaves and grass, and thickly lined with down and
feathers. The eggs are white, unspotted, and of oblong oval shape,
measuring about .80 by .55.

GENUS PELROCHELIDON. Cabanis. .

Bill stout and deep, somewhat as in Progne. Nostrils entirely superior, open, without.
overhanging membrane on the inner (or upper) side, but somewhat overhung by short
bristies, seen also along the base of mandible and in chin. Legs stout, the taisi short,
not exceeding the middle too exclusive of its claw; feathered all round fur basal third
or fourth, though no feathers are inserted on the posterior face. Tail falling short of
the closed wiugs, nearly square or slightly emarginate; the lateral feathers broad to
near the ends, and not attenuate.

PETROCHELIDON LUNIFRONS (Say) Lawrence...
Cliff Swallow; EBave Swallow.

Hirundo fulva, BONAPARTE, i, 1825, 65.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 162, 180.—
ReaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395

Hirundo lunifrons, KIkKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 267.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 364; Reprint, 6, 16.

Petrochelidon lunifrons, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
565; Reprint, 5.—Lana@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, Jour. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Hirundo lunifrons, Say, ‘‘Lovg’s Exp. Ry. Mts, ii, 1823, 47.”

Hirundo fulva, DEWITT CLINTON, Ann, Lyc. N. Y., vii, 1824, 156. -

Petrochelidon lunifrons, LAWRENCE, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., vii, 1861, 317.

Lustrous steel-blue; forehead whitish or brown, rump rufous, chin, throat, and sides
of head chestnut; a steel-blue spot on the throat; breast, sides, and generally a cervi-
cal collar rusty gray, whitening on the belly. Young sufficiently similar. Length, 5;
wing, 44; tail, 24.

Habitat, North A.nerica at large. Africa (Layard).

Very common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about the middle
of April and remains until September.

This Swallow, like the preceeding, migrates along the banks and over
the beds of streams. They are very variable in their numbers in differ-

,

EAVE SWALLOW. 289

ent years, as well as erratic in their choice of a summer residence. It
was formerly thought they had made their appearance at a comparatively
late date in the Eastern United States, but it is now known that they
had been seen in New York, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New Bruns-
wick, about the time they were described from the Rocky Mountains by
Say. Audubon states that he saw them at Newport, Kentucky, opposite
Cincinnati, in 1819, which is the earliest notice we have of their almost
certain occurrence in Ohio. Dr. Kirtland, in 1838, says that they had
“recently extended their settlements to several buildings in the west
part of the latter city. During the present summer they have built
their nests on a barn in the north part of Columbiana county.”

Their distribution is now general throughout the State. They are
always to be found in colonies during the breeding season, and build
their nests always on the outside of buildings, under the eaves. I have
seen their nests several years since under the eaves of a mill on Alum
Creek, near this city; under the eaves of a brick dwelling in the north-
east portion of this city, and on the new frame depöt building at Georges-
ville, a few miles southwest. But the outside of barns is their favcrite
location, a colony of these birds often occupying the eaves while Barn
Swallows inhabit the interior. I have never known them to build
on the same structure for more than three years successively. Whether
they removed simply from a desire for change, or because the locality
became unsuiied from use for the safe fastening of their nests, I do not
know. I have known efforts to drive them away from a building where
they had located, to be long-continued and severe before they were finally
persuaded to go.

This nesting on buildings, an acquired habit, exhibited to a greater
or less extent by all the members of the family, except the Bank Swal-
low, shows an appreciation of the advantages of civilization, and is
evidence that they possess reason as distinguished from instinct. In
uninhabited regions the nest is placed against a vertical or overhanging
rock.

The nests of the Eave Swallow are composed entirely of mud, tempered
by the bill of the bird, and deposited in its position as a little pellet.
They are retort-shaped, the nest proper being almost closed in between
the top of the wall and the projecting eave or cornice, and the opening
built out for several inches to form the neck of the flask or retort.
In the Eastern States it is said that the nest is frequently built without
the elongated entrance, but all the nests I have seen were uniform in.
possessing it. The cavity is large, and wel lined-with feathers, wool,
and bits of straw. The eggs are white, usually less elongated than those

19

29) BIRDS—HIRUNDINIDE.

of the Barn Swallow, and the spots and blotches of reddish-brown, are
larger. Two broods are usually raised in a season.

Grnus COTYLE. Boie.

Bill small; nostrils lateral, overhung by a straight-edged membrane. Tarsus about
equal to middle toe without claw; feathered at upper end, especially on inner face, and
having also a small tuft of feathers attached to posterior edge near the hind toe. Mid-
dle toe with basal joint adherent externally to near the end, half way internally; the

claws comparatively little curved, the lateral reaching beyond the base of the middle.
Tail slightly forked.

COTYLE RIPARIA (L.) Boie.
Bank Swallow; Sand Martin.

Hirundo riparia, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—READ, Proc. Philad. Acad.
Nat. Sci, vi, 1853, 395.

Cotyle riparia, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 283. —WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep.
for 1560, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 565;
Reprint, 1875, 5—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, Jour. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., 1, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Hirundo riparia, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 10th ed., 1758, 192.

Cotyle riparia, BOIE, Isis., 1826, —.

Lustreless gray, with a pectoral band of the same; other under parts white. Sexes
exactly alike. Young similar, the feathers often skirted with rusty or whitish. Length
44-44; wing 33-4; tail 2.

Habitat, Europe, Asia, Africa, America.

Rather common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about the middle
of April and remains until the first of September. In the immediate
vicinity of Columbus the Bank Swallow is now but a migrant, but form-
erly it was a common resident. This is probably due in part to the
increase in numbers of the next species, but largely to the want of suit-
able breeding places. Formerly our rivers ran here and there between
more or less steep loamy banks, which remained comparatively un-
changed from year to year, but as the country became more densely in-
habited, and the forest cleared away, the streams were subject to more
sudden freshets. While these freshets seldom occurred during the breed-
ing season of these birds, yet during their absence in the colder portion
of the year, the site of their former habitation often became entirely
removed, They seem also to have forsaken the gravel pits in which
they were accustomed to nest, because they were an unsafe residence,
the layer of fine loam and sand in which they preferred to dig their holes
being too frequently removed. On their spring migrations they linger
lovingly about their old homes, as if reluctant to leave the spot which
their traditions invest with so much interest.

ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW. 221

A suitable site for nesting may be occupied bya colony of from twenty
to fifty pairs of these birds. The holes are usually dug quite near the
level of the ground, on the perpendicular face of abank. They are ex-
cavated by the birds, and extend to the depth of from two to four feet.
The termination of the excavation is usually somewhat enlarged, and
the floor thinly covered with straw and feathers, on which the eggs are
deposited. These are five in number, pure white, measuring .72 by .47.

Genus STELGIDOPTERYX. Baird.

Bill rather small; nostrils oval, superior, margined behind but scarcely laterally by
membrane, but not at all overhung; the axes of the outline converging. Frontal
feathers soft, and, like chin, without bristles. Tarsus equal to middle toe without claw;
the upper end covered with feathers all round, none at lower end. Basal joint of middle
toe adherent externally nearly to end; internally scarcely half. Lateral toes about
equal, their claws not reaching beyond base of middle claw. Tail slightly emarginate ;
the feathers broad and obliquely rounded at end. Edge of wing rough to the touch;
the shafts of the fibrille of the outer web of the cuter primary prolonged and bent at
right-angles into a short, stiff hook.

STELGIDOPTERYX SERRIPENNIS (Aud.) Bd.
Rough-winged Swallow.

Cotyle serripennis, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 290.—WHEATON, Ohio Agrice
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 374; Reprint, 6, 16.

Stelgidopterix (error) serripennis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1475, 565; Reprint, 5.

Stelgidopleryx serripennis, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, Journ,
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist , i, 1679, 173; Reprint, 7.

Hirundo serripennis, AuDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 593.

Cotyle serripennis, Born, Isis, 1844, 170.

Stelyidopteryx serripennis, BAIRD, Rev. Am. Birds, 1864, 314.

Lustreless brownish-gray, paler below, whitening on the billy. Rather larger than
the last. Hooklets on outer web of outer primary wanting, or much weaker in the fe-
male.

Habitat, United States, from Atlantic to Pacific, and probably adjoining British Pro-
vines. British Columbia. Rare or wanting in Northeastern States; south to Guate-
mala.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about the middle of
April and remains until September.

Next to the Barn Swallow, this appears to be our most abundant
species. It is generally confounded with the Bank Swallow, which it
resembles, and with which it frequently associates, sometimes breeding
in the same location. A little care will soon enable one to distinguish
between the species at a considerable distance. The Rough-winged

292 BIRDS—HIRUNDINIDE.

Swallow is larger, and has a more labored flight than the Barn Swallow ;
it lacks the pure white of the under parts, and the pectoral collar is in-
complete and obscured. Their notes also differ, the Rough-winged is
more noisy, though less so than most other members of the family.

With us, although the greater number are found in the vicinity of
water, the Rough-winged Swallow is a bird of general distribution. It
was first detected in this State by Dr. Kirtland (Kirkpatrick, 1. c.), who
found them abundant and nesting in the banks of Rocky River, near his
residence. In 1861, I found it common in the vicinity of Columbus, and
discovered its nest on a beam under a low bridge. Since then they ap-
pear to be increasing in numbers, at least in the city. They nest abund-
antly in the banks of rivers and creeks, and in gravel pits, where they
excavate holes, larger but not so deep as the holes of the Bank Swallow.
They generally choose a spot where cxcavation is easy, an isolated pair
often removing a decayed root; small colonies generally excavate their
holes between a layer of loam and one of sand, in such a manner that
the loam forms the roof, and the sand the floor of the excavation. These
holes are dug varying distances from the top of the bank, and vary in
depth from one to three feet. Usually a few straws and feathers arranged
around the eggs, are the only apology for a nest. Their nests are often
in the cracks in the rocks of stone-quarries, and very frequently in the
crevices of the piers and abutments of bridges, the foundations of mills,
and other masonry. In the city they frequently place their nest in the
most frequented places. A pair nested for several successive years not
more than thirty feet from the principal business street of this city, oc-
cupying a pudlock hole in a brick building, about ten feet from the
ground, and below the windows of a telegraph office. Another pair
nested in an alley, in a hole in a brick wall under a door in the second
story, through which goods were daily raised and lowered by a hoist.
They also build on the projecting caps of the large pillars in the porticos
of the State House. Mr. Langdon states that they build in barns, but
in this vicinity the beams under the floors of bridges are preferred to
other wooden structures.

The eggs are five or six, pure white; they measure .75 by .53.

Genus PROGNE,. Boie.

Body stout. Bill robust, lengthened ; lower or commissural edge of maxilla sinuated,
decidedly convex for basal half, then as concave to the tip, the Jower mandible falling
within its chord. Nostrils superior, broadly open, and nearly circular; without any ad-
jacent membrane, the edges rounded. Legs stout. Tarsus equal to middle toe without
claw; the joint feathered ; lateral toes about equal; the basal joint of middle toe half
free internally, rather less so externally. Claws strong, much curved.

MARTIN. 293

PROGNE suBis Linnaus.
Purple Martin.

Hirundo purpurea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162 —ReaD, Proc. Phila. Acad.

Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395. h
Hirundo purpurea, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii. 1859, 299. —WHEATON, Ohio Agric.

Rep. for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1461, 6; Food of Birds, etc., Obio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
565; Reprint, 1875, 5.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7.

Progne subis, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 332.—LANGDon, Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Blue Martin, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Hirundo subis, LINN@US, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 192.
Hirundo purpurea, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., 1766, 344.
Progne purpurea, Bors, Isis, 1826, 971.

Progne subis, BAIRD, Rev. Am. Birds, 1865, 274.

Lustrous blue black. The female and young are much duller above, and more or less
white below, streaked with gray. Length 7 or more; wing nearly 6; tail 34, simply
forked.

Habitat, North America to within Arctic Circle. Bermudas. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives about April Ist, and
remains until September.

The Martin is so nearly universally an inhabitant of towns and cities
that it is difficult to imagine how it found a home before the presence of
man afforded a suitable nesting place. Yet some of these birds still adhere
to their ancient customs, and rear their young in natural cavities of
trees and deserted holes of Woodpeckers, almost within the limits of the
city of Columbus. I have found them nesting in Woodpecker’s deserted
nests in a tall oak at the Columbus Arsenal, and in the cavities of the
dead limbs of an elm standing on the bank of the Scioto within the
present city limits, and in knot-holes of a walnut tree a few hundred
yards gouth of the last named situation. Whether these were penal
colonies, or simply “old fogies,” could not be determin:d, but the young,
as they cautiously and painfully crept from their holes to a trembling
foothold on the dead limbs, strongly appealed to my sympathy.

Such are their usual nesting places when no human dwellings afford a
better choice, and for want of trees they sometimes nest in crevices of
rocks. In towns and cities they prefer to nest in Martin boxes or “bird
houses” erected for their especial use, and in default of these any shel-
tered place about a building will do, though the higher the better.

The nest is loosely constructed of leaves, straw, bits of string and paper,
lined with feathers. The eggs are pure white, and measure .94 by .79.

After the breeding season is over, these birds congregate towards night
in large flocks, and having selected a suitable cornice on some high build-
ing, make preparations for spending the night. The retiring ceremony

294 BIRDS—AMPELIDE.

is very complicated and formal, to judge from the number of times they

_alight and rise again, all the while keeping up a noisy chatter. It is
not until twilight deepens into evening that all are huddled together in
silence and slumber, and their slumbers are often disturbed by some
youngster who falls out of bed, amid the derisive laughter of his neigh-
bors, which is changed to petulant scolding as he clambers over them to
his perch, tumbling others down. All at once the scene of last night’s
disturbance is quiet and deserted, for the birds have flown to unknown
southern lands, where they find less crowded beds, and shorter, warmer
nights.

FAMILY AMPELIDA. THE CHATTERERS.

Primaries ten, the first less than half the second. Basal joint of widdle toe not shorter
than that of inner toe; united to the outer for about two-thirds, to the inver for about
one-half, its length. ‘Tarsus not longer than middle toe and elaw. Gonys less than half
the length of under jaw. Bill triangular, much depressed at base, moderately notched,
and hooked at tip.

Sub-family AMPELINE. Waxwings.

Nostrils linear, more or less covered by frontal feathers. Wings long, acute, with ten
primaries, but the first very short avd displaced (on the outer side of the second), so a8
to be readily overlooked. Inner quills as a rule, aud sometimes the tail feathers, tipped
with horny appendages, like red sealing-wax. Tail short, square, the under coverts
highly developed, reaching nearly to its end. Feet weak; tarsus shorter than middle
toe and claw.

Genus AMPELIS. Linnzus.
Head with a well developed broad soft crest.

AMPELIS GARRULUS Linnzus.
Bohemian Waxwing.

Bombycilla garrula, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xl. 1841, 20.—SToRER, Proc.
Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1845, 52.—ReAD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 343; Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 397.

Ampelis garrulus, BaırD, P.R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 317.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii,
1859, 339.—WHBATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1866, 161, 364, 374; Reprint, 6; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 1875, 565; Reprint, 5.—BaırD, BREWER
and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1674, 397.—Couss, Birds of Col. Val., 1878, 461, 467.

Bohemian Waxwing, KIRTLAND, Am, Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218; Obio Farmer,
ix, 1860, 91.

Ampelis garrulus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758.

Bombycilla garrula, VIEILLOT, Ency. Meth., ii, 1823, 766.

General color brownish-ash, shading insensibly from the clear ash of the tail and its
upper coverts and rump into a reddish-tinged ash anteriorly, this peculiar tint height-
ening on the head, especially on the forehead and sides of the head, into orange-brown.

BOHEMIAN WAXWING. ° 295

A narrow frontal line, and broader bar through the eye, with the chin and throat,
sooty-black, not sharply bordered with white. No yellowish on belly. Under tail-
coverts orange-brown, or chestnut. Tail ash, deepening to blackish-ash towards the
end, broadly tipped with rich yellow. Wings ashy-blackish; primaries tipped (chiefly
on the outer webs) with sharp spaces of yellow, or white, or both; secondaries with
white spaces at the ends of the outer webs, the shafts usually ending with enlarged,
horny, red appendages. Primary coverts tipped with white. Bill black’sh-plumbeous,
often paler at base below, Feet black. Sexes alike. Length, 7 or 8 inches; wing,
about 44; tail, 24.

Habitat, northerly portions of the Northern Hemisphere. In America, south regu-
larly to the northern tier of States, and in the Rocky Mountains to Colorado; irregn-
larly or casually to about 35°. (Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, New
Mexico and Arizona.)

Winter visitor in Northern Ohio only. Dr. Kirtland’s account (1. c.,
quoted on page 217) is the first record of their appearance in the State,
though not the first of their capture within the United States. He after-
wards states (I. c., 1852, quoted on page 193) that they visit the vicinity
of Cleveland, “almost every winter, and sometimes in large flocks.” I
am indebted to Mr. Langdon for the following, from Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat.
Hist, ii, 1845, 52, Aug. 6:

Dr. D. H. Sturer mentioned that he had received a letter from Prof. J. P. Kirtland, of
Cleveland, Ohio, dated July 17, 1845, mentioning some facts which might be interesting
to ornithologists. At the date of the letter, flocks of Pine Finch, Fringilla pinea, were
flying about bis garden. and also the Bohemian Waxwing, Bombycilla gairula, thirty
or forty specimens of which had been taken.

In 1860 (l. c. Ohio Farmer, quoted under Hesperiphona), Dr. Kirtland
again mentions their occurrence, and says they are attracted by the
berries of the mountain ash and red cedar, and fruit of the persimmon.
Mr. Kirkpatrick adds the berries of the hawthorn to their bill of fare
Mr. Read repeats the statement that they are present nearly every year.
Dr. Coues (l. c. Birds of Col. Val.) mentions their casual occurrence in
severe winters in Southern Ohio, which I have not been able to verify.

This bird is known everywhere asa wanderer. Only in afew instances
have its breeding places been discovered. In this country its nest has
been found by Mr. Kennicott’on the Yukon, and by Mr. McFarlane on
the Anderson River. Dr. Coues (l. c.,) says:

“The bird undoubtedly nests in the United States. While in the Rocky Mountains,
at latitude 49°, I secured a newly fledged bird, so young that there is no reasonable
doubt that it was bred in the vicinity. The specimen was shot in thick coniferous
woods, at an attitude of about 4,200 feet, on the 19th of August, 1874. No migration
had been begun at the time, and no other individuals were observed, as would likely
have been the case had they been roving away from their summer home.”

“The egg obtained by Kennicott on the Yukon is smaller than the European speci-

296 . BIRDS—AMPELIDE.

men, measuriog .90 by .65 of an inch. Its ground is more of a greenish-slate or stone-
color, and the spots are of a dark-brown, with a deep violet shading.” (Brewer, 1. c.)

AMPELIS CEDRORUM (V.) Gray.
Cedar Bird; Cherry Bird.

Bombycilla carolinensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Rep,, 1833, 162.—Ruwap, Fam. Visitor,
iii, 1853, 343; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Ampelis cedrorum, BaIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 318.—KıRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii,
1859, 317.—WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 364; Reprint, 6; in Coues’
Birds of N. W., 1874, 233; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 565;

Reprint, 5.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, jonas Cin. Soe.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8. \

Cedar Bird, PALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Bombycilla carolinensis, BRISSON, Orn., ii, 1760, 337. (Not binomial.)
Bombyciila cedrorum, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 88.

Ampelis cedrorum, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, i, 1449, 278.

General color as garrulus. Under tail-coverts whitish; little or no orange.hrown
about head; no white on wings; chin black, sbading gradually into the colo: f the
throat ; a black frontal, loral and transocular stripe as in garrulus, but this bordered on
the forehead with whitish; a white touch on lower eyelid; feathers on side of lower
jaw white; abdomen soiled yellowish; tail tipped with yellow. Length, 7-74; wing,
about 3%

Habitat, North America at Jarge, to latitude 54° N. or beyond; south through Mexico
and Central America. Bermudas. Jamaica. Cuba. Accidental in England.

Usually abundant resident, Breeds. The Cedar Bird, or Cherry Bird,
as it is generally called in Ohio, though classed among the resident
birds, is named as resident only from the fact that it appears at any time
during the year. Usually more of them are to be seen in the month of
May than at other times, when they appear in close flocks of usually
from 20 to 50. At this time their food is’insects, and they display ex-
cellent qualities as fly-catchers, flying farther from their perch to secure
their prey than any other bird of fly-catching habits, except the Swal-
lows. Their flight is easy, undulating, and swift, and the whole flock
moves as if by the impulse of a single will. Their note is a short
wheezy whistle, and they have no song. They continue in flocks until
breeding commences, which is not till late in June, and as soon as their
young are fledged they again assemble in companies. These birds are
rather stupid, and very great gormandizers. In fact, their movements
all seem prompted by their appetites. They are very fond of cherries,
and a fluck of them in a cherry tree is an entertaining sight to those
who are not especially interested in the fruit. When a flock alights,
they sit motionless and erect for a time, like parrots, then by a move-
ment of the head and neck, each one takes a survey of his immediate

CHERRY BIRD. 297

surroundings, and one by one they proceed to the chief business of their
lives. They eat until they can eat no longer, and are hardly able to
move. As Mr. Read says, they are “very polite, passing food to one
another.”

In the fall they feed on the berries of the gum tree and poke-berries ;
in the winter on the berries of the mountain ash and red cedar. I have
never seen them on the ground. With us they are less common in
winter.

The nest of the Cedar Bird is built on the horizontal branch of a tree,
at varying distances from the ground. Sycamore trees furnish favorite
sites, but they often breed in orchards. The nest is large, composed of
twigs and vegetable fibres, and lined with grass. The eggs are usually
five. grayish-blue, varying from a light slate to stone color, blotched with
very dark brown and purplish. They measure about .85 by .65. While
nesting the old birds are very silent.

In regard to “sealing-wax” tips to secondary quills of birds of this
genus, Dr. Coues (Birds of Col. Val., 452) says they “have been subjected
to chemical and microscopical examination by L. Stieda, and shown to be
the enlarged, hardened, and peculiarly modified prolongation of the shaft
itself of the feather, composed of central and peripheral substances, dif-
fering in the shape of the pigment cells, which contain abundance of
red and yellow coloring matter.” My own opinion has always been that
these tips were both the end of the shaft and terminal lamin of the
vane, which were agglutinated together by a deposit of red coloring mat-
ter. These tips are sometimes found upon the tail-feathers of the Cedar
Bird. Inaspring male in high plumage before me, they are on all the
feathers, not as well developed as on the secondaries, but the red coloring
matter on the shaft forms a streak which extends nearly the width of
the yellow tip of the tail-feathers, more distinct above than below.
The terminal lamine project at the end as if the feather had been
trimmed toa small triangular point. This triangle is red, and the lamins
more or less adherent and stiff, though readily separated from each other
by slight pressure. On most of the feathers there is a narrow red edging
extending across the end of the feathers, and the under tail-coverts are
distinctly red-tipped.

The tips to the secondaries vary in number and development at differ-
ent times. They are most numerous and highly developed in spring, in
the latter part of summer often entirely wanting. They may be present
in young birds in first plumage.

298 BIRDS—VIREONIDA.

FAMILY VIREONIDA. THE VIREOS.

Primaries ten, the first less than half the second, or rudimentary and displaced, con-
eoaled on the outer side of second. Basal joint of widdle toe shorter than that of inner
toe, and wholly adherent to both inner and outer toes. Tarsus longer than middle toe
and claw. Gonys more than half the length of the lower jaw. Bill stout, high, com-
pressed; notched and abruptly hooked at tip. :

Genus VIREO. Vieillot.
Wings pointed or rounded; longer than the even or rounded tail.
The following is compiled from Dr. Coues’

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES.

* Primaries apparently only 9, the first being rudimentary or displaced (occasionally
quite visible).

+ Throat and breast yellow, abdomen white. - V. FLAVIFRONS.

tt No definite yellow below. .
a Sides of crown with black streaks. V. OLIVACEUS.
aaNo black on crown. - V. PHILAD».LPHICUS.

* * Primaries 10, the first short and ‘ spurious.”
t Wing bars wanting. V. GILVUS.
+} Wing-bars present.

b Length over five inches. - - V. SOLITARIUS.
b b’Length under five inches. V. NOVEBORACENSIS.

€
VIREO oLIVAcEUS (L.) V.
Red-eyed Vireo.

Vireo olivaceus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1893, 395.—Bairp, P.R R Rep.. ix, 1858, 3}2.—WHEatTon, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 364; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565;
Reprint, 1875, 5.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7.

Vireosylvia olivaceus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173;
Reprint, 7.

Red-eyed Vireo, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Muscicapa olivacea, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 327.

Vireo olivaceus, ‘ Vieillot,” BONAPARTE, Aun, Lye. N. Y., ii, 1826, 71.

Vireosylvia olivacea, BONAPARTE, ('on. Av., 1850, 329.

Vireosylvia olivaceus, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 363.

Above olive green ; crown ash, edged on each side with a blackish line, below this a
white superciliary line, below this again a dusky stripe through the eye; under parts
white, faintly shaded with olive along sides, and tinged with olive on under wing and
tail coverts; wings and tail dusky, edged with olive outside, with whitish inside; bill
dusky, pale below; feet leaden-olive; eyes red; no spurious quill. Large, 52-(4; wing,
34-24; tail 24-24; bill, about $; tarsus, 4.

Habitat, chiefly Eastern North America to Hudson’s Bay; Greenland; west to Rocky
Mountains, and even beyond; Washington Territory; Utah; south to New Granada
and Trinidad. Cuba. Accidental in England.

PHILADELPHIA VIREO. 299

Abundant summer resident from the last week in April to October.
Breeds. The Red-eyed Vireo is the most abundant species of the family
with us. It frequents woodland, though often seen in op n places, and
even in cities, especially during the migrations. Its song is shorter,
louder, and more vigorous than that of the Warbling Vireo. Its call note
is short aud harsh. Both are heard during the whole day. The Red-
eyed Vireo, like all others of the family, subsists chiefly upon insects
which he captures on the wing like the true fly-catchers, and hunts for
on the branches and leaves In the fall, however, it becomes quite fru-
givorous, feeding upon various berries. Its plumage is frequently soiled
with the red juice of the pokeberry.

The nest of this bird, as of all others of the family, is pensile, its rim
being attached to the horizontal fork of a twig. It is usually placed from
five tu twenty five feet of the ground. The walls are thin, composed for
the most purt of vegetable fibres, which are bleached to a uniform wood
color, and firmly felted together; the lining is of grass, sometimes mingled
with horsehairs and bits of newspapers. The eggs are pure white,
sparsely marked with small round spots of very dark brown. They
measure about .85 by .56.

VIREO PHILADELPHICUS (Cassin) Bd.
Philadelphia Vireo.

Vireo philadelphicus, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 335.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Kep. for
1860, 1861, 365, 374; Reprint, 7, 16; in Coues’ Birds N. W., 1874, 233; Food of Birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 565; Reprint, 5.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 7; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 5.

Vireosylvia philadelphica, BAIRD, Rev. Am. Birds, 1365, 34.

Vireosylvia philadelphicus, BatrD, BkEWER and Rıpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 367.—
LanGpon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 173; Reprint, 7.

Vireosylvia philadelphica, Cassin, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1851, 153.

Above, dull olive-green, brightening on the rump, fading insensibly into ashy on the
crown, which is not bordered with blackish; a dull white superciliary line; below,
palest possible yellowish, whitening on throat and belly, slightly olive-shaded on sides;
sometimes a slight creamy or buffy shade throughout the under parts; no obvious
wing-bars; no spurious quill. Length, 43-54; wing, about 23; tail, about 24; bill,
hardly or about 4; tarsus, 3.

Habitat, Eastern North America, especially the Mississippi Valley; north to Hudson’s
Bay ; south to Guatemala. Rare in the Atlantic States and New England.

Not very common but regular spring and fall migrant, in May and
September. The Philadelphia Vireo is one of the most interesting of
the family, because of its comparatively recent discovery and general
rarity. It frequents woodland and the wooded borders of streams. I

300 BIRDS—VIREONIDE.

have seen a single individual in my garden. In the spring they are
found singly or in pairs, sometimes in high ash trees, but usually in the
branches of undergrowth in beech woodland. In the fall Ihave found
them in flocks, in company with Red-eyed Vireos and Bay-breasted
Warblers. Fall specimens are decidedly yellow below. A little ac-
quaintance will enable an observer to determine the species at sight as
readily as the family to which it belongs. Its smaller size and olive-
green, without marked ashyness of the upper parts, readily separate it
from the Warbling Vireo, while the absence of wing-bars as readily dis-
tinguishes it from the White-eyed Vireco. So far as I can ascertain, they
are mute when on their migrations.

The Philadelphia Vireo was first described by Cassin in 1851, from a
single specimen taken in the vicinity of Philadelphia nine years before.
An Ohio specimen was presented to the Museum of the Smithsonian In-
stitution by Dr. Kirtland previous to 1858. It is reported common dur-
ing the migrations in Wisconsin. Its place and manner of breeding are
unknown.

T have seen at least three specimens which have a short exposed first
primary; in one this feather was exposed for over one fourth of an inch,
and normally situated with reference to the second quill; in the other
two specimens the rudimentary first primary projected somewhat less
beyond the greater coverts, but was somewhat displaced, though less so
than is ordinarily the case The presence of a spurious primary in
Vireo olivaceous has been noted by Mr. C. F. Batchelor (Bull. Nutt Orn.
Club, iii, 1878, 97). It should, however, be understood that birds of this
genus described as having nine primaries, have been shown to have
really ten, the first being short, rudimentary and displaced (lying in the
same plane as, and concealed by the primary or greater wing-coverts).
The discovery of this fact was made by Prof. Baird, and the subsequent
researches of Dr. Coues render it probable that all so called nine-primaried
birds really possess ten, the first rudimentary. On this subject Dr. Coues
(Birds of Col, Val., 1878, 486) says:

Believing this to be an important matter deserving of further investigation, I was not
long since led to examive the general question, with satisfactory results. I verified
Professor Baird’s observations in many wore cases, extending them to include all our
North American families excepting perhaps Laniid@ (in Lanius) and Ampelide (in
Ampelis), The clue to the search for the apparently wanting primary was given by Baird
(Review, pp. 160, 325), from which it appears that in all those Vireos which seem to
have only nine primaries, two little feathers, distinct in size and shape, and somewhat
so in position, are found at the base of the supposed first primary; while in Vireos,
with obviously ten primarics, there is only one such little feather. With the possible
exception of Ampelis and Lanius, in which 1 did not make out the state of the parts sat-

WARBLING VIREO. 3801

isfactorily, I find that in all of the numerous North American genera examined, those of
ten primaries show but one of these little feathers, while the rest have two. In the
family Alaudide, as in Vireonide, some geuera have ten primaries, others apparently only
nine; and in our genus Eremophila, in which only nine are developed, there are two of
the little feathers just mentioned, the overlying one being exactly like one of the pri-
mary coverts, the other, though not very similar, more resembling an abortive primary.
Alauda arvensis, which shows a minute but obvious spurious quill, has but one such
little feather; and in Galerita eristata, with a spurious quill about two-thirds of an inch
long, there is likewise but one. In Clamatorial Passeres, perhaps withont exception,
there are ten fully develuped primaries, the first of which may equal or exceed the next
in length; and in the single North American Clamatorial family, Tyrannide, { find, as
before, only one of these little feathers. In a Woodpecker, remarkable among Picarian
birds for possessiug only nine loug primaries, the first being short or spurious, there is
also but one.

It thus seems to be established that amoug supposed nine-primaried birds, the addi-
tional one, making ten in all, is normally represented by the second one of these tiny
quills which overlie the base of the vutermost fully developed feather ; it being the same
little quill which in ten primaried Oscines, in Clamatcres, and probably other birds, comes
to the front and constitutes the first regular primary, either remain!ng quite short, when
it is the so-called ‘‘spurivus” primary, or leugtheuing to equal or exceeu the ovuer pri
maries in extent.

It becomes an interesting question whether both of these miante quills be not radi-
mentary primaries, as one of them certainly is. I have failed to detect any material
difference between the two in size, shape, or position. One overlies the other, indeed, as
a covert should a primary, but the two are together inserted side by side on the upper
side of the first fully developed quill; both are rigid and acuminate, more like primaries
than like coverts, aud both are abruptly shorter than the true primary cuverts. So far,
all the evidence favors the supposition that both are rudimentary primaries. On the
other hand, coloration is against such hypothesis, ag in the original case of Vireo flavi-
Jrons, in which Baird determined the underlying one of these two little feathers to be
the missing primary, mainly because it was colored like the primaries, the overlying one
resembling the coverts in coloratioa. But the color test is often inapplicable, coverts
and primaries being usually like each other in this respect, and color sometimes puints
the other way. ‘hus, in Sitta carolinensis, a ten-primatied Oscine with spurious first
primary, the single remaining little feather is white at base across both webs, like the
primaries, the true primary coverts being white only on the inner web.

VIREO GiLvus (V.) Bp.
Warbling Vireo.

Vireo gilvus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 183, 180 —R#ap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
383; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395. —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 464; Reprint, 1861, 6; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565;
Reprint, 1875, 5.—Lan@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7.

Viredsylvia gilvus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Re-
print, 8. \

Warbling Vireo, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136. -

Muscicapa gilva, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 65.

302 BIRDS—VIREONIDA.

Vireo gilvus, BONAPARTS, Journ. Phila. Acad, iv, 1824, 174.
Vireosylvia gilva, CASSIN, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1851, 153.
Vireosylvia gilvus, BAIRD, BREWER and Rıpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 368.

Primaries ten, the exposed poriion of the first of which is one-third or less of the
second, no obvious wing-bars, no blackish stripe along the side of the crown, and no
abrupt contrast between color of back and crown. Upper parts greenish, with an ashy
shade, rather brighter on the rump and edgings of the wings and tail, anteriorly shad-
ing insensibly into ashy on the crown. Ash of crown bordered immediately by a whitish
superciliary and loral line; region immediately betore and behind the eye dusky ash.
Below, sordid white with faint yellowish (sometimes creamy or buffy) tinge, more ob-
viously shaded along the sides with a dilution of the color of the back. Quills and
tail-feathers fuscous, with narrow external edgings as above said, and broader whitish
edging of the inner webs; the wing coverts without obvious whitish tipping. Bill dark
horn-color above, paler below ; feet plumbeous. Iris brown. Length, 5 inches, or rather
more; wing, 2.80; tail, 2.25; bill, 40; tarsus, .67.

. Habitat, Temperate Eastern North America; west to the bigh central plains (beyond
which replaced by var. swainsoni); south to Mexico.

Abundant summer resident from April 25th to October. Frequents
especially the wooded banks of streams, groves, and the shade-trees of
the city, breeding in all these locations; seldom in dense woodland.
The ordinary note of this bird is short, querulous, aud scolding, but its
song is one of the most varied, prolonged, tender, and sweet’ of our sum-
mer birds.

The nest of this bird resembles that of the Red-eyed Vireo, both in the
materials of which it is composed, and its general structure, but it is
usually at a very considerable distance from the ground.

The eggs are five, white, sparingly spotted with dark brown, sometimes
blotched with reddish-brown, and still more rarely immaculate. They
measure from .75 to .70 of an inch in length, and average about .55 in

breadth.

VIREO FLAVIFRONS V.
Wellow-throated Vireo.

Vireo flavifrons, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
375; Proc. Phila. Acad, Nat Sei., vi, 1853, 395 —Barnp, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 342,
WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 7; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 564; Reprint, 1875, 5.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7.

Vireosylvia flavifrons, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1866, 346.

Lanivireo flavifrons, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174;
Reprint, 8.

Vireo flavifrons, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 85.

Lanivireo flavifrons, LAWRENCE, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., ix, 1868, 96.

Above, rich olive-green, crown the same or even brighter, ramp insensibly shading
into bluish-ash; below, bright yellow, belly and crissum abruptly white, sides anter-

SOLITARY VIREO. 303

4

jorly shaded with olive, posteriorly with plumbeous; extreme forehead, superciliary
line, and ring around eye, yellow; lores dusky; wings dusky, with the inner second-
aries broadly white-edged, and two broad white bars across tips of greater and median
coverts ; tail dusky, nearly all the feathers completely encircled with white edging; bill

and feet dark leaden-blue; no spurious quill. Length, 52-6; wing, about 3; tail, only
about 24.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British. Provinces; west to Iowa and Kansas;
south to Mexico, Central America, and British Columbia. Cuba.

Common summer resident, especially in Northern Ohio. Breeds. Mr.
Langdon gives it as largely migrant in the vicinity of Cincinnati, where
but a few remain and breed. In the immediate vicinity ot Columbus, it
is a not common spring and fall migrant in the last week of April, May,
and September, but I have found them nesting in oak woods, ten or
twelve miles distant. Mr. Read states that it is abundant in Northern
Ohio.

The Yellow-throated Vireo frequents secluded woods and banks of ra-
vines and streams, and appears to be partial to oak forests. They are
generally seen high in the trees, usually singly or in pairs. The song of
the male is shorter than that of the Warbling Vireo, less varied, and ina
higher key. In Massachusetts its habits are described by Dr. Brewer as
very different. He states that he has “found no one of the genus so
conimon in the vicinity of dwellings, or more familiar and fearless in itg
intercourse with man.” In our gardens it is a rare visitor in May.

The nest of this bird is constructed much like that of other members
of this genus, except that it is profuseiy covered with moss. It is ate
tached to a fork of one of the lower branches of a tree, from three to ten

feet trom the ground. The eggs are white, marked with sputs of rosey-
brown, and measure about .83 by .64.

VIREO SOLITARIUS (Wils.) V.
Blue-headed Vireo; Solitary Vireo.

Vireo solitarius, WHtaToN, Olio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365, 375; Reprint, 1861, 7, 17; Food
ot Buds, eic., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565; Reprint, 1875, 5.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds
vt Cin., 1877, 7; Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 5.

Lanivireo solitarius, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Ree
print, 3.

Muscicapa solilaria, WILSON, Am, Orn., ii, 1810, 43.

Vireo solularius, VIBLLUT, “ Nouv. Dict. @’Hist. N.,” xi, 1817.

Lanivireo solitarius, ALLEN, Am. Nat., iii, 1869, 507, 579,

Above, olive-green, crowa and sides of head bluish-ash in marked contrast ; a broad
white sive from nostrils to and around eye and a dusky loral line; below white, flanks
washed with olivaceous, and axillaries and crissum pale yellow; wings and tail dusky,
most of the feathers edged with white or whitish, and two conspicuous bars of the same

304 BIRDS—VIREONIDE.

across tips of middle and great coverts; bill and feet blackish horn-color. Length, 54-
52; wing, 23-3; tail, 24-24; spurious quill 4-3, about 4 as long as second.
Habitat, United States and Canada; south to Central America. Cuba.

Not common spring and fall migrant in Southern and Middle Ohio,
probably summer resident in Northern Ohio. I have taken it in May,
September, and October. With us they are found usually in the lower
branches of trees or the higher branches of undergrowth. They are
quiet and shy, always solitary, and apparently fatigued, or at least not
quite at home with us.

The Solitary or Biue-headed Vireo appears to be a bird of unequal dis-
tribution. Mr. Gentry, speaking of their presence in the vicinity of
Philadelphia, where they breed, states that it had recently become much
more abundant than formedly, and that during some seasons it was nearly
as abundant as the Red-eyed Vireo. In Massachusetts, according to Dr.
Brewer, it has been found in a few restricted localities. He describes its
song as “a prolonged and very peculiar ditty, repeated at frequent inter-
vals, and always identical. It begins with a pleasant warble, of a grad-
ually ascending scale, which at a certain pitch suddenly breaks down
into a falsetto note. The song then rises again in a single high note,
and ceases.”

The nest is described as being rather more loosely constructed than
that of other Vireos, and as exhibiting more variety in the materials of
which it is composed. It is usually placed within twelve feet of the
ground. The eggs are five, of a less crystalline whiteness than those of
most Vireos, and spotted uniformly with reddish-brown and dark red.
They measure about .77 by .52. '

VIREO NOVEBORACENSIS (Gm.) Bp.
White-eyed Vireo,

Vireo noveboracensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 163.—ReApD, Fam. Visitor, iii,
1853, 375; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat, Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio. Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565;
Reprint, 1875, 5.—LANGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 7; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8.

Muscicapa noveboracensis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 947.
Vireo noveboracensis, BONAPARTE, Journ. Phila. Acad., iv, 1824, 176.

Above, bright olive-green, including crown; a slight ashy gloss on the cervix, and the
rump showing yellowish when the feathers are disturbed; below, white, the sides of the
breast and belly, the axillars and crissum, bright yellow; a bright yellow line from nos-
trils to and around eye ; lores dusky; two broad yellowish wing-bars; inner secondaries
widely edged with the same; bill and feet blackish plumbeous; eyes white. Length,

WHITE-EYED VIREO. 305

about 5 inches; wing, 24-24 ; tail, 2} ; spurious quill, 2, half as long as the second, which
abont equals the eighth; tarsus, about 2; middle toe and claw, 4; bill, under 4.

Habitat, Eastern United States, excepting perhaps parts of New England; west to
Dakota, Kansas, and Western Texas; south to Guatemala. Bermudas. Cuba.

Common summer resident from the last week in April to the last of
September, but of irregular distribution. In some localities apparently
well suited to its habits, it is never seen. Breeds. Dr. Kirtland names
it without comment. Mr. Read says it is abundant throughout the sum-
mer. Mr. Langdon gives it as a common summer resident. I have never
been able to find it in the vicinity of Columbus.

This little bird, the smallest of the family breeding with us, has many
peculiarities besides its white eyes. It is a frequenter of low thickets,
while the others of the family are found in woodland. It is not a whit
behind its relatives in reputation for courage in defense of itself when
wounded, or of its nest and young. Dr. Coues (Birds Col. Val., 524) says
of it:

“The White-eyed Vireo has always been notable, even in groups of birds whose spirit
is high, for its irritable temperament ; and during the breeding season, nothing can sur-
pass the petulance and irascibility which it displays when its home is too nearly ap-
proached, and the fuss it makes when its temper is ruffled in this way. It skips about
in a panicky state, as regardless of exposure as a virago haranguing the crowd ona
street corner, seemingly at such loss for adequate expletives that we may fancy it quite
ready to say ‘‘Thank you,” if somebody would only swear a little. Like the Wrens and
Titmice—like various birds, in fact, which live habitually in shrubbery, where they
have to peer and pry about to see well—these Vireos show a good deal of curiosity and
inquisitiveness when anything it going on that they do not quite understand; and if we
take care not to frighten them into a flutter of excitement, they frequently come almost
within arms’ reach by slow and devious approaches, poising curiously on one twig after
another, and soliloquizing the while in their quaint fashion. Their uneasiness, however,
is chiefly exhibited during the breeding season, and all their vehemence is but the ex-
cess of treir concern for their li tle families, which, as they seem to be aware, are pecu-
liarly exposed to danger in their lowly homes; their ardor exhausts itself when the
occasion is past, and what had been excessive solicitude gives way to the simple spright-
liness and vivacity, which then appears as an agreeable trait. In the springtime they
rival their relatives in brilliancy and versatility of song, which must be heard to be
appreciated ; it is a curious medley, delivered with great earnestness and almost endless
variations, scarcely to be described in words.”

The nest is suspended from a fork of a bush or low sapling, seldom
more than six feet above the ground, and generally so low that its con-
tents are visible to the passer by. It is composed of moss, fibres of bark,
bits of leaves, grass, and such other articles as the birds may consider
either useful or ornamental. Wilson nicknamed it “the Politician,” be-
cause it frequently used bits of newspaper in the construction of its

20

306 BIRDS—LANIIDE.

nest. The eggs are usually five, white, with purple and reddish-brown
dots. They measure .78 by .60.

FAMILY LANIIDA. THE SHRIKES.

Primariesten. Tarsi distinctly scutellate. Nostrils overhung (not con ealed) by bristly
feathers. Rictal bristles present, strong. Bill powerful, compressed, strongly notched,
toothed and hooked. Wings and tail moderate. Large. Colors black, white, and gray.

r

Sub-family Lantın®. Typical Shrikes.

Bill very powerful, much compressed, with a very prominent tooth behind the noteh.
Wings considerably rounded. Tail rather long and graduated. Sides of tarsiin part
scutellate. Lateral toes about equal.

Genus LANIUS (Linneus.) Coues.

Base of bill, including nostrils, covered by bristly feathers directed forwards. Tip of
under mandible bent upward in a hook. Rictus with long bristles. Tail longer than

wings, much rounded, the feathers broad. Claws sharp and much eurved. Body ro-
bust.

LaNius BOREALIS Vieillot.
Great Northern Shrike; Butcher bird.

Lanius septentrionalis, KiRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163, 131.—READ, Fam. Vis-
itor, iii, 1853, 351; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 345. :
Collyrio borealis, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 325..—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for

1860, 364, 374; Reprint, 1861, 6, 16.

Collurio borealis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565; Reprint,
1875, 5.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin, 1877, 7; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8—MARSHALL, Journ. of Science (newspaper, Toledo,
O.), new series, ii, 1879, No. 6 (nesting).

Northern Butcher Bird, KIRTLAND, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 91.

Lanius borealis, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am Sept , i, 1807, 90 —Couzs, Birds Col. Val., i, 1878, 558,
Lanius septentrionalis, BONAPARTE, Ann. Lye. N. Y., ii, 1826, 72, 438.

Collyrio borealis, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 324.

Collurio borealis, BAIRD, Rev. Am. Birds, 1866, 440.

Clear bluish-ash, blanching on the rump and scapulars; below white, always vermic-
ulated with fine wavy blackish lines; a black bar along side of the head, not meeting
its fellow across iorehead, interrapted by a white crescent on under eyelid, and bordered
above by hoary white that also occupies the extreme forehead; wings and tail black,
the former with a large spot near base of the primaries, and the tips of most of the
quills white, the latter with nearly all the feathers broadly tipped with white, and with
concealed white bars; bill and feet black. Length, 9-10; wing, 43; tail rather more.
‘The young are similar, but none of the colors are go fine or so intense; the entire plum-
-age has a brownish suffusion, and the bill is flesh-colored at base.

Habitat, North America, northerly ; south in winter to about 35°. Bermudas.

GREAT NORTHERN SHRIKE. 307

Irregular and not very common winter visitor from November to April.
Neither Dr. Kirtland during the time embraced by his writings, nor Mr.
Read, were aware of the presence in Ohio of any other species of this
family. The former states that it is an occasional visitor in the cold
season, and in the Ohio Farmer (l. c) that none made their appearance
in the mild winter of 1859-60. Mr. Read gives it as rare in his Cata-
logue, but in the Family Visitor states that it is “frequently seen at all
seasons of the year,” which may, I think, indicate the presence of the fol-
lowing species. I have been informed that this species breeds in the
vicinity of Cleveland, but on an examination of specimens, the White-
rumped Shrike had been mistaken for ıt. The only record of its breed-
ing within the State is that of Mr. D. M Marshall, of Oswego, N. Y.,
(l. c.) who says:

“ The first specimen I ever obtained was about three miles west of Oswego, N. Y. I
shot both the male and female of the birds, and also got the nest, which was in an apple
tree, about fifteen feet from the ground. The nest was about the sizo of that of a robin,
and was made from twigs and pieces of an old newspaper. It was very nicely lined
with poultry feathers, and contained five eggs, of a light gray color, speckled with
darker spots of a greenish-brown. * * * * I found a nest of this kind about two
weeks ago, three miles east of Toledo, O, in an orcbard. The nest was about twenty
feet from the ground, and was built upon the top of an old robin’s nest. I have found
two of their nests since then.”

The above statement is sufficiently positive, but not sufficiently min-
ute as to identification. Mr. Marshall writes from a locality where Dr.
Brewer writes me the Northern Shrike breeds “sure enough,” but I am
not so sure that Mr. Marshall has not mistaken excubitorides for borealis,
and have endeavored to obtain from him more definite information, thus
far without success. Until we have more than a simple assertion to that
effect, the case of the Northern Shrike breeding in Ohio must be consid-
ered as not proven.

The Shrikes are the “ Bushwhackers” among birds. No others are
so notorious for cruelty and rapacity. They kill not only for food, but
apparently for the gratification of a blood-thirsty instinct, which has
no parallel among our Birds of Prey. They alone, of all birds, impale
their victims upon thorns and twigs. Their food consists of mice, small
birds, beetles and grasshoppers. They capture mice and birds much in
the manner of hawks, lying in wait for and pouncing upon them from
an elevation. If their captive is not required for immediate use, it is
impaled by the neck upon a thorn or sharp twig. Mr. Marshall. says
that he has seen a bird “flying towards its nest with a mouse hanging
from the bill by the neck. The bird alighted on a twig, and holding

308 _ BIRDS—LANIIDE.

the mouse by the neck with the bill, pushed it upon a thorn, and after
it was impaled, struck it two or'three blows by the bill on the head to
make its position secure; the thorn ran through the neck of the mouse.
It was only five or six feet from the nest in the same tree.” He also says
that a friend once saw a Butcher Bird carrying a live garter snake in its
bill, which the bird adroitly fastened upon a thorn. After the snake was
impaled he took it still alive from the thorn. He examined several
mice and small birds impaled upon thorns in this manner, and thinks
that the Butcher Bird produces death by strangulation, as there were no
marks of violence upon them.

In eastern cities these birds sometimes appear in considerable num-
bers, and prey upon the English Sparrows, and are so bold as frequently
to fly into houses and attack caged birds. With us, however, they con-
fine themselves to fields with solitary trees and fence rows. They
exhibit great curiosity when first they discover a human being, but this
is soon exhausted, and they become very shy and wary, ‘exhibiting a
tantalizing skill in evading capture.

They have a habit of pursuing small birds for the sole purpose of an-
noying and terrifying them, and in so doing exhibit a considerable
acquaintance with their habits. Such birds as the Yellow-bird, they
attempt to drive into thickets and prevent from flying, by keeping con-
stantly above them, but such as naturally take refuge in low places, as
most Sparrows, they drive into the upper branches of trees, following
them from branch to branch, but keeping always below them. When
engaged in this amusement, their actions strongly resemble those of the
Jay.

Their flight is quick and varied, sometimes undulating and protracted,
and at others accomplished by quick short strokes of partially extended
wings, somewhat after the manner of the Spotted Sandpiper. When
pursued, they often fly low, taking advantage of trees, fences, or inequal-
ities of the ground for concealment.

Their notes are singular, sometimes loud and shrill, when they have
been compared to the noise made by the creaking of a tavern sign; at
other times finely modulated, and said, though the general appearance
of the bird doubtless suggests the comparison, to resemble the notes of
the Mockingbird. They are also said to imitate the cries of other birds
in distress, for the purpose of decoying them. The nest of the Butcher
Bird is built in trees. It is large, and except the base of twigs and
stalks, is composed of soft mosses, stems, and grasses, thoroughly felted
together, and lined abundantly with down and feathers. “The egg
measures 1.10 inches by .80, and is of a light greenish-ground, marbled

LOGGERHEAD .SHRIKE. 309

and streaked with blotches of obscure-purple, elay-color, and rufous-
brown.”

LANIUS LUDOVIcIANUs Linnzus.

var. LUDOVICIANUS Cs.
Loggerhead Shrike.

Collyrio Tudovicianus, WHEATON, Reprint Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 21, (probable).

Collurio ludovicianus, WHEATON, in Coues’ Birds of N. W., 1874, 233; Food of Birds, etc.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 565; Reprint, 1875, 5.—LANnGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,
8; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 8.

Collurio ludovicianus, var. ludovicianus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 120.

Lanius ludovicianus, var..ludovicianus, Cours, Birds of Col. Val, i, 1878, 563,

Lanius ludovicianus, Brisson, Orn., ii, 1760, 162 (not binomial).—Liny.xus, Syst. Nat., i,
1766, 134.

Collyrio ludovicianus, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 325.

Collurio ludovicianus, BAIRD, Rev. N. A. Birds, 1866, 443.

Slate colored, slightly whitish on the rump and scapulars; below, white, with a few
obscure wavy black lines, or nore; black bar on one side of the head, meeting its fellow
across the forehead, not interrupted by white on under eyelid, and scarcely or not bor-
dered above by hoary white; otherwise like borealis in color, but smaller; 8-84; wing,
about 4; tail rather more.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States; north to Mississippi and Ohio Valley, and
recently (?) extending to New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and even Maine.
California.

Common summer resident in Middle, less common in Northern and
Southern Ohio. Arrives during the first week in March, noted March
4th for several consecutive years, and remains until September. First
ascertained to occur in Ohio by myself in 1874, a female specimen, taken
May 31, 1873, on which my note in Coues’ Birds of the Northwest was in
part based, proving a nearly typical specimen of this variety. Her
mate was an equally well marked individual of var excubitoroides. Since
then it has continued to be our commonest bird of the family. Mr.
Langdon gave it as rare in 1877, mentions its increasing numbers and
“ breeding in 1878, and considers it an uncommon resident in 1879.

The recognized range of this species has changed greatly within a
few years. As late as 1874, the highest authorities confined it to the
Southern States, though it had previously been noted in Illinois by
Holder in 1861, and in Wisconsin by Dr. Hoy in 1853, who also includes
excubitoroides in his list. Since then the species, especially this variety,
seems to have vastly extended eastward, having been found in most of
the above named States breeding.

The habits cf the Loggerhead are essentially the same as those of the

310 BIRDS—LANIIDE.

Northern Shrike. Probably fewer quadrupeds and birds compose its fare,
with a greater proportion of insects and small reptiles. They are not
less savage and bloodthirsty than the Northern Shrike. The young are
frequently caught and sold to the uninitiated for young Mocking-birds,
but if two of them be placed’ in the same cage, the doctrine of the “sur-
vival of the fittest” is speedily demonstrated. In this vicinity it is
generally distributed in open country, never in woodland or in the
city. It prefers rich bottoms, but is often found in upland fields.
Thickets along railroads are a favorite resort, affording a constant supply
of food, suitable breeding sites, and a favorite perch upon a telegraph
wire. In other situations a fence-stake is a favorite perch, often beside
a public road, for the curiosity of this species is not so easily satisfied as
that of the Northern Shrike. They fly from their perch to the ground
to secure insects, their actions in this respect resembling those of the
Red-headed Woodpecker. They are generally in pairs on their arrival,
and almost immediately proceed to the business of nesting. The nest
is built in a tree or bush, often with no attempt at concealment, but fre-
quently in the almost inaccessable branches of a honey locust, or in
an osage-orange hedge. Usually they are within fifteen feet from the
ground, sometimes not more than three. Until the young are hatched,
their behaviour when the nest is approached or examined, does not differ
from mild-mannered birds, but when the young are in danger they are
exceedingly combative in resenting it, flying closely over head with
open mouths and hoarse shrieks. Their cries attract birds of the same
species from a great distance, but these remain idle though excited spec-
tators. The nest is large and deep, and with us resembles the nest of
the Northern Shrike, above described. When built near a railroad they
frequently employ the cotton used in cleaning engines in its construc-
tion. Few birds form so compact a nest of similar materials. The birds
occupy the nest for several days before laying commences. The eggs are
often laid in April. They are of a light grayish color, spotted with lav-
ender, yellowish- and pinkish-brown, and can not be distinguished from
the eggs of var. excubitorides. More southern nests are described as
smaller and much shallower. The average measurement of the egg is
1.05 by .75.

LANIU3S LUDOVICIANUS Linneus.

var. EXCUBITORIDES (Sw.) Cs.
White-rumped Shrike.

Collyrio excubitoroides, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, addenda, 480; Re-
print, 7.

LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE. 311

Collurio ludovicianus var. excubitoroides, WHEATON, in Coues’ Birds of N. W., 1874, 233;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 565; Reprint, 1875, 5.—Couss, Birds
of N. W., 1874, 103.—MERRIAM, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 55.—LANGDON, Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8; Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iv, 1879, 120.

Lanius ludovicianus var. excubitorides, Cougs, Birds of Col. Val., i, 1878, 563.

Lanius excubitorides, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor,-Am., ii, 1831, 115.

Lanius excubitoroides, BAIRD, Rep. Gt. Salt Lake, 1852, 328.

Collyrio excubitoroides, BALIRD, Birds N. Am, 1858, 527.

Collurio ludovieianus var. excubitoroides, Couns, Key, 1872, 125.

With the size and essential characters of head stripe of var. ludovicianus, and the un-
der parts, as in that species, not or not obviously waved, but with the clear light ashy
upper parts, and hoary whitish superciliary line, scapulars and rump of borealis.

Habitat, middle province of North America, north to the Saskatchewan; east through
Kansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, Xllinois, Ohio, New York, and Canada West. Rhode Island,
California,

Rare in Southern and Middle Ohio, probably more common in North-
ern-Ohio. Summer resident from March to September. Breeds. The
history of this bird in Ohio is somewhat obscure. It was first noted in
my catalogue of 1860 (1861) on the authority of Dr. Kirtland and Mr.
Winslow. In 1862 and after, I found Shrikes not rare during summer in
the vicinity of Columbus, which I suppose to have been of this variety.
In 1873, with a single exception, the female mentioned on page 309, all
specimens examined by me were clearly referable to this variety, but after
this date they seem to have become darker yearly, only here and there a
male falling on the excubitorides side of the line. Mr. Ridgway seems to
have noticed the same change, for in “Notes on Birds observed at Mount
Carmel, Southern Illinois, in the spring of 1878,” (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club,
iii, 1878, 164), he says: ‘‘ Although in previous papers I have given the
White-rumped form (excubitoroides) as the Shrike of this portion of the
country, all the specimens obtained during my recent visit were per-
fectly typical of the Southern race.”

Have we here an admixture of races, or are the differences to be con-
sidered simply sexual or individual, or, to draw the line sharply, were
the Loggerheads of 1874 the offspring of the White-rumped Shrikes of
18737

Mr. C. Hart Merriam, in Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1858, 55, gives an
excellent resume of this subject, which I give entire:

“Concerning the ‘Loggerhead Shrike,’ the case, though in some respects parallel with
the above, is much more difficult of explanation, and has given rise to much confusion,
owing to the complication arising from the close relationship existing between the South-
ern and Western forms. Coues, in his ‘Key,’ states that ‘extreme examples of ludovi-

312 BIRDS—LANIIDE.

cianus and excubitoroides look very different, but they are observed to melt into each other
when many specimens are compared, so that no specific character can be assigned,’ and
if the doctor had substituted the term varietal for specific, he would have hit equally
near the truth. The fact is, there is so little difference between Eastern examples of
excubitoroides and the Suuthern bird that they have often been confounded, aud it is
practically almost impossible to distinguish them. My own opinion is that the locality
whence the specimen came furnishes the most valuable clew to its identity. In a
young male taken by Mr. Dayan at Lyon’s Falls, Lewis county, New York, September
4, 1877, the light ash of the upper parts contrasts strongly with the ‘dark plumbeous-
ash’ of typical Southern examples of ludovicianus in the cabinet of Mr. George N. Law-
rence, to whose kiudness I am indebted for the comparison, and for many other favors.
In other respects the bird more closely approaches the Southern form. [he Western
bird breeds abundantly in Ohio (Wheaton) and was first observed in Canada West (near
Hamilton) by Mr. Mcilwraith about the year 1360, since which date it has bred regularly
in that locality. Allen, in 1869, published in the ‘American Naturalist’ (p. 579) the first;
record of its breeding in New York State (near Buffalo), and Rathbun gives it as
breeding at Auburn, in the central portion cf the State. Fred. J. Davis, Esq.,
informs me that he has taken several of its nesta in the vicinity of Utica, and
the fact of its breeding in Lewis couuty completes its range to the Adirondacks. Be-
yond this barrier it is not, to my knowledge, found, excepting as a rare straggler; and
most of the New England specimens have cou:monly been regarded as accidental visitors
from the South. Mr. Purdie, however, in this Bulletin (Vol. II, Ne. 1, page 21, 1877),
records the capture of a ‘typical’ specimen of var. exeubitoroides at Cranston, R. I., Sep-
tember 2, 1873, by Fred. T. Jencks. This is, so far as I am aware, the only recognized
instance of the capture of the Western form in New England. As a pretty conclusive
proof that our New York bird has been derived from the Western (excubitoroides) ‘‘ type,”
we have the fact of the continuity of its range eastward from the Mississippi to the
Adirondacks (through Ohio to Buffalo, Auburn, Utica, and Lewis county, New York);
while, on the other hand, its entire absence from those portions of the State where the
Carolinian Fauna is most marked (notably along the Hudson River, where such charac-
teristic birds as Icieria virens, Myiodioctes mitratus, Helmitherus vermivorus, and Siurus
motacilla breed in abundance) is sufficient evidence that it is not the Southern bird.
That it does not occur in the region above specified is pretty clearly shown by the fact
that neither Edgar A. Mearns (of Highland Falls, near West Point) nor Eugene P. Bick-
nell (of Riverdale), two of our most enterprising young collectors, have ever met with
even a single straggler of the genus, other than C. borealis, although they have both
made the birds of the Hudson River Valley a special study.”

Thus it appears that this variety has extended its range eastward from
the Mississippi Valley mainly along the basin of the Great Lakes,
though a comparison of the citations of both varieties of recent dates
shows that not even the locality now furnishes a clew to assist in identi-
fication. Mr. Langdon, in Bull. Nutt. Club, iv, 1879, 120, gives the fol-
lowing note on this variety in Southwestern Ohio:

“On the 22d of August, 1878, I took a well-marked example of Collurio ludovicianus var.

excubitoroides at Madisonville, which upon dissection proved to be a male ‘young of the
year.” It had attained its full plumage, however, the under parts being immaculate,

EVENING GROSBEAK. 313

and the dorsal surfaces showing no traces of the buffy suffasion and transverse vermi-
culation usaally observable in the young of this genus; the clear, pale bluish-asby of
its upper parts, with the conspicuously white rump and superciliary line, proclaimed its
relationship at a glance. Its capture here will be regarded with interest by ornitholo-
gists, this being the southeasternmost point at which it has been recorded; and is of
additional significance on account of the occurrence here of the typical ©. ludovicianus,
which is a regular though somewhat rare summer resident in this vicinity, where it has
been found breeding on three occasions at least.”

The habits, nest, and eggs, resemble those of the preceding variety.

FAMILY FRINGILLIDA. FINCHES, ETC.

Primaries nine. Bill traly conic, much shorter than the head, its commissure abraptly
angulated near the base; no lobe along middle of the tomia, but usually a notch at end.
Nostrils placed very high. Rictal bristles usually obvious. Tarsus longer than lateral
toe and claw.

Genus HESPERIPHONA. Bonaparte.

Bill enormously large and stout. Wings very long and pointed, reaching beyond the
middle of the tail. Primaries much longer than secondaries and tertials; outer two
quills longest, the others rapidly graduated. Tail short, slightly forked, two-thirds the
wing. Feet short; tarsus less than middle toe. Lateral toes nearly equal. Claws
much curved, stout, compressed.

HESPERIPHONA VESPERTINA (Coop.) Bp.
Evening Grosbeak,

Hesperiphona vespertina, KIRTLAND, Ohio Farmer (newspaper), ix, 1860, 91.—WEHEATON,
Obio Agric. Rep. for 1870, 365, 375; Reprint, 7, 17; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—Couss, Key, 1872, 127; Birds of N. W., 1874,
127; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Clab, iv, 1879, 74.—Barrp, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds,
i, 1874, 452.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1878, 81.

Fringilla vespertina, COOPER, Ann. Lyc. N. Y., i, 1825, 220.

Hesperiphona vespertina, BONAPARTE, C. R., xxxi, 1850, 424.

Dusky olivaceous, brighter behind ; forehead, line over the eye, and under tail-coverts
yellow; crown, wings, tail and tibie black; the secondary quills mostly white; bill
greenish-yellow, of immense size, about $ of an inch long and nearly as deep. Length,
74-84; wing, 4-44; tail, 24. The female and young differ somewhat, but cannot be mis-
taken.

Habitat, Rocky Mountains to the Pacific; north to the Saskatchewan ; south to Mex-
ico; eastward along the northern tier of States to Lake Superior regularly; to Ohio,
Canada, and New York City casually. Indiana (Jordan).

In my catalogue of 1860 (1861) I mentioned the capture of a specimen
in the vicinity of Columbus in 1847. I am now certain that this was an
error on the part of my informant; the only known occurrence of the

314 BIRDS--FRINGILLIDE.

species in this State is that mentioned by Dr. Kirtland in the Ohio
Farmer, March 24, 1860. The full text of his note is as follows:

Those of your readers who are interested in the Natural Sciences will no doubt be
gratified to learn that so rare a bird as the Evening Grosbeak has made its appearance
in these parts. Early last week a beautiful specimen of a female was secured by Charles
Pease, Jr., and on the next day I saw several others of this species. It is known among
ornithologists as the Hesperiphona vespertina, and has never before, I believe, been dis-
covered east of Lake Michigan. Dr. Hoy, of Racine, Wisconsin, has occasionally met
with it in that vicinity. From Lake Superior to Oregon is the usual Jimit of its loca-
tions. Its appearance is hoth neat and unique. The several species of northern birds
which usually visit us during winter were scarce the past season. No white owls, very
few white snow buntings, red-polls, and northern butcher-birds were ‘seen. . We secured
a few Bobemian wax chatterers, one pine grosbeak, aı d several purple finches. Robins
have been with us all winter. The supplies of flood influence the annual visits of these
species. The wax-chatterers and robins were evidently attracted by the abundance of
mountain-asb and red-cedar berries, and the fruits of the persimmon; and the purple

finches and pine grosbeaks by the numerous cones of the Jarch pines and spruces which
are growing about my premises.

The Evening Grosbeak derives its common and scientific name from
the erroneous belief that it sang only in the evening. They are de-
scribed as occurring in loose flocks, and feeding on seeds and buds of
trees. Their song is said to be a miserable failure. Nothing is known
of its breeding habits.

Genus PINICOLA. Vieillot.

Bill short, nearly as high as long, convex in all directions; basal third of upper man-
dible concealed by bristly feathers. Tarsi shorter than middle toe. Wings rather longer

than the emarginate tail. First primary rather shorter than the second, third, and
fourth.

PINICOLA ENUCLEATOR (L.) Cab.
Pine Grosbeak.

Corythus enucleator, READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395,

Pinicola canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365, 375; Reprint, 1861, 7, 17.

Pinicola enucleator, Couxs, Birds N. W., 1874, 105.—WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.

Pine Grosbeak, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218; Ohio Farmer, ix,
1860, 91.

Loxia enucleator, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 299.
Corythus enucleator, CUVIER.

Pinicola canadensis, CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1851, 167.
Pinicola enucleator, CABANIS, Mus Hein., i, 1851, 167. |

Male carmine-red, paler or whitish on the belly, darker and streaked with dusky on
the back; wings and tail dusky, much edged with white, the former with two white
bars. Female ashy-gray, paler below, marked with brownish-yellow on the head and
rump. Length, 8-9; wing, 44; tail, 4.

PINE GROSBEAK. 315

Habitat, British America south to the northern tier of States in winter, and occasion-
ally to Maryland, Ohio, Illinois and Kansas. West Virginia (Audubon). Europe.

Winter visitor in Northern Ohio. The first record of its occurrence, in-
ferentially, is that of Audubon, who states (B. Am., iii, 1841, 179, that it
appeared at the mouth of the Big Guyandotte, on the Ohio (a few miles
above Ironton, Ohio), where several specimens were taken. Dr. Kirtland
(quoted on page 193) makes the first record of its actual occurrence. Mr.
Read gives it as “rare, though occasionally seen during most of the year.”
I have no recent information concerning it.

The Pine Grosbeak, as its name indicates, is a frequenter of pine woods,
though not exclusively. Their food consists of the seeds of the pine and
other coniferous trees, berries, and buds of various trees. They are irreg-
ular in their appearance in the Northern United States in winter, but
when present are usually very numerous, and so tame and unsuspicious
that they may be captured with an insect net. In the northernmost
States it is found throughout the year, though but little is known in re-
gard to its breeding habits. Dr. Brewer says “Mr. Boardman has found
a nest, near Calais, about which there can be little doubt, although
the parent was not seen. This was placed in an alder-bush in a wet
meadow, and was about four feet from the ground. It was composed en-
tirely of coarse green mosses. The eggs were two, and were not dis-
tinguishable from those of the European enucleator,” which he describes
as having “a light slate-colored ground with a marked tinge of greenish,
broadly marked and plashed with faint, subdued cloudy patches of
brownish-purple, and sparingly spotted, chiefly at the larger end, with
blackish-brown and dark purple. They measure 1.02 inches in length
by .70 in breadth.”

Genus CARPODACUS. Kaup.
Bill short, stout, vaulted. Nostrils concealed by bristly feathers. Tarsus’shorter than

middle toe. Hind claw much curved, shorter than the middle one. Wings long and
pointed, reaching to the middle of the tail. Tail shorter than wings, forked.

CARPODACUS PURPUREUS (Gm.) Bp.
Purple Finch.

Fringilla purpurea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 184.—Reap, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395. .

Carpodacus purpureus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365, 375; Reprint, 1861, 7,
17; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174;
Reprint, 8.

Purple Finch, KIRTLAND, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 91.

Fringilla purpurea, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 923.

Carpodacus purpureus, BONAPARTE, Con. Av., i, 1850, 533.

316 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA.

Male crimson, rosy, or purplish-red, most intense on the crown, fading to white on the
belly, mixed with dusky streaks on the back; wings aud tail dusky, with reddish edg-
ings, and the wing-coverts tipped with the same; lores and feathers ail round the base
of the bill hoary. Female and young with no red; olivaceous brown, brighter on the
rump, the feathers above all with paler edges, producing a streaked appearance; below
white, thickly spotted and streaked with olive- brown, except on the middle of the belly
and under tail-coverts; obscure whitish supereilisry and maxillary lines. Young males
show every gradation between these extremes in gradually assuming the male plumage,
and are frequently brownish-yellow or bronzy below. Length, 53-64; wing, 3-3}; tail,
24-2}.

Habitat, United States from Atlantic to Pacific, excepting perhaps the Southern Rocky
Mountain region.

Common spring and fall migrant in Middle, winter resident in South-
ern, and probably resident in Northern Ohio. Dr. Kirtland, in his cata-
logue, presumes it to breed, having taken it in June; ke also mentions
i's occurrence in winter. Mr. Read cays it ‘stops a few days in spring
in large numbers,” and that he had taken it in August. Mr. Langdon
gives it as migrant in fall, winter, and spring, and says that it “feeds
largely on the buds of the slippery-elm, its flesh being strongly flavored
thereby.”

In the vicinity of Columbus it is to be found irregularly from October
to the latter part of April. but is rare during December and January. In
the fall it frequents weedy and swampy woodlands and borders of streams,
feeding upon the seeds of plants. In spring it is found in flocks in wood-
land, where it feeds largely upon the buds of trees. At this time it has
a sweet though not very powerful song.

The nest is usually placed in an evergreen tree, but sometimes in an
orchard. It is described as being flat and shallow, composed of grass,
strips of bark, and vegetable fibres. The eggs are pale emerald-green,
spotted with very dark brown, chiefly about the greater end. They vary
in size from .92 to .81 by .70 to .60.

Genus LOXIA. Linneus.

Mandibles much elongated, compressed, and attenuated, greatly curved or falcate,
their points crossing or overlapping to a greater or less degree. Tarsi very sbort, claws
long, hind claw longer than its digit. Wings very long and pointed, reaching beyond
the middle of the narrow forked tail.

Loxra CURVIROSTRA Forster.
var. AMERICANA Cs.
Common Crossbill.
Loxia curvirostra, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 184.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad.

Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEAToN, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 566; Reprint, 6; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 62.

COMMON CROSSBILL. 317

Curvirostra americana, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 366, 375; Reprint, 7, 17.
Loxia curvirostra var. americana, LANGDON, Cat. Birds Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Loxia curvirostra, FORSTER, Phil. Trans., lxii, 1772, No. 23,
Curvirostra americana, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv, 1811, 44.
Loxia americana, BONAPARTE, List, 1735, 38.
Loxia curvirostra var. americana, COUES, Key, 1872, 351.

Male bricky-red, wings blackish, unmarked; female brownish-olive, streaked and
speckled with dusky, the rum» saffron. Immature males mottled with greenish and
greenish-yellow. Length, abou : 6; wing, > $3 tail, 24.

Habitat, Northern North America; sontb into the United States in winter. Resident
in Maine and in mountains to Pennsylvania.

Irregular and erratic visitor, usually in winter, perhaps breeds. Dr.
Kirtland in 1838 had not met with it, but believed it to have occurred
in Ashtabula county. Mr. Read gives it as an occasional winter visitor.
I saw a specimen said to have been taken in this vicinity in the winter
of 1859-60. In the winter of 1868-9 Mr. Dury found them abundant,
feeding upon the seeds of the horse-weed in the vicinity of Cincinnati.
Mr. C. J. Orton took a specimen at Yellow Springs a few years later. Mr.
Langdon notes their occurr:nce in the vicinity of Cincinnati in the win-
ter of 1874-5. In Bull Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 62, I noted its appear-
ance as follows:

“On the 18th of June last Mr. Charles Hinman killed one of these birds ont of a flock
of eight or ten which visited the coniferous trees in his garden in this city. The speci-
men which came into my possession by the kindness of Mr. Oliver Davie was a male,
not in full plumage. I have siuce learned that the Red Crossbill has remained during
the season in the vicinity of Cleveland in cousiderable numbers, and is reported to have
nested there.”

I was unable to learn whether its nest had been actually discovered.
It has been known to nest in Indiana within a few years.

The Crossbill subsists mainly upon the seeds of pine and coniferous
trees, for obtaining which, their curious bills are said to be peculiarly
adapted. They are commonly reported to breed in winter or early spring,
while the weather is yet severe. But little is known of their breeding
habits, only very few nests having been discovered. One described by
Dr. Brewer, was taken by Mr. Chas. 8. Paine, in East Randolph, Vermont;
another by E. P. Bricknell, Riverdale, New York City, April 80, 1875.
This nest and eggs are described by him in Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, v, 1880,
7, a8 follows:

“The nest was placed in a tapering cedar of rather scanty foliage, about eighteen

feet from the ground, and was without avy single main support, being built in a mass
of small tangled twigs, from which it was with difficulty detached. The situation could

318 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

scarcely have been more conspicnous, being close to the intersection of several roads
(all of them more or less bordered with ornamental evergreens), in plain sight of as many
residences, and constantly exposed to the view of passers-by. The materials of its com-
position were of rather a miscellaneons character, becoming finer and more select from
without inwards. An exterior of bristling spruce twigs loosely arranged surrounded a
mass of matted shreds of cedar bark, which formed the principal body of the structure,
a few strips of the same appearing around the upper border, the whole su ‘ceeded on the
inside by a sort of felting of finer material, which received the scanty lining of black
horse-hair, fine rootlets, grass stems, pieces of string, and two or three feathers. This
shallow felting of the inner nest can apparently be removed intact from the body of the
structure, which, besides the above-mentioned materials, contained small pieces of moss,
leaves, grass, string, cottony substances, and the green foliage of cedar. The nest meas-
ured internally two and one-half inches in diameter by over one and a quarter in depth;
being in diameter externally about tour inches, aud rather shallow in appearance.

“The fresh eggs are in ground color of a decided greenish tint, almost immaculate on
the smaller end, but on the opposite side with irregular spots and dottings of lavender-
brown of slightly varying shade, interspersed with a few heavy surface-spots of dark
purple-brown. There isno approach in the arrangement of these to a circle, but between
the apex of the larger end, and the greatest diameter of the egg, is a fire hair like sur-
face line; in two examples it forms a complete though irregular circle, and encloses the
principal spots. In the other egg, which is the largest, this line is not quite complete,
and the primary blotches are wanting, but the secondary markings are correspondingly
larger and more nnmerous. In another egg there are two perfect figures of 3 formed on
the sides by the secondary warks, one of them large and sivgularly symmetrical. The
eggs measure respectively .74 by .56, 75 by .58, .73 by .59.”

LoXIA LEUCOPTERA Gm.
White-winged Crossbill.
Curvirostra leucoplera, WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. fur 1860, 366, 346; Reprint, 1861, 8, 18.
Loxia leucoptera, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint,
1875, 6.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.
Loxia leucoptera, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1783, 844.
Curvirostra leucoptera, WILSON, Am. Orn, iv, 1811, 4°.

Wings in both sexes with two conspicuous white bars; male rosey-red, female brownish-
olive, streaked and speckled with dusky, the rump saffron. Length, about 6; wing, 34;
tail, 2}.

Habitat, Northern North America, sonth in winter to the United States. Greenland.
Accidental in Europe.

Rare and irregular winter visitor. Not given by Dr. Kirtland or Mr.
Reed. Inserted in my catalogue of 1861, on the authority of Mr. Kirk-
patrick, who informed me that it had been taken at Willoughby, Lake
county. Mr. Dury informs me that it was abundant in the vicinity of
Cincinnati in the winter of 1868-9, in company with the preceding
species, and even more numerous than they.

RED-POLL LINNET. 319

This species is generally considered more northerly in its range than
the Red Crossbill, Its habitual breeding range is from Northern New
England northward; it is also found in Wyoming insummer. Audubon
mentions its breeding in Pennsylvania in summer, but this was excep-
tional. In its habits it resembles the preceding.

The nest is described as composed of spruce twigs and lichens, lined

with hair and shreds of bark. The eggs are pale-blue, with fine dots of
black and ashy-lilac at the larger end.

Genus ZGIOTHUS. Cabanis.

Bill very shori, conical, extremely acute, the outliues even concave, base of upper
mandible and nostrils concealed by bristly feathers, middle of mandible with several
parallel ridges. Wings very long, reaching to the middle of the forked tail, second quill
a little the longest. Middle toe and claw as long as the tarsus; inner lateral tue rather
the longer; hind claw longer than its digit.

.

ZEGIVTHUS LINARIA (L ) Cab.
Xted-poll Linnet.

Fringilla linaria, KIRTLAND, Ohiv Geolog. Surv , 1338, 164, 183; Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 63.
—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Set, vi, 1853, 395.

Aegiothus linaria, Barro, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 429.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 1801, 366; R-print, 8. :

Aigiothus linariu, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 566;
Reprint, 6.

ZEgiothus linarius, BAIRD, BREWER and Rrpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 497.

Aigoithus (error) linaria, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Bist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 5.

ZEgoithus (error) linarius, LanaDon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175 ;
Reprint, 9. 7

Red-poll, KirtLanp, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 120, 140, 148; Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 91.
Fringilla linaria, Linn us, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 322.
Zgiolhus linarius, CABANIS, Mus Hein., 1351, 161.

Upper parts streaked with dusky and flaxen in about equal amounts, ramp white or

rosey, streaked with dusky; below, streaked on the sides, belly dull white; bill mostly
yellow; feet blackish. Length, 54-5%; wing, 23-3; tail, 24-22.

Habitat, northern regions of both Hemispheres, ranging irregularly southward in
winter to the Middle States or beyond, and to corresponding latitudes in the West.

Tolerably regular winter resident in Northern Ohio, casual in other
portions of the State. Dr. Kirtland made their acquaintance about
1835-6, when he states that they appeared in flocks om his premises.
He states that they were unusually abundant in the winter of 1849-50,
when they were slow in taking their departure, remaining in large
flocks until April. Mr. Read gives it as abundant during extremely
cold weather. I have seen specimens from Sandusky, and Mr. Langdon

320 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA.

notes that Mr. Dury took a single specimen in the vicinity of Cincinnati
in January, 1869. Dr. Brewer (1. c.) says:

“Dr. Kirtland informs me that early in the winter of 1868, his grandson picked up a
wing-broken male Red-poll, and placed it in his green-house. It began at once to feed
on crumbs of bread and hay-seed. and rapidly recovesed. It soon acquired the habit ot
leaping from shelf to shelf, among the plants, and was finally seen climbing up some
large Pelargonium shiubs, and suspending itself, parrot like, by its feet from the limbs,
capturing aphides. From that time it tuok uo other food, living exclusively on the par-
asitic insects of the plants. So active was it in captaring these, that fur two months it
was not necessary to fumigate the green-house to destroy them. From day to day a
female Red-poll hovered over the building, and her calls were responded to by the in-
valid, Late in the season he escaped from his confinement, and was seen to join his

faithful mate, which had remained with him all winter.”

In habits the Red-poll is said to resemble greatly the Common Yellow-
bird, and its flightis similar. The nest is built in low trees and bushes;
it is constructed of moss, grass, and catkins of willow, and lined with

vegetable down. The eggs are light bluish-white, finely dotted with

rusty-brown. They average .65 by 53.

Genus CHRYSOMITRIS. Boie.
Bill rather acutely conic. Nostrils concealed. Ridges on upper mandible obsolete.
Tarsi shorter than middle toe, outer toe rather longer than inver. Claw of hind toe
shorter than its digit. Wings and tail as in Agiothus.

CHRYSOMITRIS PINUS (Wils.) Bp.
Pine Linnet.

Fringilla pinea, STORER, Proc. Bost. Sod. Nat. Hist., ii, 1845, 52.

Linaria pinus, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 140.

Chrysomitris pinus, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 425).—WHRATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 1861, 365; Reprint, 7; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1874, 1875,
566; Reprint, 6.—Lanepoy, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Jonrn. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Pine Finch, KtrTLanp, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 148, 164; Am. Journ. Sei. and Arts, xiii,
1852, 218.

Fringilla pinus, WILSON, Am. Orn., ii, 1810, 133.

Chrysomitris pinus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 33.

Bill extremely acute; continuously streaked above with dusky and olivaceous-brown
or flaxen; below with dusky and whitish, the whole plumage in the breeding season
more or less suffused with yellowish, particularly bright on the ramp; the bases of the
quills and tail feathers extensively sulphury yellow, and all these feathers more or less
edged externally with yellowish. Length, 4%; wing, 22; tail, 14.

Habitat, North America generally. United States chiefly in winter; south in Rocky

Mountains to Mexico.

PINE LINNET. 321

Abundant, nearly resident, possibly breeding in Northern Ohio; win-
ter visitor in obher parts of the State.

First noted in Ohio by Dr. Storer, on the auth. vol Dr. Kirtland
(quoted on puge 2:5). Dr. Kirtland gives the fol) v:ug account in the

pages of the Family Visitor of May 30, 1850:

“Daring the last three years large flocks of these birds, consistivg of both old and
young, have visit ‘dA our grounds as early us the first of July, and since they appeared
here last summer, we have observed them alınost ı aily for a period of nine months and
a half. At this time they are still common, aud show no evidence of a disposition to
depaxt for more northern hanats.

“At tneir first appearaitce in mid-suminer, the young are immatured—portions of
down still mixed with their feathers, and their quills bloodshot, and so weak that they
cuuld hardly sustain a flight of seventy miles acruss the Lake. They are then so tame
that they can be readily approached. Several have been taken about my place by
means of a butterfly net, and our Malteso cat has not failed to lay the flocks’ under
heavy contributions. Their food, during the summer, seems to consist almost exclus-
ively of apbides, which they collect in great numbers frı.m the flowers, shrubs, and fruit
trees in the immediate vicinity of the dwelling-houess During autumn and winter,
they sustain themselves here on the seeds of weeds and grapes. Those of the catnip are
a special favorite with them, and we have seen a dozen individuals congregate upon one
of those plants.

“They frequently associate with the American Goldfinch during the summer, and the
Red-poli during winter.

“From these facts we are induced to believe it is a permanent resident in this vicinity,
and that it breeds here during the montbs of May and June, although we have not yet
discovered its nest.”

Under date of June 29th he says: ‘ Numerous flocks of this interesting
little bird are still common about our place, five miles west of Cleveland.
They are now mating, and as they have been repeatedly seen here as early
as the first of July in other years, it is probable they breed and rear their
young in this vicinity.” And, July 11th, “The Pine Linnet is still about
our shrubbery, and will no doubt continue during the summer.”

It appears, however, from his article in American Journal of Science
and Arts (see page 193), that he never knew them to breed. They are
not named in Mr. Read’s list. In the vicinity of Columbus I have
never been able to find them but on two occasions, and on each of these
single birds, one solitary, on a tree in the edge of a wood, the other
with Purple Finches in weeds on the bank of the river. Mr. Langdon
states that Mr. Dury found them abundant in the vicinity of Cincinnati
in the winter of 1868-9. None had been observed since.

The Pine Linnet breeds in Eastern North America as far south as Mas-
sachusetts, and in the Rocky Mountains to Mexico. The nest is described
as built of small twigs of evergreen trees, grasses and rootlets, lined with

21

322 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

fine rootlets and hair. The eggs are light green, spotted chiefly about the
larger end, with light rusty-brown. They measure .71 by .50.

CHRYSOMITRIS TRISTIS (L.) Bp.
American Goldfinch; Wellow-bird.
Fringilla tristis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., 1831, 1%2.—KırtLann, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
164 —READ, Proc. Phila. Acad Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.
Carduelis tristis, AUDUBON, B. Am., iii, 1841, 129
Chrysomitris tristis, WuwaTon, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 365; Reprint, 1861, 7; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1374, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6—Lanepon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 174; Reprint, 8.
American Goldfinch, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, 1350, 140.— BaLLov, Field and Forest, iii,
1878, 136.
Fringilla tristis, LINN2US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 320.
Carduelis tristis, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils , 1825, No. 96,
Chrysomitris tristis, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 33.

Male in summer rich yellow, changing to whitish on the tail coverts; a black pateh
on the crown; wings black, more or less edged and barred with white; lesser wing-
coverts yellow ; tail black, every feather with a white spot; bill and feet flesh-colored.
In September the black cap disappears and the general plumage changes to a pale
flaxen brown above, and whitey-brown below, with traces of the yellow, especially
about the head ; this continues till the following April or May. Female olivaceous, in-
eluding the crown; below soiled yellowish; wings and tail dusky, whitish-edged ; young
like the female. Length, about 4%; wing, 2%; tal, 2.

Habitat, North America generally.

Abundant resident, less common in winter. Breeds. The Yellow-bird
is almost too well known to require further description. Its bright colors,
undulating flight, plaintive note, and fondness for the seeds of thistles,
lettuce, and sunflowers, render it more conspicuous than many birds of
larger size. It resembles more northern birds in its gregarious and erratic
habits. In spring they are found in large flocks, especially delighting
in willow trees, where they sing in concert a confusing melody of high
notes. They are fond of water, and like the common yellow butterflies,
gather in numbers on the borders of streams, and puddles of water by the
roadside.

The Yellow-bird breeds late, with us, usually in July. The nestis built
in trees. Often the shade trees or fruit trees in cities are chosen, and
they appear to be the only birds breeding with us whose nest is ever placed
in a peach tree. It is usually from fifteen to twenty feet from the ground,
and built of moss, grass, and small vegetable fibres, thickly lined with
vegetable down.

The eggs are five, light bluish-white, unmarked. They measure about
.65 by .52.

SNOW BUNTING. 323

Genus PLECTROPHANES. Meyer.
Bill variable, blunted; lower mandible higher and wider at base than upper. Wings
one-half longer than the nearly even tail, reaching nearly to its tip. First quill as long

as the second. Tarsi longer than middle toe. Hind claw very long and acute, longer
than its digit, less curved than the middle claw. Lateral toes equal.

PLECTROPHANES NIVALIS (L.) Meyer.
Snow Bunting.

Emberiza nivalis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 515.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1832, i64, 183 —ReaD, Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1835, 395.

Plectrophanes nivalis, AUDUBON, B. Am., iii, 1861, 56.—Barrp, P.R R. Rep., ix, 1858, 438.
WIEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1760, 1661, 366; Reprint, 8; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1674, 1875, 566; Reprint, €.—Coues, Birds of N. W., 1874, 118.—
LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

White Snow Bird, KirtLanp, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 63, 72, 120, 148; Ohio Farmer, ix,
1860, 91. ;

Emberiza nivalis, LINN@us, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 308.

Plectrophanes nivalis, MEYER.

Bill small, truly conic, ruffed at base; hind claw decidedly curved. In breeding
plumage pure white, the back, wings aud tail variegated with black; bill and feet black.
AS generally «ven in the United States, the white is clouded with warm, clear brown,
and the bill is brownish. Length, about 7; wing, 44; tail, 22.

Habitat, Arctic America and Greenland, and corresponding latitudes in the Old World.
Irregularly soathward in winter in the United States to about 35°.

Irregular winter visitor, common in Northern, rare in Middle and
Southern Ohio. Dr. Kirtland (Fam. Vis, April 18), speaking of the late-
ness of the spring of 1850, says:

“ Several species of winter birds seem to have known that winter was likely to linger
iu the lap uf May. Withio a few days large flocks of Red-polls have been flitting
about our fields, and the White Snow-bird has remained so late with us this season that
it has moulted here and appeared in its summer plumage—an occurrence never before
observed. We have never known them to continue here after the ice has left the Lake,
aud snow entirely disappeared.”

In this vicinity I have met them on but three occasions. A single
bird was found in April, 1863, whose departure had probably been delayed
by some accident. In February, 1874, a single individual was seen in
company with Shore Larks. In February, 1875, a flock of about two
hundred birds appeared during a severe snow storm. Mr Langdon says
it has not been seen in the vicinity of Cincinnati for several years.

The Snow Bunting appears in the United States in roving flocks only
in severe cold weather. They appear to be more common near the coast

324 BIRDS——-FRINGILLID A.

than in the interior, the contrary of which appears to be the case with
the next species. They breed from latitude 62° northwe:?.

The nest is placed on the ground; it is built of grasa, wilh a]
feathers. The eggs are five, dull white, sprinkled with yeilowish-r ifous,
and measure .95 by .64.

stage of

PLECTROPHANES LAPPoNIcus (L.) Selby.
Lapland Longspur.

Pleetrophanes lapponicus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Repriut, 1875, 6.—Lang@pon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Journ. Civ. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1678, 114; Reprint, 5; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9,

Fringilla lapponica, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., 1, 1766, 317.

Plectrophanes lapponica, SELBY, Liun. Trans., x), 156.

Bill moderate, unruffed, but with alittle tuft of feathers at the base of the sictus; hind
claw straightish, with ite digit longer than the middle toe and claw. Adult male:
whole head and throat jet black, bordered with buffy or whitish, which forms a postocular
line, separating the black of the crown from that of the sides of the head; w broad .
chestnut cervical collar; upper parts in general blackish, streaked with buffy or whitish
that edges all the feathers; below, whitish, the breast aud sides black-streaked ; wings
dusky, the greater coverts and inner secondaries edged with dull bay ; tail dusky, with
an oblique white area on the outer feathers; bill yellowish, tipped with black; legs and
feet black. Winter males show less black on the head, and the cervical chestnut duller ;
the female and young have no continuous black on the head, and the crown is streaked
like the back, and there are traces of the cervical collar. Length, 6-64; wing, 34-345
tail, 24-24.

Habitat, Arctic regions of both Hemispheres; in America south in winter to Pennsyl-
vania, Kentucky, Kansas, and Colorado.

Common and tolerably regular winter visitor in the vicinity of Colum-
bus from December | to March 20. Rare and irregular in the vicinity of
Cincinnati.

The Lapland Longspur usually appears in this vicinity during the
first’ protracted cold weather. The first to appear are single birds, in
company with Shore Larks. Afterwards they may be seen in compact
flocks of from ten to thirty, frequenting old brick-yards, and fields where
cattle are fed, in company with Shore Larks, with which they associate
on the ground, but fly by themselves in close flocks. Frequently when
first flushed they utter a rapid rattling note, somewhat like that of the
Kingfisher, but less loud and harsh. Their food consists of the seeds of
plants, which they are very industrious in collecting.

The Lapland Longspur breeds in the Arctic Regions. The nest is
placed on the ground, built of mosses, grass, and a few feathers. The

SAVANNA SPARROW. 325

eggs are greenish-gray, almost concealed by a mottling of chocolate-brown.
They measure about .80 by .62.

Genus PASSERCULUS. Bonaparte.

Outlines of bill nearly straight, lower mandible smaller than upper. Wings unusually
long, reaching to middle of the short, nearly even, tail. Inner secondaries as long as
the primaries, first primary longest. Tail feathers pointed, narrow. Tarsus about equal
to middle toe. Hind toe much longer than the equal lateral toes, its claw reaching to
middle of middle claw. Claws moderately curved.

PASSERCULUS SAVANNA (Wils.) Bp.
Savanna Sparrow.

Passerculus savanna, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1577, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 9.

? Sand Sparrow, BaLLou, Field aud Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Fringilla savanna, WILSON, Am. Orn., tii, 1811, 55.

Passerculus savanna, BONAPARTE, List, 1833, 33.

Above brownish-gray, streaked with blackish, whitish gray, and pale bay, the streaks
largest on the interscapulars, smallest on the cervix, the crown divided by an obscure
whitish line; superciliary line and edge of wing yellowish ; sometimes‘ an obscure yel-
lowish suffusion about the head. Below, white, pure or with faint buffy shade, thickly
streaked with dusky, the individual spots edged with brown, mostly arrow-shaped, run-
ning in chains along the sides, and often aggregated in an obscure blotch on the breast.
Wings and tail dusky, the wing-coverts and inner secondaries black-edged and tipped
with bay. Length, 54-52; wing, 24-22; tail, 2-2}.

Habitat, North America at large.

Very common, spring and fall migrant in Southern and Middle, prob-
ably summer resident in Northern Ohio.

The Savanna Sparrow usually appears in Middle Ohio during the first
week in April and remains until the latter part of May. In one instance
only have I seen itin June. Mr. H.C. Benson informs me that he has
found it breeding at Gambier. It appears to have been overlooked by
Dr. Kirtland and Mr. Read. In the fall it returns late in September, and
remains until late in October. It is a terrestrial species, usually found
in fields and in weeds along the banks of streams, and sometimes in wet
places. It is never found in woodland, though I have sometimes seen
them perching on trees in orchards. In spring it has a curious squeaky
song, which evidently has not the full power of its breeding notes; its
ordinary note is a feeble chirp.

This Sparrow breeds from Massachusetts northward. The nest is
placed on the ground, composed of grass, with a lining of hair and

326 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

feathers. The eggs are from four to six in number, greenish- or grayish-
white, more or less thickly blotched with different shades of brown.

Genus POOECETES, Baird.

Bill rather large; upper outline slightly decurved towards the end, lower straight.
Wings unusually long and pointed, reaching to the middle of the tail, second and third
quills longest, the first « little shorter. Inner secondaries lengtbeued. Tail feathers
broad nearly to the end, where they are obliquely truncate. Tarsus about equal to
middle toe; outer toe a little longer than inner, hind tue reaching to base of middle

claw.
PooECETES GRAMINEUS (Gm.) Baird.
Bay-winged Bunting; Grass Finch.

Fringilla graminea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 133, 164.—Reapb, Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1853, 395. :

Poocetes gramineus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 366; Reprint, 8 —Lane-
DON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Pooecetes gramineus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 566;
Reprint, 6.

Poocetes (error) gramineus, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8.

Fringilla graminea, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1783, 922.

Poocetes gramineus, BAIRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 449.

Pooecetes gramineus, Ci UES, Key, 1872, 136.

Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides and across breast; no yellow anywhere;
lesser wing-coverts chestnut, and one to three outer pairs of tail feathers party or wholly
white. Above, grayish-brown, the streaking dusky and brown, with grayish white;
below, white, usually buffy-tinged, the streaks very numerous on the fore part and
sides; wing-coverts and inner quills much edged and tipped with bay; crown like back,

without median stripe, line over, and ring round eye, whitish; feet pale. Length, 53-64;
wing, 27-34: tail, 24-22

Habitat, United States from Atlantic to Pacific; north to the Saskatchewan.

Abundant summer resident, from latter part of March to November.
Breeds. The Grass Finch frequents commons, roadsides, fallow and
weedy fields, seldom in woodland or well cultivated places. It is noted
for its clear, sweet, and finely modulated song, which is heard through-
out the day, but especially in the evening after most birds are silent,
and in cloudy weather. The song lacks the vivacity and emphasis of
that of the Song Sparrow, but excels it in sweetness. From the habit
of singing in the evening it is often called the Vesper Bird.

This species varies considerably in its general coloration, and appar-
ently in size. Individuals in March, in worn plumage, being lighter
and apparently smaller than October birds in their new, long feathers.

In the fall they. migrate in companies, and sometimes are found in grassy
woodland.

YELLOW-WINGED SPARROW. 327

The Grass Finch builds its nest on the ground, usually in an exposed
place, often under a thistle; it is composed of bits of weed-stalks and
grass, with a little horse-hair for a lining. The eggs are usually four,
grayish-white, spotted with reddish-brown, and more or less blotched
and lined with dark brown. Their average measurement is .80 by .55.

Genus COTURNECULUS. Bonaparte.

Bill short, targid, auder mandible broader but lower than upper. Wings short, -
rounded, reaching to base cf tail; the tertials almosi as long as primaries; not much
difference in length of primaries. Tail short and narrow, decidedly shorter than wing,
graduated laterally, but slightly emarginate.

CoTURNICULUS PASSERINUS (Wils.) Bp.

Wellow-winged Sparrow.

Pringille passerina, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.

Coturniculus passerinus, WHEATON, Qhio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 3665 Reprint, 1861, 85 Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 566; Repriut, 1875, 6—LaNnepon, Cat. Birds
of Cin, 1877, 8; Journ. Cin. Soe. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 55 Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Hringilla passering, WILSON, Am. Orn., ii, 1811, 76.

Coturniculus pesserinus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 32.

Edge of wing conspicnonsly yellow; lesser wing coverts and short line over the eye
yellowish; below, notor net evidently streaked, but fore parts aud sides buff, fading to
lull white on the belly. Above, singularly variegated with black, gray, yellowish-
‘brown, and a peculiar purplish bay in short streaks and specks, the crown being nearly
black, with a sharp median brownish-yellow line, the middle of the back chiefly black,
with bay and brownish-yellow edgirgs uf the feathers, the cervical region and ramp
chiefly gray, mixed with bay; wing-coverts and inner quills variegated like the back;
feet pale. Young similar, not so buffy below, aud with pectoral and maxillary dusky
spots. Length, 44-54; wing, 2¢; tail, 2 or lees, the outstretched feet reaching to or
beyond its end.

Habitat, United States; south to Guatemala and Costa Rica. Cuba. Jamaica. Porte
Rico.

Common summer resident from April te August. Breeds. Dr. Kirt-
land inserts it in his catalogue without comment. Mr. Langdon gives
it as a rare summer resident, on the authority of Mr. Dury. In the
vicinity of Columbus it is very common in meadows, clover and grass
fields. In its habits it is shy and retiring, usually not observed until it
is flushed, when it darts off rapidly, in a zig-zag flight, as if much
alarmed, then pursues a short course, which deviates by angles rather
then curves, and having reached a safe distance, drops quickly to the
ground. Fields with a few stumps are favorite localities, and the male

328 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

mounts a stump or the top of a weed-stalk by the hour sometimes, sing-
ing at short intervals his peculiar song, tsééécé, so high and monotonous
that it has been aptly compared to the note of the grasshopper. Later
in the season, as if the bird, tired of the monotony of its breeding note,
changes it to a shorter and less monotonous ge ick, the first syllable of
which is prolonged, and after an interval the last is given quickly,
abruptly, and strongly emphasized. More rarely a few short and rapid
notes are heard, as if the bird was trying to learn to sing.

' The nest is placed’upon the ground, usually concealed by a bunch of
weeds, and built of grass, with a lining of horse hair. The eggs are four
or five, white, with reddish-brown spots, and measure .75 by .60,

ÜOTURNICULUS HENSLOVII (Aud.) Bp.
Henslow’s Sparrow.

Emberiza henslowi, AUDUBON, Birds Am., iii, 1541, 76, pl. 163,

Coturniculus kenslowi, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366, 376; Reprint, 1861, 8,
18; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric Rep for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1975, 6—Lanepon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,93; Revised List, Journ. Cin Soc. Nat. fiist.,, i, 3879, 1755
Reprint, 9.

Coturniculus henslowi, BONAPARTE, List, 183%, 32.

Coturniculus henslovii, COUES, Birds N. W., 1874, 133.

Resembling the last; smaller; more yellowish above, and with sharp maxillary, pee-
toral and lateral black streaks below; tail longer, reaching beyond feet.

Habitat, Eastern United States to New Hampshire; west to the Loup Fork of Platte.

The specimen of this bird from which Audubon drew his description
and figure, was taken at Newport, Kentucky, opposite Cincinnati.
He states that it is “accidental in Ohio.” The specimen obtained by
me in 1856, in this vieinity, and which in 1861 I mentioned as being
of this species, I now suppose to have been the young of the Yellow-
winged Sparrow, a species with which I was not then acquainted.
In all probability Henslow’s Bunting will be found not uncommon in
restricted localities, particularly in the southern and western portions of
the State. In habits, nest, and eggs, it is hardly to be distinguised [rom
the preceeding species.

Genus MELOSPIZA. Baird.

Body stout. Bill conical, somewhat compressed. Feet stout, not reaching beyond
the tail; tarsus a little longer than middle toe. Wings quite short and rounded, scarcely
reaching beyond base of tail; the tertials considerably longer than the secondaries; the
quills considerably graduated, the fourth longest. Tail moderately long and consider-
ably graduated.

SWAMP SPARROW. 329

Merosr1zA LINCOLNI (Aud.) Bd.
Lincoln’s Minch.

Melospiza lincolni, WHEATON, Ohio Agric Rep. for 1060, 379 (probable) ; Food of Birds, etc.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,
8; Jour. Cin. Suc. Nat. Hist , i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 5; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 22.

Fringilla lincolnii, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii 1834, 539.

Melospiza lincolnii, Barr, Birds N. Am., 1858, 433.

Below, white, breast banded and sides often shaded with yellowish ; everywhere except
on the belly, thickly and sharply streaked with dusky; above, grayish-brown, crown
and back with blackish, brownish, aud paler streaks; tail grayish-brown, the feathers
usually showing blackish shaft lines; wings the same, the coverts and inver quills
blackish, with bay and whitish edgings; no yellow on wings or head. Length, 54; wing
and tail about 24

Habitat, the whole of North America. Mexico. Guatemala.

Not uncommon spring and fall migrant in May and October. Fre-
quents woodland undergrowth, brush-piles, and banks of streams in
spring, weedy woodlands and high weeds and grass in swampy places
in the fall. In the vicinity of Columbus it makes its way silently north-
ward in spring, not associating with other sparrows, and seldom in the
company of its own kind. It is rather shy and retiring, hiding in
brush-heaps. Its flight is quick and straight, but low. In the fall it
frequently associates with Swamp Sparrows, which it somewhat resem-
bles in appearance and habits. I found them quite abundant at the
Licking Reservoir, October 17, 1874, in the tall grass of the low borders
of the Reservoir, in company with Swamp, White-throated, and White-
crowned Sparrows. Mr. C.J. Orton has taken it at Sandusky, and Mr.
W. H. Gaylord at Cleveland. I have seen one individual in my garden
in May. With us it is the most silent of all the Sparrows. I do not
remember to have ever heard it chirp. At its breeding places it is said
to have a sweet song.

Lincoln’s Finch is most abundant west of the Mississippi River, and
though found in several of the Eastern States, is rare. It breeds from
Wisconsin and Northern New York northward. The nest, which is
placed upon the ground, is built of grass; the eggs are greenish-white,
more or less thickly spotted and blotched with different shades of reddish-
brown. They measure .74 by .56.

MELospızA PaLustris (Wils.) Bd.
Swamp Sparrow.

Fringilla palustris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—ReAD, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat, Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

330 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

Melospiza palustris, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LAnGoon, Cat. Birds
ot Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Fringilla palustris, Witson, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 49.

Melospiza palustris, Barrv, Birds N. Am., 1858, 483,

Crown bright bay, or chestnut, blackening on the furebead, often with an obscure
median ashy line, and usually streaked with black; cervix, sides of head and neck,
and the breast, strongly ashy, with vagne datk auricular and maxillary markings,
the latter bounding the whitish chin, the ashy of the breast obsoletely streaky; belly
whitish; sides, flanks, and crissum strongly shaded with brown, and faintly streaked ;
back and rump brown, rather darker than the sides, boldly streaked with black and
pale biowu or grayish. Wings so strongly edged with bright bay as to appear almost
uniformly of this color when viewed closed, bus inner secoudaries showing black with
whitish edging; tail likewise strougly edged with bay, and usually showing black shaft
lines. No yellowish anywhere; no tail feathers white; farther distinguished fiom its
allies by the emphasis of the biack, bay, and ash. Length, 54-6; wing aad tail 24-4.

Habitat, Eastern and part of Middle Province of North America; north to Newfound-
Jand and Labrador; west to Utah; sonth to Texas.

Common spring and fall migrant in April and May, October and No-
vember. Although it is very probably a summer resident in Northern
Ohio, neither Dr. Kirtland or Mr. Read so state. Mr. Langdon gives it
as acommon migrant. In the vicinity of Columbus, though common,
it is very retiring in its habits, especially in spring, frequenting swamp
woodlands and the weedy banks of small brooks. In the fall it appears
in the high grass of swamps and low borders of rivers, in companies of
considerable numbers. I+ is not, however, entirely confined to wet
places, for I have found them in upland woods quite distant from water.
While with us it is very retiring and silent. Occasionally a single chip
is heard. At its b eeding grounds it is said tosing a pleasing and some-
what varied song. Its neat and trim form, tasteful colors, happily con-
trasting bright brown with black and ash, render it one of the handsomest
of the smaller Sparrows.

The nest of the Swamp Sparrow is placed upon the ground, under a
tussock of rank grass, in a low, moist place. The eggs are grayish- or
bluish-white, so thickly speckled all over with different shades of brown
as sometimes to conceal the ground color.

MeLospizA MELODIA (Wils.) Bd.
Song Sparrow.
Fringilla melodia, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Sury., 1832, 164.
Fringilla fasciata, ReaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.
Melospiza melodia, WHRATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; in Coues’
Birds of N. W., 1874, 233; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Re-

print, 1875, 6.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

SONG SPARROW. 331

? Fringilla fasciata, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 922.
Fringilla melodia, W1Lson, Am. Orn., ii, 1810, 125.
Melospiza melodia, BaıkD, Birds N. A., 1858, 477.

Below, white, slightly shaded with brownish on the flanks and crissum, breast and sides
with numerous dusky streaks, with brown edges, coalescing tn form a pectoral blotch and
maxillary stripes bounding the throat; crown dull bay, with fine black streaks, divided
and bounded on either side by ashy-whitish lines; vagne brown or dusky and whitish
markings ou the sides of the head; the interscapular streaks black, with bay and ashy-
white el gings; rump and cervix grayish brown, with merely a few bay marks; wings with
dull bay edgings, the coverts and inner quills warked like the interscapulars; tail obvi- -
ously longer than the wings, pale brown, with darker shaft lines, on the middle feathers

at least, and often with obsolete wavy markings. Lenyth, 6-64; wing, about 24; tail,
about 3.

Habitat, Eastern United States, with geographical varieties to the Pacific; north to
Canada and Nova Scotia.

Abundant, resident at least in Middle and Southern Ohio. Breeds.
Generally distributed, though most abundant along streams of water and
in low places. Often seen in gardens of the city. and breeding com-
monly in the suburbs. This is probably, next to the Chipping Sparrow,
the most familiar of all our native Sparrows, being generally known as
the “Ground Chippy.” It is less arboreal than the common Chippy, and
a bird of considerable attractions as a vocalist. It is one of the earliest
songsters of spring, or rather its song announces the closing of winter.
It varies with the season, and with different individuals at the same
time, but is always animated and vigorous.

In winter the Song Sparrow retires from the open country to sheltered
glades in woods, and shrubbery on the banks of streams and ditches.

That this bird has a strong attachment to its nest, and also that it
possesses mental qualities akin to reason, was happily illustrated by a
pair of these birds observed by me in June, 1875. Their nest had
been built upon the ground, within a few feet of the track of the Lit-
tle Miami Railroad, about a mile west of this city. Some laborers, in
clearing away the undergrowth and cutting the grass along the track,
had discovered the nest and removed it, placing it very insecurely on a
fork of a horizontal limb of a maple sapling, about three feet from the
trunk. Instead of deserting the nest, as many birds would have done,
or attempting to secure it to the limb on which it was placed, the birds
gathered long stems of timothy grass and fastened them by twisting the
tops together and around a limb extending over the nest at a distance of
nearly one and a half feet. The lower ends of these stems were firmly
fastened into the rim of the nest, and other stems were knitted in trans-
versely, forming a pretty complete basket work. The whole structure

332 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

resembled an elongated hollow cone or inverted balloon. The only open-
ings sufficiently large to admit the passage of the birds were an entrance
over the limb, at the fork, and an exit directly opposite. In this re-
markable structure the eggs were hatched and the young safely raised.
After the nest was deserted I found the attachment of the grass stems
sufficiently strong to support the nest after the limb on which it was
placed was removed.

The nest is generally placed on the ground, but often on a low bush.
It is composed mainly of leaves and grass, and lined with fine grass,
rarely with horse-hair, perhaps with good reason, for I have found two

‚ unfortunate females who had ensnared themselves in attempting to use
this material. The eggs are usually five. Their ground color varices
from a grayish- or pinkish-white to light bluish-green, more or less
thickly spotted with dark reddish-brown. Their average measurement
is .82 by .60.

Genus JUNCO. Wagler.

Bill small, the lower mandible as high as the upper. Taısus longer than middle toe;

outer toe longer than inner, barely reaching to base of middle claw ; hind toe reaching

to middle of middle claw. Wings rather short; a little longer than the tail; primaries
longer than the nearly equal secondaries and tertiaries.

JUNCO HYEMALIS (L ) Sel.
Snowbird.

Fringilla hyemalis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1033, 164, 183.—ReaD, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395. ‘

Junco hyemalis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1860, 336; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6 —Lanapon, Birds of
Cin., 1877, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Snow Bird, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 63—Rgap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 68,

Fringilla hyemalis, Linnasus, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 183.
Junco hyemalis, SCLATER, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1857, 7.

Blackish-ash, below abruptly pure white from the breast. Two to three outer tail
feathers white. Bill flesh colored. In the female, and in fact in most fall and winter
specimens, the upper parts have a more grayish, or even a decidedly brownish cast, and
the inner quills are edged with pale bay. Length, 6-64; wing and tail, about 3.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America; in the United States west to the Black
Hills, thence northwest to Alaska, Washington Territory. Utah. Colorado. Arizona.

Winter resident in Southern and Middle, and resident throughout the
year in Northeastern Ohio. Dr. Kirtland says it “breeds in great num-
bers in the dark beech woods of the Connecticut Western Reserve.” Mr.
Read says it is “most abundant in winter, yet common throughout the
year.” I have seen it in July in Portage county. In the vicinity

\

\

\

TREE SPARROW. 333

of Columbus it makes its appearance in October, and remaina until
the first of May It i: most abundant in November and March. In
very severe weather / trary most of them pass further south. They
are tu be fuund evei y ». but especially affect the undergrowth along
the banks of streams, fence-rows, and thickets on the edges of woods.
They are numerous in the gardens of cities, and become quite familiar.
Their ordinary note is a short sharp emphatic chip. rapidly repeated as
the bird is flushed, but in the spring »s the days become warmer, they
delight to set in the low branches of trees and sing a very sweet sup-
pressed song, as if tuning up in anticipation of the approaching breed-
ing season. .

The nest is placed on the ground. It is composed of strips of bark,
straw, rootlets, and hair, and lined with moss and fur. The eggs are
creamy-white, spotted and blotched with reddish-browi. They measure
‚75 by .60.

Gexus SPIZELLA. Bonaparte.

Bill conical, its outlines slightly curved, the lower mandible decidedly larger than the
upper. Feet slender; tarsus rather longer than middle toe; hind toe a little longer than
outer lateral, which slightly exceeds the inner; outer claw reaching to base of middle
elaw, aud half as long as its toe. Wings somewhat pointed, about equal to and reach-
ing nearly to middle of the tail; tail rather long, moderately forked.

SPIZELLA MONTICOLA (Gm.) Bd.
Tree Sparrow.
Fringilla canadensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv , 1833, 164.—Reap, Proc Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci, vi, 1853, 395.
Spizella monticola, WHEBATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1560, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds
of Cin , 1877, 8; Revised List, Joura. Cin. Suc Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 175: Reprint. 9.
Fringilla monticola, GMELIN, Syst. Nat , i, 1788, 912.
Fringilla canadensis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., 1790, 4:34.
Spizella monticola, BAIRD, Birds N. Am, 1858, 472

Bill black above, yellow below; legs brown, toes black; no black on forehead ; crown
chestnet (in winter specimens the feathers usually skirted with gray), bordered by a
grayish-white superciliary and loral line, and some vague chestnut marks on sides of
head; below, impurely whitish, tinged with ashy auteriorly, washed with pale brownish
posteriorly; the middle of the breast with an obscure dusky bloteh; middle of back
boldly streaked with black, bay, and flaxen; middle and lesser wing-coverts black,
edged with bay and tipped with white, forming two conspicuous cross-bars; inner
secondaries similarly variegatéd ; other quills and tail feathers dusky, with pale edges.
Length, 6; wing and tail, nearly 3.

Habitat, North America at large, excepting, probably, the Gulf States.

Abundant winter resident from November to the latter part of April.

334 BIRDS—FRING ILLID A.

Mr. Read says “a few remain and spend the entire year with us; have
raised them from the nest.” With the exception that they have been
found breeding at Calais, Maine, by Mr. Boardman, and the statement of
Dr. Coues, that it breeds in mountains within our limits, this is the only
record of its breeding in the United States.

This is one of the most hardy of all the Sparrows. With us they fre-
quent willow thickets, shrubbery, and high weeds along the banks of
streams, and weedy spots on the edges of wouds. Not uncommonly they
are found in gardens of cities. They are gregarious, sometimes feeding
in flocks of a hundred. They are scarcely less terrestrial than the Snow
Sparrow, but take their common name from the habit they have ot flying
from thickets into trees when disturbed. Their common note is a soft
chirp, and when feeding they frequently utter an exceeding high and
clear short twitter, like the tinkling of a tiny bell. Brfore leaving us
the males sing a rather low but exceeding sweet song.

The Tree Sparrow nests on the ground or on low bushes; the nest is
built of fibres of bark and grass, and lined with feathers. The eggs are
light-green, rather sparsely marked with reddish-brown, and measure
.85 by .65.

SPIZELLA sociaLis (Wils.) Bp.
Chipping Sparrow.
Fringilla socialis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—RkAD, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.
Spizella socialis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 566; Repriut, 1875, 6—LANGDon, Cat. Birds

. of Cin., 1877, 8: Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.
Chipping Sparrow, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1877, 1 6. :
Fringilla socialis, WILSON, Am. Orn., ii, 1510, 127.

Spizella socialis, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 33.

Adult: bill black; feet pale; crown chestnut, extreme forehead black, a grayish-white
superciliary line, below this a blackish stripe through eye aud over auriculars. Below,
a variable shade of pale ash, nearly uniform and entirely unmarked; back streaked
with black, dull bay and grayish-brown; inner secondaries and wing-coverts similarly
variegated, the tips of the greater and lesser coverts forming whitish bars; rump ashy,
with slight blackish streaks; primaries and tail dusky, with paler edges. Young, with
crown streaked like the back, the breast and sides thickly streaked with dusky, the bill
pale brown, and the head lacking definite black. Length, 5-54; wing, about 23; tail
rather less.

Habitat, Temperate North America from Atlantic to Pacific.
Abundant summer resident from April to November. Breeds abund-

antly. Perhaps no bird is more familiar or better known. It rather
seeks than shuns the society of man, and is especially abundant in cities

FIELD SPARROW. 335

and towns. Although found in woodland, its preference is for the open
country and sparsely wooded pasture fields. In the fall they become gre-
garious, but in spring, though numbers may be seen together, they are
seldom seen in flocks. The conımon name is derived from its note. Its
song is a rapid, prolonged, monotonous, but not unpleasant repetition of
a single note.

On one occasion I found the nest of this bird on the ground. It was
placed in a slight depression in the turf of a woodland pasture, and con-
tained four eggs. I kept sight «f it until the young were hatched and
left the nest, which did not differ in construction from those placed in
trees.

The nest of the Chipping Spurrow, so far as known, with the above
single exception, is always placed in trees cr bushes. It is indifferently
fixed in a perpendicular or horizontal fork, and is for the most part com-
posed of black horse-hair, with a loose foundation of grass and vegetable
fibres. I have seen two nests composed entirely of white hairs. The
eggs are four or five, bluish-green, rather sp. rsely spotted with purplish-
and blackish-brown. They measure about 70 by .55.

SPIZELLA PUsILLA (Wils.) Bp.
Field Sparrow.
Fringilla pusilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.
Fringilla juncorum, READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395,
Spizella pusilla, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep fur 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6 --LanGpon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ, Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.
Fringilla pusilla, WiLs0n, Am. Orn, ii, 18W, 121.
Fringilla juncorum, NUTTALL, Man., 1b32, 499.
Spizella pusilla, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 33.

Bill pale reddish; feet very pale; crown du)l chestnut; no decided black or whitish
about head. Below, white, unmarked, but much washed with pale brown on breast and
sides; sides of head and neck with some vagne brown markings; all the ashy parts of
socialis replaced by pale brownish Back bright bay, with black streaks and some pale
flaxen edgings; inner second ries similarly variegated; tips of median and greater
coverts forming decided whitish cross-bars. Size of socialis, but more nearly the colors
of monticola. Young, for a short time, streaked below as in socialis.

Habitat, Eastern United States.

Abundant summer resident from April to November. Frequents es-
pecially the edges of woodland and borders of fields; sometimes, while on
its spring migration, visits the gardens of cities. Its song is rather
mournful, but very sweet and pleasing. It is heard during the whole
day, and is especially noticeable at midday, when most birds are silent.

336 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE,

Thickets along railroads are favorite resorts of this species, and a tele-
graph wire is a favorite perch while singing.

The nest ©: the Field Sparruw is placed on the ground, nat kof
gya 3, or in w low bush or tres but a few inches above the grou at As
composed of grass, with a foundation of dead leaves and a lining of hair.
The eggs are four or five, white, more or less thickly spotteu with reddish-
brown.

Gunus ZONOLRICHIA. Swainson.

Body rather stout, Bill slightly notched, somewhat compressed, excavated inside.
Wings moderate, rounded, not reaching to middie of tail; secondarics and tertials equal,
shorter than the first primary. Tail rounded, about equal to the wings. Feet stout;
tarsus rather longer than middle toe, Hind toe longer than lateral. Claws slender and
considerably curved.

ZONOTRICHIA ALBICOLLIS (Gm.) Bp.
W hite-throated Sparrow.

Fringilla pennsylvanica, KiRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 183.—Rxap, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1858, 395.

Zonotrichia albicollis, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 464 —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of Biras, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1874, 566; Re-
print, 1875, 6.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc,
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

White-throated Finch, KiRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 148, 164.

Fringilla albicollis, Guu in, Syst. Nat.. i, 1785, 926.

Fringilla pennsylvanica, LATHAM, Ind. Orn,, 1790, 446.

Zonotrichia albicollis, BONAPARTH, Uonsp. Av., 1850, 478.

Adult male, with the crown black, divided by a median white stripe, bounded by a
white superciliary line and yellow spot from nostril to the eye; below this a black stripe
through the eye; below this a maxillary black siripe bounding the definitely pure white
throat, sharply contrasted with the dark ash of the breast aud sides of the neck and
head. Edge of wing yellow. Back continuously streaked with black, chestnur, and falvous-
white; rump ashy, unmarked. Wings much edged with bay, the white tips of the
median and greater coverts forming two couspicnous bars; quills and tail feathers
dusky, with pale edges. Below, white, shaded with ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper

SPIZELLA PALLIDA (Sw.) Bp.
Clay-colored Sparrow.
Spizella pallida, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint,
1875, 6.
Emberiza pallida, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 251.
Spizella pallida, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 33.
Habitat, from Texas to the Upper Missouri and Saskatchewan; east to Iowa, Wiscon-
sin, and Illinois. Given as a bird of Ohio by me in 1875, on what I now consider insuf-
ficient authority.

WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. 337

and purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale. Female and immature birds with the
black of head replaced by brown, the white of throat less conspicuously contrasted with
the duller ash of surrounding parts, and frequently with obscure dusky streaks on the
breast and sides. Length, 64-74; wings and tail each about 3.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America; north to 65°; west to the Indian Terri-
tory, Kansas, and Dakota.

Abundant and regular Spring wad fall migrant ia April and May, Sep-
tember to November. Frequents woodland undergrowth and the banks
of streams, and is generally seen in scattered flocks. In the spring the
males arrive several days before the females, and disappear sooner. Late
in spring many females are seen considerably streaked below; these are
probably young birds. Dr. Kirtland mentions their remaining in North-
ern Ohio throughout the month of June, but they have never been known
to breed with us. Mr. Merriam has discovered it breeding in the Adir-
ondack region, Northern New York, while Mr. E. A. Mearns gives it as
a regular winter resident in the lower Hudson River Valley.

In some sections, this Sparrow, which is one of the largest of the
streaked Sparrows, is known as the Peabody Bird, from its clear but
somewhat drawling notes, which strikingly resemble the syllables
pe-d-body, pe-d-body, d-body, & body, &-body. It is a tolerably regular visitor
in spring in gardens of the city, where its song is sometimes heard at
night. Its call note is a lisping éscep.

The nest is built upon the ground; it is composed of moss and grass,
lined with fine grass, rootlets, hair, and a few feathers. The eggs vary
from four to seven. They are of a pale-greenish color, more or less
thickly spotted with rusty-brown, and measure .90 by .68.

ZONOTRICHIA LEUCOPHRYS (Forst.) Sw.
White-crowned Sparrow.

Fringilla leucophrys, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog, ii, 1834, 88; B. Am,, iii, 1841, 159.—Kirt-
LAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 183.—ReaD, Proc. Phila, Acad. Nat. Sci, vi,
1853, 395.

Zonotrichia leucophrys, BAIRD, P, R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 460.—WHrATon, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566;
Reprint, 1875, 6.—BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 568.—LAnG-
pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint,
5; Revised List, Journ. Cin, Soc, Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

White-crowned Finch, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, 1850, 148, 161.

Emberiza leucophrys, FORSTER, Philos. Tr., Ixii, 1772, 382, 403, 426.

Fringilla leucophrys, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 107.

Fringilla (Zonotrichia) leucophrys, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 255.

Zonotrichia leucophrys, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 32.

22

338 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA.

Adults of both sexes with the crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad black
stripe that meets its fellow on the forehead and descends the lores to the level of the
eyes, and bounded by another black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around
the side of the hind head, neatly meeting its fellow on the nape; edge of under eyelid
white. Or, we may say, crown black, enclosing a median white stripe and two lateral
white stripes, all confluenton the hind head. General color a fine dark ash, paler below,
whitening insensibly on the chin and belly, more brownish on the romp, changing to dul}
brownish on the flanks and crissum, the middle of the back streaked with dark purplish-
bay and ashy-white. No bright bay, like that of albicollis, any where, except some edging
on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white,
forming two bars; no yellow anywhere; bill and feet reddish. Young birds have the
black of the head replaced by a very rich warm brown, the white of the head by pale
brownish, and the general ash has a brownish suffusion, and the back is more like
albicollis.

Habitat, Eastern North America north to the Aretic region; in the Rocky Mountain
region replaced by var. intermedia, and on the Pacific slope by var. gambeli. Greenland.
Cape St. Lucas.

Very common spring and fall migrant, but less uniform in numbers
than the preceding species. Arrives a little later in spring and departs
earlier in the fall. Dr. Kirtland mentions their remaining until July
in the vicinity of Cleveland, in 1850. Mr. Langdon states, on the au-
thority of Mr. Dury, that they were abundint during Christmas week,
1877, in the vicinity of Cincinnati. It is found in the same localities
as the White-throated Sparrow, though oftener seen along the borders of
fields than in woodland. In the fall it is less common, and irregular,
frequenting high weeds on the banks of streams Usually its song is
not heard, but in seasons when they appear in very considerable num-
bers, and remain late, as in the spring of 1875, it is a constant singer.
Like the preceding. its notes are very soft and sweet, a rather slow and
mournful rendering of the syllables and melody of the old song, OA,
de dr, de-dr, what can the matter be? Sometimes a dozen may be heard sing-
ing on the borders of a single field.

The large size, contrasted colors of its head, with plain body colors,
neat, trim form, with a martial aspect which it sometimes wears, render
it an attractive and rather imposing bird.

The White-crowned Sparrow seems to be rather more northern in its
summer distribution than the White throated. In but two instances, at
Rutland, Vermont, and Potsdam, New York, do I find it recorded as
breeding in the United States east of the mountains of Colorado.

The nest is placed upon the ground, built of weeds and grass, with a
lining of fine grass. The eggs are usually four, pale bluish-green, thickly
spotted, especially about the larger end, with reddish-brown. They meas-
ure about .92 by .70.

LARK FINCH. 339

Genus CHONDESTES. Swainson.

Bill swollen, both outlines curved. Lower mandible as high as, and broader than, the
upper. Tarsi about equal to the middle toe; lateral toes equal and very short, not
reaching base of middle claw. Wings long, pointed, reaching nearly to the middle of
the tail. Tertials equal to secondaries. Tail long, rounded. :

CHONDESTES GRAMMACA (Say.) Bp.

Lark Finch.

Chondestes grammaca, WEEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 129; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861,
366; Reprint, 8; in Coues’ Birds of N. W., 1874, 234; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 566; Reprint, 6.—Coues, Birds of N. W., 1874, 159.—BAIRD,
BREWER and Rıpaway, N. A. Birds, i, 1874, 563.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 9 —Rıpaway, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 43 —JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1878, 86.

Chondestes grammica, BREWSTER, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 122.—LANGDoN, Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i, 1879, 175; Reprint, 9.

Fringilla grammaca, Say, Long’s Exp., i, 1823, 139.

Chondestes grammaca, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 32.

Head curiously variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown chestnut, black-
ening on the forehead, divided by a median stripe and bounded by two lateral stripes,
of white; a black line through, and another below the eye, enclosing a white streak
under the eye and the chestnut auriculars; next a sharp black maxillary stripe, not
quite reaching the bill, cutting off a white stripe from the white chin and throat. A
black blotch on middle of breast. Under parts white, faintly shaded with grayisb-
brown; upper parts grayish-brown, the middle of the back with fine black streaks.
Central tail feathers like the back, the rest jet black, broadly tipped with pure white in
diminishing amount from the lateral pair inward, and the outer web of outer pair en-
tirely white. Length, 64-7; wing, 34; tail, 3.

“First plumage. Crown dark brown, faintly tinged with. hestnut. A median and two
lateral stripes of pale brownish-yellow. Rest of upper parts similar to the adult, but
with the rump obscurely spotted, and the streaking on the feathers of the interscapular
region much broader. Lores dull black. Beneath soiled white, thickly streaked every-
where, excepting npon the abdomen, with dull black. From a specimen in my collec-
tion obtained at Columbus, Ohio, by Dr. J. M. Wheaton.” (Brewster, 1. c.)

Habitat, Plains and prairies of the West; south to Mexico; west to the Pacific; north

to Wisconsin and Iowa; east to Middle Ohio, Massachusetts. District of Columbia.
Florida.

Common summer resident from the last week in April until August, —
less common in Southern Ohio, not known in Northern Ohio. Breeds.
The Lark Finch was first known as an Ohio bird in 1861; during the
spring and summer I saw three specimens. It has since appeared quite
regularly, and in increasing numbers. On its first arrival it frequents
stubble-fields and roadsides, and sometimes gravelly places, but selects
for its summer home a sparsely wooded pasture, or neglected field bor-
dered with low trees. It sings from the time of its arrival until after

340 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA,

the breeding season, and none of our Sparrows equal it in melody. Dr.
Brewer says of it:

“The song of this species is described as composed of regularly divided parts, almost
perfect in compass, in vigor and continuity unsurpassed, if not unequaled, by any other
North American species. It begins with a series of chants, the style reminding one
somewhat of the Cyanospiza eyanea, but each syllable loud, rieh, and clear, and uttered
with a peculiar emotional trill, the whole seeming delivered in a hurried manner, in one
continuous gush of silvery notes, and accompanied by a metallic tremolo. Asif exhausted
the singer falters, and the notes become scareely eadible, then suddenly reviving, as if
in great joy, the song is resumed jn all ita vivacity, until the bird at last really appears
to be overcome with its efforts.” x

These birds have some other peculiar traits. On the ground they run
instead of hop, as is the case with most Sparrows. Three or four may
frequently be seen following each other after the manner of quails, run-
ning with low.:red heads, drooping wings, and expanded tail. In some
parts of Illinois they are known as Quail-heads, probably from a super-
ficial resemblance which they bear to that bird in coloration, and the
habit above mentioned. In some localities they are called Road Birds,
from their habit of running along roadsides and feeding in roads.

Birds in trouble sometimes appeal to man for assistance. In the sum-
mer of 1875, I was attracted by the singular movements of one of these
birds, which flew before me, frequently alighting, as if endeavoring to
draw me away from itsnest. Following it for a short distance, it circled
several time around a garter snake, which I killed, when the bird perched
upon a fence stake and filled the air with his grateful notes. I was still
more than ever convinced that the nest or young of the bird were near,
and commenced search. During my unsuccessful search the bird disap-
peared. Returning to the spot where the dead snake lay, I gave it a toss
with my stick, which was immediately followed by the reappearance of
the bird, which exhibited more anxiety than ever. It flew at the snake,
which it seemed to understand was now harmless, picked at and at-
tempted to drag it. Going to the spot, I found the nest, and the snake
partially coiled around it. Another toss, and I was again rewarded with
a song.

The nest of the Lark Finch is placed in a slight depression of the
ground, sometimes, according to Mr. Ridgway, in trees and bushes. Dr.
Brewer describes it as being nearly flat and very shallow, composed en-
tirely of various grasses, loosely intertwined, but the nests which I have
seen in this locality are neat, compact structures, with deep cavities,
and composed almost entirely of fine dark rootlets, neatly lined with
grass, and with some attempt at ornamentation about the rim. The

‚ENGLISH SPARROW. 341

eggs are usually four, sometimes five. They are of a soiled white color,
spotted with very dark brown,.and marked with zigzag, straight, and
wavy lines of blackish, as in the eggs of many of the Icteride. They
measure .85 by .65. As soon as the young are able to fly they take to
trees, and from this time until their departure, this species is more ar-
boreal than in the spring and early summer.

Genus PASSER. Brisson.

Bill shaped much as in the Purple Finch. Wings moderate, pointed, second quill
longest, but scarcely exceeding the (irst and third, which are equal. Tail two-thirds as
long as the wing, slightly forked; tarsus as long as the middle toe; lateral toes equal.

PAssER poMEsticus (L.) Degland and Gerbe.
English Sparrow.
Passer domesticus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Re-
print, 1575, 6.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9.
Pyrgila domestica, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 175; Re-
print, 9.
Fringiila domestica, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 323.
Pyrgita domestica, Cuvier, Reg. An., 1829, 439.
Passer domesticus, DEGLAND and GERBE, Orn. Europ., i, 1867, 241.

Male: above reddish brown, the back streaked with black; the crown and under
parts brownish ash, the chin and throat black; a white wing-bar. Female lacking the
black on chin and throat. Length, 64; wing, about 3; tail, 24.

Introduced from Europe. Resident. Breeds. The English Sparrow
has been introduced into most of the cities and larger towns, and many
of the villages of the State, within the last ten years. They were at
first supposed to be a deadly foe to insects injurious to fruit and shade
trees, but this seems to have been an error, their only recommendation
being that they are tolerable scavengers, but like most scavengers, they
are dirty themselves, and make nearly as much dirt as they remove, and
are noisy without melody or other attractive traits. They are familiar
even to impudence, as might be expected from their having been natur-
alized without as much as making a ‘declaration of intention.”

When first introduced in this city they put on aristocratic airs, occu-
pied the cornices of the best hotels, business houses and palatial resi-
dences, and spent their leisure time only in the finest streets and. parks.
Now they are content with humbler quarters. They seem to be shunned
by other birds, none but Cow-birds seeking their acquaintance.

Their nest is placed in bird-boxes, crevices about houses, and some-
times in vines and evergreen trees. When built in holes and bird-

fy

342 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA.

boxes scarcely any art is shown in construction, or taste in the selection
of material, but nests in trees have a foundation of twigs and a lining
of grass, pieces of string and bits of soft material of various sorts. The
eggs are from four to seven in number, bluish-ash, spotted and streaked
with various shades of brown. They measure about .90 by .62. Several
broods are raised in a season.

Genus PASSERELLA. Swainson.

Body stout. Bill unnotched, the two jaws of equal depth; roof of upper mandible
vaulted. Wings long, pointed, about equal to the even tail, and reaching to its middle.
Inner secondaries not lengthened. Tarsus about equal to the middle toe. Lateral toes
lengthened, the tips of their claws reaching far beyond base of middle claw.

PASSERELLA ILIACA (Merrem.) Sw.
Eox Sparrow.

Fringilla iliaca, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Passerella iliaca, Barrp, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 489.—WHRATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of Birds, etc, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Re-
print, 1875, 6.—LanGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Fringilla iliaca, MERREM, Beit. Gesch., ii, 1786-7, 49. .

Passerella iliaca, SWAINSON, Class B, ii, 1837, 228.

General color ferrugineous or rusty red, purest and brightest on the rump, tail, and
wings, on the other upper parts appearing as streaks laid on an ashy ground; below,
white, variously but thickly marked except on the belly and crissum with rusty red, the
markings anteriorly in the form of diffuse confluent blotches, on the breast and sides
consisting chiefly of sharp saggitate spots and pointed streaks ; tips of middle and greater
coverts forming two whitish wing-bars; upper mandible dark, lower mostly yellow;
feet pale. Length, 62-73; wing and tail each 3 or more.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America, north to mouth of Yukon ; west to edge
of great plains. Colorado.

Common spring and fall migrant in March and April, October and No-
vember. Frequents woodland and borders of streams. Rarely in gardens
of cities.

This is one of the largest and finest of the Sparrows. Its long wings
give it a flight which is more thrush-like than any other Sparrow, and
it has the thrush-like habit of concealing itself behind the trunks and
larger branches of trees when alarmed. Its only note while with us is
a low but rather sharp ischip, but in the Eastern States and at his sum-
mer home his song is described as being exquisitely sweet.

The Fox Sparrow is not known to breed within the limits of the United
States, but has been found nesting in Labrador and British America.

BLACK-THROATED BUNTING. 343

The nest is built either on the ground or in trees. It is constructed
of grass, moss, and fibrous roots, with hair and feathers. The eggs are
light bluish-white, thickly spotted with rusty-brown. They measure
-92 by .70.

Genus EUSPIZA. Bonaparte.

Bill large and strong, swollen; the lower mandible nearly as high as, and considerably
broader than, the upper, the edges much infected and shutting within the upper. Tarsus
barely equal to middle toe; lateral toes equal, not reaching base of middle claw. Wings
long, sharp -pointed, longer than the emarginate tail, and reaching nearly to ita middle
Inner secondaries lengthened, but much ekorter than primaries.

EvusPizA AMERICANA (Gm.) Bp.
Black-throated Bunting.

Fringitla americana, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 183.

Emberiza americana, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 579; B. Am., iii, 1841, 66.

Euspiza americans, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep, for 1860, 366, 376; Reprint, 1861, 8, 18;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1675, 6—Cours, Birda
of N. W., 1874, 166.—BAIRD, BREWER and RipGway, ii, 1874, 67.—LANGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 114; Reprint, 5; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.—BREWSTER, Ball. Nutt.
Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 1225 iv, 1879, 41.

Eimberiza americana, GMELIN, Syst. Nat, i, 1788, 872.

fringilia americana, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1822, 107.

Euspiza americana, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 32.

Male: above grayish-brown, the middle of the back streaked with black, the hing
neck ashy, becoming on the crown yeliowish-olive, with black touches; a yellow super-
ciliary line, and maxillary touch of the same; eyelid white; ear-coverts ashy; chin
white; throat with » large jet-black patch; under parts in general white, shaded on
the sides, extensively tinged with yellow on the breast and belly; edge of wing yellow;
lesser and middle eoverts rich chestnut, the other coverts and inner secondaries edged
with paler; bill dark horn-blue; feet brown. Female: smaller; above like the male, but
head and neck plainer; belew less tinged with yellow, the black throat patch wanting,
and replaced by sparse sharp maxillary and pectoral streaks. Length, 63-7; wing, 24;
tail, 22.. ,

“Autumnal plumage: young. Crown, shoulder, and ramp, with sides of head and neck,
light olive-brown, the centres of the feathers slightly darker; a little concealed chestnut
on the shoulders, Feathers of the interscapular region with dull black centres and
brownish-fulvous edges. Wing-bands, with outer margins of wing-coverts and second-
aries, dull brownish-fulvous. Superciliary line brownish-yellow, fading anteriorly to
brownish-white. Throat, central area of the abdomen, and the crissum, pale brownish-
white. Sides of breast and body brownish-olive, with dark brown streaking on the
flanks. Breast dull reddish-orange, streaked with dark brown, and washed with ob-
scure ashy-white. From a specimen in the collection of Dr. J. M. Wheaton, obtained at
Circleville, O., August, 1878.” (Brewster, 1. c., 1879.) ‘

. “First plumage. Above pale fulvous, with broad markings of dark brown upon the
feathers of the interscapular region, and narrower fainter ones of lighter brown upon

.

344 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

the crown. Bend of wing, middle and greater coverts, fulvous. Under parts delicate
fawn-color, deepest upon the breast. No markings beneath, excepting a faintly indi-
cated line of dusky s,.ots upon the sides of the breast. From a specimen in my cabinet
collected at Columbus, Ohio, by Dr. J. M. Wheaton. This bird is very young, scarcely
large enough to fly.” (Brewster, 1. ¢., 187°.)

Habitat, Eastern United States; west to Kansas, Nebraska, aud Colorado; north to
Massachusetts; south to Mexico, Central America, and New Grenada.

Abundant summer resident from May to September, in Middle and
Southern, less common in Northern Ohio. Frequents clover and grain
fields. Probably has greatly increased in numbers with the increase of
cultivation. Audubon states that it is rare in Ohio and Kentucky, and
Dr. Kirtland says that he admits it to his list on insufficient authority.
Mr. Read omits it. It is now the characteristic summer bird of fields
throughout Middle and Southern Ohio.

No one of our Sparrows is more variable in plumage. Although the
above description is correct for a iarge proportion of birds, yet many
specimens are found which differ from it in several particulars. I am of
the opinion that it is several years before they attain their highest plum-
age, aud that the sexes can not be distinguished by theircolor alone. The
size also varies considerably, and the males are not always larger than
the females. Very highly colored males have the head decidedly glossed
with yellow, and the breast decided, though not definite, rich yellow,
prolonged as a broad median line to the lower belly. Some males, appar-
ently adult, have the black throat-patch, instead of bread and shield-
shaped, reduced toa small indefinite spot; in others the black of throat is
entirely wanting, but the maxillary streaks are present, with or without
pectoral streaks. Males without black on the throat show no lack of
chestnut on the wing or yellow on the breast. In fact the chestnut on
the wing sometimes appear in an inverse ratio to the black on the
throat, but some males, in spring, have the chestnut reduced to a mere
trace. : .

The same variations are seen in the females, some of whom bave a
small black spot on the breast, and more rarely a large definite shield,
but these latter appear to. be very old birds. Some without black on the
throat are quite yellow below; some have well defined chestnut on the
wings, while in others it is entirely wanting. In fact, no description
can be framed which would accord with every variation, or separato the
BeXes. j j

The Black-throated Bunting, or Little Field Lark, as it is commonly
called, to distinguish it from the Meadow Lark, usually arrives in the
vicinity of Columbus during the first week in May. Sometimes a few

BLACK-THROATED BUNTING. 345

single males first appear, but usually the fields which were comparatively
silent the day before, are filled with the monotonous notes of many birds.
The females arrive a few days later, when pairing and breeding immedi-
ately begins. Two or three males pursue a female about the fields, as is
the habit of the Bobolinks, singing as they fly. The female sometimes
tires of this rapid courtship, and seeks refuge and rest in woodland.
From the time of their arrival till the young are well fledged, the male,
perched on the top of a stump, tall weed, or fence stake, sings his chip,
chip, che, che, che, che, which Dr. Coues interprets as “Look! look! see me
here! see,” with wearisome monotony. Only occasionally some more
talented vocalist conceives the happy idea of a variation, and renders it
che, che, che, chip, chip. This is their only song, but sometimes when flying
they utter a coarse guttural croak.

The nest is usually placed on the ground, but sometimes attached to
the stems of tall weeds, or more rarely in trees and bushes. When placed
on the ground it is composed for the most part of dead stalks of clover,
and is so inartistic and fragile that it can with difficulty be taken up en-
tire. When placed above the ground, it is comparatively neat and com-
pact, and built of vegetable fibres. The eggs are generally four, light-
blue, unspotted, and almost exactly like those of the Bluebird. They
measure .90 by .70.

After the breeding season they are silent, and in August prepare to leave
for the South. As in spring, their migrations are performed by night.
Their coarse note is often heard as they fly over-head. Early in foggy
September mornings these notes are frequently heard, and the birds seen
as they descend to feed and rest in the thickets of young willows and
wild cucumbers that cover the gravelly islands and low banks of our
rivers. From the fact that I have never taken September birds with.
black on the throat, I am inclined to believe that in their winter plum-
age it is wanting. (?) :

In their habits they seem to form a connecting link, if any were
needed, between the families of Fringillide and Icteridx, and their resem-
blance to the latter family is further seen in their smooth, short, and
dense plumage. |

Genus GONIAPHEA. Bowditch.

_ Bill very large, nearly as high as long; the commissure conspicuously angulated just
below the nostril. Lower jaw extending much behind the forehead. Rictus with a few
long stiff bristles. A prominent knob in the roof of the mouth. Wings long, longer
than the even tail, reaching to its middle. Tarsus shorter than middle toe. Outer lat-
eral toe a little longer than inner.

346 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDE.

GONIAPHEA LUDOVICIANA (L) Bowditch.
Rose-breasted Grosbeak..

Fringilla ludoviciana, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 166.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 164, 184; Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xl, 1841, 21.

Coccoborus ludovicianus, AUDUBON, B. Am., iii, 1841, 210.

Coccothraustes ludovicianus, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 623.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Guiraca ludoviciana, WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 129; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861,
366, 376; Reprint, 8, 18.

Goniaphea ludoviciana, WuEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
566; Reprint, 6—Lanepon, Cat. Birds uf Cin., 1877, 9.

Hedymeles ludovicianus, BaAIRD, BREWER and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1674, 72.—LANG-
pon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Loxia ludoviciana, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 306.

Fringilla ludoviciana, BONAPARTE, Am Orn., ii, 1828, 79.

Guiraca ludoviciana, SWAINSON, Philos.-Mag,, i, 1827, 438.

Coccothraustes (Guiraca) ludovicianus, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831,
271.

Goniaphea ludoviciana, Bowpiren, ‘ Excurs. in Madeira, 1825.”
Hedymelis ludovicianus, CABANIS, Mus. Hein., i, 1851, 153.

‘Adult male with head and neck all round and most of the upper parts black, the ramp,
upper tail-coverts, and under parts white, the breast and under wing-coverts exquisite
carmine or rose-red ; wings and tail black, variegated with white; bill pale; feet dark.
Female: above streaked with blackish and olive- or flaxen-brown, with median white
coronal and superciliary line; below, white, more or less tinged with fulvous and streaked
with dusky; under wing-coverts saffron-yellow ; upper coverts and inner quills with a
white spot at end; bill brown. Young males at first resemble the female. Length,
73-84; wing, about 4; tail, about 34.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America, north to Labrador and the Saskatche-
wan; south through Mexico and Central America to Ecuador. Cuba.

Common summer resident in Northern Ohio, chiefly migrant in South-
ern and Middle Ohio, where but few remain and breed.

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak, one of the most handsome, showy, and
musical of North American birds, arrives early in May and returns
southward in September. It frequents both high and low woodlands
and wooded swamps, and sometimes, though rarely, makes its appearance
in the gardens of the city. Those which remain choose for their sum-
mer home thickets on the wooded borders of streams, especially in the
vicinity of sycamore trees. While on their migrations, the males and
females are very seldom seen together. Dr. Kirtland states that they
frequent the cranberry marshes of Northern Ohio, and that it surpasses
the Mocking-bird in the animation of its song. Mr. Read says that they
nest in large numbers on the borders of streams and cranberry marshes.

INDIGO BIRD. 347

In this vieinity they are rare during the breeding season; I have but
once discovered their nest. This was placed in a low thorn-tree in a
thickel on the edge of a sycamore grove on the bank of the Olentangy
River. I was attracted to the locality by the loud, clear and flute-like
voice of the male, who, perched high in the branches of the tall trees,
sang by the hour his incomparable notes. Audubon states that he found
their nest and eggs in the vicinity of Cincinnati.

The nest is placed in a low tree on the edge of woods or on the bank of
a stream. It is composed of small twigs, vegetable fibres, and grass; the
eggs vary from light green to greenish-white, thickly spotted with red-
dish-brown. They measure about 1 00 by .75. The males assist in, if they
do not largely perform, the duties of incubation.

In the fall the males migrate in small companies of ten or twelve, and
from the fact that all which I have seen resemble the females, except
in having the under wing-coverts and spot on the breast carmine, I sus-
pect that old males lose their black, and become streaked in the fall. (?)

Genus CYANOSPIZA. Baird.

Bill deep at base, compressed; the commissure with an obtuse shallow lobe in the
middle. Tarsus about equal to middle toe; outer toe barely longer than inner, its claw
falling short of base of middle claw. Claws much curved, acute. Wings long and
pointed, longer than the uearly even tail, and reaching to its middle.

CYANOSPIZA CYANEA (L.) Bp.
Indigo Bird.

Fringilla cyanea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164, 183.—Reab, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

GONIAPHEA CERULEA (L.) Sclater.
a
Blue Grosbeak.

Guiraca cerulea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 379; Reprint, 21 (probable).
—LANGpDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 22
(probable).

Goniaphea cerulea, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 566;
Reprint, 6.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9.

Loxia cwrulea, LINNZvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 306.
Guiraca cerulea, SWAINSON, Philos. Mag., i, 1827, 438.
Goniaphea carulea, SCLATER, P. Z. S., 1856, 301.

Habitat, United States southerly, from Atlantie to Pacific. In the East, north to the
Middle States regularly ; to Connecticut Valley occasionally ; to Maine casually. In the
interior north to the Platte. In the West, north through California. South to Mexico
and Central America. Cuba.

Given in my list of 1875 on what I now consider insufficient authority.

348 BIRDS—FRINGILLID A.

Cyanospiza cyanea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep for 18€0, 366, 376; Reprint, 1861, 8, 18;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1575, 6.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176;
Reprint, 10.—JoNEs and SHu1zx, Ilius. Nests and Eggs of Ohio Birds, part 2, 1879,
plate 4,

Tanagra cyanca, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., 1766, 315.
Fringilla cyanea, WILSON, Am. Orn., i, 1810, 100.
Cyanospiza cyanea, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 505.

Adult male: indigo blue, intense and constant on the head, glancing greenish, with
different lights on other parts; wings and tail blackish, glossed with greenish-blue;
feathers around base of bill black; bill dark above, rather paler below, with a curious
black stripe along the gonys. Female: above plain warm brown; below, whitey-brown,
obsoletely streaky on the breast and sides; wing-coverts and inner quills pale-edged,
but not whitish; upper mandible blackish, lower pale, with the black stripe just men-
tioned. The young male is like the female, but soon shows blue traces, and afterwards
is blue, with white variegation below. Length, 54; wing, 2%; tail, 24.

ITabitat, Eastern Province of the United States; north to Canada and Maine; west
to Kansas and Indian Territory; south to Texas, Mexico, and Central America.

Abundant summer resident from the first week in May to the latter
part of October. Breeds. Found almost everywhere, but especially in
woodland, thickets, and rank vegetation along streams; in cities fre-
quently during the spring migration.

The male seems proud of his bright plumage, and loses no opportunity
to render himself conspicuous, while the female is as decidedly modest
and retiring. Their call or alarm note is a sharp chip, but the male is a
vigorous and frequent, though not particularly gifted, songster.

The nest is built in low bushes, of leaves and grass. The eggs are
four or five, white, with a bluish tinge, unspotted; or, rarely, thinly
dotted with reddish-brown. They measure .75 by .58.

Genus CARDINALIS.’ Bonaparte.

Conspicuously crested. Bill very large, lower jaw wider and about as deep as the
upper. Tarsi longer than middle toe. Outer toe rather longer than inner, and longer
than hind toe. Tail longer than the wings, both rounded.

CARDINALIS VIRGINIANUS (L.) Bp.
Cardinal Redbird.

Fringilla cardinalis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog,, ii, 1834, 366.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1338, 164, 184.

Pitylus cardinalis, AUDUBON, B. Am., iii, 1841, 199.

Cardinalis virginianus, READ, Proc, Phila. Acad. Nat, Sei., vi, 1853, 395.—WIEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1961, &; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LAnGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 10.

CARDINAL REDBIRD. 349

Loxia cardinalis, Linnzcus, Syst. Nat., 1766, 300.
Fringilla (Cocothraustes) cardinalis, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils., 1825, No. 79.
Cardinalis virginianus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 35.

Male: rich vermillion or rosy-red, obscured with ashy on the back; face black; bill
reddish ; feet brown. Female: ashy brown, paler below, with evident traces of the red
on the crest, wings, tail, and under parts. Leugth, 8-9; wing, about 33; tail, 4.

Habitat, Eastern United States; west to Kansas, Nebraska, and Texas; north to the

Middle States, rare in New York, casual in Connecticut, accidental in Massachusetts;
represented by varieties iu the Southwest.

Common resident. Breeds. Frequents thickets in woodland and
swamps.

The Cardinal Grosbeak, or Redbird, as it is here generally called, is
better known as a cage bird than in its native state. It is resident
throughout the State, though not sedentary, but wandering in winter
and collecting in great numbers in suitable sheltered localities. Mr.
Read says that he has taken it in Northern Ohio when the thermometer
stood at z-ro. Dr. Kirtland, in 1838, said it “was hardly known in the
Western Reserve until within the last three or four years,” but was
then common and resident. Mr. Read also mentions their increasing
numbers. ;

In this vieinity they are generally distributed during the breeding
season, but in severe winters they collect in large companies in swamp
thickets. In one such locality of about ten acres in extent, I have seen
in an hour more than a hundred birds. They are also frequent visitors
to the gardens of the city during the colder portions of the year.

In their habits and flight they bear considerable resemblance to the
Brown Thrush, The call or alarm note of this bird is a loud sharp chip,
and their song a highly modulated repetition of loud whistling notes of
great variety. They often sing at night, and the song of the female,
though weaker, is not less varied, and more pleasing than that of the
male. :

Considerable numbers are trapped and sold. In cold weather almost
any form of trap baited with corn, buckwheat, or other seeds, will capture
them; in spring they are generally taken in trap-cages, by the use of
decoy birds. They are nearly always to be found in the markets of the
city, where they sell at from one to two dollars per pair.

The nest is placed in a variety of situations, usually from three to ten
feet from the ground. Ihave found them in low dense-topped trees, in
thickets, on the top of vine-covered stumps, in wild-gooseberry bushes
overhanging water, and in brush-heaps. I have found the nest ready for
the reception of eggs as early as April 17. It is rather small and com-

350 BIRDS—FRINGILLIDA.

pact, constructed of small twigs and rootlets, and lined with grass. The
eggs are four in number, very rarely five, white, thickly spotted with
dark reddish-brown, which often forms a ring around the larger end.
They vary in size and shape, nearly as much as those of the Cowbird,
which they somewhat resemble, and which is sometimes found in the
same nest. They measure from .98 to 1.10 inlength by from .78 to .80.

Genus PIPILO. Vieillot.

Bill rather stout, the lower jaw not so deep as, but wider, thantheupper. Feet large,
tarsus about equal to middle toe; outer toe a little longer than inner, equal to hind toe.
Claws stout, compressed, moderately curved. Wings short, much rounded, reaching to
end of upper tail-coverts, outer four quills graduated. Tail longer than wings, gradu-
ated externally. ;

PIPILO ERYTHROPIHALMUS (L.) V.
Towhe Bunting; Chewink.

Fringilla erythropthalma, KIRTLAND? Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—READ, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Pipilo erythropthalmus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, &; Food
of Birds, ete., Obio Agric. Rep for 1874, 566; Reprint, 1875, 6.—LaNnGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 9; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1678, 115; Reprint, 6; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Fringilla erythropthalmus, LINN£US, Syst. Nat, i, 1766, 318.
Pipilo erythropthalmus, VIEILLOT, Gal. Ois., i, 1824, 109.

Adult male: black, belly white, sides chestnut, crissum fulvous-brown; primaries and
inner secondaries with white touches on the outer webs; outer tail feathers, with the
outer web, and nearly the terminal half of the inner web, white, the next two or three
with white spots, decreasing in size; bill blackish; feet pale brown; iris red in the
adult, white or creamy in the young, and generally in winter specimens. Female: rich
warm brown where the male is black; otherwise similar. Very young birds are streaked
brown and dusky above, below whitish, tinged with brown and streaked with dusky.
Length: male, &4; wing, 33; tail, 4; female rather less.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America to Minnesota, Canada, and Labrador;
west to Kansas and Fort Randall; replaced in northern Dakota by var. arcticus.

Very common summer resident in Middle and Northern, resident
throughout the year in Southern Ohio. Breeds. In the vicinity of Co-
lumbus the Towhe is abundant from the middle of March to the middle
of November, and I have taken single birds in every month of the
year. It frequents thickets and woodland undergrowth. Sometimes
when migrating they visit the gardens of the city. The common names,
Towhe and Chewink, are imitations of its ordinary note, which is quick,
ringing, and somewhat petulant, though not unpleasant. Its song is
quite different; mounting like the Chat to the middle branches of a tall

BOBOLINK. 351

tree, it sits motionless, and sings at short intervals pe ar, pe, che-che-che. It
is a restless, busy bird, and resents intrusion upon his premises by scold-
ing notes, short contemptuous flights and disdainful flirtings of his fine
tail, of which he is evidently proud. When his notes are not heard his
presence is indicated by the noise he makes in running over and scratch-
ing among the dry leaves.

The nest is usually well sunken in a depression of the ground at the
root of a bush or young sapling. Several instances, however, have been
brought to my notice where it has been placed in trees and bushes eight
or ten feet above the ground. It is composed almost entirely of stems of

» grass, upon a foundation of dead leaves. The eggs are white, thickly
spotted with light ashy-brown, and measure .93 by 80.

FAMILY ICTERIDH ORIOLES, ETC.

Primaries nine. Bill conic, but lengthened; little, if any, shorter than head; the
angulation of tomia evident; no uotch at end. Nostrils high. No rictal bristles.
®

Sub family AGELAIN As. Marsh Blackbirds.

Bill stout, conical, acutely pointed, not longer than the head; the outlines nearly
straight. Legs longer than the head, adapted for walking.

Claws not much curved.
Tail moderate, shorter than the wings, nearly even.

Gexus DOLICHONYX. Swainson.

Bill short, little more than half the head Tarsus shorter than middle toe; inner toe
longer than outer, not reaching base of middle claw. Wings long, pointed. Tail feath-
ers acutely pointed at tip, with the shafts stiffened and rigid as in the Woodpeckers.

DoLICHONYX ORYZIVORUS (L.) Sw.
Bobolink; Reedbird; Ricebird.

Icterus agripennis, NUTTALL, Man , i, 1832, 185.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.
—ReAD, Fam. Vis., iii, 1853, 319; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Dolichonyx oryzivorus, NUTTALL, Man, i, 2d ed., 1840, 198 —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 366, 376; Reprint, 1861, 8, 18; Food of Birds, ete,, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 567; Reprint, 1875, 7.--LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat Hist, i, 1878, 115; Reprint, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
176; Reprint, 10.

Emberiza oryzivora, LINNA&US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 311.

Icterus agripennis, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils, 1824, No. 87.

Dolichonyx oryzivorus, SWAINSON, Zool. Journ., iii, 1827, 351.

Male in spring: black; cervix buff; scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts ashy-
, white; interscapulars streaked with black, buff, and ashy ; outer quills edged with yel-
lowish ; bill blackish-horn ; feet brown. Male in fall, female and young, entirely dif-

352 BIRDS—ICTERIDE.

ferent in color; yellowish. brown above, brownish-yellow below, crown and back con-
spicuously, nape, rump, and sides less broadly, streaked with black; crown with a me-
dian and lateral light stripe; wings and tail blackish, pale edged; bill brown. The
male changing, shows confused characters of both sexes. Length, 63-73; wing, 24-4;
tail, 23-3; tarsus, about 1; middle toe and claw, about 14.

Habitat, Eastern North America; north to the Saskatchewan; west to the Rocky
Mountains, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, aud Montana; south to Bolivia, La Plata, ete.

West Indies. Gallipagoes.

Abundant summer resident in Northern, very common spring and fall
migrant, less common summer resident and breeding in Middle, and mi-
grant only in Southern Obio. Dr. Kirtland gives it without comment.
Mr. Read gives it as very abundant, and breeding, and states that “years —
ago it was not found on the Reserve.” Mr. B. I. Abell, of Welchfield,
Geauga county, says that it was first observed in that place May 20, 1857.
Mr. Langdon gives it as an “occasional migrant in May, usually in small
flocks.”

In this vicinity it was unknown to old residents. I first saw them in
May, 1857, when I obtained a specimen which, with two, or three others,
was perched upon a tree on the bank of Alum Creek. Since then they
have increased in numbers, and during the Jast six or seven years at
least, a few have nested with us. They are also known to breed at
Yellow Springs, about fifty miles south of west from this city. This
appears to be their southernmost recorded limit during the breeding sea-
son. Dr. Brewer gives their breeding range from latitude 42° to 54°.

The Bobolink arrives in this vicinity during the first week in May, in
companies of from six to thirty. On their first arrival they rather pre-
fer wet meadows, but those which remain to breed choose dry and often
elevated clover fields. Many of the males are in full breeding plumage
when they arrive, but some have most of the black feathers skirted with
buff or ashy. The females arrive a few days later than the males. Dur-
ing the fall migration they show a decided preference for fields and
orchards in which stand crops of Hungarian grass, on the seeds of which
they feed ravenously. They generally migrate by night, when their call
note, a sharp chink, is heard overhead. Sometimes, however, they migrate
during the day, as was the case with the first seen by me, and with a
single male, which alighted on the top of an ash tree in my garden, and
after resting awhile, flew away singing.

‚The song of the male isa most remarkable performance. Sitting upon
the top of a bending weed, or perched upon a stump, bush, or fence, he
sings such a variety of hasty, jolly, and gingling notes, that the ear is
puzzled to receivethem. From some of the syllables of his song he takes

COW-BIRD. 353

his name. While singing he raises and depresses his feathers, seems to
contract and expand his whole body, bows, nods, and shrugs, till he re-
sembles a French dancing-master in uniform, singing, fiddling, dancing,
and calling off at the same time. In the mating season, several males
pursue the same female, flying rapidly and low, filling the air with their
chorus of song.

Several pairs nest in the same field, and when this is entered by a
human being, all the males resent the trespass by hovering about, sing-
ing and scolding, till he is convinced that a dozen nests are endangered
by his every step.

The nest is placed on the ground, well concealed in the rank clover.
It is built of clover and grass stems. The eggs are five or six, dull white,
variously shaded, and spotted and blotched with reddish- and grayish-
brown. They measure .90 by .70.

Genus MOLOTHRUS. Swainson.

Bill short, stout, about two-thirds the length of the head; the culmen broad, rounded,
convex, and running back On the head to a point. Lateral toes nearly equal, reaching
to distal joint of the middle toe, which is shorter than the tarsus. Wings long, pointed,
longer than the nearly even tail, first quill longest.

MOoLoTHRUS ATER (Bodd.) Gr.

Cow-bird.

Icterus pecoris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162, 180.—ReAD, Fam. Visitor, iii,
1853, 319; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Molothrus pecoris, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rap. for 1860, 366, 376; Reprint, 1861, 8, 18.

Molothrus ater, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint,
1875, 7.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Cow Bird; Cow Blackbird ; Cow Troupial, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 63.—KIRTLAND,
Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 71.—Ba Liou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Fringilla pecoris, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 910.

Icterus pecoris, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils., 1824, No. 88.

Molothrus pecoris, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 277.
Molothrus ater, GRAY, Hand List, ii, 1870, 36.

Male, iridescent black; head and neck purplish-brown. Female, smaller, an obscure
looking bird, nearly uniform dusky grayish-brown, but rather paler below, and appear-
ing somewhat streaky, owing to darker shaft lines on nearly all the feathers; bill and
feet black in both sexes. Length, 74-8; wing, over 4; tail, over 3.

Habitat, Temperate North America to latitude 68°, excepting perhaps the Pacific
coast; in Arizona, Lower California, and southward replaced by var. obscurus.

Abundant summer resident from March to the last of October. Breeds,
Apparently a late addition to our fauna, for Dr. Kirtland admited it “on

rather doubtful authority,” and Mr. Read said, in 1853, that it had re-
23

354 .BIRDS—ICTERIDA

cently greatly increased in numbers. Found everywhere, and notorious
as the only Ohio bird which builds no nest, but lays its eggs in the nest
of other birds, by whom they are hatched, and the young cared for. In
selecting a nest in which to deposit her eggs, the female is not particu-
lar; the nest of almost any tree- ground- or bush-nesting bird will
answer, whether it be that of a Vireo, Gnatcatcher, or Cardinal Gros-
beak. I have never known them placed in the nest of any Swallow,
Wren, Woodpecker, Nuthatch, or Titmouse (except the Tufted Titmouse).
From the fact that their eggs are sometimes found on the ground, or even
in the bed of small brooks, it is probable that they are not always able to
find a nest in time to meet an emergency.

Dr. Coues gives a very full and interesting account of the bird and its
habits, in his “Birds of the Northwest,” from which I extract the fol-
lowing paragraphs:

“Itis interesting to observe the female Cow-bird ready tolay. She becomes disquieted;
she betrays unwonted excitement, and ceases her busy search for food with her com-
panions. At length she separates from the flock, and sallies forth to reconnoitre, anx-
iously indeed, for her case is urgent, and she has no home. How obstrusive is the sad
analogy! She flies to some thicket, or hedge-row, or other common resort of birds,
where, something teaches her—perhaps experience—nests will be found. Stealthily and
in perfect silence she flits along, peering furtively, alternately elated or dejected, into
the depths of the foliage. She espies a nest, but the owner’s head peeps over the brim,
and she must pass on. Now, however, comes her chance; there is the very nest she
wishes, and no one at home. She disappears for a few minutes, and it is almost another
bird that comes out of the bush. Her business done, and trouble over, she chuckles her
self gratulations, rustles her plumage to adjust it trimly, and flies back to her asso-
ciates. They know what has happened, but are discreet enough to say nothing—charity
is often no less wise than kind.

‘‘Polygamy is rare among higher birds; in no creatures are the parental and conjugal
instincts more strongly developed or beautifully displayed. But the Cow-bird illustrates.
this mode of life, and not in the lordly manner of the barn-yard cock, so devoted to his
harem, so gallant and just to all. Asin this species there is no love of offspring, neither
can there be conjugal affection; all family ties are dispensed with. The association is
a mere herding together in quest of food in similar resorts. ‘The Cow-birds never mate;
their most intimate relations are no sooner effected than forgotten; not even the decent
restrictions of a seraglio are observed; it is a perfect community of free-lovers, who do
as the original Cynics did. The necessary courtship becomes in consequence a curiously
mixed affair. During the period corresponding to the mating season of orderly birds,
patriarchs of the sorry crew mount up the trees and fences, to do what they call their
singing. They posture and turn about, and ruffle their feathers to look bigger than Na-
ture made them ; if their skins were not tough they would certainly burst with vanity,
They puff out their throats and pipe the most singular notes, perhaps honestly wishing
to please their companions of the other sex—at any rate, to their own satisfaction.
Meanwhile the females are perched near by, but without seeming very enthusiastic—
rather taking it all as a matter of course, listening at times, it may be, but just as likely
preening their plumage, with other thoughts and an ulterior purpose. The performance

RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD. 355

over, it is a very little while afterward when the whole band goes trooping after food
in the nearest cattle-yard or pasture.”

During July these birds disappear for a season, and where they go and
what they do, has never been certainly discovered. I am somewhat of
the opinion, from having seen them in great numbers during that
month in the mountains of Pennsylvania, that like many others with-
out family cares, they go to the mountains to rusticate and keep cool.
In September and October they reappear on their way south, often in
immense close flocks.

The eggs of the Cow-bird are white, more or less thickly spotted or
dotted with ashy-brown; they are generally of a rounded oval form, nearly
equal in size at both ends. Usually a single egg is deposited, but as
many as five have been found in a nest. How many eggs the female
lays in a season would be an interesting but difficult fact to ascertain.

Genus AGELAUS. Vieillot.

Bill, with culmen parting the feathers of the forehead, as long as the head, shorter
than tarsus. Wings pointed, reaching to end of lower tail-coverts, second primary
longest. Tail rounded.

AGELZUS PHENIcEUS (L.) V.
WMed-winged Blackbird.

Ieterus phoeniceus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 16%. —READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
319; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Agelaius phoeniceus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8.—Lana-
DON, Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Agelaus pheniceus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint,
1875, 7.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 9.—JoNzs and SHULZE, Illus. Nests and
Eggs of Ohio Birds, Plate 5, Part 2, 1879.

Red-winged Blackbird, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Oriolus phoeniceus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 161.
Agelaius phoniceus, VIEILLOT, ‘‘ Analyse, 1816.’
Icterus phoeniceus, ‘‘DAuDIN,” LICHT., Verz., 1823.
Ageleus phoeniceus, COUES, Key, 1872.

Male uniform lustrous black; lesser wing-coverts scarlet, broadly bordered by brown-
ish-yellow or brownish-white, the middle row of coverts being entirely of this color, and
sometimes the greater row likewise are mostly similar, producing a patch on the wing
nearly as large as the red one. Occasionally there are traces of red on the edge of the
wing and below. The female smaller, under 8; everywhere streaked; above blackish-
brown, with pale streaks, inclining on the head to form median and superciliary stripes;
below whitish, with very many sharp dusky streaks; the sides of the head, throat, and
the bend of the wing, tinged with reddish or fulvous. The young male at first like the
female, but larger; apt to have a general buffy or fulvous suffusion, and bright bay
edgings of the feathers of the back, wings, and tail, and soon showing black patches.
Length, 8-9; wing, 43-5; tail, 334.

Habitat, Temperate North America.

356 BIRDS—ICTERIDE.

Abundant summer resident from March ist to November. Breeds.
The Red-winged or Swamp Blackbird frequents swamps and marshes,
both of great and small extent. In the spring they appear in small
flocks, but in the fall collect together sometimes by thousands. When
perched on the low trees or high weeds of a marsh, it presents an attrac-
tive appearance, but its notes are, to say the least, unmusical, being a
singular combination of clear and guttural sounds frequently repeated,
as if he was intent on learning to sing, but failed at every effort.

The nest of the Red-winged Blackbird is usually placed in the low
willows of a swamp, and frequently considerable numbers breed together.
It is built chiefly of hempen fibres of plants, with strips of the leaves and
outer covering of the stems of cat-tails. Usually it is placed in an up-
right fork, or firmly attached to several upright twigs. Sometimes it is
placed on the ground. The eggs are of a light bluish color, very variable,
lined and blotched with purplish and black. Their average measurement
is one inch by three-fourths of an inch.

Genus XANTHOCEPHALUS. Bonaparte.

Bill about twice as long as high, its outlines nearly straight. Claws all very long,
much curved, the inner the longest, reaching beyond middle of middle claw. Tail nar-
row, nearly even, the outer web scarcely widening to the end. Wings long, much longer
than the tail; first quill longest.

XANTHOCEPHALUS ICTEROCEPHALUS (Bp.) Bd.

Wellow-headed Blackbird.

Xanthocephalus icterocephalus, Cours, Birds of N. W., 1874, 189 (probable).—WHEATON,
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint, 1875, 7.

Icterus icterocephalus, BONAPARTE, Am. Orn., i, 1835, 27.

Xanthocephalus icterocephalus, BAtRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 531.

Male black, whole head (except lores), neck, and upper breast yellow, and sometimes
yellowish feathers on the belly and legs; a large white patch on the wing, formed by
the primary and a few of the outer secondary coverts. Female and young brownish-
black, with little or no white on the wing, the yellow restricted or obscured. Female,
much smaller than the male, about 94. Length, 10-11; wing, 54; tail, 43.

Habitat, Western North America; north to the Saskatchewan and Red River; east
regularly to lowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, casually to Greenland, Massachusetts, Penn-
sylvania, and Forida; south to Mexico.

Accidental. My only authority for inserting this species here is Mr.
W.R. Limpert, a competent ornithologist, who is familiar with this
species in the West. He informs me that in the summer of 1873, a pair
of these birds made their appearance in a low meadow, a fow miles south
of Groveport, in this county, where they probably bred.

In its habits this species resembles the preceding, being highly gre-

FIELD LARK; MEADOW LARK. 357

garious, and social while breeding. They are said to place their nest,
which is constructed of reeds and aquatic grasses, in tufts of reeds, and
rank grasses. The eggs, from three to six in number, are pale grayish-
green, thickly spotted with different shades of reddish-brown. They
measure 1.10 by .75.

Genus STURNELLA. Vieillot.

Body stout, toes reaching beyond the tail. Tail feathers narrow, acutely pointed.
Bill long, slender, the culmen extending backward and parting the frontal feathers;
longer than the head, shorter than the tarsus. Inner toe longer than outer, not reach-
ing base of middle claw. Hind toe a little shorter than the middle, which is equal to
the tarsus. Hind claw nearly twice as long as the middle. Feathers of head stiftened
and bristly. Inner secondaries nearly equal to the primaries.

STURNELLA MAGNA (L.) Sw.
Fieldlark; Meadowlark.

Sturnus ludovicianus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.

Sturnella ludoviciana, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 311; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1853,
395.

Sturnella magna, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint, 1875, 7.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 9; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10;
Field Notes, ib. iii, 1880, 125.

Alauda magna, LINNUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 167.
Sturnus ludovicianus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 290.
Sturnella ludoviciana, SWAINSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., 1831, 282.
Sturnella magna, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 535.

Above, the prevailing aspect brown. Each feather of the back blackish, with a ter-
minal reddish-brown area, and sharp brownish-yellow borders; neck similar, the pattern
smaller; crown streaked with black and brown, and with a pale median and superciliary
stripe; a blackish line behind eye; several lateral tail feathers white, the others with
the inner quills and wing-coverts barred or scolloped with black and brown or gray.
Edge of wing, spot over eye, and under parts generally, bright yellow, the sides and
crissum flaxen-brown, with numerous sharp blackish streaks; the breast with a large
black crescent (obscure in the young); bill horn-color; feet light brown. Length, 10-11;
wing, 5; tail, 34; bill, 14. Female similar, smaller, 94.

Habitat, Eastern North America, north to Nova Scotia and latitude 53°; west to the
prairie region, where it is gradually replaced by var. neglecta, and represented by other
varieties in Cuba, Central America, Mexico, and South America.

Abundant. Summer resident in Northern, in part resident in Middle,
and resident, but less numerous in winter, in Southern Ohio. In this
vicinity the Meadow Lark is most abundant from the middle of March
to the first of November, but a few spend the severest winters here. I
have seen them when the thermometer had recorded a temperature of
—20° the previous night, and the ground covered with snow, apparently
wandering in search of food.

x

358 BIRDS—-ICTERIDE.

As its name implies, the Meadow Lark frequents meadows, fallow
fields, and sparse grassy woodland. It is rather a rare visitor in cities,
but in the country does not shun the vicinity of dwellings. In the fall
they gather in flocks, and are more silent and shy. At this time they
are somewhat esteemed.as a game-bird, though few who eat them suspect
their relationship to the despised Blackbirds, or discover that of all our
birds they are the most frequently affected by internal parasites.

The flight of the Meadow Lark is strong and quick, sometimes rather
heavy and jerky. Its song is loud, clear, and sweet, among the most
pleasant of bird voices in early spring. Mounted on the stake of a fence,
top of a stump or tree, he whistles he-ar, cheer, as if accompanying the
action to the word. The notes are often followed by a rapid, monotonous
chatter, not at all melodious, and which is often given alone when perch-
ing or flying.

The nest of the Meadow Lark is placed on the ground, by the side of
a tussock of grass, often covered with a dome of grass, and sometimes
approached by a grass-covered way. The eggs are usually five or six,
white, more or less thickly spotted or dotted with reddish-brown of vary-
ing shade. They measure about 1.10 by .80. Two broods are often raised
in a season.

Sub-family ICTERINA. Orioles.
Bill slender, acute, as long as the head. Feet adapted for perching.
Genus ICTERUS. Brisson.

Tarsus about equal to middle toe; claws short and curved. Outer lateral toe a little
longer than inner, reaching beyond base of middle claw.

Icrerus spurivs (L.) Bp.
Orchard Oriole.

Icterus spurius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1438, 162.—AupuBon, B. Am., iv, 1843,
50.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 311; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi. 1853, 395.—
WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of Birds, ete.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint, 1875, 7.—LaNGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,
10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Reprint, 10.

Oriolus spurius, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 162.
Icterus spurius, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 51.

Male black, lower back, rump, lesser wing-coverts, and all under parts from the
throat, deep chestnut; a whitish bar across the tips of greater wing-coverts; bill and
feet blue-black. Tail graduated. Length, about 7; wing, 3}; tail, 3. Female smaller,
plain yellowish-olive above, yellowish below; wings dusky; tips of the coverts, and
and edges of the inner quills, whitish; known from the female of the other species by
its smaller size and very slender bill. Young male at first like the female, afterwards
showing confused characters of both sexes; in a particular stage it has a black mask
and throat.

BALTIMURE ORIOLE. 359

Habitat, United States East of the Rocky Mountains; rare in Northern New England
and only casually in the Canadas.

Common summer resident. The Orchard Oriole arrives usually a few
days later than the following species, and is less generally distributed
and less common. Its favorite resorts are the low banks of sparsely
wooded streams and willow thickets, and though frequently found in
orchards and gardens, does not, in this vicinity, exhibit the preference
which its common name implies.

In this vicinity the Orchard Oriole builds a nest, which for compact-
ness, neatness, care in the selection of materials, and adaptation to con-
cealment and the safety of the young, is unexcelled even by the noted
Baltimore Hangnest. The nest is composed entirely of long green blades
of strong marsh grass, woven compactly together to form a deep purse
or cup, only slightly contracted at the rim and nearly twice as deep as
wide, and with or without a scant lining of vegetable down. It is
attached by the rim, and sometimes by the sides, to slender twigs of wil-
low trees, where its color, which becomes by bleaching a uniform light
straw, renders it very difficult to discover. The eggs are usually four
in number, pale bluish, marked with dots and zig-zig lines of light
aud dark brown.

ICTERUS BALTIMORE (L.) Daudin.
Baltimore Oriole.

Icterus baltimore, KırrLanD, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 16% —Rxap, Fam. Visitor,
iii, 1853, 311; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. 8ci., vi, 1853, 395; WHEATON, Obio Agri.
Rep. for 1860, 366; Reprint, 1861, 8; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1374,
567 ; Reprint, 1875,7.—LanoGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176 ; Reprint, 10.—JoNEs and SHULTZ, Lllustrations of
Nests and Eggs of Ohio Birds, Part 1, 1879, Plate 1.

Oriolus baltimore, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 162.

Icterus baltimore, Daupin, Trans. Orn,, ii, 348,

Male with the head and neck all round, and the back, black ; rump, upper tail coverts,
lesser wing coverts, most of the tail feathers, and all the under parts from the throat,
fiery orange, but of varying intensity according to age and season. Middle tail feathers
black, the middle and greater coverts and inner quills, more or less edged aud tipped
with white, but the white on the coverts not forming a continous patch; bill and feet
blue black. Length 74-8; tail 3. Female smaller, and much paler, the black obscured
by olive, sometimes entirely wanting. The young entirely without the black on throat
and head, othewise colored nearly like the female.

Habitat, United States, west to the Rocky Mountains. North regularly to the British
Provinces. Breeds chiefly toward the northern portions of its range, but generally dis-
persed in summer over the United States.

Abundant summer resident from the latter part of April to September.
Breeds. Found everywhere, and everywhere well-known by the bril-

360 BIRDS—ICTERIDE.

liant plumage of the male. In many households no bird is more familiar
or welcome; though some arrive earlier, possess more musical voices, or
are more confiding, none inspire the same emotions as this, when for the
first time in the season he alights upon the topmost branches of the elm
in the door-yard, peers curiously into his dilapidated nest which still
swings from the drooping branch, and whistles for his lagging mate.

The Misses Jones and Shulze give us a faithful and beautiful illus-
tration of the nest and eggs of this bird. From their description I take
the following:

“ The typical nest is truly pensile, and is suspended from the extreme branches of an
overhanging limb, where, shaded from the sun by leaves above, it rocks to the gentlest
breeze. At other timos it is fastened to a perpendicular limb of considerable size, where
the smaller branches put forth. Between these two positions various others are com-
mon and constantly met with ; no two nests being hung in exactly the same manner.
The distance from the ground varies from four to seventy feet.

Daring the period of nidification, any substance combining the proper length, thick-
ness and strength is in demand; conseqaently the materials of construction are almost
without number, and depend to a great extent upon locality.

In the wcods, long grasses, strips of bark and vegetable fibres of different kinds make
up the structure; but in cities and villages, orin the country, near houses, yarn, wrap-
ping-twine, horse and cow hairs, rags, paper and such other substances as are ready
prepared and accessible, are largely usei. The liming is generally of hairs, vegetable
down, and fibres.

The cavity varies in depth from two and three-fourths to six inches; inside diameter
at the mouth, from two and three-fourths to three and three-fourth inches, increasing
from one-half to one inch near the bottom.

The complement of eggs is from four to six. They measure 1.05 x .70 to 80x .50;
average, about .92 x .60. When blown, the ground is white, with the brightness
dimmed by the faintest bluish or pinkish tint, and marked with dots, lines, scawle and
blotches of dark brown or black, usually distributed irregularly over the surface; but
often thickest about the crown, forming a wreath.

Sub-family QUISCALIN A. Crow Blackbirds.

Bill slightly curved, the cutting edges inflected. Legs longer than head, fitted for
walking.
Genus SCOLECOPHAGUS. Swainson.

Bill slender, shorter than the head. Wings longer than the nearly even tail.

ScoLECOPHAGUS FERRUGINEUS (Gm.) Sw.
Rusty Grakle.

Quiscalus jerrugineus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—Reap, Fam. Visitor,
iii, 1853, 327; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Scolecophagus ferrugineus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep., 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861, 9; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Reprint, 1875, 7.—LANGDOoN, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 176; Re-
print, 10; Field Notes, ib, iii, 1880, 125,

Rusty Blackbird, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

BRONZED GRAKLE; CROW-BLACKBIRD. 361

Oriolus ‚ferrugineus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 393.
Quiscalus ferrugineus, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils., 1824, No. 46.
Scolecophagus ferrugineus, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 285.

Male in summer lustrous black, the reflections greenish, and not noticeably different
on the head; but not ordiftarily found in this condition in the United States; in general
glossy black, nearly ali the feathers skirted with warm brown above, and browish yel-
low below, frequently continuous on the foreparts; the male of the first season, like
the female, is entirely rusty brown above, the inner quills edged with the same; a pale
superciliary stripe; below, mixed rusty and grayish black, the primaries and tail above
black ; billand feet black at all times. Length, male about 9; wing 44; tail 34; bill
2; female smaller.

Habitat, Eastern Province of North America, west to Kansas, Nebraska and Dakota ;
thence obliquely in British America to the Pacifiein Alaska. Breeds from Northern New

England northward. In winter gererally dispersed over the Middle, Western and
Southern States.

Common spring and fall migrant in March, April and October. In the
spring they appear usually in small flocks making their way north-
ward along streams and seldom seen ata distance from water. These are
in winter plumage or moulting; later, during April, a considerable num-
ber linger about ponds and swamps, and before leaving us acquire their
full breeding plumage. In the fall they have their rusty coats on their
arrival,

Their nests are placed in low trees and bushes and the eggs are
described as measuring alittle over an inch in length by three-fourths of
an inch in width. The ground color is light greenish or grayish,
thickly dotted with reddish- and purplish-brown, without streaks or
lines.

Genus QUISCALUS. Vieillot.

Bill as long as the head, stout. Wings in the male shorter than the long, conpicuously
graduated tail.

QUISCALUS PURPUREUS (Bart.) Licht.

var. ZNEvS Ridgway.
Bronzed Grakle; Crow Blackbird.

Quiscalus versicolor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162, 180.—R#ap, Fam. Visitor,
iii, 1853, 327; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861, 9.

Quiscalus purpureus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete.. Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 567; Re-
print, 1875, 7LaNnGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10.

Quiscalus purpureus, var. eneus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 177; Reprint, 11; Field Notes, ib, iii, 1880, 125.

Ciow Blackbird, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.BArLov, Field and Forest, iii,
1878, 136.

362 BIRDS—ICTERIDA.

Quiscalus purpureus, LICHTENSTEIN.

Quiscalus versicolor, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict., xxviii, 1919, 488.

Quiscalus purpureus, var. @neus, BAIRD, BREWER and Rip@way, N. Am. Birds, ii, 1874,
218.

Metallic tints rich, deep, and uniform, Head andneck all yound rich silky steel-blue,
this strictly confined to these portions, and abruptly defined behind, varying in shade
from an intense Prussian blue to brassy greenish, thé latter tint always, when present,
most apparent on the neck, the head always more violaceous; lores velvety-black. En-
tire body, above and below, uniform continuous metallic brassy-olive, varying to burn-
ished golden olivaceous-bronze, becoming gradually uniform metallic purplish or red-
dish-violet on wings and tail, the last more purplish; primaries violet-black ; bill, tarsus
and toes pure black, iris sulphur-yellow.

Length, 12.50 to 13.50; wing, 6.00; tail, 6.00; culmen, 1.26; tarsus, ’.32. Third and
fourth quills longest and equal; first shorter than fifth; projection of primaries beyond
secondaries, 1.28; graduation of the tail, 1.48. (Ridgway.)

I give above the nomenclature and description of Mr. Ridgway, who separates the
Crow Blackbirds of the Mississippi Valley from those of the Atlantic slope into varieties
@neus aud purpureus. The points of difference are the color, which in var. purpureus is
variegated purple, blue, and violet on the body ; size, wneus being larger; and propor-
tion, the first quill in purpureus nearly equal to second and third, which are longest,
and the tail is proportionally less graduated.

Habitat, Mississippi region of the United States, east to the Allegheny Mountains, west
to Fort Bridger; Saskatchewan Region, Hudson’s Bay Territory. Maine. More or less
abundant in all eastern States north of New Jersey.

Abundant summer resident from March to November. Breeds. Found
everywhere, but is especially numerous in sycamore groves along streams,
and in oak woodland. The habits of this bird are almost too well known
to require further notice. The prejudice which, with or without cause,
existed against them is apparently dying out, and they are less system-
atically persecuted than formerly. None of our birds present a more,
beautiful appearance than does the Blackbird in his stately walk over
the lawn in search of his insect food. He has one bad habit, that of
robbing the nests of smaller birds. I have repeatedly seen them destroy
the nest and eggs of the Chipping Sparrow, built in my own garden.
This appeared to be from mere love of mischief, as they were not content
with destroying the eggs but returned to demolish the nest, and again
pulled to pieces the half finished nest which the birds rebuilt.

The nest of the Crow Blackbird is built either on trees or in cavities.
Misses Jones and Shultz give as an illustration a nest “ built in a grove of
thorn trees, in a piece of wet grass land not far from Columbus,” a spot
frequented by a colony of these birds. In former years these birds com-
monly nested in clumps of ornamental evergreens, and in large elm trees
in the city, and these nests were generally placed in the branches of the
trees and were often quite exposed. Now, however, by far the greatest

RAVEN. 363

number of nests are placed in the holes of limbs and hollow trunks of
trees, especially sycamore and oak. In some localitias where oak trees
have been “topped,” the nest is placed on the end of the ‘‘ stub.”

The nest is composed of mud, with a foundation of grass and weeds,
and a lining of fine grasses and frequently hair. The eggs are from four
to six. Their “ground color is light greenish or smoky blue, with irreg-
ular dark-brown or black blotches, dots, lines, and scrawls distibuted
promiscuously over the surface, often resembling Japanese characters.”
They measure 1.13 by .83.

FAMILY CORVIDA. THECROWS.

Primaries, 10; the first usually about half the second; the outer four sinuated on the
inner edge. Nostrils concealed by stiffened bristles or bristly feathers directed forwards,
Tarsus with scutella separated from the lateral plates by a narrow naked strip. Basal
joint of middle toe united for about half its length to each lateral. Bill notched.

Subfamily CORVINA. Typical Crows.

Bill as long as head; wings long aud pointed, longer than the short, nearly even tail.

Genus CORVUS. Linnzus.

Bill nearly as long as tarsus, very stout, higher than broad at base, much arched;
tarsus longer than middle toe.

Corvus CORAX L.

Raven.

Corvus corax, WILSON, Am. Orn., ix, 1825, 136.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162,
180.—AUDUBON, B. Am., iv, 1843, 86.—Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 327; Proc.
Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 395—WuEaTON, Food of Birds, etc., Obio Agric.,
Rep. for 1874, 1875, 568; Reprint, 8—Coues, Birds of N. W., 1874, 205.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 115; Reprint, 6.

Corvus carnivorus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 367; Reprint, 9.

Corvus corax var. carnivorus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
177; Reprint, 11; Field Notes, ib, iii, 1880, 125.

Raven, KirTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Corvus corax, LINNEUS.

Corvus carnivorus, BARTRAM, Trav. Fla., i, 1793, 290.

Corvus corax var. carnivorus, BAIRD, BREWER, and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1875, 234,

Entire lustrous black; throat feathers acute, lengthened, and disconnected. Length,

about 2 feet; wing, 16-18 inches; tail, 10.

Habitat, North America. Rare east of the Mississippi.

Rare winter visitor. Early in the history of the State the Raven was
not uncommon. Wilson speaks of it as entirely supplanting the Crow
on the southern shores of Lake Erie. It soon became less numerous, and
in the course of fifty years had disappeared as a regular visitor from all
parts excepting the northern portions of the State, where it is now rare.

364 BIRDS—CORVIDZ.

Mr. Read says that it was frequent in 1853. Mr. Langdon states that a
specimen was taken September 3, 1879, near Marysville, Union county,
which is now in the collection of Dr. Buffington of that place. This is
the only record for several years.

The nest of the Raven is placed in trees, sometimes on rocks. It is
composed of sticks, lined with hair, and is quite bulky. The eggs average
six in number, light-green in color, marked with dots and blotches of

purple and brown. They measure about two inches in length by one
and one-third in width.

Corvus AMERICANUS Aud.

Common Crow.

Corvus corone, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 162.—RraD, Family Visitor, iii, 1853,
327; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Corvus americanus, WMEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 367 ; Reprint, 1861, 9; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8—LANnGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 224. j

Crow, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1880, 1.—BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Corvus corone, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv, 1811, 79.

Corvus americanus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 317.

Habitat, Temperate North America, excepting, probably, most of the high central
plains and the southern Rocky Mountains, where the Raven abounds.

Abundant. Resident in Southern, summer resident in Middle and
Northern Ohio; a few remain in Central Ohio during mild winters.
No one of our birds suffers more from a bad reputation than the Crow,
yet none seem more likely to outlive their past notoriety. Hated and
pursued by every boy who can command a gun, their sagacity often proves
their only safety. In all places of this State they fear the gun or the
semblence of it, while a human being unarmed is looked upon with sus-
picion only.

In the vicinity of Columbus, where, twenty years since they were abun-
dant, they are now, except when migrating, hardly common. Whether
this diminution in numbers is due to changes in environment, or from
causes acting directly upon the birds themselves is not known. Doubt-
less the removal of trees along rivers and creeks, in which they were
accustomed to roost, has assisted in lessening their numbers. It is
asserted that they were attacked by a disease resembling the “chicken
cholera,” some fifteen years since, which decimated their ranks. But
neither of these causes seem to be sufficient. In most parts of the
State their numbers are undiminished. Mr. Read states that they were
increasing in numbers in Northern Ohio in 1853.

BLUE JAY. 365

The nest of the Crow is placed in trees, and built of sticks and twigs
lined with moss or stripsof bark. The eggs are green, more or less thickly
spotted and blotched with blackish brown. Variations in ground color
are sometimes met with, and, more rarely, the spots are wanting.

Sub-family GARRULINZE. Jays.

Wing, short, rounded, less than the much graduated tail, reaching not much beyond
the under tail coverts, its tip formed by the 4th-7th quills.

Genus CYANURUS. Swainson.

Head crested ; bill rather slender, somewhat depressed at base.

CYANURUS CRISTATUS (L.) Sw.

Blue Jay.
Corvus cristatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.

Garrulus cristatus, ReaD, Fam, Visitor, iii, 1853, 335; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853; 395.

Cyanurus cristatus, WHKEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861, 9; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1374, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 10.

Cyanura cristata, BAIRD, BREWER, and RipGway, ii, 1874, 276.—LANGDON, Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11.

Blue Jay, BALLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1378, 136.

Corvus cristatus, LINNZUS, i, 1766, 157.
Garrulus cristatus, VIEILLOT, Ency. Meth., 890.
Cyanurus cristatus, SWAINSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 495.

Purplish blue, below pale gray, whitening on the throat, belly and crissnm; a black
collar across the lower throat and up the sides of the neck and head, behind the crest,
and a black frontlet bordered with whitish; wings and tail pure rich blue, with black
bars, the greater coverts, secondaries, aud tail feathers, except the central, broadly
tipped with pure white; tail uch rounded, the graduation over aninch. Length, 11-12;
wing, 54; tail, 52.

Habitat, Eastern North America; north to 56°; west to Kansas and Dakota.

Abundant resident. The Blue Jay, or Jay Bird as it, perhaps, is oftenest
called, is a striking exemplification of the saying, ‘ Fine feathers do not
always make fine birds.” It seems to be a family inheritance to the
Corvid to possess traits which render them ebnoxious to the human
race. Of our three representatives, the Raven has for ages been a bird
of evil omen, the Crow the embodiment of mischievous cunning, while
the Jay can not conceal his meanness with his beautiful plumage. His
flight is that of a thief who dreads detection on all sides. His voice
bewrays the meanness of his soul, while his vanity is only equalled by
his domineering disposition. He possesses, to an eminent degree, the
power of mimicry, and may frequeatly be seen heading the mob of

366 BIRDS—CORVIDE.

small birds in their assault upon a belated owl, himself the noisest of
the crowd ; but no sooner does the unfortunate owl find a quiet retreat
than our hero quickly disperses his army by imitating the cries of the
Sparrow-hawk, and not seldom taking advantage of the confusion to
plunder a nest. In this vicinity, for several years past, they have been
less numerous than twenty years ago, but have apparently increased in
numbers the past two or three years.

The nest of the Jay is built of twigs and fibrous roots. It is generally
placed in a tree at varying distances from the ground, sometimes in
bushes. The eggs are usually five,olive-drab, thickly spotted with olive-
brown. They measure 1.10 by .85.

A remarkable instance of conservative adaptation, revealed by acci-
dent, and possible only among birds, is to be found in a communication
to the Family Visitor, Vol. 1, 1850, 32, over the signature “C.”

“A Blue Jay, with its wing broken, was brought to me one day to stuff, but as I was
unable to do it then I kept it till the next day. It would hop about the room vocifera-
ting in its loud, harsh manner, skulking in corners, and trying to hide under chairs, but
when caught biting fiercely the fingers exposed to it. Wishing to kill it without injur-
ing the skin or disarranging its feathers, I attempted to strangle it by compressing its
neck firmly so that the windpipe was entirely clesed, and in this manner I held it for
several minutes without its presenting’ any appearance of suffocation or inconvenience,
and its thorax contracted and expanded regularly. Putting it down on the floor, it
hopped off into a corner, screaming and scolding as usual. I was sadly puzzled to
account for this, till at length I thought of its wing, and on examining it I found the
large bone (humerus) broken, and through this it had breathed. After I stopped up
this orifice, and compressed the windpipe again, it was suffocated in a few moments.

SUB-ORDER CLAMATORES.” NON-MELODIOUS PASSERES.

FAMILY TYRANNIDA. THE FLYCATCHERS.

First primary lengthened, often longest, at least over two-thirds as long as the longest.
Bill broad at the base, much depressed, tapering to a fine point, which is abruptly de-

PERISOREUS CANADENSIS (L.) Bp.

Canada Jay.
Perisoreus canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 367 (error); Addenda, 480
(correction); Reprint, 1861, 21 (probable).

Corvus canadensis, LINN2Z0US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 158,
Perisoreus canadensis, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 27.

The Canada Jay was named as an Ohio bird, in my catalogue of 1861, by an error which
was corrected in the appendix and reprint. Its nearest locality, so far as known to me,
is Lewis Co., N. Y., where it has been found breeding in considerable numbers by Dr.

Merriam.

KINGBIRD. 367

curved. Culmen rounded or flattened. Gonys flattened. Commissure straight, or nearly
80, to the tip. Nostrils small, circular, basal, overhung but not concealed by bristles.
mouth capacious, with broad and deeply fissured rictus, beset with numerous long,
strong bristles. Feet small and weak. Tail of twelve feathers.

Genus TYRANNUS. Cuvier.

Wings long, the outer primaries rather abruptly attenuated near the end (in the adalt),
longer than the nearly even tail.

TYRANNUS CAROLINENSIS (Gm.) Temm.

Kingbird: Bee Martin,

Muscicapa tyrannus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Tyrannus intrepidus, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 351; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 355.

Tyrannus carolinensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 362; Reprint, 1861, 4; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8. —LANGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint,
11; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1330, 224.—JoNEsS and SHULZeE, Illus. Nests of Ohio
Birds, Part 2, 1879, Plate 6.

Lanius tyrannus, LINNAEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 136.

Lanius tyrannus var. carolinensis, et ludovicianus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 302.

Tyrannus carolinensis, TEMMINCK, Tabl. Meth., 24.

Muscicapa tyrannus, WILSON, Am. Orn., i, 1808, 66.

Tyrannus intrepidus, VIEILLOT, Gal. Ois., i, 1824, 214.

Two outer primaries obviously attenuate. Above blackish, darker on the head;
crown with a flame colored patch; below pure white, the breast shaded with plumb-
ecus; wings dusky, with much whitish edging; tail black, broadly and rather sharply
tipped with white, the outer feather sometimes edged with the same. Bill and feet
black. Young without the patch; very young birds show rufous edging of wings and
tail. Length about 8 inches; wing 44; tail 34; bill under 1:

Habitat, North America at large, north to 57° or further; west to the Rocky
Mountains, Oregon, Washington Territory, and British Columbia. South to Peru.
Cuba.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives late in April and re-
mains till the middle of September.

The King-bird is noted for the audacious bravery with which it defends
its nest. No bird is too large or too active to escape its determined attacks,
and its pursuit is unremitting till the intruder is driven to seek safety
from its impetuous assailant in distant and often difficult flight. No
sooner, however, is the breeding season over than our hero loses his
combativeness, and becomes as meek and peaceable as other birds, not
even sounding his jingling war note.

In the vicinity of this city the King-bird has increased in numbers
with the removal of forests, in which it is seldom found. It frequents

368 BIRDS—TYRANNIDA.

the borders of streams, old fields and fence rows. Mr. Langdon
mentions their especial abundance in ‘‘ woods and groves” bordering
marshes on the northern shore of Lake Erie. In this city they have
evidently greatly increased in numbers, as well as others of the family,
and I have thought this increase coincident with, and because of, the
introduction of water works.

The nest of the King-bird is built in trees, very frequently a sycamore
or elm near a stream, or an isolated tree in the middle of a field is chosen.
Orchards afford favorite nesting sites. The nest is usually placed from
twenty to thirty feet above the ground, on or in the fork of alimb. It
is composed of coarse grasses, rootlets and vegetable fibers, well lined
with fine grass, feathers, and hair. The eggs are generally four, some-
times six, of a rich creamy white color, spotted and blotched with dark
rich brown. They measure .95 by .70. I once found the nest placed in
the perpendicular fork of a small willow which grew up from the bottom
ofa pond. The nest was hardly a foot above water, and was much more
neatly and compactly built than is ordinarily the case.

Genus MYIARCHUS. Cabanis.

Head moderately crested. Wings about equal to the long, broad, even tail, scarcely
reaching to its middle; 1st primary shorter than 6th. Tarsus equal to middle toe, which
is decidedly longer than hind toe.

Myrarcaus crinitus (L.) Cab.

Great Crested Flycatcher.

Muscicapa crinita, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.—AUDUBON, B. Am., i, 1840,

211; Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 166.

Tyrannus crinilus, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 351; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sei., vi,
1853, 395.

Myiarchus crinitus, Barr, P. R. R, Rep., ix, 1858, 179.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii,
1859, 379.—WuxaTon, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 500; Reprint, 8—LaNGpon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1379, 177; Reprint 11;
Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1880, 225.

Muscicapa crinita, LINN&ZUS, Syst. Nat., 1776, 326.

Tyrannus crinitus, Swainson, Zool. Journ., xx, 1826, 271.

Myiarchus crinitus, CaABANIS, J. f. O , 1855, A79.

Decidedly olivaceons above, a little browner on the head, where the feathers have dark
centers; throat and fore breast pure dark-ash, rest of under parts bright yellow, the two
colors meeting abruptly; primaries margined on both edges with chestnut; secondaries
and coverts edged and tipped with yellowish white; tail, with all the feathers but the
central pair, chestnut on the whole uf the inner web, excepting, perhaps, a very var-

GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER. 369

row strip next the shafı; outer web of outer featbers edged with yellowish; the middle
feathers, outer webs of the rest, and wings, except as stated, dusky brown. Very
young birds kave rufous skirting of many feathers, in addition to the chestnut above
described, but this soon disappears. Length, 84-94; wing and tail about 4; bill and tar-
sus, each, 2.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces, but rarely beyond the Connecti-
cut Valley; west to Eastern Kansas and Indian Territory. Guatemala, Costa Rica.

Common summer resident from May 1st to September. Breeds. Fre-
quents open woodlands, orchards, and shrubbery.

In this species the courage which the King-bird displays in defending
its nest is converted into a quarrelsomeness, which vents its spleen upon
itsown kindred. Its harsh, defiant notes are heard in nearly every grove
and orchard, and frequent contests may be seen between members
of this species.

This is the only species of the family, breeding with us, which finds a
nesting place in cavities of trees. It is noted for using the cast off
skins of snakes in the construction of its nest. Whether this strange
custom is simply an eccentric fancy or a defensive proceedure is not
known.

In this city these birds have, within a few years, taken up their sum-
mer abode in moderate numbers, choosing for a nesting site a box put
up for Bluebirds or Martins, and from which they have been known to
expel settled occupants. This new habit is no doubt owing to the
destruction of favorite breeding spots, and the increased supply of food
which the city affords, by reason of the abundant water supply. In the
cases which I have observed, these birds broke and carried out eggs of
Bluebirds, making use of their nests, simply adding a few straws and
shavings. The nest is usually placed in a natural cavity of the trunk
or one of the larger limbs, sometimes, however, in the deserted hole
of a Woodpecker. Into this they carry large quantities of leaves,
straw, and rootlets, which they line with feathers. In all nests which
I have seen, except those in boxes, snake skins were present, placed
about the rim.

The eggs are remarkable for their coloration. They are light buffy
brown, streaked longitudinally by lines and markings of purplish and
darker brown. They measure 1. by .75.

Genus SAYORNIS. Bonaparte.

Head moderately crested. Middle toe scarcely longer than hind toe, shorter than tar-
sus. Wings moderately pointed, equal to the broad, slightly forked tail. First primary
shorter than sixth.

24

370 BIRDS—TYRANNIDA.

SAYoRNIS Fuscus (Gm.) Bd.

Pewee: Pewit: Phobe.

Muscicapa fuscus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Tyrannus fuscus, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 359; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat Sci., 1853, 395.

Sayornis fuscus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 403.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.,
for 1860, 362; Reprint, 1861, 4; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 568 ; Re-
print, 1875, 8.—LaNnapon, Cat. Birds of Cin,, 1877, 10;, Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1880, 225; JONES
and SHULZE, Illust. Nests and Eggs, Pt. 4, 1880, Pl. X.

Pewee, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Muscicapa fuscus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 93.

Tyrannus fuscus, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 312.

Sayornia fuscus, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 184.

Dall olivaceous brown; the head much darker fuscous-brown, almost blackish, usually
in marked contrast with the back; below soiled whitish, or palest possible yellow, partic-
ularly on the belly ; the sides, and the breast nearly or quite across, shaded with grayish-
brown; wings and tail dusky, the outer tail feather, inner secondaries, and usually the
wing coverts edged with whitish; a whitish ring around the eye; bill and feet black,
Varies greatly inshade. The foregoing is the average spring condition. As the summer
passes, the plumage becomes much duller and darker brown, from wearing of the
feathers, and then, after the moult, fall specimens are much brighter than in spring,
the under parts being frequently decidedly yellow, at least on the belly. Very young
birds have some feathers edged with rusty, particularly on the edges of the wing and
tail feathers. Length 63-7; wing and tail, 3-3}.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces; west to Vermillion River, or
farther; south to Mexico.

Common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives very early, sometimes in
February, oftener in March, and remains until late in November.

This is, or was, one of our best known birds. Its early appearance
and characteristic note, a frequently repeated, emphatic pe-wit, pe-wee,
now rendered with a falling and now with a rising inflection, made it,
with the Robin and Bluebird, a “welcome harbinger of spring.” This is
still the case in many, perhaps most, portions of the State; but in the
immediate vicinity of this city the bird is comparatively rarely seen
except during its migrations. This decrease in numbers is probably
due to the removal of favorite breeding places. Stone culverts have
taken the place of old wooden bridges, and the “ Bridge-bird,” as it
is sometimes called, is seldom willing to consider the former an im-
provement; old log houses, under the roof and against the beams of
which they were accustomed to place their nests, are removed, and
more modern structures furnish neither convenient nor secure nesting
places. 8o the once familiar birds have become solitary and shy, seek-
ing the stone quarry, ravine, or cliff, against the perpendicular rocks of
which they place their nest. Sometimes a singular position is chosen

OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER. 371

for the nest. Mr. Mebs, an ornithologist of this eity, brought me a nest
which he took from the beams of a freight car which had recently made
a trip of forty-five miles. The five eggs which it contained were per-
fectly fresh, and, except one, unbroken.

The nest of the Pewee is built of clay, tempered by the bill of the
bird, and attached to the face of rocks, beams, or walls. It is usually
covered, sometimes very artistically, with moss, and lined with grass and
feathers, The eggs are generally five, pure white. Not unfrequently,
however, they are sparsely dotted with reddish-brown. They measure
.80 by .60.

Genus CONTOPUS. Cabanis.

Head slightly crested. Bill much depressed, very broad at base. Wings pointed,
much longer than the emarginate tail, reaching beyond its middle. Feet very small;
Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw. a

CoNTOPUS BOREALIS (Sw.) Bd.

Olive-sided Flycatcher.

Contopus borealis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 379, 480; Food of Birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.—MEr-
RIAM, Trans. Conn. Acad., iv., 1877, 55.

Sayornis (error) borealis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. Reprint, 1861, 4.

Tyrannus borealis, SWAINSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 141.
Contopus borealis, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 158.

Dusky olivaceous brown, usually darker on the crown, where the feathers have black
centres, and paler on the sides; chin, throat, belly, crissum, and middle line of the
breast white, more or less tinged with yellowish; wings and tail blackish, unmarked,
excepting inconspicuous grayish-brown tips of the wing coverts, and some whitish edg-
ing of the inner quills; feet and upper mandible black, lower mandible mostly yellowish
The olive-brown below has a peculiar streaky apparance hardly seen in other species,
and extends almost entirely across the breast. A peculiar tuft of white, fluffy feathers
on the flanks. Young birds have the feathers, especially of the wings and tail, skirted
with rufous. Length, 7-8; wing, 33-44, remarkably pointed ; second quill longest, sup-
ported nearly to the end by the first and third, the fourth abruptly shorter; tail about
3; tarsus, middle toe and claw together about 14.

Habitat, Temperate North America. Mexico. Central America. Greenland.

Rare migrant. The Olive-sided Flycatcher was first named as an Ohio
bird in my catalogue (1861), on the authority of Mr. R. K. Winslow, who
stated that it had been found at Cleveland. Mr. Dury informed me that
he had taken one specimen at Cincinnati, and I am almost positive that
I have seen one specimen here. On the other hand, Mr. Winslow is not
now able to recall the particulars of its capture, and it is not given by

372 BIRDS—TYRANNIDE.

Mr. Kirkpatrick in his series of articles in the Ohio Farmer, 1860. Mr.
Langdon, in 1877, gives it as a “rare migrant in spring,” but in his Re-
vised List gives it as “doubtfully identified.”

The Olive-sided Flycatcher is much more common west than east of
the Mississippi. Numerous instances of their breeding in New England
are recorded. The nearest locality in which they are known to breed is
Lewis county, N. Y., where Mr. Merriam has taken the nest and finds
the birds not uncommon. It appears to be more numerous in New Eng-
land at present than formerly, but has not been found in many instances
south of New York. The Olive-sided Flycatcher frequents coniferous
woods, and the nest is usually placed in an evergreen tree. The eggs are
creamy white, marked about the greater end with a confluent ring of
purple, lavender, and brown spots, and much resemble, except in size,
.those of the next species. They measure .82 by .62.

Contopus VIRENS (L.) Cab.

Wood Pewee.

Muscicapa virens, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Tyrannus virens, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 359; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Contopus virens, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 11; WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 362; Reprint, 1861, 4; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 568; Re-
print, 1875, 8.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11; Summer Birds, ib. iii, 1880, 225.

Muscicapa virens, Linnzus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 357.
Tyrannus virens, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 316.
Contopus virens, CABANIS, J. f. O., iii, 1855, 479,

Olivaceous brown, rather darker on the head, below with the sides washed with a
paler shade of the same nearly or quite across the breast ; the throat and belly whitish,
moro or less tinged with dull yellowish; under tail coverts the same, usually streaked
with dusky; tail and wings blackish, the former unmarked, the inner quills edged and
the coverts tipped with whitish; feet and upper mandible black, under mandible
usually yellow, sometimes dusky. Spring specimens are purer olivaceous. Early fall
birds are brighter yellow below. In summer, before the now worn feathers are renewed,
quite brown and dingy whitish. Very young birds have the wing-bars and pale edging
of quills tinged with rusty, the feathers of the upper parts skirted, and the lower plum-
age tinged with the same; but in any plumage the species may be known from all the
birds of the following genus by. these dimensions: Length, 6-64; wing, 34-34; tail,
22-3; tarsus, middle toe and claw together hardly one inch, or evidently less; tarsus,
about 4, not longer than the bill. i

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces, west to border of central
plains. South to New Grenada. Mexico.

Abundant summer resident from May to September. Frequents for-
ests, groves, orchards and gardens. The Wood Pewee is the latest arriv-

ACADIAN FLYCATCHER. 373

ing of all members of the family breeding with us. It is one of our most
familiar birds, and, by those whose acquintance with birds is super-
ficial, is confounded with the Pewee above described. It is, however,
considerably smaller, slenderer, and rather darker. Their notes are much
alike, but that of the Common Pewee consists of two syllables quickly
and sharply repeated, while the note of the Wood Pewee consists of three
syllables, pe-to-wee, less emphatic,much slower and softer. These notes
are heard at all hours of the day, but especially after sunset, when the
bird has regaled himself upon a plentiful supply of crepuscular insects,
he delights in their repetion.

The nest of the Wood Pewee is a beautiful structure, egualed only by
that of the Hummingbird and Gnatcatcher, which it resembles.
It is placed on a horizontal limb, or on a horizontal fork, frequently
quite near the ground. It is composed of fine grass and vegetable fibres
with spider’s webs and down, and the outside completely covered with
bits of grayish lichens which give it a very neat and finished appear-
ance, while they assist materially in its concealment. The eggs are
four, creamy white, with a ring of lavender and purplish-brown confluent
spots near the greater end. They measure .78 by .55.

Genus EMPIDONAX. Cabanis.

Head slightly crested. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw, which is decidedly
longer than hind toe. Tail nearly even, a little shorter than the wings; first primary
shorter or not obviously longer than 5th; 2d, 3d and 4th forming point of wing.

Empiponax Acapicus (Gm.) Baird.

Acadian Mlycatcher.

Muscicapa acadica, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 163.

Tyrannus acadicus, (in part?) Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 359; Proc. Phila. Acad., vi,
1853, 395.

Empidonax acadicus, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 197.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer,
ix, 1860, 43.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. fur 1860, 1861, 362, 373; Reprint, 4, 15;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 568; Reprint, 8.—HENSHAw,
Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, i, 1876, 14.—Lan@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11.—BREWSTER, Bull. Nutt.
Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 177, (first plumage).

Muscicapa acadica, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 947.
Empidonax acadicus, Barry, Birds N. A., 1858, 197. 5

Above olive green, clear continuous and uniform (though the crown may show rather
darker, owing to dusky centres of the slightly lengthened, erectile feathers) ; below,
whitish, olive shaded on sides and nearly across breast, yellow-washed on belly, flanks,
crissum and axillars; wings dusky, inner quills edged, and coverts tipped with tawny-
yellow; all the quills whitish edged internally; tail dusky, olive-glossed, unmarked;

374 BIRDS—TYRANNIDE.

a yellowish eye-ring; feet and upper mandible brown, lower mandible pale. In midsum-
mer rather darker; in earlyffall, brighter and more yellowish below, when very young,
the wing markings more fulvous, the general plumage slightly buffy-suffused. Length
58-64; wing 24-3 (rarely 34) ; tail 24-22; bill nearly or quite 4, about + wide at the nos-
trils; tarsus #; middle toe and claw 4; point of wing reaching nearly an inch beyond
the secondaries ; 2d, 3d and 4th quills nearly equal and much (4 inch or more) longer
than 1st and 5th, which about equal each other.

“ First plumage. Above nearly pure olive, with indistinct narrow transverse bands of
darker. Wing-bands pale reddish-brown. Under parts soiled yellowish-white, with an
olivaceous cast on the sides and breast, From a specimen in my collection shot by Dr.
J.M. Wheaton, at Columbus, Ohio, June, 1876” [July, 1875.] (Brewster, 1. c.)

Habitat, Eastern United States ; rarely north into New England and no authentic re-
cord beyond Massachusetts. Canada West. West to the Mississppi and slightly beyond.
Cuba. %

Abundant summer resident from May to September. Breeds. Fre-
quents woodland, andis seldom seen far from its breeding spot except
when migrating, when it is a frequent visitor in the gardens of this city,
often remaining several days. The favorite retreats of this bird are
beech woods of considerable extent. Here they are found perched on the
lower branches of trees, or higher up on the border of a glade. Dark woods
are preferred to high, open, mixed woodland. In such localities they
form a striking feature in the bird-fauna, Their ordinary note is a sharp,
quick, loud and emphatic what-d’ye see, which, coming from an unseen and
perhaps unsuspected performer, is really startling in the stillness. Fre-
quently the bird utters a low rapid twittering note accompanied by a
rapid movement of the wings, as if in ecstacy. A similar action is some-
times seen in the Wood Pewee, the noise resembling the rustling made
by the Woodcock’s flight.

The nest of the Acadian Flycatcher differs in position from all other
species of the family breeding with us, in being invariably placed in a hor-
izontal fork, usually not more than fifteen feet from the ground. In the
manner of its attachment it resembles the nests of the Vireos, being
fastened by the brim while the bottom is unsupported. In structure,
however, it is very different. It is composed almost entirely of small
stems and tops of the grass commonly known here as “roller grass.”
These are losely thrown together forming a shallow cup bound to the
fork with spider’s web. When just finished they presenta very slovenly
appearance, considerable quantities of the grass hanging from the peri-
hery of the nest, so that it looks like a tuft of hay, caught by the limb
from a load driven under it. If the weather is damp this material soon
falls off in the wind and the body of the nest becomes more compact.
Frequently the nest is so thin that the eggs may be counted from
below.

TRAILL’S FLYCATCHER. 375

The eggs vary from two to four, and I have often seen nests with a sin-
gle egg well advanced in incubation, or a single young bird, and believe
from the position of the nest, towards the end of a long horizontal or de-
clining limb, that eggs frequently fall from it when shaken by the wind.
They are of a light yellowish-buff color, with a decided flesh colored tint
when fresh, and rather sparsely spotted with light-brown. They measure
-78 by .56.

The Acadian Flycatcher is a favorite nurse of the Cow-bird; most nests
contain one egg of this parasite, and I have seen as manyasfour. Onone
occasion I saw a Cow-bird in the effort to deposit her egg in this nest,
turn out all the eggs, the twig on which the nest was placed yielding to
her weight.

EMPIDoNAX TRAILLI (Aud.) Baird.
Traill’s Flycatcher.

Tyrannus traillii, Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 359; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Empidonax trailii, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 107.

Empidonax traillii, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362, 373; Reprint, 4, 15;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 568; Reprint, 8—HENSHAw,
Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, i, 1576, 14.

Empidonax trailli, LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10.—ALLEN, apud Coues, Bull.
Nutt. Orn. Club, v. 1880, 24.

Empidonax pusillus var. trailli, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
177; Reprint, 11. :

Traill’s Flycatcher, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218.

Muscicapa traillii, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1832, 236.

Tyrannus traillii, NUTTALL, Man. i, 1840, 323.

Empidonax traillii, Barrp, Birds of N. Am., 1858, 193.

Empidonax pusillus var. trailli, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. Am. Birds, ii, 1874,
369.

Above olive brown, lighter and duller brownish posteriorly, darker anteriorly, owing
to obviously dusky centres of the coronal feathers; below, nearly as in acadicus, but
darker, the olive-gray shading quite across the breast; wing-markings grayish-white
with slight yellowish or tawny shade; under mandible pale; upper mandible and feet
black. Averaging a little less than acadicus, 54-6; wing, 23-22, more rounded, its tip only
reaching about $ of an inch beyond the secondaries, formed by 2d, 3d and 4th quills as
before, but 5th not so much shorter (hardly or not 4 of an inch), the lst ranging between
5th and 6th; tail, 24; tarsus, $ as before, but middle toe and claw, three-fifths, the
feet thus differently proportioned owing to length of the toes.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces, west to the central plains,
whence to the Pacific replaced by var. pusillus. South to New Grenada.

Common summer resident in Central Ohio from May to September.
Breeds. Traill’s Flycatcher, was first observed in this state by Dr.

376 BIRDS—TYRANNIDA.

Kirtland (l. c.,) and Mr. Kirkpatrick subsequently mentions that he
found it on the banks of the Rocky River near Cleveland. Mr. Langdon
gives it as a rare migrant in the vicinity of Cincinnati. In this vicinity
it arrives about the end of the first week in May, passing northward
along the margins of streams. It is rather shyer and more restless than
others of the genus. Its presence is usually made known by a character-
istic whit-te-ar, which is frequently repeated as the bird flits from bush
to bush or across.a narrow stream.

It was not known to breed in the state until its nest was discovered by
me, June 5, 1874. This nest was placed in an elder bush beside a ditch,
in Thomas’ swamp on the west side of the Olentangy river, near this city.
It contained four eggs. A few days afterwards, while in company with
my friend, C. J. Orton, we discovered a nest without eggs ina wild plum
thicket a short distance from the east bank of the same stream, near
North Columbus. The next season numerous nests were found in low
wet grounds, formed by an excavation along the Little Miami Railroad
between the city and Insane asylum. This locality which was nearly
amile long by not more than fifty yards wide, proved to be a favorite re-
sort for these birds for three or four years, and I have found as manyas
half a dozen nests in a couple of hours search. Here their nests were
usually found in willows from two to eight feet from the ground. One
or two nests were taken in grape vines, and one in a small tree of
Enonymus atropurpurea, several in elder bushes. Those built in the acute
forks of willows were less neat than those in the broader forks of other
bushes, but all agreed in general character, and were widely different
from nests of the same birds taken in Northern New England, as also are
the eggs.

Mr. Henshaw (l.c.) describes the nests and eggs of this and the pre-
ceeding species, giving for the first tine, a eorrect description of their
differences as found here. A portion of his article is here inserted:

‘“] shall briefly describe a nest of Traillii, one of a series of five, kindly presented by
Dr. Wheaton, and taken near Columbus, Ohio.

“Tt may be fairly compared with the usual structure of the Summer Yellow Warbler
(Dendreca estiva), so well known to every one, but lacks something of the compactness
and neatness shown by this species in its method of weaving together the materials that
make up its home. Hempen fibres compose the exterior, or the bulk of the nest, while
internally it is lined in true Flycatcher style with fine grasses, and a slight admixture
of down from thistles; the main point of all, however, is its position with regard to the
branches. It is built into an upright fork, the small twigs that surround it being made
available to secure it more firmly in its place by being encircled with the stringy fibres.
In this particular of position correspond all of the nests of this bird I have seen, as well

as those of pusillus in the west.
“Taking now a nest of E. acadicus, and placing it beside the others, a very striking dif-

TRAILL’S FLYCATCHER. 377

ference is at once seen. Instead of comparing it with the structures of the Warbler, or
with those of the above species, we are at once reminded of the Vireos, though no one
familiar with the elegant basket-like structure of these weavers would think of mistak-
ing this for one of their masterpieces. The resemblance is but a superficial one, begin-
ning and ending with the manner the nest is disposed in a horizontal fork. :

“ It is a slight structure made of fine grasses, interspersed more or less with the blos-
soms of trees, the whole disposed in a circular form, and fitted between two twigs; a
firm support is derived from a binding of spiders’ web, which are interwoven with the
sides of the nest, and then carried over the twigs on either side, encircling them with strong
bands. The entire base of the nest is without support, and so thin is the slight struc-
ture that the eggs might almost be seen from below. This nest was built in a small tree,
perhaps twenty feet from the ground. In this repect the two species vary but little,
both preferring to select the lower branches of tree or shrub as the site of their domicile,
and only rarely departing from the rule. This last nest was taken near Washington,
by Mr. P. L. Jouy, who kindly placed it at my disposal. The contrast between these
two structures could indeed scarcely be greater, and those selected for description may,
I think, be taken as fair samples of the styles of nest architecture that obtain with the
two species, at least ali of a considerable number I have seen, from several localities,
correspond with the foregoing.

‘A word as to the eggs. After examination of several sets of either species, of which
the identity was unquestionable, I am certain that no decided differences of coloration
exist between them; none at least that are constant and that can be made of use in the
exact discrimination of the two. Dr. T. M. Brewer, in speaking of the eggs of E. traillii,
describes them as possessing a ‘white ground color with distinct roseate tinge,’ and
marked with large and well defined blotches of purplish-brown, while in his description
of acadicus, he says in distinction, the eggs resemble more those of the Contopi, and are
‘of a rich cream color with reddish-brown shading, marked at larger end with scattered
and vivid blotches of red and reddish-brown.’ The truth is, however, that the shade
of the groand color of either species is extremely variable, not being alike in any two
sets [have examined. The eggs of Traill’s Flycatcher are frequently found to be a very
decided cream color, approaching buff, while those of the Acadian, if anything, are more
buffy, but will now and then be found to be fully as pale as some of the Traill’s. The
markings, too, are subject to considerable variation as to precise shade, number and
size,

“ On this point Dr. Wheaton remarks, that while he can discover no specific difference
in the eggs of the two birds, he is of the opinion, that the eggs of acadicus average a lit-
tle longer and slenderer than those of Traillii, and have perhaps a yellower buff tinge.

“With reference to the habits of these two species, Dr. Wheaton has always observed
a very decided difference, especially in the localities chosen as homes, and considers ‘ the
locality as characteristic of the species as any of its other points.’ He has always found
Traill’s Flycatcher a lover of the low grounds, and especially fond of the willow clumps
along running streams, while of the Acadian he says: ‘It is never fond in company
with, or in such localities as are frequented by the Traill’s. In all cases it is found
in upland woodland, preferably, and I might almost say as far as my observation ex-
tends in beech woodland. I have never seen it even during the migration in other
places.’ ”

To this description I can add little except by way of qualification of
my own opinion. In one locality, a swamp in an extensive forest about

378 BIRDS—TYRANNIDE,

four miles east of the city, I found both species together, Traill's Fly-
catcher, frequenting the swamp, and when disturbed flying to the forest
trees, while the notes of the Acadian Flycatcher were heard at but a short
distance beyond. Furtherobservation convinces me that in this vicinity
the eggs of Trailli are of a darker ground color, and spotted with darker
brown than those of acadicus. The spots on Trailli look as if made with
thick paint; many spots are surrounded with a halo of lighter brown as
if the paint had run.

In the Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, v, 1880, 20, Dr.
Coues, with the object “to confirm and amplify his (Henshaw’s) obser-
vations,” describes the nests and eggs of these two species, from specimens
sent him by Mr. O. Widmann, from St. Louis, Missouri. In so doing he
quotes extensively from Mr. Widmann’s letter of transmission, which
shows this species with him to differ as much in its manners from Ohio
birds as my description makes them differ from eastern examples. Dr.
Coues’ description of the nest and eggs is, but more minutely and emphati-
cally, that of Mr. Henshaw. He concludes that the eggs of Trailli “are so

similar to those of acadicus that no one should pretend to tell them apart

with confidence.” He further quotes a letter from Mr. Allen, relating to
the same specimens. showing the difference between eastern and western
nests of Trailli as follows:

“The New England nests (Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont specimens) are
scarcely distinguishable from the ordinary nest of Cyanospiza cyanea, and consequently
suggest no comparison with the nest of E. minimus, they being bulky structures of coarse
materials, which no one would think could belong to the species building the small,
compact nests of soft materials that come to us from Ohio, through Dr. J. M. Wheaton,
or from Missouri, through Mr. Widmann.”

In this connection I may add that the description of the eggs by Dr.
Brewer, referred to by Mr. Henshaw, is correct for eastern specimens,
western eggs being much more buffy. I have surmised that our birds
might be identical with the western variety, pusillus, but Mr. Brewster
informs me that he can discover no difference between Ohio and New
England birds.

Other localities frequented by these birds in the breeding season, are a
willow-covered island in the Scioto River, a short distance below the city
and the “starch-factory swamp,” a recently drained region below the city,
lying between the canal and river. In the former of these localities I
have found but few nests, search for them being an almost hopeless task,
for the reason that as the island is frequently flooded, nearly every willow
fork is filled with a bunch of drift leaves. It is not impossible that such
qualities may have been chosen for nesting places for the protection

LEAST FLYCATCHER. 379

which the great number of these bunches afford. No bird is more wary
when its nest is approached, quitting it as soon as an intruder approaches
within a dozen yards. I have very seldom been able to discover the fe-
male on the nest, but when disturbed she retires to a safe distance and
utters a plaintive whit, expressive of her anxiety. During the breed-
ing season the ordinary notes undergo some change, becoming a louder,
deeper, hoyt-te-ar.

EMPIDONAX MINIMUs Baird.

Least Flycatcher.

Tyrannus acadicus, (in part?), READ, Family Visitor, iii, 1853, 359; Proc. Phila. Acad., vi,
1853, 395.

Empidonax minimus, BaırD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 196.—KıRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix,
1860, 35.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric, Rep. for 1860, 362, 373; Reprint, 1861, 4,15; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric, Rep. for 1874, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8.—LAnGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Re-
print, 11; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 225.—DURY and FREEMAN, Obs., ib., iii,
1880, —, Reprint, 4.

Tyrannus acadicus, NUTTALL, i, 1840, 320.

Tyrannula minima, W. M. and 8. F. BAıRD, Proc. Phila. Acad., i, 1843, 284,

Empidonax minimus, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1853, 195.

Colors almost exactly as in Trailli; usually, however, olive-gray rather than olive-
brown; the wing-markings, eye-ring and loral feathers plain grayish-white; the whole
anterior parts often with a slight ashy cast; under mandible ordinarily dusky; feet
black. It is a smaller bird than Trailli, and not so stoutly built ; the wing-tip projects
only about 4 an inch beyond the secondaries; the 5th quill is but very little shorter
than the 4th, the 1st apt to be nearer the 6th than 5th; the feet are differently propor-
tioned, being much as in acadicus; the bill is obviously under 4 inch long. Length, 5-
5.25; wing, 2,60 or less; tail about 2.25.

Habitat, Eastern North America to the high central plains; up the Missouri to Fort
Union. Winters in Central America.

Common spring and fall migrant in May and September. Frequents
edges of woods and thickets, and is often seen in gardens. Its note while
with us is a short, low whit, repeated as the bird industriously pursues
his winged prey.

The Least Flycatcher breeds from Southern New England northward.
Dr. Merriam has taken its nest in Northern New York, and it may breed
in Northern Ohio, as Mr. Langdon found the bird in Ottawa county about
the first of July.

The nest is a neat structure of fibres of bark and grasses, lined with
plant-down and hair, and placed in an upright fork of a sapling within
a few feet of the ground. The eggs are pure white without spots. They
measure .65 by .50.

380 BIRDS—TYRANNIDE.

EMPIDONAX FLAVIVENTRIS Baird.

Yellow-bellied F'lycatcher.

Empidonax flaviveniris, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 139.—WHEATON, Obio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 362, 373; Reprint, 1861, 4, 15; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 568; Reprint, 1875, 8.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11.

Tyrannula flaviventris, W. M. and 8. F. Barrp, Proc. Phila. Acad., i, 1843, 283.
Empidonax flaviventris, BAıRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 198.

Above olive-green, clear continuous and uniform as in acadicus, or even brighter; below
not merely yellowish, as in the foregoing, but emphatically yellow, bright and pure
on the belly, shaded on the sides and anteriorly with a paler tint of the color of the back ;
eye-ring and wing-markings yellow ; under mandible yellow; feet biack. In respect of
color, this species differs materially from all the rest; none of them even in their
autumnal yellowest quite match it. Size of Trailli or rather less; feet proportioned as
in acadicus ; bill nearly as in minimus, but rather larger; 1st quill usually equal to 6th.

Habitat, North America at large. South through Mexico and Central America to New
Grenada.

Common spring and fall migrant in May, August and September. Fre-
quents thickets in woodland and gardens of the city. The Yellow-bellied
Flycatcher, though rather shy and retiring in its habits presents several
points of interest not shared by other membersof the genus, It isseldom
found perched near the extremity of limbs watching for or. capturing
flying insects, but is generally seen in the midst of a low thicket or fence
row, and at the first intimation that it is an object of observation, seeks
further concealment by hiding near the ground and remaining motion-
less. None of the family are such adepts at concealment, its habits in
this respect resembling those of the Connecticut and Mourning Warblers.

On one occasion while walking in the woods, I discovered a pair of
birds busily engaged in feeding on some elm saplings. Alighting near
the bottom of the trunk they hopped from one to another of the alternate
twigs, ascending spirally. Meantime they gathered their food, which I
soon discovered to be small black ants. I watched this procedure for half
an hour, unable to identify the birds. Hoping they might prove an
extralimital species with which I was not acquainted, I returned in
the afternoon with a gun. The birds were not feeding, but in the trees
near by I detected what appeared to be the same species. Great was
my surprise when securing them to find they were Yellow-bellied Fly-
catchers. An examination of their stomach revealed large quantities of
the black ants, and I have no doubt they were the birds which I had
seen feeding, in that heterodox way for flycatchers, in the morning.
I am inclined to think these actions are not unusual to the birds, and

YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER, 381

that they are better adapted for hopping from branch to branch by their
tarsus, which is longer proportionally than in other members of the genus.

Another peculiarity of this species is its note, which is as much entitled
to the name of song as that of most of the Warblers and many other
Oscines. On two occassions I have heard peculiar, uninterrupted, soft
whistling notes, from the top of a tree, so different from those of any bird
with which I was acquainted, that the birds where shot for identification,
and proved to be of the present species. Other observers have notice this
song, which it appears is rarely heard during the migration. Its ordi-
nary note is described as a weak pu, but I have sometimes heard them
utter a soft p-teah, at others a low but sharp pe-wit.

That the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher may possibly breed in this state is
a supposition warranted by the appearance of the young in August.
Comparatively little is known in regard to its breeding habits, in fact,
until within a couple of years no perfectly satisfactory identification of
the nest and eggs had been made. Mr. H. A. Purdie (Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iii, 1878, 167) thus describes a nest taken in Maine, and others
have since been discovered placed on the ground :

N

“Ona collecting trip made by Mr. Ruthven Deane and myself to Houlton, Aroostook
county, Me., during the second and third weeks in June of this year, we were fortunate
enough to secure the much. desired nest and eggs of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. For
its possession we are under obligations to Robert R. McLeod, Esq., and to one of his
collectors, Mr. James Bradbury, who discovered the nest, both surrendering all claim to
the prize, but desirous that a description should be given for the benefit of all inter-
ested.

“Mr. Bradbury informed us that he had found, on June 15, a nest unknown to him with
one egg. On the 18th he conducted us to the ed ge of a wooded swamp, and, pointing to
the roots of an upturned tree, said the nest was there. We approached cautiously, and
soon saw the structure and then the sitting bird, which appeared to be sunken in a ball
of green moss. Our eager eyes were within two feet of her, thus easily identifying the
species, when she darted off; bat, to make doubly sure, Mr. Deane shot her. There was
no mistake; we at last had a genuine nest and eggs of the Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.
A large dwelling it was for so small and trim a bird. Built in and on to the black mud
clinging to the roots, but two feet from the ground, the bulk of the nest was composed
of dry moss, while the outside was faced with beautiful fresh green mosses, thickest
around the rim or parapet. The home of the Bridge Pewee (Sayornis fuscus) was that at
once suggested. But no mud entered into the actual composition of the nest, though at
first we thought so, so much was clinging to it when removed. The lining was mainly
of fine black rootlets, with a few pine needles and grass-stems. The nest gives the fol- ©
lowing measurements : depth inside, one and one-half inches; depth outside, four and
a quarter inches; circumference inside, seven and a quarter inches.

“ The eggs, four in number, were perfectly fresh, rounded oval in shape, and of a beau-
tifal rosy-white tint, well spotted with a light reddish shade of brown.”

382 BIRDS—CAPRIMULGIDA.

/

ORDER PICARIA. PICARIAN BIRDS.

SUB-ORDER CYPSELI. Cypseliform Birds.
FAMILY CAPRIMULGIDA. GOATSUCKERS.

Feet semipalmate, the anterior toes connected at base by movable webbing. Hind toe
very small, elevated, semilateral. Middle toe produced, its large claw pectinate. Bill
fissirostral, with very small, triangular, depressed horny part and immense rictus, reach-
ing below the eyes, furnished with bristles. Ratherlarge Plumage soft and lax, much
variegated.

Sub-family CAPRIMULGINA. TRUE GOATSUCKERS.

Outer toe with four phalanges only. Sternum with one pair of shallow posterior fis-
sures.

Genus ANTROSTOMUS. Gould.

Nostrils tubular; gape with long stiff bristles reaching beyond the bill. Wings
slightly rounded, primaries emarginate ; tailed rounded.

ANTROSTOMUS VOCIFERUS (Wils.) Bonap.

Whippoorwill; Night Jar.

Caprimulgus vociferus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1835, 162, 180.—READ, Proc. Phila,
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi., 1853, 395.

Antrostomus vociferus, KIRKPATRICK, Obio Farmer, viii, 1859, 195.—WEEAToN, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362, 373; Reprint, 4, 15; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 1875, 568; Reprint, 8—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 10 ; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Whippoorwill, WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 92.

Caprimulqus vociferus, WILSON, Am. Orn., v., 1812, 71.
Antrosiomus vociferus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 8.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces. North to about 50°. West to
the Plains. South through portions of Mexico to Guatemala.

Common summer resident in some localities, rare or absent in others.
In the immediate vicinity of Columbus the Whippoorwill is quite rare.
I have never heard its note, and have seen but two specimens. These
were found in low woods in May, and were evidently on their spring mi-
gration. Ten miles west of this city at Georgesville and West Jefferson
they are rather common, and breed. In Eastern and Southeastern Ohio
they are more numerous. Mr. Langdon gives it as uncommon in the
vicinity of Cincinnati. During the breeding season they seem to prefer
the more hilly portions of the State, and I am of the opinion that the
geological structure determines their distribution at this time, as is per-

NIGHTHAWK. 383

haps the case wifh several of our ground-nesting birds. I have never
found the birds in summer on a limestone or clay soil, and the localities
in which I have mentioned their occurrence are all on an outcrop of
sandstone.

The name of this bird is a tolerably accurate rendering of its note,
which is frequently and quickly uttered in the evening, both when the
bird is on the wing in pursuit of nocturnal insects which constitute its
food, or at rest. It is seldom seen in day time when it retires to the se-
clusion of deep undergrowth. Its plumage is soft and blended like that
of the owls, while the disposition of its colors resembles that of many
nocturnal lepidoptera.

When wounded, and capture is threatened, the Whippoorwill will
sometimes raise and depress it feathers, throw back its head, and open-
ing its wide mouth in a threatening manner, utter a short blowing
sound somewhat like the hiss of a snake.- This may be the note which
some writers have mentioned as made by the bird while perching at night.

The eggs of the Whippoorwill are two in number, about 1.25 inches in
length by .88 in width. The ground color is white, singularly marked
and mottled with gray and brown lines and spots. They are laid in
a depression of the ground upon a few leaves, but no attempt is made
toward the construction of a nest.

Genus CHORDEILES. Swainson.

Bill very small, the gape with short feeble bristles. Wing very long and pointed ; 1st
primary equal to 2d; tail long, slightly forked.

CHORDEILES VIRGINIANUS (Gm.) Bp.
Nighthawk.

Caprimulgus virginianus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog., Surv., 1838, 162.—READ, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Chordeiles popetue, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 211.-WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; in Coues’ Birds N. W., 1874, 234.

Chordeiles virginianus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 568;
_ Reprint, 8.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11.

Chordeiles popetue, var. popetue, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Nighthawk, WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 92.

Caprimulgus virginianus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 1028.

Caprinuelgus popetue, VIEILLOT, O. A. S., i, 1807, 56.

Chordeiles virginianus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 8.

Chordeiles popetue, BAIRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 151.

Chordeiles popetue var. popetue, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1874.

Above mottled with black, brown, gray, and tawny, the former in excess; below from
the breast transversly barred with blackish and white or pale fulvous; throat in the

384 BIRDS—CAPRIMULGIDE.

male with a large white, in the female tawny, cross-bar; tail blackish, wits distant
pale marbled cross-bars and a large white spot (wanting in the female) on one or both
webs of all the feathers toward the end; quills dusky, unmarked except by one large
white spot on five outer primaries about midway between their base and tip; in the fe-
male this area is restricted or not pure white. Length, about 9; wing, 8; tail, 5.

Habitat, entire temperate North and Middle America. North to Hudson’s Bay. Cuba,
Jamaica and the Bahamas. South to Brazil.

Common summer resident, from May to September. The Nighthawk
is a much better known bird throughout the State than the Whippoor-
will. It arrives in this vicinity early in May, when it may be seen
perched upon the limb of a tree, motionless and apparently asleep. Ina
few days pairing is effected, and one or both birds may be seen flying high
over a locality which they have chosen for nesting, even in the brightest
noonday sun. At such times attention is called to the bird by its loud
and singular note, which is heard while it is at a great height.

Some writers have asserted that the birds of this family are unable by
reason of the smallness of their feet to sit upon a limb in the ordinary
fashion of birds, but must place the long axis of the body parallel with
the limb. Reasonable as this may appear, some birds in this neighbor-
hood contemptuously disregard the teachings of wise men, and perch
crossways upon limbs without apparent inconvenience. I have shot

- several for so doing, as has also my friend, Dr. O. Frankenberg, and we
hope to put an end to this provokingly unscientific habit.

The Nighthawk and Whippoorwill are frequently confounded, or con-
sidered as birds of the same species. A careful comparison with each
other or with the descriptions will at once show a very decided difference.
The Nighthawk is also known as the Goatsucker, a name given to its
European relative, from the belief that it did as the name implied.
Doubtless its habit of frequenting pastures and fields where cattle
feed, in search of insects which abound in such places, led to this super-
stition. Ihave elsewhere noted (Birds N. W.,1.c.) that in skinning,
these birds exhale a strong goatlike odor, which may have added a fan-
ciful reason for this long exploded idea.

In the latter part of summer the Nighthawks collect in large companies
towards night and frequent fields in search of food. Their southern mi-
gration is performed in the latter part of August and September. During
this period they may be seen in very loose flocks, toward evening, making
their way southward, and feeding as they fly. At such times they fly
over, rather than around obstacles, and do not turn aside for cities. Their.
flight is high or low, according to the dryness or dampness of the atmos-
phere, which governs the flight of the insects on which they feed. Flocks.
of thousands are sometimes seen.

CHIMNEY SWIFT. 385

The eggs of the Nighthawk, like those of the Whippoorwill, are placed
on the ground, with this distinction, that the Nighthawk seeks no shel-
ter, but selects an open field or bare rock. No nest is constructed. The
eggs are two, grayish, thickly mottled with varied tints of darker gray.
They measure about 1.30 by .90.

FAMILY CYPSELIDA. SWIFTS.

Feet neither syndactyle nor zygodact, le, scarcely or not semipalmate, of frequently
abnormal ratio of phalanges (middle or outer toe, or both, with fewer joints than usual
among birds). Hind toe very small, elevated, frequently lateral or versatile. Middle toe
not produced nor its claw pectinate. Bill much asin Caprimulgide, but rictus unbristled.
Small. Plumage compact, of few simple subdued colors.

Subfamily CoatTuRINmE. Spine-tailed Swifts.

Hind toe scarcely versatile. Tarsus covered with naked skin. Tail feathers stiffened
and mucronate by the projection of their shafts.

Genus CHATURA. Stephens.

First primary longest; tail very short, about two-fifths the wing, slightly rounded.
Tarsus longer than middle toe; lateral toes equal, nearly as long as the middle; hind
toe and claw less than the middle toe without the claw.

CHETURA PELAGICA (L.) Baird.

Chimney Swift.

Hirundo pelasgia, WILSON, Am. Orn., v. 1812, 48,

Cypselus pelasgius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.

Chetura pelasgia, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 736.—RxEaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi,
1853, 395.—KIPKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 203.—WHEaTON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; in Coues’ Birds of N. W., 1874, 234; Food of Birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 569; Reprint, 9—LaNGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 11.

Chetura pelagica, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Re-
print, 12; Summer Birds, iii, 1880, 225.

Chimney Swift, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Hirundo pelagica, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 192.

Hirundo pelasgia, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 345.

Cypselus pelasgius, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 63.

Chetura pelasgia, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen’]. Zool., xiii, 1825, 76.

Chetura pelagica, BAIRD, BREWER, and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1874, 432.

Sooty-brown with faint greenish gloss above, below paler, becoming gray on the
throat; wings black. Length, about 5; wing the same; tail, 2 or less.

To the above description of Dr. Coues’, which is sufficient for purposes of identification,
it may be added that the feathers of the crown are so short as to resemble scales, and
form a projecting arch or cornice over the eyes. The eye-lids and a small circumorbital
space are naked and purplish. A broad line of soft thick-set velvety feathers extends

25

386 BIRDS—CYPSELIDA.

from the nostrils along ihenppen mandible to the gape, across the lores in front of and
above the eye. On the under surface of the wing a linear bare space may be noticed
extending frem the carpal joint to the base of the first primary. Mr. Ridgway informs
me that this space is found in the Hummingbirds.

Abundant summer resident from April to October. Breeds. This
singular bird, commonly called Chimney Swallow, presents many pe-
culiarities which pass unnoticed because the bird is familiar. It is
the only representative of its family in America east of the Rocky
Mountains, and the only bird which has forsaken its natural breeding
resorts to nest in chimneys. So sombre is its plumage, so well adapted
for not “showing dirt,” that, as an illustration of the theory of natural se-
lection, the bird seems to be adapted to the chimney and not the chimney
to the bird. Not many years since the birds were here and the chimneys
were not, and we find historical evidence that they formerly occupied
the hollow trunks of trees for breeding as well as roosting purposes.

T. M. Harris in his Tour into the North-west Territory, 1805, givesthe
following account of their occupation of trees for roosting purposes, which
came under his observation within the limits of this State. The para-
graph is quoted by Wilson, vol. v, 1812, 52:

“] may mention a large collection of feathers found within a hollow tree, which I ex-
amined, with the Rev. Mr. Story, May 18th, 1803. It is in the upper part of Waterford,
about two miles distant from the Muskingum. A very large sycamore, which through
age, had decayed and fallen down, contained in its hollow trunk, five and a half feet in
diameter, and for nearly fifteen feet upward, a mass of decayed feathers, with a small
admixture of brownish dust, and the exuvi® of variousinsects. The feathers were so
rotten, that it was impossible to determine to what kind of birds they belonged. They
were less than those of the Pigeon; and the largest of them were like the pinion and
tail feathers of the Swallow. I examined carefully this astonishing collection, in the
hope of finding the bones and bills, but could not distinguish any. The tree, with some
remains of its ancient companions lying around, was of a growth preceding that of the
neighboring forest. Near it and even out of its mouldering ruins grew thrifty trees, of a
size which indicate two or three hundred years of age.”

“Such, continues Wilson,” are the usual roosting places of the Chimney Swallow
in the more thinly settled parts of the country. In towns, however, they are differ-
ently situated ; and it is a matter of curiosity to observe that they frequently select the
court-house chimney, for their general rendezvous, as being usually more central, and
less liable to interruption during the night.”

In this city, thirty years ago, the Chimney Swifts like the Martins
roosted under the cornices of high buildings, and were not a whit behind
their distant relatives, in the formal manceuvering and noisy clatter,
which preceded their retiring. Now, many of them rendezvous in the
large chimneys of mills and factories, but, true to their ancient predilec-
tion, the greater number congregate in the large chimneys of the State

CHIMNEY SWIFT. 387

House. About sundown they seem to come from all directions, and, as if
driven by a whirlwind, circle around in the air high above the chosen
spot. One by one, they drop into the opening, almost as if shot. Not
unfrequently some disturbance drives them out again, and the formal
circling is repeated until, at last, going to bed is comfortably accom-
plished.

The nest of the Chimney Swift, which, as above stated, was formerly
placed in hollow trees, is now with very few exceptions fastened to the
inside of a chimney, sufficiently below its top to be protected from the
rays of the sun. Ina deep woods about three miles east of this city I
have known the cavity of a tall tree to be visited by these birds, for three
successive seasons, and I have no doubt they nested there. Whether this
habit had been unbroken by their ancestors from the time antedating
chimneys, or was a retrograde movement, I cannot venture an opinion.
Since the introduction of smaller flues to chimneys, and the almost uni-
versal use of coal in this city, the birds seem to be less generally dis-
tributed and, perhaps, less numerous.

A beautiful nest of this bird was presented to me by my friend, Arnold
Boyle of this city. He took it from the inside of a barn in Wyandot
county, where its position was similar to that of the Barn Swallow.

The nest of the Chimney Swift is built of small dead twigs which are
broken from the trees by the birds while on the wing. In cities, locust
twigs are preferred. These are glued together and to the side of the
chimney by the saliva of the bird. In this basket-like structure from
four to six pure white eggs are laid, which measure .75 by .50.

FAMILY TROCHILIDE. HUMMINGBIRDS.

Secondaries only six. Bill tenuirostral, longer than head, nearly cylindrical. Gape
constricted. Tongue filiform, extensile, bi-tubular. Wings, long in terminal portion
abbreviated proximally, acute. Plumage compact, of metallic sheen. Size smallest of
all birds.

Sub-family TROCHILINA. Typical Hummingbirds.

Anterior toes not connected at base. Plumage brilliant, with more or less metallic
lustre, at leastin the males.

Genus TROCHILUS. Linnzus.

Feathers of throat but little elongated laterally; tail forked (in males), its lateral
feathers but little narrower than the others, lanceolate-acute.

388 BIRDS—TROCHILIDE.

TROCHILUS COLUBRIS Linnzus.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

Trochilus colubris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395. —KIRKPATRICK, Obio Farmer, ix, 1860, 163.—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 362; Reprint, 1361, 4; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 569; Reprint, 1875, 9.—Lana@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Hummingbird, BALLOUV, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Trochilus colubris, LINNZ=US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 191.

Male with the tail forked, its feathers all narrow and pointed ; no scales on crown;
metallic gorget reflecting ruby-red, etc.; above golden-green ; below white, the sides -
green; wings and tail dusky-purplish. The female lacking the gorget; the throat white;
the tail somewhat double-rounded, with black bars, and the outer feathers white-tipped.
Length, 34; wing, 1}; bill, #.

Habitat, North America, east of the Rocky Mountains. North to 57° at least. South
to Brazil. Cuba.

Very common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives in May and departs
in October. The Hummingbird, so well-known as the smallest of all
our birds, and whose iridescent plumage, peculiar structure, and swift
flight seem to us to separate it from all other birds, is in Eastern North
America, the only representative of a numerous family, confined to this
continent, and most numerous in South America. About a dozen species
are found in North America, all but the present confined to the region
west of the Mississippi.

The food of Hummingbirds consists for the most part of small insects
which they obtain from the interior of deep flowers, and which are there
secure from the pursuit of other birds. Their nearest relative, with us, is
the Chimney Swift, and like that bird they take their food while on the
wing. No object can be more graceful or beautiful than one of these
birds poised in air, before a favorite flower, the body surrounded by the
misty halo of their rapidly vibrating wings. Their flight is very swift,
direct and prolonged, resembling that of an insect rather than a bird.
In some locations, as a flowery woodland, or low bank of a stream where
rank vegetation is blooming, they appear in flocks to feed both before
and after the breeding season.

The nest of the Hummingbird isa remarkably beautiful structure. It
is placed on a horizontal limb of a forest tree, or in an orchard, and is
composed of soft down from the stems of plants, covered artistically with
bits of gray lichen from the trunks of trees Seen in position, it resem-
bles a moss covered knot. The eggs are two only, pure white, nearly
spherical, and measure but .50 by .35.

KINGFISHER. 389

SUB-ORDER CucuLI. Cuculiform Birds.
FAMILY ALCEPINIDA. KINGFISHERS.

Secondaries more than six. Feet syndactyle by connection of outer and middle toes.
Outer toe much longer than inner, united for half its length with the middle, form-
ing a broad sole. Tibie naked below. Bill longer than head, straight, acute, with hard
cutting edges and ample rictus. Tongue rudimentary, fixed Wings pointed, much
longer than the short square tail. Tail feathers twelve. Plumage compact, oily.

CERYLE ALcYoN (L.) Boie.

Belted Kingfisher.

Alcedo aleyon, WILSON, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 59.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.
—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 395.

Ceryle alcyon, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 243.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
569; Reprint, 9.—MARrcH, Am. Nat, ii, 1868, 490.—LaNnepon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1377, 10; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 177; Reprint, 11; Sum-
ıner Birds, iii, 1880, 225.

Kingfisher, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 225.

Alcedo alcyon, LINNUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 180.

Ceryle alcyon, Box, Isis, 1828, 316.

Upper parts, broad pectoral bar, and sides under wings, dull blue with fine black
shaft lines; lower eyelid, spot before eye, a cervical collar and under parts, except as
said, pure white; the female with a chestnut belly band, and the sides of the same color,
quills and tail feathers black, speckled, blotched and barred with white on the inner
webs; outer webs ot the secondaries and tail feathers like the back; wing-coverts fre-
quently sprinkled with white; bill black, pale at the base below; feet dark. Length,
12 or more; wing about 6; tail, 34 ; whole foot, 14; bill about 24.

Habitat, North and Middle America and many of the West India Islands.

Abundant. Resident in Southern Ohio, and retiring from Middle
and Northern Ohio, only when the streams and ponds are covered with
ice. In this vicinity Kingfishers usually arrive during the month of
February and remain until December. Their food consisting exclusively
of fish, they are seldom seen except in the immediate vicinity of water.
They prefer for feeding places the rapid shallows of streams. Here they
may be seen in pairs flying up and down the stream or hovering over a
spot where they expect to secure their prey. The lower branches of a
tree overhanging the water, or the top of a dead stub, furnish a favorite
lookout, from which they plunge beneath the surface of the water. A fish
secured, they fly off quickly to a secure spot to swallow their captive.
Their note is a loud, coarse rattle, frequently repeated.

The nest of the Kingfisher is an excavation in the face of a high bank
of astream or side of an artificial excavation. The entrance is usually

390 BIRDS—CUCULIDE.

within a couple of feet below the top of the bank and extends inwards,
usually straight, but sometimes with an angle, from three to six feet.
Usually no nest is made, but near the extremity the eggs are deposited
in the midst of fish bones disgorged and excreted. The eggsare from five
to seven, usually six, nearly spherical, clear shining white, and of very
dense texture. They measure 1.30 by 1.05. The birds are very much
attached to their nesting site. One nest on the bank of a gravel pit, I
have dug down upon for several successive years, and the birds are not
yet inclined to desert the spot. Another bank occupied by these birds
was removed by a freshet, and a large sycamore tree which stood upon it
was carried into the middle of the stream, where it remained with large
quantities of earth adhering to the roots. In this earth the birds made a
tortuous and difficult excavation, and successfully raised their young.

FAMILY CUCULIDA. THE CUCKOOS.

Feet zygodactyle by reversion of outer or fourth toe. Not scansorial; tail of eight or
ten long soft feathers Bill with decurved tip, not formed for hammering; rictus am-
ple. Tongue not extensile nor vermiform nor barbed. Salivary glands and hyoidean
apparatus not peculiar. No nasal tufts of feathers. Arboreal and terrestrial.

Grnus COCCYZUS. Vieillot.

Wings pointed, shorter than the tail; the lst and 2d quills shortened. Billabout equal
to the head, stout at base, then compressed, curved throughout. Tibial feathers full, as
in the hawks; tarsus not longer than toes.

Coccyzus ERYTHROPHTHALMUS (Wils.) Bp.
Black-billed Cuckoo,

Coceyzus erythrophthalmus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 170; B. Am., iv, 1842, 300.
—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—WHEAToN, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11.—
Jonus and SHULZE, Illustrations of Nest and Eggs of Ohio Birds, Part I, 1879, Plate 3.

Coccyzus dominicus, READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Coccygus erythrophthalmus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 195. —WHEAToN, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361, 371; Reprint, 3, 13—Lanepon, Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Black-billed Cuckoo, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Cuculus erythrophthalmus, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv, 1811, 16.
Coccyzus erythrophthalmus, BONAPARTE, Obs., Wils., 1825, No. 48.
Coccyzus dominicus, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1832, 550.

Coccygus erythrophthalmus, CABANIS, J. f. O., 1856, 104.

Above uniform satiny olive-gray, or ‘‘ quaker color,” with bronzy reflections. Below
pure white, sometimes with a faint tawny tinge on the fore parts. Wings with little or no
rufous. Lateral feathers not contrasting with the central, their tips for a short distance

BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO. 391

blackish, then obscurely white. Bill blackish except occasionally a trace of yellowish
below. Eye-lids red; bare circum-ocular space purplish. Length, 11-12; wing, 5-54;
tail, 6-64; bill under 1.

Habitat, North America to the Rocky Mountains. North to Labrador. South through
Mexico and Central America to the Valley of the Amazon. Cuba, rarely. Accidental
in Europe.

Very common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives in May and re-
mains until late in September. As soon as the leaves on forest trees are
sufficiently advanced to afford concealment, the Black-billed Cuckoo
makes its appearance in woods and gardens. The first intimation of his
arrival, for he is very shy and retiring in his habits, is his peculiar note.
This is a prolonged, monotonous, guttural sound, which has been likened
to the noise made by water running from the mouth of a jug. It is from
this rapid croaking note, and the belief that it was premonitory of wet
weather, that these birds have obtained their common name of Rain
Crows.

Some seasons they are much more abundant during the spring migra-
tions than others. During the latter part of May, 1873, when a white
moth was exceedingly abundant, the Black-billed Cuckoo appeared in
great numbers, and fed upon them.

The Black-billed Cuckoo is more frequently found in upland woods .
than its Yellow-billed relative, though it shares with the latter its
favorite haunts, the sunny thickets on the borders of streams. j

Although near relatives of the notorious Cuckoo of Europe, which, like
our Cow-bird, lays its eggs in the nest of other birds, our Cuckoos gener-
dilly respect the marriage tie, and endeavor to perform all the duties
consequent. Still there are occasions when they adopt the less reputable
custom of their distant relatives and deposit their eggs in the nest of
other birds and delegate paternal duties to them.

The eggs of Cuckoos have been found in the nest of the Cedar Bird,
Robin and Wood Thrush, all of which birds lay eggs resembling those of
the Cuckoo in color, and an anonymous writer in the “Oologist” (1877)
records the finding of two eggs of a Cuckoo in the nest ofa “ Redbird”
near Gambier, Ohio.

Misses Jones and Shulze figure beautifully the nest and eggs of this
species, with the following account of its nesting habits: ‘

The place usually selected for the nest is a wood where there is a thick undergrowth,
and where the grape, ivy, and other climbing vines are found.

While no particular tree or shrub seems, more than another, adapted to its use, the
low, damp places near rivers and smaller streams are more likely to be chosen than the
high lands, probably owing to the greater luxuriance of suitable vegetation near the
water-courses.

392 BIRDS—CUOULIDE.

The nest is built either upon a horizontal or in a perpendicular fork of a tree, upon a
cluster of small branches, the top of a stump, the stemsof the stronger climbing vines
or a similar position affording a suitable resting-place, and is always surrounded by
thick foliage.

Its height varies from one foot to about thirty feet, but is rarely, if ever, found
directly upon the ground. The nests of low position, are usually built in the perpendi-
cular forking of stunted elms, thorns or other small trees. The higher nests are built
among the vines.

The materials of construction are sticks, twigs, thorns, grasses, rootlets, strips of bark,
blossoms and catkins.

The sticks are variable in size, and with the thorns form the foundation; the whole
is loosely thrown together and is a minature of the hawk’s nest. Catkins of the oak,
poplar, etc., or grape blossoms, with grasses, weed fibres and rootlets, form the lining
and are often worked into the foundation. Frequently strips of bark, leaves or lichens,
are added to the usual twigs, thorns and catkins.

The complement of eggs is from two to five, usually four. They are of a light bluish-
green color when blown, sometimes mottled with a darker shade, and vary exceedingly
in shape; some are elliptical while others only approach that form, and have an aver-
age measurement of 1.12 x .83.

They are usually deposited one every day, but quite an interval may elapse, so that
young birds and almost fresh eggs may be found in the same nest.

The nests and eggs of the Yellow and Black-billed Cuckoos resemble each other
closely, and it is not always possible to differentiate the two, Nests of the former are
often found which could not not be mistaken for those of the Black-billed on account of
the coarseness of the nest, larger size and paler color of the eggs; but the nest and eggs
of the latter have no characteristics which might not belong to the former. However,
as a rule, the nest of C. erythrophihalmus may be known from that of the C. americanus by
the fact that it is constructed with more care, the sticks being somewhat smaller, the
catkins less numerous, and the whole woven together in a firmer manner. The eggs are
smaller, less elliptical, and of a slightly darker green. There are no nests or eggs of
other birds in the limits of the state, with which these may be confounded by any mod-
erately careful observer.

Coccyzus AMERICANUS (L.) Bonap.
Wellow-billed Cuckoo.

Coccyzus americanus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci, vi, 1853, 395. —WHEATon, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11.—JONES and SHULZE,
Illust. Nest and Eggs, Pt. 5, Pl. 14.

Coccygus americanus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 179.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361, 371; Reprint, 3, 13.—LaNGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1830, 225.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Cuculus americanus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 170.

Coccyzus americanus, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils. 1825, No. 47.

Coccygus americanus, CABANIS, J. f. O., 1856, 104.

Above as in the last; below pure white. Wings extensively cinnamon rufous on in-
ner webs of the quills. Central tail feathers like the back, the rest black with large

YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO. 393

white tips, the outermost usually edged with white. Bill extensively yellow below and
on the sides. Size of the last.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces. West to the Rocky Mountains.

California. South through Mexico and various West India Islands, and Central America
into South America as far as Buenos Ayres. Accidental in Europe.

Common summer resident. Breeds. Arrives and departs with the
last species and frequents the same resorts, but is rather more confined to
the wooded banks of streams. Not unfrequent in orchards, and in gar-
dens of the city. The following paragraph from the pen of Dr. Coues
(Birds N. W. p. 277) is a happy description of the manners of the
Cuckoos :

“The peculiar notes of this bird, sounding like the syllables koo-koo-koo, indefinitely
repeated, are probably uttered more frequently during the atmospheric changes preced-
ing falling weather, and have given rise to the name ‘‘ Rain Crow,” by which both our
species are universally known to the vulgar. The Yellow-billed is rather the noisier
bird of the two, and its voice is more forcible. It is a rather shy and unfamiliar species,
inhabiting high, open woods, as well as the large shade-trees of parks and cities, and
generally remains high among the branches. When dashing about, in active pursuit of
the various large-winged insects that form its chief food, they are conspicuous objects,
the metallic olive-gray flashing in the sun, and the snowy under parts contrasting with
the verdure. But ordinarily they are hidden birds, oftener heard than seen; they pass
from one tree to another steathily, with a rapid, gliding, noiseless flight, and often rest
motionless as statues for a long time, especially when crying out, or when they have
detected a suspicious object. They court the seclusion of the thickest foliage. Their
curiosity is not small, and they may be observed to frequently peer down with inquisi-
tive looks through the dense foliage, trying to make out some unusual object. Although
not parasites, like the European species, devoid of parental instinct, they have their
bad traits, being even worse enemies of various small, gentle birds; for they are aban-
doned thieves, as wicked as Jays in this respect, continually robbing birds of their eggs,
and even, it is said, devouring the helpless nestlings.”

The nest and eggs of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo resemble so much those
of the other species that the same description answers for both. The eggs
of this species are generally a shade lighter in color and average some-
what larger, 1.30 by .85. Dr. Jones states that he has found the eggs of
this bird in the nest of the Cardinal Grosbeak, and of one the Cuckoos
in that of the Catbird. One peculiarity in the nesting habits of these
birds is, that no sooner is an egg laid than the female begins incubation,
and it is a common thing to find young of different ages or young and
eggs in the same nest.

SUB-ORDER Picr. Piciform Birds.

FAMILY PICIDAH. WOODPECKERS.

Feet zygodactyle by reversion of the outer or fourth toe. Highly scansorial; tail of
twelve rigid acuminate feathers, whereof the outer pair are short and spurious, concealed

394 BIRDS—PICIDE.

between the bases of the next two pairs. Bill stout, straight, with the tip truncate or
acute, not decurved (except in Colaptes) an efficient chisel for hammering or boring wood.
Tongue vermiform, extensile (except in Sphyrapicus) and barbed. Salivary glands large;
hyoidean apparatus peculiar. Nasal tufts usually present. Arboreal.

«

Genus HYLOTOMUS. Baird.

Bill with a lateral ridge extending from base to tip. Outer posterior toe shorter than
outer anterior. Nostrils linear.

Hyroromus PILEATUS (L.) Baird.
Pileated Woodpecker; Logcock.

Picus pileatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Rep., 1838,162.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
vi, 1853, 395.—TREMBLY, Field Notes, i, 1861, 65.

Hylotomus pileatus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 315.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362, 373; Reprint, 4,15; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—LANnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Pileated Woodpecker, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1—WHEATON, Field Notes, i,
1861, 92.

Picus pileatus, LiInNzvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 173.
Hylotomus pileatus, BAIRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 107.

Black ; the head, neck and wings much varied with white or pale yellowish; bill dark ;
male, scarlet crested, scarlet moustached ; female with the crest half black, half scar-
let, and no maxillary patches. Length, 15-19; wing, &4-10; tail, 6-7.

Habitat, timbered regions of North America at large.

Not common resident in most parts of the State. The Pileated Wood-
pecker, Logcock, or Woodcock as sometimes erroneously called, was, forty
years since, a common bird in all parts of the State. Comparatively few
now remain in the western and especially northwestern portions, still
fewer in the hilly southern and eastern portions. In the vicinity of any
of our larger towns and cities it may be considered accidental. I have

CAMPEPHILUS PRINCIPALIS (L.) Gray.
Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

Campephilus principalis, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178 ;
Reprint, 12.

Picus principalis, LINNZUvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 173.

Campephilus principalis, GRAY, Genera, 1840.

Habitat, Southern Atlantic and Gulf States. North to North Carolina and mouth of
the Ohio.

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is very properly included in his “ Revised List” of Cin-
cinnati Birds, by Mr. Langdon, on the authority of Dr. Haymond, who states that they
were formerly found in Franklin county, Indiana, a locality not far from the western
boundary of Ohio. Doubtless they were once residents of this State, but in default of
any direct and positive evidence to that effect, they should not be admitted to our list.

HAIRY WOODPECKER. 395

never seen but one of these birds in this county, and that about twenty
years since. One was shot when hammering on the roof of a church in
this city about the same time. Old citizens smile as they tell of the fun
they had trying to kill with sticks, these birds which frequented the trees
on the grounds of the “first school house.”

The nest.of the Pileated Woodpecker is an excavation dug out by the
bill of the bird in a large limb or trunk of a high tree either living or
dead. The eggs are of a rounded oval shape, glistening white, unmarked,
and measure 1.25 by 1.02.

Genus PICUS. Linnezus.

Bill with a lateral ridge extending from base to tip. Outer posterior toe longer than
outer anterior. Nostrils linear.

Picus vitLosus Linneus.
Hairy Woodpecker.

Picus villosus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 162.—ReEAD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci, vi, 1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 267.—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Picus rubricapillus, ReaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Hairy Woodpecker, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Picus villosus, LInNzvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 175.

Picus rubricapillus, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1840, 685.

Back black, with a long white stripe; quills and wing coverts with a profusion of white
spots; four middle tail feathers black, next pair black and white, next two pairs white ;
under parts white; crown and sides of head black; with a white stripe over and behind
the eye, another from the nasal feathers running below the eye to spread on the side
of the neck, and a scarlet nuchal band in the male, wanting in the female; young
with the crown mostly red or bronzy, or even yellowish. Length, 9-10; wing nearly 5;
tail, 34.

Habitat, the entire wooded portions of North America—the typical form east of the
Rocky Mountains, reaching the Pacific, however, in Alaska. Var. harrisü from the
Rocky Mountains to the Pacific. Each variety grading in size according to latitude.

Rather common resident, more frequent in fall, winter, and early
spring than in summer. Breeds.

The Hairy Woodpecker though most numerous along the edges of
woodlands, is a frequent visitor during the colder months, in gardens of
the city and in orchards.

It is less inclined to accept the society of other species than its mina-
ture, the Downy Woodpecker, and maintains a dignified manner, as it
busies itself searching for the larva of insects in decaying trees, and
spiders and eggs of insects in crevices of the bark.

396 BIRDS—PICIDE.

The nest of the Hairy Woodpecker is often excavated in a terminal
limb of a lofty beech, sometimes in the trunk of an apple tree, more
rarely in a dead stub. The eggs are five or six in number, and like
those of all other birds of this family, are pure crystal white with an ivory
texture. They are an inch in length by nearly three-fourths in width.

Picus PUBESCENs Linnzus.
Downy Woodpecker.

Picus pubescens, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162, 179.—Rwab, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 299—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362, 372; Reprint, 4, 14; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12; Summer Birds, ib., iii,
1880, 225.

Picus medianus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Rep., 1838, 162, 179.—RxEaD, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Downy Woodpecker, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Picus pubescens, LINNZUS, Syst., Nat., i, 1776, 136.
Picus (Dendrocopus) medianus, SWAINSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 308.
Picus medianus, NUTTALL, Man., ii, 1834, 601.

Coloration exactly as in P. villosus except the outer tail feathers are barred with black
and white. Length, 6-7; win g under 4; tail under 3.

Habitat, entirely correspondent with that of P. villosus. Var. gairdneri from the
Rocky Mountains to the Pacific.

Common resident. Breeds. More numerous during the colder months
than in summer.

The Downy Woodpecker is the smallest of our members of the family.
It is frequently misnamed “Sapsucker,” a term which can only be ap-
plied with any propriety to the Yellow-bellied Woodpecker.

It is much more humble and social than the Hairy Woodpecker, being
generally found in company with Titmice, Wrens, and Nuthatches, keep-
ing near the ground, searching the branches of low trees or saplings, in
the tops of fallen trees, in hedge-rows, brush heaps or on fences. It is
quite unsuspicious of man, and continues its busy chiseling, unheeding
his near approach.

The nest of the Downy Woodpecker is excavated in the trunk of a
small dead tree, often in the dead limb of an apple tree, sometimes in the
post or rail of a fence, seldom more than twenty feet from the ground,
often within reach. The eggs, generally five, white, unmarked, meas-
ure .83 by .72.

BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER. 397

Genus PICOIDES. Lacepede.

Bill much depressed at base, with lateral ridges much nearer commissure than culmen ;
gonys very long, equal to distance from nostrils to tip. Feet with only three toes, the
first or inner hind toe wanting, outer front toe a little longer than inner, slightly ex-
ceeded by hind toe. Wings very long, reaching beyond middle of tail.

PrcorpEs ARCTICUS (Sw) Gr.

Black-backed Woodpecker.

Picoides arcticus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 379, (probable); Reprint, 1861, 22,
(probable) —BatrD, BREWER aud RıpGwar, ii, 1874, 521.

Picus (Apternus) arcticus, SWAINSON, Fn. Bor. Am. ii, 1831, 313.
Picoides arcticus, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, ii, 434.

Crown with yellow patch in the male. Back uniform black, sides of head striped,
of body barred, with black and white; under parts otherwise white; quills with white
spots; tail feathers unbarred, the outer white, the central black. Length, 8-9; wing,
44-5; tail, 34-4.

Habitat, Northern North America. into the northern United States in winter, and in
all probability resident along our northern frontier, as well as further south in moun-
tainous regions.

Rare or accidental, and probably in winter only, in Northern Ohio.
Mr. Kirkpatrick informed me in 1861, that it was said to have occurred
in Ashtabula county, but with his characteristic caution, added “not
having seen the specimen I cannot vouch for the truth of the statement.”
It was accordingly mentioned in my catalogue in the list of probabilities,
It was ommitted from a subsequent list, no further evidence of its occur-
rence having been obtained.

Dr. Brewer in the work cited, says: “It has been found as far south
as Massachusetts, New York and Ohio, but rarely,” and in correspon-
dence with me in regard to its occurence, wrote that his statement was
based upon one specimen sent to him with other birds, by a local col-
lector, of Akron, Summit county, Ohio, and that, as the birds were sent
to him for identification, he had no doubt they were shot in that vicinity.

The nearest locality to us in which this Woodpecker is known to be a
permanent resident is Lewis county, New York, where both it and the
Banded Three-toed Woodpecker (P. americanus) have been discovered to
breed by Dr. C. H. Merriam. The eggs measure .91 by .70.

Genus SPHYRAPICUS. Baird.

Bill as in Picus, but the very prominent lateral ridge terminating at the middle of
the commissure; lateral outline of bill concave to near the tip. Outer toes longest,
the inner posterior toe very short, less than inner anterior without claw. Wings long
and pointed. Tail feathers very broad, abruptly acuminate, with a very long linear tip.
Tongue, scarcely extensible.

398 BIRDS—PICIDE.

SPHYRAPICUS varius (L.) Baird.

Yellow-bellied Woodpecker.

Picus varius, WILSON, Am. Orn., i, 1808, 147.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Surv., 1838, 162,
179.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Sphyrapicus varius, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 307.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 569; Reprint, 9.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Sphyropicus varius, var. varius, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1874, 540,

Picus varius, LINNZvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 176.

Sphyrapicus varius, BAIRD, Birds N. A. 1858, 103.

Crown crimson, bordered all around with black; chin, throat and breast black, en-
closing a large crimson patch on the former in the male, in the female this patch white ;
sides of head with a line starting from the nasal feathers and dividing the black of the
throat from « trans-ocular black stripe, this separated from the black of crown by a
white post-ocular stripe; all these stripes frequently yellowish; under parts dingy yel-
low, brownish, and with sagittate dusky marks on the sides; back variegated with
black and yellowish-brown ; wings black with large oblique white bar on the coverts,
the quills with numerous paired white spots on the edge of both webs; tail black, most
of the feathers white edged, the inner webs of the middle pair and the upper coverts,
mostly white. Young birds lack the definite black areas of the head and breast, and
the crimson throat patch, these parts being mottled gray. About, 84; wing, 44-5;
tail, 3}.

Habitat, the typical form in Eastern North America north to 64° at least. South to
Guatemala. Mexico. Cuba. Bahamas. Greenland. Var. nuchalis from the Rocky
Mountain region and Great Basin. Var. ruber from Cascade Mountains and Sierra
Nevada to the Pacific.

Common spring and fall migrant in March, April, October, and Novem-
ber. Mr. Langdon gives it as a not common winter visitor in the
vicinity of Cincinnati.

The Yellow-bellied Woodpecker, one of the most singular and attrac-
tive members of the family, is a regular migrant in spring and fall, and
while it never occurs in great numbers in this vicinity it may frequently
be seen in small companies of five or six in mixed woodland. The indi-
viduals of these little companies pay but little regard to each other, and
their association may for the most part be purely accidental. They are
the most silent of all our Woodpeckers, though not at all suspicious or
shy. When not in a hurry, they visit our orchards and gardens, search-
ing for insects in the crevices of bark. The ornamental evergreens of
cities, especially pine trees, are favorite resorts, and I suspect they have
a preference for pine woods, as on their arrival they are frequently soiled
by gum from these trees.

This is the only Woodpecker to which the term “Sapsucker” can

RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER. 399

with any propriety be applied. It lacks the long extensile tongue which
enables the other Woodpeckers to probe the winding galleries of wood-
eating larve, and is known to feed largely upon the green inner bark of
trees. In some localities it is said to destroy many trees by stripping off
the bark. In this locality its numbers are never so great as to prove
destructive, on the other hand, its visits are of great benefit to our gar-
dens and orchards. It destroys great numbers of pupe# of Aigerians,
which inhabit our maple, peach and pear trees, as well as currant-bush
borers, and coddling moths of our apple trees.

No one seems to have discovered for what purpose the tongue of birds
of this genus differs so greatly from those of other members of the family,
and the suggestion offers that their food is not obtained from the interior
of trees, but from the bark and small pithy branches.

The breeding range of this bird is not clearly made out. The older
writers gave it as breeding where it is now recognized as migrant only.
Perhaps it breeds in Northern Ohio; I once observed a pair digging an
excavation about fifty feet from the ground in a tall ash on the edge of
woods, in May. This they deserted, however, before it was completed.
They are known to breed from Northern New York, northward. The
nest is described as high up in some dead tree, and the eggs as pure
white, measuring .95 by .70.

Genus CENTURUS. Swainson.

Bill with lateral ridges not extending to tip or commissure. Nostrils very broadly
oval. Posterior outer toe shorter than anterior outer.

CENTURUS CAROLINUS (L.) Sw.
Red-bellied Woodpecker.

Picus carolinus, WILSON, Am. Orn., i, 1808, 113.—KıRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
162.—READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Centurus carolinus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 331.—WHkaTon, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 362; Reprint, 4; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 569; Reprint, 9—LaNnepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12.

Red-bellied Woodpecker, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1678, 136.

Picus carolinus, LINNZvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 174.
Centurus carolinus, SWAINSON, Class B., ii, 1837, 310,

Back and wings, except larger quills, closely banded with black and white ; primaries
with large white blotches near the base, and usually a few smaller spots. Whole
crown and vape scarlet in the male, partly so in the female; sides of head and under
parts grayish-white, usually with a yellow shade, reddening on belly ; flanks and cris-
sum with sagittate-black marks; tail black, one or two outer feathers white barred ;

400 BIRDS—PICIDE.

inner web of central feathers white with black spots, outer web of the same black with
a white space next the shaft for most of its length; white predominating on the rump.
Length, 9-10; wing about 5; tail about 24.

Habitat, Eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains. North rarely to southern
New England. Canada West.

Common resident. Breeds. The Red-bellied Woodpecker, known to
many as the “ Zebra Bird,” is the most retiring of all our species. In
the colder months of the year it is frequently found on the edges of heavy
woodland and in partially cleared land, less often in fields or near hab-
itations. In summer, however, it retires to the deepest and most unfre-
quented forests to breed. Mr. Kirkpatrick, as the result of his observa-
tions near Cleveland, suggests that it may be a summer resident only in
Northern Ohio, which would account for their greater abundance, appar-
ently, in other parts of the State in winter. It does not differ much in
habits from the Hairy Woodpecker.

When engaged in hammering for insects, it frequently utters a short
singular note, which Wilson, who mentions finding the bird at Chilli-
cothe, Ohio, likens to the bark of small dog. The note is usually twice
repeated and resembles the hoarse utterance of the syllables chow, chow.

The nest is excavated in the dead limb or trunk of a high tree. The
eggs are five, white, and measure 1.02 by .88.

Genus MELANERPES. Swainson.

Ridge of upper mandible not extending to tip or commissure of bill. Nostrils broadly
oval, Outer pair of toes equal.

MELANERPES ERYTHROCEPHALUS (L.) Sw.
Med-headed Woodpecker.

Picus erythrocephalus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 122.—Rgap, Prose. Phila
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Melanerpes erythrocephalus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 339.—WEHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 362, 373; Reprint, 1861, 4, 15; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 569; Reprint, 1875, 9—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Boc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 178; Reprint, 12; Summer Birds, ib., iii.,
1880, 225.

Red-headed Woodpecker, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 174.

Picus erythrocephalus, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 174.
Melanerpes erythrocephalus, SwAINSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 316.

Glossy blue-black ; rump, secondaries and under parts from the breast pure white;
primaries and tail feathers black; whole head, neck and breast crimson in both sexes,
grayish-brown in the young ; about 9; wing, 54; tail, 34.

Habitat, Temperate North America to the Rocky Mountains. Now rare in New Eng-
land. Utah. California.

N

GOLDEN-WINGED WOODPECKER. 401

Abundant summer resident from April to October. A few remain in
Middle Ohio throughout the year.

This in the most abundant and best known of all our Woodpeckers.
It frequents forests and groves, orchards and solitary trees in fields.
With the ordinary food habits of Woodpeckers, it combines a taste for
grasshoppers and beetles, and is moreover an expert flycatcher, often
capturing insects on the wing after the manner of the true Flycatchers.
It is more often seen seeking food on the ground than any other of the
family, except the Golden-winged Woodpecker. Nor is its food entirely
insectivous, for, as farmers and gardeners well know, it invades gar-
dens and orchards, eating, carrying off and mutilating the finest apples,
pears, cherries, and other fruits. It also visits the corn-fields and feeds
upon the tender corn and the worms which attack it.

In this vicinity only a few remain through the winter, and these retire
to the deepest woods or wooded ravines, where they find a limited pro-
tection from the severity of the weather. About the middle of April
they return in great numbers from the south, and leave again in Septem-
ber and October.

They are very neisy and quarrelsome, not only among each other, but
frequently with other birds. Should a bird of another species be in-
clined to resent their impertinent assault, they retire to a dead limb or
fence stake, and treat their irritated enemy to an aggravating game of
bo-peep.

The nest of the Red-headed Woodpecker varies greatly in position,
being located from ten to a hundred feet above the ground. It is gen-
erally in a dead limb or trunk, but not unfrequently excavated in living
wood. The eggs are usually five, pure white, and measure from 1.10 to
1.15 inches in length by .80 to .90 in breadth.

Genus COLAPTES. Swainson.

Bill curved, pointed, without ridge on upper mandible. Nostrilsoval. Posterior out
toe shorter than the anterior.

CoLAPTES AuRATUS (L.) Sw.
Golden-winged Woodpecker; Flicker.

Pious auratus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 162.

Colaptes auratus, Reap, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio
Farmer, ix, 1860, 347.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 362, 373; Reprint, 1861,
4, 15; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 569; Reprint, 1875, 9—Lanepow,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Reprint, 13
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 225; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 125.

26 3

402 BIRDS—PICIDE.

Yellow-spotted Woodpecker, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Cuculus auratus, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 112.
Picus auratus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 174.
Colaptes auratus, SWAINSON, Zool. Journ., iti, 1827, 353.

Back, wing coverte, and innermost quills olivaceous-brown thickly barred with black.
Rump snowy-white. Quills and tail golden-yellow underneath, and shafts of this color.
A scarlet nuchal crescent and large blaek peotoral crescent in both sexes; male with
black maxillary patches, wanting in the female, head and nape ash, ehin, throat and
breast lilac-brown ; under parts with numerous round blaek spots; sides tinged with
creamy-brown, belly with yellowish. About 10 inches long; wing about 6; tail, 44.

Habitat, Eastern North America, to the slopes and foot-hills of the Roeky Mountains,
where in many localities it becomes mixed with C. americanus, Alaska. Greenland.
ccidental in Europe.

Abundant summer resident, and in part resident during the whole
year throughout the State. The Golden-winged Woodpecker arrives in
great numbers early in April, and is then in flocks in woods. A con-
siderable number pass on to the north, while those which remain
become generally dispersed over the country. The majority depart for
the South;in November, those which remain through the winter do not
congregate in considerable flocks, but, in small companies, roam the
fields and woods in search of food.

This bird is known by a number of names besides the ones above given,
High-hole, Wake-up and Yellow-hammer, in allusion to its nesting, note,
and color, respectively. F

Its ordinary note is singular, and suggests a violent hiccough, if it is
possible for birds to be so affected, and in addition it often sounds a
subdued, rolling, guttural chirrup. Its habits as to food differ somewhat
from allothers of the family. It is very fond of corn both green and
ripe, and is a great devourer of ants, indeed it seems to be specially
adapted for obtaining these insects. Its long, curved, pickaxe-like bill,
is employed in breaking down decayed logs and stumps, where these in-
sects abound, and which it collects upon its long and slimy tongue.
They may often be seen probing an ant-hill, for these insects.

Albinoes of this bird, are, perhaps, more frequent than among other
species of the family. Mr. Langdon (Obs.) says: “A beautiful Albino
has been taken at Valley Junction, by Mr. Harry Hunt, and is now in
his collection. It is of a delicate cream color, but the red nape shows
plainly, and the pectoral crescent obscurely.” A specimen, perhaps
darker buff, but the other markings corresponding to the above descrip-
tion, was taken by,Mr. W. R. Limpert, near Groveport, in this county,
several years since, and is now in my keeping. Mr. Joseph Sullivant,

CAROLINA PARROT. 403

of this city, has a specimen, locality unknown, nearly pure white, with
scarlet nape and yellow shafts to quills.

The nest of the Flicker is most frequently in a dead trunk at a consid-
erable height from the ground. It is generally excavated by the birds,
though not unfrequently the eggs are laid within a natural cavity. These
are from five to seven or even more in number, pure white, often varying

in size even in the same nest. Their average measurement is 1.09 by
88. :

&

ORDER PSITTACI. PARROTS.
FAMILY PSITTACIDA. PARROTS.

With the characters of Psittaci, given on page 200.

Subfamily SITTACINA. Parroquets.
Head plain, tail long or lengthened, wedge-shaped or graduated.

Genus CONURUS. Kuhl.

Culmen rounded. Face entirely feathered, except a curve around the eye. Tail shorter
than wings,

CoNURUS CAROLINENSIS (L.) Kuhl.
Carolina Parroquet.

Psittacus carolinensis, WILSON, Am. Orn., iii, 1811, 89.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Veolog. Surv.,
1838, 62, 179. .

Psittacus carolinensis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 135.

Centurus (error) carolinensis, AUDUBON, B. Am., iv., 1842, 309.

Conurus carolinensis, READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK,
Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860, 251—WaueEatTon, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361, 371;
Reprint, 3, 13; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570; Reprint, 10.
—BairD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, ii, 1874, 589.—Cougs, Birds N. W.,
1874, 296.—LaNnGpDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 11; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, i,
1878, 115; Reprint, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Re-
print, 13.

Parroquet, ATWATER, Hist. Ohio, 1838, 96.

Paittacus carolinensis, LINN&US, Syst., Nat., 1766, 141.

Conurus carolinensis, ‘‘Kunr, Nov. Acb. Acad. Caes. Lesp. Car.,” 1830.

Green; head yellow; face red; bill white; feet flesh-color; wings more or less
variegated with blue and yellow. Young, simply green. Length, 13; wing, 74; tail, 6.

Habitat, Southernmost Atlantic and Gulf States; up the Mississippi to Missouri; up
the Missouri River to the Platte. Colorado. Iowa. Wisconsin. Nebraska. Formerly
north in the Eastern United States to Pennsylvania and the Lakes. Albany, N. Y.

404 BIRDS—PSITTACIE.

Formerly a visitor, in probably all parts of the State in summer, and
breeding in the southern if not other portions, but has not made its ap-
pearance for several years.

Wilson, after mentioning their occurrence near Lake Michigan in
latitude 42°, and twenty-five miles northwest of Albany, N. Y., says:

*‘ In descending the Ohio, by myself in the month of February, I met with the first
‘flock of Parroquets at the-mouth of the Little Scioto. I had been informed by an old
and respectable inhabitant of Marietta, that they were sometimes, though rarely, seen
there. I observed flocks of them, afterwards, at the moath of the Great and Little
Miami, and in the neighborhood of the numerous creeks that discharge themselves into
the Ohio.”

In 1831, Audubon says:

“Our Parrakeets are very rapidly diminishing in number, and in some districts, where
twenty-five years ago they were plentiful, scarcely any are now to be seen. At that
period they could be procured as far up the tributary waters of the Ohio as the Great
Kanawha, the Scioto, the heads of Miami, the mouth of the Manimee [Maumee] at its
junction with Lake Erie, on the Illinois River, and sometimes as far northeast as Lake
Ontario, and along the Eastern districts as far as the boundary-line between Virginia
and Maryland. At the present day very few are to be found higher than Cincinnati,
nor is it until you reach the mouth of the Ohio that Parrakeets are met with in consid-
erable numbers. I should think that along the Mississippi there is not now half the
number that existed fifteen years ago.

In 1838, Atwater writes:

“: A few years ı ace Parroquets, in large flocks, lived in the woods along the Obio River
from Millers’ B .tom downwards, and along the Scioto River, upward from its mouth to
where Colum',ıs now stands. They are still iu the bottoms below Chillicothe, near the
river, where there is the proper food for them to eat, and birds enough for them to tor-
ment by their squalling noise.”

Dr. Kirtland in 1838, notes:

“The Parrakeets do not usually extend their visits north of the Scioto, though I am
informed, perhaps on doubtful authority, that thirty years since flocks of them were
seen on the Ohio at the mouth of Big Beaver, thirty miles below Pittsburgh.”

Mr. Read in 1853, says:

“A few years ago a flock of these birds appeared in Talmadge, Summit Co., as I was
informed by my friend, Rev, Sam’l. Wright. Have myself never seen them in the
Reserve.”

Mr. Langdon says:

“ Mr. Joseph Settle tells me that Parroquets occurred in large numbers near Madison-
ville, during the summer of 1837, ’38 and ’39. Few were seen in 1840, and none after
that year. He describes them as a “green bird,” appearing in flocks, like Blackbirds,
making aloud chattering noise, and destroying a considerable amount of fruit. Mr. Dury
notes, on the authority of Giles Richards, Esq., their occurrence at Matson’s Mille, near

CAROLINA PARROT, 405

Venice, Butler Co., Ohio; Mr. Richards pointing out the identical sycamores in which
they had nested many years ago.”

Finally, the late Wm. 8. Sullivant, L L.D., a well informed ornitho-
logist, as well as eminent botanist, who was well acquainted with
these birds in earlier years, informed me that in Jul), 1842. a flock
numbering from twenty-five to thirty made their appearance in the
Capitol Square of this city and remained in the elm trees opposite his
residence for a couple of hours, greatly to his enjoyment and the delight
of numerous small boys.

According to Audubon, the Parroquet nested in natural cavities of trees,
the compliment of eggs being two. This was not accurately deter-
mined for the reason that more than one female was believed to occupy
the same nest. He describes the eggs as greenish-white. Dr. Brewer
describes an egg as of a rounded oval form, dull white color, measuring
1.40 by 1.10.

ORDER RAPTORES. BIRDS OF PREY.

FAMILY STRIGIDH. OWLS.

Feet highly raptorial, with large, strong, sharp, curved contractile claws adapted for
grasping. Hallux perfectly incumbent, lengthened (more than half as long as the fourth
toe), with large claw. Front toes with slight basal webbing between outer and middle
toe, or none. Nostrils imperforate. Bill short, stout, not notably contracted in its conti-
nuity, with strongly hooked tip. Head feathered wholly or in greatest part. Lower
larynx developed with one pair of muscles. Cceca present, as a rule, if not always.

Physiognomy peculiar by reagon of great lateral expansion and lengthwise shortening
of the cranium, causing the eyes to be directed forward. Eyes surrounded by a disc of
radiating bristly feathers, in frout closely appressed to and hiding the base of the bill,
elsewhere bounded by a rim of differently formed feathers. Tomia never toothed or
lobed. Nostrils usually at the edge of the cere. Outer toe completely versatile, shorter
than inner toe. Basal phalanx of middle toe not longer than the second, and much
shorter than the next. Legs commonly feathered or bristly to or on the toes. Plumage
peculiarly soft and lax, without after-shafts; flight perfectly noiseless. Cranial walls
widely separated by intervention of spongy diploé. Sternum commonly doubly notched.
Chiefly nocturnal.

Genus STRIX. Linnzus,

No ear tufts; facial disc highly developed, not circular; ears very large, operculate.
Tarsi long, scant feathered, bristly below like the nearly naked toes. Middle claw
usually serrate or jagged. Plumage downy.

406 BIRDS—STRIGIDE.

STRIX FLAMMEA Linnzus.

var. AMERICANA (Aud.) Cs.
Barn Owl.

Strix pratincola, KıRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 35; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1859, 373 (probable) —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Strix flammea, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint,
1875, 10.

Strix flammea, var. americana, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 115; Reprint, 6—WaeaTon, Ball. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 62.

Striz flammea, var. pratincola, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin., Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
179; Reprint, 13; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 126,

Strix flammea, LINNZUS, Syst.'Nat., i, 1766, 133.

Sirix pratincola, BONAPARTE, List, 1338, 7.

Strix flammea, var. americana, COUES, Key, 1872, 201.

Strix flammea, var. pratincola, RipGway, BB. & R., N. A. Birds, iii, 1874, 13.

Tawny or fulvous brown, delicately clouded or marbled with ashy or white, and
speckled with brownish-black ; below, a varying shade from nearly a pure white to ful-
vous, with sparse sharp blackish speckling; face white to purplish-brown, darker or
black about the eyes, the disk bordered with dark-brown; wings and tail barred with
brown, and finely mottled like the back ; bill whitish ; toes yellowish. Length, female,
17; wing, 13; tail, 54 ; male rather less.

Habitat, North America and Mexico; not beyond the United States; rarely north to
New England and the Columbia. New York. Maine.

Rare visitor. Notover half a dozen individuals recorded. Mr. Kirkpat-
rick in 1859, mentions the probable occurrence of the Barn Owl in South-
ern Ohio. Two. years later, Mr. Kirkpatrick having positive informa-
tion of its occurrence and capture, I included it in my catalogue. Mr.
Dury subsequently informed mé that Ohio specimens were in his collec-
tion. Mr. Langdon in 1878, mentions Mr. Dury’s two specimens, and in
1880, says: ‘‘Mr. Shorten informs me of the capture of our third recorded
specimen of this species on April 14, 1880, at Foster’s Landing, on the
Ohio River, 36 miles above Cincinnati.”

The only specimens from this vicinity are noted by me in the aka
Bulletin (l. c.), as follows:

“Mr. Oliver Davie, of this city, has a specimen of this bird killed in this vicinity,
November 2, 1878. This is its northermost appearance in the interior, except on one
occasion, recorded by Mr. E. W. Nelson (Bull. Ess. Ias., 1876, Vol. VIII, p. 116), of two
taken in a trap near Chicago. Dr. Howard E. Jones informs me that he killed a speci-
men twenty-five miles south of Columbus, near Circleville, in the summer of 1873, which
is now in the Museum of Hobart College, Geneva, New York.”

The dates of these captures indicate that the bird is at least a sum-
mer resident of the State. The eggs, from three to six in number are

GREAT HORNED OWL. 407

white, and measure 1.80 by 1.25. They are deposited in nooks of build-
ings or crevices of rocks, sometimes in burrows in bluffs. No attempt is
made toward the construction of a nest.

Genus BUBO. Cuvier.

Size large. Ear tufts large and prominent. Eyes large. Facial discs complete. Eare
not operculate. Tarsi and toes densely feathered, claws very strong.

Bvuso VIRGINIANUS (Gm.) Bp.
Great Horned Owl.

Strix virginianus, WILSON, Am. Orn. vi, 1812, 59.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161
179.—ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 303; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Bubo virginianus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 35; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1859, 375.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570, Reprint, 10.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 12; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Reprint, 13.

Strix virginianus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 287.
Bubo virginianus, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 6.

Distinguished by its large size, in connection with'he conspicious ear tufts ; the other
species of similar dimensions are tuftless. The plumage varies interminably, and no
concise description will meet all its phases; it is a variegation of blackish, with dark
and light-brown, and fulvous. A white collar is the most constant color mark. Length
about 2 feet; wing, 14-16 inches; tail, 9-10.

Habitat, the Western Hemisphere. Common and generally distributed in wooded
regions in the United States.

Common resident. Breeds. This is the largest of all the Owls with
ear tufts, and perhaps the only one of sufficient size and abundance to
cause much damage by its depredations upon hen-roosts. It frequents
most especially deep woods and swamps, and may frequently beseen flying
or perching in day time, when it sees tolerably well. On such occasions
it is uusally attended by an unfriendly escort of Crows, Jays and smaller
birds, who pester it relentlessly.

Sometimes it is taken in traps set for itself or other wild animals, and
when wounded, fights fiercely both with bill and claws; even the snap-
ping of its bill is sufficient to induce caution on the part of those ap-
proaching.

The food of the Great Horned Owl consists of small quadrupeds such as
rats, mice, squirrels and occasionally rabbits, birds, reptiles and fish.

The nest is placed either in the fork of a high tree or in a cavity.
Sometimes they occupy the deserted nest of a hawk. The eggs are two,
dull white, nearly"spherical, and measure 2.30 by 2.00.

408 BIRDS—STRIGIDE.

Genus SCOPS. Savigny.

Size small; ear tufts moderate. Facial discs complete. Tarsi feathered ; toes, in our
species, cov. red with short bristly feathers.

Scop3 asto (L) Bp.
Screech Owl; Mottled Owl.

Strix asio, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Sarv., 1838, 161, 179.—ReAD, Fam. Visistor, iii, 1853,
303; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Soi., vi, 1353, 395.

Strix nevia, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 296; Proc Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci, vi, 1853, 395.

Scops asio, KikKPATRICK, Ohio Farmes, viii, 1868, 43; Ohio Agrie. Rep. for 185°, 1859,
375.— BREWER, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contributions, xi, 1869, 63 —WHRATON,
Ohio Agric. Rip. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3; Food of Birds, ete., Obio Agrio.
Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570; Reprint 10.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12,; Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Reprint, 13; Summer Birds, ib.,
iti, LR80, 225.

Strixjasio, Linnzzus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 132,
Scops asio, BONAPARTH, Comp. List, 1833, 6.
Striv,n@via, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 289.

One plumage: General aspect gray, paler or whitish below. Above speckled with
blackish, below patched with the same; wings and tail dark-barred ; usually a lightish
scapular area.

Another: General aspect brownish-red, with sharp black streaks ; below rufous-white,
variegated ; quills and tail with rufous and dark bars. These plumages shado insensibly
into exch other and it has been determined that they bear no definite relations to age,
sex or season. Length about 10; wing, 7; tail, 34.

Habitat, North America at large.

Common resident, but more numerous during the warmer portion of
the’ year. Breeds.

This is the smallest of ovr Owls with ear tufts. It presents, more strik-
ingly than any other species of our birds, the variation in color known
as dic omatism. Many early ornithologists considered the red and the
gray birds to constitute two species, and this opinion still obtains among
those whose acquaintance with them is casual. It has been sufficiently
proven, not only that birds of each plumage mate, but also that the
young brood while in the nest, may consist of birds of both colors. I
once discovered a pair of these birds caring for six newly fledged young;
the female was of the red and the male of the gray type of coloration ;
while of three of the young which I secured, one only was red. The color
is thus seen to be an individual character, and not governed by age, sex
or geason.

None of our Owls are more frequently seen or heard about houses,
or even in the midst of large cities. Nearly every one is familiar

LONG-EARED OWL. 409

with its wailing screech. In this city it is not a frequent visitor, and
confines its visits to the colder portions of the year. At such times it
often appears to be driven to desperation to procure food. Mr. C. H.
Wetmore informed me that some bird, probably an Owl, attempted for
several successive nights to capture the shadow of a canary bird, which
fell upon a white window curtain, near which its cage was suspended.
Hoping the bird might prove to be an Acadian Owl, I requested that if
possible he procure the specimen, which he did, it proving to be of this
species. While the bird was lying in my office, it was seen by other
gentlemen, who reported that presumably the same bird had made the
the same attempt at their respective resitences. As might be expected
in a bird which developed a hobby for so rare an article of diet, it was
reduced to a shadow itself. Its ordinary food consists of large insects,
mice and small birds.

The nest of the Mottled Owl is placed in a hollow stump or trunk, often
in a decaying apple tree. The eggs are from five to seven in number,
pure white and nearly round. They measure 1.38 by 1.19.

Genus OTUS. Cavier.

Size medium, Ears very large, with semi-circular flap. Ear tufts long and con-
epicuous; facial disc complete. Tarsi and toes feathered.

Orus VULGARIS Fleming.

var. WILSONIANUS (Less.) All

Long-eared Owl.

Strix otus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1833, 572.

Otus vulgaris, AUDUBON, B. Am., i, 1840, 136.

Otus wilsonianus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 27; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1859, 377.—WHEATON, Ohio Agrio. Rep. for 1860, 361 ;, Reprint, 1861, 3.

Otus vulgaris, var. wilsonianus, WHEATON, Food ot Birds, etc, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
570; Reprint, 1875, 10 —LaneGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1878, 115; Rn 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1879, 179;
Reprint, 13.

Otus vulgaris, FLEMING, Brit. An., 56.
Oius wilsonianus, Lesson, Tr. Orn., i, 1831, 110.
Otus vulgaris, var. wilsonianus, ALLEN, Bull. M.C. Z., iii, 1872, 180.

General plumage above a variegation of dark-brown, fulvous and whitish, in small
pattern; breast more fulvous, belly whiter, the former sharply striped, the latter
striped and elaborately barred, with blackish; quills and tail mottled and closely barred
with fulvous and dark-brown; face pale; with black touches and eye patches; bill and
claws blackish. Ear tufts of 8-12 feathers. Length, 14-15; wing, 11-12; tail, 5-6.

Habitat, Temperate North America at large.

410 BIRDS—-STRIGIDE.

Resident. Common in winter, rare in summer. Probably breeds.
The Long-eared Owl, which Audubon found “not rare in Ohio,” is,
curiously enough, not named in the catalogues of Dr. Kirtland and Mr.
Read. It is, perhaps, a somewhat irregular, but at times abundant win-
ter visitor. So far as my observations extend it appears to be most com-
mon in winters when the next species is least numerous. Mr. Kirk-
patrick, the first local writer who mentions it, says “it is an inhabitant
of the woods from which it seldom ventures far. It is extremely abund-
ant in the eastern States, on the seaboard, but is much scarcer west of the
Alleghenies. In Ohio it occasionally occurs, and is in all likelyhood a
constant resident with us, and specimens are sometimes obtained, and it
is, however, rather more plentiful than formerly.” Mr. Langdon reports,
“full fledged young of the year taken by Mr. Dury, at Avondale, in July,
1878—this first evidence of the breeding of this species in this vicinity.”

Forests of evergreens are said to be the favorite resorts of this species
for breeding purposes. The nest is composed of sticks with a more or
less complete lining of feathers. The same nest is occupied for several
years. Sometimes an old Hawk’s or Crow’s nest is occupied. In some
localities they are said to nest on the ground or on low bushes. The
eggs are generally two, sometimes four, white, and measure from 1.65 ta
1.50 in length and from 1.35 to 1.30 in breadth.

Genus BRACHYOTUS. Gould.

Ear tufts small and inconspicuous; otherwise like Otus.

BRACHYOTUS PALUSTRIS (Bechst.) Bp.
Short-eared Owl.

Strix brachyotus, KIRTLAND, Obio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 179.—ReAD, Fam. Visitor, iii,
303; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Brachyotus cassinii, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Brachyotus palustris, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agrie. Rep. fer 1874, 570; Re-
print, 1575, 10.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds ef Cia. 1577, 12.

Otus brachyotus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 1; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 1859,
376.—LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Reprint, 13

Strix brachyotus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 283.
Otus brachyotus, AUDUBON, Syn., 1839, 28.
cx nii, BREWER, Proc. Bost. Soc., 1856.
j tris, BECUSTEIN, V.D., iii, 344.
Brachyotus palustris, BONAPARTE, List, 1838,
Fulvous or buffy-brown, paler or whitey-brown below; breast and upper parts

{sr atl..t ckly streaked with dark-brown; belly usually sparsely streaked with the
same, but not barred crosswise; quills and tail buff, with few dark bands and mottling;

GREAT GRAY OWL. 411

facial area, legs and crissum pale, unmarked ; eye-patch blackish; ear tufts of from 3-6
feathers. Size of Otus.

Habitat, Europe. Asia. Greenland. America. West Indies.

Resident. Very common in winter, rare in summer. Breeds. The
Short eared Owl frequents swamps, borders of streams and fields. In
winter they sometimes appear in considerable flocks and hunt in com-
pany. A dozen or more are sometimes seen in fields and mounted
on fences, on cloudy days, watching for mice or other prey. Mr. Kirk-
patrick says it “is believed to breed in the swamps of Sandusky,” Mr.
Langdon gives it as a fall, winter and spring visitor, but Dr. Howard E.
Jones informs me that he has discovered the nest and eggs on the ground
near Circleville.

The Short-eared Owl usually nests on the ground, sometimes without
any attempt at nest building, but generally collecting together a few
sticks with feathers and grass. In some distant localities it excavates
short burrowsin banks. The eggs are four or five, white, more oval than
in most of this family, and measure 1.50 by 1.25.

Genus SYRNIUM. Savigny,

Size large. No ear tufts. Ears moderate, operculated. Eyes small. Facial discs
large, complete. Tarsi and toes full feathered. ‘

SYRNIUM CINEREUM (Gm.) Bonap.
Great Grey Owl.

Syrnium cinereum, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 107; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1359, 379.— WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3.—Covugs,
Birds of N. W., 1874, 308.—Lanapon, Journ. Cin. Sec. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Re-
print, 6; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.

Syrnium lapponicum, var. cinereum, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 1875, 570; Reprint, 10.

Strix cinerea, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 291.

Syrnium cinereum, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 6.

Syrnium lapponicum, var. cinereum, RIDGWAY, in Coues’ Key, 1872, 204.

Above, cinereous-brown, mottled in waves with cinereous white ; below, these colors
rather paler, disposed in streaks on the breast, in bars elsewhere ; quills and tail with five
or six darker and lighter bars; the great disk similarly marked in regular concentric
rings, An immense owl, one of the largest of all, much exceeding any other of this
country. Length, 2} feet; wing, 14; tail a foot or more.

Habitat, Northern North America, south in winter to Masssachusetts, Illinois and
Calitornia.

Extremely rare winter visitor. Mr. Kirkpatrick, adds this largest of
North American Owls, “to our fauna in consequence of an Owl answer-

412 BIRDS—STRIGIDE.

ing the description of this speciss, having been shot some years ago at
Huntsburg, Geauga county.” Mr. Langdon states that it has been “iden-
tified by Mr. Dury in Clarke county, Ohic; and Mr. Quick is confident
that he has seen a specimen taken at Brookville, Indiana.”

Dr. Brewer describes the nest of this bird as placed in trees, and com-
posed of sticks and moss with a lining of down. An egg in his posses-
sion “ is small for the size of the bird, and is of a dull soiled-white color,
oblong in shape, and decidedly more pointed at one end than at the
other.” It measures 2.25 inches in length by 1.78 in breadth.

SYRNIUM NEBULOSUM (Forst.) Boie.
Barred Owl.

Strix nebulosa, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161 —RaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853,
303; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1353, 395.
Syrnium nebulosum, KIRKPATRICK, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 378.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1361, 3; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agcie. Rep. for 1374,
70; Reprint, 1875, 10.—Lanapon, Cat. Birdsof Cin., 1877, 12; Revised List, Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist, i, 1379, 179; Reprint, 13.

Strix nebulosa, FORSTER, Tr. Philos, Soc., Ixii, 336, 424.
Syrnium nebulosum, ‘‘ BoIE.”—GRAY, Genera of Birds.

Above cinereous-brown, barred with white, often tinged with fulvous; below similar,
paler, the markings in bars on the breast, in streaks elsewhere ; quills and tail feathers
barred with brown and white with an ashy or fulvous tinge. Length about 13; wing,
13-14; tail, 9.

Habitat, North America, east of the Rocky Mountains. Chiefly United States.

Common resident. The Barred Owl, or, as frequently called, the
Round-headed Owl is common in all parts of the State. It frequents
woods and wooded swamps, not unfrequently visiting towns and cities.
Like the Great Horned Owl, it sometimes visits chicken-roosts and causes
great devastation, but its ordinary food consist of squirrels, rats, mice and
small birds.

The nest of the Barred Owl is frequently placed in the cavity of
a tree or in the deserted nest of a Hawk or Crow; less frequently it
constructs for itself a nest of sticks. The eggs are white and measure
2. by 1.65.

Genus NYCTEA. Stephens.

Size large. No ear-tufts; facial disc incomplete. Eyes and ears moderate. Tarsi
and toes densely covered with long hair-like feathers.

SNOWY OWL. 413

NyotEA scAnDIAcaA (L.) Newton.
Snowy Owl.

Strix nyctea, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv., 1912,53.—AUDUBON, Orn Biog.,1i, 1€34, 195.—Nur-
TALL, Man., i, 1832, 116.—KirTLanp, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 179.—REaD, Fam.
Visitor, iii, 1853, 295; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci. vi., 1853, 395.

Surnia nyctea, AUDUBON, B. Am., i, 1840, 113.

Nyctea nivea, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1359, 51; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1358, 1859,
382 —BREWER, N. A. Oology, Smith. Contrib., xi, 1859, 80.—WHRATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1075, 570 ; Reprint, 10.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin. 1877, 12.

Nyctea scandıaca, var. arctica, BAIRD, BREWER and Ripeway, N. A. Birds, iii, 1874, 71.—
Lanapon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,179; Reprint, 13.

White Owl, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218; Ohio Farmer, ix, 1860,
91,

Strix scandiaca, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 132.

Strix arctica, BARTRAM, Trav. Fla., 1791, 269.

Stric nyctea, LINNZDS, Syst, Nat., i, 1766, 132.

Surnia nyctea, SELBY, Ill. Br. Orn., i, 1833, 95.

Nyctea nivea, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, i, 1844, 34.

Nyctea scandiaca, NEWTON, 4th Ed. Yarr. Br. Birds, pt. iii, 1872, 187.

Pare white with more or fewer blackish markings. Length nearly 2 feet; wing, 17
inches ; tail, 10.

Habitat, northern portion of Northern Hemisphere, ranging irregularly southward in
winter. In North America, resident from the Canadas and probably from Maine,
northward. Regularly enters the Northern States in winter, frequently wandering to
the Middle States, casually to the Southern States, even to Texas. Kansas. Kentucky
and South Carolina, Bermuda.

Common winter visitor in Northern Ohio, more rare and irregular in
Middle and Southern Ohio.

This large northern Owl, commonly called the White Owl, is described
by Mr. Kirkpatrick as often quite abundant on the southern shore of Lake
Erie, both in mild andsevere winters. In this vicinity, and further south,
they have never appeared in considerable numbers, and are quite irregu-
lar. It is quite likely that the more uniform and equally mild climate
of the Lake basin affords them a comfortable winter residence, and
that the birds going further south are in search of information and ad-
venture rather than driven by climate or want of food.

In the Eastern States it seems to be rather more abundant and regular
than in the interior, often visiting the larger New England cities in
great numbers.

This Owl frequently flies by. day. It feeds upon rabbits and partridges,
and is said to be an expert fisher.

414 BIRDS—STRIGIDE.

The nest of the Snowy Owl is placed on the ground. The eggs are
three or? our, white, and measure 2.37 by 2.
Mr. Read relates:

“ This relic of superstition was exhibited during the winter of 1851, in a township of
Ashtabula county, by a visit of this bird under circumstances well calculated to work
upon this feeling. The Owl came by his usual noiseless flight and perched himself upon
a house where lay a corpse, around which the friends had assembled to bear it to its
long resting place. On being disturbed it flew direct to the church in which the funeral
services were to be held, and behind which lay the graveyard with the open grave, It
thus seemed to herald the first victim to the tomb, and many an old lady imagined that
the pestilence that walketh at noonday was about to visit that devoted town. The
bird, however, was shot and perhaps its power for evil was thereby destroyed.”

Genus SURNIA. Dumeril.

Size medium. No ear-tufts. Facial disc obsolete, Tarsi and toes densely feathered.
Tail long, graduated,

SURNIA ULULA (L.) Bp.

var. HUDSONIA (GM.) Ripa.
Hawk Owl; Day Owl.

Surnia ulula, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 67; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 383.—
WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint, 1875, 10.

Surnia ulula var. hudsonica, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12.

Surnia ulula, var. hudsonia, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
179; Reprint, 13.

Strix ulula, LInNzus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 133.

Strix hudsonia, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. i, 1788, 295.

Surnia funerea, DUMERIL, Zool. Anal., 1806, 34.

Surnia ulula, var. hudsonia, RIDGWAY, in Cones, Key, 1872, 205.

Dark-brown above more or less thickly speckled with white; below closely barred
with brown and whitish, the throat alone streaked ; quills and tail with numerous
white bars; face ashy, margined with black. Length about 16 inches; wing, 9; tail, 7,
graduated, the lateral feathers 2 inches shorter than the central.

Habitat, Northern North America. Breeds from Maine northward. In winter oo-
casionally south to Pennsylvania and Illinois. Bermudas. Not yet observed west of
the Rocky Mountains.

Rare winter visitor. ‘lhe Hawk Owl is more northern in its distribu-
tion in winter than the preceeding species and is even more diurnal,
having the form and appearance of a Hawk with the soft plumage of an
Owl.

ACADIAN OWL. 415

Mr. Kirkpatrick is our chief authority for its insertion here. He
Says:

“ This species is rare in Ohio. With us itisin all probability a winter visitoronly. It
breeds, however, in some of the more Northern States and in Canada, and is said to

feed on small quadrupeds, grouse and ptarmigan, and often endeavors to seize the
small game shot by the hunter.”

Mr. Langdon thinks that he has seen this species at St. Mary’s Reser-
voir.

It is said to breed in the hollows of trees, or more rarely in the branches,
in which case the nest is constructed of sticks, grass and feathers. The

eggs are said to number from five to eight, and measure about 1.50 by
1.20.

Genus NYCTALE. jBrehm.

Size small. No ear-tufts; facial disc perfect ; ears operculate ; tarsus and toes densely
feathered.

NYCTALE acapica (Gm.) Bp.
Acadian Owl; Saw-whet Owl.

Strix acadica, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 537.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
161, 179.—ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1853, 303; Proc. Phila, Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395. .

Ulula acadica, AUDUBON, B. Aw., i, 1840, 124.

Nyctale acadia, (error) KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1859, 9; Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1858, 1359, 381.

Nyctale acadica, BREWER, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contributions, xi, 1859, 74, 132, pl.
45.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3; Food of Birds, ete.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570 ; Reprint, 18 —Couszs, Birds of N. W., 1874, 316.
—BairD, BREWER and Ripaway, N. A. Birds, iii, 1874, 45.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 12; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179 ; Reprint, 13.—
Dury and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1880, 104; Reprint, 5,

Strix acadica, GMELIN, Syst., Nat., i, 1788, 296,

Nyctale acadica,, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 7.

Size small. Bill, black, the cere tumid, the circular nostrils presenting anteriorly,
Above chocolate-brown, spotted with white, the tail with transverse white bars; facial
area and forehead variegated with white, the face and superciliary line grayish-white;
the lower parts white with streaks of the color of the back, Length, 74-8; wing, 53;
tail, 23.

Habitat,’ Temperate North America from Atlantic to Pacific; chiefly, however, North-
ern United States and aéjoining British territory; ranging southward, in wooded
mountainous regions, into Mexico.

Not ‘uncommon resident in Northern, resident or winter visitor in
Middle and Southern Ohio. Breeds.

416 BIRDS—STRIGIDE.

The Acadian Owl is the smallest member of the family found with us.
It is more nocturnal than many others of the family, and this, together
with its size, renders its discovery diflicult. Mr. Read gives it as not un-
common, being more frequently seen than the red variety of the Mottled
Owl. Mr. Winslow considers it by no means rare, and Mr. Kirkpatrick
says, “it is not plentiful with us, but may occasionally be found.” Mr.
Langdon records but three specimens taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati,
and considers it a winter visitor only. To this record Messrs. Dury and
Freeman, add one, and perhaps two, individuals, one of which was taken
May. Audubon says “in Cincinnati, I had one brought to me which
had been taken from the edge of a cradle in which a child lay asleep, to
the no small astonishment of its mother.”

In this vicinity it is very rare; I have never seen it alive. On the
11th of January 1879, my neighbor, Mr. B. J. Loomis, brought me a
specimen, a present from his little daughter, who found it dead, probably
frozen, in their garden. Two specimens were taken in this vicinity late
in November of the present year (18:0).

It seems to bé rather partial to evergreen woods, and the lack of these
may account in part for its rarity here. Nyc ale albifrons and Nyctale kirt-
landi which were once supposed to be distinct species, and also te
be the young of Tengmalm’s Owl, are now known to be the young of this
species. Mr. Winslow has a specimen of albifrons, and Dr. Brewer men-

NYCTALE TENGMALMI (Gm) Bp.

var. RICHARD:ONI (BP.) Ripa.

Tengmalm’s Owl.
Nyctale tengmalmi, var. richardsoni, Cours, Birds of N. W., 1874, 324, ° Northern Ohio
(Winslow).”

Strix tengmalmi, GMELIN, i, 1788, 291.
Nyctale richardsoni, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 7.
Nyctale tengmalmi, var. richardsoni, RIDGWAY, Am. Nat., vi, 1872, 285.

Habitat, the typical form,. Europe, Asia and Northern Africa. Var. richardsons
from North America; south regularly to the United States frontier; in winter rarely
through New England, beyond which there is no record on the Atlantic. Northern Ohio
( Winslow.)

The above range is given to this bird by Dr. Cones, but upon inquiry of Mr.
Winslow for particulars respecting its occurrence, he was unable to give me any infor-
mation, and Dr, Coues was unabi!e to recall his authority.

The accrediting of this bird to this fauna is, doubtless, an ‘error, which possibly may
have arisen from the capture of specimens of so-called albifrons and kirtlandi mentioned
above.

MARSH HAWK. 417

tions a specimen of kirtlandi, both of which were taken in the vicinity
of Cleveland

The nest of the Acadian Owl is placed in holes of tre«s, and the eggs,
pure white, globular, measure 1.13 by .87. Dr. Brewer says, “ it has been
said to breed near Cleveland, Ohio, and its nest and eggs have been se-
cured.”

FAMILY FALCONIDA. DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY.

With the characters given in the first paragraph of the definition of Family Strigida,
but constrasting with the second paragraph of that definition as follows:

Physiognomy not peculiar in any lateral expansion of the eranium; the eyes lateral
in direction. No complete facial disc; base of bill not hidden by appressed bristles.
Nostrils wholly in the cere. Outer toe rarely versatile, except Pandion, etc. ; not shorter
than the inner. Basal phalanx of middle toe longer than the seéeud. Legs commonly
naked and scutellate or reticulate in some portion of their length; toes always bare
and scaly. Plumage compact, usually with after-shafts; flight audible. Cranial walls
with little diploé. Sternum commonly single-notched or fenestrate, sometimes entire.
Diurnal. ”

Genus CIRCUS. Lacepede.

Face with a raff forming an imperfect facial disc, as in the owls; nostrils oval; wings,
tail and tarsi very long, the latter twice as long as the middle toe, scutellate in front and
behind.

CIRCUS CYANEUS (L) Lacép.

var. HuDsonIvs (L.) All.
Marsh Hawk; Hoarrier.
e

Falco cyaneus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.

Circus hudsonius, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 395; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
361.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Circus cyaneus, var. hudsonius, WHEATON, Food cf Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1878, 115; Reprint, 6; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
120; Reprint, 14.

Falco cyaneus, LINNA&US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 126.

Falco hudsonius, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 128.

Circus hudsonius, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 36.

Cirens cyaneus, var. hudsonius, ALLEN, Bull. M. Z. C., 1872, 181.

Adult male pale bluish-ash, nearly unvaried, whitening below and on upper tail
coverts; quills blackish towards the end. ‚Length, 16-18; wing, 14-15; tail, 8-9; fe-
male larger, above dark-brown streaked with reddish-brown, below the reverse of this;
tail banded with these colors; immature male is like the female though redder, but in
any plumage the bird is known by its white upper-tail-coverts and generic characters.

Habitat, Europe, Asia. Var. hudsonius throughout North America. Var. cinereus in
South America.

Common and resident in some portions of the State, rare and migrant
in others. Dr. Kirtland, in 1838, had not met with this bird but named
27

418 BIRDS—FALCONIDE.

it in his catalogue on the authority of Dr. Sager, who had taken it in
the Maumee Valley. Mr. Read does not name it. Mr. Kirkpatrick says,
“it is quite common in Ohio and abounds around Sandusky Bay, in the
marshes of which it obtains a rich supply of food. Along the Cuyahoga
bottoms it may often be seen, and it no doubt breeds in these iocalities.”
Mr. Dury has found it breeding at the Mercer county Reservoir. Mr.
Langdon gives it as arare spring and fall migrant in the vicinity of
Cincinnati. In the vicinity of Columbus it was once rather common, and
bred in the swamp prairies south of the city. A few remained here
during the winter but they were more numerous in summer. Now it is
comparatively rare; in some seasons none are seen, Itis always found
in the vicinity of water, and at present is most frequently seen in late
summer or early fall, sweeping slowly over the bottoms in pursuit of
mice, birds and large insects.

The nest of the Marsh Hawk differs from that of all others of the
family, breeding with us, in being placed on the ground. It is composed
of scant materials or none, and contains from three to six eggs. These
are dull white more or less shaded with green or blue, often spotted with
different shades of brown, lilac and lavender. They measure about 1.80
by 1.45.

Genus ELANOIDES. Vieillot.

Bill moderately strong. Nostrils broadly oval. Wings long and pointed ; tail long,
deeply forked; feet,small; tarsi reticulate, feathered half way down in front; toes

barely webbed.
ELANOIDES FoRFicaTUs (L.) Ridgway.

Swallow-tailed Kite.

Falco furcatus, WILSON, Am. Orn., vi, 1812, 70.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161,
178.—Reap, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 228; Proc, Acad. Nat. Sei., Phila., vi, 1853,
395.

Nauclerus furcatus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer vii, 1858, 363.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3; Foed of Birds, eto., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,

570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116.

Elanoides forficatus, WHEATON, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1877, 12.—Lanepon, Revised
List, Journ. Cin.Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint, 14,

Swallow-tailed Hawk, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Falco forficatus, LINNZvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758,

Falco furcatus, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 129,

Nauclerus furcatus, VIGORS, Zool. Journ., ii, 1825, 387.

Elanoides yetapa, VIEFLLOT, Ency. Meth., iii, 1823, 1205.

Elanoides forficatus, RIDGWAY, Bull. U. 8. Geolog. and Geog, Surv., ii, No, 2, 1876, 181.

SWALLOW-TAILED KITE. 419

Head, neck and under parts white; back, wings and tail lustrous-black ; feet greenish
blue, claws pale. Length, female, 23-25; wing, 16-174; tail, 14; male a little smaller.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States. On the Altantic coast not regularly beyond
Virginia, but casually to Massachusetts. Up the whole Mississippi Valley, however, to
latitude 47°, Up the Missouri to Fort Leavenworth at least. Cuba. South to Brazil.
Accidental in Europe.

Formerly an abundant summer resident ; now a rare?vistor. Wilson
says of this elegant Hawk that it “is very abundant in South Carolina
and Georgia, and still more so in west Florida, and the extensive prairies
of Ohio and the Indiana Territory.”

In 1838, Dr. Kirtland says:

“ A few years since the Swallow-tailed Hawk was to be seen during the summer, in
considerable numbers in Portage and Stark counties. From some unknown cause it has
of late, ceased to visit these localities, They were probably the northernmost verge of its
summer migrations, and the late cold and wet seasons have driven it back into warmer
climates.”

Mr. Read does not appear to have seen it, and adds nothing to Dr. Kirt-
land’s statement. Mr. Kirkpatrick, 1858, adds that “the prairies of Craw-
ford county were formerly a favorite place of resort, and occasionally a
specimen may be found there still.” Nothing more is heard of the bird
in this State until 1878, when a specimen was taken, as noted by me in
the Bulletin (1. c.) as follows:

“This bird, which has not been recorded from Ohio for over twenty-five years, was
taken in Licking county, near the town of Pataskala, seventeen miles east of Columbus,
August 22, 1878. It is reported to have been killed when in the act of pursuing chickens.
On being brought to the town of Pataskala, it excited considerable remark, no one
being acquainted withit. It was finally decided to be a Bald Eagle escaped from Barnum’s
Show, and thrown away. It was recovered and identified by Rev. C. H. Permort, who
carefully removed the skin from the decomposed remains and presented it tome. It is in
high plumage, the dark area iridescent with purple-bronze and green.”

In habits the Swallow-tailed Hawk differs from most other members of
the family, in that it is gregarious, great numbers sometimes associating
and feeding together, and breeding in the same neighboorhood. Dr, Kirt-
land, 1850, speaking of their former appearance in considerable numbers,
says they “might be seen moving in graceful circles, at no great height,
watching for the garter snake, that then infested our meadows.”

Their food consists of snakes, lizards and large insects which they
devour whileon the wing. It rarely alights on the ground.

The nest of the Swallow-tailed Hawk is said to be placed on a high
tree, in the vicinity of water, and to resemble that of the Crow. The
eggs are dirty-whitish, with blotches of different shades of brown, most
numerous about the smaller end. They measure 1.90 by 1.50.

420 BIRDS—FALCONIDE.

Genus ACCIPITER. Brisson.

Bill at base higher than long. Wings short; tail long; tarsi long, slender, feathered
at base; toes padded underneath.

AccIPITER Fuscus (Gm.) Bp.

Sharp-shinned Hawk; Pigeon Hawk.

Falco velox, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 161, 178.

Falco fuscus, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1252, 220; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Accipiter fuscus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 155; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 352.
—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 20; Food of Birds, etc.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 12.

Nisus fuscus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint,
14; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 225.

Falco fuscus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 220.

Falco velox, WILSON, Am. Orn., v, 1812, 280.

Accipiter fuscus, BONAPARTE, Comp. List., 1838, 5.

Nisus fuscus, Kaup, Mon. Fale. Cont. Orn., 1850, 64.

Feet extremely slender; bare portion of tarsus longer than middle toe; scutelle fre-
quently fased, tail square. Above dark-brown (deepest on the head, the occipital
feathers showing white when disturbed) with an ashy or plumbeous shade which in-
creases with age, tili the general cast is quite bluish-ash; below white or whitish,
variously streaked with dark-brown and rusty, finally changing to browish-red (palest
behind and slightly ashy across the breast) with the white then only showing in narrow
cross-bars ; clio, throat and crissum mostly white with blackish pencilling ; wings and
tail barred with ashy and brown or blackish, the quills white-barred basally, the tail
whitish tipped; bill dark; claws black; cere and feet yellow. Male, 10-12; wing, 6-7;
tail, 5-6; female, 12-14; wing, 7-8; whole foot, 34 or less.

Habitat, the whole of North America. South to Panama.

Common resident in Northern, less common in Middle and Southern
Ohio. Dr. Kirtland and Mr. Read give this Hawk as common. Mr.
Kirkpatrick gives us to infer that it does not remain in the vicinity of
Cleveland during winter, but states that it breeds. Mr. Langdon gives
it as rare in the vicinity of Cincinnati, and cites Mr. Dury as authority
for its breeding there. Inthis vicinity it is rather rare, though, I believe,
a resident throughout the year.

The Sharp shinned Hawk is one of the most daring and dashing of
the family, frequently and successfully visiting the barn-yard for food,
and often attacking birds of nearly its own weight. Sometimes, how-
ever, he fails to obtain his prey, either from over confidence in his own
abilities, or under estimation of the powers of his victim. I onee saw an
adult bird of this species pounce upon a Meadowlark, quietly feeding upon

COOPER’S HAWK. 421

the ground. By some means the attack was only partly successful, and
the Lark hopped about for a few moments with the Hawk upon his
back. Theridiculousness of his position seemed to disconcert the Hawk,
who relaxed his grip, only to find himself attacked by bill and claws of
his victim. Then followed a fierce fight with claws, bills and wings, in
which both contestants appeared equally activeand determined. Finally
the combatants separated, the Hawk fiying in one direction disappointed,
dejected and disgusted, the Lark in another, recovering his breath by
extraordinary cries of alarm and distress.

The nest of the Sharp-shinned Hawk is usually placed in trees, some-
times on rocks. The eggs are white, variously shaded, thickly marked
with different shades of brown. They measure about 1.45 by 1.15.

ACCIPITER COOPERI Bp.
Cooper’s Hawk; Chicken Hawk.

Falco cooperi, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv , 1838, 164, 179.

Asiur cooperi, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 220; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853,
395.

Accipiter cooperi, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1858, 147; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
315.—BREWER, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contributions, xi, 1859, 20.—WHEATON,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric,
Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12.

Nisus cooperi, BAIRD, BREWER, and RipGway, iii, 1674, 233 —LANGDON, Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint 14; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1880,
225. ;

Cooper’s Hawk, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Falco cooperi, BONAPARTE, Am. Orn., ii, 1828, 1.

Accipiter cooperi, GRAY, List B. Br. Mus. ii, 38.

Nisus cooperi, RIDGWAY, Proc. Bost. Soc., xvi, 1873, 59.

Feet moderately stout; bare portion of tarsus shorter than middle toe; scutell® re-
maining distinct; tail a littlerounded. Colors and their changes as in A. fuscus; larger,
male, 16-18; wing, 9-10; tail, 7-8; female, 18-20; wing, 10-11; tail, &-9. Whole foot
4 or more.

Habitat, Temperate North America and southward.

Very common resident in Southern and Middle, more rare in Northern
Ohio. Breeds. Dr. Kirtland; 1850, mentions it as breeding abund-
antly in former years. Neither Mr. Read nor Mr. Kirkpatrick indicate
that they were personally acquainted with it. Mr. Langdon gives it
as a rather common summer resident in the vicinity of Cincinnati. In
this vicinity it is one of the most abundant Hawks, especially in
winter, when it approaches human habitations, and road sides. It is
extremely methodical and regular in its habits at this season, and the

9
422 i BIRDS—FALCONIDA.

same individual is to be found at the same locality, at the same hour,
day after day.

The two birds of this genus are perhaps the boldest depredators of the
family. They do not hesitate to attack chickens in the presence of their
owners and frequently continue their visits until they have exterminated
the young broods, often, however, paying for their audacity with their
life. At the same time they feed largely upon small quadrupeds, snakes
and other reptiles, and are very destructive to game.

The nest of Cooper’s Hawk is built in trees. The eggs, from three to
five in number, are white, sometimes blotched with yellowish-brown.
They measure 1.94 by 1.56.

Genus ASTUR. Lacepede.

Size large ; tarsi feathered half way to the toes in front; other characters much like
Accipiter.

ASTUR ATRICAPILLUS (Wils.) Bp.
Goshawk.

Falco palumbarius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.

Astur atricapillus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 139; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 349.
BREWER, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contributions, ix, 1859, 17, 18, 131, pl. 5,
(error); American Naturalist, i, 1868, 121 (correction) —WAEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 560; Reprint, 1861,2; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570;
Reprint, 1875, 10.—Coues, Birds of N. W., 1874, 339 —LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1872, 12; 121.

Astur palumbarius, var. atricapillus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 180; Reprint, 14.

Falco atricapillus, WıLsoN, Am. Orn., vi, 1812, 80.

Astur atricapillus, JARDINE and SELBY, Illust., 1825.

Falco palumbarius, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1823, 28.

Astur palumbarius, var. atricapillus, RIDGWAY, Proc. Bost. Soc., xvi, 1874, 571.

Adalt dark bluish-slate blackening on the head, with a white superciliary stripe ; tail
with four broad dark bars; below closely barred with white and pale-slate, and sharply
streaked with blackish. Young dark-brown above, the feathers with pale edges, streaked
with tawny-brown on the head and cervix; below fulvous-white with oblong brown
markings. Female, 2 feet long; wing, 14 inches; tail, 11; male smaller.

Habitat, British America, and the Northern half of the United States—the latter
chiefly in winter; farthest south along the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada.

Rare winter visitor. This large and handsome Hawk, which is now
known to breed from Northern New England northward, sometimes
appears in considerable numbers in winter both northeast and west of
us. In this State, however, no record of such appearance is known to
me, only a few individuals being noted.

,

DUCK HAWK. 423

Dr. Kirtland named it in his list on the implied authority of Audubon.
Mr. Read refers to it, but not as an Ohio bird. Mr. Kirkpatrick men-
tions a specimen taken by Dr. Sterling in the vicinity of Cleveland.
Mr. Langdon, on the authority of Mr. Dury, notes: “A single specimen,
female in inmature plumage, taken twenty miles east of Cincinnati, in
November, 1878.” Doubtless this bird is of not unfrequent occurrence in
northwestern Ohio. I have never meet with it in this vicinity.

The nest of the Goshawk is placed in trees. The eggs, usually four,
are dull greenish-white, sometimes faintly spotted with yellowish-brown.
They measure about 2.30 by 1.80. i

Genus FALCO. Linnsus.

Bill with a distinct notch and prominent tooth. Nostrils circular, with a central
tubercle. Wings long and pointed; tail rather long and wide; tarsi short, robust;
claws long and sharp.

FALco coMMUNIS Gm.

var. ANATUM (Bp.) Ridgway.

Peregrine Falcon; Duck Hawk.

Falco peregrinus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 161, 178.—Reap, Fam. Visitor,
iii, 1852, 212; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Falco anatum, Kirkpatrick, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 379; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 345.
—WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2.

Falco communis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint,
1875, 10.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12.

Falco communis, var. anatum, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
188 ; Reprint, 22.

Falco communis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 270.

Falco anatum, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 4.

Falco communis, var. anatum, RipGway, Proc. Bost. Soc, 1873, 45.

Tarsus feathered but little way down in front, elsewhere irregularly reticulated in
small pattern, not longer than middle toe; Ist quill alone decidedly emarginate on inner
web, not shorter than the 3d. Above blackish-ash, with more or less evident paler
waves; below, and the forehead, white with more or less falvous tinge, and transverse
bars of blackish ; conspicuous black ear-patches. Young with the colors not so intense
and tending to brown; the tawny shade below stronger, the lower parts longitudinally
striped. Length, about 18; wing, 13-14 ; tail, 7-8.

Habitat, nearly cosmopolitan. Var. anatum, generally distributed in America. Var.
communis, from most parts of the Old World. Var. melanogenys, from Australia and Java.
Var. minor, from South Africa.

Not rare in Northern and Northwestern Ohio, rare in Middle and not

identified in Southern Ohio. This large Hawk, the largest of the typi-
cal Falcons with us, is not uncommon in the vicinity of Cleveland, where

424 BIRDS—FALCONIDA.

it appears to be chiefly a migrant, and perhaps a winter visitor. Mr.
Dury, as stated by Mr. Langdon, procured specimens from the St. Mary’s
Reservoir, whera it may possibly breed, as it has been found breeding in
corresponding latitudes in Illinois. In the vicinity of Columbus it is
rare. J have seen a single specimen, and Mr. Jasper has one, which he
took in the immediate vicinity of the city.

The Great-footed or Duck Hawk, is noted for its swiftness of flight and
great daring. It follows ducks and other water fowl on their migrations,
pursuing and striking them down, while on the wing. It is sometimes
very bold, seizing the bird, which the gunner has killed, and carrying it
off, when almost within his reach. This temerity is often fatal.

The nest of the Duck Hawk is usually placed in nearly inaccessible
places on rocks, sometimes in trees. The eggs are four, variable in co'or,
some being white sparingly spotted with light reddish-brown, others with
the light color obscured with chocolate brown, and with blotches of still
darker brown. Eggs in the same nest sometimes present these extremes
of coloration. They measure abont 2.20 by 1.70.

. FALCO COoLUMBARIUS Linneeus.
Pigeon Hawk.

Falco columbarius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.—RrAD, Family Visitor,
iii, 1852, 204; Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1°53, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 1861, 360; Reprint, 2; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 570; Reprint, 10.—LanGpon, Cat Birds of Cin., 1877, 12.

Hypotriorchis columbarius, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, viii, 1858, 387; Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 125r, 1859, 347.

Falco lilhofalco, var. columbarins, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 179; Reprint, 10.

Falco columbarius, LINNEvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 128.

Hypotriorchis columbarius, GRAY, Gen. of Birds.

Falco lithofalco, var. columbarius, RipGway, Proc. Bost. Soc., 1673, 46.

Tarsus scarcely feathered above, with the plates in front enlarged, appearing like a
double row of alternating scutell® (and often with a few true scutell® at base); Ist and
2d quill emarginated on inner web.

Adult male, above ashy-blue, sometimes almost blackish, sometimes much paler;
below pale fulvous or ochraceous, whitish on the throat, the breast and sides with large
oblong dark-brown spots with black shaft lines; the tibi® reddish, streaked with brown;
inner webs of primaries with about eight transverse white or whitish spots; tail tipped
with white, and with the outer feather whitening ; with a broad subterminal black zone
and 3-4 black bands alternating with whitish ; cere greenish-yellow, feet yellow. Fe-
male with the upper parts ashy-brown; the tail with 4-5 indistinct whitish bands;
about, 13; wing, 8; tail, 5; male smaller.

Habitat, North America, ranging into Mexico, Central America and northern portions of
South America. Ecuador. Jamaica.

SPARROW HAWK. 425

Not common spring and fall migrant in March, April, September,
October and November in most portions of the State, rare resident near
Cleveland where it sometimes breeds. Mr. Langdon gives it as a rare
migrant in the vicinity of Cincinnati, and it is far from common in the
vicinity of Columbus. It is usually seen in the vicinity of streams and
low grounds, pursuing flocks of Blackbirds and other migrants. It re-
cieves its name from its size and color, rather than from any habit of.
preying upon pigeons.

Dr. Kirtland speaks of it as of frequent occurrence in Northern Ohio,
and Mr. Read notes its occurrence in midsummer. Mr. Kirkpatrick says:

“This handsome little Hawk is of pretty common occurrence in this State. Dr. Kirt-
land says it is a permanent resident. A pair have built their nests for several year past
near his house at Rockport, and he has observed them daring the whole season. They
visit his barn and out-houses in pursuit of mice and other small prey. He shot two
young specimens, but the old are too shy to be approached within shot. They are now
in very fine dark plumage; the young being much Jighter colored.”

This is perhaps its most southern breeding record, and will surprise
many ornithologists, as no other authentic and specific account exists of
its breeding in the Eastern United States, south of Maine. It is hardly
possible that so accurate an observer as Dr. Kirtland should have failed
to properly identify the birds breeding with him.

The nest is said to be placed in trees or on rocks. The eggs vary in
size “ from 1.50 by 1.30 to 1.80 by 1.80. Coloration ranges from a nearly
uniform deep rich brown to whitish or white, marked with a few indis-
tinct dots of dull grayish or drab.”

FALco sPARVERIUS Linnzus.
Sparrow Hawk.

Falco sparverius. KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1338, 161, 178.—ReaAD, Fam. Visitor, iii,
1852, 212; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395 —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570 ;
Reprint, 1875, 10.—LANnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc, Nat Hist., i, 1879, 179; Reprint, 13; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1880, 225.

Tinnunculus sparverius, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 171; Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1858, 348,

Falco sparverius, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 128.
Tinnunculus sparverius, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept., i, 1807, 48.

Tarsus and quills as in columbarius. Crown ashy-blue, with a chestnut patch, some-
times small or altogether wanting, sometimes occupying nearly all the crown; conspi-
cuous black maxillary and auricular patches, which with three others around the nape
make seven black places in all, but a part of them often obscure or wanting; back
cinnamon-brown, in the male with a few black spots or none, in the female with num-

426 BIRDS—FALCONIDA.

erous black bars; wing coverts in the male ashy-blue, with or without black spots, in
the female like the back; quills in both sexes blackish with numerous pale or white
bars on inner webs; tail chestnut, in the male with one broad black subterminal bar,
white tip, and outer feather mostly white with several black bars; in the female the
whole tail with numerous imperfect black bars; below white variously tinged with buff,
or tawny, in the male with a few small black spotsor none, in the female with many
brown streaks ; throat and vent nearly white and immaculate in both sexes; bill dark-
horn, cere and feet yellow to bright orange; 10-11; wing, 7; tail, 5, more or less.
Habitat, the whole of North America and southward.

Abundant summer resident from April to November, and in part resi-
dent throughout the year. \

This Hawk, the smallest and most beautiful of the family, is further
distinguished from most if not all the others by the color differences
between the sexes. It is the most abundant species of the family, and
does not appear to be decreasing with cultivation, as is the case with
most others. Itisfound almost everywhere, though most abundantly
along the borders of streams where the high sycamore trees furnish
suitable nesting places, or about low fields. The telegraph wires along
railroads furnish favorite perches from which they may watch for and
pounce upon small birds, mice and large insects, which constitute their
food.

Dr. Coues, from whom I have culled many pleasant paragraphs, thus
moralizes over the Sparrow Hawk:

“Few, if any, of our birds are more widely dispersed, few are better known, and cer-
tainly no Hawk is regarded with less disfavor. Too small of frame—though stout
hearted enough, I warrant—to commit depredations in the farm-yard; subsisting on
small insectivorous birds, it is true, but also destroying countless field-mice and noxious
insects, he is to be held a benefactor to the agriculturist. The prettiest and jauntiest of
our Hawks, and yet no prig; a true Falcon, if a little one, with as noble mien and as
much pluck as the best among his larger brethren, we can but admire him. No Hawk
is more abundant in the West. Go where we may, in summer or winter, we shall see
him hovering over the fields, or perched, erect and motionless, on his outpost, sweeping
the ground below with keen, audacious eye. It is a treacherous calm; the ardor of the
Falcon grows with restraint. An unlucky Sparrow?flirts in yonder bush, and gives a
flippant chirp—whish! and it is all over. Poor, little, rollicking Sparrow! this is no
easier for you to bear, because it is a ‘‘law of nature,” as we say. Who is ever quite
ready for the last? What pang is taken away when the cry it extorts is drowned in &
sea of like lamentation? We theorize best before the Falcon’s talon strikes.”

Solitary individuals, and these, so far as my observation extends, always
females, are not unfrequently seen here throughout the winter, remain-
ing in the same neighborhood through the season.

The nest of the Sparrow Hawk is placed in cavities of high trees, either
natural or holes deserted by Woodpeckers. The eggs, usually five in

RED-TAILED BUZZARD. 427

number, measure 1.38 by 1.13, being nearly spherical. Their ground-
color is a buffy-cream, usually spotted with light or dark-brown.

Genus BUTEO. Cavier.

Bill short, wide; edge of upper mandible lobed; wings long, wide, 4th and 5th quills
longest; three or more quills emarginate; tarsi robust, scutellate in front and behind,
reticulate on sides; toes moderate ; claws strong.

BureEo AQuıLınus (Barton) Coues.
Red-tailed Buzzard; Hen Hawk,

Falco borealis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii,
1852, 228; Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Buteo borealis, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 99; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 353.—
Brewer, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contributions, xi, 1859,22 —WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep, for
1874, 570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint, 14; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880,
225.

Red-tailed Hawk, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Falco borealis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 266.

Buteo borealis, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., iv, 1816, 478.

Falco aquilinus, Barton, “Frag. Nat. Hist. Penna ,” 1799, 11.

Buteo aquilinus, Cours, Birds Col. Val., i, 1878, 593.

Four outer quills emarginate on inner web. Adult dark-brown above, many feathers
with pale op tawny margins, and upper tail coverts showing much whitish ; below white
or reddish-white, with various spots and streaks of different shades of brown, generally
forming an irregular zone on the abdomen; tail above bright ohesinut-red, with subter-
minal black zone and narrow whitish tip, below pearly-gray ; wing coverts dark ; young
with the tail grayish-brown barred with darker, the upper parts with tawny streaking.
A large stoutly built Hawk. Female, 23; wing, 154; tail, 84; male, 20; wing, 14;
tail, 7.

Habitat, the whole of North America. Mexico. Cuba. Jamaica.

Common resident, Breeds. The Hen Hawk, as this and the follow-
ing species are usually termed, is the most common of the large Hawks
in this portion of the State. This is especially the case in summer, when
its numbers greatly exceed those of the next species. It is a frequent
visitor in barn-yards, and though lacking much of the pluck and dash of
the members of most of the preceeding genera, it has the equally success-
ful quality of perseverence. During the summer they are generally seen
in pairs, soaring high above the woods in which their nest is built, or the
adjacent fields. Their food consists of rabbits, squirrels, partridges, mice
and reptiles, They are less retiring than other members of this genus,
and frequently breed in the immediate vicinity of cities.

428 BIRDS—FALCONIDE.

For a number of years, sportsmen reported a pair of Albino Hawks in
the vicinity of Shadeville, in this county. For some time all attempts
to capture them were unavailing, but one was shot about three years
since, which proved to be of this species It was pure white, with a
single normal-colored tail feather, the only color-mark by which the
species could be distinguished. Last winter its mate was winged and
captured. This bird was entirely white. Nothing is known of their
progeny, and it is probable they did not inherit the peculiarity of their
parents. :

The nest of the Red-tailed Buzzard is placed in high trees The eggs
are usually three in number, white, blotched with light reddish. brown.
They measure about 240 by 2.00.

BUTEO LINEATUS (Gm.) Jardine.
Ited-shouldered Buzzard.

Falco hyemalis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 161, 178.—READ, Fam. Visitor, iii,
1852, 228; Proc. Phila. Acad Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Falco buteodes, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog Surv., 1838, 161, 178.

Falco lineatus, ReaD, Proc. Philad. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Buteo lineatus, ReaD, Fam. Visitor, iti, 1852, 235.—KarKpaTRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858,
115 ; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 1859, 356.—WHEAToN, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860,
1861, 360; Reprint, 2; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570; Re-
print, 10.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint, 14.

Red shouldered Hawk, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1808, 1.

Falco lineatus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 263.

Falco hyemalis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 274,

Falco buteodes, NUTTALL, Man., i, 1832, 100.

Buteo lineatus, JARDINE, Am. Orn, ii, 1832, 290,

Four outer primaries emarginate on inner web. General ptumage of the adult of a
rich fulvous cast; above, reddish-brown, the feathers with dark-brown centres; below
a lighter ehade of the same, with narrow dark streaks and white bars; quills and tail
blackish conspicuously banded with pure white; the bend of the wing orange-brown.
Young plain dark-brown above, below white with dark streaks; quills and tail barred
with whitish. Nearly as long as B. borealis, but not nearly so heavy; tarsi more naked.
Female, 22; wing, 14; tail, 9; male, 19; wing, 13; tail, 8 (average).

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. Nova Scutia. Var. elegans, westward.

Common resident. Breeds. The Red-shouldered Buzzard, Hen Hawk
or Winter Falcon, is common in all parts of the State, though in many
places it appears complementary to the last species. In this vicinity
it is more numerous in winter than in summer, returning northwardly
in spring or to the most retired localities to breed.

BROAD-WINGED BUZZARD. , 429

For a number of years adult and young birds were supposed to be of
different species, as will be seen by the nomenclature and references
above. The common name, Winter Falcon, more properly belongs to the
young of this species.

The Red-shouldered Hawk, like the preceding, visits the barnyard, but,
as a rule, his diet is more humble, and he seeks his food in swamps and
retired places. In winter he sometimes visits the roadside, or perches
upon fences in fields, by the hour.

The nest of the Red shouldered Buzzard is built of sticks and twigs,
lined with moss and a few feathers, and placed in high trees. The eggs
resemble those of the preceeding species in color, but measure about 2.20
by 1.75.

BUTEO PENNSYLVANIcUs (Wils.) Bp.
Broad-winged Buzzard.

Falco pennsylvanicus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.—REaD, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Buteo pennsylvanicus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 107 ; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
354 —WEHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2; Food of Birds, etc.,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 570; Reprint, 1875, 10.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 13; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116; Reprint, 7; Revised List, Journ.
Cin, Soé. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint, 14.

Broad-winged Hawk, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1450, 1.

Falco pennsylvanicus, WILSON, Am. Orn., vi, 1812, 92.
Buteo pennsylvanicus, BONAPARTE, Osserv. Cay. R. A. 55.

Three outer primaries emarginate on inner web. Above, umber-brown, the feathers
with paler, or even with fulvous,or ashy-white edging, those of the hind head and nape
cottony-white at base; quills blackish, most of the inner webs white, barred with
dusky ; tail with three broad dark zones alternating with narrow white ones, and white
tipped; conspicuous dark maxillary patches; under parts white or tawny, variously
streaked, spotted or barred with rusty or rufous, this color usually predominating in
adult birds, when the white chiefly appears as oval or circular spots on each feather ;
throat generally whiter than elsewhere, narrowly dark-lined In the young the upper
parts are duller brown, varied with white, the under parts tawny-whitish with linear
and oblong dark spots, the tail grayish-brown with numerous dark bars. Female, 18 ;
wing, 11; tail, 7; male, less.

Habitat, Temperate Eastern North America. South to Costa Rica, Panama, and
Ecuador. Cuba.

Not common resident, except, perhaps, in winter. Breeds. This Hawk
is much less abundant than the other members of the genus, and appears
to be of much milder disposition than they. In the vicinity of this city
it is quite rare, and only found in the most retired situations, generally in
wooded swamps. Insome portions of the State it appears to be more com-
mon. Dr. Kirtland says that it is common and breeds in Northern Ohio,

430 BIRDS—FALCONIDE.

Mr. Read, that itis frequently seen. Mr. Langdon says that it is not rare
in the vicinity of Cincinnati. Fully identified nest and eggs have been
taken at Yellow Springs by Mr. W. M. Wilson. The nest was built of
sticks and placed in the fork of a moderately large tree. The eggs were
white, rather sparsely blotched with light reddish-brown. The compli-
ment of eggs is four, and they vary in size from 2.15 by 200 to 1.72 by
1.70.

Genus ARCHIBUTEO. Brehm.

Large hawks; tarsi feathered in front to the toes, partly bare behind. Four outer
primaries emarginate on inner web. Other characters much as those of Buteo.

ARCHIBUTEO LaGoPus (Gm.) Gr.

var. SANCTI-JOHANNIS (Gm.) Ridgway.
Rough-legged Buzzard.

Falco sancti-johannis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.

Archibuteo sancti johannis, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 123; Ohio Agric. Rep.,
for 1858, 357”.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1660, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Archibuteo lagopus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1853, 131; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1859, 395.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1€61, 3.

Archibuteo lagopus, var. sancti-johannis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep.,
for 1874, 570; Reprint, 1875, 18.—Lane@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116; Reprint, 7; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist;, i,
1879, 180; Reprint, 14.

Falco sancti-johannis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 270.

Archibuteo sancti-johannis, BONAPARTE, Consp., 1850, 18.

Archibuteo lagopus, Cassin, Illust., 1854, 104.

Archibuteo lagopus, var. sancti-johannis, RIDGWAY, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1870, 142.

Below, white, variously dark marked, and often with a broad blaek abdominal zone ;
but generally no ferrugineous. Above, brown varying from dark-ehocolate in the
adult to light-umber in the young; the back, scapulars and shorter quills strongly
cinereous. The head above more or less white, dark streaked ; upper tail coverts and
tail at base white, the former tipped with blackish; the latter barred near the tip with
one, and sometimes several bands of black or dark-brown. In this plumage the bird has
been known as A. lagopus, the Rough-legged Buzzard, while to a melanotic variety of
the same, found in this country only, the name sancti-johannis, has been given. This
variety is entirely glossy-black except the occiput, forehead, throat, inner webs of
quills, base of tail and broad tail-bars, white. As it is now generally conceded that
these are varieties of the same species, the original name, lagopus is retained and the
American form considered a geographical variety of the European, characterized as
variety sancti-johannis. Length, about 2 feet; wing, 16-18; tail, 8-10.

Habitat, typical lagopus, Europe. Var. sancti-johannis in North America at large;
rather northerly. The melanotic condition chiefly observed in the Middle Atlantic
States, New England and northward.

FISH HAWK. 431

Rather common but irregular winter visitor in Northern, rare in
Middle and Southern Ohio. Dr. Kirtland named this bird as Ohioan in
1838, one specimen of the black variety having been taken by him. Mr.
Kirkpatrick states that in the winter of 1858-9, they were quite numer-
ous in the vicinity of Cleveland. I have seen specimens taken in the
vicinity of Sandusky, and one individual in this city. Mr. Langdon
cites Mr. Dury as authority for a single specimen in the vicinity of Cin-
cinnati.

The Rough-legged Buzzard frequents swamps, marshes and the vicinity
of lakes and rivers. It appears to be more numerous near the coast than
in the interior east of the Mississippi. It is less active than most Hawks
and approaches the Owls in the habit of hunting by twilight. Its food
consists of mice and frogs.

This Hawk breeds from New England northward. The nest is placed
in trees oron rocks. The eggs measure about 2.18 by 1.75. The ground
color is generally creamy-white, and the blotches dark-brown.

Genus PANDION. Savigny.

Wings very long; general form heavy. Bill short, compressed; tarsi very thick and
strong, covered with small circular scales; toes very rough beneath.

PANDION HALIAETUS (L.) Savigny.

Fish Hawk; Osprey.

Falco halietus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161.

Pandion carolinensis, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 91; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
369.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Pandion haliaétus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 415; B. Am., i, 1840, 68.—WHEATON,
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570 ; Reprint, 1875, 10.— LANGDON, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 179; Re-
print, 13.

Falco haliaetus, LINNE&US, Fn. Snec., 22.

Pandion halietus, CUVIER, Reg. An., i, 1817, 316.

Pandion carolinensis, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 3.

Plumage lacking after-shafts, compact, imbricated, oily to resist water; that of the legs
short and close, not forming the flowing tufts seen in most other genera, that of the head
lengthened, acuminate; primary coverts stiff and acuminate. Feet immensely large
and strong, the tarsus entirely naked, granular-reticulate, the toes all of the same
length, unwebbed at base, very scabrous underneath, the outer versatile; claws very
large, rounded underneath. Hook of the bill long, nostrils touching edge of cere. Above
dark-brown ; most of the head and neck and the under parts white, latter sometimes
with a tawny shade, and streaked with brown. Length, 2 feet; wing, 16-18 inehes;
tail, 8-10.

432 BIRDS—FALCONIDE.

Habitat, Cosmopolitan. The American and Australian, respectively, under names of
P. carulinensis and P. leucocephalus, have been currentiy regarded as distinct races or
species.

Common summer resident in many portions of the State, rare in others.
Mr. Kirkpatrick says of it:

“ [he Fish Hawk is widely distributed over the whole country, and at one time was
quite plentiful in Ohio. When Dr. Kirtland resided at Poland, Mahoning county, these
birds built their nests in the vicinity of the village, and could be seen every day during
the summer season. Now they are rare. A few pairs are generally to be found fishing
in Sandusky Bay; bat they are somewhat sky, aud it is difficult to get a shot at them.
Occasionally a speimen will make its appearance near the shore of the Lake near Cleve-
land. The last we saw uf them was about teu years since, although others have seen in-
dividuals more recently. We are not aware that this Hawk breeds near this place; but
in the less frequented parts of our State, and in the neighborhood of water, the nests may
sometimes be seen.”

In this immediate vicinity the Fish Hawk appears only as a spring
and fall migrant in May, August and September. At such times it pro-
ceeds leisurely along our rivers. I have observed it at the Licking
Reservoir, in the vicinity ef which it doubtless breeds, as also at St.
Mary’s Reservoir in Mercer county.

The food of this bird consists exclusively of fish, and, asis well known,
it is often obliged to catch, not only for itself and family, but for the
White-headed Eagle.

The nest of the Fish Hawk is a large structure occupied by it for sev-
era] years. The eggs are creamy-white marked with various shades of
brown; the complement is from two to four, and they measure from 2.56
to 2.24 by 1.88 to 1.69.

Genus AQUILA. Auctorum.

Size large. Bill compressed, hooked at tip, straight at the base, wing long, pointed ;
tarsi stroug, feathered to the toes.

AQUILA CHRYSAETUS Linnzus.
Golden Eagle.

Falco fulvus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1858, 67, 177.—READ, Fam, Visitor, iiı, 1852,
236.

Falco chrysaetus, READ, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Aquila chrysaetos, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 67 ; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858,
1859, 362.

Aquila canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 361; Reprint, 1861, 3.

Aquila chrysaetus WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 570; Reprint,
1875, 10.

Aquila chrysetus, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13.

GOLDEN EAGLE. 433

Aquila chrysetus, var. canadensis, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist,i,
1879, 180; Reprint, 4.
Golden Eagle, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 15.

Falco fulvus, Linnzus, Syst Nat., i, 1766, 125.

Falco chrysaetos, LINNZ Us, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 125.

Aquila chrysaetos, BRISSON, Ora., i, 431.

Aquila canadensis, Cassin, Birds, N. Am., 1858, 41.

Aquila chrysaetos, var. canadensis, RIDGwaY, BB & R., N. A. Birds, iii, 1874, 314.

Dark-brown with a purplish gloss; lanceolate feathers of head and neck golden-
brown; quills blackish; in the young, tail white with a broad terminal black zone.
About 3 feet long; wing, upwards of 2 feet; tail a foot or more.

Habitat, North America, northerly. Sonth, ordinarily to about 35°. Europe. Asia.

Rare winter visitor, formerly more common, and, perhaps, rare resident
throughout the year. Dr. Kirtland mentions its occasional visits to the
shores of Lake Erie, and says that Mr. Dorfeuille had seen a specimen
taken inthe State. Mr. Read says:

“Tt is often seen on the [Lake] shore, and itis said that a pair have nested for
several years in a high tree on a woody point of the shore near Sandusky Bay. The
Rev. Sam’] Wright of Toledo, now deceased, wrote me in the winter of 1852, that he
then had a young bird of this species, which was quite tame, and a very interesting pet.
It fully answered the description of the ‘ Ring-tailed Eagle.’ After the death of Mr.
Wright it"was promised'to the writer, but, escaping from confinement, though accus-
tomed to obey the voice of its old master, it could not be recaptured, and at last
accounts was still lingering about the neighborhood of the city.”

Mr. Kirkpatrick says:

“Yo 1810, when Dr. Kirtland first came to this State, Eagles where plentiful, and
were to be seen flying along the lake shore. Among these, Golden Eagles were
occasionally to be seen, but as all the large predacious birds have become comparatively
scarce, it is somewhat doubtful if this species now visits Ohio.”

Mr. Langdon gives it as a rare spring and fall migrant in the vicinity
of Cincinnati. A specimen in my collection, for which I am indebted to
Mr. J. L. Stelzig, was wounded in Hocking county in the fall of 1877,
and presented to the City Park of this city. It died in February, 1878.
Another specimen, mounted by Mr. Oliver Davie, of this city, was said to
have been taken alive in this State, but the exact locality could not be
ascertained.

The Golden Eagle, in this country, usually places its nest on in-
accessible rocks, rarely on trees. The nest is composed of large sticks,
and is a massive structure, from four to six feet in height and six or
seven feet in diameter. The same eyrie is occupied by the same pair
for many years. The eggs are usually three, soiled whitish, marked and
spotted with various shades of dark-brown, They are nearly spherical,
measuring from 2.65 to 3.00 by from 2.35 to 2.15.

28

434 BIRDS—FALCONID A.

Genus HALIAETUS. Savigny.

Tarsus naked, scutellate in front ; other generic characters much as in Aquila.

HALIAETUS LEUCOCEPHALUS (L.) Savigny.

White-headed Eagle; Bald Eagle.

Falco leucocephalus, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv, 1812, 890.—KıRrTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 161, 178.—ReAD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395; Fam. Visitor, iii,
1852, 252.

Falco washingtonianus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 178.

Falco washingtonii, Reap, Proc. Phila. Acad., vi, 1853, 395.

Haliaetus washingtonii, READ, Fam. Visitor, iii, 1852, 244.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer,
vii, 1858, 83; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 1859, 366.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, >.

Haliaétus leucocephalus, KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858, 75; Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1858, 1859, 366. —WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 361; Reprint, 3; Food
of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570; Reprint, 10 —LANGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin,, 1877, 13; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Re-
print, 14; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 226; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 126.

Washington Eagle, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1, 15.

Bald Eagle, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 15, 148.—BALLov, Field and Forest, iii,
1878, 136.

Falco leucocephalus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 124.

Haliaetus leucocephalus, SAVIGNY.

Falco washingtoniana, AUDUBON, Loudon’s Mag., i, 1828, 115. : 5
Falco washingtonii, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog , i, 1831, 58.

Haliaetus washingtonii, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 3.

Dark-brown ; head and tail white after the third year; before this, these parts like
the rest of the plumage. About the size of the last species. Immature birds average
larger than adults.

Habitat, the whole of North America. Greenland. Casual in Europe.

Common and resident in some localities, irregular winter visitor or
migrant in others. The American or White-headed Eagle is most abun-
dant near large bodies of water, and is more common on the Lake Shore
than in other portions of the State. Wilson gives the following account
of his observations of them in the State:

“In one of those partial migrations of tree squirrels that sometimes takes place in our
western forests, many thousands of them were drowned in attempting to cross the Ohio;
and at a certain place, not far from Wheeling, a prodigious number of their dead bodies
were floated to the shore by aneddy. Here the Vultures assembled in great force, and
had regaled themselves for sometime, when a Bald Eagle made his appearance, and took
sole possession of the premises, keeping the whole Vultures at their proper distance for
several days. He has also been seen navigating the same river on a floating carrion,
though scarcely raised above the surface of the water, and tugging at the carcass, re-
gardless of snags, sawyers, planters, or shallows. He sometimes carries his tyranny to
‚great extremes against the Vultures. In hard times, when food happens to be scarce,

WHITE-HEADED EAGLE. 435

should he accidentally meet with one of these who has his craw crammed with carrion,
he attacks it fiercely in the air; the cowardly Vulture instantly disgorges, and the deli-
cious contents are snatched up by the Eagle before they reach the ground.”

From Dr. Brewer’s description I take following paragraph respecting
the habits of this Bird:

“The White-headed Eagle appeared to be equally adapted by nature for the endur-
ance of heat or cold, and is apparently indifferent to either. Its residence is influenced
only by its abundance of food, especially that of fish ; and it seems to matter very little
whether that plenty is procurable within the Arctic Circle or on the coast and rivers of
Florida and Texas. In places like the Falls of Niagara, where the stream is ever liable
to contribute the remains of animals destroyed by the descent of the torrent, this Eagle
is especially abundant. Unscrupulous, greedy, voracious, not select in its choice of food,
and capable of providing for itself when necessity compels, we find this not altogether
unsuitable emblem of our country, now enacting the tyrant and robber and plundering
the Fish Hawk of the fruits of its industry, now sharing with the Raven and Vulture
the dead Salmon of the Columbia, and in other places diving for and catching its own
fish. The impetuosity with which it pursues, overtakes, and robs the Fish Hawk, bear-
ing off a fish it has just taken, must be witnessed to be appreciated ; and the swiftness
with which the Eagle can dart down upon and seize the booty, which the Hawk has
been compelled to let fall, before it reaches the water, is not the least wonderful feature
of this striking performance. On the banks of the Columbia where [when] there are no
Fish Hawks to depend upon, the bird finds an easy subsistence on the vast numbers of
dead salmon which abound ; and in Florida, Mr. Allen has observed it dive and catch its
own fish. This is also confirmed by statements of other naturalists, Wilson also accuses
this Eagle of destroying great numbers of young pigs in the Southern States, young
lambs and even sickly sheep; and in one instance it attempted to carry off a child,
which was only saved by its dress giving way.”

Of the breeding habits of the White-headed Eagle in this State, Dr.
Kirtland (Fam. Visitor, 1. c.), gives the following account:

“ For many years a pair of Eagles resorted to a nest in a stately oak tree standing on
the high precipice near the shore of the Lake in Rockport, five miles west of this city.
Nothing occurred to interrupt them until five years ago—during a severe storm their
favorite tree was prostrated to the ground in the month of November or December.
Early in theensuing spring they were observed constructing a new nest in the top
of another very large and lofty oak, in the same vicinity, in which to rear their young
that season. The following spring the female was shot by a hunter. The male im-
mediately disappeared, and was not again seen here until the next winter, when he
appeared accompanied by a new mate. The pair took possession of the deserted nest,
made extensive repairs, and prepared to raise their brood. Since then we have watched
their habits with great interest. * * * During summer they may be seen daily
perched upon some high tree hanging over the precipitous shores of the lake. From
that altitude they can readily discover any dead fish floating upon the surface of the
water fora great distance. From this source they obtain their food so long as the lake
remains free from ice, but when this freezes over, and the weather becomes severely
cold, they forage the country in search of dead carcases about the farm.”

436 BIRDS—CATHARTIDE.

He again speaks of these birds as follows:

“ Our old favorites alluded to in the third number of the Family Visitor, have again
occupied their old eyrie, and at this time evidently have young init. This is inferred
from the watchfulness and anxiety shown by the parent birds at the approach of any
one towards their resort, and from the circumstance that they are frequently carrying
fish from the lake into their nest. It is situated so high in the branching top of a large
oak that nothing can be seen within it by a person on the ground. Daring the present
season its size has been greatly augmented by the addition of dry sticks.

A few days since four of those biped nuisances, termed hunters, which are con-
stantly swarming from this city commenced shooting at these birds but fortunately
their attack was unsuccessful.”

Mr. Kirkpatrick, writing in 1858, says the nest was still occupied by
this pair of birds.

The Washington Eagle (H. washingtonii), to which so frequent reference
is made, is now held, without dissent, to be the young of the White-
headed Eagle, which is known to exceed the adult in size.

In the immediate vicinity of Columbus, the white headed Eagle is
rare, and migrant or winter visitor. I have not seen one for twenty
years, but a fine adult specimen was observed on Alum Creek, about four
miles from the city, by my friends, Doctors Fullerton and Landis, in
September last. I have seen it in October, at the Licking County
Reservoir, and have been informed that it remains through the sum-
mer and probably breeds there. About thirty years since, when a fatal
epidemic prevailed among cattle, Eagles appeared in considerable num-
bers in the northern part of this county and fed upon the carcasses of
the victims.

In the vicinity of Cincinnati, Mr. Langdon states that they are some-
times common in winter. In Union county they appear every winter,
and doubtless there are many localities in the grazing portions of the
State where they are regular visitors if not residents.

The eggs are from two to four in number, white, unspotted, nearly
spherical, measuring about 3 inches by 2.75.

FAMILY CATHARTIDA. AMERICAN VULTURES.

Feet scarcely raptorial, with lengthened, little curved or contractile, weak, short
claws. Hallux elevated, shortened, not more than half as long as the fourth toe, with
small claw. Front toes all webbed at base ; middle toe lengthened; outer not rever-
sible, Basal phalanx of middle toe longer than either of the succeeding. Nostrils per-
forate. Bill lengthened and comparatively weak, little hooked, contracted in ita con-
tinuity; tomia not toothed or lobed. Head naked of feathers in greatest part ; sparsely
bristly. No lower larynx developed. Nococa. After-shafts absent.

TURKEY BUZZARD. 437

Genus CATHARTES. Illiger.

Crop feathered. Male without fleshy crest, or other appendages on the head. Only
the upper half or less of the neck bare; plumage commencing gradually with normal
broad feathers ; feathers of breast and abdomen broad and normal. Head only moderately
elongated, the upper outline irregular, the forehead elevated above the dorsal outline
ofthe cere. Bill strong, the terminal hook well developed, its outlines only moderately
convex ; cere nearly equal to the head in length. Sexes alike.

Mr. Ridgway places our two species in separate genera, which for con-
venience may here be considered sub-genera, as follows:

Rhinogryphus. Nosiril occupying the whole of the nasal cavity, it anterior end
broadly rounded; cere as deep as broad, the upper and lower outlines
divergent posteriorly, the former considerably arched; lower mandible
much less deep than upper. Skin of the neck without corrugations; a
semi-circular tuft of antrorse radiating bristles in front of the eye. Wing
very long, the primaries reaching to or beyond the end of the tail. Tail
much rounded. (R. auraand R. burrovianus.)

Catharista. Nostril occupying only the posterior half of the nasal cavity, its an-
terior end contracted and acute; cere depressed, much wider than deep, its
upper and lower outlines parallel, the former not perceptibly arched ; lower
skin of the neck transversely corrugated ; no tuft of bristles in front of the
eye. Wings short, the primaries reaching scarcely to the middle of tail.
Tail even, or slightly emarginate. (C. atratus.)

CATHARTES AURA (L.) Illiger.

Turkey Buzzard.

Vultur aura, WILSON, Am. Orn., iv, 1812, 89.

Cathartes aura, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161, 176.—Rxap, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 395.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1658, 59; Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1858, 343.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360 ; Reprint, 1861, 2; Food of
Birds, etc , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571 ; Reprint, 1875, 11.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 13; Summer Birds, Journ. Civ. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 226.

Rhinogryphus aura, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1,1879, 180; Re-
print, 14.

Turkey Buzzard, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Vultur aura, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 122.

Cathartes aura, ILLIGER, Prod., 1811, 236.

Rhinogryphus aura, BAIRD, BREWER and Rip@way, N. A. Birds, iii, 1874, 344.

Blackish-brown; quills ashy-gray on their under surface; head red; feet flesh-
colored; bill white. Skin of the head corrugated, sparsely beset with bristle-like
feathers; plumage commencing in a circle on the neck; tail rounded. Length, about

24 feet; extent, 6; wing, 2; tail, 1.

Habitat, The whole of the United States and adjoining British Poesessions. South
through Central and most of South America.

Common summer resident in Southern and Middle, less common in

438 BIRDS—CATHARTIDE.

Northern Ohio. Breeds. Formerly abundant and perhaps in part resi-
dent throughout the State. Dr. Kirtland, in 1838, says :

“The Turkey Bazzard is common during the summer, but duss not continue in the
northern parts of our State during the winter. It formerly nested in considerable num-
bers on the banks of the Big Beaver, near the line of Pennsylvania and Ohio, within
the limits of the former State. It numbers have greatly diminished within a
years.”

In 1850, speaking of changes in the fauna of the State, and referring
to previous years, he observes:

© Turkey Buzzards and Ravens collected in numerous flocks aboutevery dead carcass,
while the Crow was less abundant than it is in more recent times.”

In this vicinity a notable diminution in number has taken place in
the last twenty-five years. Now they may be seen from March to Decem-
ber, but in former years they remained, in small numbers, though the
winter. Dr. Howard E. Jones informs me that they still remain through
the winter at Circleville, only twenty five miles south of Columbus.

Turkey Buzzards are essentially gregarious, not only flying and feed-
ing in company, but resorting to the same spot to roost. These roosts
are not uncommon, and generally a sycamore grove in the bend or fork
of a stream is chosen. Here they resort about sunset in considerable
numbers.

In general they are very silent birds, their only notes being a hiss of
defiance or warning to their neighbors when feeding, or a low, guttural
croak of alarm when flying low overhead.

Dr. Coues’ gives the following general account of their movements, and
breeding habits :

“Except when flying, the birds show to little advantage. The color is dull; the
form uncomely ; the gait is constrained, and the attitudes are negligent and slothful.
They walk or hop indifferently, and sometimes move with a succession of leaps, accel-
erated with the wings. When about to take flight from the ground, they stoop for an
instant till the breast almost touches, and then, unfolding the wings, give a vigorous
spring into the air; with a few powerful, hurried flaps, they are fairly off. They soon
begin their gyrations with set wings, only beating at intervals, when they are forced to
rise rapidly away from some obstacles ; and, circling thus, they are shortly in the upper
air.

The Turkey Buzzard breeds sometimes in communities and sometimes by single pairs,
depositing its eggs on the ground, on rocks, or in hollow logs and stumps. The situa-
tion is generally in thick woods; and when numbers breed together, the foulness of the
resort is beyond description—vegetation may be entirely destroyed over large areas,
Even single nests are offensive from their noisome deposits, not only of excrementitious
matters, but of others, disgorged by the parents to feed the young. The eggs are gen-
erally two in number, often only one; they measure about 22 in length by 2, or rather
less, in breadth, being thus notably shorter and of less capacity than those of the Black

BLACK VULTURE. 439

Vulture They are creamy or yellowish-white, variously blotched and splashed with
different shades of brown and usually showing other smaller spots of lavender and pur
plish-drab. The young aresaid to be covered at first with a whitish down and to be fed
for some time with half-digested carrion disgorged by the parents.”

CATHARTES ATRATUS (Bartr.) Less.
Black Vulture; Carrion Crow.

Cathartes iota, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., ii, 1834, 33.

Cathartes atratus, AUDUBON, B Am., i, 1840, 17.—KIRKPATRICK, Ohio Farmer, vii, 1858,
59; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1858, 344.—Brewer, N. A. Oology, Smithsonian Contribu-
tions, xi, 1859, 5.—WHEAToN, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 360; Reprint, 1861, 2;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571; Reprint, 1875, 11—Covuss, Key,
1872, 222.—Lanepon, Bull. Nutt. Ornith. Club, ii, 1877, 109; Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 13.

Catharista atrata, BAIRD, BREWER and RipGway, iii, 1874, 35%. —LANGDoN, Revised List,

Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 180; Reprint, 14.

Vultur atratus BARTRAM, Trav., 1792, 289.
Cathartes atratus, LESSON, Man., i, 1828, 73.
Cathartes iota, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 23.

Blackish ; quills very pale, almost whitish, on the under surface; head dusky; bill
and feet grayish-yellow. Skin of the head as in last species, but plumage running up
the back of the neck to a point on the hind head; tail square. Smaller than aura but
a heavier bird. Length, about 2 feet; wing, 14; tail, %.

Habitat, Tropical and Sub-tropical America. On the Atlantic coast, north regularly to
North Carolina, casually to Massachusetts and Maine; resident from South Carolina,
southward.

Rare or accidental winter visitor in South-western Ohio only. Fora
long time the following statement of Audubon was the only authority for
considering it an Ohio bird:

“ This bird is a constant resident of all our southern States, extends far up the Mis-
sissippi Valley, and continues the whole year in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois and even in
the State of Ohio as far as Cincinnati.”

Mr. Langdon gives the following, the only recent note of its occur-
rence:

“On or about December 20, 1876, I came upon three individuals of this species
(Catharies atratus, Less.) feeding on the carcass of a hog, in a wooded ravine near Madi-
sonville; one of them I shot at and wounded, but lost sight of it in the woods, and the
other two remained in the immediate vicinity long enough to give me an excellent op-
portunity to observe their peculiarities of form and flight, although I could not approach
within gunshot of them. On January 1, 1877, however, I found a specimen that had
been killed a few days previous, in the same locality, by Mr. Edwin Leonard, of Madison-
ville, under circumstances rendering it probable that was the one I had wounded; its
skin is now in my collection. .

‘The oocurrence of this bird in Ohio, or in fact anywhere in the Mississippi Valley

440 BIRDS—COLUMBID.

north of the Ohio River, has heretofore rested solely on Audubon’s account of its range,
which has been quoted by all subsequent writers; and, being essentially a southern
species, its capture here, at a time when the Ohio River was frozen over and the ground
covered with several inches of snow, seems worthy of remark. J have identified this
species here satisfactorily to myself, on two previous ocvasions, both in winter, but have
never seen the ‘ Turkey Buzzard’ (C. aura) at that season, although it is quite common
during the summer.”

The Black Vulture, like the Turkey Buzzard, breeds on or near the
ground. The eggs are two in number, yellowish-white or cream-color,
blotched with dark reddish-brown. They measure about 3.50 by 2 inches,
and are said to average a pound in weight.

ORDER COLUMBA. COLUMBINE BIRDS.

FAMILY COLUMBIDA. PIGEONS.

In addition to ordinal characters, given on page 200, the feathers with thickened,
spongy rachis loosely inserted in the skin. Head completely feathered, excepting some-
times a circum-orbital space. Tarsi naked or only feathered a little way above. Tail
of twelve feathers, or lengthened, cuneate, and of fourteen.

Genus ECTOPISTES. Swainson.

Tarsi shorter than laterai toes; feathered above; inner toe longer than outer ; tail of
12 feathers, very long, cuneate, about equal the wing; 1st primary longest.

Ecropistes MACRURA (L.) Coues.
Wild Pigeon.

Columba migratoria, WILSON, Am. Orn , i, 1808, 10%.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
164.—RxaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Ectopistes migratoria, KIRTLAND, Family Vistor, i, 1850, 133.—WMHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep., 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861.—Barrp, BREWER and Rıpaway, iii, 1874, 373.

Ectopistes migratorius, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571;
Reprint, 1875, 11 —Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13.

Ectopistes macroura, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 181;
Reprint, 15.

Columba macroura, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1758, 164.

Columba migratoria, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1760, 285.

Ectopistes migratoria, SWAINSON, Zool. Journ., iii, 1827, 355.

Ectopistes macroura, COUES, Birds N. W., 1874, 766.

Ectopistes macrura, Cougs, Bull. U. 8. Geolog. and Geog. Surv., iv, No. 3, 1878, 628.

Adult male dull blue above with olivaceous tinge on back, below dull purplish-red,
whitening on vent and crissum ; sides of neck golden and ruby; some wing-coverts
black-spotted; quills blackish, with slaty, whitish and rufous edging; middle tail
feathers bluish-black, the others white or ashy, the inner webs basally black with chest-
nut patch; bill black ; feet coral-red ; female and young duller and more brownish or

WILD PIGEON. 441

olivaceous above, below dull grayish, with a tawny tinge anteriorly, or quite gray ;
very young have the feathers skirted with whitish; length, 15-17; wing, 7-8; tail
about the same.

Habitat, the greater portion of North America, but scarcely west of the Rocky Moun-
tains. Pacific coast near latitude 49°. Nevada. Cuba. Accidental in Europe.

Formerly an extremely abundant summer resident and migrant,
appearing in all seasons. Now, much less abundant and irregular. Not
known to breed at present, though it probably does so. Until about
1855, Pigeons were extremely abundant in Central Ohio, having at and
before this time a roost and breeding place near Kirkersville, Licking
county. Then, for weeks at a time, they might be observed flying over
this city or around its suburbs. In the morning soon after sunrise until
9 o’clock or after, their flight was westward, from the roost. In the after-
noon, from four o’clock till sundown they were returning. During these
periods, they were never out of sight, and often dozens of flocks were in
view at once. These flocks were not of large size, but may be estimated
to consist of from five hundred to fifty thousand birds, and it was their
daily habit to leave their roost in search of food, in this manner. Whether
those leaving in the morning invariably returned the same evening, or
how far their journeys for food extended is not known. At such times
they fed both in beech and oak woods and cornfields. When feeding
upon acorns they were rather quietly dispersed among the branches of
the trees, but beech nuts were generally collected from the ground. In
their flight over the city, they were usually at long gun-shot range or
higher, but in the country they flew nearer the ground, and following the
plane of any inequalities. Vast numbers were shot, killed with poles
on their roosts, or captured in nets. Dr. Kirtland states that near Circle-
ville, in 1850, 1,285 were caught in a single net in one day. And even
this number was not exceptional if the price at which they weresold is any
indication. Many thousands were offered for sale in the market of this
city. Most of them were brought alive in coops, and the purchaser had
the choice of carrying them home alive or having them killed on the spot.
If he chose the latter, the seller by a dexterous movement fractured or
dislocated the bird’s neck between his teeth. The average price at this
time was five or six cents a dozen.

Mr. Read states that in the spring of 1851, they appeared “in vast
numbers in the flelds feeding upon the dead grasshoppers, the remains
of the countless hordes, which well nigh devoured ‘ every green thing’
during the preceeding summer and fall,” a statement which will surprise
ornithologists who have been accustomed to consider birds of this family
as exclusively vegetarian.

442 BIRDS—COLUMBIDR.

On several occasions we have been favored with a general migration
of these birds, when they have appeared, as described by Wilson, in “con-
gregated millions.” This was the case in 1854, when the light of the
sun was perceptably obscured by the immense, unbroken, and apparently
limitless flock which for several hours passed over this city. In the fall
of 1859 I witnessed a similar migration near Granville, Licking county,
since which time the birds have been much less numerous. On this oc-
casion I had an opportunity of observing a large flock while feed-
ing. The flock, after a little circling by the foremost ranks, alighted
upon the ground, presenting a front of over a quarter of a mile, with a
depth of nearly a hundred yards. In a very few moments those in the
rear, finding the ground already stripped of mast, arose above the tree
tops and alighted in frontof the advance column. This movement soon
became continuous and uniform, birds from the rear flying to the front so
rapidly that the whole presented the appearance of a rolling cylinder
having a diameter of about fifty yards, its interior filled with flying leaves
and grass. The noise was deafening and the sight confusing to the mind.

During the last ten years Pigeons have appeared irregularly, but
usually in spring and fall, insmall flocks. Sometimes these linger about
swampy woodlands for several days. Possibly they may breed in
detached parties, but no such instance is known to me.

The Wild Pigeon breeds in vast communities. The nest of sticks is
placed in a small tree; the eggs, two, pure white, measure 1.45 by 1.05.

Genus ZENZEDURA. Bonaparte.

Tarsi stout, longer than lateral toes, bare of feathers; inner toe longer than outer;
tail of 14 feathers, long, graduated ; 2d primary longest. Circum-orbital space naked.

ZENZDURA CAROLINENSIS (L.) Bp.

Carolina Dove,

Columba carolinensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164. —READ, Proc. Phila. Acad.
Nat. Sei., vi, 1853, 395. R

Zenaidura carolinensis, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., vol. ix, 1858, 605.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861, 9, —LAnGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Jour.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116; Reprint, 7; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.

_ Hist. i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15.

Zenedura carolinensis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571; Re-
print, 1875, 11—Lanepon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 226.

Carolina Dove, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Columba carolinensis LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 286.
Zenaidura carolinensis, BONAPARTE, Consp., ii, 1854, 84.

CAROLINA DOVE, 443

Brownish-olive, glossed with blue on the crown 47:1 nape; below purplish-red, becom-
ing tawny-white on the vent and crissum ; neck .uwetallic-golden ; a velvety-black spot on
the anriculars and others on the wing-coveits and scapulars ; middle tail feathers like
the back, the rest ashy-blue at the base, then crossed by a black bar, then white or
ashy-white; bill very slender, black; feet carmine; the female and young differ as in
the wild pigeon; length, 11-13; wing, 5-6; tail, 6-7.

Habitat, United States from Atlantic to Pacific. Canada West. Cuba. South to
Panama.

Abundant throughout the State: Resident in Southern, resident in
part in Middle and Northern Ohio. Breeds.

The Carolina Dove, also called Turtle and Mourning Dove, is one of our
best known and familar birds. Its amiable conjugal disposition and
sweet but mournful cooing, have made it typical of several pleasing
attributes in song and story.

Except during the breeding season this species is highly gregarious,
though flocks of them never attain the magnitude of those of the Wild
Pigeon. They are to be found everywhere, both in woodland and open
places. During the breeding season they are found in pairs. The nest
is placed in horizontal branches of trees, on stumps, rocks, or on the
ground; in the latter situation rarely, in this vicinity, for the soil being
clayey and cold, the eggs are often addled, and this applies to other
partially ground-nesting birds which nest early, the Brown Thrush, for
instance.

None of our birds except a few Hawks and Owls breed as early as the
Dove. Ihave found the nest with young asearly as the middle of April.
They continue breeding until September. The nest varies in construc-
tion with its location. When placed in trees it is composed of a few
sticks somewhat after the fashion of the Cuckoo, but if on a large limb,
it is often but a sufficient rim of twigs and straw to retain the eggs.
When on the ground a few straws and dead leaves are the only indica-
tions of an attempt at construction. The eggs are two in number, pure
white, elliptical, and measure about 1.05 by .86.

ORDER GALLINA. GALLINACEOUS BIRDS.
FAMILY MELEAGRIDA. TURKEYS.

Hind toe shortened, elevated. Tarsi, toes and nasal fosse naked. Head bare of
feathers, sparsely bristly, with wattles and caruncles. A pectoral taft of bristly feath-
ers. Tarsi usually spurred in the male. Plumage iridescent. Size large.

Genus MELEAGRIS. Linnzus,

Tarsi scutellate in front and behind, reticulate on the sides. Tail of 18 feathers.
Forehead with a depending fleshy cone. Head and half of neck without feathers,

444 BIRDS—MELEAGRIDA.

MELEAGRIS GALLOPAVO L.
var. AMERICANA (Bartr.) Coues.

Common Wild Turkey.

Meleagris gallopavo, BONAPARTE, Am. Orn., i, 1825, 80.—KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio
Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.—NUTTALL, Man. 2d edition, i,
1840, 773.—AUDUBON, B. Am., v, 1842, 42.—ReaD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sei, vi,
1853, 395.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 367; Reprint, 9.—LanGpon,
Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1830, 226; Field Notes, ib., 1880, 126.

Meleagris gallipavo, var. americana, WHEATON, Food of Birds, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
1875, 571; Reprint, 11.

Meleagris gallopavo, var. americana, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13.

Meleagris gallopavo, var. gallopavo, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 181; Reprint, 15.

Wild Turkey, KıRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Meleagris gallopavo, Linnxvs, Fn. Suec., No. 198.

Meleagris americana, BARTRAM, Trav., 1791, 290.

Meleagris gallopavo, var. americana, COUES, Key, 1872, 222.

Meleagris gallopavo, var. gallopavo, BAIRD, BREWER aud RipGway, iii, 1874, 404.

Naked skin of head and neck livid-blue; general color copper-bronze with copper and
green reflection, each feather with a narrow black border; all the quills brown closely
barred with white; tail chestnut barred with black and a broad subterminal black
bar. Tip of tail feathers and upper tail coverts lighter chestnut. Length, 3-4 feet.

Habitat, of var. americana, the Eastern Province of the United States and portions of
Canada Of true gallopavo, the southern portions of the Middle Province and south-
wards.

Fomerly abundant and resident, breeding throughout the State. Now
exterminated in the more thickly settled portions, but still common in
some northwestern counties. Breeds. Dr. Kirtland (1850) speaks of the
time when Wild Turkeys were more common than tame ones are now.
Mr. Read said, in 1853, that it was still common. Thirty years since it
was quite common in Middle Ohio, but rapidly decreased in numbers,
until it has been extremely rare in this county during the last ten years.

The few which remain exhibit great intuitive or acquired cunning in
avoiding detection. As if aware that their safety depended on their pre-
serving an incognito when observed, they effect the unconcern of their
tame relatives so long as a threatened danger is passive or unavoidable.
I have known them to remain quietly perched upon a fence while a team
passed by ; and one occasion knew a couple of hunters to be eo confused
by the actions of a flock of five, which deliberately walked in front of
them, mounted a fence and disappeared leasurely over a low hill before
they were able to decide them to be wild No sooner were they out of
sight than they took to their legs and then to their wings, soon placing

PRAIRIE HEN. 445

a wide valley between them and their now amazed and mortified pur-
surers.

The nest of the Wild Turkey is made on the ground; the eggs are
from ten to fifteen in number, dark-buff or cream color thickly sprinkled
with dark umber-brown. They measure about two and a half inches in
length by one and three-fourths in breadth.

FAMILY TETRAONIDA. GROUSE.

Size medium. Hind toe shortened, elevated. Tarsi wholly or in great part, sometimes,
also, the toes, and always the nasal foss®, feathered. Head completely feathered ex-
cepting a definite papillate strip over the eye. Tail feathers sixteen or more. Sides of
neck usually with lengthened feathers, or a naked distensible area, or both. No spurs.
Plumage without iridescence.

Genus CUPIDONIA. Reichenbach.

Legs feathered to the lower end of tarsus. Tail very short, truncate, bat laterally
graduated, half the wings. Sides of neck with long, pointed, or lanceolate, stiff feathers.
Nasal fosse scarcely one-third the culmen.

Cupipon1a cuPipo (L.) Bd.

Pinnated Grouse; Prairie Hen.

Tetrao cupido, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 165.

Cupidonia cupido, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 367; Reprint, 1861, 9, 19; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571; Reprint, 1875, 11; Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, i, 1879, 62.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 13; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15.

Tetrao cupido, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 274.
Cupidonia cupido, BaIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 627.

Above variegated with black, brown, tawny or ochrey, and white, the latter especially
on the wings; below pretty regularly barred with dark brown, white and tawny; throat

TETRAO CANADENSIS Linnzus.

Canada Grouse; Spruce Partridge.

Tetrao canadensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Re-
port for 1860, 1861, 367 (error) ; addenda, 480 (correction) ; Reprint, 21, (probable).

This bird was named as an Ohio bird by Dr. Kirtland who says: “I have been in-
formed that a bird answering the description of the Canada Grouse has been killed on
the shores of Lake Erie, but have not been to obtain a specimen or even any very au-
thentie account of it.”

The Canada Grouse is resident from Northern New York, northwards. It has been
found breeding in Lewis county, by my friend, Dr. C. H. Merriam. It is not probable
that it ever visits this State.

446 BIRDS—TETRAONIDA.

tawny a little speckled, or not; vent and crissum mostly white; quills fuscous with
white spots on the outer webs; tail fuscous, with narrow or imperfect white or tawny
bars and tips; sexes alike in color, but the female smaller with shorter neck-tufts.
Length, 16-18; wing, 8-9; tail, about 5.

Habitat, fertile prairie country of the United States, nearly to eastern foot-hills of the
Rocky Mountains in some latitudes—especially Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, eastern half of
Minnesota, Southeastern Dakota, Middle and Eastern Kansas and Nebraska, Arkansas and
Eastern Texas. Var. pallidicinctus from Western Texas. Still lingers in certain localities
in the Middle States and New England.

Rare resident in Northwestern and Central Ohio. Probably breeds.
In the Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club (1. c.) I noted the
capture of the only specimen taken in this county for many years, as
follows :

“A male Pinnated Grouse was killed by a gunner, seven miles west of Columbus,
November 16, 1878. By the kindness of Mr. A. B. Stevenson, who purchased the bird,
theskin is now in my collection. As long ago as 1838 Dr. Kirtland wrote: ‘The Prairie
Hen is found in considerable numbers in the northwestern parts of the State” Itisnow
very rare, though a few remain in the vicinity of Toledo, and in Erie, Ottawa, Craw-
ford and Marion counties. Mr. R. E. Neil informs me that a few years since a few re-
mained at Radnor, Delaware county.”

Since the above was published I have learned that Messrs. Al. Buttles
and Charles Wagner, well-known sportsmen of this city, flushed a pair
of these birds a few years since, not far from the locality in which the
above mentioned specimen wassecured, but did not succeed in taking
them. I learn that they also remain in Wyandot county, and in the
vicinity of Venice, Sandusky county, though in very limited numbers;
and on perhaps less reliable authority that they have been seen in Fair-
field and Pickaway counties. It seems not impossible that they may be
now on the increase after having once been nearly exterminated or driven
from the State. Itis to be hoped that proper legislation may afford to
the birds of this family an opportunity of recovering their diminished
numbers so far as can be done by protection from pursuit and capture, at
all seasons, for a sufficient number of years.

The nest of the Prairie Hen is placed on the ground. The eggs, usually
from eight to twelve, are pale gray or brown, usually unmarked, but
sometimes uniformly sprinkled with brown. They measure about 1.75
by 1.25 inches.

Genus BONASA. Stephens.

Lower half of tarsus bare, with two rows of scutell® anteriorly. Sides of neck with a
ruff of broad, truncate soft feathers. Tail very broad, square, as long as the wings.

RUFFED GROUSE. 447

BonasA UMBELLUS (L.) Steph.

Ruffed Grouse; Partridge; Pheasant.

Tetrao umbellus, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog.
Surv , 1833, 165.—AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 211; B. Am., v. 1842, 74.—ReaD, Proc.
Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi, 1853, 395.

Bonasa umbellus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 367, 377; Reprint, 1861, 9,19;

Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 571; Reprint, 1875, 11.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 226,

Bonasa umbellus, var. umbellus, BAIRD, BREWER and RıpGway, iii, 1874, 450.—LANGDON,
Revised List, Journ. Soc. Nat. His~., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15s

Partridge, KıRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Tetrao umbellus, LINN Us, Syst. Nat, i, 1766, 275.
Bonasa umbellus, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool, xi, 1824, 300.

Sexes nearly alike; variegated reddish- or grayish-brown; the back with numerous
oblong, pale, black-edged spots; neck-tufts glossy-black ; below, whitish barred with
brown ; tail with a broad subterminal black zone, and tipped with gray. Length, 16-
18; win, 7-8.

“Habitat, the typical form, the United States to the high central plains, in wooded
districts. Canada and the interior of the fur countries, to Nulato, Alaska (Dall). But
I am informed by Mr. Ridgway that British American—even Canadian—specimens are
all more or less referable to var. wmbelloides, being grayer than those of the United
States). Of var. umbelloides, the Rocky Mountain region. Of var. sabinii, the Pacific
provinces, from the northern border of California to Sitka.” (Coues.)

Common resident in many localities, rare or absent in others. Breeds.
It was formerly much more numerous and widely distributed than now,
but has decreased in numbers with the rapid clearing away of tim-
bered lands. It is now most abundant, and probably always has been, in
the hilly portions of the State, less frequent or almost exterminated in
level woodlands. It is not found in prairie regions, its distribution being
complementary to that of the last species.

Very few remain in the immediate vicinity of Columbus, where, fifteen
or twenty years since, they were not uncommon in some localities. Mr.
Langdon gives no record of its capture in the vicinity of Cincinnati,
within this State. In the Hocking Hills and their continuation north-
ward, and in the hilly region of Eastern Ohio, they are still common.
Ohio birds, present color-characters approaching types of both var. wmbellus
and wmbelloides. In the same localities, decidedly red and comparatively
gray birdsaretaken. But my observations have not been sufficiently ex-
tended to determine whether these differences are dependent on age or sex,
though they certainly are not on season.

To avoid confusion it is neccesary to say to those who know this or the
next species by the name of Partridge, that this bird is not a Partridge,

448 BIRDS—PERDICIDE.

neither is it a Pheasant, the former name being most appropriately applied
to the birds of a Sub-family of Perdicide found in the Old World, and which
is more nearly applicable to the bird commonly called Quail, than to the
Rufled Grouse. On the other hand it is still farther removed from the
Old World family of Phastanide which embraces the Pheasants.

The nest of the Ruffed Grouse is placed on the ground. It is com-
posed of a few leaves, without any attempt at construction. The eggs are
from seven to ten in number. They are usually of a uniform dark cream
color, but sometimes blotched with a darker shade of the same. They
measure 1.60 by 1.15.

FAMILY PERDICIDA. THE PARTRIDGES.

Size small. Tarsi, toes, and nasal fosse naked. Head completely feathered. No
peculiar feathers or tympanum on sides of neck. Nospurs. Plumage not iridesscent.

Subfamily ODONTOPHORIN AL. AMERICAN PARTRIDGES.

Bill stout. the lower mandible more or less bidentate on each side near the end.

Genus ORTYX. Stephens.

Head without crest. Tail not much more than half the wings; outstreached feet
reaching beyond tail.

ORTYX VIRGINIANUS (L.) Jardine.
Virginia Partridge; Quail; Bob-white.

Perdix virginiana, WILSON, Am. Orn, vi, 1812, 21—AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 388.—
KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 164.

Ortyx virginiana, AUDUBON, B. Am., vi, 1812, 21.—Rreap, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., vi.
1853, 395.

Ortyx virginianus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 367; Reprint, 9; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 571; Reprint, 11.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 14; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116; Reprint, 7; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat Hist., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 1880,
226 —JCNES and SHULZE, Illust. Nests and Eggs, Pt. 6, Pl. XVIII.

Quail, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1.

Tetrao virginianus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 277.
Perdix virginianus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 650.
Ortyx virginianus, JARDINE, Nat. Lib. Birds, iv. —, 110.

Coronal feathers erectile but not forming a true crest. Forehead, superciliary line
and throat white, bordered with black; crown, neck all round and upper part of
breast brownish-red, other under parts tawny-whitish, all with more or fewer doubly
crescentic black bars; sides broadly streaked with brownish-red ; upper parts variegated
with chestnut, black, gray and tawny, the latter edging the inner quills, Female known

QUAIL. 449

by having the throat buff instead of white, less black about the fore-parts, and general
colors less intense, rather smaller than the male. Length, 9-10; wing, 43-5; tail, 24-3.

Habitat, Eastern United States. North to Massachusetts and slightly beyond;
Canada West; Minnesota. West to high central plains. Up the Missouri to White
River. Salt Lake Valley, introduced. Var. texanusin Texae. Var. floridanus in Florida,
and very similar specimens up the Mississippi Valley to Southern Illinois. Introduced
in Bahamas and Santa Cruz.

Abundant resident. Breeds. This well-known bird is an exception to
all others of the order, in that it was probably absent or at least confined
to but few localities in the State at the time of its first settlement, and
has steadily increased in numbers as the forest has been cleared away,
while others have diminished. It is practically sedentary in its habits,
yet during the fall months often changes its locality by more or less
complete migrations. During this period the birds sometimes appear in
considerable numbers in unexpected places, not unfrequently in the
streets, on the houses and in gardens of large cities.

The following account from the beautiful work of Misses Jones and
Shulze, from the pen of Dr. Howard E. Jones, an enthusiastic sportsman
and naturalist, presents co many interesting and important facts that I
reproduce it nearly entire:

“The Bob-White is a permanent resident of Ohic. The greater portion of the year
the old birds with the family increase are found in coveys. In early spring this general
attachment is broken up by pairing, each pair selecting a locality where they remain
during the breeding season. When mating has taken place it is known by the
demonstrations of the male, who gives the whole neighborhood due notice of his domes-
tic intentions by frequent repetitions at short intervals, of his cheerful and well-known
notes—Bob- White, Bob- White. Nesting begins as early as the first of May. Two and
sometimes three broods are raised during the season. Corners of worm-fences and
stumps, in garden patches or in cultivated fields, having tall grass or weeds about them
are favorite sites for the nest. Sometimes it is placed in a field with no protection ex-
cept the growing grain or grass. Rarely it is built in thick woods, in a tussock, or
beside a stump or logs. But wherever the locality, either highland or lowland, culti-
vated or wild, a spos well covered by a luxuriant growth of grass is usually selected
Though at times concealment as a means of security seems to be abandoned, and the
nest is placed under the protection of man. I have frequently seen nests built within a
few yards of a farm house, in the short blue-grass near a much frequented path; and
only a few seasons since, I found a nest alongside a tie on sandy ground within five feet
of a railroad track.

The nest, which always rests upon the ground, is placed in a slight concavity, either
natural or prepared by the mother-bird. Sometimes the materials are so arranged
with the surrounding tufts of grass as to form an arched covering having a side opening,
but generally it is quite free from any attempt at artificial concealment.

The materials of construction consist of dry grass, straws, leaves, weed stems; or like
substances found in the immediate vicinity. The average diameter of the structure is
about four and one-half inches,

29

450 BIRDS—PERDICIDE.

The complement of eggs is from fifteen to twenty-five, usually about eighteen. Oc-
casionally a nest is discovered which contains thirty or forty, and even more. Such a
set is without doubt the joint labor of two or three heus. The eggs are pure white,
unless stained by the bed of grass upon which they rest. At one end they are quite
pointed, at the other obtusely rounded, and measure about 1.18 x .98 of an inch.

At the time of the first settlements in Ohio, itis quite probable Quail were scarce, and
found only in certain localities. The extensive and dense forests, covering almost the
entire territory, made it ill-adapted to their nature; and those which were enabled to
perpetuate their existence occupied only some of the limited open tracts of land then
found here and there over the country. In support of this conclusion I will here refer
to the facts contained in 3 statement made by my great-grand-father who emigrated to
this State directly after peace with the Indians was affected by General Wayne under
Washington, and, in the Spring of 1798, located with his family on what was then
named and since known as the ‘ High-bauk Prairie,’ near Chillicothe. In this seemingly
favorable locality he resided several years before the voice of the Quail was heard; so
long that he abandoned the anticipation of Quail shooting, and questioned if it would
ever be recognized as a sportin Ohio. One day in early summer he thought he heard a
well-recognized though suppressed sound, ‘ Bob- White.’ Somewhat doubting the sense
of hearing, he immediately made observations and procured additienal evidence, that
of sight, Yes, he actually heard and saw the bird. Elated with the good news he pro-
ceeded to the cabin and told his discovery with so much excitement and enthusiasm that
it created a laugh at his expense. He excused his manner, however, by saying it was
sufficient to excite any one, to know that a highly esteemed and familiar bird had found
its way through such an interminable wilderness, and announced his arrival in that
modest and meaning way.

Bob- White is really a bird of civilization. He flourishes best near the abodes of man.
Tho caltivation ofthe soil and settlement of the country increase their number seem-
ingly by lessening, their dangers, and giving an easy mode of subsisting. With no
friend but agriculture, with no protection but fields of grass and grain, they become
abundant in spite of the Hawk, the Owl, the Crow, the Blue Jay, the Oppossam, the
Raczoon, the Polecat, the Weasel, the Norway Rat, the Snake, the Deg, the Cat, the
mowing machine, the sportsman, the trapper, the summer rains, and the winter snows,
each of whieh has an influence in circumseribing their wonderful capacity for increase.

The Quail regards man as his friend, although he is not a stranger to man’s treachery
and cruelty. If not for the ill-treatment so often received from those whose friendship
he courts, he would soon become quite as domestic as the barn-yard poultry. In fact,
he frequently presses his claims so perseveringly in this line, that they are reseived and
recognized. Some years since, early in May, I discovered a nest being built by a pair
of these birda, in a lot only a short distance from the house. Each day, for several days,
they added a little to the appearance of the structure, and when completed, an egg was
deposited daily until nineteen filled the nest, and incubation began. Up to this time I
had been extremely cautious in my observations, especially those approaching fa-
miliarity. Bat now I made myself quite at home, going to the nest frequently every
day; until the birds became so accustomed to my presence, and so well assured that in
this confidence there was no danger, that the female would even permit my hand under
her and to remove an egg, without being disturbed or getting off the nest. A week
before the expected arrival of the little ones, Imade a tight fence of boards, about two
feet high, inclesing a space twelve feet square. After hatching, the family remained in
the enclosure and were fed the same as domestic chickens, neither the old nor young

QUAIL. 451

showing the least fear at my approach. They scon grew strong enough to get over the
fence, and I turned them all out.

Ihave known a number of instances where these birds, having been reared with the
farm poultry, became completely domesticated. In one instance, nine beautiful full-
grown ones, that had been hatched and cared for by a common hen, with some of herown
chickens, had the liberty of all-out-dcors, yet they remained constantly about the
house and garden, seldom using their wings, and at the call to feed the poultry, they
were the first to respond, and not until completely satisfied with the repast, was a
chicken, turkey, or other fowl permitted by these pugnacious little fellows to intrude or
take acrumb. A slight attempt was made to induce this brood to roost upon a perch,
after the manner of their relatives, the chickens. The success was, however, only par-
tial; their attachment to the old methods was too great, or their feeling of security so
much increased by placing themselves together in a circle with heads outward, as they
naturally do at night, that only a compromise was effected. A board was placed in the
chicken house five or six feet from the ground, and wide enough to admit the number
to place themselves tail to tail in a circle. On this they spent the night with the other
fowls. I have no doubt, however, the habit of sleeping on the ground could readily be
changed to that of recsting on trees or other more secure places; as I instanced once in
a bird reared with some chickens, which, after being instructed a few times, readily took
the perch by the side of his foster-mother, and seemed as much at home as any of the
chickens which were now old enough to roost.

Birds from the field, under certain circumstances, as fear or want of suitable selection
of ground, will toost singly upon trees and other elevated places. This I have scen
quite often in the case of the overflow cf lands by high water, and when bewildered in
an attempt to adopt city life. Every year, in the fall season, large coveys come into
this city and are heard constantly whistling fer each other, and may be seen running
about the streets. These birds cften roost ou the house tops, the tops of chimneys, and
on the branches of the street trees, one, and sometimes two in a places, and continue the
practice for weeks, or until they become destroyed or leave for the country. As they
always get together on foot, it becomes almost impossible, when once scattered in a city,
to find each other, and so long as one of their number remains absent and makes it
known by the signal whistle, the ether birds will remain and endeavor to make them-
selves heard; and in doing this they again become dispersed and divided by houses,
walls and fences; and thus day after day ia occupied in these fruitless efforts to collect
the family, each day lessening their number, until few,if any, reach the field again.

The social relations existing betweon Bob-white and the barn-yard fowl are generally
very friendly. Ihave frequently found hens’ eggs ard Quails’ eggs in one nest; and have
known a common hen and a Quail to deposit daily, each an egg in the same nest ; until
the complement was full, at the end of whieh time the Quail submitted the incubation
to her larger companion. The disposition of these birds is only moderately good. They
are always amiable and gentle in their femily relations, and rarely domineering or vin-
dictive towards their friendly associates. They are cowardly towards their onemies ; and
while in coveys, seem to maintain » sence of security by keeping close together ; and so
strong is this feeling, that wounded birds, unable to fly, will follow after their com-
panions on foot, as long as able to go. When paired, the two are constant companions,
ever watchful over the welfare of each other. They share equally the duties and respon-
sibilities of wedded life, and from the birth of the first offspring to their settlement in
the world, as faithful father and mother, are unceasing protectors and providers for the
family. This extraordinary strength of attachment, and exhibition of natural affection,

452 BIRDS—PERDICIDE.

has often attracted my attention. I once discovered by accident, a nest nicely con-
cealed by some tufts of grass, after being placed under the projecting end of a fence rail.
At this time there were in it five eggs. This number increased daily until twenty-three
eggs filled the nest, and incubation began. All went happily, until one morning there
was evidently great distress in this little household. The male bird was sounding his
anxious alarm—he went hurredly from one part of the farm to that of every other—
sometimes running—sometimes flying—stopping a moment here—a moment there—call-
ing at the top of his voice for his mate, in that peculiar tone which denotes distress.
His unanswered cry soon told the tale—some accident—some ruthless Hawk—some
sneaking cat, or some other enemy had captured and destroyed his faithful companion.
He kept up his call for several hours, sometimes coming close after me, making a low,
chittering noise, as if suspicious something could be told—that I could tell him where
his love had gone. Far from it, I was also in search—in search of anything that could
give a clue to the unfeeling wretch that had done the bloody deed. I was excited, and
would have executed the severest penalty known, if the guilty one could have been
found. I had been to the nest several times, with merely the thought she might be
testing the affections of her lord, or playing him a practical joke; but no, the eggs were
bare. About noon of that day he ceased his noise, and, hoping his mate had returned,
Ihastened to {he nest again; but in this again disappointed. The reason, however,
for his stillness was explained. He was on the eggs, keeping life in the prospective
family. Forseveral days he left his charge frequently, to make further search for the
missing partner. One morning I stopped as usual to see how the little widower was
getting along, and found nothing but a bundle of egg shells. Every egg had been
hatched. Not far from the nest I heard a low chit-chit-chit, and soon discovered Bob with
his brood, Hoe continued to care for the young, as I can testify from our frequent meet-
ings, and reared a fine large covey, which received protection and sympathy, during
the following winter, of all the farm hands and sportsmen who knew him and his well-
behaved family.

Quail are not strictly granivorous in their notions of diet. In autumn and winter,.
they subsist chiefly upon grain, berries, grapes, black-haws, and seeds of weeds and
vines. Butin the spring and early summer, their food is almost exclusively composed of
ants, bugs, and otherinsects. While Henry William Herbert justly extols the benefits
the agıiculturist derives from the consumption of weed-seeds by these birds; he omits.
to give them credit for their inseetivorous qualities. He says: when it is taken into
consideration that each individual Quail consumes daily nearly two gills of weed-seed,
it will be at once evident that a few bevies of these little birds, carefully and assiduously
preserved on a farm, will do more toward keeping it free of weeds, than the daily annnal.
labor of a dozen farm servants. With the endorsement of the above it is highly impor-
tant to add, that a few coveys carefully preserved would protect the farmer against the
ravages of many destructive insects, which are by far greater pests and more to be
feared than the ragweed, the dock, or the brier. As an insect exterminator, the Quail
may be placed in the front ranks of our native birds. I examined the crop of one that
was killed by flying against a white house, having been frightened from a potatogpatch.
near by, which contained seyenty-five potatc-buge. This is only one of many instances.
illustrating the practical usefulness of these birds to the farmer.

Quail are pursued by man and beast and bird and reptile; but with a fair opportun-
ity and timely warning, they manifest a wonderful faculty for evading their foe. Ex-
cepting against the pot-hunter, they are provided with ample means for celf-preservation.
Ho who steals upon them while enjoying the sunshine by the side of some old log or

QUAIL. 453

stump or fence-corner, all seated in a space less than the circumference of a half bushel
measure, or even closer on a cold winter day, and betrays their confidence by firing upon
them in this unsuspecting attitude, filling his bag with the dead, and marching off,
having the brand of ‘‘sneak-thief” upon his brow, is a pot-hunter. He too, who with
a show of indifference, rides about, pretending to be overseeing his own affairs, whistling
around and around, until the poor unsuspecting birds, in order to get out of his way,
nnconsciously walk into a net prepared for them, and as a reward for their confiding
freindship, triumphantly pinches their heads, is 2 pot-hunter. Against such they have
no protection. When these birds have warning of danger and wish to evade detection,
or when closely pursued, they will conceal themselves against the observation of their
foes in the most magical manner; and if satisfied they are unobserved, will not move
sometimes until they have suffered themselves to be captured on the spot. It is quite
amusing to witness the changes that come over the dreams of the amateur sportsman
when he fails to put up his expected birds. He knows where they are, for he marked
them all down in the meadow of short grass, within a few yards of a stump or tree.
Then, it is such a commentary on his dogs, for he knows they are all right—never better,
truer noses; still they go, over and over, round and round, without coming to a point.
There, that dog has flushed a bird. Now he is assured they are all within twenty feet
of that place; and he renews his search, and keeps his dogs going over and over the
same ground, until both dogs and gunner disgusted, quit the place. How they got
away, and where they all went to, and why that single bird remained where the covey
went down, and why the dogs did not point that bird, all pass through the mind of the
hunter as he leasurely marches on in search of better luck. He perhaps meets his ex-
perienced friend, to whom he relates his disappointment, and who, in turn, proposes after
a@ given time to return to the meadow, stump or tree. They do so, and every dog comes
to a point. Down come three birds. The dogs move cautiously, in a moment again
stand. This repeated until the last bird has gone the gantlet. Experience of this kind
is not a novelty, but occurs frequently. A few years since I was out with a friend, and
we flushed a very large covey, and marked them down accurately on an elevated piece
of ground in a woodland pasture. The grass was short, and there was not even a weed
or brier, and but here and there a large tree. We moved forward with three dogs, ex-
pecting to bring on an engagement at once. We made the dogs approach cautiously,
giving them warning that game was in the immediate vicinity, but they arrived at the
identical spot where we saw as many as thirty birds alight, without making the least
demonstration whatever that there was anything unusual about ths place. We knew
better, and made them go over and over, crossing and re-crossing, until it seemed every
foot and even every inch of ground had been most thoroughly examined, We did this
until two sportsmen and three good dogs gave up the pursuit. It was now past noon,
and we sat down on the grass and uncorked our canteens and opened up the lunch. We
were eating, talking and laughing, occasionally rewarding the dogs with a cracker, when
my friend, by way of sport, said, ‘‘ Look at old Tom, he is on a point.” The dog was
half standing, half down, with his nose thrown down under his chest, between his front
legs. Sure enough he was on a point, for there was the bird, with its bright black eyes,
only partially concealed by a leaf, almost under the dogs body. My friend placed his
hat over itand caughtit, without moving from the dinner-table. Atthatinstant another
dog made a point within six inches of my feet. I saw the bird at once, and attempted
to capture it with my hand but it made its escape. This was the signal for a general
move, and the whole covey rose from all around and about us. The concert of their
actions in the manner of going down, retaining scent, remaining still under the most

454 BIRDS—PERDICIDE.

trying circumstances, and the mode of leaving—all indicated an understanding, an edu-.
cation by command, how to act in time of great danger.

The ability to evade the perception of the sharpest and most experienced dog, has been
accounted for in various ways by sportsmen and authors; some claim that through
fear they retain their scent by alighting and not moving after touching the ground, and
compressing the plumage in a way to check the emanations. Others deny most empha-
tically that they posses the power to withhold the scent, and say the manifestations are
accounted for by thescent being confined and covered up; while others assert knowingly
that the reason the dogs are unable to find the birds at the spot where they are seen to
settle is they are not there to flash; that they run away, and that after a given time
will return to the place where the sportsman expected, but failed, to find them. Iam
satisfied, however, that ordinary observation and a little patience will convince anyone
that these birds do possess the power, and dofrequently exercise itin a way that deprives
the dog of not only the ability to locate them by scent, but also of the entire knowledge
of their presence ; and that the birds appear to fully understand when they are in this
relation to the dog. That they do not always ‘run away and come back again’ I have
frequently tested to my entire satisfaction. A few years since, I flushed a covey of
about one dozen birds and marked them down very correctly in some broom-corn
stubble. My dog was beyond question, but I was compelled to give them up without
finding a bird. The cover was not heavy, and I put this down as possibly an instance
where they had all escaped by running ‘like race horses,’

A short time after, about three inches of snow fell in the night, and in the morning I
concluded to lock after this covey a little further. The dog came to a stand near the
same place I found them a few days before. When flushed, they all took their old route,
settling close together ; I was soon there with the dog, and hunted the place over and
over, but could not find even a track or imprint in the unbroken snow. I now made.
several circles around tho place, to render assurance doubly eure that the birds had not
run away, and were at the point where I saw them go down. Yes, the evidence was con-
clusive. They were all there within ashort distance of each other. This was enough, I
walked away and remained long enough to quiet their fears, and then retarned, and the
dog made point after point until probably every bird was found, although not one had
moved frem the spot at which he touched the snow-covered ground.

Quail shooting is the great field sport of the country. It is by far the most exciting,
as the bird is the most troublesome to follow up, and, when flashed, the most difficult.
to kill. It may have its faults, but when restricted by proper legislation, it has its
benefits and advantages. While it diminishes the aggregate number of birds by sub-
tracting from each eovey, it seldom destreys the whole family, and in this way insures:
the preservation of an abundance to propagate another season. Wing shooting also
draws from the destructive spoils of the pot-hunter and trapper, making the birds coy,
suspicious, and not easily seen. True, there is a possibility that the sportman with dog
and gun may destroy a whole family unintentionally or by accident, for it once fell to.
my lot to be the author of a chapter of this kind. While riding along the road in a.
buggy with a friend, I discovered my dog on a stand near the road some distance in
front, with nose and tail parallel to the line of fence. As I moved up, the birds rose by
concert, in line along the fence, and I fired at the rear bird and for a few seconds saw
nothing but smoke, then a wounded bird making his way on foot into a sorghum patch
on the opposite side of the road, I attempted to intercept his passage but failed, and he
escaped into the dense cover. Where the other birds were I did not yet know, for the
smoke stood at the muzzle so long it was impossible to see a feather fall. My friend,

BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER. 455

who had charge of the conveyance and sat in the buggy, declared that every bird fell,
I walked over the ground and picked up twelve dead birds; from the first to the last
the distance was about twenty yards. The next day, on passing the place the dog came
to a point; not expecting a repetition of the slaughter, I walked up, but no bird flushed
I now moved some dead grass, and found the one I had winged the day before, and
which was so badly wounded that I killed him as a kindness. Here the whole covey was
exterminated ; but as I felt sorry for the act, did not intend it, and would never do it
again, it should not be considered unpardonable, Experience, however, sustains the
position taken by sportsmen, that the judicious use of the gun merely diminishes by
drawing upon the yearly increase, and does not oppose the preservation and healthy
propagation of these birds.

Still, if unmolested, they would not, perhaps, under the most favorable circumstances,
become in excess of their usefulness to the agriculturist. Yet, however plentiful they
may be, it seems an inexcusable cruelty to take their lives either for gain or amusement,
and I agree with Mr. Herbert: ‘were I a farmer, I would hang it over my kitchen fire-
place, inscribed in goodly capitals—Spare the Quail! If you would have clean fields
and goodly crops, spare the Quail! So shall you spare your labor.’”

ORDER LIMICOLAZ. SHORE BIRDS.
FAMILY CHARADRIIDA. PLOVER.

Legs moderate. Tarsus shorter than tail, reticulate. Hind toe wanting (except in
Squatarola, where very small, and in Aphriza). Bill short, straight, not exceeding the
head (generally shorter), shaped like a pigeon’s, with short, broad, soft nasal fossa sep-
arated by a constriction from the enlarged, obtuse, horny terminal part. Head large,
globose, contracting suddenly to the bill. Neck short. =

Sub-family CHARADRIINA. True Plover.

Size moderate or small; body plump; neck thick. Gape very short, reaching little
beyond base of culmen. Tarsus reticulate, longer than middle toe. Tail of twelve
feathers, nearly even, or rounded.

Genus SQUATAROLA. Cuvier.

Hind toerudimentary. Legs reticulated with elongated hexagons anteriorly, of which
there are five or six in a transverse row, fewer behind. Tail slightly rounded.

SQUATAROLA HELVETICA (L.) Brehm.

Black-bellied Plover.

Charadrius helveticus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 185.

Squartarola (error) helvetiea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Squatarola helvetioa, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15.—Dury and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1830, 104;
Reprint, 5.

Tringa helvetica, Linn2xus, Syst. Nat., i, 1763, 259.

Squatarola helvetica, BREHM, VY. D., 554,

456 BIRDS—CHARADRIIDE.

Adult in breeding season (rarely seen in the United States); face and entire under
parts black; upper parts variegated with black, and white or ashy; tail barred with
black and white; quills dusky with large white patches. Adults at other times and
young: below white more or less shaded with gray, the throat and breast more or less
speckled with ‘dusky ; above blackish, speckled with white or yellowish; the rump white
with dark bars, legs dull bluish. Old birds changing show every grade, from a few
isolated feathers on the under parts, to numerous large black patches. Length, 11-12;
wing, 7 or more; tail, 3; bill, 1-14; tarsus, 2; middle toe and claw, 14; hind toe,
hardly 4.

Habitat, nearly Cosmopolitan.

Rather rare spring and fall migrant. More frequently seen on the
jake shore than elsewhere. Dr. Kirtland says that it is sometimes seen in
company with the Kildeer. Mr. Langdon gives it as rare in the vicinity
of Cincinnati, where Messrs. Dury and Freeman note its occurrence in
September. I met with a single specimen here in August, 1875. Mr.
. Oliver Davie took a specimen in May, which was in breeding plumage,
but their spring migration ordinarily takes place in April. Both
these specimens were solitary birds, feeding on the gravelly shores of the
Scioto River, a short distance from this city.

The Black-bellied Plover breeds in the Arctic regions, and possibly
further south on the Pacific coast. The nest, like that of all members of
the order, so far as known, is placed on the ground. The eggs are four,
brownish-clay color, thickly marked with spots of brownish-black, larger
and irregular about the greater end. They measure about 2 by 1.40
inches.

Genus CHARADRIUS. Linneus.

Tarsi and naked tibie uniformly reticulated.

CHARADRIUS FULVUS Gm.

var. VIRGINICUS, (Borck.) Cs.

Grolden Plover.

Charadrius pluvialis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Golog. Surv., 1838, 165, 184.

Charadrius virginicus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Charadrius fulvus, var. virginicus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric, Rep. for
1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 15.

Charadrius fulvus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 687.
Charadrius pluvialis, WILSON, Am. Orn., vii, 1813, 71.
Charadrius virginicus, ‘‘ BORCH, Mus. Berol.”

Charadrius fulvus, var. virginicus, Cours, Key, 1872, 243.

Plumage speckled above, and in the breeding season black below, asin the last species,
but much of the speckling bright yellow, and the rump and upper tail-coverts like the

KILDEER. 457

back; forehead, and a broad line over the eye to the nape white; tail feathers grayish-
brown, with imperfect white or ashy bars; axillars gray or ashy. At other times, the
under parts nearly as in the last species. Length, 10-11; wing, 7 or less; tail, under
3; bill, 1 or less.

Habitat, Var. fulvus, Asia and Pacific regions generally. Prybilov Islands. Var.
virginicus, all of North America. Greenland. Accidental in Europe.

Migrant ; usually abundant in spring, common in thefall. TheGolden
Plover is the most abundant of the strictly migrant species of the family.
In April it usually appears in flocks of from thirty to one hundred birds,
in high meadows and pastures. Their flight is very swift, and the flocks
are very close. All movements, when on the wing, are performed with
wonderful rapidity and unanimity. They run quickly in the grass,
and, while rather shy, exhibit sometimes considerable curiosity and
some degree of confidence. Their voice isa pleasant mellow whistle, fre-
quently repeated while on the wing. During the spring migration while
with usthey are changing from winter to breeding plumage. Generally the
colors of winter predominate, but sometimes specimens are taken with
the under parts nearly uniform black. In September they return in full
winter plumage, and now frequent the gravelly and muddy borders of
streams, sometimes in large flocks, and sometimes in pairs or as single
birds, solitary or in company with Tattlers and Sandpipers. At this
season their habits are less active than in spring. They are the only
birds of the family whose size, abundance, and other qualities entitle
them to any consideration asa game bird. As such they are generally
esteemed.

The Golden Plover breeds in the Arctic regions. The nest is composed
of a few leaves within a natural depression of the ground. The eggs re-
semble those of the preceeding species in color, but measure about 1.90
by 1.38.

Genus AGIALITIS. Boie,

Front of tarsus with plates arranged vertically of which there are two or three in a
transverse series.

JEGIALITIS VOCIFERA (L.) Bonap.

Kildeer Plover.

Charadrius vociferus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog.Surv., 1838, 165.

Aegialitis vociferus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368 ; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Aigialitis vociferus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin,
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16; Summer Birds, iii, 1880, 226,

Kildeer, BALLov, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Charadrius vociferus, LINN&ZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 253.

ZEgialitis vociferus, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 45.

Zgialitis vocifera, Cours, Birds N. W., 1874, 452.

458 BIRDS—CHARADRIIDE.

Above quaker-brown with a greenish tinge, sometimes most of the feathers tipped and
edged with orange-brown; rump and upper tail coverts orange-brown ; most of tail
feathers white at base and tip, suffased with orange-brown in part of their length and
with 1-3 black bats; secondaries mostly white, and primaries with a white space; a
black bar across the crown and two black bands on the neck and breast; forehead and
entire under parts except as stated white; bill black; feet pale; eyelids scarlet.

Length, 9-10 inches; wing, 6 or mora; tail, 34 much rounded; tarsus, about 1}.

Habitat, Temperate North America. West Indies, Central and South America in
winter. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant summer resident. Breeds. Arrives during the first week
in March, usually, sometimes during the latter part of February, and re-
mains until the last of October or later. No sconer are the streams per-
manently open, even before the fields are free from snow, than the
characteristic note, from which it takes its name, is heard. Commonly
single birds are first seen flying high, afterwards they appear in pairs and
soon set about breeding. They frequent both high and low grounds, pas-
tures, fallow fields and old brick yards, as well as borders of streams. The
nest is placed on the ground, usually in the vicinity of a stream or pond,
and often on a elevated spot; when it is approached by man or other sus-
picious object, the birds manifest great alarm and anxiety, hovering over-
head with shrill cries, or, if the danger is imminent, tumbling upon the
ground, affecting all manner of injuries to draw the intruder away, as is
the habit of many others of this order, as well as the Quail and Dove.

After the breeding season is over, both young and old collect in
flocks of from ten to fifty, and seek the muddy or gravelly shores of streams,
where they feed, augmenting their numbers daily until they depart for
the south. At this time the note, Kildeer, Kildeer, is less frequently
heard, unless the flock has become scattered, but a lower alarm note, a
rapid te é é é é-t, is frequently sounded as they run stiffly but swiftly over
the gravel and in the shallows.

The eggs of the Kildeer are four in number, drab or clay-color rather
thickly spotted and blotched with blackish-brown. The smaller end is
quite pointed, as is commonly the case with birds of this order. They
measure 1.50 by 1.12.

ANGIALITIS SEMIPALMATA Bonaparte.

Semipalmated Plover; Ringneck.
Charadrius semipalmatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 168, 184.
Aegialitis semipalmatus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368; Reprint, 1861, 10
Atigialitis semipalmatus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 9.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 16.—Dury and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1880, 104;
Reprint, 5.

PIPING PLOVER. 459

Charadrius semipalmatus, BONAPARTE, Obs., Wils., 1825, No. 219.
Aegialitis semipalmatus, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 45.
Asgialitis semipalmatus, COUEB, Birds, N. W., 1874, 453.

Above dark ashy-brown with an olivaceous shade; below white; very broad coronal
and pectoral black bars in the adult in spring, in fall and in the young the coronal bar
hardly evident, the pectoral grayish-brown ; edges of eyelids bright orange; bill
moderately short and stout, orange or yellow, black tipped; legs yellowish; toes con-
spicuously semipalmate. Length, about 7 inches; wing, 44; tail, about 24 rounded.

Having taken fall specimens with the coronal bar and pectoral band as distinct and
black as in spring birds, I am of the opinion that the above description errs in regard to
adults in fall.

Habitat, North America, breeding chiefly in high latitudes, wintering from our south-
ern border to Brazil.

Not common migrant in spring, more abundant in the fall. I have
seen the Semipalmated Plover in spring but on one occasion, May, 1880,
when a pair, in company with Kildsers, lingered for several days about
the wet places in an old brick-yard near this city. They are common
and regular in the fall, however, arriving the last week of July or first of
August, frequenting gravelly and muddy shores of streams in small flocks
of from eight to twenty birds, or less, single birds frequently associating
with Leastand Semipalmated Sandpipers. Their habits resemble those of

‚the Kildeer, and their note is a soft mellow whistle.

The eggs of this bird resemble those of the Kildeer, except in size,
they measure about 1.25 by 93.

It is not unlikely the breeding range of this species will be found to
extend southward farther than has been heretofore supposed. It is re-
corded as breeding in Massachussetts, and Mr. Nelson has found both young
and old near Chicago early in July, under circumstances making it almost
certain that they nested in that vicinity.

JEGIALITIS MELODA (Ord.) Bp.
Piping Plover; Ringneck,
Charadrius melodus, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xl, 1841, 24.
Aegialitis melodus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 368, 377; Reprint, 10, 19.
Zgialitis melodus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 572 ;
Reprint, 12.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1878, 116; Reprint, 7.
ZEgialitis meloda, LANGDon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Re-
print, 16.
Piping Plover, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xiii, 1852, 218.
Charadrius melodus, ORD, ed. Wils. Am. Orn., v, 1812, 30.
Aigialitis melodus, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 45.
ZEgialitis meleda, CevEs, Birds N. W., 1874, 455.
Above, very pale ashy-brown ; the black bands narrow, often imperfect; bill colored
as in the last, but shorter and stumpy ; edges of eyelids colored ; no evident web between

460 BIRDS—H ZMATOPODIDA.

inner and middle toes, and only a slight one between middle and outer. Length, about
7 inches; wing, 44; tail 2.

Habitat, United States and British Provinces, east of the Rocky Mountains. Abun-
dant along the Atlantic coast of the United States, breeding north to the St. Lawrence,
and wintering from the Carolinas southward. Cuba. Bahamas. Jamaica.

Rather common spring and fall migrant, and in part summer resident
on Lake Erie, not common migrant in the interior of the State.
This little bird was probably first recorded as occurring inland by Dr.
Kirtland, above cited. Mr. Winslow informs me that he has found them
on the lake shore, where their actions indicated the immediate pre-
sence of the nest or very young birds, but he was unable to discover
either. They have been found breeding on Lake Michigan, within the
State of Illinois, by Mr. Nelson and others.

Mr. Ridgway describes as a geographical race of this species, var.
circumeinctus, from the Missouri region. To this variety Mr. Nelson refers
the birds taken by him in Illinois, and doubtless Ohio birds are the same.
But specimens of circumcinctus have been taken in various localities on
the Atlantic coast, and doubtless, as held by Mr. Brewster, the variety is
untenable.

The eggs of the Piping Plover, are clay-colored, sparsely but uniformly
dotted and speckled with blackish-brown. They measure 1.25 by 1.

FAMILY HH MATOPODIDA. TURNSTONES, ETC.

Legs moderate, stout. Tarsus shorter than tail. Bill hard, more or less contracted
at base, with short nasal fosse, gonydeal angle, and ascending gonys, the tip either
compressed and truncate, or depressed and acute. Feet three-toed and with basal web-
bing (Hematopus), or four-toed and cleft (Strepsilas).

Genus STREPSILAS. Linnsus.

Bill sharp pointed not longer than the tarsus, which is scutellate in front; four-toed
with no obvious webbing; hind toe lengthened.

STREPSILAS INTERPRES (L.) IIL

Turnstone.

Strepsilas interpres, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 184.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 368, 377; Reprint, 1861, 10, 19; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep
for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—Coues, Birds of N. W., 1874, 459.—Lanapon, Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1870, 184 ; Reprint, 16.

Tringa interpres, LINNEUS, Fn. Suec., 63.
Strepsilas interpres, ILLIGER, Prod., 1811, 263.

Adult in summer pied above with black, white, brown and chestnut red, the latter
color wanting in winter and in young birds; below from the breast (which is more or
jess completely black) throat, most of the secondaries, bases of the primaries, and bases

AVOCET. 461

and tips of the tail feathers white; bill black; feet orange; length, 8-9 inches; wing,
54-6; tail, 24; bill, 4, almost recurved; tarsus, 1; tibise bare but a little way.

Habitat, sea coasts of nearly all countries. Less frequent in the interior.

Not common migrant on the shores of Lake Erie; rare in other portions
of the State. %

The Turnstone, of which Audubon in 1838, said, “never in the in-
terior,” was the same year, stated to visit the shores of Lake Erie by Dr.
Kirtland. It has been occasionally taken in the vicinity of Cleveland, by
Mr. Winslow and others. Judge Potter, of Toledo, informs me that a
considerable flock appeared, several year since, in the vicinity of that
city, several being secured by a sportsman, most of which were pre-
served by him. Mr. Langdon gives it in his list, it having been identi-
fied by Dr. Haymond, in Indiana, near Cincinnati. I have never seen
it alive, or from this vicinity.

The Turnstone is not known to breed within the limits of the United
States, at least in the interior. Mr. Sinnett, observed them on the coast
of Texas in the breeding season, and believes them to breed there. The
eggs are described as of an olive-green ground-color, with brown spots.

FAMILY RECURVIROSTRIDE. STILTS AND
AVOCETS.
Legs extremely long; the tarsus equalling or exceeding the tail, and feet either four-

toed and palmate (Recurvirostra) or three-toed and semipalmate (Himantopus); with
the bill much longer than than the head, very slender, acute, and curved upward.

Genus RECURVIROSTRA. Linneus,

Toes 4, fall webbed ; bill decidedly recurved, flattened, tapering to a very sharp
point; body depressed, plumage underneath thickened as in water birds.

RECURVIROSTRA AMERICANA Gm.

Avocet.

Recurvirostra americana, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1837, 166, 185.—WHEATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377; Reprint, 1861, 10,19; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric,
Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—Lancpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16.

Recurvirostra americana, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 693.

White; back and wings with much black; head and neck cinnamon-brown in the
adult, ashy in the young; bill black, 32 to gape; legs blue; eyes red. Length, 16-18;
wing, 7-8; tail, 34 ; tarsus, 34.

“The young Avocet has the head and neck white, with an ashy or plumbeous shade,

instead of chestuut or cinnamon-red. In this condition it constitutes the R. occidentalis
of authors. Of the adult, the bill is black ; the iris, bright red ; the legs and feet clear,

462 BIRDS—RECURVIROSTRIDE.

pale blue, with part of the webs flesh-colored. The plumage is white, changing, to cin-
namon or chestnut on the neck and head; the back, wing-coverts, and primaries black,
contrasting witb the white of the scapulars and ramp. In size the bird is extremely
variable ; perhaps seventeen inches in total length by thirty in extent represents aver-
age measurements. Contrary to the rule among waders, the female is amaller than the
male.” (Coues, Birds N. W:, 462.)

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. North to the Saskatchewan and Great
Slave Lake, Rare or casual in New England. Breeds throughout. Winters on our
southern border and beyond (to Guatemala).

Extremely rare visitor; the only record of its occurrence:is that of Dr.
Kirtland, who says: “ This unique bird has been killed by sportmen in
the vicinity of Cincinnati.”

Dr. Coues gives the following general account of their habits, and of
his observations of them on the plains in June, 1864:

“In the United States and northward the Avocet is chiefly a summer visitor, enter-
ing our limits from the Sonth in spring, though many winter along our border. A past
of the birds scatter over the United States, and others go further north, to breed; for
they raise their young with equal facility from the latitude of the Middle States—or
even further south, especially in the West—to that, for instance, of Great Slave Lake.”

“ The Avocets were in full plumage, with the head and neck cinnamon color; and,
from their actions, I had no doubt they had nests somewhere about the ponds. They
were quite gentle and familiar, and not at all distarbed by my approach, displaying a
characteristic of theirs during the breeding season, at least in regions where they are
not often molested, and have, therefore, not leaıned a wholesome dread of man. They
walked leisurely about, up to the belly inthe water, with graceful, deliberate steps,
each of which was accompanied by a swaying of the head and neck, as usual with birds
of similar form. When approached too closely, they rose lightly from the water, utter-
ing their peculiar cries, flapped leisurely to a little distance, and again alighted to pur-
sue their peaceful search for food, forgetting, or at least not heeding, their recent
alarm. As they rose from the water, their singular, Jong legs were suffered to dargle
for a few moments, but were afterward stretched stiffly backward, as a counterpoise to
their long necks; and, thus balanced, their lithe bodies were supported with greatest
ease by their ample wings. When about to realight, they sailed without flapping for a
little distance, just clearing the water, their legs again hanging loosely ; as they touched
the ground, their long wings were held almoat upright for an instant, then deliberately
folded and settled in place with a few slight motions.”

The eggs of the Avocet are described as varying in ground-color from
dark-olive to buff, uniformly spotted with chocolate-brown and neutral
tint. They measure about 2.00 by 1.40.

Genus HIMANTOPUS Brisson.

Hind toe aksent; anterior toes somipalmate ; bill nearly straight, not flattened.

STILT. 463

HIMANTOPUS NIGRICOLLIS V.

*

Stilt.

Himantopus nigricollis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380 (probable), 460; Re-
print, 1861, 10; Food of Birds, ete, Ohio Agric, Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1675,
12.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16.

Himantopus nigricollis, VinILLot, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., x, 1817, 42.

Glossy-black above ; forehead, sides of head and neck, ramp and under parts white ;
tail white or ashy; bill black; legs carmine; young with back and wings brown.
Length, 13-15; wings, 8-9; tail, 3; tarsus, 4.

Habitat, United States generally. Mexico, part of West Indies, Central America, and
South America to Peru and Brazil.

Rare summer visitor. Perhapsbreeds. The Stilt has been repeatedly
taken on Lake Erie, as I am informed by Mr. Winslow. Mr. Langdon
notes a specimen frora near Cincinnati on the authority of Mr. Dury. I
have never meet with it, though birds answering to its description have
been reported as occuring here.

Dz. Coues gives the following description of their habits and eggs:

“ Avocets and Stilts correspend with each other in habits as closely as they do in form.
One of the most marked physical differences is found in the etracture of the feet. Avocets
have a hind toe, which the Stilts have not, and their feet are aimost completely webbed,
so that they are among the best swimmers of the long-legged fraternity. Stilts, on the
contrary, scarcely swim at all, and never exoept on an emergency. When the Avocets
are wading about, it often happens that they get beyond their depth, when, instead of
rising on wing, they keep on as if nothing had happened to take them off their feet. If
they are wounded, they sometimes escape by diving as well as swimming.”

“The wings of the Stilt are very long and pointed, ae well as ample in width; its
flight, in consequence, ia firm, vigorous, and swift. When folded they reach beyond
the tip of the tail, and as the under-coveris reach to the end, the bird tapers off behind
to a fine point. The black shorter quills and secondaries meet across the back, hiding
the white ramp and tail. On the ground, whether walking or wading, the bird moves
gracefully, with measured steps ; the long legs are much beni at each step (only at the
joint, however !), and planted firmly, perfectly etraight; excepting under eertain cir-
cumstances, as those Wilson narrates, there is nothing veecillating, feeble or unsteady,
either in the attitudes or movements of the birds. When feeding, the lege are bent back-
ward with an acute angle at the heel-jeint, to bring the body lower; the latter is tilted
forward and downward over the eentze of equilibrium, where the feet, and the long neck
and bill reach the rest of the distance to the greund. Its feed consist of equatic in-
sects of all sorte, probably also of the ova or smallest fry of fish, and various kinds of
lacustrine vegetation ; in seeking it, the whole heed is frequently immersed in the
water. The eggs appear very large for the size of the bird; they are pyriform in shape,
broad at eme end and pointed at the other ; four constitute a nest-fall, But both size
and shape vary a good deal. Two specimens I selected aa representing the extremes in
a large series measured, respectively, 1.85 by 1.15, and 1.70 by 1.25; the former being

long and nétrow, the latter short and comparatively blunt. The coloris dark ochraceoue,

464 BIRDS—PHALAROPODIDA.

or pale brownish-olive, blotched all over with spots and splashes of brown and blackish-
brown, of irregular siz’ and shape.”

FAMILY PHALAROPODIDA. PHALAROPES.

General characters of Scolopacide. Body depressed; the under plumage thickened
and duck-lixe. Toes lobate. Tarsi compressed. Habits natatorial.

Genus STEGANOPUS. Vieillot.
Membranes of toes straight-edged ; bill very slender, awl-shaped, longer than the
head.
STEGANOPUS WILSONI (Sab.) Cs.

Wilson’s Phalarope.

Phalaropus wilsoni, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Rep., 1838, 165, 185. WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 363, 377; Reprint, 1861, 10, 19.

Steganopus wilsonü, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.

Steganopus wilsont, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 12; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.

Wilson’s Phalarope, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 164.

Phalaropus wilsoni, SABINE, App. Franklin’s Journ,, 1823, 691.

Steganopus wilscni, Cours, Ibis, Apl., 1865.

Adult ashy; upper tail-coverts and under parts white; a black stripe from the eye
down the side of the neck spreading into rich purplish-chestnut, which also variegates
the back and shades the throat; young lacking these last colors. Length, 9-10; wing,
5; tail, 2; bill, tarsus and middle toe, each over 1, black.

'‘ Habitat, United States and British Provinces, generally. North to the Saskatchewan.
Rare or casual in the Eastern United States. Common in the Mississppi Valley aud
westward. Breeds in Western United States and in the interior of the fur countries in
the lower latitudes. Mexico, Central and South America, in winter.

Not common spring and fall migrant. Probably breeds in North-
western Ohio. Dr. Kirtland notes the visit of a flock to Mill Creek,
in Trumbull county. It is reported by Mr. Winslow as having been re-
peatedly taken in the vicinity of Cleveland. Itis not included in Mr.
Langdon’s last list, though I have been informed that it has been taken
in the vicinity of Cincinnati. Ihave never seen itin this vicinity. It
ig a common summer resident in Northern Indiana (Brayton), abun-
dant in Northern Illinois, and undoubtedly is a not uncommon resident
throughout the summer in some localities in Northwestern Ohio.

To Mr. E. W. Wilson, we are indebted for the most complete biography
of this bird yet written. I quote from his paper in Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club,
if, 1877, 58:

“Tn Northern Illinois, where the following observations were made, Wilson’s Phalarope
is the most common summer resident, occurring about grassy marshes and low prairies

WILSON’S PHALAROPE. 465

and is not exceeded in numbers by even the ever-present Spotted Sand-piper. As is the
case with several other species of birds, Lake Michigan appears to form a limit to its
common occurrence in the eastern portion of its range. On the west it extends to the
Rocky Mountains, and between these limits it has been recorded during the breeding-
season from the Saskatchewan to the Arkansas (Cones) and to the city of Mexico
(Nuttall). It is more closely confined to its favorite haunts than most water-birds, and
this may, in a measure, account for the little hitherto known regarding its habits. Dur-
ing the first two weeks of May, the exact date varying with the season, this beautiful
bird first makes its appearance in Northeastern Illinois. Its arrival is heralded by a few
females, which arrive first, and are found singly about the marshes. At this time the
females have a peculiar harsh note, which I have heard but a few times, and only from
solitary individuals before the arrival of the main body.

A few days later small flocks, embracing both sexes, may be found along the borders
of grassy pools, or lying at midday on the sunny side of some warm knoll in the mareh.
Asthe breeding-season approaches they become more restless, flying from place to place,
and finally separate into small parties of two or three pairs. About the middle of May
their love-making commences, and is at first indicated by the increasing solicitude they
show for each othe:’s welfare. The appearance of a person in their vicinity at this time
is the signal for all the birds near to come circling about, though generally not within
easy gunshot. By a careful approach one may now and then find a small party swim-
ming about in some secluded pool. The charming grace of movement exhibited at such
times, combined with their tasteful elegance of attire, form one of the most pleasing
sights one could witness, as they swim buoyantly from side to side of the pool, grace-
fally nodding their heads; now pausing an instant to arrange a feather, or to daintily

' gather some fragment of food, and now floating idly about, wafted by the slight breeze
which at intervals ripples the surface of the water. A more common, but scarcely less
pleasing sight is presented when, unconscious of observation, they walk sedately along
the border of the water, never departing from their usualeasy grace of movement.
Their food is generaily found in such places, where the receding water farnishes a
bountiful supply. The only demonstrations I have observed during the pairing-time
consist of a kind of solemn bowing of the head and body ; but sometimes, with the head
lowered and thrust forward, they will run back and forth in front of the object of their
regard ; or again a pair may often be seen to salute each other by alternately bowing or
lowering their heads; but their courtship is characterized by a lack of the rivalry and
vehemence usually exhibited by birds. A male is often accompanied by two females at
first, but as soon as his choice is made the rejected bird joins her fortunes with some
more impressible swain.

The nesting-site is usually in some thin tuft of grass on a level spot, bat often in an
open place concealed by only afew straggling blades of small carices, The male scratches
a shallow depression in the soft earth, which is usually lined with a thin layer of frag-
ments of old grass blades, upon which the eggs, numbering from three to four, are de-
posited about the last of May or firstof June. Owing to the low situations in which the
nests are placed, the frst set of eggs is often destroyed by a heavy fall of rain, causing
the water to rise so as to submerge the nest. In this caso the second set, numbering
two or three, are often deposited in a depression ecratched'in the ground, as at first, but
with no sign of any lining. Accidents of this kind causé the second set of eggs to be
sometimes deposited as late as the last of June.

The young usually appear about the third week of June, and are able to fly in about
three weeks, Generally a number of pairs nest upon the same marsh. In some in-

30

466 BIRDS—PHALAROPODIDE.

stances as many as fifty may be counted within the radins of a mile; but, notwithstand-
ing this, their nests are extremely difficult to discover, the material and the color of the
eggs correspond so closely to the appearance of the surrounding surface. If they are
disturbed while building, the nest is usually abandoned. Incubation is attended to by
the male alone. The female, however, keeps near, and is quick to give the alarm upon
the approach of danger. The females aro frequently found at this time in small parties
of six or eight; and should their breeding-ground be approached, exhibit great anxiety,
coming from every part of the marsh to meet the intruder, and, hovering over his bead,
utter a weak nasal note, which can be heard to only a short distance. This note, which
is possesseil by both sexes, is nearly always made while the birds are in the air, and its
production requires apparently considerable effurt; the head and neck being inclined
downward, and then suddenly raised as the note is uttered, the flight being at the same
time momentarily checked. The movements of the birds usually render it an easy
matter to decids whether or not they have nests in the immediate vicinity. After the
first alarm, those having nests at a distance disperse, while the others take their course
in the form of an ellipge, sometimes several hundred yards in length, with the object
of their suspicion in the contre; and, with long strokes of thair wings, mach like the
flight of a Kildeer, they move back and forth. As their nests aro approached the length
of their flight is gradually Jessened, until at last they are joined by the males, when
the whole party hover low over the intruder’s head, uttering their peculiar note of alarm.
At this time they have an ingenious mode of misleading the novice, by flying off to a
short distance and hovering anxiously over a particular spot in the marsh, as though
there were concealed the objects of their solicitude. Should they be followed, however,
and a search be there made, the manouvre is repeated in another place still farther from.
the real location of the nest. But should this ruse prove unavailing, they return and
seem to become fairly desperate, flying about one’s head almost witbin reach, manifest-
ing great distress. If possible, still greater agitation isshown when they have unfledged
young—they even betrayicg their charge into the hands of ihe enemy by their too
obvious solicitude, they then hovering directly over the yonvg, and utterivg their notes.
of distress. The young have a fino, wiry peep, inaudible beyond a few fect. They are
very pretty little creatures, covered with yellowish-bufi-eolored down, with black spots
on the upper surface of the body. Even when first hatched they are quite lively and
difficult to capture.

About tho middle of July the females suddenly disappear, and a little later the males
and the young also leave, with the exception of a few stragglers, which occasionally re-
main until the last of August. The main portion rarely remain as late*as the 10th, and
are usually gone by the 5th. The males commence their fall moult before they leave;
but I have never taken a specimen in which the winter plumage was very evident.”

Genus LOBIPES, Cuvier.

Membranes scalloped ; bill very slender, awl-shaped.

LOBIPES HYPERBOREUS (L.) Cuv.
Northern Phalarope.
Phalaropus hyperboreus, KIRTLAND, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xl, 1841, 21.—WHLATON,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380 ; Reprint, 1861, 10.
Lobipes hyperboreus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agrio. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ, Cin.
Soe. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.

RED PHALAROPE. 467.

Tringa hyperborea, LINNALUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 249.
Phalaropus hyperboreus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 775.
Lobipes hyperboreus, CUVIER, Reg. An., i, 1829, 532.

Adalt, dark opaque-ash or grayish-black, the back variegated with tawny ; upper tail-
coverts and under parts mostly white; side of the head and neck with a broad stripe of
rich chestnut, gonerally meeting on the jugulum; breast otherwise with ashy-gray ;
young lacking the chestnut. Length, about 7 inches; wing, 44; tail, 2; bill, tarsus, and
middle toe each, under 1, black.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere, penetrating to very high latitudes to breed, migratory
sometimes into the tropics in Winter. Generally distributed, but more particularly
maritime.

Rare spring and fall migrant. Dr Kirtland, quoted on page 217, notes
the capture of a pair in winter plumage on Lake Erie. Mr. Winslow
and others have since taken it on the lake shore. Dr. Jasper took a pair
in winter plumage on the Scioto River, in the immediate vicinity of
this city, a few years since, one of which is now in my collection, the other
in that of Mr. Oliver Davie.

The eggs are described as having’a ground-color of various shades of
brown or olive, spotted with darker-brown. They measure about 1.20
by .80.

Genus PHALAROPUS, Brisson.
Membranes scalloped, bill comparatively stout, flattened, with lancet shaped tip.

,

PHALAROPUS FULICARIUS (L.) Bp.

Red Phalarope.

Phalaropus fulicarius, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 380 (probable) ; addenda,
480; Reprint, 10.—Couns, Birds of N. W., 1874, 472.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22,

Lobipes (error) fulicarius, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
572; Reprint, 12.

Tringa fulicaria, LInNzvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1777, 249.

Phalaropus fulicarius, BONAPARTE, Journ. Philad. Acad., iv, 1825, 232,

Adult with the under parts purplish-chestnut of variable intensity, white in the
young; above variegated with blackish and tawny. Length, 7-3 inches ; wing, 5 ; tail,

22; bill, 1, yellowish, black-tipped ; tarsus, $, greenish,

Habitat, essentially the same as that of L. hyperboreus,

Rare migrant. The Red Phalarope was named as an Ohio bird by my-
self in 1861, on the authority of Mr. R. K. Winslow, of Cleveland, who-
informed me that two or three specimens had been taken on Lake Erie..
Although Mr. Langdon names it in his Catalogue, he omits it from hig.
later List, doubtless for want of positive identification. It is named by
Mr. Ridgway as a bird of Illinois, and Mr. Nelson gives it as an occasional

468 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

migrant on Lake Michigan. It appears to be more exclusively maritime
than other species of this family.

The eggs of the Red Phalarope cannot with certainty be distinguished
from those of the last species.

FAMILY SCOLOPACIDA. SNIPE, ETC.

Legs moderate. Tarsus shorter than tail, scutellate. Hind toe present (except in
Calidris). Bill long, equalling, or often exceeding, frequently several times longer than
the head, softish and membranous to the very tip, without constriction in its continuity ;
straight or variously curved.

GENUS PHILOHELA. Gray.

Wing short; first three primaries attenuate; tail feathers 12; tibia feathered to the
joint; tarsi shorter than the middle toe; toes slender, unwebbed ; bill much longer than
the head, stout and deen at base, grooved nearly the whole length, the tip knobbed ;
gape very short and narrow; ear under the eye, which is set in the upper back corner
of the head. ,

PHILOHELA MINOR (Gm.) Gr.

American Woodcock.

Scolopax minor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 165.

Philohela minor, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 363; Reprint, 1261, 10; Food of
Birds, etc , Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12—LanGpon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 226.

Woodcock, CHUBB, Forest and Stream, xiv., 1880, 307.

Scolopax minor, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 661.

Philohela minor, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, 1849.

Above variegated and harmoniously blended black, browa, gray and russet; below
pale warm brown of variable shade. Length, male, 10-11; female, 11-12; extent, 16-18;
wing, 43-5; bill, 24-3; tarsus, 1}; middle toe and claw, 14; weight, 5-9 ounces.

Habitat, Eastern United States and British Provinces. North to Nova Scotia and
Canada. Northwest to Fort Rice, Dakota. West to Kinsas and Nebraska.

Very common summer resident from March to October. Breeds.

The Woodcock, one of the most, if not the most highly esteemed of our
game birds, may be found at almost any season of the year when the
ground is not frozen. I have seen them the first of March, when the
ground was covered with snow, turning over the wet leaves in high wood-
lands. Also in the latter part of November when the ground was frozen
hard except about boggy springs, where they lingered probing the moist
earth for insects. On their arrival in spring they appear to ba already
mated. Mr. Chubb has seen the young at Cleveland on April 9. Some,
“however, are not hatched until the middle of May.

AMERICAN SNIPE. 469

The Woodcock, during the breeding season, frequentsdensa woods, and
swampy thickets, more rarely high woods, even hill sides, but in this
case in the vicinity of water. After the breeding season they are often
found in more open wet places, especially at night, for their habits are
quite nocturnal, Corn-fields, pastures and commons with a rich loamy
soil are favorite places of resort after sunset.

When disturbed from the nest or the young are endangered, the parent
exhibits remarkable sagacity in attracting attention to herself and from
the objects of her affection, and feigns lameness in limb and wing, often
leading the observer to a hopeless and comical pursuit.

The nest of the Woodcock is placed upon the ground, at the root of a
tree, in a clump of weeds, or without any attempt at concealment, in re-
tired woodland. It composed of a few dead leaves. The eggs are four in
number, light grayish-brown with brownish blotches and shading; they
measure 1.50 by 1.15.

Genus GALLINAGO. Leach.

Bill much ionger than the head, straight, soft to the end where it issomewhat widened
and grooved on top; gape short and narrow; ear under eye; tibiae feathered nearly to
the joint; tarsus a little shorter than the middle toe and claw; tces unwebbed.

GALLINAGO WILSONI (Temm.) Bp.

American Snipe: Wilson’s Snipe.

Scolopax wilsonii, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.

Gallinago wilsonii, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368; Reprint, 1€61, 10; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 1%.—LANGDON, Summer
Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist, iii, 1880, 226.

Gallinago wilsoni, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc,
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16.

Snipe, CHUBB, Forest and Stream, xiv, 1880, 307.

Scolopax wilsoni, TEMMINCK, Pl. Color., v, livr. lxviii.

Gallinago wilsoni, BONAPARTE, Comp. List, 1838, 52.

Crown black with a pale middle stripe; back varied with black, bright bay and
tawny, the latter forming two lengthwise stripes on the scapulars; neck and breast
speckled with brown and dusky; lining of wings barred with black and white; tail,
usually of 16 feathers, barred with black, white and chestnut; sides waved with dusky ;
belly dull white; quills blackish, the outer white-edged. Length, 9-11; wing, 44-54;
bill, about 24; whole naked portion of leg and foot, about 3.

Habitat, the whole of North America, and southward to South America, Mexico.
West Indies. Breeds from Northern New England northward.

Abundant spring and fall migrant in March, April and often in May,
September, October. Occasional summer resident in Northern Ohio,
though no authentic instances of its breeding have been recorded.

This well-known game bird is a regular migrant, often in great num-

470 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

bers, especially in spring. It frequents low open places, such as wet
meadows and marshes, and muddy banks of streams.

They are found in small companies of from three to twelve, technically
called “wisps.” Solitary birds are not unfrequently met with.

No other game birds, are more erratic and eccentric than these.
They are extremely fickle in the choice of their feeding ground;
one day they may swarm in a certain locality, and the next none
are to be discovered. Their flight is strong, but, especially at the
‘beginning, erratic. They almost invariably fly against the wind, and
lie closest on clear still days. Occasionally they alight on trees or
fences. Their note, uttered as they rise, resembles the word “ escape.”

The nest of the Snipe, as of all others of this family so far as known,
is placed on the ground. The eggs, three or four in number, measure
about 1.55 by 1.10. They are grayish-olive blotched with dark-brown,
sometimes with lines of blackish.

Genus MACRORHAMPHUS. Leach.

Bill asin Gallinago ; legs long; tibia bare upwards of three-quarters of an inch ; tar-
sus longer than the middle toe and claw; outer and middle toes connected by an evi-
dent membrane; tail feathers 12.

MACRORHAMPHUS GRISEUS (Gm.) Leach.

Red-breasted Snipe.

‚Scolopax grisea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.

Hacrorhampus (error) griseus, WIEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 368, 480 ; Re-
print, 10; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 572; Reprint, 12,
.Macrorhamphus griseus, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin.

Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 162; Reprint, 16.
‚Macrorhampus (error) griseus, var. scolopaceus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 1875, 572 ; Reprint, 12.

Soolopax grisea, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. i, 1728, 658.
Macrorhamphus griseus, LEACH, Cat. Brit. Mus., 1816, 31.

Tail and its coverts, at all seasons, conspicuously barred with black and white (or
tawny), lining’of wings and axillars the same; quills dusky, shaft of first primary, and
tips of the secondaries, except long inner ones, white; bill and feet greenish-black.
in summer, brownish-black above, variegated with bay; below brownish-red, varie-
gated with dusky ; a tawny superciliary stripe, and a dark one from the bill to the
eye. In winter plain gray above, and on the breast, with few or no traces of black and
bay, the belly, line over eye and under eyelid white. Length, 10-11; wing, 5-£4; tail,
24; bill, about 24; tarsus, 14; middle toe and claw,14. A variety of this bird (M.
scolopaceus, Lawrence) is almost a foot long, the bill upward of three inches,

Habitat, the whole of North America. Greenland. Mexico. West Indies. Central
America. Much of South America. Brazil. Breeds in high latitudes. Chiefly migra-
tory in the United States. Winters in the South, and beyond, as above. Of frequent
occurrence in Europe.

STILT SANDPIPER. 471

Not common migrant. The Red-breasted Snipe is named by Dr. Kirt-
land without comment, and given by Mr. Langdon asa rare spring and
fall migrant. I have never met with it in this vicinty.

This bird, which greatly resembles the Common Snipe in structure
and general appearance, differs from it in habit. It is described as mi-
grating in flocks, often of large size, and as being so unsuspicious as to
allow a near approach.

The eggs of this bird resemble those of the Common Snipe so closely
as not to be with certainty distinguised. They average about 1.62 by
1.12. It is known to breed only in high latitudes.

Gexus MICROPALAMA. Baird.

Bill much asin Gallinago, but shorter; less widened at the end, and less distinctly
farrowed above, sometimes perceptibly curved; legs very long; tibia bare an inch;
tarsus as long as the bill; feet semipalmate ; tail feathers 12.

MICROPALAMA HIMANTOPUS (Bp.) Bd.

Stilt Sandpiper.
Mieropalma (error) kimantopus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380, 480; Reprint,
1861, 11.
Micropalama himantopus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Auris: Rop. for 1874, 572;
Reprint, 1875, 12.—LAXGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin,
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1679, 184; Reprint, 22.

Tringa himantopus, BONAPARTE, Aun. Lyc. N. Y., ii, 1826, 157.
Micropalama himantopus, BAIRD, Birds N. A., 1858, 726.

Adult in summer, above blackish, each feather edged and tipped with white and
tawny or bay, which on the scapulars becomes scalloped ; auriculars chestnut; a dusky
line from bill to eye, and a light reddish superciliary line; upper tail coverts white
with dusky bars; primaries dusky with blackish tips; tail feathers ashy-gray, their
edge and acentral field white; under parts mixed reddish, black, and whitish, in streaks
on the jugulum, elsewhere in bars; bill and feet greenish-black. Young and adultin
winter, ashy-gray above, with or without traces of black and bay, the feathers usually
with white edging; line over the eye and under parts white; the jugulum and sides
suffused with the color of the back, and streaked with dusky ; me usually pale. Length,
8-9 inches; wing, 5; tail, 2}; bill and tarsus, both 14-13%; middle toe, 1.

Habitat, North America generally. Not observed west of the Rocky Mountains.
Rare in the United States. West Indies. Central America and most of South America.

Very rare migrant. The Stilt Sandpiper was given as a bird of Ohio
by me in 1861, on the authority of Mr. R. K. Winslow, who informed me
that specimens had been taken on Lake Erie, where it was very rare.
Mr. Ridgway gives it as a bird of Illinois, and Mr. Nelson mentions two
specimens on Lake Michigan, near Chicago.

No description of their nesting or eggs is known to me.

472 BIRDS—SCOLOPACID &.

Genus EREUNETES. Iliger.

Bill, tarsus and middle toe with ita claw, about equal, but bill very variable and apt:
to be shorter; feet semipalmate ; tail doubly emarginate the central feathers projecting.

EREUNETES PUSILLUS (L.) Cass.

Semipalmated Sandpiper.

Ereunetes peirificatus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1850, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11.

Ereunetes pusillus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.—LANGDoN, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 116; Reprint, 7; Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16.

Ereuntes (error) pusillus, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14.

Tringa pusillus, Linwazus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 252.

Ereuneles petrificatus, ILLIGER, Prod., 1811, 262.

Ereunetcs pusillus, CAssın, Birds N. Am., 1858, 724.

Aduit in summer: above variegated with black, bay and ashy or white, each feather
with a black-field, reddish edge and whitish tip; rump and upper tail coverts, except
the lateral ones, blackish ; tail feathers ashy-gray, the central darker ; primaries dusky,
the shaft of the first white; a dusky line from tho bill to the eye, and a white super-
ciliary line; below, pure white, usually rufescent on the breast, and with more or less
dusky speckling on the throat, breast and sides, in young birds usually wanting; in
winter the upper parts mostly plain ashy-gray; but in any plumage and under any
variation the species is known by its small size and semipalmated feet. Length, 54-64.
inches ; wing, 44-34%; tarsus, and middle tee and claw, about 1; bill variable from } to
14, averaging, #.

Habitat, the whole of North and Central, and most of South America. West Indies.

Very common spring and fall migrant in May, August and Sep-
tember.

The Semipalmated Sandpiper is a regular migrant in this vicinity,.
though more abundant in the fallthan in spring. They usually appear
in small flocks of from eight to twenty birds, and frequent the gravelly
and sandy shores of streams or muddy banks of ponds, They are rather
more shy than the next species, which they greatly resemble, and with
which they are usually confounded under the common name of ‘ Peeps.”

The Semipalmated Sandpiper breeds only in high latitudes. The:
eggs are four, measuring about 1.22 by .83. Their ground-color is a vari-
able shade of drab, dotted and blotched with dark brown.

Genus TRINGA. Linneeus,

Bill averaging about as long as the head, never twice as long; toes unwebbed; hind
toe present; tail withuut bars.

(Sub-genus Acfodromas—Bill, tarsus, and middle toe with claw of about equal length ;-
tibia naked below.)

BAIRD’S SANDPIPER. 473

TRINGA MINUTILLA V.

Least Sandpiper.

Tringa wilsonü, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1833, 165.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11.

Tringa minutilla, WIEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint,
1875, 12.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin, 1877, 14; Revised List, Jonrn. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Ilist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 226.

Tringa minutilla, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist., Nat., xxxiv, 1819, 452,

Tringa wilsoni, NUTTALL, Man., ii, 1834, 121.

Upper parts in summer with each feather blackish centrally, edged with bright bay,
and tipped with ashy or white; in winter and in the young simply ashy; tail feathers
gray with whitish edges, the central blackish, usually with reddish edges, crown not
conspicuously different from hind neck ; chestnut edgings of scapulars usually scalloped ;
below white, the jugulum with dusky streaks and an ashy or browish suffasion; bill
black; legs dusky greenish. Smallest of the Sandpipers ; length, 54-6 inches; wing,
34-34; tail, 2 or less; bill, tarsus and middle toe with claw, about 2.

Habitat, North, Central and South America, and West Indies. Accidental in Europe.

Migrant, not common in spring, abundant in the fall. In this vicinity
the Least Sandpiper is of rather rare occurrence in small flocks in spring,
but in the fall they are more abundant than the last species. I have
never seen them in the winter plumage as above described. They
arrive a few days earlier than their Semipalmated cousins, and depart
for the south sooner. But they have the same habits, frequent the same
localities, and flocks of birds are often composed of both species. When
this is the case, the Semipalmated Sandpipers even if largely in the
minority, take the lead, as their somewhat larger size, stronger flight
and louder note fit them for doing.

When not in company with other species none of our_shore birds are
more confiding and unsuspecting than these, considerable flocks con-
tinuing their search for food almost under the feet of the observer.

The Least Sandpiper breeds from Canada northward, and has been
found nesting in the vicinity of Chicago, Illinois, by Mr. E. W. Nelson.

TRINGA BAIRDII Coues.

Baird’s Sandpiper.

Tringa bairdii, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep., for 1874, 572; Reprint,
1878, 12.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.—Dury and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1880, 104; Reprint, 5.

Actodromas bairdii, Cours, Proc. Phila, Acad., 1861, 194.

Tringa bairdii, SCLATER, P. Z. S., 1867, 332.

“Adult male: bill wholly black, small and slender, slightly shorter than the head, just
as long as the tarsus or as the middle toe and claw, slightly expanded or lancet shaped

474 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDZ.

at the end, the point acute; grooves long, narrow, deep; feathers on side of lower
mandible evidently reaching further than those on upper. Upper parts brownieh-black
(deepest on the rump and middle upper tail-coverts, and lightest on the neck behind),
each feather bordered and tipped with pale brownish-yellow, the tipping of the scapulars
broadest and nearly white, their marginings broad and brightest in tint, making several
deep ecallops toward the shafts of the feathers. Only the outer series black, the others
plain gray, with paler margina. Jugulum tinged with light, dull yollowish-brown,
spotted and streaked with ill-defined blackish markings, as are also the sides under the
wings. Throat and the other under parts white, unmarked. Feet black, like the bill.
Length, 7.25; extent, 15.25; wing, 4.90; bill, .85; tarsus, and middle toe and claw, the
same, The female is entirely similar, but slightly larger. The young have the upper
parts wholly light brownish-ash, darker on the rump, and all the feathers with a dark
field, and pale or whitish edging; waves of brownish-black on the scapulars. Jugulum
and breast suffused with dull, light reddish-brown; the spotting small, sparse, and very
indistinct.

T. fuscicollis is a little larger, on an average; the bill noticeably stouter, flesh-colored at
base below; the feathers on the sides of the lower mandible do not extend noticeably
beyond those on the upper; the scapular edging is bright chestnut; the jugulum is
white, or barely perceptibly ashy with numerous narrow, distinct streaks; and the
upper tail-coverts are white. T. bairdii is exactly intermediate in size between T. macu-
lala and T. minutilla, and is almost identical with the latter in pattern of coloration, but
the markings upon tho breast are not thick and heavy, and the edging of the scapulars
not bright chestnut, The species scarcely requires comparison with maculata ; the latter
is much larger ; it differs in the colors and preportions of the bill; the pattern (plain,
unscalloped) of coloration of the scapular edgings, the abrupt transition from the color
of the crown to that of the hind neck; the heavy pectoral markings, ete. T. bairdii,
like all its allies, is subject to a partially melanotic condition of plumage.” (Coues.)

Habitat, North America, chiefly in the interior. Rare on the Atlantic coast. Mexico.
Central and South America. Africa (Layard),

Rare spring and fall migrant in March, September, and October.
None of our Shore-birds seem to have had as much difficulty in
placing themselves in the proper light before ornithologists as this.
It was uoknown until within the last thirty years, and when discov-
ered, and for sometime after, confounded with other species. Dr. Coues
first gave it rank and name in 1861.

Iam quite certain that I met with this species in March, 1857, and
took one specimen, firing, at long range, into the largest flock of Sand-
pipers I ever beheld, as they rose from the borders of a pond in a corn-
field. Since which time I have taken a single specimen in September,
on the gravelly shores of the Scioto river in the immediate vicinity of
this city. This bird wasin the company of Semipalmated Plovers and
Least Sandpipers. Mr. Oliver Davie has a specimen taken in the same.
locality in the following October. Mr. Winslow has a specimen taken
near Cleveland, and Messrs. Dury and Freeman note one specimen,
October, 27, 1878, at Cincinnati.

WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER. 475

Baird’s Sandpiper is only known to breed in the Arctic regions. The
eggs are clay-colored, spotted with umber-brown. They measure about
1.30 by .90.

TRINGA MACULATA Vieillot.

Pectoral Sandpiper.

Tringa maculata, WIEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—LAnGoon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 14 ; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Re-
print, 15.

Tringa maculata, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., xxxiv, 1819, 465.

Coloration much as in last species, but crown noticeably different from cervix; chest-
nut edging of scapulars straight-edged ; chin whitish, definitely contrasted with the
heavily ashy-shaded and sharply dusky-streaked jagulum. Large. Length, 84-9 inches;
wing, 5-54; bill, tarsus and middle toe with claw, about14; bill and feet greenish.

Habitat, North, Central and South America. West Indies. Greenland. Europe.

Very common spring and fall migrant, apparently most numerous in
spring. Arrivesin March and returns in September, October and Novem-
ber. It is frequently seen in large flocks in spring, but oftener in small
com panies, or sometimes single birds. At this time it frequents wet corn-
fields and meadows. In the fall solitary individuals are the only
ones I have observed frequenting the shores of streams and ponds, often
associating with the smaller species of this and the preceeding family.
It is generally a shy and suspicious bird, and is said to have some of the
desirable qualities of a game bird, especially ag it will lie to a dog better
than most species of this family.

Spring specimens differ somewhat in plumage. In addition to birds
as above described, I have taken specimens after the middle of April in
which the bay skirting of the feathers is broadly replaced by ashy ex-
eept on the innermost scapulars, while birds earlier in the season pre-
sented the normal coloration.

TRINGA FUSCICOLLIS Vieillot.

Whitc-rumped Sandpiper.

Tringa bonapartiit, WHEATON, Ohio Agri. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11.

Tringa bonapartei, WIIEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Re-
print, 1875, 12.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14.

Tringa fuscicollis, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Re-
print, 22; Field Notes, ii, 1880, 127.

Tringa fuscicollis, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’His. Nat, xxxiv, 1819, 461.

Tringa bonapartii, SCHLAGEL, Rev. Crit. Ois., Eur., 1844, 69.

Size, medium. Upper tail-coverts white; feet black; bill black, light colored at base
below; coloration otherwise much as in the preceeding species. An ashy wash on the

476 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

jugulum is hardly perceptible except in young birds, and then it is slight; the streake
are very numerous, broad and distinct, extending as specks nearly or quite to the bill,
and as shaft lines along the sides.

Habitat, North America, east of the Rocky Mountains. Not observed in Alaska.
Breeds in the far North. Migratory through the United States, in the eastern Province.
Winters in the Southern States. Greenland. West Indies. CentralandSouth America.
Europe, rarely.

Not uncommon spring and fall migrant on Lake Erie, rare in the in-
terior of the State. The White-rumped Sandpiper was given as an Ohio
bird by me in 1861, on the authority of Mr. Winslow. I have met with
it but once, in a locality known as the “ Broom corn fields,” near Shade-
ville, in this county, late in October, 1875, and Mr. Langdon notes two
specimens taken near Cincinnati, September 6, 1879.

No reliable description of their nest and eggs is known to me.

(Sub genus Arquatella. Tarsus shorter than middle toe; tibiw feathered.)

TRINGA MARITIMA Brunnich.

Purple Sandpiper.

Tringa maritima, WUEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380 (probable); addenda, 430;
Reprint, 1861, 10; Food of Birds, ete, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint,
1875, 12.

Tringa maritima, BRUNNICH, Orn. Bor., 1764, 54.

Bill little longer than the head, much longer than the tarsus, straight or nearly
80 ; tibial feathers long, reaching to the joint; though the legs are really bare a little
way above; adult, above ashy-black with purplish and violet reflections, most of the
feathers with pale or white edgings; secondaries mostly white; line over eye, eye-
lids and under parts white, the breast and jugulum a pale cast of the color of the back,
and sides marked with the same. In winter, and mostimmature birds, the colors are
similar but much duller; very young birds have tawny edgings above, and are mottled
with ashy and dusky below. Length, 8-9 inches; wing, 5; tail, 2%, rounded; bill, 14;
tarsus, #; middle toe, 1, or a little more.

Habitat, North America, northerly and chiefly coastwise. South to the Middle States
in winter. Great Lakes. Greenland. Europe. Asia.

Very rare visitor on Lake Erie. Mr. Winslow informed me that a
specimen was taken, many years since, in the vieinity of Cleveland,
which was preserved in the Museum of the Cleveland Academy of Natu-
ral Sciences. Mr. Ridgway in 1874, gives it as a bird of Illinois, and Dr.
Coues says “it is said to be common on Lake Michigan.” This is proba-
bly a mistake, for Mr. Nelson in 1876, gives as the only instance of its
occurrence known to him, a single male,in the collection of Dr. J. W.
Velie, taken on the lake shore near Chicago, November 7,1871. Dr. Hoy

DUNLIN. 477

met with it in Western Missouri. No other record of its occurrence in
the interior is known to me. Dr. Coues says (Birds N. Wy p. 489):

“ This species is included in the present work on the strength of its occurrence in West-
ern Missouri, attested by Dr. P. R. Hoy, as above cited. Its presence, however, may be
regarded exceptional. As its scientific name implies, it is chiefly a coastwise bird,
though also occurring on the larger inland waters. It ls said to be common on the
shores of Lake Michigan. It is eminently a boreal bird, breeding very far to the north-
ward, and only rarely reaching the coast of the Middle States in winter, beyond which
its occurrence is open to question. Itis rather plenty along the New Ecgland coast in
autumn, winter and spring, when it frequents chiefly rocky shores covered with sea-
weed, rather than the bare sand beaches.

“The egg of Tringa maritima is of the usual pyriform shape, and measures about 1.40 by
1.00, The ground is clay color, shaded with olivaceous; tho markings are large, num-
erous and distinct, of rich umber-brown of different depths and intensity, occurring all
over the shell, but being most numerous as well as largest on the inajor half. With
these spots are associated chell-maikings of pale purplish-gray, and light neutral
tint.”

(Sub-genus Pelidna.—Bill slightly decurved, much longer than tarsus; tibie bare
below; tarsus not shorter than middle toe.)

TRINGA ALPINA L.

var. AMERICANA Cass.

American Dunlin.

Tringa schinzii, (Brehm.) KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 105, 185.

Tringa alpina, KIRTLAND, Am. Jour. Sci. and Arts, xl, 1841, 123.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 380, 480; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Tringa alpina, var. americana, WHEATON, Food of Birds,ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
572; Reprint, 1875——Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182; Reprint, 16.

Tringa alpina, LINNEUS, Fn. Suec., 64.
Pelidna schinzii, BREHM.
Tringa alpina, var. americana, Cassın, Baird’s B. N. A., 1858, 719.

Adult in summer; above, chestaut, each feather with a central black field, and most
of them whitish tipped, rump and upper tail-coverts blackish, tail feathers and wing-
coverts ashy-gray, quills dusky with pale shafts, secondaries mostly white, and inner
primaries edged with the same; under parts white, belly with a broad jet- -black area,
breast and jugulum thickly streaked with dusky; bill and feet black. Adult in win-
ter, and young; above, plain ash-gray, with dark shaft lines, with or withont red or
black traces; below white, little orno trace of black on the belly; jugulum with a fow
dusky streaks and an ashy suffusion. Length, 8-9 inches; wing, 44-5; tail, 2-24;
bill, 14-12, longer than head, compressed at base, rather depressed at the end; tibia
bare about 4; tarsus, 1, or rather less.

Habitat, North America, especially coastwise. Migratory and wintering in the United
States. Breeds in high latitudes only.

478 BIRDS—SCOLOPACID A.

Common spring and fall migrant on Lake Erie, rare in spring and
rather common in the fall in the interior of the State. In this vicinity,
where I havé szen the Dunlin only in the fall, it appears in October, in
flocks of six or eight, frequenting the gravelly shores of streams. Single
specimens are often seen with flacks of other Sandpipers. The number
of specimens which are sometimes brought from the vicinity of Shadeville
and the Licking Reservoir induce me to believe that it not unfrequently
occurs in considerable flocks. Specimens in the collections of Mr. H. E.
Chubb and others, from Cleveland, are in full breeding plumage.

(Sub genus Tringa. Bill perfectly straight, tibie bare below, tarsus not shorter than
middle toe).

TRINGA canotus L.

RMed-breasted Sandpiper; Gray-back; Knot.

Tringa canutus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380 (probable) ; addenda, 480, Re-
print, 1861, 10 ; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—
Couzs, Birds of N. W., 1874, 491.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 14; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.

Tringa canutus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 251.

Bill equalling or rather exceeding the head, comparatively stout ; adalt in summer:
above, brownish-black, each feather tipped with ashy-white, and tinged with reddish
on scapulars; below, uniform brownish-red, much as in the robin, fading into white on
the flanks and crissum ; upper tail-coverts white with dueky bars, tail feathers and
secondaries grayish-ash with white edges; quills blackish, gray on the inner webs and
with white shafts; bill and feet blackish. Young: above’ clear ash, with numerous
black and white semicircles; below white, more or less tinged with reddish, dusky
speckled on breast, wavy barred on sides, Length, 10-11; wing, 6-64; tail, 23, nearly
square ; bill about 1} (very variable).

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere. Australia. New Zealand. South America.

Rare spring and fall migrant, in May and September. Mr. Winslow
notes this ‘maritime species” as not rare on Lake Erie. I have met
with it but once near this city, a solitary individual standing motionless
on a sandy shore, Mr. Ed. Savage, of this city, captured a fine male,
of a pair in full breeding plumage, at the Licking Reservoir, May 27,
1878. Prof. Snow gives it ag common in Kansas and Mr. Nelson says it
isa regular but not common migrant on Lake Michigan. Its distribution
is chiefly coastwise, where it is abundant, and it breeds only in high
latitudes.

Genus CALIDRIS. Cuvier.

No hind toe; otherwise like sub-genus Tringa,

SANDERLING. 479

CALIDRIS ARENARIA (L.) DLL

Sanderling; Ruddy Plover.

Calidris arenaria, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380, (probable); addenda, 480 ;
Reprint, 1861, 11; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875,
12,—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15 ; Revised List, Journ. Cia. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 182; Roprint, 16; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1830, 127.—DUrRY and FREEMAN, ib.,
ili, 1880, 104; Reprint, 5.

Tringa arenaria, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat. 1766, 251.

Calidris arenaria, ILLIGER, Prod., 1811, 249.

Adult in summer; head, neck and upper parts varied with black, ashy and bright
reddish ; below from the breast pure white; tail except central feathers light-ash, nearly
white; primaries gray with blackish edges and tips, the shafts of all and bases of most
white; secondaries white except a space at the end, and greater coverts broadly white
tipped; bill and feet black. Adult in winter, and young, no reddish; speckled with
biack and white, sometimes tawny tinged on the jogulum. Length, 73-3; wing, 44-5;
tail, 24; bill, about 1; tarsus, 1 or rather less; middle toe and claw, &. ,

Habitat, Sea-coasts of nearly all countries.

Common spring and fall migrant on Lake Erie, less common in the
interior of the State. The Sanderling, untila few years since considered
an exclusively maritime species, is common on the Great Lakes. Mr.
Nelson says it is met with on Lake Michigan in flocks of from five to
seventy-five birds, frequenting the sandy beaches in company with the
Piping Plover. Mr. Chubb informs me that it is common on Lake Erie
near Cleveland.

Mr. Langdon in 1877, mentions a specimen, from the vicinity of Cin-
cinnati, in the collection of Dr. Byrnes; in 1879 he notes its capture on
several occasions, and mentions additional specimens in the collection of
Charles Dury, and in 1880, a specimen taken on the Ohio, opposite Cin-
cinnati, by Mr. Shorten, in September, 1879. Messrs. Dury and Freeman
note its occurrence September 15, 1878. I have seen it but once from
this vicinity, in October, 1874, when I obtained a specimen from a sports-
man, who informed ms they were at that time not uncommon in the
vicinity of Shadeville, associating with Pectoral Sandpipers.

Genus LIMOSA. Brisson.

Bill longer than tarsus, slender, and curving gently upwards, grooved to near the tip.
Gape not extending beyond base of furrowed culmen. Tarsus scutellate in front and
behind, reticulate laterally ; a short basal membrane between middle and outer toes.
Tail short, even,

480 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

LımosA FEDOA (L.) Ord.

Great Marbled Godwit.

Limosa fedoa, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 185; Am. Journ. Sei. and Arts,
xl., 1841, 24.—WEHEATON, Ohio Agric, Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11,19;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 572; Reprint, 1875, 12.—LaNGpon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Jour. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 182;
Reprint, 16.

Great Marbled Godwit, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 164.

Scolopax fedoa, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 224.

Limosa fedoa, ORD, ed. Wils., vii, 1825.

Tail barred throughout with black and rufous, rump and upper tail-coverts like the
back; no pure white anywhere. General plumage rufous or ciunamon-browa ; below,
nearly unmarked and of very variable shade, usually deepest on the lining of the wing;
above, variegated with black and brown or gray; quills rufous and black; bill flesh-

‘colored, largely tipped with black; feet dark. Large; length, 16-22; wing, about 9;
tail, about 34; bill, 4-5; tibia bare 1-14; tarsus, 24-34; toes, 14, stout.

Habitat, entire temperate North America; Central and South America. Breeds in the
Missouri and Upper Mississippi regions, and thence to the Saskatchewan. Winters in
Southern States and southward.

Not common spring and fall migrant. Dr. Kirtland notes its capture
in several instances in Northern Ohio, in addition to that mentioned on
page 220, and in connection with the Glossy Ibis following. Mr. Langdon
states, on the authority of Mr. Dury, that thirty-three were “‘ shot in one
day, near the mouth of the Little Miami, some years ago by Charles
Weeks, Esq.” A specimen was taken by a son of Dr. Jasper in the
immediate vicinity of this city, April 21, 1879.

Dr. Coues says (Birds N. W., p. 493): /

“ Comparatively little has been learned of the breeding resorts and habits of this God-
wit, though it is such a common and generally distributed bird during its migrations
and in winter. Audubon surmises that it may breed in South Carolina and perhaps in
Texas, where, as Mr. Dresser found it in summer, it probably does. Occuring in abun-
dance along most of the Atlantic coast, it nevertheless appears less common north of
Massachusetts, and has not, it would appear, been observed much, if any beyond New
England in thatlongitude, The centre of its abundance in summer, and its main breed-
ing ground, is, apparently, the Northern Mississippi and Eastern Missouri regions, and
thence to the Saskatchewan ; for, unlike its relative (L. hudsonica), 16 does not proceed
very far north to nest. It breeds in Iowa, and in Minnesota and Eastern Dakota,
where I otserved it in June, and where the eggs have been procured. I found it on the
plains bordering the Red River, in company with Long-billed Curlews and great num-
bers of the Bartramian Sandpipers, nesting, like these species, on the prairie near the
river and about the adjoining pools, but not necessarily by the water’s edge. In its habits
at this season it most nearly resembles the Curlew, and the two species, of much the
same size and general appearance, might be readily mistaken at a distance where the
difference in the bill might not be perceived. On intrusion near the nest, the birds

HUDSONIAN GODWIT. 481

mount in the air with loud, piercing cries, hovering slowly around with labored flight
in evident distress, and approaching sometimes within a few feet of the observer.

The only perfect set of eggs of the Godwit I have seen were taken June 1, 1871, fifty
miles northwest of Saint Paul, Minnesota; both parents were secured and deposited in
the Saint Paul Academy, where I examined them ; so that the identification is unques-
tionable. There are three eggs in this set, measuring 2.30 by 1.60, 2.28 by 1.56, and 2.25
by 1.62. The color is a clear, light plivaceous drab; the markings are small and num-
erous, but not very strongly pronounced—there is nothing (in this set) of the heavy
blotching and marking usually seen in waders’ eggs. The spots are pretty evenly dis-
tributed, though rather larger in two instances, and more numerous in the other instance,
about the butt than elsewhere. These markings are of various umber-brown shades,
with the usual stone-gray shell spots.”

Lrmosa HaMastica (L.) Coues.
Hudsonian Godwit.

Limosa hudsonica, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geo.og. Surv., 1838, 165, 185.— WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861. 11, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 572; Reprint, 12.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15.

Limosa hemastica, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Re-
print, 17.

Scolopas hemastica, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., 1758, 147.

Limosa hudsonica, BWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831.

Limosa hamastica, Cours, Birds, N. W., 1874, 760.

Tail black, largely white at base, its coverts mostly white; ramp blackish; lining of
wings extensively blackish; under-parts in the breeding season intense rufous (chiefly
barred) with dusky ; head, neck and upper-parts brownish-black, variegated with gray,
reddish and usually some whitish speckling ; quills blackiah, more or less white at the
base. Young and apparently winter specimens much paler, tawny-whitish below, more
gray above. Considerably smaller than the foregoing, about 15; wing, 8 or less; bill,
34 or less; tarsus, 24 or less.

Habitat, Northern and Eastern NorthAmerica. WestIndies. South America. Breeds
far northward. Not noted west of the Rocky Mountains. Rare along the Atlantic.

Rare spring and fall migrant. Dr. Kirtland notes its capture in the
vicinity of Cincinnati, and Mr. Winslow mentions its occurrence near
Cleveland. I met with a flock of eight birds, in the spring of 1858,
wading in a shallow pond in an old brick-yard within the city limits,
but was not so fortunate as to secure specimens. In the spring of 1861,
a fine specimen was taken below the State dam, near the city, by a sports-
man and taxidermist, which was preserved until recently.

The eggs of the Hudsonian Godwit are of a very dark olive-drab color,
with blotches of stilldarker drab. They measure about 2.18 by 1.40.

Genus TOTANUS. Bechstein.

Bill nearly straight, about equal to or shorter than the tarsus, not grooved in its
terminal fourth. Gape of mouth extending beyond base of culmen. Tarsi scutellate in
front and behind.

31

482 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.
Sub-genus Symphemia, Toes with two subequal webs; legs bluish or dark.

ToTANUS SEMIPALMATUS (Gm.) Temm.

Semipalmated Tattler; Willet,

Totanus semipalmatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165; Am. Journ. Sei. and
Arts, xl, 1841, 24..—WHEAToN, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875,
572; Reprint, 12.—LAnGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15 ; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17; Field Notes, ib., ii, 18c0, 127.

Symphemia semipalmata, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1850, 1861, 369; Reprint, 11.

Scolopax semipalmata, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., 3, 1788, 659,
Totanus semipalmatus, TEMMINCK, Man. Orn., ii, 637.
Symphemia semipalmata, HARTLAND, R. Z., 1845, 342.

Bill straight, comparatively stout, grooved little if any more than half its length.
In summer, gray above, with numerous black marks, white below, the jugalum streaked,
the breast, sides and crissum barred or with arrow shaped marks of dusky (in winter,
and in yoang birds, all these dark marks few or wanting, except on jugulum); upper
tail-coverts, most of the secondaries, and basal half of primari»s, white; ends of prim-
aries, their coverts, lining of wings, and axillars, black; bill blueish or dark. Toes
with two conspicuous basal webs. Length, 12-16; wing, 7-3; tail, 24-3; bill or tarsus,
2-24; tibia bare, 1 or more, middle toe and claw, 14-2.

Habitat, Temperate North America, north to 56°, but chiefly United States. Breeds
throughout its United States range. Resident in the Sonthern States. Common in the
interior but more so along the coast. West Indies. Central América. Accidental in
Europe.

Not common spring and fall migrant, probably breeds in northern
Ohio. Dr. Kirtland mentions their occurrence on the lake shore in 1838,
and, as quoted on page 220, their residence during summer. Mr. Lang-
don gives it as a rare spring and fall migrant. J have never seen it in
this vicinity.

Dr. Coues gives the following description of their nesting and habits:

“The nest is placed near the water of some secladed pool, or in the midst of a marsh,
whether fresh or salt, in a tussock of grass or rushes. It is a rude structure, of the sim-
plest materials, raised a little way from the ground, and with a shallow indentation.
The eggs are very variable in all respects. As to size and shape, the following meastre-
ments show the differences: 2.90 by 2.45; 1.95 by 1.50; 2.00 by 1.50; 2.05 by 1.55; 2.12
by 1.50; averaging about 2.00 by 1.50. They are less pointedly pyriform than the eggs
of the smaller Tattlers and Sandpipers. The ground is sometimes brownish-olive, or
drab, or clay-color ; sometimes, again, quite buffy-brown ; in a few cases greenish or
grayish-white. The spotting is bold and distinct, bat little massed even at the greater
end, where, though the spots are largest and most numerous, they generally remain dis-
tinct. The spots are mostly clean-edged and sharp, of moderate size, but sometimes
quite fine and seratchy. They are of varions umber-brown shades, and accompanied
with the usual obsolete shell-markings.

Under ordinary circumstances Willets are notoriously restless, wary, and noisy birds;
put their nature is changed, or, at any rate, held in abeyance, during and for a short

GRBATER TELL-TALE. 483

time after incubation. They cease their cries, grow less uneasy, become gentile, if still
auspicious, and may generally be seen stalking quietly about the nest. When Willets
are found in that humor—absent-minded, as it were, absorbed in reflection upon their en-
grossing duties, and unlikely to observe anything not directly in front of their bill—it
is pretty good evidence that they have a nest hard by. It is the same with Avocets, and
probably many other waders. During incubation the bird that is “off duty” (both
parents are said to take turns at this) almost always icdulges in revery, doubtless rose
tinted, and becomes in a corresponding degree oblivious to outward things. If then
they are not set upon in a manner entirely too rude and boisterous, the inquiring orni-
thologist could desire no better opportunity than he will have to observe their every
motion and attitude. But once let them become thoroughly alarmed by too open ap-
proch, particularly if the setting bird be driven from her nest, and the scene quickly
shifts; there is a great outcry, violent protest and tumult, where was quietude. Other
pairs, nesting near by, join their cries till the confusion beeomes general. But now,
again, their actions are not those they would show at other times; for instead of fly-
ing off with the instinct of ssf-preservation, to put di-tance between them and danger,
they are held by some fascination to the spot, and hover around, wheeling abont, flying
in circles a little ways to return again, with unremitting clamcr. They may be only too
easily destroyed under such circumstances, provided the ornithologist can lay aside his
scraples and steel himself against aympathy.

The half webbing of the toes renders this species something of a swimmer, if necessity
arise ; but it only takes to water beyond its depth under urgent circumstances. In size
as well as in plumage it is very variable; the length of the legs, particularly, varies in
different individuals to a surprising degree.”

Sub-genus Glottis, Toes with inner web very small; legs yellow.

ToraNUS MELANOLEUCUs (Gm.) V.
Greater Tell-tale.

Totanus melanoleucus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.—AUDUBON, Orn. Biog.,
iv, 1838, 68.—WEEATON, Food éf Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 570 ; Re-
print, 12.—LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc,
Nat Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17; Summer Birus, ib, iii, 1880, 227.

Totanus veciferus, AUDUBON, B. Am., v, 1842, 317.

Gambetta melanoleuca, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.for 1860, 1861, 369; Reprint, 11.

Scolepax melanoleuca, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 659.
Totanus melanoleucus, VIBILLOT, N. D. d’H. N., 1816.
Gambetta melanoleuca, BONAPARTE, Comp. Rend., 1856.

Bill straight or slightly bent upwards, very slender, grooved half its length or less,
black; legs long and slender, yellow. In summer, ashy-brown, above varied with black
and speckled with whitish, below white, jugulum streaked, and:breast, sides and cris-
sum speckled or barred with blackish, these latter marks fewer or wanting in winter
and in the young; upper tail-coverts white with dark bars; tail feathers marbled or
barred with ashy or white ; quills blackish. Large; length, over 12; wing, over 7; tail,
3 or more; bill, 2 or more; tarsus, about 24; middle toe and claw, 14; tibia bare, 14.

Habitat, Western Hemisphere. In the United States, chiefly migratory, and in win-
ter. Breeds mostly in high latitudes. Abundant. j

BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

Common spring and fall migrant, but more numerous in fall than in
spring. The Greater Telltale is generally found in pairs, less often in
small flocks, on the gravelly or rocky banks of streams. Its association
with other Sandpipers is merely accidental. In the Eastern States it
appears to be much more wary than with us, and it is said to give warn-
ing to ducks and other game birds of the approach of the gunner. With
us it is not difficult to approach, while its large size, harsh scream, and
singular habit of tipping or jerking its body backward and forward on
its long legs, render it a conspicuous object.

Mr. Nelson (Bulletin of the Essex Institute, viii, 1876, 128), gives the
following, the only account of their nesting which I have seen. The
locality is in the State of Illinois:

“In June, 1875, I found several pairs of these birds about the Calumet Marshes, where,
from their actions, I was certain they were breeding, but was not fortunate enough to
find their nests. The 10th of June, 1876, Mr. Rice observed a pair about prairie slough
near Evanston. A few days later a set of four egge were brought him from a similar
situation a few miles northwest of that place, and from the description of the parent
bird—driven from the nest—he decided they must belong to this species. I perfectly
agree with Mr. Rice’s decision, for the prominent characteristics noticed by the collector
are obviously applicable to this bird.

The nest was situated in a slight depression at the base of a small hillock near the
border of a prairie slongb, and was composed of grass stems and blades. The eggs meas-
ure respectively 1.70 by 1.20; 1.72 by 1.31; 1.74 by 1.31; 1.80 by 1.38 inches. The
ground color is a deep grayish-white, marked on three eggs with spots of dark-brown,
and on the other egg with spots and well-defined blotches of a considerably lighter
shade of the same. In addition there are shell markings and obscured spots of lilac.
The markings are disposed quite abundantly over the surface of the egg, but are more
numerous about the large end.”

Toranvus FLAVIPES (Gm.) Vieillot.

ellow-shanks,

Totanus flavipes, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 161.—WHEATON, Food of Birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin.
1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17; Sum-
mer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227.

Gambetia flavipes, WHEATON, Okio Agric. Rep, for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11.

Scolopax flavipes, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 659.

Fotanus flavipes, VIEILLOT, Nonv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., 1816, 400.

Gambetta flavipes, BONAPARTE, Comp. Rend., 1856.

A minature of the last; colors precisely the same; legs comparatively longer ; bill
grooved rather forther. Length, under 12; wing, under 7; tail, under 3; bill, under
2; tarsus, about 2; middle toe and claw, and bare tibia, each 14.

Habitat, Western Hemisphere. Breeds from the Northern States northward, Many
winter in the Southern States. Accidental in Europe.

SOLITARY TATTLER. 485

Very common spring and fall migrant. The Lesser Telltale is rather
more extensively distributed while with us than the former species. It
is not confined to stony banks of streams, but may be found about muddy
banks of ponds or in any situation resorted to by Sandpipers or Plover.
They are often found in flocks of from five to six, or in pairs, or a8 sin-
gle birds, either solitary or associated with other Sandpipers. Usually
they are quite tame and unsuspicious.

They are not known to breed within the State, but Mr. Nelson reports
their breeding in Illinois. The eggs are described as three or four in num-
ber, light-brown or clay-color, blotched with very dark-brown. They
measure about 1.65 by 1.16.

Sub-genus Rhyacophilus. Toes with inner web rudimentary ; legs blackish.

TOTANUS BOLITABIUS (Wils.) Aud.

Solitary Tettler.

Totanus chlorypygius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165,

Rhyacephiius solitarius, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861,
11.

Totanus solitarius, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Re-
print, 1875, 13.—Couss, Birds of N. W., 1874, 449 (eggs ?).—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227.

Totanus chloropygius, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist., Nat., vi, 1816, 401.

Tringa solitaria, Wıson, Am. Orn., 1790, 730.

Totanus solitarius, AUDUBON, Syn., 1839, 242.

Rhyacophilus solitarius, Cassin, Birds N. Am., 1858, 733.

Bill perfectly straight, very slender, grooved little beyond its middle. Dark lustrous
olive-brown, streaked on the head and neck, elsewhere finely speckled with whitish;
jugulum and sides of neck with brownish suffusion and dusky streaks; ramp and upper
tail-coverts like the back; tail, axillars and lining of wings beautifully barred with
black and white ; quills entirely blackish ; bill and feet very dark olive-green ; young
duller above, less speckled, jugulum merely suffused with grayish-brown. Length, 8-9;
wing, 5; tail 24; bill, tarsus, and middle toe, each about 1-14; tibie bare $.

Habitat, Western Hemisphere. North to Alaska. Breeds in Northern United States
and northward, if not aleo throughout most of the United States range. Winters
chiefly or altogether beyond our limits, in Mexico, Central and South America, and West
Indies. Accidental in Europe.

Common migrant, and in part summer resident. The Solitary Sand-
piper is well named, when its personal habits or the localities which it
frequents are considered. It is found, except during and shortly after the
breeding season, about small ponds in woods, remote shaded ditches or
small brooks, just such localities as are frequented by the Water Thrush.

486 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDE.

In nearly every instance, during their migration, single birds are met
with, though late in the fall they sometimes frequent the muddy borders
of streams in the company, apparently unsolicited by them, of other
Sandpipers. On most occasions, with us, they are rather shy and wary,
taking flight while the intruder is at long gun-shot range, and usually
flying to a considerable distance before alighting. Sometimes, however,
if no desirable feeding spot is near, they return to the same spot and re-
sume their occupation as if they had forgotten the interruption. Very
often the first indication of their presence is their alarm note which
resembles that of the Water Thrush, but is shriller and louder, sounded
as they mount to their high and rapid flight.

Ihave seen the Solitary Sandpiper here during all the summer months,
and once found the young in the care of their parents, on the borders of
a small pond, in a pasture surrounded by woodland, four or five miles
south of this city. An egg, presented to me by Mr. O. Davie, which was
taken in an open field bordering the Scioto River, near this city, though
without any positive claims, possesses characters which entitle it to
consideration, as possibly that of this species. It is of a pointed oval
shape, and not nearly so pyriform as are the eggs of most of this family,
and measures 1.25 by .88, so that it is smaller than the eggs of the
Spotted Sandpiper. The ground-color is clay-color with a reddish tinge,
thickly marked with reddish and blackish-brown. The nest was on the
ground in as exposed a locality as is ever frequented by this bird. It
contained two eggs, both far advanced in incubation, only one of which
was preserved. The fragments of this egg are now in the collection of
the Smithsonian Institution. Concerning the eggs of this bird, Dr. Coues
(Birds of the Northwest, p. 499) says:

“ The only egga supposed to be of the Solitary Tattler I have seen, are two in the
Smithsonian collection from Cleveland, Ohio (Dr. Kirtland). The size 1.50 by 1.05; the
shape ordinarily pyriform. The ground is clay-colored, without olivaceous or other
shades The markings are heavy and numerous on the larger half of the egg, smaller
and fewer elsewhere. They are very dark—quite blackish-brown—lacking the slightest
shade of the rich umber or chocolate which most waders show more or less evidently.
The shell-spots are similarly of a darker neutral tint than usnal. The indentification of
these eggs, however, is open to question: they may be those of the Killdeer.”

Dr. Brewer (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 197), gives the following
description, the only authoritative account which I have seen:

“The egg of this species has remained, to the present time, an unknown and much-
desired addition to our cabinets. From time to time eggs claimed to be of this bird
have been described, or have had a nominal existence in collections. But these claims

have always been open to suspicion and doubt. The eggs have all either had so strong
a resemblances to either the Spotted Tattler (Tringoides maoularius) or to that of the

SPOTTED SANDPIPER. 487

Killdeer (Bgialitis vociferus) as to cause the belief that their identification could not be
eorrectly made. During the last year eggs were sent to me for verification from five
different parties, and all were deemed not worthy of credence. A few days ago, hearing
of a Solitary Tattler having been shot near her nest, and an egg obtained, in Castleton,
Vermont, I at once wrote to the party, and have obtained from him a temporary loan of
both parent and egg, with permission to describe the same in the Balletin.

The bird and egg were taken by Mr. Jenness Richardson about the middle of May,—
I have not the exact date,—1878, at Lake Bomaseen, on the ground, in a pasture bord-
ering ona swamp. Tbe bird wae on her nest when first discovered, but fluttered off when
approached, ran a short distance, then stood still, watching him until she was secured.
There was no actual nest, only a small depression in the ground. I am informed by
Mr. Richardson that the bird is quite common in that locality, but very shy. This egg
resembles no egg in my possession, and in its appearance there is something suggestive
of an egg prematurely cut from its parent. It is smaller than I anticipated, measuring
only 1.37 by .95, while the egg of Totanus ochrepus, which bird closely corresponds in
size and appearance with our Solitary, measures 1.50 by 1.10. Tbe ground-eolor is a
light drab, similar to that of the ogg of Zgialitis melodus. Over this are scattered small
rounded markings of brown, some of these quite cark, nowhere confluent, and never
large enongh to be called blotches. At the larger end there are a few faint purplish or
lilac discolorations or shell-warks. In shape it is an elongated pyriform.”

Genus TRINGOIDES. Bonaparte.

Bill short, straight, grooved nearly to the tip, about equal to tarsus and middle toe.
Gap extending but little beyond base of culmen. Outer toe webbed, inner cleft. Tail
much rounded, more than half the wing.

TRINGeIDES MACULARIUS (L.) Gr.
Spotted Sandpiper.

Totanus macularius, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.

Tringoides macularius, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 11; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1675, 13.—Lanepon, Cat Birds
of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17;
Summer Birdg, iii, 1880, 227.

Spotted Sandpiper, BaLLou, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 138.

Tringa macularia, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 249.

Totanus macularius, TEMMINCK, Man., 1815, 422.

Tringeides mecularius, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, iii, 1849, 574.

Above, olive (quaker-color, exactly as in the Cuckoo), with a coppery lustre, finely
varied with black ; line over eye, and entire under parts pure white, with numerous
sharp circular black spots, larger and more crowded in the female than in the male, en-
tirely wanting in very young birds; secondaries broadly white-tipped, and inner prima-
ties with a white spot; most of the tail feathers like the back with sub-terminal black
bar and white tip; bill pale-yellow, tipped with black; feet flesb-color. Length, 7-8;
wing, about 4; tail, about 2; bill, tarsus and middle toe, each about 1.

Habitat, North America at large. Breeds nearly throughont its North American
range. Winters in the Southern States and beyond. Central and South America
to Brazil. West Indies. Casual in Europe.

488 BIRDS—SCOLOPACIDA.

The Spotted Sandpiper, generally known by the vernacular name of
“ Peet-weet” or ‘ Tester-tail,” in allusion to its frequent note or curious
motion, is the most abundant summer resident of its tribe from April to
October. Industrious and noisy, it frequents sandy shores, retiring
usually to the shelter of high weeds under which it constructs its nest. Its
flight, owing to the changed proportion of wings and tail, differs from
that of any other of our Sandpipers, being slower and more laborious.
It usually takes its course horizontally above the water, moving in
straight lines or gentle curves, with frequent vaccillating strokes of
wings. Oftener than other birds of the family it iseeen mounted on a rail
fence, prostrate log or dead limb, where its singular attitude and motions
arouse the risible sympathy of the spectator. Dr. Coues (Birds N. W., p.
500), thus describes its habits:

“ As often as the Tip-up or ‘‘ Teeter-tail,” as it is also called, stops in its pursuit of in-
sects, the fore part of the body is lowered a little, the bead drawn in, the legs slightly
bent, whilst the hinder parts and tail are alternately hoisted with a peculiar jerk, and
drawn down again, with the regularity of clock-work. The movement is more conspic-
uous in the upward than in the downward part of the performance ; as if the tail were
spring-hinged, in constant danger of flying up, and needirg constant presence of mind
to keep it down. It is amusing to see an old male in the breeding season busy with
this operation. Upon some rock jutting out of the water he stands, swelling with am-
oronus pride and self-sufficiency, puffing out his plumage till he looks twice as big a
natural, facing about on his narrow pedestal, and bowing with his hinder parts to all
points of the compass. A sensitive and fastidious person might see something derisive,
if not actually insulting, in this, and feel as Crusoe may be presumed to have felt when
the savages who attacked his ship in canoes showed the signs of contumaceous scorn that
DeFoe records. But it would not be worth while to feel offended, since that is only the
entirely original and peculiar way the Tip-up has of conducting his courtships. Orni-
thologists are not agreed upon the useful purpose subserved in this way, and have as
yet failed to account for the extraordinary performance.”

The nest of the Spotted Sandpiper, as above said, is usually built in
the shelter of high weeds on a sandy island or border of a cultivated field
or meadow near water. It consists of a few dead leaves, lining a slight
depression. The eggs are four, of a creamy or clay-colored ground, blotched
with blackish-brown.

Genus PHILOMACHUS. Moehring.

Bill nearly straight, gcooved nearly to the tip, as long as the head. Gape extending
a little farther back than culmen; feathers of lower mandible extending farther forward
than on upper, those of chin still farther. Legs slender, tarsus longer than middle toe.
Outer and middle toes webbed, inner toe cleft. Tail rather long, barred.

UPLAND PLOVER. 489

PHILOMACHUS pucnax (L.) Gr.
Ruff; Reeve.
Philomachus pugnax, WHEATON, Bull. Nuttall Orn. Club, ii, 1877, 83.

Tringa pugnax, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., 1766, 247.
Philomachus pugnax, GRAY, Genera.

Male in the breeding season with the face bare and beset with papille, and the neck
with an extravagant ruff of elongated feathers; plamage endlessly variable in color ;
length, about 10; wing, 64-7; tail, 24-3; bill, 14; tarsus, 12; middle toe and claw, 14;
female, smaller, the head fully feathered and no ruff.

Habitat, Northern Europe and Asia. Accidental in United States.

Less than a dozen instances of the occurrence of this bird in North
America are recorded. In 1858, Mr. Cassin gives it as accidental on
Long Island. Mr. Brewer (Am. Nat. 1872, 306), records its occurrence in
Massachusetts, and 1876 (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, i, 1876, 19), its capture
in Maine. The only zecord of its occurrence in Ohio, is my own, above
cited, as follows:

“ Dr. Theodore Jasper, of this city, obtained, November 10, 1872, at the Licking Reser-
voir, thirty miles east of Columbus, a Wader which remained unidentified till recently.
I was of the opinion that it would prove to be either Philomachus pugnaz, or a nonde-
script. -On communicating my views to Mr. H. W. Henshaw, of Washington, he kindly
offerej to compare the specimen with others in the National Museum. He writes that
the bird, which was a male (probably young), is positively identical with specimens of
that species in the collection of the National Museum.”

Gsnus ACTITURUS. Bonaparte.

Bill short, straight, about as long asthe head, grooved three-fourths its length, the
gape very deep reaching to nearly below the eyes, the feathers extending on the upper
mandible beyond those on the lower, which do not fill the interramal space ; tail very
long, more than half the wing, graduated; tarsi much longer than middle toe and
claw ; tibiz bare near the length of the latter.

ACTITURUS BARTRAMIUS (Wils.) Bp.

Bartramian Sandpiper; Upland Plover.

Totanus bartramius, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 24.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Gevlog. Surv.,
1838, 165, 185.

Tringa bartramia, AUDUBON, B. Am., v, 1842, 248.

Aotiturus bariramius, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 360; Reprint, 11; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. fer 1874, 1875, 573; Reprint, 13.—CoPE, Zoolog.
Sketch of Ohio, Walling and Gray’s Atlas of Ohio, 1872, 25.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soo. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 183 ; Reprint, 17.

Tringa bartramia, WILSON, Am. Orn.. vii, 1813, 63.
Totanus bartramius, TEMMINCK, Man., ii, 1820, 650.
Actiturus bariramius, BONAPARTE, Saggio, 1831.

490 BIRDS—SCOLOPACID A.

Above blackish with a slight greenish reflection, variegated with tawny and whitish ;
below, pale tawny of varying shade, bleaching on throat and belly; jugulum with
streaks, breast and sides with arrowheads and bars of blackish; axillars and lining of
wings pure white, black-barred ; quills blackish, with white-bars on the inner webs;
tail varied with tawny, black and white, chiefly in bars, bill and legs pale, former black-
tipped. Length, 11-13; wing, 6-7; tail 3-4; bill, 1-14; middle toe and claw about the
same ; tarsus, about 2.

Habitat, North America. North to the Yukon. Not observed in the United States
west of the Rocky Mountains. Atlantic coast to Nova Scotia. Breeds from the Middle
districts northward. Wintera in Mexico, West Indies, Central and South America to
Brazil. Casual in Europe.

Bartram’s Sandpiper or the Field Plover, as it is commonly termed with
us, is an abundant migrant and common summer resident, being found
from the middle of April to the latter part of September. It frequents,
in large flocks, plowed fields, meadows and retired fields; more rarely is
seen in pairs along the banks of streams, never, however, according to
my observation, wading in the water. When on its migrations it is
very wary and difficult to approach, but during the breeding season its
whole nature seems to be changed in this respect. In the protection of
its nest and young it resorts to vartous devices to attract and hold the
attention of the intruder to itself, mimicking lameness of leg and wing,
tumbling in the air and on the ground, much after the manner of the
Woodcock at similar times. After the breeding season is over it often
imitates the smaller hawks in its flight, soaring, sailing and hovering,
so as to entirely mislead one whois not familiar with this habit. This
latter habit has been noticed by Mr. Wm. Brewster in the Ruff (Philo-
machus), to which he supposed it to be peculiar.

It has also the frequent habit in spring of alighting on the tops of
fences, after the manner of the Meadow-lark. Individuals thus perched
seem to be acting as sentinels for the flock feeding below. During the
breeding season, they often perch on the tops of willow trees, when an
intruder makes his appearance.

Its ordinary note is a loud pleasing whistle, but in summer it often
utters a loud, tremulous, piercing scream, which for wierdness is not sur-
passed by the cry of the Screech Owl or Loon.

The eggs are four, pale clay-color or drab, thickly spotted with umber-
brown in small pattern for birds of this family. They measure 1.75
by 1.28.

Grxus TRYNGITES. Cabanis.

Bill very small, straight, stout, shorter than tarsus or middle toe with olaw, feathered

above as far as the nostrils, still farther below. Gape extending considerably beyond

culmen. Webbing of toes radimentary. Tail not half as long as wing, rounded, with
central feathers projecting.

LONG-BILLED CURLEW. 491

TRYNGITES RUFESCENS (V.) Cab.
Buft-breasted Sandpiper.

Tringa rufescens, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165; Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, xl,
1841, 23.

Tryngites rufescens, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—Lanepon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 138; Re-
print, 22.

Tringa rufescens, VIHILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat. xxxiv, 1819, 470.

Tryngites rufeseens, CABANIS, J. f. O., iv, 418.

Quills largely white on the inner web, and with beautiful black marbling or mottling,
best seen from below; tail unbarred, gray, the central feathers darker, all with subter-
minal black edging and white tips; crown and upper parts blaekish, the feathers with
whitish or tawny edging, especially on the wings; sides of the head, neck all round
and under parts pale rufous, or fawn color, speckled on the neck and breast with dusky ;
bill black; feet greenish-yellow. Length, 7-8; wing, 5-5}; tail, 2}; tareus, 14; middle
toe and claw, and bill, under an inch.

Habitat, North America. Migratory in the United States. Rather uncommon along
the eastern coast. Breeds in the interior of the fur countries, and in Alaska. South
America. Accidental in Europe.

Rare migrant, only noted in the fall. In addition to its occurrence
noted by Dr. Kirtland, quoted on page 219, it has since been taken on
several occasions near Cleveland. A specimen was taken in the immedi-
ate vicinity of this city, August 31, 1876, which is now in the museum
of the Ohio State University. This bird was in company with Semipal-
mated Plover and Semipalmated Sandpipers, on a gravelly bank of the
Scioto River.

The Buff-breasted Sandpiper is said to resemble the preceeding species
in frequenting upland fields and meadows.

The eggs are four, pointedly pyriform, measuring about 1.45 by 1.05.
They are clay-colored, of warious shades, sharply spotted and blotched
with rich umber-brown.

Genus NUMENIUS. Linnsus.

Tarsi scutellate in front only, which distinguishes this genus from all others of the
family. Bill much longer than the head, decurved.

NUMENIUS LONGIROSTRIS Wils.
Long-billed Curlew.

Numenius longirestris, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 185; Am. Journ. Sci. and
Arts, xl, 1841, 24.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11;
Food of Birds, otc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183;
Reprint, 17.

Mumenius longirostrie, WILSON, Am. Orn., viii, 1814, 26.

492 BIRDS—SOOLOPACIDA.

Bill of extreme length and curvature, measuring from 5 to 8 or 9 inches; total length,
about 2 feet; wing, a foot or less; tail, about 4 ; tarsus, 23-22. Plumage very similar
to that of the Godwit, prevailing tone rufous, of varing intensity in different birds and
in different parts of the same bird, usually more intense under the wing than elsewhere ;
below, the jugulum streaked, and the breast and sides with arrow-heads and bars of
dusky ; above, variegated with black, especially on the crown, back and wings; tail
barred throughout with black and rufous; secondaries rufous; primaries blackish and
rufous; no pure white anywhere; bill black, the under mandible flesh-colored for some
distance; legs dark.

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. Breeds nearly throughout its range,
and resident in the South, South to Mexico. Guatemala. Cuba.

Formerly not uncommon and probably summer resident ; of late rare
and known only as a migrant. Dr. Kirtland mentions its capture in
1837, and in 1841, quoted on page 220, speaks of it as if of common occur-
rence. Mr. Langdon notes three or four specimens from the vicinity of
Cincinnati. I have seen specimens captured at Licking Reservoir. It
may sometimes breed at St. Mary’s Reservoir and other localities of
Northwestern Ohio, as it is known to breed in Northern Illinois.

“The eggs of the Long-billed Curlew are not often so pyriform as among the smaller
waders, being in shape not unlike hen’s eggs. Different specimens measure: 2.45 by
1.85 ; 2.60 by 1.80; 2.65 by 1.80; 2.70 by 1.90; 2.80 by 1.90. They are clay-colored, with
more or less olivaceous in some instances, and in others decidedly buffy shade. The
spotting is generally pretty uniformly distributed and of small pattern, though in many
cases there is larger blotching and even massing about the great end. The color of the
markings is sepia or umber, of different shades, in the buffy-tinged specimens, rather
tending to chocolate. The shell-markings, are commnoly numerous and evident.”
(Cones, Birds N. W. p., 509).

NUMENIUS HuDsonicus Lath.
Hudsonian Curlew.

Numenius hudsonicus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 185.—WHRATON, Ohio
Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369 ; Reprint, 1861, 11; Food of Birde, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188; Reprint, 22.

Numenius hudsonicus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 712.

Bill medium, 3 or 4 inches long; length, 16-18; wing, 9; tail, 3}; tarsus, 24-%
Plumage as in the last species in pattern, but general tone much paler; quills barred.

Habitat, North America. Greenland. Central and South America. Breeds in high
latitudes. Migratory through the United States, wintering in the Southern States and
far beyond.

Rare spring and fall migrant. Dr. Kirtland says that a specimen was
taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati which was preserved in Dorfeuille’s
Museum, and that he possessed a specimen from Cleveland. Mr. Lang-
don omits it from his list, but cites the above reference to Dr. Kirtland

.

ESQUIMAUX CURLEW. 493

as pertaining to the next species. The birds spoken of by Dr. Kirtland
are N. hudsonicus, Latham, which he calls Esquimaux Curlew. There has
been confusion in regard to this and the next species, both the scientific
and common names having been transposed by several writers. Mr. Win-
slow, in a list of birds of this family furnished me in 1861, gives both this
and the following species as found in the vicinity of Cleveland. I have
never seen it or known of its capture in this vicinity. It appears to be
everywhere less numerous than the other members of this genus.

The eggs of the Hudsonian Curlew are always larger than those of the
following species but cannot be distinguished from them with certainty,
by any other character. They measure from 2.12 to 2.80 in length, in
width about 1.60.

NUMENIUS BoREALIS (Forst.) Lath.

Esquimaux Curlew.

Numenius borealis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 380, 480; Reprint, 1861, 11.
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—Lana@pon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183;
Reprint, 17.

Scolopax borealis, FORSTER, Philos Trans., lxii, 1772, 411.

Numenius borealis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 712.

Bill small, under 3 inches long; length, 12-15 inches; wing, under 9; tail, 3; tarsus,
2. Plumage in tone and pattern almost exactly as in the last species, but averaging
more rufous, especially under the wings, and primaries not barred.

Habitat, North and Middle America. Not recorded west of the Rocky Mountains.
Alaska, Breeds within the Arctic Circle. Migratory though the United States, where
rarely if ever observed in winter, never to breed. Extraordinarily abundant in
Labrador in August. Winters in Middle and South America. No West Indian record.
Accidental in Enrope.

Not common spring and fall migrant. Mr. Winslow gives it as not
rare in the vicinity of Cleveland. Mr. Langdon, states on the authority
of Mr. Shorten, that a specimen was taken in the vicinity of Cincinati,
in September, 1878. In this vicinity of this city it is very rare; I have
seen a single specimen accompanying a flock of Golden Plover, in
autumn, several years since.

Dr. Coues (Pr. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1861, 236), gives the following
observations of their habits in Labrador:

“The Curlews associate in flocks of every size, from three to as many thousand, but
they generally fly in so loose and straggling a manner that it is rare to kill more than
half a dozen at a shot. When they wheel, however, in any of theirmany beautiful

evolutions, they close together in a more compact body, and offer a more favorable op
portunity to the gunner. Their flight is firm, direct, very swift, when necessary much

494 BIRDS—TANTALID&.

protracted, and is performed with regular rapid beats. They never sail, except when
about to alight, when the wings are much incurved downward, in the manner of most
waders. As their feet touch the ground, their long, pointed wings are raised over the
back, until the tips almost touch, and then deliberately folded, much in the mauner of the
Solitary Sandpiper (Rhyacophilus solitarius). Their note is an cften-repexted, soft,
mellow, though clear, whistle,whioh may be easily imitated. Ry this means they can
readily be decoyed within shot, if the imitation ie good and the gunner is careful to keep
concealed. The smaller the flock the more easily are they allured, and a single indi-
vidual rarely fails to turn his course toward the spot whence the sound proceeds. When
in very extensive flocks, they have a note whioh, when uttered by the whole number, I
can compare to nothing but the chattering of a flock of Blackbirds. When wounded
and taken in hand, they emit a very loud, harsh scream, like that of a common hen
under similar circumstances, which ery they also utter when pursued.

“Their food consists almost entirely of the cow-berry (Empeirum nigrum), which
grows on all the hill-sides in astonishing profusion. I+ is also called the ‘ bear-berry’
and ‘curlew-berry.’ It is a small berry, of a deep purple color, almost black, growing
upon a procumbent, running kind of heath, the follage of which has a peculiar moss-like
appearance. This is their principal and favorite food, and the whole intestine, the vent,
the legs, the bill, throat, and even the plumage, are mere or less stained with the deep
purple juice. They are also very fond of a species of small snail that adheres to the rock
in immense quantities, to procure which they frequent the land-washes at low tide.
Food being so abundant, and so easily obtained, they become excessively fat. In this
condition they are most delicious eating, being tender, juicy, and finely flavored ; but,
as might be expected, they prove a very difficult job for the taxidermist.

“ Although the Curlews were in such vast numbers, I did not find them so tame as
might be expected, and as I had been led to suppose by previousrepresentations. Iwas
never able to walk openly within shooting distance of a flock, though I was told it was
often done. The most successful method of obtaining them is to take such a position as
they will probably fly over in passing from one feeding ground to another. They may
then be shot with ease, as they rarely fly high at such time. The pertinacity with
which they cling to sanatı feeding grounds, even when much molested, I saw strikingly
illustrated on one occasion. The tide was rising and about to flocd a muddy flat, of per-
haps an acre in extent, where their favorite snails were in great quantities. Although
six or eight gunners were stationed upon the spot, and kept up a continual round of fir-
ing upon the poor birds, they continued to fly distractedly about over our heads, not- .
withstanding the numbers that every moment fell. They seemed in terror lest they
should lose their accustomed fare of snails that day. On another occasion, when the
birds had been so harassed for several hours as to deprive them of all opportunity of
feeding, great numbers of them retired to a very small island, or rather a large pile of
rocks, a few hundred yards from the shore, covered with sea-weed and, of course, with
snails. Flock after flock alighted on it, till it was completely covered with the birds,
which there, in perfect safety, obtained their morning meal.”

Of their nest and eggs, he says (Birds N. W., p. 512):

“ This species breeds in great numbers in the Anderson River region, usually making
up its nest complement of four eggs by the third week in June. The nest is generally
in an open plain, and is a mere depression of the ground, lined with a few dried leaves
or grasses, The eggs vary to the great extent usually witnessed among waders. The
ground is olive-drab, tending either to green, gray, or browu in different instances.

WOOD IBIS. 495

The markings, always large, numerous and bold, are of different depths of dark choco-
late, bistre, and sepia brown, with the ordinary stone-gray shell spots. They always
tend to aggregate at the larger end, or, at least, are more more numerous on the
major half of the eggs; thongh in a few instances the distribution is nearly uniform
Occasionally the butt end of the egg is almost completely occapied by confluence of very
dark markings. Eggs vary from 1.90 by 1.40 to 2.12 by 1.33, averaging about 2.00
by 1.45.”

ORDER HERODIONES. HERONS AND THEIR
ALLIES.

FAMILY TANTALIDA. IBISES, ETC.

Hallux somewhat reduced, less perfectly incumbent than in Ardeide. Tarsi commonly
reticulate. Middle claw not pectinate. Lores, gular space and usually more of the
head, naked. Bill variously curved or with expanded tip.

Sub-family TantaLinz. Wood Ibiees.

Bill extremely stout at base, where as wide as the face, gradually tapering to the
decurved tip. Tarsus reticulate.

Genus TANTALUS. Linnens.

With characters of its sub-family.

TANTALUS LOCULATOR L.

Wood Ibis.

Tantalus loculator, WHraton, Reprint, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1861, 21, (probable).—Coves,
Key, 1872, 263; Birds of N. W., 1874, 513.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15;
Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183; Reprint, 17.—JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 1878, 134.

Tantalus loculator, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 240.

Adult with the head and part of the neck naked, corrugate, bluish ; legs blue; bill
pale greenish; plumage entirely white excepting the quills, tail, primary coverts and
alula which are glossy black: young with the head downy- feathered, the plumage
dark-gray, the quills and tail blackish; length, about 4 feet; wing, 18-20 inches ;
bill, 8-9; tarsus, 7-8.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States, and across in corresponding latitudes to the

. Colorado River. North to Ohio, Hlinois, andthe Carolinas. Accidentally to Wisconsin,
ennsylvania, and New York. Cuba. Mexico. Central and South America.

Rare visitor in spring, late summer and early fall. In 1861, I included
the Wood Ibis in my list of birds of probable occurrence on the authority
of Mr. Kirkpatrick, of Cleveland, who informed me that it had “ perhaps
been shot in Southern Ohio.” Dr. Coues, in his Key, gives its range
“ North to Ohio and the Carolinas,” apparently ignorant of the fact that

ry

496 BIRDS—TANTALIDE.

Dr. Hoy had recorded it from the vicinity of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I
have been unable to verify Dr. Coues’ statement as to its occurrence in
Ohio at or before the date of his writing, and consequently omitted it
from my List of 1875, though the probability of its occurrence began to
approach a certainty. In 1878, Mr. Langdon added this bird to his List
of Birds of the vicinity of Cincinnati on the authority of Dr. Haymond,
who says (Indiana Geolog. Surv., 1869) :

“These large and curious birds occasionally visit the Whitewater Valley in the
month of August. Some years ago, I kept one (which had a broken wing) about six
weeks. In that time it became very tame, learned its name and would come when
called.

We fed it upon living fish, which it would swallow with amaging rapidity, except
eatfiah, which reqaired labor and time to dispose of. It died from having eaten a
Mackerel which had been placed in a basin to soak.”

This is satisfactory in showing that this species occurs very near to
our borders. Mr. Langdon, further writes me under date of February 23,
1879:

“Tf Iam not very mnch mistaken, I have at last cleared up the much-agitated
“Wood Ibis question,” and 1 herewith proceed to give you the results of my investiga-
tions and also to answer your letter of the 17th, inst.

In looking over the Indiana Index to Coues’ Bibliography, I found two references to
Haymond, as you will see, and, as I had never befure heard of but one (1869), I at once
proceeded to look up the other, which was as follows: ‘Birds of South-eastern Indiana,
by Rufus Haymond, M.D., Proo. Phil. Acad., viii, November, 1856.’ About 135 specimens
are given and among them the Wood Ibis, from his aecount of which I make the follow-
ing extract verbatim, which you will cbsorve differs somowhat, though not essentially,
from his account of the same specimen iu the Indiana Agricultural Report, 1869. The
main difference is, that in his 1456 List, he mentions specifically and definitely the visit
of a flock of the birds to South-eastern Indiana.

You will remember that the Whitewater River, where the birds were found, is
not far from the Ohio line (perkaps 12 or 15 miles), also that the Whitewater after flow-
ing less than 20 miles from Brookville, Indiana, enters Ohio, and after traversing its
South-western corner for several miles it joins the Great Miami within the State of
@hio. Now Haymond’s account speaks of them as remaining along the river (White-
water) and canal for some weeks and although he does not say Ohio once, yet there is
abundant room for the inference that the birds reached Ohio in following the White-
water. ‘Here is the copy of Haymond’s record:

“The first day of August, 1855, a large flock of these birds made their appearance in
this neighborhood. They remained along the river and Whitewater canal for about a
month or six weeks. A son of one my neighbors broke the wing of one them and caught
it. After keeping it three or four weeks, feeding it upon fish, he gavo it tomo. I kept
it until near the first of November when ıt fell a victim, as many another biped has
done, to its appetite.”

Here follows the account of its eating a mackerel, and dying in con-
vulsions the next day; also, the statement that it learned its name,
Tantalus, and would come when called if it was hungry, etc.

WOOD IBIS. 497

He also mentions that it would stand for hours perfectly still, with its
long bill hanging straight down its neck. When tired of this position
it would lay the tarsus flat upon the ground and stand upon the end of
the tibia

Both Dr. Coues and Mr. Kirkpatrick may have referred to the same
specimens actually taken in Ohio at the time the flock described by Dr.
Haymond made its appearance on our Indiana border. Fortunately
I am not obliged to question the above authorities in adding this bird to
our list: just as this goes to press, Mr. H. E. Chubb, of Cleveland, a well-
known taxidermist and naturalist, writes me that: “ A young male, which
I have in my collection, was shot last spring ten miles west of Cleve-
land. There were no others with it.”

I extract the following from Dr. Coues’ extended account of its habits
(Birds, N. W., page 513) :

“ The Wood Ibis is a remarkable and interesting bird. In its general size, shape and
color, it might be likened to a Crane, being about four feet long, and standing still
higher when erect; white in color, with black-tipped wings and black tail. The head
is peculiar, being entirely bald in the adult bird, and having an enormously thick,
heavy bill, tapering and a little decurved at the end. Ia Florida it is sometimes called
the ‘‘Gannet”; on the Colorado it is known as the Water Turkey.

The carriage of the Wood Ibis is firm and sedate, almost stately ; each leg is slowly
lifted and planted with deliberate precision, before the other is moved, when the birds
walk unsuspicious of danger. I never saw one run rapidly, since on all the occasions
when I have been the cause of alarm, the bird took wing directly. It springs power-
fally from the ground, bending low to gather strength, and for a little distance flaps
hurriedly with dangling legs, as if it was much exertion to lift so heavy a body. Bat
fairly on wing, clear of all obstacles, the flight is firm, strong, and direct, performed
with continuous moderately rapid beats of the wing, except when the birds are sailing
in circles as above noted. When proceeding in a straight line the feet are stretched
horizontally backward, but the head is not drawn closely in upon the breast, as is
the case with Herons, so that the bird presents what may be called a top-heavy appear-
ance, increased by the thick large bill.

The eggs of the Wood Ibis are like Heron’s, in being nearly ellipsoidal, but differ from
these, as well as from those of the Bay Ibis, in color, which is uniform dull white, with-
out markings. The shell is rather rough to the touch, witha coating of softish, flaky,
calcareous substance. A specimen that I measured was exactly 2% inches in length by
12 in breadth. Two or three are said to be a nest-complement.”

Sub-family Ieınınz. True Ibises.
Head partially naked. Bill very long and slender, curved throughout, and grooved
nearly to the tip.
Genus PELGADIS. Kaup.

With the characters of the sub-family, and tarsus scutellate.

32

498 BIRDS—TANTALIDE.

PELGADIS FALCINELLUS (L.) Kaup (?).

Glossy Ibis.

Ibis ordii, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377 ; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Ibis falcinellus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 473 ; Reprint,
1875, 13.

Ibis falcinellus, var. ordit, Couns, Birds of N. W., 1874, 517.—LANGDON, Cat, Birds of
Cin., 1877, 15.

Plegadus falcinellus, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 188;
Reprint, 22.

Glossy Ibis, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 164.

Ibis falcinellus, BONAPARTE, Obs. Wils., 1825, No. 199.
Ibis oydii, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 49.

Ibis faleinellus var. ordii, Cougs, Key, 1872, 263.
Pelgadis falcinellus, ‚Ibis, 1878, 112.

Plamage rich dark-chestnut, changing to glossy dark-green with purplish reflections
on the head, wings and elsewhere; bill dark; young similar, much duller, or grayish-
brown, especially on the head and neck which are white streaked. Claws slender, nearly
straight; head bare only about the eyes and between the forks of the jaw. Length,
about 2 feet; wing, 10-11; tail, 4; bill, 44; tarsıs, 34; middle toe and claw, 3.

Habitat, United States, southerly, straying north to Massachusetts and Ohio.

Extremely rare or accidental, only one record of its occurrence known
tome. Dr. Kirtland, after quoting from the Boston Traveler, [June] 28,
1850, an account of the capture of this species at Cambridge and Middle-
boro, Massachusetts, and Middletown, Connecticut, says :

“To the above we would add that two of these interesting birds, probably a pair,
were seen two years since, near Fairport, Lake county. One of them, a beautiful male,
was shot by Mr. Prugen, and forwarded to us. It was duly skinned and mounted, and
may now be seen standing along side of a Scarlet Ibis, from the banks of the Amazon,
in the second case south of the door, in the cabinet of Nat. Hist., at the Cleve. Med. Coll.

Mr. Prugen has furnished us with several rare birds; among others a fine specimen of

Wilson’s Phalarope, and a pair of Great Marbled Godwits.” Pr

Dr. Coues gives the following brief account of this bird (Birds N. W.,
517), to which may be added that later investigations have shown it to be
not uncommon at Utah Lake and other localities in the Western United
States, where it is known asthe “Black Snipe” and “ Black Curlew ;”
and Mr. Ridgway describes two other species of this genus in the United
States, one at least of which is tenable:

“ The Glossy Ibis is not figured in Wilson’s Ornithology, and remained an unknown
inhabitant of the United States up to the termination of that author’s labors. In 1817
a specimen was taken in New Jersey, and annonnced by Mr. Ord under the the name of
Tantalus mexicanus. Since that time it has been found at irregular intervals along our
coast, chiefly in the Southern and Middle districts, but occasionally as far north as
Massachusetts; where, however, its occurrence must be considered as accidental.
Audubon says that he found it in flocks in Texas, but gives only a meagre account of its

GLOSSY IBIS. 499

habits. Nuttall’s article is mainly an account of Ibises in general, devoted principally
to mention of ancient, and particularly Egyptian, chronicles and superstitions regard-
ing them. The United States species was first separated under the name of ordü by
Bonaparte, 1838.

The eggs of Ibises are very different from those of Herons. The shell is heavier,
rougher, and more granular, the difference in texture being very apparent; and are
ovoidal, not ellipsoidal,-with considerable difference in the degree of convexity of the
two ends. Those of the Glossy Ibis measure from 1.90 by 1.45 to 2.10 by 1.50, and are of

a dull greenish-blue color, without markings. The number usually deposited is believed
to be three.”

FAMILY ARDEIDA. THE HERONS.

Hallux lengthened, perfectly incumbent with large claws. Tarsi scutellate. Middle
claw pectinate. Bill perfectly straight, tapering, acute. Loral region definitely naked,
continuous with covering of the bill. Head narrow, elongate, tapering.*

*Mr. Ridgway in his studies of North American Herodiones adheres to the old division
of this family and gives the following synopsis of its Ohio members:

ARDEIDA.—TuHE True HERONS.

Sub-family ARDEINzZ.—Outer toe equal to or decidedly longer than the inner. Claws
short, generally strongly curved. Three pairs of powder-down tracts. Rectrices
lengthened, stiffish, twelve in number (except Zebrilus).

Sub-family BOTAURINE.—Outer toe decidedly shorter than the inner. Claws long, slen-
der, slightly curved. Two pairs, only, of powder-down tracts. Recirices very short,
soft, only ten in number.

Sub-family ARDEINZ.
A.—Rectrices twelve ; tibie with the lower portion more or less naked.
a. Pectoral and inguinal powder-down tracts widely separated. .

$. Malar region completely feathered (except in Pilherodius, where anterior part is
bare). Bill shorter than the tarsus and middle toe (usually shorter than, or
about equal to, the tarsus).

1. ARDEA.—Size very large. Adult with scapular plumes elongated, narrowly-
lanceolate, and with compact webs ; in the breeding season, the occiput with
two long, slender, compact-webbed, pendant plumes. Color mainly plumb-
eous- or slate-blue (rarely—e. g. white phase of A. occidentalis—wholly pure
white). Culmenshorter than middle toe.

2. HERODIAS.—Size large, but smaller than the species of the preceding genus.
Adult with the scapular plumes greatly elongated, reaching far beyond the
end of the tail, the shafts thick and rigid, the webs decomposed, hair-like,
and distinct. Color entirely pure white.

3. GARZETTA.—Size small. Adult with occipital, jugular, and scapular plumes,
the latter reaching to or a little beyond the end of the tail; the shafts
moderately rigid, and recurved terminally; the webs decomposed, with
long, hair-like, but not distant fibres. Other plumes varying in structure,
according to the species. Color entirely pure white,

500 BIRDS—ARDEIDE.

Genus ARDEA. Linneas.

Decomposing feathers ( ‘‘ powder-down-tracts ”), on back over hips, belly under hips,
and on breast. Back and head in adult in breeding season, with elongated feathers or
plumes. Tail feathers twelve. Tibia bare the lower third or more. Sexes similar.

ARDEA HEROpDIAS L.

Great Blue Heron. i

Ardea herodias, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1835, 165; Family Visitor, i, 1850, 124.—
Cops, Zool. Sketch of Ohio, Walling and Grays’ Atlas of Ohio, 1872, 25.—WHEATON,
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc., Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 183;
Reprint, 17 ; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227.

Ardea herodia, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377 ; Reprint, 1861, 10.

Ardea herodias, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 247.

Back without peculiar plumes at any season, but scapulars lengthened and lanceolate ;
an occipital crest, two feathers of which are long and filamentous; long loose feathers
on tbe Jlowerneck. Length, about 4 feet; extent, 6; bill, 54 inches; tarsus, 64; middle
toe and claw, 5; wing, 12-20; tail,7. Fewale much smaller than male. Adult of both
sexes grajish-blue above, the neck pale purplish-brown with a white throat-line, the
head black with a white frontal patch; the under parts mostly black, streaked with
white; tibia, edge of wing and some of the lower neck feathers orange-brown; bill and
eyes yellow, culmen dusky, lores and legs greenish. The young differ considerably but
are never white and cannot be confounded with any of the succeeding.

Habitat, North America. North to Hudson’s Bay and Sitka. South to Guatemala and
Galapagos. West Indies. Breeds throughout its range, and winters in the South.

Common summer resident, somewhat restricted during the breeding
season, but at other times generally distributed in all suitable locations,
from March or earlier to November or later. Jo December, 1880, a
specimen was brought me which was killed on a rapid shallow of Walnut

4. BUTORIDES.—Size small. Adult with scapular plumes elongated, compact-
webbed, lanceolate, but with rounded tips. Feathers of the pileum elon-
gated, lanceolate. Jugular plumes broad, blended. Culmen longer than
tarsus; middle toe almost equal to tarsus. Color much variegated.

5. NYCTIARDEA.— Size medium. Adult with several extremely elongated linear,
compact-webbed occipital plumes. No scapular plumes. Jugular feathers
broad, blended. Culmen about equal to tarsus; tarsusslightly longer than
middle toe. Lateral outlines of billconcave; gonys nearly straight. Adult
and young exceedingly different in plumage.

Sub-family BoTAURINA.
6. BOTAURUS.—Size medium, or rather large. Sexes similar; young similar to
2 adult.
7. ARDETTA.—Size extremely small (the smallest of Herons), Sexes dissimilar
(in all species?) ; young slightly different from adult.

WHITE EGRET. 501

Creek. The temperature for several days had ranged below zero. This
bird was in good condition.

The food of this species, and in general of the family, consists of fish,
frogs and other reptiles, small mollusks and aquatic larve. These they
secure by patient watching while standing in the water, with extended
necks; when the desired prey comes within reach, the head and neck are
so suddenly withdrawn preparatory to making a successful dart, that the
eye can hardly follow the action.

The nest of this species is placed in high sycamore trees, along rivers,
or in the depths of a retired swamp. In localities destitute of trees the
nest is placed on rocks. Sycamore trees are especially affected by them,
the light color of the limbs, and the peculiar tint of the foliage harmon-
izing so well with their plumage, as to render their presence, when at rest,
difficult of detection.

The eggs are two or three in number, elliptical in outline, and light,
dull greenish: blue in color. They measure about 2.50 by 1.50.

ARDEA EGRETTA Gmelin.

Great White Egret.

Ardea egretta, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Rep., 1833, 165, 185.—WHEaTON, Food of Birds,
etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 573; Reprint, 13.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of
Cin., 1877, 15.

Herodias egretta, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 368, 377 ; Reprint, 10, 19.—
LANGDOon, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18 ; Sum-
mer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 227.

Ardea egretta, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. i, 178, 629.
Herodias egretta, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, iii, 1849.

No obviously lengthened feathers on the head at any time; in the breeding season,
back with very long plumes of decomposed feathers drooping far beyond the tail; neck
closely feathered ; plumage entirely white at allseasons; legs and feet black. Length,
36-42 inches (not including the dorsal train); wing, 16-17; bill, nearly5; tarsus,
nearly 6.

Habitat, United States, southerly, straggling northward to Nova Scotia. Massachu-
setts, Canada West, and Minnesota. West Indies; Mexico; Central and South America.

Rather common visitor in J uly, August and September. Perhaps
breeds in Wéstern Ohio, but I have no record of its occurrence in spring
or in the breeding season, nor seen any except young birds. Dr. Coues,
in connection with this bird, Birds N W. p, 521, observes “that a cer-
tain northward migration of some southerly birds at this season (sum-
mer) is nowhere more noticeable than among the Herons and their allies,
the migrants consisting chiefly of birds hatched that year, which un-
accountably stray in the wrong direction.”

502 BIRDS—ARDEIDE.

ARDEA CANDIDISSIMA Gmelin.

Little White Egret.

Garzetta candidissima, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377; Reprint, 1861, 10;
19.—LANGDOoN, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18.

Ardea candidissima, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Re-
print, 1875, 13.—Lana@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1878, 117; Reprint, 8.

Ardea candidissima, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 17&8, 633.

Garzetta candidissima, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av., ii, 1855, 118.

Adult with a long occipital crest of decomposed feathers and similar dorsal plumes,
latter recurved when perfect; similar, but not recurved plumes on the lower neck, which
is bare behind; lores, eyes and toes yellow ; bill and legs black, former yellow at base,
latter yellow at the lower part behind. Plumage always entirely white. Length, 24 ;
wing, 11-12; bill, 3; tarsus, 34-4.

Habitat, United States, southerly. North regularly to the Middle States, casually to
Massachusetts and even to Nova Scotia. Kansas. Mexico. West Indies. Central and
South America to Chili. Breeds throughout the regular United States range, and
resident in the Gulf States and further south.

Very rare or accidental. Mr. M. C. Reed, of Hudson, captured a speci-
men several years since in Ashtabula county. This bird had been pre-
viously wounded. Mr. Winslow records it from Northern Ohio, but may
refer to the same individual. Late in the summer of 1859, I saw five of
these birds at Granville, Licking county. These were apparently all
young. Mr. Langdon, on the authority of Mr. Dury notes one specimen
taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati.

Although Dr. Coues states that the range of the last species and this

ARDEA CERULEA L.

Little Blue Heron.

Florida cerulea, WHEATON, Reprint, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1861, 21 (probable).
Ardea caerulea, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15 (probable).

Ardea cerulea, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 239.
Florida cerulea, BAIRD, P. R. R. Rep., ix, 1858, 671.

The Little Blue Heron probably occurs in the southern portion of the State, but Iam
not aware that it has been positively identified within our limits, though it occurs in
Southern Illinois, and has been seeu by Mr. Brewster in West Virginia. The following
is Dr. Coues description: Head of the adult with lengthened decomposed feathers,
those of the lower neck and scapulars, elongate and lanceolate; no dorsal plumes; neck
bare behind, below. Size of the Snowy Heron. Adult slaty-blue becoming purplish on
the head and neck; bill and loral space blue, shading to black at the end; eyes yellow,
legs black. Young pure white, but generally showing blue traces, by which it is distin-
guished from Snowy Heron, as well as by the color of the bill and feet, though at first
the legs are greenish-blue with yellow traces.

GREEN HERON. 503

smaller but more elegant and showy one, appears to be nearly or quite
coincident, it would appear that the larger bird is muclı the most num-
erous in this State, as well as regular in its visits.

ARDEA VIRESCENS Linnzeus.

Green Heron.

Ardea virescens, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.—Cops, Zool, Sketch of-Ohio,
Walling and Gray’s Atlas of Obio, 1872, 25.—WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Obio
Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 573; Reprint, 13.—Lane@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15.

Butorides virescens, WHEATON, Ohio Agrie. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 369.—LAnGDon, Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soe, Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18; Summer Birds, ib., iii,
1880, 227.

Ardea virescens, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 238.

Butorides virescens, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av., ii, 1855, 128.

Adultin the breeding season with the crown, long soft occipital crest, and lengthened
narrow feathers of the back lustrous dark-green, sometimes with a bronzy iridescence,
and on the back often with a glaucous cast; wing-coverts green, with conspicuous tawny
edgings ; neck purplish-chestnut, the throat line variegated with dusky or whitish; under
parts mostly dark brownish-ash, belly variegated with white; quills and tail green-
ish-dusky with a glaucous shade, edge of the wing white; some of the quills usually
white tipped; bill greenish-black, much of the under mandible yellow; lores and iris
yellow ; legs greenish-yellow ; lower neck with lengthened feathers in front, a bare
space behind. Young with the head less crested, the back without long plumes, but
glossy greenish, neck merely reddish-brown, and whole under parts white, variegated
with tawny and dark-brown. Length, 16-18; wing, about 7; bill, 24; tarsus, 2; mid-
die toe and claw, about the same; tibia bare 1 or less.

Habitat, United States generally, breeding throughout and wintering in the South.
Mexico. West Indies. Central America to Venezuela.

Abundant summer resident, from April 1, to October. Breeds. The
most numerous of the family in the State. Everywhere a well-known
and unpopular bird. It has numerous common names, among which
Fly-up the-creek is probably the most refined. It is much less abundant
in this immediate vicinity than formerly, where, once unsuspicious, it
has become quile shy and wary.

The nest of the Green Heron is composed of twigs, placed in small tree
in a swamp or on the border of a stream, not unfrequently in an orchard
at a distance from water. The eggs are light greenish-blue.

Genus NYCTIARDEA. Swainson.

Powder-down-tracts as in Ardea. No elongated or peculiar feathers of neck or back
at any season. Tail feathers twelve. Sexes similar.

504 BIRDS—ARDEIDE.

NYCTIARDEA GRISEA (L.) Steph.

var. NEVIA (Bedd.) Allen.

Night Heron.

Ardea discors, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 184.

Nyctiardea gardeni, Waraton, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377 ; Reprint, 1861, 10, 19.

Nyctiardea grisea, var. nevia, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874;
Reprint, 1875, 13.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1677, 15; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1878, 117; Reprint, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184 5
Reprint, 18; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 127.—DURY and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1380, 104;
Reprint, 5.

Ardea discors, NUTTALL, Man. ii, 1834, 54.

Ardea nevia, BODDERT, Plauch. El., 1784, 939.

Nyctiardea ga: deni, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 678.

Nyctiardea grisea, var. nevia, ALLEN, Bull. M.C. Z, iii, 1872, 182.

No peculiar feathers excepting two or three very long filamentous plumes sprit ging
from the oceiput, generally imbricated in one bandle; bill very stout; tarsi reticulate
below in front; length, about 2 feet; wing, 12-14 inches; bill, tarsus, and middle tee,
about 3. Crown, scapulars aud inter-scapulars very dark glossy-green ; general plum-
age bluish-gray, more or less tinged with lilac; forehead, throat line and most under-
parts whitish ; occipital plumes white; bil! black ; lores greenish; eyes red ; feet yellow.
Young very different ; Jacking the plumes; grayish-brown, paler below, extensively
speckled with white; quills chocolate-brown, white-tipped.

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. Breeds abundantly in New England.
Winters in the South and beyond. Part of the West Indies. Mexico. Central America.
South America.

The Night Heron is not an uncommon bird in all suitable localities in
the State, probably breeding in retiredswamps. Ido not know postively
of its breeding within the State, but Mr. Langdon records the capture of
full fledged young at Madisonville, in June and July. In this vicinity
it is most common in the fall. As its name indicates it is more nocturnal
in its habits than other members of this family, and on that account
more frequently heard than seen. Its note is aloud hoarse squawk.

Genus BOTAURUS. Stephens.

No peculiar crests or plumes. Sexessimilar. Tail of ten feathers. Tarsi shorter than
middle toe.
Boravurvus Minor (Gm.) Boie.

Bittern; Indian Hen.

Ardea minor, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.

Botaurus lentiginosus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep for 1860, 368; Reprint, 1861, 10; Field
Notes, i, 1861, 129.—TREMBLY, ib, i, 1861, 180. :

Botaurus minor, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Obio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint,
1875, 13. —LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 184 ; Reprint, 18; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227.

LEAST BITTERN. 505

Ardea minor, WILSON, Am. Orn., viii, 1814, 35.

Botaurus minor, Born, Isis, 1826, 979.

Botaurus lentiginosus, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., xi, 1819, 596.
Ardea stellaris, var. minor, GMELIN, Syst., Nat., i, 1788, 635.

Plumage of upper-parts singularly freckled with brown of various shades, blackish,
tawny aud whitish; neck and under-parts ochrey or tawny-white. Each feather
marked with a brown dark-edged stripe, the throat line white, with brown streaks;
a velvety-black patch on each side of the neck above; crown dull-brown, with buff
superciliary stripe; tail brown; quills greenish-black, with a glaucous shade, brown
tipped ; bill black and yellowish, legs greenish, soles yellow ; length, 23-28; wing, 10-13;
tail, 44; bill, about 3; tarsus, about 34.

Habitat, entire temperate North America (up to 58° or 60°). Cuba. South to
Guatemala. Breeds chiefly from the middle districts northward, wintering thence south-
ward. Regularly migratory. Accidental in Europe.

Summer resident from March to November, but usually seen in this
vicinity during the spring and fall migrations. Like the Blue Heron it
is an early and late migrant, often seen after severe frosts in the fall.
It is apparently more numerous than any others of the family except the
Green Heron. But, unlike any of the preceding, it is usually seen in
weedy and bushy swamps and not along running streams, prefering, if it
must have company, that of the Snipe and Rail, to that of its immediate
relatives.

A friend describes to me a bird which he saw stalking along the bank
of a creek in spring, asof a freckled mulatto color, about two feet long,
slender and graceful in its movements, which he calls “Nelly Bly,” for

“When she walks she lifts her foot
And then she putsit down.”
A description which better applies to this species than to any other of
this family.

The nest of the Bittern is placed on the ground; the eggs, three to

five in number, are brownish-drab, measuring about 2.00 by 1.50.

Genus ARDETTA. Gray.

Generic characters as in Botaurus, but sexes differently colored.

ARDETTA EXILIS (Gm.) Gr.

Least Bittern.

Ardea exilis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.—AUDUBON, B. Am., vi, 1843, 100.

Ardetia exilis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep, for 1860, 1861, 368 ; Reprint, 10; Field Notes,
i, 1861, 129; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 573; Reprint, 13.
—TREMBLY, Field Notes, i, 1861, 180.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 117; Revised List, ib., iii, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18; Sum-
mer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 127,—Dury and FREEMAN,
ib., ii, 1880, 184; Reprint, 5.

506 BIRDS—GRUIDER.

Ardea exilis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 645.
Ardetia exilis, GRAY, Genera of Birds, iii, 1849.

No peculiar feathers, but those of the lower neck, long and loose, as in the Bittern;
size very small; 11-14 inches long; wing, 4-5; tail, 2 or less; bill, 2 or less; tarsus,
about 1$. Male with the slightly crested crown, back and tail, glossy greenish-black ;
neck behind, most of the wing-coverts, and outer edges of inner quills, rich chestnut,
other wing-coverts, brownish-yellow ; front and sides of neck and under-parts, brown-
ish-yellow, varied with white along the throat line, the sides of the breast with a black-
ish-brown patch; bill and lores mostly pale yellow, the culmen blackish; eyes and soles
yellow; legs greenish-yellow; female with the black of the back entirely, that of the
crown mostly or wholly replaced by rich purplish-chestnut, the edges of the scapulars
forming a brownish-white stripe on either side,

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. Breeds throughoutits United States
range, wintering in the South. Cuba. Jamaica. Central America.

Not common summer resident especially in the higher portions
of the State. In swampy districts it is not uncommon. Prefers wooded
swamps but is often seen along water-courses, generally singly, though
not so averse to the society of its fellows as the Bittern. During the
migrations it often becomes confused and may turn up in most unex-
pected localities. Audubon narrates the following :

“One morning while I was in the Cincinnati Museum, a woman came in holding in
her apron one of this delicate species alive, which she said had fallen down the chimney
of her house under night, and which, when she awoke at day-break, was the first object
she saw, it having perched on one of the bed-posts.”

It is the most tame and unsuspicious of the family. On the 14 of May,
1876, my friends, Oliver Davie and Arnold Boyle discovered one of these
birds on the bank of the Scioto River within the city limits; being with-
out a gun, they gave chase with stones and succeeded after an hour’s
pursuit in securing a fine specimen for their collection. On this subject
Dr. Coues says (Birds of Northwest, p., 520), “ Speaking in general terms,
and without considering the artificial frame of mind brought about by
man’s interference, the shyness of the Heron corresponds exactly to its
size ; and it isso with many other birds, particularly Gulls—the larger the
species, the more wary.”

Mr. Langdon, (Summer Birds, l.c.) says that in Ottawa county they are ‘‘ quite common,
frequenting and nesting amongst the ‘deer-tongue ’ and ‘ saw-grass,’ at a considerable
distance fromland. Judging from the depth of water in the situations where they were
most numerous, we inferred that they spend much of their time clinging to tall aquatic
grasses, and walking about on the lily ‘pads’ in search of food. They uttered no sound
when flushed, and flew as noiselessly as owls. The nest is rather a bulky affair for the
size of the bird, composed entirely of ‘saw-grass,’ a platform being constructed by bend-
ing a number of green blades toward a common center, so that they cross each other at a
height of fifteen or twenty inches from the water; this platform is slightly depressed in
the center and the depression lined with a few blades of dried grass of the same species

WHOOPING CRANE. 507

as that used in the foundation. Four eggs, of a very faint greenish-blue tint and rounded
oval in shape, constitute a full set; those taken were incomplete, containing from two
to three eggs, which were fresh and probably the second laying of the season. They
evidently build an entire new nest for the seccnd brood, as the grasa was still fresh
and green in those observed.”

ORDER ALECTORIDE. CRANES, RAILS, ETC.

FAMILY GRUIDA. CRANES.

Of great stature, with extremely long neck and legs. Part or all of the head bare.
Toes much shorter than the tarsi; with basal webbing, but without lobation ; hallux
very short, highly elevated. Billequalling or exceeding the head, compressed, perfectly
straight, contracted about the middle, with enlarged acute terminal portion ; nasal foss®
wide and deep, with large perforate nostrils.

Genus GRUS. Linnzsus.
With the characters of the family.

GRUS AMERICANA (L.) Temm.

White Crane; Whooping Crane.

Grus americana, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165.

Grus americanus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 368, 377; Reprint, 1861, 9, 19;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—LANGDon,
Cat. Birds of Cin, 1877, 15; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 117; Reprint, 8; Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18.

Ardea americana, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1776, 234.
Grus americana, TEMMINCK, Analyse.

Adult with the bare part of head extending in a point on the occiput above, on each
side below the eyes, and very hairy. Bill very stout, convex, ascending, that part of
the under mandible as deep as the upper opposite it. Adult plumage pure white with
black primaries, primary coverts and alula; bill dusky-greenish ; legs black; head car-
mine, the hair-like feathers blackish. Young with the head feathered; general plum-
age gray (?) varied with brown. Length, about 50 inches; wing, 24; tail, 9; tarsus, 12;
middle toe, 5; bill, 6.

Habitat, temperate North America, Up the Mississippi Valley, spreading through
the fur conntries. Texas to Florida, and occasionally upon the coast to the Middle
States.

Rare. Spring and fall migrant. Dr. Kirtland, who, following Audubon,
did not distinguish between this and the following species, says:

‘The Sandhill or Whooping Crane, the adjutant bird, occasionally visits Ohio. Dr
Ward imforms me that two were killed near Roscoe, in Coshocton county in 1837, and
the Hon. Calvin Pease also informs me that he once saw a flock of them in Fairfield
county.”

Mr. Langdon includes it in his Revised Ligt, two or three specimens

508 BIRDS—RALLIDE.

having been taken in the vieinity of Cincinnati. Mr. Mapes, a com-
petent ornithologist, informed me that he saw a flock of over fifty of these
birds flying over this city on the 26th of November, 1876. Dr. Coues
describes the eggs as follows:

“Two eggs of the Whooping Crane are in the Smithsonian from Great Slave Lake,
wherethey were taken by Mr.J. Lockhart. Though from the same nest, oneis noticeably
more elongated than the other, measuring about 3.90 by 2.65, the other being about 3.60
only, with the same width. The shell is much roughened with numerous elevations,
like little warts, and is, moreover, punctulate all over. The ground is a light brownish-
drab ; the markings are sparse, except at the great end ; they are large irregular spots
of a pale dull chocolate-brown, with still more obscure or nearly obsolete shell-mark-
ings.”

Gres CANADENSIS (L.) Temm.

Brown Crane; Sandhill Crane.

Grus canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 480; Reprint, 1861, 9; Food
of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13 —Lanepon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184 ; Re-
print, 18.

Ardea canadensis, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 234.

Grus canadensis, TEMMINCK, Analyse.

Adult with the bare part of head forking behind to receive a pointed extension of the
occipital feathers, not reaching on the sides below the eyes, and sparsely hairy. Bill
moderately stout, with nearly straight and scarcely ascending gonys, that part of the
under mandible not so deep as the upper at the same place. Adult plumage
plumbeous-gray never whitening ; primaries, their coverts, and alula, blackish. Young
with head feathered, and plumage varied with rusty brown. Rather smaller than the
last.

Habitat, United States from Florida and the Mississippi Valley to the Pacific, and in-
terior of the far countries. North to the Yukon and west coast of Baffin’s Bay. Cuba.
Breeds apparently nearly throughout its range.

Rare migrant; probably occasional summer resident. The quotation
from Dr. Kirtland above, may refer to this species. Mr. Winslow in-
cludes it in his list of birds of Northern Ohio, and it has been reported
to me as breeding within a few years in the vicinity of Toledo. Mr.
Langdon mentions two specimens taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati.
Ihave never seen the bird in this vicinity, and though I have frequently
heard of its occurrence, the identification has never been unquestionable.
Both this bird and the Blue Heron are sometimes confounded under the
common name of Blue Crane.

FAMILY RALLIDH. RAILS, GALLINULES, ETC.

Size moderate and small; neck and legs comparatively short. Head completely
feathered, excepting, in the Coots and Gallinules, a broad horny frontal plate. Toes

VIRGINIA RAIL. 509

equallicg or exceeding tarsi, simple orlobate. Billnot constricted in the middle, rather
ahorter than bead, straight and quite stout; or much longer, regularly slender and
decurved, with long nasal foss®. Nostrils incompletely or not perforate.

Sub-family RALLınz. Rails.
Feet simple; head without frontal plate.

Genus RALLUS Linnsus.
Bill longer than the head, curved.

RALLUS ELEGANS Aud.

F'resh-water Marsh Fen.

Rallus elegans, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860. 369, 378 ; Reprint, 1861, 11, 20; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Kep., for 1474, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13—Lanepon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc, Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Re-
print, 18; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1820, 227.

Rallus elegans, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 27.

Above brownish-black ; variegated with olive-brown, becoming rich chestnut on the
wiug-coverts; under-parts rich rufous or cinnamon-brown, usually paler on the middle
of the belly and whitening on the throat; flanks and axillars blackish, white-barred.
Length, about 16; wing, 5-6; tail, 2-24; bill, 24; tarsus, 2; middle toe and claw, 2¢.
Female smaller. s

Babitıt, United States, rather sontherly. North on the Atlantic coast regularly to the
Middle States, casually to Connecticut; in the interior to Kansas and Missouri at least;
oa the Pacific side to Oregon and Washingtor. Cuba, Mexico. Winters in the South-
ern States.

Not an uncommon migrant, most frequently seen in spring. Prob-
ably a summer resident breeding in extensive swamps and marshes.
Dr. Howard E. Jones informs me that he has taken the young in the
vicinity of Circleville. It is frequently confounded with and known as
the Clapper Rail, but the latter is confined to the vicinity of salt water,
and is a bird of duller plumage.

The eggs measure about 1.66 by 1.10. The color varies from dull white
to cream or pale buff, with reddish-brown markings.

RALLUS VIRGINANUS L.
Virginia Rail.

Rallus virginianus, NUTTALL, Man. ii, 1835, 205.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
165, 185—WueaTon, Field Notes, i, 1861, 153; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378;
Reprint, 1861, 11, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint,
1875, 13.—Lane@pon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat,
Hist., i, 1879, 184; Reprint, 18.

Virginia Rail, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Rallus virginianus, Linnzvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 283.

510 BIRDS—RALLIDE.

Coloration exactly as in elegans of which itis a perfect miniature. Length, 84-10} ;
wing about 4; tail about 14; bill, 14-13; tarsus, 14-14; middle toe ; 14-12.

Habitat, United States and British Provinces. Winters in the Southern States and
beyond. South to Guatemala. Cuba.

Common summer resident, most abundant duringthe migrations. This
and the Carolina Rail are the common species. Of the two, the Virginia
Rail is the most retiring and least numerous. It is found in all ex-
tensive swamps and marshes of the State and breeds from Central Ohio
northward to the lakes. It is given as a migrant only, in the vicinity
of Cincinnati, by Mr. Langdon.

Eggs 1.25 by .95, similar to those of the preceeding species.

Genus PORZANA. Vieillot.
Bill shorter than the head, stout and straight.

PorzaANa CAROLINA (L.) Cab.

Carolina Rail; Sora; Ortolan.

Rallus carolinus, KiInvLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1836, 165, 185.

Porzana carolina, WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 153; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378;
Reprint, 1861,11, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint,
1875, 13.—LaNnGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184 ; Reprint, 18; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 227.—Dury and
FREEMAN, ib, iii, 1880, 104; Reprint, 5.

Rallus carolinus, Linnzvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 263.

Porzana carolina, CABANIS, Journ., 1856, 428.

Above, olive-brown, varied with black, with numerous sharp white streaks and specks ;
flanks, axillare and lining of wings, barred with white aad blackish; belly whitish ;
erissum rufescent. Adult with the tace and eentral line of the throat black, the rest of
the throat, line over eye, and especially the breast more or less intensely slate-gray, the
sides of the breast usually with some obsolete whitish barring and speckling; young
without the blaek, the throat whitish, the breast brown. Length, 8-9: wing, 4-44; tail,
about 2; bill, $-2; tarsus, 14; middle toe and claw, 1.

Habitat, entire temperate North America; especially abundant along the Atlantic
coast during the migrations. Breeds from the Middle districts northward. Winters in
the Southern States and beyond. South to Venezuela. Various West Indian Islands.
Greenland. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant spring and fall migrant in April, October and November,
and common summer resident, breeding in suitable locations throughout
the State.

This is the most abundant species of the family with us, and, especially
on tide-water, is a highly esteemed game bird. In spring it is often found
in quite exposed localities, such as the borders of brooks and ponds. In
the fall they are much more numerous and frequent high weeds on the

YELLOW RAIL. 511

dried bottoms of ponds, cornfields, and marshy places. In their habits, like
all others of this family, they are retiring, skulking like rats in run-ways
at the roots of grass and weeds. They are with difficulty flushed, and
when on the wing, their flight is short, extremely slow and labored, just
clearing the tops of the grass or weeds. In alighting they drop suddenly
as if shot, and conceal themselves or quickly run for safety to a consider-
able distance.

The nest of this species, as of all others of the family, is placed on the
ground. The eggs are eight or ten in number, greenish or olive-drab,
with markings of reddish-brown. They measure about 1.20 by .90.

PoRZANA NOVEBORACENSIS (Gm.) Cass.

Yellow Rail.

Rallus noveboracensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165, 185.

Porzana noveboracensis, WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11,
20; Food of Birds, eto., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—Lane-
Don, Cat. Birds of Cin. 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
184; Reprint, 18; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 127.

Fulica noveboracensis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 701.

Rallus noveboracensis, BONAPARTE, Sp. List, 1827, 213.

Porzana noveboracensis, Cassin, Birds, N. Am., 1858, 750.

Above, varied with blackish and ochre:-brown, and thickly marked with narrow
white semicircles and transverse bars; below, pale ochrey-brown, fading on the belly,

PoRZANA JAMAICENSIS (Gm.) Cass.

Black Rail.

Porzana jamaicensis, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Svc. Nat. Hist , i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23.

Rallus jamaicensis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 718.

Porzana jamaicensis, Cassin, Birds N. Am., 1858, 749.

Blackish, head and under-parts dark-slaty, paler or whitening on the throat; above
speckled with white, the cervix and upper back varied with dark-chestnut; lower
belly, erissum, flanks and axillars, white-barred ; quills with white spots. Very small,
about 54; wing, 23-3; tail, 14; tarsus, 2.

Habitat, South America to Chili. Central America. West Indies. In North America
to New Jersey and Kansas, rare. Illinois, breeding (Nelson).

Mr. Langdon introduces this bird to our acquaintance in his Catalogue of the
Birds of the Vicinity of Cincinnati, in which he says, ‘‘a Rail shot by myself, near
Madisonville, several years ago, I now think was this species.” In addition to this, Dr.
Howard E. Jones is almost positive that he has killed it in the vicinity of Circle-
ville. It is also reported from Northern Ohio but of this I have not as yet obtained
positive evidence. As Mr. Langdon omits it from his later list, we must wait more posi-
tive identification than the above.

512 BIRDS—RALLIDA.

deepest on the breast where many feathers are dark tipped ; flanks with numerous white
bars; crissum varied with black, white and ruf.us. Small, aboat 6 lorg; wing, 34;
tail, 14; bill, 4; tarsus, $; middle toe and claw, 1}.

Habitat, Eastern North America. North to Hadson’s Bay. but iu New England net
observed beyond Massachusetts. Apparently nowhere abundant. Winters in the South-
ern States.

Not common spring and fall migrant; probably summer resident.
The Yellow Rail, otherwise known as the Yellow-breasted Rail or Upland
Rail, is the least common of all species positively identified in this State.

It has been taken in the vicinity of Cleveland, where it is known as
the Upland Rail, frequenting higher ground than that usually affected by
members of this family. Mr. Langdon gives it as rare in the vicinity
of Cincinnati. Dr. Howard E. Jones, to whom I am indebted for speci-
mens, has taken it frequently at Circleville, both in fall and spring, and
considers it nearly as common as other species and believes that it breeds
there, which is probably the case throughout the State.

Eggs rich, warm, buffy-brown, marked at the greater end with a cluster
of reddish-chocolate dots and spots, and measuring 1.10 by .82.

Mr. Maynard describing a Massachusetts specimen taken on high land
twenty or thirty rods from a meadow at the foot of a hill, says, “It is a
female and differs from any which I have seen, having a broud white edg-
ing to the secondaries.” A specimen obtained at Circleville, by Dr. Howard
E. Jones and presented to me, has the outer secondaries white-tipped for
an inch or more and the adjacent quills barred with white, the under
tail-coverts deep purplish chestnut. Hither these markings have been
overlooked by previous describers or the species varies much in color
and pattern in these particulars. Nuttall describes the birdas uniformly
having white-tipped secondaries.

Subfamily GALLINULINE. Gallinules.

General form much as in Rallin® but body less compressed. Furehead shielded by a
proad, bare, horny plate. Toes longer thau the tarsus.

Genus GALLINULA. Brisson.

Toes margined with a thin, though evident, membrane. Nostrils linear.

GALLINULA GALEATA Bon.

Florida Gallinule.

Gallinula chlorepus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 165,185; Am. Journ, Sei., and
Arts, xl, 1841, 22.

FLORIDA GALLINULE. 513

Gallinula galeata, WHEATON, Field Notes, i, 1861, 153; Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369,
378; Reprint, 1861, 11, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Re-
print, 1875, 13.—LAnGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin, 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 181; Reprint, 18; Summer Birds, ib, iii, 18€0, 228.

Florida Gallinule, TREMBLY, Field Notes, i, 1861, 180.—WHEAToN, Ball. Natt. Club, ii,
1877, 83.

Crex galeata, LICHTENSTEIN, Verz. Doubl., 1823, &0.
Gallinula chloropus, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 336.
Gallinula galcata, BONAPARTE, Am. Orn., iv, 1832, 128.

Head, neck and under-parts, grayish-black, darkest on the former, paler or whitening
‘on the belly; back brownish-olive; wings and tail dusky; crissum, edge of wing, and
stripes on the flanks, white; bill, frontal plate, and ring around tibi® red, the former
tipped with yellow; tarsi and toes greenish; 12-15 long; wing, 63-74; tail, 34; gape
of bill, about 14; tarsus, about 2.

Habitat, United States, southerly. Resident in the Southern States. Northward to
Massachusetts rarely, to Canada West, Kansas, Minnesota, and San Francisco. West
Indies. Central America. South America to Chili.

The Florida Gallinule, first noticed as an Ohio bird by Dr. Kirtland,
quoted on page 218, is a not uncommon summer resident in extensive
swamps and marshes throughout the State. It is equally retiring in its
habits with the Rails, but unlike them it often takes to water from choice,
and swims with ease and buoyancy. When swimming it presents a very
duckish or rather cootish appearance, its body being vastly distended by
large air sacks, which inflated change the aspect of the bird entirely.

On its migrations it sometimes makes its appearance in barnyards,
associating with domestic fowls, and in other unexpected places.

A nest and nine eggs of this bird were taken at Sandusky Bay, in 1874, ,
by my friend,C.J.Orton. These eggs were brownish buff, rather thickly
spotted with dark reddish-brown and umber. In shape they were an
elongated oval.

Mr. Langdon (Summer Birds, 1. c.) gives the following account of this
species as observed by him in Ottawa county:

“« A very common species, breeding abundantly in the more open portions of the
marsh. The nests are situated amongst the ‘saw-grass,’ and constructed of its dried
blades. Their height varies, some almost resting on the water, while others are placed
a foot or more above it and have an incline eight or ten inches in width, made of dried
grass, extending from the water’s edge, which makes them a conspicuous object where
the surrounding vegetation is not too dense. The dozen or so sets of eggs taken were
in various stages of incubation, and a few young were observed following their parents,
The young, when a day or two old, are about the size of a newly hatched domestic
chicken, and when found in the open water are easily captured; they present a curious
sight paddling for dear life, with their bright red and orange bills standing out in strong
contrast with their sooty-black, down-covered bodies.”

33

514 BIRDS—RALLIDA.

Gensus PORPHYRIO. Temminck.

Toes without marginal membrane. Nostrils oval.

PORPHYRIO MARTINICA (L.) Temm.

Purple Gallinule.
Gallinula martinica, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11, 20.
Porphyrio martinica, WHEATON, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, ii, 1877, 83.—LaNGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184; Re-
print, 18.

Head, neck and under-parts beautiful purplish-blue, blackening on the belly, the cris-
sum white; above olivaceous-green, the cervix and wing-coverts tinted with blue;
frontal shield blue; bill red, tipped with yellow; legs yellowish. Young with the head,
neck and lower back brownish, the under-parts mostly white, mixed with ochrey.
Length, 10-12; wing, 64-7; tail, 24-3; bill from gape, about 14; tarsus, about 2}; mid-
dle toe and claw, about 3.

Habitat, Sonth Atlantic and Gulf States, north casually to New England. (Maine.
Nova Scotia).

Rare in spring. The Purple Gallinule was given in my Catalogue
of Ohio Birds (1861) and afterward omitted from a subsequent list for
reasons below stated. Mr. Langdon restores it toits place with abundant
authority as follows:

“Dr. Hunt informs me of the capture of this Species near the mouth of the Big Miami
River, on March 31, 1877”; and further in foot note, ‘‘Two specimens of the Purple
Gallinule have since been taken at Madisonville, one by the writer in the latter part of
April, and another by Mr. William H. Whetsel, early in May. Mr. John W. Shorten also
reports one killed May 1st, at Jones’ Station, Ohio (about thirty miles from Cincinnati),

by J. H. Kelly, Esq.
“ Being a species of rare occurrence so far north, the capture of four specimens here in

one season is worthy of note.”

In the Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, July, 1877, I had
the pleasure of recording another specimen as follows:

‘I have just received from my friend, Dr. Howard E. Jones, a fine skin of the Purple
Gallinule (Porphyrio martiniea), killed by him at Circleville, Ohio, May 10, 1877. This
bird is now recorded for the first time on unimpeachable authority, as a visitor of the
State. Dr. Jones tells me that it has been seen before in the vicinity of Circleville. In
my Catalogue of the Birds of Ohio (Ohio Agric. Rep. 1860), it was inserted on what I
afterwards discovered to be insufficient authority, and for that reason it was omitted
from a subseqnent list (Food of Birds, etc., 1875). I have several times been favored
with reports, and once or twice with skins, presumed to be of this species, which proved,
however, to be those of the Florida Gallinule, which is not a rare summer resident
_ throughout the State.”

I have no authentic account of the eggs of this species, nor of its breed-
ing in the State. Careful observation will be necessary to determine
whether its occurrence here, in such numbers as the above notes would
indicate, is exceptional or regular.

COOT. 515

Sub-famaly Funıcınm. Coots.

Body rather depressed, plumage compact, tarsus shorter than middle toe. All toes
lobate, furnished with membranous flaps. Aquatic.

Genus FULICA. Linnaeus.
Characters of the sub-family.

FULICA AMERICANA Gm.
Coot.

Fulica americana, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint, 1875, 13.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 16 ; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soe. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 184 ; Reprint, 18;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 228.

Pulica americana, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 704.

Dark slate, paler or grayish below, blackening on the head and neck, tinged with
olive on the back ; crissum, whole edge of wing, and top of the secondaries white ; bill
white or flesh-colored, marked with reddish-black near the end; feet dull olivaceous;
young similar, paler and duller. Length, about 14; wing, 7-8; tail, 2; bill from the
gape, 14-14; tarsus, about 2; middle toe and claw, about 3.

Habitat, Temperate North America. Alaska. Greenland. Mexico. West Indies.
Central America.

Abundant spring and fall migrant in all parts of the State, most fre-
quently seen in spring, and very common summer resident in extensive
swamps or weedy lakes. This bird forms the connecting link
between the Rails and Gallinules and the swimming birds proper. It
has the general structure of the birds of its family so modified that it is
more aquatic in habit than any of them, being better adapted for swim-
ming and diving than for locomotion on land. They are considered a
nuisance by sportsmen and a fraud by amateurs who sometimes mistake
them for ducks.

In this vicinity they are abundant in March and April, especially when
the streams are full, and again in early fall they frequent reedy and
weedy marshes, where their presence might not be suspected, so dense
ig the cover. Butif a stone or stick be thrown into the rushes, an instant
alarm is sounded, and the cackle of countless Mud Hens, as they are
commonly called, is heard from all parts of the marsh.

The nest of the Mud Hen is built near or on the water. The eggs are
ten or twelve in number, clay-colored, uniformly dotted with dark brown.
They measure about 2.00 by 1.25.

516 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

ORDER LAMELLIROSTRES. ANSERINE BIRDS.

FAMILY ANATIDA. GEESE, DUCKS, ETC.

Of moderate size; the neck short, or, when lengthened, not accompanied by co-ordi-
nately lengthened legs, these being always shorter than the wing. Billstraight, Tibia
feathered below. Hind toe present, well developed, and functional, though short.

Sub family Cxanınz. Swans.

Skin between eye and bill naked; tarsi reticulate; sexes alike; size very large. Neck
very long.

Genus CYGNUS. Linnaus.

Characters of sub-family.

CYGNUS BUCCINNATOR Richardson.

Trumpeter Swan.

Cygnus buccinnator, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1360, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11,
20; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1674, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Cougs,
Birds of N. W., 1874, 545.—LAxGoon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Cygnus buccinnator, RICIIARDSON, Fn. Bor-Am., ii, 1831, 464.

Adult plumage entirely white; younger, the head and neck washed with a rusty-
brown ; still younger, gray or ascby. Bill ard feet black. Length, 4-5 feet. Tail
(normally) of twenty-four feathers. No yellow spots on bill, which is rather longer
than the head, the nostrils fairly in its baeal half.

Habitat, chiefly the Mississippi Valley, and northward to the Pacific. Hadson’s
Bay. Canada. Casually on the Atlantic coast. Breeds from Iowa and Dakota north-
ward. In winter south to the Gulf. Said to have occurred in Eugland.

Rare migrant and winter visitor. The Trumpeter Swan was first
mentioned as an Ohio bird by myself in 1861, on the authority of Mr.
Winslow, who informed me that it was occasionally taken at Sandusky
Bay and other points on the lake shore. Mr. Langdon records one speci-
men taken and three seen on the Ohio River, near Cincinnati, in Decem-
ber, 1876, and informs me the captured specimen is preserved by M.

Wocher, Esq.

Cyr@nus AMERICANUS Sharpless.
Whistling Swan.
Cygnus musicus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.
Cygnus americanus, WIIRATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369; Reprint, 1861, 11; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574 ; Reprint, 1775, 14.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat, Hist., i, 1879; Reprint, 14.

Cygnus musicus, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1823, 379.
Cygnus americanus, SHARPLESS, Doughty’s Cab, N. H, i, 1830, 185.

WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE. 517

Size and color of the last species, except a yellow spot on bill near base. Bill not
longer than the head ; nostrils median. Tail (normally) of twenty feathers.

Habitat, Continent of North America; breeding only in the far North; wintering in
the United States. Accidental in Scotland.

Not common, spring and fall migrant, perhaps also winter resident.
More numerous on Lake Erie than elsewhere, though occurring generally
thoughout the State. Mr. Langdon gives it as a rare migrant. In
March, 1877, I saw several specimens from Western Ohio, and the Scioto
and Muskingum River. Most of these were in full plumage, a few with
reddish-brown on headand neck. Young birds of this species sometimes
want the yellow spot at the base of the bill.

Sir John Richardson, quoted by Dr. Coues, says:

“Common all along the Yukon. Arrives with the Geese about May 1, but in a con-
trary direction, coming down instead of up the Yakon. Breeds in the great marshes
near the Yukon mouth. The eggs, two in number, vary from pure white to fulvous, as
do the parents on the head and neck, apparently without regard to age. The eggs are
usually in a tussock quite surrounded with water, so that the female must sometimes
set with her feet in the water. They are usually laid about May 21 at Nulato, but later
at the Yukon mouth. In July the Swans moult and cannot fly, and the Indians have
great sport spearing them with bone tridents. They are very sby birds, and usually
shot on the wing or with a bullet. This species, if hung long enough, is tender, well-
flavored, and excellent eating.”

Sub-family ANSERINE. Geese.
Head completely feathered, tarsi reticulate; neck shorter than in Swans, and legs
longer than in Ducks. Bill rather short, high, compressed, tapering. Sexes alike. Size

large.
Genus ANSER. Linnezus.

Bill as long as the head, thelaminz prominent. Hind toe long, its tip reaching to the
ground. Bill and feet bright colored.

ANSER ALBIFRONS Gm.

var. GAMBELI (Hartl.) Cs.
American White-fronted Goose.
Anser albifrons, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.
Anser gambeli, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11, 20.
Anser albifrons, var. gambeli, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
574 ; Reprint, 1875, 14-—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1878, 117; Reprint, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
185; Reprint, 19. &
White-fronted Goose, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.
Anas albifrons, GMELIN, Syst., Nat., i, 1788, 509.
Anser albifrons, BECHSTEIN, Naturg., iv., 898.
Anser gambeli, HARTLAUB, R. M. Z., 1852, 7.
Anser albifrons, var. gambeli, Cours, Key, 1872, 282.

518 BIRDS—ANATIDA.

Lamine of bill moderately exposed ; tail normally of sixteen feathers. Under-parts
white or gray, extensively blotched with black; back dark-gray, with paler or brown-
ish edgings of the feathers; upper tail-coverts white; head and neck grayish-brown,
the forehead conspicuously pure white (in the adult; dark in some states); bill pale
lake; feet orange, with pale claws. Length, about 27 inches; wing, 16-18; tail, 5-6;
tarsus, 23-3; middle toe and claw about the same. Only differs from the European in
an average longer bill (1$-2.instead of 14-12).

Habitat, Continent ef North America; breeding in the far north; wintering in the
United States. @uba.

Not common spring and fall migrant, perhaps a not infrequent winter
resident in some localites. The White-fronted Goose is more common on
the lake and reservoirs than elsewhere, but is occasionally found on the
Ohio River and streams in the interior of the State. Mr. Langdon notes
its capture in the vicinity of Cincinnati. A specimen in my collection
was taken by Mr. Warren Clark, in Fairfield county, and I have seen
specimens from Western Ohio.

The eggs of this species are dull greenish-yellow with obscure darker

tints. They measure 3.00 by 2.00.

ANSER HYPERBOREUS. Pall.

Snow Goose.

Anser hyperboreus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.— WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 369, 378; Reprint, 1861, 11, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 574 ; Reprint, 1876, 13.—Lanapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Snow Goose, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1854, 72.

Anser hyperboreus, PALLAS, Spic. Zool., viii, 1767, 80, 25.

Bill with lamin® very prominent, owing to arching of the edges of the bill. Adult
plumage pure white, but in most specimens the head washed with rusty-red ; primaries
broadly black-tipped ; bill lake-red with white nail; feet the same with dark claws.
“Young dull bluish or pale lead colored on the head and upper part of the body”
(Cassin). Length, about 30; wing, 17-19; tail, 54-6; bill, 24; tarsus, 33.

Habitat, the whole of North America. Breeds in high latitudes, migrating and win-
tering in the United States ; abundant in the interior and along the Pacific Coast, rare
on the Atlantic. Greenland, transient. Cuba. Rare or casual in Europe. :

Occasional spring and fall migrant. Not rare on Lake Erie; rare in
the vicinity of Columbus. Mr. Langdon records three specimens taken
on the Little Miami, near Madisonville, February, 1878. In the spring
of 1874, a flock of about twenty visited this vicinity. These were all old
birds. It is said that the old and young migrate in separate flocks, the
young not attaining their full plumage until the fourth year.

Eggs yellowish-white, 3 by 2 inches.

The Lesser Snow Goose (var. albatus) undoubtedly occurs here, as it is

BLUE GOOSE. 519

found in Illinois, in equal numbers with the larger variety (Nelson), but
I am not aware that it has been properly identified. \

ANSER C@RULESCENS (L.) Vieill.
Blue Goose.

Anser coerulescens, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574, Reprint,
1875, 14.—LANGDoN, Cat. of Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Anas corulescens, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 198.

Anser coerulescens, VIEILLOT, Ency. Meth., i, 1823, 115.

With nearly the size, and exactly the form of the last species, but the plumage ashy,
varied with dark-brown, the head, upper neck, tail-coverts and most of the under-parts
white, the wing-coverts silvery ash.

Habitat, North America generally.

Rare. The Blue Goose was first introduced as an Ohio bird by myself,
in 1875, two specimens having been identified at Columbus. Until lately
it has been considered by many ornithologists as the young of the Snow
Goose. The specimens above referred to have a peculiar history which is
as follows: In the fall of 1875, a strange bird associated with a flock of
tame geese about four miles south of this city, followed them into a barn
at night, and was secured. Under the impression that it was a “Brant”
(a common name for all wild geese, except the Canada Goose) it was
brought alive to the City Park of this city. It was kept for a year,
associating with swans and becoming quite domesticated. It would fre-
quently fly away considerable distances, but was readily retaken. On
the 27th of October, a goose was wounded in the river a few hundred
from the City Park and secured. Under the impression that it was the
escaped bird, it was returned to the park, but much to the surprise of all
concerned, it was found that there were now two geese almost precisely
alike. The superintendent of the park, Mr. J. L. Stelzig, made the new
comer as comfortable as possible, but the next day but one goose remained
and this the wounded bird captured the previous day. The other had
probably flown to the south, its instinct perhaps quickened by the
acquaintance which it had so recently renewed with its own species. In
a few days the wounded specimen died, and came into my possession by
the kindness of Mr. Stelzig. The following is its description: Head
and upper neck white, with an interrupted line of dark gray-brown on
the nape and occiput (this line wanting on the other and probably older
individual). Lower neck, upper breast, and back grayish-brown, becom-
ing lighter on belly and under tail coverts. Lesser wing coverts, primary
coverts, lower back, rump, and tail pearl-gray of varying shade, with
lighter or whitish tips or edging to the feathers ; quills, inner secondaries

520 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

and secondary coverts brownish: black, the latter with broad whitish edg-
ing. Bill light lake red, the arched edges blackish, nail light horn-
color. Feet darker-red. Length, 274; wing, 174; tarsus and middle toe
with claw, each 34; bill, 23.

Mr. Langdon gives this species as a migrant on the Ohio and its tribu-
taries, and notes its identification at Brookville, Indiana. A specimen
which I saw in Cincinnati was said to have been taken on Sandusky
Bay.

Genus BRANTA. Scopoli.

Bill shorter than the head, the lamin of upper mandible concealed. Hind toe elevated,
rudimentary, not reaching the ground.

.BRANTA BERNICLA (L.)

Brant Goose.

Anas bernicla, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67.

Anser bernicla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.

Bernicla brenta, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Branta bernicla, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint,
1875, 14.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 16; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Anas bernicla, LiInnzusS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 19.

Branta bernicla, ScoroLı, Bemerk. Naturg., 1770, 73.

Anser bernicla, ILLIGER, Prod., 1811, 277.

Bernicla brenta, STEPHENS, Gen. Zool., xii, pt. ii, 1824, 46.

Head, neck, body anteriorly, quills and tail black ; a small patch of white streaks on
the middle of the neck, and usually white touches on the under eyelid and chin; upper
tail coverts white; back brownish-gray, under parts the same but paler, and fading
into white on lower belly and crissum; black of jugulum well-defined against the color
of the breast; length, 2 feet; wing, 13; tail, 5; bill, 14; tarsus, 24.

Habitat, Europe and North America, rare or casual on the Pacific.

Rare migrant. “The Brant Goose is not unfrequently seen passing
over us in the spring of the year, and it is frequently seen on the lake
shore during a few days in spring” (Kirtland). Ihave never identified
this bird; it is given by Mr. Langdon as “migrant on the Ohio and trib-
utaries.”

- It is with considerable hesitation that I permit the Brant to remain
as unquestionably a bird of Ohio. Dr. Kirtland’s note is, when carefully
considered, rather vague, and Mr. Langdon’s very general. Audubon
says the Brant is never found far inland. Mr. Winslow informs me that
it has not to his knowledge been taken on Lake Erie. Dr. Haymond
has identified it in Brookville, Indiana, and Mr. Nelson says: “ Probably
a rare visitant, but the only instances known to me of its capture in

CANADA GOOSE. 521

this portion of the country is a specimen taken by Dr. Hoy, from a flock
of three, upon the lake shore near Racine (Wisconsin). Dr. Coues men-

tions observing them in vast numbers on the Missouri river in October,
1872.

BRANTA CANADENSIS (L ) Gray.

Canada Goose; Wild Goose.

Anser canadensis, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 1; B. Am., 1834, 179.—KIRTLAND,
Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.—CoLLıns, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 307.

Anas canadensis, KIRTLAND, Preliminary Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv. 1838, 67.

Bernicla canadensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20.

Branta canadensis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1871, 574; Re-
print, 1875, 14.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 228.

Canada Goose, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Anas canadensis, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 198,

Anser canadensis, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist., Nat., ——.
Bernicla canadensis, Born, Isis, 1826, 921.

Branta canadensis, GRAY.

Tail normally eighteen feathered. Grayish-brown, below paler or whitisb-gray, bleach-
ing on the crissum, all the feathers with lighter edges; head and neck black, with a
broad white patch on the throat mounting each side of the head ; tail black, with white ,
upper coverts. Length, about 36; wing, 18-20; tail, 64-74; bill, 12-2; tarsus, usually
over 3.

Habitat, the whole of North America, breeding in the United States, as well as further
north. Accidental in Europe.

Common spring and fall migrant; winter resident in part, and, per-
haps still, though rarely, a summer resident, breeding in retired loca-
tions. Dr. Kirtland says: “TI learn from Dr. Ward that the Wild Goose
frequently spends the winter in the Scioto Valley and becomes so tame
as to visit the corn-fields in search of food.” At the time Dr Kirtland
wrote (1838) the fact that Wild Geese visited the corn-fields may have
been an evidence of their tameness, but if so, it must also point to the
vast changes which have since taken place. At the present time the
Geese find no more secure feeding grounds than the vast corn-fields of the
Scioto Valley. However, these birds are less numerous than formerly,
at least in the vicinity of this city. They seem to retain for a long time
an attachment for places, and visit each year a favorite locality on the
Olentangy River, so near this city, that I have known amateur sports-
men to refrain from shooting them, for the reason that “they were too
near town to be wild geese.”

522 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

BRANTA CANADENSIS (L.)

var. HUTCHINSII (Rich.) Cs.

EXutchins’ Goose.
Bernicla hutchinsiit, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20.
Branta canadensis, var. hutchinsit, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14..—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17.
Anas canadensis, LINNEUs, Syst. Nat., 1766, 198.
Anser hutchinsii, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor-Am., iii, 1831, 198.
Bernicla hutchinsii, WOODHOUSE, Sitgr. Rep., 1823, 102, 70.
Branta huchinsii, BANNISTER, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1870, 131.
Branta canadensis, var. hutehinsii, Couns, Key, 1872, 284.
Tail sixteen-feathered. Colors exactly as in the Canada Goose, but size less. Length,
about 24 feet; wing, 15-17; tail, 5-6; bill, 14-14; tarsus rather under 3.
Habitat, North America, but chiefly northern and western.

Rare migrant, only recognized on Lake Erie. Mr. Winslow informs
me that several specimens have been taken at Sandusky Bay.

Mr. Nelson, Bull. Essex Ins., viii, 1876, 138, speaking of a series of eight
Canada Geese examined by him says:

“In the lot were typical representatives of the two forms above named (B. canadensis
and hutchiusii). In addition were several specimens which formed a direct chain in which
it was impossible to tell where one variety ended and the other commenced. The size
of the specimens, the coloratien, and indeed every particular, aided in perfecting the
series, except the number of tail feathers, which was eighteen throughout. In hutehinsis
I have found this to be a very variable character, as a large portion of the specimens
which agree perfectly with the dimensions of the latter possess the eighteen tail feathers,
instead of sixteen, as given by authors.”

Sub-family Anatınz. River Ducks.

Neck and legs shorter than in geese. Tarsi scutellate in front, hind toe simple, feet
small. Sexes dissimilar. The genera of this sub-family based upon form and relative
proportion of bill to head and foot.

Genus ANAS Linnsus.
Bill broad, rather larger than foot. Tail two-fifths the wing.

ANAS BoscHas L.

Mallard.

Anas domestica, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep., 1838, 67.

Anas bosehas, KIRTLAND, Ohio.Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep.
for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574;
Reprint, 1875, 14.—LaNnapon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19 ; Summer Birds, iii, 1880, 228.

Mallard, KırTLann, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1, 72.

Anas boschas, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 205.

DUSKY DUCK. 523

Male with the head and upper neck, glossy green, succeeded by a white ring; breast
purplish-ehestnut; tail feathers mostly whitish; greater wing-coverts tipped with
black and white, the speculum violet; feet orange red; female with the wing as in the
male; head, neck and under-parts pale ochrey, speckled and streaked with dusky.
Length, about 24; wing, 10-12.

Habitat, nearly cosmopolitan, and nearly every where domesticated. Wild through-
out the whole of North America, breeding sparingly throughout the United States as
well as further north. Very rare and scarcely found in New England beyond Massachu-
setts, where replaced by the Dusky Duck.

Abundant spring and fall migrant. One of the most highly esteemed
ducks. Some remain through the summer and breed in the reservoirs and
secluded swamps.

Dr. Kirtland, writing in 1850, speaks of the changes in the aquatic
fauna of the State as follows:

“ Wild geese, swans, ducks and wading birds literally swarmed about every lake,
pond and creek, during spring and autumn. Many species also bred on the Reserve.

Forty years since, while travelling from Buffalo to Ohio, along the immediate shore of
the lake, the scene was constantly enlivened by the presence of ducks, leading their young
on the margin of the water, or hastily retreating to it on our approach. It often
happened that on doubling some point of land or fallen tree, we placed ourselves in a
position to cut off their communication with their favorite element. The instructive
expedients to which the thoughtful mother would resort to extricate her charge from
impendiag danger, was to us a matter of amusement and interest. The Goosander,
Mallard and Summer Duck, were among the mest common species we observed.”

The nest of the Mallard is placed on the ground, in a clump of weeds
or grass, near water. The eggsare pale, dirty yellowish-drab in color, and
average 2.35 by 1.75 inches.

ANAS OBSCURA Gm.

Dusky Duck.

Anas obsoura, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 166, 186.— AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 15; B. Am., vi, 1843, 249.—W HEATON,
Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Re-
vised List, Journ. Cin. Sec. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Black Duck, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Anas obscura, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 541.

Size of the Mallard and resembling the female of that species, but darker and without
decided white anywhere except under the wings. Tail 16-18 feathered.
Habitat, Eastern North America, especially along the Atlantic coast from Labrador to

Texas. 7

Not uncommon spring and fall migrant; not common summer resident
in Northern Ohio. The Dusky Duck or Black Duck, as commonly called, is

524 BIRDS—ANATID A.

much less common in the interior than along the Atlantic coast. Some-
times they appear in considerable numbers on the lake and reservoirs.
On the streams they are more seldom seen, and so far as my observation
extends, never in large flocks.

The eggs of the Dusky Duck are not distinguishable from those of the
Mallard.

Genus DAFILA. Leach.

Neck very long. Bill longer than the foot, narrow. Tail in adult male much pointed,
three-fourths or more the wing.

DarıLa acura (L.) Bonap.
Pintail: Springtail.

Anas acuta, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.

Dafila acuta, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of Birds,
eto., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc, Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Anas acuta, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 202.

Dafila acuta, BONAPARTE, List, 1833, 56.

Tail cuneate, when fully developed the central feathers projecting and nearly equal-
ling the wing ; much shorter and not so narrow in the female and young, four to nine
inches long; wing, 11; total length, about 24. Bill black and blue, feet grayish-blue,
head and upper neck dark-brown, with green and purple gloss, sides of neck witha
long white stripe, lower neck and under parts white, dorsal line of neck black, passing
into the gray of the back, which, like the sides, is vermiculated with black; speculum
greenish-purple, auteriorly bordered by buff tips of the greater coverts, elsewhere by
black and white ; tertials and scapulars black and silvery ; female and yqung with the
whole head and neck speckled or finely streaked with dark-brown and grayish or yellow-
ish-brown; below dusky-freckled; above blackish, all the feathers pale-edged; only a
trace of the speculum between the white or whitish tips of the greater coverts and
secondaries.

Habitat, North America and Europe. Breeds chiefly in high latitudes. In wintensouth
to Panama. Cuba. i

Abundant spring and fall migrant. Sometimes remains through the
winter, and is one of the earliest to return in spring. The Pintail is one
of the shyest of our ducks. It isseldom seen in ponds, being partial to
running streams.

The eggs are dull grayish-olive in color, and measure 2.25 by 1.50.

Genus CHAULELASMUS. Gray.

Bill as long as the head, shorter than foot; longer than tarsus. Tail about two-fifths
the wing.

AMERICAN WIDGEON. 525

CHAULELASMUS STREPERUS (L.) Gray.

Gadwall; Gray Duck,

Anas strepera, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.

Chaulelasmus streperus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12,
20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—LAnG-
DON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879,
189; Reprint, 23.

Gadwall, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Anas strepera, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 200.

Chaulelasmus streperus, GRAY, 1838.

Male with most of the plumage barred or half-ringed with black and white or whitish ;
middle coverts chestnut, greater coverts black, speculum white ; female known by these
wing marks. Length, 19-22; wing, 10-11.

Habitat, North America generally. Europe. Asia. Africa. Generally distributed
in this country.

Not very common spring and fall migrant, in part summer resident.

The Gadwall is one of the least common of all the ducks which may
be looked for throughout the State during their migrations. I have
never met with it in summer. Mr. Dury informs me that it breeds at
the reservoir in Mercer county.

The eggs are creamy-buff and measure about 2.00 by 1.50.

Genus MARECA Stephens.

Bill shorter than head or foot, equal to tarsus or inner toe. Tail not more than half

the wing.
MARECA AMERICANA (Gm.) Steph.

American Widgeon; Baldpate.

Anas americana, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog.
Surv., 1838, 165.

Mareca americana, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, ; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanapon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 15; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185;
Reprint, 19.

Anas americana, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 659.

Mareca americana, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool, xii, 1824, 185.

Bill and feet grayish-blue, top of head white or nearly so, plain or speckled, its sides
and the neck, more or less speckled; a bread green patch on sides of head; fure breast
light-brownish ; belly pure white; crissum abruptly black, middle and greater coverts
white, the latter black-tipped; speculum green, black bordered; length, 20-22; wing,
11; tail, 5; tarsus, 2; bill, 1-1}: female known by the wing markings.

Habitat, North America. South to Guatemala. Breeds in various parts of the United
States. Cuba. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant spring and fall migrant, usually in considerable flocks in

526 BIRDS—ANATIDA.

spring, when it is shy and suspicious; in fall less abundant and less
wary. Perhaps a few remain through the summer and breed.
The eggs are of a pale buff-eolor and measure 2.00 by 1.50.

Norz.—The European Widgeon (Mareca penelope) may yet be detected as an accidental
visitor. It is of casual occurrence on the Atlantic coast, and has been taken in Wiscon-
sin, Illinois and California.

Similar to the above, but head and neck reddish-brown, scareely varied, top of head
creamy or brownish-white, its sides with mere traces of green.

Genus QUERQUEDULA. Stephens.
Bill a little longer than head or foot, tail not one-half wing.

Sub-genus Nettion. Head sub-crested.

QUERQUEDULA CAROLINENsIS (Gm.)
Green-winged Teal.

Anas erecca, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 219.—KırTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838,
166, 186.

Anas carolinensis, AUDUBON, B. Am., vi, 1843, 243.

Nettion carolinensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Querquedula carolinensis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574;
Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Teal, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, 1850, 72.

Anas crecca, WILSON, Am. Orn.. vii, 1814, 101.

Anas carolinensis, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 533.

Nettion carolinensis, BarrD, Birds N. A., 1858, 777.

Querquedula carolinensis, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., xii, 1824, 128,

Head and upper neck chestnut, with a broad glossy green band on each side, uniting
and blackening on the nape; under parts white or whitish, the fore-breast with circular
black spots; upper :parts and flanks closely waved with blackish and white; a white
crescent in front of the wing ; crissum black, varied with white or creamy ; speculum rich
green bordered in front with buffy tips of the greater-coverts, behind with light tips
of secondaries; no blue on the wing; bill black; feet gray. Female differs in the
head markings, but those of the wing are the same. Small; length, 14-15; wing, 743
tail, 34 ; bill, 14; tarsus, 14.

Habitat, North America. Greenland. Mexico. Cuba. South to Honduras. Breeds
from the northern border of the United States northward.

Abundant spring and fall migrant. Frequently found in small brooks

and ponds as well as in larger waters.
Eggs, pale dull greenish, 1.75 to 1.90 in length by 1.20 to 1.30 in
breadth.

Sub-genus Querquedula. Head not orested.

SHOVELLER. 527

QUERQUHDULA Discors (L.) Steph.

Blue-winged Teal.

Anas discors, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 166, 186.

Querquedula discors, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14—Lana@pon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Re-
print, 19; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 228.

Teal, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Anas discors, LINNaUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 205.

Querquedula discors, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., xii, 1824, 149.

Head and neck of the male blackish-plumbeous, darkest on the crown, usually with
purplish iridescenee ; a white crescent in front of the eye; under parts thickly dark-
spotted ; wing coverts sky-blue, the greater white-tipped ; speculum green, white-tipped ;
axillars and most under wing-coverte white ; scapulars striped with tawny and blue, or
dark-green ; fore-back barred; rump and tail dark, plain; crissum black; bill black,
feet dusky yellow; female with head and neck altogether different; under parts much
paler and obscurely spotted ; but known by the wing marks.

Habitat, North America, chiefly east of the Rocky Mountains. To the Pacific coast
in Alaska. West Indies. Mexico. Central and South America to Ecuador. Acciden-
tal in Europe. ,

_Abundant spring and fall migrant, not common summer resident in

Northern Ohio. Mr. Langdon mentions its breeding in Ottawa county.

. This is the first Duck to return in fall, usually making its appearance
early in September. It frequents still waters, especially muddy and
gravelly shallows and ponds, and spends much time sitting on muddy
banks. A well-known and highly esteemed game bird.

ess similar to but lighter than those of the Green-winged Teal.

Genus SPATULA. Boie.

Bill much longer than head or foot, widening rapidly to the end where it is twice as
wide as at the base.
SPATULA CLYPEATA (L.) Boie.
Shoveller.
Anas olypeata, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166.
Spatula clypeata, WEBATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 570; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of
Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat. Birde
of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soo. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19,

Anas elypeata, LINNZABUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 249.
Spatula olypeata, Bore, Isis, 1822, 564.

Bill as above with very numerous and prominent lamine. Head and neck of male,
green ; fore-breast white, belly purplish-chestnut; wing-coverts blue; speculum green
bordered with black and white; some scapulars blue, others green, all white-striped ;
bill blackish ; feet red. Female known by bill and wings.

528 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

Habitat, North America. Europe. Asia. Australia. In this country throughout the
continent, breeding from Texas to Alaska, and wintering abundantly from the Middle
distriets sonthward to Guatemala, Mexico, Cuba, and Jamaica.

Very common spring and fall migrant, summer resident in part. This
beautiful bird is more frequently seen in this vicinity singly or in pairs
than in flocks, and as often in ditches and wet places as in streams; not
unfrequently found in wet woodland. Breeds in some portions of the
State and in the vicinity of Columbus where it is not known to breed,
often remains in spring for weeks after all others have left.

Genus AIX. Swainson.
Bill shorter than the head, elevated at base. Tail half the wing.

Aıx sponsa (L.) Boie.

Summer Duck: Wood Duck.

Anas sponsa, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 52; B. Am., vi, 1843, 2?77.—KIRTLAND, Prelim.
Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.

Aix sponsa, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of Birds,
etc. Obio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14..—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Summer Duck, KirTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 1, 72.

Anas sponsa, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat, i, 1766, 207.

Aix sponsa, Bors, Isis, 1826, 329.

Crested ; head iridescent green and purple, with parallel curved white superciliary
and post-ocular stripes, and a broad white throat-patch; length, 18-20; wing, 84-94;
tail, 43-5; tarsus, 14-14; bill, 14. Female with the head mostly gray.

Habitat, North America, especially United States, breeding throughout in suitable
places, and wintering chiefly in the south. Cuba.

Summer resident. Common migrant, and breeding throughout the
State. The above description, while it answers all purposes for identifica-
tion, gives no conception of the coloring of this most beautiful of all our
ducks. In fact the variety, richness and lustre of its plumage are such
that no description can give an adequate conception.

Nest in holes of trees; eggs greenish buff, 2.00 by 1.50.

It is frequently for a time domesticated, of which Dr. Kirtland gives
the following account (Family Visitor, 1. c.):

“Tn answer to your queries respecting the domestication of the Summer or Wood
Duck, I would state that H. T. Kirtland, Esq., of Mahoning county, succeeded on several
occasions in domesticating that beautiful bird, many years since; and at one time had
on hand a considerable flock.

“ He had trained a small dog so thoroughly that it would pass along the shores of the
crecks and bay ous in the vicinity during the summer, where flocks of the old and young
ducks were congregating, and before the latter were sufficiently fledged to take to the
wing. Alarmed at the approach of an enemy, the old ones would sound their peculiar

WOOD DUCK. 529

notes and fly away, and the ducklings stealthily run on shore and conceal themselves
among the weeds and grass. The faithful dog would trace them out, one by one, and
as soon as he had detected one, would place it betweeen his two fore-paws and retain it
without injury, till my brother would secure it.

“In this way he could take any desirable number. At one time, he had a large flock
that were full-grown and in their full plumage, which in the males is more beautifal
than the peacocks, or any American bird.

“They were restrained within the enclosure of his garden and door-yard, containing
perhaps an acre of ground, and were apparently as tame as our common domestic Mal-
lards.

“ At a time when some of them were preparing their nests, in hollow logs furnished
them for the purpose, a mischievous pole-cat found his way into the premises, and
destroyed several of the females. This interrupted them for that season. The survivors
were neglected and permitted to escape to a creek in the vicinity, and before the return
of another season were destroyed by hunters. Since that time he has not renewed: the
attempt to domesticate them ; but his efforts convinced me of its feasibility. The faith-
fal dog has long since been dead, and the ducks are now very rare in that neighborhood.

“ A few years since, while engaged in taking insects with a light net, I unexpectedly
same across an old duck with her brood, consisting of perhaps half a dozen indivi-
duals. They were feeding in an artificial ditch, with nearly perpendicular banks. The
mother sounded an alarm and flew away—the young could not creep up the sides of the
ditch, and therefore attempted to escape by swimming. I threw the millinet bag over
two of them which I secured without injury. After amusing myself with them and
observing their trepidation I let them take their way.

“Not only this species but many others might be successfully tamed and introduced
into our poultry yards. There is no obstacle to the accomplishment of this purpose with
the Black, Gadwall, Pochard, Teals and Canvas-back Ducks. Their habits are no more
unfavorable than those of the Mallard which was the parent of the domestic kind.

‘¢ We doubt not that the Snow and the White-fronted Geese, which are still common
in some parts of the west, could be reduced to the same condition. I know that the
Canada Goose has often bred about the farm-yard, and that the Sandhill Crane may
become one of the most familiar pets.”

Sub-family FuLiGuLInz. Sea Ducks.

Tarsi scutellate anteriorly ; feet large; hind toe with a broad membranous lobe.

Genus FULIGULA. Stephens.

Bill with feathers extending in a short obtuse angle upon forehead, and as a crescent
on sides, leaving an acute basal process uncovered superiorly and laterally on each side.
Nail of bill small, narrow, distinct, forming only central part of tip. Tail short, rounded,
about one-third the wing.

Sub-genus Fulix, Bill broad, about equal to inner toe and claw, its sides parellel to
the end or widening, the nostrils in its posterior two-fifths.
FULIGULA MARILA (L.) Stephens.
Greater Black-head.

Huligula marilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—WEHEAToN, Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Geolog. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 574; Reprint, 14.
34

580 BIRDS—ANATIDA.

Fuligula marila, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc.
_ Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 19.

Fulix marila, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 370; Reprint, 12.

Anas marila, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 196.

Fuligula marila, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., xii, pt., ii, 1824, 198.

Fulix marila, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 791.

Male with the head, neck, and body anteriorly black, the former with a green gloss;
back and sides whitish, finely waved in zig-zag with black; below, and speculum of
wing white; bill dull blue with black nail; legs plumbeous. Female with the head
and anterior parts brown, and cther black parts of the male, rather brown; face pure
white. Length, about 20 inches; wing, 9

Habitat, the whole of North America. Greenland. Europe. Asia.

Not common spring and fall migrant in the interior of the State, where
generally found in «mall numbers in company with the two following
species or the Golden-eye; more common on Lake Erie, but nowhere
abundant.

FuLigvLa AFFiINnis Eyton.

Lesser Black-head. .

Fuligula afinis, AUDUBON, B. Am., vi, 1843, 316.

Fulix affinis, WHEATON, Obio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 370 ; Reprint, 12.

Fuligula afinis, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1574, 1875, 574; Re-
print, 14.—LANnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1679, 185; Reprint, 19; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 228.

Fuligula afinis, EyYTON, Monog. Anat., 1838, 157.

Fulia afinis, BatrD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 791.

Extremely similar to the preceding but smaller, about 16; wing, 3; gloss of head
chiefly purple; flanks and scapulars less closely waved with black(?). Itis very difficult
to define this bird specifically, and it may be simply a small southern form; but it
appears to preserve its characters though constantly associated with the last.

Habitat, North America, and south to Guatemala in winter. Breeds in high latitudes
and southward at least to the United States border. Part of the West Indies.

Abundant spring and fall migrant, rare summer resident, perhaps
breeding in Northern Ohio. No one of the Ducks of this sub-family are
more abundant or regular than this, which, at the proper season, is gen-
erally dispersed throughout the State, frequenting equally the lake, re-
servoirs, rivers and ponds. Individuals occasionally are seen, both on
the lake and in the interior, during summer, and usually a few remain.
through the winter.

FuLiguLA coLLarıs (Donovan) Bp.

Ring-necked Duck.

Fuligula rufitorques, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.
Fulix collaris, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 1%.

POCHARD. 531

Fuligula collaris, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint,
1875, 14.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 185; Reprint, 20.

Anas collaris, DONOVAN, Br. Birds, vi.

Fuligula rufitorques, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 393.

Fuligula collaris, BONAPARTE, List Eur. Birds, 1842.

Fulix collaris, BArRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 792.

Similar to the foregoing, but an orange-brown ring round the neck; speculum gray;
back nearly uniform blackish ; bill black, pale at base and near tip; female with head
and neck brown, and no collar, but loral space and chin whitish, as is aring round eye;
bill plain dusky. In size between the foregoing.

Habitat, North America, breeding far north, wintering in the United States and beyond.
South to Cuba. Jamaica. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant spring and fall migrant, but less regular in great numbers
than the preceding. Frequents the same localities and has the same
habits.

Sub-genus Aythya. Bill narrower, longer than inner toe; the nostrils nearer middle.

FULIGULA FERINA (L.) Sw.

var. AMERICANA (Eyton) Coues.
Red-head: Pochard,

_ Fuligula ferina, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67 ; Ohio Geolog. Surv.,
1838, 166, 187.—AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv., 1838, 197; B. Am., vi, 1843, 311.

Aythya americana, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Fuligula ferina, var. americana, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874,
574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 228.

Pochard, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Fuligula ferina, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 392.

Fuligula americana, EXTON, Monog. Anat., 1838.

Aythya americana, BONAPARTE, Comp. Rend., 1858,

Fuligula ferina, var. americana, COUES, Key, 1872, 289.

Bill dull blue with a black belt at end, broad and depressed, shorter than head (2
or less) the nostrils within its basal half; color of head rich, pure chestnut, with bronzy
or red reflections, in the female, plain brown ; body antericrly, rump and tail coverts
black, in the female dark-brown, back, scapulars and sides plumbeous-white, finely
waved with unbroken black lines, less distinct in the female; speculum, bluish-ash.
Length, about 20; wing, 9-10; tarsus, 14-12.

Habitat, North America, but more particularly Eastern North America. Breeds in the
Fur countries. Bahamas.

Common spring and fall migrant on the lake and reservoirs ; less com-
mon on the rivers and ponds, where usually seen singly or in pairs in
company with Ring-necks and Black-heads or Widgeons. Frequently
confounded with the following species.

532 BIRDS—ANATIDA.

FULIGULA VALLISNERIA (Wils.) Steph.

Canvas-back Duck.

Fuligula vallisneria, KIRTLAND, Prelim. Rep. Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 67; Ohio Geolog.
Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—WHEaTON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574 ;
Reprint, 1875, 14.—LAnGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229.

Aythya vallisneria, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Canvass-back Duck, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850, 72.

Anas vallisneria, WILSON, Am. Orn., viii, 1814, 103.
Fuligula vallisneria, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zool., xii, pt. ii, 1824, 196.
Aythya vallisneria, Bore, Isis, 1826, 980.

Similar to the preceding, but bill blackish, high at the base and narrow throughout,
not shorter than head (two and a half or more), the nostrils at its middle; head much
obscured with dusky ; black waved lines of the back sparse and much broken up into
dots, the whitish thus predominating.

Habitat, North America. Breeds from the Northern States northward. Winters from
the Middle States southward to Guatemala.

Common spring and fall migrant on the lake, less common on the Reser-
voirs, and rather rare generally throughout the State The Canvas-
back, the most highly esteemed duck for the table in the Eastern States,
ranks less highly in the interior, where it would seem that Mallards, Wid-
geons, Wood Duck and Teal, loose little by comparison. As stated
above, this and the preceding species are frequently confounded. Dr.
Coues gives the following differential diagnosis which will enable any
one to separate these species:

“Some persons experience difficulty in discriminating between the Canvas-back and
Red-head, but there is no occasion for this, at least in the case of males. In the Red-head,
the whole head is clear chestnut-red, with coppery or bronzy reflections, aud the bill is
elear pale grayish-blue, with a dark tip. In the Canvas-back, nearly all the head is ob
scured with blackish-brown, aud the bill is dusky thronghout. There is also a marked
difference in the shape of the head and bill; in the Red-head, the head is puffy and
globose, sloping abruptly down to the base of the bill; in the Canvass-back, the bead is
longer and narrower, and slopes gradually down to the bill, which rises high on the
forehead. These distinctions of form hold with tho females, though less evident in that
sex. In the Canvas back, moreover, the bavk has much more light than dark color, in-
stead of an equal amount or less, the fine black lines being very narrow and mostly

broken up into minute dots ”

Genus BUCEPHALA. Buird.

Bill feathered as in Fuligula, shorter than the head, about equal to tarsus, compressed
and somewhat tapering, nostrils near the middle. Tail longer and more pointed than in

Fuligula, about half the wing.

BUFFLE-HEADED DUCK. 533

BUCEPHALA CLANGULA (L.) Gr.
Golden-eyed Duck.

Puligula clangula, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.

Bucephala americana, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Bucephala clangula, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Re-
print, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20.

Anas clangula, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 201.
Fuligula clangula, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 393.
Bucephala americana, BAıRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 796.
Bucephala clangula, Cours, Key, 1872, 290.

Male with the head and upper neck glossy green, and a white oval or rounded loral
spot, not touching the base of the bill throughout; lower neck all round, lower parts in-
cluding sides, most of the scapulars, wing-coverts and secondaries, white; the white of
outer surface of wings continuous ; lining of wings and axillars dark; most of upper
parts black ; no waving on the back or sides; bill black with pale or yellow end, with
nostrils in anterior half; feet orange, webs dusky; eyes yellow; head uniformly puffy.
Female with head snuff-brown, and no white patch in front of eye, and white of wings
not always continuous. Length, 16-19: wing, 8-9.

Habitat, North America. Cuba. Europe.

Not very common spring and fall migrant and winter resident. The
Golden-eye or Whistler, as commonly called from its noisy flight, is most
frequently seen in small flocks or singly, in swift streams, where the
water remains unfrozen. They are among the shyest of our ducks.

BucEPHALA ALBEOLA (L.) Bd.

Buflle-headed Duck,

Fuligula albeola, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.

Bucephala albeola, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14——Lanapon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229.

Anas albeola, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 199.

Fuligula albeola, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 394.

Bucephala albeola, BAIRD, Birds N. Am., 1858, 797.

Somewhat similar to the foregoing, but, male with the head particularly puffy, of varied
rich iridescence, with a large white auricular patch confluent with its fellow on the
nape; small; length, 14-16; wing, 6-7; bill, 1, with nostrils in its basal half; female
still smaller, an insignificant looking duck, with head scarcely puffy, dark-gray with
traces of the white auricular patch.

Habitat, North America. Mexico. Cuba. Greenland. Accidental in Europe.

Abundant spring and fall migrant, and winter resident in part. Mr.
Langdon mentions its frequent occurrence in summer on the lake. The

534 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

Bufile-head, or, as more frequently called, the Dipper Duck or Butter-ball,
is more abundant on the streams than in ponds. No species is better
known to the amateur sportsman than this, which frequently prefers to
avoid danger by diving rather than by flight. They are usually seen
in small flocks of from six to ten, among which the males frequently
outnumber the females. Both sexes, however, are often seen singly or
in company with other species.

Dr. Coues (Birds N. W., 575) describes the nest of this duck as placed
in the hollow of a dead tree, and composed of feathers. The eggs are
described as varying ‘from buff to a creamy-white or grayish-olive color,
and measuring from 1.67 to 2 in length by from 1.25 to 1.50 in breadth.

Genus HARELDA. Leach.

Bill without lateral and superior extension of feathers and consequently without su-
perior and lateral basal processes; the lateral outline of feathers oblique. Bill not
swollen at base, shorter than head or tarsus, high, tapering to the tip. Nostrils
linear, in the posterior half of bill. Tail feathers long and pointed, in the male equal
to the wing.

HARELDA GLACIALIS (L.) Leach.

Long-tailed Duck.
Harelda glacialis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20 ;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—MERRIAM,
Trans. Conn. Acad., iv, 1877, 127.

Anas glacialis, Lrnnasus, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 203.
Harelda glacialis, ‘‘ LEACH.’”—STEPH., Gen. Zool., xii,pt. ii, 1854, 175.

Tail of fourteen narrow, pointed feathers, in the male in summer the central ones very
slender and much elongated, nearly or quite equalling the wing; nail of bill occupying
the whole tip; seasonal changesremarkable. Malein summer with the back and the long
narrowly lanceolate scapulars varied with reddish-brown, wanting in winter, when this
color is exchanged for pearly-gray or white; general color blackish or very dark brown,
below from the breast abruptly white; no white on the wing; sides of head plumbeous-
gray; in winter the head, neck and body anteriorly, white, but the gray cheek-patch
persistent, and a large dark patch below this; bill at all seasons black, broadly orange-
barred. Female without lengthened scapulars or tail feathers, the bill dusky greenish,
and otherwise different; but recognized by presence of head- and neek-patches, and
absence of white on the wing. Length, 15-20 or more, according to tail; wing, 8-9.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere, Chiefly maritime. Also on the Great Lakes.

Not common winter visitor on Lake Erie, and rare in the interior of
the State. Mr. Winslow informed me in 1861, that the Long-tailed
Duck was of not unfrequent occurrence on the lake, and I have since
seen several specimens from Sandusky Bay.

My friend, Dr. T. C. Hoover captured a fine male ina small creek near
Bellaire, Ohio, February 9, 1877, and Chas. J. Orton secured a female in

KING EIDER. 535

breeding plumage at Licking Reservoir the following April. Both are
now in my collection. Mr. H. E. Chubb informs me of its capture in
Medina county, in the winter of 1880-1, and writes under date of Feb-
ruary 7, 1881:

“ Since receiving your letter, a male was brought in alive, having been captured in a
creek near this eity [Cleveland]. A Buffalo friend tells me that they are very abundant
on the Niagara River at times, and only yesterday a Canadian from the North shore of
lower Lake Ontario told me of their being with them in immense numbers. They are
frequently caught in the fisherman’s nets, becoming entangled when diving for fish.”

Genus SOMATERIA. Leach.

Bill narrow, compressed, tapering to the end. Feathers of the forehead running for-
ward in a long narrow point, and of cheeks extending along the lower edge of bill, so
that the two strips embrace between them a linear portion of the bill, one-half the length
of culmen, and which extends back further than the lower edge of mandible. Nostrils
beyond the middle of commissure. Nail very broad, thickened, and greatly overlapping tip
of lower mandible. Tail short, rounded ; about two-fifths the wing.

Sub-genus Somateria. Bill with frontal processes, not feathered to the nostrils.

SOMATERIA SPECTABILIS (L.) Leach.
King Wider.
Somateria spectabilis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, .370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12,

20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—CouEs,
Birds N. W., 1874, 581.-—-ALLen, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, v, 1880, 62.

Anas spectabilis, LINNZUS, Fn. Suec., 39.
Somateria spectabilis, Born, Isis, 1822, 564.

Bill with broad squarish, nearly vertical frontal processes bulging angularly out of line
with culmen. Male in breeding attire, black, including a forked chin-patch, a frontal
band, and small space round eye; the neck and fore-parts of the body, part of inter-
scapulars, of wing-coverts and of lining of wings, and a flank patch, white, creamy on
the jugulnm, greenish on sides of head; crown and nape fine bluish-ash. Female
resembling that of the Common Eider, but bill different, Size of the last or rather less.

Habitat, northern North America and Europe. Chiefly coastwise. South to New
Jersey. In the interior to Lake Erie.

Hisrrionicus TORQUATUS (L.) Bp.
Harlequin Duck.

Histrionicus torquatus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860 (1861), addenda, 480; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.

This duck was admitted to my lists of 1861 and 1875, on what I now deem insufficient
authority. It was then believed to be of rare occurrence on Lake Erie, but was not men-
tioned in Mr. Winslow’s list of ducks of Northern Ohio. Several specimens are said to
have been taken by Dr. Hoy, of Racine, Wisconsin, and Dr. Coues’ has discovered it
breeding in Dakota.

536 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

Very rare winter visitor. Mr. Winslow informed me that one was
taken many years since at Cleveland and one at Sandusky Bay. A
specimen in the possession of Mr. Langdon was obtained there in the
winter of 1877-8. This is an immature bird.

On November 4th, 1880, I found a bird of this species in process
of preparation for the table by a market dealer in this city, who
informed me that he had obtained it, together with a female Mallard,
from a sportsman who shot for him in the vicinity of Harrisburg,
about fifteen miles southwest of this city. He stated that the bird was
killed on Darby Creek. I have no reason to doubt this statement. I
obtained a stay of proceedings for sufficient time to make a partial
desciption of the bird and secure the head and foot. The dealer was kind
enough afterwards to say that he was very sorry I did not discover the
bird before he sold it or agreed to dress it for the table, and the gen-
tleman who graced his table with the only King Eider ever identified in
the interior of Ohio, remarked to me that he hoped it might be the
last that he ever attempted to dine upon.

The sex of this specimen was not determined; the following is the
description: Head, neck and breast tawny-ashy, deepening to dull chest-
nut on top of head, each feather with a short streak of dusky ; back of neck
and sides as far as wings more decidedly ashy ; each feather with a subter-
minal dusky bar; belly nearly uniform dusky; shoulders and lesser
coverts dusky with lighter edgings ; quills plain, nospeculum. Scapulars
and lower sides with tawny-rusty tips.

Being in doubt as to the specific identification of this specimen, I for-
warded it to Mr. Ridgway, who kindly writes the following:

“The head is that of S. spectabilis, beyond question—perhaps a young male—which
might account for the difference in color to which you refer; the color varies much,
however, in both species, and I am of opinion that the specimen is a female. I enclose
two rude sketches showing a very radical difference between S. spectabilis and S. mollis-
sima in the anterior outline of the feathering of the head, by which you can invariably
distinguish the two.”

Mr. Ridgway’s sketches show clearly the very considerable anatomical
difference between spectabilis and mollissima. From them it appears that
in spectabilis the feathers of the culmen extend forward as far as the pos-
terior end of nostril, those of side of bill falling far short of this. In
mollissima the reverse is the case, the lateral feathers reaching nearly to
middle of nostril, while the feathers of culmen do not extend farther
forward than the lateral ones in spectabilis.

It has been taken at Chillicothe, Illinois, and Milwaukie, Wisconsin.
Their occurrence on Lake Erie, though not positively within the limits
of Ohio is noted by Mr. J. A. Allen (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club., v, 1880, 62) :

AMERICAN BLACK SCOTER. 537

‘‘ Although the King Eider (Somateria spectabilis, has been recorded as occurring at Lake
Erie, and as a ‘rare winter visitant’ to Lake Michigan, its presence near Buffalo, N. Y.,
in such numbers as the following communication indicates, seems worthy of record.
Mr. Charles Linden, of that city, in a letter dated November 26, 1879, writes: ‘I send
you a fresh-shot specimen of what appears be Somateria spectabilis, young. * * * *
Several flocks of them have, for the first time, made their appearance in the Niagara;
they are very tame, allow approach to within a few yards, dive readily, and appear
again a long distance from where they dove. They are evidently not used to the lurk-
ing dangers of the gun, and have probably found their way up the St. Lawrence, up
Lake Ontario, and across to Lake Erie. There have been to my knowledge at least eigh-
teen of them shot, They are generally found in small flocks of three or four birds.’”

Genus (EDEMIA.

Bill without lateral and superior basal processes; but much swollen or gibbous at base
(in adult males); then depressed, and broad. Nail very large, forming the tip. Nostrils
anterior to middle. ‚

Sub-genus (Edemia. Bill scarcely encroached upon by the frontal feathers, shorter
than head, the gibbosity superior, circumscribed ; nostrils at its middle; tail normally
sixteen-feathered.

(EDEMIA AMERICANA Sw.
American Black Scoter.

(Edemia americana, MERRIAM, Trans. Conn. Acad., iv, 1877, 127.
Oidemia americana, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor. Am., ii, 1831, 450.

Plumage of male entirely black ; bill black, the gibbosity orange. Female sooty-brown,
paler below, becoming grayish-white on the belly, there dusky-speckled, on the sides and
flanks dusky-waved ; throat and sides of head mostly continuous whitish ; bill all black ;
feet livid olivaceous, with black webs. Male, nearly 2 feet; wing, about 10 inches;

SoMATERIA MOLLISSIMA (L.) Leach.

var (?). DRESSERI Sharpe.

Eider Duck.

Bill with long club-shaped frontal processes extendi':g in a line with the culmen upon
the sides of the forehead, divided by a broad feathe: cd interepace. Male in breeding
attire, white, creamy-tinted on breast and washed with green on the head; under-parts
from the breast, lower back, rump, tail, quills, and large forked patch on the crown,
black. Female with the bill less developed, general plumage an extremely variable
shade of reddish-brown or ochrey-brown, speckled, mottled and barred with darker;
male in certain stagesresembling the female. Length, about 2 feet; wing, 11-12 inches.

Habitat, Atlantic and Arctic coasts.

Mr. Nelson gives the Common American Eider as a not very rare winter visitor on
Lake Michigan, where it is more numerous in winter than the King Eider. Careful
observation will no doubt prove it to be an occasional winter visitor to Lake Erie.

538 BIRDS—ANATIDE.

female, 18-19 inches; wing, 8-9; gape, 2; culmen, 13%. Differs from the European in
shade and coloration of the protuberance on the bill.

Habitat, North America, both coasts, and large inland waters.

Rare winter resident or visitor. I can record but three instances of its
capture. A young male was taken at Licking Reservoir, December, 1876,
and preserved by Dr. Jasper, of this city. This is the specimen referred
to by Dr. Merriam, above cited. Mr. Winslow has since informed me that
it has been taken on Portage River, in Northern Ohio, and Mr. Chubb
writes me that he shot one of a flock of three on Lake Erie, in the fall of
1880.

Dr. Merriam has taken it on Black River, N. Y., and Mr. J. A.
Allen reports its capture at St. Louis, Missouri.

Sub-genus Melanetta. Bill broadly encroached upon by the frontal feathers, on the
calmen nearly or quite to the nostrils, and on its sides to a less extent, shorter than
head ; nail broad and truncate; gibbosity superior, circumscribed.

(EDEMIA Fusca (L.) Sw.

(var?.) VELVETINA CassIN.
Velvet Scoter.

Melanetta velvetina, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 378; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20.

(Edemia fusca, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint,
1875, 14.—LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint,
20.

Anas fusca, LINNZUS, Fn. Suec., 39.
(Edemia fusca, FLEMING, Phil. of Zool., ii, 1823, 260.
Melanetia velvetina, BarrpD, Birds N. A. 1858, 805

Male black with a large white wing-patch, and another under the eye ; feet orange-
red, with dusky-webs. Bill black, broadly orange-tipped; size of the last or rather
larger; female smaller, sooty-browr, pale-grayish below, with much whitish about
head, but showing white speculum ; bill all black.

Habitat, Europe and America, chiefly maritime, but also on inland waters.

Rare winter visitor in the interior, probably more frequent on Lake

Erie. Mr. Winslow states that this duck sometimes occurs on the lake
both in the vicinity of Cleveland and Sandusky Bay. Many years since
I saw an adult bird said to have been taken on the Scioto River, near
this city. An immature bird was taken at the Licking Reservior in
December, 1876, in company with the last species.
_ Mr. J. A. Allen records two specimens from St. Louis, Missouri, and
Mr. Nelson gives it as rather common on Lake Michigan and occurring
throughout the State of Illinois, and Dr. Haymond notes it as “ numer-
ous in winter” in Franklin county, Indiana.

RUDDY DUCK. 539

NoTE.—A third and only remaining species of this genus, (Edemie perspicillata, Steph.,
Surf Duck, is recorded as taken at Mt. Carmel, Illinois, by Mr. Ridgway, at St. Louis,
Missouri, by Mr. J. A. Allen, and as common on Lake Michigan, by Mr. Nelson. There
is no record of its occurrence in Ohio, though it may be confidently looked for.

Gunus ERISMATURA. Bonaparte.

Tail feathers eighteen, narrow, rigid, spinous, and almost entirely exposed; the
coverts much abbreviated. Bill broad, high at base and depressed at tip. Upper lat-
eral angle running back on forehead farther than the lower edge of bill. Nostrils rather
small, reaching to middle of bill. Nail from above very narrow, bent abruptly down-
wards and backwards at the tip. Tarsus scarcely more than one-third the long feet.

ERISMATURA RUBIDA (Wils.) Bp.
Ruddy Duck.

Fuligula rubida, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 186.

Erismatura rubida, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 379; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—LANGDON,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186;
Reprint, 20.

Anas rubida, WıLsoN, Am. Orn., viii, 1814, 128.

Erismaiura rubida, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 59.

The male in perfect plumage with neck all round, and the upper-parts brownish-red,
the lower-parts silky-white watered with dusky, the chin and sides of the head dead-
white, the crown and nape black, but not often seen in this condition in the United
States; as generally observed, and the female at all times, brown above, finely dotted
and waved with dusky, paler and duller below with darker undulations and sometimes
a slight tawny tinge, as also occurs on the side of head; crown and nape dark-brown;
crissum always white. Length, 14-17; wing, 5-6; tarsus, it.

Habitat, North America at large. South to Guatemala, where found breeding at
Duenas. Cuba.

Rather irregular, but sometimes abundant migrant in the fall; not
common in spring. The Ruddy Duck is often seen in the fall on rivers
and small streams in flocks of from fifteen to twenty birds, when they
are frequently shot in considerable numbers, as they fly low and com-
pactly at such times. When in the water no Duck excels them in diving,
and they are hardly surpassed by the Grebes in this respect. The spring
migration usually brings one or two males to notice in this vicinity each
year, those first passing being in moult, those later in full breeding plum-
age. It may perhaps breed in Northern Ohio, as they are believed, by Mr.
Nelson, to breed in Northern Illinois. Dr. Coues discovered them breed-
ing in Montana and Dakota.

Sub-family MErGInNz. Mergansers.

Bill more or less nearly cylindrical, the nail hooked and overhanging, the lamella
highly developed into prominent retrorse serrations.

540 BIRDS—ANATIDA.

Genus MERGUS. Linnezus.
With characters of the sub-family.

Sub-genus Mergus. Bill not shorter than the head. Head with a depressed crest.
Tarsus two-thirds the middle toe.

MERGUS MERGANSER Linnzus.

Merganser; Goosander.

Mergus merganser, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—WHEAToN, Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat, Birds
of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229.

Mergus americanus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Goosander, KIRTLAND, Fam. Visitor, i, 1850.

Mergus merganser, Linnvs, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 209.

Mergus americanus, Cassin, Proc. Phila, Acad., 1853, 187.

Nostrils nearly median ; frontal feathors reaching beyond those on sides of bill; male
with the head scarcely crested, glossy green; back and wings black and white, latter
crossed by one black bar; under parts salmon-colored ; length, about 24; wing, 11;
female smaller, occipital crest better developed, but still limsy ; head and neck reddish-
brown; black parts of the male ashy-gray ; less white on the wing; under-parts less
tinted with salmon.

Habitat, North America. Europe. Asia.

Common spring and fall migrant, but in most parts of the State
winter resident as well, and in Northern Ohio summer resident, formerly
breeding commonly. Perhaps breeds in Middle Ohio, as I have met with
them in pairs in June.

Most modern writers have omitted mention of a point in the structure
of the birds of this sub-family, which can not escape the notice of the
taxidermist. I refer to the structural difference in the esophagus and
integument of the throat and neck as compared with other ducks. In
this sub-family the skin is loose, and the gullet enormously distensible,
this peculiar looseness of the skin is as strongly marked as in the King-
fisher, and evidenced by the ease with which the head is withdrawn
in skinning a specimen. I once took a male bird in winter, which
had, to my surprise, the tail of a fish protruding from its mouth.
As the bird did not appear to have been choking when killed, I made a
careful examination and discovered that it had made a meal of an ordi-
nary white sucker, the head of which had been so nearly digested by the
stomach, that the bones were separated, and the undigested portion from
the occiput to end of tail, which lay in the gullet and mouth measured
seven inches.

HOODED MERGANSER. 541

MERGUS SERRATOR Linnzus.

Bed-breasted Merganser.

_Mergus serrator, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1836, 166, 187”.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860, 370, Reprint, 1861, 120; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 574; Reprint, 1875, 14.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised
List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186 ; Reprint, 18; Summer Birds, ib., iii,
1880, 229.—DURY and FREEMAN, ib, iii, 1880, 104; Reprint, 5.

Mergus serrator, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 208.

Nostrils sub-basal ; frontal feathers not reaching beyond those on sides of bill; a long,
thin, pointed crest in both sexes. Smaller than the last; wing, 8-9; general coloration,
and sexual difference the same, but the male with the jugulum rich reddish-brown,
black-sirsaked, the sides conspicuously finely waved with black, a white, black-bordered
mark in front of the wing, and the wing crossed by two black bars.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere.

Not common. Spring and fall migrant and winter resident ; much the
rarest of the three species with us, as appears to be the case in other
places in the interior, and it appears to be more common in fall and
winter than in spring. I have never seen more than half a dozen adult

males.

Sub-genus Lophodytes. Bill shorter than head. Head with an erect crest. Tarsus
ene-half the middle toe.
Mereus cucuLtLatus. Linneus.
Wooded Merganser.
Mergus cucullatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—WHEATON, Food of

Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574; Reprint, 1875; 14.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds
of Cin., 1877, 17; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint,
0.

Lophodytes cucullatus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370; Reprint, 1861, 12.

Mergus cucullatus, LINNAUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 238.

Lophodytes cucullatus, REICHENBACK, Syst. Av., 1852, ix.

Nostrils sub-basal; frontal feathers reaching beyond those on sides of bill; a compact
erect, semicircular, laterally-compressed crest in the male, smaller and less rounded
in the female; male, black, including two crescents in front of wing, and bar across
speculum; under parts, centre of crest, speculam and stripes on tertials, white; sides
ehestnut, black-barred ; length, 18-19; wing, 6; female smaller; head and neck brown;
ehin whitish ; back and sides dark-brown, the feathers with paler edges; white on the
wing less, bill reddish at base below.

Habitat, North America. Cuba. Europe.

Very common spring and fall migrant, probably a not common summer
resident. The Hooded Merganser is the most abundant species of the
genus with us, and is about equally common in spring and fall. It is
wsually found singly or in pairs, sometimes in small flocks, in rivers

542 BIRDS—PELECANIDA.

and ponds. It is an expert diver, and often resorts to diving rather than
flight to escape danger. This species has in common with the Goos-
ander the habit of hiding under the exposed roots of trees on the banks
of streams. From the fact that it may frequently be discovered in such
places, sometimes at quite a distance from water, I incline to think
they are ordinarily rather nocturnal in their habits, and commonly con-
ceal themselves in the middle of the day. :

Audubon speaks of their breeding on the Ohio and the lakes, and Mr.
Brewster notes their breeding in Florida.

ORDER STEGANOPODES. TOTIPALMATE BIRDS.
FAMILY PELECANIDA. THE PELICANS.

Bill several times longer than the head, slender but strong, depressed, perfectly
straight, with small distinct hooked nail at end. Nostrils very small. Gular sac enor-
meus. Mandibular rami meeting only at tip. Wing extremely long, with upward of
forty remiges. Tail short, rounded, of twenty or more feathers. Legs beneath centre
of equilibrium, extremely short and stout.

Genus PELECANUS. Linnsus.
With the characters of the family.

PELECANUS TRACHYRHYNCHUs Lath.

White Pelican.

Pelecanus onocrotalus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.

Pelecanus erythrorhynchus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric Rep., for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13, 21.

Pelecanus trachyrhynchus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574;
Reprint, 1875, 14.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 17; Journ. Cin. Soc Nat. Hist.,
i, 1878, 117; Reprint, 8; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1579, 186; Re-
print, 20; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1¢80, 229.

Pelecanus erythrorhynchus, GMELIN, Syst. Nat., i, 1788, 571.

Pelecanus trachyrhynchus, LATHAM, Ind, Orn., ii, 1790, 884.

Pelecanus onocrotalus, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 400.

White; occiput and breast yellow ; primaries, their coverts, bastard quills and many
secondaries black; bill, sac, lores and feet yellow. Length, about 4 feet; expanse,
7-9; wing, 2; bill, 1 or more; tail, 4; normally 24-feathered.

Habitat, North America, up to latitude 61° at least. Rare or casual in the Middle
States and New England. Abundant in the interior, especially west of the Mississippi.
Texas and Florida. South to Central America.

Not rare spring and fall migrant, occurring most frequently in the fall.
Dr. Kirtland mentions the Pelican as an occasional visitor. Several
years ago the skin of a specimen in full breeding plumage was in the pos-
session of Mr. Jos. Sullivant, of this city; this was taken in this State,

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT. 543

and is the only specimen Ihaveseen in spring plumage. In the fall of
1861 quite a large flock made their appearance in this vicinity, of which
about a dozen were captured, one which is now preserved in the museum
of Starling Medical College. One morning, during the time of their visit,
I laid behind a bank of the Scioto river near this city, waiting the
rising of a heavy fog, to shoot some Teal who were heard feeding in the
shallows. The favorable moment came and both barrels were discharged.
Apparently from the smoke of my gun, but really from the bank below
its muzzle, sprang three of these birds, enlarged to colossal size by the
deceptive agency of the fog. I was greatly astonished.

Four or five years since a specimen was taken in Fairfield county, near
the Licking Reservoir, which was preserved by Dr. Jasper, of this city.
Mr. Langdon gives it as an occasional! migrant on the Ohio, and in Sum-
mer Birds says, “ one or two instances of the occurrence of this speeies in
summer are noted by Mr. Porter” (Northern Obio).

Mr. H. E. Chubb writes me, under date of February 7th, 1881, concern-
ing a specimen recently captured, as follows:

“ The specimen I had alive was shot and captured in Sandusky Bay. ido uot know
whether there were others with it or not. One shot strack it in the neck, and it was
then chased down by men in a boat. I could hardly get it to eat at first, but before I
had it a week it would follow me all over the room for a fish, and took its three pounds
of fish a day with great relish.”

The nest of the Pelican is said to be simply alow mound of dirt scraped
together by the bird. A single egg is the complement.

FAMILY GRACULIDA. THE CORMORANTS.

Bill about as long as head, stout, straight, scarcely tapering, strongly hooked. Nos-
trils abortive. Gular sac moderate, but evident; mostly naked. Wings short. Tail
large, fan-shaped, scansorial, of twelve to fourteen broad stiff feathers exposed to the
base. Legs inserted far behind centre of equilibrium.

Genus GRACULUS. Linneus.
With the characters of the family.

GRACULUS DILOPHUS (Sw.) Gray.

Double-crested Cormorant.

Graculus dilophus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Re-
print, 1875, 15.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18.

Pelecanus (Carbo) dilophus, SWAINSON and RICHARDSON. Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 473.

Graculus dilephus, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, iii, 1849,

Tail of twelve feathers; gular sac convex or nearly straight-edged behind. Glossy
greenish-black ; feathers of the back and wings coppery-gray, black-shafted, black-
edged ; adult with curly black lateral crests, and in the breeding season other filamen-

54 BIRDS—GRACULIDA.

tous white ones, over the eyes and along the sides of the neck; white flank-patch not
observed in the specimens examined, but probably occurring ; gular sac and lores orange.
Eyes green. Length, 30-33 inches; wing, 12 or more; tail, 6 or more; bill along gape,
3}; tarsus a little over 2. Young, plain dark-brown, paler or grayish (even white on the
breast) below, without head plnmes.

Habitat, North America at large, in the interior as well as coastwise.

Not common spring and fall migrant. This variety of the Cormo-
rant is perhaps not now to be found breeding in the State, though it is
said to have nested years ago at the Licking Reservoir. I have seen
specimens of this variewy taken there recently, during the migrations.
It appears to be the only variety found throughout the State during the
spring migration.

GRACULUS DILOPHUS (Sw.) Gray.

var. FLORIDANUS (Aud.) Coues.

Florida Cormorant,

Graculus dilophus var. floridanus, WHEATON; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—Covuss, Key, 1872, 303.—LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin.,
1877, 18; Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 117 ; Reprint, 8; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229;
Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 127.

Phalacrocorax floridanus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 387.

Graculus floridanus, BONAPARTE, Consp. Av., 1855, 172.

Graculus dilophus var. floridanus, Cours, Key, 1872, 303.

Similar so the preceding, smaller (wing, 12 or less; tail, 6 or less; tarsus a little
under 2), but bill as large if not larger; gape nearly 4. The plumage is exactly the
same, excepting, probably, that white plumes are not developed. There are said to be
certain differences in the life-colors of the bills (blue instead of yellow on under mandi-
ble and edges of upper.—Audubon). This is simply a localized southern race of dilophus,
smaller in general dimensions, with relatively larger bill, as usual in such cases; the sac
seems to be more extensively denuded.

Habitat, South Atlantic and Gulf States, ranging north to the Ohio and to North
Carolina.

Spring and fall migrant in Western Ohio, summer resident in some
localities. Breeds. I have never known of the occurrence of this variety
in spring in the vicinity of Columbus or eastward, but it sometimes
occurs on our river and canal in late summer and fall. Mr. Langdon
(Summer Birds, |. c.), notes its capture in June, at Sandusky Bay, and in
his Observations on Cincinnati Birds gives the following:

“Mr, Dury has favored me with an exceedingly interesting account of the former
abundance of this species at St. Mary’s Reservoir, in which he says: ‘On the south side
of the Reservoir, about seven miles from Celina, was the ‘Water Turkey’ Rookery.
Here I used to go to shoot them, with the natives who wanted them for their feathers ;
I have helped kill a boat load.

‘¢¢ One season I climbed up to their nests aud got a cap full of eggs. The nests were

POMARINE JAEGER. 545

made of sticks and built in the forks of*the branches. The trees (which were all dead)
were mostly oaks, and covered with excrement. I found from two to four eggs or young
to a nest. The young were queer little creatures—looked and felt like India rubber.
The old birds flew around in clouds, and made their croaking notes, indicative of their
displeasure at my presence. Some of the trees had ten or twelve nests on them. As
the timber has rotted and blown dowu, the birds have become less and less numerous.’

“The above circumstances occurred during the month of June, 1867, since when, as
Mr. Dury states, these birds have rapidly decreased in numbers. The many specimens
examined by him were, without exception, var. floridanus.

“ My own observation of the species in Ohio is limited to a single specimen found float-
ing in the Reservoir late in October, 1874, when its comrades had probably migrated.
It has also been tolerably well identified on both Miamis during the migrations.”

ORDER LONGIPENNES. LONG-WINGED
SWIMMERS.

FAMILY LARIDA. GULLS, TERNS, ETC.

Nostrils not tubular, lateral, perforate. Bill with continuous covering, or only broken
by a sort of cere, hooked or straight to the end, Hallux small and elevated but always
present.

Subfamily LESTRIDINz. Jaeger or Skua Gulls.

Covering of bill discontinuous, the upper mandible being saddled with a large horny
“ cere” beneath which the nostrils‘open (unique among water birds); bill epignathous.
Tail nearly square, but the middle pair of feathers long-exserted. Feet strong, tarsi
scutellate in front, rough behind ; toes full-webbed.

Genus STERCORARIUS. Brisson.
With characters of the sub-family.

STERCORARIUS POMATORHINUS (Temm.) Vieillot.
Pomarine Jaeger.
Lestris pomarinus, TEMMINCK, Man , 1815, 514.
Stercorarius pomarinus, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist., Nat., xxxii, 1819, 108.
Stercorarius pomatorhinus, NEWTON, Ibis, 1865, 509.

Middle tail feathers finally projecting about four inches, broad to the tip. Length, about
20 inches; wing, 14; bill, 14-12; tarsus about 2. Adult:—Back, wings, tail, crissum
and lower belly brownish-black; below from bill to belly, and neck all round, pure
white, excepting acuminate feathers of sides of neck, which are pale yellow; quills
whitish basally, their shafts largely white; tarsi above blue, below, with the toes and

GRACULUS CARBO (L.) Gray.
Common Cormorant; Shag.

Graculus carbo, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 1861, 480.
This species was erroneously given by me, as above. Itis probably strictly maritime.

35

546 BIRDS—LARIDE.

webs black. Not quite adult :—As before, but breast with dark spots, sides of the body
with dark bars, blackish of lower belly interrupted; feet black. Younger :—Whole un-
der parts, with upper wing and tail-coverts variously marked with white and dark; feet
blotched with yellow. Young :—Whole plumage transversely barred with dark-brown
and rufous; feet mostly yellow. Dusky stage (coming next after the barred plumage just
given ?): fuliginous, unicolor; blackish-brown all over, quite biack on the head, rather
sooty-brown on the belly; sides of the neck slightly gilded.

Habitat, seas and sea-coast of Europe, Asia, aud America. Interior of North America.

Extremely rare or accidental visitor in winter on Lake Erie; now
first named as a bird of this State. Mr. H. E. Chubb, of Cleveland writes
me, February 7, 1881, as follows:

“Two were seen at our breakwater last fall, one of which I have. My friend, who
shot it, brought it in for a hawk, saying that it was chasing the sparrows in a field when
he killed it. Both this and its mate had previously been making it lively for the small
Gulls and Terns, as the books say they should, but I never heard of one which attempted
to change its diev in this manner.”

Mr. Nelson records two specimens as having been identified on Lake
Michigan near Chicago.

Sub-family LARINz. Gulls.

Covering of bill continuous, horny throughout; bill more or less strongly epignathous,
compressed, with more or less protuberant gonys; nostrils linear-oblong, median or sub-
basal, pervious. Tail even or nearly so, rarely forked or cuneate, without projecting
middle feathers.

Genus LARUS. Linnenus.
With the general characters of the sub-family.

Sub-genus Larus. Large or medium size, robust ; bill stout, more or less strongly
hooked and protuberant at the symphysis; under parts never rosy-tinted, nor head with
dark hood; tail of adult entirely white. Hind toe well developed, bearing a perfect
claw.

Larus LEUCOPTERUS Faber.
White-winged Gull.

Larus leucopterus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370, 379; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20;
Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15 —RipGway,
Ann. Lyceum, N. Y., x, 1874, 393.—Couvss, Birds, N. W., 1874, 622.

Larus leucopterus, FABER, Prod. Isl. Orn., 1822, 91. '

Primaries entirely white, or palest possible pearly-blue, fading insensibly into white
at some distance from the end, their shafts straw-color; mantle palest pearly-blue; bill
yellow, with vermillion spot on lower mandible; feet flesh colored or pale yellowish.
In winter, head and neck slightly touched with dusky. Young :—Impure white with or
without traces of pearly on the mantle; head, neck and upper parts mottled with pale
brownish, sometimes quite dusky on the back, the under parts a nearly uniform but very

GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL. 547

faint shade of the same, the quills and tail often imperfectly barred with the same ; bill
greenish-yellow. Length, about 24 (rather less than more); wing, 16-17; bill, 12-2;
tarsus, 2-24.

Habitat, Northern and Arctic seas, circumpolar; south in winter on the Atlantic coast
to Loug Iesand.

Rare winter visitor on Lake Erie. Mr. Winslowstates that two or three
specimens have been taken in Cleveland harbor. Mr. Nelson gives it as
a regular and not uncommon winter visitor on Lake Michigan.

Nots.—The Glaucous Gull (Z, glaucus) may oceur in winter on the Lake. Mr. Nelson
states that three specimens have been taken and others seen on Lake Michigan, by Dr.
Hoy. It is extremely similar to L. leucopterus, but larger, length, 30; wing, 184.

Larus MARINUS Linnzus.

Great Black-backed Gull

Larus marinus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152, 181.—Kirt-
LAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370,
379; Reprint, 1861, 12, 20; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Re-
print, 1875, 15.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23.

Larus marinus, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 225.

Feet flesb-colored ; bill yellow with red spot. Mantle blackish slate-colored; first
primary with the end white for 2-3 inches; second primary with a white sub-apical
spot, and, like the remaining ones that are crossed with black, having the tip white
(when not quite mature, the first, with small white tip and sub-apical spot, the second
with white tip alone). In winter, head and neck streaked with dusky. Young :—Whit-
ish, variously washed, mottled aud patched with brown or dusky; qnills and tail black,
with or without white tips; bill black. Very large; length, 30 inches; wing, 184; bill
above 24.

Habit.t, American and European coast of the Atlantic. South in winter to Long
Island (to Florida, Aud.). Great Lakes and the Mississippi (Aud.).

Like the preceding, a rare winter visitor on Lake Erie. Audubon (1. c.)
BAYS:

cy

“Lake Erio supplies with food the L. marinus, L. argentatus, L, atricilla, and some
others, 33 well as the Great, the Arctic, the Roseate, and Black Terns, and some others,
all of which pass at times over to the Ohio, and from thence to the ocean.”

Mr. Winslow gives it as an occasional visitor to the vicinity of Cleve-
land in later years. Mr. Langdon (1877) notes its probable identifica-
tion on the Ohio, at Cincinnati. Many years since I saw a very large
Gull flying high overhead, in this vicinity, which must have been this
bird or L. glaucus.

548 BIRDS—LARIDE.

Larus ARGENTATUS Brunn.

var. SMITHSONIANUS Üoues.

American Herring Gull.

Larus argentatus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152, 167.—Kirt-
LAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 370 ;
Reprint, 1861, 12.

Larus argentatus, var. smithsonianus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20.

? Larus occidentalis, TREMBLY, Field Notes, i, 1861, 129, 180.

Herring Gull, BALLoU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Larus argentatus, BRUNNICH, Orn. Bor. 1764, 44.
Larus smithsonianus, COUES, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1862, 296.
Larus argenialus, var. smithsonianus, COUES, Check List, 1874, 103.

Feet flesb-color ; bill yellow with xed spot; mantie pale dull blue (darker than in
leucopterus, but nothing like the deep slate of marinus, much the same asin all the rest of
the species); primaries marked as in marinus (but the greater majority of specimens will
be found to have the not quite mature or final condition) ; length, 22-27; wing, 15-18;
tarsus, 24-22; bill, about 24 long, about }-} deep at bass, and about the same at the pre-
tuberance. In winter: head and hind neck streaked with dusky. Young :—At first
almost entirely fuscous or sooty-brown, the feathers of the back, white-tipped or not;
size at the minimum above given. As its grows old, it gradually lightens; the head,
neck and under parts are usually quite whitish, before the markings of the quills are
apparent, and before the blue begins to show, as it does in patches, mixed with brown ;
the black on the tail narrows to a bar, at the time the primaries are assuming their
characters, but this bar disappears before the primaries gain their perfect pattern.
At one time the bill is flesh-color or yellowish, black-tipped.

Habitat, North America generally ; especially on the Atlantic coasi. Cuba to Labra-
dor; breeding from New England northward. Also in the interior, and occasionally on
the Pacific coast.

Common spring and fall migrant on Lake Erie, less common on the
Ohio ; common but irregular, most frequent in spring, on the streams of
the interior of the State. In the vicinity of this city, the Herring Gull
is, in spring, the most frequently seen of all the Gulls, though usually
occurring singly or in small companies of six or eight, and never in con-
siderable numbers as is sometimes the case with Bonaparte’s Gull. They
frequent the swift shallows below dams, flying up, down and across the
stream hunting for fish, which they pounce upon, somewhat in the
manner of the Kingfisher, occasionally alighting in the water, apparently
to rest. These birds are generally more shy and wary than they are
found in the cities of the luke shore, where they spend much of their
time among the shipping of the rivers or harbor apparently as uncon-
eerned in the presence of man as are domestic pigeous. Occasionally an

r

KITTIWAKE GULL. 549

adult bird, probably accustomed to such surroundings, visits the still
waters in the limits of this city, cruising about for floating fragments, or
resting buoyantly upon the water, apparently somewhat flattered to find
himself an object of interest.

The Herring Gull, like most of the members of this family, breeds in
communities. The nest is placed on the ground, and is said to be large
and bulky, composed of grass and moss. The eggs are generally three,
measuring about 2.80 by 1.90; the ground color is a varying shade of
bluish, greenish or brownish-olive, with dark markings, very variable
in shape, size and distribution.

LARUS DELAWARENSIS Ord.
Ring-billed Gull.

Larus zonorhynchus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152.— KIRTLAND,
Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.

Larus delawarensis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric, Rep. for 1860, 371, 379; Reprint, 1861, 13;
Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—Lanapon,
Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat, Hist., i, 1879, 186 ;
Reprint, +0,

Larus delawarensis, ORD, Guthrie’s Geog., ii, 1815, 319.

Larus zonorhynchus, RICHARDSON, Fu. Bor-Am., ii, 1831, 421.

Adult plumage precisely like that of the last species, and its changes substantially the
same ; bill greenish-yellow, encircled with a black band near the end, usually complete,
sometimes defective, the tip and most of the cutting edges of the bill yellow; in high
condition, the angle of the mouth and a small spot beside the black, red ; feet olivaceous,
obscured with dusky or bluish, and partly yellow ; the webs bright chrome. Notably
smaller than argentatus ; length usually 18-20 inches; extent, about 48; wing, about 15;
bill under 2, and only about 4 deep at the protuberance ; tarsus, about 2, obviously lon-
ger than the middle toe.

Habitat, North America generally ; throughout the interior as well as coastwise.
Cuba.

Common spring and fall migrant, perhaps formerly summer resident
on Lake Erie ; less common in the interior of the State than the preced-
ing species. In this vicinity I have seen but two individuals of this
species in spring and in fall. Mr. Langdon notes a single specimen
taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati. My friend, C. J. Orton obtained
specimens from a considerable flock, in April, 1874, at the Licking Reser-
volr.

Sub-genus Rissa. Like sub-genus Larus, but hind toe rudimentary or minute, usually
without a perfect claw.
Larus TRIDACTYLUS Linneus.,
Kittiwake Gull.
Bissa tridactylus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371, 379; Reprint, 1861, 13, 21.—
RıpawAY, Ann. Lyc., N. Y., x., 1874, 393,

550 BIRDS—LARIDE.

Larus tridactylus, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575 ; Reprint,
1875, 15.

Larus tridactylus, LINNZUS, Fn. Suec., 55.
Bissa tridactyla, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 62.
Larus (Rissa) tridactylus, Cougs, Birds N. W., 1874, 644.

Hind toe only appearing as a minute knob, its claw abortive. Mantle rather dark
grayish-blae; first primary with the whole outer web, and the entire end for about two
inches, black; next one, with the end black about as far, but outer web elsewhere
light, and a white speck at extreme tip; on the rest of the primaries that have black,
this color decreases in extent proportionally to the shortening of the quills, so that the
base of the black on all is in the same line when the wings are closed (a pattern peculiar
to the species of Rissa) ; and these all have white apex. Bill yellow, usually clouded
with olivaceous; feet dusky olivaceous. Rather small; 16-18; wing, 12; bill,14-14;
tarsus about the same; middle toe and claw longer; tail usually slightly emarginate.
In winter, nape and hind neck shaded with the color of the mantle. Young :-—Bill black ;
a black bar on the tail, another across the neck behind; wings and tail variously
patched with black; dark spots before and behind the eyes; quills mostly black.

Habita‘, Arctic regions of both hemispheres. South in winter on the Atlantic coast
to the Middle States.

Very rare or accidental winter visitor on Lake Erie. Mr, Winslow notes
the occurrence of three specimens in Cleveland harbor many years since.
This appears to be the only record in the interior, except that of Mr. Nel-
son, who records one individual identified, but not captured, by Dr. Hoy,
on Lake Michigan, in 1870.

Sub-genus Chrecocephalus. Form less robust and bill more slender than in sub-genus
Larus ; in the breeding season the white of under-paris rosy-tinted, and the head enveloped
in a dark-colored hood.

LARUS PHILADELPHIA (Ord) Coues.
Bonaparte’s Gull.
Larus bonapartii, AUDUDON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 212; B. Am., vii, 1844, 131.—TREMBLY,
Field Notes, i, 1861, 120.
Larus capistriatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.
Choicocephalus philadelphia, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.
Larus philadelphia, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Re-
print, 1875, 15.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soo.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 186; Reprint, 20.
Sterna philadelphia, ORD, Guthrie’s Geog., ii, 1815, 319.
Larus capistratus, BONAPARTE, Am. Orn., iv, —.
Larus bonapartei, RICHARDSON, Fn. Bor-Am., ii, 1831, 425.
Chroicocephalus philadelphia, LAWRENCE, Birds N. Am., 1858, 852.
Larus philadelphia, GRAY, List Br. Birds, 1863, 235.
Larus (Chrecocephalus) philadelphia, Cours, Birds N. W., 1874, 655.

Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw. Small; 12-14; wing, 94-10}; tarsus, 14;
bill, 14-14, very slender, like a Tern’s. Adult in summer :—Bill black ; mantle pearly

BONAPARTE’S GULL. 551

blue, much paler than in atricilla ; hood slaty-plumbeous, with white touches on the
eyelids; many wing-coverts white ; feet chrome-yellow, tinged with coral red; webs ver-
million. Primaries finally :—The first 5-6 with the shafts white except at tip; first
white, with outer web and extreme tip black; second white, more broadly crossed with
black; 3d to 6th-8th with the black successively decreasing. In winter no hood, but a
dark auricular spot. Young :—Mottled and patched above with brown or gray, and
usually a dusky bar on the wing; the tail with a black bar, the primaries with more
black, the bill dusky, much of the lower mandible flesh-colored or yellowish, as are the
feet.

Habitat, North America. Casual in Europe.

Common spring and fall migrant on Lake Erie; less common and
rather irregular in the interior of the State.

Bonaparte’s Gull is perhaps the most numerous of all the Gulls in the
interior of the State, where it sometimes appears in spring in consid-

Larus ATRICILLA Linnzus.
Laughing Gull.

Larus atrieilla, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1338, 166, 185.—AUDUBON, B. Am., vi,
1844, 152 (under L. zonorkynchus).—WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—Couss, Birds of N. W., 1874, 650.—LANnGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189;
Reprint, 23.

Chroicocephalus atrieilla, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371, 379; Reprint, 1861,
13, 21.

Larus atricilla, LINNZvS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 225.
Chroicococephalus atricilla, LAWRENCE, Birds N. Am., 1858,850.
Larus (Chrococephalus) atricilla, Couzs, Birds N. W,, 1874, 650.

Probably never identified as an Ohio bird. Audubon’s statement, quoted on page 547, on
which Dr. Kirtland named this species as Ohioan, is contradicted by his other statements
(B. Am., vii, p. 138): “I never met with them on the Mississippi, above New Orleans,”
and (ib., p. 142): “Up the Mississippi to New Orleans.” My own identificationin 1861, Iam
convinced was an error, the specimen in question being philadelphia in breeding plumage.
On submitting this matter with others to Mr. Robert Ridgway, he kindly favored me
with the following, under date of March 31, 1881:

‘‘Asto the occurrence of L. atricilla and Sterna macrura, I do not know but that
taking the character of the evidence into consideration, it would be best to expunge,
both from the list. I know of no record which I could rely on for the occurrence of
either of these species anywhere in the Mississippi or Ohio Valleys, not excepting my own
for L. atricilla on the Wabash. Black-headed Gulls much larger than L. philadelphia have
been repeatedly seen there, but they may have been L.franklini. Still, all the birds of
this family are great wanderers occasionally, and there is of course a reasonable proba-
bility of the occurrence, more or less often of both of these species far from their usual
haunts. Since the publication of my Catalogue of Illinois Birds I have become ‘ autop-
tically’ acquainted with Z. atricilla in a region where it abounds (coast of Virginia) and
now more than ever doubt having seen it in Southern Illinois, L. franklini being more
probably the species noticed.”

552 BIRDS—LARIDE.

erable flocks; in fall it is rather more regular, but in less numbers than
in spring, single birds or pairs often lingering for several days about
favorite feeding places.

Audubon first saw this bird when crossing the Ohio from Cincinnati to
Newport, Kentucky, to view the nests of the Cliff Swallows, in 1819.

GENUS XEMA. Leach.
Like sub-genus Chracocephalus. Tail forked.

XEMA SABINEI (Sab.) Leach.
F'rork-tailed Gull.
Xema sabinii, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371, 379; Reprint, 1861, 13, 21.
Xema sabinei, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint,
1675, 15.—Rmeway, Ann. Lye. N. Y., x, 1874, 393.
Larus sabinei, J. SABINE, Linn, Trans., xii, 1818, 522.
Xema sabinei, LEACH, App. Ross. Voy., 1825.

Adult :— White, including inner primaries, most of secondaries, and greater coverts ;.
head enveloped in a slate-colored hood, succeeded by a velvety-black collar; mantle
slaty-blue, extending quite to the tips of the tertiaries ; whole edge of the wing, and
first five primaries black, their extreme tips, and the outer half of'their inner webs to
near the end, white; bill black, tipped with yellow; feet black; length, 13-14; wing,
10-11; bill, 1; tarsus, 14; tail, 5, forked an inch or more. The changes of plumage are
correspondent with those of L. philadelphia; in the young the tail is often simply emar-

ginate.
Habitat, Arctic regions of both hemispheres. Spitzbergen. In America, south in win-

ter to New York, and Great Salt Lake, Utah.

Accidental in winter on Lake Erie. Mr. Winslow informs me that he
took an immature bird of this species in Cleveland harbor many years
since. The speeimen was preserved and mounted, and placed in the
museum of Cleveland Medical College. He has since informed me that
from lack of care it has been destroyed by vermin. Mr. Nelson killeda
specimen in full breeding dress on Lake Michigan, near Chicago, in
April, 1873, but unfortunately it was not secured.

Sub-family STERNINAa. Terns.

Covering of bill continuous (no cere) hard and horny throughout; bill paragnathous,
relatively longer and slenderer than in the Guils, very acute, the commissure straight or
nearly so to the end; nostrils generally linear. Tail never square, almost invariably
forked (often deeply forficate), Wingsextremely long and pointed. Feetsmall and weak.

Sub-genus Gelochelidon. Bill remarably short, stout and obtuse, hardly or not half as
long again as the tarsus.
Srerna ANGLICA Montague.
Gull-billed Tern; Marsh Tern.

Sterna aranea, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.—WHxEaATON, Ohio Agrio.
Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.

COMMON TERN. 553

Sterna anglica, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 573; Reprint,
1875, 15.—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin. 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. 800.
Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23.

Sterna anglica, MONTAGUE, Orn. Dict. Suppl., 1813.

Sterna aranea, WILSON, Am. Orn., viii, 1814, 143.

Bill and feet black; mantle pearly grayish-blue, this color extending on the rump
and tail; primaries with the white stripe restricted to their base, their shafts white.
Length, 13-15; extent, about 34; wing, 10-12; tail, 4, forked only 2 or less, the lateral
feathers little narrowed ; tarsi, i-14; bill, 1}.

Habitat, nearly cosmopolitan. In North America, chiefly Eastern United States; not
detected on the Pacific side. Patagonia.

Rare visitor in the vicinity of Cleveland, where taken by Mr. Winslow.
Given as an exceedingly rare summer visitor in the vicinity of Chicago
by Mr. Nelson.

Sub-genus Sterna. Bill of ordinary Sternine character ; occiput not crested ; feet not
black. Medium and small.

STERNA FLUVIATILIS Naumann.
Common Tern; Sea-swallow.

Sterna hirundo, NUTTALL, Man., ii, 1834, 271.—KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166,
185.—AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 75; Birds Am., vii, 1844, 98—WHEATON, Food
of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 1875, 575; Reprint, 15.—Lanepon, Cat Birds
of Cin., 1877, 18 ; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23;
Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229.—Dury and FREEMAN, ib,, iii, 1880, 104; Reprint,
5.-

Sterna wilsonii, TREMBLY, Field Notes, i, 1861, 129.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep, for 1860,
1861, 371; Reprint, 13.

? Great Tern, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152.

Sterna hirundo, LINNZUS, Fn. Suec., 158.
Sterna fluviatilis, NAUMAUNN, Isis, 1820.
Sterna wilsoni, BONAPARTE, List, 1838, 61.

Bill red, blackening on the terminal third, the very point usually light; feet coral-
red. Mantle pearly grayish-blue ; primary shafts white except at the end; below white,
washed with pale pearly plumbeous, blanching on throat and lower belly. Tail mostly
white, the outer web of the outer feather darker than inner web of the same. Length of
male, 144 (13-16); extent, 31 (29-32); wing, 104 (43-112); tail, 6 (5-7); tarsus, $ (44) ;
bill, 14-14; whole foot, averaging 12; female rather less; averaging toward
these minima; young birds may show a little smaller, in length of tail particularly, and
so of total length; length, 12 or more; wing, 9 or more; tail, 4 or more; bill, 14 or
more. In winter this species does not appear to lose the black-cap, contrary to a nearly
universalrule. Young :—Bill wostly dusky, but much of the under mandible yellowish;
feet simply yellowish ; cap more or less defective ; back and wings patched and barred
with gray and light brown, the bluish showing imperfectly if if all, but this color shading
much of the tail; usually a blackish bar along the lesser coverts, and several tail
feathers dusky on the outer web ; below, pure white, or with very little plumbeonus shade.

554 BIRDS—LARIDE.

Habitat, Europe. Eastern North America generally. Bahamas. Breeds variously in
its North American range; winters in the United States north to 57°; passes beyond
Texas.

Common spring and fall migrant, perhaps not common summer resident
on Lake Erie, less common or irregular throughout the State. In this
vicinity the Common Tern is most frequently seen in spring, when it
sometimes appears in considerable flocks on our river. In the fall a
solitary individual sometimes lingers for several days. Mr. Langdon
mentions its rather common occurrence on Sandusky Bay in summer.

The appearance of any of the birds of this family in the interior of the
State is so irregular and transient, as to render their study a matter of
uncertainty, ii not accident, except upon the shore of Lake Erie, Mr.
William Brewster (Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 13) is so felicitous
in his paper “On the Terns of the New England Coast,” that I trust I
need make no apology for giving it here entire:

“ Among all the sea-birds that with the changing seasons visit our New England shores
there are none half so beautifal as the Terns, or Sea-Swallows. Family Laride, sub-
family Sternin®, genus Sterna,—thus they are classed in the books. What a pity their
names could not have been more aptly chosen! There is much in a name, and Sterna
sounds hard and cold. Nor is the English appellation, Tern, a whit more appropriate
or beautiful. Why could not these birds of graceful motion and fanltless coloring have
borne the name of Aphrodite? Perhaps like her they were evolved from the sea-foam.
No sea-foam can be purer than their spotless breasts, and the softest tints of the
summer sky are impressed upon their pearly mantles. If ever birds were born of the sea
surely they are these. The delicate rosy blush of at least one species must have been
borrowed from some rareshell. But Science, plodding and realistic, frowns upon such
imagery, and her solid columns of facts and figures are resistless.

‘* Occurring more or less regularly along the coast of New Englaud, we find eleven
species of Terns, all of which, with one possible exception (Sterna caspia), are either
summer residents or migratory during the spring or fall months. Of this number five
species may be set down as accidental visitors, which are either blown from their course
by adverse winds or wander beyond the usual range. The Royal Tern (Sterna maxima),
the Marsh Tern (S. anglica), the Sandwich Tern ($. cantiaca), and the Sooty Tern (S.
Juliginosa) are stragglers from the South, while the Forster’s Tern (8. forsteri), breeding
in the interior well up into the fur countries, probably strikes across to the coast and
follows its indentation southward. The last-uamed species, though rare, is of perhaps
too regular occurrence to be classed among the accidentals, for one or two specimens
are reported nearly every season, usually during the month of September.

“The Caspian Tern—all previous statements to the contrary—must be considered &
regular visitor every season, and by no means uncommon. They come down from their
northern breeding-grounds during the latter part of September and for several weeks,
at least, are to be found in moderate numbers all along ourseaboard. I have observed
them at various points from Ipswich to Nantucket. At the latter place, upon one occa-
sion, six individuals were seen fishing in the harbor near the town. As to their winter-
ing within New England limits, I can offer only negative evidence, but that points to
the inference that they pass farther south with the approach of severe weather. During

COMMON TERN. 555

the first week of May, 1875, I found them quite numerous at Chatham, Mass. They fre-
quented the sand-bars near the shore, and kept apart from the Herring and Black-
backed Gulls, the only other species of Larid® present at the time. The Short-tailed
Tern (Hydrochelidon nigra) can likewise no longer be regarded as a rare or accidental
visitor. Their numbers vary considerably in different years, but they are always to be
found during the fall migration. AtNantucket they were fairly numerous in August and
September of 1878. I known of but one instance of the capture of this Tern in spring.

‘Four species only out of the number accredited to New England are known to breed
along its coast. They may be given in the order of their comparative abundance as fol-
lows: The Wilson’s or Common Tern (S. fluviatilis) ; the Roseate Tern (S. dougalli) ; the
Arctic Tern (S. macrura) (the choice of precedence between the last two species will
vary as different localities are considered); and the Least Tern (S. antillarum). Of these
the Roseate and Least Terns are for the most part; confined to the waters of Cape Cod,
while the Arctic and Common Terns brzed along the entire coast, and rauge northwards
to unknown latitudes. Formerly a small colony of Least Terns nested annually upon
the Ipswich sand-hills, but they have been entirely driven, away by psrsecution. This
point was probably about the extreme limit of their northern range upon the Atlantic
coast. I have also upon one occasion found the Roseate Tern as far north as Casco Bay,
Maine, where a small flock was observed upon the Green Island. They certainly were
not nesting there, though the date, July 20, renders it not impossible that they had
eggs or young on some of the neighboring islands.

“ Spring comes over the sea laterthan upon the land, and fewer tokens are given of its
presence. There is no freshening grass; no budding foliage, nor springing up of green
thizgs in sheltered places, Summer may be close at hand, but as yet the sea gives no
sign. When the wind is from the north, the waves in the bay have that steely glint
that they have borne all winter. The sand drifts drearily over the wind-swept beach-
ridges, and the marshes are bleak and brown, while in the interior Robins may be
hopping about upon green lawns, and violets blooming in every woodland nook. The
Ducks and Geese, it is true, are marshalling their cohorts and stretching out in long
lines northward, but the breath of ocean is still chill and cold. Indeed, the season is
commonly far advanced, and the apple orchards in bloom inland, ere the winter Gulls
are gone to their distant breeding-grounds. Scarcely has the rear guard of their legions
departed, when the Terns begin te appear. And what a fitness is there in the chang-
ing season! The larger Gulls, that enliven our shores through the colder months, seem
born to breast the fiercest gusts of winter and to wrest a living from icy seas. Bold,
hardy, vigorous, they delight in the cold, and their every motion bespeaks conscious
power and strength. The Terns, on the other hand, are characterized by a delicate per-
fection of outline and a swift grace of movement, that seems ill-adapted to stern, pitiless
surroundings. They are like swift yachts that winter in southern seas, and come back
to us on the first warm breezes of summer. Yet the significance is perhaps only
local, after all, for both Gulls and ferns herald the opening summer to the inhabitant of
Labrador and Greenland.

“The Least Terns, although the smallest and seemingly the most delicate of their
tribe, arrive first. By the middle of May they appear in certain favored spots,—for they
are not anywhere very numerous,—and small colonies of from ten to fifty pairs are
soon formed at various points along the shores of Cape Cod and upon some of the more
sandy islands in the Vineyard Sound.

“A few days after the advent of the ‘Little Strikers,’ as the Least Terns are called

by the ’longshoremen of Virginia, the Wilson’s and Roseate Terns begin to appear.

556 BIRDS—LARIDE.

They are already paired, but judging by the occasional bickerings and jealousies that
arise, even the more sedate females are not above a little harmless flirtation. It is a
pretty sight to see the mated birds sitting side by side upon some long sand-spit, all
with their breasts turned to the soft morning breeze, and each little glossy black cap
glistening in the sunlight. Forty or fifty there may be altogether, with others continually
arriving from the distant fishing-grounds. As the incoming birds settle among their
fellows, a low murmur of welcome runs through the assembled throng, and fifty pairs of
wing are simultaneously raised above their owner’s backs. Itis like the greeting offered
by men to one whom they delight to honor, save that among these simple sea-birds even
tke humblest are rarely neglected. Those individuals occupying the higher portion of the
bar are squatted on the warm sand, or lying with wings partially extended to the grate-
fal rays of the sun, while along the water’s edge many are washing and pluming them-
selves, scattering the salt spray in every direction, or toying with the lapping waves.
As the rising tide encroaches on their domain, numbers of the more careless are floated
off their teet, when they take wing and alight again among the rest. In this way the
area continually narrows, until the birds are massed in a compact body upon the highest
point. When this at length becomes submerged they all take wing and remove to some
other spot. The same bar is apt to be resorted to daily, and if sufficiently elevated to
be beyond the reach of the tides, it is all the more likely to be chosen. 5

“ About the middle of June—the time varying somewhat with different localities—the
Terns repair to their breeding-grounds and begin to deposit their eggs. Muskegat, the
outermost of a group of low, sandy islands that with Nantucket form the breakwater of
Vineyard Sound, is, and has been since time immemorial, the largest breeding station of
the Terns on the New England coast. It is crescentic in shape, three miles long by one
across at the broadest part, and uninhabited. The beach along the eastern shore is
steep and bold, and in the calmest summer weather the heavy surges from the open
ocean break upon the shiftiog sands with an incessant sullen roar. Upon the Sound
side shallows and sand-bars extend for miles in every direction, and it is said that at
low tide one may wade across to Tuckernuck, more than a mile distant. The interior
of the island rises in rolling sand-hills, whigh are sparsely clothed with beach-grass and
a stunted growth of poison ivy, while a few scattered clumps of bayberry-bushes afford
the nearest approach to arboreal vegetation. Were it not for man,—who, alas! must be
ranked as the greatest of all deatroyers,—the Terns would here find an asylam sufficiently
secure from all foes. But season after season the poor birds are daily robbed of their
eggs by fishermen, while frequent yachting parties invade their strongholds and shoot
them by hundreds, either in wanton sport or for their wings, which are presented to
fair companions. Then the graceful vessel spreads her snowy sails and glides blithely
away through the summer seas. Allis gayety and merriment on board, but among the
barren sand-hills, fast fading in the distance, many a poor bird is seeking its missing
mate; many a downy little orphan is crying for the food the dead mother can no longer
supply; many a speckled egg lies cold and deserted. Buzzing flies settle upon the
bloody bodies, and the tender young pine away and die. A graceful pearl-tinted wing
surmounts a jaunty hat for a brief season, and then is cast aside, and Muskegat lies for-
gotten, with the bones of the mother and her offspring bleaching on the white sand.
This no fancy sketch ; all over the world the sad destruction goes on. It is indeed the
price of blood that is paid for nodding plumes. Science may be, nay, certainly is,
cruel at times, but not one tithe of the suffering is caused by her disciples that.
votaries of the fickle goddess Fashion yearly sanction.

“My first visit to Muskegat was in 1870. It was about the 25th of June when we

COMMON TERN. 557

landed on the island, and three days were spent in investigating its fauna. Although
the fishermen told us that the Tern had been diminishing for years, their numbers at
that time, nevertheless, were astonishing. The Arctic Terns were breeding apart in a
separate colony, on a long, narrow strip ot sand, while the Common or Roseate Terns
intermingled freely, often times placing their nests side by side. Little preference seemed
to be accorded by the last two species to any given localitiy. Their eggs were as often
laid upon the windrows of sea- weed at high-water mark, as among the ivy-vines on the
sand-hills. Indeed, they were scattered everywhere, and the birds that were breeding
there must have been numbered by hundred of thousands. The sight was a uovel and
impressive one. Overhead, at varying heights, swarms of Terns were passing and
repassing, crossing each other’s flight in mazy lines, From the birds just skimming the
crests of the sand-hills to the white specks floating thousands of feet above the earth in
the blue sky, the air was filled with their countless numbers. Hundreds were con-
ténually rising from their nest and making out to sea, or returning from the fishing-
grounds, each with a small fish held crossways in its bill.

‘“On one occasion that I remember, a black thunder-cloud rose out of the sea, in the
north, and the white birds hovering over the island were brought out in striking con-
trast tu the dark background. Ii was as if the air were filled with snowflakes. The
noise was simply deafening, especially when the birds became aware of our presence.
As we advanced, their sitting mates rose from the nests in clouds, swelling the throng
of anxious parents over our heads, each bird adding its shrill voice to the general din.
Yet amid all this confusion they took good care to keep beyond gun range. Occasionally,
however, an exception to this occurred, and a daring bird darted down into our very
faces. High overhead all the time a number of Black-headed Gulls (L. atricilia) floated
in graceful circles, adding their shrill demonical langhter to the weird chorus.

‘If a Tern wereshot, the effect was instantaneous and startling. Every voice was at
ence hushed, hundreds of long narrow wings were set, and troops of gliding arrowy
forms swept down in silence to the fallen victim. From the sky above, from every nook
and corner of the neighboring sand-hills, they came hurrying to the spot. Then, as if at
a given signal, every bird burst out afresh in cries of rage, protest, and despair. The
effect was indescribable. As the graceful birds came whirling down in perfect silence,
they seemed like dread avengers seeking to bear away their dead comrade and to over-
whelm his destroyer. If another bird was killed, the tumult continued and the excite-
ment became even more intense; but if no farther molestation were offered, they
gradually departed one by one. This habit of hovering over their slain companions,

‚though undoubtedly prompted by sympathy and social affection, is a most unfortunate
one, as it is constantly taken advantage of, and dozens are frequently killed at a time.

“ Upon Muskegat the Terns have, or had at the time of which I write, another onemy,
which, though second in importance to man, nevertheless destroyed large uambors of.
these birds. This was the Short-eared Owl (Brachyotus palustris). A small colony of
these birds had established itself upon a certain elevated part of the island, spending
the day in a tract ef densely matted grass Scattered about in this retreat were the
romains of at least a hundred Terns, that they had killed and eaten. Many of these

‘ were fresi, while others were in every stage of decomposition, or dried by the sun and
wind. In each case the breast had been picked elean, but in no instance was any other
portion disturbed. Every day, at a certain time, these Owls sallied forth in search of
fresh prey. We used regularly to see them about sunset, sailing in circles over the island
or beating along the crests of the sand-hills. They were invariably followed by vast
mobs of enraged Terns, which dived angrily down over the spot where the Owl had

558 BIRDS—LARIDE.

alighted, or strung out in the wake of his flight like the tail of a comet. The Owl com-
monly paid little attention to this unbidden following, and apparently never tried to
sieze his persecntors while on the wing, but on several occasions we saw a sitting bird
pounced upon and borne off. Sometimes in the middle of the night a great outery
amoug the Terns told where a tragedy was being enacted.

‘<7 found the Terns sadly diminished in numbers when I last visited Muskegat, in July,
1874. Their persecutors were ravishing their stronghold more relentlessly than ever, and
nearly every day fishermen came from far and near to collect their eggs. So cleanly
had they swept the island that we could find scarcely a nest with eggs, and at that
comparatively late date not a single young bird was to be seen. In fact, the poor Terns
were kept laying like hens through the whole summer. We were told by the fishermen
that quite as many eggs were obtained by them in August asin June; it is doubtful if
one pair in a hundred succeeded in raising offspring that year. Under such conditions
the result is in-vitable. If prompt legislation be not brought to bear on the matter, the
time is near at hand when the waters of Vineyard Sound will no longer be enlivened
by these innocent birds. The inconsiderable destruction of small fishes, a reason that
has been given for withholding protection, is of little moment, and those barren sandy
shores can ill afford tc «088 the presence of the gracefu: Sea-swallow.

“ Of the eggs of the three species of Terns which breed upon Muskegat, little need be
said save that they vary to analmost endless degree, and cannot specifically be distin-
guished. The Wilson’s and Roseate Terns ueually build nests, some of which are quite
pulky, with a lining of dry grasses, upon a foundation of coarse twigs or sea-weed. In
mauy cases, however, the eggs were simply iaid in a slight depression in the sand. We
fancied that the Roseate Terns built more substantial domiciles than the other species,
but the difficulty of satisfactorily identifying any considerable number of nests rendered
a positive conclusion hopeless. The Arctic Terns, as before stated, bred apart from the
others, aiid laid their eggs upon the bare sand.

“The notes of the Wilson’s and Arctic Terns vary, if at all, only slightly in modulation.
The ordinary cry of anger or protest is a harsh vibrating te-ar-r-r, that of contentment
or recognition a soft chick. They utter various other sounds, all more or less discordant.
The usnai note of the Roseate Tern is a soft mellow hew-it, repeated at frequent inter-
vals. It has, in addition, when excited or angry, cry which can be closely imitated
by forcibly tearing a strong piece of cotton cloth.

‘© One who bas never held in his hand a freshly killed Tern can scarcely imegine its
wonderful beauty. The delicate faultless outlines; the long, slender, graceful wings;
the pearly blue-gray back; the soft tinting beneath, set off by the bright coral red of the
feet and bill, all go to mate up a whole that must satisfy the most »sthetie eyo. The
delicate blush that suffuses the breast of the Roseate Tern cau only be seen in ıts perfec-
tion for a brief period after death, for either it fades altogether, or turns to a dull salmon
tint before the bird becumes cold. Like an ethereal grace, it shrinks and perishes
betore the gaze of vulgar eyes.

‘ When the cares of incubation are over,—and sad, unprofitable cares they must be in
most cases for these poor birds,—the Terns resort again to the sand-bers nearest their
chosen fishing-grounds. The waters about Nantucketare a favorite haunt, and through
the month of September they swarm abont every bay and cove that indents the shore.
Their movements, however, depend largely upon those of the blue-fish. Those voracious
creatures prey upon the smaller fishes, and, hunting always in schools, by their com-
bined action drive the feeble fry to the surface, when they are seized by the Terns. The
fishermen rely almost wholly upon the actions of the latter to discover the presence of

s

COMMON TERN. 559

fish in the Sound, and when a flock of Terns is seen hovering over a certain spot, a
school of blue-fish is pretty sure to be at work beneath.

“Tt ig an interesting sight to watch the birds collect. A moment before, perhaps only
a few were to be seen, leisurely winnowing their way along the shore; butin an incredi-
bly short space of time the lucky discoverer of a school is surrounded by hundreds of his
fellows, aud a perfect swarm of eager, hungry birds poises over the spot. Dozens dash
down at once, cleaving the water like darts, and, rising again into the air, shake the
salt spray fru their feathers by a single energetic movement, and make ready for a
fresh plunge. Every bird among them is screaming his shrillest, and the excitement
waxes fast and furious. Beneath, the blue-fish are making the water boil by their
savage rushes, znd there is fun and profit for all save the unfortunate prey. Their posi-
tion is perhyps the best exemplification of the ‘frying-pan and the fire’ that can be
found in nature.

“The descent of a Tern npon its victim is performed with inimitable ease and grace.
The bird frequently disappears entirely beneath the surface, and occasionally even swims
a short distance under water before reappearing. The flighi of the Rosexte Tern. is
especially dashing and beautiful, with the long cleft tail streaming out behind, or in-
clining, rudder-like to either side, as the bird suddenly changes its course. I have seen
the Wilson’s Tern picking up floating garbage from the surface in the mınner of a
Gull, but the food is ordinarily small fishes, which are taken alive.

“In clear calm weather in September few Terns will be seen along shore. They
probably wander farther out to sea at such times, or congregate upon the sand-bars to
rest and p'ume themselves. The cleanliness of these birds is remarkable. Not only is
the plumage invariably spotless, but I have on wore than one occasion seen a wounded
one, which had been taken into the boat, begin to arrange its disordered feathers, and
its feeble efforts to remove the blood-stains from its fresh wounds were truly touching.

“When the wind blows hard the Terns spenı: much of their time un tre wing, and
then display great restlessness andactivity. Theysecm to exult with the freshening breeze,
like ships that have been becalmed. At such times I have seen them play ‘or many
minutes with a fish which one of their number had captured. The holder would drop it,
evidently by design, and the whole troop go sweeping down in pursuit. The foremost
was sure to seize it before it reach the: water, when it was taken up into the air and
again dropped. In this manuer the prize would be in turn passed from one to another.
The game was apparently well understood by all, as no attempt was made by any of
them to devour the fish. Swallows will frequently play with a feather in a similar
manner. ,

“ The ease with which sea-birds find their way through the densest fog is as astonish-
ing as it is inexplicable. I have seen the Terns passing between the fishing-grounds and
Muskegat when it was impossible for human eyes to discern an object many yards
away, and yet their course was as direct and decided asin the clearest weather. Indeed,
at such times the fishermen are often guided by their flight.

“The Least Terns usually leave for the south in the latter part of August, and the
Short-tailed species commonly departs before the close of the succeeding month. But
the Wilson’s, the Roseate, and tbe Arctic Terns linger about Nantucket through the first
half of October. After that their numbers thin rapidly, and by the 25th all are gone.
The fishermen say that they follow the blue-fish in their southward migration. How-
ever that may be, when the chilliug blasts of early November sweep across the sea,
the Herring and Black-backed Gulls have taken their places upon the sand-bars
about Nantucket; the Eider Duck, the Scoter, the Whistler, and the Sheldrake flock to

560 BIRDS—LARIDA.

fish among the Muskegat ‘ tide-rips’; and troops of Snow-Buntings whirl over the bleak
sand-hills.”

STERNA FORSTERI Nutt.
Forster’s Tern.

Sterna forsteri, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 515; Reprint,
1875, 15.—LANGDoN, Cat. Birds of Cin,, 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., i, 1879, 187; Repriat, 21.—DURY and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1880, 104; Reprint,
5.

Sterna forsteri, NUTTALL, Man., ii, 1834, 274.

Like the last; larger, tail longer than wings.‘ Wing of adult, 94-104; tail, 64-8, thus
often beyond the extreme of fluviatilis, and nearly as in macrura ; bill, 1$ (14-14), and
about 2-5 deep at base (ın fluviatilis rarely if ever so deep); tarsus seldom down to 4;
whole foot, about 2. Little or no plumbeous wash below ; inner web of the outer tail.
feather darker than outer web of the same. Young and winter birds may be distin-
guished from fluviatilis at gunshot range; the black cap is almost entirely wanting, and
in its place is a broad black band on each side of the head through the eye; several
lateral tail feathers are largely dusky on the inner webs; their outer webs are white.

Habitat, North America at large. Middle America. South America to Brazil. Only
known to breed in the higher latitudes.

Not very common spring and fall migrant. Not recorded from the
lake shore. Mr. Langdon gives-it asa rare migrant in the vicinity of
Cincinnati, where Messrs. Dury and Freeman note six specimens taken
May 4, 1879. My own acquaintance with the bird in this vicinity is
limited to a single specimen taken in the fall of 1861 or 1862. Doubtless
it has been confounded with other species, as no adequate and generally
accessible description of the adult was had until 1858 (Lawrence), or of the
young until 1862 (Coues).

This Tern may possibly breed in Northern Ohio, as it has been dis-
eovered breeding in Northern Illinois by Mr. Nelson, who gives the fol-
lowing description of its nesting and eggs:

‘‘ Although I have been aware that S. forsteri nested in this vicinity for several years,
it was not until the middle of June, 1876, that I had the pleasure of examining one of
their nests. While we were collecting eggs among the wild rice patches, on Grass Lake,
June 14th, Mr. Douglas observed a pair of these Terns hovering near a small patch of
Saggitaria leaves growing in several feet of water, and rowing to the spot found the
pest, which was a loosely built structure of coarse pieces of reeds resting upon a mass of
floating plants and concealed from view by the surrounding leaves. Upon the nest was
a single young bird, abont to seramble into the water, but upon seeing Mr. Douglas it
erouched to avoid being observed, and was enptured. A thorough search at the time
failed to revealany other young ones, so the adults, which had been darting and scream-
ing about this heap, were secured, with a second pair which had espoused the cause of
their companions. Their anxiety we afterwards found to be the proximity of an unfin-
ished nest, similarly situated. That evening we found and secured two more young

ROSEATE TERN. 561

upon the nest found in the morning. The next morning fortune favored me, and, while
passing between several floating masses of decaying vegetable matter I observed four
small heaps of wild rice stalks resting upon one of these masses, and on a near view, to
my delight they proved to be the desired nests containing eggs. The nests were
situated in a line, and the two outer ones were not over twenty-five feet apart. The
only materials used were pieces of wild rice stems, which were obviously brought from
some distance, as the nearest patch of rice was several rods distant. The nests were
quite bulky, the bases being two feet or more in diameter. The greatest depth was
about eight inches, and the depression in the centre so deep that while sitting in the
boat a rod away the eggs were not visible. Two of the nests contained three eggs, and
two contained two eggs, each. The following are the measurements of three of the
eggs, representing the amount of variation: 1.70 by 1.25; 1.75 by 1.20 and 1.60 by 1.25.
The ground color varies from a pale greenish to a warm brownish drab. The spots and
shell markings are of a varying shade of brown, distributed much as in the other small
Tern’s eggs.”
StERNA DOUGALLI Mont.
Roseate Tern.
Sterna paradisea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.
Sterna paradisea, WHEATON, Focd of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 574 ; Reprint,
1875, 15.
Sterna dougalli, LANGDoN, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 187; Re-
print, 21. ‘
Roseate Tern, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152.
Sterna dougalli, MoNTAGUE, Orn. Dict. Suppl., 1813.
Sterna paradisea, KEYSERLING and BLASsIUs, Wirl. Eur., 1840, 97.

Bill black, usually orange at base below. Mantle very pale pearly-blue; primaries
with the white band broad and usually extending to the very tip ; below, pure white,
or rosy-tinted ; feet coral-red. Changes of plumage as in other species. Length, 12-16;
wing, 9-10; tail, 5-8; bill, 13-1}, very slender; tarsus, 3-4.

STERNA MACRURA Naumann.
Arctic Tern.

Sterna arctica, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geol. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.

Sterna macroura, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13; Food of
Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575 ; Reprint, 1875, 15.—Rıpaway, Ann. Lyc.,
N. Y., x, 1874, 393.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18.

Arctic Tern, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog,, iii, 1835, 98; B. Am., vii, 1844, 152; BaLLov, Field
and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Sterna macrura, NAUMANN, Isis, xii, 1819, 1847.

Sterna arctica, TEMMINCK, Man., ii, 1820, 742.

The statement of Audubon, quoted on page 547, is the only authority for citations of
this as an Ohio species, except that of Mr. Ballou. On page 108 of the same volume, Audu-
bon says: ‘The Arctic Tern is found or the Eastern coast of the United States only,”
thus annulling ‘the former statement. Mr. Nelson does not give it as a bird of Illinois,
nor do I find any other record of its occarrence in the Mississippi Valley or in the in-
terior ; see also Mr. Ridgway’s views on page 551.

36

562 BIRDS—LARIDA.

Habitat, Europe. In North America, observed from Massachusetts to Florida, thence
to Central America. Various West Indian Islands. Breeds apparentiy throughout its
range. No United States record of wintering.

Not common spring and fall migrant. Named by Audubon as above
cited, and by Mr. Winslow as occurring on Lake Erie. Mr. Langdon
notes a single example from the vicinity of Cincinnati.

STERNA ANTILLARUM (Less.) Coues.
Least Tern.
Sterna minuta, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iv, 1838, 175; B. Am., vii, 1844, 119.
Sterna frenata, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.
Sterna superciliaris, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Re-
print, 1875, 15.— Lanepon,Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18.
Sterna superciliaris, var. antillarum, LANGDON, Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat, Hist.,
i, 1879; Reprint, 21. 4
Sterna superciliaris, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist., Nat., xxxii, 1819, 126.
Sterna minuta, WILSON, Am. Orn., vii, 1813, 80.
Sternula antillarum, Lesson, Descr. Mam. et Ois., 1847, 256.
Sterna frenata, GAMBEL, Proc. Phila. Acad., iv, 1848, 128.
Sterna superciliaris, var. antillarum, Cougs, Birds N. W., 1874, 692.

Bill yellow, usually tipped with black. Mantle pale pearly grayish-blue, unchanged
on the rump and tail; a white frontal crescent, separating the black from the bill, bounded
below by a black loral stripe reaching the bill; shafts of two or more outer primaries
black on the upper surface, white underneath ; feet orange. Young :—Cap too defective
to show the crescent; bill dark, much of the under mandible pale; feet obscured.
Very small, only 8-9; wing, 6-64; tail, 2-345; bill, 1-14; tarsus, %.

Habitat, Temperate North America, especially along the Atlantic coast of the United
States, but also on the larger inland waters, Up the Pacific coast to California. South
into the Antilles and Middle America generally. Apparently winters beyond the United
States.

Not common and apparently very irregular spring and fall migrant.
Audubon states that it “is extremely abundant at times on the lakes
and on the Ohio,” which is not confirmed by recent observations. Mr.
Winslow does not giveit as a bird of Northern Ohio, but Mr. Langdon
notes several specimens taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati. I saw a
pair on the canal below this city several years since.

Genus HYDROCHELIDON. Brehm.

Webs deeply incised (feet little more than semipalmate), Tail merely emarginate,
hardly or not half as long as the wing.

HYDROCHELIDON LARIFORMIS (L.) Coues.
Black Tern.

Sterna nigra, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 535; B. Am., viii, 1844, 16.—KIRTLAND,
Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 185.

BLACK TERN. 568

Hydrochelidon plumbea, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.

Hydrochelidon fissipes, WHEATON, Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575 ; Re-
print, 1875, 14.

Hydrochelidon lariformis, LANGDON, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877,18; Revised List, Journ,
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 187; Reprint, 21; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 229.—
Dury and FREEMAN, ib., iii, 1880, 104 ; Reprint, 5.

Black Tern, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 98.

Short-tailed Tern, BALLOU, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Rallus lariformis, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat,, i, 1758, 153.
Sterna nigra, BRISSON, Orn., vi, 1860, 211.

Hydrochelidon nigra, Born, Isis, 1822, 563.

Sterna plumbea, WILSON, Am. Orn., vii, 1813, 83.
Hydrochelidon plumbea, LAWRENCE, Birds Am., 1858, 864.
Sterna fissipes, LINNRUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 228.
Hydrochelidon fissipes, Couns, Proc. Phil. Acad., 1862, 554.
Hydrochelidon leriformis, Couns, Birds N. W., 1874, 704.

Adult in breeding plumage; head, neck and under parts, uniform jet-black ; back,
wings and tail plumbeous; primaries unstriped ; crissum pure white; bill black. In
winter and young birds, the black is mostly replaced by white on the forehead, sides of
head and under parts, the crown, occiput and neck behind, with the sides under the
wings, being dusky-gray ; a dark auricular patch and another before the eye; in a very
early stage, the upper-parts are varied with dull brown. Small; wing, 8-9, little less
than the whole length of the bird; tail, 34, simply forked ; bill, 1-14; tarsus,#; middle
toe and claw, 14.

Habitat, Europe, &c. North Ameriea generally. Alaska. Middle America. South
America and Chili. Breeds at large in North America. Winters chiefly or entirely ex-
tralimital.

Common summer resident in Northern Ohio, and common spring and

fall migrant in other parts of the State.

In this vicinity the Black or Short-tailed Tern is the most numerous
and regular species of the sub-family while on the migrations, and may
be seen on the rivers, ponds or canals. I have never known it to breed
here, however. Mr. Langdon gives the following observations of them
in the breeding season, in Ottawa county (Summer Birds, 1. c.):

“A very common summer resident in the marsh; nesting, or rather laying its eggs on
the islands of decaying vegetation and mud formed by sunken muskrat houses. Three
eggs constitute a full set, and they are apparently rolled about in the mud purposely,
until well coated, so as to hide the markings and thereby make them less conspicuous.
In two or three instances only did we observe any attempt at a nest, and these would
not have been recognized assuch without the eggs, consisting as they did of merely a
few fragments of grass or bulrushes so disposed as to prevent the eggs from rolling ; in
most cases the eggs rested in a slight depression on the baremud. The sun appears to be
their chief incubator, although the decaying vegetation of which the abandoned musk-
tat houses consist, doubtless plays some part in the process, In no instance did we
succeed in flushing a bird from the eggs, although they would appear in pairs to the num-
ber of twenty or thirty and hover about within a few feet of our heads making a great

564 BIRDS—-COLYMBIDA.

outery when we approached their property, which was soon to be ours by right of dis-
covery. At other times the birds were not at all gregarious, being usually observed forag-
ing singly or in pairs. Several young of the year were taken, thus confirming the state-
ment of the resident who informed us that he had taken numbers of eggs of the first
brood in May. Of the dozen or more'sets of eggs taken by us early in July, more than
half were fresh or nearly so.”

ORDER PYGOPODES. DIVING BIRDS.
FAMILY COLYMBIDA. LOONS.

Feet four-toed, palmate. Hallux lobate, connected at base with base of inner toe.
Tail perfect. Head closely and completely feathered. Nostrils with a depending lobe
or flap. Bill straight, compressed, acute.

Genus COLYMBUS. Linneus.
With characters of the family.

CoLYMBUS TORQUATUS Brunn.
Loon; Great Northern Diver.

Colymbus glacialis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. “urv., 1838, 166, 186.

Colymbus torquatus, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13; Food
of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—LAnGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 187; Re-
print, 21; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1830, 230.

Loon, BALLov, Field and Forest, iii, 1878, 136.

Colymbus torquatus, BRUNNICH, Orn. Bor., 1764, No. 134.

Colymbus glacialis, LINNEUB, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 221.

Black; below from the breast white, with dark touches on the sides and vent; back
with numerous square white spots; head and neck iridescent with violet and green,
having a patch of sharp white streaks on each side of the neck and another on the
throat; bill black. Young:—Dark-gray above, the featkers with paler edges; below
white from the bill, the sides dusky; bill yellowish-green and dusky. Length, 24-3 feet ;
extent, about 4; wing, about 14 inches; tarsus, 3 or more; longest toe and claw, 4 or
more; bill, 3 or less, at base 1 deep and 4 wide, the culmen, commissure and gonys all
gently curved.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere. In winter generally dispersed in the United States.

Common spring and fall migrant and winter resident. Mr. Langdon
notes its occasional occurrence in Northern Ohio in summer, and it is
still probably, as it certainly was formerly, a summer resident. Dr.
Kirtland meations its having been picked up on land after a storm. I
have known it to be taken in the streets of this city under the same cir-
cumstances. In this vicinity it often appears in companies of from six
to ten, and furnishes ample shooting to sportsmen who find them the most
expert of all divers, generally escaping by this means when their cap-

RED-THROATED DIVER. 565

ture seems almost certain. On the Ohio river I have seen them in great
numbers when they seemed to take pleasure in accompanying steam-
boats, swimming along side, and often diving under. When diving their
movements are more like those of a turtle than those of a bird, the legs
moving in the horizontal plane of the body, and the wings assisting
with short flaps, executed by moving the proximal joints only.

COoLYMBUS arcticus Linnzus,
Black-throated Diver.

Back and under-parts much as in the last species; upper part of head and hind neck,
bluish-ash or hoary-gray ; fore neck purplish-black. The young resemble those of that
species but will be known by their inferior size. Length, under 24 feet; extent, about
3; wing, 13 or less; tatsus, 3; bill, about 24.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere.

Very rare or accidental visitor, now first given as‘’a bird of Ohio. Mr. .
H. E. Chubb writes: “I mounted one specimen for a gentleman in
Garrettsville last fall [1880]. It was shotin Sandusky Bay. This is the
only specimen I have seen.”

CoLYMBUS SEPTENTRIONALIS Linnzus.
Red-throated Diver,

Colymbus septentrionalis, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371, 379; Reprint, 1861,
13, 21; Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—
LanGpon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i,
1879, 187; Reprint, 21.

Colymbus septentrionalis, LINNZ&US, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 220.

Blackish ; below white, dark along the sides and on the vent and crissum; most of
head and fore neck bluish-gray, the throat with a large chestnut patch; hind neck
sharply streaked with white on a blackish ground, bill black. Young have not these
marks on the head and neck, but a profussion of small, sharp, circular or oval white
spots on the back. Size of the last, or rather less.

Habitat, Northern Hemisphere.
Spring and fall migrant ; not rare on Lake Erie, especially in the fall,
rare in other portions of the State. Mr. Langdon mentions two or three
‘individuals taken in the vicinity of Cincinnati. I have never met with
it.

FAMILY PODICIPIDA. GREBES, ETC.

Feet four-toed, lobate. Hallux lobate, free. Tail rudimentary. Head with a naked
loral strip and bristly or variously lengthened feathers. Bill straight or decurved at
end, compressed, acute.

566 BIRDS—PODICIPIDE.

Genus PODICEPS. Latham.

Bill slender or moderately stout, paragnathous, acute. Nostrils narrow or linear.
Loral bare strip narrow. Frontal feathers normal. Tarsus generally but little, if any,
shorter than the middle toe—at least three-fourths as long. Semipalmation of toes
moderate. Lobe of hallux broad. Usually conspicuous crests or ruffs during the breed-
ing season.

PoDICEPS GRISEIGENA (Bodd.) Gray.

var. HOLBOLLI (Reinh.) Coues.

Red-necked Grebe,

Podiceps rubricollis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.

Podiceps griseigena, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13.

Podiceps griseigena, var. holbölli, WHEATON, Food of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep.for 1874,
574; Reprint, 1875, 15.—LANGDoNn, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ.
Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23.

Colymbus griseigena, BODDERT, Tab. Pl. El., 55.
Podiceps griseigena, GRAY, Gen. of Birds, iii, 633.
Podiceps holbolli, REEINHART, Ibis, iii, 1861, 14.
Podiceps griseigena var. holbolli, Couns, Key, 1872, 327.
Podiceps rubricollis, BONAPARTE, Syn., 1828, 417.

Tarsus about four-fifths the middle toe and claw ; bill little shorter than tarsus; crests
and ruff moderately developed. Length, about 18; wing, 7-8; bill, 1% to nearly 2; tar-
sus, 3; middle toe and claw, 2%. Adult :—Front and sides of neck rich brownish-red ;
throat and sides of head ashy, whitening where it joins the dark color of the crown, the
feathers slightly ruffed ; top of head with its slight occipital crest, upper-parts generally,
and wings dark-brown, the feathers of the back paler edged; primaries brown; part of

Popicers cristatus (L.) Lath.

Crested Grebe. j

Podiceps cristatus, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—WHEATON, Ohio Agric.
Rep. for 1860,371; Reprint, 1861, 13; Food of Birds, etc., Ohio Agric. Rep. for
1874, 574 ; Reprint, 1875, 15.—Lanepon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List,
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 189; Reprint, 23.

Colymbus cristatus, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 222.
Podiceps cristatus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 78.

I was not less-surprised than most amateur ornithologists by the assertion of Dr.
Brewer (Bull. Nuttall Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 52), respecting this species, that “ not a spec- °
imen is in existence of American origin, and that there is no authentic record of the’
capture of a single specimen in America. Every specimen that has been referred to this
species, when in existence, proved to be either immature examples of P. griseigena, or
to be foreigu examples.” On investigation the four or five supposed instances of its
capture in this State, all proved to be, as Dr. Brewer says, immature Red-necked Grebes,
while the only skin of a Crested Grebe which I could obtain for comparison (kindly
lent me by Dr. Jasper), and which was labeled Labrador, was almost as unquestionably
an European bird.

HORNED GREBE. 567

inner quills white ; lower parts pale silvery-ash, the sides watered or obscurely mottled,
sometimes obviously speckled with dusky; bill black, more or less yellow at base.
The young will be recognized by these last characters, joined with the peculiar dimen-
sions and proportions.

Habitat, the typical form, Europe. Var. holbölli from Greenland and North America ;
with this Asiatic and Japanese specimens are said to agree.

Rare spring and fall migrant, perhaps also winter resident. It has
been taken several times on the lake, at the St. Mary’s and Licking
Reservoirs and on the Scioto River, at Circleville, by Dr. Howard E.
Jones.

PopicEPs cornutus (Gm.) Lath.
Hlorned Grebe.

Podiceps cornutus, AUDUBON, Orn. Biog., iii, 1835, 429; B. Am,, vi, 1843, 318.—KIRTLAND,
Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.—W HEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Re-
print, 1861, 13; Food of Birds, etc. Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.
—LANGDon, Cat. Birds of Cin., 1877, 18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
i, 1879, 187; Reprint, 21; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 230.

Colymbus cornutus, GMELIN, Syst., Nat., i, 1788, 519.

Podiceps cornutus, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 783.

Tarsus about equal to the middle toe without its claw; bill much shorter than the
head, little more than half the tarsus, compressed, higher than wide at the nostrils,
rather obtuse; crests and ruffs highly developed. Small, length, about 14; extent, 24;
wing, 6 or less; bill, about £; tarsus, 13. Adult:—Above, dark-brown, the feathers
paler edged; below, silvery-white, the sides mixed dusky and reddish; most of the
secondaries white; fore neck and upper breast brownish-red ; head glossy black, includ-
ing the ruff; a vroad band over the eye, to and including the occipital crests, brownish-
ish-yellow ; bill black, yellow-tipped. The young differ as in other species, but always
recognizable by the above measurements and proportions.

Habitat, North America. Europe. Asia.

Rather common spring and fall migrant and summer resident, most
frequently seen in the fall. Audubon states that it breeds in Northern
Ohio, and Mr. Langdon gives the following regarding their supposed nest-
ing in Ottawa county at the present time:

“Two sets of eggs taken July 2d, I refer, with a query, to this species as the birds
were not seen in either instance. They present such differences, however, in shape,
coloration and complementary number, that they can hardly be credited to P. podiceps,
and I therefore prefer to consider them under the head of P. cornutus, for the present at
least.

“These eggs are chalky-white, with a faint, though definite, tinge of pale bluish-
green, much like the tint of the Least Bittern’s eggs, and very unlike the pale
whitey-brown of the eggs of P. podiceps observed by us; they are also more elongated
in shape than the ordinary egg of P. podiceps, and taper nearly equally toward both
ends, which are decidedly pointed, rather more so than the eggs of P. podiceps; another
important point of distinction is the number in a fall set, whieh is apparently but two,

568 BIRDS—PODOCIPIDA.

the complement of P. podiceps being from four to eight. That our sets were probably
full is indicated by the fact that one of them contained fully developed young, which
swam, and even attempted to dive, on being placed in the water after removal from the
egg. The nests were similar tolthose of P. podiceps described below, and the eggs were
covered in like manner with decaying vegetation during the day and left for the sun to
incubate,

“The young removed from these eggs presented slight, but constant differences in
the head and neck-markings, and the size ef the bill, as compared with the young of P.
podiceps, obtained in the same manner, those supposed to be P. cornutus being smaller,
with more slender bills, less blotching about the head and neck, and none in the median
line of throat.

“Mr. Porter has repeatedly taken similar eggs, two in a set, during the past four or
five years, but owing to the absence of the parent bird during the day, and its shyness
at night, has been unable to identify it.”

Genus PODILYMBUS. Lesson.

Bill stout, epignathous, obtuse. Commissure decurved abruptly at end. Nostrils
broadly oval. Loral bare sirip broad. Frontal feathers bristly. Tarsus not three-
fourths the middle toe. Semipalmation of toes extensive. Lobe of hullux moderate.
No decided crests or ruffe.

PopitymMBus Popicers (L.) Lawr.
Pied-billed Dabchiek.

Podiceps carolinensis, KIRTLAND, Ohio Geolog. Surv., 1838, 166, 187.

Podilymbus podiceps, WHEATON, Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1860, 371; Reprint, 1861, 13; Food
of Birds, ete., Ohio Agric. Rep. for 1874, 575; Reprint, 1875, 15.—LANnGDon, Cat.
Birds of Cin., 1877,18; Revised List, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1879, 187; Re-
print, 11; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 231; Field Notes, ib., ii, 1880, 127.

Colymbus podiceps, LINNZUS, Syst. Nat., i, 1766, 223.
Podilymbus podiceps, LAWRENCE, Birds N. Am., 1858, 898.
Podiceps carolinensis, LATHAM, Ind. Orn., ii, 1790, 785.

Length, 12-14; wing, about 5; bill, 1 or less; tarsus, 14. Adult: Bill bluish, dusky
on the ridge, encircled with a black bar; threat with along black patch ; upper-parts
blackish-brown ; primaries ashy-brown, secondaries ashy and white; lower-parts silky-
white, more or less mottled or obscured with dusky; the lower neck in front, fore
breast and sides, washed with rusty. Young lacking the throat patch and peculiar
marks of the bill, otherwise not particularly different ; in a very early plumage with the
head curiously striped.

Habitat, North, Central and part of South America.

Abundant spring and fall migrant, and in many portions of the
State summer resident. Breeds. This bird is commonly known as the
Dipper, Water-witch or Devil-diver, and under one of these names is
known to every boy who has wandered with a gun along any of our
creeks and rivers. Their skill in diving is proverbial, as well as their
awkwardness when on land, which is very seldom. It is a popular
error that they are unable to fly. I have seen them rise from the

PIED-BILLED DABCHICK. 569

water and fly heavily though not laboriously for some distance, and that,
too, when they were not pressed for diving-room. With us they are more
numerous in spring, migrating singly or in small scattered flocks of six
or eight. In the fall flocks consisting of apparently a single brood, keep-
ing closely together, are sometimes seen.

Mr. Langdon in Summer Birds, (1. c.), gives the following interesting
and valuable notes upon the nesting habits of this species as observed by
him in Northern Ohio.

‘* As more or less doubt appears to prevail in regard to the building of floating nests
by members of the Grebe family, I desire here to testify to the fact that the nests of
the present species does float, notwithstanding the skeptical ‘itis said’ of Dr. Coues, in
his remarks on the nidification of the family.

“The little floating island of decaying vegetation held together by mud and moss,
which coustitutes the nest of this species, is a veritable ornithological curiosity. Im-
agine a ‘ pancake’ of what appears to be mud, measuring twelve or fifteen inches in
diameter, and rising two or three inches above the water, which may be from one to
three feet in depth; anchor it to the bottom with a few concealed blades of ‘ saw-grass,’
in a little open bay, leaving its circumference entirely free; remove a mass of wet muck
from its rounded top and you expose seven or eight soiled brownish- white eggs, resting
in a depression the bottom of which is lessthan an inch from the water; the whole mass
is constantly damp. This is the nest of the Dabchick, who is out foraging in the marsh,
or perhaps is anxiously watching us from some safe cover near by.

“ The anchoring blades of coarse saw-grass or flags, being always longer than is neces-
sary to reach the bottom, permit of considerable lateral and vertical movement of the
nest, and effectually provide against drowning of the eggs by any ordinary rise in the
water-level such as frequently occurs during the prevalence of strong easterly winds
on the lake. A small bunch of saw-grass already growing in a suitable situation is
evidently selected as a nucleus for the nest, and the tops bent so as to form part of it.

“ During the day we invariably found the eggs concealed by a covering of muck as
above described, but, as we ascertained by repeated visits at night and in the early
morning, they are uncovered at dusk by the bird who incubates them until the morn-
ing sun relieves her of her task.

“The complement of eggs is usually seven, but we took one set of eight.

‘The above description applies equally well to any of the six nests observed by us,
and to the dozens observed by Mr. Porter at the same locality, during the past four or
five years; he notes, however, a few instances in which the nest, instead of being en-
tirely free at its circumference, as above describe:l, was held in place by the surrounding
‘ deer-tongue’ (Saggitaria ?).” j :

APPENDIX.

[A.] CHECK LIST OF OHIO BIRDS, WITH DATES OF THEIR
OCCURRENCHE.

As stated in the introduction, the nomenclature of Dr. Coues’s Check
List is that adopted in the preceding pages. Since the publication of
that list, many changes have been made by Dr. Coues and others, affect-
ing the nomenclature of our birds.. Such changes as were generally
accepted prior to 1880 have been adopted.

In the following pages I have adopted the nomenclature and order of
Mr. Ridgway’s Check List.*

In this list not only the nomenclature but the order will be found
changed from that of the foregoing pages, but in no case is this believed
to be so complete as to prevent a ready recognition.

The number following the common name is the number in Mr. Ridg-
way’s list. No systematic attempt to record the arrival and departure
of birds has been made, the dates being simply the records of ordinary
observation and collections. Unless otherwise noted these dates apply
to birds observed in the vicinity of Columbus, so that, excluding the
birds unnoted, we bave a list of the birds of Franklin county.

Two birds in the list being introduced species, and not indigenous to
the United States, are not numbered. Species whose occurrence must be
consigered purely accidental are numbered in brackets.

The list gives 292 species, 4 of which are represented by additional
varieties, and 2 introduced species, making a total of 298 species and
varieties. Of these 6 are considered accidental.

* Nomenclature of North American Birds, chiefly contained in the United States
National Museum. By Robert Ridgway. Bulletin of the United States National
Museum. No. 21. Published under the direction of the Smithsonian Institute. Wash-
ington: Government Printing Office, 1881.

10,

11.

12.

33.

14.

15.

16.

CHECK LIST.

571

CHECK LIST AND DATES.

Hylocichla mustelina (Gm.) Baird.
Wood Thrush. 1.

Hylocichla fuscescens peer ) Baird.
Wilson’s Thrush. 2.

Hylocichla alicie Baird.
Gray-cheeked Thrush. 3.

Hylocichla ustulata swainsoni (Caban.) Ridgw.

Olive-backed Thrush. 4a,

Hylocichla unalasc® pallasi (Caban.) Ridgw.

Hermit Thrush. 50.

Merula migratoria (Linn.) Sw. and Rich.
7.

Robin,

Mimus polyglotius Da ) Boie.
Mockingbird. 11.

Galeoscoptes carolinensis (Linn.) Caban.

Catbird. 12.

Harporhynchus rufus (Linn.) Caban.

Brown Thrasher. 13.

Sialia sialis (Linn.) Haldem.
Bluebird. 22.

Polioptila cerulea ine ) Sel.
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. 27.

Regulus calendula (Linn.) Licht.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 30.

Regulus satrapa (Linn.) Bp.
Golden-crowned Kinglet. 33.

Lopophanes bicolor (Linn.) Bp.
Tufted Titmouse. 36.

2
Parus atricapillus Linn.

Black-capped Chickadee. 41.

Parus carolinensis Aud.
Carolina Chickadee. 42.

Sitta carolinensis Gm.
White-bellied Nuthatch. 51.

Sitta canadensis Linn.
Red-bellied Nuthatch. 52.

April 29—, 75; May 5—, 76; April
20—, 78; 18—, 80,

May 2-21, Sept. 23,73; April 20,
Aug. 25, 74; May 5-19, 75; 5,
76; 5,77; 7,78; April 22, 80.

May 3-12, Sept. 15, 73; May 7,
Sept. 13-28,74; May 8-21, 75; 7,
76; 4,77; 5, 78.

May 9, Sept. 3-19, 73; May 8, Sept.
7-29, 74; April 28-May 19, 75;
May’ 5, 76; 16, 77; 5, Aug. 26,
78.

April 5, Oct. 12, 73; Mar. 26-May
2, Sept. 30, 74; April 3, 75; 19,
76; 15-23, 7.

Dec. 10,73; Feb. 27—, 75; 26—,
76; Jan. 28—, 77; Feb. 27—,
78: Mar. 5—,79; wintered, 79-
80.

April 27—, 73; 29—Sept. 25, 74;
May 1—, 75; April 21—Sept.
25, 76; April 238—, 77; 19—,
78; 18—, 80.

April 14—, 73; Oct. 7, 74; April
7—, 75; =, 76; 16-, 717;
23—, 79.

Feb. 14—, 74; 22—, 75 ; 26—, 76;
Jan. 28— 77; Feb. 38— 78, win-
tered, 78-79 ; do. 79-80.

April 13—, 73; 18—, 74; 10—, 75;
7—, 76; 14—, 78.

April 13, Sept. 29, 74; April 12-
May 19, 75; Oct. 2, 76; April 3,
77.

April 4, Oct. 6,73; Mar. 24, Oct.

8, 74,

Resident.

Dec. 19, 73; Nov. 9-Dec. 10, 74;
Nov. 12, 77.

June 27, 73; April 18-July 23, 74;
April 20—, 76; 24— 77; 25—,
78; 13—, 79.

Resident.

Sept. 3-24, 74; May 7-15, 75.

572

OHIO BIRDS.

[19.] Sitta pusilla Lath.

20.

21.

22.

26.

37.

38.

Brown-headed Nuthatch. 53.
Certhia familiaris rufa (Bartr.) Ridgw.
Brown Creeper. 55.
Thryothorus ludovicianus (Gm.) Bp.
Carolina Wren. 60.

Thryothorus bewicki (Aud.) Baird.
Bewick’s Wren. 61.

Troglodytes aédon Vieill.
House Wren. 63,

Anorthura troglodytes hyemalis (Vieill.);Coues.
65.

Winter Wren.
Telmatodytes palustris (Wils.) Baird.
Long-billed Marsh Wren. 67.

Cistothorus stellaris (Licht.) Caban,
Short-billed Marsh Wren. 68.

Anthus ludovicianus (Gm.) Licht.
American Titlark. 71.

Mniotilia varia borealis (Nutt.) Ridgw.
Small-billed Creeper. 74a.

Protonotaria citrea (Bodd.) Baird.
Prothonotary Warbler. 75.

Helminthotherus vermivorus (Gm.) Salv. & Godm.

Worm-eating Warbler. 77.

Helminthophaga cincinnatiensis Langdon.
Cincinnati Warbler. 78.*

Helminthophaga pinus (Linn.) Baird.

Blue-winged Yellow Warbler. 79.

Helminthophaga chrysoptera (Linn.) Baird.
Golden-winged Warbler. 81.

Helminthophaga ruficaptlla (Wils.) Baird.
Nashville Warbler. 85.

Helminthophaga celata (Say) Baird.
Orange-crowned Warbler. 86.

Helminthophaga peregrina (Wils.) Baird.
Tennessee Warbler. 87.

Parula amerieana (Linn.) Bp.
Blue Yellow-backed Warbler... 88.

Perissoglossa tigrina (Gm.) Baird.
Cape May Warbler. 90.

Dendreeca wstiva (Gm.) Baird.
Summer Yellowbird. 93.

April 4, Dec. 10, 73; Jan. 31, Sept.
28-Dec. 12, 74; Nov.17, 76, Jan.
27,77.

Resident. ca
See Appendix.

April 27—, 73; May 1—, 74; 4—,
75; April 22—, 76; May 4—, 77;
April 19—, 78; 23—, 79; 20—,
80.

Oct. 13, 73; May 9, Sept. 30-Oct..
13, 74; April 1-May 1, 75; April
5-19, 77; 2, Nov. 2, 78.

April 28, 73; Oct. 13, 74; May 11,
Oct. 18, 76.

Oct. 7,73; May 4-6, Oct. 3-23, 74;
April 12-28, Sept. 26, 75; May
3-8, Oct. 9, 76; April 8-May 10,
Oct. 1, 77; April 19, 78.

June 27, 73; April 27-Sept. 17, 74;
April 29—, 75; 26—, 76.

April 23—, 74; 25—, 78.
See appendix—Additions.

June 27,73; May 8—, 74; July
a6

May 17, 75.

Sep. 10, 73; May 9, Sept. 15—-Oct..
1, 74. May 12-19, 75.

May 15-17, 75.

Sept. 15-26, 73; May 14-18, Sept.
“*2-Oct. 7, 74; Sept. 5-25, 76.

May .15, Sept. 15, 74; May 14, 77;
June 30, 79.

May 8-17, 75; Sept. 25, 76.
April 30—, 73; May 1— Aug. 743

May 2—, 75; April 28—, 76; 15:
—, 78; 283—, 79; 19—, 80.

43.

44.

45.

46.

47.

54.

55.

58.

59.

CHECK LIST.

Dendreca cerulescens (Linn.) Baird.
Black-throated Blue Warbler. 94.

Dendroeca coronata (Linn.) Gray.
Yellow-rump Warbler. 95.

Dendroeca maculosa (Gm.) Baird.
Black-and-yellow Warbler. 97.

Dendreca cerulea (Wils.) Baird.
Cerulean Warbler. 98.

Dendreca pennsylvanica (Linn.) Baird.
Chestnut-sided Warbler. 99.

Dendreca castanea (Wils.) Baird.
Bay-breasted Warbler. 100.

Dendreca striata (Forst.) Baird.
Black-poll Warbler. 101.

Dendreca blackburnie (Gm.) Baird.
Blackburnian Warbler. 102.

Dendreca dominica albilora Baird.

White-browed Yellow-throated
Warbler. 103a.

Dendreca virens (Gm.) Baird.

Black-throated Green Warbler. 107.

Dendreca kirtlandi Baird.
Kirtland’s Warbler. 110.

Dendreca pinus (Wils.) Baird.
Pine-creeping Warbler. 111.

Dendreca palmarum (Gmel.) Baird.
Red-poll Warbler. 113.

Dendreca discolor (Vieill.) Baird.
Prairie Warbler. 114.

Siurus auricapillus (Linn.) Swains.
Golden-crowned Thrush. 115.

Siurus nevius (Bedd.) Coues.
Small-billed Water Thrush. 116.

Siurus motacilla (Vieill.) Coues.
Large-billed Water Thrash. 117.

Oporornis agilis (Wils.) Baird.
Connecticut Warbler. 118.

Oporornis formosa (Wils.) Baird.
Kentucky Warbler. 119.

Geothlypis philadelphia (Wils.) Baird.
Mourning Warbler. 120.

573

May 19, 73; 9, Sept. 4,74; May
10-19, 75; 17, 76; 14-21, 77.

Oct. 13,73; May 2, Sept. 2-Oct.
23, 74; May 8-18, 75; April 21,
Oct. 18-Nov. 5, 76; April 26, 77;
19, 78.

May 20, Sept. 15, 73; May 8,
Sept. 2-28, 74: May 11-22, 75;
7, Sept. 10-25, 76; May 14, 77.

May 21-June 27, 73; May 8—, 74;
9—, 75; 14—, 76; 14—, 77; April
19—, 78.

May 19, 73; 8, Sept 2-20, 74; May
12-21, 75; 18, 76.

sae 1 73; May 17, Sept. 7-Oct.

3 .

May 26, Sept. 23,73 ; May 17, Sept.
14-Oct. 17,74; May 17, 75; 18-26,
Oct. 16, 76,

May 13, Sept. 25, 73; May 8, Sept.
5-36, 74; May 12-19, 75; 14, 77.

April 19, Sept. 23, 73; Sept. 7, 74;
May 8—Aug. 22, 75; April 19—
Aug. 16, 76. April 7—, 77; 14—,
78; 13—, 79.

May 9-20, 73; 5, Sept. 7-30, 74;
May 17,76; April 18, 80.

May 8, 75.

Nov. 7, 74; May 6-15, 75; April 26,
Oct. 27, 76.

May 15, 75.

May 18—Sept.18,73 ; April 20—Oct.
1,74; April29—, 75; May 4—, 76;
Aug. 26, 78; April 23—, 80,

Oct. 17, 74; April 26-May 13, 75;
4, Sept. 25, 76; April 15-30, 77;

9, 78.

July %, 74; June 19, 75; April
15—, 77; 21—, 78.

Sept. 16, 74; May 22, 75.

Seph 2-30, 74; May 21-26, 75; 16,

574
60.
61.
62,
63.
64.
65.

66.

67.

68.

69.
70.
71.
72.

73.

73a.

74.

75.

76.

77.

78.

79.

OHIO BIRDS.

Geothlypis trichas (Linn.) Caban.
Maryland Yellow-throat. 122,

Icteria virens (Linn. ) Baird.
Yellow-breasted Chat. 123.

Myiodioctes mitratus (Gmel.) Aud.
Hooded Warbler. 124.

Myiodioctes pusillus (Wils.) Bp.

Black-capped Yellow Warbler. 125.
Myiodioctes canadensis (Linn.) Aud.
Canadian Flycatching Warbler. 127.

Setophaga ruticilla (Linn.) Swains.
American Redstart. 128.

Vireosylvia olivacea (Linn.) Bp.
Red-eyed Vireo. 135.

Vireosylvia philadelphica Cass.
Philadelphia Vireo. 138.

Vireosylvia gilva (Vieill.) Cass.
Warbling Vireo. 139.

Lanivireo flavifrons (Vieill.) Baird.
Yellow-throated Vireo. 140.

Lanivireo solitarius (Vieill.) Baird.
Blue-headed Vireo. 141.

Vireo noveboracensis (Gmel.) Bp.
White-eyed Vireo. 143.

Lanius borealis Vieill.
Great Northern Shrike. 148.
Lanius ludovicianus Linn.

Loggerhead Shrike. 149.

Lanius ludovicianus excubitorides (Sw.) Coues.

White-rumped Shrike. 149a.
Ampelis garrulus Linn.
Northern Wax-wing. 150.

Ampelis cedrorum (Vieill.) Baird.
Cedar Wax-wing. 151.

Progne subis (Linn.) Baird.
Purple Martin. 152.
Petrochelidon lunifrons (Say.) Lawr.
Cliff Swallow. 153.

Hirundo erythrogastra Bodd.
Bar». Swallow. 154.

Tachycineta bicolor (Vieill.) Caban.
White-bellied Swallow. 155.

May 5—, 73; 11—, 74; 7—, 75; 1—,
76; April 28—, 78.

June 6—, 73; May 6—, 74; 7—
16; 14—,77;7—-,78% |= ”

Aug. 25, 74; May 21, 75.

May 22, Sept. 18, 73 ; Sept. 2-28, 74;
8-22, 75; 16, 76; 18, 77.

May 13, 73; 11, 74; 8-22, 75; 23,
76; 5,

May 5—, 73; 11—, 74; 9—, 75; 5—,
76; April 23—, 77.

April 30—,{73; May 7—Sept. 28, 74;
May 8—, 75; 1—, 76; 16—, 77;
April 25—, 78.

Sept. 16, 73; May 8, Sept. 29-30,
74; May 18-19, 76.

May 2—Sept. 14, 74; May 8—, 75;
1—, 76; April 23—, 77; 19—, 78 ;
23, 79; 22—, 80.

May 5—Sept. 15, 74; May 8—, 75.

May 1, Sept. 23, 73; Sept. 23-30,
74; May 13-14, 75.

April 14-27, 73; March 30, 74; Feb.
27, 75; Nov. 7, 76.

May 16—, 73; April 7—Ang, 31, 74;
Sa 23—, 75; Mar. 4—, 76; 4—,
7.

May 16, 73.

April 4—, 73; May 25— 74; 14—,
76; Nov. 2, 78; wintered, 80-81.

March 30—, 73 ; April 13— Aug. 74;
April 7—, 75; 7—, 76; 1—, 77;
2—, 78; March 28—, 79,

May 10—, 75; 2—, 76; April 21—,
77; April 21—, 78.

April a 75; 22—, 76; 15—, 775

?
April 8—Aug 74; April 19—, 76;
March 28—, 77; April 9—, 78;
14—, 79.

CHECK LIST. 575

80. Cotile riparia (Linn.) Boie. May 6—, 75; April 23—, 76; 23—,
Bank Swallow. 157. 77.
81. Stelgidopteryx serripennis (Aud.) Baird. April 18—Aug. 74; May 6—, 75;
Rongh-winged Swallow. 158. April 22—, 76; 21—, 77; 16—,
78; 20—, 79.
82. Pyranga rubra (Linn.) Vieill. May 2—, 73; 7—, 74; 16—, 75; 12—,
Scarlet Tanager. 161. 76; April 26—, 77; May 5—, 78.

83. Pyranga estiva (Linn.) Vieill.
Summer Redbird. 164.

[84.] Hesperiphona vespertina (Cooper.) Bp.
Evening Grosbeak. 165.

85 Pinicola enucleator (Linn.) Vieill.
Pine Grosbeak. 166.

86.. Carpodacus purpureus (Gm.) Baird. Feb. 12—April 18, Oct. 13—Nov. 7,
Purple Finch. 168. 74; April 7,75; Jan. 19, 77; Nov.
‘ 2, 78.
. 87. Loxia curvirostra americana (Wils.) Coues. June 18, 78.

American Crossbill. 172.

88. Loxia leucoptera Gm.
White-winged Crossbill. 173.

89. Aigiothus linaria (Linn.) Caban.
Common Redpoll. 179.

90. Astragalinus tristis (Linn.) Caban. Resident.
American Goldfinch. 181.

91. Chrysomitris pinus (Wils.) Bp. Nov. 29, 73; Dec. 19, 76; Nov. 2,
Pine Goldfinch. 185. 78.

92. Plectrophanes nivalis (Linn.) Meyer. Feb. 19, 75; Jan. 27, 77.
Snow Bunting. 186

93. Centrophanes lapponicus (Linn.) Caban. Feb. 8, 74; 19-27, Nov. 28—, 75;
Lapland Longspur. 137. Nov. 7, 76; Jan. 6-13, 77.

[E [—] Passer domesticus Linn. Imported. Resident.

English Sparrow.

94. Passerculus sandwichensis savanna (Wils.) Ridg. Sep. 27, 73; April 6-May 6, Sep.
Savannah Sparrow. 193a. 11, 74; April 8-May 24, 75;
April 20-May 3, 76. x

95. Poccetes gramineus (Gm.) Baird. March 28—, 73 ; 22—, 75; April 6—
Grass Finch. 197. 76; 2—, 77; March 2,78, ”
96. Coturniculus passerinus (Wils.) Bp. May 6—Sept., 74; April 30—, 75:
Yellow-winged Sparrow. 198. May 3, 76: April 26—, 77. ’ ”

97. Coturniculus henslowi (Aud.) Bp.
Henslow’s Sparrow. 199.

98. Chondestes grammica (Say.) Bp. April 30—, 73; May 7—Sep. ©
Lark Finch, 204. April 30, 75; 19, 620°

77; 21—, 78. : }

99. Zonotrichia leucophrys (Forst.) Swains. May 1, Nov. 1, 73; May 2, Oct
White-crowned Sparrow. 206. 13-17, 74; May 8-11, 75: 4-7.

>

6) N $ a . i .
; he 18-27, 76; April 23, 773 28,

576,

100.

101.

102.

103.

104.
105.
106.
107.

108.

109.

110.

111.

112.

114.

115.

[116.] Xanthocephalus ioterooephalus (Bp.) Baird.

117.

OHIO BIRDS.

Zonotrichia albicollis (Gm.) Bp.
White-throated Sparrow. 209.

Spizella montana (Forst.) Ridgw.
Tree Sparrow. 210.

Spizella domestica (Bart.) Coues.
Chipping Sparrow. 211.

Spizella pusilla (Wils.) Bp.
Field Sparrow. 214.

Junco hyemalis (Linn.) Sol.
Black Snowbird. 217.

Melospiza fasciata (Gmel ) Scott.
Song Sparrow. 231.

Melospiza palustris (Wils.) Baird.
Swamp Sparow. 233.

Melospiza lincolni (Aud.) Baird.
Lincoln’s Finch. 234.

Passerella iliaca (Merrem.) Sw.
Fox-colored Sparrow. 235.

Pipilo erythrophthalmus (Linn.) Vieill.
Chewink; Towhe. 237.

Cardinalis virginianus (Briss.) Bp.
Cardinal Grosbeak. 242.

Zamelodia ludoviciana (Linn.) Coues.
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, 244.

Passerina carulea (Linn.) Swains.
Indigo Bunting. 248.

iza americana (Gm.) Bp.
Black throated Bunting. 254.

Dolichonyx orysivorus, (Linn.) Swains.
2,

Bobolink.

Molothrus ater (Bodd.) Gray.
Cowbird. 258.

Yellow-headed Blackbird. 260.

Ageleus phaniceus (Linn.) Vieill.

Red-and-buff-sbouldered Blackbird. 261.

Sturn ella magna (Linn.) Swains.

Meadow Lark. 263.

April 15, Sept. 16, 73; April 3°
Sept. 29, 74; April 36, 735

Oct. 16, 76; April 23, 77; 19, is!
79.

?

?

Nov. 2, 73—Jan. 31, Nov. 7—, 74;
7.

April 3—, 73; 1—, Nov. 4, 74; Mar.
30—, 75; April 10—, 76; April
2—, 77; Mar. 27—, 78; 24—, 79.

April 16—, 73 ; Mar. 30—, 74 ; 25—,
75; April 15—, 76; S—, 77; Mar.
2, 78.

Oct. 12, 73—May 9, Sept. 28, 74—
May 8, 75; Oct. 1, 76.

Resident.

May 1, Sept. 29-Oct. 17, 74; April
21, 76; 13, 79.

May 15, 73; Oct. 17, 18, 74; May
10-24, 75; 17, 77.

Oct. 29, 73; Mar. 7-24, Oct. 13-
Nov. 7,74; Mar. 18, 75; 13, 76;
Feb. 27, 77; Mar. 9, 79.

Mar. 19—, Dec. 10, 73; Mar. 24—,
74; 18—, 75; April 1l—, 77;
Mar. 15—78.

Resident.

May 4, 73; 3-June 3, Sept. 12-23,
74; May 11-19, 75; 14—, 76;
78.

’

May 11—, 73; 10—, 74; 10—, 75;
a 76; April 30—, 77 ; May 5—,
78.

May 11—, 73; 4, 74; 6—, 75; 4—,
76; 7—, 77; April 28—, 78.

May 4—, 73; 2—Aug. 13, 74; 7—,
76; April 30—, 77; May 5—, 78.

April 14—Oct. 13, 73; Mar. 30—,
74 ; Oct. 18, 76.

Mar. 6—Oct. 17, 74; Mar. 25—, 75;
Feb. 25—Oot. 18, "76; Feb. 20—,
77; Mar. 10—, 79.

Mar. 16—, 73 ; Feb. 12—Oct. 13, 74 ;
Mar. 75; Feb. 26—, 76;
wintered 7%, 77; Feb. 24—, 80.

119.

120.

121.

122,

123.

124.

125.

[1]

126.

127.

128.

129.

130.

131.

132.

133.

134.

135.

136.

137.

138.

CHECK LIST.

Icterus spurius (Linn.) Bp.
Orchard Oriole. 270.

Icterus galbula (Linn.) Coues,
Baltimore Oriole. 271.

Scolecophagus ferrugineus (Gm.) Swains,
Rusty Blackbird.

Quiscalus purpureus ceneus Ridgw.
Bronzed Grakle. 2785.

Corvus corax carnivorus (Bartr.) Ridgw.
American Raven. 280.

Corvus frugivorus Bartr.
Common Crow. 282.

Cyanocitta cristata (Linn.) Strickl.
Blue Jay. 289,

Alauda arvensis Linn.
Sky Lark. 299.

Eremophila alpestris (Forst.) Boie.
Shore Lark. 300.

Tyrannus carolinensis (Linn.) Temm.
Kingbird; Bee Martin. 304.

Myiarchus crinitus (Linn.) Caban.
Great Crested Flycatcher. 312.

Sayornis fuscus (Gmel.) Baird.
Phebe Bird; Pewee. 315.

Contopus borealis (Swains.) Baird.
Olive-sided Flycatcher. 318.

Contopus virens (Linn.) Caban.
Wood Pewee. 320.

Empidonax flaviventris Baird.
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. 322.

Empidonax acadicus (Gmel.) Baird.
Acadian Flycatcher. 324.

Empidonax pusillus trailli (Aud.) Baird.
Traill’s Flycatcher. 325a.

Empidonax minimus Baird.
Least Flycatcher. 326.

Trochilus colubris Linn.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird. 335.

Chetura pelasgica (Linn.) Baird.
Chimney Swift. 351.

Caprimulgus vociferus Wils.
Whippoorwill. 354.

37

577

May 4—Aug,., 74; Ee. 6—, 75;
7—, 76; 4—, 77;

April 30—, 73; May 1—, Sept. 24,
74; May A, 75; April 29—, 76;
ok. 77; 19, 75; 22—, 80.

Sept. 9, 73; April 18, Oct. 17, 74;
en 12-April 24, 75; April 30,
7.

Oct. 5, 73; Mar. 2—, 74; Mar. 12—,
755 "Feb. 26 — Nov. i, 76; Feb.
20—, 77; Mar. 9—, 7

Feb. 14—Oct. 17,74; Jan. 28—, 77;
Mar. 9—, 79.

Resident.

ed
Nov. 9—, 74; Oct. 31—, 75; 18,
76—Mar. 28, 77; Nov. 1—, 77.

May 4—, 73; 1—, 74; 6—, 75; 1—,
76; April 21—, 78.

May 4—, 73; 3—, 74; 8—, 75; 1—,
76; 14—, 77; April 25—, 78.

Nov. 3, 74; Mar. 14—, 75; 13—,
76; 24—, 771; 27—, 78; oe 79.

May 12—, 73; 10—, 74; 9—, 75;
8—, 76; 14—, 77; 5—, 78.

May &-22, 75; 16-20, 76; 18, 77.
May 21—,73; Aug. rae 7. „May
14—, 76; 17—. 77;

May 18—Aug., 74; May 15—, 75;
13—, 76; 21—, 77; 8—, 78.

May 12, 73; 6, 74; 7-24, Aug. 22,
75; Aug. 8, 76; ’ May 7-9, 77.

May 6—Oct. 2, 73; May 5—Sept. 27,
74; May 10—Oct. 16, 75; May
12 76; 9—, 77; 5, 78.

April 18—Oct. 13, 74; April 14—,
76; April 18—, 78.

May 5,74; 2, 76; 25, 77.

578

139.
140.
141.

142.

143.
144.
145.

146.

147.
148.
149.
150.
151.
152.
153.
154.
155.
156.
157.
158.
159.

160.

OHIO

Chordeiles popetue (Vieill.) Bd.
Nighthawk. 357.

Picus villosus Linn.

Hairy Woodpecker. 360.
Picus pubescens Linn.
Downy Woodpecker. 361.

Picoides arcticus (Swains.) Gray.

Black-backed Three-toed Woodpecker.

367.

Sphyrapicus varius (Linn.) Baird.
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker. 369,
Hiylotomus pileatus (Linn.) Baird.
Pileated Woodpecker; Logeock. 371.

Centurus carolinus (Linn.) Bp.
Red-bellied Woodpecker. 372.
Melanerpes erythrocephalus (Linn.) Swains.
Red-headed Woodpecker. 375.

Golaptes auratus (Linn.) Swains.
Yellow-shafted Flicker. 378.

Ceryle aleyon (Linn.) Boie.
Belted Kingfisher. 382.

Coccyzus americanus (Linn.) Bp.
Yellow-billed Cuckoo. 387.

Cocoyzus erythrophthalmus (Wils). Baird.
Black-billed Cuckoo. 388,

Conurus carolinensis (Linn.) Kuhl.
Carolina Parakeet. 392.

Aluco flammeus americanus (Aud.) Ridgway.
American Barn Owl. 394.

Asio americanus (Steph.) Sharpe.

American Long-eared Owl. 395.

Asio accipitrinus (Pall.) Newton.
Short-eared Owl. 496.

Strix nebulosa Forst.
Barrei Owl. 397.

Ulula cinerea (Gmel.) Bp.
Great Gray Owl. 399.

Nyctale acadica (Gmel.) Bp.
Saw-whet Owl. 401.

Scops asio (Linn.) Bp.

Little Screech Ow]. 402.
Bubo virginianus (Gm.) Bp
Great Horned Owl. 405.

Nyctale scandiaca (Linn.) Newt.
Snowy Owl. 406.

BIRDS.

May 20—, 73; 11, 74; 1 75;
7—, 76; 15, 77; Aug. %6, 7

Resident.

Resident.

April 4, 73; 5, 75; 20, 76; 2-16, 77;
19, 78; 1

April -, 1861.
Resident.

April 13—Dec. 19, 73; Mar. 30—,
74; April 30—, 75; 21—, 77;
19—, 78.

Resident.

Mar. 17—Oct. 28, 74; Mar. 13—,
76; April 3, 77; 6—, 79.

May 1s 78; 10—, 74; 19—Sept.
76.

May 21—, 73; 13—, 74; 8—, 75,
8.

*

July —, 1862. Observed by W.S.
Sullivant.

Nov. 2, 78; May 1, 1881.

Oct. 29, 74; Dec. 17, 76.

Nov. 4, 73.

Feb. 11, Nov. 26, 74; 12, 77.

Jan. 11, 79.
Resident.
Resident.

Jan, -, 1858.

161.

162.

163.

164.

165.

166.

167.

168.

169.

170.

171.

172.

173.

174.

175.

176.

177.

178.

179.

180.

181.

182.

183.

CHECK LIST.

Surnia funerea (Linn.) Sw. & Rich.
American Hawk Owl. 407.

Falco peregrinus nevius (Gm.)Ridgw.

Peregrine Falcon; Duck Hawk. 414.

ZEsalon columbarius cing ) Kaup.
Pigeon Hawk.

Tinnunculus sparverius (Linn.) Vieill.
Sparrow Hawk.

Pandion haliaetus carolinensis (Gm.) Ridgw.
American Osprey; Fish Hawk. 425.

Elanoides forficatus (Linn.) Rid, a
Swallow-tailed Kite. 42

Circus hudsonius (Linn.) Vieill.
Marsh Hawk. 430.

Accipiter cooperi Bonap.
Cooper’s Hawk. 431.

Aceipiter fuscus (Gmel.) Bp.
Sharp-shinned Hawk. 432.

Astur atricapillus (Wils.) Bp.
American Goshawk. 433.

Buteo borealis (Gm.) Vieill.
Red-tailed Hawk. 436.

Buteo lineatus (Gm.) Jard.
Red-shouldered Hawk. 439.

Buteo pennsylvanicus (Wils.) Bp.
Broad- winged Hawk. 443.

Archibuteo lagopus sancti-johannis (Gm.) Ridgw.

American Rough-legged Hawk. 447.

Aquila chrysaétus canadensis (Linn.)
Golden Eagle. 449.

Halicetus leucocephalus (Linn.) Savig.
Bald Eagle; Gray Eagle. 451.

Cathartes aura (Linn.) Illig.
Turkey Buzzard. 454.

Catharista atrata (Wils.) Less.
Black Vulture; Carrion Crow. 455.

Ectopistes migratoria (Linn.) Sw.
Passenger Pigeon. 459.

Zenaidura carolinensis (Linn.) Bp.
Mourning Dove. 460.

Meleagris gallopavo americana (Bartr.) Coues.

Wild Turkey. 470a.

Bonasa umbellus (Linn.) Steph.
Ruffed Grouse. 473.

Cupidonia cupido Geer ) Bp.
Prairie Hen. 470.

579

Dec. -, 1869,

Dec. 19, 73; Nov. 7. 76.

Oct. 5, 74; Mar. 23—, 75; 75-76,
wintered.

Sept. 4, 76.

Aug. 22, 78; Licking county.

Aug. 21, 78; 20, 79.

Resident.

Jan, 19,77; April 25—Nov. 2, 78.

Resident.
Resident.
Resident.

Mar. 14, 75.

Oct. 17, 74; Jan. 11, 77.

Mar. 15—, 75, April 6—, 76.

a N 73; March 24, Sept.10-Oct.
Mar. 2—, 74; 22—, 75; winters.
May 28, 66.

are -, 1868.

Nov. 16. 78,

580

184.
185.
186.
187.
188.
189.
190.
191.
192.
193.
194.
195.
196.

197.

198.

199.
200.

201.

202.

2020. Macrorhamphus griseus scolopaceus (Say) Coues.
Red-bellied Snipe; Greater Gray-

OHIO BIRDS.

Ortyx virginiana (Linn,) Bp.

Bob-white; American Quail, 480.

Ardea herodias Linn.
Great Blue Heron. 487

Herodias alba egretta ae } EN.
American Egret.

Garzetta candidissima (Gm.) Bp.
Snowy Heron. 490.

Butorides virescens (Linn.) Bp. .
Green Heron. 494.

Nyctiardea grisea nevia, (Bodd.) Allen.
Black-crowned Night Heron. 495.

Botaurus lentiginosus (Montag.) Steph.

American Bittern. 497,

Ardetta exilis (Gm.) Gray.
Least Bittern. 498.

Tantalus loculator Linn.
Wood Ibis. 500.

Plegadis falcinellus (Linn.) Kaup.
Glossy Ibis. 503.

Strepsilas interpres (Linn.) Dllig.
Turnstone. 509.

Squatarola helvetica (Linn.) Cuv.
Black-bellied Plover. 513.

Charadrius dominicus Mull.
American Golden Plover. 515.

Oxyeohus vociferus (Linn.) Reich.
Kildeer. 516.

Aigialitis semipalmatus Bp.
Semipalmated Plover. 517.

ee melodus (Ord.) Bp.
Piping Plover. 520.

Philohela minor (Gm.) Gray.
American Woodcock, 525.

Gallinago media wilsoni (Temm.) Ridgw.

Wilson’s Snipe. 526a.

Macrorhamphus griseus (Gm.) Leach.
Red-bellied Snipe; Gray Suipe.

back. 527a.

203. Micropalama himantopus (Bp.) Baird.

204.

Stilt Sandpiper. 528.

Tringa canutus Linn.
Knot; Robin Snipe. 529.

Resident.

March 21—Oct. 17, 74; June 5, 77.
Aug. 8, 73; 1, 77.
April 14—, 73; 18—, 74 ;24—, 75.
Oct. 17, 74.

Oct. 28—Nov. 20, 73 ; April 21—, 78.

May 14, 76.

May 12, 76.

Sept. 2,73; May 6, 74; April 21-29,
Oct. 30, 75; April 16, 77.

Mar. a 74; Feb. 25—, 75; 26—,
76; Mar. es 77; 5, 79; Feb.
24—, 80.

Aug. 16, 73; July 25, 74; Aug. 28,
ah 16, 76; 11, 77; May 17-19,

Aug. -, 1856.
Mar. 3—, 74; April 16—, 77.

Mar.-May 5, 73; Mar. 27, Oct. 17,
74; April 5- -May 7,75; "April 19,
76; May 4, 77.

May 27, 78. Licking Reservoir.

CHECK LIST.

205. Arquatella maritima (Brunn.) Baird.
Purple Sandpiper. 530.

206. Actodromas maculata (Vieill.) Coues.
Pectoral Sandpiper. 534.

207. Actodromas fuscicollis (Vieill.) Ridgw.
Bonaparte’s Sandpiper. 536.

208. <Actodromas bairdi Coues.
Baird’s Sandpiper. 537.

209. Actodromas minutilla (Vieill.) Bp.
Least Sandpiper. 538.

210. Pelidna alpina americana Cass.
Red-backed Sandpiper. 539a.

211. Breunetes pusillus (Linn.) Cass.
Semipalmated Sandpiper. 541.

212. Calidris arenaria (Linn.) Nlig.
Sanderling. 542.

213. Limosa feda (Linn.) Ord.
Marbled Godwit. 543.

214. Limosa hemastica (Linn.) Coues.
Hudsonian Godwit. 545.
x 4
215. Totanus melanoleucus (Gm.) Vieill.
Greater Yellow-legs; Tell-tale. 548.

216. Totanus flavipes (Gmel.)- Vieill.
Yellow-legs. 549.

217. Rhyacophilus solitarius (Wils.) Cass.
Solitary Sandpiper. 550.

218. Symphemia semipalmata (Gm.) Hartl.
Willet. 552.

[219.] Machetes pugnax (Linn.) Cuv.
Ruff, 554.

220. Bartramia longicauda (Bechst.) Bp.
Bartram’s Sandpiper; Field Plover. 555.

221. Tryngites rufescens (Vieill.) Caban.
Buff-breasted Saudpiper. 556.
I
222. Tringoides macularius (Linn.) Gray.
Spotted Sandpiper. 557.

223. Numenius longirostris Wils.
Long-billed Curlew. 558.

224, Numenius hudsonicus Lath,
Hudsonian Curlew. 559,

225. Numenius borealis (Forst.) Lath.
Eskimo Curlew. 560.

581

Aug. 14, 73; Oct. 19,74; April 10
Sept. 26, 75; Aug. 29, 76; April
20,77; 19, 78.

Oct. -, 75.

Sept. 1, 76; Nov. 9, 77.

Aug. 14, 73; 10, 74; 16,76; 14, 77.

Oct. 18, 76.

Aug. 16, 73; July 24, 74; Aug. 28-
Oct. 30, 75; Aug. 16, 76; 7, 77;
25, 78.

Oct. 7, 74.
April 21, 1879.
April -, 1857; May -, 1862.

Sept. 4, 73; April 18, Aug. 6- Oct.
17, 74; April 21, 75; Aug. 16-
Nov. 14, 76; Aug. 30, 77.

April 14-May 16, Aug. 16, 73; Aug.
—Oct. 17,74; May 8, 76; Aug.
30, 77.

April 24—July 29, 73; May 28—July
25,74; April 18, 76.

Nov. 10, 72. Licking Reservior.
Aug. 14, 73; April 27-Aug. 31, 74;

April 10—, 75. N
Ang. 31, 76,

April 27—, 73; 18—Oct. 8, 74;
April 10—, 75; 18—, 76; 21—,
77; 19—, 78.

October, 1869.

582

226. Phalaropus fulicarius (Linn.) Bp.
Red Phalarope. 563.

227. Lobipes hyperboreus (Linn.) Cuv.
Northern Phalarope. 564.

228. Sieganopus wilsoni (Sab.) Coues.
Wilson’s Phalarope. 565.

229. Reourvirostra americana Gmel.
American Avocet. 566.

230. Himantopus mexieanus (Mull.) Ord.

Black-necked Stilt. 567.

231. Rallus elegans Aud.
Red-breasted Rail. 569.

232. Rallus virginianus Linn.
Virginian Rail. 572.

233. Porzana carolina (Linn.) Baird.
Sora Rail. 574.

234. Porzana noveboracensis (Gm.) Baird.
Little Yellow Rail. 575.

235. Ionornis martinica (Linn.) Reich.
Purple Gallinule. 578,

236. Gallinula galeata (Licht.) Bp.
Florida Gallinule. 579.

237. Fulica americana Gmel,
American Coot. 580,

238. Grus americana (Linn.) Temm.
Whooping Crane. 582.

239. Grus canadensis (Linn.) Temm.
Sandhill Crane. 583.

240. Olor americanus (Sharpless) Bp.
Whistling Swan. 588.

241. Olor buccinnator (Rich.) Wagl.
Trumpeter Swan. 589.

242. Chen cerulescens (Linn.) Ridgw.
Blue-winged Goose. 590.

243. Chen hyperboreus (Pall.) Boie.
Snow Goose. R

244. Anser albifrons gambeli (Hartl.) Coues.

American White-fronted Goose. 593a.

245. Berniola canadensis (Linn.) Boie.
Canada Googe. 594.

245a. Bernicla canadensis hutchinsü (Sw. & Rich.)
Ridgw. &
Hutchins’ Goose. 394a.

246. Bernicla brenta all. ) Steph.
Brant. 595.

Anas boscas Linn.
Mallard. 601.

247,

OHIO BIRDS.

Columbus, fall of —; Dr. Jasper.

May 5, 74; April 19, 76.

April 10, 75.

May 4—Nov. 1,73; May 2—Oct. 17,

74; April 17 —, 76.

April 24, 79.
May 10, 77; Circleville.

April 20, 76.

ee 1, 73; Oct.17, 74; Mar, 25—,

5.

Nov-26, 76.

March 19, 77.

Oct. 28, 76.

March 19, 74.

Oct. 17, 74; March 1-2, 77.

April 18, 73; Oct. 17, 74 ; Feb. 20-
April 26, 77; March 11, 79.

CHECK LIST. 583

248. Anas obscura Gmel. Oct. 17, 74; March 5, 79.
Black Mallard. 602.

249. Chaulelasmus streperus (Linn.) Gray. March 28, 77.
Gadwall. 604,

250. Dafila acuta (Linn.) Bp. Feb. 27,75; 20, 77; March 5, 79.
Pintail. 605.

251. Mareca americana (Gmel.) Steph. Oct. 3, 74; March 19, 77.
Bald-pate. 607.

252. Spatula clypeata (Linn.) Boie. _ April 15, 75; March 4, 76; 27, 77;
Shoveller. 608. 11, 79.

253. Querquedula discors (Linn.) Steph. April 18, Oct. 17, 74; April 20, 75;
Blue-winged Teal. 609. 7,76; May 8, 76; April 20, 77;

8.
’
254. Nettion carolinensis (Gmel.) Baird. April 20, 75.

Green-winged Teal. 612.

255. Ai sponsa (Linn.) Boie. March 28, 77.
Wood Duck; Summer Duck. 613.

256. Fulix marila (Linn.) Baird. April 7-23, 76; March 11, 77.
Scaup Duck. 614.
257. Fulia afinis (Eyt.) Baird. March 23, 75; 11, 77; 6, 79.

Little Blackhead. 615.

258. Fulia collaris (Donov.) Baird. March 25, 75; 11, 77; 6, 79.
Ring-billed Blackhead. 616.

269. Zthyia vallisneria (Wils.) Boie, March 30, 77.
Canvas back. 617.

260. ZEthyia americana (Eyt.) Bp. March 25, 75.
Redhead. 618,

261. Clangula glaucium americana (Bp.) Ridgw. March 23, Dec. 20, 75; 12-15, 76.
American Golden-eye. 620, &

262. Clangula albeola (Linn.) Steph. March 25, 75; 6, 77; April 14, 78,
Butterball; Bufflehead. 621. i =

263. Harelda glacialis (Linn.) Leach.
Long-tailed Duck; Old Squaw. 623.

264. Somateria spectabilis (Linn.) Boie. Dec. 4, 1880.
King Eider. 629.

265. (Edemia americana Sw. & Rich. Dec. 11, 76; Licking Reservoir,
American Scoter. 630.

266. Melanetta velvetina (Cass.) Baird. Dec. 13, 76; Licking Reservoir.
American Velvet Scoter. 632.

267. Erismatura rubida (Wils.) Bp. April 27, 73.
Ruddy Duck. 634,

268. Mergus merganser americanus (Cass.) Ridgw. March 19, Nov. 12, 77.
American Sheldrake. 636.

269. Mergus serrator Linn. Nov. 4, 78.
Red-breasted Sheldrake. 637.

270. hodytes cucullatus (Linn.) Reich. March 25, 75; 4, 76; 19, 77;:Nov. 2
Lop Hooded Sheldrake. 638. FR cn ee Vv. 2,

584 OHIO BIRDS.

271, Pelecanus erythrorhynchus Gmel.
American White Pelican. 640.

272. Phalacrocorax dilophus (Sw. & Rich.) Nutt.
Double-crested Cormorant. 643.

Oct. -, 61.

April 1, 78; Licking Reserveir,

272a Phalacrocorax dilophus floridanus (Aud.) Ridgw. Sept. -, 61.

Florida Cormorant. 64384.

273. Rissa tridactyla (Linn.) Bp.
Kittiwake Gull. 658.

274. Larus leucopterus Faber.
White- winged Gull. 661.

275. Larus marinus Linn.
Great Black-backed Gull. 663.

276. Larus argentatus smithsonianus Coues.
American Herring Gull. 666a.

277. Larus delawarensis Ord.
Ring-billed Gull. 669.

278. Larus philadelphie (Ord.) Gray.
Bonaparte’s Gull. 675,

[279.] Xema sabinei (J. Sabine) Leach.
Sabine’s Gull. 677.

280. Sterna anglica Montag.
Gull-billed Tern. 679.

281. Sterna forsieri Nutt.
Forster’s Tern. 685.

282. Sterna fluviatilis Naum.
Cowmon Tern.

283. Sterna dougalli Montag.
Roseate Tern. 688.

284. Sterna antillarum (Less.) Coues.
Least Tern.

285. Hydrochelidon lariformis surinamensis (Gm.)
idgw.
Black Tern. 693.

[286.] Stercorarius pomatorhinus (Temm.) Vieill.
Pomarine Jaeger. 697.

287. Podiceps holbolli Reinh.
American Red-necked Grebe, 731.

288. Dytes auritus (Linn.) Ridgw.
Horned Grebe. 732.

289. Podilymbus podiceps (Linn.) Lawr.
Thick-billed Grebe. 735.

290. Colymbus torquatus Brunn.
Loon.

291. Colymbus articus Linn.
Black-throated Diver. 738,

292. Colymbus sepientrionalis Linn.
Red-throated Diver. 740.

March 25, 73; April 22, 75; March
30, 76; 2-30, 77; Nov. 4, 78

March 3, 77.
|

April 21, 75; Nov. 4, 78.

Oct. -, 62.

May -, 72; Oct. 19, 75.

May -, 62.

Aug. 4,75; May 9, 77.

April 30, 74; Nov. 30, 78.

April 14, 73; March 26, 75; April

5, 7

May 7, 77.

GARDEN BIRDS. 585

[B.] LIST OF BIRDS OBSERVED IN MY GARDEN.

, *

For the purpose of illustrating the extent to which ornithological ob-
servations be made in densely inhabited places, I give the following
list of species which I have observed alight in my garden in the central
part of the city of Columbus, a lot 1874 by 75 feet.

Hylocichla mustelina. Wood Thrush. Common. May.

Hylocichla fuscescens. Wilson’s Thrush. Common. May.

Hylocichla alicie. Gray-cheeked Thrush. Common. May.

Hylocichia ustulatus swainsoni. Olive-backed Thrush. Common. May.

Hylocichla unalasce pallasit, Hermit Thrnsh. Common. April.

Merula migratoria. Robin. Abundant. Breeds.

Galeoscoptes carolinensis, Catbird. Abundant. Breeds.

Harporhynchus rufus. Brown Thrasher. Not common. April.

Sialia sialis. Bluebird. Common. Breeds.

Polioptila cerulea, Gunatcatcher. Not common. May.

Regulus calendula. Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Common. April, October.

Regulus satrapa. Golden-crowned Kinglet. Common. March, November.

Lophophanes bicolor. Tufted Titmouse. Common.

Parus atricapillus. Black-capped Chickadee. Not common. December.

Sitta carolinensis. White-bellied Nuthatch. Common. October—April.

Sita canadensis. Red-bellied Nuthatch. Not common. September, April.

Certhia familiaris rufa. Brown Creeper. Common. March, April, May.

Thryothorus ludovicianus. Carolina Wren. Common. Resident.

Troglodytes aédon, House Wren. Common. Breeds.

Anorthura troglodytes hyemalis. Winter Wren. Notcommon. April i-May 1, 1875.

Anthus ludovicianus. American Titlark. Rare. October 20, 74,

Mniotilta varia borealis. Small-billed Creeper. Notcommon April, May, July.

Helmitherus vermivorus. Worm-eating Warbler. Rare.

Helminthophaga pinus. Blue-winged Yellow Warbler. Rare.

Helminthophaga peregrina. Tennessee Warbler. Common. October.

Parula americana. Blue Yellow-backed Warbler. Rare. June 30, 1879.

Dendreca estiva. Snmmer Yellow Bird. Abundant. Breeds.

Dendreca cerulescens. Black-throated Warbler. Not common. May.

Dendreca coronata. Yellow-rumped Warbler. Not common. May, November.

Dendreca maculosa. Black-and-yellow Warbler. Not common. May.

Dendreca cerulea. Cerulean Warbler. Rare. May 8, 1874.

Dendreca pennsylvanica. Chestnut-sided Warbler. Rare. May 8, 1874.

Dendreca castanea. Bay-breasted Warbler. Not common. September.

Dendreca striata, Black-poll Warbler. Common. September.

Dendreca blackburnie. Blackburnian Warbler. Rare. May 10, 1875.

Dendroeca dominica albilora. White-browed Yellow-throated Warbler. Not com-
mon. May.

586 OHIO BIRDS.

37, Dendreca virens. Black-throated Green Warbler. Not common. May, Oct.
38, Siurus auricapillus. Golden-crowned Thrush. Not rare. April-May.

39. Siurus nevius. Small-billed Water Thrush. Rare. May.

40. Geothlypis philadelphia. Mourning Warbler. Rare. May 26, 1875.

41. Geothylypis trichas. Maryland Yellow-throat. Not common. May.

42. Setophaga ruticilla, Redstart. Not common. May, August.

43. Vireosylvia olivaceus. Red-eyed Vireo. Common. May, September.

44. Vireosylvia philadelphica. Philadelphia Vireo. Rare. May 8, 1674.

45. Vireosylvia gilva. Warbling Vireo. Common. Breeds.

46. Lanivireo flavifrons. Yellow-throated Vireo. Not common.

47. Ampelis cedrorum. Cedar Wax-wing. Common. Breeds.

48. Progne subis. Purple Martin. Abundant.

49. Petrochelidon lunifrons. Cliff Swallow. Not common.

50. Hirundo erythrogastra. Barn Swallow. . Abundant.

51. Tachycineta bicolor. White-bellied Swallow. Not common,

52. Cotyleriparia. Bank Swallow. Rare. May.

53. Stelgidopteryx serripennis. Rough-winged Swallow. Abundant.

54. Pyranga rubra, Scarlet Tanager. Rare.

55. Astragalinus tristis. Yellowbird. Abundant. Breeds.

56. Passerculus sandwichensis savanna, Savannah Sparrow. Not common. October.
57. Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-crowned Sparrow. Not common. October.
58. Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Sparrow. Very common.

59. Spizella montana. Tree Sparrow. Formerly common in winter. Now rare.
60. Spizella domestica. Chipping Sparrow. Abundant. Breeds.

61. Spizella pusilla. Field Sparrow. Not common. April.

62. Junco hyemalis. Black Snow-bird. Abundant. October—April.

63. Melospiza fasciata. Song Sparrow. Common.

64. Melospiza palustris. Swamp Sparrow. Rare. April 26, 1881.

65. Melospiza lincolni. Lincoln’s Finch. Rare. May 17, 1877.

66. Passerella iliaca. Fox-colored Sparrow. Rare.

67. Passer domestica. English Sparrow. Introduced. Resident. Breeds.

68. Pipilo erythrophthalmus. Chewink; Towhee. Not common. March-April.
69. Cardinalis virginianus. Cardinal Grosbeck. Rather common in winter.

70. Zamelodia ludoviciana. Rose-breasted Grosbeck. Rare.

71. Passerina cyanea. Indigo Bird. Not common.

72. Spiza americana. Black-throated Bunting. Rare. August 13, 1877.

73. Dolichonyx oryzivorus. Bobolink. Rare. May 18, 1873.

74. Molothrus ater. Cowbird. Common in summer.

75. Icterus spurius. Orchard Oriole. Common.

76. Icterus galbula. Baltimore Oriole. Common.

77. Quiscalus purpureus eneus. Bronzed Grakle. Common.

78. Cyanurus cristatus. Blue Jay. Common.

79. Tyrannus carolinensis. Kingbird. Common of late.

80. Tyrannus crinitus. Great-crested Flycatcher. Rather common.

81. Sayornis fuscus. Phoebe Bird; Pewee. Not common.

82. Contopus virens. Wood Pewee. Common. Breeds.

83. Empidonax Auboiventris. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. Common. May, August,
84. Empidonax acadicus. Acadian Flycatcher. Common.

85. LEmpidonasx pusillus trailli. Traill’s Flycatcher. Common.

GARDEN BIRDS.

86. Empidonax minimus. Least Flycatcher. Common.

87. Trochilus colubris. Hummingbird. Common.

88. Chetura pelasgica. Chimney Swift. Abundant. Breeds.

89. Picus villosus. Hairy Woodpecker. Not common in winter.

90. Picus pubescens. Downy Woodpecker. Common in winter.

91. Sphyrapicus varius. Yellow-bellied Woodpecker. Common. April.
92. Melanerpes erythrocephalus. Red-headed Woodpecker. Not common.
93. Colaptes auratus. Yellow-shafted Flicker. Rare.

94. Coccyzus americanus. Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Common.

95. Coccyzus erythrophihalmus. Black-billed Cuckoo. Common.

96. Strix nebulosum. Barred Owl. Rare in winter.

97. Scops asio. Little Screech Owl. Not common. October—March.

98. Zenaidura carolinensis. Mourning Dove. Rare.

99. Ortyx virginiana. Bob-white; American Quail. Common in October.
100. * Butorides virescens. Green Heron. Accidental. August 28, 1874.

101. Tringoides macularius. Spotted Sandpiper. Accidental. July 17, 1874,

The following species not included in the preceding list, have
noticed flying over.

Ageleus pheniceus. Red-and-buff-shouldered Blackbird. March.
Sturnella magna. Meadow Lark. April.
Scolecophagus ferrugineus. Rusty Blackbird. October.
Corvus frugivorus. Crow. March, November.
Eremophila alpesiris. Shore Lark.

Chordeiles popetue. Night Hawk. August.

ZEsalon columbarius. Pigeon Hawk. October.
Tinnunculus sparverius. Sparrow Hawk. May.

Buteo borealis, Red-tailed Hawk.

Cathartes aura. Turkey Buzzard. March, May.
Oxyechus, vociferus. Kildeer. March.

Bernicla canadensis. Canada Goose.

The following have been found in the gardens of my neighbors:

Centrophanes lapponicus. Lapland Longspur. March 30, 1881. Frozen.
Nyctale acadica. Saw-whet Owl. January 11, 1876. Frozen.
Colymbus torquatus. Loon. March, 1862.

587

been

588

Page.

204.
205.
206.
207.

208.
208.

209.
210,
211.

212.
214.

217.
221.
223.
224.

225.
227.
228.

230.

230.

OHIO BIRDS.

[C.] ADDITIONS, ADDITIONAL REFERENCES AND
CORRECTIONS.

Turdus migratorius, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
221.

Turdus mustelinus, Dury and Freeman, Observations on Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc.
Nat. Hist., ii, 1879. 100.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 211.

Turdus pallasi, Dury and Freeman, Observations, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 100.

Turdus swainsoni, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,.ii, 1879,
100. :
Turdus alicie, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc, Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 100.
Turdus fuscescens, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,

100.

Mimus polyglottus, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
121.

Galeoscoptes carolinensis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 221.

Harporhynohus rufus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ, Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 221. ‘ ,

Sialia sialis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 221.

Regulus calendula, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
100.

Polioptila cerulea, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
100.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib,, iii, 188, 221.

Lopophanes bicolor, Dury and Freeman, Obs, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
100.

Parus carolinensis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
221.

Sitia carolinensis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
221.

Sitta canadensis, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 100.

Certhia familiaris americana, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1879, 100.

Troglodytes tudovicianus, Audubon, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 76.—Zhryothorus ludovicianus,
var. ludovicianus, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iti,
1880, 122.

Thryothorus bewicki, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101. Note of the capture of two specimens of this species in the vicinity of
Cincinnati. This is the first authentic record of the occurrence of this bird
in our limits, and for this reason, though considered as probable on page
230, I have given it its proper place in our check-list.

Troglodytes edon, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101.—Troglodytes domesticus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc, Nat.
Hist., iii, 1880, 222.

CINCINNATI WARBLER. 589

232. Cistothorus palustris, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 101.—Telmatodytes palustris, Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 222
(nesting).

235. Hremophila alpestris. Mr. Chubb informs me that this species breeds in the
vicinity of Cleveland.

238. Certhia varia, Audubon, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 76.—Mniotilta varia, Dury and Free-
man, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 101.

239. Parula americana, Dury and Freeman; Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101. .

241. Sylvia vermivora, Audubon, Orn. Biog,, i, 1831, 177.—Helmitherus vermivorus, Dury
and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 101.

HELMINTHOPHAGA CINCINNATIENSIS Langdon.

Cincinnati Warbler.

Helminthophaga cincinnatiensis, LANGDON, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 119; Field
Notes, ib, 122; Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club., v, 1880, 208.—Rıpaway, Ball. Nutt. Orn.,
Club., v, 1880, 237; Nomenclature N. A. Birds, 1881, 85.

This new species was discovered by Dr. Frank W. Langdon, with whose
name the readers of this report have become familiar in the preceding
papers. His original description was reprinted in the Bulletin, as above
cited, and is as follows:

“ Adult male; spring plumage. Entire upper parts excepting forehead, clear, bright,
olive green, with a tinge of yellowish in certain lights, quills and retrices dark plum-
beous brown, their outer webs fringed with olive green like that of the back. Below, in-
cluding crissum, bright cadmium yellow, of nearly the same shade throughout. Fore-
head bright yellow, this color bounded anteriorly by very narrow black line from
lores, and behind gradually merging into the clear olive-green of crown; feathers
of vertex with a median concealed area of black, Lores velvety black ; auriculars black,
tipped with yellowish-green, giving them a mottled appearance. A yellow area beneath
the eye separates the black of lores from that of auriculars,

‘Greater and lesser wing coverts tipped with greenish-yellow, forming two indistinct
wing-bars ; outer primary edged with whitish. Inner webs of two outer tail feathers nar-
rowly margined with white near the tip.

“Bill, in the flesh, black, excepting extreme tip, and base of lower mandible,
which are bluish horn-color; culmen slightly decurved, with trace of a notch at tip.
Rictus with fairly developed bristles extending nearly or quite to nostrils, here differing
from any other species of the genus. Eyes, dark brown; tarsi and toes, pale brownish ;
claws, paler, Dimensions: Length, 4.75; wing, 2.50; tail, 1.85; culmen, .44, from
nostrils, .34; tarsus, .70.

“The discovery of additional specimens may modify the above description somewhat,
for, as Dr. Coues suggests to me, the concealed black of vertex would seem to indicate
that this specimen had not quite attained its full spring dress.

“ The species is described from a single specimen, taken by the writer at Madisonville,
Hamilton County, Ohio, on May 1, 1880. It has been submitted to Dr. Elliott Coues for
examination, and by him in company with Messrs. Ridgway and Henshaw, pronounced
to be undoubtedly new. Its relations, according to Dr. Coues, are mainly with Helmin-

590 OHIO BIRDS.

thophaga pinus, although in the concealed black of vertex and auriculars it slightly
resembles certain plumages of Oporornis formosa. From H. pinus, its nearest ally it differs
in its decidedly larger size, the presence of rictal bristles, the concealed black of vertex
and the black auriculars ; negatively, in the total absence of white wing bars, white tail
blotches, and ashy blue on wings and tail. With O. formosa it seems hardly necessary to
compare it; its smaller size, dissimilar proportions, short tarsi, yellow forehead, and
white margin to outer tail feathers, sufficiently distinguish it from that species. A
suspicion of hybridism between the two genera is, in the present state of our knowledge,
inadmissible. .

“ Of its habits nothing is known except that it was shot while searching for insects
at the end of a maple limb about fifty feet from the ground.

“Tt is a little remarkable that this should be the third new species of this genus
announced from the eastern United States during the past six years; such, however, is
the fact, and in all three instances the discovery has been made in an already thoroughly
explored section. Whether this has any significance as indicating a special tendency of
the genus to differentiation on account of changes in its environment, or is merely a
coincidence, is of course problematical; the question of an extension of range from some
heretofore unexplored habitat would also come in here for consideration.”

Mr. Ridway (1. c.) expresses his views in regard to its validity and re-
lations to other species as follows:

“Having had, through Dr. Coues’ courtesy, the pleasure of examining the type speci-
men of Mr. Langdon’s new Helminthophaga, recently described in the Journal of the Cin-
cinnati Society of Natural History, July, 1880, I feel constrained to offer a few remarks
concerning it, as an expression of my own views regarding its validity as a species. At
first sight, the bird impresses one with its unique coloration, which on further examina-
tion is found to be a perfect combination of the plumage of Helminthophaga pinus and
Oporornis formosa. The wings and tail are plain-colored, as in the latter, but the wings
show a faint suggestion of the wing-bands of the former, in the pale olivaceous tips to
the middle and greater coverts. The forehead is yellow, as in H. pinus, but behind and
along the postero-lateral edge of this yellow is seen a portion of the black cap which
characterizes O. formosa. The black markings of the side of the head are intermediatein
extent between the narrow and postocular streak of the Helminthophaga, and the broader
loral patch with suborbital continuation, as seen in the Oporornis. In form, the bird is
as nearly intermediate between the two as could well be imagined, the bill inclining
more to that of Oporornis in size and shape, the feet more like those of Helminthophaga.
The bird may eventually prove to be a distinct species; butit certainly suggests a hybrid
between those named aboved, with quite as good (in fact exactly the same) reason as
that between Hirundo erythrogastra and Petrochelidon lunifrons, recorded in a former num-
ber of the Bulletin (Vol. III, pp. 135, 136). This view of the matter is strengthened by
the circumstance that in many, if not most, parts of the Mississippi Valley, especially in
the latitude of Cincinnati, the two species bred very abundantly in the same localities,
both nesting on the ground, and often having their nests situated only a few feet apart.”

242. Helminthophaga pinus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 101.

243. Helminthophaga chrysoptera, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 1879, 101—Langdon, Field Notes, ib., iii, 1880, 122,

ADDITIONS. 591

244. Helminthophaga celata. Mr. Chubb writes me February 7, 1881, that this species
‘¢ has not been uncommon the last two falls.”

245. Helminthophaga peregrina, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 101.

246. Dendreca estiva, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 222,

247. Dendreca virens Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii. 1879, 102.

249. Dendreca cerulea, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,

101.

262, Dendreca blackburnie, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat Hist., ii,
1879, 101.

253. Dendreca striata, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,

101.

254. Dendreeca castanea, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101.

256. Dendreca pennsylvanica, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 101.

257. Dendreca maculosa, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
101.

258. Perissoglossa tigrina, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 101. Mr. Chubb informs me this species is common in fall, near
Cleveland.

259. Sylvia discolor, Audubon, Orn. Biog., i, 1831, 76.—Dendreca discolor, Dury and
Freeman, Obs., Journ. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 102.—Langdon, Field Notes,
ib., iii, 1880, 123.

263. Dendreca kirtlandi, Langdon, Field Notes, ib., iii, 1880, 123.

Mr. Langdon notes the capture by Mr. H. E. Chubb, of Cleveland, of
two specimens of this very rare warbler, a male and female, on May 4th
and 12th, respectively. Mr. Chubb furnishes me the following inter-
esting notes of their capture:

‘‘Both were in shrubby fields not over three feet from the ground. The male
was under my eye for probably five minutes. I was after a Chat, the first of the season
I had heard, and while cautiously trying to get sight of him through the bushes I
noticed what I supposed was one of the small Flycatchers, perch near me. From this
pase of operations he made several sallies after insects, returning to the same perch.
Not finding the Chat, and it being about time to retarn home, I thought best to empty
my barrel at the Flycatcher, as he was showing some peculiar motions. You can
imagine my delight when nearing him, in seeing the pale yellow belly of a Kirtland
Warbler which I recognized atonce. I shot the female, half suspecting what it was, and
the fear of losing her cut short wy opportunity for study. She was about two feet from
the ground working up from the roots of ashrub. Iam inclined to think they are rather
terrestrial in their habits, frequenting bushy fields near woods.”
265. Dendreca palmarum, Dury and Freeman, Obs, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 102. j

267. Siurus auricapillus, Dury and Freeman, Obs. Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 102.

268. Siurus nevius, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1879, 102.

”

592

272,
273.
275.
276.
279.

281.

282.

284.
285.

286.
287.
288.

293.
298.

299.

301.
302.

303.

304.

306.

310.

316.

320.
322.

323.

326.

OHIO BIRDS.

Oporornis agilis. ‘Not as rare as some other warblers here [Cleveland].
Shot four last season, another was picked up just outside my office.” (Chubb.)

Oporornis formosus, Dury and Freeman, Obs , Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102,—Langdon, Field Notes, ib., iii, 1880, 123.

Geothlypis trichas, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ, Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 222.

Geothlypis philadelphia. ‘Not rare, I have killed as many as eight in one morn-
ing.” (Chubb.)

Myiodioctes mitratus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 102.

Myiodioctes canadensis, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102.— Wilsonia mitrata, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 123.

Setophaga ruticilla, Dary and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102.

Pyranga rubra, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 102.

Pyranga estiva, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102.

Hirundo erythrogastra, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 223.

Tachycineta bicolor, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
123; Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 223.

Petrochelidon lunifrons, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 223.

Progne subis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 223.

Vireo olivaceus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880;
223,

Vireo philadelphicus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
102.

Vireo gilvus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ıii, 1880, 223.

Lanivireo flavifrons, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,

1879, 102.

Lanivireo solitarius, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 102.

Vireo noveboracensis, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 103.

Lanius borealis. I have recently received satisfactory evidence that the record
of this bird breeding in Northern Obio was an error.

Lanius ludovicianus exoubitorides, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat.
Hist., iii, 1880, 123; Summer Birds, ib., 233.

Loxia curvirostris americana, Dury and Freeman, Obs, Journ. Cin Soc. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 1879, 103.

Chrysomitris pinus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, 103.

Chrysomitris tristis, Langdon Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat, Hist., iii, 1880,

Plectrophanes nivalis, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soe. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
124.

Poccetes gramineus, Dury aud Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 224.

327.

329.

330.

332.

334.

335.
336.

341.

343.

347.

348.

350.

351.

353.
355.

357.

358.

359.

361.

367.

390.

406.

460.

479.

ADDITIONS. 593

Coturniculus passerinus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin, Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 103.

Melospiza palustris, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
103.

Melospiza melodia, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
224. R

Junco hyemalis, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
103. ;

Spizella socialis, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ, Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
224.

Spizella pusilla, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 124.

Zonotrichia leucophrys, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 103.

Pyrgita domestica, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
124.— Passer domesticus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
iii, 1880, 223.

Euspiza americana, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 224.

Cyanospiza cyanea, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
103.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 224.

Cardinalis virginianus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii,
1880, 224.

Pipilo erythrophthalmus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1879, 103.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 224.

Dolichonyx oryzivorus, Langdon, Field Notes, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
125; Summer Birds, ib., 224.

Molothrus ater, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 224.

Agelaius phoniceus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Higt., iii,
1880, 224. j

Sturnella magna, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
224.

Icterus spurius, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879,
103.—Langdon, Summer Birds, ib., iii, 1880, 224.

Icterus baltimore, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
224.

Quiscalus purpureus ceneus, Langdon, Summer Birds, Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.
iii, 1880, 224.

Tyrannus carolinensis, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii,
1€79, 103.

Coccygus erythrophihalmus, Dury and Freeman, Obs., Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1879, 104.

Strix flammea americana, By the kindness of Mr. Oliver Davie I examined in the
flesh a fine specimen of the Barn Owl, in very light plumage, taken by Mr.
Thev. Heischman, at Gahanna, about seven miles from this city, May 1,
1881. 8

Strepsilas interpres. ‘‘ Shot two last fall on the lake shore, and one was shot the
abe al autumn.”—( Chubb, 1881.)

Calidris arenaria. ‘Could be found last fall on any of the beaches near here.”—
( Chubb.)

594 OHIO BIRDS.

497-8, For PELGADIS wherever found, read PLEGADIS.

498. Plegadis falcinellus. Dr. H. C. Wann informed me several months since of the
reported capture of an Ibis in Greene county, several miles from Xenia. He
was unable te give any particulars or identification, except that the bird
was taken alive and partly domesticated. Dr. Wann referred me to H.
McQuiston, Esq., of Xenia, as possibly able to obtain definite information.
He kindly furnishes the following, under date of April 20, 1881:

“The party who captured the bird spoken of by Dr. Wann is Mr. Edward
Ferguson, a farmer living six and a half miles south ot this city.

“ He says he found the bird in his house- yard immediately after a storm of
rain, etc.,in May or June of 1878, and kept it for some weeks, when it
died. He says it would eat crumbs from the table, worms, etc., and from
his description I would say it was a young Glossy Ibis, the marks, color,
curved bill, ete., convince me it is that bird. Iread your description of each
of the Ibis family to him, and he at once said that of the young Glossy Ibis
was a good description of the bird; he says it was not quite two feet long,
but otherwise the description was perfect; and I suppose it being a young
bird, and he says it certainly was a young one, would account for the diff-
erence in length. He did not preserve the bird or any part of it.”

511. Porzana noveboracensis. “' Is not sorare as generallysupposed. For the last four
years I have secured one or two each season. They are extremely difficult
to move, and unless you have a good Rail dog you may pass within two or
three yards of them without making them fly. Two of my specimens were
caught by dogs, seemingly preferring capture to flight.”—( Chubb.)

The following changes in Families and Family Nomenclature, affecting the nomencla-
ture and arrangement of groups represented in Ohio, are adopted by Mr. Ridgway.
Changes are indicated by comparing with the corresponding group of Dr. Coues.

Coues, 1872. Ridgway, 1881.
SYLVICOLIDZ= MNIOTILTIDZ.
TANTALINE= CICONIDE.
IsipInz— IBIDIDE,
HZMATOPODID. excl. STREPSILAS— HEMATOPODIDE.
STREPSILAS— STREPSILIDEE.
GRACULIDE— PHALACROCORACIDE.
LARIDE excl. LESTRIDINZ= LARIDE.
LESTRIDIN£Z— STERCORARIDE.
Popicirpipza=— PODICIPITIDE.

[D.] BIBLIOGRAPHY OF OHIO ORNITHOLOGY.
’

In the preparation of the following pages I am indebted to Dr. Elliott
Coues, U. 8. A., J. J. Barber, Esq., of this city, and Dr. Frank W. Lang-

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 595

don, of Madisonville for valuable papers otherwise inaccessible to me,
and to the latter gentleman for much timely and laborious assistance.

Species for the first time given as Ohican are in italics. Only such species are given
as synonyms (Syn.) as occur elsewhere in the same paper under another name. Names
of species, now rejected as Ohioan, or rejected upon the then evidence, are inclosed in
parentheses.

1808-14. Witson, A. American Ornithology; or, the Natural History of
the Birds of the United States: Illustrated with plates en-
graved and colored from original drawings taken from nature.
By Alexander Wilson. Vol. I[-IX.] Philadelphia: Pub-
lished by Bradford and Inskeep.

Names the following birds, as observed in Ohio:
Vol. I, 1808.— Picus carolinus, P. varius.
Vol. III, 1811.—Alcedo alcyon, Sylvia magnolia, Psittacus carolinensis.
Vol. IV, 1811.— Strix nyctea, Falco leucocephalus.
Vol. V, 1812.— Hirundo pelasgia, Columba migratoria.
Vol. VI, 1812.—Perdiz virginianus, Strix virginiana, Falco furcatus.
Vol. IX, 1814.—Vultur aura, Corvus corax. 14 species.

1825-33. Bonaparte, C. L. American Ornithology; or, the Natural
History of Birds inhabiting the United States, not given by
Wilson, with figures drawn, engraved, and colored, from na-
ture. By Charles Lucian Bonaparte. Vol. I[-IV.] Phila-
delphia: Carey, Lea & Carey—Chestnut street. London :—John
Miller, 40 Pall Mall.

Names the following as occurring in Ohio:

Vol. I, 1825.—Hirundo lunifrons, Meleagris gallopavo.

1831-39. AupuBon,J.J. Ornithological Biography, or an account of the
habits of the Birds of the United States of America; accom-
panied by descriptions of the objects represented in the work
entitled The Birds of ‘America, and interspersed with delinea-
tions of American scenery and manners. By John James
Audubon, F. R. SS. L. & E. Edinburg: Adam Black.

Names the following species as Ohican:

Vol. I, 1831. Sylvia discolor, Psittacus carolinensis, Coccyzus erythrophthal-
mus, Fringilla tristis, Sylvia vermivora, 8. formosa, Tetrao umbellus, Tanagra
estiva, Falco halietus, Perdix virginiana, Troglodytes ludovicianus, Certhia
varia.

Vol. II, 1834. Cathartes iota, Strix nyctea, Fringilla leucophrys, F. ludovici-
ana, Muscicapa crinita, Icteria viridis, Fringilla cardinalis, Emberiza nivalis,
Strix acadica.

Vol. III, 1835. Anser canadensis, Anas sponsa, Larus zonorhynchus, L. argen-
tatus, L. marinus, (L. atricilla), Anas crecca, Podiceps cornutus, (Arctic Tern),
Black Tern. :

596 OHIO BIRDS.

Vol. IV, 1838. Totanus bartramius, Anas obscura, Totanus melanoleucus,
Sterna hirundo, S. minuta, Fuligula ferina, Larus bonapartei, Strix otus, Em-
beriza americana. 40 species, 35 new,

1832-34. Nurrauy, T. A Manual of the Ornithology of the United
States and of Canada. By Thomas Nuttall, A. M., F. L. 8.
[Vol. I.] The Land Birds. Cambridge: Hilliard and Brown,
booksellers to the University. MDCCCXXXII. [Vol. II.]
The Water Birds. Boston: Hilliard, Gray, and Company.
MDCCCXXXIV.

Records the occurrence in Ohio of [Vol. I] Strix nyctea, Icterus agripen-
nis, Musicapa cerulea, Meleagris gallopavo, [ Vol. IL] Rallus virginianus, Sterna
hirundo. New species, 5.

1838. ATwATER, Cates. A History of the State of Ohio, natural and
civil. By Caleb Atwater, A. M., Member, etc., etc. First
edition. Cincinnati. pp. 93-96.

Mentions by common name, and sometimes very indefinitely, about sev-
enty-five species of birds. Notes the Sandhill Crane on the Scioto nearly all
the year; Paroquette, as quoted on page 404; closes with a highly lauda-
tory and histrionic description of the Brown Thrush aud his vocal powers.

1838. KırTLann, Jarep P. Report of Dr. Kirtland, Second Assistant
Geologist.< First Annual Report on the Geological Survey of
the State of Ohio. By W. W. Mather, Principal Geologist, and
the several assistants. Columbus: Samuel Medary, Printer
to the State. 1838, pp. 65-69.

Presents the plan and economic importance of the Zoological Survey of
the State. Names Meleagris gallopavo, Anas domestica Anas canadensis,
Anas bernicla, Anas americana, Anas obscura, Anas sponsa, Anas discors, Anas
crecca, Fuligula vallisnera, Fuligula ferina, Tetrao cupido, Tetrao umbellus,
Perdix virginiana. New species, 7.

1838. Kirtuanp, J. P. Report on the Zoology of Ohio. By Professor
“ J. P. Kirtland, M. D.< Second Annual Report on the Geolo-
gical Survey of the State of Ohio. By W. W. Mather, Princi-
pal Geologist, and the several assistants. Columbus: Samuel
Medary, Printer to the State. pp. 160-6 and 177-187.

As it is expected that this report will be reprinted as an appendix to the
whole volume no further comments are necessary than to state that this is
the first systematic attempt to enumerate the birds of Ohio. Two hundred
and twenty-two (222) (by error in numbering 223) species arenamed. The
list includes all given as Ohioan by Wilson, Bonaparte, Nuttall, and him-

“ self in the preliminary report, and all given by Audubon except Sylvia
discolor, 8. formosa, Cathartes iota, Sterna minuta, and Strix otus.

The new species are Turdus migratorius, T. mustelinus, T. minor, T. wilsonii,
T. polyglottus, T. felivox, T. rufus, Saxicola sialis, Regulus calendula, R, cristatus,
(RB. tricolor Syn.) Parus bicolor, P. atricapillus, Sitta carolinensis, S.canadensis, 8.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 597

pusilla, Certhia familiaris, Troglodytes europeus, T. palustris, Alauda alpestris,
Anthus spinoletia, Sylvia americana, S. solitaria, S. chrysoptera, $. rubracapilla.
S. peregrina, S. estiva, S. virens, S. canadensis, S. azurea, S. coronata, 8. black-
burnie, S. striata, S. castanea, S. icterocephala, S.'maratima, 8. petechia, S. au-
rocapilla, S. noveboracensis, S, agilis, S. trichas, S, wilsonii, S. pardalina, Mus-
cicapa ruticilla, Hirundo rufa, H. bicolor, H. riparia, H. purpurea, Bombycilla
carolinensis, Vireo olivaceus, V. gilvus, V. flavifrons, V. noveboracensis, Lanius
septentrionalis, Fringilla purpurea, Loxia curvirostra, Fringilla linaria, F. gram-
inea, F. passerina, F. palustris, F, melodia, F. hyemalis, F. canadensis, F. socialis,
F, pusilla, F. pennsylvanica, F. iliaca, F. cyanea, F. erythropthalma, Icterus pe-
coris, I. pheniceus, Sturnus ludovicianus, Icterus spurius, I baltimore, Quiscalus
ferrugineus, Q. versicolor, Corvus corone, C. cristatus, Muscicapa tyrannus, M.
Susca, M. virens, M. acadica, Caprimulgus vociferus, C. virginianus, Trochilus
colubris, Coccyzus americanus, Picus pileatus, P. villosus, P. pubescens, P. medi-
anus (Syn.), P. erythrocephalus, P. auratus, Strix asio, S. brachyotus, 8. nebulosa,
Falco cyaneus, F. velox, F. cooperii, F. palumbarius, F. peregrinus, F. colum-
barius, F. sparverius, I. borealis, F. hyemalis, F. buteodes (Syn.), F. pennayl-
vanicus, F. sancti-johannis, (F. washingtonianus, Syn.), F. fulvus, Columba caro-
linensis; ( Tetrao canadensis), Charadrius helveticus, C. pluvialis, C. vociferus, C.
semipalmatus, C. melodus, Strepsilas interpres, Recurvirostra americana, Phala-
ropus wilsoni, Scolopax minor, 8. wilsonü, S. grisea, Tringa wilsonii, T. schinzii,
Limosa hudsonica, L. fedoa, Totanus semipalmatus, T. flavipes, T. chloropygius,
T. macularius, Tringa rufescens, Numenius longirostris, N. hudsonius, Ardea
herodias, A. egretta, A. virescens, A. discors, A. minor, A. exilis, Grus americana,
Rallus carolinus, R. noveboracensis, Gallinula chloropus, Cygnus musicus, Anser
albifrons, A. hyperboreus, Anas acuta, A. streperus, A. clypeata, Fuligula mar-
illa, F. rufitorques, F. clangula, F. albeola, F. rubida, Mergus merganser, M. serra-
tor, M. cuculatus, Pelecanus onocrotalus, Sterna aranea, Colymbus glacialis, (Podi-
ceps cristatus), P. rubricollis, P. carolinensis. New species, 163, less 4 syn-
onyms, 159, These, with those mentioned previously , give 222 birds re-
corded as Ohioan in 1838.

1841. Kırrıann, J. P. Fragments of Natural History. By J. P. Kirt-
land, M.D., Prof. Theo. and Prac. Phys. Medical College of
Ohio. “I write that which I have seen.” Le Baum. No. II,
Ornithology.< Am. Jour. Sci. and Arts, XL, 1841, pp. 19-24.
Desultory notes on seventeen species, dated June 4, 1840. Bombycilla
garrula, Phlaropus hyperboreas, Sylvia pensilis, 8. rara, Fringilla ludoviciana,
(S. trochilus), Florida gallinule, Tringa rufescens, Tringa alpina, Sylvia
maratima, $, icterocephala, 8. castanea, Totanus semipalmatus, Limosa

fedoa, Numenius hudsonicus, Charadrius melodus, New species, 4.
1840-44, AupuBon, J, J. The Birds of America, from drawings made in
the United States and their Territories. By John James
Audubon. Philadelphia: J. B.Chevalier. 1840-1844. 7 vols.
In addition to species given in Ornithologtcal Biography, mentions as

Ohioan, Sylvicola maculosa, Emberiza henslowi, Corvus corax, Tanagra
rubra, Icterus spurius and Fuligula marila (= affinis.) New species, 2.

598

1845.

1850.

1850.

1850.

1850.

1850.

1850.

150.

1850.

1850.

1850.

1850.

OHIO BIRDS.

Storer, D. H. [Occurrence of Fringilla pinea [pinus], and Bomby-
cilla garrula, in Ohio in July.J< Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 1845, 52.
Statement as above in letter from Dr. J. P. Kirtland. ‘Jew species, 1.
Kirtianp, J. P. Fragments of Natural History.< Family Visi-
tor (weekly newspaper), Vol. I, No. 1, 1850, 1.

Notes on twenty-one species, chiefly regarding their relative abundance
compared with former years. Washington Eagle, Red-tailed, Red-shoul-
dered, Broad-winged, Cooper’s and Swallow-tailed Hawks, Goosander, Mal-
jard, Summer Duck, Wild Turkey, Partridge, Quail, Pileated Woodcock,
Turkey Buzzard, Raven, Crow, Crow Blackbird, Robin, Blue Bird, Thrush,
Catbird.

[KırrLann, J. P.] The Eagle. < Family Visitor, No. 2, 1850, 15.
Golden Eagle, an occasional visitor; Washington Eagle, a doubtful
species; White-headed Eagle, breeding in Rockport, Ohio.
[Kirvtanp, J. P.] The Blue Bird.< Family Visitor, i, No. 7,
1850, 55.
A popular account of the bird.
[KırıLan, J. P.] Birds of Winter.< Family Visitor, i, No. 8,
1850, 63. e
Fringilla linaria, F. hiemalis, Emberiza nivalis.
[Kretianp, J. P.] Troupial or Cow-blackbird.< Family Visitor,
i, No. 9, 1850, 71.
A popular deseripiion.
J. P.K.[ıerLAaxp,] Editorial Correspondence.< Family Visitor,
i, No. 10, 1850, 72.
Domestication of the Summer Duck, and other water fowl.
[KırrranD, J.P.] Instinct.< Family Visitor, i, No. 15, 1850, 120.
Owing to late season Redpolls and White Snowbirds remain until April,
the latter in breeding plumage.
[Kırrranp, J. P.] The Wild Pigeon.< Family Visitor, i, No. 17,
1850, 133.
A popular account.
[Kırırann, J.P.] Pine Linnet.< Family Visitor, i, No. 18, 1850,
140.
Fringilla linaria, arriving July 1, and remaining until May 30.
[Kırtrann, J. P.] White-crowned and White-throated Finches.<
Family Visitor; i, No. 19, 1850, 148.
Remaining till June 1.
[Kırrranp, J. P.] Pine Finch.< Family Visitor, i, No. 19, 1850,
148.

Still remains (June 29) and mating.

1850.

1850.

1850.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 599

[Kırrran, J. P.] White-headed Sparrow.< Family Visitor, i,

No. 19, 1850, 148.

Still remains (June 27),

[Kırrıand, J. P.] White-headed Hagle.< Family Visitor, i, No.

19, 1850, 148.
Nesting at Rockport, Ohio, in 1850.

[Kırrrann, J.P.) The Glossy Ibis.< Family Visitor, i, No. 21,

1850, 164.

Copies account in Boston Traveller (May?) 28th, one specimen recently
taken near Cambridge, and one at Middleboro, Mass., and one at Middle-
town, Conn., and records two specimens of the Glossy Ibis two years previ-
ously (1848) near Fairport, Lake county, Ohio, one captured. Also records
taking of Wilson’s Phalarope and Great Marbled Godwit by the same collec-
tor.

1850, [Kırrrann, J. P.] White-throated and White-headed Sparrow.<

1851.

1852

1852.

Family Visitor, i, No. 21, 1850, 164.
Remained at Sandusky, until June [July]3; Pine Linnet still remains
[July 11].

[KırrLand, J.P.] A Rare Bird. < Family Visitor, i, 1851, 412.

Troglodytes ludovicianus taken at Rockport, Ohio, April 30, 1851.

. Barkv, 8. F. Description of a new species of Sylvicola. Sylvicola

kirtlandii.< Ann. Lyc. N. Y., v. 1852, 217.

KırrLann, J. P. Peculiarities of the Climate, Flora, and Fauna

of the South Shore of Lake Erie, in the vicinity of Cleveland,
Ohio; by J. P. Kirtland< Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 2nd
Series, xiii, 1872, pp. 215-19. Reprinted in Proc. Cleveland
Acad. Nat. Sci., 1874, 1875, 171, and in Family Visitor, 1851-2.

Reprinted in this Report p.191. Notes on the Hooded, Kentucky, Yellow-
throated Wood, Cerulean and Prairie Warblers, Traill’s Flycatcher, Piping
Plover, Pine Grosbeak, White Owl, Bohemian Wax-wing and Pine Finch.
New species 3.

1852. [Reap, M. C., Editor.] The Cow Blackbird.< Family Visitor,

iii, No. 9, 1852, 68.
List of 18 species foster parents of the Cow Blackbird ; Snowbird (Junco)
and Chestnut-sided Warbler breeding in Ashtabula county, Ohio.

1852-3. [Reap, M.C.] Birds of Ohio.< Family Visitor, iii, 1852.

The first systematic attempt to describe the birds of the State. Ordinal,
family, generic, and specific descriptions, with notes on habits of abouta
dozen families are given. No choice is expressed as to specific nomenela-
ture, several synonyms being sometimes given ; I have adopted the nomen-
clature of his Catalogue (1853), below. No, 25, p. 196, ‘‘ Birds.” General
introduction and nomenclature of parts ; No. 26, p. 204, Falco columbarius;
No, 27, p. 212, Falco sparverius, F. peregrinus ; No. 28, p. 220, Astur cooperi,

600

OHIO BIRDS.

Falco fuscus, F. furcatus, F. hyemalis, F. borealis; No. 30, p. 236, Buteo
lineatus (Syn.), Falco fulvus, Halistus washingtonii (Syn.); No. 32, p. 252,
Falco lucocephalus ; No. 37, p. 295, 1853, Strix nyctea, $8.n»via (Syn.), No.
38, p. 303, Strix asio, 8. virginiana, 8, brachyotus, $. nebulosa, 8. acadica,
No. 39, p. 311, Sturnella ludoviciana, Icterus baltimore, I. spurius; No. 40,
p. 319, Icterus pheeniceus, I. pecoris, I. agripennis; No. 41, p. 317, Quiscalus
versicolor, Q. ferrugineus, Corvus corax, C. corone ; No. 42, p. 335, Gasrulus
cristatus, Parus bicolor, P. atricapillus; No. 43, p. 343, Bombycilla garrula,
B. carolinensis ; No. 44, p. 351, Lanius septentrionalis, Tyrannus intrepidus,
T. crinitus; No. 45, p. 359, Tyrannus fuscus, T. vireus, T. acadicus, T.
traillii; No. 46, p. 367, Setophaga ruticilla, Sylvania mitrata, Sylvia coerulea ;
No. 47, p. 375, Icteria viridis, Vireo flavifrons, V. noveboracensis; No. 48,
p. 383, Vireo gilvus, V. olivaceous, Mimus polyglottus; No. 50, p. 399, Mimus
rufus, M. felivox, Turdus migratorius, T. mustelinus, T. solitarius, T.
wilsonii, T. noveboracensis; No.51, p. 407, Turdus aurocapillus, Sylvicola
coronata, 8. ruficapilla; No. 52, p. 415, Sylvicola »stiva, 8. maculosa, 8.
pardalina, 8. maritima, 8. pensilis, +. virens, 8. blackburni®, 8. ictero-
cephala; No. 53, p. 423, Sylvicola castanea, 8. striata, 8. discolor, 8.
americana, ®. canadensis, 8. formosa, Trichas marylandica, T. agilis.
Species 74—2 synonyms, 76, none new.

1853. Reap, M.C. Catalogue of the Birds of Northern Ohio.< Proc.

Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1853, pp. 395— 402.

Falco columbarius, F. sparverius, F. peregrinus, F. cooperi, F. fuscus,
F. fureatus, F. hyemalis, F. borealis, F. pennsylvanicus, F, lineatus (Syn.),
F. chrysaetus, F. washingtonii (Syn.), F. leucocephalus, Cathartes aura,
Strix nyctea, 8. nevia (Syn.) 8. asio, 8. virginiana, 8. brachyotus, 8.
nebulosa, 8. acadica, Sturnella ludoviciana, Icterus baltimore, I. spurius, I.
phosniceus, I. pecoris, I agripennis, Quiscalus versicolor, Q. ferrugineus,
Corvus corax, C. corone, Garrulus cristatus, Parus bicolor, P. atricapillus,
Bombycilla garrula, B. carolinensis, Lanius septentrionalis, Tyrannus in-
trepidus, T. crinitus, T. fuscus, T. virens, T. acadicas, T. trailli, Setophaga
ruticilla, Sylvania mitrata, 8. cerulea, Icteria viridis, Vireo flavifrons, V.
noveboracensis, V. gilvus, V. olivaceus, Mimus polyglottus, M. rufus, M.
felivox, Turdus migratorius, T. mustelinus, T. solitarius, T. wilsonii, T.
noveboracensis, T. aurocapillus, Sylvicola coronata, S. ruficapilla, S. estiva,
S. maculosa, 8. pardalina, 8. maritima, 8. pensilis, S. virens, S. blackburnia,
S. icterocephalus, 8. castanea, 8. striata, 8. discolor, $. americana, §. cana-
densis, S. formosa, Trichas marylandica, T, agilis, Vermivora pennsylvanica,
V. solitaria, V. chrysoptera, V. peregrina, V.rubricapilla, Troglodytes aedon,
T. hyemalis, T. ludovicianus, 7. brevirostris, T. palustris, Regulus calen-
dula, R. tricolor, Sialia wilsonii, Anthus ludovicianus, Alauda alpestris,
Emberiza nivalis, Tanagra rubra, T. »stiva, Fringilla cyanea, F. leacophrys,
F. pennsylvanica, F. graminea, F. fasciata, F. canadensis, F. socialis, F.
juncorum, F. iliaca, F. hyemalis, F. palustris, F. tristis, F. linaria, F.
erythrophthalmia, F. purpurea, Cardinalis virginianus, Coccothraustes
ludovicianus, Corythus enucleator, Loxia curvirostra, Conurus carolinus,
Coccyzus americanus, C. dominicus, Colaptes auratus, Picus pileatus, P
erythrocephalus, P. tarolinus, P. varius, P. villosus, P. rubricapillus (Syn.),

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 601

P. pubescens, P. medianus, (Syn.), Sitta carolinensis, S. canadensis, Certhia
americana, Mniotilta varia, Trochilus colubris, Alcedo aleyon, Hirundo
purpurea, H. rufa, H. fulva, H. bicolor, H. riparia, Chetura pelasgia,
Caprimulgus vociferus, C. virginianas, Columba carolinensis, C. migra-
toria, Meleagris gallopavo, Ortyx virginiana, Tetrao umbellus. Species,
146—synonyms, 5, new species, 2.

1854. ZucHoLp, —< Journal fiir Ornithologie, vi, 1854, 355.
Copies Baird’s description of Sylvicola kirtlandi.

1855. Cassin, J. Illustrations, ete., i, 1855, 278; pl. xlvii.
Sylvicola kirtlandi from the original.

1858. Barrp, Spencer F. Birds.< [Pacific R. R. Report], ix, 1858.
Mentions several specimens of Ohio birds in the National Museum. Vireo
philadelphicus, Empidonax minimus. New species, 2.

1859. Brewer, T. M. North American Oology.< Smithsonian Contri-
butions, xi, 1859.

Names seven species of Raptores as Ohivan.

1859. KIRKPATRICK, Joun. Birds of Ohio.< Ohio Farmer (newspaper,
Cleveland), 1859.

Vol. vii, 1858, p. 59, Cathartes aura, C. atratus; p. 67, Aquila chrysaétos ;
p. 75, Halistus leucocephalus ; p. 83, H. washingtonii (Syn.); p. 91, Pan-
dion carolinensis ; p. 97, Buteo borealis ; p. 107, B. pennsylvanicus; p. 115,
B. lineatus; p. 123, Archibuteo sancti-johannis; A. lagopus (Syn.); p. 139,
Astur atricapillus; p. 147, Accipiter cooperi; p. 155, A. fuscus; p. 171,
Tinnunculus sparverius ; p. 363, Nauclerus furcatus; p.379, Falco anatum ;
p. 387, Hypotriorchis columbarius; p. 395, Circus hudsonius.

Vol. viii, 1859, p. 11, Otus brachyotus; p. 27, O. wilsonianus; p. 35,
Bubo virginianus; p. 43, Scops asio; p. 51, Nyctea nivea; p. 59, Nyctale
acadica; p. 67, Surnia ulula ; p. 75, Syrnium nebulosum ; p. 107, S. cinereum,
Strix pratincola (probable); p. 195, Antrostomas vociferus; p.211, Chordeiles
popetue; p. 227, Hirundo rufa; p. 243, H. bicolor; p. 267; H. lunifrons;
p. 283, Cotyle riparia; p. 290, C. serripennis ; p. 299, Progne purpurea; p.
339, Ampelis garrulus; p. 347, A. cedrorum; p. 355, Tyrannus intrepidus ; p.
379, Myiarchus crinitus; p. 403, Sayornis fuscus.

Vol. ix, 1860, p. 11, Contopus virens; p. 35, Empidonax minimus; p. 43,
E. acadicus; p. 197, E. trailli; p. 139, E fiaviventris; p. 163, Trochilus
colubris; p. 179, Coccygus americanus; p. 195, C. erythrophthalmus; p.
203, Chaötura pelasgia ; p. 267, Picus villosus; p. 299, P. pubescens; p. 307,
Sphyrapicus varius; p. 315, Hylotomus pileatus, p. 331, Centurus carolinus;
p. 339, Melanerpes ery throcephalus ; p.347, Colaptes auratus. New species,4.

1859. Kirkpatrick, JoHn. Rapacious Birds of Ohio.< Ohio Agric. Re-
port for 1858 [1859], pp. 341-383.
Reprint of Raptores from the Birds of Ohio, Ohio Farmer (above).
1860. KırTLanD, J.P. An Addition to the Fauna of Ohio.< Ohio
Farmer, ix, 1860, 91.

-

602

1860.

1861.

1861.

1861.

1861.

1861.

1861.

1861.

1861.

OHIO BIRDS.

Notice of occurrence of Hesperiphona vespertina, now species, and com-
ments on rarity of various birds during the winter,
Anon. [KIRKPATRICK, Joan] Kirtland’s Warbler.< Ohio Farmer
ix, 1860, 179.
Note of a specimen of Dendreca kirtlandi taken by Mr. Darby, at Cleve-
land, in the spring of 1860.

Trems.y, J.B. Bird Talk.< Field Notes. [Agricultural News-
paper, Columbus, O.], i, 1861, 65.

Note on Picus pileatus as observed about Toledo.

Wıkavon, J.M. Bird Notes.< Field Notes, i, 1861, 65.
Note on distribution of Pileated Woodpecker, Whipporwill, Night-
hawk and Shore Lark.

Epiror [$. D. Harris]. Field Notes, i, 1861, 65.
Note on the introduction of the English Skylark, at Columbus, in 1851,

Treme.y, J. B. Ornithological Inquires.< Field Notes, i, 1861,
129.
Larus occidentalis (= argentatus, immature), L. bonapartei, Sterna
hirundo, at Toledo in April.

Wuaaton, J. M. Rare Birds.< Field Notes, i, 1861, 153.
Notes on the capture at Columbus, in May, of Porzana carolina, Rallus
virginianus, Guiraca ludoviciana, Ardetta exilis, Gallinula galeata, and
Chondestes grammaca. New species, 1.

Wuearon, J. M. Ornithological Inquiries.< Field Notes, i, 1861,
152,

Suggestions as to proper identification of L. occidentalis (above), and
hints towards laws of migration. —

TREMBLY, J.B. Gulls.< Field Notes, i, 1861, 180.
Continued discussion of so-called L. occidentalis, with interesting notes
upon the breeding habits of the Florida Gallinule, and upon Ardetta exilis
and Botaurus lentiginosus.

Wueaton, J. M. Catalogue of Birds of Ohio. By J. M. Wheaton
of Columbus.<. Ohio Agricultural Report tor 1860 (1861), pp.
859-3880.

Prepared with the assistance of Messrs John Kirkpatrick, R. K. Winslow,
and Dr. J. P. Kirtland, Two humdred and eighty-five species are given
with annotatious.

The new species are Turdus swainsonii, (Thryothorus bewickii), Protonotaria
citrea, Helminthophaga celata, Dendroica pinus, Seiurus ludovicianus, Geothlypis
philadelphia, Vireo solitarius, Collyrio excubitoroides, Curvirostra leucopiera,
Plectrophanes lapponicus, Passerculus savanna, Contopus borealis, Strix pratin-
cola, Himantopus nigricollis, Phalaropus fulicarius, Micropalma himantopus,
Ereunetes petrificatus, Tringa maculata, T. bonapartii, T. maritima, T. canutus,
Calidris arenaria, Numenius borealis, Garzetia candidissima, Grus canadensis,

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 603

Rallus elegans, (Gallinula martinica), Fulica americana, Cygnus buccinnator,
Bernicla hutchinsii, Harelda glacialis, ( Histrionicus torquatus), Somateria spec-
tabilis, Melanetta velvetina, (Graculus carbo), Lurus leucopterus, Rissa tridactylus,
Xema sabinii, Colymbus septentrionalis.—10. Species of probable occurrence, 3.
1861. Wuwaron, J. M. Catalogue of the Birds of Ohio. Reprinted from

the Ohio Agricultural Report for 1860 (1861), pp. 1-21.
Reprint of the last, repaged and with its addenda, distributed in place;

3 species added to list of probabilities. Sayornis (error) for Contopus
(borealis),

1861. Corzıns, W.O. Report of Senate Select Committee, upon Senate
Bill No. 12, “For the protection of Birds and Game.”< Fif-
teenth Ann. Rep. Obio State Borrd of Agriculture for 1860
(1861), 381-390.

Facts in the natural history of Ohio Birds, with recommendations for
legislative action.

1864. Hoven, F. B. House of Representatives, 36th Congress, Ist Ses-
sion, Ex. Doc. No.55. Results of Meteorological Observations
made under the direction of the United States Patent Office
and Smithsonian Institution,from the year 1854-1859, inclu-
sive, being a report of the Commissioners of Patents made at
the first session of the Thirty-sixth Congress, Vol, II. Part 1.
Washington. Goverment Printing Office. 1864. Observa-
tions upon Periodical Phenomena in Plants and Animals, from
1851 to 1859, with tables of dates of opening and closing of
Lakes, Rivers, Harbors, etc. Arranged by Franklin B. Hough,

.. M.D. Dates of First Appearance of Birds, pp. 183-206.

Tables of dates of spring appearance of Turdus migratorius, Mimus felivox,
Sialia sialis, Troglodytes aedon, Hirundo horreorum, Progne purpurea,
Dolichonyx oryzivorus, ägelaius pheniceus, Quiscalus versicolor, Tyrannus
intrepidus, Tyrannula fusca, Antrostomas vociferus, Chetura pelasgia,
Pandion carolinus, and Bernicla canadensis at the following stations: Cin-
cinnati, Mt, Healthy, Ripley, Hockingport, Marietta, Hamilton, German-
town, Troy, Belle Centre, Savannah, Bowling Green, Hiram, Edinburg,
Windham, Poland, Cleveland, Rockport, Madison, Welchfield, Jefferson and
Ashtabula.

1864. Bartrp, 8. F. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections. 181. Review
of American Birds in the Museum of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution. By S.F. Baird. Part I. North and Middle America.
Washington. Smithsonian Institution.

p. 23. First mention of Turdus alicie from Ohio. New species, 1.

1867. Brewer, T. M. Some errors regarding the habits of our Birds.
By T. M. Brewer, M.D.< The American Naturalist, i, 1867,
113.

604 OHIO BIRDS.

°

Corrects error in “ North American Oology ” respecting the breeding of
Astur atricapillus in Ohio.
1868. Marcu, P.G. Kingfishers Nest again.< Am, Naturalist, ii, 1868,
490.
Description of two Ohio Nests of this bird.
1868. GarLick, T. Migrations of Birds.< Am. Naturalist, ii, 1868,
492.

Observation on an Albino Robin at Cleveland.

1869. InseRsoLL, Exnzsr. Variation of Bluebird’s Eggs.< Am. Natur-
alist, iii, 1869, 391.

Pure waite eggs of Bluebird, at Oberlin, Ohio.

1872. Couzs, Erriort. Key to North American Birds: containing a con-
cise account of every species of living and fossil bird at present
known from the continent north of the Mexican and United
States Boundary. Illustrated by 6 steel plates, and upwards
of 250 woodcuts. By Elliott Coues, Assistant Surgeon, United
States Army. Salem: Naturalists Agency. New York:
Dodd and Mead. Boston: Estes and Lauriat. 1872.

Mentions several species as Ohioan, and on page 263, Tantalus loculator
“north to Ohio.” New species, 1.
1872, Copz, E. D. ‚Zoological Sketch of Ohio. By E. Cope, A. M., Sec.
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila.< New Typographical Atlas of the
State of Ohio with descriptions, Historical, Scientific, and
Statistical, together with maps of the United States and Terri-
tories. By H. F. Walling and O. W. Gray, Civil Topographi-
cal Engineers. Published by Stedman, Brown & Lyon. Cin-
cinnati, 1872.

Gives thenumber of Ohio Birds as 263, grouped as follows: Passeres, 132;
Syndactyli, 5; Scansores, 12; Psittaci, 1; Raptores, 25; Pullastre, 2;
Gallinew, 4; Gralla, 45; Natatores, 37. Short notes on a few of the com-
moner species, p. 25.

1874. Rınaway, Roperr. Catalogue of the Birds ascertained to occur in
Illinois.< Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., x, 1874, pp. 364-394.

Incidentally names a few species as Ouioan probably on earlier Ohio au-
thorities.
1874, Barrp, Brewer and Ripaway. A History of North American
Birds. By 8. F. Baird, T. M. Brewer, and R. Ridgway. Land
Birds Illustrated by 64 colored plates and 593 woodcuts. Vol.
I[—III]. Boston. Little, Brown and Company. 1874.

Names several birds as occurring in Ohio, and Vol. II, p. 531, first au-
thentic record of Picoides arcticus as Ohioan. New species, 1.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 605

1874, Couzs, Erziort. Department of the Interior. United States
Geological Survey of the Territories. F. V. Hayden, U. S.
Geologist-in-Charge. Miscellaneous Publications No. 3.
Birds of the Northwest: a Hand-book of the Ornithology of the
Region drained by the Missouri River and its Tributaries.
By Elliott Coues, Captain and Assistant Surgeon U. 8. Army.
Washington: Government Printing Office. 1874.

Mentions several species as Ohioan, with notes. (Nyctale tengmalmi, var.
richardsoni), p. 314. New species, 1.

1874. Wnsarton, J. M. Notes. < Birds of the Northwest, 1874, 223-4.
Notes on Turdus swainsoni, T. alicie, Dendroca corulea, D. dominica,
Ampelis cedrorum, Vireo philadelphicus, Collurio ludovicianus, Melospiza

melodia, Chondestes grammaca, Chordeiles popetue, Chatura pelasgia.
New species, 1.

1874. KırrLann, J. P. Peculiarities of Climate, Flora and Fauna of
the South Shore of Lake Hrie, in the vicinity of Cleveland,
Ohio.< Proc. Cleveland Acad. Nat. Sci., 1874, pp. 200-287.

Read 1851, and orlginally published, as above, in Am. Journ. Sci., xiii,
1852, also in Family Visitor, 1853 (7).

1874. KırtLanD, J. P. Mounted Birds from Northern Ohio, in the

Academy’s Museum.< Proc. Cleveland Acad. Nat. Sci.,
1874, pp. 200-287.

“The article includes only the Accipitres and a few Incessores, but is quite
full, as far as it goes, with characters of the genera and higher groups, and
descriptions and biographies of the species. It is annotated by Thomas
Brown, editor of the Ohio Farmer, in which the descriptions originally
appeared, and was prepared in 1858-9,” Coues, Bibliographical Appendix,
Birds Col. Val., 1878, 705.

This Ithink is an error, probably on the part of the editors of Proc. Cleve,
Acad. Nat. Sci. The paper in question is undoubtedly a reprint of “ The
Birds of Ohio,” by John Kirkpatrick, Ohio Farmer, 1868-9-60. No artiele
with the above title, or any extended ornithological paper by Dr. Kirtland
appeared in the Ohio Farmer, at any time. The Editor was not an ornith-
ologist.

1873. Waxarton, J. M. The Food of Birds as related to Agriculture. <
Ohio Agricultural -Report for 1874 (1875), pp. 561-578 (Sept.
1875). Also Reprint, repaged but otherwise unchanged, pp.
1-18.
“ Thisisifeffeet acorrected and completed list of the birds of Ohio, briefly
annotated, and with the general food regimen of each family given; being
a well-conceived essay of much practieal utility.” Coues, Bibliographical
Appendix, Birds of Colorado Valley, 1878, 716.
288 species with 6 additional varieties given. The-new species and
varieties are, Parus atricapillus, var. carolinensis, Melospiza lincolni, (Spizella

606

OHIO BIRDS.

pallida,) Passer domesticus, (Goniaphea cerulea,) Xanthocephalus icterocephalus,
Tringa bairdi, Anser cerulescens, Graculus dilophus, Graculus dilophus var.
floridanus, and Sterna forsteri.—11.

1876. Jorpan, D. S. Manual of the Vertebrates of the Northern United

1876.

1877.

1877

1877

1877

1877.

States, including the district east of the Mississippi River, and
north of North Carolina and Tennessee, exclusive of marine
species. By David Starr Jordan, Ph. D., M. D. Professor
Natural History in U. W. C. University, and in Indiana State
Medical College. Chicago: Jansen McClurg and Company.
1876.

Names definitely as Ohioan, Dendreca kirtlandi, Myiodioctes mitratus,
Hesperiphona vespertina, and Tantalus loculator. 2nd Edition, 1878,
Chondestes grammaca.

HensHaw, H. W. On two Empidonaces, traillii, and acadicus.<

Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, i, 1876, pp. 14-17.
Description of nest of E. trailli from Ohio, and notes of both species in
Ohio.

Laneapon, F. W. A Catalogue of the Birds of the Vicinity of Cin-

cinnati [Ohio], with Notes. By Frank W. Langdon. Salem,
Mass: The Naturalists’ Agency. 1877. 8 vo. pamph. pp. 18.
“279 spp. with notes; breeders indicated by asterisk; species included
on strength of their known range have their numbers in parentheses.—A
good list.” Coues, Bibliographical Appendix, Birds of Col. Val., 1878, 732.
Recent captures of Cathartes atratus, Porphyrio martinica and (Porzana
jamaicensis). New species, 1

. Dury, CHarızs. Fecundity of the Carolina Wren (Thryothorus

ludovicianus).< Bulletin Nuttall Ornithological Club, ii,
1877, 50.

Carolina Wren with four breods in one season.

. Wueaton, J. M. The Ruff and the Purple Gallinule in Ohio.<

Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, ii, 1877, 50.

First authentic record of Philomachus pugnax and’ Porphyrio martinica in
Ohio. New species, 2.

. Lanepon, F.M. Occurrence of the Black Vulture or Carrion Crow

in Ohio.<. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, ii, 1877, 109.
Capture of this species at Madisonville, Dec. 1876.

Mereiam,C. H. A Review of the Birds oßConnecticut, with Re-

marks on their Habits.< Trans. Conn. Acad., iv, July-Oct.,
1876, pp. 1-165. Alsoseparate, pamphlet and bound, A Review
of the Birds of Connecticut. By C. Hart Merriam. New Haven.
Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor, Printers. 1877. Large 8vo.
pp. 1-166.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 607

‘An important article, very critical, complete and workmanlike, bring-
ing the subject up to date. * * * I hold it for a model of this sort of
work.”—Coues. Names as Ohioan, Contopus borealis, Harelda glacialis, and
Gdemia americana. New species, 1.

1878. BarLou, W. H. The Natural History of the Islands of Lake
Erie.< Field and Forest, iii, 1878, pp. 135-137.

‘thirty-eight species given by their common names, 30 breeding.

1878. Couzs, Erziorr. Department of the Interior. United States
Geological Survey of the Territories. F. V. Hayden, U. S.
Geologist-in-Charge. Miscellaneous Publications. —No. 11.
Birds of the Colorado Valley, a repository of scientific and
popular information concerning North American Ornithology.
By Elliott Coues. Part First. Passeres to Laniide. Biblio-
graphical Appendix. Seventy Illustrations. Washington.
Government Printing Office. 1878.

Mentions Sitta pusilla, Dendroeca kirtlandi, Ampelis garralus and Lanius
ludovicianus as Ohioan.

1878. Lanepon, F. W. Observations on Cincinnati Birds. By Frank
W. Langdon.< The Journal of the Cincinnati Society
of Natural History, Oct., 1878.

Interesting and valuable notes on 54 species, Alauda arvensis, introduced,
acclimated and breeding.

1878-9. BrewsrerR, W. Descriptions of the First Plumage in various
species of North American Birds.< Bull. Nutt. Club, Vol.
III-IV, 1878, 1879.

‘Describes from Ohio specimens, Vol. iii, p. 121, Chondestes grammica,
first plumage ; p. 122, Euspiza americana, first plumage; p. 177, Empidonax
acadicus, first plumage ; Vol. iv, p.41, Enspiza americana, autumnal plum-
age, young. The same (1859) reprinted and repaged, pp. 1-39.

1878—. Jones, G. E. and Suuuze, E. J. Illustrations of the Nests and
Eggs of the Birds of Ohio with text. By Genevieve E. Jones
and Eliza J. Shulze. Circleville, Ohio.

«Too late for the fuller notice we may hope to give hereafter comes to
us the first number of a beautiful work, which we sincerely hope may be
successfully completed according to the announced design of the lady
authors. Part I contains figures of the nests and eggs of Icterus baltimore,
Turdus mustelinus, and Coccygus erythrophthalmus, colored by hand, printed
on Whatman’s antiquarian drawing-paper, and forming three of the most
exquisite pictures of bird-homes we have ever seen. Each plate has its
sheet of letterpress, which fitly illustrates these artistic plates. The work
is to appear, if it meets with sufficient support, in parts of three plates
each, to be completed in about thirty parts; it is published by subscription,

608

OHIO BIRDS.

at $5.00 for colored, and $2.00 for uncolored, impressions. The objects are
represented of life size, in their natural surroundings, calling for the
large folio form in which the work appears. To judge by the first Part,
the work is one of very unusual merit, deserving that hearty recognition
and support which we trust will be accorded by all who can appreciate the
combination of great artistic excellence and fidelity to nature. The
authors are be congratulated upon their taste and evident ability; we
hope in due time to be able to felicitate them upon the complete success of
their undertaking.”—E. C. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 52.

“Tt became our sad duty to pen for the last number of the Bulletin a
notice of the death of the leading author of this work, on the very thres-
hold of the great undertaking with which her name properly continues to
be associated. The hope then expressed, that, notwithstanding this most
melancholy occurrence, the enterprise would not be abandoned by Miss
Shulze and other co-workers, has been fuifilled in the recent appearance of
Part II. A slip printed with this number briefly refers to Miss Jones’
death, and announces that in future numbers Miss Shulze will be assisted
in the illustrations by Mrs. Virginia E. Jones, and that the text will be
prepared by Howard E. Jones, A. M., M. D. This promises well
for the continuance of a work so seriously interrupted at the outset; and
the number now in hand shows no falling off either in the beauty of the
plates or in the appropriateness of the text. No illustrated work to com-
pare with the present one has appeared in this country since the splendid
Audubonian period closed; and it is not too much to say of the Misses
Jones and Shulze’s pictoral work, that it rivals in beauty and fidelity of
illustration the production of Audubon’s pencil and brush, pronouneed by
Cuvier the greatest monument every erected by art to nature. We would
not be thought to have lost our critical faculty in mere admiration, nor
seem to use words of praise without fully recognizing their weight; but it
is useless to attempt the formality of mere critism in a case where our en-
thusiasm is instinctive. Judged from a standpoint of the highest art cul-
ture, these colored lithographs have of course only a certain degree of ex-
cellence, determined rather by the limited possibilities of the means em-
ployed than by the ability of the artists; measured by the highest stan-
dard of similar efforts to represent nature in lithography, these illustra-
tions compare favorably with the best that have ever appeared. Though
a gentle hand has faltered but too soon, and the spirit that guided it has
passed on, yet is assuredly erected to her memory the ‘monument more
lasting than brass.’

‘It would be superfluous to recall the attention of working ornitholo-
gists to a publication whose merits are obvious and so fully recognized
already. We would rather seek to interest the larger class of persons who
are lovers of nature, and have the means and leisure to gratify their tastes.
So highly ornate a work is necessarily expensive, and its successful com-
pletion would seen contingent upon the support it receives. Too many -
cheap, flashy books on natural history find a place in parlors, and even in
libraries, where we shouldexpect to find the evidences of a more cultivated

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 609
taste, and where a work like the present could most desirably replace
others so inferior. The position which the ‘Illustrations’ may finally se-
eure in the archives of science can only be told hereafter, when the work
is completed ; but, meanwhile, the beauty of each number is its own ‘ ex-
cuse for being,’ and its own recommendation to favor.

“ Part II, which appeared last October, contains Plates IV, V, and VI,
being illustrations of the nests and eggs of Cyanospiza cyanea, Ageleus
pheniceus, and Tyrannus carolinensis, with the text of these species, and also
of Quiscalus eneus—the plate of the latter, we presume, being in preparation
for the next number. Some delay in the appearance of the Part was
doubtless unavoidable under the circumstances; but we shall look for
further installments to be published with regularity, and as rapidly as may
be consistent with their faithfal execution.”—E. C.—Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club,
v, 1880, 39.

Part 1, July, 1879, Icterus baltimore, Pl. I; Turdus mustelinus, Pl. II;
Coccyzus erythrophthalmus, Pl. III.

Part 2, Oct., 1879, Cyanospiza cyanea, Pl. IV; Agel»us pheeniceus, Pl.
V; Tyrannus carolinensis, Pl. VI.

Part 3, Jan., 1880, Turdus migratorius, Pl. VII; Collurio ludovicianus,
Pl. VIII; Quiscalus purpureus var. cneus, Pl. IX.

Part 4, April, 1880, Sayornis fuscus, Pl. X; Thryothorus ludovicianus,
Pl. XI; Sialia sialis, Pl. XII.

Part5, July, 1880, Hirundo erythrogaster, Pl. XIII; Coccyzus americanus,
Pl. XIV.

Part 6, Oct., 1880, Dendreeca »stiva, Pl. XV; Spizella pusilla, Pl. XVI;
Mimus carolinensis, Pl. XVII; Ortyx virginianus, Pl. XVIII.

Part 7, Jan., 1881, Empidonax acadicus, fig. 1, Contopus virens, fig. 2, Pl.
XIX; Icteria virens, Pl. XX; Geothlypis trichas, Pl. XXI.

Part 8, April, 1881, Cardinalis virginianus, Pl. XXII; Vireo olivaceus, fig.
2, Pl. XXIII; Zenx»dura carolinensis, Pl. XXIV.

1879. Wuearon, J. M. Kirtland’s Warbler again in Ohio,< Bull.
Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 58.
Male and female D. kirtlandi taken at Rockport, by ‘William and John
Hall, in 1878.
1879. Wueaton, J. M. Occurrence of Birds rare to the vicinity of
Columbus, Ohio.< Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 62.
Loxia curvirostra (in June), Elanoides forficatus, Strix flammea var.
americana,‘ Cupidonia cupido.

1879. Couns, E. History of the Evening Grosbeak.< Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iv, 1879, pp. 65-75.

Mentions the occurrence of the Evening Grosbeak at Cleveland and
Columbus, the latter an error on my authority.

1879. Brewer, T. M. The Eggs of the Redstart.< Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iv, 1879, 118.
Measurement of eggs of Setophaga ruticilla from Ohio.
39

610 OHIO BIRDS.

1879. Lanepon, F.W. Albinismin the Tufted Titmouse.< Bull. Nutt.
Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 116.

Describes partially albino specimens of Lopophanes bicolor.

1879. Lanepon, F.W. The White-rumped and Loggerhead Shrikes in
Ohio.< Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 120.

Occurrence of both varieties at Madisonville.

1879. MARSHALL, D.M. The Butcher Bird.< The Journal of Science

(newspaper, Toledo, O.), new series, ii, 1879, No. 6.
The Northern Shrike breeding near Toledo. (Error,—see Appendix).

1879. Lananon, F. W. A Revised List of Cincinnati Birds By Frank
W. Langdon.< Journ. Gin. Society Nat. Hist., Vol. I, No. 4,
Jan. 1879, pp. 167-193.
Also reprint, repaged, 8 vo. pamph., pp. 27.

“ About two years ago Mr. Langdon published a catalogue of the birds of
the vicinity of Cincinnati, with notes, including 279 species. The present
revision of the subject gives the numerous additional facts which have
meanwhile become known to the author, and in recognition of which the
list has been entirely remodelled, ‘to represent the present state of our
knowledge of ‘Cincinnati Birds,’ so far as their local distribution is con-
cerned, as well as the later conclusions of the most approved authorities
in respect to classification and nomenclature.’ The list is chiefly based
upon collections aud observations made at two or three points between the
Great and Little Miami Rivers, within ten or twelve miles of the Ohio. The
breeders, known or inferred, are marked with the asterisk or obelisk. The
256 identified species are of the following categories: Constant residents,
27; summer residents, 62; winter visitants, 10; regular migrants, 82; irreg-
ular migrants, 37; casual visitants, 31; species that have disappeared
within forty years, 7. There are also included 26 ‘species of probable
occurrence, not yet identified,’ nearly or quite all of which seem likely to
be found. The List is annotated throughout with the usual and proper
comments on each species, and is concluded with some general observations
suggested by the writer’s experience. It is very good piece of work, based
in greatest part ou original personal observations, very carefully elaborated,
with attention not only to the material facts presented, but to those nice-
ties of workmanship which are too often neglected.” * * * B.C.—
Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, Vol. iv, 1879, 112.

This is the most accurate and reliable list yet published of Ohio Birds.
Dr. Langdon’s limits encroach somewhat upon the State of Indiana, but
except in the case of one or two species this does not affect his Catalogue
as an Ohio list.

1879. Purpiz,H. A. Another Kirtland’s Warbler.< Bull. Nutt. Orn.
Club, iv, 1879, 185.
Enumerates nine examples of Dendreca kirtlandi known, four of which.
are Ohioan.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 611

1879. Lanepon, F. W. Nesting of the Kentucky Warbler in Ohio.
<Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iv, 1879, 236.

Description of an Ohio nest and egge of Oporornis formosa.

1879. Dury, CHARLES and FREEMAN, L. R. Observations on Birds.
< Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1879, pp. 100-104.
Also separate, pamph., repaged, pp. 1-5.

A list of 69 species with dates of observation, with generally brief notes
ot peculiarities in nesting, etc. First authentic record of Tringa bairdii
and Sterna hirundo in the vicinity of Cincinnati and first authentic
record of Thryothorus bewickii in Ohio, 2 specimens, March 27, 1879. New
species, 1.

1880. CHusp,H. E. Spring Field Notes.< Forest and Stream, (news-
paper,) Vol. 14, No. 12, May 20, 1880, 307.
Notes on the arrivals and captures, at Cleveland, from Feb. 12 to May 4,
1880, 87 species. Among them, Yellow-throated Grey Warbler, Florida
Gallinule, April 19; Large-billed Water Thrush, Long-billed Curlew and
Little Yellow Rail, April 24; Red-throated Diver and Horned Grebe,
April 30; Kirtland’s Warbler, May 4.

1880. InaERsoLL, SeyMm. Unusual Nesting Places.< Forest and Stream,
Vol. 14, No. 12, April 22, 1880, 224.
Robin nesting on railway bridge; Chipping Sparrow nesting in a hang-
ing basket of plants.
1880. INcERsoLL, Seym. [Spring arrivals].< Forest and Stream, Vol.
14, No. 12, April 22, 1880, 22.
About twenty species noted from Feb. 10 to April 3.
1880. Lananpon,F. W. Description of a New Warbler of the Genus
Helminthophaga. By Frank W. Langdon.< Journ. Cin.
Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, pp. 119, 120, with plate.
Also reprinted with plate, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, v, 1880,
208-210.

Description of Helminthophaga cincinnatiensis. New species, 1.
1880. Lanepon, F. W. Ornithological Field Notes, with five additions
to the Cincinnati Avian Fauna. By Frank W. Langdon. <
Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880, 121-127.

‘These notes relate to the bird fauna of the immediate vicinity of Cin-
cinnati, and virtually form a supplement to the same author’s excellent
“ Revised List of Cincinnati Birds,” published in 1879. They add five
species to the number there given, and bring the total thus far identified
to 263. They relate to 40 species, giving records of further captures of
many of the rarer ones, and of the nesting, etc., of others. Among the
points of special interest are the capture of two specimens (male and female)
of Kirtland’s Warbler (Dendreca kirtlandi) near Cleveland, May 4 and 12,
1880, and the replacement of a colony of several hundred Rough-winged

612

OHIO BIRDS.

and Cliff Swallows, formerly nesting about the piers and under the floors
of a bridge, by ‘that much regretted addition to our fauna,’ the House
Sparrow.’—J. A. A.—Ball. Natt. Orn. Club, v, 1880, 232.

The species new to the vicinity of Cincinnati are Cistothorus stellaris,
Helminthophaga cineinnatiensis, Helminthophaga celata, Melospiza lin-
eolni, and Tringa fuscicollis. Notes the recent capture of Corvus corax
carnivorus in Union county, and of two specimens of Dendreca kirtlandi
by Mr. Chubb, at Cleveland, May, 1880.

1880. Ripeway, R. Note on Helminthophaga cincinnatiensis.< Bull.

Nutt. Orn. Club, v, 1880, 237.
Considers it as probably a hybrid between Helminthophaga pinus and
Opcrornis formosa.

1880. Lanepon, F. W. Summer Birds of a Northern Ohio Marsh. By

Frank W. Langdon.< Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1880,
pp. 220-232.

A list of 95 species, for the most part briefly annotated or not, of Birds
observed ‘on the grounds of the Wynous’ Point Shooting Club, near
Port Clinton, Ottawa county, Ohio, during the week ending July 4, 1880.”
Especially valuable for full notes of the nesting of Ardetta exilis, Gallinula

‘galeata, Hydrochelidon lariformis, Podiceps cornutus (?) and Podilymbus

podiceps.

1872. Maynarp,C. J. A Catalogue of the Birds of Ceos Co., N. H., and

Oxford Co., Me., with annotations relative to their breeding
habits, migrations, etc. By C.J. Maynard. With notes by
William Brewster.< Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., xiv, for
Oct., 1871, pub. 1872, pp. 356-385.

Dendreca castanea noted as occurring in Ohio, p. 366.

1878. Merrıam, C. H. Remarks on some of the Birds of Lewis County,

Northern New York.< Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, p. 52.

Collurio ludovicianus var. excubitoroides breeding in Ohio.

1878. Rınaway, R. Eastwara range of Chondestes grammaca.< Bull.

Nutt. Orn. Club, iii, 1878, 43.
Notes its oecurrence in Ohio in 1860 (1861).

PATTERNS OF COLORATION. 613

[E.] ON THE RELATION BETWEEN LATITUDE AND THE
PATTERN OF COLORATION IN OHIO BIRDS*.

At the last meeting of the Society I expressed an opinion somewhat adverse to the
universal application of the laws of latitudinal variation among birds, at least to their
availability for the purpose of determining whether certain forms should be considered
species or varietiest.

At the same meeting I expressed myself as doubtful of the correctness of the opinion
there advanced that white wing-bars and white tips to tail feathers should be considered
as simply ornamental. Afew words willgivemy reason for dissenting from sueh a view.
Without attempting to show that tail spots or wing-bars are not peculiar to that sex
which is most highly ornamented among birds, let us first examine into the structural
relation of the feathers bearing these marks to the marks themselves. In the case of
white tail tips, Iam of the opinion that the presence or absence of these spots has
largely to do with the form of the tail, of which there are two strongly marked types,
forked and rounded. In the former the lateral feathers are the longest, in the latter the
central. Among all our Ohio birds, Ifindnone with forked tails and white tips to
the tail feathers, all white tail tips being combined with more or lessrounded tails. The
King-bird has a white tipped tail all the tips being nearly equal, while the tail as a
whole is nearly square. In other birds with a rounded tail and white tips the white in-
creases in the same or in an increasing proportion to the shortening of the lateral
feathers. I do not wishit to be understood that all birds with rounded tails have white-
tips for this is not the case, but that there is a definite correllation between these
characters is evident. Inthe Hammingbird, the male has a forked tail of uniform color,
while the female has a rounded tail with white tips.

In tail feathers then we find white tips associated with the feathers of less develop-
ment as to length, and I might add that in many birds the white of the tip extends
towards the base of the outer feathers along the outer, that is tosay the shorter, web of
the feather.

In the case of wing-bars the same relation may be seen, though perhaps there are
more exceptions to the rule than in the case of tail-tips. Wing-bars, that is white tips
to the greater or lesser row of wing-coverts are in their greatest perfection in Passeres,
in which order, the coverts are not more than half as long as the secondary quills, while
in all other orders, with few exceptions (e. g. Picid®), the wing-coverts are more than
half the secondaries. I find a single reasen, and this a negative one, to suppose that
wing-bars may be simply ornamental, as follows; Most birds in the Order Passeres
which have wing-bars nest in trees, while in many instances the lack of wing-bars is
associated with the habit of ground nesting. The relations between this habit and
the presence or absence of this color-mark are well seen in family Sylvicolidw, where,
with the exception of one or two species of Helminthophaga, all the ground nesting

* Read before the Columbus Society of Natural History, Aug. 29, 1874.

+ The laws of latitudinal variation have been given on page 194-196 of this report and
need not be again presented here.

614 OHIO BIRDS.

species are without wing-bars, while in D. palmarum, so far as known the only ground-
nesting Dendreca, the wing-bars are wanting. In this family the presence or absence
of wing-bars seems to be associated with the presence or absence or more or less perfect
developemert of tail spots (not tail-tips, however, in the sense used above), except in the
case of Myiodioctes mitratus where wing-bars are wanting but tail spots are well developed.

It may be further said with regard io the presence of wing-bars that they seem to be
more perfectly developed in the northern than in the southern birds of a genus.

I have brought before you many specimens of our Ohio Birds for the purpose of inquir-
ing into relations which exist between the color or pattern of coloration and the mean
annual temperature to which these birds are subjected. In this investigation, I shall
assume that birds which are only winter visitors with us are subject to the lowest tem-
perature; that those which are resident throughout the year with us are next in order
in this respect, while summer residents may be considered as subjected to the highest
average temperature, and spring and fall migrants to an average temperature higher
than that of residents.

There is a well-known law that when the adult male and female of a species resemble
each other the young differ from either parent ; and, when the adult male and female
are unlike, the young resemble the female. I wish now to make a series of comparisons
showing the relations between young of different species, or the young of one species
with the adult of another. But first I will call your attention to afew birds for the
purpose of illustrating the law of resemblance or difference between the young and old
of the same species. We have here the male aud female of one of our most common
birds, the Robin, Turdus migratorius, and they will be seen to resemble each other very
closely both as to pattern of coloration and color. Their young, however, differ both
in color and pattern. In the other case, we have the Purple Finch, Carpodacus pur-
pureus, the male of which is adorned with bright though shaded or blended colors,
while the female is much plainer, lacks the bright color and is thickly dusky-streaked.
The sex of the young male could not be determined by the markings or color, asin both
these the resemblance to the female is almost perfect. In some cases the male and fe-
male differ in eolor but not in pattern, as here in the case of the Towhe Bunting (Pipilo
erythrophthalmus). In this case the young bird differs from either parent.

There appear to be among young birds three distinct primary patterns of plumage,
the spotted, barred, and streaked ; in the developement of the individual these may re-
main permanently, and more or less completely, or be transformed into another pattern
by the blending of two of these, or into definite or indefinite color areas.

In making the following comparisons between birds of our own State, our peint of
observation, in this city, is favorable, being central and very near the fortieth degree of
latitude.

I have here six birds, all of them True Thrushes and all of different species. Five of
these present on their under parts a more or less distinctly spotted pattern while the
sixth is uniform or nearly so in the region where the others are spotted. You recognize
this sixth specimen as the Robin, Turdus migratorius, of which I made use in illustrat-
ing the differences between old and young birds. On comparing the young of the Robin
with the other five Thrushes, the pattern of coloration is seen to be the same.

If now we arrange these birds, placing that bird first whose southern breeding limit,
so far as known, is most northerly, and the others following in the same order we have:

1. Turdus alici®,
2, Turdus swainsoni,

SPOTTED AND BARRED PATTERNS. 615

3. Turdus pallasi,
4. Turdus wilsoni,
5. Turdus mustelinus,
6. Turdus migratorius.

Of these the first four breed north of us, the last two breed with us and southward. Of
the spotted Thrushes, the most southern one, T. mustelinus, has the spots darkest and
most definite; and comparing all of them with the young Robin, we are forced to the
conclusion that the first four species are of the same pattern of plumage and nearly
equal developement of that pattern,jwhile the Wood Thrush is of the same pattern
in a higher state of developement. In the case of the adult Robin, itis plainly seen
that it has out-grown a pattern of coloration which is permanent in the other species.

Of the Wrens, we have five or six species, all of which exhibit the barred type of
plumage in greater or lesser degree of perfection. I arrange them as the Thrushes were
arranged.

1. Anorthura troglodytes, var. hyemalis,
2. Cistothorus stellaris,

3. Telmatodytes palustris,

4. Troglodytes aédon,

5. Thryotborus ludovicianus,

6. Thryothorus bewickii.

Of the six species inhabiting this State the last, Bewick’s Wren, T. bewickti, is not
known to extend so far northward as this city. The first named, the Winter Wren, 4.
troglodytes, is not positively known to breed within our limits though it probably does
so in northern Ohio. Of the other four the House Wren, 7. aedon, and the Carolina
Wren, T. ludovicianus, both breed here, the latter being at or near its northern limit
and a constant resident, while the former is migratory. The Long- and Short-billed
Marsh Wrens, T. palustris and C. stellaris probably both breed in suitable places in this
latitude, though not known to do so here or southward in this State; both breed in
northern Ohio.

In the Winter Wren the barred plumage extends over the back, belly, wings and
tail. In the two migratory Marsh Wrens the barring is confined to wings, tail and
under tail-coverts. In the House Wren it is present on wings, tail, back, flanks and
under tail-coverts. In the Carolina Wren and Bewick’s Wren confined to wings, tail
and under tail-coverts, while in the last species the barring becomes a definite deepening
and extension of the colors into black and white areas on the outer tail feathers. So
that while all the birds of this family are barred, the more southern forms have only
partly outgrown the pattern which remains permanent in northern species.

In the Sparrows (Fringillide) we have a large family, one of the characteristics of
which is that most of its members have temporarily or permanently a streaked plumage.
Of the members of this family found in the State, all the young, so far as known, are
more or less streaked except those of Pinicola enucleator, Chrysomitris tristis and Cardi-
nalis virginianus. The adults of these three species are never streaked.

In the following we have a different color and pattern according to sex, the adult
males having passed through and beyond the condition permanent in the female, which
is always streaked.

1. Carpodacus purpureus,
2. Loxia curvirostra,
3. Loxia leucoptera,
4. Goniaphea ludoviciana,

616 OHIO BIRDS.

Of these the first three are winter visitors only, and it!is to be noticed that the male,is
at least two years in acquiring its full plumage jwhich‘is;of blended character.‘ The
fourth finds its southern breeding limit with us and acquires its final’pattern during its
first year thought it is not perfected in color until later.

The two following breed with us and southward, acquire their adult plumagezin the
first year, and their females loose their streaks, havingithe same pattern though they
differ in color from their males.

1. Cyanospiza cyanea,
2. Pipilo erythrophthalmus.

The following species more or less streaked both above and below, in both sexes, are
winter visitors or migrants breeding exclusively to the north of us.

1. ®Agiothus linaria,
Chrysomitris pinus,
Plectrophanes lapponicus,
Passerculus savanna,
. Melospiza lincolni,
Passerella iliaca.

nen

The following species streaked above and below breed with us; the first a migrant and
near or at its southern eding limit, and the second nearly resident ; both nest upon
the ground.

1. Pooecetes gramineus,
2. Melospiza melodia.

The following species, streaked above but not streaked below, breed exclusively to the
north of us.

1. Plectrophanes nivalis,

2. Melospiza palustris,
Spizella monticola,

4. Zonotrichia albieollis,

5. Zonotrichia leucophrys.

Of these it may be remarked that M. palustris breeds within the limits of this
State, and the same has been asserted of S. monticola. Z. albicollis often presents toler-
bly distinct streaking below in the female.

The following breeds north of us, but within the limits of this State; the male and
female resemble each other in color and pattern.

1. Junco hyemalis,

The following, streaked above but unstreaked below, breed with us and southward.
Coturniculus passerinus,

Spizella socialis,
. Spizella pusilla,
Chondestes grammaca,
Euspiza americana.

RECAPITULATION OF FRINGILLIDA.
Breeding northward :

Both sexes streaked above and below

swan a a a sex eenuNe ae 6
Female streaked above and below ...-.~. .----- --2-00 seeeee nn eee n nenne 3
Both sexes streaked above... --- ---- ences ne peewee cece cea ene cecens nen 5
Adults not streaked .... 2.0. 2... ceee mann cee en cee anne emcee coon amen I

STREAKED PATTERN. 617

Breeding here and northward :

Both sexes streaked above and below .... .ccens cacces ceccce namen en . 2

Female streaked above and below ........--- sie sides eSeahiceneee eaeinae 1

Both sexes streaked above.........--. ... Seswasatuateoecs lg wediesiseinee -

Adults not streaked ..... ee a a a a Date seme So -

3

Breeding here and southward :

Both sexes streaked above and below .... 2... .---e2 20 -neeee rennen cece

Female streaked above and below ---- ----- -orun2 eeccee tec ene sea -

Both sexes streaked above.....-.--. EEE hae 5

Adults: not 8treaköd. unsre Lecmucadeaaswmeesacosincey see 2

7

In Family Icterid®, though we have not the same type of plumage throughout, the
arranagement may be as follows:
1. Sturnella magna,
2. Scolecophagus ferrugineus,
3. Dolichonyx oryzivorus,
Agelsus pheniceus,
Molothrus ater,
Icterus baltimore,
Icterus spurius,
8. Quiscalus purpureus, var. eneus.

.

StU

The first exhibits the streaked type of plumage in both sexes, and is nearly resident
with us. The second, the only species breeding exclusively to the north of us, presents
in the fall a change of plumage similar to that of the young. The third, whose south-
ern breeding range is with us, presents a highly developed plumage in the male while
the female resembles the young, retaining the streaked plumage, to which the male re-
turns in the fall. The fourth, presents the same difterence in sex as the third, except
that the male retains its spring pattern of plumage permanenily. In the fifth
species the male and female have both outgrown a streaked plumage in the young, but
the male acquires a higher developement of plumage than the female, and breeds both
to the north and south of us. In the two Orioles the males differ from the females in
brighter colors and more definite pattern, and undergo no marked change of plumage in
the fall. The Orchard Oriole is more southern in its breeding range than the Balti-
more. The last species presents but little difference in the plumage of the male and fe-
male, and the young, as is also the case with the Orioles, is not streaked.

We have now considered the relations existing between young and old and different
species of birds of the spotted, barred and streaked type of plumage, using for this pur-
pose the largest families in which these types are especially noticeable; fortunately they
are the larger families of the Oscines. I have made no mention of the large family
Sylvicolide, for the reason that it presents different types of plumages in different genera,
and, among those of streaked pattern, few birds which afford comparison by
reason of marked differences in southern breeding limits. Of the Sylviid®, Parid»,
Sittide, Tanagridw, Vireonidw, Ampelid® and Corvida, it may be said that they possess
no pattern of coloration, the body plumage being generally of uniform, dull or neutral
tint in which the young and adult resemble each other. The same is true of sub-order
Clamatores. Family Hirundinidw presents no marked variations to confirm or

618 OHIO BIRDS.

oppose our views, for, though quite varied in plumage, their range during the breed-
ing season is nearly coextensive.

Of the remaining Families, the Blue-bird, Sialia sialis, resembles the Robin in develop-
ing color areas from the spotted type. The Brown Creeper, C. familiaris, Shore
Lark, E. alpestris, Titlark, A. ludovicianus, retain the streaked type of plumage and all
breed north of us.

In some instances interesting comparisons may be made between two species of the
same or allied genera. In Family Laniide we have two species and one variety. The
Northern Shrike, C. borealis, differs in color from the Loggerhead, C. ludovicianus in
having its under-parts waved, the black bar of the side of the head not meeting its
fellow across the forehead and bordered above by a hoary white line, the extreme fore-
head in the Loggerhead Shrike being black, not bordered above with white, and the
under-paris unbarred white. The young of ludovicianus, however, like the young of
borealis, is barred above and below. This barring disappears first from the upper parts,
but specimens otherwise in adult plumage are sometimes plainly barred below. Young
ludovicianus often lacks any indication of the black frontlet, and sometimes it is de-
veloped on one half the forehead only. The base of the bill is light colored below,
and altogether the young of the Loggerhead bears a greater resemblance to the adult
Northern Shrike than to its own parents.

In a comparison between the Red-headed Woodpecker. M. erythrocephalus, a species of
southern distribution, and with the exception of the Yellow-bellied Woodpecker, P. varius,
the most migratory in habit, and the Flicker, C. auratus, a species of more northern
distribution, and more nearly resident with us, we find some unexpected points of resem-
blance. The adult Red-headed Woodpecker has well defined coler areas and both sexes
are alike. Tho Flicker presents a spotted plumage below and bars above, both types in
their most perfect development. In the young of the Red-headed Woodpecker we find
the under-parts spotted and the upper-parts obviously barred. The spots and bars soon
disappear from the under and upper-parts of the body but on the distal half of the
secondaries the bars remain for one or two years, acquiring the individual perfection at-
tained by the bars on the secondaries of the Flickers, the most distal bar being the last to
disappear. The red of the Red-headed Woodpecker first appears as a narrow crescent
on the nape, which is followed by a spot on the breast, and another extending from
the auriculars a short distance down the side of the neck. These red spots occupy
respectively the situation of the nuchal crescent, the pectoral crescent and the maxillary
patches of the male Flicker. Soon after this developement of plumage the young leave
for the south and the changes immediately following are unknown to me. In the
spring the birds return with a red head and more or less perfect black pectoral cresent,
traces of which are seen until it arrives at its highest plumage, if not sometimes per-
manently, and one or two black bars on the secondaries. So that it appears the Red-
headed Woodpecker passes through a pattern of plumage similar to that which is per-
manent in the Flicker.

We have considered the relation of the spotted, barred and streaked patterns of plum-
age in connection with young and adult birds, and northern and southern birds. The
question may now be asked, Is there a similar relation of developement between the
patterns themselves? We have examined them in the order of the families in which we
found the most extensive presentation of each pattern. Is there anything to indicate
that the spotted pattern is a more highly developed pattern than the streaked?
In other words is there any reason, from the pattern of plumage alone, why the typical
thrushes with ten primaries should s and first in the arrangement of our birds, or should

RELATION BETWEEN PATTERNS. 619

that place, as intimated by some, be occnpied by the streaked sparrows with nine pri-
maries ?

Presuming upon the inference to be drawn from one of the laws above mentioned,
that where males and females differ in plumage, the male is more highly developed, and
has passed through a type of plumage which remains permanent in the female, it follows
that if we find an adult male of any species presenting one of these patterns of plumage
and the adult female another, we may decide that the male presents the higher
type of plumage. We discover such an example in the Sparrow Hawk, F. sparverius,
the female of which is streaked below and barred above while the male presents dis-
tinct spots below, while the bars are wider and fewer above, and on the wing-coverts
are distinct spots. For this reason we conclude that the spotted pattern of plumage is a
higher development than the streaked or barred. Instances of the barred pattern suc-
ceeding streaks are not infrequent among the Raptores.

We think then that our investigations have shown that the pattern of coloration in
the adults of our Northern Birds is the same as that found in the young of allied Southern Birds.

The cause or reason for such a law is unknown, but I believe the germ of the correct
idea is contained in the following from Audubon’s Journal in Labrador (Life of Audubon,
p. 349):

“Aug. 4, It is wonderful how quickly every living thing in this region whether ani-
mal or vegetable, attains its growth. In six weeks I have seen the eggs laid, the birds
hatched, and their first moult half gone through ; their association in flocks begun, and
preparations for leaving the couniry.

“ That the Creator should have ordained that millions of diminutive, tender creatures,
should crossspaces of country, in all appearance a thousand times more congenial for all
their purposes, to reach this poor, desolate, and deserted land, to people it, as it were, for
a time, and to causeit to be enlivened with the songs of the sweetest of the feathered
musicians, for only two months at most, and then, by some extraordinary instinct, should
cause them all to suddenly abandon the country, is as wonderful as it is beautifal and
grand.

“Six weeks ago this whole country was one sheet of ice; the land was covered with
snow, the air was filled with frost, and subject to incessant storms, and the whole country
& mere mass of apparently useless matter. Now the grass is abundant, and of rich
growth, the flowers are met with at every step, insects fill the air, and the fruits are
ripe. The sun shines, and its influence is as remarkable as it is beautiful; the snow
banks appear as if about to melt, and here and there there is something of a summerish
look. Butin thirty days allis over; the dark northern clouds will come down on the
mountains; the rivulets and pools, and the bays themselves will begin to freeze; weeks
of snow-storms will follow, and change the whole covering of these shores and country,
and nature will assume not only a sleeping state, but one of desolation and death.
Wonderful! wonderful! But it requires an abler pen than mine to paint the picture of
this all-wonderful country.

“Aug.5. This has been a fine day; we have had no new hurricanes and I have fin-
ished the drawings of several new birds. It appears that northern birds come to matur-
ity sooner than southern birds; this is reversing the rule in the human species ”

620 OHIO BIRDS.

[F.] GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS USED IN THE
PRECEDING DESCRIPTIONS.

The following definitions are compiled from Dr. Coues’ Glossary, in
Baird, Brewer and Ridgway’s History of North American Birds, iii,
1874, pp. 535-560.

A

Abdomen. Belly; part of gastreum between sternum and anus.

Aberrant. Deviating from ordinary character.

Abortive. Suppressed ; remaining or becoming imperfect.

Acuminate. Tapering gradually to a point.

Aigithognathous. Having the palate bones disposed as in a Sparrow or other passerine
bird.

After-shaft. Scape or stem of the supplimentary plume springing from many feathers, or,
oftener, such plume itself.

Albinism. State of whiteness, complete or partial, resulting from deficiency or entire
lack of pigment in the skin and its appendages.

Albino. An animal affected with albinism.

Altrices. Birds reared in the nest and fed by the parents.

Aliricial. Having the nature of Altrices.

Alula. Literelly little wing. The bastard wing, composed of the feathers that are set
on the so-called thumb.

Antie. Frontal points; projection of feathers on either side of base of culmen.

Anus. Outlet of refuse of digestion. In birds the same orifice discharges the products
of the genito-urinary organs.

Arcuate. Bow-shaped; bent regularly and gradually.

Attenuate. Growing gradually slenderer towards an extremity ; or, narrowly produced
for a long distance; in either case necessarily sharp-pointed which would be rather
acuminate.

Aural or Auricular. Pertaining to the ear.

Auriculars. Peculiar feathers covering the ear-opening,

Autumnal Plumage. That ensuing from the first moult, if any, or prior to the spring
moult, from which it is different in many birds.

Axillar or Axillary. Pertaining to the arm-pit.

Azillaries, Lengthened or otherwise distinguished feathers growing from the axillary
region.

Azygos. Single, in the sense of not paired.

B

Back. Upper surface of body proper.

Band or bar. Any cress-wise color mark, transverse to long axis of the body.
Belt. Bar or band of color more or less completely encircling the body.
Bend of Wing. Angle or prominence formed at carpus in the folded wing.

= GLOSSARY. 621

Booted. Having the tarsal envelope entire, i. e, undivided in most or all of its extent,
by fusion of the usual scales or plates.

Breast. Anterior portion of lower part of trunk between jugulum and abdomen; prop-
erly the region overlying and containing the breast-bone, but generally restricted to
the more forward swelling portion of such region.

Bristle. Small, stiff, hair-like feather, especially about the mouth or eyes.

C

Cecum. Intestinal cul-de-sac at junction of smaller and larger intestines, usually pre-
sent paired in birds; sometimes a foot long.

Calcareous. Chalky.

Canthus. Corner of eye where the lids meet; commissural point of eyelids.

Caput. Head. 2

Carinate. Keeled; ridged beneath as if keeled; having akeel, as the sternum of most
birds.

Carneous. Fleshy.

Carotid. The principle blood vessel of the neck, single in most birds, sometimes paired
as in mammalia.

Carpal Angle. Prominence formed at the wrist joint when the wing is closed. It is an
important point regionally, since the universally used measurement “ length of wing,”
is from this point to the end of the longest quill.

Cere. Fleshy, cutaneous or membranous, often feathered, covering of base of bill of many
birds, as parrots, hawks and owls.

Cervical. Pertaining to the hind-neck, as, a cervical collar.

Cervix. The hind-neck; from occiput to interscapulium, including nape and scruff.

Cheek. Outside of base of lower jaw ; also the corresponding region of upper jaw.

Chin. Space between forks of lower jaws.

Ciliated. Bristly, furnished with bristles or small bristle-like feathers; fringed.

Clavicle. Collar-bone. In birds the two clavicles usually unite to form the furculum,
merry-thought or wish-bone.

Collar. Ring of color around neck.

Coloration. Coloring; pattern or mode of coloring, or the colors collectively.

Commissure. Line of closure of the two mandibles; track or trace of their opposed edge
when the jaws are closed.

Compressed. Narrowed sidewise; higher than wide.

Coracoid. A large stout bone connecting shoulder with sternum.

Crest. Any lengthened feathers on top or sides of head.

Crissum. Properly the under tail-coverts collectively. Oftener used to designate the
circum-anal plumage.

Crown. Pileus; top of head, especially the vertex.

Culmen. Ridge of upper mandible ; highest median lengthwise line of the bill.

Cuneate, cuneiform, Wedge-shaped. A cuneate tail has the middle feathers longest, the
rest sucessively regularly shortened.

D

Deciduous. Temporary ; falling early. The dorsal plumes of the egret are deciduous.
Decomposed. Separate; standing apart. A decomposed crest has the feathers standing

away from each other.

622 OHIO BIRDS.

Decurved. Gradually curved downward.

Dentirostral. Having the bill notched as if toothed.

Depressed. Flattened vertically. Opposite of Compressed.

Desmognathous. Having the palate bones united.

Diagnostic. Distinctively and exclusively characteristic.

Diaphragm. Midriff; musculo-tendinous partition between thorax and abdomen, rudi-
mentary or wanting in birds.

Dichromatic. Of two colors, as the ‘“ red” and ‘‘ gray” plumages of Scops asio.

Divaricate. Branching off; spreading apart, curving away.

Dorsal. Pertaining to the back. ,

Dorsum. Back; upper surface of trunk from neck to rump.

Down. Small soft feathers of plumulaceous structure, generally growing about the
roots of plume and concealed by them.

Dusky. Of any undefined dark color.

E

Eared. Having lengthened or highly colored auricular or other feathers on the side of
the head.

Emarginate. Notched at the end; slightly forked, especially in case of a tail so shaped ;
also notched, or abruptly narrowed along the edge in its continuity, as the border of
many a wing-quill.

Epignathous. Hook-billed.

Erectile. Susceptible of being raised, as a crest.

Eryihrism. A particular state of plumage characterized by excess of red pigment.

Even. Having all the feathers of equal length.

F

Falcate. Sickle-shaped ; seythe-shaped.

Family. Systematic group of the grade between order and genus, generally distinguished
or denoted by the termination -ide.

Femoral. Pertaining to the thigh, or part of leg from hip to knee.

Fenestrate. Furnished with openings.

Ferrugineous or Ferruginous. Rusty-red.

Filiform. Thread-like.

Fissipalmate. Lobed and semipalmate as a grebe’s foot is.

Fissiped. Having cleft toes Opposed to Palmiped.

Fissirostral Having the bill cleft far beyond the base of its horny part.

Flank, Hinder part of side of trunk.

Forehead. Front of head from bill to crown.

Foreneck, Whole front of collum, from chin to breast ; whole throat.

Forficate. Deeply forked.

Forked (tail). Having the outer feathers longest, the rest gradually successively short-
ening to the middle pair; when these are again lengthened somewhat, the tail is said
ta be doubly forked.

Fossa, fosse Used chiefly in the plural to denote the pits or grooves in which most
birds’ nostrils open.

Fossorial. Digging into the earth for its habitation.

Free. Said of the leg when not enclosed to the knee in the common integument of the
body.

GLOSSARY. 623

Fuliginous. Sooty-brown ; dark smoky brown.

Fulvous. Of a brownish-yellow color.

Furcate. Forked; forticate.

Fuscous. Of a dark-brown color.

G

Gape. Opening of the mouth; area of the open mouth.

Gastreum. The whole under part of the bird.

Genus. An assemblage of species, or a single species, constituting a taxonomic group of
value next below that of the family.

Gibbous. Swollen; protuberant; humped:

Gonydeal. Pertaining to the mandibular symphysis.

Gonys Keel or lower outline of the bill as far as the mandibular rami are united.

Gorget. Throat-patch, distinguished by color or texture of the feathers.

Graduated. Changing length at regular intervals, in regular succession ; eaid chiefly of
the tail when its feathers regularly shorten successively by more and more from the
middle to the outer.

Granulate. Roughened with numerous small elevations.

Greater Wing-coverts. The single, longest, most posterior series of the secondary set.

Ground-color. The color of the general surface of the egg-shell, as distinguished from its
markings.

Gular. Pertaining to the upper foreneck.

Guttate. . Having drop-shaped spots.

H

Habitat. Locality or region frequented by a species ; its geographical distribution.

Halluz The hindtoe. The name is retained even when the hind toe is brought around
to the front. When the toes are in pairs it is the inner of the two hind ones except in
Trogonide. In the genus Picoides the actual single hind toe is not the hallux but the
fourth toe reversed, there being no hallux. This too may always be recognized by
presence of not more than two joints. It isthe one usually wanting in three-toed
birds, and is frequently rudimentary or functionless, even when present. Its large
size, with largest claw, and specialization of its flexor muscle, marke the passerine or
highest group of birds.

Hexagonal. Having six sides and edges.

Hoary. Of a pale silvery-gray.

I

Identification. Act or process of determining to what species a specimen or a name
belongs ; the determination so made.

Imbricated, Fixed shingle-wise with overlapping edge or end.

Immaculate. Unspotted ; not marked with different colors.

Immature. Not having yet assumed final size, shape, color, or other conditions of the
adult.

Imperforate. Not pierced through; also closed up (said chiefly of the nostrils).

Incised. Cut out; cut away.

Incumbent. Depressed or bending down upon something; laid at full length; chiefly
said of the hind toe when its whole length rests upon the ground or other support owing
to its low insertion on the level of the rest.

624 OHIO BIRDS.

Inner toe. In most birds the second is the inner anterior toe; in the trogons, the third
or middle toe becomes inner anterior by reversion of the second, which is then inner
posterior. In several birds the hallux or first or hinder toe is reversed, and becomes
inner anterior. But in any position the inner toe, properly speaking, is the second, that
one with only three joints.

Insistent. Said of the hind toe when its base is so elevated that its tip only touches the
ground.

Interramal. Between the forks or rami of the lower jaw.

Interscapular. Between the shoulders. The plural interscapulars or interscapularies is
used to denote the feathers of such region collectively.

Iridescent. Glittering with many colors, which change in different lights.

J

Jugulum. Lower throat; lower foreneck.

L

Lamella, Lamina, A thin plate or scale; plate-like process. The processes inside a
duck’s bill are lamella; the individual barbs of a feather are lamina.

Lamellirostral. Having a lamellate bill.

Lanceolate. Lance-head shaped; tapering narrowly at one end, less so at the other.

Larynx. Adam’s-apple; hollow cartilaginous organ, a modification of the windpipe either
at the top or bottom, but especially the former; the lower larynx being called Syrinx.

Lesser Wing-coverts. The smaller anterior set of secondary coverts in several series upon
the plica alaris.

Linear. Narrow with straight parallel sides; uniformly narrow for a long distance.

Lobate, Lobed. Farnished with membranous flaps (said chiefly of toes).

Lobe. Membranous flap (generally curved, but may be straight-edged).

Long-exserted. Said of tail-feathers abruptly much longer than the reat,

Loral. Pertaining to the lore.

Lore. Space between eye and bill.

Lower Wing-coverts. See Tetrices.

Lower Tail-coverts. See Crissum.

Lunulate. Narrowly crescentic.

Luteous. Clay-colored.
M

Maculate. Spotted.

Mandible. Jaw. Properly the under jaw, the upper jaw being mazilla.

Marbling. Fine spotting and streaking intermixed ; variegation like marble.

Maxilla. Jaw, especially the upper jaw.

Moxillar, Maxillary. Pertaining to the upper jaw.

Melanism. State of coloration resulting from excess of black or dark pigment ; a frequent
condition of hawks.

Melanistic, Melanotic. Affected with melanism.

Membrane. Soft skinny covering of the bill of many birds is said to be membranous.
Webbing of toes is the interdigital membrane.

Mental. Pertaining to the chin.

Mentum. Chin, Soft parts between the branches of the lower jaw.

Metagnathous. Cross-billed ; having the points of the mandibles passing each other on

the night and left.

GLOSSARY. 625

Middle Toe. The third toe in order of reckoning, with few exceptions four-jointed.
When the fourth toe is reversed, it becomes the outer anterior toe; in a few birds in
which the true inner or second toe is wanting, it becomes the inner anterior tos. It
is never versatile. It rarely has only three joints like the second toe,

Middle Wing-coverts or Median Coverts. The series of upper coverts of the secondary set,
situate in one or more rows between the greater and lesser ceverts. They are usually
recognized by their overlapping each other in the reverse direction (i. e. inner border
of one overlapping outer border of the next one) from the others, whence they are some-
times called tectrices perverse.

Migration. Periodical (but sometimes irregular) journeyings, or changes of abode, of
birds at certain seasons, te secure food, climate, or other physical conditions of environ-
ment best suited to their wants. Migration is generally meridional (north-south) and
believed by some to be mainly accomplished along a magnetic meridian ; butit is
often quite otherwise, influenced by topography, etc., or altogether capricious. Inthe
Northern Hemisphere, vernal migration is northward, the autumnal in the opposite
direction.

Monogamous. Pairing ; mating with a single one of the opposite sex. Birds of which
the male assists in incubation and care of the young are called doubly monogamous.

Mucronate. Spine-tipped, as the tail of a swift.

N

Naris, pl. Nares. The nostril.

Nasal. Pertaining to the nostril.

Natatorial. Capable of swimming; belonging to swimming birds.

Nidification. Nest building; mode of nesting.

Nomenclature. Thesum of the words or terms peculiar to any department of knowledge;
as, ornithological nomenclature ; in this sense equivalent to terminology. Also, the nam-
ing of objects according to some fixed principle; as, the binomial nomenclature. It is
essential to the integrity of nomenclature that it should rest upon classification or
taxonomy.

Nucha. Nape; upper part of cervix, next to occiput.

Nuchal. Pertaining to the nape.

Oo

Obscure. Dark; not evident; little known; faintly marked.

Occipital. Pertaining to the hind head.

Occiput. The hind head.

Ochrey, Ochreous. Celor of yellow ochre.

Gsophagus. Gullet; tube conveying food from mouth to stomach.

Olivaceous. Of a mixed green and brown color.

Oölogy. Science of birds’ eggs. :

Order. In classification a group between family and class.

Ordinal. Having the taxonomic rank or value of an order.

Oscines. A group of singing-birds, possessing a complex vocal organ of numerous
eyringeal muscles, conferring musical ability. These are regarded as the highest or
most perfectly developed of their class.

40

626 OHIO BIRDS.

P

Palearctic. Indigenous to the northern parts of the Eastern Hemisphere.

Paleogean. Indigenous to the Eastern Hemisphere, or ‘‘ Old World.”

Palatal, Palatine. Pertaining to the palate; palatine is said especially of certain bones.

Palate. Roof of mouth.

Palmate, Palmated, Palmiped. Web-footed ; having the anterior toes full-webbed.

Palpebral. Pertaining to the eyelids.

Papilla. Small fleshy, nipple-like prominences.

Papillate, Papillose. Having papille.

Paragnathous. Having both mandibles of equal length, their tips meeting.

Parasitic. Habitually making use of cther birds’ nests.

Parotid, Pertaining to the ear. Especially a salivary gland situated near the ear.

Passeres. A group of birds including sparrows and all the higher birds.

Pectinate. Having tooth-like projections like those of a comb.

Pectoral. Pertaining to the breaat.

Perforate. Pierced through (especially of the nostrils when without a septum).

Pervious. Open. Used synonymous with perforate in respect of the nostrils, but better
restricted to the opposite of impervious or closed (as to an external opening).

Phalanx, pl. phalanges. Commonly any bone of a finger or toe.

Pinnated. Having little wing-like tufts of feathers on the neck.

Polygamous. Mating with more than one female, like the domestic cock,

Postorbital. Situate behind the eye.

Powder-down Feathers. Peculiar imperfect feathers, in a matted patch, which grow con-
tinually, and as constantly break down, with a scurfy exfoliation, and pervaded with
a greasy substance; they are especially conspicuous in the heron tribe but are found
elsewhere.

Precoces. An obsolete group of birds, able to run about and feed themselves at birth.

Primary, pl. primaries. Any one of the (usually ten, often nine, rarely eleven) large stiff
quills growing upon the pinion or hand-bone, as distinguished from the secondaries
which grow upon the forearm. They form the tip of the wing and much of its
surface.

Protractile, Protrusile. Susceptible of being thrust forward or out, as the tongue of most
woodpeckers.

Psilopedes. A group of psilopedic birds, distinguished by being born weak and helpless,
fed and reared in the nest.

Psilopedic. Having down growing only from the future pteryle, as the precursor of the
future plumage, to which it is subsequently affixed for a while and then falls off.

Pierylosis. Plumage, considered with reference to its distribution on the skin.

Ptilopedic. Clothed at birth with floccus.

Punctate. Dotted; pitted ; studded with points.

Pygopodes. A group of birds distinguished by the far backward position, and deep

burial, in common integument, of the legs.

R

Recurved. Bent regularly and gradually upward.
Reflected. Turned backwards.

Reflection. Play of color changing in different lights.
Remiges. Quills of the wing.

GLOSSARY. 627

Reticulate. Marked with a network of lines.

Retractile. Susceptible of being drawn back and driven forward as a hawk’s claw.

Retrices. Quills of the tail.

Rictus. Gape of the mouth.

Rounded (tail). Having the central feathers longest, the rest successively gradually and
slightly shorter. A tail is double-rounded when, with central feathers shorter than the
next, the rest are graduated as before.

Rudimentary. Undeveloped ; imperfectly elaborated; existing only in its beginnings.

Ruff. Set of lengthened or otherwise modified or peculiarly colored feathers around the
throat or whole neck.

Rugose. Wrinkled.

Rump. The lower back.
8

Saggitate. Arrow-head shape; an elongated cordate figure with pointed lobes.

Scabrous. Scabby ; scurfy; scaly. Said of a surface roughened as if in such manner.

Scansorial. Capable of climbing, as a woodpecker.

Scapular, Scapulars. The feathers growing in an oblique line across the humerus. They
fill what would otherwise be an interval between the wing and the body.

Schizognathous. Having the palate bones separated.

Scutellum, pl. Scutella. Any one of the divisions into which the podotheca may be broken
up by regular lines of impression ; especially such divisions when large and in tegular
vertical series; various smaller divisions being called reticulations. Scutella occur
especially on the anterior face of the tarsus and top of the toes; often also on
the back of the tarsus; sometimes they completely encircle the tarsus. When thus
large, some ornithologists call them scuta ; then using scutella for the smaller irregular
reticulations. Scutella are sometimes obsolete.

Secondary-coverts. The small wing-feathers growing from the forearm and its region,
overlying the bases of the secondary quills. 2

Secondary Quills or Secondaries. Quills growing upon the forearm,

Semipalmate. Half-webbed ; having a basal webbing between the front toes not reach-
ing to their ends.

Serrate. Toothed like a saw.

Speculum. Mirror; brightly colored area on the secondaries, especially of ducks.

Spurious. False; bastard; imperfect; rudimentary.

Spurious Quill. The first primary when very short.

Steganopodous. Having all four toes fully webbed.

Suffrago. The tibio-tarsal joint; the heel joint.

Sulcus. A groove or channel.

Superciliary. Pertaining to region of eye-brow, as a streak of color over the eye.

Syndactyle. Having two toes immovably coherent for a considerable distance.

Synonym. A different word of the same or similar meaning.

Syrinx. The lower larynx, situate at the bottom of the trachea, at the fork of the
bronchi. The vocal organ of birds.

T

Tail-coverts. ‘Phe small feathers underlying or overlying the base of the tail.

Tarso-metatarsus. The morphologically correct term for the segment, commonly called
the tarsus in descriptive ornithology—that bone reaching from the tibia to the toes,
and which is really nearly all metatarsus, but has at its top one of the small tarsal

628 OHIO BIRDS.

bones confluent with it, so that in itself it comprehends part of tarsus as well as all of
metatarsus.

Tarsus. Theankle bones collectively. In birds there are no persistently separate tarsal
bones, since the two proximal ones are confluent with the extremity of the tibia, form-
ing its so called malleoli, and the distal one anchyloses with the metatarsus, leaving
the tarsal joint between them, as in reptiles, not between the tarsal bones and the
tibia, as in mammalia. But in descriptive ornithclogy, the whole segment between
the tibia and the toes, commonly called the shank, is usually called tarsus,

Tectrices. Coverts; the smaller feathers, either of wing or tail, but especially of the
former.

Tenuirostral. Slender-billed.

Tertials, Tertiaries. Large inner quills of wings growing from humerus or elbow. The
two or three longer inner true secondaries are often incorrectly called tertials,
especially when distinguished by size, shape, and color from the rest of the second-
aries.

Tibia. Principal and inner bone of leg between knee and heel; the shin bone.

Tomium, pl. tomia. The cutting edge of the bill.

Totipalmate. Having all four toes webbed.

Truncate. Cut squarely off.

Type. Way; plan; mode. Also, sign or symbol. The type, or typical form, of a group
is that which exhibits a given set of characters most perfectly. But the type of a
genus is usually the species, if any, from which the generic characters were especially
drawn up, without reference to such qualification; while, furthermore, the type of a
species, in current acceptation, is merely the specimen from which the species was
originally described ; even though it may very inadequately represent such species.

Typical. Of most usual structure; adhering strictly to a given plan of structure.

v

Variety. A nascent species. Practically, the term designates a set of objects incom-
pletely distinguished from the othersof the same species by reason of slightness of the
difference, or presence of connecting links.

Versatile. Reversible; susceptible of turning either way.

Vertex. Crown. Highest central portion of top of head.

W

Washed. As if overlaid with a thin layer of different color.

SHCTION III.

REPORT ON THE

_ REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS

OF OHIO.

BY W. H. SMITH, M. D., Pu.D.

LETTER OF TRANSMISSAL.

Professor J. 8. NEWBERRY, Chief Geologist :

Deak Sir: I have the honor herewith to transmit the following synoptical and
descriptive catalogue of the Reptiles and Amphibians of Ohio.

While the aim has been to make this a fair presentation of the fauna of the State, it
has also been an object to render the facts pertaining to these animals as accessible as
possible to persons desiring to gain information. The data upon which this catalogue
is founded are not only the collections received from Ohio but also the works of pre-
vious writers on Herpetology, the results of whose researches have often been em-
ployed.

Under the head of habitat is given the range of each animal outside of the State, so
far as specimens present would admit, or as was found recorded in the writings of some
competent authority. Whenever there was a reasonable degree of doubt as to an ani-
mal occurring in a region it has been indicated by an interrogation or quotation mark ;
and though in other cases there might be the best of reasons for believing the range of
the animal more extensive than here given, in the absence of a recorded observation or
specimen it has not been indicated.

While it is hoped that the lists here given will prove reasonably complete, it is un-
doubtedly true that a more careful survey of the State by one versed in Herpetology
would add other and very desirable facts to the results herein contained. To enable
any one using this synopsis to recognize species not now recorded from Ohio in case
they occur there, as well as to render this catalogue more valuable for comparison
with neighboring States, various references to, as well as lists of, extralimital species
occuring nearest to our limits are given. It is also hoped that the references to other
authors may prove an aid to at least some students of Herpetology.

Finally, the writer takes pleasure in rendering acknowledgements first of all, to
Prof. Tuttle, of the Ohio State University, who generously placed a fine set of Reptiles
collected in the State at his disposal. Considering that he and Prof. Tuttle had never
met, but were entire strangers, and that the latter gentlemen could have been actuated
solely by a desire to aid science, his action is worthy of high commendation. The col-
Jection thus forwarded to the writer was of value in that it contained two specimens
which otherwise he would not have been able to locate in the State. The author also
received a like generous treatment from Oberlin College and Michigan University, both
of which institutions place their entire collections at his disposal. He is also under
obligations to the various authors who have written upon this subject, but without
attempting to enumerate them in detail he will simply say that among the best of
these may be mentioned Baird and Girard’s excellent Catalogue of N. A. Serpents,

632 LETTER OF TRANSMISSAL.

Agassiz’s Contributions to Natural History, Dumeril and Bibron’s Erpetologie, the Cata-
logues of the British Museum, DeKay’s Reptiles of New York, Prof. Cope’s Check List,
and Mitchell’s Researches upon Crotalus Poisoning. With this acknowledgement of
obligation and with gratitude for all favors received.

I am, sir, very respectfully yours,

W. H. SMITH.
ST. CLAIR, Micu., April, 13, 1881.

REPORT

ON THE

REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS OF OHIO.

BY W. H. SMITH, M.D., Pu. D.

INTRODUCTION.

There are in the State at least thirty-six species of Reptiles and
twenty-five Amphibians. That vulgar prejudice exists against many of
these animals, which leads to their being killed wherever met, is a
common place truth. To show how ill-founded is this prejudice it is
only necessary to say that there are probably in the State but three
animals, Crotalus durissus, Banded Rattlesnake, Crotalophorus tergeminus,
Massassauga, and Ancistrodon contortrix, the Copperhead, which are at all
venomous. The remainder are perfectly harmless.

However, these creatures do not simply failof doing evil. They often
do positive geod. Thus the office of such animals as frogs, salamanders,
lizards and some snakes, in devouring noxious insects and other vermin,
is a very important one, and has a direct bearing upon the agricultural
interests of the State. It remains then a question whether farmers will
continue to misunderstand and destroy these true friends of theirs or
whether they shall be protected.

The food of some of these animals furnishes an interesting object for
study. Thus the common Bull Frog, Rana catesbiana, has been known to eat
insects, helices, worms, mice, spiders preserved in alcohol, and even their
own species. Two instances of this came under my personal observation.
In one case having placed two frogs in a jar over night I was surprised
in the morning to find the smaller one, which was about one-third the
size of the other, had disappeared. To avoid the possibility of mistake,
the remaining one was killed, opened, and the other found in hisstomach
in a semi-digested state, In the other case a large frog was seen in the

634 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

very act of swallowing one about half hisown size. I have subsequently
seen snakes in the stomachs of other snakes, salamanders in other sala-
manders, and it may be an interesting question as to how far‘this canni-
balistic habit obtains throughout the animal kingdom.

In the stomach of this same species, Allen* found a Ohrysemis picta or
Painted Tortoise, one and a half inches long, and saw it seize a cedar
bird which he had shot, and which the frog proceeded to swallow,
although the wings and tail projected from its mouth, and there it sat
waiting quietly for the lower end to digest. The same gentlemen, as
well as Dr. Brewer,f states that they have seen it swallow young ducks,
and it is a common belief of Massachusetts farmers that it robs them of
their young chickens. The story by Dr. Jonest of finding a grass snake
in the stomach of a large bull frog is so remarkable that we may reason-
ably hesitate about accepting it until confirmed by other observers.

Other frogs probably use similar food; in fact, the writer has observed
the Rana halecina or Leopard Frog in the act of swallowing its own
species, and has found the elytra of beetles in their stomachs. And as
these animals, as well as toads, lizards, salamanders, and some snakes
subsist chiefly upon insects, they aid in keeping down the multiplicity
of these pests, and are thus beneficial.

The tadpoles or young of frogs, and probably also of salamanders live
almost, or entirely, upon vegetable matter. However, in some cases they
are said to have eaten decomposing animal matter, and even other tad-
poles. Prof. Baird states that this may be taken advantage of to clean
skeletons by placing the two together in water. The larval Rana sylvatica
he found to be the most effective, as these devoured the macerated flesh,
leaving a ligamentous skeleton. Their food primarily is vegetable, and
it is probable that they never attack their own species unless driven by
hunger or after they have attained a good degree of development.

The frog is, usually at least, very cautious in regard to its method of
taking food. It ordinarily approaches and first touches the prey with
its tongue, then retires and afterwards returning with a spring, seizes,
holds, and manipulates it dextrously with the fingers of its anterior feet,
then closes its eyes, and forces the animal head foremost downwards into
the stomach. During this operation, if interrupted, it jerks and kicks
vigorously so long as the intruder continues its annoyance.

The toad is a voracious feeder. It has been observed to eat nine wasps,
one after the other, but would take no more. The same afternoon it

* Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. 12, pp. 185-197.
tProc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. 5, p. 211.
t Chemical and Physical Investigations, Smithsonian Contributions, Vol. 8.

INTRODUCTION. 635

greedily devoured eight additional ones. It eats worms and insects of
every kind, but prefers bees and wasps. It will not touch a dead ani-
mal, even though just killed, but waits for its prey to stir before seizing
it. On taking bees and wasps, instead of swallowing them immediately,
it presses them between its jaws until death occurs, and thus avoids
their sting.

When an insect drops'before a toad at rest, the latter immediately
arouses from its torpor, and with animation moves towards its prey. It
halts, pointer-like, at a proper distance, and finally with lightning-like
swiftness darts out its tongue and brings the animal into its mouth. A
miss of its mark is not followed by a second attempt until the insect
begins to move.

As these animals hybernate, are cold blooded and sluggish, they can go
for a long time without food. Hallowell kept a Proteus angwinus thir-
teen months without nourishment, and, so far as observed, the animal
suffered no inconvenience. And yet there is a limitation to their
powers of endurance. The stories so often repeated about finding them
immured in rocks cannot be sustained; in all these cases probably some
cavity, by which they had entered when small, and through which they
continued to receive air and food, had probably been overlooked. At all
events it has been experimentally proved that toads cannot live twelve
months when deprived of air, nor two years without food.

In regard to the tailed Amphibians, they are all insectivorous, Spelerpes
porphyriticus having been observed in the very act of eating flies, while
the contents of the stomach in others leaves no doubt as to their diet.
Thus, in Notophthalmus viridescens or Crimson Triton was found insects,
spiders, physa, and lymnea; in Plethodon erythronotus were small mollusks ;
while in Spelerpes ruber or Red Salamander occured worms, elytra of beetles,
and the remains of other salamanders. In like manner Salamandra
maculosa has been shown to eat flies, beetles, young snails, and worms.
Menobranchus lateralis undoubtedly feeds upon Annelids and Libellula
larve, while Menopoma alleghaniensis, the Alleghany Hellbender eats
worms, fish, crawfish, and the like.

Lizards are insectivorous, though as to their additional articles of diet
the writer as yet has no information.

Turtles undoubtedly vary in their food. Cistudo clausa has been seen
to eat insects and an Agaric or mushroom; the Green and Gopher Tur-
tles are vegetarian, the latter being fond of sweet potatoes, melons, and
bulbous roots, and injuring gardens; Chrysemys picta, the Painted Tur-
tle, and Nanemys guitatus, the Spotted Tortoise, eat worms, insects, frogs,
aquatic reptiles, and probably also the water plantain ; Chelydra serpentina,

636 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

the Snapping Turtle, preys upon frogs, fishes, and young ducks; while
Trionyz ferox is said to feed upon fish and small aquatic reptiles.

Serpents vary full as much as turtles in regard to food. For instance
Liopeltis vernalis, the Green Snake, is insectivorous; Diadephis punctatus
the Ring-necked Snake, eats worms, insects, and grubs; Storeria dekayi,
the Little Brown Snake, has been found with the elytra of beetles in its
stomach; Eutenia sirtalis feeds upon frogs, toads, and small quadrupeds ;
Abastor erythrogrammus takes rats; Bascanion flagelliforme, the Coach-
whip Snake, preys upon birds; Boa Constrictors and Pythons swallow their
species; Ancistrodon contortrix, the Copperhead, eats mice, Ranide, and
small birds; Pityophis melanoleucus takes mice, rats, rabbits, and young
chickens ; Ophibolus triangulus uses frogs and toads; Bascanion constrictor,
the Blue Racer, consumes frogs, small birds, and other snakes, having been
observed swallowing a dead Eutenia ; while in the stomach of Tropidonotus
sipedon, the Water Snake, I have found frogs and small fishes, and in
Ophibolus getulus, the Chain Snake, the remains of otherserpents; Crotalus
durissus, the Rattlesnake, is said to live upon insects, frogs, lizards, mice,
moles, young birds, and chickens. Toads are ordinarily believed to be
eaten by serpents. However, the writer’s experience, having in vain
endeavored to feed them to Bascanion constrictor and Crotalophorus ter-
geminus, leads him to believe that toads are rarely preyed upon by snakes,
but that they are sometimes eaten by Eutxnia sirtalis and Ophibolus
triangulus is, it appears, beyond question. The former he has himself
seen in the act of swallowing a Bufo americanus.

The fangs of the venomous serpents* are firmly soldered to the lower
side of the maxillary bone, which joins the lachrymal above by a
ginglymoid articulation. Posteriorly it is in contact with the external
pterygoid and palate bones. A muscle, the spheno-pterygoid, which has
no analogue in other animals, extends from the base of the cranium in
the middle line, backward and outward, to be inserted into the external
pterygoid, which by contraction it draws forward, pushing the maxillary
before it and causing the fangs to be erected. At the same time, other
muscles cause the mouth to be widely opened and the anterior portion
of the body to be thrown forward, downward, or backward toward the
object aimed at. If the enemy is missed, the venom may spirt several
feet, but if struck, another pair of muscles, the external pterygoid, which
run from the point of articulation of the lower jaw forwards, and are
spread out as a fascial layer over the gland, and inserted by two slips

*For a fuller treatise upon Crotalus poisoping, its venom and antidotes, see the ex-
cellent article by Dr. S. Wier Mitchell, Smithsonian Cont., vol. xii, to which the author
is largely indebted for facts here given.

INTRODUCTION. 637

into the base of the fang, contract, drawing the point of the latter back-
ward, thus deepening the wound, and in part forcing out the venom.
This is followed by still another motion or rather two other movements,
a rolling outward of the two upper maxillary bones and with them
the fangs, so that if the animal misses its aim it may not bite itself, and
the closure of the mouth. The latter is effected by various muscles,
among which the anterior temporal lies over the posterior two-thirds of
the poison sac, and in contracting, forcibly compresses the glands and
compels the venom to flow out through the duct and tooth into the
wound. That the duct does not enter the tooth is true, but the sheath
falling at the base completes the channel, though in rare cases not per-
fectly, but permits the fluid to escape alongside the fang. After having
thus struck its victim, deepened the wound, and injected a sufficient
quantity of venom, the animal opens its mouth and lets go its hold.
Occasionally it happens that the teeth of the lower jaws become en-
tangled, and the serpent is unable to get away. It will then shake its
head from side to side, not as is ordinarily supposed on account of rage,
but in its efforts to escape. At times, also, only one of the fangs pene-
trates the wound, and the victim receives only half the usual amount of
venom. In such a case, or in case the venom was spilled outside the fang,
or the serpent’s supply was exhausted by its having previously bitten
an enemy, a physician might be seriously misled as to the effects of a
remedy.

In structure, as Prof. Owen* has shown, the fang may be likened unto
a simple tooth, flattened and then turned up so as to bring the edges
together, thus forming a cylinder or rather a cone open at both ends.
The suture is along the anterior or convex side of the tooth, thus bring-
ing the veniferous canal in front of the pulp cavity. The venom is
secreted by the glands, and the only cavities for its storage are the ducts,
hence the terms poison sacs, vesicles, etc., are misnomers, and ought be
abolished.

The average amount of venom thrown out at once by a serpent, three
or four feet long, is from two to four drops, though in some cases as mueh
as fifteen drops has been given off through a single fang. By filling the
glands with water their capacity has been estimated at from eleven to
twenty-nine drops. The color of the venom varies from, pale green to
orange; its specific gravity is from 10.30 to 10.44 ; it is tasteless, acid, dries
slowly, and is then adhesive, and its virulence is not affected by heat or
cold. Heat, however, produces an albuminous precipitate which is harm-

*Comp. Anatomy, Vol. I, p. 396.

638 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

less, and if, after filtration, alcohol be added to the liquid part another
precipitate will be obtained, containing all its virulent property. The
material to which its virulence is due is, therefore, not precipitated by
heat, but is by alcohol, and yet this re-agent does not render it inert, as
has been shown by injecting the alcoholic precipitate under the skin of
animals.

In the treatment of venomous snake-bites it is obvious that any means
taken to prevent the poison gaining full egress into the system must be
very serviceable. Thus,if the bitten part be a limb, a ligature above
the wound will interrupt the circulation and exclude a large portion of
the venom. For a similar purpose, scarifying or sucking the wound, or
burning it with caustics may be of service. However, any such means to
be available must be used speedily after the injury, and their value
lessens as we recede from that period, As the venom is supposed to
operate by depressing the heart and inducing putrefactive changes in
the blood, muscles, and other parts of the system, it is evident that stimu-
lants are always indicated, and in fact, alcohol in some of its forms is
among the best remedies; also bathing the wound in ammonia, and
ammonia and arsenic internally given, are said to have excellent anti-
dotal effects. ’

After all, the danger from serpent bites, though serious, is not so bad
as is generally believed: In the first place, they are of rare occurrence,
and it is only exceptionally that we know of a person who has met with
such an accident ; and then in the second place, it is exceptional for a
person bitten by a venomous serpent to die. The rule is for them to get
well. In Dr. Mitchell’s sixteen cases there were only four deaths, and
this is a fair average mortality. The danger, of course, varies with the
amount of poison injected, and the surgical means used to prevent its
complete passage into the system. The belief that hogs are not injured
can probably be explained on the ground that the virulent matter is ab-
sorbed by the adipose tissue and does not enter the circulation.

The question of the virulence of the venom upon the serpent itself
has been settled by experiment, and also by Dr. Dearing’s* case of a
Crotalus that accidentally bit himself. The result was the death of the
snake. Thus we see that the venom exerts its deadly power, not only
upon cold and warm-blooded vertebrates, but upon the animal which
produces it In other words, it isa liquid secreted from the blood, which
becomes fatal on being introduced back into the very same source.

Another interesting fact in regard to these animals, to which, I believe,

* Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. iv, p. 313.

INTRODUCTION. 639

attention has not hitherto been properly directed, is the various modes
of protection furnished them by nature. We find the Turtles, for the
most part, provided with a union of the cuticle and skeleton into which
they can retreat, and which can be closed about them. To see the value
of this mode of protection, it is but necessary to endeavor to draw out the
head of one, which will be found to be a very difficult task. In asimilar
manner, the scales, plates, and spines, so common as a dermal covering,
havea profound significance, and their color is amatter of too great a value
to be overlooked. The Rattlesnakes and Copperheads are provided with
fangs, for injecting venom, and the former with a caudal rattle, by the
vibration of which it may aid in frightening away its foes. But the color
has an important bearing. The young of the venomous Crotalophorus
tergeminus, and of the harmless Tropidonotus sipedon and Ophibolustriangulus,
bear such a resemblance to each other that it might be considered a case
of mimicry. However, the colorof these animals is more or less adapted
to their surroundings. The Green Snake resembles closely the grass
through which it crawls, and the same is true also of the Storerias and
Striped Snakes. Unless closely examined they could easily escape the
eye of the observer. In like manner the markings of frogs furnishes an
excellent illustration of adaptation. The green of the Bull-frog and the
spots on the Leopard Frog need but be mentioned to be appreciated.
Rana temporaria var. sylvatica; when pursued, conceals itself in grass or
leaves, which it resembles so closely as to be discovered with difficulty.
The Common American Toad (Bufo americanus), might not at first seem to
have its colors most suitable for protection, and yet when we see it in its
secluded retreats, under stones and in odd corners, and consider its noc-
turnal habits, the conviction forces itself upon me, that probably no
better shades could have been chosen. As desert animals are sand colored,
and arctic are white, like the snow, so these animals show a decided
adaptation to their surroundings.

The best illustration is furnished by the common Tree Toad .(Hyla ver-
sicolor). Like the Chameleon, this little animal can change its color, and
thus transform itself into a being resembling the limb or branch on
which it sits. As Milne Edwards* found in the Chameleon, so in this
there are two sets of cutaneous glands, the one superficial and the other
deep. The former of these gives it a green coloration, with a golden re-
flection ; the latter are much thicker and dark. They contain many
brush-shaped cavities, and the expansion of these towards the circum-
ference determines the color and causes the green tint to disappear, not

*Ann. des Sci. Nat., 1834, p. 46.

640 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

only by diminishing ‘its cavities but by expanding its own. In this
manner the deep meshes sometimes appear white while the exterior net-
work takes on a pearly aspect. The animal in this manner, by blend-
ing in a different degree two or three primitive colors, changes its shade
so much that it comes to resemble the object upon which it happens to
be. A similar power to vary these colors at willis present to a greater or
less extent in all the Hylide. Theadvantages of this, in enabling these
animals to escape their enemies, and to approach their prey unobserved,
is too obvious to be considered here.

In this connection it may be mentioned, that tadpoles sometimes show
a mimetic coloring. A case of this kind is recorded by Miss Monk,*
in which, being kept in an aquarium with Water Purslane, Ludwidgia
palustris, they imitated almost precisely the color of the leaves. So per-
fect was the resemblance that a friend visiting her was actually deceived
and mistook aleaf fora tadpole. Personally I have seen such cases of imi-
tation, but none sufficiently marked to justify a person being misled in
this manner. *

Again, the serpents have a remarkable power of enlarging their
bodies by the inhalation of air. Tounderstand how this is done it is but
necessary to dissect a snake, and observe the situation and length of the
lungs. By thus enlarging his body the serpent renders himself more
formidable in appearance, and has thus a tendency to frighten away an
enemy. Add to this the peculiar blowing sound with which the air is
emitted, sometimes as in Heterodon, suggesting the rattle of the Crotalidz,
and again, as in Pityophis, said to imitate the roaring of a bull,and this
matter of exhalation, as well as inhalation, has a profound significance.

Another mode of protection is in the secretion of some of these ani-
mals. ‘Thus the frog on being caught usually ejects a quantity of fluid,
and also becomes more or less swollen. The use of this ejection was to
me a mystery until seeing Mr. Aldrick’s} account of a snake gliding
upon a’ frog, when the latter simultaneously jumped and threw this
liquid into the mouth and eyes of the serpent. The latter was ap-
parently blinded by the discharge, sprung wildly from side to side, and
lost track of hisintended prey. This incident seems to indicate that the
ejection of this fluid in the frog accomplishes the same purposes as the
discharges in the Bombardier Beetles, and enables the Batrachian to
escape its enemies.

However this may be, the cutaneous secretions of some Reptiles,
and Amphibians are admirably adapted to the purpose of protection.

*Am. Naturalist, vol, xii, p. 695.
tAm. Naturalist, vol. xii, p. 473.

INTRODUCTION. 641

The Musk Tortoise, Serpents, Tree and Common Toad are illustrations of
this. No person has ever handled the Common Garter Snake alive with-
out finding his hands for sometime afterwards tainted with a very dis-
gusting odor. Rattlesnakes, on sufficient irritation, have been
known to emit a yellow or brownish fluid, and a very offensive smell.
In like manner the consequences of annoying the Spreading Adder are
very unpleasant to one’s olfactory organs. Also, Pityophis is said to
emit an odor equally disagreeable, and the Tree Frogs have an acrid ex-
cretion.

According to Rainey’s* experiments the secretions of the Common Toad
are irritating, acrid, and capable of producing a smarting sensation like
aconite. Dr. Blick’s account of the half drunken man, who, in a wager,
bit off the head of atoad, and paid for his experiment by an alarming
swelling of lips, tongue, and throat, and Dumeril and Bibron’s f observa-
tion that the emanations from these animals seemed to have an ill-effect
upon others when confined together with them, with the fact that a dog
will not touch a toad, render it probable that they secrete a matter by
the glands on their exterior, which is very important to them as a
means of protection. While this is true, the common belief that
handling them is productive of warts or other deleterious effects is utterly
without foundation, and has its counterpart in the belief of the common
people of Great Britain, that if a person afflicted with warts handles a
toad it will effect a cure. There is, however, according to Escobarf a
South American toad, Phyllobates melanorhina, which secretes a venom of so
great virulence that it is extracted and used by the Indians for poisoning
their arrows. This venom is sufficient to effect the death of large ani-
mals, like the Jaguar, and is equally fatal to man, exerting its toxic
effect by acting upon the organs of sensibility and motion.

The ordinary course of development is for Frogs and Toads, when about
to deposit their eggs, to seek the water of some pond, ditch, or brook, and
there they pair, the eggs being fecundated as they are emitted.
The young when hatched are gill breathing animals, and hence incapable
of existing without water. However, the young sometimes appear in
cellars and gardens with high walls, which, as Lowe, Jenyns, || and

* Micros. Journ., London, 1858, p. 457.

t Erpetologie Generale, Suite a Buffon, Tome 8, p. 184.
{ Comptes Rendus, Tome 68, p. 1488.

Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 1853, pp. 341 and 483.

41

642 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

Bennett* observe, can hardly be explained on the supposition that they
had passed through the larval state. It is probable, therefore, that as
the Salamandra atra, which lives high up the Alps, is ovoviviparous, and
Hiylodes martinicensis, of Guadaloupe, f comes forth mature from the egg,
so our Amphibians, in part at least, under certain circumstances, bring
forth their young in a perfect condition.

‚Again, physical agents exert an important influence upon the develop-
ments of the animals. Thus the larve if kept in too deep water will not
develop. They grow, but continue in the tadpole state, unless the
liquid be shallow. Temperature also plays an important part, it having
been found that at 60° F. the ovaof frogs will develop most rapidly, and
any diminution of temperature is followed by a corresponding retarda-
tion of development. The effect of light is rather a mooted question,
and yet it is probable, from the experiments of Edwards, Higginbottom {
and Thury,|| that its presence hastens and its absence retards their pro-
gress; the latter showing that in a green jar, with other conditions
equal, tadpoles would not develop, while they did in one constructed of
ordinary glass, thus rendering this conclusion highly probable.

Some very recent interesting experiments are recorded on the Sala-
mandra atra, an ovoviviparous animal, by Madame von Chauvin.§ It
was believed that if the young were removed prematurely from the
mother and placed in water they would adapt themselves to an aquatic
life. The experiment proved entirely successful, in that one individual
lost its gills, developed a new pair suited to respiration, and, after four-
teen weeks residence in water, underwent transformation and became
a land Salamander. This would seem to indicate, that, at some not very
distant day, the Salamandra atra and maculosa had diverged from a com-
mon stock, and that while one continued on in its aquatic mode of re-
production, the other had, owing to changed conditions, become terres-
trial.

As fegards the geographical distribution of Reptiles, much might be
written, but a few facts will only be referred to here. That these ani-
mals, like the birds, increase in beauty and variety of markings, and in
‚their venomous properties as they approach the tropics, is an old observa-

* Proc. Am. Ass. for Adv. Sci., 1853, p. 230.

+t Am. Naturalist, vol. viii, p. 438.

} Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 3d Ser., vol. 15, p. 376.

|| Ibidem, 4th Ser., vol. 15, p. 376. See also Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1867, p. 169.
:$ Am. Naturalist, vol. xii, p. 468.

INTRODUCTION. 643

tion. Another important factor, towhich Prof. Cope* has directed atten-
tion, is the amount of terrestrial and atmospheric moisture. In the
Amphibians, which spend nearly or all their life in water, and the
aquatic turtles and serpents, the dependence of the species upon this
element for distribution is sufficiently manifest. The well-watered eastern
border and the Mississippi Valley are the homes of the aquatic Reptilian
and Amphibian life, while the dry and almost barren region from Mexico
to Arizona and Nevada is characterized by the predominance of Lizards,
Toads, and Snakes with an extraordinary development of the rostral
shield. The latter characteristic, seen in our Hog-nose Snake, probably
is in some way useful to the animal in removing the sandin which it
either burrows for concealment or seeks for food. A peculiar foot struc-
ture, or movable spines on the side of the leg, may find a similar explana-
tion, while the prolongation of the nostrils forward in our Trionychide,
or Soft-shelled Turtles, is a character adapted to their habits of life, they
living buried in mud, and only bringing this proboscis to the surface to
accomplish the work of respiration.

In a similar manner may be traced a relation between the powers of
endurance of these animals and the extent of their distribution. Thus
Amphibians will endure more cold than the Ophidians, and hence ex-
tend farther northward. In the writer’s, and, so far as his knowledge
goes, other’s efforts to keep serpents over the winter, they, if once frozen
stiff, invariably failed to resuscitate, but a frog, even when taken out of
the ice and gradually thawed, comes forth to an apparently new life.
The modes of progression, serpents being limbless, the scarcity or abun-
dance of food, the enemies of a species, and the method of reproduction,
have important bearings. It cannot be expected that snakes which pro-
pagate only when several years old, oviposit usually in the hotter parts
of summer, and then lay only a few eggs, should compete with the more
enduring frogs and toads, which have such a numerous progeny. Owing
to such causes one wouldexpect what is actually found to be the case,
that the Amphibians are far more abundantly distributed over the earth
than are the Ophidians.

In the Western Continent, Dr. Gtinther has shown that we have two
apparently distinct creations, the one radiating from the Valley of the
Amazon; the other from that of the Mississippi. That these faunas
meet and mingle along Nerthern Mexico, Western Texas, Arizona, and
Nevada, is a fact abundantly attested. To these might perhaps be added
the mixed life of the Pacific region, and that radiating from the Mississippi

*Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1875, B. p. 197.

644 REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS.

Valley, as first pointed out by Agassiz for Turtles, and afterwards di-
vided by Cope, into an Eastern, Southern, and Western fauna.

Finally, in regard to classification, the study ofthese animals has been
rendered needlessly complicated. Naturalists have seemed so eager to
append their names to a new species that, instead of examining to see
what others had done before them, they affixed a new name to a large
per cent , at least, of the animals met. The truth of this statement is
evident from the abundant synonyms by which nearly all these animals
are known. In some casesagain,the most carefulandconscientious observ-
ers have been misled, and considered varietal differences specific charac-
istics. Such a principle followed out in regard to the human race would
give us numerous species of men founded on as valid grounds as have
been many of the species of animals. Moreover, in regard to the separa-
tion of these animals into genera, families, sub-orders, etc., naturalists
have changed each others names and arrangement, often for better, but
too many times apparently for the sake simply of a change, and to the
disadvantage of science.

In selecting marks of species, families, and orders, much difficulty must
be experienced. To any one who has made a careful and thoughtful
study of osteological characters, these, though among the best, are insuf-
ficient. Thus the bones of the same animal vary, not only in the extent
of ossification, but in number with age. Nor arethe anatomical relations
of the soft parts any more valid. Let a person examine the structure of
a frog and tadpole, and he would unquestionably pronounce them to be
distinct species. On the other hand the teeth, their shape, presence or
absence, the matter of having a grooved or hollow poison fang, indicate a
habit of the animal, and are, to a certain extent at least, valuable grounds
of classification. The same remark will apply to the presence or absence
of a tongue in the Amphibians, its shape and attachments, and whether
protrusible or not, so as to become an instrument of prehension. Ina
similar manner the palmation of the toes indicating an aquatic ani-
mal, and the dilatation of the tips showing an arboreal habit, the pro-
jecting rostral in Heterodon, the soft shell and prolonged nostrils in the
Trionychidz, the presence of parotoids, the granulation of the abdomen,
the covering of the head, the scales whether carinate or not, the presence
af spines or thorns, and femoral pores, as well as the transverse lamelle
seen on the feet of Anolis, seem to be tolerably constant and consequently
valuable in classification. These should be combined with osteological
and other characters carefully used, and also taken with a diligent study
of the animal’s habits, and thus in time we may hope to get a valuable
and permanent arrangement. Until such a redistribution can be made,

INTRODUCTION. 645

the following classificatiens of Dumeril and Bibron of Ophidia and
Lacertilia, and Günther of Anoura, and Agassiz, as modified by Cope, of
Testudinata, are perhaps the best attainable.

That many of the marks used in describing species in this treatise are
not coustant, the writer and every student of Herpetology well knows.
Thus the presence and absence of a loral or ante-orbital plate may both
be seen in the same animal on opposite sides of the head; the number
of rows of dorsal scales varies in different individuals of a species;
the coloration and arrangements of the spots and stripes, the number of
the upper and lower labials, in fact the cephalic plates are liable to
become more or less fused and run together; the number and arrange-
ment of the shields in the carapax, and even the shape of the head is
more or less variable. In using such marks, for the purposes of
description, the writer but acknowledges the imperfections of this
branch of Zoology, and hopes that after this suggestion, no one will be
misled by any of these variable characters at times used in the synopses,
but that they may be found of service in the identification and study of
the species.

One of the most difficult things about the study of these animals is
that their colors change so much when placed in alcohol. Thus yellow
becomes white; green, blue; and red, brownish-black ; while brown and
metallic tints remain for some time unchanged. However, exposure to
the sun for a season will often enable us to form an idea of the original
shade.

Sex may be told in most if not all Turtles by the males having convex
plastra,and in the Anoura by the males, in the greater portion of the
species, being supplied with vocal vesicles.

REPTILIA.

Vertebrate animals characterized by having the blood cold with oval
nucleated corpuscles; heart usually with three chambers; circulation
incomplete; venous and arterial blood intermingled ; aortic arches two,
which coalesce or anastomose in front of the dorsal vertebre ; reproduc-
tion oviparous or ovoviviparous; embryo with amnion and allantois ;
respiration pulmonary in young and adult; lungs with few cells; met-
amorphoses none; occipital condyles one; rami of the lower jaw in
several pieces; 08 quadratum present; nervous system cerebro-spinal ;
brain small; lateral lobes of cerebellum, corpus callosum, and pons
varolii wanting ; corpora bigemina upon the upper surface of the brain ;
epidermal covering in the form of scales or plates. Excrementitious and
reproductive organs opening into a cloaca.

Exclusive of the extinct orders, the following synopsis will refer an
animal to its proper place:

Key To THE ORDERS OF REPTILES.

Epidermal covering in the form of plates, not united with the skeleton; anal slit

longitudinal; teeth conical, in sockets. . . . . . . . CROCODILIA.
Epidermal covering united with the skeleton forming a carapax and plastron ; teeth
none. 7 . 5 . a . . . TESTUDINATA.

Epidermal covering in the form of scales, rarely plates, distinct from the skeleton ;
anal slit transverse; teeth conical. a.

a. Eyelids usually present; mouth not dilatable; body usually lacertiloid
with four well developed feet. . . . . . 4 LACERTILIA.

a. Eyelids none; mouth very dilatable; body always serpentiferm, without

feet; abdomen usually covered with large, entire, transverse scutell®.
OPHIDIA.

CROCODILIA. (Extralimital.)

Body lacertiloid, of large size; dermal armor composed of scutes and overlapping
scales; anal slit longitudinal ; limbs four, well developed, anterior pair shorter, posterior
feet more or less palmate; fingers five, toes four; nails on the three preaxial digits
usually present; eyelids three, distinct; auditory openings with valves; external nares
capable of closure; teeth in a single row, in sockets; tongue thick, fleshy, adherent its
entire length, and not protrusible ; heart quadrilocular, but with the pulmonary artery
and aorta connecting; quadrate bone large; palatines excluding the vomer from the

REPTILES. 647

orbit; parietal foramen none; alisphenoids large; orbitosphenoid rudimentary or
wanting; vertebr® completely ossified, procelous except atlas, dentatus, the two
sacrals and first caudal ; in extinct species amphi- or opisthocwlous; cervical vertebra
with small ribs; ribs articulating with the vertebra by means of a head and tubercle ;
always oviparous.
Inhabit fresh water in hot countries.
The Crocodilians are all extra-limital. The existing forms may be divided as
fellows:
Muzzle large and flat. a.
Muzzle elongated, rounded and dilated at the end. a a F GAVIALIDE.
a. Fourth tooth in lower jaw received into a notch on the side of the upper
maxillary ; hind legs with a toothed fringe, and toes completely palmated.

CROCODILIDA.
a. Fourth or canine tooth in lower jaw received into a fossa in the upper; hind
legs simply rounded and toes semipalmate. 5 P . ÄLLIGATORIDE.

Gavialid®, the Gavials, comprise two genera, Gavialis, one species, G. gangeticus, in-
habiting the Ganges, and Somistoma, two species, in the rivers of Borneo and
North Australia.

Crocodilide, the Crocodiles, has one genus, Crocodilus, with four American, three
African, four Asiatic, and one Australian species. On this continent they are not found
north of Yucatan, Guatemala, or Cuba, except one species, Crocodilus americanus, which
occurs in Florida.

Alligatoride, the Alligators or Caimans, comprise also but a single genus, Alligator,
with ten species, and are limited to the New World.

Alligator mississippiensis or lucius is the common Alligator of our Southern States. It
is dark ash-brown above, paler beneath ; dorsal plates with elevations forming discon-
nected longitudinal ridges ; four of these carinate plates upon the neck are arranged quad-
rately.

REPTILES.

648

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FAMILIES OF LIZARDS. 649

ORDER LACERTILIA. LIZARDS.

Sauria, MIVART, MILNE Epwarps.

Body usually lacertiloid, in some species serpentiform ; feet usually four, sometimes
two, and occasionally none; anal slit transverse ; body covered with scales, tubercles,
or spines; top of head with plates; eyelida usually movable; teeth conical, not in
sockets ; heart with auricles and a ventricle, the septum in the latter incomplete;
urinary bladder present; vertebra proc@lous except in the Geckos and Sphenodon where
they are amphicelous ; sacrals separate, sometimes one, aud never exceeding two in num-
ber; head of ribs simple, undivided ; sternum present except in the serpentiform species ;
quadrate bone somewhat movable; rami of the lower maxillary usually firmly united ;
alisphenoids and orbitosphenoids absent or rudimentary; parietal foramen usually dis-
tinct; parotic processes long ; hyoid a median rod.

The Lacertilia comprise a large order, with numerous species and families. Those
inhabiting North America may be arranged as follows:

* Bones of skull grown ‘together; dorsal region covered with square plates; genera-

tive organs simple; feet rudimentary or none. 2 a A AMPHISBAENIDE.
* Bones of skull distinct; dorsa) region usually scaly; penis and vagina bifid; feet
usually well developed. a. 5

a. Tongue flat, elongate and bifid. 0.
a. Tongue thick, convex, attached at base to esophagus. c.
db. Abdominal region covered with roundish scales, quincuncially arranged and
resembling those of the back. d.
b. Abdominal region covered with square plates. e.
Dorsal scales granular; eyes large, almost without lids. . GECKOTIDA.

v. Dorsal scales imbricated ; eyes moderate; lids distinct. . . IGUANIDZ.
d. Eyes and eyelids nearly or quite concealed. f.
d. Eyes and eyelids prominent. A e ‘ R A e SCINCIDE.

e. Teeth solid ; cephalic shields large. g.
e. Teeth hollow or grooved behind. h.
Jf. Head conical; rostral cup-shaped. Se “0.200. TYPHLINID2.
J. Head depressed ; rostral elongated. 2 & . . TYPHLOPSIDA.
g. Sides flattened, without lateral fold. h.
g. Longitudinal lateral fold or stripe present. i.
h. Cephalic shields small. 5 2 ji N HELODERMIDE,
h. Cephalic shields large, regular. 1.
4. Ear distinct. j.

i. Ear concealed. . ä 5 . 6 z CHALCIDE.
j. Limbs two or none; body serpentiform ; no femoral pores. ANGUIDE.
j. Limbs four; body more or less lacertiloid. . . . ZONURIDE.
1, Supraorbital plate bony. N 2 : A R LACERTIDE.
li. Supraorbital plate horny. 3 ö R . . TEIDE.

Of these families, Amphisbaenid& has one genus Rhineura, with one species, floridana,
inhabiting Florida; Geckotide has four, Coleonyr, Spherodactylus, Phyllodactylus, and
Diplodactylus, of which Spherodactylus notatus occurs in Florida, the remainder range
from Texas to the Pacific coast; Typhlinidw has Aniella pulchra in California; Typhlop-
side, one genus, Stenostoma, with two species ranging from Texas to the Pacific; Teid»
has Cnemidophorus and Verticaria; Helodermid» has Heloderma horridum in Mexico;

650 REPTILES—SCINCIDA.

Lacertid» has Xantusia vigilis in California; Chaleide has Brachypus cuviert in British
Columbia; Anguid®, one species, Ophisaurus ventralis ; Zonurid®, two genera, Gerrhonotus
and Barissa, the former with six, the latter with a single species, olivacea, which range
from Texas to California. None of the preceding families occur in the State, but the
Iguanide and Scincide are represented in our limits.

FAMILY SCINCIDAH. THE SKINKS.

Body lacertiloid ; dorsal and ventral region covered with similar imbricated scales,
quincuncially arranged ; head subtriangular, tapering gradually into the neck; back
rounded, without crest or spines; tongue fleshy, squamous, flat, emarginate, and free
anteriorly; cephalic plates present; nostril opening into a solitary nasal; prefrontal
single ; temporal fossa arched ; premaxillaries two; mesosternum cruciform ; feet four,
well developed.

* Supranasals none; lower eyelid with a transparent disk. : . LyGosoma.

* Supranasals a pair; lower eyelid scaly. & : i B 5 EUMECES.

Genus EUMECES. Wiegmann.

Head short, approximately cuneiform ; nasal plates one on each side, just behind the
rostral; a small pair of supranasals just above; superciliaries above each eye four;
occipitals five; post-frontals two; vertical pentagonal; teeth in both jaws in a marginal
row ; anterior margin of ear dentate; both eyelids scaly ; scales smooth and imbricated ;
toes five on each foot, distinct and provided with claws; tail long, conical, and covered
with scales similar to the body.

EUMECES QUINQUELINEATUS Linnaus.

Blue-tailed Skink.

Lacerta fasciata, LINNZEUS, SHAW, LATREILLE.

Lacerta quinquelineata, LINNZUS, GMELIN, GREEN, SAY.

Scincus tristatus, DAUDIN.

Scincus quinquelineatus, SCHNEIDER, LATREILLE, DAUDIN, KUHL, MERREM, HARLAN,
SCHLEGEL.

Scincus bicolor, HARLAN, CUVIER.

Euprepis tristatus, WAGLER.

Tiliqua bicolor, GRAY.

Scincus fasciatus, HOLBROOK, STORER, DEKay.

Plestiodon quinquelineatum, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.

Color bluish-black above with five yellow lines, the vertebral one of which bifurcates
on the head, giving off a branch to the right, and another to the left side of the ver-
tical plate; both branches extend to the nostrils where they unite with the nearest
lateral lines ; the lower lateral line passes from the snout through the auditory opening
just above the limbs to the tail; all these lines hecome indistinct on the caudal ex-
tremity, and all disappear with age; abdomen light-bluish; extremities brownish
above, bluish or light golvred beneath; throat and gular region creamy white; tail
deep blue; toes long, qnteriorly the second and third of equal length, and posteriorly the
second the longest; nostrils small and situated near the muzzle ; scales of the body and
limbs imbricated, and plates on the head well developed ; supranasals and post-frontals

GROUND LIZARD. 651

not contignous. Length, 74 inches; fore limbs, 1; head to axilla, 14; body, from
muzzle to anus, 3; hind limbs, 12; tail, 42; diameter of head, $; diameter of body, 4.

Habitat, Massachusetts, New York, to Georgia, Florida, and Mississippi, north to
Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois.

In the young the yellow stripes are very distinct, and disappear with
age, as well as other marks of coloration, which, taken with a slight varia-
tion in the cephalic plates, would lead one to suspect a distinct species.
The female also probably differs from the male by the retention of the
characteristics of the young longer, it may be to an adult state.
The blue color of its tail may be due to its having been broken off and
reproduced, but it is probably its natural tint.

The Blue-tailed Skink is found under bark in May; it is very active in
its movements and difficult to capture. It lays nine oval eggs ata time;
is occasionally seen sunning itself, and when alarmed makes a rapid
retreat. ‘

GENUS LYGOSOMA. Gray.

Head sub-quadrangular; palate edentulous; nasals nearly contiguous; supranasals
wanting ; rostral erect, triangular; lower eyelid with a transparent disk in the center ;
body fusiform; scales smooth ; external auditory meatus distinct.

LY6030MA LATERALS Say.

Ground Lizard.
Scincus lateralis, Say, HOLBROOK, GRAY, KIRTLAND, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Scincus unicolor, HARLIN.
Oligosoma laterale, COPE, JORDAN.
Mocoa lateralis, GUNTHER.
Lygosoma laterale, DEKAY, BAIRD,

General color olivaceous with black dots, and a dark stripe margined with white on
each side; abdomen and under parts yellowish ; tail blue, twice the length of the body ;
ear very large, circular, the anterior edge simple and rounded; prefrontal plate very
long, narrowed anteriorly ; post-frontals double ; two preanal scales largest. Length,
6 to 8 inches.

Habitat, Florida. Georgia. South Carolina and Texas to “ Illinois and Ohio.”

This species I find mentioned in Dr. Kirtland’s report as having been
sent to him by Mr. Dorfeuille, and said to have been taken in Ohio. I
have not seen it from the State.

Breeds in Georgia in the middle of March.

FAMILY IGUANIDA. THE IGUANAS.

Body lacertiloid or raniform ; scales imbricated, usually not in whorls; ventral region
covered with small plates or scales; cephalic plates various or irregular; tongue
papillose, simple, thick, fleshy, convex, emarginate, and slightly free anveriorly, but not

652 REPTILES—IGUANIDE.

protrusible; maxillary teeth sometimes in a common alveolus, and sometimes soldered
to the jaw ; gular region often provided with a pouch; back sometimes crested; feet
four, with distinct toes; premaxillary bone single; mesosternum anchor shaped.

The Iguanide are allextralimital except Sceloporus, but the following synopsis of those
inhabiting North America may be of service in referring the animals to their appropriate
genera : >
Dorsal scales carinated ; infraorbital plate long. a.

Dorsal scales smooth or tubereulated ; nape without spine. cv.
Dorsal region and nape more or less spinose ; body raniform. b.

a. Cephalic plates smooth; occipital as broad aslong. . . . . SCELOPORUS.
a. Cephalic plates rugose; occipital mnch longer than broad. . HALOTREPIS.
b. External ear opening present. . : . r N . PHRYNOSOMA.
b. External ear opening none. R 3 a . . DOLIOSAURUS
e. Infraorbital region with one long wate: d.

e. Infraorbital region with row of short plates or scales; occipital small. 4.

4. Interorbital plates in two rows. : ® . i N & . AMa.
ad. Interorbitals in one or three series. e.
e. Occipital the largest of the cephalic plates. f.
e. Occipital plates no larger than the others. Ah.
Jf. Caudal scales smooth ; anterior limbs very long. g.

f. Caudal scales above carinate; anterior limbs moderate. . . . Uta.
g Ear distinct. . . é fa > es . R CALLISAURUS,
9. Ear invisible. ; : i os HOLBROOKIA.
h. Rostral plate triangular; a row of deatan like a crest extending along
the back from nape to tip of tail. . . . . . Drpsosaurus.
h. Rostraloblong; no trace of a dorsal crest. . . . CROTAPMYTUS.
4. Toes enlarged under the antepenultimate phalanges forming a suboval,
transversely lamellate space. ‘ . a ‘ ß R . ANOLIS.
i. Toes not thus enlarged. j.
j. Tail blunt; rostral plate transversely oblong. . . . EUPHRYNE.
j. Tail pointed; rostral small, scale-like. . . N . CROTAPHYTUS.

Genus SCELOPORUS. Wiegmann.

Head short ; cephalic plates smooth, the occipital largest ; a row of moderately large
plates begins on each side of the occipitals, passes forwards, and between the orbits becomes
a single row, which is bounded on each side by a very small row; superciliary region
with one row of large plates; eyelids scaly; infraorbital plate long, sometimes with
smaller ones at the end; internasal region with small irregular plates; inframaxillary
plates small; external auditory meatus very distinct; nape without spines ; gular pouch
not marked ; dorsal scales carinated, ventral smooth, imbricated ; tail long and pointed ;
caudal and dorsal crests wanting ; toes on each foot five, unguiculate; femoral region
with a series of distinct pores.

ScELOPORUS UNDULATUS Harlan.

The Brown Swift.

Lacerta undulata, DAUDIN.
Uromastix undulata, MERREM.

BROWN SWIFT. 653

Lacerata hyacinthina, et faciata, GREEN.

Agamaundulata, HARLAN.

Tropidolepis undulatus, CUVIER, HOLBROOK, GRAY, DUMERIL and BIBRoN, DEKay,
STORER.

Sceloporus undulatus, GRAVENHORST, BAIRD, Cops, JORDAN.

General color above brownish, with irregular transverse undulating bands of black;
gular region and sides greenish blue; abdomen and under surface of limbs and tail
greenish to yellowish with dark spots; toes whitish ; rostral plate depressed, making
a triangle of slight altitude; nasals large; skin upon the throat thrown into a partial
fold; dorsal scales imbricated, with the carinew on their posterior portion not denticulated ;
thighs behind tbe femoral pores covered with small scales; tail and toes long and
slender. Length, 6 inches; head to gular fold, 8 lines; head to anus, %4 inches; fore
limb, $; hind limb, 1$; transverse diameter of head 4 inch; of neck, 4 inch; vertical of
head, 54 lines; circumference of body, 2 to 3 inches.

Habitat, Connecticut, New. York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Arkansas to Georgia
and the Gulf of Mexico.

Extralimital North American Lacertilia, whose range is such as to render their

occurrence in Ohio possible.
ANGUIDZ.

Ophisaurus ventralis, Daud.
HOLBRoox, N. A. Herp., ii, p. 135.—GUNTHER, Cat. Liz. Brit. Mus., p. 56.—Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sei., Phila., 1856, p. 239.
Habitat, Virginia, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, and
Kansas. “Michigan”.
TEIDA.
Cnemidophorus sexlineatus, Linn.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1854, p. 192.—HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., ii, p. 109.—GunrHER,
Cat. Liz. Brit. Mus., p. 21.—U. 8. Geolog. Surv., 100 Meridian, v., p. 557.

Habitat, Virginia, Florida, Illinois, New Mexico, Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.

SCINCIDE.

Eumeces septenirionalis, Bd.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1858, p. 256.

Habitat, Minnesota, Nebraska.

_ Eumeces anthracinus, Bd.
Jour. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila., 1850, p. 294.

Habitat, Pennsylvania to Texas, in mountains.

Eumeces inornatus, Bd.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1858, p. 256.
Habitat, Nebıaska.
IGUANIDE.
Anolis principalis, Linn.
Horproor, N. A. Herp,, ii, p. 77.—GUNIHER, Cat. Liz. Brit. Mus., p. 202.—Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, p. 232.
Habitat, South Carolina, Florida, to Louisiana and Texas. ‘ Cuba.”

654 REPTILES—CISTUDINIDE.

The Brown Swift, known alsoas Pine-tree Lizard, and Brown Scorpion, is
a very active little animal; it prefers sandy and rocky soils, especially
regions of pine forests; and, though harmless when disturbed, elevates
its scales so as to give to its body a more formidable appearance. It may
be seen on sunny days on fences and the sides of houses, and apparently
does not occur in wet places. It probably hybernates beneath old bark ;
does not become adult until two years of age; and in Georgia breeds in
April.

ORDER TESTUDINATA. TURTLES.*

Chelonia, GRAY, MIVART, HUXLEY, and MILNE EDWARDS.

Body-covering in the form of a dorsal and ventral shield; carapax and plastron formed
by a union of the epidermis and skeleton ; head, neck, feet, and tail free; jaws in the
form of a horny beak, edentulous; tongue thick and fleshy ; rami of lower mandible
anchylosed ; bones of the cranium immovably united; alisphenoid unossified ; naso-
ethmoid cartilage present; premaxille small and united ; quadrate bone large, immov-
able; caudal vertebre procelous; sacral vertebre two; thoracic walls immovable ;
legs four, with the pectoral and pelvic arches inside the skeleton; lungs voluminous,
with exceedingly large cells; heart with two auricles and a ventricle, the latter with
an imperfect septum ; urinary bladder large. ,

Key TO THE FAMILIES OF TESTUDINATA.

* Limbs in the form of paddles. N ‘ : R e 6 h CHELONIDE.
* Fest palmate; usually fluviatile. a.
* Feet clavate; terrestrial; carapax very convex. A R n TESTUDINIDE.
u. Carapax composed of hard osseous plates. b.
a. Carapax leathery, without osseous plates. . B : TRIONYCHIDE,
b. Sternal shields 12 or more. c.
b. Sternal shields less than 12. E ; . . . CINOSTERNIDA.
ec. Jawa usually not strongly hooked ; oe oval or oblong. d.
c. Jaws strongly hooked; plastron cruciform. . . . CHELYDRIDE.
d. Plastron with a movable transverse suture ; carapax short and high.
CISTUDINIDE.
d. Plastron usually without such suture ; carapax depressed or elongated.
EMYDID.».

*For classification and reproduction, see Agassiz’s Cont. Nat. Hist. U.S. and also
Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1869, p. 165.

BOX TURTLE. 655

Family Chelonide, extralimital, Atlantic and Pacific coasts, is easily recognized by
its limbs being in the form of flappers; plastron somewhat cruciform ; the vertebral
costal plates each often with a prominent scale or tuberous projection. It has four
genera, Chelonia, two species, Agassiz’s Cont., i, p. 377, and Holbrook’s N. Am. Herp., ii,
p 25; DeKay’s Rept., p. 2; Thalassochelys, one species, caouana, Holbrook’s Herp., ii, p.
33; Agassiz’s Cont., i, p. 384; Eretmochelys, two species, Agassiz’s Cont., i, p. 380,
and Holbrook’s Herp,, ii, p.39; and Sphargis, one species, coriacea, Storer’s Rep., p. 216;
Holbrook’s Herp., ii, p. 45, and Agassiz’s Cont. i, p. 317.

Testudinide, extralimital, has carapax short and very convex; plastron with a some-
what movablo transverse hinge; limbs clavate; claws blunt and short, and toes firmly
united by the integument; one genus Testudo, three species, agassizii, Proc. Cal. Acad.
Sci., 1870, p. 67; carolina, Agassiz’s Cont. i, p. 447; Holbrook’s Herp., p.25; and
berlandieri, Agassiz’s Cont. Nat. Hist., i, p. 447.

FAMILY CISTUDINIDA. BOX TORTOISES.

Carapax and dorsal disk of bones consolidated completely, the shell thus formed being
short, high, and broad; sternal bones united with the epidermis to form a plastron with
a transverse movable suture; sternal shields twelve, the gular, post-gular, and pectoral
in front of the suture, the abdominal, preanal, and anal behind; plastron and carapax
united by a ligamentous articulation; jaws somewhat hooked ; feet slightly palmate;
claws moderate; tail very short; head and neck long.

Genus CISTUDO. Fleming.

Plastron rounded or truncate anteriorly and posteriorly ; lobes unequal, the forward
one shorter: hind feet elongated ; toes unequal, the second longest; scales of the feet
subequal, rounded posteriorly.

CISTUDO CLAUSA Gmelin.
Common Box Tartle or Checkered Tortoise.

Cistudo carolina, KIRTLAND, STORER, DEKay.
Cistudo virginea, et triunguis, AGASSIZ.
Cistudo virginea, ALLEN.

General color of carapax black, variegated with yellow, sometimes the conditions
give rise to well defined spots, bands or blotches; upper part of head and neck brown,
often mingled with red or yellow especially upon the sides; gular and inframaxillary
region varying from a speckling or spotting of black and white to « uniform reddish-
yellow; plastron varying from black or spotted toa uniform reddish or yellowish ; carapax
notched in front; marginal plates twenty-four or twenty-five ; costals four on each side;
last vertebral rounded superiorly, the first pentagonal, projecting in front, often notched
behind as are the second and third, all the plates with concentric strie; young with
a median dorsal keel; second and third costals nearly quadrilateral; hind toes three or
four. Length of carapax, 6 inches; height of carapax, 3 inches; tail from anus, 5 lines.

This species has been confounded with the Testudo carolina, a southern animal, which
probably does not extend north of the Carolinas. They differ in the feet of the latter
being club-shaped, with only the blunt claws projecting, while our Turtle has its feet

656 REPTILES—CHELYDRIDE.

somewhat palmate with sharp pointed claws. The color markings being very variable
are of no value as furnishing points of distinction.
Habitat, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio and Michigan, to Missouri, and South.

This species is rare, but occurs in every part of the State. Their
favorite resorts are dry sandy hills, being rarely found in damp places.
They cannot endure rain, but retire to their holes on the approach of a
storm. They attain a great age, a specimen mentioned by Allen* must
have been at least sixty years old. They probably do not migrate to any
great distance from their birth-place, and go into winter quarters by bur-
rowing into the ground in September.

FAMILY CHELYDRIDA. SNAPPING TURTLES.

Head and neck large and powerful; jaws strong, horny, the apex of upper with a dis-
tinct downward curve; tail long, with a caudal crest of prominent, laterally compressed.
tubercles; feet palmate with loug claws; plastron small, cruciform, composed of
twelve shields; aquatic auimals of great strength and exceeding ferocity.

+ Head covered with plates; a row of three scales on each side between the costal and

marginal plates ; extralimital. : n 5 n F . . tMACROCHELYS,

¢ Head covered with skin. . 3 2 ‘ : Fi & x ‘ CHELYDRA.

Genus CHELYDRA. Schweigger.

Head large, but smaller than in Macrochelys, and covered with soft skin; upper and
hinder part of the orbit projecting beyond the skull; mouth very broad; commissure
sinuous; nostrils large; tympanum often concealed; carapax highest medially with
ridges on the vertebral and costal plates, which disappear with age; under side of tail
with two rows of large, smooth scales; no scales between the costal and marginal rows
of plates

CHELYDRA SERPENTINA Linnzus.

Snapping Turtle.

Testudo serpentina, LINNZUS, DAUDIN, LECONTE.
Chelonura serpentina, SAY, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, DEKay.
Emys serpentina, GRAY, MERREM.

Emysaurus serpentina, STORER, DUMERIL and BiBron.
Chelydra serpentina, Gray, COPE, ALLEN, JORDON.

Color olivaceous 01 dirty brown above; plastron, under part of legs, neck, and tail
yellow, becoming dull with age; color more or less disguised by the mud adherent to
the animal and carapax; vertebral shields nearly quadrate, the first with a rounded,
sinuous or jagged edge behind; last neural pointed posteriorly; second and third

* Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist. vol. 12, p. 176.

+One species, Macrochelys iacertina (Gypechciys, Ag.) Holbrook’s N. A. Herp., i, p. 147;
Agassiz’s Cont., i, p. 414, ranges from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and
‘Texas, north to Illinois and Missouri.

SNAPPING TURTLE. 657

costals very large, nearly quadrilateral, the lower edge rounded, the first costal largest,
almost triangular; marginal plates twenty-four or twenty-five; of sternal shields,
the abdominal much the largest. Length of carapax, 1 foot; length of head and neck, 7
inches; height of carapax 4 inches,

Habitat, Ecuador, Florida and Louisiana; north to Missouri, Indiana, Michigan,
Canada and Maine.

This species is not only common in all parts of the State, but is
frequently met with throughout its whole range. Itis usually known as
the Snapping Turtle, though called also Land Turtle, Snake, and Ser-
rated Tortoise in the north, and Loggerhead and Alligator Terrapin
in the south.

It is a ferocious animal ; when annoyed it throws itself into an attitude
of defence, snaps violently with its mandibles inflicting a severe wound,
and will not let go its hold even after the cutting off of its head. They
live in ponds and muddy streams, but are occasionally found at a dis-
tance from water. Oviposition occurs the latter part of June, a hole
being scooped out in the sand, and from sixty to seventy elliptical eges
deposited therein. These eggs as well as the turtles, are by some esteemed
a luxury for food, in fact the writer has known persons to keep the ani-
mals for a long time in a barrel with dish water, sour milk, and refuse
from the table generally, in order to fatten and prepare them for use.
The young are considered preferable. In advanced life the meat
becomes rank, and at times emits a musky odor, rendering it unpalatable.
Those found around Ann Arbor, Michigan, have a large number of fresh
water alg® growing upon their carapax.

This species is well marked, being characterized by its powerfully
hooked jaws, its spinous caudal crest and small cruciform plastron com-
posed of twelve plates. The only species with which it can be con-
founded is Alacrochelys lacertina, which probably is not found in the State.

FAMILY EMYDIDA. POND TURTLES.

Head, neck, and feet moderate, the latter more or less palmate; mandibles horny,
the upper not hooked ; carapax oval or oblong, broadest posteriorly, usua!ly depressed,
bat highest medially, and composed of hard osssous plates, never soft aud leathery ;
sternal shields twelve, usually soldered immovably together and to the carapax, furm-
ing a large, oval or oblong plastrop ; knees and elbows not slipping in naked among
the viscera; animals living for the most part in marshes, and in or along the edges of
ponds, pools, and streams; young living almost exclusively in water, much more so than
the adalt.

42

658 REPTILES—EMYDIDA.

KEY TO GENERA OF EMYDIDA.

* Upper jaw notched anteriorly. a.
* Upper jaw not notched anteriorly, or with only asinuous indentation. 0.
a. Carapax not carinate. c.

a. Carapax carinate. . 3 : ‘ . CHELOPUS.

b. Vertebral keel persistent in tha a Sauer jaw = a@ spoon: shaped
dilatation. ei . . . . . . . GRAPTEMYS.

b. Vertebral line in adult tuberculated ; horny sheath of jaws straight ; extra-
limital. . R . ‘i . 2 * MALACOCLEMMYS.

c. Carapax considerably arched, and sian more or less spotted on the
vertebral and costal plates. d.
c. Carapax depressed ; vertebral and costal plates not spotted. e.
d. Plastron without a movable transverse hinge; costal and vertebral
plates with isolated, round, nonconflaent yellow spots. .. . NANEMYS,
d. Plastron with a movable transverse suture; vertebral, and usually the
costal plates, without round yellow spots. . : 2 . Enmys.
e. Alveolar surface of jaw not divided by a longitudinal ridge; neck, legs
and tail often with bright red stripes. . . . . CHRYSEMYS.
e. Alveolar surface of jaw with aridge parallel to cutting edge; no scarlet
stripes. : . . . 3 : i a : . PSEUDEMYS.

Genus CHELOPUS. Rafinesque.

Upper jaw with a distinct notch anteriorly; lower jaw straight except at tip, or
arched upward; horizontal alveolar surface narrow ; sides of head compressed ; plastron
immovably soldered together and to the carapax ; head compressed laterally ; carapax
elongated, considerably arched, and provided with a keel.

* A dark orange blotch on each side of the neck extending over the temporal muscles ;

extralimital, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. . + C. MUHLENBERGI.

* Sides of neck without such spots. : . A = a N C. INSCULPTUS.

CuELoPus INSCULPTUS LeConte.

Sculptured Tortoise.

Testudo insculpius, LECONTE, HARLAN.

Emys scabra, SAY.

Emys insculptus, LECONTE, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, STORER.
Emys pulchella, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Emys speciosa, GRAY.

Glyptemys insculptus, AGASSIZ, VERRILL, ALLEN.
Chelopus insculptus, COPE, JORDON.

“One species Malacoclemmys palustris (Emys palustris, et terrapin, DeKay), Agassiz’s
Cont., i, p. 437; Holbrook’s N. A. Ilerp., i, p.&7; DeKay’s Rept. N. Y., p. 10, ranges
along the Atlantic coast, in salt marshes, from New York to Texas and South America.

t Agassiz’s Cont., i, p. 443; Holbreok’s N. A. Herp., i, p. 45; DeKay’s Rept., p. 17.

BLANDING’S BOX TORTOISE. 659

Color above brown, often tinged with reddish; neck often with a yellow line upon
side, but not a prominent blotch; plastron yellow, with black blotches; under side of
neck, legs, and tail reddish, sprinkled with black ; plates of the carapax with concentric
and radiating strie on each, strongly marked, often with fine tuberculous points
within; vertebral plates transversely oblong, hexagonal, and alternating with the
costals; the first ‘pentagonal, the last irregularly sub-hexagonal ; marginal plates
twenty-five, with a wave-likeindentation, and a distinct notch behind; plastron with a
deep notch between the two anal plates; preanal plates broader than the pectoral; all
the plates of the plastron quadrilateral except the gular, which are triangular; sternal
shields often with visible concentric stria. Lenght, 8-10 inches.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania; west to
Eastern Ohio.

Rare in the State.

The Sculptured Tortoise, called also Wood Turtle, and Fresh Water
Terrapin, occurs usually in dry flelds, but I have seen them in meadows
and along the borders of streams in spring. They are much less aquatic
than any of the other genera of the family, and in early spring the
males and females seemed to be together in damp localities. Later I
was able to find only females, and these were uniformly filled with eggs,
I had an opportunity from April to June, 1878, of observing them near
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and in numerous cases found their flanks covered
with leaches, also saw small Helicidse adhering to their limbs, thus show-
ing one of the means of distribution of the latter group of animals. They
repair in autumn to streams and ponds, and prepare to hybernate by
burying themselves in mud. They are timid and retiring animals, but
when excessively irritated will snap at the offensive object, their means of
defence being a withdrawal into, and closure of the shell around them.
They emit a piping note, and feed upon the low field-blackberry and
other vegetables.

Pr

GENUS EMYS. Brogniart.

4
Carapax elongated, keelless, oval, considerably arched, and broadest posteriorly ;
plastron with a more or less movable transverse hinge between the pectoral and
abdominal plates, and joined to the carapax by a ligamentous suture; head depressed ;
tympanum distinct; upper mandible notched ; alveolar margins narrow; eyes and nos-
trils large.

!Emys MELEAGRIS Shaw.

Blanding’s Box Tortoise.

Testudo meleagris, SHAW.

Lutremys mıleagris, GRAY, LECONTE.

Cistudo blandingii, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, STORER.
Emys meleagris, AGABSIZ, COPE, JORDAN.

/

660 REPTILES—EMYDIDA.

é

Carapax above jet black, with numerous, irregular, yellow, more or less confluent
blotches, giving it in places the appearance of a black and yellow marbling, but often
the yellow is entirely wanting; plastron sometimes yellow, but usually black, each
plate usvally with its inner and anterior border somewhat yellow ; head and nape black,
often with reddish or yellow blotches; lower mandible yellow; gular region yellow,
usually more or less clouded with dark ; head above covered with a soft skin; feet and
tail scaly ; tympanum and nostrils large; lower jaw with a small hook; commissure of
mouth much curved ; neck long; eyes large; marginal plates twenty four or twenty-.
five; costals large, the first largest, the second and third nearly quadrilateral, the fourth
rhombic; first vertebral four-sided, broadest anteriorly, last septagonal, the four lower
sides short, to articulate with the four posterior marginals, the remaining three sides
about twice as long, the upper border rounded or prcjecting; the remaining neural
plates hexagonal, the anterior and posterior borders nearly twice the Jength of the
lateral; costal and vertebral plates alternating; carapax entire in front, notched
behind; plastron elliptical, entire anteriorly but broadly notched posteriorly ; sternal
shields all four-sided except the gular, which are triangular, with the most acute angle
posteriorly ; tail rather small; toes five in front and four behind. Length of carapax,
Yinchas; length of neck and head, 54 inchee; height of carapax, 22 inches; tail from
anus, 2 inches.

Habitat, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Illinois.

The Emys meleagris seems to be rare everywhere. It was described by
Dr. Holbrook as coming from the prairies of Illinois, and afterwards
noted by Dr. Storer as found along the Fox River. It has been subse-
quently seen in various parts of the states named, and, though as yet I
have no knowledge of its having been observed in Ohio, its range is such,
having been found at Ann Arbor, Michigan, among other places, that I
doubt not it will be detected in the State. The most northern limit at
which it has been observed is, I believe, Haverhill, New Hampshire, and
Racine, Wisconsin, the former being in latitude 44°. .

Being somewhat longer than its European analogue, Emys lutaria, it has
been needlessly confounded with Cistudo clausa, from which it may
readily be distinguished by its upper mandible being notched at the
apex, and the absence of a downward curve or hook of the beak. The
carapax is also much longer and devoid of the keel, and the plastron with
its transverse movable suture less marked, and its posterior end broadly
notehed or truncated, thus rendering the anal plates four-sided instead of

triangular.
A specimen before me had the carapax marked eleven years ago, and

has lost one limb, the wound of which has healed perfectly.

Genus NANEMYS. Agassiz.

Upper jaw with a notch at apex; lower mandible arched upwards; snout rounded,
not laterally compressed; carapax ecarinate, considerably arched and elongated;
plates of plastron immovable, united together and to the carapax; neck and legs scaly.

SPECKLED OR SPOTTED TORTOISE 661

NANEMYs Gurtatvus. Schneider.

Speckled or Spotted Tortoise.

Testudo guttata, SCHNEIDER, SHAW.

Testudo punctata, SCHNEIDER, SCHEPFF, LATREILLE, DAUDIN, LECONTE.

Emys punctata, MERREM, Say, HARLAN, KIRTLAND.

Emys guitala, SCHWEIGGER, HOLBROOK, STORER, GRAY, DEKay, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Clemys punclata, WAGLER.

Chelopus gultatus, CoPE.

Nanemys guttatus, AGASSIZ, JORDAN.

Color of carapax black, with here and there an isolated round or nearly round yellow
spot ; plastron yellow, with more or less black, sometimes almost or entirely black;
marginal plates yellow, or yellow and black beneath; head, neck, and chin brown or
black, with reddish-yellow spots; feet dark colored, reddish or yellowish beneath;
marginal plates twenty-five, nuchal narrow, elongated ; first vertebral pentagonal, the
anterior margins shorter; last neural septagonal, rarely hexagonal, the remaining ver-
tebral shields neatly hexagonal ; costals four, the first, second, and third largest; costal ~
and vertebral plates alternating ; a groove in the plastron and carapax in front for the
neck ; gular shields triangular, the remaining sternals with four sides; plastron behind
broadly notched, carapax nearly or quite entire; sternal shields often with concentric
strie. Length of carapax, 5 inches; height of carapax, 1Zinches; length of tail, 1}.

Habitat, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina, to Michigan
and Indiana.

Agassiz states that this species “does not extend south of North
Carolina, nor west of New York and Pennsylvania,” but the Museum of
Michigan University contains a specimen taken in Ionia county,
Michigan, by Prof. J. B. Steere; it has also been found at Ann Arbor, and
Dr. Levette of the Indiana Geological Survey reports it as occurring in
the northern part of that State. Dr. Kirtland reports it as rare in Ohio, and
hence, though not having myself seen it, I think, without question, it
should be included in the fauna of the State.

The Spotted Turtle frequents sluggish streams, ponds, and ditches
with muddy bottom, but I have never seen them where the water itself
was muddy. I have observed them in New York inhabiting the same
ponds as Chrysemys picta, and about as numerous. They never left the
water except to lay their eggs, which they did in June or July. They
were frequently observed sitting upon the edges of ponds and upon logs,
but in all cases plunged suddenly when approached. They go into
winter quarter in the fall by burying themselves in mud. The yellow
spots are very characteristic and appear earlier than the lungs or family
characters.

Gexus GRAPTEMYS. Agassiz.

Head, neck, and feet rather slender; upper mandible curved, sometimes with a bare
trace of a notch at the apex, lower jaw with a spoon-shaped dilatation ; carapax de-

662 REPTILES—EMYDIDE.

pressed with a persistent keel; plastron immovably soldered together and to the
carapax ; outer sido of fore legs with a row of scales; toes five in front and four behind ;
posterior feet with the toes broadly palmate.
* Head and neck with yellow lines, often reticulated, and a single spot on each side
or none; keel not very prominent. és 3 7 & : G. GEOGRAPHICA.
* Head with large yellow blotches or stripes; keel very prominent. G. LESUEURIL.

GRAPTEMYS GEOGRAPHICA LeSueur.

Geographic or Map Turtle.

Testudo geograrhioa, LESUEUR, LECONTE, HOLBROOK.
Emys geographica, LECONTE, KIRTLAND, DEKay.
Emys macrocephala et megacephala, HOLBROOK.

Emys labyrinthica, LESUEUR.

Graptemys geographica, AGASSIZ.

Malacoclemmys geographica, COPE, JORDAN.

Color of carapax olivaceous to brown, with a network of yellow stripes interlacing in
such a manner as to give a cellular appearance, these markings not so prominent in the
center, and in some specimens nearly or quite obsolete; plastron yellow, often black in
the center ; head above dark olive, with numerous yellow longitudinal lines, and often
a small spot of the same color as above, and with similar lines; legs and tail olivaceous,
with yellow stripes; under sides of marginal plates yellow, with brown spots contain-
ing yellow lines within; plastron and carapax hollowed out in front to fit the neck, and
notched behind; marginal plates twenty-five, the anterior narrow, but broadest behind;
costal and vertebral plates alternating; first neural nearly quadrilateral, with a pro-
jection backwards, the last septagonal, irregular; gular triangular; the remaining sternal
shields four-sided, abdominal much the largest; anterior angle of anals received into a
depression between the two preanals; tail short and thick; tympanum not prominent.
Length of carapax, 9 inches; height of carapax, 2% inches; tail from anus, 14 inches.

Habitat, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Arkansas,

The Geographic Tortoise probably occurs in every part of the State,
having been obtained at Toledo, Rockport, and Cincinnati. They are
very bold, active, vigorous animals, approaching even the Chelydrida
in disposition, and their flesh is said to be very palatable.

A specimen before me shows an abnormality, having an extra verte-
bral and two extra costal plates, one on each side.

GRAPTEMYS LESUEURII Gray.

Pseudogeographic Tortoise or LeSueur’s Wap Turtle.

Testudo geographica, var. b, LESUEUR.

Emys geographica, GRAY, var. a, LECONTE.

Emys lesueurii, GRAY.

Emys pseudogeographica, HOLBROOK, DeKay.
Graptemys lesueurii, AGASSIZ.

Malacoclemmys pseudogeographicus, Cope, JORDAN,

Color of carapax, plastron, limbs and tail, same as the preceding, but the yellow

PAINTED TURTLE. 663

markings upon the she!l are usually more intense; head brownish, with longitadinal
lines and lateral blotches of yellow, ons of these blotches in front and another behind
the ear, a third between the eye and the angle of the mouth; costal and vertebral plates
alternating ; first neural pentagonal, last almost triangular, the remaining vertebral
hexagonal; plastron elliptical, broadly emarginate behind ; gular triangular, the remain-
ing sternal shields quadrilateral; carapax higher than in the preceding species, more
strongly carinated. Length of carapax, 54 inches.

Habitat, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Arkansas, and Louisiana.

This species, which seems to have a range of the whole Mississippi
Valley from the Sault St. Marie on the north to Louisiana on the south,
is occasionally, though rarely, found inthe State. It is usually known
under the specific name of pseudogeographica, but Gray’s name, lesueurü,
is older, and hencs entitled to precedence.

Genus CHRYSEMYS. Gray.

Head moderate ; upper jaw curved laterally, and notched at the apex; mandibles nar-
row ; legs and tail scaly ; toes fivein front and four behind; hind feet broadly palmate;
carapax depressed ; plastron elliptical, shields immovable, soldered together and to the

ecarapax.
* Costal and vertebral shields in transverse lines of threeeach. . . . . C. PICTA,
* Costal and vertebral shields alternating. 2 . 5 ‘ . (C, MARGINATA.

CurRYsEMys Pict Herm.

Painted Turtle.

Testudo picta, HERM, SCHNEIDER, GMELIN, SCH@EPFF, SHAW, DAUDIN.

Tegtudo cinerea, SCHNEIDER, SHAW, SCH(EPFF.

Emys picta, SCHWEIGGER, MERREM, SAY, FITZINGER, GRAVENHORST, LECONTE, HARLAN,
GRAY, DUMERIL and BIBRON, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, STORER, DEKay.

Emys cinerea, SCHWEIGGER, MERREM.

Chrysemys picla AGASSIZ, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.

Chrysemys dorsalis, AGAS»IZ.

Color of carapax olive te brown, with irregular yellow lines margined with black ;
vertebral line narrow, yellow; plastron orange or yellow, often black in places; head
brown, with yellow spots; neck, feet, and tail dark brown, with bright yellow and scar-
let spots or bands; gular region brownish, with red and yellow stripes; eyes moderate ;
pupils black ; irides golden, with a dark line passing through their center; costal and
vertebral plates in transverse rows three in each, never alternating; first neural
quadrilateral, last heptagonal ; middle vertebral shield quadrangular ; second and fourth
hexagonal; marginal plates twenty-five, with a bright red blotch in their center and
two red lines above it; a broad yellow band margined with black along the anterior
margin of each row of costal and vertebral plates; gular and anal plates triangular, the
remaining sternal shields quadrilateral; pectoral much the largest. Length of carapax,
6 inches; height of carapax, 2} inches; tail to anus, 14 inches.

Habitat, New Brunswick, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, and Louisiana, to Lake Superior, and Eastern Ohio.

664 REPTILES—EMYDIDA.

This is a very beautiful Turtle, the markings varying conriderably,
and the young being more brilliant than the adult. They inhabit still,
never running water, occurring in ponds and muddy places, where they
may be seen setting upon the hanks or upon logs, but plunging suddenly,
if approached. They are decidedly aquatic animals, and are unable to
survive many days, if removed from the water. They are timid and in-
offensive, emit a piping note; and after attaining her eleventh year the
female, in a June evening, digs a perpendicular hole in which she deposits
her elliptical eggs.

CHRYSEMYS MARGINATA Agassiz.

Lady Turtie or Agassiz Turtle.

Chrysemys marginata, AGASSIZ.
Chrysemys b.llü, GRAY.
Chrysemys picta, var. marginata, COPE, JORDAN.

Color above of carapax varying from bronze green to brown, usually with a narrow
vertebral line of yellow margined with black; anterior margin of each plate usually
with a similar line; second or third costal at times with a bright yellow or red spot;
marginal plates brown to black, with various yellow or red markings ; head brownish,
with yellow spots or lines; neck, legs, and tail with red lives; plaetron yellow, with a
central dark blotch; carapax flatter, broader, and more rounded than in Chrysemys
picta; vertebral and costal plates alternating, never forming transverse rows of three
each ; first neural quadrangular, with sinuous sides, last heptagonal, the lower sides
shorter; the three central vertebral shields hexagonal; lateral margin of costal, first
and last neural thields often with parallel ridges; plastron with the gular and anal
plates triangu)ar, the remainder quadrilateral; abdominal the broadest, and pectoral
narrowest. Length of carapax, 6 inches; height of carapax, 2} inches; tail to anus, 14.

Habitat, New York ?, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Missouri.

This species seems to replace Chrysemys picta in the west, and in
Michigan it is quite common, while picta is very rare, if at all. In Ohio,
picta is found occasionally in the eastern part of the State, never so
far as I know in the west, while marginata occurs in the western por-
tion.

A specimen before me from Waterloo, New York, which from general
appearance I take to be a variety of Chryremys marginata, has six costal
shields on one side and seven on the other. It has in the center of the
carapax, apparently a large vertebral plate, replaced by four small ones,
in addition to which it has five, the normal number, median dorsal
shields ; the four central plates are arranged in pairs of unequal size, the
posterior one on the right side being much the smaller. Such an
abnormality I do not find recorded of any turtle.

This species and C. picta are about equally abundant in Ohio, and

LADY TURTLE. 665

their habits are remarkably similar. C. marginata ranges as far
north as Lake Superior, and, in the latitude of Ann Arbor, Michigan,
has been found out of winter quarters as late as October 22, and in the
spring on March 31. They undoubtedly attain toagoodage. A plastron
before me of this species was discovered in Sharon, Wastenaw county,
Michigan, in 1838, by Dr. C. B. Porter, who inscribed the date and his
name upon it. The animal was again discovered within half a mile of
same spotin1868 The size of the letters and figures show that the plastron
could not have grown perceptibly during this period of thirty years.
From this and other cases where people have inscribed their names and
dates upon them, we may safely conclude that some, if not all, of our
land and fresh water turtles wander to but a short distance, grow slowly,
if at all, after attaining a length, in this species, of eight inches. In the
case of Cistudo clausa, sixty years elapsed between the time of the in-
scription and its rediscovery, and it then, as in this species, was found
within half a mile of the place where it was originally marked.

FAMILY CINOSTERNIDA. THE CINOSTERNOID
TURTLES.

Feet palmate; toes four or five, fingers five; carapax high, narrow and composed of
hard osseous plates; plastron small, between cruciform and elliptical, with only seven,
nine or eleven shields; marginal plates twenty-three, vertebrals five, narrow, becoming
broader posteriorly ; costals large, four on each side; margins of carapax turning down-
ward and inward instead of outward ; head pointed ; sockets of eyes deep.

+ Plastron oval with movable hinge between the pectoral and preanal plates, allowing

it to close the shell. . ‘ A . A . 5 . . CINOSTERNUM.
+ Plastron cruciform; no movable hinge behind ; incapable of closing the shell.
AROMOCHELYS.

Genus CINOSTERNUM. Spix.

Head sub-quadrangular, pyramidal and broad; superior maxillaries rather widely
separated behind ; jaws slightly hooked with an inframental papilla; cranium with a
single rhomboidal plate; plastron oval; pectoral and preanal plates articulated by a
movable suture allowing the animal to close the shell; vertebral plates somewhat im-
bricate ; tail long, and unguiculate in the males.

CINOSTERNUM PENNSYLVANICUM Bosc.

Mud Tortoise.

Testudo pennsylvanica, GMELIN, SCH(EPFF, LATREILLE, SHAW, DAUDIN, EDWARDS.
Emys pennsylvanica, SCHWEIGGER, IIARLAN.

Terrapene pennsylvanica, MERREM, SCUINZ.

Cistudo pennsylvanica, SAY. ‘

666 REPTILES—CINOSTERNIDA.

Kinosternon pennsylvanicum, BELL, BONAPARTE, LECONTE, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, GRAY.
Cinosternon pennsylvanicum, WAGLER, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Thryrosternum pennsylvanicum, AGASSIZ.

Color of carapax dusky brown, of plastron yellow or orange with dark blotches; some-
times having the sutures margined with black; head and neck brownish, with whiter
stripes and spots; feet and tail chestnut, lighter beneath; carapax oval, emarginate
behind ; first vertebral shield triangular, its apex posterior and truncate ; second, third,
and fourth hexagonal; costals large; marginals elevated; plastron notched behind;
abdominal plates articulating with the pectorals and preanals by more or less movable
sutures; sternal shields all deeply sculptured with parallel and angular lines; head
large ; upper and lower jaw with a curved tooth-like projection; anterior limbs with
two scaly folds above, small scales beneath, and terminating in five short claws; tail
short with lateral tubercular processes and terminating in a horny point. Length of
carapax, 4 inches; height of carapax, 1 4-5 inches; length of tail, 7 lines.

Habitat, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Ohio,
and Michigan.

This animal is found in ditches and muddy ponds; it feeds upon fish
and small aquatic reptiles, and emits a strong musky odor.

Genus AROMOCHELYS. Gray.

Head sub-quadrangular, pointed, and very large; jaws powerful; plastron cruciform,
with a transverse more or less movable suture anterior to pectoral plates, but immovable
behind; posterior end of plastron broadly notched or truncate ; toes five; fingers five;
tail moderate; carapax somewhat carinated at least in the young; chin with warts; sup-
plemental plates between the plastron and carapax contiguous to both.

AROMSCHELYS oDoRATUs Latreille.

Musk Tortoise.

Testudo odorata, LATREILLE, DAUDIN, LECONTE.
Testudo pennsylvanica, SCHCEPFF.

Cistudo odorata, SAY.

Emys odorata, SCHWEIGGER, HARLAN, KIRTLAND.
Sternotherus odoratus, BELL, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, STORER, DrKay.
Sternotherus boscii, BELL.

Kinosternon odorata, GRAY, LECONTE.
Kinosternum shavianum, BELL.

Staurotypus odoralus, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Ozotheca odorata, et tristycha, AGASSIZ.

Ozotheca odorata, ALLEN.

Aromochelys odoratus, COPE, JORDAN.

Color of carapax olive to brown or green; head and neck similarly colored, with
yellow stripes on each side; plastron black and yellow; colora very much obscured by
the adhering mud; pupils black; irides golden; anterior marginal plate very narrow,
broadest behind ; first costal very large, the second and third pentagonal, the two upper
sides much the shortest, the anterior and posterior margins longest; four hinder mar-

MUSK TORTOISE. 667

ginals much the higher, making an upward curve or indentation into the posterior cos-
tal on each side ; last vertebral quadrangular, broadest behind, with a slight projection
downward between the two posterior marginals; first neural elongated, broadest
anteriorly; vertebrals slightly imbricated, alternating with the costals ; carapax slightly
emarginate behind, arched upward over the neck; gular plate nearly triangular, the
remaining sternal shields more or less quadrilateral ; abdominal much the largest; tail
short, with several rows of pointed warts; neck, legs, and feet granulated; fore legs
with scaly plates, and bases of feet with scales; no plates on the posterior limbs.
Length of carapax, 44 inches ; height of carapax, 1Zinches; breadth of carapax, 3 inches;
length of tail, 1 inch.

. Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Sonth Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama,
and Louisiana, to Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Missouri.

The Musk Tortoise inhabits ditches and ponds, burying itself in mud.
It is an active animal, and bites with considerable vigor if irritated. It
has a very disgusting odor from which, with its habits, it has received
not only its specific, but also its various common names, such as Musk
Turtle and Stinkpot in the north, and Mud Terrapin in the south. It
occurs in Northern Ohio and probably also occasionally through the
whole State. It oviposits in June and July.

FAMILY TRIONYCHIDA. THE SOFT-SHELLED
TURTLES.

Carapax in the form of a flattened orbicular disk, never completely ossified, ita mar-
gins soft and flexible, and in some species with the ribs projecting; costal plates when
visible eight pairs; posterior margin of carapax extending much beyond the body;
sternum composed of four pairs of bones and one odd one; plastron a leathery covering
with or without the sternal bones being visible externally ; feet broadly palmate; head
and neck very long and flexible; nostrils carried forwards by a long tubalar projection ;
temporal arch narrow; parietal bones slightly if at all projecting outward; pterygoids
broad, with slight depressions on their external edges; sphenoids extending forward
between the pterygoids to the palatines; inner nares large, and situated far back.

The Trionychide are usually found at the bottom of shallow water buried in mud.
They remain thus buried, raising their head and long flexible snout to the surface for
the purpose of respiration. Thus the long flexible neck, head, and snout as well as the
soft covering correspond to the habits of the animal, as a hard carapax and plastron
are unnecessary fer the purposes of protection to them while buried in the mud. In
burrowing they go under a thin layer horizontally by digging with the fore feet, brao-
ing and pushing the bedy under with the hind ones.

*Septum of nose without any internal ridges on each side . R ‘ AMYDA.

* Septum of nose with a ridge on each side. . ‘ e . ASPIDONECTES.

Genus AMYDA. Schweigger.

Head long, narrow, and pointed anteriorly; horizontal aiveoler surface of jaw nar-
row, broadest behind, and with a downward curve of the upper under the eye; lower

668 REPTILES—TRIONYCHIDA.

mandible compressed laterally, and extended forward ; mandibular edges sharp ; nos-
trils situated under rather than at the end of the proboscis; nasal septam smooth or
without any transversely projecting ridge.

AMYDA mutica LeSueur.

Leathery Turtle.

Trionyx muticus, LESUEUR, LECONTE, KIRTLAND, DrKay, GRAY.
Gymnopus mutica, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Amyda mutica, AGASSIZ, COPE, JORDAN.

Color of upper parts olivaceous to brown, with darker spots upon the carapax;
beneath more or less whitish without spots or mottled marks; carapax oval, smooth,
depressed along the vertebral line instead of carinate; anterior margin of carapax nakcd,
that is without spines or tubercles; anterior feet with three broad scales which are
acute above and anteriorly, and with two oblong tubercles behind; tail short; young
with band on the head and neck, Length, 8 inches.

Habitat, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, and Missouri.

This species seems to have its range over the waters of the Mississippi,
and also of the Great Lakes, being according to LeSueur common in
Lakes Erie and Ontario. In the State it also occurs in the Ohio River.
The tail in the males is longer than in the females; in the latter it
does not extend beyond the margin of the carapax.

Genus ASPIDONECTES. Wagler.

Head broader than in Amyda, curving rapid!y downward from a line between the
orbits; mandibles corneous, narrow, and nearly straight ; nostrils terminal, with a trans-
verse projection upon each side of the septum; mouth broader and rounder than in
Amyda ; feet very broadly palmate, with three claws on each exserted.

ASPIDONECTES SPINIFER LeSueur.

Soft-shelled Turtle.
Trionyx spiniferus, LESUEUR.
Trionyx ocellatus, LESUEUR.
Trionyx ferox, KIRTLAND, DEKAY, not of Schweigger and others.
Aspidonectes ferox, WAGLER.
Gymnopus spiniferus, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Aspidonectes apinifer, AGASSIZ, COPE, JORDAN, COUES, YARROW.

Color of carapax dark slate, with ocellate spots above, and often with black dots
along the margin ; plastron creamy white ; head and neck dark above, light brown, or a
marbling of black and white beneath ;a lightstripe extends from the eye back ward ; cara-
pax with a vertebral ridge slightly elevated, its center hard, its margins soft with the ribs
projecting ; costal plates eight on aside, distinct in adult; anterior margin of carapaz with
a row of spines or denticulated ; fore limbs with transverse elevations ; feet large and
very broadly palmate; claws on each, three; tail anterior to anus very thick, beyond

SOFT-SHELLED TURTLE. 669

narrow and short; shoulders broad, on a line with anterior portion of carapax; eyes
prominent and almost vertical; cleft of mouth extending behind the eyes; shell above
with numerous minute tuberculations or depressions.

The young differs from the adult by having the shell lighter colored, in some nearly
cream, its anterior margin dentioulated, the costal plates not separable, and the hard
shields of plastron not discernable. Length of carapax, 92 inches; height of carapax,
3 inches; breadth of carapax, €} inches; length of head and neck, 6 inches.

Habitat, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Mis-
souri, Iowa, and Montana.

This species is said to be the most delicious and nourishing as food
of any of the Testudinata. They may be caught with a hook, but are
usually speared. They are abundant in all the streams flowing into the
Ohio and Lake Erie. Dr. Kirtland observed them in calm weather float-
ing near the surface of the water, and followed by several Black Bass.
The statements about its ferocity vary, probably owing to its having
been confounded with Aspidonectes ferox.

Extralimital North American Testudinata, not previeusly mentioned in this work.
Aspidonectes ( Paltypeltis, Ag.) feror, Schweigger.

HOoLBROOoK, N. A. Herp., ii, p. 11.—AGassız, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 401.

Habitat, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.

Aspidonectes asper, Agassiz.
AGassız, Cont., i, p. 405.

Habitat, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Aspidonectes nuchalis, Agassiz.
AGassız, Cont.,i, p. 506.

Habitat, Cumberland and Upper Tennessee Rivers.
Agpidonectes emoryii, Agassiz.

Aaass z, Cont., i, p. 407.

Habitat, Texas.

Aromochelys carinatus (Goniochelys triquetra, et minor, Ag.) Gray.
AGassız, Cont., Nat. Hist., U. 8. p. 423.—U. 8. Geolog. Surv., 100th Meridian, vol. v.,
p. 582.

Habitat, Missouri to Louisiana, Texas, and Arizona.

Cinosternum sonoriense, LeConte.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1854, p. 184.—U. 8. Geolog. Surv., 100th Meridian, v., 5,
p. 89.—Aaassiz, Cont., Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 428.

Habitat, Arizona and Mexico.

Cinosternum integrum, LeConte.
Prec. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phil., 1854, p. 183.—AGassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. 8. i, p. 430.

Habitat, Mexico.

670 REPTILES—TRIONYCHIDE.

Cinosternum (Ptatythyra, Ag.) flavescens, Agassiz.
Acassız, Cont. Nat. Hist., U. S., i, 430.

Habitat, Arkansas, Texas, and Arizona.

Cinosternum henrici, LeConte.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1859, p.4.—U. 8. Geolog. Surv., 100th Meridian, vol. v, p.583.

Habitat, New Mexico and Arizona.

Pseudemys (Ptychemys, Ag.) rugosa, Shaw.
AGassız, Count. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p, 431.—HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., i, p. 55.—DeKay,
Rept. N. Y., p. 16, as Emys rubriventris.

Habitat, New Jersey to Virginia.

Pseudemys concinna, LeConte.
HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., i, pp. 119-68.—AGassız, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 432.

Habitat, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas.

Peeudemys mobiliensis, Holbrook.
HoLBROoK, N. A. Herp., i, p. 71.—AGassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. 8., i, p. 433.

Habitat, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas.

"Pseudemys hieroglyphica, Holbrook,
HoLBRooR, N. A. Herp., i, p. 3.—AGAssız, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 434.

Habitat, ‘" Indiana,” and Tennessee to Georgia.

Pseudemys (Trachemys, Ag.) scabra, Linunzus,
AcGassız, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 434.—HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., i, p. 123.

Habitat, North Carolina to Georgia.

Pseudemys troostii, Holbrook.
Acassız, Cont. Nat Hist. U. 8., i, p. 436.—HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., i, p. 123.

Habitat, Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

Pseudemys elegans, Wied.
AGassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 435.—HOLBROOK, N. A. Herp., i, p, 115.—CoveEs
and YARROW, Herp. Dakota and Montana, p. 260.
Habitat, Texas to Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and Dakota.
Chrysemys oregonensis, Harlan.
Acassız, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 259.—Couzs and Yarrow, Herp. Dakota and
Montana, p. 259.—U. 8. Geolog. Surv., 100th Meridian, v, p. 583.

Texas and Arizona, to Minnesota, Nebraska, and Dakota.

Chrysemys ( Dierochelys, Ag.) reticulata, Bosc.
Aaassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 44.—HoLBroog, N. A. Herp., i, p. 59.
Habitat, North Carolina, Florida, and Alabama, to Louisiana.
Chelopus (Actinemys, Ag.) marmoratus, Baird and Girard.
Aacassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. S., i, p. 434.—Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1852, p. 177.—
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1854, p. 91 as Emys nigra—U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., vol.
12, p. 292.—WILLIAMSON, Report, p. 3.

Habitat, California to Puget Sound.

SOFT-SHELLED TURTLE. 671

Cistudo ornata, Agassiz.
AGassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U. 8, i, p. 445.—Cougs and Yarrow, Herp. Dakota and
Montana, p. 266.
Habitat, Iowa to Upper Missouri.

Cistudo major, Agassiz. i
Aqassiz, Cont. Nat. Hist. U.S., i, p. 445.

Florida to Alabama.

ORDER OPHIDIA. SERPENTS.*

Body long and slender, serpentiform ; limbs none, but rudiments of the pelvic arch
present in Pythons, Boas, and Tortrices ; epidermal covering above in the form of
scales, which are periodically cast off and renewed ; head often with plates, under sur-
face usually covered with scutell®; integument very extensible ; anal slit transverse ;
eyelids wanting ; tympanum none; tongue long, bifid, sheathed at base, and capable of
protrusion ; teeth conical, not in sockets, situated upon the jaws and palate; month
very dilatable owing to the presence of a quadrate bone; juga), quadrato-jugal, sternum,
orbito-and alisphenoids absent ; post-frontals, nasale, and lachrymals well developed ;
rami of lower jaw composed of several pieces; vertebra numerous, the dorsal procolous;
hear t trilocular, composed of two auricles and a ventricle, the latter with a partial sep-
tum; lungs usually one, when two asymetrical ; urinary bladder wanting.

* An erectile poison fang in front part of the mouth; deep pit between tho eye and

nostril. 5 . : . . . ‘ CROTALIDE,
*A permanently erect poison fang in front Be of mouth; lachrymal pit wanting;
extralimital. A . 5 r ELAPIDE.
* No poison fang in front are of month; fuer pit wanting. . COLUBRIDE.

FAMILY CROTALIDE. CROTALID SNAKES.

Teeth in upper jaws few; erectile poison fangs in front; head usually triangular,
plainly separable from the body; a deep pit between the eye and nostril; dorsal scales
carinated ; urosteges undivided anteriorly ; species all venomous,

Tail provided with arattle a.

Tail without rattle; cephalic plates large as in Colubride. b.

a. Top of head covered with scales, plates if any not reaching further back than

the eyes. . 3 . . CROTALUS.
a. Cephalic plates large, and scenged as in Colubride, . « CROTALOPHORUS.
b. Loral plate present. B é a e ‘ 5 a . ANCISTRODON.
db. Loral plate absent. x 3 E ‘ R 2 é r Tox1coPals.

GENUS CROTALUS. Linnzus,

Cephalic region above covered with scales, » few large plates may be present anterior to
a transverse line between the eyes; caudal rattle always present and well developed;
body large and strong ; pupil of eye vertical; Jachrymal or nasal fossa very distinct;
rostral plate large, temporals and läbials small; the two anterior inframaxillaries large.

* For plates of heads, see U. S. P. R. R. Rep., vol. x; on classification of extralimital
N. A. species, see Baird and Girard’s Catalogue, j

672 REPTILES—CROTALIDA.

CROTALUS DurRissus Linnzus.

Banded Rattlesnake.

Uropsophus durissus, GRAY.

Urocrotalon durissus, FITZINGER.

Tropsophus triseriatus, WAGLER.

Crotalus durissus, IIOLBROOK, DUMERIL and BIBRON, BAIRD and GIRARD, STORER, DEKaYy
Crotalus horridus, COPE.

General color sulphur-brown and darker brown, arranged in
bloiches or transverse bands; head very triangular, abruptly
separable from the neck; superciliary plates small and numer-
ous; upper labials 12-14, lower 13-15; rostral large, triangular,
rounded above, anteorbitals two, elongated longitudinally ; dor-
sals in 23 to 25 rows ; gastrosteges 170 to 1&0; urosteges 23 to 28.
Length, 34 feet ; head, 12 inches; tail, 5 inches; transverse diam-
eter of head, 1 inch ; transverse diameter of neck, § inch; cir-

cumfsrence of body, 34 inches. NR

an!
nat,

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, [4X
West Virgivia, South Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Kansas,
and Arkansas.

The Banded Rattlesnake inhabits rocky mountains
and hills, its venom is very virulent, but to its favor
may be said that it rarely or never strikes unless
stepped upon or interfered with in a serious manner, /
and then apparently acts only in self-defence. It *Fıc. 1.—Crotalus du-

ei R rissus, head covered
also usually, though not always, gives warning and above with scales.
thus enables a person to get out of its way.

They areattimes gregarious, being occasionallyfound collected together,
especially in winter, but more usually they are alone. Theyare inactive,
sluggish animals of slow locomotion, and in this respect contrast strangely
with the rapidity of the vibrations of their tail, and the instantaneous
quickness with which they strike an enemy. They have been known
to live a year without food, but need water especially at the time of
shedding their skin. The fangs are, in somes cases at least, shed at the
same time as the integument, and reproduced in a few days. They are
believed to be most virulent at this time, which may be true, and may be

* The plates which accompany this catalogue have been drawn from the specimens by
Miss Lilly E Chase, of Ann Arbor, Michigan.

It has not been my aim to insert a large number of illustrations, as this has already
been done in the wıitings of Holbrook, DeKay, Agassiz, and the various United States
Reports; and yet it is believed that the few given on the mouths of Salamanders and
head of Crotalus and Crotalophorus will be very serviceable in the identification of
genera.

PRAIRIE RATTLESNAKE. 673

explained by supposing that the venom accumulates owing to the fangs
being shed.

Various theories have been advanced as to the use of the rattle,
none of them being entirely satisfactory. One supposition is that it has
resulted in time from the agitation of the highly nervous tail, and has
no special function. Pityophis melanoleucus, the Bull Snake shows such
an agitation, and its tail when in motion is said to somewhat resemble
the rattle of this species. Again, it has been conjectured to be of use in
calling the sexes together, and thus aiding in the preservation of the
species. Another hypothesis is that, as it resembles the noise made by
a grasshopper, it might be of service in decoying insectivorous birds
within reach of the animal. The rattle is said to be heard often when
there is no cause of irritation. If such be the case, it probably does not
occur with the Crotalide in our limits. A fourth suggestion is that it
serves to alarm the higher species, giving them warning, and thus en-
abling them to escape its bite. Such a hypothesis is contrary to all
analogy, since nature’s mode is to provide the animal with that which
is best for its individual wants without regard to others. A last supposi-
tion is that it is of use to the serpent in terrifying its enemies. Proba-
bly this last is more worthy of credence, and is not to be set aside by
the fact that it sometimes attracts the attention of enemies in such a
way as to induce them to destroy it. In other cases it renders the
snake more frightful, and enables it to paralyze its foes or desired prey
with fear. It may also be of some use in the other ways mentioned,
especially in bringing about the union of the sexes.

A popular belief is that one rattle is added each year; however, this
cannot be true, as Dr. Holbrook knew a case of two rattles being added
in a year, and Dr. Bachman observed a species in which four were
developed in twelve months. Thus, we may see that the number of rat-
tles is, as Dr. Holbrook observed, dependent upon the condition of the
animal as regards liberty, nourishment, etc., and is no test of age.

The oil of this species is said to be very valuable.

Genus CROTALOPHORUS. Linnzus,

Cephalic region above covered with plates, which are seen posterior to a trausverse line
between the eyes ; caudal rattle always preseut, though smaller than in Crotalus ; body
moderately strong; pupil vertical; rostral plate moderately large, temporals and labials
small; the two anterior inframaxillaries large, the remainder small.

Dorsal rows of scales 26. : ; : . A . E 2 C. TERGEMINUS.

Dorsal rows of scales 23. & : . N é : é ' ©. MILIARIUS,

43

674 REPTILES—CROTALIDE.

CROTALOPHORUS TERGEMINUS Holbrook.
Prairie Rattlesnake or Massassauga.

Crotalus tergeminus, SAY, HARLAN, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Crotalophorus kirtlandii ?, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, COPE.

General color varying from ash to brown, spots of dark-brown
margined with black, and exterior to this a still lighter circle;
vertebral blotches 34 in number, almost quadrate, notched in
front and behind, and extending from the neck to the tail; two
or three series of lateral blotches on each side varying from cir-
cular to oblong ; a light line begins upon the neck and, passing
forwards, bifurcates, giving a branch to the upper and one to
the lower jaw; a transverse line of light crosses the vertical
plate ; a white or yellowish line begins upon the neck, runs for-
ward, bifurcates, and again nearly or quite meets in front so as to
almost or quite enclose a dark blotch situated for the most part
upon the occipital plates; beneath light colored to black; dorsal]
scales in 25 rows; gastrosteges 140-150; urosteges 25-30, the last us tergeminus, show-
three to five bifid; vertical plate sub-hexagonal, sometimes di- ing
vided so as to leave a small triangular one behind; labials Covered with plates.
11-12 below, 12-14 above; anteorbitals elongated longitudinally; rostral irregularly
hexagonal. Length, 2 1-6 feet; head, 14 inches; tail, 2% inches; transverse diameter of
head, # inch; of neck, 4 inch; circumference of body, 4 inches.

Habitat, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Kansas, Nebraska, Montana, Georgia,
and “Indian Territory.”

In the State I have only seen specimens from Warren county, but pre-
sume it.occursin all parts of Ohio. It lives in marshes, though I have:
seen it on elevated and dry grounds. Its bite is justly dreaded by per-
sons compelled to frequent such places. It rarely, if ever, strikes with-
out warning, and never unless disturbed.

Var. kirtlandii, also an inhabitant of Warren county, differs from this
by being of a nearly uniform black with brown blotches above in the
adult.

The specimen of C. tergeminus which I have seen from Wisconsin have a.
broader head, and the transition from head to neck is more abrupt than
in Illinois or Ohio specimens, while a specimen from Lenawee county,
Michigan, shows a head scarcely broader than the neck. It will thus be
seen that the shape of the head as well as the coloration varies materially
in this species.

CROTALOPHORUS MILIARIUS Linnzus.
Ground Rattlesnake.
Crotalus miliarius, LINNZUS, GMELIN, MERREM, SCHLEGEL, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, Dum-

ERIL and BIBRON,
Caudisona miliarius, FITZINGER, WAGLER.
Crotalophorus miliarius, HOLBROOK, GRAY, DEKAY, BAIRD and GIRARD, Cork

COPPERHEAD. 675
Genus ANCISTRODON. Beauvois.

Cephalic region covered with nine large plates arranged as in Colubride ; vertical and super-
ciliaries on a line with the eye, occipitals farther back; anteorbitals two, elongated
longitudinally ; nasals two; loral present, excluded from the the orbit; head flattened,
triangular; dorsal scales in 23 rows, carinated; tail rather short, tapering to a point,
and without rattle; urosteges divided posteriorly.

ANCISTRODON conToRTRIx Linnzus,

Copperhead.

Boa contortrix, LINNZUS, GMELIN,

Agkistrodon mokason, BEAUVOIS.

Cenchris contortrix, DAUDIN.

Cenchris mokeson, HARLAN.

Scytalus cupreus, RAFINESQUE, HARLAN.

Toxicophis, TROOST.

Trigonocephalus cenchris, SCHLEGEL.

Trigonocephalus contortriz, HOLBROOK, HALLOWELL, KIRTLAND, DeKay, DUMERIL and
BIBRON.

Ancistrodon contortrix, BAIRD and GIRARD, COPE, ALLEN.

Copper-colored above, brighter upon the flanks; reddish-brown transverse bands upon
the back, about 16 in number, dilated upon the sides; rounded spots of a similar color
between these bands; lateral blotches from 30-38, varying from round to sub-quadrate,
dusky ; beneath palecupreous; postorbital plates two, continuous under the eye with two
small infraorbitals; superciliaries broad and long; vertical slightly longer than the
occipitals, the latter notched posteriorly ; labials, 8 above, 9 below; inframixillaries
small; gastrosteges, 150-155 ; urosteges, 40-50; tail terminating in a horny point, the
analogue of the rattle in the Crotalide. Length, 29 inches; head, 13 inches; tail, 34

General color grayish ash, vertebral blotches varying from circular to triangular or
elliptical, from 37 to 45 in number, each with a yellow border; a reddish-purple verte-
bral line extending from head to tail through the blotches; lateral blotches in two or
three series; nape with a grayish to yellowish longitudinal band, with a black blotch
on each side anteriorly; a narrow line of white extends from the angle of the mouth to
the eye; vertical plate irregularly sub-hexagonal; labials, 10-11 on a side above, 11-12
below ; anteorbitals two, elongated longitudinally; loral one on each side; nasals two;
rostral large, irregular, urn-shaped, smallest above; dorsal scales in 23 rows; gastros-
teges, 130-140; urosteges, 30-40, usually not well marked. Length, 17 inches; head, #
inch; tail, 2} inches; transverse diameter of head, 4 inch; of neck, 3-16 inch; circum-
ference of body, 2 inches. ‘

Habitat, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas.

DeKay records this species in Michigan, on what authority I am unable to determine.
If it is a resident of that State it will doubtless yet be found in Ohio. However, its ex-
treme southern range leads me to believe that its reference to the fauna of Michigan is
a mistake, and that it probably does not occur within our limits.

676 REPTILES—ELAPIDA.

inches; transverse diameter of head 1} inches; of neck, $ inch; circumference of body,
4 inches.

Habitat, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Peunsylvania, South
Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Kansas and Ohio.

Genus TOXICOPHIS. Troost.

Cephalic region covered with eleven plates, sesisal an supareiliaries in a line
with eyes, the occipital situated more posteriorly ; anteorbitals two, elongated longi-
tudinally; nasals two ; loral absent; head triangalar; dorsal scales carinated, in 25
rows; tail moderate, tapering to a cornevus point; candal rattle none; urosteg:s iid
posteriorally. Extralimital,

ToxIcoPHis Pıscıvorus Lacepede.
Water Moccasin.

Crotalus piscivorus, LACEPEDS.

Scytalus piscivorus, LATREILLE, DAUDIN, HARLAN. e

Coluber aquaticus, SHAW.

Natrix piscivorus, MERREM.

Acontias leucostomus, TROOST.

Trigonocephalus piscivorus, HOLBROCK, Gray, DUMERIL and BiBron, DeKay.
Toxicophis piscivorus, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Ancistrodon piscivorus, JORDON.

Color above brown, with dark vertical bars of black and red; head purplish. black ;
peneath black, blotched with dirty yellow; a yellow band ia occipital region ; vertical
plate as long as cecipitals ; labials 8 above, 11 below; gastrostegas, 135-140; arosteges, -
42-46. Length, 28 inches; head, 14; tail, 4}; transverse diameter of head, i} inches;
of neck, $ inch; circumference of bo iy 4 inches.

Habitat, North Carolina, South Curolina, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Southern
Illinois, and Arkansas.

The Water Moccasin is more aggressive than the Rattlesnakes, attack'ng everything
that comes within reuch. Its mods of attack is to erect ifs head, open its mouth, and
strike without warning. It is decidedly aquatic, being always found near or in water,
and in swampy places.

FAMILY ELAPIDE.

Teeth in beth jaws; small poison fangs in front; body colubriform ; head oval, not
separable from the neck, and covered with plates; pib between the eye and nostril
wanting; dorsal scales smouth ; urosteges bifid; tail pointed, without rattle. Extra-
limital.

Genus ELAPS. Schneider.

Cleft of mouth moderate ; cephalic and tem poral region with plates; postorbitals two;
anteorbitals one; uasals two; labials and inframaxillaries large; post-abdominal
‚scutella entire.

ELara FuLvıus Cuvier.

Bead Snake.
Jet black, yellow and red bands alternating render this species easily recognizable.

Habitat, Virginia, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Texas, and Arkansas.

THE COLUBRID. 677

In the State it occurs along the waters of the Mahoning, Big Beaver,
and Muskingum rivers, and also in the neighborhood of Cleveland.

The Copperhead is one of our most venomous species. It differs from
the Rattlesnakes in that it strikes without warning. It is an indolent,
sluggish animal, but when approached raises its head, thrusts out its
tongue, and strikes at the intruder. It has various common names such
as Hazel-head, Chunkhead, Red Viper, Copperbelly, Cotton-mouth, Dumb
Rattlesnake, Red and Deaf Adder, but it is more usually designated as
Copperhead. They, at least the pregnant females, are gregarious and
occur in meadows or elevated grounds. They are, however, terrestrial,
and appear to be ovoviviparous; at least according to Allen, five females
out of seven, caught in the latter part of July in Massachusetts, contained
slightly developed embryos, while of six females killed in September the
ovaries of each contained seven or nine young, six inches long.

FAMILY COLUBRIDA. THE COLUBRINESNAKES,

Conical teeth in both jaws ; head oblong or oval, covered with large plates; poison
fangs wanting; pupil of eye citcular ; lachrymal or nasal pit absent ; body colubriform ;
head tapering gradually into the neck; dorsal scales carinated or smooth; no anal
appendages; urosteges bifid; tail conical, without rattle, tapering gradually to a point;
species all believed to be harmless,

The following excellent table, fashioned after the Smithsonian Catalogue of Reptiles,
by Baird and Girard, and Jordan’s Mannal, it is believed will enable anyone to readily
refer a species to its proper genus.

Dorsal scales carinated. a.

Dorsal scales smooth. 4.

a. Post-abdominal scutella entire. b.
a. Post-abdominal scutella bifid. c.

b. Dorsal rows of scales not exceeding 23. 5 f A . EUTENIA.

b. Dorsal rows exceeding 25. i 4 . ‘ : a PITYOPHIS.

ce. Loral and anteorbital plates both present. a.

ce. Anteorbitals absent; extralimital. 5 n . : i a HALDEA.

ce. Lorals absent. . N 2 5 2 E ‘ a STORERIA,
d. Dorsal rows of scales 17 or piv x & . e R . CYCLOPHIS.

d. Dorsal rows of scales 19 or more. e.
e. Cephalic plates typical. f.
e. Cephalic plates not typical. h.
f. Postorbitals three, rarely two; anteorbitals usually one; dorsal rows of

scales 23-29. . . Sa Saw ots TROPIDONOTUS.
Ff. Postorbitals two; dorsal rows of scale 19-21. F ‘ . REGINA. *
h. Muzzle projecting and recurved. . . & & HETERODON.
h. Muzzle not projecting. . . a . . : : COLUBER.

4. Anteorbital plates both present. j.
4. Anteorbitals absent. m.
j. Post-abdominal scutella entire, or bifid with 25 rows of dorsal scales.
OPHIBOLUS,

678 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA.

j. Post-abdominal scutella bifid; dorsal rows of scales not exceed 21. &.

k. With a yellowring round the neck. . . . . . DYADOPHIS.
%. Without cervical ring. 1.
1, Dorsal scales in 15 rows. ‘ : A ; a . LIOPELTIS.
t. Dorsal scales in 17 or more rows. a i ‘i 3 . BascANIUM.

m. Dorsal scales in 19 rows. n.

m. Dorsal rows of scales not exceeding 17. 0.
n. Prefrontals one. ; a n E 5 5 R R . FARANCIA,
n. Prefrontals two. ‘ a a : 5 ABASTOR.
0. Postorbitals two; dorsal aealaad in 15 or 1 rows. 2 3 . VIRGINIA.
o. Postorbitals one; dorsal scales in 13 rows. ; ‘ ‘ CARPHOPHIS,

Genus EUTZENIA. Baird and Girard.

Body varying from long and slender to strong and moderately thick ; cephalic plates
normal; anteorbitals one; postorbitals usually three; loral present ; nasals two; pre-
frontals two; labials and inframaxillaries moderately large; dorsal scales strongly
carinated, in19-21rows; gastrosteges, 140-170; post-abdominal scutella entire; urosteges,
50-120, all bifid; ground color dark, with a vertebral and two lateral stripes; habits
terrestrial ; species ovoviviparous.

Lateral stripe on the third and fourth rows of scales; body slender; tail nearly one-

third of total length. a.
Lateral stripe on second and third rows of scales ; body stouter; tail one-fourth of

total length. 2 R R r a R F ri h 2 E. SIRTALIS,
a. Urosteges less than 110. . 5 . ‘i “ A = E. PROXIMA.
a. Urosteges 115 or more. . . . 3 5 a R ö E. SAURITA.

EUTENIA PROXIMA Say.
Say’s Garter Snake.

Coluber proximus, SAY, HARLAN.
Tropidonotus proximus, BOIE.
Eutenia proxima, BAIRD and GIRARD, COPE, JORDAN.

General color above black; vertebral band varying from yellow to brown; lateral
stripes green or yellowish to white ; occipital plates with a yellow spot about the cen-
ter of the commissural line ; abdomen and under parts varying from dingy white to oliva-
ceous or green ; vertical plate elongated, pentagonal, the posterior sides much the shorter,
the lateral edges longest and arcuate to receive the projecting part of superciliaries ; nasals
two ; rostral broad, but not very high ; upper labials eight, lower nine or ten; temporal
region covered with large plates ; inframaxillaries reaching to the eighth lower labial;
loral rhomboidal ; eye over the fourth and ‘fifth upper labial ; dorsal rows of scales nine-
teen, all carinated ; vertebral band covering one and two half rows of scales; lateral
stripes on the third and fourth rows from the abdomen ; color below the lateral stripes
somewhat lighter than above; body stouter than Eutenia saurita; tail about two sevenths
the total length ; gastrosteges, 170-180; urosteges, 80-85. Length, 22 feet; head, 1
inch; tail, 9 inches; transverse diameter of head 74 lines}; of neck 54 lines; circumfer-
ence of body 24 inches.

Habitat, ‘‘ California,” Montana, and Arkansas, to Wisconsin, Ohio, North Carolina,
Louisiana, Texas, and Mexico.

Rare in the State.

STRIPED OR GARTER SNAKE. 679

EUTENIA savuRrita Linnzus.

Swift Garter or Ribbon Snake.

Coluber saurita, LINN&ZUS, HARLAN, STORER. KIRTLAND, THOMPSON.

Leptophis scuritus, HOLBROOK, DeKay.

Tropidonotus sauritus, SCHLEGEL, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER, PUTNAM, VERRILL,
ALLEN.

Eutenia saurita, et faireyi, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Body very slender, elongated, tapering very gradually to an exceeding long, pointed
tail; upper labials geven on each side, lower ten; inframaxillaries extending to seventh
lower labial; vertical plate elongated, hexagonal; eyes large; general color above
dark-brown, with three longitudinal stripes, extending from the head to tip of tail,
sometimes these stripes become indistinct after passing the anus, the vertebral one is
very narrow, covering slightly more than one row of scales, and terminating in front on
the posterior margin of the occipital plates, the lateral lines are somewhat broader, ex-
tending forward to the posterior labials, and situated upon the third and fourth rows of
scales from the abdomen ; orbital plates, lower part of head, and gular region yellowish-
white; both sides of vertebral line and upper edge of lateral stripes margined with
black; abdomen and nnder part of tail greenish-white, without spots; gastrosteges,
175-180; urosteges, 115-120; dorsal scales in 19 rows, all strongly carinated. Length, 3
feet; head, finch; tail, 9 inches; transverse diameter of head, $ inch ; of neck, $ inch;
circumference of body 2 inches.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio,
Michigan, Wisconsin, Mississippi, Texas, Mexico, and Honduras.”

Var. fairéyi, Baird and Girard, has two small yellow spots on the occipital plates, a
black lateral band bordered by two rows of black scales, thus making the color below the
lateral stripe the same as that above, and the tail somewhat less than one-third the

total length.

Habitat, Louisiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin.

The typical Eutznia saurita is common in Ohio, though I have as yet
no record of the variety faireyi having been found in the State. It
seeks damp or wet retired woods for its residence, is very nimble, climbs
trees, and at times takes to water and swims readily. It has been
popularly confounded with the next species, but is less active, and of a
much slenderer form than E. sirtalis.

EUTENIA sırTarıs Linneus.

Striped or Garter Snake.

Coluber sirtalis, LINNZUS, HARLAN, KIRTLAND, STORER.
Tropidonotus bipunctatus, SCHLEGEL, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Tropidonotus tenia, DEKAY.

Tropidonotus sirtalis, HOLBROOK, VERRILL, ALLEN.
Eutainia sirtalis, parietalis, et dorsalis, BAIRD and GIRARD.
Eutainia haydenii, et cooperi, KENNICOTT.

? Coluber ordinatus, LINNZUS.

680 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA.

? Tropidonotus ordinatus, HOLBROOK, PUTNAM, GUNTHER.
Eutainia ordinata, Barrp and GIRARD,
? Eutainia radix, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Body moderately strong ; general color above black or dark-brown, with a verte~
bral and two lateral stripes of yellow ; abdomen greenish-white, often with black spots
upon the sides; under jaw and gular region yellowish-white to greenish-yellow ; verte--
pral and lateral bands begin at the posterior of the head and become insensibly lost
upon the tail; occipital plates often with two small yellow spots; ante-and postorbi-
tals, labials, and lower half of rostral yellowish-green ; nasals two; upper labials seven
or eight, lower eight or nine; inframaxillaries reaching to sixth lower labial; dorsal
scales strougly carinated, in 19 rows; gastrosteges, 137-170; urosteges, 55-80 lateral
stripe npon the second and third rows of scales; vertebral band about the width of a
scale, though situated upon one and two half rows, color below the lateral stripe some-
what lighter than above; tail one-fourth of total length. Length, 24 feet; head, 14 inches;
tail, 52 inches; transverse diameter of head, ¢ inch; of neck, 2 inch ; circumference of
body 3 inches.

Habitat, Maine to Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Illinois, Oregen,
Minnesota, Michigan, Isle Royale in Lake Superior, and Lake Winnipeg.

In the State I have specimens from Yellow Springs, Columbus, and
Lancaster, though it iscommoneverywhere. Some of the Ohio specimens
show a much duller coloration than is ordinarily observed, probably owing
to their having been captured a short time prior to the period at which
they would shed their skin. A specimen kept by me in confinement
changed from such dull to the ordinary bright markings on casting off
itsepidermis. Ihave observed a similar fact in regard to the Blue Racer,
Bascanium on constrictor, and also upon the Eulenia saurita.

Eutsenia sirtalis is our commonest snake. They are clumsy and
sluggish animals, found in low, marshy, or comparatively dry places, take
to water readily, and when irritated, elevate their scales, giving the body
a roughened appearance, and when handled exude a very disagreeable
and offensive odor. After swallowing a frog, if one seize the animal by
the tail and pass the foot along its back, it can be made to disgorge,
and the frog escape in a living condition.

They are popularly believed to swallow their young to shield the latter
from danger ; in fact unscientific observers report having cut them open
and found the little ones within, a fact which can be readily accounted
for when it is remembered that this genus brings forth its young alive,
and the parties observing undoubtedly saw them in the ovaries rather
than in the stomach. Possibly a similar mode of reproduction obtains in
other species reported to swallow their young; or the fact that some
snakes prey upon others may explain the origin of such reports.

The Garter Snake takes to water quite readily, and retires to winter
quarters in October, and issues forth again the following spring, in May.

STRIPED OR GARTER SNAKE. 681

Occasionally owing to open or very mild weather they re-appear, for a
few days at a time, earlier, andthen seem toagain hybernate. They aregre-
gariousin winterquarters, having been frequently ploughedupin bunches,
are sometimes found under peat, and in company with rattlesnakes. Dr.
Kirtland reports that they are eaten by hawks, owls, swine, and in some
instances, by fowls, ducks, and turkies. The femalesin Julyand August
are usually found pregnant with from twenty-five to forty young, and in
September and October the sexes have been geen in copulation.

Var. dorsalis, Baird and Girard, hasa broader vetebral stripe, margined on each side
for one scale in width with black, as are also the sides of the abdominal scutelle and
upper basal edge of the scales in the exterior dorsal row; arow of spots above the
lateral stripe, and the outer row of dorsal scales acutely ewarginate.

Var. parietalis, Baird and Girard, has a moderately broad dorsal stripe, and the
spaces about and between the lateral dark spots brick red. Is is prabably extralimital,
ranging from Indiana to Texas and West.

Var. radix, Baird and Girard, has the scales rough, the outer row broad, the stripes
narrow, the lateral ones being less than a scale in width thongh situated upon two rows,
often upon the third and fourth, and has six series of distinct black spots. It is extra-
limital, ranging from Illinois and Wisconsin, to Minnesota, Dakota, Oregon, and Wash-
ington Territory.

Another variety occurring in the State is characterized by the entire
absence of the dorsal stripe, it might appropriately be called melanota,

Genus REGINA. Baird and Girard.

Body rather slender; size moderately swall; teeth isodont; cephalic plates normal;
anteorbitals two or one; postorbitals two, sometimes three ; labials and inframaxillaries
moderate; nasals one or two; loral present; prefrontals two; dorsal scales carinated
in 19-21 rows ; gastrosteges 130-164 ; urosteges 50-85, all divided ; post-abdominal scutella
bifid; general color light beneath, dark above, usually with longitudinal bands ; habits
mostly aquatic; reproduction cvoviviparous.

Anteorbitals two. a.

Anteorbitals one . n . . . R. KIRTLANDL.

a. Vertical plate as peed at vestatigr edge of énpérciliaries asin front. 0.
a. Vertical plate less broad at posterior edge of superciliaries than in front; extra-
limital; Texas. “ S . . . “ . . . R. CLARKL.
b. Abdomen unicolor or with bands. o,
db. Abdomen with two series of black spots; extralimital; Pennsylvania and

South. 5 ‘ . . . . . . . R. RIGIDA.
c. Vertical plate notched upon the sides to receive the projecting angle of the
superciliaries. 2 ‘ Pr F 5 . R. GRAHAMI.

e. Sides of vertical plate ot N é é a . . BR, LEBERIS.

682 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA.

REGINA LEBERIS Linnzus.

Yellow-bellied or Leather Snake.

Coluber leberis, LINNZUS, GMELIN, KALM, SHAW, DAUDIN.

Coluber septemvittatum, SAY, HARLAN.

Tropidonotus leberis, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER, COPE.
Regina leberis, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Color olive-brown above, beneath yellow, with four longitudinal bands of greenish-
brown, of these bands the two inner at times looking somewhat like series of dots; the
yellow upon the sides appears as bands above the brown; sides of vertical plates
parallel, the plate itself being hexagonal, with the posterior apex more acute than the
anterior; anteorbitals two; upper labials seven, lower eight; inframaxillaries reaching
to the end of the sixth lower labial ; postorbitals over the fourth and fifth upper labials ;
dorsal scales 19; gastrosteges 140-150 ; urosteges 65-80; yellow bands upon the sides on
first and second rows of scales; tail moderately long, becoming unicolor by the con-
fluence of the lines. Length, 22 inches; head, $ inch; tail, 54 inches; transverse
diameter of head, 4 inch; of neck, 7-16 inch; circumference of body, 14 inches.

Habitat, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee,
Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois.

In the State I have specimens from Highland county, and also from
Columbus. It is aquatic, and probably occurs elsewhere, though it
is not very common.

REGINA KIRTLANDII Kennicott.

Little Red, Snake.

Regina kirtlandit, KENNICOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1865. p. 75.
Tropidoclonion kirtlandii, CoPe, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1860, p. 340.

General color above purplish brown, with four rows of sub-circular to triangular
blotches, the outer larger than the inner, being from two to five scales in width; color
beneath brick red, with a well defined series of dark blotches near the exterior of the
scutell®; dorsal scales in 19 rows, all carinate; vertical plate hexagonal, the posterior
angle more acute, the sides nearly parallel ; anteorbitals one on each side; nasals one,
with an indented line giving it the appearance of two; upper labials six, lower
seven ; postorbitals above the fourth upper labials, and inframaxillaries reaching to sixth
lower labials; gastrosteges 130-135; urosteges 55-60; post-abdominal scutella bifid.
Length 174 inches ; head, $ inch ; tail, 44 inches; transverse diameter of head, 5-16 inch;
of neck 4 inch; circumference of body, 14 inches.

Habitat, New Jersey, Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois.

Regina kirtlandii is a terrestrial animal, being found in woods, gen-
erally under old logs. It is sluggish, not very pugnacious, and in the
State has been detected in Columbus.

In naming this species, Mr. Kennicott pays the following compli-
ment to the Ohio Herpetologist: ‘In giving to this serpent the name

WATER SNAKE. 683

of Dr. Kirtland, as a slight token of the respect due him to whose enthu-
siastic and untiring devotion to Science the West owes so much, I would
also make some expression of my personal gratitude to the honored
teacher, whose kind encouragement and instruction led me to study Na-
ture, by dedicating to him his pupil’s first contribution to Science.”

Genus TROPIDONOTUS. Kuhl.

Body thick and stout; sizelarge ; cephalic plates normal ; anteorbitals one, sometimes
two; postorbitals three, rarely two; labials and inframaxillaries large; nasals two;
loral present; prefrontals two; dorsal scales in 23-29 rows, carinated; gastrosteges
130-155 ; urosteges 65-85 all divided; postabdominal scutella bifid; general color three
to five series of dark blotches upon a lighter ground; habits aquatic; reproduction
ovoviviparous.

Dorsal scales in 23, rarely 25 rows. a.

Dorsal scales in 25 rows; upper labials 9, lower 11; extralimital. . T. WOODHOUSIL.

Dorsal scales in 27 rows. R N : : . F : . T. RHOMBIFER.

Dorsal scales in 29 rows ; extralimital, North Carolina to Georgia. . T. TAXISPILOTA.

a. Abdomen usually spotted with dark. b.
a. Abdomen unicolor. o.

b. Gastrosteges 137-145. r s » ‘ a e ‘ a T. SIPEDON.
b. Gastrosteges 128-133. : i : . H : i . T. FASCIATUS.
o, Anteorbitals one or two. . = ; . . T. ERYTHROGASTER.

TROPIDONOTUS SIPEDON Linnzus.

Water Snake or Water Adder.
Coluber sipedon, LINN2ZUS, SHAW, MERREM, HARLAN, KIRTLAND, STORER.
Tropidonotus sipedon, HOLBROOK, DEKay, DUMERIL and BIBRON, VERRILL.
Coluber pocdogaster, WIED.

7

REGINA GRAHAMII Baird and Girard.

Graham’s Snake.

Tropidonotus grahami, GUNTHER, COPE, JORDAN.
Regina grahamii, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color above brown, witha light vertebral line margined with black; lateral line
yellow, with a black margin situated upon the first, second, and third rows of scales;
abdomen yellowish, without spots; vertical plates nearly pentagonal, with the sides notched
a little behind the center ; anteorbitals two ; nasals one; upper labials seven, lower eight;
postorbitals above the line of union of the fourth and fifth upper labials ; inframaxillaries
Teaching to the anterior end of the seventh lower labials; dorsal scales in 19 rows;
gastrosteges 160-162; urosteges 57. Length, 20% inches; head, § inch; tail, 4 inches;
transverse diameter of head, 5-16 inch; of neck, } inch; circumference of body, 14 inch.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley from Western Mexico, Texas and Lonisiana, to Illinois and
Michigan.

Although I have no record of this species having been observed in the State, its
range is such as to render its occurrence in Ohio probable.

684 REPTILES—COLUBRIDE.

Tropidonotus niger, HOLBROOK.
Nerodia sipedon, et transversa, BAIRD and GIRARD.
Tropidonotus fasciatus, var. sipedon, GUNTHER.

a
General color above brownish, with three series of darker, more or less distinct, ap-

proximately quadrilateral blotches, the vertebral row much the larger, covering from
two to three scales before backwards, and nine to ten scales in width; abdomen
yellowish, with dark blotches, or a marbling of yellow and brown; the general color is
sometimes in old specimens so predominant as to render the markings obscure ; vertical
plate pentagonal, nearly or quite as long as commissural line of occipitals, the latter
truncate behind; upper labials 8, lower 10; anteorbitals 1; postorbitals 3, over the
commissural line of the fifth and sixth upper labials; inframaxillaries reaching to the
posterior end of seventh lower labial; dorsal scales in 23, rarely 25, rows; gastrosteges
137-145 ; urosteges 60-80; body attaining a large size; tail short.

The young of this species show the coloration very decidedly ; a light line reachin
back from the posterior edge of, and two light spots upon the occipitals; head also
variously marked or marbled with lighter. Length, 2% feet; head, 14 inches; tail, 74
inches; transverse diameter of head, $ inch; of neck, 9-16 inch; circumference of body
44 inches.

Habitat, Canada, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Vir-
ginia, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Upper Missouri, ‘‘ Louisiana and
Mexico.”

In the State, as in the extralimital part of its range, Tropidonotus
stpedon is the commonest aquatic snake. It may be seen along the shores
of ponds, and streams, and upon logs, basking in the sun. It is found
only in wet places, and when disturbed takes to water and glides
rapidly away. Although a formidable looking animal, the Water
Snake is destitute of poison fangs, and perfectly harmless.

TROPIDONOTUS FasciATUS Linnzus.

Coluber fasciatus, LINNZUS, DAUDIN, HOLBROOK.

Coluber porcatus, HARLAN.

Tropidonotus fasciatus, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, DUMERIL and BiBRON, GUNTHER.
Nerodia fasciata, BAIRD aud GIRARD.

? Coluber porcatus, KIRTLAND.

General color brown above, with transverse dark spots in the'young; sides with from
30-38 sub-triangular red patches; abdomen reddish-white, with dark blotches; head
broader behind, and more triangular than Tropidonotus sipedon ; vertical plate pentagonal,
broader in front than behind; upper labials 8, lower 9; anteorbitals 1; dorsal scales in
23 rows, the exterior as well as the others carinated; gastrosteges 128-233; urosteges
40-75.

Habitat, South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Mexico, Central America.

Dr. Kirtland refers the Coluber porcatus to Ohio, and states that it is found upon the
shores of rivers and creeks, and that it was popularly confounded with Tropidonotus.
sipedon, under the name of Water Snake. I have not seen it from the State, and think
owing to its southern range, that his identification was probably erroneous.

RED-BELLIED WATER SNAKE. 685

TROPIDONOTUS ERYTHROGASTER Shaw.

Red-bellied Water Snake.

Coluber erythrogaster, SHAW, HOLBROOK.
Tropidonotus erythrogaster, HOLBROOK, DEKay, DUMERIL and Bipron.
Nerodia erythrogaster, et agassizii, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color bluish to reddish black above, without spots or blotches; beneath
coppery red; body attaining a great size; head large, triangular; muzzle obtuse or
truncate ; vertical, occipital, temporal, and labial shields large, of the latter the sixth
and seventh upper, and the fifth and sixth lower the largest; vertical plate pentagonal,
broadest in front, about as long as commissural line of occipitals; anteorbitals one;
upper labials 8, lower 10; inframaxillaries large, extending to eighth lower labial; dor-
sal scales in 23 rows, all carinated except the exterior in which it has become obsolete ;
gastrosteges 150-155; urosteges 67 to 80. Length, 3 11-12 feet; head, 14 inches; tail,
10} inches; transverse diameter of head, 14 inches; of neck, 2 inch; circumference of
body, 7 inches.

Habitat, Michigan, Illinois, Kansas, Arkansas and South.

I have never seen. Tropidonotus erythrogaster from Ohio. Dr. Wheaton
informs me that in the vicinity of Columbus a large serpent of this genus,
with a coppery belly is not uncommon. It is doubtless this species,
in which opinion I am confirmed by the fact that it has been found at
Lake Erie, near Brest, Monroe county, Michigan.

Genus HETERODON. Besuvois.

Size large; neck and body capable of great dilatation by inhalation of air which is
afterwards emitted witha peculiar hissing sound, hence the name Blowing Vipers; head
short, large, triangular, resembling somewhat the venomous Crotalide ; cephalic region
covered with large plates, of which the rostral forms a trihedral pyramid, with a promi-

TROPIDONOTUS RHOMBIFER Hallowell.

Holbrook’s Water Snake.

Tropidonotus rhombifer, HALLOWELL, COPE.
Nerodia rhombifer, et holbrookii, BAIRD and GIRARD. :

General color brown, with quadrangular black blotches, about 50 in number, from head
to end of tail; lateral transverse bars alternating with the preceding ; head elongated,
slightly swollen at the temples; muzzle truncated ; vertical plate elongated, slightly
notched on the sides, and its length greater than commissural line of occipiial: upper
labials 8, lower 10; inframaxillaries reaching about to end of seventh lower labials;
dorsal scales in 27 rows, the outer smooth ; gastrosteges 142-143; urosteges 63-73. Length,
23 feet; head, 14 inches; tail, 64 inches; trausverse diameter of head, 10 lines; of
neck, 8 lines; circumference of body 3 inches.

Habitat, Michigan, Dlinois, Arkazsas, and Louisiana.

Provably not in our limits, butits range is such that it may easily extend into Ohio.

686 REPTILES—COLUBRIDE.

nent ridge or keel above; small infraorbitals, above the labials, continuous with the ante-
orbitals in front and postorbitals behind ; nasals two ; lorals one or two ; prefrontals enclos-
ing an azygos plate with or without other small plates along side ; two posterior maxillary
teeth much the longest ; dorsal scales in 23 to 27 rows, carinated ; gastrosteges 125-150 ; uro-
steges 30-58; post-abdominal scutella, bifid.
Azygos and frontals separated by small plates. a. ;
Azygos and frontals contiguous. ‘ : : H. PLATYRHINUS.
a. Interfrontal region with from 4-8 staal Dielen: extralimital. . . H.simus.
a. Interfrontal region with from 11-15 small plates; extralimital. . H. Nasicus.

HETERODON PLATYRHINUS Latreille.
Hog-nose Snake or Spreading Adder.

Coluber heterodon, DAUDIN, SAY, HARLAN.

Heterodon platyrhinus, LATREILLE, HOLBROOK, STORER, KIRTLAND, DEKAY, DUMERIL and
BIBRON, GUNTHER, COPE,

Heterodon annulatus, TROOST.

Heterodon platyrhinos, cognatus, niger, et atmodes, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color light-brown above, with three series of dark blotches varying from
quadrate to circular, and becoming half rings upon the tail, alternating with light
yellow; black band crossing the anterior part of the vertical and superciliary plates
and posterior half of the postfrontals, and continuing through the eye to the angle of
the mouth; upper part of the neck and back with the scales between the black spots
brown centrally and surrounded with orange-yellow, as can be seen by stretching the
skin; under part of tail varying from yellow to flesh-red; abdomen slate color, becoming
greenish-yellow under the neck ; inframaxillary region greenish-white; vertical and
superciliary crossed by a greenish band; upper labials yellow, eight in number, lower
nine; vertical pentagonal, cuneiform, broadest in front, and longer than commissural
line of occipitals; superciliaries broad ; azygos elongated, acute behind, contiguous
with the prefrontals and postfrontals, reaching to about the middle of the commissural
line of the latter; inframaxillaries extending to fourth lower labial; dorsal scales in 25,
rarely 23, rows ; gastrosteges 125-149; urosteges 46-58. Length, 23 feet; head, 1 inches 7
tail, 7 inches; transverse diameter of head, 14 inches; of neck, 1 inch; circumference
of body, 3} inches.

Habitat, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Vir-
ginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Tennessee, Illinois,
Ohio, Michigan, and ‘ California.”

The Hog-nose Snake is occasionally found in the northeastern part of
State, and in the Scioto Valley. It is usually met with in sandy
soils, and, it is said, also in low, wet meadows. Its breeding has been ob-
served in Georgia in April, but probably is later in our more northern
climate. Heterodon platyrhinus rejoices in a multitude of common
names, such as Spreading, Deaf, and Blowing Adder, Flat-head, Hog-and
Buckwheat-nose Snake, Blauser, Blowing, and Sand Viper, etc.

Considerable discussion has been going on lately in the Science News*

*Vol. I, Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4,

BLACK VIPER. 687

as to the effect of the bite of this Heterodon. Dr. Yarrow of Washington,
D. C., called attention to it, and also since stated the fact that he had
a fine specimen brought to him the past summer, which the slayer
called the “ Mountain Moccasin,” and declared it to be the most venomous
of all snakes. A similar belief prevails among the Indians and com-
mon people generally. On the other hand, Messrs. H. 8. Reynolds,
Urbana, Illinois, C. C. Abbott, Trenton, New Jersey, and R. M. W. Gibbs,
Kalamazoo, Michigan, state that they had each been bitten by
Heterodon platyrhinus, and had known it to bite animals without serious
results. Mr. H. E. Heighway, Cincinnati, Ohio, states that, while
on a scientific expedition last summer, Prof. A.S. Wetherby and six
students from Cincinnati University, found under old logs a “ Puffing
Adder” of the genns Heterodon. The Professor picked it up fearlessly, and
while preparing to put it into a bottle of alcohol, was bitten upon the
thumb, but no attention was paid to the bite, and no harm resulted. On
the other hand, it may be stated, that the Heterodon has at the posterior
end of the maxillary bone two or four teeth, much larger than the
others, and resembling fangs in appearance. They are still farther
enveloped in a sheath similar to that in the venomous serpents, and
separated by a short interval from the ordinary teeth. These teeth are
firmly soldered to the bone, and not loosely set in grooves as the ordinary
ones. That the animal could use them for the purpose of striking seemed
to me impossible, until Prof. Steere informed me of their peculiar power
of apparently dislocating their jaw, which may enable them to do so.
The question therefore must be settled by observations made upon the
actual bite of the animal. These thus far seem to point to its harmless
character, and yet it is hardly safe from them to infer positively that
the general opinion is wrong, and that naturalists are right. My own
impression is that Heterodon is harmless, and yet its general appear-
ance, and more especially the shape of its head strikingly resembles that
of the venomous reptiles.

HETERODON PLAYRHINUS Latreille.

var. NIGER Catesby.

Black Viper.

Vipera nigra, CATESBY.

Coluber cacodemon, SHaw.

Scytale niger, DAUDIN, HARLAN.

Coluber thraso, HARLAN.

Heterodon niger, TROOST, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, BAIRD and GIRARD, DUMERIL and
BIBRON, GUNTHER.

688 REPTILES—COLUBRIDE.

This variety differs from the typical Heterodon platyrhinus by being of a uniform black
or brown above, without spots, and having a slate colored abdomen.

Habitat, Convecticut, Pennsyivania, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee.
In the State, Dr. Kirtland ceporis it as having been fouud at Legionville and the Ohio
hills.

The Black Viper is apparently more ferocious than the typical
platyrhinus. When disturbed it flattens its head, hisses, throws its
mouth wide open, giving it the appearance of a dislocated lower jaw
(which remains fixed for some time), and darts at the object. If unable
thus to frighten away its foes, and is in turn a little roughly treated,
such as being pushed with a stick, it will feign death, as was observed
by Troost and also by Prof. Steere of Michigan University. The former
of these gentlemen was so far deceived that he laid down his snake for a
short time, when it made its escape, and was found again with diffi-
culiy. He also found in one which he dissected twenty-five oval eggs,
each three-quarters of an inch long, and without a calcareous cover.

Grnus PITYOPHIS. Holbrook.

Body rather long and moderaioly slender; head elongated; teeth equal, smooth ;
cepLaiic plates not no:mal; rostral high, piojecting forwards in some species; pre-
frontals two ; posifrontals four or five; uasals two; loral small ; anteorbitals one or two;
postorbitals vhree or four; dorsal scales in 25 to 35 rows, middle ones slightly car-
inated; gastcosteges 210-244 5 urosteges 44-72; post-abdominal scutella entire,

Dorsal scales in 29 rows. . . . A . : . PP. MELANOLEUCUS.

Dorsal scales in 29 rows; extralimital. A . ‘ . . : . P. sayı.

PityoPHIS MELANOLKUCUS Daudin.
Pine or Dull Snake.

Coluber melanoleucus, DAUDIN, HARLAN.
Pituophis nclanolucus, TTOLBROOK, BAIRD end GIRARD, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER,
Copz, JORDAN.

General color white to yellowish, with a dorsal series of large chestnut blotches,
which are wmargined with black; abdomen unicolor, with sides irregularly mottled; ver-
tical p'ate sub-pentagoual ; postivonials four, the internal pair sub-triangular, external
polygonal; upper labiais 8, lower 14; nostrils two, vertically oblong; rostral convex,
projecting forwards and reaching to the iuternal ,ost-frontals behind ; tail about one-
seventh of total length; urosteges 60-65 ; gastrosteges 215-230; dorsal scales in 29 rows.
Length, 4 fect; tail 63 inches.

"itat, New Jersey, South Carolina and Florida, to Ohio.

Rare in the State. Usually, if not always, the Bull Snake is found in pine
woods. It lays from seven to twelve eggs in July, and prior to oviposi-
tion the female is very irritable. They emit an odor which is believed
to be of use in attracting the opposite sex.*

*For habits of this animal see Am. Naturalist, Jan., 1875, p. 1.

\

SAY’S CHAIN SNAKE. 689

Genus OPHIBOLUS Baird and Girard.

Body moderately elongated ; head slightly, if at all, separable from the neck ; ceph-
alic plates normal; vertical very broad ; superciliaries narrow ; postfrontals and prefron-
tals, each a pair, of moderate size; occipitals large ; postorbitals two; anteorbitals one;
nasal one, with an indented line giving it the appearance of two; labials and infra-
maxillaries rather large; dorsal scales in 21-25 rows, smooth, not imbricated; gas-
trosteges, 180-220; urosteges, 44-65 ; post-abdominal scutella entire or bifid.

t Dorsal scales in 21 or 23 rows; anal plate entire. a.

t Dorsal scales in 25 rows; anal plate bifid. . . : 5 . O. CALLIGASTER.

a. Gastrosteges, 180-210. Db.
a. Gastrosteges, 210-225; extralimital, Maryland to Louisiana; east of Alleghanies.
O. GETULUS.
b. Red, with black rings; head red. . . : ‘ h . ©. DOLIATUS.
b. Gray, with brown blotches margined with dark; head gray and black.
O. TRIANGULUS.

OPHIBOLUS CALLIGASTER Say.

Say’s Chain Snake.

Coluber calligaster, Say, HARLAN.
Ablabes triangulum, var. calligaster ; Ophibolus evansii, KENNICOTT.
Ophibolus calligaster, COPE, JORDAN.

General color above grayish-brown, with a vertebral series of from forty to sixty
chocolate to black sub-quadrangular, emarginate blotches, margined with still darker ;
head greenish-brown, with darker spots; upper labials yellow; latera! blotches alter-
nating with the vertebral series, often not very distinct; abdomen maculated with
approximately quadrilateral dark blotches; vertical plate pentagonal, nearly as long
as commissural line of occipitals ; upper labials, 7.8, lower, 9-11; dorsal scales in 25 rows ;
anal plate bifid; gastrosteges, 232; urosteges, 60-70. Length, 34 feet; head, 10 lines;
tail, 5 inches; transverse diameter of head, 8 lines; of neck, 7 lines; circumference of
body, 3 inches.

Habitat, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Ohio.

I am indebted to Prof. Tuttle, of the Ohio State University for the
single specimen of this species which I have seen from the State. It came
from Lancaster, in Fairfield county.

OPHIBOLUS TRIANGULUS Boie.

Milk Snake.

Coluber triangulum, BOIE.

Coluber eximius, DEKAY, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, STORER, GUNTHER.
Coluber guttatus, BCHLEGEL. j

Ophibolus eximius, et clericus, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Ablabes triangulum, DUMERIL and BIBRON, var. clericus, et eximius, HALLOWELL.
Lampropeltis triangula, et Ophibolus doliatus, sub-species triangulus, COPE.
Lampropeltis triangula, VERRILL,

44

690 REPTILES—COLUBRIDZ.

General color grayish white; a vertebral series of transversely ellipitical, brown margined
with black blotches extends from the neck to the tail, each blotch covering from four
to five scales in length and fifteen to twenty in width; lateral spots of the same color in.
two rows on each side, each spot from three to four scales in width and two to-three in
length, with smaller spots between ; ventral spots quadrangular on one, two, and some-
times three scutelle, longest transversely ; the white upon the back arranged somewhatin
transverse bands about one and a half to two scales in width; head with two
elliptical blotches reaching from the occipitals backwards, that on the left side the.
larger, causing the white or creamy-white on the neck above to appear as a longitudinal
band between the blotches, and this band bifurcates just behind the occipitals ; a dingy
white spot on the anterior of the occipitals surrounded by a sub-quadrangular spot of
black or brown; a transverse dark band crossing the vertical and postfrontals just in
front of the eye; a longitudinal brown blotch running from the eye backward and
forward ; eyes moderate; pupils black; irides red; vertical plate nearly an equilateral
triangle ; occipitals rather large, truncate behind ; upper labials, 7, lower, 8; infra-
maxillaries reaching to posterior end of fifth lower labial; dorsal scales in 21 rows; gas-
trosteges, 200-210; urosteges, 48-55. Length, 34 feet; head, 14 inches; tail, 5% inches;
transverse diameter of head, $ inch ; of neck, $ inch; circumference of body 3} inches.

Habitat, Canada, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania,
Maryland, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa.

Common in all parts of the State.

The Museum of Michigan University contains a double-headed O.
triangulus, of which the remainder of the body appears to be perfectly
normal. Another case is recorded by Prof. Wyman* of a Tropidonotus
sipedon with two heads and two tails, and a similar case as well as an in-
stance of a five legged frog is reported by Mr. Kingsley.f Mr. Ryder}
also calls attention toa specimen of Rana palustris with five limbs or
rather an additional pair of hind legs fused together. This limb had six
toes, and its digital formula might be written 5,4, 3,3, 4,5,and the outer
or dark colors prevailed just as they should in case of two limbs united.
Cases of monstrosities among serpents have been observed by various
parties from the time of Aristotle and Redi to the present, and they, as
well as the occurrence of monsters in general, may be due to shock.

The Milk Snake called also Chicken Snake, Thunder and Lightning
Snake, Chequered or Spotted Adder, is found in dry woods and frequently
also in outhouses and dairies, which it is said to visit in order to get at
the milk. It isa perfectly harmless animal, climbs readily and glides
with grace and rapidity over smooth places.

Mr. C. Hart Merriam on the authority of Mr John M. Howey, of
Canandaigua, N. Y., gives an instance of an Ophibolus (probably this.

*Proc. Bost. Soc Nat. Hist., vol. ix, p. 183.
+ Am. Naturalist, vol. xii, p. 594-751.
4Science News, Dec., 15, 1878, p. 69.

RED OR CORN SNAKE. 691

species) swallowing an Eufenia or Striped Snake. He (Howey) struck
the snake with the scythe, cutting it in two about three inches from its
head, when to his surprise a tail stuck out. He drew it out, and then
discovered it to be an Eutenia, about two-thirds as long as the Ophibolus.
It had, of course, been swallowed head foremost, and the head was nearly
digested.

OPHIBOLUS DOLIATUS Linnzus.

Red or Corn Snake.

Coluber doliatus, LINNEVS, GMELIN, HARLAN.
Coluber coccineus, BLUMENBACH, KIRTLAND.
Coronella coccinea, SCHLEGEL.

Coronella doliata, HOLBROOK, GUNTEB!R.
Ophibolus doliatus, et gentilis, BAIRD 2 1d GIRARD.
Lampropeltis doliata, et Orhibolus doliatus, CoPE.
Rhinostoma coccinea, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color red, with from twenty-two to twenty-five pairs of transverse black
bands, each inclosing a yellow spot ; head in front red, with a black ring on posterior of
oceipitals, passing forward on each side across the superciliaries and vertical to meet on
the postfrontals, thus inclosing a large nearly triangular spot with the apex anteriorly;
a black spot upon the sides of the head, upon the temporals and posterior upper
labials ; abdomen red, with dark spots; vertical plate nearly an equilateral triangle ;
upper labials, 7, lower, 8; inframaxillaries reaching to posterior edge of fifth lower
labial ; dorsal scales in 21 or 23 rows; gastrosteges, 185-208; urosteges, 45-50. Length,
24 feet ; bead, J inch; tail, 34 inches; transverse diameter of head, 6 lines; of neck, 5
lines; circumference of body, 2 inches,

Habitat, Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas, and Illinois.

Dr. Kirtland mentions having had a specimen sent to him labelled by
Mr. Dorfeuille, which was said to have been taken in Ohio. It ig
accordingly inserted here, though it must be rare in the State.

Genus COLUBER. Linnzus.
Scotophis, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Body large, attaining a length of four or five feet; head elongated; vertical plate
large and very broad ; postfrontals attaining a great size; prefrontals two, large ; rostral
large, not projecting ; nasals two; loral present; anteorbitals one; postorbitals two;
upper and lower labials large ; mouth deeply cleft; dorsal scales in 23 to 29 rows, the
middle ones slightly carinated, the outer smooth; gastrosteges, 200-235; urosteges,
65-93; post- abdominal scutella bifid.

*Dorsal scales in 25 rows. a.

*Dorsal scales in 27, rarely 25 rowa. 0.

*Dorsal scales in 29 rows. d.

a. Gastrosteges, 200-210; tail at anus, large, tapering rapidly to a point.
©. VULPINUS,

692 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA,

a. Gastrosteges, 230-240; tail at anus moderate, tapering gradually to a point; ex-

tralimital, South Carolina, Louisiana, and Missouri. . . . . CO. CONFINIS.
b. Dorsal region greenish-yellow, with four longitudinal brown bands; extralimital,
North Carolina to Florida. k 7 ‘ 4 C. QUADRIVITTATUS.

b. Dorsal region without bands. c.
ce. Gastrosteges, 230-235; vertical plate longer than broad; black above.
©. OBSOLETUS.
c. Gastrosteges, 210-230 ; vertical plate about as long as broad ; red dorsal blotches;
extralimital, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, to Mississippi.
C. @UTTATUS.
d. Vertical plate about as long as broad; extralimital, Texas to Arkansas.
C. LINDHEIMERII.
d. Vertical plate longer than broad; extralimital, Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, and
Illinois. 6 A R . ; . ; C, EMORYI.

CoLUBER OBSOLETUS Say.

Pilot Black Snake or Racer.

Coluber obsoletus, SAY, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND.
Coluber obsoletus, et alleghaniensis, DEKAY.
Scotophis alleghaniensis, BAIRD and GIRARD.
Elaphis alleghaniensis, ALLEN.

Coluber obsoletus, et Scotophis alleghaniensis, COPE.

Color black, sometimes with the scales margined with yellowish-white, giving the
appearance of lighter blotches; head black above; upper labials greenish-yellow;
abdomen dark or a mottled black and yellow, or black and white; gular and lower
maxillary region either mottled or dirty yellow; vertical plate sub-pentagonal, longer
than broad; occipitals large, truncate behind; postfrontals and astral large; upper
labials, 8, the two posterior the largest, Jower, 11, fifth and sixth largest; inframaxil-
laries extending to eighth lowerlabial ; dorsal scales in 27, rarely 25 rows; gastrosteges,
230-235 ; urosteges, 80-86. Length, 5 feet; head, 13 inches; tail, 10 inches; transverse
diameter of head, 1 inch; of neck, 9 lines; circumference of body, 44 inches.

Habitat, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Obio, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas.

In the State I have seen but one specimen of the Pilot Snake. It
came from Yellow Springs, Clarke county, and was sent to me by Prof.
Tuttle, of the Ohio State University. Itdiffered from the typical Coluber
obsoletus by having 25 instead of 27 rows of scales, and a slightly broader
vertical plate, approaching in these respects the southern variety, confinis.
It is said to dwell for the most part in damp places, crawling upon the
hills in autumn previous to hybernation, and is an animal of “ prodigious
velocity,” probably rare in our limits. It resembles and is liable to be
confounded with the Blue Racer, Bascanion constrictor, from which it can
be readily distinguished by its darker color, and having the central dorsal
scales carinated instead of smooth.

BLUE RACER OR BLACK SNAKE. 693

Genus BASCANION. Baird and Girard.

Body elongated, attaining a Yength of five or six feet; head elongated, passing
gradually into the neck; vertical plate elongated; superciliaries wide; occipitals
large; postfrontals moderately large; postorbitals two; anteorbitals two ; loral large ;
nasals two; labials large; inframaxillaries weli developed ; mouth deeply cleft; dorsal
scales in 17, rarely 19 rows, all smooth; gastrosteges, 170-210; urosteges, 80-110; anal
plate bifid; color above black, olive, or blue.

BascANION CONSTRICTOR Linnzus.

Blue Racer or Black Snake.

Coluber constrictor, LINNZUS, GMEZIN, HARLAN, SCHLEGEL, STORER, HOLBROOK,
THOMPSON, KIRTLAND, DEKay.

Hierophis constrictor, BONAPARTE.

Coryphodon constrictor, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.

Bascanion constrictor, BAIRD and GIRARD, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.

? Bascanion foxii, BAIRD and GIRARD.

? Coluber flaviventris, Say, HARLAN, HOLBROOK.

? Bascanion flaviventris, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color above in ourspecimens, varying from uniform azure blue to blue-black ;
below greenish-blue; gular region, lower jaw, labial, and rostral region of upper jaw
whitish ; a light line passing from the rostral just above the loral and eye, to the
anterior edge of the superciliaries; vertical plate pentagonal, with irregular sides,
broadest anteriorly, in length about equal to commissural line of occipitals; upper

CoLUBER VULPINUS Baird and Girard.

Fox Snake.
Scotophis vulpinus, BAIRD and GIRARD.
Coluber vulpinus, COPE.
Elaphis spiloides, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Coluber spiloides, GUNTHER.

General color above light-brown, with a vertebral and two lateral rows of chocolate
colored blotches, the vertebral very large, covering from five to nine scales in length and
about twelve in width, the lateral much smaller, about three scales in length and from
three to five in width ; these blotches extending upon the tail, but smaller; head light-
brown to yellow; abdomen with four series of approximately quadrilateral black blotches ;
vertical plate nearly an equilateral triangle; occipitals large, rounded behind; upper
labials, 8, the sixth and seventh largest, lower, 11, the fifth much the largest; infra-
maxillaries reaching to the sixth lower labial; dorsal scales in 25 rows; gastrosteges,
300-310; urosteges, 65-70; taillarge at base. Length, 5 feet; head, 1$ inches; tail, 92
inches; transverse diameter of head, 14 inches; of neck, 10 lines; circumference of
body, 5 inches.

Habitat. Massachusetts, New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota.

Although this species has not yet, so far as I know, been observed in Ohio, its
range is such as to render its occurrence in the northern part of the State very probable.

694 REPTILES—-COLUBRID 2.

labials, 7, lower, 9; inframaxillıries extending to sixth lower labial; temporal region
covered with two rows of plates, three or four in each ; rostral large, triangular, project-
ing between the prefrontals ; dorsal scales in 17, rarely 19 rows; gastrosteges, 175-190;
urosteges, 80-110. Length, 6 feet; head, 1$ inches; tail, 18 inches; transverse diameter
of head, 1 inch; of neck, $ inch; circumference of body, 5 inches.

Habitat, Canada, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan, and Ohio. ‘St. Domingo.”

From the State I have seen specimens from London and Lancaster,
and the portion adjoining Michigan, though it is probably moderately
common everywhere. Dr. Kirtland observed that it seemed to be upon the
increase, as the State became cleared.

The western Blue Racer differs very markedly in color from the Black
Snake of the east. In the latter the color is a lustrous pitch black,
while in ours, in the adult state, it is a light azure, and a very pale
blue or almost white beneath. The scales in our serpents are somewhat
broader than in any of the eastern specimens which I have seen. These
differences are sufficient to constitute what Prof. Cope calls a “ sub-
species” or geographical variety, to which the name czruleus may very
properly be applied.

The Blue Racers are gregarious animals during hybernation and in
spring, having been ploughed up in bunches of seventy to eighty, but in
summer they seem to be solitary, as they are then found singly or in pairs,
a male and female being together. They inhabit woods, are sometimes
found under and around barns, and climb trees and bushes in order to
reach birds’ nests, and obtain the young birds andeggs. They also prey
upon mice and frogs, and although non-venomous, are said to pursue an
enemy who retreats before them. Allen remarked that in Massachusetts
Bascanion constrictor, like the field mice, was more numerous some years
than others, possibly the result of the same cause in both instances,
viz. the relative degree to which the ground was protected by snow
during winter. The same gentleman saw one alive during a break in
the cold weather on January 29, 1864.

Genus LIOPELTIS. Fitzinger.

Body long and slender; head elongated; teeth equal, smooth; cephalic plates nor-
mal; postfrontals and prefrontals each a pair; postorbitals two; anteorbitals one or
two; nasals one; loral present, occasionally fused with the nasal; occipitals large;
mouth deeply cleft; dorsal scales in 15 rows, all smooth; gastrosteges, 129-140; anal

plate bifid.

SUMMER GREEN SNAKE. 695

LioPELTIs veRNALIs DeKay.

Green or Grass Snake.

Coluber vernalis, PEKAY, HARLAN, STORER, KIRTLAND, HOLBROOK, THOMPSON.
Chlorosoma vernalis, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Herpetodryas vernalis, HALLOWELL.

Cyclophis vernalis, GUNTHER, COPE.

Liopeltis vernalis, COPE, JORDAN.

Color uniform bright dark-green above; paler beneath, sometimes nearly white; color
in alcohol pale-blue ; vertical plate elongated pentagonal; rostral large; upper labials,
six, lower, eight; eyes large, above the third and fourth upper labials ; inframaxillaries
reaching to the sixth lower labial; gastrosteges, 129-140; nrosteges, 70-95. Length, 14
feet; head, inch; tail, 42 inches; transverse diameter of head, 5 lines; of neck, 4
lines; circumference of body, 14 inches.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey,
Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Nebraska, Montana and Colorado, to Florida and New Mexico.

This beautiful little snake frequents marshes, is quick and lively in its
movements, and is occasionally found in every part of Ohio.

Gexus CYCLOPHIS. Günther.

Body long and slender; head moderately large; teeth equal, smooth; sye rather
large; cephalic plates normal; postfrontals and prefrontals each a pair; postorbitals
two; anteorbitals one; nasals one; loral present; occipitals large; vertical elongated ;
inframaxillaries long; dorsal scales sub-elliptical, in 17 rows, carinated ; gastrosteges,
155-165; urosteges, 110-135; anal plate bifid.

CyrcLopHis mstivus Linneus.

Summer Green Snake.

Coluber estivus, LINNZUS, HARLAN.

Leptophis estivus, BELL, HOLBROOK.

Herpetodryas estivus, SCHLEGEL, DUMERIL and BIBRON, HALLOWELL.
Anguis viridis, CATESBY.

Cyclophis estivus, GUNTHER, COPE, JORDAN.

Opheadrys wstivus, FITZINGER, COPE.

Leptophis estivus, et majalis, BAIRD and GIRARD.

General color above reddish-green, in alcohol changing to blue; beneath yellowish to
greenish-white ; upper labials and lower jaw for the most part white; vertical plate sub-
pentagonal, longer than broad, but not equal to commissural line of occipitals; upper
labials, 7, lower, 8; mouth deeply cleft; commissure curved ; eye over third and fourth
upper labial; inframaxillaries extending to seventh lower labial ; scales in 17 rows, all
carinated except the three outer; gastrosteges, 155-158; uresteges, 125-135. Length, 25
inches; head, 8 lines; tail, 11 inches; transverse diameter of head, 4 lines; of neck, 3
lines ; circumference of body, 15 lines.

696 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA.

Habitat, Massachusetts ?, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arkansas,
Ohio, Illinois, Missouri, ‘‘ California, Michigan, West Indies.”

A single specimen of this beautiful little serpent was sent to me by
Prof. Tuttle, of the Ohio State University. It was captured at Ironton,
Lawrence county, and is likely to be confounded with the preceding
species, from which its seventeen rows of carinated scales at once dis-
tinguish it. Prof. Cope found that in confinement “ instead of climbing
over caladia, ferns, etc., it Jived mostly under ground. It had a curious
habit of projecting its head, and two or three inches of its body above
the ground, and holding them for hours rigidly in a fixed attitude.” In
this position its resemblance to a small sprout or plant might easily
lead to its being mistaken for such, or overlooked by other animals.

GeNuS DIADOPHIS. Baird and Girard.

Body slender, elongated ; head rather short and broad; teeth equal, smooth ; cephalic
plates normal; postfrontals and prefrontals each a pair; loral present; nasals two;
postorbitals two; labials and inframaxillaries rather small ; occipitals of fair size ; rostral
comparatively small, not projecting ; dorsal scales in 15-17 rows ; gastrosteges, 142-240 ;
urosteges, 35-60 ; anal plate bifid ; occipital region generally with a yellowish-ring.

Dorsal scales in 15 rows. A * é D. PUNCTATUS.
Dorsal scales in 17 rows; abdomen spotted and Pattlea with black ; extralimital.
D. ARNYL

DiapoPHis puncrarus Linnzus.

Ring-necked Snake.

Coluber punctatus, LINNZUS, GMELIN, HARLAN, KIRTLAND, STORER, HOLBROOK, DEKay.
Coluber torquatus, SHAW.

Natrix edwardsii, et punctatus, MERREM,

Homalosoma punctatum, WAGLER.

Spiletes punctatus, SWAINSON.

Calamaria punctata, SCHLEGEL.

Ablabes punctatus DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER, HALLOWELL,

Diadophis punctatus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Cops, VERRILL, ALLEN, JORDAN.

General color above bluish to brownish-black, without spots; a yellow transverse
band in the occipital region, sometimes this ring is replaced by yellow spots transversely
arranged ; beneath orange colored to whitish, either uniform or with a medial row of
spots; labial region yellowish-white ; vertical plate nearly triangular, not as long as
commissural line of occipitals ; upper labials, 8, lower, 9; occipitals long and not trun-
cate behind ; inframaxillaries reaching to sixth lower labial; eye above the fourth and
fifth upper labials; dorsal scales in 15 rows; gastrosteges, 148-163; urosteges, 35-56.
Length, 15 inches; head, 6 lines; tail, 3 inches; transverse diameter of head, 34 lines;
of neck, 23 lines; circumference of body 1 inch,

LITTLE BROWN SNAKE. 697

Habitat, Canada, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana; north to Ohio and Michigan,
and west to the plains. r

The Ring-necked Snake is occasionally found in Ohio, but it is rare.
It occurs under stones, but more commonly under the bark of decayed
trees, and, like the Eutainiz, when handled, emits a strong and dis-
agreeable odor.

Var. amabilis, Baird and Girard, may be distinguished from the above
by having the eye over the third and fourth labials, the abdomen crowded
with black spots, and a narrow occipital ring. It ranges from California

to Texas and eastward as far as our limits, being occasionally found in
Ohio.

Genus STORERIA, Baird and Girard.

Body small; head rather short, easily separable from the neck; teeth smooth and
equal; cephalic region covered with plates; loral absent, rarely present ; postfrontals and
prefrontals each a pair ; nasals two ; anteorbitals one or two ; postorbitals two ; occipitals
large; labials and inframaxillaries ot good size; rostral rather small; dorsal scales in
15-17 rows, carinated ; gastrosteges, 120-140; urosteges, 40-55; anal plate bifid ; ovovi-

viparous.
Anteorbitals one; dorsal scales in 17 rows. ‘ ‘ 2 : ‘ S. DEKAYL
Anteorbitals two; dorsal scales in 15 rows. . € “8. OCCIPITO-MACULATA.

STORERIA DEKAYI Holbrook.

Littie Brown Snake. *

Coluber dekayi, HOLBROOK.

Coluber ordinatus, LINNUS, STORER,

Tropidonotus dekayi, HOLBROOK, DEKay.

Storeria dekayi, BAIRD and GIRARD, COPE, JORDAN.
Ischnognathus dekayi, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.

_ General color above grayish-brown, with a somewhat lighter vertebral band margined
by dotted lines; a black bar extending from the occipitals to the angle of the mouth;
two black spots below the eye; abdomen and under parts greenish to grayish white;
vertical plate broad, sub-pentagonal, shorter than commissural line of occipitals ; ante-
orbitals one ; upper and lower labials each seven on a side; inframaxillaries reaching to
sixth lower labial; eye small, above the fourth upper labial; dorsal scales in 17 rows ;
gastrosteges, 120-150; urosteges, 40-60. Length, 1 foot; head, 54 lines; tail, 24 inches;
transverse diameter of head, 3 lines ; of neck, 2 lines ; circumference of body 38 inches.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, South Carolina,
Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan.

In the State the Little Brown Snake occurs at Cleveland and in north-
western and central Ohio, and probably is met with occasionally in all
parts. Itisan aquatic little animal, feeding upon insects, and perfectly

4

698 REPTILES—COLUBRIDA.

harmless. An anomaly sometimes occurs in regard to the cephalic plates, as
in the case of a specimen before me, which has four postorbitals on one side
and two on the other, and also has a couple of labials united.

STORERIA OCCIPITO-MACULATA Storer.

Red-bellied Storeria.

Coluber occipilo-maculata, STORER.

Coluber venustus, HALLOWELL.

Storeria occipito-maculata, BAIRD and GIRARD, ÜOPE, JORDAN.
Ichnognathus occipito-maculata, GUNTHER.

General color above grayish to dark-brown, with at times dark spots arranged in
longitudinal band; three light spots in the nuchal region ; beneath red or salmon-color to
white, sometimes with red upon the flanks and white between ; vertical plate sub: pen-
tangular, longer than broad, nearly or quite equal to commissural line of occipitals ;
anteorbitals two ; nostril in the anterior nasal; upper labials, 5-6, lower, 6-7, on a side;
dorsal scales in 15 rows; gastrosteges, 125-130; urosteges, 40-50. Length, 10 inches;
head, 4 lines; tail, 2 inches; transverse diameter of head, 2 lines; of neck, 14 lines;
circumference of body 1 inch.

Habitat, Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, Ili-
nois, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota.

Not rare about Columbus. It is somewhat nocturnal, and lives chiefly
under logs and stones.

Genus CARPHOPHIS. Gervais.

Body slender, cylindrical, of nearly uniform thickness; head and neck not separable,
the former tapering ‘to a pointed snout ; teeth equal, smooth; vertical plate very broad ;
supercilaries exceedingly narrow; eccipitals moderate; postorbitale one; anteorbitals
one; frontals one or two pairs; inframaxillaries small; dorsal scales in 13 rows, all
amocoth; gastrosteges, 120-135; anal plate bifid.

Frontal plates in two pairs. «.

Frontal plates a single pair ; abdomen flesh-colored ; extralimital. . . C. HELENA.
a. Color above lustrous purplish-black ; abdomen flesh-colored, extending ever the

third rew of scales; extralimital. . . . oo. . C. VERMIS,

a. Color above chestnut-brown. . . . . . C. AMENDB.

CARPHOPHIS AMENUS Say.

Ground or Worm Snake.

Coluber amenus, SAY, HARLAN, STORER.

Calamaria amena, SCHLEGEL.

Brachyorrhos amenus, HOLBROOK.

Celuta amena, BAIRD and GIRARD.

Carphophis amena, GERVAIS, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.
Carphophiops amenus, COPE, JORDAN.

General coler above brown, without spots or bands; beneath salmon-red ; head small ;
vertical plate irregular, hexagonal, pointed behind, about as broad as long, and equal

GROUND OR WORM SNAKE. 699

to commissural line of occipitals ; temporal shields well developed ; frontal plates in two
pairs; nostril in anterior part of nasal plate; rostral rounded anteriorly ; loral quad-
Tilateral, entering the orbit; postorbital rhomboidal; upper labials, five, lower, six;
eyes over the third and fourth labial; urosteges, 120-132. Length, 11 inches; head, 4}
lines; tail, 14 inches; transverse diameter of head, 2% lines; of neck, 22 lines; circum-
ference of body, 1 inch.

Habitat, Massachusetts?, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carelina, Mississippi, Illinois, Western Missouri, and Ohio.

This species is inserted here upon the authority of Dr. J. M. Wheaton,
of Columbus, who informs me that some years ago a specimen was cap-
tured by Prof. Tuttle, at Ironton, on the bank of the Ohio river. The
animal was sent to the Smithsonian Institution, hence its absence from .
the collection which that gentleman so kiudly placed in my hands. Dr.
Wheaton, however, informs me that it had the peculiarity of a single
pair of frontals. This would make it correspond, in that respect at least,
to Carphophis helene which is probably only a variety of C. amenus.

The following species of Ophidians, though not yet reported from the State, have such
@ range as to render their occurrence in our fauna possible:

Farancia abacura, Holb.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 123.

Habitat, South Carolina and Louisiana, and according to Nelson, Illinois.

Abasior erythrogrammus, Daud.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 125.

Habitat, North Carolina and Georgia, to Alabama, and Nelson says, Illinois.

Virginia valerie, Baird and Girard.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 127.

Habitat, Maryland and Nerth Carolina, to Illinois.
Virginia elegans, Kenn.

Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1859, p. 99.

Habitat, Illineis to Arkansas.

Carphophis helene, Kenn,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1859, p. 100;

Habitat, Illinois aud Tennessee, to Mississippi.
Carphophis vermis, Kenn.

Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, p. 99.

Habitat, Missouri, Kansas. :

Ophibolus getulus, var. sayi, Holb.
BALRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 84.

Habitat, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, to Mississippi and Louisiana,

700 REPTILES—COLUBRIDZ.

Diadophis arnyi, Kenn.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1859, p. 99.
Habitat, Illinois to Kansas.
Coluber emoryii, Baird and Girard.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1859, p. 98. As S. calligaster.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, p. 244.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 157.
Habitat, Texas to Arkansas, Kansas, and Illinois.
Pityophis sayi, Schl.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 151.
Habitat, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska.
Regina (Microps, Hal.) lineata, Hallowell.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phil., 1856, p. 241.
Habitat, Kansas to Texas.
Tropidonotus woodhousii, Baird and Girard. j
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 59.
Habitat, Texas to Missouri, and Arkansas.
Heterodon simus, Linn.
BAIRD and GIRARD, Cat., p. 59.
Habitat, North Carolina, South Carolina, to Mississippi, Illinois and Wisconsin.
Heterodon nasicus, Baird and Girard.
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, p. 249.
BAIRD AND GIRARD, Cat., p. 59.

U.S. Geolog. Surv., 100th Meridian, v. 611.
Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1874, p. 69.

Habitat, Mexico, New Mexico, Utah and California, to Kansas, Arkansas, Nebraska
and Montana.

AMEEIBIS,

Metamorphosis after birth; respiration branchial in young, pulmonary
or pulmonary and branchial in the adult, but always feeble in the
lungs, while active from theskin; lungs with few and coarse cells; blood
cold; corpuscles oval, nucleated; circulation incomplete; heart in adult
with two auricles and a ventricle} ; reproduction oviparous or ovovi-
parous; foetus anamniate; allantois wanting, unless the urinary bladder
represents it{; skin usually naked or unarmed; skeleton incomplete,
internal; cranium with two occipital condyles; nasal sacs and pharynx
connected; nervous system cerebro-spinal; brain small; cerebellum
scarcely visible; excrementitious and reproductive organs opening into
a cloaca.

The living forms are divided into three orders, as follows :

Feet present, at least in front; body not vermiform. a.

Feet wanting; body vermiform ; extralimital. : N 5 5 OPIOMORPHA.

a. Adult tailless; body short and thick. . > x > 2 d ANOURA.

a. Tail always present; body lacertiloid. ä : 5 . URODELA.

ORDER ANOURA. TAILLESS AMPHIBIANS.

Metamorphosis complete ; young fish-like, herbivorous, with a long intestinal canal ;
gills external at first; teeth and limbs wanting ; adult vithout branchial arches; body
short, depressed, raniform, tailless; feet four, posterior longer; tongue large, fleshy,
free posteriorly, and capable of protrusion; ear provided with an eustachian tube ; fenestra
rotunda present; nasal sacs and pharynx connected ; hyoid bone with but one pair of
cornua; radius and ulna anchylosed as are also the tibia and fibula; astragalus and cal-
caneum replaced by two elongated, cylindrical bones; vertebrae ten, without any dis-
tinct atlas; ureters opening into the oviducts; fecundation after exclusion of the eggs.

*¥For the anatomy of these animals, see Brown’s Klassen und Ordnung des Thier-
Reiches, and Duges’ Recherches sur l’Osteologie et la Myologie des Batraciens a leurs
differens Ages.

tA question has been raised in regard to the structure of the heart in the Perenni-
branchıata. Proteus, and also the Axolotl in all probablity have only a single auricle.

} Prof. Wyman, Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., p. 58, states from his observations that
he considers the urinary bladder of frogs to structurally resemble that of fishes and
scaly reptiles. From its anatomical relations to the intestine and vascular system he
regards it as a rudimentary allantois.

702 AMPHIBIA—BUFONIDE.

* Maxillary teeth present in the upper jaw. a.
* Maxillary teeth wanting. b.
a. Tips of toes undilated. o.

a. Tips of toes dilated, forming disks. . 3 R e 2 5 . Hyıuma.
b. Parotoids present; toes palmate. R 3 : 2 é ; BuronIpa.
b. Parotoids none ; toes distinct. ‘ ‘i ö 3 . 3 ENGYSTOMIDZ.
c. Parotoids present. ‘ ‘ R A ‘ ; ALYTID.
v. Pareteids none. : ‘ a b RANIDE.

Alytide, extralimital, characterized by a stout, toad like body; parotoids present;
upper maxillary and vomer dentigerous; tongue rounded, nearly entire, slightly, if at
all, free behind ; ear perfect; pupil of eye vertical; toes undilated, palmate; sacral
diapophyses dilated; vertebra pro- or opisthocwlian ; manubrium cartilaginous, and
usually the cuneiform bone developed into a kind of shovel, an adaptation to their fos-
sorialjhabits, has two North America genera, Spea and Scaphiopus ; the latter, with three
species, of which Scaphiopus holbrookii, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1863, p. 54, and
DeKay’s Reptiles of N. Y., p. 66, ranges from Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York,
Maryland, to South Carolina, Florida, and Mississippi. It digs with celerity and soon
buries itself, pairs and oviposits within a few hours after awaking in spring.

Engystomide, extralimital, has no maxillary testh, no parotoid, no epicoracoid, but with
a perfect ear, undilated distinct toes, and dilated sacral diapophyses, is represented
in North America, by one species Engystoma carolinense, Holbrook, North American
Herp., v. p. 23, whieh ranges from South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, to Louisiana,
and Mississippi. “Mexico.”

FAMILY BUFONIDE. THE TOADS.

Posterior feet scarcely as long as the body ; fingers four; toes five, palmate and un-
dilated ; skin usually warty; parotoids very large; ear perfectly developed; mouth
edentulous; tongue large, fleshy, attached in front, entire and free behind, and capable
of being used as an instrument of prehension ; sacral diapophyses dilated ; acromion
and coracoid connected by a cartilaginous arch ; cuneiform bone usually prolonged into
a distinct plantar tubercle; terrestrial and nocturnal.

Genus BUFO. Laurenti.

Body very rough and warty; head short; crown flat, or with slight ridges; tongue
elliptical; muzzle rounded or truncated; males generally with an internal vocal sac,
which communicates with the mouth by two orifices; lateral cntaneous folds wanting;

parotoid with distinct pores.

Buro LENTIGInosus Shaw.

American Toad.

Rana terrestris, CATESBY.

Rana musica, LINNAUS.

Bufo lentiginosus, SHAW, GUNTHER, CoP.

Bufo musicus, LATREILLE, DAUDIN, MERREM, GRAVENHORST.
Telmatobius lentiginosus, LECONTE.

Bufo americanus, HOLBROOK, DEKAY, STORER.

AMERICAN TOAD. 703

Bufo musieus, et americanus, HARLAN, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Bufo fowleri, PUTNAM.

Bufo cognatus, SAY.

Bufo frontosus, CoPE.

General color above cinereus to dark slate, speckled with whitish-gray and brown;
beneath yellowish or dirty white; gular region and under side of legs darker; head
small; nostrils vertical, smaller and closer together than the inner narea; eyes moder-
ate; pupii black; irides golden; tympanum small, its color rendering it not very
apparent; feet each with two plantar tubercles, the one large and the other small; hind
legs obscurely barred with darker ; above granulate or speckled over with small warts;
forehead with two long ridges swollen behind ; very variable, owing to age, season,
sex, and will of the animal. Length, 34 inches; hind limb, 34 inches; fore limb, 14
inches ; breadth of head, 14 inches; depth of head, $ inch; head to axiila, 14 inches.

The typical Bufo lentiginosus is extralimital, having ita habitat South Carolina, Fior-
ida, Alabama, Mississippi; but our fauna ineludes var. am:ricanus, LeConte, which dif-
fers from the above by having the bony ridges moderate and not much swollen behind ;
the small warts upon the back replaced by much larger ones, and a yellewish vertebral
line extending from the occipital region backwards.

Habitat, Labrador, Nova Scotia, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut,
New York, Virginia, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Arkansas, Kanaas, Dakotah,
“ Great Bear Luke.”

The American Toad, including its varieties, is the analogue of
Bufo vulgaris of the old world, and, like that species, has a remarkably
wide distribution, ranging from the Esquimaux River and Okak, Labra-
dor, to Florida and Texas and Mexico, and north to Dakotah and Lake
Winnipeg; and Gunther in his catalogue mentions a specimen sent by
Sir J. Richard on from the Great Bear Lake. In brief, this genus ap-
pears to be almost world wide, with the exception of Australia, in their
distribution, anda striking fact is that the Japanese specimens of Bufo
vulgaris approach more nearly to the American Toad than do the Euro-
pean. They also attain a large size in elevated regions.

Our toad during the day remains in concealment, crouched in cavities
under stones, dead or decaying trees, or stumps, and is sometimes in
cellars, or drowned in wells. They have been found in the latter situa-
tion buried in the mud at the bottom, but still alive, and are upposed
to have been interred for some time. They are mild and timid animals,
which oviposit in May, and begin to disappear the last of August or fore-
part of September. Like the frogs, they repair to ponds and hybernate
in mud, where they have been found a foot below the surface. Bell
states that they eat their skin as soon as cast, and, in Massachusetts, Allen
found frogs and toads under stones in an unfrozen spring in February.

Mr, W. K. Higley, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, informs me that he has
seen the common American Toad, in April, repair in great numbers to

704 AMPHIBIA—HYLIDA.

ponds in order to copulate, the male seizing the female just behind the
arms. A short time after he noticed the pond to contain a great number
of dead animals, which he explains on the supposition that the males
while mounted upon the females, pressed the latter under water so long
as to cause death from drowning, and this view was corroborated by his
finding, in some cases, the male still clasping the dead female.

FAMILY HYLIDA. TREE TOADS.

Head short; parotoids none; tongue attached in front, free and usually notched
pehind; ear well developed, with a distinct tympanum; maxillary and vomero-pala-
tine teeth present in upper jaw; abdominal integument areolate, or with tubercular
granulations; toes palmate, with the tips of the digits dilated, forming disks or pellets ;
vertebrae procelian; sacral diapophyses dilated or undilated ; arboreal or aquatic.

This family are most abundant in the Neotropical, but absent from the Ethiopian
region, and our North American genera may be divided as follows:

*Toes distinct or slightly webbed at base; Es nearly or quite distinct; disks
small. ‘ . : . E : . CHOROPHILUS.

* Toes webbed nearly “ Eine fis nearly or siti distinct; disks small. Ackıs.

* Toes prominently webbed; firgers partially palmate; disks large; body often short
and thick, s R R : h « 5 . e x . . . Hyıa.

Genus CHOROPHILUS. Baird.

Body slender and very delicate, smooth or granulated above; tongue nearly orbicnlar,
emarginate behind; vomerine teeth posterior to or between the inner nares ; fingers and
toes distinct or with basal web reaching to phalanges; tips slightly dilated; sacral
diapophyses expanded ; males with a vocal vesicle, vomerine teeth between the inner
nares; skin above granulated. b 5 2 Ve E 3 Y C. TRISERIATUS.

Vomerine teeth posterior to inner nares; skin sissies smooth or warty, not granu-
lated ; web entirely wanting between the two outer toes; color above black, with spots
or stripes. i . . . . . 2 ‘ < . 5 . C. NIGRITUS.

CHOROPHILUS TRISERIATUS Wiedman.

Little Tree Frog.

Ayla triseriatus, MAX. PRINZ von WIEDMAN.
Helocetes triserialus et feriarum, BAIRD.
Chorophilus triseriatus, JORDAN, COPE.

General color above, bluish ash to black, with a vertebral and two lateral lines, often
with five distinct stripes in front; spots wanting, or present only upon the head; femur
abont as long as, or somewhat shorter than, the tibia; toes with a slight trace of web
at the base of each; second too very long, fifth short; hind legs long, about two and a
half to three times the anterior; skin granulated above and below, without warts;
vomerine teeth in two elevated circular patches, between the inner nares.

Length, 1 inch; hind leg, 18 inches; head to axilla, 5 lines; transverse diameter of
head, 3} lines; vertical diameter of head, 1% lines; transverse diameter of body, 3
lines,

CRICKET FROG. 705

Habitat, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, New Mexico, Kansas, Nebraska,
Colorado, and Dakotah.

Rare in Ohio.
Genus ACRIS. Dumeril and Bibron.

Head short and broad; eyes prominent; tongue cordiform; vomerine teeth in two
groups, between the inner nares; tympanum scarcely perceptible; skin upon the back
smooth cr slightly granular; digital disks small; toes webbed almost to tips; fingers
nearly or quite distinct; males with an interior subgular vocal sac.

ACRIS GRYLLUS LeConte,
var. CREPITANS Baird.

Cricket Frog.
Rana gryllus, LECONTE, HARLAN.
Rana dorsalis, HARLAN.
Acris gryllus, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.
Hyla gryllus, HOLBROOK.
Hylodes gryllus, HOLBROOR, DeKay.
Acris crepitans, BAIRD, LECONTE.
Acris gryllus, subgenus, crepitans, COPE,

Color above varying from cinereous to olivaceous or brown, often with a triangular
dark spot, margined with white in the occipital region; another dark spot, some-
times extending from the axilla backwards, with white on its under side; back often
with minute points of black, and frequently with. vertebral stripe; lips usually whitish,
speckled with darker; chin and gular region varying from white to yellow; abdomen
whitish, often varied with dusky ; inner and posterior part of thighs granulated; femur
slightly shorter than tibia; second toe longest; posterior limbs three and a half to four
times as long as the anterior, the latter with a transverse cutaneous fold across the
breast between them.

Length, 14 inches; head to axilla, 5 lines; hind leg 1$ inches; transverse diameter of
head, 44 lines; vertical diameter of head, 3 lines; transverse diameter of body, 5% lines.

Habitat, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Arkansas, Georgia, Flor-
ida and Texas.

This is a lively and noisy little aquatic animal, frequenting the grass
on the borders of ponds, and never found upon trees,

Genus HYLA. Laurenti.

Head short, not separable from the body, and covered with a soft skin; eyes promi-
nent; vomerine teeth between the nares; toes long and broadly palmate; fingers more
or less webbed; digital disks prominent; tongue large, nearly orbicular, entire or
slightly emarginate behind; males with one or two sublingual vocal sacs; arboreal in
summer ; hybernating in mud or old logs; color changeable.

Chorophilus nigritus. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phil., 1855, p. 427, Holbrook’s N. Am.,
Herp. IV, p. 107. This animal, which I had supposed to be a Southern spacies, limited
to South Carolina and Georgia, is recorded by Gürther, Cat, British Museum, p. 97,
under the name of Pseudacris nigrita, as coming from the Great Bear Lake. Should this
species be found to have so wide a range, it will doubtless yet be found in our limits.

45

706 AMPHIBIA—HYLID.

* Patches of vomerine teetb not elevated; tongue truncate or entire behind ; reddish
to blackish brown, with dark rhomboidal spots and lines, sometimes showing a cruci-

form arrangement. . . . a 3 . 5 a H. PICKERING.
* Patches of vomerines slightly elevated ; tongue arsaieinate behind ; color varying from
green to brown, with irregular spots. 8 & a a fs is H. VERSICOLOR.

HyLA vERsicotor LeConte.

Common Tree Toad.

Hyla versicolor, LECONTE, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, STtoRER, DEKAY, DUMERIL and BIBRON,

GUNTHER, VERRILL, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.

Hyla verrucosa, DAUDIN.

Dendrohyas versicolor, Tschudi.

Hyla squirrella, STORER, ALLEN, JONES.
Hyla riehardii, BAIRD.

General color above varying from green to brown, with irregular darker blotches;
dark upon the legs, usually in the form of bars; inframaxillary region as far back as
the gular fold, of the same color as the back; skin above rough, with numerous small
elevations; abComen and under part of the thighs whitish to yellow, strongly granu-
lated; femur longer than tibia; tarsus much shorter; toes palmate to the base of the
distal phalanges, and these with a web-like expansion on each side; fingers distinctly
webbed at base, the fourth opposable to the other three; hind leg two to two and a half
times the length of the anterior; tongue very thick and fleshy, slightly notched behind;
inner nares more widely separated than the outer; vomerine teeth in two approximately
transverse, slightly elevated lines between the inner nares.

Length, 14 inches; head to axilla, 74 lines; hind limb, 2} inches; transverse diameter
of head, 7 lines; vertical diameter of head, 44 lines; tranaverse diameter of body, 74
lines.

Habitat, Nova Scotia, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia,
Georgia, Louisiana, Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, “Great Bear Lake, California, and
Mexico.”

This beautiful little animal is very common in all parts of the State.
It has ventriloquial powers, and is especially clamorousin damp weather
and towards evening. It is found on trees and old fences, to the color of
which it assimilates itself in a striking degree. It has an acrid secre-
tion. In fine weather it climbs the highest trees after insects; and
Harlan* records a case of one in winter, dug up at the root of an apple
tree several feet under ground. Burroughs also relates that he has
heard them piping late in November in an apple tree, and was quite
confident that they hybernated therein. The ground at this time was
frozen, and on the first warm day in April he found one in a cavity of
the trunk of the tree. It is improbable that it had come from the

* Medical and Physicai Researches, p. 109,
+Science News, November 1, 1878, p. 8.

.

PICKERING’S TREE TOAD. 707

marshes thus early in the season, and he therefore thought ‘that the
animal had hybernated in that situation. Whether they spend the
winter in mud or old logs, they are found in marshes in early spring,
where they lay their eggs. Afterwards, in the latter part of April or in
May, they betake themselves to the woods. ®

The Tree Toad is also reported to be useful as a barometer. It is said
that, if they are placed in a tall jar, with a ladder in“it, in fair weather
they will climb towards the top, but descend on the approach of a storm.
How true this may be, not having tried it, I have no means of judging,
and shall refrain from expressing any opinion on the subject.

HyLA PICKERINGII Holbrook.
Pickering’s Tree Toad.

Hylodes pickeringti, HOLBROOK, STORER, DEKay.
Hyla pickeringii, LECONTE, COPE, JORDAN.

Color quite variable at the will of the animal: in general, reddish brown to fawn
above, with lines and spots or specks of darker, arranged upon the back in the form of
a cross; upper lip yellowish; legs above with transverse dark bars; posterior of the
body with a dusky blotch; under parts white, with numerous dark spote; gular and
inframaxillary region yellowish; dark markings upon the animal often becoming in-
distinct ; eyes large ; pupils black ; irides golden ; tympanum small; nostrils small, nearer
the muzzle than the eye; inner nares more widely separated than the outer; a trans-
verse fold of the skin connecting the fore limbs on the under side; body rather slender ;
hind legs long; femur a trifle shorter than the tibia; thighs granulated beneath.

Length, i inch; head to axilla, 10 lines; hind leg, 14 inches; fore leg, 64 lines ;
transverse diameter of head, 4 lines; vertical diameter of head, 2} lines; transverse
diameter of body, 44 lines.

Habitat, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania,
Michigan te Cook county, Dlinois.

I have not seen this species from the State, and have included it here
solely on the extent of its extralimital range. It is found on bark of
dead trees and on leaves, such as Indian corn and grape vines, and in
green-houses. It has been observed in Maine to deposit its eggs in water
in April, and at other seasons occurred in upland or damp woods among
fallen leaves.

FAMILY RANIDA. THE FROGS.

Posterior feet much longer than the anterior, in length exceeding the body ; fingers
four; toes five, simple, undilated at tips and broadly palmate; skin smooth; parotoids
none ; tongue large, fleshy, attached in front, emarginate and free behind; vomero-pal-
atine teeth present; maxillaries, a single row in the upper jaw; ear well developed;
tail in young long and compressed ; sacral diapophyses cylindrical ; epicoracoid present ;
cuneiform bone somewhat prolonged, but not forming a spur; animals aquatic in the
main, inhabiting every region of the globe.

708 AMPHIBIA—RANIDA.

Genus RANA. Linneus.

Tongue oblong, deeply notched behind, and free posteriorly and laterally; vomerine
teeth between the inner nares; eustachian tubes large; tympanum prominent; eyes
large; fingers distinct, fourth not opposable to the others; males usually with two lat-
eral vocal sacs.

The eggs ın our species are almost mature in the fall, so that animals can and do pair
and oviposit in one to two days after awaking from hybernation.

* Dorsal region, with large, distinct spots. 0.

* Dorsal region, with small spots, or none. a.

”” a. Tympanum,small, seven or less millimeters in diameter. c.

a, Tympanum usually, eight or more millimeters in diameter, and when smaller,
temple without black band, and back not vermiculated with whiteor yellow. d.
b. Males with an internal vocal sac on each side; dorsal spots roundish and usually

arranged somewhat irregularly. 5 « x & R. HALECINA.
b. Males without vocal sacs; dorsal and lateral sata usually quadrate and ar-

ranged in four distinct rows, with other external ones irregular,

R. PALUSTRIS.

. Temple, with a large black spot. x é N R. TEMPORARIA.

c. Temple without such spot; color above, graaniarh olive, with sinuations or
vermiculations of white or yellow; extralimital; New York, Okak, Labra-
dor and Yukon River to Minnnesota, Montana and Utah.

R. SEPTENTRIONALIS.

d. Dorso-lateral cutaneous folds distinct. : 2 7 R. CLAMITANS.

d. Dorso-lateral cutaneous folds wanting or indistinct, . R. CATESBYANA.

RANA HALECINA Kalm,

Leopard Frog.

Rana halecina, KaLM, DauD!n, MERREM, HARLAN, TscHUDI, DUMERIL and BIBRON,
HOLBROOK, HALLOWELL, LAURENTI, STORER, DEKAY, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN, GUN-
THER, VERRILL.

Rana pipiens, GMELIN, SHAW, SCHNEIDER, LECONTE.

Rana palusiris, GMELIN.

Rana berlandieri, BaIxD.

Rana melanotus, RAFINESQUE.

Rana areolata, BAIRD and GIRARD (?).

Rana capito, LECONTE.

Rana utıicularia, HARLAN.

Color above varying from light to dark green or brown; dorsal aud lateral spots
large, black, often margined with yellow, gub-circular or elongated, quadrate, and often
arranged in two, but rarely more, distinct rows, and when in more than two rows, then
with spots placed irregularly between ; abdomen varying from white to yellow or dusky ;
legs above with transverse bars or blotches of b'uck, which often have a yellow margin;
thighs granulated posteriorly; femur shorter chan tibia; toes and fingers, with tuber-
cles at the joints; tympanum, green, about seven millimeters in diameter; vomerine
teeth in two, almost circular, slizhtly elevated patches; inner nares large, more widely
separated than the outer ; snout rather pointed; nostrils lateral, about midway between

MARSH, PICKEREL, OR TIGER FROG. 709

the muzzle and the eye. Length, 34 inches; head to axilla, 14 inches; hind leg, 5%
inches; transverse diameter of head, 1 inch; vertical diameter of head, 8 lines; trans-
verse diameter of body, 14 inches.

Habitat, Nova Scotia to Lake Winnepeg, Maine, Massachusetts, New ;York, Pennsyl-
vania, South Carolina, Georgia, Mexico, New Mexico, Arizona, Arkansas, Utah, Color-
ado, Montana, Ohio and Michigan.

Common in all parts of the State.

The Leopard or Shad Frog is usually found in wet places in marshes
and upon the borders of streams, though it is said to have been found in
summer in fields at a distance from water. They are active animals,
very difficult to capture, leaping from eight to ten feet, emit a peeping
note, and lay their eggs in April. This is the analogue, and it may be
a variety of the European Rana esculenta, or Green Frog, which it resem-

bles.
Rana PALustRis LeConte.

Marsh, Pickerel, or Tiger Frog.
Rana palustris, LECONTE, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, DUMERIL and BIBRON, HALLOWELL,

STORER, KIRTLAND, DEKAY, GUNTHER, VERRILL, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.

Rana pardalis, HARLAN.

Color above light to dark green, with four distinet rows of usually large quadrate,
black spots, which at times are conflpent, producing the appearance of longitudinal
bands; outside of these rows are other spots arranged irregularly; upper part of legs
with transverse bars or blotches of black; abdomen and under parts varying from
white to orange yellow; thighs granulated posteriorly ; femur shorter than tibia; toes
and fingers, usually with tubercles at the joints; tympanum green, lighter than the
body, and small, from two to four millimeters in diameter; vomerine;teeth, in two,
nearly circular, slightly elevated patches; inner nares moderate, more distant than the
outer; snout roundly pointed; nostrils somewhat nearer the muzzle than the eye;
vocal vesicle always wanting; cutaneous folds not prominent, Length, 24 inches;
head to axilla, 11 lines; hind leg, 4 inches; fore leg, 14 inches; transverse diameter of
head, + inch; vertical diameter of head, $ inch; transverse diameter of body, % inch.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio and Michi-
gan.

The habits of this little animal are very similar to those of Rana
halecina, and there is considerable doubt in my mind whether it should be
retained as a distinct species, and not considered a variety of young Rana
halecina ; while the typical halecina differs strikingly from the typical pa-
lustris, the varieties of these closely approach, if they do not shade into
each other.

The Marsh Frog is usually found in the vicinity of ponds and marshes,
though occasionally, in the morning, after a heavy dew, it is seen at some
distance from water. Its note isa prolonged, grating sound, and its odor
strong and offensive.

710 AMPHIBIA— RANIDE.

RANA TEMPORARIA Linnzus.

Rana muta, LAURENTI.

Rana scotica, BELL.

Bana oxyrhinus, et platyrhinus, STEENSTRUP.
Rana arvalis, NILSSON.

Rana japonica, SCHLEGEL.

Habitat, England, Scotland, Germany, and Sweden, to Japan.

(American Specimens.)
a. var. CANTABRIGENSIS Baird.

Yellowish-brown above, with a lateral fold, and a vertebral line from snout to anus,
light colored; posterior of thigh and leg with a narrow light line.

Habitat, Massachusetts to Rocky Mountains; north of the Great Lakes.
Not yet observed in Ohio.

b. var. syLvatica LeConte.

Wood Frog.

Rana sylwatica, LECONTE, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, STORER, DEKAY, DUMERIL and Bis-
RON,fALLEN, VERRELL.

Bana‘ sylvatica, et pennsylvanica, HARLAN.

Banaltemporaria, var. sylvatica, GUNTHER, JORDAN.

Colorfabove green to greenish-brown ; no vertebral band; lateral cutaneous folds of
about the same color as the back; u dark spot passing through the tympanum, eye and
usually; also the nostril, margined below with white; legs above usually barred or
plotched with dark ; abdomen cream-colored to white; gular region and under parts of
legs” yellowish ; lower jaw often with darker markings ; thighs granulated posteriorly ;
femur and tibia of nearly equal length, the latter somewhat longer; toes and fingers
with tubercles under part of the joints; head small; muzzle obtusely rounded; tym-
panum small, not exceeding three and a half millimeters in diameter ; nostrils a little nearer
the muzzle than the eye, and nearly a3 widely separated as the inner nares.

The young differs from the adult by having the colors more intense, the back is
olivaceous brown, the spot on the temple black, and the under parts a mere pronounced
yellow. Length, 2 inches; head to axilla, 9 lines; hind legs, 34 inches; fore limb, 14
inches ; transverse diameter of head, 9 lines; vertical diameter of head, 4 lines; trans-
verse diameter of body, 9 lines.

Habitat, Nova Scotia, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia,
to Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin.

The Wood Frog is very abundant in the woods of Ohio, where it is
found among damp fallen leaves, which it resembles so closely as to
be overlooked. They appear in March or April, and go into winter
quarters the last of October or forepart of November. They probably do
not resort to ponds but hybernate in woods, and in spring lay their eggs,

GREEN OR SPRING FROG. zı1

in some cases, at least, in springs. They prefer thick oak or maple
forests as a habitation, and in Maine their notes may be heard as early
as April, but in our limits earlier. They are never found in the south-
ern states. Their color is quite variable being darker in spring, but be-
coming paler after exposure for sometime tolight. The young are eight
lines in length immediately after the loss of their tail.

An interesting fact meets us by comparison of the specimensof Rana tem-
poraria of the Old World with those of the New. That it is exceedingly
variable is evident from the different varieties often mistaken for differ-
ent species in this country and on the eastern continent. The most note-
worthy fact, however, is that those of Japan and eastern Asia, in the size
of the tympanum and coloration, are intermediate between those of
Europe and our American varieties.

Some at least of the other Amphibia show the same relations, thus indi-
cating, as pointed out by Prof. Marsh in regard to the extinct vertebrata,
that there had probably once, if not oftener, been an interchange of
faunas between the two continents through the region of Behring’s
Straits.

RANA CLAMITANS Daudin.

Green or Spring Frog.

Rana clamata, DAUDIN, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.

Rana clamata, et flaviviridis, HARLAN.

Rana clamitans, MERREM, HOLBROOK, ALLEN, VERRILL, CoPE, JORDAN.
Rana fontinalis, LECONTE, STORER.

Bana clamitans, fontinalis, et horiconensis, DEKay.

3 Rana nigrescens, AGASSIZ.

Color above green to brown, without any large spots; legs and sides irregularly
spotted or speckled with darker; beneath silvery white to yellow; gular region often
irregularly spotted with darker; thighs granulated posteriorly ; femur nearly as long as
tibia ; toes and fingers with small tubercles at most of the joints; ‘ympanum of medium
size or large, usually about eight or ten millimeters in diameter, but sometimes not
over four, its color green, with a central nucleus of lighter green; eyes black; irides
yellow ; muzzle rounded somewhat; nostrils latero-vertical, half way between the eye
and snout; inner nares medium, slightly more widely separated than the outer;
vomerine teeth small, in two patches; dorso-lateral cutaneous fold well marked, reach-
ing from the eye backwards. Length, 3 inches; head to axilla, 18 inches ; hind leg, 4
inches; fore leg, 14 inches; transverse diameter of head, 14 inches; vertical diameter
of head, 74 linea; transverse diameter of body, 14 inches,

Habitat, Nova Scotia, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Arkansas.

The Green Frog is common along brooks and around ponds, sitting
upon the banks, and plunging at the approach of danger. In wet weather

712 AMPHIBIA—RANIDE.

they leave the water and;wander to some distance. They are among the
earliest to awaken from their winter sleep, having been observed in
March and April.

*RANA CATESBYANA Shaw.

Buil Frog.
Rana catesbyana, SHAW, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.
Rana mugiens, MERREM, WAGLER, TSCHUDI, DUMERIL and BIBRON, GUNTHER.
Rana pipiens, HALLOWELL, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, STORER, DeKay.
Rana pipiens, et scapularis, HARLAN.

Color above greenish-brown, with darker irregular spots,
these blotches niore conspicuous upon the legs and sides; under
parts yellowish white, often mottled with black or brown; legs
above of the same color as the body, but the darker blotches
often assume the form of transverse bars; femur shorter than
the tibia; tubercles at some of the joints of the fingers and toes ;
tympanum in adult large, eight to twelve millimeters in diame-
ter; nostrils half way between the eye and muzzle; pupils
' black; irides green; vomerine teeth in two nearly circular
patches between the inner nares, the latter large and more
widely separated than the outer. Length, 74 inches; head to
axilla, 24 inches; hind leg 94 inches; fore leg, 4 inches;
transverse diameter of head, 24 inches; vertical diameter of
Fic. 3.— Rana catesbyana, _ head, 14 inches; transverse diameter of body, 3 inches.

“Month open, & showings Habitat, Canada, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsyl-

inner nares, teeth, and vania, Delaware, North Carolina, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas,

tongue. Kansas, Ohio, Michigan.

The Bull Frog, called also by the boys Cow Frog, is very common, not
only in the State, but also throughout its whole range. Its hoarse voice,
low bass notes, supposed | by ı some to be its love songs or call of the male
to the female,jhave}, ‚been. compared to the roaring of a bull, hence the
common name.” They “are. aquatic animals, being found in ponds,
ditches, and pools, eccasionally coming to land, but only passing to any
distance from the water in wet weather and at night.

Prof. Rogers states; that “the frog is very susceptible to the entice-
ments of motion.” He has often caught them at the South by “agitating
a hook and line baited with red tape,” at which they would bite and
entangle their teeth. Dr. Corse states that he has observed the spawn
of frogs to develop on the fourth day, and has also known Rana
catesbyana to pass a whole year in the tadpole State.

The Bull Frog is the one more commonly eaten, though any of them

*For anatomy of nervous system see Smithsonian Contributions, vol. 5

BULL FROG. 713:

may be used as articles of diet. Frequently only the hams are taken, but
in some cases the animal is captured, killed, the viscera removed,
and the body fried in eggs and bread crumbs. They are then said to he

delicious, and it is reported that they are much used in this manner in
certain places.

*ORDER URODELA. TAILED AMPHIBIANS.

Caudata, LEUCKART.

Body elongated, naked or without exoskeletal plates; tail compressed or cylindrical,
persistent throughout life; feet usually two pairs, rarely only one; radius and ulna, as
well as tibia and fibula, not united into a single piece ; external opening of the cloaca
a longitudinal slit.

Gills persistent throughout life. : R 2 : PERENNIBRANCHIATA,

Gills caducous, : . & 5 2 & N ö Bi ÜADUCIBRANCHIATA.

SUB-ORDER PERENNIBRANCHIATA,

Amphipneusta, OPPRL.

Proteides, LEUCKART, HARLAN, MULLER, DUMERIL and BIBRonN.
Phanerobranches, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Pseudophydiens, DEBLAINVILLE. ;
Sirenidee, TENNEY.

Ichtyoides, LATREILLE.

Branchis persistent; prefrontal, nasal and maxillary bones wanting; premaxille not
anchylosed together ; pterygoid absent or united with the palatines; vertebra: amphi-
colous; carpus and tarsus cartilaginous, the latter sometimes absent; eyes without lids,
in some cases surrounded by circular ring resembling a lid.

Pelvic arch and limbs wanting; extralimital. . ‘ 5 . TÜRACHYSTOMIDE.

Pelvic arch and limbs present. a z x 5 ‘ ö i 2 PROTEIDE.

FAMILY PROTEIDA. THE MUD PUPPIES.

Skull elongated ; paraspheneid edentulous ; vomer with teeth along its anterior mar-
gin; prsmaxille and dentaries dentigerous ; pterygoid present and anchylosed with the
palatines ; occipital condyles sessile ; first two ceratohyals connate; branche, branchial
apertures, and three pairs of arches persistent; eyelids wanting; pelvic and pectoral
arches and limbs developed ; anterior digits three or four, fourth finger, or in this case
the third, the first being absent, with a single phalanx.

* Toes, two or three on each foot ; trunk very much elongated ; extralimital.

_ Proteus.

* Toes, four on each foot; trunk, short and thick. . 5 . MENOBRANCHUS.

*The classification and descriptions of this order are taken from the author’s printed
thesis on the Urodela and Casilia, to which any persons desiring information on extra-
limital species may refer.

71: AMPHIBIA— PROTEIDE.

* Gesus MENOBRANCHUS. Harlan.

Necturus, RAFINESQUE, WAGLER, COPE, GRAY.
Phanerobranchus, FITZINGER.

Upper jaw with twe curved rows of teeth, the posterior row nearly parallel with, and
much longer than the anterior, situated upon the front edge of the vomer and lateral
processes of the pterygoid; lower jaw with a single series of teeth, which lock between
the two upper; tongue ovate, large, fleshy, free anteriorly and laterally ; toes distinct,
four in front and four behind; body shortand thick; tail short, much compressed.

TMENOBRANCHUS LATERALIS Say.

Mud Puppy, Water Dog or Dog Fish.

Protie tetradactyle, LACEPEDE.

Triton lateralis, Say.

Necturus maculosus, maculatus, luteus, and fuscus, RAFINESQUE.
Necturus lateralis, COPE, JORDON.

Menobranchus lateralis, HARLAN, DEKAY.

Sirena maculosa, RAFINESQUE.

Phanerobranchus cepedii, FITZINGER.

‚Siredon hyemalis, KNEELAND, and the following probably :
Necturus maculatus, BAIRD.

Proteus maculatus, BARNES.

Menobranchus maculatus, HOLBROOK.

Men@ranchus punctatus, GIBBES.

Necturus punctatus, COPE.

Body cylindrical, smooth, brownish, with darker spots and often a lateral line; head
broad, depressed; eyes moderate; nostrils small; muzzle truncate; teeth large and
‘conical ; gular fold very strongly developed ; gills red, three on each side. Length, 14
feet.

Habitat, Santee River?, Ohio, Alleghany, and Hudson Rivers, the Great Lakes, Lake
Champlain and Portage Lake. ‘ Arkansas.”

This species has not been heretofore reported from the Hudson River,
but last spring while visiting the Natural History Society, at Pough-
keepsie, N. Y., my friend, Dr. W. G. Stevenson, called my attention to

* Although this genus had been previously called in a vague manner by various names
such as Proteus, Salamandra, Triton, and Neoturus, Dr. Harlan first clearly elucidated ita
characters, and as his name has become well-known ita retention is deemed proper and
it is accordingly inserted here.

tDr. Barton considered this to be a young Menopoma alleghanıensis, to which its skull
bears such arelation as might be expected between larva and adult, but its geographical ©
distribution is quite different and it is hardly possible that the adult, if existing in the
region of the lakes could have been overlooked.

Cope, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1866, vol. vi, expresses the opinion that this is a
larval Spelerpes, and changes to that as Siredon to Amblystoma. However, it has never
yet been transformed.

MUD PUPPY, WATER DOG, OR DOG FISH. 715

one of these animals caught in the Hudson. He also informed me that
one had previously been captured in that river. Ithad probably passed
thence through the Erie canal or the one connecting the river with '
Lake Champlain.

Kneeland* states that this animal is nocturnal, feeds upon living
worms, never dead ones unless very hungry, swallowed but could not
digest minnows two and half inches long, has its gills nibbled off by
small fish, and hence can survive by cutaneous and pulmonary respira-
tion. Smith f confirms Kneeland’s view of the pulmonary, as well as
branchial respiration, in that he succeeded in inflating one of the pul-
monary sacs. He also found a Libellula larva in the animal’s stomach.

Their motions are very active when in the water, and are performed by
the body and tail. They seem to be ill at ease when placed in the sun,
and attempt to get out by retiring into a shady part. They have been
known to live in water that froze a half inch every night for three
months, but died in about four hours when removed from the liquid.
When in water they may be observed crawling about over the bottom,
Tising to the surface at times and expelling a globule of air or effecting
the same under water. They eat a numberof worms aday, or go several
months without food. At times they are found with parasitic worms
near their gills. The flesh of this animal is said to be excellent eating.

SUB-ORDER CADUCIBRANCHIATA.

Branchia not present in the adult state; maxillary and nasal bones large; prefrontals
usually present ; premaxillz separate or anchylosed, and always dentigerous.

*Branchial apertures upon the neck open. (DEROTREMATA ) 4.

*Branchial apertures closed in adult. 0b.

a. Anterior metacarpal bones three; extralimital. A 3 . AMPHIUMIDA.
a. Anterior metacarpals four. . . . 7 2 . . MENOPOMIDA.
db. Anterior metacarpals four. . ‘ . . . ‘ . SALAMANDRIDE.

FAMILY MENOPOMIDA. THE MENOPOMES.

Protonopside, COPE.

Skull broad ; parasphenoid edentulous; vomer with teeth along its anterior margin;
premaxilla and dentaries dentigerous; maxille and nasals large; pterygoid present
and very broad ; two separate premaxillary bones; prefrontals and parietals prolonged
so as to embrace the frontals; fronto-temporal arch absent; occipital condyles sessile ;
basihyal cartilage present ; gill holes open or closed; branchial arches may be reduced
to two; upper and lower eyelids distinct ; vertebra amphicelous; carpus and tarsus

* Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., vol. vi, pp. 152, 371, and 429.
+ Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist., N. Y., vol. ii, p. 259,

716 AMPHIBIA—MENOPOMIDA.

cartilaginous; pelvic and pectoral limbs well developed; anterior digits four; fourth
finger with three phalanges.
*Branchial apertures persistent. R a i . . 2 MENOPOMA,
*Branchial apertures closed in adult ; éctvallinibal, © « « . CORYPTOBRANCHUS.

Genus MENOPOMA. Harlan.

Palatine teeth in a parabolic curve between the inner nares, almost parallel to those
of the maxillary ; tongue transversely oval; head depressed ; eyes small; parotids none ;
branchial apertures upon the side of the neck persistent; skin naked ; limbs short and
thick; toes four in front and five behind, the latter membranous ; tail compressed,
shorter than the body.

*MENOPOMA ALLEGHANIENSIS Harlan.

Hell-Bender or Mud-Devil.

Protonopsis horrida, BARTON, BARNES, COPE.
Abranchus alleghaniensis, HARLAN.

Cryptobranchus salamandroides, LEUCKART.

Eurycea macronata, RAFINESQUE.

Molge gigantea, in part, MERREM.

t Menopoma fusca, HOLBROOK.

Salamandria horrida, et gigantea, or maxima, BARTON.
Salamandra alleghanensis, MICHAUX.

Menopoma alleghaniensis, COPR.

Body somewhat elongated, thick and strong; color slate with dark spots; toes five ;
fingers four; two outer toes with large membranous fringes; a broad expansion of the
skin on the outer side of each limb; body with a cutaneous longitudinal fold on each
side; tail long, very much compressed laterally, presenting a blade form appearance;
head very broad and strongly depressed ; muzzle rounded ; nostrils small, well defined ;
inner nares large; mouth a parabolic curve; tongue large, fleshy, broad, filling the
whole lower jaw, and free anteriorly. Length, 2 feet.

Habitat, Ohio and Alleghany Rivers, and North Carolina, “all tributaries of the Mis-
eissippi.” Not of the Great Lakes.

The Hell-bender is said to be very voracious, and feeds upon worms,
cray-fish, fishes, and aquatic reptiles. They also shed a membrane
probably corresponding to the external layer of the skin. Grote ob-
served them with this rolled up in the mouth as ifin the act of swallow-
ing it, and he believed that he perceived in another case the animal
doing the swallowing.

A similar shedding of the epidermis having been observed in
Spelerpes porphyriticus, Dactylethra, and Cyclorhamphus, it becomes probable
that the remaining forms of this order also undergo a periodical moult-

*For Myology see Mivart’s article, Proc. Zool. Soc., London, 1869.
+ Cope wakes Menapoma fuscum distinet with headwaters of the Tennessee as its habitat.

HELL-BENDER OR MUD-DEVIL, 717

ing. The individuals observed by Grote all had an intermittent sway-
ing motion in the aquaria during July and August, which he conjectured
might be either connected with the animal’s effort to cast the skin or a
movement to attract the opposite sex. The Menopoma oviposits in
August and September, probably for this purpose visiting the’ muddy
banks of rivers. The eggs are at first about the size of a pea, enveloped
in a glairy albuminous fluid. They are connected in strings, and in-
crease after oviposition by imbibition of water. The Hell-bender at the
time of pairing, changes its appearance, the tail becoming broader and
the folds upon the sides varying.

FAMILY SALAMANDRIDA. THE SALAMANDERS.

Gradientia, OPPEL, GRAY.
Pseudo-sauriens, DEBLAINVILLE.
Atretoderes, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Myctodera of some authors.

Gill-slits perfectly closed in the adult state; skull broad; palatines present in the
young, and arranged as in Trachystoma and Proteida, but change their relations with the
growth of the animal; nasal bones usually large; dentaries and premaxille bearing
teeth; limbs four, well developed ; anterior toes four; fourth finger with three
phalanges ; eyelids two, an upper and a lower, very distinct.

Dumreil and Bibron contrasted the term Atreivderes, from Atratos, without a foramen,
and Deras neck, with Trematoderes, which they applied to the remainder of the Urodela.
The latter name etymologically considered seems to be a good one, but unnecessary, as
is also its synonym, Immutabilia of Fitzinger.

*Vomero-palatine teeth in two longitudinal rows divergent behind, or sphenoidals

present in two elongated groups, and thus divergent. a.
*Vomero-palatine teeth transversely arranged, or wanting, or convergent posteriorly.

AMBLYSTOMA.
a. Hind toes four on each foot. b.
a. Hind toes five. v.
db. Tongue attached in front by a membrane. . F . HeEMIDACTYLIUM.
db. Tongue free all around, boletoid ; extralimital. e 2 BATRACHOSEPS.

c. Sphenoidal teeth in two longitudinal groups of several rows each; vomero-
palatines in a transverse series. d.
ec. Sphenoidal teeth wanting; vomero-palatines in two longitudinal rows, never

in a transverse series. ; . . E . . NOT&PHTHALMUS,
d. Tougue attached in front by a membrane. e
.d, Tongue free all around, boletoid, . : : . ; . SPELERPES,
e Vomero-palatine teeth in a continuous transverse row ; commissure much
curved ; extralimital. : & . « ANAIDES,
e. Vomero-palatine series more or tess ine medially ; commissure
nearly straight. e z e ‘i 5 . i . PLETHODON.

Genus AMBLYSTOMA. Tschudi.

/Plagiodon, DUMERIL and BIBRON, includes Xiphonura, Tscuupt, and Heterotriton, Gray.
Palatine teeth in a transverse, often interrupted row, sometimes in the form of an arch or

718 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDA.

crotchet; toes, four in front, five behind, never palmate; tongue fleshy, round or long,
centrally attached, with lateral and anterior margins free; quadrato-jugal bone want-
ing; skin smooth, slimy, perforated with mucous pores, especially above the orbits and
in the parotid region ; costal farrows strongly marked ; tail short, round to oval at the
base, but compressed towards the extremity ; vertebra amphicwlous ; parasphenoid not
dentigerous ; orbitosphenoid and pro-otic separated by membranes; posterior margins
of palatines bearing the teeth ; carpus, tarsus, and basi-hyal ossified in adults.
Spots large, very different from the usual color. a.
Spots none, minute, or nearly uniform with the ground solar, 1,
a. Plantar tubercles two. h.
a. Plantar tubercles indistinct or none. b.

b. Costal grooves 14; vomerine series of teeth two. f.
b. Costal grooves 12. e.
b. Costal grooves 11; vomerine series of teeth 3. c.
b. Costal grooves 10; vomerine series of teeth 3; ee Georgia, Louisiana,
and Illinois. : . . A A. TALPOIDEUM.
c. Color black ; spots or ade large; ee series of teeth concave behind or
straight. d.
c. Color plu:w.beous ; spots small ; median series of teeth convex behind ; extra-
limital. . . . . A. CONSPERSUM.
da. Back with transverse Baris a gray. . : P . . A, OPACUM.
d. Back without transverse bands of gray. . . . . A. PUNCTATUM.
e. Vomerine series of teeth 3; canthus rostralis distinct; back with a gray
line. . A. MACRODACTYLUM.
e. Vomerine series oi teeth two; ee Fortis none; no gray dorsal line;
extralimital. : : : 7 3 A. TENEBROSUM.
f. Canthus rostralis wanting. g..
f. Canthus rostralis distinctly marked ; extralimital. . . A. TEXANUM.

g. Back and tail with gray rings or bands; extralimital, South Carolina.
A. CINGULATUM.
9. Back plumbeous; sides spotted. A « N R A. MICROSTOMUM,
h. Costal grooves twelve, i.
h. Coastal grooves eleven ; vomerine series of teeth three ; extralimital, New Jersey.
A. BICOLOR.
i. Tail shorter than body ; cauthus rostralis wanting. j.
Tail longer than body ; canthus rostralis distinct. . . . . . A. XIPHIAS,
j. Vomerine teeth in a nearly continuous line. &.
j. Vomerine teeth in four distinct patches; extralimital ; New Mexico.
A. TRISRUPTUM.

i.

k. Nares inequidistant; yellow spots usually small. . . A TIGRINUM.
k. Nares equidistant; yellow spots large; extralimital, Dakota, Montana,
California, Nebraska, New Mexico, and Mexico. . A. MAVORTIUM.
1. Plautar tubercles indistinct or none. m.
1. Plantar tubercles two, distinct; extralimital,Iowa. . . . . A. OBSCURUM.

m. Costal grooves twelve or more. n.
m. Costal grooves eleven ; extralimital, Vancouver’s Island and Washington

Territory. . . ‘ . R . . . a A. PAROTICUM.

mn. Vomerine series of teeth three, extending to exterior of nares.
A. JEFFERSONIANUM.

LARGE SPOTTED OR VIOLET COLORED SALAMANDER. 719

n. Vomerine series of teeth two, extending only to interior of nares; extra-
limital, Northern Rocky Mountains. E 3 ä A. ATERRIMUM.

AMBLYSTOMA PUNCTATUM Linnzus.

Large Spotied or Vielet Colored Salamander.

Amblystoma subviolaceum, TSCHUDI.

Salamandra subviolacea, DEKAY, HOLBROOK, HARLAN, SCHLEGEL, KIRTLAND.
Salamandra punctata, LACEPEDE, WAGLER.

Salamandra venenosa, BARTON, DAUDIN.

Lacerta subviolacea, BARTON.

Lacerta punctata, LINNZUS.

Lacerta maculata, SHaw.

Amblystoma punctatum, BAIRD, COPE, JORDON.

Color black, at least above, sometimes slightly purplish, changing to brown in
alcohol ; two sets of bright yellow spots arranged somewhat in rows on each side of
the back ; legs also spotted, spots unequal and change to white in alcohol; tail oval,
compressed at the end; body cylindrical ; head large, depressed ; muzzle rounded, skin
smooth, perforated with pores ; two patches of these on each side of the head, one reach-
ing from nostril backwards, above and somewhat around the eye, the other in the
parotid region ; cervical fold streng ; another fold present behind the eye, the two con-
nected by a ridge; costal furrows eleven, strongly marked, sometimes with others less
marked ; furrows behind the leg in the anal region four, and others less prominent upon
the tail; back with a longitudinal groove; tail indistinctly furrowed lengthwise upon
the side ; eyes prominent ; nostrils small, distinct. Total length, 6 inches; length at loss
of branchia, 1 5-6 inches ; body 34 inches; head to gular fold, $inch; diameter of head,
$inch.

Habitat, Nova Scotia, Canada, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Vir-
ginia, South Carolina, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and

Illinois.

The Violet Colored Salamander is found under rocks and decaying
maiter in damp forests and sometimes in cellars. It appears to be noc-
turnal, and like the rest of these animals is perfectly harmless,

AMBLYSTOMA OPACUM Gravenhorst.

The Opaque or Blotched Salamander.

Salamandra opaca, GRAVENHORST.

Salamandra gravenhorstii, LEUCKART.

Salamandra fasciata, GREEN, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, STORER, WAGLER, DEKay.
Amblystoma opaca, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

Color above light clay or ash, with transverse, dark brown or bluish bands, sometimes
in blotches, and extending from head to tail; below, dark slate; head with a triangu-
lar spot; in alcohol the animal is a grayish ash, with transverse bands of dark brown
or brownish black ; tail oval, with indistinct lateral furrows; body nearly cylindrical,
thickest in the middle; head large, depressed ; muzzle round; mucous pores of the skin
numerous, abont equally distributed, hence no special patches above the eye and in the

720 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDE.

parotid region; cervical fold, fold behind the eye and connecting groove, costal furrows,
and fnrrows in the anal and candal region, as in A. punctatum ; dorsal longitudinal
groove less marked than in that species, but still distinct; eyes small yet prominent;
nostrils minute. Total length at loss of branchia, 2 1-6 inch; length, 3} inches; tail, 14
inches ; body, 2 inches; head to cervical fold, 4inch; diameter of body, $ inch ; diameter
of head, 15-16 inch.

Habitat, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and Florida, to Texas, Wisconsin,
Michigan and Ohio.

Cope says, “The principal difference in form and structure between
this species and A. punctatum is seen in the absence of any dorsal fur-
row, or a less prominence of that on the side of the tail. The limbs are
more feeble, the head narrower, etc.” In the eight specimens before me,
however, all of which came from Southern Illinois, the dorsal groove is
very distinct. Ina specimen from Ann Arbor it is barely visible. In
these the most prominent mark of the species is its color, which differs
very strikingly from that of A. punctatum.

Mann* states that this animal lays its eggs in the beds of small ponds,
and in some cases the number of these amounts to one hundred and eight.
He found them in this situation in summer, and also in November, and
always with the male and female curled up over the eggs as if in the pro-
cess of incubation.

AMBLYSTOMA TIGRINUM Green.

The Tiger Salamander.

Salamandra tigrina, GREEN, HARLAN.
Salamandra ingens, GREEN.

Salamandra lurida, SAGER.

Triton tigrinus, HOLBROOK, DeKaY.
Amblystoma episcopus, HALLOWELL, BAIRD.
Amblystoma luridum, BAIRD, HALLOWELL.
Amblystoma tigrinum, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

Color in alcohol varying from brown to lurid above, plumbeous
and yellowish white below, the yellowish white in blotches, be-
tween the brown and plumbeous, sometimes connected longitudi-
nally; spots varying from reddish brown to white, yellow in fresh
specimens, extending irom the head to the tail, and scattered ir-
regularly; tail, oval; body cylindrical in some, in others thickest
in the middie and tapering both ways; head depressed; muzzle
round; skin smooth, with numerous mucous pores; gular fold and
fold behind the eye, with connecting parotid ridge; costal

Fig, 4.—dmbly- farrows eleven strongly marked, and others becoming indistinct;

stoma tigrinum, furrows behind the legs gradually ceasing, so that the tip of the
mouth oper. —_twil ig smooth; back with a longitudinal groove; tail without any
indications of lateral furrows; eyes prominent; nostrils small, distinct; plantar tuber-

* Smithsonian Reports, 1854, page 294.

THE GRANULATED SALAMANDER. 721

cles two, well developed. Length at loss of branchiw 3% inches, Adult, length, 7
inches; tail 3; body, 4 inches; head to cervical fold, 1 inch; diameter of body, 1 inch;
diameter of head, $ inch.

Habitat, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, Louis-
iana, New Jersey, and New York.

Hoy* states that this animal moves very slowly upon land, but is very
active in water. Insults offered to its mouth or eyes are resented by
strokes of the tail. They are nocturnal in habits, and usually remain in
concealment during the day. They have been observed in great num-
bers in the Cathole, at Ann Arbor, Michigan, swimming vigorously on
March 10th, and their eggs were found a few days later, after which they
disappeared, passing into the woods and excavating burrows, in which
they awaited their prey, being concealed, all but their heads. In the
fall they wander about in search of a suitable place in which to hyber-
nate, and at this time often stray into cellars during a wet night.

AMBLYSTOMA JEFFERSONIANUM Green.

The Granulated Salamander.

Salamandra granulala, DeKar.

Triton niger, DEKaY.

Xiphonura jeffersoniana, TSCHUDI, GRAY.

Salamandra jeffersoniana, GREEN, HOLBROOK, HARLAN, SCHLEGEL.
Amblystoma fuscum, t HOLBROOK.

Amblystoma laterale, t HALLOWELL.

Amblystoma jeffersonianum, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

Amblystoma platineum, t COPE.

Color black to greenish in alcohol, above, greenish slate, without blotches or spots,
below, of a grayish green tinge; cervical fold white; tail roundish oval; body cylin-
drical, much longer aud slimmer than 4. punctatum; head elongate, apparently not
separable from the body ; mnzzle round ; mucous pores of the skin distributed over the :
body generally, and not collected in special groups; cervical fold indistinct, but its
place marked by a white band; fold and connecting ridge behind scarcely discernible ;
costal furrows thirteen, less marked than in A. punctaium, but nevertheless distinct, or
at least their place represented by a whiter color; furrows behind tho leg also less
prominent, and extending almost to the tip of the tail; dorsal longitudinal groove
nearly or quite indistinct; lateral caudal furrows wanting, but a sub-caudal extends
from anus to tip; eyes small but prominent; nostrils minute; adult, length at loss of
branchiz, 1 3-5 inches; length, 33 inches; tail, 1 9-16 inches; body, 2 1-16 inches ; head
to cervical fold 7-16 inch; diameter of body, 8 inch; diameter of head, 2-16 inch.

Habitat, Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Southern Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri,
Ohio, Michigan to north shore of Lake Superior, and the country included.

* Smithsonian Report, 1854, page 295.
+ Cope makes three sub-species, viz., laterale, fuseum, and platinewm.

46

722 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDE.

AMBLYSTOMA MICROSTOMUM Cope.
Small-Mouthed Salamander.

Triton porphyriticus, (?) HOLBROOK.

Color in alcohol brownish black, paler beneath’; plumbeous spots of indefinite outline
scattered thickly and irregularly over the sides, sometimes wanting, at others licheni-
form ; tail round or nearly so at the base, but becoming ensiform towards the end; body
slender ; length about thirteen times its greatest diameter ; head narrower than and not
separable from the body ; projection of upper jaw not as great as that of the lower;
dorsal furrow present, but not deeply indented; mucous pores of the head not different from
those of the body ; lingual longitudinal furrow present; length at loss of branchia, 2
2-5 inches ; length, 4 inches; tail, 14 inches; body, 24 inches; head to cervical fold, .45
inch; diameter of head, .31 inch.

Habitat, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, and Ohio to Louisiana.

This species very closely resembles Plethodon glutinosus, but is distin-
guished from it by the arrangement of the teeth in a transverse unin-
terrupted row, arched in front instead of being separated by a wide in.
terval, and also by the tail being very much compressed laterally ; while
in P. -glutinosus it is cylindrical, or only slightly compressed. Triton
porphyriticus of DeKay is probably Plethedon glutinosus.

AMBLYSTOMA XIPHIAS Cope.

Long-Tailed Salamander.

Color yellowish olive, brighter yellow beneath; sides and back with brown anasto-
mosing or reticulating bands; head small; cheeks swollen; eyes rather small, but
distinct; mandible projecting; outer nares nearer together than the inner; tongue
large; vomerine teeth V-form, at an obtuse angle, interrupted along the median line

Genus HEMIDACTYLIUM. Tschudi.

Desmodactylus, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Vomerine teeth in two rows, one on each side behind the inner nares, sphenoidals
also in two groups, separated from the former and each other; tongue oval, adherent
in front; parietal bones osseus; premaxillaries two; fontanelle wanting; toes rudi-
mentary, palmate at base, four in front and four behind.

HEMIDACTYLIUM scuTATUM Schlegel.
Four-toed Salamander.

Salamandra fusca, GREEN, Jour. A. N. Science, Phil., 1818, page 357, not of Rafinesque.
Salamandra scututa, SCHLEGEL.

Salamandra melanostica, GIBBES.

Desmodactylus melanosticus, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Hemidactylium scutatum, TSCHUDI, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

FOUR-TOED SALAMANDER. 723

and limbs of the V curve; tail, oval, crestless, grooveless, longer than the body, com-
pressed from the base and not elevated ; digits triangular, depressed; length, 114 inches;
tail, 6 inches; head to cervical fold, 1 inch; breadth of head, .88 inch.

Habitat, Columbus, Ohio.

Genus PLETHODON. Tschudi.
Phatnomatorhina, BIBRON.
Plethodon and Desmognathus, BAIRD, COPE.

Vomerine teeth in two patches, one behind each of the inner nares, rarely wanting ;
sphenoidals numerous in two almost quadrilateral groups; tongue large, round, or oval,
entire or slightly notched behind, adherent in front, and centrally, laterally and poste-
riorly free; skin, smooth; body, cylindrical; tail, round, tapering to the tip; toes,
four in front and five behind; premaxillaries, two.

With the exception of Plethodon persimilis, the exact position of which is doubtful,
the following table will serve for the determination of the species:

” Sphenoidal teeth in two medially contiguous groups ; vomerine patches separated by

a distinct interval. a.
* Sphenoidal teeth in two not contiguous groups; vomerines often approximated. d.
a, Color cinereous; dorsal band red, rarely wanting. b.
a, Color black; dorsal band always wanting. c.
d. Costal furrows thirteen or less; muzzle truncate; vomerine series of teeth
medially approximated, e.
d. Costal furrows fourteen or more; muzzle round ; vomerines few or none, /f.
b. Costal furrows sixteen or more. . . . . . P. ERYTHRONOTUS.
db. Costal furrows fourteen, extralimital; California to Vancouver’s Island.
P. INTERMEDIUS.
c. Costal furrows fourteen, with irregular gray blotches. P. GLUTINOSUS.
c. Costal furrows twelve; color uniform black; extralimital, Massachusetts,
New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and Louis-

jana. ‘ 2 . . . . . . . . P. NIGER.
e. Plantar tubercles two, in front; spots minute; extralimital ; Oregon to Cal-
ifornia, ‘ A . . 3 a . . P. OREGONENSIS,

e. Plantar tubercles none; spots large, orange; extralimital; Lower California.
P. CROCEATER.
Ff. Dorsal band wanting’; dots red or none; toes long; body marbled below.
P. FUSCUS.

Color above, brown, muzzle yellowish, limbs and tail orange brown; upper surface
with black spots on each side scattered irregularly; beneath white, with pitchy black
spots, especially numerous in the gular region; head large; muzzle obtuse; eyes not
very prominent; iris yellow; pupil black; gular fold well developed ; costal furrows
well marked; skin of the back similarly cut, making it resemble scutw; body cylin-
drical, short ; limbs slender ; tail round at base, compressed distally, equal to and some-
times twice the length of the body. Length 2 3-5 inches.

Habitat, Rhode Island to South Carolina. Illinois, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Not yet recorded from Ohio, but inserted here on account of its extralimital range,
It has been found in April under old logs and rails in open woods, at some distance from
the water, and was very quick and lively in its movements.

724 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDE.

Jf. Dorsal band yellowish; dots brown; toes short; body dirty white below; ex-
tralimital ; New York, Pennsylvania to Georgia. . . P. OCHROPHZUS.

* PLETHODON ERYTHRONOTUS Green.

The Red-Backed Salamander.

Salamandra erythronota, GREEN, STORER, DEKAY, HOLBROOK, HARLAN.
Salamandra agilis, SAGER.

Plethedon cinereum, TSCHUDI.

Amblystoma erythronotum, GRAY.

Saurophis, FITZINGER.

Spelerpes erythronotus, KENNICOTT.

Plethodon cinereus, COPE.

Color upon the sides cinereous; dorsal stripe extending from the occiput
to the extremity of the tail of deep or light red; head brown above; lower
jaw and gular region whitish, ventral part of the body light, but not as
ai much so as the throat and chin; sides in alcohol sometimes reddish brown,
and dorsal stripe cream colored; eyes large, black; head somewhat de-
i) pressed, scarcely separable from the body; canthus rostralis none; costal
| grooves sixteen to nineteen; caudal furrows about twenty; cervical fold
| indistinct, its place represented by a white line ; nostrils laterally situated ;
| length, 34 inches; tail, 1$inches; head to cervical fold, 9-16 inch; width of
| head, 7-32 inch.

Habitat, Nova Scotia, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan, as far as the northern shore
of Lake Superior.

Fic. 5—Ple-

thod :
ots Very common.

mouth open.

Haldeman f states that, while Herpetologists have supposed that P.
erythronotus and cinereus are different sexes of the same species, from their
having been so often found associated together, yet he, asa result of careful
examination, came to the conclusion they were not. Four cinereus
opened by him contained gravid ovaries, and hence were females ; on the
other, hand, two erythronotus contained only seminal matter and sperma-
tozoa, imperfectly developed. Two others were found, however, with
gravid ovaries, hence we have of tho erythronotus both male and female.
Prof. Green, however, concluded, after careful revision, that the cinereus
was probably only an aged individual, in which the dorsal stripe had
become obsolete.

The Red-backed Salamander is the first of this group seen in spring,
having been observed in the middle of April. I found them
near Vassar College, in New York State, on April 6, 1878. It oc-

* Proc. Acad. Nat. Sai. Phil. 1874, page 315.
+ Cope recognizes three sub-species, erythronotus, cinereus, and dersalis.

THE GRAY SPOTTED OR VISCID SALAMANDER. 725

curs in moist, woody places, hiding under stones and old logs, and when
these are upturned it, if alone, quickly disappears in the decaying wood,
moss, leaves, or earth; but, if accompanied by its young, neither it nor
the little ones attempt to escape until touched. It climbs glass by ad-
hering with its abdomen, is frequently curled up on herbs, and, if dis-
turbed, springs away by a sudden uncoiling. They are very agile in
their motions, walk rapidly, run by sudden and irregular jerks, and have
been kept alive an entire year by allowing them dead leaves constantly
moistened. Their food appears to be small snails. When the young
are found, as a rule, they are accompanied, and often apparently being
fed, by their parents, but are occasionally alone. Their little ones, as
well as their eggs, occur under the moss and bark of decayed trees. The
latter are found in bunches of from six to eleven each, and individually
are about three-twentieths of an inch in diameter, and have been found
in June at Ann Arbor, Michigan, Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and in
August in the White Mountains.

The young are supplied with branchiz, but lose them early, that is, in
about three or four days after hatching. The little ones usually have
the same markings as the adult, but are often bright red, spotted with
black. The younger larve are nearly white; the older olive, with dark
spots. As age advances, the color deepens, becoming a brown, and very
old specimens often have a purplish tint,

PLETHODON GLUTINOSUS Green.

The Gray Spotted or Viscid Salamander.

Salamandra glutinosa, GREEN, SCHLEGEL, KIRTLAND, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, STORER,
DeKay.

Salamandra variolata, GILLIAMS.

Salamandra eylindracea, HARLAN, KIRTLAND.
Plethodon variolosum, TSCHUDI, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Cylindrosoma glutinosum, DUMERIL and BIBRON.
Triton porphyriticus? DEKay.

Plethodon granulatum, GRAY.

Salamandra elongata, VALENCIENNES,

Plethodon glutinosus, TSCHUDI, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

Color above glossy black, with numerous minute gray spots, larger upon the sides, in
some almost confluent, in others licheniform patches; color below plumbeous, with
small spots of gray in the gular region ; legs also spotted; cervical fold and a narrow
strip on each side of anus of a yellowish tinge; costal farrows fourteen ; nares equi-
distant; vomerine series of teeth extending to the exterior of inner nares; canthas
rostralis none; nostrils small, Jaterally situated; head and body scarcely or not at ail
separable; cervical or gular fold distinct; body with a dorsal longitudinal farrow ; tail

726 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDA.

long, round, tapering; legs moderately long, slender, and not very strong; head, de-
pressed ; eyes not as prominent asin P. erythronotus. Length, 44 inches; tail, 2 inches;
head to cervical fold, 4 inch; breadth of head, $ inch.

Habitat, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi,
Louisiana, Illinois, Ohio, and the country included, Straits of Belle Isle.

This animal conceals itself under rocks and logs in moist places, but
has been found upon dry, elevated ground. The color seems to vary
much with age, the young being much more thickly spotted than the
adult. In the specimens before me, this variation is not influenced by
locality. They hybernate beneath wet logs, and go into the water to
breed in April, in Georgia, and probably a little later in our limits.

PLETHODON Fuscus Rafinesque.

Dusky Salamander.

Salamandra picta, HARLAN, STORER, DEKay.
Salamandra intermixta, GREEN, KIRTLAND.
Salamandra quadramaculata, HOLBROOK.

Triturus fuscus, RAFINESQUE.

Desmognathus fusca, BAIRD, VERRILL, COPE.
Salamandra auriculaia, HALLOWELL, GRAY, BAIRD.
Cylindrosoma auriculatum, DUMERIL and BIBRON,
Salamandra haldemani,? HOLBROOK.

Spelerpes haldemani, ? HALLOWELL.

Plethodon fuscus, HALLOWELL.

Von Color brown marbled with pink; vertebral region not so dark ; laterally and
() \ ventrally still lighter, sometimes yellowish or very light orange, but generally
browa and white marbled; chin and gular region almost white; head very
©” much depressed; muzzle round, not truncate; parasphenoidal teeth not con-
ana tiguous; vomerines few in a row on each side, often wanting; eyes prominent;
fuscus, dorsal longitudinal furrow present; cervical fold, postorbital and parotid

Sa grooves well marked; costal furrows thirteen to fifteen, usually ffourteen,

limbs small; toes long and slender; vertebre opisthocelous; tail compressed, carinate
above, sometimes terminating in a fin, but usually pointed. Length, 34inches; tail, 12
inches; head to cervical fold, 4 inch; breadth of head, 5-16 inch.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia,
North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Indiana,
and Ohio.

Var. auriculatus differs from this by being black or nearly so above, with a reddish spot
behind and below the eye, and minutely punctate with red upon the sides; extralimital.

Habitat, South Carolina to Louisiana.

Lives in shallow brooks, and emits its eggs in a string connected by
albuminous matter, which is afterwards wound around the body by one
of the pair.

STRIPED-BACK SALAMANDER. 727

Genus SPELERPES. Rafinesque.

Vomerine teeth in a transverse row, behind the inner nares, interrupted medially ;
sphenoidals in two elongated groups ; separated from each other, usually narrower in front
and diverging behind ; tongue boletoid; head short, depressed ; body cylindrical, slender;
digits free, four in front and five behind; tail long, tapering and distally compressed.

Body with distinct spots or bands. a.

Body spotless, or with minute dots; extralimital, Arkansas. . 8S, MULTIPLICATUS.

a. Costal furrows 15-17. 0.
a. Costal farrows 14 or leas. c.
b. Color in the main red. . . 5 . A . S. RUBER.
b. Color cinereous and white, with black; extralimital, Georgia.
8. MARGINATUS.
c. Color above yellow. f.

c. Color above cinereous, lines black. e A 5 . . 8. BILINEATUS.
c, Color above brown. : F > a : 8. PORPHYRITICUS.
f. With dark spots; no vertebral line. ‘ ‘i - . 8. LONGICAUDUS,

f. With black vetebral line; extralimital, North Carolina, South Carolina,
and Georgia, to Alabama. 5 n N 7 . §. GUTTOLINEATUS.

SPELERPES BILINEATUS Green.

Striped-back Salamander.

Salamandra bilineatus, GREEN, HOLBROOK, HARLAN, CUVIER, DEKAY.
Salamandra flavissima, HARLAN, HOLBROOK.

Salamandra cirrigera, GREEN, HARLAN.

Spelerpes cirrigera, BAIRD, GRAY, HALLOWELL.

Bolitoglossa bilineata, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

‚Spelerpes bilineatus, BAIRD, ALLEN, COPE, JORDAN.

Color above cinereous, with two or three longitudinal black lines ; ver-
tebral line narrow, but broader in front, sometimes nearly or quite
effaced ; below yellow or yellowish white; color very much obscured by
alcohol; head oval; eyes ovate; irides yellow; postorbital and parotid
folds distinct, gular only marked by a cicatrix ; costal grooves fourteen,
in most specimens indistinct; limbs slender; digits long, excepting the
first and last; tail nearly or quite as long as the body and sometimes
longer. Length, 22 inches; tail,.14 inches; head to gular fold, } inch ;
breadth of head, 3-16 inch.

Fig. 8 —Spelerpes Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia,

bilineatus, mouth Florida, Louisiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
open.

Common. Lives under stones and decaying matter in woods and moist
places, especially along the banks of brooks and in shallow water, and is

very active.
Var. cirrigera seems to differ from this mainly in the possession of two

barbels between the nostrils and lip in the male; they are not present
in the female. Green says, “when these animals were alive the

728 AMPHIBIA—SALMANDRIDA.

cirrhi or nasal appendages were about one-fourth of aninch long. From
the situation where they were found, and from their general appearance,
they must be ‚placed among the Land Salamanders; but their fleshy
cirrhi seem? conclusively to prove that their principal resort must be in
the water.”

SPELERPES LONGICAUDUS Green.

Cave or Long-tailed Salamander.

Salamandra longicauda, GREEN, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, DEKay, Haran.
Spelerpes lucifuga, RAFINESQUE.

Cylindrosoma longicaudatum, TECHUDI, DUMERIL and BiBRon.

Saurocercus longicaudus, FITZINGER.

Spelerpes longicaudus, BAIRD, COPE, JORDAN.

Color yellow; body, head, chin, and gular region cream-colored, belly yellowish
white; spots dark colored, numerous, and irregular in form, scattered thickly over the
upper and lateral surface; below immaculate; head nearly oval, more depressed than
in the preceding species; vomerine teeth and sphenoidal groups not contiguous; eyes
elongated, not very prominent; nostrils lateral and minute; postorbital fold invisible,
parotid well marked, but the place of the gular represented by a scar; limbs slender ;
digits moderate, widely separated ; tail very long, nearly equalling and sometimes ex-
ceeding twice the length of the body ; back without a longitudinal groove, but with the
spots here and upon the sides arranged somewhat in rows. Length, 5 inches; tail 31-5
inches ; head to gular fold, inch; breadth of head, + inch.

Habitat, Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Louisiana, Kentucky, Ohio, and
Wisconsin.

From the State I have seen but one specimen, which was captured
near Lancaster. It frequents running water in deep caverns, and thus
resembles the Proteus of Carniola. Its subterranean habits prepare us
to expect what we actually find it to be, one of our most beautiful species
of Salamander.

SPELERPES RUBER Daudin.

The Red Salamander.

Salamandra rubra, DAUDIN, HOLBROOK, DEKay.
Salamandra maculata, GREEN, STORER, HARLAN.
Salamandra rubriventris, GREEN, KIRTLAND.
Salamandra subfusca, GREEN.

Salamandra fusca, HARLAN.

Pseudotriton subfuscus, TSCHUDI.

Mycetoglossa ruber, BIBRUN.

Mycetoglossus subfuscus, BONAPARTE.

Siren operculata, PALISSOT BEAUVOIS.

Proteus neo-cesariensis, GREEN.

THE RED SALAMANDER. 729

Pseudotriton ruber, BAIRD,
Pseudotriton sticticeps,* BAIRD.
Pseudotriton montanus, BAIRD.
Pseudotriton flavissimus, HALLOWELL.

Color above red, with numerous nearly circular small black spots; beneath less vivid
and immaculate, except in the gular region ; in alcohol the color is dark yellowish or
light brownish, and the spots brown; head in perpendicular longitudinal sections
nearly a perfect triangle, in width equal to the body and not separable from it;
muzzlo round; sphenoidal and vomerine teeth contiguous at the anterior margin of the
former, the latter continuing outwardly to posterior of inner nares; eyes prominent ;
nostril minute; postorbital and parotid grooves indistinct ; gular fold strongly marked ;
costal furrows fourteen to sixteen; tail and anal region with numerous circular folds
indistinct above and disappearing distally ; a longitudinal groove runs from the anus
towards the extremity of the tail; skin upon the back forming a longitudinal ridge
from the nape backwards; limbs moderate, hind ones much the stronger; inner toes
longest; tail round at the base, but compressed distally. Length, 5 inches; tail, 14
inches ; head to gular fold, § inch; breadth of head, 4 inch.

Habitat, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Texas,
Minnesota, and Ohio.

The Red Salamander is found under stones or in shallow water and
marshes very early in the spring. On April 6, 1878, I found two near
Vassar College in New York State, under a stone. When discovered
they seemed to be alarmed and endeavored to get away, but when in
marshes showed no disposition to stir. They are apparently nocturnal
animals, remaining in concealment during the day and at night sally-
ing forth in search of prey. Their food is mainly small worms, though
Hallowell found in the stomach of one a coleopterous insect, and the tail
and posterior limbs of a Salamander, probably Plethodon niger, and they
are themselves devoured by the American Bittern, and doubtless many
other animals in like manner prey upon them. In confinement they
rarely leave the water in the daytime, but usually do so at night.

The little ones may readily be confounded with the young of Plethodon
erythronotus to which in color it bears a marked resemblance, but the
attachment of the tongue is quite different.

SPELERPES PORPHYRITICUS Green.

Salmon-colored or Purple Salamander.

Salamandra porphyritica, GREEN, KIRTLAND, HOLBROOK.
Salamandra salmonea, STORER, HOLBROOK, DEKay.
Pseudotriton salmoneus, BAIRD, HALLOWELL, ALLEN.

*Cope makes sticticeps a sub-species with habitat South Carolina, and montanus also a
sub-species with a range from Pennsylvania to South Carolina in Alleghany Mountains.

730 AMPHIBIA—SALAMANDRIDA.

Spelerpes salmoneus, GRAY, COPE.
Gyrinophilus porphyriticus, COPE.
Amblystoma salmoneum, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Color yellowish-brown above; sides salmon color, with a tinge of yellow; upper sur-
face irregularly marked with gray, below white; tail yellowish, head large, flattened ;
muzzle truncate; eyes prominent, and distant from each other ; inner nares large ; nos-
trils small; gular fold strongly marked; canthus rostralis prominent; dorsal longi-
tudinal groove present; costal furrows usually fourteen; limbs moderate; digits en-
tirely distinct; tail compressed and earinate. Length, 5.7 inches; tail, 2.3 inches.

Habitat, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Alabama, and
Ohio.

The Salmon-colored Salamander is found on moist land, under logs in
damp woods, and in still water. It attempts self-defense, snaps savagely,
and throws its body into contortions when disturbed. In confinement it
appeared healthy for a year, and lived upon flies.

Prof. Baird* calls attention to this animal being much. more easily
discovered in a larval than in the mature condition near Carlisle,
Pennsylvania, stating that he had caught hundreds of larve before
finding a single adult. It is included in this list as coming from Ohio
on authority.

Genus NOTOPHTHALMUS. Rafinesque.

Teeth in two longitudinal series, closely approximated in front, divergent behind ;
tongue attached anteriorly and posteriorly, and with only a small portion of its lateral
margins free; postorbital arch long and strong, formed by the union of the tympanic
and frontal bones; palatine processes cuneiform ; spinous process of vertebrae quadran-
gular; ribs rudimentary; tail small, compressed from the base; toes four in front and
five behind, the first and fifth rudimentary.

NoroPHTHALMUS VIRIDESCENS Rafinesque.

Newt, Evet, Eft or Crimsom Spotted Triton.

Triturus viridescens,t RAFINESQUE. "
Diemyctylus viridescens, RAFINESQUE, HALLOWELL, VERRILL, COPE, ALLEN.
Diemyotylus miniatus,t RAFINESQUE, HALLOWELL, VERRILL, COPE, ALLEN
Salamandra stellio, SAY.

Salamandra symmetrica, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, DEKAY, STORER.
Salamandra punctatissima, Woon.

Salamandra dorsalis, HARLAN, HOLBROOK, KIRTLAND, STORER.

Salamandra millepunctata, STORER.

Salamandra coccinnea, ? DEKay.

Notophihalmus miniatus, STORER.

*Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1850.
tCope makes two sub-species, viridescens and miniatus.

CRIMSON SPOTTED TRITON. 731

Triton millepunctatus, DeKay.
Triton dorsalis, HALL.
Triton symmetricus, punctatissimus, et dorsalis, DUMERIL and BIBRON.

Color varying from olive to scarlet above, from orange to red beneath, the
two colors abruptly separated ; sides with five or more ocellate spots, often
arranged in a line and sometimes with other similar but smaller spots lower
down; entire under surface punctate with black dots, which sometimes
cover the back and tail as well; head oval; muzzle rounded at the apex;
commissure of the mouth not extending behind the posterior canthus of the
eye; gular and postorbital folds wanting ; costal grooves about fourteen,

ion Shera indistinct ; back usually with a dorsal crest; tail strongly carinated above

enon j and below. Length, 34 inches; tail, 12 inches; head to axilla, 4 inch;

breadth of head, + inches.

Habitat, Canada, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Poe
vania, Georgia, Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Michigan.

The Crimson Triton is found under stones, and decayed wood and
leaves, and also in brooks and pools. Holbrook observed them swimming
with vivacity under ice an inch thick. Storer found fragments of
Lymnea, Physa, insects, and spiders in their stomachs, and also ascertained
that they cast their skin in June, and that the new cuticle was in every
respect similar to the old. They are not so rapid in their motions as
Plethodon erythronotus. In confinement they throve well if allowed a
daily supply of fresh water and a sufficient quantity of flies, which they
seized by a sudden spring, and swallowed apparently by several con-
tinued efforts. Their eggs are laid attached to weeds and grass in shallow
water, in albuminous masses, looking somewhat like those of frogs, and
the young does not lose its branchi& until late in development.

Mr. Howard A. Kelly* relates that he has taken the “Red Eft,”
Notophthalmus miniatus, found in Sullivant Connty, Pennsylvania,
and kept them in a dark box filled with moss and saturated with
water; and that all the specimens thus treated changed from the ver-
milion of the miniatus to the dull or olive of the Notophthalmus viridescens,
that upon being thrown into water they struggled to land, but soon
returned to the water, coming to the surface at intervals for air. They
were kept for sometime and always appeared satisfied with their aquatic
residence. Such an observation would seem to indicate that instead of
specific or even varietal differences in this species, we have simply the
changes due to age and condition.

*Am. Naturalist, Vol. xii, p. 399.

732 LIST OF OHIO REPTILES

TABULAR LIST OF THE REPTILIA AND AMPHIBIA OF OHIO.

The following list or renumeration is subjoined, believing that it well be convenient
for reference.

REPTILIA.

LACERTILIA.
SCINCIDA.

Eumeces fasciatus, Linn. Blue-tailed Skink.
Lygosoma laterale, Say. Ground Lizard.

IGUANIDE.

Sceloporus undulatus, Harlan. Brown Swift.

OPHIDIA.

CROTALIDE.

Crotalus durissus, Linn. Banded Rattlesnake.
Crotalophorus tergeminus, Holb. Prairie Rattlesnake.
Crotalophorus tergeminus var. kirtlandii. Massassauga.
Ancistrodon contortris, Linn. Copperhead.

COLUBRID.

Eutenia saurita, Linn, Ribbon Snake.

Eutenia proxima, Say. Say’s Garter Snake.
Eutenia sirtalis, Linn. Garter Snake.

Eutenia sirtalis, var. dorsalis, Baird and Girard.
Regina leberis, Linn. Leather Snake.

Regina kirtlandii, Kenn. Little Red Snake.
Tropidonotus sipedon, Linn. Water Snake.
Tropidonotus erythrogaster, Shaw. Red-bellied Water Snake.
Heterodon platyrhinus, Latr. Hog-nose Snake.
Heterodon platyrhinus, var. niger, Cat. Black Viper.
Pityophis melanoleucus, Daud. Bull Snake.
Ophibolus calligaster, Say. Say’s Chain Snake.
Ophibolus triangulus, Boie. Milk Snake.

Ophibolus doliatus, Linn. Red Snake.

Coluber obsoletus, Say. Pilot Black Snake.
Bascanion constrictor, Linn. Blue Racer

Liopeltis vernalis, DeKay. Green Snake.

Cyclophis estivus, Linn. Summer Green Snake.
Diadophis punctatus, Linn. Ring-necked Snake.
Diadophis punctatus, var. amabilis, Baird and Girard,
Storeria dekayi, Holb, Little Brown Snake.
Storeria occipito-maculata, Storer. Red-bellied Storeria.

Carphophis ameenus, Say. Ground Snake,
i

AND AMPHIBIANS,

TESTUDINATA.

CISTUDINID.E.
Cistudo clausa, Gmel. Box Turtle,

CHELYDRIDE.

Chelydra serpentina, Linn. Snapping Turtle.

EMYDIDE.

Chelopus insculptus, LeConte. Sculptured Tortoise.
Nanemys guttatus, Schn. Spotted Turtle.
Graptemys geographica, LeSueur. Map Turtle.
Graptemys lesueurü, Gray. LeSueur’s Map Turtle.
Chrysemys picta, Herm. Painted Turtle.

Chrysemys marginata, Ag. Lady Turtle.
Cinosternum p ylvanicum, Bose. Mud Tortoise.
Aromochelys odoratus, Latr. Musk Tortoise.

Amyda mutica, LeSueur. Leathery Turtle.
Aspidonectes spinifer, LeSueur. Soft-shelled Turtle.

AMPHIBIA.

ANOURA.

BUFONIDE.

Bufo lentiginosus, var. americanus. American Toad.

HYLIDA.
Chorophilus triseriatus, Wied. Little Tree Frog.
Acris gryllus, var. crepitans, Baird. Cricket Frog.
Hyla versicolor, LeConte. Common Tree Toad.

RANIDE.
Rana halecina, Kalm. Leopard Frog.
Rana palustris, LeConte. Marsh Frog.
Rana temporaria, var. sylvatica, LeConte. Wood Frog.
Rana clamitans, Daud. Green Frog.
Rana catesbyana, Shaw. Bull Frog.

URODELA.

PROTEDE.

Menobranchus lateralis, Say. Mud Puppy.

MENOPOMIDZ.

Menopoma alleghaniensis, Harl. Hell-bender.

BALAMANDRIDE.

Amblystoma punctatum, Linn. Large Spotted Salamander.
Amblystoma opacum, Grav. Blotched Salamander.
Amblystoma tigrinum, Green. Tiger Salamander.
Amblystoma jeffersonianum, Green. Granulated Salamander.

734 SUMMARY.

Amblystoma microstomum, Cope. Small-mouthed Salamander.
Amblystoma xiphias, Cope. Long-tailed Salamander.
Plethodon erythronotus, Green. Red-backed Salamander.
Plethodon glutinosus, Green. Gray-spotted Salamander.
Plethodon fuscus, Raf. Dusky Salamander.

Spelerpes bilineatus, Green. Striped-back Salamander.
Spelerpes long; caudus, Green. Cave Salamander.

Spelerpes ruber, Daud. Red Salamander.

Spelerpes porphyriticus, Green. Salmon-colored Salmander.
Notophthalmus viridescens, Raf. Crimson Triton.

Species doubtfully referred to Ohio:
OPHIDIA,

CROTALIDEE.
Crotalophorus miliarius, Linn.

COLUBRIDE.
Regina graha mii, Baird and Girard. Graham’s Snake.
Tropidonotus fasciatus, Linn,
Tropidonotus rhombifer, Hol. Holbrook’s Water Snake,

Coluber vulpinus, Baird and Girard. Fox Snake.
TESTUDINATA.

EMYDIDA.

Emys meleagris, Shaw. Blanding’s Box Tortoise.

AMPHIBIA.
ANOURA.

HYLIDE.
Chorophilus nigritus, LeConte.
Hyla pickeringii, Holb. Pickering’s Tree Toad.
URODELA.
BALAMANDRIDE.

Hemidactylium scutatum, Schl. Four-toed Salamander.
Whole number of species reported from the State:

Lacertilia ...-.. -.000 cane sun noc annnen ann asesie see Sneeacdeeeseece. 0
Ophidia ..- 22. ----2- een ne core cece cone nenne cee ann come es cone num meee nen
Testudinata

Number of species doubtfully referred to Ohio:

Ophidiswaccountuce BR RREEREUERRRERERS ann Heb ad anne neun 8

Total.scrseeise essen OO

SECTION IV.

REPORT ON THE FISHES OF OHIO.

BY DAVID L. JORDAN, M. D.

DR. 5. 8. NEWBERRY, Siaie Geologisi :

Dear Sir: The following report, which I have the honor to submit to you, contains
descriptions of all the fishes known to inhabit the waters of the State of Ohio, with
notes on the habits, distribution, and value of each species.

I desire to acknowledge my obligations to Professor Spencer F. Baird, Secretary of
the Smithsonian Institution, and to Professor G. Brown Goode, Curator of the United
States National Museum, for the privilege of examining tho various collections made in
Ohio by Professors Baird, Putnam, Milner, and cthers, and preserved in the National
Museum. To Professors Theodore Gill and E. D. Cope, I am indebted for various usefal
suggestions, aud to Dr. John Sloan, Mr. J. H. Klippart and others, for specimens of rare
fishes. Iam also indebted to my former colleague, the late Professor H. E. Copeland,
for many valuable observations, especially on the Etheostomatida, and to my assistant,
Mr. Chas. H. Gilbert, for various aids.

Very respectfully yours,
DAVID 8. JORDAN.
BUTLER UNIVERSITY, IRVINGTON, IND., December 10, 1878.

REPORT

FISHES OF OHIO.

BY DAVID L. JORDON, M.D.

PREVIOUS PUBLICATIONS ON THE FISHES OF OHIO.

Before proceeding to the discussion of the Fishes of Ohio, a brief sur-
vey of the earlier publications treating wholly or chiefly of the local fish
fauna may be interesting:

The earliest of these which has come to my notice is a brief paper by
Rafinesque, entitled “Discoveries in Natural History, made during a
journey through the Western Region of the United States, by Constan-
tine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. Addressed to Samuel L. Mitchill, Presi-
dent, and other members of the Lyceum of Natural History, in a letter
dated at Louisville, Falls of the Ohio, 20th July, 1818,” in the American
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review, September, 1818.

In this article the following catalogue of fishes of the Ohio River is
given, and nine of the species are described atsomelength. Many of the
names adopted were merely provisional, and were changed when the
species were finally described :

Perea SalmiOned: „ass. ee ans e Salmon.

Perea; chryB6p8---..2..0m00 4 ar eigene Rockfish.
ScivNa grunniens joscssiwecerweecesacecegarccsscssstoeccie wes White Perch.
Scieena caprodes ....--.-.20. scene. TER Hog Fish.
Bodianus Gallarns ...viis cise 2 He Baas.

Sparus CYANelUS .. un... en Sun Fish.
Sparus nigropunctatus - „eu. noes cece ee nun coe eee anne ne Bachelor Perch.
Silurus punctatus .... cen ce ees cece s cone anno nnennn toenees Mud Cat Fish.

47

738 FISHES—-INTRODUCTION.

Silurus olivaris eronnnenneus anne naonen anne Baden Sao SS Yellow Cat Fish.
Silurus amblodon ..---- .----- secees neon one eo enon none nee ann. . Black Cat Fish.
Catostomus bubalus...-.. „=... ceeecs cons secece cows sonen „o.. Buffaloe Fish.
Catostomus'erythrurus...wo series ee oes eed. Horde.
Catostomus macropterus. „un. wen. secee EIERN IHREN Carp,
Catostomus: duquesnei uses ee Sucker.

Clupea heterurus..-. ---- ee Sees seco eeuiesemseseusces Gizzard.

Clupea alosoides ------ „ur see eee cece nnnnan anne cans mau Shad.
"Glossodon harengoides -....- euren ence ccceas ence anne Sree Spring Herring.
Glossodon heterurus. ......-----+- asenieecis rasen > .-..Summer Herring.
Hydrargyra dinema ..22.. one cone recone ounmun amao nano secens Minny.
Hydrargyra notata „oe enemas nennen concer ennnen snmnnn namen Chub.
Hydrargyra amblops ..---. coos anno snaneo cneces aunnnn menu nenn White Chub.
Lepisosteus fluviatilis Gar Fish.
R0ly0don lolum essen een aukenabsaneenenn Shovel Fish.
Polyodon pristis ...-... EEE EEE SCREEN AN Spade Fish.
Acipenser platorynchus . -.- Sturgeon.
Silurus pallidus..... OLE ER ae White Cat.

Not seen yet: Pike, Eels, Lamprey, Black Perch, Yellow Perch, Red Perch.

Soon after this appeared a supplemental paper, recording 22 more
species, and describing three of them. This was in the October number
of the journal, and was entitled “Further discoveries in Natural History,
made during a journey through the Western Region of the United
States, by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq.”

The following are the species added to the catalogue in this paper:

Lepisosteus platostomus .....--20. 2-042 oo -eoeee Alligator Fish.
Lepisosteus stenorhynchus ...... 0+. 00. --- Mass Gar Fish.
Anguilla laticauda...... „one -onuen snooun cone cone Ohio Eel,
Cyprinus fasciolaris ...-.. -.--0+ onen cece ee Mullet.

Cyprinus trachiaphas ..---- ------ 2 0202 ...-.. - Brown Mallet.
Exoglossum argentum..---. „our scenes nenn vee White Chub.
Olmerus albula ...... “nes aneoan ee ESSEN OFEIEIDE White Fish.
Bodianus calliops ------ --nuun scence sonne nnnunn Bride Perch.
Pogostoma leucops.acc wann enccee concen nunenn en White Eye.

Egos) vittäatuß.... een. nee nee Jack Pike,

Esox fasciolaris .----- 0-22. zuauun cows cous manner Salmon Pike.
Catostomus amisopterus...-.2 .u-0-0 eeccus anmone- Perch Buffalo.
Catostomus amblodon...... --cocr cane cescen cone Black Buffalo.
Catostomus Velifer sues ciccicns casnse 18 Sailor Fish.
Glossodon chrysops 2... ---- eo-+ nes -aecees onen. Gold Eye Herring.
Clupea chrysochloris ...... 20-000 sone wee samunen- Golden Shad.
Silurus pallidug...... ceo. onen w+ nano uno ana... White Cat Fish.
Silurus cerulescenS.......20+s--+- i eeusaetd Maceece Blue Cat Fish.
Glanis limosus .......-++ e200 see 2 veceescoce- -- Mud Cat Fish.
Aceipenser heptipus...--. -20- enee e202 eee ene cone Brown Sturgeon.
Dinoctus truncatus ...o0. zauner cnenns sonne cee --. Blunt-nose Sturgeon.

Litholephis adamantinus .......... e+... s+ on». Diamond Fish or Devil Jack.

RAFINESQUE ON OHIO FISHES. 739

A third paper, in the November number of the same journal is called
“ Further account of Discoveries in Natural History in the Western States,
by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. Communicated in a letter
from that gentleman to the editor, Lexington, October 5, 1818.”

In this are described the following new species, and the genera to
which they belong:

Pomoxis annularis, Noturus flavus, Sarchirus vittatus,

A fourth paper by Rafinesque on Ohio animals was published in the
Journal de Physique, de Chymie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, June,
1819. It is entitled “Prodrome de 70 nouveaux Genres d’Animaux
découverts dans Vintérieur des Etats-Unis d’Amérique durant Vanée
1818.”

The genera of fishes there noticed are the following: Aplodinotus,
Etheostoma, Pogostoma, Aplocentrus, Calliurus, Lepomis with its sub-genera,
Pomotis and Apomotis, Notemigonus, Amphiodon, Amblodon, Cycleptus, Noturus,
Pilodictis, and Litholepis. The species added to the list are:

Aplodinotus grunniens, Calliurus punctulatus, Amblodon niger,
Etheostoma flabellaris, Lepomis cyanellus, Cycleptus nigrescens,
Etheostoma caprodes, Lepomis macrochirus, Noturus luteus,
Etheostoma blennioides, Notemigonus auratus, Pilodictis limosus,
Pogostoma leucops, Amphiodon alveoides, Litholepis adamautinas,
Aplocentrus calliops, Amblodon bubalus,

The fifth paper by Rafinesque on Ohio Fishes is “ Description of the
Silures or Cat-fishes of the River Ohio, by C. S. Rafinesque, Professor of
Botany in the Transylvania University of Lexington, Kentucky,” from
Quarterly Journal of Science, Literature and Arts, Royal Instivution,
London, 1820, ix.

Here are described the following species.

Silurus maculatus, Silurus cerulescens, Silurus lividus,
var. erythroptera, var, melanurus, var. fascatus,
Silurus pallidus, Silurus argentinus, Silurus melas,
var. marginatus, Silurus nebulosus, Silurus cupreus,
var. lateralis, Silurus viscosus, Silurus xanthocephalns,
var. leucoptera, Silurus limosus.

Rafinesque now desired to gather together these scattered papers, with
their confused and often contradictory nomenclature into one coherent
work, and so he began the publication of a series of descriptions of the
fishes of the Ohio River in the “ Western Review and Miscellaneous
Magazine,” published at Lexington, Kentucky. This publication
began December, 1819 and closed November, 1820.

Oversheets of this series of articles were bound and repaged as a small
volume under the following title:

740 FISHES—INTRODUCTION.

Ichthyologia Ohiensis | or | Natural History | of | the Fishes Inhabiting the | River
Obio | and its Tributary Streams | Preceded by a physical description of the Ohio and
its branches | by C. S. Rafinesque, | — | Professor of Botany and Natural History in
Transylvania University, Author of the Analysis of Nature, &c., &c., member of the
Literary and Philosophical Society of New York, the Historical Society of New York,
the Lyceum of Natural History of New York, the Academy of Sciences of Philadelphia,
the American Antiquarian Society, the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences of Naples,
the Italian Society of Arts and Sciences, the Medical Societies of Lexington and Cinein-
nati, &e, &e, | — | The art of seeing well, or of noticing and distinguishing with
accuracy the chjects which we perceive is a high faculty of the mind, unfolded in few
individuals, and despised by those who can neither acquire it, nor appreciate its re-
sults | — | Lexington, Kentucky | printed for the Author by W. G. Hunt (price one
dollar). | — | 1820 | (1 vol., 8vo, 90 pp.).

On the reverse of the title page:

These Pages | and the Discoveries which they contain | in one of the principal
Branches | of Natural History, | are respectfully Insribed | by the Anthor | To his fel-
low-labourers in the same field of Science | Prof. Samuel L. Mitchill, M. D | who has de-
scribed the Atlantic Fishes of New York, | and to | C. A. LeSueur, | who was the first
to explore the Ichthyology of the Great American Lakes, &c. | In token | of Friend-
ship, Respect, and Congratulation.

This singular work has been for several reasons a stumbling block in
the progress of the study of American Ichthyology. This has been
partly owing to errors of observation on the part of the author, partly to
the admixture of statements derived from memory, imagination, or hear-
say with statements of fact, and, finally, in no slight degree to the fact
that Rafinesque’s accounts were taken from the living fishes, and hence
were not to be readily interpreted by workers in the closet with preserved
specimens.

The difficulty of obtaining the volume, and the fact that several writers
of authority, especially French and English, have set the bad example
of ignoring Rafinesque’s works altogether, because in their limited
knowledge of the local fauna, they have be unable readily to determine
his species, have also helped to cause confusion.

Rafinesque’s work has been well summed up by Professor Agassiz :

“ Nothing is more to be regretted for the progress of natural history in this country
than that Rafinesque did not put up somewhere a collection of all the genera and
‚species he had established, with well-autbenticated labels, or that his contemporaries
‘did not follow in his steps, or at least preserve the tradition of his doings, instead of
-deersing him and appealing to foreign authority against him. Tracing his course as a
naturalist during bis residence in this country, it is plain that he alarmed those with
whom he had intercoarse, by his innovations, and that they preferred to lean upon the
authority of the great nataralist of the age, then residing in Europe, who, however,
knew little of the special] history of this country, than to trust a somewhat hasty man
‚who was living among them, and who had collected a vast amcunt of information from
all parts of the States, upon a variety of objects then entirely new to science, From

RAFINESQUE NEITHER KNAVE NOR FOOL. 74

what I can learn of Rafinesque, I am satisfied that be was a better man than he
appeared. His misfortune was his prurient desire for novelties and his rashness in
publishing them, and yet both in Europe and America he has anticipated most of his
contemporaries in the discovery of new genera and species in those departments of
science which he has cultivated most perserveringly, and it is but justice to restore them
to him, whenever it can be done.” (Am. Journ. Sc Arts, 1854, p 354.)

Without further discussion of this subject, which the writer has else-
where treated in full (Review of Rafinesque’s memoirs on North Ameri-
can Fishes, Bull., ix, U. 8. Nat. Mus., 1877), I may say that Rafinesque’s
work as a whole is bad enough, and bad in a peculiarly, original, and
exasperating way, but that it is much better than some of its critics
have considered it, and that the trouble it has occasioned in nomencla-
ture is due to a large extent to causes not inherent in the character of
the work. A certain amount of conservative odium always attaches to
a writer who attempts to form natural genera out of time-honored arti-
ficial combinations.

I now turn with pleasure to the writings of one, who, though perhaps,
not so good an ichthyologist as his predecessor, Rafinesque, was a much
more satisfactory writer on Fishes.

The earliest paper of Dr. Jared Potter Kirtland on the Fishes of Ohio,
to be found in his “Report on the Zoölogy of Ohio, in the second annual
report of the Geological Survey of this State, by W. W. Mather, in 1838.”

This paper consists of a catalogue of 72 species, with notes on their
habits, distribution, and value as food.

Later, Dr. Kirtland undertook a much more important work entitled,
“Descriptions of the Fishes of Lake Erie, the Ohio River and their tribu-
taries.”

This was published as a serial in the Boston Journal of Natural His-
tory, vols. iii, iv, and v, (1840 to 1846).

In this work, 66 species are described belonging to 32 genera. Each
species is accompanied by a figure drawn by Dr. Kirtland himself
These figures are very unequal, some of them, especially of the later ones,
are very good, while others are scarcely recognizable. It should be re-
membered that scientific draughtsmen were more difficult to obtain in
Ohio then than now, and that the author of the paper drew the fishes
himself because he could find no one else competent to do it

The faults of this paper are exactly the reverse of those of the Ichthy-
ologia Ohiensis. They are principally two fold: (a) in an undue con-
servatism, whereby several really distinct species (as Pomoxys annularis
and Pomoxys nigromaculatus) are confounded, and numerous smaller min-
nows and darters are treated as the young of their larger relatives, and
(b) in an undue reliance on the opinion of certain other authors, whose

j42 FISHES—INTRODUCTION,

knowledge of Western fishes was much less than his own. A good re-
sult of this conservatism is, however, seen in the fact that, while out
of the 111 species described in the Ichthyologia Ohiensis, upwards of
43 are either spurious or redundant; in the “Fishes of Lake Erie and
the Ohio River,” out of 66 species none are spurious, and only three
Semotilus dorsalis, Platirestra endentula, and Ammocetes concolor, are redun-
dant. Of these, the first was correctly suspected by Dr. Kirtland to be
indentical with his Semotilus cephalus. The second he had not seen, but
had followed LeSueur, who was one of the best ichthyologists of his day,
in considering it as a distinct species, instead of what it really was, an
old individual of Polyodon folium. As regards the Ammoceetes, the discov-
ery that these eyeless forms were simply larval Lampreys is a very
recent one, made, if Iam not mistaken, by Professor Huxley.

Later, in the Cleveland “ Annals of Science” and “ Family Visitor,”
the plates of his Fishes of Ohio were reproduced, and some new species
described and figured. As I have not these papers at hand I forbear
further remark on them.

Dr. Kirtland once told the writer that he abandoned the idea of con-
tinuing his ichthyological writings with the flood of new genera poured
out by Agassiz, Girard, and others, which swept away his landmarks,
and which in many cases he was unable to identify or understand, and
he said that if he could have his way, he would have us “all turned
hack to the Linnean classification.” It will be noticed that while
Rafinesque “ discovered” upwards of 70 new genera and sub-genera in
America, Dr. Kirtland declined to establish even one.

Since the time of Dr. Kirtland the only paper of importance especially
relating directly to the Fishes of Ohio is the “ First Annual Report of the
Ohio State Fish Commission, to the Governor of the State of Ohio, for the
years 1875 and 1876,” and the “Second Annual Report” of the same for
the year 1877.

The part pertaining to the habits and value of the fishes was written
by the late Mr. John H. Klippart, a close observer and excellent
amateur ichthyologist. The descriptions of genera and species in the
first report were arranged by Mr. Chas. H. Gilbert, and the second by Dr.
Erneat Copeland from manuscript of the present writer.

These papers contain a catalogue of 185 species supposed to occur in
Indiana and therefore in Ohio. This list, except in some minor matters
of nomenclature, and in the inclusion of some Illinois species, is sub-
stantially that which forms the basis of the present report. The accounts
of the food fishes, contained in Mr. Klippart’s paper, are readable and
valuable.

KIRTLAND ON OHIO FISHES. 743

The following table will be interesting as showing the progress of our
knowledge of Ohio fishes, and the changes which have taken place in the
nomenclature.

In it are included the species described from Ohio by (a) Rafinesque in
the “ Ichthyologia Ohiensis,” and by (6) Kirtland in his ‘‘ Fishes of Lake
Erie, the Ohio River and their tributaries. For the purpose of com-
parison I add (c) the list of species contained in the present report, and
(d) a list of names given by Dr. Günther to the same species in his
Catalogue of the Fishes of the British Museum (8 vols., 1859-1870), the
most valuable general work yet published on Ichthyology.

FISHES—INTRODUCTION.

744

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Jo ISIIT UNOA

745

FOUR LISTS OF OHIO FISHES.

'SNIOUBTOTL SNMOIKONEY
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"on snpegdeooygugx snamruy

FISHES—INTRODUCTION.

746

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747

FOUR LISTS OF OHIO FISHES.

'STIEINUUB SIXOWOT

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7°. --- gnonofosfITO SNUOSLUIOFON

FISHES—INTRODUCTION.

748

‘soploluneTq ETLLOISOATIT

‘UINeUOTIT es TOIPEISOZIIS

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snprted stmodery
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749

FAUNAL AREAS OF OHIO.

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Sanan cons cons en gopordes BULLET

750 FISHES—INTRODUCTION.

The State of Ohio includes two well defined faunal areas, so far as its
fishes are concerned. These are Lake Erie and its tributaries on the
north, and the Ohio River and its tributaries on the south. Of about
163 species found in the waters of the State, about 40 may be considered
characteristic of the Lake fauna, seldom being found in tributaries of the
Ohio. A large number, about 67, belong properly to the Ohio River
fauna, the remaining 56 being common to both. The species found in the
lake number therefore about 96,and those in the river, about 123. In
nearly every case where a species is common to both faune, northern or
lake specimens will be found to be deeper in body and deeper in color
than the southern or river specimens. Some of the species belonging
properly to the lake region occur in the headwaters of the Scioto, Miami,
etc. I suppose this to be due to the fact that the watersheds in the State
are sometimes low and swampy, permitting at times the interchange of
fishes. Why these species do not spread southward is not explained,
but this is probably due to something in the water or the climate.

Of species belonging especially to the Lake fauna, we may enumerate
the following:

Acipenser rubicundus,
Amiurus catus,
Carpiodes thompsoni,
Catostomus longirostris,
Couesius prosthemius,
Rhinichthys cataract®,
Hudsonias storerianus,
Telestes elongatus,
Coregonus quadrilateralis,
Coregonus clupeiformis,
Coregonus hoyi,
Coregonus artedi,
Coregonus nigripinnis,

Coregonus tullibee,
Cristivomer namaycush,
Percopsis guttatus,
Esox nobilior,

Eucalia inconstans,
Pygosteus occidentalis,
Lota maculosa,
Uranidea spilota,
Triglopsis thompsoni,
Eupomotus aureus,
Perca americana,
Microperca punctulata,
Boleichthys eos.

Of species characteristic of the Ohio River fauna, the following may be

mentioned:

Scaphirhynchops platyrhynchus,
Polyodon folium,
Litholepis epatula,
Noturus flavus,
Pelodichthys olivaris,
Amiurus xanthocephalus,
Amiurus melas,
Ichthzlurus robustus,
Icththzlurus furcatus,
Ichthyobus bubalus,
Bubalichthys urus,

Minnilus ariommus,
Minnilus scabriceps,
Lythrurus diplemius,
Hudsonius stramineus,
Pomolobus chrysochloris,
Dorosoma cepedianum,
Centrarchus viridens,
Xenotis lythrochloris,
Lepomis anagallinus,
Lepomis macrochirus,
Etheostoma squamiceps,

FISHES OF GENERAL DISTRIBUTION.

Bubalichthys bubalus,
Carpiodes carpio,
Carpiodes cutisanserinus,
Cycleptus elongatus,
Myxostoma anisura,
Ceratichthys amblyops,
Ericymba buccata,
Minnilus rubrifrons,

751

Pecilichthys coeruleus,
Nothonotus camurus,
Nanostoma zonale,
Rheocrypta copelandi,
Imostoma shumardi,
Ericosma evides,
Pleurolepis pellucidus.

The following are species of general distribution, occuring probably in

every suitable stream in the State:

Amiurus natalis,
Catostomus teres,
Catostomus nigricans,
Erimyzon sucetta,
Minytrema melanops,
Myxostoma macrolepidotum,
Ceratichthys biguttatus,
Semotilus corporalis,
Chrosomus erythrogaster,
Notemigonus chrysoleucus,

Melanura limi,
Labidesthes sicculus,
Pomoxys nigromaculatus,
Pomoxys annularis,
Xenotis megalotis,
Lepomis pallidus,
Apomotis cyanellus,
Ambloplites rupestris,
Miczopteras salmoides,
Micropterus pallidus,

Minnilus rubellus,
Hudsonius analostanus,
Luxilus cornutus,
Hyborhynchus notatus,

Roccus chrysops,
Etheostoma flabellare,
Boleosoma nigrum.
Percina caprodes.

As an illustration of the character of the local fauna of the smaller
streams of the interior, I give the following list of the species taken by
Professor H. E. Copeland and myself in the White River, near Indian-
apolis, Indiana. This stream is in all essential respects similar to the
Miami, and other rivers of Western Ohio:

ETHEOSTOMATIDE.

Microperca punctulata Putn........ zauunsannnan sonen nnmenn Rare,
Etheostoma flabellare Raf..---- --..- cenees cons onen annnnn an Rare.
Nothonotus camurus (Cope) Jor. = eeoee suunen anne anne ---- Rare.
Peecilichthys variatus (Kirt.) Ag... ...... EUER SED Common
Pocilichthys spectabilis- Ag. -... enc. --000n 0unaananen nee - .... Frequent.
Pleurolepis pellucidus (Baird) Ag... --.- «==. - ene cerns „0... - Frequent.
Boleosoma nigrum (Raf.) Jor...=.- ..... SivevesacetesS ones . Common.
Alvordius aspro Cope and Jor. „euren eee. saannn cece nen ..... Frequent.
Ericosma evides Jordan and Copeland...--0. --- --- sans cee. Rare.
Rheocrypta copelandi Jor....... -- ee ae ee MALS.

Diplesium blennioides (Raf.) Jor....... ===. secees eens none - ÜOMMOR.
Percina caprodes (Raf.) Grd....--- eaananannaannnenenn oee--. COMMOn,

75 752 FISHES INTRODUCTION.

CENTRARCHIDE,

Pomoxys nigromaculatus (LeS.) Grd. .----- ----..--000. 2000. Rare.
Pomoxys annularis Raf...---- ---- ---- 2. --. -- BEER Uncommon.
Ambloplites rupestris (Raf.) Gill... --.... 20000 coon 000... COMMON.
Micropterus pallidus (Raf.) Gill and Jor. ...-.. .-----.. ..... Common.

Micropterus salmoides (Lac.) Gill... ---- --e00.. canes wens wee „Common.
Apomotis cyanellus Raf. .........-- EN Common.
Lepomis macrochirus Raf.....-..-.--..----6 DEE Frequent.
Lepomis pallidus (Mit.) Gill and Jor. -»-.- - --.-.....-- „>... Common.
Xenotis inseriptus (Ag.) Jor. ...o-u.--uu0un see woe ween cence Frequent.
Xenotis megalotis (Raf.) Jor. 22. .---0. eee 0000 nenne Common.
Xenotis lythrochloris Jor. - ..---- cence “nr 2u0nan ann ann Frequent.
Xenotis: aureoluB; Tor: usa namens een ee an Frequent.
SOLENIDE.
Haploidonotus grunniens Raf........ neueren Uncommon.
COTTIDE.

Potamocottus wilsonii, (Grd.) Gill

Potamocottus caroline Gill... - --- ---- --=- pee eee ene man ana
ATHERINIDE.
Labidesthes sicculus Cope. 22. ...-.- 20-02. -uuuun nee w ee eens Common.
CYPRINODONTIDE.
Zygonectes notatus (Raf.) Jor. ....=u-.uruunsenoon mono san Common.
UMBRIDE.

Melanura limi (Kirt.) Ag. ---. --.. uns mans nun nun eons cone RATE.

ESOCIDE.

Esox salmoneus Raf, essen scan tecnanctese .Common.

DOROSOMATIDE.

Dorosoma cepidianum (LeS.) Gill. ... 20= ---- === sous --.-.. Uncommon.

CYPRINIDE.
Campostoma anomalum (Raf) Ag....-.. 0-00 000 eweeee---Common,
Hyborhynchus notatus (Raf.) Ag. ...... ---2 2000 0020 0000... --Common.
Hybognathus nuchalis Ag... non canon see mann nenne Rare.
Ericymba bucatta Cope, - .--- 22. sausenennnne ae Common.
Semotilus corporalis (Mit.) Putn. „......--=- .-uousonenoe no Common.
Ceratichthys biguttatus (Kirt.) Grd. ....-..-uuus onuuun anne Common.

Ceratichthys amblops (Raf.) Grd. ---- --.--- -- LEE -„.. Common.

FISHES OF WHITE RIVER. 753
Erimystax dissimilis (Kirt.) Jor. .... 22-2. 2200000000 nen oes Frequent.
Rhinichthys obtusus Ag. - .- 0-2. eens ween coe ene ceo nes ann COMMON,
Hudsonius stramineus (Cope) Jor....-....-0-- ++ Ada Frequent.
Chrosomus erythrogaster Raf....--- ---- 2.200000 can enn ner Common.
Lythrurus diplemius (Raf.)‘Jor....---- -- ---- -.-.--- cunnon ann Common.
Luxilus cornutus (Mit.) Jor. - 2.2. 2000 cece sonen peewee coer Common.
Hudsonius analostanus (Grd.) Jor. ...-... NE Se, Common.
Episema scabriceps Cope. ...... seen. cece coe e ee cone ween cone Locally abundant.
Episema ariomma Cope.........---- Be REINE ECT Frequent.
Minnilus dinemus Raf, «0.0000. 2: ana aaa anne ne Frequent.
Minnilus rubrifrons (Cope) Jor. „=... ... 0... ER ERETE Common.

Notemigonus chrysoleucus (Mit.) Jor..... .- 2-20 0000 ence ones COMMON.

CATOSTOMIDE.
Catostomus teres (Mit.) LeS...... Dieser ee Common.
Catostomus nigricans LeS. ... u... 2002 0000 coos oo. Common.
Erimyzon sucetta (Lac.) Jor. . .....-.---. 000. cece cone une Common.
Minytrema melanops (Raf.) Jor. ... 2.2. „eo sunoan none nos. COMMON.
Myxostoma macrolepidotum (LeS.) Jor. .....- en znun on-ooe Common.
Carpiodes carpio Raf, „.e- ---. “un cone ne ne ana ovaveseuess Rare.
SILURIDE,
Ichthwlurus punctatus (Raf.) Jor. ...-.. .... ea anne Rare.

Amiurus melas Raf..-.. ---- --- 2-0 cone 2020 0000 edie son. Uncommon,
Amiurus cupreus (Raf.) Gill. --. 20-22. “=. coos 0000 2000 0.0... COMMON.

Amiurus xanthocephalus Raf. ....2. eu... es e 2000... Common.
Noturus sialis Jor. -- -.nccuneuuuen aesena eee ne sauna nenn on COMMON.
Noturus flavus Raf, .----. ---- ences samen sauna anna coos anes Frequent.
Noturus miuras Jor, ...--- cone ee cece ns nen anna sonane nennen Common.

LEPIDOSTYIDE.

Lepidosteus osseus (L.) Ag. »... 0.2000 one ee nenn co cene nn. ÜDCOMMOR,

POLYODONTIDZ.
Polyodon folium Lacep......- .----+ s-220+ coe = 2+ mann nenn Uneommon.
PETROMYZONTIDE.
Ammocotes niger (Raf.) Jor....--- .-- denne Safe reach Locally abundant.
Scolecosoma argenteum (Kirtland) Jor. ...-.. .-- see eo... Rare,

48

2lolim,,

A fish in the popular sense of the word is a member of any one of the
four classes of aquatic or fish-like vertebrates, the Pisces (True Fishes), the
Elasmobranchii (Sharks, Skates, etc.), the Marsipobranchit (Lampreys), and
Lep’ocardii (Lancelets). A fish in this comprehensive and rather in-
definite sense may be defined asa cold-blooded vertebrate, adapted for life.
in the water, breathing by means of gills, the limbs if present developed
a fins, the fingers and toes being represented by cartilasinous rays con-
necte: by membrane, the exoskeleton obsolete or developed as scales or
bony plates, and one er more fins developed on the median line of the
body, usually composed of rays connected by membrane.

Of a fish, in the popular sense, one could hardly say more, without the
necessity of the constant introduction of exceptions. Of a “true fish, we,
a member of the Class Pisc:», a definition will be given further on.

Of the four classes of fish like vertebrates only two are represented in
the waters of Ohio. These are the Lampreys (Mursip branchii) and the
True Fishes (Pisces). These two may be compared as follows:

* Skull imperfectly developed, without lower jaw or memb:ave bones (opercula, ete.);
paired fins (pectorals and ventrals) undeveloped, with no shoulcer girdle or pelvic
elements ; gills purse-shape, usually with several external opening*; nostril single, on
the median line of the head ; body e+l-ehaped, scaleless. . . . MARSIPOBRANCHN.

**Skull well-developed, with a lows: jaw and membrane bones; paired fins more or
less developed, with a shoulder girdle (is riform or furcula-shaped) enrved furwards and
with its respective sides connected below; and with distinct privic elements; gills not
pursc-rbap.d, theiz«xternal openings single on each sid»; nostrils one on each side,
their openings often double; body variously formed, usually scaly. . . . PISCES.

Beginning with the lowest, or least complicated of these groups we come now to the
consideration of

CLASS I. MARSIPOBRANCHN. THE MYZONTS.

Skeleton cartilarinous; the skull.inperfectly developed, not separate
from the vertebralcolumn ; noribs; no true jaws; nolimbs; no shoulder
girdle nor pelvic elements; gills in the form of fixed sacs, without
brauchisl arches, six or seven in number on each side; a single nasal
aperture; mouth subinferior, nearly circular, adapted for sucking ; heart

FISHES—-PETROMYZONTIDA. 766

without arterial bulb; alimentary canal’ straight, simple, without cecal
appendages, pancreas or spleen; generative outlet peritoneal ; vertical
fins with feeble rays, continuous around the tail; naked, eel-shaped
animals, inhabiting all waters. (Marsipion, a small pouch or puree;
bragchia, gills.)

This class is divided into two orders, the Hyperotreta or Hag-fishes, in
which the nasal duct is tube-like with cartilaginous rings, penetrating
the palate, and Hyperoartia or Lampreys, with the nasal duct developed
n the form of a blind sac not penetrating the palate. The former order
is not numerous in species, and none of its members aie fouud in fresh
water, so that in the fauna of Ohio, we have to consider only

ORDER 1. HYPEROARTIA. THE LAMPREYS.

Marsipobranchii with the nasal duct in the form of a blind gac, not penetrating the
palate. This order is equivalent to the single family Pelromyzontidw. (Auperes, palate ;
artios, complete or entire.)

FAMILY I. PETROMYZONTIDE. THE LAMPREYS.

Buy eel-shaped, naked, sub-cylindrical anteriorly, compressed behind ; mouth nearly
CrvVax, suctorial, armed with horny teeth which are simple or multicuspid, and rest on
papilla ; of these teeth several standing behind the op-ning of the @sophagus are wore
or less united, forming a semi-circular plate, known astue mandibulsry plate; in froni
of the opening of the esophagus are either two large separate tecth, or cise two or three
teeth coalescent into a crescent shaped plate; these are the so-called maxillary teeth ;
eyes present, in the adult; gill openings seven, arranged in a linear series along the
sides of the chest ; nostril above the head; lips present, sometimes fringed; dorsal fin
with its posterior part usually continuous with the anal around the tail, the anterior
part more or less distinctly separated by a notch ; intestines with a spiral valve; eggs
small.

Some species of Lamprey build large circular nests, as large as a cart-
wheel, a foot or two in height, sometimes raising half a foot above the

‘surface of the water. They collect these stones, of the size of a hen’s egg
with their mouth, and are said to fushion them into circles with their
tail. Whether our Ohio species build conspicuous nests, I do not know.

These animals undergo a metamorphosis, the young forms being
usually toothless, with the eyesrudimentary. Until quite recently, these
larval forms have been considered as separate genera. Genera five or six,
species about twenty, found in all waters in temperate regions. They
attach themselves to the bediesof fishes, and feed on their flesh, which
they scrape off with their rasp-like teeth. The marine species of the
genus Petromyzon reach a considerable size and are valued as food. The
fresh water species are, however, too small for such use. Two genera
are represented in Ohio. They are easily distinguished by the differ-
ence in the teeth.

756 FISHES—PETROMYZONTIDE.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF PETROMYZONTIDE.

*Maxillary teeth coalescent, forming a crescent shaped plate, with a distinct cusp at
each end, between which is sometimes a small median cusp; dorsal fin continuous.
AMMOC@ITES. 1.
**Maxillary teeth double or triple, composed of two or three pointed cusps elose

together, and not forming a crescent-shaped plate; dorsal fin continuous.
SCOLECOSOMA. 2.

Genus 1. AMMOCCITES. Dumeril.

Ammoceetes, DUMERIL, Faune Francaise, 1828, (based on larval forms.)
Ichthyomyzon, GIRARD, U. 8. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858.

Type, Ammocetes branchialis, L., the larval form of Petromyzon planeri, BLOCH, an
European species closely related to A. niger.

Etymology, ammos, sand ; koite, to lie.

Small Lampreys with the dorsal fin continuous, sometimes emarginate, but not
divided into fins, the posterior portion continuous with the anal around the tail, and
with the maxillary tooth single, forming a broad crescentic plate, with a large bluntish
cusp at each end, and sometimes a small cusp betweenthem. But one American species
is known, very closely allied to the European Pride or Small Lamprey.

1. AmMoca@TEs NIGER (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Small Black Lamprey.

Petromyzon nigrum, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 84.

Petromyzon niger, JORDAN (1878), Man. Vert., first edition, 315.

Ammocates niger, JORDON (1878), Man. Vert., second edition, 349.—JORDON (1878), Bull.
Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist., 2, 70.

Description.—Head moderate, nearly as long as the chest (i. e. space occupied by the
gill openings) ; mouth comparatively small ; lips with w conspicuous fringe ef papille;
dorsal fin high, considerably depressed in front of the vent, but not divided into fins,
the pcsterior part highest; anal fin evident; anal tube conspicuously protruded in the
spring ; eyes moderate; maxillary tooth with its cusps large, triangu'ar, well separated,
a small pointed median cusp usually present in the adult; in younger specimens the
median cusp is obsolete, and in half grown individuals the tooth forms « curved plate,
without distinct cusps ; mandibulary plate curved with eight to ten well devéloped sub-
equal,tooth-like lobes, inside of which is a plate bearing three teeth; a plate on each
side of the opening of the w@sophagus, the remaining teeth inconspicuous. Bluish-black
above, silvery below; size small. Length, 6 to 10 inches.

Habitat, Obio Valley, Upper Mississippi, and Great Lake region.

Diagnostic marks. —This species may be known to be a Lamprey by its
sucking mouth and numerous gill openings. From the other Ohio
Lamprey, the form of the maxfllary tooth will distinguish it at sight.
The larvee of the two without eyes or teeth are very similar, but the
present species is smaller and darker than Scolecosoma argenteum.

SILVERY LAMPREY. 157

Habits.—This Lamprey is usually seen in the spring, when it ascends
small clear brooks, in large numbers for the purpose of depositing its
spawn. They are often found clinging to stones and clods of earth, in
which position they are readily destroyed by the small boy. Later in the
season they disappear, probably returning to deeper water, and are sel-
dom caught except when attached to some unlucky fish. As they are
rarely seen on their way down stream, “it is thought by fishermen that
they never return, but waste away and die, clinging to rocks and stumps
of trees for an indefinite period; a tragic feature in the scenery of the
river bottoms worthy to be remembered with Shakespeare’s description
of the sea floor.” ( Thoreau.)

They probably occur throughout Ohio, but are more abundant further
northwest. They have, of course, no economic value.

Genus 2. SCOLECOSOMA. Girard.

Scolecosoma, GIRARD, U. 8. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 384, 1859.
Type, Ammoceies concolor, KIRTLAND, which is the larval form of Petromyzon argenteus,
KIRTLAND.
Etymology, skolex, worm; soma, body.

Lampreys of rather small size, having the dorsal fin high and continuous, with only
a shallow emargination ; the teeth nearly equal over the large buccal disk, the maxillary
teeth two in number, pointed and set close together, without interspace and not form-
ing a crescent shaped plate; mandibular plate with numerous close-set pointed cusps,
which resemble distinct teeth. This genus differs from Petromyzon in the continuous
dorsal, there being two distinct dorsal] fins in the latter genus. Its known species in-
habit the Great Lake region and the Mississippi Valley. Tho group was originally in-
tended to include only those blind species (i. e. larvee) which had a single dorsal fin,
those larve with two dorsal fins being called by Girard dAmmocetes. The type of
Scolecosoma really seems to be a representative of a distinct genus, for which the name
is of course to be retained in spite of the erroneous views ontertained as to its relations
by its author.

2. SCOLECOSOMA ARGENTEUM (Kirtland) Jordan.

Silvery Lamprey; Wud Eel.

Petromyzon argenteus, KIRTLAND (1840), Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 342.

Ichthyomyzon argenteus, JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., first edition.

Ammoceees argenteus, JORDAN (1878) Man. Vert., second edition.

Ammoceetes concolor, KIRTLAND (1840), Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 473 (larva).

Ichthyomyzon hirudo, GIRARD, (1859), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 342.—GUNTHER (1870),
« Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., viii, 507.

Ammocetes hirudo, JORDON, Man. Vert., second edition, 350.

Ammocetes epyptera, ABBOTT (1860), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 327 (larva).

758 FISHES—PETROMYZONTIDE.

Deseription. —Body stoutish, compres3ad behin1; head broad, with large buccal disk
the edges of which are fringed but not conspicously ; teeth pretty strong and nearly
uniform, the two moxillary cusps being very similar to the other teeth ; mandibulary
cusps seven in number, connivent, the middle ones the longest; color bluish, sides
silvery ; often msitled; a small dusky spot above each gill opening, usually conspic-
uous. Length about a foot.

Habitat, Great Lake ragion and Mississippi and Ohio Valleys, mostly in deep water
but ascending small streams to spawn in the spring.

Diagnosis—The presence of two teeth close together, and similar to
the other teeth, in the mouth in front of the opening of the gullet will
distinguish this Lamprey from the other species found in Ohio. This
species is larger and paler colored.

Habits —Tais Lamprey is rather common, both in Lake Erie and in
the Ohio River. Itis not often found in small streams, excepting in
the spawning season. I have obtained several specimens, with Perch
from Lake Erie, both external, feeding on the Perch, and internal, having
been devoured by the fish. Dr. Kirtland’s original type was found
fastened to a Wall-eyed Pike (Stizostethiwm). Probably all of our larger
fishes sometimes are victims to its voracity. The species seems to reach
nearly its full size before dropping its larval peculiarities, as blind and
toothless specimens of six or eight inches in length are occasionally
taken.

According to Professor Milner, this Lamprey frequently is parasitic on
the Lake Sturgeon, producing circular scars or raw sores. “It is proba-
ble that their natural food is the slime or mucus exuded in abundance
from the pores, but they frequently retain their hold upon aspot until
they have eaten through to the flesh, and deep ulcerous cavities occasion-
ally result from the sore” (Milner, Rept. U. S. Fish Comm., 1872-73, p.
74). According to Dr. C. C. Estes and others, this species likewise finds
“ green pastures” on the naked skin of Polyodon.

CLASS U. PISCES. THE TRUE FISHES,

Excluding the Chimeras, Skates, Sharks, Lampreys, Lancelets and
their allies, fish-like vertebrates, which are not fishes in a strict zoologi-
cal sense, a fish may be defined as follows:

A fish is a cold blooded vertebrate, adapted for life in the water, having
the limbs developed as fins, the dactyls being represented by cartilaginous
raya connected by membrane (rarely obsolete); exo-skeleton, if present,
of gcales, spines, or bony plates; one or more fins on the median line of
the body composed of rays connected by membrane; skull developed,

?

TERMS USED IN DESCRIPTION. 759

with membrane bones (opereula, ete.) in connection with it, and contain-
ing a braiu of several differentiated ganglia; shoulder girdle developed,
lyriform or furcula sh. ped; a distinct lower jaw; branchis, with the
outer edge free, attached to about five bony arches, which are connected
with the hyoid bone and parallel with the shoulder girdle, the Linder-
most pair modified into tooth-bearing “ pharyngdals;” gill openings a
single cleft on each side behind tne operculum, either confluent below
or else separated by an isthmus; heart (typically) with two cavities and
an arterial bulb. In most fishes there is a membranous air bladder
lying immediately beneath the back bone, answering homologically to
the lungs of the higher vertebrates. In a few Ganoids the air bladder is
cellular and more or less functional, and connected by a glottis with the
esophagus; in most of the soft-rayed species (Suckers, Minnows, Sal-
mon, Catfishes, etc.) there is a slender duct connecting the air bladder
with the alimentary canal; in the spinous fishes (Perch, etc.) this ig
wanting. Reproduction by eggs of small size, which are usually fertil-
ized after exclusion; the members of a few groups (Cyprinodontide, Am-
blyopsid, etc.) are ovoviviparous, the young being developed in a sort of
uterus. (Latin piscis, a fish.)

Nore.—The terms used in the description of fishes may perhaps best be made clear to
one not familiar with them by a sort of object lesson. Tho reader is supposed to have
at hand a specimen of the Common Brook Sucker (Catostomus teres) and a Black Bass
(Micropterus salmoides). The general form of the body is, in th’s memoir, usually first
indicated in general terms, as elongate, oblong, short, deep, etc.; more specific terms are
compressed (flattened laterally); depressed (flattened from above); fusiform (spindle-
shaped, tapering each way from the shoulders); terete (nearly cylindrical, ö. e., the ver-
tical and horizontal diameters about equal. The depth of the body is described by com-
parison with the length, along the side from the tip of the snout to the base of the caudal
fin. The depth is measured at the deepest point, and is proportionately greater in old
fishes than in young. The general form of the head is next noted; then the form and
position of the mouth; the mouth is terminal when‘its opening is forwards, and the two
jaws are not very unequal in length, as in the Black Bass ; it is inferior, when, by the
shortness of the lower jaw, its position is entirely underneath the snout, as in the
Sucker; it is oblique when its cleft slants backward and downward when the mouth
is closed; it is horizontal when the reverse is the case. The bores of which the jaw is
composed are the following: Tho two dentary bones joined by a symphysis in front, form-
ing the mandible or lower jaw ; the pre-maxillaries, or inter-mazillaries, forming always the
middle of the front part of the upper jaw, aad in some cases forming its entire edge, as
is the case in the Black Bass. Attached to the pre-maxilla:ies, either behind them,
as in the Black Bass, or below them, asin the case of the Trout, are the maxilluries or su-
pra-mavillaries. In the Black Bass these are conspicuous and flat, extending back below
the eye; in the Sucker they are hardly recognizable without dissection; in some fishes
there is attached to the upper posterior edge of the maxillaries and parallel with it a
very small bone called the supplemental maxillary, The relative size of the mouth is
conveniently indicated by describing how far back the maxillary extends; thus ““ max-

760 FISHES— TECHNICAL TERMS.

D
llary extending to posterior border of pupil,” indicates that the maxillary reaches a ver-
tical line passing through that point. In the same way, the position of the mouth may
he fixed by stating on what level as compared with the eye, the pre-maxillary or upper
lip is placed.

The jaws are sometimes provided with lips. These may be plain, plicate, puckered, or
pappillose (with little tubercles, as is the case with the Brook Sucker). At the angle of
the mouth, attached to the maxillary, is sometimes a fleshy appendage, called a barbel.
This may be extremely short and scarcely visible, as in the Chub, or very long and con-
spicuous, as in the Catfish. Sometimes the nostrils or the chin, or both, may have
barbels,

The upper jaw is said to be protractile, when there is a deep farrow in the skin, sepa-
rating it from the skin of the forehead, as in the Sucker, and not protractile, when the
skin of the upper lip, in the middle at least, is continuous with that of the forehead, as
in the Log Perch.

The membrane bones of the head may be readily recognized by taking a Sucker. The
large ‘‘ gill cover,” occupying most of the side of the head behind the eye is the oper-
culum or opercle; below this and extending up obliquely behind it is the subopercle; in
front of the opercle, nearly parallel with it and separating it from the cheek, is the pre-
opercle, and below the angle of the preopercle, wedged in between it and the subopercle,
is the narrow interopercle : below the eye is the series of suborbital bones, and in front of
it, below the double opening of the nostril, is the preorbital. On the top of the head in
the Sucker, and rather posterior, is a characteristic hole in the skull covered by skin,
known as the fontanelle. The presence of the fontanelle may be verified with a pin.

The eye is proportionately much larger in a young fish than in an old one; its relative
size is usually expressed by comparing its diameter with the length of the muzzle (dis-
tance from front of eye to the tip of the snout), with the length of the head (measured
from the tip of the snout along the side of the head to the posterior border of the
opercle), and with the width of the interorbital space (distance between the eyes above).
Thus eye five in head, is a concise way of stating that the diameter of the eye is one-fifth
the length of the side of the head.

Tne tooth-bearing bones of the mouth can be recognized in the Black Bass. The
principal of these are,

1. Dentary, the bones of the lower jaw.

2. Premaxillary, above described.

3. Maxillary, above described. This bone is usually toothless, or merely toothed on
its edge.

4. Vomer, the bone on the middle line of the palate, immediately behind the upper
jaw. This bone has a patch of teeth in the Black Bass.

5. Palatines, a bone extending outward and backward on each side from the vomer,
provided each with a band of teeth in the Black Bass.

6. Pterygoids, behind the palatines on each side, without teeth in the Black Bass; but
armed with a small patch in the Rock Bass (Ambloplites).

7. Tongue, toothless in the Black Bass, but with a patch of teeth in the Rock Bass.

8. Hyoid bone, the base of the tongue, on each side of which the gill arches are
attached.

9. Gill rakers, the stiffened appendages of the anterior pair of gill arches; the gills are
on the outer or convex edge, the gill rakers on the interior or concave side of the arch.

DESCRIPTIVE TERMS. 761

10. Upper pharyngeals, two sets of bones, usually rounded, placed on the upper side of
the esophagus, behind the gill arches.

11. Lower pharyngeals, one on each side of the median line, below the esophagus, and
behind the gill arches. These bones are modified gill arches, and their forms vary much
with the different suborders of fishes, and their structure is of great importance in the
system of classification. In the Black Bass they are flattish and somewhat triangular ;
in the Sucker they are sickle-shaped.

The comparative size of the head is described by noticing how many times its length
(along the side, from the snout to the posterior edge of the opercle), is contained in the
length of the body (measured along the side from the tip of the snout to the middle of the
base of the caudal fin). Thus ‘head 4} in length” (as is the case in the Sucker) in-
indicates that the length of the head is a little less than one-fourth that of the head
and the body. The length of the head is proportionately rather greater in young fishes
than in adults.

Below the subopercle and interopercle, and nearly parallel with them are the bony
branchiostegal rays enveloped in the gill membranes. These are three in number on each
side in the Sucker, six in number in the Black Bass, and their number often furnishes
important characters.

The scales when normally developed, are either Ctenoid (with the exposed or posterior
edge rough or ciliated as in the Perch or Black Bass), or Cycloid (smooth as in the Sucker).
In most cases, there is a series of scales along each side, each of which is provided with
a mucous tube, these forming a conspicuous raised line known as the lateral line. In
many scaleless fishes this chain of mucous tubes is developed.

The relative size of the scales is indicated by counting them. Of course, the smaller
they are proportionately, the more numerous they are. The number forming the lateral line
is one of the most valuable and constant of specific characters, being subject to but slight varia-
tions. ‘ Scales 10-65-7,” the formula ef our Sucker, signifies ten series of scales between
the dorsal fin and the lateral line; 65 scales in the lateral line, and seven series between
the lateral line and the ventrals, .

The fins are (a) the paired fins, which are the pectorals (corresponding to the anterior
limbs or arms) situated immediately behind the gill openihgs, and the ventrals (corres-
ponding to the posterior limbs) placed either behind or below the pectorals; and (b)
the vertical fins, or fins on the median line of the body. These are the dorsal (on the
back), caudal (on the end of the tail), and the anal (on the lower side, behind the vent).

The dorsal is sometimes divided into two fins, in which case the anterior is called
first dorsal, the posterior, second dorsal.

The position of the fins is a matter of much importance. The ventrals are said to be
abdominal when they are inserted on the belly, notably behind the pectorals, asin the
Sucker, thoracic when inserted under the pectorals or close behind them, as in the Black
Bass, jugular when in advance of the pectorals, as in the Cod fish.

The rays of which the fins are composed may be either spines or soft rays.

The spines are usually stiff and pointed, and are never jointed or articulated, and are
never branched. In those fishes which have spines there is commonly one in each ven-
tral fin, none in the pectoral or caudal fins, one or more in the front part of the anal fin
and several in the anterior part of the dorsal fin, constituting the whole first dorsal
when there are two dorsal fins.

The soft rays are always articulated or jointed towards their tips, and most of them
are also branched. They are therefore usually wider at their tips than at their bases,
and are seldom rigid, unless rendered so by drying. In all cases where the dorsal and

762 FISHES—ORDERS OF

anal fins are composed of soft rays only, there are at the anterior edgs of the fin, from
one to three undeveloped or rudimentary.rays, usually closely adherent to the first
developed ray. Some writers enumerate these in their descriptions, but in the present
memoir they aro not counted except in a few cases, where the fact is specified. The
short spines should, however, never be omitted. The last ray of the dorsal and anal
fins is usually split to the base. This is counted as one not as two.

In certain fishes, as the Trout and Cat fish, there is on the median line of the Hase
behind the dorsal fin a fleshy expansion known as the adipose fin, It has of course, no
rays, and is not strictly a fin. j

In the present paper the number of spines is indicated by the use of Roman figures;
the number of soft raya, by Arabic figures. When a tin has both spines and soft rays,
if the two kinds are united by a membrane, a comma (,) separates the number of spines

-from the number of soft rays. In case the spines are separated as o distinct fina
dash (—) divides the two in the enumeration. Thus, in the Black Bass, ‘‘D. X,13”
indicates a continuous dorsal fin, with ten spines and thirteen soft rays. In the White
Bass, “‘D. IX—I,12” indicates two dorsals, whereof the first has nine spines, the second
has one spine and twelve short rays.

The number of rays in the pectoral and caudal fins is seldom of any valve in the classifi-
cation of fishes.

The abbreviations, D., dorsal fin; A., anal; C., caudal; P., pectoral; V., ventral;
B., branchi stegals, and lat. 1., lateral line, are frequently used, especially in enumerat-
ing the number of fin rays or scales.

ARTIFICAL KEY To THE ORDERS OF Pısces REPRESENTED IN OHIO.

*Tail evidently heterocercal; ventral fins abdominal; no true spines, but some of the
fins usually provided with fulera, (Ganoidei).
a, Skeleton cartilaginous; body naked or with series of bony bucklers.
bb. Mouth narrow, inferior, toothless, preceded by four barbels.
, CHONDROSTEI, 3.
bb. Mouth terminal, brohd, with minute deciduous teeth ; snout prolonged into a
sputulate process, e A r . A . SELACHOSTOMI. 2.
aa. Skeleton bony; body scaly.
cc. Scalos ganoid, i.e. rhombic enamelled plates; dorsal fin short; no gular
plates. . . e 2 ‘ 2 GINGLYMODI. 4.
ce. Seales cycloid; dorsal fin very re a atonal gular plate.
HALECOMORPHI 5.
**Tail not evidently heterocercal, (Teleostei).
d. Maxillaries wanting, or confluent with.the palatines; body serpentiform; no
ventral fing; vertical fing confluent, or nearly so around the tail.
ENCHELYCEPHALL 6.
dd. Maxillaries present, rndimentary, each forming the base of a long barbel; no
scales; dorsal and pectoral fins each with a single strong spine.
NEMATOGNATHI 7.
ddd. Maxillaries, complete, not forming the base of a long barbel.
e. Ventral fias (in our species) composed each of a strong spine and a rudimen-
tary ray; doisal with free spines; body scaleless, naked or mailed.
HEMIBRANCHIL 9.
ee, Ventral fins if present, not as above. . F . TELEOCEPHALI. 8.

PADDLE FISHES. 763

SUB-CLASS GANOIDEI. THE GANOID FISHES.

Skeleton bony or cartilaginous; optic nerves forming a chiasma; arterial bulb rhyth-
mically contractile, provided with several rows of valves; intestine usually with a
spiral valve; veutral fins, if present, abdominal; tail more or less heterocerez!. Of this
important sub-class, few species are now extant, and these few vary widely from one
another. Of the earlier fossil fishes, a very large proportion are gancids (ganos,
splendor, many of the species being provided with shining enamelled plates),

ORDER 2. SELACHOSTOMI. THE PADDLE
FISHES.

No subopercle, preopercle, interopercle or maxillary bones; a single broad branchio-
stegal ; ventral fins abdominal, with an entire series of basilar segments; branchihyals
cartilaginous; premaxillaries forming the border of the large mouth; snout dilated,
prolonged ; skin smooth or nearly so; tail heterocercal. This order contains but a single
family, Polyodontide, (Selachos, a shark; stoma, mouth.)

FAMILY II. POLYODONTIDA. THE PADDLE
FISHES.

Body elongate, fusiform, subterete; skin smooth or with minute ronghnesses ; sides of
the upturned part of tail with bony plates; mouth very wide, terminal bat overhung
by the long snoat, which is produced into a long and thin spatula-liks process, reticulate
above and below, thin and flexible at its edges; jaws and palate with minute
deciduous teeth; no barbels; gill openings wide; opercle rudimentary, striate, pro-
duced into along skinny flap; no tongue; spiracles present; air bladder large, com-
municating with the @sophagus; intestine with a well-developed spiral valve; stomach
cecal, with a broad divided pyloric appendage; dorsal far back, between veutrals and
anal; caudal with its lower lobe well-developed, nearly as long as the upper; pectoral
fins large, inserted low; lateral line present. ,

There are two species of this singular family known, representing two genera, Poly-
odon from America and Psephurus from China. They are large shark-like fishes, living in
fresh-waters, and feeding on mud and minute Crustacea.

*Gill rakers long and fine, exceedingly numerous; upper caudal falcra narrow, 15 to

20 in number. ‘ . é . : . 3 s . . PoLyopon. 3.

Genus 3. POLYODON. Lacepede,

Polyodon, LACEPEDE, Hist, Nat. des Poissons, i, 403, 1798.

Spatularia, Saaw, General Zoology, v, 362, 1804.

Platirosira, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 223, 1818 (adult without teeth),
Type, Polyodon feuille, LACEPEDE, Polyodon folium, Auct.
Etymology, polus, many; odon, tooth.

Polyodontide with each branchial arch furnished with a double series of very long
setiform gill rakers, the two series being divided by a broad membrane; upper caudal
fulera not enlarged. American.

764 FISHES—POLYODONTIDE.

8. PoLyopon FOLIUM Lacepede.

Paddle Fish; Spoom-bill; Shovel Fish; Bill Fish; Duck-billed
Cat.

Polyodon feuille ( folium), LACEPEDE (1798), Hist. Nat. des Poiss., i, 403.

Polyodon folium, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 21.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit.
Mus, viii, 346.—JORDAN (1&78), Man. Vert. E. U. 8.. 2d. Ed., 344 (and of authors
generally).

Spatularia reticulata, Suaw (1844), Gen. Zool., v, 362 (and of some authors).

Platirostra edentula, LESUEUR (1818), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 223 (based on old
and toothless specimens),— KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v. 22.

Planirostra spatula, OWEN, Osteo}. Catal., i, 83.

Body moderately elongated, the disproportionately large head and long snout form-
ing nearly half of the total length, the prolonged opercular flap extending about to the
ventrals; spatula largely developed, nearly as broad as the head, forming more than
one third of the total length in the young, and about one-fourth in the adult; fins
large, all more or less falcate ; color grayish, pale below. D.,55 to 60. A., 56. Length,
2 to 6 feet.

Habitat, entire Mississippi Valley. Abundant in the larger streams, seldom enter-
ing small ones.

Diagnosis—This species is known at once by the broad leaf.like pro-
jection of the snout. It bears little resemblance to any other American
fish.

Habits.—This large fish abounds in the lower parts of the Ohio River
and its principal tributaries, whence it is often taken in nets, but its
tough shark-like flesh is but little esteemed.

The character of its food has been first made known by Prof. S. A.
Forbes (Bull. Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist., 2., 82), who remarks:

“ This is by far the most remarkable fish in ourrivers, and is not less remarkable in its
food than initsstructure. By the fishermen it is supposed to live on the mud and slimo of
the river bottom. The alimentary canal of each of the five specimens examined was found
full of a brownish, half fluid mass, which, when placed under the microscope, was seen to
be made up chiefly (in one case almost wholly) of countless myriads of entomostraca, of
nearly every form known to occur in our waters, including many that have been seen as
yet nowhere but in the stomachs of these fishes. Mixed with these, in varying proportion,
were several undetermined and probably undescribed species of water worms (4nnulata),
most of them belonging to the family Naidide. Sometimes as much as a fourth of the
mass was composed of vegetable matter—largely alg, but included fragments of all the
aquatic plants known by me to occur in the waters of the Illinois, except Ceratophyllum.
Occasional leeches (Clepsine), water bettles (Coptotomus interrogatus, etc.), a fow larva of
Diptera and Ephemere and water bugs (Coriza) were noticed. Among the crustacea
several specimens of the remarkable Leptodora hyalina were found.

“T have not had time for anything more than a general examination of the mass of
matter presented—sometimes more than a pint from a single fish—and cannot, there-
fore, give a list of the species. Curiously, very little mud was mixed with the food.

PADDLE FISH ; SPOON-BILL. 765

“The remarkably developed gill-rakers of this species thus receive their explanation.
These are very numerous and fine, arranged in a double row on each gill arch, and are
twice as long as the filaments of the gill. By their interlacing they form a strainer
scarcely less effective than the fringes of the baleen plates of the whale, and probably
allow the passage of the fine silt of the river bed when this is thrown into the water by
the shovel of the fish, but arrest everything as large as a Cyclops. The fish is said by the
fishermen to plow up the mud in feeding with its spatula-like snout, and then to swim
slowly backward through the muddy water. Its mouth, it may be noticed, is very large,
even for a fish.

“It is possible that this wholesale destruction of entomostraca may affect the food
supply of other and more valuable fishes, especially of the very young of the predaceous
species. We cannot yet say, however, where the stress of the struggle comes in the life
of any given species, and consequently are unable either to relieve or heighten it at
will, or to perceive the full effect of the forces already at work. Fuller knowledge
must precede any but the most cautious and conservative recommendations.”

Synonymy.—This species was first described by Lacepede, under the
generic name of Polyodon, in reference to the very numerous teeth in the
jaws and palate, which character was considered to distinguish the genus
from its relatives, the Sharks and the Sturgeons. Lacepede’s description,
which is a very minute and excellent one, was made up from numerous
young specimens preserved in the French Museum under the name of
“Chien de mer feuille”. The original locality of these specimens was
unknown, as Lacepide remarks, “Nous ne pouvons cependant rien con-
jecturer relativement 4 ses habitudes; sur lesquelles nous navons recu
aucun renseignement, non plus que sur les mers qu’elle habite; tout ce
que nous pouvons dire, c’est que, par une suite de la conformation de ce
Polyodon, elles doivent, pour ainsi dire tenir le milieu entre celles des
squales et celles des acipensires.”

A few years later, this fish was again described under the name Spatu-
laria reticulata Shaw, and this name has been, of late years, occasionally
employed by writers in spite of the unquestionable priority of Polyodon
folium, on the ground of the inappropriateness of the latter name, the
adult fish being often without teeth. There is, however, no good ground
for setting aside Polyodon, even if Spatularia seems a more pleasing name.
The fish does have many teeth, even if they ultimately fall out, and
Polyodon it must remain.

Still later, old specimens received the name of Platirostra edentula, they
being considered to form a genus distinct from Polyodon, on account of
their toothlessness, and of certain alleged differences in form. The
identity of Platirostra with Polyodon remained undiscovered until com-
paratively recently.

Lastly comes the name Planirostra spatula, apparently given with full

766 FISHES—ACIPENSERIDA.

knowledge of the priority of other names, and therefore worthy of notice
only for censure of its author.

ORDER 3. CHONDROSTEI. THE CHONDROSTEANS.

Body elongated, covered witha series of beny plates; tailheterocercal ; skeleton cartila-
ginous; mouih small, inferior, without teeth ; no branchiostegal rays ; ventral fin with
an entire series of basilar segments; no subopercle or preopercle; interopercle and
maxillary present; branchihyals osseous. This group contains but the single family,
Sturgeons or Acipenscride. (Chondros, cartilage; osteon, bone).

FAMILY III. ACIPENSERIDE. THE STURGEONS.

Body elongated, subterete, protected by five rows of large bony shields, the lower row
sometimes deciducus in old specimens; the shields are usually provided each with a
hooked spine; between these rows are usually souller rough plates; snout produced ;
mouth entirely inferior, much behind the tip of the snout, protractile, toothless; four
barbels in a transverse row in front of the mouth; vertical fing with fulera; dorsal fin
placed far back, nearly opposite the anal; ventral fins present, posterior; pectoral fins
large, inserted low; air Lladder large, not cellular; stomach not cecal, with pyloric
appendages; intestine with a spiral valve. Young Sturgeons have the scales rougher
and the snout lorrger and more pointed than it is in the adult.

Large fishes, inhabiting the fresh waters of nortliern regions, some of them marine and
entering the rivers. G nera two, species twenty-five or more. Most of them are valued
as food.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF ACIPENSERIDE.

*Rows of bony buckleis distinct from head to tail; spiracles present ; snout sub-coni-

cal, rather narrow. A P i ‘ r E & ACIPENSER, 4,
**Rows of bony bucklers all confluent on nities ‘tail; no spiracles; snout rather broad,
triangular, depressed. . . . . . . SCAPHIRRHYNCHOPS. 5.

Genus 4. ACIPENSER. Linnzsus,

Acipenser, LINNEUS, Syst. Nature, 1858.

Type, Acipenser sturio, L., the Common Sea Sturgeon.

Ety mology, Latin Acipenser, a Sturgeon, said to be from acus, sharp, and pinna lin.

Sturgeons with the tail subterete, the rows of bony bucklers not being confluent on
it; spiracles present ; snout sub-conic, narrowed ; tail not ending in a filament. This
genus as here understo« d comprehends all but one of the known species of Sturgeons.
Some of then: are marine; others are confined to the fresh water lakes and rivers.

4. ACIPENSER RUBICUNDUS LeSueur.

Lake Sturgeon; Rock Sturgeon.

Acipenser rubicundus, LESUEUR (1818), Trane. Am. Philos. Sac., i, 388.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 338.—KIRILAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 303.—MILNER,
Rept. Comm. Fisheries, 1872-73, 67, and of authors generally.

LAKE STURGEON. 767

Acipen ser rupertianus, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am., Fishes, 311, and of several
authors.

Acipenser lıopeltis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., viii, 341.

Description.—Snout rather short and bluntish, forming less than half the length of the
head in the adult, longer and more pointed in the young; barbels long. nea:er the snout
than the eye; bony shields moderate, rather smooth; shields with the pointed keel
neatly central, and directed rather upwards than backwards; skin with numerous
prickles and stellate ossifications ; about 13 shields in the dorsal row (before dorsal fin);
34 in the Jateral series and 9 in the ventral; the plates becoming smoother with age,
and in very old rpeciiucus, most of them finally falling off; anal fin mostly below the
dorsal; caudal fulera, not remarkably developed, Length, two to six feet.

Habitat, Great Lakes, Upper Mississippi and northward, very abundant in the Upper
Lakes, ascending the iributary rivers in large numbers to spawn in the spring.

Diagnosis.—The Lake Sturgeon is distinguished from the S-a Sturgeon
(A. s’uris, L.), by its smaller size and the greater number of rlates in the
lateral series (about 34 instead of 28). From the Ohio River Sturgeon,
it may, perhaps, be known by the central position of the spinous keel to
the plates. This character (first noticed by Professor Milner), may be
simply due to the greater age of the specimens examined, as the plates
certainly grow smoother, and the spines more central with increased age.

Habiis —In Ohio this species occurs only in Lake Evie and ils larger
tributaries, the Stu. g-on of the Ohio River being considered, whether cor-
rectly or not, as belonging to another species. The following account is
abridged from the notes of Prof. Milner (Rept.Commr. Fish and Fisheries,
1872-73) : . ,

“This Sturgeun attains the largest size of any fish of the lakes. They are taken only
withiu comp ratively choal waters, and in some of the bays and among the islands they
are very abundant. The largest specimen it has been my fortune to cee did not quite at-
tain the length of six feet, though there are traditions in localities on the lakes of nine
foot Sıurgeons. The average of the mature ones taken is less than five feet. In numbers
they will not compare favorably with any of the staple food-fishes, At Sandusky, Ohio,
where they are more numerous than in any other locality, except, perhaps, Green Bay,
Wis., tl.ere were abou, 14,000 mature Sturgeons handled, weighing about 700,000 pounds,
obtained from about 85 pound-nets.”

Their fsod consists almost entirely of the shell-fish of the lakes, prin-
cipa ly Gasteropods, the thinner-shelled kinds of the genera Tihysa, Planor-
bis, and Vulvala being found broken ix the stomachs, while Limnza and
Melaniho remain whole. Eggs of fishes are sometimes found, but it is
probable that they are not extensively spawn eaters.

The spawning season in Lake Erie occurs in June. They then ascend
the varivus tributary rivers as far as the depth of the water and the
various obstructions will permit, in large schools, and may often be seen

468 FISHES—ACIPENSERIDE.

in the evening, leaping from the surface, throwing their bulky forms en-

tirely out of the water.

In regard to the game qualities of this species, Mr. Hallock says
(Sporteman’s Gazetteer, 4th Ed., 339):

“The long projecting sucker mouth situated almost under the center of the head
will sometimes suck in from the bottom the anglers baited hook, in which case, one
may as well try to snub an old log. It is possible, however, to coax him to move occa-
sionly, and then you may, or you may not, succeed in bringing him to gaff.” * * ‘(As
a game fish, the sturgeon is not a success.”

5. ACIPENSER MACULOSUS LeSueur.

Ohio River Sturgeon.

Acipenser maculosus, LESUEUR, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., New Series, i, 393.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., viii, 339, and of authors generally.

Description —This species is very similar to the preceding, and all the specimens
which the writer has had the opportunity to examine, seem to him to be the
young of the preceding. The snout is more pointed than in the Lake Sturgeon; the
skin rougher; the scutes are more strongly keeled and their spinous points are placed
much behind the middle of the shield, and are directed backward more than is the case
in the preceding. As observed long ago by Dr. Kirtland (Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv,
1812, p. 304.), ‘“ These characters are not, however, permanent, and therefore are not to
be relied upon. If the maculesus of LeSueur, be not the young of the others, their young
have never been discovered.”

Habitat, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.

Habits.—The habits of this fish are essentially similar to those of the
preceding, and a more careful comparison of the two must be made before
any important specific differences (if such exist) be pointed out.

Genus 5. SCAPHIRRHYNCHOPS. Gill.
Scaphirhynchus, HECKEL, Ann. Wiener Museum, i, 1835, 71 (preoccupied in Ornithology).
Scaphirhynchops, GiLL, Mss., in Jordan and Copeland’s Check List Fishes N. A., Bull
Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 161.

‘Type, Acipenser platyrhynchus, RAFINESQUE.

Etymology, skaphe, spade ; rugchos, snout; ops, appearance.

Sturgeons with the tail broad, depressed, wider than deep, entirely covered by the
confluent series of bony plates; no spiracles ; snout depressed, triangular, having almost
the form of a spade ; tail ending in a long filament ( at least in the young); anal fin
inserted behind the dorsal. A single species.

6. SCAPHIRRHYNCHOPS PLATYRHYNCHUS (Rafinesque) Gill.

Shovel-nosed Sturgeon.

Aoipsenser platorynchus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 79.—KRRTLAND, Bost.
Journ. Nat. Hist., v. 25.

SHOVEL-NOSED STURGEON. 769

Scaphirhynchus platyrhynchus, GIRARD (1858), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 357, and of most
authors,

Scaphirhynchops platyrhynchus, JORDON (1878), Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d. Ed., 346.

Acipenser cataphractus, GRAY (1834), Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 122.

Scaphirhynchus cataphractus, GUNTHER (1870), Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., viii, 345.

Scaphirhynchus rafinesquit, HECKEL (1835), Ann. Wiener Museum, i, 71.

Description —Body rather long:and slender, tapering anteriorly into a depressed spade-
shaped snout, and posteriorly into the long and slender tail, which is much depressed,
considerably broader than deep, and from the dorsal fin backward completely encased
in a coat of mail formed by the coalescence of the lateral series of scutes ; shields all
somewhat obcordate, the spine quite posterior and nearly horizontal; the edges of the
scutes rough; lateral scutes higher than long; anal fin almost entirely behind dorsal ;
dorsal rays about 25 in number, dorsal series of shields of about 16 ecutes ; lateral series
43; ventral series 11; color plain brownish. Length, one to eight feet (Kirtland),

Habitat, Ohio Valley to the Upper Missouri, and southwest to the Rio Grande; not
recorded from the Great Lakes.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once from the other Stur-
geons by the flattened tail, the surface of which is entirely bony.

Habits.—This fish is common in the Ohio River, and some of its larger
tributaries. It is taken in seines in considerable numbers, and is used
for food, though it does not seem to be highly valued. Nothing dis-
tinctive is on record of its habits which are probably essentially like
those of the Lake Sturgeon.

ORDER4. GINGLYMODI THE RHOMBOGANOIDS.

Parietals in contact; pterotic simple; symplectic present; mandible with coronold,
operenlar, angalar articular, and dentary bones; basis of cranium simple; third
superior pharyngeal bone small, lying on fourth; upper basihyal wanting; maxillary
subdivided; a pracoracoid arch; vetrebras opisthocelian; pectoral Äns with meso-
pteryginm and five other basal elements; skeleton generally ossified ; precoracoid carti-
laginous; one axial hyoid, and three basal branchihyals; tail heterocercal; dorsal
short, inserted far back; ventrals abdominal; pectorals inserted low; scales rhombic,
enamelled ; air bladder cellular, partly fanctional. (Gigglumos, hinge; odous, tooth.)

This order includes but one family, the Gar Pikes or Lepidosteide.

FAMILY IV. LEPIDOSTEIDA. THE GAR PIKES.

Body elongate, covered with hard diamond-shaped enamelled scales, arranged in re-
gular oblique series; head more or leas elongate, the jaws depressed and produced, the
upper jaws projecting somewhat beyond the lower ; mouth with the cleft rather narrow
but very long; most of the margin of upper jaw formed by premaxillaries; each jaw
with one or two series of very strong teeth, set vertically, between these are numerous
smaller teeth; middle portion of each jaw with bands of fine rasp-like teeth, which

49

770 FISHES—LEPIDOSTEIDA.

grow larger backward ; top and sides of head bony and rugose ; opercula well-developed ;
gill openings rather large; branchiostegals three; fins without spines, but all preceded
by falcra: dorsal short and rather high, rather behind the anal fin and similar to it;
ventral fins Jarge, abdominal; pectorals inserted very low; air bladder large, cellular,
having somewhat the functions of alung, communicating with the pharynx by a sort of
glottis; stumach not c@cal, but with numerous pyloric appendages; intestine with a
radimentary spiral valve.

Fishes of large size, inhabiting the fresh waters of North America, from the Great
Lakes to Ceutral America and Cuba, the last relics of the Ancient Ganoid Fauna, ‘ left
to show us what the ancient Fishes were like, as Saturn’s rings to show us how the
world was made.” There are bat two genera now extant, and the number of species
is small, perhaps not exceediug three. Numerous fossil genera and species are known.

ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA OF LEPIDOSTEIDA.

*Large teeth of the jaws in a single series. s Bo 4 P LEPIDOSTEUS. 6,
*"Large teeth uf the jaws in two series; snout broad, depressed, about as long as the
rest uf the head. . . . . . . . . . LITHOLEPIS. 7.
Guxus 6. LEPIDOSTEUS. Lacepede.

Lepisosteus, LACtPeDsr (1t03), Hist. Nat. des Poiss., v, 331,
Lepidosteus, AGAssiz, Puissons Fossiles, ii, 2.
Cylindrosteus, RAFINTEQUE (19:0), Ich. Ohiensis, 72,
Type, Lepisosteus gavialis, Lac.; Esox osseus, L.
Etymology, lepis, scales ; osteon, bone.

Sub-genus Lepidosteus. Snout very slender, much longer than the rest of the head.

7. LepipostEvs osseus (Linneus) Agassiz.

Long-nosed Gar Pike; Bill Fish.

ieee: Sat ee

Esox osseus, LINN US, Syst. Nat., i, 516.— BLOCH and SCHNEIDER, 392.—MITCHILL, Trans.
Lit. and Phil. Soe., i, 44; Am Monthly Mag., ii, 321—Suaw, Gen. Zool., v, 115.
Lepidosteus osseus, AGASSIZ, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 2.—STORER, Synopsis, 465.—Cors, Proc.
Phil, Acad. Sci., 1864, +7.— Putnam, Bull. M. C. Z, 1863, 2.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes,
viii, 330.—DumuriL, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, 1870.—JoRDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874,
226; Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist, 1276, 96; Man. Vert., 1876, 308, and of many
writers.

? Esox viridis, GMELIN, L I., 1789, (after Catesby). :

Lepisosteus gavialis, LACEPEDE, v, 333, 1203.—GUICHENOT, Mag. Zool., 1839, Poissons, 5.

Sarchirus vittatus, RATINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 79.

Lepisosteus oxyurus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 73.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Obio., 170, 186;
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 16.—THompson, Hist. Vt., 145, 1342.

Lepidosteus oxyurus, AGAS8IZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts., 1854, 360.—PutNam, Buil. M.
C. Z., 1863, 2.—Cors, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 87.

Lepisosteus longirostris, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 70 (based on the species described
by Mitchell “‘ under the obsolete name of Esox osseus).

Lepidosteus longirostris, RICHARDSON, F. B. A., iii, 237.—DeKar, Fishes N. Y., 274.

LONG-NOSED GAR PIKE. 771

Lepidosteus huronensis, RICHARDSON, 1. c.—AGaAssiz, 1. c.— Cops, 1. c., 86.—DUMERIL, I. c.

Lepidosteus rostratus, RICHARDSON, 1. c., 238.

Lepidosteus gracilis, AGAssiz, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 3.— RICHARDSON, 1. c., 240.

Lepidosteus semiradiatus, AGASBIZ, 1. c., ii, 2.—MULLER, Abhandl. Akad. Wiss. Berl., 1814,
pl. 2.

Lepidosteus lineatus, THomrson, Hist. Vermont, 145, 1842.

Lepidosteus bison, DEKay, Fishes, N. Y., 271.

Lepidosteus leptorhynchus, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 351, 1859.

Lepidosteus crassus, COPE, Proc, Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 86.

Lepidosteus otarius, Cops, |. c.

Lepidosteus louisianensis AUGUST DUMERIL, Hist. Naturelle des Poissons, 1870.

Lepidosteus hartani, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus smithii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus ayresii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus olintonii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus piquotianus, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus elisabeth, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus copii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus lamarii, DUMERIL, op. cit.’

Lepidosteus troostii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus lesueurii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus treculti, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus milbertii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus horatii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus thompsoni, DUMERLL, op. cit.

Description.—Body elongate, subterete ; head very long, forming about one third the
length, its depth about one twelfth; snout more than twice the length of the rest
of the head; ventral fins about midway between pectorals and anal; olivaceous,
white below; sides with round black spots, which are more distinct posteriorly ; in old
fishes these are faint, but in the young they are very conspicuous, and in very young
individuals they are confluent, forming a black lateral band; all the fins except the
pectorals with similar round black spots. D.7, A. 9, lat.1.65. Length, two to five feet.

Habitat, New York to Missouri river, south to Florida and the Rio Grande, abundant
in all large bodies of water, but not ascending small streams.

Diagnosis.—From the other Bony Gars this species may be known
at once by the great length and slenderness of the snout, the distance
from the eye to the tip of the snout being more than twice the length of
the rest of the head.

Habits.—The Gar Pike is abundant in the state of Ohio, inhabiting
the Lake and the Ohio River, and ascending all the larger tributaries of
both. It frequents lakes and quiet places in the rivers and is a fish of
usually quiet or somnolent habits. Dr. Kirtland remarks, “It may be
seen, apparently sleeping, on the surface, and gently carried around on
an eddy, for an hour at a time.” Notwithstanding the prevalent idea of
its great voracity, it rarely takes the hook, and I have never seen it

772 FISHES—LEPIDOSTEIDE.

attempt to take food, although I have frequently seen them basking in a
school of minnows, and have kept them in aquaria. 1 have never found
any fish in the stomach of the Gar, and out of eight examined by Prof.
Forbes, the stomachs of all but one were empty, that one containing a
single craw-fish.

The fishermen generally have a great dislike for this fish, destroying
it without mercy when taken. Its flesh is said to be rank and tough,
and it is seldom or never used for food. Even “the dogs will not eat it”,
say some writers, but the average dog prefers a beef-bone even to Trout
or Grayling.

This fish is interesting to the comparative anatomist from its combin-
ing certain reptilian characters with the ordinary traits of fishes, and to
the geologist, asit is intimately connected with certain Ganoid groups now
extinct, and the study of its embryology, which no one has yet been able
fully to trace, is expected to throw much light on the relations of the
Ganoids to ordinary fishes and to Reptiles and Batrachia. The youngest
specimens now known have the caudal fin developed as a second dorsal
and anal, separated by a slender tail.

Since the above was written, Prof. Alexander Agassiz has read a paper
before the National Academy of Sciences, detailing his recent studies of
the Embryology of this species. The following abstract of this paper is
from Science News, vol. i, pp. 19-20.

“Some knowledge of the embryology of the Gar Pike (Lepidosteus) has long been
needed, but no one has been able to raise the young, until Mr. Agassiz succeeded in doing
so Jast summer. This fish is one of the few living survivors of those vast extinct orders
of geologic ages; and it is thus especially important to compare its embryology with
that of modern fishes, in the hope of revealing more fully the structure of the fossil
races, and of throwing light upon modern questions of evolution. The Limulus, which
holds a similar position among the crabs, has had its embryology worked out by Pack-
ard, while Morse has studied the development of the brachiopods—an almost extinct
group of mollusks dating back to the early rocks.

The Gar Pike comes up the St. Lawrence in May, laying its eggs about the 20th, and
then disappears. The eggs are large, viscous, stick fast in an isolated way to whatever
they fall upon, and look much like those of toads, having a large outer membrane and
a small yolk. Mr. Agassiz sent his assistant, Mr. S. W. Garman, to obtain these eggs,
and also arranged to have a series collected at all stages of growth and preserved. Art-
ficial fecundation failed, but Mr. Garman brought to Cambridge about 500 naturally-laid
eggs, of which all but 30 perished through mold. The young began to hatch in six days
and Mr, Agassiz began his examinations, the miefortune to the eggs precluding any
study previous to the birth of the young. Out of the 30 young hatched, 27 lived until
July 15th, when they were as old as those observed by Prof. Wilder. Mr. Agassiz found
that these little Gar Pikes were not so different from the young of the bony fishes as he
had expected; the interesting development of the lung was not made out, but judging
by external characters the difference is small. Connection with the Sharks appears in

SHORT-NOSED GAR PIKE. 773

the similarity of the branchial arches and by te presence of the lateral fold in which
the pectoral fius are formed; the way the tail is developed is very like that of the bony
fishes. Among the ganoids, it appears, as well asin ordinary fishes, the dorsal cord is
straight at first, then assumes a slight upward curve at the extremity, when finally
there appears the beginning of a lobe underveath pointing toward the complete hetero-
cercal tail. All this is as in the bony fishes; but this is the permanent condition of
the Gar Pike, while in the bony fishes the extremity of the dorsal cord becomes extinct.
The mode of development of the pectoral lobe (very large in this species) furnishes
another resemblance. In the brain, and in the mode of formation of the gills, a likeness
to the sharks is noticeable. The young Gar Pikes move very slowly, and seem to float
quietly save an exceedingly rapid vibration of the pectorals and the tip of the tail.
They do not swim about much, but attach themselves to fixed ol.jects by an extraordinary
horse-shoe-shaped ring of sucker-appendages about the mouth. These appendages
remain even after the snout has become so extended that the ultimate shape is hinted
at; and furthermore it is a remnant of this feature which forms the fleshy bulb at the
end of the snout in the adult. The summing up of Mr. Agassiz’s investigations thus
far is, that the young Gar Pike has many characteristics in common with the sharks and
skates, but is not so different from the bony fishes as has been supposed.”

None of our species, unless it be the Hel has been made the subject of so
many useless nominal species as the Gar Pike. This work began with an
unfortunate remark of Professor Agassiz (Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854,
360), “I have now in my own collection, not less than twenty-two well
characterized species of this genus.” For the naming of these twenty-
two and about as many more we are indebted to Professor August Dumeril,
yet only three, or at most five or six of them all are really distinguishable.

Sub-genus Cylindrosteus. Rafinesque. Snout moderate, about as long as the rest of
the head.

8. LEPIDOSTEUS PLATYsTomus Rafinesque.

Short-nosed Gar Pike.

Lepisosteus platostomus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 72.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, and Bost.
Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 20.

Lepidosteus platystomus, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 360.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes, vii, 339.—STORER, Synopsis, 466.—WILDER, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1875,
B. 151, and of anatomists generally.

Cylindrosteus platystomus, AuGust DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, 1870.—Jorpan, Ind.
Geol. Surv., 1874, 227; Bull. Buff. Soc., 1876, 96; Man. Vert., 308.

Lepisosteus albus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 73.

Cylindrosteus albus, Cops, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 86.

Lepidosteus platyrhynchus, DEKaY, Fishes N. Y., 273, 1842.

Cylindrosteus platyrhynchus, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus grayi, AGassız, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 2. 3.

Lepidosteus ( Cylindrosteus) latirostris, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Rept., x, 353.

Cylindrosteus latirostris, COPE, 1. c.

Lepidosteus (Cylindrosteus) oculatus, WINCHELL, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1864, 183.

774 FISHES—LEPIDOSTEID &.

Dylindrosteus oculatus, COPE, 1. c.

Dylindrosieus productus, Cor, Proc. Phil. Acad., 1865, 86.—DUMERIL, op. cit.
Cylindrosteus agassizii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Cylindrosteus rafinesquei, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Cylindrosteus bartonii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Cylindrosteus castelnandii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Cylindrosteus zadockii, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Description.—T he Short-nosed Gar is very similar to the preceding species in size, color,
dentition, ete. The body is, however, rather deeper, and the snout is notably shorter,
being only about as long as the rest of the head. Different specimens vary considerably
in the length of the snout, and some specimens are very pale, while others are dusky or
more or less distinctly spotted. Length, 2 to 5 feet.

Habitat, Great Lakes to Florida and Texas, abundant is most large bodies of water,
most common southward.

Diagnosis —From the Alligator Gar, this species may be known by the
presence of a single row of teeth on each side of the jaw. From the
Long-nosed Gar, the shortness of its snout will distinguish it.

Hvbits.—This species is not common anywhere in Ohio, and it is more
often foundin the Ohio River than in Lake Erie. In habits, food, etc.,
the two fishes are so far as known precisely identical.

This species like the preceding, has been frequently made the type of
new species, but being less common in collections, it has suffered some-
what less.

Genus 7. LITHOLEPIS. Rafinesque.

Litholepis, RAFINESQUE, American Monthly Magazine, iii, 1818, 447.
Atraotosteus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 72.
Type, Litholepis adamantinus, RAFINESQUE, 1818; Lepisosteus ferox, RAFINESQUE, 1820,
=Lepisosteus spatula, LACEPEDE, 1803. .
Etymology, lithos, stone ; lepis, scale.

Gar Pikes with jaws comparatively short and broad, the snout rather wide, about as
long as the rest of the head, and the large teeth of the jaws in two rows on each side.
Species reaching a very large size. The name Atractosteus has been most frequently em-
ployed for this genus, but as will be seen by the above synonymy, the preferable name
Litholepis is two years the older. But one species is known from the United States, but
two others, perhaps identical with ours, are described from tropical America.

9. LITHOLEPIS sPATULA (Lac.) Jordan.
Alligator Gar; Great Gar; Manjuari.

? Esox tristechus, BLOCH and SCHNEIDER, Syst. Ichthyol., 395, 1801 (Cuba).

9 Atractosteus tristeechus, POEY, Synopsis Piscium Cubensium, 1868, 445 (from Cuba; pos-
sibly distinct from ours).

Lepisosteus spatula, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. des Poiss., v, 333, 1803, and of some authors.

Aractosteus spatula, DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poiss, 1870,

ALLIGATOR GAR. 775

Litholepis spatula, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 24 Ed., 342, 1878,

Litholepis adamantinus, RAFINESQUE, Am. Monthly Mag., 1818, iii, 447; Ich. Oh., 76.—
JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 96; Man. Vert., Ist Ed.

Lepisosteus ( Atractosteus) ferox, RAFINKSQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 75.—CHRArD, Pac. R. R. Surv.,
x, 353, 1858.

Lepisosteus ferox, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 170, 196; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv,
18.—STORER, Synopsis, 466.

Atraciosteus ferox, DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, 1870.—JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv.,
1874, 227.

Lepidosteus ( Atractosteus) berlandieri, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 353,

Atractosteus lucius, DUMERIL, op. cit.

Lepidosteus viridis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., viii, 329, 1870 (probably not Esox
viridis, Gmelin).

Description.—Body comparatively stout, subterete; head moderate, forming more than
one-fourth the length; snout broad, depressed, its length being about half of the total
length of the head; general color olivaceous, the young being more or less spotted,
especially posteriorly and on the fins. D.,8; A, 8; lat. 1., 60. Length, 8 feet or more
when adult.

Habitat, warmer parts of America. Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Gulf States
ascending the Mississippi and its tributaries to Kansas, Illinois and Ohio.

Diagnosis.—The great Alligator Gar may be known from the other
species by its broad, depressed snout, and by the presence of two series of
large teeth on each side of the jaw.

Habits—The habits of this species are doubtless similar to those of
the other Gars, except that its greater size may enable it to feed upon
larger animals. The fish is essentially a tropical species and is probably
now very rarely seen in the Ohio River. I have never seen a specimen
from the Ohio River. Dr. Kirtland knew of but two or three having
been taken in its waters, and Rafinesque apparently saw but the jaws
of one. Specimens from the Lower Mississippi, Texas and Florida are
however, not rare in collections.

This fish, with its coat of mail and long, sharp teeth is, doubtless, a
formidable one, but its ferocity has probably been somewhat exaggerated
by newspaper correspondents and other irresponsible writers.

Rafinesque’s remarks on his “ Litholepis adamantinus” are worth quot-
ing:

“ This may be reckoned the wonder of the Ohio, It is only found as far up as the
falls, and probably lives also in the Mississippi. I have seen it, but only at a distance,
and have been shown some of its singalar scales. Wonderful stories are related con-
cerning this fish, but I have principally relied upon the description and figure given me
by Mr. Audubon. Its length is from 4 to 10 feet. One was caught which weighed 400
pounds. It lies sometimes asleep or motionless on the surface of the water, and may be

mistaken for a log or asnag. It is impossible to take it in any other way than with the
seine or a very strong hook, the prongs of the gig cannot pierce the scales which are as

776 FISHES—AMIIDA.

hard as flint, and even pıoof against lead balls! Its flesh is not good to eat. It is a
voracious fish Its vulgar names are Diamond Fish (owing to its scales being cut like
diamonds), Devil Fish, Jack Fish, Garjack, ete. The snout is large, convex above, very
obtuse ; the eyes small and black ; nostrils small, round before the eyes; mouth beneath
the eyes, transversal with large angular teeth. Pectoral and abdominal fins trapezoidal
Dorsal and anal fins equal, longitudinal, with many rays. The whole body covered
with large stone scales, lying in oblique rows; they are conical, pentagonal and pen-
taedral, with equal] sides from half an inch to one inch in diameter, brown at first but
becoming of the color of turtle shell when dry. They strike fire with steel! and are
ball proof!”—(Rafinesqne, Ich. Ohiensia, 91.)

If our species is identical with the Cuban Manjuari, which is not im-
probable, the older name, L. iristechus (Bloch), must be substituted for
L. spatula.

ORDER V. HALECOMORPHI. THE CYCLOGANOIDS.

Parietals in contact; pterotic simple ; basis of cranium, and anterior vertebra simple;
mandible with opercular and coronoid; maxillary not segmented, forming part of the
border of the mouth; third superior pharyngeal lying on the enlarged fourth; upper
basihyal wanting ; vertebrae amphiceelian; pectoral fins with mesopterygium and eight
other elements, body covered with thick, cycloid scales; tail heterocercal ; dorsal fin
long; ventral fins abdominal; skeleton mostly ossified: precoracoid cartilaginous; one
axial and four basal branchihyals; air bladder cellular, with partial functions of a lung.

This order contains but a single family, the Amiide, with no near relatives among
recent fishes. (Latin, halecomorphous, having the form of a shad.)

FAMILY V. AMIID&. THE GRINDLES.

Body oblong, mcderately compreesed posteriorly ; the head broad, narrowed forwards,
ita upper surface bony and rugose; membrane bones of head extremely hard; a broad
radiated bony plate between the branches of the lower jaw; maxillary broad, with a
supplemental bone, forming part of the margin of the upper jaw ; jaws withstrong teeth ;
similar teeth cn vomer, palatine and pterygoid bones; eye rather small; anterior nos-
trils each with a barbel; branchiostegals about nine; gill openings very wide, not
separated by an isthmus; gill rakers short, body covered with cycloid scales; lateral
line present ; dorsal fin occupying most of the back, its rays rather low, of nearly uniform
length ; anal fin short; ventral fins small; pectoral fins inserted rather high; fins all
without fulera ; tail heterocercal ; air bladder large, cellular, lung-like, communicating
by a glottis with the esophagus; stomach large; coloration dark, the male fishes with
an ocellated black spot on the tail. A single species is known, among recent fishes.

Gunus 8. AMIA. Linnsus.

Amia, Linnzxovs, Systema Natura, Ed. xii, 1766.
Type, Amia calva, LINNZUS.
Etymology, amia, an ancient name of the marine Bonito (Sarda pelamys) transferred
‘by Linnzus to this very different fish.
The characters of the genus are included above, with those of the family.

GRINDLE FISH. 777

10. AmıA caLva Linneus.

Grindle Fish; Grindle; John A. Grindle; Bow-fin; Dog-fish;
Mud-fish; Brindle-fish; Poisson de Marais; Lawyer.

Amia calva, LINN2US (1758), Syst. Natura.—KtRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 479.
GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., viii, 325.—JORDAN, Man. Vert. E. U. 8., 2d Ed., 340.

Amia ocellicauda, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am., iii, 246, 1836 (adult female).

Amia occidentalis, DeKay (1848), New York Fauna, Fishes, 269, 1842 (adult female).

Amia ocellicauda, occidentalis, marmorata, ornata, viridis, canina, lentiginosa, subcerulea,
cinerea, and reticulata (1846), Cuv. et VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xix, 412-431, 1846.

Amia ornata, marmorata, ocellicauda, thompsoni, canina, lentiginosa, occidentalis, reticulata,
piquotii, cinerea, subcerulea, and viridis, AUGUST DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. Des Poissons,
1870.

Description—Dark olive or blackish above, nearly white below ; sides with traces
of greenish markings; lower jaw and gular plate with round blackish spots; fins
mostly blackish; male fishes smaller than the females, marked by a roundish black
spot near the base of the caudal fin, above; this spot is surrounded by a pale orange
ocellation ; this spot is wanting in the females ; depth of body from four to four and one
half times in its length; leugth of head nearly four; eye small, contained eight times
in head. Dorsal, about 46; anal, 11; lat. 1, 68. Length of male, 14 feet; female, 2 to 24.

Habitat, Great Lake region to Virginia, Florida, and Texas, very abundant in the
larger or more sluggish rivers, and in the bayous and lakes.

Diagnosis.—Either as “ Grindle” or “‘ Dog-fish” this species is known to
every fisherman in the regions where it occurs. From all other Ohio
fishes it may be known by the presence of the broad plate between the
branches of the lower jaw.

Habits.-—-This species occurs in Ohio, both in Lake Erie and in the
Ohio River, more abundantly in the lake, however, than in the rivers.
It is one of the most powerful and most voracious of our fishes. It is
more tenacious of life than any other, living longer out of water
than any, even the species of Amiurus. I once kept a specimen alive,
out of water, in a warm room, for a whole afternoon, in order to make a
water-color sketch of it. Its lung-like air-bladder enables it to breathe
air, so long as its air passages are kept moist, and when out of water, it
dies only after the shrinkage of its gelatinous and pasty muscles due to
the evaporation of the water they contain. The susceptibility to evap-
oration of the fleshy parts is one of the peculiar characteristics of this
fish. The flesh is never used for food, and is said to be very disagreeably
flavored, even if it did not almost wholly disappear in the process of
frying.

Concerning the “ gamey ” qualities of this fish, the following from a
correspondent of the Chicago Field (1878, p. 403), from Jackson, Miss.,
may be interesting to anglers who are not exclusively pot-fishers:

778 FISHES—AMIIDE.

“We have a fish here that we call ‘John A. Grindle’, but what his other names may
be in different parts, if they are found there, I do not know. They grow up to ten
pounds weight, and are perfectly worthless except for sport, but for the latter they are
grand. They are far ahead of our trout, I beg your pardon, you say we must not call
them trout any more but black bass. Well our black bass then, or any other fish I
know of.

“Grindle or John A., as we familiarly term them, are my favorite fish when I want
a day’s sport, for they are dead game, never giving up until tired out, and it takes a long
time to tire him. Of course the man who fishes for the pot swears when he gets a John
A., and then breaks his head, but the pot-fisher don’t want gameness or sport, though
he thinks he wants the latter; meat is what he is after and a John A. bothers him, A
favorite place for our fish is across the river and through the thickets to Lawrence lake,
which is so surrounded by swamp that it is difficult to approach, but which is
much frequented by anglers in season. Our manner of taking the Grindle is usually
with a reed pole, with or without a reel, and with a strong hook and line baited with
a live minnow, which we cast and troll.

“ John A. is a terrific biter, and as fierce a fighter as Iever knew, and he lasts. One
day last week I killed fourteen, weighing from three to seven pounds apiece, and one
of these fish fought me over half an hour. Think of that! half an hour’s exciting fan,
alternating between hope and fear and then crowned with success. This is a delight
that the pot-fisher never felt with his stiff pole twitching out his little fish before he
fairly feels them, in his haste to get another. Having told you so much about them, I
will now try and give you a description of the fish as far as I am able, not being a
scientist ; but hope that you may be able to recognize it and tell us something of it.

“ John A. is a soft-finned fish, nota spine about him. His body is round and long, like
a pike or jack, and has heavy scales, which are round, that is have no prickles like a
perch or bass. His tail is rounded, but not evenly; itis as if the lower portion was
worn off, but the young ones are so, and I think it natural. His head is covered with
hard plates, and looks like the head of a reptile; it has two sets of teeth, with some
‘on the roof of the mouth and others back near the gullet. There is but one fin on his
back, but it runs nearly the whole length of it, and is soft and of even height. The
lower fins are large and a pair in the middle of its belly. There is sometimes a black
spot as big as a quarter of a dollar on its tail, and we call them John A.’s and ‘Spotted
Grindle,’ according as they have or are without the spot. They live a long time out
of water. There, that is as near as I can come to his likeness, unless I add that it has
an expression of ferocity in its whole look.”

Mr. Hallock (Sportsman’s Gazetteer, 324), thus remarks concerning
this fish : ,

“They take frogs, minnows, and sometimes the spoon. Their habitat is deep water,
when they drive everything before them, Their teeth are so sharp and their jaws so
strong that they have been known to bite a two-pound fish in two the very first snap.
The young when about six inches long make a famous bait for Pickerel and Pike. Put
a hundred in a rain barrel and you can keep them all summer without change of water.
For the aquarium, the young have no equal, but nothing else but snails can live in the
tank. He will kill a lizard or any other living thing the instant it touches the water.”

According to Dr. C. C. Estes (Hallock, 1. ¢.):

‘“ While the parent remains with the young, if the family becomes suddenly alarmed,

THE LAWYER, 779

the capacious mouth will open, and in rushes the entire host of little ones; the ugly
maw is at once closed, and off she rushes to a place of seourity, where again the little
captives are set at liberty.”

As indicated in the synonymy above, this fish has been made the sub-
ject of many nominal species, most of them based on specimens in the
Museum at Paris. The discovery that the differences in color and size
are merely sexual differences, which, by the way, was the first piece of
ichthyological work attempted by the present writer, has caused them
to fall into the synonymy. After laboriously distinguishing twelve
“species”, among the thirty or so specimens at his disposal, M. Dumeril
very naively remarks, “I am unable to determine for which, among the
species with a black caudal spot, the name Amia calva was intended.”

The Vernacular names of this species are rather interesting. Some
of its earlier describers called it Mud-fish, and this name is frequently
met with in anatomical works. Itis very rarely heard among the fisher-
men. Throughout the Great Lake Region the prevailing name is Dog-
fish, which name is there also applied to Melanura limi, most fishermen
supposing the latter to be the young of Amia. In Lake Champlain it is
said to be called “ Bow-fin”. In the Western States, the name “ Lawyer”
is frequently applied to it, often with the remark that “this is not the
real Lawyer” (Lota maculosa). The alleged reason for the application’of
this name, as Dr. Kirtland once told me, is that “it will bite at anything,
and is good for nothing when caught.” A correspondent of the Chicago
Field informs us that “ these ornary customers are called Lawyers because
they are bull-headed and slippery.”

Of wider range than any of these names is the name Grindle, with
its variations Grinnel, Grindle-fish, Brindle-fish and John A Grindle,
This name is applied to the fish in the Dismal Swamp Region of Vir-
ginia, where I have found the species abundant, and in Southern Illinois,
as well as in all the streams of the low country of the South where the
fish is known. No hint has yet been given as to its origin. The fol-
lowing remarks from the pen of Mr. Fred. Mather on this name are very
pertinent :

“We fancy the Southern name of ‘ Grindle’ for the Amia for several reasons, one of
which is that no other fish bears it, and another is its striking oddity. The fish bears
this name, as we have seen, in nearly all the Southern states and also parts of Illinois
and Ohio. Its other names are all shared with other fishes, for instance, ‘dog-fish’ is
applied to a kind of Shark, ‘ mud-fish’ is shared with the little Mud Minnow, Melanura,
and ‘lawyer’, with the Lirg or Eel-pout, Lota. Besides, * grindle’ covers more terri-
tory, and is consequently less local than any of the trivial names. But who was old
Grindle, anyway?” \

780 FISHES—ANGUILLIDE.

SUB-CLASS TELEOSTEI. THE BONY FISHES.

Skeleton more or less ossified ; tail homocercal, or at least not evidently heterocercal ;
optic nerves simply crossing, withoutchiasma; arterial bulb simple, with two opposite
valves at its origin; air bladder if present, not cellalar. This group comprises the

great majority of recent fishes (teleos, perfect ; osteon, bone). ‘

ORDER 6. ENCHELYCEPHALI. THE EELS.

This order is framed by Professor Cope for the reception of those Eel-like fishes which
have the following osteological characters.

Parietals in contact ; lower pair of basibyals wanting ; scapular arch suspended to an
anterior vertebra; no post temporal; no symplectic; maxillary bone absent, or connate
with the premaxillary, which forms the borderof the mouth. Premaxillaries separated
on the median line by the ethmoid; superior branchihyals and inferior and superior
pharyngeals well developed, the latter of four bones. Of these the fourth is largest
and supports the third which, with the second, is directed forwards. ( Cope.)

Among the fresh water fishes, the Eels may be known by the serpentiforın body, the
absence of ventral fins and the long and low dorsal and anal which meet around the
tail; the jaws are well developed and provided with teeth. But one species occurs in
the waters of Ohio. (Egchelus, eel; kephale, head.)

ANALYSIS OF FAMILIES OF ENCHELYCEPHALI.

*Pectoral fins present; teeth of sides of jaw separated, not forming a continuous
cutting edge. A A 5 a ‘ e 7 a A A ANGUILLIDE. 6.

FAMILY VI. ANGUILLIDA. THEEELS.

Body much elongated, anteriorly cylindrical, compressed behind, covered with mi-
nute scales which are imbedded in the skin ; mouth rather large, horizontal, the upper
jaw not projecting; teeth small, in bands, not forming a uniform cutting edge; gill
openings rather narrow ; dorsal fin beginning at a considerable distance behind the head,
continuous with the anal around the tail. A single genus, with probably less than ten
species, although several hundred have been described. The Eels are cosmopolitan, and
inhabit all sluggish or still waters, whether brackish or fresh, in warm or temperate
regions.

Genus 9. ANGUILLA. Thunberg.

Anguilla, THuNBERG. * * *

Murena, (Linnzvs) BLEEKER, Atl. Ich. Mur. I. (not of authors generally.)
Type, Murena anguilla L , equal to Anguilla vulgaris, TURTON.
Etymology, Latin, anguilla, Greek, egohelus, an eel.

The characters of this genus are included above.

EEL. 781

11. ANGUILLA VULGARIs Turton.

Common Eel.
EUROPEAN SYNONYMY. (var. vulgaris? )

Murena anguilla, LINNEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 426.—BLOCH and SCHNEIDER, Systema Ich-
thyol., 486, and of all early writers.

Anguilla vulgaris, TURTON, British Fauna, 87.—FLeming, British Animals, 199.—GuN-
THER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mas., viii, 28, and of European authors generrally.

Anguilla canariensis, callensis, aculirostris, mediorostris, oxyrhina, pekinensis, migratoria,
Auviatilis, cuvieri, bibronii, savignyi, morena, marginata, microptera, altirostris,
platycephala, latirostris, nilotica, egyptiaca, hibernica, and many other names of Euro-
pean species-makers.

AMERICAN SYNONYMY. (var. rostrata ? )

Murena anguilla, SCHOPFF, Beobacht. Natarforscher, Berlin, viii, 138.

Anguilla vulgaris, MiTcHILL (1814), Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc., i, 360; Am. Mo. Mag,, ii,
241.— GUNTHER (1870), Cat. Fishes, viii, 30.—‘‘ DARESTE, Monograph of Anguilliform
Fishes,””—fide Barrp (unites into one, all the species of Anguilla described from the
Northern Hemisphere).

Murena rostrata, LESUEUR, Journ, Phil. Ac. Sc. i, 81,—Rıca., F. B. A, iii, 267.

Anguilla rostrata, DeKay, Fishes N. Y., 312.—STORER, Synopsis, 425.—JORDAN (1876),
Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 96.; Man. Vert., 304, sec. ed., 338.

Murena bostoniensis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad., i, 81. —STORER, Rept. Fishes Mass., 158.—
THOMPSON (1842), Hist. Vt., 148.

Anguilla bostoniensis, DEKay, Fishes N. Y., 313.—Ayres, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 279, —
Storer, Synopsis, 435; Fishes Mass., 1855, 408.—GILL, Cat. Fishes East Coast, 1861,
56; Can. Nat, Aug., 1865, 20; Rept. U. 8. Fish Commission, 1871-72, 811.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, 1870, viii, 31, and of late authors generally.

Anguilla serpentina, STORER, Synopsis, 486.—GILL, Cat. Fishes E. Coast, 1861, 56.

Murena serpentina, LESUEUR, ].c., i. 82,—StorerR, Rept. Fishes, 158.—TmoMmpson, Hist.
Vt., 1842, 148.

Anguilla argentea, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 313.—STORER, Synopsis, 485.—GILL, l.c.

Murena macrocephala, LESUEUR, lc., 82.

Anguilla macrocephala, DeKay, l.c., 313 —ITORER, Synopsis, 486.—GILL, 1c, 82,

Anguilla laticauda, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh,, 77.

Anguilla aterrima, RAFINESQUE, 1c., 78.

Anguilla xanthomelas, RAFINESQUE, l.c., 78.

Anguilla lutea, RaFINESQUE, l.c., 78.—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 234.—
STORER, Synopsis, 486, and of some Western writers.

Anguilla tenuirostris, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 310.—‘‘ Kaup, Cat. Apodal Fish, 44,”

Anguilla noveorleanensis, Kaur, 1c., 43.

Anguilla punctatissima, KAUB, l.c., 44.

Anguilla terana, Kaur, 1.c. 45.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, viii, 32.

Anguilla nove terre, KAUP, l.¢., 45.—GILL, lc , 1861, 56.

Anguilla wabashensis, KAUP, l.c., 46.

Anguilla tyrannus, GIRARD, U.S. and Mex. Bound. Sarv., 1859, 75.

Body cylindrical, compressed behind, ending in a point; head long, flattened above ;
mouth horizontal, extending to beyond the eye, the lower jaw rather the longer; eye

782 FISHES—ANGUILLIDE.

small, well forward; anterior nostrils with a slight barbel; pectorals about half as long
as head, rounded ; color olive-brown, or yellowish, sometimes almost black, the color
extremely variable; head ten in length. D. & A. 455; length two to four feet.

Habitat, throughout the Northern Temperate Zone, in bays, and ascending all streams,

Diagnosis—A person that does not know an eel at sight will not look to
this paper for information.

Habits—In the State of Ohio the Hel is not a very common fish, al-
though there are few streams in the State in which they are not some-
times found. It is supposed that their presence in Lake Erie is due to
the opening of canals. They are native, however, in the Ohio.
Whether they breed in the State, or in fact in any fresh water, is still
uncertain. I am inclined to think that they do breed in fresh water, if
for no other reason than that I have found young Eels, less than an inch
long, in the head waters of the Alabama River, some 500 miles from the
sea. The habits of the Eel and its excellent qualities as a food fish are
too well known to require special notice here.

The question as to the sexual characters and relations of the Hel has
long remained a standing puzzle to naturalists. The following account
of the recent final settlement of this question, from the New York Times,
will be of interest in this connection :

When Prof. Baird announced to the American Fish Culture Association, in February
last [1878], that he had within the six weeks previous received Eels with ripe ovaries, it
started a ripple of excitement in the room, which in a few days reached every natural-
ist in the land, and awakened new interest in the old question of the mode by which
this mysterious fish perpetuated its race, one which had baffled all inquirers since man
first sought to penetrate the secrets of creation, and which had almost by common con-
sent been relegated to the category of ‘‘ things which no fellow can find out.”

In commenting on this discovery, writers have ransacked history from Aristotle down,
and have given all the theories which have been entertained by people who framed
them in order to hide their ignorance, and who had not the moral courage to confest
that they really did not know how the fish did breed. Aristotle, after roasting the in.
testines of Eels, and recording that he heard the eggs crack, afterward doubted the ev:
idence, and, for want of something better, declared that they were born of mud. This
was improved upon by Pliny, who solemnly attributed their origin to particles rubbei
from mature Eels by contact with rocks, etc. Later conjectures of fishermen and othe)
have credited their existence to the “hair worm” or “hair snake,” Gordius, who in it:
turn is absurdly said to originate from a hair. Mussels, lamphreys, carrion, and othe:
objects, animate or inanimate, have been charged with their maternity, but since the
statement made by Prof. Baird, last season, many persons have been on the lookout for
the ovaries of the Eel, but without success, until recently, and now, since Mr. Eugene
G. Blackford, of Fulton Market, has shown them to the fishermen, fish-dealers, and
others, they allsay: ‘Oh, yes, that is what we call ‘Eel fat,’ it is always plenty at

EEL. 783

this time of the year.” And now the wonder is that no one has discovered this before,
for during all these long centuries, in which the question of the generation of Eels has
been an open one, the eggs have been in plain sight; in fact, right under the noses of
the investigators. It is also singular that -all the Eels observed so far in the markets
have been females. Mr. Blackford, after showing the ovaries to his eel-dressers, di-
rected them to watch for any departure from this appearance, and some interest was-
being awakened in the old assertion of their being hermaphrodites, although no sper-
matozoa had been been found in connection with the ovaries, until the recent discovery
of a male Eel by Prof. Packard set the question of their unisexuality at rest. These
discoveries were being discussed in Mr. Blackford’s office a short time ago by a few gen-
tlemen, among whom was Mr. Frederick Mather, the well known fish culturist, when a
specimen was brought from an Eel weighing six pounds.

A portion was placed under the microscope, when the eggs appeared to be in shape of
octogons, but which, Mr. Blackford stated, was caused by their pressing upon each
other. Mr. Mather took the ovary home, and, after carefully examining the eggs, con-
firms Mr. Blackford’s statement of their globular form when separated, but finds that
the eggs, like those of all fishes before exclusion, are flaccid, and is of the opinion that an
increase in size and solidity would occur after they had been deposited by the fish and
the absorption of water and milt had taken place. The eggs varied so much in size
that a measurement by the micrometer of one or two did not give as fair an idea of their
dimensions as to place a number in a line, measure them, and count them under a low
power, by which means, with three different lots, Mr. Mather found that they measured
eighty to the inch, and when separated or the glass slide could be readily discerned by
the naked eye. Mr. Mather then proceeded to estimate the number of eggs contained
in this six-pound Eel, which was done by carefally subdividing the mass until a small
portion contained a quantity which could be counted, and which was then multiplied by
the number of divisions, thus: The mass was halved, quartered, etc., seventeen times,
making the last section 1-131,072 of the whole. Yo avoid error, this was done three
times, giving the first time sixty-eight eggs, or 8,912,896 in the whole. The second
trial gave seventy-seven eggs, or a total of 10,092,544, while the third yielded seventy-
one eggs, which showed the mass to contain 9,306,112.

Considering the minuteness of the eggs, these different results are remarkably near each
other, and Mr. Mather fixes the numbers contained in this individual fish at 9,000,000,
which, when we consider that each of the ovaries was nearly a foot in length, and
about half an inch in diameter at the thickest part, does not seem to be at all exaggerated.

The wonderful fecundity of Eels is shown in the immense numbers seen ascending the
streams in early summer, when each little elver of three inches probably represents
one hundred eggs, which, from being devoured, infertility, and other causes, have failed
to arrive at his length.

ORDER VII. NEMATOGNATHI. THE CAT-FISHES.

This order, easily recognizable at sight by the long barbela, dorsal and pectoral spines,
and the absence of true scales, is distinguished by the following osteological characters,
according to Professor Cope:

“ Parietals and supraoccipital confluent; four anterior vertebrz ossified, an ossicula
auditus, no mesopterygium. Basis cranii and pterotic bone simple; no coronoid bone.

784 FISHES—SILURIDA.

Third superior pharyngeal bone wanting, or small and resting on the fourth, second di-
rected backwards; one or two pairs of basal branchihyals ; suboperculum wanting; pre-
maxillary forming mouth-border above ; interclavicles present.” A large order, in some
respects intermediate between the Sturgeons and the Cyprinide. The leading family is
the Siluride,

*Opercle present ; dorsal fin inserted in front of the ventrals. . . SILURIDE. 7.

FAMILY VII. SILURIDA. THE CAT-FISHES.

This family includes such of the Nematognathi as have the rayed dorsal fin short, and
placed in advance of the ventrals, and the operculum developed. The variation in appear-
ance among the members of this family is great, some having the skin naked, others hav-
ing it covered with bony plates of various forms. The American fresh water species, some
thirty in number, agree in having the body naked; the head with eight long barbels
whereof the maxillary bones form the base of the longest pair; no subopercle; top of
head not mailed; dorsal and pectoral fins each with a pungent spine, which is often
serrate; adipose fin present, without rays; gill openings wide.

There are upwards of seven hundred species of Silurid® known, referred to about one
hundred genera. They are most numerous in the fresh waters of South America, and
are numerous enough in North America and Africa. A few occur in Europe, and some
are marine Our species are valued for food in proportion tu their size. They mostly
inhabit lakes and sluggish streams, and are usually very tenacious of life.

* Adipose fin, with its posterior margin free, not adnate to the body, nor connected
with the caudal fin.

uw. Band of teeth on the premaxillaries, without lateral backward processes.

b Supraoccipital bone produced backward from the skull, receiving the pointed
anterior end of the second interspinal (bone at the base of the dorsal fin), thus forming
a continuous bony bridge from the head to the dorsal; (slender silvery species, with small
mouth and forked caudal fin). . F 4 4 P IcuHTHzLURUs, 10,

bb. Supraoccipital bone not produced, falling short of the interspinal, the bony
bridge being therefore interrupted ; (stout dusky-colored species, with larger mouth and
less forked or truncate caudal fin. 5 5 5 P AMIURUS, 11.

aa. Band of teeth on the premaxillary, with a ‘sue backward extension on each
side; lower jaw longest; anal fin short. a ; PELODICHTHYS. 12,

** Adipose fin low, keel like, adnate to the body, and usnally continuous with the

caudal fin. . ? ö N R h 5 P Norurus. 13.

Genus 10. ICHTHALURUS. Rafinesque.

Ictalurus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 61.
Elliops, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 62.
Synechoglanis, GILL (1859), Annals Lyc. Nat. Hist., vii, 39.
Ictalurus, GILL (1862), Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., 41.
Ichthelurus, Corz (1869), Journ. Acad. Nat Sci., Pbila., 237. (Corrected orthography.)
Type, Silurus punctatus, Rafinesque.
Etymology, Ichthus, fish ; ailourus, cat.
Body elongated, slender, and much compressed. The caudal peduncle is short but
slender, and presents behind the anal an elongated elliptical section.

FORK-TAILED CHANNEL CAT. 785

Head conical in profile, compressed, and with the sides sloping downward and out-
ward. The supraoceipital bone is prolonged backward, and its emarginated apex re-
ceives the acuminate anterior point of the second interspinal. The skull is covered by
a thin tense skin, through which the sculpture of the bones is apparent; eyes large
and almost entirely lateral; mouth small, transverse, and terminal; the upper jaw
protrudes beyond the lower ; teeth subulate and aggregated into a short, laterally trun-
cated band on each jaw. Branchiostegal rays 8 or 9; dorsal fin situated over the inter-
val between the pectoral and ventral fins, higher than long, with one long spine and
usually six articulated rays; adipose fin pedunculated over the posterior portion of the
anal; anal fin long, and provided with from 25 to 35 rays; it commences near the anus;
ventral fins each with one simple and seven branched rays; pectoral fins each with a
stout spine, retrorse-serrate within, and about nine branched rays. The serre of the
pectoral spines vary with age and circnmstances, and do not in this genus give good
specific characters. Caudal fin elongated and deeply forked, with the lobes equal and
pointed.

The genus Ichthelurus is at once recognized by the forked caudal fin, its silvery or
olivaceous colors, and by its compressed, elongated, and slender body which gives to it
a peculiarly graceful appearance, very unlike that of the stout, obese and large-headed
Amiuri, The head is smaller in proportion than in Amiurus, more compressed, and not
covered by so thick a skin; the mouth is proportionally much smaller. But the only
invariable generic distinction resides in the mode of insertion of the supraoccipital or
interparietal bone into the head of the second interspinal. A firm and immovable
bridge is thus formed, which gives an uninterrupted passage from the dorsal fin to the
snout. The silvery coloration is also a marked distinguishing feature.

It is not generally true that the species of Zchthelurus reach a larger size than those
of the other genera. Amiurus nigricans and Pelodichthys olivaris far exceed in size any of
the species of Ichthelurus.

12. ICHTHELURUS FURCATUS (Cuv. and Val.) Gill.

Fork-tailed Channel Cat.

Pimelodus furcatus, Cuv. and VAL. (1840), Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xv, 136.

Ichthalurus furcatus, GILL (1861), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.

Amiurus furcatus, GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., v, 103.

Ichthelurus furcatus, JORDAN, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 75; Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 1878, 328,

Pimelodus affinis, BAIRD and GIRARD (1854), Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci., Phila., 26.—GIRARD ( 1859),
U. 8. Mex. Bound., Ich., 32.

Description.—Body very slender ; head slender, the eye small, wholly anterior, its pos-
terior margin being in front of the middle of the head; slope from snout to dorsal fin
more or less concave; skin thin; coloration brightly silvery; anal fin extremely long,
with 32 to 34 rays ;* its base forming one-third of the length of the body and head;
head 4} in length; depth, 4 in adult, 64 in young; pectoral spine 14 in head; length 1
to 2 feet.

Habitat, Ohio Valley to Texas, in the larger streams ; not common.

*In this family the rudimentary rays at the beginning of the anal are always in-
cluded in the enumeration.

50

786 FISHES—SILURIDE.

Diagnosis—This is the only Cat-fish in Ohio having more than thirty
rays in the anal fin.

Habits—I have seen one or two specimens taken at Cincinnati. Noth-
ing distinctive is known of its habits, which are probably identical
with those of its cogener, I. punctatus.

13. IcHTHALURUS ROBUSTUS Jordan.

Chuckle-headed Cat.

Ichthelurus robustue, JORDAN (1876), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 76; Man. Vert., Ed. 2d,
1878, 328.

Description.—Body rather stout and deep, compressed behind ; the back elevated ; head
rather large, one-third longer than broad; the eye moderate, wholly in front of the mid-
dle of the head ; slope from snout to base of dorsal more or less concave, the dorsal re-
gion being elevated; skin thick; coloration pale, little silvery; anal fin moderate, its
base 34 to 4 in length; its rays 27 to 30; head 44 in length; depth about 4; pectoral
spine little more than half the length of head; length 1 to 2 feet.

Habitat, Ohio Valley, Mississippi Valley, not very common.

Diagnosis—From J. punctatus this species may be known by the smaller
and more anterior eye, which is in front of the middle of the head;
from J. furcatus it is separated by the shorter anal fin.

Habits.—The few specimens known of this species are from the lower
Ohio, Illinois, and Mississippi Rivers. Nothing distinctive is known of
its habits in life.

14. IcurHaLuRuUS PUNCTATUS Jordan.

Blue Cat; White Cat; Silver Cat; Channel Cat.

Silurus punctatus, RAFINESQUE (1818), Amer. Monthly Mag. and Critical Review, Sep-
tember, 359.

Ictalurus punctatus, JORDAN (1876), Bull. Buff. Soo. Nat. Hist., 95; Manual of Ver-
tebrates, 300.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 159.—JORDAN (1877), Annals Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y.,—. —NELSON (1876), Bull.
Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.

Ichthelurus punctatus, JORDAN (1878), Bull.U. 8, Nat. Mus., x, 76; Man. Vert., Ed.
2d, 328.

Pimelodus caudafurcatus, LESUEUR (1819), Memoires du Museum, v, 152.

Amiurus caudafurcatus, GUNTHER (1864), Catalogue of Fishes, v, 102.

Silurus maculatus, RaFINESQUE (1820), Quarterly Journal of Science, Literature, and
Arts, London, 48 (et var. erythroptera, p. 49).

Pimelodus (Ictalurus) maculatus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 62.

Silurus pallidus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit, and Arts, London, 49 (et var.
marginatus, lateralis, leucoplera). 2

Pimelodus pallidus, RaFINESQUE (1820), Ich, Oh., 63,—KIRTLAND (1838), Report Zool.
Ohio, 169, 194.

BLUE CAT. 787

Silurus cerulescens, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sei. Lit. and Arts, London, 49 (et
var. melanurus).

Pimelodus cerulescens, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 63.—KIRTLAND (1838), Rept.
Zool. Obio, 169, 194; (1846) Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 332,—STORER (1846), Sy-
nopsis Fishes N. A. in Mem. Nat. Acad. Sci., 405. (All these descriptions refer more
or less to Amiurus nigricans.) .

Ictalurus cerulescens, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.—CoPpe (1865), Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 85; (1870) Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 489.—JoRDAN (1874), Ind. Geol.
Survey, 222.—GILL (1876), Ich., Capt. Simpson’s Exped., 417.

Ichthalurus cerulescenes, COPE (1869), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., 237.

Silurus argentinus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 50.

Pimelodus argyrus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 64.

Pimelodus furcifer, Cuv. and VAL. (1840), xv, 139.—‘‘ HYRTL (1859), Denkschr. Akad. Wiss.
Wien, 16”.— Kngr, Sitzgsber. Akad. Wiss. Wien, xxvi, 421.”

Ictalurus furcifer, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43—JoRDAN (1876), Manual
Vert., 300.

Pimolodus gracilis, HoucH (1852), Fifth Ann. Rept. Reg. Univ., Condition State Cabinet
Nat. Hist., Albany, 26.

Synechoglanis gracilis, GILL (1859), Trans, Lyc. Nat. Hist., 3 (reprint).

Ictalurus gracilis GiLL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.—Corx (1865), Proo. Acad.
Nat. Sci, Phila, 85.—JoRDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 300.—JORDAN and CoPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.

Pimelopus vulpes, GIRARD (1858), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 170; (1859) U. 8. and Mex.
Bound. Sarv., 33.

Ictalurus vulpes, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.—JoRDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.

Pimelodus olivaceus, GIRARD (1858), Pac. R. R. Survey, x, 211.

Ictalurus olivaceus, GILL (1862), ). c., 43; (1876) Rept. Ichthy. Capt. Simpson’s Exp., 417.
—JoRDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 300.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 159.

‚Synechoglanis beadlei, GıLL (1859), Trans. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 2 (reprint).

Ictalurus beadlei, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.—JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159,

Pimelodus houghit, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 159.

Pımelodus megalops, GERARD (1859), 1. ¢., 161 (said to have the eye very large, its dia-
meter one-third the length of the side of the head).

Ictalurus megalops, JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 159.

Pimelodus graciosus, GIRARD (1859), Proo. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 161.

Pimelodus kammondii, ABBOTT (1860), Proc, Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 568,

Pimelodus notatus, ABBOTT (1869), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 569,

Ictalurus simpsoai, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43; (1876) Ich. Capt. Simp-
son’s Exp., 47.

Deseription,— Body slender, little elevated, the dorsal region not much elevated, and
the profile from snout to dorsal little concave; head rather small, conical, with small
mouth; eye larger, placed medially, the middle of the head falling in front of its pos-
terior raargin; skin thin; pectoral spines long, 1% in head; coloration olivaceons, sil-
very, the adult bluish, the young yellowish, with darker blotches, made of dark
poiats, which disappear with age; head 4; depth 5in length; anal base about 4 times
in length, of 25 to 29 rays. Length 1 to 24 feet.

788 FISHES—SILURIDE.

Habitat, Canada to Florida, Texas and Montana, abundant in all suitable waters east
of the Alleghanies.

Diagnosis.--This most abundant species may be known from the other
white Cat-fishes by the position of the eye, which is not wholly in ad-
vance of the middle of the head.

Habits.—This species is very abundant in the Ohio River and its larger
tributaries, and is found, but less frequently, in Lake Erie. It does not
usually ascend small streams. It is used for food, and is of some value,
but the flesh is perhaps hardly as good as that of most of the Amiuri.
The species prefers clear waters, being averse to mud, and is much less
tenacious of life than the Amiuri are. Its singular form and silvery
colors renders it an attractive aquarium fish.

The idea is prevalent that this is our largest Cat-fish. I find no good
evidence of the truth of thissupposition. The largest specimens I have
ever seen would hardly weigh over five or six pounds. And all the large
“Blue Cats” which have been shown me belong to Amiurus nigricans. I
have seen the adult of Ichthelurus punctatus put on the hook as “live
bait,” to attract Amiurus nigricans, at Cumberland Falls, in Kentucky.

Genus 11. AMIURUS. Rafinesque.

Silurus et Pimelodus sp., LINN£US, and all writers prior to 1802.

Ameiurus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 65 (as section under sub-genus Ictalurus of
Pimelodus.)

Amiurus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 50, and of recent writers generally.

Ameurus, CoPE (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 231.

Gronias, Cop (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 231,

Type, Silurus cupreus, Rafinesque.

Etymology, a, privitive; meiourus, curtailed, in allusion to the entire caudal fin.

Body moderately elongated, robust, anteriorly vertically ovate, and scarcely com-
pressed ; caudal peduncle also robust, but much compressed, and at its end evenly con-
vex.

Head large, wide, laterally expanded, above ovate and in profile cuneiform ; supra-
occipital extended little posteriorly and terminating in a more or less acute point,
which is entirely separate from the second interspinal buckler; the skin covering the
bones is thick.

Eyes rather small, in one species covered by the skin; mouth large, terminal, trans-
verse, the upper jaw in most species the longer; jaws often equal, the lower, in one or
two species distinctly projecting.

Teeth subulate, aggregated in broad bands on the intermaxillaries and dentaries; the
intermaxillary band is convex in front, of equal breadth, and abruptly truncated near
the insertion of the intermaxillaries ; the lower dental band is anteriorly semicircular,
attenuated to the angles of the mouth.

Branchiostegal membrane on each side with eight or nine rays in typical species; ten
or eleven in two orthree aberrant species; dorsal situated over the interval between

GREAT FORK-TAILED CAT. 789

the pectorals and ventrals, higher than long, with a pungent spinous ray dentate behind,
and about six branched rays; adipose fin short, inserted over the posterior half of the
anal; anal fin of moderate length, with from fifteen to twenty-six rays, the usual num-
ber being tweaty or twenty-one; caudal fin short, usually truncate when spread open,
slightly emarginate when not expanded,—in species related to Ichthelurus more or less
deeply forked, in some other species rounded; when the caudal fin is forked the lobes
are usually unequal; ventrals each with one simple and seven branched rays; pectoral
fins each with a stout spine, which is commonly retrorse-serrate behind, these serr® vary
much with age and circumstances, and do not appear in this genus to furnish good spe-
cific characters; lateral line usually incomplete.

This genus includes our common Eastern American Catfishes, and is readily recognized
by the broad head covered by a thick skin, the freetermination of the posterior process
of the supraoccipital bone, the compressed body, and by the free adipose fin. wr

This genus, althongh undoubtedly a very natural one, israther hard to defin/ Cer-
tain species (lupus, niveiventris, nigricans) have real affinities with the species of Ich-
thelurus, having, like them, the body elongate, the head rather narrow, the anal long, ,
the caudal forked, and the coloration pale. The absence of the connection between
the supraoccipital and the interspinal is the only technical character by which Amiurus
may be distinguished from Ichthelurus.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF AMIURUS.

* Caudal fin forked. B 2 7 s n 3 3 s R NIGRICANS. ‚15.
** Caudal fin rounded, or slightly emarginate.
a. Anal rays 24 to 26. N . s . E 2 a 7 i NATALIS. 16.
aa. Analrays 18 to 22.
b. Lower jaw longer than upper. 5 & . 2 . « VULGARIS, 17.
bb. Lower jaw not longer than upper.
o. Coloration mottled or variegated; adipose fin large. . MARMORATUS. 18.

co, Coloration nearly plain.
d. Head moderately broad, with a nearly even slope from the tip of the
snout to the elevated base of the dorsal fin.
e. Body elongate; anal rays 20 to 22. . s A ‘ . caTus. 19,
ee. Body short and deep; anal rays 18 to 20. . : . . MELAS. 20.
dd. Head very broad ; an angle at occiput; anal small, usually with 19 rays.
XANTHOCEPHALUS. 21.

15. AMIURUS NIGRICANs (LeSueur) Gill.

Great Fork-tailed Cat; Mississippi Cat; Florida Cat;
Great Catfish of the Lakes.

Pimelodus nigricans, LESUEUR (1819), Memoires du Museum d’Hist. Nat., v, 153.—Cuv.
and Var. (1840), xv, 133.—DeKay (1842), Fishes N. Y., 180.—STORER (1846),
Synopsis, 403.—‘‘ HyRTL (1859), Denkschrift Akad. Wiss. Wien, xvi, 16.”

Amiurus nigricans, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44—JorDAN (1876), Man.
Vert. 318.—JORDAN and CoPELAND (1876), Check List, 159 (not of GUNTHER (1864),
nor of Core (1870), equal 10 4. canosus).— JORDAN (1877), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 83;
(1878), Man. Vert., sec. ed., 329.

Silurue (Pimelodus) nigrescens, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am , Fishes, 134.

Pimelodus sp. incog., THOMPSON, (1842), History Vermont, 139.

790 FISHES—SILURIDA.

Pimelodus cerulescens in part, of RAFINESQUE, KIRTLAND, and others; the big ‘‘ Chan-
nel Cats” all belong to this species.

Description —Body moderately stout, head narrow, longer than broad ; mouth moder-
ate, the upper jaw the longer ; barbels long; pectoral spines short and stout, dentate ;
caudal fin strongly furcate, but less so than in the Channel Cats; anal fin very long;
color dark, sometimes mottled with paler; anal 25 or 26. Head 4jin length ; its width
5. Length, 2 to 6 feet.

Habitat.—Great Lake region to Texas and Florida, abundant in the larger streams and
lakes.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known from the other Amiuri by the
forked tail. The form is stouter and the colors darker than in any of the
species of Ichthelurus.

Habits—This species is the common Cat-fish of the lake fishermen, in
contra-distinction to the Bull-head, as A. catus is usually called. In the
Ohio it is the Mississippi Cat. It is found only or chiefly in the larger
bodies of water, and reaches a very great size. It is valued as food, al-
though the flesh is rather coarse and flavorless. I have seen specimens
of nearly a hundred pounds weight, and have heard of Cat-fish weighing
two or three hundred pounds, but I presume them to have been weighed
by guess.

16. AMIURUS NATALIS (LeSeur) Gill.

Catfish; Yellow Cat.
a. var natalis,
Pimelodus natalis, LESUEUR (1819), Mem. du Museum, v, 154.—STORER (1846), Synopsis,
405.
Amiurus natalis, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc Nat. Hist., 44.—GUNTHER (1864), Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., v, 101.—JoRDAN (1877), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, &6.

Pimelodus puma, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 160.—JORDAN (1678), Man.
Vert., Ed. 2, 331.

b. var. lividus.

Silurus lividus, RAFINESQUE (1850), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 48 (et var.
Suscatus).

Pimelodus lividus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 65.

Amiurus lividus, JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert.,302.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check
List, 159.

Pimelodus felinus, GIRARD (1858), U. 8. Pac. R. R. Expl., x, 209.

Amiurus felinus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—Cork (1870), Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc , 485 —JoRDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 159.

Pimelodus catus, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., 160 (not of DeKay and most
authors).

Amiurus catus, CoPE (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 484.—JoRDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 159.

Pimelodus cupreoides, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 159.

LONG-JAWED CATFISH, 791

Amiurus oupreoides, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.
6. Var, cenosus.

Silurus (Pimelodus) cenosus, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 132.—Cuv.

and VAL. (1840), xv, 129.—DeKay (1842), Fishes N. Y., 186.—-STORER (1846), Sy-
nopsis, 402.

Amiurus cenosus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—CoPE (1870), 1. c., 485.—

JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 303.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 159.
d. var. cupreus.

Silurus cupreus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 51.

Pimelodus ( Ameiurus) cupreus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh., 65.

Pimelodus cupreus KIRTLAND (1838), Rept. Zool. Ohio, 169, 194 ; (1846) Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist, iv, 333. —DeKay (1842), Fishes N. Y., 187.—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404.—
GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Soi., Phila., 169.

Amiurus cupreus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—Core (1870), Proc. Am.
Phil. Soc., 485.—JoRDAN (1876), Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 96; Man. Vert., 303.—
NELSON (1876), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check
List, 159.—JORDAN (1877), Annals Lyceum Nat. Hist. N. Y.; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 45.

Ameurus cupreus, COPE (1865), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 276.

e. var. antoniensis.
Pimelodus antoniensis, GIRARD (1859), Pac. R. R, Expl., x, 291.
Amiurus antoniensis, GULL (1862), 1. c., 44.—Cope (1870), 1. ¢., 485.

Description. —Body not much elongate, usually rather deep and chubby, sometimes ex-
tremely so; head wide and flattish, not much longer than broad, the mouth very wide;
the lower jaw usually shortest, but sometimes the two jaws about equal when the
mouth is closed ; dorsal region not much elevated ; anal fin very long, its base one-fourth
or more the length of the body, of 24 to 27 rays; spines not very long; caudal fin
truncate or slightly notched ; color normally dark yellowish brown, sometimes nearly
black ; head 34 to 4 in length; depth 4 to 5; D.I,6; A. 24to0 27. Length 1 to 2 feet.

Habitat, Great Lake Region to Virginia, Florida, and Texas, generally abundant.

Diagnosis.—This is an extremely variable species as regards color
and form. It is the only Ohio Cat-fish having a truncate caudal fin and
more than twenty-three anal rays. Specimens from different waters
vary much from each other. A very short, fat, chubby form is occasion-
ally seen, which looks very unlike the ordinary form. Some of the lead-
ing varieties have received special names, which it is not necessary to
give here.

Habits —This is one of the most abundant species of the lakes, ponds,
and bayous of Ohio, being tolerably common throughout the State. It
does not reach a very large size.

17. AMIURUS vuLeaRIs (Thompson) Nelson.
Long-jawed Catfish.
Pimelodus vulgaris, THOMPSON (1842), History of Vermont, 138.

192 FISHES—SILURIDA.

Amiurus vulgaris, NELSON (1876), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.—JORDAN (1877), Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus, x, 85; (1678) Man.
Vert., ed. 2d., 33.

Pimelodus ailurus, GIRARD (1858), U. 8. Pac. R R. Surv., Fishes, 210.

Amiurus ailurus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist , 44,

Amiurus elurus, COPE (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 485 —JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert.,
302.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1877), Check List, 159.

Pimelodus dekayi GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 160.

Amiurus dekayi, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—CoPE (1870), Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 485. —JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 302.

Description —Body moderately elongate; head longer than broad, rather narrowed
forward; profile rather steep, pretty evenly convex; dorsal region more or less ele-
vated; month wide, the lower jaw projecting beyond the upper; barbels long; anal
fin moderate, of about 20 rays; caudal fin truncate; color blackish, belly pale; head
34 to 4in length; depth 43 to5; D.I, 6; A.20. Length 1 to 14 feet.

Habitat, Great Lake Region and Mississippi Valley to Manitoba. Not uncommon.

Diagnosis.—This is the only species of Amiurus in which the lower jaw
is the longer. From Pelodichthys olivaris it may be known by the longer
anal fin, as well as by the very different form and coloration.

Habits.—This species is not very commonin Ohio. It is taken in Lake
Erie with Amiurus catus, and occasionally in the Ohio River. It is sold
as a food fish with the ordinary “ Bull-head.”

18. AMIURUS MARMORATUS (Holbrook) Jordan.

Marbled Catfish.

Pimelodus marmoratus, HOLBROOK (1855), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 54.
Amiurus marmoratus, JORDAN (1877), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 89; (1878) Man. Vert., ed
2d., 332, 407.

Description.—Body rather stout and chubby; head moderately broad, with a nearly
even slope from the elevated base of the dorsal to the snout; mouth rather wide; jaws
about equal ; barbels long, branchiostegals 10; dorsal spine high, more than half the length
of head, inserted nearer the adipose fin than the snout; adipose fin very large; caudal
fin truncate ; coloration usually variegated, the ground color dark, sharply mottled with
brown, greenish, and whitish, the coloration sometimes nearly plain ; head 3} in length;
depth 4; D.I,6; A. 20. Length 14 feet.

Habitat, Southern Illinois to Florida, chiefly in lowland streams.

Diagnosis.—The color of this species is usually sufficiently distinctive;
when this is obliterated it cannot be readily separated from A. melas.

Habits —This species occurs in the Lower Ohio, but it has not yet been
noticed in the limits of the State. Nothing distinctive is known con-
cerning its habits, except that it is a species of the bayous, and its range
is chiefly southward.

BULL-HEAD—HORNPOUT. 793

19. Amıurus MELAS (Rafinesque) Jordan and Copeland.

Small Black Catfish.

Silurus melas, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, Lond., 51.

Pimelodus melas, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh,, 66.

Amiurus melas, JORDAN and COPRLAND (1876), Check List, 195.—JoRDAN (1877), Bull. U.
8. Nat. Mus., x, 89; (1578) Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 332.

Pimelodus catulus, GIRARD (1859), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 208.

Pimelodus confinis, GIRARD (1859), Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 159.

Amiurus obesus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 45.—GirLL (1876), Ich., Capt.
Simpson’s Expd., 420. ?

Description —Body very stout, short and deep; head moderate, somewhat contracted
forwards, the front steeply elevated, the body thick across the shoulders, rather rapidly
narrowed behind; jaws nearly equal; dorsal fin inserted nearer adipose fin than snout ;
anal basis nearly 5 in length of body, the fin short and deep; color very dark or blackish ;
membrane of anal fin almost always distinctly black, contrasting with the paler rays;
head 34; depth 34 to 4; anal 18 to 20. Length 1 foot.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley and Great Lake region.

Diagnosis—The short, chubby form and short and deep anal fin usually
readily distinguish this species from the closely related A. catus.

Habits —This small species is rather common in the Ohio River. It is
confounded by the fishermen with A. zanthocephalus and A. catus.

20. AMIURUS catus Gill.

Bull-head; Hornpout; Catfish.

Silurus catus, LINNZUS (1758), Syst. Nat., x, p. 305; (1766) xii, p. 504.—BLoch. Scun.
(1801), 387.—MITcHILL (1818), Journal Lit. and Philos. Soc. N. Y., i, 433.

Pimelodus catus, Cuv. and VAL. (1840), xv, 124.—DeKay (1842), Fishes N. Y., 182.— STORER
(1846), Synopsis, 402.

Amiurus catus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44. GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fishes,
v, 99 (excl. syn. pars).—UHLER and LUGGER (1876), Fishes of Maryland, 152.—JORDAN
(1877), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 90; Man. Vert. E. U. $., 332,

Pimelodus nebulosus, LESUEUR (1819), Mem. du Museum, v, 149.—STORER (1838), Rept.

+ Fishes Mass., 102.

Amiurus nebulosus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hiat., 44.—Cork (1870), Proc. Am,

Philos. Soc., 485.

Pimelodus atrarius, DEKay (1842), Fishes N. Y., 185.—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404 ;
(1855) Fishes of Mass., 279.

Amiurus atrarius, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—JORDAN (1876), Man.
Vert., 30.—NELSON (1876), Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.—JoRDAN (1877), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 46.

Pimelodus felis, AGassız (1850), Lake Superior, 261.

Amiurus felis, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.

Pimelodus hoyi, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila,, 159.

Amiurus hoyi, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—Copx (1870), Proc. Am. Philos.

794 FISHES—SILURIDE.

Soc., 486.—JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 301—JoRDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check
List, 159.

Pimelodus vulpeculus, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 160.

Amiurus vulpeculus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.

Amiurus mispilliensis, Copk (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 486.—JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.

Description.—Body rather elongate ; head rather broad, the front moderately steep, the
slope frum snout to dorsal being nearly an unbroken line; upper jaw longer than lower;
anal fin with 21 or 22 rays, its base 44 in length of body; dorsal spine usually inserted
rather nearer adipose fin than snout; head 4; depth 4 to 4% in length; color dark yel-

lowish brown, varying to black, the belly white, with a tinge of yellow. Length 1 to
2 feet.

Habitat, Great Lake region to Maine and South Carolina, the commonest Cat-fish
northward and east of the Alleghany Mountains.

Diagnosis.—The common Bullhead may be known by the presence of
21 or 22 anal rays, a projecting upper jaw, and a truncate or a very slightly
emarginate caudal fin.

Habits —This is the commonest of the Cat-fishes in Lake Erie and its
tributaries, abounding in every brook and pond. In the Ohio River it
is very much Jess common, its place being taken by the closely related
melas and xanthocephalus. It does not reach a large size, but is a very fair
food fish.

Thoreau speaks of the Horned-pout as a dull and blundering fellow,
like the Eel, vespertinal in its habits, and fond of the mud. It bites de-
liberately, as if about its business. They are extremely tenacious of life,
opening and shutting their mouths for half an hour after their heads
have been cut off. A blood-thirsty and bullying race of rangers, inhab-
iting the river bottoms, with ever a lance in rest, and ready to do battle
with their nearest neighbor. I have observed them in summer, when
every other one had a scar upon his back, where the skin was gone, the
mark of some fierce encounter. Sometimes the fry, not an inch long, are
seen darkening the shore with their myriads.

The following vigorous description of the habits of Amiurus catus, and
of its claims on the attention of the Fish Commission, is from the editor
of the Milwaukee Sun. Although written as a burlesque, it givesa
vivid and truthful idea of the “game” qualities of the Bull-head:

It seems that the action of the Milwaukee common council in withdrawing the use of
the water works from the fish commissioners will put a stop to the hatching of white
fish. This is as it should be. The white fish is an aristocratic fish that will not bite a
hook, and the propagation of this species of fish is wholly in the interest of wealthy
owners of fishing tubs, who have nets. By strict attention to business they can catch

all of the white fish out of the lake a little faster than the State machine can put them in.
Poor people can not get a smell of white fish, The same may be said of brook trout.

CATFISH. 795

While they will bite a hook, it requires more machinery to catch them than ordinary
people can possess without mortgaging a house. A man has got to have a morocco book
of expensive flies, a fifteen dollar bamboo jointed rod, a three dollar trout basket, with
a hole morticed in the top, a corduroy suit made in the latest style, top boots of the
Wellington pattern, with red tassels in the straps, and a flask of Otard brandy in a
side pocket. Unless a man is got up in that style a speckled trout will see him in Chi-
cago first, and then it won’t bite. The brook trout is even more aristocratic than the
white fish, and should not be propagated at public expense.

But there are fish that should be propagated in the interest of the people. There is
@ species of fish that never looks at the clothes of the man who throws in the bait, a
fish that takes whatever is thrown to it, and when once hold of the hook never tries to
shake a friend, but submits to the inevitable, crosses its legs and says, “‘ Now I lay me,”
and comes out on the bank and seems to enjoy being taken. It is a fish that is the friend
of the poor, and one that will sacrifice itself in the interest of humanity. That is the
fish that the State should adopt as its trade-mark, and cultivate friendly relations with
and stand by. We allude to the Bull-head.

The Bull-head never went back on a friend. To catch the Bull-head it is not neces-
essary to tempt his appetite with porter-bouse steak, or to display an expensive lot of
fishing tackle. A pin hook, a piece of liver, and a cistern pole is all the capital required
to catch a Ball-head, He lies upon the bottom of a stream or pond in the mud thinking.
There is no fish that does more thinking, or has a better head for grasping great ques-
tions, or chunks of liver, than the Ball-head. His brain is large, his heart beats for
humanity, and if he can’t get liver, a piece of tin tomato can will make a meal for
him. Itis an interesting study to watch a boy catch a Bull-head. The boy knows
where the Bull-head congregates, and when he throws in his hook it is dollars to but-
tons that ‘‘in the near future” he will get a bite.

The Bull-head is democratic in all its instincts. If the boy’s shirt is sleveless, his hat
crownless, and his pantaloons a bottomless pit, the Bull-head will bite just as well as
though the boy is dressed in purple and fine linen, with knee-breeches and plaid stock-
ings. The Bull-head seems to be dozing on the muddy bottom, and a stranger would
say that he would not bite. But wait. There isa movement of his continuation, and
his cow-catcher moves gently toward the piece of liver. He does not wait to smell of
it, and canvass in his mind whether the liver is fresh, It makes no difference to him.
He argues that here is a family out of meat. ‘‘My country calls and I must go,” says
the Bull-head to himself, and he opens his mouth and the liver disappears.

It is not certain that the boy will think of his bait for half an hour, but the Bull-head
isin no harry. He is in the mud and proceeds to digest the liver. He realizes that his
days will not be long in the land, or water, more properly speaking, and he argues that
if he swallows the bait and digests it before the boy pulls him out, he will be just so
much ahead. Finally, the boy thinks of his bait, pulls it out, and the Bull-head is
landed on the bank, and the boy cuts him open to get the hook out. Some fish only
take the bait gingerly, and are only caught around the selvage of the month, and they
are comparatively easy to dislodge. Not so with the Bull-head. He says if liver isa
good thing, you can’t have too much of it, and it tastes good all the way down. The
boy gets down on his knees to dissect the Bull-head, and get his hook, and it may be
that the boy swears. It would not be astonishing, though he must feel, when he gets
his hook out of the hidden recesses of the Bull-head like the minister who took up a
collection and didn’t get a cent, though he expressed thanks at getting his hat back.
There is one drawback to the Bull-head, and that is his horns. We doubt if a boy ever

796 FISHES—SILURIDA.

descended into the patent insides of a Bull-head to mine for limerick hooks, that did
not, before the work was done, run a horn into his vital parts. But the boy seems to ex-
pect it, and the Bull-head enjoys it. We have seen a Bull-head lie on the bank and be-
come dry, and. to all appearances dead to all that was going on, and when a boy sat
down on him, and got a horn in his elbow, and yelled murder, the Bull-head would grin
from ear to ear, and wag his tail as though applauding for an encore.

The Bull-head never complains. We have seen a boy take a dull knife and proceed
to follow a fish line down a Bull-head from head to the end of his subsequent anatomy,
and all the time there would be an expression of sweet peace on the countenance of the
Bull-head, as though he enjoyed it. If we were preparing a picture representing ‘‘ Re-
signation,” for a chromo to give to subscribers, and wished to represent a scene of suf-
fering, in which the sufferer was light-hearted, seeming to recognize that all was for the
best, we should take for the subject a Bull-head, with a boy searching with a knife for a
long-lost fish-hook.

The Bull-head is a fish that has no scales, but in lieu thereof has a fine India rubber
skin, that is as far ahead of fiddle-string material for strength and durability as possible.
The meat of the Ball-head is not as choice as that of the Mackerel, but it fills up a
stomach just as well, and The Sun insists that the fish commissioners shall drop the
hatching of aristocratic fish, and give the Bull-heads a chance.

21. AMIURUS XANTHOCEPHALUS (Rafinesque) Gill.

Small Yellow Catfish.

Silurus xanthocephalus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 51.

Pimelodus xanthocephalus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 66.—KIRTLAND (1838), Rept.
Zool, Ohio, 169, 194.—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 405.

Amiurus canthocephalus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—JoRDAN and COPE-
LAND (1876), Check List, 159.—JORDAN (1877), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., N. Y.,—.

Pimelodus catus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 330 (excl. syn.).

Amiurus albidus, JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 302 (not Pimelodus albidus LeSueur).—NEL-
soN (1876), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.

Amiurus nebulosus, JORDAN (1877), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 45.

Description. —Body stout and deep, much as in A. natalis, head very broad, about as
broad as long, the slope from snout to base of dorsal quite uneven, there being a more
or less decided angle at the oceiput; mouth very broad; dorsal spine inserted nearer
adipose fin than snout; anal fin short and low, its rays usually 19; caudal fin truncate
or slightly emarginate; coloration rather pale yellowish brown; head 4 in length;
depth 4 to 44. Length 1 foot.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species resembles A. natalis, but differs in the short
anal fin. The broad head separates it from A. catus, and the anal fin is
lower and smaller than in the latter species.

Habits.—This small species abounds in the ponds and bayous of South-
ern Ohio and Indiana. I have not noticed it in any of the streams trib-
utary to Lake Erie. Its habits offer nothing distinctive.

MUD CATFISH. 797

Genus 12. PELODICHTHYS. Rafinesque.

Pilodictis, Rafinesque (1819), Prodrome de Soixante dix Genres, etc., in Journal de
Physique, de Chymie, et d’ Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 422.

Leptops, RAFINESQUE (1820) Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 64.

Opladelus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 64.

Ilictis, RAFINESQUE (1820, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 66.

Pylodictis, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 67.

Hopladelus, GıLL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist , 45, and of most late authors.

Pelodichthys, GILL and JoRDAN, MSS.—JORDAN (1876), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist, N. Y ,—.

Pimelodus sp , KIRTLAND, Cuv. and VAL,, et Auct.

Etymology, pelos, mud; ichthus, fish.
Type, Pilodictis limosis, Raf. = Silurus olivaris, Raf.

Body much elongated, very slender, much depressed, anteriorly broader than high;
head. large, very wide and depressed, laterally expanded, above broadly ovate, and in
profile cuneiform ; skin very thick, entirely concealing the skull; supraoccipital bone
entirely free from the head of the second interspinal; eyes small; mouth very large,
anterior and transverse; the lower jaw always projects beyond the upper; teeth in
broad villiform bands on the intermaxillaries and dentaries; the intermaxillary band
is convex anteriorly, and proceeds to the insertion of the maxillaries, where it is ab-
ruptly angularly deflected, and proceeds backward as an elongated triangular extension.
The band at the symphysis is slightly divided and anteriorly separated by a small tei-
angular extension of the labial membrane; the lower dental is anteriorly semicircular
and attenuated to the corners of the mouth; there are about twelve branchiostegal
rays on each side; the dorsal fin is situated over the posterior half of the interval be-
tween the pectorals and ventrals, and has a spine and about seven branched rays; the
spine is rather small, and more or less enveloped in the thick skin; the adipose fin is
large, and has an elongated base resting over the anal; it is very obese and inclines
rapidly backward; it is rather less free posteriorly than in Amiurus; the anal fin is
small; it commences far behind the anus, is a little longer than high, and is composed
of about fourteen rays; the caudal fin is oblong, subtruncated, placed on a vertical
basis, and with numerous accessory simple rays, recurrent above and beneath the caudal
peduncle; the pectorals have a broad, compressed spine, serrated or dentated on its
external and internal margins, and with the prolonged fleshy integument obliquely
striated ; the ventrals are rounded and have nine rays, one simple and eight branched ;
vent well behind ventrals, much in advance of anal; coloration brown or yellowish,
more or less marbled or spotted. But one species is yet known.

22. PELODICHTHYS OLIVARIS (Rafinesque) Gill and Jordan.

Mud Catfish.

Silurus olivaris, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag,, iii, Sept., 355.

Hopladelus olivaris, GıLL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 45.—CorE (1867), Journ,
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 237—Jorpan (1876), Man. Vert., 303; (1877), Proc. Acad,
Nat. Sci. Phila., 46.—NELSoN (1877), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—GıLL (1876),
Ich. Capt. Simpson’s Expl , 426.—JoRDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 170.

Pelodichthys olivaris, JORDAN (1876), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., N. Y., —; Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus,, x, 1877, 95; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 334.

798 FISHES—SILURIDE.

Glanis limosus, RAFINEEQUE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag,., iii, 447, and iv, 107 (name only),

Pilodictis limosus, RAFINESQUE (1819), Journ. de Physique, 422.

Pylodictis limosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 67.

Silurus nebulosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 50.

Pimelodus nebulosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh., 64.

Silurus viscosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit and Ki 50.

Pimelodus viscosüs, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh., 66.

Silurus limosus, RaFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Lit. and Arts, 51.

Pimelodus limosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh., 67.—KIRTLAND (1846), Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist., iv, 335.—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404.

Pimelodus punctulatus, Cuv. and Vat. (1840), xv, 134.—DeKay (1842), Fishes, N. Y., 187.
—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 403.—GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fishes, v, —.

Pimelodus aneus, Cuv. and Var. (1840), xv, 135.—DEKay (1842), 1. c—STorER (1846),
1. c., 403.

Deseription. —Body very long and slender, depressed forwards, closely compressed
behind; head extremely flat, the lower jaw the longer; barbels short; dorsal spine
small, half the height of the fin, enveloped in thick skin ; pectoral spine very strong,
flattened, serrate behind; caudal fin somewhat emarginate; anal fin short, its base
about 7 in body ; coloration mottled brown and yellowish, whitish below ; head, 34 in
length ; depth, 54; D., I, 7; A., 15. Length, 2 to 3 feet.

Habitat, Ohio Valley to Iowa and southward, abundant in the larger streams.

Diagnosis.—The flat head and strongly projecting jaw distinguish this
species at once from our other Catfishes.

Habits—This species abounds in the Ohio River and its larger tribu-
taries. It reaches a larger size than any other except Amiurus nigricans
and is used for food, although its unattractive exterior causes it to be less
valued than the other large species, As its name indicates, it is pre-
eminently a mud loving species.

Genus 13. NOTURUS. Rafinesque.

Noturus, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag., iv, 41.
Schilbeodes, BLEEKER (1858), Ichthyologi® Archipelagi Indici Prodromus, vol. i, Siluri
(Acta Societarum Indo-Nederlandic», vol. iv), 258, (S. gyrinus, Mit ).
Etymology, notos, back ; oura, tail (means tail over back, Raf.).
Type, Noturus flavus, Raf.

Body more or less elongate, anteriorly subcylindrical, thence more or less compressed ;
head above ovate and depressed, with a slight longitudinal farrow, branching into a
transverse depression on the nape; skin very thick, entirely concealing the bones;
Supraoccipital entirely free from the head of the second interspinal ; eyes small or of
moderate size; mouth anterior, rather large, and transverse; upper jaw usually more
or less projecting beyond the lower; teeth subulate, closely set in a broad band in each
jaw, the lower one interrupted, the upper continuous; branchiostegals nine; dorsal fin
situated over the posterior half of the interval between the pectoral and ventral fins,
with a sharp, short, entire spine, and seven branched rays; adipose fin long and low,
keel-like, its posterior lower margin being adnate to the tail, and usually connected
with the caudal fin; caudal fin obliquely truncated or rounded, inserted on an

YELLOW STONE CAT. 799

obliquely rounded base; numerous rudimentary rays in front of it both above and
below ; anal fin short, with 12 to 20 rays; ventrals rounded, nine rayed ; pectoral fins
with a sharp spine, either smooth, grooved or dentate behind; vent some distance in
front of anal fin; lateral line complete.

The species are numerous and of small size. The group is less homogeneous than
Ichthelurus and Amiurus.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF NOTURUS.
*Premaxillary band of teeth with a strong backward process on each side (subgenus
Noturus).
a. Pectoral spine serrate in front, nearly entire behind; adipose fin notched.
FLAVUS. 23.
**Premaxillary band of teeth without lateral backward processes (subgenus
Schilbeodes).
db. Pectoral spine serrate behind, rough in front ; adipose fin notched.
c. Pectoral spines shortish, about one-third length of head, weakly serrate ; jaws

equal. 5 5 . EXILIS. 24.
cc. Pectoral spines very serene more whan half length of the head; upper jaw
longer. . 2 n MIURUS. 25.
bb. Pectoral spine grooved behind ; adipose fin high an continuous; stout.
SIALIS, 26,

23. Norurus FLAvus Rafinesque.

Yellow Stone Cat; Tommon Stone Cat.

Noturus flavus, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am, Monthly Mag. and Critical Review, p. 41; Ich.
Oh., 1820, 68.—KırTLAanD (1838), Rept. Zool. Ohio, 167, 195; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist.,
iv, 1846, 336 —STORER (1846), Synopsis, 406.—GiLL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 45.—CoPE (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 277; Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1869, 237.—GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fishes, vi, 104.—UHLER and LUGGER (1876),
Fishes Maryland.—JorDAN (1877), Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist., N. Y.,—.

Noturus luteus, RAFINESQUE (1819), Journ. de Physique, 421.—JoRDAN (1877), Bull. U.
S. Nat. Mus, x., 99; Man. Vert., 2d.ed., 1878, 335.

Noturus occidentalis, GILL (162), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 45; (1876) Capt. ? Simpson’s
Rept., 423.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 160.

Noturus platycephalus, GUNTHER (1864), Catalogue Fishes, v, 104.—JORDAN and CoPE-
LAND (1876), Check List, 160.

Description —Body elongate ; head depressed, broad and flat, nearly as broad as long;
middle region of body subcylindrical ; tail compressed; a strong keel on the back
behind the dorsal, leading to the adipose fin ; adipose fin deeply notched, but continuous
with the caudal fin; dorsal spine very short; pectoral spine retrorsely serrated in
front, slightly rough or nearly entire behind, its length contained three times in
distance from snout to dorsal ; color nearly uniform yellowish- brown, sometimes black-
ish above; fina yellowish edged ; head, 44; width of head, 54 ; depth, 2# ; distance from
snout to dorsal 3; anal rays, 16. Length, 10 to 15 inches.

Habitat, Canada to Virginia, Missouri, and Montana, abounding in the larger streams.

800 FISHES—SILURIDZ.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known from the other Stone Cats by
its greater size, and by the U-shaped band of premaxillary teeth.

Habits —Like the other Stone Cats, this is a sluggish fish, lurking
under stones and logs. It is much more abundant in the Ohio and its
immediate tributaries than in the streams of the interior. Although
much the largest species of the genus, it is too small to be valued as
food.

24. Noturus ExILıs Nelson.

Slender Stone Cat.
Noturus exilis, NELSON (1876), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat, Hist., 51.—JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 160.—JORDAN (177), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y. —; Bull. U. 8.
Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 10; Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d. Ed., 1878, 335.

Description —Body elongated, the head small, narrow, very much depressed ; the jaws
neatly equal; premaxillary band of teeth without backward processes ; dorsal spine
low, nearer snout than anal; pectoral spines short, nearly straight, about one-third
length of head, slightly retrorse, serrate without, with about six small straight teeth
within, which are not one-third as long as the spine is broad; color pale yellowish-
brown, nearly plain; tip of dorsal black ; head 44 in length; depth about 6; distance
from snout to dorsal 3 1-5 in length; anal rays 14 or 15. Length, 3 to 5 inches.

Habitat, Indiana to Missouri*and Kansas, not yet noticed in Ohio.

Diagnosis—This species may be known from the other Ohio species by
the small, rough pectoral spines, and by the nearly equal jaws.

Habits.—This species has not yet been noticed east of the tributaries
of the Illinois, but as it will probably be found in Ohio, it is inserted
here. It is one of the smallest and most slender species, and its habits
offer nothing distinctive.

25. Norurus MruRvus Jordan.

Variegated Stone Cat.

Noturus miurus, JORDAN, MSS.—JoRDAN and COPELAND (1876), Cheek List, 160.—
JORDAN (1877), Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 46 (name only); Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N.Y.,
1877, —; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1878, 100; Man. Vert., 2d. Ed., 1878, 336.

Description.—Body moderately elongate, the dorsal region more or less elevated ; head
moderate, the upper jaw the longer; pectoral spines very strong, curved, their inner
serre very strong, spine-like, more than half as long as the spine is broad; adipose fin
continuous, high, interrupted by a deep notch which does not, however, break the con-
tinuity of the fin; the rudimentary candal rays beginningin the notch; color grayish,
the back with four definite, broad, dark cross-bars; one before the dorsal, one behind it,
one on the middle of the adipose fin, and one small one behind ; top of head, and tips
of fins black; distance from snout to dorsal 23 in length; pectoral spine 24 in this dis-
tance; head 32 t0 4; depth 44 to 5; A.12o0r13. Length 3 or 4 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley to Great Lake region and south to Louisiana.

CHUBBY STONE CAT. 801

Diagnosis.—From the other Ohio Cat-fishes, this species may be known
by the large, saw-like pectoral spine, and by the variegated coloration.

Habits.—This pretty little fish abounds in most of the small streams
of Ohio, especially southward. It is found under stones and logs. It
is an attractive species for the aquarium.

26. Norurts sıaLıs Jordan.

Chubby Stone Cat.

Noturus sialis, JORDAN (1877), Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., x, 102; Man. Vert., 2d. Ed., 1878,
337.

Description —Body short and thick, compressed behind ; head very large and broad,
Lees depressed than in the others; spines stout and rather long, those of the pectoral
fins straight, about half the length of the head, 24 in the distance to the dorsal fin;
smooth externally, grooved within; dorsal higher than long, its insertion nearer anal fin
than snout; adipose fin high aud continuous, not at all notched; barbels short, the
lower darker; color nearly uniform yellowish brown, without dark bars or blotches; a
conspicuous narrow black lateral streak and sometimes two dorsal streaks; head, 34 to
4; depth 4 to 5; distance from snout to dorsal 22; width of head 32 Length, 3 or 4
inches.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley to Red River of the North.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by its chubby form, its plain,
pale coloration, and by the absence of serrations on the pectoval spine.

Habits.—The habits of this species are similar to those of N. miurus.
The two species reach about the same size; they are usually found
together and are about equally abundant in Ohio.

ORDER 8. TELEOCEPHALL THE TYPICAL
FISHES.

This order comprises the vast majority of recent fishes, and is characterized rather
negatively as wanting the peculiarities of the other orders, than as having any positive
traits of its own. In general, the maxillaries are normally developed, and distinct
from the premaxillaries, not forming the base of a long barbel. The gills are of the
ordinary pattern, and the gill openings are in front of the pectorals and not usually very
narrow ; the opercle, subopercle, preopercle, and interopercle are all developed. This
group includes the various soft-rayed fishes, with the ventrals abdominal, the scales
generally cycloid and the air-bladder connected by a duct with the alimentary canal,
the Malacopteri or Physostomi of authors, and the spinous rayed fishes, with the ventrals
thoracic, the scales usually ctenoid and the air bladder without duct, the Acanthopteri
or Physochysti of authors, as well as a large number ef forms variously intermediate or
aberrant (teleos, perfect; kephale, head; the skull having all its parts developed).

51

802 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

ARTIFICAL KEY TO THE FAMILIES OF TELEOCEPHALI FOUND IN OHIO.

*Ventral fins present, abdominal.
t Rayed dorsal fin single: no spines.
a. Adipose fin present.
b. Scales ctenoid; lateral margins of upper jaw formed by pre-maxillaries alone.
PERCOPSIDA. 14.
bb. Scales cyeloid ; lateral margins of upper jaw formed by maxillaries.
SALMONIDE. 13.
aa. Adipose fin wanting.
c. Abdomen compressed to a sharp edge, which is armed with hard plates or
serratures.
d Month small, the upper jaw the longer; maxillary simple.
DOROSOMATIDE. 10.
dd. Mouth rather large, the jaws about equal; maxillary in three parts,
CLUPEID2. 11.
cc. Abdomen not serrated.
e. Jaws toothless; pharyngeals faleiform.
Jf. Dorsal rays 11 or more; pharyngeal teeth very numerous in a single row.
CaTOSTOMIDE 8.
Jf. Dorsal rays 7 to 9; pharyngeal teeth few. . . . . CYPRINIDE. 9.
ee. Jaws with teeth.
g. Vent normal, behind the ventrals; eyes developed.
h. Head naked; teeth strong; scales large, silvery. HYODONTIDE. 12.
hh. Head scaly more or less; dorsal fin inserted posteriorly, opposite anal or
nearly so.
i. Upper jaw not protractile.
j. Jaws very long, armed with strong unequal, movable teeth.
Esocıpz. 18.
jj. Jaws short, armed with bands of small teeth. . UMBRIDE. 17.
ti. Upper jaw extremely protractile; head flattened above; mouth small ;
caudal] rounded. 3 : 4 n . CYPRINODONTIDE. 16.
99. Vent jugular, before the ventral fins; eyes concealed.
AMBLYOPSIDE. 15.
+t Rayed dorsal fins two, the anterior of a few feeble spines; body elongate, with a
silvery lateral band. & a : 7 2 x ATHERINIDE. 19.
**Ventral fins present, thoracic or jugular.
a. Skin covered with scales.
b. Anterior three or more rays of dorsal fin spinous; ventrals thoracic.
ce. Dorsal with more than five spines.
d. Vomer with teeth.
e, Branchiostegal 7; dorsal fins two; preopercle wanting.
PERCIDE. 24.
ee. Branchiostegals 6; preopercle nearly or quite entire.
f. Anal spines one or two; dorsal fins two. . ETHEOSTOMATID&. 23,
Jf. Anal spines three to nine; dorsal fin continuous.
CENTRARCHIDE. 22,

dd. Vomer toothless; anal spines two.
9. Second anal spine not larger than first. . . ETHROSTOMATIDZ. 23.

SUCKERS. 803

99. Second anal spine many times as large as the first. Screnipe. 25.
cc, Doral fin continuous, with less than five spines,

h. Vent anterior, near or in front of ventrals; bones of head serrated.
APHODODERIDE. 20.
hh. Ventnormal; bones of head entire. . . . . ELASsOMATIDZ. 21.

bb. Anterior dorsal of soft rays only; a barbel at tip of lower jaw.

GADIDE. 27,
aa. Skin naked or prickly; head broad; dorsal finstwo. . COoTTIDE. 26.

FAMILY VIII. CATOSTOMIDE. THE SUCKERS.

Body oblong or elongated, covered with cycloid scales of moderate or large size;
head moderate, naked, the opercular bones normally developed ; nostrils double; mouth
commonly more or lessinferior, usually with thickened lips; the upper jaw is formed
in the middle by the small, lamelliform premaxillaries and on the side by the max-
illaries; no barbels; no teeth in the jaws; pharyngeal bones falciform, with a single
row of many compressed teeth which grow smaller upward; branchial openings
restricted to the sides, separated by a broad isthmus; branchiostegals three; dorsal
variously developed, the number of rays from nine to fifty ; anal short and high; caudal
emarginated or forked; pectorals placed low; ventrals abdominal; intestinal canal
very long; stomach simple, without pyloric ceca; air bladder large, not protected by a
bony capsule, divided by transverse contrictions into two or three regions. Fishes of the
fresh water, all but two of the known species being American. The latest authority on
the group (Jordan, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., xii, 1578) recognizes 55 species, arranged in 13
genera. These fishes feed chiefly on vegetable substances, and on worms, ova, insect
larv®, crustaceans, and small mollusks. All are used as food, but none of them are
much valued as the flesh is coarse, soft, tasteless, and full of small bones. The young of
some of the species abound in every brook and pond in the State of Ohio, and they
form one of the most characteristic features of our fish fauna.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CATOSTOMIDE.

*Dorsal fin elongated, more or less elevated in front, of 25 or more rays; air bladder
in two parts.
t Fontanelle present; body oblong ovate; scales large; head large.
a. Mouth large, terminal, protractile forwards; lips thin, nearly smooth.
IcuTHyosus. 14.
aa. Mouth small, subinferior, protractile downward.
b. Pharyngeal bones strong, the teeth coarse and large, increasing in size down-
ward. > . . « «© «© » » « BUBALICHTHxS. 15.
bb. Pharyngeal bones, narrow, their teeth thin and weak. . CARPIODES. 16.
tt Fontanelle obliterated by the union of the parietal bones; body elongate;
scales small; head small. 5 . . . . . CyYcLertus. 17.
**Dorsal fin short, subquadrate, with ten to eighteen rays; body oblong or elongate.
c. Air bladder in two parts.
d. Lateral line complete; lips papillose ; scales moderate or small.
CaTostTomus. 18,
dd. Lateral line interrupted or wanting ; lips plicate ; scales large.

804 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

e. Lateral line entirely wanting; mouth somewhat oblique.
ERIMYZON. 19.
ee. Lateral line incomplete, obsolete in the young, becoming more perfectly
developed with age, but always interrupted ; mouth inferior.
MINYTREMA. 20.
cc. Air bladder in three parts; lateral line developed.
f. Month normal, the upper jaw protractile, the lower lip entire or lobed, usually

plicate. -
g. Fharyogeal bones moderate, the teeth compressed, growing gradually
larger downward; mouth rather swall.e. . . . . Myxostoma. 21.

99. Pharyngeal bones very strong, with the lower teeth much enlarged, sub-
cylindrical and truncate; upper teeth small and compressed; mouth
large, oblique. : 3 : x : . PLACOPHARYNX, 22.
ff. Mouth singular, the upper lip ie protractile, greatly enlarged, the lower lip
developed as two separate lobes; operculum very short.
QUASSILABIA. 23.

Genus 14. ICHTHYOBUS. Rafinesque.
Amblodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique de Chymie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris,
421, 1819 (part).
Ictiobus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, p, 55. (As subgenus of Catostomus )
Ichthyobus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1855, p. 145.
Type, Amblodon bubalus, RAFINESQUE.
Etymology, ichthus, tish ; bous, bull or buffalo; i.e, buffalo-fish.

Head very large and strong, wide and deep, its length 34 to ©$ in that of the body,
its upper surface broad and depressed; eye moderate, wholly anterior in position, the
middle of the head being entirely behind it; suborbital bones proportionately narrow ;
fontanelle large, well open; opercular apparatus largely developed, the suboperculum
broad, the operculum broad, strongly furrowed; mouth very large for a Sucker, ter-
minal, protractile forwards, the middle of the premaxillaries rather above the line of
the middle of the eye, the posterior edge of the maxillary extending about to the line of
the nostrils ; mandible very strong, oblique, placed at an angle of 45 degrees or more
when the mouth is closed, its posterior end extending to beyond opposite the front of
the eye, its length alittle less than one-third that of the head ; lips very little developed,
the upper narrow and smooth, scarcely appreciab!e, the lower narrow, rather full on the
sides, but reduced to a narrow rim in front, entirely destitute both of papille and plice ;
jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; muciferous system of head well developed ; isthmus
narrow ; pharyngeal bones in form intermediate between those of Carpiodes and those of
Bubalichthys, the outer surface of the arcb standing outwards, and presenting a porous
outer margin; the peduncle of the symphysis is much longer proportionally, and more
pointed thanin Carpiodes and Bubalichthys. The teeth are very numerous, small, thin and
compressed as in Carpiodes, but the lower ones are gradually larger than the upper ones ;
their inner edge slanting outward, and not uniformily arched as in Bubalichthys, or
truncate as in Cycleptus, the innermost margin rising somewhat in the shape of a pro-
jecting cusp; gill-rakers of anterior arch long and slender above, becoming shorter
downward ; body heavy, robust, not especially arched above nor greatly compressed,
the form somewhat elliptical, the depth 24 to 33 in the length of the body ; scales large,
thick, nearly equal over the body, their posterior edges somewhat serrate, the lateral

RED-MOUTH BUFFALV FISH. 805

line welldeveloped, but not as distinct as in Carpiodes, slightly decurved anteriorly, the
number of scales in its course 36 to 42; 13 to 15 in a transverse series from dorsal to ven-
trals; dorsal fin with an elongate basis, its number of rays 25 to 30, the anterior rays
somewhat elevated, their length about half that of the base of the fin ; caudal not much
forked ; anal fin not much elevated, its rays about 9 in number; pectorals and ventrals
moderate, the latter with about 10 rays; sexual peculiarities, if any, unknown; colora-
tion dark, not silvery, above dusky olive; lower fins more or lees black; air bladder
with two chambers; size very large. But one species is certainly known.

27. IcHTHYOBUS BUBALUS (Rafinesque) Agassiz.

Red-mouth Buffalo Fish; Large-mouthed Buffalo.

Ambludon bubalus, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physiqne, 1818, 421.

Catostomus bubalus, RAFINESQUE, Am. Month. Mag. and Crit. Rev., 1818, 354; Ich. Oh,
1820, 55.

Ichthyobus bubalus, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 196.—JORDAN,
Fishes of Icd., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1676, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
298; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 34; Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 322; Bull U.S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 214.—JORDAN and Copz-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 153.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53. —
Netson, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.

Sclerognathus cyprinella, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
477, pl. 518.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 428.—GuNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii,
1868, 24.

Icthihyobus cyprinella AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 196.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876, 298.— JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Ichthyobus rauchit, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sc. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 196.—PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1563, 10 —JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—
JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d. Ed.,
1878, 323.

Icthyobus stolleyi, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 196.—JORDAN and
COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Icihyobus ischyrus, NELSON, MSS.—JoRDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72 —
JORDAN and COP&LAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s
Rept., 1876, 53.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.

Description.—Body robust, moderately compressed, the outline somewhat elliptical,
but the back rather more curved than the belly; depth 24 to 34 in length; head very
large and thick, 34 in length of body ; opercular apparatus very strong, the operculum
itself forming nearly half the length of the head ; scales very large; developed rays of
the dorsal 26 to 29; anal rays 9; ventral 10; scales 7-37 to 41-6; coloration dull brown-
ish-olive, not silvery; fins dusky; size very large, reaches a length of nearly three feet
and a weight of 20 to 30 pounds.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley, generally abundant in the larger streams.
Diagnosis —This species is at once distinguished from the other Buffalo

Fishes by the large terminal mouth and very thin smooth lips.
Habits —This species abounds in the Ohio River and its larger tribu-

806 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

taries in company with the species of Bubalichthys and Carpiodes. It
reaches a considerable size, a well grown specimen weighing 15 to 25
pounds. It is used everywhere as food, and sells readily, but the flesh is
full of small bones, scarcely worth the picking. According to Professor
Forbes it feeds chiefly on Entomostracans.

Genus 15. BUBALICHTHYS. Agassiz.

Bubalichthys, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts. 1825, 92.
Sclerognathus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus, vii, p. 22, 1868.
Catostomus et Carpiodes, sp. of authors.

Type, Carpiodes urus, Agassiz.

Etymology, boubalos, buffalo; ichihus, fish.

Head moderate or rather large, deep and thick, its superior outline rapidly rising, its
length about four in that of the body; eye moderate, median or rather anterior in posi-
tion; suborbital bones comparatively narrow ; fontanelle always present and widely
open ; mouth moderate or small, more or less inferior, the mandible short, little oblique,
or typically quite horizontal, the mandible less than one-third the length of the head;
the premaxillaries in the closed mouth below the lavel of the lower part of the orbit;
lips rather thin, thicker than in Ichthyobus, the upper protractile, narrow, plicate, the
plice sometimes broken up into granules; lower lip comparatively fall (for a Buffalo-
fish), faintly plicate, the plice broken up into granules, the lower lip having the general
n-shaped form seen in Carpiodes ; jaws without cartilaginous sheath; muciferous system
well developed; opercular apparatus well developed, but less so than in Ichthyobus, the
operculum strongly rugose; isthmus moderate ; pharyngeal bones triangular, with large
teeth, which increase in size fron above downward ; teeth compressed, their grinding
edge blunt, slightly arched in the middle, and provided with a little cusp along the
inner margin, which is hardly detached from the crown, and does not rise above the
surface ; gill-rakers of anterior arch slender and stiff above, growing shorter downward ;
body ovate or oblong, the dorsal outline more or less arched, the sides of the body com-
pressed, the ventral outline curved also, but to a less degree; scales very large, about
equal over the body, their posterior outlines somewhat serrate ; lateral line well deve-
loped, nearly straight, with 35 to 42 scales, 12 to 14 in a cross-series from ventrals to
dorsal; dorsal fin begioning near the middle of the body, somewhat in advance of the
ventrals, its anterior rays elevated, their height about equal to half the base of the fin,
the number of rays in the dorsal fin ranging from 25 to 32; caudal fin well forked, the
lobes about equal, not falcate ; anal fin comparatively long and rather low, of eight or
nine developed rays; ventrals moderate, 10 rayed; pectorals rather short; sexual
peculiarities, if any, unknown; coloration dall dark-brown, nearly plain, not silvery ;
fins olivaceous or more or less dusky ; air-bladder with two chambers; size quite large.

In general appearance, the species of Bubalichthys bear a considerable resemblance to
those of Carpiodes. The form is, however, coarser than that of any Carpiodes, the dorsal
fin is lower, and the coloration is darker and duller. The species reach a Jarger size
than do those of Carpiodes, bnt whether larger or not than the species of Ichthyobus I am
unable to say. In external appearance, Bubalichthys is intermediate between Carpiodes
and Ichthyobus, the one species, bubalus, resembling’ Carpiodes most, the other, urus,
being most like Ichthyobus.

BIG-MOUTH BUFFALO. 807

28. BuBALICHTHYS URUS Agassiz.

Big-mouthed Buffalo; Black Baffalo; Mongrel Buffalo.

#2? Amblodon niger, RAFINELQUE, Journal de Physique, Phila., 1818, 421. (Entirely un-
recognizable.)

?? Catostomus niger, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 56. (Unrecognizable; more likely
Cycleptus elongatus.)

Bubalichthys niger, AGassiz, Am. Journ Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 195.—JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 222, 1875; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist , 1876, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
298.—NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist, 1876, 50.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 158—Jorpan, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 75.—Jorpan
and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53.—JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877,
34; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 328.

Carpiodes urus, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355.

Bubalichthys urus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, xix, 1855, 193.—PuTNaM, Bull. Mos.
Comp Zool, 1863, 10,—JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus,, xii,
1878, 209.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Bubalichthys bonasus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 24 series, xix, 1855, 195.—JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Description.—Body much less elevated and less compressed than in the preceding, the
back not at all carinated ; axis of body above ventrals about at the lateral line, and but
very little farther from the dorsal outline than from the ventral ; depth 3 to 44 in length ;
head very stout, strongly transversely convex, thicker, larger, and less pointed than in
the next, about four in length; eye about equal to snout, 54 in head, much smaller than
B. bubalus ; mouth large, considerably oblique, opening well forward ; mandible longer
than eye; dorsal fin lower and less rapidly depressed than in the next, the longest ray
scarcely half the length of the base of the fin; anal fin rounded, its rays not rapidly
shortened, the middle ones not much shorter than the longest; colors very dark; fins
all black ; scales 8-41-7; dorsal 30; anal 10.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley, in all the larger streams.

Diagnosis.—From the other species of this genus, B. urus may be known
by the larger mouth, and the less elevated and compressed body. Its
colors are darker than those of any other of the Buffalo-fishes.

Habits.—This species occurs in the Ohio River and its larger tributaries,
but is rather less abundant than either the preceding or the next. It
reaches a considerable size, and is of some value as a food fish.

29. BUBALICHTHYS BUBALUS Agassiz.

Buffalo-fish; Small-mouthed Buffalo; High-backed Buffalo.

Catostomus bubalus, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 163; Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v,
1845, 266.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424. (Not of Rafinesque).

Bubalichthys bubalus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 195.—JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Proc. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila, 1877, 75; Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus., xii, 1878, 206.—JoRDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN and.
GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1877, 53.

4
808 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

?? Carpiodes taurus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355. (Not identifiable.)

2? Bubalichthys taurus, AGAssız. Am. Journ. Sci. Art, 2d series, xix, 1855, 193.— JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

?? Carpiodes vitulus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 356. (Not identifiable.)

9? Bubulichthys vitulus, AGAssız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 193.—JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1376, 153.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept.,
1876, 53.

Selerognathus urus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1363, 22.

Icthyobus cyanellus, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1376, 158 —Jorpan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1877, 73; Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 323.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53.

Bubalichthys altus, Nevson, MSS, 1877.—JorDan, Pros Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 73; Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 324.

Bubalichthys bubalinus, JoRDAN, Bull U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1867, 50; Man. Vert., 24 Ed.,
1878, 325.

Description —Body considerably elevated and compressed above; the dorsal region
subcarinate, belly thicker; depth “4 to 2} ia length; axis of body above the ventrals
below the lateral line and nearly twice as far from the back as from the belly; head
moderate, triangular in outline when viewed from the side, four in length; eye equal
to snout, four to five in length of head, much larger than in B. urus; mouth quite
small, notably smaller and more inferior than in B. urus ; mandible about equal to eye;
dorsal fin elevated in front and rapidly declined, the highest ray reaching much
beyond the middle of the fin, the seventh ray about half the length of the third or
longest; anal rays rapidly shortened behind, the middle rays much shorter than the first
long ones; scales 8-39-6; dorsal 29; anal 10; ventrals 10; coloration paler, the lower
fins slightly dusky.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley, abundant in the larger streams.

Diagnosis —T 1's species has the highest back and smallest mouth of
any of the Buffalo fishes.

Habits. —Its habits «re indentical with those of urus and Ichthyobus
bubalus, It reaches about the same size as the others, and is of similar
value as food.

Genus 16. CARPIODES. Rafinesque.

Carpiodes, RAFINESQUE,Ich. Oh., 1320, 56. (As subgenus of Catostomus.)
Sclerognathus, VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 472.
Type, Catostomus cyprinus, LeSueur.
Etymology, Latin carpio, a carp; i.e., carp like.

Head comparatively short and deep, sometimes conic, sometimes blunt, its length
ranging from 34 to 5 in that of the body, its upper surface always rounded ; eye moder-
ate, median or anterior in position; suborbital bones well developed, their depth more
than half that of the fleshy portion of the cheek below; fontanelle always present, well
developed; mouth always small, horizontal and inferior, the mandible less than one-
third the length of the head, the lips thin, the upper protractile, narrow, the lower
quite narrow, V-shaped, or rather U-shaped, behind ; both lips feebly plicate or nearly
smooth, the plice often more or less broken up; jaws without cartilaginous sheath ;
muciferous system moderately developed ; opercular apparatus well developed, the sub-

CARP SUCKER. 809

opercle broad, the operculum in the adult more or less rugose: isthmus moderate;
pharyngeal bones remarkably thin and laterally compressed, with a sballow farrow
along the anterior margin on the inside, and another more central one on the outline of
the enlarged surfaces; teeth very small, compressed, nearly equally thin along the
whole inner edge of the bone, forming a fine comb like crest of minute serratures ;
their cutting edge rises above the inner margin into a prominent point. Gill-rackers of
anterior arch slender and stiff above, becoming reduced downward. Body ovate or ob-
long, the dorsal outline more or less arched, the ventral outline more nearly straight,
the depth from one-half to one-third the length, the sides compressed ; the back notably
80, forming a sort of carina; caudal peduncle short and deep; scales large, about equal
over the body, their posterior margins slightly serrate; lateral line well developed,
nearly straight, 34 to 41 scales; 12 to 15 scales in a cross-row from dorsal to ventrals ;
dorsal fin begicning near the middle of the body, somewhat in advance of ventrals, fal-
cate, its anterior rays very much elevated and usually filamentous, their height rang-
ing from one-half to one and one-third the base of the fin, the number of developed rays
ranging from 23 to 30; caudal fin well forked, the lobes equal; anal fin comparatively
long and low, emarginate (in males ?), its number of developed rays usually 8; ventrals
shortish, with usually 10 rays: pectorals short ; sexual peculiarities little marked ; in
some species, at least, the males in spring have the snout minutely tuberculated ; colora-
tion always plain; pale olivaceous above, white below, but hardly silvery, the fins all
partaking of the color of the region to which they belong; air-bladder with two cham-
bers. Size medium or rather large.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CARPIODES.

*Dorsal fin with its anterior rays shortened, one-half to three-fourths as long as the
base of the fin.
a. Head short, 44 to 5 in length; anterior rays of dorsal short, notably thickened

and osseous at base. 4 . & R . CARPIO. 30.
aa. Head medium, 3% to 44 in length; anterior rays of dorsal not thickened.
b. Body oblong, the depth 22 in length ; scales 6-37-5. . . CYPRINUS. 31.

bb. Body short, the back arched, the depth 24 in length, scales about 8-40-6.
THOMPSONI 32.

aaa. Head long, 3} in length; eye nearly median. s ‘ F BISON. 33.
**Dorsal fin with its anterior rays about equal to the length of the base of the fin.
ce. Muzzle conic, projecting. . . a x r VELIFER. 34.

cc. Muzzle very abruptly obtuse.
d. Front margin of lower jaw notably in advance of the eye.
CUTISANSERINUS. 35.
dd. Front margin of lower jaw not in advance of the front margin of the eye,
the snout being extremely blunt. . R . . DIFFORMIS. 36.

30 CARPIODES CARPIO (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Big Carp Sucker; Olive Carp Sucker.

Catostomus carpio, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 66.

Carpiodes carpio, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1877, 95 ; Man. Vert., 1876, 297 ;
Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, ix, 1877; Man. Vert.,
24 Ed., 1678, 321; Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 200.—NzLson, Bull. No. 1, Ills.
Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JorDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN
and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 63. x

810 FISHES—-CATOSTOMIDA.

Carpiodes nummifer, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 484.

Description. —Body fusiform, more elongate than in the other species, compressed, but
not much arched; head quite short; muzzle short, but projecting much beyond the
mouth ; eyes small, anterior 44 in head; first rays of dorsal short, extremely stout and
osseous at base, the insertion of the first ray nearer the end of the muzzle than the base
of the caudal fin ; color pale, as in all the other members of the genus; head 4} to 5;
depth 24 to 3; D., 30; scales 7-36-5. Length, 1 to 14 feet ; the largest species of the
genus.

Habitat, Ohio Valley, etc., abundant, often ascending smaller streams.

Diagnosis. —This species may usually be readily distinguished by the
small head and the thickened anterior rays of the dorsal.

Habits.—This is the commonest species of its genus in the Ohio River,
and it is often found in the streams of the interior of the State. It has,
not yet been recorded from Lake Erie. Like the others, it is used as food,
but never highly valued.

31. CARPIODES cyPRINUS (LeSueur) Agassiz.

Eastern Carp Sucker; Nebraska Carp Sucker; Rio Grande Carp.

Catostomus cyprinus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., i, 1817, 91.

Labeo cyprinus, DEKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 194.

Sclerognathus cyprinus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
474.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 427.

Carpiodes eyprinus, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 191.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. vii, 1868, 24—Corz, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 484.—
JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 292; Man. Vert., 1876, 297; 2d Ed., 1878, 323 —UHLER
and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 140.—JoRDAN and COPELAND, Check List,
1876, 458.

Carpiodes vacca, AGaAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 356.—JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
1878, 198, xii.

Carpiodes tumidus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Phila Acad. Nat. Sci., 1854, 28.

Ictiobus tumidus, GIRARD, U. 8. Mex. Bound. Surv., Ich., 34, pl. xxx, 1859, f. 1-4.

Ichth yobus tumidus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Carpiodes damalis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1356, 170; U.S. Pac. R.R. Expl.,
x, 1858, 218, pl. xlviii, f. 1-4.—CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1865, 85.—JoRDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155.

Carpiodes grayi, Cope, Proc. Am, Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 482.—JorpDaNn and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—CoPpz and Yarrow, Wheeler’s Expl. W. 100th Mer., v,
Zool., 1876, 681.

Description.—Body oblong, not much elevated ; head moderate, the muzzle prominent
but rather bluntish; front scarcely concave between the eyes, the profile forming a
nearly uniform curve; eye small, nearly six in head ; anterior rays of dorsal not thick-
ened, moderately elevated, nearly three-fourths as long as the base of the fin, the first
ray nearly midway from snout to base of caudal; color pale; head 3% to 44 in length ;
depth 22; D., 24 to 27; scales 6-37-5. Length, one foot.

Habitat, New England to Alabama, Nebraska and Mexico.

LAKE CARP. 811

Diagnosis.—This species may usually be readily known from the closely
related C. velifer by the lower dorsal, and from C. thompsoni by the slen-
derer body and larger scales.

Habits.—This is the common Carp Sucker of Eastern Pennsylvania and
of the Southern and Southwestern States. It has not yet been noticed in
Ohio, but it doubtless occurs here.

32. CARPIODES THOMPSONI Agassiz.

Lake Carp.

Catostomus cyprinus, THOMPSON, Hist. Vt., 1842, 133.

Carpiodes thompsoni, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1865, 191.—CoPe, Proce.
Acad. Nat. Sci. Philn., 1864, 285; Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 483.—JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 1876, 297; 2d Ed, 1878, 322; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus,, xii, 1878, 198.—Jor-
DAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s
Rept., 1876, 53.

Ichthyobus thompsoni, N#sLsoN, Bull. No. 1, Ill. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.

Description —Body short and stout, the back much arched, head moderate, the muzzle
somewhat pointed; eye small, 64 in head; tip of lower jaw much in advance of the nos-
trils ; maxillary reaching line of orbit; anterior snborbital large, deep, roundish ; dor-
sal fin with its anterior rays not thickened, elevated, their length about two thirds that
of the base of the fin; origin of dorsal about midway between snout and base of caudal ;
color pale; head 4 to 44; depth 24; D., 27; scales 8-39 to 41-6. Length one foot.

Habitat, Great Lakes, abundant.

Diagnosis.—This species may usually be known by the short body in
connection with the comparatively low dorsal fin.

Habits.—This fish is as yet recorded only from the great lakes. It is
abundant in Lake Erie, and is sold by the fishermen as Carp, or some-
times, especially after being split and salted, as Lake Shad. I have ex-
amined many specimens from Sandusky Bay.

33. CARPIODES BISON Agassiz.

Long-headed Carp Sucker.

Carpiodes bison, AGass!z, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355; 1855, 190.—Copx, Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 4¢3.—Jorpan, Man. Vert., 1876, 297; 2d Ed., 1878, 322;
Ball. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 50; xii, 1878, 197.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53.

Ichthyobus bison, NELSON, Ball. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.

Description.—Body oblong, the back not much arched; head quite long; muzzle elon-
gate-conic, so that the eye is nearly median in position, the middle of the length of the
head falling in front of its posterior margin ; eye large, 44 1n head ; lips well developed ;
anterior rays of the dorsal fin not thickened, uot much shorter than the base of the fin;
color pale; head 34; depth 3; D., 27; scales 7-40-5, Length, one foot.

Habitat, Ohio Valley, not very common.

812 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

Diagnosis.—This species may usually be known by the large head.
Habits.—I have seen but very few specimens of this species, all from
the lower Ohio. It is probably rare in this State.

34. CARPIODES VELIFER (Rafinesque) Agassiz.

Carp Sucker; Skimback; Quillback Sailor Sailing Sucker;
. Spear-fish.

9? Catostomus anisopterus, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh., 1820, 46. (Description at second hand
and unrecognizable.)

Catostomus velifer, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 56.

Carpiodes velifer, KIRTLAND, Rep. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168 —AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sei. Arts,
2d series, xix, 1855, 191.—CoPpk, Proc. Am. Philos Soc. Phila., 1870, 452.—JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
297 3; 2d Ed., 1878, 321; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 34, 1877.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Check List, 176, 158.—JoRDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s First Report Ohio Fish
Commission, 1377, 87. j

Ichthyobus velifer, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49. ;

Sclerognathus cyprinus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ Nat. Hist., v, 1846, 275. (In part; not of
Cuv. and Val.)

Description —Body rather deep, the back arched; head moderate, the muzzle conic,
projecting, obtusely pointed; end of the mandible reaching to opposite the nostrils;
anterior suborbital as deep aslong ; eye moderate, 4 to 44 in head ; first rays of dorsal
very high, inserted nearer muzzle than base of caudal; color pale; head 32; depth 2}
to 24; D., 26; scales 7-37-5. Length, one foot.

Habitat, Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley.

Diagnosis.—This is the only species with the snout conical and the
long rays of the dorsal longer than the base of the fin.

Habits.—This species is abundant in the Ohio River, where it is usually
known as Quillback, Spear-fish, and Sailor, its lower finned relative, C.
carpio, being usually known as Carp. I have seen none from Lake Erie,
but as it occurs in the lakes of Western New York, it will doubtless be
found there.

35. CARPIODES CUTISANSERINUS Cope.

Long-finned Carp Sucker; Quillback.

Carpiodes cutisanserinus, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 481.—JoRDAN and
COPELAND, Check List, 1676, 158.—JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 9, 1877, 50; xii,
1878, 195; Man. Vert.,2d Ed., 321, 1878.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept.,
53, 1876.

Carpiodes selene, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 481.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 163.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 73.—JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 321.

Ichthyobus difformis, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1876, 49.

DEFORMED CARP SUCKER. 813

“

Description.—Body short and deep, the back arched, head thick, the muzzle notably
blunt but less so than in C. difformis ; anterior edge of mandible in advance of the
orbit; the maxillary jast reaching the line of the lower rim of the orbit; eye smallish,
44 in head; anterior rays of dorsal longer than the base of the fin inserted about mid-
way between snout and base of caudal; head 4; depth 23; D., 26; scales 7-37-5.
Length, one foot.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley, generally abundant.

Diagnosis.—This is one of the species with a very blunt head and very
high dorsal fin. The head is normal in appearance, not distorted as in
C. difformis.

Habits.—This species is abundant in the Ohio, and is not usually dis-
tinguished by the fishermen from (. velifer.

The name, cutisanserinus (goose-skinned), alludes to the presence of
minute tubercles on the snout of the male in the spawning season.

36. CARPIODES DIFFORMIS Cope.

Deformed Carp Sucker.

Carpiodes difformis, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc, Phila., 1870, 480.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876, 297; 2d Ed., 1878, 321; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1877, 723 Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus., 9, 1877, 50; xii, 1873, 195.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—
JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s First Report Ohio Fish Commission, 86, pl. xiii,
f, 21, 1877. ‘

Description.—Body short and deep, the back considerably arched ; head very thick,
the muzzle exceedingly blunt, almost truncate, so that the anterior edge of the mandi-
ble is in line with the anterior rim of the orbit, and the maxillary reaches to the an-

terior edge of the pupil; anterior suborbital bone deeper than long; eye large, 34 to 4

in head ; dorsal fin with its anterior rays very long, longer than the base of the fin; the

first ray of the dorsal nearer the muzzle than the base of the caudal; head 44; depth

24; D., 24; scales 6-34-4. Length, one foot.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species resembles a monstrosity of the preceding,
which indeed it may really be.

Habits.—But two or three specimens of this species are now known, all
from the Wabash and lower Ohio.

Genus 18. CYCLEPTUS. Rafinesque.

Cycleptus, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, de Chimie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris,
1819, 421.
Rhytidostomus, HECKEL, Fische Syriens, Russeggers Reisen, 1842, p. 1023.
Catostomus et Sclerognathus, 8p., AUCT.
Type, Cycleptus nigrescens, Rafinesque, = Catostomus elongatus, LeSueur.
Etymology, kuklos, round; leptos, small. ‘‘The name means small, round mouth.”
(Rafinesque.)

814 FISHES—-CATOSTOMIDA.

Head very small, short and slender, its length contained six to seven times in that of
the body, its upper surface rounded; eye quite small, nearly median, not very high up,
its length six to eight in that of the side of the head ; suborbital bones rather small and
quite narrow ; fontanelle entirely obliterated by the union of the parietal bones; mouth
small, entirely inferior, overlapped by the projecting snout, the upper lip thick, pen-
dent, covered with three to five rows of tubercles, the outer quite large, the inner small;
lower lip moderate, formed somewhat as in Catostomus, but less full, incised behind;
jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; muciferous system not greatly developed ; opercular
apparatus not greatly developed, the operculum smooth and narrow ; isthmus moderate ;
gill-rakers moderately long, soft; pharyngeal bones strong, the teeth stout, increasing
in size downwards, rather wide apart; body elongate, moderately compressed, not much
elevated, the caudal peduncle long, the greatest depth contained four to six times in
length ; scales moderate, about equal over the body, not closely imbricated, with wide
exposed surfaces, the number in the lateral line from 55 to 60, and about 17 in a trans-
verse series from dorsal to ventrals; edges of scales serrate; lateral line well developed,
nearly straight; fina rather large; dorsal fin beginning in front of ventrals and
ending just before anal, of about 30 rays, strongly falcate in front, the first and second
developed rays in length more than half the length of the base of the fin, the rays
rapidly shortened to about the eighth, the length of the remaining rays being nearly uni-
form and all short; caudal fin large, widely forked, the lobes about equal; anal fin
quite small, low, of 7 or eight developed rays, scaly at base; ventrals moderate, with
ten rays; pector&ls elongate, sonewhat falcate; sexual peculiarities somewhat marked ;
the males in spring wish a black pigment ; the head then covered with small tubercles;
air-bladder with two chambers, the anterior short, the posterior elongate. But a single
species of this singular genus is as yet known. It is found in the waters of the Mis-
sissippi Valley, and, although not a rare fish, it is by no means as generally abundant as
are many others of its family.

37. CYCLEPTUS ELONGATUS (LeSueur) Agassiz.
Biack Horse; Gourd-seed Sucker; Missouri Sucker; Suckerel.

Catostomus elongatus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 103.—RAFINESQUE,
Ich. Oh., 1820, 60. —KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 16¢ ; Boston Journ. Nat. Hist ,
v, 1845, 267.—DEKaY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.—CUVIER et
VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xvii, 1844, 455.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 422.

Cycleptus elongatus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 197.—JoRDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95 (name only); Man.
Vert., 1876, 298; 2d Ed., 1678; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 38; xii, 1878, 189.—
NELSON, Bull. No. 1, DJs. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 50.—JORDAN and COP&LAND, Check
List, 1876, 158 (name only).—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53
(name only).

Sclerognathus elongatus, GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 23.

Cycleptus nigrescens, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1818, 421; Ich. Oh., 1820, 61.

Deseriplion.—Body elongate, the depth four to five in length; head six to six and
a half; eye small, six to seven in length of head; longest ray of dorsal a little longer
than head ; pectorals rather longer than head; coloration very dark, the females oliva-
ceous and coppery, the males chiefly jet black with coppery shadings ; fins dusky ; dorsal
39; scales 9-56-7. Length, 14 to 2} feet; weight, 2 to 15 pounds.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley.

BLACK-HORSE SUCKER. 815

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by the small head and long
dorsal.

Habits—It is not rare in the Ohio River, but it seldom ascends the
smaller streams. At the Falls of the Ohio it is frequently but irregularly
taken, and is sold under the name of Gourd-seed Sucker. Itisalso called
Missouri Sucker and Black Horse. According to Dr. Kirtland, “it
migrates down the river at the approach of winter. Itis esteemed more
highly for food than any other of the family.”

Genus 19. CATOSTOMUS. LeSueur.

Catostomus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 89
Hypentelium, RAFINESQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 421.
Decactylus, RAFINESQUE, Ichtbyologia Ohiensis, 1820,
Hylomyzon, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 205.
Minomus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 173.
Acomus, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 173.
Type, Cyprinus catostomus, FORSTER = Catostomua longirostrum, LESUEUR.
Etymology, kato, low; stoma, mouth.

Head more or less elongate, its length ranging from three and a half to five in body,
its form varying considerably in the different subgenera; eyes rather small, high up,
median or more or less posterior in position ; suborbital bones narrow, longer than broad,
much as in Mykostoma ; funtanelle always present, usually widely open, in two species
reduced to a narrow slit, but never wholly obliterated ; mouth rather large, always in-
ferior, and sometimes notably so; the upper lip thick, protractile, papillose; the lower
lip greatly developed, with a broad free margin, deeply incised behind, so that it forms
two lobes, which are often more or less separated ; mandible horizontal, short, not one-
third the length of the head and not reaching to opposite the eye; lower jaw usually
without distinct cartilaginous sheath; opercular apparatus moderately developed, not
rugose; pharyngeal bones moderately strong, the teeth shortish, vertically compressed,
rapidly diminishing in size upwards, the upper surface of the teeth nearly even, or some-
what cuspidate ; body oblong or elongate, more or less fusiform, subterete, more or less
compressed ; scales comparatively small, typically much smaller and crowded anteriorly,
the number in the lateral line rangiog from about 50 to 115, the number in a transverse
series between dorsal and ventrals from 15 to 40; lateral line well developed, straight-
ish, somewhat decurved anteriorly ; fins variously developed ; dorsal with its first ray
nearly midway of the body, with from nine to fourteen developed rays; anal fin short
and high, with probably always seven developed rays; ventrals inserted under the mid-
dle or posterior part of the dorsal, typically with ten rays, in one subgenus usually nine,
the number often subject to variation of one; caudal fin usually deeply forked, the
lobes nearly equal ; sexual peculiarities not much marked, the fins higher in the male
and the aval somewhat swollen and tuberculate in the spring ; breeding males in some
species with a rosy or orarge lateral band; air-bladder with two chambers; vertebra
in ©. teres and C. nigricans 45 to 47.

“The skeleton in Catostomus is distinguished by the comparative want of solidity, cer-
bones consisting merely of a network of osseous matter. There is a large and broad fon-
tanelle on the upper surface of the head, separating the parietal bones, and leading

816 FISHES—-CATOSTOMIDE.

directly into the cerebral cavity. The occipital process is below the anterior vertebra,
enlarged into a biadder-like swelling, which is not solid, but consists of wu delicate
network only. The prefrontal is advanced to the anterior part of the orb:t. The jaw-
bones are very feeble, the intermaxillary being reduced to a thin lamella, which does not
descend to the middle of the maxillary. The anterior part of the mandible is horizontal,
thin and slightly dilated. The apophyses of the four anterior vertebrw are very strong
and long.”—(GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit Mus., vii, 13 )

This genus as at present restricted comprises three well-marked groups, which may be
accepted as subgenera, under the names Catostomus, Decadactylus, and Hypentelium Ove
of these groups, Hypentelium, has been considered as a distinct genus, on account of the
differences in the form of the head and in the squamation. These differences are, how-
ever, individually of subordinate value, and should probably be held to designate a sub-
generic section, rather than a distinct genus,

The genus Catosiomus is, next to Myxostoma, the most rich in species. It is much the
most widely distributed of the genera of Suckers, some of its members abounding in
every river of North America, and one of them being found in Asia. Only three of them
are found in Ohio,

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CATOSTOMUS.

*Scales much crowded and reduced in size anteriorly.
tScales very small, about 100 in lateral line. (Subgenus Catostomus.)
LONGIROSTRIS 38,
tt Scales median, 65 to 85 in the lateral line, (Subgenus Decadactylus.) TERES. 39,
**Soales not crowded, nearly equal over the body, 48 to 55 in the lateralline. (Sub-
genus Hypentelium.) ‘ ‘ ‘ N s e 2 ‘ NIGRICANS. 40.

38. CATOSTOMUS LONGIROSTRIS LeSueur.

Long-nosed Sucker; Northern Sucker; Red-sided Sucker.

Cyprinus catostomus, FORSTER, Philos. Trans., Ixiii, 1773, 145, tab. 6.—SCHNEIDER, ed.
Bloch., 1802, 444.

Catostomus longirostrum, LESURUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1817, 102.—THomPson,
Hist. Vt., 1842, 135.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, xvii, 1844, 453.—STORER, Synopsis,
1846, 421.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.

Catostomus longirostris, DEKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1841, 203.—JORDAN

and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1877, 54.—Jorpan, Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878,
175.

Catostomus hudsonius, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila, 1817, 107,—Cuvier and
VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 459.—STORER, Synopsis, 1816,
419.—AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 208.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 13.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 293.—NELSoN, Bull. No. 1, Ills.
Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 48.

Catostomas forsterianus, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 720; Fauna Bor.-Amer.,
iii, Fishes, 1836, 116.—DeKay, New York Fauna, partiv, Fishes, 1842, 203.—CUVIER
and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat.des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 463.—STORER, Synopsis, 1246,
419.—PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.—JoRDAN and CoPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 156.

Acomus forsterianus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 172.

COMMON SUCKER. 817

Cotostomus aurora, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 360, pl. 2, f. 34; Purnam, Bull. Mas.
Comp. Zuul., 1863, 10.

Acomus aurora, GERARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1856, 173.

Acomus griseus. GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, 174; U.S. Pac. R. R. Expl,
x, 1555, 222, pl. xlıx.

Catostomus griseus GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 14.—JorpDAN and CorE-
LAND, Check List, 1~76, 156.

Catostomus griseum, Cope, Ilayden’s Geol. Surv. Wroming, 1870, 434,

Catostomus lactarius, GIRARD, Proc. Acid. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 174.—JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 156,

Acomus lactarius, GIRARD, U.S Pac. R. R. Expl., x, 1858, 223.

Descriptien.—Body elongate, subterete; head quite long and slender, depressed and
flattened above, broad at base but tapering into a long snout, which considerably over-
hangs the large mouth; lips thick, coarsely tuberculate; the upper lip narrow, witu
two or three rows of papil!s; jaws without cartilaginous sheath; eye rather swall,
behind the middle of the head; fontanelle large; scales very small, much crowded for-
wards; color dusky abuve, pale below, the males in spring with a broad rosy lateral
band, and with the head and anal fin profusely tuberculate, the tubercles ou ibe head
emall; head 44 to 42 in length; depth 4} to 42; D., 10 or 11; lat. 1., 95 to 1143 26 to 31
scales in a cross series from dorsal to ventrals. Length, 14 to 2 feet.

Habitat, Great Lake region to Alaska, very abundant throughout British America.

D agnosis —This is the enly Obio Sucker which has more than 70
scales iu the lateral line.

Habits —This fish is quite abundant in Lake Erie, where it is taken
with other species in the net. It does not often ascend the streams, and
is almost never seen in waters tributary to the Ohio. It is a fish of
northern distribution and likes cold, clear waters.

39. CatTostomus TERES (Mitchell) LeSueur.

Common Sucker; White Sucker; Brook Sucker; Fime-
scaled Sucker.

LeCyprin commersoniew, LACEPEDE, H st. Nat. des Poiss., v, 1803, 502, 508.

Catostomus commersoni, JORDAN, Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1875, p 32).

Cyprinus c.dostomus, Peck, Mem. Am. Acad., ii, 18—, pt. 2, p. 55, pl. 2, f£. 4. (Not of
Forster.) ß

Cyprinus teres, MITCHILL, Lit. and Phil. Trans. New York, i, 1814, 458.

Catostomus teres, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1817, 103.—THompson, Hist.
Vt., 1842, 131.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, xii, 1544, 468.—STORER, Synopsis, 1346,
423.—AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 208 —GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
British Mas., vii, 1865, 15.--CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc Phila., 1870, 468,—Jorpan,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221; Man. Vert., 1876, 293; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 37;
xii, 1875, 166 —Nerson, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 43—Joxpan and
CoPELaND, Check List, 1876, 156.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876,
53; ib., 1878, 84, pl. xi, f. 18-19.

52

818 FISHES—-CATOSTOMIDE.

Catostomus communis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci: Phila, i, 1817, 95.—DeKAy, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1812, 196.--CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des
Poissons, xvii, 1844, 426.—KıRrTLanD, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 265 —STORER,
Synopsis, 1246, 421.—CoPk, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1868, 236 —UBLER and
LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 138.

Catostomus bostoniensis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 106.—STORER,
Rept Ich. Mass, 1838, 84; Synopsis, 1846, 423; Hist. Fishes Mass., 1867, 290, pl.
xxii, 1.3. —CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 432.—PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool , 1863, 10.—GiLL, Canadian Nat., Aug , 1865, p 19.—THoREAU,
Week on Concerd aud Merrimack, 1863, 38.

Catostomus flecuosus, RAFINKSQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 59.

Catostomus hudsonius, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 717. (Not of LeSueur.)

Cyprinus (Catostomus) hudsonius, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor -Am., Fishes, 1836, 112,

Cyprinus (Catostomus) reticulatus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Am, Fishes, 1823, 303.

Catostomus gracilis, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zoo]. Obio, 1338, 163.

Catostomus nigricans, STORER, Rept. Ich. Mass, 1838, 86 (not of LeSueur) —THoMPSoN,
Hist Vermont, —, 1542.

Catostomus pallidus, DiuKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 200.—STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 426.

Catostomus aureolus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist Nat. des Poiss., xvii, 1844, 439.
(Not of LeSueur.) -GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1268, p. 16.

Catostomus forsterianus, AGassız, Lake Superior, 1850, 368 ; Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d
series, xix, 1855, 208.

Acomus forsterianus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 173.

Catostomus sucklii, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila, 1856, 175; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Expl, x, 1858, pl. li, 266 —CoPe, Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Wyoming, 1870, 1672, 434.

Catostomus suckleyi, JORDAN and COPELLAND, Check List, 1876, 156.

? Catostomus texanus, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila , 1860, 473.—JORDAN and CoPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 156.

Catostomus chloropteron, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 473.—CoPe, Proc.
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1365, 85.

Catostomus chloropterus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.

Catostomus aliiculus, Cops and YARROW, Wheeler’s Expl. W. 100th Mer., v, Zool., 1876,
677 —JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1576, 156.

Moxostoma trisignatum, (COPE) COPE and YARROW, Wheeler’s Expl] W. 100th Mer, v.,
Zool , 1876, 679.

Erimyzon trisignatus, JORDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.

Description —Body moderately stout, subterete, heavy at the shoulders; head rather
large aud stout, conical, flattish above; snout moderately prominent, scarcely over-
passing the mouth; mouth rather large, the lips strongly papillose, the upper moderate,
with two or three rows of papilla; jaws without cartilaginous sheath; fontanelle
large ; scales crowded anteriorly, much larger on the sides than below; coloration oliva-
ceous, sometimes dusky ; males in spring with a faint rosy lateral band ; young brown-
ish, mere or less mottled, sometimes with two or three confluent lateral blotches which
sometimes form a faint lateral band; head 4 to 44 in body (34 to 44 in young); depth 4
to 4% in length, varying with age, the young slender; scales 10-64 to 70-9. Length, 1 to
13 feet.

Habitat, all waters of the United States, east of the Rocky Mountains.

0

HOG SUCKER. 819
Diagnosis.—T his is the only Sucker in*Ohio having 65 to 70 scales in
lateral line.

Habits.—This species is the most common of the Suckers, swarming in
every pond and stream in Ohio, and is the one to which the name Sucker
primarily belongs. It varies much in size, color and form in the differ-
ent streams. Its flesh is soft and poor, and of little value for food. It
bites at a small hook baited with a worn, and is one of numerous tribe
of boy’s fish, which may be found on every urchin’s string. ,

40. CATOSTOMUS NIGRICANS LeSueur.

Hieg Sucker; Mog Mullet; Hog Molly; Crawi-a-bottom; Stene
Roller; Stone Toter; Stone Lugger; Hammer-head; Mud Sucker.

a. Subspecies nigricans.

Cotostomus nigricans, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil, 1317, 102 —DeaKay, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 202.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des
Poiss , xvii, 1844, 453 —KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 272.—STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 421.—CoPe, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1868, 236; Proc Am. Philos.
Soc. Phila., 1870, 468.—GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 17.—UBLER
and LuGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 138.—Jorpon, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist N.Y,
xi, 1877, 345; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 162.

Cotostomus nigrans (sic), KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1833, 163.

Hylomyzon nigricans, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, xix, 1855, 205.—PUTNAM, Bull. Mus.
Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.—JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221.

Hypentelium nigricans, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
294; 2d Ed, 1378&.—Neuson, Ball. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat Hist., 1876, 48.—Jorpan and
COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.—JoRDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53.

Catostomus maculosus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 103.—DEKay, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishea, 1842, 203.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des
Poiss., 1844, 454.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 422— UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of
Maryland, 1876, 139.

Exoglossum macropterum, RAFINESQUE, Journ: Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1817, 420.—CuvieRr
and VALENCIENNES, xvii, 1844, 486.—STORER, Synopsis, 1°46, 428.

Hypentelium macropterum, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, p. 68.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool.
Ohio, 1838, 168

Catostomus xanthopus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohio., 1820, 57.

? Catostomus ? megastomus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 59. (Most likely mythical.)

Catostomus planiceps, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 450,
pl. 516.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 426.

aa. Subspecies etowanus.

Catostomus nigricans, var. etowanus, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc Nat. Hist. N. Y., xi, 1877, 345.

Description.—Body stout and heavy in front, tapering off rapidly from the shoulders
to the tail, nearly cylindrical behind ; head quadrangular, broad and flat above, with
vertical sides; the interobital space transversely concave; frontal bone thick, broad
and short; fontanelle short and rather small; mouth large, the upper lip very thick,

820 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDA.

strongly papillose, with a broad free margin, on which are eight to ten series of papilla ;
lower lip greatly developed, strongly papillose, considerably incised behind, but less so
than in the other species of this geaus; pectoral fias very large; scales moderate, not
crowded anteriorly, nearly equal over the body ; eye rather small, four aud a half to five
in head; color olivaceous; sides with brassy lustre; belly white; back brown, with
several dark cross-blotebes, irregularly arranged, obsulete in old individuals ; lower fins
dull red with dnsky shading; bead 4 to 44 in length; depth 44 tv 5; D., 11; V., 9;
scales 7-505. Length, one to two feet.

Habitat, New York to North Carolina, west to the Great Plains and Texas.

Diagnosis.—This is the only Sucker having the eye sockets so elevated
that the space between them on the top of the head is transversely con-
cave.

Hubits.—This fish is extremely abundant in every running stream in
Ohio, where its singular, almost comical form is familiar to every school
boy. It delights in rapids and shoals, pref-rring cold and clear water. Its
powerful pectorals render it a swifter swimmer than any other of its
family. Its habit is to rest motionless on the bottom, where its mottled
colors render it difficult to distinguish from the stones among which it
lies. When disturbed, its darts away very quickly, after the manner
of the Evheostomo.ds. They often go in small schools. I have never
found this fish in really muddy water, and when placed in the aquarium
it is the first fish to die as the water becomes foul. Although called the
Mud Sucker in the book, it is most churacteristically a fi-h of the run-
ning streams. This species reaches a lenyth about two feet, and is often
cauyht in its spawning season by means of a spear or snare. It is, like
the preceding, a “ boy’s fis,” and not worth the eating.

Genus 20. ERIMYZON. Jordan.

Moxostuma, AGassiz, Journal ~c'ence and Arts, (854, 200 (Not of Rafinesque. )
Erimyzon, JORDAN, Bull. Buff Soc Nat Hist., 1-76, 95.
Teretulus, COPE, Synopsis of Fishes of N C ‚2d et, Addenda, 1877. (Not of Ratinesque.)
Cyprinus, Catostomus, and Labeo, sp EARLY AUTHORS.

Tyne, Cyprinus oblongus, Mitchul, Cyprinus sucetta, Lac.

E:ywology, eri, an intensive particle ; muzo, to suck.

Heat moderate, rather broad above ; monih moderate, somewhat inferior, the upper lip
weil evel. ped, ireely protractile, the lower moderate, ınfolded, A shaped in outline, pli-
cat, with 12-20 ples on each sid: ; lower jaw without cartilaginous sheath,ra her strovger
tha) usual, and onlique in position when the mou h is close 1, the mouth thas similar to
tha of Ichthyobus; eye moderate, rather high up, placed about midway of the head;
subo: ital bones considerably dev. loped, not very mach narrower than tne fleshy por-
tion «f the check b. ow them, the posterior subortital concavo convex, about twice as
long as deep, sometimes divided, the anterior somewhat deeper than long, sometimes
div) ed into two, sometimes united with the preorbital boue, which is well developed

CHUB SUCKER. 821

and much longer than broad; opercular bones moderatel, developed, scarcely or notrugose;
fontanelle evident, ratker large; gill rakers rather long, about half the diameter of the eye
in length; isthmus moderately developed, about the width of the eye; pharyngeal bones
weak, teeth quite small, slender, and weak, rapidly diminishing in length upwards,
each tooth narrowly compressed, with a cusp on the inner margin of the cutting sur-
face, and some inequalities besides ; Body oblong, rather shortened, heavy forwards and
considerably compressed ; scales rather large, more or less crowded forwards, some-
tin.cs showing irregularities of arrangement, the longitudinal radiating furrows much
stronger than usual, the scales rather longer than deep, but so imbricated in the adult
that the exposed surfaces appear deeper than long ; lateral line ent'rely wanting ; scales
in the longitudinal series from head to base of caudal 35 to 45 in number; scales in
transverse row from base of ventral to dorsal 12 to 18; dorsal fin rather short and high,
with from 10 to 14 developed rays, the number usually 11 or 12; beginning of dorsal fin
rather nearer snout than base of caudal; pectoral fins moderate, not reaching ventrals ;
the latter not to vent; ventrals under a point rather in advance of the middle of dorsal ;
their rays normally nine, but occasionally eight to ten; anal fin high and short, more or
less emarginate or bilobed in adult males; caudal fin moderately forked or merely lun-
ate, its two lobes about eqnal; air-bladder with two chambers.

This genus has a very wide range, one of its two known species probably occurriog in
all the streams of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.

41. Erimyzon sucerta (Lacipede) Jordon.

Chub Sucker; Creek Fish; Mullet; Sweet Sucker.

Cyprinus sucetta, LaC"PEDE, Hist, Nat. des Poissons, v, 1803, 606, 610.

Catostomus sucetta, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Phila., 1817, 109.—DeKay, New York Fauna,
part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203. ,

Catostomus suceti, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 466.—
STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 419.

Moxostoma sucetta, AGASSIZ, Am. Jour. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 202.—PUTNAM, Bull.
Mus Comp Zool., 1869, 10.

Erimyzon sucetta, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 291; 2d Ed., 319; Bull. U.$. Nat. Mus., xii,
1878, 144 —JoRDAN and COPELAND Check List, 1876, 157.

Cyprinus oblongus, Mircuty, Lit. and Phil. Tratis New York, 1, 1814, 459.

Catostumus eblongus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, 1817, 108 —Tuompson, Hist. Vt.,
1842. 134 (Synonymy, but not description, which applies to M. macrolepidotum.)—
CuvirR and VALENCIENNKS, Hist. Nat. des Puissons, xvii, 1844, 411.—STORER, Syn-
opsis, 1346, 423.

Labeo oblongus DeKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1°42, 193,

Moxostoma oblongum, AGassiz, Am. Journ Sci Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 203 —PuTNaM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.—GILL, Canadian Nat., p. 19, Aug., 1865.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1¢63, 21.—Copg, Proc. Am Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 468.
—JorpDan, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 211 (name only).—UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of
Maryland, 1876, 140.

Erimyzon oblongus, JORDıN Bull. Bnffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 25 (name only; gen-
eric diagnosis of Erimyzon) ; Mav. Vert., 1276, 294; Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., xi, 1°77,
346 ; xi, 1877, 365; Bull. U. S.Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 36.—Nkıson, Bull, No. 1, I'Js,
Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 48.—JorDan and COPELAND, Check List, 1676, 157 (name
only).

822 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDM.

Teretulus oblongus, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53 (name only);
1877, 85, pl. xii, f. 20.

Catostomus gibbosus, LESUEUR, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 92.—STORER, Rept.
Ichthy. Mass., 1838, 183; Synopsis, 1846, 420; Hist. Fishes Mass., 291, 1867, pl. xxii,
f. 4..—KıRTLAND, Hamilton Smith’s Annals of Science.

Labeo gibbosus, DEKay, New Yurk Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 194.

Catostomus tuberculatus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Paila., i, 1817, 93.—DEKay,
New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1312, 199.—CuvieR and VALENCIENNES, Hist.
Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1814, 444.—THOREAU, Week on Concord and Merrimack,
1863, 38.

Catostomus vittatus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 104.—DeKay, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.—Cvv. and VaL, xvii, 1844, 459.—STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 422.

Catostomus fasciolaris, RAFINESQUE, Icb. Oh., 1320, 58.

Labeo elegans, DeKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1812, 192.

Catostomus elegans, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 425.

Labeo esopus, DeKay, New York Fauna, parc iv, Fishes, 1342, 195.

Catostomus esopus, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 425.

Labeo elongatus, DEKay, New York Fauua, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 195.

Moxostoma anisurus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 202. (Not of
Rafinesque. )

Moxosioma tenue, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 203.—PUTNAM, Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zvol., 1863, 10 —GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mas, vii, 1868, 21.

Erimyzon tenuis, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.

Moxostoma claviformis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 171; U.S. Pac. R. R.
Expl., x, 1058, 219, pl. xlviii, f. 5-9

Erimyzon claviformis, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.

Moxostoma kennerliyi, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila., 1856, 171; U. 8. Mex. Bound.
Sarv., Ichth., 35, 1859, pl. xx, f. 4-6.

Moxostoma campbelli, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, 171; U. S. Mex. Bound.
Surv. Ichth., 35, 1850, pl. xx, f 4-6.

Erimyzon campbelli, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1376, 157.

Description.—Body oblong, compressed, becoming gibbous with age, the ante-dorsal
region more or less elevated in the adults; the depth 34 in length, ranging from 24in
adults to4in young; head stout, short, about 4} in length (4 to 44), the interorbital
space wide and depressed, the lower parts uarrower, so that it is somewhat wedge-
shaped downward ; eye not large, 44 in head (44 to 54); mouth protractile downward
and forward, the mandible obliqae; scales usually clusely imbricated and more or less
crowded forward, but often showing various irregalarities in arrangement, about 43
(39-45) in a logitadinal series and 15 (14 to 16) in a transverse series between the ven-
trals and the dorsal ; fin-rays somewhat variable, the dorsa! with 11 (10 to 13) developed
rays, the anal with 7, and the ventrals with 9 (rarely 8) ; coloration varying with age;
never distinct series of black spots along the rows of scales; young with a broad black
lateral band bordered above by paler; in some specimens from clear water, this band is
of a jet-black color and very distinct; in others, it is duller; later this band becomes
broken into a sariea of blotches, which often assume the form of broad transverse bara ;
in adult specimens, these bars disappear, and the color is nearly uniform brown, dusky

CHUB SUCKER.

above, paler below, everywhere with a coppery or brassy, never silvery, lustre ; the fins
are dusky or smoky brown, rarely reddish-tinged ; sexual differences strong; the males
in spring with usually three large tubercles on each side of the snout, and with the anal
fin more or less swollen and emarginate ; adalt specimens with the back gibbous and
the body strongly compressed, in appearance quite unlike the young; maximum length
about 10 inches.

Habitat, all waters of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.

Diagnosis —This is the only Sucker in Ohio without a lateral line which
has not a series of black spots along the rows of scales on the sides of the
body.

Habits —This species, like the two preceding, abounds in every brook
and pond inthe State of Ohio. It is one of the very smallest of the Suck-
ers, rarely reaching the length of afoot. It is more than usually tenac-
ious of life, and bites readily at a small hook, but is of very little value
as food. The young are rather handsome fishes, the black lateral band

‘being sometimes very distinct. In the aquarium they feed upon alge
and the offal of other fishes. In the stomachs of specimens examined
by Prof. Forbes, only conferve, diatoms, and mud were found.

Genus 21. MINYTREMA. Jordan.

Minytrema, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d ed.. 1878, 318.
Catostomus, Ptychostomus, Moxostoma, and Erimyzon sp, AUTHORS.

Type, Catostomus melanops, Rafinesque.

Etymology, minus, reduced ; trema, aperture, in allusion to the imperfections of the
lateral line.

Species with the form, squamation, and general appearance of Myxostoma, but with
the air bladder in two parts, as in Erimyzon, and the lateral line imperfect, in the very
young entirely obsolete, in half-grown specimens showing as a succession of deepened
furrows, in the adult with perfect tubes, but interrupted, these tubes being wanting on
some of the scales, especially posteriorly ; head moderate, rather broad above; mouth
moderate, inferior, horizontal, the upper lip well developed, freely protractile, rather
small, infolded, A-shaped in outline, plicated, with 12 to 20 plic® on each side; lower
jaw without cartilaginous sheath ; eye moderate, rather high up, placed about midway
of the head. Suborbital bones considerably developed, not very much nargower than
the fleshy portion of the cheek below them, the posterior suborbital concavo-convex,
about twice as long as deep, sometimes divided, the anterior somewhat deeper than
long, often divided into two, sometimes united with the preorbital, which is well
developed and much longer than broad. The number and form of these bones, except
as to their depth, are not constant in the same species, and do not afford specific char-
acters; opercular bones well developed, not much rugose; fontanelle evident, rather
large; gill rakers rather long, in length about half the diameter of the eye; isthmus
mcderate; pharyngeal bones essentially as in Myxostoma ; body rather elongate, sub-
terete, becoming deep and rather compressed with age; scales rather large, nearly
equal over the body, the radiating farrows not specially marked ; lateral line as above

824 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

deseribed, interrupted in the adult, but with perfect tubes, imperfect in part!y grown
specimens, entirely obsolete in the young; scales in a lungitudinal series 44 t047 in
number, 12 ro 14 in a trausverse series from dorsal to ventrals; dorsal fin rather short
and high, with about 12 developed rays, beginning rather nearer the snout than the
bse f the caudal; pectoral fins moderate, not reaching ventrals, the latter not to vent;
ventrals rather in advance of the middle of the dorsal, their rays normally 9, rarely 8 or
10; anal fin bigh and short, often more or less emarginate in males; caudal fin moder-
ately forked, the lobes about equal; air-bladder with two chambers; males in spring
with th» head covered with many small tubercles.

Bat one species of this genus seems to be known. It is widely distributed in the
waters of the Western and Southern States.

‘this genus has been recently separated from Erimyzon, on account of the peculiar-
ities of the lateral line. The form of the body, the form of the mouth, and the churac-
ter of the squamation differ considerably in the two genera.

42. MINYTREMA MELANOPS (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Striped Sucker; Sand Sucker; Spotted Sucker; Black-
nosed Sucker.

Catostomus melanops, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820,57,—KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat Hist.,
v, 1-45, 271 —STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424.

Catostomus melanopsis, KIRTLAND, Zool Ohio, 1*38, 168.

Ptychostomus melanops, AGAssız, Am Journ. Sci. Arts, 24 series, xix, 1855, 204 —Copx,
Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 48%,

Erimyzon melanops, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc Nat. Hist., 176, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
294; Aon. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., xi, 1577, 347 —NELson, Bull. No. J, Is. Mus. Nat.
Hist., 1876, 48 —JORBAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1#76, 157.

Minytrema melanops, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 318; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus,, xii,
1873, 158

Catostomus fasciatus, (LESUEUR MSS.) Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
449.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 426 —GuNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 186%, 19.

Moxostoma victoria, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 171; U. S. Mex. B und.
Sarv., Ichth., 1859. 35 pl. xx, f. 1-3.

Ptychostomus haydeni, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1656, 172; U. 8. Pac. R. R.
Expl., x, 1658, 220, pl. xlix, f. 1-4.

Teretulus haydeni, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.

Teretulus sucetia, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept. Fish Comm. Obio, 1877, 53.
(Supposed to be C. sucetta, Lacepede, as it was perhaps in part the C. suc.ti of Cuv.
and Val, and of Bose )

Erimyzon sucetta, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 35.

Description. —Body oblong, little compressed, the young nearly terete, the adults
deeper- bodied ; the dorsal region not elevated ; depth abvut four in length, varying
from three in adults to four and a half in the young; head not very large; four and a
half in leugth of body (44 to 44); not specially depressed; mucous pores rather strong ;
eye small, five tosixin head; mouth quite inferior, horizontal, rather small; scales
large, firm, regularly and smoothly imbricated, in 46 (44-47) longitudinal series and
13 (12 to 14) transverse series, not crowded forwards; fin-rays usually, dorsal 12,
anal 7, ventrals 9; coloration dusky, with usually a black blotch behind the dorsal

STRIPED SUCKER. 825

fin ; top of head black; lips pale; each ecale along the sides with a small, more or less
distinct blackish spot at its base, these spots forming interrupted lorgitudinal lines
along the rows of scales; these lines are usually very distinct, especially in the adult,
but young specimens often show them faintly ; sides and belly silvery, with a coppery
lustre ; sexual peculiarities moderately marked; very old males with the head covered
with -mall tubercles in spring ; no great changes with age, either in form or coloration ;
size large ; maximum length about 18 inches.

Habitat, Great Lakes to South Carolina and Texas.

Diagnosis —This species may be best known by the coloration. each
scale along the sides having a conspicious dark spot, which forms dark
stripes along the series of scales.

Hubits —This species is abundant in the lake regions, and grassy ponds
throughout Ohio. It is fond of clear sluggish waters. It is often taken
in nets in Lake Erie, but is more common in the basin of the Ohio. It
is a handsome fish, and the young being very tenacious of life are at-
tractive aquarium fishes. It may be used as food, but as a food fish is
more saleable than edible.

Genus 22 MYXOSTOMA. (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Catostomus, sp. LESUEUR, and of all writers till 1855.

Moxostoma, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 54. (Proposed as a subgenus for
those species of Catosiomus with eight ventral rays and the caudal lobes unequal;
type C. anisnrus, Raf.)

Teretulus, RAFINESQUk, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1620, 57. (As a subgenus, to irclude
those species of Catostomus with nine ventral rays; no type designated— most of the
species recorded belong to the present genus. C. aureolus, LeSueur, is the species
first mentioned, and to this species and its relative the name Yeretulus was after-
wards restricted by Professor Cope.)

Ptychostomus, AGassiz, American Journal of Science and Arts, 1855, p. 203 (No type
designated ; the species mentioned are P. aureolus, P. macrolepidotus, P. duquesnii,
and P. melanops. P. aureolus has been considered the type of the genus.)

Teretulus, CoPe, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1863, 236.

Moxostoma, JORDAN, Manual of Vertebrates, 1:76, 295.

Myxostoma, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1877, 343. (Corrected orthography.)

Etymology, muzo, to suck; stoma, mouth.
Type, Catostomus anisurus, Rafinerque.

Body more or less elongate, sometimes nearly terete, usually more or less compressed ;
head variously Jong or short, its length ranging from three and a half to five and a half
in that of the body ; eye usually rather large, varying from three to six times in the
length of the side of the bead, its position high up and median or rather posterior ; sub-
orbital bones very narrow; fontanelle on top of head always well open, the parietal
bones not coalescing ; mouth varying much in size, always inferior, the mandible being
horizontal or nearly so; lips usually well developed, the form of the lower lip varying,
usually with a single median fissure; the lips with transverse plic®, rarely somewhat
papillose; jaws without cartilaginous sheath; muciferous system considerably developed;

FISHES—CATOSTOMIDA&.

opereular bones moderately developed, nearly smooth; isthmus broad; gill-rakers
feeble; pharyngeal bones rather weak, the teeth moderate, strongly compressd, the
lower five or six much stronger than the others which diminish rapidly in size upward,
each with a prominent internal cusp; scales large, quadrate, nearly equal over the body
and not crowded anteriorly, usually about 41 in the lateral line, and about 12 series
between dorsal and ventrals; lateral line well developed, straight or anteriorly curved ;
fins well developed, the dorsal inserted about midway of the b ıdy, its first rays usually
nearer snout than caudal, the number of rays usually 13 (11 to 17); anal fin short and
high, emarginate in old males, with seven rays; ventrals inserted under middle of dor-
sa], usually with nine rays; caudal fin deeply forked; air-bladder with three chambers ;
skeleton essentially as in Catostomus, the vertebra (in M. carpio) 27-14; sexual peca-
liarities little marked, the males in the spawing season (March to June) with the lower
fins reddened, and the anal rays swollen and tubercalate

Species numerous and very closely related, abounding in all waters of the United
States, east of the Rocky Mountains.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MYXOSTOMA.

*Lower lip infolded, A-sbaped when viewed from below, witha distinct median
crease, in which the two halves of the lip meet forming an acute angle; mouth
small; dorsal rays 16. i 2 e . a ‘i . . VELATUM. 43,

**Lower lip full, its posterior edge truncate, not infolded or A-shaped.

a. Dorsal rays 12 to 14.
b. Caudal fin with the upper lobo falcate, much longer than the lower.
ANISURA. 44,
bb. Caudal fin symmetrical.
c. Mouth very small; head short, 5 to5}in length. . . . AUREOLUM. 45.
ce. Mouth rather large; head larger, 4 to 5 in length.
MACROLEPIDOTUM. 46.
aa, Dorsal rays 15 to 18; mouth large. 3 7 . ; & CARPIO, 47.

43. MyxosToMA VELATUM (Cope) Jordan.

Smali-mouth Red Horse; White Nose.

Catostomus anisurus, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 269 (with plate). (Not
of Rafinesque.)—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424.

Ptychostomus anisurus, JORDAN, Buil. Baffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 94 (name only).

Moxostoma anisurus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 295.

Teretulus anisurus, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1676, 49.—JORDAN and
COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 153 (name only).

Moxostoma anisurum, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72, 80.

Moxostoma anisura, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1877, 53 (name only).

Myxostoma anisura, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 33.

Ptychostomus velatus, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 471.

Moxostoma velatum. JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1676, 296.

Teretulus velatum, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.

Teretulus velatus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.

Moxostoma velata, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53 (name only).

GOLDEN RED HORSE. 827

Myxostoma velata, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed, 1878, 317; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus,, xii,
187, 132.
Ptychostomus collapsus, CoPk, Proc. Am. Philos. Suc. Phila., 1870, 471.

Description —Body stout, deep, compressed, the back elevated; head short, heavy, flat-
‘tish ard broad above, thick through the checks; eye rather large, midway in head, four
to five in its length; u.uzzle rather prominent, bluntish, overhanging the very small
mouth; tins very large ; the dorsal long and high, its height five-sixths the length of the
head ; pectorals nearly reaching ventrals; mouth quite small, the lips plicate, the lower
lip infolded, A-shaped when viewed from below, with a distinct median crease, in which
the two halves of the lips meet, forming an acute angle; color silvery, smoky above,
lower fius red; head 3% to 44; depth 3 to 1; D. 15 to 17; scales 6-42-5. Length 1 foot.

Habitat, Upper Mississippi Valley to Georgia and North Carolina, widely distributed,
but not generally abundant.

Diagnosis —This species may be known by the small and contracted
mouth, in connection with the presence of 15 or more dorsal rays.

Hu bits.—This species is frequently taken in the Ohio River and its
tributaries, but it is not abundant anywhere in the west. In some of
the streams of North Carolina, it is the commonest species. It is little
valued as food. This seems to be the species called White Nose by Dr.
Kirtland, but more than one species is apparently included in his
description.

44, Myxostoma ANISURUM (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Long-tailed Red Horse.

Catostomus anisurus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 54.

Myxostoma anisura, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1868, 315.

Ptychostomus breviceps, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 478.

Teretulus breviceps, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157. (Name only.)

Mo.xostoma breviceps, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53. (Name only.)

Myxustoma breviceps, JORDAN, Ball U. 8. Nat. Mus, 1877, 9, 50. (Name only.)
Description —Body compressed, the back somewhat elevated; head short, conic,

flattish, formed as in Jf aureolum; mouth very small, the lips plicate, the lower full and

truncate behind; dorsal fin short and high, falcate, the anterior rays being elevated,

and the free border deeply incised, the height of the largest rays being half greater than

the base of the fin; caudal fin with the upper love much longer than the lower, falcate,

at least in the adult; colors olıvaceous, sides silvery with coppery reflections; head

54; depth 34; D. 12 or 13; scales 6 46-5. Length one foot.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species is very close to M. aureolum, and may indeed
be the male of that species. It may be known from the other Red Horse
by the inequality of the lobes of the caudal.

Habits.—{ have seen a few specimens of this in the United States
Museum, obtained in the Cincinnati market. Prof. Cope’s types came
from Western Pennsylvania, further than this nothing is known of its
habits or distribution.

828 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

45. MyxosTtoMa AUREOLUM (LeSueur) Jordan.

Golden Red Horse; Lake Mullet.

Catostomus aureolus, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 95.—KIRTLAND,
Rept Zool Ohio, 1638, 163; Boston Journ, Nat Hist, iii, 1840, 349 —DrKay, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1¥42, .01—SroreR, Synopsis, 1846, 420 —AGASSIZ,
Lake Snperior, 1850, 357.—GunTHEk, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. vii, 1868, 16. (In part;
description apparentiy copied and coufused.)

Ptychostomus aureolus, AGassız, Am Journ. Sei. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204 —PUTNAM,
Bail, Mus. Comp. Zool, 1863, 10.—CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1664, 285;
Proc. Am Philos. Suc. Phila, 1870, 476.

Moxostoma aureolum, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 295.

Teretulus aureolum, NELSON, Ball. Nu 1, Ilis. Mus Nat. Hist, 1876, 49

Teretutus aureolus, JORDAN and COPRLAND, Check List, 1876, 157. (Name only )

Moxostoma aureola, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 54. (Name only.)

Myxostuma aureola, JURDAN, Man. Vert. E. U.S, 2d Ed., 1878, 314; Bull. U. 8. Mus, xii,
124, 1873

Catostomus lesueurit, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 772.

Cyprinus (Catostomus) sueurii, RICHARDSON, Faun Bor.-Am, Fishes, 1836, pp 118, 303.

Catostomus sueurii, CUV. and VaL., Hist. Nat des Puissons, xvii, 1844, 475.—STORER, Sy-
nopsis, 1847, 425

Catostomus sueuri, DEKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.

Piychos'omus sueurii, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila , 477, 1870

Teretulus sueurii, JORDAN and COP«LAND, Check List, 1376, 157. (Name only.)

Catostomus macrolepidotus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit Mus, vii, 1868, 18. (Excl. syn.)

Description.— Body moderately elongate, compressed, the back somewhat arched ; head
comparatively short, low and +mall ; mouth small, somewhat overpasstd by the snout;
lips plicate; lower lip full, truncate behind; coloration bright yellowish brown, not

silvery , lower fins bright red; head 5 to 54; depth 34; D. 13; scales 6-42 to 48-5.

Length, 12 to 18 inches.

Habitat, Obio Valley and Great Lake region and northward.

Di1gnosis—This species may be known from the Common Red Horse
by the shorter head and -maller mouth.

Habits.—This handsome Sucker is very common in Lake Erie, and is
found, though less abundantly in the Ohio River It is confounded by
the fishermen with the Common Red Horse, and is of similarly little
value as food,

46. MYxosToMA MACROLEPIDOTUM (LeSueur) Jordan.

Common Bed Horse; Mullet; White Sucker; Large-scaled
Sucker.
a. var. macrolepidotum.

Catostomus macrolepidotum, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., i, 1817, 91.—DrKay,
New York Fauna, pait iv, Fishes, 1842, 202.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, llist. Nat.

COMMON RED HORSE. 829

dea Poissons, xvii, 1844, 447 —STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 420.—UHLER and LUGGER,
Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 140.

Ptychostimus macrolepidotum AGassiz Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204.—
Corr, Proc. Am, Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 475.—JuRDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221.
(Name only )

Moxostoma macrolepidotum, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 296.

Terelulus macrolepidotum, Newtson, Ball. No. 1, Ils. Mas Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.

Teretulus macrolepidotus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, x, 1876, 157. (Name only.)

Moxostoma macrolepidota, JoRDaAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s Rept., 12°6 53 (uame
only); Man. Vert. E. U. 8., 24 £>., 313, 1578; Ball. U. S. Na us, xii, 1878,
1.

Catostomus oneida, DEKaY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 198 —STORER, Syn-
opsis, 1840, 425.

Ptychostomus ontida, Cope, Proc. Am. Philo. Soc. Phila., 1870, 476.

Ptychustomus robustus, COPS, Proc. Aw. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 473.

Teretulus robustus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1576, 157 (name only).

Plychostomus congestus, Cop“ and YARRUW, Lieutenant Wheeler’s Expl. W. 100th Mer.,
v, 1076, — (uot of Girard.)

Habitat, North Carolina to Vermont, and northwestward—through the Gieat Lake

Region and Upper Mississippi, the only form of the species occurring east of the

Alleghany Mountains. (alsu in Arizona.)

b. var. lachrymale (Cope) Jordan.

Piychostomus lachrymalis, Cops, Pıoc Am Philos Soc. Phila, 1870, 474.

Teretulus lachrymalis, JORVAN wut COPKLAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only).
Myxostoma duquesnü, var. lachrymalis, JonDaN, Aun. Lye Nat. Hist. N. Y., xı, 1,77, 349.
Myxostoma macrolepidota, var. lachrymalis, JURDAN, Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1875, 313.

Habitat, North Carolina to Alabama,

c. var. duquesnü (LeSueur) Jordan.

Catostomus duquesnti, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1817, 105.—RAFINESQUE,
Ich. Oh, 1820, 60 —KIRTLAND, Rept. Zoo.. Ohio, 1533, 163; Boston Journ. Nat Hist.,
v, 1845, 263.—DEKay, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203 —Cuviur and
VALENCIENNES, Xvii, 1844, 4.8.—STORER, Synopsis, 1816, 423—GuntTuer, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 1968, 18 —UnLer and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1376, 139.

Ptychostomus duquesnii, AGAassız Am. Jonrn. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204.

Teretulus duquesnii, Cop, Journ Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1578, p. — —NELSuN, Bull. No. 1,
Ills Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876,49; JoRDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (uame
only). ,

Ptychostomus duquesni, CoPeE, Proc. Am Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 476.—Jorpan, Bull.
Buff :lo Soc. Nat. Hist , 1876, 95.

Moxostoma duquesnii, JoRDTAN, Man. Vert , 1876, 295.

Moxostoma duquesnei, JORDAN and GILBERT, iu Klippart’s Rept., 1876, 53 (name only).

Myzxostoma duquesnii, JORDAN, Ann, Lyc. Nat. Hist,, 1877, 349; Ball. U. 8. Nat. Mus, ix,
1377, 37.

Myxostoma macrolepidota, var. duquesni, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, p. 313; Ball.
U.S Nat. Mus. xii, 120.

830 FISHES—CATOSTOMIDE.

Catostomus erythrurus, RAFINESQUE Am. Month. Mag. and Crit. Rev., 1818, 345; Ich.
Oh., 1850, 59.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168.

Ptychostomus erythrurus, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 474 —JoRDAN, Fishes
of Ind., 1875, 221 (name only). .

Teretulus erythrurus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1676, 157 (name only).

Rutilus melanurus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 51.

Description. — Body stou:ish, compressed, varying to moderately elongate ; head stout,
moderately long; mouth moderate or rather large, not very small, nor very much over-
passed by the muzzle; lips thick, strongly plicate ; lower lip full, truncate behind; dor-
sal fin moderate, not falcate, its rays 12 to 19—usually 13 in number; scales large; col-
oration olivaceous; sides pale or silvery, with bright reflections; lower fins red or
orange in the adnlt; head 4 to 5; depth 34 to 44; scales 6-45-5. Length 18 to 24 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region to Georgia and Arizona.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by presence of a rather large
mouth, and a moderate dorsal fin.

Habits —Two varieties of the Common Red Horse may be recognized in
Ohio. One (var. duquesni?) is the common form in the streams of the
southern two thirds of the State. This form is more silvery in color;
the body and head are more elongate, and the mouth is larger; the
other (var. macrolepidotum) is common in Lake Erie, and in all these
respects forms a transition towards the short headed, small-mouthed
and high-backed Myxostoma aureolum. Both varieties reach a large size,
and are used as food, although their value is not great. The species is
found in all clear waters in the west, and ascends the small streams in
May, for the purpose of spawning. It is not very tenacious of life, and
in the aquarium dies on the least suspicion of impure water.

47. Myxostoma carpio (Valenciennes) Jordan.
Carp fNlullet; White Lake Mullet.

Catostomus carpio, VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xvii, 1344, 457.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846,
426 —GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 1868, 20.

Ptychostomus carpio, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1570, 476.

Moxostomus carpio, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 303.—JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart’s
Rept. Fish Comm. Obio, 1877, 53 (name only).

Teretulus carpio, NELSON, Bull. No 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JORDAN and CoPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only).

Myxostoma carpio, JORDAN, Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d Ed, 1878, 312; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus,
xii, 1878, 118.

Description.--Body deep, strongly compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; head
large, broad above; mouth large, with full lips, which are strongly plicate; lower lip
fall, truncate behind; eye large; dorsal fin high and large, more developed than in any
other species of this genus, the first ray about as long as the base of the fin, the rays 15
to 18 in number; coloration very pale and silvery, the lower fins pale; head 33 to 44;
depth 34; D. 17; scales 5-43-4. Length 18 to 24 inches.

Habitat, Ohio River and Great Lake Region.

BIG-JAWED SUCKER. 831

Diagnosis —This species may be known by the presence of about 17
dorsal spines and a large mouth.

Habits.—This is a large species frequently taken with M. macrolepido-
tum in Lake Erie. JI have also seen several from the Ohio River at Cin-
cinnati and Marietta. It is a species of northern distribution.

Genus 23. PLACOPHARYNX. Cope.

Placopharynx, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos Soc. Phila., 1870, 477.
Type, Placopharynx carinatus, Cope.
Etymology, plax, a broad surface; pharugx, pharynx.

This genus is identical with Myxostoma in a] respects, except in the development of
the pharyngeal bones and teeth. The pharyngeal bones are very strong and the teeth
on the lower half of the bone are much reduced in number (6 to 10). They are nearly
cylindrical in form, being little compressed, and with a broad, rounded or flattened
grinding surface. In +ize and form, these enlarged teeth are extremely irregular. The
upper teeth are small, and compressed as in Myxostoma. The mouth in Placopharynax is
larger than in any species of Myxosioma and the lips are much more developed.

But one species is known.

48. PLACOPHARYNX CARINATUS Cope.

Big-jawed Sucker.

Placopharynx carinatus, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos Soc. Phila., 1876, 467.—JORDAN, Fishes
of Ind., 1875, 221 (name only); Man. Vert , 1876, 296; 2d Ed., 1678, 311; Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1¢77,72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1777, 50 (name only); xii, 1878,
10%; Bull. U.S Geol. Sarv., vol. iv, 1877, No. 2, p. 417.—Nx son, Bull. No. 1, Ils.
Mas Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158 —JORDAN
and GILBERT, in Klippart’s R+ pt., 1677, 53 (name only).—KLIPPART, First Report of
Obio Fish Commission, 1877, 86.

Description —Body oblong, moderately compressed, heavy at the shoulders; head very
large ; eye small, behind the middle of the head ; mouth extremely large, the lower jaw
oblique when the mouth is closed, the mouth thus opening forward as well as down-
ward ; lips very thick, coarsely plicate, the lower lip full and heavy, truncated behind ;
head above evenly rounded (carinate, according to Professor Cope) ; color brassy-green
above, pale below; lower fins red; head 3%; depth 3%; D. 13; scales 6-45-6; V. 9.
Length 18 to 24 inches.

Habitat, -Missiesippi Valley and Upper Great Lakes.

Diognosis.—This large coarse species may be certainly known only by
the examination of its pharyngeal teeth.

Habits—This fish is probably common in the Western Rivers, but owing
to its great similarity of form to the Common Red Horse, has been over-
looked by most naturalists. The writer has met with the following
specimens: (a) acomplete sksleton of a very large specimen found by Dr.
J. M. Wheaton in the Scioto River near Columbus; (6) two young speci-

832 FISHES—-CATOSTOMIDE.

mens obtained in Illinois River by Professor A. W. Brayton; (c) a pair
of pharyngeal bones taken by Dr.G M. Levette from a specimen taken in
the Wab.sh at Terre Haute, where the fish is said to be abundant; (d) a
pharyngeal bone and air-bladder from a specimen taken in Detroit River
by Professor Baird; (+) a pharyngeal boae from “ post pliocene ” depesits
at the Fills of the Ohio by Dr. Juhn Sloan, and (f) many specimens
taken in fish traps in French Broad River where itis the most abundant
of the Suckers. Excepting Professor Cope’s original type, the above
mentioned are the only specimens on record.

Genus 24. QUASSILABIA Jordan and Brayton.

Lagochila, JORDAN aud BRAYTON, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 280 (preoceupied in
conch»logy as Lagochilus).
Quassilabia, (JOKDAN and BRAYTON) JORDAN, Man. Vert., E. U.S, 2d Ed, 1878, 401.
T, pe, Lagochila lacera, Jordan and Brayton.
Et, mology, Latin, quassus, broken or torn ; labia, lip

Body elongated, not much compressed, not elevated; head shortish, conical, with
lengthened eneut, its length four and a half to five in body, the opercular region being
reduced, so that the eye is well backwards; suborbital bones narrow ; fuutane le large,
widely open ; mouth large, singular in structure, inferior, the upper lip not protractile,
greatly prolonged, its surface elsely plicate; lower lip much reduced, divided into two
distinct elongate loves, which are weakly papillose; the split between these lobes ex-
tends backwards to the edge of the dentary bones which are provided with a horny plate
as in the western genus Pantosteus; the lower lip is entirely separated by a deep fissure,
from the upper at its angle; the skin of the cheeks forms a sort of cloak over this fis-
sure, the crease separating this skin from the lips extends dowa on the vader side of the
head ; muciferous tubes well developed; fins moderate, of the same type asin Myxos-
toma ; scales large, the lateral line well developed and nearly straight, with aboat 45
scales in its course; air-bladder in three parts.

But one species is known, one of the most singular of American fishes.

49. QUASSILABIA LACERA Jordan and Brayton.

Hare-lip Sucker; Sp:it-mouth Sucker; May Sucker of the
Scioto; Cut-lip.

Lagochila lacera, JORDAN and BRAYTON, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila,, 1877, 230.—Jorpan,
Man Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 311.

Quassilabia lucera, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 406; Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr.,
1878, 418; Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 106.

Description —Head short, conical, with lengthened snout, the region between the eyes
flattened and with prominent mucous ridges; cheeks and lower part of head tumid;
opercle very small, its greatest length scarcely greater than the diameter of the eye;
four and one-third in length of head, two in length of snout, its situation thus quite in-
ferior ; length of top of head one and two-thirds in distance from the snout to the base

HARE-LIP SUCKER. 833

the dorsal; body slender; dorsal fin low ; color olivaceous or bluish-brown above; sides
and belly silvery; lower fins faintly orange; head 4%; depth 4%; D. 12; A.7; V.9;
scales 5-45-5. Length 1 to 14 feet.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species will be known at sight frora the fact that its
under jaw is “ hare-lipped,” i.e. the fleshy lip is split to the bone.

Habits—This species was first taken by Professor Brayton and the
writer in Chickamauga River in Georgia, a tributary of the Tennessee.
Later, we obtained a third specimen in Elk River, Tennessee. In April,
1878, much to my surprise, a fine large specimen was sent to me by Mr.
J. H. Klippart of the Ohio State Fish Commission. This specimen was
taken in the Scioto River, and Mr. Klippart tells us that the species is
well known to the fishermen at Columbus, who call the fish “May
Sucker,” as it spawns in May. That so conspicuous a species should so
long have eluded the ichthyologists in the Ohio Basin, is extremely re-
markable. The habits of this species are doubtless similar to those of
allied Red Horse.

FAMILY IX. CYPRINIDA. THE CARPS.

Cyprinoid fishes with the margin of the upper jaw formed by the premaxillaries alone,
and the lower pharyugeal bones well developed, falciform, nearly parallel with the gill
arches, each provided with one tothree series of teeth in small number, from three to
seven in the main row, and a less number in the others; head naked; body almost
always scaly ; barbels two or four (absent in most of our genera and not large in any);
belly usually rounded, rarely compressed, never serrated; gill openings moderate,
separated by an isthmus; no adipose fin; dorsal fin short in American species (elongate
in many old world forms); ventral fins abdominal; air-bladder usually large, commonly
divided into an anterior and posterior Jobe, rarely wanting ; stomach without append-
ages, appearing a8 a simple enlargement of the intestine. Fishes of moderate or small
size, inhabiting the fresh waters of the old world and of North America. Genera about
two hundred; species nearly a thousand; excessively abundant where found, both in
individuals and in species, and from their great uniformity in size, form and coloration,
constituting one of the most difficult groups in Natural History in which to distinguish
genera and species. The genera found in Ohio, with the exceptions of Campostoma,
Exoglossum, Chrosomus, and few others, are all very closely related, and are separated by
characters which, though reasonably constant, are often difficult to determine. From
time to time different authors have proposed to throw most of these small genera into the
genus Leucisous, a procedure, which, without farther discussion, may be said to have
always led to confusion. The spring or breeding dress of the male fishes is often pecu-
liar. The top of the head and often the fins, or various portions of the body are covered
with small tubercles, outgrowths from the epidermis. The fins and parts of the body
in young spring males are often charged with bright pigment, the prevaling color of
which is red, although in some genera it is satin-white, yellow, or black.

53

834 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

NoTE.—The student will find it necessary from the first to examine very carefally the
teeth of these fish, as only by dental characters can most of the genera be recognized.
The pharyngeal bones lie behind the gills, inside of and parallel with the shoulder gir-
dle. They can be removed by inserting a pin or small hook under the shoulder girdle.
They should be carefully cleaned, and in most cases they can be examined only by aid of a
lens. Usuallya principal row of four or five larger teeth will be found, in front of
which is a set of one or two smaller ones. The two sides are usually but not always
symmetrical, therefore both must be examined, Thus “ teeth 2, 4-5, 1, indicates two
rows of teeth on each side, on the one side four in the principal row and two in the
lesser, on the other side five in the main row and one in the other. ‘‘ Teeth 4-4,” in-
dicatea a single row of four on each pharyngeal bone and so on.

In most of our genera, these teeth—or the largest ones, are “‘raptorial,” that is
hooked inward at the tips. A ‘‘ grinding ” or ‘“‘ masticatory ” surface, is an excavated area
in the concavity of the hook or at its base. Sometimes a lateral bevel on the edge
of the tooth so resembles a masticatory surface as to ‘ deceive the very elect” until the
question as to its actual concavity is tested by a pin or other similar object. Sometimes
the masticatory surface is very narrow and confined to one or two of the teeth. In the

present state of our knowledge, the presence or absence of this surface must be taken
as a generic character.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CYPRINIDE.

*Species native, with the dorsal short and without serrated spine.

t Intestinal canal mere or less elovgate (more than twice as long as head and body);
peritoneum (lining of abdominal cavity) dark ; teeth not strongly hooked, with
grinding surface.

uw. Intestinal canal 6 to 9 times length of body, coiled around the air-bladder ; teeth

4-4 or 1, 4-4, 0. R 5 . . CAMPOSTOMA. 25.
aa. Intestinal canal 2 to 4 times length of body, Felon the air- bladder and not coiled
around it.

b. Teeth 5-5 or 4-5; anal fin shert; scales minute ; lateral line imperfect.
CHROSOMUS. 26.
bb. Teeth 4-4; scales rather large,
v. Dorsal fin with its rudimentary ray slender, firmly attached to the first
developed ray ; lateral line complete. . . HYBOGNATHUS. 27,
cc. Dorsal fin with its rudimentary ray rather stout, spine-like, connected by
a membrane tothe first developed ray (a black sput on front of dorsal
fin, above the base).
d. Lateral line incomplete. . . . . . PIMEPHALES. 28,
dd. Lateral line complete. ‘ i 5 . HYBORHYNCHUS. 29.
+t Intestinal canal short, less than twice the iengtk of head and body ; peritoneum
pale; teeth well hooked.
t Abdomen behind ventral fins, not compressed to an edge ; anal basis moderate or
short.
e. Lewer jaw three-lobed ; the dentary bones forming the middle lobe, being united
their whole length ; upper jaw not protractile ; teeth 1, 4-4, 1, without grind-
ing surface. » . . . : . ExoGLossum. 30.
ee. Lower jaw not three-lobed, the dentary bones distinct, except at their
symphysis. ,

CARPS. 835

Ff. Teeth in the main row 4-4.
g. Maxillary without barbel.
h. Teeth 4-4 or 1, 4 4, lor 0.
é. Bones of head without cavernous chambers; lips thin ; teeth with grind-
ing surface.
k. Lateral line complete. . . . . 5 Hupsonius. 31.
kk. Lateral line incomplete. . . 3
Ah. Teeth 2, 4-4, 2
t. Teeth without grinding surface; lateralline complete ; anal basis rather

long. e . MINNILUS. 33.
tl. Teeth with wiiddine ET lateral ine complete.

m. Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals; anal basis long (rays 10

3 ‘ . CHRIOPE. 32.

to 13). & . : a LYTHRURUS. 34.
mm. Dorsal fin inserted over or @ little behind ventral; anal basis short
(rays 7 to 9). . . . . ö . A LuxıLus. 35.

é. Suborbital, interopercle and dentary bones much dilated, cavernous,
crossed by mucous channels (readily seen by looking at the head of

the fish from below ; teeth 1, 4-4, 0, 2 a ERICYMBA. 36.
iii. Lips thick, fleshy, the lower enlarged behind; mouth small, inferior;
teeth 4-4, without grinding surface. . . PHENACOBIUS. 37.

gg. Maxillary with a small barbel at or near its extremity (sometimes minute
in Rkinichthys).
n. Upper jawnot protractile; scalessmall; dorsal behind ventrals.
RAINICHTHYS, 38,
nn. Upper jaw protractile.
o. Teeth 1,4-4, 1 or 4-4.
p Teeth with grinding surface, 4-4; body elongate. . ERımysTax. 39,
pp. Teeth without grinding surface. . 5 « ÜCERATICHTAYS. 40.
oo. Teeth 2, 4-4, 2, without grinding surface. . . Covrsius. 41,
ff. Teeth 2, 5-4, 2 or 1, or 2, 5-5, 2, without grinding surface.
q. Maxillary with a minute, lateral barbel (obscure or invisible in young speci-
mens); scales moderate or large. . n 3
.qq Maxillary without barbel; scales small.
r. Lateral line complete. é . ; . TELESTES. 43.
rr. Lateral line incomplete. A . A PHoxinus. 44,
tt Abdomen behind ventral fin compressed to an edge; anal basis elongated.
8. Teeth 5-5, with grinding surface; lateral line complete; anal rays 10 to 18,
NOTEMIGONUS, 45.
**Species introduced from Asia through Europe, with long dorsal fin preceded by a
serrated spine.
t. Barbels none. . » . . . : Carassius. 46.
tt, Barbels four. . . ‘ 7 ‘ . CYPRINUS. 47,

« SEMOTILUS. 42,

GENUS 25. CAMPOSTOMA. Agassiz.

Campostoma, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 219.
Type, Rutilus anomalus, Rafinesque.
Etymology, kampe, curve ; stoma, mouth.

836 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

Body moderately elongated, little compressed ; mouth normal, the jaws with a hard
sheath ; premaxillaries protractile; no barbel; teeth 4-4 or 1, 4-4, 0, with oblong grind-
ing surface and but little hook; air-bladder suspended in the abdominal cavity, and
entirely surrounded by many convolutions of the long alimentary canal; herbivorous ;
sexual difference very great; scales moderate; lateral line present; dorsal nearly over
ventrals ; anal basis short; no spines. The singular arrangement of the intestine in re-
lation to the air-bladder is peculiar to Campostoma among all known fishes. Several
species are known, all American ; fishes of moderate size and bright colors, swarming in
the brooks and rock-pools of the interior of the United States.

50. CAMPOSTOMA ANoMALUM (Rafinesque) Agassiz.

Stone Roller; Stone-toter; Steel-backed Minnow.

Rutilus anomalum, Rar., Ich. Oh., 1820, 52.

Campostoma anomalum, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 218.—JORDAN, Ann. Lyc.
Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 325, and of most writers.

Exoglossum lesueurianum, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 169, 193 (not of Raf.).

Exoglossum spinicephalum, Cuv. et VAL., xvii, 1844, 489.

Exoglossum dubium, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1842, 272.

Campostoma dubium, Cops, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 395.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii,
1868, 183.

Chondrostoma pullum, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 357.

Campostoma formosulum, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 176; U. S. Mex.
Bound. Surv. Ich., 1859, 41.

Campostoma hippops, callipteryx, mormyrus, and gobioninum, CoPk, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei.,
Phila., 1864, 284.

Description.—Body oblong, moderately compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; the
head moderate, rounded above, with nearly vertical cheeks; mouth moderate, subin-
ferior; scales deep, rather small and crowded anteriorly ; fins moderate, the dorsal fin
nearly over the ventrals ; color brownish or nearly black, with a brassy lustre above,
the scales more or less mottled with dark; a dark vertical bar behind opercle; iris
usually orange ; dorsal and anal each with a dusky cross-bar about half way up, the
reat of the fin olivaceous, or, in spring males, fiery orange; males in spring with the head
and often the whole body covered with rather large rounded tubercles; in no other
American fish are the nuptial appendages so extensively developed ; head 44; depth
44; D.8; A.7; lat. 1.53; teeth 4-4. Length 4 to 8 inches,

Habitat, Western New York to Minnesota and southwest to the Rio Grande.

Diagnosis.—This fish may be known from all other of our minnows by
the great length and peculiar arrangement of the intestines.

Habits.—This species is extremely abundant in every stream in Ohio.
It spawns early in spring, and it ascends in great numbers all the run-
ning streams, even the very smallest. Later it retires to the deeper
places in the creeks, where it may be readily recognized by its quick
motions and dusky colors. Most of the specimens seen are comparatively
small, but. occasionally an old male may be noticed in the spring, with

RED-BELLIED MINNOW. 837

its entire body rough and gray with tubercles, and with its vertical fins
gaily variegated with black and orange. Such individuals appear to
have exhausted their vitality and die quickly in confinement, and are
often found dead. Young individuals are active and hardy in the
aquarium, where they feed on conferve and diatoms.

The Stone Roller is too small to be of any value as food, but with other
of uur larger Cyprinoids, is caught and valued by small boys.

GENUS 27. CHROSOMUS. Rafinesque.

Chrosomus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia, 1820, 47.
Type, Luxilus erythrogaster, Ratinesque.
Etymology, chros, color; soma, body.

Body moderately elongate, little compressed ; jaws normal; no barbels; teeth 45 or
5-5 moderately hooked, with oblong grinding surface; alimentary canal about twice
as long as the body; peritoneum more or less black ; scales very emall ; lateral line short
or wanting; dorsal behind ventrals; anal basis short; size smail; colors in spring
brilliant. The brilliant little fishes which compose this genus, bear a superficial re-
semblance to the species of Phoxinus but their relation is probably nearer Pimephales and
Hybognatkus. All are American. ‘

51. CHROSOMUS ERYTHROGASTER Rafinesque.

Red-bellied Minnow.

Luzxilus erythrogaster, RAFINESQUS, Ich. Oh., 1820, 47.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zoul. Oh, 169;
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., 1844, iv, 23.

Chrosomus erythrogaster, RAF , Ich. Oh., 1820, 47.—AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts., 1854,
359, (?) 1855 (reprint).—PUrTNAM, Bull. M. C.Z, 1863, 8—Cope, Cyp. Penn., 1866,
391; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1869, 233.—JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1871, 302,
and of most authors.

Leuciscus erythrogaster, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 410.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 217.

P Chrosomus eos, CoPE, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1868, 233.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 248.
—JORDAN, Man. Vert , 1876, 284.

Chrosomus pyrrhogaster, JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876, 94; Man. Vert. 284.
(Proposed for C. erythrogaster, Auct., the ©. erythrogaster of Raf. being perhaps C. eos.
It is best however to foilow the prevailing nomenclature.)

Description — Body oblong, tapering each way from the middle, little compressed ; head
moderate, rather pointed ; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique, the jaws about eqaal ; fins
rather small, the dorsal and anal fin rather high and short; caudal long; scales quite
small, firmly attached bot not much imbricated ; lateral line developed for less than
half the length of the body ; color brownish- olive, with a dosky dorsal line, and ofter
some blackish spots; two black lateral bands as above described, between these
bright silvery area; belly below the lower band abruptly silvery; females obscurely
marked ; males in the spring with the belly and the interspace between the lateral bands
bright scarlet ; base of the vertical fins also bright scarlet ; in high coloration the body
is everywhere minutely tuberculate, and the fins are bright yellow; head 43; depth 44;
D.7; A. 8; lat. 1. 85; teeth usually 5-5, sometimes 4-5. Length, two to three inches,

838 FISHES—

Habitat, Ohio Valley to Red River of the North, in clear brooks.

Diagnosis —This the only little Minnow in Ohio having long intestines
and minute scales.

Habits —The habits of this species are almost identical with those of
Campostoma anomalum, with which in the north it is usually associated.
It is, however, still more closely confined to the clear streams having
their sources in springs. It is the most graceful of our minnows, and, in
the breeding season, perhaps the most brillantly colored. In the
aquarium, it is very hardy, and is altogether more desirable than any
other of our species of Cyprinoids. This species seldom reaches alength of
more than three inches.

Genus 27. HYBOGNATHUS. Agassiz.

Hybognathus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 223.—GIRARD, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., 1856, 176, 180.
Type, Hybognathus nuchalis, Agassiz.
Etymology, hubos, gibbons ; gnathos, jaw, the tip of the lower jaw having a slight pro-
tuberance.

Body more or less elongate and compressed ; mouth horizontal; jaws normal, rather
sharp-edged, the symphysis prominent; no barbels; upper jaw protractile; teeth 4-4,
caltriform with an oblique grinding surface and scarcely any hook; alimentary canal
elongated, about four times length of body; peritoneum black; scales large; lateral
line continuons ; dorsal over ventral; anal basis short; size moderate.

Species numerous, the typical and largest one found in most streams east of the
Rocky Mountains, the others mostly southwestern.

50. HyB.GNATHUS NUCHALIS Agassiz.

Silvery Minnow.

Hybognathusnuchalis, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 223.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1876, 289, and of many authors.

Hybognathus argyritis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, —; U. 8. Pac. R. R.
Surv., x, 1859, —.—CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc , 1870, —. —JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2a
Ed., 1878, 289, and of most writers.

Hybognathus evansi, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, —.

Hybognathus regius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, — —JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1876, 289.

Hybognathus osmerinus, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, —.

Description.—Body elongate, comparatively slender; head moderate, rather short, the
front comparatively steep; eye large, rather longer than the muzzle, about four in
head ; upper jaw heavy ; lower jaw thin ; scales large and silvery ; lateral line decurved ;
about twelve large scales in front of the dorsal; olivaceous green above, transluvent in
life ; sides clear silvery, with bright reflections; fins unspotted ; head 44; depth 44; D.
8; A.1; teeth 4-4; lat. 1.38. Length, 5 to 7 inches.

FAT HEAD. 839

Habitat, New Jersey to the Upper Missouri and southward.*

Diagnosis.—This is the only silvery large-scaled minnow found in
Ohio, which has long intestines and black peritoneum.

Habits —This graceful species is found in abundance in the small
streams flowing into the Ohio River. It is rare in the interior, and
probably seeks the river channels. Its breeding habits are unknown to
me, and the males and females are similarly colored, and do not develop
horny tubercles. In the Potomac River, what I consider to be the same

species, is used for food, being sold with its relative, Hudsonius storerianus,
under the name of Smelt.

GENUS 28. PIMEPHALES. Rafinesque.
Pimephales, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820, 52.
Type, Pimephales promelas, Rafinesque.
Etymology, pimeles, fat; kephale, head.

Body short and stout, little compressed ; head short and rounded ; mouth small, in-
ferior; upper jaw protractile; no barbels; teeth 4-4 with grinding surface, not strongly
hooked ; dorsal over ventrals, its first rudimentary ray separated from the rest by a
membrane; anal basis short; intestinal canal elongate; peritoneum black; scales rather
small; lateral line incomplete.

Small fish of American waters. In all the known species there isa black blotch on the
dorsal fin in front, about half way up. The breeding males have the head swollen and
black, and the snout armed with a few disproportionately large nuptial tubercles.

53. PIMEPHALES PROMELAS Rafinesque.

Fat Head; Black Head.

Pimephales promelas, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 94.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838,
194; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1838, 475.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 418.—AGAssız,
Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 220 —PUTNAM, Ball. M. C. Z, 1863, 8.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes, vii, 1868, 181,—JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 224; Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 1876, 91; Man. Vert., 1876, 275; 2d Ed., 1878, 288, and of writers generally.

Pimephales fasciatus, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1256, 180; Pac. R. R. Sarv., x,
234.

Plargyrus melanocephalus, ABBOTT, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1860, 325.

Pimephales milesii, Cops, Proc. Acad. Sei. Phila , 1864, 232.—GuNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii,
1868, 181,--JorDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 276.

Pimephales agassizii, Cops, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 391.

¢

Description.—Body very short and deep, head short, and everywhere convex, almost
globular in adult males; mouth small, inferior, horizontal; scales deep, closely imbri-
cated ; olivaceous, the dorsal with a large black bar across it, nearly halfway up, most
distinct anteriorly, appearing as a simple dusky shade in young; male fish dusky, the

*As here defined, more than one species may be included, but if so, the author is unable
to distinguish them.

840 FISHES-—CYPRINIDE.

head jet black, with several large tubercles on the snout in spring, a dusky shade along
sides of the caudal peduncle; head 44; depth 4; D. 1,7; A.7; lat. 1.47; teeth 4.5
Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley to the Upper Missouri, abundant.

Diagnosis.— Among Ohio fish, this small species may be known at sight
by the short, thick head and small mouth.

Habits.—This species is most abundant in the small and often muddy
brooks which flow directly into the ‘Ohio River. It does not appear to
like a sandy or gravelly bottom, and as it feeds on mud and Alge, it is
seldom found in company with such species Ericymba and Chrosomus.

Genus 29. HYBORHYNCHUS. Agassiz.

Hyborhynchus, AGassız, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 233.
Type, Minnilus notatus, Rafinesque.
Etymology, hubos, gibbous; rhugchos, snout.

This genus differs from Pimephales only in having the lateral line complete, and the
maxillary often provided with a rudimentary or obsolete barbel. The species are more
elongate than those of Pimephales and reach a larger size. The coloration and nuptial
4ress is similar in the two genera.

60. HysporHyncHus Notatus (Rafinesque) Agassiz.

Blunt-nosed Minnew.

$ Minnilus notatue, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 47.

Hyborhynchus notatus, AGAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 222.—Copz, Cyp. Penn., 1866,
392; Journ. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1869, 235.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 182.—JORDAN,
Bull. Buff. Acad. Sci., 1876, 94 ; Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1878, 28, and of writers generally.

? Hyborhynchus superciliosus, COPE, Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci. 1869, 234.—JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 289. (Specimens with an obsolete maxillary barbel. )

Description —Body rather elongate, not elevated, moderately compressed; head
moderate, the muzzle blunt and convex, top of the head depressed ; cheeks vertical;
mouth small, inferior, horizontal; fins small, the dorsal moderate, the first ray distinct
and spine-like in the males, slender in the females; anal small; caudal short; scales
moderate, deep, closely imbricated ; scales in front of the doreal small and crowded ;
aye moderate; eolor olivaceous, little silvery, sides bluish ; a black spot on the dorsal
fin in front, near the base; a dusky shade at base of caudal; males in spring with black
on the dorsal more extended, and the head wholly black; snout with about fourteen
Aisproportionately large tubercles; head 44; depth5; D.8; A.7; lat. 1.44; teeth 4-4,
Length, 4 inches,

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Great Lake Regions, abundant.

Diagnosis —The presence of a dark spot on the anterior rays of the
dorsal distinguishes this plain species from all the others with long in-
testines or teeth 4-4.

CUT-LIPS. 841

Habits.—This species swarms in all the streams in the State of Ohio,
ascending small and even muddy brooks. It is a species of feeble organ-
ization and without bright colors. Old males in the spring are rather
curious-looking little fishes.

Genus 30. EXOGLOSSUM. Rafinesque.

Exoglossum, RAFINKEQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., i, 1818, p. 420.

Type, Exoglossum lesueurianum, Raf. = Cyprinus mazillingua, LeS.

Body moderately elongate, little compressed ; dentary bones nearly straight, connected
throughout their length ; mandible much contracted, incurved, witha fleshy lobe on each
side of it at the base, the middle thus resembling a projecting tongue; teeth hooked,
without grinding surface, 1, 4-4, 1; no barbels; premaxillaries not projectile; air-blad-
der normal; alimentary canal not elongate; scales moderate; dorsal line present; fins
without spines; dorsal slightly behind ventral; anal basis short.

A single species known, singularly distinguished from allthe other Cyprinoid fishes
by the structure of the lower jaw.

61. Exo@LossuM MAXILLILINGUA (LeSueur) Haldeman.

Cut-lips; Day Chub; Nigger Chub.

Cyprinus maxillingua, LESUEUR, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 85.

Exoglossum mazillingua, HaLDEMAN, Rupp. Hist. Lancaster Co., 1844, 474.—AGassız, Am.
Journ. Sci. Arts, xix, 1855, 215;—COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. 1866, 360.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 188.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 308, and of other
writers generally.

Exoglossum lesueurianum, RAFINESQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 420.

Description —Body rather stout, little compressed ; head large, broad and flatish above,
with tumid cheeks; mouth moderate, slightly oblique, the end of the maxillary not
reaching the line of the orbit; upper jaw longer than lower; scales rather crowded an-
teriorly, those in front of the dorsal small; color olivaceous, smoky or dark above; &
blackish bar behind opercle, and a dusky shade at the root of the caudal in the young;
fins unmarked; head 44; depth 5; D. 8; A. 7; lat. 1.53; teeth 1-4-4-1. Length six
inches. 3

Habitat, Western New York to West Virginia.

Diagnosis.—This is the only minnow in America in which the two
dentary bones or forks of the lower jaw are united in one for their whole
length.

Habits.—This singular fish has not yet been recorded from Ohio. As,
however, it is very abundant in the Susquehanna River, and its occur-
rence in the Kanawha River has been noticed, it will probably be found
in the eastern part of the State. Its habits resemble those of Compostoma
anomalum, preferring clear rock-pools, but not haunting rapids. Accord-
ing to Professor Cope, “its stomach usually contains abundant remains
of Physx, Pisidia, and other small mollusca, which form its food. The

842 FISHES—CYPRINIDA.

shovel-like mandible would appear to be adapted for removing these
creatures from their hold on the rocks and bottom, while the great
strength of the pharyngeal walls and muscles enables the fish to crush
the shells before mastication with the pharyngeal teeth.” It takes the
hook readily, and is therefore a ‘“ boy’s fish.”

Genus 31. HUDSONIUS. Girard.

Hudsonius, GIRARD, Proc. Aéad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 210.
Hybopsis, Cops, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 385 (not of Agassiz).
Photogenis, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 379 (in part).
Type, Clupea hudsonia, DeWitt Clinton.
Etymology, Hudson River.

Body oblong or elongate; mouth rather small, horizontal or somewhat oblique; jaws
normal; no barbels; teeth 4 4 or 1, 4-4, 1 (in one species 1, 4-4, 2), hooked, with grind-
ing surface; scales large; lateral line complete; dorsal fin inserted nearly over ven-
trals; anal fin short. A very large genus including our smallest and feeblest minnows,
together with some of our largest species.

‘This genus, as now understood, comprises three well marked subgenera, which have
under one name or another been sometimes taken as genera. These are:

1. Hudsonius proper, including silvery species of large size, with short heads; dorsal
fin inserted in front of the ventrals; teeth two-rowed; scales not closely imbrica‘ed ;
fins plain. These species bear a close resemblance to Hybognathus.

2. Miniellus (Jordan), including small, plain species, with rather large head; dorsal
fin inserted over ventrals; teeth one-rowed; scales large, not closely imbricated; fins
plain. These are the smallest and most insignificant of American Cyprinid®, and may
be usually known from the young of larger species by the large scales before the dorsal,

3. Photogenis (Cope), including species of moderate size; compressed; dorsal fin in-
serted behind the base of the ventrals; teeth two-rowed ; scales deeper than long,
closely imbricated ; dorsal fin with a dark blotch on its upper posterior portion; males
in spring with the snout, etc., tuberculate, and the fins charged with satin-white pig-
ment. The members of this group closely resemble certains forms referred to Cliola, and
in some degree certain species of Luxilus. Besides the following, several other southern
and western species perhaps occur within our limits.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF HUDSONIUS.
* No black blotch on posterior rays of dorsal ; dorsal not inserted behind ventrals ; scales
not closely imbricated.
t Head short, about 42 in length. 5
tt Head comparatively long ; 3% to 4 in length.
a. Mouth inferior, horizontal.
b. Lateral line 34; pectorals reaching ventrals. 2 5 A VOLUCELLUS.

. . . STORERIANUS,

bb. Lateral line 36; head stoutish ; pectorals short. . 2 STRAMINEUS,
aa. Mouth terminal, oblique.

c. Lateral line 35. 2 . . r F FRETENSIS.

cc. Lateral line 44. . . 3 3 HJEMATURUS,

** A black blotch on posterior rays of dos; ER inserted behind ventrals ; scales
deeper than long, closely imbricated. . a . + ANALOSTANUS,

LAKE MINNOW. 843

62. Hwupsonıus STORERIANUS (Kirtland) Jordan.

Lake Minnow.
Leuciscus storerianus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 30.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 250.
Hybopsis storerianus, Cope, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 380, and of authors.
Hudsonius amarus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1856, 210.
Hybopsis amarus, JORDAN. Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1864, 279.
Hybopsis phaönna, CoPe, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 279.

Description—Body elongate, considerably depressed in adults; head quite short, the
muzzle blunt, decurved, shorter than the very large eye, which is three in head ; top of
the head flattened, somewhat concave between the orbits; greatest depth of the bead
nearly three-fourths its length; mouth moderate, nearly horizontal, the jaws nearly
equal; the maxillary extending to the eye; lateral line nearly straight, slightly
decurved anteriorly ; eighteen scales before the dorsal ; coloration very pale, sometimes
a dusky spot at base of the caudal, especially in the young; sides with a broad silvery
band; pectorals not reaching ventrals, the latter not to vent; caudal fin long; head 43;
depth 44; D.8;.A. 8; scales 5-39 4; teeth1, 4-4, 0or1. Length 4 to 8 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region to New Jersey and south to Georgia, east of the
Alleghanies.

Diagnosis—This bandsome fish may usually be best known by the
small size of the head and mouth, compared with other large-scaled species
with short intestines.

Hobits.—This fish is abundant in Lake Erie, where it reaches a con-
siderable size. It seldom ascends the small streams, but is taken in
seines in the waters of the lake. The largest I have seen were about eight
inches long, and it is said to grow much larger. Dr. Kirtland also found
it only in the lake.

Hudsonius fluviatilis Girard (Clupea hudsonia, Clinton) is also said to in-
habit Lake Erie, but I have never seen specimens from the lakes. It
has teeth 1, 4-4, 2, and usually a dusky caudal spot. i

63. Hüunsonıus VOLUCELLUS (Cope) Jordan.

Hybognathus volucellus, Cope, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 283.
Hybopsis volucellus, CcPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 851, and of writers.
Leuciscus volucellus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 260.

Description —Body moderately stout; head depressed, elongate, the vertex plane, the
muzzle elongate ; fins more elongate than in most of the related species ; the pectorals
reaching the ventrals; caudal peduncle slender; eye three and one-third in head; oliva-
ceous, a slight dusky lateral shade; no dorsal stripe ; fins plain; head 32; depth 4; D.
8; A.8; scales 4-34-5; teeth 44. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Southern Michigan to Wisconsin.

844 FISHES—CYPRINIDA.

Diagnosis —This species much resembles H. stramineus, but differs in
proportionately greater length of the pectorals. Itisfound in the streams
of southern Michigan and Wisconsin, and doubtless in northern Ohio
.also, though I have not seen it. Nothing'is known of its habits.

64. Hupsonius STRAMINEUS (Cope) Jordan.
Straw-colored Minnow.

Hybognathus stramineus, Cop, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1864, 283.
Hybopsis stramineus, COPE, Trans, Am. Philos. Soc., 1826, 331.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d
Ed., 1878, 291.

Description.—Body moderately stout, little compressed; head rather broad, with
rounded angles; mouth small, inferior, horizontal; snout very obtuse; eye large, 3 in
head; fifteen rows of scales in front of the dorsal fin; pale olivaceous; sides little sil-
very; usually a darker dorsal band; fins all plain; head 4; depth 5 ; scales 5-36-4 ; teeth
4-4. Length, 2} inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Lake region, abundant in small streams.

Diagnosis.—This insignificant fish may be known by its large scales,
and, in general, by the absence of all peculiarities.

Habits—This fish, the feeblest in structure of all our minnows, and one
of the smaliest and dullest colored, occurs in considerable abundance
throughout the State, mostly inhabiting the small streams. It is found
in company with Hyborhynchus notatus, which it considerably resembles.
The individuals of the latter are much more abundant.

A related species which is found in Kentucky and Virginia, and may occur in Ohio, is
Hudsonius microstomus (Raf.) Jor. (Minnilus microstomus Raf., Hybopsis longiceps Cope),
characterized as follows:

Body elongate, the caudal peduncle not contracted ; mouth inferior, horizontal, small,
the maxillary not reaching the line of the eye; fins rather short; eye large, three and a
half in head; fourteen scales before the dorsal; preorbital bone much longer than
deep; olivaceous, translucent, a silvery lateral band, along which is a black speck at
the origin of each tube of the lateral line; D.8; A. 7; scales 5-33-2; teeth 4-4. Length, 24
inches.

65. Hupsonius FRETENSIS (Cope) Jordan.

Hybopsis fretensis, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 332 —JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 292.

Description —Body slender and compressed, resembling hotropis; head convex between
orbits; mouth quite oblique, the middle of the maxillary being opposite the line of the
pupil; maxillary not reaching to orbit; eye three and a half in head ; seventeen rows of
scales in front of the dorsal; lateral line decurved; olivaceous, a dark median dorsal
band, a plumbeous silvery lateral shade; cheeks silvery ; a dark spot at the base of the

SILVER FIN. 845

caudal; fins plain; head 4; depth 5; D. 8; A. 8; scales 6-35-3; teeth 4-4. Length 24
inches.

Habitat, Michigan to Illinois.

Diagnosis.—F rom the other species of this genus, this species may be
known by its resemblance in form, and structure of mouth to the genus
Minnilus.

Habits.—I have never seen this fish in life, and known nothing of its
habits. i

66. Hüupsonıus HEMATURUS (Cope) Jordan.

® Red-tailed Minnow.

Hybopsis hematurus, Copr, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1866, 332.—JoRDAn, Man.
Vert.. 2d Ed., 1878, 292.
Leuciscus hematurus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 259.

Description.— Body stoutish ; muzzle little obtuse ; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique,
the maxillary extending to the orbit; eye three and a half in head; lateral line nearly
straight; plumbeous above; head dusky above ; a dusky lateral band, not shining; a
dusky spot at base of caudal; caudal fin dull red in life; twenty-one rows of scales in
front of dorsal; head 4; depth 44-5; D.8; A.7; scales 7-44-4. Length 22 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region, not abundant.

Diagnosis—From the other members of this genus, H. hematurus may
usually be known by its smaller scales.

Habits.—This species has as yet only been recorded from tributaries of
Lake Michigan, but it doubtless occurs in Northern Ohio. Nothing
distinctive is known of its habits.

66. HUDSONIUS ANALOSTANUS (Girard) Jordan.

Silver Fin.

Luxilus kentuckiensis, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 27, pl. 8, f.3 (not of
Rafinesgue).
Cyprinella kentuckiensis, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 279,
Hypsilepis kentuckiensis, Cork, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 371.
Leuciscus kentuckiensis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 261.
Cyprinella analostana, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 58,
Hypsilepis analostanus, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 166.
Leuciscus analostanus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vii, 256.
Luxilus analostanus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 294.
Photogenis spilopterus, Cops, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc , 1866, 378.
Leuciscus spilopterus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 254. ,

Deseription.—Body moderately elongate, somewhat compressed, the dorsal and ven-
tral outlines regularly and gently arched; head rather short and deep; mouth rather
small, quite oblique, the lower jaw received within the upper when the mouth is closed ;
eye small, four and a half in head; leaden silvery, bluish in the males; edges of acales

816 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

dusky; a dark vertebral line; a large black spot on the upper posterior part of the
dorsal; paired fins and lower part of the belly, as well asthe tips of the anal and
caudal, and the front and upper parts of the dorsal charged with clear satin-white pig-
ment in males in spring; in full breeding dress the dorsal pigment with a greenish.
lustre ; no creamy band at base of the caudal; males with the head and front covered
with small tubercles; head 44; depth 32; D.8; A. 8; scales 5-38-3; teeth 1, 4-4, 1 the
edges more or less distinctly serrata. Length 4 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley, Great Lake Region, and eastward.

Diagnosis.—The dark blotch on the last rays of the dorsal sufficiently
distinguishes this elegant fish from all others found in Ohio.

Habits —This species abounds in all the clear streams in the State of
Ohio. The male in the breeding season is one’of the most beautiful of
our minnows, on account of the satin-white lustre of its sides and fins.
It is therefore desirable as an aquarium fish. The species is not used
for food.

Genus 32. CHRIOPE. Jordan.

Chriope, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr., 1878.
Type, Hybopsis bifrenatus, Cope.
Etymology, chreia, want; ope, aperture, from the imperfections of the lateral line.
Body moderately elongate; mouth normal; no barbels; teeth 4-4, with grinding sur-
face amd hook, the edges more or less crenate; scales large, not closely imbricated ;
lateral line wanting posteriorly ; dorsal fin over ventrals; anal fin short; species of
small size differing from Hudsonius chiefly in the incomplete condition of the lateral line.
But two species are known, U. bifrenate (Cope), of the Eastern and Middle States, a
handsome little fish with a jet-black burnished lateral band, and the following.

68. CHRIOPE HETERODON (Cope) Jordan.

Northern Chriope.

Alburnops hetercdon, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 281.
Hybopsis heterodon, Cops, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc , 1866, 382.
Leuciscus heterodon, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit Mus., vii, 261,
Hemitremia heterodon, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d. Ed., 1878, 303.

Description —Body moderately stout, the back compressed and elevated; head rather
pointed, the muzzle acuminate; mouth oblique, tae lower Jaw projecting, the upper
lip opposite the upper rim of the pupil; maxillary extending to opposite front of orbit ;
thirteen scales in front of dorsal; eye three in head ; color olivaceous; a blackish dorsal
band; sides with a leaden or dusky band; head 4; depth 4; D.8; A.8; scales 5-36-3;
the lateral line extending about half the length of the body ;’ teeth 4-4, often crenate.
Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Michigan to Wisconsin.
Diagnosis.—From other small minnows with large scales, this plain
species may be known by the incomplete lateral line.

.

ROSY-FACED MINNOW. 817

Habits. — This species was first described from Detroit River, and there-
fore it will probably be found in tributaries of Lake Erie in Ohio. Noth-
ing distinctive is known of its habits.

Genus 33. MINNILUS. Rafinesque.
? Notropis, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 209 (nomen ineptum). ’
Minnilus, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh., 1820, 45.
Alburnellus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 193.
Episema, CoPE and JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 77.
Type, Minnilus dinemus, Raf.
Etymology, from the vernacular Minnow; Frerch, menuise; Latin, minus, small.

Body elongate, somewhat compressed ; mouth oblique, terminal, normal ; no barbels ;
teeth 2, 4-4, 2, hooked, with entire edges and no grinding surface; scales thin, usually
large ; the lateral line continuous, somewhat decurved ; exposed surface of scales
broad ; dorsal fin over or behind ventrals; anal basis elongate, its rays eight to twelve ;
species of small size, graceful form and delicate coloration.

Our species may be referred to two subgenera characterized as follows:

Episema, Cope and Jordan. Dorsal fin inserted directly over ventrals.

Minnilus, Rafinesque. Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals.

It does not appear best to retain the name Notropis for this genus, for the following
reasons: 1. The typical speciesis not certainly identified. Itis perhaps as likely to
have been Notemigonus chrysoleucus as Minnilus dinemus. 2. Even if the identification

were certain, the vame Notropis is subject to rejection as an inept name, as the back is
notat all keeled in auy species.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MINNILUS
*Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals ( Minnilus).
a. Head proportionately long, 3 4-5 in length; body compact; eye moderate, 4 in
head. 2 . . r RUBRIFRONS. 69.
aa. Head See N 4% in length; body elongated, compressed ; eye
large, 3% in head. . . A & DINEMUS. 70.
aaa. Head moderate, 44 in length; eye large, 34 in Teas body compressed.

PHOTOGENIS. 71.
**Dorsal fin inserted directly over ventrals (Hpisema),

b Eye extremely large, 235 in head ; anal rays 9. ‘ . ARIOMMUS, 72.
bb. Eye large, 3 in head; anal rays 8, . . . SCABRICEPS. 73.

69. MINNILUS RUBRIFRONS (Cope) Jordan.

Rosy-faced Minnow.
Alburnus rubrifrons, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 85; Trans. Am. Philos.
Soc., 1866, 388.
Leuciscus, rubrifrons, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 255.
Minnilus rubrifrons, JORDAN, Man. Vert., Ist Ed., 1876, —.
Notropis rubrifrons, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 296.

Description.—Body moderately elongate, the back scarcely elevated, the caudal pe-
duncle somewhat contracted; head longer than in the other species, conic and

848 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

rather pointed ; mouth rather large, very oblique; upper lip above the line of the mid-
dle of the pupil, the maxillary reaching to opposite the eye ; eye moderate, anterior, 4 in
head; olivaceous above, the scales with darker edges; sides silvery; a dark vertebral
line; males with the snout tuberculated in the spring, the forehead, opercular region,
and base of the dorsals being flushed with red; head 3 4-5; depth 43; D. 8; A. 10; scales
6-39-3; teeth 2, 4-4, 2, little hooked, one of them sometimes showing a sort of grinding
face. Length 22 ‘inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosi:—This is a much smaller species than M. dinemus. It has
also a notably larger head and smaller eye.

Habits. —This elegant little fish is very abundant in the southern part
of Ohio. It frequents clear waters and rapids of the larger streams. In
the breeding season it is very handsome.

70. MiınnıLus pineMus Rafinesque.

Emerald Minnow; Rosy Minnow ; Lake Silverside.

? Notropis atherinoides, RAFINESQUE, Am. Month. Mag., ii, 1818, 204 (erroneous and un-
certain ; may be Notemigonus).—_ JORDAN, Bull, Ills Lab. Nat. Hist., ii, 1878, 60.

Minnilus dinemus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 45.—JORDAN, Man Vert., lst Ed., 1876.

Notropis dinemus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed, 1878, 296, and elsewhere.

Alburnus rubellus, AGassız, Lake Superior, 1850, 364.

Leucisous rubellus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 254.

Minnilus rubellus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 1876, —.

Notropis rubellus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 296.

Alburnellus dilectus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 193.

Alburnellus jacutus, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 387.

Alburnellus arge, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 387.

Leucisus copii, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 205.

Description. Body long and slender, compressed, the back not elevated; head slen-
der, conic, proportionately shorter than in the other species; month moderate, very
oblique ; upper lip on a level with the lower part of the pupil; maxillary not reaching
to the front of the eye; eye large, rather longer than the snout, three and one-fourth in
head ; fins low, the dorsals well behind the ventrals, the tips of the ventrals extending
to about the middle of the dorsal ; lateralline decurved ; color translacent green above,
sides bright silvery ; scales above finely punctate, but not enough to render them dark
edged, nor to form blotches along the sides ; a faint dark vertebral line ; males in spring
with the snout and the base of the dorsal fin rosy; head 4%: depth 54; D.8; A.11;
scales 5-38-3 ; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Great Lake Region, frequenting the river channels and the
lakes.

Diagnosis.—This species is perhaps the slenderest of our minnows. It
may be known by its form, its silvery coloration and the size of its
anal fin.

WHITE-CHEEKED SHINER, 849

Habits.—This elegant fish is exceedingly common in Lake Erie, and
throughout the State it is one of the most abundant of the Minnows. It
frequents the large bodies of water, and is seldom seen in small streams.
It delights in clear lakes and in the deep water at the foot of a milldam
or waterfall. Off the wharves in the lake, they are often caught by boys
with dip-nets, who sell them to fishermen as bait.

I find considerable variation in this species both in form and color.
Lake specimens (rubellus) are usually brilliantly silvery. Some river
specimens (dinemus, jaculus) are much slimmer than others, the depth
sometimes forming less than one sixth of the length. These slender
specimens have been described as a distinct species, and they may really
be, but at present, I am unable to define them as such. Again,
deep-bodied specimens with rather smaller eye, have been determined as M.
dilectus (Girard). They are probably not specifically different.

Name.—The specific name, dinemus (two-threaded), refers to the pre-
sence of two lateral lines, i.e., the true lateral line, and a color-streak
above it. It is an objectionable and perhaps misleading name, but as it
has ‘priority, I do not feel authorized to reject it. The still earlier name
atherinoides, perhaps belongs to this species, but it may have been based on
the young of Notemigonus.

71, MINNILUS pHorogenis (Cope) Jordan.

N White-cheeked Shiner.

Sgalius photogenis, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 280.

Leuciscus photogenis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 252.

Minnilus photogenis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., lst Ed., 1876, —.

Notropis photogenis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 297.

Photogenis leucops, Cops, Trans. Am. Pnilos. Soc., 1866, 379, and elsewhere,.
Description.—Body slender, compressed; head moderate; mouth quite oblique, lower

jaw scarcely projecting ; maxillary not reaching orbit ; back broad; dorsal fin inserted

behind middle of body alittle behind ventrals; lateral line decurved ; eye large, three and

a third in head; color olivaceous, with brown vertebral and dorsal lines; sides and

below bright silvery; cheeks silvery; head 44; depth 54; D 8; A.10; scales 6-40-3.

Length 3 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and southward.

Diagnosis.—This species much resembles the young of the preceding.
Its eye is not so large, and the dorsal fin is not as far back. The anal
fin is also smaller.

Habits.—T his species is rarely seen in the State of Ohio. It occurs in
some tributaries of the Ohio, in West Virginia, and probably will be found

54

850 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

in the streams runnirg from the hills on the Ohioside of the same river.
It has a wide distribution in the Alleghany region of the south. The
species is subject to considerable variation.

72. MINNILUs ARIOMMUS (Cope) Jordan.

Big-eyed Shiner.
Photogenis ariommus, Cops, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 388; Proc. Acad. Nat Sei.
Phila., 1867, 104.
Cliola ariomma, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 293.
Episema ariomma, JORDAN, Bull. Ils. Lab. Nat. Hist., 1878, 60.

Description. —Body stout, moderately elevated, somewhat compressed; head heavy,
broad above, the snout moderate, somewhat decurved; month moderate, oblique, its
jaws equal, the upper lip on a level with the middle of the pupil, the maxillary reaching
the front of the eye; eye very large, two and three-fifths in bead, much longer than
snout, larger than in any other American Cyprinids ; fins moderate, the dorsal directly
opposite ventrals, the tips of the ventrals opposite the last dorsal ray; scales large;
fitteen in front of the dorsal; lateral line much decurved ; olivaceons, scales above dark-
edged ; sides and below bright silvery ; no red; head 32; depth 44; D. 8; A.9; scales
6-39-2; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—The great size of the eye, larger than in any other min-
now chiefly distinguishes this species.

Habits—This species is abundant in White River, Indiana, in which
stream the original type was taken. It there frequents the river chan-
nel, in company with dinemus, a species which it much resembles both
in size and color. It doubtless occurs in Southern Ohio, but I have no
specimens from that State. In fact, with the single exception of a
specimen from Kentucky, preserved in the United States Museum, I
have seen no specimens except from White River, and none others have
been recorded. This species is very handsome, and is desirable for
aquaria.

73. MINNILUS SCABRICEP3 (Cope) Jordan.
Rough-headed Shiner.

Photogenis scabriceps, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1867, 166.
Cliola scabriceps, JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1868, 298.
Episema scabriceps, JORDAN, Bull. Ils. Lab. Nat. Hist., 2, 1878, 60.

Description.—Body rather stout, little compressed, the back slightly elevated ; head
rather stout and broad, the muzzle bluntish, somewhat decurved ; mouth rather small, ter-
minal, oblique ; the maxillaryreaching the front of the orbit; lateral line decurved ; fins
rather small, eye large, three in head ; color plain olivaceous, scales dark-edged above;
sides white, with a lateral band formed of dusky specke, this band running through the

RED-FIN. 851

eye, around the snout ; males tuberculate in the spring; head 4; depth 44; D.8; A. 8;
scales 6-38-3 ; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length, 34 inches,

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.This species resembles the preceding, but reaches a smaller
size, and has a smaller eye. Its coloration is duller.

Habits —This species is found in most of the tributaries of the Ohio,
but is not very abundant. It seems to frequent mostly the small streams
and brooks in company with Hyborhynchus notatus and Ericymba, buccata.

Genus 34. LYTHRURUS. Jordan.

Lythrurus, JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 1876, 272.

Type, Semotilus diplemius, Raf.

Etymology, luthron, blood; oura, tail.

Body somewhat elongate, strongly compressed ; mouth normal, oblique; no barbels;
teeth 2, 4-4, 2, with grinding surface ; intestinal canal short; scales small, closely im-
bricated; lateral line continuous, decurved; fins large; dorsal well behind ventrals
(with a black spot at its base in front in all known species); anal fin long; its rays ten
to twelve; size small; breeding cclors brilliant, the fins being deep red in the males
in spring. Four species are known in the Mississippi Valley. These are closely
related, and may perhaps all be varieties of L. diplemius. Only L. diplemius has
as yet been noticed in Ohio, but Z. cyanocephalus, Copeland, a small compact species
resembling a Pimephales may be looked for in Northwestern Ohio. L. ardeus, Cope, a
slender silvery species like a Minnilus may be found in Southern Ohio, and L. atripes,
Jordan, a species with the anal black-spotted like the dorsal, may occar in the sluggish
streams tributary to the Ohio River. We have, however, no evidence that any of these
species have a claim to be noticed in this report.

74. LYTHRURUS DIPLEMIUS (Rafinesque) Cope.

Red-fin.

? Semotilus diplemius, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 50.

Hypsolepis diplemius, PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 7.

Hypsilepis diplemia, Cops, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864, 279; Cyp. Penn., 373; Proc.
Phila., Acad., 1867, 162.—JoRDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 223.

Leuciscus diplemius, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 250 (not of Kirtland).

Luxilus diplemia, JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876, 94.

Lythrurus diplemius, JORDAN, Mao. Vert., lst Ed., 1876, 285; 2d Ed , 1878.

?? Rutilus ? ruber, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 52 (probably L. ardeus).

Rutilus compressus, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 169 (probably not of Raf.).

Leuciscus compressus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iv, 306.—STORER, Synopsis, 469
(probably the female of this species).

Description —Body elongate, compressed, little elevated ; the caudal peduncle notably
long; head long, conic, rather pointed ; mouth large, moderately oblique, the premax-
illary on the level of the pupil, the maxillary extending to opposite the eye; lower jaw
somewhat projecting; eye moderate, about equal to the muzzle, 34 in head; scales
closely imbricated, crowded anteriorly, the ante-dorsal scales about 30; doreal fin high,

852 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

inserted about midway between ventrals and anal; pectorals not reaching ventrals, the
latter to the vent; caudal fin long; coloration dark steel-blue above, pale or silvery
below, the males often showing traces of 8 to 10 cross-bars; a conspicuous spot at the
base of the dorsal in front, the fins otherwise all plain; males with the anterior dorsal
region and the head profusely covered with small whitish tubercles, the belly and lower
fins being of a bright brick red in spring ; females very pale olive, sometimes colorless ;
head 44; depth 44; D.7; A. 11; 9-47-3; teeth 2, 44,2. Length 34 inches.

Diagnosis.—The Red fin may be known from all the other minnows of
similar appearance by the presence of a black spot at the base of the dor-
sal, in front. The only other species similarly marked, Semotilus corpor-
alis, has a larger head, and a short anal fin of 7 or 8 rays.

Habits.—This species is very abundant throughout Ohio, especially in
the southern part of the State. It is especially fond of small, clear
streams. The male fish in the spring is one of the most brilliant of our
fishes, being sometimes almost violet colored, and later of a fine brick-
red. The female is usually very pale, with a delicate purplish luster.

GeENvs 35. LUXILUS. Rafinesque.

Luxilus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 47.
Hypsolepis, BAIRD, Mss., AGassız Am. Journ. Sci. Aris, 1854, 359,
Alburnops, GIRARD, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 194.
Plargyrus (Raf.), GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 195.
Hydrophlox, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 292.
Type, Luxilus chrysocephalus, Ratinesque ; Cyprinus cornuius, Mitch.
Etymology, Latin, luz. light, in allusion to the vernacular name shiner.

Body oblong, more or less compressed; mouth normal; no barbels; teeth 2,4-
4, 2, hooked, with masticatory surface; intestinal canal short; scales large, more or
less closely imbricated along the sides of the body, so that the exposed surfaces are
higher than long; lateral line continuous, decurved; dorsal over or slightly behind
ventrals; anal fin short; breeding coloration usually very brilliant; the male flushed
with red, and with the snout tnberculate. As here understood, this is a large genus,
including a considerable number of species, most of them Southern in their distribution.
There are three well-marked subgenera: Luzilus proper, including large species, with
the scales very closely imbricated, and much deeper than long; the dorsal over the
ventrals avd the jaws even ; type L. cornutus,

Coccotis, Jor., including rather large species, with the scales less closely imbricated,
put still deeper than long; dorsal behind ventrals and lower jaw projecting; type L.
coccogenis.

Alburnops, Grd. (Bydrophiox), small species with the scales normal; the jaws equal
and the dorsal somewhat behind the ventrals. These fishes resemble certain species of
Hudsonius, but the males are brilliantly colored. Type, L. blennius.

Only L. cornutus, the largest and best known of the species of the genus has been
observed in Ohio.

SHINER. 853

75 LuxıLus cornutus (Mitch.) Jordan.

Shiner; Red-fin; Rough-head.

Cyprinus cornutus, MiTcHILL, Am. Monthly Mag. and Crit. Rev., 1817, 298 (brief men-
tion); Am. Monthly Mag., 1818, 324 (description).

Leuciscus cornutus, STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., ix, 1822, 162; Synopsis, 1840, 409.—
DeKay, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 207.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 1868, 249.

Hypslepis cornutus, STORER, Fishes Mass., 1855, 284.—CoPe, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864,
279.—PUTNAM, Bulletin M. C. Z., 1863, 7.

Plargyrus cornutus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 196.

Hypsilepis cornutus, Cope, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 372; Proc Phila. Acad. Sci., 1867, 158; Journal
Phila. Acad. Sci., 1868, 292.—JorDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 223.—UHLER and
LUGGER, Fishes of Md., 1876, 148, and of late American writers.

Hypsilepis cornutus, vars gibbus, frontalis, cerasinus, cornulus, cyaneus, Cope, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Sci., 1867, 167.

Luzilus cornutus, RAFINESQUE, MSS. Fishes of the Susquehanna.— JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Nat.
Hist. Soc., 1876, 94; Manual Vert., 1876, 26; 2d Ed., 1878, 283, and elaewhere.—
NeLson, Ball Iils. Mus. Nat Hist., 1877.

Cyprinus megalops, RAFINESQUE, Am. Monthly Mag., 1818, 121 (has probably priority of
description).

Cyprinus melanurus, RAFINESQUE, 1. c, 1818, 121.

Luxilus chrysocephalus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 48.

Semotilus deplemia, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168 (not of Raf.).

Leuciscus diplemia, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1846, 276.—SIORER, Synopsis, 411.

Argyreus rubripinnie, HECKEL, Russeger’s Reisen, 1843, 1040.

Leuciscus gibbosus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., July, 1845; Synopsis, 1846, 418.

Hypsolepis gibbosus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358.

Plargyrus gibbosus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 191.

Leuciscus plagyrus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1815, 26.

Leuciscus plargyrus, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 410.

Leuciscus frontalis, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 368.

Hypsilepis frontalis, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sei. Arts, 1854, 359.—PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z.,
1863, 7.

Plargyrus frontalis, GIRARD, 1. c.

Leuciscus gracilis, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 370.

Plargyrus gracilis, GIRARD, l. c.

Hypsilepis gracilis, Cop, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sei., 1867, 157.

Plargyrus typicus, GIRARD, 1. c., 195.

Plargyrus argentatus, GIRARD, 1. c., 196.

Plargyrus bowmant, GIRARD, 1. c., 186, and Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 263, 1858.

Hypsilepis cbesus, Cope, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1867, 157 (not L. obesus, Storer, fide
Agassiz).

Description Body elongate, compressed in the young, in the adult short, compressed,
with the anterior dorsal much swollen ard gibbous; head rather heavy, compressed,
rounded between the eyes, the snout bluntish, moderate, nearly horizontal, the jaws
nearly equal, the lower somewhat inclined; eye moderate, four to five in head; max-
illary scarcely reaching front of eye; the premaxillaries below the level of the eye;
scales always deeper than long on the flanks, becoming extremely so in the adults ;

854 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

lateral line decurved ; dorsal moderate, inserted directly over ventrals in the young,
thrown somewhat backward in the adult by the growth of the post-oceipital region ; pec-
torals barely or not reaching ventrals, the latter about to vent ; region in front of the
dorsal typically with ‘about 23 scales; coloration dark steel-blue above, the scales
with dusky edges, the bases also dusky ; a gilt line along the back and one along each
side, these distines only when the fish is in the water; belly and lower part of the sides
silvery, or bright rosy in spring males; dorsal fin somewhat dusky, the other fins plain,
the lower fins all rosy in spring males; head dark above; a dark shade behind scapula;
. lower jaw and region in front of dorsal to the tip of the snout covered with small tuber-
cles in spring males; females and young fisbes are plain olivaceous above and silvery
below; head 43; depth 34, varying much with age; D.8; A.9; scales 6-41-3; teeth
2. 4-4, 2 with rather narrow grinding surface.
This species is extremely variable and several varieties have been indicated by name by
Professor Cope. It is, however, unnecessary to describe them here. Length, 5 to 8
inches.

Habitat, in all waters east of the Great Plains, except in the South Altantic States
(wanting in streams between the Neuse and the Alabama), everywhere the most
abundant fish.

Diagnosis.—The adult Shiner may be known at once by-the dispro-
portionately great depth of the scales on the sides, the exposed portions
being very much higher than long. The young can only be distin-
guiehed from certain species of Alinnilus, Hudsonius, ete., by careful dis-
crimination.

Habits—In every permanent stream in Ohio, this is the most abundant
fish. In all small brooks, and in quiet places in every river, the young
will be found in myriads, and a good part of the food of the Black Bass
and other predacious species is formed by this fish. It reaches a consid-
erable size, but is scarcely used as food except by pot fishers and boys.
The flesh is soft and very soon spoils after death, hence the name Rot-
ten gut or Rot-gut Minnow, frequently given to it in the South.

Genus 36. ERICYMBA. Cope.

Ericymba, Corn, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 88.

Type, Ericymba buccata, Cope.

Etymology, evi, an intensive particle; kumba, a cavity, in allusion to the mucous
channel.

Body oblong, moderately compressed ; muzzle broad ; interopercle and bones of the man-
dible with externally visible mucous chambers largely developed ; lips thin ; no barbels; teeth
1, 4-4, 0, without grinding surface, hooked, the edges entire; scales rather large; lat-
eral line continuous; dorsal fin above ventrals; anal basis short; silvery fishes of
rather small size; known at once from all other minnows by the cavernous bones of the
head. Bat a single species is now known.

SILVER-JAWED MINNOW. 855

76. ERICYMBA BUCCATA Üope.
Silver-jawed Minnow.

Ericymba buccata, Copa, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 88.—GUNTEAER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vii—JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 299.

Description.— Body fusiform, rather elongate, little compressed, the back not elevated ;
head rather long, somewhat depressed above, with broad and prominent muzzle; mouth
rather small, horizontal, subinferior, the lower jaw considerably shorter than upper;
upper lip below Jvel of pupil; maxillary not reaching to eye; dentary bones dilated,
the macous channels conspicuous cross lines; opercle small; eye large, four in head;
fins small, dorsal over ventrals; scales moderate, the lateral line nearly straight ; mid-
dle of the belly scaleless; fifteen scales before dorsal; color olivaceous, rather pale ;
sides bright silver with bluish reflections; a dark dorsal streak, conspicuous posteriorly ;
fins plain; males without tubercles or bright colors; head 35-6; depth 5; D. 8; A.'8;
scales 5-33-3 ; teeth 1, 4-4, 0. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species is known at once from all other minnows by
the cavernous condition of the bones of the lower jaw.

Habits.—This graceful and interesting little fish is abundant in most
streams tributary tothe Ohio. It prefers clear, gravelly or sandy streams,
and often ascends the small brooks. Most specimens seen are small.
The males do not undergo any special changes in color or form in the
breeding season.

Genus 37. PHENACOBIUS. Cope.

Phenacobius, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 96.
Sarcidium, Cops, Hayden’s Geol. Surv., 1870, 1872, 440.

Type, Phenacobius teretulus, Cope.

Etymology, phenax, deception ; bios, life, the species having the appearance of herbiv-
orous minnows, but with the teeth and intestines of the carnivorous.

Body elongate, subterete; mouth small, inferior, with thickened lips, the lip of the
lower jaw developed as a conspicuous lobe on either side, presenting aslight resemblance
to the lower jaw of Exoglossum ; no barbels; premaxillaries protractile; dorsal fin in-
serted in advance of ventrals; anal basis short; intestinal canal not elongated, peri-
toneum pale; teeth 4 4, hooked, without grinding surface; scales rather small; lateral
line continuons. Species of rather small size, bearing a considerable resemblance to
young suckera. Three or four species are known, mostly of southern distribution.

77. PHENACOBIUS TERETULUS Cope.

Phenacobius teretulus, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 96.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 299.

Sarcidium scopiferum, Cops, Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Terr., 1872, 440 (probably same).

Phenacobius scopiferus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 299; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv.
Terr., 1878; Bull. Ills State Lab. Nat. Hist., ii, 1878, 61.

Phenacobius teretulus, var. liosternus, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 46.

FISBRES—CYPRINIDZ.

Description. —Body slender, little compressed, the back elevated, the caudal peduncle
stout; head stout, the muzzle elongate, obtusely decurved, heavy; mouih small, in-
ferior, horizontal, the maxillary not reaching to the eye; lips weakly plicate; isthmus
wide; lateral line nearly straight; eye large, high up, three and a half in head; pale
yellowish, the scales above dark-eliged, ; snout blackish; a plumbeous lateral band; fins
plain ; head 43; depth 43; D.8; &%7; scales 6-43-5; teeth 4-4. Length 3} inches.

Habitat, West Virginia to the Rio Grarde.

Diagnosis. —F rom other small minnows, this species may be known by
the thickened lips, in connection with the short intestines and the num-
ber (4-4) of the teeth.

Habits.—This species has not yet been recordedfrom Ohio. P. teretulus
occurs in the streams of West Virginia, and P. scopiferus which I take to
be the same species or a variety of it is foundin Illinois. Wemay there-
fore look for it in the streams of Southern Ohio. Little distinctive is
known of the habits of this species. Professor Cope found it in the
Kanawa, abundant in the river channel and in the mouths of tributaries.

Genus 38. RHINICHTHYS. Agass'z.

Argyreus, HECKEL, Russegger’s Reisen, 1843, i, 1040 (preoccupied in Entomology).
Rhinichthys, AGassız, Lake Superior, 1850, 350.

Type, Cyprinus atronasus, Mitch.

Etymology, rhin, snout ; ichthus, fish.

Body rather elongate, not much compressed ; mouth small, subinferior, normal; the
upper jaw not protractile ; the upper lip continuous with the skin of the forehead ; a bar-
bel terminal, on the maxillary; teeth usually 2, 4-4, 2, hooked, without grinding sur-
face; intestinal canal short ; scales very small; lateral Jine continuous ; dorsal fin inserted
behind the ventrals; anal basis short ; coloration dark, rosy in spring.

Species of rather small size, abounding in all clear brooks in the United States, east

of the Rocky Mountaics.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF R#INICHTHYS.

*Body elongate, the depth about5 in length; barbel rather long ; snout much pro-
jecting. . . . . . . : CATARACTH, 78,
**Body compact, the depth 4 to 4} in length; barbel minute; snout little projecting.

ATRONASUS. 79,

78. RHINICHTHYS CATARACT. (Valenciennes) Jordan.

Long-nosed Dace; Niagara Gudgeon.
Gobio cataracte, Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat des Poissons, xvii, 1842, 315, pl. 483.
Ceratichthys cataracte, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 365.—GUNTHER, Cat,
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 176.
Rlünichihys caturacte, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d ed., 1878, 307, and elsewhere.
Leuciscus nasutus, AYRES, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 1843, 2, 99, aud of authors.

LONG-NOSED DACE. 857

Rhinichthys nasutus, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 353.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus.,
vii, 189, and of most writers.

Argyreus nasutus, CoPE, Trams. Am. Philos. Soo., 1856, 369.

Rhinichthys marmoratus, AGassız, Lake Superior, 1850, 354.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit.
Mus,, vii, 189.

Description.—Body elongate, little compressed, not elevated ; head long, the muzzle
flattened, narrowed and extremely prominent, the mouth being entirely inferior and
horizontal; eye nearly median, its diameter contained twice in the length of the
snout, about five times in head; isthmus wide; barbels evident; lateral line commenc-
ing opposite the upper posterior angle of the opercle, decurved ; pectoral] fins enlarged
in the males, a small fatty lobe in the axils; color olivaceous or daik green, paler below,
with numerous dusky punctutations, the back often almost black, some of the scales
usually irregularly darker, producing a mottled appearance; no black lateral band;
young specimens with a dusky lateral shade; a blackish spot on the opercle; males in
spring with the lips, cheeks and all the fins crimson; head 4, depth5; D.8; A.7;
scales 14-65-8; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, New England, Middle States, and Great Lake Region, in clear cold water.

Diagnosis —This species may be known by the very projecting snout
in connection with the barbels and the very small scales.

Hoabits.—This species is fond of clear swift waters, as is the trout. It
haunts the rapids and rock pools, and its motions are swift and powerful.
In the State of Ohio, it is not a very common species, but it is found in
tributaries of Lake Erie, and sometimes in the lake itself. It also occurs
in the southeastern part of the State.

Name.—This fish was first described from specimens sent from Niagara
Falls to the Museum at Paris. It was therefore named Gobio cataractz or
“Gudgeon of the Cataract.”

79. RHINICHTHYS ATRONASUS (Mitchill) Agassiz.
Black-nosed Dace; Rockfish.

var. alronasus.

Cyprinus atronasus, MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc. New York, i, 1814, 460.

Leuciscus atronasus, DeEKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 205, and authors,

Argyreus atronasus, COPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866.

Rhinichthys atronasus, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 354.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit.
Mus,, vii, 191, and of nearly all recent writers.

var. obtusus.

Rhinichthys obtusus, AGassiz, Am, Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 357.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876, 280; Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 331.

Argyreus dulcio, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 185.

Argyreus obtusus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 185.

Rhinichthys obtusus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 190.

858 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

Rhinichthys lunatus, CoPE, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci, 1864, 278; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sei.,
1869, 228.—Jorpan, Ind. Geol. Survey, 1874, 223; Man. Vert., 281.
Argyreus lunatus, CoPE, Proc. Am. Phil. Soc., 1870. -

Description —Body moderately elongate, little compressed; head moderate, rather
broad and flattened above; snout moderate; mouth small, horizontal, subterminal, the
lower jaw included; barbel minute, but probably always present; upper lip on the
level of the lower part of the pupil; maxillary not reaching nearly to the eye; eye
small, nearly median, one and one-half in snout, four and one-half in head; fins rather
small; dorsal fin well back; scales quite small, somewhat imbedded; lateral line
decurved; color blackish above, some of the scales irregularly daıker; a black band
passing from the snout through eye and along the sides of the body ; a pale streak below
this ; belly silvery; males in spring with the lateral bands and the lower fins, and some-
times the whole body bright crimson; males in later summer with the lateral band
scarlet or orange, the red color growing fainter later in the season; head 4; depth 44;
D.7; A.7; lat. 1.64; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 3 inches.

Var. obtusus (Ag.) a southwestern form may be thus characterized :

Very similar to R. atronasus, but usually rather stouter, the head a little shorter, and
the coloration somewhat different; back olivaceous, mottled with darker; sides with
a rather faint brownish band margined above and below with paler; belly silvery; a
dusky blotch in the middle of the base of the dorsal fin; males with the pectoral fins en-
larged, and with the lateral band rosy; head 4; depth 44; D. 7; A.7; scales 1463-8;
teeth 2, 4-4,2. Length 3 inches.

Habitat, New England to Alabama. Var. atronasus in the region from Cleveland east-
ward to Maine and Virginia. Var. obtusus in the Upper Lake Region, Ohio Valley and
southward to Georgia and Alabama.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by its small scales and dark
colors in connection with the position of the mouth. Its shorter snout
distinguishes it at once from the preceding.

Habits.—This species is one peculiar to the clear small brooks and
spring runs. In suitable localities it is excessively abundant. It is a
very swift and active fish, and the males in spring and summer are
brilliantly colored.

GENUS 3). ERIMYSTAX. Jordan.

Erimystax, JORDAN (nova).
Type, Leuciscus dissimilis, Kirtland.
Etymology, eri, an intensive particle; mustax, barbel (moustache).

Body elongate; mouth inferior, with the lips somewhat thickened ; a well developed
barbel at the posterior end of the maxillary; teeth 4-4, hooked, with narrow grinding
surface ; scales rather large ; lateralline continuous; dorsal fin in advance of ventrals;
anal basis short; size medium. A single species known, in coloration and habits bear-
ing some resemblance to the Etheostomoid fishes.

SPOTTED SHINER. 859

80. Erımystax DISSIMILIs (Kirtland) Jordan.

Spotted Shiner.

Luzilus dissimilis, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1840, 341.

Ceratichthys dissimilis, Cop, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 277; Cyp. Penn., 1866,
368.—GunTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 177.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed,, 1878,
306, and of writers generally.

Description.—Body long and slender, little compressed, with long caudal peduncle ;
head long, rather flat above, the snout somewhat bluntly decurved, projecting a little
beyond the rather small horizontal mouth; lower jaw included; both jaws with the
skin hard in front, forming a sort of tip laterally ; barbels considerably shorter than
pupil; maxillary not reaching nearly to orbit; eye very large, high up, somewhat
directed upward, rather behind the middle of the head, forming more than one-third
the length of the head; opercle small; dorsal rather large, its posterior border oblique ;
anal small; caudal well forkea; pectoral rather long ; scales rather large, twenty-two
in front of dorsal; lateral line nearly straight; olivaceous, sides silvery, with bluish
lateral band, which is widened into several dusky spots, formed by dark punctutations
aud most distinct posteriorly ; a dusky band on head, through eyes and snout, fins plain ;
head 44; depth 53; D. 8; A. 7; scales 6-47-5; teeth 4-4. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Lake region.

Diagnosis. —This species may be known by the long and slender body
and the peculiar coloration, the bluish black lateral blotches being found
in no other of our species.

Habits.—This species seeks large bodies of water, being most abundant
in the lakes and in the channelsof the large streams. I have neverseen
it in small brooks, and it is seldom taken in the rivers in small seines,
except at very low water. It reaches a considerable size for a minnow
and as it takes the hook, it is frequently seen on the small boy’s “string
of fish” along the Ohio. According to Dr. Kirtland it is often used to
“bait the hook on ‘sett’ lines. ”

Genus 40. CERATICHTHYS. Baird.

Ceratichthys, BAIRD, 1853.—GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 212, and of authors.
Hybopsis, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358,
Nocomis, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 190.
Erinemus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1676, 279.
Type, Semotilus biguttatus, Kirt.
Etymology, keras, horn; ichthus, fish.

Form varioas; mouth terminal or inferior, with lips thin or somewhat fleshy ; a conspic-
uous barbel terminal on the maxillary; premaxillaries projectile; teeth 4-4 or 1, 4-4, 1
or 0, hooked, without grinding surface; scales rather large; lateral line contiauous;
dorsal fin inserted over, in front of, or slightly behind ventrals; anal basis short ; size and
coloration various.

A large genus embracing a wide range of forms. Of the numerous species, but two
have as yet been found in Ohio. These two bear little resemblance to each other, and
may may be taken as representatives of distinct subgenera.

860 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CERATICHTHYS.

*Mouth subinferior; scales large, about 36 in lateral line; eye very large; silvery

(subgenus Hybopsis). . . . . . R AMBLYOPS. 87.
**Mouth terminal ; scales mediam, about 41 in lateral line; eye moderate; not
silvery (subgenus Ceratichthys). . 7 x . . BIGUITATUS. 82.

81. CERATICHTHYS AMBLYoPs (Rafinesque) Girard.
Big-eyed Chub.

var. amblops.

Rutilus amblops, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 51.

Ceratichthys amblops, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 18:6, 213.—JoRDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 306.

Nocomis amblops, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 328.

var. gracilis.

Hybopsis gracilis, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358.—JORDAN, Ann. Lye. Nat.
Hist. N. Y., 1876, 331. |

Gobio vernalis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 1€8; U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv.,
1858, 249.

Hybopsis winchelli, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 211.

Nocomis winchelli, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 330.

Ceratichthys winchelli, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 306.

Ceratichthys hyaliflus, Cops, Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci., Phila., 1868, 236 —GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 179, and of authors.

Description. —Body moderately elongate, little compressed, heaviest anteriorly ; head
large, the muzzle rather long, the profile very blunt; eye unusually large, larger than in
most of our minnows, its diameter about one-third the length of the side of the head ;
mouth rather small, inferior, horizontal; barbels well developed; fins moderate, the
dorsal inserted over the base of the ventrals; scales large; color translucent above,
sides and below bright silvery ; a plumbeous lateral band, sometimes faint, sometimes
shining blackish ; top of head and a streak through the eye dark; no vertebral band ;
fins unspotted ; males in spring not tuberculate and without red markings ; head 4;
depth 4%; scales 5-40-3; D.8; A. 8; pharyngeal teeth 1, 4-4, 1. Length 3 inches.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley. Var. gracilis, Tennessee and southwards.

Diagnosis—This species may be known by the presence of a very
large eye in connection with the maxillary barbels and large silvery
scales. .

Habits.—This species is abundant in all tributaries of the Ohio River.
It frequents clear sandy or gravelly streams, and seeks the river chan-
nels rather than the small brooks. The male in spring, so far as known,
never becomes tuberculate, and the fins are never red, characters which
help to distinguish this species from its ornate southern relative,
Ceratichthys rubrifrons.

HORNY-HEAD. 861

82. ÜCERATICHTHYS BIGUTTATUS (Kirtland) Girard.

Horny-head; Horned Dace; River Chub; Jerker.

Catostomus melanotus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 56.

Ceratichthys melanotus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1875, 278.

Semotilus biguttatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 344.

Leuciscus biguttatus, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 214.—STORER, Synopsis, 413.

Ceratichthys biguttatus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 213.—PUTNaMm,
Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 8.—Cops, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 366; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1863,
226; Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 147), 459.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mas, vii, 178.—
JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Survey, 1071, 223—JorpaN and Cops#.and, Bull. Buff.
Soc. Nat. Hist., 1-76, 149.—Nexson, Bull. Ills. State Mus;, 1876.—UHLER and Lue-
GER, Fishes of Md., 144.—Cope and Yarrow, Lieut, Wheele1’s Survey, 1076, and of
most late writers.

Nocomis biguttatus, Cope and JORDAN, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci, 1877.—JORDAN, Ann. Lyc.
Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 355.

Leuciscus croceus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc Nat. Hist , July, 1845; Synopsis, 1846, 419.—
Acassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359.

Nocomis nebrascensis, GIRARD, Proc. Phila, Acad. Nat. Sci., 1856, 213; Pac. R. R. Surv.,
x, 1458, 254.

Nocomis bellicus, GIRARD, Proc, Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 213.

Ceratichthys cyclotis, Cope, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864, 277; Cyp. Penn., 365; Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 1874, 113.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 173.

Ceratichthys stigmaticus, Cops, 1. c., 366.—GUNTHER, l. c.

Description.—Body rather robust, not elevated, little compressed ; head large, rather
broadly rounded above, the snout conical, blantish ; mouth rather large, subterminal,
little oblique, the lower jaw somewhat the shorter; the upper lip somewhat below the
level of the eye, and the maxillary not reaching to the front of the eye; eye small,
median, very high up; suborbitals very narrow ; preorbitals large; fins moderate, the
dorsal rather posterior, slightly behind the insertion of the ventrals; candal broad,
little forked ; scales large and nearly equal over the body, not crowded anteriorly ;
eighteen rows in front of the dorsal; lateral line rising opposite upper posterior angle
of opercle, somewhat decurved ; color bluish olive, sides with bright green and coppery
reflections ; a curved dusky bar behind the opercle; scales above with dark borders;
belly pale, but not silvery ; rosy in spring males; tins all pale orange, without black
spots ; males in spring with a crimson spot on each side of the head; the adults with the
top of the head swollen, forming a sort of crest, which is sometimes a third of au inch
higher than the level of the neck, and is covered with large tubercles; young witha
dark caudal spot ; barbel well developed ; head 4; depth 44; D.8; A.7; scales 6 41-4;
teeth 1, 4-4, 1 or 1, 4-4, 0. Length 6 to 9 inches.

Habitat, Pennsylvania to Utah Basin, abundant in all streams north and south.

Diagnosis.—This familiar species may in general be known by its
large size and lack of silvery lustre, in connection with the presence of
the barbel. It has no spot on its dorsal fin, and its scales are not
crowded anteriorly.

Habits.—This fish is found in every stream in the State of Ohio. It
reaches a considerable size and is nearer a “game fish” than any other of

862 FISHES—CYPRINIDE.

its family in the State, as it takes the hook readily and energetically
and it may be eaten when properly fried. The catching of this fish is
the principal excitement of the average ‘summer boarder” at many
places in the south and west. The male of this species, in the spring,
has the head extravagantly covered with tubercles, hence the name
“ Horny-head.” This species is less disposed to ascend small streams than
the “Horned Dace” (Semotilus corgoralis), and is hence often called the
River Chub, the other being the Creek Chub. A fisherman of Rock Castle
River, in Kentucky, has told me that the young of this species makes the
best bait for the Black Bass, as “it will swim longer than any other
with a hook in its body.” These are almost the identical words used by
Rafinesque, concerning his still unidentified “Indian Chubb,” Luxilus
kentuckiensis.

Genus 42. COUESIUS. Jordan.

Couesius JORDAN, Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Terr., 1878.
Type, Leucosomus dissimilis, Girard.
Etymology, dedicated to Elliott Coues.

Body elongate, mouth terminal, normal; a well developed barbel at the posterior
end of the maxillary; teeth 2, 4-4, 2, hooked, without masticatory surface ; scales
rather small; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin over or slightly behind ventrals; anal
basis short. This genus comprises four or five species, all of large size and northern
distribution. They resemble the species of Semotilus, but differ in dentition and in the
position of the barbel.

83. CoUESIUS PROSTHEMIUS (Cope) Jordan.

Lake Chub.

Ceratichthys prosthemius, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 365 —JorDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1868, 307.

Ceratichthys plumbeus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 176 (probably not Gobio
plumbeus, Ag ).

Description.—This fish is of the average size of Semotilus corporalis, but of a much
more slender form ; the outline is fasiform, the head being small, and the muzzle broad
and abruptly descending ; back compressed medially ; first dorsal ray midway between
the end of the muzzle and the origin of the caudal, considerably longer than the first
ray of the anal, its base longer than the base of the anal; ventrals opposite the first ray
of the dorsal, not reaching to the vent; end of maxillary not reaching to opposite the
orbit ; mouth terminal, small; muzzle obtuse ; isthmus narrow ; barbels well developed ;
head and upper part of body blackish ; a plumbeous band above the lateral line, white
below; head 4; depth about 4; D.8; A. 8; scales 11-63-8; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length six
or seven inches.

Habitat, Great Lake region.

CHUB. 863

Diagnosis.—From other large chubs with a barbel, this species may be
known by the presence of two teeth in the lesser row in the pharyngeals,

Habits.—This species has thus far only been recorded from the Upper
Lakes. It is probably not abundant in Lake Erie, and does not, so far as
is known, ascend the streams.

A closely related species (Couesius dissimilis), with the mouth larger
and somewhat oblique, occurs in the Upper Lakes.

Genus 42. SEMOTILUS. Rafinesque.

Semotilus, RAFINEEQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 49.
Leucosomus, HECKEL, Russegger’s Reise, 1843, i, 1042,
Cheilonemus, BatRD, Storei’s, Fish. Mass. 1855, 288.
Type, Semotilus, Raf = Cyprinus corporalis, Mit.
Etymology, sema, banner, i.e., dorsal fin; tidus, supposed by Rafinesque to mean
spotted.

Body robust; mouth terminal, the upper jaw protractile ; a small barbel on the maxil-
lary just above its end; intestinal canal short ; teeth 2, 5-4, 2, hooked, without mastica-
tory surface; scales moderate ; lateral line continuous; dorsal more or less posterior to
ventrals; anal basis short; species of large size. This genus differs from Telestes in the
presence of a maxillary barbel; and from the European genus Gobio in the presence of
but two, instead of three, teeth in the lesser row.

But three or four species are known, divisible into two well marked subgenera,

Leucosomus.—Scales rather large, not crowded anteriorly ; dorsal nearly over ventrals,
without black spot at its base.

Semotilus.—Scales small, smaller and crowded anteriorly ; dorsal well behind ventrals,
with a black svot at its base in front.

The single representative of Leucosomus, Scmotilus bullaris (Raf.) Jor., the great Chub
or Fall fish of Pennsylvania and the Eastern States may perhaps occur in the eastern
part of Ohio. This species is much the largest of the eastern Cyprinide, and may be
known from 8. corporalis, by the absence of the black dorsal spot, and by the other
characters noticed above. In the young of both species the barbel is usually too small to
be appreciated.

84. SEMOTILUS CORPORALIS (Mitchell) Putnam.

Chub; Horned Dace; Creek Chub; Smaller Fall-fish.

Cyprinus corporalis, MITCHILL, Am. Monthly Mag,, ii, 1817, 289, and 1818, 324.

Leuciscus corporalis, DEKay, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 213.

Semotilus corporalis, PUTNAM, Bull, M. C. Z., 1863, 8; in Storer’s Fishes Mass., 256.—COPE,
Cyp. Penn., 362, 1866; Proc. Phil. Ac. Sci., 1865, 85; Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Terr.,
1870, 442, and 1871, 472.—ABBOTT, Am. Nat., April, 1870, 12.—JoRDan, Ind. Geol.
Surv., 1674, 223; Ball. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 94; Man. Vert., 1876, 278.—GooDe,
Bull. U. S. Mus., vi, 1676, 64; and of most late U. S. writers.

Leucosomus corporalis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 269.

Cyprinus atromaculatus, MITCHILL, Am. Monthly Mag,, ii, 1817, 324,

Leuciscus atromaculatus, DEKayY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 210.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 409,

864 FISHES—CYPRINIDA.

Semotilus atromaculatus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Soi., 1856, 204; Pac. R. R. Rept., 1858,
283.—ABBoTT, Am. Nat., April, 1870, 13.

Leucosomus atromaculatus, Cops, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1861, 223.

Semotilus dorsalis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 49.—KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, 160 ;
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 184, 345.—GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., 283.

Leuciscus dorsalis, STORER, Synopsis, 411.

Semotilus cephalus, RAFINEEQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 49.—KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio,
169; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 345.—GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surrey, 1858, 283.

Leuciscus cephalus, DeKay, Fishes of N. Y , 214, 1843.—STORER, Synopsis, 409.

Leuciscus iris, Cuv. and VAL., xvii, 1814, 253.

? Leuciscus rotengulus, Cuv. and VAL., xvii, 1844, 318.—STORER, Synopsis, 416.

Leuciscus storeri, Cuv. and VAL., xvii, 1844, 319.

Leuciscus pulchelloides, AYRuS, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 157.

Leuciscus incrassatus,GIRARD, Proc. Phila, Acad.Sci., 1856, 190; Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 252,

Semotilus macrocephalus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad , 1856, 201.

Leucosomus macrocephalus, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., 252.

Leucosomus pallidus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 180; Pac. R.R. Surv., 251.

Semotilus pallidus, CoPE, Cyp. Penn., 363.

Semotilus corporalis, var. pallidus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 279.

Semotilus speciosus, GIRARD, Proc, Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 204; Pac. R. R, Surv., 1858, 283.

Semotilus hammondi, ABBOTT, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1860, 474.

Description. —Body stout, the dorsal outline arched in front of the dorsal, the body
tapering backwards from a point considerably in advance of the dorsal, so that-the base
of that finis oblique; head large and heavy, broad and rounded above; snout broad,
mouth broad, oblique, the lower jaw slightly included, the upper lip just below tre
level of the pupil, the maxillary barely reaching the front of the pupil; maxillary bar-
bel small, not evident in specimens of less than two or three inches in length ; eye rather
small about five in head; scales small, considerably crowded and reduced anteriorly,
about thirty series is front of the dorsal fin ; lateral line beginning at upper posterior
angle of the opercle, and considerably decurved ; fins small, the dorsal aout midway
between ventrals and anal; color dusky bluish above; sides with a vague dusky band,
black in the young, disappearing in the adults; belly creamy, rosy tinted in the males
in spring; dorsal fin always with a conspicuous black spot at the base in front, which
is bordered with red in the male; a dark vertebral line; scales everywhere edged with
dark punctutations ; a dusky bar behind opercle; males with the snout coarsely tuber-
culated in spring; head 33; depth 4; D.7; A. 8; scales 9-58-6 (those in the lateral line
varying from 52 to upwards of 65) ; teeth 2, 5-4, 2; length 10 inches.

Habitat, Western Massachusetts to Dakota and South Georgia.

Diagnosis.—But two of the Ohio Cyprinids, possess: the characteristic
color mark of a black spot at the base of the dorsal in front. These are
Semotilus corporalis and Lythrurus diplemius. These are in other respects
very different. In cases of doubt, the latter may be distinguished by the
greater number of rays (LO to 12) in the anal fin. .

Habits.—This species, the largest of the Cyprinids of Ohio, abounds in
every brook, bayou or clear pond in the State. It takes the hook
readily, and makes fair food if fried crisp without delay.

RED-SIDED SHINER. 865

Genus 43. TELESTES. Bonaparte.

Telestes, BONAPARTE, Fauna Italica, Pisc.
Tigoma, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1856, 205.
Siboma, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1856, 209.
Clinostomus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Paila., 211.
Gila, sp. Cops, etc., (not of Baird and Girard).
Type, Leuciscus muticellus, Bonaparte. (Italy.)
Etymology, telestes, perfect.

This genus as here understood includes a very wide range of forms, agreeing in having
the mouth normal, large or small, without barbels; teeth 2, 4-5, 2 or 2, 5-5, 2 without
grinding surface; dorsal m>re or less posterior, usually behind the ventrals; scales
moderate or small, the lateral line complete; caudal fin without a great number of re-
current rudimentary rays The species are numerous in Europe, Asia, and Western
Amsrica. Thesingle species thus far noticed in Ohio, beloags to the subgenus Clinos-
iomus, distinguised by the enormous mouth, projecting lower jaw, backward dorsal, and
small scales.

85. TELESTES ELONGATUs (Kirtland) Jordan.

Red-sided Shiner.

Luszilus elongatus, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool , Ohio, 1838, 169, 192; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 389.

Leuciscus elongatus, Cuv. et VAL., xvii, 404.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 245.

Clinostomus elongatus, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 212.

Gila elongata, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.

Leuciscus productus, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 164.

Squalius proriger, CoPE, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 260.

Clinostomus proriger, Cope, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 375.

Leuciscus proriger, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus, vii, 246.

Description —Body elongate, compressed; head long, rather pointed; mouth very
large, oblique, the lower jaw notably projecting, with a small knob at the symphysis;
apper lip on the level of the pupil; maxillary extending to the middle of the orbit;
posterior angle of the opercle acute; eye moderate, nearly four in head; scales very
small; fins short and high, the dorsal somewhat behind ventrals; lateral line decurved ;
color dark bluish, the scales mottled with paler; sides with a broad black band; belly
more or less silvery; the front half of the lateral band bright crimson in spring males,
the belly and lower fins more or less reddened, a dark vertebral band; head 4; depth
5; D 8; A.9; scales 10-70-5; teeth 2, 4-5, 2. Length 4 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region and Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis —The great size of the mouth and the small size of the scales
distinguish this species from all other minnows found in Ohio.

Habits.—This is one of the most brilliant of our minnows. It fre-
quents clear, cold streams, and is therefore more abundant in the tribu-
taries of the lake than in those of the Ohio River. It is unsurpassed as
an aquarium fish.

55

866 FISHES—CYPRINIDA.

Genus 44. PHOXINUS. Agassiz.

Phoxinus, AGAssız, Mem. Soc. Sc. Neufchatel, 1, 37.

Type, Cyprinus phoxinus L. = Phoxinus lavis Ag.

Etymology, phoxinos, a minnow, from phoxos, tapering.

Body stout; mouth normal, without barbels; teeth 2, 5-5, 2, or 2, 5-4, 2, hooked, with-
out grinding surface ; scales small, but little imbricated ; lateral line incomplete or want-
ing; dorsal fin behind ventrals, anal basis short; species of small size and brilliant col-
oration; found both in Europe and America. The resemblance to Chrosomus in form,
squamation, and coloration is considerable, but the teeth and alimentary canal are quite
different. Three species are known in America, and two or three in Europe.

86. PHOXINUS NEOG Rus Cope.

New Worid Minnow.

Phoxinus neogeus, COPE, Trass. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 375.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit.
Mus,, vii, 247.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 302.

Description. —A stout little fish, with the head large, short, and blunt anteriorly; mouth
rather small, oblique, terminal, reaching about to the frent of the eye; eye mederate,
rather longer than muzzle; color blackish, a black lateral band, above which is a pale
streak; a dark spot at base of caudal; belly pale, crimson in the males in spring;
head 3 4-5; depth 41-5; D.8; A. 8; scales 18-77-12; lateral line developed on about 24
scales; teeth 2, 5-4, 2. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Southern Michigan to Minnesota.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by its very small scales and in-
complete lateral line. From Chrosomus erythrogaster it may be best known
by the presence of two rows of teeth. |

Habits.—T his little fish has been thus far noticed only in Southern
Michigan, Southern Wisconsin, and Northern Illinvis. It doubtless oc-
curs in North-western Ohio. Its habits are probably very similar to
those of Telestes elongatus.

Genus 45. NOTEMIGONUS. Rafinesque.

Notemigonus, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421,
Stilbe, DeKay, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 204.
Leucosomus, GIRARD, 1853 (not of Heckel = Semotilue).
Luzxilus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sei., 1°56, 203 (not of Raf.). (Type C. crysoleucus,
Mitch.)
Plargyrus, PUTNAM, Bulletin M. C. Z., 1863, 7 (not of Raf.).
Stilbius, GıLL, Can. Naturalist, 1865, 18. on
Type, Notemigonus.auratus, Raf. = Cyprinus chrysoleucus, Mit.
Eiymoiogy, notos, back; hemi, half; gonus, angle, the back being almost keeled.

Body deep, strongly compressed; the belly somewhat carinate behind the ventral
fins, the scales not crossing it; head small; jaws normal; mouth oblique; no barbels;
teeth 5-5, hooked, with grinding surface, the edges more or less crenate; the alimentary
canal moderate, rather longer than body, but hardly to be considered elongate; scales

GOLDEN SHINER. 867

moderate; lateral line much decurved, continuous; dorsal fin much behind ventrals;
anal basis moderately elongate; the rays 10 to 18; species. of large size, all American,
closely related to the European genus Abramis, from which they differ in the shorter
aval, Abramis having from 25 to 45 rays in that fin.

87. NoTEMIGcNUs-CHRYSOLEUCUS (Mitchill) Jordan.

‘

Geiden Shiner.

Cyprinus chrysoleucus, MITCHILL, Rept. Fishes N. Y., 1814, 23; Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc.,
i, 1815, 459. ;

Rutilus chrysoleuous, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 48,

Cyprinus (Leuciscus) chrysoleucus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Am,, iii, , 1837, 122.

Leuciscus chrysoleucus, STORER Rept. Fishes Mass., 1839, &8,—THoMPson, Hist Vermont,
1842, 136.—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 1843, 305.

Notemigonus chrysoleucus, JORDAN, Bull. U.S Mus, x, 1877, 65; Man, Vert., 24 Ed., 1878,
301.

Notemigonus auratus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 40.

Abramis versicolor, DeKay, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 191.

Leuciscus versicolor, STORER, Syn., 1846, 4i5..

Stilbe versicolor, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Aris, 1854, 359,

Leuciscus obesus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., July, 1865, p. —; Synopsis, 1846,
418.

Stilbe obesa, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sei. Arts, 1854, 359.

Luxilus obesus, GIRARD, Proc. Pail. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203.

Leuciscus americanus, STORER, 1816, 408. (Not of Linn. sus.)

Leucosomus americanus, GIRARD, Storer’s Fishes Mass. ” 1853, 283.

Luxilus americanus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203.

Plargyrus americanus, PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 7.

Stilbius americanus, GILL, Can, Nat., Aug , 1865, 18.—JoRDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 224.

Stilbe americana, Corps, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 389.—ABBOTT, Am. Nat., 1870, 14.—Goopk,
Bull. U, 8. Museum, vi, 1876, 64.—UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876,
145. .

Abramis americanus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 1863, 305.

Notemigonus americanus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155.—Jorpan, Ann.
N. Y. Lye. Nat. Hist., 1877, 344, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 93; Man. Vert.,
1876, 291.—NELson, Bull. Ils. Mus., 1876, 48. ,

Luxilus seco, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203; Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 281.

Notemigonus seco, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155.—JORDAN, Ann. N. Y.
Lyc, 1877, 365.

Descriplion. —Body moderately indes; strongly compressed ; head short, subconic,
compressed, the top of the head convex, the profile of the head continuous with that of
the back; mouth small, oblique, the upper lip on the level with the upper part of the
puril, the maxillary not reaching the front of the eye; eye moderate, about four in
head; fins medium; color clear greenish above; sides silvery with bright golden reflec-
tions; fins yellowish, the tips of the lower fins eometimes orange in spring males; head
44; depth 3; D.8; A. 12-14; scales 12-51-3; teeth 5-5. Length 12 inches.

868 FISHES—CYPRINIDA.

Habitat, Maine to Alabama and Texas, north to Minnesota. Every where abundant
except in the South Atlantic States, where it is superseded by the southern N. ameri-
canus (L ). :

Diagnosis.—This species bears little resemblance to our other Ohio
Oyprinide. In general, it may be known by the long anal fin, and by the
carinated belly, over the middle line of which (behind the ventral fins)
the scales do not pass. .

Habits—This large species is especially characteristic of sluggish
waters. In every lake, pond, or bayou in Ohio it is extremely abundant;
in weedy bayous most of all. The yellow pond lily is its favorite shel-
ter. Shallow ponds, left in the spring by the overflowing of some stream,
will often be found full of them, their companions in distress in such
cases being often Amiurus xanthocephalus and natalis, Umbra limi, Esox
salmoneus, and Erimyzon sucetta. This fish in form and coloration some-
what resembles a Shad, and it has been frequently taken for such by
careless observers. Rafinesque himself placed it among the Clupeide,
which fact accounts for the general neglect of his name, Notemigonus.

Genus CARASSIUS. Nilsson.

Carassius, NILSSON, Prodromus.

Type, Cyprinus carassius, L; Carassius vulgaris, Niles.

Etymology, from Karass or Karausch, the vernacular name of the European Crucian Carp.

Body oblong, compressed and elevated; mouth terminal, without barbels; teeth 4-4,
molar not compressed ; seales large; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin very long, with
a stout spine, which is serrated behind ; anal short, with a similar spine; large species,
of the fresh waters of Europe and Asia, often domesticated. One species, the familiar
Gold-fish, is here domesticated, and has become naturalized in some streams.

Carassius AURATUs (Linnzus) Bleeker.

Gold-Fish.

This fish, native of the fresh waters of China, and domesticated in all parts of the
world as an aquarium fish, is too well known to need description. There are twenty
species in the fresh waters of Ohio, more beautifully colored than this coarse and
gaudy fish, and more desirable for agaariam purposes in every respect, except that of
tenacity of life.

Genus CYPRINUS. Linnezas.

Cyprinus, LINNZUS, Systema Natura, i, 525.

Type, Cyprinus carpio, L.

Etymology, kuprinos, Carp.

Body ehort and deep, resembling that of a Buffalo-fish; head heavy; mouth anterior,
rather narrow, with four long barbels; dorsal fin long, with a strong, serrated spine ;
anal short; scales large, reduced in number, or wanting in some of the domesticated
varieties; teeth molar-like, 1, 1, 3-3, 1, 1. Europe and Asia, one species; introduced
into America,

CARP. 869
CYPRINUS cARPIo Linnzus.

Carp.

This well known fish was originally a native of Asia, from whence it has been intro-
duced into Europe and America. In dom>stication it has eplit up into many varieties.
I am not aware that it has as yet become naturalized in any part of Ohio. As a fish for
ordinary pond culture it has no equal.

FAMILY X. DOROSOMATIDA. THE GIZZARD
SHADS.

Herring-like fishes, with the mouth entirely toothless, small, subinferior, oblique, over-
lapped by the blantish snout, maxillary bone narrow and short, of a single piece, not
reaching to opposite the middle of the eye, and forming but a small part of the lateral
margin of the upper jaw; mandible short and broad, its rami enlarged at base; gill-
rakers slender, comparatively short; gill membranes not united; branchiostegals 5 to
7 in number, fourth branchial arch with an accessory branchial organ; head short,
body ovate, elevated, strongly compressed, covered with rather large, deciduous scales;
no lateral line; belly closely compressed, its edge retrorsely serrated ; dorsal fin about
midway of the body, usually behind ventrals; pectorals rather long, with an accessory
scale; anal very long and low; caudal forked; stomach stout, muscular, gizzard-like.
Genera two, with about a dozen species inhabiting the coasts and rivers of most warm
regions.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF DOROSOMATIDE.

*Last ray of dorsal fin produced into a filament. 2 s . DOROSOMA. 46.
Genus 46. DOROSOMA. Rafinesque.

Dorosoma, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 39.
Chatoessus, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 2d Ed., 1828.

Type, Dorosoma notata, Raf., Clupea heterurus, Raf.

Etymology, doros, lance; soma, a body.

As here understood, this genus includes all those Dorosomatide which have the last
ray of the dorsal fin prolouged into a filament. The species of this genus are properly
marine, but most of them ascend fresh waters, and individuals of some species are perma-
nently resident there.

870 FISHES—DOROSOMATIDE.

88. DorosomA CEPEDIANUM (LeSueur) Gill.

Gizzard Shad; Hickory Shad.
var, cepedianum (East Coast, marine form.)

Megalops cepediana, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., i, 1817, 361.

Chatoessus cepedianus, Cuv. et VaL., Hist. Nat..des Poiss., xxi, 99.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish.
Brit. Mas., vii, 409.

Dorosoma cepedianum, GILL, Cat. Fish. East Coast, 1861, 55, and elsewhere, and of late
writers generally.

Dorysoma cepediana, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 279.

Chatoessus insociabilis, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1560, 365.

var. heterurum.

Clupea heterurus, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 354.

Dorysoma cepediana heterura, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 13; Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 280, and elsewhere.

Dorosoma notata, RAFINESQUK, Ich. Oh., 1820, 40, and of some authors.

Chatoessus elliptieus, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, pp. 169, 195.—KıRTLAanD, Bost.
Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 235, pl. 10, fig. 1.

Description —Body ovate, much compressed, but not ahi elevated, ‘axis of body
considerably nearer dorsal than ventral outline; mouth small, inferior, the snout
rounded ; eye twice the length of snont, 43 in head; length of top of head 33 in dis-
tance to origin of dorsal; dorsal fin beginning midway between snout and middle of
base of candal, the last or filamentous ray being about equal to the length of the
head and more than twice the base of the fin; pectorals scarcely reaching ventrals; 14
in head; ventrals reaching half way to anai, 2 1-6 in head; vent about midway be-
tween snout and tip of caudal; base of anal a little longer than head, three times the
height of its longess yay; caudal fin widely forked, the lobes usually unequal, largely
scaly at base; depth of candal peduncle half length of head; color bluish above,
aides silvery, often with golden reflections 3 fins plain; young with a large blackish
blotch on each side behind the head, over the pectoral fins, this disappearing with
age; head 4; depth 24; D. 11; A. 30; V. 8; lat. 1. 56; 20 scales from dorsal to ven-
trals; 17 scutes in front of ventrals, 12 behind. Length 12 to 15 inches.

Habitat, Atlantic and Gulf coasts of United States from New York to Texas, entering
streams and often becoming land-locked in ponds. Var. Aeterurus, in all large streams
of the Mississippi Basin, escaped through canals into Lake Michigan and Lake Erie.

Diagnosis.—This fish may be known by its serrated belly and small,
toothless mouth, and by the filament on the dorsal fin.

Habits.—This species is abundant in the Ohio River. It apparently.
prefers the deeper waters, and seldom ascends the smaller streams. It
has, however, entered the canals, and specimens are now frequently
taken in Lake Erie. Mr. Klippart states that “before the construction
of the Ohio Canal it was not found anywhere north of the divide, or

GIZZARD SHAD. 871

water shed between the lake and the Ohio River. It abounds in the
Licking Reservoir, and is a great nuisance to the fishermen, who some-
times find that two-thirds of all the fish in the net are these ‘ herring,’
asthey term them.” Thisepecies feeds upon weeds, i. e., vegetable debris,
alg&, conferve, desmids, and diatoms.

As a food fish, the Gizzard Shad is almost worthless. The flesh is soft,
coarse, and insipid, as well as full of bones. Mr. Klippart states that it
ls sometimes split and salted on Lake Erie and shipped with other fish
of low grade as“ Lake Shad.” He also states that “forty years ago it
was esteemed an excellent food fish on the Cincinnati market,” which, if
true, shows either that the Cincinnatians do not now buy fish for their
good looks (for the gizzard Shad is a handsome fish), or else in forty
years they have progressed a long way toward epicureanism.

The popular name “Gizzard Shad” is given in given in allusion to the
gizzard-like form of the stomach, which resembles that of a hen.
“Hickory Shad” is said to allude to a fancied resembance between the
stomach and a hickory nut.

Synonymy.—This fish is now considered as a form or variety of the
common Eastern Gizzard Shad, which is a salt water fish, although, like
the Shad, it freely enters the rivers.’ The oldest name for the Western
form is heterurus of Rafinesque, given in allusion to the inequality of
the lobes of the tail. The difference between heterurum and cepedianum
is not great, the greater arch of the back in cepedianum being the main
difference.

FAMILY XI. CLUPEIDE. THE HERRINGS.

Clupeoid fishes, with the month moderate or rather large, termina], the jaws nearly
equal ; the maxillary composed of about three pieces, not extending beyond the eye;
dentition extremely various, the teeth typically feeble; gill-rakers more or less elongate,
slender; gill openings wide, the membranes not united; branchiostegals rather few ;
body compressed, the belly serrated ; scales moderate or rather large, deciduous; no lat-
eral line; caudal fin forked ; dorsal fin moderate, nearly median, nearly opposite the
ventrals (which are absent in a foreign genus); anal fin moderate or long, genera
about twelve, although a much greater number has been described ; species about 120,
inhabiting all seas, some of them ascending or remaining in fresh waters ; many of
them are highly valued as food fishes; others are coarse and fall of small bones; most
of the species are closely related to the typical genus Clupea, bat the variations in the
position of tho rudimentary teeth are extremely great. These variations have given
rise to a great number of generic names, most of which are probably useless.

872 FISHES—CLUPEIDA.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CLUPEIDA.

*No teeth on the vomer ; no dorsal filament; scales cycloid.
+ Cheeks deeper than long; teeth wanting or on the jawsonly. . . . ALOSA.
tt Cheeks longer than deep; tongue and often jaws also with more or less devel-
oped teeth, 5 H 3 : R . 2 . . PoMoLosBus. 47.

Genus ALOSA. Cuvier.

Alosa, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 2d Ed., 1829.

Type, Clupea alosa, L.; Alosa vulgaris, Cav.

Etymology, Latin alausa or alosa, a name applied by early writers to the Shad, from
the Engl‘sh Allis or German, alse, allied to the Latin, halec

This genus differs from Pomolobus chiefly in the form of the cheeks, which are higher
than long, the horizontal process of the opercle being very short; the body is deeper
than in the other genera, and there are no teeth except sometimes a few cadacous ones
in the jaws. The propriety of retaining Alasa as a genus distinct from Pomolobus is not
very evident; but until the whole group can be reviewed, it is best to follow custom.

ALOSA SAPIDISSIMA (Wilson) Storer.
Common Shad.

Clupea alosa, MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soe., i, 1814, 449 (not of Linnzus).

Clupea sapidissima, WILSON, Rees’ Eucyclopedia, Amer. Ed, 181.

Clupea sapidissima, RAFINESQUE, Am Movthly Mag,, ii, 1818, 205.

Alosa sapidissima, STORER, Synopsis Fish. N. A , 458, and of nearly all late writers.

Alosa prestabilis, DEKay, New Yo:k Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 255.—STORER, Hist. Fish.
Mass., and of writers.

Description —Body stout, elliptical, compressed ; mouth moderate, usually entirely
toothless; lower jaw rather longest, its tip fitting into an emargination of the upper;
dorsal fin median, beginning rather in front of the ventials; ventral serrations strong;
color bluish or olivaceous, sides silvery ; usually a dusky blotch on sides behind head,
sometimes followed by one or more smaller ones; in older specimens these become obso-
lete; head 4} in length; depth 34; D 15; A. 19; lat. 1. 60; scutes 21, 15. Length 1
to 2 feet.

Habitat, New England to Gulf of Mexico, ascending streams to spawn.

Diagnosis—The true shad may be known by its serrated belly and
rather large mouth. which is usually totally destitute of teeth.

Habits —As this familiar and excellent fish is not indigenous to the
waters of Ohio, its habits may be biiefly treated here. It is found along
the whole Atlantic Co.st of the United States, and ascends all suitable
streams in the spring for the purpose of spawning. Its migrations in the
sea extend from the South northward in the spring, returning in the fall.
In Ohio Shad have been introduced into the Ohio River, but as they mi-
grate southward in the summer, the chance of their returning next sea

SKIPJACK. 873

son to the same district, or even the same State, is not very great.
Several large individuals have already been takeninthe Ohio. Astothe
value of the Shad as a food fish in Ohio, the following note by Mr. Klip-
part, seems to contain the gist of the matter.

“People from the East, who, in their childhood, were accustomed to
Shad as a food fish, have imbibed very strong prejudices in its favor ; but
people accustomed to White-fish at first, never learn to esteem the Shad
as highly as Eastern people do. Non-migrating fishes will find greater
favor as food fish, while any sort of game fish will be greatly preferred by
the sportsman.”

Genus 47. POMOLOBUS. Rafinesque.

Pomolobus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 38.
Kowala, Meletta, etc., Cuv. et VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xx.
Alausella, GıLL, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 36, etc.
Type, Pomolobus chrysochloris, Rafinesque.
Etymology, poma, operculum ; lobos, lobe.

No teeth on the vomer ; feeble or caducous teeth present on some one or more of the
bones of the mouth (rather stout in one species) ; lower jaw rather the longest, its lips
fitting into the emargination of the upper; gill rakers rather long; dorsal fin median,
beginning rather in advance of ventrals, its last ray not filamentous; ventral serrations
strong ; body oblong, compressed ; scales medium, posteriorly entire. Species 60 or 70,
in all seas, some of them entering or remaining in fresh water.

This genus is divisible into several groups or subgenera, Pomolobus proper being re-
presented by a single American fresh water species. It is distinguished by its stronger
dentition, the teeth at the symphysis of the lower jaw being larger than in other
Clupeide, and there are some teeth on the premaxillaries and the tongue. The Ameri-
can marine species (Alewife, etc.,) belong to the subgenus Meletta, with teeth on the
tongue only. Both Pomolobus and Alosa are distinguished from Clupea by characters of
little importance.

89. PoMoLOBUS CHRYSOCHLORIS Rafinesque.

Skipjack; Ohio Shad.

Pomolobus chrysochloris, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 38 —GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei.,
Phila., 1861, 33.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 279, and of most late writers
who have noticed the species.

Alosa chrysochloris, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 307, pl. 15, fig. 3.

Description —Body elliptical, much compressed, not elevated ; month rather large,
terminal, oblique, the teeth in the jaws better developed than in other shad-like fishes ;
caudal peduncle rather deep, its depth about twice the width of the eye; color brilliant
blue, with green and golden reflections, silvery below ; head 4; depth 54; D.18; A. 18;
lat. 1.55; 17 scutes behind ventrals. Length 8 to 12 inches.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley and Gulf of » exico; generally abundant in the larger
streams, and escaped through the canals into Lakes Erie and Michigan.

874 FISHES—HYODONTIDE.

Diagnosis.—From all other Ohio fishes, this species may be known by
the serrated belly, in connection with the projecting lower jaw. |

Habits —In regard to distribution, habits and value as food this
species is essentially like the Gizzard Shad. It is found only in the
larger rivers and ponds, never ascending the small streams. Compara-
tively lately, it has made its way into the Lakes. It is migratory to some
extent, but whether individuals ever descend from Ohio to the Gulf of
Mexico, is not yet known. It is a handsome fish, but it does not reach a
very large size, and its flesh being dry and bony, it is not valued as food.
The name Skipjack alludes to its habit of leaping from the water. It
feeds upon small fishes, insects and probably crustaceans.

FAMILY XII. HYODONTIDA. THE MOON EYES.

Clupeoid fishes with the mouth moderate, oblique, terminal, the jaws about equal,
the maxillary reaching to about opposite the middle of the eye; maxillary small, slender,
without supplemental bones, articulated to the end of the premaxillary, and forming
the lateral margin of the upper jaw; eye exceedingly large, much longer than the thick,
bluntish snout; dentition greatly developed, nearly every bone in the mouth being
provided with bands of teeth; premaxillary and mandible provided with rather stout vill-
iform teeth; maxillaries with feeble teeth; tongue with two marginal rows of very long
canines, between which is a band of close set, shorter, almost paved teeth ; vomer with
& similar long series of paved teeth, but without canines; palatines with long series of
close set teeth, a similar series on the pterygoids and on the sphenoid bone; sides of
lower jaw shutting within the upper, so that the dentaries fio against the palatines ;
gill membranes entirely separate, the branchiostegals eight to ten in number; scales
large, brilliantly silvery, cycloid; lateral line distinct, straight; body oblong,
compressed, rather deep, belly with ordinary scales, rounded or carinated ; dorsal fin
well back, beginning opposite the vent; ventrals well developed; caudal fin strongly
forked A single genus, with about three species, inhabiting the fresh waters of North
America, remarkable for their brilliantly silvery coloration.

Genus 48. HYODON. LeSuenr.

Hiodon, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 364.
Glossodon, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 354.
Amphiodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421 (alosoides).
Clodalus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 43.
Glossodon, HECKEL, Russegger’s Reisen, i, 1843, 1033.
Elattonistius, GILL and JORDAN, Ball. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877. (Subgenus.).
Type, Hiodon tergisus, LeSueur.
Etymology, huoeides, hyoid bone, i.e., bone shaped like the letter upsilon ; odon, tooth
(in allusion to the toothed tongue).

Generic characters not separable from those of the family.

MOON-EYE. 875

90. Hyopon TERGISsUs LeSueur.

Moon-eye; Toothed Herring; “Silver Bass.”

Hiodon tergisus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 364.

Hyodon tergisus, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 265.—KırrLanp, Bost. Journ, Nat.
Hist.. v, 1846, 333 —Cuv. et Var., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xix, 309,—GIRARD, U. 8.
Pac. R.R. Expl., Fish., 1859, 332.—GUNTuER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus , vii, 375.— JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 277, and of all recent authors.

Hiodon clodalus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 367.

Glossodon harengoides, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 354.

Glossodon heterurus, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 354.

Hyodon vernalis, RaFiINESQU#, Ich. Oh., 1820, 43.

Cyprinus ( Abramis? ) smithii, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 110.

Leuciscus smithii of copyists.

Glossodon smithii, HECKEL, Russegger’s Reisen, 1843, 1033, (as a new genus of Cyprinidae).

Description. —Body oblong, closely compressed ; belly in front of ventrals very slightly
transversely carinated, the edge vbtuse ; belly behind ventrals with the edge somewhat
sharp; head short and blunt, the eye very large, much longer than the snout,
three in head ; pectoral fins shorter than head, not reaching nearly to the ventrals; dorsal
fin nearly as long as high in front; color brilliantly silvery, the back slightly darker ;
head 44-3; depth 3; D. 12; A. 23; scales 5-58-8. Length about a foot.

Habitat, Canada, Great Lake Region and entire Mississippi Valley ; abundant in
the larger streams and lakes.

Diagnosis.—The Moon-eye may be known among Ohio fishes by its
compressed form and brilliant white color, in connection with the sharp
teeth and very large eye. This species may be known from the next
by the number of developed rays (12) in the dorsal fin.

Habits.—This fish frequents the large rivers and lakes, very seldom
ascending small streams. It probably retires to deep waters in the win-
ter. Itisavigorous and “gamey ” fish, usually freely taking the minnow
or fly, and it is abundant both in Lake Erie and the Ohio, so that it is
often taken in large numbers in seines. From its great beauty, it is usually
salable where not well known, but its flesh is poor, and, like most
of its relatives, its bones are small and numerous. Dr. Estes considers it
“one of the smartest of fishes. They will come up, taste a fly, let go and
be gone before the angler has time to strike, Therefore to be a Moon-
eye fly-fisher, one must be very sharp and not read a book while cast-
ing,” (Estes-Hallock, Sportsman’s Gazetteer, 327). The Moon-eye feeds
on insects, crustacea and small fishes.

91. Hyopon ALosoIpes (Rafinesque) Jordan and Gilbert.

Amphiodon alosoides, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, Paris, 1819. |

Hyodon amphiodon, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820.

Hyodon chrysopsis, RICHARDSON, Fauna Boreali-Amer., iii, 1836, 232.—JORDAN, Bull. U. 8;
Nat. Mus , x, 1877, 68.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 277.

876 FISHES—SALMONIDA.

Description. —Body closely compressed, becoming deep in the adult; eye moderate,
smaller than in other species, about 34 in head, the maxillary reaching to beyond its
middle; back Jess arched, snout blunter and more elevated than in A tergisus, mouth
larger and more oblique; pectorals longer and ventrals shorter than in A. tergisus; belly
carinated both before and behind ventrals; bluish, sides silvery, with golden luster ;
head 4 3-4; depth 34; D.9; A. 32; scales 6-56-7.

Habitat, Ohio River to the Saskatchawan ; common northward.

Diagnosis.—From Hyodon tergisus, this epecies may be known by its
short dorsal, of but nine developed rays, and by the carination of the
whole ventral edge.

Habits.—Nothing distinctive is known of the habits of this species.
Originally described by Rafinesque from the Falls of the Ohio, its occur-
rence southward has been overlooked until very lately. In 1836 it was
found in the Saskatchawan River by Sir John Richardson, and later by
Dr. Coues in the Upper Missouri. In 1880 the writer obtained numer-
ous specimens at the Falls of the Ohio, and was thus enabled to recog-
nize the Amphiodon alosoides of Rafinesque. The species will doubtless
be found in all the larger rivers of the Northwest. A third species,
Hyodon selenops, Jordan and Bean, occurs in the rivers of the Southern
States, but has not yet been seen in Ohio.

FAMILY XIII. SALMONIDAH. THE SALMONS.

Body oblong or elongate, covered with cycloid scales; head naked ; mouth terminal,
varying much in size and form ; maxillary forming the lateral margin of the upper jaw,
provided with a supplymental bone, premaxillaries not protractile ; teeth various, some-
times wanting; gills four, a slit behind the fourth; pseudobranchiz present, but often
small or rudimentary ; gill-rakers moderate; gill-membranes not connected, free from
the isthmus; branchiostegals 6-20; no barbels; dorsal usually median, not greatly
elongate; adipose fin present; caudal fin forked; anal fin moderate or rather long;
ventrals moderate, nearly median ; pectorals placed low ; lateral line present; abdomen
rounded ; air-bladder large; stomach cwcal or siphonal, the pyloric coca few or many,
sometimes obsolete ; ova generally large, falling into the cavity of the abdomen before
exclusion ; genera about 20; species 125, a large and varied family. Its members in-
habit chiefly the fresh waters of northern regions, many of them being anadromous, run-
ning up from the sea to spawn in the rivers. One genus, Retropinna, is found in New
Zealand, and the species of Microstoma, Argentina, and Silus are mostly deep sea fishes,
In economic importance this family ranks among the very first, and the Salmon and
Trout in all northern regions are the choicest prize of the angler.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF SALMONIDE.

a Pyloric ceca many; stomach siphonal.
b. Jaws toothless or nearly so; scales large. (Üoregonin«.)
ce. Maxillary short and broad. 3 ‘ ö 7 . . COREGONUS. 49,
bb. Jaws with distinct teeth; scales mostly small. (Salmonine.)

PILOT FISH. 877

d. Anal fin elongate of 14 to 17 rays. . n . ONCORHYNCHUS. 50.

dd. Anal fin short, of 9-11 developed rays.
‘ e. Vomer flat, its tovthed surface plain; teeth on the shatt of the vomer in

alternating rows or one zigzag row, those on the shaft placed directly

on the surtace of the bone, not on a free crest (posterior vomerine teeth
sometimes deciduous); species black-spotted. . . Samo. 51.

ee. Vomer boat-shaped, the shaft strongly depressed ; scales very small, about

200 in the course of the lateral line; species not anadromons. j

f. Shaft of vomer with a raised crest, bearing strong teeth, the crest pos-

teriorly free; a bard of stout, recarved teeth on the hyoid bone;
species gray-spotted. s . ‘ ‘ . CRISTIVOMER. 52.

Jf. Shaft of vomer without raised crest, entirely toothless; species crim-

son spotted, the lower fins with marginal bands of black aud plain.

SALVELINUS. 53. -

Genus 49. COREGONUS. Linnzus.

Coregonus, LINNZUS, Sytema Natura, 1758 (artedi).
Argyrosomus, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850 (artedi).
Prosopium, MILNER, Mss., Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878 (quadrilateralis).
Allosomus, JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878 (tullibee).
Type, Salme (Coregonus) lavaretus, L.
Etymology, korre, the temples; gonos, angle.

Body oblong or elongate, compressed ; head more or less conic, compressed, the form
of the snuut varying considerably ; mouth small, the maxillary short, not extending
beyond the orbit, with a well developed supplemental bone ; teeth extremely minute,
if present ; scales rather large, cyoloid, about 80 in the course of the lateral line; dor-
sal fin moderate, caudal fin deeply forked, anal fin somewhat elongate, of about 14 rays ;
ventrals well developed ; pseudobranchi® large; gill-rakers varying from short and
thick to very long and slender; air-bladder very large; stomach horse-shoe shaped,
with many—about 100—pyloric ceca ; ova small; species about 40, inhabiting the clear,
fresh waters of Northern Europe, Asia, and America, in arctic regions descending to the
sea. The group, as here defined, inclades a number of sections characterized by minor
modifications of structure, some of which have been considered as genera. It seems to
us that the number of distinct species has been overestimated by previous writers, and
the difficulty of distinguishing species is greater, and the geographical range of each
one is much wider than has hitherto been generally supposed. The species are highly
valued for food ; the coloration is very unifurm, bluish above, the sides and below sil-
very or olivaceous.

This genus may be subdiv.ded as follows:

* Premaxillaries broad, placed vertically or turned inward, overlapping the tip of the
lower jaw; the outliue of the muzzle, therefore, bluntish or truncate.

t Preorbital short and very broad; gill-rakers very short, thick, few in number;
supraorbital short, ovate; maxillary short and rather broad, not reaching to the
line of the eye; the small supplementary bone narrow and sharply elliptical ;
mouth very small; the snout more or less produced. (Prosopium, Milner.)

QUADRILATERALIS.

878 FISHES—SALMONIDE.

tt Preorbital long and narrow; gill-rakers long and slender; supraorbital oblong
maxillary comparatively long, the supplemental bone ovate, rather broad.

( Coregonus.)

t Tongue toothless, or nearly so; back’ elevated. 2 & -CLUPEIFORMIS.
t Tongue with about three series of small teeth; body elongate, compressed, the

back not elevated. 5 ‘ . . 2 e LABRADORICUS.

** Premaxillaries narrow, placed more or less horizontally ; mandible elongate, often
projecting ; the outline of the muzzle pointed; all the bones of the head more or
less elongate.

$ Body elongate, subfusiform, the dorsal and ventral curves not equal; scales
small, uniform, convex behind; gill-rakers long and slender. (Argyrosomus,
Agassiz.) a

a. Lower jaw shorter, included; premaxilleries oblique, their anterior mar-
gin in front below level of pupil; scales bright silvery, not punctate.

HOYL
aa. Lower jaw more or less projecting; premaxillaries nearly horizontal,
their anterior margins in front, not below, the pupil; scales punctu-

late with black. io is 5 Se: ARTEDI, NIGRIPINNIS.
$$ Body short, deep, compressed, shad-like; curve of the back similar to that
of the belly; scales large, larger forwards, rather closely imbricated,

the posterior margin little convex. (Allosomus, J ordan.) TULLIBEE.

92. CoREGONUS QUADRILATERALIS Richardson.

Pilot-fish; Shad Waiter; Reund Fish; Menomonee White-fish.

Salmo (Coregonus) quadrilateralis, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 714.

Coregonus quadrilateralis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi, 176.—JORDAN, Man. Vert,
2d Ed., 1878, 276, and of authors generally.

Coregonus noveangle, PRESCOTT, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xi, 1851, 342.

Body elongate, not elevated, nor much compressed, the back rather broad, the form
rather more terete than in any of the other species; mouth very small and narrow, in-
ferior, the broad maxillary not reaching to opposite the eye, 53 in head; head long, the
snout compressed and bluntly pointed, but not strongly decurved ; mandible originating
under middle of eye, 34 in head; adipose fin small; gill-raker short and stoutish ;
snout scarcely below level of lower edge of eye; preorbital wider than pupil; head 5
in length; depth 42; D 11; A. 10; scales 9-80 to 90-8; color dark bluish above, silvery
below. Length about 1 foot,

Habitat, deep, cold lakes, New Hampshire, Upper Great Lake Region, and northward
to Alaska. I have seen no specimens from Lake Erie, but it undoubtedly occurs there.

Diagnosis.—From the other species of White-fish found in the Great
Lakes, this species may be known by its short, blunt gill-rakers and
broad preorbital.

Habits —Little distinctive is recorded of the habits of the Menomonee
White fish. It is never taken in large numbers; it inhabits considera-
ble depths, and the stomach is often found to be filled with small shells.

COMMON WHITE-FISH. 879

93. CoREGONUS CLUPEIFORMIS (Mitchill) Milner.

Common White-fish.

Salmo clupeiformis, MITCHILL, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 321.

Coregonus clupeiformis, MILNER, Mas., in Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 362. (Not of
authors generally = C. artedi.) ;
Coregonus albus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 231.—GUNTHER, Cat.

Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 184, and of most authors.
Coregonus otsego, DEWITT CLINTON, Med. Phil. Regist ‚iii, 18<. the “‘ Otsego Lake Bass.”

Coregonus richardsoni, latior and sapidissimus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes -Brit. Mus., vi,
185, 1-6.

Deseription.—Body oblong, compressed, always more or less elevated, and becoming
notably so in the adult; head comparatively small and short, the snout bluntish, ob-
liquely truncated ; maxillary reaching just past front of orbit, about four in head; eye
large, 4 to5 in head; color olivaceous above; sides white, but not silvery ; width of pre-
orbital less than half that of pupil; lower fins shortish ; gill rakers moderate, slender,
two-thirds diameter of eye, about 50 below ang!e of arch; tip of snout on level of pupil ;
tip of lower jaw on level of lower part of eye; head 5 in length; depth 3 to 4; D.11;
A. 11; seales 8-74-9. Length, 20 inches. ‘‘The average white-fish is of two or three
pounds weight, a large one six or seven; rarespscimens are caught, however, of much
greater weight, sometimes turning the scales at 20 pounds.”— Stockwell.

Habitat, large bodies of water; Great Lakes and northward.

Diagnosis. —This species may be known from other White-fishes by the
small mouth and short lower jaw, in connection with the slender gill- .
rakers and narrow preorbital. The young are much slenderer than the
adult, and the variations due to food and condition are very great. Old
fishes usually have a considerable fleshy hump at the shoulders, and the
head seems disproportionately small.

Habi’s.—The following account of the spawing habits is from the pen
of Dr. G. A. Stockwell, of Port Huron, Michigan (in Hallock’s Sports-
man’s Gazetteer, 4th edition, 332, 1878):

“ The spawning begins in November, terminating in December, and is indicated by
the fish leaving deep water and appearing in immense numbers on rocky shoals.
Formerly they frequented the streams for this purpose, but at the present time, there
are but few streams emptying into the Great Lakes that are free from saw-mills and
their attendant dust, which is offensive to these fish. At the first day’s netting on the
spawning beds, the catch is wholly males, apparently well stocked with milt; on the
second, a few females appear, plump with apawn The proportion of females increased
day by day until a week or ten days when there are two or three and often four times
as many females as males, after which they gradually disappear, until the latter pre-
ponderate as they are the last as well as first upon the beds. The best opinion seems to
be that the males precede the females only to prepare the ground ; especially as they at
that time assume an extraordinary roughness of scales and employ themselves constantly
in scraping up gravel on which the spawn is subsequently deposited. Some, however,
believe that the mere inclination to milt causes them to seek the proper position with-

880 FISHES.—SALMONID A.

out reference to the presence or absence of the females; others still are of the opinion
that they precede only to wait for the females, and do not commence milting until
spawning begins. The latter opinion is undoubtedly the true one, for Mr. Milner has
established the fact that the act of spawning in the female and milting in the male is
carried on at the same time, and with a slight though decided orgasm. The males have
been accused of lingering for the purpose of feasting on the spawn, but this is contrary
to nature and undoubtedly a slander. The most careful of observers assures me that the
males who linger on the beds are employed in covering the spawn.”

“The White- fish has been known since the time of the earliest explorers as pre-emin-
ently a fine flavored fish. In fact, there are few table-fishes its equal. * * To be
appreciated in its fullest excellence, it should be taken fresh from the lake and broiled.
Father Marquette, Charlevoix, Sir John Richardson, explorers, who for months at a
time had to depend on the White-fish for their staple article of food, bore testimony in
their writings to the fact, that they never lost their relish for it, and deemed it a
special excellence that the appetite never became cloyed with it.”— Milner.

Food —The food of the White-fish was for a long time an unsolved
problem, as nothing but slime is usually found in their stomachs. It is
now known that they feed mainly on small Crustacea and Mollusks in-
habiting deep waters, organisms which are digested in the stomachs of
those fishes taken in the pound nets, before the fishes are taken from the
water.

Mr. Milner observes (Rept. Comm. Fish and Fisheries, 1872-73, p.

44):
, “To Dr. P. R Hoy, of Racine, we think, belongs the credit of first discovering the
character of their food. On opening the stomachs of numerous White-fish, he at first
failed to determine the character of the stomach-contents, until after washing the half-
digested mass in a basin of water, he found the sediment to be fall of small crustacea,
whose existence in the lake had never before been suspected.

‘“My examination and preservation of the stomach contents from all quarters of the
lakes, confirmed Dr. Hoy’s observations and discovered a few other small forms of life as
the food of the White. fish.

“ The invertebrates found were, of Crustaceans, Species of the families Gammaride and
Myside ; of the Mollusks, species of the genus Pisidium; and certain insect-larve,”

The White fish very rarely takes the hook, and is in no sense a game-
fish. It is taken in all the great Lakes in very great numbers, formerly
with seines, but now chiefly by means of giil-nets and pound-nets. Among
the fishes of Ohio, it is the most important both as to quantity taken and
quality as food. Attempts at artificial propogation have been very suc-
cessful. The fullest and best account of the habits of the White-fish is
to be found in the Report of the U. S. Comm..of Fish and Fisheries,
1872 3, pp. 43-64, written by the late Prof. Jas. W. Milner. To this
report, the reader is referred for further details.

MUSQUAN RIVER WHITE-FISH. 881

94. CoREGONUS LABRADORICUS Richardson.

Musquan River White-fish ; Labrador White-fish; “ Whiting ” of
Lake Winnepiseogee.

Coregonus labradoricus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Boreali-Amer., iii, 1836, 206.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 176, and of authors generally.
Coregonus neohantoniensis, PRESCOTT, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xi, 1851, 342,

Description.—Body rather elongate, compressed, the back not elevated ; head rather
long and slender, compressed ; mouth rather small, the jaws equal, the maxillary reach-
ing tothe front of the pupil; maxillary bone broad, rather short, its supplementary
piece ovate; tongue with about three series of distinct small teeth; mandible reaching
middle .of eye; eye large, 48 in head; supraorbital bone long and rather narrow;
bluish black above, silvery below ; scales with dark punctulations; fins all dusky; dor-
sal fin high in front, the last rays short; gill rakers slender; head 4% in length; depth
44; D.11; A. 11; scales 9-30-8. Length about 15 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region to the Adirondacks, White Mountains and northward,
in cold, clear lakes.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known from the Common White-fish
by its slenderer body, larger mouth and evidently stout small teeth, the
form of the mouth readily separates it from the ‘‘ Lake Herring” and its
relatives.

Habits —Little distinctive is recorded of the habits of this species. It
is very abundant in Canada and northern New England, but I have
seen no specimens from Lake Erie, and do not know that it occurs there.
It is said to rise to the fly in the Canadian Lakes.

95. CoREGonvs Hoy! (Gill) Jordan.
Lake Moon-eye; Cisco of Lake Mighigan.

Argyrosomus hoyi, GILL, MSS., Hoy, Trans. Wis. Acad., 1872, 100 (name only).—JoRDAN,
Amer. Nat., March, 1875, 135.—MILNER, Rept. U. 8. Fish Com’r for 1872-3, 86.
Coregonus hoyi, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1868, 275.

Body rather elongate, compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; head rather long, in
form intermediate between Coregonus and Argyrosomus; mouth rather large, terminal,
the lower jaw evidently shorter than upper, even when the mouth is open; tip of muz-
zle rather bluntly truncate; maxillary reaching to opposite middle of pupil, about 6 in
head; mandible extending to posterior margin of pupil; supraorbital narrow ; suborb-
ital rather broad; premaxillary on level of lower part of pupil; preorbital narrow;
pseudobranchiz very laige; fins low, the free margin of the dorsal very oblique ; eye
very large, 34 in head; tongue with traces of teeth; gill-rakers slender, about
25 below angle, rather long, nearly as long as eye; color bluish above, sides
and below rich silvery, brighter than in any other of our Coregoni, much as in Hyodon
and Albula; lateral line almost straight; head 44; depth 42; D. 10; A. 10; scales 7-75-7.
Length 7 or 8 inches; weight rarely more than half a pound.

56

882 FISHES—SALMONIDA.

Habitat. Lake Michigan, Lake Superior; one specimen in the National Museum from
Lake Ontario. Said to occur in small lakes in the interior of Michigan.

Diagnosis —This species may be known from the Lake Herring,. which
it resembles in form, by the shortness of itslower jaw, which fits within
the upper, as in the White-fish, and by the pure silvery luster of the scales,
which have none of the dusky punctulations as in the other Coregoni.

Habits.—Little is known of the habits of this Cisco. Dr. Hoy, its dis-
coverer, writes, “ This little beauty never approaches shoal water, where
Argyrosomus clupeiformis (artedi) is only found. About 30 or 40 fathoms
is as near shore as it has ever been captured here.” (Racine, Wisconsin.)

Prof. Milner observes, “The Cisco of Lake Michigan, not to be con-
founded with the Cisco of Lake Ontario, is a fish frequenting the deep
waters. It is taken in considerable quantities at depths of from 30 to
70 fathoms, and is the principal food of the Salmon or ‘“ Mackinaw
Trout.” Prof. Milner further remarks that the depth of 50 fathoms
“may be considered in the deeper lakes the zone of the Mackinaw Trout
and of the Cisco throughout the spring, summer, and fall, with the ex-
ception, in the case of the Trout, of the spawning season.”

96. CoREGONUS ARTEDI LeSueur.

Lake Herring; Michigan Herring; Cisco.

Coregonus artedi, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1818, 231.—Jorpan, Man.
Vert. 2d Ed., 274.

Coregonus clupeiformis, DrKay, New York Fauna, Fish., 1842, 248, pl. 60, f. 198.—Gun-
THER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi, 198, and of many recent authors (not Salmo clu-
peiformis, Mitch.).

Argyrosomus clupeiformis, MILNER, Rept. U. 8. Fish Comm., 1872-3, 65, and of most rec-
ent American writers.

Salmo (Coregonus) lucidus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Am., 1836, iii, 207.

Salmo (Coregonus) harengus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 210.

Argyrosomus sisco, JORDAN, Amer. Nat., 1875, 136. (Local variety in lakes of Indiana
and Wisconsin. )

Body elongate, compressed, little elevated; head compressed, rather pointed; mouth
rather large, the maxillary reaching about to the middle of the pupil, about 2} in head,
the mandible 2} in head ; preorbital bone long and slender; suborbital broad; supraor-
pital nearly as long as eye, about four times as long as broad; adipose fins very small;
eye 4 to 5 in head; gill-rakers very long and slendér, as long as eye, 25 to 30 below the
angle; bluish black or greenish above; sides silvery; scales with dark specks; fins
mostly pale; pectoral and anal dusky-tinged; head 44; depth 44; D.10; A. 11; scales
8-76-7. Length about a foot. The usual length is rather less than a foot, and the weight
9 to 10 ounces. The largest seen are about 19 inches long and two pounds in weight.

Habitat, Great Lakes and northward to Alaska and Labrador ; very abundant, usually
frequenting shallow waters. In numerous small lakes in Indiana and Wisconsin (Ge-
neva, Tippecanoe, Oconomowoc, LaBelle, etc.) is the modified var. sisco ( Argyrosomus
sisco, Jordan, Amer. Nat., 1875, 136), which lives in the deep waters, coming into shal-
low waters to spawn in December.

LAKE MOON-EYE. 883

Diagnosis.—From our other White fish this species may be known by
its slender, herring-like form and projecting lower jaw.

Habits.—The Lake Herring is found throughout the lake region in
enormous numbers. It inhabits comparatively shoal waters and goes
about in vast schools, “ crowding into the pound-nets in masses until the
cribs are filled to the surface of the water. In Lake Erie frequently a
corner of the net is lowered, and a large proportion of them allowed to
escape before the remainder are thrown into the boat. Although they
have been taken in this way for years, there is no apparent diminution
in their numbers. Perhaps the little disposition on the part of the fish-
ermen to catch them, in some measure accounts for this fact, though
there must be as well some natural advantages in their prolificity and
in the tenacity of life of the egg. They are little tought after, because
they are not a favorite fish in the market, being rather deficient in qual-
ities as a fresh or salt fish, though having no objectionable flavor. They
are small and thin when opened, and become shrunken when pickled.
* %* * The profit on them to the fishermen is less than any
other fish handled from the lakes, because of the low price they com-
mand in the market, and the expense of dressing and packing is much
greater than in White-fish, Trout, or Pike, because of their smaller size.
Differing from the White-fish in the construction of the mouth, it being
terminal, they more readily take a bait, and may be fished for with hook
and line with a suitable bait. Insects are the best for this purpose,
though they are frequently taken with aminnow. The contents of the
stomach have been obtained in but a few instances, the fish being taken
almost exclusively in the pound nets, and in these they have generally
remained long enough to digest the stomach contents. A few specimens
from seines in the Detroit River were found to contain insects and a few
of the Gammaridz, but no remains of vertebrates, though the Herring are
frequently taken with a minnow bait. They are found, by examination
of their stomachs during the spawning season, to be spawn eaters of the
worst character, their stomachs being crammed with White-fish ova, and
considering the great numbers of the Herring and their vicinity to the.
spawning grounds, the destruction they effect must be very great.”
(Milner.)

The spawning season is about the last of November. It is thought
that this species does not migrate for the purpose of spawning, but re-
mains in the shoal waters, where it is commonly taken.

‘In the deep lakes of Northern Indiana (Tippecanoe, Eagle, etc.), and
in similar lakes in Eastern Wisconsin (Geneva, the Oconomowoc Chain,
etc.), a fish is found, known as the Cisco, which is generally thought to

884 FISHES—SALMONID2.

be a different species from the Lake Herring. This opinion I formerly
held, and introduced it into nomenclature, giving the fish the name of
Argyrosomus sisco. I find, however, no structural character distinguishing
the Cisco from the Lake Herring, and I have no doubt that they are spe-
cifically identical, the Cisco being a local variety, modified in its habits
by its residence in the smaller lakes.

The following account of the habits of the Cisco of Lake Tippecanoe

is furnished by Judge J. H. Carpenter, of Warsaw, Indiana (See Jordan
Amer. Nat., 1875, 135.).

‘Some years ago, probably five, these fish were discovered on the north side of Tip-
pecanoe Lake, by Isaac Johnson, and at each return of their spawning season, which is
the last of November, they have reappeared in large numbers. They are not seen at
any other season of the year, keeping themeelves in the deep water of the lakes. The
general opinion is that they will not bite at a hook, but Mr. pen = that he has
on one or two occasions caught them with a hook. * er ®

“The spawning season lasts about two weeks, and they come in myriads into the
streams which enter the lakes. There are large numbers of persors who are engaged
night and day taking them with small dip-nets. They are caught in quantities that
would surprise you could you witness it. Those who live in the neighborhood put up
large quantities of them, they being the only fish caught in the lakes which will bear
salting. Some gentlemen who have been fishing to-day (December 8, 1574) inform me
that the run is abating, and that in a few days the fishes will have taken their depar-
tare for the deep water of the lakes, and will be seen no more until next November.”

A correspondent (“H. 8. V.”) gives the following account of the Cisco
of Geneva Lake, Wisconsin:

“This graceful, silvery fish is fonndin largest numbers in the water of Lake Geneva,
Wisconsin, It is seen and caught there only about ten days in the year, usually in the
month of June, coming to the surface of the lake from the deeper spots to feast upon
the Cisco fly, somewhat similar to the common sand-fly, only larger, which appears at
that time and again disappears after the fish have had all they want of them. The fish
go in schools and are caught best when the weather is warm and the flies are thickest,
usually from six to ten o’clock in the morning. A very small hook and light line is
used, no sinking or bobber. The fly is used for bait, the fish jumping for it frequently
before it strikes the water. At times the water is kept in a constant ferment, and many
of the fish can be seen part way out of water at once. When they are biting, the
sportsman who is most active gets most fish. The Cisco fish average from six inches to
a foot in length, a slender, graceful, silvery fish. They do not make a very strong fight
for life; if it were not for the rapid biting, a fisherman would miss the locked for ex-
citement in the sport.”

97. CoREGONUS NIGRIPINNIS (Gill) Jordan.

Blue-fin; Black-fin.

Argyrosomus nigripinnis, GILL, MSS. in Milner’s Rept., U. 8. Fish Comm , 1572 3, 87.
Coregonus nigripinnis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed , 1878, 275.

TULLIBEE. 885

Desoription —Body stout, fusiform, compressed ; head stout; mouth large, the lower
jaw prejecling ; eye rather large, longer than snout, about four in head; teeth very
minute as in C. artedi, but appreciable on premaxillaries and tongue; gill-rakers very
numerous, long and slender; lower fins long; color dark bluish above; sides silvery,
with dark punctulations; fins all blue-black ; head 44; depth 32; D. 10; A. 12; scales
7-86-6, Length, 15 to 18 inches; average weight, 14 pounds.

Habitat, deep waters of Lake Michigan. Not yet noticed in Lake Erie. Especially
abundant in Grand Traverse Bay.

Diagnosis.—From the Lake Herring, the larger size, stouter form, and
especially the deep blue-black color of the lower fins readily distinguish
it. 1

Habits.—This species is as yet known only from the deep waters of
Lake Michigan where it is found in company with Coregonus hoyi. It is
occasionally seen in the markets of Chicago, sometimes in considerable
numbers. Its qualities as a food fish are probably similar to those of the
White-fish.

98. CoREGONUS TULLIBEE Richardson.

Tallibee; “ Wongrel White-fish.”’

Salmo (Coregonus) tullibee, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer,, iii, 1836, 201.
Coregonus tullibee, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 199.
Argyrosomus tullibee, JORDAN. Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 361.

Description.—Body short, deep, compressed, shad-like, the dorsal and ventral curves
similar; caudal peduncle short and deep; head conic, compressed, much as in ©. nig-
ripinnis ; mouth large, the maxillary as long as the eye, extending past the front of the
pupil, its supplemental bone narrowly ovate, with prolonged points; jaws equal when
closed ; eye large, as long a3 snout, four and a half in head ; preorbital narrow ; supra-
orbital elongate, rectangular; scales anteriorly considerably enlarged, their diameter
half larger than the diameter of those on the caudal peduncle; color bluish above; sides
white, punctate with fine duts; each scale with a silvery area, these forming a series of
distinct longitudinal stripes; head 4; depth 2; D.11; A. 11; scales 8-74-7. Length,
18 inches.

Habitat, Great Lakes and northward.

Diagnosis —The Tullibee has the deep, compressed form of the Shad,
with the projecting lower jaw of the Lake Herring. These particulars
distinguish it at once from the other White-fishes.

Habits.—Scarcely anything is known of the habits of the Tullibee. It
is certainly not abundant in any of the Great Lakes, although probably
occuring in all of them. I once received a photograph of a Tullibee, from.
Dr. E. Sterling, of Cleveland, Ohio. The specimen had been taken in
Lake Erie and Dr. Sterling informed me that it was known to the fisher-
men as the “Mongrel White-fish,” they thinking it to be a hybrid
between the White-fish and the Lake Herring.

886 FISHES—SALMONIDA.

Genus 50. ONCORBYNCHUS. Suckley.

Oncorhynchus, SUCKLEY, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1871, 312.
Type, Salmo scouleri, Rich., Suckley, = Salmo kisutch, Walbaum, not Salmo scouleri,
Richardson, which is Salmo gorbuscha, Walbaum.
Etymology, ogkos, hook; rugkos, snout.

Body elongate, subfusiform or compressed ; mouth wide, the maxillary long, lanceo-
late, usually extending beyond the eye; jaws with moderate teeth, which become in the
adu!t male enormously enlarged in front; vomer long and narrow, flat, with a series of
teeth both on the head and the shaft, the latter series comparatively short and weak ;
palatine with teeth ; tongue with a marginal series on each side; teeth on vomer and
tongue often lost with age ; no teeth on the hyoid bone; branchiostegals more or less
increased in number; scales moderate or small; dorsal fin moderate; anal fin compara-
tively elongate, of 14-20 rays; pyloric appendages in increased number; gill-rakers
rather numerous: ova large; sexual peculiarities (in typical species) very strongly
developed ; the snout in the adultmales greatly distorted ; the premaxillaries prolonged,
hooking over the lower jaw, which in turn is greatly prolonged and somewhat hooked
at tip; the teeth of these bones also greatly enlarged; a fleshy hump is developed
before the dorsal-fin, and the scales of the back become imbedded in the flesh. Salmon,
mostly of large size, ascending the rivers tributary to the North Pacific in North-
America and Asia, now being introduced into Atlantic waters. The genus includes the
largest of the Salmon family, and the noblest of our fond fishes. One of the five known
species has been introdaced into various eastern streams and lakes,

99. OxcoRHYNCHUSs CHOUVICHA (Walbaum) Jordan and Gilbert.

Quinnat Salmon; King Salmon; Chouicha; Columbia Salmon;
Chinnook Salmon; Saw-kwey; Spring Salmon; Sacramento
Salmon.

Salmon tshawytscha (Chouicha), WALBAUM, Aıtedi Pise., 1792, —.

Salmo orientalis, PALLas, Zoogr. Rosso-Asiat., iii, 1811.

Salmo quinnat, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 319, and of most late writers.

Oncorhynchus quinnat, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. vi, 158.—JORDAN, Proc. U. 8.

Nat. Mus,, i, 69. :
Salmo quinnat, confluentus, and argyreus, SUCKLEY, Monogr. Salmo., 105, 109, 110.

Description.—Color dusky above, often tinged with olivaceous or bluish; sides and
below silvery; head dark slaty, with metallic lustre, usually darker than the body and
little spotted ; back, dorsal fin, and tail usually profusely covered with round black
spots; these are sometimes very few, but very rarely altogether wanting; tail with a
peculiar metallic silvery pigment; male about the spawning season (October) blackish,
more or less tinged or blotched with dull red ; head conic, rather pointedin the females
and spring males; jaws not emarginate either in front or on sides; maxillary rather
slender, the small eye rather behind its middle; teeth small, longer on sides of lower
jaw than in front; vomerine teeth very few and weak, disappearing with age; in
the males in late summer and fall the jaws become elongate and distorted, and the an-
terior teeth much enlarged, as in the related species; the body then becomes deeper,
more compressed, and arched at the shoulders; preopercle very convex ; operele strongly
convex; body comparatively robust, its depth greatest near its middle; ventrals in-
serted behind middle of dorsal, ventral appendage half the length of the fin; caudal, as

QUINNAT SALMON. 887

usual in this genus, strongly forked, on a rather slender caudal peduncle; flesh red and
rich inspring, becoming paler in the fall as the spawning season approaches; head 4;
depth 44; B. 15-16 to 17-19, the number on the sides usualiy unlike; D. 11; A. 16; gill-
rakers usually 9-14 (i. e., 9 above the angle and 14 below); pyloric ewca 140-160; scales
usually 27-150-20, the number in a longitudinal series varying from 140-155, and in
California specimens occasionally as low as 130-155. Length, 36 inches. Usual weight
in the Columbia River 22 pounds, elsewhere 16-18 pounds, but individuals of 70 pounds
have been taken.

Habitat, Ventura River to Alaska and Northern China, ascending all large streams ;
most abundant in the Columbia and Sacramento Rivers, where it is the principal Sal-
mon. Upwards of 35,000,000 pounds are now takenevery spring in the Columbia River,
most of them canned for exportation. It ascends the large streams in spring and sum-
mer, moving up without feeding until the spawning season, by which time many of
those which started first may have travelled nearly a thousand miles After spawning,
most of them in the upper waters perish from exhanstion. [tis by far the most valua-
ble of our Salmon. It has been introduced by the Fish Commission into many eastern
streams.

Diagnosis —The Quinnat Salmon at any age, may be known at once from
the Salmon and Trout native in the Great Lake Region, by the long anal
fin, which contains about 16 developed rays.

Habits.—The following account of the habits of the Quinnat Salmon
may be interesting in view of the attempts now being made to natura-
lize the species in Ohio waters. This account was originally written
for the Popular Science Monthly and published (May, 1881, pp. 1-6) under
the title of “ Story of a Salmon :”

‘In the realm of the Northwest Wind, on the boundary-line between the dark
fir-forests and the sunny plains, there stands a mountain, a great white cone two
miles and a half in perpendicular height. On its lower mile, the dense fir-woods cover
it with never-changing green; on its next half mile, a lighter green of grass and bushes
gives place in winter to white; and, on its uppermost mile, the snows of the great Ice
age still linger in unspotted purity. The people of Washington Territory say that this
mountain is the great ‘‘ King-pin of the Universe,” which shows that, even in its own
country, Mount Rainier is not without honor.

‘‘Flowing down from the southwest slope of Mount Rainier is a cold, clear river fed
by the melting snows of the mountain. Madly it hastens down over white cascades and
beds of shining sands, through birch- woods and belts of dark firs to mingle its waters
at last with those of the great Columbia.

“This river is the Cowlitz, and on its bottom, not many years ago, there lay half-
buried in the sand a number of little orange-colored globules, each about as large as a
pea. These were not much in themselves, bat, like the philosopher’s monads, each one
had in it the promise and potency of an active life. In the water above them, little
suckers and chubs and prickly sculpins were straining their mouths to draw those
globules from'the sand, and vicious-looking crawfishes picked them up with their blun-
dering hands and examined them with their telescopic eyes. But one, at least, of the
globules escaped their scientific curiosity, else this story would not be worth telling.

“The sun shone down on it through the clear water, and the ripples of the Cowlitz

888 FISHES—SALMONIDZ.

said over it their incantations, and in it at last awoke a living being. It was a fish,
a curious little fellow, only half an inch long, with great, staring eyes which made
almost half his length, and a body so transparent that he could not cast a shadow. He
was a little salmon, a very little salmon, but the water was good, and there were flies,
and worms, and little living creatures in abundance for him to eat, and he soon becamea
larger salmon. And there were many more little salmon with him, some larger and some
smaller, and they all had a merry time. Those who had been born soonest and had
grown largest used to chase the others around and bite off their tails, or, still better,
take them by the head and swallow them whole, for, said they, ‘Even young salmon
are good eating.’ ‘Heads I win, tails you lose’ was their motto. Thus, what was once
two small salmon became united into one larger one, and the process of ‘addition,
division, and silence,’ still went on.

“ By-and-by, when all the salmon were too small to swallow the others, and too large
to be swallowed, they began to grow restless and to sigb for a change. They saw that
the water rushing by seemed to be in a great hurry to get somewhere, and one of them
suggested that its hurry was caused by something good to eat at the other end of its
course. Then all started down the stream, salmon-fashion, which fashion is to get into
the current, head up-stream, and so to drift backward as the river sweeps along.

“Down the Cowlitz River they went for a day and a night, finding much to interest
them which we need not know. At last, they began to grow hungry, and, coming near
the shore, they saw an angle-worm of rare size and beauty floating in an eddy of the
stream. Quick as thought one of the boys opened his mouth, which was well filled with
teeth of different sizes,and put it around that angle worm. Quicker still he felt a sharp
pain in his gills, followed by a smothering sensation, and in an instant his comrades
saw him rise straight into the air. This was nothing new to them, for they often leaped
out of the water in their games of hide-and-seek, but only to come down again with a
loud splash not far from where they went out. But this one never came back, and the
others went on their course wondering. :

“ At last they came to where the Cowlitz and Columbia join, and they were almost
Jost for a time, for they could find no shores, and the bottom and the top of the water were
so far apart. Here they saw other and far larger salmon in the deepest part of the current,
turning neither to the right nor left, but swimming straight on up just asrapidly as they
could. And these great salmon would not stop for them, and would not lie and float
withthe current. They had no time to talk, even in the simple sign-language by which
fishes express their ideas, and no time to eat. They had an important work before them
and the time was short. So they went on up the river, keeping their great purposes to
themselves, and our little salmon and his friends from the Cowlitz drifted down the
stream.

‘‘ By-and by the water began to change. It grew denser, and no longer flowed rapidly
along, and twice a day it used to turn about and flow the other way. And the shores
disappeared, and the water began to have a different and peculiar flavor—a flavor which
seemed to the salmon much richer and more inspiring than the glavier-water of their
native Cowlitz, Andthere were many curious things to see; crabs with hard shells and
savage faces, but so good when crushed and swallowed! Then there were luscious squids
swimming about, and, to a salmon, squids are like ripe peaches and cream for dinner.
There were great companies of delicate sardines and herring, green and silvery, and it
was such fun to chase them and to capture them.

QUINNAT SALMON. 889

‘“ Those who eat only sardines, packed in oil by greasy fingers, and herrings dried in
the smoke, can have little idea how satisfying it is to have one’s stomach full of them,
plump, and silvery, fresh from the sea.

“Thus they chased the herrings about and had a merry time, Then they were chased
about in turn by great sea-lions, swimming monsters with huge half-human faces, long
thin whiskers, and blundering ways. The sea-lions liked to bite out the throats of the
salmon, with their precious stomachs fall of lucious sardines, and leave the rest of the
fish to shift for itself.

“And the seals and the herring scattered the salmon about, and at last the hero of
our story found himself quite alone, with none of his own kind near him. But that did
not trouble him much, and he went on his own way, getting his dinner when he was
hungry, which was all the time, and then eating alittle between-meals for his stomach’s
sake.

“So it went on for three long years; and at the end of this time our little fish had
grown to be a great, fine salmon, of forty pounds’ weight, shining and silvery as a new
tin pan, and with rows of the loveliest round black spots on his head, and back, and
tail. One day, as he was swimming about, idly chasing a big sculpin, with a head so
thorny that he never was swallowed by anybody, all of a sudden the salmon noticed a
change in the water around him.

“ Spring had come again, and the south-lying snow-drifts on the Cascade Mountains
once more felt the ‘earth was wheeling sunward,’ and the cold snow-waters ran down
from the mountains and into the Columbia River, and made a freshet on the river, and
the high water went far out into the sea, and out in the sea our salmon felt it on his
gills; and he remembered how the cold water used to feel in the Cowlitz when he was
a little fish, and in a blundering, fishy fashion he thought about it, and wondered
whether the little eddy looked as it used to, and whether caddice worms and young
mosquitoes were really as sweet and tender as he used to think they were; and he
thought some other things, but, as a salmon’s mind is located in the optic lobes of his
brain, and ours in a different place, we can not be certain, after all, what his thoughts
really were. What he did we know. He did what every grown salmon in the ocean
does when he feels the glacier-water once more upon his gills. He became a changed
being. He spurned the blandishments of soft-shelled crabs. The pleasures of the table
and of the chase, heretofore his only delights, lost their charms for him. He turned his
course straight toward the direction whence the cold fresh water came, and for the rest
of his life he never tasted a mouthful of food. He moved on toward the river-mouth, at
first playfally, as though he were not really certain whether hé meant anything, after
all. Aftewards, when he struck the fall current of the Colum bia, he plunged straight
forward with an unflinching determination that had in it something of the heroic.
When he had passed the rough water at the bar, he found he was not alone; his old
neighbors of the Cowlitz and many more, a great-army of salmon, were with him. In
front were thousands; pressing on, and behind them, were thousands more, all moved
by a common impluse, which urged them up the Columbia.

“They were swimming bravely along where the current was deepest, when suddenly
the foremost felt something tickling like a cobweb about their noses and under their
chins. They changed their course a little to brush it off, and it touched their fins as
well. Then they tried to slip down with the current, and thus leave it behind. But
no—the thing, whatever it was, although its touch was soft, refused to let go, and held
them like a fetter; and, the more they struggled, the tighter became its grasp. And

.890 FISHES—SALMONIDE.

the whole foremost rank of the salmon felt it together, for it was a great gill-net, a
quarter of a mile long, and stretched squarely across the mouth of the river. By-and-
by men came in boats and hauled up thé gill-net and threw the helpless salmon into a
pile on the bottom of the boat, and the others saw them no more. We that live outside
the water know better what befalls them, and we can tell the story which the salmon
could not.

‘All along the banks of the Columbia River, from its mouth to nearly thirty miles
away, there is a succession of large buildings, looking like great barns or warehouses,
built on piles in the river, and high enough to be out of the reach of floods. There are
thirty of these buildings, and they are called canneries. Each cannery has about forty
boats, and with each boat are two men and a Jong gill net, and these nets fill the whole
river as with a rest of cobwebs from April to July; and to each cannery nearly a thou-
sand great salmon are brought in every day. These salmon are thrown in a pile on the
floor; and Wing Hop, the big Chinaman, takes them one after another on the table,
and with a great kuife dexterously cuts off the head, the tai], and the fins; then with a
sudden thrust removes the intestines and the eggs. The body goes into a tank of water,
and the head goes down the river to be made into salmon-oil. Next, the body is brought
on another table, and Quovg Sang, with a machine like a feed-cutter, cuts it into pieces
just as long asa one-poand can. Then Ah Sam, with a butcher-knifo, cuts these pieces
into strips just as wide as the can. Then Wan Lee, the China boy, brings down from the
loft, where the tinners are making them, » hundred cans, and into each can puts &

, spoonful of salt. It takes just six salmon to fill a hundred cans. Then twenty China-
men put the pieces of meat into the cans, fitting in little strips to make them exactly
fall. Then ten more solder up the cans, and ten more put the cans into boiling water
till the meat is thoroughly cooked, and five more punch a little hole in the head of each
can to let out the air. Then they solder them up again, and little girls paste on them
bright-colored labels showing merry little Cupids riding the happy salmon up to the
cannery-door, with Mount Rainier and Cape Disa;pointment in the background ; and @
legend undeineath says that this is ‘Booth’s’ or ‘Badollet’s Best,’ or ‘Hume’s’ or
“Clark’s’ or ‘Kinnery’s Superfine Salt-water Salmon.’ Then the cans are placed in
‚cases, forty-eightin a case, and five hundred thousand cases are put upevery year. Great
‘hips come to Astoria and are loaded with them, and they carry them away to London,
‚and San Francisco, and Liverpool, and New York, aud Sydney, and Valparaiso, and
Skowhegan, Maine; and the man at the corner grocery sells them at twenty cents a
can.

‘All this time our salmon is going up the river; escaping one net as by a miracle,
and soon having need of more miracles to escape the rest; passing by Astoria on a for-
tunate day, which was Sunday, the day on which no man may fish if he expects to sell
what he catches, till finally he came to where nets wer: few, and, at last, to where they
ceased altogether. But here he fuund that scarcely any of his many-companions were
with him, for the nets cease when there are no more salmon to be canght in them. So
he went on day and night where the water was deepest, stooping not to feed or loiter on
the way, till at last he came to a wild gorge, where the great river became an angry tor
rent rushing wildly over a hung staircase of rocks. But our hero did not falter, and,
summoning all his forces, he plunged into the Cascades. The current caught him and
dashed him against the rocks; A whole row of silvery scales came off and glistened in
the water like sparks of fire, and a place on his side became black and red, which, for
a salmon, is the same as being black and blue for other people. His comrades tried to

QUINNAT SALMON. 891

go up with him ; and one lost his eye, one his tail, and one had his lower jaw pushed back
into his head like the joints of a telescope. Again he tried to surmoant the Cascades,
and at last he succeeded, and an Indian on the rocks above was waiting to receive him.
But the Indian with his spear was less skillful than he was wont to be, and our hero es-
caped, losing only a part of one his fins, and with him came one other, and henceforth
these two pursued their journey together.

‘Now a gradual change took place in the looks of our salmon. In the sea he was
plump and round and silvery, with delicate teeth, and as handsome and symmetrical a
mouth as any one need wish to kiss. Now his silvery color disappeared, his
skin grew slimy, and the scales sank into it; his back grew black and his sides turned
red—not a healthy red but a sort of hectio flash. He grew poor, and his back, formerly
as straight as need be, now developed an unpleasant hump at the shoulders. His eyes
—like those of all enthusiasts who forsake eating and sleeping for some lofcer aim—
became dark and sunken. His symmetrical jaws grew longer and longer, aud meeting
each other, as the nose of an old man meets his chin, each had to turn aside to let the
other pass. And his beautiful teeth grew longer and longer, and projected from his
mouth, giving him a savage and wolfish appearance, quite unlike his real disposition.
For all the desires and ambitions of his nature had become centered into one. We do
not know what this one was, but we know that it was a strong one, for it had led him
on and on, past the nets and horrors of Astoria, past the dangerous Cascades, past the
spears of the Indians, through the terrible flume of the Dalles, where the mighty river is
compressed between huge rocks into a channel narrower than a village street; on past
the meadows of Umatilla and the wheat-fields of Walla Walla; on to where the great
Snake River and the Columbia join; or up the Snake River and its eastern branch, till
at last he reached the foot of the Bitter-Root Mountains in. the Territory of Idaho,
nearly a thousand miles from the ocean, which he left in April. With him still was
the other salmon which had come with him up the Cascades, handsomer and smaller than
he, and, like hin, growing poor and ragged and tired. At last, one October afternoon,
they came together to a little clear brook, with a bottom of fine gravel, over which the
water was a few inches deep. Our fish painfully worked his way to it, for his tail was
all frayed out, his muscles were sore, and his skin covered with unsightly blotches.
But his sunken eyes saw a ripple in the stream, and under it a bed of little pebbles and
sand. So there in the sand he scooped out with his tail a smooth, round place, and his
companion came and filled it with orange-colored eggs. Then our salmon came back
again, and, softly covering the eggs, the work of their Jives was done, and, in the old
salmon-fashion, they drifted tail foremost down the stream.

“Next morning, a settler in the Bitter-Root region, passing by the brook near his
house, noticed a ‘ dog-salmon’ had run in there and seemed ‘mighty nigh tuckered
out’ So he took a hoe, and wading into the brook, rapped the fish on he head with it,
and carrying it ashore threw it to the hogs. But the hogs had a sarfeit of salmon-
meat, and they ate only the soft parts, leaving the head untouched. And a wandering
naturalist found it there, and sent it to the United States Fish Commission to be iden-
tified, and thus it came to me.”

892 FISHES—SALMONIDE.

Genus 51. SALMO. Linneus.

Salmo (artedi), LINNZUs, Systema Nature, 1758.
Fario, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., xxi, 294 (argenteus).
Salar, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss , xxi, 319 (fario).
Trutta, SIEBOLD, Susswasser fische, 319 (fario).

Type, Salmo salar, L.

Etymology, Latın Salmo, a Salmon; from Salio to leap.

Body elongate, somewhat compressed; mouth large; jaws and tongue toothed as in
o her genera; vomer flat, its shaft not depressed; a few teeth on the chevron of the
vomer, behind which is a somewhat irregular single or double series of teeth, which are
sometimes deciduous with age; teeth on the palatine; scales large or small, 100 200 in
a longitudinal series; dorsal and anal fins short, of about 11 rays each ; caudal fin trun-
cate, emarginate, or forked, its peduncle comparatively stout; sexual peculiarities var-
iously developed; the males in typical species with the jaws prolonged and the front
teeth enlarged, the lower jaw being hooked upwards at the end, and the upper jaw
emarginate or perforate. In some species these peculiarities are little marked. Species
of moderate or large size, black-spotted, abounding in the rivers and Jakes of Northern
America, Asia, and Europe, from the Atlantic Ocean; one or two species, marine and
anadromous.

Bat one species of this genus occurs in the Atlantic waters of America, the Common
Marine Salmon of Europe and America. As attempts have been made to introduce this
species into the waters of Ohio, we give an account of it here.

100. Samo saLar Linneus.
Sea Saimon; Common Salmon.

Salmo salar, LINNZEUS, Syst. Nature ; GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1758, 2, and
of nearly all authors.

Salmo sebago, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1853, 3&0, a local variety, land: locked
in the lakes of Maine.

Salmo gloveri, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1854, &5, young or parr-form.

Body moderately elongate, symmetrical, not greatly compressed; head rather low;
mouth moderate, the maxillary reaching just past the eye, its length 24-3 in head; in
young specimens (parrs) the maxillary is proportionately shorter; preoperculum with
a distinct lower limb, the angle rounded; scales comparatively large, rather largest
posteriorly, silvery and well imbricated in the young, becoming imbedded in adult males ;
vomerine teeth little developed, those on the shaft of the bone few and deciduous;
scales large (lat. 1. 120); caudal fia well forked, truncate in old individuals; no hyoid
teeth ; sexual differences strong; breeding males with the lower jaw hooked upwards,
the upper jaw emarginate or perforate to receive its tip ; coloration in the adult brown-
ish above, the sides more or less silvery, with numerous black spots on sides of head,
on body, and on fins, and numerous red patches along the sides in the males; young
specimens (parrs) with about 11 dusky cross-bars, besides black spots and red patches,
the color, as well as the form of the head and body, varying much with age, food, and
condition; the black spots in the adult often X shaped, or XX shaped; head 4; depth
4; B.11; D.11; A. 9; scales 23-120-21; vertebra 60; pyloric ceca about 65.

MACKINAW TROUT. 893

‘Habitat, North Atlantic, ascending all suitable rivers in Northern Europe, and the
region north of Cape Cod; sometimes permanently land-locked in lakes, where its
habits and coloration (but no tangible specific characters) change somewhat (in Amer-

ica) var. sebago.

Diagnosis.—F rom our Lake Trout and Brook Trout the Salmon may read-
ily be distinguished by the much larger scales and the presence of round,
black spots on the body and fins. From the Quinnat Salmon, the At-
lantic Salmon may be known by the short anal fin, which has but nine
or ten perfect rays.

Habits —The habits of the Common Salmon are too well known to need
discussion here. It inhabits the Northern Atlantic on both sides, and
in the spring ascends all suitable streams to spawn, being especially
abundant in the Canadian rivers. The land-locked Salmon (Salmo salar,
var. sebago) of the lakes of Maine differs in no structural respect, but
has different habits resulting from its restriction. This form has been
especially recommended for introduction into the lakes of the Western
States.

Genus 52. CRISTIVOMER. Gill and Jordan.
Cristivomer, GILL and JORDAN, Man. Vert. 2d Ed., 1878, 356.

Type, Salmo namaycush, Walbaum.
Etymology, Latin, crista, crest; vomer, vomer.

Body elongate, moderately compressed; head long; mouth very wide, the strong
maxillary reaching beyond the eye; teeth on the jaws and tongue as in the other genera,
‚but stronger; a band of strong recurved teeth on the hyoid bone; vomer boat-shaped,
the shaft much depressed, provided with a raised crest, which is posteriorly free, and
which is provided with a persistent series of strong teeth; scales small, 175-220 in the
lateral line; fins moderate; anal fin short; last rays of dorsal and anal not prolonged ;
caudal fin forked; sexual peculiarities not strongly marked ; species of large size, gray-
spotted, inhabiting the lakes of the northern parts of America.

This genus should probably be regarded as a section or sub-genus under Salvelinus,
There is probably but one species, the Siscowet of Lake Superior (Salmo siscowet, Agas-
siz), being apparently a local variety of Cristovomer namaycush, distinguished chiefly by
its extreme fatness. At least, we have failed to find any structural difference of any
sort, by which the two species may be distinguished.

101. CristIvoMER NAMAYcusH (Walbaum) Gill and Jordan.
Mackinaw Trout; Great Lake Trout; Large Togue.

Salmo namaycush, WALBAUM, Artedi piscium, 1792.—GUNTHER, Cat, Fish. Brit. Mus,, vi,
123, and of most authors.

Salmo amethystinus, MITCHILL, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1818, 410 (Great Lakes).

Salmo hoodi, RicHaRD3ON, Fauna Bor.-Amer, iii, 1836, 83.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit.
Mus. vi, 151 (Arctic America).

894 FISHES—SALMONIDA.

Salmo confinis, DEKay, N. Y. Fauna Fish. 1842, 238 (Lakes of New York).
Salmo symmetrica, Salmo pallidus, RAFINESQUE (Lake Champlain); Salmo adirondacus,
Norris (Adirondacks); Salmo toma, HAMDEN (Maine), etc.

Var. siscowet.
Salmo siscowet AGassız, Lake Superior, 1850, 333.

Description —Body elongate, covered with thin skin, there being no special develop-
ment of fatty tissue under the skin; head very long, its upper surface flattened ; mouth
very large, the maxillary extending much beyond the eye, the head and jaws propor-
tionately lengthened and pointed; teeth very strong; caudal fin well forked; general
coloration dark gray ; sometimes pale, often almost black; everywhere with rounded,
paler spots, which are sometimes reddish tinged; head usually vermicuiate; fins often
mottled; dorsal and candal reticulate with darker; eye large, 44 in head; maxillary
nearly half the length of the head; interorbital space nearly 4; head 4; depth 4; D.
11; A.11; 1.1, 185-205. Length 2 to 4 feet. Average weight about 4 pounds. Speci-
mens of 50 to 80 pounds weight are sometimes taken.

Habitat, Lake Region and Lakes of Northern and Western New York, New Hamp-
shire, and Maine to Montana and northward, very abundant in the larger bodies of water,
varying somewhat in size, form, and color in the different lakes.

’

Description of var. siscowet (Agassiz), Siscowet Salmon.

Body short and deep, covered with thick skin, there being an excessive tendency to
the developmert of fatty tissue; head very short and deep, its upper surface broad and
short, covered by a skin so thick as to completely hide the bones; no distinct median
carina; mouth very large, its gape narrower than in C. namaycush; teeth weaker than
in C. namaycush, its supplemental bone also shorter and broader; maxillary a little more
than half ihe length of the head; caudal fin well forked; scales emall, about 175 in the
lateral line; coloration as in C. namaycush, but usually paler; fin-rays the same.

Habitat, Lake Superior; abundant, but not yet found elsewhere. This form is very
close to the preceding, but differs in the shortness and breadth of the bones of the head
and in the extreme fatness of the flesh.

Diagnosis—The Lake Trout, when adult, may be readily known by its
large size and gray spots. The young much resembles the Brook Trout,
and has equally small scales. It can always be distinguished (a) by the
presence of teeth on the median line of the vomer, behind the front
patch, and (b) by the presence of a patch of distinct, stout teeth on the
hyoid bone or root of the tongue. The Brook Trout has teeth on the
front of tke vomer only, and on the margin of the tongue.

Habits.—The wide range of this species and the great variety in the
waters which it inhabits, and the food on which it lives, render it more
than usually subject to variations in size, color, and appearance. It is
stated similar variations occur in its habits, but as I have seen the fish
alive only in the Great Lakes, I have no means of verifying these state-
ments. The following general account is condensed from Milner (Rept.
U.S. Fish Commr., 1872-3, 38).

MACKINAW TROUT. 895-

The Trout of the Great Lakes is one of three most numerous fishes
(Trout, White-fish, Lake Herring), and except the Sturgeon it attains
the greatest weight of any of the lake fishes. It is captured almost ex-
clusively by the gill-nets, though the pound-nets in some portions of the
lakes take them during the spawning season, and in the winter a
great many are caught in the bays, through holes cut in the ice.

As compared with the White-fish, their merits as a fresh fish are rela-
tive to taste, though most people prefer the latter. Salted Trout are in-
ferior to salted White fish, and bring a lower price in the market.

Their migrations, so far as known, are confined to the spawning season.
They do not ascend the rivers, and although they occur in inland lakes
connected with the main lake by rapids, there seems to be no knowledge
of their ever having been seen or taken in the outlets. At other times
than the spawning period, they remain chiefly in deep water, a depth of
thirty fathoms being the most favorable ground for their capture. In
the shallow waters of Lake Erie, in the western part of the lake, they
are scarcely found at all, though numerous in the deeper portion, east of
the city of Cleveland.

The Lake Trout is a ravenous feeder, The fishermen say of him that
“he always bites best when he ib fullest.” “

In Lake Michigan the food of the White-fish was ascertained to be
chiefly the Cisco (Coregonus hoyt.). The prevailing notion that they feed
largely on White-fish has not been confirmed by observations. During
most of the year they live in deeper water than that-in which the young
White-fish are found.

Their exceeding voracity induces them to fill their maws with singular
‘articles. When steamers pass, the refuse from the table is eagerly seized
by the Trout. Ihave taken from the stomach a raw peeled potato and
a piece of sliced liver, and it is not unusual to find pieces of corn cobs in
the green season, and in one instance I heard of a piece of ham bone,

They are readily taken with a hook, baited with pieces of fish. They
are a’sluggish fish to pull in, taking hold of the bait with a tug at the
line, and then allowing themselves to be pulled to the surface, with no
more vibration in the line than if a heavy sinker was the weight at the
end.

The spawning season is toward the last of October, about a month
earlier than that of the White-fish. The localities selected for spawning
are usually rock bottoms in seven to ninety feet of depth. The decrease-
in numbers of the Lake Trout is not as apparent as in the White-fish.
The pound-nets have not made the extensive inroads upon their num--

896 FISHES SALMONIDA.

bers, and none but mature fishes are taken. The larger ones are less
numerous, and it is claimed that the average weight of the Trout is less
than in former years.

Like other Salmonoids, the Lake Trout has proved to be well adapted
to artificial culture. The one drawback with them is the difficulty of
obtaining the spawn in October, when the rough weather renders a visit
to the spawning grounds a matter of hardship and danger. ~

Herbert says, “A coarse, heavy, stiff rod, a long and powerful, oiled
hempen or flaxen line, on a winch, with a heavy sinker; a cod-hook
baited with any kind of flesh, fish, or fowl is the most successful, if not
the most orthodox or scientific, mode of capturing him. His great size
and immense strength alone give him value as a fish of game; but when
hooked, he pulls strongly and fights hard, though he is a boring, deep
fighter, and seldom, if ever, leaps out of the water like the true Salmon
or Brook Trout.”

The species or variety known as the “ Siscowet”’ has thus far only been
seen in Lake Superior. Its habits are thus summed by Mr. Milner:

“With the rare exceptions of young specimens found near the shore,
it is taken entirely with gill-nets in deep water. It is a remarkably fat
fish, and as a fresh fish, is very inferior for the table. Even boiled, it is
oily and rank in flavor. Asa salt fish packed in brine, it is most excel-
lent, and is universally admitted to surpass either White-fish or Trout.
Its range of depth is outside of forty fathoms. How much deeper than
this it may be found, I cannot tell, as no fishing at greater depth than
fifty fathoms came under my observation in Lake Superior. The stom-
achs were found to be filled with a Cottoid. This seemed to be its entire
article of food in the vicinity of the Apostles’ Islands.

“They spawn earlier in the fall than any other of the Salmonoids in
the lakes, By the latter part of August, the spawn in some of them is
ripe and running freely, while in the month of September the females
are all ripe and depositing spawn. They seemed to have no migratory
instinct at this season, but were taken while spawning in the same vi-
cinity, where they had been taken for weeks previously.”

Genus 53. SALVELINUS. Richardson.

Salvelinus (Nillson), RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836.
Baione, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842.
Elmbla, Rapp.

Type, Salmo salvelinus, L.

Etymology, an old name of the Earopean Charr; German, Salbling.

BROOK TROUT, 897

Body moderately elongate; mouth large or small; teeth as in Cristivomer, but rather
weaker, the hyoid patch rudimentary or wanting, and thevomer without the raised crest,
with a few teeth on the chevron only; scales very small, 200-250 in a longitudinal row ;
fins moderate, as in Cristivomer, the caudal forked in the young, truncate in some species
in the adult; sexual peculiarities not strongly marked, the males with the premaxil-
laries enlarged, and a fleshy projection at the tip of the lower jaw; coloration dark,
with round, crimson spots, and the lower fins with marginal bands of black, reddish,
and pale; species numerous in the clear streams of the northern parts of both conti-
nents, sometimes descending to the sea, where they lose their variegated colors and be-
come nearly plain and silvery; the members of this genus are in general the smallest
and handsomest of the trout. But one species is found in the Eastern United States ;
another very similar is found west of the Cascade Range, and several inhabit the waters
of Arctic America.

102. SALVELINUS FONTINALIS (Mitchill) Gill and Jordan.

Brook Trout; Speckled Trout; Salmon Trout of Canada.

Salmo fontinalis, MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc. N. Y., i, 435.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 152, and of nearly all authors.

Salvelinus fontinalis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 360; Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus.
i, 81.

Salmo canadensis, HAMILTON SMITH, in Griffith’s Cuvier, 1834, 474,

Salmo immaculatus, H. R. STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., vi, 1850, 364 (based on large
sea-run specimens, the so-called ‘‘ Canadian Salmon Trout”).

Salmo hudsonicus, LUCKLEY, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1861, 310.

Description. —Body oblong or elongate, moderately compressed, not much elevated ;
head large, but not very long, the snout bluntish, the interorbital space rather broad;
mouth large, the maxillary reaching more or less beyond the eye; eye large, usnally
‘somewhat above the line of the axis of the body; caudal fin slightly lunate in the adult,
forked in the young; adipose fin small; pectoral and ventral fins not especially elon-.
gate; red spots on the side, rather smaller than the pupil; back mostly without spots,
more or less barred or mottled; dorsal and caudal fins mottled or barred with darker ;
lower fins dusky, ‘with a pale, usually orange band anteriorly, followed by a darker one;
belly in the males often more or less red; sea-run individuals (‘Canadian Salmon
Trout”) are often nearly plain, bright silvery, many local varieties distinguished by
shades of color also occur; head 44; depth 44; D. 10; A.9; scales 37-230-30; gill-rakers
about 6-11. Length 18 inches or less. Weight 4 pound to 10 pounds or more, depend-
ing on food, locality, size of stream, etc.

Habitat, clear, cold streams from Pennsylvania to Dakota and northward to the Are-
tic Circle, southward in the Alleghanies to the head waters of the Savannah, Chatta-
'hoochee, Catayrba, and French Broad. In Ohio the species is, I am told, confined to
one or two small streams in Ashtabula county.

Diagnosis.—The Brook Trout is too well known to need especial de-
scription here. It can, only by any possibility, be confounded with the
young of the Lake Trout among Eastern fishes. The absence of teeth

57

898 FISHES—SALMONIDER.

on the hyoid bone and on the shaft of the vomer distinguish it from the
latter. Its scales are much smaller than those of the Atlantic Salmon
or of the Quinnat.

Habits.—It is the favorite game fish of America, pre-eminent in wari-
ness, in beauty, and in delicacy of flesh. It inhabits all clear and cold
waters within its range, the large lakes and the smallest ponds, the tini-
est brooks and the largest rivers, and when it can do so, without soiling
its aristocratic gills on the way, it descends to the sea and grows large
and fat on the animals of the ocean.

Although a bold biter, it is a wary fish, and it often requires much
skill to captureit. It can be caught with artificial or natural flies, min-
nows, crickets, grasshoppers, grubs, the spawn of other fishes, or even
the eyes or cut pieces of other Trout. It spawns in the fall, and its
period of spawning ranges from September to late in November. It be-
gins to reproduce its kind when it is two years old, at which age, it
measures some six inches in length. In May and June Trout de-
light in rapids and swiftly running water, and in the hot months of mid-
summer, they resort to deep, cool, and shaded pools. In August and
September, on the approach of the spawning season, they gather around
the mouths of cool, gravelly brooks, whither they resort to make their
beds (Hallock).

It is hardly necessary to enter into a detailed discussion of the habits
of the Brook Trout in this paper. Every one of my readers,

“ Born beneath the fishes’ sign
Of constellations happiest,”
has his own Trout story to tell, which the next generation may believe
or not.

For, in the words of Myron H. Reed, “This is the last generation of
Trout fishers. The children will not be able to findany. Already there
are well-trodden paths by every stream in Maine, in New York, and in
Michigan. I know of but one river in North America by the side of
which you will find no paper collar or other evidence of civilization. It
is the Nameless River. |

Not that Trout will cease to be. They will be hatched by machinery
and raised in ponds, and fattened on chopped liver, and grow flabby and
lose their spots. The Trout of the restaurant will not cease to be. He
is no more like the Trout of the wild river than the fat aiid songless
Reed Bird is like the Bobolink. Gross feeding and easy pond life ener-
vate and deprave him.

“The Trout that the children will know only by legend is the gold-

TROUT PERCH. 899

sprinkled, living arrow of the White Water; able to zigzag up the cata-

ract ; able to loiter in the rapids, whose dainty meat is the glancing
butterfly.”

FAMILY XIV. PERCOPSIDH. THE TROUT
PERCHES.

Body moderately elongate, somawhat compressed, the caudal peduncle long and slen-
der ; head conical, pointed, naked ; mouth small, horizontal; maxillary short, narrow,
without supplemental bone, not reaching to the large eye; margin of upper jaw formed
by premaxillaries alone, which are short and rot protractile; teeth very small, villiform
on premaxillaries and lower jaw only; tongue short, adherent; gill-membranes sepa-
rate, free from the isthmus; pseudobranchi» present; branchiostegals six; gill-rakers
short, tubercle-like; opercle with entire edges; lower limb of the preopercle well de-
veloped, the angle nearly a right angle, its inner edge with a raised crest; bones of the
head cavernous, as in Acerina and Ericymba; cranium with a raised crest, which dees
not extend to the occiput; scales moderate, rather thin, adherent, their edges strongly
etenoid ; lateral line continuous; dorsal short, median; ventrals anterior, just in front
of the dorsal, 8-rayed ; pectorals narrow, placed rather higher than usual; anal small;
caudal forked ; adipose fin present, small; stomach siphona], with about 10 well devel-
oped pyloric ceca; ova rather large, not falling into the abdominal cavity before excla-
sion ; air-bladder present ; small fishes of the fresh waters of the cooler parts of Amer-
ica; a single genus, with probably but one species. The group is one of special interest,
as it combines with ordinary salmonoid characters the structure of the head and mouth
of a percoid, resembling notably the European genus Acerina.

Genus 54. PERCOPSIS. Agassiz.
Percopsis, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 284.
Salmoperca, THOMPSON, 1853.
Type, Percopsis guttatus, Agassiz.
Etymology, perke, perch ; opsis, appearance.

The characters of the genus are included above.

2 103. PERCoPsIs @UTTATUS Agassiz.
Trout Perch.

Percopsis guitatus, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 286.— GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus.,
vi, 207.—JORDAN, Man. Vert. 2d Ed., 1873, 270.
Salmoperca pellucida, THOMPSON.

Pale olivaceous, a silvery stripe along the lateral line, becoming obsolete forwards $
upper parts with obseure, round dusky spots made of dark points. Head slender and
conical; mouth small, subinferior, maxillary not nearly reaching front of orbit; caudal
peduncle long and slender; peritoneum silvery; head 3 4-5 in length; depth about
43; D.11; A.8; Lat. 1.50. Length about 6 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region, extending southward to the Dalaware, Ohio and Kansas
Rivers; abundant only in tributaries of the Great Lakes.

900 FISHES—PERCOPSIDA.

Diagnosis—This is the only fish which combines the adipose fin of the
salmon, with the small, rough scales of the perch.

Hoabits.—Little is known of the habits of the Trout Perch. It is found
in the open lakes and in the small streams. I have seen it taken with
hook and line from the wharves at Chicago, and I have found it among
schools of minnows in small streams of Northern Wisconsin. One or
two specimens have been obtained by Dr. Sloan in the Ohio River. It
spawns in spring, and its ova are comparatively large like those of the
Trout. They are excluded through an oviduct.

FAMILY AMBLYOPSIDA. THE CAVE-FISHES.

Body moderately elongate, compressed behind; head long, depressed; mouth rather
large, the lower jaw projecting; premaxillaries long, scarcely protractile, forming the
entire margin of the upper jaw; jaws and palatines with bands of slender, villiform
teeth; branchiostegals about 6; gill-rakers very short; pseudobranchi® concealed ;
gill-membranes more or less completely joined to the isthmus; head naked, the surface
sometimes crossed by papillary ridges; body with small, cycloid scales, irregularly
placed; no lateral line; vent jugular, close behind the gill-openings; ventral fins small
or wanting; pectorals moderate, inserted higher than in most soft-rayed fishes; dorsal
without spine, nearly opposite the anal; caudal truncate or rounded; cranium without
median crest; stomach cecal, with one or two pyloric appendages; air-bladder present ;
ovary single; some, and probably all, of the species are ovoviviparous; in two of the
genera the eyes are very rudimentary and hidden under the skin, and the body is trans-
lucert and colorless ; fishes of small size, living in subterranean streams and ditches of
the Central and Southern United States; three genera and four species are ‘all of the
family yet known, but that others will be discovered, and the range of the present
known species extended, is very probable. The ditches and small streams of the low-
lands of our Southern coast will undoubtedly be found to be the home of numerous in-
dividuals, and perhaps of new species and genera, while the eubterranean streams of
the central portion of our country most likely contain other species ” (Putnam).

None of this family have yet been recorded from Ohio, and I am not aware of the ex-
istence of any cave streams in the State in which it is likely that they will be found.
I give here a brief account of the characters of the species found in the caves of Ken-
tucky and Indiana, as they belong to the general fauna of the Ohio Valley.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF AMBLYOPSIDZ,

a. Eyes rudimentary, concealed under the skin; body colorless.

b. Ventrals present, small. a e F . . AMBLYOPSIS.
bb. Ventrals obsolete. z a ‘ . 4 ‘ TYPHLICHTHYS.
aa, Eyes well developed; body colored ; no ventrals. 5 5 CHOLOGASTER.

Genus. AMBLYOPSIS. DeKay.

Amblyopsis, DEKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 187.
Type, Amblyopsis speleus, DeKay.
Etymology, amblus, blunt; opsis, vision.

SMALL BLIND FISH. 901

Eyes rudimentary, concealed under the skin; surface of head crossed by vertical,
tactile ridges; gill-membranes fally joined to isthmus; ventral fins present, quite small,
close to anal; colorless fishes of small size, inhabiting the cave streams in the limestone
regions of the Western States.

AMBLYOP3Is SPELHUS DeKay.

Larger Blind Fish of the Mammoth Cave.

Amblyopsis speleus, DEKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 147”.—WYMan, Amer. Journ.
Sci. Arts, 1843, 94; Aun. Mag. Nat. Hist., xii, 1843, 298; Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1850, 349, and elsewhere.—THoMPson, Ann. Nat. Hist., 1844, 112.—TELLKAMPF,
Müller’s Arch., 1844, 381.—AGass1z, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1851, 127.—PoEY, Mem.
Cuba, 104.—GuNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 2. —PUTNAM, JORDAN, and of
all writers generally.

Description. —Colorless ; mouth comparatively large, the length of its cleft about equal
to the base of dorsal; pectorals reaching front of dorsal; caudal long, rather pointed ;
one pyloric cecum ; head 3 in length; depth 44; D.8; V.4. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, subterranean streams of Kentucky and Indiana. Mammoth Cave, etc.

ae

Genus TYPHLICHTHYS. Girard.

Typhlichthys, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 62.
Amblyopsis, sp., GUNTHER.
Chologaster, sp., GILL.

Type, Typhlichthys subterraneus, Girard.

Etymology, tuphlos, blind ; ichthus, fish.

This genus may be known by its blindness and by the abre1ce of the ventral fins.

TYPHLICHTHYS 8SUBTERRANEUS Girard.

Small-blind Fish.

Typhlichthys subterraneus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1859, 62, and of Patnam,
Jordan, and late writers generally.
Amblyopsis spel@us, variety without ventral fins, GUNTHER, ].c.
Description.—Colorless ; head rather blunter and broader forwards than in A, speleus ;
mouth smaller, its cleft shorter than base of dorsal; pectorals scarcely reaching dorsal ;
one pyloric cecum; D.7 or 8; A.7 or 8. Length, 2 inches.

Habitat, subterranean streams of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama.

Genus CHOLOGASTER. Agassiz.

Chologaster, AGAssız, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, xvi, 1853, 135.

Type, Chologaster cornutus, Agassiz (from South Carolina).

Etymology, cholos, deficient ; gaster, belly, (from the lack of ventral fins).

This genus has the general characters of Amblyopsis, but differs in the absence of ven-
tral fins and in the fully developed condition of the eyes, which are small and lateral ;
the species are not pellucid, but colored like ordinary fishes; no papillary ridges ;
pyloric cceca 2.

902 FISHES--CYPRINODONTIDE.

CHOLOGASTER AGASSIZI Putnam.

Chologaster agassizi, PUTNAM, Amer. Nat., 1872, 30, Mammoth Cave.—JoRDAN, Man.
Vert., etc.

Description.—Uniform light brown; fins somewhat speckled ; head four in body, its
length scarcely greater than the greatest depth; pectorals reaching little more than
half way to front of dorsal; D.9; A.9. Length, 14 inches.

Habitat, subterranean streams in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Southern Illinois.

FAMILY XV. CYPRINODONTIDA. THE
CYPRINODONTS.

Body oblong or moderately elongate, compressed behind, depressed forwards, covered
with rather large cycloid scales, which are adherent and regularly arranged ; no lateral
line; head scaly, at least above; mouth terminal, small, the lower jaw usually project-
ing; margin of the upper jaw formed by the premaxillaries only ; premaxillaries strong,
extremely protractile; teeth incisor-like or villiform, sometimes present on the vomer,
but usually in the jaws only; lower pharyngeals separate, with cardiform teeth ; gill-
membranes somewhat connected, free from isthmus; gill-rakers very short and thick;
branchiostegals 4-6; pseudobranchi® none; dorsal fin single, inserted posteriorly, of
soft rays only, rarely with a single spine or rudimentary spinous dorsal; caudal fin
not forked; ventral fins abdominal, rarely wanting ; pectoral fins inserted low; no
adipose fin; stomach not cecal, without pyloric appendages; air- bladder simple, often
wanting. Sexes usually unlike, the fins being largest in the males. Most all are ovo-
viviparous, the young well developed at time of birth. Fresh-water fishes of Southern
Europe, Asia, Africa, and'America, some of them occurring in bays and arms of the sea.
They are mostly of small size, and the species are very difficult of determination,
Genera 30; species about 140.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CYPRINODONTIDA.

a. Dorsal fin beginning in advance of anal. P " ‘ * FUNDULUS. 55.
aa. Dorsal fin beginning behind origin of anal. . 7 0 ZYGONECTES, 56.

i Genus 55. FUNDULUS. Lacepede.
Fundulus, LACRPEDE, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, v, 1803, 37.
Hydrargyra, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., v, 1803, 378 (swampinus).
Xenisma, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1676, 322 (stellifer).
Adinia, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei, Phila., 1859, 117 (multifasciaia).
Type, Fundulus mudfish, Lac. = Cobitio heteroclitus L.
Etymolegy, Latin, fundus, the bottom, in‘allusion to the supposed mud-loving habits.

Body rather elongate, little elevated, compressed behind; mouth moderate; jaws,
each with two or more series of pointed teeth, usually forming a narrow band ; bones of
the mandible firmly united; scales moderate ; branchiostegals 4 to 6; preopercle, pre-
orbital, and mandible with mucous pores; dorsal and anal fins similar, moderately
developed or rather large, the dorsal usually inserted in front of the anal; ventrala well
developed ; air bladder presert; sexes differing in color, size, and development of the
fins, the anal fin in the male normal ; intestinal canal short; species very numerous,
mostly American, inhabiting fresh waters and arms of the sea. They are the largest in
size of the Cyprinodonts, and some of them are very brightly colored.

BARRED KILLIFISH. 903

104. FUNDULUS DIAPHANUS (LeS.) Agassiz.

Barred Killifish; Toothed Minnow.

Hydrargyra diaphana, LeSunvr, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 130.

Fundulus diaphanus, AGAssiz.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, —; Man. Vert. 2d Ed., 1878,
262. ‘

Hydrargyra multifasciata, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1877, 131.

Fundulus multifasciatus, Cuv.et VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xviii, 200.—Cops, Proc. Acad.

Nat Sci. Phila., 1865, 78.—STÖRER, Hist. Fishes Mass., 1867, —.—GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1866, 324.—CoPe and Yarrow, Wheeler’s.Rept , Surveys, etc,
Fishes, 1877, —, and of most recent writers.

Description.—Body elongated, somewhat compreesed, the head flattened above and
moderately broad ; depth 44 to 5 in length; head 2%; eye large, 3-32 in head, a little
less than the width of the interorbital space; mouth moderate, of the usual form
among Cyprinodonts ; vent about midway between middle of caudal and front of eye;
scales rather large, in 38 to 40 transverse rows; D. 12 or 13; A. 11 or 12; V. 6; branch-
jostegals 5; color olive-brown, more or less translucent; sides silvery with 12 to 16
dark olive- brown cross bands, somewhat undulating or irregular, rather narrower than
the interspaces; dorsal region irregularly spotted with darker ; fins unspotted. Length,
3 inches.

Habitat, this species occurs abundantly in the brackish waters along our eastern
coast. It also ascends all streams to their sources, being especially fond of the cold
spring water in which they take their rise. It has been taken in various streams of
Michigan, Wisconsin, Obio, and even in Colorado, and in all waters in the State of New
York. LeSueur’s original types were from Saratoga Lake.

Diagnosis. —This species may be known at once among our small fishes
by the posterior dorsal, all of soft rays, in connection with the dark bars
on the side. i

Habits.—In Ohio, this species will be found chiefly in the small lakes
and ponds in the northern part of the State. Its size is too small for it
to attract special attention. Like all the members of its family, it is ex-
tremely tenacious of life.

Genus 56. ZYGONECTES. Agassiz.

Zygonectes, AGASSIZ, American Journ. Sci. Arts, 1654, 135.
Micristius, GILL, Canadian Naturalist, August, 1865, p. 24. (Type, Fundulus zonatus
Cuv. and VAL.)
Fundulus, Haplochilus, and Pecilia, sp. of authors.
Type, Pecilia olivacea Storer, = Semotilus nolatus, Raf.
Etymology, zugos, a yoke (in pairs); nectes, swimmer, from the supposed habit of
swimming at the surface of the water in pairs.

This genus is closely related to Fundulus, differing chiefly in the small size and

posterior position of the dorsal, which has usually less than ten rays and is commonly
inserted behind the front of the anal fin; the species are smaller in size than those of

904 FISHES—CYPRINODONTIDE.

Fundulus, and different in appearance, so that we feel reluctant to unite the two gen-
era, although the technical differences are very slight. Species all American. Surface
swimmers, feeding upon insects.

The species are quite numerous, but have been little studied.

The following article from the pen of John A. Ryder, on the develop-
ment of a species of this genus is almost the only attempt at the study
of the breeding peculiarities of the Cyprinodonts :

“ Since we have taken up our temporary residence at Cherrystone, Virginia, we have
found this interesting genus of cyprinodonts in great abundance in fresh and brackish
water streams, also in a fresh water pond in the vicinity, a few miles south of where
our station is located. In the latter situation three forms have been collected, all of
which are in breeding condition—we will not say spawning condition, as they do not, as
do most other fishes, commit their ova to the care of the element in which they live,
but carry them abont in the ovary, where they are impregnated and where they develop:
in a very remarkable manner.

‘Of the manner of impregnation we know little or nothing, except the evidence
furnished by the conformation of the external genitalia of the two sexes. In the adult,
male, which measures one and one-eighth of an inch in length, the anal fin is strangely
modified into an intromittent organ for the conveyance of the milt into the evary of
the female; a tabular organ appears to be formed by the three foremost anal rays, but
one which is greatly prolonged and united by a membrane. At the apex these rays are
somewhat curved toward each other, and thus form a blunt point, but the foremost one
of the three rays is armed for its whole length with ridges at its base and with sharp
recurved hooks at its tip, the other two at their tips similarly with hooks, and between
their tips are two small fenestra or openings which possibly communicate directly with
the sperm ducts from the testes. The basal elements of the fins are aggregated into a
cylindrical columnar truncated bony mass, which is prolonged upward into the cavity
of the air-bladder for the distance of nearly the eighth of an inch; from it a series of
fibrous bands pass to the dorsal and posterior wall of the air-bladder to be inserted in
the median line. Whether this bony column serves to steady the fin in tke act of copu-
lation, or whether it serves to give passage to the sperm duct, is an unsettled question
with the writer. The modified anal fin of the male measures a third of an inch in
length. Other peculiarities of the male are noticeable—for instance, the more ab-
breviated air-bladder or space which also occupies a more oblique position than in the
female. The most remarkable difference presented by the male as compared with the
female, however, is his inconsiderable weight, which is only 160 milligrames, while that
of the gravid female is 1,030 milligrames or nearly six and one-half times the weight of
the male.

“The female, as already stated, is larger than the male, and measures one inch and
three-fourths in length. The liver lies for the most part on the left side. The intestine
makes one turn upon itself in the fore part of the body cavity and passes back along the
floor of the abdomen to the vent. The air-bladder occupies two-fifths of the abdominal
cavity, and at its posterior end the wolffian duct traverses it vertically, to be enlarged
near the outlet into a fusiform urinary bladder of very much the same form as in many
embryo fishes, as demonstrated by Professor Kupffer and myself. The ovary is a simple,
impaired organ which lies somewhat to the right and extends from the anterior portion
of the body cavity to the hinder end, and serves to fill up its lower moiety when fally
developed. The ova, when full grown, are each enveloped in a sac or follicle supplied

DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINODONTS. 905

with blood from a median vascular trunk which divides and subdivides as it traverses
the ovary lengthwise, in a manner similar to that of the stem to which grapes in the
bunch are attached. In this way it happens that each egg or ovum has its own inde-
pendent supply of blood from the general vascular system of the mother, from which the
material for the growth and maturation of the egg is derived, and which afterward
becomes specialized into a contrivance by which the life of the developing embryo
is maintained while undergoing development in their respective follicles in the ovary
or egg-bag. The ova develop along the course of the main vessel and its branches, as
may be learned upon examining a hardened specimen, where the very immature ovarian
eggs are seen to be involved in a meshwork of connective fibrous tissue, which serves
not only to strengthen the vessels but also afterwards enters into the structure of the
walls of the ovarian sacs or follicles externally.

‘“ The very immature eggs measure from less than a hundredth of an inch up to a
fiftieth, and on up to a twelfth of an inch, when they may be said to be mature. They
develop along a nearly median rachis or stalk which extends backward and slightly
downward and which gets its blood supply very far forward from the doraal aorta. The
ova, after developing a little way, are each inclosed in a follicle, the Grefian follicle,
ovisac, ovarian capsule, membrana granulosa of Von Baer, or membrana cellulosa of Coste.
As the egg is matured there is a space developed about it which is said to result from the
breaking up of the granular layer of cells covering it. This space is filled with fluid,
and in this liquid, which increases in quantity as development proceeds, the embryo of
Zygonectes or top-minnow, is constantly bathed. There is no trace whatever in the egg of
this fish of an independent egg membrane, as is the case with all known forms which spawn
directly into the water, and which is usually, if not in all cases, perforated by one or
more mycropolar openings or pores for the entrance of the spermatozoon. This fact
raises the question whether the egg membrane or zona radiata usually present in the ova
of water-spawning fishes is not entirely absent in all the viviparous species. Whether
Ratbke has recorded anything on this point in his account of the development of Zoarces,
the viviparous blenny, I am not able to say at present, as I do not have access to his
memoir. Suffice it to say, however, that with very cautious preparation, staining and
dissection of the follicles inclosing the ova of Zygonectes, I have completely failed to dis-
cover what I could regard as an egg membrane, although personally familar with the
appearance of the coverings of the ova of more than twenty species, embracing fifteen
or more families. The zona radiata or covering of the egg in other bony fishes is said to
be secreted from the cells lining the follicles and is composed of a gelatinoid substance,
and it is often perforated all over by a vast number of extremely fine tubules called pore
canals by their discoverer, Johannes Mueller. No such structure existing as a covering
for the egg of Zygonectes, we are in a position to ask the question why such a unique con-
dition of affairs should exist in this case? The answer, it would appear to us, is not far
to seek. In the case of eggs which ordinarily hatch in water it is necessary that they
should be supplied with a covering more or less firm and capable of protecting the con-
tained embryo, which in the case of the top-minnow is not needed, because the embryo is
developed so as to be quite competent to take care of itself as a very well organized lit-
tle fish when it leaves the body of its parent. Nature will not waste her powers in an
effort to make useless clothes for such of her chjldren as do not need them ; on the con-
trary, she is constantly utilizing structures economically, and often so as to serve more

than one purpose. This is the apparent answer to the query with which we started.
“ The follicles or sacs containing the ova are built up internally of flat, polygonal
cells of pavement epithelium, and externally of a network of multipolar, fibrous, con-

906 FISHES—CYPRINODONTIDE.

nective tissue cells and minute capillary blood vessels, with cellular walls, which
radiate in all directions over the follicle from the point where the main arterial vessel
joins the follicle, and which, together with its accompanying veins and investment of
fibrous tissue, constitutes the stalk by which the follicle and its contained naked ovum
is suspended to the main arterial trunk and vein. The capillary system ends in a
larger venous trunk, which also follows the course of the main median arterial trunk
back to the heart by way of the Cuvierian ducts. The very intricate mesh-work of fine
vessels which covers the follicle supplies the developing fish with fresh oxygen, and also
serves to carry off the carbonic dioxide in much the same way as the placenta or after-
birth performs a similar duty for the young mammal developing in the uterus of its
parent. There is this great difference, however, between the fish and the mammal. In
the former there is no uterus; the development takes place in the follicle in which the
‘eggs have grown and matured; there is no true placenta, but respiration is effected by
& follicular mesh-work of blood vessels, and the interchange of oxygen and carbonic
dioxide gases takes place through the intermediation at first of the fluid by which the
embryo is surrounded in its follicle, and later, when blood vessels and gills have
developed in the embryo, they too become accessories to aid in the oxygenation of its
blood. In the mammal there is a uterus; the egg must leave its ovarian follicle and be
conveyed to the uterine cavity before a perfectiy normal development can begin ; there
is a fully developed richly vascalar placenta joined to the fetus, the villi or vascular
loops of which are insinuated between those developed on the maternal surface of the
uterine cavity. In both fish and mammal, however, this general likeness remains; that
there is no immediate vascular connection between mother and embryo. In both the
respiration of the embryo is ¢ffected by the transpiration of gases through the inter-
mediation of membrane and fluids, oxygen being constantly supplied and carbonio
dioxide carried off by means of a specialized portion of the blood system of the maternal
organism.

“There is still another difference which distinguishes the developing fish from the
mammal which has not been noticed. The body of the former is built up by gradual
transformation or conversion of the substance of the yelk into the various structures
which make up its organization. In other words, the young fish obtains no nutrition
from its parent; thereis merely a reorganization of the stored protoplasm of the yelk
sac. In the mammal, on the other hand, the embryo receives nourishment through the
placental structures, though there is a yelk at an early stage; the largest proportion
of the embryo is built up from the protoplasm supplied from the blcod system of the
parent. Judging from the large size of the young of some viviparous fishes, such as in
Embiotoca, it is possible that there may be some exceptions to the rule indicated above,

‘‘ Besides the very intricate network of capillary vessels which covers the follicles of
the ovary of Zygonectes a large opening of a circular or oval form makes its appearance
in the wall of each one at or near the point of attachment of the vascular stalk by which
they are supported. This opening appears to increase in size as the young fish develops;
whether it is present during the earliest stages of the intrafollicular development of the
embryo I do not kno w, as I did not have an opportunity to sea those phases. A branch
from the main nutritive vessel frequently lies near the margin of the opening, curving
around it. Whether this opening serves the same purpose as the micropyle of ova pro-
vided with a membrane would appear very probable, as it is difficult to see in what
other manner the milt, which is ‘probably introduced into the ovarian cavity by the
male, could reach the ovum through the wall of its follicle. The opening into the fol-
liole may be named the follicular foramen. Through it the cavity in which the embryo

DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINODONTS. 907

lies is brought into direct communication with the general ovarian space, which, sin-
gularly enough appears to be occluded from without by a temporary closure ur plug-
ging up of the oviduct or canal from the posterior end of the ovarian rac, a state of
affairs, which, if it can be confirmed, approximates, or, to some extent, resembles, the
condition found to obtain in a pregnant mammal, where the uterine os or mouth is tem-
porarily occluded during gestation.

“We found ourselves unable to determine the species of the form, the structure of
which is described above; none of those described in Jordan’s Manual appear to agree
with our species (Gambusia patruelis, B. & G.—D.8.J.). It may be, as some of us have
surmised, that the isolation of the form on the eastern peninsula of Virginia for a great
length of time may have served to develop specific characters, and that it is undescribed.
We leave the determination of the species to the systematic ichthyologists.

“Thus far our account has dealt only with the structure of the adults and the pecu-
liar contrivances by means of which reproduction is effected ; we will now take up the
discussion of the egg and embryo.

“The globular vitellus measures about a line in diameter including the embryonic or
germinal portion. The germinal protoplasm probably occupies a peripheral position
covering the nutritive or vitelline portion of the egg as a continuous envelope with
strands of germinal matter running from it through and among the corpuscles of the
vitellus. This peripheral germinal layer, when the egg is ready to be fertilized, mi-
grates toward one pole and assumes a biscuit shape. This is essentially the history of
the formation of the germinal disk of the Teleostean egg as worked out independently by
Professor Kupffer and the writer. Little of a trustwortby character is known of the
history of the germative vesicle and spot, which bear the same relation to the egg as
the nucleus and nucleolus do to the substance of the cell of the ordinary type. When
cleavage of the germinal disk has begnn, it is the first positive evidence that impregnation
has been successful. The disk then begins to spread over the vitellus or yelk and soon
acquires the form of a watch glass with its concave side lying next the surface of the
yelk. Coincident with the lateral expansion of the germinal disk, a thickening appears
at one point in its margin which is the first sign of the appearance of the embryo fish.
With its still further expansion, the embryo is developed more from the margin of the
disk toward its centre; in this way it happens that the axis of the embryo lies in one of
the radii of the disk; its head toward the centre, its tail at the margin.

“ But before the embryo is fairly formed, a space appears under the disk limited by
the thickened rim of the latter, and the embryo at one side. This space, the segmenta-
tion cavity, is filled with fluid and grows with the growth of the germinal disk, as the latter
becomes converted into the blastoderm, and does not disappear until sometime after the embryo
has left the egg as a young fish; and then it often remains as a space around the yelk sac
for as long as a vestige of the latter remains, as may be seen in the young of Cybium,
Parephippus, Gadus, Elecate, and Syngnathus. In regard to this point, I hold views en-
tirely different from any other observers, but inasmuch as the writer has had opportu-
nities for the study of the development of a greater number of species representing a
greater number of families than any previous investigator, and because the observa-
tions are based on material studied without the use of hardening re-agents which either
deform or obliterate the segmentation cavity, and also because it was found to be present
in all of the forms which were sufficiently well studied, it is belieyed that it will be found
in the developing ova of most or all Teleostean fishes. Should this prove to be the fact, the
Teleostean egg willbe asdistinctly defined in respect to the sum of the developmental char-

>

908 FISHES—CYPRINODONTIDE.

acters which it presents from the developing ova of other vertebrates, as the adult Teleost
is the from remaining classes of the sub-kingdom to which it belongs. The floor of the cav-
ity appears to be formed by the hypoblast or innermost embryonic layer, while its roofis
formed by the epiblast or outermost skin layer. Gradually this blastoderm, which has
been derived by cleavage from the germinal disk, grows over the yelk, no part of its epi-
blast layer being in direct contact with the hypoblast below on account of the presence
of the intervening film of fluid, except at its rim. The embryo also appears to be in
fixed contact with the yelk. The blastoderm grows at about an equal rate all around
its margin; the point where the edges of the blastoderm finally close is almost directly
opposite the site where the germinal disk first appeared ; the closure at last occurs just
behind the tail of the embryo where a little crater-like elevation marks the point at
which it disappears. The embryo now lies along a meridian of the blastoderm ; its head
at the original germinal pole, its tail at the other. The growth of the blastoderm over
the yelk is greatly facilitated by the film or fluid contained in the segmentation cavity,
over which it can glide as it grows without friction. This view seems to me to be the
most rational yet proposed in explanation of the method by which the blastoderm grows
laterally in all directions down over the yelk. In some cases the yelk sac is frequently
much absorbed before the outer epiblastic sac begins to collapse. This is the case with
Cybium after it leaves the egg and proves very conclusively that the outer sac is en-
tirely free, laterally and ventrally from the inner one containing the yelk.

“ There are two principal methods by which the yelk is absorbed ; the one where a
more or less extensive net-work of vessels is developed over the surface of the yelk, and
through which all, or nearly all, of the blood passes to reach the venous end of the
heart; in many cases no such net-work is ever developed, as for instance, in the shad,
mackerel, cod, and bonito. To the former class the young top minnow belongs. Its
yelk is orange-colored and imbedded in it superficially are a great number of refrin-
gent oil globules of small size. There appears to be a sinus beneath the head, con-
tinuous with the segmentation cavity in which the heart is developed. The body of the
young fish lies in a groove or farrow on the surface of the yelk. This isthe youngest
state in which I have seen Zygonectes and explains why I have given the preceding gen-
eral account of the development of a young fish. The somites or segments of muscle
plates had been developed for some time. Tho heart, brain, intestine and organs of
sense were defined. P
_ “The next important stage observed was when the yelk sac was in great part ab-
sorbed and the fish nearly ready to hatch, or more properly to leave its follicle and the
body of its parent. The extraordinary acceleration of development, noted in almost every
detail of structure was such as I had never witnessed in any other species of young fish.
The bones of the skull, although still cartilaginous, were advanced to « condition not
seen in the shad until it bas been hatched for three weeks or more. There were inter-
maxillary elements with teeth ; pharyngeal patches of teeth; the brain was pretty well
roofed over by the cartilaginous cranium ; the branchiosteges were developed in cartil-
age; the opercles completely covered and concealed the gills, the opercular elements
being differentiated; the gills already bore branchial leaflets; the neural and.
hemal arches of the vertebr® were developed in cartilage; there was a lagena attached
to the auditory capsule; scales covered the sides and back and were developed in
pockets of the dermal epithelium ; in five, all the fins were already developed except the
ventrals with the same number of rays as in the adult. All this, and yet the yelk sac
was still not absorbed. I have never seen in any fish embryos of the same age an in-

DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINVDONTS. 969

star ce where scales were @eveloped or where the fins had approximated their adult con-
dition so nearly as in this case. The only instance known to me at this writing where a
continous dorsal and ventral median fin-fold is never developed, is in the case of
Syngnathus, where the caudal rays are developed before the dorsal ones. Whether the
unpaired fins of Zygoneotes are, or are not, derived from such a fold would be an inter-
esting observation. A marked acceleration is also noticeable in the development of the
brain, a study of which by means of sections, as compared with that of the adult, has
furnished me with some valuable clues in following up the developments of Teleostean
genera. :

‘To sum up, this fish begins an independent career as far developed as when the shad,
cod, mackerel, bonito, and many other fishes are from three to six weeks o!d. By so
much he has the advantage over these types in the struggle for existence in that he is
ready to feed, to pursue his prey discriminately, as soon as he is born, while the other
forms alluded to are comparatively helpless until some time after they have absorbed
their yelk sac, although most of them by that time have acquired mandibular, maxillary,
or pharyngeal teeth or both. The Fish Ccmmission authorities need never be uneasy
about the fate of the top minnows; they will take care of themselves; their species is
sure of survival. But our study, it would seem to the wiiter, has not been in vain,
because, even though the fish is too small to be of any practical value, it has taught us
that where Nature has so effectually provided for the protection of the young fish she
does not require one adult to produce as many embryos. In Zygonectes twenty-five to
thirty young is perhaps the limit of production for a single female ;. in Apeltes, or the
four-spined stickleback, the male of which is provided, according to my observations,
with a spinning apparatus, with which he fabricates a nest in which the young are
hatched and taken care of, the number of eggs is from fifteen to twenty. Contrasting’
these small numbers with 100,000 to 3,000,000, the number of ova easily matured in a
single season by a single female of many anadromous and marine species, which have
heavy, adhesive or floating eggs, it would appear that the quantities of germs produced
by different species of fishes is in some way proportioned to their chances of survival.
Otherwise we are at a loss to explain the enormous fertility cf many marine forms; the
astounding fertility of the oyster and clams is another instance illustrating this princi-
ple, where ova are matured by the tens of millions and where barely one out of a million
survives so as to attain adult age.

“Certain adaptations of structure are also plainly noticeable on a comparative study of
fish ova. Thus the egg membrane of floating eggs is extremely thin, thinner than that
of heavy or adhesive eggs, while the thickest membranes are those provided with exter-
nal filamentous appendages. The most thinly clad hatch ont soonest. May it not be
that the thinness of the envelope. of the egg has some relation to the rapidity with
which the oxygenation of the egg is effected and consequently with the rapidity of tis-
sue and embryonic changes? And, finally, who would undertake to say that all of
these modifications of the embryonic envelope are not such as could be developed by
natural selection so as to favor the survival of the greatest number of embryos ?

“ Before closing I wish to state that it is the oviduct of the female in some cyprinodonts
that is prolonged into a tube at the anterior edge of the anal fin, as I have lately learned.
This difference, as compared with Zygonectes, would be usefnl as a general character, as
suggested by Colonel Marshall McDonald, to whose unselfish, helpful interest I am
deeply indebted for assistance in manifold ways while the investigation of the material
was in progress upon which the foregoing account is based.— Forest and Stream.

910 FISHES—CYPRINODONTIDA.

105. ZYGoNECTES NoTATUus (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Top Minnow; Top Swimmer.
Semotilus? notatus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 86.
Zygonectes notatus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 264, and elsewhere.
Pacilia olivacea, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., July, 1845; Synopsis, 430.

Zygonectes olivaceus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xvii, 1854, 353—JoRDAN, Man.
Vert., 252.

Fundulus tenellus, BAIRD and GIRAKD, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1853, 289.
Zygonectes tenellus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1859, 60.
Zygenectes lateralis, AGASSIZ, Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 353.

Zygonectes zonatus, AGAssiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 353.

Zygonectes pulchellus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1853, 113.—JoRDAN, Ind. Geol,
Surv., 1874, 218. .

Haplochilus pulchellus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., v, 1866, 314.
Fundulus aureus, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 78.
Haplochilus aureus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi. 1866, 315.

Description.—Body rather slender, compressed behind ; head low, depressed, and rather
elongate, the snout somewhat produced, the lower jaw scarcely projecting; interorbital
space broad, its width about half length of head; eye large, less than snout, about three
in head; fins moderate, the dorsal and anal elevated in the males; teeth in a broad
band, the outer series considerably enlarged and canine-like; coloration brownish-olive,
with a broad, dark purplish-black lateral band running from tip of snout through eye
to base of caudal; darker in males than in females; young specimens have the edges
of the band serrated ; a few series of small, black dots along the side of the back; dor-
sal, caudal, and anal fins dotted with black; top of head with a conspicuous translucent

spot in life, which fades in spirits; concentric strie on scales, strong; head 4; depth;
44; D.9; A. 11; scales 34x11.

Habitat, all waters of the basin of the Mississippi, and in southern tributäries of the
Great Lakes.

Diagnosis.— This is the only Ohio fish with the caudal fin rounded be-
hind, the head flattened above, and a purplish-black lateral band which
passes around the nose.

Habits.—This is a very common species in the basin of the Mississippi.
It frequents still waters, especially canals and ponds made by overflow
of creeks in the spring. In open rivers it is found chiefly in still,
weedy places. Where found, it always swims near the surface, and may
be recognized as far as seen by one expert in little fishes. It is too small
for food, but is sometimes used for bait. Its beauty and extreme hardi-
ness render it a desirable aquarium fish to those few who prefer our
graceful native fishes to the gaudy and vulgar gold-fish,

106. ZYGoNECTES DISPAR Agassiz.
Striped Top Minnow.
Zygonectes dispar, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 253, —NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus.

STRIPED TOP MINNOW. 911

Nat. Hist., 1876, 42.—Jorpan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 67; Man. Vert., 2d
"Ed., 1878.

Desoription.—Body short and deep, much compressed ; head short and very broad, the
flat, interorbital space being two-thirds of its length, and barely twice the diameter of
the eye, the distance between the eyes above greater than the distance between them
below ; suout broadly rounded ; fins moderate; dorsal much smaller than anal; outer
series of teeth somewhat enlarged ; coloration pale olive, bluish in life; a very distinot
brownish line along the edges of each row of scales, appearing wavy or serrated as is
follows the scales; about ten of these longitudinal stripes are present; males with
the lines interrupted, appearing as series of dots, and further marked by about nine
dark cross-bars; adults with a dark blotch below the eye, and sometimes conflaent with
it; oviduct free from anal fin; head 32; depth 34; dorsal 7; A. 9; scales 35-10.
Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Lakes and sluggish streams from Ohio to Iowa.

Diagnosis.—The dark, lengthwise stripes of this species at once distin-
guish it from the other Top Minnows found in Ohio.

Habits—This species seems to prefer the waters of the large streams
and lakes. As yet it has only been taken in Illinois, where it is widely
distributed, and in Indiana and Ohio, the lakes tributary to the Wabash,
Illinois, and Maumee. It swims near the surface, with a languid motion,
as if it were very hard work.

Another species of this type, Zyg»nectes melanops (Cope) Jordan, known
by the absence of stripes and the presence of a still more conspicuous
black spot below the eye, occurs in Southern Illinois, and may be looked
for in the bayous of Southern Ohio.

FAMILY XVI. UMBRIDA. THE MUD MINNOWS.

Body oblong, broad anteriorly, compressed behind; head large, flattened above;
mouth moderate, the maxillary without distinct supplemental bone; bands of villiform
or cardiform teeth on premaxillaries, lower jaw, vomer, and palatines; premaxillaries
not protractile ; lateral margin of upper jaw formed by the broad, short maxillaries,
which are toothless; lower jaw the longer; gill-openings wide, the membranes scarcely
connected; gill-rakers little developed ; branchiostegals 6-8; scales moderate, oycloid,
covering head and body ; lateral line obscure or wanting ; dorsal fin moderate, posterior
in advance of anal; ventrals small, close to anal; pectorals inserted low; caudal fin
rounded ; stomach without blind sac; no pyloric ewca; pseudobranchi® hidden, gland-
ular, air-bladder simple; sexes similar; carnivorous fishes, living in mud or among
weeds at the bottom of clear, sluggish streams and ponds, extremely tenacious of life,
like the Cyprinodontidew ; oviparous; genera 2; species 3; Umbra crameri of Austria;
Dallia pectoralis, of Alaska; and Umbra limi. The family is very close to the Esocida,
differing mainly in the smaller mouth and weaker teeth.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF UMBRIDA.

a. Pectorals narrow, few (12-15) rayed ; ventral rays 6; scales moderate.
UMBRA. 57,

912 FISHES—UMBRIDE.

Genus 57. UMBRA. Muller.
Umbra (Kramer Elench. Anim. Austr. Infer., 1756), MULLER, Abhand. Akad. Wissench.,
Berl , 1842, 188.
Melanura, AGassiz, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1864, 135.

Type, Umbra crameri, Muller, from Southern Austria.

Etymology, Latin, umbra, shade.

Body oblong, covered with cycloid scales of moderate size, without radiating strie;
no lateral line; head shortish, little depressed ; eye rather small; cleft of mouth mod-
erate ; ventral fins 6-rayed, below or slightly in front of dorsal ; anal fin much shorter
than dorsal; pectorals rather narrow, rounded, placed low, with 12-15 rays, which are
much jointed; caudal rounded ; preopercle and preorbitai with mucous pores; branch-
iostegals 6; gill-rakers short, thick ; size small.

107. UMBRA xii (Kirtland) Gunther.

Mud Minnow; Mud Dace; Dog Fish.

Hydrargyra limi, KIRTILAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 277.

Melanura limi, AGassız, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 217.—JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed.,
1878, 265, and of many American writers.

Umbra limi, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 232, and of many writers.

Var.? pygmea.

Hydrargyra fusca, THOMPSON, Nat. Hist. Vt., 1842, 137.

Hydrargyra atricauda, DEKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 220.

Melanura annulata, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 217 (after Rafinesque’s, which
species appears, however, to be a true Exoglossum).

Leuciscus pygmeus, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 214.

Melanura pygmea, BAIRD, Ninth Smithson. Rept., 1855.

Umbra pygmea, BEAN, Mss., Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 53.

Fundulus fuscus, AYRES, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 296.

Description. —Dark-green or olive, mottled, sides with irregular, narrow, pale bars,
these often obscure or wanting; a distinct black bar at base of caudal; whitish stripes
sometimes present along the row of scales; head 3% in length; depth 44; B.6; P.14;
D.14; A.8; V.6; Lat. 1.35; L. trans. 15. Length 2 to 5 inches.

Habitat, Lake Champlain to Delaware and Minnesota, chietly northward, occasional
or rather rare in the Ohio Valley.

Diagnosis.—This species is the only small fish found in Ohio with a
rounded caudal fin, and a black bar across the tail.

Habits—This singular and interesting fish is very abundant in the
grassy or weedy streams and ponds in the northern part of Ohio. In the
southern part of the State it is less common, but may be occasionally
taken. Its ability to survive in mud after the water has evaporated is
remarkable, and instances are recorded where it has been actually
plowed up in plowing through a dried up pond or swamp. Prof: Baird
says, “A locality which, with the water perfectly clear, will appear des-

MUD MINNOW. 913

titute of fish, will perhaps yield a number of mud fish on stirring up the
mud at the bottom and drawing a seine through it. Ditches in the
prairies of Wisconsin, or mere bog-holes, apparently affording lodgment
to nothing beyond tad-poles, may thus be found filled with Melanurus.”
It, however, is fond of the muddy bottoms of clear, quiet waters, and is
seldom found in streams which are constantly turbid.

The name Dog fish, frequently applied to the species, comes from its
resemblance to the young of Amia calva, and many fishermen maintain
stoutly the identity of the two. The entire dissimilarity of the dorsal
fins of Amia and Umbra will separate them at sight.

The Mud-minnow of the coast streams from New York southward,
shows some differences from the Mud-minnow of the Great Lake Region,
and is possibly a different species, Umbra pygmza, (DeKay) Bean.

FAMILY XVII. ESOCIDA. THE ie

Body elongate, not elevated, more or less compressed ; head long; the snout much
prolonged aud depressed; mouth very large; its cleft forming about half the length of
the head ; lower jaw the longer; upper jaw not protractile, most of its margin formed
by the maxillaries, which are quite long and provided with a supplemental bone; pre-
maxillaries, vomer, and palatines with broad bands cf strong, cardiform teeth, which
are more or less movable; lower jaw with strong teeth of different sizes; tongue with
a band of small teeth ; head naked above; cheeks and opercles more or less scaly; gill-
openings very wide; gill-membranes separate, free from the isthmus; gill-rakers tuber-
cle-like, toothed ; branchiostegals 12-20; scales small; lateral line weak, obsolete in
young specimens, developed in the adult; dorsal posterior, opposite and similar t
anal; caudal fin emarginate ; pectoral fins small, inserted low; ventrals rather post-
erior; vent normal ; no adipose fin; no barbels; stomach not cecal, without pyloric
appendages; pseudobranchi® glandular, hidden; air-bladder simple. Fishes of mode-
rate or large size inhabiting the fresh waters of the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and
North America. Genus one; species about six, one of them cosmopolitan, the rest all
confined to America. The species are all noted for their greediness and voracity.

Genus 58. ESOX. Linnzus.

Esox, LINN2ZUS, Systema Nature, 1758 (lucius).
Lucius, RAFINESQUE, Indice d’Ittiol. Sicil., 1810 (luctus).
Picorellus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 70 (vitiatus).
Muscalongus, JORDAN, Klippart’s Second Rept. Ohio Fish Commr., sve, 92 (nobilior).
Type, Esox lucius, L.
Etymology, Latin, Esox, a pike, probably from isos, equal, oxus, sharp.
The characters of the genus are included above. There are three sections of the
genus which may be defined as follows:
Picorellus, RAFINESQUE.—Branchiostegals 12 to 14; cheeks as well as opercles entirely
scaly; species of generally small size, greenish, barred or reticulated with darker
(species, salmoneus).

58

914 FISHES—ESOCIDE.

Esox, Linnzzus.—Branchiostegals 14 to 16; cheeks scaly ; lower half of opercle bare;
species of rather large size, light spotted on rather dark ground (species, lucius).

Muscalongus, JoRDAN.—Branchiostegals 17 to 19; lower half of cheeks as well as
opercles, bare; species reaching an immense size, black-spotted on a lighter ground
(species, nobilior).

108. Esox saLmonrus Rafinesque.

Little Pickerel.

Esox salmoneus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 70.—JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876,
96.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 267, and of late writers.

Picorellus salmoneus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., lst Ed., 256.

Esox vermiculatus, LESUEUR, Cuv. and Val., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., xviii, 333.

Esox lineatus, LESuEUR, Cav. and Val., 1. c., xviii, 335.

Esox lugubrosus, LESUEUR, Cuv. and Val., xviii, 338.

Esox umbrosus, KIRTLAND, Cleveland Annals of Science, 1855, 79.—Corz, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Sci., 1865, 79; Cyp. Penn. (Trans. Amer. Phil. Soc.), 1866, 408.

Esox cypho, Corr, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 78.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit.
Mus, vi, 230.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 267, and of most writers.

Esox porosus, CoPE, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1866, 408.

Description.—Body moderately gtout, somewhat compressed ; head rather short, the eye
being exactly in the middle of the head ; eye large, less than three times in snout, about
six in head; cheeks and opercle entirely scaly ; caudal well forked ; color green or gray-
ish; sides with many carved streaks; sometimes forming bars, but more usually form-
ing marmorations or reticulations, the color extremely variable, sometimes quite plain;
sides of head usually variegated; a dark bar downward from eye and one forward;
base of caudal sometimes mottled ; other fins usually plain; head 34; depth 5-6; D. 11;
A.11; Lat.1.105. Smallest of all the Pikes. The length about a foot.

Habitat, entire Ohio Valley and in streams tributary to the Great Lakes from the
South; also in the Upper Mississippi Valley. .

Diagncsis.—From the other Ohio Pikes, this species may be known by
its entirely scaly opercles, and its small size and slender form.

The nearly related Eastern species, Esox reticulatus, LeSueur, the com-
mon Pickerel of the seaboard States differs in having the snout longer,
and the branchiostegals more numerous, 14 or 15 in number.

Habits.—This little fish is found throughout the State, but is especially
abundant in the ponds and streams tributary tothe Ohio. It swarmsin
the spring in ponds formed by the overflow of the creeks. Thousands
of them are destroyed yearly by the drying of such ponds. In the
spring it ascends all small streams, and it is often found in temporary
brooks in cornfields and other unexpected places, remote from its native
waters. People finding pickerel thus stranded often affirm stoutly that.
they “rain down.”

This species is too small to be of any importance as food. I have not
seen any of more than the length of a foot.

COMMON PIKE. 915

Its habits are like those of its Eastern relative, Esox reticulatus, which
Thoreau describes as “the swiftest, wariest, and most ravenous of fishes,
which Josselyn calls the River Wolf. It is a solemn, stately, ruminant
fish, lurking under the shadow of a pad at noon, with still, circumspect,
voracious eye; motionless as a jewel set in water, or moving slowly along
to take up its position ; darting from time to time at such unlucky fish
or frog or insect as comes within its range, and swallowing it at a gulp.
Sometimes a striped snake, bound to greener meadows across the stream,
ends its undulatory progress in the same receptacle.”

109. Esox Lucrus Linnzus.

Common Pike; Lake Pickerel.

* Synonymy for European Specimens.

Lucius, BELLON, De Aquat., 296.—RONDELET, ii, 188.—SaLv., 94, 95.—SCHONEVELDE,
44.—ALDROVANDI, De Pisc., 630.—JONSTON, iii, t. 3, c. 5, t. 29, f. L—-GESNER, De
Pise., 500.—WILLOUGHBY, 236, tab., 5, f 2.—Ray, Syn., 112.—KLeın, Miss. Pisc., v.
74, tab. 20, f. 1.

Esox No.1, ARTEDI, Synon., 26; Gen. p. 10, and Spec. 53.—GRONOVIUS, Zoophyl. No. 361

Esox lucius, L., Syst. Nat., i, 516.—BLocH, Fische Deutschl., i, 229, t. 32; Bl. Schn., 390,
—LACEPEDE, V. p. 297. REISINGER, Prod. Ichth. Hung., 47.—Dononav, Brit. Fishes,
v. pl. 109.—FLEM., Brit. Ann., 184.—JURINE, Mem. Soc. Phys. et Hist. Nat. Geneve,
iii, 1825, 231, pl. 15.—ERKSTROM, Fische Morko, 78.—FRIES and ERKSTROM, Scand.
Fisk., 49, t. 10.—NıLsson, Prodr. 36, and Scand. Faun. Fisk., 348.—PALLAS, Zoogr.
Ross.-As., iii, 336.—PARNELL, Wern. Mem., vii, 272—YaRRELL, Brit. Fishes, 1st Ed.,
1pl., 383; 2d Ed, 1 pl., 434; 3d Ed., 1, 343.—SELYSs-LoxGcH., Faune Belge, 223.—
Cuv. and VAL., xviii, 278.—KROYER, Danm. Fisk., 236.—GRONOVIUS, Syst. Ed. Gray,
146.—GUNTHER, Fische des Neckars, 107.—RapP, Fische des Bodensees, 11.—HECKEL
and Kner, Susswasserfische, 287.—SIEBOLD, Susswasserfische, 325.—GUNTHRR, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 226, and of all authors since Linn zus.

The Pike; Hecht; Brochet; Lucio or Luzzo, Gädda (Sweden).

Synonymy for American Specimens.

a

Esox estor, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 413.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 228 (Excl. syn. pars. Not of Richardson, DeKay, and others,
which is E. nobilior, Thompson).

Esox lucius, var. estor, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 255.—NELSON, Ball, Ils. Mus. Nat.
Hist., 1876.—JoRDAN and COPELAND, Check List Fishes, 1876, 143.

Esox lucius, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer. Fishes, iii, 1836, i24.—DreKay, New York
Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 226.—STORER, Synopsis Fishes N. A., 1846, 438.—CoPE, Proc.
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 79.—CoPre, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 408.—
GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 227.—JORDAN, Bull. U. 8S. Nat. Mus., x,
1877, 55.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 266.—JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv.
Terr., 1878, 432.

* Copied from Gunther Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, p. 286.

916 FISHES—ESOCIDE,

Esox reticulatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nati. Hist., v, 1846, 233, pl. 10, f. 2 (not LeSueur,
first carefully distinguished from the Muskallunge).

Esox deprandus (LESUEUR), Cuv. and VaL., xviii, 1846, 336.—Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat.
Sci. Phila., 1865, 79; Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. 1866, 408.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 2.

Esox boreus, AGASS1Z, Lake Superior, 1850, 317.

Esox lucioides, AUCT. ;

Description.—Body elongate; the head very long; eye midway in head, 6% in its
length, in specimens 18 inches in length ; mouth proportionately rather larger than in the
other pikes ; the palatine teeth much larger than those of the vomer, except in front, the
two series about equal in length; scales a little larger than in the Muskallunge ; lower
two-thirds of the opercle, or from the eye downward, naked; cheeks scaled; the scales
on the lower half of the cheeks smaller than those of the upper; coloration bluish or
greenish-gray, with many yellowish white spots rather smaller than the eye, and ar-
ranged somewhat in rows; eye yellow; vertical fins with rounded, black spots; scales
of the back with shiny, triangular specks. Young fishes are often darker and scarcely
spotted, but marked with yellowish-white bars, directed downward and forward, which
later break up in spots; sides of head with 3 or 4 horizontal, whitish bars, one of them
bounding the scaly part of the operculum ; head 34; depth5; D.17; A.16; V.11; Lat. 1.
120-125; B.15. European specimens have mostly but 13 or 14 branchiostegals. Length
2 to 4 feet.

Habitat, waters of Northern North America, from the Great Lake Region to Alaska,
and in all waters of Northern Asia and Europe, one of the most widely diffused of fresh
water fishes. It is occasionally taken in tributaries of the Ohio River, but is very
abundant in Ohio in the northern part only.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once by its spots, which are
pale or yellowish on a darker ground, and by its scaly cheeks and half-
bare operculum.

‘Habits.—The Pike is very abundant in all the streams and ponds trib-
utary to Lake Erie, as well as in the lake itself. In the tributaries of
the Ohio it is less common, although frequently taken. It, however,
prefers cool waters. It is an important fish in the markets, and is read-
ily sold, although it is not a fish of the very first grade.

This species has long served as the emblem of rapacity among fishes.
“They are mere machines for the assimilation of other organisms,” feed-
ing freely on any animate thing which they can catch, and fortunately
they can sometimes catch each other. i

It is stated that Dr. E. T. Sturtevant once “ put two young Pickerel
about five inches long in a trough with a great quantity of little Cypri-
noids of about one inch in length. These two Pickerel ate 122 Minnows
the first day, 130 the second day, and 150 the third day, and increased one
inch in length in forty-eight hours.” In this statement, the rate of
growth is, of course, exaggerated ; but they will unquestionably devour
Minnows till the tail of the last one hangs out of the mouth, there being
no room to swallow it.

MUSKALLONGE, 917

The Pike is a gamey fish, taking the hook readily. Fishing for it
through the ice, when the skating is good, is considered an exhilarating
pastime.

Prof. Cope observes: “For ourselves we do not join in the condemna-
tion visited on the Pike by some, and have a liking for its flesh. If its
increase can be restrained instead of favored, in waters which produce
the best species, it will cease to inflict much injury by its voracious
habits, for it naturally haunts still or grassy waters, where it devours
fishes inferior to itself, as Eels, and Cat-fish, and frogs. On the other
hand, we do not think the Pike needs any protection, as he has many
natural advantages in the struggle for life; but he should not be de-
stroyed except for the table.” (Rept. Fish Commr. Penn. for 1879-1880,
107.)

110. Esox xoBILIoR Thompson.

Muskallonge; Mascalonge; Maskinonge; Great Pike.

“ Esox masquinongy MITCHILL ” (Quoted, “ Mirror, 1824, 297,” but it is not there ; I cannot
find the description anywhere).
Esox estor, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., ii, 127,—KirTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist.,
v, 338, and of several writers (not of LeSueur, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , i, 1818,
413; nor of GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi, 228, E. lucius).

Esox nobilior, THOMPSON, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., 150, 163, 173, 205.—CoPE, Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 79.—JoRDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 54; Man. Vert., 2d Ed.
266, and of all late writers.

Description —Body elongate; the general form as in EZ. lucius, but the head rather
larger; eye about midway in head; interorbital space transversely concave, with a
prominent middle ridge; maxillary reaching to opposite middle of orbit; lower half of
cheeks and opercles scaleless, the scaly region about as wide as the eye and bounded by
an irregular line running parallel with the profile; color dark-gray, sides with round,
dark spots of a grayish- -black hue, nearly the color of the back on a ground color of
grayish-silvery ; belly white; fins black spotted; head 33; depth 6; D.17; A.15; V.
.12; B. usually 18; Lat. 1.150. Length 3 to 6 feet or more, by far the largest of the Pikes,
and the largest game-fish of American fresh waters.

Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and lakes of British America, seldom ascending
rivers except to spawn. Said to occur sometimes in the Ohio River, but we have no
certain information of its capture there.

Diagnosis—This species may at once be known by being dark-spotted on
a lighter ground color. Most writers who have mentioned it have con:
founded it with the Common Pike, although Dr. Kirtland (0. c.) has well
pointed out the difference.

“The ground color on the sides of the Muskallunge is always light, a
mixture of golden and silvery luster, maculated with dark oblong or
roundish spots, while on the other the ground coloring consists of dark

918 FISHES—ATHERINIDE.

reticulations, relieved with irregular, yellowish spots not placed in rows.
Our fishermen say that the Muskallonge is spotted with black, and the
Pike with yellow.”

Habits—The Muskallonge is much less common than the Pike, and is
found almost exclusively in the deep waters of the lakes, “except for a
few days in spring, when it runs into the mouths of rivers to spawn.”
It reaches an immense size. Dr. Kirtland mentions one more than five
feet in length, and weighing over sixty pounds. The largest one of
which I have a record was six feet long and weighed eighty pounds. It
is highly valued for food. Dr. Kirtland informs us that “epicures con-
sider it one of the best of fishes of the West,” and Mr. J. L. Beaman af-
firms that “as a food fish there is nothing superior to this. He ranks
with the Salmon and Speckled Trout, and surpasses the Black and
Striped Bass. The meat is almost as white as snow, fine-grained, nicely
laminated, and the flavor is perfect.”

The Muskallunge is as voracious as the Pike, and eighty pounds of Mus-
kallunge represents several tons of Minnows, White-fish, and the like.
It is not a common fish. Its great size and voracity perhaps account for
this. ‘It is a long, slim, strong, and swift fish, in every way formed for
the life it leads, that of a fierce and dauntless marauder.” (Hallock.)

FAMILY XII ATHERINIDE THE SILVERSIDES.

Body elongated, more or less compressed, covered with rather small cycloid or crenate
scales; sides with a bright, distinct silvery band in all known species; lateral line ob-
solete ; teeth small, sometimes wanting; premaxillaries protractile or not; gill-mem-
branes separate, free from the isthmus; pseudobranchie present; dorsal fins well sepa-
rated, the anterior of a few feeble spines ; ventrals subabdominal, of one spine and five
soft rays; vertebra numerous, Small, carnivorous fishes of warm regions, usually
swimming in schools near the shore; a few species in permanently fresh water; genera
about seven; species forty-five. Only one of the American species inhabiting fresh
water.

a. Mouth very oblique; the upper j1w plane above, concave within ; the lower jaw
correspondingly convex, the very protractile premaxillaries forming a peculiar
roof-like beak. . . A a . . . . . LABIDESTHES. 59,

Genus 59. LABIDESTHES. Cope.

Labidesthes, Cops, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 455.
Type, Chirostoma sicculum, Cope.
Etymology, labis, a pair of forceps; estheo, to eat.

Silversides, with the premaxillary bones prolonged anteriorly into a roof-shaped
beak of elongate form, reaching posteriorly to the line of the orbit, extremely pro-
tractile; teeth in several series; lower jaw as long as upper; no palatine teeth; body

RIVER SILVERSIDE. 919

very elongate, translucent ; dorsal spines four; scales small. This genus contains but
a single species, peculiar to the fresh waters of the Western States—a, small fish, very
slender and gracefal, and of delicate organism. j

111. LABIDESTHES siccuLus Cope.
River Silverside; Skipjack.

Chirostoma sicculum, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 81.
Labidesthes sicculus, Cops, Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., 1870, 455.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 1st
Ed., 1877, 2d Ed., 1878, 261.

Description.—Form very slender, the depth contained 6 to 7 times in length; the head
about 44; eye large and round contained 34 times in the length of the side of the head,
and 14 times in the length of the snoat; top of head and muzzle plane, the latter con-
vex transversely, its tip about even with that of the lower jaw; front with.a median
ridge; teeth slender and simple; scales small; in 14 longitudinal and 75 transverse
series; anal fin very long, nearly one-third the length of the body; first dorsal short,
with 4 very weak spines; D.1; V.10; A. I, 22; Ventrals I, 5; color very clear, trans-
lucent olive; in life qaite transparent; above dusted with black points; sides with a
very distinct, silvery band, which covers one row and two half rows of scales, edged
above with plambeous ; cheeks silvery. Length 3 to 4 inches.

Habitat, Michigan to Tennessee, west to Iowa, Detroit River (Cope), Sandusky Bay,
Clinch River (Cope), Camberland River, Illinois River, Wisconsin River, and in most
streams of Ohio and Indiana.

Diagnosis.—This is the only fish found in Ohio with a long, slender
body, two dorsal fins, and a bright, silvery stripe along the sides.

Habits.—This little creature is one of the most singular and elegant

-of our fishes. It occurs in great abundance where found, and is espec-
ially numerous in clear pools left in summer by the fall of the waters in
the stream which has tilled them. It swims near the surface, and often
throws itself out of the water, for which reason it is known to Indiana
boys by the name of “Skipjack.” It is an attractive creature in the
aquarium, but from its delicacy of organization hard to keep alive.

FAMILY XIX. APHREDODERIDA. THE PIRATE
PERCHES.

Body oblong, moderately compressed, covered with ctenoid scales; dorsal fia single,
high, with but three or four spines, which are rapidly graduated, the first being quite
short; ventral fins thoracic, without distinct spine, and with seven soft rays; mouth
moderate, the lower jaw slightly projecting, the maxillary reaching to the anterior
border of the eye; teeth in villiform bands, on jaws, vomer and palatines; pharyngeals
narrow, the lower separate, with villiform teeth; preorbital, preopercle and other bones
of the’ head strongly serrated; branchiostegals six; gill membranes free from the
isthmus; air-bladder simple; pyloric coca about twelve; scales moderate, ctenoid ; no

920 FISHES—APHREDODERIDE.

lateral line; vent always anterior; its position varying with age, being behind the ven-
trals in the young and jugular in the adult, a singular fact, first noted by Prof. 8. A.
Forbes. A single species in this remarkable family is known. This inhabits the low-
land waters, ditches and bayous of the Mississippi Valley and Atlantic coast.

Genus 60. APHREDODERUS. Le Sueur.

Aphredoderus, LeSueur, Cuv. et VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss, ix, 1838, 329.
Sternotremia, NELSON, Bull. Iils. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 39.
Asternotremia, Nelson, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, —.
Aphrodedirus, COPE. Aphododerus, JORDAN, corrected orthography.
Type, Aphredoderus gibbosus, LeSueur, = Scolopsis sayanus, Gilliame.
Etymology, aphodos, excrement; dere, the neck or throat, from position of the vent.

Characters of the genus included above. The body in the known species is rather
short, compressed, thickened and bluntish forward-; the general color is olivaceous, and
a dark bar is present below the eye and at the base of the caudal fin.

The study of the position of the vent in this genus has developed some singular
things. It becomes evident from the examination of a large series that the position of
the vent is not a character of generic importance, as was supposed when the genus
Sternotremia was proposed, nor is it apparently an individual or a sexual Öharacter as
has since been suggested. The observations of Professor Forbes, verified by myself, ap-
pear to show that the position of the vent is dependent on the age of the fish. In the
adult, the vent is jugular, close behind the little projecting knob at the throat. In the
youngest specimens examined, it is more or less behind the ventral fins. In specimens
intermediate in sizs, its position is intermediate, the degree of advancemant being pro-
portionate to the size of the fish.

Occasional irregularities occur, but the above rule holds so generally that it cannot
be merely accidental. From it, I infer that in the very young, the position of the vent
will be found to be as usual in Percoid fishes, as in the young Flounder the eyes
are symmetrical, the aberrant characters being developed with age.

This moving forward of the vent seems to be simply due to the lengthening of the
horizontal part of the intestine or “rectum” of the fish. Aphododerus sayanus is one of
the most highly interesting of our fishes and a complete study of its embryology would
be very desirable.

A closely related family Elassomatide, with a single known species Elassoma zonatum
occurs in the streams and ponds of Southern Illinois and may be found in Ohio. It is
perhaps the smallest of all spinous fishes. In Elassoma, the vent is normal in position
and the ventral rays are in the normal number I, 5. The dorsal fin is reduced in size as
in Aphredoderus.

112. APHREDODERUS sAYANUS (Gilliams) Dekay.

Pirate Perch.

Scolopsis sayanus, GILLIAMS, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., iv, 182-, 81.

Aphredoderus sayanus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 35.—Barrp, Ninth Smith.
sonian Rept., 1855, 326.—GuUNTHER, Cat, Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 271, and of authors
generally.

PIRATE PERCH. 921

Aphododerus sayanus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 249.

Aphredoderus gibbosus, (LeSueur) Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., ix, 1833, 448.

Sternotremia isolepis, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 39.—JoRDAN, Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 71 (specimens with vent posterior).

Asternotremia isolepis, NELSON, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Museum, x, 1377, —.

Aphododerus isolepis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 24 Ed , 1578,249.

Aphrodedirus cookianus, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 60 (waters of
Maumee River, specimens with vent anterior).

Aphododerus cookianus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Mus., x, 1877, —.

Asternotremia mesotrema, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, — (specimens with vent:
intermediate.)

Description —Body broad, stout, elevated at the dorsal, the depth 33 in length, with-
out caudal; head large, broad and stout, 3 in length, its greatest thickness a little more
than half its length, its depth at the pupil a little less; mouth wide, lower jaw longest ;
maxillary reaching anterior margin of eye; eye moderate, 44 in snout, its posterior mar-
gin of eye; eye moderate, 44 in snout, its posterior margin nearly midway of head, 14
in snout, and in interorbital space; lower posterior angle of cheek about a right angle;
fin rays D. III, 11; A. IL,6; V.7; B.6; pyloric c®:a 12; begianing of dorsal much
nearer snout than base of caudal, base of dorsal 1 4-5 in distance from snout to first ray ;
pectoral as long as from snout to opercular margin ; tips of pectorals not reaching as far
as those of ventrals; ventrals cousiderably more than half length of head, reaching four-
fifths the distance to anal; long anal spine 24 in head; caudal rounded; scales very
small, strongly ctenoid, not easily seen along the middle of the body, largest on cheeks
and on opereles; 48to 55 series along sides; color dark olive, appearing bronze in
spirits, profusely speckled with dark points, which give the fins a dark color; a dark
bar at base of candal and a light one behind it. Length 3 to 4 inches.

Habitat, Maumee River. Calumet River. Wabash River, tributaries of the Missis-
sippi and lower Ohio Rivers. South to Arkansas, also in coastwise streams from New
York to Louisiana. It is found only in sluggish alluvial waters among weeds, and its
presence in the west seems to have been quite overlooked until lately.

Diagnosis.—This species will be always known among Ohio fishes by
the presence of a continuous dorsal fin with three or four distinct spines.

Habits.—Its habits are little known. It is said to be quite voracious,
and appears only at night. It is too small to be of value for food, but
will doubtless take the hook if encouraged.

FAMILY XX. CHENTRARCHIDA. THE SUN-FISHES.

Perch-like fishes with a single dorsal fia; six (rarely seven) branchiostegals; the
pseudobranchiz reduced in size and partly concealed, and the body more or less deep and
compressed, the regions above and below the axis of the body nearly equally developed
and corresponding to each other; dorsal fin either continuous, or more or less deeply
notched; the spines six to ‘thirteen in number, depressible in a slight groove; anal fin
with three to nine spines, the soft rays in dorsal and anal being from nine to eighteen

922 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

in number; ventral fins thoracic, each with one spine and five soft rays; caudal fin
either slightly forked or lunate, or else rounded; mouth terminal, usually more or less
oblique; the protractile premaxillaries forming the lateral margins of’ the upper jaw ;
villiform teeth on jaws and vomer, and usually on palatines also; teéth sometimes
present on tongue and pterygoid bones; pharyngeal bones provided with teeth which
are conical and acute in most cases, but sometimes more or less rounded or truncate ;
gill-rakers of anterior branchial arch, exhibiting various degrees of development, long,
setiform and numerous in Pomoxys and Centrarchus, shorter and less numerous in the
others; maxillary bone in most cases broad and flat, with a small, supplemental bone
lying parallel with it, on its posterior margin. In a few species of Lepomis this bone is
minute or obsolete, and the maxillary is reduced in size; body covered with scales,
which are rarely strongly ctenoid, and are sometimes cycloid; cheeks and opercles scaly ;
opercular bones usually nearly or quite entire; the preoperclé commonly slightly den-
tate at its angle; operculum (Lepomis, Chenobrytius) provided sometimes at its upper pos-
terior angle with a more or less prolonged flap, which is always black, usually with pale
edging; in other cases the operculum ends behind in two flat points, with a membra-
nous border. In all cases a more or less distinct, dasky spot is present at that point.
Coloration usually brilliant; ground color olive-green, varied in some cases with yel-
low, orange, or blue. The species of Lepomis are in partleular very brightly colored, and
many of the others are among the most ornate of our fresh water fishes.

All the Centrarchide are North American, and with one exception ( Archoplites interrup-
tus, of the Sacramento River), all the species are confined to the Eastern and Southern
United States and neighboring parts of Canada and Mexico. About twenty-five species
probably exist, although more than a hundred have been described. All of them which
reach a sufficient size are valued as food fishes. All of them in habits are carnivorous,
voracious, and ‘‘gamey.” Most of them construct rnde nests in the spawnirg season,
which they defend with much spirit.

Many of the species have a wide range, and are subject to considerable variations
from the diffsrences of food, water, and other causes. This is especially true in regard
to the species of Micropterus and Lepomis. The latter genus is one of the most difficult
among our fishes, in which to distinguish species.

The family Centrarchide was first distinguished by Dr. Gunther in 1859, as tribe
Grystina, and more fully defined in 1860 by Dr. Holbrook, under tho name Ichthelide.
In 1864 Dr. Gill first circumscribed it under the name Centrarchide, the names Ichthelide
and Grystide being considered untenable, as the genera called Grystes and Ichthelis had
both received prior names Micropterus and Lepomis. Its relations are very close to the
Serranide and other Percoid groups, from which it can scarcely be distinguished as a
true family.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CENTRARCHIDE.

* Body more or less short and deep, compressed ; dorsal fin not deeply notched.

a. Dorsal and anal fins about equal, the soft portion of the latter longest and most
posterior; opercle emarginate; gill-rakers setiform, very long, finely dentate,
in large number; caudal fin emarginate.

db. Spinous dorsal shorter than soft part, the spines 5 to 8 in number, rapidly grad-
uated ; anal spines normally 6; body compressed and elongate ; mouth large.
Pomoxys. 61.

GENERA OF CENTRARCHIDA. 923
db. Spinous dorsal longer than soft part, the spines about 12 in number, not rap-
idly graduated ; anal spines normally 8; body deep; mouth moderate.

CENTRARCHUS 62.
aa. Dorsal fin much longer than anal fin, the base of the former 14 to 3 times that of
the latter; the soft parts of the two fins about equal, of § to 14 rays, and end-

ing at the same vertical behind. ,

c. Body comparatively short and deep; compressed; anal spines well-developed,
dorsal spines strong, not separated by a deep notch from the soft rays.
d. Tongue and pterygoid bones toothless; mouth moderate or small.

e. Operculum ending behind in an entire convex process or flap, whicheis al-
‘ways more or less black; dorsal spines normally 10; anal spines 3; the
soft rays in each fin about 10; caudal fin emarginate.

f. Lower pharyngeal bones with the teeth, or most of them, coarse, rounded
or truncate above, i. e., teeth paved; the bones themselves broad and

concave. n : : . & EUuPoMOoTIs. 63.
Sf. Lower pharyngeal es narrow, with the teeth all, or nearly all, conic
and sharp. ® n R 5 5 2 a LEpomis. 64.

dd. Tongue and pterygoid bones with kesh; mouth large.
9 Operculum ending behind in a convex flap; anal apines 3.
CHENOBRYTTUS. 65.
99. Operculum emarginate behind; anal spines usually 6.
AMBLOPLITES. 66.
** Body elongate, not greatly compressed ; dorsal spines 10; anal 3; dorsal fin nearly
divided into two fins by a deep notch; caudal emarginate; opercle emarginate ;

mouth very large; supplemental maxillary bone well developed.
MICROPTERUS. 67.

Genus 61. POMOXYS. Rafinesque.

Pomoxis, RAFINESQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 417 (annularis).
Pomoxys, GILL, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1864.
Hyperistius, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts (hexacanthus).

Type, Pomoxis annularis, Raf.

Etymology, poma, operole; oxus, sharp.

Dorsal and anal fins about equal in extent, the soft portion of the latter longest and
most posterior, tbe two fins being obliquely opposed; spinous dorsal little developed,
shorter than soft part, continuous with it, the spines 5 to 8 in number, rapidly gradu-
ated; anal spines normally six; body compressed and rather elongate; mouth large;
lower jaw longest ; supplemental maxillary bone well developed; gill-rakers setiform,
very long, about 20 in number, armed with teeth ; palatine teeth present; opercle emar-
ginate behind ; scales nearly smooth.

This genus contains, so far as is known, but two species; both of which are described

below:

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES oF Pomoxys.

a. Dorsal spines 6. . . = : ‘ r ANNULARIS. 113.
aa. Dorsal spines 7 or&. 5 A : ‘ . . SPAROIDES, 114,

924 FISHES—OCENTRARCHIDE.

113. Pomoxys ANNULARIS Rafinesque.

Crappie; New Light; Campbellite; Batchelor; Bride Perch
Strawberry Perch; Chinquapin Perch; Sac-a-lai.

Pomozis‘annularis, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 14; Journ. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sei., 1818, 417; Ichth. Oh., 1820, 33.—GIRARD, U.S, P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 6.

Pomoxys annularis, JORDAN and COPELAND, Proc. Acad Nat. Sci. Puila., 1876.—NELSON,
Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.—GILBERT and KLIPPART, Rept. Ohio Fish Comm., 1877,
77.— JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 231; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 37; Ann. N.
Y. Acad. Sci., vol. i, 1877, 97; Man. Vert., 1878, 247; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., vol.
iv. 1878, 437; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 47, 76°—Bean, U.S. Nat. Mus.,
1820, 99.

Cichla storeria, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1833, 191.

Pomoxys storerius, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865.

Pomoxis nitidus, GIRARD, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., Nov., 1857, p. 200; U. 8. Pac. R.R,
Surv., 1853, 6. ,

Centrarchus nitidus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 257.

Pomoxys protacanthus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1865.

Pomosxys intermedius, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. S:i. Phila., 1865.

Pomozxys brevicauda, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1865.

Description. —Body elongate, the depth usually about 2} in length of body, the profile
more or less strongly S-shaped, owiug to the projecting snout, depressed oceipital
region and strongly prominent, thickened ante-dorsal area ; head long, about 3 inlength,
the mouth very wide, the mandible being about as long as the pcctorals ; eye large,
about 4 in head; fin rays, dorsal VI, 15, the spines varying from V to VII; anal VI, 18, the
spines frequently but five in number; the number of spines is subject to considerable
variation, but the normal number both in dorsal and anal is six; the proportions of the
spines also vary somewhat; lateral line with about 42 scales (36 to 48); color, clear sil-
very olive, mottled with dark olive green, the green being chiefly on the upper part of
the body and having a tendency to form narrow vertical bars; dorsal and caudal mot-
tled with green ; anal pale, scarcely marked at all; soft rays of dorsal and anal very high,
but still lower than in P. sparoides. This species reaches the length of about a foot. The
form varies much with age, large specimens having the body much deeper and more
compressed than is the case with young fishes.

Diagnosis.—From all our species except the next, the presence of this
fish may be known by about six spines both in the dorsal and anal. The
S-curve to the profile and the larger mouth characterize this species. A
good color mark is the pale color of the anal which in P. sparoides is
strongly mottled. The normal number of dorsal spines is seven in P,
sparoides and six in P. annularis.

Habitat.—This species belongs properly to the Lower Mississippi Valley,
being most abundant from Missouri south. It occurs in large numbers
in the Ohio River and its larger tributaries where it is valued as a pan-
fish. It possesses some of the “ gamey” qualities of the Black Bass but
to a less extent. It prefers still waters and ponds and seldom ascends
small streams. It is rarely taken in Lake Erie.

GRASS BASS. 925

114. Pomoxys sParoIpes (Lacepede) Girard.

Calico Bass; Grass Bass; Bar Fish; Bitter Head; Tin Mouth;
Sand Perch; Sac-a-lai.

Centrarchus sparoides, Cuv. and VAL., iii, 1829, 88, pl. 48.

Pomozis sparoides, GIRARD, U.S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 6.

Cantharus nigromaculatus, (LeSueur, MSS.) Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat. Poiss, 1828, 8.

Centrarchus hexacanthus, Cuv. and VAL., vii, 1831, 458.—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist., iii, iv, 1842, 480.—DrKay, Fauna N. Y.,Fishes, 1842, 31.—STORER, Syn., 1846,
299.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 257.

Pomoxis hexacanthus, HOLBROOK, Ichthy. 8. C., 1860, 39.—PuTNaM, Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1863,
6.—CoPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 451.—ABBOTT, Rept. U. 8. Fish Com., 1875,
1876, 837.— JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 231.—NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.—
GILBERT, Rep. Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 77.

Hyperistius hexacanthus, UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 111.

Pomozis nigromaculatus, GIRARD, U. S. P. R. R. Sarv., 1858, 6.—JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat.
Mus,, No. 10, 1877, 37; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci.,.i, No. 4, 1877, 97; Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus,., No. 12, 1878, 47, 76; Bull. Hayden’s Geolog. Surv., ii, 1878, 437; Man. Vert.,
1878, 247.—GOODE, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879, 114.—Bean, U. S. Nat. Mus,,
1880, 99.

Hyperistius carolinensis, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1864, 93 (without description).

Description.— Body oblong, elevated, greatly compressed, the depth being nearly half
the length, the head one-third ; profile more regular than in the preceding species, the
projections and depressions being less marked; head much deeper and shorter than in
P. annularis, the mouth considerably smaller, the mandible being considerably shorter
than pectorals; snout projecting, forming au angle with the descending profile; fins
very high; anal rather larger than dorsal, its height being from one-fourth to one fifth of
the length of the fish without caudal fin; dorsal VII, 15, varying to VIII spines,
very rarely VI; anal VI, 18, varying to V, 17; lateral line with 40 to 42 scales; color a
bright silvery olive,mottled with clear olive green, the dark mottlings gathered in irre-
gular small bunches, rather than in lines or bars and covering the whole body and the
soft rays of the anal as well as those of the caudal and dorsal fins; usually a dusky

.opercular spot. This species reaches a length of a little more than a foot.

Diagnosts.—This species may be known by the presence of 6 anal and
7 dorsal spines, and by the presence of dark markings on the anal fin
and the region about it.

Habitat-—This species is widely distributed. It occurs in abundance
in the Great Lake Region, and in the upper part of the Mississippi Val-
ley, and in the Missouri, Eastward it has been found in the Delaware
and Potomac, the rivers of Carolina and in the Alabama River. In the
middle region it is less abundant, being replaced by the preceding spe-
cies. I have seen but few specimens from the Ohio Valley. In the
Great Lakes, this species is taken in large numbers. In the ponds and
lakes of Northern Indiana and Ohio, it is also abundant. As a food fish

it is most excellent.

926 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

Storer, and after him Kirtland and others, have confounded this fish
with P. annularis. The synonym carolinensis, Gill, was given on the pre-
sumption that the Carolina fish was specifically different from that in-
habiting the Great Lakes, which, however, does not seem to be the case.

Both this species and the preceding have been recommended for the
stocking of ponds.

Genus 62. CENTRARCHUS. Cnvier and Valenciennes.

Centrarchus, sp., CUVIER et VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, iii, 1829, 84.
Centrarchus, AGassiz, American Journal Sci. Arts, 1854.
Eucentrarchus, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1864, 92 (irideus, name only).

Type, Labrus irideus, Lacepede.

Etymology, kentron, spine ; archos, anus, from the many anal spines.

Dorsal and anal fins about equal in extent, the soft portion of the latter longest and
most posterior, the two fins being obliquely opposed ; spinous dorsal longer than soft
part forming angle with it, the spines normally about 12 in number, not rapidly
graduated ; anal spines normally 8; body deep, compressed ; mouth moderate; lower
jaw longest; supplemental maxillary bone well developed; teeth on palatines; gill
rakers setiform, very long, in large number (25 to 30) on anterior gill arch, armed with
small teeth; scales nearly smooth; opercle emarginate, ending in two flat points;
caudal fin emarginated. Bat one species of this genus is now known.

Synonymy.—The name Centrarchus was first proposed for Ambloplites rupestris, Cen-
.. trarchus irideus, and Pomozys spareides under the names of C. @neus (LeSueur), C. pen-
tacanthus (C. & V.), C. irideus (Lac.), and C. sparoides (Lac.). No type was assigned.
Afterwards (1832) species of Pomoxys (hexacanthus) and of Chenobryttus (gulosus and
viridis) were added by Cuvier and Valenciennes. Later (1842) DeKay added two nom-
inal species of Micropterus ( fasciatus and obscurus). In 1854, Prof. Agassiz revived the.
Rafinesquian genera, Ambloplites, Pomoxis, and Calliurus for species then referred to
Centrarchus, properly retaining the name Centrarchus for the species belonging to the
original genus which had not previously been made types of other genera, i. e., U. irideus.
In 1864, Prof. Gill suggested the name Eucentrarchus for Centrarchus irideus to be used.
in case of the general adoption of the rule requiring that the first species mentioned
under a new genus should be considered its type, unless some other type was specified.
The species first mentioned under Centrarchus was C. eneus, and under this view, Cen-
trarchus would be a mere synonym of Ambloplites. The general common sense of natu-
ralists has, however, rejected the “first species” rule as impracticable and undesir-
able.

115. CENTRARCHUS MACROPTERUS (Lacepede) Jordan.

Shining Bass; Large-finned Bass,

Labrus macropterus, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., iii, 447.

Centrarchus macropterus, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus, No. 10, 1877, 361; Bull. U.S.
Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 36; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 437; Man. Vert,
1878, 246.

Labrus irideus, (Bosc M88.) LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat: Poiss., iv, p. 716, pl. 5, f. 3.

.

SHINING BASS. 927

Centrarchus irideus, Cuv. et VAL., iii, 1829, 89, —DeKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 31.—
STORER, Syn., 1846,291.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 257.—HOLBROOK,
8. C., 1660, 18.—Purnam, Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1863, 6—Cors, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc.
1879, 451.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 230; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Soc., i, 1877, 97; Ball.
U.S Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36 ; Man. Vert., 1878, 246; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv.,
iv, 1678, 437; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 47.—NELson, Cat. Fishes Ill. 1876,
37.—Bran, U. S. Nat. Mus., 9.

Eucentrarchus irideus, GILL, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1844, 93.

Description. —Body very short, suborbicular, the snout projecting at a considerable an-
gle; back and belly closely compressed; the greatest thickness of the body being
through the opercular region ; top of head broad and flattish, the interorbital space being
about equal to eye; mouth small, very oblique, almost vertical, the maxillary scarcely
reaching the middle of eye; eye very large, about 3 in head; head 3 in length of body ;:
greatest depth 2; dorsal XI to XIII, 12 or 13; anal VIII, 13 er 14; lateral line
with 37 to 43 scales; color silvery green, with about 20 horizontal dark stripes along the
rows of scales, the number of stripes becoming abruptly smaller on caudal peduncle
where there are 8 or 9; a black spot on last rays of dorsal; a blackish bar below eye.
Length of 4 to 6 inches.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once among our fresh water
fishes by the presence of 7 to 9 spines in the anal fin, and 11 to 13 in the
dorsal.

Habitat —North Carolina to Southern Illinois and southward, in deep
and sluggish streams of the lowland. It has been found in abundance
by Prof. 8. A. Forbes in Southern Illinois near Cairo. It has not yet
been noticed in Ohio, but is to be looked for in the bayous of the Ohio
River. Where abundant, as in the Carolinas, it is of considerable value
for food.

Genus 63. EUPOMOTIS. Gill and Jordan.

Pomotis, sp., Cuv. et VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., iii, 1828, and of authors generally (not
of Rafinerque, 1819 or 1820, Lepomis),
Eupomotis, GILL and JORDAN, Field and Forest, 1876, p. —.
Type, Sparus aureus, Walbaum, = Pomotis vulgaris, C. & V. = Perca gibbosa, L.
Etymology, eu, well; poma, opercle; ous, ear.

Dorsal fin much more developed than anal fin, the base of the former more than twice
that of the latter, the soft parts of the two fins about equal and terminating at the same
vertical behind ; dorsal spines 10, rather high; anal spines 3; caudal fin emarginate;
month small, with equal jaws; maxillary without supplemental bone, not reaching to
orbit; no palatine teeth ; gill rakers short, blunt and week, undifferentiated, destitute
of teeth ; lower pharyngeal bone broad, concave, with at least the middle teeth usually
conic: scales ctenoid; opercular flap moderately developed, rounded ; colors brilliant
or rather plain ; all the known species have the opercular flap tipped with scarlet. Three
or four species of Eupomotis are now known, most of them of southern distribution.
Some of the species of Lepomis approach so closely to these, that the propriety of the
separation of the genus Eupomotis from Lepomis must be considered very doubtful.

928 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

116. Evpomoris cipposus (Linneus) Jordan.

Common Sun-fish; Pumpkinseed; Sunny.

Perca fluviatilis gibbosa ventre luteo CaTESBY, Nat. Hist. Carolina, ete., iii, tab. viii,
1730.

Perca gibbosa, LInNxvuS, Systema Natura, Ed. xi, 1760, 293, (based on Catesby).

Lepomis gibbosus, McKay, MSS.

Sparus aureus, WALBAUM, Artedi Pisc., 1792, 290, (based on Catesby.)

Pomotis aureus, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1864, 93; Syn. Fishes Gulf of St. Law-
rence and Bay of Fundy, 1865, 6.—UHLer and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876,
113.

Eupomotis aureus, GILL and JORDAN, Field and Forest, v, 2, 1877, p. 190.—NELSoN, Rept.
U.S. Fish Com., 1875-76, 790, 796.—GILBERT, Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 80.—JoRDAN.
Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 98; Bull.
Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 15; Man.
Vert., 1878, 244.—GooDkE, Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879, 114.—Goopz and BEAN,
Bull. Essex Inst., 1679, 18.—BEan, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1880, 98.

Labrus auritus, WALBAUM, Artedi Pisc., 1792, 243, (not of Linn»us).—SHAW, Zool., iv,
1805, p. 482.—MITCHILL, Mem. Fish. N. Y., 1815, 403.

Pomotis auritus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 261.—PUTNAM, Bull.M. C. Z.,
i, 1863, 6.—JoRDan, Mai. Vert., 1876, 233.—NELSon, Cat. Fish. Ill., 1876, 38.— ABBOTT,
Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1875-76, 837.

Morone maculata, MITCHILL, Rept. Fishes N. Y., 1814, 19.

Pomotis maculatus, Cope, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 45.

Sparus mocasinus, RAFINESQUE, Prec. des Iec. Som., 1814, 19.

Pomotis vulgaris, Cuv. et VAL., iii, 1829, 91—Cuvier, Regne Anim,, Il. Poiss., 1829, pl.
10, f. 3.—JARDINE, Natural. Libr., i, Perches, 1835, 162.—R1cHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-
Amer., 1836, p. 24, pl. 76.—STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, ii, 300.—KIRILAND,
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, iv, 1841, 470.—Taompson, History of Vermont, 1842,
130.—DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 31.—AYRres, Bost. Journal Nat. Hist.,
1842, 10, 258.—STOReER, Syn., 1847, 292.—Linsiey, Cat. Fishes Conn.— Aqassiz,
Lake Superior, 1850, 293.—HERBERT, Frank Forester’s Fish and Fishing, 1850, 200.—
PERLEY, Cat. Fishes New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, 1852, 5.—STORER, History
Fishes Mass., 1867, 12.—G1LL, Tenth Ann. Rept. Smithsonian Inst., 1847, 258.—
Jackson, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist. (nest and habits),—HOLBROOK, Ichthy. 8. C.,
1860, 8—HoLMEs, Rept. on Fishes of Maine, 1862, 71.—NELSoN, Rept. U. S. Fish
Com. 1875-76, 699.

Pomotis catesbei, Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., vii, 1831, 469.—STORER, Syn,
1846, 291.—DrKay, Fauna N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 33.

Pomotis ravenellii, Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., vii, 1831, 465.—DeKay, Fauna
N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 33.—STORER, Syn., 1846, 293.—JORDAN, Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus,, ii,
1878, 225.

Pomotis luna, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. u, Nov., 1857, p. 201; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 22.

Description.—Body deep, very gibbous, both dorsal and ventral outlines strongly
‚ourved; depth in adult, a little more than half its length without caudal, the head a
little more than a third; eye large, 8 to 44 in head, about equal to flap; month small,

COMMON SUN-FISH. 929

the maxilliary scarcely reaching to orbit; profile usually forming an angle above eye,
the antedorsal region being very convex; fins well developed, the spines of the dorsal
rather high—higher than in any other of our species with blue cheek stripes ; the spines
as long as from snout to past pupil; pectoral tins long, reaching to anal; opercular flap
moderate, broad and short, bluntly rounded, black except a broad edge on the lower
posterior part, which in life is always bright scarlet; in spirits this scarlet tip becomes
whitish, but it is always present and is always a striking feature ; fin rays; dorsal X, 10;
anal IIT, 10; lateral line with 36 to 45 scales; coloration very variable according to
the surrounding of the fish; back greenish-olive, usually dark ; sides profusely spotted

. with orange; belly orange-yellow ; lower fins orange, the upper olivaceous, with the
membranes closely spotted with orange and olive, with clear blue wavy streaks; colors
varying from blackish olive to a pale yellowish olive; adult specimens usually most
brilliantly colored. Length 6 to 8 or 10 inches.

Habitat, this species is most abundant and best known of all the Centrarchide, and it
is the one to which the name of Sun-fish is most commonly given. It is found in great
abundance, throughout New England, Canada, the entire Great Lake Reyioa, all the
tributaries of the Upper Mississippi from Illinois northward; throughout the Middle
States, and southward in all the streams flowing irto the Atlantic, at least as far as
Georgia. It seems, however, to be entirely absent in the Lower Mississippi region and in
the southwest generally. Its place being taken by the allied Eupomotis nolatur.

Diagnosis.—This species may always be known by the peculiar form
and coloration of the opercular flap, in connection with the small mouth
and high spines. No other species in Ohio, has a broadly rounded oper-
cle, black, tipped with bright scarlet. Very young specimens resemble
the young of some of the species of Lepomis, but an attentive examination
will show the differences.

Habits.—In Ohio Eupomotis gibbosus is the most abundant of the Cen-
trarchid# in Lake Erie and its tributary streams. It also occurs in large
numbers in the head waters of the Wabash, Scioto and other streams
tributary to the Ohio, which have their rise in the northern portion of
the State. I have, however, never seen a specimen from the Ohio River
nor from the lower course of any of its larger tributaries, and I doubt if
it ever occurs in these, unless introduced through the canals. The same
peculiarities of local distribution may be noticed in two other species
whose range is nearly co-extensive with that of the present species Perca
americana and Stizostedium vitreum.

The Common Sun-fish is taken in Lake Erie in large numbers for the
market. Although small it is deservedly valued as a pan-fish.

Any kind of bait large enough for it to swallow it takes with vigor
and persistence.

The following account of the nest building habits of this species—
which are shared to a greater or less extent by all the Centrarchidz, so
far as known—is given by Dr. Holbrook (Ichthyol. 8. Car., p. 10) :

59

930 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

‘This fish prefers still and clear waters. In the spring, the female prepares herself
a circular nest, by removing all reeds or other dead aquatic plants from a chosen spot
of a foot or more in diameter, so as to leave bare the clean gravel or sand; this she ex-
cavates to the depth of three or four inches, and then deposits her spawn, which she
watches with the greatest vigilance; aud it is curious to see how carefully she guards
this nest against all intruders; in every fish, even those of her own species, she sees
only an enemy, and is restless and uneasy till she has driven it away from her nursery.
We often find groups of the nests placed near each other along the margin of the pond
or river that the fish inhabits, but always in very shallow water; hence they are liable
to be left dry, in seasons of great drought. These curious nests are frequently encircled
by aquatic plants, forming a curtain around them, but a large space is invariably left
open for the admission of light.”

Thoreau (Week on Concord and Merrimack) thus spoke of this fish :

“ It is the most common of all, and seen on every urchin’s string; a simple and inof-
fensive fish, whose nests are visible all along the shore, hollowed in the sand, over
which it is steadily poised through the summer hours on waving fin. Sometimes there
are 20 to 30 nests in the space of a few roads, two feet wide by half a foot in depth and
made with no little labor, the weeds being removed, and the sand shoved up on the
sides, like a bowl. Here it may be seen early in summer assiduously brooding, and
driving away minnows and larger fishes, even its own species, which would disturb its
ova, pursing them a few feet, and circling around swittly to its nest again ; the min-
nows, like young sharks, instantly entering the empty nests, meanwhile, and swallow-
ing the spawn, which is attached to the weeds and to the bottom on the sunny side. The
spawn is exposed to so many dangers that a very small proportion can ever become fishes,
for besides being the constant prey of birds and fishes, a great many nests are made so
near the shore, in shallow water, that they are left dry in a few days, as the river goes
down. These and the Lanipreys are the only fishes’ nest that I have observed, though
the ova of some species may be seen floating on the surface. The breams are so careful
of their charge that you may stand close by in the water and examine them at your
leisure. I have thus stood over them half an hour at a time and stroked them familiarly
without frightening them, suffering them to nibble at my finger harmlessly, and seen
them erect their dorsal flns in anger when my hand approached their ova and have even
taken them gently out of the water with my hand; though this cannot be accomplished
by any sudden movement, however dexterous, for instant warning is conveyed to them
through their denser element, but only by letting the fingers gradually close about them
as they ara poised over the palm and with the utmost gentleness raising them slowly to
the surface.

‘Though stationary, they keep up a constant sculling or waving motion with their
fins, which is exceedingly graceful, and expressive of their humble happiness, for unlike
ours, the element in which they live is astream which must be constantly resisted. From
time to time they nibble the weedsat the bottom or overhanging their nests or dart after a
fly or worm. The dorsal fin besides answering the purpose of a keel, with the anal, serves to
keep the fish upright, for in shallow water where this is not covered, they fall on their sides.

“ As you stand thus stooping over the bream in its nest, the edges of the dorsal and
caudal fins have a singular dusty golden reflection, and its eyes which stand out from
the head, are transparent and colorless. Seen in its native element, it is a very beauti-
ful and compact fish, perfect in all its parts, and looks like a brilliant coin fresh from
the mint. Itis a perfect jewel of the river, the green, red, coppery, and golden reflec-

COMMON SUN-FISH. 931

tions of its mottled tides being the concentration of such rays as struggle through the
floating pads and flowers to the sandy bottom, and in harmony with the sunlit brown
and yellow pebbles. Behind its watery shield it dwells far from many accidents inev-
itable to human life.”

117. Evpomoris norarus (Agassiz) Jordan.

Pomotis notatus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sei. and Arts, 1834, 302—JoRDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876, 240.

Lepomis notatus, Corr, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 453.

Xystrophtes notatus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No
10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12,
1878, 61.

Eupomotis pallidus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877; Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1878,
244 (not Pomotis pallidus, Agassiz, )

Description —A large stout species, of an elongate form ; head 3 inlength; depth about
24; general aspect of Lepomis pallidus, but the mouth larger, reaching front of eye;
eye large, 4 in head; iris red; scales very large, 45 in the lateral line; four rows on the
cheek; spines high and strong, the longest as long as from snout to past the middle of
pupil; pectoral fins long, but not reaching anal; gill-rakers stronger than in E. gib-
bosus, much more strongly dentate; the pharyngeal bones as in that species are broad and
strong, covered with large subtruncate teeth ; color in spirit pale brassy green, without
traces of blue or orange; opercular flap short and rounded, shorter than in Eupomotis
gibbosus, black, with a wide pale border chiefly below and behind.

Habitat, Lower Mississippi Valley, the specimens described from the Mississippi Val-
ley at St. Louis. Others examined from Alabama River (Bean coll.). Agassiz’s types
were from the Tennessee River in Alabama. Some of these sent to me by Professor Gar-
man, belong to the present species formerly erroneously identified by me with
the Pomotis pallidus of Agassiz. This species probably occurs in the Ohio River in Ohio,
but no specimens from this State are on record.

Diagnosis —This Sun-fish resembles among Ohio species Lepomis pal-
lidus, from which it may be known by the paved teeth and by the colora-
tion of the ear flap.

Genus 64. LEPOMIS. Rafinesque.

Lepomis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc., 1819, (type Labrus auritus, Linneus,
and of Gill, Cope, and many recent writers, not of Rafinesque, 1820).

Pomotis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc., 1819 (same type); Ich. Ohiensis, 1820
(not of Holbrook and recent writers).

Apomotis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc. (cyanellus).

Ichthelis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820 (auritus).

Telipomis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820 (cyanellus).

Bryttus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss. (punctatus).

Ichthelis, HoLBROOK, Ich. S. Car., 1860 (auritus and pallidus).

Calliurus and Bryttus, GIRARD, U.S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858.

Lepiopomus, JORDAN, Ann. N, Y. Lyceum Nat. Hist., 1877 (corrected orthography).

Xenotis, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1877, 76 (fallax).

932 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

Xystroplites, JoRDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1878 (gilli).
Helioperca, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist (pallidus).
Type, Labrus auritus, L.
Etymology, lepis, scales; poma, opercle.

Dorsal fin much more developed than anal, its base twice or more that of the latter
the soft parts of the two about equal and terminating at the same vertical behind; dor-
sal spines ten; anal spines three; caudal fin emarginate; mouth moderate or rather
large, with equal jaws; maxillary with a supplemental bone, which in some species is
very minute or obsolete; pharyngeal bones with conic teeth which are usually, but not
always sharp; palatine teeth present or obsolete; no teeth on the tongue or pterygoids ;
gill-rakers comparatively short, sometimes very weak ; operculum with a rounded flap
which is usually more or less elongate. Species of moderate or small size, usually
brightly colored. The number of species is quite large and there is considerable diver-
ity of form among them.

Synonymy.—The synonymy of this genus has been complicated in several ways. In
the first place the typical species, Labrus auritus, was very poorly. dese: ibed by Linnzus,
so that it cau be cnly identified by circumstantial evidence. The name has been often
but in my opinion erroneously referred to Eupomotis gibbosus. The genus Lepomis was
framed in 1819, to include all the Sun-fishes, but the Labrus auritus, L. was expressly
indicated as its type. Lhe sub-genus Pomotis was proposed to include this typical
species and such others as had long opercular flaps. In 1820, Rafinesque without assign-
ing any reason changed the name of his genus of Sun-fishes from Lepomis to Ichthelis, and
transferred the name Lepomis to the Black Bass. It will be evident from the above that
the name Pomotis and Ichthelis of Rafinesque, being simple synonyms of Lepomis cannot
be used for any of our genera of Sun-fishes so long as Lepomis is available. A more ex-
tended study of this group leads me to doubt the propriety of the numerons subdivisions
of this genus, formerly admitted by me. The following observations of Mr. McKay on
the genus Lepomis (Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mas., 1850, 88), I quote with full eudorsement:

“This genus as understood by me, includes 4pomotis, Xenotis, Bryttus, Helioperca,
Xystroplites, and Eupomotis of authors. Apomotis has been separated from Lepomis on
account of the large wize of the supplemental maxillary. On careful comparison, this is
fourd to be scarcely larger than in one or two other species of Lepomis. It disappears
by degrees, but seems to exist in all of the species, though so so small as to be inappre-
ciable. I have even found it present in large specimens of L. pallidus. Its presence in the
species is only a character of degree, therefore not generic. Till the greup had been more
fully studied, Xenotis was supposed tocontain a large number of species, and was separated
from Lepomis principally for convenience sake, and on the slight character of the feeble
gill-rakers. By comparison of a very large series of the alleged species from Professor
Jordan’s collection, I have come to the conclusion that they are all forms of single spe-
cies (Z megalotis). The gill-rakers are usually rather more feeble than in the rest of the
species of Lepomis, but this again is a question of degree. Bryttus has been distinguished
from Lepomis by the presence of palatine teeth. This is also a question of degree and is
subject to the most perfect gradation. I have found it impossible to retain Xystroplites
and Eupomotis also, as there is a complete gradation in the uharacter of the pharyngeals,
between Lepomis proper and Xystroplites, and again between Xystroplites and Eupsmotis,
both as to the width and form of the bones themselves and the form of the teeth.”

LONG-EARED SUN-FISH. 933

118 Lepomis mEGALoTIs (Rifinesque) Cope.

Long-eared Sun-fish; Red-bellied Bream.

Ichthelis aurita, RAFINESQUF, Ichth. Oh , 1820, 29.

Lepomis auritus, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Soc. Phila., vi, 1769, 221.

Ichthelis megalotis, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 29.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 237.—
NELSon, Cat. Fishes Iil., 1876, 38,

Lepomis megalotis, Cops, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 220.

Xenotis megalotis, JORDAN, Boll. U. 8. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Ann. N Y Acad. Sci.,
i, No. 4, 1877, 93; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436; Bull, U.S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 12, 1878, 76; Man. Vert., 1878, 242.

Pomotis nitida, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, iv, 1841, 472,—StTormr, Syn.,
1841, 204. , i

Lepomis nitidus, Cope, Proc. Aimer. Paiios. Soc., 1870, 453.

Pomotis breviceps, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1853, 309.—GrrarD,
U.S. P. R. R. Surv , 1858, 23; Marcy’s Expl. Red River, La., 1853, pl. xiii, 246.
Xenotis breviceps, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1-77, 36; Bull. Hayden’s Geol.

Surv., iv, 1873, 436

Pomotis aquilensis, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1853.—GIRARD,
U.S, Pac, R. R. Surv., 1858, 25; Ichth. Mex. Bound., 1859, 7.

Xenotis aquilensis, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36.

Pomotis fallax, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii, 1851, 24.—GIRARD,
U.S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 27; Ichth. Mex. Bouni., 1859, 8.

Ichthelis fallax, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 238.

Xenotis fallax, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Bull. Hayden’s Geol.
Surv., iv, 187%, 436. En

Pomotis convexifrons, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1854, 24.

Pomotis nefastus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii, 1854, 24.

Pomotis hematodes, (Agassiz Mss.), WAILES, Rept. on Agric. and Geol. Miss., 1854, 331.

Pomotis sanguinolentus, AGassi1z, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 304,

Ichthelis sanguinolentus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 238.—NELSON, Cat. Fishes 11l., 1876, 36.

Xenotis sanguinolentus, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1876, 23, 36; Ann. N. Y.
Acad. Sci., i, No. 4, 1877, 98; Man. Vert., 1878, 242; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12,
1878, 31, 46, 61; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436.—Bran, Proc. U. S. Nat.
Mus., ii, 1879, 235; U.S. Nat. Mus, 1880, 98.

Pomotis inscriptus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 302.

Lepomis inscriptus, Cops, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 221, 225.

Ichthelis inscriptus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 237.—NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 38.

Xenotis inscriptus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y Acad. Sei., i, 1877,93; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No.
10, 1577, 35, 42; Man. Vert., 1878, 243; Bull. U.S. Mus,, No. 12, 1878, 46, 61; Ball.
Hayden’s Geol, Sarv., iv, 1878, 436.

Pomotis popeii, GIRARD, U. 8. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 26.

Xenotis popii, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Bull. Hayden’s Geol.
Sarv., 1878, 436.

Lepomis oculatus, Cope, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 221.

Lepiopomus oculatus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99.

Lepomis peltastes, Cope, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. 1870, 434.

934 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

Xenotis peltastes, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus, No. 10, 1877, 36; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci.,
i, 1877, 98; Man. Vert., 1878, 243; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436.—BEAN,
U.S. Nat. Mas., 1880, 98.

Ichthelis macrochira, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 236 (not of Rafinesque).—NELSON, Cat.
Fishes Ill., 1376, 38.

Ichthelis anagallinus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 38 (nec Cope).

Xenotis solis, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 22, 36 (nec Cuv. and Val.);
Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1678, 436.

Xenotis lythrochloris, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 10,
1877, 40; Ann Acad. Sci. N. Y., i, 1877, 98. ,

Xenotis aureolus, JORDAN, Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878; Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus., No.
10, 1877, 36, 41; Man. Vert., 1878, 243.

Description—Body deep and rather short, the occiput depressed, and the profile high
and strongly curved; dorsal outline convex; deptn more than half the length; head
with flap a little less; eye 1} in flap; dorsal spines low, lower than in the other species
except L. cyanellus, in adults shorter than from snout to middle of eye; pectorals not
reaching vent; opercular flap very long in adult, always with a broad pale edge which
is pinkish behind and bluish in front; in young specimens the flap exhibits every stage
of development, no two individuals being alike in this respect; colors very brilliant,
more so than in any other of our Sun-fishes, but fading rapidly after death. The gen-
eral color of an adult specimen is brilliant blue and orange, the black chiefly blue, the
belly entirely orange, the orange forming irregular longitudinal rows of spots, the blue
in wavy vertical lines along the series of scales; vertical fins with the soft rays blue and
the membranes orange, sometimes fiery red; ventral and anal dusky blue, appearing
blackish when folded; lips blue; cheeks with blue and orange stripes; top of head
and neck black; iris bright red; fins unspotted; young specimens with the ear-flap
small, and the coloration variously dull; D. X, 10; A. III, 10; lat. 1. 40.

Habitat: This species occurs in great abundance throughout the Ohio Valley, and,
rather more sparingly in tributaries of Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, and the Upper Mis-
siseippi.

Diagnosis.— Among Ohio species, when fully grown, it may usually be
known by the large ear-flap which always has a pale margin. The
young fishes may best be known by the small and feeble gill-rakers. No
other of our fresh-water fishes appears in a greater variety of forms and
it is not surprising that such a long array of nominal species should
have been based on it.

“ Habits—This species seems to prefer deep still places in rivers and
clear ponds, avoiding muddy water and small brooks. It reaches a
length of six to eight inches, takes the hook readily, and is of some value
as a pan-fish.

119. Lepomis HUMILIS (Girard) Cope.
Orange-spotted Sun-fish.

Bryttus humilis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., Nov., 1857; U. 8. Pac. R. R. Surv.,

1858, 21.
Lepomis humilis, Core, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1868, 223.

CHAIN-SIDED SUN-FISH. 935

Lepiopomus humilis, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden’s
Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 435.

Lepomis anagallinus, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil, vi, 1869, 221.

Ichthelis anagallinus, JORDAN, Man. Vert , 1876, 237.

Lepiopomus anagallinus, JORDAN, Bull. U.S. Nat Mus, No 10, 1877,35; Ann.N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1877, 99; Man. Vert., 1878, 240; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 435.

Description. —A small, elongate, brightly colored species, resembling somewhat the
young of Lepomis cyanellus; depth 2} in length; head about 3; caudal peduncle and fin
more than one-third the total length; mouth rather large; mucous cavities large; gill-
rakers long, about as in Lepomis cyanellus ; scales large: 33 to 36 in the course of the
lateral line; fins well developed ; dorsal spines rather high, the longest as long as from
snout to past the pupil; coloration brilliant; general color greenish, the fins and sides
with mottings of a darker green (a very characteristic feature); sides in adults with
many very distinct salmon red spots, very conspicuous in life, slowly fading in spirits ;
opercular flap rather large, with a very wide crimson border which entirely surrounds
the black ; no blue cheek stripes; a black dorsal spot (on Cope’s type, and on specimens
in the Smithsonian Institution from Indian Territory; my Kentucky specimens, how-
ever, do not show it). Length three inches.

Habitat, Kentucky to Kansas (Cope, type). Missouri (Cope), Salt River, Ken-
tucky (Jordan, extremely abundant, many spscimes sent by Mr. W. M. Linney), Indian
Territory (specimens in U. S. Nat. Mus). Lepomis humilis has not yet been noticed in
Ohio, but it doubtless occurs in small rocky streams in the southern part of the State.

Diagnosis. —T bis isour smallest Sun fish, and one of the most brilliantly
colored ; the very wide red margin of the ear-flap, and the green mot-
tling of the vertical fins, easily distinguish it in connection with the
‘long gill-rakers. It is of little value as food from its small size.

120. Lepomis MAcRocHIRUS Rafinesque.
Chain-sided Sun-fish.

Lepomis macrochirus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 420.

Ichthelis macrochira, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 26.

Lepiopomus macrochirus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus,
No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 435; Man. Vert , 1878, 239.

Lepomis nephelus, Cope, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vi, 1869, 222.

Chanobryttus nephelus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 235.

Telipomis nephelus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes I!l., 1876, 37.

Description.—Small, bright-colored species of a regularly oblong form; depth 22-5 in
length; mouth large, larger than in most of the species of this genus, approaching thatof L.
cyanellus; head somewhat pointed ; mucous cavities large ; scales moderate, about 42 in
the lateral line, 5 rows on the cheeks; fins well developed; pectorals elongate, reaching
anal; dorsal spines rather high, much as in the preceeding species; coloration in life,
bright with lustre; general color a brilliant steel-blue with many dark bronze-orange
spots so arranged that the ground color forms a series of vertical chain-like bars very
conspicaous in life ; soft rays of the vertical fins mottled with brown and the anal more

936 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

or less edged with pale orange; no black dorsal spot; no blue cheek-stripes, but the
sides of head with a purplish lustre; opercular flap small, bordered below with silvery.
In spirits the coloration is that of a young Chenobryttus antistius, closely spotted or
clouded with brown, so that the pale ground color appears in irregular vertical chain-
like bars. The young resembles that of Eupomotis gibbosus very much, and older speci-
mens look like the young of Chenobryttus. In both cases, the generic character will
serve for identification. This species reaches a length of about four inches.

Habitat, Ohio and Mississippi Valleys from Pennsylvania to Illinois, Kiskiminitas
River, Western Pennsylvania (Cope), White River (Jordan), Ohio River (Rafinesque,
Jordan), Illinois River (Forbes, Nelson, Jordan).

Diagnosis.—The chain like bars and peculiar mottled coloration best
distinguish this species. The large mouth is also a point of importance.
This fish is of no value as food, but its activity, hardiness, voracity and
beauty commend it as an inhabitant of the aquarium. N

Lepomis macrochirus, although one of the very earliest described of our
Sun-fishes has been overlooked by most late writers. It is not by any
means rare, but it is somewhat select in its localies, preferring clear
weedy ponds and streams.

121. Lepomis paLLipus (Mitchill) Gill and Jordan.

Blue Sunefish; Copper-nosed Bream; Dollardee.

Labrus pallidus, MiTCHILL, Trans Lit. and Philos. Soc. N. Y. 1814, 407.

Lepomis pallidus, GILL and JoiwDAn, Field and Forest, 1877.—NELSON, Rept. U. S. Fish
Com., 1875-76, 790, 756.—BEANn, Proc. U.S. Nat, Mus , 1880, 97.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
3d Ed., 241.

Lepiopomus pallidus, JORDAN, Aun. N. Y. Lye. Nut. Hist, 1876, 316; Ann. N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull U.S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Man. Vert., 1878, 241; Bull.
U.S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 40, 46, 60, 76; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436.

Helioperca pallida, GILBERT, Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 80.—Jorpan, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat.
Hist., 1876, 355.

Lepomis appendix, MITCHILL, Suppl. to Mem. Fishes N. Y. 1818, 217.

Pomotis incisor, DeKay, Fauna N. Y., Fish., 1842, 33.—STORER, Syn., 1846, 293.—Aqassiz,
Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 30%. —WaıLes, Report on Agric. and Geol. Miss.,
1854, 334.

Ichthelis incisor, HOLBROOK, Ichthy. S. C., 1860, 12—Purnam, Bull. M. C. Z, 1863, 6.—
JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 235.—NeLson, Cat, Fishes Ill, 1876, 36.—ABBoTT, Rept.
U.S. Fish Com., 1875-76, 838.

Lepomis incisor, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Art., 1864, 93.

Lepiopomis incisor, GOODE, Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879, 114.—GooDE and Began, Proo.
U.S. Nat. Mas., ii, 1879, 139.

Pomotis gibbosus, Cuv. and Val., Hist. Nat. Poiss., vii., 1831, 467”.—DeKay, Fauna N.Y.
Fishes, 1842, 33.—STORER, Syn., 1846, 293.—Jorpan, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii,
1879, 225.

BLUE SUN-FISH. 937

Pomotis macrochira, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, iv, 1841, 469 (nec Raf.)

Pomotis speciosus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila,, vii, 1354, 24—-G1raRD,
U.S. P.R. R. Surv., 1858, 23; Ichth. Mex. Bound. 1859, 5.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 263.

Lepomis speciosus, Cope, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 453.

Ichthelis incisor, var.? speciosus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 236.

Ichthelis speciosus, NeLson, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37,

Pomotis obscurus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts , 1854, 302.

Ichthelis incisor, var.? obscurus, JonDAN, Man. Vert , 1876, 236.

Lepiopomus obscurus, JORDAN, Aun. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist, 1376, 317; Ann, N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1377, 99; Ball. U. 8. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. U. 8, Nat. Mas., No.
12, 1378, 56, 60, 76; Man. Vert., 1878, 212; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 436,

Lepomis megalotis, a, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, vi, 1869, 220 (nec Raf.); Proc.
Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 452.

Lepomis longispinis, Copa, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., vi, 1869, 220.

Lepomis ardesiacus, Copa, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Paila., vi, 1869, 222.

Lepomis purpurescens, Cops, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 454.

Description —This species is the most widely diffused of all our Sun-fishes and it is
everywhere one of the most abundant. Like Lepomis megalotis it is subject to very great
variations in form, coloration, and general appearance, yet it is usually, of all Sun-fishes,
the species most readily recognized. The body is deep and compressed, rather elongate,
with slender caudal peduncle when young; short, deep and almost orbicular in very old
specimens; the head is moderate, about one-third the length, with short snout, large
eye, and steep, though usually concave profile; the depth of the body is about half the
length, in old specimens somewhat more; the mouth is quite small, the maxillary not
reaching eye; the opercalar flap 1s large, entirely black, with a narrow margia at base.
nearly as broad as long in adults; in young specimens the flap is usually quite small and
broader than long; fin large; dorsal spines very high, often higher than soft rays in
young, their length about equal to the distance from snout to posterior margiu uf eye;
pectoral fias very long and falcate, reaching beyond beginning of anal; scales moder-
ate; those on cheeks in about 6 rows; lateral-line with 45 to 48; coloration, adults dark
olive or bluish-green ; belly aud lower parts more or less coppery; no blue stripes on
the cheek ; a large dusky or ‘‘ inky” spot on the last rays of dorsal and anal; specimens
in spirits are usually nearly uniform pale olive or even silvery; young specimens show
several undulating or chain-like transverse olive bars and a bright purplish Justre in
life. Length 6 to 10 inches, rarely longer.

Habitat, entire Great Lake Region. Mississippi Valley and all streams of the Gulf
States. Also in all Atlantic streams from Delaware River to Florida, everywhere abun-
dant. Throughout Ohio, it occurs in abundance in small ponds, large specimens are,
however, rarely found except in the Lake and larger rivers.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known under all circumstances by the
dusky blotch on the last rays of the dorsal in connection with high
spines and the absence of blue stripes on the cheek.

Habits.—In the Lakes where it attains a large size it is valued as a pan
fish, ranking with Ambloplites rupes'ris and Eupomotis gibbosus. It abounds
in every stream in Ohio.

938 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

122. Lepomis CYANELLUS Rafinesque.
Green Sun-fsh; Red-eye.

Lepomis cyanellus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 420.

Ichthelis oyanella, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 27.

Chenobryttus cyanellus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 234.

Telipomis cyanellus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes IIL, 1876, 37.

Apomotis cyanellus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 100; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 76; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Sarv.,
iv, 1878, 435; Man. Vert., 1878, 239.—Bean, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus, 1880, 97.

Ichthelis melanops, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 27.

Lepomis melanops, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 22.

Chenobryttus melanops, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc , 1870, 452.

Chenobryttus cyanellus, var. melanops, JORDAN, Man. Vert., lst Ed., 1876, 234.

Pomotis longulus, BarRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., vi, 1853, 391.—GIRARD,
in Marcy’s Expl. Red River, La., 1853, 245, pl. xii.

Calliurus longulus, GIRARD, Ichth. Mex. Bound., 1859, 5; U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 16.

‚ Bryttus longulus, BALRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii, 1854, 25.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mns., i, 1859, 258.

Calliurus diaphanus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov., 1857; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 13.

Calliurus formosus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., Nov., 1857, 200; U.S P.R.R.
Surv., 1858, 14.

Calliurus microps,GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila, Nov., 1857; U.S. P. R. R. Surv.,
1858, 17. |

Lepomis microps, Cope, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1869, 222.

Telipomis microps, NkLson, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.

Brytius signifer, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov , 1857; U.S. P. R. R. Surv.,
1858, 20.

Apomotis signifer, JORDAN, Bull U.S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden’s Geol.
Surv., iv, 1878, 435.

Lepomis mineopas, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., vi. 1869, 223.

Chonobrytius mineopas, CoPk, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 452.

Description —Body oblong, varying to elongate, often short and deep, especially in
northerr specimens, the depth usually about 2} in length; the head about 3; mouth
pretty wide, the maxillary reaching nearly to middle of eye; lower jaw rather longest ;
fins rather small, the dorsal spines very low, the longest scarcely longer than snout ;
scales always small, about 46 in the course of the lateral line; opercular flap short and
small, less than eye, broadly margined with pinkish, the black confined to the bony
part of the flap; colors extremely variable, the prevailing shade usually green, with a
strong brassy lustre on sides, becoming usually yellow below; often nearly all deep
green, often with the blue predominating, sometimes in northern specimens nearly black ;
each scale usually with a sky blue spot and more or less of gilt edging, which gives an
appearance of pale lines along the sides; besides the blue spots, some specimens, usually
young or half-grown ones, are crossed by vertical bars of a brassy olive, or sometimes
almost black color; many adults are further marked by sprinklings of black dots; ver-
tical fins marked with green and blue, the anal almost edged in front with pale orange;
in very young specimens, the vertical fins are of a dull red color; ventrals usually yel-

GREEN SUN-FISH. 939

lowish; iris red; cheeks with narrow wavy stripes of bright blue; usually a round black
‚spot on last rays of dorsal and anal behind, the latter, and sometimes both, obsolete.
A species extremely variable both in form and coloration, yet easily recognizable at
‘sight. As is the case in many species, specimens from tributaries of Lake Michigan in
Wisconsin are deeper-bodied and darker-colored than those from the Ohio River. This
species reaches a length of abont eight inches, but they are usually seen of a much
smaller size.

Habitat: Lepomis cyanellus abounds throughout the entire Mississippi Valley and in all
the streams tributary to the Gulf of Mexico. It occurs more sparingly in the tributaries
of the Great Lakes, and has not been noticed at all east of the Mountains. Throughout
the Ohio Valley, it is one of the most abundant of fishes, occuring in every pond, and
ascending small streams, where in may be found lurking in deep holes and under every
‘projecting root. It is too small to be of much.account as a food fish and is valued
chiefly by the boy.

Diagnosis.—The elongated body, large mouth and low spines at once dis-
tinguish this species. It is the only species in Ohio which has but three
anal spines, and a distinct supplemental maxillary bone, which has no
teeth on the tongue.

GrENus 65. CHANOBRYTTUS. Gill.

:Calliurus, AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854 (not Raf ).
Chenobryttas, GILL, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1864, 92.
-Glossoplites, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 233.
Type, Calliurus melanops, Girard, = Pomotis gulosus C. & V.
Etymology, chaino, to yawn; brytius, an allied genus = Apomotis.

Dorsal fin much more developed than anal fin, its base about twice that of the latter,
the soft parts of the two fins nearly equal and terminating at the same vertical behind;
dorsal spines strong, ten in number; anal spines three; caudal fin emarginate; dorsal
fins not notched; mouth very large, the maxillary reaching to opposite the posterior
margin of the eye, very broad and flat, with a very large supplemental bone; palatine
teeth very strong; a conspicuous patch of teeth on the tongue and on the pterygoid
bones ; gill-rakers long, very strong, armed with strong teeth; opercle ending behind
in a large but rather short rounded process or flap; lower jaw longest; body stout,
‘heavy, moderately elongate; aspect and dentition of Ambloplites. This genus contains
so far as is known but two species, both large, stout Sun-fishes, voracious in habit, re-
rembling Bass. The second species, Chenobryttus gulosus (Cuv. and Val.) Cope, occurs
only in the South Atlantic and Gulf States. ’

123. CHENOBRYTTUS ANTIsTIUS McKay.

War-mouth; Wide-mouth Sun-fish; Black Sun-fish; Red-eyed
Bream.

‘Chenobryttus gulosus, COPE, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 84 (Michigan, not Cen-
trarchus gulosus, Cuv. and Val.).—JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 43;
Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y.. 1877, —; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, —; Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 237.

x

940 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDZ.

Lepomis gulosus, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1869, 223.

Chenobrytius melanops, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, (not Calliurus melanopa,
Grd.).

Glossoplites melanops, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 223, 317.

Chenobryttus antistius, McKay, Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus., 1831, 88.

Description.—Body heavy, deep and thick, stouter and thicker than in the southern
Chenobryttus gulosus; depth 24 in length; head about 2¢; mouth large, its maxillary
reaching nearly to posterior margin of eye—the supernumerary bone strong; scales on
the cheeks in 7 to 9 rows, rather smaller than in gulosus ; mucous pores about head very
large; opercular flap rather large and broad but not long; dorsal inserted anteriorly,
the first spine being over the ear-flap ; spines very stout, the longest as long as from
snout to middle of eye; color in spirits very dark, almost black; three oblique bands
across the cheeks and a black opercular spot, pale-margined below, as large as the eye;
young specimens are profusely mottled, as are the young of Ambloplites, and farther-
marked with vertical chains of spots; in life, adults dark olive-green above, sides green-
ish and brassy, with blotches of pale blue and bright coppery red, the red predomina-
ting; belly bright brassy yellow, profusely mottled with bright red ; lower jıw chiefly
yellow ; iris bright red; opercular spot as large as eye, black, bordered below with cop-
per color; 3 or 4 wide dark red bands radiating backward frow across cheeks and oper-
cles ; separated by narrow pale blue interspaces ; upper fias barred with black, orange,
and blue, the former color predominating ; lower fins dusky ; a small black spot on last
rays of dorsal, with a few dusky specks around it. Tuis species is best distinguished
from Ch. gulosus, by the positiou of the dorsal, the first spine being situated over the
opercular lobe, while in C. gulosus the first spine is situated directly over the posterior
portion of the base of the pectorals. Length 8 to 12 inches.

Habitat, Lake Michigan. Mississippi Valley, chiefly northwestward. Michigan
(Cope), Lake Michigan (Jordan), Illinois River (Forbes, Nelson), Wabash River (Jordan).

This species has not yet been recorded from Ohio, but it doubtless occurs in the west-
ern part of the State and in the Ohio River.

It is a stout, voracious species, strongly resembling the Rock Bass. It is ““ gamey,”
and is, where abundant as in the Upper Mississippi, valued as a pan-fish. All the speci-
mens examined from the Gulf States, belong to the allied species or variety C. gulosua.

Diagnosis.—T his is the only one of our Ohio fishes which has teeth on

the tongue, three spines in the anal fin, and ten in the single dorsal
fin.

Genus 66. AMBLOPLITES. Rafinesque.

Ambloplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 83.—AGassiz, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts,
1854, —.
Centrarchus, Cuv. aud VaL., 1831, and of many authors.
Type, Lepomis ictheloides, Raf. = Bodianus rupestris, Raf.
Etymology, amblus, blunt; oplites, armed.

Dorsal fin much more dsveloped than anal fin, the soft parts of the two fins about
equal and terminating at the same vertical behind ; dorsal fin with 11 or 12 (10 to 13)
spines; anal normally with 6 (5 to 7); caudal fin emarginate; scales ctenold; mouth
large, teeth on vomer, palatine and pterygoid bones; a single large patch of teeth on

ROCK BASS. 941

the tongue; lower jaw longest; a well-developed supplemental maxillary bone; gill-
rakers long and strong, about ten of them on the anterior arch longer than the rest, and
armed with teeth ; operculum without flap, ending in two flat points.

The synonymy of this genus rcquires no special remark. The name Amblo-
plites was first suggested by Rafinesque as a sub-genus of his Lepomis (1820,
micropterus) but without characterization of any importance. In 1854, the genus was
first established and characterized by Prof. Agassiz who retained Rafinesque’s name as

by the laws of nomenclature he was obliged to do. But one species of Ambloplites is
certainly known.

124. AMBLOPLITES TUPESTRIS (Rafinesque) Gill.

Rock Bass; Goggle-eye; Red-eye; Lake Bass.

Bodianus rupestris, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Month. Mag. and Crit. Rev., 1817, 120.

Ambloplites rupestris, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 20.—CcPE, Journ. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 217; Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 451.—GILBERT, Ohio
Fish Com., 1878, 79.—NELson, Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1675-76, 790, 792, 796.—JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 1876, 231; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 100; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No.
10, 1877, 34; Man. Vert., 1878, 237; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, 435; Bull.
U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 40, 46, 60, 75.—GooDe, Proc. U. 8, Nat. Mus., ii, 1879,
114.—BeaAn Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1880, 97, and of all recent American writers.

Ichthelis erythrops, RAFINESQUE, Ichth Ob., 1820, 29.

Cichla enea, LESURUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila,, 1823, 214.

Centrarchus ceneus, Cuv. et VAL, iii, 1829.— KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, pp. 168, 191.—
DrKay, Fauna N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 27,—-THompson, Hist. of Vermont, 1842, 31.—
STORER, Syn., 1846, 289 —GUNTHER, Cat. Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 256.

Ambloplites eneus, GIRARD, U.S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 8.

Centrarchus pentacanthus, Cuv. et VAL. iii,, 1829, 88.—DxKay, Fauna N. Y., Fish., 1842,
30.—STORER, Syn., 1846, 290.

? Ambloplites cavifrons, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 217.—JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 1876, 231; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 34; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv.,
iii, 1878, 435; Man. Vert., 1878, 237.

Description.—Body oblong, the depth about 24 in length; head 3 in length, the profile
convex, eye about equal to snont, 34 to 32 in head, about equal to length of opercle ;
cheeks with about eight rows of scales and a naked area; dorsal spines stout, rather
low; D. XI, 11; A. VI, 10; lateral line with about 40 scales; general color, a brassy
olive-green, with much dark mottling, the young irregularly blotched with bleck, the
adult more uniformly colored, each scale with a equarish dusky blotch, these forming
more or less distinct longitudinal stripes; fins dark olive the soft rays more or less
barred; irisred. This species reaches the length of about a foot.

Habitat, Vermont and Lower Canada to Great Lake Region. Minnesota. Dakota,
and southward to Texas; chiefly west of the Alleghanies.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once as the only one in
Ohio having 10 to 12 spines in the dorsal and 5 to 7 in the anal.

Habits.—This familiar fish is abundant in all streams, lakes and ponds
of Ohio. Like all the largerCentrarchidz it is an excellent pan fish, and

942 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

is deservedly valued as food. It is a free biter, but anglers consider it
destitute of game. It is recommended for propagation in ponds.

Genus 67. MICROPTERUS. Lacepede.

Micropterus, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. des Poiss., iv, 1802, 325.
Calliurus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Physique, 1819, 420.
Lepomis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 30. (Not of Raf., 1819.)
Aplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 30.

Nemocampsis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 31.

Dioplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 32.

Aplesion, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 36.

Huro, Cuv. and VAL, Hist. Nat. des Poiss., ii, 1828, 124.
Grystes, Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., iii, 1829, 54.

Type, Micropterus dolomieu, Lacepede.

Etymology, mikros, small; pteron, fin. The dorsal fin in the typical specimen having
been injured, its posterior rays detached ana bitten off short, were taken by Lacepede
for a separate fin.

Body elongate, ovate. compressed, the back not much elevated; head oblong, conic;
mouth very large, oblique, the broad maxillary reaching nearly to or beyond the pos-
terior margin of the eye, the supplemental bone well developed ; lower jaw prominent ;
teeth on jaws, vomer, and palatines, usually none on the tongue; preopercle entire;
operculum ending in two flat pojnts, without cartilaginous flap; branchiostegals
normally 6; scales rather small, weakly ctenoid; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin
divided by a deep notch, the spines low and rather feeble, 10 in number; anal spines 3,
the anal fin much smaller than the dorsal, caudal fin emarginate; size large.

The two species of this genus are among the most characteristic game
fishes of America. The synonymy of the genus and of both species has
been very much confused; but, in our opinion, the nomenclature now
adopted, after numerous changes, must hereafter be accepted.

The following article, contributed by the present writer to Forest and
Stream (Nov. 28, 1878) gives a resume of the matter of the nomenclature
as generally understood, before the more critical examination of the sub-
ject, made by Dr. Henshall in his “ Book of the Black Bass.”

Since the publication of the name Micropterus pallidus (Raf.), Gill and Jordan, as a
substitute for Micropterus nigricans for the scientific name of the Large-mouthed Black
Bass, I have received numerous congratulations, verbal and written, from brother fish-
ermen on the appropriateness of the name selected, and I presume that my colleague in
this matter, Professor Gill, has had a similar experience. Lately a correspondent of
Forest and Stream, Mr. A. F. Clapp, suggests that the name Micropterus salmoides be like-
wise ‘‘stamped out” to make room for some more appropriate appellation. It seems
timely, therefore, that we should “rise and explain.”

The name Micropterus pallidus is not a name of our own selection, but a name which,

ROCK BASS. 943

by the laws of scientific nomenclature, we are Bound to use. By the operation of these
laws every genus must bear the oldest (generic) name bestowed on any of its members,
unless this name has been previously used for something else, or is glaringly false (not
simply irrevelant or inappropriate), or is otherwise ineligible; every species must bear
the first (specific) name imposed upon it (unless, as before, it be for one reason or
another ineligible), and the proper name of any species must be made by combining the
above mentioned specific and generic names.

This is the law on the subject, and, as elsewhere, the law is usually, though not al-
ways simply right. We accept many meaningless, or even objectionable names, to
avoid the confusion attendant upon arbitrary changes. Were it not for these rules
science would ever suffer, as it has much suffered in the past from the effurts of the
improvers of nomenclature—men who invent new names for old objects, for the parpose
of seeing their own personal designations, Smith, Jones, Brehm, Reichenow, or what
not, after them. In the words of “a right Sagamann,” John Cassin: ‘There is not,
evidently, any other course consistent with justice and the plainest principles of right
and morality, and, in fact, no alternative, unless, indeed, an operator is disposed to set
himself up for the first of all history, as is said of an early Chinese emperor The latter
course, in a degree, singular as it may appear, is not entirely unknown to naturalists,
especially to those who regard science as a milch cow rather than a transcendent god-
dess, a distinction in classification tirst made by the great poet Schiller.”

Now, as to the names of our species of Bass, I take it for granted that the reader
knows (a) what a Black Bass is, and what it is not (b); that there are two species of
Black Bass, the large-mouthed and the small-mouthed, the latter being with most
anglers the Black Bass par excellence, the other the off horse, and (c) what the difference
between them is. In any event you will find it written in Professor Gill’s most excel-
lent paper, ‘On the Species of the Genus Micropterus,” in the ‘‘ Proceedings of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1873.”

The earliest published notice of a Black Bass with a scientific name was one of the
small-mouthed kind, sent to Lacepede from South Carolina. This specimen bore with
it the name of ‘‘ trout,” after the abominable, contemptible, and pernicious and other-
wise detestable custom of our erring Southern brethren of calling a black bass in the
river, or a weak fish in the sea a re trout.” Now, we may presume that the great French
naturalist was puzzled by this name, and put on his spectacles to see what in the
world could be “ trout-like” about such a fish, with its coarse scales and spinous fins.
To him it looked more like a wrasse or cunner, Labrus, than a trout; but no matter, it
must resemble a trout somehow or the Americans would not call it so. So he put it
down in his great work as Labrus salmoides, the trout-like Labrus, to the everlasting
injury of the fish, the name is not only senseless, but bad Latin, the proper form of the
word being Salmonoides.

Lacepede had another specimen of the Black Bass, without label, and from an un-
known locality. This one had the last rays of the dorsal broken and torn loose from
the rest, and was otherwise in a forlorn condition. This specimen he considered as a
genus distinct from the other, and he gave it the name of Micropterus dolomieu— ‘‘ Dolo-
mieu’s small fin.” Dolomieu was a friend of Lacepede, who had about as much to do
with the fish as George Washington or Victor Hugo. No one could tell, either from
figure or description, what this Micropterus dolomieu was; but Cuvier, thirty years later,
found the original type and pronouuced it Black Bass, in poor condition, and declared
that the ‘‘ genus and species of Micropterus ought to disappear from the catalogue of
fishes.”

944 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDE.

Then the versatile and eccentric Professor Rafinesque appeared upon the scene, and
in rapid succession gave the small-mouthed Black Bass names enough for a whole fam-
ily. First, he called it Bedianus achigan, being told that the Canadian voyageurs knew
the fish as Vachigan. Then afterward specimens of different sizes appeared as Calliurus
punctulatus, Lepomis trifasciata, Lepomis jlexuolaris, Lepomis salmonea, Lepomis notata, and
Etheostoma calliura. Soon after Le Sueur, with a lofty scorn for Rafinesque and his
doings, named specimens of different sizes, Cichla fasciata, Cichla ohiensis, and Cichla
minima. Lastly, DeKay, in 1842, called it Centrarchus obscurus, and we hope this may be
the last. ;

Now, the name salmoides being the oldest is, of course, the one to be adopted. But
suppose “we stamp it out.” Is Micropterus dolomiew any better? Out with it!
Micropterus achigan? Just as bad. I fear that the ‘‘ stamping out” process would have
to be continued too long. You may spell it salmonoides if you like, but you cannot get
rid of it.

Now, for the large-mouthed Baes. The oldest desription we find is that of a young
specimen from the Ohio by Rafinesque, in 1820, as Lepomis pallida. The description is
poor enough, and not altogether correct, but the name is a happy inspiration, as good
as salmoides is bad. Soon after (1822) Le Sueur described the same fish from Florida as
Cichla floridana, a name which would be well enough if it were confined to the streams
of the orange groves, but it seems rather narrow in view of the fact that the fish is
found in Mexico and Manitoba, and every where between.

Next, a specimen came to Cuvier and Valenciennes, under the title of ‘‘ Black Bass of
Lake Huron.” To their eyes the fish was black enough, but not a bass, i. e., Labrax, and
they called it Huro nigricans, the ‘‘ Black Huron,” making a new genus for it, because
their specimen had but six dorsal spines, the last four having been broken off, leaving
two dorsal fins. The colored figure, which they published, remained a standing puzzle
for some time.

In Dr. Kirtland’s private copy of his own fishes of Ohio he had carefully drawn off
and colored a copy of Cuvier’s figure of his Black Huron, and had all his life sought for
such a fish in the lakes and never found it. About a year before his death Dr. Kirtland
asked me if I had ever seen that fish or could tell him what it was, and I had the
pleasure of informing him what the monster really was. Next, in 1854, Professor
Agassiz, thinking that this fish in the Tennessee River could not be the same as in Lake
Huron, called it Grystes nobilis, a good name enough, but thirty-four years too late. In
the same year specimens from Texas were named Grystes nuecensis by Baird and
Girard, but the fish is found in other streams than the Rio Nueces, Then a meaty and
excellent name, Grystes megastoma, was given by Mr. Garlick in 1857, which closes the
American synonymy, but the disease has broken out in France again, and Messrs.
Vaillant and Bocourt, of Paris, who ought to know better, have again described it as
Dioplites triculii and Dioplites variabilis. The poorest business a French naturalist can
engage in is that of describing new species of American fishes, A good share of our
cumbersome and confusing synonymy is due to Gallic assistance.

Now, in 1873, Prof. Gill, in his masterly review of these species, followed the thread
back only to Huro nigricans in 1828, and so called the big-mouthed black bass, as he was
bound to do, Micropterus nigricans, “The names floridanus and pallidus were presumed
by him to refer to the other species, for the reason that he had never seen a big-
mouthed Black Bass either from the Ohio River or from Florida. In 1876 Prof. Goode
had collected it in Florida, and so felt bound to restore Le Sueur’s name, and to call it

ROCK -BASS. 945

Micropterus floridanus. In 1877 I called Prof. Gill’s attention to the fact that there were
big-mouthed as well as small-mouthed Black Bass in the streams where Rafinesque
fished, and he agreed with me at once that the Lepomis pallida of Rafinesque was the
big-mouth, which is why the big-mouthed Black Bass, Oswego Bass, Grass Bass, and
Bayou Bass is Micropterus pallidus (Rafinesque) Gill and Jordan, at present date, and
such may it ever remain.

Now, as to the name of the genus itself, the difficulty is just as great. The name
Micropterus is unquestionably the oldest. But (a) we are perhaps not absolutely certain
that the original Micropterus dolomieu was 2 Black Bass at all; (b) it was described as
distinct under the erroneous impression that it had a little adipose fin behind the dor-
sal, and (c) the name (small fin) refers to this imaginary peculiarity, and is, therefore,
incorrect. °

On the other hand, the Black Bass really has smaller fins than any of its relatives,
and the name has, therefore, a certain appropriateness. I think, with Prof. Gill, that
it should be retained, although Prof. Cope and others, as good authority as we are, are
inclined to demur.

Next comes Calliwrus (beautifal tail), not a bad name, for the young Bass have the tail
ornamented with black, white, and yellow, but not a very good name. Then comes
Lepomis (scaly opercles), previously applied to the sunfishes, and, therefore, not usable
for a Bass. Then comes Rafinesque’s Aplites, Nemocampsis, Dioplites, and Aplesion, un-
worthy of any attention, although for some reason Dioplites has kept up a sort of life,
while the other three have wholly died.

Next comes the name Huro for the large-mouthed, and Grystes for the small- mouthed.
Of course the two do not belong to separate genera. The name Grystes was given as &
translation of the name Growler, under which name the Black Bass was sent to the
museum at Paris: Thus, our two species are often called in foreign books the Black
Huron (Huro nigricans), and the Salmon-formed Growler (Grystes salmoides). The name
Grystes is a graceful one, and has been used more frequently than any other, but there
are seven names ahead of it on the record, and first @®me first served, and synonymy
take the hind most.

The names Labrus, Bodianus, Cichla, and Centrarchus belong to wholly different fishes,
and were given by different authors through mistakes as to the relationship of the
Black Bass.

I trust that this hasty and rather rambling account will be of some service to the
numerons class of my fishing brethren who like to be right in their use of names, and
who want to know, you know, but who, like Wilhelm Tell, cannot “lange brüfen oder
wählen.”

The above account contains two fallacies, which vitiate the nomen-
clature there adopted, namely, the assigning of priority of date to the
name Labrus salmoides, and the supposition that this name referred to
the Small-mouthed Bass. These errors came from an examination of a
reprint of Lacepede, and were exposed on the receipt of a copy of the
original edition. These are: -(a) the earliest published notice of a
Black Bass was under the name of Micropterus dolomieu. This notice re-
ferred to one of the small-mouthed species, which must, therefore, of
course, be known as Micropterus dolomieu. (b) The second notice in point

60 ‘

946 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

of time was the Labrus salmoides of Lacepede. As shown by Dr. Hen-
shall, there is no doubt that this notice referred to the large mouthed
species, which being also a Micropterus, must be called . Micropterus
salmoides.

A full discussion of these questions may be found in the “ Book of the
Black Bass,” by Dr. J. A. Henshall, published as these sheets are pass-
ing through the press, to which admirable memoir the reader is referred.*

The confusion existing in regard to the proper vernacular name of the
two species of Black Bass is portrayed in the following article, from the
pen of Dr. Henshall : _

The genus Micropterus, Black Bass, includes but two species: Micropterus salmoides
(Lac.) Gill, the small-mouthed Bass, and Micropterus pallidus (Raf.) Gill and Jordan, the
large-mouthed Black Bass, or, as it is sometimes called, the Oswego Bass. Possibly, no
genus of fishes has been the occasion of so much confesion, scientifically and popularly,
as the Black Bass. This is owing, no doubt, to its extensive habitat and wide-spread
distribution; the original habitat of both species being the great basin of the St. Law-
rence, the whole Mississippi Valley, or almost the entire range of country lying between
the Alleghany and the Rocky Mountains, and the South Atlantic States from Virginia
to Florida. It would naturally be expected, in view of this extraordinary and expansive
habitat, to find differences of conformation, color, and habits; indeed, it is surprising
that the variations are not more marked, and the number of species consequently
greater when one considers the great natural differences and conditions of the numerous
waters and varieties of climate to which this genus is native. We find, however, that
the most striking difference is in color, which will run from alm ‘st black through all
the shades of slate, green, olive, and yellow to almost white, and, indeed, these varia-
tions in eolor can be found in almost any one State, and toa great extent in any one
stream or lake, at different seasdms of the year. Slight dissimilarities of contoar and
some divereity of habits also exist. But all of these differences obtain, not only with
regard to Black Bass, but to most other genera of fresh water fishes, and depend on
well known natural causes. [lived for ten years in Wisconsin, where there were twenty
lakes abounding in Black Bass within a radius of eight miles of my residence, and from
close and constant observation of the characteristics of the Black Bass in them, I could
almost invariably tell upon being shown a string of bass in what particular lake they
had been caught.

Without going into a specific and detailed analysis of the two species of Black Bass,
it will be sufficient to say, that, as a general rule, the small-mouthed Bass is more
trimly built and of a darker or more sombre hue than the other variety, where they both
inhabit the same water; the large-mouthed Bass being rather a coarse looking fish, with
a much larger mouth, larger scales, thicker through the shoulders, with more depth of
body, more pendulous belly, and growing to a larger size, with the color more inclined

* Book | of the | Black Bass, | comprising its complete, | scientific, and life history, |
together with a practical treatise on | angling and fly fishing, | and a full description
of | tools, tackle, and implements | by | James A. Henshall, M.D.| ‘TI am, sir, a
brother of the angler.’—Izaak WALTON | Fully illustrated | Cincinnati | Robert Clarke &
Co. | 1881.

BLACK BASS. 947

to shades of green. The color of the small-mouthed variety sometimes approaches
shades of olive or yellow; and there will often be more or Jess red in the iris of the eye, in

some instances shading down to orange or yellow. This latter distinction, however,
like the double carve at the base of the caudal fin, and the more forked tail—which
have been mentioned as distinguishing characteristics of the small-mouthed variety—
cannot be depended on, as one or all of these distinctions are often lacking.

The furmer name of the large-mouthed species, Micropterus nigricans (C. & V.) Gill,
has been very wisely discarded by Professors Gill and Jordan, who have substituted
therefor the more descriptive title of Micropterus pallidus, This has been done in jus-
tice to Rafinesque, whose priority of description of this species certainly entitles him to
this acknowledgment. ichthyologists have, at various times, given to the genus num-
erous appellatives, and to the species more than thirty specific names, while laymen in
different sections of the country have contributed their quota of vernacular names,
among which may be mentioned: Black Bass, Bass, Black Perch, Jumping Perch,
Trout, Black Trout, Chub, Green Bass, Moss Bass, Oswego Bass, etc. In almost every
issue of the Forest and Stream correspondents write of Bass, Bass fishing, Bass tackle,
etc., meaning Black Bass in each instance, and take it for granted that the legion of
readers of that widely circulated journal will understand what particular kind of Bass
is meant. Now, this is all wrong, and is owing to the culpable carelessness, or perhaps,
in some instances, to a want of proper information, and is a habit that ought to be re-
formed. Let us call things by their names—a spade a spade, or a quail a quail. It is
just as easy to right the distinctive name ‘‘ Black Bass” as the general name “ Bass.”
Bass is a very vague term at best, meaning one thing in one part of the country and a
totally different thing in another. Along the Eastern coast it means either a Striped
Bass or a Sea Bass; in the West it may be either a Black Bass, a Rock Bass, a White
Bass, or a Silver Bass; while in Otsego county, New York, it means an Otsego Bass,
which is not a Bass at all. Then again, your correspondents write of the real Black
Bass, meaning generally M. salmoides, the small-mouthed species, seeming to imply that
the other species is not real, or at least is not the Black Bass, but something elee—a
kind of pseudo variety, Others, in writing of the large-mouthed species, M. pallidus—
owing to its former name, M. nigricans—have called it the real Black Bass, under the
impression that, as it was named nigricans, i. e., black, the other variety must be some
other color, and was not the Simon pure article. Now, one species is not more real than
the other; the small-mouthed variety is regarded as the type species, because it was the
first to be described. It is thought by some to be a gamier fish than the large-mouthed
variety ; indeed, I have sometimes thought so myself; but this notion, like the gusta-
tory superiority of the canvas- back among ducks, the delectable excellence of the brook
trout among fish, or the exquisite ambrosial flavor of Veuve Cliquot among wines, exists
more in the imagination than in reality. Both varieties of the Black Bass are equally
good as game fish, and equally good for the table. The term ‘‘ Black Bass,” then, is
distinctive, and should always be used when alluding to the genus generally. In writ-
ing of the different species, they should be mentioned as the small-mouthed Black Bass,
or the large-mouthed Black Bass, as the case may be, no matter whether the color be
black, green, or yellow. Every reader will then know exactly what is meant, and much
of the confusion and uncertainty that now prevail will be cleared away.

948 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MICROPTERUS.

a. Mouth smaller, the maxillary in the adult not extending beyond orbit; scales
smaller, 72-75 in the lateral line; 10-12 series above the lateral line; cclor of
young more or less barred or spotted, without dark lateral band.

DOLOMIEU. 125.
aa. Mouth very large, the maxillary in the adult extending beyond the orbit ; scales
rather large, 65-70 in the lateral line ; 7-8 series above lateral line; last spines
of dorsal very short, so that the fin is almost divided into two; young with a
blackish lateral band. . 7 7 ‘ . . 7 SALMOIDES. 126.

125. Microprerus DOLOMIEU.* Lacepede.

The Small-mouthed Black Bass.

Micropterus dolomieu, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., iv, 325.—HENSHALL, Book of the
Black Bass, 1881, 84.

Bodianus achigan, RAFINESQUE, Month). Mag. and Critic. Rev., 1817, 120.

Micropterus achigan, GILL, Rept. Commr. Ag., 1866, 407.

Calliurus punctulatus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1620, 26.

Lepomis trifasciata, flecuolaris, salmonea, and notata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 31, 32.

Etheostoma calliura, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 36.

Cichla fasciata, ohiensis and minima, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., ii, 216, 218,
220.—KIRTLAND, Zool. Oh., 1838, 191.

Centrarchus fasciatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1842, 28.—DrKay, New
York Fauna Fishes, 1842, 28.

Grystes salmoides, Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat Poiss., iii, 1854, 54, and of numerous authors.

Micropterus salmoides, GILL, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., B. 1873, 55.—JORDAN, Man. Vert ,
E. U.S., 2d Ed., 1878, 236; Pros. U. S. Nat. Mas., ii, 1880, 218, and of most recent
American Writers.

Centrarchus obscurus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 30.

Body ovate-fusiform, becoming deeper with age; head large; mouth large, but
smaller than in M. salmoides, the maxillary ending considerably in front of the hinder
margin of the orbit; scales on the cheek minute, in about 17 rows; scales on the trunk
comparatively small; dorsal fin deeply notched, but less so than in M. salmoides ; color-
ation quite variable, the young dull, golden green, with bronzed lustre, darker spots
along the sides, which tend to form short vertical bars, but never a dark lateral band,
usually three bronzed bands radiating from eye across cheeks and opercles; a dusky
spot on point of operculum ; belly white; caudal fin yellowish at base, then black, with
white tips; dorsal with bronze spots, its edge dusky. In some waters the fin-markings
are obsolete, but usually they are very conspicuous in the young. Southern specimens
usually have the scales of the lower part of the sides with faint dark streaks; adult
specimens have all these marks more or less wholly obliterated, and become ultimately
of a uniform dead-green, without silvery luster; head 34; depth 34; D X, 13; A. III,
10 or 11; scales 11-74-17. Length 1to2 feet. Average weight when adult 4or 5 pounds,

Habitat, all streams of United States from Vermont and Western New York to South
Carolina, Arkansas, and Dakota, preferring clear or cold waters.

* For full synonymy, see (Henshall) ‘‘ Book of the Black Bass.”

SMALL-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 949

Diagnosi.—The small-mouthed Black Bass may always be certainly
distinguished from the other species by the smaller scales, there being
70 to 80 in the lateral line. The color of the young is always a per-
fectly reliable distinctive mark.

Habits.—In Ohio this species is everywhere abundant in the proper
localities. As compared with Micropterus salmoides, it is a fish of the
running waters, having little liking for warm and grassy ponds, bayous,
or lakes.

The writer can add little new to our knowledge of this most excellent
game fish. I, therefore, confine myself to making extracts from some of
the many writers who have sounded the praises of the Black Bass.

The following article, by Dr. J. A. Henshall, first appeared in Forest
and Stream.

Those who have tasted the lotus of salmon or trout fishing in that Utopian clime of
far away, while reveling in its esthetic atmosphere, and surrounded by a misty halo of
the spray of the waterfall, or enveloped by the filmy gauze and irridescent haze of the
cascade, have inscribed tomes, sang idyls, chanted pwons, and poured out libations in
honor and praise of the silver spangled salmon or the ruby studded trout, while it is left
to the vulgar horde of Black Bass anglers to stand upon the mountain of their own
doubt and presumption, and, with uplifted hands, in admiration and awe, gaze with
dazed eyes from afar upon that forbidden land—that terra incognita, and then, having
lived in vain, die and leave no sign.

It is then with a spirit of rank heresy in my heart; with smoked-glass spectacles on
my nose to dim the glare and glamour of the transcendent shore; with the scales of
justice across my shoulder—M. salmoides in one scoop and M. pallidus in the other—I
pass the barriers and confines of the enchanted land and toss them into a stream that
has been depopulated of even fingerlings by the dilettanti of salmon and trout fishera;
for I would not, even here, put Black Bass in a stream inhabited by salmon or brook
trout. While watching the plebian interlopers sporting in an eddy, their bristling
spines and emerald sides gleaming in the sunshine, I hear an awful voice from the ad-
jacent rocks exclaiming, ‘‘ Fools rush in where angels fear to tread!’ Shade of Izaak
Walton defend us! While appealing to Father Izaak for protection, I quote his words:
“Of which, if thou be a severe, sour complexioned man, then I here disallow thee to
be a competent judge.”

Seriously, most of our notions of game fish and fishing are derived from British
writers; and as the salmon and trout are the only fishes in Great Britain worthy of
being called game, they, of course, form the themes of British writers on game fish,
Americans, following the lead of our British cousins in this, as we were wont to do in
all sporting matters, have eulogized the salmon and brook trout as the game fish par
excellence of America, ignoring other fish equally worthy. While some claim for the
Striped Bass a high niche in the list of game fish, I feel free to assert that, were the
Black Bass a native of Great Britain, he would rank fully as high in the estimation of
British anglers as either the trout or the salmon. I am borne out in this by the opinions
of British sportsmen, whose statements have always been received without question.
W. H. Herbert (Frank Forester) writing of the Black Bass, says: ‘‘ This is one of the

950 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

finest of the American fresh water fishes; it is surpassed by none in boldness of biting,
in fierce and violent resistance when hooked, and by a very few only in excellence upon
the board.” Parker Gilmore (‘‘ Ubique’’) says: ‘‘I fear it will be almost deemed her-
esy to place this fish (Black Bass) on a par with the trout; at least, some such idea I
had when I first heard the two compared; but Iam bold, and will go further. I con-
sider he is the superior of the two, for he is equally good as an article of food, and much
stronger and more untiring in his efforts to escape when hooked.” Mr. Gilmore again
says: ‘‘ Americans have reason to be proud of the Black Bass, for its game qualities
endear it to the fisherman, and its nutty, sweet flavor to the gourmand.”

Now, while salmon fishing may be the highest branch of piscatorial sport; and while
trout fishing in Car ada, Maine, and the Lake Superior region justifies all the extrav-
agant praise bestowed upon it, Iam inclined to doubt the judgment and good taste of
those angiers who snap their fingers in contempt cf Black Bass fishing, while they will
wade a stream strewn with brush and logs, catch a few trout weighing six or eight to
the pound, and call it the only artistic angling in the world! While they are certainly
welcome to their opinion, I think their zeal is worthy of a better cause. The Black
Bass is eminently an American fish, and has been said to be representative in his char-
acteristics. He has the faculty of asserting himself and making himself completely at
home wherever placed. He is plucky, game, brave, and unyielding to the last when
hooked. He has the arrowy rush and vigor of a trout, the untiring strength and bold
leap of a salmon, while he has a system of fighting tactics peculiarly his own. He will
rise to the artificial fly as readily as the salmon or the brook trout, under the same
conditions; and will take the live minnow or other live bait, under any and all circum-
stances favorable to the taking of any other fish. I consider him, inch for inch and
pound for pound, the gamest fish that swims. The royal salmon and the lordly trout
must yield the palm to a Black Bass of equal weight. That he will eventually become
the leading game fish of America is my oft expressed opinion and firm belief. This re-
sult, I think, is inevitable, if for no other reasons, from a force of circumstances
occasioned by climatic conditions and the operation of immutable natural laws, such as
the gradual drying up and dwindling away of the small trout streams, and the conse-
quent decrease of brook trout both in quality and quantity; and by the introduction of
predatory fish in the same waters with trout. Another prominent cause of the decline
and fall of the brook trout is the erection of dams, saw mills, and factories upon trout
streams, which, though to be deplored, cannot be prevented; the march of empire and
the progress of civilization cannot be stayed by the honest, thuugh powerless protésts
of anglers. But, while the ultimate fate of the brook trout is sealed beyond peradven-
ture, we have the satisfaction of knowing that in the Black Bass we have a fish equally
worthy, both as to game and edible qualities, and which, at the same time, is able to
withstand and defy many of the causes that will in the end effect the annihilation and
extinction of the brook trout.

As I have stated long since in the Forest and Stream, the Black Bass will exhibit game
qualities that will at once convince and surprise the most skeptical salmon or trout
fishers, if they will angle for him with as suitable and delicate tackle as they employ
for his more favored congeners of the tribe Salmonide. It is high time, then, that
anglers and sporting writers should accept the situation, accord to the Black Bass his
just due, and acknowledge him as the coming game fish of America.”

As to the edible qualities of the Black Bass little need be said. Aside from its at-
tractiveness to anglers as a game fish, its flesh is of the very best. ‘‘ Few better pan

SMALL-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 951

fish are known to epicures. He is thick, solid, and heavy; has little waste and few
bones about him; is sweet, tender, and juicy, and when well cooked makes a dish fit
for a king.”— Hallock.

The following account of the breeding habits of the Black Bass is
abridged from Dr. Henshall’s “ Book of the Black Bass.’ The habits of
both species are usually the same:

“ Black Bass are very prolific, the females yielding fully one fourth of their weight in
spawn. ‘The period of spawning extends from early spring to midsummer, according to
the section of country and temperature of the water, being always earlier in warm or
shallow waters.

“The Bass leave their winter quarters in deep water about a month or six weeks
before the spawning season, at which times they can be seen running up streams and
in the shallow portions of lakes in great numbers. Soon afterwards, the males and
females pair off and prepare for breeding.

“ They select suitable spots for their nests, usually upon a gravelly or sandy bottom,
or in rocky ledges, in water from eighteen inches to three feet deep in rivers, and from
three to six feet deep in caves and ponds; and, if possible, adjacent to deep water or
patches of aquatic plants, to which the parent fish retire if disturbed.

“ The nests are circular saucer-like depressions, about twice the length of the fish in
diameter. They are formed by the Bass, by fanning and scouring from the pebbles all
sand, silt, and vegetable debris, by means of their fins and tails, and by removing
larger obstacles with their mouths. This gives to the beds a bright, clean, and white
appearance, which in clear water can be seen at a distance of several score yards. I
have seen hundreds of such nests in groups, almost touching each other, in the clear
water lakes of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota.

“Sometimes the nests are formed upon a muddy bottom, with a pavement or foun-
dation of small sticks and leaves, from which the mud and slime have been washed and
scoured.

“The females deposit their eggs on the bottom of the nests, usually in rows, which
are fecundated by the male, and become glued to the pebbles or sticks contained therein.

The eggs are batched in from one to two weeks, depending on the temperature of the
water, but usually in eight or ten days.

“ After hatching, the young fry remain over the bed for three or four days, when they
retire in‘o deep water, or take refage in the weeds or under stones, logs, and other
hiding places.

“During the period of incubation the nests are carefully guarded by the parent fish,
who remain over them, and by a constant motion of the fins create a current, which
keeps the eggs free from any sediment or debris. After the eggs are hatched, and while
the young remain on the nests, the vigilance of the parent fish becomes increased and
unceasing, and all suspicious and predatory intruders are driven away.

“Their anxiety and solicitude for their eggs and young, and their apparent disregard
of their own safety at the time is well known to poachers and pot fishers, who take
advantage of this trait, and spear or gig them on their nests.

‘‘T have also known some who call themselves anglers, who take the Bass at this
time in large numbers, with the minnow or craw-fish. Of course, the Bass does not
‘pite’ at this season voluntarily, but when the bait is persistently held under their

952 FISHES—CENTRARCHIDA.

noses, they at first endeavor to drive it away or remove it from their nests, and finally,
I think, swallow it in sheer desperation.

“After the young Bass leave the spawning beds, their food at first consists of animal-
cule, larve, insects, and the ova of other fish; as they grow older and larger, they
devour worms, tadpoles, and small fish, and later in life, they vary their diet with craw-
fish, frogs, mussels, and water-snakes, until, attaining a weight of two pounds, they will
bolt anything from an angle worm to a young musk-rat.”

126. MicRopreRvs SALMOIDES* (Lacepede) Henshall.

The Large-Mouthed Black-Bass.

Labrus salmoides, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss , iv., 1802, 716.—Grystes salmoides, HoL-
BROOK, Ich. 8S. Car., 1860, 28.—Micropterus salmoides, HENSHALL, ‘‘ Book of the
Black Bass,” 1881, 110.

Lepomis pallida, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 20 —Micropterus pallidus, JORDAN, Bull. U.S.
Nat. Mus., x, 1877; Man. Vert., E. U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 236, and elsewhere.

Cichla floridana, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., ii, 1822, 219.

Huro nigricans, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., ii, 1828, 124, and of var-
ious copyists.— Micropterus nigricans, GILL, Proc. Ass. Adv. Sci., B, 1673, 70, and of
various writers. ,

Grystes nobilior, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sei. Arts, xvii, 1854, 298.

Grystes nuecensis, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, vii, 1854, 25.
—Dioplites nuecensis, GIRARD, U. 8. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, Fishes, 1858, 4.

Description. Body ovate-fusiform, becoming deeper with age, moderately compressed ;
head large; mouth very wide, the maxillary in the adult reaching beyond the eye, in
the young shorter; scales on the cheek in about 10 rows, scales on the trunk compara-
tively large; lingual teeth sometimes present; dorsal fin very deeply notched; colora-
tion of the young dark-green above, sides and below greenish-silvery ; a blackish stripe
along the sides from opercle to the middle of the caudal fin; three dark oblique stripes
across the cheeks and opercles; below and above the lateral band some dark spots;
caudal fin pale at base, then blackish, whitish at tip; belly white. As the fish grows
older the black lateral band breaks up and grows fainter, and the color becomes more
and more of a uniform pale, dull green, the back being darker ; a dark opercular blotch
usually present; head 3}; depth 34; D. X, 12; A. III, 11; scales 7-68-16. Length 1 to 24
feet. Average weight of the adult fish 6 to 8 pounds.

Habitat, Manitoba to Florida and Mexico and all intermediate regions, preferring
sluggish waters.

There is a prevalent notion among anglers that the Big-mouthed Bass
is the Northern species, and the Small-mouthed the Southern. This arises
from the fact of the great abundance of the present species in many
Northern ponds and lakes unsuited for the residence of Micropterus dol-
omiew. This idea is fallacious. Micropterus salmoides is found in Mexico
and Florida, as well as througbout Texas. It is, in fact, as characteristic

.

* For a full synonymy of this species, see Henshall’s ‘‘ Book of the Black Bass,” p. 110.

LARGE-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 953

of the bayous of the Gulf States as of the lakelets of Michigan. A still
more wide-spread notion is that Micropterus salmoides is the Southern spe-
cies, and Af. dolomieu the Northern. The two are certainly native in
Canada and throughout the Alleghany region (except streams flowing
east, north of Virginia) to Alabama and South Carolina. I have myself
taken both species in every considerable river basin within those limits.
The extreme Northern limit from which any Black. Bass has been recorded
is the Red River of the N orth, and the specimens there obtained belong to
Micropterus salmoides. So that Micropterus salmoides has been taken farther
North, farther South, and farther West than its rival species, which can
only claim the Eastern extreme. Thesimple fact is that both inhabit the
same geographical area; but Micropterus salmoides takes to bayous, ponds,
and the sluggish rivers of the far South, while Micropterus dolomieu is
found chiefly in running streams: Every Western river contains both
species, but they are not usually taken together in the same part of the
stream.

Diagnosis—This species may be known from the preceding by the
larger mouth, larger scales, of which there are less than seventy in the
course of the lateral line. The young may be known at once by the
color, the ground here being much paler than in the other, and there
being a broad blackish band along the sides.

Habits.—This species is more sluggish in its habits than the preceding,
and as above noticed, it more often frequents still waters and ponds. In
the aquarium it is less active and less hardy than Micropterus dolomieu.
It reaches a larger size than the Small-mouthed Black Bass. It is not
quite so highly valued as food, but the difference is probably very slight,
or even imaginary.

FAMILY XXI. SERRANIDA. THE SEA BASS.

Body oblong or elongate, more or less compressed, covered with adherent ctenoid
scales of moderate or small size; mouth horizontal or little oblique, usually large; pre-
maxillary protractile; maxillary broad, with or without a supplemental bone, its pos-
terior part not slipping under the edge of the preorbital; jaws with bands of teeth,
some of the teeth sometimes enlarged and canine-like; no incisors or molar teeth; vomer
and palatines, with bands of villiform teeth ; tongue sometimes with teeth; pterygoids
toothless; gill-rakers usually stiff and rather long, armed with teeth; gills 4, a long
slit behind the fourth; pseudobranchi® large; lower pharyngeals separate, rather nar-
row, with pointed teeth ; gill-membranes separate, free from the isthmus; branchios-
tegals 7 or 6; cheeks and opercles scaly; preopercle with its posterior margin more or
less serrate; opereles usually ending in one or two flat points or spines; nostrils double;
lateral line continuous, single, not running up on the caudal fin; skull without cranial

954 FISHES—SERRANIDE.

spines, not cavernous; no suborbital stay ; dorsal fin variously developed, continuous
or divided, the spines stiff; anal fin rather short, with 3 spines, which are rarely obso-
lete; ventrals separate, thoracic, I, 5; pectorals well developed; caudal fin truncate,
rounded, or moderately forked, its peduncle stout and not keeled ; vertebra about 25; air-
bladder present, usually rather small, and adherent to the walls of the abdomen ; intestinal
canal short, with several or many pyloric ceca; the stomach cecal. Genera 40; species
about 300, and found in all warm seas, a few in fresh waters.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF SERRANIDZ.

a. Dorsal spines ten; anal spines three; branchiostegals seven; teeth all villiform,
without canines, present on jaws, vomer, palatines, and tongue; no supplemental
maxillary bone. . . 5 . . . . . a Roccus. 68.

Genus 68. ROCCUS. Mitchill.

Morone, MircuHiLy, Report in part on Fishes N. Y., 1814 (in part; a mongrel group com-
posed of species of Perca, Roccus, and Eupomotis wronge, supposed to differ from
Perca in having abdominal ventrals. The name may be properly considered as a
synonym of Perca.). ,

Roccus, MITCHILL, Report in part on the Fishes of N. Y., 1814, 25.

Lepibema labrax, RAFINE£QUE, Ich Oh., 1820, 23.

Roccus and Morone, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., iii, 1860.

Labrax, Cuvier, Regne Animal, ii, 1317 (not of Pallas, 1811.).

Type, Roceus striatus, Mitchill = Sciena lineata, Bloch.
Etymology, Ruck-fish, a barbarous latinization of the common name “ Rock,” applied
by fishermen to Roccus lineatus,

Description.—Body oblong or ovate, compressed and more or less elevated; head con-
ical, scaly above and on sides; mouth nearly horizontal ; the jaws equal or the lower pro-
jecting; premaxillaries protractile; maxillaries large, without supplemental bone, only
the edge of the anterior part slipping under the preorbital; teeth all villiform, in bands
on jaws, vomer, palatines, and tongue; eye large, orbital ridge a little elevated; pre-
opercle serrate behind and below, the teeth of its lower margin sometimes enlarged;
opercle with two flat spines; preorbital narrow; peeudobranchi® large; scales large;
breast scaly ; dorsal fins separate or connected at base, the anterior with 9 strong spines;
anal spines well developed; caudal fin lunate; pectorals small; species about 6, in
America and Europe, inhabiting both fresh and salt waters.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF Roecus.

a. Serre on lower edge of preopercle small, not directed forwards.
b. Teeth on base of tongue; ansl spines graduated; lower jaw prcjecting ; scales
on cheeks almost cycloid ; dorsal fins separate,
c. Teeth at base of tongue in a single patch; body oblong, compressed (Lepi-
bema, Rafineeque). - B R . . . f ‘ CHRYSOPS,
bb. No teeth on base of tongue; second anal spine enlarged ; jaws equal; scales
on cheeks ctenoid; dorsal fins somewhat connected (Morone, Gill).
d. Sides striped with black. . . 5 : : . INTERRUPTUS,

WHITE BASS OF THE LAKES. 955
127. Roccus curysops (Rafinesque) Gill.

White Bass of the Lakes; Striped Bass.

Perca chrysops, RAFINEEQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 22.

Lepibema chrysops, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 23.

Labrax chrysops, GILL, Proc. Acad. Sci. Phila., 1860, 20 (not of Girard).

Roccus chrysops, GILL, Proc. Acad. Sci. Phila., 1860, 113 and 1861, £0.—CoPe, Proc. Acad.
Sci. Phila.. 1865, 83.—MILNER (1874), Rept. U. 8. Fish Commission, 1872-3, 6.—
JORDAN (1875), Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212; Bull. Buffalo Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876, 92;
Man. Vert., 1876, 226.—NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876.—JORDAN and CoPE-
LAND, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 136 —JORDAN and GILBERT, Klippart’s Rept.
Fish Commissioner Ohio, 1878.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.

Labrax multilineatus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Poissons, iii, 1830, 588.— KIRTLAND
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v, 1845, 21—DeKay Fishes N. Y., 1842, 24.—STORER,
Synopsis (in Mem. Amer. Acad., New Series, ii), 1846, 274.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes,
i, 1859, 67.

Labrax notatus, SMITH, RICHARDSON, Fauna Boreali-Americari, iii, 1836, 8—DEKay
Fishes N. Y., 142, 14.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 274.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i,
1859, 67.

Labrax albidus, DeKaY Fishes N. Y., 1842, 13.—STORER Synopsis, 1846, 275.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 63. ‘

Labrax osculatii, FiLıPPi, Revue et Mag. Zoologie, v, 1853, 164.—GunTHER, Cat. Fishes,
i, 1859, 65.

Silvery, tinged with golden below the lateral line and with reddish above; sides with
blackish or dusky longitudinal lines, 4 or 5 above the lateral line, 1 through which the
lateral line runs, and a variable number of more or less distinct ones below it, the latter
sometimes more or less interrupted or transposed, so as to appear like ancient church
music; dorsal outline much curved, second anal spine } length of bead; axis of body
rather below the middle of its depth; head conical, slightly depressed at the nape;
mouth small, nearly horizontal; maxillary reaching middle of pupil; head about 3} in
length; depth about 24; eye large, its diameter equal to the length of the snout; D.
IX-I, 14; A. III, 12; scales 7-53-13. Length 10 to 15 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake Region, Upper Mississippi and Ohio Valleys and northward.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known from Roccus interrup:us, the only
one of the Bass which it particularly resembles, by the fact that the two
dorsal fins are entirely separated. The coloration is much more silvery
and the dark stripes are less conspicuous in Roccus chrysops.

Habits—This species is generally abundant in the lakes, where it is
known as the White Bass. Its flesh is very similar to that of the Black
Bass, and is similarly well-flavored. In the Ohio River it seems to be
less common, but it is frequently taken, The species frequents chiefly
deep or still waters, seldom ascending small streams. It is said to thrive
well in ponds. It is a gamey fish, although in this respect inferior to
either species of Black Bass.

956 FISHES—PERCIDE.

128. Roccus INTERRUPTUS (Gill) J. & G.

Yellow Bass.

Labrax chrysops, GIRARD, Pac. R.R., Expl., x, 1858,29. (Not Perca chrysops of Rafineeque.)
Morone interrupta, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 48.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,

1876.— GILL, Ich. Capt. Simpson’s Report, 1876; JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 232.
Roccus interruptus, JORDAN and GILBERT, Synopsis Fish N. A.

Description.—Brassy, tinged with olivaceous above; sides with 7 very distinct longi-
tudinal black bands, darker than in the other species, those below the lateral line in-
terrupted posteriorly, the posterior part alternating with the anterior; body oblong-
ovate, with the dorsal outline much arched; head depressed, somewhat pointed, its
profile concave; eyes large, their diameter equaling length of snout; mouth somewhat
oblique, maxillary nearly reaching middle of orbit; spines very robust, second anal
spine 2-5 length of head; dorsal fins little connected; head 3 in leugth; depth 24; D.
1X-I, 12; A. III, 9; Lat. 1. 50.

Habitat, Lower Mississippi Valley, extending up the Ohio to the mouth of the
Wabash or beyond. It does not seem to be very common anywhere except in the Lower
Misissippi, and nothing special is known of its habits, which probably differ little from
those of the White Bass.

Diagnosis —The Yellow Bass may be known from the White Bass by
the fact that the two dorsal fins are connected by a low membrane. The
color in life is yellow, not silvery, and the black lateral stripes are very
conspicuous.

FAMILY XXII. PERCIDA. THE PERCHES.

Body more or less elongate, terete.or compressed, covered more or less completely with
rather small, ctenoid, adherent scales; lateral line usually present, not extending on the
caudal fin; mouth terminal or inferior, small or large, the premaxillaries protractile or
not; maxillaries large or small, without distinct supplemental bone; jaws, vomer, and
palatines with bands of teeth, which are usually villiform, but sometimes mixed with
canines, occasionally the teeth on the vomer or palatine are absent; head naked or more
or less scaly ; preopercle entire or serrate; opercles usually ending in a flat spine; bran-
chiostegals 6 or 7; gills 4, a slit behind the fourth; gill-membranes free or connected,
not joined to the isthmus; gill-rakers, slender, toothed; pseudobranchi® small or
granular and concealed, or altogether wanting ; lower pharyngeals separate, with sharp
teeth; fins generally large; two dorsals, the first of 6 to 15 spines; anal fin with one or
two spines (three in Percichthys, a fresh water genus from Chili.) Ventrals thoracic, I,
5; pectorals often very large; caudal lunate, truncate or rounded; anal papilla often
present; air-bladder small and adherent, often entirely wanting; pyloric ceca few;
vertebrze 30 to 45; genera about,20; species 90 to 100; inhabitants of the fresh waters
of cool regions, most of them being American, and nearly all belonging to the fauna of
the United States. The great majority of the species belong to the sub-family of
‘Etheostomatine, the Darters, all the species of which group are American. They are

YELLOW BASS. 957

among the most singular and interesting of our fishes. They differ from the typical
Percin® in their small size, bright colors, and large fins, and more technically in the
rudimentary condition of the pseudobranchis and the air-bladder, both of which organs
are usually inappreciable. The preopercle is unarmed, and the number of branchiostegals
is six. An anal papilla is likewise developed, as in the Gobiide, to which group the
Darters bear a considerable superficial resemblance, a resemblance, however, which in-
dicates no real affinity.

The colors of the Hitheostomatine are usually very brilliant, species of Pacilichthys,
Northonotus, and Diplesium being among the most brilliantly colored fishes known; the
sexual differences are often great, the females being as a rule dull in color and more
speckled or barred than the males. Most of them prefer clear running water, where
they lie on the bottom concealed under stones, darting, when frightened or hungry, with
great velocity for a short distance by a powerfal movement of the fan-shaped pectorals,
then stopping as suddenly. They rarely use the caudal fin in swimming, and they are
seldom seen moving or floating freely in the water like most fishes. When at rest, they
support themselves on their extended ventrals and anal fin. All of them can turn the
head from side to side, and they frequently lie with the head in a curved position or
partly on one side of the body.

Ammocrypta, and perhaps some of the others, prefer a sandy bottom, where, by a sud”
den plunge, the fish buries itself in the sand and remains quiescent for hours at a time,
with only its eyes and snout visible. The others lurk in stony places, under rocks and
weeds. Although more than usually tenacious of vitality from their bottom life, the
Darters are the first to be disturbed by impurities in the water. All the Darters are
carnivorous, feeding chiefiy on the larva of gnats, and, in their way, voracious. All are
of small size; the largest, Percina, reaches a length of eight inches, while the smallest,
Microperca, is probably the smallest spiny-rayed fish known, barely attaining the length
of aninch and a half. They are of too small size to be used for food, although, accord-
ing to Rafinesque, ‘‘ they are good to eat, fried.”

The Percine are represented in America by two genera, and in Europe by the same
two and three others—Acerina, Percarina, and Aspro—the latter bearing a strong external
resemblance to the Etheostomatine, and serving as a connecting link between them and
the more typical forms. 5

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF PERCIDE.

a. Pseudobranchis well developed; preopercle serrate; branchiostegals 7.

(Percin«.)
db. Canine teeth none; body oblong. . . F e . ‘ PERCA.
bb. Canine teeth in jaws and palatines ; holly elongate. . . . STIZOSTEDIUM.

aa. Pseudobranchiz imperfect or wanting; preopercle entire; branchiostegals 6.

( Etheostomatine. )
c. Premaxillaries protractile.

d. Body extremely elongate, subcylindrical, translucent, the belly at least
naked; lateral line complete; gill-membranes broadly united.
e. Anal spine single; anal fin nearly as large as second dorsal.

AMMOCRYPTA.
dd. Body less elongate, opaque, chiefly scaled.

f. Anal spine obscure, normally single; lateral line complete.

BOLEOSOMA.
ee. Anal spines two, the first commonly the longer.

958 FISHES—PERCIDE.

9. Gill-membranes more or less broadly united; belly with ordinary scales.
h. Lateral line complete; maxillary adnate to the preorbital.

DIPLESIUM.
gg. Gill-membranes scarcely united ; anal as large as second dorsal.
i. Belly, with enlarged caducous plates. 7 A COTTOGASTER,
ii. Belly without enlarged plates, anteriorly naked, posteriorly scaled.
like the sides. : E R A £ 2 . IMosToMma.

cc. Premaxillaries not protractile.
j. Lateral line complete.
k. Ventral line with a series of enlarged, spinous, caducous scales,
or if these are fallen, a naked strip.
1. Mouth small, inferior, beneath a pig-like snout. . . PERCINA.
U. Mouth larger, the snout not projecting beyond it.

ALVORDIUS,
kk. Ventral line without caducous scales

m. Gill-membranes scarcely connected. . S NOTHONOTUS.
mm. Gill-membranes broadly connected. 7 . NANOSTOMA.

jj. Usateral line present, incomplete.
n. Gill-membranes broadly united. . R ‘ ETHEOSTOMA.
nn. Gill-membranes separate, or nearly so. . . P@&cILICHTAYS.
jj. Lateral line obsolete. a 5 E 5 4 MICROPERCA.

Genus 69. PERCA. Linnzus.

Perca, LINNEUS, Systema nature. Ed. x., 1858.

Type, Perca fluviatilis L.

Etymology, Latin, Perca, a perch ; Greek, perche, from perchos, dusky.

Body elongate, fusiform, somewhat compressed ; head conical; its sides mostly scaly ;
the operculum chiefly naked and rough-striate, armed with a single spine ; preoperculum
scapular and caracoid bones serrated; mouth moderate; teeth all in villiform bands;
dorsal fins not connected, the first with about thirteen spines; anal with two slender

' spines; caudal forked; scales small, rough; lateral line complete; pyloric c@ca 3; ver-
tebra 21-20.

129. PERCA AMERICANA Schranck.

Yellow Perch; Ringed Perch; Common Perch.

Perca americana, SCHRANCK, 17, fide Gill.—JORDAN and GILBERT, Klippart’s Report Fish
Commr. Ohio, 1877, 65.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.

Perca fluviatilis, var. americana, STEINDACHNER, Batrage, 1877.

Bodianus flavescens, MITCHILL, Ph. Trans, N. Y., 1815, i, 421.

Centropomus luteus, RAFINESQUE, Precis des Dicouvertes Somiologiques, 1814, 19.

Perca flavescens, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 1817.—Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poissons,
ii, 1828, 46.—RicHARDSON, Fauna Bor'-Amer., Fishes, 1836, 74.—DeKay, Nat. Hist.
N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 3 —STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 17.—KrirTLanp, Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist., v, 1847, 337.—AcaAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 291.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit.
Mus,, i, 59, 1859.—HOLBROOK, Ich. S. Car., 1860.—STORER, Hist. Fishes Mass., 1867.—
JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, and of authors generally.

YELLOW PERCH. 959

Perca serratogranulata, Cuv. and Var., Hist. Nat. des Poissons, ii, 1623, 47.—DeKay,
New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 5.

Perca granulata, Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poissons, ii, 1828, 48.—DeKay, N. Y.
Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 5.

Perca acuta, Cuv. and VAL, Hist. Nat des Poiss., ii, 1828, 49.—RicHarDsoN, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 1836, 4.—DrKay, N. Y. Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 6.—GuNTHER, Cat.
Fish. Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 60.

Perca gracilis, Cuv. and VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poiss., ii, 1828, 50.—RicHarRDson, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 1836, 4—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 60.

Description.—Body oblong, rather short, deep, and compressed; mouth moderate, the
maxillary not quite reaching to orbit; lower jaw a little longest; eye moderate, 44 to
5 in head; top of head naked, the bones rough behind ; cheeks with rather large scales,
well imbricated; operele naked, and with radiating strie, of which the uppermost
forms a strong, flat spine, below which seven or eight striz. end in sharp teeth; gill-
rakers comparatively short, in length about equal to the diameter of the pupil;
pseudobranchiz very small; scales rather small, 55 to 62 in the lateral line, 6 above and
15 to 18 below; first dorsal spine inserted above base of pectorals; head 34; depth 32;.
fin rays: D. XIII-I, 13; A. II, 8. Color dark-olive above; sides more or less brassy-
yellow; belly white; about six irregular, dark olive bars on sides; lower fins clear,
pale orange, sometimes whitish, sometimes red; second dorsal and caudal yellowish-
olive, somewhat dusky tinged; first dusky yellow at base, a black blotch on the pos-
terior part of the fin; lower jaw, etc., translucent 1eddish. The coloration varies much
with circumstances, individuals living in weedy streams, being much darker and more
spotted than the average lake specimens are. Length of adult 8 to 12 inches.

Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and upper portion of the Mississippi Valley, and
in all streams east of the Alleghany Mountains, south to Georgia. West of the Alle-
ghanies it does not occur, except in the lake region and in the upper waters of such
streams as the Scioto, Wabash, Illinois, Rock, etc., rising in the same water shed with
streams flowing into the great lakes. In the upper courses of the Wabash, Scioto, etc.,
the Perch is often very abundant, but in the valley proper of the Ohio, into which these
stfeams flow, it is not found native, a peculiarity of distribution not yet accounted for.

The Perch is voracious and gamey, readily taking the hook, and being a handsome
fish, it usually finds a ready sale for fuod. Its flesh is, howéver, much inferior to that
of the Bass or the Pike-Perches, being rather soft, coarse, and insipid.

“The common Perch, Perca flavescens, which name describes well the gleaming, golden
reflectious of its scales, as it is drawn out of the water, its red gills standing out in
vain in the thin element, is one of the handsomest of our fishes, and at such a moment
as this reminds us of the fish in the picture which wished to be restored to its native
element until it had grown larger.

“The Perch is a tough and heedless fish, biting from impulse, without nibbling and from
impulse refraining to bite, and sculling indifferently past. It is a true fish, such as the:
angler loves to put into his basket or hang on the top of his willow twig, on shady
afternoons, along the banks of the streams. So many unquestionable fish he counts,.
and so many shiners which he counts, and then throws away.”’— Thoreau.

960 FISHES—PERCIDE.
Genus 70. STIZOSTEDIUM. Rafinesque.

Stizostedion, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh. 1820, 23,

Pomacampsis, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh., 1820 (Perca nigropunctata, Raf.; an erroneously de-
scribed or mythical species.).

Lucioperca, Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. des Poissons, ii, 1838, 110 (Perca lucioperca L.-
Lucioperca sandra, C. & V).

Sandrus, STARK, Elements of Nat. Hist., i, 1828, 466.

Stizostedium, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 82, 85 (amended orthography).

Stizostethium, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1877 (amended orthography).

Centropomus, BLEEKER, 1877 (Centropomus sandat, Lac. ; P. lucioperca L. is the first species
mentioned by Lacepede in his genus Centropomus—not Centropomus of Cuvier and
Gill—Centropomus undecimalis Lac., a West India species, having been by them se-
lected as the type of Centropomus.).

Cynoperca, GILL and JoRDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 45 (subgenus, based on
Lucioperca canadensis, Hamilton Smith.).

Mimoperca, GILL and JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 45 (subgenus, based on
Perca volgensis, Pallas.).

Perca and Centropomus, sp. early authors.
Type, Stizostedion salmoneum, Rafinesque.

Perches, with the body elongate, little compressed, and the premaxillaries and pala-
tines provided with some large teeth, arranged in rows, the rest of the teeth uniform ;
tongue toothless; head conical, elongate, depressed, partly covered with small ctenoid
scales; preoperculum serrated ; operculum armed with one to twenty spines of varying
size, the terminations of rib like elevations on the surface of the bone; dorsal fins sep-
arated, the first with twelve to fifteen spines, the second with seventeen to twenty-
three soft rays. This genus consists of about five species, abounding in the fresh waters
of North America and Europe. They are, of course, carnivorous and voracious, but
are everywhere highly valued for food.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF STIZOSTEDIUM.

Dorsal fins well separate@, the interspace between them more than the diameter
of the eye; the distance frcm the base of the last spine of the first dorsal, and the first
of the second equal to the space occupied by the last four to six spines of the first dor-
sal; anal fin II, 12, longer than high ; second dorsal I, 17 to I, 21; spines of the second
dorsal and anal closely attached to the soft rays; last dorsal spine scarcely erectile,
more or less firmly bound down by the membrane; canine teeth strong (American
Species. ).

* Soft dorsal comparatively short (its base one-fourth shorter than that of spinous
dorsal), and with about seventeen short rays; cheeks, opercles, and top of head more
or less closely scaled; body depressed, subterete; size small; pyloric cceca forming two
groups, the primary one of four, unequal, moderate, much shorter than the stomach;
the secondary of few (1-3) rudimentary ones, which are sometimes atrophied.

CANADENSIS,

** Soft dorsal rather long (one-sixth shorter than spinous dorsal), with about twenty
soft rays; cheeks and upper surface of head nearly naked ; body more compressed ; size
large; pyloric cosca three, subequal, all along (about as long as stomach).

SAUGER. 961

130. STIZOSTETHIUM CANADENSE (C. H. Smith) Jordan.

Sauger; Gray Pike; Sand Pike; Ground Pike; Pickering;
Pickerel.

Lucioperca canadensis, C. H. SMITH, MSS., Griffith’s Cuvier’s Animal Kingdom, x, 1834,
275.—RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer. Fishes, iii, 1836, 17.—DeKay, N.Y. Fauna,
Fishes, 1842, 19.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 276.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes. i, 1859, 75.
—JORDAN, Klippart’s Report, 1877, 225.

Stizostedium canadense, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 225.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 136.

Stizostethium canadense, JORDAN, Bull., x, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1877, 48; Man. Vert., 2d Ed.,
1878, 230.

Lucioperca grisea, DEKay, N. Y. Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 19.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 276.
—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 76.—JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212.

Stizostedium griseum, MILNER, Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1872-3.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876,
225 —NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 36.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 136.

Lucioperca borea, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., Nov., 1857 (not Okow or Horn Fish,
Richardson, which is S. vitreum.).

Stizostedion boreus, GIRARD, Pac. R, R. Surv., x, 1868, 31.

Stizostedium boreum, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876. 186.

Lucieperea pepinus, Estes, Hallock’s Sportsman’s Gazetteer.

Description.—Body most elongated, more terete than in vitreum proper, with the back
scarcely compressed, so broad that the lateral line may be seen in a view from above;
the back somewhat angulated as it descends to the sides; the depth of the body four
and one-half to five in length; head quite pointed, about three and one-half in length ;
the slope of the profile greater than in vitreum ; eye smaller, five to five and one-half
in adult; mouth rather smaller, the lower jaw included; maxillary reaching to opposite
posterior margin of eye; opercle with a sharp, flat spine, usually a smaller one below
it, and an obscure one above; sometimes two or three smaller ones below, often
none; the position and number of these spines extremely variable; in variety canadense,
sometimes as many as seventeen of these spines occur; cheeks usually closely scaled,
the hinder third, or less, sometimes naked ; median farrow on top of head closely scaled ;
coloration paler and more translucent, the shades less blended than in S. vitreum, olive
gray above, sides considerably brassy or pale orange, with much black mottling ; the
black gathered into several definite dark areas, the most distinct of these being oppo-
site the second dorsal; two others fainter; at each extremity of the spinous dorsal and
one at base of caudal; these blotches are irregular and diffuse, but very characteristic ;
young specimens are pale orange, with broad, black shades; spinous dorsal, with two
or three rows of round, black spots, one of each row on the membrane between each
pair of spines; no distinct blotch on posterior part of the fin; a large black blotch at
base of pectorals; second dorsal with about three rows of irregular, dark spots; caudal
yellowish and dusky, almost barred ; fin rays: dorsal XII, 1-17, varying to XIII, 1-18;
anal II, 12; lateral line with ninety two to ninety-eight scales; pyloric ceca four to
seven, four of them larger than the rest, of different lengths, all small and shorter than
the stomach ; the usual number is six, but the two small ones are sometimes one or both
absent, sometimes duplicated. Length of adult 10 to 15 inches.

61

962 FISHES—PERCIDA.

Habitat, St. Lawrence River, Great Lake Region, Upper Mississippi, and Upper Mis-
souri rivers; also in the Ohio, where it has been introduced from the lakes, through the
canals, according to the fishermen. t

Dingnosis.—The different form and coloration, particularly the mark-
ings of the dorsal fin, distinguish this species at once from Stizostediwm
vitreum. This species has, moreover, always fewer dorsal rays, more
scaly cheeks, and permanent armature of the operculum.

Remarks.—In comparing saugers frora widely separated localities cer-
tain differences appear, which are perhaps sufficiently constant to indi-
cate distinct varieties. Of these, three are perhaps worthy to be desig-
nated by name. The above description was drawn from the common
Sauger or Sand Pike of the lakes (Lucioperca grisea, DeKay), which should
bear the name of Stizostedium canadense, var. griseum. The Sauger or
Pickering of the St. Lawrence was the original Lucioperca canadensis of
Col. C. H. Smith. It should, therefore, be the typical variety, canadensis.
Its head is rougher and more closely scaled, and the number of spinous
points on the opercle is greater. The “Sand Pike” of the Upper Mis-
souri averages rather slender, with a long, slenderer nose, and more flat-
tened and snake-like head. This is the Lucioperca borea of Dr. Girard,
and may be called var. borewm, if the differences here noted prove at
all constant. :

Habits.—The Sauger never reaches a large size, the largest I have seen.
being from fifteen to eighteen inches in length. It is abundant every-
where in the Great Lakes, and is valued as food, although less highly
rated than its relative, the Pike-Perch.

It is plentiful in the Ohio River, where it is probably indigenous, al-
though some claim that it has been introduced there through the
canals.

131. STIZOSTETHIUM VITREUM (Mitchill) Jordan and Copeland.
var. Vitreum.

Wall-eyed Pike; Glass Eye; Dory; Salmon; Pike-Perch; Okow;
Wornfish; Green Pike; Yellow Pike; Jack; Jack Salmon.

Perca vitrea, MiTcHILL, Supplement Am. Monthly Mag, ii, 1818, 247 (Cayuga Lake).

Stizostedium vitreum, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List N. Am. Fresh Water Fishes,
Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 136.

Stizostethium vitreum, JORDAN, Aun. N. Y. Lye, Nat. Hist., 1877; in Klippart’s Rep. Fish:
Commr. Ohio, 1877; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1877; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878,

Lucioperca americana, Cuv. and Var., ii, 1829, 122—Ricwarpson, Fauna, Bor.-Amer.,

iii, 1836, 10.—KIRTLAND, Zoo]. Ohio, 1838, 192; Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., iv, 237.—-
THOMPSON, Hist. Vt., 1842, 130.—DeKay, Zool. N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 17.—STORER, Syn-

BLUE PIKE. 963

opsis, 1846, 276.—A@assiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 294.—JARDINE, Nat. Libr., Perches,
1852, 107”.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 74.—JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212,
and of writers genezally.

Sticostedium americanum, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 82, 85.—Copx, Proc.
Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 448.—MILNER, Rep. U. S. Fish Com., 1872-3, 425.—JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 1876, 225.—UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 110,—NEL-
SON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 36.

var. Salmoneum.

Blue Pike (Lake Erie); White Salmon (Ohio River);
Pickerel No 2.

Perca salmonea, RAFINESQUE, Am. Monthly Mag., v, 1818, 354; Ich. Oh., 1820, 21.

Stizostedion salmoneum, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 23.

Stizostedium salmoneum, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 82.—Jorpan, Man.
Vert., 1876, 225.— Core, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 449.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 136.—NELSoN, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nxt. Hist., 1876, 36.

Stizostethium salmoneum, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1877; in Klippart’s Report
Fish Commr. Ohio, 1877.—JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877.

9? Perca nigropunctata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 23 (very erroneous).

7? Pomacampsis nigropunctatus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 23.

Description of var. vitreum —Body elongate, rather slender and subcylindric, becoming
deep with age, the depth in young of 14 inches, 14 to 5 in length; head long, 33 in length ;
mouth large, the maxillary reaching beyond the pupil to posterior margin of orbit, its
length 2% to 3 in head; mandible a little more than half length of head; eyes large,
less than in salmoneum, shorter than snout aud than preopercle, 44 to 5in head; jaws
equal, or the lower slightly projecting, its sides somewhat included ; cheeks scaly, vary -
ing to nearly smooth, usually a few scales at leust behind the eye ; opercle with a strong,
flat spine, which is sometimes bifid or trifid, no smaller ones below it; dorsal spines high,
more than half the length of head, as long as from snout to past eye, and 1-3 to 1-5
past opercle; general color a heavy olive, varying considerably, finely mottled with
brassy, the latter color forming indistinct lines, which run obliquely upward and back-
ward along the rows of scales; sides of head more or less vermiculated ; lower jaw
flesh-colored ; belly and lower fins pinkish; spinous dorsal fin without black spots ex-
cept a large jet black blotch, which involves the membrane of the last two or three
spines; second dorsal and caudal mottled olive and yellowish; base of pectorals with-
out distinct black spot; dorsal XII or XIII, 2, 20, or 21; anal II, 12; lateral line with
about 90 scales; pyloric caca long and large, subequal, three in number; size very
large; this species reaches a length of nearly three feet, and a weight of twenty to
forty pounds.

Habitat, Mississippi Valley, Ohio and Tennessee Valleye, Great Lake Region, and
streams of the Atlantic slope south of New England, north to the fur countries.

Diagnosis.—This species may be most readily known from the preced-
ing by the presence of a single black spot on the posterior part of the
spinous dorsal, instead of one or two rows of smaller spots on the middle
part of the fin.

The Jack reaches, occasionally, forty pounds, and, like the trout, seeks

964 FISHES—PERCIDE.

the highest and coolest waters that will float him. It possesses great
activity and strength, and is a ravenous destroyer of perch and
other species. Were it not so superior in every way to all others,
this habit might condemn it; as it is, we regard it as one of the best.
species we possess. In the South it is eagerly bought, and forms the
principal table fish for the various places of resort, where it can be ob-
tained.” (Cope, Rept. Comm. Fish, Penn., 1881, 128.)

In Ohio this is one of the most important food fishes. Great numbers
are annually taken in Lake Erie and shipped to various parts of the
East and South.

Description of var. salmoneum.—The body is shorter, thicker, and deeper, with slenderer
caudal peduncle, the diameter of which is not much greater than that of the large eye;
the mouth is smaller, the maxillary not reaching quite to the posterior margin of the
pupil, 3 in head; the eye is larger, its diameter equal to the length of the snout or that of
the preopercle; the lower jaw is slightly included ; the dorsal spines are evidently consid-
erably lower than in 8. vitreum, the longest about equal to the distance from the snout to a
point just short of hinder margin of orbit, about 24 in head ; the coloration is similar to
that of S. vitreum, but the adult is bluer or greener, with scarcely any of the brassiness
characteristic of the latter species ; the coloration of the fins is darker, and there are
traces of a blackish horizontal band along the dorsal in addition to the large black blotch
on the hinder rays; young specimens (from Ohio River) are more silvery, with traces of
faint black bars along the back; fin-rays, dorsal XIV—1, 20; anal II, 13; lateral line with
95 scales ; opercular spine single, as in S. vitreum ; cheeks largely naked; pyloric ceca
three, large, longer than stomach, as in the preceding variety ; size much less than that
of S. vitreum. The largest specimens seen by me were about fourteen inches in length.

Habitat, Lake Erie, Ohio River, and southward to Georgia.

This variety is said to frequent only bayous and imlets, not being taken in the
deeper waters of the lakes, where S. vitreum especially abounds. It also reaches a
smaller size, according to Mr. Klippart, who asks, ‘ Why does the Blue Pike frequent
the bayous and get to be no more than twelve to fifteen inches in length, and to weigh
not to exceed two or three pounds, if it is identical with the wall-eyed Pike which fre-
quents the deep waters of the lake, and attains a length of three feet and a weight of
eighteen to twenty pounds?” This species, according to Mr. Klippart, is, at the Lake
Erie fisheries, split aud salted with the Sauger (S. canadense), the two together being
known to the commercial world as ‘‘ Pickerel No. 2,” and bringing about two-thirds the
price of Pickerel No. 1 (S. vitreum).

Genus 71. AMMOCRYPTA. Jordan.
Pleurolepis, AGassız, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 5 (preöceupied among Fossil
Ganoids).
Ammocrypta, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 5.
Type, Ammocrypta beani, Jordan.
Etymology, ammos, sand; kruptos, concealed.

Description.—Body slender and elongate, sub-cylindrical, pellucid in life; head slen-
der; mouth rather wide, terminals horizontal, the lower jaw included; premaxillaries
very protractile; teeth on the vomer; scales thin, ctenoid, little imbricated, present

SAND DARTER. 965

along the region’of the lateral line and on the tail, sometimes wanting on the back or
belly ; lateral line complete ; gill membranes considerably united ; head scaly or naked ;
no ventral plates; the belly naked; dorsal fins moderate, about equal to the anal fin
and to each other; dorsal with about ten spines; anal spine single, weak; vertebra
22 + 22 (A. pellucida} ; darters of moderate or rather large size; inhabiting the sandy
bottoms of clear streams, where they bury themselves entirely excepting the eyes and
snout; coloration translucent, with bright reflections.

132, AMMOCRYPTA PELLUCIDA (Baird) Jordan.

Sand Darter.

“}Etheostoma pellucidum, BAIRD, Mas., 1853.”

Pleurolepis pellucidus, AGassız, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 5.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Am. Naturalist, 1877 (February) 86.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d ed., 1878, 219.—F'ORBES,
Bull. Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist, ii, 1878, and of authors generally.

Description.—Body elongate, nearly cylindrical, the flesh pellucid in life, but of firm,
wiry texture ; head long; checks, opercles, and temporal region scaly ; opereular spine
small; region in front of dorsal mostly naked ; scales little ctenoid, nearly smooth to
the touch when wet, covering the sides of the body, loosely imbricated, and more or
less imbedded in the skin; those along lateral line and caudal peduncle, best developed ;
maxillary barely reaching to opposite the large eye; eyes high up, separated by a nar-
row, grooved space ; pectorals short, reaching tips of ventrals, half way to vent; trans-
lucent scales with fine, black dots; a series of small squarish olive or bluish blotches
along the back, and another along the sides, connected by a gilt line; D. X-I, 9; A.I
8; Lat.1 75 to 80; head 44; depth 7; length 3 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Upper Mississippi, Pennsylvania to Minnesota and Missouri ;
abundant in clear streams with sandy bottoms.

Diagnosis.—The slim, translucent, cylindrical body distinguishes this
at sight from all other Ohio fishes.

Habits —This extremely curious little fish lies buried in the sand in
the bottoms of shallow streams, with only its snout and eyes uncovered.
It feeds upon the larva of insects and other small organisms. For a full
account of its habits see American Naturalist for February, 1877, p. 86.
It has, of course, no economic value of any sort, but as an aquarium fish
it is the most attractive which our waters yield.

Two other species of this genus are found southwestward, and may
perhaps occur in Ohio. These are A. beani Jor., known by its naked
head and nearly naked body, and A. asprella Jor., known by its small,
rough scales, there being about one hundred in the lateral line.

Genus 7%. BOLEOSOMA. DeKay.

Boleosoma, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 20.

Arlina, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 64.

Estrella, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1869, 65.
Type, Boleosoma tessellata, DeKay ; Etheostoma olmstedi, Storer.
Etymology, bolis, dart; soma, body.

966 FISHES—PERCIDE.

Body moderately elongate, fusiform, not translucent ; head small, narrowed forwards,
the profile convex; mouth small, horizontal, the lower jaw included; premaxillaries
protractile; maxillary not joined to preorbital, except at its insertion; vomerine teeth
present; scales large ; lateral line continuous (rarely wanting on two or three scales) ;
belly with ordinary scales; gill-membranes little connected ; dorsal spines 7-10, slen-
der; soft dorsal much larger than anal; anal normally with a single, short, slender
spine, the first soft ray simple but articulate; vertebra (B. nigrum) 17 + 20; coloration
olivaceous and speckled, the males with head black in spring; size small.

ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF BOLEOSOMA.
.

a. Second dorsal with 11 or 12 rays; cheeks and breast mostly naked ; lateral line
with more than 40 acales, its pores usually wanting on 3 or 4 posterior scales.

NIGRUM.
aa. Second dorsal with 13 or 14 rays; cheeks scaly ; breast naked; lateral line com-

plete. . . 3 R a 2 a N OLMSTEDI.

133. BoLEOSoMA NIGRUM (Rafinesque) Jordan.
-Johnny Darter.

Eiheostoma nigra, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 37.

Boleosema nigrum, JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 15.

Boleosoma maculatum, AGassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 305.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., ed. 2, i,
1859, 77.—FORBEs, Bull. IlJs, Lab. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 40, and of many authors.

Boleosoma olmstedi var. brevipinne, COPE, Journ. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1868, 214.

Boleosoma brevipinne, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 273.

Boleosoma mutatum, VAILLANT, Recherches var. les Poiss. d’Eau Douce, 1872, 88.

Deseription.—Body fusiform, slender; head conical, moderate, the snout somewhat de-
curved ; mouth small, lower jaw included ; cheeks and breast naked (specimens occa-
sionally found with these regions closely scaly); opercles scaly; space before dorsal
mostly scaled ; fins high, but smaller and lower than in the other species; coloration
pale olivaceous; back much tessellated with brown; sides with numerous small
W-shaped blotches ; head speckled above, mostly black in the males; a black line for-
ward from eye, and sometimes a line downward also; fins barred; males in the spring
blackish anteriorly, sometimes almost entirely black; tubes of the lateral line obsolete ;
on the last, 4 or 5 scales; head 44; depth 5; D. IX-12; A.I, 8; scales 5-51-9. Length
24 inches.

Habitat, Great Lake region and Mississippi Valley ; abundant everywhere in the
Northwest; found in nearly every stream of Ohio.

Diagnosis.—F rom the other Darters, the genus Boleosoma may be known
by its speckled coloration and absence of distinct anal spines. From its
congerer, B. olmstedi, B. nigrum may be known by the small second dor-
sal of but 12 rays, and by the naked cheeks. The two forms, however,
undoubtedly are subject to intergradation.

Habits.—This species lurks on the bottom in clear, small brooks, mov-

TESSELLATED DARTER. 967

ing for a ehort distance with great rapidity won disturbed, then resum-
ing its former position of quiescence.

134. BoLEosoma OLMSTEDI (Storer) Agassiz.
Tessellated Darter.

Etheostoma olmstedi, STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 1842, 61.

Boleosoma olmstedi, Aeassiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 299.—SToRER, Fish. Mass., 1867, 30.
—Cop#, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 268, and of nearly all authors.

Perca (Percina) minima, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sei.. viii, 1842, 330.

Boleosoma tessellatum, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 20.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish.
Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 77.

Boleoséma maculaticeps, COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 269.

Description.—This species agrees with B. nigrum in all essential respects, except the
following: Cheeks aud opercle scaly; lateral line complete, with about fifty scales in
its course; second dorsal comparatively long; D. IX, 14; A. I, 9; coloration essentially
as in the preceding ; size somewhat larger. Length 3 inches.

Habitat, New England to Wisconsin and south to Georgia, replacing B. nigrum north-
ward and east of the Alleghanies. In Ohio probably confined chiefly to tributaries of
Lake Erie.

Habits.—Similar to those of Boleosoma nigrum. A species of the related
genus Vailläntia (Vaillantia camura, Forbes, Jordan), occurs in Illinois,
and may be looked for in Southern Ohio. It may be known from the
species of Boleosoma by its incomplete lateral line.

Genus 73. DIPLESIUM. Rafinesque.

Diplesion, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 37.
Hyostoma, AGassiz, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 305.
Diplesium, JORDAN, Man. Vert., lat Ed., 1876, 218.

Type, Etheost blennioides, RAFINESQUE.

Etymology, dis, two; plesion, near = two dorsals near together.

Body elongate, subterete ; head very short and blunt, with tumid cheeks, the profile
very convex; mouth small, inferior, horizontal; premaxillaries protractile, little mov-
- able, joined to the forehead mesially by a slight frenum ; maxillary not protractile, ad-
nate for most of its length to the fleshy skin of the preorbital; teeth in jaws strong;
no teeth on vomer or palatines; gill-membranes broadly connected; scales moderate ;
lateral line complete, no enlarged ventral plates; dorsal fins large, the spinous dorsal
longer and lower than the second of about thirteen spines; anal smaller than second
dorsal with two spines; vertebra (D. blennioides) 19 plus 22; coloration largely green.

135. DIPLESIUM BLENNIOIDES (Rafinesque) Jordan.

Green-sided Darter.

Etheostoma blennioides, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 419; Ich. Oh., 1820, 37 (not
of Agassiz).

968 FISHES—PERCIDE.

Diplesium blennioides, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 1876, 223.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Amer. Nat., 1876, 339, and in numerous recent papers. i

Hyostoma newmani, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 305.

Peleoma cymatogramma, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 327.

Hyostoma cymatogrammum, Corr, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci., 1868, 214.

Hyost blennioperca, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1868, 214.

J LE

Description.—Body stout, elongate, little compressed ; profile very convex; eyes large,
high up and close together, a transverse depression at the nape and a longitudinal fur-
row between the eyes; mouth small, horizontal, quite inferior ; upper jaw concealed in
a furrow under the snout; scales moderate, those on the belly large, cycloid, not

‘caducous; cheeks with fine scales; opercles with large ones; neck scaly; chest naked ;

anal papilla very large; anal spines strong; caudal fin emarginate; lower rays of the
pectorals, and rays of the ventrals and anal enlarged and fleshy in the males; color
olive green, tessellated above; sides with about eight double transverse bars, each pair
forming a Y-shaped figure. These are joined above, forming a sort of wavy, lateral
band. In life these markings are of a clear, deep green; sides sprinkled with orange
dots; head with olive stripes and the usual dark bars; first dorsal dark orange brown
at base, blue above, becoming pale at tip; second dorsal and anal of a rich blue green,
with some reddish; caudal greenish, faintly barred; young and female specimens are
more or less dull, but the pattern is peculiar; head 44; depth 42; D. XIII, 13; A. II, 8;
Lat. 1. 65-78. Length 3 to 5 inches.

Habitat, all streams of the central basin from Virginia to Alabama, Minnesota, and
Kansas. Abundant in all gravelly streams in Ohio.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known by its very blunt head and
small, inferior mouth.

_ Habits. — Its habits are essentially like those of the species of Boleosoma.
It is a delicate species, perishing at once in foul water.

GENUS 74. IMOSTOMA. Jordan.

Imostoma, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1877, 49.

Type, Hadropterus shumardi, Grd.
Etymology, eimi, to move; stoma, mouth.

Body stout and heavy forwards; head broad and blunt; mouth broad, the lower jaw
included; upper jaw protractile ; vomerine teeth present ; sides of the head scaly ; body
covered with rather large scales, 56 in the lateral line; no enlarged ventral plates, the
posterior part of the abdomen scaled like the sides, the anterior part with a naked
strip ; lateral line continuous; dorsal fins large, the first larger than the second, of ten
spines; anal fin large, in male specimens greatly prolonged, reaching the caudal; anal
spines two, the first the larger; dorsal formula X, 15; aval II, 11; pattern of coloration
not well defined, dark blotches on a ıighter ground. But one species is known.

136. Imosroma sHUMARDI (Girard) Jordan.

Hadropterus shumardi, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 100.
Imostoma shumardi, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 49; Man. Vert., 2d Ed.,
1878, 222, and elsewhere.

COTTOGASTER. 969

Description.—Body stout, heavy forward, compressed behind; head broad and thick,
resembling that of Diplesium ; eye large, 34 in head ; mouth large and broad, the lower
jaw wide, a little shorter than the upper; maxillary reaching to the eye; cheeks, oper-

eles, and neck scaly ; chest naked; belly naked anteriorly, scaly in front of the vent;
scales rather large ; dorsal fins large, the first larger than the second, which is smaller
than the anal, though longer; the two dorsal fins well separated; anal fin large, very
deep, in some specimens (males ?) reaching to the caudal; anal spines strong, the first
the larger ; color dark, densely but vaguely blotched with darker; sides with 8-10 ob-
scure blotches, the anterior ones bar-like; a large black spot on base of spinous dorsal
behind, and a small one in front; second dorsal, caudal, and pectorals barred; a very
strong black suborbital bar, and a faint dark line along muzzle; head 3 2-5; depth 5;
D. X, 15; A. II, 11. Length 3 inches.

Habitat, Wabash River to Illinois and Arkansas; not abundant. Not yet seen in
Ohio. 7

Diagnosis.—From other Darters of similar appearance, this species is
known by its protractile mouth.

Habits — Nothing distinctive is known of its habits.

Genus 75. COTTOGASTER. Putnam.

? Cottogaster, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 5.
Rheocrypta, JORDAN, Bull. U.S Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 9.
Type, Boleosoma tessellatum, Thompson, not of DeKay.

Etymology, Kottos, Cottus ; gaster, belly.

Body rather robust, little compressed ; head moderate, bluntish ; mouth small, the
lower jaw included; premaxillaries protractile; maxillary not adherent to the preor-
bital ; teeth on vomer; gill-membranes nearly separate; scales ctenoid, those of the
middle line of the belly enlarged and spinous, falling off at times, leaving a naked strip;
lateral line continuous; dorsal fins large, the second usually smaller than the first and
smaller than the anal; anal spines two, strong, the first the stronger; size moderate.

137. COTTOGASTER COPELANDI Jordan.

Rheocrypta copelandi, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 9; Man. Vert. E. U. S,,
2d Ed., 1878, 222, and elsewhere.

Description.—Body rather slender and elongate ; head pretty large, rather long, some-
what narrowed, resembling that of Boleosoma; mouth small, horizontal, subinferior ;
eye large, ¢4 in head; cheeks naked ; opercles and neck each with a few scales; throat
naked; ventral plates well developed ; scales moderate, strongly ctenoid ; color brown-
ish olive, a series of rather small, horizontally oblong black blotches along the lateral
line, forming an interrupted lateral band ; back tessellated; blackish streaks forward
and downward from eye; ventral fins dusky ; vertical fins with dusky specks; a black
spot on anterior rays of spinous dorsal ; head 44; depth 54; D XI, 10; A. II, 9; Lat.
1.56. Length 24 inches.

Habitat. This species has thus far been taken only in White River, near Indianapolis,

Indiana.

970 FISHES—PERCIDE.

Habits—It lives in rapids in clear water, and does not ascend small
streams.
Genus 76. PERCINA. Haldeman.

Percina, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., viii, 1842, 330.
Pileoma, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 16.
Asproperca, HECKEL, MSS. in Canestrini Systema der Percoiden, 1860, 311.

Type, Perca nebulosa, Haldeman = Sciena caprodes, Rafinesque.
Etyx ology, Latin, Percina, a little perch.

Body elongate, slightly compressed, covered with small ctenoid scales; lateral line
continuous; ventral line with enlarged plates, which fall off, leaving a naked strip;
head depressed, rather pointed, the mouth being small and inferior, overlapped by a
tapering, sabtruncate, pig-like snout; upper jaw not protraotile; teeth on vomer and
palatines; gill-membranes scarcely connected ; dorsal fins well separated, the first the
larger, of 13-15 spines; the second dorsal rather larger than the anal, which has two
spines, the first of which is usually the shorter; a rudimentary air-bladder and
pseudobranchix ; vertebra (P. caprodes) 19 plus 22; general pattern of coloration
olivaceous, with dark vertical bands alternately long and short; largest of the darters.

138. PERCINA CAPRoDES (Rafinesque) Girard.
Log-perch; Hog-fish; Rock-fish; Hog-molly.

Sciena caprodes, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag. and Crit. Rev., 1818, 354.

Etheostoma caprodes, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Phys., 1819, 419.—Ra¥FINESQUE, Ich. Oh.,
1820, 38.—KirTLaND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1841, 346.

Pileoma caprodes, VAILLANT, Recherches Etheost, 1873, 43.

Percina caprodes, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 66.—JORDAN and COPELAND,
Amer. Nat., 1876, 337, and of all recent American writers.

Percina nebulosa, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., viii, 1842, 330.

Pileoma semifasciatum, DeKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 16.

Percina bimaculata, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1843, 157.

Etheostoma zebra, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 308.

Description —Body elongate, compressed; head leng and pointed, depressed and
sloping above; mouth small, quite inferior, the maxillary not reaching nearly to the
front of the eye; cheeks and opercles scaly; chest naked, space in front of spinous
dorsal scaly ; fins rather low ; color salmon-yeliow or greenish, with about fifteen trans-
verse dark bands from the back to the belly, these usually alternating with shorter and
fainter ones, which reach about to the lateral line; a black spot at the base of the
caudal; fins barred; head 4; depth 64; D. XV, 15; A II, 9; Lat.1.92. Length 6 to8
inches, being much the largest in size of the Darters.

Habitat, Quebec to Georgia, Lake Superior, and the Rio Grande, abundant in all
streams, particularly in the basin of the Ohio.

Diagnosis —From other Darters this species may be known by the
pointed and pig-like nose, and by the zebra-like black bands on the sides.
Habits.—This species thrives in clear, rapid streams with gravelly bot-
toms, and is generally abundant throughout Ohio. It is large enough to

LOG-PERCH. 971

be sometimes taken with a small hook, and is often brought home

by boys. Its flesh is excellent, but it is too small to have any import-
ance as a food fish.

139. PERCINA Manitou Jordan.

Percina manitou, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 53; Man. Vert. 2d Ed., 1878,
220, and elsewhere.

Description.—Body elongate, little compressed ; head slender, but less so than in P.
caprodes, the snout being shorter, blunter, and less sloping ; eye larger, 34 to 4 in head,
with mouth rather small, little inferior, the maxillary not reaching quite to the eye;
cheeks and opereles with small scales; chest naked; space in front of spinous dorsal
naked ; fins moderate, the height of the soft dorsal less than the distance from the
snout to the preopercle; colors black and olivaceous, the back strongly marbled, the
lateral bars short, not extending up the sides much above the lateral line; the bars
are confluent more or less, and about twenty in number, the last one blotch-like; a
round, black caudal spot; dorsal and caudal fins mottled; head 44; depth 7; D. XV,
14; A.II, 10; Lat. 1.90. Length 5 inches.

Habitat, Lakes of Northern Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin ; specimens variously
intermediate between this and the preceding found in the Potomac River ( Bean), and.
in Illinois (Forbes). This form is usually well marked in color and in other respects ; but
it is doubtful whether it can be maintained as a distinct species.

Habits.—This form has been thus far chiefly taken in lakes; the other,

(caprodes) in rivers. Whether this is a constant difference, I am unable
to say.

Genus 77. ALVORDIUS. Girard.

Hiheostoma, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 354 (not of Rafinesque).
Alvordius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859," 67.
Ericosma, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mas., x, 1876, 8.

Type, Alvordius maculatus, GIRARD.

Etymology. Dedicated to Major B. Alvord.

Body rather elongate, little compressed ; mouth rather wide, terminal, the lower jaw
included, the snout above not protruding beyond the premaxillaries, which are not
protractile ; teeth on vomer, and usually on palatines also; gill-membranes separate;
scales small, ctenoid, covering the body; belly with a median line of enlarged spinous
plates, which fall off, leaving a naked strip; sides of head scaly or not; lateral line
complete; fins large, the soft dorsal smaller than the spinous or the anal; anal spines
2; dorsal spines 10-15; vertebra 22 plus 22 ( 4. aspro), 17 plus 22 (A. evides) ; coloration
bright; sides with dark blotches.

Darters of moderate size, having greater powers of swimming freely’
in the water than any of the other genera. The species are among the
most graceful in form and elegant in coloration of all American
fishes. This species is very close to Percina, from which it differs only
in the form of the mouth.

972 FISHES—PERCIDE.

140. ALVORDIUS MACROCEPHALUS (Cope) Jordan.

Etheostoma macrocephalum, Cops, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 401.
Alvordius macrocephalus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1678, 220.

Description.—Body elongate; head long, eel-like; mouth rather large, maxillary
reaching to opposite anterior margin of orbit; eye shorter than snout, 44 in head; ven-
tral shields twice as long as other scales; cheeks, opercles, neck, and chest without
scales; color light brown, with a slightly undulating whitish band from upper angle of
opercle to caudal peduncle; back with dark quadrate spots; sides with niue blackish
longitudinal spots, alternating with smaller ones; streaks downward and forward from
the eye; vertical fins somewhat barred; spinous dorsal with a median blackish band;
head spotted above; head 34; depth 7; D. XV, 13; A. II, 11; scales 11-77-15, Length
3 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley. The known specimens are all from Western Pennsylvania.

Diagnosis.—This species is distinguished from its relatives by its very
large, naked head.
Habits.—Nothing distinctive known.

141. ALVORDIUS PHOXOCEPHALUS (Nelson) Jordan.

Etheostoma phoxocephalum, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 55.
Alwordius phoxocephalus, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1877, 50; Man. Vert., 2d
Ed., 1878, 221, and elsewhere.

Description.—Body rather slender, compressed; head extremely long, narrow, and
taperiug, the snout very acuminate; mouth large, the maxillary reaching to the eye ;
the lower jaw unusually narrow and long, scarcely shorter than upper ; eye about equal
to snout, 44 in head; cheeks, opercles, and neck with small scales; chest naked ; color
yellowish brown, somewhat as in A. aspro, but the lateral spots smaller and more num-
erous, scarcely twice the size of the eye, quadrate in form ; a small blackish spot at each
end of the lateral line; head 4; depth 54; D XII, 13; A. II, 9; scales 12-68-14,
Length 3 inches.

Habitat, Indiana (White River) to Tennessee and Kansas; not very abundant; not
yet noticed in Ohio.

Diagnosis.—Distinguished from the other species of the genus by the
long, slender head.

Habits —This species is found in clear, gravelly rivers; it has not yet
been noticed in Ohio, but doubtless occurs in the Southwestern part of
the State.

142. ALVORDIUS asPRo Cope and Jordan.

Biack-sided Darter.

Etheostoma blennioides, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat Hist., iii, 1841, 348, not of Rafinesque.
— VAILLANT, Kecherches sur Etheost., 1873, 54, and of many writers.

Alvordius aspro, COPE and JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 51.--JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 3d kd., 1880, 220.

BLACK-SIDED DARTER. 973

Alvordius maculatus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 220 (probably not of Girard).
Description Body rather elongate, fusiform, compressed behind; head moderately
elongate, less pointed than in some of the species; mouth moderate, the lower jaw in-
cluded ; maxillary reaching just past the front of the eye; eye about equal to snout,
four in head; gill-membranes little connected; lateral line straight, prolonged to the
eye; opercles with rather large scales; cheeks with very small ones, which are scarcely
visible over its whole surface; chest naked ; neck naked or more or less scaly; body
otherwise entirely scaly, the scales small and rough; straw yellow or greenish, with
dark tessellations and marblings above, and about seven large, dark blotehes along the

sides, partly confluent, thus forming a moniliform band; fins barred; Bead 4; depth 6;
D. XITI-XV, 13; A. II, 9; scales 9-65-17.

Habitat, Virginia to Lake Michigan, Tennessee River, and Upper Missouri, an
abundant and variable species.

Diagnosis.—From the other Darters generally, this species is readily
known by the beautiful pattern of the black markings on its sides. From
nearly related species, the stoutish head, partly scaly, will usually dis-
tinguish it.

Habits.—This species, the most graceful of all the Darters, delights in
clear streams with gravelly bottoms. It is less closely confined to the
bottom and to the shelter of stones than the others, swimming more
freely in the water, while the others rarely rise more than two or three
inches. As an aquarium fish it is “hardier than any other fish as
pretty, and prettier than any other as hardy.”

143. ALVOoRDIUS vARIATUS (Kirtland) Jordan.

Etheostoma variatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1841, 274.

Alvordius variatus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 3d Ed., 1880, 220.

? Alvordius maculatus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 67.

Etheostoma peltatum, SHAUFFER, MSS.; Core, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1864, 232.
Alvordius peliotus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 220.

Description.—Body moderately elongate, deeper than in A. aspro; head rather short
and stout; mouth large, the maxillary reaching the eye, lower jaw scarcely shorter than
upper, outer teeth somewhat enlarged; eyes moderate, about as long as snout, 34 in
head; head naked with the exception of a few scales on the upper anterior part of the
opercle; neck and breast scaleless; ventral shields larger than in any of the other
species, four times as large as the other scales, 6 to 8 in number, with strong, radiating
points; coloration bright olive, the back with short, brown cross bars; the sides with
broad, brownish shades; black blotch on neck and on opercle; blackish bars downward
and forward from eye; fins barred, the spinous dorsal with a black band. According to
Dr. Kirtland, the males are further variegated with blue, green, and orange. Head 33;
depth 5; D. XII, 12; A. II, 8; scales 7-53-9, Length 4 inches.

Habitat, Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. Not abundant.

Diagnosis. —The naked head and large ventral plates distinguish this
species.

974 FISHES—PERCIDA.

Habits —Nothing distinctive is known of the habits. The peculiar,
enlarged caducous scales of the belly reach a larger development in this
fish than in any other.

144. ALvorpius EvipEs Jordan and Copeland,

Gilded Darter.

Etheostoma evides, JORDAN and COPELAND, M838. in Nelson Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist.,
1876, 36.

Alvordius evides, JORDAN and COPELAND, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 51.

Ericosma evides, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 221,
and elsewhere.

Description. —Body moderate, somewhat compressed ; head heavy, the profile rather
convex ; eye rather large, high, 34 in head; mouth moderate, somewhat oblique, the
lower jaw included; maxillary reaching front of eye; cheeks, neck above, and throat
naked; opercles with rather large scales; ventral plates little eplarged; fins large;
second dorsal lower than anal, but with longer base; coloration extremely brilliant;
dark olivaceous above, tessellated with dark; sides with about seven broad transverse
bars extending from below the lateral line on one side across the back and down the
other side; these bars are wider than the eye, and are connected along the lateral line
by a faint black stripe ; in the female these bars are black and the intervening spaces
yellowish; in the male the bars are of a dark, rich blue-green, with metallic luster; the
connecting longitudinal line greenish bronze; just above this line is a luminous yellow-
ish streak, and above in each of the interspaces between the bars is a bright blotch of
bronze-red ; entire lower parts, of the body of a bright clear yellow, which becomes on
the under side of the head, throat, and branchiostegals a bright orange-red ; blackish
green streaks downward and forward from eye; cheeks orange-red, the color of iron
rast; dorsal fin orange-colored, with a bright, bronze edge, a blackish spot on the last
Tays ; second dorsal and caudal pale orange ; two luminous spots at base of caudal ; anal
bronze, with a blue-black shading; ventral fins dark blue-black; pectorals faintly
orange; males with the rays of the ventral and anal fins covered with small corneous
tubercles, exactly as in some Cyprinide ; female and alcoholic specimens show little of
the bright colors, although the same pattern is preserved ; the dorsal has a dusky spot
on its posterior rays, and the fins are destitute of the dark bars found in the other
species of Alvordius; head 44; depth 54; D. XI, 10; A. II, 8; scales 9-63-9. Length
24 inches.

Habitat. Thus far taken only in White River, in Central Indiana.

Habits.—It frequents clear and rapid waters. It is one of the most
brilliantly colored of all our fishes.

Genus 78. NANOSTOMA. Putnam.

.

Nanostoma, Putnam, MS88.; JORDAN, Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 6.

Type, Pecilichthys zonalis, COPE.
Etymology, nanos, small; stoma, mouth.
Body fusiform, not greatly compressed ; mouth small, subinferior, the premaxillaries

GILDED DARTER. 975

not protractile; vomerine teeth very feeble or wanting; scales large; gill-membranes
broadly connected, no enlarged ventral plates; lateral line complete; dorsals well sep-
arated, the second much larger than anal, higher and shorter than spinous dorsal ; dor-
sal spines about ten; anal spines two.

This genus is mainly distinguished from Nothonotus by the broad union
of the gill-membranes.

145. NANOSTOMA ZONALE (Cope) Jordan.

Poecilichthys zonalis, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1868, 212, tab. 24, f. 1. (male).
Nanostema zonalis, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 15, and elsewhere.
Nanostoma vinetipes, JORDAN, Proc. U. 8, Nat. Mus, 1879 (female).

Description. —Body slender, somewhat compressed; head small, rather short; the
mouth small, subinferier; snout decurved, rather obtuse, maxillary not reaching front
of eye; cheeks, opercles, neck, and throat closely scaled ; eye rather large; teeth very
feeble, those on the vomer not evident, probably none on the palatines; first dorsal
well developed, separated from the second, which is higher and shorter than the spinous
dorsal, and considerably larger than the anal; caudal emarginate; bright olivaceous
above, golden below; six dark brown quadrate dorsal spots, which connect by alter-
nating spots with a broad, brown lateral band, from which eight narrower dark-bluish
bands more or less completely encircle the belly; paired, anal, and caudal fins golden,
brown-spotted ; middle half of the first dorsal crimson; a series of round, crimson spots
near the base of the second dorsal; occiput, a band on muzzle and one below eye black ;
& black spot on operculum and one at base of pectorals; females duller and speckled ;
the ventrals barred; the lateral bars feebler; head 44; depth 5; D. XI, 12; A. II, 7;
scales 11-50-12. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Ohio and Upper Mississippi Valleys, widely diffused but not generally
abundant.

Habits. Nothing distinctive known.

146. NANOSTOMA TESSELLATUM Jordan.

Hadropterus tessellatus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, x, 1877, 7.

Description.—Color olivaceous, the markings obliterated in the type; body fusiform;
head broad and heavy, entirely naked; neck scaly; mouth moderate, horizontal, the
lower jaw included, the maxillary extending to opposite front of eye; anal higher than
second dorsal, but not so long, its spines strong; gill-membranes broadly united; D. x,
12; A.II,8; Lat.1.48. Length 24 inches.

This species is known only from one specimen, in poor condition,
taken in the Alleghany River, at Foxburg, Pennsylvania.

Genus 79. NOTHONOTUS. Agassiz.

Nothonotus, AGassiz, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.

Type, Eiheostoma maculata, KIRTLAND.
Etymology, nothos, prominent; notos, back, from the high dorsal fins.

976 FISHES—PERCIDE.

Body not greatly elongate, usually compressed; head moderate, snout decurved
over 3 moderate sized sub-terminal mouth, which is horizontal or slightly oblique;
scales various, usually rather large, the lateral line continuous; gill-membranes nearly
separate; fins all large, the spinous dorsal usually rather larger than the second,
the base of the second dorsal longer than that of the anal; upper jaw not protractile;
teeth feeble, usually not appreciable on the palatines and very feeble on the vomer;
species of moderate size, among the most beautiful of all fishes. This genus differs from
Peilichthys only in having the lateral line complete.

147. NOTHONOTUS CAMURUS (Cope) Jordan.
Biue-breasted Darter.

Pacilichthys camurus, CoPE, Proc Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 262, 265.
Nothonotus camurus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 16.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d
Ed., 1878, 225, and elsewhere.

Description.—Body stout; head short; muzzie abruptly decurved, the mouth some-
what inferior; lower jaw included; males very dark olive or blackish, with an obscure
band of a paler shade; belly paler; breast and throat deep rich blue; sides profusely
sprinkled with crimson dots, like a brook trout; these spots sometimes arranged in short
longitudinal series of threes and fours; series of olivaceous lines along the rows of
scales; first dorsal with a black spot at base in front and a crimson one on the margin
between the first and second rays; second dorsal, caudal, and anal crimson, bordered
with yellow, which again is bordered with black or dark-blue on the edge of the fin;
the crimson is deepest next the yellow; pectoral and ventral fins with a broad,
red margin; females less distinctly marked, olivaceous, somewhat parted; head 4;
depth 44; D. XI, 13; A. II, 8; scales 7-53-8. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley, Cumberland River, Tennessee ; White River, Indiana; Mahon-
ing River, Ohio; French Creek, Pennsylvania. Not abundant.

Habits—This species is one of the most brilliant and delicate of all
our fishes. It is found in clear, cold streams, and thus far nowhere in
great abundance. Professor Cope remarks concerning this species . and
others discovered by him.

“All of the above species lie on the bottom, frequently beneath stones, with the head
only projecting, on the lookout for prey. Ordinarily they lie motionless, except occa-
sionally inclining their position and exhibiting their gorgeous colors. The effect of
this is heightened by the crystal clearness of the waters of the Southern mountain
streams, which reflect as well the beauty of a Southern sky and the noble trees and
flowering shrubs that border them in the rich wilderness of the Cumberland Range.
Few more attractive spots to the naturalist can be found, aud among its natural treas-
ures these peculiar little fishes are among the most curious. All the fishes of this group
can turn the head from side to side, and they frequently lie in a curved position or par-
tially on one side of the body.”

148. NOTHONOTUS MacuLatus (Kirtland) Agassiz.

Etheostoma maculatum, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 276, pl. ii, fig. 3.
Nothonotus maculatus, AGassız, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed,, 1878, 225.

BLUE-BREASTED DARTER. 977

Description. —Body moderately elongate, deep, and compressed; head long and rather
pointed; mouth pretty large ; jaws equal; dorsal fin elevated, the longest rays reaching
caudal; olive-green, sides with rather large spots of brilliant carmine; vertical fins
more or less barred with red and white; head 4; depth 4%; D. XII, 13; A. II, 8; Lat.
1, 60. Length 24 inches.

Habitat. Thus far only kuown from Mahoning River, Ohio, whence specimens were
sent long ago by Dr. Kirtland to the U. S. National Museum. “It excels in beauty the
speckled trout.””—KiRTLAND.

Genus 80. ETHEOSTOMA. Rafinesque.

Etheostoma, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Phys., 1819, 419.—Jorpan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1877, 57.

Catonotus, AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 305.
Type, Etheostoma flabellaris, RAFINESQUE.
Etymology, ” etheo, to strain; stoma, mouth.

Body elongate, compressed; mouth terminal, more or less oblique; upper jaw not
protractile; vomerine teeth present, teeth in the jaws strong, the outer series canine-
like; opercular spine well developed; gill-membranes broadly united; scales rather
‘large; lateral line incomplete; an enlarged, black humeral scale; first dorsal fin low,
considerably lower than the second dorsal, of seven to nine subequal spines, which,
in the males, end in little fleshy knobs; anal fin smaller than the second dorsal, with
two spines, the first of which i is always the larger; vertebra (E. lineolatum) 14 plus 21;
size small; coloration dark ; the species are extremely quick in their movements, and
their coloration, although not gaudy as in Pecilichthys, is very elegant.

149. ETHEOSTOMA FLABELLARE Rafinesque.

Etheostoma flabellaris, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 419.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d.
Ed., 1878, 227, and elsewhere.

Etheostoma flabellata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 36.

Catonotus flabellaitus, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3. _

Pecilichthys flabellatus, Cops, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 263, 450.

Etheostoma jontinalis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 86.

Etheostoma linsleyi, H. R. STORER, Proc. Bost, Soc. Nat. Hist.

Oligocephalus humeralis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 66.

Catonotus fasciatus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 67.

Catonotus kennicotti, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.

Description.—Body elongate, compressed, the back scarcely arched; head long and
rather pointed, entirely destitute of scales; mouth rather large, terminal, oblique, the
lower jaw notably the longer; eye moderate, longer than the snout, about 4 in head;
opercular spine strong; fins all low, the first dorsal in the males about half as high as
the second, higher in the females; caudal large, rounded; anal spines longer in females

* The word Etheostoma is stated by Rafinesque to mean ‘‘ various mouths,” the species
known to him, i. e., Percina caprodes, Diplesium blennioides, and Htheostoma flabellare—
being so different in respect to the form of the mouth, that he conceived that they
might belong to different subgenera.

62

978 FISHES—PERCIDA.

than in the males; dorsal and anal spines pointed in the female, in the male with
thickene, fleshy tips; scales moderate; lateral line extending about to end of first
dorsal; neck and throat naked; scales on sides extending up to the base of the dorsal
fin; color dark, each scale with a dark spot, these forming a series of conspicuous lon-
gitudina) lines along the rows of scales; second “orsal and caudal conspicuously cross-
barred; head blackish, with dark stripes radiating from eye; males further marked
with conspicuous dark c:oss-bars ; a black humeral spot; head 4; depth 5; D. VIII, 12;
A. II, 8; scales 7-53-7. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, New York, Lake Erie, and Ohio Valley. Very abundant eastward.

Diagnosis.—The short, low dorsal, and the projecting lower jaw, distin-
guish this species from all others in Ohio.

Habits—This species is very abundant in Western New York and
Pennsylvania, swarming on the bottom of every clear and rocky stream.
It is an active and hardy little fish. It is found throughout the Ohio
Valley, but seems to be less abundant westward (Wisconsin and Iliinois).

In the Northwest occurs a closely related species or variety, Etheos-
toma lineolatum (Agassiz), “istinguished by the presence of series of very
distinct, black, lengthwise stripes made of black dots. ,

150. ETHEOSTOMA SQAMICEPS Jordan.

Etheostoma squamiceps, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 11; Man. Vert., 2d Ed.,
1878, 228. > se

Description —Body rather elongate, considerably compressed, the caudal peduncle
deep; head Jarge; the jaws comparatively short, and equal; lateral line wanting only
on about ten of the posterior scales, and with occasion») tubes behind the continuous
series; spivous dorsal low and short, the spines about equal, less than half the height
of the second dorzaly bases of the two dorsala about equal, slightly connected by
membranes; color dark, without spots, stripes, or bands in spirits; female mottled,
with about six cross blotches; vertical fins cross-barred; lower fins black in the male,
pale in the female; a large black humeral spot; head 31-5; depth 5; D. IX, 12; A. II,
7; scales 5-50-6. Length 22 inches. :

Habitat, Ohio Valley; the known specimens being from Russellville, Kentucky, and
from New Harmony, Indiana. Nothing is known of its habits.

Genus 61. PCECILICHTHYS. Agassiz.

Pecilosoma, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 299 (name preoccupied).

Pecilichthys, AGassız, Amer, Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 305.

Oligocephalus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1859, 67.

Aplesion, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 102 (not of Rafinesque).

Astatichthys, VAILLANT, Recherches sur Poiss. Eau Douce., Amer, Septent., Etheostom.,
1873, 106.

Type, Etheostoma carulea, STORER.
Etymology, poikilos, variegated ; ichthus, fish.

BLUE DARTER. 979

Body rather stout and compressed; head large; mouth moderate, nearly horizontal ;
vomer with testh ; upper jaw not protractile; ecales rather large, the lateral line com-
plete posteriorly, usually on abont two-thirds of the length of the body; gill-mem-
branes scarcely connected ; dorsal spines nine to eleven, their height about two-thirds
that of the soft rays; second <iorsal rather larger than first and larger than anal; anal
with two well developed spines, the first usually the longer; vertebra 15-18; size
rather small; general pattern of coloration vertical blue bars on an olivaceous or
orange ground. The species are quite numerous.

151. Pacinicutuys vir@atus Jordan.

Pecilichthys virgatus, JORDAN, Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus., 1879,

Description —Body slender, formed much as in Etheostoma flabellare; mouth rather
large; head entirely naked; a naked strip on the nape; preopercle serrulate; humeral
region with an enlarged, black scale-like process; lateral line short, straight, greenish;
each scale with a dark spot, these forming conspicuous longitudinal stripes along the
rows of scales; D IX, 10; A II, 8; Lat. 1.53. Leugth 24 inches.

Habitat: Abundant in Cumberland River, in Kentucky; probably also in Southern
Ohio.
Habits.—An active inhabitant of clear mountain streams.

152. PaciLicHTHys CERULEUS (Storer) Agassiz.
Blue Darter; Rainbow-fish ; Soldier-fish.

Etheostoma coeruleus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1845, 47.

Pacilichthys ewruleus, AGASsIZ, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3, and of many writers.

Astatichthys coeruleus, VAILLANT, Recherches, 1872, 107.

Pecilichthys variatus, AGAssız, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854. 305.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 226.

Pecilosoma erythrogastrum, KirTLAND, Annals of Science, Cleveland, 1854, 4.

Peiliehthys versicolor, AGassız, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 304.

Poecilostoma transversum, ABBOTT, Proc Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 326.

Astatichthys pulchellus, VAILLANT, Recherches, 1873, 113.

Description.—Body robust, rather deep and compressed, the back somewhat elevated;
head large, compressed, somewhat pointed; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique, the
lower jaw scarcely included, the maxillary reaching front of orbit; neck and breast
usually naked; fins all large, dorsal fins usually slightly connected ; scales rather large;
lateral line straight; males olivaceous, tessellated above, the spots running together
into blotches ; back without black lengthwise stripes ; sides with about twelve indigo-blue
bars running obliquely downwards and backwards, most distinct behind, separated by
bright orange interspaces; caudal fin deep orange, edged with bright blue; anal fin
orange, with deep blue in front and behind ; soft dorsal chiefly orange, blue at base and
tip; spinous dorsal crimson at base, then orange, with blue edgings; ventral bluish,
often deep indigo; cheeks blue ; throat and breast orange; females much duller, with
blue or red, the vertical fins barred or checked; young variously marked; head 32;
depth 44; D. X, 12; A. II, 7; scales 5-45-8 ; the lateral line developed on about 30 to
35. Length 24 inches.

980 FISHES—PERCID&.

Habitat, Upper Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley, and tributaries of Lake Erie and |
Lake Michigan. In much of the Ohio Valley the most abundant member of the family,
swarming in all streams.

Habits—It prefers the channels on gravelly bottoms, seldom ascending
brooks. It is less active than many of its relatives, but is the most
gaudily colored of all. Stories of its having first appeared in different
streams at the time of the outbreak of the late civil war are still extant,
there being something patriotic about its red and blue coloration. For
similar reasons it is sometimes called “‘soldier-fish” by the very few per-
sons who know of its existence.

153. PacrLicHTHYs SPECTABILIs Agassiz

Pecilichthys spectabilis, AGassiz, Awer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 304.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 226, and elsewhere. .

Description.—Very similar to the preceding, but more elongate and rather more com-
pressed ; the colors somewhat similar, but the upper portion of the sides with distinct
blackish stripes along the rows of the scales, and the ground color of the back and
sides having a peculiar whitish or bleached appearance ; the two dorsal fins usually well
separated ; head 4; depth 44; D. X, 12; A. I, 7; scales 5-40-7; Lat. 1. on 20 to 25
scales. Length 2 to 3 inches.

Habitat, Ohio Valley and Upper Mississippi Valley, with tho preceding and nearly
equally abundant, but frequenting chiefly the small brooks and spring runs.

Habits—If this be a distinct species (which I doubt), and not merely
the brook form of the preceding, it differs from the latter in its place of
abode. It abounds in the little brooks, where it is as plentiful as P.
coeruleus is in its larger streams.

Pa@riticHTHys Eos Jordan and Copeland.
Red-sided Darter.

Boleichthys eos, JORDAN and COPELAND, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 46 —Jorpan,
Man. Vert. 21 Ed., 1878, 278.

Description.— Body elongate, slender, snmewhat compressed, especially behind, rather
heavy forwards, with very long caudal peduncle; head long, rouvded in front; mouth
small, little oblique, the upper jaw a very little the longer; dorsal fias high, about
equal; caudal truncate; cheeks, opercles, and neck closely scaled ; breast with a median
series of small scales, or noue; luteral line developed on 22 to 26 scales, arched upward
above pectorals ; colur datk olive, with darker markings; ten or twelve dorsal spots or
bars, and as many short, dark bluv vars, not continuous with them; the inter-
spaces between these bars, as well as most of the ventral region, bright crimson in the
males, nearly plain in the fomales; lowex parts of the sides, cheeks, etc., with various
sharply deficed, but irregular black markings; second dorsal, caudal, and pectorals
strongly marked with wavy bands; first dorsal bright blue in the males, with a broad
median band of crimson, speckled in the females; top of head dark; black streaks

LEAST DARTER. 981

downward and forward from eye; head °{; depth 54; D. IX, 11; A. II, 7; Lat. 1.58.
Length 24 inches.

Habitat, Northwestern Ohio to Minnesota; abundant northwestward; noticed only
in tributaries of the Maumee, in Ohio.

Habits —This species seems to be found in lakes and their tributaries
more abundantly than is usual in this group. It is a brightly colored
and active little fish.

Genus 82. MICROPERCA. Patnam.

Microperca, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 4.

Type, Microperca punctulata, Putnam.
Etymology, mikros, small; perke, perch.

Body rather short, compressed; mouth moderate; the jaws about equal, the upper
not protractile ; vomerine teeth present; scales large; lateral live wanting, or on one
or two scales only; dorsal fin small, subequal, well separated, the first with six or
seven spines; anal fin much smaller than second dorsal, with two, or-rarely one, spines,
which are well developed; pattern of coloration greenish, with dusky bars and zigzag
markings; size very small, probably the smallest of the spiny-rayed fishes.

’

155. MicroPERCA PUNCTULATA Putnam.
Least Darter.

Microperca punctulata, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, i, 1863, 4.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 228, and elsewhere.

Description. —Body rather short and My, somewhat compressed ; the back arched, the
caudal peduncle rather long; head moderate, the snout somewhat decurved; the mouth
moderate, terminal, oblique; chéeks naked; opercles somewhat scaly; neck and chest
naked ; scales quite large, strongly ctenoid ; fins all small; anal spines strong, the first
usually the largest; coloration olivaceous, the sides closely speckled and with vague
bars and zigzag markii gs; second dorsal and caudal barred; dark streaks radiating
from eye; a dark humeral spot; head 34; depth 44; D. VI to VII, 10; A. II, 6; Lat. 1.
34. Length 14 inches. \

Habitat, ‘tributaries of the Upper Great Lakes and the northern parts of the Mississ-
ippi and Ohio Valleys; abundant northwestward. In distribution and probably in
habits similar to Pecilichthys eos.

FAMILY XXIII. SCIHNIDA. THE CROAKERS.

Body compressed, more or less elongate, covered with rather thin, eteneid scales ;
lateral line continuous, extending on the caudal fin; head prominent, covered with
scales; bones of the skull cavernous, the muciferous system highly developed, the sur-
face of the skull, when the flesh is removed, very uneven; chin usually with pores,
sometimes with barbels; mouth small or large, teeth in one or more series, the outer of
which are sometimes enlarged; canines often present; no incisor nor molar teeth ; no

982 FISHES—SCLENIDE.

teeth on vomer, palatiaes, pterygoids, or tongue; maxillary without supplemental bone,
slipping under the free edge of the preorbital; premaxillaries protractile, but not very
freely movable; nostrils double; pseudobranchi® usually large, present in all our
genera; gills 4, a slit behind the fourth; gill-rakers present; branchiostegals 7; gill-
membranes separate, free from the isthmus; lower pharyngeals separate or united ;
preopercle serrate or not; opercle usually ending in two flat points; dorsal fin deeply
notched, or divided into two fins, the soft dorsal being the longer, the spines depressible
into a more or less perfect groove; anal fin with one or two spines ; ventral fins thoracic,
1, 5; pectoral fins normal; caudal fins usually not forked ; ear bones very large; pyloric
coca usually rather few ; air-bladder usually large and complicated (wanting in Menti-
cirrus); most of the species make a peculiar noise, called variously croaking, grunting,
drumming, and snoring; this sound is supposed to be caused by forcing the air from the
air-bladder into one of the lateral horns; carnivorous; an important family of about
25 genera and 125 species, found in all warm seas, one species being confined to fresh
waters; many of them reach a large size, and nearly all are valued for food.

Genus 83. HAPLOIDONOTUS. Rafinesque.

Aplodinotus, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, de Chemie et D’histoire Naturelle, 1819,
418.

Amblodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421 (based on the pharyngeal teeth
of A grunniens, erroneously ascribed to Ichthyobus bubalus).

Haploidonotus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 103 (corrected orthography).

Eutychelithus, JORDAN, Man. Vert. E. U. S., Ist Ed., 1876, 242.

Type, Aplodinotus grunniens, RAFINESQUE.

Etymology, haplois, a simple cloak io fit the body; notos, the back, in allusion to the
scaly coating of the base of the second more sapped by Rafinesque to distinguish
this genus from Sciena.

Body oblong, the snout bluvt, the back elevated. and compressed; mouth rather
small, low, horizontal, the lower jaw included; teeth in villifurm bands, the outer
scarcely enlarged; no barbels; pseudobranchi® rather small; gill-rakers short and
blunt; lower pharyngeals very large, fully united, with coarse, blunt, paved teeth ;
preopercle slightly serrate; dorsal spines strong and high, with a close fitting sheath
at base, the two dorsals somewhat connected; second anal spine very strong; caudal
double truncate; chin with five pores. But one species of this genus is certainly
known. It has a wide distribution in the fresh waters of the United States.

156. HapLorpoNotTus GRUNNIENS Rafinesque.

Sheeps-head; Thunder-pumper; Drum; Bubbler; Grunting
Perch; White Perch: Croaker.

Aplodinotus grunniens, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, Vol. 88, 1819, 418.

Amblodon grunniens, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 24.—AGassiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts,
1854.—GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Expl. and Surv., x, 1854, 96.

Haploidonotus grunniens, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 104.—Jorpan, Man.
Vert., 1576; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878,

Sciena oscula, Lu SUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila., 1822, 25%. —KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool.
Ohio, 1838, 168, 192.

SHEEPS-HEAD. 983

Corvina oscula, Cuv. et VaL., Uist. Nat. de Poiss., v, 1830, 98.—RıcHARDson, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., ıii, 1836, 68 —KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 350.—DEKAY,
Fishes N. Y., 1842, 73.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 319.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit.
Mus,, ii, 1860, 297.

Sciena grisea, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1822, 254.

Corvina wrisea, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1342, 76.

? Corvina richardsoni, Cuv. and VaL., Hist. Nat. Poies., v, 100—RicHaRDSON, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., 1836, 64.—GUNTHER, ii, 298 (based on a deformed individual).

? Eutychelithus richardsoni, JORDAN, Man. Vert., lst Ed, 242.

Amblodon concinnus, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 307.

Haploidonotus concinnus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei. Phila., 1861, 104.—JoRDAN, Man.
Vert., 1876.

Amblodon lineatus, AGAssız, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 307.

Haploidonotus lineatus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 105.—JoRDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876.

Amblodon neglectus, GIRARD, U. S. Mex. Bound. Surv., Ichth., 1859, 12.

Haploidonotus neglectus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1861, 105.

Description —Boiy oblong, rather elongate, the front rather steep, the outline of the
back posteriorly forming a nearly straight slope with scarcely any curve; the caudal
; peduncle rather slender; back very much compressed, its thickness being very much less
than that of the bally; the greatest depth about one-third of the length; head oblong,
the suout high and blunt; length of head contained about three and one-half times
in the length of body (without caudal fin); mouth rather small, rather inferior; teeth
in a villiform band in each jaw, that of the upper preceded by a row of slightly
larger ones; eyes rather large, placed anteriorly, their diameter about equal to the
length of the snout, and about one-fourth of the length of the side of the head; scales
rather irregular in position, 50 to 54 in the course of the lateral line, seven or eight
rows between the lateral line and the dorsal, and ten or twelve between it and the ven-
trals; fin rays: D. IX-1, 30; A II, 7; first of the anal fin short, the second very large
and long, attached to a stout bone; gencral color grayish-silvery, the back darker, the
scales considerably punctate with fine dark points. Young specimens are often
marked on the back with oblique lines, caused by the presence of darker spots along
the rows of scales. This species reaches a length of more than two feet and a weight
of forty to fifty pounds ; specimens as seen in markets have usually a weight of one to
five pounds.

Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and Mississippi Valley, southward to Georgia and
Texas. It is found chiefly in the channels of the larger streams and in the lakes. It
seldom ascends the creeks and small rivers.

Diagnosis.—This species is the only one in Ohio which has two anal
spines, whereof the second is very much longer and stronger than the
first.

In the Great Lakes this species is very abundant, and reaches a large
size. It is there known as Sheeps-head, and is very rarely eaten as food.
It has there the reputation of being “ the most worthless fish that swims.”
The flesh has at all times a more or less disagreeable shark-like odor,
which, in lake specimens, is often positively offensive. In the lakes the

984 FISHES—COTTIDA.

species is peculiarly liable to the attacks of parasitic entozoa, and great
tumors are often found on different parts of the body.

In the lakes of Northern Indiana it is known as Crocus, which name
is a corruption of Croaker, a name given to species of the marine genus
Micropogon in the same family. In the Ohio River it is now usually
known by the name of White Perch, and commands a good price, al-
though compared with the Sun-fishes and Bass, it is very indifferent
food, not better than Suckers, except that the bones are fewer. Farther
south it has the name of Drum, which term is also applied to the species
of the related marine genus, Pogonias.

‘The names Croaker, Drum, Grunter, Thunder-pumper, etc., refer to a
croaking sound, which the fish makes when in the water, and which
may be heard in the night by putting the ear close to the water in still,
deep places in rivers inhabited by this species.

This phenomenon is found in all or most Seienid&, and in many of the
related families, Sparide, Cottide, etc. It is always accompanied by a
trembling of the sides of the fish, very perceptible when a fish recently
taken is held in the hand. It is thus explained by Dr. Holbrook (Ichth.
8. Car., 118), in the case of the salt water Drum (Pogonias chromis).

“Cuvier observes that it may depend on the air-bladder. Thongh he says that it has
no connection with the outside atmosphere. DeKay supposes it to be occasioned by the
strong compression of the expanded pharyngeal teeth on each other.

“Frequent examinations of the structure and arrangement of the air-bladder, as well
as observations on the living animal just taken from the water, when the sound is at in--
tervals still continued, have satisfied me that it is made in the air bladder itself; that
the vibrations are made by the air being forced by strong muscular contractions through
a narrow opening from one large cavity, that of the air-bladder, to another, that of the
cavity of the lateral horn; and if the hands be placed on the sides of the animal, vi-
brations will be felt in the lateral horn, corresponding with each sound.”

It seems to me certain that the noises proceed from the air-bladder, but it ie also cer-
tain that they are produced in some species (Artedius, ete. in which the air-bladder has
but one cavity, and is without the complicity of structure found in Pogonias and most
Scienoids.

The ear bones in Haploidonotus grunniens are largely developed, quadrate
in form, and marked with a rude impress of a letter L. These are com-
monly known as “lucky stones” to boys living where this fish is found.”

FAMILY XXIV. COTTIDA. THE SCULPINS.

Body moderately elongate, fusiform or compressed, tapering backward from the head,
which is usually broad and depressed; eyes placed high, the interocular space usually
narrow; a bony stay connecting the suborbital with the preopercle, usually covered by

SCULPINS. 985

the skin ; upper angle of preopercle usually with one or more spinous processes; teeth
equal, in villiform or cardiform bands on jawe, apd usually on vomer and palatines; pre-
maxillaries protractile; maxillary without supplemental bone; gills 34 or 4; slit behind
the last gill small, or obsolete; gill-rakers short, tubercle-like or obsolete; gill-mem-
branes broadly connected, often joined to the isthmus; body naked, or variously armed
with scales, prickles, or bony plates, but never uniformly scaled; lateral line present,
simple ; dorsal fins separate or somewhat connected, the spines usually slender, the soft
part elongate; caudal fin separate, rounded; anal fin similar to the soft dorsal, without
spines; pectoral fins large, with broad procurrent base, the rays mostly simple, the
upper sometimes branched ; ventrals thoracic, rarely entirely wanting, the rays usually
less than I, 5; pseudobranchis present, at least in all our species; pyloric ceca usually
in small number (4—8); air- bladder commonly wanting; genera about 40; species about
150, mostly of the rock pools of Northern regions; many species found in fresh waters.”
The majority of the species are of small size and singular aspect. None are valued as
food, the flesh being dry and rather coarse, and the waste consequent on the removal of
the head and skin very great.

The fresh-water species are all small in size. They lurk under stones and in shady
places after the manner of the Darters. They are found only in clear waters, and delight
especially in caves and springs.

All the fresh-water species are, we think, referable to two genera,

a. Gill-membranes nearly free from the isthmus, forming a broad fold across it; aslit
behind last gill; bones of head extensively cavernous; no palatine teeth.

TRIGLOPSIS.
aa. Gill-membranes fully united to the isthmus; no slit behind last gill; bones of
head little cavernous; palatine teeth present or not. . ‘ ; URANIDEA.

Genus #4. TRIGLOPSIS. Girard.

Triglopsis, GIRARD, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iv, 1751, 18.

Ptyonotus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus,, ii, 1860, 175 (substitute for Triglopsis, con-
sidered to be preoccupied), there being a marine genus Triglops Kroger, 1844, in the
same family.

Type, Triglopsis thompsonii, GIRARD.
Etymology, Trigla, the Gurnard, a marine genus of another family to which the present
genus bears no special resemblance ; opsis, appearance.

Fresh-water Sculpins with the body and head slender and elongated, the former taper-
‘ing quite rapidly away towards the tail; both covered with smooth naked skin; mouth
large; lateral line chain-like; teeth on vomer, none on the palatines; eyes large, the
interorbital area concave; bones of lower part of head extensively cavernous; a small
but distinct slit behind last gill; gill membranes almost free from the isthmus, forming
a broad fold across it; preopercular spines, short, straight, simple ; fivs large, especially
the second dorsal. Small fishes inhabiting the deeper waters of the \:reat Lakes. A
single species known, thus far found in Lake Ontario and in Lake Michigan. It undoubt-
edly occurs also in Lake Erie, although none has yet come to the notice of any natural-
ist. Most of the specimens thus far obtained of Triglopsis thompsonii have been taken
from the stomach of the Ling (Lota maculosa). The relations of the genus Triglopsis are
particularly with the marine genus Cottus, and it seems to be a modified survivor of an
ancient salt-water species, of the fauna of the basin of the Great Lakes.

986 FISHES—COTTIDA.

157. TRIGLOP3I8 THOMPS3ONII, Girard.

Triglopsis thompsonii, GIRARD, Proc. Bost Soc. Nat Hist., 1851, 19; Mon. Cottoids, 1851,
65 —JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876; Man Vert., 2d Ed., 1875, 256.

Ptyonotus thompsonii, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., ii, 1860, 175.

Triglopsis stimpsoni, GILL, Mss. (no description published.)

Pale olivaceous, with durker blotches; upper fins faintly banded ; body elongate, very
slender; head Jong, depressed above; snout long and pointed; eye quite large, nearly
as long as snout, much wider than interorbital space, 4 in heud; jaws subequal; mouth
large, the maxillary extending rather beyond middle of eye; preopercle with 4 sharp
spines, the tm. per much shorter than pupil; cavernous structure of skull highly devel-
oped; upper surface of the head smooth; gill-membranes not broadly united, nearly
free from isthmus; dorsal fias well separated ; spinous dorsal short and low, ite height
little more than lengih of snout; second dorsal very large, 3 times height of first, its
longest rays about as long as head; anal high, half as high as second dorsal; pectoral
long, reaching past front of anal; ventrals well developed; lateral line chain-like, con-
spicuous; skin perfectly smooth; head 3; depth 6; D. VII-18; A 15; V.1., 3; Length
3 inches. N

Habitat, deep waters of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario. This species
inhabits somewhere in the depths of Lake Ontario, bus has not yet been seen or caught
alive either by fishermen or naturalists. The manner in which its discovery took plave
is as follows: In opening the stomach of the Ling (Lota maculosa), the fishermen of
Oswego, finding it almost coustantly filled with that fish, had entertained the errone-
ous opinien that the Ling swallowed its progeny. Professor Baird, who visited that
plaee in 1850, and heard the story, secured specimens, which at once enabled him
to recognize in them a fish new to science, although half digested, the skin and the fins
in most cases destroyed. In that state, when the head and body alone have preserved
their shape, the elongation of the former and the tapering head of the latter may re-
mind superficial observers of the elougated head and the tapering body of Lota maculosa.
Attention should be directed on all fishing grounds of the Ling to the contents of the
stomachs of these fish, as at present the only way known of procuring Triglopsis. By
this means, at least, we should become acquainted with its geographic distribution, for
mere remains, when they cannot be mistaken, are always sufficient to establish its
occurrence at any given place, should complete and fresh specimens escape all researches.
(Girard, Mon. Cottoids, 67.)

The specimens from Lake Michigan, to which the name of Triglopsis stimpsoni has been
given, are not distinguishable from the original types of the species.

Genus 85. URANIDEA. DeKay.

Cottus, 8p., GIRAKD, 1851, and of early writers generally (not type).
Uranidea, DeKay, New York Fauna Fishes, 1242, 61.
Cottopsis, GIRARD, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1850, 303 (asper).
Potamocottus, GILL, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., viii, 1861, 40 (punctulatus).
Tauridea, JORDAN and Rick, Man. Vert. E. U. S., Ed. 2d, 1878, 255 (spilota).
Type, Uranidea quiescens, DeKay =Cottus gracilis, Heckel.
Etymology, ouranos, sky ; eido, to gaze. .
Fresh-water Sculpins with body fusiform, little compressed ; head feebly armed, the

i

HOY’S COTTUS. 987

preopercular spines generally short, covered by the skin; skin smooth or vari-
ously prickly, without scales; villiform teeth on jaws and vomer, and in some species
on palatines also; gill-membranes fully united to the wide isthmus, over which they do
not form a fold; no slit behind fourth gill; branchiostegals 6; dorsals nearly or quite
separate, the first of 6-9 slender spines; ventrals I, 3, or I, 4. Fishes of small size, in-
habiting clear waters in the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America. The species
are numerous, and difficult to distinguish, as they are all very similar in form and color-
— ation. The development of the palatine teeth in some of the species is so slight that
their presence cannot well be used as a generic character.
It is not unlikely that other species besides those mentioned below may be found in -
Lake Erie or its tributaries.

ANALYSIS OF SUBGENERA AND SPECIES OF URANIDEA.

a. Palatine teeth obsolete; ventrals (in our species) I, 3; skin smooth or nearly so.

. ( Uranidea.)

b. Preopercular spine prominent, straight, directed backwards, and but little up-
wards. ‘ . . . 5 HOYI.

bb. Preopercular spine cpdarsta; Bodies rei
c. Pectorals short, not reaching anal. ö . 3 FRANKLINI.
cc. Pectorals long, reaching anal. r R . GRACILIS.
aa. Palatine teeth present; ventrals (in our ee I, 4.

d. Skin smooth, or prickly in the axil only. s e (Potamocottus.)
e. Preopercular spine short, hooked; dorsal rays about VII-17; anal about 12.
RICHARDSONI.

%. Pectoral rays all simple
y. Spinous dorsal very low, of six spines; palatine teeth little develoged ;

body small and slender. (Subspecies. ) 2 i . bairdi.

yy. Spinous dorsal well developed of 7 or 8spines; palatine teeth well de- "
veloped ; body robust. (Subspecies.) 5 7 . caroline.
az. Upper pectoral rays branched. (Subspecies) . ‘ « wileoni,

dd. Skin of back and sides covered with prickles.

f. Preopercular spine short ; prickles villiform. i n (Cottopsis.)
ff. Preopercular spine long, strongly hooked ; prickles stiff. . (Tauridea.)
SPILOTA.

158. URANIDEA H)yı Putnam.

Hoy’s Cottus.

Uranidea hoyi, PUTNAM, Mss.—Nzuson, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 41.—Jorpan,
Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila., 177, 63; Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 1878, 253.

Description. —Grayish olive, speckled and barred; body rather slender; female with
the anterior parts of body and above lateral line covered with sparse prickles; male
apparently smooth; head narrowed forwards; jaws narrow, about equal; maxillary
reaching front of pupil; preopercalar spine prominent, longer than pupil, sharp, almost
straight, directed backwards and but little upwards; below this is another sharp, prom-
inent spine, also nearly straight, directed partly downwards; 1 or 2 minute concealed

988 FISHES—COTTIDE.

spines still lower; pectoral fins reaching vent; D. VI-16; A.11; V.I.3; P.13. Length
of specimens 2 1-6 inch.

Habitat, Lake Michigan—in deep water; two specimens known.

Female specimen taken 12 miles off Racine, Wis., in 12 fathoms, June 4th, 1875, by Dr.
Hoy; the male off Milwaukee, June 15th. The specimens are now in bad condition,
from rough handling. The female is distended with ripe eggs, so that the width of the
body is one-third the total length.

This species seems to be quite distinct from all those described by Girard. The peculiar
charactera are the number and form of the preopercular spines, the contracted mouth,
the large eyes, the small size of the body, and the length of the ventral fins. This curi-
eus little fish is as yet known only from the waters of Lake Michigan, but its occurrence
in Lake Erie, also, is not improbable

.

159. ÜRANIDEA FRANKLINI (Agassiz) Jordan.

Cottus franklini, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 303.—GHRARD, Monogr. Cott., 53. —GUN-
THER, ii, 158.

Uranidea franklini, JORDAN, Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 1878, 252.

? Cottus formosus, GIRARD, Monogr. Cott., 1851, 58.

Uranidea kumlieni, Hoy, Mss.—NELson, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 41—JoRDAN,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 64.

Olivaceous, mottled; both dorsals and anal with a broad dark bar on the distal half;
pectorals and caudal broadly blotched with dusky; jaws equal; preopercular spine
stout, short, pretty strongly hooked upwards and inwards; first dorsal rather high, not
much lower than second ; pectorala short, not reaching anal; axil prickly, as in L. rich-
ardsoni: head 34; depth 5; D. VIII-17; A. 11 or 12, Lergth 3 inches.

Habitat, deep waters of the Great Lakes: Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, ? Lake
Ontario.

This small species has not yet been obtained in Lake Erie, although doubtless occur-
ring there.

160. URANIDEA cracitis (Heckel) Putnam.
Slender Miller’s Thumb.

Cottus gracilis, HECKEL, Ann. Wiener Mus., ii, 1837, 148.—GIRARD, Proc. Am. Assoc Adv.
Sc., 18.0, 401; Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1850, 189; Mon. Cottoids, 85, 49.

Uranidea gracilis, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., Ed. 1st,.

‘1876, and Ed. 24, 1878, 252.

Uranidea quiescens, DeKay, Nat Hist. N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 61.

Cottus gobio, AYRES, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., 1845, 121 (not of Linnzus),

Description.—Olivaceous, mottled, upper edge of spinous dorsal red in life; body rather
slender, fusiform ; preopercular spine moderate, concealed ; mouth rather large, the max-
lary reaching nearly to the pupil; pectorals reaching front of anal; ventrals about to
vent; head 34; depth 5; D. VIII, 16; A.12. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, New England and New York; the common Eastern species found ‘‘ quies-

MILLER’S THUMB. 989

cent” under stones in clear gravelly brooks, after the manner of the Darters. This
species has not yet been noticed in Ohio, but it may probably be found in tributaries
of Lake Erie, in the north-eastern part of the State.

161. URANIDEA RICHARD3ONI (Agassiz) Jordan and Gilbert.
Miller’s Thumb; Blob; Muffle-jaws; Cave Bull-head.
a. var, richardsoni. (Upper Lakes.)
Cottusrichardsoni, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 300 ; GIRARD, Mon. Cott., 1850, 39.—Gun-
THER, ii, 1850, 158.
b. var. bairdi. (Ohio to N. Y.)

Cottus bairdi, GIRARD, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1850, 410; and Mon. Cott, 44.
ca

!

ce. var. wilsoni. (Ohio Valley.)

Cottus wilsoni, GIRARD, Mon. Cott., 1851, 42.

d. var. alvordi. (Wisconsin and Michigan.)

Cottus alvordi, GIRARD, Mon. Cott., 1851, 46.

e. var, meridionalis. (Alleghanies.)

Cottus meridionalis, GIRARD, Proc. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1850, 410; and Mon. Cott., 1851, 47.

f. var. zopherus. (Alabama basin.)

Potamocottus zopherus, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876.

g. var. caroline. (Ohio Valley and southward.)

Potamocottus caroline, GILL, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1861, 40.

Description.—Olivaceous, more or less barred and speckled with darker; fins mostly
barred or mottled ; body slender or stout, tapering regularly backward to the tail; ver-
tex somewhat depressed; interocular space with a groove; preopercle with a short,
sharp spine, little hooked, directed backwards and upwards, mostly covered by the
skin; below this are 2 smaller concealed spines; subopercle with a stoutish spine,
directed forwards; skin smooth, except the region immediately behind the pectorals,
which is beset with very small sharp prickles; these are sometimes obsolete; lateral
line conspicuous, continuous or interrupted behind ; first dorsal low and feeble ; pectoral
fins large, their length nearly equal to that of the head, their tips usually reaching be-
yond the origin of the soft dorsal; ventral fins moderate; isthmus very broad, the gill-
membranes not forming a fold across it; head 34; depth 4-6; D. VI to VIII, 16 or 17;
A. about 12; V. I, 4. Length 3 to 6 inches

Habitat, Middle and Northern States, and probably northward; abounding in all clear
rocky brooke and lakes southward along the Alleghanies.

Norte.—As understood by us, Uranidea richardsoni is a wide spread and abundant species,
varying in different regions, as is the case with most non-migratory species. In this as

990 FISHES—COTTIDE.

in other species of similar range, the inhabitants of each stream, or of each river-basin,
may show local peculiarities. A number of these forms have received from Dr. Girard
specific names, which are accompanied by detailed descriptions. Large collections of
these fishes reveal the fact that numerous other “species” still exist undescribed, as it
is a rare thing to find a specimen which exactly agrees in all respects with any of the
species in Dr. Girard’s ‘‘ Monvgraph of the Fresh-Water Cottoids.” The following forms,
of all of which the writer has specimers, may possibly be recognized as ‘‘ varieties,”
but of their complete intergradation we have no doubt.

Var. richardsoni (Ag.) is rather slender, with the vent rather more posterior than usual,
placed midway between the snont and the tip of the caudal; in the others it is nearly
midway between the snout and middle of caudal. Wisconsin to Lake Superior.

Var. bairdi (Girard) is small and slender, with the spinous dorsal very low, and the
palatine teeth less developed than in the other forms. Cayuga Lake, N. Y., to Ohio.

Var. wilsoni (Grd.) is rather stouter, with stronger palatine teeth, and with some of
the uppermost of the pectoral rays bifurcate, they being entire in the others. Ohio
Valley, Pennsylvania, and Indiana.

Var. alvordi (Gra. ) is short and chubby, with tho first dorsal rather high and joined
by membrane to the second more than in other forms. Common in Wisconsin and
Michigan.

Var. meridionalis (Grd.) is rather robust, with the dorsal fins scarcely connected, and
the mouth rather larger, the maxillary extending to opposite posterior border of eye;
the preopercular spine is sharp and directed well upward. Pennsylvauia to North
Carolina, along the Alleghanies ; abundant.

Var. zophera (Jor.) is slender and very dark in color, and more conspicuously varie-
gated; the palatine teeth well developed. Alabama River.

Var. caroline (Gill) is a very large form, rather robust, reaching a length of nearly
six inches, without axillary prickles, and with the palatine teeth well developed. The
lateral line, as in the other forms, is sometimes coutinuous and sometimes interrupted.
It abounds in the limestone region from Indiana to Tennessee, and is frequently found
in caves and under railroad culverts.

The following interesting account of the habits of this species is from
the pen of Prof. 8. H. Gage, of Cornell University. He terms the fish
the “Cuyuga Lake Star Gazer.”

“ This curious little fish Uranidea bairdi, which, when it is full grown, is only about
as long as one’s middle finger, justly merits its name, as its eyes are directly on top of its
head. Its salt water cousin 1s the Sea Robin or the Gurnard, which it resembles in
having very large pectoral fins placed close to the broad head. These fius are so large,
and the head so broad that the fish looks as if it were nearly all head and pectoral fins.
The Star Gazer is so peculiar in form and habits, that in nearly every locality a special
name bas been given it. The fishermen of Cayuga Lake call it the ‘stone fish,” as itis
found almost exclusively under stones. In the northern part of the State it is called a
‘‘flying fish,” from its rapid movements, and in England it is called the “millers
thumb,” from the supposed resemblance of its broad, flat head to a miller’s thumb.

“The Eurvpean Star Gazer ( Uranidea gobeo) was known to that pioneer in all human
knowledge, Aristotle, who called it Kottus, whence the modern scientific name Cottus.

MILLER’S THUMB. 991

He described its characteristics admirably, saying that it; lived under stones, and that
when the top of the stone was struck, the fish would come out and dart around with
incredible swiftness, as if the unwonted noise made it crazy.

“The Star Gazer lives in clear, cold brooks, and in the sheltered part of lakes; and
like many other fishes does not object to eating its small:r brothers and sisters. The
subject of this paper lives near the west shore of the lake, down three or four miles at
least, and is especially abundant at the mouth of cool, spring brooks.

“ There are two inferesting points with reference to its eating and respiration that
have never been described of any fish in American books so far as I know. Fishes are
very quick in their movements, and very slippery, so that itis not only difficuit to catch
them, but to hold them after they are caught. In the Star Gazer, as in many oiher
fishes, there is a very effectual means of preventing the escape of whatever may be
caught. in both jaws there are very numerous, sharp, conical, recurved teeth, having
a strong hinge on the side toward the throat, and an elastic band on the opposite side.
These hinged teeth are set upon a bony base, and from the arrangement of the hinge,
they are very readily bent toward the throat, but are immediately siraightened by the
elastic band when the pressure is removed ; but after being once straightened the strong
hinge and bony base will not allow them to move farther in that direction. Wheuever
a fish is canght the teeth are readily bent toward the throat, thus freely permitting
motion in that direction; but if by any means the motion tended to be in the other di-
rection, the teeth would form a myriad of rigid hooks preventing any escape In all
the struggles of the prey to escape, every motion toward the throat would be easy, but
mötion in the opposite direction would be impussible, so that the very efforts 10 escape
only render escape the more hopeless. Truly we might well write over tois fearful
portal the gloomy words of Dante, ‘‘ All hope abandon ye who enter here.”

“The mechanism of respiration is very complex, but its whole office is to force cnr-
rents of water over the gills and so purify the blood. There is one very interesting
point in this mechanism, which has not been described in American books as js stated
above, but which is easily understood. As fishes do not have fleshy lips to securely
close their mouths, it is evident that when there is an attempt to force the water filing
the mouth cavity over the gills and out through the gil] fissures, it will tend to flow out
through the mouth as well as through the gill fissures To prevent thi, regurgitation,
and insure the passage of the current over the gills there is both on the floor and roof
of the mouth, just behind the jaws, a crescent shaped membranous enrtain. Tlese cur-
tains are attached at their anterior edges, but their posterior e/ges float freely. When-
ever water is drawn into the mouth the curtains float up against the roof and down
against the floor of the mouth, offering no resistance whatsoever to the current. When
the mouth is closed to force the water over the gills, the water tends to flow out through
the opening of the mouth, butin doing so it gets above and below the curtains, moving
them so that their free edges meet, and as they are so fastened in front that they can-,
not move further after their edges meet, the current of water is not allowed to go fur-
ther in that direction, and therefore must pass over the gills and out through the fis-
sures. These curtains in the mouth of the fish act precisely like the valves in the heart,
they freely permit a current of fluid in one direction, but not in the reverse.

“The color of the Star Gazer is reddish brown, with deeper transverse bars. In the
spring some of them are entirely black. It is so quick in its movements that it some-
times takes five or ten minutes to cateh one. If the fish is frightened out of its hiding
place under a stone, and ehased five or ten minutes before being caught, it will not be

992 FISHES—COTTIDA.

black as when first seen, but of a light gray colour. This change of color from black to
gray takes place in five minutes, and sometimes even less, aud changes completely the
appearance of the fish. This rapid change of color was so new to me that it was demon-
strated over and over again to make sure there was no mistake The cause seamed
to be the great fright and the light. Upon studying them more carefully in an aquarium,
it was fouud that when the water became deprived of its oxygen they would pant like
a suffocating animal, and become very pale just as they did when frightened. If the
water is changed, these pale fish soon regain their natural color and respire slowly and
regularly. B

“It has been known to fishermen from time immemorial that many fishes imitate the,
bottom on which they live, changing their color whenever put upon a differently colored
bottom. This fact has been recently studied with great care, and has been very satis-
factorily explained. It was found that the skin contained very many pigment cells,
which may be expanded into thin sheets or contracted into almost invisible dots. These
cells are of three colors, black, red, and yellow, the black being most abundant. As
they are intimately mingled together, it is evideut that a great variety of shades may
be produced by a suitable combination of the colors. If the black cells were contracted,
and the red or yellow cells expanded, the fish would be red or yellow, or if the red cells
were expanded in certain regions, the yellow in others, and the black in others, a spotted
or striped appearance would be given. It was also found that if a fish were put upon
differently colored bottoms frequently, it soon became able to change its color very much
more quickly than at first.

“If the eyes be blinded no change in color takes place, but if the eyes are left perfect,
and a spinal nerve be cut, then the skin supplied by that nerve remains of a natural
tint, although the surrounding skin whose nervous supply has been unaffected, will
change through its whole range of colors.

“ There is one point in the character of the Star Gazer, which is, so far as I know,
unique with fishes. If one be carefully watched at a considerable distance, the respira-
tions, indicated by the alternate opening and closing of the mouth and gill fissures, will
be seen to take place about forty times per minute. Now, if one suddenly moves up very
near the fish, not the slightest mosion of the body or of the respiratory apparatus can
be detected. If, however, one remains pertectly still for about half a minute, and
watches the gill covers, he will see them commence to rise and fall very gently, and in
two or three minutes the respirations will be as vigorous as ever. This experiment may
be tried over any number of times and always with the same result. This is equiva-
lent to holding the breath with the higher animals, and is apparently for the same pur-
pose ; viz, to escape detection. This supposition is verified by the following observa-
tion. As wus stated above, a fish in impare water respires very rapidly and with des-
perate etiort. No matter how suddenly one moves near a fish in this condition, not the
slightest notice is taken of it; that is, the distress of suttocation has rendered the fish
indifferent to its surroundings

“The parental instincts of the Star Gazer are no less interesting than its purely selfish
ones. If one goes to the west shore of the lake from April to July, and lifts up flat
stones in water twelve to fifty centimetres deep, there will be found clinging to the
under side of many of them an irregular, conical mass of beautiful salmon colored eggs,
and under the same stone a Star Gazer. If the fish be frightened away, but nothing
else disturbed, it will return in a short time as if to take charge of the eggs. The eggs
are those of the Star Gazer, as is proved by hatching them; and the belief that the fish

!

COW-FACED SCULPIN. 993

is there to watch them is irresistible; for it returns to them after being driven away,
and stays on guard from the time the eggs are laid in April until they are hatched in
July.

“The eggs are laid near the shore in shallow water, but the fish seems to have fore-
thought; for they are never laid above the low water mark of July, heace in April or
May one must look in deeper water for them than in July.

“When the eggs are laid they are mingled with a clear, thick substance like the white
ofegg; but this sabstance hardens almost as soon as it is brought in contact with water,
and is a true hydraulic coment, serving to fasten the eggs firmly together, and to attach
them to whatever they are pressed against. So firmly does this cement hold the eggs,
that they will be broken before separating from each other or from the stone to which:
the cluster is attached.

‘Now, if the eggs in the middle of the cluster should hatch first, the fishes would not
only find it hard to get out, but would loosen the cluster from the stone. This does not
occur, but first the outside layer of eggs hatches, and then the next, and so on till all
are hatched. It may seem strange that eggs laid at one time should not all hatch
together; but observation has shown that heat hastens and cold retards the hatching of
the eggs of cold blooded animals as well as those having warm blood. The order in
which the Star Gazer’s eggs are hatched becomes intelligible from what has just been
said, when it is remembered that the outside layer of eggs is constantly laved by the
surrounding water, and is first warmed by it, while the deeper layers are not so soon
affected.”

This species is occasionally taken with the-hook in our clear streams.
It bites readily, and is, in its way, voracious. In the aquarium its
movements are interesting, much like those of the Darters; but it is
unable to endure foul water. It is too small to be used for food. The
largest specimens we have seen have been taken in cave streams, in
which waters the species is especially abundant. It does not, however,
go far into the caves, and its eyes are fully developed.

162. URANIDEA SPILOTA Cope.
Cow-faced Sculpin.

Uranidea spilota, Cops, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1665, 82.—Bean, Proc. U. S. Nat.
Mus., 1881, 127.

Cottopsis spilotus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 1, and Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1877, 61. $

Tauridea spilota, JORDAN and Rice, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 225.

Cottopsis ricei, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876.

Description —Body moderately elongate, depressed, the head especially so, quite
abruptly contracted opposite the base of anal, the body behind head nearly as deep
as wide; body behind the vent ratlier slender, subterete, giving a tadpole-like form;
jaws about equal, the lower narrower, but projecting in front; mouth rather contracted,
the maxillary scarcely reaching to eye; palatine teeth; eye 44 in head, half wider than
the interorbital space, about equal to snout ; eyes close together, entirely superior ; head
very broad and flat, as broad or broader than long, including the perpendicular spines,

63

994 FISHES—GADIDE.

its depth half its length; profile rising rapidly from head to base of dorsal, which runs
along a decided ridge or carina; preopercular spine extremely large, more than. three
times as large as in other of our fresh-water Cottoids, and as long as the eye; this spine
is hooked backwards, and is slightly spiral, giving the fish a decidedly buffalo-like
or cow-like physiognomy ; three spines hooked downwards below the large one, the
lower concealed ; a strong spine directed forwards at base of opercle; isthmus as wide
as.from snout to middle of orbit; head 33-5; depth 5}; fin rays: D. VIII,17; A 12;
ventrals 1-4; pectorals 16; branchiostegals 6; base of pectorals crescentic, their tips
just short of anal, the rays all simple; ventrals under pectorals reaching two-thirds to
vent, their membrane decurrent; dorsal beginning a trifle beyond ventrals, rather
nearer anal than snout; vent midway between base of caudal and snout; depth at first
ray of anal less than half length of head, the thickness at the same point a little more
than one-third; leass depth one-fourth of head; candal peduncle slenderer than in any
other Cottoid known to me in our fresh waters; bead smooth; space above lateral line
behind bead covered with small, stiff prickles, slightly hooked backwards, readily vis-
ible as little black specks when the skin is dry ; axillary region not provided with spines ;
color pale brown, rather fively specked and mottled with darker broan; pectorals mot-
tled; belly white. Length of smaller specimen (Nelson’s type) 2 5-6 inches; of
larger ?$.

Habitat, Great Lukes, in deep water; Lake Michigan (Nelson, Rice, Jordan); Lake
Ontario (Jordan) Several specimens of this -pecies are mixed with Girard’s original
types of Triglopsis thompsoni, in the United States National Museum; near Hudsou’s Bay
(Bean); also in Grand River (Cope). Not yet kn«wu from Obio, but probably occurring
in Lake’Erie.

Diagnosis.—From our other Sculpins this species may be known by the
prickly back. Specimens poorly preserved lose these prickles, however.
The species may then be distinguished by the cow-like physiognomy,
due to the great development and curvature of the preopercular spines.

FAMILY XXV. GADIDE. THE COD-FISHES.

Body elongate, compressed behind, tapering into the isocercal tail; scales small,
cycloid, covering head and body; lateral lice continuous; moath large, the teeth
pointed, variously arranged ; gill openings very wide, the membranes separate or nearly
80, free from the isthmus; pseudebranchi® obsolete; bones of head usnally unarmed ;
chin ueually with a barbel; fins all-compos-d of sofs rays only; dorsal fin very long,
sometimes divided into two or three fine; anal Jong, sometimes divided; caudal free
from dorsal and aval; ventrals narrow; jugular of 2 to 7 rays; pyloric c@ca numerous;
air-b!adder usually present; genera 15; species about 70. Fishes mostly of the North-
ern seas, many of them reaching a large size. Several of the most important food fishes,
as the Cad, Haddock, Hake, Pollock, Cusk, ete , belong to this family. A single species
is found in fresh waters.

a. Dorsal fins two, the first well developed; anal tin single; ventral rays six; chin
with a barbel A A R A R B 7 A ‘i . ? ; a Lota.

LAW YER. 995

Genus 86. LOTA. Cuvier.

Lota, Cuvizr, Regne Animal, ii, 1817.
Type, Gadus lota, L.: Lota maculosa, var. vulgaris, BEAN.
Etymology, Latin, lota, the ancient name of the Burbot.

Body long and low, depressed anteriorly, subterete medially, strongly compressed
behind ; head large, broad and flattened above, the interorbital space wide and flattened ;
eyes moderate, lateral, anterior; head above and behind eyes sealy; anterior nostrils
each with a small barbel; middle of lower jaw with a long one; mouth large, some-
what oblique, the upper jaw the longer; premaxillaries and lower jaw each with a
band of slender, recurved, equal, cardiform teeth; vomer with a broad band of similar
teeth, which extends backwards laterally ; no canine teeth; palatines toothless; gill-
membranes somewhat connected, free from the isthmus; branchiostegals 7 or 8; gill-
rakers very short, dentate; scales very small, cycloid, imbedded in the skin; lateral’
line present; vertical fins scaly; dorsal fins two, separate, the first short, of 10 to 13
well developed rays; second dorsal very long, similar to anal; caudal fin distinct,
rounded ; ventrals slender, long, of about six rays; pectorals moderate, broad. A sin-
gle species known, found in the fresh waters of Europe and North America.

163. Lora MacuLosa (LeSueur) Richardson.

Lawyer; Ling; Burbot; Aleky Trout; Mother of Eels; Cusk;
a Eel-pout.

Var. maculosa (American variety).

Gadus maculosa, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 83.

Molva maculosa, LESUER, Mem. du Mus., 1819, 159.

Lota maculosa, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., 1836, 248,—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist,, iv, 1842, 24.—DrKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 284.—BEAN, Science
‚News, 1878, 42, and of most American writere.

Gadus compressus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 84.

Lota compressus, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 471.

Gadus lacustris, MITCHILL, Amer. Month. Mag,, ii, 1817, 244 (not of Walbaum).

Molva huntia, LESyxuR, Mem. du Mus, v, 1819, 161.

Gadus lota, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1824, 74.

Lota brosmiana, STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist. iv, 1839, 58.

Lota inornata, DEKay, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 283.

Lota lacustris, G1LL, Canadian Naturalist, 1865.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., and of
several late writers (based on Gadus lacustris, WALBAUM ; a worthless description of
some fish, more likely an Amiurus).

Description —Color dark-olive above, usually thickly marbled with blackish, some-
times nearly plain brownish; belly yellowish or dusky; upper jaw longest; head
broad, depressed; D, XIII, 76; A. 68; V.60r7. Length 1 to 2 feet.

Habitat, Great Lake Region, and northward to Arctic Sea, Connecticut River, Hudson
River, lakes of New York, Maine, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, Upper Mississippi,
Missouri, etc, ; occasional in Ohio River.

996 FISHES—GADIDE.

Synonymy.— The earliest available specific name of this species (unless we call it
Lota lota) is maculosus LeSueur, as has been shown by Dr. Bean (l.c.). The prior name,
lacustris (* Gadus lacustris, Walbaum, 1792), which has been used by Dr. Gill and my-
self, appeärs not to have been given to this species, nor to anything in particular, and
is, therefore, not available. The earliest name of the European Burbot which
Dr. Bean has found, is Lota vulgaris, Jenyns (1835). The European form is provisionally
considered a variety (var. vulgaris), differing only in the fewer vertebrae (61 instead of
64). Most of the common names of this species have been given in allusion to its re-
semblance to marine Gadoid fishes, as ‘‘ ling,” “ cusk,” ete.

Diagnosis.—The “Lawyer” or Burbot may be known from all other
Ohio fishes by the presence ef a single barbel on the chin.

Habits.—This species inhabits chiefly large bodies of water, particularly
broad, still, or deep rivers and lakes. Its range is entirely northward,
Kansas City and New Albany, Indiana, being the southernmost
points from which it has been recorded. In Ohio it is found in some
abundance in Lake Erie. As an article of food it is not highly valued.
The unattractive appearance of the fish is probably the cause of this,
rather than any bad character of the flesh. The flesh is to my taste
fairly good, although rather tough and destitute of richness, ranking
about with the Cat-fishes, and decidedly better than the flesh of the
“Drum,” or of any of the Suckers. The liver is said to be especially
delicious, but my taste is not sufficiently delicate to distinguish it from
other fish liver, when cooked.

In Europe the Burbot is often boiled and eaten.cold with vinegar
and other codiments. So prepared, it is tough and tasteless.

The Burbot ‘‘is carnivorous and voracious, having a craving and wonderfully disten-
sible stomach, which makes it an efficient dredge in securing bottom fishes. From this
source was obtained the rare sculpin-like fish, Triglopsis thompsoni. It is said to lie in
wait under stones watching for its prey, and to feed principally at night.”—BEAnN.

ORDER 9. HEMIBRANCHII THE HALE-GILLED
FISHES.
No pneumatic duct communicating with the air-bladder; superior branchihyal and

pharyngeal bones reduced in number; inferior pharyngeals separated ; ventral fins ab-
dominal or subabdominal; pectoral fins elevated; mouth bounded by premaxillaries

* The following is Walvaum’s description of his ‘‘ Gadus lacustris :”

“ Gadus lacustris, Americanus Mathemeg; Anglis Land Cod, Pennant Arct. Zool.,
Introd., p. 191; Corpus tripedale, superne subspadiceum, inferne griseum; cirri tres, in mandi-
bula inferiore, quorum medius longitudine duos alios vincit.”

This description is valueless, and applies to no fish, The “Land Cod” of British
America is said to be an Amiurus, and there is little doubt that the species which hov
ered in the ‘‘distorted perspective” of Walbaum’s mental vision, to borrow an expres-
sion from Dr. Coues, was the Amiurus nigricans LeSueur.

LAWYER. 997

only; interclavicles developed. There are also several important peculiarities in the
shoulder girdle and skull, which separate these fishes from the perch-like forms. The
name hemi, half; bragchia, gills) alludes to the reduction in number of the branchihyals.

ANALYSIS OF FAMILIES OF HEMIBRANCHIL.

a. Bones of head moderately produced; ventral fins of a stout spine and a rudimen-
tary ray; dorsal fins preceded by free spines; body scaleless, naked, or mailed.
GASTEROSTEIDE

FAMILY XXVI. GASTEROSTEIDE.
THE STICKLEBACKS.

Body elongate, somewhat compressed, tapering behind to a slender caudal peduncle;
head rather long, the anterior part not produced into a tube ; mouth moderate, the cleft
oblique, the lower jaw prominent; teeth sharp, even, in a narrow band in each jaw ;
no teeth on vomer or palatines; premaxillaries protractile; preorbital rather broad ; sub-
orbital plate large, often covering the anterior part of the cheeks, connected with the
preopercles; opercles unarmed; branchiostegals three; gill-membranes broadly united,
free, or joined to the isthmus; gill-rakers moderate; no true scales, the skin naked or
with bony plates; dorsal with its spines disconnected, two or more in number; anal
similar to soft dorsal, armed with a single spine; ventral fins subabdominal, each con-
sisting of a single sharp spine and a rudimentary soft ray; middle or sides of belly
shielded by the innominate bones; pectorals short, placed at a considerable distance
from the gill openings from which they are separated by a quadrate, naked area covered
with shining skin; caudal fin narrow, usually lunate; air-bladder simple; a few pyloric
coca; genera 5, the two mentioned are, however, scarcely worthy of separation from
Gasterosteus. About twenty species are known, most of them of very wide distribution
jn the rivers and bays of northern regions. They are all of small size, and are exceed -
ingly active, pugnacious, and destructive.

“<Tt is scarcely to be conceived what damage these little fishes do, and how greatly
detrimental they are to the increase of all, the other fishes among which they live, for it
is with the utmost industry, sagacity, and greediness that they seek out and destroy all
the young fry that come their way.”

The Sticklebacks build elaborate nests in the spawning season. These the male fish
defends with much spirit.

ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF GASTEROSTEIDE.

a. Innominate bones joined together, forming a triangular or lanceolate bony piece
on the middle line of the abdomen behind the ventral fins; gill-membranes
posteriorly free from the isthmus.

b. Dorsal spines 4 to 6, in the same line when erected; no candal keel. EUCALIA. 87
bb. Dorsal spines 8 to 10, not in a right line when erected, but projecting altern-
ately to the right and left; caudal keel present. . . . PYGostEus. 88.

Genus 87. EUCALIA. Jordan.

Gasterosteus sp., KIRTLAND, STORER, and others.

Eucalia, JORDAN, Man. Vert., Ed. 1st, 1876, 248; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sc, Paila., 1877, 65.
Type, Gasterosteus inconstans, Kirtland.
Etymology, eu, well; kalia, nest.

998 FISHES—GASTEROSTEIDE.

Smooth-skinned Sticklebacks with the caudal keel undeveloped ; the dorsal spines in
small number and placed vertically in a right line; the spines all unserrated; ventral
plates coalesced into a narrow plate on the.median line between the veutra] fins; a dis-
tinct subquadrate post-pectoral plate; caudal peduncle comparatively short and stout ;
gill-membranes posteriorly free from the isthmus.

Small fishes inhabiting the inland brooks and lakes of the Northern United States.
But one species is certainly known, running into two or three varieties. This group is
probably unworthy of generic distinction from Gasterosteus, from which it difters mainly
in its feeble spines, and lack of armature, and in the freedom of the gill-membranes
from the isthmus.

164. EucaLıa inconstans (Kirtland) Jordan.

Brook Stickleback.

Gasterosteus inconstans, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., 1839; STORER, Synopsis, 1846.
—COoPE, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila , 186. °

Apeltis inconstans, JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 1875, 217.

Eucalia inconstans, JORDAN, Man. Vert, 1876, 248; Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila., 1877, 65;
Man. Vert., Ed. 1, 1878, 259.—NeLson, Bull. Ills. Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876 —JoRDAN and
COPELAND, Clteck List, 1876.

Gasterosteus micropus, COPE, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1264, 186.

var. pygmaa.

Gasterosteus pygmeus, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850.
Eucalia inconstans var. pygmea, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 248; Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila,,
1877, 66.—Man. Vert., Ed, 2d, 1878, 259.

var. cayuga,

Eucalia inconstans var. cayuga, JORDAN, Man, Vert., Ed. lst, 1876, 249; Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc,
Phila., 1877, 66; Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 1878, 259.

Description —Males in spring jet black, tinged anteriorly with coppery red; females
and young olivaceous, mottled and dotted with black ; body moderately elongate, little
compressed, the caudal peduncle comparatively stout, not keeled ; skin smooth, entirely
destitute of dermal plates, the skeletal plates covered by it; innominate bones small,
lanceolate, covered by the skin ; area in front of pectorals small ; thoracic processes very
slender and widely separated, covered by skin; gill: membranes somewhat free from the
isthmus posteriorly ; gill rakers short ; dorsal spines low, subequal, in a right line, those
in front lowest, a cartilaginous ridge along their base; ventral spines short and sharp,
serrated; head 34; depth 4; D. IV-I, 10; A.I, 10. Length 24 inches.

Habitat, sluggish, grassy brooks, from central Ohio, northern Illinois and Kansas
northward ; very abundant in the tributaries of the Great Lakes.

Habits.—This interesting little fish is very abundant in many streams
in the northern part of Ohio. It frequents small brooks, lurking among
the weeds and grass, ready to dart on any luckless minnow or insect that
attracts its notice. In the aquarium these Sticklebacks are excessively

MANY-SPINED STICKLEBACK. 999

quarrelsome, and in default of other game they destroy each other. The
males are more active than the females. In the breeding season the
males become jet black. In the spring this species, as well as all the
other species of Stickleback, builds a nest for its eggs, and defends this
nest vigorously.

GENUS 83. PYGOSTEUS. Brevoort.

Pygosteus (Brevoort, Mss ), GILL, Cat. Fishes East Coast, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci., 1861 (not
characterized); Can. Nat., August, p. 8 (reprint), 1865.
Gasterostea, SAUVAGE, Nouv. Archives du Mus., Paris, 1872.
Type, Gasterosteus occidentalis, Cuv. and Val.=G. pungitius L.
Etymology, puge, rump; osteon, bone.

Body slender, elongate, somewhat compressed ; caudal peduncle very slender, with a
strong keel on each side, which renders ‘it much broader than deep; skin destitute of
bony plates (except those connected with the pelvis); the plate extending upward from
the ventral fins well developed, striated ; head rather long; the mouth as in the other
species; naked area in front of pectorals moderate; backward processes from the
shoulder-girdle below well developed, widely divergent, forming a V shaped figure, em-
bracing a large naked space; dorsal spines moderate, subequal, or the anterior ones
rather highest ; spines not set in a right line, diverging alternately fo the tight and left,
with more or less regularity ; spines 7 to 9 in number; anal spine similar to the others;
innominate bones rather feeble, joined more or less completely on the middle line of the
belly ; ventra] spines moderate, finely toothed ; gill-membranes free from the isthmus
posteriorly. Perhaps but a single species widely distributed in northern regions, in both
fresh and salt water. The group differs from Gasterosteus mainly in tie increased num-
ber of dorsal spines, and the greater freedom of the gill-membranes. It is probably un-
worthy of retention as a distinct genus.

165. Pyaosreus Ppuneitius (L.) Gill.
Many-spined Stickleback.

Gasterosteus pungitius, LINN&Zvs, Syst. Nat. 1753.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish,, i, 6, nn Bull.
U.S. Nat. Mus., xv, 1879, 129, and of most writers:

Gasterosteus concinhus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor. Amer., 1836, 57.—GUNTAER, Cat. Fish.,
i, 6.

Gasterosteus occidentalis, Cuv.and VAL., Hist. des Poiss., iv, 1829, 509. —DeKAY, New York
Fauna Fishes, 68.—GUNTHER, i, 6.

Pygosteus pungitius, GILL, Mss.

Gasterosteus mainensis, STORER, Bost. Journ., i, 464.—GUNTHER, i, 6.

Gasterosteus nebulosus, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1350.

Pygosteus nebulosus, JORDAN, Man.-Vert., 1876.

Pygosteus occidentalis, var. nebulosus, JORDAN, Man. Vert, Ed. 1, 260.

Gasterosteus dekayi, AGAssız, Lake Superior, 1850, 311.—STORER, Hist. Fish. Mass.

Gasterostea pungitia, occidentalis and blanchardi, SAUVAGE, Nouv. Archiv. Mus. Paris, 1873.

Description.—Olivaceous above, profasely punctulate; sides irrezularly barred with
darker ; belly silvery; body very slender, somewhat compressed, tapering into the very

1000 ° FISHES—GASTEROSTEIDZ.

long and slender caudal peduncle, which is much depressed and strongly keeled, broader
than deep; no dermal plates; plates of the skeleton not all covered by skin; post
pectoral plate well developed, striated ; head shortish, the snout rather blunt; thoracic
processes well developed, widely divergent, forming a V-shaped figure; dorsal spines
moderate, the anterior diverging to the right or left at different angles, the posterior
more nearly erect; anal spine large, larger than the dorsal spines; innominate bone
feeble, lanceolate, not carinated, its edges raised; ventral spines moderate, serrulate,
length more than one-third that of head; gill rakers long and slender ; gill membranes
posteriorly free from the isthmus; head 4; depth 54; D. IX-I, 9; A.I,8. Length 2}
inches.

Habitat, northern parts of Europe and North America, widely distributed, inhabiting
both salt and fresh waters. It is found in rather deep water in the Upper Great Lakes,
and northward to the Saskatchawan, and doubtless beyond. It has not yet been ob-
served in Lake Erie, :

I have compared numerous specimens of the lake form (var. nebulosus),
sent me by Dr. P. R. Hoy, from Racine, Wisconsin, with examples of the
common marine form of G. pungitius, and I find no constant difference,
Dr. Bean finds also no difference between the marine form found in
America (occidentalis) and the common G. pungitius of Europe.

The habits of the lake form have necessarily become somewhat changed
from those of its marine relatives.

Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once from all other little
fishes found in our fresh waters by the presence of about ten spines in
its dorsal fin, arranged in a zigzag row, and entirely disconnected from
each other. °

Habits.—Little distinctive is known of its habits. It has thus far been
found in rather deep water in Lakes Michigan and Superior, and, al-
though not generally common, it may sometimes be found in considerable
numbers. It is a most active and gracefui little fish, and with it we
close our series of the Fishes of Ohio.

ADDENDA AND ERRATA.

On page 757 for “Genus?2. Scolecosoma, Girard ;” read ‘““Genus?2. Ichthyomyzon. Girard.”

The proper type of Ichthyomyzon is Petromyzon argenteus Kirtl. ; Scolecosoma was based
on the young of the same species.

On page 757 for ‘2. Scolecosoma argenteum (Kirtland) Jordan ;” read ‘‘ Ichthyomyzon ar-
genteus (Kirtland) Girard.

On page 764 for “3. Polyodon folium Lacepede;” read “3. Polyodon spathula (Wal-
baum) Jordan;” and add to the synonymy, ‘‘ Squalus spathula Walbaum, Artedi
Piscium, 1792, 522.”

On page 781 for “11. Anguilla vulgaris Turton ;” read “11. Anguilla rostrata (LeSueur)
DeKay.”

The American Hel seems to be a distinct species from the Common Eel
of Europe. The following graphic description of its habits is from the
pen of Mr. Wm. H. Ballou, of Chicago:

“ They are among the most voracious of carnivorous fishes. They eat most inland
fishes except the Gar-fish and the Chub. Investigation of six hundred stomachs by
Oswego fishermen showed that the latter bony fish never had a place on their bill of
fare. They are particularly fond of game fishes, and show the delicate taste of a con-
noisseur in their selections from choice Trout, Bass, Pickerel, and Shad. They fear not
to attack any object when disposed, and their bite on human flesh shows even a vicious
attitude towards man. On their hunting excursions they overturn huge and small stones
alike, working for hours if necessary, beneath which they find species of Shrimp and
Cray fish, of which they are exceedingly fond. Their noses are poked into every imagin-
able hole in their search for food, to the terror of innumerable small fishes.

“Kels are to the water what the fish-hawk is to the air. They are among the most
powerful and rapid of swimmers. Again, they hide in the mud beneath some log or
overhanging rock, and dart out with tremendous fury on their unsuspecting prey. They
attack the spawn of other fishes open-mouthed, and are even said to suck the eggs
from an impaled female. They fearlessly and rapidly dive head foremost in the mud-
disappearing in an instant. They are owl-like in their habits, committing their depre-
dations at night.

“No fish is known to feed upon the grown Eel. Pickerel, Gar-fish and Bass are sup-
posed to devour the young fry.”

On page 817 for ‘‘39. Catostomus teres (Mitchill) LeSueur;” read ‘39. Catostomus com-
mersonii (Lacepede) Jordan.”

Nots.—The present report was prepared by the writer and submitted by him to Pro-
fessor Newberry in the year 1878. The first part of the report, from page 735 to page
848, was printed during the summer of 1881, as originally written, the writer not seeing

@

1002 ADDENDA AND ERRATA.

the proof-sheets. The manuscript of that part of the work from the Hyodontide to the
end has been revised by the author in the fall uf 1881, and thereby brought up to date.
This will account for several discrepancies between the nomenclatnre as given in the
lists of Ohio fishes (pp. 743-753), and that appearing in the text.

It has been found impossible in the printing-office to which the State of Ohio entrusts
its public printing, to send proof-sbeets to the authors for correction. I am, therefore,
under great obligations to Dr. J. M. Wheaton for the care which he has taken iu reading
the proof-sheets in my stead.

Drawings of about one hundred species of Ohio fishes were prepared for this paper
by Dr. E. R. Copeland, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The authorities in charge »f the
printing have, however, for some reason not seen fit to have them engraved.

D.8. J.

CORRECTION TO MAMMALIA.

Pages 118, 119—Dr. Frank W. Langdon in his paper on the ‘‘Mammalia of the
Vicinity of Cincinnati,” says (Journ. Cin. Soc. Nat. Hist., Jan., 1881, p. 305, foot.note).

“Since the present article has been in type, I have received, through the kindness of
Dr. J. M. Wheaton, of Columbus, Ohio, proof sheets of Dr. A. W. Brayton’s forthcoming
Report on the Mammalia of Ohio (Ohio Geol. Survey, iv), in which I find myself given
as authority for the occurrence of Spermophilus franklini in this State. This is an error
for which I am personally and solely responsible, having misinterpreted Dr. Byrnes’
description of the animal at the time of sending the note to Dr. Brayton. Subsequently
a more detailed description from D:. Byrnes revealed the fact that the animal was S.
tridecimlineatus, but by some oversight on my part, Dr. Brayton was never notified of the
correction; his remarks on S. franklini, therefore, so far as they relate to Ohio, should
be referred to S. tridecimlineatus.” :

‚INDEX.

PAGE
Accipiter cooperi.--. -- “ann ---22+------ 421
Fuscus ..- --. nee 420
Acipenser maculosus...-...----.------- 768
rubicundus 2244 coon ee ene anne 766
ACIPENSERIDE ches ccinie'wie wie! se'sisies 766
Aeris grillus crepitans ..........-.---. 705
Actiturus bartramius ....-. ===. nu. 0... 489
Adder, Spreading..........-...---.-- 636
Water .2.=u..5-..0#3222 20-2 633
Kgialitis meloda ..---- ---0.-.---.-..-- 459
semipalmata ......-.--.-- anne 458
POCUCPD. una 457
ZEgiothus linaria .-.. 22-20. enue eee n ne - 319
Agelaius phaniceus _.....20-.-222. anne 355
AW BPONSOsscclesescansetesc ddeswavestan, 02
Alauda arvensis ...--..--.0+ .e-eee une 234
ALAUDIDA »..u.uua00 0000er een 234
ALCEDINIDE ana anna nen cee eee san 389
ALECTORIDA u... ante 507
Alosa sapidissima.....2. -u00 22-220 00 872
Alvordius aspro „=-.=--- .---n sun ---- 972
EVIdeB uses een 974
macrocephalus.----- -- ----2+ ann 972
phoxocephalus ---==- .----- ==.» 972

varalls-zua-scn Beisein do
Ambloplites rupestris. .---.---- “nun une. 941

AMBLYOPSIDE .... uun nenne coe e ee nn 909
Amblyopsis spel@us - ..-00- auenun wee ee 901
Amblystoma jeffersonianum ...--.------ 721
MICTOBLOMUM „una weeees reeves -- 722
OPACUM .. 200s wecnne raunun namen 719
punctatum „===. +--+. ERBEN 719
tigrinunsnasuusansenssneen nun 720
xiphias „nn. runnunennnnn nun 722
Amia calya ..---- ----unuanune nennen 777
AMUDE ..- en cnn e cece ee name nenn 776

PAGE

Amiurus CAIUS „nun -ennnunannnnn nenn 793
MATMOTAEUB anan nenn wee eee eee =e 792

NVEUAS nahe gute einai oe se 793
Natalie. oo euere ee 790
NIGTICONG aaa 769
Vulgaris „uses een ae 791
wanthocephalus sun ana een nnnn- 796

_ Ammocates niger ..-...--2- 06+ ------- 756
Ammocrypta pellucida. ----. ------ -==- 965
AMPELIDE gesandt 294
Ampelis cedrorum „----- ------uunnan ne 296
Garrulus unseren va 294
AMPHIBIA ...-..s2eue+ en eeathoowress 701
Amyda MULCH sons ccneee “nun 00 nenn 668
ANGE DORCAS einen anne 522
OUSCUNG zuende ee 523
ANATIDB 22.22-22.45 DO,
Ancistrodon contortriw „2. - 220 «+--+ 675
Anguilla rostrata ---- ---- -ouuunsnnnen 1001
VUELOS aus taeeenien ee OL
ANGUILLIDA: „u.0=2. 2.2 Scene 780

Anorthura hyemalis
ANOURA zusehen 701
Anthus ludovicianus 236
Antrostomus vociferus....-...-e02--0+- 382

Anser albifrons gambeli .......---0- a 517
COTULESCENS ~20- 22-22 2-2 519
hyperboreus .... 222. smuane ann =e 518

Aquila chrysaetus ....- ---- -uuaun nenne 432

APHREDODERIDE „un 0-22-22. nn. 919

Aphredoderus sayanus......-.----- un 920

Archibuteo sancli-johannis „==. ---. .--. - 430

Arctomys MONAK ..---.-- anne nun 122, 185

Ardea COrwled ...22. “une ++ conn anne nee 502
candidissima „=... seees.------- 502

egretta ...2-.---- Soke edles: . 501

1004 INDEX.
PAGE PAGE
Ardea herodias - ------ ------ 222 0000 -- 500: | Bittern. 2.422 see owen. 504
DIESEN Een 503 Least ...-.. u... een ae 505
ARDEIDE „onennerenunnnennnnennnnnn. 499 | Blackbird, Crow -----..-----.------- 361
Megan erlassen Meere eh 505 Red-winged ......c-....00---+- 355
Aromochelis odoratus ..-...---- .--0--+- 666 Yellow-headed ...-...--------- 356
ARTIODACTYLA. usw san anne see 6%:°| Black. sc. soccshess gucecteseses 884
Arvicola ausieruß „ua nane anen anne ene 143 | Black-head, Greater ......-..---+---- 529
Pinelorum 2cacescoe sacs ave cass 148 LGS860 asien 530
TIPOTUG oS a rosincawe seca ceewel 145 | Black Horse... sowsisssiscwasesescesies 814
Aspidonectes spinifer zu. »----- ==... 668 | Blarina brovicauda „u. .....- bessert 96
Asiur atricapillus onarun anne con. nenn 422 a eR ee un... 88, 180
Atalapha cinereus aoe vennes snanen anne 88 | Blindfish, Larger ....---.--.----- 0... 901
NOVEDOTACENSIB ....-.--. anne 86 Smallisasssss sa 901
ATHERINIDR access ee 918: |. BOB. cccascscesce eens csowesen ees en 989
AVOCOb senken ee 461. |: Bluebird. 1.22. 22.5224 25222422 212
Badger’ ars are ae 41 | Biue-fin iu. seen ceveessswencccwncu. 884
Baldpalssasscn sans ae 525: | Bobolinkise-cs-sctecesscesesece eedcas 351
Barefish unseren sie 922. | Bob-white ---=.0==u: 400 un: u 448
Bascanion constrictor „nanan suuane nun 693 | Boleosoma nigrum ..-2-- socce+ cone nenn 966
Bass, Black Wear ar an erate ECRIEN 942 olmatadi Las sassesee sagen ones O67
Large-mouthed.. ..---- .- ---- -- 952 | Bombycilla garrula .... auun anne anne nn 917
Small-mouthed ...-.. -..-.. 0. 948 | Bonasa umbellus ......---- anne nnnn nn 447
Calico; Grass .....----..------ 925 | Botaurus minor „=. .--.----2- nennen 504
Eake.. anne nee 941: ;Bowehn..sa-srssstane 777
Large-finned .....-.--.-------- 926: BOVIDM sa csecerecdicwecs vase Gace sees 68
ROCs suas score atabe Gaetonddeges 941 | Brachyotus palustris „ou uno socece-- 410
Shining: i552! cuide ns emcee sees 926 | Branta bernicla .... ---- ---+ e220 ------ 520
StHpOd .ccdsc0 cee: necedsweeseas 935 canadensis „nu sanneon ceneee nun 521
Wille su dreschansse 955 |. huichinsü .... nano unun ------ 522
VoONMOw wince cewicics een 956 | Bream, Copper-nosed..---.-...------ 936
Bat, Carolina. ..2...2-2. scene ana nn. 84 _ Red-bellied ...-...--.....---.- 933
Little Brown ....-.--...----.-- 83 Red-eyed ....-...------- ise came 939
Höäty.:--.u2:022 4. ee 88 | Brindle-fish ...-.. „eur 20... 22 neun. 777
New York..... reihen 86 | Bubalichthys bubalus ....2.---.------- 807
Red avcsnsesiewecte-acesexscus 86 UFUS) aus Shes en sawed 807
Silver Black......-...2- een 84: 15Bubbler nee wn weus Cees occ ac 982
Batohelor xecessesee woos 2 :=====.: wu. 924 | Bubo virginianus ..... 2.2. -22. 2-2. ann 407
Bear! .2...=-0:000 ne essen 64 | Bucephala albeola...--...---2. +--+ ann 533
Beaver »-.u..uu un seas ne 126 olangula.=-n.====..===0r #000 40er 58D
Bibliography of Omithology...... --..- 594 | Buffalo... .----- EEE SEAN 68
Birds, Additions and Corrections...... 588 Big-mouthed ......-....--.---- 807
Check List of .....-.. VER ERRERR 570 Blacki era 807
Orders Of ssc. cesses 222er 199 High-backed .-...-.-==- cscs cece 807
Pattern of coloration of....-..- 613 Large-mouthed .........--.--.- 805
Variation of........-.-. N 194 Monpgrel-- usa. 807
Bison americanus .. 00. erenansaunnn en - 68 Red-mouthed...........-.-.-.. 805
Bitter-head woos =... sac =: «rss 925 Small-mouthed .......... Nase 807

INDEX 1005

PAGE PAGE

Buffalo-fish sccss2seceesces ase cccces 807 | Cat, Duck-billed ................2-.- 764
Bufo lentiginosus .... .-.--. .a00+- nenn. 702 Florida. sis een 789
BUFONIDE .s.nan asses ssecee codec ce 702 Fork-tailed...... FRE ETE 785
Bull:heäd....e. ec ee 793 Great . ....-. --20 nenne. 789
Cay Orsicmes oc tacces tscacmccue 989 Mississippi ==>. 4====+20+222%= 789
Bunting, Bay-winged .......... 2... 326 Mountain: =... 10
Black-throated ...... 220. 2.0... 343 BILVEr ac essen 786
HensloWR:. Aussee ae es, 328 Stone, Chubby ..............-- 801
NOW esse naeh 323 Slender ».=uu-..n0u00 4300 800
TOWN Lucene ee aan 350 Variegated ............. 800
Burbot ..--..220 eee BER ERER 995 Tipet scene 10
Butcher Bird: unseren 306, 592 We nenn seen 786
Buteo aquilinus -.- u... -- ununan nano une 427 Mellowi een 790
Unegtus- zuuuun sun Jesse 438 | Cab-Dird sccscecucdselecececerscac sace 210
pensylvanicus zuun annenn --ce-e-- 499) | Catefishinccons see esse 790, 793
Buzzard, Broad-winged.............. 429 Long-jawed ........-.--20.---- 791
Red-shouldered.....-......--.. 428 Marbled ssiices seeccasicedencdee 792
Red-tailed 22:00 2206, 427 Mudsesasn seems 797
Röngh-legg6d..........00usu: 430 Of the Eaken.. une 789
Turkey Seesen een 437 Small Black... -...02-..2 793
Calidris arenaria zuunen neun ennnnn 479, 593 Small Yellow .........---..--. 796
Campbellite .......-- names ae 924 | Cathartes atratus =... ---.---ooen una 439
Campephilus prineipalis .------ .----- -- 394 QUID „neun anna aannaeunnennne 437
Campostoma anomalum .....-..--..-.- 836 | CATHARTIDA onen nenn eanenn nn nennen 436
CANIDE a a Massen 12 | CATOSTOMIDE snen anne sauna nennen 803
Canta lupus = ---r un... 0000 u 14, 171 | Catostomus commersonii........--.-...1001
CAPRIMUDGIDE: mas rauen aan 382 longirostris zaua anna een nenn 816
Carassius auratus .----- --uuunsennen ee 868 7 MIQIUCONS era 819
Cardinalis virginianus ......--2.------ 348 lere8 wean wane serene cone anna 817
Cariacus virginianus........--+.------ 78 | Cedar Bird wecoss ccs. cesecdcesees cans 296
CARNIV OBA „2,2000 sannenaen 5 | CENTRARCHIDS so 4e¢esys0 G21
Caip scesscseswittec:-padewed casey ss 869 | Centrarchus macropterus.........2..... 926
Dakeor.zars Gosckaneceveies secs 811 | Centurus carolinus.........--...-..... 399
Carphophis amenus..-==.- seen saeeee 698 | Ceratichthys amblyops.............---. 960
Carpiodes bison...--...--2-------+ nenne 811 biguttatus..........-. EEE, 861
CO PIO soratencaccrennes acess 809 | Certhia familiaris ........-22.--2-2--- 227
CUlisanserinuß «22222 “uunun anne 812: | VCERTHIDE er ake 226
CYPTINUS 12-0. - 2+ en ee rennen nn 810 | Ceryle alcyon „nu. 22. cee cone ceone. no 389
difformis .. 220. --0un - seen ee nun 813°) CERVIDAD 2322 iceeees ceases cessccace4 77
TROMPBOW: Gare user 811 | Cervus canadensis .... ..2...200...---- 79
POMPE insg daisies demain 812 | Chenobryttus antistius ...... gohan hans 939
Carpodacus purpureus „u... -uuu nun 315 | Chetura pelagica .......--- TRADE 385
Castor fiber zau:u= sane zuineen se 562s nee 126 | CHARADRIIDA ........222. nennen nenn 455
CASTORIDE .n-eun nennen cece ee anne 125 | Charadrius fuluus una aan onen nn 456
Cat; Blu.:-:2.2.0:Ksa=53 rasen 786 melodus „un ununenuannennn nn 220
Channel ........ TE 786 | Chat, Yellow-breasted.......... west 277
Chuckle-headed .......--.----- 726 | Chaulelasmus streperus....-..--0.200-- 525

1006 INDEX.
PAGE
Check List and Dates of Birds .-..... 570 | Coluber vulpinus .........---+-----
Chelopus insculptus.......-+--- iseesee 658 | COLUBRIDE ......-oonann nenne ann
Chelydra serpentina 656 | CoLUMBAE; COLUMBIDE
ÖHELYDRIDE „usa asec aaa sea 656 | Colymbus arcticus ......---- ann nun
Cherry Bird... 2222.22: 296 _ Septentrionalis .....----+----0-- 565
Chewink cx ==... rear 350 torquatus ....2. unnnn ansehen 564
Chickadee, Black-capped ....-. .----.- 222 | Condylura cristata..... NE 176
Caroling. sa. ecstasy sie weet 223 | Contopus borealis. .... 22-22. sees nun 371
Chickaree ......-. 222. eee nee eee ee 105 VITENS „un nn Eee 372
Chipmunk :....504 cescassanees scenes 115 | Conurus carolinensis ......---. .------- 403
CHIROPTERA. - 2... 200000 == cceces sees 81. || Coot: -===2.4:- 2a een ine 515
Chologaster agassizi ..---..--.---. 200 902 | Copperhead ..---. ---- ana sera 675
CHONDROSTEL .-- --- - -2200 auen eee ene 766 | Coregonus artedi.......--- denen 882
Chordeiles virginianus .....--..-+----- 383 clupeiformis „en. "nenn nnnane 879
Chondestes grammaca ..-..------------ 339 höyl: ana nee ana 881
Chorophilus triseriatus ......---------- 704 labradoricus „ne .---20 eee eee. 881
CHOUICHR ae s22:.=- 2 Laced, ge STIER. 886 nigripinnis „neuen nuanunanennnnn 884
Chriope heterdon ....-...20+ anne enannn 846 quadrilateralis .----. „onen uane- 878
Chriope, Northern........--.-..-.--- 846 tullibee Lane auunen ne sewer nun &85
Chrosomus erythrogastra .........20--- 837 | Cormorant, Common .-...-.-...-....-. 545
Chrysemys marginata ...--. FREE 664 Double-crested ...... ------ 543
ION sseceaincce se eereeee 663 Mlorida, 2.5 0... 2-8 544
Chrysomitris pinus ....-...---.------. 320 | CORVIDE 2... 222. anne eee eee anne 363
ee Sowig assess oc seceens 322 | Corvus americanus ...-... essen 364
Chub zen coe teeesacssosye 863 OU OB ss cnials Senmeserwaasweees ces 363
Bigseyed.: use 860 | COTTIDE ...u-...0...- enssssge tunen 984
Creek: ara ee 863 | Cottogaster copelandi.......-----..+-+- 969
Days ae 841 | Cottus, Hoy’s ---- ..---- ----2unonu nn 987
Biker. eier 862 | Coturniculus henslovü....--- zaunun un. - 328
Nigger ce einen nen 8al Passerinus 22202 caw e ee annane nn 327
River ..-2.. 2220+ sees sees nun 861 | Cotyle riparia -..nn 22222-2220. eee 290
CIGONID AD. a a 594: | ‘Cougars. 2222-2 en ee 6
CINOSTERNIDE ..---.---enne -eoeee-.- 665 | Couesius prosthemius....-...---------- 862
Cinosternum pennsylvanicum........--. 665 | Cowbird -....----.------ LT 353
Circus hudsonicus .......-..--0..-2--. 417 | Crane, Brown; Sandhill .......-...-.. 508
OlBC0: eos, esses as Weges 882 White; Whooping ...-......-. 507
Lake Michigan ....--. ..---- ---- 881. ; Crappie u... cece seis pene sane nn 924
Cistothorus stellaris...--. seeeeee-----. 233 | Crawl-a-bottom .........-----..----- 819
CISTUDINIDM =s2. 2420004002 ee sshe 655 | Creeper, Black and White ..........- 238
Cistudo clausa .... ----.- 220 eee ne onen Brown „u... ..- e220 nun cece nun 227
CLAMATORES ..--..------- Cristivomer namayoush ....2..----+ une 893:
Climate of Ohio........-20...---.-.- 191 | Croaker ..-.2. 2.202. -22-e coon nenn 982
CUUPEIDM 2205 e6cnccte awe ee 871 | Crossbill, Common ....-...--......-- 316
Coccyzus americanus .... === .2--0- nun White-winged .......-.....--. 318
erythrophthalmus CROTALIDAS .uuuns seewecescccs cose ces 671
Colaptes Guratus....--.--22+ eene serene Crotalophorus miliarius ....+..-++----- 674
Coloration of Birds... - .----- --- sur, tergeminus .......- Beeren 674
Coluber obsoletus „=. ==. ann anne anne Crotalus durissus ......--- see. ann anna 672

INDEX 1007
PAGE PAGE

Crow ........-.- siaeete sree cid aware 364 | Dendreca var. albilora .....-....-...- 260
Carrion aussi acecceeswesse 439 kirtlandi 1... -.0...----. ---- 263, 591
Cuckoo, Black-billed ---- ------ ---=.- 390 maculosa „uuennenmnnnanneun anne 257
Yellow-billed 392 palmarum san neoone nn anan nn 265
CUCULI; CUCULIDE .. 122. 22. anne 389, 390 pennsylvanicd un. anun seen ennee 256
Cupidonia cupido me. .---------- see 445 DINUB a mire un een, 266
Curlew, Esquimaux .......-...-.--.- 493 slriate one ce weee canes anne nenn 288
Hudsonian ....---..------.---- 492 UQTUNGs occis- cave meats ciSeanoes ER 258

Long: billed ..-....---...----- 491 VITENE sore nen een 247

CUB secon secince.ceeeteceencecmcewese 995 | Diadophis punctatus ...-..-..----.---- 696
Cutelipsssissisjosad cs ra 832: 1 DIDELPHIA ec 161
Cut ps: ic ccisaecdcisce cana neescecsiecs 841 | DIDELPHIDE.......--.2. 0-22-2022. 162
Cyanospiza cyanea.......------------- 347 | Didelphis virginiana ......---.-.-----.- 163
Cyanurus cristatus .... 2.2. anna anne nn 265 | Diplesium blennivides .....--.-.-.----- 967
Cycleptus elongalus ...-..----.-------- 814 | Diver, Black-throated ..-. .... .----. - 565
Cyclophis @stivus ...-...---...----.--- 695 Great Northern..............-. 564
Cygnus americanus ....-..----- nenn 516 Red-throated....... .---- 2.20. 565
buceinnator „zen nennen nen 516: | Dog-fish csc. cee 400.0 acee 714, 777, 912
CYPRINIDAD sine uns sues aan seen, sees 2 833 | Dolichonyx oryzivorus ......-..-------- 351
CYPRINODONTIDA ..--- eens nee eee 902 | Dollardee ...--...-..--.--+----.----- 936
Cyprinus carpio een Gece eee 869 | Dorosoma cepidianum ......222.-.-0--- 870
CYPSEET, ea. anne 382 | DOROSOMATIDE ...-.- nun nn url £69
CYPBELIDA GEN 3853: 7Dobyess ausser ee 962
Dabchick, Pied-billed ..........-.... 563 | Dove, Carolina ......--...--.-.------ 442
Dace, Black-nosed.......----.-----.- 857 || Dumas rennen 982
Horned scx coos. csseexcaciess: €61, €63 | Dunlin.-...-..... esse 477
Long-nosed ......---.-.-..---.- 856 | Duck, Boffle headed ..........----. 1. 538

Mud: „2.0: wessen seus 912 Canvas-back ..acccsee ese anna 532
Dafila acuta .......nunuarunneoenennn- 524 DSRS? snes nor sans 523
Darter, Biack-sided.... - RE SEE 972 Rider cn sense 537
Bio ua a 979 Golden, 6YO)s cccc ccc coe w eens 533
Blne-breasted ...---- .-2-.. =. - 97 Gray sian Seren 525
Gilded .... .----- - - EN 974 Harlequin: 2.2.0. 000. 935
Green-sided .....-..--.-.-...- 967 Long-tailed) „=. wcis/scc 02 534
Johnny „essen 966 Ring-necked .--- = ---.--22.-- 530
Beask seen en 981 Ruddys=---- rare 539

Red. sided. --.-.0.-..0-2000022: = 980 Summer; Wood..-..--- -.... 528

San. arena 965 | Eagle, Bald; White-headed.......- -- 434
Tessellated ..---- .-.--. #---- - 987 Geis oc. ceisveisiemice thee u... 432

Deel Amann 78 | Ectopistes macrura .....----.-----.--- 440
Descriptive Terms—Fishes. .---.-...-- 759 | Eel, Common ....-...-....----- ----- 751
Dendroeca wstiva..- 20 ----. -.u0nononnn 246 Mud) zuerst ca 757
blackburni@ ..-..------+-5 eee - 952 | Hel: pout cose ur 000.0. 995
comuled.- Noses co oeek ow eeeee 949° ||) Bl... -u: nern deren nee 730
caerulescens ...2-.- acces sans 248 | Egret, Great White.......--..---.--. 501
castaned „= -ouunn nun ence nenn 254 Little White .----- ---- ---- ---- 502
coronata ...-- FREE 251 Eider, King ..---. .----- ee 535
Wiscblor sccsescdsccoeeesessccese 259 | Elanoides forficatus....-...--.-+.---.- 418

1008 INDEX.
PAGE . PAGE
BEAPIDAL se een een 676 |. Finch, Purple 4.00: -..0u.2.200 2 .. 315
Plas Julius essen 676s" Fish; Bille Jess. ses wmesce vec ses 764, 770
Pe scion: deains camel ccwbiobaacueemas -- 79 CGröek.ene ee 821
Empidonax acadicus ....+. anne nuun -- 2. 373 Dog vorcteccsass ein: 912
Hariveniris cercactccmes Saunen 380 Griddle j.-deccccss see 777
MINIMUS .0ewee-coenar sevnce ann 319 Paddle; Shovel ..-....--.---«. 764
Tallinn nen augen B79 | „Bisher.e=2ssnneen enter 24
EMYDIDA „essen en 657 | Fishes, Distribution -... „000. -.-... 750
Emys meleagris.... „eu nun aan nenn 659 Four Lists: Of ces 33-0 20 744
ENCHELYGEPHALL .... suneue eee nenn 780 Previous Publications on.....-. 737
Eremophila alpestris...--.- -- ---.-.- 235, 589 Rafinesque on ..--. ------ eu... 737
Erethizon dorsatus ....-. u... -- une eee. 154 | Flicker.... 2.20.00 202000... ee 401

Ereunelespustllus ion cccciecseiseeeiconn en 402
Erieymba buccata=.==-2:: 200.000. . 855
Erimystax dissimilis ........---.------ 859
Erimyzon sucetia.... nenn sens --0-e--2- 821

Erismatura rubida „=. 2-0 ---o0u coun 539
Ernine ccascs weseceeecccs Bea ee 28
ESOGID AG 202er 913
FROG WAUS nase nn cone nee 915
NOUOP eves weimse nnd euasionccane, OT
SQUINON GUS ===. een see 914
Etheostoma flabellare....-..2220. 2-2-5 977
BQ UAMICENE soz nee ee 978
Eucalia inconstans .2.=2. 2.2226 esenee ee 993
Eupomotis gibbosus „==. “=... - anne -- 928
HOCUS: Gedecceiccrmwcsesesecen PBL
Euspiza americana ...o.--..-++-+--00-- 343
Eumeces quinquelineatus....2.-.----+-- 650
Butenia proxima ..coo.- -eewee wees nun 678
BU TANS ae emis aan see 679

POU ale cave. 070

VON anne dee er ae
Exoglossum masillilingua
LGICO GHAI: une 43
colunibgrius „usa 424
Sparveriuß „neue. vn see 425
Falcon, Peregtine 423
FALCONIDE ınun nee none erkenne 417
Pall fish: Yeraksnsn sis ei BOD
ERTIDE 2222 unse 5
Kelis:concolor zus... scicnewessseccio te 6
Fiber DENIM ee een 100
Fieldlark use. 22228 ea en 357
Pine, Bm near 326
Eark.alsinsi ee 339
LinGoln’s: uses sows sauer 329

Flycatcher, Acadian. .........-.. +...
Great-crested .... ---- ou. ------
Least... „22304300. 252

Olive-sided
Trails ccs ss ea
Yellow-bellied
Fox; Gray aan
Redes cetiecess ea Bi
FRINGILLID ...... --- Ske icimiaeiisierdes 313
Erog, Cricket! „u... Bi 705
Green „and sauna 711
Leopard...-32- 22-2422 708
Marsh; Pickerel......----- ---- 709
SPENB ES wide Save waeeticce saeiee! FL
ER 709
Wood. kreisen an 710
Fulica americana ..- zu .-uunn snananan 515
Fuligula afinis..-.-as000snuune sonne - 530
AMENCANG Er ee ee een 53L
COU c2cacsewewes wen ae 530
TROT A? une warm sees 529
vallisneria „our .-oe- ee 532

Fundulus diaphanus
GADIDE una ae eles ca

Gadwall: 222-0002
GALEINE ee
Gallinago wilsoni .----- ---.n -uannnn ann
Gallinula chloropus.. nun ..--00.--.--- 218
Galeala wuu.2.u.:: se acess wee ass 512
Gallinule, Florida........--...... 218, 512
Purple wus #000. 514
GANOIDEI au.0u vanacn cece seiewew-awiis 763
Gar, Alligator; Great....-...-....... 774
Garden Birds, List of.....-....- “can. 585

Garter) Swilt---- es... sans 679

INDEX. 1009
PAGE PAGE
GASTEROSTEIBE .-....-2-..---2. 222. 997 | Gull, Black-backed ........-.---..--- 547
Geothlypis philadelphia ............276, 592 Bonaparte’s .....---..----. ---- 550
trichas 275 Fork-tailed 02. 200.00. 00... 552
GINGLYMODI ... f 769 Herring -...002. 202020020000 cone 548
Glass Eye... ..... 22-2 cece cane sone 962 Kibbiwahe. nen 549
Glossary, of Ornithological Terms.... 620 Laughing... +... 551
Gnatcatcher, Blue Gray......... .... 217 Ring-billed.--... 2.0020 2020000.- 549
Godwit, Great Marbled ........ .... 480 White-winged..............-.. 546
Hudsonian .... ...-.. 222.20... 481 | HEMATOPODIDR .... 2... ..-...460, 594
GOgglaEyorl..an un ea 941 | HaLECOMORPHI .........--. ann ann 776
Goldfinch, American... ............. 322 | Haliaetus leucocephalus ........--- u... 434
Gold-Fish ..........2...........-..... 868 | Hammer-head .--- -----2 22.220200... 819
Goniaphea cerulea.... 2... 2222-22. nen 347 | Haploidonotus grunni
iL ludoviciana 2.0... 2220.0 eee 346 | Hare, Southern Varying ..-......-... 159
Goosander ---- 2-2 ee nn. 540 WO sans 156
Goose, Blue .........2.....-...--..-.. 519 | Harelda glacias.........-.. ER, 534
Brant: 2er 520 | Harporhynchus rufus ...--- onen nun. 211
Canadas, Wilde: 2.....2002-2.2. 591. | Harrien. 22... asien 417
Hutchin’s ..22:: cdcisen ss 35a 522 | Hawk, Chicken; Cooper’s....-....-.. 421
SHOWS: deze BIS DUoR sccececieteeecesess causeds 423
White-fronted..-.-.-......-..- 517 Fish joss essen 431
Gopher, Gray ..----. -- ---- -.....119, 1002 HOD) na2255 ae 427
Striped... ur sur cee 000. 181 Mareliose cess cone sce ecsicensizss 417
GOSbaWE....0.:..0.0000 aa ann 422 Big60n.:22.:222.2282.-332.253343 420, 424
Greebe, Crested ..--...----.-.------- 566 Sharp-shinned ......---..--.-. 420
Horned :....:-2eeuurs20 eae, 567 SPATLOW. Scenes 425
Red-necked ..........-...---.- 566 | Hell-bender .......... SE ESENETSEER 716
GRACULIDE onen anna anne ----543, 594 | Helminthophaga celata..........--. 244, 591
Graculus carbo ---- ---+ ---- SRERR NEN 545 chrysoptera ..---.--2=ruurenunn 243
MIODNUE 2525 2a weine te ccc 543 eincinnatiensis .........---.----- 589
floridanus .--- ---- === 544 lawrencü --.. nun nnnnnnsnnnnnn- 246
Grakle, Bronzed...-....-.-..-------- 361 leucobronchialis .......-.--. ---- 245
Rusty eh ee are 360 peregrina „2 ee nee ca enne anne 245
Graptemys geographica ..--...-------- 662 PINUS .. =. 22 eee ene wee ne ann 242
lesueurü - 220 neces wen nee nenne 662 ruficapilla ---- .----. 2220. wees 243
Gray-back ......---. 200er ann ana 478 | Heimitherus vermivorus....--...--. ... 241
Grindle ı==us=420=0#040 0 40m 777 | HEMIBRANCHU «222. 0ccceccces easiness 996
Grosbeak, Blue......-.----.----+---- 347 | Hemidactylium scutatum ...... ee 722
Pirersca rs mess 314 | Hen, Fresh-water Marsh ............. 509
Rose-breasted .....----. ------ - 346 Indian „eu cssnd come nee 504
Ground Hog ..-.-.. --- --- .- =. 0200. - 122 Prairie ..---- ---- ----creu een. 445
Grouse, Canada ........---.--------- 445 | H®RODIONES .... ---.------------ 002 495
Pinnated, »2:....+.--=08 32.2 ses 445 | Heron, Blue, Great .--...---.....-.-- 500
Rated sce o56 sce se acter sees 447 Little. csceceis ans 502
Grus americana nnnan ana anna nennen 507 Green... nenne 508
canadensis .-.-.. ..---.2-------- 508 Night anna 504
Gudgeon, Niagara........---...----- 856 | Herring, Lake; Michigan..--.. .-.. -- 882

64

1010

INDEX. =
PAGE PAGE
Herring, Toothed.......... ---- --..-. 875 | Jack „2.2... 2uun anan cone onen cece san nn 962
Hesperomys leucopus.----- .ernen sauna 137 | Jaeger, Pomarine............---..--- 545
palustris 20. ee week cece ee ann 140: Jay; BING: ccc geae sees ee BOD:
Heterodon platyrhinus ...-.. „22202000. 686 Canada: = | ewcesesess- BO6
TAGE een enges derseses (OVO | SOPROP „nes 861
Himantopus nigricollis...... “au... 463 | John A. Grindle ...... ---- .--- .-.. .. . 777
HIRUNDINIDE .... „un au eee ee we ee 285 | Junco hyemalig...-.....-------------- 332
Hirundo erythrogastra.... .... ..0.----- 286 | Killifish, Barred..........--...---.-.
Histrionicus torquatus..........---.-.- 535 | Kingbird ....2... 02. 2. eee ee eee ee
Hog-fish; Hog-molly 970 | Kingfisher, Belted ;
Hornfish na een 962 | Kinglet, Golden-crested...--..----.-- 215
Hornpout ........ ana ar ee 973 Ruby-crowned ...--.....-. 0... 214
Horny-head ....--- .----- en cane eee. 861 | Kirtland, Climate of Ohio ....-.-.... 191
Hudsonius analostanus ......-..2+-2.-- 845 on Fishes »-=-.- seccescssocecne 741
Sretensis Fragments Nat. Hist........... 216
hematurus .......20..20.---.-. 845 | Kirtland’s Warbler ............---... 263
Slorerianus 2.220. wee ene weneee ee 843 | Kite, Swallow-tailed..... een ee 418
SIramiNneUs .ocnes anne anne nun 844. | Knot ass EEE EN FERNE 478
volucellus nun seen ee nannnn cone ee 843 | Labidesthes sicculus ...-....---.-..---- 919
Hummingbird ...........2.. 2222... 388: | TUACERTILIA jete cee aan ae ade 649
Hybognathus nuchalis........-....--.- 833 | LAMMELLIROSTRES ...........------- 516
Hyborhynchus notatus. ===. 20202. 20... 840 |.Lamprey, Silvery..-....----....--... 757
Hydrochelidon lariformis .... 2.2.0... 562 Small Black..............---.- 756
Ayla pickeringti.....2......+.--+..... 707 | LANODE ...... Senne hesu 306
VETSICHLON zu wens cane een ann 706 | Lanius borealis...........--------- 306, 592
HYLIDE une sis eueis dnsmiem cacees 704 ludovicianus ...2....2225 sannnn a 309
Hylotomus pileatus ..---. 122. e202 san - 394 excubitorides ....-...++--- 310
Hyodon alosoides ---- -----.- +--+ -22.-- 875 | LARIDE ..22 2. 2222. nn eee ee eee 545, 594
TEV QISUBY aeg sauna 875 | Larus argentatus .... 2.2.2... 2-2. one 548
HYODONTIDE ..---.------ onen. 1... 874 atrieilla ...20. 2-20. anne EREREN 551
HYPEROARTIA 2... 02. coe. enon nun. 755 delawarensis ....-.- ----2. .+-5-- 549
HYSTRICDE . „a0 aces cess 153 leucoplerus- sans 546
IBIDIDE Gassen ne clessnceacesee ts 594 MArINUB cose saaiesexevereies nn 547
Ibis, Glossy ---- ---- 2222.22. 0000.....498, 594 philadelphia. ...--...+--.---.--- 550
Wood. euere eens ue 495 tridactylus ...22- 020-2. en lannnn- 549
Ichthelurus furcatus .... 2... 00. cones 785 | Lark, Brown ...... 020. 22008 nenn cone 236
punctatus „= 22. 22-200. en 786 Horned; Shore .........--. 235, 589
TODUSTUS .2 2220 san we nnee nennen - 786 | Lawyer.-.. -..- ---0- 20. eee 2-777, 995
Ichthyobus bubalus ....-. zu --+------ 805 | Lepomis cyanellus ...-...-.----------- 938
Ichthyomyzon argenteus ....-..---- ------1001 humilis .oaanesnnnun coe ann ee 934
Tcteria virens.---- --. - coos cone ne nun 277 machrochirus .....--.+..------- 935
ICTERIDE: cn ede 351 megalotis 20. seruunnnunnn ween 933
Icterus baltimore .... un suunen ene. an 359 pallidus .aceseccmcecmccmass can 936
spurius i LEPIDOSTEIDE ..- nn see cee ns nennen 769
IGUANID Al Accs sesiows cous aan u Lepidosteus OBBEUB .oeene ance one Bons 770
Imostoma shumardi .......--. .-++---- platystomus „un 22-202 anne ann 773
Indigo) Bird u... cose Sasssesssusaese- 347 | LEPORIDE „non nnnn anne eee eee eee eee ee 156
INSECTIVORA .... -- Weseceoskecscauces 88 | Lepus americanus ....---. FE 159

INDEX. 1011
PAGE PAGE
Lepus sylvaticous ...... see aan saanennn 156 | Melospiza lincolni 22... 222. 2000an ann 329
LIMICOLE „ansagsaneneeeetenesan 455 melodia ------unnnnnnen anna 330
Limosa fedoa ...--. "==... 220000. 220, 420 palustris.... une nenn anna eee. 329
hemaslica, „===. sessveevectixens 481 | Menobranchus lateralis.........--. -.-.
Lingua seen 995 | Menopome alleghaniensis
Linnet; Pine: ..„--..u:20.s0=s=2.37-=: 320 | MENOPOMIDE ...... 02 20222 ween ne
Red-poll ...--. -- -----. 2.00. -- 319 | Mephitis mephitica ... --- 2-22. nun un
Liopeltis vernalis ..- ---- ---- - ---nuu0u 695 | Merganser......---. ..---. ..--20---
List of Reptiles and Amphibia....... 732 Hooded 2.235022. 00.40 2
Litholepis spatula......-.-...--+---.-- 774 | Mergus cucullatus .........----.------
Lizard, Ground ......---...-+-- 2000» 651 METGONSET „un we nnn nee anne
Lobipes hyperboreus .- ==. - === sun con 466 BETTALOY 12-22. anne nenn name nun
Logeock ...-.- ---- .-- --. BE REN 394 | Micropalama himantopus......---- anne 471
Log-Perch........ BRFRANETHEREFERSPRAENERNE 970 | Microperca punctulata .........------- 981
LONGIPENNES ....---. 1000-2 200000... 545 | Micropterus dolomiew ..-.....-.-. nun 948
Longspur, Lapland.... ---- ------ ---- 324 salmoides ....-...---- ---- nun 952
Toon acs see Maenner as aeg 564 | Miller's Thumb... ...--. 22-22. nano. 989
Lophophanes bicolor....--..---- ee 221 Slender cessesesea cesses an 988
Lota maculosa.- ---- ---=-- --o000 nen 995 | Mimus carolinensis ---- - ---- ---- 0... .. 210
Loxia var, americana ...---. - -----. u. 316 polygloitus ...-...----- anna nun 209
leucoptera .... ..se2. ann nennen 318 ||) Mink cn ee eenecsy seus 35
Lutra canadensis... ------ == nu. == 56 | Minnilus ariommus ...-..---.-----.--. 850
Luxilus cornutus....-.200.--00--- ann 883 dinemus „un. eno. wens coer see nn. 848
Lygosoma laterale ....-..----. 0000 00 651 photogenis ..-2.-.--2-.-e0------ 849
Lynx, Bay sce: une oe 10 rubrifrons 2202 unnn ones ween nenne 847
Canada „zu. messer 9 SCabricepE anne ones nnanne anne 850
Lynx canadensis .----- 10.22. 4-00 nn 9 | Minnow, Blunt-nosed........ ....... 840

1173 1 \\)
Lythrurus diplemius ..-...--...---.-- 851
Macrorhamphus griseus -...--.-------. 470

Mallard ...-.. --.- .---0. eee peheetat 522
MAMMALIA „ou. een ne nenne eee es =e 4
Manjuari .--. .----. -----+ anne nennen 774
Mareca americana ...--- ---- 2 ana -- 525-
Marmot: seesieceesicwse He ea 122
MARSIPOBRANCHII .... ---- ---+-+ une 754
MARSUPIALIA „20. pee eee wee cee ee eee 161
Marten, Pennant’s.......----..--.--- 24
Martin, Bee ...-...----. -------- ----- 367

Purple .... cowoes +. 293

Nand. ..-cucesensowtcasaswices cas 290
Maryland Yellow-throat .........---- 275
Mascalonge; Maskinonge...--...---. 917
Massassauga.......---- mon seer nee -- 674
Meadowlark..---. ---- EEE 357
Melanerpes erythrocephalus ...-.------- 400
MELEAGRIDE ... „nun eee e eee eee nn 443

Meleagris var. americand..-»---------- 444

Emerald ..-.- ------ 22022000... 848

Lake 2. uch 843

Mod nasser en 912

New World ...... en ereeeee 866
Bed-bellied.ncnumuunnuaunsauci. 897
Red-tailed ...... 220. 22.2002 0... 845

ROSY oss 400 (848

ROBY LACE runs 847
Silver-jawed ..---.. - 2-22. ene. 0 855
SUTSTS cr Sap eeeadowesae. 838
Steel-backed .--- -----2 ===... 836
Straw-colored ..-...-.........- 844

Top essen 910
Striped .... ............ 910

Foothed jccecwieizcccatccsososies 903
Minytrema melanops .... .....-.2-----. 824
Mnioüilta varia .----- 2220. coon mann ee - 238
MNIOTILTIDE ..-..- 2.2.0000 eee aaa 594
Moccasin, Water ...-.....--.---2...- 676
Mocking Bird .......----.--.--. ana. 209
Mole, Common .........-- wesen 90

1012 INDEX.

PAGE PAGE
Mole, Star-nosed ..- --. -- eur uuuu0n -- - 176 | Noturus miurus ---- -----=--0unsaunnn- 800
Molothrus ater 2.22 neun we eeee- nn nun 353 AUS nun are anne sees 801
Moon-ey®...--- “= wees nennen nun 875 | Numenius borealis .......-2..--+++ nun 493
Lakoe......seresseenenetennern 8e1 hudsonicus ..--... 2200+ 0 220, 492
MOTACILLIDE ..---. 22-0) eee eee nun - 236 longirostris ..--2...---- ennnnn nn 491
Mother of Eels .-........------------ 995 | Nuthatch, Brown headed......---...- 226
Mouse, Deer...-.. DS RE tees semua, 137 Red-bellied .--. ---- ---- ------ -. 225
Jumping ---- o-oo. we ees 00000 130 White-bellied ............--..- 224
Meadow, Common .....-.-.-..--- 145 | Nyetale acadica .--- ---- ---- === «=... - 415
Prairie »-----..0-.....-2- 143 var. richardsonü ....-.-.---.--- 416
Rice-field ss =.u..0000r “osasi cose 140 | Nyctea scandiaca ...-......----------. 413
White-footed ..........---.--- 137 | Nyctiardea grisea var. nevia....-...-.. 504

MONODELPHIA ..--.. .-----.------ nenn 5 | Gtdemia americana ...-...----.------- 53
Mid. DOV ilo anna sea 716 fusca var. velvetina ...-..---.-.- 53
Mud Puppy sec zu ween cece wersreees 714 | Ohio, Physical Geography of......... 19
MUOG-fi6H »u...u.00: 0004 Rennen Wad | JOKOW sans aba ei escqeeceees 2962
Muffle jaws.... ..-.-.. 2.2.2. 000002002. 989 | Oncorhynchus chouicha ......---- nun 886
Mullöt: 2=.=.23: 40-400 seein 821, 828 | Oporornis agilis....-....---. Haiaisie's 272, 592
HOP: „usa. seus ee seat 819 Jormosus .--- = suun sees ne 278
TEakö:. 23:0 2nasansueenseese 828 | Ophibolus calligaster...-.. un nun une 689
White........--. 0.2. 22. 830 dolalus 5 sorta oie ee 691

MURA os 0% <occsheacuwecemmnsiescds 133 triangulus ......-.-----. nenn nn 689
Muskallonge ...-....---.-.----- .-+-- 917° | (QPHIDIA. vce eee anne aan BTL
Mustela pennanti ......-.------- ----. 24 | Opossum .-.-...- iobamcuee seme see's: LOD
MUSTELIDE uses sense 21 | Oriole, Baltimore... --. ------ .-----»- 359
Myiarchus crinitus......-.---.-----.-- 368 Otchärd 2.2.4.0 000884 358
Myiodioctes canadensis ...-..---.------ 281: | Ortolan:sys sek wed ers 510
mitratus ...--. en ceen ee nennen 279 | Ortyx virginianus......2.----+---0---- 448
Dusillus „usa cresisiss seen twos 281 | OSCINES ..... ..---.------- 2000 ---- 199, 204
Myxostoma anisurum ....--..----- ,--- 827 | Osprey ..-- .----. ---- see eee eee eee nn ASL
aureolum ...---..02-- +--+ Bis nen 828: | Otter... ernennen 56
Carpio enanenenaenanuennn rennen. 830 | Otus var. wilsonianus .....-... nun ---- 409
macrolepidotum ...--..----- ..-.- 828 | Owl, Barn .... .-.- ---- 22-220... 406, 593
velslum.-wwuscseeis euer KeRe 826 Barred is: ses casees sun 412
Nanemys guttatus ...-..-..++------ --- 661 DAY nun ernennen 414
Nanostoma zonale ..-.-. .----.-----+-- 975 Great Gray ....-.-2-. neun san 411
tessellatum ...--- ann ee-e------- 975 Great Horned..........-.-.---. 407
NEMATOGNATHI ...--.------- ------ nn 783 Hawk sss cscs cass seecunnses 414
Neotoma florida .......--. ..+--+--+--- 135 Long-eared ....----.. 409
New Light ...--..----- eonsteneset wees 924 Mottled «=== 4-0: - 000. 408
NOW euere sn ee 730° Saw-whet ... „002-200 0000. 415
Nighthawk .... ---. 0.222 2000 0000000 383 Screech .....s-20+---ee-------- 408
Night Jar ..---..--..---0.-----+ e+ 382 Short-eared .......--..----. +--+ 410
Notemigonus chrysoleucus ..---...----- 867 SOOWY «ernennen nee ae 413
Nothonotus camurus .....--. ---------- 976 Tengmalm’s ........-..-------- 416
maculatus .-.-.--- rum --2-ee oe 976 | Pandion haliaetus ...-. -------------- 431
Notophthalmus viridescens ......------- 730 | Panther ...-..--+.----------+----+-- 6
Noturus exilis „----- 20. ween e nun 800 | Parroquet, Carolina ..........---.-.- 403

INDEX. 1013

PAGE PAGE

Partridge ...... --. Sasse 447 ||, BOD 2.2... 4000; 370
Spruce ..--...... wee ee ween wees 445 | Phoxinus neogeus .....----- en 2-00. 266
Passer domesticus ---- --=- ---. ---2----- SAY: || PIGARIAD unse 382
Passerculus iliaca ..-..-....----+.---- 342 | Pret; PICID AG . ons cncicen 2. 393
PASSERES .. - --- ---- = eee cone ween 199, 204 | Pickerel......-..--...--.. BR mares 961
PARIDE seca aan na naar 221 VAG: u... 002er 915
Parula americana ---. ---“-“e --2+--+--- 239 Little ....... want ae an OL4
Parus atricapillus ---- ---- 2.--0. ------ 222 NO: 222 ae nase 963
carolinensis .....--.------ 223 | Pickering «u... 2000. san aaa 961

Pokan- sur san aan 24 | Picoides arcticus.... anun ana anne ann 397
PELECANIDE „2220. 200 cee eee vee eee 542 | Picus pubescen8..---. .uanen nes nennen 396
Pelecanus trachyrhynchus ...--...----- 542 VULlOBUS .. 222. cee e ee cn ee coe un 395
Pelican, White ..--....--...----.--.- 542: | Pigeon, Wildes... cane a 440
Pelodichthys olivaris .....--...---.---- 797 -\ Piké, Blue: ..--..2=.-.-000 000 963
Perca americana .---- .----- +--+ 0000 958 Common wesc u: ran rue 915
Perch, Bride; Chinquapin ..---...... 924 Gar, Long-nosed....-..-.....-. 770
COMMOR u... 958 Short-nosed ..........-.- 773
Grunting u... 982 Gray; Ground .......-......-- 961
Pirate... aan eu 920 GIOEn. ern 962
Ringed, seca: essen: senses see es% 958 Gröab: ons sees cceceeecicsicnsces 917

Sand: ana unnensspinseene zen 92D Sand mans 961
Strawberry .........--.--..--.- 924 Yellow; Wall-eyed......----.. 962
White: msn nenne O82 | Pik&Perch wccneeocerccexes: une 962
Yellow :esascse area aaa ee 958 | Pilot-fish ..--- ------ - == 2... 22.2... 878
PEROIDE set aussen ana aaa ar 956 | Pimephales promelas...---.--.---- --+- 839
Percina caprodes ...-....2+-.-0-+ nun 970 | Pinicola enucleator ....--2.-.2-------- 314
Manildü . ceaaacdnwsusme si awarnns 971. | (Pintail er: see 524
PERCOPSIDE cee u. aan £99 | Pipilo erythrophthalmus ..........---.- 350
Percopsis gultatus .---- -.22-..c-00--- 899 | Pipit --2--. cee eee ee reece ee une 236
PERDICIDA ...--r see sacsesssseces 448 | Pirate Perch «u. «=... 0000 avd euer 920
Perisoreus canadensis ....-.-.....----- 366 | Pisces ........---. BR A 758
Perrissoglossa tigrina ....-...---.---.- 591 | Pityophis melanoleucus ...-.-.----.---- 688
Petrochelidon lunifrons .......- ---- 288 | Placopharynx carinatus ....---.-...-.- 831
PETROMYZONTIDE -.--.--.------------ 755 | Plectrophanes lapponicus ...........+-. 324
Pewee; Pewit...-...-------.-------- 370 MiWalisi- au seed cancer tease, 2S
"Wood .... ---..------+--------- 372 | Plegadis falcinellus ......-.. -----.498, 594
PHALACROCORACIDE ...--. -- +--+ une 594 | Plethodon erythronotus .......----.---- 724
PHALAROPODIDE ...-...---.. ----.-- 464 Ffüseue) .=20=- 48: sce ee 726
Phalarope, Northern .... ------ .----- 466 Glutinosus - == = cee eee nun nenn 725
BER een in 467 | Plover, Black bellied ....-.-. ..--- -- 455
Wilson’ 442-4042 ve 464 Golden. 5 sus rer 456
Phalaropus fulicarius ...-%-..-------- 467 Kildeer .......--.-----..2--..- 457
hyperboreus ---. .-.=-- ===. 2. 217 Piping .... --- --- -- joe eweeleee 459
Pheasant ..---.---------------- nn. 447 Raddy ---- ---- ---.---.---- 479, 593
Phenacobius teretulus ------ ------ ----- 855 Semipalmated .....-..----. ---. 458
Philohela minor ..---..---+- ------ +--+ 468 Upland 2.222. „0220.00 200: 489
Philomachus pugnau .......----.----. 489 | Pochard ......---. anne ------ -----+-- 531

1014 INDEX.
2 PAGE PAGE
Popicie DZ; PODICIPTIDZE.....-. 565, 594 | Rail, Black ..... ---- -- = 02. 22) un. 511
Podiceps cornutus „=... uuunn eens une 567 Carolina sessescses asien nen anne 51€
Crisialus).- wen seesee2 noo 566 VIrgInia serien
greiseigena var. holbolli ..--.. --.. 566 Yellow
Podilymbus podiceps 1.1202 auunan anne 568 | Rainbow fish
Pacilichthys coeruleus ----=- - -----. 000. 979: | RALEIDE onen
bien nun Rallus elegans.----. ------ ------ wens se 509
spectabilis.nnuun --unnnnnnnnn ee -- 980 virginianus onen 2-2-2. see --- anne 509
virgatus Rana catesbyana
Poisson de Marais 777 clamitans
Polioptila cerulea : 217 haleeina zuun nase seennn nenn eee
Polyodon folium...... ivesikuecese 764, 1001 palustris
spalhula „neun wane vnc eee ween oe 1001 sylvatica
POLYODONTIDE ,.. o.-ee-0---------- 763 | RANDE ..222. 2. on wee eee eee
Pomolobus chrysochloris ...--. =. ----- 873 | RAPTORES v2 ..sscoesssee see secs ce 405
Pomoxis annularis Rat, Wood .-......-. ERBENSSSERTEEIALHSERE 135
8paroides „nun anneenenennn- Rattlesnake, Banded .... .--- ---. ---- 672
Pooecetes gramineus- «=== -- ------ vunen Ground ...--. ------ ciwsiajerilereeis 674
TPOBBUML .„.---r000n0n coc ene anne tone Prairie} ones cesicn cc scmvesiisies ar 674
Potter E. D., Notes Raven seat. ses ee 363
Poreupine, Canada Recurvirostra americana........---.--- 461
Porphyrio martinica RECURVIROSTRIDE „2 222 -un nenn 461
Porzana carolina. „=. “un anno anne Redbird, Cardinal ...-...-.-.....-...- 348
jamaicensis „ur anne nennen - SOMMOT ‚newer coc Mina 284
noveboracensis BRed-ey&.....u.-r. 4.0 938, 941
Procyon lotor „-.- „au e222 220+ none nun Bedün „u... 1u=-.. 000000 0000 851, 853
PROCYONIDE ..-20- ------ nenn soo nee Red-head ..c:co0necwesceeccsiecee cues 531
Progne subis „_.. -enoce voeeee nennen Red Horse, Common....-...---..-.+.. 828
PROTEIDE ....-- suonenuunnnn nenne Golden: u... 00 see 828
Protonotaria citr@a .....----- nun --- 240 Long-tailed .........--.-.. 002. 827
PSITTACI; PSITTACIDE...--...------- 403 Small-mouthed ...... -----. wae. 826
Pumpkin-seed ...--. .-..------- ------ 928 | Redstart ossccecccpeeancceowsesens des 282
Putorius vulgaris „== ==. ---- ana +--+ 171. | Reedbird. =. -...=..u=#--0200022.000. BSL
ErManeUB „nun nennen ee cece nn 28, 12]. | Beeren ame nasse 489
BON era seen 35 | Regina grahamü ---- ----=-- --=--- e2--- 683
PYGOPODES: sera ses nenne 564 kirtlandi ..-... .----242-00- ee0-- 632
Pygosteus pungitius Besen 999 leberis zu une ae en 682
Pyranga astiva. ..-- 02-02 mann nennen 284 | Regulus calendula .........--- Erreger 21a
TUDRAL. east ae 284 BAalraya: 2u.uuu. nennen 25
Quail »uuscss- sun 448 | Reptilians, Characters of -.......-... 648
Quassilabia lacera „=... “nun -----+ nun 832. | REPTILIA. v0. none 2000 nennen cose 646
Querquedula carolinensis ..---..------- 526 | Rhinichthys atronasus ....-....----...- 857
Gi8COT8 ou nenn ween ee nenn anne +. 527 COLATACLE L202... eens cone ne cone 856
Quiliback wsscorcdscese ss 812 | Bicebird. uon..cceneceseni nen 351
Quiscalus aaneus „n-a-nunnennnnn nenn 361 | Ringneck .... ..---- ..2--. nen nenn 458, 459
Rabbit, Gray; Wood Robin: in senas te wes tien aeescciseewes 204
Raceli..au es Rocous chry80p8 -=-- ----0+ +20. anna 955

INDEX. 1015
PAGE ö PAGE
Rockfiah ......u-0....00.4..0#200..00 857,970 | Sauger -- sos ncvcsvcsssvcscsaeces cose 961
RODENTYA. sea cece Memes wee 100 | Saw-kwey..-.....-- BR EEE NE ROSNEFRRN: 886
Rough-head ...-..- ..---. 22220 22... 853 | SAXICOLIDE..... neues een 212
Round Fish ...---. ..---- 020002220. 878 | Scalops aquaticus.----- - == nunn anne 90
Ruf near near 489 | Scapanus breweri ------ .-.. ---- anne - 93
Sac-a-lai -.-- .2.2-. 222. -....924, 925 | Scaphirrhynchops platyrhynchus.....--- 768
Salze 812 | Sceloporus undulatus .... 1.0.2.0. ------ 652
SALAMANDRIDEE 22. -22. cen. cee anne - TAT. || STENDE sun na 981
Salamander, Blotched .-.- .----- ----- 719 | SCINCIDE „u... un nun 222. 22. anne nn 650
Cave are 728: | BCIURIDE..osu0sasscnsaner aan ID)
DUSKY „unsssseasssenneanennn 726 | Sciurus carolinensis ......-..---------- 108
Four-toed hudsonius .cece..---22 eee -eaee 105
Granulated ......------...-..- 721 WOE? PEN EN 112
Long-tailed ..---. ------ ---- 722, 728 | Scolecophagus ferrugineus.----. .---..-- 360
Opaque -- su: 719 | Scolecosoma argenteum .....---...----- 757
Purple 2u...222:u22 ies 729 | SCOLOPACIDE .... 22... nun nn e200 nn 468
Red ur .00044 0000.00: BEN 728 | Scops asio..----- 2202+ - cane nnnnnn nun 408
Red-backed -............-....- 724 | Scoter, Black
Salmon-colored 729 Velvet
Small-mouthed 722 | Sculpin, Cow-faced
Spotted, Gray ---- ---- ---- 0... 725 | Sea-swallow .... 200. een nenn wae
Dargo 2:20 719 | SELACHOSTOMI ...-..------ nennen ann
Striped-back ...... .......-..-- 727 | Semotilus corporalis...... .--. ann -----
QIGOR ne se aan 720 | SERRANIDE ...-- „-ununnnanan aan ann
Violet-colored ....-.---.--.----- 719 | Setophaga ruticilla „=. “nun nnun nn u... 282
Viscid........ en Sere 725 | Shad, Common ....... 0202000 case coe 872
SALMONIDEE ana ann aan ann eee ann 876 Gizzard ; Hickory ....-....-..- 870
Salmon nassen 892, 962 OIG. us aaa 873
' Chinnook; Columbia ........ 886 | Shad Waiter „..-.- 2.2.2.0... eames 878
JOCK ces ancesces desvasedionwene ot (O62 | SHAG cccswasia tecsciuecesscas sees.ssee' O40)
King; Quinnat; Sacramento... 886 | Sheeps-head ......---------+ zuun ee 982
BOB ns nee see 892: | :Shiner .o:.u2.222.200 224 nee aa 853
SPIINE <snswasesecasceccoes nen 886 Big-eyed .-.--- -- - “urcun eanenn- 850
White: se 963 Golden „uses 867
Salvelinus fontinalis ..--.. 22-20. u20..- 897 Red-sided s.cc6u cons uno sciences 865
Sanderling ...--- ..-- -ouu.2-un 2000 479, 593 Rough-headed ........-..----- 850
Sandpiper, Baird’s...-...-.-..--..--- 473 Spotted is zuuuuuuu00040- ua 859
Bartramian.......-...-.------- 489 White-cheeked .......-........ 849
Buff-breasted ...... -- .----. 219, 491 | Shoveller...... ...-. 202. .---------- 527
Least 2... ccccee ceceee neuen none 473 | Shrew, Least ......-...-----..---- 98, 180
Pectoral... „nn naar ann. - 475 Short-tailed -.-eus=-25-.u---2.- 96
PUOLPPlS sewer Senisece sens coisceeas 476 | Shrike, Great Northern. ...-.. ---. 306, 592
Red-breasted ......-....------- 478 Loggerhead ....-...-..--- ewes. 309
Semipalmated ....-... -.-.....- 472 White-rumped.......-. -.-. 000. 310
Spotted .... 2.2.2. nun nn 487 | Sialia sialis... 22. 1.222. ene cone nennen 212
SH b sans secs seca an sees ac 471 | «Silver Bass” ...2.. ---- een. - one -- 875
White-rumped ....... ee 475 1 Silver Fin..oosuu0u4020u40000 Ben 845

1016 INDEX.
PAGE PAGE
Silverside, Lake... -.. ---- ------ == - 848 | Sora ..... Bere us ceenmossieten 510
River Jocesvewekeccoeswaceesaes 919 | SORICIDE .- = 2-22. cece ee anna wees 94
SILURIDE ...... aan svesea seme 784 | Sparrow, Chipping 334
SITTID AL needs 224 Clay-colored 336
Sitta canadensis ..---. ..222. e000 ennane 225 Englieh- :2:u2,- 20222 341
carolinensis ---.- „== see. nen 224 Field... .----. Biene 335
PUSH ccscwecees ana anennn 226 BOS sale 342
Siurus motacilla ..-.0. 2200. cee ween nn 269 Savanna „nn nun nen cone anne 325
NEVIUS on. BEINEN“: meet ce 268 SONG! susanne cows ine 330
Skink, Blue-tailed ..---- .---. 0... 650 Swamp... 20.200 39
Skipjack ..........---.---- 873, 919 Treo ass w sun caer ann ua 333
BROOK: nassen 48 White-crowned .....-.-..--.--. 337
Skylark, European ...-.........---+- 234 White-throated 336
Snake, Bead 676 Yellow-winged 327
Black ......... .----.---.----- 693 | Spatula clypeata ...2.. 22-000 ences cone 527
Boll sascsesaccessececscseececa 688 | Spear-fish ..--....2--.-.-2--. 0a ann 812
Chain 689 | Spelerpes bilineatus .........--..------ 727
Coins as ne 691 longicaudus „=. ----ur 2-2-0. une 728
Boxen Lisa 693 porphyriticus „=-- ---- cone een ne 729
Garter sesaieecocdiewtececccsccos 679 TUDE? „une esacneckccvasccsesse he 728
Day 6 een coe ene 678 | Spermophile, Gray-headed.......119, 1002
Graham’s...... 0.222. cee. eeeeee 683 Franklin’s -.....--. ...--. 119, 1002
Green; Grass.....--.-.---. nn... 695 Striped ea 181
POON en an ae Spermophilus franklini. ...-.-..- ....119, 1002
Hog-nose tridecimlineatus ......+--..----. 181
Leather .----. 22-222... Sphyrapicus varius „2... nenne an anne 398
Little Brown Spizella monticola ...--. zanane 2-02 anne 333
Red pallida .20. .2.0 wen eee nee ween. 336
Mk needs: pusilla: co onesies cose ene oo ie etal’ 335
BUG 222.225 4222. a a a Ra 334
Pinel-sse sce Bpoon-bill....u0-- ccc eens cone en wee. 764
Bedauern Springtail ---- 2.00. 222-2. anne nn 524
Ribbon...:uu. 8. ee Squatarola helvetica .... ===. -unnanannn 455
Ring-necked.....--...... paces 696 | Squirrel, Chipping..............--..- 115
StTIPO soo vec co oc doaciiens cosy 679 Flying sea ana 102
Summer Green ............02.. 695 POX age 112
Watery au: secs een 683 GIBY? aaa us anne 108
Holbrook’s ...... use 685 Ground sche 115
Red-bellied .... .... --...- 685 Prairie. scecse ses see 119
WON 22. ana tena saeges 698 Striped .----. - 22. eu. 181
Yellow-bellied ............-.... 682 Pine} Red „u. snes seox osew cece 105
Snipe, Red-breasted 470 | Stargazer, Cayuga-Lake ............. 990
Wilson? zu: see sees seve cece 469 | STEGANOPODES ....---- 2-2-0. ana. 542
SDOWDIN u... nenne 332 | Steganopus wilsoni..-.-...u-u0n 2-02.00. 464
Soldier-üsh. seu. seceee sommes sees 25: 979 | Stelgidopteryx serripennis.............. 291
Somateria mollissima...-....---. uuunen 537 | STERCORARUDE .....-..--2- 022.008. 594
spectabilis........-..-20.-.---.. 535 | Stercorarius pomatorhinus ....2-... 222. 545

INDEX 1017
PAGE j PAGE
Sterna antillarum ................-... 562 | Sucker, Sand... ....-- nenne anna. 82
anglich mean nenn. REN 552 Split-mouth .... 22.02.2220. .... 832
dougalli kauen neuen eee eve cee BOL Spotted ; Striped ......-... 2... 824
fluviatilis 1.000. nennen. 558 BWECE men anne tener scenes 821
560 White .....--.- 20020. 22222. 817, 828
MACTUTG anna anna BEN AT 561 | Suckerel .... .-.. ennnen nenn nn nenn. 814
Stickleback, Brook ...-...--s-...---- 998 | Sunfish, Black......--.....002. 02000. 939
Many-spined ........222...---. 999 BING eae eceainia inc Seeeweteiewve ss 936
SEITE sete to hat esse 463 Chain-sided .... 220002 22000... 935
Stizostethium canadense .......-..----- 961 Common ...... nennen snaeen nenn 928
VUTCUM «vd enrteie ne ee eeenen 962 GOON sn ea 938
AIR REN EUERSORERDE TERASSSESDÄCH 28 Long-eared ...... 222.2 .02. 002. 933
Stone-lugger ..--.. 22002. ceeceseeeee 819 Orange spotted ..........22.... 934
Stone-roller zu. 200 2002 20000... 819, 836 Wide-mouth ........ 22.0.2 .0.. 939
Stone-toter../.....002. nennen ann 819, 836 | Sunny..---. anne ann nennen nn. 928
Storeria dekayt sannnnanenenn nennen coos 697 | Surnia var. hudsonia. .......... 2.200. - 414
occipito-maculata ..-..-.-...---- 698 | Swallow, Bank
Storeria, Red-bellied..........-.-.+.. 698 a
STREPSILIDE ....00. 0000. coos nenn na 594 Cliff; Eave
Strepsilas interpres ..---. «2-0. nenn 460, 593 Rough-winged ...... 2.220. 002. 291
STRIGIDEE .. 2... eee eeee-ceceee nennen 405 White-bellied....--. .. 2200... .... 287
Strix flamınea americana ...--.----. 406, 593 | Swan, Trumpeter.......... 2.2... 516
Sturgeon, Lake; Rock........ ER RENN 766 Whistling ..... ...... a eee eee eee 516
Ohio River; Shovel-nosed...... 768 | Swift, Brown... 2.2222. nenn ann. 652
Sturnella Magna „one. uuuuun sun se nenn 357 Chimney =... === 4.-.-2.0200.24, 385
Sucker, Big-jawed ..---...---. ------ - 831 | SYLVICOLIDH une nenne nn anne 237, 594
Black- Nosed ...2..205.252245scigc05 824 | SYLVIIDA „u. 0:scc0c: ann ences cone noes 214
Brook „un w20- eeeene eee eee nun 817 | Sylvia castanea...22. anne anne anne. 220
Cärp, Bip) .---2.-ienreesen 809 pensilis „onen neun een anne 217
Deformed ......-.-.----- 813 icterocephala ......-.2..----.-.- 219
Hastert; ic... 810 maritima nennen cones namen 219
Long-finned .........--.. 812 trochilus ..-. 22. anne nenne cone. 218
Long-headed .........--. 811 | Syrnium cinereum _..22...c00. cee on. au
Nebraska ......-.--..--- 810 nebulosum .... auunnn .eeeee anna 412
Olive ..--..-...--------. 809 | Tachycineta bicolor. ............-.-.-.. 287
Chub cbs en » 82]. | TALPIDA assoc tones een cc. 89
Common; Fine-scaled.......... 817
Gourd-seed ....-.-----. -------- 814
Hare-lip .---.------.--------.- 832
OP iessecia dds. esta 819
Large-scaled .......----------- 828 | Tantalus loculator ...... nun ann. wee 495
Long-nosed ...-....----..------ 816 | Tatler, Semipalmated..-......2.. 2... 482
May of Scioto .........--.--.-. 832 Solitary .--.......-..-.----.... 485
Missouri..-...------ else 814 | Tazxidea americana zn... 240 era cee. 4
MUG: a... een . 619 | Teal, Blue-winged .... .---... .... ... 527
Northern; Red-sided...---. --.. 816 Green-winged -... nennen 2.2... 526
Sailing .----- .o---- see eee wee eee 812 | Technical Terms, Ornithological ..... 620

1018 INDEX.

PAGE PAGE
TELEOGEPHALIsanaen anne nameee wees 801 | Totanus solitarius. ..unn an enunennnnnne 485
TRLEOSTEL ..ccee coos core eeeeee nenne 780 | Toxicophis piscivorus .... 220 ann -e---- 676
Telestes elongatus anuannanenen nenne nee 865 | Triglopsis thompsoni ...--.---- nun nun 936
Telltale, Greater... ---- ---- fafa theatre 483 | Tringa alpina .....+-2+--------+-+ 219, 477
Telmatodytes palustris... 222. neun 282 bairdit: ..---...-- oe cee ee cee eee 473
Tern, Arcvic..---.------ ----+-------- 561 CANUlUB .- nun commee cone oe nun 478
Black. nee ee 562 Fuscicollis .. 122. eee ene comme cece 475
Common ssseeescesensesess ee 553 maculata. .. 2-22 eee nee pen ewe nen 475
Forater’S .--coe sauna ann 560 maritima .. 2000 anne eee earesisidice 476
Gill billed 2c esexs weds 4440 552 minulilla saacisceisacenice sone soon 473
Teant. cGucauecsuusSonssenncents 562 TUFESCENS .. 222+ ween Ag aeee esse 219
Roseate cece cece nenne cece anne. BOL | Tringoides macularius...-..-.----- one 487
TESTUDINATA anna cece nee anne 654 | Triton, Spotted. ..-......-..---..--.- 730
Tetrao canadensis ...--. anne ann eee -es - 445 | TRIONYCHIDE ..-.------ -.eee+ ee eee - 667
TETRAONIDE „en -ce cee ann nenne cane 445 | TROCHILIDE 2... ------ eee ene 387
Thrasher’ sus... een 211 | Trochilus colubris.......--+ eninennnenn- 388
Thryothorus bewickii...-...--.0---. 230, 588 | TROGLODYTID .....-----------. nn 228
ludovicianus ...-2. ouunn cone woe 228 | Troglodytes domesticus .......----- ---- 230
Thrash. Brown .u==-20000.0 140 secs 211 | Tropidonotus erythrogaster ...--..------ 685
Golden-crowned ...--..----.--- 267 FJascialus: sees esse 684
Gray-cheeked....-. -----.------ 208 rombifer won wee ana cee eee cee eee 685
Hermit .-..-.--.- Aus Eee 206 SIDEÄON: sanena sum saniennensunanne 683

Olive-backed ........---. 10000. 207 | Trout, Brook
Watel. t2tscccecncisdwce een Great Lake; Mackinaw........ 893
Large billed ...--...-..-- 269 Salmon; Speckled ....-...--..- 897
Wils0t’6.cc24. sc. cn. ee 308 | Trout-Pereh =. :-==s=.--- .--r cece - 899
Wood .-.- ..---- wees eee. 205 | Tryngites rufescens ......----.----- 219, 491
Thunder-pumper .....--.-----.------ 982 | Tullibee .....---..-.-.--------- +--+ 885
Tin-mouth .....----..----------- nn 935... TORDIDE 2.2 es..cceseesoeeccclec-.c3 204
Withieie oe wetexreelkwsiedeae eden eoteue 236 | Turdus fuscescens „nur nenn anne nn 208
Titmouse, Tufted ....-.....--...----. 221 migratorius .-..-..----- +--+... 204
Toad, American ....---.-..---.-----. 702 mustelinus .2 222. naunuaanen coon - 205
Tree, Common.....--.-..---.-- 706 POA occesesssicadss veesios wae 206
Pickering’s ....-...----. 707 BWAINBONE nennen wee eee we eens 207
Togue, Large ...--. ---- ---. ------ ---- 893 QUAD ce occrisisicne une 208
Top Minnow; Top Swimmer .--...--- 910): |) Turkey; Wild.-....2:-.:02.. 4000040 444
Striped. -=uu. dacceecivsccs. ence 910 | Turnstone.--. .---- 220002 una nenn 460, 593
Tortoise, Blanding’s .-....---.-...--- 659 | Tartle, Agassiz’s...-....-----.-.---2- 664
Checkered ..-...-..-------- 2... 655 BOX! nun 655
Mid: 222.0: 665 Geographic .----- -- - 2-20 20. 662
Mosk: see Rense EEE 666 Lady zes sees tcideseeagey 664
Pseudogeographic ........--.-. 662 Leathery ...--...---.---. 2-02. 668
Sculptured ..---. 2+. ----2+ nn LeSueur’s ....-.-. 2222-22-20. 662
Speckled ; Spotted Map euere 662
Totanus flavipes „==... ---- ------ anne 484 Painted ..---. -----. 220... vun. 663
melanoleucus ..---. .----+ ennenn- 483 Snapping.-...........----- uno. 656
semipalmatus .....----------- 220, 482 | Typhlichthys subterraneus....--. +----- 901

INDEX. 1019
PAGE PAGE
EY RANNIDM 22240, 366 | Warbler, Blue Yellow-backed .....-.. 239

Tyrannus carolinensis ..-...-...--.---- 367
UMBRIDA es cnceseunacssceacennccon OLY
Umbra Umi. > ausm ceeanes se sean anne 912

UNGULATA ses nennen 67
Uranidea franklini ... 2.2. ---ucn scannen 988
gracilis ......---0 0.0220. ann 988

ROY 2.2320 dee eames 'toletewe OBI
richardsont -....----- see. ann 989
Spiloia:. «scene san seine sec 993
URODELA.. un aan een 713
Urocyon cinero-argentatus ---.-..--.... 19
URSIDRSc nA ea 63
Ursus americanus- .----. ----enenenenn 64
MEALy ua er caine cenmicans 208
VESPERTILIONIDE ...--.uuunanannnna- 82
Vespertilio fuscus „=. ===. ---- uuunnn- 84
NOCHVAGUE .. 2-2. - eevee enee----- 84
subulatus 2222 eee e eee e nennen 83
Viper, Black wan. 22: 524x220= cone Secs 687
Vireo, Blue-headed ..---- -----. .--»-- 303
Philadelphia ...--......----.-. 299
Red-eyed ..-.----- nenn uuunn- 298
Solitary wciccciecc ccs are gen 303
Warbling ---..--- REINER 301
White-eyed...-.. ..-.--.zuu0u. -- 304
Yellow-throated -.....-.---.-.. 302

Vireo flavifrons ..---. ----un uuunen nun 302
gilvus .2 0. ee ene cee nne eevee --- 301
noveboracensi8 ......---- eel vistas 304
olivaceus 1.2.2. cee nee ee eee woes 298
philadelphious ....-.----------+- 299
solitarius ..---...-------.------ 303
VIREONIDE ---- 22-22 eee ceee eee =. 298
Vulpes pennsylvanicus ..-.-..---------- 16
vulgaris .----- -- een nenn nenn woes 171
Vulture, Black -.-.---..--------------- 439
Wagtail, Water -.---.-----.--------- 268
Wapiti ..-. ----.- -- 2-2 e222 eee eee ee ee 79
Warbler, Bay-breasted....--.- ---- - =-- 254
Black and Yellow ----....--... . 257
Blackburnian .....----..------ 252
Black-capped ...-.------------- 281
Black-poll +... ---.----.----.-- 263
Black-throated Blue ......-- u. 248
Green ...-..------------- 247

Blue Golden-winged .-----..---- 243
Blue-winged Yellow .----. ----- 242

Cerulean ......--22.eeeeeeeeees 249
Canada Flycatching -.......--. 281

Cape. May i225. c0 cvccce cous 258, 591
Cheatnut-sided --...----....-.. 25€
Cineinnsall...---2-- 222-0252 589
Connecticut »----- ---- - 272, 592
Hooded was: :=.===: +: costs 279
Kentucky << == +44 sees 273
Kirtland8..2.42..0. we seed 263, 591
Lawrence's: ---...----:=---= sess 246
Mouning eos... 276, 592
Nashville... seco ieee ese 243
Orange-crowned.......---- .244, 591
Pine-creeping 266
Prairie »====- #420: aaa a0 259
Prothonotary .. ...=. - 22-020. 240
Summer oa <sies, cscnee arc ana 246

Tennessee ...... .---o- eneeee --- 245
White-browned Yellow-throated 260

White-throated ................ 245
Worm-eating ..--...---...----- 241
Yellow Red-poll ...-..--..-...- 265
Yellow-rumped .........--.--.- 251
Warmouth .-e-sn.u-erssseuasnanan 939
Water DOR: 2. 714
Waxwing, Bohemian..........-....-. 294
Weasel, Common ......---...---.----
Least: sccieniernctse ceca ceee
Whippoorwill ..--..-....---. zur une
Whitefish, Common
Labrador -.-=..2.2u= 2 veces sess
Menomonee ...--. .----- --- = -
Mongrel 2... == 000-4.
Musquan River
W.hite.N088...-...4222-2-22002 22 E
White River, Fishes of .-.. ..---.. .... 751
“Whiting ” ...---.----- 20200-000000 - 881
Why de Har’ is Missin’......-..-.-... 170
Widgeon ...-.-. ..---. 22 ++ ween ee nenn 525
Wild Cat teren 10, 180
Willdtne-24- 223er eek sank 482
Wolf sce uns cava aaa wre 14, 180
Woodehuck..-..- -.-. =“ -uuu ne onen nun 122
Woodcock _---- ---- .----- zn. uune nn 468
Woodpecker, Black-backed ......---- 397
Downy: u... nissen 396
Golden-winged .--- ---- ---- 401

1020 INDEX.
PAGE PAGE
Woodpecker, Hairy. -.--.-.-....--.- 395 | Xanthocephalus icterocephalus...--- ---- 356
Ivory-billed 22... 0-5 eens dcsess 394 | Xema sabinei.neu-- .----. eee seen 552
Pileated. „as. ren 394. || Yellow bitd .e.uu...u000.2040000002.: O22
Red:bellied. angst 399 | Yellow-shanks. au stsieisis seeenn ae 484
Red-headed. 2... uze-=42:.0:2&2: 400 | Yellow-throat, Maryland.........-..- 275
Yellow-bellied .... ---. -----.-. 398 | ZAPODIDA 4.-u0-0enn cone enenseneen 129
Wood Rat ....2.u.0-0 00044000 a 18D | Zaps hudsonius. ann sinne: 130
Wren, Bewick’s .... ---- ---- -----.230, 588 | Zenedura carolinensis.-.-- ---- ..----... 442
Carolina ....--...----..------- 228 | Zonotrichia albicollis -... 2... zuunseunoe 336
House: secueaesga een 280 leucophrys ---- ..------.-------- 337
Marsh, Long-billed ........---. 232 | Zygoneotes dispar ---- 1-2-2. anne ----- 910
Short-billed ..-.-....--.. 233 ROME: unuuaeeneeheeneezeee so 910

Winter --..40825- 22 See a see 231

Sr
Su