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ANATOMY OF PIGEON.
= ee ee Coue's Key N.ABirds.

kK, ¥ |

NortH American Birps.

CONTAINING A CONCISE ACCOUNT OF EVERY SPECIES OF LIVING AND FOSSIL
BIRD AT PRESENT KNOWN FROM THE CONTINENT NORTH OF THE
MEXICAN AND UNITED STATES BOUNDARY, INCLUSIVE
OF GREENLAND AND LOWER CALIFORNIA,

WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY:

AN OUTLINE OF THE STRUCTURE AND CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS;

AND

FIELD ORNITHOLOGY,

A MANUAL OF COLLECTING, PREPARING, AND PRESERVING BIRDS.
Che Fourth Lvrition,

‘EXHIBITING THE NEW NOMENCLATURE OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION, AND
INCLUDING DESCRIPTIONS OF ADDITIONAL SPECIES, ETC.

By ELLIOTT COUES, A.M., M.D., PH.D.,

Late Captain and Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army and Secretary U. S. Geological Survey ; Vice-President of the American

Ornithologists’ Union, and Chairman of the Committee on the Classi ‘ion and N. 1 of North A i Birds;
Foreign Member of the British Ornithologists’ Union ; Corresponding Member of the Zodlogical Seciety
of London ; Member of the National Academy of Sciences, of the Faculty of the National
Medical College, of the Phi ical and Biological ieties of Washing

of the General Council of the Theosophical Society of India, etc.

\
PROFUSELY ILLUSTRATED.

BOSTON:

ESTES AND LAURIAT,
1894.

OONITH
Qe
GST
C2eS
(B04

a
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by
F. W. PuTNAM AND ELLIotr COUEs,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by
F. W. PuTNAM AND ELLIOTT COUEs,
fo

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington.

Copyright, 1882, 1884, and 1887,
By Estes AND LAURIAT.

UNIVERSITY PRESS:
Joun Witson AnD Son, CAMBRIDGE.

Go

SPENCER FULLERTON BAIRD,

NESTOR OF AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS,

Chis Mork,

BEARING TO OTHERS THE. TORCH RECEIVED FROM HIM IN EARLIER DAYS,

is Devdtcated,

CONTENTS.

—@——_

PAGE
PTOURE cs saa Se SS aS es, acs: eae Bs Vee Gen a a eels Sy et Mase ae “ore, Be 1
DEDICATION ie) Tar Mah 26) Bk. ae ee) GS. a GP Si ah a ee el ee. Se
CONTENTS IS ee Ge. ee RE ees Sn el eo Ge eee a i ae a eee v

Histontcan PREFACE. se 1 ee ee ee ee te et we ee ee ew) Kt

! PART I.

FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

§ 1. Implements for collecting, and theirpse . . . . - 1 ee ee ee ee 1
§ 2 Dogs . . Baad Se is lak Ag mr der cween ia! gta. leh BP Ee <9 9
§ 3. Various suggestions and alottins for fidldework Be WEE ee eo Heke a OG
§ 4. Hygiene of collectorship. . - 2 ee ee eee ee ee ee ee OD
§ 5. Registration and labelling . . . SB iae ae! a. - 21
§ 6. Instruments, materials, and fixtures fot j preparing : etelains Ry Toate es ar Riowoen see “OB
§7. Howtomakeabirdskin. © 2. 1 1 ee ee ee eee ee ee 8
§ 8. Miscellaneous particulars a GRO Be ah ae Se ae ed Bs al 45

§ 9. Collection of nests andeggs . - - 6 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee ee BO
§10. Care ofacollection . 6 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee ee ee ee BM

PART II.

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

§ 1. Definition of birds . . . . fo ee See ee GS ee a. DD)
§ 2. Principles and practice of toustiicattats i ree teh ae ee en Ry Gor are aes OD
§:3. Definitions and descriptions of the exterior parts of binds Sie ele, GaP ial copia) 4, es", BQ)
a. Ofthe feathers, or plumage . - - - + ee ee ee we ew ew ee 8B

&. The topography of birds . © 6 6 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee ee OT

1. Regions of the body - - - ee 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee OM

9. Of the members ; their parts and nee @ <eeoteteln teak: Cones arco ey car S100

i Whe bill ie es a ae ce ew a ee: Se 100

ii. Thewings. ©... ee ee ee ew ee we ee ew ee © 106

fii, Thetall 2 6 0 2 ee ee ee ee ee ee ew ee TN

iw. Thefect . 6 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee ee ee 1B

vil

CONTENTS.

§ 4. An introduction to the Anatomy of birds .

a.

22 Sp RSS

Osteology : the osseous system, or skeleton .

1. The spinal column . F

2. The thorax: ribs and Stanton

3. The pectoral arch .

4. The pelvic arch .

5. The skull . od

Neurology : the nervous seetenns cpeie ae special senses
Myology: the muscular system .

Angeiology: the vascular or circulatory syaiets:
Pneumatology: the respiratory system. . . . . .
Splanchnology: the digestive system

Odlogy: the urogenital system .

§ 5. Diteeilons for using the artificial keys - . . . . wes

ARTIFICIAL Key To THE ORDERS AND SUBORDERS .
AgtiriciaL Key To tHE Famities
TaBpuLaR VIEW OF THE GROUPS HIGHER THAN GENERA .

PART III.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS.

I. Order PASSERES : Insessores, or Perchers Proper

1.

Suborder PASSERES ACROMYODI, or OSCINES: ee Binds F

1. Family Turpipaz: Thrushes, etc. . . .
Subfamily Turdine: Typical Mhrastivs :
Subfamily Mimine : Mocking Thrushes
Subfamily Cincling: Dippers .

£2 Ot i CO gos

Subfamily Polioptiling : Gnat-catchers .
2, Family Coamaipa: Wren-tits ?
8. Family Paripz: Titmice, or Chickadees

7. Subfamily Paring: True Titmice
4. Family Srrtipa: Nuthatches .
5. Family Certuup#: Creepers

8. Subfamily Certhiine: Typical Creepers
6. Family Troeropytipa#: Wrens

9. Subfamily Compylorhynchine : Han dailed Wiese

10. Subfamily 7roglodyting: True Wrens .
7. Family Ataupipm: Larks .
ll. Subfamily Culandritine : Shore Larks
12. Subfamily Alaudine: Sky Larks
8 Family Moracituipa#: Wagtails and Pipits
18. Subfamily Motacilline: Wagtails
14. Subfamily Anthine: Pipits, or Titlarks

ny

Subfamily Saxicoline : Stone-chats and Binebils
Subfamily Reguline: Kinglets and Wood-wrens .

PAGE
133
134
137
142
145
147
149
174
192
195
199
209
215
227

230
231
234

238
240
240
243
248
254
256
259
260
262
263
263
269
272
272
273
274
277
280
281
282
283
284
285

CONTENTS.

9. Family Sytvicotrpa: American Warblers
15. Subtamily Sylvicoline: True Warblers
16. Subfamily Ictentine: Chats

17. Subfamily Setophagine: Fly-catching Warklors :

JO. Family Cervsipm: Honey Creepers
11. Family Tanacrivz: Tanagers
12. Family Hinunpinipa: Swallows
18. Family AmpEtip#: Chatterers
18. Subfamily Ampeline: Weastiee.
19. Subfamily Ptilogonatine : Fly-snappers ,
20. Subfamily Myiadestine: Fly-catching Thrushes .
14. Family Virzonip#: Vireos, or Greenlets .
15. Family Lanupa: Shrikes .
21. Subfamily Landing: True Shrikes
16. Family Friveituipa#: Finches, ete. . ‘
17. Family Icrerm#: American Starlings; Blackbirds, ales
22. Subfamily Ageleine: Marsh Blackbirds
23. Subfamily Sturnelline: Meadow Starlings
24. Subfamily Ictertne: Orioles
25. Subfamily Quiscaline: Crow Blackbirds
18. Family Corvipa: Crows, Jays, etc.
26. Subfamily Corving« Crows
27. Subfamily Garruline: Jays . .
19. Family Sturwipm: Old World Starlings
28. Subfamily Sturnine: Typical Starlings

2. Suborder PASSERES MESOMYODI, or CLAMATORES: Songs ee ‘i

20. Family Tyrannip#: American Flycatchers ,
29. Subfamily Zyrannine : True Tyrant Flycatchers .

II. Order PICARLZ: Picarian Birds
3. Suborder CYPSELIFORMES: Cypseliform Binds
21. Family Caprimvuteipm: Goatsuckers
30. Subfamily Caprimulgine: True Gosisuokas :
22. Family Cypsruip#: Swifts .
31. Subfamily Cypseline: Typical Swifts
32. Subfamily Cheturine: Spine-tail Swifts
23. Family Trocuitip#: Humming-birds
33. Subfamily Zrochiling : Humming-birds
4. Suborder CUCULIFORMES: Cuculiform Birds
24. Family TRoconip#: Trogons :
34. Subfamily Zrogoning: Trogons .
[—. Family Momoripz: Sawbills] .
25. Family Atcepinip#: Kingfishers . ‘ :
85. Subfamily Alcedinide: Piscivorous = Ringisher .
26. Family Cucutrpa#: Cuckoos . ae
86. Subfamily Crotophagine: Anis | 2
37. Subfamily Saawrotherine: Ground Gackiods,
38. Subfamily Coceygine: American Cuckoos -
5. Suborder PIGIFORMES: Piciform Birds
27, Family Picip#: Woodpeckers .

viii CONTENTS.

PAGE
IX. Order PSITTACI: Parrots’ 2 2... 1 1 ee ee ee ee 404
28. Family Psirracipm: Parrots . . . . 6 6 6 6 ee ee ee. 495

39. Subfamily drine: Parrots . . 2 6 ee we ew we ew + 495

IV. Order RAPTORES: Birds of Prey. . . on BR te ay Be GO Ree as BOG
6. Suborder STRIGES: Nocturnal Birds of Pry ie Sete) Gap an. epider sat dey reget ADS

29. Family Atuconip#: BarnOwls . . . . . . ss | i « «6, $00

80. Family Stricipm: Other Owls. . 2. . 2. 1. 2 1 ee ee ee + 508

40. Subfamily Strigine : ae ay tee! cas tats ee 83S See ee HOD

41. Subfamily Budonine: é ke ee Be ae aw, JBO

% Suborder ACCIPITRES: Diurnal Birds of Prey Sheiely natn gy ier DLE

31. Family Faucontpz: Vultures, Falcons, Hawks, Hazon sha: ft ee we a SBTO

42. Subfamily Circing : Harriers Ao Rw ew we os we CED

43. Subfamily Miloine: Kites. . . . . st ta aes ght « + 522

44. Subfamily Aceipitring : Hawks Se ee Sw w eo 2 BIE

45. Subfamily Felconing: Falcons . 8 ee ee oe ae SBT

46. Subfamily Polyborine: Cavacaras . . a ee a om BP bee he BBD)

47. Subfamily Buteonine: Buzzards and Beles se ee ww we SAL

82. Family Panpionip#: Fish Hawks, or Ospreys . . . . . « » » + 556

8. Suborder CATHARTIDES: American Vultures eo Re Se? He er aca Seo BO

88. Family Catuartipm: American Vultures. . . . . 1. 1. 1... 5ST

V. Order COLUMB: Columbine Birds ........2.2.2.2.2.. 561
9. Suborder PERISTER: True Columbine Birds . ....... =. . 562

84. Family Cotumpipm: Pigeons . .« Sd San ge yreS ates oe BBD

48. Subfamily Columbine : Typical Pigeon, pa fo we a a eo O64

49. Subfarhily Zenuidine: Ground Doves . . . «~~». «= « 566

50. Subfamily Starncenadine: Quail Doves .. . ihe BEL

VI. Order GALLINZ: Gallinaceous Birds; Fowls . ........ =. «571
10. Suborder PERISTEROPODES : Pigeon-toed fowls . ye Drs 572,

85. Family Cracipm: Curassows ae te ee eo = @ 5

51. Subfamily Penclopine: Guans . . ra are a & 573

11. Suborder ALECTOROPODES: True Fowls . . . : dog e Gap BZ

86. Family Metzacripipa: Turkeys F oe SE Roe eH 576

87. Family Trrraonipm: Grouse; Partridge; Ghani i fa a oe 576

52. Subfamily Zetraonine: Grouse . . . oe DEE

58. Subfamily Odontophoring: American Phceridlesy anit Quails ar 588

{[—. Subfamily Perdicine : Old World Partridges and Quails. . . 594

VII. Order LIMICOL: Shore-birds boty ee ae . . 596
88. Family Cuaraprip#: Plover : Re ek GO, 597

54. Subfamily Charadriine: True Plover ; ad Gls “hy Gb9G

55. Subfamily Aphrizine: Surf-birds ie eg SOS x 605

39. Family Hamatoropipz: Oyster-catchers ; Murnstones oe doa ws 1606

56. Subfamily Hematopodine: Oyster-catchers . . . . . . . . 606

57. Subfamily Strepsilaine: Turnstones . . aoe @ 2 w a 60S

40. Family Recurvinostrin#: Avocets; Stilts . . . . .. . . . . 609

41. Family Poatarnopopipm: Phalaropes . . . . ....... ~. 612

42. Family Scotopacrpa: Snipe, ete. ©. 2 2 2 1 we ee ee 614

CONTENTS.

VIII. Order HERODIONES: Herons and their Allies.

42. Suborder IBIDES: The Ibis Series .
43. Family Isipipa: Ibises
44. Family Puatauzipa: Spoonbill,
13. Suborder PELARGI: The Stork Series .
45. Family Ciconupa#: Storks. . .
58. Subfamily Zantaline: Wood Thisea.
59. Subfamily Ciconiine: True Storks .
14. Suborder HERODII: The Heron Series
46. Family Arpripz: Herons

60. Subfamily Ardeine: True Herons wey

61. Subfamily Botaurine: Bitterns

TX. Order ALECTORIDES: Cranes, Rails, and their Allies
15. Suborder GRUIFORMES: Cranes and their Allies .

47. Family Gruip#: Cranes
48. Family Anamip#: Courlans
16. Suborder RALLIFORMES: Ralliform Birds .

49. Family Parripa: Jagands . ,

50. Family Ratuipa: Rails, ete. :
62. Subfamily, Ralline: True Rails .
63. Subfamily Gallinuline: Gallinules
64. Subfamily Fudicine : Coots

X. Order LAMELLIROSTRES: Anserine Birds .
17. Suborder ODONTOGLOSSA: Grallatorial Anseres
51. Family Po@wicorrerips#: Flamingoes .
18. Suborder ANSERES: Anserine Birds Proper .
52. Family Anatip#: Geese, Ducks, etc.
65. Subfamily Cygnine: Swans
66. Subfamily Anserine: Geese .
67. Subfamily Avatine: River Ducks
68. Subfamily Fuliguline: Sea Ducks
69. Subfamily Merging: Mergansers

XI. Order STEGANOPODES : ae Birds
53. Family Suripz: Gannets é
54. Family Pevecanip#: Pelicans .
55. Family PoaLacrocoracip# : Goenerats ‘
56. Family Puotipa: Darters
57. Family Tacuypetipa: Frigates
58. Family Paaiituontipa: Tropic Birds

-

XII. Order LONGIPENNES: Long-winged Swimmers

19. Suborder GAVIA: Slit-nosed Longwings
59. Family Larmwz: Gulls, Terns, ete.

70. Subfamily Lestridine : Jaegers, or Situs Gulls

71. Subfamily Larine: Gulls .
72. Subfamily Steruine: Terns
73. Subfamily Riynchopine : Slime

x CONTENTS.

A PAGE
20. Suborder TUBINARES: Petrels. . 2. 2. 1 6. 2 ee ee ee ee OB
60. Family Procertanipm. Petrels. 1 2. . 2. 2. 6 1 6 eee es 098

74. Subfamily Diomedeine: Albatrosses . . . . . . + + + + VU4
75. Subfamily Procellariing: Petrels . 2. 2. 2. 1. 1 we es + 076

XIII. Order PYGOPODES: Diving Birds .........2.2.2. =. 787
61. Family Couvmsrpm: Loons . . . . . 1 ee ee ee ee 089

62. Family Popicrrepipz: Grebes Ld cteggs Hap tee “ile Re” He 792

63. Family Aucip#: Auks . . . spite, dae oe hy See ed ee EE

76. Subfamily Phaleridine : Parrot eal) ie — . « « 800

77. Subfamily Aleixe: Guillemots, Murres, and Auks seopee - . . 810

PART IV.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF THE FOSSIL BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA.

A. Teromary Brrps . . 2-1 1 ee ee ee ee 822
B. Cretaczrous Brrps. .. . : ‘ a ee ee eee ee 825
C.. Jurassic! BIRDS... ai, 4 (ew we ew we wee ww ew 82D)

END XS oe coy Gas) Gah ae) 8 SP ee wig eR We SP ee ee ee a) eh es La de a ee eee BB
ARPENDIXG 4. Gg yore gl ON ae ae BO ROR eS ee a es 8

PREFACE TO THE FOURTH EDITION.

. JN presenting a new edition of the Ky to those who are interested in North

American Birds, the publishers desire the author to add a word by way
of preface. But little need be said of a book which speaks for itself in passing
through several editions to supply that demand for a standard textbook of
ornithology which this work has itself done much to create, by stimulating and
satisfying an interest in one of the most delightful departments of Natural
History.

The part which the Key has taken in the evolution of the subject since
1872 is sketched in the “Historical Preface” (pp. xxvi-xxx), first introduced
in the Second Edition, 1884. Since the founding of the American Ornitholo-
gists’ Union in 1883 the impetus then given to the study of birds has resulted
in a momentum directly proportionate to the number of workers in this field
and to the length of time these have been engaged. I could wish the fruits
of such unparalleled activity were all sound and ripe, but they are not; growth
has been forced to some extent in rival hot-houses, and the familiar parable of
wheat and tares finds a fresh illustration. Too quick transition from an old to
a new order of things in the technicalities of our subject has brought disorder,
as usual, Till the pace slackens somewhat, so that we can see where we stand,
I do not think it would be wise to recast the Kry.

Therefore, the only change in the present edition is the addition of a Second
Appendix, beginning page 897.

E. ¢.

PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION.

HE second edition of the “Key,” which appeared in May, 1884, has al-
ready been out of print for more than a year. Though aware of the
continued demand for a standard work of reference, the author has been unable
to meet it more promptly, having meanwhile accepted some other literary en-
gagements which proved imperative in their demand upon his capacity for work.
Slight as the requisite revision of this book has proven to be, it did not seem ex-
pedient to go to press again without recognizing the steps American Ornithology
has taken during the past three years, though these may be called many rather
than great ones. There is so little to change in the substance of the book that
it has been thought decidedly best to reprint from the same plates, and put what
new matter has come to hand in the form of an Appendix. However much
there is that might have advantageously gone into the second edition, but did
not, the author is satisfied with nearly everything that did go in, and quite ready
to submit it all to the still further test of time. The transition from what some
of his friends have called the “Couesian Period” may mean a change in form
rather than in fact.

. The naming of our birds, as an art distinguished from the science of know-
ing them, has lately been pitched in a key so high that the familiar notes of the
former “Key” might jangle out of tune, or be lost entirely, were the attempt
made to reset them just now. During the confusion unavoidably incident to
such sweeping changes in nomenclature as we have recently made, it will be a
decided benefit to the student, the sportsman, and the amateur, if not also to
every working ornithologist, to be provided with a convenient means of compar-
ing the older with the newer style of nomenclature we have adopted, until each
one shall have grown accustomed to the change of spectacles. This accommoda-
tion is afforded by the present edition, which leaves the names and their num-

ii PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION.

bers untouched in the body of the text, and then adjusts them to the new angle
of vision in the Appendix, in parallel columns. Thus the new “Key” turns
either way; or, to vary the metaphor, the renovated structure stands Janus-
faced, looking both ways at once— backward upon its old self, of which it
has no cause to be ashamed ; forward upon another self, of which it has much
reason to be proud.

The train of incidents which resulted in what may be called a nomenclatural
explosion was fired at the founding of the American Ornithologists’ Union at
New York, in September, 1883. As one of three persons who brought that
happy episode upon an unsuspecting bird-world, which nevertheless greeted their
stroke with acclamation, the author must plead a modesty act in bar of trial of
his pen on that particular count. But as the honor was his of presiding over
the first Congress of the Union, whilst the ideas of its founders were shapen in-
to a permanent and world-wide organization, so also it fell to his lot to appoint
several committees for the despatch of business the Union at once took in hand;
and of one of these-he has to speak here.

This particular wheel within other wheels turned upon a resolution of the
Union “that the Chairman appoint a committee of five, including himself, to
whom shall be referred the question of a revision of the Classification and
Nomenclature of the Birds of North America.” Having accepted the situation,
the author held with his esteemed colleagues many sessions of the Committee in
Washington and New York, and in April, 1885, offered to the Union the result
of much joint labor. The report of the Committee being accepted, it was ordered
to be printed, and it appeared in 1886 in an octavo volume of 400 pages,
entitled “The Code of Nomenclature and Check-list of North American Birds,
adopted by the American Ornithologists’ Union,” etc.

The objects which we kept steadily in view were: first, to establish certain
sound principles or canons of nomenclature applicable to zodlogy at large.as
well as to ornithology: and, secondly, to apply these rules consistently and
effectually to the naming of North American birds. Others must be left to
judge how well or ill these purposes may have been accomplished, but the
simple fact is that no sooner had the book appeared than it became the standard
and indeed the only recognized Nomenclator in American Ornithology. That
which the Committee had stamped with the seal of the Union became the
current coin of the realm, other than which our venerable fowl, The Auk, should
know none.

5 PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION. ili

In estimating the probable consequences for the long run, it is necessary to
discriminate between any given ornithological fact and the handle we may agree
to give that fact. The former is a natural fixity, the latter is a movable furni-
ture; the former is subject to no authority we can set up, the latter is wholly ar-
bitrary, determinable at our pleasure. Uniformity of nomenclature is so obvious
and decided a practical convenience that even at the risk of seeming to laud
work in which he had a hand, the author cannot too strongly urge compliance
with the Union’s code, and adherence to the set of names the Union has
adopted. These may not be the best possible, but they are the best we have.

The author’s insistence upon this point does not of course extend to any
case where an error of ornithological fact may appear. That is an entirely
different matter. Reserving to himself, as he certainly does, the right of indi-
vidual judgment in every question of ornithological science, he is the last to
persuade others to refrain from equal freedom of expert opinion. “So many
men, so many minds,” even when the number is only five; no individual opinion
is necessarily reflected upon any point in the Code and Check-list ; it is the collec-
tive voice of a majority of the Committee that is heard in every instance. The
occasion for individual dissent on the part of any member of that body, as of any
other writer upon the subject, arises when in his private capacity as an author
he has, as it were, to pass upon and approve or disapprove any results of the
labors of others. The Appendix to the present edition of the “ Key” unavoidably
brings up such an occasion. Yet that he may not even seem to reflect upon any
of his co-workers, his criticism express or implied has been sedulously reduced
to its lowest terms. It consists chiefly in declining to admit to the “Key” some
forms that the Committee have deemed worthy of recognition by name. Indeed
he has preferred to err, if at all, on the other side, desiring to give the user of this
book the later results of the whole Committee.

Nevertheless he must here record an earnest protest, futile though it may
be, against the fatal facility with which the system of trinomials lends itself to
sad consequences in the hands of immature or inexperienced specialists. No
allusion is here intended to anything that has been done, but he must reiterate
what was said before (Key, p. xxvil ) respecting what may be done hereafter if
more judicious conservatism than we have enjoyed of late be not brought to bear
down hard upon trifling incompetents. The “trinomial tool” is too sharp to
be made a toy; and even if we do not cut our own fingers with it, we are likely
to cut the throat of the whole system of naming we have reared with such

iv PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION.

care. Better throw the instrument away than use it to slice species so thin that
it, takes a microscope to perceive them. It may be assumed, as a safe rule of
procedure, that it is useless to divide and subdivide beyond the fair average
ability of ornithologists to recognize and verify the result. Named varieties of
birds that require to be “compared with the types” by holding them up slant-
wise in a good strong light, — just as the ladies match crewels in the milliner’s
shop, — such often exist in the cabinets or in the books of their describers, but

seldom in the woods and fields.
E. C.

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION,
WasuinetTon, D.C., April, 1887.

HISTORICAL PREFACE.

Were a modern Hesiod to essay — neither a cos-
mogony nor a theogony — but the genesis of even the
least department of human knowledge, — were he to
seek the beginnings of American Ornithology, he would
find it only in Chaos, For from this sprang all things,

great and small alike,
to pass through Night
and Nemesis to the
light of days which
first see orderly pro-
gress in the course
of natural evolution,
when is first estab-
lished some sequence
of events we recognize
as causes and effects.
Then there is system,
and formal law ; there
science becomes possi-
ble ; there its possible
history begins.

Long was the time
during which the birds
of our country were
known to its inhab-
itants, after the fash-
ion of the people of
those days, — known
as things of which use
could be made, and
studied, too, that use
might be made of them.
But this period is pre-
historic; no evidence
remains, save in some quaint pictograph or rudely graven image. There followed a
period— shorter by far than the former one, though it endures to-day — when the same

xii HISTORICAL PREFACE.

birds awakened in other men an interest they could not excite in a savage breast, and
the sense of beauty was felt. Use and Beauty! What may not spring from such divinely
mated pair, when once they brood upon the human mind, like halcyons stilling troubled
waters, sinking the instincts of the animal in the restful, satisfying reflections of the
man ?

The history of American Ornithology begins at the time when men first wrote upon
American birds ; for men write nothing without some reason, and to reason at all is the
beginning of science, even as to reason aright is its end. The date no one can assign,
unless it be arbitrarily ; it was during the latter part of the sixteenth century, which,
with the whole of the seventeenth, represents the formative or embryonic period during
which were gathering about the germ the crude materials out of which an ornithology of
North America was to be fashioned. As these accumulated and were assimilated, — as
the writings multiplied and books bred books, “each after its kind,” this special depart-
ment of knowledge grew up, and its form changed with each new impress made upon its
plastic organization.

Viewing in proper perspective these three centuries and more which our subject has
seen — passing in retrospect the steps of its development — we find that it offers several
phases, representing as many “ epochs” or major divisions, of very unequal duration, and
of scientific significance inversely proportionate to their respective lengths. All that
went before 1700 constitutes the first of these, which may be termed the Archaic epoch.
The eighteenth century witnessed an extraordinary event, the consequence of which to
systematic zodlogy cannot be over-estimated ; it occurred almost exactly in the middle of
the century, which is thus sharply divided into a Pre-Linnean epoch, before the institu-
tion of the binomial nomenclature, and a Post-Linnean epoch, during which this technic
of modern zodlogy was established, — each approximately of half a century’s duration,
In respect of our particular theme, the first quarter of the nineteenth century saw the
“father of American ornithology,” whose spirit pointed the crescent in the sky of the
Wilsonian epoch. During the second quarter, these horns were filled with the genius of
the Audubonian epoch. In the third, the plenteousness of a master mind has marked
the Bairdian epoch.

Clearly as these six epochs may be recognized, there is of course no break between
them ; they not only meet, but merge in one another. The sharpest line is that which
runs across Linneus‘at 1758; but even that is only visible in historical perspective, while
the assignation of the dates 1700 and 1800 is rather a chronological convenience than
otherwise. Nothing absolutely marks the former; and Wilson was unseen till 1808.

The Archaic epoch stretches into the dim past with unshifting scene, even at the
turning-point of. the two centuries in which it lies. It is otherwise with the rest ; their
shapes have incessantly changed; and several have been the periods in each of them dur-
ing which their course of development has been accelerated or retarded, or modified in
some special feature. These changes have invariably coincided with — have in fact been
induced by — the appearance of some great work ; great, not necessarily in itself, but
in its relation to the times, and thus in the consequences of the interaction between the
times and the author who left the science other than he found it. The edifice as it
stands to-day is the work of all, even of the humblest, builders; but its plan is that of
the architects who have modelled its main features, and the changes they have success-

HISTORICAL PREFACE. xiii

ively wrought are the marks of progress. It is consequently possible, and it will be found
convenient, to subdivide the epochs named (excepting the first) into lesser natural inter-
vals of time, which may be called “ periods,” to each of which may attach the name of
the architect whose design is expressed most clearly. I recognize fifteen such periods, of
very unequal duration, to which specific dates may attach. Seven of these fall in the
last century ; eight in the three-quarters of the present century. "We may pass them in
brief review.

Tus ArcHaic Epoca: to 1700.

Mere mention or fragmentary notice of North American birds may be traced back
to the middle of the sixteenth century ; but, up to the eighteenth, no book entirely and
exclusively devoted to the subject had appeared. The Turkey and the Humming-bird
were among the earliest to appear in print ; the latter forms the subject of the earliest
paper I have found, exclusively and formally treating of any North American bird as
such, and this was not until 1693, when Hamersly described the “ American Tomineius,”
as it was called. One of the largest, as well as the smallest of our birds, — the turkey,
early came in for a share of attention. The germs of the modern “ faunal list,” —that is
to say, notes upon the birds of some particular region or locality, — appeared early in the
seventeenth century, and continued throughout; but only as incidental and very slight
features of books published by colonists, adventurers, and missionaries, in their several
interests, — unless Hernandez’s famous ‘“‘ Thesaurus” be brought into the present connec-
tion. Among such books containing bird-matter may be noted Smith’s “ Virginia,” 1612;
Hamor’s “ Virginia,” 1615 ; Whitbourne’s ‘‘ Newfoundland,” 1620; Higginson’s “ New
England,” 1630; Morton’s “New English Canaan,” 1632 ; Wood’s “New England’s
Prospect,” 1634; Sagard Theodat’s “Voyage,” 1632; Josselyn’s “New England’s
Rarities,” 1672 ; —and so on, with a few more, — sometimes mere paragraphs, some-
times a page or a formal chapter, — but scarcely anything to be now considered exgept in
a spirit of curiosity.

Tue Pre-Linnzan Epocn : 1700-1758.
(1700-1730.)

The Lawsonian Period. — It may be a lucus a non to call this the “ Lawsonian”
period ; but a name is needed for the portion of this epoch prior to Catesby, during which
no other name is so prominent as that of John Lawson, Gentleman, Surveyor-General of
North Carolina, whose “ Description and Natural History ” of that country contains one
of the most considerable faunal lists of our birds which appeared before 1730, and went
through many editions, — the last of these being published at Raleigh, in 1860. The
several early editions devote some fifteen or twenty pages to birds, —an amount aug-
mented considerably when Brickell appropriated the work in 1737. The Baron de la
Hontan did similar service to Canadian birds in his “ Voyages,” 1793; but, on the
whole, this period is scarcely more than archaic.

(1730-1748.)

The Catesbian Period. — This comprises the time when Mark Catesby’s great work
was appearing by instalments. ‘The Natural History of Carolina, Florida,” etc. is the

xiv HISTORICAL PREFACE.

first really great work to come under our notice ; its influence was immediate, and is even
now felt. It is the “ Audubon” of that time ; a folioin two volumes, dating respectively
1731 and 1743, with an appendix, 1748; passing to a second edition in 1754, to a
third in 1771, under the supervision of Edwards ; reproduced in Germany, in “ Selig-
mann’s Sammlung,” 1749-76. It was published in parts, the date of the first of which
I believe to have been 1730, though it may have been a little earlier. Volume I, contain-
ing the birds, appears to have been issued in five parts, and was made up in 1731; it consists
of a hundred colored plates of birds; with as many leaves of text ; a few more birds are
given in the appendix, raising the number to 113. These illustrations are recognizable
almost without exception ; most of the species are for the first time described and figured ;
they furnish the basis of many subsequently named in the Linnean system ; the work
was eventually provided by Edwards with a Linnean concordance or index ; and alto-
gether it is not easy to overestimate the significance of the Catesbian period, due to this
one work ; for no other book requires or indeed deserves to be mentioned in the same
connection, though a few contributions, of somewhat “archaic” character, were made by
various writers.

(1748-1758.)

The Edwardsian Period. — This bridges the interval between Catesby and the estab-
lishment of the binomial nomenclature, and finishes the Pre-Linnzan epoch. No great
name of exclusive pertinence to North American ornithology appears in this decade.
But the great naturalist whose name is inseparably associated with that of Catesby had
begun in 1741 the “ Natural History of Uncommon Birds,” which he completed in four
parts or volumes, in 1751, and in which the North American element is conspicuous.
This work contains two hundred and ten colored plates, with accompanying text, forming
a treatise which easily ranks among the half-dozen greatest works of the kind of the Pre-
Linnzgn epoch, and passed through several editions in different languages. Its impress
upon American ornithology of.the time is second only to that made by Catesby’s, of
which it was the natural sequence, if not consequence _It bore similarly upon birds soon
to be described in binomial terms, and was shortly followed by the not less famous
“Gleanings of Natural History,” 1758-64, a work of precisely the same character, and in
fact a continuation of the former. Edwards also made some of our birds the subject of
special papers before the Philosophical Society, as those of 1755 and 1758 upon the
Ruffed Grouse and the Phalarope. It may be noted here that one of the few special papers
upon any American bird which Linnzus published appeared in this period, he having in
1750 first described the Louisiana Nonpareil (Passerina ciris). This period also saw the
publication of part of the original Swedish edition of Peter Kalm’s “Travels,” 1753-61,
which went through numerous editions in different languages. Kalm was a correspondent
of Linnzus; the genus of plants, Kalmia, commemorates his name; his work contains
accounts of many of our birds, some of them the bases of Linnean species ; and he also
published, in 1759, a special paper upon the Wild Pigeon. As in the Catesbian period,
various lesser contributions were made, but none requiring comment. Thus Lawson,
as representing the continuation of a preceding epoch, and the associated names of
Catesby and Edwards in the present one, have carried us past the middle of the last
century.

AISTORICAL PREFACE. xv

Tue Post-Linnzan Epdcu: 1758-1800.
(1758-1766.)

The LInnnean Period. — An interregnum here, during which not a notable work or
worker appears in North American ornithology itself. But events elsewhere occurred,
the reflex action of which upon our theme is simply incalculable, fully requiring the
recognition of this period. The dates, 1758-1766, are respectively those of the appear-
ance of the tenth and of the twelth edition of the “Systema Nature” of Linneus. In
the former the illustrious Swede first formally and consistently applied his system of
nomenclature to all birds known to him; the latter is his completed system, as it finally
left his hands ; and from then to now, zodlogists and especially ornithologists have dis-
puted whether 1758 or 1766 should be taken as the starting-point of zodlogical nomen-
clature. In ornithology, the matter is still at issue between the American and the
British schools. However this may result, the fact remains that during this “Linnean
period,” 1758 to 1766, we have the origin of all the tenable specific names of those of
our birds which were known to Linneeus; the gathering up and methodical digestion
and systematic arrangement of all that had gone before. Let this scant decade stand, —
mute in America, but eloquent in Sweden, and since applauded to the echo of the world.

Nor is this all. The year 1760 saw the famous “Ornithologia” of Mathurin Jacques
Brisson (born April 20, 1725 —died June 23, 1806), in six portly quartos with 261 folded
plates, and elaborate descriptions in Latin and French of hundreds of birds, a fair pro-
portion of which are North American. Many are described for the first time, though
unfortunately not in the binomial nomenclature. The work holds permanent place;
and most of the original descriptions of Brisson’s are among the surest bases of Linnean
species.

(1766-1785.)

The Forsterian Period. — Nearly twenty years have now elapsed with so little in-
cident that two brochures determine the complexion of this period. John Reinhold
Forster was a learned and able man, whose connection with North American ornithology
is interesting. In 1771 he published a tract, now very scarce and of no consequence
whatever, entitled “A Catalogue of the Animals of North America.” But it was the
first attempt to do anything of the sort, —in short, the first thing of its kind. It gives
302 birds, neither described nor even named scientifically. But that was a large num-
ber of North American birds to even mention in those days,— more than Wilson gave
in 1814. Forster followed up this exploit in 1772 with an interesting and valuable
account of 58 birds from Hudson’s Bay, occupying some fifty pages of the “‘ Philosophical
Transactions.” Several of these birds were new to science, and were formally named, —
such as our White-throated Sparrow, Black-poll Warbler, Hudsonian Titmouse, and
Eskimo Curlew. Aside from its intrinsic merit, this paper is notable as the first formal
treatise exclusively devoted to a collection of North American birds sent abroad. The
period is otherwise marked by the publication in 1780 of Fabricius’ “ Fauna Groenlandica,”
in which some 50 birds of Greenland receive attention ; and especially by the appearance
of a great statesman and one of the Presidents of the United States in the réle of orni-
thologist, Thomas Jefferson’s ‘Notes on the State of Virginia” having been first pri-

xvi * ‘HISTORICAL PREFACE

vately printed in Paris in 1782, though the authorized publication was not till 1787.
It contains a list of 77 birds of Virginia, fortified with references to Catesby, Linnzus,
and Brisson, as the author’s authorities. There were many editions, one dating 1853.

The long publication in France of one of the monumental works on general orni-
thology coincides very nearly with this period. I refer of course to Buffon and his
collaborators. The “Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux,” by Buffon and Montbeillard, dates
in its original edition 1770-1783, being in nine quarto volumes with 264 plain plates.
It forms a part of the grand set of volumes dating 1749-1804 in their original editions.
With the nine bird-volumes are associated the magnificent series of colored plates known
as the “Planches Enluminées,” published in 42 fascicles from 1765 to 1781. The
plates are 1008 in number, of which 973 represent birds.

(1785-1791.)

The Pennantian Period. — A great landmark —one of the most conspicuous of the
last century — was set up with the appearance in 1785 of the second volume of Thomas
Pennant’s “Arctic Zoology.” The whole work, in three quarto volumes with many
plates, 1784-1787, was ‘designed as a sketch of the Zodlogy of North America.”
In this year, also, John Latham completed the third volume (or sixth part) of his
“General Synopsis of Birds.” These two great works have much in common, in so far
as a more restricted treatise can be compared with a more comprehensive one; and in
the history of our subject the names of Latham and Pennant are linked as closely as
those of Catesby and Edwards. The parallel may be drawn still further; for neither
Pennant nor Latham (up to the date in mention) used binomial names ; their species
had consequently no standing; but they furnished’ to Gmelin in 1788 the same bases
of formally-named species of the thirteenth edition of the “Systema Nature,” that
Catesby and Edwards had afforded Linnzus in 1758 and 1766. Pennant treated up-
wards of 500 nominal species of North American Birds. The events at large of this brief
but important period were the progress of Latham’s Supplement to his Synopsis, the first
volume of which ‘appeared in 1787, though the second was not completed till 1801;
the appearance in 1790 of Latham’s “Index Ornithologicus,” in which his birds receive
Latin names in due form ; and the publication in 1788 of the thirteenth edition of the
“Systema Nature,” as just said.

We are so accustomed to see “Linn.” and “Gm.” after the names of our longest-
known birds that we almost unconsciously acquire the notion that Linnzeus and. Gmelin
were great discoverers or describers of birds in those days. But the men who made
North American ornithology what it was during the last century were Catesby,
Edwards, Forster, Pennant, Latham, and Bartram. For “the illustrious Swede” was in
this case little more than a methodical cataloguer, or systematic indexer ; while his editor,
Gmelin, was merely an industrious, indiscriminate compiler and transcriber. Neither of
these men discovered anything to speak of in this connection.

(1791-1800.)
The Bartramian Period. — William Bartram’s figure in the events we are sketching
is a notable one, — rather more on account of his bearing upon Wilson’s subsequent. ca-
reer than of his own actual achievements. Wilson is often called the “father of Ameri-

HISTORICAL PREFACE. “xvii

can ornithology ;” if this designation be apt, then Bartram may be styled its godfather.
Few are fully aware how much Wilson owed to Bartram, his “guide, philosopher, and
friend,” who published in 1791 his “Travels through North and South Carolina,” con-
taining much ornithological matter that was novel and valuable, including a formal
catalogue of the birds of the Eastern United States, in which many species are named
asnew. I have always contended that those of his names which are identifiable are
available, though Bartram frequently lapsed from strict binomial propriety ; and the
question furnishes a bone of contention to this day. Many birds which Wilson first
fully described and figured were really named by Bartram, and several of the latter's
designations were simply adopted by Wilson, who, in relation to Bartram, is as the
broader and clearer stream to its principal tributary affluent. The notable “Travels,”
freighted with its unpretending yet almost portentous bird-matter, went through several
editions and at least two translations ; and I consider it the starting-point of a distinctively
American school of ornithology.

We have seen, in several earlier periods, that men’s names appear in pairs, if not
also as mates. Thus, Catesby and Edwards; Linneus and Gmelin; Pennant and
Latham ; and, perhaps, Buffon and Brisson. The Bartramian alter ego is not Wilson,
but Barton, whose ‘Fragments of the Natural History of Pennsylvania,” 1799, closed
the period which Bartram had opened, and with it the century also. Benjamin Smith
Barton’s tract, a folio now very scarce, is doubly a “fragment,” being at once a work
never finished, and very imperfect as far as it went; but it is one of the most notable
special treatises of the last century, and I think the first book published in this country
that is entirely devoted to ornithology. But its author’s laurels must rest mainly upon
this count, for its influgnce or impression upon the course of events is scarcely to be rec-
ognized, —is incomparably less than that made by Bartram’s “Travels,” and by his
mentorship of Wilson.

By the side of Bartram and Barton stand several lesser figures in the picture of this
period. Jeremy Belknap treated the birds of New Hampshire in his “ History” of that
state (1792). Samuel Williams did like service for those of Vermont in his “‘ History ”
(1794). Samuel Hearne, a pioneer ornithologist in the northerly parts of America, fore-
shadowed, as it were, the much later ‘‘ Fauna Boreali-Americana” in the narratiye of his
journey from Hudson’s Bay to the Northern Ocean —a stout quarto published in 1795.
Here a chapter of fifty pages is devoted to about as many species of birds; and Hearne’s
observations have a value which “ time, the destroyer,” has not yet wholly effaced.

THe Witsonran Epoco: 1800-1824.
(1800-1808.)

The Vieillotian Period. — As we round the turn of the century a great work occupies
the opening years, before the appearance of Wilson, —a work by a foreigner, a French-
man, almost unknown to or ignored by his contemporaries in America, although he was
already the author of several illustrated works on ornithology when, in 1807, his “ Histoire
Naturelle des Oiseaux de l’Amérique Septentrionale” was completed in two large folio
volumes, containing more than a hundred engravings, with text relating to several hun-
dred species of birds of North America and the West Indies; many of them figured for

xviii HISTORICAL PREFACE.

the first time, or entirely new to science. This work, bearing much the same relation
to its times that Catesby’s and Edwards’ respectively did to theirs, is said to have been
published in twenty-two parts of six plates each, probably during several years; but the
date of its inception I have never been able to ascertain. However this may be, Vieillot
alone and completely fills a period of eight years, during which no other notable or even
mentionable treatise upon North American birds saw the light. Vieillot’s case is an
exceptional one. As the author of numerous splendidly illustrated works, all of which
live; of a system of ornithology, most of the generic names contained in which are
ingrained in the science; of very extensive encyclepsdic work in which hundreds of
species of birds receive new technical names: Vieillot has a fame which time rather
brightens than obscures. Yet it is to be feared that the world was unkind during his
lifetime. At Paris, he stood in the shadow of Cuvier’s great name; Temminck assailed
him from Holland ; while, as to his work upon our birds, many years passed before it
was appreciated or in any way adequately recognized. Thus, singularly, so great a work
as the “Histoire Naturelle” —one absolutely characteristic of a period — had no appre-
ciable effect upon the course of events till long after the times that saw its birth, when
Cassin, Baird, and others brought Vieillot into proper perspective. There is so little
trace of Vieillot during the Wilsonian and Audubonian epochs, that his “ Birds of North
America” may-almost be said to have slept for half a century. But to-day, the solitary
figure of the Vieillotian period stands out in bold relief.

(1808-1824.)

The Wilsonian Period. —The “ Paisley weaver ;” the ‘Scotch’ pedler ;” the “ melan-
choly poet-naturalist ;” the “father of American ornithology,” — strange indeed are the
guises of genius, yet stranger its disguises in the epithets by whith we attempt to label
and pigeon-hole that thing which has no name but its own, no place but its own. Alex-
ander Wilson had genius, and not much of anything else — very little learning, scarcely -
any money, not many friends, and a paltry share of “the world’s regard” while he lived.
But genius brings a message which men must hear, and never tire of hearing ¢ it is
the word that comes when the passion that conceives is wedded with the patience that
achieves. Wilson was a poet by nature, a naturalist by force of circumstances, an Ameri-
can ornithologist by mere accident, — that is, if anything can be accidental in the life of
aman of genius. As a poet, he missed greatness by those limitations of passion which
seem so sad and so unaccountable ; as the naturalist, he achieved it by the patience that
knew no limitation till death interposed. As between the man and his works, the very
touchstone of genius is there; for the man was greater than all his works are. Genius
may do that which satisfies all men, but never that which satisfies itself; for its inspira-
tion is infinite and divine, its accomplishment finite and human. Such is the penalty
of its possession.

Wilson made, of course, the epoch in which his work appeared, and I cannot restrict
the Wilsonian period otherwise than by giving to Vieillot his own. The period of Wil-
son’s actual authorship was brief; it began in September, 1808, when the first volume of

e “ American Ornithology” appeared, and was cut short by death before the work was
finished. Wilson, having been born July 6, 1766, and come to America in 1794, died
August 23, 1813, when his seventh volume was finished ; the eighth and ninth being

HISTORICAL PREFACE. xix

completed in 1814 by his friend and editor, George Ord. But from this time to 1824,
when Bonaparte began to write, the reigning work was still Wilson’s, nothing appearing
during these years to alter the complexion of American ornithology appreciably. Wil-
son’s name overshadows nearly the whole epoch, — not that others were not then great,
but that he was so much greater. This author treated about 280 species, giving faithful
descriptions of all, and colored illustrations of most of them. There are numerous
editions of his work, of which the principal are Ord’s, 1828-29, in three volumes ;
Jameson’s, 1831, in four; Jardine’s, 1832, in three; and Brewer's, 1840, in one; all
of these, excepting of course the first one, containing Bonaparte’s ‘‘ American Orni-
thology ” and other matter foreign to the original ‘“ Wilson.” In 1814, just as “ Wilson”’
was finished, appeared the history of the memorable expedition under Lewis and Clarke
—an expedition which furnished some’ material to Wilson himself, as witness Lewis’
Woodpecker, Clarke’s Crow, and the “ Louisiana” Tanager; and more to Ord, who con-
tributed to the second edition of “ Guthrie’s Geography ” an article upon ornithology.
Ord’s prominence in this science, however, rests mainly upon his connection with Wilson’s
work, as already noted. Near the close of the Wilsonian period, Thomas Say gave us
important notices of Western birds, upon the basis of material acquired through Long’s
Expedition to the Rocky Mountains, the account of which appeared in 1823. In this
work, Say described sundry species of birds new to seience; but he was rather an ento-
mologist than an ornithologist, and his imprint upon our subject is scarcely to be found
outside the volume just named. A noted — some might say rather notorious — character
appeared upon the scene during this period, in the person of C. S. Rafinesque, who seems
to have been a genius, but one so awry that it is difficult to do aught else than mis-
understand him, unless we confess that we scarcely understand him at all. In the
elegant vernacular of the present day he would be called a crank ; but I presume that
term means that kind of genius which fails of interpretation ; for an unsuccessful genius
“is a crank, and a successful crank is a genius. For the rest, the Wilsonian period was
marked by great activity in Arctic exploration, in connection with the ornithological
results of which appear prominently the names of William E. Leach and Edward
Sabine.

As illustrating the relation between Wilson and Bartram, which I have already
pointedly mentioned, I may quote a few lines from Ord’s “ Life of Wilson.”?

+ ‘ His school-hcuse and residence being but a short distance from Bartram’s Botanic Garden, situated on
the west bank of the Schuylkill: a sequestered spot, possessing attractions of no ordinary kind; an acquaintance
was soon contracted with that venerable naturalist, Mr. William Bartram, which grew into an uncommon friend-
ship, and continued without the least abatement until severed by death. Here it was that Wilson found him-
self translated, if we may so speak, into a new existence. He had long been a lover of the works of Nature, and
had derived more happiness from the contemplation of her simple beauties, than from any other source of gratifi-
cation. But he had hitherto been a mere novice ; he was now about to receive instructions from one whom the
experiences of a long life, spent in travel and rural retirement, had rendered qualified to teach. Mr. Bartram
goon perceived the bent of his friend’s mind, and its congeniality to his own; and took every pains to encourage
him in a study, which, while it expands the faculties, and purifies the heart, insensibly leads to the contemplation
of the glorious Author of Nature himself. From his youth Wilson had been an observer of the manners of birds;
and since his arrival in America he had found them objects of uncommon interest; but he had not yet viewed
them with the eye of a naturalist.” :

This was about 1800 —rather a little later. Wilson’s “‘ novitiate’? was the Vieillotian period, almost exactly.
Bartram survived till July 22, 1823, his eighty-fourth year; the date of his death thus coinciding very nearly with
the close of the Wilsonian epoch and period.

xx HISTORICAL PREFACE.

Tue Avupusonian Epoco: 1824-1853.
(1824-1831.)

The Bonapartian Period.— A princely person, destined to die one of the most
famous of modern naturalists —— Charles Lucien Bonaparte, early conceived and executed
the plan of continuing Wilson’s work in similar style, if not in the same spirit. He
began by publishing a series of “Observations on the Nomenclature of Wilson’s Orni-
thology,” in the “Journal” of the Philadelphia Academy, 1824-25, republished in an
octavo volume, 1826. This valuable critical commentary introduced a new feature, —
decided changes in nomenclature resulting from the sifting and rectification of synonymy.
It is here that questions of synonymy — to-day the bane and drudgery of the working
naturalist — first acquire prominence in the history of our special subject. There had
been very little of it before, and Wilson himself, the least “bookish” of men, gave it
scarcely any attention. Bonaparte also in 1825 added several species to our fauna upon
material collected in Florida by the now venerable Titian R. Peale,— whose honored
name is thus the first of those of nien still living to appear in these annals. Bonaparte’s
“ American Ornithology,” uniform with “Wilson,” and generally incorporated therewith
in subsequent editions, as a continuation of Wilson’s work, was originally published in
four large quarto volumes, running 1825-33. The year 1827, in the midst of.this work
of Bonaparte’s, was a notable one in several particulars. Bonaparte himself was very busy,
producing a “ Catalogue of the Birds of the United States,” which, with a “ Supplement,”
raised the number of species to 366, and of genera to 83; nearly a hundred species
having been thus become known to us since Ord laid aside the pen that Wilson had
dropped. William Swainson the same year described a number of new Mexican species
and genera, many of which come also into the ‘“‘ North American” fauna. But the most
notable event of the year was the appearance of the first five parts of Audubon’s elephant
folio plates. In 1828-29, as may also be noted, Ord brought out his three-vol. 8vo
edition of Wilson. In 1828, Bonaparte returned to the charge of systematically cata-
loguing the birds of North America, giving now 382 species; and about this time he
also produced a comparative list of the birds of Rome and Philadelphia. His main
work having been completed in 1833, as just said, Bonaparte continued his labors with
a ‘Geographical and Comparative List of the Birds of Europe and North America,”
published in London in 1838. This brochure gives 503 European and 471 American
species. The celebrated zodlogist wrote until 1857, but his connection with North
American birds was only incidental after 1838. The period here assigned him, 1824—
1831, may seem too short: but this was the opening of the Audubonian epoch—a
period of brilliant inception, and one in which events that were soon to mature their
splendid fruit came crowding fast; so that room must be made at once for others who
were early in the present epoch.

(1831-1832.)

The Swatnsonio-Richardsonian Period. —The “Fauna Boreali-Americana,” the
ornithological volume of which was published in 1831, made an impression so indelible
that a period, albeit a brief one, must be put here. The technic of this celebrated

HISTORICAL PREFACE. xxi

treatise, more valuable for its descriptions of new species and genera than for its methods
of classification, was by William Swainson, as were the elegant and accurate colored
plates ; the biographical matter, by Dr. (later Sir) John Richardson, increased our knowl-
edge of the life-history of the northerly birds so largely, that it became a fountain of
facts to be drawn upon by nearly every writer of prominence from that day to this.
Fach of the distinguished authors had previously appeared in connection with our birds,
— Swainson as above said; Richardson in 1825, in the appendix to Captain Parry’s
“Journal.” The influence of the work on the whole cannot be well overstated.

Two events, besides the appearance of the “Fauna,” mark the year 1831. One of
these is the publication of the first volume of Audubon’s “ Ornithological Biography,”
being the beginning of the text belonging to his great folio plates. The other is the
completion of the bird-volumes of Peter Pallas’ famous “ Zoographia Rosso-Asiatica,”
one of the most important contributions ever made to our subject, treating so largely
as it does of the birds of the region now called Alaska. The same year saw also the
Jameson edition of “‘ Wilson and Bonaparte.”

(1832-1834.)

The Nuttallian Period.—Thomas Nuttall (born 1786—died 1859) was rather botanist
than ornithologist ; but the travels of this distinguished English-American naturalist
made him the personal acquaintance of many of our birds, his love for which bore fruit
in his “ Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and Canada,” of which the first
volume appeared in 1832, the second in 1834. The work is notable as the first “ hand-
book” of the subject ; it possesses an agreeable flavor, and I think was the first formal
treatise, excepting Wilson’s, to pass to a second edition, as it did in 1840. Nuttall’s
name is permanent in our annals; and many years after he wrote, the honored title was
chosen to be borne by the first distinctively ornithological association of this country, —
the “Nuttall Ornithological Club,” founded at Cambridge in 1873, and still flourishing.

(1834-1853.)

The Audubonian Period. — Meanwhile, the incomparable work of Audubon —~
“the greatest monument erected by art to nature” — was steadily progressing. The
splendid genius of the man, surmounting every difficulty and discouragement of the
author, had found and claimed its own. That which was always great had come to be
known and named as such, victorious in its impetuous yet long-enduring battle with
that curse of the world,—I mean the commonplace; the commonplace, with which
genius never yet effected a compromise, since genius is necessarily a perpetual menace
to mediocrity. Audubon and his work were one; he lived in his work, and in his
work will live forever. When did Audubon die. We may read, indeed, “on Thurs-
day morning, January 27th, 1851, when a deep pallor overspread his countenance... .
Then, though he did not speak, his eyes, which had been so long nearly quenched,
rekindled with their former lustre and beauty; his ‘spirit seemed to be corscious that
it was approaching the Spirit-land.” And yet there are those who are wont to exclaim,
“a soul! a soul! what is that?” Happy indeed are they who are conscious of its
existence in themselves, and who can see it in others, every instant of time during their
lives !

xxii HISTORICAL PREFACE.

Audubon’s first publication, perhaps, was in 1826,—an account of the Turkey-
buzzard, in the “Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal,” and some other minor notices
came from his pen. But his energies were already focused on his life-work, with that
intense and perfect absorption of self which only genius knows. The first volume of
the magnificent folio plates, an hundred in number, appeared in 1827-30, in five parts ;
the second, in 1831-34, of the same number of plates; the third, in 1834-35, likewise
of the same number of plates; the whole series of 4 volumes, 87 parts, 435 plates and
1065 figures of birds, being completed in June, 1839. Meanwhile, the text of the
“ Birds of America,” entitled “ Ornithological Biography,” was steadily progressing, the
first of these royal octavo volumes appearing in 1831, the fifth and last in 1839. In
this latter year also appeared the “ Synopsis of the Birds of North America,” a single
handy volume serving as a systematic index to the whole work. In 1840-44 appeared
the standard octavo edition in seven volumes, with the plates reduced to octavo size
and the text rearranged systematically ; with a later and better nomenclature than that
given in the “ Ornithological Biography,” and some other changes, including an appendix
describing various new species procured during the author’s journey to the upper Mis-
souri in 1843. In the original elephant folios there were 435 plates ; with the reduction
in size the number was raised to 483, by the separation of various figures which had
previously occupied the same plate; and to these 17 new ones were added, making 500
in all. The species of birds treated in the “ Synopsis ” are 491 in number; those in the
work, as it finally left the illustrious author’s hands, are 506 in number, nearly all of
them splendidly figured in colors.

In estimating the influence of so grand an accomplishment as this, we must not
leave Audubon “alone in his glory.” Vivid and ardent was his genius; matchless
he was both with pen and pencil in giving life and spirit to the beautiful objects he
delineated with passionate love ; but there was a strong and patient worker by his side, —
William Macgillivray, the countryman of Wilson, destined to lend the sturdy Scotch
fibre to an Audubonian epoch. The brilliant French-American naturalist was little of
a “scientist.” Of his work, the magical beauties of form and color and movement are
all his; his page is redolent of Nature’s fragrance: but Macgillivray’s are the bone and
sinew, the hidden anatomical parts beneath the lovely face, the nomenclature, the
classification, —in a word, the technicalities of the science. Not that Macgillivray was
only a closet-naturalist ; he was a naturalist in the best sense—in every sense —of the
word, and the “vital spark” is gleaming all through his works upon British birds,
showing his intense and loyal love of Nature in all her moods. But his place in the
Audubonian epoch in American ornithology is as has been said. The anatomical struc-
ture of American birds was first disclosed in any systematic manner, and to any consider
able extent, by him. But only to-day, as it were, is this most important department
of ornithology assuming its rightful place; and have we a modern Macgillivray to
come ?

The sensuous beauty with which Audubon endowed the object of his life was long
in acquiring, with loss of no comeliness, the aspect more strict and severe of a later and
maturer epoch. Audubon was practically accomplished in 1844, the year which saw
his completed work ; but I note no special or material change in the course of events, —
no name of assured prominence, till 1853, when a new régime, that had meanwhile been

HISTORICAL PREFACE. xxiii

insensibly established, may be considered to have closed the Andubonian epoch, — the
Audubonian period thus extending through the nine years after 1844.

While Audubon was finishing, several mentionable events occurred. I have already
spoken of Bonaparte’s “ List” of 1838, and of the 1840 edition of Nuttall’s “Manual.”
Richardson in 1837 contributed to the Report of the Sixth Meeting of the British Asso-
ciation for the Advancement of Science an elaborate and important “Report on North
American Zodlogy,” relating in due part to birds. The distinguished Danish naturalist,
Reinhardt, wrote a special treatise on Greenland Birds, 1838; W. B. O. Peabody one
upon the birds of Massachusetts, 1839. The important Zodlogy of Captain Beechey’s
Voyage appeared in 1839, with the birds done by N. A. Vigors. Maximilian, Prince
of Wied, published his “ Reise in das Innere Nord-America” in 1839-41. Sixteen new
species of birds from Texas were described and figured by J. P. Giraud in 1841, and
the same author's useful “Birds of Long Island” was published in 1844. This year
saw also the bird-volume of De Kay’s “ Zodlogy of New York.” The Rev. J. H. Linsley
furnished a notable catalogue of the birds of Connecticut in 1843. A name intimately
associated with Audubon’s is that of J. K. Townsend, whose fruitful travels in the
West in company with Nuttall in 1834 resulted in adding to our list the many new
species which were published by Townsend himself in 1837, and also utilized by
Audubon. Townsend’s “Narrative” of his journey appeared in 1839; and the same
year saw the beginning of a large work which Townsend projected, an “ Ornithology
of the United States,” which, however, progressed no further than one part or number,
being killed by the octavo edition of Audubon. In 1837 I first find the name of a
friend of Audubon which often appears in his work — that of Dr. Thomas Mayo Brewer,
who wrote on the birds of Massachusetts in this year, and in 1840 brought out his use-
ful and convenient duodecimo edition of ‘“‘ Wilson,” in one volume. In 1844, Audubon’s
last effectual year, the brothers Win. M. and S. F. Baird appear, with a list of the birds
of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, having the year previously, in July, 1843, described two new
species of flycatchers, in the first paper ever written by the one who was to make the
succeeding epoch; and it is significant that the last bird in Audubon’s work was named
“Emberiza bairdi.”

Such were the aspects of the ornithological sky as the glorious Audubonian sun
approached and passed the zenith ; still more significant were the signs of the times as
that orb neared its golden western horizon. In the interval between 1844 and 1853,
Baird and Brewer continued ; Cassin and Lawrence appeared in various papers; and
round these names are grouped those of William Gambel, with new and interesting ob-
servations in the Southwest; of George A. McCall and S. W. Woodhouse, in the same
connection; and of Holbéll in respect of Greenland birds. The most important con-
tributions were the several papers published by Gambel, in 1845 and subsequently, and
Baird’s Zodlogy of Stansbury’s Expedition, 1852. But no period-marking, still less epoch-
making, work accelerated the setting of the sun of Audubon.

Tue Barrpran Epocu: 1853-18 —.

(1853-1858.)

The Cassinian Period. — While much material was accumulating from the explora-
tion of the great West, and the Bairdian period was rapidly nearing ; while Brewer and

Xxiv HISTORICAL PREFACE.

Lawrence were continuing their studies and writings, and many other names of lesser
note were contributing their several shares to the whole result: the figure of John Cassin
stands prominent. Cassin was born September 6, 1813, and passed from view in the
Quaker City, January 10, 1869. Numerous valuable papers and several important works
attest the assiduity and success with which he cultivated his favorite science to the end
of his days. I think that his first paper was the description of a new hawk, Cymindis
wilsont, in 1847. Among his most important works are the Ornithology of the Wilkes
Exploring Expedition ; of the Perry Japan Expedition ; and of the Gilliss Expedition to
Chili. Aside from his strong codperation with Baird in the great work to be presently
noticed, Cassin’s seal is set upon North American ornithology in the beautiful book
begun in 1853 and finished in 1856, entitled “Ilustrations of the Birds of California,”
etc., forming a large octavo volume, illustrated with fifty colored plates. His distinc
tive place in ornithology is this: he was the only ornithologist this country has ever
produced who was as familiar with the birds of the Old World as with those of America.
Enjoying the facilities of the then unrivalled collection of the Philadelphia Academy, his
monographic studies were pushed into almost every group of birds of the world at
large. He was patient and laborious in the technic of his art, and full of book-learning
in the history of his subject ; with the result, that the Cassinian period, largely by the
work of Cassin himself, is marked by its “bookishness,” by its breadth and scope in
ornithology at large, and by the first decided change since Audubon in the aspect of the
classification and nomenclature of the birds of our country. The Cassinian period marks
the culmination of the changes that wrought the fall of the Audubonian sceptre in all
that relates to the technicalities of the science, and consequently represents the beginning
of a new epoch.

The peers of this period are only three, — Lawrence, Brewer, and Baird. The for-
mer of these, already an eminent ornithologist, continued his rapidly succeeding . papers
and was preparing his share of Baird’s great work of 1858; though later his attention be-
came so closely fixed upon the birds of Central and South America, that a “ Lawrencian ,
period” is to be found in the history of the ornithology of those countries rather than
of our own. Dr. Brewer’s various articles appeared, and in 1857 this author, so well
known since Audubonian times, became the recognized leading odlogist of North America,
through the publication of the first part of his “ North American Odlogy ” — a work unfor-
tunately suspended at this point. Though thus fragmentary, this quarto volume stands
as the first systematic treatise published in this country exclusively devoted to odlogy, and
giving a considerable series of colored illustrations of eggs. “But a larger measure of the
world’s regard became his much later, when, in 1874, appeared the great “ History of North
American Birds,” in three quarto volumes, all the biographical matter of which was by
him ; and, even as I write, two more volumes are about to appear, in which: he has like
large share. Thus closely is the name of Brewer identified with the progress of the
science for nearly half a century, — from 1837 at least, to 1884, some four years after his
death, which occurred January 23, 1880. He was born in Boston, November 21, 1814.

Baird published little during the Cassinian period, being then intent upon the great
work about to appear ; but the number of workers in special fields attests the activity
of the times. S. W. Woodhouse published his completed observations upon the birds
of the Southwest in an illustrated octavo volume. Zadock Thompson’s “ Natural History

HISTORICAL PREFACE. XXV

of Vermont” (1853) paid attention to the birds of that state. Birds of Wisconsin were
catalogued by P. R. Hoy; of Ohio, by M. C. Read and Robert Kennicott; of Illinois, by
H. Pratten ; of Indiana, by R. Haymond; of Massachusetts, by F. W. Putnam; and
various other ‘‘faunal lists” and local annotations appeared, including President Jefter-
son’s Virginian ornithology, three-quarters of a century out of date. Dr. T. C. Henry
and Dr. A. L. Heermann wrote upon birds of the Southwest ; Reinhardt continued ob-
servations on Greenland birds; Dr. Henry Bryant published some valuable papers.
The since very eminent English ornithologist, Dr. P. L. Sclater, appeared during this
period in the present connection. ‘The series of Pacific Railroad Reports, which were
to culminate, so far as ornithology is concerned, with the famous ninth volume, were in
progress ; the sixth volume, containing Dr. J. S. Newberry’s valuable and interesting
article upon the birds of California and Oregon, was published in 1857. Thus the
Cassinian period, besides being marked as already said in its broader features, was
notable in its details for the increase in the number of active workers, the extent and
variety of their independent observations, and the consequent accumulation of materials
ready to be worked into shape and system.

(1858-18—.)

The Bairdian Period. — The ninth volume of the “ Pacific Railroad Reports ” was an
epoch-making work, bearing the same relation to the times that the respective works
of Audubon and Wilson had sustained in former years. A great amount of material —
not all of which is more than hinted at in the foregoing paragraph — was at the service
of Professor Baird. In the hands of a less methodical, learned, and sagacious naturalist,
—of one less capable of elaborating and systematizing, — the result would probably have
been an ordinary official report upon the collections of birds secured during a few years
by the naturalists of the several explorations and surveys for a railroad route from the
‘Mississippi Valley to the Pacific Ocean. But having already transformed the eighth
-volume of the Reports from such a “public document” into a systematic treatise on
North American Mammals, this author did the same for the birds of North America,
with the codperation of Cassin and Lawrence. This portly quarto volume, published in
1858, represents the most important and decided single step ever taken in North Ameri-
can ornithology in all that relates to the technicalities of the science. It effected a
revolution — one already imminent in consequence of Cassin’s studies — in classification
and nomenclature, nearly all the names of our birds which had been in use in the
Audubonian epoch being changed in accordance with more modern usages in generic
and specific determinations. While the work contains no biographical matter, — nothing
of the life-history of birds, it gives lucid and exact diagnoses of the species and genera
known at the time, with copious synonymy and critical commentary. Various new
genera are characterized, and many new species are described. The influence of the
great work was immediate and widespread, and for many years the list of names of the
738 species contained in the work remained a standard of nomenclature from which
few desired or indeed were in position to deviate. The value of the work was further
enhanced in 1860 by its republication, identical in the text, but with the addition of an
atlas of 100 colored plates. Many of these plates were the same as those which had
appeared in other volumes of the Pacific Railroad Reports, notably the sixth and tenth

xxvi HISTORICAL PREFACE.

and twelfth (the two latter volumes having appeared in 1859); others were those con-
tained in the “ Mexican Boundary Report” which had appeared under Professor Baird’s
editorship in 1859; about half of them were new.

_ have spoken of the collaboration of Cassin and Lawrence in the production of this
remarkable treatise. Considering it only as one of a series of reports upon the Pacific
Railroad Surveys, I should bring into somewhat of association the names of those who
contributed the ornithological portions of other volumes, as the fourth, sixth, tenth, and
twelfth, — Dr. C. B. R. Kennerly, Dr. J. S. Newberry, Dr. A. L. Heermann, Dr. J. G.
Cooper, and Dr. George Suckley. Nor should it be forgotten that numberless other col-
lectors and contributors, whose specimens are catalogued throughout the volume, brought
their hands to bear upon the erection of this grand monument.

But what of the genius of this work?— for I have not measured my words in speak-
ing of Wilson and Audubon. Can any work be really great without that mysterious
quality ? ? Certainly not. This work is instinct with the genius of the times that saw
its birth. This work is the spirit of an epoch embodied.

But here I must pause. My little sketch is brought upon the threshold of contem-
poraneous history, — to the beginning of the Bairdian period, of the close of which, as
of the duration of the Bairdian epoch, it is not for me to speak. When the splendid
achievements of American ornithologists during the past quarter of a century shall be
seen in historical perspective; when: the brilliant possibilities of our near future
shall have become the realizations of a past; when the glowing names that went before
shall have fired another generation with a noble zeal, a lofty purpose, and a generous
emulation — then, perhaps, the thread here dropped may be recovered by another hand.

Yet a few words of Preface proper to the present work appear to be required. The
original edition of the “Key” was published in October, 1872, in an issue of about
2,200 copies. It was not stereotyped, and has been for some years entirely out of print.
It formed an imperial octavo of 361 pages, illustrated with 238 woodcuts in the text and
6 steel plates. It was designed as a manual or text-book of North American Ornithology.
To meet this design, the Introduction consisted of a general account of the external
characters of birds, an explanation of the technical terms used in describing them, and
some exposition of the leading principles of classification and nomenclature. An artificial
“key” or analysis of the genera, constructed upon a plan found practically useful in
botany, but seldom applied to zoblogy, was. introduced, to enable one who had some
knowledge of the technical terms to refer a given specimen to its proper genus. Then,
in the body of the work, each species was briefly described, with indication of its
geographical distribution and references to several leading authorities. The families and
orders of North American birds were also characterized, and a synopsis of the fossil birds
was appended. The work introduced many decided changes in classification and nomen-
clature which the then state of the science seemed to require, and systematically recog-
nized a large number of those subspecies or geographical races which are now indicated
by the use of trinomial nomenclature, — a method now fully established and recognized
as peculiar to the “‘ American school.” The central idea of the treatise was to enable one

HISTORICAL PREFACE. XXvii

to identify and label his specimens, though he might have no other knowledge of orni-
thology than such as the book itself gave him. I have been given to understand that
the work has answered its purpose, and has had a useful career; and I have long since
been advised by my esteemed publishers that they were ready to issue a second edition,
which I have only just now found time to complete.

The present edition of the “ Key” is conceived in the same spirit as the former one,
to fulfil precisely the same purpose. But it has been entirely rewritten, and is quite
another work, though the old title is preserved. An author who practises his profession
diligently for twenty years is apt to find fault with his first book, and seek to remedy
its defects when opportunity offers. It has become quite clear to me, as it doubtless has
to others, that the old “‘ Key” no longer turns in the lock with ease and precision, — not
that it has rusted from disuse, but that the more complicated mechanism of the lock re-
quires its key to be refitted. During no previous period has our knowledge gone faster
or farther or more surely than in the interval between the two editions of the “ Key ;”
there are scores of active and enthusiastic workers where there was one before ; scores of
important treatises have appeared ; the literature of the subject has been searched, sifted,
and systematized ; every corner of our country has been ransacked for birds, and the list
of our species and subspecies has reached about 900 by the many late discoveries ; active
interest in this branch of science is no longer confined to professed ornithologists ; the
importance of avian anatomy is as fully recognized as is the beauty of the life-history of
birds ; a distinctively American school of ornithology has grown up, introducing radical
changes in nomenclature and classification ; a quarterly journal of ornithology has reached
its ninth annual volume ; an American Ornithologists’ Union, the membership of which
extends to every quarter of the globe, has been founded.

So rapid, indeed, has been the progress, and so radical the changes wrought during the
last few years, that I doubt not this is the time to take our bearings anew and proceed

‘with judicious conservatism. Neither do I doubt that just at this moment a new
departure is imminent, hinging upon the establishment of the American Ornithologists’
Union. It behooves us, therefore, to consider the question, not alone of where we stand
to-day, but also, of whither we are tending ; for we are certainly in a transition state, and
not even the near future can as yet be accurately forecast. The pliability and elasticity of
our trinomial system of nomenclature is very great ; and the method lends itself so readily to
the nicest discriminations of geographical races, — of the finest shades of variation in sub-
specific characters with climatic and other local conditions of environment, that our new toy
may not impossibly prove a dangerous instrument, if it be not used with judgment and cau-
tion. We seem to be in danger of going too, far, if not too fast, in this direction. It is not
to cry “halt!” — for any advance is better than any standstill ; but it is to urge prudence,
caution, and circumspection, lest we be forced to recede ingloriously from an untenable
position, — that these words are penned, with a serious sense of their necessity.

In the present unsettled and perplexing state of our nomenclature, when appeal to
no “authority ” or ultimate jurisdiction is possible, it is well to formulate and codify
some. canons of nomenclature by which to agree to abide. It is well to apply such
canons rigidly, with thorough sifting of synonymy, no matter what precedents be disre-
garded, what innovations be caused. It is well to use trinomials for subspecific deter-
minations. But it is not well to overdo the “variety business ;” feather-splitting is

XXviii HISTORICAL PREFACE.

no better than hair-splitting, and the liberties of the “American idea” must never
degenerate into license. Our action in this regard must stop short of a point where -an
unfavorable reaction would be the inevitable result.

But I have digressed, in saying a warning word, from the point of the conclusion of
this Preface, which is simply to describe the new edition of the “Key” with special
reference to its difference from the former one. The classification and nomenclature are
materially different, in consequence of the progress of our knowledge during the past twelve
years. In 1873, a year after the old “Key” appeared, I published a “ Check List,” con-
formed exactly with the nomenclature of the “Key.” In 1882, when I had recast the “‘ Key,”
I published a second edition of the “ Check List” in conformity with the new “ Key.”
The present work, therefore, gives the same names, with scarcely any variance, though with
a few additional ones; the new “Check List” and the new “‘ Key” being practically one
in all that pertains to nomenclature, and representing a particular phase of the subject.
The numbering of the species, also, corresponds with that in the “ Check List.”

Part I. of the present work consists of my “Field Ornithology,” originally published as
a separate treatise in 1874, and now for the first time incorporated with the “Key.” It is
reprinted nearly verbatim, but with some little amplification towards its end, and the intro-
duction of a few illustrations.

Part II. consists of the introductory matter of the old ‘‘ Key,” very greatly amplified.
In its present shape it is a sort of “Closet Ornithology ” as distinguished from a “ Field
Ornithology ;” being a treatise on the classification and structure of birds, explaining and
defining the technical terms used in ornithology, — in short, teaching the principles of
the science and illustrating their application.

Part III., the main body of the work, describes all the species and subspecies of
North American birds known to me, defines the genera, and characterizes the families and
higher groups. The descriptions are much more elaborate than those of the old “ Key,”
and I trust that such amplification has been made without loss of that sharpness of
definition which was the aim of the first edition. I have kept steadily in view my main
purpose — the ready identification of specimens. In many cases I have drawn upon my
other works — such as the “ Birds of the Colorado Valley,” the “Birds of the North-
west,” and several of my Monographs, — for available ready-made descriptions ; but for
the most part the matter of this kind is new. Scarcely any of this part of the old
“ Key ” remains as it was. One improvement, I think, will be found in the removal of
the unnecessary references to authorities which closed the descriptive paragraphs of the
old “ Key,” and the utilization of the space thus gained by introducing terse biograph-_
ical items, with special reference to nests and eggs, to song, flight, migrative and other
habits ; the technical descriptions of the species thus also epitomizing the life-history of
the birds. Geographical distribution is also more fully treated, as its importance de-
serves. More attention has been paid to the description of the plumages of females and
young birds. The specific names head. their respective paragraphs, instead of tailing-off
the same; they are also marked for accent, and their etymology is concisely stated, —
though for this matter the student should continue to use the new “Check List.”

As regards the artificial “key to the genera” of the old work, it has ‘proven that
too much was attempted in undertaking to carry the student at once to our refined mod-
ern genera. I have accordingly substituted artificial keys to the orders and families ;

HISTORICAL PREFACE. XX1X

and throughout the work have analyzed species under their respective genera, these
under their subfamilies or families, and these again under their orders.

Part IV. consists of a Synopsis of the Fossil birds of North America, corresponding
to the appendix of the old “‘ Key,” but augmented by later discoveries. As before, this
part of the work has been revised by Professor O. C. Marsh.

In the mechanical execution of the work, it has been my aim to compress the most
matter into the least’space and leave no waste paper, in order to keep the treatise within
a single portable volume of convenient text-book size. I judge that there is nearly four
times as much matter in the present volume as there was in the original edition, the
page being much more closely printed, in a smaller type, and on thinner paper.

The old “ Key” was insufficiently illustrated, and the average character of the cuts
was not entirely satisfactory. The present edition more than doubles the number of
illustrations. These are in part original, in part derived from various sources, all of
which are duly accredited in the text. The basis of the series is of course the cuts of the
former edition ; but many of these have been discarded and replaced by better ones.
About fifty of the most effective engravings were secured by my publishers from Brehm’s
“ Thierleben ;”’ nearly as many more are from Dixon’s “ Rural Bird Life,” the American
edition of which is owned by the same firm. A few have been copied from D. G. Elliot’s
“ Birds of America,” and a few others from the Proceedings of the Zodlogical Society of
London. About fifty of the prettiest ones were drawn by Mr. Edwin Sheppard and en-
graved by Mr. H. H. Nichols, expressly for this edition. Another set—- how many there
are of them I do not know —are from my own drawings, and have mostly appeared in
other of my publications. Several of Mr. R. Ridgway’s drawings have been placed at my.
service, through his kind attentions, and with Professor Baird’s permission. I am in-
debted to Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A., for about thirty original anatomical drawings, as
well as for the colored frontispiece. Mr. Henry W. Elliott has kindly put at my dis-
position several of his own artistic compositions, and I have received some very beautiful
engravings with the compliments of the Century Company of New York.

It is always agreeable to pay one’s respects when due, and acknowledge assistance
and encouragement received in the preparation of one’s books. Yet what an embarrass-
ment is mine now! For there is no writer of repute on North Amenvan ornithology,
and scarcely a leader of the science at large, who has not assisted in the making of the
“ Key ;” and there is no reader of the work who has not encouraged its author to produce
this new edition. I am trebly in debt, —to thousands whose names I know not; to
hundreds I only know by name and fame ; to scores of tried and trusted friends.

But let me say how much I am indebted to my compositors and proof-readers of the
University Press at Cambridge for the skill with which they have turned copy into print,
and to the proprietors of that justly-celebrated establishment for the pains they have
taken in making the book an example of beautiful and accurate typography. Let me
recognize here the liberality and generosity of my friend, Mr. Dana Estes, senior of the
firm of Estes and Lauriat, in permitting me to make the book to suit myself, and in
sparing no expense to which he might be put in consequence. Let me not forget that’
during its preparation, as for many years previously, I have enjoyed to the fullest extent
the privileges of the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum, through the
courtesy of Professor Baird, my access to the great collection of birds being always facili-

Part L

FIELD ORNITHOLOGY:

BEING A

MANUAL OF INSTRUCTION FOR COLLECTING, PREPARING,
AND PRESERVING BIRDS.

TELD ORNITHOLOGY must lead the way to Systematic and Descriptive Ornithology.
The study of Birds in the field is an indispensable prerequisite to their study in the
library and the museum. Directions for observing aud collecting birds, for preparing and pre-
serving them as objects of natural history, will greatly help the student on his way to become
a successful Ornithologist, if he will faithfully and intelligently observe them. It is believed
that the practical Instructions which the author has to give will, if followed out, enable any
one who has the least taste or aptitude for such pursuits to become proficient in the necessary
qualifications of the good working ornithologist. These instructions are derived from the
writer's own experience, reaching in time over twenty years, and extending in area over large
portions of North America. Having made in the field the personal acquaintance of most
species of North American birds, and having shot and skinned with his own hands several
thousand specimens, he may reasonably venture to speak with confidence, if not also with
authority, respecting methods of study and manipulation. Feeling so much at. home in the
field, with his gun for destroying birds, and his instruments for preserving their skins, he
wishes to put the most inexperienced student equally at ease; and therefore begs to lay
formality aside, that he may address the reader familiarly, as if chatting With a friend on a
subject of mutual interest. :

§ 1.—IMPLEMENTS FOR COLLECTING, AND THEIR USE.

The Double-barrelled Shot Gun is your main reliance. Under some circumstances
you may trap or snare birds, catch them with bird-lime, or use other devices; but such cases
are exceptions to the rule that you will shoot birds, and for this purpose no weapon compares
with the one just mentioned. The soul of good advice respecting the selection of a gun is,
Get the best one you can afford to buy ; go the full length of your purse in the matters of
material and workmanship. To say nothing of the prime requisite, safety, or of the next most
desirable quality, efficiency, the durability of a high-priced gun makes it cheapest in the end.

1

2 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

Style of finish is obviously of little consequence, except as an index of other qualities; for
inferior guns rarely, if ever, display the exquisite appointments that mark a first-rate arm.
There is really so little choice among good guns that nothing need be said on this score; you
cannot miss it if you pay enough to any reputable maker or reliable dealer. But collecting
is a specialty, and some guns are better adapted than others to your particular purpose, which
is the destruction, as a rule, of small birds, at moderate range, with the least possible injury
to their plumage. Probably three-fourths or more of the birds of a miscellaneous collection
average under the size of a pigeon, and were shot within thirty yards. A heavy gun is there-
fore unnecessary, in fact ineligible, the extra weight being useless. You will find a gun of
7% to 8 pounds weight most suitable. For similar reasons the bore should be small; I prefer
14 gauge, and should not think of going over 12. To judge from the best sporting authorities,
length of barrel is ofless consequence than many suppose; for myself, I incline to a rather
long barrel, — one nearer 33 than 28 inches, —believing that such a barrel may throw shot
better; but I am not sure that this is even the rule, while it is well known that several
circumstances of loading, besides some almost inappreciable differences in the way barrels are
bored, will cause guns apparently exactly alike to throw shot differently. Length and crook
of stock should of course be adapted to your figure, —a gun may be made to fit you, as well
as a coat. For wild-fowl shooting, and on some other special occasions, a heavier and
altogether more powerful gun will be preferable.

Breech-Loader vs. Muzzle-Loader, a case long argued, may be considered settled in
favor of the former. Provided the mechanism and workmanship of the breech be what they
should, there are no valid objections to offset obvious advantages, some of which are these:
ease and rapidity of loading, and consequently delivery of shots in quick succession ; facility of
cleaning; compactness and portability of ammunition ; readiness with which different-sized shot
may be used. This last is highly important to the collector, who never knows the moment
he may wish to fire at avery different bird from such as he has already loaded for. The
muzzle-loader inust always contain the fine shot with which nine-tenths of your specimens
will be secured; if in both barrels, you cannot deal with a hawk or other large bird with
reasonable prospects of success; if in only one barrel, the other being more heavily charged,
you are crippled to the extent of exactly one-half of your resources for ordinary shooting.
Whereas, with the breech-loader you will habitually use mustard-seed in both barrels, and yet
can slip in a different shell in time to seize most opportunities requiring large shot. This con-
sideration alone should decide the case. But, moreover, the time spent in the field in loading
an ordinary gun is no small item; while cartridges may be charged in your leisure at home.
This should become the natural occupation of your spare moments. No time is really gained ;
you simply change to advantage the time consumed. , Metal shells, charged with loose ammu-
nition, and susceptible of being reloaded many times, may Le used instead of any special fixed
ammunition which, once exhausted in a distant place (and circumstances may upset the besf
calculations on that score), leaves the gun useless. On charging the shells ark the number
of the shot used on the outside wad; or better, use colored wads, say plain white for dust shot,
and red, blue, and green for certain other sizes. If going far away, take as many shells as you
think can possibly be wanted — and a few more.

Experience, however, will soon teach you to prefer paper cartridges for breech-loaders.
They may of course be loaded according to circumstances, with the same facility as metal
shells, and even reloaded if desired. It is a good deal of trouble to take care of metal shells,
to prevent loss, keep them clean, and avoid bending or indenting ; while there is often a prac-
tical difficulty in recapping— at least with the common styles that take a special primer.
Those fitted with a screw top holding a nipple for ordinary caps are expensive. Paper cart-

IMPLEMENTS FOR COLLECTING, AND THEIR USE. 3

ridges come already capped, so that this bother is avoided, as it is not ordinarily worth while
to reload them. They are made of different colors, distinguishing various sizes of shot used
without employ of colored wads otherwise required. They may be taken into the field empty
and loaded on occasion to suit; but it is better to pay a trifle extra to have them loaded at the
shop. In such case, about four-fifths of the stock should contain mustard-seed, nearly all the
rest about No. 7, a very few being reserved for about No. 4. ‘Cost of ammunition is hardly
appreciably increased ; its weight is put in the most conveniently portable shape; the whole
apparatus for carrying it, and loading the shells, is dispensed with; much time is saved, the
entire drudgery (excepting gun-cleaning) of collecting being avoided. I was prepared in this
way during the summer of 1873 for the heaviest work I ever succeeded in accomplishing during
the same length of time. In June, when birds were plentiful, I easily averaged fifteen skins
a day, and occasionally made twice as many. As items serving to base calculations, I may
mention that in four months I used about two thousand cartridges, loaded, at $42 per M.,
with seven-eighths of an ounce of shot and two and three-fourths drachms of powder ; only
about three hundred were charged with shot larger than mustard-seed. In estimating the size
of a collection that may result from use of a given number of cartridges, it may not be safe for
even a good shot to count on much more than half as many specimens as cartridges. The
number is practically reduced by the following steps: — Cartridges lost or damaged, or orig-
inally defective; shots missed; birds killed or wounded, not recovered; specimens secured
unfit for preservation, or not preserved for any reason ; specimens accidentally spoilt in stuffing,
or subsequently damaged so ‘as to be not worth keeping; and finally, use of cartridges to
supply the table.

Other Weapons, etc. — An ordinary single-barrel gun will of course answer; but is a
sorry makeshift, for it is sometimes so poorly constructed as to be unsafe, and can at best be
only just half as effective. This remark does not apply to any of the fine single-barrelled breech-
loaders now made. You will find them very effective weapons, and they are not at all expen-
sive. An arm now much used by collectors is a kind of breech-loading pistol, with or without
a skeleton gun-stock to screw into the handle, and taking a particular style of metal cartridge,
charged with a few grains of powder, or with nothing but the fulminate. They are very light,
very cheap, safe and easy to work, and astonishingly effective up to twenty or thirty yards;
making probably the, best ‘second choice” after the matchless double-barrelled breech-
loader itself. The cane-gun should be mentioned in this connection. It is a single-barrel,
lacquered to look like a stick, with a brass stopper at the muzzle to imitate a ferule, counter-
sunk. hammer and trigger, and either a simple curved handle, or a light gunstock-shaped piece
that screws in, The. affair is easily mistaken fur a cane. Some have acquired considerable
dexterity in its use; my own experience with it is very limited and unsatisfactory ; the handle
always hit me in the face, and I generally missed my bird. It has only two recommendations.
If you approve of shooting on Sunday and yet scruple to shock popular prejudice, you ean slip
out of town unsuspected. If you are shooting where the law forbids destruction of small birds,
—a wise and good law that you may sometimes be inclined to defy, — artfully careless handling
of the deceitful implement may prevent arrest and fine. A blow-gun is sometimes used. It is
a long slender tube of wood, metal, or glass, through which clay-balls, tiny arrows, etc., are
projected by force of the breath. It must be quite an art to use such a weapon successfully,
and its employment is necessarily exceptional. Some uncivilized tribes are said to possess
marvellous skill in the use of long bamboo blow-guns; and such people are often valuable
employés of the collector. I have had no experience with the noiseless air-gun, which is, in
effect, a modified blow-gun, compressed air being the explosive power. Nor can I say much
of various methods of trapping birds that may be practised. On these points I must leave you
to your own devices, with the remark that horse-hair snares, set over a nest, are often of great

4 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

service in securing the parent of eggs that might otherwise remain unidentified. I have no
practical knowledge of bird-lime ; I believe it is seldom used in this country. A method of
netting birds alive, which I have tried, is both easy and successful. A net of fine green silk,
some 8 or 10 feet square, is stretched perpendicularly across a narrow part of one of the tiny
brooks, overgrown with briers and shrubbery, that intersect many of our meadows. Retreating
to a distance, the collector beats along the shrubbery making all the noise he can, urging on
the little birds till they reach the almost invisible net and become entangled in trying to fly
through. I have in this manner taken a dozen sparrows and the like at one ‘‘drive.” But
the gun can rarely be laid aside for this or any similar device.

Ammunition. — The best powder is that combining strength and cleanliness in the highest
compatible degree. In some brands too much of the latter is sacrificed to the former. Other
things being equal, a rather coarse powder is preferable, since its slower action tends to throw
shot closer. Some numbers are said to be ‘‘too quick” for fine breech-loaders. Inexperienced
sportsmen and collectors almost invariably use too coarse shot. When unnecessarily large, two
evils result: the number of pellets in a load is decreased, the chances of killing being corre-
spondingly lessened; and the plumage is unnecessarily injured, either by direct mntilation,
or by subsequent bleeding through large holes. As already hinted, shot cannot be too fine for
your routine collecting. . Use ‘‘ mustard-seed,” or “‘ dust-shot,” as it is variously called; it is
smaller than any of the sizes usually numbered. As the very finest can only be procured in
cities, provide yourself liberally on leaving any centre of civilization for even a country village,
to say nothing of remote regions. A small bird that would have been torn to pieces by a few
large pellets, may be riddled with mustard-seed and yet be preservable ; moreover, there is, as
a rule, little or no bleeding from such minute holes, which close up by the elasticity of the
tissues involved. It is astonishing what large birds may be brought down with the tiny pellets.
I have killed hawks with such shot, knocked over a wood ibis at forty yards and once shot
a wolf dead with No. 10, though I am bound to say the animal was within a few feet of me.
After dust-shot, and the nearest number or two, No. 8 or 7 will be found most useful. Water-
fowl, thick-skinned sea-birds, like loons, cormorants, and pelicans, and a few of the largest land
birds, require heavier shot. I have had no experience with the substitution of fine gravel or
sand, much less water, asa projectile; besides shot I never fired anything at a bird except
my ramrod, on one or two occasions, when J never afterwards saw either the bird or the stick.
The comparatively trivial matter of caps will repay attention. Breech-loaders not discharged
with a pin take a particular style of short cap called a “‘ primer;” for other guns the best
water-proof lined caps will prevent annoyance and disappointment in wet weather, and may
save you an eye, for they only split when exploded ; whereas, the flimsy cheap ones — that
“G D” trash, for instance, sold in the corner grocery at ten cents a hundred — usually fly
to pieces. Cut felt wads are the only suitable article. Ely’s ‘‘ chemically prepared ” wadding
is the best. It is well, when using plain wads, occasionally to drive a greased one through
the barrel. Since you may sometimes run out of wads through an unexpected contingency,
always keep a wad-cutter to fit your gun. You can make serviceable wads of pasteboard, but
they are inferior to felt. Cut them on the flat sawn end of a stick of firewood: the side of a
plank does not do very well. Use a wooden mallet, instead of a hammer or hatchet, and so
save your cutter. Soft paper is next best after wads; I have never used rags, cotton or tow,
fearing these tinder-like substances might leave a spark in the barrels. Crumbled leaves or
grass will answer at a pinch. I have occasionally, in a desperate hurry, loaded and killed
without any wadding.

Other Equipments. —(a.) For the Gun. A gun-case will come cheap in the end,
especially if you travel much. The usual box, divided into compartments, and well lined,

IMPLEMENTS FOR COLLECTING, AND THEIR USE. 5

is the best, though the full length leather or india-rubber cloth case answers very well. The
box should contain a small kit of tools, such as mainspring-vice, uipple-wrench, screw-driver,
etc. A stout hard-wood cleaning rod, with wormer, will be required. It is always safe to
have parts of the gun-lock, especially mainspring, in duplicate. For muzzle-loaders extra
nipples and extra ramrod heads and tips often come into use. For breech-loaders the appara-
tus for charging the shells is so useful as to be practically indispensable. (b.) For ammuni-
tion. Métal shells or paper cartridges may be carried loose in the large lower coat pocket,
or in a leather satchel. There is said to be a chance of explosion by some unlucky blow, when
they are so carried, but I never knew of an instance. Another way is to fix them separately
in a row in snug loops of soft leather sewn continuously along a stout waist-belt; or in several
such horizontal rows on a square piece of thick leather, to be slung by a strap over the shoul-
der. But better than anything else is a stout linen vest, similarly furnished with loops holding
each a cartridge; this distributes the weight so perfectly, that the usual ‘“ forty rounds” may
be carried without feeling it. The appliances for loose ammunition are almost endlessly
varied, sv every one may consult his taste or convenience. But now that everybody uses the
breech-loader, shot-pouches and powder-flasks are among the things that were. (c.) For
specimens. You must always carry paper in which to wrap up your specimens, as more par-
ticularly directed beyond. Nothing is better for this purpose than writing-paper; ‘‘ rejected”
or otherwise useless MSS. may thus be utilized. The ordinary game bag, with leather back
and network front, answers very well; but a light basket, fitting the body, such as is used
by fishermen, is the best thing to carry specimens in. Avoid putting specimens into pockets,
unless you have your coat-tail largely excavated: crowding them into a close pocket, where
they press each other, and receive warmth from the person, will injure them. It is always
well to take a little cotton into the field, to plug up shot-holes, mouth, nostrils, or vent, imme-
diately, if required. (d.) For Yourself. The indications to be fulfilled in your clothing are
these: Adaptability to the weather; and since a shooting-coat is not conveniently changed,
while an overcoat is ordinarily ineligible, the requirement is best met by different underclothes.
Easy fit, allowing perfect freedom of muscular action, especially of the arms. Strength of
fabric, to resist briers and stand wear ; velveteen and corduroy are excellent materials. Sub-
dued color, to render you as inconspicuous as possible, and to show dirt the least. Multiplicity
of pockets — a perfect shooting-coat is an ingenious system of hanging pouches about the
person. Broad-soled, low-heeled boots or shoes, giving a firm tread even when wet. Close-
fitting cap with prominent visor, or low soft felt hat, rather broad brimmed. Let india-rubber
goods alone ; the field is no place for a sweat-bath.

Qualifications for Success. — With the outfit just indicated you command all the required
appliances that you can buy, and the rest lies with yourself. Success hangs upon your own
exertions; upon your energy, industry, and perseverance; your knowledge and skill; your
zeal and enthusiasm, in collecting birds, much as in other affairs of life. But that your
efforts — maiden attempts they must once have been if they be not such now—may be directed
to best advantage, further instructions may not be unacceptable.

To Carry a Gun without peril to human life or limb is the a b ¢ of its use. ‘‘ There’s
death in the pot.” Such constant care is required to avoid accidents that no man can give it
by continual voluntary efforts: safe carriage of the gun must become an unconscious habit, fixed
as the movements of an automaton. The golden rule and whole secret is: the muzzle must
never sweep the horizon ; accidental discharge should send the shot into the ground before your
feet, or away up in the air. There are several safe and easy ways of holding a piece: they
will be employed by turns to relieve particular muscles when fatigued. 1. Hold it in the
hollow of the arm (preferably the left, as you can recover to aim in less time than from the

6 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

right), across the front of your person, the hand on the grip, the muzzle elevated about 45°.
2. Hang it by the trigger guard hitched over the forearm brought round to the breast, the
stock passing behind the upper arm, the muzzle pointing to the ground a pace or so in front
of you. 38. Shoulder it, the hand on the grip or heel-plate, the muzzle pointing upward
at least 45°. 4. Shoulder it reversed, the hand grasping the barrels about their middle, the
muzzle pointing forward and downward: this is perfectly admissible, but is the most awkward
position of all to recover from. Always carry a loaded gun at half-cock, unless yo@are about
to shoot. Most good guns are now fitted with rebounding locks, an arrangement by which .
the hammer is thrown back to half-cock as soon as the blow is delivered on the pin. This
admirable device is a great safe-guard, and is particularly eligible for breech-loaders, as the
barrels may be unlocked and relocked without touching the hammers. Unless the lock fail,
accidental discharge is impossible, except under these circumstances: a, a direct blow on the
nipple or pin; 0, catching of both hammer and trigger simultaneously, drawing back of
the former and its release whilst the trigger is still held,— the chances against which are .
simply incalculable. Full-cock, ticklish as it seems, is safer than no-cock, when a tap on
the hammer or even the heel-plate, or a slight catch and release of the hammer, may cause
discharge. Never let the muzzle of a loaded gun point toward your own person for a
single instant. Get your gun over fences, or into boats or carriages, before you get over
or in yourself, or at any rate no later. Remove caps or cartridges on entering a house.
Never aim a gun, loaded or not, at any object, unless you mean to press the trigger. Never
put a loaded gun away long enough to forget whether it is loaded or not; never leave a
loaded gun to be found by others under circumstances reasonably presupposing it to be un-
loaded. Never put a gun where it can be knocked down by a dog ora child. Never imagine
that there can be any excuse for leaving a breech-loader loaded under any circumstances.
Never forget that the idiots who kill people because they ‘‘ did n’t know it was loaded,” are
perennial. Never forget that though a gunning accident may be sometimes interpreted (from
a certain standpoint) as a “dispensation of Providence,” such dispensations happen oftenest
to the careless.

To Clean a Gun properly requires some knowledge, more good temper, and most
“‘elbow-grease ;” it is dirty, disagreeable, inevitable work, which laziness, business, tiredness,
_ indifference, and good taste will by turns tempt you to shirk. After a hunt you are tired, have
your clothes to change, a meal to eat, a lot of birds to skin, a journal to write up. If you
“sub-let ” the contract the chances are it is but half fulfilled ; serve yourself, if you want to
be well served. If you cannot find time for a regular cleaning, an intolerably foul gun may be
made to do another day’s work by swabbing for a few moments with a wet (not dripping) rag,
and then with an oiled one. For the full wash use cold water first ; it loosens dirt better than
hot water. Set the barrels in a pail of water; wrap the end of the cleaning rod with tow or
cloth, and pump away till your arms ache. Change the rag or tow, and the water too, till
they both stay clean for all the swabbing you can do. Fill the barrels with boiling water till
they are well heated; pour it out, wipe as dry as possible inside and out, and set them by a
fire. Finish with a light oiling, inside and out; touch up all the metal about the stock, and
polish the wood-work. Do not remove the locks oftener than is necessary ; every time they
are taken out, something of the exquisite fitting that marks a good gun may be lost ; as long
as they work smoothly take it for granted they are all right. The same direction applies to
nipples. To keep a gun well, under long disuse, it should have had a particularly thorough
cleaning; the chambers should be packed with greasy tow; greased wads may be rammed at
intervals along the barrels; or the barrels may be filled with melted tallow. Neat’s-foot is
recommended as the best easily procured oil; porpoise-oil which is, I believe, used by watch-
makers, is the very best; the oil made for use on sewing-machines is excellent 3 “olive” oil

f
IMPLEMENTS FOR COLLECTING, AND THEIR USE. 7

(made of lard) for table use answers the purpose. The quality of any oil may be improved by
putting in it a few tacks, or scraps of zinc, — the oil expends its rusty capacity in oxidizing the
metal. Inferior oils get “sticky.” One of the best preventives of rust is mercurial (“ blue”)
ointment: it may be freely used. Kerosene will remove rust; but use it sparingly for it
“eats” sound metal too.

To Load a Gun effectively requires something more than knowledge of the facts that the

, powder should go in before the shot, and that each should have a wad a-top. Probably the
most nearly universal fault is use of too much shot for the amount of powder; and the next,
too much of both. The rule is bulk for bulk of powder and shot. If not exactly this, then
rather less shot than powder. It is absurd to suppose, as some persons who ought to know
better do, that the more shot in a gun the greater the chances of killing. The projectile
force of a charge cannot possibly be greater than the vis imertie of the gun as held by the
_ Shooter. The explosion is manifested in all directions, and blows the shot one way simply
and only because it has no other escape. If the resistance in front of the powder were
greater than elsewhere, the shot would not budge, but the gun would fly backward, or
burst. This always reminds me of Lord Dundreary’s famous conundrum — Why does a dog
wag his tail? Because he is bigger than his tail; otherwise the tail would wag him. A
gun shoots shot because the gun is the heavier; otherwise the shot would shoot the gun.
Every unnecessary pellet is a pellet against you, not against the game. The experienced sports -
man uses about one-third less shot than the tyro, with proportionally better result, other things
being equal. As to powder, moreover, a gun can only burn just so much, and every grain
blown out unburnt is wasted if nothing more. No express directions for absolute weight or
measures of either powder or shot can be given; in fact, different guns take as their inost
effective charge such a variable amount of ammunition, that one of the first things you have to
learn about your own arm is, its normal charge-gauge. Find out, by assiduous target practice,
what absolute amounts (and to a slight degree, what relative proportion) of powder and shot
are required to shoot the furthest and distribute the pellets most evenly. This practice, further-
more, will acquaint you with the gun’s capacities in every respect. You should learn exactly
‘what it will and what it will not do, so as to feel perfect confidence in your arm within a cer-
tain range, and to waste no shots in attempting miracles. Immoderate recoil is a pretty sure
sign that the gun was overloaded, or otherwise wrongly charged ; and all force of recoil is sub-
tracted from the impulse of the shot. It is useless to ram powder very hard; two or three
smart taps of the rod will suffice, and more will not increase the explosive force. On the shot
the wad should simply be pressed close enough to fix the pellets immovably. All these direc-
tions apply to the charging of metal or paper cartridges as well as to loading by the muzzle.
The latter operation is so rarely required, now that guns of every grade break at the breach,
that advice on this score may seem quite anachronistic; nevertheless, I let what I said in the
original edition stand. When about to recharge one barrel see that the hammer of the other
stands at half-cock. Do not drop the ramrod into the other barrel, for a stray shot might
impact between the swell of the head and the gun and make it difficult to withdraw the rod.
During the whole operation keep the muzzle as far from your person as you conveniently can.
Never force home a wad with the flat of your hand over the end of the rod, but hold the rod
between your fingers and thumb; in case of premature explosion, it will make just the differ-
ence of lacerated finger tips, or a blown-up hand. Never look into a loaded gun-barrel; you
might as wisely put your head into a lion’s mouth to see what the animal had for dinner.
After a miss-fire hold the gun up a few moments and be slow to reload; the fire sometimes
“hangs” for several seconds. Finally, let me strongly impress upon you the expediency of
light loading in your routine collecting. Three-fourths of your shots need not bring into action
the gun’s full powers of execution. You will shoot more birds under than over 30 yards ; not

8 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

a few you must secure, if at all, at 10 or 15 yards; and your object is always to kill them with
the least possible damage to the plumage. I have, on particular occasions, loaded even down
to $0z. of shot and 14dr. of powder. There is astonishing force compressed in a few grains of
powder ; an astonishing number of pellets in the smallest load of mustard-seed. If you can
load so nicely as to just drive the shot into a bird and not through it and out again, do so, and
save half the holes in the skin. ‘

To Shoot successfully is an art which may be acquired by practice, and can be learned |
only in the school of experience. No general directions will make you a good shot, any more
than a proficient in music or painting. To tell you that in order to hit a bird you must point
the gun at it and press the trigger, is like saying that to play on the fiddle you must shove
the bow across the strings with one hand while you finger them with the other; in either
case the result is the same,:a noise—vox et preterea nihil—but neither music nor game.
Nor is it possible for every one to become an artist in gunnery; a ‘‘crack shot,” like a poet, is
born, not made. For myself I make no pretensions to genius in that direction; for although
I generally make fair bags, and have destroyed many thousand birds in my time, this is rather
owing to some familiarity I have gained with the habits of birds, and a certain knack, acquired
by long practice, of picking them out of trees and bushes, than to skilful shooting from the
sportsman’s standpoint ;~in fact, if I cut down two or three birds on the wing without a miss
I am working quite up to my average in that line. But any one not a purblind “ butter fin-
gers,” can become a reasonably fair shot by practice, and do good collecting. It is not so hard,
after all, to sight a gun correctly on an immovable object, and collecting differs from sporting
proper in this, that comparatively few birds are shot on the wing. But I do not mean to
iinply that it requires less skill to collect successfully than to secure game; on the contrary, it
is finer shooting, I think, to drop a warbler skipping about a tree-top than to stop a quail at
full speed ; while hitting a sparrow that springs from the grass at one’s feet to flicker in sight
a few seconds and disappear is the most difficult of all shooting. Besides, a crack shot, as
understood, aims unconsciously, with mechanical accuracy and certitude of hitting; he simply
wills, and the trained muscles obey without his superintendence, just as the fingers form letters
with the pen in writing ; whereas the collector must usually supervise his muscles all through
the act and see that they mind. In spite of the proportion of snap shots of all sorts you will
have to take, your collecting shots, as a rule, are made with deliberate aim. There is much
the same difference, on the whole, between the sportsman’s work and the collector’s, that there
is between shot-gun and rifle practice, collecting being comparable to the latter. It is gener-
ally understood that the acme of skill with the two weapons is an incompatibility ; and, cer-
tainly, the best shot is not always the best collector, even supposing the two to be on a par in
their knowledge of birds’ haunts and habits. Still a hopelessly poor shot can only attain fair
results by extraordinary diligence and perseverance. Certain principles of shooting may per-
haps be reduced to words. Aim deliberately directly at an immovable object at fair range.
Hold over a motionless object when far off, as the trajectory of the shot curves downward.
Hold a little to one side of a stationary object when very near, preferring rather to take the
chances of missing it with the peripheral pellets, than of hopelessly mutilating it with the
main body of the charge. Fire at the first fair aim, without trying to improve what is good
enough already. Never ‘‘pull” the trigger, but press it. Bear the shock of discharge with-
out flinching. In shooting on the wing, fire the instant the but of the gun taps your shoulder;
you will miss at first, but by and by the birds will begin to drop, and you will have Jaid the
foundation of. good shooting, the knack of “covering” a bird unconsciously. The habit of
“poking” after a bird on the wing is an almost incurable vice, and may keep you a poor
shot all your life. (The collector’s frequent necessity of poking after little birds in the bush
is just what so often hinders him from acquiring brilliant execution.) Aim ahead of a

SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK. 9

flying bird —the calculation to be made varies, according to the distance of the object,
its velocity, its course and the wind, from a few inches to several feet; practice will finally
render it intuitive.

§ 2.— DOGS.

‘ A Good Dog is one of the most faithful, respectful, affectionate and sensible of brutes ;
deference to such rare qualities demands a chapter, however brief. A trained dog is the indis-
peusable servant of the sportsman in his pursuit of most kinds of game; but I trust I am guilty
of no discourtesy to the noble animal, when I say that he is a luxury rather than a necessity te
the collector —a pleasant companion, who knows almost everything except how to talk, who
converses with his eyes and ears and tail, shares comforts and discomforts with equal alacrity,
and occasionally makes. himself useful. So far as a collector’s work tallies with that of a
sportsman, the dog is equally useful to both ; but finding and telling of game aside, your dog’s
services are restricted to companionship and retrieving. He may, indeed, flush many sorts of
birds for you; but he does it, if at all, at random, while capering about ; for the brute intellect
is limited after all, and cannot comprehend a naturalist. The best trained setter or pointer
that ever marked a quail could not be made to understand what you are about, and it would
ruin him for sporting purposes if he did. Take a well-bred dog out with you, and the chances
are he will soon trot home in disgust at your performances with jack-sparrows and tomtits. It
implies such a lowering and perversion of a good dog’s instincts to make him really-a useful
servant of yours, that I am half inclined to say nothing about retrieving, and tell you to make
a companion of your dog, or let him alone. I was followed for several years by “‘ the best dog
I ever saw” (every one’s gun, dog, and child is the best ever seen), and a first-rate retriever ;
yet I always preferred, when practicable, to pick up my own birds, ‘rather than let a delicate
plumage into a dog’s mouth, and scolded away the poor brute so often, that she very properly
returned the compliment, in the end, by retrieving just when she felt like it. However, we
remained the best of friends. Any good setter, pointer, or spaniel, and some kinds of curs,
may be trained to retrieve. The great point is to teach them not to “mouth” a bird ; it may
be accomplished by sticking pins in the ball with which their early lessons are taught. Such
dogs are particularly useful in bringing birds out of the water, and in searching for them when
lost. One point in training should never be neglected: teach a dog what “‘to heel” means,
and make him obey this command. A riotous brute is simply unendurable under any
circumstances.

§8.— VARIOUS SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK.

To be a Good Collector, and nothing more, is a small affair; great skill may be ac-
quired in the art, without a single quality commanding respect. One of the most vulgar,
brutal, and ignorant men I ever knew was a sharp collector and an excellent taxidermist.
Collecting stands much in the same relation to ornithology that the useful and indispensable
office of an apothecary bears to the duties of a physician. A field-naturalist is always more or
less of a collector; the latter is sometimes found to know almost nothing of natural history
worth knowing. The true ornithologist goes out to study birds alive and destroys some of
them simply because that is the only way of learning their structure and technical characters.
There is much more about a bird than can be discovered in its dead body, —how much more,
then, than can be found out from its stuffed skin! In my humble opinion the man who only
gathers birds, as a miser money, to swell his cabinet, and that other man who gloats, as miser- -
like, over the same hoard, both work on a plane far beneath where the enlightened naturalist
stands. One looks at Nature, and never knows that she is beautiful; the other knows she is
beautiful, as even a corpse may be; the naturalist catches her sentient expression, and knows

10 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

how beautiful she is! I would have you to know and love her; for fairer mistress never
swayed the heart of man. Aim high! — press on, and leave the half-way house of mere col-
lectorship far behind in your pursuit of a delightful study, nor fancy the closet its goal.

Birds may be sought anywhere, at any time; they should be sought everywhere, at
all times. Some come about your doorstep to tell their stories unasked. Others spring up
before you as you stroll in the field, like the flowers that enticed the feet of Proserpine. Birds
flit by as you measure the tired roadside, lending a tithe of their life to quicken your dusty
steps. They disport overhead at hide-and-seek with the foliage as you loiter in the shade of
the forest, and their music now answers the sigh of the tree-tops, now ripples an echo to the
voice of the brook. But you will nut always so pluck a thornless rose. Birds hedge them-
selves about. with a bristling girdle of brier and bramble you cannot break; they build their
tiny castles in the air surrounded byimpassable moats, and the drawbridges are never down.
They crown the mountain-top you may lose your breath to climb; they sprinkle the desert
where your parched lips may find no cooling draught; they fleck the snow-wreath when the
nipping blast may make you turn your back; they breathe unharmed the pestilent vapors of
the swamp that mean disease, if not death, for you; they outride the storm at sea that sends
strong men to their last account. Where now will you look for birds?

And yet, as skilled labor is always most productive, so expert search yields more than
random or blundering pursuit. Imprimis ; The more varied the face of a country, the more
varied its birds. A place all plain, all marsh, all woodland, yields its particular set of birds,
perhaps in profusion: but the kinds will be'limited in number. It is of first importance to
remember this, when you are so fortunate as to have choice of a collecting-ground ; and it will
guide your steps aright in‘a day’s walk anywhere, for it will make you leave covert for open,
wet for dry, high for low and back again. Well-watered country is more fruitful of bird-life
than desert or even prairie; warm regions are more productive thon cold ones. As a rule,
variety and abundance of birds are in direct ratio to diversity and luxuriance of vegetation.
Your most valuable as well as largest bags may be made in the regions most favored botani-

‘cally, up to the point where exuberance of plant-growth mechanically opposes your operations.

Search for particular Birds can only be well directed, of course, by a knowledge of
their special haunts and habits, and is one of the mysteries of wood-eraft only solved by long
experience and close observation. Here is where the true naturalist bears himself with con-
scious pride and strength, winning laurels that become him, and do honor to his calling.
Where to find game (“gaime” is anything that vulgar people do not ridicule you for shooting)
of all the kinds we have in this country has been so often and so minutely detailed in sporting-
works that it need not be here enlarged upon, especially since, being the best known, it is the
least valuable of ornithological material. Most large or otherwise conspicuous birds have very
special haunts that may be soon learned; and as a rule such rank next after game in ornitho-
logical disesteem. Birds of prey are an exception to these statements; they range everywhere,
and most of them are worth securing. Hawks will unwittingly fly in your way oftener than
they will allow you to approach them when perched: be ready for them. Owls will be
startled out of their retreats in thick bushes, dense foliage, and hollow trees, in the daytime ;
if hunting them at night, good aim in the dark may be taken by rubbing a wet lucifer match
on the sight of the gun, causing a momentary glimmer. Large and small waders are to be
found by any water’s edge, in open marshes, and often on dry plains; the herons more particu-
larly in heavy bogs and dense swamps. Under cover, waders are oftenest approached by
stealth ; in the open, by strategy; but most of the smaller kinds require the exercise of no special
precautions. Swimuning birds, aside from water-fowl (as the “‘ game” kinds are called), are gen-
erally shot from a boat, as they fly past; but at their breeding places many kinds that congre-

SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK. 11

gate in vast numbe:s <re more readily reached. There is a knack of shooting loons and grebes
on the water ; if they are to be reached at all by the shot it will be by aiming not directly at
them but at the water just in front of them. They do not go under just where they float,
but kick up behind like a jumping-jack and plunge forward. Rails and several kinds of
sparrows are confined to reedy marshes. But why prolong such desultory remarks? Little
can be said to the point without at least a miniature treatise on ornithology; and I have not
yet even alluded to the diversified host of small insectivorous and granivorous birds that fill our
woods and fields. The very existence of most of these is unknown to all but the initiated ; yet
‘hey include the treasures of the ornithologist. Some are plain and humble, others are among
the most beautiful objects in nature; but most agree in being small, and therefore liable to be
overlooked. The sum of my asivien about them must be brief. Get over as much ground,

both wooded and open, as you can thoroughly examine in a day’s tramp, and go out as many
days as you can. It is not always necessary, however, to keep on the tramp, especially dur-
ing the migration of the restless insectivorous species. One may often shoot for hours without
moving more than a few yards, by selecting a favorable locality and allowing the birds to
come to him as they pass in varied troops through the low woodlands or swampy thickets.
Keep your eyes and ears wide open. Logk out for every rustling leaf and swaying twig and
bending blade of grass. Hearken to every note, however faint ; when there is no sound, listen
for a chirp. Habitually move as noiselessly as possible. Keep your gun always ready.
Improve every opportunity of studying a bird you do not wish to destroy; you may often
make observations more valuable than the specimen. Let this be the rule with all birds you
recognize. But I fear I must tell you to shoot an unknown bird on sight; it may give you
the slip in a moment and a prize may be lost. One of the most fascinating things about field-
work is its delightful uncertainty: you never know what’s in store for you as you start out;
you never can tell what will happen next; surprises are always in order, and excitement is
continually whetted on the chances of the varied chase.

For myself, the time is past, happily or not, when every bird was an agreeable surprise,
for dewdrops do not last all day; but I have never yet walked in the woods without learning
something pleasant that I did not know before. I should consider a bird new to science
ample reward for a month’s steady work; one bird new to a locality would repay a week’s
search ; a day is happily spent that shows me any bird that I never saw alive before. How
then can you, with so much before you, keep out of the woods another minute ?

All Times are good times to go a-shooting; but some are better than others. (a.) Time
of year. In all temperate latitudes, spring and fall — periods of migration with most birds —
are the most profitable seasons for collecting. Not only are birds then most numerous, both as
species and as individuals, and most active, so as to be the more readily found, but they

‘inelude a far larger proportion of rare and valuable kinds. In every locality in this country
the periodical visitants outnumber the permanent residents; in most regions the number of
regular migrants, that simply pass through in the spring and fall, equals or exceeds that of
either of the sets of species that come from the south in spring to breed during the summer,
or from the north to spend the winter. Far north, of course, on or near the limit of the vernal
migration, where there are few if any migrants passing through, and where the winter birds
are» extremely few, nearly all the bird fauna is composed of “summer visitants;” far south,
in this country, the reverse is somewhat the case, though with many qualifications. Between
these extremes, what is conventionally known as ‘‘a season” means the period of the vernal or
autumnal migration. For example, the body of birds present in the District of Columbia (where
‘ I collected for several years) in the two months from April 20th to May 20th, and from Septem-
ber 10th to October 10th, is undoubtedly greater, as far as individuals are concerned, than the
total number found there at all other seasons of the year together. As for species, the number

12 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

of migrants about equals that of summer visitants; the permanent residents equal the winter
residents, both these being fewer than either of the first mentioned sets ; while the irregular vis-
iturs, or stragglers, that complete the bird fauna, are about, or rather less than one-half as many
as the species of either of the other categories. About Washington, therefore, I would readily
undertake to secure a greater varvety of birds in the nine weeks above specified than in all the
rest of the year; for in that time would be found, not only all the permanent residents, but nearly
all the migrants, and almost all the summer visitants ; while the number of individual birds
that might be taken exceeds, by quite as much, the number of those procurable in the same
length of time at any other season. Mutatis mutandis, it is the same everywhere in this
country. Look out then, for “the season;” work all through it at a rate you could not
possibly sustain the year around; and make hay while the sun shines. (b.) Time of day.
Early in the morning and late in the afternoon are the best times for birds. There is a myste-
rious something in these diurnal crises that sets bird-life astir, over and above what is ex-
plainable by the simple fact that they are the transition periods from repose to activity, or
the reverse. Subtile meteorological changes occur; various delicate instruments used in
physicists’ researches are sometimes inexplicably disturbed ; diseases have often their turning
point for better or worse; people are apt to be born or die; and the susceptible organisms of
birds manifest various excitements. Whatever the operative influence, the fact is, birds are
particularly lively at such hours. In the dark, they rest —nost of them do; at noonday,
again, they are comparatively still; between these times they are passing to or from their
feeding grounds or roosting places; they are foraging for food, they are singing; at any rate,
they are in motion. Many migratory birds (among them warblers, etc.) perform their journeys
by night ; just at daybreak they may be seen to descend from the upper regions, rest a while,
and then move about briskly, singing and searching for food. Their meal taken, they recu-
perate by resting till towards evening; feed again and are off for the night. If you have had
some experience, don’t you remember what a fine spurt you made early that morning ?—
how many unexpected shots offered as you trudged home belated that evening? Now Iam
no fowl, and have no desire to adopt the habits of the hen-yard; I have my opinion of those
who like the world before it is aired; I think it served the worm right for getting up, when
caught by the early bird; nevertheless I go shooting betimes in the morning, and would walk
all night to find a rare bird at daylight. (c.) Weather. It rarely occurs in this country that
either heat or cold is unendurably severe; but extremes of temperature are unfavorable, for two
reasons: they both occasion great personal discomfort ; and in one extreme only a few hardy
birds will be found, while in the other most birds are languid, disposed to seek shelter, and
therefore less likely to be found. A still, cloudy day of moderate temperature offers as a rule
the best chance ; among other reasons, there is no sun to blind the eyes, as always occurs on a
bright day in one direction, particularly when the sun is low. While a bright day has its good
influence in setting many birds astir, some others are most easily approached in heavy or fall-
ing weather. Some kinds are more likely to be secured during a light snowfall, or after a
storm. Singular as it may seem, a thoroughly wet day offers some peculiar inducements to
the collector. I cannot well specify them, but I heartily indorse a remark John Cassin once
made to me: —“‘J like,” said he, ‘to go shooting in the rain sometimes; there are some
curious things to be learned about birds when the trees are dripping, things too that have not
yet found their way into the books.”

How many Birds of the Same Kind do you want ? — All you can get — with some
reasonable limitations; say fifty or a hundred of any but the inost abundant and widely diffused
species. You may often be provoked with your friend for speaking of some bird he shot, but
did not bring you, because, he says, ‘‘Why, you’ve got one like that!” Birdskins are
capital ; capital unemployed may be useless, but can never be worthless. Birdskins are a

°

SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK. 138

medium of exchange among ornithologists the world over; they represent value, — money value
and scientific value. If you have more of one kind than you can use, exchange with some
one for species you lack; both parties to the transaction are equally benefited. Let me bring
this matter under several heads. (a.) Your own “series” of skins of any species is incomplete
until it contains at least one example of each sex, of every normal state of plumage, and every
normal transition stage of plumage, and further illustrates at least the principal abnormal
variations in size, form, and color to which the species may be subject; I will even add that
every different faunal area the bird is known to inhabit should be represented by a specimen,
particularly if there be anything exceptional in the geographical distribution of the species.
Any additional specimens to all such are your only “duplicates,” properly speaking. (b.) Birds
vary so much in their size, form, and coloring, that a “‘ specific character” can only be pre-
cisely determined from examination of a large number of specimens, shot at different times, in
different places ; still less can’ the “limits of variation” in these respects be settled without
ample materials. (¢.) The rarity of any bird is necessarily an arbitrary and fluctuating con-
sideration, because in the nature of the case there can be no natural unit of comparison,
nor standard of appreciation. It may be said, in general terms, no bird is actually “ rare.”
With a few possible exceptions, as in the cases of birds occupying extraordinarily limited’
areas, like some of the birds of paradise; or about to become extinct, like the pied duck,
enough birds of all kinds exist to overstock every public and private collection in the world,
without sensible diminution of their numbers. ‘ Rarity” or the reverse is only predicable
upon the accidental (so to speak) circumstances that throw, or tend to throw, specimens into
naturalists’ hands. Accessibility is the variable element in every case. The fulmar petrel is
said (on what authority I know not) to exceed any other bird in its aggregate of individuals;
how do the skins of that bird you have handled compare in number with specimens you have
seen of the “rare” warbler of your own vicinity? All birds are common somewhere at some
season; the point is, have collectors been there at the time? Moreover, even the arbitrary
appreciation of “rarity ” is fluctuating, and may change at any time; long sought and highly
prized birds are liable to appear suddenly in great numbers in places that knew them not
before ; a single heavy “invoice” of a bird from some distant or little-explored region may at
once stock the market, and depreciate the current value of the species to almost nothing.
For example, Baird’s bunting and Sprague’s lark remained for thirty years among our special
desiderata, only one specimen of the former and two or three of the latter being known. Yet
they are two of the most abundant birds of Dakota, where in 1873 I took as many of both as
I desired; and specimens enough have lately been secured to stock all the leading museums
of this country and Europe. (d.) Some practical deductions are to be made from these
premises. Your object is to make yourself acquainted with all the birds of your vicinity, and
to preserve a complete suite of specimens of every species. Begin by shooting every bird you
can, coupling this sad destruction, however, with the closest observations upon habits. You
will very soon fill your series of a few kinds, that you find almost everywhere, almost daily.
Then if you are in a region the ornithology of which is well known to the profession, at once
stop killing these common birds —they are in every collection. You should not, as a rule,
destroy any more robins, bluebirds, song-sparrows, and the like, than you want for yourself.
Keep an eye on them, studying them always, but turn your actual pursuit into other channels,
until in this way, gradually eliminating the undesirables, you exhaust the bird fauna as far as
possible (you will not quite exhaust it— at least for many years). But if you are in a new
or little-known locality, I had almost said the very reverse course is the best. The chances
are that the most abundant and characteristic birds are ‘‘ rare” in collections. Many a bird’s
range is quite restricted: you may happen to be just at its metropolis ; seize the opportunity.
and get good store, — yes, up to fifty or a hundred; all you can spare will be thankfully
received by those who have none. Quite as likely, birds that are scarce just where you happen

14 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

to be, are so only beeause you are on the edge of their habitat, and are plentiful in more acces-
sible regions. But, rare or not, it is always a point to determine the exact geographical
distribution of a species; and this is fixed best by having specimens to tell each its own tale,
from as many different and widely separated localities as possible. This alone warrants pro-
curing one or more specimens in every locality ; the commonest bird acquires a certain value
if it be captured away from its ordinary range. An Eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) shot in
California might be considered more valuable than the “rarest” bird of that State, and would
certainly be worth a hundred Massachusetts skins; a varied thrush (Turdus nevius) killed
in Massachusetts is worth a like number from Oregon. But let all your justifiable destruction,
of birds be tempered with mercy; your humanity will be continually shocked with the havoc
you work, and should never permit you to take life wantonly. Never shoot a bird you do not
fully intend to preserve, or to utilize in some proper way. Bird-life is too beautiful a thing to
destroy to no purpose; too sacred a thing, like all life, to be sacrificed, unless the tribute is hal-
lowed by worthiness of motive. ‘‘ Not a sparrow falleth to the ground without His notice.”

I should not neglect to speak particularly of the care to be taken to secure full suites of
females. Most miscellaneous collections contain four or more males to every female, — a dis-
proportion that should be as far reduced as possible. The occasion of the disparity is obvious :
females are usually more shy and retiring in disposition, and consequently less frequently
noticed, while their smaller size and plainer plumage, as a rule, further favor their eluding
observation. The difference in coloring is greatest among those groups where the males are
most richly clad, and the shyness of the mother birds is most inarked during the breeding
season, just when the males, full of song, and in their nuptial attire, become most conspicuous.
It is often worth while to neglect the gay Benedicts, to trace out and secure the plainer but not
less interesting females. This pursuit, moreover, often leads to discovery of the nests and
eggs, — an important consideration. Although both sexes are generally found together when
breeding, and mixing indiscriminately at other seasons, they often go in separate flocks, and
often migrate independently of each other; in this case the males usually in advance.
Towards the end of the passage of some warblers, for instance, we may get almost nothing
but females, all our specimens of a few days before having been males. The notable excep-
tions to the rule of smaller size of the female are among rapacious birds and many waders,
though in these last the disparity is not so marked. I only recall one instance, among Amer-
ican birds, of the female being more richly colored than the male — the phalaropes. When
the sexes are notably different in adult life, the young of both sexes usually resemble the adult
female, the young males gradually assuming their distinctive characters. When the adults
of both sexes are alike, the young commonly differ from them.

In the same connection I wish to urge a point, the importance of which is often over-
looked ; it is our practical interpretation of the adage, ‘a bird in the hand is worth two in the
bush.” Always keep the first specimen you secure of a species till you get another; no matter
how common the species, how poor the specimen, or how certain you may feel of getting other
better ones, keep it. Your most reasonable calculations may come to naught, from a variety
of circumstances, and any specimen is better than no specimen, on general principles. And in
general, do not, if you can help it, discard any specimen in the field. No tyro can tell what
will prove valuable and what not; while even the expert may regret to find that a point comes
up which a specimen he injudiciously discarded might have determined. Let a collection be
“weeded out,” if at all, only after deliberate and mature examination, when the scientific results
it affords have been elaborated by a competent ornithologist ; and even then, the refuse (with
certain limitations) had better be put where it will do some good, than be destroyed utterly.
For instance, I myself onee valued, and used, some Smithsonian ‘“ sweepings”; and I know
very weil what to do with specimens, now, to which I would not give house-room in my own
cabinet. If forced to reduce bulk, owing to limited facilities for transportation in the: field

SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK. 15

{as too often happens), throw away according to size, other things being equal. Given only
so many cubic inches or feet, eliminate the few large birds which take up the space that would .
contain fifty or a hundred different little ones. If you have a fine large bald eagle or pelican,
for instance, throw it away first, and follow it with your ducks, geese, etc. In this way, the
bulk of a large miscellaneous collection may be reduced one half, perhaps, with very little
depreciation of its actual value. The same principle may be extended to other collections in.
natural history (excepting fossils, which are always weighty, if not also bulky) ; very few bird-
skins, indeed, being as valuable contributions to science as, for example, a vial of miscella-
neous insects that occupies no more room may prove to be.

What is “A Good Day’s Work ? ” — Fifty birds shot, their skins preserved, and obser-
vations recorded, is a very good day’s work; it is sharp practice, even when birds are plentiful.
I never knew a person to average anywhere near it; even during the ‘‘ season” such work
cannot possibly be sustained. You may, of course, by a murderous discharge into a flock,
as of blackbirds or reedbirds, get a hundred or more in a moment; but I refer to collecting
a fair variety of birds. You will do very well if you average a dozen a day during the seasons.
I doubt whether any collector ever averaged as many the year around; it would be over four
thousand specimens annually. The greatest number I ever procured and prepared in one day
was forty, and I Have not often gone over twenty. Even when collecting regularly and
assiduously, I am satisfied to average a dozen a day during the migrations, and one-third or
one-fourth as many the rest of the year. Probably this implies the shooting of about one in
five not skinned for various reasons, as mutilation, decay, or want of time.

Approaching Birds.— There is little if any trouble in getting near enough to shoot
most birds. With notable exceptions, they are harder to see when near enough, or to hit
when seen; particularly small birds that are almost incessantly in motion. As a rule—anda
curious one it is— difficulty of approach is in direct ratio to the size of the bird; it is perhaps
because large conspicuous birds are objects of more general pursuit than the little ones you
ordinarily search for. The qualities that birds possess for self-preservation may be called
wariness in large birds, shyness in small ones. The former make off knowingly frum a sus-
picious object; the latter fly from anything that is strange to them, be it dangerous or not.
This is strikingly illustrated in the behavior of small birds in the wilderness, as contrasted with
their actions about towns; singular as it may seem, they are more timid under the former cir.
cumstances than when grown accustomed to the presence of man. It is just the reverse with
a hawk or raven, for instance ; in populous districts they spend much of their time in trying to
save their skins, while in a new country they have not learned, like Indians, that a white man
is “ mighty uncertain.” In stealing on a shy bird, you will of course take advantage of any
cover that-may offer, as inequalities of the ground, thick bushes, the trunks of trees; and it is
often worth while to make a considerable détour to secure unobserved approach. I think that
birds are more likely, as a rule, to be frightened away by the movements of the collector,
than by his simple presence, however near, and that they are more afraid of noise than of
mere motion. Crackling of twigs and rustling of leaves are sharp sounds, though not loud
ones; you may have sometimes been surprised to find how distinctly you could hear the move-
ments of a horse or cow in underbrush at some distance. Birds have sharp ears for such
sounds. Forma habit of stealthy movement; i¢ tells, in the long run, in comparison with
lumbering tread. There are no special precautions to be taken in shooting through high open
forest; you have only to saunter along with your eyes in the tree-tops. It is ordinarily the
easiest and on the whole the most renumerative path of the collector. In traversing fields and
meadows move briskly, your principal object being to flush birds out of the grass; and as most
of your shots will be snap ones, keep in readiness for instant action. Excellent and varied

16 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

shooting is to be had along the hedge rows, and in the rank herbage that fringes fences. t is
best to keep at a little distance, yet near enough to arouse all the birds as you pass: you may
catch them on wing, or pick them off just as they settle after a short flight. In this shooting,
two persons, one on each side, can together do more than twice as much work as one. Thick-
ets and tangled undergrowth are favorite resorts of many birds; but when very close, or,
as often happens, over miry ground, they are hard places to shoot in. As you come thrashing
through the brush, the little inhabitants are scared into deeper recesses ; but if you keep still a
few minutes in some favorable spot, they are reassured, and will often come back tu take a
peep.at you. A good deal of standing still will repay you at such times ; needless to add, you
cannot be too lightly loaded for such shooting, when birds are mostly out of sight if a dozen
yards off. When yourself concealed in a thicket, and no birds appear, you can often call num-
bers about you by a simple artifice. Apply the back of your hand to your slightly parted lips,
and suck in air; it makes a nondescript ‘‘screeping” noise, vatiable in intonation at your
whim, and some of the sounds resemble the cries of a wounded bird, or a young one in distress.
It wakes up the whole neighborhood, and sometimes puts certain birds almost beside themselves,
particularly in the breeding season. Torturing a wounded bird to make it scream in agony
accomplishes the same result, but of course is only permissible under great exigency. In pen-
etrating swamps and marshes, the best advice I can give you is to tell you to get along the
best way you can. Shooting on perfectly open ground offers much the same case; you must
be left to your own devices. I will say, however, you can ride on horseback, or even in a
buggy, nearer birds than they will allow you to walk up to them. Sportsmen take advantage
of this to get within a shot of the upland plover, usually a very wary bird in populous districts ;
I have driven right into a flock of wild geese; in California they often train a bullock to graze
gradually up to geese, the gunner being hidden by its body. There is one trick worth know-
ing; it is not to let a bird that has seen you know by your action that you have seen it, but to
keep on unconcemedly, gradually sidling nearer. ,I have secured many hawks in this way,
when the bird would have flown off at the first step of direct approach. Numberless other
little arts will come to you as your wood-craft matures.

Recovering Birds. — It is not always that you secure the birds you kill; you may not
be able to find them, or you may see them lying, perhaps but a few feet off, in a spot practi-
cally inaccessible. Under such circumstances a retriever does excellent service, as already
hinted ; he is equally useful when a bird properly ‘‘ marked down” is not found there, having
fluttered or run away and hidden elsewhere. The most difficult of all places to find birds is
among reeds, the eternal sameness of which makes it almost impossible to rediscover « spot
whence the eye has once wandered, while the peculiar growth allows birds to slip far down out
of sight. In rank grass or weeds, when you have walked up with your eye fixed on the spot
where the bird seemed to fall, yet failed to discover it, drop your cap or handkerchief for a
mark, and hunt around it as a centre, in enlarging circles. In thickets, make a “bee line”
for the spot, if possible keeping your eye on the spray from which the bird fell, and not for-
getting where you stood on firing; you may require to come back to the spot and take a new
departure. You will not seldom see a bird just shot at fly off as if unharmed, when really it
will drop dead in a few moments. In all cases therefore when the bird does not drop at the’
shot, follow it with your eyes as far as you can; if you see it finally drop, or even flutter
languidly downward, mark it on the principles just mentioned, and go in search. Make every
endeavor to secure wounded birds, on the score of humanity; they should not be left to pine
away and die in lingering misery if it can possibly be avoided.

Killing Wounded Birds. — You will often recover winged birds, as full of life as before
the bone was broken ; and others too grievously hurt to fly, yet far from death. Your object is

- SUGGESTIONS AND DIRECTIONS FOR FIELD-WORK. 17

to kill them as quickly and as painlessly as possible, without injuring the plumage. This is
to be accomplished, with all small birds, by suffocation. The respiration and circulation of
birds is very active, and most of them die in a few moments if the lungs are so compressed
that they cannot breathe. Squeeze the bird tightly across the chest, under the wings, thumb
on one side, middle finger on the other, forefinger pressed in the hollow at the root of the neck,
between the forks of the merrythought. Press firmly, hard enough to fix the chest immovably
and compress the lungs, but not to break in the ribs. The bird will make vigorous but ineffect-
ual efforts to breathe, when the muscles will contract spasmodically ; but in a moment more,
the system relaxes with a painful shiver, light fades from the eyes, and the lids close. I
assure you, it will make you wince the first few times; you had better habitually hold the
poor creature behind you. You can tell by its limp feel and motionlessness when it is dead,
without watching the sad struggle. Large birds obviously cannot be dealt with in this
way; I would as soon attempt to throttle a dog as a loon, for instance, upon which all the
pressure you can give makes no sensible impression. A winged hawk, again, will throw itself
on its back as you come up, and show such good fight with beak and talons, that you may be
quite severely scratched in the encounter: meanwhile the struggling bird may be bespattering
its plumage with blood. In such a case — in any case of a large bird making decided resist-
ance —I think it best to step back a few paces and settle the matter with a light charge of

" mustard-seed. Any large bird once secured may be speedily dispatched by stabbing to the
heart with some slender instrument thrust in under the wing — care must be taken too about
the bleeding ; or, it may be instantly killed by piercing the brain with a knife introduced into
the mouth and driven upward and obliquely backward from the palate. The latter method is
preferable as it leaves no outward sign and causes no bleeding to speak of. With your thumb,
you may indent the back part of a bird’s skull so as to compress the cerebellum; if you can
get deep enough in, without materially nee the plumage, or breaking the skin, the
method is unobjectionable.

Handling Bleeding Birds.— Bleeding depends altogether upon the part or organ
wounded ; but other things being equal, violence of the hemorrhage is usually in direct pro-
portion to the size of the shot-hole ; when mustard-seed is used it is ordinarily very trifling, if it
oceur at all. Blood flows oftener from the orifice of exit of a shot, than from the wound of
entrance, for the latter is usually plugged with a little wad of feathers drivenin. Bleeding from
the mouth or nostrils is the rule when the lungs are wounded. When it occcurs, hold up the
bird by the feet, and let it drip; a general squeeze of the body in that position will facilitate
the drainage. In general, hold a bird so that a bleeding place is most dependent; then, pres-
sure about the part will help the flow. A “gob” of blood, which is simply a forming clot,
on the plumage may often be dexterously flipped almost clean away with a snap of the finger.
It is first-rate practice to take cotton and forceps into the field to plug up shot-holes, and stop
the mouth and nostrils and vent on the spot. I follow the custom of the books in recommend-
ing this, but I will confess I have rarely done it myself, and I suspect that only a few of our
most leisurely and elegant collectors do so habitually. Shot-holes may be found by gently
raising the feathers, or blowing them aside; you can of course get only a tiny plug into the
wound itself, but it should be one end of a sizable pledget, the rest lying fluffy among the
feathers. In stopping the mouth or vent, ram the fluff of cotton, entirely inside. You cannot
conveniently stop up the nostrils of small birds separately ; but take a light cylinder of cotton,
lay it transversely across the base of the upper mandible, closely covering the nostrils, and
confine it there by tucking each end tightly into the corner of the mouth. In default of such
nice fixing as this, a pinch of dry loam pressed on a bleeding spot will plaster itself there and
stop further mischief. Never try to wipe off fresh blood that has already wetted the plumage ;
you will only make matters worse. Let it dry on, and then — but the treatment of blood-
stains, and other soilings of plumage, is given beyond.

: 2

18 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY. =

Carrying Birds Home Safe.— Suppose you have secured a fine specimen, very likely
without a soiled or ruffled feather; your next care will be to keep it so till you are ready to
skin it. But if you pocket or bag it directly, it will be a sorry-looking object before you get
home. Each specimen must be separately cared for, by wrapping in stout paper; writing
paper is as good as any, if not the best. It will repay you to prepare a stock of paper before
starting out; your most convenient sizes are those of a half-sheet of note, of letter, and of cap
respectively. Either take these, or fold and cut newspaper to correspond; besides, it is always
well to have a whole newspaper or two for large birds. Plenty of paper will go in the breast
pockets of the shooting-coat. Make a ‘“ cornucopia,” — the simplest thing in the world, but,
like tying a particular knot, hard to explain. Setting the wings closely, adjusting disturbed
feathers, and seeing that the bill points straight forward, thrust the bird head first into one
of these paper cones, till it will go no further, being bound by the bulge of the breast. Let
the cone be large enough for the open end to fold over or pinch together entirely beyond the
tail. Be particular not to crumple or bend the tail-feathers. Lay the paper cases in the game
bag or great pocket so that they very nearly run parallel and lie horizontal; they will carry
better than if thrown in at random. Avoid overcrowding the packages, as far as is reasonably
practicable; moderate pressure will dv no harm, as a rule, but if great it may make birds
bleed afresh, or cause the fluids of a wounded intestine to ooze out and soak the plumage of
the belly, —a very bad accident indeed. For similar obvious reasons, do not put a large heavy
bird on top ofa lot of little ones; I would sooner sling a hawk or heron over my shoulder, or
carry it by hand. If it goes in the bag, see that it gets to the bottom. Avoid putting birds
in pockets that are close about your person; they are almost always unduly pressed, and may
gain just enough additional warmth from your body to make them begin to decompose before
you can get at skinning them. Handle birds no more than is necessary, especially white-
plumaged ones; ten to one your hands are powder-begrimed : and besides, even the warmth
and moisture of your palms may tend to injure a delicate feathering. Ordinarily pick up a
bird by the feet or bill; as you need both hands to make the cornucopia, let the specimen
dangle by the toes from your teeth while you are so employed. In catching at a wounded
bird, aim to cover it entirely with your hand; but whatever you do, never seize it by the tail,
which then will often be left in your hands for your pains. Never grasp wing-tips or tail-
feathers; these large flat quills would get a peculiar crimping all along the webs, very difficult
to efface. Finally, I would add there is a certain knack or art in manipulating, either of a
dead bird or a birdskin, by which you may handle it with seeming carelessness and perfect
impunity ; whilst the most gingerly fingering of an inexperienced person will leave its rude
trace. You will naturally acquire the correct touch; but it can be neither taught nor
described.

A Special Case.— While the ordinary run of land birds will be brought home in good
order by the foregoing method, some require special precautions. I refer to sea birds, such as
gulls, terns, petrels, ete., shot from a boat. In the first place, the plumage of most of them is,
in part at least, white and of exquisite purity. Then, fish-eating birds usually vomit and
purge when shot. They are necessarily fished all dripping from the water. They are too
large for pocketing. If you put them on the thwarts or elsewhere about the boat, they usually
fall off, or are knocked off, into the bilge water ; if you stow them in the cubby-hole, they will
assuredly soil by mutual pressure, or by rolling about. It will repay you to pick them from
the water by the bill, and shake off all the water you can; hold them up, or let some one do
it, till they are tolerably dry ; plug the mouth, nostrils, and vent, if not also shot-holes ; wrap
each one separately in a cloth (not paper) or a mass of tow, and pack steadily in a covered box
or basket taken on board for this purpuse. With such precautions as these birds most liable
to be soiled reach the skinning table in perfect order; and your care will afterward transform
them into specimens without spot or blemish.

HYGIENE OF COLLECTORSHIP. 19

§ 4.— HYGIENE OF COLLECTORSHIP.

It is Unnecessary to speak of the Healthfulness of a pursuit that, like the collector’s
occupation, demands regular bodily exercise, and at the same time stimulates the mind by
supplying an object, thus calling the whole system into exhilarating action. Yet collecting
has its perils, not to be overlooked if we would adequately guard against them, as fortunately
we may, in most cases, by simple precautions. The dangers of taxidermy itself are elsewhere
noticed; but, besides these, the collector is exposed to vicissitudes of the weather, may endure
great fatigue, may breathe miasm, and may be mechanically injured.

Accidents from the Gun have been already treated; a few special rules will render
others little liable to occur. The secret of safe climbing is never to relax one hold until another
is secured; it is in spirit equally applicable to scrambling over rocks, a particularly difficult
thing to do safely with a loaded gun. Test rotten, slippery, or otherwise suspicious holds
before trusting them. In lifting the body up anywhere, keep the mouth shut, breathe
through the nostrils, and go slowly. In swimming, waste no strength unnecessarily in trying
to stem a current; yield partly, and land obliquely lower down; if exhausted, float; the
slightest motion of the hands will ordinarily keep the face above water; and in any event keep
your wits collected. In fording deeply, a heavy stone will strengthen your position. Never
sail a boat experimentally ; if you are no sailor, take one with you or stay on land. In cross-
ing a high, narrow footpath, never look lower than your feet; the muscles will work true if
not confused with faltering instructions from a giddy brain. On soft ground, see what, if
anything, has preceded you; large hoof-marks generally mean that the way is safe; if none
are found, inquire for yourself before going on. Quicksand is the most treacherous, because
far more dangerous than it looks; but I have seen a mule’s ears finally disappear in genuine
mud. Cattle paths, however erratic, commonly prove the surest way out of a difficult place,
whether of uncertain footing or dense undergrowth.

Miasm.— Unguarded exposure in malarious regions usually entails sickness, often pre-
ventable, however, by due precautions. It is worth knowing, in the first place, that miasmatic
poison is most powerful between sunset and sunrise; more exactly, from the damp of the
evening until night vapors are dissipated; we may be out in the daytime with comparative
impunity, where to pass a night would be almost certain disease. If forced to camp out, seek
the highest and dryest spot, put a good fire on the swamp side, and also, if possible, let trees
intervene. Never go out on an empty stomach ; just a cup of coffee and a crust may make a
decided difference. Meet the earliest unfavorable symptoms with quinine; I should rather say,
if unacclimated, anticipate them with this invaluable agent. Endeavor to maintain high
health of all functions by the natural means of regularity and temperance in diet, exercise, and
Tepose.

“ Taking Cold.” — This vague ‘‘ household word” indicates one or more of a long varied
train of unpleasant affections, nearly always traceable to one or the other of only two causes:
sudden change of temperature, and wnequal distribution of temperature. No extremes of heat
or cold can alone effect this result ;' persons frozen to death do not ‘take cold” during the
process. But if a part of the body be rapidly cooled, as by evaporation from a wet article of
clothing, or by sitting in a draught of air, the rest of the body remaining at an ordinary tem-
perature ; or if the temperature of the whole be suddenly changed by going out into the cold,
or. especially, by coming into a warm room, there is much liability of trouble. There is an

old saying, —
ene “When the air comes through a hole

Say your prayers to save your soul;””

20 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

and I should think almost any one could get a ‘‘ cold” with a spoonful of water on the wrist
held to a key-hole. Singular as it may seem, sudden warming when cold is more dangerous
than the reverse; every one has noticed how soon the handkerchief is required on entering a
heated room on a cold day. Frost-bite is an extreme illustration of this. As the Irishman
said on picking himself up, it was not the fall, but stopping so quickly that hurt him; it is
not the lowering of the temperature to the freezing point, but its subsequent elevation, that
devitalizes the tissue. This is‘why rubbing with snow, or bathing in cold water, is required
to restore safely a frozen part; the arrested circulation must be very gradually re-established,
or inflammation, perhaps mortification, ensues. General precautions against taking cold are
almost self-evident, in this light. There is ordinarily little if any danger to be apprehended
from wet clothes, so long as exercise is kept up; for the “ glow” about compensates for the
extra cooling by evaporation. Nor is a complete drenching more likely to be, injurious than
wetting of one part. But never sit still wet; and in changing rub the body dry. There is a
general tendency, springing from fatigue, indolence, or indifference, to neglect damp feet ; that
is to say, to dry them by the fire; but this process is tedious and uncertain. I would say
especially, off with the muddy. boots and sodden socks at once; dry stockings and slippers,
after a hunt, may make just the difference of your being able to go out again or never. Take
care never to check perspiration ; during this process, the body is in a somewhat critical condi-
tion, and sudden arrest of the function may result disastrously, even fatally. One part of the
business of perspiration is to equalize bodily temperature, and it must not be interfered with.
The secret of much that might be said about bathing when heated, lies here. A person over-
heated, panting it may be, with throbbing temples and a dry skin, is in danger partly because
the natural cooling by evaporation from the skin is denied, and this condition is sometimes not
far from a ‘‘sunstroke.” Under these circumstances, a person of fairly good constitution may
plunge into the water with impunity, even with benefit. But if the body be already cooling
by sweating, rapid abstraction of heat from the surface may cause internal congestion, never
unattended with danger. Drinking ice-water offers a somewhat parallel case; even on stoop-
ing to drink at the brook, when flushed with heat, it is well to bathe the face and hands first,
and to taste the water before a full draught. It is a well-known excellent rule, not to bathe
immediately after a full meal; because during digestion the organs concerned are compara-
tively engorged, and any sudden disturbance of the circulation may be disastrous. The
imperative necessity of resisting drowsiness under extreme cold requires no comment. In
walking under a hot sun, the head may be sensibly protected by green leaves or grass in the
hat; they may be advantageously moistened, but not enough to drip about the ears. Under
such circumstances the slightest giddiness, dimness of sight, or confusion of ideas, should be
taken as a warning of possible sunstroke, instantly demanding rest and shelter.

Hunger and Fatigue are more closely related than they might seem to be; one is a sign
that the fuel is out, and the other asks for it. Extreme fatigue, indeed, destroys appetite ;
this simply means, temporary incapacity for digestion. But even far short of this, food is more
easily digested and better relished after a little preparation of the furnace. On coming home
tired, it is much better to make a leisurely and reasonably nice toilet than to eat at once, or to
lie still thinking how tired you are; after a change and a wash you will feel like a “ new
man,” and go to table in capital state. Whatever dietetic irregularities a high state of eivili-
zation may demand or render practicable, a normally healthy person is inconvenienced almost
as soon as his regular meal-time passes without food; a few can work comfortably or profit-
ably fasting over six or eight hours. Eat before starting; if for a day’s tramp, take a lunch ;
the most frugal meal will appease if it do not satisfy hunger, and so postpone its urgency. As
a small serap of practical wisdom, I would add, keep the remnants of the lunch, if there are
any; for you cannot always be sure of getting in to supper.

REGISTRATION AND LABELLING. 21

Stimulation. — When cold, fatigued, depressed in mind, and on other occasions, you
may feel inclined to resort to artificial stimulus. Respecting this many-sided theme I have a
few words to offer of direct bearing on the collector’s case. It should be clearly understood in
the first place that a stimulant confers no strength whatever ; it simply calls the powers that be
into increased action at their own expense. Seeking real strength in stimulus is as wise as an
attempt to lift yourself up by the boot-straps. You may gather yourself to leap the ditch and
you clear it ; but no such muscular energy can be sustained ; exhaustion speedily renders further
expenditure impossible. But now suppose a very powerful mental impression be made, say
the circumstance of a succession of ditches in front, and a mad dog behind; if the stimulus of
terror be sufficiently strong, you may leap on till you drop senseless. Alcoholic stimulus is a
parallel case, and is not seldom pushed to the same extreme. Under its influence you never
can tell when you are tired; the expenditure goes on, indeed, with unnatural rapidity, only it
is not felt at the time; but the upshot is: you have all the original fatigue to endure and to
recover from, plus the fatigue resulting from over-excitation of the system. Taken as a forti-
fication against cold, alcohol is as unsatisfactory as a remedy for fatigue. Insensibility to cold
does not imply protection. The fact is the exposure is greater than before; the circulation and
respiration being hurried, the waste is greater, and as sound fuel cannot be immediately supplied,
the temperature of the body is soon lowered. The transient warmth and glow over, the system
has both cold and depression to endure ; there is no use in borrowing from yourself and fancy-
ing you are richer. Secondly, the value of any stimulus (except in a few exigencies of disease
or injury) is in proportion, not to the intensity, but to the equableness and durability of its
effect. This is one reason why tea, coffee, and articles of corresponding qualities, are preferable
to alcoholic drinks ; they work so smoothly that their effect is often unnoticed, and they ‘‘ stay
by” well; the friction of alcohol is tremendous in comparison. A glass of grog may help a
veteran over the fence, but no one, young or old, can shoot all day on liquor. I have had
so much experience in the use of tobacco as a mild stimulant that I am probably no impartial
judge of its merits: I will simply say I do not use it in the field, because it indisposes to mus-
cular activity, and favors reflection when observation is required; and because temporary
abstinence provokes the morbid appetite and renders the weed more grateful afterwards.
Thirdly, undue excitation of any physical function is followed by corresponding depression, on
the simple principle that action and reaction are equal; and the balance of health turns too
easily to be wilfully disturbed. Stimulation is a draft upon vital capital, when interest alone
should suffice; it may'be needed at times to bridge a chasm, but habitual living beyond. vital
income infallibly entails bankruptcy in health. The use of alcohol in health seems practically
restricted to purposes of sensuous gratification on the part of those prepared to pay a round
price for this luxury.. The three golden rules here are, —never drink before breakfast, never
drink alone, and never drink bad liquor; their observance may make even the abuse of
alcohol tolerable. Serious objections for a naturalist, at least, are that science, viewed
through a glass, seems distant and uncertain, while the joys of rum are immediate and unques-
tionable; and that intemperance, being an attempt to defy certain physical laws, is therefore
eminently unscientific.

§5— REGISTRATION AND LABELLING.

A mere Outline of a Field Naturalist’s Duties would be inexcusably incomplete with-
out mention of these important matters; and, because so much of the business of collecting
must be left to be acquired in the school of experience, I am the more anxious to give explicit
directions whenever, as in this instance, it is possible to do so.

Record your Observations Daily. — In one sense the specimens themselves are your
record, — prima facie evidence of your industry and ability ; and if labelled, as J shall presently

22 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

advise, they tell no small part of the whole story. But this is not enough; indeed, I am not
sure that an ably conducted ornithological journal is not the better half of your operations.
Under your editorship of labelling, specimens tell what they know about themselves ; but you
ean tell much more yourself. Let us look at a day’s work: You have shot and skinned so
many birds and laid them away labelled. You have made observations about them before
shooting, and have observed a number of birds that you did not shoot. You have items of
haunts and habits, abundance or scarcity ; of manners and actions under special circumstances,
as of pairing, nesting, laying, rearing young, feeding, migrating, and what not; various notes
of birds are still ringing in your ears ; and finally, you may have noted the absence of species you
saw a while before, or had expected to occur in your vicinity. Meteorological and topographi-
eal items, especially when travelling, are often of great assistance in explaining the occurrences
and actions of birds. Now you know these things, but very likely no one else does; and
you know them at the time, but you will not recollect a tithe of them in a few weeks or months,
to say nothing of years. Don’t trust your memory : it will trip you up; what is clear now will
grow obscure; what is found will be lost. Write down everything while it is fresh in your
mind; write it out in full: time so spent now will be time saved in the end, when you offer
your researches to the discriminating public. Don’t be satistied with a dry-as-dust item ;
clothe a skeleton fact, and breathe life into it with thoughts that glow; let the paper smell of
the woods. There’s a pulse in a new fact; catch the rhythm before it dies. Keep off the
quicksands of mere memorandum — that means something “to be remembered,” which is just
what you cannot do. Shun abbreviations; such keys rust with disuse, and may fail in after
times to unlock the secret that should have been laid bare in the beginning. Use no signs
intelligible only to yourself: your note-books may come to be overhauled by others whom
you would not wish to disappoint. Be sparing of sentiment, a delicate thing, easily degraded
to drivel: crude enthusiasm always hacks instead of hewing. Beware of literary infelicities :
‘ the written word remains,” it may be, after you have passed away; put down nothing for

your friend’s blush, or your enemy’s sneer; write as if a stranger were looking over your
shoulder.

Ornithological Book-keeping may be left to your discretion and good. taste in the
details of execution. Each may consult his preferences for rulings, headings, and blank forms
of all sorts, as well as particular modes of entry. But my experience has been that the entries
it is advisable to make are too multifarious to be accommodated by the most ingenious formal
ruling ; unless, indeed, you.make the conventional heading -‘‘ Remarks” disproportionately
wide, and commit to it everything not otherwise provided for. My preference is decidedly for a
plain page. I use a strongly bound blank book, cap size, containing at least six or eight
quires of good smooth paper; but smaller may be needed for travelling, even down to a pocket
note-book. I would not advise a multiplicity of books, splitting up your record into different
departments: let it be journal and register of specimens cumbined. (The registry of your
own collecting has nothing to do with the register of your cabinet of birds, which is sure to
include a proportion of specimens from other sources, received in exchange, donated, or pur-
chased. I speak of this beyond.) I have found it convenient to commence a day’s record
with a register of the specimens secured, each entry consisting of a duplicate of the bird’s label
(see beyond), accompanied by any further remarks I have to offer respecting the particular
specimens ; then to go on with the full of my day’s observations, as suggested in the last para-
graph. You thus have a “register of collections” in chronological order, told off with an
unbroken series of numbers, checked with the routine label-items, and continually interspersed
with the balance of your ornithological studies. Since your private field-number is sometimes
an indispensable clew to the authentication of a specimen after it has left your own hands,
never duplicate it. If you are collecting other objects of natural history besides birds, still have

REGISTRATION AND LABELLING. 23

but one series of numbers; duly enter your mammal, or mineral, or whatever it is, in its
place, with the number under which it happens to fall. Be scrupulously accurate with these
and all other figures, as of dates and measurements. Always use black ink; the “fancy”
writing-fluids, even the useful carmine, fade sooner than black, while lead-pencilling is never
safe.

Labelling. — This should never be neglected. It is enough to make a sensitive ornithol-
ogist shiver to see a specimen without that indispensable appendage —a label. I am sorry to
observe that the routine labelling of most collections is far from being satisfactory. A well-
appointed label is something more than a slip of paper with the bird’s name on it, and is still
defective, if, as is too often the case, only the locality and collector are added. A complete
label records the following particulars: 1. Title of the survey, voyage, exploration, or other
expedition (if any), during which the specimen was collected. 2. Name of the person in
charge of the same (and it may be remarked that the less he really cares about birds, and the
less he actually interests himself to procure them, the more particular he will be about this).
3. Title of the institution or association (if any) under the auspices or patronage of which the
specimen was procured, or for which it is designed. 4. Name of collector; partly to give
credit where it is due, but principally to fix responsibility, and authenticate the rest of the
items. 5. Collector’s number, referring to his note-book, as just explained; if the specimen
afterwards forms part of a general collection it usually acquires another number by new regis-
try; the collector’s then becoming the “ original,” as distinguished from the “current,”
number. 6. Locality, perhaps the most important of all the items. A-specimen of unknown
or even uncertain origin is worthless or nearly so; while lamentable confusion has only too
often arisen in ornithological writings from vague or erroneous indications of locality: I should
say that a specimen ‘‘not authentic” in this particular had better have its swpposed origin
erased and be let alone. Nor will it do to say simply, for instance, ‘‘ North America” or even
“United States.” The general geographical distribution of birds being according to recognized
faunal areas, ornithologists generally know already the quarter of the globe from which any
bird comes; the locality of particular specimens, therefore, should be fixed down to the very
spot. If this be obscure add the name of the nearest place to be found on a fairly good map,
giving distance and direction. 7. Date of collection, —day of the month, and year. Among
other reasons for this may be mentioned the fact that it is often important to know what
season a particular plumage indicates. 8. Sex, and if.possible also age, of the specimen, — an
item that bespeaks its own importance. Ornithologists of all countries are agreed upon certain
signs to indicate sex. These are: ¢ for male, 9 for female,—the symbols respectively of
Mars and Venus. Immaturity is often denoted by the sign ,; thus, #,, young male. Or,
we may write 9 ad., 9 yg., for adult female, young female, respectively. It is preferable,
however, to use the language of science, not our vernacular, and say & juv. (juvenis, young).
“ Nupt.” signifies breeding plumage; ‘‘ hornot.” means a bird of the year. 9. Measurements
of length, and of extent of wings; the former can only be obtained approximately, and the
latter not at all, from a prepared specimen. 10. Color of the eyes, and of the bill, feet, or
other naked or soft parts, the tints of which may change in drying. 11. Miscellaneous partic-
ulars, such as contents of stomach, special circumstances of capture, vernacular name, ete.
12. Scientific name of the bird. This is really the least important item of all, though

.generally thought to take precedence. But a bird labels itself, so to speak; and nature’s
label may be deciphered at any time. In fact, I would enjoin upon the collector not to
write out the supposed name of the bird in the field, unless the species is so well known as
to be absolutely unquestionable. Proper identification, in any case to which the slightest
doubt may attach, can only be made after critical study in the closet with ample facilities for
examination and comparison. The first eight items, and the twelfth, usually constitute the

24 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

face of a label; the rest are commonly written on the back. Labels should be of light card-
board, or very stiff writing paper; they may be dressed attractively, as fancy suggests; the
general items of a large number of specimens are best printed ; the special ones must of course
be written. Shape is immaterial ; small ‘‘cards” or “ tickets” are preferred by some, and
certainly look very well when neatly appointed; but I think, on the whole, that a shape
answering the idea of a ‘‘slip” rather than a “ticket” is most eligible. A slip about three
inches long and two thirds of an inch wide will do very well for anything, from a hawk to a
humming-bird. Something like the “‘ shipping tag” used by merchants is excellent, particu-
larly for larger objects. It seems most natural to attach the string to the left-hand end. The
slip should be tied so as to swing just clear of the bird’s legs, but not loose enough to dangle
several inches, for in that case the labels are continually tangling with each other when the
birds are laid away in drawers. The following diagrams show the face and back of the last
label I happened to write before these lines were originally penned; they represent the size
and shape that I find most convenient for general purposes; while the ‘‘ legend” illustrates
every one of the twelve items above specified.

§& Explorations in Dakota. Dr. Elliott Coues, U.S.A. §}
s 3
z No. 2655. Buteo borealis(Gm.) V. 9 juv. =e
ra
5 Fort Randall, Missouri River. Oct. 29, 1872. S
FS
Obverse.

23.00 x 53.00 x 17.60. — Eyes yellowish-gray; bill horn-blue,
darker at tip; cere wax-yellow; tarsi dull yellowish; claws
bluish-black. Stomach contained portions of a rabbit; also, a
large tapeworm.

Reverse.

‘Directions for Measurement may be inserted here, as this matter pertains rightfully to
the recording of specimens. The following instructions apply not only to length and extent,
but to the principal other dimensions, which may be taken at any time. For large birds, a
tape-line showing inches and fourths will do; for smaller ones, a foot-rule graduated for inches
and eighths, or better, decimals to hundredths, must be used; and for all nice measurements
the dividers are indispensable. ‘‘ Length: ” Distance between the tip of the bill and end of
the longest tail-feather. Lay the bird on its back on the ruler on a table; take hold of the bill
with one hand and of both legs with the other; pull with reasonable force to get the curve all \
out of the neck ; hold the bird thus with the tip of the bill flush with one end of the ruler, and
see where the end of the tail points. Put the tape-line in place of the ruler, in the same way,
for larger birds. ‘‘ Hxtent:” Distance between the tips of the outspread wings. They must
be fully outstretched, with the bird on its back, crosswise on the ruler, its bill pointing to your
breast. Take hold of right and left metacarpus with the thumb and forefinger of your left and
right hand respectively, stretch with reasonable force, getting one wing-tip flush with one end
of the ruler, and see how much the other wing-tip reaches. With large birds pull away as
hard as you please, and use the table, floor, or side of the room; mark the points and apply
tape-line. ‘‘ Length of wing:” Distance from the carpal angle formed at the bend of the
wing to the end of the longest primary. Get it with compasses for small birds. In birds with
a convex wing, do not lay the tape-line over the curve, but under the wing in a straight line,
This measurement is the one called, for short, “ the wing.” ‘‘ Length of tail: Distance

MATERIALS FOR PREPARING BIRDSKINS. 25

from the roots of the rectrices to the end.of the longest one. Feel for the pope’s nose; in either
a fresh or dried specimen there is more or less of a palpable lump into which the tail-feathers
stick. Guess as near as you can to the middle of this lump; place the end of the ruler opposite
this. point, and see where the tip of the longest tail-feather comes. ‘‘ Length of bill: ”” Some
take the curve of the upper mandible; others the side of the upper mandible from the feathers;
others the gape, etc. I take the chord of the culmen. Place one foot of the dividers on the
culmen just where the feathers end; no matter whether the culmen runs up on the forehead, or
the frontal feathers run out on the culmen, and no matter whether the culmen is straight or
curved. Then with me the length of the bill is the shortest distance from the point just indi-
cated to the tip of the upper mandible; measure it with the dividers. In a straight bill of
course it is the length of the culmen itself; in a curved bill, however, it is quite another thing.
“* Length of tarsus:” Distance between the joint of the tarsus with the leg above, and that
with the first phalanx of the middle toe below. Measure it always with dividers, and in front
of the leg. ‘‘ Length of toes:” Distance in a straight line along the upper surface of a toe
from the point last indicated to the root of the claw on top. Length of toe is to be taken
without the claw, unless otherwise specified. ‘‘ Length of the claws:” Distance in a straight line
from the point last indicated to the tip of the claw. ‘‘ Length of head” is often a convenient
dimension for comparison with the bill. Set one foot of the dividers over the base of the culmen
(determined as above) and allow the other to slip snugly down over the arch of the occiput.

§ 6.— INSTRUMENTS, MATERIALS, AND FIXTURES FOR PREPARING BIRDSKINS.

Instruments.— The only indispensable instrument is a pair of scissors or a knife;
although practically you want both of these, a pair of spring forceps, and a knitting-needle, or
some similar wooden or ivory object, yet I have made hundreds of birdskins consecutively
without touching another tool. ‘‘ Persicos odi, puer, apparatus!” I always mistrust the
emphasis of a collector who makes a flourish of instruments. You might be surprised to see
what a meagre, shabby-looking bit our best taxidermists work with. Stick to your scissors,
knife, forceps, and needle. But you may as well buy, at the outset, a common dissecting-case,
just what medical students begin business with; it is very cheap, and if there are some unneces-
sary things in it, it makes a nice little box in which to keep your tools. The case contains,
among other things, several scalpels, just the knives you want; a “‘ cartilage-knife,” which is
nothing but a stout scalpel, suitable for large birds; the best kind of scissors for your purpose,
with short blades and long handles —if ‘‘ kneed” at the hinge so much the better; spring
forceps, the very thing ; a blow-pipe, useful in many ways and answering well for a knitting-
needle ; and some little steel-hooks, chained together, which you may want to use. But you
will also require, for large birds, a very heavy pair of scissors, or small shears, short-bladed
and long-handled, and a stout pair of bone-nippers. Have some pins and needles; surgical
needles, which cut instead of punching, are the best. Get a hone or strop, if you wish, and a
feather duster. Use of scissors requires no comment, and I would urge their habitual employ
instead of the knife-blade ; I do nine-tenths of my cutting with scissors, and find it much the
easiest. A double-lever is twice as effective as a single one, and besides, you gain in cutting
soft, yielding substances by opposing two blades. Moreover, scalpels need constant sharpen-
ing; mine are generally too dull to cut much with, and I suppose I am like other people —
while scissors stay sharp enough. The flat, thin ivory or ebony handle of the scalpel is about
us useful as the blade. Finger-nails, which were made before scalpels, are a mighty help.
Forceps are almost indispensable for seizing and holding parts too small or too remote to be
grasped by the fingers. The knitting-needle is wanted for a specific purpose noted beyond.
The shears or nippers are only needed for what the ordinary scissors are too weak to do. Our
instruments, you see now, are ‘‘ a short horse soon curried.”

26 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

Materials. —(a.) For stuffing. ‘What do you stuff ’em with?” is usually the first
question of idle curiosity about taxidermy, as if that were the great point; whereas, the stuffing
is so small « matter that I generally reply, “anything, except brickbats!” But if stuffing
birds were the final cause of Cotton, that admirable substance could not be more perfectly
adapted than it is to the purpose. Ordinary raw cotton-batting or wadding is what you want.
When I can get it I never think of using anything else for small birds. I would use it for all
birds were expense no object. Here tow comes in; there is a fine, clean, bleached article of
tow prepared for surgical dressings; this is the best, but any will do. Some say chop your
tow fine; this is harmless, but unnecessary. A crumpled newspaper, wrapped with tow, is
first-rate for a large bird. Failing cotton or tow, any soft, light, dry, vegetable substance may
be made to answer, — rags, paper, crumbled leaves, fine dried grass, soft fibrous inner bark,
etc.; the down of certain plants, as thistle and silkweed, makes an exquisite filling for small
birds. But I will qualify my remark about brickbats by saying: never put hair, wool, feathers,
or any other ANIMAL substance in a birdskin ; far better leave it empty: for, as we shall see in
the sequel, bugs come fast enough, without being invited into a snug nest. .(b.) For preserv-
ing. ARSENIC, — not the pure metal properly so called, but arsenic of the shops, or arsenious
acid, —is the great preservative. Use dry powdered arsenic, plenty of it, and nothing else.
There is no substitute for arsenic worthy of the name, and no preparation of arsenic so good as
the simple substance. Various kinds of ‘‘ arsenical soap” were and may still be in vogue;
it is a nasty greasy substance, not fit to handle; and although efficacious enough, there is a
very serious hygienic objection to its use. Arsenic, I need not say, is a violent irritant poison,
and must therefore be duly guarded, but may be used with perfect impunity. It is a very
heavy substance, not appreciably volatile at ordinary temperatures, and therefore not liable,
as some suppose, to be breathed, to any perceptible, much less injurious, extent. It will not
even at once enter the pores of healthy unbroken skin ; so it is no matter if it gets on the fingers.
The exceedingly minute quantity that may be supposed to find its way into the system in the
course of time is believed by many competent physicians to be rather beneficial as a tonic. I
will not commit myself to this; for, though I have never felt better than when working daily
with arsenic, I do not know how much my health was improved by the out-door exercise
always taken at the same time. The simple precautions are, not to let it lie too long in con-
tact with the skin, nor get into an abrasion, nor under the nails. It will convert a scratch or
cut into a festering sore of some little severity; while if lodged under the nails it soon shows
itself by soreness, increased by pressure ; a white speck appears, then a tiny abscess forms, dis-
charges and gets well in a few days. Your precautions really respect other persons more than
yourself; the receptacle should be conspicuously labelled “POISON!” Arsenic is a good
friend of ours; besides preserving our birds, it keeps busybodies and meddlesome folks away
from the scene of operations, by raising.a wholesome suspicion of the taxidermist’s surround.
ings. It may be kept in the tin pots in which it is usually sold; but some shallower, broader
receptacle is more convenient. A little drawer say 6x6 inches, and an inch deep, to slip
under the edge of the table, or a similar compartment in a large drawer, will be found handy.
A salt-spoon, or little wooden shovel whittled like one, is nice to use it with, though in effect,
I always shovel it up with the handle of a scalpel. As stated, there is no substitute for arsenio;

1 “Strange as it may appear to some, I would say avoid especially all the so-called arsenical soaps ; they
are at best but filthy preparations ; besides, it is a fact to which I can bear painful testimony that they are,
especially when applied to a greasy skin, poisonous in the extreme. I have been so badly poisoned, while workin :
upon the skins of some fat water birds that had been prepared with arsenical soap, as to be made seriously ill, the
poison having worked into the system through some small wounds or scratches on my hand. Had pure areattiy
been used in preparing the skins, the effect would not have been as bad, although grease and arsenic are generally
a blood-poison in some degree; but when combined with ‘soap’ the effect, at least as far as my experience goes,
is much more injurious.” (MAYNARD, Guide, p. 12.) In endorsing this, I would add that the combination is the.
more poisonous, in all probability, simply because the soap, being detersive, mechanically facilitates the entrance
of the poison, without, however, chemically increasing its virulence.

MATERIALS FOR PREPARING BIRDSKINS. 27

but at a pinch you can make temporary ‘shift with the following, among other articles: —table
salt, or saltpetre, or charcoal strewn plentifully ; strong solution of corrosive sublimate, brushed
over the skin inside ; creosote; impure carbolic acid; these last two are quite efficacious, but
they smell horribly for an indefinite period. A bird threatening to decompose before you can
get at it to skin, may be saved for a while by squirting weak carbolic acid or crevsote down the
throat and up the fundament; or by disembowelling, and filling the cavity with powdered
charcoal. (¢.) For cleansing. Gypsum is an almost indispensable. material for cleansing
soiled plumage. ‘‘ Gypsum” is properly native hydrated sulphate of lime ; the article referred
to is ‘‘ plaster of Paris” or gypsum heated up to 260° F. (by which the water of crystalliza-
tion is driven off) and then finely pulverized. When mixed with water it soon solidifies, the
original hydrate being again formed. The mode of using it is indicated beyond. It is most
conveniently kept in a shallow tray, say a foot square, and an inch or two deep, which had
better, furthermore, slide under the table as a drawer; or form a compartment of a larger
drawer. Keep gypsum and arsenic in different-looking receptacles, not so much to keep from
poisoning yourself,‘as to keep from not poisoning a birdskin. They look much alike, and
skinning becomes such a mechanical process that you may get hold of the wrong article when
your thoughts are wandering in the woods. Gypsum, like arsenic, has no worthy rival in its
own field ; some substitutes, in the order of their applicability, are: — corn-meal, probably the
best thing after gypsum; calcined magnesia (very good, but too light— it floats in the air,
and makes you qough); bicarbonate of magnesia; powdered chalk (‘‘ prepared chalk,” creta
preparata of the drug shops, is the best kind) ; fine wood-ashes; clean dry loam. No article,
however powdery when dry, that contains a glutinous principle, as for instance gum-arabic or
flour, is admissible. (d.) For wrapping, you want a thin, pliable, strong paper ; water-closet
paper is the very best; newspaper is pretty good. For making the cones or cylinders in
which birdskins may be set to dry, a stiffer article is required; writing paper answers perfectly.

Naturalists habitually carry « Pocket Lens, much as other people do a watch. You
will find a magnifying glass very convenient in your search for the sexual organs of small
birds when obscure, as they frequently are, out of the breeding season; in picking lice from
plumage, to send to your entomological friend, who will very likely pronounce them to be of a
‘new species ; ” and for other purposes.

Fixtures. When travelling, your fixtures must ordinarily be limited to a cullecting-
chest ; you will have to skin birds on the top of this, on the tail-board of a wagon, or on your
lap, as the ease may be. The chest should be very substantial — iron-bound is best; strong
as to hinges and lock—and have handles. A good size is 30x18 x18 inches. Let it be
fitted with a set of trays; the bottom one say four inches deep; the rest shallower’; the top
one very shallow, and divided into compartments for your tools and materials, unless you fix
these on the under side of the lid. Start out with all the trays full of cotton or tow. At
home, have a room to yourself, if possible ; taxidermy makes a mess to which your wife may
object, and arsenic must not come in the way of children. At any rate have your own table.
I prefer plain deal that may be scrubbed: when required; great cleanliness is indispensable,
especially when doing much work in hot weather, for the place soon smells sour if neglected.
I use no special receptacle for offal, for this only makes another article to be cleaned; lay
down a piece of paper for the refuse, and throw the whole away. A perfectly smooth surface
is desirable. I generally have a large pane of window-glass on the table before me. It will
really be found advantageous to have a scale of inches scratched on the edge of the table; only
a small part of it need be fractionally subdivided; this replaces the foot-rule and tape-line,
just as the tacks of a dry-goods counter answer for the yardstick. You will find it worth while
to rig some sort of a derrick arrangement, which you can readily devise, on one end of the

28 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

table, to hitch your hook to, if you hang your birds up to skin them ; they should swing clear
of everything. The table should have a large general drawer, with a little drawer for gypsum
and arsenic already mentioned, unless these be kept elsewhere. Stuffing may be kept in a box
under the table, and make a nice footstool ; or in a bag slung to the table leg.

Query : Have you cleansed the bird’s plumage? Have you plugged the mouth, nostrils,
and vent? Have you measured the specimen and noted the color of the eyes, bill, and feet,
and prepared the labels, and made the entry in the register? Have you got all your apparatus
within arm’s length? Then we are ready to proceed.

§7.—HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN.
a: THE REGULAR PROCESS.

Lay the Bird on its Back, the bill pointing to your right! elbow. Take the scalpel like
a pen, with edge of blade uppermost, and run a straight furrow through the feathers along the
middle line of the belly, from end of the breast-bone to the vent. Part the feathers com-
pletely, and keep them parted.? Observe a strip of skin either perfectly naked, or only cov-
ered with short down; this is the line for incision. Take scissors, stick in the pointed blade
just over the end of the breast-bone, cut in a straight line thence to and into the vent; cut
extremely shallow.® \

Take the forceps in your left hand, and scalpel in your right, both held pen-wise, and with
the forceps seize and lift up one of the edges of the cut skin, gently pressing away the belly-
walls with the scalpel-point ; no cutting is required; the skin may be peeled off without trouble.
Skin away till you meet an obstacle; it is the thigh. Lay down the instruments; with your
left hand take hold of the leg outside at the shank; put your right forefinger under the raised
flap of skin, and feel a bump; it is the Amee ; push up the leg till this bump comes into view ;
hold it so. Take the scissors in your right hand; tuck one blade under the concavity of the
knee, and sever the joint at a stroke; then the thigh is left with the rest of the body, while
the rest of the leg is dissevered and hangs only by skin. Push the leg further up till it has
sipped out of its sheath of skin, like a finger out of a glove, down to the heel-joint.. You
have now to clear off the flesh and leave the bone there; you may scrape till this is done,
but there is a better way. Stick the closed points of the scissors in among the muscles just
below the head of the.bone, then separate the blades just wide enough to grasp the bone ;
snip off its head; draw the head to one side; all the muscles follow, being there attached ;
strip them downward from the bone; the bone is left naked, with the muscle hanging by a
bundle of tendons (‘‘leaders’”’) at its foot; sever these tendons collectively at a stroke. This’
whole performance will occupy about three seconds, after practice; and you may soon discover
you can nick off the head of the bone of a small bird with the thumb-nail. Draw the leg bone
back into its sheath, and leave it. Repeat all the foregoing steps on the other side of the bird.
If you are bothered by the skin-flaps settling against the belly-walls, insert a fluff of cotton.

1 Reverse this and following directions for position, if you are left-handed.

2 The motion is exactly like stroking the right and left sides of a moustache apart; you would never dress
the hairs smoothly away from the middle line, by poking from ends to root; nor will the feathers stay aside,
unless stroked away from base to tips.

8 The skin over the belly is thin as tissue paper in a small bird; the chances are you will at first cut the
walls of the belly too, opening the cavity; this is no great matter, for a pledget of cotton will keep the bowels in;
nevertheless, try to divide skin only. Reason for cutting info vent: this orifice makes a nice natural termination
of the incision, buttonhole-wise, and may keep the end of the cut from tearing around the root of the tail. Reason
for beginning to cut over the edge of the sternum: the muscular walls of the belly are very thin, and stick so close
to the skin that you may be in danger of attempting to remove them with the skin, instead of removing the skin |
from them; whereas, you cannot remove anything but skin from over the breast bone, so you have a guide at the
start. You can tell skin from belly-wall, by its livid, translucent whitishness instead of redness.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 29

Keep the feathers out of the wound; cotton and the moustache movement will doit. Next you
must sever the tail from the body, leaving a small ‘‘ pope’s-nose” for the feathers to stay stuck
into. Put the bird in the hollow of your lightly closed left hand, tail upward, belly toward you;
or, if too large for this, stand it on its’ breast on the table in similar position. Throw your
left forefinger across the front of the tail, pressing a little backward ; take the scissors, cut the
end of the lower bowel free first, then peck away at bone and muscle with cautious snips, till
the tail-stump is dissevered from the rump, and the tail hangs only by skin. You will soon
learn to do it all at one stroke; but you cannot be too careful at first ; you are cutting right
down on to the skin over the top of the pope’s-nosg, and if you divide this, the bird will part
company with its tail altogether. Now you have the rump-stump protruding naked; the legs
dangling on either side; the tail hanging loose over the bird’s back between them. Lay down
scissors, take up forceps! in your left hand; with them seize and hold the stump of the rump;
and with point or handle of scalpel in the other hand, with finger-tips, or with thumb-nail
(best), gently press down on and peel away skin.? No cutting will be required (usually) till
you come to the wings: the skin peels off (usually) as easily as an orange-rind; as fast as it
is loosened, evert it; that is make it continually turn itself more and more completely inside
out. Work thus till you are stopped by the obtruding wings. You have to sever the wing
from the body at the shoulder, just as you did the leg at the knee, and leave it hanging by
skin alone. Take your scissors,* as soon as the upper arm is exposed, and cut through flesh
and bone alike at one stroke, a little below (outside of) the shoulder-joint. Do the same with
the other wing. As soon as the wings are severed the body has been skinned to the root of
the neck; the process becomes very easy ; the neck almost slips out of its sheath of itself; and
if you have properly attended to keeping the feathers out of the wound and to continual ever-
sion of the skin, you now find you have a naked body connected dumb-bell-wise by a naked
neck to a cap of reversed skin into which the head has disappeared, from the inside of which
the legs and wings dangle, and around the edges of which is a row of plumage and a tail.5
Here comes up an important consideration: the skin, plumage, legs, wings, and tail together
weigh something, — enough to stretch ® unduly the skin of the neck, from the small cylinder of
which they are now suspended; the whole mass must be supported. For small birds, gather
it in the hollow of your left hand, letting the body swing over the back of your hand out of the

1 Or at this stage you may instead stick a hook into a firm part of the rump, and hang up the bird about
the level of your breast; you thus have both hands free to work with. This is advisable with all birds too large
to be readily taken in hand, and will help you, at first, with any bird. But there is really no use of it with a small
bird, and you may as well learn the best way of working at first as afterward.

2 The idea of the whole movement is exactly like ungloving your hand from the wrist, by turning the glove
inside out to the very finger tips. Some people say, pull off the skin; I say never pull a bird’s skin under any cir-
cumstances: push it off, always operating at lines of contact of skin with body, never upon areas of skins already
detached.

3 The elbows will get in your way before you reach the point of attack, namely, the shoulder, unless the
wings were completely relaxed (as was essential, indeed, if you measured alar expanse correctly). Think what a
difference it would make, were you skinning a man through a slit in the belly, whether his arms were stretched
above his head, or pinned against his ribs. It is just the same with a bird. When properly relaxed the wings
are readily pressed away toward the bird’s head, so that the shoulders are encountered before the elbows.

4 Shears will be required to crash through a large arm-bone. Or, you may with the scalpel unjoint the
shoulder. The joint will be found higher up and deeper among the breast muscles than you might suppose,
unless you are used to carving fowls at table. With asmall bird, you may snap the bone with the thumb-nail
and tear asunder the muscles in an instant. .

6 You find that the little straight cut you made along the belly has somehow become a hole larger than the
greatest girth of the bird; be undismayed; it is all right.

6 If you have up to this point properly pushed off the skin instead of pulling it, there is as yet probably no
stretching of any consequence; but, in skinning the head, which comes next, it is almost impossible for a beginner
to avoid stretching to an extent involving great damage to the good looks of askin. Try your utmost, by delicacy
of manipulation at the lines of contact of skin with flesh, and only there, to prevent lengthwise stretching. Cross-
wise distension is of no consequence; in fact more or less of it is usually required to skin the head, and it tends
to counteract the ill effect of undue elongation.

“a

30 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

way; for large ones, rest the affair on the table or your lap. To skin the head, secure the
body in the position just indicated, by confining the neck between your left thumb and fore-
finger ; bring the right fingers and thumb to a cone over the head, and draw it out with gentle
force; or, holding the head itself between the left thumb and forefinger, insert the handle of
the scalpel between the skin and skull, and pry a little, to enlarge the neck-cylinder of skin
enough to let the head pass. It will generally! slip out of its hood very readily, as far as its
greatest diameter ;? there it sticks, being in fact pinned by the ears. Still holding the bird as
before, with the point of the scalpel handled like a nut-picker, or with your thumb-nail, detach
the delicate membrane that lines the ear-ppeniug ; do the same for the other ear. The skull is
then shelled out to the eyes, and will skin no further of its own accord, being again attached
by a membrane, around the border of the eye-socket. Holding the scalpel as before, run its
edge around an are (a semicircle is enough to let you into the orbit) of the circumference, dis-
severing the membrane from the bone. Reverse the scalpel, and scoop out the eyeball with
the end of the handle; you bring out the eye betwixt the ball of your thumb and the handle
of the instrument, tearing apart the optic nerve and the conjunctival tissue, but taking care
not to open the eyeball? or lacerate the eyelids. Do the same with the other eye. The head
is then skinned far enough ; there is no use of getting quite to the base of the bill. You have
now to get rid of the brain and flesh of the nape and jaws,* and leave most of the skull in; the
cranial dome makes the only perfect ‘‘ stuffing” fur the skin of the head. This is all done at once
by only four particular cuts. Hold the head between your left thumb and fingers, the bill point-
ing tuwards you, the bird’s palate facing you; you observe a space bounded behind by the base
of the skull where the neck joins, in front by the floor of the mouth, on either side by the prongs
of the under jaw, —these last especially prominent. Take the scissors; stick one blade just
inside one branch of the lower jaw, thence into the eye-socket which lies below (the head
being upside down), thence iuto the brain-box ; make a cut parallel with the jaw, just inside
of it, bringing the upper scissor blade perpendicularly downward, crashing through the skull just
inside of the angle of the jaw. Duplicate this cut on the other side. Connect the anterior
ends of these cuts by a transverse one across the floor and roof of the mouth. Connect the
posterior ends of the side cuts by one across the back of the skull near its base, —just where
the nape-muscle ceases to override the cranium. You have enclosed and cut out a squarish-
shaped mass of bone and muscle, and, on gently pulling the neck (to which of course it
remains attached), the whole affair comes out, bringing the brain with it, but leaving the
entire roof of the skull supported on a scaffolding of jaw-bone. It only remains to skin the
wings. Seize the arm-stump with fingers or forceps; the upper arm is readily drawn from its
sheath as far as the elbow; but the wing must be skinned to the wrist (earpus— “bend of
the wing”) ; yet it will not come out so easily, because the secondary quills grow to one of the
fore-arm bones (the ulna), pinning down the skin the whole way along a series of points. To
break up these connections, hold the upper arm firmly with the left thumb and forefinger, the
convexity of the elbow looking towards you; press the right thumb-nail closely against the
back edge of the ulna, and strip downward, scraping the bone with the nail the whole way.
If you only hit the line of adhesions, there is no trouble at all about this. Now you want to

1 The special case of head too large for the calibre of the neck is treated beyond.

2 and you will at once find a great apparent increase of amount of free skin in your hand, owing to release
and extension of all that was before shortened in length by circular distension, in enlargement of the neck-
cylinder.

i 3 An eyeball is much larger than it looks from the outside; if you stick the instrument straight into the
socket, you may punch a hole in the ball and let out the water; a very disagreeable complication. Insinuate the
knife-handle close to the rim of the socket, and hug the wall of the cavity throughout. :

* You may of course at this stage cut off the neck at the nape, punch a hole in the base of the skull, dig out
the brains, and scrape away at the jaw-muscles till you are satisfied or tired; an unnecessary job, during which

the skin may have become dry and shrivelled and hard to turn right side out. The operation described in the
text may require ten seconds, perhaps.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 31

leave in one of the two fore-arm bones, to preserve sufficiently the shape of the limb, but to
remove the other, with the upper-arm bone and all the flesh. It is done in a moment: stick the
point of the scissors between the heads of the two fore-arm bones, and cut the hinder one (ulna)
away from the elbow; then the other fore-arm bone (radius), bearing on its near end the
elbow and the whole upper arm, is to be stripped away from the ulna, taking with it the flesh
of the fore-arm, and to be cut off at its far end close to the wrist-joint, one stroke severing the
bone and all the tendons that pass over the wrist to the hand; then the ulna, bare of flesh,
is alone left in, attached at the wrist. Draw gently on the wing from the outside till it slips
into the natural position whence you everted it. Do the same for the other wing. This
finishes the skinning process. The skin is now to be turned right side out. Begin any way
you please, till you see the point of the bill reappearing among the feathers; seize it with
fingers or forceps, as convenient, and use it for geutle traction. But by no means pull it out
by holding on to the rear end of the skin —that would infallibly stretch the skin. Holding
the bill, make a cylinder of your left hand and coax the skin backward with a sort of milking
motion. It will come easily enough, until the final stage of getting the head back into its
skull-cap; this may require some little dexterity ; but you cannot fail to get the head in, if
you remember what you did to get it out. When this is fairly accomplished, you for the first
time have the pleasure of seeing something that looks like a birdskin. Your next? care is to
apply arsenic. Lay the skin on its back, the opening toward you and wide spread, so the
interior is in view. Run the scalpel-handle into the neck to dilate that cylinder until you can
see the skull; find your way to the orifices of the legs and wings; expose the pope’s-nose ;
thus you have not only the general skin surface, but all the points where some traces of flesh
were left, fairly in view. Shovel in arsenic; dump some down the neck, making sure it reaches
and plentifully besprinkles the whole skull; drop a little in each wing hole and leg hole;
leave a small pile at the root of the tail; strew some more over the skin at large. The simple
rule is, put in as much arsenic as will stick anywhere., Then close the opening, and shake up
the skin ; move the head about by the bill; rustle the wings and move the legs; this distrib-
utes the poison thoroughly. If you have got in more than is necessary, as you may judge by
seeing it piled up dry, anywhere, hold the skin with the opening downward over the poison-
drawer, and give it a flip and let the superfluous powder fall out. Now for the ‘‘make up,”
upon which the beauty of the preparation depends. First get the empty skin into good shape.
Let it lie on its back; draw it straight out to its natural length. See that the skin of the
head fits snugly; that the eyes, ears, and jaws are in place. Expand the wings to make sure
that the bone is in place, and fold them so that the quills override each other naturally ; set the
tail-feathers shinglewise also; draw down the legs and leave them straddling wide apart.
Give the plumage a preliminary dressing; if the skin is free from kinks and creases, the feath-
ers come naturally into place; particular ones that may be awry should be set right, as may
be generally done by stroking, or by lifting them free repeatedly, and letting them fall; if any
(through carelessness) remain turned into the opening, they should be carefully picked out.
Remove all traces of gypsum or arsenic with the feather duster. The stuffing is to be put in
through the opening in the belly; the art is to get in just enough, in the right places. It
would never do to push in pellets of cotton, as you would stuff a pillow-case, till the skin is
filled up; no subsequent skill in setting could remove the distortion that would result. It
takes just fowr” pieces of stuffing — one for each eye, one for the neck, and one for the body;

1 Some direct the poisoning to be done while the skin is still wrong side out; and it may be very thoroughly
effected at that stage. I wait, because the arsenic generally strews over the table in the operation of reversing
the skin, if you use as much as I think advisable; and it is better to have a cavity to put it into than a surface to
strew it on.

2 For any ordinary bird up to the size of a crow. It is often directed that the leg-bones and wing-bones be
wrapped with cotton or tow. I should not think of putting anything around the wing-bones of any bird up to the
size of an eagle, swan, or pelican. Examination of a skinned wing will show how extremely compact it is, except

82 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

while it requires rather less than half as much stuffing 4s an inexperienced person might
suppose. Take a shred of cotton that will make a tight ball as large as the bird’s eye; stick
it on the end of your knitting-needle, and by twirling the needle whilst the cotton is confined
in your finger tips, you make a neat ball. Introduce this through the belly-opening, into
the eye-socket ; if you have cut away skull enough, as already directed, it will go right
in; disengage the needle with a reverse twirl, and withdraw it. Take hold of the bill with
one hand, and with the forceps in the other, dress the eyelids neatly and naturally over
the elastic substance within. Repeat for the other eye. Take next a shred of cotton that
will roll into a ‘firm cylinder rather less than the size of the bird’s neck. Rod it on the
needle much as you did the eye-ball, introduce it in the same way, and ram it firmly into
the base of the skull; disengage the needle by twirling it the other way, and withdraw it,
taking care not to dislodge the cotton neck. If now you peep into the skin you will see
the end of this artificial neck; push it up against the skin of the breast, —it must not lie
down on the back between the shoulders.1 The body-wad comes next; you want to
imitate the size and shape of the bird’s trunk. Take a mass of cotton you think will be
enough, and take about half of this; that will be plenty (cotton is very elastic). It should
make a tolerably firm ball, rather egg-shaped, swelling at the breast, smaller behind. If you
simply squeeze up the cotton, it will not stay compressed ; it requires a movion something
like that which bakers employ to knead dough into the shape of a loaf. Keep tucking
over the borders of the cotton till the desired shape and firmness are attained. Insert the ball
between the. blades of the forceps in such way that the instrument confines the folded-over
edges, and with a wriggling motion insinuate it aright into the body. Before relaxing
the foreeps, put your thumb and forefinger in the bird’s armpits, and pinch the shoulders
together till they almost touch; this is to make sure that there is no stuffing betfveen the
shoulders, — the whole mass lying breastwards. Loosen the forceps and withdraw them. If
the ball is rightly made and tucked in, the elasticity of the cotton will chiefly expend itself in
puffing out the breast, which is just what is wanted. Be careful not to push the body too far
in; if it impacts against the skin of the ueck, this will infullibly stretch, driving the shoulders
apart, and no art will remedy the unsightly gape resulting. You see I dwell on this matter of
the shoulders ; the whole knack of stuffing correctly focuses just over the shoulders. If you find
you have made the body too large, pull it out and make a smaller one; if it fits nicely about
the shoulders, but is too long to go in, or too puffy over the belly, let it stay, and pick away
shreds at the open end till the redundancy is remedied. Your bird is now sturfed. Close the
opening by bringing the edges of the original cut together. ‘There is no use of sewing # up
the cut, for a small bird; if the stuffing is correct, the feathers will hide the opeuing; and if they
do not, it is no matter. You are not making an object for a show case, but for a naturalist’s

just at the shoulder. What you remove will never make any difference from the outside, while you would almost
inevitably get.in too much, not of the right shape, and make an awkward bulging no art would remedy; I say,
then, leave the wings of all but the largest birds empty, and put in very little under any mrcumstances. As for
legs, the whole host of small perching birds need no wrapping whatever; depend upon it you will make a nicer
skin without wrapping. But large birds and those with very muscular or otherwise prominent legs must have
the removal of flesh compensated for. I treat of these cases beyond.

1 Although a bird’s neck is really, of course, in direct continuation of the back-bone, yet the natural sigmoid
curve of the neck is such that it virtually takes departure rather from the breast, its lower curve being received
between the prongs of the merrythought. This is what we must imitate instead of the true anatomy. If you let
the end of the neck lie between the shoulders, it will infallibly press them apart, so that the interscapular plumage
cannot shingle over the scapular feathers as it should, and a gaping place, showing down or even naked skin,
will result. Likewise if the neck be made too large (the chances are that way, at first), the same result follows.
These seemingly trifling points are very important indeed; I never made a decent birdskin till I learned to get the
neck small enough and to shove the end of it against the breast.

2 But sew it up, if you please, though you may be perhaps giving the man who subsequently mounts the
bird the trouble of ripping out the stitches. Stitches, however, will not come amiss with a large bird. I generally,
in such cases, pin the edges of the cut in one or more places.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 33

cabinet. Supposing you to have been so far successful, little remains to be done; the skin
already looks very much like a dead bird; you have only to give the finishing touches, and
“set” it. Fixing the wings nicely isa great point. Fold each wing closely; see that the
carpal bend is well defined, that the coverts show their several oblique rows perfectly, that all
the quills override each other like shingles. Tuck the folded wings close up to the body —
rather on the bird’s back than along its sides ; see that the wing tips meet over the tail (wnder
the tail as the bird lies on its back); let the carpal angle nestle in the plumage; have the
shoulders close together, so that the interscapulars shingle over the scapulars. If the wing be
pressed in éoo tightly, the scapulars will rise up on end; there must be neither furrow nor
ridge about the insertion of the wings; everything must lie perfectly smooth. At this stage
of the process, I generally lift up the skin gingerly, and let it slip head first through one hand
after the other, pressing here or there to correct a deformity, or uniformly to make the whole
skin compact. The wings set, next bring the legs together, so that the bones within the
skin lie parallel with each other; bend the heel-joint a little, to let the tarsi cross each other
about their middle; lay thern sidewise on the tail, so that the naturally flexed toes lie flat, all
the claws mutually facing each other. See that the neck is perfectly straight, and, if anything,
shortened rather than outstretched ; have the crown of the head flat on the table, the bill point-
ing straight forward, the mandibles shut tightly.?, Never attempt any “fancy” attitudes with
a birdskin; the simpler and more compactly it is made up the better.2 Finally, I say, hang
over your bird (if you have time); dress better the feathers that were well dressed before ;
perfect every curve; finish caressingly, and put it away tenderly, as you hope to be shriven
yourself when the time comes.

There are several ways of laying a birdskin. A common, easy, and slovenly way is to
thrust it head first into a paper cone; but it makes a hollow-chested, pot-bellied object,
unpleasant to see, and renders your nice work on the make-up futile. A paper cylinder,
corresponding in calibre to the greatest girth of the birdskin, binds the wings well, and makes
a good ordinary specimen, —perhaps better than the average. Remarking that there are some-
detestable practices, such as hanging up a bird by a string through the nose (methods only to
be mentioned to be condemned), I will tell you the easiest and best way, by which the most
elegant and tasteful results are almost necessarily secured. The skins are simply laid away
in cotton, just as they come from your hands. Take a considerable wad of cotton, make a
“bed” of it, lay the specimen in, and tuck it wp nicely around the edges. In effect, I gener-
ally take a thin sheet of cotton wadding, the sizing of which confers some textile consistency,
and wrap the bird completely but lightly in it. By loosening or tightening a trifle here or
there, laying down a “ pillow” or other special slight pressure, the most delicate contour-lines
may be preserved with perfect fidelity. Unnecessary pother is sometimes made about drying

1 Exceptions. Woodpeckers, ducks, and some other birds treated of beyond, are best set with the head flat
on one side, the bill pointing obliquely to the right or left; owls, with the bill pointing straight up in the air as
the bird lies on its back. x

2 If the mandibles gape, run a thread through the nostrils and tie it tightly under the bill. Or, since this
injures the nostrils (and we frequently want to examine their structure) stick a pin in under the bill close to the
gonys, driving it obliquely into the palate. Sometimes the skin of the throat looks sunken betwixt the sides of the
jaw. A shred of cotton introduced with forceps through the mouth will obviate this.

8 Don’t cock up the head, trying to impart a knowing air — it cannot be done, and only makes the poor bird
look ridiculous. Don’t lay the skin on one side, with the legs in perching position, and don’t spread the wings —
the bird will never perch hor fly again, and the suggestion is unartistic because incongruous. The only permis-
sible departure from the rule of severe simplicity is when some special ornament, as a fine crest, may be naturally
displayed, or some hidden markings are desired to be brought out, or a shape of tail or wing to be perpetuated ;
but in all such cases the “flowery” inclination should be sparingly and judiciously indulged. It is, however,
frequently desirable to give some special set to hide a defect, as loss of plumage, etc.; this may often be accom-
plished very cunningly, with excellent result. No rules for this can be laid down, since the details vary in every
case; but in general the weak spot may be hidden by contracting the skin of the place, and then setting the bird
in an attitude that naturally corresponds, thus making a virtue o” ~

34 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

skins; the fact being that under ordinary circumstances they could not be kept from drying
perfectly ; and they dry in exactly the shape they are set, if not accidentally pressed upon. At
sea, however, or during unusually protracted wet weather, they of course dry slowly, and may
require some attention to prevent mildew or souring, especially in the cases of very large,
thick-skinned, or greasy specimens. Thorough poisoning, and drying by a fire, or placing
in the sun, will always answer. Very close packing retards drying. When travelling, or
operating under other circumstances requiring economy of space, you must not expect to
turn out your collection in elegant order. Perfection of contour-lines can ouly be secured by
putting each specimen away by itself; undue pressure is always liable to produce unhappily
outré configuration of a skin. Trays in a packing box are of great service in limiting possi-
bilities of pressure ; they should be shallow; one four inches deep will take a well stuffed hen-
hawk, for example, or accommodate from three to six sparrows a-top of one another. It is
well to sort out your specimens somewhat according to size, to keep heavy ones off little ones ;
though the chinks around the former may usually be economized with advantage by packing
in the less valuable or the less neatly prepared of the latter. When limited to a travelling
chest, I generally pass in the skins as fast as made, packing them “solid” in one sense, yet
hunting up a nice restiug-place for each. If each rests in its own cotton coffin, it is astonishing
how close they may be laid without harm, and how many will go in a given space; a tray
30 x 18 x 4 inches will easily hold three hundred and fifty birds six inches long. As a tray fills
up, the drier ones first put in may be submitted to more pressure. A skin originally dried in
good shape may subsequently be pressed perfectly flat without material injury; the only thing
to avoid being contortion. The whole knack of packing birds corresponds to that of filling a
trunk solidly full of clothes, as may easily be done without damage to an immaculate shirt-
front. Finally, I would say, never put away a bird unlabelled, not even for an hour; you may
forget it or die. Never tie a label to a bird’s bill, wing, or tail; tie it securely to both legs
where they cross, and it will be just half as liable to become detached as if tied to one leg only.
Never paste a label, or even a number, on a bird’s plumage. Never put in glass eyes before
mounting. Never paint or varnish a bird’s bill or feet. Never replace missing plumage of.one
bird with the feathers of another — no, not even if the birds came out of the same nest.

b. SpecraL Processes; COMPLICATIONS AND ACCIDENTS.

The Foregoing Method of procedure is a routine practice applicable to three-fourths if
not nine-tenths of the ‘‘ general run” of birds. But there are several cases requiring a modi-
fication of this programme; while several circumstances may tend to embarrass your operations.
The principal special conditions may therefore be separately treated to your advantage.

Size. — Other things being equal, a large bird is more difficult to prepare than a small
one. In one case, you only need a certain delicacy of touch, easily acquired and soon becom-
ing mechanical ; in the other, demand on your strength may be made, till your muscles ache.
It takes-longer, too;+ I could put away a dozen sparrows in the time I should spend over
an eagle; and I would rather undertake a hundred humming-birds than one ostrich. For

1 The reader may be curious to know something of the statistics on this score —how long it ought to take
him to prepare an ordinary skin. He can scarcely imagine, from his first tedious operations, how expert he may
become, not only in beauty of result, but in rapidity of execution. I have seen taxidermists make good small
skins at the rate of ten an hour; but this is extraordinary. The quickest work I ever did myself was eight an
hour, or an average of seven and a lalf minutes apiece, and fairly good skins. But I picked my birds, all small
ones, well shot, labelled, measured, and plugged beforehand, so that the rate of work was exceptional, besides
including only the actual manipulations from first cut to laying away. No one averages eight birds an hour, even
excluding the necessary preliminaries of cleansing, plugging, etc. Four birds an hour, everything included, is
good work. A very eminent ornithologist of this country, and an expert taxidermist, once laid a whimsical wager,
that he would skin and stuff a bird before a certain friend of his could pick all the feathers off a specimen of the
same kind. I forget the time, but he won, and his friend ate crow, literally, that night.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 85

“large” birds, say anything from a hen-hawk upward, various special manipulations I have
directed may be foregone, while however you observe their general drift and intent. You may
open the bird as directed, or, turning it tail to you, cut with a knife! Forceps are rarely
required; there is not much that is too small to be taken in hand. As soon as the tail is
divided, hang up the bird by the rump, so you will have both hands free. Let it swing clear
of the wall or table, at any height most convenient. The steel hooks of a dissecting case are
not always large enough; use a stout fish-hook with the barb filed off. Work with your nails,
assisted by the scalpel if necessary. I know of no bird, and I think there is none, in this
country at least, the skin of which is so intimately adherent by fibrous or muscular tissue as
to require actual dissecting throughout; a pelican comes, perhaps, as near this as any; but in
many cases the knife may be constantly employed with advantage. Use it with long clean
sweeping strokes, hugging the skin rather than the body. The knee and shoulder commonly
require disarticulation, unless you use bone-nippers or strong shears; the four cuts of the skull
may presuppose a very able-bodied instrument, even a chisel. The wings will give you the
most trouble, and they require a special process; for you cannot readily break up the adhesions
of the secondary quills to the ulna, nor is it desirable that very large feathers should be
deprived of this natural support. Hammer or nip off the great head of the upper arm-bone,
just below the insertion of the breast muscles; clean the rest of that bone and leave it in. Tie
a string around it (what sailors call ‘‘two half hitches” gives a secure hold on the bony
cylinder), and tie it to the other humerus, inside the skin, so that the two bones shall be rather
less than their natural distance apart. After the skin is brought right side out, attack the
wings thus: Spread the wing under side uppermost, and secure it on the table by driving
‘a tack or brad through the wrist-joint; this fixes the far end, while the weight of the skin
steadies the other. Raise a whole layer of the under wing-coverts, and make a cut in the skin
thus exposed, from elbow to wrist, in the middle line between the two forearm bones. Raise
the flaps of skin and all the muscle is laid bare; it is to be removed. This is best done by
lifting each muscle from its bed separately, slipping the handle of the scalpel onder the
individual »ellies; there is little if any bony attachment except at each end, and this is readily
severed. Strew in arsenic; a little cotton may be used to fill the bed of muscle removed from
a very large bird; bring the flaps of skin together, and smooth down the coverts; you need
not be particular to sew up the cut, for the coverts will’hide the opening; in fact, the operation
does not show at all after the make-up. Stuffing of large birds is not commonly done with
only the four pieces already directed. The eyeballs, and usually the neck-cylinder, go in as
before; the body may be filled any way you please, provided you do not put in too much
stuffing nor get any between the shoulders. All large birds had better have the leg-bones
wrapped to nearly natural size. Observe that the leg-muscles do not form a cylinder, but a
cone; let the wrapping taper naturally from top to bottom. Attention to this point is neces-
sary for all large or medium-sized birds with naturally prominent legs. The large finely
feathered legs of a hawk, for example, ought to be well displayed ; with these birds, and also
with rails, ete., moreover, imitate the bulge of the thigh with a special wad laid inside the
skin. Large birds commonly require also a special wad introduced by the mouth, to make
the swell of the throat; this wad should be rather fluffy than firm. As a rule, do not fill out

1 Certain among larger birds are often opened elsewhere than along the belly, with what advantage I cannot
say from my own experience. Various water birds, such as loons, grebes, auks, gulls, and ducks (in fact any
swimming bird with dense under plumage) may be opened along the side by a cut under the wings from the
shoulder over the hip to the rump; the cut is completely hidden by the make-up, and the plumage is never ruffled.
But I see no necessity for this; for, as a rule, the belly opening can, if desired, be completely effaced with due care,
though a very greasy bird with white under plumage generally stains where opened, in spite of every precaution.
Such birds as loons, grebes, cormorants, and penguins are often opened by a cut across the fundament from one
leg to the other; their conformation in fact suggests and favors this operation. I have often seen water birds slit
down the back; but I consider it very poor practice.

36 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

large birds to their natural dimensions; they take up too much room. Let the head, neck,
and legs be accurately prepared, but leave the main cavity one-third if not one-half empty ;
no more is required than will fairly smooth out creases in the skin. Reduce bulk rather by
flattening out than by general compression. Use tow instead of cotton ;* and if at all short of
tow, economize with paper, hay, ete., at least for the deeper portions of the main stuffing.
Large birds may be “set” in a great quantity of tow; wrapped in paper, much like any
other parcel ; or simply left to dry on the table, the wings being only supported by cushioning
or other suitable means.

Shape. — Some special configurations have been noticed in the last paragraph, prema-
turely perhaps, but leading directly up to further considerations respecting shape of certain
birds as a modifying element in the process of preparation. As for skinning, there is one
extremely important matter. Most ducks, many woodpeckers, flamingoes, and doubtless
some others with which I am not familiar, cannot be skinned in the usual way, because the
head is too large for the calibre of the neck and cannot be drawn through. In such cases,
skin as usual to the base of the skull, cut off the head there (inside the skin of course), and
operate upon it, after turning the skin right ‘side out, as follows: Part the feathers carefully
in a straight line down the back of the skull, make a eut through the skin, just long enough
to permit the head to pass, draw out the skull through this opening, and dress it as already
directed. Return it, draw the edges of the cut nicely together, and sew up the opening with
a great many fine stitches. Simple as it may appear, this process is often embarrassing, for
the cut has an unhappy tendency to wander about the neck, enlarging itself even under the
most careful manipulation ; while the feathers of the parts are usually so short, that it is diffi-
cult to efface all traces of the operation. I consider it very disagreeable ; but'for ducks I know
of no alternative. I have however found out a way to avoid it with woodpeckers, excepting
the very largest; it is this: Before skinning, part the eyelids, and plunge the scalpel right
into the eyeballs; seize the cut edge of the ball with the forceps, and pull the eye right out.
It may be dexterously done without spilling the eye-water on the plumage; but, for fear of
this, previously put a little pile of plaster on the spot. Throw arsenic into the socket, and
then fill it with cotton poked in between the lids. The eyes are thus disposed of. Then, in
skinning, when you come to the head, dissever it from the neck and work the skull as far out
as you can; it may be sufficiently exposed, in all cases, for you to gouge out the base of the
skull with the scissors, and get at the brain to remove it. Apply an extra large dose of
arsenic, and you will never hear from what jaw-muscle has been left in. In all these cases, as
already remarked, the head is preferably set lying on one side, with the bill pointing obliquely
to the right or left. Certain birds require a special mode of setting ; these are, birds with very
long legs or neck, or both, as swans, geese, pelicans, cormorants, snakebirds, loons, and
especially cranes, herons, ibises, and flamingoes. Long legs should be doubled completely on
themselves by bending at the heel-joint, and either tucked under the wings, or laid on the
under surface ; the chief point is to see that the toes lie flat, so that the claws do not stick up,
to catch in things or get broken off. A long neck should be carefully folded; not at a sharp
angle with a crease in the skin, but with a short curve, and brought round either to the side
of the bird or on its breast, as may seem most convenient. The object is to make a “ bale”
of the skin as nearly as may be, and when It is properly effected it is surprising what little
space a crane, for instance, occupies. But it is rarely, if ever, admissible to bend a tail back
on the body, however inconveniently long it may be. Special dilations of skin, like the pouch
of a pelican, or the air sacs of a prairie hen, may be moderately displayed.

Thin Skin. — Loose Plumage. — It is astonishing how much resistance is offered. by
the thin skin of the smallest bird. Though no thicker than tissue paper, it is not very liable

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 37

to tear if deftly handled; yet a rent once started often enlarges to an embarrassing extent if
the skin be stretched in the least. Accidental rents and enlargements of shot-holes should be
neatly sewn up, if occurring in an exposed place; but in most cases the plumage may be set
to hide the openings. “ The trogons are said to have remarkably thin and delicate skin; I have
never handled one in the flesh. Among our birds, the cardinal grosbeak and the species of
Caprimulgide have, I think, about the tenderest skins. The obvious indication in all such
cases is simply a little extra delicacy of manipulation. In skinning most birds, you should
not loose more than a feather or two, excepting those loosened by the shot. Pigeons are
peculiar, among our birds, for the very loose insertion of their plumage; you will have to be
particularly careful with them, and in spite of all your precautions a good many feathers will
probably drop. As stripping down the secondary quills from the forearm, in the manner
already indicated, will almost invariably set these feathers free from the skin, I recommend you
not to attempt it, but to dress the wings as prescribed for large birds.

Fatness. — Fat is a substance abhorred of all dissectors; always in the way, embarrass-
ing operations and obscuring observations; while it is seldom worth examination after its
structure has once been ascertained. It is particularly obnoxious to the taxidermist, since it
is liable to soil the plumage during skinning, and also tu soak into the feathers afterwards ;
and greasy birdskins are never pleasing objects. A few birds never seem to have any fat ;
some, like petrels, are always oily ; at times, especially in the indolent autunin season, when
birds have little to do but feed, the great majority acquire an embonpoint doubtless to their own
satisfaction, but to the taxidermist’s discomfort. In all such cases gypsum should be lavishly
employed. Strew plaster plentifully, from the first cut all through the operation; dip your
fingers in it frequently, as well as your instruments. The invaluable absorbent will deal with
inost of the ‘‘running” fat. When the skin is completely reversed, remove as much of the
solid fat as possible; it is generally found occupying the areolar tissue of particular definite
tracts, and most of it may usually be peeled or flaked off in considerable masses. Since the

' soft and oozy state of most birds’ fat at ordinary temperatures may be much improved by cold,
it will repay you to leave your birds on ice for a while before skinning, if you have the means
and time to do so; the fat will become quite firm. There is a device for preventing or at any
rate lessening the soiling of the plumage so apt to occur along the line of your incision; it is
invaluable in all cases of white plumage. Take a strip of cloth of greater width than the
length of the feathers, long enough to go up one side of the cut and down the other. Sew
this closely to the skin all around the cut, and it will form an apron to guard the plumage.
You-will too frequently find that a bird, prepared without soiling and laid away apparently
safe, afterwards grows greasy; if the plumage is white, it soon becomes worse than ever by
showing dust that the grease catches. Perhaps the majority of such birds in our museums
show the dirty streak along the belly. The reason is, that the grease has oozed out along the
cut, or wherever else the skin has been broken, and infiltrated the plumage, being drawn up
apparently by capillary attraction, just as a lampwick “‘ sucks up” oil. Sometimes, without
obviously soiling the plumage, the grease will run along the thread that ties the label, and
make a uniformly transparent piece of “‘oil-paper.” I have no remedy to offer for this gradual
infiltration of the plumage. It will not wash out, even with soap and water. Possibly careful
and persistent treatment with an ether might be effective, hut I am not prepared to say it would
be. Removal of all fat that can be got off during skinning, with a liberal use of plaster, will
in a measure prevent a difficulty that remains incurable.

Bloodstains, etc.— In the nature of the case, this complication is of continual occurrence ;
fortunately it is easier dealt with than greasiness. Much may be done in the field to prevent
ploodying of the plumage, as already said. A little blood does not show much on a dark

38 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

plumage; but it is of course conspicuous on light or white feathers. Dried blood may often
be scraped off, in imitation of the natural process by which a bird cleanses its plumage with
the bill; or be pulverized by gently twiddling the feathers between the fingers, and then
blown off. But feathers may by due care be washed almost as readily as clothing; and we
must ordinarily resort to this to remove all traces of blood, especially from white surfaces. If
properly dried they do not show the operation. With a soft rag or pledget of cotton dipped in
warm water bathe the place assiduously, pressing down pretty hard, only taking care to stroke
the feathers the right way, so as not to crumple them, until the red color disappears ; then you
have simply a wet place to deal with. Press gypsum on the spot; it will cake; flake it off
and apply more, till it will no longer stick. Then raise the feathers on a knife-blade and
sprinkle gypsum in among them; pat it down and shake it up, wrestling with the spot till the
mvisture is entirely absorbed. Two other fluids of the body will give you occasional annoy-
ance, —the juices of the alimentary canal and the eye-water. Escape of the former by mouth,
nostrils, or vent is preventable by plugging these orifices, and its occurrence is inexcusable.
But shot often lacerates the gullet, crop, and bowels, and though nothing may flow at the
time, subsequent jolting or pressure in the game-bag causes the escape of fluids: a seemingly
safe specimen may be unwrapped to show the whole belly-plumage a sodden brown mass.
Such accidents should be treated precisely like bloodstains ; but it is to be remarked that these
stains are not seldom indelible, traces usually persisting in white plumage at least in spite of
our best endeavors. Eye-water, insignificant as it may appear, is often a great annoyance.
This liquor is slightly glairy, or rather glassy, and puts a sort of sizing on the plumage difficult
to efface; the more so since the soiling necessarily occurs in a conspicuous place, where the
plumage is too scanty and delicate to bear much handling. It frequently happens that a lacer-
ated eyeball, by the elasticity of the coats, or adhesion of the lids, retains its fluid till this is
pressed out in manipulating the parts; and recollecting how the head lies buried in plumage at
that stage of the process, it will be seen that not only the head, but much of the neck and even
the breast may become wetted. If the parts are extensively soaked, the specimen is almost
irreparably damaged, if not ruined. Plaster will absorb the moisture, but much of the sizing
may be retained on the plumage ; therefore, though the place seems simply wet, it should be
thoroughly washed with water before the gypsum is applied. I always endeavor to prevent
the accident; if I notice a lacerated eyeball, I extract it before skinning, in the manner
described for woodpeckers. Miscellaneous stains, from the juices of plants, etc., may be
received ; all such are treated on general principles. Blood on the beak and feet of rapacious
birds, mud on the bill and legs of waders, etc., etc., may be washed off without the slightest
difficulty. A land bird that has fallen in the water should be recovered as soon as possible,
picked up by the bill, and shaken ; most of the water will run off, unless the plumage is com-
pletely soaked. It should be allowed to dry just as it is, without touching the plumage,
before being wrapped and bagged. If a bird fall in soft mud, the dirt should be scraped or
snapped off as far as this can be done without plastering the feathers down, and the rest
allowed to dry; it may afterward be rubbed fine and dusted off, when no harm will ensue,
except to white feathers which may require washing.

Mutilation. — You will often be troubled, early in your practice, with broken legs and
wings, and various lacerations ; but the injury must be very severe (such as the carrying away
of a limb, or blowing off the whole top of a head) that cannot be in great measure remedied by
care and skill. Suppose a little bird, shot through the neck or small of the back, comes apart
while being skinned; you have only to remove the hinder portion, be that much or little, and
go on with the rest as if it were the whole. If the leg bone of a small bird be broken near
the Heel, let it come away altogether; it will make little if any difference. In case of the
same accident to a large bird that ought to have the legs wrapped, whittle out a peg and stick

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 39

it in the hollow stump of the bone; if there is no stump left, file a piece of stout wire to a
point and stick it into the heel joint. If the forearm bone that you usually leave in a small
bird is broken, remove it and leave the other in; if both are broken, do not clean the wings
so thoroughly that they become detached; an extra pinch of arsenic will condone the omission.
In a large bird, if both bones of the forearm are broken, splint them with a bit of wood laid in
between, so that one end hitches at the elbow, the other at the wrist. A humerus may be
replaced like a leg bone, but this is rarely required. If the skull be smashed, save the pieces,
and leave them if you can; if not, imitate the arch of the head with a firm cotton-ball. A
broken tarsus is readily splinted with a pin thrust up through the sole of the foot: if too large
for this, use a pointed piece of wire. There is no mending a bill when part of it is shot away ;
for I think the replacing of part by putty, stucco, etc., inadmissible; but if it be only fractured,
the pieces may usually be retained in place by winding with thread, or with a touch of glue or
mucilage. It is singular, by the way, what unsightliness results from a very trifling injury to
the bill; much, I suppose, as a boil on a person’s nose is peculiarly deplorable. I have already
hinted how artfully various weak places in a skin, due to mutilation or loss of plumage, may be
hidden.

Decomposition. — It might seem unnecessary to speak of what may be smelled out so
readily as animal putrescence; but there are some useful points to be learned in this connection,
besides the important sanitary precautions that are to be deduced. Immediately after death
the various fluids of the body begin to ‘“ settle” (so to speak), and shortly after the muscular
system as a rule becomes fixed in what is technically called rigor mortis. This stiffening
‘usually occurs as the animal heat dies away; but its onset, and especially its duration, is very
variable, according to circumstances, such as cause of death ; although in most cases of sudden
violent death of an animal in previous good health, it seems to depend chiefly upon tempera-
ture, being transient and imperfect, or altogether wanting, in hot weather. As it passes off,
the whole system relaxes, and the body soon becomes as “limp” as at the moment of death.
This is the period immediately preceding decomposition ; in fact, it may be considered as the
stage of incipient putridity ; it is very brief in warm weather, and it should be seized as the
last opportunity of preparing a bird without inconvenience and even danger. If not skinned
at once, putrescence becomes established; it is indicated by the effluvium (at the outset ‘‘ sour,”
but rapidly acquiring a variety of disgusting odors) ; by the distension of the abdomen with
gaseous products of decomposition ; by the loosening of the cuticle, and consequently of the
feathers; and by other signs. If you part the feathers of a bad-smelling bird’s belly to find
the skin swollen and livid or greenish, while the feathers come off at a touch, the bird is too
far gone to be recovered without trouble and risk that no ordinary specimen warrants. It is
a singular fact that this early putrescence is more poisonous than utter rottenness; as physicians
are aware, a post-mortem examination at this stage, or even before it, involves more risk
” than their ordinary dissecting-room experience. It seems that both natural and pathological
poisons lose their early virulence by resolution into other products of decay. The obvious
deduction from all this is to skin your birds soon enough. Some say they are best skinned
perfectly fresh, but I see no reason for this; when I have time'to choose, I take the period of
rigidity as being preferable on the whole; for the fluids have then “‘ settled,” and the limbs are
readily relaxed by manipulation. If you have a large bag to dispose of, and are pressed for
time, set them in the coolest place you can find, preferably on ice; a slight lowering of temper-
ature may make a decided difference. Disembowelling, which may be accomplished in a
moment, will materially retard decomposition. Injections of creosote or dilute carbolic acid
will arrest decay for a time, for an indefinitely long period if a large quantity of these anti-
septics be employed. When it becomes desirable (it can never be necessary) to skin a putres-
cent bird, great care must be exercised not only to accomplish the operation, but to avoid

40 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

danger. I must not, however, unconsciously lead you to exaggerate the risk, and will add
that I think it often overrated. I have probably skinned birds as ‘‘ gamey ” as any one has,
and repeatedly, without being conscious of any ill effects. I am sure that no poison, ordinarily
generated by decomposition of a body healthy at death, can compare in virulence with that
commonly resulting after death by many diseases. I also believe that the gaseous products,
however offensive to the smell, are innocuous as arule. The danger practically narrows down
to the absorption of fluids through an abraded surface; the poison is rarely taken in by natural
pores of healthy skin, if it remain in contact but a short time. Cuts and scratches may be
closed with a film of collodion, or covered with isinglass or court plaster, or protected by
rubber cots on the fingers. The hands should, of course, be washed with particular care
immediately after the operation, and the nails scrupulously dressed. Having never been
poisoned (to my knowledge), I cannot give the symptoms from personal experience; but I
will quote from Mr. Maynard:

“Tn a few days numerous pimples, which are exceedingly painful, appear upon the skin
of the face and other parts of the person and, upon those parts where there is chafing or
rubbing, become large and deep sores. There is a general languor and, if badly poisoned,
complete prostration results; the slightest scratch becomes a festering sore. Once poisoned
in this manner (and I speak from experience), one is never afterward able to skin any animal
that has become in the least putrid, without experiencing some of the symptoms above
described. Even birds that you handled before with impunity, you cannot now skin without
great cure. The best remedy in this case is, as the Hibernian would say, not to get poisoned,
.... bathe the parts frequently in cold water ; and, if chafed, sprinkle the parts after bathing,
with wheat flour. These remedies, if persisted in, will effect a cure, if not too bad; then,
medical advice should be procured without delay.” 2

How to mount Birds.— As some may not improbably procure this volume with a
reasonable expectation of being taught to mount birds, I append the required instructions,
although the work only professes to treat of the preparation of skins for the cabinet. Asa
rule, the purposes of science are best subserved by not mounting specimens; for display, the
only end attained, is not required. I would strongly advise you not to mount your rarer or
otherwise particularly valuable specimens; select for this purpose nice, pretty birds of no
special scientific value. The principal objections to mounted birds are, that they take up
altogether too much room, require special arrangements for keeping and transportation, and
cannot be handled for study with impunity. Some might suppose that a mounted bird would
give a better idea of its figure and general aspect than a skin; but this is only true to a limited
extent. Faultless mounting is an art really difficult, acquired by few; the average work done
in this line shows something of caricature, ludicrous or repulsive, as the case may be. To
copy nature faithfully by taxidermy requires not only long and close study, but an artistic
sense; and this last is a rare gift. Unless you have at least the germs of the faculty in your
composition, your taxidermal success will be incommensurate with the time and trouble you
bestow. My own taxidermal art is of a low order, decidedly not above average; although I
have mounted a great many birds that would compare very favorably with ordinary museum
work, few of them have entirely answered my ideas. A live bird is to me such a beautiful
object that the slightest taxidermal flaw in the effort to represent it is painfully offensive ; per-
haps this makes me place the standard of excellence too high for practical purposes. I like a
good honest birdskin that does not pretend to be anything else; it is far preferable to the

1 Avoid all mechanical irritation of the inflamed parts; touch the parts that have ulcerated with a stick
' of lunar caustic; take a dose of salts; use syrup of the iodide of iron, or tincture of the chloride of iron, say thirty
drops of either, in a wineglass of water, thrice daily; rest at first, exercise gradually as you can bear it; and skin
no birds till you have completely recovered.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 41

ordinary taxidermal abortions of the show-cases. But if, after the warnings that I mean to
convey in this paragraph, you still wish to try your hand in the higher department of taxi-
dermy, I will explain the whole process as far as manipulation goes; the art you must discover
in yourself.

The operation of skinning is precisely the same as that already given in detail; then,
instead of stuffing the skin as directed above, to lie on its back in a drawer, you have to stuff
it so that it will stand up on its feet and look as much like a live bird as possible. To this end
a few additional implements and materials are required. These are: a, annealed wire of vari-
ous numbers; it may be iron or brass, but must be perfectly annealed, so as to retain no
elasticity or “ spring ;” b, several files of different sizes; c, sume slender, straight, brad awls ;
d, cutting pliers; e, setting needles, merely sewing or darning needles stuck in a light wooden
handle, for dressing individual feathers ; , plenty of pins (the long, slender insect pins used by
entomologists are the best) and sewing thread; g, an assortment of glass eyes. (The fixtures
and decorations are noticed, beyond, as occasion for their use arises.)

There are two principal methods of mounting, which may be respectively styled soft stuff-
ing and hard stuffing. In the former, a wire framework, consisting of a single anterior piece
passing in the middle line of the body up through the neck and out at top of the head, is
immovably joined behind with two pieces, one passing through each leg; around this naked

‘forked frame soft stuffing is introduced, bit by bit, till the proper contour of the skin is secured.
I have seen very pretty work of this kind, particularly on small birds; but I consider it much
more difficult to secure satisfactory results in this way than by hard stuffing, and I shall there-
fore confine attention to the latter. This method is applicable to all birds, is readily practised,
facilitates setting of the wings, arranging of the plumage, and giving of any desired attitude.
In hard stuffing, you make a firm ball of tow rolled upon a wire of the size and shape of the
bird’s body and neck together ; you introduce this whole, afterwards running in the leg wires
and clinching them immovably in the mass of tow.

Having your empty skin in good shape, as already described; cut three pieces of wire of
the right! size; one piece somewhat longer than the whole bird, the other pieces two or three
times as long as the whole leg of the bird. File one end of each piece to a fine sharp point ;
try to secure a three-edged cutting point like that of a surgical needle, rather than the smooth
punching point of a sewing-needle, as the former perforates more readily. Have these wires
perfectly straight.2 Bend a small portion of the unfiled end of the longer wire irregularly upon
itself, as a convenient nucleus for the ball of tow.? Take fine clean tow, in loose dossils, and '
wrap it round and round the wire nucleus, till you make a firm ball, of the size and shape of
the bird’s body and neck. Study the contour of the skinned body: notice the swelling breast-
muscles, the arch of the lower back, the hollow between the furcula into which the neck, when
naturally curved, sinks. Everything depends upon correct shaping of the artificial body; if
it be misshapen, no art can properly adjust the skin over it. Firmness of the tow ball and
accurate contour may both be secured by wrapping the mass with sewing thread, loosening
here, tightening there, till the shape is satisfactory. Be particular to secure a smooth super-
ficies; the skin in drying will shrink close to the stuffing, disclosing its irregularities, if there
be any, by the maladjustment of the plumage that will ensue. Observe especially that the
neck, though the direct continuation of the backbone, dips at its lower end into the hollow of
the merry-thought, and so virtually begins there instead of directly between the shoulders.

1 The right size is the smallest that will support the whole weight of the stuffing and skin without bending,
when a piece is introduced into each leg.- If using too thick wire, you may have trouble in thrusting it through

the legs, or may burst the tarsal envelope,
2 If accidentally kinky, the finer sizes of wire may be readily straightened by drawing strongly upon them

so as to stretch them a little. Heavier wire must be hammered out straight,
3 Cotton will not do at all; it is too soft and elastic, and moreover will not allow of the leg wires being thrust

into it and there clinched.

42 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

The three mistakes most likely to be made by a beginner are, getting the body altogether too
large, not firm enough, and irregular. ‘When properly made, it will closely resemble the
bird’s body and neck, with an inch or several inches of sharp-pointed wire protruding from the
anterior extremity of the neck of tow. You have now to introduce the whole affair into
the skin. With the birdskin on its back, the tail pointing to your right elbow, and the
abdominal opening as wide as possible, hold the tow body in position relative to the skin;
enter the wire, pass it up through the neck, bring the sharp point exactly against the middle
of the skull, pierce skull and skin, causing the wire to protrude some distance from the middle
of the crown. Then by gentle means insinuate the body, partly pushing it in, partly drawing”
the skin over it, till it rests in its proper position. This is just like drawing on a tight kid
glove, and no more difficult. See that the body is completely encased; you must be able to
close the abdominal aperture entirely. You have next to wire the legs. Enter the sharp
point of one of the leg-wires already prepared, exactly at the centre of the sole of the foot,
thrusting it up inside the tarsal envelope the whole length of the ‘‘ shank,” thence across the
heel joint 1 and up along the next bone of the leg, still inside the skin. The point of the wire
will then be seen within.the skin, and may be seized and drawn a little further through, and
you will have passed a wire entirely out of sight all the way along the leg. The end of the
wire is next to be fixed immovably in the tow ball. Thrust it in at the point where the knee,
in life, rests against the side of the body.? Bring the point to view, bend it over and reinsert"
it till it sticks fast. There are no special directions to be given here; fasten the wire in any
way that effectually prevents ‘‘ wabbling.” You may find it convenient to wire both legs
before fastening either, and then clinch them by twisting the two ends together. But remem-
ber that the leg-wires may be fixed respecting each other, yet permit a see-saw motion of the
body upon them. This must not be; the body and legs must be fixed upon a jointless frame.
Having secured the legs, close the abdominal opening nicely, either by sewing or pinning; you
may stick pins in anywhere, as freely as in a pin-cushion; the feathers hide their heads. Stick
a pin through the pope’s nose to fix the tail in place.

All this while the bird has been lying on its back, the neck stretched straight in continua-
tion of the body, wired stiffly, the legs straddling wide apart, straight and stiff, the wings lying
loosely, half-spread. Now bring the legs together, parallel with each other, and make the
sharp bend at the heel joint that will bring the feet naturally under the belly (over it, as the
bird lies on its back). Pick up the bird by the wires that project from the soles and set it on
its stand, by running the wires through holes bored the proper distance apart, and then secur-
ing the ends by twisting. The temporary stand that you use for this purpose should have a
heavy or otherwise firm support, so as not easily to overturn during the subsequent manipu-
lations. At this stage the bird is a sorry-looking object ; but if you have stuffed correctly and
wired securely, it will soon improve. Begin by making it stand properly. The common fault
here is placing the tarsi too nearly perpendicular. Perching birds, constituting the majority,
habitually stand with the tarsi more nearly horizontal than perpendicular, and generally keep
the tarsi parallel with each other. Wading and most walking birds stand with the legs more
nearly upright and straight. Many swimming birds straddle a little; others rarely if ever.
See that the toes clasp the perch naturally, or are properly spread on the flat surface. Cause
the flank feathers to be correctly adjusted over the tibize (and here I will remark that with
most birds little, if any, of the tibiee shows in life), the heel joint barely, if at all, projecting

1 There is occasionally difficulty in getting the wire across this joint, from the point sticking into the enlarged
end of the shin-bone. In such case, take stout pliers and pinch the joint till the bone is smashed to fragments.
The wire will then pass and the comminution will not show. If there is any trouble in passing the wire through
the tarsus, bore a hole for it with a brad awl.

® This point is further forward and more belly-ward than you might suppose. Observe the skinned body
again, and see where the lower end of the thigh lies. If you insert the wire too far back, you cannot by any possi-
bility balance the bird naturally on its perch; it will look in imminent danger of toppling over.

HOW TO MAKE A BIRDSKIN. 43

from the general plumage. It is a common fault of stuffing not to draw the legs closely
enough to the body. Above all, look out for the centre of gravity; though you have really
fastened the bird to its perch, you must not let it look as if it would fall off if the wires slipped;
it must appear to rest there of its own accord. Next, give the head and neck a preliminary
setting, according to the attitude you have determined upon. This will bring the plumage
about the shoulders in proper position for the setting of the wings, to which you may at once
attend. If the body be correctly fashioned and the skin of the shoulders duly adjusted over it,
the wings will fold into place without the slightest difficulty. All that I have said before
about setting the wings in a skin applies here as well; but in this case they will not stay
in place, since they fall by their own weight. They must be pinned up. Holding the wing
in place, thrust a pin steadily through near the wrist joint, into the tow body. Sometimes
another pin is required to support the weight of the primaries; it may be stuck into the flank
of the bird, the outer quill feather resting directly upon it. With large birds a sharp pointed
wire must replace the pin. When properly set, the wing-tips will fall together or symmetri-
cally opposite each other, the quills and coverts will be smoothly imbricated, the scapular
series of feathers will lie close, and no bare space will show in frqnt of the shoulder. Much
depends upon the final adjustment of the head. The commonest mistake is getting it too
far away from the body. In the ordinary attitudes of most birds little neck shows, the head
appearing nestled upon the shoulders. Ifthe neck appears too long, it is not to be contracted
by pushing the head directly down upon it, but by making an S curve of the neck. No precise
directions can be given for the set of the head, but you may be assured it is a delicate, difficult
matter; the slightest turn of the bill one way or another may alter the whole expression of the
bird. You will of course have determined beforehand upon your attitude, upon what you wish
the bird to appear to’ be doing; then, let your meaning be pointed by the bird’s bill.

On the general subject of striking an attitude, and giving expression to a stuffed bird, little
can be said to good purpose. If you are to become proficient in this art, it will come from
your own study of birds in the field, your own good taste and appreciation of bird life. The
manual processes are easily described and practised; it is easy to grind paint, I suppose, but
not so to be an artist. I shall therefore only follow the above account of the general processes
with some special practical points. After ‘‘attitudinizing” to your satisfaction, or to the best
of your ability, the plumage is to be carefully ‘‘ dressed.” Feathers awry may be set in place
with a light spring forceps, or needles fixed in a handle, one by one if necessary. When no
individual feather seems out of place, it often occurs that the general plumage has a loose,
slovenly aspect. This is readily corrected by wrapping with fine thread. Stick a pin into the
middle of the back, another into the breast, and perhaps others, elsewhere. Fasten the end of
a spool of sewing cotton to one of the pins, and carry it to another, winding the thread about
among the pins, till the whole surface is covered with an irregular network. Tighten to
reduce an undue prominence, loosen over a depression ; but let the wrapping as a whole be
light, firm, and even. This procedure, nicely executed, will give a smoothness to the plumage
not otherwise attainable, and may be made to produce the most exquisite curves, particularly
about the head, neck, and breast. The thread should be left on till the bird is perfectly dry ;
it may then be unwound or cut off, and the pins withdrawn. When a particular patch of skin
is out of place, it may often be pulled into position and pinned there. You need not be afraid
of sticking pins in anywhere: they may be buried in the plumage and left there, or withdrawn
when the skin is dry. In addition to the main stuffing, a little is often required in particular
places. As for the legs, they should be filled out in all such cases as I indicated earlier in this
section ; small birds require no such stuffing. It is necessary to fill out the eyes so that the
lids rest naturally ; it may be done as heretofore directed, or by putting in pledgets of cotton
from the outside. A little nice stuffing is generally required about the upper throat. To stuff
a bird with spread wings requires a special process, in most cases. The wings are to be wired,

*

44 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

exactly as directed for the legs; they may then be placed in any shape. But with most small
birds, and those with short wings, simple pinning in the half-spread position indicating flutter-
ing will suffice; it is readily accomplished with a long, slender insect pin. I have already
spoken of fixing the tail by pinning or wiring the pope’s nose to the tow body; it may be thus
fixed at any desired elevation or depression. There are two ways of spreading the tail. One
is to run a pointed wire through the quills, near their base, where the wire will be hidden by
the coverts ; each feather may be set at any required distance from the next by sliding it along
this wire. This method is applicable to large birds; for small ones the tail may be fixed with
the desired spread by enclosing it near its base in a split match, or two slips of card-board,
with the ends tied together. This holds the feathers until they dry in position, when it is to
be taken off. Crests may be raised, spread, and displayed on similar principles. A small
crest, like that of a cardinal or cherry bird, for instance, may be held up till it dries in position
by sticking in behind it a pin with a little ball of cotton on its head. It is sometimes neces-
sary to make a bird’s toes grasp a support by tying them down to it till they dry. The toes
of waders that do not lie evenly on the surface of the stand may be tacked down with small
brads. The bill may be pinned open or shut, as desired, by the method already given. Never
paint or varnish a bird’s bill or feet.

Substitution of an artificial eye for the natural one is essential for the good looks of a
specimen. Glass eyes, of all sizes and colors, may be purchased at a moderate cost. The
pupil is always black; the iris varies. You will, of course, secure the proper color if it is
known, but if not, put in a dark brown or black eye. It is well understood that this means
nothing ; it is purely conventional. Yellow is probably the next most common color; then
come red; white, blue, and green, perhaps approximately in this order of frequency. But do
not use these striking colors at hap-hazard; sacrificing truth, perhaps, to looks. Eyes are gen-
erally inserted after the specimen is dry. Remove a portion of the cotton from the orbit, and
moisten the lids till they are perfectly pliable; fix the eye in with putty or wet plaster of Paris,
making sure that the lids are naturally adjusted over it. It goes in obliquely, like a button
through a button-hole. Much art may be displayed in this little matter, making a bird look
this way or that, to carry out the general ‘* expression.”

On finishing a specimen, set it away to dry; the time required varies, of course, with the
weather, the size of the bird, its fatness, etc. The more slowly it dries the better; there is
less risk of the skin shrinking irregularly. You will often find that a specimen set away with
smooth plumage and satisfactory curves dries more or less out of shape, perhaps with the
feathers raised in places. I know of no remedy; it may, in a measure, be prevented by seru-
pulous care in making the body smooth and firm, and in securing slow, equable drying.
When perfectly dry remove the wrapping, pull out the superfluous pins or wires, nip off the
others so short that the ends are concealed, and insert the eyes. The specimen is then ready
to be transferred to its permanent stand.

Fixtures for. the display of the object of course vary interminably. We will take the
simplest case, of a large collection of mounted birds for public exhibition. In this instance,
uniformity and simplicity are desiderata. ‘‘ Spread eagle” styles of mounting, artificial rocks
and flowers, etc., are entirely out of place in a collection of any scientific pretensions, or
designed for popular instruction. Besides, they take up too much room. Artistic grouping
of an extensive collection is usually out of the question; and when this is unattainable, half-
way efforts in that direction should be abandoned in favor of severe simplicity. Birds look
best on the whole in uniform rows, assorted according to size, as far as a natural classification
allows. They are best set on the plainest stands, with circular base and a short cylindrical
crossbar on a lightly turned upright. The stands should be painted dead-white, and be no
larger than is necessary for secure support; a neat stiff paper label may be attached. A small
collection of birds, as an ornament to a private residence, offers a different case; here, variety

MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS. 45

of attitude and appropriate imitation of the birds’ natural surroundings are to be secured. A
miniature tree, on which a number of birds may be placed, is readily made. Take stout wire,
and by bending it, and attaching other pieces, get the framework of the tree of the desired size,
shape, and number of perches. Wrap it closely with tow to a proper calibre, remembering
that the two forks of a stem must be together only about as large as the stem itself. Gather
a basket full of lichens and tree moss; reduce them to coarse powder by rubbing with the
hands; besmear the whole tree with mucilage or thin glue, and sift the lichen powder on it till
the tow is completely hidden. This produces a very natural effect, which may be heightened
by separately affixing larger scraps of lichen, or little bunches of moss ; artificial leaves and
flowers may be added at your taste. The groundwork may be similarly prepared with a bit
of board, made adhesive and bestrewn with the same substance; grasses and moss may be
added. If a flat surface is not desired, soak stout pasteboard till it can be moulded in various
irregular elevations and depressions; lay it over the board and decorate it in the same way.
Rocks may be thus nicely imitated, with the addition of powdered glass of various colors.
Such a lot of birds is generally enclosed in a cylindrical glass case with arched top. As it
stands on a table to be viewed from different points, it must be presentable on all sides. A
niche in parlor or study is often fitted with a wall-case, which, when artistically arranged, has
a very pleasing effect. As such cases may be of considerable size, there is opportunity for the
display of great taste in grouping. A place is not to be found for a bird, but a bird for the
place, — waders and swimmers below on the ground, perchers on projecting rests above.
The surroundings inay be prepared by the methods just indicated. One point deserves atten-
tion here; since the birds are only viewed from the front, they may have a ‘‘ show-side” to
which everything else may be sacrificed. Birds are represented flying in such cases more
readily than under other circumstances, supported on a concealed wire inserted in the back of
the case. Ihave seen some very successful attempts to represent a bird swimming, the duck
being let down part way through ai oval hole in a plate of thick glass, underneath which
were fixed stuffed fishes, shells, and seaweed. It is hardly necessary to add that in all orna-
mental collections, labels or other scientific machinery must be rigorously suppressed.

Transportation of mounted birds offers obvious difficulty. Unless very small, they are
best secured immovably inside a box by screwing the foot of the stands to the bottom and
sides, so that they stay in place without touching each other. Or, they may be carefully packed
in cotton, with or without removal of the stands. Their preservation from accidental injury
depends upon the same care that is bestowed upon ordinary fragile ornaments of the parlor.
The ravages of insects are to be prevented upon the principles to be hereafter given in treating
of the preservation of birdskins.

§ 8.— MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS.

Determination of Sex. — This is an important matter, which must never be neglected.
For although many birds show unequivocal sexual distinctions of size, shape, and color, like
those of the barnyard cock and hen for instance, yet the outward characteristics are more
frequently obscure, if not altogether inappreciable, on examination of the skin alone. Young
birds, moreover, are usually indistinguishable as to sex, although the adults of the same species
may be easily recognized. The rule results, that the sexual organs should be examined as the
only infallible indices. The essential organs of masculinity are the testicles ; similarly, the
ovaries contain the essence of the female nature. However similar the accessory sexual struc-
tures may be, the testicles and ovaries are always distinct. The male organs of birds never
leave the cavity of the belly to fill an external bag of skin (scrotwm) as they do among
mammalia; they remain within the abdomen, and lie in the same position as the ovaries
of the female. Both these organs are situated in the belly opposite what corresponds to the

46 : FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

“‘ small of the back,” bound closely to the spine, resting on the front of the kidneys near their
fore end. The testicles are a pair of subspherical or rather ellipsoidal bodies, usually of the
same size, shape, and color, and are commonly of a dull opaque whitish tint. They always
lie close together. .A remarkable fact connected with them is, that they are not always of the
same size in the same bird, being subject to periodical enlargement during the breeding season,
and corresponding atrophy at other seasons. Thus the testicles of a house sparrow, no bigger
than a pin’s head in winter, swell to the size of peas in April. The ovary (for although this
organ is paired originally, only one is usually functionally developed in birds) will be recog-
nized as a flattish mass of irregular contour, and usually whitish color; when inactive, it
simply appears of finely granular structure which may require a hand lens to be made out ;
when producing eggs, its appearance is unmistakable. Both testis and ovary may further he
recognized by a thread leading to the end of the lower bowel, — in one case the sperm-duct, in
the other the oviduct; the latter is usually much the more conspicuous, as it at times transmits
the perfect egg. There is no difficulty in reaching the site of these orgaus. Lay the bird on
the left side, its belly toward you: cut with the scissors through the belly-walls diagonally
from anus to the root of the last rib, or further, snipping across a few of the lower ribs, if these
continue far down, as they do in a loon for instance. Press the whole mass of intestines aside
collectively, and you at once see to the small of the back. There you observe the kidneys, —
large, lobular, dark reddish masses moulded into the concavity of the sacrum (or back middle
bone of the pelvis); and on their surface, towards their fore end, lie testes or ovary, as just
described. The only precaution required is, not to mistake for testicles a pair of small bodies
capping the kidneys. These are the adrenals or ‘ supra-renal capsules,” — organs whose
function is unknown, but with which at any rate we have nothing to do in this connection.
They occur in hoth sexes, and if the testicles are not immediately seen, or the ovary not at
once recognized, they might easily be mistaken for testicles.. Observe, that instead of lying
in front, they cap the kidneys ; that they are usually yellowish instead of opaque whitish ; and
that they have not the firm, smooth, regular sphericity of the testicles. The testes, however,
vary more in shape and color than might be expected, being sometimes rather oblong or linear,
and sometimes grayish or livid bluish, or reddish. There is occasionally but one. The sex
determined, use the sign g or 9 to designate it, as already explained. In the very rare cases
_of impotence or sterility among birds, of course no organs will be observed; but I should dislike
to become responsible for such labelling without very careful examination. The organs of a
small bird out of the breeding season are never conspicuous, but may always be found on close
scrutiny, unless the parts are disintegrated by a shot. _

Recognition of Age is a matter of ornithological experience requiring in many or most
cases great familiarity with birds for its even approximate accomplishment. There are, how-
ever, some unmistakable signs of immaturity, even after a bird has become full-feathered, that
persist for at least one season. These are, in the first place, a peculiar soft fluffy ‘ feel” of the
plumage ; the feathers lack a certain smoothness, density, and stiffening which they subse-
quently acquire. Secondly, the bill and feet are softer thun those of the adults ; the corners of
the mouth are puffy and flabby, the edges and point of the bill are dull, and the scales, etc.,
of the legs are not sharply cut. Thirdly, the flesh itself is tender and pale colored. These are
some of the points common to all birds, and are independent of the special markings that
belong to the youth of particular species. Some birds are actually larger for a while after
leaving the nest, than in after years when the frame seems to shrink somewhat in acquiring
the compactness of senility. On the other hand, the various members, especially the bill and
feet, are proportiovally smaller at first. Newly growing quills are usually recognized on sight,
the barrel being dark colored and full of liquid, while the vanes are incomplete. In studying,
for example, the shape, of a wing or tail, there is always reason to suspect that the natural

MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS. 47

proportions are not yet presented, unless the quill is dry, colorless, and empty, or only occupied
with shrunken white pith.

Examination of the Stomach frequently leads to interesting observations, and is always
worth while. In the first place, we learn most unquestionably the nature of the bird’s food,
which is a highly important item in its natural history. Secondly, we often secure valuable
specimens in other departments of zodlogy, particularly entomology. Birds consume incal-
culable numbers of insects, the harder kinds of which, such as beetles, are not seldom found
intact in their stomachs; and a due percentage of: these represent rare and curious species.
The gizzards of birds of prey, in particular, should always be inspected, in search of the small
mammals, ete., they devour; and even if the creatures are unfit for preservation, we at least
learn of their occurrence, perhaps unknown before in a particular region. Mollusk-feeding
and fish-eating birds yield their share of specimens. The alimentary canal is often the seat of
parasites of various kinds, interesting to the helminthologist; other species are to be found
under the skin, in the body of muscle, in the brain, etc. Most birds are also infested with
external parasites of many kinds, so various that almost every leading species has its own sort
of louse, tick, ete. Since these creatures are only at home with a live host, they will be found
crawling on the surface of the plumage, preparing for departure, as soon as the body cools after
death. There is thus much to learn of a bird aside from what the prepared specimen
teaches, and moreover apart from regular anatomical investigations. Whenever practicable,
brief items should be recorded on the label, as already mentioned.

Restoration of Poor Skins. —If your cabinet be a “‘ general” one, comprising specimens
from various sources, you will frequently happen to receive skins so badly prepared as to be
unpleasant objects, besides failing to show their specific characters. There is of course no sup-
plying of missing parts or plumage ; but if the defect be simply deformity, this may usually be
in a measure remedied. The point is simply to relax the skin, and then proceed as if it were
freshly removed from the bird; it is what bird-stuffers constantly do in mounting birds from
prepared skins. The relaxation is effected by moisture alone. Remove the stuffing ; fill the
interior with cotton or tow saturated with water, yet not dripping ; put pads of the same under

_ the wings; wrap the bill and feet, and set the specimen in a damp, cool place. Small birds
soften very readily and completely; the process may be facilitated by persistent manipulation.
This is the usual method, but there is another, more thorough and more effective; it is expo-
sure to a vapor-bath. The appointments of the kitchen stove furnish all the apparatus
required for an extempore ‘‘ steamer ;” the regular fixture is a tin vessel much like a wash-
boiler, with closed lid, false bottom, and stopcock at lower edge. On the false bottom is
placed a heavy layer ‘of gypsum, completely saturated with water; the birds are laid on a
perforated tray above it; and a gentle heat is maintained over a stove. The vapor penetrates
every part of the skin, and completely relaxes it, without actually wetting the feathers. The
time required varies greatly of course; observation is the best guide. The chief precaution
is not to let the thing get too hot. Professor Baird has remarked that crumpled or bent
feathers may have much of their original elasticity restored by dipping in hot water. Immer-

_ sion for a few seconds suffices, when the feathers will be observed to straighten out. Shaking

off superfluous water, they may be simply left to-dry, or they may be dried with plaster. The
method is chiefly applicable to the large feathers of the wings and tail. Soiled plumage of
dried skins may be treated exactly as in the case of fresh skins.

Mummification. — As before mentioned, decay may be arrested by injections of carbolic
acid and other antiseptics; if the tissues be sufficiently permeated with these substances, the
body will keep indefinitely; it dries and hardens, becoming, in short, a ‘‘ mummy.” Injection

48 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

should be done by the mouth and vent, be thorough, and be repeated several times as the
fluid dries in. It is an improvement on this to disembowel and fill the belly with saturated
tow or cotton. Due care should be taken not to soil the feathers in any case, nor should the
carbolic solution come in contact with the hands, for it is a powerful irritant poison. I mention
the process chiefly to condemn it as an atrocious one; I cannot imagine what circumstances
would recommend it, while only an extreme emergency could justify it. It is further objection-
able because it appears to lend a dingy hue to some plumages, and to dull most of them
perceptibly. Birds prepared —rather unprepared — in this way, may be relaxed by the
method just described, and then skinned; but the operation is rather difficult.

Wet Preparations. — By this term is technically understood an object immersed in some
preservative fluid. It is highly desirable to obtain more information of birds than their stuffed
skins can ever furnish, and their structure cannot be always examined by dissection on the
spot. In fact, a certain small proportion of the birds of any protracted or othérwise ‘ heavy ”
collecting may be preferably and very profitably preserved in this way. Specimens in too
poor plumage to be worth skinning may be thus utilized ; so may the bodies of skinned birds,
which, although necessarily defective, retain all the viscera, and also afford osteological mate-
rial. Alcohol is the liquid usually employed, and, of all the various articles recommended,
seems to answer best on the whole. I have used a very weak solution of chloride of zinc with
excellent results; it should not be strong enough to show the slightest turbidity. As glass
bottles are liable to break when travelling, do not fit corners, and offer practical annoyance
about corkage, rectangular metal cans, preferably of copper, with screw-lid opening, are
advisable. They are to be set in small, strong, wooden boxes, made to leave a little room for
the lid wrench, muslin bags for doing up separate parcels, parchment for labels, ete. Unoc-
cupied space in the cans should be filled with tow or a similar substance, to prevent the
specimens from swashing about. Labelling should be on parchment; the writing should be
perfectly dry before immersion; india-ink is the best. Skinned bodies should be numbered to
correspond with the dried skin from which taken; otherwise they may not be identifiable.
Large birds thrown in unskinned should have the belly opened, to let in the alcohol freely.
Birds may be skinned, after being in alcohol, by simply drying them: they often make fair
specimens. They are best withdrawn by the bill, that the ‘‘swash” of the alcohol at the
moment of emersion may set the plumage all one way, and hung up to dry untouched.
Watery moisture that may remain after evaporation. of the alcohol may be dried with plaster.

Fie¢s 1, 2.— Views of sternum and pectoral arch of the ptarmigan, Lagopus albus, reduced; after A. New-
ton. 1, lateral view, with the bones upside down; 2, viewed from below. a, sternum or breast-bone, showing two
long slender lateral processes; b, ends of sternal ribs; c, ends of humerus, or upper arm-bone, near the shoulder-
joint; d, scapula, or shoulder-blade; e, coracoid; /, merry-thought, or furculum (clavicles).

Osteological and other Preparations (figs. 1-3). — While complete skeletonizing of
a bird is a special art of some difficulty, and one that does not fall within the scope of this
treatise, I may mention two bony preparations very readily made, and Susceptible of rendering

MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS.

ornithology essential service.
attachments.
afford in most cases invaluable
is of course to sacrifice a skin, to
mutilated or decayed specimens
in this way. The breast-bone
tilated, is always preservable with
may form its natural accompani-
with it the coracoids (the stout
with the shoulders, figs. 1, 2, ¢),
intervening between these bones,
d), all without detachment from
tively constitute the ‘ shoulder-
off the large breast inuseles close
sertions into the wing-bones (c) ;
that tie the shoulder-blades to the
b) close to the side of the breast-
usually found between the prongs
hold of the shoulders (figs. 1, 2,
affair, dividing some slight connec-
behind it. The following points
often has long slender processes
mon fowl and the ptarmigan are
shown in the figures), liable to be
snapped; the shoulder-blades usu-
off; the merry-thought is some-
When travelling, it is generally not
tions of either skull or sternum ;
flnous flesh removed, and besprin-
perfectly cleaned, is particularly
pronged bones that hinge the jaw,
push on the palate from behind.
specting the identification of these
which should invariably bear the
it belongs; the label should be
is more likely to be able to speak
ally accompanied by askin; never-
cilitate its recognition should be
are methods, with which I am not
preparations. You may secure
ing the bones; or, what is perhaps
till the flesh is completely rotted
the sun. A little potassa or soda
bones, if you can stop the process
dissolved but the tougher ligaments
preparation, as it is called; if the
parts of a large specimen may be
one glued. I think it best, with

Fie. 3. —Trachea or
windpipe of the male red-
breasted merganser, Mer-
gus serrator, about } nat.
size, viewed from above
(behind); after Newton, A,
tongue; B B, its attach-
ments; C C, windpipe, di-
lated in the middle and
swelling below into a bony
box, D; £ E, bronchial
tubes, going to lungs.

49

I refer to the skull, and to the breast-bone with its principal
These parts of the skeleton are, as a rule, so highly characteristic that they

zoélogical items. To save a skull
all intents; but you often have
that are very profitably utilized
(figs. 1, 2, a) excepting when mu-
the skin, and for “choice” invoices
ment. You want to remove along
bones connecting the breast-bone
the merry-thought (figs. 1, 2, f)
and the shoulder-blades (figs. 1, 2,
each other, for these bones collec-
girdle,” or scapular arch. Slice
to the bone, and divide their in-
scrape or cut away the muscles
chest ; snip off the ribs (figs. 1, 2,
bone; sever a tough membrane
of the wish-bone; then, by taking
at ¢), you can lift out the whole
tions underneath the bone and
require attention: the breast-bone
behind and on the sides (the com-
extreme illustrations of this, as
cut by mistake for ribs, or to be
ally taper to a point, easily broken
times very delicate or defective.
advisable to make perfect prepara-
they are best dried with only super-
kled with arsenic. The skull, if
liable to lose the odd-shaped,
and the freely movable pair that
Great care should be exercised re-
bones, particularly the sternum,
number of the specimen to which
tied to the coracoid bone. A skull
for itself, and, besides, is not usu-
theless, any record tending to fa-
duly entered on the register. There
familiar, of making elegant bony
very good results by simply boil-
better, macerating them in water
away, and then bleaching them in
hastens the process. With breast-
just when the flesh is completely
remain, you secure a ‘‘natural”
ligaments go too, the associate
wired together, those of a small
skulls, to clean thei entirely of

ligament as well as muscle; for the underneath parts are usually those conveying the most

desirable information, and they should not be in the slightest degree obscured.

4

Since in such

50 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

case the anvil-shaped bones, the palatal cylinders already mentioned, and sometimes other
portions come apart, the whole are best kept in a suitable box. I prefer to see a skull with
the sheath of the beak removed, though in some cases, particularly of hard-billed birds, it
may profitably be left on. The completed preparations should be fully labelled by writing on
the bone, in preference to an accompanying or attached paper slip, which may be lost. Some
object to this, as others do to writing on eggs, that it ‘‘defaces” the specimen ; but I confess
I see in dry bones no beauty but that of utility.

“Tn many families of birds, as the ducks (Anatide), the trachea or windpipe of the male
affords valuable means of distinguishing between the different natural groups, or even species,
chiefly by the form of the bony labyrinth, or bulla ossea, situated at or just above the divari-
cation of the bronchial tubes. A little trouble will enable the collector in all cases to preserve
this organ perfectly, as represented in the annexed engraving (fig. 3). Before proceeding to
skin the specimen, a narrow-bladed knife should be introduced into its mouth and by taking
hold of the tongue (A) by the fingers or forceps, the muscles (BB) by which it is attached to
the lower jaw should be severed as far as they can be reached, care being of course taken not
to puncture the windpipe (CC); and later in the operation of skinning, when dividing the
body from the neck or head, not to cut into or through it. This done, the windpipe can be
easily withdrawn entire and separated from the neck, and then the sternal apparatus being
removed as before described, its course must be traced to where, after branching off in a fork
(D), the bronchial tubes (# Z) join the lungs. At these latter points it is to be cut off. Then
rinsing it in cold water, and leaving it to dry partially, it may, while yet pliant, be either
wrapped round the sternum, or coiled up and labelled separately.” — (A. Newton.)

§ 9.— COLLECTION OF NESTS AND EGGS.

Ornithology and Odlogy are twin studies, or rather one includes the other. A collec-
tion of nests and eggs is indispensable for any thorough study of birds; and many persons
find peculiar pleasure in forming one. Some, however, shrink from “ robbing birds’ nests”
as something particularly cruel; a sentiment springing, no doubt, from the sympathy and
deference that the tender office of maternity inspires; but with all proper respect for the
humane emotion, it may be said simply, that birds’-nesting is not nearly so cruel as bird-

shooting. What I saidin a former section, in endeavoring to guide search for birds, applies .

in substance to hunting for their nests; the essential difference is, that the latter are of
course stationary objects, and consequently more liable to be overlooked, other things being
equal, than birds themselves. Most birds nest on trees or bushes; many on the ground
and on rocks; others in hollows. Some build elegant, elaborate structures, endlessly varied
in details of form and material; others make no nest whatever. In this cuuntry, egging is
chiefly practicable in May and during the summer; but some species,’ particularly birds of
prey, begin to lay in January, while, on our southern border at least, the season of repro-
duction is protracted through September ; so there is really a long period for search. Par-
ticular nests, of course, like the birds that build them, can only be found through ornithological
knowledge; but general search is usually rewarded with a varied assortment. The best clew
to a hidden nest is the actions of the parents; patient watchfulness is commonly successful in
tracing the bird’s home. As the science of odlogy has not progressed to the point of deter-
mining from the nests and eggs to what bird they belong, in even a majority of cases, the
utmost care in authentication is indispensable. To be worth anything, not to be worse
than worthless in fact, an egg must be identified beyond question; must be not only
unsuspected, but above suspicion. A shade of suspicion is often attached to dealers’ CLES 5
not necessarily implying bad faith or even negligence on the dealers’ part, but from the nature
of the case. Itis often éxtremely difficult to make an unquestionable determination, as for

° COLLECTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 51

instance when numbers of birds of similar habits are breeding close together ; or even impos-
sible, as in case the parent eludes observation. Sometimes the most acute observer may be
mistaken, circumstances appearing to prove a parentage when such is not the fact. It is in
general advisable to secure the parent with the eggs: if shot or snared on the nest, the
identification is simply unquestionable. If you do not yourself know the species, it then
becomes necessary to secure the specimen, and retain it with the eggs. It is not required to
make a perfect preparation ; the head, or better, the head and a wing, will answer the purpose.
When egging in downright earnest, a pair of climbing irons, a coil of § inch rope, and a tin
collecting box filled with cotton, become practically indispensable; these are the only field
implements required in addition to those already specified.

Preparing Eggs. For blowing eggs, a set of special tools is needed. These are “ egg-

drills,” — steel implements with a sharp-pointed conical head of rasping surface, and a slender
shaft; several such, of different sizes, are needed; also, blow-pipes of different sizes, a delicate

anil

Fic. 4. —Egg-drills, different sizes, nat.
size; after Newton.

thin pair of scissors, light spring for-

CEDE; some little hooks, and a small Fic. 5. — Instruments for blowing eggs; after Newton. a, 6,
syringe. They are inexpensive, and blow-pipes, } nat. size; c, wire for cleansing them; d, syringe, }
may be had of any dealer in natur- nat. size (the ring of the handle must be large enough to insert

the thumb); ¢, bulbous insufflator, for sucking eggs.
alists’ supplies. (See figs. 4-7.) Eggs
should never be blown in the old way of making a hole at each end; nor are two holes any-
where usually required. Opening should be effected on one side, preferably that showing least
conspicuous or characteristic markings. If two are made, they should be rather near together ;
on the same side at any rate. But one is generally sufficient, as the fluid contents can escape
around the blow-pipe. Holding the egg gently but steadily in the fingers,’ apply the point of

1 The usual method of emptying eggs through one small hole is doubtless supposed to be a very modern trick;
put it dates back at least to 1828, when M. Danger proposed “‘a new method of preparing and preseving eggs for
the cabinet,” which is practically the one now followed, though he used a three-edged needle to prick the hole,
instead of our modern drill, and did not appear to know some of our ways of managing the embryo, I make this
reference to his article to call attention to one of the tools he recommends, which I think would prove useful, as
being better than the fingers for holding an egg during drilling and blowing. The simple instrument will be un-
derstood from a glance at the figure given in the Nuttall Bulletin, iii, 1878, p. 191. The oval rings are covered with
light fabric, like mosquito-netting or muslin, and do not touch the egg, which is held lightly but securely in the
netting. The cost would be trifling, and danger might be avoided by Danger’s method

52 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY. -

the drill perpendicularly to the surface, unless it be preferred to prick with a needle first.
A twirling motion of the instrument gradually enlarges the opening by filing away the shell,
and so bores a smooth-edged circular hole. This should be no larger than is required to
insert the blow-pipe loosely, with room for the contents to escape around it. Nor is it always
necessary to insert the pipe; a fine stream of water may be easily injected by holding the
instrument close to the egg, but not quite touching. The blowing should be continuous and
equable, rather than forcible ; a strong puff easily bursts a delicate egg. Be sure that all the
contents are removed; then rinse the interior thoroughly with clean water, either by taking a
mouthful and sending it through a blow-pipe, or with the syringe. Blowing eggs is a rather
fatiguing process, more So

Cc} than it might seem; the ila A)
. Z cheek muscles soon tire, 1
and the operator actually
becomes ‘blown ” himself
before long. The opera-
tion had better be done
over a basin of water, both
to receive the contents, and
to catch the egg if it slip + 7
from the fingers. The

membrane lining the shell
;

should be removed if pos-

Mey ARTE =
: sible. It may be seized by
the edge around the hole,
with the forceps, and
drawn out, or picked out
with a bent pin. But this
is scarcely to be accom- cl ¢c
ae SEE > plished in the case of fresh
eggs, when the membrane

Fie. 6. — Scissors, knives, and forceps, } nat. may be simply pared
size; after Newton.

LURE seecens

smoothly around the edge

of the hole. Eggs that have been incubated of course offer diffi-

culty, in proportion to the size of the embryo. The hole may be J
drilled, as before, but it must be larger; and as the drill is apt to

split a shell after it has bored beyond a certain size of hole, it is often Wis 7 ook: for exe
well to prick, with a fine needle, a circular series of minute holes tracting embryos, nat. size;
almost touching, and then remove the enclosed circle of shell. This oe nae ieee
must be very carefully done, or the needle will indent or crack the cutting edge along the con-
shell, which, it must be remembered, grows more brittle towards eee

the time of hatching. Well-formed embryos cannot be got bodily through any hole that can
be made in an egg ; they must be extracted piecemeal. They may be cut to pieces with the
slender scissors introduced through the hole, and the fragments be picked out, with the
forceps, hooked out, or blown out. No embryo should be forced through a hole too small;
there is every probability that the shell will burst at the critical moment. Addled eggs, the
contents of which are thickened or hardened, .offer some difficulty, to overcome which persistent
syringing and repeated rinsing are required; or it may be necessary to fill them with water,
and set them away for such length of time that the contents dissolve by maceration; carbonate
of soda is said to hasten the solution ; the process may be repeated. as often as may be necessary.
Tn no event must any of the animal contents be suffered to remain in the shell. When emptied

COLLECTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 58

and rinsed, eggs should be gently wiped dry, and set hole downward on blotting-paper to
drain.1 Broken eggs may be neatly mended, sometimes with a film of collodion, or a bit of
tissue paper and paste, or the edges may be simply stuck together with any adhesive substance.
Even when fragmentary a rare egg is worth preserving. Eggs should ordinarily be left empty;
indeed, the only case in which any filling is admissible is that of a defective specimen to which
some slight solidity can be imparted with cotton. It is unnecessary even to close up the hole.
It is best, on all aecounts, to keep eggs in sets, a ‘‘set” being the natural clutch; or whatever
less number was taken from a nest. The most scrupulous attention must be paid to accurate,
complete, and permanent labelling. So important is this, that the undeniable defacing of a
specimen, by writing on it, is no offset to the advantages accruing from such fixity of record.
It is practically impossible to attach a label, as is done with a bird-skin, and a loose label is
always in danger of being lost or displaced. Write on the shell, then, as many items as
possible ; if done neatly, on the side in which the hole was bored, at least one good ‘‘ show side ”
remains. An egg should always bear the same number as the parent, in- the collector's
record. In a general collection, where separate ornithological and odlogical registers are kept,
identification of egg with parent is nevertheless readily secured, by making one the numerator
the other the denominator of a fraction, to be simply inverted in its respective application.
Thus, bird No. 456, and egg No. 128, are identified by making the former 43§ the latter 23.
All the eggs of a clutch should have the same number. If the shell be large enough, the name
of the species should be written on it; if too small, it should be accompanied by a label, and
may have the name indicated by a number referring to a certain catalogue. According to my
“Check List,” for example, ‘‘No. 1” would indicate Turdus migratorius. The date of collec-
tion is a highly desirable item; it may be abbreviated thus; 3 | 6 | 82 means June 3, 1882. It
is well to have the egg authenticated by the collector’s initials at least. Since ‘‘ sets” of eggs
may be broken up for distributions to other cabinets, yet permanent indication of the size of
the clutch be wanted, it is well to have some method. A good one is to write the number of
the clutch on each egg composing it, giving each egg of the set, moreover, its individual
number. Supposing for example the clutch No. 42% contained five eggs; one of them would
be 422 | 5 | 1:*the next 22 | 5 | 2, and so on. But it should be remembered that all such
arbitrary memoranda must be systematic, and be accompanied by a key. Eggs may be kept
in cabinets of shallow drawers in little pasteboard trays, each holding a set, and containing a
paper label on which various items that cannot be traced on the shell are written in full.

1 Reinforcing the Eggshell before Blowing. — Fig. 8 “ shows a piece of paper, a number of which, when gummed
on to an egg, one over the other, and left to dry, strengthen the shell in such a manner that the instruments above
described can be introduced through the aperture in the middle and worked to the best advantage, and thus a
fully formed embryo may be cut up, and the pieces extracted through a very moderately +
sized hole; the number of thicknesses required depends, of course, greatly upon the size
of the egg, the length of time it has been incubated, and the stoutness of the shell and
the paper. Five or six is the least number that it is safe to use. Each piece should be
left to dry before the next is gummed on. The slits in the margin cause them to set
pretty smoothly, which will be found very desirable; the aperture in the middle of each
may be cut out first, or the whole series of layers may be drilled through when the hole
is made in the egg. For convenience’ sake, the papers may be prepared already gummed,
and moistened when put on (in the same way that adhesive postage labels are used).
Doubtless, patches of linen or cotton cloth would answer equally well. When the opera-
tion is over, a slight application of water (especially if warm) through the syringe will fg, g,— Nat. size.
Joosen them so that they can be easily removed, and they can be separated from one
another, and dried to serve another time. The size represented in the sketch is that suitable for an egg of mod-
erate dimension, such as that of a common fowl. The most effectual way of adopting this method of emptying
eggs is by using very many layers of thin paper and plenty of thick gum, but this is, of course, the most tedious.
Nevertheless, it is quite worth the trouble in the case of really rare specimens, and they will be none the worse for
operating upon from the delay of a few days caused by waiting for the gum to dry and harden. The naturalist
to whom this method first occurred has found it answer remarkably well in every case that it‘has been used, from
the egg of an eagle to that of a humming-bird, and among English odlogists it has been generally adopted.”
(A. Newton, in Smiths. Misc. Coll. 139, 1860.)

54 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

Such trays should all be of the same depth, —half an inch is a convenient depth for general
purposes; and of assorted sizes, say from one inch by one and one-half inches up to three by
six inches; it is convenient to have the dimensions regularly graduated by a constant factor
of, say half an inch, so that the little boxes may be set side by side, either lengthwise or
crosswise, without interference. Eggs may also be kept safely, advantageously, and with
attractive effect, in the nests themselves, in which a fluff of cotton may be placed to steady
them. When not too bulky, too loosely constructed, or of material unsuitable for preservation,
nests should always be collected.1_ Those that are very closely attached to twigs should not be
torn off. Nests threatening to come to pieces, or too frail to be handled without injury, may
be secured by sewing through and through with fine thread: indeed, this is an advisable pre-
caution in most cases. Packing eggs for transportation requires much care, but the precau-
tions to be taken are obvious. I will only remark that there is no safer way than to leave them
in their own nests, each wrapped in cotton, with which the whole cavity is to be lightly filled;
the nests themselves being packed close enough to-be perfectly steady.

§ 10.—CARE OF A COLLECTION.

Well Preserved Specimens will last ‘forever and a day,” so far as natural decay is
concerned. I have handled birds in good state, shot back in the twenties, and have no doubt
that some eighteenth century preparations are still extant. The precautions against defilement,
mutilation, or other mechanical injury, are self-evident, and may be dismissed with the remark,
that white plumages, especially if at all greasy, require the most care to guard against soiling.
We have, however, to fight for our possessions against a host of enemies, individually despica-
ble but collectively formidable, — foes so determined that untiring vigilance is required to ward
off their attacks even temporarily, whilst in the end they prove invincible. It may be said that
to be eaten up by insects is the natural end of all bird-skins not sooner destroyed.

1“ 4 Plea for the Study of Nests,” made by Mr. Ernest Ingersoll in his excellent ‘“ Birds’-Nesting,” suits
me so well that I will transcribe it. ‘‘ Whether or not it is worth while to collect nests—for there are many per-
sons who never do so —is, it seems to me, only a question of room in the cabinet. As a scientific study there is far
more advantage to be obtained from a series of nests than from a series of eggs. The nest is something with which
the will and energies of the bird are concerned. It expresses the character of the workman; is to a certain extent
an index of its rank among birds, — for in general those of the highest organization are the best architects, — and
give us a glimpse of the bird’s mind and power to understand and adapt itself to changed conditions of life. Over
the shape and ornamentation of an egg the bird has no control, being no more able to govern the matter than it
can the growth of its beak. There is as much difference to me, in the interest inspired, between the nest and the
egg of a bird, as between its brain and its skull, —using the word brain to mean the seat of intellect. The nest is
always more or less the result of conscious planning and intelligent work, even though it does follow a hereditary
habit in its style; while the egg is an automatic production varying, if at all, only as the whole organization of:
the bird undergoes change. Don’t neglect the nests then. In them more than anywhere else lies the key to the
mind and thoughts of a bird, —the spirit which inhabits that beautiful frame and bubbles out of that golden
mouth. And is it not this inner life, —this human significance in bird nature, —this soul of ornithology, that we
are all aiming to discover? Nests are beautlful, too. What can surpass the delicacy of the humming-bird’s home
glued to the surface of a mossy branch or nestling in the warped point of a pendent leaf; the vireo’s silken ham-
mock ; the oriole’s gracefully swaying purse; the blackbird’s model basket in the flags; the snug little caves of the
marsh wrens; the hermitage-huts of the shy wagtails and ground-warblers, the stout fortresses of the sociable
swallows! Moreover, there is much that is highly interesting which remains to be learned about nests, and which
can only be known by paying close attention to these artistic masterpieces of animal art. We want to know by
what sort of skill the many nests are woven-together that we find it so hard even to disentangle; we want to know
how long they are in being built; whether there is any particular choice in respect to location; whether it be a
rule, as is supposed, that the female bird is the architect, to the exclusion of her mate’s efforts further than his
supplying a part of the materials. Many such points remain to be cleared up. Then there is the question of
variation, and its extent in the architect of the same species in different quarters of its ranging area. How far is
this carried, and how many varieties can be recorded from a single district, where the same list of materials is
open to all the birds equally? Variation shows individual opinion or taste araong the builders as to the suitability
of this or that sort of timber or furniture for their dwellings, and observations upon it thus increase our acquaint-
auce with the scope of ideas and habits characteristic of each species of bird.”

CARE OF A COLLECTION. 55

Insect Pests (Figs. 9, 10, 11, 12) with which we have to contend belong principally to the
two families Tineide and Dermestide — the former are moths, the latter beetles. The moths are
of species identical with, and allied to, the common clothes moth, Tinea flavifrontella, the carpet
moth, 7. tapetzella, etc., — small species observed flying about our apartments and museums,
in May and during the summer. The beetles are several rather small thick-set species, princi-
pally of the genera Dermestes and Anthrenus. I am able to figure species of these genera,
with their larval stages, and of two other genera, Ptinus and Sitodrepa, through the attentions
of Prof. C. V. Riley, the eminent entomologist. The larvee (‘‘ caterpillars” of the moths, and
‘“grubs” of the beetles) appear to be the chief agents of the destruction. The presence of the
mature insects is usually readily detected ; on disturbing an infested suite of specimens the moths

Fia. 9.— Anthrenus scrofularie, enlarged; the short line shows nat. size. a, b, larvee; c, pupa; d, imaga,

Fia. 10. — Dermestes lardarius, en- Fig. 11. — Sitodrepa panicea, Fic. 12. — Ptinus brunneus.
larged. a, larva; 6, anenlarged hair; enlarged. a, imago; d, its an-
c, imago. tenna, more enlarged.

flutter about, and the beetles crawl as fast as they can into shelter, or simulate death. The
insidious larvee, however, are not so easily observed, burrowing as they do among the feathers,
or in the interior of a skin; whilst the minute eggs are commonly altogether overlooked. But
the ‘‘bugs” are not long at work without leaving their unmistakable traces. Shreds of
feathers float off when a specimen is handled, or fly out on flipping the skin with the fingers,
and in bad eases even whole bundles of plumes come away at a touch. Sometimes, leaving the
plumage intact, bugs eat away the horny covering of the bill and feet, making a peculiarly
unhappy and irreparable mutilation. I suppose this piece of work is done by a particular
insect, but if so I do not know what one. It would appear that when the bugs effect lodgment
in any one skin, they usually finish it before attacking another, unless they are in great force.
We may consequently, by prompt removal of an infested specimen, save further depredations ;

56 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

nevertheless, the rest become ‘‘suspicious,” and the whole drawer or box should be quaran-
tined, if not submitted to any of the processes described beyond. Our lines of defence are sev-
eral. We may mechanically oppose entrance of the enemy ; we may meet him with abhorrent
odors that drive him off, sicken or kill him, and finally we may cook him to death. I will
notice these methods successively, taking occasion to describe a cabinet under head of the first.

Cases for Storage or Transportation should be rather small, for several reasons. They
are easier to handle and pack. There are fewer birds pressing each other. Particular speci-
mens are more readily reached. ‘Bugs must effect just so many more separate entrances to
infest the whole. Small lids are more readily fitted tight. For the ordinary run of small birds
I should not desire a box over 18x18x18, and should prefer a sinaller one; for large birds, a box
just long enough for the biggest specimen, and of other proportions to correspond fairly, is
most eligible. Whatever the dimensions, a proper box presupposes perfect jointing; but if
any suspicion be entertained on this score, stout paper should be pasted alung all the edges,
both inside and out. We have practically to do with the lid only. If the lot is likely to
remain long untouched, the cover may be screwed very close and the crack pasted like the
others. Under other and usual circumstances the lid may be provided with a metal boss fitting
a groove lined with india rubber or filled with wax. An excellent case may be made of tin
with the lid secured in this manner, and further fortified with a wooden casing. Birdskins
entirely free from insects or their eggs, encased in some such secure manner, will remain intact
indefinitely ; but there is misery in store if any bugs or nits be put away with them.

Cabinets. — As a matter of fact, most collections are kept readily accessible for examina-
tion, display, or other immediate use, and this precludes any disposition of them in “hermeti-
cal” cases. The most we can do is to secure tight fitting of movable woodwork. The
“eabinet” is most eligible for private collections. This is, in effect, simply a bureau, or chest of
drawers, protected with folding doors, or a front that may be detached, either of plain wood or
sashing for panes of glass. It is simply astonishing how many birdskins of average size can
be accommodated in a cabinet that makes no inconvenient piece of furniture for an ordinary
room. A cabinet may of course be of any desired size, shape, and style. In general it will be
better to put money into excellence of fitting rather than elegance of finish; the handsomest
front does not compensate for a crack in the back or for a drawer that hitches. There should

-not be the slightest flaw in the exterior, and doors should fit so tightly that a puff of air may

be felt on closing them. The greatest desideratum of the interior work, next after close
fitting yet smooth running of the drawers, is economy of space. This is secured by making
the drawers as thin as is consistent with stability ; by having them slide by a boss at each end
fitting a groove in the side wall, instead of resting on horizontal partitions; and by hinged
countersunk handles instead of knobs. I do not recommend, except for a suite of the smallest
birds, a multiplicity of shallow drawers, accommodating each one layer of specimens; it is
better to have fewer deeper drawers, into which light shallow movable trays are fitted. These
trays never need be of stuff over one-eighth or one-fourth of an inch thick, and may have
bottoms of stiff pasteboard glued or tacked on. They may vary from one-half inch to two
inches in depth, but this dimension should always be some factor of the depth of the drawer,
so that a certain number of trays may exactly fill it. They should be just as long as one
transverse dimension of the drawer, and rather narrow, so that two or more are set side by
side. Finally, though they may be of different depths, they should be of the same length and
breadth, so as to be interchangeable. They may simply rest on top of each other, or slide on
separate projections inside the drawer. Such trays are extremely handy for holding particular
sets of specimens, to be carried to the study table without disturbing the rest of the collection.
If a collection be so extensive that any particular specimen may not be readily hunted up,

I

CARE OF A COLLECTION. 57

it will be found convenient to have the drawers themselves labelled with the name of the
group within. A collection should always be methodically arranged — preferably according to
sone approved or supposed natural classification of birds; this is also the readiest mode, since,
with some conspicuous exceptions, birds of the same natural group are approximately of the
same size. If I were desired to suggest proportions for a private cabinet of most general
eligibility, I should say four feet high, by three feet wide, by two feet deep, in the clear; this
makes a portly yet not unwieldy looking object. It is wide enough for folding-doors, to be
secured by bolts at top and bottom, and lock; not so high that the top drawer is not readily
inspected ; and of proportionate depth. Such a case will take seven drawers six inches deep
either of the full width, or in two series with a median partition; these drawers will hold
anything up to an eagle or crane. A part of them at least should have a full complement of
such trays as I have described, — say three or four tiers of the shallower trays, three trays to a
tier, each about two feet long by about a foot wide ; and one or two tiers of deeper trays.

To Destroy Bugs. —In our present case prevention is not the best remedy, simply be-
cause it is not always practicable ; in spite of all mechanical precautions the bugs will get in.
We have, therefore, to see what will destroy them, or at least stop their ravages. It is a
general rule that any pungent aromatic odor is obnoxious to them, and that any very light
powdery substance restrains their movements by getting into the joints and breathing pores.
Both these qualities are secured in the ordinary ‘‘insect powder,” to be had of any leading
druggist. It should be lavishly strewn on and among the skins, and laid in the corners of the
drawers and trays. Thus employed it proves highly effective, and is on the whole the.most
eligible substance to use when a collection is constantly handled. Camphor is a valuable agent.
Small fragments may be strewn about the drawers, or a lump pinned in mosquito netting in a
corner. Benzine is also very useful. A small saucer full may be kept evaporating, or the
liquid may be sprinkled — even poured — directly over the skins ; it is very volatile and leaves
little or no stain. It. is, however, obviously ineligible when a collection is in constant use.
My friend Mr. Allen informs me he has used sulphide of carbon with great success. The
objection to this agent is, that it is a stinking poison; should be used in the open air, to
escape the ineffably disgusting and deleterious odors, and its employ is properly restricted to
eases for storage. When the bill or feet show they are attacked, further depredation may
be prevented by pencilling with a strong solution of corrosive sublimate ; a weaker solution,
one that leaves no white film, on drying; on a black feather, may even be brushed over the
whole plumage. Mr. Ridgway tells me that oil of bitter almonds is equally efficacious. But
remember that these poisons must be used with care. Specimens may be buried in coarse
refuse tobacco leaves. One or another of these lines of defence will commonly prove successful
in destroying or driving off mature insects, and even in stopping the ravages of the larve;
but I doubt that any such means will kill the ‘‘nits.”. With these we must deal otherwise ;
and their destruction no less that that of their parents is assured, if we subject them to a high
temperature. Baking bird-skins is really the only process that can make us feel perfectly
safe. Infected specimens, along with suspected ones, should be subjected to a dry heat, from
212° F. up to any degree short of singeing the plumage. This is readily done by putting the
birds in a wooden tray in any oven — they must however be watched, unless you have special
contrivances for regulating the temperature. How long a time is required is probably not
ascertained with precision ; it will be well to bake for several hours. When the beetles and
larvee are found completely parched, it may be confidently believed that the unseen eggs are
out of the hatching way forever.

Two Items. — One is, that arsenic helps to keep out the bugs, besides preventing decay
—afact that should never be forgotten, and that should give sharper edge to my advice

58 FIELD ORNITHOLOGY.

respecting lavish use of the substance at the outset. If it be true, as some state, that bugs can
eat arsenic without dying, it is also true that they do not relish it; and in entering a case of
skins they will burrow by preference in those holding the least of it. This fact is continually
exhibited in large collections, where if two birds be side by side, one being duly arsenicized
and the other not so, one will be taken and the other left. My second item, with its proper
deduction, will form, I think, a fitting conclusion to this treatise. It is a fact in the natural
history of these our pests, that they are fond of peace and quiet, —they do uot like to be dis-
turbed at their meals. So they rarely effect permanent lodgment in a collection that is con-
stantly handled, though the doors stand open for hours daily. As a consequence, the degree
of our diligence in studying birdskins is likely to become the measure of our success in pre-
serving them. I once read a work, by an eminent and learned divine, on the ‘“ Moral Uses of
Dark Things,” under which head the author included everything from earthquakes to mos-
quitoes. If there be a moral use in the ‘‘ dark thing” that museum pests certainly are to us,
we have it here. The very bugs urge on our work.

Fig. 13.— WILson’s SCHOOL-HOUSE, NEAR GRAY’s FERRY, PHILADELPHIA. From a drawing by M. S.
Weaver, Oct. 22, 1841, received by Elliott Coues, February, 1879, from Malvina Lawson, daughter of Alexander
Lawson, Wilson’s engraver. See article in the ‘Penn Monthly,” June, 1879, p. 443. The drawing was first
engraved on wood, and published, by Thomas Meeban, in the *Gardener’s Monthly,” August, 1880, p. 248. The
present impression is from an electrotype of that wood-cut. The size of the original is 5.10 X 3.95 inches. This
reminder of early days of “ Field Ornithology ” in America may be further attested by the signature of

Part II.

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY:

AN OUTLINE OF THE

STRUCTURE AND CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS.

§ 1.— DEFINITION OF BIRDS.

ENERAL ORNITHOLOGY, like Field Ornithology, is a subject with which the
student must have some acquaintance, if he would hope to derive either pleasure or
profit from the Birds of North America. For any intelligent understanding of this subject, he
must become reasonably familiar with the technical terms used in describing and classifying
birds, and learn at least enough of the structure of these creatures tu appreciate the characters
upon which all description and classification is based. Extensive and varied and accurate as
may be his random perception of objects of natural history, his knowledge is not scientific, but
only empirical, until reflection cones to aid observation, and conceptions of the significance of -
what he knows are formed by logical processes in the mind. For

Science (Lat. scire, to know) is knowledge set in order; knowledge disposed after the
rational method that best shows, or tends to show best, the true relations of observed facts.
Sound scientific facts are the natural basis of all philosophic truth, and the safest stepping-
stones to religious faith, —to that wisdom which comes only of knowing the relation which
material entities bear to spiritual realities. The orderly knowledge of any particular class of
facts —the methodical disposition of observations upon any particular set of objects — constitutes
a Special Science. Thus

_ Ornithology (Gr. épyOos, ornithos, of a bird; Aéyos, logos, a discourse) is the Science of
Birds. Ornithology consists in the rational arrangement and exposition of all that is known of
birds, and the logical inference of much that is not known. Ornithology treats of the physical
structure, physiological processes, and mental attributes of birds ; of their habits and manners ;
of their geographical distribution and geological succession; of their probable ancestry; of
their every relation to one another and to all other animals, including man, — in short, of their
significance in Nature and Supernature. The first business of Ornithology is to define its
ground — to answer the question, j

60 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

What is a Bird ?— There is every reason to believe that a Bird is a greatly modified
Reptile, being the offspring by direct descent of some reptilian progenitor; and there is no
reason to suppose that any bird ever had any other origin than by due process of hatching out
of an egg laid by its mother after fecundation by its father, —just what we believe to have been
the invariable method during the period of the world known to human history. There is no
reason to believe that any bird was ever originally created and endowed with the characters it
now possesses; but that every bird now living is the naturally modified lineal descendant
of parents that were less and less like itself, and more and more like certain reptiles, the
further removed they were in the line of avian ancestry from such birds as are now living.
This is the Darwinian logic of observed facts, upon which the modern Theory of Evolution is
based,*in opposition to the tradition of the special creation of every species of animal; which
latter has no scientific basis whatever, and is consequently accepted as true by few thought-
ful persons who are capable of forming independent judgments. . Accordingly,

Birds and Reptiles—even those of the present geologic epoch — share so many and so
important structural characters, that the chiefs of science of our day are wont to unite the two
classes, Aves and Reptilia, in one primary group of the Vertebrata, or animals with a back-
bone. This group is called Sawropsida, or reptiliform ; it is contrasted, on the one hand, with
Ichihyopsida, or fish-like vertebrates, including Batrachians as well as Fishes; and, on the
other, with Mammalia, the province of the Vertebrata which includes Man and all other
animals that suckle their young. We find that .

The Sauropsida (Gr. catpos, sawros, a reptile; dys, opsis, appearance), or lizard-like
Vertebrates, agree with one another, and differ from other animals, in the following important
combination of characters, substantially as laid down by Professor Huxley, — some of the char-
acters being shared by the Ichthyopsida, and some by the Mammalia, but the sum of the
characters being distinctive of Sawropsida: They are all oviparous (laying eggs hatched out-
side the body of the parent), or ovoviviparous (laying eggs hatched inside the body of the
parent), being never viviparous (bringing forth alive young nourished before birth by the
blood of the mother). The embryo develops those foetal organs called amnion and allantois,
and is nourished before hatching by the great quantity of yolk in the egg. There are no
mammary glands to furnish the young with milk after birth. The generative, urinary, and
digestive organs come together behind in a common receptacle, the cloaca, or sewer, and their
products are discharged by a single orifice. The kidneys of the early embryo, called Wolffian
bodies, are soon replaced functionally by permanent kidneys, and structurally by the testes of
the male and the ovaries of the female. The cavity of the abdomen, or belly, is not separated
from that of the thorax, or chest, by a complete muscular partition, or diaphragm. The great
lateral hemispheres of the brain are not connected by a transverse commissure, or corpus
callosum. Air is always breathed by true lungs, never by gills. The blood, which may be
cold or hot, has red oval nucleated corpuscles; the heart has either three or four separate
chambers, — the latter in birds, in which the circulation of the hot blood is completely double,
z.é., in the lungs and one side of the heart, in the body at large and the other side of the heart.
The aortic arches are several ; or if but one, as in birds, it is the right, not the left. as in mam-
mals. The centra, or bodies, of the vertebrae are ossified, but have no terminal epiphyses.
The skull hinges upon the back-bone by a single median protuberance, or condyle, and the
part bearing the condyle is completely ossified. The lower jaw consists of several separate
pieces, the articular one of which hinges upon a movable quadrate bone; and there are
other peculiarities in the formation of the skull. The ankle-joint is situated, not, as in
mammals, between the tarsal bones and those of the leg, but between two rows of tarsal bones.
The skin is usually covered with outgrowths, in the form of scales or feathers. — Different as

DEFINITION OF BIRDS. 61

are any living members of the class of Birds from any known Reptiles, the characters of the
two groups converge in geologic history so closely, that the presence of feathers in the former
class, and their absence from the latter, is one of the most positive differences we have found.
The oldest known birds are from the Jurassic rocks of Europe, and the Cretaceous beds of
North America. These birds had teeth, and various other strong peculiarities of structure,
which no living members of the class’ have retained.

AVES, or the Class of Birds, may be distinguished from other Sawropsida, for all that
is known to the contrary, by the following sum of characters: The body is covered with
feathers, a kind of skin-outgrowth no other animals possess. The blood is hot; the circu-
lation is completely double ; the heart is perfectly four-chambered ; there is but one (the right)
aortic arch, and only one pulmonary artery springs from the heart; the aortic and the pulmo-
nary artery have each three semilunar valves. The lungs are fixed and moulded to the cavity
of the chest, and some of the air-passages run through them to admit air to other parts of the
body, as under the skin and in various bones. Reproduction is oviparous; the eggs are very
large, in consequence of the copious yolk and white; have a hard chalky shell, and are hatched
outside the body of the parent. There are always four limbs, of which the fore or pectoral
pair are strongly distinguished from the hind or pelvic pair by being modified into wings,
fitted for flying, if at all, by means of feathers — not of skin as in the cases of such mammals,
reptiles, and fishes as can fly. The terminal part of the limb is compressed and reduced,
bearing never more than three digits, only two of which ever have claws, and no claws
being the rule. There are not more than two separate carpals, or wrist-bones, in adult recent
birds (with very rare exceptions) ; nor any distinct interclavicular bone. The clavicles are
complete (with rare exceptions), and coalesce to form a ‘* wish-bone” or “ merry-thought.”
The sternum, or breast-bone, is large, usually carinate, or keeled, and the ribs are attached to
its sides only; it is developed from two to five or more centres of ossification. The sacral ver-
tebree proper have no expanded ribs abutting against the ila ; the ilia, or haunch-bones, are
greatly prolonged forward ; the socket for the head of the femur,or thigh-bone,is a ring, not a
cup; the ischia and pubes are prolonged backward in parallel directions, and neither of these
bones ever unites with its fellow in a ventral symphysis (except in Struthio and Rhea). The
fibula, or outer bone of the leg, is incomplete below, taking no part in the ankle-joint. The
astragalus, or upper bone of the tarsus, unites with the tbia,or inner bone of the leg, leaving
the ankle-joint between itself and other tarsal bones, the lower of which latter similarly unites
with the bones of the instep, or metatarsus. There are never more than four metatarsal bones,
and the same number of digits; the first or inner metatarsal bone is usually free, and incom-
plete above; the other three anchylose (fuse) together, and with distal tarsal bones, as already
said, to form a compound tarso-metatarsus. Recent birds, at any rate, have a certain saddle-
shape of the ends of the bodies of some vertebrae. Such birds have also no teeth and no fleshy
lips; the jaws are covered with horny or leathery integument, as the feet are also, when not
feathered.

The Position of the Class Aves among other Vertebrates is definite. Birds come in
the scale of development next below the Class Mammalia, and no close links between Birds
and Mammals are known; the most bird-like known inammal, the duck-billed platypus of
Australia (Ornithorhynchus paradoxus), being several steps beyond any known bird. Birds
are the higher one of the two classes of Sawropsida — the lower class, Reptilia, connecting with
the Batrachians (frogs, toads, newts, etc.) and so with the Fishes, Ichthyopsida. In this Verte-
brate series, Birds constitute what is called a highly specialized group; that is to say, a very par-
ticular off-shoot, or, more literally, a side-issue, of the Vertebrate genealogical tree, which in
the present geological era has become developed into very numerous (about 10,000) species,

62 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

\

closely agreeing with one another in the peculiar sum of their physical characters. In compar-
ison with other classes of Vertebrates, all birds are much alike; there is a less degree of
difference among them than that found among the members of any of the other classes of Verte-
brates; their likeness to each other being strong, and their kind of difference from any other
Vertebrates being peculiar, makes them the ‘highly specialized” class they are recognized to
be.. The structural difference between a huinming-bird and an ostrich, for exainple, is not greater
in degree than that subsisting between the members of some of the orders of Reptiles ; whence
some hold, with reason, that Birds should not form a class Aves, but’an order, or at most a sub-
class, of Sauropsida, and so be compared not with a class Reptilia collectively, but with other
Sauropsidan orders, such as Chelonia (turtles), Sawria (lizards), Ophidia (serpents), ete. The
practical convenience of starting with a ‘‘ class” Aves, however, is so great, that such classificatory
value will probably long continue to be ascribed, as heretofore, to Birds collectively. I have
spoken of Birds as a particular ‘‘ side-issue” or lateral branch of the Vertebrate “‘ tree of life ”;
hence it is not to be supposed that they are in the direct line of genealogical descent. Though
they stand as a group next below Mammals in the scale of evolution, it does not follow that
Mammals were developed from any such creature as a Bird has come to be, any more than
that Birds have been evolved from any such Reptiles as those of the present day. It is one
of the popular misunderstandings of the Theory of Evolution, to imagine that all the lower
forms of animals are in the genetic line of development of the higher forms; that man, for
example, was once a gorilla or a chimpanzee — actually such an xpe. The theory simply
requires all forms of life to be developed from some antevedent form, presumably, and in most
cases certainly, lower in the scale of or-
ganization. Thus man and the gorilla
are both descendants of some common
progenitor, more or less unlike either of
these existing creatures. All mammals
are similarly the modified descendants of
some more -primitive stock, from which
stock sprang also all Sawropsida, medi-
ately or immediately; therefore, a Mam-
inal is not a modified Bird, though higher
in the scale; and, though a Bird is a
modified Reptile, it is not a modification
of any such snake or lizard as now ex-
ists. The most bird-like reptiles known
are not the Pterodactyls, or Flying Rep-
tiles (Pterosauria), as might be sup-
posed; but of that remarkable order, the
Ornithoscelida, comprising the Dinosau-
rians, which ‘present a large series of
inodifications intermediate in structure
between existing Reptilia and Aves,”
and are therefore inferentially in the
direct ancestral line of modern Birds.

Geologic Succession of Birds, —
Birds have been traced back in geologic

Fig. 14.—Oldest known ornithological treatise, iMus- time to Cretaceous and Jurassic epochs

trating also the art of lithography,in the Jurassic period, . +a 7: =
engraved by Archeopteryzx lithographica. From the original of the Meshenie or Mid Life period of
slab in the British Museum ; after A. Newton, Ency. Brit. the world’s history. The earliest ornith-

DEFINITION OF BIRDS. 63

ichnites, — the fossils so called because supposed to indicate the presence of Birds by their
foot-prints, were discovered about the year 1835 in the Triassic formation in Connecticut.
But the creatures which made these tracks are now reasonably believed to have been all
‘Dinosaurian Reptiles. The oldest ornitholite, or fossil certainly known to be that of a true
Bird, is the famous Arch@opteryx, found by Andreas Wagner in 186] in the Odlitic slate of
Solenhofen in Bavaria. This has a long lizard-like tail of twenty vertebre, from each of which
springs a well-developed feather on each side; feathers of the wings are also well preserved ;

Fie. 15.— Restoration of Hesperornis regalis. After Marsh.

bones of the hand are not fused together, as they are in recent Birds; and the jaws bear true
teeth. This Bird has served as the basis of one of the primary divisions of the class Aves ;
though it has many reptilian characters, it is a true Bird. The great gap between this ancient
Avian and latter-day birds has been to some extent bridged by Marsh’s discovery and splendid
restoration of Birds from the Cretaceous formations of North America, such genera as
Ichthyornis and Hesperornis forming types of ‘two other primary divisions of the class, Odon-
totorme and Odontolce, or Birds with teeth in sockets, and those with teeth in grooves. In
both genera the tail is short, as in ordinary birds. In Ichthyornis, though the. wings are

64 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

sf

‘well developed, with fused metacarpals, and the sternum is keeled, the vertebre present the
extraordinary primitive character of being biconcave. In Hesperornis the vertebre are
saddle-shaped, as usual, but the sternum is flat, as in the existing ostriches, and the wings
are rudimentary, wanting metacarpals. Some twenty species of several genera of other
American Cretaceous Birds have been described by the same author. Remains of Birds
multiply in the next period, the Tertiary. Those of the Eocene or early Tertiary are largely
and longest known from discoveries made in the Paris Basin, among them the Gastornis

Sa sae

Fia. 16.— Restoration of Ichthyornis victor. After Marsh.

parisiensis, at least as large as an ostrich; some of these belong to extinct genera, others to
genera which still flourish; none are known to have true teeth, or otherwise to be as primitive
as the reptile-like forms of the Cretaceous. The Miocene or Middle Tertiary has proven
specially rich in remains of Birds, including some of extinct genera, but in largest proportion
referable to modern types. Later Tertiary (Pliocene and Post-pliocene) birds are almost all
of living genera, and some are apparently of living species. Extinct birds coeval with man,
their bones bearing his marks, are found in various caves. Sub-fossil birds’ bones occur in
shell-heaps (kitchenmiddens) and elsewhere, of course contemporaneous with man, and some

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 65

of them scarcely pre-historic. One of the oldest of these is the gigantic Apyornis maximus
of Madagascar, of which we have not only the bones, but the egg. The immense Moas, or
Dinornithes of New Zealand, were among the later of these to die,
portions of skin, feathers, etc., of these great creatures having been
found. With the Moa-remains are found those of Harpagornis, a
raptorial bird large enough to have preyed upon the Moas. Finally,
various birds have been exterminated in historic times, and some of
them within the life-time of persons now living. The Dodo of
Mauritius, Didus ineptus, is the most celebrated one of these, of
the living of which we have documentary evidence down to 1681;
the Solitaire of Rodriguez, Pezophaps solitarius, the Géant, Leguatia
gigantea, and several others of the same Mascarene group of islands,
are in similar case. The Great Auk, Alca impennis, is supposed
to have become extinct in 1844; a species of Parrot, Nestor pro-
ductus, was last known to be living in 1851; various parrots and
other birds have likewise disappeared within a very few years.
At least one North American bird, the Labrador Duck, Camp-
tolemus labradorius, seems likely soon to follow. (A. Newton,
Ency. Brit., 9th ed., art. Birds.)

§ 2.— PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION.

: Having seen what a Bird is, and how it is distinguished
from other animals, our next business is to inquire how birds are ¥1q. 17.— Restoration of
related to and distinguished from one another, as the basis of Leguatia gigantea. From

Packard, after Schlegel.

Classification : a prime object of ornithology, without the attainment of which birds,
however pleasing they are to the senses, do not satisfy the mind, which always strives to make
orderly disposition of its knowledge, and so discover the reciprocal relations and interdepen-
dencies of the things it knows. Classification presupposes that there do exist such relations,
according to which we may arrange objects in the manner which facilitates their comprehen-
sion, by bringing together what is like, and separating what is unlike; and that such relations
are the results of fixed, inevitable law. It is, therefore,

Taxonomy (Gr. rdés, taxis, arrangement, and vouos, nomos, law), or the rational,
lawful disposition of observed facts. Just as taxidermy is the art of fixing a bird’s skin in a
natural manner, so taxonomy is the science of arranging birds in the most natural manner;
in the way that brings out most clearly their natural affinities, and so shows them in their
proper relations to each other. This is the greatest possible help to the memory in its
attempt to retain its hold upon great numbers of facts. But taxonomy, which involves
consideration of the greatest problems of ornithology, as of every other branch of biology
(biology being the science of life and living things in general), is beset with the gravest difficul-
ties, springing from our defective knowledge. We could only perfect our taxonomy by
having before us a specimen of every kind of bird that exists, or ever existed; and by
thoroughly understanding how each is related to and differs from every other one. This is
obviously impossible; in point of fact, we do not know ail the birds now living, and only a
small number of extinct birds have come to light; so that many of the most important links
in the chain of evidence are missing, and many more cannot be satisfactorily joined together.

With these springs of ignorance and sources of error must be reckoned also the risk of going
5

66 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

t

wrong through the natural fallibility of the mind. The result is, that the “‘ natural classifica-
tion,” like the elixir of life or the philosopher’s stone, is a goal still distant; and as a matter
of fact, the present state of the ornithological system is far from being satisfactory. It is
obvious that birds, or any other objects, may be ‘‘ classified” in numberless ways, — in as
many ways as are afforded by all their qualities and relations, —to suit particular purposes, or
to satisfy particular bents of mind. Hence have arisen, in the history of the science, very many
different schedules of classification ; in fact, nearly evéry leader of ornithology has in his time
proposed his own ‘‘ system,” and enjoyed a more or less respectable and influential following.
Systems have been based upon this or that set of characters, and erected from this or that
preconception in the mind of the systematist. Down to quite recent days, the modifications
of the external parts of birds, particularly of the bill, feet, wings, and tail, were almost ex-
clusively employed for purposes of classification; and the mental point of view was, that
each species of bird was a separate creation, and as much of a fixture in Nature’s museum
as any specimen in the naturalist’s cabinet. Crops of classifications have been sown in
the fruitful soil of such blind error, but no lasting harvest has been reaped. The confusion
thus engendered has brought about the inevitable reaction; and the fashion of the present
day is decidedly the opposite extreme, — that of counting external features of little conse-
quence in comparison with anatomical characters. Too much time has been wasted in
arguing the superiority of each of these characters for the purposes of classification; as if
a natural classification should not be based upon all points of structure! as if internal and
external characters were not reciprocal and mutually exponent of each other! But the
genius of modern taxonomy seems to be so certainly right, — to be tending so surely, even if
slowly, in the direction of the desired consummation, that all differences of opinion, we may
hope, soon will be settled, and defect of knowledge,.not perversity of the mind, be the |
only obstacle left in the way of success. The taxonomic goal is not now to find the way in
which birds may be most conveniently arranged, described, and catalogued ; but to discover
their pedigree, and so construct their family-tree. Such a genealogical table, or phylum
(Gr. pidroy, phulon, tribe, race, stock), as it is called, is rightly considered the only taxonomy
worthy the name, —the only true or natural classification, In attempting this end, we proceed
upon the belief that, as explained above, all birds, like all other animals and plants, are
related to each other genetically, as offspring are to parents; and that to discover their genetic
relationships is to bring out their true affinities, — in other words, to reconstruct the actual
taxonomy of Nature. In this view, there can be but one “natural” classification, to the
perfecting of which all increase in our knowledge of the structure of birds infallibly and inevi-
tably- tends. The classification now in use, or coming into use, is the result of our best
endeavors to accomplish this purpose, and represents what approach we have made to this end.
It is one of the great corollaries of that theorem of Evolution which most naturalists are
satisfied has been demonstrated. It is necessarily a

Morphological Classification ; that is, one based solely upon consideration of structure
or form (uop$7, morphé, form) ; and for the following reasons: Every offspring tends to take
on precisely the structure or form of its parents, as its natural physical heritage; and the
principle involved, or the-law of heredity, would, if nothing interfered, keep the descendants
perfectly true to the physical characters of their progenitors ; they would ‘“ breed true” and be
exactly alike. But counter influences are incessantly operative, in consequence of constantly
varying external conditions of environment; the plasticity of organization of all creatures ren-
dering them more or less susceptible of modification by such means, they become unlike their
ancestors in various ways and to different degrees. Ona large scale is thus accomplished, by
natural selection and other natural agencies, just what man does in a small way. in producing
and maintaining different breeds of domestic animals. Obviously, amidst such ceaselessly

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 67

shifting scenes, degrees of likeness or unlikeness of physical structure indicate with the greatest
exactitude the nearness or remoteness of organisms in kinship. Morphological characters
derived from examination of structure are therefore the surest guides we can have to the
blood-relationships we desire to establish ; and such relationships are the ‘‘ natural affinities”
which all classification aims to discover and formulate. As already said, taxonomy consists
in tracing pedigrees, and constructing the phylum ; it is like tracing any leaf or twig of a tree
to its branchlet, this to its bough, this again to its trunk or main stem. The student will
readily perceive, from what has been said, the impossibility of naturally arranging any consid-
erable number of birds in any linear series of groups, one after the other. Todo so means
nothing more or less than the mechanical necessity of book-making, where groups have to
succeed one another, in writing page after page. Some groups will follow naturally ; others
will not; no connected chain is possible, because no such single continuous series exists in
nature. In cataloguing, or otherwise arranging a series of birds for description, we simply
begin with the highest groups, and make our juxta-positions as well as we can, in order
to have the fewest breaks in the series. F

Morphology being the safest, indeed the only safe, clue to natural affinities, and the key
to all rational classification, the student cannot too carefully consider what is meant by this
term, or too sedulously guard against misinterpreting morphological characters, and so turn-
ing the key the wrong way. The chief difficulty he will encounter comes from physiological
adaptations of structure ; and this is something that must be thoroughly understood. The
expression means that birds, or any animals, widely different in the sum of their morphological
characters, may have certain parts of their organization modified in the same way, thus bring-
ing about a seemingly close resemblance between organisms really little related to each other.
For example: a phalarope, a coot, and a grebe, all have lobate feet; that is, their feet are
fitted for swimming purposes in the same way, namely, by development of flaps or lobes on
the toes. A striking but very superficial and therefore unimportant resemblance in a certain
particular exists between these birds, on the strength of which they used to be classed
together ina group called Pinnatipedes, or ‘‘ fin-footed” birds. But, on sufficient examination,
these three birds are found to be very unlike in other respects; the sum of their unlikenesses
requires us to separate them quite widely in any natural system. The group Pinnatipedes is
therefore unnatural, and the appearance of affinity is proven to be deceptive. Such resem-
blance in the condition of the feet is simply functional, or physiological, and is not correspon-
dent with structural or morphological relationships. The relation, in short, between these
three birds is analogical ; it is an inexact superficial resemblance between things profoundly
unlike, and therefore having little homological or exact relationship. Analogy is the apparent
resemblance between things really unlike, — as the wing of a bird and the wing of a butterfly,
as the lungs of a bird and the gills of afish. Homology is the real resemblance, or true relation
between things, however different they may appear to be, —as the wing of a bird and the fore-
leg of a horse, the lungs of a bird and the swim-bladder of a fish. The former commonly
rests upon mere functional, 7. e. physiological, modifications; the latter is grounded upon
structural, i. e. morphological, identity or unity. Analogy is the correlative of physiology,
homology of morphology; but the two may be coincident, as when structures identical in
morphology are used for the same purposes and are therefore physiologically identical. Physi-
ological, diversity of structure is incessant, and continually interferes with morphological
identity of structure, to obscure or obliterate the indications of affinity the latter would
otherwise express clearly. It is obvious that birds might be classified physiologically,
according to their adaptive modifications or analogical resemblances, just as readily as upon
any other basis: for example, into those that perch, those that walk, those that swim, etc. ;
and, in fact, most early classifications largely rested upon such considerations. It is also evi-

68 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

dent, that when functional modifications happen to be coincident with structural affinities, —
as when the turning of the lower larynx into a music-box coincides with a certain type of
structure, — such modifications are of the greatest service in classification, as corroborative
evidence. But since all sound taxonomy rests on morphology, on real structural affinity, we
must be on our guard against those physiological ‘‘ appearances” which are proverbially
“‘deceptive.” I trust I make the principle clear to the student. Its practical application
is another matter, only to be learned in the school of experience. This matter of

Homology or Analogy may be thus summed: Birds are homologically related, or
naturally allied or affined; according to the sum of like structural characters employed for
similar purposes; they are analogically related, only aceurding to the sum of unlike characters
employed for similar purposes. A loon and a cormorant, for instance, are closely affined,
because they are both fitted in the same way for the pursuit of their prey by flying under water.
A dipper (family Cinclide) and a loon (family Colymbide) are analogous, in so far as both are
fitted to pursue their prey by flying under water; but they stand near opposite extremes of the
ornithological system ; they have little affinity beyond their common birdhood ; very different
structure being modified to attain the same end. So again, conversely, the crow has vocal
organs almost identical in structure with those of the nightingale, and the organization of the
two birds is in other respects very similar ; their affinity or homology is therefore close, though
the crow is a hoarse croaker, the nightingale an impassioned musician.

The Reason why Morphological Classification is so important as to justify or even
require its adoption has been very clearly stated by Huxley, whose words I ‘cannot do better
than quote in this connection. Speaking of animals, not as physiological apparatuses merely ;
not as related to other forms of life and to climatal conditions; not as successive tenants of
the earth ; but as fabrics, each of which is built upon a certain plan, he continues: “It is
possible and conceivable that every animal should have been constructed upon a plan of its
own, having no resemblance whatever to the plan of any other animal. For any reason we
can discover to the contrary, that combination of natural forces which we term Life might
have resulted from, or been manifested by, a series of infinitely diverse structures; nor would
anything in the nature of the case lead us to suspect a community of organization between
animals so different in habit and in appearance as a porpoise and a gazelle, an eagle and a
crocodile, or a butterfly and a lobster. Had animals been thus independently organized, each
working out its life by a mechanism peculiar to itself, such a classification as that now under
contemplation would be obviously impossible; a morphological or structural classification
plainly implying morphological or structural resemblances in the things classified.

‘“‘ As a matter of fact, however, no such mutual independence of animal forms exists in
nature. On the contrary, the members of the animal kingdom, from the highest to the lowest,
are marvellously connected. Every animal has something in common with all its fellows ;
much, with many of them;-more, with a few; and usually, so much with several, that it
differs but little from them.

“Now, a morphological classification is a statement of these gradations of likeness which
are observable in animal structures, and its objects and uses are manifold. In the first place,
it strives to throw our knowledge of the facts which underlie, and are the cause of, the similar-
ities discerned, into the fewest possible general propositions, subordinated to one another,
according to their greater or less degree of generality ; and in this way it answers the purpose
of a memoria technica, without which the mind would be incompetent to grasp and retain the
multifarious details of anatomical science.

“But there is a second and even more important aspect of morphological classification.
Every group in that classification is such in virtue of certain structural characters, which are

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 69

not only common to the members of the group, but distinguish it from all others; and the
statement of these constitutes the definition of the group.

“Thus, among animals with vertebra, the class Mammalia is definable as those which
have two occipital condyles, with a well ossified basi-occipital ; which have each ramus of the
mandible composed of a single piece of bone and articulated with the squamosal element of the
skull; and which possess mamme and non-nucleated red blood-corpuscles.

“But this statement of the characters of the class Mammalia is something more than an
arbitrary definition. It does not merely mean that naturalists agree to call such and such
animals Mammaha: but it expresses, firstly, a generalization based upon, and constantly
verified by, very wide experience; and, secondly, a belief arising out of that generalization.
The generalization is that, in nature, the structures mentioned are always found associated
together ; the belief is that they always have been, and always will be, found so associated.
In other words, the definition of the class Mammalia is a statement of a law of correlation, or
coexistence, of animal structures, from which the most important conclusions are deducible.”
(Introd. to Classif. of Animals, 8vo, London, 1869, pp. 2, 3.)

But broad as such laws of correlation of structure are, and important as are the conclusions
deducible, we must constantly be on our guard against presuming upon the infallibility either
of the data or of the deduction, as the author just quoted goes on to show. Such caution is
specially required where there is no obvious reason for the particular combination that may be
found to exist. In the case of the ostrich-like birds (Ratite), for example, we can understand
how a flat, unkeeled breast-boue, a particular arrangement of the shoulder-bones, and a rudi-
mentary state of the wing-bones, are found in combination, because all these modifications of
structure are evidently related to loss of the power of flight; and, in point of fact, no exception
is known to the generalization, that such conditions of the sternal, coraco-scapular, and
humeral bones always coexist. But in all known struthious (ratite) birds, this state of the
bones in mention coexists also with a peculiar modification of the bones of the palate, and no
necessary connection between these two sets of diverse characters is conceivable. Now, if we
only knew struthious birds, and found the combination in mention to hold with them all, we
should doubtless declare our belief, that any bird having such palatal characters would also be
found to possess such imperfect wing-apparatus. But this would be going too far: in fact,
we know that the tinamous (Dromeognathe) have such a palate, yet have a keeled sternum
and functionally developed wings. The real use and proper application of such generalizations -
is to teach the lesson, that creatures exhibiting such modified combinations of characters are
genetically related to each other just in the degree to which they possess characters in common,
and are genetically remote from each other in the degree to which they do not possess characters
in common: 4. é., that their similarities and distinctions of structure are sure indexes of their nat-
ural affinities. To take another case, derived from consideration of a large number of existing
birds: it is an observed fact, that a particular arrangement of the plates upon the back of the
tarsus, a peculiar modification of the lower larynx or voice organ, and an undeveloped or abortive
condition of the first large feather on the hand, are found associated in a vast series of birds,
constituting the group of Passeres called Oscines. What possible connection there can be
between these three separate and apparently independent modifications we cannot even sur-
mise; but that they have some natural and necessary connection we cannot doubt, and that
the connection is causal, not fortuitous, is a logical inference from the observed fact, that
birds which present this particular combination are also closely related in other structural
characters; that is, that they have all been subjected to operative influences which have
conspired to produce the modifications observed. Given, then, a bird with a known oscine
larynx, but unknown as to its feet and wings, it would be a reasonable inference that
these members, when discovered, would present the characters observed to occur in like
eases. But the first lark (Alaudide) examined would show the inference to be fallible;

70 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

for the tarsus of such a bird is differently disposed, though a lark has an elaborate singing
apparatus, and only nine instead of ten developed primaries. Once more: the development
of a keeled sternum, a peculiar saddle-shape of certain vertebra, and lack of true teeth, are
characters coexisting in all the higher birds; and, as far as these birds are concerned, we
have no hint that such a combination is ever broken. In fact, however, the singular Creta-
ceous Ichthyornis shows us a pattern of bird in which a well-keeled sternum and perfectly
formed wing coexist with teeth in reptile-like jaws and with fish-like biconcave vertebra.
What we learn from this case indeed breaks down one of the most precise definitions we
might have made (and indeed did make) respecting birds at large; but in its failure we are
taught how great is the modification of geologically recent birds from their primitive gener-
alized ancestry; we learn something likewise of the steps of such modification, and of the
length of time required for the process. It is the history of attempts to frame definitions
of groups in zodlogy, that they are all liable to be negatived by new discoveries, and
therefore to be broken down and require remodelling as our knowledge increases. It is to
be readily perceived that the ability to draw distinctions and make definitions of groups is as”
much the gauge of owr ignorance as the test of our knowledge ; for all groups, like all species,
come to be such by modification so gradual, so slight in each successive increment of difference,
that, if all the steps of the process were before our eyes, we should be able to limit no groups
whatever in a positive, unqualified manner. All would merge insensibly into one another, be
inseparably linked in as many series as there have been actual lines of evolutionary progress,
and finally converge to the one or few starting points of organized beings.

Practically, however, the case is quite the reverse, — happily for the comfort. of the work-
ing naturalist, however sadly the philosopher may deplore the ignorance implied. Degrees of
likeness and unlikeness do exist, which when rightly interpreted enable us to mark off groups
of all grades with much facility and precision, and thus erect a morphological classification
which recognizes and defines such degrees, and explains them upon the principles of Evolution.
The way in which the principles of such classification are to be practically applied gives occa-
sion for some further remarks upon

Zodlogical Characters. — A “character,” in zodlogical language, is any point of struc-

ture which may be perceived and described for the purpose of comparing or contrasting animals

‘with one another. Thus, the conditions of the sternum, palate, tarsus, larynx, as noted in
preceding paragraphs, are each of them ‘‘ characters” which may be used in describing indi-

vidual birds, or in framing definitions of groups of birds. Morphological characters, with

_which the classification we have adopted alone concerns itself, may be derived from the
structure of a bird considered in any of its relations, or as affected by any of the conditions to
which it is subjected. Thus embryological characters are those afforded by the bird during

the progress of its development in the egg, from the almost structureless germ to the fully

formed chick. Such characters of the embryo in its successive stages are of the utmost signifi-

cance ; for it is a fact, that the germ of each of the higher organisms goes through a series of

developmental changes which, at each succeeding step in the unfolding of its appropriate plan

of structure, causes it to resemble the adult state of animals lower than itself in the scale of

organization. In fine, the history of the evolution of every individual bird epitomizes the

history of those changes which birds collectively have undergone in becoming what they are by

modified descent from lower organisms. Such transitory stages of any embryo, therefore, give

us glimpses of those. evolutionary processes which have affected the group to which it belongs.

Any bird, for example, when a germ, is at first on-the plane of organization of the very lowest

known creatures, — one of the Protozoa. As its germ develops, and its structure becomes
more complicated by the formation of parts and organs successively differentiated and special-

ized, it rises higher and higher in the scale of being. At a certain stage very early reached

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 71

(for the steps by which it becomes like any invertebrate are very speedily passed over), it
resembles a fish in possessing gill-like slits, several aortic arches, no true kidneys, no amnion,
etc. Further advanced, losing its gills, gaining kidneys and amnion, etc., it rises to the
dignity of a reptile, and at this stage it is more like a reptile than like a bird; having, for
example, a number of separate bones of the wrist and ankle, no feathers, etc. The assump-
tion of its own appropriate characters, 7. e. those by which it passes from a reptilian creature
to become a bird, is always the last stage reached. We can thus actually see and note,
inside any egg-shell, exactly those progressive steps of development of the individual bird
which we believe to have been taken on a grand scale in nature for the evolution of the class
Aves from lower forms of life; and the lesson learned is fraught with significance. It is nothing
less than the demonstration in ontogeny (genesis of the individual) of that phylogeny by which
groups of creatures come to be. The interior of any adult bird, again, furnishes us with all
kinds of ordinary anatomical characters, derived from the way we perceive the different organs
and systems of organs to be fashioned in.themselves, and arranged with reference to one
another. The finishing of the outward parts of a bird gives us the ordinary external characters,
in the way in which the skin and its appendages are modified to form the covering of the bill
and feet, and to fashion all kinds of feathers. Birds being of opposite sexes, and such differ-
ence being not only indicated in the essential sexual organs, but usually also in modifications
in size or shape of the body or quality of the plumage and other outgrowths, a set of sexual
characters are at our service. Birds are also sensibly modified in their outward details of
feathering by times of the year when the plumage is changed, and this renders appreciation
of seasonal characters possible. All such circumstances, and others that could be mentioned,
such as effects of climate, of domestication, etc., in so far as they in any way affect the struc-
ture of birds, conspire to produce zodlogical ‘‘ characters,” as these are above defined. Such
characters, according as they result from more or less profound impressions made upon the
organism, are of more or less “‘ value” in taxonomy ; being of all grades, from the trivial ones
that serve to distinguish the nearest related species or varieties, to the fundamental ones that
serve to mark off primary divisions. Thus the ‘‘ character” of possessing a backbone is com-
mon to.all animals of an immense series, called Vertebrata. The “character” of feathers is
common to all the class Aves ; of toothless jaws to all modern birds; of a keeled sternum to
all the sub-class Carinate ; of feet fitted for perching to all Passeres ; of a musical apparatus
to all Oscines ; of nine primaries to all Fringillide ; of crossed mandibles to all of the genus
Loxia ; of white bands on the wings to all of the species Loxia leucoptera. There is thus
seen a sliding scale of valuation of characters, from those involving the most profound or
primitive modifications of structure to those resting upon the most superficial or «ultimate
impressions.. It will also be obvious, that every ulterior modification presupposes inclusion
of all the prior ones ; for a white-winged crossbill, to be itself, must be a loxian, fringilline,
oscine, passerine, carinate, modern, avian, vertebrated animal. The more characters, of all
grades, that any birds share in common, the more closely are they related, and conversely.
Obviously, the possession of more or fewer characters in common results in

Degrees of Likeness. — Were all birds alike, or did they all differ by the same characters
to the same degree, no classification would be possible. It is a matter of fact, that they do
exhibit all degrees of likeness possible within the limits of their Avian nature ; it is a matter
of belief, that these degrees are the necessary result of Evolution,— of descent with modification
from a comimon ancestry; and that being dependent upon that process, they are capable of
explaining it if rightly interpreted. For example: Two white-winged crossbills, hatched in
the same nest, scarcely differ perceptibly (except in sexual characters) from each other and
from the pair that laid the eggs. We call them “specifically” identical ; and the sum of the
differences by which they are distinguished from any other kinds of crossbills is their “specific

72 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

character.” All the individual crossbills which exhibit this particular sum constitute a
“species.” In this case, the genetic relationship of offspring and parent is unquestionable, —
it is an observed fact. Now turn to the extremely opposite case. The difference between
our crossbills and the Cretaceous Ichthyornis is enormous: I suppose it is nearly the greatest
known to subsist between any two birds whatsoever. But the Ichthyornis and the Loxia are
also separated by a correspondingly immense interval of téme, and presumably by correspond-
ingly enormous differences in conditions of environment, —in their physical surroundings.
It is a logical inference that these two things — difference in physical structure, and difference
in physical environment —are in some way correlated and coérdinated. If we presume, upon
the theory of evolution, that despite the great difference, a crossbill is genetically related
to some such bird as an Ichthyornis, as truly as it is to its actual parents, only much more
remotely, and that the difference is due to modifications impressed upon its stock in the course
of time, conformably with changing conditions of environment, we shall have a better expla-
nation of the difference than any other as yet offered, —an explanation, moreover, which is
corroborated by all the related facts we know, and with which no known facts are irrecon-
cilable. But to correctly gauge and formulate the degrees of likeness or unlikeness between
any two birds is to correctly ‘classify ” them ; and if these degrees rest, as we believe they do,
upon nearness or remoteness of genetic relationship, classification upon such basis becomes the
truest attainable formulation of ‘‘ natural affinities.” It is the province of morphological
classification to search out those natural affinities which the structure of birds indicates, and
express them by dividing birds into groups, and subdividing these into other groups, of greater
or lesser ‘‘ value,” or grade, according to the more or fewer characters shared in common, —
that is, according to-degrees of likeness; that is, again, according to genealogical relationship
or consanguinity.

Zoslogical Groups.— To carry any scheme of classification into practical effect, natu-
ralists have found it necessary to invent and apply a system ‘of grouping objects whereby the
like may come together and be separated from the unlike. They have also found it expedient
to give names to all these groups, of whatever grade, such as class, order, family, genus,
species, etc.; and to stamp each such group with the value of its grade, or its relative rank
in the scale, so that it may become currency among naturalists. The student must observe,
in the first place, that the value of each such coinage is wholly arbitrary, until sanctioned
and fixed by common consent. The term “class,” for example, simply indicates that natu-
ralists agree to use that word to designate a conventional group of a particular grade or
value. Indispensable as is some such acceptable medium of exchange of ideas among
naturalists, their groups are not fixed, have no natural value, and in fact have no actual
existence in the treasury of Nature. It cannot be too strongly impressed upon the student
that Nature makes no bounds, — Natura non facit saltus ; there are no such abrupt transi-
tions in the unfolding of Nature’s plan, no such breaks in the chain of being, as he would be
led to suppose by our method of defining and naming groups. He must consider the words
“ class,” “ order,” ete:, as wholly arbitrary terms, invented and designed to express our ideas
of the relations which subsist between any animals or sets of animals. Thus, for example, by
the term the “‘ Class of Birds” we signify simply the kind and degree of likeness which all
birds share, such being also the kind and degree of their umlikeness from any other animals ;
the word ‘‘class” being simply the name or handle of the generalization we make respect-
ing their relations with one another and with other animals; it represents an abstract idea,
is the expression of a relation. True, all birds embody the idea; but “class” is never-
theless an abstraction. Now, as intimated earlier in this essay, the definition of the idea we
attach to the term — the limitation of the class Aves — depends entirely upon how much we
know of the relation intended to be expressed. It so happens, that no animals are known

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 73

which cannot be decided to belong, or not to belong, to the conventional class of birds, because
we have found it convenient and expedient to consider the presence of feathers a fair criterion,
or necessary qualification. But what, when an animal is discovered the covering of whose body is
half-way between the scales of a lizard and the plumes of a bird, and whose structure is other-
wise as equivocal? This may happen any day. A feather is certainly a modified scale; a
feather has doubtless been developed out of a scale. In the case supposed, we should have to
modify our definition of the ‘Class of Birds” ; that is, change our ideas upon the subject, and
alter the boundary-line we established between the classes of birds and reptiles; whereas,
were a ‘‘ class” something naturally definite, independent, and fixed, all that we could lea
about it would only tend to establish it more surely. The same obscurity and uncertainty of
definition attaches to groups of every grade— from the Animal ‘‘ Kingdom” itself, which
cannot be cut clear of the Vegetable ‘‘ Kingdom” — down through classes, orders, families,
genera, species, and varieties —yes, to the imdidual itself which, however unmistakable
among higher organisms, cannot always be predicated of the lowermost forms of Life.
Such divisions, of whatever grade, as we are able to establish for the purposes of classification,
depend entirely upon the breaks and defects in our knowledge. There is no such thing as
drawing “‘ hard and fast” lines anywhere, for none such exist in Nature.

Taxonomic Equivalence of Groups.— But, however arbitrary they may be, or however
obscure or fluctuating may be their boundaries, groups we must have in zodlogy, and groups
of different grades, to express different degrees of likeness of the objects examined, and so
to ‘‘classify” them. It is a great convenience, moreover, to have a recognized sliding-scale
of valuation of groups from the highest to the lowest, and an accepted valuation. Just as in a
thermometrie scale, there are ‘‘ degrees” designated as those of the boiling-point of water, the
heat of the blood, the freezing of water, of mercury, etc.; so there are certain degrees of like-
ness conventionally designated as those of class, order, family, genus, and species ; always ac-
cepted in the order here given, from higher to lower groups. (There are various others, and
especially a number of intermediate groups, generally distinguished by the prefix swb-, as sub-
family ; but those here given are generally adopted by English-speaking naturalists, and
suffice to illustrate the point I wish to make.) It may sound like a truism to say, that groups
of the same grade bearing the same name, whatever that may be, must be of the same value,
—must be based upon and distinguished by characters of equal or equivalent importance.
Equivalence of groups is necessary to the stability and barmony of any classificatory system.
It will not do to frame an order upon one set of characters here, and there a family upon a
similar set of characters; but order must differ from order, and family from family, by an equal
or corresponding amount of difference. Let a group called a family differ as much from the
other families in its own order as it does from some other order, and by this very circumstance
it is not a family but an order itself. It seems a very simple proposition, but it is too often
ignored, and always with practical ill result. Two points should be remembered here: First,
that absolute size or numerical bulk of a group has nothing to do with its taxonomic value:
one order may contain a thousand species, and another be represented by a single species,
without having its ordinal valuation affected thereby. Secondly, any given character may
assume different importance, or be of different value, in its application to different groups.
Thus, the number of primaries, whether nine or ten, is a family character almost throughout
Oscines ; but in one oscine family (Vireonida) it has scarcely generic value. It is difficult,
however, to determine such a point as this without long experience. Nor is it possible, in
fact, to make our groups correspond in value with entire exactitude. The most we can hope
for is a reasonable approximation. As in the thermometric simile above given, ‘‘ blood heat”
and other points fluctuate, so does order not always correspond with order, nor family with
family, in actual significance. What degree of difference shall be “ ordinal”? What shall

74 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

be a difference of “family”? What shall be “generic” and what “specific” differences ?
Such questions are more easily asked than answered. They demand critical consideration.

Valuation of Characters.—In a general way, of course, the greater the difference
between any two objects, the more ‘‘important” or “fundamental” are the “ characters ”
by which they are distinguished. But what makes a character ‘“‘ important ” or the reverse ?
Obviously, what it signifies represents its importance. We are classifying morphologically,
and upon the theory of Evolution; and in such a system a character is important or the
reverse, simply as an exponent of the principles, or an illustration of the facts, of evolutionary
processes of Nature, according to the unfolding of whose plans of animal fabries the whole
structure of living beings has been built up. Why is the possession of a back-bone such a
“fundamental” character that it is used to establish one of the primary branches of the animal
kingdom? It is not because so many millions of creatures possess it, but because it was
introduced so early in thé evolutionary process, and because its introduction led to the most
profound modification of the whole structure of the animals which became possessed of a
vertebral column. Why is the possession by a bird of biconcave vertebre so significant?
Not because all modern birds have saddle-shaped vertebrae, but because to have biconcave ver-
tebree is to be quoad hoc fish-like. Why is presence or absence of teeth so important? Not that
teeth served those old birds better than a horny beak serves modern ones, but because teeth
are a reptilian character. Obviously, to be fish-like or reptile-like is to be by so much unbird-
like; the degree of difference thus indicated is enormous ; and a character that indicates such
degree of difference is proportionally ‘ important” or “‘ fundamental,” — just what we were
after. By knowledge of facts like these, and by the same process of reasoning, a naturalist of
tact, sagacity, and experience is able to put a pretty fair valuation upon any given character;
he acquires the faculty of perceiving its significance, and according to what it signifies does it
possess for him its taxonomic importance. As a matter of fact, it seems that characters of all
sorts are to be estimated chronologically. For, if animals have come to be what they are by
any process that took time to be accomplished, the characters earliest established are likely to
be the most fundamental ones, upon the introduction of which the most important train of
consequences ensue. Feathers, for example, as the Arch@opteryx teaches us, were in full
bloom in the Jurassic period, and they are still the most characteristic possession of birds:
all birds have them; they are a class character. If they had been taken on quite recently, we
may-infer that many creatures otherwise entirely avian might not possess them, and they
would have in classification less significance than that now rightly attributed to them. On
the other hand, we cannot suppose that the finishing touches, by which, in the presence of
white bands on the wings of Lomia leucoptera, and their absence in Loxia curvirostra, these two
“ species ” are distinguished, were not very lately given to these birds. It is a very late step
in the process, and correspondingly insignificant; it is of that value or importance which we
call ‘‘ specific.” The same method of reasoning is available for determining the value of any
character whatever, and so of estimating the grade of the group which we establish upon such
character.’ As a rule, therefore, the length of time a character has been in existence, and its
taxonomic value, are correlated, and each is the exponent of the other.

“Types of Structure.” — In no department of natural history has the late revolution in
biological thought been more effective than in remodelling, presumably for the better, the
ideas underlying classification. In earlier days, when ‘‘ species” were supposed to be inde-
pendent creations, it was natural and almost inevitable to regard them as fixed facts in nature.
A species was as actual and tangible as an individual, and the notion was, that, given any two
specimens, it should be perfectly possible to decide whether they were of the same or different
‘species, according to whether or not they answered the ‘specific characters” laid down for

i

PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 75

them. The same fancy vitiated all ideas upon the subject of genera, families, and higher
groups. A “genus” was to be discovered in nature, just like a species; to be named and
defined. Then species that answered the definition were ‘‘typical”; those that did not do so
ve were ‘‘sub-typical” ; those that did worse, were ‘‘ aberrant.” A good deal was said of

“types of structure,” much as if living creatures were originally run into moulds, like casting
type-metal, to receive some indelible stamp; while—to carry out my simile—it was supposed
that by looking at some particular aspect of such an animal, as at the face of a printer’s type,
it could be determined in what box in the case the creature should be put; the boxes them-
selves being stipposed to be arranged by Nature in some particular way to make them fit
perfectly alongside each other by threes or fives, or in stars and circles, or what not. How
much ingenuity was wasted in striving to put together such a Chinese puzzle as these fancies
made of Nature’s processes and results, I need not say ; suffice it, that such views have become
extinct, by the method of natural selection, and others, apparently better fitted to survive, are
now in the struggle for existence. Rightly appreciated, however, the expression which heads
this paragraph is a proper one. There are numberless ‘types of structure.” It is perfectly
proper to speak of the “‘ vertebrate type,” meaning thereby the whole plan of organization of
any vertebrate, if we clearly understand that such a type is not an independent or original
model conformably with which all back-boned animals were separately created, but that it is
oue modification of some more general plan of organization, the unfolding of which may or
did result in other besides vertebrated animals; and that the successive modifications of the
vertebrate plan resulted in other forms, equally to be regarded as ‘‘types,” as the reptilian,
the avian, the mammalian. Upon this understanding, a group of any grade in the animal
kingdom is a ‘‘ type of structure,” of more general or more special significance, presumably
according to the longer or shorter time it has been in existence. An individual specimen is
“typical” of a species, a species is “ typical” of a genus, etc., if it has not had time enough to
be modified away from the characters which such species or genus expresses. Any set of
individuals, that is, any progeny, which become modified to a degree from their progenitors,
introduce a new type; and continually increasing modification makes such a type specific,
generic, and so on, in succession of time. There must have been a time, for example, when
the Avian and Reptilian “‘ types” began to diverge from each other, or, rather, to branch apart
from their common ancestry. In the initial step of their divergence, when their respective
types were beginning to be formed, the difference must have been infinitesimal. A little
further along, the increment of difference became, let us say, equivalent to that which serves to
distinguish two species. Wider and wider divergence increased the difference till genera,
families, orders, and finally the classes of Reptilia and Aves, became established. In one
sense, therefore, — and it is the usual sense of the term, — the “type” of a bird is that one
which is furthest removed from the reptilian type, — which is most highly specialized by differ-
entiation to the last degree from the characters of its primitive ancestors. One of the Oscines,
as a thrush or sparrow, would answer to such a type, having lost the low, primitive, gener-
alized structure of its early progenitors, and acquired very special characters of its own, repre-
senting the extreme modification which the stock whence it sprung has ‘undergone. In a
broader sense, however, the type of a bird is simply the stock from which it originated ; and
in such sense the highest birds are the least typical, being the furthest removed and the most
modified derivations of such stock, the characters: of which are consequently remodelled and
obscured to the last degree. Two opposite ideas have evidently been confused in the use of
the word “Type.” They may be distinguished by inventing the word teleotype (Gr. réXeos,
teleos, final, i.e., accomplished or determined; formed like teleology, etc.) in the usual sense of
the word type, and using the word we already possess, prototype (Gr. mp&ros, protos, first,
leading, determining), in the broader sense of the earlier plan whence any teleotype has been
derived by modification. This, Ichthyornis or Archeopteryx is prototypic of modern birds,

76 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

any of which are teleotypic of their ancestors. It may be further observed that any form
which is teleotypic in its own group, is prototypic of those derived from it. Thus, the
Archeopteryx, so prototypic of modern birds, was a very highly specialized teleotype of its
own ancestry. A little reflection will also make it clear that the same principle of antitypes
(opposed types) is applicable to any of our groups in zodlogy. Any group is teleotypic of the
next greater group of which it is a member; prototypic of the next lesser one. Any species is
teleotypic of its genus; any genus, of its family; any family, of its order; and conversely ;
that is to say, any species represents one of the ulterior modifications of the plan of its genus.
The Class of Birds, for example, is one of the several teleotypes of Vertebrata, 7. e., of the
vertebrate plan of structure; representing, as it does, one of several ways in which the
vertebrate prototype is accomplished. Conversely, the Class of Birds is prototypical of its
several orders, representing the plan which these orders severally unfold in different ways.
And so on, throughout any series of animals, backwards and forwards in the process of their
evolution; any given form being teleotypic of its predecessors, prototypic of its successors.
All existing forms are necessarily teleotypic, — only prototypic for the future. Prototype, in the
sense here conveyed, indicates what is often expressed by the word archetype. But the latter,
as I understand its use by Owen and others, signifies an ideal plan never actually realized; the
‘‘ archetype of the vertebrate skeleton,” for example, being something no vertebrate ever pos-
sessed, but a theoretical model — a geueralization from all known skeletons. The correspond-
ence of my use of ‘‘ prototypic” with a common employ of ‘‘archetypic,” and of ‘“ teleotypic” as
including both “‘ attypie” and ‘‘ etypic,” is noted below.

The actual and visible genetic relationships of living forms being practically restricted to
individuals of the same species, — parents and offspring ‘‘ specifically ” identical, —it would seem
at first sight that species must be the modified descendants of their respective genera, in order
to be teleotypic of any such next higher group. But nothing descends from a genus, or any
other group; everything descends from individuals; a ‘‘ geuus,” like any other group, is an
abstract statement of a relation, not a begetter of anything. To illustrate: the “ genus
Turdus” is represented, let us say, by a score of species: if these species be rightly allocated
in the genus, they are all the modified descendants of a form which was, before they severally
branched off, a specific form; and the ‘‘ genus Turdus” in the abstract is simply that form ;
and that form is prototypic of its derivatives. In the concrete, as represented by its teleotypes,
the genus Turdus suis the modifications which these have collectively undergone, without
specifying the particular modifications of any of them; it expresses the way in which they are
all like one another, and in which they are all unlike the representatives of any other genus.
Thus what is above advanced is seen to hold, though genera and all other groups are actual
descendants of individuals specifically identical.

Generalized and Specialized Forms.— Taking any one group of animals—say the genus
Turdus, of numerous species — and considering it apart from any other group, we perceive that
it represents a certain assemblage of characters peculiar to itself, aside from those more funda-
mental ones it includes of its family, order, etc. Its particular characters we call ‘“ generic.”
Among the numerous teleotypic forms it includes, there is a wide range of specific variation,

1“ Archetypical characters are those which a group derives from its progenitor, and with which it com-
mences, but which in much modified descendants are lost; such, for example, is the dental formula of the Educa-
bilia (M 4PM ¢C 31% x 2),—a formula, as shown by Owen, very prevalent among early members of the group,
but generally departed from more or less in those of the existing faunas. Attypical characters are those to the
acquisition of which, as a matter of fact, we find that forms, in their journey to a specialized condition, tend...
typical characters are exceptional ones, and which are exhibited by an eccentric offshoot from the common stock
of a group.” —(Gill, Pr, Am. Assoc. Ady. Sci., xx, 1873, p. 293.) To illustrate in birds: A generalized lizard-like
type of sternum is archetypic of any bird’s sternum. The sternum of the lizard-like animals whence birds
actually descended is prototypic ; the keeled sternum of a carinate bird is attypical in most birds, etypical in the
peculiar state in which it is found in Stringops; but equally teleotypic in both instances.

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. TT

within the limits of generic relationship. Some of its species are modified further away than
some others are from the generic standard or type to which all conform more or less perfectly.
The former, having more peculiarities of their own, are said to be the most specialized ; tho
latter, having fewer peculiarities, ure the least specialized. Those that are the least specialized
are obviously the most generalized ; and this means, that we believe them to be nearest to the
stock whence all have together descended with modification. The application of this illustra-
tion to great groups shows us the principle upon which any form is said to be generalized or
specialized. The Ichthyornis, with its fish-like vertebree, reptile-like teeth, bird-like sternum
and shoulder-girdle, is a very generalized form. A thrush is the opposite extreme of a highly
specialized form. The two are also separated by an enormous interval of time: one being
very old, the other quite new; a chronological sequence is here perceived. Since the evolu-
tionary processes concerned in the modification on the whole represent progress from simplicity
to complexity of organization, and therefore ascent in the scale of organization, a generalized
type, an ancient type, and a simple type are on the whole synonymous, and to be contrasted
with forms specialized, recent, and complex. They therefore respectively correspond to

“Low” and “High” in the Scale of Organization.— All existing birds are very
closely related, notwithstanding the great numerical preponderance of the class in the present
geological epoch. This outbreak, as it were, of birds upon the modern scene, is like the
nearly simultaneous bursting into bloom of a mass of flowers at the end of one branch of the
Sauropsidan stem. All modern birds, in fact, are strongly specialized forms, so much so that it
is difficult to predicate ‘‘high” or “low” within such a narrow scale. The great group
Passeres, for example, comprehending a majority of all known birds, is scarcely more different
from other birds than are the families of reptiles from each other, and among Passeres we have
little to go upon in deciding “high” or “low” beyond the musical ability of Oscines. It is
hard to see much difference in actual complexity of organization between those birds regarded
as the lowest, as an ostrich or a penguin, and those conceded to be highest, as a swallow or
sparrow. Nevertheless, in a larger perspective, as between a fish, a reptile, and a bird, the
student will readily perceive the bearing of the ideas attached to the terms “low” and “high”
in the scale of organization.“ Creatures rise in the scale by a number of correlated modifica-
tions and ‘1 the course of time (for it takes time to evolve a class of birds from sauropsidan
stock as really as it does to develop the germ of an egg into the body of a chick). Progressive
differentiation and specialization of structure and function in due course elaborates diversity
from sameness, complexity from simplicity, the ‘‘ high” special from the ‘‘ low” general plan
of organization ; the culmination in man of the vertebrate type, first faintly foreshadowed in
the embryonic Ascidian. No one should venture to foretell the result of infinitesimal increments
in elevation of structure and function, nor presume to limit the infinite possibilities of evolu-
tionary processes, either in this actual world or in the foretold next one.

As to “evidences of design” in the plan of organized beings, it may be said simply that
every creature is perfectly ‘ designed” or fitted for its appropriate activities, and perfectly
adapted to its conditions of environment. In fact, it must be so fitted and adapted, or it would
perish. Whether it so determines itself, or is so determined, is a teleological question. The
_ truth remains that every creature is perfect in its own way. A worm is as perfectly fitted to be
a worm, as is a bird to be a bird; in fact, were it not, it would either turn into something else,
~ or cease to be. A spade is as perfect an organization of the spade kind, as is a steam-engine of
that kind of an organization ; though the difference in complexity of structure and functional
capacity, like that between the lowly organized ascidian generality and the highly organized
avian speciality, is enormous.

One word more: The class of mammals is highest in the scale of organization. The
class of birds is next highest. But it does not follow, from this relation sustained by Mam-

78 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

malia and Aves collectively, that every mammal must be more highly organized than every
bird. It is difficult to say how a mole or a mouse is a more elaborate or more capable creature
than a canary-bird, physically or mentally. The relative rank of two groups is determined
by balancing the aggregate of their structural characters. In large series, the average of
development, not the extremes either way, is taken into account ; so that the lowest members
of a higher group may be below the highest members of the next lower group. ‘The common
phrase, ‘‘ below par,” or ‘“‘above par,” is most applicable to such cases.

Machinery of Classification. — The inexperienced student may be glad to be given some
explanation of the way in which the taxonomic principles we have discussed are applied, and
carried into practical effect in classifying birds. Our machinery for that purpose is our inherit-
ance from those naturalists who held very different views from those which touch the evolu-
tionary key-note of modern classification. It is clumsy, and does not work weil as a means of
expressing the relations we now believe to be sustained by all organisms toward one another ;
but it is the best we have. Systematic zodlogy, or the practice of classification, has failed to
keep pace with the principles of the science; we are greatly in need of some new and sharper
“tools of thought,” which shall do for zoélogy what the system of symbols and formule have
done for chemistry. We want some symbolic formulation of our knowledge. The invention of
a practicable scheme of classification and nomenclature, which should enable us to formulate
what we mean by Turdus migratorius, as a chemist symbolizes by SO,H, what he understands .
hydrated sulphuric acid to be, would be an inestimable boon to working naturalists. The
mapping out of groups with connecting lines to indicate their genetic relations, in the form of a
‘“‘ yhylum,” is a common practice ; but that, like any other pictorial representation of a ‘“ fami-
ly tree,” is not the graphic symbolization required. The first steps in this direction have been
tentatively taken already by the late Mr. A. H. Garrod and others: we already have a mother
of the required invention in the necessity of the case, and may hope that the father will not be
long in coming.

Under the present system, Birds are called a ‘‘Class” of Vertebrates, and are subdivided
into ‘ orders,” ‘‘ families,” ‘‘ genera,” “species” and ‘‘ varieties,” as already sufficiently indicated.
Groups intermediate to any of these may be recognized ; and if so, are usually distinguished
by the prefix swb-. Many other terms are in occasional use, as “ tribe,” ‘‘race,” “series,”
“cohort,” “super-family ”; but those first mentioned are the best established ones among
English-speaking naturalists. Their sequence is fixed, as above, from higher to lower, in
relative rank.1 With the exceptions to be presently noted, the names of any groups are
arbitrary, at the will of the person who founds and designates them. The framer of a genus,
or the describer of a species, calls it what he pleases, and the name he gives holds, subject to
certain statutory regulations which naturalists generally agree to abide by. The exceptions
are the names of families and sub-families, the former commonly being made to end in -ide, the
latter in -ine: family Turdide ; sub-family Turdine. This is a great convenience, since we
always know the rank intended to be noted by these forms. The names of groups higher than
species are almost invariably single words; as, order Passeres ; but sometimes, especially in
cases of intermediate groups, two words are used, one qualifying the other; as, sub-order
Passeres Acromyodi, or oscine Passeres. A generic or sub-generic name is always a single
word ; these, and the names of all higher groups, invariably begin with a capital letter.

Until quite recently, the scientific name of any individual bird almost invariably consisted
of two terms, generic’ and specific, —the name of the genus, followed by the name of the

1 The expression “higher group,” in the sense of relative rank in the taxonomic scale, will of course be dis-
tinguished from the same expression when applied to the relative rank in the scale of organization of the objects
classified. An order of birds is a “ higher group” than a family of birds, in the former sense, but no higher than
an order of worms, in the latter sense.

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 79

species; as, Turdus migratorius, for the robin. This is the ‘‘ binomial nomenclature” (badly so
called, for ‘‘binominal” would be better); introduced by Linnzeus in the middle of the last cen-
‘tury. It was a great improvement upon the former method of giving either single arbitrary names
to birds, often a mere Latin translation of their vernacular nickname, or long descriptive names
of several words; probably no other single improvement in a method of nomenclature ever did
so much to make the technique of nomenclature systematic. To couple the two terms at all
was a great thing, the convenience of which we who never felt its want can hardly appreciate.
To follow the generic by the specific term was itself of the same advantage that it is to have
the Smiths and Browns of a directory entered under S and B, instead of by Johns and Jameses;
besides according with the genius of the Romance languages, which commonly put the adjec-
tive after the noun. A Frenchman, for example, would say, Bec-croisé aux ailes blanches de
VAmérique septentrionale, or ‘‘ Bill-crossed to the wings white of the America north,” where
we should say, ‘‘ North American white-winged Cross-bill,” and Linnzus would have written
Loxia leucoptera. The binomial scheme worked so well that it came to have the authority
and force of a statute, which few subsequent naturalists have been inclined, and fewer have
ventured, to violate; while it became an ex post facto law to prior naturalists, ruling them out
of court altogether, as far as the legitimacy of any of the names they had bestowed was con-
cerned. It necessarily rested, however, or at any rate proceeded upon, the false idea of a species
asa fixity. Linneeus himself experienced the inadequacy of his system to deal binomially with
those lesser groups than species, commonly called ‘ varieties,” now better designated as “‘ con-
species” or ‘‘ subspecies”; and he often used a third word, separated however from the
binomial name by intervention of the sign ‘‘ var.” or some other symbol. Thus, if he had
supposed an American crossbill to be a variety of a European Lowia leucoptera, he might have
called it Loxia leucoptera, a, americana. Some years ago, in treating of this subject, I urged
the necessity of recognizing by name a great number of forms of our birds intermediate between
nominal species, and connecting the latter by links so perfect, that our handling of ‘ species”
required thorough reconsideration. The dilemma arose, through our very intimate knowl-
edge of the climatic and geographical variation of “species,” either to diseard a great number
that had been described, and so ignore all the ultimate modifications of our bird-forms; or else
to recognize as good species the same large number of forms that we knew shaded into each
so completely that no specific character could be assigned. In the original edition of the
present work (1872), I compromised the matter by reducing to the rank of varieties the nominal
species that were known or believed. to intergrade ; and the original edition of the ‘‘ Check
List” (18738) distinguished such by the sign ‘‘ var.” intervening between the specific and the
subspecific name. I subsequently determined to do away with the superfluous term ‘ var.,” and
in the next edition of the Check List (1882) reverted to a purely trinomial system of naming
the equivocal forms; as, Loxta curvirostra americana. The same system is used in the present
treatise ; it is found to work well, and seems likely to come into general employ, at least in
this country. It is commended to the consideration of our brethren over the sea.

The Student cannot be too well assured, that no such things as species, in the old
sense of the word, exist in nature, any more than have genera or families an actual existence.
Indeed they cannot be, if there is any truth in the principles discussed in our earlier paragraphs.
Species are simply ulterior modifications, which once were, if they be not still, inseparably
linked together; and their nominal recognition is a pure convention, like that of a genus.
More practically hinges upon the way we regard them than turns upon our establishment of
higher groups, simply because upon the way we decide in this case depends the scientific
labelling of specimens. If we are speaking of a robin, we do not ordinarily concern ourselves
with the family or order it belongs to, but we do require a technical name for constant use.
That name is compounded of its genus, species, and variety. No infallible rule can be laid

80 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

down for determining what shall be held to be a species, what a conspecies, subspecies, or
variety. It is a matter of tact and experience, like the appreciation of the value of any other
group in zodlogy. There is, however, a convention upon the subject, which the present
workers in ornithology in this country find available; at any rate, we have no better rule to go
by. We treat as “specific” any form, however little different from the next, that we do not
know or believe to intergrade with that next one; between which and the next one no inter-
mediate equivocal specimens are forthcoming, and none, consequently, are supposed to exist.
This is to imply that the differentiation is accomplished, the links are lost, and the characters
actually become “specific.” We treat as ‘ varietal” of each other any forms, however differ-
ent in their extreme manifestation, which we know to intergrade, having the intermediate
specimens before us, or which we believe with any good reason do intergrade. If the links
still exist, the differentiation is still incomplete, and the characters are not specific, but only
varietal, in the literal sense of these terms. In the latter case, the oldest name is retained as
the specific one, and to it is appended the varietal designation: as, Turdus migratorius pro-
pinquus. The specific and subspecific names are preferably written with a small initial
letter, even when derived from a person or place.

One other term than those just considered sometimes forms part of a bird’s scientific
name: this is the sebgenus. When introduced, it always ‘follows the generic term, in par-,
entheses; thus, Turdus (Hylocichla) mustelinus. This is eumbrous, especially when there
are already three terms, and is little used in this country. I have latterly discarded it altogether.
There is no real difference between a subgenus and a genus, —it is a difference of slight
degree merely; and modern genera have so multiplied that one can easily find a single name
for any generic refinement he may wish to indulge.

It has always been customary to write after the bird’s name the name of the original
describer of the species, — originally and properly, as the authority or voucher for the validity
of the species named. But as genera multiplied, it was often found necessary to change the
generic name, the species being placed in another genus than that to which its original
namer referred it. The name of the person who originated the new combination came to be
generally suffixed, presumably as the authority for the validity of the classification implied.
As this was to ignore the proprietorship of the original describer, it beeame customary to
retain describer’s name in parentheses and add that of the classifier ; thus, Turdus migratorius
Linneeus ; Planesticus migratorius (Linn.) Bonaparte. The practice still prevails; it is no
more objectionable than any other harmless exhibition of human vanity. The student will find
it carefully carried out in my Check List, and entirely discarded in the present work.

It would take me too far to go fully into the rules of nomenclature: some few points may
be noted. A proper sense of justice to the describers of new genera, species, and varieties,
prompts us to preserve inviolate the names they see fit to bestow, with certain salutary
provisions. Hence arises the ‘‘ law of priority.” The first name given since 1758 is to be
retained and used, if it can be identified with reasonable certitude; that is, if we think we
know what the giver meant by it. But it is to be discarded, and the next name in priority of
time substituted, if it is ‘glaringly false or of express absurdity,” —as calling an American bird
“ africanus,” or a black one “albus.” No generic name can be duplicated in zodlogy, and one
once void for any reason cannot be revived and used in any connection. The same specific
name cannot be used twice in the same venus.

The Actual Classification of Birds has undergone radical modification of late years,
though the same machinery is employed for its expression. This is as would be expected,
seeing how profoundly the theory of Evolution has affected. our principles of classification, how
completely the morphological has replaced other systems, and how steadily our knowledge of
the structure of birds, and their chronological relations, has progressed. Nevertheless, the

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF CLASSIFICATION. 81

ornithological system is still in a transition state, and the classification implied by the way
North American birds are arranged in the present work must be regarded as tentative and
provisional. In the original edition of the ‘‘ Key,” the classification was vitiated at the outset
by physiological considerations,’ and in some other respects was open to decided improvement, as
I trust the present edition shows. The general arrangement is, however, much the same. The
table given on a succeeding page (p. 234) will afford the student a coup d’ail of the groups, from
subclass to subfamily, which I have been led to adopt; it represents, as far as it goes, a classifi-
cation of birds at large. The principal groups, higher than families, which are absent from the
North American Fauna, are: the whole of the Ratite, or Struthious birds ; the Dromeognathe,
probably an order, embracing the South American Tinamous; the order or suborder of the
Penguins of the Southern Hemisphere, Sphenisci ; and several small superfamily groups be-
longing in the vicinity of the Gallinaceous and Columbine birds.

As to the primary divisions of Aves, it seems certain that these must be made with special
reference to the extraordinary extinct forms from the Cretaceous, and to the radical difference
between struthious or Ratite and Carinate Birds. The arrangement offered on p. 234 has
perhaps some claims to consideration. The subclass Carinate, which includes all other exist-
ing birds, seems certainly not to be primarily divisible into a few orders, such as were in vogue
but a few years ago; but to be split directly into a large number—perhaps about twenty —
groups of approximately equivalent value, to be conventionally designated as orders, if we
take Carinate as a subclass of the class Aves. The attempt to force birds into a few — five or
six — leading divisions cannot be justified if we are to regard the taxonomic significance of a
number of remarkable forms, the peculiarities of which are now well known. Passeres seems
to be one of the most firmly established of these ordinal groups. ‘‘ Picarie” is one of the most
unsatisfactory of all, and I have no doubt it will be abolished.

With this glance at some taxonomic principles and practices, I pass to an outline of the
structure of birds, some knowledge of which is indispensable to any appreciation of orni-
thological definitions and descriptions. It is necessary to be brief, and I shall confine myself
mainly to the consideration of those points, and the explanation of those technical terms, which
the student needs to understand in order to use the present volume easily and successfully.
Here, however, I will insert a tabular illustration of a sequence of zodlogical groups, from
highest to lowest, under which a bird may fall : —

Kingdom, Animalia: Animals.
Branch, Vertebrata : Back-boned Animals.
Province, Sauropsida: Lizard-like Vertebrates.
Class, Aves: Birds.
Subclass, Carinate: Birds with keeled breast-bone.
Order, Passeres : Perching Birds. :
Suborder, Oscines: Singing Birds.
Family, Zurdide: Thrush-like Birds.
Subfamily, Turdine: True Thrushes.
Genus, Turdus : Typical Thrushes.
Subgenus, Hylocichla: Wood Thrushes.
Species, ustulatus : Olive-backed Thrush.
Subspecies, alicie: Alice’s Thrush.

1In primarily dividing birds into Aves aeree, Aves terrestres, and Aves aquatice, after Lilljeborg, I should
do myself the justice to say, however, that the fact that these divisions did not rest upon morphological characters
of any consequence was expressly stated (pp. 8 and 276 of the orig. ed.).

6

82 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

§ 3.—DEFINITIONS AND DESCRIPTIONS OF THE EXTERIOR PARTS OF BIRDS.

a. OF THE FEATHERS, OR PLUMAGE.

Feathers are possessed only by birds, and all birds possess them. Feathers are modified
scales ; like scales, hair, horns, plates, sheaths, etc., they are outgrowths of the integument, or
skin covering the body, and therefore belong to the class of epidermic (Gr. émi, ept, upon;
déppa, derma, skin), or exoskeletal (Gr. é&, ex, out; oxederdy, skeleton, dried; in the sense of
“outer skeleton”) structures. The horny coverings of the beak and feet are of the same class,
but very differently developed. Besides being the most highly developed or complexly special-
ized, wonderfully beautiful and perfect kind of tegumentary outgrowth ; besides fulfilling in a
singular manner the design of covering and protecting the body ; — feathers have their particular
locomotory office: that of accomplishing the act of flying in a manner peculiar to birds. For
all vertebrates, excepting birds, that progress through the air—the flying fish (Haocetus) with
its enlarged pectoral fins; the flying reptile (Draco or Pterodactyl) with its skinny parachute ;
the flying mammal (bat) with its great webbed fingers — accomplish aérial locomotion by means
of tegumentary expansions. Birds alone fly with tegumentary outgrowths, or appendages. All
a Vird’s feathers, of whatever kind, collectively constitute its ptilosis (Gr. mridov, ptilon, a
feather) or PLUMAGE (Lat. pluma, a plume or feather).

Development of Feathers. — In a manner analogous to that of hair, a feather grows in
a little pit or pouch formed by inversion of the dermal or true-skin layer of the integument,
being formed in a closed follicle or shut sac consisting of an inner and outer coat separated by
a layer of fine granular substance. The outer layer or ‘‘ outer follicle” is composed of several
thin strata of nucleated epithelial cells (cuticle cells) ; the inner is thicker, spongy, and filled
with gelatinous fluid; a little artery and vein furnish the blood circulation, very active during
the formation of feathers. The inner is the true matrix or mould upon which the feather is
formed, evolving from the blood-supply the gelatinous material, and resolving this into cell-
nuclei; the granular layer is the formative material which becomes the feather. The outer
grows a little beyond the cutaneous sac that holds it, and opens at the end; from this orifice
the future feather protrudes, sprouting as a little five-rayed pencil point. The process is thus
graphically illustrated by Huxley: “‘ The integument of birds is always provided with horny
appendages, which result from the conversion into horn of the cells of the outer layer of the
epidermis. But the majority of these appendages, which are termed ‘feathers,’ do not take the
form of mere plates developed upon the surface of the skin, but are evolved within sacs from
the surfaces of conical papille of the dermis. The external surface of the dermal papilla,
whence a feather is to be developed, is provided upon its dorsal [upper] surface with a median
groove, which becomes shallower towards the apex of the papilla. From this median groove
lateral furrows proceed at an open angle, and passing round upon the under surface of the
papilla, become shallower, until, in the middle line, opposite the dorsal median groove, they
become obsolete. Minor grooves run at right angles to the lateral furrows. Hence the surface
of the papilla has the character of a kind of mould, and if it were repeatedly dipped in such a
substance as a solution of gelatine, and withdrawn to cool until its whole surface was covered
with an even coat of that substance, it is clear that the gelatinous coat would be thickest at
the basal or anterior end of the median groove, at the median ends of the lateral furrows,
and at those ends of the minor grooves which open into them; while it would be very thin
at the apices of the median and lateral grooves, and between the ends of the minor grooves.
If, therefore, the hollow cone of gelatine, removed from its mould, were stretched from within;
or if its thinnest parts became weak by drying ; it would tend to give way, along the inferior
median line, opposite the rod-like cast of the dorsal median groove and between the ends of

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS. — FEATHERS. 83

* the casts of the lateral furrows, as well as between each of the minor grooves, and the hollow
cone would expand into a flat feather-like structure with a median shaft, as a ‘vane’ formed
of ‘barbs’ and ‘barbules.’ In point of fact, in the development of a feather such a cast of the
dermal papilla is formed, though not in gelatine, but in the horny epidermic layer developed
upon the mould, and, as this is thrust outward, it opens out in the manner just described.
After a certain period of growth the papilla of the feather ceases to be grooved, and a continu-
ous horny cylinder is formed, which constitutes the ‘ quill” (Introd. Classif. Anim., p. 71.)

& Sp
Fi ¥ - Ht MWe Be
a a 88

&

°
8
0080000
°
3

Fay t

Fig. 18. —Symmetrical Figures from Forming Feathers; @, dove; 6, turkey. — ‘In the summer of
1869, whilst examining the feather capsule of a nestling dove, the microscopic slide was suddenly covered with a
multitude of exquisite forms. . . . The next day my German farmer climbed to the dove’s nest and procured a few
more pin-feathers. Some of these were cut into fine shreds, rubbed in a drop of water, and placed under the
microscope. In a short period the figures of yesterday were again before me. From the cut surfaces of the
portions of the pin-feathers I had placed under the lens, granules appeared to stream forth like blood, covering
the microscopic slide in countless numbers. Mingled with these were numerous larger cells of a globular or oval
form, having a transparent centre. These and the granules gave to the water a slightly glutinous consistency.
As the fluids on the glass dried, lines at different angles shot across the slide, looking much as though an
unseen camel’s hair pencil had been swiftly drawn in opposite directions, sometimes at right angles, but frequently
at angles more acute. Probably at the moment of transition from a fluid to a solid condition, the transparent
nucleated cells assumed the form of a square, a lozenge, a starry hexagon, a cross, or any other beautiful figure
which could be formed of the parts which suddenly appeared in the spherical cells, these parts seeming at first, in
some instances at least, to consist of minute triangles. At the same moment the little granules moved to order,
and there before the astonished gaze were diamonds such as Aladdin might have envied, in form as varied, but far
more symmetrical, than the frost-work on a window pane of a winter’s morning.” (Miss Grace Anna Lewis, in
Am. Nat., v, 1871, p. 675.)

84 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

Structure of Feathers. — A perfect feather, possessing all the parts it can have devel-
oped, consists of a main stem, shaft or scape (Lat. scapus, a stalk; fig. 19, ad), and a supple-
mentary stem or after-shaft (hyporhachis ; Gr. amo, hupo, under, payes, rhachis, a spine or ridge;
fig. 19, b), each bearing two webs or vanes (Lat. verillum, pl. vexilla, a banner ; fig. 19, ¢, ¢, c),
one on either side. The whole scape is divided into two parts: one, nearest the body of the
bird, the tube or barrel or ‘ quill” proper (Lat. calamus, a reed), which is a hard, horny,
hollow, and semi-transparent cylinder, containing a little pith in the interior; it bears no webs.
One end of this quill tapers to be inserted into the skin; the other passes, at a point marked by
a little pit (Lat. wmbilicus, the navel) into the shaft proper or rhachis, the second part of the
stem. The rhachis is a four-sided prism, squarish in transverse section, and tapers gradually
to a fine point; it is less
horny than the barrel, very
elastic, opaque, and solidly
pithy; it bears the vexilla.
The after-shaft, when well
developed, is like a duplicate
in miniature of the main
feather, from the stem of
which it springs, at junc-
tion of calamus with rha-
chis, close by the umbilicus.
It is generally very small
compared with the main
part of the feather, though |
quite as large inafewkinds
of birds; it is entirely want- Fie. 20. — Two barbs,
ee oe a, a, ofa vane, bearing an-
ing in some groups of birds; terior, 5, , and posterior,
it is never developed on the ¢,barbules; enlarged ; after

P E Nitzsch.
large, strong wing- and tail-
feathers. The rane consists of a series of appressed,
flat, narrowly linear or lance-linear lamin or
plates, set obliquely on the rhachis by their bases,
Fig. 19. — A partly pennaceous, partly plum- diverging out from it at a varying open angle, end-
ori a ni pone eater seis cere” Ber ing in a free point; each such narrow, acute plate
¢, ¢, c, Vanes, cut away on left side in order not is called a barb (Lat. barba, a beard ; fig. 20, a, a).
ere retin ieieaiiece of Now if these Jamine or barbs simply lay alongside
each other, like the leaves of a book, the feather
would have no consistency; therefore, they are connected together ; for, just as the rhachis .
bears its vane or series of barbs, so does each barb bear its vanes of the second order, or little
vanes, called barbules (dimin. of barba ; fig. 20, b, b,c). These are to the barbs exactly what
the barbs are to the shaft, and are similarly given off from both sides of the upper edges of
the barbs; they make the vane truly a web, that is, they so connect the barbs together that
some little force is required to pull them apart. Barbules are variously shaped, but generally
flat sideways, with upper and lower border at base, rapidly tapering to a slender thready end,
and are long enough to reach over several barbules of the next barb, crossing the latter ob-
liquely. All the foregoing structures are seen by the naked eye or with a simple pocket lens,
but the next to be described require a microscope: they are the barbicels(another dimin. of
barba), also called cilia, or lashes (fig. 21); and hamuli, or hooklets (Lat. hamulus, a little
hook ; fig. 21). These are simply a sort of fringe to the barbules, just as if the lower edge
of the barbules were frayed out, and only differ from each other in that barbicels are plain hair-

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— FEATHERS. 85

like processes, while hamuli are hooked at the end; they are not found on all feathers, nor on
all parts of some feathers. Barbicels occur on both anterior and posterior rows of barbules,
though rarely on the latter; hooklets are confined to any an-
terior seriés of barbules, which, as we have seen, overlie the
posterior rows, forming a diagonal mesh-work. The design
of this beautiful structure is evident; the barbules are inter-
locked, and the whole made a web; for each hooklet of one
barbule catches hold of a barbule from the next barb in front,
any barbule thus holding on to as many of the barbules of the
next barb as it has hooklets; while, to facilitate this interlock-
ing, the barbules have a thickened upper edge of the right size
for the hooklets to grasp. The arrangement is shown in fig.
22, where a, a, a, a, are four barbs in transverse section, viewed
from the cut surfaces, with their anterior, b, 6, b, 6, and pos-
terior, ¢, ¢, ¢, c, barbules, the former bearing the hooklets
which catch over the edge of the latter.

oo s

Fie. 22, —
Four barbs in
cross section, a,
a, a, a, bearing
anterior, b, b, b,
b, and posterior
C, C, ¢, ¢, bar-
bules, the form-
er bearing hook-

Types of Feathery Structure. — But all feathers do not
answer the above description. The after-shaft may be wanting,
as we have seen. Hooklets may not be developed, as frequently

Fig. 21.—
A single bar-
bule, bearing
barbicels and
hooklets ; mag-

happens. Barbicels may be few or entirely wanting. Barb-
ules may be similarly deficient, or so defective as to be only
recognized by their position and relations. Even barbs them-
selves may be few or lacking on one side of the shaft, or on

lets which catch
over the latter;
magnified; after
Nitzsch.

nified ; after

Nice both sides, as in certain bristly or hair-like styles of feathers. Consideration of
1tzscn.

these and other modifications of feather-structure has led to the recognition of
three types or plans: 1. The perfectly feathery, plumous, or pennaceous (Lat. pluma, a plume,
or penna, a feather fit for writing with; fig. 23), as above described. 2. The downy or
plumulaceous (Lat. plumula, a little plume, a down-feather), when the stem is short and
weak, with soft rhachis and barbs, with long slender thready barbules, little knotty dilata-
tions in place of barbi- Ree!

cels, and no hooklets.
3. The hairy, bristly, or
filo - plumaceous (Lat.
filum, a thread), with
a very long, slender stem,
and rudimentary or very
small vanes composed of fine cylindrical barbs and barbules, if any, and uo barbicels, knots,
or hooklets. There is no abrupt definition between these types of structure ; in fact, the same
feather may be constructed on more than one of these plans, as in fig. 19, partly pennaceous,
partly plumulaceous.. All feathers are built upon one or another, or some combination, or
modification, of these types; and, in all their endless diversity, may be reduced to four or five

Fic. 238.—A
almost entirely pennaceous; no after-shaft. From nature, by Coues.

Different Kinds of Feathers.—1. Contowr-feathers, penne or plume proper, have a
perfect stem composed of calamus and rhachis, with vanes of pennaceous structure, at least
in part, usually plumulaceous toward the base. These form the great bulk of the surface-
plumage exposed to light; their beautiful tints give the bird’s colors; they are the most
modified in detail of all, from the fish-like scales of a penguin’s wings to the glittering jewels of
the humming-bird, and all the endless array of the tufts, crests, ruffs, and other ornaments of the
feathered tribes; even the imperfect bristle-like feathers above mentioned may belong among

86 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

them. Another feature is, that they are usually individually moved by subcutaneous muscles,
of which there may be several to one feather, passing to be attached to the sheath of the tube,

‘ inside the skin, in which the stem is inserted. These muscles may be plainly seen under the
skin of a goose, and every one has observed their operation when a hen shakes herself after a
sand bath, or any bird erects its top-knot. 2. Down-feathers, plumule, are characterized by
a downy structure throughout. They more or less completely invest the body, but are almost
always hidden beneath the contour-feathers, like padding about the bases of the latter; occa-
sionally they come to light, as in the fleecy ruff about the neck of the condor, and then usually
replace contour-feathers ; they have an after-shaft, or none ; and sometimes no rhachis at all,
the barbs then being sessile in a tuft at the end of the quill. They often stand in a regular quin-
cunx (:-:) between four contour-feathers. 3. Semiplumes, semiplume, may be said to unite
the characters of the last two, possessing the pennaceous stem of the former, and the plumula-
ceous vanes of the latter; they are with or without after-shaft. They stand among penne, as
the plumule do, about the edges of patches of the former, or in parcels by themselves, but are
always covered by contour-feathers. 4. Filoplumes, filoplume, or thread-feathers, have an
extremely slender, almost invisible stem, not well distinguished into barrel and shaft, and
usually no vane, unless a terminal tuft of barbs may be held for such. Long as they are,
they are usually hidden by the contour-feathers, close to which they stand as accessories,
one or more seeming to issue out of the very sacs in which the larger feathers are implanted.
These are the nearest approach to hairs that birds have; they are very well shown on domestic
poultry, being what a good cook finds it necessary to singe off after plucking a fowl for the
table. 5. Certain down-feathers are remarkable for continuing to grow indefinitely, and with
this unlimited growth is associated a continual breaking down of the ends of the barbs. Such
plumulz, from being always dusted over with dry, scurfy exfoliation, are called powder-down ;
they may be entitled to rank as a fifth kind, or pulviplumes. They occur in the hawk, parrot,
and gallinaceous tribes, and especially in the herons and their allies. They are always present
in the latter, where they may be readily seen as at least two large patches of greasy or dusty,
whitish feathers, matted over the hips and on the breast. The design is unknown.

Feather Oil Gland. — Birds do not perspire, and cutaneous glands, corresponding to the
sweat-glands and sebaceous follicles so common in Mammalia, are little known among them.
But their ‘‘oil-ean” is a kind of sebaceous follicle, which may be noticed here in connection
with other tegumentary appendages. This is a two-lobed or rather heart-shaped gland, sad-
dled upon the ‘ pope’s nose,” at the root of the tail, and hence sometimes called the uropygial
(Lat. wropygium, rump), or rump-gland. If there be no single word to name it, it may be
called the eleodochon (Gr. édatoddyos, elaiodochos, containing oil). It is composed of numerous

, Slender tubes or follicles which secrete the greasy fluid, the duets of which, uniting successively
in larger tubes, finally open by one or more pores, commonly upon a little nipple-like elevation.
Birds press out a drop of oil with the beak and dress the feathers.with it, in the well-known
operation called ‘‘ preening.” The gland is large and always present in aquatic birds, which
have need of waterproof plumage; smaller in land-birds, as a tule, and wanting in some. The
presence or absence of this singular structure, and whether or not it is surmounted by a particu-

lar circlet of feathers, distinguishes certain groups of birds, and has come to be made much use
of in classification.

Pterylography. — Feathered Tracts and Unfeathered Spaces. — Excepting certain
birds having obviously naked spaces, as about the head or feet, all would be taken to be
fully feathered. So they are all covered with feathers, but it does not follow that feathers are
everywhere implanted upon the skin. On the contrary, a uniform and continuous pterylosis
is the rarest of all kinds of feathering ; though such occurs, almost or quite perfectly, among

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS. — FEATHERS. 87

certain birds, as the ostrich tribe, penguins, and toucans. If we compare a bird’s skin to a
well-kept park, part woodland, part lawn; then where feathers grow is the woodland; where
they do not grow is the lawn. The former places are called tracts or pteryle (dimin. from Gr.
mrepov, pteron, a plume); the latter, spaces or apteria (Gr. a privative, and mrepev) ; they
mutually distinguish certain definite areas. Not only are the pteryle and apteria thus definite,
but their size, form, and arrangement mark whole families and even orders of birds ; 3 so that
pterylosis becomes available, and is indeed found to be important, for purposes of classification.
Pterylography, or the description of this matter, has been made a special study by the cele-
brated Nitzsch, who has laid down the general plan of pterylosis which obtains in the great
majority of birds, as follows: 1. The spinal or dorsal tract (pteryla spinalis; fig. 24, 1),
running along the middle of the bird above from the nape of the neck to the tail ; subject to
great variation in-width, to dilation and contraction, to forking, to sending out branches, to
interruption, etc. 2. The humeral tracts (pt. humerales ; Lat. humerus, the shoulder, or upper
arm-bone; fig. 24, 2), always present, one on each wing; they are narrow bands, running from
the shoulder obliquely backward upon the upper arm-bone, parallel with the shoulder-blade.

Fie. 24, — Pterylosis of Cypselus apus, drawn by Coues after Nitzsch; right hand upper, left hand lower,
surface. 1. spinal tract; 2. humeral; 3. femoral; 4. capital; 5. alar; 6. caudal; 7. crural; 8. ventral.

3. The femoral tracts (pt. femorales ; Lat. femur, the thigh; fig. 24, 3): a similar oblique
band upon the outside of each thigh, but subject to great variation. 4. The ventral tract (pt.
ventralis ; Lat. venter, the belly ; fig. 24,8), which forms most of the plumage on. the under
part of a bird, commencing at or near the throat, and continued to the vent; like the dorsal
tract, it is very variable, is usually bifurcate, or forked into right or left halves, with a median
apterium, is broad or narrow, branched, etc.; thus, Nitzsch enumerates seventeen distinct modi-
fications! The foregoing are mostly isolated tracts, that is, bands nearly surrounded by com-
plementary apteria; the following are, in general, continuously and uniformly feathered, and
thus practically equivalent to the part of the body they represent: Thus, 5, the head tract
(pt. capitalis ; Lat. caput, capitis, head; fig. 24, 4) clothes the head, and generally runs
into the beginning of both dorsal and ventral tracts. 6. The wing tract (pt. alaris ; Lat. ala,
wing ; fig. 24, 5) represents all the feathers that grow upon the wing, excepting those of
the humeral tract. 7. The tail tract (pt. caudalis ; Lat. cauda, tail; fig. 24, 6) includes
the tail-feathers proper and their coverts, and those about the elgodochon, and usually receives
the termination of the dorsal, ventral, and femoral tracts. 8. The leg tract (pt. cruralhs ;
Lat. crus, erwris, leg; figs. 24, 7) clothes the legs as far as these are feathered, which is
generally to the heel, always below the knee, and sometimes to the toes or even the claws. —
I need not enumerate the apteria, as these are merely the complements of the pteryle. The

88 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

highly important special ‘‘ flight-feathers ” of the wings and ‘‘ rudder-feathers” of the tail are
to be examined beyond, in describing those members for purposes of classification.

Endysis and Ecdysis.— Putting on and off Plumage.— Newly hatched birds are
covered for some time with a kind of down, entirely different from such feathers as they ulti-
mately acquire. It is scanty, leaving much or all of the body naked, in most altricial birds,
such as are reared by the parents in the nest (Lat. altriz, female nourisher) ; but thick and
puffy in some Altrices, and in all Precoces (Lat. precox, precocious), which run about at birth.
Since many birds which require to be reared in the nest are also hatched clothed, or very speedily
become downy, a more exact distinction may be drawn by using the terms ptilopedic and psilo-
pedic (Gr. rridov, ptilon, a feather; Wedds, psilos, bare; and mais, pais, a child) respectively
for those birds which are hatched feathered or naked; a chicken and a canary-bird are familiar
examples. It is the rule, that the higher birds are born helpless and naked, requiring to be
reared in the nest till their feathers grow ; the reverse with lower birds, as the walking, wading,
and swimming kinds ; and a primary division of birds has even been proposed upon this physio-
logical distinction. It offers, however, too many exceptions; thus, no birds are more naked
and helpless at birth than young cormorants. Probably all precocial birds are also ptilopedic
and all psilopzedic birds altricial; but the converse is far from holding good, many altrices, as
hawks and owls, being also ptilopedic. In other words, psilopeedic birds are always altricial,
but ptilopeedic birds may be either altricial or precocial. In any case, true feathers are soon
gained, in some days or weeks, those of the wings and tail being usually the first to sprout.
The acquisition of plumage is called endysis (€&vdvors, endusis, putting on). The renewal of
plumage is a process familiar to all, in its generalities, under the term ‘ moult,” or ecdysts
(Gr. exdvows, ekdusis, putting off). Feathers are of such rapid growth, and make such a drain °
upon the vital energies, that we easily understand how critical are periods of the change.
The first plumage is usually worn but a short time; then another more or less complete
change commonly occurs. The moult is as a rule annual; and in many cases more than
one moult is required before the bird attains the perfection of maturity in its feathering.
It is well known how different many birds are the first year in their coloration from that
afterward acquired ; sometimes changes progress for several years; and some birds appear
to have a period of senile decline. ‘All such changes are necessarily connected, if not
with actual moult, as is the rule, then at any rate with wear and tear and repair of the
plumage. The first plumage being gained, under whatever conditions peculiar to the species,
it is the general rule, that birds are subject to single, or annual, moult. This commonly occurs
in the fall, when the duties of incubation are concluded, and the well-worn plumage most needs
renewal. This once-a-year moult, at least, happens to nearly or quite all birds. Many,
however, moult twice a year, the additional moult usually occurring in the spring-time, when
a fresh nuptial suit is acquired ; in such cases, the moult is said to be double, or semi-annual.
Such additional moult is generally incomplete; that is, all the feathers are not shed and
renewed, but more or fewer new ones are gained, with more or less loss of the old ones, if
any. The most striking ornaments donned for the breeding season, as the elegant plumes
of many herons, are usually worn but a brief time, being doffed in advance of the general
fall moult. A few birds, as the ptarmigan (Lagopus), regularly have even a third or triple
moult, shedding many of their feathers as usual in the early autumn, then changing
entirely to pure white for the winter, then in spring moulting completely to assume their
wedding-dress. As a rule, feathers are moulted so gradually, particularly those of the wings
and tail, and so simultaneously upon right and left sides of the body, that birds are at no time
deprived of the power of flight. The first flight-feathers acquired by young birds are usually
kept till the next season; but in those that fly very early, before they are half grown, as so
many gallinaceous birds do, their first weak wing-feathers are included in the general moult

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS. — FEATHERS. 89

which occurs to young and old in the fall. The duck tribe offer the remarkable case, that
they drop their wing-quills so nearly all at once as to be for some time deprived of the power
of flight. It is quite certain that many birds change the colors of their plumage remarkably,
without losing or gaining any feathers, by some process which affects the texture of the feath-
ers, such as the shedding of the barbicels and hooklets, or its pigmentation ; or by such processes
combined. The male of our bobolink changes from the buff dress of the female to his rich black
suit without losing or gaining any feathers. It is difficult to lay down any rules of moulting
for particular groups of birds, since birds very closely related differ greatly in respect to their
changes of plumage, and the subject has not yet received the attention its interest and impor-
tance should claim for it. The physiological processes involved are analogous to those con-
cerned in the shedding of the hair of mammals and the casting of the cuticle of reptiles.

Plumage-changes with Sex, Age, and Season. Aside from any consideration of the
way in which plumage changes, whether by moult or otherwise, the fact remains that most birds
of the same species differ more or less from one another according to certain circumstances. The
dissimilarity is not only in coloration, though this is the usual and most pronounced difference,
but also in the degree of development of plumes, — their size, form, and texture. Since young
birds are those which have not come to sexual vigor; since breeding recurs at regular periods
of the year; and since males and females usually differ in plumage, — nearly all the various
dresses worn by different individuals of the same species are correlated with the conditions of
the reproductive system. As the internal generative organs represent of course the essential or
primary sexual characters, all those of the plumage just indicated may be properly classed as
secondary sexual.characters. These are of great importance, not only in practical ornithology,

pit as the basis of some of the soundest views that have been advanced respecting the evolu-
tion of specific characters in this class of animals. The generalizations may be made: that
when the sexes are strikingly different in plumage, the young at first resemble the female ;
when the adults are alike, the young are different from either; when seasonal changes are great,
the young resemble the fall plumage of the parents; and, further, that when the adults of two
related species of the same genus are nearly alike, the young are usually intermediate, their
specific characters not being fully developed. Specific characters are often to be found only in .
the male, the females of two related species being starcely distinguishable, though the males
may be told apart at a glance. Extraordinary developments of feathers, as to size, shape, and
color, are often confined to one sex, usually the male. The more richly, extensively, or pecu-
liarly the male is adorned, the simpler the female in comparison, as the peacock and peahen.
The Wise Man of Late has formulated the several categories of secondary sexual characters,
giving the following rules or classes of cases: ‘'1. When the adult male is more beautiful or
conspicuous than the adult female, the young of both sexes in their first plumage closely
resemble the adult female, as with the common fowl and peacock; or, as occasionally
occurs, they resemble her much more closely than they do the adult male. 2. When the adult
female is more conspicuous than the adult male, as sometimes though rarely occurs [chiefly
with certain birds of prey and snipe-like birds], the young of both sexes in their first plumage
resemble the adult male. 8. When the adult male resembles the adult female, the young of
both sexes have a peculiar first plumage of their own, as with the robin [usual]. 4. When the
adult male resembles the adult female, the young of both sexes in their first plumage resemble
the adults [unusual]. 5. When the adults of both sexes have a distinct winter and summer
plumage, whether or not the male differs from the female, the young resemble the adults of
both sexes in their winter dress, or much more rarely in their summer dress, or they resemble
the females alune. Or the young may have an intermediate character; or again they may
differ greatly from the adults in both their seasonal pluinages. 6. In some few cases the
young in their first plumage differ from each other according to sex; the young males re-

90 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

sembling more or less closely the adult males, and the young females more or less closely the
adult females.” — (Darwin, Desc. of Man, new ed., 1881, p. 466.)

Summary of Secondary Sexual Characters of Birds.— The temptation to give the
conclusion of the whole matter in Darwin’s own words, summary of his views of Sexual
Selection as so important a factor in Natural Selection, need not be resisted. I therefore quote
again from the work last cited, pp. 496-499.

“ Most male birds are highly pugnacious during the breeding-season, and some possess weapons adapted for
fighting with their rivals. But the most pugnacious and the best armed males rarely or never depend for success
solely upon their power to drive away or kill their rivals, but have special means for charming the female. With
some it is the power of song, or of giving forth strange cries, or instrumental music, and the males in consequence
differ in their vocal organs, or in the structure of certain feathers. From the curiously diversified means for pro-
ducing various sounds, we gain a high idea of the importance of this means of courtship. Many birds endeavor to
charm the female by love-dances or antics, performed on the ground or in the air, and sometimes at prepared places,
But ornaments of many kinds, the most brilliant tints, combs, and wattles, beautiful plumes, elongated feathers,
top-knots, and so forth, are by far the commonest means. In some cases mere novelty appears to have acted asa
charm. The ornaments of the males must be highly important to them, for they have been acquired in not a few
cases at the cost of increased danger from enemies, and even at some loss of power in fighting with their rivals.
The males of very many species do not assume their ornamental dress until they arrive at maturity, or they assume
it only during the breeding season, or the tints then become more vivid. Certain ornamental appendages become
enlarged, turgid, and brightly colored during the act of courtship. The males display their charms with elaborate
care and to the best effect; and this is done in the presence of the females. The courtship is sometimes a pro-
longed affair, and many males and females congregate at an appointed place. To suppose that the females do not
appreciate the beauty of the males, is to admit that their splendid decorations, all their pomp and display, are
useless; and this is incredible. Birds have fine powers of discrimination, and in some few cases it can be shewn
that they have a taste for the beautiful. The females, moreover, are known occasionally to exhibit a marked
preference or antipathy for certain individual males.

“Tfit be admitted that the females prefer, or are unconsciously excited by the more beautiful males, then
the males would slowly but surely be rendered more and more attractive through sexual selection. That it is
this sex which has been chiefly modified, we may infer from the fact that, in almost every genus where the sexes
differ, the males differ much more from one another than do the females ; this is well shown in certain closely-allied
representative species, in which the females can hardly be distinguished, whilst tlhe males are quite distinct. Birds
in a state of nature offer individual differences which would amply suffice for the work of sexual selection; but we
have seen that they occasionally present more strongly-marked variations which recur so frequently that they
would immediately be fixed, if they served to allure the female. The laws of variation must determine the nature
of the initial changes and will have largely influenced the final result. The gradations, which may be observed
between the males of allied species, indicate the nature of the steps through which they have passed. They
explain also in the most interesting manner how certain characters have originated, such as the indented ocelli
on the tail-feathers of the peacock and the ball and socket ocelli on the wing-feathers of the Argus pheasant. It is
evident that the brilliant colors, top-knots, fine plumes, &c., of many male birds cannot have been acquired
as a protection; indeed, they sometimes lead to danger. That they are not due to the direct and definite action
of the conditions of life, we may feel assured, because the females have been exposed to the same conditions,
and yet often differ from the males to an extreme degree, Although it is probable that changed conditions acting
during a lengthened period have in some cases produced a definite effect on both sexes, or sometimes on one sex
alone, the more importaat result will have been an increased tendency to vary or to present more strongly marked
individual differences : and such differences will have afforded an excellent ground-work for the action of sexual
selection.

“The laws of jnheritance, irrespectively of selection, appear to bave determined whether the characters
acquired by the males for the sake of ornament, for producing various sounds, and for fighting together, have been
transmitted to the males alone or to both sexes, either permanently, or periodically during certain seasons of the
year. Why various characters should have been transmitted sometimes in one way and sometimes in another, is not
in most cases known; but the period of variability seems often to have been the determining cause. When the
two sexes have inherited all characters in common, they necessarily resemble each other; but as the successive
variations maybe differently transmitted, every possible gradation may be found, even within the same genus,
from the closest similarity to the widest dissimilarity between the sexes. With many closely-allied species, follow-
ing nearly the same habits of life, the males have come to differ from each other chiefly through the action of
sexua! selection; whilst the females have come to differ chiefly from partaking more or less of the characters thus
acquired by the males. ‘The effects, moreover, of the definite action of the conditions of life, will not have been
masked in the females, as in the males, by the accumulation through sexual selection of strongly- pronounced colors
and other ornaments. The individuals of both sexes, however affected, will have been kept at each successive
period nearly uniform by the free intercrossing of many individuals.

“ With species, in which the sexes differ in color, it is possible or probable that some of the successive varia-
tions often tended to be transmitted equally to both sexes; but that when this occurred the females were pre-

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS. — TOPOGRAPHY. 91

vented from acquiring the bright colors of the males, by the destruction which they suffered during incubation.
There is no evidence that it is possible by natural selection to convert one form of transmission into another. But
there would not be the least difficulty in rendering a female dull-colored, the male being still kept bright-colored,
by the selection by successive variations, which were from the first limited in their transmission to the same sex.
Whether the females of many species have actually been thus modified, must at present remain doubtful. When,
through the law of the equal transmission of characters to both sexes, the females were rendered as conspicuously
colored as the males, their instincts appear often to have been moditied so that they were led to build domed or
concealed nests.

“In one small and curious class of cases the characters and habits of the two sexes have been completely
transposed, for the females are larger, stronger, more vociferous and brighter colored than the males. They have,
also, become so quarrelsome that they often fight together for the possession of the males, like the males of other
pugnacious species for the p ion of the females. If, as seems probable, such females habitually drive away
their rivals, and by the display of their bright colors or other charms endeavour to attract the males, we can under-
stand how it is that they have gradually been rendered, by sexual selection and sexually-limited transmission,
more beautiful than the males — the latter being left unmoditied or only slightly modified.

** Whenever the law of inheritance at corresponding ages prevails, but not that of sexually-limited trans-
mission, then if the parents vary late in life—and we know that this constantly occurs with our poultry,
and occasionally with other birds — the young will be left unaffected, whilst the adults of both sexes will be
modified. If both these laws of inheritance prevail and either sex varies late in life, that sex alone will be
modified, the other sex and the young being unatfected. When variations in brightness or in other conspicuous
characters occur early in life, as no doubt often happens, they will not be acted on through sexual selection until
the period of reproduction arrives; consequently if dangerous to the young, they will be eliminated through
natural selection. Thus we can understand how it is that variations arising late in life have so often been pre-
served for the ornamentation of the males; the females and the young being left almost unaffected, and therefore
like each other. With species having a distinct summer and winter plumage, the males of which either resemble
or differ from the females during both seasons or during the summer alone, the degrees and kinds of resemblance
between the young and the old are exceedingly complex; and this complexity apparently depends on characters,
first acquired by the males, being transmitted in various ways, as limited by age, sex, and season.

‘+ As the young of so many species have been but little modified in color and other ornaments, we are enabled
to form some judgment with respect to the plumage of their early progenitors ; and we may infer that the beauty
of our existing species. if we look to the whole class, has been largely increased since that period, of which the
plumage gives us an indistinct record. Many birds, especially those which live much on the ground, have undoubt-
edly been obscurely colored for the sake of protection. In some instances the upper exposed surface of the plumage
has been thus colored in both sexes. whilst the lower surface in the males alone has been variously ornamented
through sexual selection. Finally, from the facts given in these four chapters [pp. 858-499 of the work in citation],
we may conclude that weapons for battle, organs for producing sound, ornaments of many kinds, bright and con-
spicuous colors, have generally been acquired by the males through variation and sexual selection. and have been
trausmitted in various ways according to the several laws of inheritance — the female and the young being left
comparatively but little modified.”

a

b. THE TopoGRAPHY OF Birps.

The Contour of a Bird with the feathers on is spindle-shaped, or fusiform (Lat.
Jusus, a spindle), tapering at both ends; it represents two cones joined base to base at the middle
or greatest girth of the body, tapering in front to the tip of the bill, behind to the end of the
tail. The obvious design is easiest cleavage of air in front. and least drag or wash behind, in
the act of flyiug. This shape is largely produced by the lay of the plumage ; a naked bird pre-
sents several prominences and depressions, this irregular contour being reducible, in general
terms, to two spindles or double cones. The head tapers to a point in front, at the tip of the
bill, and contracts behind, toward the middle of the neck, in consequence of diminution in
bulk of the muscles by which it is slung on the neck; which last is somewhat contracted or
hour-glass shaped near the middle, swelling where it is slung to the body. The body is largest
in front and tapers to the tail. The

Centre of Gravity is admirably preserved beneath the centre of the body, and opposite
the points where it is supported by the wings. The enormous breast-muscles of a bird are
among its heaviest parts, sometimes weighing, to speak roundly, as inuch as one-sixth of the
whole bird. Now these are théy that effect all the movements of the wings at the shoulder-
joints, lifting as well as lowering the wings. Did these pectoral muscles pull straight, the
lifters would have to be above the shoulder-joint ; but they all lie below it, and the lifters

92 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

accomplish their office by running through pulleys to change the line of their traction. They
work like men hoisting sails from the deck of a vessel; and thus, like a ship’s cargo, a bird’s
chief weight is kept below the centre of motion. Top-heaviness is further obviated by the way
in which birds with a long heavy neck and head draw these parts in upon the breast, and
extend the legs behind, as is well shown by the attitude of a heron flying. The nice adjust-
ment of balance by the variable extension of the head and feet is exactly like that produced in
weighing by shifting a weight along the arm of a steel-yard; and together with the slinging
of the chief weight under the wings instead of over or even between them, enables a bird to
easily keep right side up in flight. The

Exterior of a Bird is divided for purposes of description into seven parts: —1. The head
(Lat. caput) ; 2. The neck (Lat. collum) ; 3. The body proper, or trunk (Lat. truncus) ; 4.
The bill or beak (Lat. rostrum); 5. The wings (Lat. pl. ale); 6. The tail (Lat. cauda) ; 7.
The feet (Lat. pl. pedes). Of these, 1, 2, 3, the head, neck, and trunk, are collectively termed
the body (Lat. corpus), in distinction from 4, 5, 6, 7, which are the members (Lat. membra).
The wings and feet are of course double or paired parts. The bill is strietly but a part of the
head; but its manifold uses as an organ of prehension make it functionally a hand, and there-
fore one of the ‘‘ members.” The

Head has the general shape of a four-sided pyramid; of which the base is applied to the
end of the neck, therefore not appearing from the exterior, and the apex of which is frustrated
at the base of the bill. The uppermost side is more or less convex or vaulted, sloping in
every direction ; the under side is flattish and horizontal; the lateral surfaces are flattish and
vertical ; all similarly taper forward. The departures from any such typical shape are endless
in degree and variable in kind, giving rise to numerous general descriptive terms, such as
“head flattened,” ‘‘head globular,” but not susceptible of exact definition. The head is
moulded, of course, upon the skull, corresponding in a general way to the brain-cavity of the
cranium proper, both in size and shape ; but it differs in several particulars. In the first place,
there is the scaffolding of the jaws; secondly, large excavations to receive the eye-balls, and
smaller ones for the ear-parts; thirdly, muscular masses overlying the bone; and lastly, in
some birds, large hollow spaces in the bone between the inner and outer tables or plates of the
cranial walls. Each side of the head presents two openings for the eye (Lat. oculus) and ear
(Lat. awris), the position of which is variable, both absolutely and in relation to each other.
But in the vast majority of birds, the eye is strictly lateral in situation, and near the middle of
the side of the head; while the ear is behind and a little below the eye, near the articulation
of the lower jaw. But the shape of the skull of owls is such, that the eyes are directed forward,
and such birds are said to have “‘ eyes anterior.” Owls also have enormous outer ears, in some
cases provided with a movable flap or conch, closing upon the opening like the lid of a box;
and in many cases their ear-parts, and some of the cranium itself, is unsymmetrical. In
most birds the ear-opening is quite small, and only covered by modified feathers. In the
woodcock and snipe, owing to the way the brain-box is tilted up, the ears are below and not
behind the eyes. The mouth (Lat. os, gen. oris) is always a fissure across the front of the head.
The cleavage varies, both in extent and direction; the latter is usually horizontal, or nearly
so, but may trend much downward; the former varies from a mininum, in which the cleft does
not reach back of the horny part of the bill, as in a snipe, to the maximum seen in fissure-billed
birds like the swifts and goatsuckers, which gape almost from ear to ear. There are no other
openings in the head proper, for the nostrils are always in the bill. The

Neck, in effect, is a simple cylinder, rendered somewhat hour-glass-shaped, as above said.
It consists of a movable chain of bones, the cervical vertebra (Lat. cervix, the neck; verto, I

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— TOPOGRAPHY. 93

turn) enveloped in muscle, along which in front lie the gullet (Lat. esophagus) and windpipe
(Lat. trachea), with associate blood-vessels, nerves, ete. Its length is very variable, as is the
number of its bones, the latter ranging from 8 to about 26. Bearing as it does the head, with
the bill, which is the true hand of a bird, the neck is extremely flexible, to permit the neces-
sarily varied movements of this handy member. Its least length may be said to be that which
allows the point of a bird’s beak to reach the oil-gland on the rump; its greatest length some-
times exceeds that of the body and tail together, as in the case of a swan, crane, or heron. The
length is usually in direct proportion to that of the legs, in obvious design of allowing the beak
to touch the ground easily to pick up food. The neck is habitually carried in a double curve,
like an open § or italic f, the lower belly of the curve, convex forward, fitting in between the
forks of the merry-thought (Lat. furculum), the upper curve holding the head horizontal at the
same time. This “sigmoid flexure” (sigma, Greek S), highly characteristic of the bird’s neck,
is produced by the saddle-shaping of the articular surfaces of the several bones. The mechan-
ical arrangement is such, that the sigma may be easily bent till the upper end (head) rests on
the lower convexity, or as easily straightened to a right line ; but little if any further deviation
in opposite curvature is permitted. As a generalization, the neck may be called relatively
longest in wading birds, as herons, cranes, ibises, etc. ; shortest in perching birds, as the great
majority of small Insessores ; intermediate in swimming birds. But many swimmers, as
swans and cormorants, have extremely long necks; and some waders, as plovers, have very
short ones. A long neck is a rarity among the higher birds (above the Galline), in most of
which the head seems to nestle upon the shoulders. The longer the neck, the more sinuous
and flexible is it likely to be. Anatomically, the neck ends before at the articulation of the
atlas (first cervical vertebra) with the skull, and behind at the first vertebra which bears free
jointed ribs reaching the sternum. (See also p. 1383, Anatomy.) The shape of the

Body proper, or Trunk, is obviously referable to that of the egg; it is ovate (Lat.
ovum, an egg; whence oval, the plane figure represented by the middle lengthwise section of
an egg; ovate or ovoid, the solid figure). The swelling of the breast represents the greatest
diameter of the egg, usually near the larger end. But the ovoid is never perfectly expressed,
and departures from the figure are numberless. In general, the higher perching birds have the
body nearly of the ovate shape; among waders, the figure is usually compressed, or flattened
vertically, as is well seen in the herons, and still better in the rails, where the lateral narrow-
ing is at an extreme; among swimmers, the body is always more or less depressed, or flattened
horizontally, and especially underneath, that the birds may rest’on the water with more
stability, as well shown by a duck or diver. Anatomically the body begins with the foremost
dorsal vertebre, or those that bear true ribs; laterally, it ceases quite definitely at the shoulder-
joints, the whole of the fore limb being outside the general content of the trunk; behind, in
the middle line, it includes everything, only the tail-feathers themselves being beyond it;
behind and laterally, it includes more or less of the legs, for these are generally buried in the
common integument of the body to the knee-joint, nearly or quite so, and sometimes to the
heel-joint ; though more strictly the trunk should be limited by the hip-joint. The rib-bearing
part of the back-bone, the ribs themselves, and the greatly enlarged breast-bone (Lat. sternum)
compose the cavity of the chest (Lat. thorax). Upon this bony box, which contains the
heart and lungs and some other viscera, are saddled on each side the bones of the shoulder-girdle
or scapular-arch, namely, the shoulder-blades (Lat. scapula), the coracoids, and the collar-bones
(Lat. clavicula), all three of which come together at the shoulder-joint. The thoracic cavity
is not separated by any partition or diaphragm from that of the belly (Lat. abdomen), which
with the pelvis, or basin, contains the digestive, urinary, and genital organs. The pelvis is
composed, in dorsal mid-line, of so many of the vertebre (dorso-lumbar, sacral proper, and
urosacral, as become immovably joined to one another, and laterally of the confluent haunch-

94 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

bones. The numerous anchylosed (or confluent) vertebrae compose the sacrum. The haunch-
bones or ossa innominata consist on each side of three bones, tlium, ischium, and pubis, in adult
life more or less perfectly anchylosed. Where they all three come together is the hip-joint.
The remaining bones, usually included among those of the body proper, are the coccygeal or
caudal vertebree. (For anatomical detail see beyond, under Osteology, ete.)

Topography of the Body. — Besides being thus divided into head, neck, trunk, and mem-
bers, the exterior of the body is further subdivided or mapped out into regions for the purposes
of description. It is necessary for the student to become familiar with the “topography” of a
bird, as this kind of mapping out may be called, for the names of the regions or outer areas
are incessantly used in ordinary descriptive ornithology. Many more names have been applied
than are in common use; I shall try to define and explain all those which are usually em-
ployed, beginning with the parts of the body, and ending with those of the members.

L REGIONS OF THE BODY.

Upper and Under Parts. — Draw a line from the corner of the mouth along the side of
the head and neck to and through the shoulder-joint and thence along the side of the body to
the root of the tail; all above this line, including the upper surfaces of the wings and tail, are
upper parts ; all below it, including under surfaces of wings and tail, are under parts ; for
which the short words ‘* above” and ‘‘ below” often stand. The distinction is purely arbi-
trary, but so convenient as to be practically indispensable. Jt will be scen how an otherwise
lengthy description, enumerating parts that lie over or under the ‘lateral line” can be
put in so few words as, for example, ‘‘ above, green; below, yellow.” Many birds colors have
some such simple general distribution. These parts are also the dorsal (Lat. dorsum, back)
and ventral (Lat. venter, belly) surfaces or aspects. The upper parts of the body proper, or
trunk, have also received the general name of noteum (Gr. varos, notos, back) ; the under parts,
similarly restricted. that of gastreum (Gr. yaornp, gaster, belly): but these tems are not
much used now. These two are never naked, while both head and neck may be variously bare
of feathers. The only exception is the transient condition of certain birds during incubation,
when, like the eider duck, they pull off feathers to furnish the nest, or when the plumage, as
usually happens, wears off. The gastreum is rarely ornamented with feathers different in
texture or structure from those of the plumage at large; but such a case is furnished by our
Lewis’s woodpecker (Asyndesmus torquatus). The noteum, on the contrary, is often the seat
of extraordinary development of feathers, either in size, shape, or texture, or all three of these
qualities ; as the singularly elegant dorsal plumes of many herons. Individual feathers of the
noteum are generally pennaceous, and for the most part straight and lanceolate; and asa
whole lie smoothly shingled or imbricated. The ventral feathers are usually more largely
plumulaceous, and less flat and imbricated, but even more compact, that is thicker, than those
of the upper parts; especially among water birds, where they are more or less curly, and
very thick set. There are subdivisions of the ,

Notzum.-— Beginning where the neck ends. and ending where the tail-coverts begin
(see fig. 25, 12), this part of a bird is subdivided into back (Lat. dorstem ; fig. 25, 11) and
rump (Lat. uropygium ; fig. 25,13). These are in direct continuation of each other, and their
limits are not precisely defined ; the feathers of both are of the pteryla dorsalis. In general,we
should call the anterior two-thirds or three-fourths of noteeum “ back,” and the rest “rump.”
With the former are generally included the scapular or shoulder-feathers, scapulars or scapu-
laries ; these are they that grow on the pteryle humerales. The region of notzeum they repre-
sent is called scapulare (Lat. scapula, shoulder-blade), and that part of noteum strictly

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— TOPOGRAPHY. 95

between them is called the interscapulare (fig. 25, 10); it is often marked, as in the chipping
sparrow, with streaks or some other distinctive coloration. A part of dorsum, lying between
interscapulare and uropygium, is sometimes recognized as the ‘‘lower back” (Lat. tergum); but
this distinction is not practically useful. To uropygium probably also belong the feathers of
the pteryle femorales, or at any rate these are commonly included with the rump in descrip-
tions; but they more properly represent the flanks (Lat. ilia, or hypochondria) ; that is, sides
of the rump. They are sometimes the seat of largely developed or otherwise peculiarly
modified feathers, as the snowy flank plumes of the white-bellied swift (Panyptila saxatilis) or
violet-green swallow (Zachycineta thalassina), which meet over the rump. The whole of
noteeum, taken together with the upper surfaces of the wings, is called the mantle (Lat. stragu-

lum, a cloak); often a convenient term, as in describing gulls and terns for example. In like
inanner, the

“2

Fic. 25.— Topography of a Bird. 1, forehead (jrons). 2, lore. 8, cireumocular region. 4, crown (vertex).
5, eye. 6, hind head (occiput). 7, nape(nucha). 8, hind neck (cervix). 9, side of neck. 10, interscapular region.
11, dorsum, or back proper, including 10. 12, notwum, or upper part of body proper, including 10, 11, and 18.
13, rump (wropygium). 14, upper tail-coverts. 15, tail. 16, under tail-coverts (crissum). 17, tarsus. 18, abdo-
men. 19, hind toe (hallux). 20, gastreum, including 18 and 24. 21, outer or fourth toe. 22, middle or third toe.
23, side of the body. 24, breast (pectus). 25, primaries. 26, secondaries. 27, tertiaries; nos. 25, 26, 27 are all
remiges. 28, primary coverts. 29, alula, or bastard wing. 30, greater coverts, 31, median coverts. 32, lesser
coverts. 33, the ‘“‘ throat,” including 34, 37,38. 34, jugulum or lower throat. 35, auriculars. 36, malar region.
37, gula, or middle throat. 38, mentwm, or chin. 39, angle of commissure, or corner of mouth. 40, ramus of
under mandible. 41, side of under mandible. 42, gonys. 43, apex, or tip of bill. 44, tomia, or cutting edges of
the bill. 45, culmen, or ridge of upper mandible, corresponding to gonys. 46, side of upper mandible. 47*nostril.
48 passes across the bill a little in front of its base.

Gastrzum is subdivided into regions, called, in general terms, breast (Lat. pectus ; fig. 25,
24), belly. (Lat. abdomen ; fig. 25, 18), and sides of the body (Lat. pleura ; fig. 25, 23). The
“sides” or pleurse belong really as much to the dorsal as to the ventral aspects of a bird’s
body; but in consequence of the underneath-freighted shape, the line we drew passes so high
up along them, that they are almost entirely given over to gastreum. The breast begins over

96 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the merry-thought where jugulum (see beyond) ends; on either hand, it slopes up to “ sides” ;
behind, its extension is indefinite. It should properly reach as far as the breast-bone does, to
the limit of the thorax; but in many birds this would leave almost nothing for abdomen, and
the limit would moreover fluctuate with almost every family of birds, the sternum being so
variable in length. Practically, therefore, without reference to the breast-bone, “‘ breast” or
pectus is restricted to the swelling anterior part of gastreeum, which we call belly or abdomen
as soon as it begins to straighten out and flatten. Abdomen, like pectus, rounds up on either
hand into sides; behind, it ends definitely in a transverse line passing across the anus. It has
been unnecessarily divided into epigastriwm or “‘ pit of the stomach,” and venter or lower belly ;
but these terms are tarely used. (Crissum is a word constantly used for some indefinite region
immediately about the vent; sometimes meaning the flanks, sometimes the vent-feathers or
under tail-coverts proper; I refer to it again in connection with these last.) Though these
boundaries seem fluctuating and not perfectly satisfactory, a little practice will enable the
student to appreciate their proper use in descriptions, and to employ them himself with suffi-
cient accuracy. The adjectival terms are respectively pectoral, abdominal, and lateral. The
anterior continuation of the trunk, or the

Neck (Lat. collum) is likewise subdivided into regions. Its lateral aspects, except in
those birds that have lateral neck-tracts of feathers, are formed by the meeting over its sides
of the feathers that grow on the dorsal and ventral pteryle, the skin being usually not planted
with feathers. Partly on this account, perhaps, a distinctively named region is not often
expressed ; we say simply “‘sides of the neck,” or -‘ neck laterally” (parauchenia, fig. 25, 9),
The neck behind, or the dorsal (upper) aspect, is divided into two- portions: a lower, the
“hind neck” proper, or “scruff of the neck” (Lat. cervix ; fig. 25, 8), next to the back;
and an upper, or ‘‘nape of the neck” (Lat. nucha ; fig. 25,7), adjoining the hind head.
These are otherwise respectively known as the cervical and nuchal region ; and, in speaking
of both together, we usually say ‘‘the neck behind.” The front of the neck has been need-
lessly subdivided, and these subregions vary with almost every writer. It suffices to call it
throat (Lat. gula, fig. 25, 37, or jugulum, 34); remembering that the jugular portion is
lowermost, vanishing in breast, and the gular uppermost, running into chin along the under
surface of the head. Guttur is a term sometimes used to include gula and jugulum together :
it is simply equivalent to “throat,” as just defined ; the adjective is guttural. Though gener-
ally covered with feathers, the neck, unlike the trunk, is frequently partly naked. When naked
behind, it is usually cervix that is bare, as so characteristically occurs in herons, from interrup-
tion of the forward extension of the pteryla spinalis. Nucha is seldom if ever naked, except as
an extension of general bald-headedness. Gula is similarly naked from above downwards, 48
conspicuously illustrated in the order Steganopodes, comprising the pelicans, cormorants, etc.,
which have a bare gular pouch; and as seen in many vultures, whose baldness extends over
nucha and gula, and even all around the neck, as in the condor, whose nakedness ends with so
singular a collar of close-set, downy feathers. The lower throat or jugulum becomes naked
in a few birds, in which a distended crop or craw protrudes, pushing apart feathers of two
branches of the pteryla ventralis as these ascend the neck. The rule is, that the neck is not
the seat of enlarged or otherwise highly developed feathers, which might restrict the requisite
freedom of its motion; but there are some signal exceptions, among which may be instanced
the grouse fanily. The ruffed grouse has a singular umbrella-like tuft on each side of the neck:
the pinnated grouse has still more curious winglets in the same situation, covering bare disten-
sible skin: the sharp-tailed grouse is in somewhat similar but less pronounced case; while the
cock of the plains has some extraordinary j ugular developments of feathers in connection with
his subcutaneous tympanum. Cervix proper almost never has modified feathers, but often a
transverse coloration different from that of the rest of the upper parts ; when conspicuous, this

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— TOPOGRAPHY. 97

is called ‘ cervical collar,” to distinguish it from the guttural or jugular “collars” or rings of
color. Nucha is frequently similarly marked with a ‘nuchal band ;” often special develop-
ments there take the form of lengthening of the feathers, and we have a “nuchal crest.” More
particularly in birds of largely variegated colors, guttur and jugulum are marked lengthwise
with stripes and streaks, of which those on the sides are apt to be different from those along
the middle line in front. Jugulum occasionally has lengthened feathers, as in many herons.
Higher up, the neck in front may have variously lengthened or otherwise modified feathers.
Conspicuous among these are the ruffs, or tippets, of some birds, especially of the grebe family
(Podicipedidz), and, above all our other birds, of the male ruff (Machetes pugnax). But
these, and a few other modifications of the feathers of the upper neck, are more conveniently
considered with those of the

Head.— Though smaller than any of the areas already considered, the head has been
more minutely mapped out, and much detail is required by the number and importance of its
recognizable parts or regions. Without intending to mention all that have been named, I
describe all needed to be known for any practical purposes.

“Top of the head” is a collective term for all the upper surface, from base of bill to
nape, and laterally to about the level of the upper border of the eyes; this is the pileum or
“cap” (fig. 25, 1, 4, 6); it is divided into three portions. The forehead, or frontal region,
or simply ‘the front” (Lat. frons ; fig. 25, 1), includes all that slopes upward from the bill,
—generally to about opposite the anterior border of the eyes. Middle head or crown (Lat.
corona) or vertex (Lat., fig. 25, 1), includes the top of the head proper, or highest part, from
the rise of the forehead to the fall of the hind-head towards nucha. This slope is the hind-head,
or occiput (Lat., fig. 25, 6). The lateral border of all three constitutes the superciliary line,
that is, the line over the eye (Lat. super, over; cilia, little hairs, especially of the brows).
‘Crown ” is often used as the same thing as pileam. The adjectives of the several words are
frontal, coronal or vertical, and occipital: pileum has none in use, coronal being said instead.

‘(Side of the head” is a general term defining itself; it presents for consideration several
regions. The orbital or circwmorbital region, or simply the orbit (Lat. orbis, an orb, here the
socket of the eyeball; fig. 25, 3), is a small space forming a ring around the eye. It includes
the eye, and especially the eyelids (Lat. palpebre). The points where these meet, in front and
behind, respectively, are the anterior canthus and posterior canthus (Gr. xavOés, kanthos, Lat.
canthus, a tire). The orbital region is subdivided into supra-orbttal, infra-orbital, ante-orbital,
and post-orbital, according as its upper, under, front, or back portion is desired to be specially
designated. The situation of the orbit varies much in different groups of birds; it is generally
midway, as said above, but may be higher or lower, jammed on toward the bill, or pushed far
up and back, as strikingly shown in the woodeock. In owls, the orbital region is exaggerated
into a great dise of radiating feathers, conferring a “peculiar physiognomy. The aural or
auricular (Lat. awris, or auriculum, ear; fig. 25, 35) region lies about the external opening
of the ear, or meatus auditorius ; its position varies in heads of different shapes, but it nearly
always lies behind and a little below the eye. Wherever located, it may be recognized at a
glance, by the peculiar texture of the feathers (the auriculars) which overlie the meatus.
Doubtless to offer least obstacle to sound, these are a parcel of loose-webbed little plumes,
which may be collectively raised and turned forward, exposing the orifice of the ear; they are
extremely large and notable in those owls which have complicated external ear parts, and in
such they form part of the great facial disc. The term ‘‘ temporal region ” or ‘“ temple ” is not
often used in ornithology, not being well distinguished from the post-orbital space between eye
and ear, and having nothing special about it. At the lowermost back corner of the side of the
head, generally just behind and below the ear, may be seen or felt a hard protuberance ; it is
the sharpest corner-stone of the head, being the place where the lower jaw hinges upon the

7

98 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

skull. This is called the ‘angle of the jaw ; ” it is a good landmark, which must by no means
be confused with the ‘angle of the mouth,” where the horny parts of the beak come together.
The lore (Lat. lorum, a strap, or bridle; hence, place where the cheek-strap passes; fig. 25, 2)
includes pretty much all the space between the eye and the side of the base of the upper
mandible; a considerable part of it is simply ante-orbital. Thus we say of a hawk, ‘lores
bristly ;” and examination of a bird of that kind will show how large a space is covered by the
term. Lore, however, should properly be restricted to a narrow line between the eye and bill
in the direction of the nostrils. It is excellently shown in the heron and grebe families, where
“naked lores” is a distinctive character. The lore is an important place, not only from being "
thus marked in many birds, but from being frequently the seat of specially modified or specially
colored feathers. The rest of the side of the head, including the space between angle of jaw
and bill, has the name of cheek (Lat. gena, first eyelid, then, and generally, the prominence
under the eye formed by the cheek-bones; fig. 25, 36). It is bounded above by loral, infra-
orbital, and auricular regions; below, by a more or less straight line, representing the lower
edge of the bony prong of the under mandible. It is cleft in front for a varying distance by the
backward extension of the gape of the mouth; above this gape is more properly gena, or malar
region (Lat. mala, upper jaw) in strictness ; below it is jaw (maxilla), or rather “‘side of the
jaw.” The lower edge of the jaw definitely separates the side of the head from the ‘“ under
surface” of the head; properly bounded behind by an imaginary line drawn straight across froni
one angle of the jaw to the other, and running forward to a point between the forks of the
under mandible. As already hinted, ‘‘ throat” (gula ; fig. 25, 37) extends upward and forward
into this space without obvious dividing line ; it runs into chin (Lat. mentum ; fig. 25, 38), of
which it is only to be said, that it is the (varying in extent) anterior part of the under surface
of the head. Anteriorly, it may be conveniently marked off, opposite the point where the
feathers end on the side of the lower jaw, from the féathery space (when any) between the
branches of the upper mandible itself; this latter is called the interramal space (Lat. inter,
between, ramus, fork).

The head is so often marked lengthwise with different colors, apt to take such definite
position, that these lines have received special names. Median vertical line is one along the
middle of pileum, from base of bill to nucha; lateral vertical lines bound it on either side.
Suprethary line has already been noticed; below it runs the lateral stripe; that part of it
before the eye, is loral or ante-orbital ; behind the eye, post-orbital ; when these are continu-
ous through the eye, they form a trans-ocular (Lat. trans, across; oculus, eye) line ; below
this is malar line, or cheek-stripe (Lat. frenum, a bridle) ; below this, on the under jaw, mac-
wlary or submaxillary line ; in the middle below, mental or gular lines.

No part of the body has so variable a ptilosis as the head. In the great majority of birds
it is wholly and densely feathered; it ranges from this to wholly naked; but nakedness, it
should be observed, means only absence of perfect feathers, for most birds with unfeathered
heads have a hair-like growth of filoplumes on the skin. Our samples of naked-headed birds
are the turkey, the vultures, the cranes, and some of the heron tribe, as ibises. Associated with
more or less complete “ baldness,” is the frequent presence of various fleshy outgrowths, as
combs, wattles, caruncles (warty excrescences), lobes, and flaps of all sorts, even to enumerate
which would exceed our limits. The parts of the barn-yard cock exemplify the whole; among
North American birds they are very rare, being confined, in evident development at any rate,
to the wild turkey. Sometimes horny plates take the place of feathers on part of the head; as
the frontal shields of the coots and gallinules. .A very common form of head-nakedness marks
one whole order of birds, the Steganopodes, which have mentum and more or less of gula
naked, and transformed into a sort of pouch, extremely developed in the pelicans, and well seen
in the cormorants. The next commonest is definite bareness of the lores, as in all herons
and grebes ; in the former including the whole circum-orbital region. A little orbital space is

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— TOPOGRAPHY. 99

bare in many birds, as the vulturine hawks, and some pigeons; species of grouse have a bare
warty supra-orbital space. Among water-birds particularly, more or less of the interramal space
is almost always unfeathered ; the nakedness always proceeds from before backwards. With
the rare exceptions of a narrow frontal line, and a little space about the angle of the mouth, no
other special parts of the head than those above given are naked in any North American bird,
unless associated with general baldness.

The opposite condition, that of redundant feathering, gives rise to all the various crests
(Lat., pl. eriste) that form such striking ornaments of many birds. Crests proper belong to
the top of the head, but may be also held to include those growths on its side; these together
being called crests in distinction to the ruffs, ruffles, beard, ete., of gula or mentum. Crests
may be divided into two kinds: 1, where the feathers are simply lengthened or otherwise
enlarged; and 2, where the texture, and sometimes even the structure, is altered. Nearly all
birds possess the power of moving and elevating the feathers on the head, simulating a slight
crest in moments of excitement. The general form of a crest is a full, soft elongation of the
coronal feathers collectively; when perfect, such a crest is globular, as in the genus Pyro-
cephalus ; generally, however, the feathers lengthen on the occiput more than on the vertex
or front, and this gives us the simplest and commonest form. Such crests, when more par-
ticularly occipital, are usually connected with lengthening of nuchal feathers, and are likely
to be of a thin, pointed shape, as well shown in the kingfisher. Coronal or vertical crests
proper are apt to be rather different in coloration than in specially inarked elongation of the
feathers ; they are perfectly illustrated in the king-bird, and other species of the genus Tyran-
nus. Frontal crests are the most elegant of all; they generally rise as a pyramid from the
forehead, as excellently shown in the blue jay, cardinal bird, tufted titmouse, and others. All
the foregoing crests are generally single, but sometimes double; as shown in the two lateral
occipital tufts of the ‘‘ horned” lark, in all the tufted or ‘‘ horned” owls, and in a few cormo-
rants. Lateral crests are, of course, always double, one on each side of the head; they are of
various shapes, but need not be particularized here, especially since they mostly belong to the
second class of crests, — those consisting of texturally modified feathers. It is a general, though
not exclusive, character of these last that they are temporary ; while the other kind is only
changed with the general moult, these are assumed for a short period only, the breeding season ;
and, furthermore, they are often distinctive of sex. Occurring on the top of the head, they
furnish the most remarkable ornaments of birds. I need only instance the elegant helmet-like
plumes of the partridges of the genus Lophortyx ; the graceful flowing train of Oreortyx ; the
somewhat similar plumes of the night and other herons. The majority of the cormorants, and
many of the auks, possess lateral plumes of similar description ; these, and those of the herons,
are probably — in most cases certainly — deciduous ; while those of the partridges above men-
tioned last as long as the general plumage. These lateral plumes, in many birds, especially
among grebes, are associated with, and, in fact, coalesce with, the ruffs, which are singular
lengthening and modifying in different ways of feathers of auriculars, gene and gula; and are
almost always temporary. Beards, or special lengthening of the mental feathers alone, are
comparatively rare; we have no good example among our birds, but a European vulture,
Gypaétus barbatus, is one. The feathers sometimes become scaly (squamous), forming, for
instance, the exquisite gorgelets or frontlets of humming-birds. They are often bristly (seta-
ceous), as about the lores of nearly all hawks, the forehead of the dabchick, meadow-lark,
etc. A particular set of bristles, which grow in single series along the gape of many binds,
are called rictal bristles or vibrisse. These occur in greater or less development in most sinall
insectivorous birds ; they are large and stiff and highly characteristic of the family Tyrannida,
or flycatchers; while in some of the goatsuckers (Caprimulgid@) they are prodigiously long,
and in one species of that family (Antrostomus carolinensis) they have lateral filaments. While
usually all the unlengthened head-feathers point backward, they are sometimes erect, forming

100 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

a velvety pile, or they may radiate in a circle from a given point, as from the eye in most owls,
where they form a disc. ;

In the foregoing paragraph I only mention a few styles of crests, chiefly needed to be
known in the study of our birds; but should add that there are many others, with endless
modifications, among exotic birds ; to these, however, I cannot even allude by name. Peculiar-
ities of nasal feathers, and others around the base of the bill, are noticed below. Forms of crests
are illustrated by many of the figures given passim in the present work.

2. OF THE MEMBERS: THEIR PARTS AND ORGANS.

I. THE BILL.

The Bill (Lat. rostrum) is hand and mouth in one: the instrument of prehension. As
hand, it takes, holds, and carries food or other substances, and in many instances, feels ; as
mouth, it tears, cuts, or crushes, according to the nature of the substances taken ; assuming
the functions of both lips and teeth, neither of which do any recent birds possess. An organ
thus essential to the prime functions of birds, one directly related to their various modes of life,
is of much consequence in a taxonomic point of view; yet its structural modifications are so
various and so variously interrelated, that it is more important in framing genera than families
or orders; more constant characters must be employed for the higher groups. The general
shape of the bill is referable to the cone ; ‘it is the anterior part of the general cone that we
have seen to reach from its point to the base of the skull. This shape confers the greatest
strength combined with the greatest delicacy ; the end is fine to apprehend the smallest objects,
while the base is stout to manipulate the largest. But in no bird is the cone expressed with
entire precision ; and, in most, the departure from this figure is great. The bill always con-
sists of two, the upper and the lower

Mandibles (fig. 26), which lie, as their names indicate, above and below, and are sepa-
rated by a horizontal fissure, — the mouth. Each mandible always consists of certain project-
ing skull-bones, sheathed with more or less horny integument in lieu
of true skin. The frame-work of the Upper Mandible is (chiefly)
a bone called the intermaaxillary, or better, in this case, the premaz-
tllary. In general, this is a three-pronged or tripodal bone running
to a point in front, with the uppermost prong, or foot, implanted
upon the forehead, and the other two, lower and horizontal, running
into the sides of the front of the skull. The scaffold of the Under
Mandible is a compound bone called inferior maxillary ; it is U- or

Fig. 26.— Parts of a Bill.
a, side of upper mandible; },

culmen; c, nasal fossa; d,
nostril; e (see below);./, gape,
or whole commissural line; g,
rictus; 4, commissural point
or angle of the mouth; i, ra-
mus of under jaw ; j, tomia of
under mandible (the refer-
ence lines e should have been
drawn to indicate the corre-
sponding tomia of upper man-
dible): k, angle of gonys; 4,
gonys; m, side of under man-
dible; », tips of mandibles.

V-shaped, with the point or convexity in front, and the prongs run-
ning to either side of the base of the skull behind, to be there mov-
ably hinged. These two bones, with certain accessory bones of the
upper mandible, as the palate bones, etc., together with the horny
investment, constitute the Jaws. Both jaws, in birds, are movable ;
the under, by the joint just mentioned; the upper, either by a
joint at, or by the elasticity of the bones of, the forehead; it is
moved by a singular muscular and bony apparatus in the palate,
further notice of which is given beyond, under head of Anatomy
(Osteology). The motion of the upper mandible is freest and most
extensive in the parrot tribe, where both fronto-maxillary and

palato-maxillary sutures exist. When closed, the jaws meet and fit along their apposed edges
or surfaces, in the same manner and for the same purposes as the lips and teeth of man or
other vertebrate animals. All bills, thus similarly constituted, have been divided into

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— THE BILL. 101
¥.

Four Classes, representing as many ways in which the two mandibles eslose upon each
other at the end. 1. The epignathous (Gr. émi, epi, upon, yvados, gnathos, jaw) way, plan, or
type, in which the upper mandible is longer than the under, and its tip is evidently bent down
over the tip of the lower. 2. The hypognathous (Gr. id, hupo, under), in which the lower
mandible is longer than the other. 3. The paragnathous (Gr. mapa, para, at or by), in which
both are of about equal length, and neither is evidently bent over the other. 4. The metagna-
thous (Gr. perd, meta, with, beside, etc.), in which the points of the mandibles cross each
other. The second and fourth of these are extremely rare; they are exemplified, respectively,
by the skimmer and the cross-bill (genera Rhynchops and Loxia). The first is common,
occurring throughout the birds of prey, the parrots, and among the petrels, gulls, etc., ete.
The great majority of birds exhibit the third; and, among them, there is such evident grada-
tion into epignathism, that it is necessary to restrict the latter to its complete development,
exhibited in the intermaxillary bone divested of its horny sheath, which often, as among fly-
catchers, etc., forms a little overhanging point, but does not constitute epignathism. These
_classes, it atiguld be added, though always applicable, and very convenient in descriptions, are
purely arbitrary, that is, they by no means correspond to any four large groups of birds ; but,
on the contrary, usually only mark families and the subdivisions of families; and the four
types may be seen in contiguous genera. The general shape of the bill has also furnished

Other Classes, for many years used as a large basis for ornithological classification, even
for the establishment of orders; but which the progress of the science has shown to: be merely
as convenient as, and only less arbitrary than, the foregoing. The principal of these are
represented by the following types: A, among land birds. 1. The fisstrostral (Lat. fissus,
cleft, and rostrum), or cleft, in which the bill is small, short, and with a very large gap run-
ning down the side of the head; as in the swallow, chimney-swift, whippoorwill. 2. The
tenuirostral (Lat. tenuis, slender), or slender, in which the bill is small, long, and with a short
cleft ; as in the humming-bird, creeper, nuthatch. 3. The dentirostral (Lat. dens, a tooth),
or toothed, in which, with a various general shape, there is present a nick, tooth, or evident
lobe in the opposed edges of one or both mandibles near the end; as in the shrike, vireo, and
some wrens, thrushes, and warblers. 4. The conirostral (Lat. conus, a cone), or conical, suffi-
ciently defined by its name, and illustrated by the great finch family and some allied ones. —
_ B, among water birds. 5. The longirostral (Lat. longus, long), or long, an aquatic style of
the tenuirostral, best exhibited in the great snipe family. 6. The pressirostral (Lat. pressus,
pressed), or the compact, illustrated by the plovers, etc., and quite likely analogous to the
conirostral. 7. The cultrirostral (Lat. culter, a knife), cutting, perhaps analogous to the
dentirostral, exemplified in the heron group. None of these terms are now used to indicate
natural groups, nor have we such absurdities as the “‘ orders” Fissirostres, Tenuirostres, ete.
A swallow, for instance, and a swift ave equally fissirostral, though only distantly related to
each other; a swift is very closely related to a humming-bird, though the latter is extremely.
tenuirostral; and birds of contiguous genera may be dentirostral or not. The words are
nevertheless convenient incidental terms in general descriptions. Various other similar terms,
expressing special modifications, as lamellirostral (Lat. lamella, a plate), acutirostral (Lat.
acutus, sharp), etc., are also employed as common names, simply descriptive of

Other Forms. — A bill is called long, when notably longer than the head proper ; short,
when notably shorter ; medium, in neither of these conditions. It is compressed, when higher
than wide, at the base at least, and generally for some portion of its length; depressed, when
wider than high ; terete (Lat. teres, cylindric), under neither of these conditions. It is recurved,
when curved upward ; decurved, when curved downward; bent, when the variation in either
direction is at an angle; straight, when not out of line with the axis of the head. A bill is

102 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

obtuse (said chiefly of the paragnathous sort) when it rapidly comes to an end that therefore
is not fine; or when the end is knobby; it is acwte when it runs to a sharp point; acuminate,
when equally sharp and slenderer ; attenuate, when still slenderer; subulate (awl-shaped),
when slenderer still; acicwlar (needle-shaped), when slenderest possible, as in some humminl-
birds. A Dill is arched, vaulted, turgid, tumid, imflated, etc., when its outlines, both crosswise
and lengthwise, are notably more or less convex ; and contracted, when some, or the principal,
outlines are concave (said chiefly of depressions about the base of the upper mandible, or of
concavity along the sides of both mandibles). A bill is hamulate (Lat. hamus, a hook), or
unguiculate (Lat. wngwis, a claw), when strongly epignathous, as in rapacious birds, where
the upper mandible is like the talon of q carnivorous beast; it is dentate, when toothed, as in
a falcon ; if there are a number of similar ‘‘ teeth,” it is serrate (Lat. serra, a saw), like a saw;
it is cultrate (knife-like), when extremely compressed and sharp-edged, as in the auk, skimmer ;
if much curved as well as cultrate, it is falcate (Lat. falx, a reaping-hook ; seythe-shaped) ;
and each mandible may be oppositely faleate, as in the cross-bill, coustituting metagnathism.
A bill much flattened and widened at the end (rare) is spatulate (Lat. spatula, a spoon) ;
examples: spoonbill, shoveller duck. One is called lamellate, when it has a series of plates
or processes just inside the edges of the mandibles; as in all the duck order, and in a few
petrels ; the design is to furnish a sifter or strainer of water, just what is effected in the whale,
by the “bone” in its mouth. Finally, the far end of the bill, of whatever shape, is called the
tip or apex (fig. 26, »); the near end, joined to the rest of the skull, the base ; the rest is the
continuity. Some other features of the bill as a whole are best treated under separate head of

The Covering of the Bill.—(a.) In the great majority of birds, including nearly all
perchers, many-walkers, and some waders and swimmers, the sheathing of the mandibles is
wholly hard, horny, or corneous (Lat. cornu, a horn) ; it is integument modified much as in
the case of the nails or claws of beasts. In nearly all waders and most swimmers, the sheath
becomes, wholly or partly, softer, and is of a dense, leathery texture. But some swimmers, as
among the auks, furnish bills as hard-covered as any, while some perchers have it partly quite
soft, so that no unexceptional rule can be laid down; and, moreover, the gradations from one
extreme to the other are insensible. Probably the softest bill is found among the snipes, where
it is skinny throughout, and in typical snipes and woodcocks vascular and nervous at the tip,
becoming a true organ of touch, used to feel for worms out of sight in the mud. In all the duck
order the bill is likewise soft; but there it is always terininated by a hard, horny, wngwis or
“nail,” more or less distinct ; and such a horny claw also occurs in other water birds with softish
bills, as the pelican. An interesting modification occurs in all, or nearly all, of the pigeon order ;
these birds have the bill hard or hardish at tip and through most of continuity, but towards
and at the base of the upper mandible the sheath changes to a soft, tumid, skinny texture,
overarching the nostrils; it is much the same with most plovers. But the most important
feature in this connection is afforded by the parrots and all the birds of prey; one so remarkable
that it has received a distinct name: CrrE. The cere (Lat. cera, wax; because it looks
waxy) is a dense membrane saddled on the upper mandible at base, so different from the rest
of the bill, that it might be questioned whether it does not more properly belong to the head than
to the bill, were it not for the fact that the nostrils open in it. Moreover, the cere is often
densely feathered, as in the Carolina paroquet, in the bill proper of which no nostrils are seen, |
these being hidden in the feathered cere, which, therefore, night easily be mistaken at first sight
for the bird’s forehead. A sort of false cere occurs in some water birds, as the jaegers, or skua-
gulls (genus Stercorarius). The tumid nasal skin of pigeons is sometimes called a cere; but
the term had better be restricted to the birds first above named. The under mandible probably
never presents softening except as a part of general skinniness of the bill; it may have a nail
at the end. (b.) The covering is either entire or pieced. In most. birds it is entire ; that is, the

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— THE BILL. 103

sheath of either mandible may be pulled off whole, like the finger of a glove. It is, however,
in many birds divided ‘into parts, by various lines of slight connection, and then comes off in
pieces ; as is the case with some water birds, particularly petrels, where the divisions are regu-
lgr, and the pieces have received distinctive names. Many auks (Alcide) have the covering
of the bill in particular pieces, and it is an extraordinary fact that such parts are of a secondary
sexual character (see p. 90), being assumed at the breeding season and afterwards moulted
like feathers. Such condition of the sheath of the beak, or of special developments of the
sheath, is called caducous or-deciduous. The entire covering of both jaws together is called
rhamphotheca (Gr. pappos, hramphos, beak; Ojxn, theke, a sheath); of the upper alone,
rhinotheca (Gr. pis, hris, the nose) ; of the under, gnathotheca (Gr. yrados, gnathos, jaw) ; but
these terms are not much used. (c.) The covering is otherwise variously marked; sometimes
so strongly that similar features are impressed upon the bones themselves beneath. The most
frequent marks are various ridges (Lat. pl. carine, keels) of all lengths and degrees of expres-
sion, straight or curved, vertical, oblique, horizontal, lengthwise, or transverse; a bill so
marked is said to be striate (Lat. stria, a streak) or carinate ; when numerous and irregular,
they are called rug@ (Lat. ruga, a wrinkle) and the Dill is said to be corrugated or rugose,
When the elevations are in points or spots instead of lines, they are called puncta (Lat. punc-
tum, a point) ; a bill so furnished is punctate, but the last word is oftener employed to designate
the presence of little pits or depressions, as in the dried bill of a snipe towards the end. Larger
softish, irregular knobs or elevations pass under the general name of warts or papilla, and a
bill so marked is papillose ;- when the processes are very large and soft, the bill is said to be
carunculate (Lat. caro, flesh, diminutive carunculus, little bit of flesh). Various linear depres-
sions, often but not always associated with caring, are grooves or sulci (Lat. sulcus, a furrow)
and the bill is then called sulcate. Sulci, like carine, are of all shapes, sizes, and positions ;
when very large and definite, they are sometimes called canaliculi, or channels. The various
knobs, “horns,” and large special features of the bill cannot be here particularized. Any of
the foregoing features may occur on both mandibles, and they are exclusive of that special
mark of the upper the nasal fossa in which the nostrils open, and which is considered below.
We have still to notice the special parts of either mandible; and will begin with the
simplest, the

Under Mandible..— Jn the majority of birds it is a little shorter and a little narrower and
not nearly so deep as the upper; but sometimes quite as large, or even larger. The upper
edge, double (7. e., there is an edge on both sides), is called the mandibular tomium, or in the
plural, tomia (Gr. réuvew, temnein, to cut; fig. 26,7), as far as it is hard; this is received
against, and usually « little within, the corresponding edge of the upper mandible. The
prongs already mentioned are the mandibular rami (pl. of Lat. ramus, a branch; fig. 26, 4) ;
these meet at some point in front, either at a short angle (like >) or with a rounded joining
(ike). At their point of union there is a prominence, more or less marked (fig. 26, &) ;
this is the Gonys (corrupted from the Gr. ydvv, gonu, a knee; hence, any similar protuber-
ance). That is to say, this point is gonys proper; but the term is extended to apply to the
whole line of union of the rami, from gonys proper to the tip of the under mandible; and in
descriptions it means, then, the wnder outline of the bill for a corresponding distance (fig. 26, 7).
This important term must be understood; it is constantly used in describing birds. The
gonys is to the under mandible what the keel is to a boat; it is the opposite of the ridge or
culmen of the upper mandible. It varies greatly in length. Ordinarily it forms, say, one-
half to three-fourths of the under outline. Sometimes, as in conirostral birds, a sparrow for
example, it represents nearly all this outline ; while in a few birds it makes the whole, and in
some, as the puffin, is actually longer than the lower mandible proper, because it extends back-
wards in a point. Other birds may have almost no gonys at all; as a pelican, where the rami

104 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

only meet at the extreme tip, or in the whole duck family, where there is hardly more. As
the student must see, the length of the gonys is simply a matter of how extensive is the fusion
of the rami, and that, similarly, their mode of fusion, as in a sharp ridge, a flat surface, a
straight line, a curve, ete., results in corresponding modifications of its special shape. The
interramal space is complementary to length of gonys: sometimes it runs to the tip of the bill,
as in a pelican, sometimes there is next to none, as in a puffin; while its width depends upon
the degree of divergence, and the straightness or curvature, of the rami. The surface between
the tomium and lower edge of rami and gonys together is the side of the under mandible
(fig. 26, m). The most important feature of the

Upper Mandible is the cudmen (Lat. for top of anything ; fig. 26, b). The culmen is to
the upper mandible what the ridge is to the roof of a house; it is the upper profile of the bill
—the highest middle lengthwise line of the bill ; it begins where the feathers end on the fore-
head, and extends to the tip of the upper mandible. According to the shape of the bill it may
be straight or convex, or concave, or even somewhat w-shaped; or double-convex, as in the
tufted puffin: but in the great majority of cases it is convex, with increasing convexity towards
the tip. Sometimes it rises up into a thin elevated crest, as well shown in the genus Cro-
tophaga, and in the puffins (Fratercula), when the upper mandible is said to be keeled, and the
culmen itself to be cudtrate ; sometimes it is really a furrow instead of a ridge, as toward the
end of a snipe’s bill; but generally it is simply the uppermost line of union of the gently con-
vex and sloping sides of the upper mandible (fig. 26, a). Ina great many birds, especially
those with depressed bill, as all the ducks, there is really no culmen; but then the median
lengthwise line of the surface of the upper mandible takes the place and name of culmen.
The culmen generally stops short about opposite the proper base of the bill; then the feathers
sweep across its end, and downwards across the base of the sides of the upper mandible,
usually also obliquely backwards. Variations in both directions from this standard are
frequent; the feathers may run out in a point on the culmen, shortening the latter, or the
culmen may run a way up the forehead, parting the feathers; either in a point, as in the rails
and gallinaceous birds, or as a broad plate of horn, as in the coots and gallinules. The lower
edge (double) of the upper mandible is the mawillary tomium, as far backward as it is hard *
and horny. The most conspicuous feature of the upper mandible in most birds is the

Nasal Fossa (Lat. fossa, a ditch), or nasal groove (fig. 26, c), in which the nostrils open.
The upper prong of the intermaxillary bone is usually separated some ways from the two
lateral prongs; the skinny or horny sheath that stretches betwixt them is usually sunken
below the general level of the Dill, especially in those birds where the prongs are long or
widely separated; this ‘ ditch” is what we are about. It is called fossa when short and wide,
with varying depth ; sulcus or groove when long and narrow; the former is well illustrated in
the gallinaceous birds; the latter in nearly all wading birds and many swimmers. When the
intermaxillary prongs are soldered throughout, or are very short and close together, there is
no (or no evident) nasal depression, the nostrils then opening flush with the level of the
bill. The

Nostrils (fig. 26, @), two in number, vary in position as follows :— they are lateral, when
on the sides of the upper mandible (almost always) ; cvlminal, when together on the ridge
(rare) ; superior or inferior when evidently above or below midway betwixt culmen and tomia;
they are basal, when at the base of the upper mandible; swb-basal when near it (usual);
median when at or near the middle of the upper mandible (frequent, as in cranes, geese, etc.) ;
terminal when beyond this (very rare; probably there are now no birds with nostrils at the
end of the bill, except the Apteryx). The nostrils are pervious, when open, as in nearly all

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE BILL. 105

birds ; tmpervious, when not visibly open, as among cormorants and other birds of the same
order ; they are perforate when there is no septum (partition) between them, so that you can
look through them from one side of the bill to the other, as in the turkey-buzzard, crane, etc. ;
imperforate when partitioned off from each other, as in most birds; but different ornithologists
use these terms interchangeably. The principal shapes of the nostrils may be thus exhibited:
—a line, linear nostrils; a line variously enlarged at either end, clavate, club-shaped, oblong,
ovate nostrils; a line, enlarged in the middle, oval or elliptic nostrils; this passing insensibly
into the circle, rownd or circular nostrils ; and the various kinds of more or less linear nostrils
may be either longitudinal, as in most birds, or oblique, as in a few; almost never directly
transverse (up and down). Rounded nostrils may have a raised border or rum ; when this is
prolonged they are called tubular, as in some of the goatsucker family, and in all the petrels.
Usually, the nostrils are defined entirely by the substance surrounding them; thus, of cere, in a
hawk ; of softish skin, in a pigeon, plover or snipe; or of horn, in most birds; but often their
contour is partly formed by a special development, somewhat distinct either in form or texture,
and this is called the nasal scale. Generally, it forms a sort of overhanging arch or portico,
as well shown in all the gallinaceous birds, among the wrens, etc. A very curious case of
this is seen in the European wryneck (Iynx torquilla), where the scale forms the floor instead
of the roof of the nostrils. The nostrils also vary in being feathered or naked; the nasal fossa
being a place where the frontal feathers are apt to run out in points (called antie), embracing
the root of the culmen. This extension may completely fill and hide the fossa, as in many
grouse and ptarmigan; but it oftener runs for a varying distance toward, or above and beyond,
the nostrils ; sometimes similarly below them, as in a chimney-swift ; and the nostrils may be
densely feathered when there is no evident fossa, as in an auk. When thus truly feathered in
varying degree, they are still open to view; another condition is, their being covered over
and hidden by modified feathers not growing on the bill itself, but on the forehead. These
are usually bristle-like (setaceous), and form two tufts, close-pressed and directed forwards, as
is perfectly shown in a crow; or, the feathers may be less modified in texture, and form either
two tufts, one over each nostril, or a single ruff, embracing the whole base of the upper
mandible; as in nuthatches, titmice, red-poll linnets, snow buntings and many other northern
Fringillide. Bristles or feathers thus growing forwards are called retrorse (Lat. retrorsum,
backward ; here used in the sense of im an opposite direction from the lay of the general
plumage; but they should properly be called antrorse, i. e., forward). The nostrils, whether
culminal or lateral, are, like the eyes and ears, always two in number, though they may be
united in one tube, as in the petrels.

The Gape. —It only remains to consider what results from the relations of the two
mandibles to each other. When the bill is opened, there is a cleft or fissure between them ;
‘this is the gape or rictus (Lat. rictus, mouth in the act of grinning). But while thus really
meaning the open space between the mandibles, it is generally used to signify the line of their
closure. Commissure (Lat. committere, to put or join together) means the point where’ the
gape ends behind, that is, the angle of the mouth, angulus oris, where the apposed edges of the
mandibles join each other; but, as in the last case, it is loosely applied to the whole line of
closure, from true commissure to tip of the bill. So we say, “‘ commissure straight,” or ‘‘ com-
missure curved; ” also, ‘‘ commissural edge” of either mandible (equivalent to ‘‘ tomial edge”)
in distinction from culmen or gonys. But it would be well to have more precision in this
matter. Let, then, tomia (fig. 26, j) be the true cutting edges of either maudible from tip to
opposite base of bill proper; rictus (fig. 26, g) be their edges thence to the POINT commis-
sure (fig. 26, h) where they join when the bill is open; the LiInE commissure (fig. 26, f) to
include both when the bill is closed. The gape is straight, when rictus and tomia are both
straight and lie in the same line ; curved, sinuate, when they lie in the same curved or waved

/

106 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

line ; angulated, when they are straight, or nearly so, but do not lie in the same line, and
therefore meet at an angle. (An important distinction. See under family Fringillide in the

Synopsis.)

Il. THE WINGS.

Definition. — Pair of anterior or pectoral limbs organized for flight by means of dermal
outgrowths. Used for this purpose by birds in general; but by ostriches and their allies only

D

Fie. 27.— Bones of right wing of a duck, Clangula islandica, from above,
Zuat. size. (Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S.A.) 4, shoulder, omos; B, elbow, ancon ;
C, wrist, carpus ; D, end of principal finger ; Z, end of hand proper, metacarpus.
AB, upper arm, brachium; BC, fore-arm, antibrachium; CD, whole hand
or pinion, manus; composed of CE, hand proper or metacarpus, excepting d ?;
ED, br ad? d3, a4, fingers, digits, digiti. h, humerus; rd, radius ; ul, ulna; sc,
outer carpal, scapholunare or radiale; cu, inner carpal, cuneiforme or ulnare;
these two composing wrist or carpus. mc, the compound hand-bone, or meta-
carpus,composed of three metacarpal bones, bearing as many digits — the outer
digit seated upon a protuberance at the head of the metacarpal, the other two
situated at the end of the bone. «2, the outer or radial digit, commonly called
the thumb or pollex, composed of two phalanges; a8, the middle digit, of two
phalanges; d4, the inner or ulnar digit, of one phalanx d?is the seat of the
feathers of the bastard wing or alula. D to C(whole pinion), seat of the flight-
feathers called primaries; C to B (fore-arm), seat of the secondaries ; at B and
above it in direction of A, seat of tertiarics proper; below A, in direction of B,
seat of scapularies (upon pteryla humeralis), often called tertiaries. The wing
shown half-spread: complete extension would bring A BCD into aright line;
in complete folding C goes to 4, and D to B; all these motions nearly in the
plane of the paper. The elbow-joint and wrist are such perfect hinges, that, in
opening or closing the wing, C cannot sink below the paper, nor D fly up above
the paper, as would otherwise be the effect of the pressure of the air upon the
flight-feathers. Observe also: rd and ul are two rods connecting Band C; the
construction of their jointing at Band C, and with each other, is such, that they
can slide lengthwise a little upon each other. Now when the point C, revolving
about B, approaches Ain the arc of a circle, rd pushes on sc, while ul pulls back
cu; the notion is transmitted to D, and makes this point approach B. Con-
versely, in opening the wing, rd pulls back sc, and wi pushes on cu, making D
recede from B. In other words, the angle A B C cannot be increased or dimin-
ished without similarly increasing or diminishing the angle B C D; so that no
part of the wing can be opened or shut without automatically opening or shut-
ting the rest,— an interesting mechanism by which muscular power is corre-
Jated and economized. ‘This latter mechanism is further illustrated in fig. 28,
where rc and ue show respectively the size, shape and position of the radial con-
dyle and ulnar condyle of the humerus. It is evident that in the flexed state of
the elbow, as shown in the middle figure, the radius, rd, is so pushed upon that
its end projects beyond wl, the ulna; while in the opposite condition of extension,
shown in the lower figure, rd is pulled back to a corresponding extent.

as outriggers to aid running;
by penguins as fins for swim-
ming under water; used also
in the latter capacity by some
birds that fly well, as divers,
cormorants, dippers. Want-
ing in no recent birds, but
imperfect in a few, as’ all
Ratite ; greatly reduced in
the Emeu, Cassowary, and
Apteryx; also in the Moas
(Dinornis) ; in the Creta-
ceous Hesperornis only the
rudimentary humerus is
known.
their structure we must
notice particularly

The Bony Framework
(figs. 27, 28, 29). — The
skeleton of a bird’s wing is
built upon a plan common
to the fore or pectoral limb
of all the higher vertebrates,
so that its bones and joints
may readily be compared
and. identified with those
of any lizard or mammal,
including man. But the
member is highly special-
ized; being fitted for accom-
plishing flight, not only by
the development of feathers,
but also by modifications in
the bones themselves. The
axes of the bones have a
special direction with refer-
ence to each other and to
the axes of the body; the
movements of the joints are
peculiar in some respects;
and the whole extremity of
the wing, from the wrist
outward, is peculiarly con-

To understand °

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE WINGS. 107

structed, by loss of some of the digits that five-fingered animals possess, and by the compres-
sion of those that are left. The wing proper begins at the shoulder-joint, where it hinges
freely upon the’ shoulder, in a shallow socket formed conjointly by the shoulder-blade or
scapula, and by the coracoid
bone; these two, with the
clavicles, collar-bones or mer-
ry-thought, furculum, form-
ing the shoulder-girdle, or
pectoral arch (figs. 56, 59).
The wing ordinarily con-
sists,’in adult life, of ten or }
eleven actually separate bones ;
in the embryo (see fig. 29)
there are indications of several
more at the wrist-joint, which
speedily lose their individual
identity by fusing together
and with bones of the hand.

Aside from these, there is S
often an accessory ossicle at Fie. 28.— Mechanism of elbow-joint. (See explanation of tig. 27.)

the shoulder-joint (fig. 56, ohs), sometimes one at the wrist-joint, occasionally an extra bone at
the end of the principal finger. The normal or usual number is shown in fig. 27, taken from
a duck (Clangula islandica), in which there are eleven.

The upper arm-bone, h, reaching from the shoulder A
to the elbow B, is the humerus. In the closed wing, the
humerus lies nearly in the position of the same bone in man
when the elbow is against the side of the body; in extension
of the wing, the elbow is borne away from the body, as when
we raise the arm, but carry it neither forward nor backward.
A peculiarity of the bird’s humerus is, that it is rotated on
its axis through about the quadrant of a circle, so that what
is the front of the human bone is the outer aspect in the
bird. The humerus is a cylindric bone, straightish or some-
what italic f-shaped, with a globular head to fit the socket
of the shoulder, a strong pectoral ridge for insertion of the
breast muscles, and at the bottom two condyles (fig. 28, re,
uc,) or joint-surfaces for articulation with a pair of succeed-
ing bones. The fore-arm, cubit or antibrachium, extending
from elbow to wrist, B to C, in fig. 27, has two parallel
bones of about equal lengths. These are the ulna, ul, and
the radius, rd; the former, inner and posterior, the larger
of the two, bearing the quills of the secondary series ; the

Zr. we latter, slenderer, outer and anterior. The enlarged proximal

extremity of the ulna is called the olecranon, or “head of the

Fig. 29, from a young grouse (Centrocercus wrophasianus, six months old), is designed to show the composi-
tion of the carpus and metacarpus before the elements of these bones fuse together: r, radius; u, ulna; s, scaph-
olunar or radiale; ¢, cuneiform or ulnare; om, a carpal bone believed to he os magnum, later fusing with the
metacarpus; z, 2 carpal bone, supposed to be unciform, later fusing with metacarpus; 8, an unidentified fifth
carpal bone, which may be called pentosteon, later fusing with the metacarpus; 7, radial or outer metacarpal
bone, bearing the pollex or outer digit, consisting of two phalanges, d and /; 91, principal (median) metacarpal
bone, bearing the middle finger, consisting of the two phalanges, d/, d// ; 9, inner or ulnar metacarpal, bearing a
digit of one phalanx, d///, The pieces marked om, z, 7, 8, 9. all fuse with 9’. (From nature by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt,
U.S. A.)

108 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

elbow.” The third segment of the wing is the wrist or carpus. In adult life, this normally
consists of two little knobby carpal bones, extremely irregular in shape,called the scapholunar,
sc, and cuneiform, cu. One being at the end of the radius, the other at that of the ulna, they
are also called radiale and ulmare. In the embryo, there is at least another carpal bone, that
early fuses with the next segment. This fourth segment is the hand proper, or metacarpus,
me, C to E (exclusive of d 2). The single metacarpal or hand-bone is very composite; that
is, compounded of several; for, besides including certain carpal elements, as already said, it
consists of three bones fused (in all recent birds) in one, corresponding to the three digits or
fingers that birds possess. In fact it is three metacarpals in one. The metacarpal corre-
sponding to the principal finger is much the largest of the three; that of the first finger is very
short, being only the expanded part seen in the figure just above the bone marked d 2; that
of the third finger is nearly as long as the main metacarpal, but much slenderer, and usually
fused only at its two ends, leaving between itself and the main metacarpal a considerable
space, as seen opposite the letters me in the figure. The wing is finished off with three
fingers or digits, marked d 2, d3, d4. The middle one of these, EH tv D in the figure, is
much the largest, and forms the main continuation of the hand. This digit, d 3, ordinarily
consists of two bones, called phalanges, placed end to end, as in the example before us; but
occasionally there is found a third phalanx. The outer or radial digit, d2, ordinarily con-
sists of two bones, of which the terminal one is small, and may be wanting. The inner or
ulnar digit, d4, consists of a single small phalanx, closely bound to the side of the middle
finger. Corresponding to the compactness and consolidation of these terminal segments, the
digits enjoy little individual motion. The outer or radial digit is the most independent one.
In the Archeopteryx the three metacarpals were free bones, and the whole hand more like
that of a lizard. No bird now has free metacarpals in adult life; none has more than three
digits. These three are supposed by some to correspond to the thumb and fore and middle
fingers of our hands; by others, to the fore, middle, and ring fingers, and being consequently
the second, third, and fourth digits, as marked in the figure. The digit marked d@ 2 is com-
monly called a bird’s thumb or pollex. The Apteryx and the cassowary have but one complete
digit. The resemblance to a lizard’s or quadruped’s digits is increased by the claws which
many birds possess. These may be borne on the enlarged terminal phalanx of d 2 (fk, in
fig. 29), as is very well shown in the turkey-buzzard and other American Cathartide ; both on
this and on the terminal phalanx of d 3 (d” in fig. 29), as in the ostrich: on the latter alone,
as in the Apteryx, cassowary, American ostrich, and swan. The inner finger, d 4 (d@’” in
fig. 29) is not known to ever bear a claw, excepting in Arch@opteryr. The whole segment,
C to D, is commonly called “‘ the hand,” “ pinion,” or manus, though, as we have seen, it consists
of hand proper (metacarpus), and fingers (digits) with their respective phalanges. (Fig. 112 ter.)

Some other bones are observed in birds’ wings. As already said, there is a little ossicle in
the shoulder-joint of many birds ; it is called the scapula accessoria (fig. 56, ohs). At the con-
vexity of the elbow there may be one or more ossicles, not pertaining properly to the wing-
skeleton, but developed in the tendons of muscles passing over the joint: they are sesamoids,
like the human patella, or knee-cap. In various birds there is found at the convexity of the
wrist, on the head of the metacarpal, an ossicle called the os prominens ; apparently a
sesamoid. Some other ossicles observed in the wrists of young birds are all supposed to be
earpal elements, the exact homologies of which may be still questioned.

The Mechanism of these Bones is admirable. The shoulder-joint is free, much like
our own, permitting the humerus to swing all about ; though the principal motions are to and
from the side of the body (adduction and abduction), and up and down in a vertical plane.
The elbow-joint is a very strict hinge, permitting motion in one plane, nearly that of the wing
itself. The finger-bones have little individual motion. The construction of the wrist-joint is

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE WINGS. 109

quite peculiar. In the first place the two bones of the forearm are so fixed in relation to each
other, that the radius cannot roll over the ulna, like ours. If you stretch your arm upon the
table, you can, without moving the elbow, turn the hand over so that either the palm or the
knuckles are downward. This is a rotary motion of the bones of the forearm, called pronation
and supination ; the prone when the palm touches the table, supine when the knuckles are
downward. This rotation is absent from the bird’s arm; if it could occur, the action of the air
upon the pinion-feathers would throw them all “at sea” during the strokes of the wing, render-
ing flight difficult or impossible. The hingeing of the hand upon the wrist is such, also, that the
hand does not move up and down, as ours can, in a plane perpendicular to the surface of the
wing, but in the same plane as that surface. The motion is that which would take place in our
hand if we could bring the little finger and its border of the hand so far around as to touch the
corresponding border of the forearm. It is a motion of adduction, not of flexion, and its opposite,
abduction, not extension, by which a wing is folded and spread. Such abduction is the way in
which the hand is ‘‘ extended” upon the wrist-joint, increasing and completing the unfolding
of the wing that begins by the true extension of the forearm upon the elbow and abduction of
the upper arm from the body. In a word, a wing is spread by the motion of abduction at the
shoulder and wrist, of extension at the elbow; it is closed by adduction at the shoulder and
wrist, and flexion at the elbow. The numerous muscles which unfold or straighten out the
wing are called extensors ; those that bend or close it are flezors. Extensors lie upon the back
of the upper arm, and the front of the forearm and hand, their “leaders” or tendons passing
over the convexities of the elbow and of the wrist. The flexors occupy the opposite sides of the
limb, with tendons in the concavities of the joints. The most powerful muscles of the wings
are the great pectoral or breast muscles, acting upon the upper end of the humerus; there are
several of them, exerted in throwing out the arm from the body, and in giving both the up and
down wing-strokes. Tendons are generally strong inelastic cords ; but there is an interesting
arrangement of an elastic cord in a bird’s wing. In fig. 27, 4 BC is adeep angle formed by
the naked bones, but none such is visible from the exterior, because the space is filled by a
fold of skin passing from C to near A. But C approaches and recedes from A as the wing
is folded or unfolded, and a cord long enough to reach A—C would be slack in the folded wing,
did not its elasticity enable it to contract and stretch, keeping the anterior border of the wing
. straight'and smooth. (For another automatic mechanism, see explanation of fig. 28.) _

The point C is a highly important landmark in practical ornithology ; it represents, in
any folded wing, a very prominent point, the distance from which to the tip of the longest
flight-feather is a special measurement known as that of ‘‘ the wing.” It is the convexity of
the carpus, commonly called the ‘‘ carpal angle,” or ‘‘ bend of the wing.” Having thus glanced
at the bony structure and mechanism of the wing, we are ready to examine the

Feathers of the Wing (fig. 30). — How important these are will be evident from the
consideration that they are the bird’s chief organs of locomotion ; for without them the wing
would be useless for flight. We also remember that such means of locomotion is the great
specialty of birds. Wing-feathers are those which grow upon the pteryla alaris. They are
of two, main sorts: the flight-feathers proper, or long stiff quills, collectively called remiges
(Lat. remesx, pl. remiges, rowers) ; and the smaller, weaker feathers overlying them, and hence
called coverts, or tectrices (Lat. tectrix, pl. tectrices, coverers). To these may be added as a
third distinct group the bastard quills, which constitute the

- Alula, or Ala Spuria (Lat. alula, little wing, diminutive of ala, wing ; spuria, spurious,
bastard). The ‘‘little wing” is simply the small parcel of feathers which grow upon the
‘‘thumb” (see fig. 27,d2; 29,dandk; 30, al). Highly significant as these may be in a mor-
phological point of view, as representing what this part of the wing may have been in early times,

110 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

they are so much reduced in modern birds as to be of little account in practical ornithology.
Tn fact, the unpractised student may fail to recognize them at first. They form a small packet
on the fore outer border of the pinion near the carpal angle, and lie smoothly upon the upper
surface of the wing, strengthening and finishing off what would be otherwise a weak spot in
the contour of the wing-border. It is quite easy, on recognizing them, to lift them collectively
a little away from the other feathers, owing to the slight mobility the thumb possesses. In fact,
they are sometimes quite obtrusive, when faulty taxidenny has discomposed them. They are
not often conspicuously modified either in size or color. In a few birds (e.g., Cathartes), a claw
will be found at the end of the joint which bears them. The student must be careful to dis-
criminate between the use of the word spurious in the present connection and its application
to a rudimentary condition of the first remex (see p. 113). The

Wing-Coverts overlie the bases of the large quills on both the upper and under surfaces
of the wing. They are therefore conveniently divided into an upper set (tectrices superiores)
and an under set (tect. inferiores). The former are so much more conspicuous than the latter
that they are always under-
stood when ‘‘ upper” is not
specified. The latter are
sometimes collectively called
‘‘the lining of the wings.”
Coverts include all the small
feathers of the wings except-
ing the bastard quills; they
extend a varying distance
along the bases of the flight-
feathers. The ordinary dis-
position and division of the
upper coverts is as follows :
One set, rather long and stif-
fish, grow upon the pinion,
and are close-pressed upon
the bases of the outer nine
or ten remiges, covering
these large feathers about as
far as their structure is plumulaceous. These are the upper PRIMARY coverts, or coverts of the
primaries (fig. 30, yc) ; they are ordinarily the least conspicuous of any. All the rest of the
upper coverts are SECONDARY; they spring mostly from the forearm. These are considered in
three groups or rows. The greater upper secondary coverts, called simply the ‘greater coverts”
(tectrices majores, fig. 30, gsc,) are the first, outermost, longest row, reaching nearest the tips of
the flight-feathers; they overlie the bases of nearly all the remiges, excepting the first nine or
ten. The median upper secondary coverts, shortly known as the ‘‘ middle coverts ” (tectrices
media), are a next row, shorter and therefore less exposed, but still quite evidently forming a
special series (fig. 30, msc). It is a common feature of these median coverts that they shingle
over each other contrary-wise to the way the greater coverts are imbricated, the outer vane of
one being under the inner vane of the next outer one. All the rest of the upper secondary
coverts, forming several indistinguishable rows, pass under the general name of lesser coverts
(tecivices minores ; fig. 30, bc). The greater coverts furnish an excellent zodlogical character }
for in no Passeres ure they more than half as long as the remiges they cover, while the reverse
is the case in most birds of lower orders. "Woodpeckers, however, though non-passerine, have
quite short coverts. The under coverts have the same general arrangement as the upper; but

Fig. 30. — Feathers of a sparrow’s wing; nat. size. (For explanation see text.)

|
:

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE WINGS. 111

they are more alike and less distinctly disposed in rows or series; so that for practical purposes
they pass under the general name of under wing-coverts, or lining of the wing. Since, when
the wing is particularly marked on the under side, it is the coverts and not the remiges that are
highly or variously colored, the common expression ‘‘ wing below,” or “ under surface of the
wing,” refers to the coverts more particularly. We should distinguish, however, from the under
coverts in general, the axillars, or axillary feathers (Lat. axilla, the arm-pit). These are the
innermost feathers lining the wings, lying close to the body; almost always longer, stiffer,
narrower, or otherwise peculiarly modified. In ducks, for example, and many of the waders,
as snipe and plover, they are remarkably well developed. The color of the axillaries is the
principal distinction between some species of plovers. The

Remiges, or Flight-Feathers (fig. 30, b, s, and ¢),give the wing its general character,
mainly determining both its size and its shape; they represent most of its surface and of its
inner and outer borders, and all of its posterior outline, forming a great expansion of which the
bony and fleshy framework is insignificant in comparison. The shape of the wing is indeed
primarily affected by the relative lengths of its bony segments, the upper arm being, in a
humming-bird, for example, very short in comparison with the terminal portion of the limb,
and in an albatross again, both upper and forearm being greatly lengthened ; still in any case
it is the Hight-feathers that mainly determine the coutour of the wing, by their absolute degree
of development, their lengths proportionately to one another, and their individual shapes. They
collectively form a thin, elastic, flattened surface for striking the air, quite firm along the front
border where the bone and muscle lie, thence growing more mobile and resilient toward the
posterior border and along the outer edge. Such surface may be quite flat, as in such birds as
cut the air with long, pointed wings, like oar-blades ; but it is generally a little concave under-
neath and correspondingly convex above ; such arching or vaulting of the wing-surface being
usually associated with a short, broad, rounded wing, as in the gallinaceous tribe, and being
least in birds which have the thinnest and sharpest wings. Corresponding differences in the
mode of flight result. The short, rounded wing confers a powerful though labored flight for
short distances, usually accompanied by a whirring noise resulting from the rapidity of the
wing-beats; birds that fly thus are almost always thickset and heavy. The long, pointed
wing gives a noiseless, airy, skimming flight, indefinitely prolonged, and accomplished with
more deliberate wing-beats ; birds of this style of wing are generally triin and elegant. These,
of course, are merely generalizations of the extremes of modes of flight, mixed and gradated
in every degree in actual bird-life. Thus the humming-bird, which has sharp, thin wings,
whirs them fastest of all birds, —so rapidly that the eye cannot follow the strokes, merely
perceiving a haze about the bird while the ear hears the buzzing. The combination of acute-
ness and concavo-convexity is a remarkably strong one, conferring a rapid, vigorous, whistling
flight, as that of a duck or pigeon, or the splendid hurtling of a faleon. An ample wing, as
one both long and broad without being pointed is called, is well displayed by such birds as
herons, ibises, and cranes; the flight may be strong and sustained, but is rather slow and
heavy. The longest-winged birds are found among the swimmers, particularly the pelagic
family of the petrels, and some of the whole-webbed order, as pelicans, particularly the frigate-
pelican. The last named, Tachypetes aquilus, has perhaps the longest wings for its bulk of
body of any bird whatever, as well as the shortest feet. The American vultures are likewise
of great alar expanse in proportion to their weight. The shortest wings, among birds possess-
ing perfect remiges, occur among the lower swimmers, as auks and divers, and among some
of the Galline. The great auk is, or was, perhaps the only flightless bird with well-formed
flight-feathers, only too small to subserve their usual purpose; though certain South American
ducks are said to be in similar predicament. In the penguins, the whole wing-structure is
degraded, and the remiges abort in scale-like feathers, the wings being reduced to fins both

112 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

in form and function. The whole of the existing Ratite have rudimentary or very imperfect
wings, as was the case with the Cretaceous Hesperornis ; but the contemporary of the latter,
Icthyornis, and the still more ancient Archeopteryz, appear both to have had excellent ones.

The disposition of the remiges in their mutual relations is very noteworthy. They have
a rigid hollow barrel of great resistant powers, considering the amount of substance, —just
like the cylindrical stem of the cereal plant; a stout, solid, highly elastic shaft; the outer web
narrower than the inner, with jts barbs set at a more acute angle upon the shaft. Any one
of these stiffer outer vanes overlies the broader and more yielding inner vane of the next outer
feather, which, on receiving the impact of air from below, resists as it were with the strength of
a second shaft superimposed. Though the ‘‘way of an eagle in the air” was a mystery to the
wise man of old, the mechanics of ordinary flight are now better understood. But the sailing
of some birds for an indefinite length of time, up as well as down, without visible motion of
the wings, and without reference to the wind, remains an enigma. The flight of the albatross
and turkey vulture, I venture to affirm, is not yet explained. The riddle of The Wing will be
tead when we know how the archsaurian escaped from ilus to ether.

The number of true remiges ranges from about sixteen, as in a humming-bird, to up-
wards of fifty, as in the albatross. Their shape is quite uniform, minor details aside. They
are the stiffest, strongest, most perfectly pennaceous of feathers, without evident hypurhachis,
if any. They are generally lanceolate, that is, tapering regularly and gradually te an obtuse
poiut, though not infrequently more parallel-sided, especially those of the secondary and
tertiary series. Either or both webs may be incised toward the end; that is, more or less
abruptly narrowed ; this is called emargination (see tig. 279); their ends may be transversely
or obliquely truncate, or nicked in various ways. In a few birds, apparently for purposes of
sexual ornamentation, they are developed in bizarre shapes of beauty, with evident decrease of
utility as flight-feathers. Those of the ostrich and penguin tribes share the peculiarities of the
general plumage of these extraordinary birds. Remiges are divided into three classes or series,
according to where they grow upon the limb, whether upon the hand, the fore-arm, or the
upper arm. In this distinction is involved one of the most important considerations of practical
ornithology, of which the student must make himself master. The three classes of quill-
feathers are: 1. the primaries ; 2. the secondaries ; 3. the tertiaries.

The Primaries (Fig. 30, b) are those remiges which grow upon the pinion, or hand-
and finger-bones collectively (fig. 27, Cto D). Whatever the total number of the remiges
may be, in nearly all birds with true remiges the Primaries are either NINE or TEN in number.
The humming-bird with sixteen remiges, the albatross with fifty or more, cach have ten
primaries. The grebes and a few other birds are said to have eleven primaries: if this be so,
it is at any rate highly exceptional. No instance of a higher number than this is known
to me. Again, it is only among the highest Passeres that the number nine is found, the
Oscines having indifferently nine or ten. In a good many Oscines, rated as nine-primaried,
there are actually ten, though the outermost is so rudimentary, and even out of allignment
with the developed primaries, that it is not counted as one of them. Among Oscines, just this
difference of one evident and unquestionable primary more or less forms one of the best distine-
tions between the families of that suborder. So the tenth feather in a bird’s wing, counting
from the outside, becomes a crucial test in many cases; for, if it be last primary, the bird is
one thing ; if it be first secondary, the bird is another. In such cases the necessity, therefore,
of determining exactly which it is becomes evident. Of course it is always possible to settle
the question by striking at the roots of the remiges and seeing how many are seated on the
pinion; but this generally involves some defacing of the specimen, and there is usually an
easier way of determining. Hold the wing half-spread: then, in most Oscines, the primaries
come sloping down on one side, and the secondaries similarly on the other, to form where they

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— THE WINGS. 113

meet a reéntrant angle in the general contour of the posterior border of the wing ; the feather
that occupies this notch is the one we are after, and unluckily it is sometimes last primary,
sometimes first secondary. But observe that primaries are so to speak, self-asserting, emphatic,
italicized, remiges, stiff, strong, and obstinate; while secondaries are retiring, whispering, in
brevier, limber, weak, and yielding. Their different character is almost always shown by
something in their shape or texture which the student will soon learn to recognize, though it
cannot well be described. Let him examine fig. 30, where 6 marks the nine primaries of a
sparrow’s wing, and s indicates the secondaries; he will see a difference at once. The
primaries express themselves, though with diminishing emphasis, to the last one; then the
secondaries begin to tell a different tale. Among North American birds the only ones with
NINE primaries are the families Motacillide, Vireonide, Coerebide, Sylvicolide, Hirundinide,
Tanagride, Fringillide, Icteride, part of Vireonidie, and the genus Ampelis. The condition
of the first primary, whether spurious or not, is often of great help in this determination.
The first primary is called ‘‘ spurious” when it is very short —say one third, or less, as long
as the second, or longest, primary. Among Passeres, a spurious first primary only occurs in
certain ten-primaried Oscines: whence it is evident, that to find such short first primary is
equivalent to determining the presence of ten primaries, though not to find it does not prove
there are only nine ; the count should be made in all cases in which the outer primary is more
than one-third as long as the next. The difference between nine primaries, and ten with the
first spurious, is excellently illustrated among: the species of Vireo. Any thrush, nuthatch,
titmouse, or creeper shows a spurious primary to advantage, — large enough not to be over-
looked, small enough not to be mistaken. .

The Secondaries (Fig. 30, s) are those remiges which are seated on the fore-arm (fig.
27, Bto C). They vary in number from six to forty or more. They have the peculiarity of
being attached to one of the bones of the fore-arm, the .
ulna. Tf an ulna be examined closely, there will be
seen a row of little points showing the attachment ;
such are indicated in fig. 27, along ul, and in fig. 31. Aes ie be Gee
The secondaries present no points necessary to dwell showing points of attachment of the second-
upon here, after what has been said of the primaries. ties. (Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A.)
They are enormously developed in the Argus pheasant, and have curious shapes in some other
exotic birds. They are often long enough to cover the primaries completely when the wing is
closed, as in grebes; on the other hand, they are extremely short in the swifts and humming-
birds.

The Tertiaries (Fig. 30, t) are properly the remiges which grow upon the upper arm,
humerus. But such feathers are not very evident in most birds, and the two or three inner-
most secondaries, growing upon the very elbow, and commonly different from the rest in form
or color, pass under the name of “‘tertiaries.” Again, in some cases, scapular feathers
(fig. 30, scp,) are called tertiaries, especially when long or otherwise conspicuous. But
there is an evident and proper distinction. Scapulars belong to the pteryla humeralis (see
p- 87); while tertiaries, whether seated on the elbow or higher up the arm, are the innerinost
remiges of the pteryla alaris. These inner remiges are often shortly called tertials ; though
the longer name is more correct, besides being conformable with the names of the other two
series of remiges. Tertiaries often afford good characters for description, in peculiarities of
their size, shape, or color. Thus it is very common among Fringillide for these feathers to be
parti-colored differently from the other remiges. In many birds they are long and “flowing ”;
as in the families Motacillide and Alaudide, where they reach about to the end of the
primaries when the wing is closed. Their development is similar in many Scolopacide. In

8

114 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

such eases, the feather-border of the wing pronounces the letter W quite strongly, — outer
lower angle at point of primaries; middle upper angle at reéntrance between primaries and
secondaries; inner lower angle at point of tertiaries.

The “ point of the wing” is at the tip of the longest primary. It is best expressed when
the first primary is longest. Sometimes the end is so much rounded off, that the midmost
primary may be the longest one, the others being graduated on both sides -of this projecting
point. In speaking of the relative lengths of remiges, we always mean the way in which their
tips fall together, ‘not the actual total lengths of the feathers. Thus a second primary, whose
tip falls opposite the tip of the first one, is said to be of equal length, though it may actually
be longer, being seated higher up on the pinion. The development of the prinaries also
furnishes one of the most important measurements of birds: for the expression ‘length of
wing,” or simply ‘‘the wing,” means the distance from the “bend of the wing,” or carpal
angle, to the end of the longest primary. The integument of the wing dves not very often
develop anything but feathers. Occasionally

Claws and Spurs are found upon the pinion. Claws have been already noticed (p. 108).
They are properly so called, being horny growths comparable in every way to those upon the
ends of the toes, like the claws of beasts, or human nails. A spur (Lat. calcar), however, is
something different, though of the same horny texture, since it docs not terminate a digital
phalanx, but is off-set from the side of the hand. It is exactly like the spur on the leg of a
fowl, which obviously is not a claw. The spur-winged goose (Plectropterus), pigeon (Didun-
culus), plovers (Chettusia, ete.), and the doubly-spurred screamer (Palamedea), afford exam-
ples of such outgrowths, of which the Jaganas (Parra) furnish the only, though a very
well-marked, illustration among North American birds. (See fig. 53 ter.)

III, THE TAIL.

Its Bony Basis. — Time was when birds flew about with long, lizard-like, bony and,
fleshy tails, having the feathers inserted in a row on either side like the hairs of « squirrel’s.
But we have changed all that distichous arrangement since when the Archeopteryx was
steered with such a rudder through the scenes of its Jurassic life. Now the true separate
coccygeal bones are few, generally about nine in number, and so short and stunted that they do
not project beyond the general plumage,—in fact scarcely beyond the border of the pelvis.
Anteriorly, within’ the bony basin of the pelvis, there are several vertebre, which, fusing
together and with the true sacrum, are termed urosacral or false tail-bones. To these
succeed the true caudal vertebra, movable upon each other and upon the urosacrum. The
last one of these, abruptly larger than the rest, and of peculiar shape, bears all the large
tail-feathers, which radiate from it like the blades of a fan. The true caudal vertebrae col-
lectively form the coccyw (Gr. kéxxv€, kokkux, a cuckoo; from fancied resemblance of the
human tail-bones to a cuckoo’s bill) ; the enlarged terminal one is the vomer (Lat. vomer, a
plough-share, from its shape; not to be confused with a bone of the skull of same name) or
pygostyle (Gr. muyn, puge, rump, and oridos, stulos, a stake, pale). The pygostyle, however,
is a compound bone, consisting of several stunted coccygeal vertebrae fused in one. The bones
are moved by appropriate muscles, and upon the surface is seated the el@odochon (p. 86). The
whole bony and muscular affair is familiar to every one as the ‘ pope’s nose” of the Christmas
turkey; it is a bird’s real tail, of which the feathers are merely appendages. In descriptive
ornithology, however, the anatomical parts are ignored, the word “tail” having reference solely
to the feathers. These, like those of the wings, are of two sorts: the coverts or tectrices, and
the rudders or rectrices (Lat. rectriv, pl. rectrices, a ruler, guider; because they seem to
steer the bird’s flight); corresponding exactly to the coverts and remiges of the wings. The

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE TAIL. 115

Tail-Coverts are the numerous comparatively small and weak feathers which overlie and
underlie the rectrices, covering their bases and extending a variable distance toward their
ends, contributing to the firmness and symmetry of the tail. They pass smoothly out from
the body. by gradual lengthening. there being seldom, if ever, any obvious outward distinction
between them and feathers of the rump and belly; but they belong to the pteryla caudalis
(p. $7). The natural division of the coverts is inte an upper and under set (tectrices super-
tores, tectrices inferiores). The inferior coverts are the best distinguished from the general
plumage. the anus generally dividing off these ‘+ vent-feathers.” as they are sometimes called.
Tt is to the bundle of under tail-coverts. behind the vent, that the term crissm is most properly
applied. Neither set is ever entirely wanting; but one or the other, particularly the upper ene,
may be very short, as in a cormorant, or duck of the genus Erismatura, exposing the quills
almost to their bases. While the upper coverts are usually shorter and fewer than the under
ones. reaching less than half-way to the end of the tail, they sometimes take on extraordinary
development aud form the bird's chiefest ornament. The gorgeous. iridescent, argus-ered
train of the peacock consists of enormous tectrices, not rectrices; the elegant plumes of the
paradise trogon, Pharomacrus mocinno, several times longer than the bird itself, are like-
wise coverts. Occasionally, a pair of coverts lengthens and stiffens, and then resembles true
tail-feathers; as in the Ptarmigan (Lagepus). The erissal feathers are more uniform in
development: they ordinarily form a compact, definite bundle, as well shown im a duck,
where they reach about to the end of the tail. In some of the storks, they become plumes of
considerable pretensions: and in the wonderful humming-bird, Loddigesta mirabilis. the
iniddle pair stiffens to resemble rectrices and projects far beyond the true tail. The

Rectrices, Rudders. or true tail-feathers. like the remiges or rowers, are usually stiff.
well-proneunced feathers. pennaceous to the very base of the vexilla, without after-shafts, as a
rule. and with the outer web narrower than the other in most cases. They are alwars in
pairs: that is, there is an equal number of feathers on the right and left half of the tail: and
their number, consequently. is an even one. The exceptions to this rule are so few and
irregular, and then only among birds with the higher numbers of rectrices, that such are
probably te be regarded as mere anomalies, from accidental arrest of a feather. They are im-
bricated over each other in this wise: the central pair are high-
est, lying with both their webs over the next feather on either
side, the inner web of one of these middle feathers indifferently —=
underlying or overlying that of the other; all thus successively fs
overlying the next outer one so that they would form a pyra- —_—

mid were they thick instead of being so flat. The arrange- —=
ment is perceived at once in the accompanying diagram ;
where it will be seen, also, that spreading the tail is the diver- 5
gence of a from 6, while closing the tail is bringing @ and b together undere. The motion
is effected by certain muscles that draw on either side upon the bases of the quills collectively ;
they are the same that pull the whole tail to one side or the other, acting like the tiller-ropes
of a boat's rudder. The general

Shape of a Rectrix is shown in fig. 23. Such a feather is ordinarily straight, some-
what clubbed or oblong, widening a little. regularly and gradually toward the tip, where it is
gently rounded off. But the departures from such shape, or any that could be assumed as a
standard, are numberless, and in some cases extreme. In fact. none of a bird's feathers are
more variable than those of the tail; it is impossible to specify all the shapes they assume.
While most are straight. some are curved — and the curvature may be to or from the middle
line of the body, in the horizontal plane. or up and down. in the vertical plane. Some shapes

116 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

have received particular names. A rectrix broad to the very tip, and there cut squarely off, is
said to be truncate ; one such cut obliquely off is incised, especially when, as often happens, the
outline of the cut-off is concave. A linear rectrix is very narrow, with parallel sides; a lanceo-
late one is broader at the base, thence tapering regularly and gradually to the tip. A notably
pointed rectrix is said to be acute ; when the pointing is produced by abrupt centraction near the
tip, as in most woodpeckers, the feather is acuminate. A very long and slender, more or less
linear feather is called filamentous, as the lateral pair of a barn swallow or most sea swallows.
The vanes sometimes enlarge abruptly at the end, forming a spoon-shaped or spatulate feather;
- or such a spoon may
result from narrowing
of the vanes near the
end, or their entire ab-
sence, as in the ‘* rack-
et” of a saw-bill (Mo-
motus). The vanes are
sometimes wavy as if
crimped; our Plotus is
a fine example of this.
Sometimes the vanes
are entirely loosened,
the barbs being remote
from each other, as in
the exotic genus Stipi-
turus, and some parts
of the wonderful caudal
appendage of the male
lyre-bird (Menura su-
perba). When the rha-
’ chis projects beyond the
vanes, the feather is
spinose, or better, mu-
cronate (Lat. mucro, a
pricker), as excellently
shown in the chimney-
swift, Chetura (fig.
j a 297). A pair of feathers
Fig. 32.— The Lyre-bird of Australia, Menura superba, to show the unique abruptly extending far
lyrate shape of the tail. (From Amer. Nat.) beyond the others are
called long-exserted, after the analogous use of the term in botany. Tail-feathers also differ
much in their consistency, from the softest and weakest, not well distinguished from coverts,
to such stiff and rugged props as the woodpeckers possess. They are downy and very rudi-
mentary in a few birds, notably all the grebes, Podicipedide, which are commonly said to
have no tail. The tinamous of South America (Dromeognathe) are also very closely
docked. The

Typical Number of Rectrices is twelve. This holds in the great majority of birds. It
is so uniform throughout the great group Oscines, that the rare exceptions seem perfectly
anomalous. In the other group of Passeres (Clamatores) it is usually twelve, sometimes ten.
Ten is the rule among Picaria, though many have twelve, a very few only eight, as in the
genus Crotophaga. The whole of the woodpeckers (Picide) have apparently ten ; but really

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE TAIL. 117

twelve, of which the outer one on each side is spurious, very small, and hidden between the
bases of the second and third feathers. Birds of prey (Raptores) have about twelve. In
pigeons the rule is twelve or fourteen, as in all our genera; but sixteen are found in some and
twenty in one case. In birds below these, the number increases directly; there are often or
usually more than twelve in the grouse, and there may be sixteen, eighteen, or twenty, as
among our own genera of Tetraonide. Wading birds, often having but twelve, furnish in-
stances of as many as twenty. Those swimming birds with large well-formed tails, as the
Longipennes, and some Anatide, have the fewest, as twelve, sometimes fourteen, rarely
sixteen; those with short soft tails have the most, as sixteen to twenty-four. Among the
penguins there are thirty-two or more. The Archgopteryx appears to have had forty, —a pair
to each free caudal vertebra; and this may be considered the prototypic relation between the
bones and feathers of the tail. The

Typical Shape of the Tail, as a whole, is the fan. The modifications of form, how-
ever, which are greater and more varied than those of the wing, are susceptible of better
definition, and many of them have received special names. Taking the simplest case, where
the rectrices are all of the same length, we have what is called the even, square, or truncate
tail. The other forms depart from this mainly by shortening or lengthening of certain
feathers. A tail nearly or quite even may have the two central feathers long-exserted, as seen
in the jaegers (Stercorarius), and tropic-birds (Phaéthon). The most frequent departure from
the even shape results from gradual shortening of successive rectrices from the middle to the
outer ones. This is called, in general, gradation or graduation (Lat. gradus, a step); such
shortening may be to any degree. More precisely, graduation means shortening of each
successive feather to the same extent, —say, each half an inch shorter than the next; but
such exactitude is not often expressed. When the feathers shorten by more and more, we
have the true rownded tail, probably the commonest form among birds; thus, the gradation
between the middle and next pair may be just appreciable, and then increase regularly to an inch
between the next and the lateral feather. The opposite gradation, by less and less shortening,
gives the wedge-shaped or cuneate (Lat. cuneus, a wedge) tail; it is well shown by the
magpie (Pica) in which, as in many other birds, the middle feathers would be called long-
exserted were the rest all as short as the outer one is. A cuneate tail, especially if the feathers
be narrow and lanceolate, is also called acute, or pointed, as in the sprig-tailed duck (Dafila)
or sharp-tailed grouse (Pediccetes). The generic opposite of the gradated is the forked tail ;
in which the lateral feathers successively increase in length from the middle to the outermost
pair. The least appreciable forking is called emargination, and a tail thus shaped is said to be
emarginate ; when it is better marked, as, for instance, an inch of forking in a tail six inches
long, the tail is truly forked or furcate (Lat. furca, a fork). But the degrees of fureation, like
those of gradation, are so insensibly varied, that qualified expressions are usual; as, ‘slightly
forked,” ‘(deeply forked.” Deep furcation is usually accompanied by more or less narrowing
or filamentous elongation of the lateral pair of rectrices, as in the barn swallows (Hirundo)
and most of the sea-swallows (Sterna). An advisable term to express such an extreme furca-
tion is forficate (Lat. forfex, scissors), when the depth of the fork is at least equal to the
length of the shortest feathers; it occurs among our birds in those last named, in the species
of the flycatcher genus Milvulus, and elsewhere. Double-forked and double-rownded tails
are not uncommon; they result from combination of both opposite gradations, in this way:
The middle feathers being of a certain length, the next two or three pairs progressively
increasing in length, and the rest successively decreasing, the tail is evidently forked centrally,
rounded externally, which is the double-rounded form, each half of the tail being rounded ;
it is shown in the genera Myiadestes and Anous. Now if with middle feathers as before,
the next pair or two decrease in length, and then the rest increase to the outermost, we have

118 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the double-forked, a common style among sandpipers, as if each half of the tail were forked.
But in such case, the forking is slight, merely emargination, being little more than protrusion
of the middle pair of feathers in an otherwise lightly forked tail; and in the double-rounded
form the gradation is seldom if ever great.

I should also allude to shapes of tail resulting from the relative positions of the feathers.
Prominent among these is the complicate or folded tail of the barn-yard fowl, and others of the
Phasianide, —a very familiar but not common form. It is only retained while the tail is
closed and cocked up, —for when it is lowered and spread in flight it flattens out. The oppo-
site disposition of the feathers is seen to some extent in our crow blackbirds (Quiscalus),
where the lateral feathers
slant upward from the lower-
most central pair. like the
sides of a boat from its keel;
this is the seaphoid (Gr.
oxagpyn, a boat) or carinate
(Lat. carina, a keel) tail.
Our * boat - tailed” grackle
has been so named on this
account. One of the mest
beautiful and wonderful of

Fig. 33. — Diagram of shapes of tail. adc, rounded ; aec, gradate; aic, all the shapes of the tail is
cuneate-gradate; alc, cuneate; abc, double-rounded; seg, square; fhg, . <
emarginate; fneog, double-emarginate; him, forked; kem, deeply forked; illustrated by the male of the

kbm, forficate. lyre-bird CVWenura superba,
fig. 32), in which the feathers are anomalous both in shape and in texture, and the resulting
form of the whole is unique. Various shapes, which the student will readily name from the
foregoing paragraphs, are illustrated in many other figures of this work. It should be remem-
bered that, to determine the shape, the tail should be nearly closed; for spreading will ob-
viously make a square tail round, an émarginate one square, ete. I append a diagram of the
principal forms (fig. 33).

IV. THE FEET.

The Hind Limbs, in all birds, are organized for progression— all ean walk, run, or hop
on land, though the power to do so is very slight in sume of the lower swimming birds, as
loons and grebes, and certain of the lower perching birds, as hunmers, swifts, goatsuckers, and
kingfishers. They are specially fitted for perching on trees, bushes, and other supports requiring
to be grasped, in the great majority of birds, as throughout the Passeres, Picarie, Accipitres,
Columba, and, in fact, mauy water-birds ; there being few forms, mainly found among three-
toed birds, or those in which the hind toe is short, weak, and elevated. in whieh the extremity
of the limb has not decided grasping power. The limb becomes a paddle for swimming either
on or in the water in many cases. In not a few, as parrots and birds of prey, the foot is
serviceable as a hand. Those kinds of birds which live in trees and bushes habitually
progress, even when on level ground, in a series of hops, or rather leaps. both feet being
moved together: in all the lower birds, however, the feet move one after the other, as in ordi-
nary walking or running. The modifications of the hind limb are more numerous. more
diverse, and more important in their bearing on classification than those of either bill. wing,
or tail; their study is consequently a matter of special interest.

Their Bony Framework (tig. 34).— Beginning at the hip-joint, and ending at the
extremities of the several toes, the skeleton of the hind limb cousists in the vast majority of
adult birds of twenty bones. This is the typical and nearly the average number; birds

x.

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEET. 119

searcely ever have more, and the principal lessenings of the number result from the absence
of one or two toes, or a slight reduction in the number of the joints of some toes, or absence of
the knee-cap. Of the normal twenty, fourteen are bones of the toes; one is an incomplete
bone connecting the hind toe with the foot; one is the knee-cap, and four are the principal
bones of the thigh (1), leg (2), and foot (1). The first or uppermost is the thigh-bone or
Jemur (Lat. femur ; adjective, femoral), fm, from hip to knee, A to B in the figure. It is
a rather short, quite stout, cylindrical bone, enlarging above and below. Above it has a
globular head, a, standing off obliquely from the shaft, received in the acetabulum (Lat. aceta-
bulum, a kind of receptacle) or socket of the hip, and a prominent shoulder or trochanter,
which abuts against the
brim of the acetabulum.
Below, it expands into
two condyles (Gr. xévdv-
Ros, a knob), for articu-
lation with both the
bones it meets at the
knee. It is the same
bone as the femur of a
quadruped or of man,
and corresponds to the
humerus of the wing.
In the knee-joint, many
or most birds have a
small ossicle, and a few
have two such bony nod-
ules, not shown in the
figure, but nearly in the
position of the letter B:
the knee-pan or knee-
cap, patella (Lat. patel-
la). The thigh is the
first segment of the limb;
the next segment is the

leg proper, or crus (Lat.
crus, the shin; adjective,
crural), B to C in the
figure, or from knee to
heel. This segment is
‘oceupied by two bones,
the tebia (Lat. tibia, a
tube, trumpet), tb, and
Jibula (Lat. fibula, a
splint, clasp), fi. Of
these the tibia is the
principal, larger, inner

PALE

Fig. 34.— Bones of a bird’s hind limb: from a duck, Clangula islandica, 3 nat.
size; Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. A, hip: B, knee: C, heel or ankle-joint; D,
bases of toes. A to B, thigh or “second joint’; Bto C, crus, leg proper, “ drum-
stick,’ often wrongly called “ thigh”; C to D, metatarsus, foot proper, correspond-
ing to our instep, or foot from ankle to bases of toes; in descriptive ornithology
the tarsus ; often called “shank.” From D outward are the toes or digits. fm.
femur; ¢b, tibia, principal (inner) bone of leg; fi, fibula, lesser (outer) bone of
leg; mt, principal metatarsal bone, consisting chiefly of three fused metatarsal
bones; am, accessory metatarsal, bearing 1t, first or hind toe, with two joints; 2¢,
second toe, with three joints; 3¢, third toe, with four joints; 4¢, fourth toe, with
five joints. At C there are in the embryo some small tarsal bones, not shown in
the figure, uniting in part with the tibia, which is therefore a tibio-tarsus, in part
with the metatarsus, which is therefore a tarso-metatarsus ; the ankle-joint being
therefore between two rows of tarsal bones, not, as it appears to be, directly be-
tween tibia and metatarsus.

bone, running quite to the heel; the fibula is smaller, and (with rare exceptions, as in some of
the penguins) only runs part way down the outside of the tibia as a slender pointed spike, close
pressed against: or even partly fused with the shaft of the tibia. Above, at the knee, both
bones articulate with the femur; the tibia with both the femoral condyles, the fibula only with
the outer condyle. Above, the tibia has an irregularly expanded head or enemial process (Gr.

120 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

xvnun, kneme, same as Lat. erws), which in some birds, as loons, runs high up in front above
the knee-joint. Below, the tibia alone forms the ankle-joint, C, by srlioulntine with the next
bone. For this purpose it ends in an enlarged trochiear (Gr. rpoxadia), or pulley-like surface,
presenting a little forward as well as downward, above which, in many birds, there is a little
bony bridge beneath which tendons passing to the foot are confined. This ttoishes the leg,
consisting of thigh, A B, and leg proper, B C, bringing us to the ankle-joint at the heel, C.

Now a bird’s legs, unlike outs, are not separate from the bedy from the hip downward ;
but, for a variable distance, are enclosed within the general integument of the body. The
freedom of the limb is greatest among the high perching birds, and especially the Raptores,
which use the fect like hands, and least among the lowest swimmers. The range of variation,
from greatest freedom to most extensive enelosure of the limb, is from a little above B nearly to
C, as in the case of a loon, grebe, or penguin. In no bird is the kuec, B, seen outside the
general contour of the plumage: it must be looked or felt for amoug the feathers, and in most
prepared skins will not be found at all, the femur having been removed. It is a point of little
practical consequence, though hearing upon the generalization just made. The first jott, or
bending of the limb, that appears beyond a bird’s plumage is the heel, C ; and this is what,
in loose popular parlance, is called “ knee,” upon the same erroneous notions that make people
call the wrist of a horse’s fore-leg “knee.” People also eall a bird’s ervs or leg proper, B to (,
the thigh,” and disregard the true thigh altogether. This coufusion is inexcusable; any one,
even without the slightest anatomical knowledge, can tell knee from heel at a glance, whatever
their respective positions relative to the body. Anee is at junction of thigh and leg proper;
it always bends forward; heel is at junction of leg with foot, and always bends backwavd.
This is as true of a bird, which is digitigrade, that is, walks on its toes with its heels in the
air, as it is of a man, who is plantigrade, that is, walks on the whole sole of the foot, with the
heel down to the ground. In a carver’s language, the thigh is the ‘second joint” (from
below) ; the leg is the ‘‘drumstick ”; the rest of a fowl’s hind limb docs not usually come to
table, having no flesh upon it. . (See frontispiece, Th, An, Lg.)

Before proceeding to the next segment of the limb, I must dwell upon the ankle-joint,
situated at the heel, — the point C, — corresponding to the carpal angle or bend of the wing,
C, in fig. 27... There we found, in adult birds, two small carpal bones, or bones of the wrist
proper ; and noted the presence in the embryo of several other carpals (tig. 29), which early
fuse with the metacarpus. Just so in the ankle, there are in embryonic life several tarsal bones,
or bones of the tarsus (Lat. tarsus, the ankle); all of which, however, soon disappear, so that
there appears to be no tarsus, or collection of little bones between the tibia and the next
segment of the limb, the metatarsus. An upper tarsal bone, or series of tarsal bones, fuses
with the lower end of the tibia, making this leg-bone really a tibio-tarsus ; and similarly, a
lower bone or set of bones fuses with the upper end of the metatarsus, making this bone a
tarso-metatarsus. So there are left uo free bones in the ankle-joint, which thus appears to be
immediately between the leg-bone and the principal foot-bone; but which is nevertheless
really between two series of tarsal boues, the identity of which has been lost.

1 The exact homologues of a bird’s vanishing tarsal bones are still questioned. Gegenbaur showed the so-
called epiphysis or shoe of bone at the foot of the tibia, and the similar cap of bone on the hoad of the principal
metatarsal bone, to be true tarsal elements, Morse went further, showing the tibial epiphysis, or uppor tarsal bone
of Gegenbaur to be really two bones, which he held to correspond with tho tibialo and flbulare, or astragalus and
calcaneum of mammals; these subsequently combining to form the single upper tarsal bone of Gegenbaur, and
finally becoming anchylosed with the tibia to form the bitrochlear condylar surface 80 characteristic of the tibia ot
elves. The distal tarsal ossicle he believed to be the centrale of reptiles. Wyman discovered the so-called “ procoss of
the astragalus” to have a distinct ossification, and Morse intorpretod it as tho infermedium of reptilos, Later
views, however, as of Huxley and Parker, limit tho tibial epiphysis to the astragalus alone of mammals. If these
opinions be correct, other tarsal elements (more than one) are to be looked for in the epiphysis of the metatarsus,
Whatever the final determination of these obscure points may be, it is certain that, as said in the text abovo, the
lower end of a bird’s tibia and the upper end of a bird’s metatarsus include true tarsal elements, Just as the upper

.

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEET. Apal

The next segment of the limb. C to D. or the foot proper. is represented by the principal
wietatarsal bone, mi. This corresponds te the human tastep or arch of the foot. nearly from
the aukle-joint quite te the roots of the toes. The metatarsal bone, like the metacarpal of
the hand, which it represents in the foot. is a compound one. Besides including the evanes-
cent tarsal element or elements already specified. it consists of three metatarsal bones con-
solidated In one, just as the metacarpal is tripartite. Among recent birds, the three are
partly distinet only in the penguins: but in all, excepting ostriches. the origival distinction is
indicated by three prongs or stumps at the lower end of the bone, forming as many articular
surfaces for the three anterior tocs. The other toe most birds possess. the hind toe. is hinged
upen the metatarsns in a different way. by means of a small separate metatarsal bone. quite
imperfect: this is the aevessery metatarsal, am. It is situated near the lower end teward the
Mnuer side of “he principal metatarsal bone. and is of various shapes and sizes: it has no true
jeivting with the latter, but is simply pressed elose upon it. much as the fibula is applied to the
dbin, or partly seldered with it. Above. it is defective: below, it bears a good meet for artien-
lation with the hiad tee. ES" In spite of anatomical proprieties, the metatarsal part of a bird's
ft — from heel to base of toes — from C to D. ‘s in ordinary deseriptive ornithelugy tneartably
ealled “* The Tas. +s": a wreng name, but one so firmly established that it would be finical
and futile te attempt to ‘substitute the correc: name. In the ordinary attitude of most birds.
it is held more or less upright. and seems t+ be rather “leg” than a part of the * foot.” It is
vulgarly called * the shank.” These points must br ingrained in the student's mind to
prevent confusion. (See fig. 112 bis. p. 229.) :

The divfis of the foot. or fees. upon which alone mes: birds walk or perch. consist of
cerain numbers of small bones placed end to end, all joiuted upen one another, and the basal
or proximate ones of each toe separately jointed either with the principal or the accessory meta-
tarsal bone. Like those of the fingers. these bones are called phalanacs (Lat. phalanr. a
rank or series) or inferncdes (because coming between any two joints or nodes of the toes).
The furthermeost one of each almost invariably bears a nail or claw (tnguis . The phalanges
are of various relative lengths. and of a variable number in the same cr different tees. But all
these points. being matters of deseriptive ornithology rather than of anatomy proper, are fully
reated beyond. as is also the special horny or leathery covering of the feet usually existing
fom the point C outwani. We may here glance at the

Mechanism of these Bones. — The hip is a ball-and-socket joint, permitting round-about
es Well as fore-ani-att movements of the whole limb. though more restricted than the shoulder-
joint. The knee is usually a strict ginglymus (Gr. ytyyAupos. gigglumas, binge) or binge-joint.
allowing only backward and forward motion: and so constructed thai The forward movement of
the leg is never carried beyond a right line with the femur, while the backward is se extensive
that the lez may be gute doubled under the thigh. In some birds there is a slight nvtatery
motion a: the knee. very evident in certain swimmers. by which the foot is thrown outward, so
that the broad webbed toes may net “interfere.” The heel or ankle-juint is a strict hinge: its
bendiz.gs are just the reverse of these of the knee: for the foot cannot pass back of a right line
with the leg. but can come forward till the ices nearly touch the front uf the knee. In some

~ binds the details of structure are such that. with the assistance of certain muscles. the foot is lacked
mpen The leg when completely straightened out. so firmly that some little muscular effert is re-
quired to overcome the obstacle: birds with this arranzement sleep securely standizg on one leg.
which is the design of the mechanisr. The jointing of the toes with the prengs of the meta-
tarsus is peculiar: for the articular surfaces are so disposed in a certain oblicuity. that when

end of the metacarpus includes carpal elements: and thar 4 birnd’s anklejoint is set tihio-tarsal or between
leg-bone and fsoc-bores. as in mammals, but between proximal and distal series cf tarsal bones. and sherefore.
medio-tarsal. is in reptiles.

122 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the toes are brought forwards, at right angles or thereabouts with the foot, they spread apart
from each other automatically in the action, and the diverging toes of the foot thus opened are
pressed upon the ground or against the water. When the toes are bent around in the opposite
direction, they automatically come together and lie in a bundle more or less parallel with one
another, besides being each bent or flexed at their several nodes. The mechanism is best
marked in the swimmers, which, for advantageous use of their webbed toes, must present a
broad surface to the water in giving the backward stroke, and bring the foot forward with the
toes closed, presenting only an edge to the water, —all on the principle of the feathering of oars
in rowing. It is carried to an extreme in a loon, where, when the foot is closed, the digit
marked 2¢ in the figure lies below and behind 3¢. It is probably least marked in birds of
prey, which give the clutch with their talons spread. The jointings of the individual phalanges
of the toes upon one another are simple hinges, permitting motion of extension to a right line
or a little beyond in some cases, with very free flexion in the opposite direction. On the
whole, the mechanics of a bird’s foot are less peculiar than those of the wing, and quite those
of the limbs of a quadruped.

In ordinary hopping, walking, and running, and in perching as well, only the toes rest upon
or grasp the support, from D to beyond, C being more or less vertically over D. Such resting
of the toes is complete for 2 ¢; 3t, 4¢ in the figure, or for all the anterior toes; but for the hind
toe it varies according to the length and position of that digit, from complete incumbency, like
that of the front toes, to mere touching of the tip of that toe, or not even this: the hind toe
is then sure to be functionless. But many of the lower birds, such as loons and grebes, cannot
stand at all upright on their toes, resting with the heel touching the ground; and in many such
cases the tail furnishes additional support, making a tripod with the feet, as in the kangaroo.
Such birds might be called plantigrade (Lat. planta, the sole; gradus, a step) im strict
anatomical conformity with the quadrupeds so designated. The others are all digitigrade,
standing or walking on their toes alone. But no birds progress on the ends of their toes, or
toe-nails, as hoofed quodrupeds do. A bird’s ordinary walking or running is the same as ours,
so far as the ordinary mechanics of the motions are concerned ; but its so-called ‘‘ hopping” is
really leaping, both legs moving at once. Most birds, down to Columba, leap when on the
ground, a mode of progression characteristic of the higher orders; but many of the more terres-
trial Passeres and Accipitres progress by ordinary walking when on the ground, as is invariably
the case with parrots, pigeons, gallinaceous birds, and all waders and swimmers.

The student need scarcely be reassured that, whatever their modifications, their relative
development, motions, and postures, the several segments of both fore and hind limbs of any
vertebrate, quadruped or biped, feathered or featherless, are fixed in one morphologically iden-
tieal series, thus: 1, shoulder or hip-joint; 2, upper arm or thigh, humerus or femur; 3,
elbow or knee-joint; 4, fore-arm or leg proper, radius and ulna or tibia and fibula; 5, wrist,
bend of wing, carpus, or heel, ankle, tarsus; 6, hand proper, metacarpus, or foot proper,
metatarsus; 7, digits with their phalanges, of hand or foot, fingers or toes. 2, first segment;
4, second segment; 5, third segment (not separate in foot of bird); 6 and 7, fourth segment,
in the wing called manus or pinion, in the leg, pes. Observe the improper naming of parts,
in the case of the hind limb, whereby 1, 2, 3, are not generally counted; 4 is called “thigh”;
5 is called “‘knee”; 6 is called “leg” or ‘‘ shank”; 7 is called “foot.” Observe also that in
descriptive ornithology 6 is ‘‘ the tarsus.”

The Plumage of the Leg and Foot varies within wide limits. In general, the leg is
feathered to the heel, C, and the rest of the limb is bare of feathers. The thigh is always
feathered, as part of the body plumage (pteryla femoralis). The crus or leg proper (thigh of
vulgar language, B to C) is feathered in nearly all the higher birds, and in swimming birds
without exception ; in the loons, the feathering even extends on the heel-joint. It is among

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEET. 12

ve

the walking and especially the wading birds that the crus is most extensively denuded;
it may be naked half-way up to the knee. A few waders,—among ours, chiefly in the
snipe family,—have the crus apparently clothed to the heel-joint ; but this is due, in most if
not all cases, to the length of the feathers, for probably in none of them does the pteryla cruralis
itself extend to the joint. Crural feathers are nearly always short and inconspicuous; but
sometimes long and flowing, as in the “flags ” of must hawks, and in our tree-cuckoos. The
tarsus (I now and hereafter use the term in its ordinary acceptation — C to D in fig. 34; ds in
fig. 36) in the vast majority of birds is entirely naked, being provided with a horny or leathery
sheath of integument like that covering the bill. Such is its condition in the Passeres and
Pwarie (with few exceptions, as among swifts and goatsuckers) ; in the waders without ex-
ception, and in nearly all swimmers (the frigate-bird, Tachypetes, has a slight feathering).
The Raptores and Galline furnish the most feathered tarsi. Thus, feathered tarsi is the rule
among owls (Striges); frequent, either partial or complete, in hawks and eagles, as in Aquila,
Archibuteo, Falco, Buteo, etc. All our grouse, and perhaps all true grouse, have the tarsus
more or less feathered (fig. 35). The toes themselves are feathered in a few birds, as several
of the owls, and all the ptarmigans (Lagopus). Partial feathering of the tarsus is often con-
tinued downward, to the toes or upon them, by sparse modified feathers in the form of bristles ;
as is well shown in the barn-owl (fig. 47). When incomplete, the feathering is generally want-
ing behind and
below, and it is
almost invariably
continuous above
with the crural
plumage. But in
that spirit of per-
versity in which
birds delight to
prove every rule Fic. 35. — Feathered tarsus of a grouse, Cupidonia cupido. Nat. size.

we establish by furnishing exceptions, the tarsus is sometimes partly feathered discontinuously.
A curious example of this is afforded by the bank-swallow, Cotile riparia, with its litte tuft of
feathers at the base of the hind toe; and some varieties of the barn-yard fowl sprout monstrous
leggings of feathers from the side of the tarsus.

The Length of Leg, relatively to the size of the bird, is extremely variable; a thrush or
sparrow probably represents about average proportions of the limb. The shortest-legged bird
known is probably the frigate-pelican, Tachypetes ; which, though a yard long more or less,
has a tibia not half as long as the skull, and a tarsus under an inch. The leg is very short in
many Picarian birds, as hummers, swifts, goatsuckers, kingfishers, trogons, etc., in many of
which it scarcely serves at all for progression. Among Passeres, the swallows resemble swifts
in shortness of their hind limbs. It is pretty short likewise in many zygodactyle, yoke-toed or
scansorial birds, as woodpeckers, cuckoos, and parrots. In most swimming birds the limb
may also be called short, especially in its femoral and tarsal segments; while the broad-webbed
toes are comparatively longer. The leg lengthens in the lower perching birds, as many
hawks and some of the terrestrial pigeons; it is still longer among walkers proper, such as the
gallinaceous birds, and reaches its maximum among the waders, especially the larger ones,
such as eranes, herons, ibises, storks, and flamingoes ; among all of which it is correlated with
extension of the neck. Probably the longest-legged of all birds for its size is the stilt
(Himantopus). Taking the tarsus alone as an index of length of the whole limb. this is in
the frigate under one-thirty-sixth of the bird’s length; a flamingo, four feet long, has a tarsus
a foot long: a stilt, fourteen inches long. one of four inches: so that the maximum and

124 i oS GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

minimum lengths of tarsus are nearly thirty and under three per cent. of a bird’s whole
length.

The Horny Integument of the Foot requires particular attention. That part of the
limb which is devoid of feathers is covered, like the bill, by a hardened, thickened, modified
integument, varying in texture from horny to leathery. This sheath is called the podotheca
(Gr. mois, odds, pous, podos, foot, and Onn, theke, sheath). It is more corneous in land birds,
and in water birds more leathery ; this general distinction has but few exceptions. The perfectly
horny envelope is tight, and immovably fixed or nearly so, while the skinny styles of sheath
are looser, and may usually be slipped about a little. The integument may differ on different
parts of the same leg, and in fact generally does so to some extent. Unlike the sheath of the
bill, the podotheca is never simple and continuous, being divided and subdivided in various
ways. The lower part of the crus, when naked, and the tarsus and toes, always have their
integument cut up into scales, plates, tubercles, and other special formations, which have
reteived particular names. The manner and character of such divisions are often of the
utmost consequence in classification, especially among the higher birds, since they are quite
significant of genera, families, and even some larger groups.

Fie. 38. — a. Reticulate tarsus

Fig. 37. — Scutellate ofa plover. Nat. size. 6. Scutel-
Fie. 36.— Booted laminiplantar laminiplantar tarsus of a late and reticulate tarsus of a
tarsus of arobin. Nat. size. cat-bird. Nat. size. pigeon. Nat. size.

The commonest division of the podotheca is into scales or scutella (Lat. scutellwm, a little
shield; pl. scutella, not scutelle as often written) ; figs. 37, and 38, b. These are generally of
large comparative size, arranged in definite vertical series up and down the tarsus and along
the toes, and apt to be somewhat imbricated, or fixed shingle-wise, the lower edge of one
overlapping the upper edge of the next. The great majority of birds have such scutella. They
oftenest occur on the front of the tarsus (or acrotarsium, corresponding to our “ instep”), and
almost invariably on the tops of the toes (collectively called acropodium) ; frequently also on
the sides and back of the tarsus or planta ; not so often on the crus, and rarely if ever on the
sides and under surfaces of the toes. A tarsus so disposed as to its podotheea is said to be
scutellate, — scutellate hefore (fig. 37), or behind, or both, as the ease may he. The term is
equally applicable to the acropodium, but is not so often used because seutellation of the upper
sides of the toes is so universal as to be taken for granted unless the contrary condition is
expressly said. The most notorious case of the Oscine podotheca (figs. 36, 37), characterizing
that great group of birds, is given beyond (next paragraph).

Plates, or reticulations (Lat. reticilum, a web; tig. 38, a) result from the cutting up of

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEET. 125

the envelope in various ways by cross lines. Plates are of various shapes and sizes, and
grade usually into true scutella, from which however they are generally distinguished by being
smaller, or of irregular contour, or not in definite rows, or lacking the appearance of imbrica-
tion; but there is no positive distinction. They are oftenest hexagonal (six-sided), a form best
adapted to close packing, as shown very perfectly in the cells of the honey-bee’s comb; but
they may have fewer sides, or be polygonal (many-sided), or even circular ; when crowded in
one direction and loosened in another the shape tends to be oval or even linear. A leg so fur-
nished is said to be reticulate : the reticulation may be entire, or be associated with scutellation,
as often happens (fig. 38, 6). A particular case of reticulation is called granulation (Lat.
granum, a grain): when the plates become elevated into little tubercles, roughened or not.
Such a leg is said to be granular, granulated, or rugose: it is well shown by parrots, and the
fish-hawk (Pandion). When the harder sorts of scales or plates are roughened without
obvious elevation, the leg is said to be scabrous or scarious (Lat. scabrum, a scab). But
scabrous is also said of the under surfaces of the toes, when these develop special pads, or
wart-like bulbs (called tylart) : as is well shown in the sharp-shinned and many other hawks.
The softer sorts of legs, and especially the webs of swimming birds, are often marked crosswise
or cancellated with a lattice work of lines, these however not being strong enough to produce
plates; it is more like the lines seen on our palms and finger-tips. The plates of a part of the
leg occasionally develop into actual serrations ; as witnessed along the hinder edge of a
grebe’s tarsus. When an unfeathered tarsus shows no divisions of the podotheca in front
(along the acrotarsium), or only two or three scales close by the toes, it is said to be booted or
greaved ; and such a podotheca is holothecal (Gr. 6dos, holos, whole, entire, and @jxn; fig. 36).
The generic opposite is schizothecal (Gr. cxi¢w, I cleave), whether by scutellation or reticula-
tion or in any other way the integument may be cut up. A booted or holothecal tarsus chiefly
occurs in the higher Oscines, and is supposed by many, particularly German ornithologists, to
indicate the highest type of bird structure. It is, however, found in a few water birds, as
Wilson’s stormy petrel and other species of Oceanites. It is not a common modification.
Exceptions aside, it only occurs in connection with an equally particular condition of the
sides and back of the tarsus, or planta. In almost all Oscine Passeres (Alaudide are an
exception), which constitute the great bulk of the large order Passeres, the planta is covered
with one pair of plates or amine, one on each side, meeting behind in a sharp ridge ; a condi-
tion called daminiplantar, in distinction from the opposite, scutelliplantar, state of the parts.
A holothecal podotheca only occurs in connection with the laminiplantar condition, the combi-
nation resulting in the perfect “boot.” Among North American birds, the genus Oceanites
aside, it is exhibited by the following genera, and by these only: Turdus, Cinclus, Saxicola,
Sialia, Regulus, Cyanecula, Phylloscopus, Chamea, Myiadestes ; and even birds of these
genera, when young, show scutella which disappear with age by progressive fusion of the
acrotarsial podotheca. (Compare figs. 36, 37.)

The Crus, when bare of feathers below, may, like the tarsus, be scutellate or reticulate
before or behind, or both ; such divisions of the crural integument being commonly seen in
long-legged wading birds. Or, again, this integument may be loose, softish, and movable, not
obviously divided, and passing directly into ordinary skin.

The Tarsus, in general, may be called subcylindrical: it is often quite circular in cross-
section; generally thicker from before backward, and only rarely wider from one side to the
other than in the opposite direction; but such a shape as this last is exhibited by the penguins.
When the transverse thinness is noticeable, the tarsus is said to be compressed; and such
compression is very great in a loon, in which the tarsus is almost like a knife blade. Quite
cylindrical tarsi occur chiefly when there are similar scales or plates before and behind, as

e

126 ‘ GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

happens in the larks (Alaudide) ; they are rare among land birds. common among waders.
Those swimming birds with a very thin skinny podotheca are apt to show traces of the four-
sidedness of the metatarsal bone. The tarsus in the vast majority of land birds is seen on
close inspection to be somewhat ovate or drop-shaped on cross-section, — gently rounded in
front, more compressed laterally, and sharp-ridged behind. This results from the laminiplan-
tation described above, and is equally well exhibited by most passerine birds, whether they
have booted or anteriorly scutellate tarsi. The line of union of anterior scutella with postero-
lateral plates on the sides of the tarsus is generally in a straight vertical line, — either a mere
Iie of flush union, or a ridge, or oftener a groove (well seen in the crows), which may or
may not be filled in with a few small narrow plates. In the Clamatorial Passeres, represented
by our flycatchers, the tarsus is enveloped in a scroll-like podotheca of irregularly arranged
plates, the edges of the scroll meeting along the inner side of the tarsus. But the full consider-
ation of special states of the tarsal envelope, however important and interesting, would be part.
of a systematic treatise on ornithology, rather than of an outline sketch like this.

The Number of Toes (individually, digiti; collectively, podiwm) is fowr: there are
never more. There are two in the ostrich alone, in which both inner and hind toe are wanting.
There are three in all the other struthious birds (Rheide, Casu-
artide), excepting Apteryx, which has four. There are like-
wise three, the hind toe being suppressed, in the tinamine
genera Calodromas and Tinamotis (Dromeognathe) ; through-
out the auk family (Aleide); in the petrel genus Pelecan-
cides; apparently in the albatrosses (Diomedeine) ; usually in
the gull genus Rissa; in the flamingo genus Phenicoparra ;
throughout the bustard family (Otidide), and among various
related forms, as Gdicnemus, HEsacus, Cursorius; in the
plovers (Charadruda), excepting Squatarola; and in the

Fig. 39.— Tridactyle foot of sand- bush-quails (Turnicide), excepting Pedionomus. In higher
erling, Calidris arenaria; nat. size. yirds three toes are a rare anomaly, only known to occur in |
three genera of woodpeckers (Picoides, Sasia, and Tiga), and in one galbuline genus (Jaca-
maralcyon), by loss of the hind toe ; in two genera of kingfishers (Ceya and Alcyone), by sup-
pression of the inner front toe; and in the passerine genus Cholornis, by defect of the outer
front toe. North American three-toed birds are these only: the woodpeckers of the genus
Picoides ; all auks (Alcide), and albatrosses (Diomedeine ; in these, however, there is a
rudiment of the hind toe); all plovers (Charadriide, excepting one, Squatarola) ; the oyster-
eatchers (Hematopus) ; the sanderling (Calidris, fig. 39); the stilt (Himantopus). Birds
with two toes are said to be didactyle ; with three, tridactyle ; with four, tetradactyle. In the
vast majority of cases, birds have three toes in front and one behind. Occasionally, either the
hind toe, or the outermost front toe, is versatile, that is, susceptible of being turmed either
way. Such is the condition of the outer front toe in ‘most owls (Striges), and in the fish-hawk
(Pandion). We have no case of true versatility of the hind toe among North American birds;
but several cases of its stationary somewhat lateral position, as in goatsuckers (Caprimulgide),
some of the swifts (Cypselide), the loons (Colymbide), and all the totipalmate swimmers
(Steganopodes). Nor have we any example of that rarest of all conditions (seen in some
Cypselide, and the African Coliide) in which all four toes are turned forward. The arrange-
ment of toes in pairs, two before and two behind, is quite common, being the characteristic
of seansorial birds and some others, as all the parrots and woodpeckers, cuckoos, trogons, ete.
Such arrangement is called zygodactyle or zygodactylous (Gr. (vydv, zugon, a yoke ; Sdxrudos,
daktulos, a digit) ; and birds exhibiting it are said to be yoke-toed (fig. 45). In all yoke-toed
birds, excepting the trogons, it is the outer anterior toe which is reversed ; in trogons, the

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEEF. 127

inner one. In nearly every three-toed bird, all three toes are anterior; our single exception is
in the genus Picoides, where the true hind toe is wanting, the outer anterior one being reversed
as usual in zygodactyles. No bird has more toes behind than in front. Birds’ toes, and their
respective joints, are

Numbered, in a certain definite order, as follows (see figs. 34, 36): hind toe = first toe,
1é; inner anterior toe = second tue, 2%; middle anterior toe = third toe, 3¢; outer anterior
toe = fourth toe, 4t. Such identification of 1 ¢, 2 ¢, 3¢, 4¢ applies to the ordinary case of three
toes in front and one behind. But, obviously, it holds good for any other arrangement of the
toes, if we only know which one is changed in position, —a thing always easy to learn, as we
shall see at once. In birds with the hind tve reversed, leaving all four in front, the same
order is evident, though then 1¢ is the inner anterior, 2¢ the next, ete. ; for it always happens,
when a hind toe turns forward, that it turns on the immer side of the foot. Similarly, in yoke-
toed birds (excepting Trogonida), it is the outer anterior which is turned backward, as above
said; then, evidently, inner hind toe =1¢; inner front toe = 2¢; outer front toe = 3¢; outer
hind toe =4¢. In Trogonide, with inner front toe reversed, the correction of the formula is
easily made. Moreover, when the number of toes decreases from four to three or two, the
digits are almost always reduced in the same order: thus, in three-toed birds, 1 tis the missing
one; in the two-toed ostrich, 1¢ and 2¢ are gone. The only known exceptions to this general-
ization are afforded by two exotic genera of kingfishers, Ceyx and Alcyone, in which 2 tis
defective ; and by the anomalous passerine Cholornis of China, in which 4¢ is in like case.
The rule is proven by the

Number of Phalanges, or joints, of the digits. The constancy of the joints in birds’
toes is remarkable, —it is one of the strongest expressions of the highly monomorphic character
of Aves. In all birds, excepting Procellariide, 1¢ when present has two joints (not counting,
of course, the accessory metatarsal). In all birds, 2¢ when present has three joints. In nearly
all birds, 3t has four joints. In nearly all birds, 4¢ has five joints. Thus, any digit has one
more joint than the number of itself. The exceptions to this regularity consist in the lessening
of the number of joints of 1 ¢ or 3¢ by one, and of 4¢ by one or two. So when the joints do
not run 2, 3, 4, 5, for toes 1 to 4, they run either, 1, 3, 4, 5, or 2, 3, 4, 4, or 2, 3, 3, 3. (These
‘statements do not regard the anomalous cases of Ceyx, Alcyone, and Cholornis — see above.)
This variability is nearly confined to certain Picarian birds: our examples of it are in certain

genera of Cypseline, fig. 40, where the ratio is 2, 3, 3,3,
of Caprimulgine, fig. 41, where it is 2, 3, 4,4; and the petrel
family, with 1, 3, 4,5. Such admirable conservatism enables

S00." us to tell what toes are missing in any case, or what ones are
(Z y) out of the regular position. Thus, in Picoides, the hind toe, y \

t apparently 1#, is known to be 4 ¢, because it is five-jointed ; o Y. / i] ‘

ay ae in a trogon, the inner hind toe is 2 t, being three-jointed ; in G i
langes of Cypse- the ostrich, with only two toes, 3¢ and 4¢ are seen to be (9 v
line foot, 2,3,3,3. preserved, because they are respectively four- and five-jointed. J)
(See fig. 34, where the digits and their phalanges are numbered.) Besides Le
this interesting numerical ratio, the phalanges have other inter-relations of ig ee
some consequence in classification, resulting from their comparative lengths. jangesof Caprimul-
In some families of birds, one or more of the basal or proximal phalanges gine foot, 2, 3, 4,4.
(those next to the foot — opposed to distal, or those at the ends of the digits) of the front toes
are extremely short, being mere nodules of bone (fig. 40); in other and more frequent cases,
they are the longest of all, as in figs. 34, 41. On the whole, they generally decrease in length
from proximal to distal extremity, and the last one of any toe is quite small, serving merely

128 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

as a core to the claw. The difference in the lengths of the several phalanges, lke that ot
the digits themselves, makes the toes more efficient in grasping, since they thereby clasp more
perfectly upon an irregular object. The design and the principle are the same as seen in the
human hand, in which model instrument the digits and their joints are all of different lengths.

The Position of the Digits, other than in respect to their direction, is important. In
all birds the front toes are inserted on the metatarsus on the same level, or so nearly in one
horizontal plane that the difference is not notable. The same may be said of the hind toes
when they are a pair, as in zygodactyle birds. But the hind toe, or hallux, as it is often
called, when present and single, varies remarkably in position with reference to the front toes;
and this matter requires special notice, as it is important in classification. The insertion of
this digit varies, from the very bottom of the tarsus (metatarsus), where it is on a level with
the front toes, to some distance up the bone. When the hallux is flush with the bases of
the other toes, so that its whole length is on the ground, it is said to be ¢ncwmbent. When
just so much raised that its tip only touches the ground, it is called insistent. When inserted
so high up that it does not reach the ground, it is termed remote (amotus) or elevated.
But as the precise position varies insensibly, so that the foregoing distinctions are not readily
perceived, it is practically best to recognize only two of these three conditions, saying simply
‘hind toe elevated,” when it is inserted fairly above the rest, and ‘hind toe not elevated,”
when its insertion is flush with that of the other toes. In round terms: itis characteristic of
all insessorial (Lat. insedo, I sit upon) or perching birds to have the hind toe pown; of all
other birds to have it uP (when present). The exceptions to the first of these statements are
extremely rare; among North American birds they are chiefly furnished by certain genera of
Caprimulgide, perhaps also of Cypselide, and of Cathartide. But among other Raptores
besides Cathartida, especially certain owls (Striges), and in some of the pigeons (Columbide),
the hind toe is not quite down, or is decidedly uplifted (as in Starnenas, for example). It is
elevated in all our rasorial birds (Galline); elevated in all our waders excepting the herons
and some of their allies (Herodiones), though not very markedly so in the rail family (Rallide).
It is elevated in all swimming birds, whether lobe-footed or completely or partly web-footed,
but in the totipalmate order (Steganopodes), where the hallux is lateral in position and
webbed with the inner toe, the elevation is slight. Now since, curiously endugh, the only
ones of our insessorial genera (see above) that have the hind toe up, have also little webs
between the front toes—since some Raptores are our only other insessorial birds with any
such true webbing—since herons and some of their allies are our only birds with such
webbing that have the hallux down—the following rule is perhaps infallible for North
American birds: Consider the hind toe up in any bird with any true webbing or lobing of the
front toes, excepting herons and some of their allies and some birds of prey. The converse
also holds almost as well; for our only birds with fully cleft anterior toes and hind toe up, are
the rails and gallinules (Railide), the black-bellied plover (Squatarola helvetica), our only
four-toed plover, the turn-stone (Strepsilas imterpres), the American woodcock (Philohela
minor), the European woodeock (Scolopax rusticula), Wilson’s snipe (Gallinago wilson), and
most of the sandpipers (Scolopacide). If the sense of this paragraph is taken in, the student
who wishes to use my artificial “key” will seldom be puzzled to know whether to take the
toe up or down.

The Hallux has other Notable Characters. — It is free and simple, in the vast majority
of birds : in all insessorial birds, nearly all cwrsorial (Lat. cursor, a courser), and most natatorial
(Lat. natator, a swimmer) forms. Its length, claw included, may equal or surpass that of the
longest anterior toe; aifd generally exceeds that of one or two of these. It is never so long as
when éncumbent ; when thus down on a level with the rest it also acquires its greatest mobility

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.—THE FEET. 129

and functional efficiency. In most Passeres it is virtually provided with a special muscle for
independent movement, so that it may be perfectly apposable to the other toes collectively,
just as our thumb may be brought against the tip of any finger. In general, it shortens as it
rises on the metatarsus: and probably in no bird in which it is truly elevated is it as long as
the shortest anterior toe. It is short, barely touching the ground, in most wading birds;
shorter still in some swimmers, as the gulls, where it is probably functionless ; it is incom-
plete in one genus of gulls (Rissa), where it bears no perfect claw: it has only one phalanx
and is represented only by a short immovable claw in the petrels (Procellartide); it disappears
in the binds named in the last paragraph but two above, and in some others. It is never actn-
ally soldered with any other toe. for any noticeable distance ; but it is webbed to the base of the
inner toe in the loons (Colymbus), and to the whole length of the toe in all the Steganopodes
(fig. 52). It may also be independently webbed ; that is, be provided with a separate flap or
lobe of free membrane. This lobation of the hallux is seen in all our sea-ducks and mergansers
(Fuliguline and Merging). and in all the truly lobe-footed birds, as coots (Fulica), grebes
(Podicipedide) and phalaropes (Phalaropodide). The modes of union -of the anterior toes
with one another may be finally considered under the head of the

Three leading Modifications of the Avian Foot. — Birds’ feet are modelled, ou the
whole, upon one or another of three plans, furnishing as many types of structure ; which
types. though they run into one another. and each is variously modified, may readily be appre-
ciated. These plans are the perching or insessorial, the walking or wading, cursorial or
grallatorial, and the swimming or natatorial —in fact, so well distinguished are they, that
earinate birds have even been primarily divided into groups corresponding to these three
evidences of physiological adaptation of the structure of the Avian pes. Independently of the
number and position of the digits, the plans are pretty well indicated by the method of union
of the toes, or their entire lack of union. 1. The insessorial type. (a) In order to make a foot
the most of @ hand, that is. to fit it best for that grasping function which the perching of
birds upon trees and bushes requires, it is requisite that the digits should be as free and
movable as possible, and that the hind one should be perfectly apposable to the others.
Compare the human hand, for example, with the foot, and observe the perfection secured by
the perfect fréedom of the fingers and especially the appositeness of the thumb. In the most
accomplished insessorial foot, the front toes are cleft to the base, or only coherent to a very
slight extent; the hind toe is completely incumbent, and as long and flexible as the rest. Our
thrushes (Turdide) probably show as complete cleavage
as is ever seen, practically as much as that of the
human fingers; the cleft between the inner and middle
tue being to the very base. while the outer is only joined
to the middle for about the length of its own basal
joint. This is the typical passerine foot (figs. 36, 37.
42,45). There may be somewhat more cohesion of
the toes at base, as in the wrens, titmice. creepers,
vireos, ete.. without, however, obscuring the true pas-
serine character. As regards this matter, the point is,
that when the toes are united at all, it is by their actual
cohesion there, not by movable webbing. Besides the ~ e
typical passerine. there are several other modifications ie as fg. ts leer

_of the insessorial foot. (6) Thus a kingfisher shows *éws, nat. size.)
what is called a syndactyle or syngnesious (Gr. ody. sun. together : ywjows, gnesios, relating to
way of birth) foot (fig. 44), where the outer and middle toes cohere for most of their extent and

have a broad sole in common. It is a degradation of the insessorial foot, and not a common
9

130 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

one either; seen in those perching birds which scarcely use their feet for progression, but
simply for sitting motionless. (¢) The zygodactyle or yoke-toed modification has been suffi-
ciently noted (fig. 45). It was formerly made much of, as a scamsorial or climbing type of foot,
m™ and an absurd “ order”
of birds ‘has been called
Scansores. But many
of the zygodactyle birds
do not climb, as the
cuckoos; while the most
nimble and adroit of
climbers, such as the
nuthatches and creepers,
retain a typically pas- Fig. 45.—Zygodactyle foot of a woodpecker, Hylotomus
serine foot. The “‘scan- pileatus, nat. size. :
sorial” is simply one modification of the insessorial plan, and has little clas-
Fig. 44.—Syn- aa : F

dactyle foot of king- sificatory significance, —no more than that attaching to the particular con-
fisher, nat. size. dition of the insessorial foot (d) which results from elevation or versatility of
the hind toe, as in some Cypselid@ and Caprimulgide. This is an abnormality which has
received no special name; it is generally associated with some little webbing of the anterior
toes at base, which is a de-
parture from the true inses-
sorial plan, or with abnormal
reduction of the phalanges of
the third and fourth toes, as
explained above (figs. 40, 41).
(e) The raptorial is another
modification of the insessorial
foot. It is advantageous to a
bird of prey to be able to
spread the toes as widely as
possible, that the talons may
— seize the prey like a set of
Fig. 46.— Raptorial foot of a hawk, Accipiter coopert, nat. size. grappling irons ; and accord-
ingly the toes are widely divergent from each other, the outer one in the owls and a few hawks
being quite versatile. In a foot of raptorial character, the toes are cleft profoundly, or, if united
at base, it is by movable -
webbing; the claws are im-
mensely developed, and the
under-surfaces of the toes are
scabrous or bulbous for greater
security of the object grasped.
Any hawk or owl or old-world
vulture exhibits the raptorial
insessorial foot (figs. 46, 47).
2. The cursorial or grallato-
rial type. The gist of this
plan lies in the decrease or’

Fic. 47.— Raptorial foot of an owl, Aluco flammeus, nat. size. entire loss of the grasping
function, and in the elevation, reduction in length, or loss of the hind toe; the foot is a good
foot, but nothing of a hand. The columbine birds, which are partly terrestrial, partly arboreal,

Mesh

EXTERNAL PARTS OF BIRDS.— THE FEET. 131

exhibit the transition from the perching to the gradient foot, in some reduction of the hind toe,
which is nevertheless in most cases still on the same level as the rest (fig. 38, 6). In the
gallinaceous or rasorial (Lat. rasor, a scraper) birds, which are essentially terrestrial, and
noted for their habit of scratching the ground for food, the hind toe is decidedly elevated and
shortened in almost all of the families (fig. 35). Such reduction and uplifting of the pone is
carried to an extreme in most of the waders, or gral-
latores, in many of which this toe disappears (figs.
38, a, 39). Itis scarcely practicable to recognize special
modifications of such gradient or grallatorial feet, since
they merge insensibly into one another. The herons,
whieh are the most arboricole of the waders, exhibit a
reversion to the insessorial type, in the length and in-
cumbency of the hallux. The mode of union of the

Fic. 48, — Semipal-

mation in Ereunetes; front toes of the walkers and waders is somewhat char- een Ba ae?
‘ oye . . paimate: 0!
nat. size. acteristic. The toes are either cleft quite to the base, toes of Symphemia;

or there jomed by small webs; probably never actually coherent. Such nat. size.

basal webbing of the toes is called semipalmation (‘‘half-webbing”). It is actually the
same thing that occurs in many birds of prey, in most gallinaceous birds, etc. ; the term is
mostly restricted, in descriptive ornithology, to those wading birds, or grallatores, in which it
occurs. Such basal webs generally run out to the end of the first, or along part of the second,
phalanx of the toes; usually farther between the outer and middle
than between the middle and inner toes. Such a foot is well illus-
trated by the semipalmated plover (AZgialites semipalmatus),
semipalmated sandpiper (Ereunetes pusillus, fig. 48), and willet
(Symphemia semipalmata, fig. 49). In a few wading birds, as the
avocet and flamingo, .the webs extend to the ends of the toes.
This introduces us at once to the third main modification of the
foot, 3. The natatorial type. Here the foot is transformed into
a swimming implement, usually with much if not entire abrogation
of its function as foot or hand. Swimming birds with few ex-
ceptions are notoriously bad walkers, and few of them are perchers.
The swimming type is presented under two principal modifica-
tions : — (a.) In the palmate or ordinary webbed foot, all the front Fie. 50. — Palmate foot of a
toes are united by ample webs (fig. 50). The palmation is usually tern, Sterna forstert ; nat. size.
complete, extending to the ends of the toes; but one or both webs may be so deeply incised,
that is, cut away, that the palmation is practically reduced to semipalmation, as in terns of
the genus Hydrochelidon (fig. 51). The totipalmate is a special case of palmation, in
which all four toes are webbed; this characterizes the whole order
Steganopodes (fig. 52). (0.) In the lobate foot, a paddle results not
from connecting webs, but from a series of lobes or flaps along the
sides of the individual toes; as in the coots, grebes, phalaropes, and
sun-birds (Heliornithide). Lobation is usually associated with semi-
palmation, as is well seen in the grebes (Podicipedide). In the snipe-
like phalaropes (Phalaropodide), lobation is present as a modification
of a foot otherwise quite cursorial. The most emphatic cases of loba-
tion are those in which each joint of the toes has its own flap, with a

Fig. 51. — Incised pal-
free convex border; the membranes as a whole therefore present a scol- mation of Hydrochelidon

loped outline (figs..53, 53 bis). Such lobes are merely a development '@”/rmés; nat. size.
of certain marginal fringes or processes exhibited by many non-ldbate or non-palmate birds.
Thus, if the foot of some of the gallinules be examined in a fresh state, the toes will be seen to

182 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

have a narrow membranous margin running the whole length. The same thing is evident in
a great many waders, and on the free borders of the inner and outer toes of web-footed birds.
In the grouse family
(Tetraonide), mar-
ginal fringes are
very conspicuous ;
there being a great
development of hard
horny substance,
fringed into a series
of sharp teeth or
pectinations (fig.
35). These forma-

Fic. 52,—Totipalmate foot of a tions appear to be
pelican; reduced. deciduous, that is,
to fall off periodically, like parts of the claws of F1@. 53.— Lobate foot of a coot; reduced.
some quadrupeds (lemmings).

Claws and Spurs. — With rare anomalous exceptions, as in the case of an imperfect
hind toe, every digit terminates in a complete claw. The general shape is remarkably constant
in the class; variations being rather in degree than in kind. A cat’s claw is about the usual
shape: it is compressed, arched, acute. The great talons of a bird of prey are only an en-
largement of the typical shape; and, in fact, they are searcely longer, more curved, or ~more
acute than those of a delicate canary bird; they are simply stouter. The claws of scansorial
birds are very acute and much curved, as well as quite large. The under surface of the claw
is generally excavated, so that the transverse section, as
well as the lengthwise outline below, is concave, and the
under surface is bounded on either side by a sharp edge.
One of these edges, particularly the inner edge of the middle
claw, is expanded or dilated in a great many birds; in some

Fic. 53 bis. —Lobate foot of phala- it becomes a perfect comb, having a regular series of teeth.
" rope, Lobipes hyperboreus; nat. size. This pectination (Lat. pecten, a comb), as it is called, only

occurs on the inner edge of the middle claw. It is beautifully shown by all the true herons
(Ardeide) ; by the whip-poor-wills and night-hawks (Caprimulgide, fig. 41); by the frigate
pelican (Tachypetes); und imperfectly by the barn owl (Aluco flammeus). It is supposed to
be used for freeing parts of the plumage that cannot be reached by the bill from parasites;
but this is very questionable, seeing that some of the shortest-legged birds, which cannot
possibly reach much of the plumage with the comb, possess that instrument. Claws are
more obtuse among the lower birds than in the insessorial and scansorial groups, as the
columbine and gallinaceous (rasorial) orders, and most natatorial families. Obtuseness is
generally associated with flatness or depression; for in proportion as a claw becomes less
acute, so does it lose its arcuation, as a rule. This is well illustrated by Wilson’s petrel
(Oceanites oceamicus), as compared with others of the same family. Such condition is carried
to an extreme in the grebes (Podicipedide), the claws of which birds resemble human finger-
nails. Otherwise, deviations from curvature, without loss of acuteness, are chiefly exhibited
by the hind claw of many terrestrial Passeres, as in the whole family Alaudide (larks),
and some of the finches (F'ringillide), as the species of ‘‘long-spur” (Centrophanes). But all
the claws are straight, sharp, and prodigiously long, in birds of the genus Parra (fig.
53 ter); these jacands being enabled to run lightly over the floating leaves of aquatic plants
by so much increase in the spread of their toes that they do not “slump in.” Claws are

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 134

also variously carinate or ridged, sulcate or grooved. In a few cases they are rounded under.
neath, so as to be nearly circular in cross-section, as is the case with those of the fish-hawk
(Pandion). They are always horny (corneous). They take name from and are reckoned by
their respective digits: thus, 1 cl. = claw of lt; 2 el. = claw of 2¢, ete.

Fic. 53 ter.— Foot of Parra gymnostoma, nat, size, showing the long, straight claws. (From Pr. U.S. Nat.
Mus. The spurred wing of the same bird is also shown. See p. 114.)

Spurs (Lat. calcar, a spur) are developed on the metatarsal bones of a few birds. They
are of the nature of claws, being hard, horny modifications of the epiderm: but they have
nothing to do with the digits. They possess a, bony core upon which they are supported,
like the horns of cattle. Such growths chiefiy occur in gallinaceous birds: the spurs of the
domestic fowl are a familiar case. Sometimes there are a pair of such weapons on each foot,
as in the Pavo bicalcaratus. The only instance of their occurrence among indigenous birds of
North America is offered by the wild turkey (Meleagris gallipavo). Metatarsal spurs are
characteristic of the male sex; they are offensive weapons, and belong to the class of ‘‘second-
ary sexual characters” (p. 90). (For wing-spurs, as shown in fig. 53 ter, see p. 114.)

§ 4.—AN INTRODUCTION TO THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.

Anatomical Structure now affords ornithologists many and the most important of the
characters used in classification. In fact, few if any of the groups above genera can be
securely established without consideration of internal parts and organs, as well of exterior
modifications of structure. Therefore, the student who really ‘‘ means business” must be on
speaking terms at least with avian anatomy. For example, none could in the least intelli-
geutly understand a wing or a leg without knowing the bony framework of those members.
Yet, for me to adequately set this matter forth would be to occupy this whole volume with
anatomy ; whereas, I can only devote a few pages to the entire subject. In such embarrass-
inent, which attends any attempt to treat a great theme in a short way that shall not also be a
small way, attention must be mainly confined to those points which bear most directly upon
systematic ornithology as distinguished from pure anatomy, in order to bring forward the
structures which are more particularly concerned in the classification of birds. I wish to
give a fair account of the skeleton, as osteological characters are of the utmost importance for
the determination of natural affinities; and to continue with some notice of prominent features
of the muscular, vascular, respiratory, digestive, urogenital, and nervous systems, and
organs of the special senses, as the eye and ear. The tegumentary system has already been
treated at some length (pp. 82-91) ; so has the osseous system, so far as the bones of the limbs
are concerned (pp. 106-109, 118-122, 127 ). What further I shall have to say is designed
merely as an introduction to the rudiments of avian anatomy, and ig supposed to be addressed
to beginners only.

134 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

a. OSTEOLOGY: THE OssEoUS SYSTEM, OR SKELETON.

Osteology (Gr. éaréov, osteon, a bone; Aédyos, logos, a word) is a scientific description of
bone in general and of bones in particular. Bone consists of an animal basis or matrix (Lat.
matrix, a mould) hardened by deposit of earthy salts, chiefly phosphate of lime. Bone is
either preformed in the gristly substance called cartilage (Lat. cartilago, gristle), and results
from the substitution of the peculiar osseous tissue for the cartilaginous tissue, or it is formed
directly in ordinary connective tissue, such as that of most membranes or any ligaments of the
body. Bone tissue presents a peculiar microscupic structure, in which it differs from teeth, as
it does also in not being developed from mucous membrane; the substance is called ostein,
as distinguished from dentine. Though very dense and hard, bone has a copious blood-supply,
and is therefore very vascular ; the nutrient fluid penetrates every part in a system of vessels
called Haversian canals. In the natural state bone is covered with a tough membrane called
periosteum (Gr. mepi, peri, around, and éaréov), which is to bone what bark is to a tree. The
bones collectively constitute the osseous system, otherwise known as the skeleton (Gr. oxederdv,
dried, as bones usually are when studied). The skeleton is divided into the endoskeleton (Gr.
@8ov, endon, within), consisting of the bones inside the body ; and the exoskeleton (Gr. é€, ex,
out of), or those upon the surface of the body, of which birds have none. Certain bones
developed apart from the systematic endoskeleton, in fibrous tissue, are called scleroskeletal
(Gr. oxdnpés, scleros, hard), as the ossified tendons or leaders of a turkey’s leg, the ring of
ossicles in a bird’s eye (an ossicle is any small boue). Sesamoid (Gr. onoayun, sesame, a
kind of pea) bones, so often found in the ligaments and tendons about joints, are probably
‘best considered scleroskeletal. The endoskeleton is divided into bones of the axial skeleton,
so called because they lie in the axis of the body, as those of the skull, backbone, chest,
pelvis, and shoulder-girdle ; and of the appendicular skeleton, including bones of the limbs,
considered as diverging appendages of the trunk. The skeleton is jointed; bones join
either by immovable suture, or by movable articulation (Lat. articulus, a joint, dimin. of artus,
a limb). In free articulations, the opposing surfaces are generally smooth, and lubricated
with a fluid called synovia. Progressive ossification often causes bones originally distinct to
codssify, that is, to fuse together; this is termed ankylosis or anchylosis ; bones so melted
together are said to be ankylosed or anchylosed (Gr. dyxtAwots or dyytA@ors, the stiffening of
joints in a bent position). Thus all the bones of a bird’s brain-box are anchylosed together,
though the box at first consists of many distinct ones; and the determination of such osseous
elements or integers in compounded bones is a very important matter, as a clue to their
morphological composition. The names of most individual bones, chiefly derived from the
old anatomists, are arbitrary and have little scientific signification; many are fanciful and mis-
leading; bones named since anatomy passed from the empiric stage, when it was little more
than the art of dissecting and describing, however, have as a rule better naming. The shaft
of a long bone is its continuity: the enlargements usually found at its extremities are called
condyles (Gr. xévdudos, kondulos, a lump, knot, as of the knuckles). Points where ossification
commences in cartilage or membrane, are ossific centres, or osteoses ; valuable clues, usually,
to the elements of compound bones. But ossification of individual simple bones may begin in
more than one spot, and the several osteoses afterward grow together. This is especially the
case with the ends of bones, which often make much progress in ossification before they unite
‘ with the shaft or main part; such caps of bone, as long as they are disunited, are called
epiphyses (Gr. emi, epi, upon; vos, phusis, growth). Protrusive parts of bones have the
general name of processes, or apophyses (Gr. dré, apo, away from, and gis); such have
generally no ossific centres, being mere outgrowths. But many parts of a vertebra, which are
called “‘ apophyses,” have independent ossific centres. The progress of ossification is usually
rapid and effectual.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY. 135

The skeleton of birds is noted for the number and extent of its anchyloses, a great ten-
dency to codssification and condensation of bone-tissue resulting from the energy of the vital
activities in this hot-blooded, quick-breathing class of creatures. Birds’ bones are remarkably
hard and compact. When growing, they are solid and marrowy, but in after life more or fewer of
them become hollow and are filled with air. This pnewmaticity (Gr. mvevparixds, pneumatikos,
windy) is highly characteristic of the avian skeleton. Air penetrates the skull-bones from the
nose and ear-passages, and may permeate all of them. It gains access to the bones of the
trunk and limbs by means of air-tubes and air-sacs which connect with the air-passages in
the lungs; such sacs, sometimes of great extent, are also found in many places in the interior
of the body, beneath the skin, etc. ; sometimes the whole subcutaneous tissue is pneumatic.
The extent to which the skeleton is aérated is very variable. In many birds only the skull,
in a few the entire skeleton, is in such condition; ordinarily the greater part of the skull,’
and the lesser part of the trunk and limbs, is pneumatized. The passage of air in some cases
is so free, as into the arm-bone for example, that a bird with the windpipe stopped can breathe

Fie. 54. — Ideal plan of the double-ringed body of a
vertebrate. W,neuralcanal; H, hemal canal; the body

Fie. 55. — Actual section of the body in the thoracic
region of a bird. N, neural canal; H, hemal canal; c,

separating them is the centrum of any vertebra, bear-
ing e, an epapophysis, and y, a hypapophysis; n,n, neu-
rapophyses; d, d, diapophyses; ns, bifid neural spine;
pl, pl, pleurapophyses; h, kh, hemapophyses; hs, bifid

centrum of a dorsal vertebra; hy, hypapophysis; d,
diapophysis ; z, zygapophysis; ms, neural spine; 7,
pleurapophysis, or vertebral part of a free rib, bearing
u, uncinate process or epipleura; cr, haemapophysis

hemal spine. Drawn by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A.,
after Owen.

or sternal part of the same; st, section of sternum or
breast-bone (hamal spine). Designed by Dr. R. W.
Shufeldt, U.S. A.

for an indefinite period through a hole in the humerus. Pneumaticity is not directly nor
necessarily related to power of flight; some birds which do not fly at all are more pneumatic
than some of the most buoyant. (On the general pneumaticity of the body see beyond under
head of the respiratory system.)

The Axial Skeleton (figs. 54, 55, 56) of a bird or any vertebrated animal, that is, one
having a back-bone, exhibits in cross-section two rings or hoops, one above and the other
below a central point, like the upper and lower loops of a figure 8. The upper ring is the
neural arch (Gr. vedpov, neuron, a nerve), socalled because such a cylinder encloses a section
of the cerebro-spinal axis, or principal nervous system of a vertebrate (brain and spinal cord,

136 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

whence arise all the nerves of the body, excepting those of the sympathetic nervous system).
The lower ring is the hemal arch (Gr. aiya, haima, blood), which similarly contains a section
of the principal blood-vessels and viscera. Fig. 55 shows such a section, made across the
thoracic or chest-region of the trunk. Here the upper ring (neural) is contracted, only sur-
rounding the slender spinal cord, while the lower ring is expanded to enclose the heart and

whereof py is the pygostyle; s, scapula;

; dv, dorsal vertebra, excepting the last one,
see note 2, p. 138.)

physes), whereof sr is sacral; w, one of the five uncinate processes or

whereof the sixth floats; p, pelvic or sacral region of the spine, com-

and urosacral vertebre; J, ilium; Js, ischium; P, pubis; a, acetabu-
(For extent of dv,

of an owl, Asio wilsonianus, life size; from nature by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A.
caudal or coccygeal vertebr,

, cervical ribs, or free pleurapophyses

Fig. 56.— Axial skeleton, minus the skull,
3 R, two of the six true ribs (pleurapo

at, atlas; az, axis; cv, cervical vertebrx; c, c/

which joins the sacrum

epipleura; cr, two of the six sternal ribs (hamapophyses),
prehending one dorsal, and several lumbar, sacral proper,
lum; in, ischio-iliac foramen; 0, obturator foramen; clv,

ohs, os humero-scapulare; cl, clavicle; C, coracoid; S, sternum.

lungs. Such a section, made in the region of the skull, would show the reverse; the upper
ring greatly inflated to contain the brain, the lower contracted and otherwise greatly modified
into bones of the jaws. Thus the trunk of a vertebrate is a double-barrelled tube ; one tube
above for the nervous system, the other below for the viscera at large ; the partition between
the two being a jointed chain of solid bones from one end of the body to the other. These
solid bones are the centrums or bodies of vertebrae, in the trunk; and in the head certain

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 137

bones which in some respects correspond with the centrums of vertebrae. The entire chain or
series of vertebrae composes the back-bone or spinal column ; with its connections (thorax and
pelvis) and anterior continuation (skull) it is the axial skeleton. The skull is considered by
some competent anatomists to consist of modified vertebre. The skull-bones have certainly
the position and relations of parts of vertebrae; to a certain extent they resemble vertebra, as
in being divisible into several segments, like as many vertebral segments; they are also direct-
ly in the axis of the body, enclosing a part of the cerebro-spinal nervous system above, and
portions of the visceral systems below. But supposed strict morphological correspondence of
cranial bones with vertebree is not supported by their mode of development, and is now gen-
erally denied, the relation being considered rather analogical and physiological than homological
and morphological. ;

1. THE SPINAL COLUMN.

A Vertebra (so called from the flexibility of the chain of vertebree; Lat. verto, I turn)
consists of a solid body or centrum, and more or fewer processes or apophyses, some of which
have separate ossific centres. Plate-like processes which arch upward from either side of a
centrum to enclose the neural canal are the newral arches or newrapophyses (fig. 54, n, 2);
at their union in the middle line above they commonly send up a process called the newral spine -
(ns). Transverse processes from the sides of the neural arch are diapophyses (Gr. 61a, dia, across)
(figs. 54, 55,d,d). Oblique processes from the sides of the same arches, serving to lock them
together, are zygapophyses (Gr. (vyov, zugon, a yoke; fig. 55, 2); there are two on each side ;
one anterior, on the front border of an arch, a pre-zygapophysis ; one posterior, on the hind
border, a post-zygapophysis. From the under-side of a centrum, in the middle line, there is often
a hypapophysis (Gr. tré, hupo, under; fig. 55, hy). These several processes, with some others
not necessary to mention here, make with the centrum « vertebra in strictness; that is, when exist-
ing at all, they are completely consolidated with one another and with the centrum into one bone.
But certain important elements of a vertebra, developed from independent ossific centres, may or
may not anchylose therewith, in different regions of the same spinal column. These are the
pleurapophyses (Gr. mdevpdv, plewron, a rib; fig. 54 pl; fig. 55, 7r). Any rib is in fact the
pleurapophysial element of a vertebra ; it may be, and in most regions of the spinal column it is,
quite small when existing at all, and anchylosed with the vertebra to which it belongs, as an
integral portion thereof. Only in the lower region of the neck, and throughout the thoracic
region, such pleurapophyses elongate, and are movably articulated with their respective verte-
bre ; they then become the ‘‘ribs” of ordinary language. Moreover, the true thoracic ribs of
birds are jointed near the middle, each thus consisting of two pieces; the upper piece is pleura-
pophysis proper: the lower is called a hemapophysis (fig. 54, h; fig. 55, er) ; it corresponds to
a‘ costal cartilage” of human anatomy. Once again: since the sternum (breast-bone) is theo-
retically, and doubtless archetypically, a solidified set of those parts of the vertebral segments
which complete the heemal arches below, each segment of a sternum to which a hemapophysis
is articulated is called a hemal spine, being compared to a neural spine above. Aside from any
consideration of the ribs proper and sternum, or free pleurapophyses, hemapophyses, and
heemal spines, any ‘‘ vertebra” of ordinary language is the compound bone which consists of
centrum and neur-, di-, pre- and post-zyg-, pleur-, hyp- and other -apophyses, if any, and
neural spine ; the latter being often called the “‘ spinous process.”

The Vertebre join one another, forming a continuous chain. Their centra are placed
end to end, one after another; their neural arches are also locked together by the zygapophyses,
when such articular processes are developed. Zygapophyses bear upon their free ends smooth
articular facets, the faces of which are mostly horizontal; those of the pre-zygapophyses looking

_ downward, and overriding the reversed faces of the post-zygapophyses. The mode of jointing

138 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

of the centra of such vertebre as are freely movable upon each other is highly characteristic
of birds, in so far as the shapes of the articular ends of the vertebral centra are concerned.
In eenlonny at large, a vertebral centrum which is cupped or hollowed at both ends, is of
course bi-concave. Such a vertebra is called amphicelous (Gr. dui, amphi, on both sides;
xoidos, koilos, hollowed) ; this is the rule in fishes, and obtained in some extinct Cretaceous birds,
as Ichthyornis ; it is unknown in recent birds.1_ A centrum cupped in front only is procelous ;
one cupped only behind is opisthocelous (Gr. émiade, opisthe, behind). Such structure neces-
sarily results in a ball-and-socket jointing of vertebree. In those vertebree of birds in which
this arrangement obtains, it is always the posterior face of a centrum which is cupped, the-
anterior one being balled; such vertebra are therefore opisthocelous. But in the freest
vertebral articulation of birds, that existing in the region of the neck, another modification
oceurs. Both ends of each vertebra are saddle-shaped ; 1. e., concave in one direction, convex
in the other; a condition which may be called heterocelous (Gr. érepos, heteros, contrary).
The concavo-convexity of any one vertebra fits the reciprocal concavo-convexity of the next.
Anterior faces of heteroccelous vertebrae are concave crosswise, up-and-down convex ; posterior
faces are the reverse; consequently, such vertebre are proccelous in horizontal section, but in
vertical section opisthocelous. The various physical characters of vertebrae in different regions
of the body, and their connections with and relations to other parts of the body, have caused
their division into several sets, as cervical, dorsal, etc., which are best considered separately.

Cervical Vertebre (fig. 56, cv) are those of the neck: all those in front of the thorax or
chest, which do not bear free pleurapophyses in adult life, or the free pleurapophyses of which,
if any, are not in two-jointed pieces and do not reach the breast-bone; ¢. e., have no hema-
pophyses. It is advisable, in birds, to draw this line between cervical and succeeding vertebra,
no other being equally practicable; for, on the one hand, one, two or more of the cervicals
(recognizable as such by their general conformation and free articulation) may have long free
ribs, movably articulated; and all the cervicals, excepting usually the first, or first and second,
have short pleurapophyses, anchylosed in adult life, but free in the embryo; while, on the
other hand, a vertebra, apparently dorsal by its configuration and even its anchylosis with the
dorsal series, may be entirely cervical in its pleurapophysial character.? Thus, in fig. 56, of an
owl’s trunk, the bone which is apparently first dorsal, and is so marked (dv), bears a free
styliform ‘‘riblet” an inch long (c’), only it is not jointed, and does not reach the sternum ;
while the next to the last cervical has a minute but still free rib (ce). In a raven’s neck before
me, the last cervical rib is about two inches long, articulating by well-defined head and shoul-
der to body and lateral process of the vertebra; the penultimate rib is about half an inch long,
with one articulation to the lateral process; while the next anterior vertebra (third from the
last) has a minute ossicle, as a free ‘‘riblet.” The rule is two such free pleurapophyses or
cervical ribs of any considerable length: sometimes one; rarely three; in the cassowary four.
Rudimentary pleurapophyses may usually be traced up to the second cervical vertebra, as slender

, 1 Except to this statement, however, the oddly-massed pygostyle, which, in birds where a terminal disc
develops inferiorly, may be distinctly cupped at both ends, as it is in a raven for example.

2 The case is very puzzling; the more so because, viewing the whole series of birds, the ambiguous “ cervico-
dorsal,’ or two such equivocal vertebra, may lean in different cases in opposite directions when the whole sum of
characters is taken into account. Therefore it may be best, as already said, to make the possession of a jointed
sternum-reaching rib the criterion of the jirst dorsal vertebra, even though an antecedent one may have the
physical characters of a dorsal, and be anchylosed with the dorsal series. This is the view taken by Huxley, who
says: ‘The first dorsal vertebra is defined as such by the union of its ribs with the sternum by means of a sternal
rib.” (Anat. Vert. Anim., 1872, p. 237.) Owen appears to regard as dorsal any of the vertebrae in question which
bear free ribs. The actual uticertainty in the case, and the discrepant reckoning by different authors, prevents us
from making a satisfactory count of the numbers of the two series of vertebra in any given case. Thus, fig 56, as
marked by Dr. Shufeldt, shows six dorsals (dv), to which is to be added the one under p, bearing the rib sr; and

from which is to be subtracted the anterior one, bearing the rib c’, which is to be regarded as cervical, though its
physical characters are evidently those of the dorsal series.

,

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY. 139

stylets or riblets, completely anchylosed with the neural arches in adult life, and lying parallel
with the long axes of the bones. The anchylosis of pleuropophyses distinguishes most cervical
vertebre in another way: for from it results, on each side of the neural arch, a foramen
(Lat. foramen, a hole, pl. foramina), through which blood-vessels (vertebral artery and vein)
pass to and from the skull. The series of these foramina is called the vertebrarterial canal ;
none such exist in those posterior cervical vertebree which bear free ribs; thus, in the raven the
canal begins abruptly at the fowrth from the last cervical. But, as in Rhea for instance (and
doubtless in many other cases), the vertebrarterial canal shades visibly into the series of
foramina formed by the spaces between the head and shouldér of any rib and the side of the
vertebra to which it is attached; such being, as I suppose, the true morphology of the canal.
The cervical is the most flexible region of a bird’s spine; the articular ends of the vertebral bodies
are the most completely saddle-shaped (heteroccelous); the zygapophyses are large and flaring,
overriding each other extensively ; the largest processes are at the fore ends of the bones; the ap-
positions of the central and zygapophysial articular surfaces are collectively such, that the column
tends to bend in an S-shape or sigmoid curve. The vertebral bodies are more or less contracted
in the middle, or somewhat hour-glass-shaped; on several lower cervicals, hypapophyses are
likely to be well developed; as are neural spines toward both the beginning and end of the
series. The vertebra on the whole are large; their neural canal is also of ample calibre. The
first two cervicals are so peculiarly modified for the articulation of the skull as to have received
special names. The first one, fig. 56, at, the atlas (so called because it bears up the head, as
the giant Atlas was fabled to support the firmament), is a simple ring, apparently without a
centrum. The lower part of the ring is deeply cupped to receive the condyle of the occiput
into ball-and-socket joint. The second cervical is the axis, ax, which subserves rotary move-
ments of the skull. It has a peculiar tooth-like odontoid (Gr. ddovs, d8évros, odous, odontos,
tooth ; ides, eidos, form) process, borne upon the anterior end of its body, fitting into the lower
part of the atlantal ring; about which pivot the atlas, bearing the head, revolves like a wheel
upon an eccentric axis. The cervicals of birds vary greatly in number; according to Huxley
there are never fewer than eight, and there may be as many as twenty-three; Stejneger gives
twenty-four for some of the swans. Twelve to fourteen may be about an average number.

Thoracic or Dorsal Vertebre (fig. 56, dv) extend from the cervical to or into the
pelvic region of the spine. In most animals, and in ordinary anatomical language, a ‘ dorsal”
is one which bears a distinct free rib, and is therefore truly thoracic, since ‘‘ ribs” are the side-
‘walls of the chest. But in birds, as we have seen, certain cervicals have distinct elongate
ribs; and, as will be seen soon, long jointed pleurapophyses are usually found in that region
commonly called ‘ sacral.” The first dorsal, in birds, is arbitrarily considered to be that one
which bears the first rib which is jointed, and which reaches the sternum by its lower (heema-
pophysial) half. Five or six vertebra of birds commonly answer this description; though the
last one which bears a long free jointed rib (which may or may not reach the sternum) is coin-
monly anchylosed with the sacrum, as sr. So few as only three hemapophysis-bearing ribs nay
reach the sternum. There may also be a long free-jointed rib which “floats” at both ends ;
i. é., is articulated neither with the sternum uor with the vertebra to which it belongs as in the
loon, for example. As the dorsal series thus shades insensibly behind into another series, the-
lumbar (which has no free, nor any distinct ribs, — ribs that one would not hesitate to call
such), it is best to consider as dorsal or thoracic all those vertebra, succeeding the last
cervical (which is to be determined as explained in the last paragraph), which have distinct
jointed ribs, whatever the connection or disconnection é6f such pleurapophyses at either end.
On this understanding, one, sometimes two or even three ‘‘ dorsal” vertebrae anchylose with
the pelvic region of the spine. Fixity of the dorsal region being of advantage to flight, these
vertebre are very tightly locked together; not only by the close apposition or even

140 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

anchylosis of their bodies and processes, but also, in many cases, by ossifications of the
tendons of muscles of the back, and codssifications of these with the vertebra, like a set of
splints, till the consolidation of the thoracic is only surpassed by that of the pelvic region of the
spine. Dorsal vertebre also usually differ a good deal from most cervicals in having shorter
bodies, laterally compressed, producing a ridge which runs along their middle line below; in
lacking a vertebrarterial canal; in having on each side two articular facets, — one on the body
and the other on the transverse process, for the head and shoulder of a rib. They are further
distinguished, usually, by having large spinous processes, in the form of high, long, thin,
squarish plates, often or usually anchylosed together. Their transverse processes are also
very prominent laterally, thin and horizontal, and often anchylosed. More or fewer dorsals
may bear large hypapophyses; which, as in the loon, may bifurcate at their ends into two
flaring plates. Such processes continue a similar series from the neck, and are in relation to
the advantageous action of the muscles (rectus colli anticus and longus colli) by which the
neck is made to straighten out from the lower curve of its sigmoid flexure.

The “Sacrum” of a Bird (figs. 57, and 60) is commonly considered to be that large
solid mass of numerous anchylosed vertebree in the region of the pelvis, covered in by, and
. fused more or less completely with, the principal bones of the

pelvis, or haunch-bones (tla). But in this consolidation of an
extremely variable number (averaging perhaps twelve, but run-
ning up to at least twenty, eleven to thirteen being usual)
of bones are included vertebrae which in other animals belong
to several different sets — dorsal, lumbar, sacral proper, and
coecygeal or caudal. We have just seen that one or two, even
three, vertebree, which are dorsal according to the definition
agreed upon, may enter into the composition of the ‘ sacrum,”
being firmly anchylosed therewith, and their long ribs issuing
out from underneath the ilia, as shown in fig. 56, sr. Next
comes one bone, or a series of several (two to five or more)
bones, anchylosed together by their bodies and spinous proc-
esses, and also anchylosed with the ilia by means of stout lateral
bars of bone sent transversely outward on either side from their
respective centra to abut against the ilia. These cross-bars
correspond in general form and position with the transverse
process of the last true rib-bearing dorsal, — that process against
which the shoulder of any developed rib abuts; they are variously
considered to be, to represent, or to include rudimentary ribs;
and such difference of view may be warranted by the state of the
parts in different birds. However this may be, the bones just
described are lumbar vertebree (Lat. lwmbus, the loin; where
such vertebre: are situated in man and other mammals); which
certainly possess abortive ribs in some cases. On successive

Fig. 57.— The ‘ sacrum” of

a young fowl, seen from below,

nat. size; after Parker. dl, dor-
solumbar series, whereof the first
is dorsal proper, the next three
are lumbar; s, the sacral series
proper, or true sacrum, consist-
ing of five vertebrx; c, the uro-
sacral series, being those caudal
vertebre, six in number, which
anchylose with one another and
with the sacrum.

lumbars the cross-bars, whatever their nature, commonly slip
lower and lower downward (belly-ward) on the vertebral bodies,
till the last ones are quite down to the level of the ventral
aspect of the centrum; these are also commonly the stoutest,
most directly transverse, and most nearly horizontal of the series
of processes, abutting against the ilia a little in advance of the
socket of the thigh bone. This ends a series of consolidated
“sacral” vertebrae which are termed collectively “‘ dorso-lumbar,”

' THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 141

—all of them anterior to the true sacrum of a bird. The sacrwm proper (fig. 57, s) consists
of those few vertebree — three, four, or five —from foramina between which issue the spinal
nerves that form the net-work called the sacral plecus. These true sacral vertebre are ribless,
and may be recognized, in a general way, by the absence of anything like the cross-bars above
described, issuing from the vertebral centra; though their neural arches send off some small
bars or plates tu fuse with the ilia. These sacrals proper are at or near the middle of the
whole sacral mass. After these come a large number — from five to ten or more — of verte-
bree which, from their following the true sacrals, though consolidated therewith and with one
another, are considered to belong to what would be the caudal region of other animals, and
are hence called “ tail-sacrals,” wro-sacrals (Gr. odpa, tail, fig. 57, ¢.) These continue to send
off a series of little plate-like processes from their neural arches, just as the true sacrals do ;
but, in addition to these, processes are given off from the bodies of the uro-sacrals, corre-
sponding in position and relation to those which proceed from the bodies of the lumbars, and
being apparently of the same morphological character (pleurapophysial). These ‘riblets”
are, however, quite slender, and also oblique in two directions; for instead of being trans-
verse and nearly horizontal, they trend very obliquely backward and upward; they also
shorten consecutively from before backward. The cross-bars of the latter uro-sacrals, however,
are stouter and altogether more like those of a lumbar vertebra. The appearances described
are those seen from below, or on the ventral aspect. Above, on the back of the pelvis, the
line of confluent spimous processes of the dorso-lumbars is commonly distinct, separated a little
from the flaring lips of the ilia. Such distinct formation may continue throughout the sacral
and uro-sacral regions; oftener, however, the line of spinous process sinks, flattens, and
widens into a horizontal plate which becomes perfectly confluent with the ilia along the pos-
terior portion of their extent; such smooth, somewhat lozenge-shaped surface being quite
continuous with the superficies of the pelvis, but perforated with more or fewer pairs of inter-
vertebral foramina. —- Such is the general character of a bird’s complex sacrum; the description
is taken chiefly from a raven (Corvus corax); the figure from the common fowl, after Parker.
The kidneys are moulded into the recesses between the sacral and uro-sacral vertebrae and in
the concavity of the ilia. The general shape of a “‘ sacrum,” viewed from below, is fusiform,
broadest across the sacral bodies proper or just in front of them, tapering toward either end;
the face of the sacrum is also flattest about the middle, more or less ridged before and behind
from compression of the vertebral bodies. It has little if any lengthwise curvature, and that
chiefly in the uro-sacral region, where the concavity isdownward. The total number of bones
may be less than twelve, or more than twenty. The extensive anchyloses in this region of
the spine are in evident adaptation to bipedal locomotion, which requires fixity hereabouts,
that the trunk may not bend upon the fulerum represented by a line drawn through the hip-
joints, which are situated about opposite the middle of the sacral mass, as shown by the arrow,
ac, in fig. 60. (The word ‘“ sacrum,” a “sacred thing,” curious in this application, is very
ancient in human anatomy, commemorating some superstitious or ritualistic notion, respecting
this part of the body.)

The Coccygeal, or Caudal Vertebrz (fig. 56, clv) proper, terminate the spinal column.
They are called ‘“ coccygeal,” from the fancied resemblance of the human tail-bones collectively
to the beak of a cuckoo (Gr. kéxxv&, kokkux). The caudals are all the free bones situated
behind the anchylosed uro-sacrals. The series commonly begins opposite the point where the
pelvic bones end; it consists of a variable number of bones, from the twenty long slender ones
which the Archaopteryx possessed, down to seven or fewer separate ones. The usual number
is eight without the pygostyle. They are stunted, degraded vertebree, whose chief office is to
support the tail-feathers; for the leash of nerves which emerge from the spinal canal to form
the sacral plexus by so much diminish the spinal cord that a mere thread is left to pene-

142 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

trate the tail, though the neural arches of all the coccygeals be still pervious. Al may be
freely movable, as in the American Ostrich (Rhea) ; but in almost all birds only the anterior
ones are distinct and vertebra-like, the rest, to a variable number, being abortive, and melted
into that extraordinary affair called the ‘“ ploughshare” or pygostyle (Gr. mvyq, puge, the
Tump; ordAos, a post), which may consist of no fewer than ten such metamorphosed tail-bones.
It has usually a shape suggesting the share of a plough (see fig. 56, py), but is too variable to
be concisely described. The pygostyle supports the tail-feathers ; and as these are morphologi-
eally one pair to each rectrix-bearing vertebra, the number of tail-feathers may be primarily
equal to the number of vertebree which fuse in the pygostyle. Thus the swan is said to have
ten vertebree in this mass; our wild swan (Cygnus columbianus) has twenty tail-feathers. In
this view, six should be the usual composition of the share-bone. A bird’s tail is really more
extensive and lizard-like than commonly supposed; thus the swan, besides its ten in the
pygostyle, has seven free caudals, and ten uro-sacrals — twenty-seven post-sacral vertebra in
all (Huxley). In the raven, the free caudals are six, exclusive of the pygostyle. These all
have large flaring transverse processes and moderate spinous processes, and the latter ones are
also provided with hypapophyses, some of which are bifurcate. The pygostyle in many birds
expands below into a large circular or polygonal disc.

2. THE THORAX: RIBS AND STERNUM.

The Thorax (Gr. 6wpa£, a coat of mail; in anat., the chest; adj. thoracic; see fig. 56) is
the bony box formed by the ribs on each side, the breast-bone below, and the back-bone above.
In birds, it is very extensive, including most or all of the abdominal as well as the thoracic
viscera, and its cavity is not partitioned off from that of the belly by a completed diaphragm,
though a rudimentary structure of that kind is found in the class. The thorax is usually sol-
dered behind to the pelvis by union of one or more pairs of ribs with the ilia; in front it al-
ways and entirely bears the pectoral arch (see p. 145). The thorax is very movable in birds,
by reason of the great length and jointedness of the ribs.

The Ribs (Lat. costa, a rib; pl. coste; adj. costal; see fig. 56, ¢, ¢, R, cr, sr, w), as said
above, are the pleurapophysial elements of vertebrae, which remain small and anchylosed, or
become long and free. In the latter state only are they “ribs” in ordinary language. The
one or more cervical ribs, however elongated, and the abortive lumbar and uro-sacral ribs, are
to be excluded from the present description, and have been already considered. True ribs are
those which belong to the dorsal vertebree proper, and are jointed in themselves; that is, have
articulated hemapophyses (see p. 137), by which they may or do articulate with the sternum.
Such true ribs are fied, when they reach from back-bone to breast-bone; floating, when either
or neither of these connections is made. Usually the last rib, though bearing a perfect ham-
apophysis, does not reach the sternum; in the loon, for example, the last rib floats at both
ends, having connection neither with vertebra nor sternum; and the two next ribs float at
their sternal ends. The perfected ribs are tew,— five or six is a usual number, though nine
are heemapophysis-bearing in the loon. The last rib at least is usually ‘‘sacral;” i.e, be-
longs to a dorsal vertebra which is anchylosed with the “sacral” mass; and two or even, as in
the loon, three ribs may likewise issue out from under cover of the ilia. These “sacral ribs”

are furthermore distinguished by being devoid of the epiplewral or uncinate processes (Lat.
uncus, a hook ; fig. 56, #) with which other true ribs are furnished, forming a series of splint-
bones proceeding obliquely from one rib to shingle over the next succeeding one, and thus
increase the stability of the thoracic side-walls. Such splints may be either articulated or an-
chylosed with their respective ribs; they have independent ossifie centres. The upper (pleura-
pophysial) part of a rib, or “vertebral rib,” when perfected, articulates with the side of the

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 143

body of a vertebra by its head or capitulum (Lat. dimin. of caput, head), and also with the
lateral process of the same vertebra by its shoulder or tuberculum (Lat. dimin. of tuber, a
swelling). In well-marked cases, the head and shoulder are quite far apart, the rib seeming
prolonged above; either of these vertebral connections may be disestablished, the other re-
maining, or both may be lost. The lower (hemapophysial) part of a rib, or ‘sternal rib,”
articulates with the side of the sternum by a simple enlargement; the ends of those sternal ribs
which thus join the sternum tend to cluster closely together at a part of the breast-bone called
its costal process (fig. 58); those which do not make the sternal connection are simply bundled
together. Commonly five or six, sometimes four, rarely only three ribs reach the sternum.
The ribs are ordinarily as slender and strict as. those shown in fig. 56; but in Apterys, for
example, their pleurapophysial parts are expansive and plate-like. They lengthen rapidly
from before backward, both in their vertebral and their sternal moieties; these parts meet at
angles of decreasing acuteness from before backward; but these angles, as those of the ribs
both with vertebre and sternum, incessantly increase and diminish in the respiratory move-
ments of the chest; all being in expiration more acute, and more obtuse in inspiration.

The Avian Sternum (Gr. orépvov, sternon, the breast; fig. 56,8) is highly specialized ;
its extensive development is peculiar to the class of Birds, and its modifications are of more
importance in classification than those of any other single bone. Thereupon it becomes an
interesting object. Theoretically it is a collection of hemal spines of vertebre. Though
such morphological character is appreciable in those animals which have a long jointed ster-
num, the segments of which, answering to pairs of ribs, develop from separate centres, there
is little or nothing in the development or physical characters of the avian sternum to favor
this view. The great bone floors the chest and more or less of the belly, and furnishes the
main point @appui of both the bony and muscular apparatus of fight, receiving important bones
of the scapular arch and giving origin to the immense pectoral muscles. (See also fig. 58.)

Birds offer two leading types of sternal structure, the ratite and the carinate, or the ‘raft-
like” and the ‘“boat-like”, according as the bone is flat or keeled (Lat. ratis, a raft; adj.
ratite ; in an arbitrary nom. pl., Ratite, a name of one of the leading divisions of birds: Lat. car-
ina, a keel; adj. carinate: nom. pl. Carinate, name of another such division). 1. In all stru-
thious birds, comprehending the ostrich and its allies (and also in the Cretaceous Hesperornis),
the sternum is a flattish, or rather concavo-convex, buckler-like bone, of somewhat squarish
or rhomboidal shape, developed from a single pair of lateral centres of ossification, —a ‘flat
boat,” without any keel, built with reference to an important modification of the shoulder-gir-’
dle, and a reduced or rudimentary condition of the wings, which are unfit for flight. 2. In all
flying birds, and some which from other than any fault of the sternum do not fly, —comprising
all remaining recent birds, or Carinate, and also the Cretaceous Ichthyornis,—the sternum
is keeled and develops from a median centre of ossification as well as from lateral paired cen-
tres; usually two of these, making five in all. In a few Carinate the keel is rudimentary, as
the flightless ground parrot of New Zealand, Stringops habroptilus ; or otherwise anomalous,
as in the extraordinary Opisthocomus cristatus, where it is cut away in front, and in the rail-
like Notornis, where the sternum is extremely like a lizard’s. In general, the development of
the keel is an index of wing-power, whether for flying or swimming, or both; the effectiveness
of the pectoral muscles being rather in proportion to depth of keel than to extent of the sides
of the ‘‘boat-bone;” thus, the keel is enormous in swifts (Cypselide) and humming-birds
(Trochilide).

The carinate sternum normally develops from five centres, having consequently as many
separate pieces in early life. T'wo of these are lateral and in pairs; the third is median and
single. The median ossification, which includes the keel, is the lophosteon(Gr. Adgos, lophos,
a crest; doréov, osteon, a bone). The anterior lateral piece, that with which the ribs, or some

‘

144 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

of them, articulate, is the plewrosteon (Gr. mevpdy, pleuron, a rib); in adult life this becomes
the costal process, so prominent in Passeres (fig. 58). The posterior lateral piece is the metosteon
(Gr. perd, meta, after). From the latter are derived the pair, or two pairs, of lateral processes
which the posterior border of the sternum has in so many birds. In fine, the extent of ossifica-
tion of the lophosteon and metostea, and the mode of their codsification, determines all those
various shapes of the posterior border of the sternum which, being commonly characteristic of
genera and higher groups, are described for purposes of classification. Thus, if the lophosteon
and the metostea are completely ossified and to the same extent behind, the posterior border of
the sternum will be transverse, and perfectly bony. Such a sternum is said to be entire. If the
lophosteon is longer than the lateral pieces, the sternum will have a central pointed or rounded
projection; when such a formation is called the middle wiphoid process (Gr. £ibos, xiphos, a
sword: ei8os, eidos, form). The projection of the metostea, not infrequent, similarly gives
a pair of external lateral xiphoid processes. But such processes oftener result merely from de-
fects of codsification between the elements of the sternum. Thus, there is often a deep notch
in the posterior border of the sternum between the lophosteon and the metosteon of each side;
the sternum is then said to be single-notched or single-emarginute (one pair of notches, one on
each side; fig. 58). This conformation prevails throughout the great group Passeres, possibly
without exception; it is therefore highly characteristic of that order, though a great many other
birds also have it. In the natural state, the notch is filled in with membrane. Such a notch
may also be converted into a ‘‘fontanelle” or fenestra (Lat. fenestra, a window), which is simply
a hole in the bone, the metostea having grown to the lophosteon at their extremities, but left an
opening between. Such a sternum is called fenestrate, more exactly wni-fenestrate (Lat. wnus,
one; one window on each side). Now, the parts remaining as before, let either each half of
the lophosteon, or each metosteon, be notched or fenestrate ; obviously then, such a sternum is
double-notched or bi-fenestrate, having four notches, or holes, two on each side, — two notches,
or two holes; or notched and fenestrate, having a notch and a hole on each side. The latter
is very frequent: when occurring, the hole is generally nearest the middle line, the notch ex-
terior. Irregularity of ossification, converting a hole into a notch, and conversely, may in any
case result in lack of symmetry; but this is a mere individual peculiarity. When there are
two notches on each side, as in fig. 56, the sternum has evidently a median and two lateral back-
ward extensions, which are then called respectively the middie, internal lateral, and external
lateral xiphoid processes. Notching of the lophosteon in the middle line, at least to any extent,
must be very rare, if indeed it ever occurs. The extreme case of emargination of the sternum is ~*
hfforded by the Galline, and is highly characteristic of that group. Here the lophosteon is
extremely narrow, and fissured deeply away from the metostea, which latter are deeply forked ;
the arrangement giving rise to two very long slender lateral processes on each side (figs. 1 and 2,
p- 48). The sternum of the tinamou, a dromeognathous bird, is still more deeply emargi-
nated, but the extremely long and slender lateral processes, which enclose an oval contour, are
simple, not forked.

In a very few birds there are centres of ossification additional to those above described.
In Turniz, there are said by Parker to be a pair of centres between the pleurostea, which he
names coracostea, because related to the part of the sternum with which the coracoids (see
p- 146) unite. The same authority describes for Dicholophus a posterior median cartilagi-
nous flap having a separate centre, named wrosteon (Gr. ovpa, owra, tail). In various birds the
sternum is eked out in the middle line behind by cartilage which has no ossification.

The sternum, especially of the higher birds, develops in the middle line in front a beak-
like process called the rostrum or manubrium (Lat. manubriwm, a handle) ; its size and shape
vary ; itis well-marked in Passerine birds (fig. 58) ; and may be bifurcate at the end and run
down the front of the keel some way, as in the raven. The fore border of the sternum is
generally greatly convex from side to side, and then, in those birds which have prominent

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 145

pleurostea, produced in angular costal processes. This border is also thickened, and presents
on each side a well-marked, smooth-faced groove, in which the expanded feet of the coracoid
bones are instepped and firmly articulated. These deep grooves commonly meet in the middle ;
are occasionally continuous from one side to the other; sometimes each crosses to the other,
side a little way. The costal processes on each side also have thickened edges, with a series
of articular facets for the ribs, which gives this border a fluted
or serrate profile. Generally the fore half, or rather less, of the
side border of the sternum is thus articular; and it is only such
costiferous (rib-bearing) extent of sternum which corresponds to the
whole body of the bone in a mammal, all the rest being ‘‘ xiphoid.”
The singular carinate sternum of Notornis, and the ratite bone of
Apteryx, are concave crosswise along the front border, and bear the
coracoids far apart, at the summits of antero-lateral projections.

A sternum is generally coneavo-convex in each direction,
bellying downward; somewhat rectangular, it may be long and
narrow, or short, broad, and squarish. It is commonly longer than
broad, with convex front border, a median beak, which is often
forked, prominent antero-lateral corners, pinched-in sides (bulg-
ing in tinamou) and indeterminate hind border. The keel
usually drops down lowest in front, sloping or curving gently up to
the general level behind, with a concave (rarely protuberant)

F F Fic. 68.— Typical passerine
vertical border, and pronounced apex, to which the clavicles may sternum, pectoral arches, and

. . H & sternal ends of ribs; from the
or may not be anchylosed, as they are in a pelican for instance. In } ail, Tusdinte agnatarieed: ante

Opisthocomus, the clavicles anchylose with the manubrium of size; Dr. R.W. Shufeldt, U.S.A.
the sternum. The external surface, both of body and keel, is ea eee We
ridged in places, indicating lines of attachment of the different pec- forked manubrium; five ribs
toral muscles. In a few birds, notably swans and cranes, the keel rine sternum; one rb oat
is expanded and hollowed out to receive folds of the windpipe in its

interior (see figs. 99, 100).— But the numberless modifications of the sternum in details of

configuration belong to systematic ornithology, not to rudimentary anatomy.

38. THE PECTORAL ARCH.

The Pectoral Arch (Lat. pectus, the breast; figs. 1, 2, 56, 58, 59) is that bony structure
by which the wings are borne upon the axial skeleton. It is to the fore limb what the pelvic
arch is to the hind limb; but is disconnected from the back-bone and united with the breast-
bone, whereas the reverse arrangement obtains in the pelvic, which is fused with the sacral
region of the spine. Each pectoral arch of birds consists (chiefly) of three bones: the scapula
and coracoid, forming the shoulder-girdle proper, or scapular arch ; and the accessory clavicles,
or right and left half of the clavicular arch. There is also at the shoulder-joint of most birds
an insignificant sesamoid ossicle, called scapula accessoria or os humero-scapulare (fig. 56, ohs) ;
and in many a rudiment of a bone called procoracoid, which occurs in reptiles, but in birds is
united with the clavicle. From the ribs, the scapula; from the sternum, the coracoid; from
its fellow, the clavicle, converges to meet each of the two other bones at the point of the
shoulder. .The lengthwise scapular arches of opposite sides are distinct from each other; the
clavicular arch is crosswise, and nearly always completed on the middle line of the body; by
which union of the clavicles the whole pectoral arch is coaptated. The coracoid bears the
shoulder firmly away from the breast; the scapula steadies the shoulder against the ribs; the
clavicles keep the shoulders apart from each other. The scapular arch is always present and
complete ; the clavicular is sometimes defective or wanting. There are two leading styles of

10

146 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

seapular arch, corresponding to the ratite and carinate sternum. (1) In Ratite the axes of the
coracoid and scapula are nearly coincident (for the most part in a continuous right line) and
anchylosed together; the clavicles are usually wanting, or defective; and the coracoids are in-
stepped on the sternum far apart. (2) In all Carinate, the axes of the coracoid and scapula
form an acute or scarcely obtuse angle (fig. 56, sglc); normally these bones are not anchylosed;
perfect clavicles are present, anchylosed with each other, but free from the other bones ; and the
coracoids are instepped close together. Decided exceptions to these conditions, as in Notornis,
are anomalous ; though incompletion of the clavicles repeatedly occurs, as noted below.

The Coracoid (Gr. xdépagé, horax, a crow; «idos, eidos, form: the corresponding bone of
the human subject, which is the stunted ‘‘ coracoid process of the scapula,” being likened to a
crow’s beak ; no applicability in the present case ;
figs. 56, c, 59, ¢) is a stout, straight, cylindric bone,
expanded at each end, extending forward, outward,
and upward from the fore border of the sternum
to the shoulder. Its foot is flattened and splayed
to fit in the articular groove of fore border of
the sternum already described; it often overlaps
that of its fellow on the median line; is narrower:
and remote from its fellow in Ratite. The head
of the bone, irregularly expanded, articulates or
auchyloses with the end of the scapula, and also
usually with the clavicle. It bears externally a
smooth demi-facet, which represents the share it
takes in forming the glenoid (Gr. yAnjvy, glene, a
shallow pit; fig. 59, gl) cavity, which is the socket
of the humerus. This articular expansion is the
glenoid process of the coracoid: the clavicular
process is that by which the bone unites with the
clavicle. The relation between the heads of the
three bones (each uniting with the other two) is.
such that a pulley-hole is formed, through which
plays the tendon of the pectoral muscle which ele-
vates the wing. The coracoid is a very constant
and characteristic bone of birds.

Fig. 59. — Right pectoral arch of a bird, Pedie-
cetes phasianellus, nat. si®e, outside view; Dr. R. The Scapula (Lat. scapula, the shoulder-

W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. 3, scapula; c, coracoid; gl, . we, 3 +. .
glenoid, the cavity for head of humerus; el, clavicle ; blade ; figs. 56, 59, s) merits in birds its name of

he, hypocleidium. In situ, the right end of the fig- ‘‘ blade-bone,” being usually a long, thin, narrow,
i ee naa sabre-like bone, which rests upon the ribs— usu-
ally not far from parallel with the spinal column, and near it; but in Ratite otherwise.
It seldom gains much width, and is quite thin and flat in most of its length; but it has a
thickened head or handle, expanding outwards into a glenoid process which unites with that
of the coracoid to complete the glenoid cavity, and dilated inward to form an acromial (Gr.
axpopuov, akromion, point of the shoulder) process for articulation with the clavicle (as it does in
man), when that bone exists. The other end is usually sharp-pointed, but may be obtuse, or
even clubbed, as in a woodpecker. The scapula is broadest and most plate-like in the pen-
guins, in which birds all the bones of the flipper-like wing are singularly flattened. In Apteryx
it reaches in length over only a couple of ribs; in most birds, over most of the thorax; and
m some its point overreaches the pelvis.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 147

The Clavicles, or Furculum (Lat. clavicula, a little key: furculum, a little fork ;
figs. 56, 59, cl), or the clavicular arch, are the pair of bones which when united together form
the object well known as the “‘ merry-thought” or ‘‘ wish-bone,” corresponding to the human
“ eollar-bones.” They lie in front of the breast, across the middle line of the body like a V
or U; the upper ends uniting as a rule both with scapula and coracoid. For this purpose, in
most birds, the ends are expanded more or less; such expansion is ¢alled the epiclerdiwm (Gr.
eri, epi, upon; KAediov, kleidion, the collar-bone) ; in Passerine birds it is said to ossify separ-
ately, and is considered by Parker to represent the procoracoid of reptiles. At the point of
union below, the bones often develop a process (well shown in the domestic fowl) called the hypo-
cleidium (Gr. ind, hypo, under ; fig. 59, he), supposed to represent the interclavicle of reptiles.
The clavicles are as a rule present, perfect, anchylosed together, articulated at the shoulder; ina
few birds anchylosed there; in several, there and
with the keel of the sternum; in Opisthocomus there
and with the manubrium of the sternum. In various
birds, chiefly Picarian and Psittacine, they are de-
fective, not meeting each other. They are wanting
in Struthio, Rhea, Apteryx, and some Psittacida.
Besides curving toward each other, the clavicles
have usually a fore-and-aft curvature, convex for-
ward. In general, the strength of the clavicles,
the firmness of their connections, and the openness
of the V or U, are indications of the volitorial or
natatorial power of the wings. The end of the fur-
culum is hollowed for a fold of the windpipe in the
crested pintado (Owen).

4. THE ‘PELVIC ARCH.

The Pelvis (Lat. pelvis, a basin, fig. 60), is
that posterior part of the trunk which receives the
uro-genital, and lower portion of the digestive, vis-
cera. It consists of the ‘ sacral” vertebre on the
middle dorsal line, flanked on each side by the bones
of the pelvic arch, which supports the hind limb.
In vertebrates generally the pelvic basin is com-
pleted on the ventral aspect by union (symphysis;
Gr. ctv, sun, together ; duais, growth) of the bones
from opposite sides. Excepting only Struthio, which
has a pubic symphysis; and Rhea, which has an
ischiac symphysis just below the sacral vertebre,
the pelvis of a bird is entirely open below and
behind; each pelvic arch anchylosing firmly with
the sacral vertebree to form a roof over the viscera
above named.‘ This sacro-iliac anchylosis is com- : ;
monly coextensive with the confluence of the many Pin eerste tit sean ius aieeneoe
vertebree which make the ‘‘sacrum” of ordinary RB. W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. dl, dorso-lumbar vertebra
language, that i, from the frst dorso-lunnbar to the {2andineudingthe tae nee belo a, te
Jast uro-sacral. The whole roof-like affair looks are the true sacral vertebre; us, urosacral verte-
something like a keelless sternum inverted. The PF® (opposite the five oval black spaces; 7, ilium

Z : Z a) Is, ischium; P, pubis; ob, obturator foramen.
pelvic arch of each side consists of three bones, iliam, The arrow flies into the acetabulum.

\

148 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

ischium, and pubis, which have independent ossific centres, but become firmly consolidated
together to form the haunch-bone or os innominatum. Each of these bones unites with the
other two, somewhere near the middle of the whole affair, at a ring-like structure called the
acetabulum (Lat., a vinegar-cruet, fig. 56, a; fig. 60, arrow ac), which all three consequently
contribute to the formation of, and which is the socket for the head of the thigh-bone (femur,
p- 119). When free ribs issue from under cover of the pelvis, they are commonly anchylosed
with the ilia; and all the abortive pleurapophyses of the lumbar-and uro-sacral vertebree have
likewise iliac anchylosis, as explained in treating of the sacrum (p. 140). As a whole, the pelvis
varies like the sternum in relative length, breadth, and degree of convexity ; and especially in
the configuration of its posterior border; but few zodlogical characters are derived from this
structure.

Viewed from below, the pelvis is seen to be much hollowed or excavated for the lodgment
of the kidneys, and cross-cut into compartments by the sacral rafters; the series of sacral
bodies forming a ridge-pole along the middle line. Above, the series of sacral spinous pro-
cesses represent the ridge-pole; anteriorly, the somewhat spoon-shaped iliac bones are
applied, concavity outward, to the dorso-lumbars ; posteriorly, in the middle line, is a more or
less flattened horizontal expansion, and laterally are the more expanded sides of the ischiac roof,
finished along the eaves and behind by the slender pubie bone, which commonly projects
backward, and inclines toward its fellow of the opposite side. The most prominent formation
of the side wall of the pelvis is the thick-lipped smooth articular ring, the acetabulum, con-
verted in the natural state into a cup by a membrane.
The postero-superior segment of the rim is promi-
nent, to form the antitrochanter (Gr. dvri, anti,
against ; tpoxavrnp, trochanter of the femur) against
which the shoulder of the femur abuts when the
head is in the ring. .

Fig. 61. — Pelvis of ag grouse, showing

three distinct bones. Il, Is, P, ilium, ischium, 5 : 2
pubis. In front of former a at vertebra pro- It is normal to recent Carinate birds to have
trudes. (Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U. 8. A.) the ischium fused with the ilium, however distinct the

pubis may remain; but to Cretaceous birds (even the carinate Ichthyornis), and the existing
Ratite, to have both ischium and pubis distinct in most of their extent.

The ium (Lat. tliwm, haunch-bone ; pl. ila ; adj..ihac ; figs. 56, I; 60, 61, Il) is the
median, most anterior and longest of the haunch-bones, and the only one which patente in ad-
vance of the acetabulum. Such anterior prolongation of this bone is the specialty of the avian
pelvis: it commonly overlies one or more ribs, and is often overreached by the end of the scapula.
It is longest and narrowest and flattest in some of the lower swimmers; the reverse among the
highest birds. Its relations and connections have been sufficiently indicated. The bone is
almost always separated from its fellow by the sacrum, though the approximation may be
very close over the back of the Pe along the middle line.

The Ischium (Gr. icyioy, ischion, the haunch-bone; pl. ischia ; adj. ischiadic, ischiatic,
better ischiac; figs. 56, 60, 61, Is) lies entirely post-acetabular, or behind the socket which it
contributes to form, and composes most of the’ side-wall of the pelvis thence to the end. It is
generally a thin, plate-like bone. Among Cretaceous birds and existing Ratite it only unites
with the ilium at and just behind the acetabulum, whence a deep ilio-ischiac fissure between
the two exists, as in the young grouse, fig. 61; but in ordinary adult birds this fissure is con-
verted into a fenestra or window of large size, just behind the acetabulum, by union of the two
bones behind it. This vacuity, whether a notch or a hole, corresponds to the ‘ sacro-sciatic
notch” of human anatomy (fig. 56, im). The ischia of opposite sides are distinct, except in
Rhea.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 149

The Pubis (Lat. pubis. bone of the front of the human pelvis where the hair grows at
puberty ; pl. pubes ; adj. pubic ; figs. 56, 60. 61 P), beginning at its share of the acetabular ring,
is a long slender bone which runs along the lower border of the ischium, sometimes for a short
distance only, often for the whole length of the ischium, and usually projecting behind ; more
or less perfectly parallel with, applied to, or united with, the inferior ischiac border. When
separate, a long deep fissure results; when united at the end, a long narrow foramen is
formed ; when incompletely united in any part of its ischiae continuity, a fissure and a foramen,
in the ostrich two foramina, result. All these conditions occur; in any ease, such ischio-pubic
interval corresponds to the obturator foramen (fig. 56, 0; fig. 60. 0b) of human anatomy; it is
greatest in Cretaceous birds and existing Ratite. The free ends of the pubes may be more or
less expanded. In the ostrich only there is a pubie symphysis of the ends of the bones: in the
same bird a separate ossicle, situated upon the lower border of the pubes, and called epipubic,
is considered to represent a “‘ marsupial” bone (Garrod). In various birds, among them our
ground cuckoo. Geococeyx californianus, the pubis projects a little forward, under the ace-
tabulum: this prominence is the propubis. Separation of the pubes is supposed to be for
amplification of the pelvic strait to facilitate the passage of the large chalky eggs birds lay.

5. THE SKULL.

The Skull of a Bird is a poem in bone— its architecture is the “‘ frozen music” of
morphology ; in its mutely eloquent lines may be traced the rhythmic rhymes of the myriad
ameebiform animals which constructed the noble edifice when they sang together.1 The poésy
(wzoinots, poiesis, a making) of the subject has been translated with conspicuous zeal and success
by Mr. W. K. Parker; its zodlogical moral has been similarly pointed by Professor Huxley ;
and the young ornithologist who would not be hopelessly unfashionable must be able to whistle
some bars of the eranial song — the pterygo-palatine bar at least.

The rapid progress of ossification soon obliterates most of the original landmarks of the
skull, fusing the distinct territories of bone in one great indistinguishable area. Thus the
brain-box of almost any mature bird is apparently a single solid bone, and most parts of the
jaw-scaffolding similarly run together. Aside from the bones of the tongue, which are collec-
tively separate from those of the skull proper ; and of the compound lower jaw, which is freely
articulated with the rest of the skull; only two or three other bones of the skull, as a rule, are
permanently and perfectly free at both ends. These are the quadrate bones— the anvil-shaped
pieces by which the lower jaw is slung te the skull: the pterygoids, articulating the palate with
the quadrate ; and sometimes the vomer. Traces only of the bones of the face and jaws are
usnally found; but even such vestiges disappear, as a role, from among the bones of the
brain-box. It is necessary to any intelligent understanding of the construction of a bird’s skull,
te learn somewhat of its mode of development in the embryonic stage; this being the only clue
to the individual bones of which it is composed, and so to any correct idea of its morphology.
One theory is, that the skull consists of four modified vertebra: and the principal bones have
been named and described by some in terms indicating the elements of a theoretical vertebra.
It is toe that the skull is segmented, or may be segmented off, like a chain of several
vertebre ; that it continues the vertebral axis forward; that it has a basis cranii like a series of
vertebral centrums, above which rises a segmented neural arch enclosing the great nervous
mass. and below which depends a set of bones enclosing visceral parts like a hzemal arch.
The hindmost cranial segment, the occipital bone, resembles a vertebra in many physical
characters, and even in mode of development. But if the serial homology of the skull with

i Bone-tissue chiefly consists of the aggregated skeletons of Osteamebe — a kind of uni-cellular protozoan
animals which inhabit in myriads the bodies of nearly all the Vertebrata, possessing the faculty of feeding upon

phosphate of lime and other earthy matters they find in the blood. and afterward excreting them in the form of
multiradiate exoskeleions of their own, collectively forming the whole skeleton of their host.

150 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the back-bone be real and true, it is so obscured by the extraordinay modifications to which
the vertebral elements have been subjected that the fact of such homology cannot be demon-
strated; and to interpret the skull as something super-imposed upon, and morphologically
different from the spinal column, is perfectly warranted if not required by the known facts of
its constructive development. This is the view taken by the rulers of to-day’s science. As
already said (p. 137) the relation between cranial and vertebral parts is rather the analogy of
adaptive modification than a true homology of structure.

Before proceeding to describe the mature skull, it will be best to consider its mode of
development. In this I shall closely follow Parker, often using the words of that master, and
illustrating the early stages of the embryo with figures borrowed from the same safe source.
In the fewest words possible, I-wish to convey an idea of the embryonic skull up to Parker’s
‘‘third stage,” at which it begins to ossify. Here, however, I will first insert a figure, kindly
drawn for me by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, of the U.S. Army, which shows most of the cranial
bones, and will give the student a preliminary notion of the “lay of the land.” I advise him
to contemplate this picture till he has learned the names printed on it by heart, and can apply
them to the identification of the parts of the real skull he should have in hand at the same time.
He may also meditate on fig. 63.

Sclerotals, co rag
eye -ceil. ? mmpeseng.

Fig. 62.-- Skull of common fowl, enlarged; from nature by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A. The names of bones
and some other parts are printed, requiring no explanation; but observe the following points: The distinction of
none of the bones composing the brain-case (the upper back expanded part) can be found in a mature skull. The
brain is contained between the occipital, sphenoidals, squamosals, parietals and part of frontal ; the ethmoidals
belong to the same group of cranial bones proper. All other bones, excepting the three ofic ear-bones, are bones”
of the face and jaws. The lower jaw, of five bones, is drawn detached; it articulates by the black surface marked
articular with the prominence just above— the quadrate bone. Observe that from this quadrate a series of bones
—quadrato-jugal, jugal, maxillary — makes a slender rod running to the premazillary ; this is the zygoma, or
jugal bar. Observe from the quadrate also another series, composed of pterygoid and palatine bones, to the pre-
maxillary; this is the pterygo-palatine bar ; it slides along a median fixed axis of the skull, the rostrum, which
bears the loose vomer at its end. The under mandible, quadrate, pterygoid, and vomer are the only movable bones
of this skull. But when the quadrate rocks back and forth, as it does by its upper joint, its lower end pulls and
pushes upon the upper mandible, by means of the jugal and pterygo-palatine bars, setting the whole scaffolding of
the upper jaw in motion. This motion hinges upon the elasticity of the bones of the forehead, at the ¢hin place just
where the reference-lines from the words “ lacrymal”’ and ‘ mesethmoid”’ cross cach other. The dark oval space
behind the quadrate is the external orifice of the ear; the parts in it to which the three reference-lines go are
diagrammatic, not actual representations ; thus, the quadrate articulates with a large pro-otic as well as with
the sqguamosal. The great excavation at the middle of. the figure, containing the circlet. of unshaded bones, is the
left orbital cavity, orbit, or socket of the eye. The mcsethmoid includes most of the background of this cavity, shaded
diagonally. The upper one of the two processes of bone extending into it from behind is the post-frontal or sphe-
notice process ; the under one (just over the quadrate) is the sguamosal process. A bone not shown, the presphenoid,
lies just in front of the oval black space over the end of basisphenoid. This black oval is the optic foramen,

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 151

through which the nerve of sight passes from the brain-cavity to the eye. The black dot a little behind the optic
foramen is the orifice of exit of a part of the trifacial nerve. The black mark under the letters ‘‘on”’ of the word
“frontal” is the olfactory foramen, where the nerve of smell emerges from the brain-box to go to the nose. The
nasal cavity is the blank space behind nasal and covered by that bone, and in the oval blank before it. The parts
of the beak covered by horn are only premawillary, nasal, and dentary. The condyle articulates with the first
cervical vertebra; just above it, not shown, is the foramen magnum, or great hole through which the spinal medulla,
or main nervous cord, passes from the skull into the spinal column. The basioccipital is hidden, excepting its
condyle; so is much of the basisphenoid, The prolongation forward of the basisphenoid, marked ‘“ rostrum,” and
bearing the vomer at its end, is the parasphenoid, as far as its thickened under border is concerned. Between the
fore end of the pterygoid and the basisphenoidal rostrum, is the site of the basipterygoid process, by which the
bones concerned articulate by smooth facets; further forward, the palatines ride freely upon the parasphenoidal
rostrum. In any Passerine bird, the vomer would be thick in front, and forked behind, riding like the palatine
upon the rostrum. The palatine seems to run into the maxillary in this view; but it continues on to premaxillary.
The maillo-palatine is an important bone which cannot be seen in the figure because it extends horizontally into
the paper from the maxillary about where the reference line “ maxillary” goes.to that bone. The general line
from the condyle to the end of the vomer is the cranial awis, basis cranii, or base of the cranium. This skull is
widest across the post-frontal; next most so across the bulge of the jugal bar.

Fia. 63. — Skull of a duck (Clangulaislandica), nat. size; Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. a, premaxillary bone;
2, partly ossified internasal septum; 0/, pervious part of nostril; ¢, end of premaxillary, perforated for numerous
branches of second division of the fifth cranial nerve; d, dentary bone of under mandible; e, groove for nerves, etc. ;
Jf, avacuity between dentary and other pieces of the mandible; g, articular surface; h, recurved “‘ angle of the jaw ;”’
i, occipital protuberance; j, vacuity in supraoccipital bone; &, muscular impression on back of skull; / is over the
black ear-cavity; m, post-frontal process; n, quadrate bone; 0, pterygoid; p, palatine; q, quadrato-jugal; r,
jugal; s, maxillary ; ¢, fronto-parietal dome of the brain-cavity; wu, the lacrymal bone, immense in a duck, nearly
completing rim of the orbit by approaching m; v, vomer; w, supra-orbital depression for the nasal gland
(see p. 157); x, cranio-facial hinge; y, optic foramen; 2, etc., interorbital vacuities.

Development of the Fowl’s Skull (figs. 64 to 69).—JIn the chick’s head cartilage is
formed along the floor of the skull by the fifth day of incubation. This cartilaginous basilar
plate is formed on each side of th notochord, fig 64, ¢ (Gr. vérov, noton, back ; yopdy, chorde, a
chord), a rod-like structure, the primordial axis of the body, around which, along the spinal
column, the bodies of the vertebra: are formed, and which runs in the middle line of the floor
of the skull as far as the pituitary space, pts. The basilar plate is the parachordal (Gr. mapa,
para, by the side of) cartilage. In this, at the earliest stage, are already planted certain parts
of the ear, the cochlea, cl, (Lat. cochlea, a snail-shell), and the horizontal one of the three sem#-
circular canals, hsc. Opposite the end of the notochord, the border of the parachordal plate
is notched, 5; this notch afterward forms the foramen ovale, for the passage of parts of the
Jifth or trifacial nerve. Near the middle line, posteriorly, the plate is perforated for the
passage of the twelfth or hypoglossal nerve, q. At each lateral corner is the separate quadrate
cartilage, to form the quadrate bone. Anteriorly, the plate connects by a strap or bridge
of cartilage, the lingula, Ig (Lat. lingula, a little tongue) with the trabeculae, tr (Lat. trabe-
cula, a little beam), which enclose the pituitary space, pts (Lat. pituita, mucus: no applica-
bility here). In front of this pituitary interval the trabeculae come together to form an wéter-

152 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

nasal plate, which is so arched over downward as to disappear from this view, ns seen in
fig. 65, where fn is the fronto-nasal process, and # is tho future oxternal nostril, Atter
uniting in the inter-nasal plate, the fore ends of the trabecula separate and becomo free 5 their
free ends are the under extremities of this jirst visceral arch (first and only pre-oral arch).
The same chick’s head, now viewed trom below, fig. 65, shows the squarish aperture, m,
of the future mouth ; the three post-oral arches, with their respective cartilaginous bars, out,
of which are to bo formed tho bones of the jaws aud tongue. 1, 2, 8, are tho corresponding
visceral clefts, betweon the arches; the first of theso is to be modelled into the ecar-
passages (outer and middle ear and eustachian tube) ; the others will disappear. The quadrate
cartilage, q, is the same that was seen in fig. 64; it is already nearly in position, between the
hind ends of the scaffolding of the upper and under jaw. The curved subocular or inaillo-
palatine bar, map, developed in the first post-oral arch, already indicates anteriorly palatine,
pa, and posteriorly, pterygoid, pg, parts; it will form tho bones so named, and others of the

Fria, 65.—Samo os fig. 64, but scon from below,
cvl, anterior corebral vesicle; «, eye; m, mouth; pis,
pituitary space; 7, fronto-nasal plato; fr, ouds of the

Fia. 64.— Skull of chick, fifth day of incubation,
9 diameters. Seen from above, the membranous roof
of the skull and the brain removed, cv1, anterior cere-
bral vesicle ; ¢, eye; c, notochord, running through the
middle of the basilar plate or parachordal cartilage, in
which are already visible the rudimentary ear-parts, ¢/,
the cochlea, hse, the horizontal semicircular canal ; pts,
the pituitary space, bounded by ¢r, the trabeculm,
which come together before {t to form the fronto-nasal
plate, fn, in fig. 65; lg, lingula or bridge connecting
trabeculae with parachordal cartilage ; 5, notch after-
ward becoming foramen ovalo for passage of parts of
the fifth (trifacial) nerve ; 9, foramen for hypoglossal
nerve; g, separate cartilage forming the future quad-
rate bone. (After Parkor, in Zncy. Brit.)

trabeculs, freo again aftor their union wd bent strong-
ly from the original axis of the trabeculae; nm, oxter-
nal nostril; my, subocular bar of cartilage, or ptery-
go-palatine rod, to form pa, palatine, and pg, ptorygold
bone, and other parts of the uppor jaw, ax the maxil-
lary, Jugal and quadrato-jugal; q, quadrate cartilage,
same as soon in fig. 64; mA, meckolian cartilage, to form:
lower jaw; those prrix are In the first post-oral visceral
arch; ch, corato-hyal, and 6h, basthyal, of second post-
oral arch; ebr, corato-branchial, cbr, epi-branchtal,.
bbr, basi-branchial, of third post-oral arch; the »arts
of the second and third arch all going into the yold
bone. 1, 2, 38, tl, 2d, 8d vinceral clefts, whoreof une Let
is to be modified into the car-passages, and the others
are to be obliterated, (After Parker.)

upper jaw. This suboeular bar is an antero-suporior part. of the first post-oral arch, of which
q and mk are a postero-inferior portion; the cleft of the future mouth is to lie between them.
The lower jaw bone, or mandible, is entirely developed from mk, its several bones developing
around this rod of cartilage, the meckelian cartilage ; it is to become movably articulated with
the bone, the quadrate, into which q will be transformed. Thus the postero-inforior part of
the first post-oral arch (second of the whole series of arches) hegins in two pieces, one of which
is to become the suspensorium, or suspender of the mandible, and the other the mandible

‘

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 153

itself. The rest of the pieces belong to the second and third post-oral arches, and all
together make up the very composite hyotd bone, or bone of the tongue (figs. 72, 73, 74). The
pieces ch and bh are in the second arch, and form respectively the ceratohyal and basihyal
bones; the pieces cbr, ebr, and bbr are in the third arch, and form respectively the cerato-
branchial, epibranchial and basibranchial bones. These pieces of the third arch have already
outgrown those of the second arch, and they will form the greatest part of the hyoid bone.

In the second stage, after the fifth day of incubation, but before any ossification has
begun, a vertical section shows the appearances represented in fig. 66. The parachordal and
trabecular cartilages are applied to each other unconformably, the latter rising high between
second and third cerebral vesicles to form the posterior pituitary wall, pel, in which the axial
skeleton properly ends. There are other changes in the parachordal cartilages. The inter-
nasal plate, formed by the union of the trabeculze in front of the pituitary space, has become a
vertical median wall between the olfactory and optic chambers of the right and left sides (pn
and eth, to ps and alc). This partition, besides forming finally the imterorbital septum which
divides the right and left orbits, will undergo further notable changes in direction, and will
develop lateral plates and processes, which
will fiake up the nasal labyrinth and the
partition between the cavity of the nose
and that of the eye, when any exists. Such
lateral developments of the ethmoid plate
are the aliethmoid, aliseptal, and alinasal.
This plate extends backward in mid-line
to the optic foramen, 2, ending in the ante-
rior clinoid wall, asc, separated from the
(parachordal) posterior clinoid wall by the
original pituitary space, now the opening
through which the carotid arteries, ic, enter
the brain cavity. Besides ethmoidal parts
proper, the plate develops at what will be
the end of the upper beak a prenasal carti-

lage, pn, to become the axis of the beak.
The mouth is become already better formed,
the axis of its cavity pointing more forward
than downward; and great changes are
undergoing in parts of the ear at the back
corner of the mouth. The quadrate and
meckelian cartilages are assuming much of
their true form. The quadrate develops
an orbital process, which extends free into
the orbit, and an otic process which articu-
lates with the auditory sac and parts of
the exoccipital cartilage. The relations at

Fig. 66.— Head of a chick, second stage, after five days.
of incubation, section in profile; x 6diameters. cvt, cv2, cv3,
first, second, and third cerebral vesicles; 1, place of the
first nerve, the olfactory; 2, place of second nerve, the
optic; ic, internal carotid artery, running into skull at what
was originally the pituitary space, now an opening bounded
in front by the anterior, acl, behind by the posterior, pel,
clinoid walls; nc, notochord; oc, occipital condyle, thence
to pel being the original parachordal cartilage, here seen in
profile; eo, exoccipital; eth, ethmoid, with ps, its presphe-
noid region posteriorly, and pn, pre-nasal part; this whole
plate afterward developing into parts of the nose and the
partition between the eyes; pa, palatine; pg, pterygoid
region; pa and pg reference lines are in the chick’s mouth; mk
meckelian cartilage (lower jaw); ch and bh, ceratohyal and
pasihyal parts of the hyoid or tongue bone. (After Parker.)

this stage have not been made out in the fowl, but are figured and described from the corre-
sponding stage of the European house martin (Chelidon urbiea). In fig. 67, mk is the cut
stump of the meckelian cartilage, of which ar is the articular part; q is the quadrate, of which
a backward process is seen articulating with teo, the tympanic wing of the exoccipital. Just
below and_behind this otie process of the quadrate, exactly where in riper embryos is the
Fenestra ovalis in which is fitted the foot of the stapes or stirrup-bone of the middle ear, there
appears a trowel-shaped projection of cartilage, the handle of which is continuous with the
substance of the ear-capsule; the sickle-shaped piece behind which is the tympanic wing of

154

the exoccipital (¢eo).

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

This trowel of cartilage is the upper anterior segment of the hyoidean

(second post-oral) arch, being to that arch what the pterygo-palatine bar is to the mandibular

_ Sse
4 est

“eo

Fic. 67.—The post-oral arches of the
house martin, at middle of period of incuba-
tion, lateral view, x 14 diameters. mk, stump
of meckelian or mandibular rod, its articular
part, ar, already shapen; g, quadrate bone, or
suspensorium of lower jaw, with a free anterior
orbital process and long posterior otic process
articulating with the ear-capsule, of which teo,
tympanic wing of occipital, is a part; mst,
est, sst, ist, sth, parts of the suspensorium of
the third post-oral arch, not completed to chy;
mst, medio-stapedial, to come away from teo,
bringing a piece with it, the true stapes or co-
lumella auris; the oval base of the stapes fit-
ting into the future fenestra ovalis, or oval
window looking into the cochlea; sst, supra-sta-
pedial; est, extra-stapedial; ist, infra-stapedial,
which will unite with sth, the stylo-hyal ;
chy and bhy, cerato-hyal and basi-hyal, distal
parts of the same arch; bbr, br 1, br 2, basi-
branchial, epi-branchial and cerato-branchial
pieces of the third arch, composing the rest of
the hyoid bone; ¢g, tongue. (After Parker.)

(first post-oral) arch. Several parts of this stapedial cartilage are recognized, as named in the

fine print under the figure. If the connections of the
second post-oral arch were completed, as those of the
first are, the tongue bone would be slung to the skull
as the lower jaw is; but they are not, the tract rep-
resented by the dot-line from the stylo-hyal, sth, to
the cerato-hyal, chy, being, like ist, above sth, only
soft connective tissue. This defect of connection is
made up for by the great development of the hyoidean
parts of the third post-oral arch, br 1 and br 2, whieh
retain the tongue-bone in position, without however
articulating it with the skull. The hand of the trowel
of cartilage soon segments itself off from the ear-cap-
sule, bringing away with it a small oval piece of the
periotic wall, which piece is the true stapes, and the
oval space in which it fits is the fenestra ovalis leading
into the inmost ear (the cochlea). The broad part of
the trowel-blade is the extra-stapedial part, on which
the membrana tympani, or ear-drum, will be stretched.
The stylo-hyal, sth, will join the extra-stapedial
plate, and the afterward chondrified band of union will
be the infra-stapedial, ist. (Figs. 71, st, and 83.)
Returning ps

now to the 7 a
chick’s head, *”° H ne
which we left

to examine

the intricate
ear-parts at

the proximal Fic. 68. — Skull of chick, second stage. in

end of the second post-oral arch, we see by fig. 68
how rapidly the parts are shaping themselves at the
end of this second stage of development. This figure
shows the cartilaginous skull, in which no trace of
ossification has appeared, excepting in the under
mandible. The brain and membranous parts of the
cranium have been removed. The roof of the skull
never becomes cartilaginous, bone there growing di-
rectly from the membrane; and the whole of the chon-
dro-cranium, as shown in the figure, is one continuous
cartilaginous structure (like the whole skull of an
adult shark or skate), excepting the parts of the post-
oral arches, which are separate. The auditory cap-
sule is environed by occipital cartilage, eo, stretching
over the back of the skull, and by wing-like growths
(alisphenoids, as) which wall most of the brain-box
in front.

profile, brain and membranes removed to
show cartilaginous formations, x 4 diameters.
eth, ethmoid, forming median nose-parts and
inter-orbital septum; developing lateral parts,
as ale, aliethmoid, a/s, aliseptum, alm, alinasal,
pp, partition between nose and eye; pn, pre-
nasal cartilage; ps, presphenoidal part of mid-
ethmoid; 2, optic foramen; as, alisphenoid,
walling brain-box in front; pf, post-frontal,
bounding orbit behind; pa, pg, palatine and
pterygoid; g, quadrate; so, supra-occipital;
eo, ex-occipital; oc, occipital condyle, borne
upon basi-occipital, and showing zc, remains
of notochord; these occipitals bound the fora-
men magnum, and eo expands laterally to form
a tympanic wing, circumscribing the external
auditory orifice behind and below; hsc, psc,
horizontal and posterior vertical semicircular
canals of ear; fr, st, fenestra rotunda and
fenestra ovalis, leading into inner ear, lat-
ter closed by foot of the stapes; mk, ch, bh,
bbr, cbr, ebr, parts of jaw and tongue, as nam-
ed in figs, 65, 66 and 67. (After Parker.)

The high orbito-nasal septuin is a continuous vertical plate of cartilage, upgrowing

from the tract of the conjoined trabecule. Lateral developments of this ethmoidal wall, in

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY.

front, are divided into several recognizable parts, ale,
als, aln, the latter being the external nostril; pp is a
transverse partition between the orbital and nasal cham-
bers. The nasal cartilages ultimately become much
convoluted to form the nasal labyrinth, among the con-
volutions of which will be the superior and inferior tur-
binal cartilages, in addition to those already noted.
The ethmoidal wall ends behind at ps, the presphe-
noidal region, where the brain case begins; below and
behind, it is deeply notched for the optic foramen, 2.
The pituitary space forms a circular foramen, through
which the carotid arteries enter. The site of the orbit
of the eye is bounded behind and below by the post-
frontal process of the alisphenoid wing, pf of as. The
pterygo-palatine rod is seen along the under border of
the skull, pg and pa. The quadrate, q, has acquired
nearly its shape, and the rest of the mandibular and
hyoidean parts are clearly displayed, mk, ete. The
proximal hyoidean element, st, is freed from the peri-
otic cartilage, leaving the fenestra ovalis (see last para-
graph). Below the general outline, pa to oc, is not
shown a mat of soft tissue, in which are to be devel-
oped the basitemporal and parasphenoid bones which
underfloor the whole skull, — the former making a plat
between the ears, fig. 69, bt, the latter forming the thick-
ened under edge of the rostrwm of the skull rbs.

At the third stage, about the middle of the second
week of incubation, the cartilaginous parts already
described are neatly finished, and the skull is beginning
to ossify. The occipital parts are well formed; the
condyle is perfect; the foramen magnum is cireum-
scribed by the ex- and supra-occipitals, eo and so, fig.
69. Investing bones, formed in membrane without pre-
vious cartilage, are becoming apparent. The basitem-
poral, bt, and parasphenoid, rbs, are engrafting upon
the base of the skull. The prenasal cartilage, pn, now
at its fullest growth, is beginning to decline; on each
side of it is formed a three-forked bone, the premaxil-
lary, px, having superiorly nasal, and laterally palatal
and dentary processes. This bone is to grow to great
size, forming most of the upper beak, and starving out
the maxillary, which in mammals is the principal bone
of the upper jaw. The palatal, pa, and pterygoid, pg,
bones are ossified, and the quadrate, q, is ossifying.
Between the premaxillary and the quadrate are the
bones forming the zygoma, or jugal bar, developed in
the outer part of the maxillo-palatine bar of the earlier
embryo. They are the weak maxillary, mx, with its
ingrowing process, the mavillo-palatine bone, map;
next the jugal, 7; then the quadrato-jugal, qj; the

155

Fig. 69.—Skull of chick, third stage,
viewed from below, x 63 diameters. pm,
prenasal cartilage, running behind into tbe
septum nasi ; on each side of it the premax-
illary, px, of which the (inner) palatal and
(outer) dentary processes are seen (the upper
nasal process hidden); mx, the maxillary,
developing inner process, the maxillo-pala-
tine, map; pa, the palatal, well-formed, ar-
ticulating behind with rbs, the sphenoidal
rostrum, its thickened under border, the
parasphenoid; this will bear the vomer at its
end when that bone is developed; ,j, jugal,
joining mx and qj, the quadrato-jugal, join-
ing j/ and g, the quadrate ; mx to q, the
jugal bar or zygoma ; pg, the pterygoid,
making with pa the pterygo-palatine bar,
joining g and pz ; dt, the basitemporal, great
mat of bone from ear to ear, underflooring
the skull proper, as rds, a similar formation,
does further forward; ic, outer end of carotid
canal, to run between the b¢ plate and true
floor of skull, and enter brain cavity at origi-
nal site of pituitary fossa (figs. 64, 66, ic); ty,
tympanic cavity —external opening of ear;
as, alisphenoid, bounding much of brain-
box anteriorly, and orbital cavity posteri-
orly; psc, posterior semicircular canal of ear,
in opisthotic bone, which will unite with the
spreading eo, exoccipital, which will reach
the condyle shown in the middle line, above
the foramen magnum, 7, completed above
by so, supra-occipital; 8, foramen lacerum
posterius, exit of pneumogastric, glosso-pha-
ryngeal and spinal accessory nerve; 9, exit
of hypoglossal nerve, in basi-occipital. (After
Parker.)

156 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

whole forming an outer lateral rod from quadrate to premaxillary, like a duplicate of the
pterygo-palatine rod from the same to the same.

Among occurrences of later stages are to be noted the development in membrane in the
middle line below of the vomer, borne upon the end of the rostrum; the roofing in of the
whole skull by the parietal, squamosal, frontal and nasal bones; the completion of the periotic
bones as the prodtic, epiotic and opisthotic, which form the otie capsule ; the development of
lacrymal bones, bounding the orbits of the eyes in front. Absorption of the middle wall of
cartilage between the nasal and orbital cavities nicks off the nose parts from those of the orbit
(fig. 70, between ntb and eth) ; and certain changes in the orbital septum develop the orbito-
sphenoids. Very nearly all the bones of a bird’s skull having thus been accounted for, we may
next consider them in their adult condition. Reference should now be made to figs. 62,
63, 70, 71.

The Occipital Bone (fig. 62, 70, 71) forms the back part of the floor of the skull, and lower
part of the back wall of the skull; neither its boundaries nor its composition is visible in
adult skulls. It is formed by the basteccipital, bo, below in the middle line; the spra-occipital
so, above in the middle line; the evxoccipital, eo, on either side. These bound the foramen
magnum (fig. 69, fm), where the nerve mass makes its exit from the cavity of the cranium into
the tube of the spinal column. At the lower part of the foramen is the protuberant occipital
condyle (figs. 68, 71, oc), borne chiefly upon the basioccipital, but to the formation of which the
exoceipitals also contribute; the latter flare widely on each side, into the tympanic wings, which
bound the external auditory meatus behind. The true basioccipital is mostly covered by the
underlying secondary bone, the basitemporal (69, 70, bt), which extends from one tympanic
cavity to the other, and more or less forward in tho middle line to the sphenoidal rostrum.
Openings to be observed in the occipital region, besides the great foramen, are those for the
hypoglossal nerve, 9, near the condyle ; for the parts of the vagus nerve, 8, more laterally, and
the carotid canal, tc: also, above the foramen magnum, openings for veins, sometimes of great
size, as in fig. 63, J.

The Parietals (figs. 62, and 70, p, 71). — Proceeding up over the brain-box, the next
bones are a pair of parietals, between the occipital behind, the frontal before, and the squa-
mosal beside ; but their limits are rarely if ever to be seen in adult skulls. They are relatively
small in birds; simply squarish plates, bounded as said, coming together in the midline.

The Frontals (fig. 62, and 70, f, 71), originally paired, soon fuse together, and with sur-
rounding bones of the skull, though maintaining some distinction from those of the nose and jaw.
These roof over much of the brain cavity, close in much of it in front, and form the roof and
eaves of the great orbital sockets. Anteriorly in the middle of the forehead line the feet of the
nasal process of the premaxillary are implanted upon the frontal, usually distinctly ; more
laterally, the nasal bones are articulated or anchylosed; this fronto-naso-premaxillary suture
forming the fronto-facial hinge, (fig. 63, 2) by the elasticity or articulation of which the upper
jaw moves upon the skull, when acted on by the palatal and jugal bars. In the midst of the fore-
head the two halves of the frontal sometimes separate, as they do in the fowl, allowing a little
of the mesethmoid to come to the front. In the middle line, underneath, the frontals fuse with
whatever extent there may be of the mescthmoid which forms the lengthwise inter-orbital
septum, and often a crosswise partition between the orbital and nasal cavities. To the antero-
external corners of the frontal are articulated or anchylosed the lacrymals. The post-frontal
process, morphologically the post-frontal or sphenotic bone, bounds the rim of the orbit behind;

1 There is apparently some ambiguity in the use of the term “ post-frontal” process by different authors. It

would appear that this process, bounding the rim of the orbit behind, may be a projection of the frontal bone, and
therefore strictly a post-frontal process. Or that, as said by Owen for Rhea, it may be a separate bone, and there-

s

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. lat

it is usually quite prominent. The frontal rim of the orbit in many birds shows a creseentic
depression (very strong in a loon and many other water birds; fig. 63, «), for lodgment of the
supra-orbital gland, the secretion of which lubricates the nasal passages. The cerebral plate of
the frontal is often imperfectly ossified, showing large *‘ windows” besides the regular opening>
for the exit of nerves which are always found at the back of the orbit. View from above, the
frontal is vaulted and expanded behind, over the brain cavity, then pinched more or less, some-
times extremely narrow over the orbits, then usually somewhat expanded again at the fronto-
facial suture. The extent of the frontal between the orbits and face, in the lacrymal region.
is very great in the duck family, as seen in fig. 63.

The Squamosal (Lat. squama, a seale: figs. 70, 71, sg.) bounds the brain-box laterally.
between occipital, parietal, frontal and sphenoidal bones, its distinction from all of these being
obliterated in adult lite. It is situated near the lower back lateral corner of the skull, forming
some part of the cranial wall just over the ear-opening, and a strong eaves for that orifice. It
is firmly united also to the bones of the ear proper. and receives the larger share of the free
articulation which the quadrate has with the skull. It often develops a strong forward-down-
ward spur, the squamosal process (fig. 62). looking like a duplicate post-frontal process :
between these two is the crotaphyte depression, corresponding to the ‘temporal fossa” of man,
in which lie the muscles which close the jaws. It scareely or not enters into the orbit, the
adjacent part of the orbit being alisphenoidal.

The Periotic Bones (Gr. repi, peri, about: ots, dros, ous, ofos, the ear; fig. 70) are
those that form the petrosal bone (Lat. petrosus, rocky. from their hardness), or bony periotic
capsule, containing the essential organ of hearing. When united with each other and with the
squamosal, they form the very composite and illogical bone called ‘‘temporal” in human anat-
omy. There are three of these otic bones, — an anterior. the pro-otic; a posterior and inferior,
the opisthotic (Gr. dwiGe, opisthe, behind) and a superior and external, the eptotic. They can
only be studied in young skulls, upon careful dissection : they do not appear upon the outside
of the skull at all, excepting a small piece of the opisthotic, which there fuses indistinguishably
with the exoccipital. But somewhat of these bones are seen on looking into the cavity of the
outer ear, and if the fenestra ovalis can -be recognized, it determines a part of the boundary
between the prodtic and opisthotic bones, while the fenestra rotunda lies wholly in the latter.
The cavity of the periotic bone is hollowed for the labyrinth of the internal ear, including the
cochlea, which contains the essential nervous organs of hearing, and the three semicircular canals
—so much of them as does not invade surreunding bones. In the young fowl’s skull viewed
internally (fig. 70), Parker figures a very large prodtic portion (po) of the periotic, perforated
by the internal auditory meatus (7) for the entrance from the brain of the auditory nerve: below
and behind the prodtie a small opisthotie (op), in relation with the exoccipital, upon the surface
of which it also appears, outside (fig. 69, at psc), and with which it blends; a very small epiotie
centre (ep). between the prodtic and supraoccipital; and the anterior semicircular canal (asc)
embedded in the latter. In Dr. Shufeldt’s figure the otic elements are merely noted diagram-
matically. Aceording io Huxley's generalization, the epiotic is in special relation with the pos-
terior semicircular canal; the prodtic with the anterior vertical canal, between which and the
foramen ovale (5) for the lower divisions of the trifacial nerve it lies. That part on which the
inner foot of the quadrate is implanted is prodtic. Below the drooping eaves of the squamosal,
before the flaring wing of the exoccipital, and behind the quadrate bone, is the always decided
and considerable cavity of the ear. bounded pretty sharply by the squamosal and exoccipital rim,
fore properly a postjrontal bone. Or, again, that it may have nothing to do with the frontal bone. but belong to

the alisphenoid, as a process of the latter or a separate ossification; in which case it would be properly the sphe-
notic. In no event has it anything to do with the sguamosal process lettered as such in fig. @.

158

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

sloping with less distinction in front toward the orbital cavity. In this auditory hollow may be
scen several openings: the

Fig. 70. — Ripe chick’s skull, longitudinal section, viewed
inside, X 3 diameters; after Parker. In the mandible are seen:
mk, remains of meckelian rod; d, dentary bone; sp, splenial ;
@, angular ; su, surangular; ar, articular; iap, internal articu-
lar process; pap, posterior articular process. In the skull: pn,
the original prenasal cartilage, upon which is moulded the pre-
maxillary, pz, with its nasal process, npx, and dentary process,
dpx ; sn, septo-nasal cartilage, in which is seen mn, nasal nerve;
ntb, nasa) turbinal ; the reference line crosses the cranio-facial
suture, the face parts and cranial parts being nearly separated
here by the nick seen in the original cartilaginous plate; eth,
ethmoid; pe, perpendicular plate of ethmoid, which will spread
nearly throughout the dotted cartilaginous tract in which it lies,
to form nearly all the interorbital septum; transverse thicken-
ing (in some birds) below the reference line eth will form the
pre-frontal, or orbito-nasal septum; io/, inter-orbital foramen;
Pps, pre-sphenoidal region, just above which is the orbito-sphe-
noidal region ; 2, optic foramen; as, alisphenoid, with 5, foramen
for divisions of the 5th (trifacial) nerve; 7, frontal; sg, squamosal ;
—p. parietal; so, superoccipital ; asc, anterior semicircular canal;
sc, 1 sinus (venous canal); ep, epiotic; eo, exoccipital; op, opis-
thotic ; po, prodtic, with 7, meatus auditorius internus, for en-
trance of 7th nerve; 8, foramen for vagus nerve; bo, basioccipi-
tal; bt, basitemporal ; ic, canal (in original pituitary space;
fig. 66 ic) by which carotid artery enters brain cavity ; ap, basi-
pterygoid process; ap to rbs, rostrum of the skull, being the
parasphenoid bone underflooring the basisphenoid and future
perpendicular plate of ethmoid. (The scaffolding cf the upper
jaw not shown, excepting pz, &c.)

meatus or proper ear-passage, through which, in one direction, a

bristle may be passed to emerge at or near
the middle line of the base of the skull,
about the root of the basisphenoidal ros-
trum. Such a passage is through the first
visceral cleft of the early embryo, modi-
fied into meatus auditorius and eustachian
tube, which latter communicates with the
back part of the mouth. Besides the other
ear-passages proper, may be found other
openings of air-passages leading into the
interior diploic tissue of bones of the
skull, and especially into the lower jaw
bone. The ear-parts are immensely de-
veloped in owls, in many species of
which they are unsymmetrical, that is,
not sized and shaped alike on right and
left sides of the head.

The Sphenoid (Gr. adn, sphen, a
wedge; eidos, eidos, form; figs. 62, 70,
71) is a compound bone, not easy to un-
derstand as it occurs in birds, as much
of it is hidden from the outside, some of
it is very slightly developed, and all of it
is completely consolidated with surround-
ing bones in the adult. It is wedged
into the very midst of the cranial bones
proper, with its body in the middle line
below, next in front of the basioccipital,
and its wings spread on either side in the
orbital cavity. A sphenoid consists es-
sentially of the basisphenoid, or main
part of the bone (fig. 62); the alisphe-
nods or ‘‘ wings,” on either side (figs. 70,
71, as); the obseure presphenoid, (ps) in
the middle line in front of and above the
main body; and the small orbito-sphe-
noids, which are in fact the wings of the
presphenoid. The body is usually covered
in by the underflooring of the basitem-
poral; it is a flat triangular plate, pro-
duced more or less forward in the middle
line as the bastsphenoidal rostrum, or
beak of the skull. This rostrum is an
important thing. It forms, in fact, the
central axis of the base of the skull;
with the mesethmoid plate the inferior
border of the interorbital septum, usually

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY. 159
thickened by the underflooring of the parasphenoid (fig. 70, rbs). The rostrum often bears
on each side a basipterygoid process (ap),— a smooth facet with which the pterygoid artic-
ulates. These processes may be very
strong, and far back on the basisphenoid
body, when the pterygoids articulate with
them near their own posterior ends, as
in the struthious birds and tinamous (fig.
75, btp); or they may be further along
ou the rostrum, and the pterygoids then
articulate near or at their fore-ends. The
rostrum may be produced far forward,
beyond the maxillo-palatines and vomer
even, as in an ostrich; or it may bear the
vomer at its end: or may be embraced
by forks of the vomer ; the palatines may
glide along it, or be remote from it on
either side. In any event, whatever its
production, whatever part may be eth-
moidal, or basisphenoidal, or parasphe-
noidal thickening, pterygo-faceting, ete.,
this ‘‘beak™ of the basisphenoid is
always in the axis of the base of the
skull, and at the bottom of the inter-
orbital plate: it may be horizontal, or
obliquely ascending forward; and the
variety of its relations with the pterygo-
palatine and vomerine mechanism fur-
nishes important zodlogical characters,
as we shall see when we come to treat
of palatal structure particularly. Just at

-the base of the beak, where it widens
into the main body of the bone, may
commonly be seen, coming from between
the sphenoidal body and the lip of the
basitemnporal underflooring, the orifices
of the eustachian tubes. and often also
the anterior ends of the carotid canal.
If a bristle, passed into a questionable

Fic. 71.— Ripe chick’s skull, in profile, x 8 diameters; after
Parker. pr, premaxillary; ain, ali-nasal cartilage; en, septo-
nasal; 7, nasal bone; 7, lacrymal; pe, perpendicular plate of
ethmoid, as in fig. 70; ps, presphenoidal region; as. alisphe-
noid; 7, frontal; p, parietal; sq, squamosal; so, superoccipital ;
eo, exoccipital; oc, occipital condyle; st, the cross-like object,
the stapes, whose foot fits fenestra ovalis, see fig. 83; g, quad~
rate; pg, pterygoid; ¢j, quadratojugal; j, jugal; pa, palatine;
mz, maxillary. In the mandible: d, dentary; su, surangular;
a, angular; ar, articular; iap, internal angular process: pap,
posterior angular process. 2, optic foramen; 5. foramen ovale,

foramen here, comes out of the ear, it for inferior divisions of the 5th nerve. (Compare fig. 70.)

has gone through the eustachian tube: if it comes out below the ear, on the floor of the skull,
outside, it has run in the carotid canal. The extent of the alisphenoids (figs. 70. 71, as) can-
not be determined in old skulls. They lie at the back lower border of the orbital cavity, clos-
ing in most of the brain box that is not foreclosed by the frontal bone. You will alcays find
at the back of the orbit. close to the mid-line, and rather low down, the very large optic fora-
mina (any figs., 2); alisphenoid should not extend in front of these orifices. A little below and
behind the optic foramina, and much more laterally, not far from the quadrate itself, is a con-
siderable foramen, quite constant, fur transmission of the inferior divisions of the fifth (trigeminal
or trifacial) nerve. This is the foramen ovale (any figs.. 5): it is either in the alisphenoid, or
between that bone and the prodtic; it must not be mistaken for one of the several smaller holes.
usually seen close about the optic foramen, which transmit the nerves (oculo-motor, pathetic.

160 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

and abducent) which move the muscles of the eyeball; these holes being collectively about
equivalent to the foramen lacerum anterius of human anatomy. Parts about the optic foramen,
before and above, are presphenoidal (figs. 70, 71, ps) and orbito-sphenoidal ; but they are
obscure to all but the embryologist, and practically furnish no zoélogical characters.

The Ethmoid (Gr. 76ués, ethmos, a sieve; from the way it is perforated in the human
species; fig. 62) is the bone of the mid-line of the skull, in front of the sphenoidal elements and
below the frontal; it is in special relation with the olfactory nervous apparatus, or sense of
smell. This is not an easy bone to ‘‘ get the hang of” in birds. Referring to figs. 66, 68, eth,
the student will see in the early embryo a high thin plate of cartilage, the mesethmord cartilage,
which is developing lateral processes to form the convoluted walls of the nasal passages. By
the uprising and forth-growing of the prenasal cartilage, the mesethmoidal plate is tilted back-
ward, as it were, under the frontal. Next, by absorption of tissue just opposite the future
eranio-facial suture, the plate is nicked apart, the portion in front of the nick elaborating
the nasal chambers, which usually remain cartilaginous, and the portion behind this nick
becoming the permanent plate, fig. 70, eth, pe, to which the name mesethmoid or mid-ethmoid
is more strictly applicable. Practically, a bird’s ethmoid is chiefly the inter-orbital septum, in
vertical mid-line between the orbits, with such flange-like processes or lateral plates as may be
developed to form an orbito-nasal septum separating the’ eye-socket from the nose-chamber.
In general, the permanent ethmoidal plate becomes nearly coincident with this orbital wall, and
pretty well cut off from the osseous or cartilaginous developments, when any, in the nasal cavi-
ties. It is then fairly under cover of the frontal, with which, as with the sphenoidal elements
posteriorly, it becomes completely fused. When this inter-orbital septum is fully developed, it
completely divides the right and left orbital cavities, and its lower horizontal border, fused
with the basisphenoidal rostrum, may like the latter be thickened by bearing its share of the
parasphenoidal splint. Oftener, however, this lower border slopes upward and forward, from the
sphenoidal base to the roof of the skull about the site of the cranio-facial suture; and usually
the septum is incomplete, having a membranous fenestra somewhere near its middle (fig. 70,
iof). Along the upper border of the mesethmoid plate, or just in the crease between it and
the overarching frontal may usually be seen a long groove, which, beginning behind at the
olfactory foramen of the brain-box, conducts the thence-issuing olfactory nerve to the nasal:
chambers. Sometimes there is another such groove, from a similar foramen near by in the
sphenoidal parts, which similarly traces the course of the ophthalmic (first) division of the tri-
facial nerve. Occasionally, as in the fowls, the two halves of the frontal bone separate a litile
at the extreme forehead, allowing the mesethmoid plate there to come up flush with the outer
surface of the skull.

In some birds, as the low ostrich, for example, the original mesethmoidal cartilage-plate
does not nick apart into orbital and nasal moieties, but ossifies as a continuous sheet of bone,
dividing right and left halves of the skull far towards the point of the beak (see fig. 75, beyond
Rito Pmx). A nasal septum, separated from the orbital septum, may persist to ossify ; form-
ing, as in the raven, a vertical plate separate from all surroundings, and liable to be mistaken
for a free vomer (see fig. 79, where the reference line v goes to it, instead of to the truncate
vomer) ; or, as in many birds, a plate variously anchyloged with its surroundings. But these
formations, as well as the various twrbinal (Lat. twrbo, a whorl) scrolls and whorls formed in
this part of the skull, belong rather to the organ of smell than to the skull proper.

The Cranial Bones proper are all those thus far described, excepting the nasal ossifica-
tions just noted, which belong to the first pre-oral arch; and the stapedial parts of the ear,
which belong to the hyoidean apparatus (second post-oral arch). Intermediate in some
respects between the proper cranial bones and

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY. 161

The Facial Bones proper is the Vomer. — By “ facial bones,” as distinguished from
‘‘eranial” bones, is meant the entire bony scaffolding of the upper and lower jaws, and of the
tongue, — parts developed in the pre-oral or maxillary, and first, second, and third post-oral, or
mandibular, hyoidean proper, and branchial, arches.

The Vomer (Lat. vomer, a ploughshare ; figs. 62, 63, 75 to 80, v) is considered, by those
who hold the vertebral theory of the skull, to be the body of the foremost (fourth from behind
— the basioccipital, basisphenoid, and presphenoid being the other three) cranial vertebra. So
far from having any such morphological significance, it is one of the late secondary bones,
developed, if at all, apart from the general make-up of the skull, as a special superaddition
underlying the ethmoidal region, as the parasphenoid and basitemporal underlie the skull further
back. Its character is extremely variable in the class of birds, though usually constant in the
several natural divisions of the class, —a fact which confers high zodélogical value upon this
anomalous bone. A vomer is a symmetrical mid-line bone of the base of the skull, found if at
all at or near the end of the rostrum. It is originally double, i. e., of right and left paired
halves. These halves persist distinct in the woodpeckers, and are remote from each other,
one on each side of the mid-line (fig. 80). The vomer is wanting entirely in the Columbine
birds, as the pigeons and some of their allies, as the sand grouse (Pterocletes) and bush quails
(Hemipodes) of the old world, and in certain of the true Galline. Its connections are various.
It may be borne free upon the end of the rostrum. It may be applied like a splint by a grooved
upper surface to the under side of the rostrum, and so fixed there; or, in such situation, it may
glide along the rostrum according to the movements of the palatal parts with which it may
connect. Thus, in the ostrich (fig. 75), it saddles the rostrum below, and is joined by the
maxillo-palatines. Or, it may be united with separate ossifications, the septo-mavxillaries,
which in some birds bridge across the palate (fig. 80). The commonest case is its deep
bifurcation behind (fig. 79), each fork uniting with the palate bone of its own side, and some-
times also with the pterygoid. Such is usually the fixture of the bone behind, and it then rides
along as well as simply bestrides the rostrum. The anterior end of the vomer may be perfectly
free, projecting into the floor of the nasal chambers (figs. 62, 77), or the fore end may be
variously steadied or connected with maxillary processes (fig. 78). When free in front, and
often when not, the vomer is a simple share-like plate, more or less expanded vertically, quite
thin laterally, and ‘ spiked,” i. e., ranning forward to a point; under these circumstances it may
or may not bifureate behind, and be there attached to the palatines or not. But the commonest
case of vomer, shown by the great Passerine group, which comprise the majority of recent
birds, is different from this, the vomer being in front thickened, flattened and expanded laterally,
and connected with nasal cartilages and ossifications (alinasals and turbinals). Such a vomer,
deeply cleft behind to join the palatals, is endlessly diversified in the configuration of its fore end,
which may be notched, lobed, clubbed, ete. The general case of such a vomer is indicated by
the expression ‘‘ vomer truncate in front,” as distinguished from the simply pointed or ‘‘spiked”
vomer. (For further details see description of the several patterns of palate-structure, beyond.)

The Quadrate Bone (Lat. quadratus, squared; figs. 62; 63, n; 64, 65, 68, 69, 71, q;
75, Qu), with which we may begin the jaw-bones proper, is the suspensorium of the lower jaw,
— the perfectly constant and characteristic bone by means of which the mandible proper articu-
lates with the skull. Its rudiment is seen in the earliest embryos, at the corners of the pri-
mordial parachordal cartilages. It belongs to the mandibular (first post-oral) arch, of which it
is the proximal element. Its general morphology has caused much dispute. From the fact
that in birds one of its functions is to support, in part, the tympanum of the ear, it has been
identified with the tympanic bone of mammals, — that which in man forms the bony tube of the
external auditory meatus. The view now generally accepted is, that the bird’s quadrate repre-

ll

162 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

sents, certainly in part, probably in whole, the little bone of the middle ear called the malleus in
mammals. Anyhow this may be, the quadrate of a bird bears the proximal ends of both jaws,
carrying their final (posterior) articulation up to the squamosal and petrosal bones. Thus, the
foot of the quadrate forms the free hinge of the lower jaw, and also movably articulates the
back-end of both the zygomatic and the pterygo-palatine bars or ‘‘arcades.” The head of
the quadrate freely articulates with the squamosal, just in front of the tympanity cavity, which
it thus bounds in front; and there is usually a shoulder which furthermore articulates with
the anterior periotic bone, the prodtic ; Struthious birds do not have these two distinct facets.
A long pedicle or orbital process extends forwards, inwards, and upwards in the orbit ; this non-
articular handle is for advantageous muscular traction. So circumstanced, the quadrate is a
stocky bone, of a shape reminding one of an anvil; it rocks freely to and fro upon its cranial
socket, pulling and pushing upon the whole maxillary and mandibular mechanism, with such
effect that when the lower jaw drops, the zygomatic and palatal bars are automatically shoved
forward, tending to make the upper jaw rise, and so increase the opening of the mouth. Such
mobility of the upper jaw automatically with the movement of the lower is very free in parrots,
whose cranio-facial connections are quite articular in character ; it is well shown also in ducks;
and probably nearly all birds have some such motion of the upper jaw upon the skull. In
nearly all birds, the mandibular articular facet of the quadrate is divided by a lengthwise
impression into inner and outer protuberances, or condyles, fitting corresponding depressions on
the articular face of the lower jaw; in some birds the articular surface is single. The zygo-
matic articulation with the quadrate is made by the balled end of the quadrato-jugal socketed
in a cup at the outer side of the mandibular facet (with various minor modifications in different
birds). The palatal articulation is made by a little condyle of the quadrate, at the inner side of
the main facet, socketed into the cupped end of the pterygoid (with minor modifications).

The Quadrato-jugal and Jugal Bones (Lat. jugum, a yoke; figs. 62, 63, g, 7; 69, 71,
qj, J) form most of the outer arcade — the jugal or zygomatic bar — leading from the quadrate
bone to the beak. The quadrato-jugal is posterior, reaching a variable distance forward ; at its
fore end it is obliquely sutured to the jugal, a splint-rod which carries the bar forward to the
maxillary bone, with which it is in like manner obliquely sutured. The whole affair is almost
always a slender rod, which with its fellow of the opposite side forms the. outermost lateral
boundary of the skull for a great distance. It corresponds in general with the “‘ zygomatic
arch” of a mammal, which is made up of a ‘‘ zygomatic process of the squamosal” and a malar
or ‘‘ cheek-bone.” The whole zygomatic arch, including the maxillary bone itself, is developed
from the outer part of the primordial pterygo-palatine bar (see fig.65). In parrots the zygoma
is movably articulated before as behind. '

The Maxillary Bone (Lat. mazilla, upper jaw bone ; figs. 62; 63, s; 69, 71, 75, ma),
forming so much of the upper jaw of a mammal, isin birds greatly reduced, being starved out by
the predominant premaxillaries which form most of the upper beak. The shape of this stunted
bone varies too much to be concisely described. Its connections are, ordinarily, with the jugal
behind by a long slender splint-like process, and with the premaxillary and usually the nasal
bones in front and externally. Internally, it may or may not connect with the palatal and
vomer. The zoélogical interest of this bone centres in certain inward (palate-ward) processes,
often its most conspicuous parts, and apparently corresponding to the plate which in a mammal
roofs the hard palate anteriorly. Though these are mere processes from the main maxillary,
they are so distinct and important that they are commonly described as if they were independent
bones, under the name of the masillo-palatines. They are flange-like or scroll-like plates, or
large spongy masses of delicate bone-tissue, — endlessly varied in configuration and context (see
the various figures of base of skull, mxp, beyond, where the palate-patterns are described).

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 163

Certain other inward maxillary processes, which may or may not unite with the vomer, and so
bridge over the palate, are called septo-maxillaries (fig. 80, sma) ; and in some woodpeckers
yet other palate-processes appear (fig. 80, pm).

The Pterygoid Bones (Gr. mrépvE, pterux, wing; «i8os, eidos, form; figs. 62; 63, 0;
65, 66, 68, 69, 71, 80, pg; 75 to 79, Pt). Returning now to the quadrate, and going along the
inner arcade, we first encounter the pterygoid, —a generally rod-like, but variously twisted,
crooked, or expanded bone which makes the connection between the quadrate behind and the
palate bone before. The pterygoid is always freely jointed at both ends; its posterior quadrate
articulation has been noted above; its anterior connection is usually by little nipper-like claws
by which it “catches on” to the hind end of the palatine. In the ostrich (fig. 75, Pt) the
pterygoid expands into a scroll-like plate; but its rod-like shape is usually preserved. Besides
passing very obliquely inward as it goes forward from the wide-apart quadrates to the narrow
rostrum in the axis of the skull, the pterygoid often bellies or elbows inwards in its course to
join the basisphenoidal beak, and be movably articulated therewith. In the majority of birds,
there is no such rostral articulation, or the pterygoid only touches the rostrum at its fore end
where it joins the palatal. In many, however, special articular facets, called basipterygoid
processes (fig. 70, ap), are developed on the rostrum for the pterygoids to abut against and
glide over. In Carinate birds, excepting the tinamous (Dromeognathe), these processes are
forward on the beak, and the pterygoids articulate at or near their own fore ends, as well shown
in the fowl or duck, figs. 77, 78, Pt. In Ratite birds and tinamous, the basipterygoids are
very long, flaring transverse processes, far back on the rostrum, at the sphenoidal base, and
the pterygoids articulate therewith at or near their own posterior ends (figs. 75, Btp, and 76).

The Palatal or Palatine Bones (Lat. palatwm, roof of the mouth ; figs. 62; 63, p; 65,
66, 68, 69, 71, 77, 78, 80, pa; 75, 76, 79, Pl) are a pair, approximately parallel and near the
mid-line, forming that part of the ‘‘ hard palate ” or roof of the mouth which is not constructed
by the palatal processes of the maxillaries, or vomer. They are nearly always long thin bones,
among the most conspicuous parts when the dried skull is viewed from below. Sometimes, as in
the ostrich (fig. 75, pl), they are remote from the axis of the skull and only connected in front
with the maxillariés and maxillo-palatines. In many birds they skip the maxillary parts in
going forward to be fused with the premaxillaries ; in most, probably, they form anterior con-
nections in one or another fashion with palatal parts both of maxillaries and of premaxillaries.
Behind, they always correctly articulate with the pterygoid. The mid-line connections made
in most Carinate birds (not in Dromeognathe) are variously with the vomer, with the ros-
trum, with each other, or some or all of these relations at once. A long deeply-cleft vomer
may by its posterior forks attach itself to the whole palatal mid-line, excluding the palatals
from the rostrum ; less extensive attachment of the same kind may permit the palatals to touch
each other and the rostrum posteriorly, while cutting them off anteriorly; also, a non-cleft
vomer may attach itself to the posterior extremity of the palatals, and bear them off the ros-
trum. The whole hard palate may fuse into an indistinguishable mass; and in almost any
case the relations of the palatals to each other and their connections afford some of the most
valuable zodlogical characters of great groups of birds. (Details figured and described beyond.)
Though very variable in configuration, as well as in connections, certain parts of a palatal may
usually be recognized, and conveniently named for descriptive purposes. Anteriorly, in the
great majority of birds, of whatever technical kind of palatal structure, the palatals are simply
prolonged as flat strap-like or lath-like bars running past the maxillary to the premaxillary
region ; and such simple band-like character may be preserved behind. Ordinarily, however,
the palatals expand posteriorly, becoming more or less laminar; and in this plate-like part
three surfaces may usually be recognized. One, more or less horizontal, flaring outward, is the

164 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

external lamina. It is well shown in a Passerine or Raptorial bird, where the postero-external
angle (between the outer border and the posterior end) of the palatal is well-marked, or may
be acutely produced ; there is no such lamina in a fowl, where the palatals are for the most
part slender and rod-like. An internal, more or less vertically produced, plate to make the
mid-line rostral or vomerine connection is the superior internal lamina, or medio-palatine pro-
cess; very strong, for example, in a fowl, where it forms all the expanded part of the bone, and
ends anteriorly as a sharp inter-palatine spur. The medio-palatine is probably to be regarded
as the main body of the bone, being the most axial part, of the most extensive and varied con-
nections. A third lip or plate of the palatal is the inferior internal lamina, looking downward ;
it is generally very evident, but in a duck or fowl is reduced to a mere ridge, indicating where
the superior internal and external lamine meet. A duck’s palatals are quite different in ap-
pearance from those of most birds, all the posterior parts just distinguished being reduced and
constricted, while the fore ends, running abruptly into the hard-boned beak, are much expanded
horizontally (fig. 78). The postero-external angles of the palatal (formed by the external
lamina), even when much produced, may not reach as far back as opposite the pterygo-palatine
articulation; or they may surpass these limits, and when they do, such backward prolongation
is called post-palatiue, the palate being considered to end at the pterygoids. In like manner,
the maxillary processes of the palatals, or the palatal strips as prolonged into the premaxillary
region, are called pre-palatines. The inner posterior process, by which the palatine is articu-
lated with the pterygoid, is its pterygoid process.

The Premaxillary Bones (figs. 62; 63, a; 69, 70, 71, 80, px; 75 to 79, pmax), also called
Intermaxillaries, form most of the upper beak, attaining enormous development in birds, and
reversing the usual relative size of premaxillary and maxillary. Mainly determining as they
do the form of the upper mandible, their shapes are as various as the bills themselves of
birds; but their generalized characters can be easily given. Each premaxillary, right and
left, forms its half the bill; the two are always completely fused together in front, commonly
preserving traces at least of their original distinction behind. They are commonly called one
bone, the premaxillary. Each is a triradiate or 3-pronged bone; one upper prong, the most
distinct, called the nasal or frontal process, forms with its fellow the culmen (p. 104, fig. 26, b)
of the bill. These processes, side by side, run clear up to the frontal bone in birds, driving the
nasal bones apart from each other. Such a median fronto-premaxillary suture, with lateral
fronto-nasal and naso-premaxillary sutures, is highly characteristic of birds, — an arrangement
probably exceptionless. Two other horizontal prongs on each side, extensively distinct from
the frontal process in most birds, but less separate from each other, run horizontally along the
side and roof of the mouth for a variable distance. These horizontal prongs are an external or
dentary process (fig. 80, dpx), forming the tomium (p. 104) of the bill, and reaching back to
join the dentary part of the maxillary; and an internal or palatal process (fig. 80, ppx), run-
ning along the commencement of the bony palate. With this latter the anterior ends of the
palatal bones unite, — either on the side toward the mid-line of the beak, or between the palatal
and dentary processes, as in a woodpecker (fig. 80). Great laminar expansions inward of these
palatal parts of the premaxillaries roof the hard part of the mouth anteriorly, though there is
usually a vacancy between the premaxillary hard palate and that formed farther back by the
maxillo-palatines and palatines. The posterior extremities at least of the frontal processes of
the premaxillaries are commonly distinguishable from each other, as well as from the frontal
and nasal bones —in fact, these fronto-nasv-premaxillary sutures are among the most per-
sistent of all. The divergence of the frontal from the palatal and dentary processes bounds the
external nostril in part, the circumscription of that orifice being completed by the prongs of the
nasal bones. The superficies of the premaxillary bone, like that of the dentary piece of the
lower jaw bone, is commonly sculptured with the impressions of the vessels and nerves which

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY. 165

ramify beneath the horny integument; and in birds with very sensitive bills, as a snipe or
duck, the end is perforated sieve-like with little holes,-into which the skin shrinks in drying,
producing the familiar ‘‘ pitted” appearance (fig. 63, at c).

The Nasal Bones (figs. 62; 71, ») might have been described next after the frontals, as
they continue forward the general roofing of the skull; but are conveniently considered in the
present connection, being in birds rather “facial” than “cranial.” They are of.large size in
birds, and pronged, — one fork, the superior process, being applied for a variable distance along
the outer side of the frontal process of the premaxillary, the other, wferior, descending to or
towards the dentary border of the maxillary or premaxillary, or both ; the divergence of these
two processes bounding the nostril behind. The base of the nasal, uppermost and posterior,
anchyloses (usually) or sutures (often) or articulates (as in parrots) with the antero-external
border of the frontal bone; its frequent collateral connections being with the lacrymal or
ethmoid, or both of these. The nasals are very variable in shape, as well as in the extent
of their connections. When expansive, they may wall in much of the nasal cavity, as well as
bound the nostrils. These latter openings, as far as the bony boundaries are concerned, are
usually much more extensive than they seem to be from the outside, being much contracted by
membrane and integument. Ordinarily, each forms a great vacuity, which the descending
prong of the nasal bone separates from a similar vacancy between itself and the lacrymal, the
lacrymal in“turn interposing between this and the orbital cavity. The descending process of
the nasal, in fact, is a marked object at the side of the base of the upper mandible of most birds,
though slight or rudimentary in the Ratita. A character of the nasals has been employed in
classification by Mr. Garrod. A bird having the bones as above generally described, with
moderate forking, so that the angle of the fork, bounding the nostrils behind, does not reach so
far back as the fronto-premaxillary suture, is termed holorhinal (Gr. édos, holos, whole ; pis,
pwés, rhis, rhinos, nose; fig. 62). But in the Colwmbide, and in a great many wading and
swimming birds, whose palates are cleft (schizognathous), the nasal bones are schizorhinal
(cxife, schizo, I cut) ; that is, cleft to or beyond the ends of the premaxillaries ; such fission
leaving the external descending process very distinct from the other, almost like a separate
bone. Pigeons, gulls, plovers, cranes, auks, and other birds are thus split-nosed. The value
of the character, except as an auxiliary, is doubtful.

The Lacrymal (Lat. lacryma, a tear; from the relation of the human bone to the tear-
duct ; figs. 62; 63, w; 71, 1) is one of several splint-like membrane-bones of the skull, having
little intimacy of relation with the general morphology of the cranium, though quite constant in
birds, and often very conspicuous. It is situated at or near the anterior outer corner of the
orbit, near the nasal but behind that bone; sometimes anchylosed, sometimes very loosely
attached, oftener firmly sutured with the frontal; and may also have connection with the nasal
and ethmoid. It is generally a claw-like affair, depending from the front outer corner of the
frontal, and consequently bounding the orbit anteriorly; it may be variously twisted, crooked,
hooked, ete. It is singularly elongated and distorted in the ostrich. In the duck tribe, in
which the lacrymo-frontal region of the skull is greatly elongated, the lacrymal has coex-
tensive attachment to the frontal bone, and is broadly laminar, with a downward process ;
in some ducks bounding at least a fourth of the orbital brim, and almost completing the circle
by extending toward the very protrusive post-froutal process, as in fig. 63, «. In some parrots,
the rim of the orbit is completed below, and even sends a bony bar to bridge over the temporal
fossa behind the post-frontal. In some birds, the lacrymal is quite free, and even in more than
one free piece. The os wncinatum, or os lacrymo-palatinum, would appear to be a palatine bone
distinct from the lacrymal; it has been observed in the Musophagide and many other pica-
rian birds, in Tachypetes and certain Procellariide. The lacrymal bone seems to be the prin-

166 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

cipal relic, in birds, of a set of splint-bones which lie about the edges of the orbits in many
Sauropsida. Another is the post-frontal or sphenotic, usually a process of the frontal, often a
separate ossification. In some birds, as various Raptores, there are one or more loose supra-
orbital plates of bone, serving to eke out the brim of the orbits; thus forming the “ orbital
shields” so prominent in many hawks, and causing their eyebrows to project. Were such a
a chain of splint-bones complete (lacrymal, superorbitals, post-frontal, and squamosal, to
quadrate), it would form an arcade of bones over the orbit, like the actual zygomatic arch
(maxillary, jugal, quadrato-jugal, to quadrate) which lies under the orbit ; and such a double
series is very perfectly illustrated in many of the Sawropsida below birds (Huxley).

Other special ossifications have been described in some birds, but I am obliged to pass
them over. I have already far exceeded intended limits, and have yet to describe the mandib-
ular and hyoidean arches, and the zodlogical characters of the palate as a whole.

The Mandible, or Lower Jaw Bone (figs. 62, 63, 70, 71) is a collection of bones devel-
oped in the first post-oral visceral arch. Each half of the compound bone (right and left) con-
sists normally of five bones, which become immovably anchylosed, but traces of the original
distinction of which commonly persist for an indefinite period, —in some birds throughout their
lives. In an embryo whose skull has passed to the cartilaginous stage, a long slender rod of
cartilage appears in the first post-oral visceral arch; this is Meckel’s cartilage, or the meckelian
vod (figs. 65, 66, 68, 70, mk), so named after a famous anatomist. Around this rod, which
subsequently disappears, the several bones of the mandible are developed. The anterior one of
these is the dentary (d), forming the scaffold of the horny part of the external under mandible.
It usually unites by anchylosis, sometimes only by suture, with its fellow of the opposite side.
This union in the middle line is the symphysis (Gr. ovv, sun, with; vous, phusts, growth).
The line of union is externally the gonys (see p. 103), the length and other characters of which
are determined by the mode of symphysis, as is the general shape of the tip of the lower mandi-
ble. The union generally makes an angular A, but may be an obtuse (); the symphysis is
very short and imperfect, as in a pelican, for instance, or the opposite, as in a woodpecker and
a multitude of birds. Behind the dentary, each ramus of the jaw continues with pieces called
splenial, angular and surangular (sp, a, su); there is often a fenestra between them, by
imperfection of bony union, as shown in fig. 62, or 63, f, which also sufficiently indicates the
relations of these parts. The articulation of the jaw with the quadrate bone is furnished by a
fifth piece called articular (ar) from its function. As a whole the mandible is a pronged bone,
forking with a variable degree of divergence from its obtuse or acute point, sometimes quite
parallel-sided, as in a duck, oftener very open; such prongs may be straight, or variously
curved or bent either in the vertical or the horizontal plane; are generally stout and stanch,
sometimes so.slender as to be quite flexible. The articular part, always expanded horizontally,
presents a smooth irregularly cupped superior surface for reception of the protuberances of the foot
of quadrate. In general, the concave articular surface is divided into an inner and outer cup sepa-
rated by a protuberance, corresponding to similar inequalities of the opposing surface of the
quadrate. Cupping of the mandibular articulation is characteristic of birds as compared with
mammals, in which latter the lower jaw has always a knobbed articular surface (condyle). In
many birds the angle of the jaw is prolonged back of the articulation as a posterior articular
process (fig. 63, h, 70, 71, pap), which may be long, slender and up-curved, as is well shown in
a fowl, duck, or plover. Such birds are said to have the ‘angle of the mandible recurved ;”
the opposite condition is ‘‘angle truncated” (cut off). Usually also, an internal angular
process (figs. 70, 71, tap) is produced inward from the articular part of the jaw, as in the
fowl, duck. Between the dentary and articular parts, the ramus of the jaw is usually verti-
cally produced as a thin raised crest, which, when prominent, is called the coronoid process ;
it corresponds to the strong process so called in a mammal, and relates to the advantageous

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY.

167

insertion of the temporal or masseteric muscles which effect closure of the jaw. It is scarcely
evident in the fowl, fig. 62, but well marked in the duck, fig. 68, over f. At the back of the
articular surface is the pneumatic foramen for entrance of air, when any; on the inner surface
of the ramus, about the splenial bone, is the opening conveying the ve§sels and nerve.

The Hyoid Bone (Gr. letter 4, hu=hy, cidos, eidos, form; figs.
65-68, 72-74) is the skeleton of the tongue; a very composite struc-
ture, consisting of several distinct bones, developed in the second and
third post-oral visceral arches (see fig. 65, where ch and bh are the
original elements of the second arch, making the basthyal and cerato-
hyal bones, and bbr, cbr, and ebr are the original elements of the third
arch, making the basibranchial, cerato-branchial, and epibranchial
bones). The whole affair is somewhat A- or s-shaped, lying
loosely, point forward, between the forks of the lower jaw, with its
long slender prongs curving up behind the hind head more or less ;
but not definitely connected with any other bones of the skull. The
connection which exists between the hyoid and other cranial bones
in a mammal is in birds broken by non-development of certain
links of bone developed in the mammalian second post-oral arch, as
the stylo-hyal, epihyal, etc.; though birds have a rudimentary stylo-
hyal, at least in the embryo, among the several proximal parts of
the second arch which form the intricate bones within the ear-
passages (fig. 67). The visible parts of a bird’s hyoid are usually:
the body of the bone, basihyal (bh, and fig. 72, c), single and median,
commonly quite short and stocky, sometimes long and slender. The
basihyal bears in front a pair of cerato-hyals (ch; not shown in
fig. 72, where they have been absorbed in 6b) usually movably
articulated with the basihyal. They commonly appear as little
“horns” or processes of the next piece, the glosso-hyal (fig. 72, b)
or bone chiefly supporting the substance of the tongue. It may be
a stout and apparently single bone, as that of the goose figured; but
oftener appears as a pair of slender bones, side by side, whose back-
ward ends are the cerato-hyals. The glossohyal may or may not
bear at its fore end a cartilaginous tip, as in fig. 72, a. All the fore-
going are hyal, i. e., belonging to the second visceral arch; the
following are branchial, of the third arch: The basi-branchial
(bbr, fig. 72, d) is a single median piece, projecting backward
from .the basihyal, with which it may be perfectly consolidated, as
it is in the figure, or separately articulated ; it may be wanting ; it
is usually tipped and prolonged backward with a thread of cartilage.
The basibranchial is oftener called ‘ urohyal,” but had better be
allowed its strict morphological name. On either side, the basihyal
bears the separately articulated cerato-branchials (cbr, fig. 72, e),
long slender bones diverging as they pass backward, and bearing
upon their ends the epi-branchials (ebr, fig. 72, f), which finish off
the hyoid bone behind, or may be in turn tipped with cartilaginous
threads. The cerato- and epi-branchials together are badly called

Fig. 72. — Hyoid bones of a
goose, nat. size; by Dr. R. W.
Shufeldt, U. S. A. a, car-
tilaginous end-piece of 6, the
great glosso-hyal, which has
absorbed or replaced cerato-
hyals or ‘lesser cornua”; c,
basihyal, movably articulated
with 6, and combined com-
pletely with d, basibranchial,
commonly called “ urohyal;”’
e, ceratobranchial; jf, epi-
branchial; e and f are to-
gether known as ‘‘thyro-
hyals,” or “ greater cornua.”

the ‘‘thyro-hyals,” and in still more popular language the “greater cornua” or “ horns”
of the hyoid. All these bones vary in different birds in size and shape and relative develop-

ment; the branchial elements are the most constant in their length and slenderness.

The

168 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

whole hyoid apparatus of the woodpeckers is specially modified; the basihyal is very long
and slender, bearing stunted cerato- and glosso-hyals at its extreme end; there is no uro-
hyal, or only a rudiment; the cerato-branchials are long, and the epibranchials so extraordi-
narily elongated in some species as to curl up over the back of the skull and forward along the
top of the skull to a variable distance ; sometimes, as in fig. 73, curling around the orbit of the
eye, or, as in fig. 74, running into the nostril to the tip of the beak. In such cases they
bundle together in passing forward over the skull, and go obliquely to one side. (Derivation
of the terms in this paragraph: hyal is another form of hyoid; branchial, Lat. branchie,
gills; basi-, Lat. basis, base; cerato-, Gr. xépas, xéparos, keras, keratos, horn ; epi-, Gr. emi,
epi, upon; stylo-, Lat. stylus, a pen; glosso-, Gr. yhéoca, glossa, tongue; wro-, Gr. ovpa,
oura, tail; thyro-, Gr. dupeds, thureos, a shield.)

Other Bones of the Skull.
The articulation of the lower jaw
with the quadrate may have certain
sesamoids. Thus, there are two
such sclerosteous or ligament-bones
in the external lateral ligament of
the raven’s jaw-joint, and the long
occipital style of the cormorant and
snake-bird is of the same character,
being an ossification in the nuchal
ligament of the neck. The siphon-
like tube which conveys air from
the outer ear-passage to the hollow
of the mandible may ossify, as it
does in an old raven, resulting in
a neat tubular ‘“ air-bone” or at-
mosteon (Gr. drpos, air).

Fias. 73, 74.— Under fig. side view of a woodpecker’s (Picus)
skull, showing the long slender basihyal (bh), bearing slight elements
at its fore end, no uroyhal, and extraordinarily long thyrohyals Types of Palatal Structure. —

(ebr, ebr) curving up over back of skull and curling together around y
orbit of the right eye. Upper fig. top view of skull of Colaptes, The MEF g eMTen of the bones of the
showing thyrohyals running along the skull and into right nostril palate in birds results in several

to end of the bill. (Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A.) types of structure, first defined by”
Huxley and applied to the classification of birds. These are the dromeognathous, schizog-'
nathous, desmognathous and egithognathous ; to which Parker has added the saurognathous.
Huxley proposed to make the primary division of Carinate birds upon this score; and since
the plan could not be made to work in his hands, it is certainly futile for any one else to
demonstrate again the impossibility of establishing the higher groups of birds upon any one
set of characters, — upon the modifications of any one structure. Nevertheless, when duly
co-ordinated with other characters, palatal structure becomes of the utmost importance in
defining large groups of birds. It is necessary, therefore, for the student to clearly understand
this matter, which I will lay before him as nearly as possible in the words of the authors
just mentioned.

Dromzognathism (Gr. dpopaios, dromaios, a runner: genus-name of the emew).— All the
Ratite birds, and the tinamous alone of Carinate birds, are dromeognathous. ‘The posterior
ends of the palatines and the anterior ends of the pterygoids are very imperfectly, or not at all,
articulated with the basisphenoidal rostrum, being usually separated from it, and supported by
the broad, cleft, hinder end of the vomer. Strong basipterygoid processes, arising from the

169

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OSTEOLOGY.

Fia. 75. — Dromeognathous skull of ostrich, 7-8 nat. size, from specimen No. 16,629, U. S. Nat. Museum, by Dr. R. W. Shufelit, U.S. A. £J?, rostrum, beyond
which the ossified nasal septum continues in the axis of the skull to the letters ““ Pmx.” V, the short vomer, borne upon R, uniting laterally with Mxp, the broad
maxillo-palatines; Pl, palatines, remote from rostrum, underrunning beyond Mzxp, but not to Pmx. Pt, expanded scroll-like pterygoids, articulating behind with
Btp, the strong basipterygoid processes on the body (not rostrum) of the sphenoid; they underlap FR, but do not articulate there. Pm, premaxillaries; Mz, maxil-
laries, whose ends run forward to opposite the letters “ Pmx”’; j, jugal; gj, quadrato-jugal; Qu, quadrate. (N. B. This is the most exceptional case of dromogna-
thism. Each one of the Ratite families, — Struthionide, Rheide, Casuariide, Dinornithide, and Apterygide ,—as well as the Carinate family Tinamide, offers
a special case of such formation, as explained in the text.)

articulate with facets which are situated

body of the basisphenoid and not from the rostrum,

This is

nearer the posterior than the anterior ends of the inner edges of the pterygoid bones.”

170 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

.

the gist of droma@ognathism; it is exhibited in several ways. (a) In Struthio alone, fig. 75,
the very short vomer, borne upon the rostrum, articulates neither with palatines nor with ptery-
goids, but with the maxillo-palatines ; and the palatines, which are remote from the rostrum,
advance beyond the maxillo-palatines, as in most birds. (0) In Rhea, the vomer is as long as
usual in birds, and‘articulates behind with the palatines and pterygoids, but does not join the
maxillo-palatines in front ; the short palatines unite with the inner and posterior edges of the
thin fenestrated maxillo-palatines. (¢) In Caswarius and Dromeus (cassowary and emeu),
the long vomer articulates behind with the palatines and pterygoids, and unites in front with
the maxillo-palatines ; these are flat, imperforate, and solidly joined to the premaxille; the
palatines are short. (d) The extinct Dinormis had flat imperforate maxillo-palatine plates
uniting solidly with the premaxille, and probably with the vomer, as in Dromeus. (e) In
Apteryx, the long vomer unites with palatines and pterygoids behind; short broad palatines
: suture obliquely with flat imper-
forate maxillo- palatine plates,
which unite both with premax-
illary and vomer. (f) The tin-
amous, Dromeognathe (fig. 76)
“have a completely struthious
palate”; vomer very broad,
uniting in front with broad max-
illo-palatine plates as in Dro-
meus; behind articulating with
posterior ends of palatines and
anterior ends of pterygoids, both
of which are thus prevented, as
in all Ratite, from any extensive
connection with the rostrum ;
basipterygoid processes springing
from body of sphenoid, not from
its rostrum, articulating with
pterygoids very near the pos-
terior or outer ends of the latter ; Fic, TT. — Schizognathous skull of

common fowl, nat. size, ffom nature,

Fic. 76.— Dromeognathous head of quadrate with a single py Dr. R. W.Shufeldt, U.S.A. Letters
skull of tinamou (Tinamus a ‘ . as before; Pa, palatine.
vebiuaieal; sonia by BUNeit articular facet, as in Ratite. ;
from Huxley. Letters as be-

fore; Map, maxillo-palatine. Schizognathism (Gr. cyifw, schizo, I cleave) is the kind of
“cleft palate” shown by the columbine and gallinaceous birds, by the waders at large, and
many of the swimmers (see fig. 77). In this general case, the vomer, whether large or small,
tapers to a point in front, while behind it embraces the basisphenoidal rostrum, between the
palatines ; these bones and the pterygoids are directly articulated with one another and with
the basisphenoidal rostrum, not being borne upon the divergent posterior ends of the vomer;
the maxillo-palatines, usually elongated and lamellar, pass inwards over [under, when the
‘skull is viewed upside-down, as it usually is] the anterior part of the palatines, with which
they unite and then bend backwards, along the inner edge of the palatines, leaving a broader
or narrower fissure between themselves and the vomer, on each side, and do not unite with one
another or with the vomer. It follows from this that in the dry skull of a plover, for instance,
which shows the schizognathous arrangement extremely well, ‘the blade of a thin knife can
be passed, without meeting with any bony obstacle, from the posterior nares alongside the
vomer to the end of the beak.” There are several groups of birds which exhibit the schizo-
gnathous plan, with ulterior modifications of palatal and other characters. (a) The colum-

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 171

bine birds (Peristeromorphe of Huxley’s arrangement): maxillo-palatines elongate and
spongy; basipterygoid processes narrow, but prominent. (6) The gallinaceous birds (Alec-
toromorphe) : maxillo-palatines varying greatly in size, but always lamellar; palatines long
and narrow, with rounded off postero-external angles; basipterygoid processes oval, flattened,
sessile upon the rostrum, articulating with the pterygoids. (c) The penguins (Sphenisco-
morphe) : maxillo-palatines concavo-convex and lamellar; no basipterygoid processes; ptery-
goids flattened. (d) In the gulls, petrels, loons, grebes,
and auks, constituting the Cecomorphe of Huxley, the
maxillo-palatines are usually lamellar and concavo-
convex, but may be spongy, tumid, and closely ‘approx-
imated to the vomer; and basipterygoid processes are
absent or present. (¢) In the cranes, rails, and their
allies (Geranomorphe), the maxillo-palatines are con-
cavo-convex and lamellar, and basipterygoid processes
are usually absent. (jf). In the plover-snipe group,
or limicoline Gralle (Charadriomorphe), the maxillo-
palatines are always concavo-convex and lamellar; the
basipterygoid processes narrow and prominent. Except-
ing perhaps group d, which does not hang together so
well, the schizognathous groups here noted correspond
very closely with recognized orders or suborders of birds;
in all of them, the maxillo-palatines are perfectly dis-
tinct from one another and from the vomer, and the
latter is slender and usually pointed. There are plenty
of other birds in which the former factor in the case
obtains ; but in these the vomer is broad and usually
truncate in front (see Zigithognathism, beyond).

Desmognathism (Gr. decpos, desmos, a bond) is
exhibited in one or another style by those swimming
and wading birds which are not schizognathous, by
the birdssof prey, and various non-passerine perching
birds. It does not fadge so well as any other one of
the palatal types of structure with recognized groups of
birds based on other considerations. In the ‘‘bound-
palate” type, the vomer is either abortive, or so small
that it disappears; when existing it iy usually slender
and tapers to a point in front; the maxillo-palatines
are united across the median line, either directly or by
means of ossifications in the nasal septum ; the posterior ,, rg ae ees ae Haren ae
ends of the palatines and the anterior ends of the ptery- nature, by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt,. U. S. A.
goids articulate directly with the rostrum (as in schizo- Letters as before.
gnathism). This type is simply and perfectly exhibited by a duck (fig. 78) in which the
maxillo-palatine is a broad flat plate united with its fellow in mid-line; the oval sessile basi-
pterygoid facets are far forward, opposite the very ends of the pterygoids. In the flamingo,
ibis, spoon-bill, stork, heron, the united maxillo-palatines are tumid and spongy, filling the
base of the beak ; basipterygoids are wanting (rudimentary in the flamingo). In totipalmate
swimmers (pelican, cormorant), desmognathism is carried to an extreme by union of the palate
bones also across the mid-line; the general arrangement is as before. The birds of prey
exhibit several special conditions of desmognathism. The parrots are another case; among

172 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

other cranial characters of these birds is to be noted the articulation of the palate bones with
the upper beak, like that of the zygoma. The multifarious Picarian birds, or non-passerine
Insessores, are desmognathous, excepting the schizognathous trogons (Trogonide) and the
“‘saurognathous” woodpeckers. Parker has established the following categories of desmo-
gnathism: (@) Perfect direct, the maxillo-palatines uniting below at the mid-line ; either with
the nasal septum free from such bony bridge, as ina duck; or anchylosed therewith, as in many
birds of prey. (b) Perfect indirect, very common, as in eagles, vultures, owls; maxillo-
palatines separated from each other by a chink, but an-
chylosed with nasal septum. (c) Imperfectly direct ;
maxillo-palatines sutured together, but not anchylosed.
“Tn young faleons and hawks the palate is at first in-
direct, is then imperfectly ‘direct, and at last perfectly
direct.” (d), Imperfectly indirect ; maxillo-palatines
closely articulated with, and separated by, the ‘‘ median
septo- maxillary ;” but there is no anchylosis. (¢)
Double: the palatines united as well as the maxillo-
palatines ; as in the pelican and cormorant above noted,
in certain Caprimulgine birds, horn-bills, ete. (f) Com-
pound: when the properly egithognathous skull of a
passerine bird becomes also desmognathous.

Mgithognathism (Gr. aiyOadds, aigithalos, some
small bird) is exhibited almost unexceptionally by the
great group of Passerine birds; it is also nearly coinci-
dent with Passeres, though a few other birds, notably
the swifts (Cypselide), also exhibit it. Huxley’s term
Coracomorphe, nearly synonymous with Passeres, relates
to the palatal structure exhibited by a raven (fig. 79), as
typical of that of Passeres at large. The vomer is a
broad bone, truncate in front and deeply cleft behind,
embracing the sphenoidal rostrum in its forks. The
palatines have produced postero-external angles. The
maxillo-palatines are slender at their origin, extending
inwards and backwards over the palatines and under the
vomer, where they end free, being united neither with
each other nor with the vomer. This disconnection of
the maxillo-palatines is quoad hoc “‘ schizognathous,” of
course; but such condition, in association with the pecu-

Fie. 79.— Avgithognathous skull of ,. .,. ‘ ‘
raven, Corvus pe ee size, from na- Jiarities of the vomer, is egithognathous. The nasal

tare, by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, U.S. A. septum in front of the vomer is often ossified in egitho-

Letters as before. N.B. The reference : . .
line, V, goes to the ossified nasal septum gnathism, and the interval between it and the premax-

borne upon the end of the vomer, which jlle filled up with spongy bone; but no union takes
latter bone begins at the thickest part of 2 ° 5

the central projection. Mzp underlies ¥ Place between this ossification and the vomer (Huxley).
and overlies Pl, but touches neither. According to Parker, the distinguishing character of the
zegithognathous type is the union of the vomer with the alinasal wall and turbinals. He dis-
tinguishes four styles: (a) Incomplete; very curiously exhibited by the low Turnix, which
stands near the gallinaceous birds. (b, ¢) Complete, as represented under two varieties, one
typified by the crow, an Oscine Passerine, the other by the Clamatorial Passerines Pachyrham-
phus and Pipra. (d) Compound, i. e., mixed with a kind of desmognathism, as noted above.
““Vomer truncated in front” is the general expression for the condition of that bone in the

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OSTEOLOGY. 173

egithognathous type; it is frequently massive in that direction, and of endlessly varied con-
figuration.

Saurognathism. — (Gr. caipos, sawros, a lizard; fig. 80). According to Huxley the
woodpeckers exhibit a ‘‘ degradation and simplification of the egithognathous structure.” The
peculiarities of the palate of these birds (including Picide, Picwmnide and Iyngide) are so
decided that Parker proposes to call them sawrognathous. The structure is very difficult
to make out, and may be understood best by
study of the accompanying figure, copied from
Parker. The mazxillo-palatines, mxp, are
very slight, not extending inward beyond the
outer margin of the palatines,-and being some-
times quite rudimentary. In front of them,
an additional little palatal plate of the max-
dlary, pmx, is developed. The vomers, v, are
delicate paired rods on each side of the median
line. The postero-external angle of the pala-
tine is either rounded off or obtuse-angled.
Where the broad main part of the palatine
suddenly narrows is developed an interpala-
tine process, ipa. The ethmo-palatine plates,
epa, or internal superior plates of the palatine,
which are of variable length, are connected
by the most marked medio-palatine ossifica-
tion, mpa, seen in the class of birds. Bridges
of bone are deposited along the inner borders
of the palatines; such are the septo-maxil-
laries, sma, and other formations which, like
the medio-palatine, serve to bind the palate
halves together. The nasal chambers are
unusually simple; there are peculiarities of
the tympanic cavity and quadrate bone.

“All these things being considered,”
says Parker, in conclusion, ‘it will seem con-
tradictory now to assert the great uniformity
of the skulls of Birds, and indeed of Birds
themselves. Yet so itis; and the countless
modifications that offer themselves for obser-
vation are gentle in the extreme. One form
is often seen to pass into another by almost
insensible gradations. . . . In the rest of the
Birds’ organization abundant evidence of the
same specialization will be seen.
exquisite adaptations.

Fic. 80.— Sawrognathous skull of nestling Picus
minor, x 4 diameters, after Parker. Px, premaxillary:
dpz, its dentary process; ppx, its palatal process; sn,
septo-nasal; pa, palatine; pmzx, peculiar palatal plate of
maxillary of a woodpecker; nf, nasal turbinal; mz,
maxillary; ipa, interpalatal spur of palatine bone; map,
rudimentary maxillo-palatine, scarcely reaching palatine;
smzx, septo-maxillary, in several pieces; v, right vomer,
its fellow opposite ; pe, lower border of perpendicular plate
of ethmoid, between vomers; epa, ethmoidal (inner)
plate of palatine; mpa, medio-palatine ; pg, pterygoid; i,
foramen for internal carotid; 8, for vagus nerve; 9, for
hypo-glossal nerve.

The mind fails to desire more beauty or to contemplate more
An almost infinite variety of Vertebrate life is to be found in this class.

Of its members some dig and bury their germs, which rise again in full plumage, whilst others
watch and incessantly feed their tender brood in the shady covert or ‘ on the erags of the rock
and the strong place.’ In locomotion some walk, others run, or they may wade, swim, plunge,
or dive, whilst most of them ‘fly in the open firmament of heaven.’” (Hney. Brit. 9th ed.
Art. Birds, p. 717.)

174 : GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

b. NeruroLtoay; Tue Nervous SYSTEM; ORGANS OF SPECIAL SENSES.

The Nervous System of any Vertebrate determines the form of such an animal; in fact,
the beautiful skeleton we have examined is simply a sketch in bone of the cerebro-spinal nervous
system, conformably with which the whole bony framework of the body is erected. A brain
and spinal chord and their lateral prolongations or nerves are the commanding superad-
ditions, in a vertebrate, to any such nervous system as an invertebrate may or does possess.
Besides the vertebrate or main nervous system, all brainy vertebrates retain a sympathetic
system of nerves, supposed to represent a modified inheritance of the whole nervous system of
Invertebrates. Thus the cerebro-spinal and sympathetic are the two distinct nervous systems
of nearly all vertebrates, — of all vertebrates which have askull and brain. The former presides
over the animal life of the creature, — its sensations, perceptions, and voluntary actions; the
latter more’ especially over its vegetative functions, as digestion, respiration, circulation, and.
reproduction, which are more or less involuntary. But the two are inseparably connected,
anatomically and physiologically, so that no distinct line can be drawn between them.
Nerve-tissue consists of an aggregation of nerve-cells and their investing substance, — the
bodies of a myriad Newramebe agglutinated by their secretions. They are of two species:
Neurameba cinerea and N. candida. The former are usually multiradiate, inosculating cells
of nerve-substance, which form the ‘‘ gray matter” of the brain and spinal chord and the
ganglia (knots) of nerves; the latter are white, thready, and form the connections of the
ganglionic masses and the whole substance of ordinary nerve-chords. The gray ame@bas are
the immediate communicants between the mind and the body of the creature; the white
amebas are the mediators between the body and outward things. The gray amcebas translate
thought in terms of matter, and conversely; the white convey the translation. How this is
done, no one knows, but the fact is manifest. In ordinary language, gray nerve centres receive
from white tracts impressions made upon the periphery of the nervous system; and, with or
without the knowledge and consent of the animal, convert these impressions into appropriately
responsive actions. This is called the ‘reflex action” of the nervous system. Some think
such reflection is the principal or only activity of the nerve-tissue, taking animals to be mere
automata, the mechanism of which is only set in motion by external stimulation. Others think
that animals, and even human beings, have in their consciousness an inner spring of action,
vaguely called ‘‘ spiritual,” whose operatious upon the matter of their bodies manifests what is
called by some ‘‘ mind,” by others “soul.” I am satisfied of the correctness, in the main, of
the latter view; but, however this may be, it is quite certain that white nerve tissue is a means
of carrying something ‘to and fro, which something is called a “nerve impulse,” for want of
knowing what it is. White nerves have therefore an efferent function, when they carry im-
pulses outward from gray centres, and an afferent function, when they bring impulses in to gray
centres. The former is their motor function ; the latter is their sensory function. In nerves at
large, impulses of both kinds travel in the same tracts without interference ; such mixed nerves
are therefore called sensort-motor. Thus, each spinal nerve has a posterior sensory ganglion-
ated root, and an anterior motor simple root, which soon blend in one chord, in which both
functions coexist. Some nerves seem to be entirely motor, as those which move muscles of the
face and tongue. The purest sensory nerves are those of ‘ special sense,” as the olfactory,
optic, and auditory. Some nerves are so ‘‘ mixed” as to combine functions of special sense,
common sensation, and motiqn, as that called glosso-pharyngeal, which méves, feels, and
tastes. The motor effluence of nerve tissue upon itself and other parts of the body is literally
animation; the sensory influence is nominally materialization. The physical mechanism of
these occult processes in a bird is as follows : —

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— NEUROLOGY. 175

The Brain (Lat. cerebrum ; Gr. éyxepadov, egkephalon; frontisp.) is the anterior dilatation
and complication of the main nervous axis of the body, contained within the skull. It resembles
x soap-bubble blown at the end of a pipe, being not less beautiful in its iris-quality, and not less
lasting. Tt is primarily triune, or three-fold, beginning as three such bubbles, called the
quterior, middle, and posterior cerebral vesicles, corrésponding to what are afterward the fore-
brain, mid-brain, and hind-brain, or prosencephalon, mesencephalon, and opisthencephulon. The
birth and multiplication of gray neuramabas causes thickenings of the bladdery membraues in
various places and ways; all such gray deposits are the ganglia of the brain, and the great
peripheral ganglion is the cortical layer or “bark of the brain.” Similar deposits of white
neuramebas connect all these ganglionic colonies, furnishing the various commissures of the
brain. The cavity of the original bubbles, continuous with the hollow of the pipe-stem or
spinal chord Qvhich was at the outset a furrow along the back of the embryo, not a tube)
becomes partially divided wp into several communicating hollows; these are the ventricles
(little bellies) of the brain. Actual prolongations of brain-tissue, or nervous threads more like
the ordinary spinal uerves, pass out of the brain-box; these are cerebral nerves, oftener called
cranial nerves ; there ave twelve pairs of them. At the pituitary space-(see p. 151; the noto-
chord ends just behind it; fig. 64) is developed a remarkable structure, the pitudtary body : its
nature is unknown. This lies under the brain; opposite it, on top of the brain, is another
curiosity, the pineal body ; it has been considered the special seat of the soul by some, though
others have Joeated that throne of animal grace in the solar plexus of the sympathetic system,
which is in the belly. The pituitary and pineal are also called respectively the hypapophysis and
cpapophysis cerebri. They lie respectively at the bottom and top of one of the cavities of the
brain, arbitrarily called the third ventricle; the anterior wall of this ventricle is the lamina
terminalis, or terminal sheet of the brain, with which, morphologically speaking, the brain ends
in frout; though, in its actual growth, the prosencephalon crowds ahead of this formation. As
the brain-cells multiply, the prosencephalon outgrows the associated parts, and becomes nearly
separated into lateral halves; these are the hemispheres of the cerebrum, or ‘halves of the
great brain”; they retain their ventricles, which intereommunicate through a passage-way,
which alse leads into the third ventricle; this is the foramen of Munro. Each sends out in
front a hollow process; these processes are the olfactory lobes, or rhinencephalon (‘‘ nose-
brain”). A great ganglionie thickening of gray matter in the interior of each hemisphere is
the corpus striatum; these ‘‘ striped bodies” are connected by the anterior commissure of the
brain. The rest and greater part of the original anterior cerebral vesicle makes up by
ganglionic thickening of its sides into what are called misleadingly the optie thalami, since
these tracts have nothing to do with the sense of sight. The thalami and associate parts
behind the lamina terminalis (third ventricle, ete.) compose what is called the thalamen-
cephalon, or ‘* bed-brain.” The original middle cerebral vesicle makes up underneath into
longitudinal commissural fibres, called the erwra cerebri or *‘ legs of the brain,” connecting fore
and aft parts; but especially composes the ganglionic centres called corpora bigemina, or
“twin bodies.” These are the optic lobes, or ‘‘ eye-brain.” They are connected by transverse
commissure. The optic ganglia and commissure, the cerebral crura, and contained cavities,
essentially compose the mesencephulon or ** mid-brain.” The original posterior cerebral
vesicle (opisthencephalon) becomes separated into two parts: The fore part of it is moulded
into the considerable mass of the cerebelliam (‘ little brain”); which, with its connections of
white substance (pons varolii, peduncles, ete.) aud the hollow underneath it (“fourth ventricle”)
constitutes the metencephalon or ** atter-brain.” The hind part of it tapers off into the spinal
chord; this tapering part is the medulla oblongata, or ‘ oblong. marrow,” also ealled the
myelencephalon, or ‘“‘marrow-brain.” This description is pertinent to brains at large, repre-
senting the general plan of structure; any fairly developed encephalon shows the parts speci-
tied ; and most complicated brain, as that of man. only shows what elaborate finishing touches

176 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

may be given to the simple structure thus outlined, when cells, both white and gray, but
especially the latter, are profusely furnished, to the ornamentation of the mind’s estate with
race-tracks great and small, and the place of fornication, — fruits of the olive, and ofthe arbor
vite. The membranes, or meninges, which hide all this from the uninitiated, are three. The
pia mater, or ‘‘ tender mother,” which immediately invests the brain, is very vascular, and
furnishes the blood supply; not only by small arteries which immediately penetrate the sub-
stance of the brain, but by enfolded sheets which enter the ventricles, and are called choroid
plexus. The arachnoid, or “cobweb,” comes next; a serous fluid which it secretes bathes the
brain, and meets concussion with its gentler fluctuation. The dwra mater, or ‘stern mother,”
is a dense outer membrane which enwraps and holds the whole firmly. These meninges
descend into the spinal column, and answer the same purpose there, maintaining the same dis-
position around the spinal chord.

The Bird’s Brain offers the following comparative characters: It is compact, having
nothing of the straggling apart of its elements seen in low vertebrates, and completely fills the
cranial cavity. Its long axis is about transverse to the axis of the spinal column. The cerebral
hemispheres are well developed, but do not cover the cerebellum or optic lobes; from their
dome the rhinencephalon protrudes like a porte-cochére. Their surface is quite smooth (devoid
of the gyri and sulci of most mammalian brains) ; even the sylvian fissure is barely indicated.
The optic lobes are of immense size, relatively to those of most vertebrates, and relatively to
the rest of the encephalon ; they appear much loosened from their surroundings, at the sides and
lower part of the mid-brain; they retain their ventricles, as does also the rhinencephalon. The
corpora striata are very large. The fornix is rudimentary. The cerebellum is well developed
and deeply sulcate, with transverse fissures, but is not divided into right and left lobes; a
“« fleecy ” lobule on each side, the flocewlus, is well defined, and received in a special recess of
the inner wall of the skull. Parts of the medulla oblongata notable in mammals are obscure or
obsolete. There is no pons varolit, or superficial transverse commissure of the cerebellum, nor
any corpus callosum, — that great white commissure of the cerebral hemispheres, characteristic
of all but the lowest mammals.

The Spinal Chord, or medulla spinalis (‘‘ spinal marrow ”) is the main nerve-axis of the
body, running in the series of neural arches of the vertebree from head to tail ; it directly con-
tinues the medulla oblongata. It retains its primitively tubular character in part at least, and
consists as usual of white matter enclosing gray matter. The chord is fissured into lateral
columns, as these are also to some extent into anterior and posterior tracts. The latter diverge
in ascending the medulla oblongata, to throw the central tube into the cavity of the fourth
ventricle ; and especially in the sacral region, where a sort of ventricle, known as the avian
sinus rhomboidalis, is similarly formed. The calibre of the chord increases at the root of the
neck, where large nerves are to be given off from the brachial plexus to the wings, and again in
the sacral region, with the same reference to nerve supply of the legs; after which the chord
continues to the end of the spinal canal as a terminal thread.

The Cranial Nerves are twelve pairs, as in mammals, the highest vertebrate number.
1, the olfactory nerve of special sense (smell) ; origin from rhinencephalon ; exit from cranial
cavity by olfactory foramen, high up in orbital cavity ; conducted along a groove to final escape
between perpendicular and lateral plates of ethmoid into the nasal chambers ; distributed to the
investing mucous membrane of the septal and turbinal bones of the nose. The exit is through
a sieve-like or eribriform plate only in Apteryax and Dinornis (Owen). 2, the optic, nerve of
special sense (sight); origin from optic lobe and thalamus; of great size, and forming a
chiasm (decussation) with its fellow; exit by optic foramen, a large hole in back of orbital

THE ANATOMY OF LIRDS.— NEUROLOGY. 177

cavity between centres of orbito-sphenoid and alisphenoid, close to or in common with its
fellow. This nerve forms the retina of the eye. 3, 4, 6, the oculi-motor, pathetic, abducent,
collectively the motor nerves of the eye, supplying the muscles moving the eye-ball; 3, to all
these muscles excepting superior oblique and external rectus; origin from crura cerebri, base of
mesencephalon ; 4, to the superior oblique, origin behind optic lobes, upper surface of meten-
cephalon ; 6, to external rectus (also to muscles of the third eyelid in birds); origin between
met- and myel-encephalon, base of brain; 3, 4, 6, exits from cranial into orbital cavity by
several small, not constant, foramina near optic foramen ;, or by this foramen sometimes all the
nerves which enter the orbit pass out of brain cavity through one great hole. 5, great trifacial
or trigeminal, sensori-motor ; feeling skin of head, moving muscles of jaws; origin (double)
from myelencephalon ; leaves brain from sides of metencephalon ; sensory root has gasserian
ganglion; motor root simple. This nerve has three divisions, whence its name: 5a, ophthalmic
division, the most distinct ; exit from cranial into orbital cavity by separate foramen above
and to outer side of optic foramen ; grooves orbital wall in passing ; ciliary ganglion ; distri-
bution mainly to lacrymal and nasal parts ; traceable to end of upper mandible ; 5b, superior
mawillary ; exit by foramen ovale, in alisphenoid or between that and proétic centre ; distribu-
tion to side of upper jaw; meckelian ganglion; 5c, inferior maxillary, derived chiefly from
motor root; exit same as 5); distribution to lower jaw (muscles, substance of bone, integu-
ment); no special sense (gustatory) function; no otie ganglion. 7, facial or portio dura,
motor ; origin from myelencephalon ; enters periotic bone, escapes from ear behind quadrate
bone, by what corresponds to stylo-mastoid foramen of mammals; communicates with 5¢ by
chorda tympani nerve, with 9, 10, 12, and sympathetic system; distribution to skin-muscles
and others of lower jaw and tongue, etc. 8, auditory or portio mollis, nerve of special sense
(hearing) ; origin with 7; no exit from skull; enters meatus auditorius internus of periotic
bone; forms auditory apparatus in labyrinth of ear. 9, glosso-pharyngeal, mixed nerve, sensori-
motor and gustatory (taste) ; origin myelencephalon ; exit by foramen in exoccipital bone,
behind basitemporal, near lower border of tympanic recess ; distribution to muscles and mem-
branes of gullet, throat, tongue, ete. 10, pnewmogastric, sensori-motor ; origin and exit next
to 9; distribution to windpipe, lungs, gullet, stomach, heart, ete. ; has recurrent syringeal to
vocal organs. 11, spinal accessory, sensori-motor ; origin upper part of spinal chord ; exit with
9,10; distribution to these nerves and to muscles of neck. 9, 10, 11, are intimately connected
with one another, and with other nerves, especially 10 with sympathetic. The several fora-
mina in a bird’s skull which may be seen in the place indicated at 8, figs. 69, 70, are for the
divisions of this composite vagus or ‘“‘ wandering” nerve of respiration, circulation, digestion,
ete.; they represent morphologically a foramen lacerum posterius, between exoccipital and
opisthotic centres. 12, hypoglossal, motor nerve of the tongue ; origin from myelencephalon ;
exit by anterior condyloid foramen in front of the occipital condyle. Thus the plan of the
cranial nerves of birds is nearly coincident with that of mammals.

The Spinal Nerves, in pairs, correspond in a general way to the vertebree, between
which they pass out by intervertebral foramina, to supply the body at large. They are sensori-
motor; arise from the spinal chord by anterior motor and posterior sensory (ganglionated) roots
which unite before leaving the spinal canal; in the sacral region the main branches leave by
separate foramina. They form plexuses or interlacements. The principal of these is the
brachial plexus; constituted by several lower cervical nerves, and one or two usually counted
as dorsal, which combine to form a single chord, whence the nerves of the wing are derived.
Similar network of three to five true sacral nerves furnishes the nerves of the leg.

The Sympathetic System consists of a pair of nervous chords running lengthwise below
the bodies of the vertebree, one on each side in the trunk, and in corresponding relations with
12

178 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

- eranial bones. An extensive and intricate series of coMmunications is effected with the nerves
of the cerebro-spinal system, excepting the special-sense nerves of smell, sight, and hearing.
The points of communication form a chain of sympathetic ganglia; from these knots, the most
conspicuous features of the system, nervous chords pass to their distribution in the motory
mechanism of the heart and blood-vessels and other viscera. The anterior sympathetic nerves
are the iridian ; the ganglia are the spheno-palatine or meckelian, intimately connected with
cranial nerves. The system ends behind in the caudal region of the spine by a ganglion
ampar.

Sense of Smell: Olfaction. — The sense of smell is effected by terminal branches of the
olfactory (1st cranial) nerve, ramifying in the mucous (pituitary or schneiderian) membrane
of the nasal cavities. Owing to the comparatively small size and little complexity of the fold-
ings and pleatings of bone or cartilage in the nasal chambers, the sensory surface being cor-
respondingly limited, it is not probable that birds possess this sense in a high degree. Besides
the cartilaginous or osseous septum, generally more or less complete in birds, there are lateral
scrolls and whorls of bone in endless diversity in most birds, which may be ossified, or remain
gtistly. The general cavity is mostly bounded and enclosed by the bony beak ; floored by the
anterior part of the hard palate; defended on each side by the descending prong of the nasal
bone ; in the dry skull, it either seems continuous with the great orbital cavity on each side
behind, or is separated therefrom by lateral ethmoid (pre-frontal) or lacrymal gssifications, or
both. Outwardly the nasal chambers open upon the beak by the external nostrils — orifices of
great zoélogical diversity, as already indicated (p. 104), bounded by prongs of the premaxillary
and nasal bones. These openings are minute or quite obliterated in some Steganopodes, as
pelicans and cormorants. The uasal cavities always communicate with the back part of the
mouth, or the posterior nares (Lat. naris, a nostril) ; generally paired, that is, with a partition
between them, sometimes united in one median aperture. The olfactory nerve, which is rather
a prolongation of the rhinencephalon itself than an ordinary nerve, escaping from the brain-
box by a special foramen, traversing the upper part of the interorbital septum in a groove or
canal, enters the nasal cavity by a single orifice (excepting Apteryx and Dimornis), instead
of the numerous apertures in a cribriform plate by which its filaments reach their destination in
mammals. The true sensitive membrane in which the nervous filaments end is that investing
ethmoidal (septal and turbinal), not maxillary parts. An associate structure of the olfactory
organ is the nasal gland, sometimes called the superorbital gland, froin its position in many
birds. Thus it is of great size in a loon, and lodged in large deep crescentic depressions on
top of the skull over the orbits, (fig. 63, w) ; these crescents nearly meeting each other in the
middle line. In other birds it is smaller, and within the cavity of the orbit, but never in that
of the nose itself, its secretion being poured into the nasal chamber by a special duct.

Sense of Sight: Vision. — The eye is an exquisitely perfect optical instrument, like an
automatic camera obscura which adjusts its own focus, photographs a picture upon its sensi-
tized retinal plate, and telegraphs the molecular movements of the nervous sheet to the optic
“twins” of the brain, where the result is ‘ biogenized;” that is, translated from the physical
terms of motion in matter to the mental terms of consciousness. But no part of the nervous
tract, from the surface of the retina to the optic centre, sees or knows anything about it, being
simply the apparatus through which the Bird looks, sees, and knows. In this elass of Verte-
brates, the optic organs, both cerebral and ocular, are of great size, power, and effect; their
vision far transcends that of man, unaided by artificial instruments, in scope and delicacy. The
faculty of accommodation, that is, of adjusting the focus of vision, is developed to a marvellous
degree; rapid, almost instantaneous, changes of the visual angle being required for distinct per-
ception of objects that must rush into the focal field with the velocity at least of the bird’s flight.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— NEUROLOGY. 179

Birds are therefore far-sighted or near-sighted (presbyopic or myupic: according to the degree
of tension the nerve-tide excites in the eye by the mechanisin described further on; and the
transition from one to the other state is effected with great quickness and correctness. Ob-
serve an eagle soaring aloft until he seems to us but a speck in the blue expanse. He is far-
sighted; and scanning the earth below. descries an object much smaller than himself, which
would be invisible to us at that distanee. He prepares to pounce upon his quarry; in the mo-
ment required for the deadly plunge he becomes near-sighted, seizes his victim with unerring
aim, and sees well how to complete the bloody work begun. A humming-bird darts so quickly
that our eyes cannot follow him, yet instantaneously settles as light as a feather upon a tiny
twig. How far off it was when first perceived we do not know; but in the intervening fraction
of a second the twig has rushed into the focus of distinet vision. from many yards away. A
woodeock tears through the thickest cover as if it were clear space. avoiding every obstacle.
The only things te the accurate perception of which birds’ eyes appear not to have accommodated
themselves are telegraph-wires and light-houses: thousands of birds are annually hurled against
these objects to their destruction.

The orbital cavity, orbit, or socket uf the eye, has been almost suthciently described (p. 150:
see also any figs. of skull in profile) as that great recess in the side of the skull bounded above
by the roofing frontal bone, behind by this and sphenoidal elements, in front, if at all, by lateral
ethmoidal elements (pre-frontal), and separated from its fellow more or less completely by the
inter-orbital septum, which is chiefly the perpendicular plate of the mesethmoid, but may be alsu
in part orbito-sphenoidal and pre-sphenoidal. The brim is completed in few birds, by union of
lacrymal and post-frontal; in quite a number of birds. however, it is nearly perfected by the
approximation of these same bones, as in fig. 63, u and m. and in some the rim is carried vut
by extra supra-orbital and infra-orbital ossification. There isno bony floor. or only sueh slight
scaffolding as the expansion of the palatine and pterygoid may afford. The zygema itself, in
mauy dry skulls, seems like the threshold of the orbital chamber. The bony walls may be also
defective in some places by great vacuities in the inter-orbital septum (fig. 70. tof, and fig. 63, 2),
and others in the cerebral wall. aside from the regular foramina which the nerves pass through.
The Ist—6th nerves (p. 176) inclusive usually enter the orbit: of their foramina, the optic
(figs. 66, 6S. 70. 71,2, and fig. 63, y) is much the largest and most constant. generally blended
with its fellow. Those for nerves ] and 5 (p. 177) are next most obvious and constant ; others
are often, and all may be, thrown into one large opening. In such a socket as this the eye-ball
rests upon a cushion of muscle, fat, gland. aud connective tissue: and large as is the chamber,
the ball fits and nearly fills it. A bird's eye-ball is much larger than the opening of the
eve-lids (see p. 30, note). ;

As to its development: ‘the Hye~ says Huxley ‘is formed by the coalescence of two sets
of structures, one furnished by an involution of the integument, the other by an outgrowth of the
brain. The opening of the tegumentary depression. which is primarily [in the very early em-
bryo] formed on each side of the head in the ocular region becomes closed, and a shut sae is
the result. The outer wall of this sac becomes the transparent cornea of the ere: the epider-
mis of its floor thickens. and is metamorphosed into the erystalline lens; the cavity fills with
the agueous humor. A vascular and muscular ingrowth taking place round the circumference
of the sac, and dividing its cavity into two segments, gives rise to the iris. The integument
around the cornea, growing out into a fold above and below, results in the formation of the
eyelids, and the segregation of the integument which they enclose, as the soft and vascular con-
gunetiva. The pouch of the conjunctiva very generally communicates. by the lacrymal duct,
with the cavity of the nose. It may be raised. on its inner side. into a broad fold. the nictitating
membrane, moved by a proper muscle or muscles. Special elands—the lacrymal externally,
and the harderian on the inner side of the eve-ball— may be developed in connection with, and
pour their secretion on to, the conjunctival mucous membrane. The posterior chamber of the

180 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

eye has a totally distinct origin. Very early that part of the anterior cerebral vesicle which
eventually becomes the vesicle of the third ventricle, throws out a diverticulum, broad at its
outer, narrow at its inner end, which applies itself to the base of the tegumentary sac. The
posterior, or outer, wall of the diverticulum then becomes, as it were, thrust in, and forced
towards the opposite wall by an ingrowth of the adjacent connective tissue; so that the primi-
tive cavity of the diverticulum, which, of course, communicates freely with that of the anterior
cerebral vesicle, is obliterated. The broad end of the diverticulum acquiring a spheroidal shape,
while its pedicle narrows and elongates, the latter becomes the optic nerve, while the former,
surrounding itself with a strong fibrous sclerotic coat, remains as the posterior chamber of the
eye. The double envelope, resulting from the folding of the wall of the cerebral optic vesicle
upon itself, gives rise to the retina and the choroid coat, the plug or ingrowth of connective
tissue gelatinizes and passes into the vitreous humor, the cleft by which it entered becoming
obliterated.” (Anat. Vert., 1571, p. 79.)

Birds alone, of all animate beings, may be rally said to “‘fall asleep” in death. When
the “silver cord ” of a bird’s life is loosed, the ‘‘ windows of the soul” are gently closed by
unseen hands, that the mysterious rites of
divoree of spirit from matter may not be pro-
faned. When man or any mammal expires,
the eyes remain wide open and their stony
stare is the sign of dissolution. Only birds
close their eyes in dying. At the same mo-
ment, the eye sinks and seems to collapse, by
the ebbing of its waters. The closure is
chiefly effected by the uprising of the lower
lid. These are the principal external differ-
ences between the eyes of birds and mammals.
The movements of the upper lid in most birds
are much more restricted than those of the
lower. The few exceptions are chiefly fur-
nished by night birds, as owls, whippoorwills,
and others of their respective tribes. The lids
consist externally of common skin, internally

Fic. 81. — Right eye-ball, seen from behind, show- of a layer of conjunctival (joining) mucous
ing the muscles: a, rectus superior ; 6, rectus externus; membrane, with interposed connective tissue:
ces Hafan: a eras ntarnus: SMES he lower is also stiflaned with a smooth plate,
ratus; kh. pyramidalis, with its tendon, ’, passing the tarsal cartilage. The upper is raised bya
dotted line) to keep it off he optie nerve then passing Stall muscle, called from its office levator pal-
around the edge of the ball to its insertion in the nicti- pebre superioris, arising from the bony orbit.
Penge emprene: There is no special lowering nor lifting muscle
of the under lid; the lids close together by the action of the orbicularis oculi, which nearly
surrounds the eye, and whose chief office is to lift the lower lid; the latter has a small dis-
tinct depressor muscle. Birds have no true hairs, but in some kinds modified filiform feathers
answer to eye-lashes. When wide open the orifice of the lids is cireular, that is, without the
inner and outer corners (cantht) of almond-eved creatures like man. There is a third inner
eyelid, highly developed and of beautiful mechanism: this is the nictitating membrane, or
“winker” (nictito, I wink), a delicate, elastic, translucent, pearly-white fold of the econ-
junctiva. While the other lids move vertically and have a horizontal commissure, the winker
sweeps horizontally or obliquely across the ball, from the side next the beak to the oppo-
site. If we menace a bird’s eye with the finger, it is curious to see the winker rush out of
the corner to protect the ball. Owls habitually sit in the daytime with this curtain shading

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — NEUROLOGY. 181

the eyes from the glare of light; and doubtless the eagle throws the same screen over its sight
when soaring towards the sun. When not in action, the winker lies curled up in the corner of
the eye, like those patent window shades which stay up of themselves till pulled down. The
ingenious mechanism of the movement of the winker across the lid may be understood with the
help of fig. 81, which represents the back of the eye-ball. The winker lies in front, on the left
hand of the picture, and is to be pulled across the front by the slender tendon, &, of the pyrami-
dalis muscle, h. As h contracts it pulls on k, and k, winding round to the front, pulls the
winker to the right hand. But 7 is the optic nerve, entering the ball; &% would press upon
it, were it not fended off by passing, as seen by the dotted line, through a pulley in the end
of the guadratus muscle, g. The harder h pulls, the harder does g also pull, their consentane-
ous action at once giving the proper direction to the tendon &, and keeping it off the nerve.

Beneath the eye-lids, upon the ball, is a delicate filmy membrane not easily recognized on
ordinary inspection: this is the conjunctiva; so called because it joins the eye to the lids. The
ocular layer is transparent where it passes over the cornea: it is then reflected away from the
ball, to form the palpebral layer, —a folding between being the nictitating membrane. The
conjunctiva is highly vascular, but the blood-vessels are too small to be scen unless they be-
come congested, when the eye presents the well-known appearance called blood-shot. Thongh
birds can hardly be said to ery, they have a well-developed apparatus for the manufacture of
tears. The lacrymal are two small glands lying one in each corner of the eye, inner and
outer. The former, called the harderian gland, is the smaller, deeply seated behind the
winker, upon which it pours a glary fluid : it is an oil-can which not only supplies but
applies the fluid to the winker, which needs constant lubricating to work well. The lac-
rymal gland proper is the outer one, which prepares the tears to moisten and cleanse the
conjunctiva; after which they are drained off by the lacrymal duct into the cavity of the
nose, which thus becomes a sort of cesspool to receive the refuse waters of the eye. A third
gland about the orbit has been already mentioned (p. 178) as pertaining to the nose, not to the
eye. Its site is shown in the crescentic super-orbital depression, fig. 63, w.

The motions of the eye-ball, though more restricted than in mammals, owing to the shape
of the ball and its close socketing, are nevertheless subserved by the usual number of siz mus-
cles. Of these four are called the recti, or straight muscles, and two the obligui, or oblique
muscles; though they are all ‘‘straight” enough, the terms applying to their lines of traetion.
The four recti arise from the bony orbit, near together, about the optic foramen, and pass to

- be inserted in the eye-ball at as many nearly equidistant points on its circumference ; the
musculus rectus superior, fig. 81, a, on top; m. 7. inferior, c, below, antagonizing a; the m. r.
externus, b, and internus, d, respectively to the outer and inner (hindward and forward) sides,
also antagonizing each other. The two oblique muscles arise further forward in the bony or-
bit, near each other, and then diverge obliquely upward, m. 0. superior, e, and downward, m.
o. inferior, f, to be inserted near the margin of the globe of the eye, close by the respective in-
sertions of superior and inferior rectus. All the motions of the ball result from consentaneous
or dissentaneous action along these six lines of traction; the muscles acting as ropes to pull
the ,ball about, and to steady it in any direction of its axis. The peculiarity of mechanism in a
bird is, that the superior oblique goes straight to its insertion, instead of passing through a
pulley which changes its line of action in mammals. The special nerves presiding over
these muscles (3, 4, 6) have been pointed out already (p. 177). In the figure, the cut orbital
ends of them all are reflected away from the ball to disclose the underlying muscles of the
wiuker: the reader must mentally bring the six loose ends together and fasten them to the
bony orbit at points near about opposite 4, as above said of their origins.

The above are the principal circumstances and accessories of the optic apparatus ; we may
now examine the eye itself, of which fig. 82 gives an enlarged view, in longitudinal vertical
section, — the nerve, marsupium, and ciliary processes not indeed lying as shown in this section,

182 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

but so introduced as to show them up intelligibly. A bird’s eye-ball is not nearly so spherical
or globular as a mammal’s. The globe of the human eye is about a five-sixths segment of a
large sphere (sclerotic) with a one-sixth segment of a smaller sphere protruding in front (cor-
neal). The anterior part of the sclerotic of a bird is so prolonged as to be in some cases almost
tubular or cylindric, and the corneal protuberance is very convex: the result may be likened
to an acorn which has a short blunt kernel in a heavy shallow cup, or to a thick old-
fashioned watch with a very convex crystal. This characteristic shape is fairly shown in
the figure; but some birds’ eyes are much imore tubular in front, — owls’ for example. The
eye-ball being hollow and filled with fluids which press in all directions, it is hard to see at first
how such a peculiar shape is maintained. But the sclerotic coat is very dense, almost gristly
in some cases; and it is reinforced by a circlet of bones, the sclerotals, h, h; see also fig. 62,
where the circlet is shown. These are packed alongside each other all around the cireumfer-
ence of one part of the sclerotic, like a set of splints. The large discoidal segment of a bird’s
eye is mostly composed of the mem-
brane called from its hardness the
sclerotic, — thick, tough, and strong,
of a glistening livid color. Three
sclerotic coats or layers may be de-
monstrated by careful dissection; in
the figure 0 is the outer, ¢ the com-
‘bined middle and inner ones, — much
exaggerated as to their distinctness.
The bony plates lie between the
outer and middle coats anterior to the
greatest girth of the eye-ball, extend-
ing from the rim of the disc nearly
or quite to the edge of the cornea.
They are a dozen to twenty in num-
ber, of oblong squarish shape, taper-
ing toward the cornea, around which
they are thus circularly disposed;

Fie. 82. — Vertical antero-posterior section of eye-ball : a, optic
nerve; 0, sclerotic, its outer coat; c, sclerotic, its middle and inner they are pretty closely bound to-

cats; dpohoola;e byaloi fmareupiom: gcnrnea 1. 1.EOOY gether, but the cirelet as @ whole,
ing ciliary processes; 4, k, canal of Petit; 2, 1, iris; m, anterior enjoys some little motion back and
ghamer of eye; cpio of he en; oink 7 portion RA. forward with the varying) converity
opticnerve, isshown. The nerve, marsupium, and ciliary processes, of the cornea, g. This last is the
not falling in this section, can only be arbitrarily shown. thin transparent membrane complet-
ing the eye-ball in front, like the crystal over the face of « watch. It is very protuberant
in birds, —even a hemisphere, or almost tubular. Its structure is not peculiar in birds; but
it is remarkable in this class of creatures not only for its convexity, but for the wide range of
the variability in convexity which increased or diminished pressure of the contained humors
may effect, and its collapse in death.

The sclerotic coat is lined with the choroid membrane, d, loosely woven of cellular tissue,
replete with blood-vessels, and painted pitch-black with a heavy deposit of pigment-cells. It
lines the whole globe as far forward as the edge of the sclerotal bones, where it splits in two
layers. The inner choroid layer turns away from the wall of the eye, toward the interior, and
in so reflecting becomes plaited, as a bag is puckered by pulling the strings. These pleats
converge upon the rim of the delicate capsule enclosing the lens of the eye, », and there
adhere, forming the ciliary processes, 1,7. The outer layer also starts away from the cir-
cumference of the sclerotic wall, as if to pass directly across the cavity, but ends in the. iis.

———<—— |]

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — NEUROLOGY. 183

‘

Around the cireumference of the iris, where sclerotic, corneal, and choroid coats come together, is
acireular band of fibres, the ciliary ligament; and on the outer surface of the choroid isa similar
band of circular and radiating contractile fibres, the ciliary muscle. These ciliary structures are
supposed to be the agents of the accommodating faculty of the eye, acting upon the lens to alter
its shape or its position, or both. It is a difficult, matter to settle, when such delicate structures
are in question.

The iris, 1, 1, or rainbow of the eye, is an exquisite structure hanging like a many-colored
curtain vertically between the two compartments of the eye; a highly ornamental framework
of the eye’s window, being both sash and blind to the pupil. It is suspended vertically in the
aqueous humor, just in front of the lens. Viewed in front, from the outside, the iris appears as
acolored cireular band around the pupil, and seems to come to the surface of the eye. But
this is not so, for the conjunctiva, the cornea, and the aqueous humor of the front chamber of
the eye, are between us and it. It may be likened to the dial-plate of a watch, which we look
at without noticing the interposed crystal. Similarly, the pupil of the eye, which shows us our
own reflection, diminished to the size of the ‘‘ eye-baby,” may be likened to the round central
hole in the‘dial-plate through which protrudes the shaft that bears the hands of a watch. The
‘ pupil” is the round black spot within the colored rim of the iris; but it is not a thing — it is
a hole in a thing — the hole in the iris through which we may look and see the black choroid
coat behind. The quivering iris is very similar in texture to the choroid, being a delicate tissue
of interlacing fibres and vessels; but it is highly mobilized by circular and radiating sets of
contractile fibres, by which the curtain is tightened and loosened, with corresponding change
in the size of the central orifice—the pupil. Although the iridian movements are largely
automatic, depending upon the stimulus of light, they are to some extent; voluntary, as any one
may satisfy himself who observes owls in confinement. During these expansions and con-
tractions of the iris, the pupil in birds preserves its circularity ; and even when the movement
is freest and most voluntary, as in owls, the contracted pupil never appears as a vertical oval
figure, or a slit, like that of eats. The round pupil of the great horned owl ranges from the
diameter of a finger ring down to that of a small split-pea. The iridian colors are often
striking in birds. Though black and brown are the commonest, yellow is quite frequent,
red is often seen, blue and green are rarer; the eyes of cormorants are of the latter color. The
iris is sometimes pure white, as it is in our common “‘ white-eyed” greenlet, Vireo noveboracensis.
In the Californian woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus, the eyes are indifferently (or at differ-
ent ages of the bird, or seasons) brown, bluish, pink, rosy, or yellow.

. The crystalline lens, 0, is a transparent biconvex disc, like a common magnifying glass,
apparently set in the iris like a mirror in its frame, but really hanging a little back of that
structure. It is enclosed in a capsular membrane, n, of extreme delicacy and transparency,
which is in turn set between two layers of the hyaloid membrane to be presently noticed.
Where these layers of hyaloid separate around the rim of the capsule to form the investment, a
small space is left between them; this circular tube around the lens is the canal of Petit, k, k.
The lens is stationed in the axis of vision; some suppose it to be equally stationary in any
transverse axis. It is, however, difficult to understand how an object thus suspended in
fluctuating humors should be insusceptible of some motion. backward or forward, as well as
of alteration in its degree of convexity; both of which may be factors in the focusing process.
From what has preceded, it is evident that the cavity of the eye is divided into anterior and
posterior compartments, or chambers, by.the reflection, from the sclerotic wall, of the choroid,
hyaloid and iridian structures, which with the lens form a vertical partition. Each chamber
is filled with a fluid of different density and consistence. That in the anterior or corneal
chamber is thin and watery, and therefore called the aqueous humor; that in the sclerotic
cavity is more dense and glassy, and for this reason known as the vitreous humor. There is
much less aqueous than vitreous; but birds have comparatively more of the former than usual,

184 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

owing to the relatively greater size and convexity of the cornea. The waters are enclosed in
exceedingly delicate membranes; the vitreous in the hyaloid membrane, e, which, besides
lining the posterior chamber and enclosing the lens as already said, sends thin partitions all
through the vitreous humor to steady these glassy waters.

The optic nerve, a, of birds is peculiar. In mammals, as a rule, the nerve is a smooth
cylinder, proceeding straight to the sclerotic, penetrating the coats of the eye-ball directly, near
the middle point behind, and then spreading out on the inside of the ball as a large circular
concave mirror. This thin, saucer-like expansion of nerve-tissue is the retina. In birds the
optic nerve is a fluted column, which approaches the eye-ball quite obliquely, strikes it ata
point eccentric from the axis of the eye, and does not at once pierce the sclerotic. Tapering to
a fine point, and running still obliquely, downward and forward, in a deep groove in the
sclerotic that would be a tube were it not split, and through a similar slit in the choroid, a
fluting of the nerve rises to attain the cavity of the eye, and the retina spreads out from the
sides and end of this fold. But the prime peculiarity of a bird’s eye is the ‘‘ purse” or ‘‘ comb,”
marsupium, pecten, f; a very vascular structure, like the choroid, and likewise painted black ;
apparently “‘ erectile,” that is, capable of increasing and diminishing in size by influx, and efflux
of blood. It is attached behind to the nervous structure ; is suspended in the vitreous humor,
and runs forward obliquely a part or the whole of the way to the lens, to the envelope of which
it may be attached in some cases. Its office is not fully determined. Its great resemblance to
the choroid proper suggests a similar function in the absorption of light. If it be turgid and
flaccid by turns it must oceupy a variable space in the vitreous humor, and in the former state
press the waters upon the most yielding part of their walls, —that where the lens is situated,
even to the extent of altering the position of the latter; and if so, of changing the focus of the
eye. It is difficult to account for the bird’s eyes’ powers of accommodation by the action of
the ciliary muscle in only changing the shape of the lens, thus throwing out of account as
impossible any change in the position of that refracting medium, or of the density of the
refracting humors, or of the convexity of the cornea. The peculiar course of the optic nerve
may be simply an anatomical convenience, or may have something to do with a bird’s ability to
see straight ahead though its eyes be laterally positioned. (See Am. Nat., ii, 1868, p.578; Pr.
Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., xii, Apr. 21, 1869.)

Sense of Hearing: Audition. — This is enjoyed to a high degree by the ‘‘ musical class”
of the Vertebrata, — birds being the only animals besides man whose emotions are habitually
aroused, stimulated, and to some extent controlled by the appreciation of harmonic vibrations of
the atmosphere. Most birds express their sexual passions in song, sometimes of the most
ravishing quality to our ears, as that of the nightingale or the bluebird, and it cannot be sup-
posed that they themselves do not experience the effect. of music in an eminent degree of
pleasurable perturbations. Otherwise, they would cease to sing. The capability of musical
expression resides chiefly in the more spiritualized male sex; the receptive capacity of musical
affections is better developed in the female, who chiefly furnishes the plastic material which is
to be moulded into the physical manifestation of the male principle. Quickness of ear is.
extraordinary in such birds as those of the genus Mimus, which correctly render any notes they
may chance to hear, with greater readiness and accuracy than is usually within human
possibility. It may be reasonably doubted that any others than some of the world’s greatest
musical composers have a higher experience in acoustic possibilities than many birds. Birds’
ears have nevertheless a comparatively simple anatomical structure, on the whole much more
like that of reptiles than of mammals. Such simplicity is seen in the ligulate or strap-shaped
cochlea, the essential organ of hearing, figs. 84, 85, 86, 87, as compared with the helicoid curva-
tion of the mammalian cochlea. The openness of the ear-parts which lie outside the tympanum
is seen in fig. 62, at.the place where the reference-lines ‘ear-cells” reach the skull; and

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — NEUROLOGY. 185

especially in fig. 71, where the stapes, st, is seen lying in the ear-cavity, the tympanum having
been removed.

There is ordinarily no external ear, in the sense of a fleshy conch or auricle, though owls
at least have a considerable flap which overlies the auditory aperture. The place of an auricle
is filled by a set of peculiarly modified feathers surrounding and overlying the opening, called
in ornithology the ear-coverts, or auriculars (p. 97; fig. 25, 36). The outer ear or meatus
auditorius externus is a considerable shallow roundish depression in the skull, at the extreme
lower lateral corner. Its ordinary boundaries are the movably articulated quadrate bone in
front, the expanded rim of the squamosal ‘above, the tympanic wing of the exoccipital behind
and below; the termination of the basitemporal also usually contributing to the under boundary.
(See fig. 71, at st; 63, underJ; fig. 62, where reference lines ‘‘ bones of ear cell” go.) On
removing the quadrate from the dry skull, the general tympanie depression is seen to be more
or less continuous with the alisphenoid ; the boundary is best marked behind and below by the
broad thin sharp-edged shell of the tympanic wing of the exoccipital. To the brim indi-
cated is attached the tympanum, or drum of the ear —that membrane being, from the con-
figuration of the parts, quite superficial, — not at the bottom of a tube-like meatus, as in man.
The membrane proper is invested externally by modified common integument which readily
peels off. Thus this wide shallow depression overlaid with feathers or a slight flap is all there
is to represent the “ outer ear-passage.” The tympanic membrane sometimes develops slight
ossification, which then represents the “tympanic bone,” or ‘‘ external auditory process” of
human anatomy. Did not this membrane occlude the way, the passage through the ear to the
mouth would be pervious. This passage is the modified persistence of the first visceral cleft or
“ gill-slit” of the embryo. Just within the tympanic membrane is the cavity of the tympanum
or middle ear, which may be very extensively exposed by merely removing the membrane.
Looking into this cavity, as may readily be done from the outside, in carefully cleaned dry
skulls, many objects of interest are presented; among them, a number of foramina — openings
leading in various directions. In the first place there are some (inconstant and not readily
identified) holes, which are pneumatic openings, conveying air from the middle ear-passage to
the interior of bones of the skull and lower jaw. Next is observed a large oritice in the lower
anterior part of the cavity, —the mouth of the eustachian tube. This tube continues the ear-
passage to the mouth ; opening at the back of the hard palate by a median orifice in common
with its fellow. In clean skulls of any size a bristle, or even a wooden tooth-pick, will pass
through the eustachian tube, and appear upon the floor of the skull in mid-line or nearly there,
under the basisphenoid, over the basitemporal. The foregoing passages have not conducted
us to the inner ear or proper acoustic cavity. There will be observed, in the side-wall of the
tympanic cavity, two definite openings near the eustachian orifice. One of these, anterior and
superior to the other, larger usually, and oval, is the fenestra ovalis; it lies in the obliterated
suture between the prodtic and opisthotic bones; and when the membranous curtain which
closes it in life is gone, you look through this ‘‘ oval window ” into the vestibular cavity of the
eat proper. The lower, posterior, circular orifice is the fenestra rotunda; through which round
window in the opisthotic bone you look into the cochlear cavity of the ear proper. Fenestra
ovalis and f. rotunda are generally close together, — only divided by a little bridge of bone, or a
mere bony bar. To the circumference of the fenestra ovalis is fitted the expanded oval foot of
the trumpet-shaped columella awris, — the stapes, or ‘‘ stirrup-bone,” as it is called in mammals
(fig. 83, s¢). This is an elegant little bone, which establishes mechanical connection between
the membrane closing the fenestra ovalis and the tympanic membrane, — something on the
principle of the ‘‘ sounding-post” inside a violin. . It is shown magnified greatly in its embry-
ouie condition, in fig. 67, and there seems to be primitively and morphologically the proximal
connection of the hyoid bone (by cerato-hyal elements) with the bony capsule of the ear; but
no trace of this relation persists. Fig. 83 shows the mature stapes of a fowl, and indicates its

186 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

several elements which have received special names. In skulls prepared with sufficient care,
the stapes may be seen im situ, as in fig. 71, st, —an extremely delicate rod, stepped into the
fenestra ovalis by its foot, the other end protruding freely, and bearing in many cases its
hammer-like or claw-like stapedial elements. A stapes I have just

Fic. 83. — Mature
stapes of fowl, about x
4; after Parker. st, its
foot, fitting fenestra
ovalis; mst, main shaft,
or medio-stapedial ele-
ment; sst, supra-sta-
pedial; est, extra-sta-
pedial ; ist, infra-sta-
pedial, its end repre-
senting a rudimentary
stylo-hyal ; f,a fenestra
in the extra-stapedial.
(See s¢ in situ, fig. 71,
and its embryonic for-
mation, fig. 67.)

picked out of an eagle’s ear is a fourth of an inch long, with a stout
foot, but a stem as fine as a thread of sewing silk, and at the tympanic
end a still finer hair-like process half as long as the main stem, from
which it stands out at a right angle. The ossification ‘is perfect, and
there appears to have been another similar process which has broken
off from the cross-like figure shown in fig. 71, st. In a raven’s skull
before me the stapes has fallen into the fenestra ovalis, and lies there with
its head sticking out, though perfectly loose. I cannot withdraw it intact,
as the expanded foot fits the hole too closely to pass through in any
position I have succeeded in placing it. It appears to be about as large
as the eagle’s. Close examination at a point somewhere about the fe-
nestra ovalis, or between that and the eustachian orifice, will discover a
minute foramen, corresponding to the ‘‘stylo-mastoid ” foramen of mam-
mals. It transmits cranial nerve 7 (see p. 177), or the facial nerve, which
has burrowed through the bony acoustic capsule from the brain-cavity
and entered the tympanic cavity on its way to the surface. There are
sometimes two such minute foramina, close together, both conducting to
the brain cavity (neither in common with the internal auditory meatus) ;
as in the eagle, in which large bird a fine bristle just passes through each.
Thus in the dry skull of a bird, all the hard parts of the middle ear or
tympanic cavity, as well as the eustachian tube, can readily be inspected

from the outside; even the limits of the opisthotic and prodtic bones can be determined to some
extent, and the ossiculwm auditis be seen im situ. There will also be nofed, in most birds, the
articular facet upon the prodtic bone for the inner head of the quadrate, as well as upon the
squamosal for the outer head of the quadrate; however these may shift in position, in dif-
erent birds, they cannot easily be overlooked or mistaken. Details of mere size and configura-
tion aside, the above general description will apply pretty well to any bird, and should suffice
for the identification of the objects seen on looking into the ear, though the number and
variety of the irregular pneumatic openings may be puzzling at first. To see these things
clearly in a mammal’s ear would require special preparation of the parts, as they lie inside a
tympanum which is itself at.the bottom of a contracted tube. In such an ear, properly laid
open, would be found a chain of three ossicles crossing the tympanic cavity from the inner
surface of the tympanic membrane to the opposite surface of the membrane closing the fenestra
ovalis —the malleus, incus, and stapes, or ‘‘ hammer,” “ anvil” and ‘ stirrup ;” and the latter
would be stirrup-shaped, not trumpet-like with a cross-bar at the mouth-piece. Some mam-
mals would also show a hyoid bone which would have what are the cerato-hyals of a bird
produced up toward the ear-parts, and continued to these by a bone called stylo-hyal, or
‘‘styloid process of the temporal”; and any mammal’s jaw would articulate directly with the
squamosal, — the chain of three ossicles being entirely inside the ear. As to comparing the
parts now: the mammalian stapes is the stapes or columella of a bird, — its stem and foot at
least ; the incus of a mammal is represented by one of the claws of the ecross-bar of a bird’s
stapes (the supra-stapedial element; fig. 83, sst); the malleus of a mammal is the great
quadrate bone of a bird; the stylo-hyal of a mammal is not fairly developed in a bird, unless
contained in or represented by another claw of the stapes (an imfra-stapedial element, ist) ;
and in these facts is the reason why a bird’s lower jaw is articulated indirectly to the skull
by means of the quadrate, and also why a bird’s hyoid bone is not articulated or in any way

|

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— NEUROLOGY. 187

directly connected with the skull — excepting when, as in a woodpecker, elongated branchial
elements of the hyoid bone take on such office by curling over the cranium (figs. 73, 74).
Section of the bone is required for further examination of the ear-parts. On longitudinally
bisecting the skull, or otherwise gaining access to the brain- -cavity, the internal surface of the
periotic bone is brought into view (fig. 70, po, op, ep). “Tt is the same bone we have seen in
the tympanic cavity, now viewed upon its cerebral surface. Ina skull of any size, as that of the
eagle before me (from which the rcst of my description will be taken), there is no difficulty in
making out the parts, although the periphery of the periotic bone is completely consolidated
with its surroundings. The periotic, or petrosal (Lat. petrosus, stony — from its hardness), or
*‘ petrous part of the temporal,” is the bony capsule of the inner ear, enclosing the labyrinth or
essential organ of hearing, — in fact, it is the skull of the ear, sometimes therefore called the
otocrane — just as ethmoidal parts form the *’ skull of the nose,” and the sclerotal bones represent
a “skull of the eye.” The periotic consists of the three bones already often mentioned, — the
proétic, po, epiotic, ep, and opisthotic, op, or anterior, superior, and posterior otocranial bones,
completely consolidated together, as well as with surrounding bones. The petrosal appears as
an irregilar protuberance in the inner wall of the brain-cavity, at the lower back part. It
seems to be more extensive than it really is, because the great superior semicircular canal, too
large to be entirely accommodated in the petrosal, has invaded the occipital bone, — the track of
its bed in that bone being sculptured in bas-relief (fig. 70, asc). Behind this semicireular trace,
the deep groove of a venous sinus is engraved in the bone, making the tract of the canal still
more prominent (fig. 70, sc). The top of the petrosal and contiguous occipital is the floor of
a recess or fossa in which is lodged the great optic lobe of the brain, partly divided from the
general cavity for the cerebral hemisphere by a bony tentorium, like that which in mammals
separates the cerebellar from the cerebral fosse. On the vertical face of the petrosal, or on the
corresponding occipital surface, is a large smooth-lipped orifice, at least 4; of an inch in longest
diameter ; it leads to a tongue-like excavation of the bone, in which the ae of the cerebel-
lum is lodged. In front, between the petrosal and alisphenoid (or in the conjoined border of
one or the other of these bones) is a considerable foramen, conducting the second and third
divisions of cranial nerve 5 (see p. 177: figs. 70, 71. 5) into the orbit. Below the petrosal (in
fact, between the opisthotic and the exoccipital), near the border of the foramen magnum, is a
foramen (which may be subdivided into foramina), representing the foramen lacerum posterius
of mammals, transmitting cranial nerves 9, 10, 11 (see p. 177; fig. 70, 8). The general space
under description is continued to the margin of the foramen magnum by the exoccipital (fis.
70, eo). Now on the vertical face of the petrosal itself— behind foramen for 5, above that fur
9, 10, 11, in front of the large floceular orifice, will be seen a smooth-lipped depression, the
meatus auditorius internus (fig. 70, 7). at the bottom of which are at least to separate small
foramina. A bristle passed in the upper (or anterior) one of these two holes emerges outside
the skull, in the tympanic cavity. near the tympanic end of the eustachian tube; it has traversed
the interior of the petrosal. in a track known as the fallopian nerviduct; it transmits cranial
nerve 7 —the facial, or portio dura. A bristle passed into the other of the two foramina may
alsu be made to come out in the tympanie eavity, but by a different track, for it emerges through
either the fenestra ovalis or the fenestra rotunda; it has traced the course of cranial nerve $8. —
the auditory nerve or portio mollis. Both bristles have entered the common internal auditory
meatus, but the second one has traversed the ear-cavity proper, through the labyrinth of the
ear, and come out at the tympanic vestibular orifice : fenestra ovalis), or at the tympanic cochlear
orifice (fenestra rotunda). Either passage is easily made. without breaking down or indeed
meeting with any bony obstacle. which would uot be the case with a mammal. Cranial nerves
7 and 8 were formerly counted as one (seventh): hence the name portio dura (“* hard portion”)
for the former, and portio mollis (-* soft portion”) for the latter. The former, as said, traverses
the petrosal bone and escapes upon the face: the latter, which is the true acoustic nerve, oF

188 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

nerve of hearing, remains in the bone, being expended upon the labyrinthine structures within
—the vestibule, semicircular canals, and cochlea, which constitute the walls of the cavities in
which the essential organ of hearing is snugly encased. '

If now, with a very fine saw —the saws now so much used for fancy scroll-work will
auswer the purpose — the whole periotic mass be cut away from the skull, and then divided in
any direction, the labyrinth can be studied. It is best to make the section in some definite
plane with reference to the axes of the whole skull, — the vertical longitudinal, or vertical
transverse, or horizontal, — as the direction and relations of the contained structures are then
more easily made out. Four or five parallel cuts will make as many thin flat slices of bone,
affording eight or ten surfaces for examination ; the whole course of the labyrinthine cavity can
be seen in sections which, when put together in the mind’s eye, or held a little apart in their
proper relations and visibly threaded with bristles, afford the required picture very nicely. It
is extremely difficult to chisel out the affair from the bone in which it is embedded. At first
glance the slices show a bewildering maze, —a continuous net-work or lattice-work of bone, in
which the unaccustomed eye will recognize nothing but confusion. All this cancellated struc-
ture, however, is pneumatic—the open-work tissue of the bone, containing air derived from
the tympanic or eustachian cavities, and having nothing to do with the ear-passages proper.
Parts of the bony labyrinth will soon be recognized by their firm smooth walls and definite
courses, as distinguished from the irregular interstices of the pneumatic bone-tissue. The bony
labyrinth consists of an irregular central cavity, the vestibule; of a cavity, projecting like a
beak downward and backward from the vestibule, the cochlea; and of three horseshoe-shaped
tubular cavities, above, behind, and below the vestibule, the semicircular canals, the ends of
whose hollows all open into the vestibule. Imagine three hollow horseshoes, with their ends
melted into a hollow inflation (vestibule), the opposite wall of which is a hollow prdjection
(cochlea) — or a hollow flat-iron (vestibule) with a long nose (cochlea) and three hollow handles
(the canals). Or, see figs. 84 to 87, representing the contained membranous labyrinth, to which
the containing bony labyrinth very closely conforms, as it is simply the bony cavity whose walls
encase the membranous and other soft structures. According as the sections have been made,
numerous cross-cuts of the canals will be seen here and there as circular orifices; the canals
themselves lying curled like worms in the petrosal and occipital substance, their ends finally
converging to the vestibular cavity. As compared with those of man, the parts are of great
size; in the eagle, the whole affair is as large as that part of one’s thumb covered by the nail;
the whole Jength of the superior semicircular canal is an inch or more; its calibre, I should
judge, being absolutely about as great asin man. The cochlea, however, though not diminutive
comparatively, is in a rudimentary condition as far as complexity of structure is concerned, in all
Sauropsida, representing only the beginning of the cochlear structure of mammals. In the
latter class, the cochlea is spirally coiled or whorled on itself like a snail-shell (whence the
name — cochlea, a.snail), making at least one turn and a half, sometimes five (two and a half in
man) ; with a centre-post or modiolus around which winds a bony flange, the lamina spiralis,
a membranous extension of which to the cochlear out-wall divides the cavity into two com-
partments or scale (scala, a flight of stairs); it is just like a spiral stairway, only an -inclined
plane instead of a series of steps. The membranous extension of the bony spiral lamina to the
side-wall obviously throws the cavity, as just said, into two spirals, which only intercommuni-
eate at the top, where the modiolus ends in a funnel-shaped expansion, the infundibulum,
beneath the apex of the snail-shell, the cupola. A marble rolling down the upper stairway
would fall into the vestibular cavity; this division of the cochlea is therefore the scala vestibuli.
The marble starting from the other side of the infundibulum would roll along the under stair-
way, and if nothing stopped the way, would fall through the fenestra rotunda into the tym-
panic cavity; this is therefore the scala tympani. The first marble would also eventually
reach the tympanum, through the vestibule, and out of the fenestra ovalis, if the foot of the

189

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.—NEUROLOGY.

stapes were‘unstepped (in life, of course, both these “ windows” are closed by membranous

Now in birds the cochlear cavity and its bony or cartilaginous contents are only the

beginnings of such structure— a strap-shaped or tongue-like protrusion from the vestibule, as
if a part of the first mammalian whorl, and very incompletely divided into scala vestibuli and

curtains).

Fig. 84. Fia. 85. Fig. 86. Fia. 87. Fig. 88.

Figs. 84, 85, membranous labyrinth of Haliaétus albicilla, x2. a, b, cochlea; b, its saccular extremity (or lagena); c, vestibule;
g, its utricle; d, anterior or superior vertical semicircular canal; e, external or horizontal semicircular canal; f, posterior or inferior
vertical semicircular canal; h, membranous canal leading into aqueduct of the vestibule; &, vascular membrane covering the scala
vestibuli; opposite this, at i, are seen the edges of the cartilaginous prisms in the fenestra rotunda; from the edges of these cartilages
proceeds the delicate membrane closing the opening of the cochlea (not shown in the fig.). ass

Fig. 86, part of the superior vertical semicircular cana], showing its ampulla (which is the dilatation of the base of any semicircu-
lar canal), nerve of ampulla, artery and connective tissue of the perilymph, x 3. a, that part of the vestibule (alveus) next to the ampulla;
b, the dilatation of the ampulla at its vestibular opening; c, where it passes into the canal proper ; d, the canal, furnished with connec-
tive tissue of the perilymph along its concave border and sides, as appears clearly at the sections e and f; g, nerve of the ampulla; kh,
artery of the connective tissue, running beneath it, remote from the wall of the duct.

Fig. 87, cochlea, x 3. a, external, b, internal, cartilaginous prism; c, membranous zone; d, saccular extremity of the cochlea, or
lagena; e, vascular membrane; /, auditory nerve, its middle fascicle penetrating the internal cartilaginous prism, to reach the mem-

\branous zone by its terminal filaments; g, auditory nerve, its posterior fascicle, running to the most posterior part of the lagena; h,
filament to ampulla of posterior or inferior vertical semicircular canal.

Fig. 88, section of the cochlea, X 3. a, vestibular surface of external cartilaginous prism, extending into d, the lagena; c, section of
the membranous zone; e, Huschke’s process of the fenestra, which, with the margins of the cartilaginous prisms, affords attachment
to the blind sac ,f, occluding the fenestra of the cochlea; g, spongy vascular membrane of the scala vestibuli; h, auditory lamellz of
Treviranus; i, canals in posterior wall of the lagena, by which the nervous filaments enter its cavity. :

(From Ibsen’s Anatomiske Underspgelser over @rets Labyrinth. 4to, Kjbenhavn, 1881, p. 17, pl. 1, figs. 13-17.)

f

7

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ing semicircular canals ; opening into tympanum by fenestra ova-

to meatus auditorius internus by the course of the auditory nerve.

it

mouths of the separate or un

lis ; conducting

In the

eagle, if its irregularities of contour were smoothed out, it would about hold a pea.

In the language of human anatomy, the three semicircular canals are the (a) anterior or
superior vertical, the (6) posterior or inferior vertical, and the (¢) external or horizontal; and

the planes of their respective loops are appro

tely mutually perpendicular, in the three

xima'

190 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

planes of any cubical figure. In birds these terms do not apply so well to the situation of the
canals with reference to the axes of the body, nor to the direction of the loops; neither is
mutual perpendicularity so nearly exhibited. The whole set is tilted over backward to some
degree, so that the (a) ‘anterior” (though still superior) loops back beyond either of the others ;
the (b) “posterior” loops bebind and below the (¢) horizoutal, which tilts down backward;
the verticality of the planes of (a) and (6) is better kept. The canals may be better known
as the (a) superior (vertical), and (6) inferior (vertical), and (c) internal (horizontal). What-
ever its inclination backward, there is no mistaking (a), much the longest of the three, looping
high up over the rest, exceeding the petrosal and bedded in the occipital, the upper limb and
loop of the arch bas-relieved upon the inner surface of the skull (fig. 70, asc). It makes much
more than a semicircle —rather a horse-shoe. The inferior vertical (6) loops lowest of all,
though little if any of it reaches further backward than the great loop of (a) ; itis the second in
size; in shape it is quite circular, —rather more than a half-circle. Its upper limb joins the
lower limb of (a), as in man, and the two open by one orifice in the vestibule ; but it is not
simple union, for the two limbs, before forming a common tube, twine half-round each other
(like two fingers of one hand crossed). The loop of (6) reaches very near the back of the skull
(outside). The canal (c) is the smallest, and, as it were, set within the loop of (0), though its
plane is nearly the opposite of the plane of (b); and the cavities of (b) and (¢) intereommuni-
cate At or near the point of their greatest convexity, farthest from the vestibule. This decus-
sation of (b) and (c), like the twining inosculation of (a) and (0), is well known. It may not
be so generally understood that there is (in the eagle if not in birds generally) a third extra-
vestibular communication of the canals. My sections show this perfectly. The great loop of
(a), sweeping past the decussating-place of (b) and (c), is thrown into a cavity common to all
three. Bristles threaded either way through each of the three canals can all three be seen
in contact, crossing each other through this curious extra-vestibular chamber, which may be
named the trivia, or ‘‘ three-way” place. (The arrangement I make out does not agree well
with the figure of the‘owl’s labyrinth given by Owen, Anat. Vert., ii, 1384. The trivia is at
the place where, in fig. 84 or 85, the three membranous canals cross one another. It does not
follow, however, that these contained membranous canals intercommunicate, and it appears
from Ibsen’s figures that they do not. Study of these admirable illustrations, with the
explanations given under them, should make the details perfectly clear to the reader.)

All that precedes relates to the bony labyrinth, — the’ scrolled cavity of the periotic bone.
The membranous labyrinth is a sac lying loosely in the hollow of the bone, and shaped just like
it, lining the hollow of the vestibule and tubes of the semicircular canals. Withdrawn intact,
it would be a perfect ‘‘ cast” of the labyrinth. Originally, this sac is also continuous with one
in the cavity of the cochlea, called the membranous cochlea, which afterward becomes shut off
from the main sac. This shut-off cochlear part lies between the scala tympani below and the
scala vestibuli above ; its interior is the scala media. If demonstrable in birds, it nust be quite
as rudimentary as the other scale. The membraue is not attached to the bony walls of the
labyrinth, but is separated by a space containing fluid, the perilymph, which also occupies the
scala vestibuli and scala tympani. A similar fluid, the endolymph, is contained in the cavity of
the membranous labyrinth, and scala media of the cochlea; in it are found concretions, or oto-
liths, of the same character as the great ‘‘ear-stones” so conspicuous’ in many fishes. This
lymph has a wonderful office —that of equilibration, enabling the animal to preserve its
equilibrium. The labyrinth and its contained fluid may be likened to the glass tubes filled
with water and a bubble of air, by a combination of which a surveyor, for example, is cnabled
to adjust his theodolite true to the horizontal. Somehow a bird knows how the fluid stands in
the self-registering levelling-tubes, and adjusts itself accordingly. Observations made on
pigeous show that ‘‘ when the membranous canals are divided, very remarkable disturbances
of equilibrium ensue, which vary in character according to the seat of the lesion. When the

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— NEUROLOGY. 191

horizontal canals are divided rapid movements of the head from side to side, in a horizontal
plane, take place, along with oscillation of the eyeballs, and the animal tends to spin round on
a vertical axis. When the posterior or inferior vertical canals are divided, the head is moved
rapidly backwards and forwards, and the animal tends to execute a backward somersault, head
over heels. When the superior vertical canals are divided, the head is moved rapidly forwards
and backwards, and the animal tends to execute a forward somersault, heels over head. Com-
bined: section of the various canals causes the most bizarre contortions of the head and body.”
(Ferrier, Funct. of the Brain, 1876, p. 57.) Injury of the canals does not cause loss of hearing,
nor does loss of equilibrium follow destruction of the cochlea. Two diverse though intimately
connected functions are thus presided over by the acoustic nerve, — audition and equilibration.

Senses of Taste and Touch: Gustation and Taction.— The hands of birds being
hidden in the feathers which envelop the whole body — their feet and lips, and usually much
if not all of the tongue, being sheathed in horn, these faculties would appear to be enjoyed in but
small degree. While it is difficult to judge how much appreciation of the sapid qualities of sub-
stances birds may be capable of, we must not be hasty in supposing their sense of taste to be
much abrogated. One who has had the toothache, or teeth ‘‘ set on edge”. by acids, or pain-
fully affected by hot or cold drinks, may judge how sensitive to impressions an extremely dense
tissue can be. Persons of defective hearing may be assisted to a kind of audition by an instru-
ment applied to the teeth; and it is not easy to define the ways in which sensory functions may
be vicariously performed or replaced. Birds are circumspect and discriminative, even dainty, in
their choice of food, in which they are doubtless guided to some extent by the gustatory
sensations they experience. As, however, only some human beings make these an end instead

-of a natural and proper means to an end, the selection of food by birds may be chiefly upon
intuitions of what is wholesome. Such purely gustatory sense as they possess is presided over
by the branches of the glosso-pharyngeal nerve which go to the back part of the tongue and
mouth. Though the chorda tympani nerve exists, there is no lingual (gustatory) branch of the
third division of the fifth cranial nerve. Yet the latter, which goes in mammals to the anterior
part of the tongue, is less effectually gustatory than the glosso-pharyngeal ; as we know by the
fact that the sensation of taste is not completely experienced until the sapid substance passes to
the back of the mouth. Gustation is likewise connected with olfaction; the full effect of
nauseous substances for example, being not realizea if the nose is held. From these alternative
considerations, each one may estimate for himself how much birds know of sapidity ; remember-
ing also, how soft, thick, and fleshy are the tongue and associate parts in some birds, as parrots
and ducks, in comparison with birds whose mouths are quite horny.

The beak is doubtless the principal tactile instrument; nor does its hardness in most birds
preclude great sensitiveness ; as witness the case of the teeth, above instanced. Sensation is
here governed by the branches of the fifth nerve. In some birds, in which also the terminal
filaments of this nerve are largest and most numerous, the bill acquires exquisite sensibility.
Such is its state in the snipe family, in most members of which, as the woodcock, true snipe, and
sandpipers, the bill is a very delicate nervous probe. The Apteryz also feels in the mud for
its food, enjoying moreover the unusual privilege of having its nose at the end of its long
exploration. Ducks dabble in the water to sift out proper food between the “ strainers” with
which the sides of their beaks are provided; and the ends of the maxillary and mandibular bones
themselves are full of holes, indicating the abundance of the nervous supply (fig. 63).

The senses of birds and other animals are commonly reckoned as five —a number which
may be defensively increased — as: by a sixth, the muscular sense, which gives consciousness
of strain or resistance, apart from purely tactile impressions; and perhaps a seventh, the
faculty of equilibration, which has a physical mechanism of its own, at least as distinct and
complete as that of hearing. The ordinary ‘‘ five senses” are curiously graded. Taction con-

192 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

notes qualities of matter in bulk, as density, roughness, temperature, etc. Gustation, matter’
dissolved in water — fluidic. Olfaction, matter diffused in air—aeriformed. Audition, atmos-

pheric air in undulation. Vésion, an ethereal substance in undulation. All animals are proba-

bly also susceptible of biogenation, which is the affection resulting from the influence of biogen ;

a substance consisting of self-conscious force in combination with the minimum of matter

required for its manifestation.?

c. MyoLocy: THE MuscuLar System.

Muscular Tissue consists of more or fewer ameebiform animals; separate colonies of whiéh
creatures, isolated in various parts of the body, compose the individual different muscles. They
are enveloped in fibrous tissue, the sheets of which are called fascia, and the ends of which,
usually attached to bones by direct continuity with the periosteal covering of the latter, form
tendons and ligaments. The muscle-animals belong to a genus which may be termed
Myameba, differing from other genera of the amcebiforms which compose the body of a bird
less in their physical character of being elongated and spindle-shaped, or even filiform, than in
their physiological character of contractility. Under appropriate stimulus, as the passage of a
current of electricity, or the wave of biogen-substance which constitutes a ‘‘ nerve-impulse,”
Myamebe shorten and thicken, tending towards a state of tonic contraction which, if completed
and long sustained, would cause them to become encysted as spherical bodies; but extreme con-
traction is never long continued. By alternate contraction and relaxation all the motions of the
body in bulk are effected. The capacity of, or tendency to, contraction is called the tonicity of
muscular fibre. The simultaneous contraction of any colony of Myamebe pulls upon the attach-
ment of the muscle at each of its ends ; in some cases approximating both ends; oftener moving
the part to which one end is attached, the other being fixed. The action of a muscle is upon ,
the simplest mechanical principles, — nothing more or less than pulling upon a part, as by a
rope, the line of traction being exactly in the line of contraction of the muscle; though it is
often ingeniously changed by the passage of tendons around a corner of bone, or through a loop of
fibrous tissue, as if through a pulley. Such movements as those of a turtle protruding its head,
or a bird thrusting its beak forward, where muscle seems to push, are fallacious ; when analyzed,
the motion is invariably resolved into simple pulling. The swelling up of a muscle in contract-
ing must indeed impinge upon neighboring parts and shove them aside; but that is an extrinsic
result. Muscles contract most powerfully under resistance to their turgescence : what is effected
by the fascize which bind them down ; — what the athlete seeks to increase by bandaging his
swelling biceps. There are two species of Myameba. MM. striata is the ordinary striped fibre
of voluntary motion, and also of some motion not under control of the will, as that of the heart.
This species is usually of a rich red color (pale pink in many birds of the grouse family), and is
the ordinary “ flesh” of the body. The other species, M. levis, composes the pale or colorless
smooth fibre of the involuntary muscles, as those of the intestines, the gullet, ete. A species of
contractile tissue commonly referred to the genus Desmameba (indifferent connective-tissue
cells) is very near Myameba levis ; example, mammalian dartos. The movements of erectile
organs, as the neat combs over the eyes of grouse, or the turkey’s caruncles, are not in any sense
myamebic, but depend mechanically upon influx of blood. ‘

The Muscular System of Aves can only be touched upon; it is impossible in my limits
to even name all the muscles, much less describe them. I can only note the leading peculiarities,
and present a figure in which the principal muscles are named.

1 The reader who may be interested to inquire further in this direction is referred to a publication entitled :—
Biogen: A Speculation on the Origin and Nature of Life. Abridged from a paper on the “ Possibilities of Proto-
plasm,” read before the Philosophical Society of Washington, May 6, 1882. By Dr. Elliott Coues, etc. Washing-
ton, Judd & Detweiler. 8vo, pp. 27. Second ed., Boston, Estes & Lauriat, 1884,

we

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— MYOLOGY. 19

‘

The subcutaneous sheet of muscle (of which the human ‘* muscles of expression” and
platysma myoides are segregations) is broken up in birds into a countless number of little slips
which agitate the feathers collectively, and especially the great quills of the wings and tail.
There are estimated to be 12,000in a goose. The prime peculiarity of birds’ musculation is the
evuormous development of the pectorales, or breast muscles, which operate the wings. The
great pectoral, p. major or p. primus, arises from the sternal keel, wheu that special bony sep-
tun between the fellow-pectorals exists, aud from more or less of the body of the sternum, pass-
ing directly to the great pectoral or outer ridge of the humerus, near the upper end of that bone.
Its origin may even exceed the limits of the sternum, invading the clavicle, ete. ; it may unite
with its fellow. It is the depressor of the humerus, giving the downward stroke of the wing.
The next pectoral. p. secundus or p. medius, arises from much or most of the sternum not oecu-
pied by the first, under cover of which it lies; it passes also the humerus, but by an interesting
way it has of running through a pulley at the shoulder it elevates that bone, giving the upiward
wing-stroke. A third pectoral, p. tertius or p. minimus, arising from sternum. and often con-
tiguous parts of the coracoid bone, passes directly to the humerus. supplemeuting the action of
the first. .A fourth muscle in many birds acts upon the humerus from the sternum or coracoid,
particularly the latter. These four differ greatly in their relative development. Such extent of
the sternum and pectoral muscles correspondingly reduces that of the belly-walls, and the
abdominal muscles are consequently scanty. Fixity of the spinal column in the dorsal region
diminishes the musculation of that part, the spinal muscles being much better developed in
the cervical region; where, in cases of some of the long-necked birds, there are curious con-
trivances for the mechanical advantage of the muscle in flexing and extending this mobile part
of the body. Muscles of the hyoidean apparatus acquire a singular development in woodpeckers.
The lower jaw is depressed particularly by muscle inserted into the end of the mandible; the
upper is elevated by particular muscles operating the pterygoid and quadrate bones. Temporal,
masseteric, and ordinary pterygoid muscles close the jaws. They are unsymmetrical in Lozia.

The diaphragm, the musculo-membranous partition which in mammals divides the thoracic
from the abdominal eavity, is only represented in birds in a rudimentary condition. Macgillivray
has figured that of the rook as consisting of three fleshy slips, vr, r, r, passing from as many
ribs, 4, 5, 6, to the pleural sae of the lungs, ¢, ¢, in fig. 101, p. 206. It is best developed in the
Apteryx.

The remarkable specialization of both limbs, — the former for flight, the latter for the
perfectly bipedal locomotion which only birds besides man enjoy, — results in corresponding
peculiarities of the muscular mechanism. Muscles beyond the shoulder are greatly reduced in
number and complexity from an ordinary quadrupedal standard ; those of the legs are rather
increased, and their configuration, relative size, and to some extent their relations are so much
changed, that great difficulty is experienced in identifying them with the corresponding muscles of
quadrupeds. The result is, great confusion in their nomenclature, which is still shifting, though
much has been done of late to give it precision. Attention has recently been called by Garrod
to the classifieatory value of certain muscles of the limbs. The tensor patagii, that muscle or
muscles which may have elastic tendons, and by which the folds of skin in the angles of the
wing bones are regulated, may have different characters in different groups of birds. It has
Jong been known that particular muscles of the hind limb are in direct and important relation
to the prehensile power of the toes, and consequently co-ordinated with the insessorial or the
reverse character of the foot. In the highest birds, Passeres, the foot grasps with great
tacility, owing to the distinctuess or individuality of the fleror longus hallucis, or bender of the
hind toe. The ambiens (Lat. ambiens, going around) is a muscle of which Garrod has even
made so much as to divide all birds into two primary groups according to whether they possess
it or not. The ambiens arises from the pelvis about the acetabulum, and passes along the inner
side of the thigh ; its tendon runs over the convexity of the knee to the outer side, and ends by

13

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

194

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THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— ANGEIOLOGY. 195

connecting with the flexor digitorum perforatus, — one of the muscles which bend the toes col-
lectively. When this arrangement obtains, the result is that when a bird goes to roost, and
squats on its perch, the toes automatically clasp the perch by the strain upon the ambiens that
ensues as soon as the leg is bent upon the thigh, and the tarsus upon the leg, the weight of the
bird thus holding it fast upon its perch. The effect is as if an elastic cord were tied to the hip
joint, thence directed over the front of the knee and back of the heel and so on to the ends of the
toes. Obviously, such a cord would be strained when the limb is bent, relaxed when the limb is
straightened out. The reader may observe a corresponding effect of the inuseular arrangement
of his forearm by throwing the hand as far back as possible; the fingers tend to close by the
strain on the flexors in passing over, what is a convexity of the wrist when the hand is in that
position. Passeres have no ambiens, the perfection of their feet in other respects answering all
purposes. Birds having it are termed homalogonatous or ‘‘ normally-kneed” (Gr. éuadds, homalos,
from épés, homos, like, even, etc.; yévu, yovaros, gonu, gonatos, knee); those wanting it are called
anomalogonatous, ‘‘ abnormally-kneed.” The distinction prevails with much applicability to
various large groups of birds, and does good duty in diagnosis when duly connected with other
characters ; but surely should not give name to primary groups founded upon it! Other
muscles of the leg much used by the same sagacious and zealous anatomist are the femoro-
caudal, accessory femoro-caudal, semitendinosus, and accessory semitendinosus. The whole five
of these muscles ‘‘ vary ; any one or more than one may be absent in different birds; . . . the con-
stancy of the peculiarities in the different individuals of each species, or the species of each
genus, and very generally in the genera of each family, makes it evident to any one working at
the subject that much respecting the affinities of the different families of birds is to be learnt
from the study of their myology, in connection with the peculiarities of their other soft parts ;
and that these features will, in the long run, lead to a more correct classification than one based
on the skeleton alone, becomes almost equally certain.” (Garrod, P. Z. S., 1873, p. 680.) I
quote in justice of this author, a modern Macgillivray in sincerity and love of truth; and very
generally, in constructing my characters of the higher groups of birds iu the body of this work,
I shall be as glad to use the myological formule of Garrod, as I am here to pay this slight
tribute to his memory.

d. ANGEIOLOGY: THE VASCULAR OR CIRCULATORY SYSTEMS.

Blood and Lymph are the two media by the circulation of which throughout the body
the various ameebvid animals which compose the tissues are fed, their waste repaired, and their
dead parts removed. Each species of Ame@ba has the faculty of selecting from the constituents
of blogd and lymph its appropriate food; and of converting such nourishment into its own
proper substance. Refuse matters are either drained off by the kidneys and voided as excrement,
or swept by the current of blood into the lungs and there cremated. The stream of lymph is a
feeder to the blood, and when the mingled currents are no longer distinguishable has become

‘ blood. The machinery of circulation is two sets of vessels — the hematic, or vascular system

proper, consisting of the heart, arteries, veins and capillaries for the blood-circulation ; and the
lymphatic, consisting of lymph-hearts and vessels, for the flow of lymph. The lymphatics,

-eonverging from all parts of the body, and especially from the intestines, end in vessels which

pour the lymph into the veins of the neck. The heart is the central organ of the blood-cireu-
lation, by which that fluid is pumped into all parts of the body through the arteries or efferent
vessels ; straining through the network of capillaries, it returns to the heart through the veins,
or afferent vessels. The set of efferent vessels is the arterial system ; that of afferent vessels is
the venous system. The blood in arteries excepting the pulmonary is bright red; that in
veins excepting the pulmonary is dark red. The change from bright to dark occurs in the
capillaries of the system at large ; the change from dark to bright only in the capillaries of the
lungs and air-sacs. The systemic blood circulation is completely separated from the pulmonic

196 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

in all animals in which, as in birds, the right and left sides of the heart are separated from each
other; such circulation is said to be double ; that is, arterial and venous blood only iningle in
the capillaries, whether of the lungs or others, and therefore at the periphery of the vascular
system: the heart being the centre of that system. Blood, in all or some of its constituents,
permeates absolutely every tissue of the body. Those tissues whose capillaries are large enough
for the passage of all the constitueuts of blood are said to be vascular; those which only feed by
sucking up certain constituents of the blood, and have no demonstrable capillaries, are called
non-vascular. But nutrient fluid penetrates the densest tissue, as the dentine of teeth ; no
permanent tissues are really non-vascular, or they would soon die, as do feathers, which require
to be renewed once a year or oftener.

Lymph and the lymphaties are noticed further on. Blood consists of water in which
several ingredients are dissolved, aud certain solid bodies are suspended. Its water is salted,
albuminated, fibrinated, and corpusculated. The proportions, which vary in different birds and
at different times in the same bird, are in round numbers: water 80, fibrine and corpuscles 15,
albumen and salts 5=100 parts. Withdrawn from the body and allowed to settle, blood sepa-
rates into two parts, serwm and coagulum. The serum is the clear yellowish salty albuminous
water ; the clot is the fibrine, in the meshes of which are mired the corpuscles, reddening the
whole mass. The plasma, plasm or plastic material of the blood, is its substance dissolved
in water; that is to say, mznas the solid corpuscles. These latter interesting little bodies are a
myriad of minute animals, which swim in the life-current, and are named Hematameba
cruentata. They have been supposed to be of two species; but the so-called white blood
corpuscles, or leucocytes, indistinguishable from lymph corpuscles, are simply the forma-
tive stages of the red blood-dises. In its early colorless stage, the. Hematameba is a
nucleated mass of protoplasm (protoplasm is the indifferent substance out of which all animal
tissue is derived), of no determinate size or shape, exhibiting active amceboid movements.
Later in the life of the minute creature, it passes into a sort of encysted state, in which it red-
dens and acquires definite dimensions and configuration. Inu birds, these ‘ blood-dises” are
flat, elliptical, and nucleated, that is, containing a kernel; they average in the long diameter
zryo) in the short sgy5, of an inch. Thus they differ decidedly from the flat, cireular, non-
nucleated, red blood-dises of Mammalia, which latter are supposed to be rather free nuclei than
perfected Haematamebe. The red color of blood is entircly due to the presence of these
unicellular animals. The energy of respiration, and corresponding activity of circulation in
birds, make them hematothermal, or hot-blooded; the pulse is quickest, the blood hottest,
and richest in organic matter, in these of all animals.

The Heart is a hollow muscular organ, at the physiological centre of the heematic vas-
cular system. Its muscle presents the principal exception to the rule, that the contractility of
Myameba striata (see p. 192) is subject to voluntary control. It is the most industrious organ
of the body, never ceasing its rhythmic systole and diastole, or contraction and dilatation, from
the moment of the first pulsation in the contractile vesicle which begins it, to that when the
“muffled drum” gives the last beat of the “funeral march to the grave.” The arteries are
the elastic thick-walled branching tubes which leave the heart on their way to the body at
large; their pulsations, over which the vaso-motor nervous system presides, are isochronous
with the heart-beats, and arterial blood thus flows in jets. The veins are the vessels converg-
ing from all parts; thin-walled, less elastic, with more equable current. The capillaries are
the communicating vessels, of such size as just to permit the Hematamebas to pass through ;
their network represents the terminations of arteries and the commencements of veins. The
heart in adult birds is completely double ; ¢. ¢., the right and left sides are perfectly separated.
Tt is also completely four-chambered ; ¢. ¢., there is an awricle and a ventricle on each side,
which communicate ; in embryonic life the two auricles communicate by the foramen ovale,

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— ANGEIOLOGY. 197

which then closes. Arteries proceed from the strong muscular ventricles ; veins are received by
the weaker auricles. The course of the blood is: From the body excepting the lungs it comes,
dark and heavy with products of decomposition, through the caval veins into the right auricle ;
from right auricle through the auriculo-ventricular opening into right ventricle ; from right ven-
tricle through the pulmonary arteries to the lungs; in the capillaries of which it is relieved of
its burden. There decarbonized and oxygenized, the bright red aerated blood returns through
the pulmonary veins to the left auricle ; through the corresponding auriculo-ventricular open-
ing to the left rentricle, which pumps it out through the aorta and other arteries to the
capillaries, and so to the veins and heart again. Thus the pulmonary arteries convey black
blood, the pulmonary veins red blood; the reverse of the usual course. Before lungs come into
play, in the egg, the blood is purified in the allantois, an embryonic organ which then sustains
a respiratory function. Besides the pulmonary there is another special circulatory arrange-
ment, the hepatic portal system of veins, by which blood coming from the chylopoetic viscera
(stomach, intestines, ete., which make chyle in the process of digestion), strains through the
liver before reaching the heart. There is no renal portal system in birds.

The heart of birds is not peculiar in its conical shape, but is more median in position than
in mammals. There being no completed diaphragm, the pericardial sac which holds it is received
in a recess between lobes of the liver. The right ventricle is much thinner-walled than the
left; the auricles have less of the elongation which has caused their natne (“‘ little ears” of the
heart) in mammals. The right auriculo-ventricular valve, which prevents regurgitation of
blood, instead of being thin and membranous, is a thick fleshy flap which during the ventricular
systole applies itself closely to the walls of the cavity. The pulmonary artery and the aorta are
each provided at their origination with the ordinary three crescentic or ‘‘ semilunar” valves; as
in mammals. The pulmonary artery arises single, forking for each lung. The pulmonary
veins are two. The systemic veins, or vene cave, bringing blood from the body at large, are
three — two pre-caval, from head and upper extremities, one post-caval, from trunk and lower
extremities. The aorta, almost immediately at the root of that great trunk, figs. 90-95, h,
divides into three primary brauches; right, ri, and left, , innominate arteries, conveying
bluod to the neck, head and upper extremities ; and main aortic, a, which curves over to the
right (left in mammals) and supplies the rest of the body. More precise statement is, perhaps,
that the aortic root, h, first gives off the left innominate, li, then at once divides into right
innominate, 77, and main aortic trunk, a, (right). It represents the fourth primitive aortic
arch of the embryo. On the whole, the avian heart is a great improvement on that of most
reptiles, though nearly resembling that of Crocodilia ; it is substantially as in any mammal,
though differing in its fleshy right auriculo-ventricular valve, two instead of one pre-caval vein,
right instead of left aortic arch, and mode of origin of the primary aortic branches.

The zoélogical interest of the avian blood-vessels centres in the carotid arteries, which,
with the vertebral arteries, supply the neck and head. The carotids may be single or double;
and other details of their disposition correspond well with certain families and orders of birds.
They are the first branches of the innominates. In most birds, there is but one carotid, the
left; in a few, one, formed by early union of two; in many, two, long distinct. The arrange-
ment will be perceived by the diagrams taken from Garrod’s admirable paper (P. Z. S., 1873,
p- 457). In nearly the words of this author: 1. In what may be termed the typical arrange-
ment (though it is not the usual one), two carotids, of equal size or nearly so, run up the front
of the neck, converging till they meet in the middle line, and so continue up to the head, on the
front of the bodies of the cervical vertebra, in the hypapophysial canal. Birds with this
arrangement Garrod calls aves bicarotidine normales (fig. 90). 2. In most birds, the carotid
branch of the right innominate being not developed, only the left, of larger size, traverses the
hypapophysial canal; but it bifureates before reaching the head, thus producing two carotids,
distributed as if there had been two all the way up. Such birds are said to have a left carotid,

198 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

and are termed aves levo-carotidine (fig. 91). 3. In certain parrots only, with two carotids,
the right is as in (1), but the left runs superficially along the neck with the jugular vein and
pneumogastric nerve; such birds are aves bicarotidine abnormales (fig. 92). 4. Two carotids,
arising normally, unite almost immediately, and the single trunk runs to near the head, just as
if there were two as in (1); then it bifurcates, as in birds with left carotid only (2). Such birds
are termed aves conjuncto-carotidine. Special cases of (4) are: in the bittern, the two roots
are of nearly equal size (fig. 93); in the flamingo, the left is very small (fig. 94); in a cockatoo,
the right is very small (fig. 95). Parrots display all four of the arrangements; the cases of the
bittern and flamingo are unique. The question is thus for nearly all birds narrowed to whether
there be two normal carotids (1), or the left only (2). Observations upon three hundred genera
show two in oue hundred and ninety-three, in one hundred and seven the left only; but the

Fia, 95.

Fics. 90-95. — Diagrams of carotid arteries of birds: h, root of aorta; a, arch of aorta, to the right side ; li, left
innominate ; ri, right innominate ; Js, left subclavian ; rs, right subclavian; Ic, left carotid; rc, right carotid. (1)
Fig 90. Aves bicarotidine normales, with two carotids, both alike. (2) Fig. 91. Aves levo-carotidine, with left
carotid only. (8) Fig. 92. Aves bicarotidinew abnormales, certain parrots, with two carotids, not alike. (4, 5, 6)
Aves conjuncto-carotidine, with two carotids, which speedily unite in one. (4) Fig. 93, bittern, both alike. (5)
Fig. 94, flamingo, left very small. (6) Fig. 95, cockatoo, right very small. (Copied by Shufeldt from Garrod.)
numerical proportion of Passerine genera makes (2) the most frequent arrangement. There is
but one carotid in all Passeres as far as known; in most Cypselide ; in Trogonide, Meropide,
Upupide, Rhamphastide, some Psittaci, the Turnicide, Megapodide, Podicipedide, Alcide,
Rheide, Apterygide. Thus in Passeres, Columbe, Accipitres, Gralla, and Anseres, the
carotid arrahgement is an ordinal character, all but the first named of these great groups
having two. The character separates most of the families of “ Picarian” birds, and also dis-
tinguishes the families Phenicopteride, Megapodide, Cracide, Turnicide, Podicipedide, and
family groups: of the Ratite, from among one another. It is apparently only a generic charac-
ter in Psittaci, and in Cypselide, Ardeide and Alcide.

Reaching the skull, the carotids burrow in the bone, between the basitemporal plate and
the true floor of the skull, and enter the cranial cavity by the “sella turcica” (the original
pituitary space) ; their anastomosis furnishes a sort of ‘‘ circle of Willis.” (Figs. 66, 69, 70, zc.)

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.—PNEUMATOLOGY. 199

Both limbs of birds have a prime peculiarity of their arteries as compared with mammals.
In the fore limb, the blood supply being chiefly absorbed by the immense pectoral muscles,
vessels which in mammals are small axillary branches appear like the main coutinuation of the
subclavian trunk, and the brachial arteries are correspondingly reduced. In the leg, the main
source of supply is the great ischiac artery, the femoral being small. This ischiac artery cor-
responds to the twig which in man accompanies the great sciatic nerve (comes nervi ischiatict) ;
and the rare human anomaly of a posterior main vessel of the thigh is therefore a reversion
{atavism) to the avian rule. There is no single proper renal artery to the kidney.

The Lymphatics of birds consist chiefly of a deep set accompanying the main blvuod-
vessels, forming various plexus, — nodes, ‘‘ glands,” or ‘‘lymph-hearts” in their course. Su-
perficial lymphatics, so prominent in mammals, are little developed, though lymphatic glands
are found in the arm-pit and groin of some birds. ‘These are the systemic vessels; a special
set, the lacteals, arise by numberless twigs in the course of the small intestine, uniting and re-
uniting to form at length two (not one as in mammals) main tubes, which lie along either side
of the spinal column. These are the thoracic ducts; which terminal trunks of the whole lym-
phatic system empty into the right and left yugular veins at the root of the neck. The contents
of the vessels differ correspondingly. Pure lymph is a pale, limpid, albuminous fluid, contain-
ing when maturely elaborated a number of irregular amceboid bodies, indistinguishable from
the white formative corpuscles of the blood (p. 196). It is strained out of. the tissues at large,
being that material, not yet effete, which is still fit for feeding the blood. The lacteals contain
chyle, —the other kind of lymph, drained off by the mucous membrane of the intestine from the
prepared food in that tube; an albuminous fluid, milky or cloudy from the abundance of oil-
globules, which, after mingling with the systemic lymph, is poured directly into the current of
the blood, in the manner above said. Since the lacteals do not appear to begin with open
mouths, the chyle must soak into them through the lining membrane of the intestines; and
as this consists of a layer of amceba-like animals, through whose bodies the chyle passes, it is »
quite true to say that the whole organism is nourished upon the excrement of amebas.

e. PNEUMATOLOGY: THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.

The Organs of Respiration provide for the ventilation of the body. Since the respira-
tory process is also calorific, they likewise furnish a heating apparatus. They consist essen-
tially of air-passages and air-spaces connected with lung-tissue, being therefore pulmonary
organs. No other animals are so thoroughly permeated as birds with the atmospheric medium
in which they live; in no others are the respiratory functions so energetic and effectual. The
lung may be likened to a blast-furnace for the combustion of decayed animal matter; puiifica-
tion of the blood and warming of the body being two inseparable results obtained. Dark
blood flowing to the lungs, heavy with effete carbonaceous matters, is there relieved of its bur-
den and aérated by the action of oxygen; the products of combustion being exhaled in the
form of carbonic dioxide and water. Aside from the proper lung-tissue, the capillary substance
of the immense air-saes tends to the same result. There is likewise, in birds, a lesser system-
of ventilation, by which air is admitted to cranial bones through the eustachian tubes; but
this is unconuected with the proper respiratory office. Pulmonary tissue consists chiefly of a
wonderful net (a rete mirabile) of capillaries, interlacing in every direction, bound together and
supported by fine connective tissue, and invested with meinbrane so delicate that their walls
seem naked, their exposure to the air being thus very thorongh. Air gains such intimacy
with the capillaries through the larynx, trachea (fig. 101, 0), and bronchial tubes (7, 7), these
being the primary air-passages. But all the bronchial tubes do not subdivide into the ultimate
air-cells; some large ones ran through the lung, pierce its surface (as at w, u, fig. 101), and end

200 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

in that system of enormous air-spaces for which the respiratory system of birds is so remarkably
distinguished, —like a heap of soap-bubbles, blown up en masse from a bow] of fluid; the extra-
pulmouary air-spaces being the larger superficial bubbles, the minute vesicles of lung-tissue
proper being little bubbles just formed. In this way air penetrates even the hollow skeleton of
most birds (p. 135).

The Lungs of Birds (fig. 101, ¢, t), notwithstanding their heated energy of respiration,
are anatomically more like those of reptiles than of mammals. They are not shut by a dia-
phragm in a special division of the great thoracic-abdominal cavity of the body, but extend from
the apex of the chest as far as the kidneys, in the pelvic region. They are not divided into lobes,
as in mammals, nor do they as in that class float freely in the chest by their mooring at their
roots; nor, again, are-they completely invested by a serous membrane forming a closed pleural
cavity. They are fixed in the dorsal region of the general cavity, covered in front with pleura,
with which slips of the rudimentary diaphragm (v, v, v) are connected; but on the dorsal surface
are accurately moulded to the intercostal spaces, showing the impressions of the ribs and verte-
bree, — just as the lobulated kidneys are stamped with the sacral inequalities of surface. They
are, as usual, two, right and left; their ‘‘ roots” are the bronchi (r, ”), the pulmonary arteries.
and veins, nerves, and connective tissue.

The Pneumatocysts. — A bird is literally inflated with these great membranous recepta-
cles of air, and draws a remarkably ‘long breath,” —all through the trunk of the body, in
several pretty definite compartments; in many, or most, or all, of the bones; in many inter-
muscular spaces; in some birds also throughout -the cellular tissue immediately beneath the
skin. They vary so much in extent and disposition as tu be not easily described except either
in the most general terms already used, or with particularity of detail for different species. Ac- °
cording to Owen, however, the usual disposition is: An iter-clavicular air-space, quite con-
stant: this, with its cervical prolongations, furnishes the great ‘‘air-drums” of our pinnated
grouse and cock-of-the-plains. Anterior thoracic, about the roots of the lungs. Lateral tho-
racic, prolonged to axillary, and to spaces and passages in the wings, including the hollow
humerus. Large hepatic or posterior thoracic, about the lower part of the lung and the liver.
Abdominal, right and left, of great size, from the lower part of the lung where the longest bron-
chial tubes open very freely; extending to pelvic and inguinal compartments, whence femoral
sacs, the hollow of the femur, ete. The subcutaneous cells are enormously developed in the
pelican and gannet; the extensive areolar tissue being thoroughly pneumatic, and furnished
with an arrangement of the cutaneous muscle (panniculus carnosus) whereby, apparently, the
air may be rapidly and forcibly expelled by compression. A similar muscle develops in some
birds’ in connection with the interclavicular air-space. (For pneumaticity of the skeleton, see
p. 135.)

The purpose of this extensive respiratory apparatus is thus dwelt upon by the great “‘New-
ton of Anatomy” just cited: ‘The extension from the lungs of continuous air-receptacles
throughout the body is subservient to the function of respiration, not only by a change in the
blood of the pulmonary circulation effected by the air of the receptacles on its repassage through
the bronchial tubes; but also, and more especially, by the change which the blood undergoes
in the capillaries of the systemic circulation which are in contact with the air-receptacles.
The free outlet to the air by the bronchial tubes does not, therefore, afford an argument against
the use of the air-cells as subsidiary respiratory organs, but rather supports that opinion, since
the inlet of atmospheric oxygenated air to be diffused over the body must be equally free. A
second use may be ascribed to the air-cells as aiding mechanically the action of respiration in
birds. During the act of inspiration the sternum is depressed [lowered from the back-bone in
norizontal position of a bird], the angle between the vertebral and sternal ribs made less acute,

7 |

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.—PNEUMATOLOGY. 201-

and the thoracic eavity proportionally enlarged; the air then rushes into the lungs and tho-
racic receptacles, while those of the abdomen become flaccid; when the sternum is raised or
approximated towards the spine, part of the air is expelled from the lungs and thoracic cells
through the trachea, and part driven into the abdominal receptacles, which are thus alternately
enlarged and diminished with those of the thorax. Hence the lungs, notwithstanding their
fixed condition, are subject to due compression through the medium of the contiguous air-
receptacles, and are affected equally and regularly by every motion of the sternum and ribs.
A third use, and perhaps the one which is most closely related to the peculiar exigencies of the
bird, is that of rendering the whole body specifically lighter; this must necessarily follow from
the desiccation of the marrow and other fluids in those spaces which are occupied by the air-
cells, and by the rarification of the contained air from the heat of the body. . . . A fourth use
of the air-receptacles relates to the mechanical assistance which they afford to the muscles of
the wings. This was suggested by observing that an inflation of the air-cells in the gigantic
erane (Ciconia argala) was followed by an extension of the wings, as the air found its way
along the brachial and anti-brachial cells. In large birds, therefore, which, like the argala [or
our wood ibis, Tantalus loculator], hover with a sailing motion for a long-continued period in
the upper regions of the air, the muscular exertion of keeping the wings outstretched will be
lessened by the tendency of the distended air-cells to maintain that condition. It is not meant
to advance this as other than a secondary and probably partial service of the air-cells. In the
same light may be regarded the use assigned to them by Hunter, of contributing to sustain the
song of birds and to impart to it tone and strength. It is no argument against this function
that the air-cells exist in birds which are not provided ‘with the mechanism necessary to pro-
duce tuneful notes; since it was not pretended that this was the exclusive and only office of the
air-cells.” (Owen, dnat. Vert., ii, 1866, p. 216.)

Though nothing like them exists in mammals, it must not be inferred that these air-
pouches are unique in birds. The general pulmonary mechanism is reptile-like, and the or-
nithic development is simply a logical extreme of arrangements found in reptiles and lower

' vertebrates, — even to the swim-bladder of a fish, which is morphologically and homologically
pulmonary, though fishes’ gills are functionally, and therefore analogically. their lungs: i. ¢.,
their respiratory apparatus.

The Trachea (Gr. rpayeia, tracheia, rough) or ‘‘ asper-artery”
answers perfectly to its English name, wind-pipe. It is the tube
which conveys air to and from the lungs (fig. 101, 1, 0 tog). It
commences at the root of the tongue by a chink in the floor of the
mouth (fig. 101, 3, ¢), rans down the neck in front between the
gullet and the skin, and ends below by forking into right and left
bronchus (fig. 101, 1, r, r). It is composed of a series of very
numerous gristly or bony rings connected together by elastic
membrane. Lengthening and shortening, effected by muscles
to be presently noted, is permitted by a very ingenious and in-
teresting construction of these rings, which will be clearly under-
stood with the help of the figures (96, u, b, 97 1,2) borrowed from
Maegillivray’s admirable account. When contracted, the rings
look like an alternating series of lateral half-hoops, as in fig. ie. 66. ee tech oF tee
96, a; when stretched to the utmost, as in fig. 96, 6 they are chea, contracted to the utmost.
clearly seen to be annular, or completely circular. The curious ee ay aioe & oe car :
bevelling of the right and left sides . each ring alternately is _ stretched to two inches, the rings
shown in fig. 97, 1,2; and fig. 97, 1, 2, represents the same two sles Acie ait pele

rings put together. The principle by which any two rings slip _ gillivray.)

202 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

partly over each other on alternate sides is something like that upon which a cooper fustens
the ends of any one barrel-hoop without any nailing or tying. The rings are in some birds
perfectly cartilaginous: in most they become
osseous. The trachea is meved by lateral
muscles, which not only shorten the tube by
approximating the rings, but also drag the
whole structure backward, by their atcach-
ment to the clavicle and sternum. The strip,

Fie 97.—1, 2, left hand, two tracheal rings, sepa- OF two strips, of muscle lying upon each side
rate, as in fig. 96, b; 1, 2, right hand, the same put of the trachea, is the contractor trachee (fig.
NE ae ee .. 101, 4, ss, ss); the most anterior, when thero
are two, as soon as it leaves the tube to go to the clavicle, becomes the cleido-trachealis, or
cleido-hyoid, fig. 101, 1, f, f: the other is similarly the sterno-trachealis. The latter may be a
direct continuation of the contractor, as in fig. 101, 1, the loose strips under q, or apparently
arise separately from the side of the lower end of the tube, as in fig. 101,16, e. (Other muscles
are to be described with the larynx superior and inferior.) The trachea is long in birds, pro-
portionate to the extension of the neck; it is very flexuous, following with ease the bends of
the neck in which it lies so loosely. Its cross section is oval or circular; but all that relates
to the configuration and course of the pipe requires special description, —so variable is the
organ in different birds. It is subject to dilatations and contractions in any part of its extent,
and to deviations from its usual direct course to the lungs. Minor modifications must be
passed over. The most remarkable expansions of the lower part of the tube occur in many
sea-ducks and mergansers (F'uliguline and Merging), and some other birds; several lower rings
of the trachea being enormously enlarged and welded together into a great bony and mem-
branous box, of wholly irregular, unsymmetrical contour. Such a structure, represented in
figs. 3 and 98, is termed a tracheal tympanum, or laby-
rinth. Tt is not a part of the voice-organ proper, but
may act as a reverberatory chamber to increase the vol-
ume of the sound, without however modulating it. Being
chiefly developed in the male, it is a kind of secondary
sexual organ. The vagaries of the wind-pipe are still
more remarkable. Very generally, in cranes and swans,
the trachea enters the keel of the sternum, which is exca-
vated to receive it, and where it forms one or more coils
before emerging to pass to the lungs. This curious wind-
ing is carried to an extreme in our Grus americana, the
whooping erane, in which the wind-pipe is about as long
as the whole bird, and about half of it— over two feet of
it!—is coiled away in the breast-bone (fig. 99). The
same thing occurs in G. canadensis to a less extent (fig.
ON Tae age eae 100). Ina Guinea-fowl, Guttera cristata, a loop of the
islandica, seen from behind, nat. size. Dr. trachea is received in a cup formed by the apex of the
Be Wo Shuteld ty USA clavicles. In various birds, as some of the curassows (Cra-
cide), the capercaillie (Tetrao wrogallus), a goose, Anseranas semipalmata, and the female of the
curious snipe, Rhynchea australis, the trachea folds between the pectoral muscles and the skin.

The Larynx (the Gr. name, Adpuyé, laruge) is the peculiarly modified upper end of the
trachea (fig. 101, 1, and 3 to 12). In mammals it is a complicated voice- organ, containing the
vocal chords anil ther consonantal apparatus; in birds the construction is simpler, as the
larynx merely modulates the sound already produced in the lower end of the tube. It lies in

—————

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.—PNEUMATOLOGY. 208

Fre. 100. — Coiling of the windpipe in the sternum of Gras canadensis: reduced. “From Amer Nat.)

204 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the floor of the mouth, at the root of the tongue, between the forks of the hyoid bone, resting
upon the uro-hyal. Besides its attachments of mucous and other membrane, it is connected
with the hyoid bone by a pair of thyro-hyoid muscles (8, 1:1), and usually with the rest of the
trachea by prolongations of the sterno- and cleido-tracheales. It is usually a small, simple,
conical ‘‘ mouth-piece” of the pipe (4, a), without the dilatation which renders the corresponding
structure —the ‘‘ Adam’s apple,” — so conspicuous in the human throat. Below, it communi-
cates directly with the pipe: above, it opens into the mouth by the glottidean fissure, or rima
glottidis (8, c), a median lengthwise chink, which opens and shuts as its sides diverge or close
together, and which is further defended in front by a folding of the mucous membrane of the
mouth, constituting a rudiment of that curious trap-door arrangement which, when fully
a is called the epiglottis (3, d, e). Exclusive of two broken upper rings of the tra-
chea (6, g), the cartilages (or oftener bones, —for they generally ossify) of the larynx are five.
One is a large single median and inferior piece, the thyroid, or shield-piece (4, 8, 7, a),
forming the mest substantial part of the structure. It is somewhat triangular or milete, run-
ning to an obtuse end in front ; and with sides and posterior angles which curl upward behind.
To ie lateral posterior corner is attached on each side the small “horns” or cornicula laryngis
(5, 6, 7, b). There is a small median upper posterior piece, supposed to represent all there is
of the cricoid (6, 7, ¢), which in man makes a ring around the larynx below the thyroid. To
the ericoid, as to a base, are attached a pair of straight slender arytenoids (6, 7, d), projecting
forward along the upper surface of the larynx: these form the rima glottidis, — the fissure of the
glottis being between them. The arytenoids are attached in front by slender ligaments to the
end of the thyroid (®, the little slips between d and e), and they are supplemented by carti-
laginous edges (6, f, f) ; but there are no true vocal chords. Besides the extrinsic thyro-hyoid
muscles, which pass from the larynx to the tongue-bone, the laryngeal parts are operated by
intrinsic muscles, the sum of the motion given by which is the opening and shutting of the
glottis by drawing apart or pulling together the arytenoids. Four pairs of such muscles are
described for some birds. As named and figured by Macgillivray for the rook, there are: the
thyro-arytenoids, which are the openers of the glottis (9, 22); the oblique arytenoids (10, 3,3);
the thyro-cricotds (11, 44); and the posterior thyro-cricoids (11 and 12, 5,5),

The Syrinx (Gr. cipry§, suriga, a pipe) or Lower Larynx is the voice-organ of birds; in
most respects a more complicated structure than the larynx proper, and one so differently
constructed in different birds that it affords characters of great significance in classification.
The highest group of Passeres, for example, is signalized by the elaboration of this musical
organ, the marvellously adroit fingering of the keys of which by the little muscular performers
sends through the tracheal sounding-pipe the tuneful messages of bird’s highest estate. A few
degraded or disgraced birds, as the ostrich and the American vultures, have no bucolic organ at
all, the trachea forking as simply as possible. Others, as the common fowl, have a fair syrinx,
bat no muscles whatever to modulate their pastoral lays. Others have one, two, or three pairs
of intrinsic muscles; to which may or may not be added a sterno-tracheal with syringeal attach-
ment. It is not so much the bulk or mere fleshiness of the syrinx that indicates musical abil-
ity; but the distinctness of the several muscles, and the mode of their insertion, which result in
endless combinations of rotating and rocking movements of the parts, whereby an infinite modu-
lation of the musical tones becomes possible. In Oscines, there are normally five or six pairs
of muscles, without counting the extrinsic sterno-tracheales; and the gist of the arrangement,
in these melodious Passeres, is the attachment of the muscles to the ends of the upper bronchial
half-rings, as far as the third one. As Professor Owen remarks with appreciative feeling, ‘the
manifold ways in which the several parts of the complex vocal organ in Cantores may be
affected, each of the principal bony half-rings, as one or the other end may be pulled, being
made to perform a slight rotatory motion, are incalculable; but their effects are delightfully

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— PNEUMATOLOGY. 205

appreciable by the rapt listener to the singularly varied kind and quality of notes trilled forth
in the stillness of gloom by the nightingale.”

I should be able to make the plan of the syrinx clear to the student with the assistance of
Macgillivray’s beautiful figures. These are drawn from the rook, — a corvine croaker, indeed,
but one whose syriux is in good order, though he has never learned to play. As the modifica-
tions affect principally the soft parts covering and moving the music-box, one description of the
latter is applicable to most birds. The last lower ring, or piece composed of several fused rings,
of the trachea, at its bifurcation into bronchi, is enlarged or otherwise modified (fig. 101, 38,
aba, and crossed below from front to back by a bony bar, the pessulus (18, at b; 15, a), or
bolt-bar, which, dividing it into lateral halves (as at 14), forms thus two lateral openings
instead of one median tube, —the beginnings of each bronchial tube. A membranous plate,
‘strengthened by cartilage, rises vertically into the tracheal tube, forming a septwm, or median
‘partition, between the orifices of each bronchus. The free curved upper margin of this septum,
extending of course, from front to back of the orifice, is called the semilunar membrane; being
the edge of a partition common to both bronchi, it forms, in fact, the inner lip of each bronchial
orifice ; that is to say, the inner rima glottidis syringis, or lip of the syringeal mouth-piece.
‘This membraue vibrates with the column of air, and is, in fact, one of the ‘vocal chords. ”
Now the bronchial rings which succeed are not annular, cireumscribing the bronchial tube,
but are half-rings (5, b, b), or ares of circles to be completed by membraue, which forms more
or less (scarcely or not half) of the circumference of the tube; this membranous part, termed
the internal tympaniform membrane (15, ¢ to ¢), being on the side of the bronchus which faces
its fellow, while the hard bronchial half-rings complete the rest of the cylinder. The mem-
brane is attached to the pessulus above. This accounts for the whole bronchial tube and its
vocal septum from its fellow. Now the concavity of the upper two or three bronchial half-
rings, on the outer wall of the tube, but in its interior, is the place where is developed a certain
fold of the mucous membrane, projecting into the tube opposite the septum, and forming the
outer lip of the syringeal glottis; for this membranous fold, like the semilunar membrane, is
set quivering in vocalization. The upper tracheal rings which enter into this arrangement
are enlarged and otherwise modified. Thus are formed two “vocal chords,” upon the vibrations
of which the harmonious or discordant notes of the bird depend. The cords are struck by the
hand of air indeed, but endless musical variations result from the play of the muscles in increas-
ing or diminishing and variously combining the tension of the several parts of the instrument.
In giving four pairs of intrinsic syringeal muscles (anterior external, anterior internal, inter-
mediate, and posterior, besides the extrinsic sterno-tracheales), as figured in 16, a, b,c, d and e,
Macgillivray is said to have understated the full oscine number, which is five or six. Inthe raven,
Owen describes five, without counting the sterno-trachealis: broncho-trachealis anticus, anterior
external; broncho-trachealis josticus, posterior external; broncho-trachealis brevis, posterior
internal ; bronchialis anticus, anterior internal; and bronchialis posticus. The general arrange-
ment, however, is fairly indicated by Macgillivray in 16, where on the side of the syrinx, the mus-
cles are seen to diverge from the tracheal lateral line to go to ends of the bronchial semi-rings.

The student will understand that my description is particular only as regards the oscine
syrinx; that in birds at large every possible modification, almost, of lower tracheal and upper
bronchial rings occurs, and with various musculation, or with none. The non-oscine rule for
the muscles is, one on each side, if any; and insertion into mid-parts, not ends, of the bronchial
half-rings. The latter character chiefly distinguishes the non-oscine syrinx when it has sev-
eral muscles. As to situations of the syrinx, three have been recognized : the ordinary broncho-
tracheal, in formation of which both bronchi and trachea take part; the tracheal, only known
to occur in some American Passeres, as in Thamnophilus and Opetiorhynchus, situated wholly
in the trachea, the lower part of which is extensively membranous ; and the bronchial, wholly
in the bronchi, as in Crotophaga and Steatornis.

‘

206 . ‘GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

Fic. 101. — Respiratory and vocal organs of the Rook, Corvus frugilegus, an Oscine Passerine bird; nat. size,
after Macgillivray. 1. a, tongue; b, basi-branchial, commonly called uro-hyal; c, c, horns of hyoid bone; d, a,
genio-hyoid muscles; e, e, stylo-hyoid muscles; J, f, cleido-hyoid muscles; g, h, é, esophagus; j, proventriculus;
or secretory stomach; k, gizzard, or gigerium, the muscular stomach; J, m, n,m, intestine, duodenum to rectum ;

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— PNEUMATOLOGY. 207

0, p, trachea, or windpipe; q, inferior larynx, or syrinx ; 7,7, right and left bronchus: ss, ss, contractor muscles
of trachea; ¢, ¢, lungs, with w, vw, apertures communicating with thoracic air-cells; v, v, v, three pairs of muscular
slips answering to arudimentary diaphragm; 1,2,3, 4,5,6,7, as many ribs. — 2. Hyoid bone; a, glosso-hyal, tipped
with cartilage, its posterior horns being cerato-hyals proper; 0, basi-hyal; c, basi-branchial proper, commonly
ealled uro-hyal; d, d, cerato-branchials proper, commonly called apo-hyals ; e, e, epibranchials proper, commonly
called cerato-hyals, tipped with cartilage, 7, —3. Glottis, or opening of trachea in the mouth; a, base of tongue;
b, 6, horns of hyoid bone ; c, rima glottidis, cleft or chink of the glottis; d,a triangular vacuity ; ¢, an elastic liga-
ment; «@ and e represent an epiglottis ; f , a papillose surface. —4. Larynx viewed from before (below); a, thy-
roid bone or cartilage.—5. Larynx viewed from behind (above); a, thyroid bone; 6, b, its appendages; c, cricoid;
d, d, arytenoids; e, e, anterior border of thyroid, to which d,d are connected by two arytenoid ligaments. —6.
Larynx viewed from right side; @, thyroid; b, appendage ; c, cricoid; d, arytenoid ; ff, cartilage attached to ary-
tenoid; g,a tracheal ring. —7. Larynx viewed from behind; a, thyroid; 8, 0, its appendages; c, cricoid; d, d, ary-
tenoids. — 8, 9,10, 11,12. Muscles of the larynx; 1,1 (fig. 8), thyro-hyoids; 2, 2 (fig. 9), thyro-arytenoids, or openers
of the glottis; 3,3 (fig. 10), oblique arytenoids; 4, 4 (fig. 11), thyro-cricoids; 5,5 (figs. 11 and 12), posterior thyro-
cricoids. — 13. Bifurcation of trachea; aba, last entire tracheal ring. —14. Last entire tracheal ring, viewed from
below, crossed by the pessulus.—15. Bifurcation of trachea, and bronchi, viewed from below; a, pessulus, the
bolt-bar, or ‘‘ bone of divarication ”; b, b, next succeeding tracheal half-rings. —16. a, b, c, d, inferior laryngeal
or syringeal muscles, not well made out in this figure; see text. But the typical oscine arrangement (acromyo-
dian) is perceived, inasmuch as anterior (a) and posterior (d) intrinsic muscular masses go to ends of the first
tracheal half-ring, at b and c; the extrinsic slip e passing to sternum; compare fig. 1, at g. — 17. Trachea, etc., of
the nightingale, nat. size. (Compare figs. 3, 67, 72, 78, 74.)

, The Song of Birds unlocks the great secret of Genesis to those who can hear the key-
note. It is the closest approach, in animate nature, to the ringing of the hydrogen bells in the
physics of light. The musical instrument figured (101, 17) is the identical pipe the “‘ great god
Pan ” first fashioned for a legacy to all time, as so sweetly said by Mrs. Browning : —

“ He tore out a reed, the great god Pan,
From the deep cool bed of the river.
The limpid water turbidly ran,
Aud the broken lilies a-dying lay,
And the dragon-fly had fled away,
Ere he brought it out of the river.

‘«« This is the way,’ laughed the great god Pan,
(Laughed while he sate by the river!)
The only way since gods began
To make sweet music, they could succeed.’
Then dropping his mouth to a hole in the reed,
He blew in power by the river.

““ Sweet, sweet, sweet, O Pan,
Piercing sweet by the river!
Blinding sweet, O great good Pan!
The sun on the hill forgot to die,
And the lilies revived, and the dragon-fly
Came back to dream on the river.”

But the sad sequel, felt by Keats, when poor Psyche has seen and known, and Eros has
found his wings : —

“So did he feel who pulled the boughs aside,
That we might look into a forest wide,
To catch a glimpse of Fauns, and Dryades
Coming with softest rustle through the trees;
And garlands woven of flowers wild and sweet,
Upheld on ivory wrists, or sporting feet:
Telling us how fair trembling Syring fled
Arcadian Pan, with such a fearful dread.
Poor Nymph,—poor Pan, — how he did weep to find
Naught but a lovely sighing of the wind
Along the reedy stream! a half heard strain
Full of sweet desolation, balmy pain.”

The blessed bluc-bird, “bearing the sky upon her back,” is burthened with the same
“‘Jicht load of song” —

208 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

Have you listened to the carol of the bluebird in the spring?

Has her gush of molten melody been not poured forth in vain?
Ah! then the pulse has quickened, and a sigh, perhaps, has risen,
From the breast the bluebird’s music stirs to thoughts that lack expression —
So tender, so tumultuous are the fancies thus aroused.

The bluebird’s song breathes gladness — breathes the sweet and solemn triumph
Love feels when all love’s passion melts in its own fruition.
Exquisitely subtile are the chords the bluebird touches— _
Chords that quiver now in ecstasy, now thrill in fond expectancy,
Now die in dreams of all that might have been.

Hers is language to interpret, and translate in accents rhythmic,
All the yearning of young love to claim his own —

Of young love that trembles on the threshold of the passions, -
And shrinks before the images his ardor calls to life.

Thus to the maiden musing come thronging thoughts unbidden,
When she hears this speaking echo of the hopes that glow within;
And the tell-tale blushes redden to the rose-tint on the bosom

Of the bird that dares to breathe her secret joy. .

Thus to the youth impetuous, whose life is set to music —

Let love but laugh and beckon from afar —

Fulfilment sends a greeting in the soft voluptuous languor

That steals upon the senses if the bluebird’s song be heard —
This song of wondrous gladness, ever bubbling, welling, gushing,
From a fountain full of promise, inexhaustible, divine !

Sweeter far these liquid accents when the buds of hope are blighted,
And the tree of knowledge bears its bitter fruit;

When memory sits brooding on the ashes of her birthright,

And sackcloth shrouds a heart that once was young;

For a silver chord is quickened where was greedy, silent sorrow —
Responding to a sympathetic touch:

The bird sings true and tender, with a precious burden laden,
With the tidings of a love that never dies.

So in the timid spring-time, when the world wears wreaths of roses,
Ring clear the joyous melodies of hope!

So in the summer season, when the wine of pleasure reddens,
Ring passionate the triumphs of the heart!

So in the sad, still autumn, when life bends beneath its burden,
When what might have been has never come to pass,

Rings once again this music on the crushed and wounded spirit,
Bringing light where all was dark and drear before:

All is not lost if the music that the bluebird bears be heeded,

For her mission is to tell us love is God.

Though it is a fact that “the Chenomorphe are not provided with intrinsic syringeal
muscles,” there may be much truth in treatises de cantu Cycni morituri which have appeared
from time to time, and to the number of which I may be pardoned for adding : —

How sadly sweet, how soft and low
Is the music born of pain —
How mournful sounds the ebb and flow,
What measured beats, what throb and throe,
. In the wild swan’s dying strain!

The archer, Death, and the twanging bow,
And the fateful shaft on-sped,

All state and grace and pride laid low,

Disordered plumes and crimson flow —
For the white swan’s heart has bled.

But hear the mournful cry that rings
On the startled air of night!

As a spirit form in the darkness wings

Its way unseen, the wild swan sings
His psalm of life and light.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — SPLANCHNOLOGY. 209

How sadly sweet the solemn strain — =

The dirge of the dying swan!
That wondrous music, child of pain,
That requiem, sounding once again —

And a bird’s soul passes on.

f. SPLANCHNOLOGY: THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.

The Alimentary Canal, or digestive tract, is a tube which passes through the body
from mouth to anus, conveying food, the nutritious qualities of which are drawn off by the lac-
teals in transitu and assimilated, the refuse being voided. This is digestion. The canal is
really a tube within a tube, being contained in the cavity below the bodies of the vertebre,
formed by the series of heamal arches (p. 135). Birds are fast livers, their digestive operations,
like the processes of respiration and circulation, being very active and effectual; they require
proportionally great quantities of food. The voracity of the cormorant is proverbial, but it is
probably not greater than that of the ethereal nightingale. Birds as a class are omnivorous ;
many species are as nearly omnivorous as any animals can well be; but the majority are either
vegetarian or flesh-feeding. Very many birds feed upon fruits, hard or soft ; but even these,
when in the nest, are nourished for the most part upon the bodies of insects ; and it may be truly
said, that the great majority of birds are insectivorous. Birds seem to. be the great controlling
agency in the economy of nature, of the increase of insect life ; agriculture would be difficult if not
impracticable without them, and their economic value is ‘einaly incalculable. Insectivorous
birds cannot be much interfered with, without destroying one of the most important and conse-
quential of nature’s many beautiful adjustments. The bird cries perpetual ‘ échec!” to the
insect. Even those birds which are mainly flesh-eaters, as the hawks and owls, are similarly
beneficial, for the creatures they chiefly prey upon are the small rodents so fateful to husbandry.
The carrion-eaters contribute largely to make tropical regions habitable to man. Various
tribes of birds feed almost exclusively upon fish; and these sometimes reach the dignity of
diplomatic and other political interests of mankind: nations have gone to war over the dung
of such birds, guano-beds being to some of the South American powers a large item of their
revenue. Chili and Peru have been fighting lately, and the United States have been wrang-
ling, over the excrements of the alimentary canal of sea-birds. This tube, in general, is
shortest, simplest, and most direct in the flesh- and fish-eaters, the nature of whose food assim-
ilates already more nearly to the substance of their bodies than does that of the vegetarians.
The tube is modified in different portions of its extent, for the prehension, retention, saturation,
maceration, and comminution of food, and the mixture with it of other solvent fluids than those
secreted by the mucous membrane of the alimentary canal itself. Hence arise the various
modifications of its length, dilatation here, contraction there; the presence in its lining mem-
brane of numerous follicles ; and the annexation of various glandular organs. Being always
longer than the body, the tube is necessarily coiled away in certain places; this folding taking
place.chietly in the intestinal part of the tract. Modifications of structure make recognizable
parts, as the mouth, gullet, crop, stomach, gizzard, intestine, cloaca, anus. Annex organs
are the salivary pisnds, the liver, and the pancreas, all of which pour their secretions into the
canal. This tube also recgives the terminations of other systems of organs: the auditory organ
of special sense; the respiratory system, which is at first a mere bud or off-set from the
digestive ; the urinary and the generative, which, though originally distinct, primitively and
permanently open into the lower bowel. The intestine is also continuous with the cavity of the
umbilical vesicle of the embryo, a primitive structure which disappears as the chick matures;
and with that of the allantois, another embryotic organ which begins by budding from the intes-
tinal cavity. Its connection with the system of blood-vessels is direct through the lacteals and
thoracic ducts (p. 199). Its operations are automatic and spontaneous, of the “reflex” order ;

Ik

210

. GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

that is, excited by the presence of food, — having work to do making it work, so to speak. Its
innervation is chiefly by the pneumogastric and sympathetic nerves; and digestion is the most
purely vegetative function, dealing with the raw materials of nutrition and consequently of the
growth and repair of the whole body. The active factors in this transaction are several spe-
cies or varieties of small creatures, called Enteramebe; they are all derived by descent with
modification from ‘the hypoblastic cells of the early embryo. Those of the canal itself form
all the mucous epithelium of that structure, with its various secretory crypts, follicles, and villi;
similar creatures, perhaps of different genera, form the lining of the salivary, hepatic, and pan-
creatic glands. Blood-vessels, in intimate connection with the digestive organs, form that
special venous arrangement by which the blood coming from that part of the intestinal tract
where chyle is made is collected in a portal system and sent through the liver, —in the embryo
a sort of ‘‘ great dismal swamp” which interrupts the ordinary current. The tube within the
tube is fixed not only at its ends, but by various membranous connections, among them the
mesenteries. We will notice the several departments of the alimentary canal, and its annexes;
reference should be made to the colored frontispiece, and to fig. 101, where most parts of the
digestive system are shown.

The Mouth and Tongue.
is divided, and the ‘‘manual” organ it contains. The mouth in general corresponds to the”

Fic 102,—Gular pouch of
bustard; copied by Shufeldt
from Garrod. a, tongue; J,
the pouch, opening under a,
hanging in front ofc, the tra-
chea, behind which is the

* esophagus, d, with its crop, e.

The most anterior of the special cavities in which the tube

shape of the jaws, already sufficiently noted (pp. 100, 162). The
anterior part is much hardened, like the beak; in fact, this hard-
ness of the buccal cavity, and the absence, or very slight distine-
tion, of a “soft palate,” are among the peculiarities of a bird’s
mouth. There is consequently little distinction, if any, between
mouth proper and fauces, or pharynx, which is the posterior part,
leading directly into the gullet. Besides this communication the
mouth receives the terminations of four special cavities. 1. The
posterior nares, on the roof of the mouth posteriorly, generally a
median slit, leading into the nasal chambers. 2. The generally
single and median and more posterior opening of the eustachian
tubes, which lead into the tympanum, and are the remains of the
first post-oral visceral cleft of the early embryo. 3. The glottis (fig.
101, 8, ¢), a slit at the base of the tongue, the opening of the wind-
pipe, and so of the whole respiratory system, which is defended by
a rudimentary trap-door, the epiglottis, if any. 4. One or several
pairs of orifices, the openings of the ducts of the salivary glands.
These structures, corresponding to the parotid, submaxillary, aud
sublingual glands of mammals, vary extremely in their develop-
ment. In woodpeckers, for example, and some Raptores, elaborate
special salivary glands occur, having a glomerate structure, and
a special ‘‘stenonine” duct. In many other birds, similarly com-
pound but less elaborate submaxillary glands pour their secretion
into the mouth by a series of pores. In,most birds, however, the
salivary glands are small, simple, and less distinct from various
other sets of mucous erypts which open into the mouth. In the
great bustard (Otis tarda; fig. 102) there is a singular buccal strue-

ture; @ great pouch opening beneath the tongue, susceptible of distension during those amatory
antics termed the ‘ showing-off” of the creature. It is in fact an air-sac, but not of the kind
already considered (p. 200), having no connection with the respiratory system. The narial,
eustachian and glottidean apertures are commonly defended by retrorse papilla ; and other snch

UR,

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— SPLANCHNOLOGY. 211

processes of mucous membrane, knobbed or acute, may occur elsewhere in lines and patches.
The roof of the mouth is nearly all “hard palate,” as already said; its soft floor is the mucous
membrane and skin between the jaws, with muscular or other intervening structures. The
principal floormg muscle is the mylo-hyoid ; the genio-hyoid (fig. 101, 1, d) is another, which
passes, like the first, from the mandibular to the hyoid bone; a third is the stylo-hyoid (e).
The floor in some cases forms a pouch, which, as in the case of the pelican, is of great exteut
and susceptible of enormous dilatation (fig. 501).

The handler of the mouth, or lingual organ, is the tongue, which answers the same pur-
pose as in other creatures: it is tactile, to some extent gustatory, sometimes prehensile, nearly
always manipulatory. In some birds, as the pelican and ibis, and also the kingfisher, it is
very slightly developed, — scarcely more than a pad at the bottom of the mouth, enjoying the
most limited motion or other function. In some birds, as the parrot and duck tribes, and also
the flamingo, the tongue is large, thick, and fleshy, quite filling the mouth. In the first-
named of these, it is dexterously manipulatory ; the morsel of food is managed between the
tongue and upper beak ; the tactile certainly and perhaps the gustatory sense is highly devel-
oped; and the fleshiness of the tongue may affect that power of articulate speech for which
some parrots are justly noted. In the Lamellirostres just mentioned the tongue has lateral
processes corresponding to the denticulations of the beak, and the under surface is horny at the,
end, like a human finger-nail. In the woodpeckers (figs. 73, 74) the tongue itself (glosso-hyal
part of the hyoid) is reduced to a slight horny and spiny tip of the lmgual apparatus; but other
parts of that mechanism are so extraordinarily developed that the ‘‘tongue” appears as a
lumbriciform (worm-like), spear-headed organ usually capable of great protrusion from the
mouth, and therefore acting as a prehensile instrument, being bedewed for that purpose with
tenacious saliva from the great salivary glands; while it is actuated in protrusion and retraction :
by specially developed muscles. In the snipe and many of the long slender-billed waders, the
tongue is similarly slender, but not protrusible. The long narrow tongue of the toucans (Rham-
phastid@) is beset with slender processes, so that it seems feathery. The tongue of the hum-
ming-bird is very singular,—delicately thready, yet double-barrelled,—two tubes placed
side by side, serving as siphons to extract the nectar of flowers. These and other

_ interesting extremes aside, the ordinary style of a bird’s tongue is flat, narrow, more or less
sagittate or lanceolate, and tipped or sheathed in horn, commonly with lateral backward pro-
cesses like the barbs of an arrow head, —the whole glossal structure upborne pretty distinctly
upon the end of the basihyal bone. (See fig. 101, where 1, a, is such an ordinary tongue, and
2, a-f, is its whole skeleton.) Such horny tongues are commonly bifid at the extreme tip
or there variously lacerate, or laciniate, or thready, — and even the fleshy tongue of some
parrots, as the lorics, is brushy at the end. The bony foundation of the tongue is the com-
posite hyoid bone, already often mentioned (see p. 167); the free lingual part proper is based
upon the glosso-hyal and its terminal cartilage; the roots curve more or less extensively about
the base or more of the skull. The tongue is moved by some intrinsic muscles, as well as by
those extrinsic ones by which it is connected to the skull, jaw, and windpipe (fig. 101, 1 and 8).

The C£sophagus.— After comminution, if any, by the beak, and insalivation in the
mouth, food passes directly through the pharynx into the esophagus or gullet, —a musculo-
membranous tube connecting mouth with stomach (fig. 101, 1, g, 2,7). This is composed (besides
its mucous membrane) of circularly disposed constrictor fibres, and longitudinal contractor fibres,
of Myamaba, of the pale, smooth species (If. levis). It has generally a pretty straight course,
but may be diverted to one side or the other ; and, in particular, is subject to various dilatations
and contractions, permanent or temporary, aside from the mere distension caused by the pas-
sage of food. When the floor of the mouth is wide and loose, the gullet partakes of the same
character above; the extreme case is afforded by the pelicans, especially P. fuscus. But the

212 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

/

gullet of inany small birds, as various genera of Fringillide and Corvide, is much more disten-
sible than is commonly supposed, and may be found crammed with seeds which there find rest-
ing-place for some time. The fish-eating birds, as herons, cormorants, loons, and others, have
also capacious gullets. The Australian bustard, Eupodotis australis, has an cesophagus capa-
ble of such extraordinary distension that it hangs down in front of the breast when inflated
with air, as it is in the amatory display in which that species is wont to indulge. Aside from
mere distensibility of transient character, the cesophagus of many birds becomes modified
anatomically into a special pouch, —the crop or craw, ingluvies, where the food is detained to
be macerated in a special secretion before passing on to the true stomach. Such definite crops
occur in birds of prey, which gorge such masses of food in their irregular voracious banquets
that it cannot all be received into the stomach at once; and likewise throughout the orders of
Columbine and Gallinaceous birds, which habitually feed upon seeds and other fruits so hard
that they are advantageously macerated as a preliminary to true digestion. The common fowl
furnishes a good illustration of a large, definite, single and median crop ; in pigeons it is a pair
of lateral dilatations (see frontisp.). In these latter birds, when they are rearing their young,
the secretion of the ingluvies, always copious, becomes still more so, and of a milky character in
consequence of the activity of the altered mucous surface; it is regurgitated into the mouths of
the young, along with the macerated grains. ‘This phenomenon is the nearest approach in
the class of Birds to the characteristic mammary function of a higher class; and the aualogy
of the ‘ pigeon’s milk’ to the lacteal secretion of the Mammalia has not escaped popular notice.”
Various other birds also feed their young by regurgitation of elaborated food; and very many
similarly reject indigestible portions of their ingesta. Such vomiting is best known to be the
wont: of birds of prey, which habitually throw up the hair, feathers and bones of their victims,
made up into the boluses called “ castings”; but the practice is far from being confined to these
flesh-eaters. The extreme case of emesis offered by birds is witnessed in the horn-bills
(Bucerotide) which have been known to throw up the coat of their stomach without discom-
fort, — what a blessing it would be to some old topers if they could do the same, and grow
another with equal ease! In fact, in consequence of the capacity and directness of the gullet,
vomiting is very easy to birds, and with some it is a means of self-defence, —very effectual
for instance in the cases of our vultures (Cathartides). Fish-eating birds, as herons, gulls,
petrels, habitually vomit when wounded or otherwise molested.

The Proventriculus.— The tube just considered ends below in a special tract, variously
dilated or not, but always peculiar in the presence of certain gastric follicles which secrete the
digestive fluid proper. The ‘stomach ” of a bird, in fact, is compound, consisting of a glandular
or digestive portion, and a muscular or grinding part. The former is the proventriculus;
whatever its size or shape, or whatever its magnitude in comparison with the grist-mill, it is
recognized by the presence in its mucous surface of these gastric follicles, secreting the peptic
fluid which chymifies the food. The follicles are perhaps always large enough for this part of
the tube to be recognized by the naked eye, —the mucous membrane having here a thickened,
velvety, vascular appearance. The glands are of various sizes and shapes, — usually simply
tubular, sometimes clubbed or conical, or variously racemose (like a bunch of grapes). They
are disposed in a zone around the tube, or in patches upon part of its surface, —in the darter
(Plotus), very singularly in a separate lateral compartment looking like a crop. Details of the
grouping of these solvent glands are interminable. Whatever its anatomical variations, and
however like the end of the esophagus it may simply appear to be, this ventriculus glandulosus
is the bird’s proper stomach (fig. 101, !, j).

The Gizzard.— Mixed with the salivary, ingluvial, proventricular and other secretions of
the mucous surface, and already chymified, the food of birds next passes directly into the giz-

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— SPLANCHNOLOGY. 213

zard; gigertum, or muscular division of the stomach, sometimes called the ventriculus bulbosus.
The two are sometimes separated by a tract, sometimes immediately consequent. In the‘nus-
cular gizzard, the food-grist is ground fine. To this end, the walls of “he cavity become devel-
oped into a more or less powerful muscular apparatus, and the mucous membrane changes to a
tough, thick, horny, occasionally even bony, lining; this callous cuticular lining being often
very loosely attached, and even deciduous in some eases. The muscular arrangement is chiefly
in two great masses, called the lateral muscles, converging to a central tendon; between them
intermediate fibres may form a more or less distinct muscular belly. In the most powerful
gizzards, the muscular tissue is very dense and dark-colored; the tendons brilliantly glistening,
and the contained ‘ millstones” extremely callous. Such a gizzard is well displayed by the
common fowl or the goose. The opposite extreme is afforded by the carnivorous and espe-
cially the piscivorous birds, whose soft food requires little trituration, —it is all a matter of
degree. How readily this part of the canal responds to the regimen of the bird, is witnessed in
our cock-of-the-plains (Centrocercus wrophasianus), —a bird whose gizzard is so slightly mus-
cular as to appear like a membranous bag, though its gallinaceous relatives have extremely
strong grinders. Its food is chiefly the buds and leaves of the wild sage (Artemisia), and grass-
hoppers. Increased muscularity of the gizzard has even been artificially produced. Birds
whose grist is heavy habitually swallow gravel, that these small stones may mechanically aid
in the grinding process. The action is so energetic, that in ‘‘auscultating” a fowl when the
mil-is in full blast, the noise of the grinding can be distinctly heard. The pebbles, in fact,
have a function which leaves ‘‘hens’ teeth” not entirely mythical. The kind of motion
impressed upon the opposing pads of cuticle is alternating, ——a rubbing back and forth to a
slight extent. Peculiar dispositions of the callous surfaces are found in some pigeons, with
corresponding peculiarity of the cross-section of the gizzard. In some of the cuckoos a matting
of impacted hairs of lepidopterous insects has been mistaken for a coat of the gizzard itself. In
the darter, which has a pyloric division or compartment of the gizzard, this is nearly filled with
a mass of matted hairs, a peculiar modification of the epithelial lining, serving to guard the
pyloric orifice. Folds of the lining membrane form a pyloric valve in many birds. The pylo-
rus, or the pyloric orifice, is that opening by which food leaves the gizzard for the intestines;
the orifice of entrance from the esophagus is the cardiac. The two are always near together,
and sometimes adjoining. (In fig. 101, 1, & is on the central tendon of the moderately muscular
gizzard; the cardiac orifice is between j and k, and pylorus between / and k.)

The Intestine continues the alimentary canal to the cloaca. Any difference in the
length of the whole tract, relatively to that of the bird, is chiefly produced by the foldings of
the intestine, especially in the upper portion of its course. The extremes of proportionate
length are perhaps not ascertained; but known to be from less than 2:1, to more than 8:1.
In birds there is little or no distinction between ‘‘ small” and ‘‘large” intestine, as to the calibre
of the tube, nor is the latter succulated as in mammals. The former is considered to extend
from the pylorus to the ceca (structures to be presently noticed). Above the ceca the intes-
tine commonly receives its foldings and windings; below them it usually proceeds more
directly, or quite straight, to the cloaca, forming literally a ‘‘ rectum”; but in the ostrich this
ultra-ceecal tract is longer than the rest, and convoluted. The cis-cecal portion is convention-
ally divided into duodenum, jejunum, and ilewm; there is, however, no positive anatomical
distinction of these parts in any animal with which I am acquainted. In birds, a ‘‘ duodenum”
is perhaps as distinct as ever; it forms the most constant duplication of the intestine, the pan-
creas being lodged in this duodenal fold (fig. 101, 1, 1, m, x). The course of the intestine is
otherwise very various in different birds. The upper end, near the pylorus, receives the hepatic
ducts; and food is chylified after impregnation with the biliary and pancreatic fluids ; a process
furthered by the proper secretions of the intestinal follicles. The chyle is drawn off by the

214 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

lacteals already described (p. 199), and the unassimilable refuse of the food becomes excremen.
titious.

Ceca (Lat. cecus, blind; in the nom. pl. ceca; sing. cecum). — The “ blind guts,” so
called because they end in euls-de-sac, are of two kinds. One is the wmbilical cecum, or
vitelline cecum, a rudimentary, or rather vestigial, structure, the remains of the open duct by
which the cavity of the umbilical vesicle (an embryonic organ) communicated with that of the
intestinal tract. It is ordinarily not to be noted at all; but it is said by Owen to have been
found half an inch long in the gallinule, an inch in the bay ibis, and dilated into a sae an inch
in diameter in the Apteryx. The structures ordinarily called ceca, or ceca coli, for they are
usually paired, are pouches or diverticula which set off from the intestine proper at the junc-
tion of the ileum with colon; but there is nothing in the intestine itself to mark this point, so
that when czeca are absent, as frequently happens, no distinction of ileum from colon or rectum
is appreciable. No part of the intestinal tract is so variable as the cecal; so that presence or
absence of these appendages furnishes zodlogical characters now-a-days taken very commouly
into account in framing genera and families. There are no ceca, as in the turkey-
buzzard and some pigeons; there is a single small cecum in herons. From a condition of
extremely small size, like little buds upon the intestine, caeca are found to elongate to extraor-
dinary dimensions; and the large specimens are frequently saccate or clubbed, with slender
roots. In geese and swans the ceca are a foot long, more or less; in some grouse they are
said to be a yard long. In the ostrich, the mucous membrane is thrown into a spiral fold.
However developed, the physiology of these intestinal appendages is, the detention of food until
all its nutritive qualities are absorbed, and increase of the absorbent surface.

The Cloa’ca (fig. 101, 1k) or “sewer,” very well named, is the termination of the bowel,
—an oval or globular enlargement of the rectum, of sufficient capacity at least to contain the
completely shelled egg. For, not as in placental mammals, the uro-genital and digestive or-
gans are behind-hand in their evolution, and do not entirely lose connection with each other.
Nor is there in birds any distinct bladder; but a cavity, originally that of the allantois of the
embryo, persists in common with that of the intestines, and is the cloaca. Such incomplete
distinction between the two as there may be, by a folding of mucous membrane or partial com-

- partment of the whole, results in cloaca proper and urogenital sinus, in which latter are the
papillose orifices of the wreters, one on each side, from the kidneys; and of the single oviduct
() or paired sperm-ducts (¢), from ovary or testes. The urine of birds not being liquid
requires no more of a bladder than the sinus furnishes. The same cavity contains the penis of
those birds, as the ostrich and drake, which are provided with an organ of copulation. A
peculiar anal gland, the bursa fabricii (see frontisp.), also opens into the cloaca. Refuse of
digestion, the renal excretion, the spermatic secretion, and the product of conception, are dis-
charged by a single anal orifice, the two former en masse.

Being intimately related to dietetic regimen, and so to the habits of birds, the alimen-
tary canal varies greatly, — even more than my slight sketch shows, —and consequently affords
good zodlogical characters in the details of its construction. But of all the anatomical systems,
this is the one most variable as a matter of physiological adaptation (see p. 67). Its char-
acters, even when they seem weighty, are therefore peculiarly liable to be fallacious as indices
of natural affinities, and must be applied with discreet caution to morphological classification.
Such are commonly only of generic significance. Thus in pigeons the ceca and even the gall-
bladder may be present or absent in neighboring genera.

Alimentary Annexes. — Some of these, as the salivary glands, have been noticed already.
The two most important bodies connected with the digestive tract, and properly considered

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OOLOGY. 215

adjuncts, are the pancreas and the liver. The former is that kind of lobulated salivary gland
which in mammals is called the “‘sweetbread.” It lies in the duodenal loop, along which its
loosely aggregated lobes extend. Its ducts, formed by the successive union of smaller efferent
tubes, are two or three in number; they pierce the intestine a little below its commencement
at the pylorus, and pour into the canal the pancreatic juice, which has the property of emul-
sionizing fat. The liver is a well-kuown glandular organ of very special structure and func-
tion, secreting the fluid called bile, also received into the intestine. It is of moderate size in
birds, and deeply divided into two principal (right and left) lobes: in some birds there is also a
sinaller lobe; and one of the large lobes may also be divided. The lobes dispart above to
receive between them the apex of the heart; they are held in place by pleuro-peritoneal folds
contributing to form the thoracic-abdominal air-cells. The viscus receives venous blood from
the extensive portal system of birds; two hepatic veins then conduct it to the post-caval. The
emunctory ducts, carrying off the bile, are two or three in number. One at least goes directly
to the intestine, and another to the gall-bladder, when that cyst exists; in which case there is
a@ separate cystic duct from the bladder to the intestine, no ductus communis choledochus, or
duct common to the hepatic substance and its cyst, being formed in birds. Two hepatic ducts
may coexist with a cystic duct, making three to the intestine, all separate; two is the rule
when there is no gall-bladder. These emunctories commonly enter the intestine some distance
apart, and after the pancreatic ducts. The gall-bladder is generally present, frequently absent ;
it’may occur or not in closely related genera of birds. :

g. OOLoGY: THE Uro-GENITAL ORGANS.

The Urinary and Generative Organs may be conveniently considered together, not
only on account of their close anatomical relations, but because their physiological functions,
totally diverse in adult life, are primitively related in the most intimate manner. For it is a
singular fact that the mean office of straining urine out of the system is at first sustained by a
structure (wolffian body), in closest connection with which, in the female, actually as a part of
which, in the male, are later developed those organs (ovary and testis) whose exalted office
is creative; for these permanent genital glands procreate the microscopic creatures called
Dynamameba, the marriage of which results in the reproduction of a complex organisin like
the male or female parent. (See figs. 103, 104, and following.)

The Wolffian Bodies, or primordial kidneys, are a pair of tubular structures which
appear very early in the progress of development of the embryo, beneath the spinal column, in
front of the fore end of the future kidneys; with each of.them is developed a duct, the wolffian
duct, which carries their excretion into the cavity of the allantois (the future cloaca). Upon *
the appearance of the true kidneys, the transitory wolffian bodies and ducts lose their urinary *
function; they ultimately disappear from the female, for the most part, leaving only a trace of
their former existence in certain vestigial structures (parovaria, etc.) ; ‘in the male, likewise,
they atrophy, but not to the same extent; for a portion of the bodies persists as an accessory
(epididymal) portion of the testicle, and their ducts persist as the sperm-ducts, or vasa deferen-
tia. Meanwhile, in closest connection with the wolffian bodies, appears a pair of organs, the
genitul glands, fora while exactly alike. Ifthe new creature is to become female, the genitai
gland devclops to a certain complexity of tissue and becomes the ovary ; while a certain duct,
the miillerian duct, developed coincidently to connect such ovary with the cloaca, becomes
the oviduct. In birds usually only one ovary and oviduct (the left) becomes functional. If
the new creature is to becomne male, the same genital gland develops to a higher degree of
complexity, acquires a tubular structure, and becomes the testicle; it connects with remains of
the wolffian body, and the wolffian duct becomes the permanent sperm-duct, conveying the

216 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

product of the male function to the cloaca, just as the oviduct conveys the product of the female
function to the same sewerage. Thus the testicle of the male and the ovary of the female are
homologous, in fact primitively identical organs, upon which sexual difference is impressed by
the greater complexity of structure acquired if the sex is to be male; a female being, anatomi-
cally aud physiologically, simply an imperfect male, arrested at one stage of her physical
progress to male perfection of structure; and the whole nature of the female bears out the same
relation of inferiority. But the oviduct of the female, and the sperm-duct of the male, though
physiologically identical, having the same function of conveying the products of generation
from the genital gland to the light of day, are not anatomically the same; for in the case of the
female, whose wolffian duct has disappeared, the miillerian is the oviduct; in the case of the
male, in which no miillerian duct appears, the wolffian is the sperm-duct. The two are analo-
gous, not homologous (a good illustration — see p. 68). But it must be further observed that
while the sperm-duct conveys only the masculine essence from centre to periphery, the oviduct
conveys the feminine material from centre to periphery, and also the male essence in the opposite
direction ; for, upon coitus, which is direct in all birds, the spermatozoa, deposited in the cloaca
of the female, find their way up through her oviduct to the ovary, there to accomplish impreg-
nation of the ovarian ova, the fecund product then passing down by the same avenue. All that
relates to the mysteries .of generation, — both the structure and function of the reproductive
organs, and the maturation of the product of conception, is properly Odlogy (Gr. &dv, oon, an
egg); though the term is vulgarly used to signify merely a description of the chalky substance
in which the egg of a bird is finally invested. The anatomy of the egg is Embryology. An
egg, or ovum, is simply the product of conception up to the time that product acquires an inde-
pendent existence; while still connected with the female tissue of the ovary, and before or after
it amalgamates with the male element, itis an ovarian ovum ;
more or less incompletely matured, it is an embryo or fetus, —
the former term being commonly applied
to the unhatched young of birds. The
only difference between the ‘‘egge” of a
“viviparous” mammal and that of an
“oviparous” bird, is in the albuminous
and cretaceous envelopes of the latter,
and its speedy expulsion from the body
of the female to be hatched outside, with-
out anatomical connection with the moth-
er after the hard shell is formed ; whereas,
in most mathmals, the ovum is retained
in a dilated part of the milerian duct
(uterus or womb) until it ‘‘hatches” ; but
mammal and bird alike “‘lay eggs,” the

Fre. 103.—Uro-genital essential germinative part of which is Fig. 104. — Uro-genital organs

organsofmaleembryobird; identical. Appreciation of these facts, offemaleembryo bird; from Owen,
from Owen, after Miiller. q id f th lati f th after Miiller. a, kidneys; b, wolf-
a, kidneys: b, ureters; c, and’a proper idea of the relations of the fan bodies; c, genital gland, to

wolffian bodies; d, their mature sexual organs to the wolffian become ovary; d,adrenals; e,ure-
ducts, to be sperm-ducts; : . i ters; J, wolffian ducts, to disap-
e, genital glands, to become bodies is necessary to any understanding pear; g, miillerian ducts, to become

testicles; /, adrenals. of the parts and processes concerned in oviduets,
reproduction.1_ We have here to consider the permanent as distinguished from the transitory
kidneys, and may then recur to the subject of generation.

1 The matter may be further illustrated by the two figures borrowed from Owen (after Miiller). In both figs ,
the large dark masses, a, are the permanent kidneys, whose ducts, b in fig. 103, ¢ in fig. 104, are the ureters, empty-
ing into the cloaca. In fig. 103, male, c is the wolffian body, whose duet, d, persists as the sperm-duct, conveying

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.—OOLOGY. 217

The Kidneys (Lat. renes, Engl. reins, adj. renal; figs. 103, 104, a; 105, x) differ much
from those of mammals in physical charaeters, though identical in function, — that of straining
off from the blood certain deleterious substances in the form of urea; whence they are sometimes
called emulgent organs. Their office of purification is analogous to that of the lungs, which
decarbonize the blood, and to some extent vicarious, as is that of excretory orgaus in general.
As the lungs are closely bound down to the thoracic region of the trunk, so are the kidneys
impacted in the pelvic region, being moulded to the sacral inequalities of surface (p. 141).
They are paired, but sometimes connected across the median line by renal tissue; they have no
special renal artery, but derive their blood from various sources; and blood from them takes
part in the hepatic portal system, no reniportal being accomplished. They have little or noth-
ing of the particular mammalian configuration which has made “ kidney-shaped” a common
descriptive term; being elongated, somewhat parallel-sided and rectangular, flattened bodies,
lobated into a few large compartments, and lobulated into many lesser divisions; their figure
depends much upon that of the pelvis. They are very dark-colored, rather soft, easily lacerable,
and appear to the naked eye to be of a granular substance, without dis-
tinction of ‘ cortical” and ‘ medullary” portions. Nor is there any
“pelvis” of the kidneys in which the uriniferous tubules empty together
by numerous ducts as into a common basin. Each ureter (figs. 103, 0;
104, e; 105, y), or excretory duct, is formed by reiterated reunion of the
tubule uriniferi, after the manner of a pancreatic duct; each ureter passes
down behind the rectum and opens into the lower back part of the cloaca,
—much like a mammalian ureter into the base of the bladder. The
original cavity of the allantois remains to furnish no more of a urinary
bladder than some special dilatation of the cloaca represents; but this
rudimentary bladder, as distinguished from the uro-genital sinus in which
the ureters terminate alongside the sperm-ducts, is well marked in some
birds ; being in the ostrich, for example, a considerable enlargement of
the cloaca between the termination of the rectum proper and the uro-
genital compartment of the sewer. The renal excretion is not watery
as in mammals, but semi-solid, and voided with the feces, of which it
forms part.

The kidneys are capped by a pair of small yellowish ‘bodies, the
supra-renal capsules or adrenals (figs. 103, f; 104, 105, d), the nature
of which is undetermined. They are chiefly interesting to the practical
ornithologist in their liability to be mistaken for testes,in examining Fi. 165.— Uro-gen-

F ital organs of the domes-
specimens for sex (see p. 45). tie mk Alter. Owens

a, testis; b, epididymis;
The testis (Lat. testis, pl. testes, Oe fen 7.
a witness; fig. 105, a) or testicle has been already sufficiently noticed as cloaca; a, kidney; y,
to its general appearance and position (p. 46). As said above, it is the eter
essential male organ, consisting of the primitive indifferent genital gland (fig. 103, e) in its
highest state of development as a tubular secretory organ, connected with the remains of
the wolffian body as a part of its efferent structure (epididymis ; fig. 105, b) and with the
original wolffian duct as its vas deferens (figs. 103, d; 105, c), or efferent duct, by which the
semen is conveyed to the cloaca. The original glands normally remain paired, and both
are usually functionally developed to corresponding size, shape, and activity; they remain
in their embryonic situation in front of the upper part of the kidneys; and such difference

Male Organs of Generation.

semen from e, the testis. In fig. 104, is the wolffian body, whose duct, /, disappears ; and g is the millerian duct,
becoming the oviduct, to convey the egg from c, the ovary. Thus e, fig. 103, and c, fig. 104, are the homologous
genital glands, becoming either testis or ovary: but the sperm-duct, d, fig. 103, is not the oviduct, g, fig. 104.

218 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

of appearance as they present under different circumstances is mainly seasonal. For birds,
as a rule, procreate only at particular times of the year, rarely having more than one or
two broods of young: the functional activity and quiescence of the testes correspond, as the
enormous swelling of the gland during the breeding season is one of the peculiarities of the
bird’s organ. This may be related to the absence, in birds. of specially formed resicule semi-
nales, or seminal reservoirs; though certain contortions and dilatations of the sperm-ducts
which are to be observed may imperfectly answer tu detain the secretion until circumstances
render it available. The passage of the sperm-duct is along the face of the kidneys, generally
in company with the ureters; the opening is by a papilla upon the surface of the uro-genital

sinus. These papillose terminations of the sperm-ducts are erectile to a degree. and answer the
‘ purpose of paired penes in those birds which are not provided with better-formed copulatory
parts. In coitu, the cloacal chambers coutaining the orifices of the genital ducts are opened,
and the more or less protruded papilla come in contact or close juxtaposition. In cases in
which a penis or two penes are developed, the urethral passage is a groove, never a tube,
though cavernous and even muscular tissue may be developed: and in any case of such an
intromittent apparatus, it has cloacal invagination when not vperative (see p. 680). These
organs, in all their variety, are of the sauropsidan, not mammalian, type; though in some
respects the structure approaches that seen in the non-placental mammals. No prostate or
cowperian glands exist in birds.

The sole office of the testis, or odphoron masculinum, is the secretion of semen, associate
structures being simply accessory, for the conveyance of that vital substance and its trausfer-
ence to the opposite sex. The seminal fluid itself is merely the vehicle of transport of the
spermatozoa, in which their activity may be freely exercised in their intuitive strugglés to gain
access to their mates in the ovary. It is literally a ‘sea of life” in which the minute creatures
swim in shoals to their destiny, — and their fate in any case is death. If they successfully
buffet the waves of fate they find a watery grave in the ovum at last; if that haven be not
reached they simply perish in mid-ocean. The spermatozoa, or seminal animalcules, or male
Dynamamebe (figs. 106, 107), are the exact counterparts of ovarian ova, in so far as they are
single-celled animals of a very low grade of organi-
zation; but their activity and intelligence is marvel-
lous, and still more so is the mysterious attribute
with which they are endowed of assimilating their
protoplasmic substance with that of the ovum; with
the result that the thus fecundated ovum is capable
of procreating itself by fission for a period until a
mass of similar creatures is engendered; from which er EAS
FIG. 106. —Spermatozoa mass is then speedily evolved the complex body of aie ea ony
of domestic cock, greatly 3 s aca S
magnified; from Owen,after the Bird. The corresponding female Dynamamebe greatly magnified:
Wagner and Leuckart. (ovarian ova) are simple spherical animaleules, phys- Saemahiee alt
ically indistinguishable from an ordinary eneysted Ameba: but the sperma- art.
tozoa are remarkably distinguished in appearance, furnishing probably the best marked case of
sexual characters to be found among the Protozoa, to which class of animals they belong. The
spermatozoa resemble flagellate infusoria or ciliated endothelium cells, though they each have
but a single whip. They are of extremely minute size, much smaller than their females, and
filamentous; more or less thickened and sometimes wavy at their nucleated heads, whence pro-
trudes an excessively delicate thready tail, endowed with great vibratory energy. They may be
likened to diminutive attenuated tadpoles, which swim by lashing the tail in the seminal fluid.
Under the microscope shoals of these curious creatures may be seen swimming in the sea, nosing
about in search of the ovum, butting their heads in wrong places, backing out and trying again
in another direction; with such suecess that ont of myriads a score or so may gain their end. It

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OOLOGY. 219

will be seen that they have a long journey to accomplish; for, liberated in the cloaca of the
female, they have to swim through the whole length of the oviduct to the ovary. Besides
such physical difference between the male and female Dynamamebe as I have indicated, they
differ in their place and mode of birth ; and in this difference lies the very gist of sex. The
original indifferent genital gland above described, arrested, as said, at a certain stage of de-
velopment and therefore female—the ovary — produces its eggs from its surface-cells, which
subside into the ovarian tissue, and are quietly packed away there as ovarian ova, ready to
ripen and awaken to impregnation in due course. The same gland, further developed into a
testis, gives active birth to the spermatozoa in the tubules of its complicated interior tissue. In
the former case, the superficial cells slowly ovulate ; in the latter, the cells lining the interior
speedily spermate ; in a word, the testis is as literally viviparous as is the ovary oviparous, —
and these conditions are certainly no insignificant indices of relative development in the seale of
being. The spermatozoa appear in some animals to be set free in myriads from the walls of the
seminal tubules whence they directly issue; in birds, they are described as appearing coiled or
otherwise packed in delicate sperm-cells, which speedily rupture and discharge the creatures in
the current of the seminal fluid, where they take up the course and display the energetic actions
above noted. Either case has its parallel among ordinary Protozoans; the former correspond-
ing to the process of budding or gemmation, the latter to that of interior fission and discharge
of numerous progeny by rupture of the envelope. The final conjugation of spermatic filaments
with ovarian ova is simple fusion, such as any ordinary sexless amoeboid animal may practise to
blend its protoplasmic substance with that of another. But there is this difference, that in the
case of Dynamameba it is a true sexual congress, usually polyandrous, and still more of a
one-sided affair in that the female Dynamameba is at the ftme in a more or less quiescent,
encysted state.

Female Organs of Generation. — The connection between the male and female organs
of generation is naturally so close that in what has preceded it has been scarcely possible to
speak of the former without reference to the female counterparts. I have thus far endeavored
to state clearly the uature of the originally sexless genital gland; the difference in the same
gland when afterward sexed male or female; and the character of the spermatic offspring of
the male gland. In reading that lesson the novitiate in such Eleusinian mysteries must not
mistake the language I have used to describe the male Dynamameba, or spermatozoén, as
applicable to anything in the developinent of the female Dynamameba, or ovum, into the
chick; for all said thus far only relates to the bringing of the spermatozoén into contact with
the ovum, preliminary to the initial step of the ovum in its course of development. It is this
female Dynamameba — this primitive ovarian ovum, the germ of the chick, which corresponds
to andis the counterpart of the male Dynamameba, on meeting and mingling with which
fecundation is accomplished; the impregnated ovum being then empowered to take up its
marvellous march. Conjugation of the opposite Dynamamebe occurs cither in the ovary or
upper part of the oviduct, — most probably the former. One or several spermatozoa — usually
more than one—accomplishing their journcy up the oviduct, and finding their affinity,
insinuate themselves into the substance of the ovum, and die there, dissolved in amorous pain :
that is to say, they melt into the substance of the ovum. The now fertile result, consisting of
the mingled protoplasm of the opposite ameebas, is to all appearance precisely the same as the
original infecund ovuin — yet there is all the difference in the world, as the result shows.

The general character of the ovary of a bird has been already indicated (p. 46). The
principal superficial difference in appearance when the ovary is in functional activity, from the
corresponding organ of a mammal, is that the ova develop to such a size, in ripening in the
ovary before leaving it for the oviduet, that the organ looks like a bunch of grapes, — very
large and conspicuous. The oviduct is the musculo-membranous tube (modified miillerian

220 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

duct) which conveys the ripened ovum, and in its passage provides it with a quantity of white
albumen, and finally a chalk shell. A bird’s oviduct is the strict morphological homologue

Fig. 108. — Female organs of do-
mestic fowl, in activity ; from Owen,
after Carus. a, b, c,d, mass of ova-
rian ova, in all stages of develop-
ment; b, a ripe one; c, its stigma,
where the ovisac or calyx ruptures;
d, a ruptured empty calyx, to be ab-
sorbed; e, infundibulum, or funnel-
sbaped orifice of the oviduct; /, next
portion of oviduct; g, follicular part
of oviduct; m, mesometry, Membrane
steadying the oviduct; the reference-
line, m, crosses the constricted part or
isthmus of the oviduct; these parts
secrete the white of the egg; /, shell-
forming or uterine part of oviduct,
in which is a completed egg, i; J,
lowest or vaginal part of oviduct,
opening into uro-genital sinus of the
cloaca, n; 0, anus.

(p. 68) of a mammal’s fallopian tube, uterus and vagina, —
more accurately, of one fallopian tube, one half of a uterus,
and one half of a vagina; for the uterus and vagina of a
mammal result from the union of both miillerian ducts;
whereas in a bird only one —the left usually —is normally
developed. Functionally, the oviduct is also analogous (p.
68) to the mammalian uterus, inasmuch as it transmits the
product of conception, and detains it for a while, in the, initial
stage of its germination, as we shall see in the sequel; though
all but the very first steps in the development of the chick
are taken during incubation, the egg having so hastily left
its uterine matrix. These structures — ovaty and oviduct,
fig. 108, are most conveniently described as we trace the
course of the ovum from its origination to its maturity. This
record differs considerably from the corresponding course of
events in a mammal, inasmuch as the ovum of a bird, though
primitively identical with that of any other animal, acquires
special albuminous and cretaceous envelopes which the mam-
malian ovum, developed in the body of the parent, does not
require. The process is termed ovulation. Ovulation, which
is the formation of an egg in the bird, must not be confounded
with germination, which is the formation of a bird in the egg.
The former can be accomplished by the virgin bird, which
may lay eggs scarcely differing in appearance from those which
have been fecundated, but germination in which is of course
impossible. The course of ovulation, and afterward of germi-
nation, is now to be traced.

Ovulation. — The ovwn begins as a microscopic point in
the ovary, the stroma or tissue of which is packed with these
incipient eggs. It is primitively just like any other female
Dynamameba, from that of a sponge up to that of a woman,
—a naked simple cell, capable of exhibiting active ameboid
movements. It consists of a finely granular protoplasm, the

ritellus, or yelk, enclosed in a delicate structureless cell-wall, the vitelline membrane, called
the zona pellucida from its appearance under the microscope. Imbedded in the vitellus is a
nucleus, or kernel, the germinal vesicle; in this is a nucleolus, or inner kernel, the germinal
spot. The ovum oceupies a tiny space in the ovary, the cellular walls of which constitute an
ovisac, or graafian follicle. Now if such an ovum as this were mammalian, it would, without
material change, burst the ovisac, be received into the fallopian tube and conveyed to the
uterus; where, supposing it already fertilized, the whole of its contents would develop into the
body of the embryo. It would therefore be holoblastic (Gr. dos, holos, the whole ; Bdacrixés,
blastikos, germinative). Jt is different with a bird or other ‘ oviparous” animal, the egg of
which has to hatch outside the body; for provision must be made for the nourishment of the
developing chick, thus separated from the tissues of its mother. Such provision is made by
the accumulation about the ovum of a great quantity of granular protoplasmic substance, which
forms nearly all the large yellow ball called in ordinary language ‘‘ the yelk” of an egg. None
of this adventitious substance goes to form the embryo; it is what the embryo feeds on during

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OOLOGY. 221

its formation. A bird’s egg is therefore meroblastic (Gr. pépos, meros, a part, and Bdaoreds),
and we must carefully discrimimate between the great mass of yellow food-yelk, as it may be
called, and a small quantity of ‘white yelk,” the true germ-yelk, which alone is transformed into
the body of the chick. The latter forms the cicatricle, vulgarly called the “tread”; that small
disc, visible in most birds’ eggs to the naked eye, which appears
upon the surface of the great yellow ball, floating in a pale thin
yelk which penetrates the denser and yellower food-yelk by a
cord of its own substance leading to a central cavity, the false
yelk-cavity, around which the food-yelk is deposited in a series
of concentric layers like a set of .onion-skins The whole mass
is surrounded by a delicate structureless yelk-skin, called the
vitelline membrane (whether this be the original vitelline mem-
brane of the Dynamameba or not; i. e., whether the food-yelk
has accumulated inside or outside the original zona pellucida).
All this enormous accumulation, effecting what is called a meto- ig. 109, —-Meroblastic ovum
vum or after-egg, to distinguish it from the protovum, or primitive (yelk) of domestic fowl, nat. size,
state of the egg, goes on in the ovary, and in the ovisac of each Gee onan cane ihe cae
ovum ; with the ripening of the ovum, the ovisacs become dis- low food-yelk, which is deposited
tended to a corresponding size, and the whole ovary acquires in concentric layers, c, d; b, the
pan ‘ 3 cicatricle or tread with its nu-
the familiar bunch-of-grapes appearance. With such maturation cleus, whence passes a cord of
of the fruit, the connection with the rest of the ovary lengthens bigs te a ke ag a
into a stalk, or pedicel, by which the ripe ovum hangs to its : Pe
stock, like any fruit upon its stem, ready to burst its skin and fall into the open mouth of the
oviduct. Such rupture of the graafian follicle (ovisac), in its now distended state known as
the capsule or calyx, occurs along a line where the numerous blood-vessels which ramify
upon its surface appear to be wanting, called the stigma: this is rent; the ovum slips out of
its calyx, like the substance of a grape pinched out of its skin, and falls into the oviduct.
After this discharge, the empty calyx collapses, shrivels, and ultimately disappears by ab-
sorption. (See expl. of fig. 108). ;

The ovum thus acquires the full size of its yelk in the ovary, — becoming, as in the ease of
the hen, a yellow sphere an inch in diameter.! Notwithstanding its enormous distension with
food-yelk, it is still morphologically a simple cell, affording the maximum dimension of any
known protozoan or single-celled animal. Entering the oviduct, the germ-yelk part of the
whole mass is fertilized by spermatozoa, unless this process has before occurred in the ovary,
and in its passage through that tube the yelk-ball becomes invested successively with the
mass of transparent albumen known as the “‘ white” of the egg, and finally by the chalk shell
— both secreted by the mucous membrane lining the oviduct.

During its functional activity, the left oviduct (there being usually only this one) becomes
highly developed, both as to its muscular walls, which by their contractility embrace the ovum
closely and squeeze it along, and as to its mucous secretory surface. It is supported by perito-
neal folds forming a mesometry, like the mesentery of the intestines; its whole structure and
office are quite like those of a length of intestine. The upper end of the singularly serpentine
oviduct is dilated into an infundibulum, or funnel-like mouth, corresponding to the fimbriated
extremity of the mammalian fallopian tube, and constituting a morsus diabolhi, or ‘‘ devil’s grip,”

1 How great this is can only be appreciated by comparison. The human egg, on escaping from the graafian
follicle, is said to be from yy to y35 of an inchin diameter. Taking it at yp, there would be 40,000 in a square inch,
and in a cubic inch 8,000,000. The largest bird’s egg known, that of the Z/pyornis, is said to have a content of
about a gross of hen’s eggs—144. Supposing the yelk of the pyornis egg to bear the usual proportion to the
other contents of the shell, and allowing for the difference in bulk between a sphere and a cube of equal diameters,
there would still be somewhere about a billion human eggs in one Zpyornis egg-yelk, — roundly, a mass of them
equal to that of the germs of more than one-half of the present population of the globe.

bo
iw
lw

GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

which gets hold of the ovum to drag it down to the common lot of mortals from its high ovarian
birth. The infundibulum receives from the mesentery a delicate tunic of unstriped muscular
fibres, which are so disposed as to dilate that orifice for the reception of the ovum ; and during
the venereal orgasm the mouth of the tube is supposed to seize upon the ripest egg. The
actual anatomy of the arrangement, and the whole operation, is strangely suggestive of one of
the oldest myths respecting the serpeut which bore the egg of the world in its jaws. The
mucous lining of the oviduct consists of a layer of ciliated epithelium; the membrane has a
different character in successive portions of its extent. Above, when the tube is not distended
with its burthen, the lining is thrown into lengthwise folds, which lower down become spirally
disposed, and then longitudinal again before they cease. This rugous portion of the tube is
beset with mucous follicles, which secrete ‘‘the white.” The oviduct, after contracting at a
point called the isthmus, enlarges to a calibre sufficient to accommodate the egg in its shell;
for this is the shell-forming part, homologous with the mammalian uterus (a sinister semi-uterus
at least), lined with large villi, and beset with the follicles whose secretious calcify the egg-shell,
and decorate it with pigment. The rest of the tube is vaginal, being merely the passage-way
by which the perfected ovum is discharged into the cloaca, to be expelled per anum. The
muscular walls of the oviduct consist of both circular and longitudinal unstriped fibres, like
those of intestine, — the latter especially in upper portions and at the infundibulum, the former
more conspicuously below, where they form a sort of os tince at the bottom of the calcific
portion, and a kind of sphincter vagine at the end of the tube. A recognizable clitoris is
developed in many birds.

The deposition of the white and of the shell
remains to be noticed. The first deposit upon
the yelk-ball consists of a layer of dense and
somewhat tenacious albumen, called the chala-
siferous membrane (Gr. xaAala, chalaza, a tu-
bercle, and Lat. fero, I bear). As the egg’ is
urged along by the peristaltic action of the
tube, it acquires a rotation about the axis of the
tube; the successive layers of soft albumen it
receives are deposited somewhat spirally; and
the chalaziferous membrane is drawn out into

These

Fig. 110. —Hen’s egg, nat. size, in section; from
Owen, after A. Thompson. 4, cicatricle or “tread,”
with its nucleus, of white germ-yelk, floating on surface
of pale thin nutritive yelk, leading to central yelk-
cavity, x; a, the yellow yelk-ball, deposited in the suc-
cessive layers, forming a set of halones, and enveloped
in the chalaziferous membrane which is spun out at
opposite poles into the twisted strings, chalaze, c, c;
b, b’, successive investments of softer white albumen;

threads at opposite poles of the egg.
threads, which become twisted in opposite direc-
tions during the rotation of the egg, are called
chalaze ; they are the “strings,” rather un-
pleasantly evident in a soft boiled egg, but serve
the important office of mooring and steadying the

yelk in the sea of white by adhesions eventually
contracted with the membrane which immedi-
ately lines the shell. They are also intrusted
with the duty of ballasting, or keeping the yelk right side up. For there is a ‘right side”
to the yelk-ball, being that on which floats the cicatricle, or “tread.” This side is also the
lightest, the white yelk being less dense than the yellow; and the chalaze are attached a little
below the central axis. The result is, that if a fresh egg be slowly rotated on its long axis,
the tread will rise by turning of the yelk-ball in the opposite direction, till, held by the twisting
of the chalazz, it can go no farther ; when, the rotation being continued, the tread is carried
under and up again on the other side, resuming its superior position as efi. After all the
spiral layers of soft white are laid on, a final covering of dense albumen is deposited at the
isthmie part of the oviduct. This forms a tough tunic called the membrana putaminis (Lat.

d, membrana putaminis, the ‘soft shell’? or egg-pod,
between layers of which at the great end of the egg is
the air space, /; e, the shell.

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS. — OOLOGY. 223

putamen, a peel, rind), or ‘ egg-pod”’; it is the final envelope of such a ‘“ soft-shelled egg”
as a hen drops when deprived of the lime required to enable her to secrete a hard shell. In
the uterine dilatation of the oviduct a thick white fluid charged with earthy matter is exuded;
this condenses upon the egg-pod and forms the shell. The composition of this earth is chiefly
earbonate of lime (common chalk), with some carbonate of magnesia, and phosphates of both
of these bases—thus like that of bone as to ingredients, but in very different proportions. The
shell does not simply overlie the pod in a distinct sheet, but is intimately coherent, the micro-
scopic crystals or other particles of the earthy matter being deposited in the matted fibrous
texture of the pod. The connection is most intimate in fresh eggs; after a while, layers of the
pod separate at the butt of the egg, forming the large air-space which every one has noticed in
that situation. The shell being very porous, readily admits air. The air space enlarges during
incubation, and the pod becomes more and more distinct from the shell, which latter also
increases in porosity and fragility towards ‘full term.” The rough or smooth appearance of an
egg-shell, the pores which may be visible to the naked eye, and other physical characters, are
due to the impression made upon it by the linmg membrane of the “uterus.” The superficial
deposit of chalk is so heavy, in some cases, as those of cormorants, etc., that it may be scraped
off without interfering with the texturally firm shell-substance underlying. All the coloration
of egg-shells, which frequently makes them pretty objects, is simply the deposit of pigment
granules in or upon the shell. Such deposit may be perfectly uniform, as it is in the bluish-
green egg of a robin, for instance, but it is oftener spotty — either upon a white or a whole-
colored ground. The browns and neutral tints are the usual colors, particularly a bright
reddish-brown; the same, lying in instead of upon the shell, gives the grays, ‘ lilacs,” and
“lavenders” so well known. In ptarmigan, the pigment is so heavily deposited that the
egg comes out pasty on the surface; a sign of “fresh paint!” one must not disregard if he
would not spoil the decoration.

Oviposition. — The energy and rapidity with which the processes involved in the manu-
facture of so complex a product as a bird’s egg is now seen to be are extraordinary. A domestic
fowl may lay an egg every day for an indefinite period. It is difficult to say how quickly an
egg may ripen in the ovary; for, during the activity of that organ, several or many are to be
found in all stages of immaturity, and the date of the initial impulse cannot well be determined.
As there is probably but one egg at a time in the oviduct, the whole process of finishing off the
yelk-ball with its chalaziform, soft albuminous, putaminous, and caleareous envelopes may go
on in twenty-four hours, most of which time is consumed in the shell-formation. The number
of eggs matured by the human female is or should be thirteen annually; thisis no large number
for many of the gallinaceous and anatine birds to deposit in about as many days. But a
probable average number is five or six. Defeat of the procreative instinct from any accident is
commonly a stimulation to renewed endeavors to reproduce ; and very many birds rear two or
three broods annually, though one clutch of eggs is the rule. Many, such as auks, petrels, and
penguins, lay a single egg. Two eggs is the rule in humming-birds and pigeons. Three is
normal to gulls and terns, though these often have but two. Four is the rule among the
small waders of the limicoline groups. Some of the small Oseines lay over the average,
having eight or ten; among these, the European sparrow, Passer domesticus, is probably the
most prolific. The parasitic euckoos are said to lay the relatively smallest eggs; that of the
Apertyx is said to be the largest, weighing one fourth as much as the bird. The usual
shape of an egg has given us the common names oval, ovate, and ovoidal, for the well-known
figure. Some, as those of owls, woodpeckers, kingfishers, and others, more or less nearly
approach a spherical shape. Eggs of grebes, herons, Totipalmate birds and various others
are rather elliptical, or equal-ended, and narrow in proportion to their length. Eggs of the
limicoline group are generally pyriform, — very broad at one end and narrow at the other. Bnt

224 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

the eggs of all birds vary more in size and shape than some of the devotees of theoretical odlogy
admit in their practice. The variation so well known in any breed of domestic fowl is scarcely
above a normal rate. The short diameter, corresponding to the calibre of the oviduct, is less
variable than the long axis; for when the quantity of food-yelk and white, upon which the
difference in bulk depends, varies with the vigor of the individual, the scantiness or redundancy
is expressed by the shoftening or lengthening of the whole mass. The egg traverses the
passage small end foremost, like a round wedge, with obvious reference to ease of parturition
by more gradual dilatation of the outlet. :

Germination. — Leaving now all the accessory parts of an egg, let us confine attention
to the germ-yelk, or “ tread,” which is alone concerned in the germinative process. Recurring
to the female Dynamameba, consisting of granular protoplasm (vitellus) included in its cell-_
wall (vitelline membrane) and including its nucleus and nucleolus (germinal vesicle and germi-
nal spot), we will trace it up to the time it begins to take shape as an embryochick. At first,
as I have observed before, it is like any other amceba; the first step of development is prob-
ably a retrograde one; for if there ensues, when the spermatozoa melt into the ovum, the
result affirmed for mammalian ova, the original germinal vesicle and germinal spot disappear,
and the whole con-
tent of the ovum
proper is simply a
homvugeneous mass
of granular proto-
plasm. In this ret-
rograde step, the or-
ganism, at the low-
est possible round
of the ladder of
evolution, is called
a monerula. The
germinal _ vesicle
and spot, however,
are speedily recon-
iy structed, and the
suse ovum looks pre-
cisely as it did be-

SY Ss eae

ats

Fig. 111. — Segmentation of the vitellus by discoidal cleavage, diagrammatic, x about fore. But observe
10 times, after Haeckel. Only the ‘‘tread,” cicatricle, or germ-yelk (figs. 109, b, 110, .4)is that the actual dif-
represented, as no other part of the whole yelk-ball undergoes the process. *.4, separation f : .
into 2; B, into 4; C, into 16, by 8 radial and 1 concentric furrow; D, into many parts, by erence 1s enormous;
16 radial and about 4 concentric furrows; H, 64 radial and about 6 concentric furrows; for it now consists
#, the whole tread broken up into a mulberry-mass (morula) of cells. af the blended aub:
stance of the original ovum and of the spermatozoa; and in this duplex or bisexed state,
before any further step is taken, the creature is called a cytula,— the parent cell of the entire
future organism. In the former state it could reproduce nothing, not even itself ; for it is the
strange physiological law of a Dynamameba that it cannot reproduce like an ordinary cell,
but must evolve an entire organism, like both of those two whose vital forces it concentrates,
summarizes, and embodies, — or nothing. ;

The first change in the parent-cell is that by which it becomes broken up into a mass of
cells, each of which is just like itself. This process is called segmentation of the vitellus; each
one of the numerous resulting cells is called a cleavage-cell. The nucleus of the parent-cell
divides into two; each attracts its half of the yelk; the halves furrow apart and there are now

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OOLOGY. 225

two cleavage-cells in place of the one parent-cell. A furrow at right angles to the first, and
redivision of the nuclei, results in four cleavage-cells. Radiating furrows intermediate to the
first two bisect the four cells, and would render eight cells, were not these simultaneously
doubled by a circular furrow which cleaves each, with the result of sixteen cleavage-cells. So

‘ the subdivision goes on until the parent-cell becomes a mass of cells. This particular kind of
cleavage, by radiating and concentric furrowing, is called discoidal, and the resulting heap of
little cells assumes the figure of a thin, flat, circular disc. Segmentation of the vitellus, in
whatever manner it may go on, results in a mulberry-like mass of cleavage-cells; and the
original cytula has become what is called a morula. This process and result are clearly shown
in fig. 111, 4-F.

The morula or mulberry-massed germ of which the “tread” of a bird’s egg at this mo-
ment consists increases by multiplication of cells, and the disc is lifted a little away from the
mass of yellow food-yelk upon which it rests, like a watch-erystal from the face of a watch.
This disposition of the greatly multiplied cells in a layer and their coherence forms of course
a membrane, —the blastodermic mem-
brane, or blastoderm, fig. 112, B, b.

ISS Beeatsre

Tk : J esa oe ian, Cows Seeisroze, iy
e cavity between the blastoderm ‘o il ih
and the mass of food-yelk is called the uh I HR

cleavage cavity, s. At the stage when Ra ee
the blastodermic membrane and cleav- eaKent a ee
age-cavity are formed, the germ is fl] | ih i

)

called a blastula, or germ-vesicle,! and ; | ,
the process by which the morula be-
eomes a blastula is called blastulation.
Next, from the thickened rim, w, of
the watch-crystal-like blastula a layer
of large entoderm cells, fig. 112, C, ¢, stu
a He

when it gets there, of course the origi- an iM

nal cleavage-cavity, s, is shut off from Fra. 112. — Further development of hen’s egg; after Haeckel:

Z Ee 1, the mulberry mass of cleavage cells, 0, same as seen on top in
the surface of the food y elk ; a second fig. 111, ¥, here viewed in profile in section, resting upon 7, the
crystal having grown under the first simply-shaded part of the figure, to represent conventionally the

mass of food-yelk. 4, morula stage (as before); B, blastula
ne: The second adheres to the first, stage, the mass of cells, 6, forming the blastoderm, uplifted from
obliterating the original cleavage-cav- the food-yelk, leaving the cleavage-cavity, s; w, the thickened
Big as 2 * _ rim of the germ-disc; (, the blastula in process of inversion, by
ity; the Cru: 8 nen obviously two which a layer of entoderm-cells, i, growing from periphery to
layered ; the rising of the inner layer centre, will apply itself to the layer of exoderm-cells, e, obliterat-

to meet the outer results in a cavity ing the cleavage-cavity, 85 D, the dise-gastrula completed, by
union of entoderm, i, with exoderm, e, leaving the primitive
between itself and the food-yelk, D, d. intestinal cavity, d, which is quite similar in appearance to the
This cavity exactly resembles the cleavage cavity, », but morphologically quite different.
original cleavage-cavity, but it is a very different thing, being the primitive intestinal cavity.
The blastula, or germ-vesicle, has become converted into a gastrula, by the invaginating
process just described, known as gastrulation. The gastrula of a bird has the circular dis-
coidal form which causes it to be termed a discogastrula. This process of forming a single
blastodennie layer, with a cleavage-cavity (blastula, or true germ-vesicle), then two blasto-
dermic layers, with obliteration of the cleavage-cavity and substitution of a primitive intestinal
cavity (gastrula), is common to all animals which consist of more than single cells, under vari-
ous modifications and disguises; the process described is that occurring in meroblastic eggs
which have a discoidal cleavage and form a discogastrula.?

ti =

1 Not to be confounded with the original “germinal vesicle ”’ of the parent-cell, which long since disappeared
2 The so-called “germ-vesicle” of the holoblastic mammalian egg is subsequent to gastrulation, not prior
and is therefore not a blastula proper.

15

226 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

What we have got now is a tread or germ consisting of a circular concavo-convex disc of
two layers of blastoderm, resting by its rim upon the great yellow ball of food-yelk, from which
it is separated by a cavity, as a watch-crystal from its face. All these changes, up to comple-
tion of gastrulation, may go on before the egg ts laid, the tread of a perfectly fresh egg being
already a multicellular discogastrula. Since the earlier stages of the embryo (cytula, morula,
plastula, and gastrula) are actually accomplished while the egg is still in the body of the parent,
the analogy of the oviduct to uterus, etc., as well as its strict homology to the parts of a
miillerian duct so named, is not so fanciful as some appear to think. The outer of the two
blastoderthic layers is the ectoderm or epiblast, C or D, e; the inner is the endoderm or hypo-
blast, i. By multiplication of cells between the two arises the mesoblast. The mesoblastie
layer of cells subsequently splits into two, of which the outer is the somatopleura, or body
layer, the inner the splanchnopleura or visceral layer. The two-layered germ has then become
four-layered. Up to the time of formation of four layers, the cells are all alike, or only differ
slightly in size, color, or consistency. Now, however, ensues that marvellous process by which
the indifferent cells of the blastodermic layers are to become differentiated in form and special-
ized in function,—a sort of division-of-labor system in the infant colony of cells, by which some
are to learn to move, others to digest, others to procreate, others to think and feel, with corre-
sponding modifications of form by which are generated the Ost be, Myamebe, Neur-
amebe,— the bone-cells, muscle-cells, nerve-cells, and all others of the complex organism
whieh is m a few days to come into being from such simple beginnings. This of course opens
up the whole field of embryology, which we cannot here enter upon. I will only add, that from
the epiblast is derived the integument, and its inversions, as those of the eye and ear, and the
brain and spinal chord. From the bypoblast is derived the lining of the alimentary canal and of
its annexes and offsets, as liver, lungs, ete. The rest of the embryo comes from the mesoblast,
and most of it from the somatopleural layer. The fissure between the two layers of the
mesoblast becomes the great pleuro-peritoneal cavity.

In explaining the early embryo, I have closely followed the great German morphologist,
Haeckel; and the illustrations are from the same high source.

Incubation. — To induce the wonderful metamorphoses just hinted at, it is only necessary
to keep a bird’s egg at a pretty even temperature of about 100° F. Nearly all birds secure
this result by the process of incubation. In many cases the sun’s rays relieve the parent of
some part of the duty. In a few, the heat evolved from vegetable ferment or decomposition is
utilized fur the same purpose. This seems to be the case to some extent with grebes; but
these incubate. ‘The exception to the rule of incubation is given by the Megapodial birds
of the Australasian Islands. A huge mound of decaying vegetable matter is raised; the eggs
are deposited vertically in a circle at a certain depth, near the summit, and the chick is devel-
oped with the aid of the heat of fermentation. The large size of the egg relates to affording
a supply of material sufficing for an unusually advanced state of development of the chick at
exclusion; whereby it has, strength to force its way to the surface of the hatching-mound,
with wings and feathers sufficiently developed to enable it to take a short flight to the nearest
branch of an overshadowing tree” (Owen). The period of incubation has been ascertained
with precision for few birds; it is known to range from ten days (perhaps less), as in case of
the wren, to fifty or sixty for the ostrich. The female is usually the sitter. Frequently both
sexes incubate in turn; such unnatural care for the young by the male is termed double monog-
amy. In most or all Ratite, in the family Phalaropodide, and some other Limicoline genera,
the male incubates. Most birds attend to their own eggs; many cuckoos (Cuculide) and the
species of Molothrus, are parasitical, laying in the nests of other birds, which are thus forced to
become foster-parents of alien offspring, generally to the destruction of their own. This seems
to result from some peculiarity of the egg-laying process, which does not permit several eggs

THE ANATOMY OF BIRDS.— OOLOGY. 227

to be incubated and hatched simultaneously. It is not so unusual among American cuckoos
as generally supposed. The degree of development to which birds attain in the egg has been
already discussed (p. 88). They break the shell by pecking at it, and struggling ; for the
former operation the bill is often tempered at the tip by a hard knob which is afterward ab-
sorbed. The necessity of providing a receptacle for eggs, in which they may be incubated,
results in nidification or nest-building ; and the extraordinary taste and ability many birds dis-
play in this matter, as well as the wide range of their habitudes, furnishes one of the most
delightful departments of ornithology, called caliology (Gr. xadtd, kalia, a bird’s nest; see
p. 54, note). Many birds burrow in the ground; others in trees; the most beautiful and
elaborate nests are furnished by various members of the Oscines, the weaver-birds of Africa
(Ploceide) probably taking the lead. The male sometimes constructs his own “nest” apart
from that in which the female ineubates. ‘Certain conirostral Cantores still practise in the
undisturbed wilds of Australia the formation of marriage-bowers distinct from the later-formed
nesting-place. The satin bower-bird (Ptilonorhynchus holosericeus), and the pink-necked
bower-bird (Chlamydodera maculata), are remarkable for their construction on the ground of
avenues, over-arched by long twigs or grass-stems, the entry and exit of which are adorned by
pearly shells, bright-colored feathers, bleached bones, and other decorative materials, which are
brought in profusion by the male, and variously arranged to attract, as it would seem, the
female by the show of a handsome establishment” (Owen). The extraordinary nests of the
Crotophaga, used in common by a colony of the birds, are noted at p. 471. ‘‘ Edible birds’-
nests,” constructed by swifts of the genus Collocalia, consist chiefly of inspissated saliva.
Perhaps the most remarkable of all the receptacles of eggs is that which the penguin makes of
its own body, the egg being carried in a sort of pouch formed by the integument of the belly,
something like that of a marsupial mammal.

.

§ 5. DIRECTIONS FOR USING THE ARTIFICIAL KEYS.

These “Keys”. differ from natural analyses in being wholly arbitrary and artificial.
They are an attempt to take the student by a ‘‘short cut” to the name and position in the orni-
thological system of any specimen of a North American bird he may have in hand and desire to
identify. The plan has been much used in Botany, though seldom if ever employed for a
whole Fauna, before the original edition of this work. It will serve a good purpose, rightly
used; but it’ must be remembered there is no ‘‘royal road to learning”; nobody can be
smuggled into sound erudition, either. Nor must too much be expected of me here; I can
take the student nowhere until he has learned the difference between the head and the tail of
a bird, at any rate. That is what the preceding pages undertake to teach; but, until such
technicalities have been mastered, progress in ornithology is out of the question.

The original ‘‘ Key to the Genera” proved scarcely so satisfactory as I hoped it would be.
It undertook too much, to conduct the student at once down to the intricacies of the very
many modern genera, not all of which can by any possibility be characterized intelligibly in
a line of type. I have probably simplified and expedited matters by preparing on the same
plan Keys to the Orders and Sub-orders, and to the Families. ‘Then in the body of the
work, under each head, further analyses are given when such seems to be required, — of
families under their orders or sub-orders, of genera under their families, and of species under
their genera. These ulterior analyses are for the most part rather natural than artificial,
though I never hesitate to seize upon any character that may furnish the desired clue to ideuti-
fication.

The artificial Keys immediately following will take the student to the families, with refer-
ence to the page of the work where such groups come; on turning to which, further analyses

228 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

will be found, generally down to species and even varieties. They are to be used as follows
(after the preceding lessons have been learned) : —

We have in hand a bird we do not know, and the name of which we wish to ascertain.
Suppose it to be that common species which builds the nest of mud upon the bough of the
apple-tree and lays greenish-blue eggs. To what family does it belong ?

The Key opens with an arbitrary division of our birds according to the number and
position of their toes. Our specimen, we see, has four toes, three in front, one behind. It
therefore comes under IV. Going to IV., we read:

Hind toe — inserted above the level of the rest, etc.
—not inserted above the level of the rest. . . . (Go to B.)

Our specimen has the hind toe not inserted above the level of the rest. Going to B, we find
five alternatives. Our bird presents no one of the special characters of the first four alterna-
tives, and this determined takes us tog. There we find:

(g) Primaries —10 ; the 1st (never spurious), etc.

—10; the 1st (spurious or), etc. . . . (Go to)
— 9; the Ist (never spurious), etc.

In this cdse the bird has obviously a spurious first primary, not nearly two-thirds as long as
the longest. Going to +;—
(i) Tarsus — ‘‘ booted ” ; wings — shorter than, etc.

—longer than tail; tail— double rounded.
—not double rounded. ... . TURDIDZ, p. 240.

Thus (provided we have taken the trouble to inform ourselves what ‘“ spurious first pri-
mary” and “booted tarsus” mean), the key conducts to a family, by presenting in succession
certain alternatives, on meeting withseach of which, we have only to determine which one of
the two or more sets of characters agrees with those afforded by our specimen. There will
not, it is believed, be any trouble in determining whether a given character ts so, or is not so,
since only the most tangible, definite, and obvious features have been selected in framing the
key. ‘After each determination, either the name of a family is encountered, or else a reference-
letter leads on to some new alternative, until by a gradual process of elimination the proper
family is reached. After a few trials, with specimens representing different groups, the process
will be shortened, for the main divisions will have heen learned; still the student must be
careful how he strikes in anywhere except at the beginning, for a false start will soon set him
hopelessly adrift. The key has been tested so thoroughly that there is little danger of his
running off the track except through carelessness, or misconception of technical terms; but
there is no excuse for the former, and the latter may be obviated by the Glossary at the end of
the book, and cspecially the foregoing General Ornithology, § 3, which should be consulted
when any doubt arises. Time spent upon the preliminary lessons will be time saved in
the end.

At page 240, as indicated, the family Turdide is fully characterized, and its sub-families
and genera are analysed. The bird in hand should answer all the characters of the family and
those of one of the sub-families, Turdine, and one of the genera, Turdus. The analysis of
the species of Turdus should show the specimen to be Turdus migratorius, the Robin. Under
the head of that species, No. 1 of the List, will be found a fair description and various other
particulars.

If there be any difficulty in going at once to the family, the student may try the key to
the orders and sub-orders, and get on the track in that way.

Directions for measurement have already been given (p. 24). In comparing measure-
ments made with those given in the Synopsis, absolute agreement, must not be expected ;
individual specimens vary too much for this. It will generally he satisfactory, if the disere-

DIRECTIONS FOR USING THE KEYS. 229

paucy is not beyond certain bounds. A variation of, say, five per cent. may be safely allowed
on birds not larger than a robin: from this size up to that of a crow or hawk, ten per cent. ;
for larger birds even more. Some birds vary up to twenty or twenty-five per cent., in their
total length at least. So if I say of a sparrow for instance, “length six inches,” and the
specimen is found to be anywhere between five and three-fourths and six and one-fourth, it
will be quite near enough. But the relative proportions of the different parts of a bird are
much more constant, and here less discrepancy is allowable. Thus ‘‘ tarsus longer than the
middle toe,” or the reverse, is often’a matter of much less than a quarter of an inch; and as it
is upon just such nice points as this that a great many of the generic analyses rest, the neces-
sity of the utmost accuracy in measuring, for the use of the keys, becomes obvious. When [
find it necessary to use the qualification ‘‘ about” (as, “bill about = tarsus”) I probably never
mean to indicate a difference of more than five per cent. of the length of the part in question.

It may be well to call attention to the fact, that most persons unaccustomed to handling
birds are liable to be deceived in attempting to estimate a given dimension; they generally
make it out less than measurement shows it to be. This seems to be an optical effect con-
nected with the solidarity of the object, as is well illustrated in drawing plates of birds, which,
when made exactly of life-size, always look larger than the original, on account of the flatness
of the paper. The ruler or tape-line, therefore, should always be used, and parti¢ularly in
those cases where analyses in the key rest upon dimensions. It is hardly necessary to add,
that in taking, approximately, the total length from a prepared specimen, regard should be
had for the ‘‘ make-up” of the skin. A little practice will enable one to determine pretty
accurately how much a skin is stretched or shrunken, and to make the due allowance in either
case.

The measurements used in this work are allin English inches and decimals.

There are probably no signs or abbreviations not self-explanatory or not already explained
in “ Field Ornithology.”

Fig. 112 bis. — Diagram of corresponding segments of hindlimbs of man, horse, and bird. The lines 1-11 are
isotomes, cutting the limbs into morphologically equal parts, or isomeres.

230 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

ARTIFICIAL KEY TO THE ORDERS AND SUBORDERS.

Page

I. Tors 3; 2infront,1 behind . . 2 soe ee ee es « Piciformes of PicaRim 444
Ii. Toes 3; 3in front. Toes — cleft or semipalmate : Bogda I esas, Oe - LIMicoLa 596
—palmate. Nostrils—tubular. ...... .. . . . LONGIPENNES 732

—nottubular . “ + 2 « » « . »PYGOPODES 787

III. Tors 4; 2in front, 2 behind. Bill—cered and hooked. . . a 3 . . Psirract 494

— neither cered nor hooked. “Tail ‘feathers —8or 10
Cuculiformes of PICARIA 444
—12 Piciformes of PICARLE 444
Iv. Tors 4; 3in front, 1 behind.

Toes —syndactyle . . . . oe es « « Cuculiformes of PICARIE 444
— totipalmate (all four full-webbed) ee 3 . + « STEGANOPODES 718

— palmate. Bill — curved up 4s . LIMICcOLa 596

— not curved up — lamellate 7 5 ‘ LAMELLIROSTRES 677

— not lamellate. Hallux — lobate : . . PYGOPODEs 787

— not lobate LONGIPENNES 732

—lobate. Tail — rudimentary . Pa . . PYGOPODES 787

— perfect. — A horny frontal shield . etl . ALECTORIDES 665

—WNofrontal shield. . . . “ c . LIMICOLE 596

— semipalmate; joined by evident movable basal web (go to A).
— cleft to the base or there immovably coherent (go to B).
A. Hind toe — elevated. Tibise — feathered below. Nostrils— perforate. . . Cathartides of RAPTORES 496
— imperforate. Gape — reaching below eye
Cypseliformes of PICARLE 444
— not reaching below eye
GALLINE 571

— naked below. Nostrils — perforate . ‘i . ALECTORIDES 665
— imperforate. Tarsi — : scutellate i in front
‘ LIMIcoLa 596

—reticulate. Head — bald
HERODIONEs 647

— feathered
LIMICOLz 596
— not elevated. Tibie — naked below . . aos . HERODIONES 647
— feathered below. Bil— corel ‘end hooked Fi . RAPTORES 496
—notcered. Nasal — membrane soft CoLUMB 561
— scale hard GALLINZ 571
B. Hind toe — elevated. Gape— reaching below eye. . a8 Cypseliformes of PIcaRrta& 444
— not below eye. 1st primary — ariateinate orabout=2d . . LimicoLa 596

— not emarginate and shorter than 2d
ALECTORIDES 665
—not elevated. Nostrils — opening beneath soft swollen membrane +. . COLUMBz 561
— otherwise. Bill — cered and hooked x ‘ . RApPToRES 496
'— otherwise. Secondaries — only six
Cypseliformes of PICARLE 444

— more than six (go to a).
a. Primaries — 10; 1st more than 3s long asthe longest .. . oe + + « Clamatores of
— 10; 1st not 2 as long as the longest : ety . : Oseines of PASSERES 238
sens ey Na ee ee BSCR AS

ARTIFICIAL KEY TO THE FAMILIES. 231

ARTIFICIAL KEY TO THE FAMILIES.

Page
TOES 3,—21N FRONT, 1 BEHIND. . . den & Mawar bis see te oe we we oe tw th we ww PLOW 477
TOES 3,—3 1N FRONT. (Go to HI.)
TOES 4,—2 IN FRONT, 2 BEHIND. (Go to III.)
TOES 4, —3 IN FRONT, 1 BEHIND. (Go to IV.)
[Tozs 8, — 8 In FRonT.]
Toes — completely webbed. Nostrils — tubular (Albatrosses). . . + + + + « . . PROCELLARIIDZ 173
—not tubular (Auks, &c.) . . . ALCIDa 797

— incompletely or not webbed. Legs — about as long as wings. Bill subulate (stilt) RECURVIROSTRIDE 609
— much shorter than wings (go to a).

(a) Tarsus — scutellate in front, about as long as bill (Sanderling) . . . . . SCOLOPACIDE 614
— reticulate in front — shorter than red chisel-like bill (Oyster-eatcher) . H2MATOPODIDE 606
— longer than bill (Plovers) “ ‘ oo % . CHARADRIIDZ 597

III. [Tozs 4,— 2 1n rront, 2 BEHIND.]

Bill — cered and strongly hooked. Tarsus granulated (Parrot) . . se ee PsitTacipz 496
— not cered; inner hind toe — 3-jointed; Plumage iridescent (Trogon) . rae . TROGONIDZ 468
— 2-jointed ; — tail of — 8 or 10 soft feathers (Cuckoos, &e. ) . . CucuLipz: 470
—12 (apparently only 10) rigid acuminate feathers
(Woodpeckers) . . F Picipa 477

[Tors 4,— 3 1n Front, 1 BEHIND.]

HIND TOE — INSERTED ABOVE THE LEVEL OF THE REST (AND ALWAYS SHORTER THAN THE SHORTEST
FRONT TOE). (Go to A.)
— NOT INSERTED ABOVE THE LEVEL OF THE REST (AND GENERALLY BUT NOT ALWAYS NOT
SHORTER THAN THE SHORTEST FRONT TOE). (Go to B.)

[The hind toe elevated. |

Feet — TOTIPALMATE (all 4 toes webbed ; hind toe semi-lateral and barely elevated). (Go to A.)
— PALMATE (3 front toes full-webbed, hind toe well up, simple or lobed or ted by slight webbing to
base only of inner toe). (Go to B.)
— LOBATE (3 front toes partly webbed or not, and conspicuously bordered with plain or scalloped mem-
branes ; hind toe free, and simple or lobed). (Go to C.)
— SEMIPALMATE (2, or 3, front toes webbed at base only by small yet evident membrane : hind toe well up,
simple). (Goto D.)
— SIMPLE (front toes with no evident membranes ; hind toe well up, simple). (Go to E.)
(A.) Tarsus — feathered, partly ; tail deeply forked; bill epignathous (Frigate-bird). . . . TACHYPETID& 730
— naked; bill — > tail, hooked at tip, furnished with enormous pouch (Pelicans) PELECANIDA 721
— < tail; throat — feathered; middle tail feathers filamentous (Tropic-birds)
PHAETHONTIDE 731
— naked; tail— pointed, soft; tomiasubserrate(Gannets) SULIDZ 720
—rounded, stiff; bill — paragnathous (Anhinga)
PLoTIDz 729
-— epignathous (Cormorants)
PHALACROCORACIDE 723

232 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

Page
(B.) Bill — curved up, extremely slender and acute(Avocet). . . . RECURVIROSTRIDE 609
— bent abruptly down, very stout, lamellate (Flamingo) . . . . PHGNICOPTERIDZ 678
—lamellate; mostly membranous, with nail at end (Swans, Geese, Ducks, &e.) ‘ . ANATIDAE 679
— not lamellate; nostrils — tubular; hind toe very small (Petrels) . ‘ PROCELDARIIDA 7713
— not tubular; hind toe — free, not lobed (Gulls and Terns). . LARIDa 133
— not free, lobed (Loons) . . . COLYMBIDA 789
(C.) Tail -- rudimentary; lores naked (Grebes) $ ‘ Fi PoprcrrepiDm 792
— perfect; forehead — covered with a horny shield (Coots) i . RALLIDZ 669
— feathered (Phalaropes). . . . PHALAROPODIDZ 612
(D.) Mid-claw — pectinate; 4th toe 4-jointed; plumage lax (Goatsuckersy . an mn a CAPRMIULGIDZ 447
— not pectinate; hind toe — versatile; plumage compact (Swifts) CYPSELID 455
— not versatile; head — naked (go to b).

— feathered (go to c).
(b.) Nostrils — imperforate; naked leg and foot shorter than tail (Turkey). . . MELEAGRIDIDZ 576
— perforate; naked leg and foot — shorter than tail (Turkey-buzzards) . CATHARTIDA® 557
— longer than tail (Cranes) : . . . GROUIDE 666
(e.) Nostrils — feathered, or scaled, in deep fossa of stout hard bill . . . TETRAONIDAE 576

— not feathered nor scaled, in groove of softish bill; tarsus — reticulate (Plover)
CHARADRIIDZ 597
— scutellate in front (Snipe, &c.)

(E.) Wing — spurred é . . PARRIDE 669
— not spurred : forehead. — covered with a horny shield (Gallinules) . ads ; . RALLIDE 669

— feathered; length —2feetor more... + . . . ARAMIDZD 667

— under 2 feet; 1st primary — attenuate (Woodcock). . » SCOLOPACIDE 614

— not attenuate — much shorter than 2d (Rails)
RALLIDE 669
— about equal to 2d (Snipe, &c.) ScoLopacipz 614
or HZMATOPODID 606

B. [The hind toe not elevated.] .

TOES SYNDACTYLOUS; tibize naked below; bill straight, acute (Kingfishers) ie ALCEDINIDZE 468
TIBILZ NAKED BELOW. (Go to d.)
NOSTRILS OPENING BENEATH SOFT SWOLLEN MEMBRANE. (Go toe.)
BILL HOOKED AND FURNISHED WITH A CERE. (Go to f.)
BIRDS WITHOUT THE ABOVE CHARACTERS. (Go to g.)
(d.) Middle claw — pectinate (Herons) . . ‘ ~ . . « . ARDEIDA 654
— simple; tarsus — scutellate in front (Tbises) . x - IsIDIDz 648
— reticulate; bill — flat, spoon-shaped (Spoonbill) . PLATALEID# 651
— not flat, stout tapering (Wood Ibis) C1con1Ip# 652
(e.) Bird over 18 inches long, greenish (Texan Guan) ca . CRACIDZ 572
Birds under 18 inches long (Pigeons) : . COLUMBID 562
(f.) Eyes — lateral, not surrounded by a disc; nostrils i in the cere ( Hawks, Eagles, &c.) . FALCONIDE 519
or PANDIONIDA 556
— anterior; face more or less disc-like; nostrils at edge of cere (Owls); middle claw — simple
STRIGIDE 502
— jagged
ALUCONIDE 500
(g-) PRIMARIE6 — 10; the Ist (never spurious) always more than 3 as long as longest (go to h).
— 10; the ist (spurious or) at most not 3 as long as longest (go to i).
— 9; the 1st (never spurious) of variable length (go to kk). 4

(h.) Tail — 12- feathered; tarsal envelope irregular (Flycatchers) . . % . TYRANNIDE 428
— 10-feathered; secondaries — only 6; bill subulate (Humming-birds) . . . TROCHILIDA 458

— more than 6; bill small, very short (Swifts) . . CyPsELIDa 455

{i.) Tarsus — “booted”; wings — shorter than tail, both much rounded; plumage very lax CHAMHID 262
— longer than tail; tail—double-rounded. . . . . . AMPELIDA 325

— not double-rounded (Thrushes, &c.) TURDIDZ 240
— acutellate; nostrils — concealed ; bill — strongly epignathous, toothed and notched (Shrikes)
LANIIDA 336
— paragnathous;— over 7 inches long (Crows and
Jays) Corvip 414
—not7 inches ; bill — nearly = head
(Nuthatches) SirTrpa: 269
— scarcely or not
} = head (Tits) PaRIDa 263

“ee ee

i

ARTIFICIAL KEY TO THE FAMILIES. 233

Page
= exposed ; length — over 9 inches; color brown or blue . Corvipa 414
— 7-8 inches; crested; 6 glossy black AMPELIDA 325
—44$-6} inches; bill distinctly hooked; tail, soft,
without black VIREONID 329
—4}-5} inches; bill slender, curved, tail stiff, acute
CERTHIIDA 272
— Birds without these characters; rictus — bristled
TURDIDZE 240

—unbristled
TROGLODYTIDE 273
(k.) Tarsus — scutelliplantar; hind claw straight (Larks)..... . + + + « ALAUDIDAD 280

— laminiplantar; bill — metagnathous, both mandibles faleate, their points crossed
FRINGILLIDZ 339
— paragnathous, tomia of up. mand. toothed or lobed near middle
(Tanagers) TANAGRIDZ 317
— epignathous, notched and hooked at tip. Length 54-6} VIREONIDE 329
— various. Quills — tipped with red horny appendages; head
crested AMPELIDZ® 325
— not appendaged; bill — fissirostral (go to 1).
—dentirostral or tenui-
rostral (go to m).
— conirostral (go to n).
G.) Bill triangular-depressed, about as wide at base as long, gape twice as long as culmen, reaching

about opposite eyes, tarsus not longer than outer toe and claw (Swallows) . HIRUNDINIDA 319
(m.) Longest secondary nearly reaching end of primaries in closed wing; hind daw (usually) little
curved, nearly twice as long as middle claw (Titlarks) . in ai » + + . MOTACILLIDA 283

Longest secondary not nearly reaching end of primaries in lowed wing; bind claw well curved,
not nearly twice as long as middle claw (Warblers, &c.) C@REBID 317, or SYLVICOLIDA 287
(n.) Bill usually thick, stout, and with evident angulation of the commissure. . . . Ioreripa 399
or! FRINGILLIDZ 339

1 Note. — These two families cannot be concisely distinguished. IcTERID contains the blackbirds, orioles,
meadow starlings, bobolinks, and cowbirds. FRINGILLID&, our largest family, includes all kinds of grosbeaks,
buntings, linnets, finches, and sparrows.

Wisin = ARR SE anR s oe Doo eaeeee Cena ey

Fig. 112 ter. Diagram of fore limbs of man, bat, horse, and bird. The lines 1-9 are isotomes, cutting the limbs
into morphologically equal parts, or isomeres.

234 GENERAL ORNITHOLOGY.

TABULAR VIEW OF THE GROUPS HIGHER THAN GENERA

ADOPTED IN THIS WORK FOR THE

CLASSIFICATION OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS.

Subclass CARINATZ: Carinate Birds.

ORDERS (138). SUBORDERS (20). FAmMILies (63). SuBFAMILIES (77).

I. PASSERES . . OSCLNES ei we 1. Turdide . . 1. Turdinz.
ao coe cae Fi Ce a > Dae Tes ee tae 3. Cincline.
gee tg hccay see ge Bi tae tar Nios ar, SGU tae dee 2 ay TRO Bae ee he a 4, Saxicoline.
at ee ae ae || Mae Sah fee eau ae te ib G aw Wee TS. Goh a 5. Reguline.
Sue he ie 7 ee a ; , 6. Polioptiline.

a

2. Chameide (?) 8 ee Ba
i ‘ : ae eS 3. Paride . es 7. Parine.
eo a ae eh a | ee ee 4. Sittide ..... 3 ek x
5. Certhiide. . . . 8, Certhiinz.
6. Troglodytide 7 9. Campylorhynchinz.
. Salat Fi A F " ale 10. Troglodytinsz.
r an See is ie. va [ase th se a) Ase as a ok re 1. Alaudide. . . . | 11. Calandritine.
gs Bae Say HE ee ee ee ee iy oid Be aS Pag 12, Alaudine.
eee te at el Ys hla ca GS ee Seed 3b 8. Motacillide . 3 13. Motacilline.
hie Meh Ha ag G8 par th) we ise, 9, ea Hl soe ee ew . . | 14 Anthine.
eg Ge Be a ee 6 |e ee we Se ee RS 9. Sylvicolide . . . | 15. Sylvicoline.
Ste See ee) ee ae Se ee Sie gs Ves ag 16. Icteriinz.
Sy Re a a » oe ew ee ws | 17, Setophagine.
Oe er eee ee BEM ESAGN Nery «+» + | 10. Cerebide . Pear ene Ge. ERO 8
SGPT Sele ug BE Top ae te soe ee ee we » . | LL. Tanagride.... : a ete
Be si aha ae ae We fo: asia cat so te - . . | 12. Hirundinide "i a 7
ok 13. Ampelide (?)_ . 18. Ampelinsze
¢-% % Ye 19, Ptilogonatinz.
. | 20, Myiadestinez.

fh lee eS Go ‘ . + 2 « « | 14. Vireonide “ eee er
eo Ae . soe eo we ww we | 15. Laniide . . » | 21, Laniine.
5 oe en Ge? ats otha AS 16. Fringillide . Ps ‘ eee ee a 8
ae ae Be aE tet ash ae OB ED i 17. Icteride . . « | 22. Agelwine.
a “Ged ce Oe RY Ge OM Ney Mean sen : ae . + | 23. Sturnelline.
ae 3 . oh dats ef se ea « se ew ew we, | 24. Teterine.
Seen é : : sone ew ew ee | 25. Quiscalinz.
ee eee ae So Gree Beet 18. Corvide ... . | 26. Corvine.
‘ . . . oe ee « . | 27, Garruline.
Set Mags oid Se «Sp a . | 19 Sturnide. . . . . | 28. Sturnine.
: a? ge Ee 8, SE eon te 2. CLAMATORES . 20. Tyrannide . . . . | 29. Tyrannine.
Il. PICARI#(?). . . 3. CYPSELIFORMES . 21. Caprimulgide . . . | 30. Caprimulgins.
ih) ta) Hie de) Seer dbe ad Slon f ap tke Sy + . | 22, Cypselide .. . . | 31 Cypseline.
ee te) cae aS. wae at eo 8 eee ewe ew ee | 82. Cheeturine.
ee ow aw rar ee . | 28. Trochilide . . . . | 33, Trochiline.
ty a ROA al 4. CUOCULIFORMES ?. . | 24. Trogonide . . . . | 34. Trogonine.
Bese see fay Sy LS a soe et ee ww we a | 25. Aleedinide . . . 35, Alcedininz.
eee eee ee Pe ee ek we ee we @ | 26. Creulide. . ». . « | 36. Crotophagina,
Be clan dehs tae Sa pe ose aer [lie Sop ae eae: aE 8 «2 8 6 ew www © | | 8%. Saurotherine.

soe ew ww we ws | 88. Coccygine.
27. Picide. ..... a th tw

ee ay cae te 5. PICIFORMES

CLASSIFICATION OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS.

285

ORDERS (13).

SuBoRDERS (20).

Faminiss (63).

SUBFAMILIES (77).

Ill. PSITTACI ...
IV. RAPTORES .

Vv. COLUMBA

VI. GALLINAS
Vil. LIMICOLZ .

Vu. HERODIONES .

IX. ALECTORIDES

X. LAMELLIROSTRES

XI. STEGANOPODES

XI. LONGIPENNES.

XIII. PYGOPODES

nD

a°

oo

10.

17.
18.

19.

. PELARGI.

a Nas “ce

. STRIGES . . . .

AOOCIPITRES. . .

. CATHARTIDES .
. PERISTERZ.

PERISTEROPODES

. ALECTOROPODES.

. IBIDES. . a> 3s

HERODII .
GRUIFORMES
RALLIFORMES .

ODONTOGLOSSZ
ANSERES. . .

28.
29.
30.

&-

3.

61.

. Charadriide . .

. Ardeide . Aner

. Gruide
. Aramide. . . -
. Parride . ....
. Rallide

. Phenicopteride
. Anatide

Psittacide ...
Aluconide ....
Strigide .....

Faleonide ...

Pandionide. . .
Cathartide. . .
Columbide . .

. Cracide . hte ow
. Meleagridide . . .
. Tetraonide .

. Hematopodide
. Recurvirostride

. Phalaropodide
. Scolopacide. . ‘

Ibidide ar

. Plataleide a
. Ciconiide

Sulide . aie

. Pelecanide. ...
. Phalacrocoracide .

. Plotide . 2

. Tachypetide ..

. Phatthontide . ..
. Laride

. Procellariide

Colymbide.

. Podicipedide
. Alcide .

39. Arine.

40. Strigine?
41. Buboninz?
42. Circinz.
43. Milvineg.
44, Accipitrins.
45. Falconinz.
46. Polyborine.
47. Buteoninz.

48. Columbinz.

49. Zenaidine.

50. Starnenadine.
61. Penelopinz.

52. Tetraonine.

53. Odontophorinz.
54. Charadriinz.
55. Aphrizinz ?

56. Hematopodinz.
67. Strepsilainaz.

58. Tantaline.
59. Ciconiine.
60. Ardeinz.

61, Botaurinz.

62. Ralline.
63. Gallinuline.
64. Fulicine.

65. Cygninz.
66. Anserine.
67. Anatine.
68. Fuliguline.
69. Merginz.

70. Lestridinz.
71. Larine.

72, Sternine.

73. Rhynchopine.
74. Diomedeinz.
75. Procellariins.
76. Phaleridine.

77. Alcine.

18 ORDERS.

20 SUBORDERS.

63 FAMILIEs.

77 SUBFAMILIES.

EXPLANATION OF COLORED FRONTISPIECE.

ANATOMY OF PIGEON, 9°, § Nat. Size.
The breast-bone and entire front walls of body removed ; the viscera drawn to the right.

A, A, skin of neck tured aside. —a, opening of bursa fabricii into cloaca. — B, brain
removed from skull and turned hind part before (p. 176). — Bp, brachial plexus (p. 177). —
b, opening of oviduct into cloaca (p. 219). — ©, crop, with left C’, and right C”, lateral dila-
tations (p. 212). — v, opening of left ureter into cloaca (p. 214). — ea, czeca coli, point where
small intestines pass into colon (p. 214).— D, D, duodenal loop of intestine, enfolding pan-
creas (p. 213).— E, esophagus, gullet (p. 211).— Er, right ear-opening. —e, left cerebral
hemisphere. —f, optic nerve (p. 176). — G, gizzard; letter on central tendon (p. 212). — g
left optic lobe (p. 176). — H, heart (p. 196); the unlettered orange-red arteries from it are the
short right and long left innominate, latter dividing into left carotid and left subclavian (both
cut short), former dividing into right carotid (the long ascending vessel) and right subclavia
just over the letters ‘‘Ty”; main aortic arch (right) not shown (pp. 197, 198); the unlet-
tered bright-blue vessels are the pulmonary arteries. — Hy, hyoid arch (p. 167). —- hh, cerebel-
lum (p. 176). —hd, hepatic ducts entering duodenum from liver (p. 215). — i, termination
of rectum in cloaca (p. 214). — J, esophagus between crop and proventriculus. — Kn, knee
(p. 120). —k, k, k, three lobes of kidney, lying in pelvis p, ureter w passing down upon
them to ¢ (p. 217). —LL, liver, right and left lobes, receiving apex of heart between them
(p. 215). — Lg, leg (p. 120). —Lu, left lung (see p. 200; compare fig. 101).—M, M’, M’,
M’”, stumps of cut pectoral muscles (p. 193). —_m, entrance into lung of left bronchial tube.
N, N, skinned neck. —n, spigelian lobe of liver. —O, left ovary, inactive (p. 220, fig. 108)
od, left oviduct, passing down with ureter to b.—P, pelvis partly exposed (p. 147).— Pe,
pancreas, lying in duodenal fold of intestine (p. 215).— Pr, proventriculus or true stomach,
between cesophagus and gizzard (p. 212).—p, medulla oblongata, connecting brain with
spinal cord (p. 175). —Q, coils of intestine, coming down from D’, behind G, passing ca to i
(p. 213). —R, cut ends of several ribs. —r, r’, two openings leading from lung to not shown
air-sacs (p. 200, fig. 101, «, «). —S, spleen. —Sr is placed over the syrinx; the fleshy bands
on each side of the letters are the intrinsic syringeal muscles; the narrower bands diverging
from trachea between Sr and Tr are extrinsic muscles (p. 204, fig. 101, 16, a-e). — Th,
thigh (p. 120). — Tr, trachea or wind-pipe (p. 201).— Ty, a gland. —t, intermediate mus-
cle of the gizzard. —U or V, remains of skull broken open to remove brain. —v, v/, v’;
three pancreatic ducts entering intestine (p. 215). — w, ureter, see k, above.— Drawn and
colored from nature by Dr. R. W. SHUFELDT, U.S. A.

Part III.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS

OF

NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS.

CLASS AVES: BIRDS.

HIS CLASS OF ANIMALS, while sharply distinguished from Mammals, is so closély

related to Reptiles, that the presence of feathers in the former, and their absence

from the latter, is the most obvious if not the only positive character by which the two classes
are separable.

Though the species of birds are numerous (some 10,000 are known), the structural diver-
sity of the Class is comparatively so slight, that the characters upon which the primary divisions
are based seem insignificant in view of those upon which the major groups of Mammals or.
Reptiles may be founded. With strict regard for equivalency of taxonomic groups, based on
morphological considerations, the conventional ‘class” of Birds is scarcely or not of higher
value than an order of Reptiles, with which Birds are associated under the name SauROP-
SIDA. But it is not proven that a given structural character may not have classificatory value
in one case, different from that which may properly be attributed to it in another; so that,
though the most diverse birds may be more alike than are extremes among Lizards for
example, we may still continue to speak of a class Aves, to be primarily divided into sub-classes:
or orders.

All known Birds, living and extinct, are divisible into the following primary groups,
which may be termed sub-classes :

I. Saurur#. — Birds with teeth. Vertebre biconcave (amphiccelous). Sternum
keeled. Wings small, with separate metacarpals. Tail longer than body, its
vertebre not pygostyled, its feathers arranged in distichous series. (One species,
Archaeopteryx lithographica, from the Jurassic of Europe. Fig. 14.)

II. Oponrotormaz.— Birds with teeth, implanted in sockets. Vertebre biconcave.
Wings large, with anchylosed metacarpals. Sternum keeled. Tail short.
(Typified by the genus Ichthyornis, from the Cretaceous of North America.
Fig. 16.)

238 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — CARINATA — PASSERES.

Il. Opontroitca. — Birds with teeth, implanted in grooves. Vertebree saddle-shaped
(heterocelous). Wings rudimentary, wanting metacarpals. Sternum without
keel. Tail short. (Typified by the genus Hesperornis, from the Cretaceous of
North America. Fig. 15.)

IV. Ratitrz.— Birds without teeth. Vertebree (some) saddle-shaped. Wings rudi-
mentary, or at most unfit for flight, with anchylosed metacarpals. Sternum
without keel (as in Odontolce, fig. 15). Tail short. (Embracing the extinct
Moas, and the living Ostriches, Cassowaries, Emeus, and Kiwis.)

VV. Carinata#.— Birds without teeth. Vertebree (some) saddle-shaped. Wings devel-
oped, with rare exceptions fit for flight, with anchylosed metacarpals. Sternum
keeled. Tail short (as to its vertebrae, which are pygostyled). (Embracing all
living birds excepting the Rate).

V. AVES CARINATZH: ORDINARY BIRDS.

The essential characters of this group, which includes all living birds excepting the
ostriches and their allies (ratite or struthious birds), are the absence of teeth, the saddle-shaped
faces of the best-developed vertebra, and the keeled breast-bone (fig. 56), in combination with
the perfection of wing-structure in adaptation to aerial (or aquatic) flight. The metacarpals and
three metatarsals are anchylosed (figs. 27, 34); the scapula and coracoid meet at less than a
right angle (very rarely more), and the furculum is usually perfect (fig. 59). (In the flightless
parrot of New Zealand (Stringops habroptilus), the sternal keel is rudimentary.) The caudal
vertebrae are few, and’the last few (pygostyle, fig. 56) are peculiarly modified to support the
tail-feathers in fan-like array. There is normally extensive post-acetabular anchylosis of the
pelvic bones, which are normally separate there in the other groups (compare figs. 56 and 15).

The division of Carinate birds has always exercised the judgment and ingenuity of orni-
thologists ; no system that has been proposed has been universally adopted, and few if any of
the major groups can be considered established and perfectly defined. The orders of Carinate,
therefore, are still provisional. But a great assemblage of birds have been ascertained to
agree (with few exceptions) in possessing certain characters, upon the combination of which
may be based an

I.— Order PASSERES: Insessores, or Perchers Proper.

The feet are perfectly adapted for grasping by the length and low insertion of the hind toe,
. great power of apposing which: to the front toes, and great mobility of which, are secured by
separation of its principal muscle (flexor longus hallucis) from that which bends the other toes
collectively (flexor profundus digitorum). The hind toe is always present, perfectly incumbent,
and never turned forwards or even sideways; its claw is as long as, or longer than, the claw
of the middle toe. The feet are never zygodactyle, nor syndactyle, nor semipalmate, nor
palmate; the front toes are usually immovably joined to each other at base, for a part, or
the whole, of the basal joints. No one of the front toes is ever versatile. The joints of the
toes are always 2, 3, 4, 5, counting from the first (hinder one) to the fourth (outer front one).
The toes are always four in number (excepting Cholornis). (Figs. 36, 37, 42, 43.) Various
as are the shapes of the wings, these members agree in having the great row of coverts not more
than half as long as the secondaries ; the primaries either nine or ten in number, and the second
aries more than six. (Fig. 30.) The tail, extremely variable in shape, has twelve rectrices
(with certain anomalous exceptions). The bill is too variable in form to furnish characters of
groups higher than families; but its covering is always hard and horny, in part or wholly, —
never extensively membranous, as in many wading and swimming birds, nor softly tumid, as in

CHARACTERS OF PASSERES. 239

pigeous, nor cered, as in parrots and birds of prey. The nostrils do not openly communicate
with each other. The oil-gland (p. 86) is nude, and of a characteristic shape. Besides these
external characters, which the student may readily examine without dissection, there are some
more important anatomical ones. The sternum (with few exceptions) is cast in a particular
mould, being manubriated, with prominent costal processes, and having each side of the poste-
rior border single-notched (neither entire, nor deeply nor doubly notched, nor fenestrate ; fig.
58). The bony palate has a peculiar structure, called egithognathous (fig. 79). There is but
one carotid artery, the left (fig. 91). The cca coli are present, though small. There is a
peculiarity in the method of insertion of the tensor patagii brevis. Besides possessing the pecul-
iarity of the flexors of the toes, already mentioned, Passeres are anomalogonatous (p. 195);
that is, the ambiens muscle is absent, as is the accessory femoro-caudal; the femoro-caudal and
semitendinosus are present, as is usually also the accessory semitendinosus.

Physiologically, the nature of Passeres is altricial and psilopedic (p. 88) ; that is, the young
are hatched weak and naked, and require to be fed for some time in the nest by the parents.
They represent the highest grade of physiological development, as well as the most perfect
physical organization of the class of birds. Their nervous irritability is great, codrdinate with
the rapidity of their respiration and circulation; they consume the most oxygen, and live the
fastest, of all birds. They habitually reside above the earth, in the air that surrounds it, among
the plants that with them adorn it; not on the ground, nor on ‘the waters under the earth.”

Pas'seres were named by Cuvier in 1798 as an order of birds; the name is simply the
plural of the Lat. passer, a sparrow. But the group as established by him included many
forms which were first properly excluded by the celebrated Nitzsch, who in 1829 limited the
group as now accepted. Besides being one of the best defined, it is by far the largest group
of its grade in ornithology. For example, of the 888 birds enumerated as North American in
the Check List, no fewer than 394 are Passeres; as are more than half of all known birds.

Passeres aze primarily divisible into two groups, commonly called sub-orders, mainly
according to the structure of the vocal organ, — the lower larynx, or syrinx. In one of these
groups, the musical apparatus is highly developed, with several distinct pairs of intrinsic mus-
cles, inserted into the ends of the upper three half-rings of the bronchial tubes. In the other,
the voice-organ is less complex, with less specialized muscles inserted into the middle portions
of the upper bronchial half-rings. The former arrangement is termed acromyodian, the latter
mesomyodian: and the birds which exhibit this difference of structure are respectively called
Passeres acromyodi and Passeres mesomyodi, or Oscines and Clamatores. (See p. 205, fig. 101.)

Associated with the acromyodian or oseine type of syrinx is a peculiar condition of the
tarsal envelope. In nearly all Oscines, the tarsus is covered on each side with a horny plate,
nearly or quite undivided, meeting its fellow in a sharp ridge behind. This condition of the
tarsus is called bilaminate, and the birds showing it are laminiplantar (figs. 37, 42, 43). In
some cases the fusion of the tarsal envelope proceeds so far that the front. of the tarsus likewise
presents a nearly or quite undivided surface, the whole tarsus being then encased in a ‘‘ boot,”
as it is called. A ‘‘ booted” tarsus may be said to be trilaminate (fig. 36). The principal ex-
ception to the association of a bilaminate or trilaminate tarsus with an acromyodian syrinx is
afforded by the Alaudide, which have the tarsus scutellate and blunt behind; and, with very
few exceptions, no bird which is not acromyodian has a bilaminate tarsus. A third important
feature characterizes Oscines, as artule. This is the reduction in length of the first primary,
which never equals the longest primary in length, is rarely over two-thirds as long as the
longest, is so short as to be called spurious, or is quite rudimentary and apparently wanting,
leaving apparently only nine primaries (fig. 30).

Associated with the mesomyodian or clamatorial type of syrinx is seen (with few excep-
tions) the opposite condition of the tarsus, the sides and back of which, as well as the front, are
covered with variously arranged scutella, so that there is no sharp undivided ridge behind.

240 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

In such eases there are also ten fully developed primaries, the first of which, if not equalling or
being itself the longest, is at least two-thirds as long. (See p. 428, fig. 279.)

- These combinations of characters may be contrasted for the purpose of dividing the great
group Passeres into two sections, conventionally denominated sub-orders.

1. SuBoRDER PASSERES ACROMYODI, -OR OSCINES: Sryneinc Birps.

Syrinx with four or five distinct pairs of intrinsic muscles, inserted at the ends of the three
upper bronchial half-rings, representing the acromyodian type of voice-organ, and constituting
a highly complex and effective musical apparatus. Side of tarsus covered with a horny plate
meeting its fellow in a sharp ridge behind ; front of tarsus also sometimes laminate. Prima-
ries ten, with the first short or spurious, or apparently only nine.

Here belong all the North American families of Passeres, with the single exception of the
Tyrannide, or Flycatchers, which are clamatorial (mesomyodian). The only North American
exceptions to the diagnosis given are afforded by the Alaudide, or Larks, and certain Troglo-
dytide, which, with an oscine syrinx and wing-structure, do not have a bilaminate tarsus. Of
our 394 Passerine species, no fewer than 363 are Oscine. The name is the Lat. os!cen, in n.
pl. os'cines, divining-birds — those whose notes were regarded as augural.

It is a question, which one of the numerous Oscine families should be placed at the head
of the series. Largely, perhaps, through the influence of those ornithologists who hold that
fusion of the tarsal envelope into one continuous plate indicates the acme of bird-structure, the
place of honor has of late been usually assigned to the thrushes. But only a part of the
thrushes themselves show this character ; on which account, probably, the rest were associated
by Cabanis with the wrens. It seems to me most probable that this character, though unques-
tionably of high import, should be taken as of less value than the reduction of the number of
primaries from ten to nine ; and I am at present inclined to believe that eventually some Oscine
family with orily nine primaries —as the finches or tanagers— will take the leading position.
Here, however, I follow usage in the sequence of the North American families of Oscines, as
follows: — Turdide, Chameide, Parida, Stttide, Certhiide, Troglodytide, Alaudide, Mota-
cillide, Sylvicolide, Tanagride, Hirundinide, Ampelide, Vireonide, Laniide, Fringillide,
Icteride, Corvide, Sturnide.

1. Family TURDID4:: Thrushes, etc.

The essential character of this great group of
Oscines is, booted tarsi and ten primaries, the lst
spurious. But such expression requires qualification,
for the Turdide do not show this combination with-
out exception, and birds of some other families do
possess it. Though it be as natural as any other
Oscine family of equal extent and variety, and equally
close relationships with other groups, it is in the
nature of the case insusceptible of perfect definition
in concise terms. The North American representa-
tives, however, may readily be circumscribed in a man-
ner enabling the student to assure himself of the family
a Wi to which they belong. Besides the true Thrushes, the

ay 149, srievstien + Watapenn ededne family as at present constituted includes the Mocking
(Turdus iliacus) and Fieldfare (7. pilaris) Thrushes, Dippers, Blue-birds, Kinglets and Guat-
Erom Dixon. catchers, with stray representatives of certain Old
‘World forms. the Chats and Sylvines, sometimes held to represent separate families (Sasxico-

TURDIDZ — TURDINZ: THRUSHES. 241

lide and Sylviide), between which and Turdide, however, no line whatever can be drawn.
The vast asseinblage of Old World Warblers are in fact much more thoroughly Thrush-like
than are our Miminea, for example; and the Turdide would be much more homogeneous and
easy to characterize if the Mock-birds and Gnat-catchers, with scutellate tarsi and not strictly
spurious lst primary, were to be excluded. The relationships of the Mimine with the Wrens
are really so close, that they have often been associated with the Troglodytide, to which they
would probably be best assigned after all. The position of Polioptila is uncertain; but it
cannot well go with Paride, and does not seem to be very different from some of the Sylvine
forms now brought under Turdide.

The North American embers of the Turdide offer collectively the following characters : —

Wing of ten primaries, of which the lst is spurious or quite short — attaining functional
size only in Mimine and Polioptiline. Wing more or less elongate and pointed, longer than
the tail (shorter and more rounded in Polioptila and most Mimine). Inner secondaries never
long and flowing as in Motacillide. Bill never stout and conical, nor with angulated commis-
sure, nor flattened with gape reaching under the eyes; usually slender, straight or little curved,
more or less compressed, subulate and acute, usually notched at end of upper mandible (but
the nick frequently
obsolete, and whole
bill attaining ex-
traordinary charac-
ters in Harporhyn-
chus). Nostrils oval
or roundish, rarely
linear, expdsed in
conspicuous nasal
fossee ; nearly or
quite reached or
overreached by the a
frontal feathers, but
never concealed by
a dense ruff as in

Parid, d Sittid Fig. 114. — Skulls of Turdide and Sylvicolide, nat. size; after Shufeldt. A, Oro-
GOP BNC DUE: scoptes montanus; B, Sialia mexicana; ©, Cinclus mexicanus; D, Siurus nevius.
Rictus bristled or Observe likeness between A and B, at points marked c, c’, l, /’; and between C and D,

with bristl e-tippe d at points marked 8, b,/ d, d/.

feathers, except in Cinclus. Tarsus normally booted, the anterior scutella, excepting a few
below, being fused in a continuous plate, — not so in Mimine and Polioptiline. On the sides
and behind, tarsus strictly laminiplantar (compare Alaudide and some Troglodyide). Tarsus
usually also long and slender; never decidedly shorter than the middle toe and claw, often
decidedly longer. Anterior toes deeply cleft, the inner to its very base, the outer adherent to
the middle for only the length of its basal joint (compare Troglodytide). Hind claw never
lengthened and straightehed as usual in Motacillide. ‘Tail feathers twelve; tail normally
much shorter than the wings, sometimes about equal, only decidedly longer in some Mimine ;
never cuneate, nor deeply forked, nor doubly rounded.

Any North American bird showing booted tarsi, ten primaries, the 1st spurious, — and
not double-rounded tail—is one of the Turdide. The group thus constituted is divisible
‘ into several sub-families, which may be analyzed as follows with reference to the North Amer-
ican genera : —

ANALYSIS OF SUBFAMILIES.

Turvinz: Typical Thrushes. Tarsi booted. Rictus bristly. Nostrils oval, exposed.

Bill straight, shorter than head. First quill strictly spurious; 2d between 4th and 6th. Tail
16

242 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

shorter than wings. Tarsus little if any longer than the middle toe and claw. Of medium
size. Cosmopolitan. One genus — Turdus.

Miminaz: Mocking Thrushes. Tarsal scutella usually distinct. Bill variable, sonctimes
attaining extraordinary length and curvature. Rictus bristly. Nostrils oval, exposed. Wings
short and rounded; 1st quill not strictly spurious, at least one-half as long as 2d, which is
shorter than 6th. Tail equalling or much longer than wings. Of medium and largest size.
Peculiar to America. An aberrant group, related to the Troglodytide. Three genera, —
Oroscoptes (fig. 114, A), Mimus, Harporhynchus.

Cinctinaz: Dippers. Tarsi booted. Bill shorter than head. Nostrils linear, exposed,
but overreached by feathers. No bristles whatever about rictus. Wings short, but still longer
than the very short square tail, with strictly spurious lst primary. Form stout. Plumage
dense. Habits aquatic. Cosmopolitan. One genus— Cinclus (fig. 114, C).

SaxIcoLinz: Chats, etc. Tarsi booted. Bill small, much shorter than head. Rictus
bristly. Nostrils oval. Wings pointed, exceeding the short, square or emarginate tail. Tar-
sus usually much longer than the middle toe and claw (not in Sialia). Of small size and
slender form, and for the most part terrestrial; but scarcely distinguished from Turdine
proper. Chiefly Old World: Three genera, — Saxicola, Cyanecula, and Siaha (fig. 114, B).

Reeuuinz: Kinglets. Tarsi booted (seutella rarely appreciable). Bill much as in
Turdine, but small and weak. Nostrils exposed, or overhung by tiny feathers. Wings
pointed, with strictly spurious Ist primary, longer than the even or emarginate tail. Tarsi
longer than middle toe and claw. Very small; under six inches. Greenish, often with flaming
crest. Chiefly Old World. Two genéra, — Phylloscopus and Regulus.

PouiopTininz: Gnat-catchers. Tarsi scutellate. Bill very slender, but widened and
flattened at base, with acute notched and hooked tip. ictus strongly bristled. Nostrils
entirely exposed. First primary not strictly spurious, half as long as the 2d. Very small;
under six inches. Coloration bluish, black and white. Peculiar to America. One genus—
Polioptila. /

Artificial Key to the Genera,

Tarsi distinctly scutellate (if not, crissum reddish). Wings not longer than tail.
Length under 6 inches. Colors bluish, black and white . .. . se ew ee e ©) 6 6Polioptila 11
Length over 6 inches.
Bill about as long as head or much longer. Tail decidedly longer than wings. Harporhynchus 4
Bill shorter than head.
Wings and tail of about equallengths. Ashy, spotted below . . . . . Oroscoptes 2
Wings rather shorter than tail. Ashy, adults plain below; or cap black - 2. . Mimus 3
Tarsi booted (anterior scutella at most indistinct).
Length 5 inches or less. Colors greenish and yellowish.

A flame-colored crest . . . 1... et ee we ae 7 - . . . Regulus’ 10
No colored crest . . é Oe Ss » +... . Phylloscopus 9
Length over 5 inches.
No bristles about bill. Whole-colored. Aquatic oak ete A Se ae dee ROR i TCMMCMS: ST
Rictus bristled.
Tarsus much longer than middle toe and claw.
Blue on throat, reddish on tail cane we ep + . Cyanecula 8
No blue or reddish. Tail black and white... ....- . Saxicola 5
Tarsus littleif any longer than middle toe and claw.
Coloration chiefly blue; bill and feet black... ..... 2... . Sialia 6
No blue. Bill and feet not black. . . iv Wee-ke oe es Lurdus 1

Oss. — In determining character of tarsus, whether booted or scutellate, it is necessary to examine adult birds;
for the fusion of the anterior scutella is progressive, and only accomplished perfectly at maturity. And in general,
in using artificial keys to genera and species, the student must agree with the author in understanding that speci-
mens fairly illustrating normal adult characters are in hand.

TURDIDA — TURDINZ:: TYPICAL THRUSHES. 2438

{. Subfamily TURDINA: Typical Thrushes.

With the tarsus, in the adult, ‘ booted” or
enveloped in a continuous plate, formed by fusion
of all the tarsal scutella excepting two or three
just above the base of the toes (fig. 36). Toes
deeply cleft,—the inner to the very base, the
outer coherent with the middle only for the length
of its basal joint. Wings more or less pointed,
longer than the tail; lst primary spurious, and
very short; 2d longer than 6th. Bill moderate,
shorter than the head, straight, more or less sub-
ulate, little depressed at base, with bristly rictus.

Fig. 115.— A typical Thrush, the European WNostrils oval, nearly or quite reached by the
sa a a frontal feathers. (Fig. 116.) Tail-feathers
widening somewhat toward their ends; tail as a whole somewhat fan-shaped ; neither decidedly
forked at the end, nor much graduated. Upwards of one hundred and fifty species are now
usually assigned to the Turdine, most of them referable to the single genus Turdus and its
subdivisions. They are nearly cosmopolitan, and have a great development in the warmer
parts of America, where they are mainly represented by types closely allied to Turdus proper ;
more aberrant forms, constituting very distinct genera, occur in the Old World. We have
but one genus in North America, of which the robin is the most familiar, as it is a very
characteristic, example; a species of Catharus, however, occurs very near if not actually
over our Mexican border. The thrushes are diffused over all the woodland parts of our
country, and are all strictly migratory insectivorous birds, though feeding also upon berries and
other soft fruits. Though not truly gregarious, some, as the robin for instance, often collect in
troops at favorite feeding places, or migrate in companies. They build rather rude nests,
often plastered with mud, never pensile, but saddled on a bough or fixed on a fork, or set
on the ground; and lay from four to six green or blue eggs, sometimes plain, sometimes
spotted. All are vocal; and some, like the wood thrush, are exquisitely melodious.

These birds may be taken in illustration of a character which runs through other of the
groups of Turdide besides the Turdine proper. The young, in their first feathering, which
is worn but a short time, are curiously speckled and streaked, in a manner quite different
from the adults. This feature is well shown by a young robin, or blue-bird, as described
beyond.

TUR/DUS. (Lat. twrdus, a thrush.) TurusnEs. The characters of the typical and single
genus represented in North America are in effect the same as those of the subfamily already
given. The several species fall in three subgenera, which may be thus analyzed : —

Merula. —Sexes similar. Bill notched near end, little widened at base. Tarsi little longer
than middle toe and claw. Beneath mostly unicolor, with streaked throat. Large; stout.
(Type, Turdus merula ; includes our robins.)

Hesperocichla. — Sexes dissimilar. Bill unnotched. Male with a black pectoral collar. Other-
wise like Merula. (Type, and only species, Turdus naevius.)

Turdus. — Sexes similar. Bill notched near end, much widened and depressed at base. Tarsi
decidedly longer than middle toe and claw. Beneath spotted. Of small stature, and rather
slender form.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Neither spotted nor banded below, but throat streaked. (Robins. )
Upper parts slate-colored ; breast chestnut.
Outer tail-feather with white tipping. (Eastern.) ....... ae 7 migratorius 1
Outer tail-feather without decided white tipping. (Western.)....... 56+ propinguus 2
Upper parts grayish-ash ; breast yellowish-buff. (Cape St. Lucas.). . . . 1... .confinis 3

~

1.

3.

244 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Streaked below on white ground, with reddish sides. (European)... ..... 6.4. « « « iliacus 4
Banded crosswise, not spotted, below ; upper parts slate-colored. (Western.) . . see ew ws NEVIUS 5
Spotted below on white or tawny ground, or on both.

Upper parts not of uniform color.

Upper parts tawny, shading to olive on rump. (Wood Thrush, eastern.). . . . . mustelinus 6
Upper parts olive, shading to rufous on rump.
Of medium size. (Hermit Thrush, eastern.) .. . Ce me eae me ae » . + nanus 10
Of largest size. (Hermit Thrush, Rocky Mts.) , eo soe + ee + auduboni 9
Of smallest size. (Hermit Thrush, Pacific coast.) “ % «1 + « + © Unalasce 8

Upper parts of uniform color throughout.
Upper parts tawny : spots below few, pale, sneey confined to buff jugulum: no buff

eye-ring. (fawny Thrush, eastern.) . ee Bea JSuscescens 7
Upper parts russet olive; under parts as before; no > buff eye) ring. (Tawny Thrush,

western.) . ‘ . . salicicola 7
Upper parts micdeh diver nies bélow mierous, avadiog waite infanstis w buff eye-

ring. (Western Olive-backed Thrush.) . be » . . ustulatus 11
Upper parts dark pure olive ; spots below as before; a buff ee — (Eastern Olive-

backed Thrush.) es . swainsoni 13
Upper parts dark pure olive; spots below as petty no buf eye- rine: ' (Hastern.) . « alicie 12

T. migrato/rius. (Lat. migratorius, migratory; migrator, » wanderer. Figs. 36, 58, 116.)
Rosin. , inswnmer: Upper parts slate-color, with a shade of olive. Head black, the eye-
lids and a spot before the eye white, and the throat streaked with white. Quills of the wings
dusky, edged with hoary ash, and with the color of the back. Tail blackish, the outer
feather usually tipped with white. Under parts, to the vent, including the under wing-coverts,
chestnut. Under tail-coverts and tibize white,
_ showing more or less plumbeous. Bill yellow,
often with a dusky tip. Mouth yellow. Eyes
dark brown. Feet blackish, the soles yellow-
ish. Length about 10.00; extent 16.00; wing
5.00-5.50; tail 4.00-4.50; bill 0.80; tarsus, or
mniddle toe and claw, 1.25. 9, in summer:
Similar, but the colors duller; upper parts
rather olivaceous-gray ; chestnut of the under
parts paler, the feathers skirted with gray or
Fig. 116, — Robin, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E.C.) — white; head and tail less blackish; throat with
more white. Bill much clouded with dusky. @ 9, in winter, and young: Similar to the adult
Q, but receding somewhat farther from the @ in summer by the duller colors, the paleness
and restriction of the chestnut, with its extensive skirting with white, lack of distinction of the
color of the head from that of the back, tendency of the white spot before the eye to run into
a superciliary streak, and dark color of most of the bill. Wery young birds have the back
speckled, each feather being whitish centrally, with a dusky tip; and the cinnamon of the
under parts is spotted with blackish. The greater coverts are tipped with white or rufous,
frequently persistent, as are also some similar markings on the lesser coverts. N. Am. at
large; an abundant and familiar bird, migratory, but breeding anywhere in its range. Nest
in trees, usually saddled on a horizontal bough, composed largely of mud; eggs 4-6, about
1.18 x 0.80, uniform greenish-blue, normally unspotted.
T. m. propin‘quus? (Lat. propinguus, neighboring; as related to the last.) ALLIED
Rosin. Quite like 7. migratorius; averaging slightly larger; wing up to 5.60; tail up
to 4.70, not so blackish as that of . migratorius, the outer feather without white, or
merely a narrow edging. A scarcely distinguished race, of the Rocky Mt. region and
westward. |
T. confi/nis. (Lat. confinis, allied or related; as to T. migratorius.) St. Lucas Rosin.
Upper parts, including sides. of head and neck, uniform grayish-ash, with slight olive shade,
searcely darker on the head; chin and throat white, streaked with ashy-brown ; breast, sides,

5.

TURDIDA — TURDINA]: THRUSHES. 245

and lining of wings pale yellowish-buff, belly white, flanks ashy. A distinct white super-
ciliary stripe; lower eyelid white. Feathers of jugulum and sides with ashy tips; greater
wing-coverts tipped with whitish; bill yellowish, upper mandible and tip of lower tinged
with dusky; feet pale brown. Wing 5.10; tail 4.10; tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw
1.07. Lower California ; resembling a young robin, but quite distinct.

T. ilvacus. (Lat. ilacus, relating to the flanks, which are red. Fig. 113.) Rep-wineep
Turusu. Upper parts hair-brown with an olive shade, darker on the head, paler on the
rump. Wing-quills deep brown; coverts and inner secondaries tipped with whitish. Tail
dark brown, the outer feather usually white-tipped. Lore blackish; eyelids and superciliary
stripe whitish; auriculars streaked with light and dark brown. Throat yellowish-white,

- streaked with brownish-black ; breast and belly grayish-white; lower tail-coverts whitish,

streaked with brown. Sides and under wing-coverts light red. Bill brownish-black, basal
half of lower mandible orange-yellow; iris brown; feet flesh-colored. Sexes alike. Length
8.50; extent 14.00; wing 4.50; tail 3.50; bill 0.75; tarsus, or middle toe and claw, 1.15.
A European species, only N. American as occurring in Greenland. The upper parts are
almost exactly like a robin’s; the lower whitish, streaked with dusky, the sides of the body
and lining of the wings bright chestnut.

T. ne/vius. (Lat. nevius, spotted, varied; nevus, a birth-mark. Fig. 117.) Variep
TurusH. OreGcon Rosin.. , in summer: Entire upper parts dark slate-color, varying in
shade from a blackish to a plumbeous slate, in less perfect specimens with a slight olive tinge ;
wings and tail blackish, with more or less of plumbeous or olive shade, according to the age of
the quills; wing-coverts, greater and
lesser, tipped with orange-brown form-
ing two cross-bars, and quills edged in
two- or three places with the same;
quills also white at base on the inner
webs, this marking not visible from the
outside; one or several of the lateral
tail-feathers tipped with white. A
broad black collar across the breast,
mounting on the side of the neck and
head. Stripe behind the eye, lower
eyelid, and under parts orange-brown,
gradually giving way to white on the
lower belly; vent and crissum mixed
white, orange-brown, and plumbeous.
Bill black ; feet and claws dull yellow-
ish. Length 9.50-10.00; extent about
16.00; wing 5.00; tail 3.75; bill 0.80;
tarsus, or middle toe and claw, 1.25. Fig. 117. — Varied Thrush (Turdus nevius), nat. size. (Ad.
Q , in summer: Upper parts olivaceous- BAU HEED

plumbeous (almost exactly the shade of the common robin in winter) ; wings and tail searcely
darker; the pectoral collar narrow, like the back in color; other under parts like those of
the g, but duller, paler, and rather rusty than orange-brown, with more white on the lower
belly. Markings of head, tail, and wings exactly as in the male. Young: Like the adult 9.
Upper parts in many cases with a decided umber-brown wash. No speckled stage, like that
of the very young robin, has been observed, though August specimens have been examined.
In the young @, the black pectoral bar is at first indicated by interrupted blackish crescents
on individual feathers. Young 9 Q sometimes show scarcely a trace of the collar. At
all ages, the markings of the head and wings are much the same. Pacific coast region, Alaska

7,

246 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

to Mexico, abundant, migratory; accidental in Mass., N. J., and Long Island. A beautiful
and very distinct species, representing the subgenus Hesperocichla (Gr. €omepos, hesperos, Lat.
vesperus, western, and xixda, kichla, a thrush). Nest in bushes, of twigs, grasses, mosses,
and lichens ; eggs 1.12 x 0.80, light greenish-blue, speckled with dark brown.

. T. musteli/nus. (Lat. mustelinus, weasel-like; i.¢., tawny in color; mustela, a weasel.

Fig. 118.) Woop Turusu. ¢ 9, adult: Upper parts, including the surface of the closed
wings, tawny-brown, purest and deepest on the head, shading insensibly into olivaceous on the
rump and tail. Below, pure white, faintly tinged on the breast with buff, and everywhere,
except on the throat, middle of belly, and crissum, marked with numerous large, well-defined,
rounded or subtriangular blackish spots. Inner webs
and ends of quills fuscous, with a white or buffy -
edging toward the base. Greater under wing-coverts
mostly white. Auriculars sharply streaked with
dusky and white. Bill blackish-brown, with flesh-
colored or yellowish base. Feet like this part of the
bill. Length 7.50-8.00; extent about 13.00; wing
4.00-4.25 ; tail 3.00-3.25 ; bill 0.75; tarsus 1.25;
middle toe and claw less. Young: Speckled or
streaked above with pale yellowish or whitish, espe-
Fic. 118. — Wood Thrush (7. mustelinus), cially noticeable as triangular spots on the wing-
nat. size, (Ad: nat.idel. E/C:) coverts. But these speedily disappear, when a
plumage scarcely different from that of the adult is assumed. The most strongly marked
species of the subgenus. In TJ. wnalasce, the only other one showing both tawny and
olive on the upper parts, the position of the two colors is reversed, the tawny occupying the
rump, the olive the head. In no other species are the spots below so large, sharp, numerous,
and generally dispersed. Eastern U. S., N. to New England only ; a famous vocalist, common
in low damp woods and thickets; migratory; breeds*throughout its range; nest in bushes
and low trees, of leaves, grasses, etc., and mud; eggs usually 4-5, plain greenish-blue like
those of the robin, but smaller: 1.08 x 0.70.
T. fusces/cens. (Lat. fuscescens, less than fuscus, dark.) Wu tson’s THRusH. VEERY.
89 : Upper parts reddish-brown, with slight olive shade; no contrast of color between
back and tail; quills and tail-feathers darker and purer brown, the former with white or

‘buff spaces at the concealed bases of the inner webs (as usual in this subgenus). No orbi-

tal light ring around the eye; auriculars only obsoletely streaky. Below, white; the sides
shaded with hoary-gray or pale grayish-olive; the jugulum buff-colored, contrasting strongly
with the white of the breast, and marked with a few small brown arrow-heads, the chin and
middle line of throat, however, nearly white and immaculate. A few obsolete grayish-olive
spots in the white of the breast; but otherwise the markings confined to the buff area. Bill

- dark above, mostly pale below, like the feet. @, Length 7.25-7.50; extent about 12.00;

Ta.

wing 4.00-4.25; tail 3.00-3.25 ; bill 0.60; tarsus 1.20. 9, smaller; average of both sexes:

“ length 7.35; extent 11.75; wing 3.90; tail 2.85; tarsus 1.12. Chiefly eastern U. S., but N.

to Canada; common, migratory, nesting in northerly parts of its range. Nest on ground or
near it, of leaves, grasses, etc., but no mud; eggs 4-5, greenish-blue like those of the wood
thrush, normally unspotted, 0.90 x 0.60. "A delightful songster, like others of the genus,
found in thick woods and swamps; of shy and retiring habits. ;

T. f. salici/cola. (Lat. salix, a willow; colo, I cultivate.) WitLow Tawny Turusu. Like
T. fuscescens, but averaging larger, the upper parts less decidedly tawny, the jugulum less
distinctly buff. Wing 3.80-4.25, av. 4.02; tail 2.95-3.40, av. 3.20; bill 0.55-0.60; tarsus,
av. 1.17; middle toe without claw, av. 0.69. A slight form recently described by Mr. Ridgway,
inhabiting the lower willowy portions of the Rocky Mt. region, U. 8. This variety is clearly

8.

9.

10.

il.

12.

TURDIDH —TURDINZ : THRUSHES. 247
‘

referable to 7. fuscescens; but it bears an extraordinary resemblance to 7. ustulatus, in the
‘russet-olive color of the upper parts, and only slightly buff tinge of the jugulum. It is dis-
tinguished from ustulatus by lack of the buff orbital ring so characteristic of ustulatus and
swainsont, and other characters. by which fuscescens differs, notably the few if any spots in the
white breast back of the buff area, and pale hoary gray instead of sordid olive-gray shading of
the sides. The nest and eggs are presumably like those of fuscescens, not like those of ustu-
latus or swainsont. (Not in Check List, 1882.)
T. unalas/ee. (Named from the island of Unalaska.) Western Hermit Turusu. In
eolor absolutely like No. 10; in size slightly less on an average; length scarcely 7.00; wing
3.30: tail 2.50; tarsus 1.15. Pacific coast region of N. A. ;
T. u. au’duboni. (To J. J. Audubon.) AupusBoy’s Hermir Turusn. In color absolutely
like No. 10; in size larger on an average; length about 7.75; wing 4.20; tail 3.30; tarsus
1.80. Southern Rocky Mt. region. A better marked variety than the last.
T.u.na/nus. (Gr. ydvos, Lat. nanus, a dwarf.) Eastern Hermit Turuss. ff ?, in
summer: Upper parts olivaceous, with a brownish cast, and therefore not so pure as’ in
swainsoni; this color changing on the rump and upper tail-coverts into the rufous of the tail,
in decided contrast with the back. Under parts white, shaded with grayish-olive on the sides ;
the breast, jugulum, and sides of the neck more or less strongly tinged with yellowish, and
marked with numerous large, angular, dusky spots, which extend back of the yellowish-tinted
parts. Throat immaculate. A yellowish orbital ring. Bill brownish-black, most of the under
mandible livid whitish ; mouth yellow, eyes brown; legs pale brownish. ¢, length 7.00-
7.25; extent 11.00-12.00; wing 3.50-3.75; tail 2.75-3.00. 9, smaller; length 6.75-7.00;
extent 10.75-11.25; wing 3.25-3.50. Averages of both sexes are: length 7.00; extent 11.25;
wing 3.50; tail 2.75; tarsus 1.15. The dimensions thus overlap those of both unalasee av’
auduboni, and no positive discrimination is possible; the differences, when any, being u
averages, not of extremes either way. 49, in winter: The olivaceous of the upper parts
assumes a more rufous cast, much like that of ustulatus, and the yellowish wash of the under
parts and sides of the head and neck is more strongly pronounced. But the most rufous speci-
mens are readily distinguished from fuscescens by the strong contrast between the color of the
tail and other upper parts. Very young: Most of the upper parts marked with pale yellowish
longitudinal streaks, with clubbed extremities, and dusky specks at the end; while the feathers
of the belly and flanks are often skirted with dusky in addition to the numerous blackish spots
of the rest of the under parts. N. Am. at large, but chiefly the Eastern Province; abundant;
migratory, and found in all woodland, but breeds only northerly, from Massachusetts and cor-
responding latitudes to the Arctic regions ;. winters in the Southern States. Nest and eggs not
distinguishable from those of the Veery (No. 7).
T. ustula‘tus. (Lat. ustulatus, scorched, singed; referring to the warm russet coloration.)
OREGON OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH. RUSSET-BACKED THRUSH. Quite like JT. swainsont
proper, No. 18, in uniformity of the color of the whole upper parts, presence of a buff orbital
ring, and general character of the shading and spotting of the under parts; but olive of the
upper parts not pure, having a decided rufous tinge, resulting in a russet-olive of exactly the
shade of that of the upper parts of the Western variety of fuscescens (salicicola) ; from which
it is distinguished by the buff orbital ring, aud very different shading and marking of the
under parts (compare No. 7 a); there being, as in swatnsoni proper, much olive-gray spotting
of the white breast back of the buff area, and much shading of the same olive-gray on the sides.
Size of swainsoni. Nest in bushes, and eggs spotted, as in the latter. Pacific coast region
of the U. S., abundant.
T. u. alicia. (To Miss Alice Kennicott, sister of Robert Kennicott.) GRAY-CHEEKED
TurusH. Similar to swatnsoni in uniformity and purity of the olive of the upper parts, which
is as dark and pure (no tendency to the rufous of wstulatus); but the sides of the head lack-

13.

248 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

ing the yellowish or buffy suffusion seen in swainsont, being thus like the back, or merely
grayer ; no buff ring around eye; breast slightly if at all tmged with yellowish. Rather larger
than swainsoni, about equalling mustelinus: length 7.50-8.00; extent 12.50-13.50; wing
4,004.25 ; tail 3.00-3.25; bill over 0.50; average dimensions about the maxima of swainsoni.
Distribution and nesting the same, but breeding range more northerly(?). A well-marked
variety, perhaps a distinct species. (A local race has been described as smaller, with the bill
usually slenderer; Catskill and White Mts.; 7. alici@ bicknelli Ridgw.)

T. u. swain/soni. (To Wm. Swainson, an English naturalist.) OLIVE-BACKED THRUSH.
& 9: Above, clear olivaceous, of exactly the same shade over all the upper parts; below,
white, strongly shaded with olive-gray on the sides and flanks, the throat, breast, and sides
of the neck and head strongly tinged with yellowish, the fore parts, excepting the throat,
marked with numerous large, broad, dusky spots, which extend backward on the breast and
belly, there rather paler, and more like the olivaceous of the upper parts. Edges of eyelids
yellowish, forming a strong buff orbital ring; lores the same. Mouth yellow; bill blackish,
the basal half of lower mandible pale; iris dark brown; feet pale ashy-brown. Length of
6, 7.00-7.50; extent 12.00-12.50; wing 3.75-4.00; tail 2.75-3.00; bill 0.50; tarsus 1.10.
9 averaging smaller; length 6.75; extent 11.50-12.00, ete. North America, N. to high
latitudes, W. to the Rocky Mts., common; migratory ; breeds from New England northward.
Nest in bushes and low trees, thus in situation like that of the wood thrush, but no mud
in its composition ; eggs unlike those of mustelinus, fuscescens, and the varieties of wnalasce,
in being freely speckled with different shades of brown on a greenish-blue ground ; size 0.90 x
0.66; number 4-5.

2. Subfamily MIMINAE: Mocking Thrushes.

Aberrant Turdide, departing
from the priine characteristic of
the fainily in having the tarsi seu-
tellate in front (the scutella some-
times fusing, however, as in the
catbird), and the lst primary,
though short, hardly to be called
spurious. Wings short and round-
ed (for this family), about equal
to the tail only in Oroscoptes ; 2d
primary shorter than the 6th.
Tail large and rounded or much
graduated, usually decidedly longer
than the wings. Tarsus about
equal to the middle toe and caw ;
feet stout, in adaptation to some-
A) what terrestrial life. Bill various
in form, usually longer or at least
more curved than in the true
thrushes; in Harporhynchus at-
taining extraordinary length and curvature. Birds much like overgrown wrens (with which
they have been associated by some) ; distinguished chiefly by greater size, different nostrils
and rictal bristles, and more deeply-cleft toes. As a group they are rather southern, hardly
passing beyond the United States; few species reaching even the Middle States, and the max-
imum development being in Central and South America. They are peculiar to America,
where they are represented by Oroscoptes, Mimus, Harporhynchus, and five or six related

Fig. 119. — Mocking-bird, about 3 nat. size. (After Wilson.)

14.

TURDIDZA — MIMINZ: MOCKING THRUSHES. 249

genera, with upward of forty recorded species, two-thirds of which are certainly genuine.
About one-half of these fall in Mimus alone; of Harporhynchus, nearly all the species occur
in the United States. In their general habits they resemble wrens as much as thrushes,
habitually residing in shrubbery near the ground, relying for concealment as much upon the
nature of their resorts as upon their own activity and vigilance. They are all inelodious, and
some, like the immortal mocking-bird, are as famous for their powers of mimicry as for the
brilliant execution of their proper songs. In compensation for this great gift of music, perhaps
that they may not grow too proud, they are plainly clad, grays and browns being the prevail-
ing colors. The nest is generally puilt with little art, in a bush, and the eggs, two to six in
number, are blue or green, plain or speckled.

Analysis of Genera.
Smallest: bill shortest ; wings about equal to tail. Adults speckled below . . . 2. 2. we we Oroscoptes 2
Medium : bill moderate; wings a little shorter than tail. Adults plain below. . ae . . -Mimus 3
Largest : bill immoderate ; wings wuch shorter than tail. Plain or spotted below . . . Harporhynchus 4

- OROSCOP'TES. (Gr. épos, oros, a mountain, and oxémrns, scoptes, a mimic). MouNTAIN

Mocxkers. Wings and tail of equal lengths, the former more pointed than in other genera of
Mimine, with the 1st quill not half as long as the 2d, which is between the 6th and 7th;
the 3d, 4th, and 5th about equal to one another, and forming the point of the wing. Tail
nearly even, its feathers but slightly graduated. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw,
anteriorly distinctly scutellate. Bill much shorter than head, not curved, with obsolete notch
near the end. Rictal bristles well developed, the longest reachiug beyond the nostrils.
O. montanus is the only known species.

0. monta‘nus. (Lat. montanus, of a mountain.) Mounrarny MocgInG-BIRD. SAGE
THRASHER. (§ 9, in summer: Above, grayish or brownish-ash, the feathers with ob-
soletely darker centres. Below, whitish, more or less tinged with pale buffy-brown, every-
where marked with triangular dusky spots, largest and most crowded across the breast, small
and sparse, sometimes wanting, on the throat, lower belly, and ecrissum. Wings fuscous,
with much whitish edging on all the quills, and two white bands formed by the tips of the
greater and median coverts. Tail like the wings; the outer feather edged and broadly tipped,
and all the rest, excepting usually the middle pair, tipped with white in decreasing amount.
Bill and feet black or blackish, the former often with pale base. Length about 8.00; wing
and tail, each, about 4.00; tarsus 1.12; bill 0.75. Young: Dull brownish above, conspic-
uously streaked with dusky; the markings below streaky and diffuse. Plains to the Pacific,
U.S.; also Texas and Lower California; an interesting species, resembling an undersized
young mocking-bird, abundant in the sage-brush of the W. Nest on ground or in low bushes ;
eggs usually 4, 1.00 X 0.72, light greenish-blue, heavily marked with brown and neutral tint.
MIMUS. (Lat. mimus, a mimic.) Mocxinc-Birps. Bill much shorter than head, scarcely
curved as a whole, but with gently-curved commissure, notched near the end. Rictal vibrisse
well developed. Tail rather longer than wings, rounded, the lateral feathers being considerably
graduated. Wings rounded. (Tarsal scutella
sometimes obsolete.) Tarsi longer than the mid-
dle toe and claw. Of this genus there are two
well marked sections (represented by the mock-
ing-bird and cat-bird respectively), which may
be distinguished by color: —

Mimus. — Above ashy-brown, below white;
lateral tail-feathers and bases of primaries white. |
(Tarsal scutella always distinct.) Fie. 120. — Catbird, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.)

Galeoscoptes. — Blackish-ash, scarcely paler below; crown and tail black, unvaried ;
crissum rufous. (Tarsal scutella sometimes obsolete.)

15.

16.

250 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

M. polyglottus. (Lat. polyglottus, many-tongued; from Gr. odds, polus, many, and yAérra,
glotta, tongue. Fig. 119.) Mocxine-prrp. , adult: Upper parts ashy-gray; lower parts
soiled white. Wings blackish-brown, the primaries, with the exception of the first, marked
with a large white space at the base, restricted on the outer quills usually to half or less of
these feathers, but occupying nearly all of the inner quills. The shorter white spaces show as
a conspicuous spot when the wing is closed, the longer inner ones being hidden by the second-
aries. The coverts are also tipped and sometimes edged with white; and there may be much
edging or tipping, or both, of the quills themselves. Outer tail-feathers white; next two
pair white, except on the outer web; next pair usually white toward the end, and the rest
sometimes tipped with white. Bill and feet black, the former often pale at the base below ;
soles dull yellowish. Length about 10.00, but ranging from 9.50 to 11.00; extent about
14.00 (13.00 to 15.00); wing 4.00-4.50; tail 4.50-5.00; bill 0.75; tarsus 1.25. Q, adult:
Similar, but the colors less clear and pure; above rather brownish than grayish-ash, below
sometimes quite brownish-white, at least on the breast. Tail and wings with less white than
as above described. But the gradation in these features is by imperceptible degrees, so that
there is no infallible color-mark of sex. In general, the clearer and purer are the colors, and
the more white there is on the wings and tail, the more likely is the bird to be a ¢ and prove
a good singer. The 9 is also smaller than the g on an average, being generally under and
rarely over 10 inches in length, with extent of wings usually less than 14.00; the wing little
if any over 4.00, the tail about 4.50. Young: Above decidedly brown, and below speckled
with dusky. U. 8. from Atlantic to Pacific, southerly; rarely N. to New England, and not
common N. of 38°, though known to reach 42°; thronging the groves of the South Atlantic
and Gulf States. Nest in bushes and low trees, bulky and inartistic, of twigs, grasses, leaves,
etc.; eggs 4-6, measuring on an average 1.00 X 0.75, bluish-green, heavily speckled and
freckled with several brownish shades. Two or three broods are generally reared each season,
which in the South extends from March to August. When taken from the nest, the “ prince
of musicians” becomes a contented captive, and has been known to live many years in con-
finement. Naturally an accomplished songster, he proves an apt scholar, susceptible of improve-
ment by education to an astonishing degree; but there is a great difference with individual
birds in this respect.

M. carolinen’sis. (Of Carolina: Carolus, Charles IX., of France.) (Figs. 37,120.) Cat-
BIRD. @° 9: Slate-gray, paler and more grayish-plumbeous below; crown of head, tail, bill,
and feet black. Quills of the wing blackish, edged with the body-color. Under tail-coverts
rich dark chestnut or mahogany-color. Length 8.50-9.00; extent 11.00 or more; wing 3.50-
3.75; tail 4.00; bill 0.66; tarsus 1.00-1.10. Young: Of a more sooty color above, with little
or no distinction of a black cap, and comparatively paler below, where the color has a soiled
brownish cast. Crissum dull rufous. U.S. and adjoining British Provinces. West to the
Rocky Mts., and even Washington Terr., but chiefly Eastern; migratory, but resident in the
Southern States, and breeds throughout its range ; nest of sticks, leaves, bark, ete., in bushes;
eggs 4-6, deep greenish-blue, not spotted. An abundant and familiar inhabitant of our
groves and briery tracts, remarkable for its harsh ery, like the mewing of a cat (whence its
name), but also possessed, like all its tribe, of eminent vocal ability.

. HARPORHYN’CHUS. (Gr. dpm, harpe, a sickle; fpuyxos, rhygchos, beak; i. e., bow-

billed.) THrasHers. Bill of indeterminate size and shape, ranging from one extreme, in
which it is straight and shorter than the head, to the other, in which it exceeds the head
in length and is bent like a bow (see figs. 121-125). Feet large and strong; indicating terres-
trial habits; tarsus strongly scutellate anteriorly, about equalling or slightly exceeding in
length the middle toe with its clay. Wings and tail rounded, the latter decidedly longer
than the former. Rictus with well developed bristles. Viewing only the extreme shapes of
the bill, as in H. rufus and H. crissalis, it would not seem consistent with the minute subdivis-

TURDIDZ — MIMINZ: MOCKING THRUSHES. 251

ions which now obtain in ornithology to place all the species in one genus; but the gradation
of form is so gentle that it seems impossible to dismember the group without violence. The
arcuation of the bill proceeds pari passu with its elongation ; the shortest bills being the
straightest, and conversely. There is also a curious correlation of color with shape of bill;
the short-billed species being the most richly colored and heavily spotted, while the bone
billed ones are very plain, sometimes with no spots whatever on the under parts. Our nine
forms of the genus are with one exception South-western, focusing in Arizona, where occur
four species, two of them not known elsewhere; two others are confined to California; two
to the Mexican border, leaving only one generally distributed. They furnish the following
Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Bill not longer than head (0.87-1.12), little or not curved. Breast spotted.
Bill 1.00, quite straight. Above rich rusty-red ; below whitish, heavily spotted and streaked with

dark brown. Eastern . . ~ . rufus 17
Bill 1.12, slightly curved. Above daric reidishbrewa; walaw whitish, heavily spoitell and streaked
with blackish. Texas .. . . » longirostris 18
Bill 1.12, curved. Above asby- ea. below whitish, *ireiet with oun apote of ihe color of the back.
Mexican border and Arizona. . . - . eurvirostris or palmeri 19, 20
Bill 0.87, scarcely curved. Above grayish- cbeontn, bélow bromnlsh-white, breast alone with arrow-
heads of the color of the back. Arizona. ‘ 5 bendirii 12
Bill 1.12, curved. Above vehiabiuets below whitish, writ profuse d distinct " plackish- brown spots.
Lower California f . : . cinereus 22
Bill longer than head (1.50), aronate,. Breast ist spotted:
Dark oily olive-brown, below paler, belly and crissum rufescent. Coast of California . . redivivus 23
Pale ash, paler still below, lower belly and crissum brownish-yellow. Arizona A ‘ lecontit 24
Brownish-ash, paler below, crissum chestnut in marked contrast. Arizona, New Mexico, and
California. ... . Pee ae oe Bet ee ne GRA ee a GS enw OSL 25

17%. H. ru/fus. (Lat. rufus, rufous, reddish. Fig. 121.) Tarasuer. Brown Turusu. gf 9: Upper

18.

parts uniform rich rust-red, with a bronzy lustre. Concealed portions of quills fuscous.
Greater and median wing-coverts blackish near the end, then conspicuously tipped with white.
Bastard quills like the coverts. Tail
like the back, the lateral feathers with
paler ends. Under parts white, more
or less strongly tinged, especially on
the breast, flanks, and crissum, with
tawny or pale cinnamon-brown, the
breast and sides marked with a profu- ¢
sion of well-defined spots of dark
brown, oval in front, becoming more
linear posteriorly. Throat immaculate,
bordered with a necklace of spots;
middle of the belly and under tail-
coverts likewise unspotted. Bill quite
straight, black, with yellow base of the Ny
lower mandible ; feet pale; iris yellow Fic. 121.— Thrasher, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.)

or orange. Length about 1] inches; extent 12.50-14.00; wing 3.75-4.25 ; tail 5.00 or more;
bill 1.00; tarsus 1.25. Eastern U. 8. chiefly, but N. to adjoining British Provinces and W.
to the Rocky Mts.; migratory, but breeds throughout its range, and winters in the Southern
States. A delightful sovgster, abundant in thickets and shrubbery. Nest in bushes (some-
times on ground), bulky and rude, of sticks, leaves, bark, roots, etc.; eggs 4-5, sometimes 6,
1.05 X 0.80, whitish or greenish, profusely speckled with brown.

H. r. longiros‘tris. (Lat. longus, long, and rostris, from rostrum, beak; i. e., long-billed.)
Texas THRASHER. Similar to H. rufus ; upper parts dark reddish-brown, instead of rich
foxy-red; under parts white, with little if any tawny tinge, the spots large, very numerous,

°

20.

21.

252 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

and blackish instead of brown; ends of the rectrices scarcely or not lighter than the rest of these

feathers ; bill almost entirely dark-colored. Besides these points of coloration, there is a decided

difference in the shape of the bill. In H. rufus, the bill is quite straight, and only just about
an inch long; the gonys is straight, and makes an angle with the slightly concave lower
outline of the mandibular rami. In H. longirostris, the bill is rather over an inch long, and
somewhat curved; the outline of the gonys is a little concave, making with the ramus one con-
tinuous curve from base to tip of the bill. Size of H. rufus. Texas and Mexico.
H. curviros'tris. (Lat. cwrvus, curved, and rostris; how-billed.) CURVE-BILLED THRASHER.
& 9: Above, uniform ashy-gray (exactly the color of a mocking-bird), the wings and tail
darker and purer brown. Below, dull whitish, tinged with ochraceous, especially on the
flanks and crissum, and marked
» with rounded spots of the color of
the back, most numerous and blend-
ed on the breast. Throat quite
white, immaculate, without maxil-
lary stripes; lower belly and cris-
sum mostly free from spots. No
decided markings on the side of the
head. Ends of greater and median
Fic. 122, — Bow-billed Thrasher, nat. size; bill a little too Wing-coverts white, forming two de-
thick. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.) cided cross-bars; tail-feathers dis-
tinctly tipped with white. Bill black, over an inch Jong, curved, stout; feet dark brown.
Length of ¢ about 11.00; wing 4.25-4.50; tail 4.50-5.00; bill 1.12; tarsus 1.25; middle toe
and claw 1.33. Q averaging rather smaller. Mexico, reaching the U. 8. border of Texas.
H.c. pal’meri. (To Edw. Palmer. Fig. 122.) Bow-sinLep THRASHER. Above, grayish-
brown, nearly uniform ; wing-coverts and quills with slight whitish edging, the edge of the
wing itself white; tail-feathers with slight whitish tips; below, a paler shade of the color of
the upper parts, the throat quite whitish, the crissum slightly rufescent, the breast and belly
with obscure dark gray spots on the grayish-white ground; no obvious maxillary streaks,
but vague speckling on the cheeks; bill black; feet blackish-brown. Length 10.75; bill
1.12; wing 4.25; tail 5.00; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.30. @ smaller; wing 3.75;
tail 4.50; tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw 1.12; bill barely 1.00. Although the differences
from the typical form are not easy to express, they are readily appreciable on comparison of
specimens. The upper parts are quite similar; but the under parts, instead of being whitish,
with decided spotting of the color of the back, are grayish, tinged with rusty, especially
behind, and the spotting is nebulous. The white on the ends.of the wing-coverts and tail-
feathers is reduced to a minimum or en-
tirely suppressed. The bill is slenderer
and apparently more curved. Arizona,
common, in desert regions. Nest in cac-
tus, mezquite and other bushes; eggs
usually 3, 1.10 x 0.80, pale greenish-blue
profusely dotted with reddish-brown.
H. bendi/rii. (To Capt. Chas. Bendire,
U.S. A. Fig. 123.) Arizona THRASHER.
Be: Bill shorter than head, compara- Fig. 123. — Arizona Thrasher, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.)
tively stout at base, very acute at tip, the culmen quite convex, the gonys just appreciably
concave. Tarsus a little longer than the middle toe and claw. 3d.and 4th primaries about
equal and longest, 5th and 6th successively slightly shorter, 2d equal to 7th, lst equal to penul-
timate secondary in the closed wing. Entire upper parts, including upper surfaces of wings

22.

23.

TURDIDE — MIMIN4: MOCKING THRUSHES. 253

and tail, uniform dull pale grayish-brown, with narrow, faintly-rusty edges of the wing-
coverts and inner quills, and equally obscure whitish tipping of the tail-feathers. No max-
illary nor auricular streaks; no markings about the head except slight speckling on the
cheeks. Under parts brownish-white, palest (nearly white) on the belly and throat, more
decidedly rusty-brownish on the sides, flanks, and crissum, the breast alone marked with
numerous small arrow-head spots of the color of the back. Bill light-colored at base
below. @: Length about 9.25; wing 4.00; tail 4.25; bill 0.87; along gape 1.12; tarsus
1.25; middle toe and claw 1.12. 9 rather smaller; wing, 3.75, etc. Arizona, less common
than palmert, with which it is associated. Nest in bushes; eggs 2-3, about 1.00 X 0.73,
elliptical rather than oval, whitish, spotted and blotched with reddish-brown.

H. ciner’eus. (Lat. cinereus, ashy; cinis, cineris, ashes. Fig. 124.) St. Lucas THRAsHER. ¢
Q: Upper parts uniform ashy-brown ; wings and tail similar, but rather purer and darker
brown, the former crussed with two white
bars formed by the tips of the coverts, the
latter tipped with white. Below, dull white,
often tinged with rusty, especially behind,
and thickly marked with small, sharp, tri-
angular spots of dark brown or blackish.
These spots are all perfectly distinct, cover-
ing the lower parts excepting the throat,
lower belly, and crissum; becoming smaller
anteriorly, they run up each side of the throat
in a maxillary series bounding the immacu-
late area. Sides of head finely speckled,
and auriculars streaked; bill black, lighten- :
ing at base below, little longer than that of Fig. 124. — St. Lucas Thrasher, nat. size. (Ad nat.
H. rufus, though decidedly curved. Length el. EC.)

of g about 10.00; wing 4.00; tail 4.50; bill 1.12; tarsus 1.25 ; middle toe and claw 1.25.
Q averaging rather smaller. Young: Upper parts strongly tinged with rusty-brown, this
color also edging the wings and tipping the tail. The resemblance of this species to the
mountain mocking-bird (Oroscoptes montanus) is striking. It is distinguished from any others
of the U. S. by the sharpness of the spotting underneath, which equals that of H. rufus itself,
the small and strictly triangular character of the spots, together with the grayish-brown of the
upper parts, and inferior dimensions. Lower California, common. Nesta slight shallow structure
of twigs in cactus and other bushes; eggs 1.12 X 0.77, greenish-white, profusely speckled.

H. redivi’vus. (Lat. redivivus, re-
vived; the long-lost species having
been rediscovered and so named.
Fig. 125.) CALIFORNIA THRASHER.
&: No spots anywhere; wings and
tail without decided barring or tip-
ping. Bill as long as the head or
longer, bow-shaped, black. Wings
very much shorter than the tail. © f
Above, dark oily olive-brown, the Fie. 125. — California Thrasher, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.)
wings and tail similar, but rather purer brown. Below, a paler shade of the color of the
upper parts, the belly and crissuin strongly rusty-brown, the throat definitely whitish in marked
contrast, and not bordered by decided maxillary streaks. Cheeks and auriculars blackish-
brown, with sharp whitish shaft streaks. Length 11.50; wing 4.00 or rather less; tail 5.00 or
more; bill (chord of culmen) nearly or quite 1.50; tarsus 1.35; middle toe and claw about

254 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.”

‘the same. 9 similar, rather smaller. Coast region of California, abundant in dense chaparral;
nest a rude platform of twigs, roots, grasses, leaves, etc., in bushes; eggs 2-3, 1.15 x 0.85,

bluish-green, with olive and russet-brown spots.

24. H.r. lecon‘tii. (To Dr. John L. Le Conte, the entomologist.) Yuma THRASHER. This
form, with size and proportions the same as those of redivivus proper, differs very notably in
the pallor of all the coloration, being in fact a bleached desert race. Excepting the slight
maxillary streaks, there are no decided markings anywhere; and the change from the pale
ash of the general under parts to the brownish-yellow of the lower belly and crissum is very

gradual. Valley of the Gila and Lower Colorado; very rare.
deep; eggs 2, 1.15 X0.77, pale greenish, dotted with reddish.

Nest in bush, bulky, loose,

25. H. crissa/lis. (Lat. crissalis, relating to the crisswm, or under tail-coverts. Fig. 126.) CRIssaL

“Fie. 126.—Crissal Thrasher, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

THRASHER. {: Brownish-ash,
with a faint olive shade, the
wings and tail purer and darker
fuscous, without white edging or
tipping. Below, a paler shade
of the color of the upper parts.
Throat and side of the lower jaw
white, with sharp black maxil-
lary streaks. Cheeks and au-
tieulars speckled with whitish.
Under tail-coverts rich chestnut,

in marked contrast with the surrounding parts. Bill black, at the maximum of length, slen-
derness, and curvature ; feet blackish. Length about 12.00; wing 4.00-4.25; tail 5.50-6.00;
its lateral feathers 1.50 shorter than the central ones; bill 1.50; tarsus 1.33; middle toe
and claw 1.25. This fine species is distinguished by the strongly chestnut under tail-coverts,
the contrast being as great as that seen in the cat-bird. The sharp black maxillary streaks are
also a strong character. The bill is extremely slender, the tail at a maximum of length, and

the feet are notably smaller than those of H. redivivus.

Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and

California in the Colorado Valley, common in chaparral; nest in bushes near the ground, .of
twigs lined with vegetable fibres; eggs usually 2, emerald green, unspotted.

3. Subfamily CINCLINA-: Dippers.

Fig. 127. —European Dipper, C. aquaticus. (From Dixon.)

Wing of 10 primaries, the
lst of which is spurious, and,
like the others, faleate; 2d
primary entering into the
point of wing ; wing short,
stiff, rounded, and concavo-
convex. ‘Tail still shorter
than the wing, soft, square,
of 12 broad, rounded feathers,
almost hidden by the coverts,
which reach nearly or quite
to the end, the under being
especially long and full. Tarsi
booted, about as long as the
middle toe and claw. Lateral
toes equal in length. Claws
all strongly curved. Bill

a

30.

TURDIDA: — CINCLINZ: DIPPERS. 255

shorter than head, slender and compressed throughout, higher than broad at the nostrils, about
straight, but seeming to be.slightly recurved, owing to a sort of upward tilting of the superior
mandible; culmen at first slightly concave, then convex; commissure slightly sinuous, to eor-
respond with the culmen, notched near the end; gonys convex. Nostrils linear, opening
beneath a large scale partly covered with feathers. No rictal vibrissz, nor any trace of bristles
or bristle-tipped feathers about the nostrils. Plumage soft, lustreless, remarkably full and
compact, water-proof. Body stout, thick-set. Habits aquatic. A simall but remarkable
group, in which the characters shared by the Turdine, Saxicoline, and Sylviine are modified
in adaptation to the singular aquatic life the species lead. There is only one genus, with
about 12 species, inhabiting clear mountain streams of most parts of the world, chiefly the
Northern Hemisphere; easily flying under water, and spending much of their time in that
element, where their food, of various aquatic animal substances, is gleaned.

CIN'CLUS. (Gr. kiykdos, kigklos, Lat. cinclus, a kind of bird. Figs. 114, 127, 128.) Dip-
PERS. Characters those of the subfamily, as above given.

Fic, 128. — American Dipper, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

C. mexica/nus. (Lat. mexicanus, Mexican. Fig. 128.) AmuricaAN Dipper, or WATER
OvuzeL. 9, adult, in summer: Slaty-plumbeous, paler below, inclining on the head to
sooty-brown. Quills and tail-feathers fuscous. Eyelids usually white. Bill black; feet
yellowish. Length 6.00-7.00; extent 10.00-11.00; wing 3.50-4.00; tail about 2.25 ; bill 0.60 ;
tarsus 1.12; middle toe and claw rather less. Individuals vary much in size. @9, in
winter, and most immature specimens, are still paler below, all the feathers of the under parts
being skirted with whitish. The quills of the wing are also tipped with white. The bill is
yellowish at the base. Young: Below, whitish, more or less so according to age, frequently
tinged with pale cinnamon-brown ; whole under parts sometimes overlaid with the whitish ends
of the feathers, shaded with rufous posteriorly ; throat usually nearly white ; bill mostly yellow ;
white tipping of the wing-feathers at a maximum; in some cases the tail-feathers similarly
marked. Mountains of Western N. A., from Alaska to Mexico; a sprightly and engaging resi-
dent of clear mountain streams, usually observed flitting among the rocks; has a fine song.
Nest a pretty ball of green moss lined with grasses, with a hole at the side, hidden in the rift
of a rock, or other nook close to the water: eggs about 5, 1.04 x 0.70, pure white, unmarked.

256 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

4. Subfamily SAXICOLINA: Stone.chats and Blue-birds.

Chiefly Old World; repre-
sented in North America by
two European species and the
familiar Blue-birds; authors
assign different limits to the
group, and frequently trans-
pose the genera. As usually
constituted, it contains up-
wards of 100 species, com-
monly referred to about 12
genera. Like many other
groups of Passeres, it has
never been defined with pre-
cision, being known conven-
tionally by the birds orni-
thologists put in it. The
following birds have booted
tarsi; oval nostrils; bristled
rictus; rather short, square or
emarginate tail ; long, pointed
wings, with very short spuri-
ous Ist quill; tarsus not shorter (except in Stalia much longer) than middle toe and claw;
pill much shorter than head, straight and acute.

Fig 129.— Wheat-ear. (From Dixon.)

Analysis of Genera.

Bill slender. Tarsus much longer than middle toe and claw. Point of sine formed by 2d4th quills.
Lateral toes of equal lengths. Form slender. No blue. Terrestrial. . . . Saxicola 6

Bill very slender. Tarsus much longer than middle toe and claw. Point of wine formed by 3d-5th quills.

Lateral toes of unequal lengths. Form slender Throat intense blue and chestnut; tail with chestnut
Cyanecula 8

Bill stouter. Tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw. Point of wing formed by 2d-4th quills. Lateral
toes of unequal lengths. Blue the chief color. Form stouter. Arboricole fi ». . . Sialia T

6. SAXI/COLA. (Lat. sazum, a rock; colo, I inhabit. Fig. 130.) Srong-cuats. Bill shorter
than head, slender, straight, depressed at base, com-
pressed at end, notched. Wings long, pointed, the tip
formed by the 2d-4th quills, the 1st spurious, scarcely
or not one-fourth as long as the 2d. Tail much
shorter than wing, square. Tarsi booted, but with 4
seutella below in front; long and slender, much ex-
ceeding the middle toe and claw; lateral toes of about
equal lengths, very short, the tips of their claws not
reaching the base of the middle claw; claws little
curved ; feet thus adapted to terrestrial habits. A large

Fic. 130. — Generic details of Saxicola. and widely distributed Old World genus, of some 30

species, inhabiting Europe, Asia, and especially Africa.

26. S. onan’the. (Gr. oivdvdn, oinanthe, name of a bird, from oivn, oine, the grape, and dvOos,
anthos, a flower. Fig. 129.) Svrong-cHat. WuHiraAT-EAR. Adult ¢: Ashy-gray; forehead,
superciliary line and under parts white, latter often brownish-tinted; upper tail-coverts white ;
wings and tail black, latter with most of the feathers white for half or more of their length ;
line from nostril to eye, and broad band on side of head, black; bill and feet black. Q more
brownish-gray, the black cheek-stripe replaced by brown. Visine without the stripe, above

S., a /

“oy of
% p
Dp ey

27.

_ the chin, so that the chestnut is cut off from the bill.

TURDIDZ — SAXICOLINA!: BLUE-BIRDS. 257

olive-brown, superciliary line, edges of wings and tail, and all under parts, cinuamou-brown ;
tail black and white as in the adult. Length of $ 6.75; extent 12.50; wing 3.75; tail 2.50;
tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 0.75. 9 smaller: length 6.50; extent 11.50, etc. Atlantic

. coast, from Europe via Greenland ; also North Pacific and Arctic coast, from Asia. Common

in Greenland, and probably also breeds in Labrador. Nest in holes in the ground or rocks,
crevices of stone walls, éte.; eggs 4-7, 0.87-0.60, greenish-blue, without spots.

SIA/LIA. (Gr. ouadis, sialis, a kind of bird.) Buius-srrps. Primaries 10, the 1st spurious
and very short. Wings pointed, the tip formed by the 2d, 3d, and 4th quills. Tail much
shorter than wings, emarginate. Bill about half as long as head or less, straight, stout, wider
than deep at base, compressed beyond nostrils, notched near tip, the culmen at first straight,
then gently convex to the end, gonys slightly convex and ascending, commissure slightly
curved throughout. Nostrils overhung and nearly concealed by projecting bristly feathers ;
lores and chin likewise bristly. Gape ample, the rictus cleft to below the eyes, furnished
with a moderately developed set of bristles reaching about opposite the nostrils. Feet short,
though rather stout, adapted exclusively for perching (in Sasicola the structure of the feet
indicates terrestrial habits). Tarsus not longer than the middle toe; lateral toes of unequal
lengths; claws all strongly curved. Blue is the principal color of this beautiful genus, which
contains three species. They are strictly arboricole; frequent the skirts of woods, coppices,
waysides, and weedy fields ; nest in holes, and lay whole-colored eggs; readily become semi-
domesticated, like the swallow, house wren, and house sparrow ; feed upon insects and berries;
and have a melodious warbling song. Polygamy is sometimes practised by them, contrary to
the rule among Oscines. Blue-birds are peculiar to America, and appear to have no exact
representatives in the other hemisphere. +

Analysis of Species.
é Rich sky-blue, uniform on back ; throat and breast chestnut, belly white . . . -.. . stalis 27
é Rich sky-blue, including throat ; middle of back and breast chestnut, belly whitish. . . mexicana 28
8 Light blue, paler below, fading to white on belly; nochestnut. . a q ; - arctica 29

S.si/alis. (Gr. ciadis, sialis,a kind of bird. Fig. 131.) Eastern BLUE-BIRD. ‘WILson’s
BLUE-BIRD. &, in full plumage: Rich azure-blue, the ends of the wing-quills blackish ;
throat, breast, and sides of the body chestnut; belly and
crissum white or bluish-white. The blue sometimes ex-
tends around the head on the sides and often fore part of

Length 6.50-7.00; extent 12.00-13.00; wing 3.75-4.00;
tail 2.75-3.00; bill 0.45; tarsus 0.70. @, in winter, or
when not full-plumaged: “Blue of the upper parts inter-
rupted by reddish-brown edging of the feathers, or obscured
by a general brownish wash. White of belly more ex-
tended; tone of the other under parts paler. Inu many
Eastern specimens, the reddish-brown skirting of the
feathers blends into a dorsal patch ; when this is accom-
panied by more than ordinary extension of blue on the Fic, 131.—Blue-bird, nat. size? (Ad
throat they closely resemble S. meaicana. @, in full nat. del. E. C.)

plumage: Blue mixed and obscured with dull reddish-brown ; becoming bright and pure on
the rump, tail, and wings. Under parts paler and more rusty-brown, with more abdominal
white than in the male. Little smaller than ¢. Young, newly fledged: Brown, becoming
blue on the wings and tail, the back sharply marked with shaft-lines of whitish. Nearly
all the under parts closely and uniformly freckled with white and brownish. A white ring
round the eye; inner secondaries edged with brown. From this stage, in which the sexes are
indistinguishable, to the perfectly adult condition, the bird changes by insensible degrees.

17

28.

29.

31.

258 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Eastern U. 8. and Canada, abundant and familiar, almost domestic; W. often to the Rocky
Mts. Migratory, but breeds throughout its range; winters in the Southern States and beyond,
whence it comes as one of the early harbingers of spring, or during mild winter weather,
bringing its bit of blue sky with cheery, voluble song. Nest in natural or artificial hollows -
of trees, posts, or bird-boxes, loosely constructed of the most miscellaneous materials; eggs
4-6, pale bluish, occasionally whitish, unmarked, 0.80 0.60; two or three broods in one
season.

S. mexica/na. (Lat. mexicana, of Mexico.) WersTERN BLUE-BIRD. MeExicaAN BLUE-BIRD.
6, adult: Rich azure-blue, including the head and neck all around. A patch of purplish-
chestnut on the middle of the back; breast and sides rich chestnut ; belly and vent dull blue
or bluish-gray. Bill and feet black. Size of the last species. 9, and young: Changes
of plumage coincident with those of the Eastern blue-bird. Immature birds may usually be
recognized by some difference in color between the middle of the back and the other upper
parts, and between the color of the throat and of the breast; but birds in the streaky stage
could not be determined if the locality were unknown. In some adult males, the dorsal patch
is restricted, or broken into two scapular patches with continuous blue between; the chestnut
of the breast sometimes divides, permitting connection of the blue of the throat and belly.
Specimens with little trace of the dorsal patch are scarcely distinguished from those of S. sialis
in which there is much blue on the throat, — the grayish-blue of the belly, instead of white,
being a principal character. U. 8. and Mexico, from Eastern foot-hills of the Rocky Mts.
to the Pacific ; N. to Vancouver; E. occasionally to the Mississippi. Abundant in the West ;
habits, nest, and eggs identical with those of S. sialis.

S. are'tica. (Lat. arctica, arctic; arctos, a bear; i. e., near the constellation so-named.)
Arctic BLuE-BIRD. Rocky Mountain BuLuE-BIRD. , in perfect plumage: Above
azure-blue, lighter than in the two foregoing, and with a faint greenish hue; below, paler and
more decidedly greenish-blue, fading insensibly into white on the belly and under tail-coverts.
Ends of wing-quills dusky; bill and feet black. Larger; length 7.00 or more; extent 13.00
or more; wing 4.50; tail 3.00. @: Nearly uniform rufous-gray, lighter and more decidedly
rufous below, brightening into blue on rump, tail, and wings, fading into white on belly and
crissum; a whitish eye-ring. Young: Changes parallel with those of the other species.
Birds in the streaky stage may be known by superior size, and greenish shade on the wings
and tail. N. America from the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, chiefly in high open regions, abun-
dant; resident southerly, migratory further North. Habits those of the others; nesting the
same, but eggs larger, about 0.92 x 0.70.

CYANE'CULA. ( A diminutive form of Gr. kvdveos, Lat. cyaneus, blue; as we should say,
“dluet.”) BLUuE-THROATS. Bill much ‘shorter than head, slender, compressed throughout,
acute at tip, with obsolete notch (quite as in Sawicola, but more compressed and slenderer).
Feet, as in Saxicola, long and slender; tarsus much longer than the middle toe and claw;
lateral toes of unequal lengths, the outer longer, but the tip of its claw still falling short of
the base of the middle claw ; claws little curved, the hinder fully as long as its digit. Wings
long and pointed (less so than in Sawicola), the point formed by the 3d, 4th, and 5th quills;
2d about equal to the 6th ; 1st spurious, about one-third as long as the longest. Tail of mod-
erate length, slightly rounded. Tail particolored with chestnut; throat and breast with azure-
blue and chestnut. The species were formerly included in Ruticilla, an Old World genus very
closely related to Saxicola ; they form the connecting link between Saxicoline proper and
Sylviine, placed by some authors in one, by others in the other group. The relationships with
Saxicola are certainly very close.

C. sue/cica. (Lat. suecica, Swedish.) BLUE-THROATED REDSTART. RED-SPOTTED BLUE-
THROAT. Entire upper parts dark brown with a shade of olive (about the color of a tit-
lark, Anthus ludovicianus), the feathers of the crown with darker centres; rump and upper

32.

10.

33.

TURDIDA — REGULINZA: KINGLETS. 259

tail-coverts rather lighter, and mixed with bright chestnut-red. Wings like the back, with
slightly paler edgings of the feathers. Middle tail-feathers like back, or rather darker, the rest
blackish, with the basal half or more of their length bright chestnut-red, or orange-brown.
Lores dusky; a whitish superciliary line. Chin, throat, and forebreast rich ultramarine blue,
enclosing a bright chestnut throat-patch; the blue bordered behind by black, this again by
chestnut mixed with white. Rest of under parts white, washed on the sides, lining of wings
and under tail-coverts with pale fulvous. Bill and feet black. Q and young similar, the
throat-markings imperfect. Length 5.75-6.00; wing 3.00; tail 2.25-2.50; bill 0.50; tarsus
1.00; middle toe and claw 0.75. Alaska; a beautiful and interesting bird, widely distributed
in the Old World.

5. Subfamily RECULINA: Kinglets and Wood-Wrens.

The two genera to be here noticed are most readily distinguished by the simple colors of
Phylloscopus, contrasted with the elegant colored crest of Regulus ; both genera include very
diminutive birds not over five inches long.

+ PHYLLO'SCOPUS. (Gr. gvAdov, phuillon, a leaf; cxomds, skopos, « watchman; as these

birds peer about in the foliage.) Woov-Wrens. Bill shorter than head, slender, straight,
depressed at base, compressed and notched at tip; nostrils exposed, though reached by the
frontal feathers. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw, booted or sometimes indistinctly
scutellate ; wings pointed, longer than tail; point formed by 3d and 4th quills; 5th much
shorter, and 6th shorter still, 2d between 5th and 6th; spurious 1st primary very short, exposed
less than 0.50. Tail about even. Size diminutive and coloration simple. Includes numerous
(about 25) Old World species, one of them occurring in Alaska.

P. borea‘lis. (Lat. borealis, northern; boreas, the north-wind.) Kennicort’s WARBLER.
Above, olive-green, clear, continuous, and nearly uniform, but rather brighter on the rump;
quills and tail-feathers fuscous, edged externally with yellowish-green; a long yellowish super-
ciliary stripe ; under parts yellowish-white, the lining of wings and the flanks yellow; wings
crossed with two yellowish bars, that across ends of greater coverts conspicueus, the other
indistinct; bill dark brown, pale below ; feet and eyes brown. Length 4.75; extent 6.00;
wing 2.25-2.50; tail 1.75-2.00; tarsus 0.70; middle toe and claw 0.55. Europe, Asia, and,
in America, Alaska.

REG/ULUS. (Lat. regulus, diminutive of rex, a king; kinglet.) Kineauets. Tarsus booted,
very slender, longer than the middle toe and claw. Lateral toes nearly equal to each other.
First quill of the wing spurious, its exposed portion less than half as long as the second.
Wings pointed, longer than the tail, which is emarginate, with acuminate feathers. Bill
shorter than the head, straight, slender, and typically Sylviine, not hooked at the end, well
bristled at rictus, with the nostrils overshadowed by tiny feathers. Coloration olivaceous,
paler or whitish below, with red, black, or yellow, or all three of these colors, on the head of
the adult. There are about ten species, of Europe, Asia, and America. They are elegant and
dainty little creatures, among the very smallest of our birds excepting the Hummers. They
inhabit woodland, are very agile and sprightly, insectivorous, migratory, and highly musical.
R. calen/dula. (Lat. calendula, a glowing little thing.) Ruspy-crownep KinGuetT. ¢ 2,
adult: Upper parts greenish-olive, becoming more yellowish on the rump; wings and tail
dusky, strongly edged with yellowish ; whole under parts dull yellowish-white, or yellowish-
or greenish-gray (very variable in tone); wings crossed with two whitish bars, and inner sec-
ondaries edged with the same. Edges of eyelids, lores, and extreme forehead, hoary whitish.
A rich scarlet patch, partially concealed, on the crown. This beautiful ornament is apparently
not gained until the second year, and there is a question whether it is ever present in the
female. Bill and feet black. Length 4.10-4.50; extent 6.66-7.33; wing 2.00-2.33; tail
1.75 ; bill 0.25; tarsus 0.75. Young for the first year (and 9 ?): Quite like the adult, but

34.

Bie

260 SYSTEMATIU SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

.wanting the scarlet patch. In a newly fledged specimen the wings and tail are as strongly

edged with yellowish as in the adult; but the general plumage of the upper parts is rather
olive-gray than olive-green, and the under parts are sordid whitish. The bill is light colored
at the base, and the toes appear to have been yellowish. N. America at large, breeding far
north and in mountains of the West, wintering in the Southern States and beyond. An exqui-
site little creature, famous for vocal power, abundant in wooded regions. Nest a large mass
of matted hair, feathers, moss, straws, etc., placed on the bough of a tree; eggs unknown.

R. satra‘pa. (Gr. carpdms, Lat. satrapes, a ruler; alluding to the bird’s golden crown. Fig.
132.) GoLDEN-cRESTED KINGLET. 4, adult: Upper parts olive-green, more or less bright,
sometimes rather olive-ashy, always brightest on
the rump; under parts dull ashy-white, or yel-
lowish-white. Wings and tail dusky, strongly
edged with yellowish, the inner wing-quills with
whitish. On the secondaries, this yellowish edg-
ing stops abruptly in advance of the ends of the
coverts, leaving a pure blackish interval in ad-
vance of the white tips of the greater coverts:
this, and the similar tips of the median coverts,
form two white bars across the wings; inner
webs of the quills and tail-feathers edged with
white. Superciliary line and extreme forehead
hoary-whitish. Crown black, enclosing a large
space, the middle of which is flame-colored, bor-
dered with pure yellow. The black reaches
across the forehead; but behind, the yellow and
Fig. 132.— Golden-crested Kinglet. (After Audubon.) fJ4me-color reach the general olive of the upper
parts. Or, the top of the head may be described as a central bed of flame-color, bounded in
front and on the sides with clear yellow, this similarly bounded by black, this again in the
same manner by hoary-whitish. Smaller than R. calendula; overlying nasal plumes larger.
Length 4.00; extent 6.50-7.00; wing 2.00-2.12; tail 1.67. 9, adult; and young: Similar
to the adult ¢, but the central field of the crown entirely yellow, enclosed in black (no flame-
color). N. America, at large; another exquisite, abundant in woodland and shrubbery, breed-
ing from N. New England northward, wintering in most of the U.S. Nest a ball of
moss, hair, feathers, ctc., about 1.50 inches in diameter, on low bough of a tree,
preferably evergreen ; eggs 6-10, white, fully speckled ; size 0.50 x 0.40.

R. s. oliva/ceus? (Lat. olivaceus, olivaccous; oliva, an olive.) WESTERN
GOLDEN-CRESTED Kinaxetr. A slight variety, said to be of livelier color-
ation. Pacifie coast
region.

6. Subfam. POLIOPTILINE: Gnat.catchers.

A small group of one
genus and about a dozen,
chiefly Central and South
American, species ; peculiar
to America. Polioptila has
been sometimes associated
with the Paride, but differs
decidedly and is apparently
= Sylviine. Characters those
Fig. 133.—Blue-gray Gnat-catcher, nat, size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) of the single genus.

11.

36.

37.

TURDIDZ4 — POLIOPTILINZA:: GNAT-CATCHERS. 261

POLIOP’TILA. (Gr. woduds, polios, hoary ; mridov, ptilon, a feather; the primaries being
edged with whitish.) GNat-carcHERs. Tarsi scutellate. Toes very short, the lateral only
about half as long as the tarsus; outer a little longer than the inner. First quill spuri-
ous, about half as long as the second. Wings rounded, not longer than the graduated tail, the
feathers of which widen toward their rounded ends. Bill shorter ‘than head, straight, broad
and depressed at base, rapidly narrowing to the very slender terminal portion, distinctly
notched and hooked atthe end—thus Muscicapine in character. ictus with well-developed
bristles. Nostrils entirely exposed. Coloration without bright tints; bluish-ash, paler or
white below; tail black and white. Delicate little woodland birds, peculiar to America, not
over 5 inches long; migratory, insectivorous, very active and sprightly, with sharp squeaking
notes.
Analysis of Species.

¢ Forehead and line over eye black ; outer tail-feather white ..... » + + cerulea 36

¢@ Whole crown black ; outer web of outer tail-feather only edged with white . . » melanura 37

¢ Line over eye black ; outer web of outer tail-feather white . - plumbea 38

P. cerul/ea. (Lat. coerulea, cerulean, blue. Figs. 133, 134, 0.) BLuE-GRAY GNaT-
CATCHER. ¢, adult: Grayish-blue, bluer on the crown, hoary on the rump, the forehead
black, continuous with a black superciliary line. Edges of eyelids white, and above these a
slight whitish stripe bordering the black exteriorly. Below white, with a faint plumbeous
shade on the breast. Wings dark brown, the outer webs, especially of the inner quills, edged
with hoary, and the inner webs of most bor- :
dered with white. Tail jet-black, the outer
feather entirely or mostly white, the next one
about half white, the third one tipped with
white. Bill and feet black. Length 4.50-
5.00; extent 6.25-7.00 ; wing 2.00-2.20; tail
about the same. 9: Like the 3g, but duller
and more grayish-blue above; the head like
the back, and without any black. Bill usually
in part light-colored. U.S. from Atlantic to
Pacific, N. to Massachusetts ; breeds through-
out its range, and winters on the southern
border and southward; abundant in woodland.

Fig. 134. —a, head of Polioptila melanura ; b, of P.
Nest a model of bird-architecture, compact- cerulea; c, tail of P. melanura; d, of P. plumbea; all

walled and contracted at the brim, elegantly ™** *7°

stuccoed with lichens, fixed to slender twigs at a varying height from 10 to 50 or 60 feet; eggs
4-5, about 0.60 X 0.45, whitish, fully speckled with reddish and umber-brown and lilac.

P. melanu/ra. (Gr. pedas, melas, black; ovpa, oura, tail. Fig. 134, a,¢.) BLACK-CAPPED
GNaT-cATCHER. ¢: Like P. cerulea, but whole top of head black. White of tail reduced
to a minimum ; outer web of the outer feather only edged with white, instead of wholly white;
tip of the inner web, with tip of the next feather, white for a very slight space ; no white on
the third feather. Size of the foregoing; tarsi rather longer, — about 0.70. 9: No black on
the head; distinguished from 9 c@rulea only by less white on the tail. Texas to South and
Lower California.

P. plum/bea. (Lat. plumbeus, plumbeous, lead-colored. Fig. 134, d.) PLumMBEous GNaT-
CATCHER. 4, adult: Upper parts like those of P. cerulea, but duller and mote grayish ; no
black on forehead; a short black stripe over eye, and below this a white one. Outer tail-
feather with the whole outer web and tip white (like the second feather of P. cerulea) ; next
two feathers tipped with white. Size of P. cerulea. 9: Like the $; the upper parts still
duller, and frequently with a decided brownish shade; no black over eye; thus only distin-
guished from Q cerulea by less white on the tail. Valley of the Gila and Colorado.

12.

39a.

!

262 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES. °

Obs. According to Brewster, Bull. Nutt. Club, vi, 1881, p. 101, the two foregoing are adult (No. 37) and young
(No. 38) of the same species, which is plumbea, Bd., Pr. Phila. Acad., 1854, p. 118; B. N. A., 1858, p. 882, and authors;
melanura, Lawr., Ann. Lyc. N.Y., vi, 1856, p. 168, but not of authors referring to the Californian bird; also, atri-
capilla, Lawr., Ann. Lyc. N. Y., v, 1851, p. 124; Cass., Ill., 1854, pl. 27, but not of Swainson. Brewster describes
the Californian bird as a new species, as follows:—P. CALIFORNICA. California Black-capped Gnat-catcher.
¢: Ascompared with P. plumbea, upper parts decidedly plumbeous instead of bluish ; throat, breast, and sides dull
ashy instead of ashy-white; lower belly and crissum fulvous or even pale chestnut ; light edging of the tail-feathers
confined to outer pair, with sometimes slight tipping of next pair (as in my fig. 134, c.); lining of wings pearly-ash,
not white; secondaries and tertials edged with light brown. No pure white anywhere; general aspect of under
parts nearly as dark as those of a cat-bird. Whole crown glossy black. Length 4.50; extent 6.10; wing 1.84; tail
1.80; tarsus 0.73; bill 0.50. 9: Similar, but no black on crown; belly and crissum pale chestnut; outer webs of
second pair of rectrices edged with white. California; being the melanura of authors referring to California birds,
but not of Lawr., 1856.

2. Family CHAM AIDA: Wren-tits.

Recently framed for a single species, much like a titmouse in general appearance, but
with the tarsus not evidently scutellate in front; rounded wings much shorter than the gradu-
ated tail; lores bristly, and plumage extraordinarily soft and lax. With the.general habits of
wrens, with which the species was formerly associated. The position and valuation of the
group are still uncertain; probably to be determined upon anatomical characters. I have
little doubt that Chamea will yet be found referable to some other recognized family of birds,
and suspect that it might be assigned to the Old World Timeliide, with at least as much
propriety as some other American groups, which have lately been relegated to that ill-assorted
assemblage. :
CHAMAIA. (Gr. yapai, chamai, on the ground.) WREN-TITS. Form and general aspect
combining features of wrens and titmice. Plumage extraordinarily lax, soft, and full. Color-
ation simple. Tarsal scutella obsolete, or faintly indicated, at least outside. Toes coherent at
base for about half the length of the proximal joint of the middle one. Soles widened and
padded, much as in Paride. Primaries 10, the 6th longest, the 3d equal to the longest sec-
ondaries, the Ist about three-fifths as long as the longest; wing thus extremely rounded, and
much shorter than the tail (about two-thirds as long). Tail very long, constituting more
than half the entire length of the bird, extremely graduated, with soft, narrow feathers, widen-

‘ing somewhat toward their tips, rounded at the end, the lateral pair not two-thirds as long as

the middle. Bill much shorter than head, very deep at the base, straight, stout, compressed-
conical, not notched, with ridged and very convex culmen, but nearly straight commissure
and gonys; naked, scaled, linear nostrils, and strongly bristled gape. Frontal feathers reaching
nasal fossze, but no ruff concealing the nostrils as in Paride.

C. fascia'ta. (Lat. fasciata, striped; fascis, a bundle of faggots.) WRren-tir. Adult:
Dark brown with an olive shade, the top of the head clearer and somewhat streaky, the wings
and tail purer brown, obscurely fasciated with numerous cross-bars; below, dull cinnamon-
brown, paler on belly, shaded with olive-brown on the sides and ecrissum, the throat and
breast obscurely streaked with dusky; bill and feet brown; iris white. Length about 6.00;
wing 2.25-2.50; tail 3.25-3.50, much graduated, the lateral feathers being an inch or more
shorter than the middle ones; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.90-1.00; middle toe and claw 0.75. First
primary nearly an inch shorter than the longest one. California coast region. A remarkable
bird, resembling no other, common in shrubbery; nest in bushes; eggs plain greenish-blue,
0.70 X 0.52.

C. £. hen’/shawi. (To H. W. Henshaw.) Hrnsaaw’s Wren-tIT. Much lighter and duller
colored; above, grayish-ash with slight olive shade (about the color of a Lophophanes) ; below,
scarcely rufesceut upon a soiled whitish ground, shaded on the sides with the color of the back;
bill and feet smaller. Interior of California, and probably adjoining regions; seems to be
a well-marked form. (Not in the Check List, 1882; see Ridgway, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. v.,
1882, p. 13.)

’

PARIDZ — PARINZ: TITMICE. 263

3. Family PARIDZ: Titmice, or Chickadees.

Ours are all small (under 7 inches
long) birds, at once distinguished
by having ten primaries, the Ist
much shorter than the 2d; wings
barely or not longer than the tail ;
tail-feathers not stiff nor acuminate ;
tarsi scutellate, longer than the mid-
2 dle toe; anterior toes much soldered
= at base}; nostrils concealed by dense
tufts, and bill compressed, stout,
straight, unnotched, and much
shorter than the head ; — characters
that readily marked them off from
all their allies, as wrens, creepers,
etc. Really, they are hard to dis-
tinguish, technically, from jays;
but all our jays are much over 7
inches long.

They are distributed over North
America, but the crested species are
rather southern, and all but one of
them western. Most of them are
hardy birds, enduring the rigors of
Fig. 135. — European Greater Titmouse, Parus major. (From Dixon.) winter without inconvenience, and,

as a consequence, none of them are properly migratory. They are musical, after a fashion of
their own, chirping a quaint ditty ; are active, restless, and very heedless of man’s presence ;
and eat everything. Some of the western species build astonishingly large and curiously
shaped nests, pensile, like a bottle or purse with a hole in one side, as represented in fig. 140 ;
others live in knot-holes, and similar snuggeries that they usually dig out for themselves.
They are very prolific, laying numerous eggs, and raising more than one brood a season; the
young closely resemble the parents, and there are no obvious seasonal or sexual changes of
plumage. All but one of our species are plainly clad; still they have a pleasing look, with
their trim form and the tasteful colors of the head.

7. Subfamily PARINAE: True Titmice.

Exclusive of certain aberrant forms, usually allowed to constitute a separate subfamily, and
sometimes altogether removed from Parida, the titmice compose a natural and pretty well
defined group, to which the foregoing diagnosis and remarks are particularly applicable, and
agree in the following characters : — Bill very short and stout, straight, compressed-conoid in

- shape, not notched nor with decurved tip, its under as well as upper outline convex. Rictus
without true bristles, but base of the bill covered with tufts of bristly feathers directed forward,
entirely concealing the nostrils. Feet stout; tarsi distinctly scutellate, longer than the middle
toe; toes rather short, the anterior soldered together at the base for most of the length of the
basal joint of the middle one. Hind toe with an enlarged pad beneath, forming, with the con-
solidated bases of the anterior toes, a broad firm sole. Wing with ten primaries, of which the
first is very short or spurious, scarcely or not half as long as the second; wing as + whole
rounded, scarcely or not longer than the tail, which latter is rounded or graduated, and com-
posed of twelve narrow soft feathers, with rounded or somewhat truncated tips. Plumage

13.

40.

41.

264 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

long, soft, and loose, without bright colors or well-marked changes according to sex, age, or
season (excepting Awriparus).

There may be about seventy-five good species of the Paring, thus restricted, most of
them falling in the genus Parus, or in its immediate neighborhood. With few exceptions
they are birds of the northern hemisphere, abounding in Europe, Asia, and North America.
The larger proportion of the genera and species inhabit the Old World. All those of the New

World oceur within our limits.
Analysis of Genera.

Crested.
Wings and tail rounded, of about equal lengths. Noredor yellow. .... . “i . Lophophanes 13
Not crested. :
Wings and tail rounded, of about equal lengths. Noredor yellow. ..... aoe Parus 14
Wings rounded, shorter than the graduated tail. Noredoryellow ....... Psaltriparus 15
Wings pointed, longer than the even tail. Head yellow ; bend of wing red . . . Auriparus 16

LOPHO/PHANES. (Gr. Addos, lophos, a crest; paivw, phaino, I appear.) CRESTED Trr-

mice. Head crested. Wings and tail rounded, of about equal lengths, and about as long as

the body. Bill conoid-eompressed, with upper and under outlines both convex. No yellow on

head nor red on wing. Plumage lax, uch the same in both sexes at. all ages and seasons.

Average size of the species at a maximum for Paring. Nests excavated in trees; eggs spotted.
Analysis of Species.

Frontlet black ; sides washed with rusty. Eastern . . . ‘ og ee 2 . bicolor 40
Crest like rest of upper parts ; no rusty on sides. Southwestern . . me ‘ + imornatus 41
Crest entirely black; rusty onsides. Texan. . ....4.2.. 3 . + « . atrocristatus 42
Head with several black stripes ; no rusty on sides. Southwestern. ....... - wollweberi 43

L. bicolor. (Lat. bis, twice; color, color. Fig. 136.) Turrep Tirmousr. & 9, adult:
Entire upper parts ashy, the back usually with a slight
olivaceous shade, the wings and tail rather purer and darker
plumbeous, the latter sometimes showing obsolete transverse
bars. Sides of the head and entire under parts dull whitish,
washed with chestnut-brown on the sides. A black frontlet
at the base of the crest. Bill plumbeous-blackish ; feet plum-
beous. Length 6.00-6.50 inches; extent 9.75-10.75; wing
and tail 3.00-3.25; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.80; middle toe and
claw 0.75. @Q smaller than g. Young: The crest less devel-
oped; little if any trace of the black frontlet; sides scarcely
washed with rusty. Eastern U.8., rather southerly; scarcely
N. to New England; resident, abundant in woodland and

a tan aad aaniaas shrubbery. Nest in holes; eggs 6 or 8, 0.75 X 0.56, white,
nat. size. (Adnat. del. E.C,) dotted with reddish-brown and lilae.

L. inorna/tus. (Lat. in, as signifying negation, and ornatus, adorned; orno, I ornament.)
Pian Tirmouse. ¢@ @, adult: Entire upper parts dull leaden-gray, with a slight olive
shade ; the wings and tail rather purer and darker. Below, dull ashy-whitish, without any
rusty wash on the sides. No black on the head. Extreme forehead and sides of the head
obscurely speckled with whitish. No decided markings anywhere. In size rather less than
L. bicolor; length usually under 6.00; wing and tail under 3.00. Young quite like the adults,
which closely resemble the young of ZL. bicolor; but in the latter there are traces at least of the
reddish of the sides or black of the frontlet, or both; the general coloration is purer, with more
distinction between the upper and under parts, and the size is rather greater. The speckled
appearance of the sides of the head and lores of L. inornatus is peculiar. Southwestern United
States, abundant, resident. The typical form Californian ; a rather larger, stouter-billed form,
lighter leaden-gray with scarcely any olive shade, from Utah, Arizona, etc., is L. i. griseus,
Ridgw., Pr. U. 8. Nat. Mus., v., 1882, p. 344.

42.

43.

14

44,

PARIDZ— PARINZ: TITMICE, 265

L. atrocrista'tus. (Lat. atro, with black, cristatus, crested; crista, a crest.) BLACK-CRESTED
Tirmouss. gf Q, adult: Plumbeous, with a shade of olive, the wings and tail rather darker
and purer, edged with the color of the back, or a more hoary shade of thesame. Beneath, dull
ashy-whitish, especially on the breast, the abdomen whiter, the sides chestnut-brown as in L.
bicolor, Extreme forehead and lores whitish; entire crest glossy black. Bill blackish-plum-
beous; feet plumbéous. Small: length shout 5.00; wing and tail 2.75. Valley of the Rio
Grande. Nest in natural cavities of trees, usually including cast snake-skins among its materi-
als; eggs 0.75 X 0.58, white, spotted with reddish-brown in fine dots over the general surface,
boldly blotched at large end, but not distinguishable from those of L. bicolor.

L. wollweb’eri. (To one Wollweber. Fig. 137.) Briptep Tirmouss. ¢ 9, adult:
Upper parts olivaceous-ash, wings and tail darker, edged with the color of the back, or even a
brighter tint, sometimes nearly as yellowish as in Regulus. Under
parts sordid ashy-white. Crest black, with a central field like the
back. Whole throat black, as in species of Parus. A black line
runs behind the eye and curves down over the auriculars, distin-
guished from the black of the crest and throat by the white of
the side of the head and white superciliary stripe; a half-collar
of black on the nape, descending on the sides of the neck, there
separated from the black crescent of the auriculars by a white cres-
cent, which latter is continuous with the white of the superciliary
line ; considerable whitish speckling in the black of the forehead Te Gan =SnnMei aie:
and lores. Bill blackish-plumbeous; feet plumbeous. Smallest: mouse, nat, size. (Mex.-B.
length 5.00 or less; wing or tail 2.40-2.65 ; bill 0.33; tarsus 0.60- Survey.)

0.70. Young: Chin narrowly or imperfectly black, and some of the above described head-
markings obscure or incomplete. The singularly variegated markings of the head of this
species at once distinguish it. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, abundant, going
in troops, in woods and shrubbery.

PA/RUS. (Lat. parus, a titmouse.) TypicaL TITMICE. CHICKADEES. Head not crested.
Wings and tail rounded, of approximately equal lengths, and about as long as the body. Bill
typically parine (see foregoing characters). No bright colors (in any North American species).
Head in most species with black. Plumage lax and dull, without decided changes with age,
sex, or season. Size medium in the family. Nest excavated. Eggs spotted.

Analysis of Species.

‘Species definitely black-capped and black-throated.

A white superciliary stripe . eine F oe? oR ae tar .montanus 48
No white superciliary stripe.
Tail not shorter than wing ; feathers of both with much hoary-whitish edging.
Larger ; tail at maximum length, coloration most hoary. Missouri Region and Rocky

Mts... . te 5 ‘ . . Septentrionalis 45
Smaller ; tail moderate; coloration less hoary. Eastern Coe . . atricapillus 44
Size of No. 44 ; coloration darker. Pacific Region ‘ . . « . occidentalis 46

Tail shorter than wings ; whitish edgings of wings and tail obsolete.
Rather smaller than No. 44. South Atlantic States. . . +. » carolinensis 47
Rather smaller than No. 44; coloration very dark. Mexican border io meridionalis 879

Species brown-capped, or crown quite like back, and blackish throat.
Cap hair-brown; back little different.

White confined to side of head. Eastern and Arctic soe ee ww we es udsonicus 49

White spreading over sides of neck. Arctic oe Nae, . .cinctus 52
Cap dark wood-brown ; back chestnut.

Back and sides rich chestnut alike. Pacific, northerly . . toa oe: & rufescens 50

Back chestnut, but sides only washed with rusty. Pacific, outnerly.. . ~. . neglectus 51

P. atricapil/lus. (Lat. ater, black; capillus, hair. Fig. 1388.) BuAck-capprp TITMOUSE.
CuicKaDEE. Crown and nape, with chin and throat, black, separated by white sides of the
head. Upper parts brownish-ash, with slight olive tinge, and a rusty wash on rump. Under

45.

46.

47%.

879.

48.

266 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

parts more or less purely white or whitish, shaded on the sides with a brownish or rusty wash.
Wings and tail like upper parts, the feathers moderately edged with hoary-white. Average
dimensions: length 5.25; extent 8.00; wing and tail,
each, 2.50; tarsus 0.70. Extremes: length 4.75-5.50;
extent 7.50-8.50; wing and tail 2.35-2.65; tarsus 0.65-
0.75. Eastern N. Am., from the Middle States northward,
very abundant, well-known by its familiar habits and pecu-
liar notes. Nest in holes of trees, stumps, or fences, natural
or excavated by the bird, made of grasses, mosses, hair, fur,
feathers, etc. ; eggs 6-8, 0.58 x 0.47, white, fully sprinkled
with reddish-brown dots and spots.

P. a. septentriona/lis. (Lat. septentrionalis, northern ;
septentriones, the constellation of seven stars, the dipper.)
LONG-TAILED CHICKADEE. Similar to P. atricapillus;
averaging larger, and especially longer-tailed, the tail
rather exceeding the wing in length. Coloration clear and
pure; wings and tail very strongly edged, especially on
the secondaries and outer tail-feathers, with hoary-white,
which usually passes entirely around their tips. Cap pure
black and very extensive on the nape; black of throat
reaching breast; sides of head and neck snowy-white.
Bill and feet dark plumbeous. Average dimensions about Fre. 138.— Black-capped Chickadee,
the maxima of P. atricapillus: length 5.25-5.50; extent Teduced. (Adnat. del. E. C.)

8.50; wing 2.50-2.75 ; tail 2.60-2.80, sometimes 3.00. This style reaches its extreme devel-
opment in the region of the Upper Missouri and Rocky Mts., there apparently to the exclusion
of P. atricaptllus proper.

P. a. occidenta/lis. (Lat. occidentalis, western; occido, I fall; i. e., where the sun sets.)
WESTERN CHICKADEE. Similar to P. atricapillus ; of the same average size; presenting
the opposite extreme from P. septentrionalis in minimum edging of wing- and tail-feathers
with hoary, heavy brownish wash of sides, and general dark sordid coloration. U.S., Pacifie
coast region.

P. carolinensis. (Lat. of Carolina.) CAROLINA CHICKADEE. Averaging smaller than P.
atricapillus, with relatively as well as absolutely shorter tail, which is rather shorter than the
wings ; wings and tail very little edged with whitish. Average dimensions about at the minima of
P. atricapillus. “Length about 4.50; wing 2.50; tail 2.25. South Atlantic and Gulf States;
N. to Washington and Southern Illinois. Nesting like P. atricapillus; eggs similar, rather
smaller.

P. meridiona/lis. (Lat. meridionalis, southern.) Mexican Cuickapen. Differs decidedly
from P. atricapilius in having the under parts merely a paler shade of the ashy of the upper,
instead of white, without any brownish wash on sides; wing-coverts and tail lacking any
hoary edging, though the wing-quills have a slight grayish-
white edging. Thus qnite like P. montanus in color, but no
white superciliary stripe. Length. 4.80-5.20; extent 8.00-
8.70; wing 2.67-2.90; tail 2.40-2.67. Mexico, recently ascer-
tained to occur in Arizona. (Numbered among addenda in
the Check List, 1882.)

P. monta/nus. (Lat. montanus, of mountains. Fig. 139.)
Mountain CuICKADEE. Upper parts ashy-gray, with scarcely Fr@. 139, — Mountain Chickadeo,
a shade, and only on the rump, of the ochraceous seen in most nat. sizo. (Ad nat. del. B.C.)
other species; under parts similarly grayish-white, without a rusty tinge, the middle of the

50.

51.

49.

49a.

52.

15.

PARIDZ —PARIN.E: TITMICE. 267

belly nearly white, the rest more heavily shaded. Wings and tail with comparatively little
whitish edging —the tail at least with no more than that of P. carolinensis. Sides of the
head and neck white; top of the head, and the throat, black. A conspicuous white super-
ciliary stripe in the-black cap, usually meeting its fellow across the forehead. Length about
5.00; extent 8.30; wing 2.50-2.75; tail rather less; bill 0.38; tarsus 0.66. U.S., from
Eastern foot-hills of the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, chiefly in alpine regions.

P. rufesicens. (Lat. rufescens, rufous, reddish.) CHESTNUT-BACKED TiTMousE. Crown
and nape dark wood-brown, becoming sooty along the sides, separated from the sooty-black of
the throat by a large white area extending back on the sides of the neck. Entire back and
sides of body rich dark chestnut, contrasting strongly with the brown of the head. Breast
and central line of under parts, with lining of the wings, whitish. Wing- and tail-coverts
more or less washed with rusty-brown. Quills and tail-feathers scarcely or slightly edged
with whitish. Bill black; feet dark; iris brown. Young with throat brown, like crown,
instead of sooty. Length 4.75; extent 7.50; wing 2.30; tail about 2.00. A strongly
marked species, with chestuut back and sides contrasting with dark brown cap and sooty throat.
Pacific coast region of the U. 8., northerly, and corresponding portions of British America.
P.r. neglec'tus? (Lat. neglectus, neglected, i. e., not chosen; nec, not, and lego, I gather,
choose.) Quite similar: crown, throat, and back the same, but sides not extensively chestnut,
being simply wéshed with rusty-browu. Coast region of California.

P. hudson‘icus. (Lat. hudsonicus, of Hudson’s Bay ; after Henry Hudson, the navigator.)
Hvupsonian TITmMousE. Crown, uape, and upper parts generally clear hair-brown, or ashy-
brown with a slight olive shade, the coloration quite the same on back and crown, and contin-
uous, being not separated by any whitish nuchal interval. Throat quite black, in restricted
area, not extending backward on sides of neck; separated from the brown crown by silky
white on the side of the head, this white not reaching back of the auriculars to the sides of the
nape. Sides, flanks, and under tail-coverts washed with dull chestnut or rusty-brown ; other
under parts whitish. Quills and tail-feathers lead-color, as in other titmice, scarcely or slightly
edged with whitish. Little or no concealed white on rump. Bill black; feet dark. Size of
P. atricapillus, or rather less. Wing 2.50; tail rather less. New England and British America
generally ; Nevada to Alaska. Common in coniferous woods.

P. h. evu’ra, nobis. Alaskan specimens are larger, the tail nearly 3.00; thus corresponding
with P. atricapillus septentrionalis, and being quite the size of P. cinctus, from which dis-
tinguished by retaining precisely the coloration of P. hudsonicus. Alaska.

P. cinc/tus. (Lat. cinctus, girdled; cingo, I bind about.) Sreerran TirmousE. In general,
similar to P. hudsonicus, but quite distinct. Throat sooty-blackish ; crown and nape dark
hair-brown, bordered laterally with dusky, quite appreciably different in tone from the brighter
brownish of the back, from which also separated to some extent by whitish of the cervix.
Sides of head and neck pure white, in a large area widening behind, this white of opposite
sides nearly meeting across the cervix. Back ashy overlaid with flaxen-brown, the rump light
brown with much concealed white. Under parts whitish centrally from the black throat, but
heavily washed on the sides, flanks, and crissum, sometimes quite across the belly, with light
brownish. Wings and tail slate-color, as usual in the genus, with much whitish edging.
especially on the secondaries. Bill plumbeous-blackish ; feet plumbeous. Wing 2.60; tail
rather more. A large stylish chickadee, lately ascertained to inhabit Aretie America, especially
Alaska, as well as boreal regions of Asia and Europe.

PSALTRI'PARUS. (Gr. WdArpia, Lat. psaltria, a lutist; and parus, a tit.) BUsH-TITS.
Dwarfs among pygmies! 3.75-4.25 long; wing 2.00 or less, tail 2.00 or more. Ashy or
olive-gray, paler or whitish below ; neither crown nor throat black; no bright ¢olors. Head
not crested; wings rounded, shorter than the long narrow graduated tail, which exceeds the
length of the body. Nest large, woven, pensile, with lateral entrance (fig. 140). Eggs 6-9,

53.

54.

255.

body, but the brown cap

268 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

white, unmarked. The three species are western; they are notable for their diminutive size,
searcely equalling a Polioptila in bulk.
! Analysis of Species.

Crown brown, unlike back ; no black on side of head . ogee a ee a a a Se - minimus 53
Crown like back ; no black on side ofhead. . . . Ss ae a i B58 . . plumbeus 54
Crown ash, unlike back ; a black stripe on side of head : . is ds . . .melanotis 55

P. min/‘imus. (Lat. minimus, least, smallest.) Jee Busx-tit. & 9: Dull lead-color,
frequently with a brown-
ish or olivaceous shade,
the top of the head ab-
ruptly darker — clove-
brown or hair-brown.
Below sordid whitish, or
brownish-white. Wings
and tail dusky, with
slight hoary edgings.
Bill and feet black.
Length 4.00 or less;
wing scarcely or not
2.00; tail 2.00 or more;
pill 0.25; tarsus 0.60.
Young birds do not dif-
fer materially. There is
considerable variation in
the precise shade of the

always differs in color
from the rest of the up-
per parts. Pacific coast
region of the U. 8.

P. plum'beus. = (Lat.
plumbeus, lead-colored.)
Piumseous Busu-tir.
62: Clear plumbeous,
with little or no olive
or brownish shade; top
of head not different
from the back; sides
of head pale brownish.
Under parts as in P.
minimus, but clearer.
Tail longer than wings.
Eyes yellow or dark brown. Length about 4.25; wing 1.88-2.12; tail 2.25-2.50; bill
0.25; tarsus 0.60. Very closely related to P. minimus ; but specimens are readily distin-
guishable. Total length greater, owing to’ clongation of the tail, which sometimes exceeds
the wings by 0.50. General coloration clearer and purer; crown not different in color from the
back, but cheeks brownish in obvious contrast. Southern Rocky Mt. region, from Wyoming
and Nevada southward; common in Arizona.

P. melano’tis. (Gr. pédas, melas, yon, pédavos, melanos, black ; ods, ous, gen. dds, otos, ear.)
BLACK-EARED Busu-TiT. , adult: Sides of head broadly black with greenish lustre, the

Fic. 140. — Least Bush-tit and nest, about ? nat. size. (Ad nat. del. H. W.
Elliott.)

16.

56.

SITTIDE: NUTHATCHES. 269

bands meeting narrowly across the chin, and nearly meeting on the nape. Crown and nape
clear ash. Back hair-brown. Wings and tail fuscous, with narrow pale ashy edgings of the
feathers ; outer webs and tips of outer tail-feathers, and inner webs of many wing-feathers,
whitish. Below, white, pure on throat and sides of neck, thence passing through lavender-
gray to rusty-brownish on flanks and crissum. Bill and feet black; iris brown. Q unknown:
probably not different. Young quite similar, having glossy black on the head before they are
fully feathered, but the black does not at first meet on the chin. Length about 4.00; wing
1.90; tail 2.25; bill 0.25, compressed, with very convex culmen and nearly straight under out-
line; tarsus 0.60; middle toe and claw 0.45. A neat little tom-thumb, native of Mexico,
N. to Arizona and probably farther, rare; I have seen but three specimens.

AURI'PARUS. (Lat. auri, of gold, and parus, a tit; from the yellowhead.) Gotp-tT1Ts. Head
not crested. Wings pointed, the 2d quill being iittle shorter than the 3d; the 1st spurious.
Tail little rounded, decidedly shorter than the wings. Bill not typically parino— betemndly
acute, with straight or slightly concave under outline, and barely convex culmen, thus resem-
bling that of a Helminthophaga ; longer and slenderer than usual in Paring ; nostrils scarcely
concealed by the imperfect ruff. Tarsi relatively shorter than in the preceding genera.
Bright colors on head (yellow) and wing (red). Plumage comparatively compact; sexes
alike, but young very different from the adult. Size very small. General form sylvicoline.
Nest globular, woven. Eggs spotted. One species.

A. fla'viceps. (Lat. flaviceps, yellow-head.) Goxp-Tir. @ 9: Upper parts ashy; under
parts whitish ; wings and tail dusky, with hoary edging. Whole head rich yellow. Lesser

'wing-coverts chestnut-red. Bill dark plumbeous; feet plumbeous. Length 4.00-4.25;

wing 1.80-2.00; tail 1.75-2.25. Young without red on wing or yellow on head; thus obscure
objects, known, however, by their generic characters. Adults vary in having the yellow
heightened to orange, or dull and greenish; the red sometimes hematitic; and the shade of
the ashy clear and pure, or dull and brownish. ‘Valley of the Rio Grande and Colorado, and
Lower California; abundant in chaparral, building in bushes a great globular nest of twigs,
lined with down and feathers; eggs 4-6, pale bluish speckled with brown, 0.60 X 0.45.

4, Family SITTID2: Nuthatches.

Bill subcylindrical, tapering, compressed, slender, acute, nearly or about as long as the
head, culmen and commissure about straight, gonys long, convex, as ascending (giving a sort of
recurved look to a really straight bill). Nostrils rounded, concealed by bristly tufts. Wings
long, pointed, with 10 primaries, the 1st very short or spurious; tail much shorter than wings,
broad, soft, nearly even; tarsus shorter than the middle toe and claw, scutellate in front; toes
all long, with large, much curved, compressed claws ; 1st toe and claw about equal to the 3d ;
Qd and 4th toes very unequal in length. Plumage compact; body flattened; tongue horny,
acute, barbed. Nuthatches are amongst the most nimble and adroit of creepers ; they scramble
about and hang in every conceivable attitude, head downwards as often as otherwise. This is
done, too, without any help from the tail, — the whole tarsus being often applied to the sup-
port. They are chiefly insectivorous, but feed also on hard fruits; and get their English name
from their habit of sticking nuts and seeds in cracks in bark, and hammering away with the
bill till they break the shell. They are very active and restless little birds, quite sociable,
often going in troops, which keep up a continual noise ; lay 4-6 white, spotted eggs, in hollows
of trees. The family, as conventionally framed, is a small one, of less than thirty species,
among them a single remarkable Madagascar form (Hypositta), a genus peculiar to Australia
(Sittella), and another confined to New Zealand (Acanthisitta) : but some of these (especially -
Acanthisitta) may not be Sittid@ at all, and in any event the family is chiefly represented by
the genus Sitta, with some fifteen species of Europe, Asia, and North America.

~ 270 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

17. SIT/TA. (Lat. sitta, Gr. cirra, name of a bird. Fig. 141.) Typican Nuruarcuss.
Characters practically those given under head of the family.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

White below, the crissum washed with rusty-brown ; cap glossy black, without stripes.
Bill stouter, 0.18-0.20 deep at base. Inner secondaries boldly variegated with black. Eastern
carolinensis 57
Bill slenderer, 0.12-0.16 deep at base. Inner secondaries scarcely variegated with blackish. Western
aculeata 58
Rusty-brown below ; cap glossy black with white stripes, or color of the back . oO i .- canadensis 59
Rusty-brown or brownish-white below ; cap brown, unlike back, witbout stripes.
Crown clear hair-brown ; a white spot on nape ; middle tail-feathers plain. Southeastern . pusilla 60
Crown dull brownish, with darker border ; little or no white on nape ; middle tail-feathers with
black. Southwestern . 7 4 Slee eta -pygmea 61

Fie. 141.— European Nuthatch, Sitta ceesia (resembling S. pusilia), nearly nat. size. (From Brehm.)

57. S. carolinen’sis. (Lat. of Carolina. Fig. 142.) CarotinA NuTHarcu. WHITs-BELLIED
Nuruatcu. 4, adult: Upper parts, central tail-
feathers, and much edging of the wings, clear ashy-
blue ; whole crown, nape, and back of the neck, glossy
black. Under parts, including sides of neck and head
to above eyes, dull white, more or less marked on the
flanks and crissum with rusty-brown. Wings and their
coverts blackish, much edged as already said, and with
an oblique bar of white on the outer webs of the pri-
maries towards their ends; concealed bases of primaries
white; under wing-coverts mostly blackish; bold bluish

Fig. 142, — Carolina Nuthatch, nat. size. : I . 7 :
(Ad nat. del. E. C.) and black variegation of the inner secondaries. Tail,

58.

59.

60.

61.

SITTIDA: NUTHATCHES. 271

excepting the two middle feathers, black, each feather marked with white in increasing amount,
the outer web of the lateral feather being mostly white. Bill blackish-plumbeous, pale at
the base below. Feet dark brown. Iris brown. Length 5.50-6.00; extent 10.50-11.00;
wing 3.50; tail 1.75; bill about 0.66 long, 0.18-0.20 deep at base. Q: Similar; black of
head imperfect, nixed or overlaid with the color of the back, or altogether restricted to the
nape. Eastern U. S. and British Provinces, resident, abundant in woodland, where its curious
quank, quank, quank may often be heard as the nimble bird hops up and down the tree-trunks.
Nest in holes, often excavated by the birds with infinite labor, lined with fur, feathers, grasses,
etc. ; eggs numerous, 0.80 X 0.60, white, profusely speckled with reddish and lilac.

S.c. aculea/ta. (Lat. aculeata, sharpened ; referring to the slender bill.) SLENDER-BILLED
Nuruarcu. Like the last; bill slenderer, 0.12-0.16 deep at base. Inner secondaries scarcely
or not variegated with blackish, and general tone of coloration duller. Woodland of Middle
and Western provinces of the U. S., common, replacing No. 57.

8. canaden’sis. (Lat. of Canada, an Iroquois word. Fig. 143.) Rep-BELLIED NuTHATCH.
Canapa NutTuatcu. 4, adult: Upper parts leaden-blue (brighter than in 8. carolinensis),
the central tail-feathers the same ; wings fuscous, with slight
ashy edgings and concealed white bases of the primaries.
Entire under parts rusty-brown, very variable in shade, from
rich fulvous to brownish-white, usually palest on the throat,
deepest on the sides and crissum; tail-feathers, except the
middle pair, black, the lateral marked with white. Whole top 2S

and side of head and neck glossy black, that of the side appear- Fig. 143.— Canada Nuthatch,
ing as a broad bar through the eye from bill to side of neck, mat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

cut off from that of the crown by a long white superciliary stripe, which meets its fellow across
the forehead. Bill dark plumbeous, paler below ; feet plumbeous-brown. Length 4.50-4.75 ;
extent 8.00-8.50; wing 2.60; tail 1.50; bill 0.50. @: Crown like the back; lateral stripe
on the head merely blackish. The under parts average paler than those of the ¢, but there
is no constancy about this. Young birds resemble the 9. Temperate N. Am., common, in
woodland; habits like those of No. 57; eggs similar, smaller, 0.65 0.54.

S. pusil/la. (Lat. pusilla, puerile, petty. Fig. 144.) BRowN-HEADED NuTHatcH. ¢ @:
No black cap or white stripe on head. Upper parts dull ashy-blue; under parts sordid or
muddy whitish. Cap clear hair-brown. A decided spot of :
white on the middle of the nape, in the brown cap, which on *
the sides of the head includes the eyes, and is bordered with
dusky. Middle tail-feathers like back, without black, and with
little or no white. Small: length scarcely 4.00; extent about
8.00; wing 2.50; tail 1.25; tarsus 0.60; bill about 0.50.
South Atlantic and Gulf States; N. to Virginia and Ohio.
Habits of the other species: eggs 0.60 x 0.50, very heavily Zs
speckled with dark reddish-brown. Fig. 144. — Brown-headed Nut-
S. pygme/a. (Gr. ruyyn, pugme, the fist; Lat. pygmaeus, a hatch, nat. size, (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
pygmy, fistling, or tom-thumb.) Pyemy Nutuatcu. ¢@ 9: Upper parts ashy-blue, and
wings with slight if any markings (as in canadensis), though some outer primaries may be
narrowly edged with white. Whole top of head, nape, and sides of head to below eyes, olive-
brown, the lateral borders of this patch blackish; an obsolete whitish patch on the nape.
Central tail-feathers like the back, but with a long white spot, and their outer webs black
at base; other tail-feathers blackish, with white marks, and often also tipped with the color of
the back. Entire under parts ranging from muddy-white to smoky-brown or rich rusty, nearly
or quite as intense as in S. canadensis; flanks and crissum shaded with a dull wash of the
color of the back. Bill and feet dark plumbeous, the former paler at base below. Iris black.

272 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Size of the last. Young: Differs much as the 9 of canadensis does from the , in having the
top of the head like the back. U.S. from the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, abundant, chiefly in
pine woods; N. to Vancouver. Eggs 6-7, white, profusely speckled with reddish, 0.62 x 0.50.

5. Family CERTHIID2: Creepers.

A very small, well-marked group, of about a dozen species, and four or five genera, which
fall in two sections, commonly called subfamilies ; one of these, Zichodromine, is represented
by the well-known European Wall Creeper, Tichodroma muraria, and several (chiefly Aus-
tralian) species of the genus Climacteris; while the genus Certhia, with five or six species or
varieties, and certain allied genera (all but one Old World) constitute the

8. Subfamily CERTHIINA:: Typical Creepers.

Our species may be known on sight, among North American Oscines, by its rigid, acunu-
nate tail-feathers, like a woodpecker’s. Besides: — bill about equal in length to head, .ex-
tremely slender, sharp, and decurved; nostrils exposed; no rictal bristles; tarsus scutellate,
shorter than 3d toe and claw, which is connate for the whole of the 1st joint with both 2d and
4th toe; lateral toes of unequal lengths, 1st toe shorter than its claw; claws all much curved
and very sharp; wing 10-primaried, the lst primary very short, not one-half the 2d, which is
less than the 3d; point of wing furmed by 3d, 4th, and 5th quills; tail rounded, equal to or
longer than wing, of 12 stout, elastic, curved, acuminate feathers. Restless, active, little forest
birds that make a living by picking bugs out of cracks in bark. In scrambling about they use
the tail as woodpeckers do, and never hang head downwards, like the nuthatches. Lay numer-
ous white, speckled eggs in knotholes; are not regularly migratory; have slight seasonal or
sexual changes of plumage ; are chiefly insectivorous, and not noted for musical ability.

18.

62.

62a.

TROGLODYTIDZ: WRENS. 273

CER/THIA. (Lat. certhius, a creeper. Fig. 146.) Characters as above. The stock-form
of this genus varies according to locality. European varieties sometimes recognized are C. coste
and C. britannica. The N. Am. bird, which is in-
separable from the European, has been called C.
rufa, fusca, and americana, for Eastern specimens,
C. montana for those from the Rocky Mt. region,
and C. occidentalis for those from the Pacific coast
region. The Mexican form, C. mexicana, differs
more appreciably, as below given.

C. familia'ris. (Lat. familiaris, from familia,
family; domestic, home-like. Fig. 145.) Brown
Creeper. ¢ 9: Upper parts dark brown, chang- —_—- Fra. 146. —Head, foot, and tail-feather of Cer-
ing to rusty-brown on the rump, everywhere ‘#4 nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

streaked with ashy-white. An obscure whitish superciliary stripe. Under parts dull whitish,
sometimes tinged with rusty on the flanks and crissum. Wing-coverts and quills tipped with
-white, the inner secondaries also with white shaft-lines, which, with the tips, contrast with the
blackish of their outer webs. Wings also twice crossed with white or tawny-white, the ante-
rior bar broad aud occupying both webs of the feathers, the other only on the outer webs near
their ends. Tail grayish-brown, darker along the shaft and at the ends of the feathers, some-
times showing shsolete transverse bars. Bill blackish above, mostly flesh-colored or yellowish
below; feet brown; iris dark brown. Length of ¢ 5.25-5.75; extent 7.50-8.00 ; wing 2.50 ;
more or less; tail usually a little longer than the wing, sometimes not so, 2.50 to nearly 3.00;
tarsus about 0.60; bill 0.65-0.75 ; Q averaging smaller than g. Temperate N. Am., in wood-
land, abundant, generally seen winding spirally up the trunks and larger branches of trees.
C.f. mexica/na. (Lat. of Mexico.) Mexican Creeper. Differs in lacking light tips of the
primary coverts, and general richer coloration, the brown more rusty ; rump bright chestnut ;
under parts grayish. Mexico, to 8. W. border of the U.S. (Not in Check List, 1882; since
ascertained to inhabit Arizona.)

6. Family TROGLODYTID4: Wrens.

Embracing a number of forms assembled in
considerable variety, and difficult to define with
precision. Closely related to the last three fami-
lies ; known froin these by non-acuminate tail-
feathers and exposed nostrils. Very intimately
resembling, in particular, the mocking group of
thrushes—those with scutellate tarsi and not
strictly spurious lst primary; but all our wrens
are smaller than any of the Mimine, and other-
wise distinguished by less deeply cleft toes — as
stated on p. 248; ‘‘the inner toe is united by half
its basal joint to the middle toe, sometimes by

Fig. 147, —European Wren. (From Dixon.) the whole of this joint; and the second joint of
the outer toe enters wholly or partially into this union, instead of the basal only.” Nostrils
narrowly or broadly oval, exposed, overhung by a scale; bill moderately or very slender,
straight or slightly decurved, from half as long to about as long as the head, unnotched
in all our genera; no evident rictal bristles; wings short, more or less rounded, with 10
primaries, the Ist: short, but not strictly spurious; tail of variable length, much or little
rounded, of broad or narrow feathers, often held over the back. Tarsi scutellate, sometimes
behind as well as in front.

18

if

274 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Excepting some Old World forms of doubtful affinity, and the species of Anorthura proper,
the Troglodytide are confined to America; and if thus restricted are susceptible of better
definition. About one hundred species or varieties are recognized, usually referred to about
sixteen genera, most of which belung to tropical America, where the group reaches its maxi-
mum development, — over twenty species of Campylorhynchus being described, for instance.
Of North American genera, Campylorhynchus, Catherpes and Salpinctes are confined to the
West, and represent a section distinguished by the breadth of the tail-feathers, which widen
toward the end. Species of all our other genera are common and familiar eastern birds, much
alike in disposition, manners, and habits; the house wren typifies these. They are sprightly,
fearless, and impudent little creatures, apt to show bad temper when they fancy themselves
aggrieved by cats or people, or anything else that is big and unpleasant to them; they quarrel
a good deal, and are particularly spiteful towards martins and swallows, whose homes they
often invade and occupy. Their song is bright and hearty, and they are fond of their own
music; when disturbed at it they make a great ado with noisy scolding. Part of them live in
reedy swamps and marshes, where they hang astonishingly big globular nests, with a little hole
in one side, on tufts of rushes, and lay six or eight dark colored eggs; the others nest any-
where, in shrubbery, knotholes, hollow stumps, and other odd nooks. Nearly all are migratory;
one is stationary ; one comes to us in the fall from the north, the rest in spring from the south.
Insectivorous, and very prolific, laying several sets of eggs each season. Plainly colored, the
browns being the usual colors; no red, blue, yellow, or green in any of our species.

Analysis of Subfamilies, Genera, and Species.

CAMPYLORHYNCHIN. Feet not strictly laminiplantar, the lateral plates divided, or not perfectly fused in one.
Tail broad, fan-shaped, the individual feathers widening toward the end.
Very large; length about 8 inches. Tarsus decidedly scutellate behind. Lateral toes of equal lengths.

Above streaked with white, below spotted with black. . . » . . « Campylorhynchus
Black and white bars of tail chiefly on outer webs of the feathers . . . . . .C. brunneicapillus 63
Black and white bars of tail chiefly on both webs of the feathers . . . ia C. affinis 64

Smaller, about 6.00long. Tarsus scutellate behind. Lateral toes of unequal lengths .
Salpinctes (S. obsoletus) 65
Smaller, about 5.50 long. Tarsus scarcely scutellate behind. Lateral toes of unequal lengths
Catherpes (C. mexicanus) 66, 67
TROGLODYTINZ. Feet strictly laminiplantar, as usual in Oscines. Tail thin, with narrow parallel-edged
feathers. Wings and tail more or less completely barred cross-wise.
Large. Upper parts uniform in color, without streaks or bars; rump with concealed white spots. Belly
unmarked ; a conspicuous superciliary stripe.
Tail shorter or not longer than the wing, all the feathers brown, distinctly barred
Thryothorus (T. tudovicianus) 68, 69, 70
Tail decidedly longer than the wing, blackish, not fully barred on all the feathers
Thryothorus (T. bewicki) 71, 72, °%
Small. Upper parts not uniform, the back being more or less distinctly barred cross-wise; wings, tail,
and flanks fully barred.
Tail about equal to the wing, the outstretched feet reaching scarcely or not beyond its end ’
Troglodytes (T. domesticus) 74, 76
Tail decidedly shorter than the wing, the outstretched feet reaching far beyond its end
Anorthura (A. troglodytes) 6, 77, 7
Small. Upper parts not uniform, the back being streaked length-wise ; flanks scarcely or not barred.
Bill about 4 as long as head; crown plain; streaks of back confined to interscapular region
Telmatodytes (T. palustris) 79, 9A
Bill scarcely or not 4 as long as head; crown streaked, like the whole back
Cistothorus (C. stellaris) 84

9. Subfamily CAMPYLORHYNCHINA:: Fan.-tailed Wrens.

For characters of this group and analysis of its genera, see above.
19, CAMPYLORHYN’CHUS. ((r. xaymvdos, kampulos, bent ; piyyos, rhugchos, beak.) Cac-
tus Wrens. Of largest size in this family ;° length about 8.00 inches. Tarsus scutellate
behind. Lateral toes of equal lengths. Wings and tail of about equal lengths. Tail broad,

63.

GA.

20.

65.

LROGLODYTIDA — CAMPYLORHYNCHINZ: FAN-TAILED WRENS. 275

with wide feathers. Tarsus a little longer than the middle toe and claw. Upper parts with
sharp white streaks on a brown ground; under parts boldly spotted with black on a white
ground; tail-feathers barred with black and white.

C. brunneicapil/lus. (Lat. brunneus, brown; capillus, hair.) BRrowN-HEADED Cactus
Wren. ¢, adult: Back grayish-brown, marked with black and white, each feather having
a central white field several times indented with black. Whole crown of head and nape rich
dark wood-brown, immaculate. A long white superciliary stripe from nostril to nape. Beneath,
nearly pure white anteriorly, gradually shading behind into decided cinnamon-brown — the
throat and fore part of the breast marked with large, crowded, rounded black spots, the rest of
the under parts with small, sparse, oval or linear black spots, again enlarging on the crissum.
Wings darker and more fuscous-brown than the back ; all the quills with a series of numerous
white or whitish indentations along the edge of both webs. Central tail-feathers like the
wings, with numerous more or less incomplete blackish bars; other tail-feathers blackish, the
outer with several broad white bars on both webs; the rest with usually only a single com-
plete white bar near the end. Bill dark plumbeous, paler below; iris orange. Length near
8.00; wing 3.50; tail rather longer; bill 0.80; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 0.90. 9,
adult: Quite like the g, but the spots on the throat and breast rather smaller, therefore less
crowded, and less strongly contrasting with the sparse speckling of the rest of the under parts.
Young: Similar to the adult on the upper parts, but the throat whitish with little speckling;
scarcely any spots on the rest of the under parts, which are, however, as decidedly cinnamon as
those of the adults. Southwestern U. §8.,— Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, southern Utah
and Nevada, and portions of California; common in cactus and chaparral, building a large
purse-shaped nest in bushes; eggs about 6, 1.00 0.68, white, uniformly and minutely dotted
with salmon-color. (If not C. brunneicapillus Lafr., this will stand as C. couesi Sharpe, Cat.
Br. Mus., vi, 1882, p. 196.)

C. affilnis. (Lat. affinis, affined, allied; ad, and finis.) St. Lucas Cactus Wren. «Sim-
ilar to the last. Cap reddish-brown, lighter instead of darker than the back. Markings of
back very conspicuous, in strong streaks of black and white, these two colors bordering each
other with little or no indentation. Under parts nearly white, the black spots, though con-
spicuous, not enlarged and crowded on the breast, but more regularly distributed. All the
lateral tail-feathers, instead of only the outer ones, crossed on both webs with numerous com-
plete white bars. The variations with sex and age correspond with those of C. brunneicapillus.
Lower California. Nest and eggs as before. (According to Sharpe, 1. c., this is C. brun-
neicapillus Lafr.)

SALPINCTES. (Gr. cadmeyxris, salpightes, a trumpeter.) Rock Wrens. Bill about as long
as head, slender, compressed, straight at base, then
slightly decurved, acute at tip, faintly notched.
Nostrils conspicuous, scaled, in a large fossa. Wing
longer than tail; exposed portion of Ist primary
about half as long as 2d, which is decidedly shorter
than 3d. Tail rounded, of 12 broad plane feathers,
with rounded or subtruncate ends. Feet small and
weak; tarsus longer than middle toe, scutellate pos-
teriorly. Hind toe and claw shorter than middle \\
one; lateral toes of unequal lengths, the outer Fie. 148, —Rock Wren, nat. size. (Ad nat,
longest, both very short, the tips of their claws del. E.C.)

falling short of base of middle claw. Only one species known.

S. obsole’tus. (Lat. obsoletus, unaccustomed; 0b, and soleo, Iam wont; hence obsolete, effaced,
the coloration being dull and diffuse. Fig. 148.) Rock Wren. ¢@ 9, adult: Upper parts
pale brownish-gray, minutely dotted with blackish and whitish points together, and usually

21.

66.

67.

67a.

276 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

showing obsolete wavy bars of dusky. Rump cinnamon-brown; a whitish superciliary line.
Beneath, soiled white, shading behind into pale cinnamon, the throat and breast obsoletely
streaked, and the under tail-coverts barred, with dusky. Quills of the wings rather darker than
the back, with similar markings on the outer webs. Middle tail-feathers like the back, with
many dark bars of equal width with the lighter ones; lateral tail-feathers similarly marked on
the outer webs, plain on the inner webs, with a broad subterminal black bar on both webs, and
cinnamon-brown tips, the latter usually marbled with dusky ; outer feathers with several black-
igh,and cinnamon bars ou both webs. Bill and feet dark horn color, the former paler at. base
below. Length 5.50-6.00; wing 2.60-2.80; tail 2.20-2.40; bill 0.66-0.75 ; tarsus 0.75-0.80.
Most of the markings blended and diffuse. Shade of upper parts variable, from dull grayish to
a more plumbeous shade, often with a faint pinkish tinge. Specimens in worn and faded plu-
mage may fail to show the peculiar dotting with black and whitish; but in these the cross-
wise dusky undulation, as well as the streaks on the breast, are commonly more distinct than
in fresher-feathered examples. The rufous tinge of the under parts is very variable in shade ;
that of the rump, however, being always well marked. Western U. §., E. to lowa; common,
haunting rocky places, where it is conspicuous by its restlessness and loud notes; nest of any
rubbish in a rocky nook ; eggs numerons, 5-8, of crystalline whiteness, sparsely sprinkled with
reddish-brown dots, 0.75 & 0.62.

CATHERPES. (Gr. xabepris, katherpes, a creeper; xara, kata, down, éprw, herpo, I ereep.)
Canon Wrens. Bill singularly attenuate, about as long as head, nearly straight in all its
outlines, with such direction of its axis that the bill as a whole appears continuous with the
line of the forehead. Tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw, with tendency to subdivision
of the lateral tarsal plate. Lateral toes of unequal lengths, the outer longest. Wings and
tail as in Salpinctes, and general features, even to system of coloration, meh the same as in
that genus. One known species, with several varieties.

C. mexica/nus. MExICAN CANON WREN. Similar to the form next described; much darker
colored both above and below, with sharper contrast of the white throat; the white speckling
mostly restricted to the back and wings ; the black tail-bars broader and more regular, and the
light markings of the wings mere indentations instead of complete bars. Bill straight, more
abruptly decurved at extreme tip. Feet stouter, dark brown. Size greater; length about
6.00; wing 2.80; tail 2.40; bill nearly 1.00 long, only about 0.12 deep at base. Specimens
vary much in sharpness and extensiveness of the speckling of the upper parts. In best-marked
cases, the spots quite white, almost lengthened into streaks, each one completely set in black ;
other examples, small, sparse and restricted, these specimens also showing wavy transverse in
bars of blackish. Mexico, to Texan border.

C. m. consper’sus. (Lat. conspersus, speckled.) SPECKLED CANON WREN. @ Q, adult:
Upper parts brown, paler and grayer anteriorly, behind shading insensibly into rich rufous,
everywhere dotted with small dusky and whitish spots. Tail clear cinnamon-brown, crossed
with numerous very narrow and mostly zigzag black bars. Wing-quills dark brown, the outer
webs of the primaries and both webs of the inner secondaries barred with the color of the back.
Chin, throat, and fore breast, with lower half of the side of the head and neck, pure white,
shading behind through ochraceous-brown into rich deep ferruginous, and posteriorly obsoletely
waved with dusky and whitish. Bill slate-colored, paler and more livid below; feet black;
iris brown. Length about 5.50; extent 7.50; wing 2.30; tail 2.12; tarsus 0.60; bill 0.80.
Throughout New Mexico and Arizona, and portions of Texas, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and
California; N. to at least 40°. A remarkable bird, famous for its ringing notes, inhabiting
cafions and other rocky places. Nesting and eggs like those of the rock wren; eggs 5 or
more, 0.75 X 0.55, erystal white, fairly sprinkled and blotched with reddish-brown.

Cc. m. punctula/tus. (Lat. punctulatus, dotted.) Dorrep CANon Wren. Smaller than
either of the foregoing: length about 5.00; wing 2.10; tail 1.90; bill 0.75. Coloration inter-

22.

68.

69.

70.

71.

“TROGLODYTIDA — TROGLODYTINZ: TRUE WRENS. 277

mediate ; upper parts most like those of C. conspersus, and wings completely barred as in that
species ; but under parts posteriorly dusky ferruginous (dark mahogany color), and tail-bars
broad, firm, and regular, as in mexicanus proper. Coast region of California. The type speci-
men, the only one I have seen, for some years in my cabinet and now No. 82,715, Mus. 8. L.,
seems to be recognizably distinct ; but all the forms of the genus intergrade. (Not in Check
List, 1882; since described by Ridgway, Pr. Nat. Mus., v., 1882, p. 343.)

10. Subfamily TROGLODYTINAZ: True Wrens.

See characters and analysis of this group on p. 274.

THRYOTHO’RUS. (Gr. Opvov, thruon, a reed, and Ootpos, thouros, leaping.) REED WRENS.
Of largest size in this subfamily ; length 5.50-6.00. Back uniform in color, without streaks or
bars; wings and tail more or less barred crosswise; belly unmarked ; a long superciliary stripe ;
rump with concealed white spots. Eggs colored.

Tail not longer than wings, like back in color, and barred, in Thryothorus proper . Nos. 68, 69, 70

Tail longer than wings, blackish, not fully barred, in Thryomanes .. . ‘< eS ~ « 71,72, 78
T. ludovicia/nus. (Lat. Ludovicianus, Louisiana; of Ludovicus, Louis XIV., of France.
Fig. 149.) Great CAROLINA WREN. Upper parts uniform reddish-brown, brightest on the
rump, where are concealed whitish spots; a
long whitish superciliary line, usually bordered
with dusky streaks; upper surfaces of wings
and tail like back, barred with dusky, the outer
edges of the primaries and lateral tail-feathers
showing whitish spots. Below, rusty or muddy
whitish, clearest anteriorly, deepening behind,
the under tail-coverts reddish-brown barred
with blackish. Wing-coverts usually with dusky
and whitish tips. Feet livid flesh-colored.
Length 6.00; extent nearly 7.50; wing 2.40;
tail 2.25; bill 0.65; tarsus 0.75. Eastern
U. S., southerly; N. regularly to the Middle
States, rarely to Massachusetts; resident as far
north at least as Washington. A common and -
well-known inhabitant of shrubbery, with a
loud ringing song; shy and secretive. Nest in
any nook about out-buildings, or in shrubbery,
when in the latter usually roofed over, of the : 3 ~
most miscellaneous materials; eggs 6-7, white, NNW
profusely speckled and blotched with shades of Fic. 149. —Great Carolina Wren, reduced. (From
reddish, brown, and purplish; 0.72 x 0.60. Tener anne
T.1. miamien’sis, (Of the Miami River, Florida.) FLorman Wren. Similar: larger,
stouter, and more deeply-colored, especially below, where nearly uniform rusty-brown. Wing
9.75; tail 2.60; bill 0.90; tarsus 0.95. Florida; a local race.
T. 1. berlan’dieri. (To Dr. Louis Berlandier.) Texan Wren. Similar: smaller; length
5.25 ; wing 2.25; tail 2.12. Coloration darker than in typical ludovicianus, especially below;
flanks as well as crissum barred with dusky; tail-bars broken up into irregular nebulation.
Valley of the Rio Grande; a local race.
T. be/wicki. (To Thomas Bewick.) Brwrcr’s Wren. Above, dark grayish-brown;
below, ashy-white, with a brownish wash on the flanks. Rump-with concealed whitish spots.
A long whitish superciliary stripe from nostrils to nape. Under tail-coverts dark-barred ; two
middle tail-feathers like back, with numerous fine black bars; others black with whitish

72.

73.

14.

15.

24.

76.

278 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PASSERES — OSCINES.

markings on the outer webs and tips. Length about 5.50; extent 6.75; wing 2.00-2.12;
tail 2.35; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.75. Eastern U.S., southerly, N. to the Middle States and
Minnesota. Not very common in the Atlantic States, but so abundant as to replace the house
wren in some parts of the interior. Nest in holes in trees, stumps, fences, etc.; eggs white,
finely dotted and spotted, resembling those of Catherpes or Salpinctes.

T. b. leucogas'ter. (Gr. Aevxds, lewkos, white; yaornp, gaster, belly.) WHITE-BELLIED
Wren. Above, uniform clear ashy-brown; below, clear ashy-white; pure white on the
middle parts. A long, strong, white superciliary stripe; auriculars speckled with white. Con-
cealed white spots on the rump. Quills of the wings fuscous, the inner feathers very obsoletely
waved with the color of the back. ‘Two iniddle tail-feathers closely barred with pure dark ash
and black; others black, with irregular white or ashy-white tips, the outer web of the exterior
feather barred with white. Length 5.50-5.75 inches; extent 6.75; wing 2.00-2.33; tail
2.25-2.50; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.75. Southwestern U. 8.; a well-marked geographical race.

T. b. spilu'/rus? (Gr. ozidos, spilos, spotted ; odpa, oura, tail.) SPECKLED-TAILED WREN.
Similar ‘to No. 71, and scarcely distinguishable; bill said to be longer, 0.60. Pacific Coast. _
TROGLODYTES. (Gr. rpwydodvrns, troglodutes, a cave-dweller.) Houszs WREns. Of
small size; no decided superciliary lime. Upper parts not uniform in color, the back more or
less distinctly barred crosswise ; wings, tail, and flanks fully barred crosswise; tail about equal
to wing in length, the outstretched feet scarcely or not reaching beyond its end. Eggs colored.
T. domes'ticus. (Lat. domesticus, domestic; domus, a house.) EasteRN Housr WReEN.
Brown, brighter behind; below rusty-brown, or grayish-brown, or even grayish-white ; every-
where waved with darker shade, very plainly on wings, tail, flanks, and under tail-coverts; breast
apt to be darker than either throat or belly ; bill shorter than head, about 0.50; wings and tail
nearly equal, about 2.00, but ranging from 1.90 to 2.10; total length 4.50-5.25, averaging about
4.90; extent about 6.75. Exposed portion of 1st primary about one-half as long as longest
primary. Eastern U.S., N. to Canada, W. to Dakota; very abundant anywhere in shrubbery,
gardens, and about dwellings, where its active, sprightly, and fearless demeanor, together with
its hearty trilling song, bring it into friendly notoriety. Nest of any trash in a hole of a build-
ing, fence, tree, or stump; eggs 6-9, 0.65 X 0.55, profusely and uniformly studded with minute
points of brown, often rendering an almost uniform color; two or three broods each season.
Resident in the South, migratory farther north.

T. d. park/mani. (To Dr. Geo. Parkman, of Boston.) Wrstern Hous—E Wren. Brown
above, little brighter on rump, nearly everywhere waved with dusky, strongest on wings and
tail, but usually appreciable on the whole back. Below brownish-white, nearly white on belly,
obscurely variegated with darker markings, which, on the flanks and crissum, become stronger
bars, alternating with brown and whitish ones. Bill blackish above, pale below ; feet brown.
Length 5.00-5.25 ; extent 6.75; wing and tail about 2.10. Exposed portion of lst primary
about one-half as long as 2d primary. Western U. S., from the Plains to the Pacific, abun-
dant, there replacing J. domesticus, to which it is so similar; but on an average paler and
grayer, with rather longer wings and tail.

ANORTHU'RA. (Gr. dv, an, signifying negation ; ép6és, orthos, straight ; odpa, oura, tail.
Fig. 147.) Winter Wrens. Like Troglodytes proper, but tail decidedly shorter than wings,
the outstretched feet reaching far beyond its end. Eggs colored.

A. troglo/dytes hiema'lis. (Lat. hiemalis, wintry; hiems, winter. Fig. 150.) Winter WREN.
Above brown, darker before, brighter behind, most of back, together with tail and inner wing-
quills, banded -with dusky, the markings obsolete on the back, where usually accompanied by
whitish specks, strongest on the wings aud tail. Outer webs of several primaries regularly
barred with brownish-white, in marked contrast with the other bars of the wings. An incon-
spicuous whitish superciliary line. Below brownish, paler or whitish anteriorly, the belly,
flanks, and crissuin heavily waved with dusky and whitish bars. Bill slender, straight, decidedly

1.

78.

25.

719.

80.

TROGLODYTIDZ — TROGLODYTINZ: TRUE WRENS. 279

.Shorter than the head. Tail much shorter than the wings. Length 3.90-4.10; extent 6.00-

6.50; wing 1.75; tail 1.25; bill 0.40; tarsus, middle toe, and claw together, about 1.12.
N. Am. at large, common, migratory, breed-
ing from New England and corresponding
latitudes northward, wintering in the U. S.,
the strict representative of the European
wren. Nest of twigs, moss, lichens, hair,
feathers, ete., usually in a stump or log
close to the ground; eggs 5-8, 0.65 x 0.48,
pure white, minutely dotted with reddish-
brown and purplish. A sly, secretive little
bird, less often seen than other wrens no less
common; voice strong and highly musical. a
A. t. paci/ficus? (Lat. pacificus, pacific, Fie. 150.— Winter Wren, little reduced. (Baird's
peace-making; pax and facio; alluding to S8ure of 4. alascensis.)
“the stilly sea.”) WersTERN Winter Wren. Like the last; darker, in lack of the
whitish specks of the upper parts, and whitish bars on outer webs of the primaries ;. but
very slightly distinguished. Pacific Coast region.
A. t. alascen'sis. (Of Alaska.) ALASKAN WINTER Wren. Like the common species in
form and coloration; larger; size of a house wren; wing 2.00-2.20; tail 1.50; tarsus 0.753
tarsus, middle toe, and claw together 1.40; bill 0.65. Culmen, gape, and gonys almost per-
fectly straight, latter slightly ascending. Aleutian and Pribylov Islands, Alaska. Well dis-
tinguished from the common form, and nearer the Japanese A. fumigatus. ‘
TELMATO'DYTES. (Gr. réApa, telma, a swamp; dvrns, dutes, an inhabitant.) Marsa
Wrens. Small. Upper parts not uniform; back streaked lengthwise with white in a black
patch ; flanks scarcely or not barred; crown plain; bill about two-thirds as long as head.
Eggs dark.
T. palus’tris. (Lat. palustris, marshy ; palus, a marsh. Fig. 151.) Lone@-siLbep Marsu
Wren. Above clear brown, unbarred, the middle of the back with a large black patch sharply
streaked with white (these white stripes sometimes de-
ficient). Crown of head usually darker than the back,
often quite blackish, and continuous with the black inter-
scapular patch. A dull white superciliary line. Wings
fuscous, the inner secondaries blackish on the outer webs,
often barred or indented with light brown. Tail evenly
barred with fuscous and the color of the back. Under
parts white, usually quite pure on the belly and middle
line of the breast and throat, but much shaded with
Fic. 151. —Long-billed Marsh Wren, brown on the sides, flanks, and crissum. Bill blackish
nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) above, pale below; feet brown. Length about 5.00;
extent 6.50; wing 1.75-2.00; tail about the same; bill 0.50 or more; tarsus 0.66-0.75.
Temperate N. Am.; Greenland. Breeds throughout its range, and winters in the Southern
States; an abundant bird, colonizing reedy swamps and marshes in large numbers, its great
globular nests of plaited rushes, with # hole in the side, being affixed to the swaying herbage ;
eggs 6-10, 0.58 x 0.45, very dark-colored, being so thickly dotted with chocolate-brown as to
appear almost uniformly of this color.
T. p. paludi’cola? (Lat. paludicola, a marsh-inhabiter; palus and colo, I cultivate.) TuLE
Mars Wren. Scarcely recognizable as distinct; bill said to be shorter, and tail and its
coverts more distinctly barred. Pacific Coast.

81.

280 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

CISTOTHO'RUS. (Gr. kioros, kistos, a shrub; Oodpos, thouros, leaping.) MARSH WRENS...
Like Telmatodytes; whole back and crown streaked with white. Bill scarcely or not one-half
as long as head. Eggs white.
C, stella/ris. (Lat. stellaris, starry; i.e., speckled. Fig. 152.) SHorT-BILLED MARSH WREN.
Upper parts brown, the crown and most of the back blackish, streaked with white. Below,
whitish, shaded with clear brown across the breast and along
the sides, and especially on the flanks and crissum, the latter
more or less indistinetly barred with dusky (often inappreci-
able). A whitish line over the eye. Wings and tail marked
as in the last species. Upper tail-coverts decidedly barred.
Bill blackish above, whitish below, extremely small, scarcely
half as long as the head; feet brown. Length 4.50; extent
j 5.75-6.00; wing and tail each about 1.75; bill 0.35-0.40;
Fig. 152.— Short-billed Marsh tarsus,’ middle toe, and claw together, about 1.12., The streak-
Wren, nat. size. (Ad nat.del.E.C:) ing of the head and that of the back are usually separated
by a plain nuchal interval; but these are as often run together, the whole bird above being
streaked with whitish and blackish upon a brown ground. The wings, tail, and entire under
parts are much like those of J. palustris, from which the species is distinguished by the mark-
ings of the upper parts and extremely short bill. Chiefly Eastern U. 8. and adjoining British
Provinces; W. to Utah. Migratory; winters in the Southern States. Frequents marshy
places like T. palustris, but is not common. Nesting different, and eggs white.

7. Family ALAUDID4:: Larks.

A rather small group, well defined by the character of the feet, in adaptation to terrestrial
life. The subcylindrical tarsi are scutellate and blunt behind as in front, with a deep gruove
along the inner side, and a slight one, or none, on the outer face. That is to say, there is an
anomalous structure of the tarsal envelope; the tarsus being covered with two series of scu-
tella, one lapping around in front, the other around behind, the two meeting along a groove on
the inner face of the tarsus, which is consequently blunt behind as well as in front. There is a
simple suture of the two series of plates on the outer face of the tarsus; the individual plates
of each series alternate. Other characters (shared by some Motacillide) are the very long,
straight, hind claw, which equals or exceeds its digit in length ; the long, pointed wings, with
the lst primary spurious or apparently wanting, and the inner secondaries (‘ tertiaries”)
lengthened and flowing. The nostrils are usually concealed by dense tufts of antrorse feathers.
The shape of the bill is not diagnostic, being sometimes short, stout and conic, mach as in
some Fringillide, while in other cases it is slenderer, and more like that of insectivorous
Passeres. The family is composed, nominally, of a hundred species; with the exception of one
genus and two or three species or varieties, it is confined to the Old World. Its systematic
position is open to question; some place it at the end of the Oscine series, or remove it from
Oseimes altogether, on account of the peculiarities of the podotheca; authors generally place it
near the Fringillide, from the resemblance of the bill of some species to that of some finches;
but it has many relationships with Motacillide, and, in the arrangement of this work, I find no
better place for it than here, though it has no special affinity with the preceding families.
Moreover, the fact that it appears to have indifferently 9 or 10 primaries may indicate a natural
position between the sets of families in which number of primaries is among the diagnostic
features. The musical apparatus is certainly well developed, as testified by the eminent vocal
powers of the celebrated sky-lark of Europe. The unpractised reader must be careful not to
confound the larks proper with certain birds loosely called ‘‘larks”; thus the titlarks, or pipits,
though sharing the lengthened, straightened hind claw and elongated inner wing-quills of

27.

82.

ALAUDIDA — CALANDRITINZ: SHURE LARKS. 281

Alaudide, belong to an entirely different family, the Motacillide ; while the American field-
lark is one of the Icteride, much further removed.

According to shape of bill, structure of nostrils, and apparent number of primaries, the
family may be divided into two subfainilies, the Alaudine, typified by the celebrated sky-lark
of Europe, and the Calandritine, of which the well-known horned lark is a typical representa-
tive. Both of these oecur in North America ;
the Alauda, however, only as a straggler from
Europe.

CALANDRITINZ&, without evident spurious 1st primary,
the primaries apparently only 9.

ALAUDIN2, with spurious Ist primary, the primaries
therefore evidently 10.

11. Subfamily CALANDRITINA :
Shore Larks.

Represented in America by the single genus
‘ 5 Eremophila, of which there are nominally ten,

Fig. 153. — Shore Lark, much reduced. (From Ten- really four or five species, one of which occurs
ney, after Baird.) in North America.
EREMO'PHILA. (Gr. épjpos, eremos, a desert; pido, phileo, I love.) Hornep Larks.
Primaries apparently only 9 (no obvious spurious Ist primary). Point of the wing formed
by the first 3 developed primaries. Inner secondaries elongated. Tail of medium length,
nearly even, the middle pair of feathers different in shape and color from the rest. Bill com-
pressed-conoid, acute, shorter than head. Nostrils completely concealed by dense tufts of
antrorse feathers. Head not crested, but a peculiar tuft of feathers over each ear, somewhat
like the so-called ‘‘ horns” of some owls. Feet of ordinary alaudine characters, as already
given. Coloration peculiar in the presence of yellowish tints and strong black bars on the
head and breast. The birds of this genus frequent open places, are strictly terrestrial in habits,
and never hop when on the ground, like most Passeres ; they are migratory in most localities,
and gregarious, except when breeding ; nest on the ground, and lay 4-5 speckled eggs; sing
sweetly in the spring time.
E. alpes/tris. (Lat. alpestris, alpine. Figs. 153, 154.) HorNED or Snore Lark. ¢ 9,
adult, in breeding plumage: Upper parts in general pinkish-brown, this pinkish or vinaceous
or liliaceous tint brightest on the nape, lesser wing-
coverts, and tail-coverts, the rest of the upper parts
being duller and more grayish-brown, boldly variegated
with dark brown streaks; middle pair of tail-feathers
and several of the inner secondaries rufous-brown, with
darker centres. Under parts, from the breast backward,
white; the sides strongly washed with the color of the
upper parts, and mottling of same across the lower part
of the breast. A large, distinct, shield-shaped black
area on the breast. Tail-feathers, except the middle
pair, black, the outermost edged with whitish. Wing-
quills, except the innermost, plain fuscous, the outer
web of the lst primary whitish. Lesser wing-coverts Fig. 154. — Shore Lark, nat. size, (Ad
usually tipped with grayish-white. Top of head like Reba
nape; bar across front of vertex, thence extended along sides of crown, and produced into a
tuft or “horn,” black ; front and line over eye, also somewhat produced to form part of the
tuft, white or yellowish ; a broad bar from nostrils along the lores, thence curving below the
eye and widening as it descends in front of the auriculars, black ; rest of the sides of the head

282 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

and whole throat white or sulphury-yelow. Bill plumbeous-blackish, bluish-plumbeous at
base below (sometimes there yellowish) ; feet and claws black; iris brown. Length of ¢,
7.00-7.50 ; extent 13.00-14.00; wing 4.25-4.50; tail 2.75-3.00; Dill, from extreme base of
culmen, 0.40-0.50 ; tarsus 0.88-0.90; middle toe and claw rather less; hind claw about 0.50,
usually longer than its digit, but very variable. Q commonly smaller than the ¢; length -
6.75-7.25 ; extent 12.75-13.25; wing about 4.00, ete. @ 9, adult, in winter: As usually
seen in most of the United States in the fall, winter, and early spring, differ from the above in
more sordid coloration of the upper parts, which may be simply grayish-brown, heavily streaked
with dusky, even ou the crown, with little or none of the ‘‘ pinkish” tints; and in lack or re-
striction of the black markings of the head and breast, or their being veiled with whitish tips
of the individual feathers ; nevertheless, the sulphury tinge of the white parts about the head is
usually very conspicuous. Fledglings have the upper parts dusky, mixed with some yellowish-
. brown, and sprinkled all over with whitish or light tawny dots, each feather having a terminal
speck. Most of the wing- and tail-feathers have rusty, tafvny, or whitish edging and tipping.
The under parts are white, mottled with the colors of the upper parts along the sides and across
the back ; no traces of definite black markings about the head and breast, nor any yellow
tinge. Bill and feet pale or yellowish. This peculiar speckled stage is of brief duration; with
an early autumnal change, a dress, little if at all different from that of the adults in winter, is
acquired. Nesting begins very early in April, or even in March, sometimes before the snow is
gone, and frequently other broods are reared through the summer; nest of grasses, etc., sunken
in the ground; eggs very variable in tone, but always profusely and heavily marked with
brownish-gray or dark stone-gray upon a grayish or greenish-white ground; in some cases
the whole surface nearly uniform. Northern hemisphere at large; in America, chiefly north-
ern and eastern parts, breeding from the Northern States northward, common in flocks in the
U.S. in winter; chiefly replaced in the West by the following varieties.

83. E. a. leucole’ma. (Gr. Aevxds, leukos, white; Acids, laimos, throat.) WESTERN SHORE
Lark. Size of the foregoing. General coloration extremely pale — brownish-gray, the
peculiar pinkish tint of certain parts sharing the geueral pallor. Black markings on head and

, breast much restricted in extent, and white surroundings correspondingly increased — thus, the
black post-frontal bar scarcely or not broader than the white of the forehead. No yellow about
head, excepting usually a slight tinge on the chin. Changes of plumage parallel with those
already given; even the nestlings show the same decided pallor. Prairies of Western U. S.,
breeding everywhere north of about 40°; very abundant.

84, E. a. chrysola/ma. (Gr. ypiveos, chruseos, golden; Aapés, laimos, throat.) SouTH-wEst-
ERN SHORE Lark. Smaller than the foregoing: ¢ with the wing scarcely or not 4.00, and

other dimensions to correspond; a very small

specimen, probably 9, has the wing only 3.50;

in another, marked @, it is 3.75. The ‘“ pink-

ish” tinge intensified into cinnamon-brown, and
pervading nearly all the upper parts; yellow of
head intensified ; black markings very heavy, —
the black on the crown widened to occupy more
than half the cap, reducing the white frontlet to

a mere trace. Southwestern U. 8. and Mexico,

breeding mostly south of 40°; abundant.

iG Wir 12. Subfamily ALAUDINZ: Sky-Larks.

Represented in America by one species, a
Fie. 155. -- Sky-Lark, reduced. (From Dixon.) — gtrageler from the Old World. Fig. 155.

28. ar (Lat. alauda, a lark; supposed Celtic al, high, and aud, song.) Sxy-Larxs.

85.

MOTACILLIDZ: WAGTAILS AND PIPITS. 283

Primaries 10, the spurious lst primary minnte but evident. Head suberested, but without
lateral ear-tufts. Wings long, pointed, the tip formed by the first 8 developed primaries ;
inner secondaries long and flowing. Tail emarginate, little more than half as long as wing.
Tarsus equal to middle toe and claw. Lateral toes of unequal lengths. Sexes alike. Nest on
the ground. Eggs 4-5, thickly speckled.

A. arven'sis. (Lat. arvensis, relating to arable land; arvum, a ploughed field.) Sky Lark.
Upper parts grayish-brown, the feathers with darker centres; under parts whitish, tinged
with buff across breast and along sides, and there streaked with dusky ; a pale superciliary
line ; wings with much whitish edgmg; outer tail-feather mostly white, the next one or two
with white borders. Length of @ 7.50; extent 14.75; wing about 4.00; tail 2.50; bill
0.50; tarsns or middle toe and claw 1.00; hind toe 0.45, its claw up to nearly 1.00. 9
smaller. This celebrated bird, whose music so often inspires the poet, occurs as a straggler
from Europe in Greenland, and also, it is said, in Bermuda and Alaska. It has also been im-
ported and turned out in this country, where it may perhaps become naturalized.

8. Family MOTACILLIDA: Wagtails and Pipits.

Bill shorter than the head, very
slender, straight, acute, notched at
tip. Nostrils not concealed by
feathers, which however reach into
the nasal fosse. Rictus not nota
bly bristled. Primaries 9, of which
the Ist is about as long as the 2d,
and the first 3, 4, or 5, form the
point; inner secondaries enlarged,
the longest one nearly or quite
equalling the primaries in the closed
wing. Tail lengthened, averaging
about equal to the wing. Feet
long and slender; tarsus scutellate,
usually longer than the middle toe
7 and claw; inner toe cleft to the
very base, but basal joint of outer
toe soldered with the middle one;
hind toe bearing a long and little
curved claw (except in Motacilla
proper). A pretty well-defined
group of one hundred, chiefly Old
World, species, which may be

Fic. 156.— Upper, White Wagtail ; lower, Yellow Wagtail. termed terrestrial Sylvias, all liv-
(From Dixon.) ing mostly on the ground, where

they run with facility, never hopping like most Oscines. They are usually gregarious; are
insectivorous and migratory. They have gained their name from the characteristic habit of
moving the tail with a peculiar see-saw motion, as if they were using it to balance themselves
upon unsteady footing. They may be distinguished from all the foregoing birds, except
Alaudide, by having only 9 primaries; from all the following Oscines, by having long flowing
inner secondaries; and from Alaudide, with which they agree in this respect, as well as in
usually having a lengthened, straightish hind claw, by having the tarsal envelope as in
Oscines generally, slender bill, and exposed nostrils. Two subfamilies are generally recog-
nized, though the distinctions are scarcely more than generic.

29.

86.

86a.

30.

284 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.
MOTACILLIN”[. Point of wing formed by first 3 primaries. Tail longer or not obviously shorter than wings, with
narrow tapering feathers. Hind claw variable in length and curvature. Coloration black and white, or

yellow and greenish.
Tail decidedly longer than wings, doubly ie Hind claw of ordinary length and curvature.

Colors black, ashy, and white, in masses . . Motacilla 29-
Tail, if anything, shorter than wings, in even. “Hind die leciethened and. straightened. Colors
yellow and green, in masses . pits Budytes 30

ANTHINA. Point of wing formed by first 4 or 5 primaries * Tail decidedly shorter than wings, its feathers not
tapering. Hind claw lengthened and straightened. Coloration brownish, the under parts streaked, upper

usually also variegated.
Tarsus not shorter (rather longer) than hind toe and claw. Tail moderately shorter than wing, the

outstretched feet not reaching beyond its end i é . Anthus 31
Tarsus shorter than hind toe and claw. Tail only about ‘two-thirds as long as wing, the outstretched
feet reaching beyonditsend . . . . . ‘ oo - + « « Meocorys 32

13. Subfamily MOTACILLINA: Wagtails.

Represented in America by two species; in the Old World by nearly fifty species or vari-
eties, chiefly belonging to the genus Motacilla and its subdivisions or immediate allies, of
which Budytes is one, forming a perfect connecting link between Motacilla proper and the
Anthine.

MOTACIL'LA. (Lat. mota-cilla, wag-tail; name of some small bird.) WHiTre WaGTAILs.
Tail much longer than wings, of 12 narrow, weak, tapering or almost linear feathers. First
3 primaries about equal and longest; longest secondary (when full grown) about reaching
their ends when the wing is closed; these flowing secondaries narrow and tapering. Tarsi long
and slender; lateral toes of about equal lengths; hind claw not particularly lengthened or
straightened ; with its digit much shorter than the tarsus. Form remarkably lithe and slender;
coloration black, ashy, and white, in large masses.

M. al’ba. (Lat. alba, white. Fig. 156.) Wuire WacrTain. , in summer: Head black,
with a broad mask of white across forehead and along sides; the black extending on the fore-
breast ; wings blackish, with much white edging and tipping of the quills and greater coverts ;
tail black, the two lateral feathers on each side mostly white; back and sides ashy; lower
parts mostly white; bill and feet black. In winter the black more restricted, that on the fore
breast forming a crescent spot. 9 similar, the black still more restricted, in part replaced by
gray. Young, gray above, grayish-white below, with a gray or blackish crescent on the
fore neck. Length about 7.25; wing 3.25; tail 3.75; tarsus 0.90; hind toe and claw 0.60;
bill 0.50. A species of wide distribution in Europe and Asia, occasional in Greenland.

M. ocula/ris. (Lat. ocularis, ocular.) SiBrRiAN WaGrTatu. Larger, and with a black eye-
stripe in the white mask. Occurs at Plover Bay, East Siberia, and may be expected across
Behring’s Straits. (Not in the Check List, 1882; since found in California.)

BU'DYTES. (Gr. Bovdurns, boudutes, some small bird. ) YeELLow Wacraiw. Characters of
Motacilla ; tail shorter, not exceeding the wing in length ; ; hind claw lengthened and straightish;
hind toe and claw nearly as long as the tarsus. Coloration chiefly yellow and greenish.

87. B. fla/vus? ae flavus, yellow. Figs. 157,156.) Yexruow Waerait. BLUE-HEADED

QuaKE-TAIL. Adult: Above, yellowish-green; below, rich
yellow, shaded with greenish on the sides, and bleaching on
the chin. Top and sides of head bluish-gray, enclosing a long
white superciliary stripe; a dusky stripe from corner of mouth
through eye to ear-coverts. Quills of the wing dusky, the
lesser coverts edged with the color of the back; median and
greater coverts showing whitish wing-bars, and inner second-
aries edged with the same. -Tail dusky, the middle feathers

Fic. 157. — Yellow Wagtail, 3
nearly nat, size (After Baird.) edged with the color of the back; the outer two on each side

81.

88.

MOTACILLIDA — ANTHINA: PIPITS, OR TITLARKS. 285

mostly white. Bill and feet black. Length about 6.50; wing 3.00; tail about 2.75 5 bill 0.50;
tarsus 0.90; hind toe and claw 0.65. A protean species of extensive dispersion in Europe and
Asia, occurring abundantly in Alaska; there 1s some uncertainty to what form the American
bird strictly belongs. It is that with the whole side of the head, below the white stripe, slaty-
blackish, and some dusky markings on breast; doubtless some Asiatic sub-species (taiwanus
Swinh.?)

14. Subfamily ANTHINA:: Pipits, or Titlarks.

In these, the tail is shorter than the wings,
and composed of broader feathers retaining their
width to near the end; 4 or 5 primaries usually
form the point of the wing; the tarsi are rela-
tively shorter, usually about equal to the middle
toe; the lateral toes are longer, the points of
their claws reaching beyond the base of the mid-
dle claw; the hind claw is always lengthened
. and straightened (as in the figure beyond given

"Ne WER Pr of Anthus ludovicianus) ; and the coloration is
WP = ert ‘“‘niggled,” that is to say, broken up in streaks
Fie. 158. — Meadow Pipit. (From Dixon.) and spots. The species of Anthine make up

nearly or about half the family; they are chiefly referable to the genus Anthus, of which,
however, there are several subdivisions. In typical Anthus, the wing is longer than the tail,
and its point is formed by the outer 4 primaries, the 5th being abruptly shorter; the hind
claw is nearly straight, and nearly or quite equals its digit in length. Neocorys only differs in
having the feet larger and tail shorter. In certain S. Am. forms, Pediocorys and Notiocorys,
the wing is more rounded, and 4 or even 5 primaries enter into the tip of the wing; in
several European subgenera only 3 primaries are abruptly longer than the succeeding ones.
Our Anthus is strictly congeneric with the European A. spinoletta, type of the genus. About
fifty species (among them six or eight Central and South American ones) are ascribed to
Anthine. They are terrestrial and more or less gregarious birds, migratory and insectivorous.
AN’'THUS. (Gr. dvOos, anthos, Lat. anthus, a kind of bird.) Prprrs. Bill shorter than head,
about as wide as high at base, compressed in most of its extent, acute at tip, where distinctly
notched; culmen slightly concave between base and terminal convexity ; rictus slightly bristled.
Wings longer than tail, tipped by the first 4 primaries, 5th abruptly shorter. Tarsi not
shorter or rather longer than the hind toe and claw; inner lateral toe rather longer than the
outer, or the two about equal. Tail extending beyond the end of the outstretched feet.

Markings of upper parts distinct, and shade of under parts greenishin. . $0 Dap + pratensis 88

Markings of upper parts obscure, and shade of under parts buffy in . St tebtyudpoite deo os ludovicianus 89
A. praten’sis. (Lat. pratensis, relating to pratum, a meadow. Fig. 158.) Mrapow Pipir.
Upper parts pale greenish-brown, distinctly marked with blackish-brown centres of the feath-
ers; wing-quills' and coverts clove-brown, edged with greenish-gray. Tail-feathers dark
brown, edged with the greenish shade of the back, the outer one obliquely white for nearly half
its length, and others with white at the end. Cheeks olivaceous, speckled with dusky. Under
parts brownish-white with a tinge of green, marked on the breast and sides with brownish-
black streaks running forward as a maxillary chain; chin, belly, and under tail-coverts un-
marked. Bill dusky above and at end, the rest livid flesh-color; feet obscure flesh-color ; iris
blackish. Length about 6.00; extent 9.50; wing 3.00; tail 2.50; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.75.
Europe; North American as occurring in Greenland, and also, it is said, in Alaska. I have
seen Alaskan Pipits, certainly not ludovicianus, and apparently pratensis; but too young and
in too bad condition to furnish decisive characters.

89.

32.

90.

286 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

A. ludovicia‘nus. (Lat. of Louisiana; Ludoviceus, Louis. Fig. 159.) Lovrstana Pipit.
American TITLARE. Brown Lark. WacrTam. Upper parts dark brown with an olive
shade, most of the feathers with dusky centres, giving an obscure
j streaky or nebulous appearance; eyelids, superciliary line, and all
‘ i) under parts brownish-white, or pale buffy or ochrey brown, very
variable in shade from muddy white to rich buff, the breast and sides
of the body and neck thickly streaked with dusky ; wings and tail
blackish, the inner secondaries pale-edged, and 1-3 outer tail-feathers
white wholly or in part. Bill blackish, pale at base below; feet brown.
Length 6.25-6.75, sometimes 7.00; extent 10.25-11.00; wing 3.25-
3.50; tail 2.75-3.00; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.90. N. Am., everywhere;
an abundant and well-known bird of fields and plains ; migratory; in
Fig. 159.—Titlark, nat. the U. 3S. seen chiefly in flocks in fall, winter, and early spring;
size. (Adnat.del.E.C.) breeds in high latitudes, and in the Rocky Mts. above timber line
as far south as Colorado; lays 4-6 very dark-colored eggs, ().80 x 0.60, in a mossy or grassy
nest on the ground; voice querulous, gait tremulous, flight vacillating.
NEO’CORYS. (Gr. véos, neos, new; xopus, korus, a helmet, and hence applied to a kind of
erested lark.) SKY Prpits. Characters of Anthus, from which little distinguished by the
shorter and more nearly even tail and larger teet, which when outstretched reach beyond the
end of the tail; tarsus shorter than hind toe and claw. Colors clearer and markings more dis-
tinct than in Anthus ludovicianus ; more as in some European species of Anthus.
N. spra’guii. (To Isaac Sprague, of Mass.) SpraGte’s Pipir. Mussovri TIrnare.
Above, variegated with numerous streaks of dark brown and gray, in largest pattern on the
back, smallest on the nape, the gray constituting the edging of the feathers. Below, dull whit-
ish, more or less brownish-shaded across the breast and along the sides; the breast sharply
streaked, the sides less distinctly so, with dusky; a more or less evident series of masillary
spots. Quills dark grayish-brown; the inner ones, and the wing-coverts, edged with grayish-
white, corresponding to the pattern of the back. Middle tail-feathers like the back; next ones
blackish-brown, the two outer pair wholly or mostly pure white, the 3d pair from the outside
usually touched with white near the end. With reduction of the gray edgings of the feathers
of the upper parts by wearing away in summer, the bird becomes darker above, with narrower
and sharper variegation, and the pectoral streaks are fainter. Bill blackish above; below,
like the feet, pale flesh-color; iris black. After the fall moult the colors again become pure;
the streaking of the upper parts is strong and sharp, and the under parts acquire a ruddy-brown
shade. Young: Edgings of the feathers of the upper parts buffy, giving a rich complexion to
the plumage; feathers of back with pure white edging, ferming conspicuous semicircular mark-
ings; greater wing-coverts and long inuer secondaries broadly tipped with white, and prima-
ries broadly edged and tipped with white or buff. Ear-coverts buffy-brown, forming a more
conspicuous patch than in the adult. Under parts strongly tinged, except on throat and middle
of belly, with buffy-brown, the pectoral and lateral streaks large and diffused. Sexes indistin-
guisbable; 9 rather smaller than g. Length 6.25-6.75, rarely 7.00; extent 10.00-11.00,
generally about 10.50, rarely 11.50; wing 3.00-3.30; tail 2.25-2.40; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.80-
0.90; middle toe and claw 0.90; hind toe and claw nearly 1.00, the claw alone about 0.50.
Central portions of the U.S., and adjoining British Provinces, from the eastern edge of the
high central plains to the Rocky Mts., from the valleys of the Red River of the North and
of the Saskatchewan to Texas; breeding in profusion in Dakota and Montana; nest on the
ground, of fine dried grasses, sometimes arched over; eggs 4-5, 0.90 X 0.60, grayish-white
minutely flecked with darker, giving a purplish cast. (General habits and manners of titlarks;
but soaring flight when singing, and the song itself, having all the qualities which have made
the European skylark famous, and being no less worthy of celebration in poetry.

SYLVICOLIDZ: AMERICAN WARBLERS. 287

9. Family SYLVICOLIDA: American Warblers.

4

Primaries, nine; ree-
trices, twelve; tarsi scu-
tellate ; inner secondaries
not enlarged, nor hind toe
lengthened and _ straight-
ened, as in the two pre-
ceding families; bill with-
out a lobe or tooth near
the middle of the com-
missure, as in Pyranga ;
not strongly toothed and
hooked at end, as in La-
nius and Vireo (which
may have ten primaries),
uor greatly flattened with
gape reaching to eyes, as in

Op Hirundinide, nor strictly
Fic. 160. — Black-throated Green Warbler, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) conical with angulated

commissure, as in Fringillide. The family presents such a number of minor modifications
_of form, that it seems impossible to characterize it, except negatively ; in fact, it has never been
satisfactorily defined. But doubtless the student will be able to assure himself that his speci-
men is a sylvicoline, by its not showing the peculiarities of our other nine-primaried Oscines.
All the sylvicolas are small birds; excepting Icteria, and perhaps a species of Siwrus, not
one is over six inches long, and they hardly average over five. With few exceptions they
are beautifully clothed in variegated colors; but the sexes are generally unlike, and the changes
of plumage, with age and season of the year, are usually strongly marked, so that different
specimens of the same species may bear to each other but little resemblance ; this of course
tenders careful discrimination necessary. The usual shape of the bill may be called conoid-
elongate (something like a slender minié bullet in miniature), but the variations in precise
shape are endless. The rictus is usually bristled; the bristles sometimes have an extraordi-
nary development, and are sometimes wanting. The wings are longer than the tail, except
in Geothlypis, Icteria, and one or two exotic genera; neither the wing nor tail ever presents
striking forms; the head is never crested. The feet have no special peculiarities, though
they show some slight modifications corresponding to somewhat terrestrial, or more strictly
arboricole, habits. The nidification is endlessly varied, more or less artistic or artless nests
being built in trees, bushes, holes, or on the ground. Musical proficiency might be expected
from the agreeably suggestive name of the family, but as a rule the ‘‘ warbler’s” singing is
rather ‘‘ quaint and curious” than very skilfully modulated or highly melodious, —to which
statement, however, there is signal exception to be taken, as in the case of the Sturt. Some of
the warblers have the habits of titmice or wrens; others of creepers or nuthatches; the Siuri
closely resemble the titlarks in some respects, and have even been placed in the Motacillide ;
while the Setophagine simulate the Tyrannide (of a different suborder) so perfectly that they
used to be classed with these clamatorial flycatchers. The warblers grade so perfectly toward
the tanagers that they have all been made a subfamily of Tanagride (where possibly they
belong). The affinity of some of them with the Cerebide, or honey-creepers of the tropics, is
so close that the dividing line has not been drawn. The position of Icteria and its two asso-
ciate exotic genera, Granatellus and Teretristis, is open to question; perhaps they come nearer
Vireonide. It is probable that final critical study will result in a remapping of the whole

288 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

group; meanwhile, the very diversity of forms included in it enables us to mark off sections
with ease.

This is the second largest family of North American birds, the Fringilide alone surpass-
ing it in number of species. If not exactly ‘‘ representative,” in a technical sense, of the Old
World Sylviine, it may be considered to replace that family in America, having much the
same réle in bird-economy; both families abound iu species and individuals; they are small,
migratory, insectivorous, and everywhere take prominent part in the make-up of the bird-fauna.
There are upward of a hundred species of Sylvicolide, distributed over the whole of North and
Middle America, and much of South America. The centre of abundance of the Setophagine,
or flycatching warblers, is in the warmer parts of America; comparatively few species reach
the United States, and only two or three are extensively dispersed in this country. On the
other hand, the Sylvicoline are more particularly birds of North America; very few of the
species are confined to Middle or South America; and Dendraca, the leading type of this group,
is the largest, most beautiful, and most attractive genus of North American birds, preéininently
characteristic of this country. The warblers have we always with us, all in their own good
time; they come out of the South, pass on, return, and are away again, their appearance and
withdrawal scarcely less than a inystery ; many stay with us all summer long, and some brave
the winters in our midst. Some of these slight creatures, guided by unerring instinct, travel
true to the meridian in the hours of darkness, slipping past ‘like a thief in the night,” stoop-
ing at day-break from their lofty flights to rest and recruit for the next stage of the journey.
Others pass more leisurely from tree to tree, in a ceaseless tide of migration, gleaning as they
go; the hardier males, in full song and plumage, lead the way for the weaker females and the
yearlings. With tireless industry do the warblers befriend the human race; their unconscious
zeal plays due part in the nice adjustment of Nature’s forces, helping to bring about that bal-
ance of vegetable and insect life without which agriculture would be in vain. They visit the
orchard when the apple and pear, the peach, plum, and cherry are in bloom, seeming to revel
carelessly amid the sweet-scented and delicately-tinted blossoms, but never faltering in their
good work. They peer into the crevices of the bark, scrutinize each leaf, and explore the very
heart of the buds, to detect, drag furth, and destroy those tiny creatures, singly insignificant,
collectively a scourge, which prey upon the hopes of the fruit-grower, and which, if undisturbed,
would bring his care to nought. Some warblers flit incessantly in the terminal foliage of the
tallest trees; others hug close to the scored trunks and gnarled boughs of the forest kings;
some peep from the thicket, the coppice, the impenetrable mantle of shrubbery that decks tiny
water-courses, playing at hide-and-seek with all comers; others more humble still descend to
the ground, where they glide with pretty mincing steps and affected turning of the head this
way and that, their delicate flesh-tinted feet just stirring the layer of withered leaves with
which a past season carpeted the ground. We may seek warblers everywhere in their season ;
we shall find them a continual surprise; all mood and cireumstance is theirs.

As at present constituted, the Sylvicolide, comprising upwards of a hundred good species,
may be divided into three subfamilies, the characters of which, given more at length beyond,
may here be shortly contrasted : —

; Analysis of Subfamilies.

Sylvicoline. -- Wings longer than tail (except in Geothlypis) ; bill conical, slender; commissure slightly
curved, with short bristles or none. Size moderate.

Icteriine. — Wings shorter than tail ; bill compressed, high, very stout ; commissure much curved, with-
out any bristles ; size very large. i

Setophagine. —Wings longer than tail; bill broad, flattened ; commissure slightly curved, with bristles
reaching far beyond the nostrils.

Artificial Key to the Genera of Sylvicolide.

Length 7,.00inchesormore. . ...,.. Wo, ata tae vd cave Loe ee ee ee ww ee Lcteria B
Length 5.50 inches or more and tail-feathers plain . . . 2... 1 ee a ss ee ew ew . . Siurus 40
Length under 5.60 or tail-feathers not plain.

SYLVICOLIDA — SYLVICOLINZE: TRUE WARBLERS. 289

Wing shorter than tail, or equal and headashy .. . : ‘ . Geothlypis 42
Wing longer than tail, or equal and head not ashy
Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw " a) * 6 E . . Mniotilta 33

Tarsus not shorter than middle toe and claw.
Rictal bristles evidently reaching far beyond nostrils.

Tail black and orange, or black and white, or dark and yellow . . . Setophaga 46
Tail ashy edged with white, and head with red as Vig gb 88) ET SR Cardellina 45
Tail greenish, unmarked, or with white blotches . . . . Myiodioctes 44

Rictal bristles evidently not reaching far beyond nostrils, or not evident at all.
Tail-feathers all unmarked.
Bill at least 0.50 inches long, very acute ; 4 black stripes on head, ornone . Helmintherus 36
Bill not 0,50 inches long.
Wing over 2.50 inches ; bill not acute; bright yellow below, or head ashy . Oporornis 41
Wing not over 2.50 inches ; bill very acute ; no bristles . ? Helminthophila 37
Tajl-feathers blotched with white, or yellow on inner webs.
Rictal bristles not evident.

Bill not 0.50 inch long; whole fore parts not yellow . Sy Helminthophila 37

Bill at least 0.50 inch lung ; whole fore parts yellow F Protonotaria 35
Rictal bristles very evident. ;

Back blue witb. gold spot, throat and legs yellow. . . Parula 34

Head orange-brown with black bar through eye . . Peucedramus 38

Coloration otherwise a o% P . Dendreca 39

Diagnostics or Characteristics of some of the Genera of Sylvicolide.

Genera Mniotilta, Parula, and Peucedramus are creeping warblers, with certain slight modifications of the
feet, enabling them to scramble about the trees much like creepers or nuthatches.

Genera Geothlypis and Oporornis are ground warblers, with the feet modified in adaptation to terrestrial
life. Genus Siur‘us is similar in this respect; the species walk on the ground, and act in some respects like Mota-
cillines.

Genera Protonotaria, Helmintherus, and Helminthophila are ‘‘ worm-eating” warblers (the old genus Ver-
mivora), with slight rictal bristles or none.

Genera Setophaga, Cardellina, and Myiodioctes are fly-catching warblers, with strongly bristled bill and
muscicapine habits, in some respects like species of Tyrannide.

Genus Jcteria is isolated by its peculiarities of form and habits, and great size for this family.

Genus Dendreca comprehends the wood warblers par excellence, —the largest genus, with over twenty
species.

BILL : — Peculiarly stout, high, and compressed in Jcteria ; — dattish, and strongly bristled in Setophaga,
Cardellina and Myiodioctes ;— large, with straightish outlines, scarcely or not bristled, and very acute in Pro-
tonotaria and Helmintherus ; — small, unbristled, and very acute in Helminthophila.

FEET : — Tarsus longest, slenderest, and usually pale-tinted in the ground warblers ; — shortest in the creep-
ing warblers, with relatively longest toes. \

Wines :— Shorter than the tail in Icteria and species of Geothlypis ; — about equal to the tail in species of
Geothlypis, Siurus, Setophaga, and Cardellina ; — usually decidedly longer than the tail.

TaIL:— The feathers (some or all) blotched with white in the following: Mniotilta, Parula, Protonotaria,
species of Helminthophila, all Dendrece excepting D. estiva, Peucedramus, oné Myiodioctes, one Setophaga.
The feathers plain olivaceous, or otherwise like the back, unmarked, in species of Helminthophila, in Helmintherus,
Oporornis, Geothlypis, Siurus, Icteria, species of Myiodioctes, Cardellina; yellow and dark in one Setophaga and
one Dendreca.

(5. Subfamily SYLVICOLINAE: True Warblers.

Bill conoid-elongate, shorter than head, about as high as, or rather higher than wide oppo-
site the nostrils, not hooked, and with but a slight notch, if any, at tip: commissure straight
or slightly curved; a few rictal bristles, reaching little, if any, beyond the nostrils, or none.
Wings pointed, usually longer than the narrow, nearly even tail.

This beautiful group, which comprehends the great majority of the Warblers, is specially
characteristic of North America, and reaches its highest development in the eastern portions of
the continent, mainly through the preponderance of species of the largest genus, Dendreca.
All the genera and most of the species of Sylvicoline are found in this country, mainly as mi-
grants, which appear in the spring, pass the summer, aud retire for the winter to Mexico, the
West Indies, and Central or even South America; though some pass the inclement season
within our limits, and one at least is found in winter in Northern States.

19

33.

91.

92.

34, P

93.

290 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES— OSCINES.

ft

Here belong the genera Mviotilta, Parula, Protonotaria, Helmintherus, Helminthophila,
Peucedramus, Dendreca, Siurus, Oporornis, and Geothlypis.
MNIOTILUTA. (Gr. pviov, mnion, moss, and rAXa, tillo, I pluck, or ruArés, tiltos, plucked ;
conjectural application to the nest-building.) CREEPING Warsiers. Coloration entirely
black-and-white ; tail-feathers white-blotched. Tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw;
hind toe long, with large claw. Wings long, pointed, Ist primary about as long as 2d; tail
nearly even, much shorter than wing. Bill nearly as long as head, slender, much compressed,
with coneave lateral outlines, and curved culinen and gonys, slightly notched and bristled.
Only one good species.
M. varlia. (Lat. varia, variegated. Fig. 161.) BLACK-AND-WHITE CREEPER. 4, adult:
Black; edges of feathers of upper parts, coronal, superciliary, and maxillary stripes, tips of
greater and median wing-coverts, outer edges of inner second-
aries and inner edges of quills and tail-feathers, and spots on
inner webs of lateral tail-feathers, white; under parts mostly
white, with black streaks on sides and crissum; Dill and feet
black. Q similar: less black in proportion to the white, being
mostly white below. Length 5.00-5.25 ; extent 8.25-8.75 ; wing
2.35-2.75; tail 2.25; bill nearly 0.50. Eastern N. Am.; N. to
the Fur Countries; W. to Dakota; migratory; breeds throughout

__ its range; winters from the southern border southward. <A
Fic. 161. — Black-and-white z ‘i ‘

Creeper, nat. size. (Adnat, del. common bird of woodland, thicket, and swamp, geuerally seen
E. C.) scrambling actively about the trunks and larger branches of the
trees, rather like a nuthatch than like a creeper, the tail not being used as a prop. Nest on
the ground, or in a stump, of bark-strips, mosses, grasses, leaves, hair, ete.; eggs 4-5, 0.70 X
0.52, white, profusely marked with reddish and other dots.
M. v. borealis? (Lat. borealis, northern ; boreas, the uorth wind.) SMALL-BILLED CREEP-
ER. Northerly specimens said to have the bill shorter and straighter.

PA'RULA. (Lat. parula, diminutive of parus, a tit.) BuLur YELLOW-BACKED WARBLERS.
Coloration highly variegated; tail-feathers white-blotched; back bluish, with yellowish
spot; throat yellow, with dark spot; feet pale. Size very small — under 5.00 inches. Bill
short, stoutish; the notch obsolete, the bristles slight though evident. Two very distinct
species in N. Am.

P. america/na. (Lat. of America; said to be named not for the Italian navigator, but from a
mountain in Central America?) @, in spring: Upper parts clear ashy-blue; middle of back
with a patch of greenish-yellow or brownish-golden. Lores dusky. A white spot on each
eyelid. Wings blackish, crossed on the ends of the greater and middle coverts with two broad
white bars; primaries narrowly, secondaries more broadly, edged externally with the color of
the back, internally with white. Tail like wings, with much edging of outer webs like the
back, the middle feathers mostly bluish ; at least two outer feathers on each side with large,
white, squarish patches on the inner web near the end, usually third feather blotched with
white, and a white touch on fourth or even fifth feather. Chin and throat yellow, rather nar-
rowly confined, this yellow spreading over the whole breast, but much of breast spotted or
tinged with orange-brown, and jugulum showing even a decided blackish collar; coloration of
this part very variable; sometimes reddish-brown markings along the sides, much as in the
chestnut-sided warbler. Rest of under parts white. Bill above black; below whitish or flesh-
colored, drying yellowish. Legs pale. Length 4.50-4.75 ; extent 7.00-7.50; wing 2.10-2.30;
tail 1.75. 9, in spring: Like the ¢; upper parts less brightly bluish, or with slight greenish
gloss; back-patch not so well defined; less white on tail; white wing-bands narrower; dark
or reddish tinting of the fore breast less decided or scarcely indicated ; the yellow itself more
restricted. Young: Bluish of upper parts glossed over with greenish, sometimes to such extent

94.

35.

95.

36.

SYLVICOLIDA(— SYLVICOLIN.E: TRUE WARBLERS. Jot

as to obscure the dorsal patch, which is then not very different from the rest of the upper parts.
White tail-spots smaller, generally confined to two outer feathers on cach side. White wing-
bands narrower. Edging of tail and wings tinged with greenish, like the back. Eyelids not
spotted with white. Yellow of fore under parts pale, with little or no indication of the dusky
across the jugulum. White of the under parts tinged with yellowish posteriorly, and fre-
quently showing brownish touches along the sides. Eastern U. 8. and British Provinces; W.
sometimes to the Rocky Mts.; migratory ; breeds in the greater part of its N. American range,
but chiefly northerly ; winters from Florida southward. Au elegant, diminutive species, abun-
datit in high open woods, where it is generally observed fluttering among the smallest twigs
and terminal foliage. Nest in trees, au elaborate woven structure of mosses and lichens ; eggs
4-5, 0.62 x 0.48, white with the usual sprinkling of reddish and other dots.

P. nigrilo’ra. (Lat. river, black ; lorum, a bridle; applied to the space between eye and
bill of a bird.) Sexnerr’s WARBLER. 4, adult: Upper parts of the same ashy-blue eolor
as in P. americana, with a dorsal patch of greenish-yellow exactly as in that species. Wings
also as in america, dusky, with grayish-blue outer, and whitish inner, edgings, aud crossed
by two conspicuous white bars across tips of greater and middle coverts. Tail as in ameri-
cane, but the white spots smaller and ahnost restricted to two outer feathers on each side.
Eyelids black, eithout white marks. Lores broadly and intensely black, this color extending
as a narrow frontal line to meet its fellow across base of culmeu, and also reaching back to
invade the auriculars, on which it shades through dusky to the gencral bluish. Under parts
yellow as far as the middle of the belly, and a little farther on the flanks, and also spreading up,
the sides of the jaw to involve part of the mandibular and malar region; on the fore breast
deepening into rich orauge, but showing nothing of the orauge-chestnut and blackish of P.
americana. Lower belly, flanks and crissun white. Bill black above, yellow below. Leys
undefinable light horn-color. Length about 4.50; wing 2.00-2.20; tail 1.$0-1.90; bill
from nostril 0.38-0.40; tarsus 0.62-0.65; middle toe alone 0.40. Texas. Another little
exquisite, recently added to our fauna; quite distinct from, though resembling, P. americana;
coming nearer P. pitiayrani, a Mexican species. :
PROTONOTA’'RIA. (Low Lat. protonotarius, first notary, or scribe; why?) Gotnen
Swamp Warsiers. Bill of great size, nearly as long as head, compressed, conic, acute, with
slightly notched tip and scarcely bristled rietus. Wings pointed, unmarked, much longer than
the short, nearly even, spotted tail. Tarsus equal to middle toe aud claw. One species.

P. cit‘rea. (Lat. citrea, pertaining to the citron; i.e., yellow.) PRoTHONOTARY WARBLER.
Golden-yellow, paler on the belly, changing to olivaceous on the back, thence to bluish-ashy
ou the rump, wings, and tail; most of the tail-feathers largely white on the inner webs; no
other special markings; bill entirely black, very large, at least 0.50 long. Length about
5.50; extent 9.25; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.25; tarsus 0.75. Sexes similar. In highest
feather the yellow of the head sometimes becomes orange-red. Eastern United States, south-
erly; north casually to Maine, New Brauswick, and Ohio; regularly to Iinois and Kansas ;
west to Indian Territory aud Texas; winters extra-limital. A beautiful species, of striking
form and colors, and sedate manners, inhabiting swamps and thickets; nest in holes, or other
sheltered cavities in trees, stumps, and logs, of the most miscellaneous materials; eggs 4-5,
0.68 X 0.54, creamy white, profusely speckled.

HELMINTHE’RUS, $ (Gr. é\pes, gen. EhpivOos, helnris, helminthos, a bug: Onp, an animal ;
i. ¢., EApevOoOnpas, helminthotheras, a bug-huuter: like vermivora, worm-eating.) Wor-
EATING SwAMPp Wagsters. Bill large, conic-acute, especially high and stout at the base,
nearly or quite as long as head, unnotehed and scarcely or not bristled. Wings rather pointed.
inuch longer than the little rounded tail. Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw. Sexes
similar ; tail-feathers unmarked; legs pale. Two very distinet species.

96. H. vermi’vorus. (Lat. vermivorus, worm-eating ; vermis, a worm, voro, I devour. Fig. 162.)

292 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Worm-EATING WARBLER. Olive, below buffy, paler or whitish on the belly; head buff,
y with four black stripes, two along sides of crown from bill to nape, one along each side of head
through the eye; wings and tail olivaceous, nnmarked ; bill
and feet pale; bill acute, unbristled, unnotched, at least
0.50. Length 5.50; extent 8.75; wing 2.75-3.00; tail
2.00-2.25. The distinctive head-stripes appear before the
bird is fully fledged. Eastern U. S., rather southerly, but
north regularly to the Middle States, casually to Maine;
west to Kansas, Missouri, and the Indian Territory ; breeds

Fig. 162. — Worm-eating Warbler, throughout its U.S. range; winters from Florida south-
nat, size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) ward; common in woods, shrubbery, and swamps; a bird
of rather slow and sedate movements; nest on the ground, of leaves, grasses, rootlets; eggs
4-5, erystal-white, minutely dotted with reddish-brown, 0.70 x 0.50.

97. H. swain/soni. (To Win. Swainson.) Swarnson’s WARBLER. Somewhat similar to the
last; no black head stripes; no decided markings anywhere. Upper parts dark olive-brown,
nearly uniform, but browner on exposed surfaces of wings and tail, and quite clear brown on the
crown. A long light superciliary stripe. Under parts dull sordid whitish, shaded on the sides with
the color of the back. Middle tail-feathers with obsolete wavy cross-bars. Bill brown above,
pale below; feet pale. Large: length nearly 6.00; wing 2.75, pointed, tip formed by 1st
—3d quills; tail 2.00, emarginate; bill of great size, 0.65 along culmen, about equalling tarsus
in length, deep at base, with straight upper mandible rising high on forehead; thus shaped
something like a meadow-lark’s. A rare and curious species, confined to the South Atlantic
States. I have seen but three specimens; the description is from Audubon’s type.

37. HELMINTHO’PHILA. (Gr. Apis, AperOos, helmis, helminthos, a bug; gdiréw, phileo, I
love.) WorM-EATING WARBLERS. Bill slender and exceedingly acute, unnotched, unbristled
(fig. 163). Wings pointed, longer than the nearly even tail, —in 5
one species nearly half as long again. Tarsi longer than middle
toe and claw. Tail-feathers in some species white-blotched, in
others plain, — the former being otherwise of bright and variegated
colors, the latter more simply clad. Nest on the ground or quite
near it (excepting in the case of H. lucie); eggs white, spotted.
To the eight established species of the genus have lately been
added three others; but one of them is almost certainly a hybrid — yg. 163, — H. chrysoptera,
between H. pinus and Oporornis formosa, while the other two are Bat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
probably hybrids between H. pinus and H. chrysoptera. There has also been added a variety
of H. celata. These ave enumerated beyond, but only the cight established species are con-
sidered in the analysis of the genus. Even with this reduction, Helminthophila is still the
second largest genus of the subfamily. It is peculiarly North American, all the known
species occurring in this country, some of them not being known to occur elsewhere. The
genus may be divided according to coloration into two groups, which correspond in a general
way with geographical distribution. Three species (HH. pinus, chrysoptera, and bachmant),
exclusively eastern, are of variegated colors, the tail-feathers white-blotched as in Dendraca.
In the other five the coloration is simpler; the tail-feathers are not, or not conspicuously,
blotched with white, and all but one of these species have a crown-patch; one of them is East-
ern, two are Western, and two of general dispersion. 'The natural analysis of the species, and
a shorter key to them, are subjoined; these tables should suffice to identify any adult male
specimens, but females and young, particularly of Nos. 5, 6, 7, require detailed descriptions for
their recognition. (In H. peregrina, with tail normally plain, the outer feather is sometimes
distinctly white-blotched.)

98.

99.

100.

101.

SYLVICOLIDAi— SYLVICOLIN 4’: TRUE WARBLERS. 293

Natural Analysis of Species.

I. Tail-feathers conspicuously white-blotched. Wings with white or yellow on coverts. Head or breast with
black, All exclusively Eastern.
1. Bluish-ash, below white ; crown and wing-bars yellow ; throat and stripe on side of head black
chrysoptera 102
2. Olive-green ; wings and tail bluish-ash, former with white or yellow bars ; crown and under
parts yellow; lores black . 3 pinus 98
8. Olive-green, below yellow ; throat, breast, and crown-patch black ; forehead yellow . bachmani 103
II. Tail-feathers inconspicuously or not blotched with white. No decided wing-markings. No black anywhere.
a. Crown without colored patch. Wings about half as long again as tail.
4. Tail with obscure whitish spot on outer feather; under parts white or whitish; upper parts
olive-green, brighter behind, quite ashy in front. Chiefly Eastern . ji - 4 + peregrina 109
6. Crown with colored patch. Wings shorter.
5. Crown-patch orange-brown ; tail unmarked; upper parts olive-green, under parts greenish-

yellow, both nearly uniform. Western and incompletely Eastern. . . . . eelata 107, 108
6, Crown-patch chestnut ; tail unmarked ; upper parts olive-green, growing ashy on head ; under

parts uniformly yellow: Eastern and inoompletely Western. . . a sflompilta 106
7. Crown-patch chestnut; tail unmarked; above olivaceous-ash, below whitish ; rump and under

tail-coverts bright yellow ; breast yellowish. Western. . . me virginie 105
8. Crown-patch and upper tail-coverts chestnut ; outer tail- feather ‘with “aun ‘white

patch ; above pale cinereous, belowswhite. Southwestern. . ........ . + lucie 104

Pass-key to the Species.

Tail-feathers white-blotched — bluish, crown yellow, throat black. . . oe ew es L Chrysoptera 102
— greenish, crown and all under parts yellow . Pa ace . . . pinus 98

— greenish, crown (partly) and throat black . . . . » bachmani 103

— upper tail-coverts chestnut, crown-patch chestnut . = » «+ « lucie 104

Tail-feathers all unmarked — upper tail-coverts— yellow; crown-patcb chestnut . é . virginie 105
—not yellow ; crown-patch— chestnut. . . ruficapilla 106

—orange-brown . celata 107, 108

—wanting . . . peregrina 109

H. pimus. (Lat. pimus, a pine-tree.) BLuE-winGepD YELLOW WaRBLER. 4, adult:
Fore part of crown and entire under parts rich yellow; upper parts yellow-olive, becoming
slaty-blue on the wings and tail (system of coloration thus like that of Protonotaria). Wings
with two white or yellowish bars; tail with several large white blotches; under tail-coverts
white; eyelids bright yellow; small stripe through eye black ; bill blue-black. Female and
young not very dissimilar; duller and more olivaceous. Length about 4.75; extent 7.50;
wing 2.40-2.50; tail 2.00-2.10; tarsus 0.65; bill 0.45. Eastern United States, north to
Massachusetts and Minnesota, west to Kansas, Indian Territory, and Texas; common, migra-
tory, breeding in its United States range, wintering extralimital. Nest on the ground, eggs
4-5, 0.67 x 0.48, white, sprinkled with reddish-brown dots. :

H. lawren/cii? (To Geo. N. Lawrence, of N. Y.) Lawrencr’s WARBLER. Like H.
pinus ; but a large black patch on the throat and breast, and broad black eye-stripe, reaching’
over auriculars, as in H. chrysoptera ; thus pinus X chrysoptera, and doubtless a hybrid
between the two. New Jersey; two specimens noted to date.

H. leucobronchia'lis? (Gr. Aevxds, leucos, white, Bpdyxos, brogchos, becoming bronchus,
throat.) WHITE-THROATED WARBLER. Like H. chrysoptera ; but a black bar through the
eye as in pinus, and lacking the black breast-patch of chrysoptera, the entire under parts being
white; thus chrysoptera X pinus, and doubtless a hybrid between the two, though up to date a
dozen or more specimens have been described, from New England, New York, Pennsylvania,
and Michigan.

H. cincinnatien’sis? (Of Cincinnati, Ohio, where discovered.) CINCINNATI WARBLER.
Like H. pinus in color; bill with evident rictal bristles; no white wing-bars or tail-blotches ;
no ashy-blue on wings or tail; concealed black on crown and sides of head like the incom-
pleted black mask of Oporornis formosa, with which the bird otherwise closely agrees in color ;
thus curiously being H. pinus X O. formosa. Length 4.75; wing 2.50; tail 1.85; bill 0.44.
One specimen known, Ohio.

294 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

102. H. chrysop'tera. (Gr. xpuads, chrusos, golden, and mrepdy, pteron, wing.) BLUE GoLDEN-

103.

104.

105.

106.

WINGED WARBLER. 6, adult: Upper parts slaty-blue, or fine bluish-gray; crown, and large

* wing-patch formed by confluent wing-bars, rich yellow; a broad stripe ou side of head and

patch on chin, throat and fore-breast, black, the eye-stripe bordered above and below with
white; under parts generally, excepting the black breast-plate, white, often tinted with yellow-
ish, and shaded on the sides with ashy. Exposed surfaces of wings and tail like upper parts;
great white blotches on three lateral tail-feathers; bill black; feet dark. 9 and immature
specimens have the back more or less glossed with yellowish-olive; the yellow of the crown
obscured with greenish; the black eye-stripe and breast-plate veiled with gray tips of the
feathers, or not at all evident. Size of H. pinus. A beautiful species, common in Eastern
United States and Canada; migratory, breeding anywhere in its United States range; nest and
eggs like those of H. pinus.

H. bach’/mani. (To Rev. John Bachman, of 8. C.) Bacnuman’s Warsier. : Upper
parts yellowish-olive, including sides ‘of head and neck, tinged with ashy on the hind head;
forehead aud under parts bright yellow; a band on the vertex separating yellow front from
ashy occiput, and the throat and fore breast, black, this breast-plate isolated in yellow sur-
roundings. Wings dusky, glossed with the color of the back on all the exposed surface.
Two or three outer tail-feathers white-blotched. Small; length 4.50; wing 2.35; tail 2.00.
South Atlantic States, extremely rare, only kuown to occur in South Carolina, Georgia, and
Cuba.

H. lw’cia. (To Miss Lucy Baird, daughter of Prof. 8. F. Baird.) Lucy’s WARBLER.
& Q, adult: Clear ashy-gray. Beneath white, with a faint tinge of buff on the breast. A
rich chestnut patch on the crown, and upper tail-coverts of the same color. A white eye-ring.
Quills and tail-feathers edged with the color of the back or whitish. Lateral tail-feather with
an obscure whitish patch. Lining of wing white. Feet dull leaden-olive. Iris dark brown
or black. Length 4.33-4.66; extent 7.00-7.50; wing 2.25-2.50; tail 1.75-2.00; tarstis
0.66 ; bill 0.25-0.33. Young: Lack the chestnut of the crown, though that of the rump is
present. The throatand breast are milk-white, without the ochrey tinge of the adults; the
wing-coverts are edged with pale rufous. The chestnut upper tail-coverts, and absence of any
trace of olivaceous or yellowish coloration, distinguish this interesting species, the general
superficial aspect of which is quite like that of a Polioptila. Valley of the Colorado and Gila;
not yet known except from Arizona. The exceptional nidification of this species of the genus
(An. Nat., vi, 1872, p. 493) has been confirmed: nest in crevice behind bark of a tree or bush,
such as a wren might select; eggs 4, not peculiar, being white dotted with reddish.

H. virgin‘ie. (To Mrs. Virginia Anderson, wife of the discoverer.) Vircinra’s WARBLER.
6, in summer: Ashy-plumbeous, alike on the back, and top and sides of head. Below dull
whitish, the sides shaded with ashy. Lining and edge of wings white.. Upper and under
tail-eoverts, and isolated spot on the breast, yellow, in strong contrast with all surroundings.
A white ring round eye. Wings and tail without yellowish edgings. Crown with a chestnut
patch, asin H. ruficapilla. Length 4.75; extent 7.50; wing 2.25-2.50; tail 2.25. 9, in
summer: The yellow duller and slightly tinged with greenish; that of the breast, and the
chestnut of the crown, more restricted. Autuinnal specimens resemble the 9 ; but in both
sexes the plumbeous of the upper parts has a slight olive shade, and in birds of the year the
crown-patch may be wanting. Southern Rocky Mt. Region; north to Colorado, Nevada, and
Utah at least. Nests on the ground, like others of the genus; eggs indistinguishable from
those of allied species. ‘

H. ruficapil/la. (Lat. rufus, rufous; capillus, hair.) NASHVILLE WARBLER. 4, in sum-
mer: Upper parts olive-green or yellowish-olive, clearer and brighter on the rump and upper
tail-coverts. Top and sides of the head and neck ashy, with a veiled chestnut patch on the
crown, and a white ring round the eye. No superciliary stripe. Lores pale. Wings and tail

107.

108.

109.

SYLVICOLIDA — SYLVICOLINZ: TRUE WARBLERS. 295

fuscous, edged with the color of the back. Entire under parts yellow, including under wing-
coverts and edge of the wing, the sides shaded with olive. Length 4.50-4.75 ; extent 7.50;
wing 2.33-2.50; tail 1.75-2.00. 9, in summer: Similar. Head less purely ashy. Crown-
patch smaller and more hidden, if not wanting. Yellow of under parts paler, whitening on the
belly. Autumnal specimens, of both sexes, though quite as yellow below as in summer, have
the ash of the head glossed over with olivaceous, and in birds of the year the crown-patch may
be entirely wanting. This species is distinguished by the rich clear yellow of the under parts
at all seasons. In H. celata, which is next most yellow below, the color has a greenish cast ;
the head is little, if any, different from the rest of the upper parts, and the crown-patch is
orange-brown. Temperate North America, but especially the Eastern Province; west only
rarely to Utah, Nevada, and even California. A common bird, migratory in most of its U. 5.
range, but breeding in New England (and farther south in alpine regions) and thence north-
ward. Nest on the ground, like the others, and eggs not peculiar.

H. cela’ta. (Lat. celata, concealed, as is the orange on the crown.) ORANGE-CROWNED
Warsier. ¢ Q, in summer: Upper parts olive, duller and washed with grayish toware
and on the head, brighter and more yellowish on the rump and upper tail-coverts. Beneath
greenish-white, palest on the belly and throat, more olive-shaded on the sides; the color not
pure, but rather streaky, and having in places a grayish cast. Wings and tail edged with the
color of the back ; lining of the wings like the belly, and inner edges of tail-feathers whitish.
Orbital ring and lores yellowish. An orange-brown patch on the crown, partially concealed,
smaller and more hidden inthe Q than in the g. Length 4.80-5.20; extent 7.40-7.75 ; wing
2.30-2.50. Resembling the last, and often difficult to distinguish in immature plumage; but a
general oliveness and yellowness, compared with the ashy of some parts of ruficapilla, and the
different color of the crown-patch in the two species, will usually be diagnostic. The sexes of
this species scarcely differ, and young or autumnal birds are very similar to the adults, except
the frequent or usual absence of the orange-brown crown-spot in birds of the year. The
species is well distinguished from all its allies by the color of the crown-patch. North America
at large. but especially the Western and Middle regions; rare or occasional in the Eastern
Province ; north to high latitudes in British America and Alaska; migratory; breeds in Arctic
regions and in alpine localities further south ; nest and eggs not peculiar.

H. c. lutes’cens. (Lat. lutescens, growing yellowish.) PAciFIC ORANGE-CROWNED WaR-
BLER. Differs in being much more richly colored. It may be described simply as olive-green
above, and greenish-yellow, shaded with olive on the sides, below, without any of the qualify-
ing terms required for precision in the case of typical celata. Pacifie Coast region, Alaska to
Lower California.

H. peregrina. (Lat. peregrina, wandering, alien, foreign; i. e., migratory.) TENNESSEE
WarBier. 6, adult: Upper parts yellowish-olive, brightest posteriorly ; ou the fore parts
and head changing to pure ash, without any greenish tint whatever. No crown-patch of any
different color. Lores, eye-ring, or frequently a decided superciliary stripe, whitish. Entire
under parts dull white, scarcely or not tinged with yellowish. Wings and tail dusky, strongly
edged with the color of the back, the outer tail-feathers frequently with an obscure whitish
spot. Bill and feet dark. Length 4.50-4.75, rarely to 5.00; extent 7.50-8.00; wing about
2.75, thus long for the size of the bird, and especially in comparison with the short tail, pointed,
with little difference in length between the first three or four quills; tail only 2.00 or less, thus
remarkably short ; the comparative length of wings and tail, with other characters, probably
always distinguishes the species from the foregoing. Q, adult: Quite like the @, but ashy of
the head less pure and clear, and under parts more or less tinged with greenish-yellow.
Young: Entire upper parts strongly aud uniformly yellowish-olive, like the rump of the adult
&, or even brighter, this color also tinging the eye-ring and superciliary stripe. Under parts
as in the adult 9, or more decidedly greenish-yellow, leaving only the belly and crissuin whit-

38.

410.

39.

296 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

ish. In this condition specimens more closely resemble some other species than when adult ;
but the short tail, long wings, and no crown-patch, should be distinctive. Chiefly Eastern
North America, but west to the Upper Missouri region and in Colorado to the Rocky Mts. ;
common, especially in the Mississippi Valley, but less so in the Atlantic States; migratory ;
breeds in New England and the northern tier of States, and thence to high latitudes in British
America; nest and eggs as in other species of the genus.

PEUCE/DRAMUS. (Gr. seven, peuke, a pine, and dpapeiv, to run.) OLIVE WARBLERS.
General aspect of Dendreca, Tongue much as in that genus, but larger, with revolute edges,
cleft tip, and laciniate for some distance from the end. Wings elongated, half as long again
as the tail (in Dendreca but little longer than the tail), reaching, when folded, nearly to the
end of the tail. ‘Tail emarginate. Tarsus no longer than the middle toe and claw. Hallux
little if any longer than its claw. Bill little shorter than tarsus (averaging little over half the
tarsus in Dendraca), attenuate, notably depressed, yet very little widened at base. Culmen
rather concave than convex in most of its length, the wnder outline almost perfectly straight
from extreme base to tip. Nasal fossee very large, with a highly developed nasal scale. Ric-
tal vibrissee few and short. Plumage without streaks. One species known.

P. oliva/ceus. (Lat. olivaceus, olivaceous in, color; oliva, an olive.) OLIVE WARBLER.
@: Upper parts ashy, more or less olivaceous, changing to greenish on the nape. Head and
neck all around orange-brown or intense saffron-yellow, with a broad black bar on the side of
the head through the eye. Wings blackish, the inner webs of all the quills edged with white,
the outer webs of most of the primaries with whitish, and the outer webs of the secondaries
with greenish; most of the prinaries also marked with white on the outer webs at base, form-
ing a conspicuous spot (only seen elsewhere in D. caerulescens, which is altogether different in
other characters). Tail like the wings, with greenish edging of most of the feathers, the two
outer ones on each side mostly or wholly white. Belly and sides whitish, tinged with olive or
brownish. Basal half of under mandible light brown. Length 4.75-5.25; extent 8.25-9.00,;
wing 2.75-5.10; tail 2.25-2.55; bill 0.55; tarsus 0.75. The female is described as having
the saffron color much clearer yellowish, and shaded with olive-green on the crown; the black
bar replaced by whitish, excepting a dusky patch on the auriculars. A remarkable Mexican
warbler, lately ascertained to inhabit Arizona, especially in mountainous localities; probably
also Texas and New Mexico. It has much the habits of the pine-creeper; the nest and eggs
are still unknown.

DENDR@/CA. (Gr. d€vdpov, dendron, a tree, and oixéw, oikeo, T inhabit.) Woop WARBLERS.
Bill variable in shape, usually couico-attenuate, more or less depressed at base, compressed
from the middle, notched near the tip, not showing the extreme acuteness of that of Helmin-
therus, Helminthophila, and Protonotaria. Rictus with obvious bristles, which are not evi-
dent in the true ‘‘ worm-eating” warblers. Tarsus longer than the middle toe and claw (it is
shorter, or not longer, in Mmiotilta). Hind toe little if any longer than its claw (decidedly
longer in Mniotilta and Parula). Wings much longer than tail, pointed, 1st and 2d primaries
longest. Tail moderate, with rather broad feathers, nearly even, but varying to slightly
rounded, or with slight central emargination. Pattern of coloration indeterminate. Tail always
with white blotches (except in estiva and its immediate allies, where the inner webs are
yellow), never plain olivaceous. Crown never with lateral black stripes, nor under parts
uniformly streaked with blackish on a pale ground, nor back with a yellow patch, nor whole
head yellow. Length usually five or six inches; rarely under and perhaps never over these
dimensions. Nest in bushes or trees, with rare exceptions. Eggs white, spotted. It is not
easy to frame a definition of this genus covering all its modifications, yet introducing no term
inapplicable to any species; but the foregoing expressions considered collectively, however
arbitrary or trivial some of them may seein to be, will serve to distinguish any Dendreca from
its allies of other genera; and, if so, the diagnosis is exclusively pertinent to the group as con-

SYLVICOLIDA — SYLVICOLINZ: TRUE WARBLERS. 297

extionally accepted. The coloration of the rectrices is a good clue to this genus; for all the
species (excepting D. e@stiva and its exotic conspecies) have the tail-feathers always blotched
with white, —a feature only shown, among North American allies, in Mniotilta, Parula, Pro-
tonotaria, Peucedramius, and some species of Helminthophila, Myiodioctes. There is as inuch
uniformity in the nest and eggs of Dendreca as in those of Helminthophila. Whereas all
these nest on the ground, as far as known all the Dendrace nest in trees and bushes, with the
single exception of D. palmarum. Exeepting D. castanea, the eggs are essentially similar ;
all being white, variously speckled, dotted, or blotched with shades of reddish and darker
brown, and lilac or purplish shell-spots. About thirty-five species are current, but not all of
them are well established; they all ovcur within our limits excepting these: pityophila
(Cuba), adelaide (Perto Rico), pharetra (Jamaica), eoa (Jamaica), awreola (Galapagoes),
capitalis (Barbadoes), and petechia (West Indies) with its several tropical forms, all like our
estiva. Of the twenty-six species which have been ascribed to North America, one, olivacea,
has since been made type of the genus Peucedramus; while of ‘‘ montana” and ‘“ carbonata”
nothing is now known: leaving twenty-three species to be treated, nearly as in the original
edition of the Key, there having been but one North American accession to the genus since
1872, though two varieties (respectively of dominica and of palmarum) have meanwhile been
described. D. tégrina has been made type of a genus Perissoglossa ; but it remains to be seen
whether other warblers do not possess the same peculiarities of the tongue. The following
artificial analysis will facilitate the determination of our twenty-three established species; I
believe it to be an infallible key to the perfect male plumages, and that it will probably hold
good for spring specimens of both sexes of many species; but it will fail for nearly all autumnal
and most female specimens of (b). It is difficult if not impossible to meet the varied require-
ments of these by rigid analysis; and recourse must be had to the detailed descriptions of the
species arranged in what seems to be their natural sequence. The supplementary table of cer-
tain diagnostic marks may prove of much assistance, though it is not a complete analysis.

Analysis of perfect Spring Males.

Tail-feathers edged with yellow; head — yellow . . ‘ : estiva 1li

—chestnut .. . vieilloti 1lla

Tail-feathers blotched with white ; a white spot at the base of primaries . cerulescens 117
—no white spot at base of primaries. (a)

(a) Wing-bars not white. Below, white, sides chestnut-streaked, crown yellow . 3 pennsylvanica 124

— yellow; sides reddish-streaked, crown reddish 3 palmarum 132, 133

— black-streaked ; above, ashy. . . : . kirtlandi 131

— olive, seddlah-airenmed: , . discolor 127

(a) Wing-bars white (sometimes fused into one large white patch). (b)

{b) Crown blue, like the back ; below white, sides and breast streaked. . . 3 cerulea 118
— chestnut, like the throat ; below, and sides of neck, buffy-tinged es castanea 123
—clear ash ; rump and under parts yellow, breast and sides black-streaked maculosa 125
—blackish, with median line orange-brown, like the auriculars ; rump yellow . tigrina 126
— perfectly black ; throat black ; a small yellow ioral spot eae «nigrescens 116

—not black; no yellow; feet flesh-color .. . . . . striata 122
—with yellow spot ; throat flame-color ; rump not yellow . . « blackburne 121
— white ; rump and sides of breast yellow... . a coronata 119
— yellow ; rump and sides of breast yellow . z « auduboni 120
(bb) Crown otherwise; throat black; back ashy, streaked, rump ash, crown yellow . a . occidentalis 113
— blackish, rump black, crown blackish . ‘ + chrysoparia 115
—olive; crown like back . Sy Ge ah arg Be virens 112
—notlikeback. . ..... townsendi 114
—yellow; back olive ; no black or ashy onhead . : r . pinus 134
—ashy-blue; cheeks the same ; eyelids yellow . gracie 128
— black ; eyelids white . .dominica 129, 130
Diagnostic marks of certain Warblers in any plumage.
Wing-bars and belly yellow Ba etfs eS NaI Se ANG, Paro! a sean Seer Te . . discolor 127
Wings and tail dusky, edged with yellow . . - 1 1 ee ee we eee estivao or rieilloti. 111 or lla

‘Wing-bars yellow, and belly pure white . . 2. 6 2 ee ee pe ew eee pennsylvanica 124

411.

illa.

112.

298 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

A yellow spot in front of the eye and nowhere else % So ‘ 4 i . . « nigrescens 116
A white spot at base of primaries (almost never wanting) . . . 3: » . cerulescens 117
Throat definitely yellow, belly white, back with no greenish . . donna or gracie 129, 130, or 128
Rump, sides of breast, crown and throat, more or less yellow . . : « « « a@uduboni 120
Bill extremely acute, perceptibly curved ; rump (generally) yellow . . oi poe . tigrina 126
Rump, sides of breast, and crown more or less yellow ; throat white ..... Cas . eoronata 119
Wing-bars white, tail-spots oblique, at end of two outer feathers only . Coe AOS - . « «pinus 184
Tail-spots at middle of nearly all the feathers, ramp and belly yellow . ti a . maculosa 125
Wing-bars brownish, tail-spots square, at end of two outer feathersonly. . 2. 4 « palmarum 182, 138
Wing-bars not very conspicuous, whole under parts yellow, back with no greenish . . . kirtlandi 131
Tail-spots at end of nearly all the feathers, and no definite yellow anywhere. . . . . « carulea 118
Throat, breast, and sides black or with black traces, sides of head with diffuse yellow, outer tail-feather
white-edged externally . ‘ virens and its western allies 112, 113, 114, 115
Throat yellow or orange, crown with at least a trace of a central yellow or orange spot, and outer tail-
feather white-edged externally ‘ Goa” Nay tak GR Cae ig 8 blackburn 121
Bill ordinary ; and with none of the foregoing special marks » ee ss « Striata or castanea 122 or 123

D. esti'va. (Lat. e@stiva, summery; estas, summer.) SUMMER WaRBLER. SumMMER YEL-
LOW-BIRD. BLUE-EYED YELLOW WARBLER. GOLDEN WARBLER. 4, adult: Golden-
yellow; the back with a greenish tinge resulting in rich yellow-olive, the rump more yellow-
ish; the middle of the back sometimes obsoletely streaked with darker. Crown like the under
parts, in high plumage’ often tinged with orange-brown. Breast and sides, and sometimes
most of the under parts, streaked with orange-brown. Quills and tail-feathers dusky, edged on
both webs with yellow, the yellow occupying most of the inner webs of the tail-feathers. Bill
plumbeous. Feet pale brown. Length 4.75-5.00; extent 7.50-7.75 ; wing 2.50; tail 2.00.
@, adult: Yellow-olive of upper parts extending on the crown; streaks below obsolete or
entirely wanting. General coloration paler. Young: Like the 9, but still duller colored.
Upper parts, including crown, pale olive, with an ochrey instead of clear yellow shade;
below ochrey-white or dull pale yellowish. Edgings of wings and tail dull yellowish. North
America, everywhere in woodland, gardens, orchards, parks, and even city streets, a beautiful,
abundant, and familiar little bird. Nests throughout its range, in fruit or shade trees, shrub-
bery and brushwood, building a neat, compact, and durable nest of soft vegetable and animal
substances felted together; eggs commonly 4-5, from 0.64 to 0.69 x 0.48 to 0.53, grayish- or
greenish-white, variously dotted and blotched with reddish-brown and lilac shades. The color
of this precious gem makes a pretty spot as it flits through the verdure of the forest or plays
amidst the rose-tinted blossoms of the fruit-orchard ; and its sprightly song is one of the most
familiar sounds of bird-life during the season when the year renews its youth.

D. vieil'loti bry/anti. (To L. P. Vieillot. To Dr. Henry Bryant.) CHestTnuT-HEADED
GOLDEN WaRBLER. Belonging to the ‘‘ golden warbler” group of the genus, and resembling
D. estiva in general characters. Dusky predominating over yellow on the tail-feathers ;
tarsus about 0.72. 4, adult: Whole head chestnut, well defined all around against the
yellow ; edging of wing-coverts slight; rufous streaks of breast and sides few and narrow.
The continental D. vietlloti, as described by Cassin in 1860, would appear to be well dis-
tinguished among its immediate insular allies by the rufous hood which envelopes the head,
but to be very questionably divisible into the several forms noted by Ridgway in 1874. That
here given is described as the Mexican race, lately ascertained to occur at La Paz, Lower
California. The 9 is said to be indistinguishable from that of others of the golden warbler
group. The extra-limital forms are all said to differ from the N. Am. D. estiva in having
longer tarsi and less yellow on the tail-feathers. (Not in the Check List, 1882. See Hist.
N. A. Birds, i, 1874, p. 217, and Pr. U. 8. Nat. Mus., iv, 1882, p. 414.)

D. vir‘ens. (Lat. virens, growing green. Fig. 160.) BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER.
&,in spring: Back and crown clear yellow-olive; forehead, superciliary line, and whole sides
of head rich yellow (in very high plumage, middle of back with dusky marks, and dusky or dark
olive lines through eyes and auriculars, and even bordering the crown); chin, throat, and

113.

114,

SLYVICOLIDA — SYLVICOLINZ:: TRUE WARBLERS. 299

breast jet black, prolonged behind as streaks on the sides; other under parts white, usually
yellow-tinged ; wings and tail dusky, former with two white bars and much whitish edgitg,
latter with outer feathers nearly all white ; bill and feet blackish. @ in the fall, and @ in the
spring: Similar, but the black restricted, interrupted, or veiled with yellow ; young similar to
the 9, but the black still more restricted or wanting altogether, except a few streaks along
sides. Small: Length 4.80-5.10; extent 7.60-8.00; wing 2.30-2.55; tail 2.00. Eastern
U.S. and British Provinces, west only to the edge of the Plains; migratory, abundant; breeds
from higher portions of the Middle States, and plentifully from New England northward ;
winters extralimital. This jaunty bird is one of the commonest warblers of summer in New
England, breeding in the pineries, in June. Nest in fork of a bough, usually at some elevation,
of the most miscellaneous materials; eggs 4-5, 0.67 x 0.54, white, with the usual sprinkling
or wreathing of brown and purplish markings. The nuptial song is very peculiar.

D. occidentalis. (Lat. occidentalis, western; where the sun sets.) WESTERN WARBLER.
Hermit WARBLER. 4, adult: Above, ashy-gray, tinged with olive, especially on the rump,
and closely streaked with black ; below, white. Top and sides of head rich yellow, the former
with transverse black markings. Central line of chin, throat, and jugulum black, ending on
the breast with a sharp convex outline, contrasted with the adjoining white. Wings and tail
as in virens. Bill black. Length 4.75-5.00; extent 7.75; wing 2.50-2.75; tail 2.12-2.25 ;
tarsus 0.66-0.75 ; bill 0.40. 9) adult: Described as similar to the male, but darker gray
above, with the yellow of the head less extended, and the throat whitish, spotted with dusky.
Young: Upper parts olivaceous-ash, and the yellow of the top of the head overlaid with olive.
Sides of the head pretty clear yellow, fading gradually into the white of the throat. No black
on the throat. White of the under parts faintly brownish-tinged, and sides with obsolete
streaks. In a September specimen the dusky olive extends over all the upper parts, tinging
the ashy of the lower back, and reaching on the crown nearly to the bill, where it gradually
lightens by admixture of yellow; the sides of the head are clear yellow, soiled with some
olivaceous; chin and throat the same, fading on the breast into the dull white of the other
under parts; sides with obsolete streaks, and a slight grayish-olive wash. There is no black
whatever about the head or throat, and the blackish streaks of the back are obsolete. The
wings are twice-barred with the conspicuous white tips of the greater and median wing-
coverts. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. 8. and southward; one of the several western relatives
of D. virens.

D. town’sendi. (To J. K. Townsend.) Townsenpn’s WarBLerR. 6, adult: Entire
upper parts yellowish-olive, rather darker than in virens, everywhere streaked with black,
especially on the crown, where the black usually predominates; no hidden yellow on the
crown. Side of the head bright yellow, enclosing a large black patch, constituted by the
loral and orbital and auricular regions, in which the yellow eyelids appear. Chin, throat,
breast, and sides part way, yellow, the jugulum black ; the sides of the breast and of the body
streaked with black. Under wing-coverts, belly, flanks, and crissum white, the two latter
slightly shaded and streaked with dusky. Wings crossed with two white bands, that of the
median coverts broadest. Wings and tail fuscous, the former with pale edgings, the latter
having two or three outer feathers largely blotched with white. Bill and feet blackish horn-
color. Length about 5.00; extent 7.50-8.00; wing 2.25-2.50; tail 2.00. 9: Like the g, but
the black of the jugulum mixed with yellow (and that on the sides of the head mixed with or re-
placed by olive?) Young: Shade of the upper parts slightly brownish, and the black streaks
slight, obsolete, or wanting. The dark patch on the side of the head olivaceous, like the back.
No continuous black on the jugulum. Autumnal adults show various gradations between the
characters of the old and young. Very closely related to D. virens, of which it is the western
representative. Adult males readily distinguished by the darker greenish upper parts, cou-
spicuously streaked, especially on the head, with black; the black cheeks and auriculars ;

115.

116.

117.

300 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

black of jugulum not reaching anteriorly to the bill, and the surrounding yellow spreading on
the breast back of the black. Young birds not so easily discriminated; but there are usually
traces at least of the black streaks on the upper parts; there is no concealed yellow on the
crown; the yellow of the under parts, quite as bright as in the adult, extends far along the
breast, behind that part where it veils the black. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, Alaska to Guat-
emala; common. A straggler taken at Philadelphia.
D. chrysopari’a. (Gr. ypvods, chrusos, golden, and mapeca, pareia, cheek.) GOLDEN-CHEEK-
ED WaRBLER. Prevailing color of upper parts black, usually mixed with olive-green ; sides
of head yellow, with narrow black stripe through eye; below, with the wings and tail, as in
virens; size of this species, and changes of plumage doubtless parallel; very closely related.
&, in full dress: Above, jet-black from bill to tail, anteriorly narrowing to a point on the fore-
head, with scarcely a trace of olivaceous toward and on the rump. Entire side of head and
neck golden-yellow, reaching the bill, elsewhere enclosed in black, and enclosing a long black
stripe through eye to side of nape, nearly cutting off a superciliary stripe from the general yel-
low area, which, however, is continuous on lore and side of nape. Chin, throat, and breast
jet black, this color extending backward along the sides as heavy streaking ; narrowing ante-
riorly where sharply defined against the yellow; other under parts, including lining of wings,
white, squarely defined against the black of breast (the whole under parts thus as in virens).
Wings blackish, with two broad white cross-bars, and whitish edging of the quills, especially
the inner secondaries. Tail blackish, the outermost feather white with only a black shaft-line
clubbed at end; the next three pairs with decreasing white areas. Bill and feet black. Texas
and southward ; rare, at least in collections. Nest in upright fork, preferably of a cedar, large
for the bird, compactly felted of bark strips, fine grasses, rootlets, and slender vegetable fibres
and cobwebs, lined copiously with hair and feathers; eggs 0.75 x 0.55, white, dotted with
reddish-brown and lavender, and blotched with darker brown, laid in May.
D. nigres’cens. (Lat. nigrescens, growing black. Fig. 164.) BLacK-THROATED GRAY War-
BLER. 4, adult: Above, bluish-ash, the interseapular region, and usually also the upper-tail
coverts, streaked with black. Below, from the breast, pure white, the
, sides streaked with black. Entire head, with chin and throat, black ;
ea sharply-defined yellow spot before the eye, a broad white stripe
behind the eye, and a long white maxillary stripe widening behind
from the corner of the bill to thé side of the neck. Wings fuscous,
- with much whitish edging, and crossed with two broad white bars
on the ends of the greater and median coverts. Tail like the wings,
Fic. 164,—Black-throatea the three lateral feathers mostly white, except on the outer webs,
Gray Warbler, nat. size. (Ad the fourth with a white blotch. Bill and feet black. Size of D.
nat, del. BOC.) townsendi. 9: Like the male, but the black of the crown mixed
with the ashy of the back, and that of the throat veiled with white tips of the feathers. Young:
Like the 9, but the crown almost entirely like the back, and the black of the throat still more
hidden. Back not streaked. Less white on the tail. Bill not entirely black. Rocky Mts. to
the Pacific, U. 5. and southward, common in woodland. Quite unlike any other species; one
of the five Dendrece which are normally confined to the West.
D. corules'cens. (Lat. c@rulescens, growing blue; ceruleus, blue.) BLACK-THROATED
BiuE WarsierR. 4, in spring: Above, uniform slaty-blue, the perfect continuity of which is
only interrupted in very high plumages, by a few black dorsal streaks; below, pure white ;
the sides of the head to above the eyes, the chin, throat, and whole sides of the body continu-
ously jet black; wing-bars wanting (the coverts being black, edged with blue), but a large
white spot at base of primaries: quill-feathers blackish, outwardly edged with bluish, the inner
ones mostly white on their inner webs ; tail with the ordinary white blotches, the central feath-
ers edged with bluish; bill black; feet dark. Young g: Similar, but the blue glossed with

118.

119.

SYLVICOLIDZE — SYLVICOLINZE: TRUE WARBLERS. 801

olivaceous, and the black interrupted and restricted. @ entirely different: Dull olive-greenish,
with faint bluish shade, below pale soiled yellowish ; but recognizable by the white spot at base
of primaries, which, though it may be reduced to a mere speck, is nearly always evident, at
least on pushing aside the primary coverts; no other wing-markings; tail-blotches small or
obscure ; feet rather pale. Size of virens. Eastern U. S., abundant, in woodland, its range
clésely coincident with that of virens. Tt is, however, rather a bird of brake and burn
than of high woods, at least in summer ; and nests in bushes, close to the ground. Eggs not
peculiar. A beautiful bird, the g with black, white and blue in masses, thus resembling no
other, and the olive-colored ? as different as possible from her mate.

D. ceru'lea, (Lat. cerwleus, cerulean, sky-blue.) CERULEAN WARBLER. AzuRE WarR-
BLER. ¢, adult: Entire upper parts sky-blue, the middle of the back streaked with black ; the
crown usually richer and also with dark markings. Below, pure white, streaked across the
breast and along the sides with dusky-blue— the breast-streaks inclining to form a short bar,
sometimes interrupted in the middle. Auriculars dusky; edges of eyelids and superciliary line
white. Wings blackish, much edged externally with the color of the back, the inner webs of
all the quills, the outer webs of the inner secondaries, and two broad bars across the tips of the
greater and median coverts, white. Tail black, with much exterior edging of the color of the
back, all the feathers, except the middle pair, with small, white, subterminal spots on the inner
webs. Length 4.00-4.50; wing 2.66; tail 2.00 or less. 9, adult: Quite different. Upper
parts dull greenish, with more or less grayish-blue shade, the greenish brightest and purest on
the crown. Eyelids, line over eye, and entire under parts, whitish, more or less strongly over-
east with dull greenish-yellow. Wings and tail dusky, the exterior edgings of the color of the
back ; the bars, spots, and interior edgings white, as in the g. The female is curiously sim-
ilar to the same sex of D. cerulescens, but in the latter the tail-spots are different ; there are no
white wing-bars, but instead there is a small whitish spot at the base of the outer primaries.
The autumnal plumage of the adults is said to differ in no wise from that of the spring. Young
males are much like the adult females, but less uniformly greenish-blue above and purer white
below, with evident blackish stripes on the interscapulars and sides of the head. The young
female resembles the adult of that sex, but is still greener above, with little or no blue, and quite
buffy-yellowish below. When in full dress this is a perfect little beauty, there being something
peculiarly tasteful and artistic in the simple coutrast of the snowy-white with the delicate azure-
blue, without any ‘‘ warm” color. ‘Eastern U. S., rarely north to New England; west some-
times to the Rocky Mts. in the latitude of Colorado. One of the rarer species. Nest small
and neat, in fork of a bough 20-50 feet from the ground; eggs 4, -creamy-white, heavily
blotched with reddish-brown, 0.60 x 0.47.

D. corona’ta. (Lat. coronata, crowned; corona, a crown. Fig. 165.) YELLOW-RUMPED
WaRBLER. YELLOW-CROWNED WARBLER. Myrtie Birp. 4g, in spring: Slaty-blue,
streaked with black; below, white, breast and sides mostly
black, belly, and especially throat, pure white, immaculate ;
rump, central crown-patch, and sides of breast, sharply yellow,
there being thus fowr definite yellow places; sides of head
black; eyelids and superciliary line white; ordinary white
wing-bars and tail-blotches; bill and feet black. @ in winter,
and @ in summer, similar, but slate-color less pure, or quite
brownish; young birds are quite brown above, with a few
obscure streaks in the whitish of the under parts. It is im-
possible to specify the endless intermediate styles; but I never _ Fic. 165.—Yellow-rumped War-
saw a specimen without the yellow rump, and at least a trace Ee ae eee
of the other yellow marks; these points therefore are diagnostic. (The only other obscure-
looking brownish warblers with yellow rump are maculosa and tigrina, when young. Resem-

120.

121.

302 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

bles auduboni, excepting in the following points: — Throat white. Breast black, nixed with
white. Sides of the head definitely pure black; edges of eyelids, aud long narrow superciliary
line, white. Wings crossed with two broad white bars, which do not fuse into one white
patch, owing to uarrowness or deficiency of white edging along the outer webs of the great
coverts.) One of the larger species. Length 5.30-5.75 ; extent 8.80-9.40; wing 2.75-3.00;
tail about 2.50. North America, but chiefly eastern; Alaska; Washington Territory; Cak-
fornia; Arizona; U.S. rarely in suinmer, but during the migrations the most abundant of all
the warblers; winters as far north as New England; seen everywhere, but is particularly
numerous in shrubbery, along hedge-rows, in flocks, with troops of sparrows, titmice, ete.
Breeds from northern New England northward; nest generally low in evergreens; eggs 4,
about 0.75 X 0.55, with the usual markings. Moult double, there being a vernal as well as
an autumnal change, the former usually effected during the spring migrations.

D. aud/uboni. (To J. J. Audubon.) AtpuBON’s WARBLER. WESTERN YELLOW-RUMP.
&, adult, in summer: Upper parts clear bluish-ash, streaked with black. A central longitudi-
nal spot on the crown, the rump, throat, and a patch on each side of the breast, rich yellow.
Sides of the head little darker than the upper parts; eyelids narrowly white, but no decided
superciliary white stripe. The ash of the upper parts extending far around the sides of the
neck. Juguluin and breast in high plumage pure black, though usually nixed with some
grayish skirting of the feathers, or invaded by white from behind, or even touched with yellow
here and there. Belly and under tail-coverts white, the sides streaked with black. Wings ,
blackish, with gray or white edging, especially on the inner quills; the median wing-coverts
tipped, the greater ones edged and tipped, with white, forming a great white blotch. Tail like
the wings, the outer webs narrowly edged with gray or white, the inner webs of all the lateral:
feathers with large white blotches. Bill and feet black. One of the largest species. Length,
5.50-5.75 ; extent, 8.75-9.33 ; wing, 2.75-3.00; tail, 2.25. 9, in swnmer: Generally similar
to the g. Upper parts duller and browner slate-color, with less heavy dorsal streaks; crown-
spot and other yellow parts paler; breast not continuously black, but variegated with black,
white, and the color of the back. Sides only obsvletely streaked. Eyelids scarcely white, and
cheeks hardly different from the back. White of wing-coverts mostly restricted to two bars;
white tail-spots smaller. Both sexes in autumn and winter, and young: Upper parts quite
brown, with obscure black marking. Yellow crown-spot concealed or wanting; yellow of
throat, ramp, and sides of breast paler and restricted. Under parts whitish, shaded on the
sides, and usually across the breast, with a dilute tint of the color of the back, the breast and
sides obsoletely streaked with darker. White of wing-coverts obscured with brownish. North
America, froin easternmost woodland of the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific; north probably to
Alaska; accidental in New England; migratory, breeding northward and in Alpine regions;
extreinely abundant ; nesting in no wise peculiar.

D. black’burne. (To Mrs. Blackburn, an English lady.) BLackBuRN’s WARBLER.
PromeruEus. , adult, in spring: Entire upper parts, including the wings and tail, black,
the back varied with whitish, the wings with a large white speculum on the eoverts and much
white edging of the coverts, the lateral tail-feathers largely white, only « shaft-line, with
clubbed extremity, being left blackish on the outer two or three pairs. Spot on fore part of
crown, eyelids, line over eye spreading into a large spot behind the auriculars, with chin,
throat, and fore breast, intense orange or flame-color. There is nothing to compare with the
exquisite hue of this Promethean torch. Sides of head black in an irregular patch, usually
confluent with the black streaks on the side of the breast, isolating the orange of the sides of
the head from that of the throat, and cireumscribing the orange patch below the eye. Under
parts from the breast white, more or less tinged with orange or yellow, and whole sides streaked
with black. Bill and feet dark. Length about 5.50; extent 8.50; wing 2.75; tail 2.00. @.
adult, in spring: Similar to the male in the pattern and distribution of the colors; upper

122,

“starts from the extreme chin, and diverges to pass one on each

SYLVICOLIDA: — SYLVICOLINA:: TRUE WARBLERS. 308

parts brownish-olive, streaked with black; the fiery orange of the male not su inteuse, or
merely yellow, that on the crown obscure or obsolete. White speculum of the wing resolved
into two white bars. Sides of the head like the back, instead of black as in the male, and the
lateral streaks duller and more blended. ¢ and Q, adult, in autumn, are sufficiently similar
to the respective sexes in spring, but the coloration is toned down, the fiery colors of the male
being less intense, and the black of the back being much mixed with olivaccous, bringing
about a close resemblance to the spring female; while the feinale is duller still, and more in-
purely colored. Young: Early autumnal birds of the year of this species are very obscure-
looking, showing no sign of the rich coloration of the adults. Above, like the adult 9, but
still browner, with more obsolete dusky streaking. Usually an indication of the crown-sput in
a lightening of the part. Sides of the head like the crown, cutting off a superciliary stripe and
the eyelids, which are ochrey-white. Whole under parts white, tinged, especially on the throat
and breast, with ycllowish, the sides with obsolete streaking. Indication of the peculiar pat-
tern of the adults, though without their actual coloration, together with the extent of white on
the tail-feathers, will usually suffice for the determination of the species, before any orange
appears on the throat, after which there can be no difficulty. Chiefly Eastern N. Am.; W.,
however, to Utah. Abundant in mixed woodland; breeds in northerly parts of its U. 8. range
and northward; winters extralimital. One of the later migrants in spring. Nests in bushes
and low trees; eggs not peculiar.

D. stria/ta. (Lat. striata, striped. Fig. 166.) BuacK-pott WaRBLER. 4, adult: Back,
rump, and upper tail-coverts grayish-olive, heavily streaked with black: whole crown pure
glossy black. Below, pure white; a double series of black streaks

side to the tail, the streaks being confluent anteriorly, discrete
posteriorly. Side of head above the chain of streaks pure white,
including lower eyelid. _ Wings dusky, the primaries with much
greenish edging, the inner secondaries with whitish edging, the
greater and median coverts tipped with white, forming two cross-
bars. Tail like the wings, with rather small white spots at the
ends of the inner webs of two or three outer feathers. Upper Fig. 166. — Black-poll War-
mandible brownish-black; lower mandible with the feet flesh- bier, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E.C.)
colored or yellowish. Length 5.25-5.75; extent 8.75-9.30; wing 2.70-2.90; tail 2.25. 9Q:
Entire upper parts, including the crown, greenish-olive, with dusky streaks; below, white,
much tinged with greenish-yellow, especially anteriorly, the streaks dusky and not so sharp as
those of the male, but still very evident. Bars and edgings of the wings greenish-white. Tail
as in the male. Rather smaller than the male on an average. Young: Similar to the adult
Q, but brighter and more greenish-olive above, the streakings few and chiefly confined to the
middle of the back; below, more or less completely tinged with greenish-yellow, the streakings
obsolete, or entirely wanting. Under tail-coverts usually pure white. These autumnal birds
bear an extraordinary resemblance to those of D. castanea (though the adults are so very differ-
ent), the upper parts being, in fact, the same in both. But young castanea generally shows
traces of the chestnut, or at least a buffy shade, quite different from the clear greenish-olive of
striata, this tint being strongest on the flanks and under tail-coverts, just where striata is the
most purely white. Moreover, castanea shows no streaks below, traces at least of which are
usually observable in striata. N. Am., excepting the Western and most of the Middle Province ;
N. to the Arctic ocean, Greenland, Alaska; west to Nebraska and Colorado. Winters extra-
limital. Breeds from northern New England northward. Migrates late in the spring, bringing
up the rear-guard of the Warbler hosts; when the Black-polls appear in force the collecting
season is about over! Nests low in spruce-trees and other evergreens; eggs 5, 0.72 0.50,
not peculiar.

123.

124.

125.

804 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

D. casta/‘nea. (Lat. castanea, a chestuut, in allusion to the color.) Bay-BREASTED War-
BLER. 4, in spring: Back thickly streaked 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 thence extends, more or less interrupted, along
the entire sides of the body; rest of under parts ochrey or buffy whitish; a similar buffy area
behind the ears; wing-bars and tail-spots ordinary; bill and feet blackish. 9, in spring:
More olivaceous 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 striata, that it is sometimes impossible to distinguish them

with certainty. The upper parts, in fact, are of precisely the same greenish-olive, with black
streaks ; but there is generally a difference below —castanea being there tinged with buffy or
ochrey, instead of the clearer pale yellowish of striata ; this shade is particularly observable on
belly, flanks, and under tail-coverts, just where striata is whitest ; and moreover, castanea is
usually not streaked on the sides at all. Mature spring birds vary interminably in the exteut
and iutensity of the chestnut. Size of striata. Eastern N. Am., north to Hudson’s Bay, W.
to the edge of the Plains. Winters extralimital. Migratory in most of the U.S. Breeds
from northern New England northward. Nests moderately high in conifers, building a large
nest of twigs, tree-moss, rootlets, fur, ete.; eggs 3-6, 0.70 X 0.52, bluish-green, profusely
spotted with browns and lilac.
D. pennsylva/nica. (Of ‘Penn’s woods”; sylva, a forest; sylvanus, sylvan. Fig. 167.)
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER. ¢, inspring: Back streaked with black and pale yellow (some-
times ashy or whitish) ; whole crown pure yellow, immediately bordered with white, then
enclosed with black; sides of head and neck and whole under
parts pure white, 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 siges of the nape, the other
reaching downward and backward 'to connect with a chain of pure
chestnut streaks that run the whole length of the body, the
under eyelid and auriculars being left white; wing-bands gen-
erally fused into one large patch, and, like the edging of the inner
i ae oe eee secondaries, much tinged with yellow; tail-spots white, as usual ;
Warbler, nat. size. (Adnat,del. bill blackish, feet brown. 9, in spring: Quite similar; colors
E.C.) less pure; black loral crescent obscure or wanting; chestnut
streaks thinner. Young: Above, including the crown, clear yellowish-green, perfectly uniform,
or back with slight dusky touches; no distinct head-markings; below, entirely white from bill
to tail, unmarked, or else showing a trace of chestnut streaks on the sides; wing-bands clear
yellow as in the adult; this is a diagnostic feature, shared by no other species, taken in con-
nection with the continuously white under parts; Dill light-colored below. Small: Length
4.80-5.10; extent 7.75-8.10; wing 2.30-2.50; tail 2.00. Eastern U. S. and adjoining British
Provinces ; west only to the edge of the Plains; winters extralimital; breeds abundantly in
Middle and Northern States; nests in forks of low saplings, shrubs, and bushes; eggs 4-5, 0.68
X 0.50, with the usual markings. A pretty species chained with chestnut on snowy ground.
D. maculo/sa. (Lat. maculosa, full of spots; macula, a spot. Fig. 168.) BLack-anp-
YELLOW WaRBLER. Maenouia. 9, in spring: Back black, usually quite pure and unin-

_terrupted in the ¢, more or less mixed with olive in the 9 ; rump yellow; upper tail-coverts

black, often skirted with olive or ashy. Whole crown of head clear ash; sides of head black,
including a very narrow frontlet ; the eyelids and a stripe behind the eye, between the ash and
black, white. Entire under parts rich yellow, excepting the white crissum, heavily streaked
with black across the breast and along the sides, the streaks on the breast so thick as to form a
nearly continuous black border to the immaculate yellow throat. Wings fuscous, with white

126.

127.

SYLVICOLID4 — SYLVICOLINZ: TRUE WARBLERS. 805

lining, white edging of the inner webs of all the quills, of the outer webs of the inner secoud-
aries, and with a large white patch formed by the tips of the median coverts and tips and outer
edges of the greater coverts. Tail blackish, with square white spots on the middle of the inner
webs of all the feathers excepting the middle pair. Bill blackish; feet dark. Length 4.75-
5.00; extent 7.00-7.50; wing 2.25-2.50; tail 2.00-2.25. Young: Upper parts ashy-vlive,
grayer on head; rump as yellow as in the adult; no decided head-markings; a whitish ring
around eye. Below, yellow, generally pure and continuous,
sometimes partially replaced by gray;. black streaks wanting,
or few and confined to the sides. Wings with two bars; tadl-
spots as in the adult. While the sexes of this dainty little
species are quite similar, the young require looking after; ob-
serve yellow rump, small square tail-spots on middle of feathers,
and extensively or completely yellow under parts. Eastern
N. Am., N. to Hudson’s Bay and Great Slave Lake, Ww. to ae ee rere
the Rocky Mts. of Colorado; abundant, chiefly migratory in warbler, nat. size. (Ad nat. del.
the U.S.; winters extralimital; breeds from New England E.©.)
northward. Builds a small neat nest in low conifers; eggs 4-5, 0.64 & 0.48, not peculiar.
D. tigri‘na. (Lat. tigrina, striped like a tiger, tgris.) Cape MAy WARBLER. Adult @,
in spring: Back yellowish-olive, spotted with black; crown in high plumage perfectly black,
usually interrupted with olive. Rump, sides of the neck nearly meeting across the nape, sides
of head and entire under parts bright yellow; ear-patch orange-brown ; a black transocular
stripe, cutting off a yellow superciliary stripe; lower throat and whole breast and sides thickly
streaked with black; yellow of throat sometimes tinged with orange-brown ; that of belly and
under tail-coverts pale or whitish. Wing-bars fused in a large white patch, formed by iniddle
coverts and outer webs of most of the greater coverts. Quills and tail-feathers blackish, edged
on outer webs with olive; tail-spots on three outer feathers near their ends, oblique, large on
outer feather, diminishing on the next successively; bill and feet blackish. The yellow patch
on the rump is conspicuous, and in high plumage that on the side of the neck is immaculate
and very bright. 9, in spring; Similar; lacking the distinctive head-markings ; under parts
paler and less streaked, tail-spats small or obscure; less white on the wing. Young: An in-
significant-looking bird, resembling an overgrown ruby-crowned kinglet, without its crest ;
obscure greenish-olive above; rump yellowish; under parts yellowish-white; breast and sides
with the streaks obscure or obsolete; little or no white on wings, which are edged with yel-
lowish. Length 5.00-5.25; wing 2.75; tail 2.25. Eastern N. Am. to Hudson’s Bay, ouly
known W. to the Mississippi. Another exquisite, resembling the Magnolia in its yellow rump
and yellow black-striped under parts, but easily recognized at maturity by the orange-brown
ear-coveris; possessing also the charm of rarity in most parts. It is also remarkable for the
curved and very acute bill, and some anatomical peculiarities of the tongue, which have caused
it to be made type of a genus Perissoglossa. Breeds in portions of New England and north-
ward; nest low in trees; eggs not peculiar.
D. dis’color. (Lat. discolor, parti-colored; opposed to concolor, whole-colored.) Prairie
WarBLER. Yellow-olive; back with a pateh of brick-red spots ; forchead, superciliary line,
two wing-Dars, and entire under parts, rich yellow; a V-shaped black mark on side of head,
its upper arm running through eye, its lower arm connecting with a series of black streaks
along the whole sides of the neck and body; tail-blotehes 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. Small:
Length 4.75; extent 7.00-7.40; wing 2.15-2.25; tail 2.00. Eastern U.S. to Massachu-
setts; W. to Kansas; an abundant bird of the Middle and Southern States, in sparse low
woodland, cedar thickets and old fields grown up to scrub-pines; remarkable for its quaint
“

128.

129.

130.

131.

306 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

and curious song; an expert fly-catcher, constantly darting into the air in pursuit of winged
insects, like the Redstart and the species of Mytodioctes. Breeds throughout its U. 8. range;
winters in Florida and the West Indies. Nest on a bush or sapling near the ground; a'small,
neat, compact structure; eggs 3-6, not peculiar. :

D. gra/ciz. (To Miss Grace D. Coues, the author's sister.) Gracr’s WARBLER. Entire
upper parts ashy-gray, with a slaty-blue tinge; the middle of the back streaked with black,
the upper tail-coverts less conspicuously so marked; the crown with crowded black arrow-
heads, especially anteriorly and laterally, the tendency of these markings being to form a line
along the side of the crown, meeting its fellow on the forehead. A broad superciliary line of
yellow, confluent with its fellow on the extreme front, changing to white, behind the eye.
Lores blackish; sides of head otherwise like the back, enclosing a crescentic yellow spot below
the eye; edges of eyelids yellow. Chin, throat, and fore breast bright yellow, bordered with
blackish streaks; the yellow of the throat separate from that under the eye or on the lores.
Under parts from the breast white, the sides shaded with the color of the back, and streaked
with black in continuation of the chain of shorter streaks along the side of the neck. Wings
dusky, with very narrow whitish edging, and crossed with two white bars along the ends of the
greater and median coverts. Tail like the wings; the lateral feather mostly white, excepting
the outer web; the next two or three with white blotches, decreasing in size. Eyes, bill, and
feet black; soles dirty yellowish. Length 4.90-5.25; extent about 8.00; wing 2.60; tail
2.25; bill under 0.50. , in autumn: Color of the upper parts obscured with a shade of
brownish-olive, the dorsal streaks obscure. ‘The head-markivgs as in summer, and the yellow
parts quite as bright. 9: Quite similar to the male, and in fact scarcely distinguishable from
the male in autumn, though the yellow is not quite so strong. Young: The slate-gray of the
upper parts much shaded with brownish-olive, the black streaks wanting on the back, those on
the crown obselete. Yellow much as in the adult but paler, and not bordered along the sides
of the neck with black streaks. The black lores are poorly defined. The wing-bars are gray-
ish or obsolete. The white of the under parts has an ochrey tinge, and the lateral streaks are
not so heavy in color nor so well defined. Southern Rocky Mt. Region of the U.S. and south-
ward; a beautiful species, related to dominica and adelaide ; it is abundant in the pine woods
of Arizona and New Mexico. Nesting still unknown.

D. domin‘ica. (Lat. dominicus, of St. Domingo.) YELLow-THROATED WARBLER. Much
like the last species, with which its changes of plumage correspond; back without black
streaks ; uo yellow in the black under the eye. A white patch separating the black of the
cheeks from the bluish-ash of the neck; a long superciliary stripe, usually yellow from bill to
eye, thence white to the nape. Forehead and sides of crown usually quite black, chin and
throat rich yellow, bordered on each side by black. Rest of under parts white, the sides boldly
streaked with black. Bill black, extremely compressed, almost a little decurved, very long
(at least 0.50). Length 5.00 or more; extent 8.00; wing 2.70; tail 2.25. A large hand-
some species, with its bright yellow throat. South Atlantic and Gulf States, common; N.
sometimes to the Middle States, casually to New England. Breeds in its U. 8. range at large ;
winters in Florida and extralimital.

D. d. albilo’ra. (Lat. albus, white ; lorwm, the lore.) WHITE-BROWED WARBLER. Pre-
cisely like the last; but superciliary stripe entirely white, and yellow of chin cut off from Dill
by white. This slight variety (considering how variable dominica is in amount of yellow in
the superciliary line) is the common form of the Mississippi and Ohio valley, north regularly to
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, W. to Kansas and Texas.

D. kirt/landi. (To Dr. Jared P. Kirtland, of Ohio.) KirTnanp’s WarBLer. gf: Upper
parts slaty-blue; crown and back streaked with black; lores and frontlet black; eyelids
mostly white. Under parts clear yellow, whitening on crissum, the breast with small spots
and the sides with short streaks of black; greater and middle wing-coverts, quills, and tail-

132.

133.

134.

SYLVICOLID:-A — SYLVICOLINZ!: TRUE WARBLERS. 307

feathers edged with white; two outer tail-feathers white-blotched on inner web. Length
5.50; wing 2.80; tail 2.70. 9, adult: Upper parts dull bluish-gray, obscured with brown-
ish on the hind neck and back, marked with heavy blackish streaks on the whole back ;
crowu and upper tail-coverts with fine black shaft-lines. Sides of head and neck like upper
parts, with darkened lores and whitish eyc-ring. Wing-quills dusky, with slight whitish edg-
ing of both webs; coverts like back, but with large blackish central field, and whitish edging
and tipping, forming two inconspicuous wing-bars. Tail-feathers like wing-quills, only the
outermost one having a small white blotch. Entire under parts dull yellow, brighter on breast,
paler on throat and belly, washed with brownish on sides, with a slight necklace of brownish
dots across the fore breast (as in Myiodioctes canadensis) ; these spots stronger on the sides of
the breast, whence lengthening into streaks on the sides and flanks; a few small sharp
scratches of the same nearly across lower breast. Under tail-coverts white, unmarked. Bill
and fect black. Length about 5.30; wing 2.60; tail 2.30; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.50. Eastern
U.§., the rarest of all the Warblers; only about a dozen specimens known thus far; its rela-
tionships appear to be with dominica, gracia, and adelaide.

D. palma/rum. (Lat. palmarum, of the palms; gen. pl. of palma, a palin.) YELLOW Rep-
Pott Warbier. Patm Warsier. In spring: Brownish-olive, ramp 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 Swnmer Warbler; a dusky loral line running through eye; no white wing-bars, the
wing-coverts and inner quills being edged with yellowish-brown; tail spots at 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. Q not particularly different from the g. Young: An
obscure-looking object, 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; pectoral and lateral streaks
obseure; crown generally showing chestnut traces; but in any plumage, known by absence
of white wing-bars and peculiarity of the tail-spots. Length 5.00-5.25 ; extent about 8.00;
wing 2.50; tail 2.25; tarsus 0.75. Eastern N. Ain., abundant; N. to Labrador, Hudson’s
Bay, Fort Resolution, ete.; breeds only beyond the U. 5., excepting in Maine. Nest on the
ground ; peculiar in this respect in the genus, as far as known; eggs uot peculiar. When the
bird is migrating it is usually found in fields, along hedge-rows and road-sides, with Yellow-
ruinps and Sparrows; the most terrestrial species of the genus, often recalling « Titlark;
migrates early in the spring, aud remains in the fall latest of any, except the Yellow-rump,
being observed at both these seasons in New England, with snow, in April and November ;
winters abundantly from the Carolinas to Texas, aud in the West Indies.

D. p. hypochry'sea’? (Gr. ime, hupo, under ; xpiceos, chruseos, golden.) YELLOW-BELLIED
Rep-pott Wareier. Said to differ in being more brightly and continuously yellow on the
under parts, with the streaks confined mostly to the sides, broadly tear-shaped instead of linear,
reddish instead of dusky; lower eyelid yellow, not whitish ; back brighter olive. *‘ Atlantic
States, from East Florida to Nova Scotia.” According to this, hypochrysea should be the
comion bird of the Atlantic States, and what is above described as true palmarwm should be
the bird of the interior. But I have little faith in the validity of the physical characters
assigned, and none in the geographical distinctions sought to be established.

D. pi'nus. (Lat. pinus, a pine.) Pins WARBLER. PINE-GREEPING WARBLER. $f: 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; superciliary line yellow; wing-bars
white ; tail-blotches confined to two outer pairs of feathers, large, oblique. Q and young:
Similar, duller; sometimes merely olive-gray above and sordid whitish below, thus making
very dingy, non-committal objects. The variations in precise shade are interminable ; but the

PEE aE

135.

808 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

species may always be kuown by the lack of any special sharp markings whatever, except the
superciliary line; and by the combination of white wing-bars with large oblique tail-spots

_ confined to the two outer pairs of feathers. One of the largest species, as well as most simply

colored; length 5.50-5.75; extent 8.50-9.00; wing 2.75-3.00; tail. 2.40; tarsus 0.70; Dill
0.45. Eastern U. S., strictly; N. only to Canada and New Brunswick, W. only to the Missis-
sippi Valley. Breeds throughout its whole range, and abounds in wiuter in the Southern
States; is nearly resident, being sometimes seen in the Middle States in midwinter, and in
New England early and late, with snow. Nests in pine-trees ; nest and eggs not peculiar.

*,* Thus passing in review the 23 ‘ solid” species of Dendraca, with two varieties lately

introduced, I may allude to two species described by early authors, but never identified.
1. Sylvia montana, Wilson. This I have given (in the orig. ed., p. 105) some reasons for sup-
posing to be a young D. virens. 2. Sylvia carbonata, Audubon. A strongly-marked bird,
the like of which has never been seen since. It has been conjectured to be a hybrid of D.
tigrina and D. striata.
SIU/RUS. (Gr. cela, seio, I wave or brandish ; ovpa, oura, tail.) Wac-TaIL Warsiers. In
general form scarcely distinguishable from Dendreca ; larger in size, different. in pattern of
coloration, in habits, gait, and nidification. Bill ordinary. Rictal bristles short but evident.
Wings pointed, much longer than tail. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw. Tail nearly
even, with rather acute feathers, and long, copious under coverts. Neither wings nor tail parti-
colored. Above olivaceous, with or without head-markings, otherwise uniform; below white,
buffy, or yellowish, profusely streaked. Legs slender, usually pale-colored. Habits terrestrial
to some extent; nest on the ground; eggs white, spotted. Vocal powers preéminent. Gait
ambulatorial, not saltatorial, aud some other traits decidedly Motacilline.

Analysis of Species.

Crown orange-brown, with two black stripes; no superciliary line is’ sh a8 +. a@uricapillus 135
Crown like back; a long superciliary line.
Below, yellowish, heavily streaked; smaller; bill not over 0.50 ae ee ee eo. +) REvius 136
Below, whitish, lightly streaked ; larger; bill over 0.50 . . Cae ae soe ee .motacilla 138

S. auricapil/lus. (Lat. awrum, gold; capillus, hair. Fig. 169.) GoLpEN-cRowNED Wav-
TAIL WARBLER. GOLDEN-CROWNED ACCENTOR. GOLDEN-CROWNED THRUSH. OVEN-BIRD.
& @, adult: Entire upper parts, including the wings and tail, uniform bright olive-green,
without markings. Top of head with black lateral stripes, bounding a golden-brown or dull
orange space. A white ring round eye; no white super-
ciliary stripe. Under parts white, thickly spotted with
dusky on the breast, the spots lengthening into streaks ou
the sides; a narrow black maxillary line; under wing-
coverts tinged with yellow. Legs flesh-colored. Length
5.75-6.50, usually 6.00-6.25 ; extent §.75-10.40, usually
9.50-10.00; wing 2.90-3.25; tail about 2.50. Varies
much in size, but is remarkably constant in coloration with

Fa. 169. —Oven-bird, nat. size. (Ad age, Sex, and season; sexes indistinguishable, and young
at del Hs Cs) scarcely to be told from the adults. Fall specimens
ordinarily quite as bright-colored as those of spring ; and the orange-brown crown-spot, though
it may be less bright, is acquired by the young with their first full feathering. There are
at first no crown-stripes, and the lower parts are buffy, indistinctly streaked; upper parts
fulvous-brown; wings and tail as in the adult. N. Am., W. to Colorado, Dakota, and
Alaska; breeds throughout its N. Am. range; winters from the southern border southward. A
pretty and engaging species, called ‘‘ Oven-bird” froin the way it has of roofing over its nest,
abundant in woodland, migratory. In May the woods resound with its loud erescendo chant,
so incessant and obtrusive that the bird was long in acquiring the reputation of musical ability

136.

137.

138.

41.

139.

SYLVICOLIDZ — SYLVICOLINZ: TRUE WARBLERS. 309

to which its luxurious nuptial song entitles it not less than the Louisiana water thrush itself.
The bird spends much of its time on the ground, trailing prettily among the fallen leaves with
mincing steps. Nest on the ground, of leaves, grasses, etc.; eggs 4-6, white or slightly
creamy, profusely speckled with reddish-brown and lilac, 0.85 X 0.65.

S. ne'vius. (Lat. nevius, spotted; nevus, a mole, birth-mark.) WaG-TarL WARBLER.
Aquatic AcCENTOR. New York Warer TurusH. ¢ @: Uniform dark olive-brown ;
wings and tail similar, unmarked ; below, pale sulphury-yellow, everywhere, except perhaps on
the middle of the belly, thickly speckled or streaked with dark olive-brown, the markings small-
est on the throat, largest on the sides. A long dull whitish superciliary line. Bill and feet dark.
Length 5.50-6.00; extent 8.50-9.50; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.25; bill not over 0.50 along
the culmen. The sexes do not differ appreciably. The shade of the upper parts varies from a
decidedly olivaceous-brown to a purer, darker bistre-brown, and that of the under parts from
sulphur-yellow to nearly white; but it is never of the buffy-white of S. motacilla. The streak-
ing varies in amount and intensity, but has a sharp distinct character in comparison with S.
motacilla, and is rarely if ever absent from the throat. No bill over 0.50, and this member lacks
the peculiar shape, as well as size, characteristic of S. motacilla. The very young bird sooty-
blackish, each feather of the upper parts with terminal bar of ochraceous; wing-coverts tipped
with the same, forming two bars; streaks below as in the adult, but broader, and not so sharply
defined. N. Am. at large, breeding in most if not all of its range; winters from the southern
border southward; a common inhabitant of thickets, swamps, and morasses, less frequently of -
mixed woodland. Nest usually under a stump or log, of mosses, leaves, and grasses, lined with
rootlets; eggs 4-6, brilliant white, profusely speckled, 0.80 < 0.60.

S. n. nota/bilis? (Lat. notabilis, noteworthy.) Wyominc Water TorusH. Described as
identical in coloration with the last, but larger; wing 3.25; tail 2.50; bill from nostril 0.50;
its depth at base 0.25; tarsus 0.83: middle toe without claw 0.56. Wyoming, one specimen:
very doubtful.

S. motacil/la. (Lat. motacilla, a wag-tail. See p. 284.) LARGE-BILLED WAGTAIL WARBLER.
Louistana Warer Torus. Very similar to 8. nevius; larger; length 6.00-6.25; extent
10.00-10.75 ; wing 3.00—-3.25 ; bill especially longer and stouter, over 0.50; tarsus nearly 1.00.
Under parts white, only faintly tinged, and chiefly on the flanks and crissum, with buff (not
sulphury-yellow) ; the streaks sparse, pale, and not very sharp; throat, as well as belly and
erissum, unmarked; legs pale. Ihave yet to see a specimen I cannot distinguish on sight;
the size of the bill is by no means the only character, though it is a principal one. Eastern
U. S., rather southern, and not very common; N. to Massachusetts regularly, sometimes to

‘ Maine; W. to Kausas, Indian Territory, and Texas ; more abundant in the Mississippi Valley;

breeds in its U.S. range at large; winters extralimital. Habits, nest and eggs like those of
S. nevius. A sweet and skilful songster.
OPOROR'NIS. (Gr. dmepa, opora, autumn ; épus, ornis, a bird: noting the abundance of
O. agilis in the fall.) BusH Warsiers. Bill of ordinary Sylvicoline characters. Rictal
bristles short but evident. Wings pointed, much longer than tail; Ist quill nearly or quite
longest. Tail nearly even, with acute feathers; wings and tail unmarked, like the back.
Under tail-coverts long and copious. Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw. Feet pale-
colored; back, wings, and tail olive; under parts yellow; black or ashy on head. Sexes alike.
Analysis of Species.

Head without black ; crown and throat ash; a whitisheye-ring . .. 0... 0. é agilis 139

Head with black; line over eye and under parts yellows . . . . . Bi ating, Slee Ee Jormosa 140
O. a/gilis. (Lat. agilis, agile, active.) CoNNECTICUT WARBLER. Olive-green, becoming
ashy on the head; below, from the breast, yellow, olive-shaded on the sides ; chin, throat, and
breast dark ash; a whitish ring round eye; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive ;
under mandible and feet pale; no decided markings anywhere. Length about 5.50; extent

140.

42

141.

310 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES

8.50-9.00; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.00. In spring birds the ash of the head and throat is quite
pure, and very dark, almost black on the breast; then the resemblance to Geothlypis phila-
delphia is close; but in the latter the wings are little if any longer than the tail. In the fall
the upper parts from bill to tail are nearly uniform olive, and the ash of the throat is pale.
Eastern U. 8., not commonly observed in the spring ; abounding in the fall in some localities ;
ashy, fugitive inhabitant of brushwood and thickets. Distribution, migration, and breeding still
imperfectly known.
O.formo'sa. (Lat. formosa, shapely, comely ; hence, beautiful in any way. Fig. 170.) Ken-
TUCKY WARBLER. 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. Length 5.50-5.75; extent about 9.25; wing 2.75-3.00 ;
tail 2.25. Young birds have the black obscure, if not wanting ;
in the fall, the black feathers of the crown of the adult are
skirted with ash. Eastern U.8., N. to the Connecticut Valley ;
also known to occur near Giushee Not abundant, but common
Fic. 170. — Kentucky Warbler, in certain sections, as in Illinois, Kansas, and other portious
mat siso Gs dina dele 02 of the Mississippi Valley. Breeds throughout its U.S. range ;
winters extralimital. A beautiful object, gleaming like gold in the tangle and débris of thick
dark woods and swamps. Nest on the ground, or in rubbish near it, of leaves, grasses, weed-
stems and rootlets, large and shallow; eggs 4-5, 0.70 x 0.56, erystal-white, sprinkled with
reddish dots.
GEO/THLYPIS. (Gr. yj or yea, ge or gea, the earth, and Odumis or Opaumis, thlupis or
thraupis, name of some bird.) GRouND WARBLERS. Bill of ordinary Sylvicoline characters ;
rictal bristles very slight. Wings remarkably short and much rounded, scarcely or not longer
than the rounded tail. Legs stout; tarsi longer than middle toe. Of medium and rather
small size for this family. Coloration olivaceous above, with yellow below. Tail rounded,
without white spots. Legs pale-colored. Habits somewhat terrestrial. Nest on the ground
or near it. This genus affords several species more or less resembling the common Mary-
land Yellow-throat, chiefly of the warmer parts of America — three of N. Am. They are
well distinguished from other Warblers by the extreme shortness of the wings, which are
searcely or not longer than the tail, and ,by the size of the pale-colored legs, which indicates
somewhat terrestrial habits. Our species are familiar inhabitants of the shrubbery, ordinarily
keeping near the ground, where the nest is usually placed.

Analysis of Species.
Sexes quite unlike: g witha black mask bordered with ash, and throat yellow; 9 with head plain trichas 141
Sexes nearly alike: head and throat ashy, deepening on breast.
No white eyelids ; breast of adult f quite blackish. . 2... +. we eee - philadelphia 142
White eyelids ; breast of adult ¢ scarcely different from throat at ee . macgillirrayi 143
G. trich’as. (Gr. tpiyds, name of some bird in Aristotle. Fig. 171.) YELLOw-THROATED
Grounp WARBLER. MARYLAND YELLOW-THROAT. 6, in summer: Upper parts rich olive,
inclining to grayish on the head, brightest on the rump. Wings and tail brown, edged with the
color of the back. Chin, throat, and breast, with under wing- and tail-coverts, rich yellow.
Middle under parts dull whitish, shaded on the sides. A broad black mask onthe front and sides
of the head, bordered behind by hoary-ash. Bill black; feet flesh-colured. Length 4.75-5.00 ;
extent 6.50-6.90; wing 1.90-2.10; tail rather more. 9, in summer: Rather smaller; yellow
of the under parts paler and more restricted ; no black or ashy markings on head, but crown
usually with some concealed reddish-brown. . Otherwise top and sides of head like back, with

142.

143.

SYLVICOLIDA) — ICTERIINZ: CHATS. 311

some obscure whitishness about the lores and orbits. Young: Similar to the adult female, but
the olive of the upper parts with much of a brownish tinge, the yellow parts and, in fact, most
of the under parts, quite buffy. The adults, in fall and winter, are similar to each other, except
in the purer and stronger yellow of the male, as at that season
the peculiar black and ashy markings of the head are wanting.
Both sexes then resemble the autumnal plumage of the young
in the browner shade of the olive and buffiness of the under parts.
U.S8., from Atlantie to Pacific; breeds throughout this range ;
winters froin the southern border southward. An abundant and
familiar inhabitant of shrubbery and underbrush, the sameness
of which is enlivened by its sprightly presence and hearty song sires pd avian ee
throughout the summer months. Nest on the ground or near it, jow-throat, g, nat. size. (Ad
usually carefully concealed, of large size and built of any rnb- nat. del. E.G.)

bish; eges 4-6, usually 0.60-0.70 long by 0.50-0.55, white, rather sparingly sprinkled, and
mostly at the large end, with several shades of brown: but the markings, like the size and
shape of the eggs, are very variable.

G. philadel’/phia. (To the city of brotherly love; Gr. @réw, phileo, Llove; ddeAgdds, adelphos,
brother.) MourninG WarBLer. ¢ 9, in spring: Bright olive, below clear yellow ; on the
head the olive passes insensibly into ash; in high plumage of ¢ the throat and breast black ;
but generally ash, showing black traces, the feathers being black veiled with ash, producing a
peculiar appearance suggestive of the bird’s wearing crape; wings and tail unmarked, glossed
with olive; under mandible and feet flesh-color; no white about eyes in adult . Young,
and generally fall specimens: Ash of the fore parts veiled with olive; sides and across breast
quite olivaceous, leaving only central line of under parts yellow; blackish-ash of jugtlum veiled
by bright yellow tips of the feathers ; eyelids brownish-yellow. Young birds have little or no
ash on the head, and no black on the throat, thus resembling Oporornis agilis; but are of
course distinguishable by their generic characters. Length 5.25-5.50; extent 7.50-8.00;
wing and tail, each, about 2.25. Eastern U. §., W. to Kansas and Dakota, rare in most
‘localities in the Atlantic States, but abundant in the Mississippi Valley; migratory; no record
of wintering in the U. '8.; breeds chiefly in the northernmost tier of States and along the British
border. Nidification like that of @. trichas; eggs not distinguishable.

G. macgillivrayi. (To Wm. MacGillivray, the eminent Scotch ornithologist, co-author of
Audubon’s works.) Maceiiivray’s WarBLer. g 9: Upper parts, including exposed
surfaces of wings and tail, clear olive-green; below, bright. yellow, shaded with olive on the
sides. Head and neck all around, throat, and fore breast, clear ashy ; eyelids white ; the loral

_ region usually dusky, the throat with blackish centres to the feathers, veiled by their gray
' skirting. Upper mandible blackish ; under mandible and feet flesh-colored or pale yellowish.

Length 5.25 ; extent 5.75-8.00; wing and tail, each, about 2.25. Seasonal and sexual differerices
those of G. philadelphia, of which it is the Western representative, differing in having white
eyelids, and in never showing a decided black patch on the breast, which is conspicuous in the
highly plumaged ¢ of the other form; but thus closely resembling 9 philadelphia, which nor-
mally shows a whitish eye-ring, and has not the breast quite black. Middle and Western
Provinces of the U. S., E. to the limit of trees on the plains, N. to British Columbia ; abundant,
migratory ; breeds throughout its U. 8. range; winters beyond. Nest and eggs as in others of
the genus.

16. Subfamily ICTERIINA: Chats.

A small group, framed to accommodate the following genus and its two tropical allies,
Granatellus and Teretistris; it is perhaps questionable whether they are most naturally classed
with the Warblers.

144.

145.

812 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

ICTE/RIA. (Gr. ikrepos, ikteros, the jaundice; hence, yellowness; from the bird’s golden
breast.) Cuats. ‘Bill stout, high at the base (higher than broad at nostrils), thence com-
pressed ; unnotched, unbristled, with much curved culmen and commissure. Frontal feathers
reaching the nostrils, which are subcircular and scaled. Wings much rounded, shorter or not
longer than the graduated tuil. Tarsus partly booted, longer than middle toe; feet stout.
Inner toe cleft to the degree usually seen in this family. Of largest size for this family. Form
stout. Coloration simple, chiefly olive, yellow, and white. Sexesalike. Nestin bushes. Eggs
white, spotted. Probably only one species.
I. virens. (Lat. virens, being green. Fig. 172.) YELLOW-BREASTED CHaT. £9, adult:
Bright olive-green, below golden-yellow, belly abruptly white ; lore black, isolating the white
under-eyelid from a white superciliary line above and a short white maxillary line below; wings
and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; bill blue-black ;
feet plumbeous. Length about 7.50; extent about 10.00;
wing about 3.00; tail about 3.25. Little difference with
age, sex, or season in the plumage of this rich bird; very
young have the fore under parts gray or white slashed
with yellow, no black on lore, and lower mandible pale;
white of belly and crissum tinged with buff. Eastern U.S.,
N.to Massachusetts, abundant, migratory ; breeds through-
Fic. 172. — Yellow-breasted Chat, nat, out its range; an exclusive inhabitant of low tangled un-
size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) dergrowth, and oftener heard than seen, except during the
mating season, when it performs thé extravagant aérial evolutions for which, as well as for
the variety and volubility of its song, itis noted. Nest in a crotch of a bush near the ground ;
eggs 3-4, very variable in size and markings. about 1.00 x 0.80, white, dotted, spotted or
blotched with reddish-browns and the usual lilac shell-markings.
I. v. longicau’da. (Lat. longus, long; cauda, tail.) Lone-raitep Cuat. ¢ 9: Entire
upper parts, including exposed surfaces of the wings and tail, grayish-olive. Quills of the wings
and tail fuscous. Fore half of body below, including lining of the wings, rich yellow; hinder
half white, shaded with gray on the sides. Loral region black; a sharp maxillary line,
another from nostril over the eye, and the under eyelid, white. Bill blackish-plumbeous ; feet
plumbeous. Size of the last; tail averaging longer. Middle and Western Provinces of the
U.S. This form, in its typical manifestation, differs from viens in the shade of the upper
parts — quite grayish instead of pure olive-green ; in the dullest-colored birds there is scarcely
a tinge of olive in the gray of the wpper parts. The yellow of the breast is as rich, however, as
that of virens. As in the cases of so many birds from this region, the tail averages longer than
that of Eastern representatives of the same species.

. 17. Subfamily SETOPHACINA: Fly-catching Warblers.

These usually have the bill depressed, broader than high at base, notched and hooked at tip,
and furnished with long stiff bristles that reach half-way or more from the nostrils to the end
of the bill. In other respects they are not distinguished from the rest of the family. While
many or most other Sylvicolide are expert in taking insects on the wing, these capture their
prey in the air with special address, simulating in this respect the true Clamatorial flyeatchers
with which some species of Setophaga used to be classed in the extensive old genus Musci-
capa.” It is hardly necessary to say that, however closely some of them may resemble the
Tyrannide, they are at once distinguished from those Clamatorial birds by the Oscine character
of the tarsi, and the presence of only nine primaries. The Setophagine are most developed in
Central and South America, where they are represented by three or four genera, and upwards of
forty species. They include some very brilliant little birds, with glossy black, orange, and even
carmine red, very likely mistaken by heedless bugs for the tints of flowers. Besides the species

44,

146.

147.

SYLVICOLIDE — SETOPHAGINZE: FLY-CATCHING WARBLERS. 3138

to be described, four or five others may be expected to occur over our Mexican border, — ainong
them the lovely Cardellina rubra, which is carmine red all over, with silky white ears; Seto-
phaga miniata, very near 8. picta ; and species of the genus Basileuterus. Our three genera
are readily distthguished, so far as our species are concerned, by coloration.

Analysis of Genera.

og Black, white, and orange; 2 brown, white, and yellow % i Oe - 1 0 + « 6 . Setophaga 46
3 @ Ashy, white, and carmine or rosy red. . c r a: 8 Bes fade Ca Cardellina 45
8 @ Without brown, red, ororange . . § : ee oe . Myiodioctes 44

MYIODIOC'TES. (Gr. pvia, muia, a tly, and dim«rns, dioktes, a pursuer.) FLY-CATCHING
Wars.ers. Bill Muscicapine, though with lateral outlines a little concave, broad and depressed
at base, with many obvious rictal bristles reaching decidedly beyoud the nostrils; enlinen and
coinmissure nearly straight. Wings pointed, as in most Sylvicolide, longer than tail; 1st quill
longer than 5th, 3d equalling or exceeding 4th. Tail narrow, even or little rounded. Middle
toe without claw about three-fifths as long as tarsus. Tail unmarked, or with white blotches
as in Dendreca. No red or flame-color; always yellow below. Comprehends three species,
well distinguished among Sylvicolide by the development of the rictal bristles and the depressed
shape of the bill, though these Muscicapine characters are not pushed to the extreme seen in
Setophaga. The tail is narrow, lacking the fan-shaped contour of that of Setophaga, and the feet
are stouter, with louger toes. In Cardellina, a near ally, the bill is narrow and conoidal, some-
what Parine in appearance, with curved culmen. In Bescleuterus, and in fact in all the extra-
limital forms of the Fly-catching Warblers, the wing is rounded, with the 1st quill shorter than
the 5th.

Analysis of Species.

Olive and yellow ; tail-feathers white-blotched . as i . mitratus 146
Olive and yellow; tail-feathers plain . » 3 . pusillus 147
Ashy-blue und yellow: tail-feathers plain . . . . : 8 canadensis 149

M. mitra/tus. (Lat. mitratus, wearing a mitre, or other head-dress, Fig. 173.) Hooprp Fiy-
CATCHING WARBLER. 4, adult: Clear yellow-olive above; below, rich yellow, shaded with
olive along the sides; whole head and ueck pure black, en-
closing a broad golden mask across forehead and through eyes ;
wings unmarked, glossed with olive; tail with large white
blotches on the two or three outer pairs of feathers, as in
Dendreca; bill black ; feet flesh-colored. Length 5.00-5.25 ;
extent 8.50; wing about 2.75; tail about 2.25. 9, adult,
and young @, with the black restricted or interrupted, if not
wholly wanting, as it is in the earlier stages, when the parts
concerned are simply colored to correspond with the upper
Fic. 173.— Hooded Warbler, nat. and under surfaces of the bird. Hood said to be not perfected
eee AA REN eee a till the third year, and to be finally acquired, in the fulness
of its extent if not in the purity of the black, by the female. Eastern U. &., strictly; N.
regularly to the Connecticut Valley ; W. to Kansas; inigratory ; breeds at large in its U. &.
range; winters extralimital. A lovely bird, reminding one of the
Kentucky warbler, common in the south in such brakes and bottoms
as the Kentucky haunts, rarer northward. Nest in bushes; eggs 4,
about 0.70 X 0.50, as usual white, reddish-sprinkled.
M. pusil/lus. (Lat. pusillus, pnerile, petty, small. Fig. 174.)
BLACK-CAPPED FLy-CATCHING WARBLER. 6, adult: Upper
parts, including exposed edgings of the wings and tail, bright yel- ===
lowish-olive ; under parts, including front and sides of the head Fic. 174. — Black-capped

ea : F ‘ f Warbler, nat. size. (Ad nat,
and superciliary line, rich yellow, shaded with olive on the sides. A del. E.C.)

148,

149.

150.

314 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

squarish, glossy blue-black patch on the crown. Wings and tail plain fuscous, with greenish
edgings, unmarked with other color. Upper mandible dark; under mandible and feet light.
Length 4.75; extent 6.75-7.00; wing 2.00-2.25: tail 2.00. 9@,and young: Lacking the
black cap, the crown being colored like the back. There is very little variation in this species,
according to age or season, though the adult summer birds are the more richly colored. N. Am.
at large, in wooded regions ; common, 1nigratory. Breeds from the northernmost States north-
ward to the limit of trees, and in the Rocky Mts. as far south as Colorado at least; winters
extralimital. Nest on the ground; eggs 4-5. 0.60 & 0.50, white, speckled and blotched with
dark reddish-brown and lilac.
M. p. pileola/tus. (Lat. pileolatus, wearing the pileum, a kind of cap.) WESTERN Buack-
CAPPED FLy-CATCHING WARBLER. Specimens from the Southern Rocky Mts. and Pacifie
coast region are frequently of a brighter yellow, almost orange, on the head and fore parts
below, with the under mandible bright yellow.
M. canaden’sis. (Lat. of Canada. Fig. 175.) Canxaptan Fry-carcutxG WARBLER. 4,
adult in spring: Bluish-ash; erown speckled with lanceolate black marks, crowded and gen-
erally continuous on the forehead; the latter divided length-
wise 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
of jet; excepting these streaks and the white under tail-coverts,
the entire under parts are clear yellow; wings and tail unmarked;
feet flesh-colur. g in autumn with the yellow very rich, even
tipping the feathers of the black necklace. Length 5.25-5.50;
: extent 7.75-8.25 ; wing 2.50; tail 2.25. Inthe 9 and young the
Fre es EW black of crown, cheeks, and necklace is obscure or much restricted
eatching Warbler. (Ad nat. ? ’ ’
del. E. C.) and in the young the back may be glossed with olive; but they
cannot be mistaken for any other species. Eastern N. Am., an abundant and beautiful wood-
land species, migratory, breeding from the Middle States occasionally, from New England regu-
larly, northward to the limit of trees. Nest on the ground, in which respect species of this
genus differ from most Sylvicolide and resemble Helminthophila; eggs 4-3, 0.75 X 0.55.
white, dotted and blotched with reddish-brown after the usual fashion of warbler exgs.
CARDELLINA. (Apparently derived from Lat. carduelis, a kind of Finch; carduus, a
thistle.) Rose Fry-carcninc Warsiers. Bill Parine in shape, much shorter than head,
high at base, culmen convex throughout ; commissure curved. Rictal bristles stiff, but hardly
reaching half-way from nostrils to tip of bill, which shows scarcely a trace of notch. Wings
long and pointed ; 2d, 3d, and 4th quills nearly equal and longest ; Ist a little longer than 5th.
Tail shorter than wings, nearly even. Feet small; tarsal scutella indistinct externally; tarsus
longer than middle toe and claw.
C. rwbrifrons. (Lat. ruber, red; frons, front, forehead.) REp-FRONTED FLY-CATCHING
WARBLER. ¢ 9: Upper parts ash, wings and tail rather darker, edged with ashy-white:
a broader and whiter bar across ends of median coverts. Below, from the breast, white, more
or less shaded with ashy on the sides, and tinged with rosy. Rump and a nuchal patch white,
or rosy-white. Whole head, throat, sides of the neck. and fore breast, bright red, with a broad
black cap extending down on the sides of the head, involving the eyes and ears, ending ina
point below the auriculars. The border of this cap is squarely transverse against the red of the
forehead from eye to eye; behind it, the red reaches up the sides of neck, but not across the
back of the neck, the white nuchal area there meeting the ashy of the back. Bill and feet
dark. In the highest summer plumage, the red is rich and carmine in hue, the cap glossy-
black : the under parts are much tinged with rosy: the rump is snowy-white. Less richly-

46.

151.

i

SYLVICOLIDA — SETOPHAGINZ: FLY-CATCHING WARBLERS. 315

feathered specimens have the head plain red, the cap sooty-black. There is much difference in
the character of the white on the nape. Length 5.00: wing 2.66; tail 2.50; tarsus 0.66;
bill 0.33, quite different in shape from that of Setophaga. Young, newly fledged: Ash of upper
parts much shaded with brown, and white of the under parts the same. Rump snowy-white,
as in the adult, but the nuchal patch obscure or inappreciable. Wings and tail as in the adult,
but with browner edgings. Black cap restricted to top of head, and of a dull sooty cast. Red.
parts of the adult, including those parts of the side of the head which are occupied in the adult
with the extension of the black cap, dull grayish-brown, tinged or irregularly slashed with red,
especially on the forehead and throat. Bill light brown; feet pale. Arizona, and doubtless
New Mexico and Texas; common in the pineries of Southern Arizona.
SETO’/PHAGA. (Gr. o7s, ontds, ses, setos, au insect; day, phago, I eat.) Repsrarts.
Bill thoroughly Museicapine in depression and breadth at base, where wider than high,
straightness of superior and lateral outlines, and development of rictal bristles, which reach far
beyond the nostrils. Wings pointed, not shorter than tail; 2d, 3d, and 4th quills nearly equal
and longest; Ist intermediate between 4th and 5th. ‘Tail rather long and fan-shaped, with
broad flat feathers, widening at their ends. Feet slender, with loug tarsi indistinctly scutellate
externally, and short toes, the middle one without its claw being about half as long as the
tarsus. Coloration indeterminate. Habits arboricole and Muscicapiue. The genus has been
made to cover considerable variety in form among the numerous species of Fly-catching Warblers
of subtropical and tropical America, where it is best represented. The diagnosis, drawn up
from S. ruticilla, may require some little modification in order to its applicability even to S.
picta. All the extralimital species differ in the shorter and more rounded wing and other char-
acters. S. ruticilla is the only species in which the sexes are decidedly dissimilar in color;
even in S. picta, the nearest ally, they are substantially alike ; and in all the rest, in which the
coloration is very various, there is no obvious difference between the sexes. Species of Seto-
phaga (including Mytoborus and Euthlypis), to the number of twelve or more, are recognized
by late authors. S. ruticilla is the only one that is generally distributed in North America.
Analysis of Species

¢ Black, white, and orange; ? brown, white, and yellow Go : : . ruticilla 152

Fe Black, white, and carmine-red . ‘ - . pieta 151
S. pie'ta. (Lat. picta, painted. Fig. 116.) PAINTED FLY-CATCHING WARBLER. 9:
Lustrous black; middle of breast and belly carmine-red ; eyelids, a large pateh on the wings
formed by the greater and iniddle coverts, broad edging
of inner secondaries, edging of. inner webs of primaries
toward the base, lining of wings, nearly all the outer tail-
feather, and a diminishing space on the next two or three,
together with the crissum, white. Bill and feet black.
Length 5 inches; wing and tail each 2.75; tarsus 0.66;
bill 0.83-0.40. @ not particularly different from the ¢,
though rather less richly colored. In poor plumages, the
black is not so lustrous; red of the belly less extensive and
of a more bricky-red tone; white of the wings aud tail nore
restricted. Very young: Dull black, or only slightly lus- Fic; 176i Patited Fly-catehing
trous ; white nearly as in the adult ; spot on lower eyelid, | Warbler. (Ad nat. del. H. W. Elliott.)
patch on wing, outer edge of first primary only, outer edges of secondaries, inside of wings,
axillars, crissum, tibize, outer tail-feather except at base, and a diminishing space on the second
and thira, wnite. Arizona and N. Mexico, and doubtless also Texas; common in Santa Rita
Mts. of Arizona. Nest found ‘under a projecting stone, in a bank near a stream”; large, flat,
shallow, of bark, weed-fibre, grasses and a few hairs. Eggs 8, 0.65 X 0.50, white, speckled
and wreathed with pale reddish-brown.

316 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

S. ruticil’la. (Lat. ruticilla, red-tail; rutilus, reddish: ‘‘redstart” is corrupted from roth-
stert, red-tail.) AmeriIcAN Repstart. g, adult: Lustrous blue-black. the belly, flanks
and crissum white. Sides of the body and lining of wings rich flame-color, which often
tinges the breast quite across. Basal portions of all the wing-quills, excepting the innermost
secondaries, the same rich reddish-orange, brightest on the outer webs, where it forms a con-
spicnous exposed spot, paler and more extensive on the inner webs. All the lateral tail-
feathers similarly colored for half or more of their length, the orange meeting the black
abruptly with transverse outline. Bill and feet black. Length 5.00-5.50; extent 7.50-8.00 -
wing 2.25-2.50; tail the same; bill 0.33; tarsus 0.66. 9, adult: The black of the g replaced
on the upper parts with olive, growing more ashy ou the head, on the wings with fuscous, and
below with white. Sides rich yellow where the J is orange, this color ofteu tinging the breast

efor!
Se

wal want oi

Fic. 177. — Honey Creeper (Certhiola flaveola; not distinguishable in a cut from C. bahamensis), $ nat. size.
(From Brehm.)
dusky ; eyelids and slight stripe from nostrils to eye whitish. Rather smaller than the g, about
equal to the lesser several dimensions given. ¢, young: Like the Q, but the upper parts more
brownish, the tail quite black, and the yellow of the sides brighter. Males changing in the
spring to their final plumage are irregularly patched with black in the general olivaceous and
white. The spring migration includes males in this condition, and others irregularly patched
with black, as well as those in perfect dress; whence it is evident that the redstart does nut
acquire his full-dress suit until in his third year. (See B.C. Y., p. 340.) Temperate N. Aim.,
but chiefly Eastern ;, W. to Utah. Breeds in most of its U.S., and all of its British American
range ; abundant from the Northern States. Nest a neat compact structure in the fork of a
shrub or sapling at little elevation; eggs 4-5, averaging 0.65-0.50, not distinguishable from
other warbler eggs. During the nuptial eestasies the lovely redstart shines among the birds
that throng the woodland, where his transparent beauty flashes like a lambent tongue of flame
at play amidst the tender pale green foliage of the trees.

47.

153.

48.

C@REBIDA): HONEY CREEPERS. TANAGRIDH: TANAGERS. 817

10. Family CQAREBIDZ: Honey Creepers.

Primaries 9, and other external characters very nearly as in the last family: but the bill is
generally slenderer and sharper, and often a little decurved. The line between the two famni-
lies has never been drawn with precision, and has become more difficult of expression since
some of the Sylvicolide have proven possessed of a peculiarity of the Carebide: deeply bifid,
penicillate tongue. As commonly understood, it is a small group containing perhaps 40 species
of pretty little birds, of the genera Certhiola, Diglossa, and Cereba, confined to tropical and
subtropical America, being especially numerous in the West Indies. Our species is merely a
stray visitor to Florida.

CERTHVOLA. (Diminutive of Lat. certhia, a creeper. Fig. 177.) Honry CREEPERS.
Bill little shorter than head, stout at base, but rapidly tapering to the extremely acute tip ;
whole bill much curved, culmen very convex, outline of under mandible continuously concave
from base to tip. Rictus unbristled. Wings long, exceeding the short rounded tail. Tarsus
longer than middle toe without claw. Contains about 15 species or varieties, mostly West
Indian.

C. bahamen’sis. (Of the Bahamas.) BanamAn Honty Creeper. Dark brown above ;
long superciliary line and under parts dull white; breast, edge of wing, and rump, bright
yellow; wings dusky, with a white spot at base of primaries, and whitish edging of the quills ;
tail dusky, tipped with white ; bill and feet black; eyes blue. Length 4.50; wing 2.33; tail
1.75. Florida; Bahamas; closely related to the Stock species, C. flaveola.

11. Family TANAGRIDA: Tanagers.

An extensive, brilliant family, confined to America,

abounding in species between the tropics. Its position

@ is a point at issue with ornithologists; it may naturally

S follow the Cerebide and Sylvicolide, though certainly

no families should stand between it and Fringillide.

In fact, certain tropical forms might be assigned to

either indifferently. The best definition of the Tana-

Fig. 178.—Dentirostral billof a Tana- gers is that given by the distinguished ornithologist

ger (Pyranga hepatica), nat. size. who called them ‘‘dentirostral finches ;” but this gen-

eralization, like other happy epigrams, is insusceptible of application in detail, and the Tana-

gers remain to be precisely characterized. As a consequence, the number of species can
hardly be approximately estimated ; but upwards of 300 are usually enumerated.

The single well-established North American genus may be recognized, among all the
birds of our country, by the combination of nine primaries and scutellate tarsi with a turgid
bill, notched at the tip and toothed or lobed near the middle of the maxillary tomia (fig. 178);
though this last character is sometimes so obscure that it might be looked at without being
seen. The species of Pyranga are birds of brilliant colors, with great seasonal and sexual
differences of plumage. They are frugivorous and insectivorous, and consequently migratory
in the United States. They inhabit woodland, lay 4-5 dark-colored, speckled eggs, nest in
trees, and are no great songsters. In distribution they are rather southerly, scarcely passing
northward beyond the U. 8. One species of another genus, Huphonia elegantissima, admitted
to our fauna upon insufficient evidence, doubtless occurs over the Mexican border.
PYRAN’GA. (Barbarous name of some South American bird.) Summer Tanacers. Bill
stout, turgid, conoidal, usually notched at tip, and with oue or more denticulations of the cut-
ting edge of upper mandible near middle of commissure. Rictal bristles well-developed. Nos-
trils basal, the frontal antie reaching them. Wings lengthened and pointed; first 4 feathers

154.

155.

156.

157.

818 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

subequal and longest. Tail moderate in length, shorter than wings, emarginate. ‘Tarsus nut
longer than middle toe; lateral toes about equal, outer eoherent with middle by nearly all of
the length of its basal joint. Sexes more or less unlike in color; red usually prevailing in the
male sex. Habits migratory, insectivorous, arboreal; voice not musical. Eggs spotted.
Four species of this beautiful genus inhabit the U. 8., three of them representing as many of
the sections into which it is divisible according to pattern of coloration. Numerous others are
found in the warmer parts of America.
Analysis of Species.
¢ Crimson or scarlet, with black wings and tail: Q clear olive and yellow. Nowing-bars . . . rubra 154
¢ Vermilion or rose-red, including wings and tail; 9 brownish-olive and buffy- al Bill light.
Smaller: length about 7.50; wing 3.75 os os # e . @stiva 155
Larger: length about 8.00; wing 4.25 as os ra dt 6 ae Vay we Ay cooperi 156
g Dusky-red above, including wings and tail. g ashy-olive and yellow. Billdark. . . . . hepatica 157
& Yellow, with scarlet head and black back, wings and tail. @ clear olive and yellow, with 2 wing-bars
ludoviciana 158
P. rub’ra, (Lat. rubra, red.) SCARLET TANAGER. , adult: Crimson or scarlet ; wings
and tail black; bill and feet dark horn-color. @Q, adult: Above, clear olive-green; below,
clear greenish-yellow ; wings and tail dusky, glossed with the color of the back ; no wing-
bars. , young: Like the @ ; later, when changing, patched with red, green, and black.
Adult males often show abnormal coloring, the body being yellow, orange, or flame-color;
or red patches appeazog on the wing coverts. @ said to change back tu plumage of 9 at
each fall moult (?) Length 6.75-7.00; extent 11.00-12.00 ; wing 3.50-3.90 ; tail about 3.00.
Eastern U. S. and adjoining British Provinces, strictly; W. to Kansas, Indian Territory, and
Texas ; not common N. of Massachusetts ; breeds throughout its U. 8. range; winters extra-
limital. This brilliant creature nests in woods, groves, and orchards, upon the horizontal
bough of a tree, building a rather loose and shallow fabric of twigs, fibres, rootlets, etc. Eggs
3-5, 0.95 X 0.65, dull greenish-blue, fully spotted with brown and lilac.
P. esti'va. (Lat. estiva, summery; @stas, summer.) Rose TanaGer. Summer Rep-
BIRD. 4, adult: Rich rose-red or vermilion, including wings and tail; the former dusky on
unexposed portions of the feathers; bill pale; feet darkér. 9, adult: Dull brownish-olive
above, below dull brownish-yellow; uo wing-bars. @, young: Like the 9. ¢ changing
plumage shows red, greenish and yellowish in irregular patches, but no black. The Q distin-
guished from Q rubra by the dull brownish, ochrey, or buffy shades of the olive and yellowish,
the greenish and yellowish of Q rubra being much clearer and paler; also by the paler bill
and feet. The tint of mature Rais varies greatly : from rosy to bricky red. Size of rubra,
or rather larger. Eastern U. &., strictly, and rather southerly ; N. rarely to Connecticut, ouly
casually farther; W. to Kansas, Indian Territory, and Texas. Migratory, abundant; breeds
throughout its range; winters extralimital. Nesting and eggs like those of rubra.
P. a. coo’peri. (To Dr. J. G. Cooper, of California.) Cooper’s TANAGER. WESTERN SuM-
MER RED-BIRD. Characters of @stiva; back rather darker than head; larger; length about
8.00; extent about 13.00; wing 4.25; tail 3.60; bill 0.75 ; tarsus 0.80. Little distinguished.
Southern Rocky Mt. region.
P. hepa'tica. (Lat. hepar, hepatis, the liver.) Hepatic Taxacer. @, adult: Upper
parts brownish-ashy, intimately mixed with dull red; top of head, upper tail-coverts, and
edgings of wings and tail, brighter brownish-red. Inner webs and ends of wing-quills dusky ;
tail-feathers throughout decidedly tinged with red. Sides of the head like the back ; edges of
eyelids red. Below, bright red; sides and flanks shaded with the color of the back, many
feathers often also with ashy skirting. Bill and feet blackish-plumbeous, the cutting edge of
the upper mandible furnished with a tooth more prominent than in most species (fig. 178).
Length about 8.00; wing 4.00; tail 3.33; bill 0.66; tarsus 0.80. 9, adult: Bill and feet as
inthe g. Upper parts greenish-olive, with an ashy-gray tinge, the crown and rump clearer

158.

AHIRUNDINIDA:: SWALLOWS. 319

and more yellowish-olive. Sides of head like back. Beneath yellow, clear and nearly pure
medially, shaded on the sides with the color of the back, sometimes brightening almost into
orange on the throat. Quills and tail fuscous, with olivaceous-yellow edgings, the former
darker than the latter. Young ¢: Like the ¢ ; in males changing, the characters of the two
sexes confused. Very young: There is an earlier streaky stage, before the assumption of a
plumage like that’ of the 9. Upper parts grayish-brown with an olive tinge; lower parts
grayish-white with a yellowish shade; both everywhere streaked with dusky. Wings and tail
like those of adult 9, but the former with ochraceous bands across ends of greater and middle
coverts. Southern Rocky Mt. region and southward.

P. ludovicia‘na. (Lat. of Louisiana, formerly of great extent in the West; name now inap-
plicable.) CRIMSON-HEADED TANAGER. 6, adult: Middle of back, wings, and tail, black ;
wings crossed by two yellow or yellowish-white bars on ends of greater and iniddle coverts ;
inner secondaries marked with white or yellowish. Head all around scarlet or even crimson, the
color extending diluted on the breast.. Other parts bright yellow, generally purest on the rump.
Tris brown; bill horn-color; legs livid bluish. Length about 7.00; wing 3.50-4.00; tail
2.75-3.25; bill 0.60; tarsus 0.75. 9, adult: Above, olive, darker and sumewhat ashy-shaded
on middle of back, clearer and brighter on rump and crown. Below, greenish-yellow, shaded
with olive on sides. Wings and and tail fuscous, with edgings of the color of the upper parts ;
greater and median coverts tipped with white or yellowish ; inner secondaries edged with the
same. Averaging rather less than the g. The bird lacks the buffy shades characteristic of 2
estiva, besides being decidedly smaller. The general coloration, in its clear olive and yellow,
is exactly that of ‘rubra; from which distinguished by the white or yellow markings on the
wings. The ¢ at first resembles the 9, and in progress toward maturity every gradation
between the two is presented. ‘The distinctive dark dorsal area, and traces of the red of the
head, soon appear. Ina usual condition of incomplete dress, the black of the back is mixed
with gray or olive, the yellow of the back of the neck is vbscured, that of the under parts is
shaded with olive, and the head is only partly red. Upper Missouri region and eastern foot-
hills of the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific; British Columbia. Breeds iu all its N. A. range and
winters extralimital. Habits, nests, and eggs like those of our other Tanagers.

12. Family HIRUNDINIDA: Swallows.

Swallows are fissirostral Oscine Passeres with
nine primaries. Bill short, broad, flat, some-
what triangular, deeply cleft, the gape wide and
about twice as long as the culmen, the mouth
thus opening to about beneath the eyes. , This
is the strongest character of the fainily in com-
parison with its Oscine allies, and one perfectly
distinctive, though some genera of Hirundines,
especially Progne, approach the Ampelide in
the form of the bill. The bill narrows rapidly
to the compressed acute tip. Nasal fossze short
and wide ; nostrils directed laterally or upward,
$ sometimes circular and completely exposed,

Fig. 179.— European Barn Swallow, Hirundo sometimes scaled over. Culmen convex,
ragiica arom Dixon.) searcely a third as long as the head; tip of
upper mandible overhanging, usually nicked. Rictus smooth (or with a few inconspicuous
bristles ?). Wings extremely long and strong, the pinion bearing only 9 primaries, the 1st of
which equals or exceeds the 2d in length, the rest being so rapidly graduated that the 9th

320 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

is scarcely or not half as long as the Ist; secondaries and their coverts also very short; all
these quill-feathers broad and stout. An acute, thin-bladed and somewhat faleate wing, of
surpassing volatorial power, results from these modifications. Tail of 12 rectrices, perhaps
abnormally only 10, usually forked, or at least emarginate, and often deeply forficate, the
outermost feathers being in this latter case narrowly linear in shape for a considerable dis-
tance. Feet short, small,
and weak, ill-adapted to
secure foot-hold, and very
badly formed for walk-
ing. Swallows scarcely
use their feet for locomo-
tion, relying mainly upon
their prowess of pinion.
The tarsal envelope thor-
oughly Oscine in struct-
ure, being scutellate in
front and laminate behind;
it is sometimes partially,
or almost entirely, feath-
ered; the tarsi are com-
monly shorter than the
lateral toes. The digits
possess the normal number
.of phalanges; the basal
phalanx of the middle
digit is commonly coherent
with one or both lateral
toes; the hallux is ordi-
nary, and not reversible.
The digits are commonly
naked and seutellate, rare-
ly feathered to the claws.
The claws are compara-
tively stroug, compressed,
well-curved, and acute,
apt for clinging. The
plumage is soft, smooth,
and blended, most fre-
quently glossy or even
iridescent, but sometimes
vO i i lustreless. Head ek
DN, DONA at broad, and depressed ;
Zea VTL Bil neck short. Mouth capa-
Fic. 180.— Upper, European House Martin, Chelidon urbica; lower, Bank cious, its greatest width
Swallow, Cotile riparia. (From Dixon.) equalling that of the head.
This is a perfectly natural group, well distinguished by the foregoing characters. The
swallows alone represent, among Oscines, the fissirostral type of structure; they have a close
superficial resemblance to the swifts and goat-suckers of another order, but the relation is one
of analogy, not of affinity, though all these birds were formerly classed together in the highly
unnatural ‘ order” Fissirostres. (Sec beyond, under Cypselide aud Caprimulgide.)

= rr

‘i

49.

HIRUNDINIDZ:: SWALLOWS. 321

A hundred species of swallows are recorded; probably about three-fourths of them are
genuine. "They are distributed all over the world; the most generalized types, like Hirundo
itself, are more or less cosmopolitan, but each of the great divisions of the globe has its peculiar
subgenera or particular sets of species. Thus, all the American groups except Hirundo and
Cotile are peculiar to this continent.

Swallows are iusectivorous, and therefore migratory in cold and temperate latitudes ;
unsurpassed in powers of flight, they are enabled to pass with ease and swiftness from one
country to another, as the state of the weather may require. With us a few warm days in
February and March often allure them northward, only to be driven back again by the cold,
giving rise to the well-known adage. No birds are better known to all classes than these, and
none so welcome to man’s abode, — cherished witnesses of peace and plenty in the homestead,
dashing ornaments of the busy thoroughfare.

The habits of swallows best illustrate the modifying influences of civilization on indigenous
birds. Formerly, they all bred on cliffs, in banks, in hollows of trees, and similar places, and
many do so still. But most of our species have forsaken these primitive haunts to avail them-
selves of the convenient artificial nesting-places that man, intentionally or otherwise, provides.
Some are just now in a transition state ; thus the purple martin, in settled parts of the country,
chooses the boxes everywhere provided for its accommodation, while in the West it retains its
old custom of breeding in hollow trees. The nesting of our swallows now presents the follow-
ing categories of method : —

1. Holes in the ground, dug by the bird itself, slightly furnished with soft material : Cotile
riparia, Stelgidopteryx serripennis.

2. Holes in trees or rocks not made by the birds, fairly furnished with soft material :
Progne subis, Iridoprocne bicolor, Tachycineta thalassina.

3. Holes, or their equivalents, not made by the birds, but secured through human agency,
and more or less fully furnished with soft material, according to the shallowness or depth of the
retreat. (Formerly, no species ; now, all the species excepting Cotile riparia.)

4. Holes constructed by the birds, of mud, plastered to surfaces, whether artificial or natural,
and loosely furnished with soft material. This is seen in perfection in the nesting of Petro-
chelidon lunifrons, and is imperfectly illustrated by the nidification of Hirundo horreorum.

5. Eggs pure white, unmarked: Iridoprocne bicolor, Tachycineta thalassina, Cotile ripa-
ria, Stelgidopteryx serripennis, Progne subis.

6. Eggs thickly speckled: Hirundo horreorum, Petrochelidon lumifrons.

The seven established North American species, referable to as many modern genera, may
readily be determined by the following

. Analysis of Genera and Species.

. Tail deeply forficate, with linear lateral feathers ; lustrous steel-blue above, rufous below *
Hirundo erythrogastra horreorum 159

2, Tail simply emarginate; lustrous green; beneath white. . .....2.~., Iridoprocne bicolor 160
3. Tail simply emarginate; opaque velvety-green; beneath white .... . Tacliycineta thalassina 161
4, Tail nearly even; lustrous steel-blue; rumprufous . . 5 + + « « Petrochetidon lunifrons 162
5. Tarsus with tuft of feathers below; lustreless gray; below white ........ Cotile riparia 163
6. Outer edge of first primary serrate; lustreless brownish; paler below. . . Stelgidopteryx serripennis 164
7. Bill very stout, curved ; male entirely lustrous blue-black . .°. . . ay » . . Progne subis 165

HIRUN’DO. (Lat. hirundo, a swallow. Figs. 179, 181.) Barn Swatrows. Tail deeply
forficate, nearly or about as long as the wings ; lateral feather linear-attenuate, about twice as
long as the middle feather. Tarsi shorter than middle toe and claw, above feathered for a little
distance; basal joint of middle toe partly adherent to both lateral toes. Bill of moderate size
for this family, of the usual shape, with straight commissure ; nostrils lateral, overarched by a
membranous scale. Upper parts glossy, dark-colored; a dark pectoral collar; forehead and
under parts rufous; tail spotted with white. Eggs colored. Sexes similar.
21

822 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

159. H. erythrogas'tra horreo/rum. (Gr. ¢pvOpds, eruthros, ruddy, and yaornp, gaster, belly.

50.

160.

51.

Lat. horreorum, of barns, gen. pl. of horreum, a barn.) Barn SwaLiow. 4, adult: deep
lustrous steel-blue; forehead and entire under
parts rufous, generally deepest on the forehead
and throat; an impertect steel-blue collar.
Wings and tail blackish, with steel-blue or
somewhat greenish gloss; the lateral pair of
tail-feathers much lengthened and filiform at
the end, all but the central pair with a white
spot. Length 6.00-7.00, very variable, accord-
ing to the development of the tail; extent 12.50-
13.50; wing 4.50-5.00; tail 3.00-5.00, the fork
2.00-3.00 deep. 9, adult: Quite like the g;
colors rather less intense and lustrous; average
size smaller. Young: Lacking in great measure
the elongation and attenuation of the lateral tail-
feathers, the fork being an inch or less in depth.
Similar to the adults, but much duller, and with
rather a greenish than steel-blue lustre — at an
early age quite brown, with scarcely any lustre,
and the rump and upper tail-coverts skirted with
rusty. Frontlet obscurely marked or reduced to
Fic. 181. — Generic details of Hirwndo (H.hor- a mere tawny line, and under parts, especially
reorum, nat. size), (Ad nat. del. E. C.) behind the dark collar, very pale, even brownish-
white. N. Am. at large; abundant; breeds throughout its range.
IRIDOPROC'NE. (Gr. “Ipis, gen. “Ipsdos, Iris, messenger of the gods; also the rainbow ;
Ipd«vn, Procne, daughter of Pandion.) Iris SwaLLows. Plumage compact, lustrous, as ‘in
Hirundo ; but tail lacking the elongation of that genus, being simply emarginate. Under
parts snowy white. Eggs colorless. Sexes similar.
I. bicolor. (Lat. bicolor, two-colored. Fig. 182.) WHITE-BELLIED SWALLow. 4, adult:
Entire upper parts glossy dark green; wings and tail blackish, lustrous; lores black. Entire
under parts pure white. Bill black; feet dark. Length
about 6.00; extent 13.00; wing 4.50-5.00; tail 2.50.
9 : Similar, the colors rather less intense and lustrous.
Young: Birds of the year slowly acquire a plumage
differing only in the less lustre and intensity from that
of the adults; but, on leaving the nest, they are dark
mouse-gray or slate-color above, including the wings
and tail, the interscapulars and inner quills tipped with
rusty; and white below, slightly shaded with ashy ;
thus curiously similar to Cotile riparia. The feet yel-
low. The first plumage is worn longer than usual, the
autumnal dress being slowly gained — one or two of Fia. 182. — White-bellied Swallow, nat.
the metallic-tinted feathers at a time. The quills of size. (Adnat. del. E. C.)
the wing are moulted by the young as well as by the adult, and in both, in autumn, the inner
secondaries are white-tipped. Temperate N. Am. Breeds indifferently in all parts of its
Tange, and winters abundantly on the southern border.
TACHYCINE'TA. (Gr. raxvxivyros, tachukinetos, moving rapidly.) VIOLET-VELVET
SwatLows. Similar to the last, but lacking lustre of the richly varied plumage of the
upper parts.

161.

52.

162.

53.

HAHIRUNDINIDZA): SWALLOWS. 3238

T. thalas’sina. (Gr. Oaddoowos, thalassinos, sea-green.) VIOLET-GREEN SwaLLow. 4,
adult : Entire under parts, including the sides of the head to just above the eyes, and an enlarged
fluffy tuft on the flanks tending to join its fellow over the rump, pure silky white. Upper parts
rich, soft, velvety-green, mixed with a little violet-purple; the crown of the head similar, but
rather greenish-brown, with a purplish tinge. Cervical region, in some cases a well-defined
though narrow cervical collar, and the upper tail-coverts, violet-purple. These rich colors
opaque, without gloss or sheen ; wings and tail blackish, with violet and purplish gloss. Bill
black; feet brownish-black, small; iris brown; mouth pale yellow. Length 4.50-5.00 ;
extent 11.50-12.50; wing 4.50; tail 2.00, lightly forked; bill 0.25; tarsus 0.40. The 9,
and immature birds in general, differ simply in the less purity and intensity of the colors of

_ the upper parts. In the very highest plumaged specimens, the back is nearly pure green,

the cervical collar distinct, and the several contrasts of crown, collar, back, and upper tail-
coverts are strong; in general, the back has a brownish-purple shade, more like that of the
crown. Very young birds are like I. bicolor, though smaller, being dark mouse-gray above
and white below. But traces at least of the special tints speedily appear. Young or autumnal
birds usually have the inner secondaries white-tipped, as in I. bicolor. Middle and Western
Provinces, U. 8. and adjoining portions of British America; E. to the Upper Missouri. Breeds
throughout its range, and winters extralimital. A lovely species.

PETROCHELI'DON. (Gr. meérpa, petra, a rock; yedidav, chelidon, a swallow.) CLIFF
Swattows. Bill stout and deep (for this family) ; nostrils superior, opening without nasal
scale. Tail unusually short, the tips of the folded wings reaching beyond it, about even, or
only slightly emarginate, with the feathers broad to their ends. Feet much as in Hirundo ;
tarsi feathered above; toes extensively adherent at base. A bristly appearance of the front
and chin, different from what is seen in other groups. The tuft of crissal feathers is full,
reaching nearly to the end of the tail. The species agree well in a special pattern of coloration,
being steel-blue above, with rufous rump and nuchal band, and usually a frontlet of different
color from the rest of the upper parts; under parts not cuntinuously white as in Tachycineta
and Jridoprocne. The nidification peculiar ; eggs colored. Sexes alike.

P. lv’nifrons. (Lat. luna, the moon, or a crescent; frons, forehead. Fig. 183.) CLIFF
SwaLLtow. Eaves Swattow. Crescent Swattow. Mup Swattow. 9, adult:
Back and top of head, with a spot on the throat, deep lustrous steel-blue, that of the crown
and back separated by a grayish nuchal collar. Frontlet white
or brownish-white. Shorter upper tail-coverts rufous. Chin,
throat, and sides of head intense rufous, sometimes purplish-
chestnut, prolonged around the side of the nape. Under parts
dull grayish-brown, with usually a rufous tinge (rusty-gray),
and dusky shaft-lines, whitening on the belly, the under tail-
coverts gray, whitish-edged and tinged with rufous. Wings
and tail blackish, with slight gloss. Bill black; feet brown.
Length 5.00-5.50; extent 12.00 or more; wing 4.25-4.50; tail
2.25, nearly square. Sexes not distinguishable; both vary much S
in the tone of coloration, especially of the rufous parts. Fore- Fra. 183. — Cliff Swallow, nat.
head sometimes white, sometimes quite brown. In young birds, *!%¢ (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

the frontlet may be altogether wanting ; upper parts lustreless dark brown, most of the
feathers being skirted with whitish ; the rufous of the throat aud rump a mere tinge, the spot
on the throat wanting, and the parts often speckled with white. N. Am. at large, abundantly
but irregularly distributed, breeding in colonies wherever suitable sites may be found for its
curious retort-shaped or bottle-nosed nests of mud.

CO'TILE. (Gr. xoriAds, kotilas, a babbler, twitterer.) Bank SwaLLows. Tarsus with a
tuft of feathers at the base below, near insertion of the hind toe. Edge of wing not rough.

163.

54,

164.

324 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Claws little curved, the lateral reaching beyond the base of the middle one. Bill very small,
the nostrils opening laterally and overhung by a membrane. Tail much shorter than wings,
emarginate. Coloration dull and simple — lustreless brown above and across breast, white
below. Eggs uncolored, laid in holes in the ground excavated by the bird. Sexes alike.

C. riparia. (Lat. riparia, riparian; ripa, bank of a stream. Figs. 180, 184.) Bank
SWattow. g¢@: Lustreless mouse-
brown; wings and tail fuscous. Be-
low, white, with a broad pectoral
band of the color of the back. A
dusky ante-orbital spot. Length
about 5.00; extent 10.50; wing
4.00; tail 2.00. Sexes similar; the
young differ chiefly in whitish edg-
ings of the feathers, especially of
the wings and tail. Even in the
adult, the upper parts are apt to
be not quite uniform, there being
paler: gray edgings of most of the
feathers. The dark pectoral band
sometimes extends backward along
the middle of the under parts (not
shown in fig. 184). Autumnal speci-
mens have the secondaries white-
tipped. Very young birds have
rather rusty than whitish skirting
of the dark feathers, and the white
throat speckled with the same. Al-
most cosmopolitan: Europe, Asia,
Africa, America; abundant in N.
Am., breeding in immense troops in holes in the ground, wherever suitable sites offer, as
natural embankments, rail-road cuttings, gravel-pits, ete.

STELGIDO/PTERYX. (Gr. oredyis, stelgis, a scraper; mrépué, pterux, wing.) Roucs-
WINGED SWALLOWS. General aspect of Cotile ; form and coloration much the same. Outer
web of lst primary converted into a series of stiff, recurved hooks. (Other-Swallows, as Psali-
doprocne Cab., have this peculiar wing structure, but are otherwise different.) The design of
the structure is not clear, but we may readily suppose that the hooks assist the birds in crawl-
ing into their holes, and in clinging to vertical or hanging surfaces. Tarsus slightly feathered
above, but lacking the curious tuft seen at the base of the hind toe in Cotile. Lateral claws
curved, and not reaching beyond the base of the middle. Basal joint of middle toe exten-
sively adherent to the outer, much less so to the inner. Bill small, with oval, superior nostrils
margined by membrane behind, but not overhung. Tail short and slightly See Eggs
uncolored, in holes dug by the birds, or elsewhere. Sexes alike.

S. serripen/nis. (Lat. serra, a saw; penna, a feather.) RoUuGH-WINGED Sauenesy. a Qs
Lustreless mouse-brown or brownish-gray, paler below, gradually whitening posteriorly.
Wings and tail darker than the upper parts. Rather larger than the last species. No dark
pectoral band contrasting with white. No tuft of feathers at the base of the hind toe. Young:
At a very early age, the feathers of the back, rump, and wings are suffused or edged with rich
rusty-brown, while the under parts are more or less tinged with a paler shade of the same.
The hooklets of the wings are only fully developed in adult birds, and are not appreciable at
all in young ones. U.S. and adjoining British Provinces ; rare in Eastern States.

Fic. 184.— Bank Swallow. (Designed by H. W. Elliott.)

55.

165.

56.

AMPELIDA — AMPELINAE: WAXWINGS. 325

PROGNE. (Gr. Upon, Procne, a nythological character.) Of large size and robust form
for this family. Bill long and stout, with much-curved commissure and deflected tip; culmen
convex, its tomial edge concavo-convex like +,. Nostrils circular, opening upward, without
nasal scale. Fect large, with strong, much-curved claws; tarsus shorter than middle toe and
claw ; lateral toes about equalling each other in length ; basal joint of middle toe freer from
lateral toes than usual. Tail forked. Sexes dissimilar. Eggs colorless.

P. su’/bis. (Lat. subis, name of an unknown bird.) PurpLe Martin. 4, adult: Intense
lustrous steel-blue. Wings and tail blackish, with bluish lustre. Bill black; feet blackish.
Length 7.50 inches; extent 15.50; wing 5.50-6.00; tail 3.00-3.50, forked; bill 0.50, very
stout, broad at the base, somewhat decurved at the end; nostrils circular, exposed, opening
upward. 9: Dark grayish-brown, glossed on the back and head with steel-blue. Wings
and tail fuscous, paler on the inner webs, with narrow gray edgings. Beneath, whitish, shaded
with dark gray in most parts, the feathers very generally with dusky shaft-line. Young birds
of both sexes resemble the adult female, though the young males are rather darker. The steel-
blue appears at first in patches. U.S. and adjoining British Provinces, abundant and gener-
ally distributed; breeds throughout its range, usually in the East in boxes provided for its
accommodation, in the West in holes in trees.

18. Family AMPELIDA: Chatterers.

This appears to be an arbitrary and unnatural association of a few genera that agree in
some particulars, but are widely different in others. The composition and position of the group
differ with almost every writer; some place it in Clamatores, next to the Tyrannide. I think
that the family should be dismembered ; the Mytadestine are near the true Thrushes, and
doubtless the other two subfamilies here presented may be properly dissociated.

Birds of the three following genera agree in this character: Bill short, broad, flattened,
plainly notched at tip, with wide rictus, and culmen or gonys hardly or not exceeding half the
length of the commissure; basal phalanx of middle toe joined with outer toe for about two-
thirds its length, and to inner toe for about half its length. The three, considered separately,
may be readily and precisely defined.

18. Subfamily AMPELINA:: Waxwings.

Of this subfamily, as here restricted, there is only one genus with three species — one of
Europe, Asia, and America, one of Asia and Japan, one peculiar to America.
AM'PELIS. (Gr. dyedis, Lat. ampelis, name of a bird.) Waxwines. Bill short, broad,
flat, rather obtuse, plainly notched near tip of each mandible, with wide and deeply-cleft gape,
the convex culmen and gonys less than half as long as the nearly straight commissure, the
width of rictus more than two-thirds the length of the gape. Nasal fosse broad, but filled
with short, erect or antrorse, and close-set velvety feathers; nostrils narrowly elliptical, over-
arched by a (feathered) scale. ictal vibrissee few and short. Wings long and pointed, much
longer than the tail, their point formed by the 3d primary, closely supported by the 2d and 4th,
the 5th abruptly shorter and the rest rapidly graduated. Primaries 10, but the 1st spurious, so
very short as readily to escape observation, and sometimes displaced to the outer side of the 2d
primary, —a, condition like that seen among the Vireos. Inner quills, as a rule, and sometimes
the tail-feathers, tipped with curious red horny appendages, like sealing-wax. Tail short,
narrow, even, two-thirds or less of the length of the wing. Feet rather weak ; tarsus shorter
than the middle toe and claw, distinctly scutellate with five or six divisions anteriorly and some-
what receding from strict Oscine character by subdivision of the lateral plates. Lateral toes of
nearly equal lengths, the ends of their claws scarcely reaching the base of the middle claw ;
hallux about as long as the inner lateral toe. Basal phalanx of middle toe coherent with outer

166.

326 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

toe for about two-thirds its length, with inner toe for about half its length. Body stout. Head
conspicuously crested. Plumage peculiarly soft, smooth, and silky. Tail tipped with yellow
(or red, in the Japanese A. phenicoptera). Sexes alike; young different. Eggs spotted.
Nest on trees. R

A. gar'rulus. (Lat. garrulus, a jay-bird: from its loquacity. Fig. 185.) Bonemian Wax-
wince. @ @, adult: 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
heightening on the head, especially on the forehead and sides of the head, into orange-brown.
A narrow frontal line, and broader bar through the eye, with the chin and throat, sooty-black,
not or not sharply bordered with white. No yellowish on belly. Under tail-coverts orange-
brown, or chestnut. Tail ash, deepening to blackish-ash toward the end, broadly tipped with

Gee
(2

AS,
<<

Me
Wey
Wf

ESS

Uy

Tich 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 blackish-plumbeous, often paler at base below; feet black. Length 7 or 8 inches;
wing about 4.50; tail 2.50. The sexes of this beautiful bird are alike, and the principal varia-
tions, aside from mere shade of the body-color, consist in the markings of the wings. In the
finest specimens, the ends of the primary quills are rich. yellow, like the tips of the tail-feathers,
forming broad firm spaces, in a continuous line when the wing is closed, with narrower offsets
going around the ends of the quills. In less perfect specimens, these markings are simply
white, are less firm, and do not appear on all the quills. The secondaries may or may not
show the red ‘‘sealing-wax” tips, but in adult birds at least probably always show white

167.

AMPELIDZ — PTILOGONATINZ: FLY-SNAPPEBRS. 327

markings at the ends, and the same is the case with the primary coverts. These wing-mark-
ings, with the chestnut crissum, and absence of yellowish on the belly, will always distinguish
the species from A. cedrorum, independently of its much superior size. Young: There is an
early streaked stage of plumage, like that of A. cedrorum. Northern hemisphere, northerly,
wandering south in vast troops at irregular periods. In America, south regularly in winter to
the northern tier of States; in the Rocky Mts. much further; casually to about 35°. Rare on
the Pacific coast except in Alaska. Breeds in high latitudes, but down to the U. 8. border in
the Rocky Mts. Nesting substantially the same as that of A. cedrorum, and eggs only differ-
ent in their greater size — about 1.00 x 0.67.

A. cedro/rum. (Lat. cedrus, gen. pl. cedrorum, the cedar. Fig. 186.) Czpar Waxwine.
CAROLINA WAXWING. CEDAR-BIRD. CHERRY-BIRD. ¢ 9, adult: General color shading
from clear pure ash on the upper tail-coverts and rump through olivaceous-cinnamon into a
richer and somewhat purplish-cinnamon on the fore parts
and head. On the under parts, the color shades through
yellowish on the belly into white on the under tail-coverts.
There is no demarcation of color whatever,and the tints
are scarcely susceptible of adequate description. Frontlet,
lores, and stripe through the eye, velvety-black ; chin the
same, soon shading into the color of the breast. A sharp
white line on the side of the under jaw; a narrower one
bordering the black frontlet and lores; lower eyelid white.
Quills of the wings slate-gray, blackening at the ends,
paler along the edges of the inner webs; without white
or yellow markings, as a rule; inner quills tipped with
red horny appendages. ‘Tail-feathers like the primaries,
but tipped with yellow, and sometimes also showing red
horny appendages. Bill plumbeous-black, sometimes paler Fig. 186, —Cedar-bird, nat. size.
at base below; feet black. Length 6.50-7.25; extent (Ad nat. del. E.C.)

11.50-12.00; wing 3.50-3.75 ; tail 2.25. Young: Brownish-gray, with a slight olive shade;
paler below, whitening or becoming slightly yellowish on the belly ; everywhere streaked with
dingy whitish; the markings most evident on the breast and sides. Wings and tail as in the
adults, but usually lacking the red appendages. The velvety-black and white on the head
imperfectly defined. Bill pale at base below ; feet plumbeous. Specimens apparently mature
and full-feathered frequently lack the sealing-wax tips. These are normally confined to the
secondaries, but occasionally appear on one or several primaries, and some or all of the rectrices
(as in fig. 185); a case is recorded in which an under tail-covert was similarly embellished. Both
sexes possess these ornaments, but as a rule they are best developed in the g. The normal
period of their appearance is not known — it is probably not constant; birds in the earliest
known plumage may possess one or more. They are possibly deciduous, independently of
moult of the feather. Their use is unknown. N. Am. at large to lat. 54° N. at least; breeds
indifferently throughout its N. A. range, and migrates or rather wanders about according
to food-supply; winters in most of the U. 8.; goes in flocks nearly the whole year, and is
especially fond of resorting to cedar thickets to feed upon the berries; breeds late (June, July)
in orchards and groves; nest in trees or bushes, in the crotch of a bough or saddled on a limb;
eggs 3-6, livid or pale bluish, sharply and usually thickly marked with blackish surface spots
and others paler in the shell; narrow and elongate, about 0.82 X 0.60.

19. Subfamily PTILOCGCONATINA: Fly-snappers.

Bill much as in the last subfamily, but slenderer for its length ; nasal scale naked ; a few
short bristles about base of the bill. Tarsus scutellate anteriorly, and sometimes.also on

57.

168.

328 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

the sides; about as long as middle toe and claw; hind toe remarkably short. Wings not
longer than the tail, much rounded, of 10 primaries; the 1st spurious, less than half as long as
the 2d, which is only about as long as the 8th; point of the wing formed by the 4th, 5th, and
6th or 3d quills. Tail loug, nearly even, with broad plane feathers (Phainopepla) ; or much
graduated, with tapering central feathers (Ptilogonys). Head conspicuously crested; sexes
(in our genus) dissimilar; young not streaked or spotted. There are only two genera of the
subfamily as thus restricted —Phainopepla and Ptilogonys, the latter with two strongly
marked species of Mexico and Central America.

PHAINOPEP'LA. (Gr. ¢acivos, phaeinos, shining; mémdos, peplos, a robe.) SHINING Fiy-
SNAPPERS. Bill somewhat as in <Ampelis, but slenderer for its length; nostrils naked,
scaled; antie bristly, reaching to nostrils; a few short rictal bristles. Tarsus scutellate
anteriorly, and slightly subdivided on sides below. Hind toe very short; middle toe and claw
about as long as tarsus; lateral toes a little unequal, outer the longer, reaching a little ‘beyond
base of middle claw, its basal joint adherent to middle; inner lateral toe nearly free to the base ;_
claws all much curved. Wings not longer than tail, rounded, of 10 primaries, the 1st spurious,
though more than half as long as the 2d, which about equals the length of the secondaries :
point of wing formed by the 4th, 5th, and 6th quills. Tail long and fan-shaped, not emargi-
nate, of broad plane feathers widening to their obtuse ends. Head with a long, thin, occipital
crest. Sexes dissimilar: ¢ glossy black, with large white wing-patch; 9 dull-colored; young
not spotted or streaked. Fine songsters. Nidification arboreal; eggs colored.

P. ni'tens. (Lat. nitens, shining.) Swininc Fiy-snapPrer. , adult: Entirely rich lus-
trous black, with steel-blue or greenish reflections. Primaries with a large white space on the
inner webs. Bill and feet black. Length about 7.50 inches; “‘ extent 11.50”; wing 3.50-
3.70; tail 3.50-4.12 ; bill 0.40-0.50; tarsus 0.60-0.66; middle toe and claw 0.66-0.75. 9,
adult: Crested, like the ¢. Entirely brownish-gray, paler beneath, the wings and tail black-
ish, the white on the inner webs of the primaries much reduced or extinguished, and in its stead
much whitish edging. of the quills and coverts, tail-feathers, and crissum. Young ¢: Like
the 9 ; and during the progress to maturity every gradation between the characters of the two
sexes is observed. Sometimes nearly all the feathers are skirted with white. Middle and
Western Provinces, U. S., from Utah, Nevada, and Colorado southward; a bird of remarkable
characters and appearance, restless and vigilant ; feeds on berries and insects; sings beautifully.
Nest a slight shallow structure, about 4.00 in diameter by 2.50 high, with a cavity about 2.00
deep, saddled on a bough, loosely fabricated of twigs, plant-fibres, and down; eggs 2-8 (rarely
single), averaging 0.93 X 0.65, greenish-white, distinctly and profusely speckled with blackish
or dark brown.

20. Subfamily MYIADESTINA: Fly-catching Thrushes.

Bill as in the last subfamily. Tarsus booted, and toes deeply cleft, as in Turdide. Lateral
toes very unequal in length, the tip of the inner claw falling short of the base of the middle.
Wings of 10 primaries, the 1st spurious, the 2d about as long as the 6th, the point of the wing
formed by the 3d, 4th, and 5th. Tail long, about equalling the wing, double-rounded, being
forked centrally, graduated externally ; all the feathers narrowing somewhat towards the end.
Head subcrested; plumage sombre, variegated on the wings; sexes alike; young spotted.
Highly musical. Containing about a dozen species, mostly of the genus Myiadestes ; others
of Cichlopsis and Platycichla ; all except one are birds of Central and South America and the
West Indies. Though our species was formerly called ‘‘ Ptilogonys,” it has nothing to do
with the foregoing subfamily. The Myiadestine are in fact nearly related to the Turdide.
Should they be placed in that family, as might be done without violence, the comparative
diagnosis would be :

TURDINZ&. — Bill moderate, scarcely or not depressed, moderately cleft. Legs stout.

58.

169.

a

VIREONIDZ: VIREOS, OR GREENLETS. 829

Tail-feathers widening a little toward the end, the tail thus becoming squarish or fan-shaped ;
even or little rounded at their ends. :

My1apEsTiIn&. — Bill very short, much depressed, widened at base, deeply cleft. Legs
weak. Tail-feathers tapering, the tail being thus rendered somewhat cuneate, and double-
rounded at end.
MYIADES'TES. (Gr. via,
muia, a fly, and éSeorns, edes-
tes, an eater.) FLY-CATCHING
TurusHes. Characters of the
subfamily as above given.

M. town’/sendi. (To J. K.
Townsend.) TowNnsEnp’s Fiy-
CATCHING THRUSH. ¢ 9: Gen-
eral color dull brownish-ash,
paler below, bleaching on the
throat, lower belly, and crissum.
Wings blackish, the inner sec-
ondaries edged and tipped with
white, nearly all the quills ex-
tensively tawny or fulvous at
the base, and several of the in- Fic. 187. — Generic details of Myiadestes (M. townsendi; bill and
termediate ones again edged ex- foot nat. size, wing and tail }), (From Baird.)

ternally toward their ends with the same color. In the closed wing, the basal tawny shows
upon the outside as an oblique spot in the recess between the greater coverts and the bastard
quills, separated by an oblique bar of blackish from the second tawny patch on the outer webs
of the quills near their ends. Tail like the wings (the middle pair of feathers more nearly like
the back); the outer feather edged and broadly tipped, the next one more narrowly tipped, with
white. A white ring around the eye. Bill and feet black. Eyes brown. Length about 8
inches; wing and tail about equal, 4.00-4.50; the latter forked centrally, graduated laterally ;
bill 0.50; tarsus 0.75; middle toe and claw rather more. Young: Speckled at first, like a
very young thrush; each feather with a triangular or rounded spot of dull ochraceous or
tawny, edged with blackish. Western U. S., from the eastern foot-hills of the Rocky Mts.
to the Pacific; N. to British Columbia. A bird not less strange and unlike anything seen in
the east than the Phainopepla ; inhabiting woodland and shrubbery, feeding on insects and
berries, and capable of musical expression in an exalted degree. Nest on the ground or in
rubbish near it, loosely made of grasses; eggs about 4, bluish-white, freckled with reddish-
brown, 0.95 x 0.67.

14, Family VIREONIDZ: Vireos, or Greenlets.

Small dentirostral Oscines, related to the Shrikes, with hooked
bill, 10 primaries and extensively coherent toes. Bill shorter
than the head, stout, compressed, distinctly notched and hooked
at tip; rictus with conspicuous bristles; nostrils exposed, over-
hung with a scale, but reached by the small bristly erect frontal
feathers. Toes soldered at base for the whole length of the basal
joint of the middle one, which is united with the basal joint of

t the inner and'the two basal joints of the outer, all these coherent
Fic, 188. — Warbling Vireo, re- phalanges very short. (Lateral toes unequal in the genus Vireo.)
Auta. (Ende st enaey,) Tarsus equal to or longer than the middle toe and claw, scutel-
late in front, laterally undivided, except at extreme base. Wings moderate, of 10 primaries, of

59.

330 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

which the 1st is short (one-half to one-fourth the second), or spurious, or apparently wanting
(being rudimentary and displaced). Size small, under 7 inches; coloration simple, mostly and
oftenest greenish ; young not spotted or streaked.

This family was formerly united with the next (Lantide), chiefly on account of the

resemblance in the shape of the bill of certain species to that of the shrikes ; but the likeness
is never perfect, and there are other more important characters, especially in the structure of
the feet, by which the two groups may be discriminated. The Vireonide are peculiar to
America; they are a small family of five or six genera and nearly seventy recorded species,
of which about five-sixths appear to be genuine. The typical and principal genus, Vireo, con-
taining nearly thirty species, is especially characteristic of North America, though several species
oceur in the West Indies and Ceutral America; one genus and species, Laletes osburni, is
exclusively West Indian; the rest — Cyclarhis, Hylophilus, Vireolanius, and Neochloe — are,
with one exception, South and Central American. In further illustration of the characters of
the group, I offer some remarks under the head of the only genus with which we have to do in
the present connection.
VIR/EO. (Lat. vireo, I am green or flourishing.) GREENLETS. Bill like that of a shrike
in miniature, moderately or very stout, shorter than the head, compressed at least toward the
end, distinctly hooked and notched at the tip, sometimes with trace of a tooth behind the notch
of the upper mandible, and usually a nick in the under mandible too. Rictal bristles con-
spicuous, and others present among the frontal and mental feathers. Nasal fossee nearly filled
with short erect feathers. Toes extensively coherent at base, as explained under head of the
family ; lateral toes of unequal lengths; claws stout, narrowly compressed, much curved and
acute. Wings at least as long as the tail, more or less rounded; sometimes much longer and
quite pointed ; of 10 primaries, the 1st usually evident, though short and spurious, but some-
times (in the section Vireosylvia and in Vireo flavifrons) rudimentary and more or less com-
pletely concealed (exceptionally obvious even in these species). Tail short, even, of narrow
feathers. Size small; length usually five or six inches. Coloration simple; above olivaceous
or grayish, the crown like the back, or ashy (in one case brown, in another black), the under
parts white, or white and yellow, or partly olivaceous. Sexes quite indistinguishable ; young
similar, not spotted or streaked. Migratory in N. Am. Insectivorous, arboricole. Nest pen-
dulous ; eggs white, spotted.

The numerous species of this genus have been divided into several groups, but no violence
will be done by considering them all as Vireo— im fact, it is difficult to do otherwise. For
even the seemingly substantial division into two genera, according as there is an evident
spurious lst primary or apparently none, separates species, like gilvus and philadelphicus,
hardly otherwise specifically distinguishable; while another division into two genera, according
to the shape of the wings and length of the spurious 1st primary or its absence, is subject to
some uncertainty of determination, and unites species, like olivaceus and flavifrons, most dis-
similar in other respects. The fact is, that almost every single species of Vireo has its own
peculiar form, in shape of bill, proportions of primaries, etc., and these details cannot well be
considered as of more than specific value. These slight differences are perfectly tangible and
surprisingly constant, rendering the determination of the species comparatively easy, though
these birds bear to each other a close general resemblance in size and color. They are all more
or less olivaceous above, sometimes inclining to gray or plumbeous, with the crown either like
the back, or else ashy, —in one species, however, brown, and in another black ; ; and white or
whitish below, usually more or less tinged with yellow. The coloration is very constant, the
sexes being indistinguishable, and the young differing little, if at all, from the adults. All are
small birds, —about 5 or 6 inches long. As a group the student will probably have no diffi-
culty in recognizing them by the foregoing diagnosis, as the character of the fect seems to be
peeuliar, among N. Am. birds, and is at any rate diagnostic when taken in connection with the

170.

VIREONIDZ:: VIREOS, OR GREENLETS. 331

character of the bill, —all those Oscines, as wrens, creepers, or titmice, that show much
cohesion of the toes, having an entirely different bill. Some of the weaker-billed species might
be carelessly mistaken for warblers ; but there is no excuse for this, nor for confounding them
with any of the little clamatorial flycatchers. The Vireos were long supposed to possess either
9 or 10 primaries. But that the important character of. number of primaries — one marking
whole fainilies as we have seen — should here subside to specific value only, seemed suspicious ;
and the fact is that all the species really have 10, only that, in some instanees, the lst primary
is rudimentary and displaced, lying concealed outside the base of the second quill. The N. Am.
species are distributed over the temperate portions of this continent, and several of them are
abundant birds of the Atlantic States, inhabiting woodland and shrubbery. They are exclu-
sively insectivorous, and are therefore necessarily migratory in our latitudes. They build a
neat pensile nest in the fork of a branchlet, and commonly lay four or five white, speekled eggs.
All are alike in this respect, the nest and eggs of none of the species (excepting atricapillus)
being distinguishable with certainty, though differing in size with that of the parent, and some-
what in position, according as the parents are birds of woodland or shrubbery; it would be
useless, therefore, to give particular descriptions for each species. Next after the warblers,
the greenlets are the most delightful of our forest birds, though their charms address the ear
and not the eye. Clad in simple tints that harmonize with the verdure, these gentle songsters
warble their lays unseen, while the foliage itself seems stirred to music. In the quaint and
curious ditty of the white-eye — in the earnest, volnble strains of the red-eye —in the tender
secret that the warbling vireo confides in whispers to the passing breeze — he is insensible
who does not hear the echo of thoughts he never clothes in words.
Analysis of Species.
Primaries apparently 9 (the 1st rudimentary and displaced). (a)
Primaries evidently 10 (the 1st short or spurious). (b)

(a) Throat yellow .. Be ee Ed Dene + » flavifrons 176
— white; crown malig: zat ‘plack- ceeok “hardly den tradtine with ible + + + « + = philadelphicus 173
— black-edged ; back olive; with maxillary streaks. . . barbatulus 172

—no maxillary streaks; crissum merely yellowish
olivaceus 170

— bright yellow
bs Jlaviviridis 171
(b) Crown black .. . 2 . atricapillus 185
—not black; apurdaiis quill i ieast . as tangs as 2d, ai aig. 2. 50 —_— ‘ i ae vicinior 180

— not } as long as 2d, or wing not 2.50 long ‘¢)

(c) Wing-bands wanting: coloration as in philadelphicus * » gilvus 174, 175
— present; length over 5.00; back olive, contrasting with ashy-blue crown solitarius 177, 178
—plumbeous, crown scarcely different . - . plumbeus 179
— 5.00 or less; wing = tail, both about2.25; 1st quill=}the2d . . pusillus 184
— > tail; crown ashy, chin and superc. line white . . . belli 183
— olive, chin wht., superc. line yell. . movebor. 181
—and under parts yell’sh . huttoni 182

V. oliva/ceus. (Lat. olivaceus, olive-colored. Fig. 189.) RED-EYED GREENLET. Above,
olive-green ; crown ash, edged on each side with a blackish line, below this a white super-
ciliary line, below this
again a dusky stripe
through eye; under parts
white, faintly shaded
with greenish - yellow
along sides, and tinged
with the same on under
wing- and tail-coverts ;
wings and tail dusky,
the feathers edged with Fie. 189.— J”. oliraceus, nat. size. (From Baird.)

; HT HN

171.

173.

274.

832 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

olive outside, with whitish inside; bill dusky above, pale below; feet leaden-blue; eyes red:
no dusky maxillary streaks; no apparent spurious quill. Little different with age, sex, or
season; young and fall birds the brightest colored, especially on the sides, crissum, and lining
of wings. Large; length 5.75-6.25 ; extent 9.75-10.75 ; wing 3.00-3.33 ; tail 2.33-2.50; bill
about 0.66; tarsus 0.75. E.N. Am.; N. to Hudson’s Bay and even Greenland; W. some-
times to Utah and Washington Territory; breeds throughout its U. 8. range, and winters from
the Gulf States southward. In most places the most abundant species of the genus, in wood-
land; a voluble, tireless songster.

Vv. flavivi'ridis, (Lat. flavus, yellow ; viridis, green. Fig. 190.) YELLOW-GREEN GREEN-
LET. Very similar to the last ; more yellowish below ; under wing- and tail-coverts decidedly
yellow; sides of body decidedly greenish-yellow. Doras and southward.

a
a,

Fig. 190,— V. flaviviridis, nat. size. (From Baird.) Fie. 191.— V. a, barbatulus, nat. size. (From Baird.)

. V. alti/loquus barba/tulus. (Lat. altus, high, loquus, speakiug; barbatulus, having a little

beard. Fig. 191.) BLACK-WHISKERED GREENLET. WHIP-TOM-KELLY. Similar to oliva-
ceus ; distinguished by a narrow dusky maxillary line, or line of spots, on each side of the
chin; bill longer, 0.75-0.80; proportion of quills slightly different (see the figs.). Cuba,
Bahamas, and casually in Florida. [V. altiloquus is the West Indian stock-form.]

V. philadel/phicus. (Gr. piAddo, phileo, I love; ddeApds, brother. Fig. 192.) Brors-
ERLY-LOVE GREENLET. 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 apparent spurious quill. Length 4.80-5.10; extent 8.00-8.50; wing 2.66; tail
2.25; bill hardly or about 0.50; tarsus 0.66. Eastern N. Am., strictly; N. to Hudson’s Bay ;
a small, plainly-colored species, almost indistinguishable from giluus except by apparent absence
of a spurious quill; not very common in the Atlantic States, more so in the Mississippi Valley.

New

Fra. 192. —V. philadelphicus, nat. size. (From Baird.) Fre. 193. — V. gilvus, nat. size, (From Baird.)

V. gil'vus. (Lat. gilvus, yellowish. Figs. 188, 193.) WARBLING GREENLET. Colors pre-
cisely as in the last species; spurious quill present and evident, } to 4 as long as the 2d primary.
Length 5.50-6.00; extent 8.50-9.25 ; wing 2.80; tail 2.25; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.65. Eastern
N. Am. to the high central plains, breeding throughout its range; wintering extralimital; an
abundant little bird and an exquisite songster. Its voice is not strong, and many birds excel
it in brilliancy of execution ; but not one of them all can rival the tenderness and softness of

175.

1%6.

177.

178.

VIREONIDA:!: VIREOS, OR GREENLETS. 333

the liquid strains of this modest vocalist. Not born to “waste its sweetness on the desert
air,” the warbling vireo forsakes the depths of the woodland for the park and orchard and
shady street, where it glides through the foliage of the tallest trees, the unseen messenger of
rest and peace to the busy, dusty, haunts. of men.

V. g. swain’soni? (To Wm. Swainson. Fig. 194.) WesTeRN WARBLING VirzO. “Similar
to V. gilvus, but smaller; colors paler; bill more depressed; upper mandible almost black ;
2d quill much shorter than 6th.” Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U.S. This Western form has
been described as distinct, but the characters assigned will not be found constant. It is simply
a dull-colored race, like many other birds of this region.

Fic. 194.— V. g. swainsoni, nat. size. (From Baird.) Fie. 195. — V. flavifrons, nat. size. (From Baird.)

V. fla'vifrons. (Lat. flavus, yellow ; frons, front.) YELLOW-THROATED GREENLET. Above,
rich olive-green, crown the same or even brighter, rump insensibly shading into bluish-ash,;
below, bright yellow, belly and erissum abruptly white, sides anteriorly shaded with olive,
posteriorly with plumbeous; extreme forehead, superciliary line and ring round eye, yellow;
lores dusky; wings dusky, with the inner secondaries broadly white-edged, and two broad
white bars across tips of greater and median coverts ; tail dusky, nearly all the feathers com-
pletely encircled with white edging; bill and feet dark leaden-blue; no apparent spurious quill.
Length 5.75-6.00; extent about 10.00; wing about’ 3.00; tail only about 2.25. A large,
stout, highly-colored species, curiously resembling Icteria virens, common in the woods of the
Eastern U. 8., and adjoining British Provinces; W. only to the edge of the plains; winters in
Florida and southward; breeds in all its U. S. range. Its proper name may be V. ochroleucus.
V. solita/rius. (Lat. solitarius, solitary; solus, alone. Fig. 196.) BLUE-HEADED GREEN-
LET. SOLITARY GREENLET. Above, olive-green; crown and sides of head bluish-ash in
marked contrast, with a broad white line from

nostrils to and around (not beyond) eye, and a 3
dusky loral line; below, pure white, flanks

washed with olivaceous, and axillars and cris- aA

sum pale yellow; wings and tail dusky, most

of the feathers edged with white or whitish,

and two conspicuous bars of the same across

tips of middle and greater coverts; bill and
feet blackish-plumbeous; iris brown. Length
5.25-5.75; extent 8.50; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.25-2.33; bill about 0.40, stout, nearly 0.20
deep at base; spurious quill 0.50-0.66 long, about 4 as long as 2d primary. Young and fall
specimens more brightly colored. A stoutly-built species, known at a glance by the bluish cap.
Eastern U. S. and Canada; not rare, but not so common as olivaceus, flavifrons, or novebo-
racensis ; inhabits woodland.

V. s. cas/sini. (To John Cassin.) ({AsSIN’S GREENLET. Scarcely different; said to be
duller and more brownish-olivaceous ; under parts tinged with buff or ochrey where solitarius
is pure white ; loral line and eye-ring impurely whitish. .Arizona and California. (Not at all
like V. plumbeus, with which it is geographically associated.)

Fig. 196. — V. solitarius, nat. size. (From Baird.)

479.

180.

181.

182.

334 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

V. s. plum/beus. (Lat. pluwmbeus, lead-colored. Fig. 197.) PLuMBEOUS GREENLET.
Leaden-gray, rather brighter and more ashy on the crown, but without marked contrast,
faintly glossed with olive on rump; a conspicuous white line from nostril to and around eye,
and below this a dusky loral stripe; below,
pure white, sides of neck and breast shaded
with the color of the back, flanks, axillars
and crissum with a mere trace of olivaceous,
or none; wings and tail dusky, with con-
spicuous pure white edgings and cross-bars.
Size of solitarius or larger. Length 5.75-
6.10; extent 9.75-10.25; wing 2.90-3.10;
tail 2.50; bill0.50; tarsus 0.66; middle toe
the same; spurious quill exposed about 0.75, 4 as long as the 2d quill. Central Plains
to the Pacific, U. 8., and especially Southern Rocky Mts., where it is abundant. A large stout
species, a near ally of solitarius, but nearly all the olivaceous of that species replaced by
plumbeous, and the yellowish by white, so that it is a very different-looking bird. Fall
specimens, however, are more olivaceous, and the bird evidently grades closely up to solitarius.
V. vici'nior. (Lat. vicinus, neighboring.) GRAY GREENLET. With the general appearance
of a small faded specimen of plumbeus: leaden-gray, faintly olivaceous on the rump, below
white, with hardly a trace of yellowish on the sides; wings and tail hardly edged with white ;
no markings about head except a whitish eye-ring. Length 5.75; extent 8.66; wing and tail
each 2.50; tarsus nearly 0.75 ; middle toe and claw hardly over 0.50; tip of inner claw falling
short of base of middle claw ; tail decidedly rounded; spurious quill exposed 0.75, 4 as long as
the 2d primary, which latter is not longer than the 8th. These peculiar proportions of the
original type specimen are constant, and the species is distinct from any other. It is our
plainest-colored species, resembling plumbeus, but more closely allied to the smaller rounder-
winged species like noveboracensis and especially pusillus ; the toes are almost abnormally
short, and the tail is as long as the wing. Arizona and New Mexico. The type-specimen
long remained unique, but others have since been found.

V. noveboracen’sis. (Lat. novus, new, Eboracum, York. Fig. 198.) WHITE-BYED
GREENLET. 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,
with axillars and cris-

2 a \
aa 4 sum, bright yellow; a
S bright yellow line from
A nostrils to and around
eye; lores dusky; two
bho ye broad yellowish wing-
4 r bars ; inner secondaries

widely edged with the
same; bill and feet
blackish-plumbeous ; eyes white. About 5 inches long; extent 8.00; wing 2.33-2.50; tail
2.25 ; spurious quill exposed 0.75, 4 as long as the 2d, which about equals the 8th; tarsus
about 0.75; middle toe and claw 0.50; bill nearly 0.50. A small, compact, brightly-colored
species, abundant in shrubbery and tangle of the Eastern U.S.; W. rarely to the Rocky
Mts.; rather southerly, N. only to the Connecticut Valley; noted for its sprightly manners
and emphatic voice.

V.hut/toni. (To Wm. Hutton, of Cala. Fig. 199.) Hurron’s GREENLET. Similar to the
last, but differing much as flaviviridis does from olivaceus, in having the under parts almost

Fie. 197.—V. s. plumbeus, nat. size. (From Baird.)

Fie. 198. — V. noveboracensis, nat. size. (From Baird.)

182a.

183.

184.

VIREONIDZ: VIREOS, OR GREENLETS. 335

entirely yellowish. California. First quill rather less than half the 2d, which about equals
the 10th; 3d a little longer than 7th; 4th and 5th nearly equal and longest. Tail slightly
rounded, shorter than the wings. Bill very small. Above olive-green; brightest behind,
especially on rump and edging of tail; duller and more
ashy toward and on top and sides of head and neck.
Wings with two bands on coverts, and outer edges of
innermost secondaries rather broadly olivaceous-white ;
other quills edged externally with olive-green, paler
toward outer primary, internally with whitish. Lat-
eral tail-feathers edged externally with yellowish-
white. Feathers of rump with much concealed yel-
lowish-gray. Under parts pale olivaceous-yellowish,
purest behind, lightest on throat and abdomen; the breast more olivaceous, the sides still
deeper olive-green, the breast soiled with a slight buffy tinge. Axillars and crissum yellowish,
the inside of wings whitish. Loral region and narrow space around eye dull yellowish, in faint
contrast to the olive of head. Bill horn-color above, paler below; legs dusky. Length 4.70;
wing 2.40; tail 2.05. (Description from Baird.)

V. h. ste/vensi. (To F. Stephens.) SrepHEns’ GREENLET. Like V. hutioni. Bill stout ;
wings from 0.30-0.40 longer than tail. Above, grayish-ash ; the crown, vertex and sides of
head and neck nearly pure ash; the back faintly tinged with olive; the rump and an edging on
the tail-feathers dull olive-green. Wings with two nearly confluent bands on the coverts, and
the outer edges of the inner secondaries broadly white ; outer quills edged more narrowly with
the same color. Beneath brownish or smoky-white, with a mere wash of yellowish on the sides
and‘ crissum. Upper eyelid dusky-brown; remainder of the orbital region, with the lores,
ashy-white in decided contrast with the nearly clear cinereous of the head generally. Lining
of wings white. Length 5.20; extent 8.50; wing 2.55-2.90; tail 2.95; tarsus 0.73; culmen
0.50. Arizona and New Mexico, especially in mountain ranges. Related to huttoni, which
has bill less stout, wing 2.40 or less, and is olive-green above and olivaceous-yellow below,
without clear white anywhere. The differences are nearly parallel with those between bells and
pusillus, — stevenst being grayish-ash above with no decided olive-green excepting on the rump
and tail, brownish-white below, untinged with yellowish excepting on sides and ecrissum, the
wing-bands pure white and nearly confluent. (Not in Check List, 1880. Description from
Brewster, Bull. Nutt. Club, vii, 1882, p. —:)

V. belli. (To J. G. Bell, of New York. Fig. 200.) Bxrxi’s GREENLET. Olive-green,
brighter on rump, ashier on head, but without decided contrasts; head-markings almost
exactly as in gilvws; below, sulphury-yellowish, only whitish on chin and middle of belly;
inner quills edged with whitish; two
whitish wing-bands, but one more con-
spicuous than the other. Hardly or not
5.00 long; wing scarcely over 2.00; tail
under 2.00; spurious quill about 2 the 2d,
which equals or exceeds the 7th. A pretty
little species, like a miniature of gilwus, but
readily distinguished from that species by Fie. 200. — V. belli, nat. size. (From Baird.)

its, small size, presence of decided wing-bars, more yellowish under-parts, and different wing-
formula. Middle region of the U. S., W. to the Rocky Mts., E. to the valley of the Ohio; an
abundant species, inhabiting copses and shrubbery in open country, with much the same
sprightly ways and loud song as those of noveboracensis.

V. pusil/lus. (Lat. pusillus, puerile, petty. Fig. 201.) Least GREENLET. Olivaceous-
gray, below white, merely tinged with yellowish on the sides; head-markings obscure ; wing-

Fie. 199. —V. huttoni, nat. size. (From Baird.)

185.

336 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

bands and edgings, though evident, sarrow and whitish ; no decided olive or yellow anywhere.
Size of belli ; wing and tail of equal lengths, little over 2.00; bill 0.33; tarsus 0.66; middle
toe and claw 0.50; spurious quill about + as long as the 2d, which is intermediate between the

7th and Sth. A small, obscure-looking Y

species, resembling belli, but much grayer, ee

tail relatively longer, spurious quill longer, = \ - —<—F
and 2d primary shorter. Arizona and a TF

Southern California, common. A y\ ——
V. atricapil'lus. (Lat. ater, black ; capil- A SL a
lus, hair.) BLAcK-CAPPED GREENLET. a (

g@: Top and side of the head black, ex- Fic. 201. — VF. pusillus, nat. size. (From Baird.:
cepting a white eye-ring and white loral stripe. Upper parts olivaceous ; lower parts white,
tinged with pale greenish on the sides and flanks. Wings and tail blackish, edged with
olivaceous, the former with two dingy whitish bars across the ends of the greater and median
coverts; lining of wings yellowish. Bill black; feet dark; iris red. Length 4.75: extent
7.25; wing 2.25: tail nearly 2.00; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.75; middle toe and claw 0.50; 1st
primary exposed 0.66. A specimen from Mazatlan, supposed to be a Q, is described by Baird
and Ridgway as having the black of the head replaced by dark slate color, the upper parts
duller olive, the lower somewhat buffy. The black cap of the ¢ renders the species con-
spicnous among all its congeners. Texas and Mexico, rare; few specimens known. Nest in
trees, pensile from a forked twig as usual in the genus, but eggs white, unmarked (as far as
Known; 15 examples examined) ; size 0.65-0.75 X 0.50-0.55.

15. Family LANIIDA: Shrikes.

Essentially characterized by the combination of
comparatively weak, strictly passerine feet with a
notched, toothed and hooked bill, the size, shape, and
strength of which recalls that of a bird of prey (fig.
202.). The family comprises about 200 recorded
species, referable to numerous genera and divisible
into three groups, not very well defined, however, of

=, which the following typical subfamily is the only
Sen =2™~ one oceurring in America: —
Fic. 202.— Shrikes’ Bills, nat.size. (From Baird.)

21. Subfamily LANIINAE: True Shrikes.

In this group the wing has 10 primaries and the tail 12 rectrices ; both are much rounded
and of nearly equal lengths. The rictus is furnished with strong bristles. The ¢ircular nostrils
are more or less perfectly covered and con-
cealed by dense tufts of antrorse bristly
feathers. The tarsi are scutellate in front
and on the outside—in the latter respect
deviating from a usual Oscine character.
Our shrikes will thus be easily distinguished ;
additional features are given under head of
the genus Lanius, the only representative ‘
of this group in America. Fie. 203. — Butcher-bird, reduced. (From Tenney,

These shrikes are bold and spirited after Wilson.)
birds, quarrelsome among themselves, and tyrannical toward weaker species; in fact, their
nature seems as highly rapacious as that of the true birds of prey. They are carnivorous,

60.

186.

LANUDA— LANIINZ: SHRIKES. 3837

feeding on insects and such small birds and quadrupeds as they can capture and overpower ;
many instances have been noted of their dashing attacks upon cage-birds, and their reckless
pursuit of other species under circumstances that cost them their own lives. But the most
remarkable fact in the natural history of the shrikes is their singular and inexplicable habit of
impaling their prey on thorns or sharp twigs, and leaving it sticking there. This has occa-
sioned many ingenious surmises, none of which, however, are eutirely satisfactory. They
build a rather rude and bulky nest of twigs, and lay 4-6 speckled eggs. They are not strictly
migratory, although our northernmost species usually retires southward in the fall. The sexes
are alike, and the young differ but little. There are only two well determined American
species, of nine that compose the genus. .
LA/NIUS. (Lat. lanius, a butcher.) Gray Surikes. Wing of 10 primaries, and tail of
12 rectrices, both rounded in shape, and of nearly equal lengths. Point of the wing formed by
the 8d, 4th, and 5th quills, the second not longer than the 6th, and the 1st about half as long
as the 3d. Tarsus equalling or slightly exceeding in length the middle toe and claw, strongly
scutellate in front, and with the outer lateral plate usually more or less subdivided, as is unusual
among Oscines. Lateral toes of about equal lengths, their claws reaching to the base of the
middle claw ; inner toe cleft nearly to the base, the outer more extensively coherent with the
basal joint of the middle toe. Feet large and strong, but without ‘specially ‘‘ raptorial”
development either of the digits or of their claws. Bill large and powerful, compressed, deep,
completely notched and toothed, and strongly hooked, presenting the full accomplishment of a
raptorial character. Rictus ample and deeply cleft, and strongly bristled; gonys short, only
about half the length of the lower mandible. Nostrils circular or nearly so, placed well forward
in the nasal fossa, more or less perfectly overhung and concealed by tufts of antrorse bristly
feathers. Body stout; neck short; head relatively large. Coloration simple, the black, white,
and bluish or grayish tints being unrelieved by red or other bright color. In the amount of
the dusky vermiculation of the under parts the species are graded from borealis (most) to excu-
bitorides (least or none), and each one is graded from young to old. In all, the general resem-
blance to a mocking-bird is striking.
Analysis of Species.
Large: length 9.00 or over. Black head-stripe broken on under eyelid and across forehead. Always waved
below withidusky™ so. gc 8 ae a a ee a a we borealis 186
Small: length under 9.00. Black head-stripe unbroken across forehead: no white on under eyelid. Adults
unwaved below.

Lighter: much white on rump and scapulars; long white patch on primaries . excubitorides 188
Darker: little white on rump and scapulars; short white patch on primaries . . . ludovicianus 187

L. borea/lis. (Lat. borealis, northern. Figs. 203, 204.) Great NorrHern SHRIKE.
BuTcHER-BIRD. fg 9, adult: Above, clear bluish-ash, blanching on rump and scapulars;
below, white, always vermiculated trans-
versely with fine wavy blackish lines; a
broad black bar along side of head, not
meeting its fellow across forehead, inter-
rupted 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
white spot near base of the primaries,
and white tips of most of the quills, the
latter with the outer web of the outer
feather edged, and all the feathers except- Fic. 204. — Butcher-bird (L. borealis), nat. size. (Ad
ing the middle pair broadly tipped, with 4+ del. E. 0.)

white, and with concealed white bases; bill and feet bluish-black; eyes blackish. Length

22

187.

188.

3838 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

9.00-10.00 ; extent 13.50-14.50; wing 5.00-5.50; tail rather more; bill 0.75; tarsus 0.90;
middle toe and claw 0.75. Young: The colors much less pure and clear. Above, grayish-
brown, scarcely or not whitening on the scapulars, tail-coverts, and forehead. The younger
the browner, sometimes almost with a rusty tinge; grayer according to age. Below brownish-
white (the younger the browner), the wavy dark markings stronger than in the adult. The
bar along the head poorly defined, merely dusky, or quite obsolete. Wings and tail brownish-
black, with less white than in the adult. Bill plumbeous-brown, flesh-colored at base below.
At a very early age, the upper parts are probably vermiculated somewhat like the lower, as
in the same stage of L. ludovicianus ; but this state I have not observed. In old age, the
dusky vermiculation of the under parts is much diminished, but I have never seen it absent
altogether. This feature, coupled with the particular character of the head-markings and
the large size and comparatively short tarsi, will always distinguish the species from L. ludo-
vicianus or excubitorides. N.Am., northerly ; breeds, however, on mountains of the Middle
States and in New England; in winter, usually extends S. to about 35°. The castle of this
‘feudal baron and brigand bold” is built in a bush or low tree with a basement of sticks,
upon which is matted and felted a thick warm superstructure of bark-strips, grasses, aud soft
vegetable substances: eggs 4-6, about 1.10 X 0.80, rather elliptical in shape, so profusely
speckled, scratched, and marbled with reddish, brownish, and purplish shades that the greenish-
gray ground color is scarcely perceptible.

L. Indovicia/‘nus. (Lat. ludovicianus, of Louisiana.) LoGGERHEAD SHRIKE. ¢ Q, adult:
Above, slate-colored, slightly whitish on upper tail-coverts and euds of scapulars; below,
white, sometimes a little ashy-shaded, but no wavy black lines, or only a few slight ones ;
white on wings and tail less extensive than in borealis or excubitorides; black bridle meeting its
fellow across forehead, not interrupted by white on lower eyelid, scarcely or not bordered above
by hoary white. Smaller: length 8.00-8.50; wing and tail each 4.00 or little more; tarsus
at least 1.00, thus relatively longer than in borealis ; bill about 0.50. Young: differing from
the adult much as young borealis does, and decidedly waved below, as in that species: but the
size and other characters are distinctive. Eastern and Southern U. S., resident, abundant; in
its typical manifestation it is characteristic of the 8. Atlantic States; but specimens more like
ludovicianus than excubitorides occur N. to New England and W. to Ohio.

C.1. excubitori/des. (Lat. excubitor, a sentinel; Gr. eiSos, eidos, resemblance ; i. e., like the
European L. excubitor.) WHITE-RUMPED SHRIKE. ComMMON AMERICAN SHRIKE. ¢ Q,
adult: Leaden-gray or light slate-color, whitening on the scapulars and upper tail-coverts.
Beneath, white, slightly shaded with the French gray on the sides, but without dusky vermicu-
lation. A narrow stripe across the forehead, continuous with a broad bar along the side of the
head, embracing the eye, black, slightly, if at all, bordered with whitish. Lower eyelid not
white. Wings and tail black, with white markings, much as in the last species. Bill and feet
plumbeous-black. Length under 9.00; extent 12.00-13.00; wing and tail, each, about 4.00;
bill 0.66; tarsus 1.00 or more. Young: Vermiculated below with dusky, upon a brownish
ground, about to the same extent as is seen in very old examples of L. borealis. General tone of
the upper parts less pure than in the adult; scapulars and tail-coverts not purely white ; black
bar of head less firm, but as far as it goes maintaining the characters of the species. Ata
very early age, the upper parts, including the whitish of the scapulars and tail-coverts, are finely
vermiculated with dusky waves. The ends of the quills, wing-coverts, and tail-feathers often
have rusty or rufous inarkings. Extreme examples of excubitorides look very different from
ludovicianus proper, but the two are observed to melt into each other when many specimens
are compared, so that no specific character can be assigned. Middle and Western N. Am.
and Mexico; N. to the region of the Saskatchewan, E. to Ohio, New York, Canada and
even New England. .

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 339

16. Family FRINGILLIDZ: Finches, etc.

Conirostral Oscines with
9 primaries. — The largest
North American family,
comprising about one-
seventh (123: 888) of all
our birds, and the most
extensive group of its
grade in ornithology. As
ordinarily constituted, it
represents, in round num-
bers 500 current species
and 100 genera, of nearly
all parts of the world, ex-
cept Australia, but more
particularly of the northern
hemisphere and through-
out America, where the

a Uys a AAW group attains its maximum
es f i, URINATE DEN A development. Any one

ae United States locality of
average attractiveness to
birds has a bird-fauna of over 200 species; and if it be away from the sea-coast, and conse-
quently uninhabited by marine birds, about one-fourth of its species are Sylvicolide and
Fringillide together — the latter somewhat in excess of the former. It is not easy, therefore,
to give undue prominence to these two families.

The Fringillide are more particularly what used to be called “‘ conirostral” birds, in dis-
tinction from “ fissirostres,” as the swallows, swifts, and goatsuckers, ‘‘ tenuirostres,” as hum-
ming-birds and creepers, and “‘ dentirostres,” as warblers, vireos, and most of the preceding
families. The bill approaches nearest the ideal cone, combining strength to crush seeds, with
delicacy of touch to secure minute objects. The cone is sometimes nearly expressed, but is
more frequently turgid or conoidal, convex in most directions or, again, so contracted that some
of its outlines are concave. The nostrils are always situated high wp — nearer the culmen than
the cutting edge of the bill; they are usually exposed, but in many, chiefly boreal, genera, the
base of the bill is furnished with a ruff or two tufts of antrorse feathers more or less completely
covering the openings. The cutting edges of the bill may be slightly notched, but are usually
plain. There are usually a few inconspicuous bristles about the rictus, sometimes wanting,
sometimes highly developed, as in our grosbeaks. The wings are endlessly varied in shape,
but agree in possessing only nine developed primaries; the tail is equally variable in form, but
always has twelve rectrices. The feet show a strictly Oscine or laminiplantar podotheca,
scutellate im front, covered on each side with an undivided plate, producing a sharp ridge
behind. None of these members offer extreme phases of development in any of our species.

But the most tangible characteristic of the family is angulation of the commissure. The
commissure runs in a straight line, or with a slight curve, to or near to the base of the bill, and
is then more or less abruptly bent down at a varying angle—the cutting edge of the upper
mandible forming a reéntrance, that of the lower mandible a corresponding salience. In
familiar terms, we might say that the corners of the mouth are drawn down — that the Finches,
though very merry little birds, are literally ‘‘down in the mouth.” In the great majority of
cases this feature is unmistakable, and in the grosbeaks, for example, it is.very strongly marked

AX) ay
Fie. 205. — European Chaffinch (Fringilla cwlebs). (After Dixon.)

340 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

indeed ; but in some of the smaller-billed forms, and especially those with slender bill. it is
hardly perceptible. On the whole, however, it is a good character, and at any rate it is the
most reliable external feature that can be found. It separates our fringilline birds pretty
trenchantly from other 9-primaried Oscines except Icteride, and most of these may be dis-
tinguished by the characters given beyond.

Taking their characters all together, Firingiliide may be defined as 9-primaried conirostral
laminiplantar oscine Passeres with axis of bill at an angle with that of skull, and nostrils
nearer culmen than cutting edge of bill.

When we come, however, to consider this great group of conirostral Oscines in its entirety,
as compared with bordering families like the Old World Ploceide, or the Icteride, and espe-
cially the Tanagride. of the New, the difficulty if not the impossibility of framing a perfect
diagnosis becomes apparent, and I am not aware that any attempts at rigid definition have
proven successful. Ornithologists are nearly agreed what birds to call fringilline, without being
so well prepared to say what ‘ fringilline” means. The subdivisions of the family, as might
be expected, are still conventional, and varying with every leading writer. Our species might
be thrown into several groups, but the distinctions would be more or less arbitrary and not
readily perceived. It is therefore best to waive the question, and simply collocate the genera in
orderly sequence.

The Fringillide are popularly known by several different names. Here belong all the
sparrows, with the allied birds called finches, buntings, linnets, grosbeaks and crossbills. In
the following pages I describe 123 species and subspecies, mostly well determined, and ascer-
tained to occur within our limits, referring them to 37 genera, as the custom is, although I
think this number of geneva altogether too large. Two of them, Passer domesticus and P. mon-
tanus, are imported and naturalized. Species occur throughout our country, in every situation,
and many of them are among our most abundant and familiar birds. They are all granivorous
— seed-eaters, but many feed extensively on buds, fruits, and other soft vegetable substances,
as well as on insects. They are not so perfectly migratory as the exclusively insectivorous
birds, the nature of whose food requires prompt removal at the approach of cold weather ; but,
with some exceptions, they withdraw from their breeding places in the fall to spend the winter
farther south, and to return in the spring. With a few signal exceptions they are not truly
gregarious birds, though they often associate in large companies, assembled in community of
interest. The modes of nesting are too various to be here summarized. Nearly all the finches
sing, with varying ability and effect; some of them are among our most delightful vocalists.
As a rule, they are plainly clad —even meanly, in comparison with some of our sylvan
beauties ; but among them are birds of elegant and striking colors. Among the highly-colored
ones, the sexes are more or less unlike, and other changes, with age and season, are strongly
marked; the reverse is the case with the rest.

The unpractised student will have more trouble in this family than elsewhere in identifying
his specimens. In the first place, the genera and species are very numerous, and so variously
interrelated that no satisfactory subfamilies have been established; they are therefore not
pareelled out in sets. Secondly, all the genera cannot be discriminated in a line of type. Te
meet the difficulty, I have caused the family to be profusely illustrated with cuts of more than
average excellence, and attempted a tabular analysis of the genera, which, though necessarily
defective, will doubtless help to some extent. Speaking roundly, there are three lots ot
genera: (a) Loxiine, mostly boreal birds, sexed unlike, ¢ often red, 9 dull, no blue, colors
massed or streaky, bill usually ruffed at base, wings pointed, tail forked, feet weak; (b)
Spizelline, everywhere, mostly small streaked and spotted species, sexed alike, may be
yellowed but are never red or blue, wings, tail, and feet various; (c) Spizine, mostly south-
erly, sexed unlike, ¢ often red or blue, bill unruffed, wings, tail, and feet various; — but
nothing will serve to distinguish these groups unexceptionally.

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 341

a
. Analysis (partial) of Genera.

Bill metagnathous, both mandibles falcate, their points crossed. gi red, 9 dark and yellowish . Lowia
Bill enormous, nearly = tarsus, greenish-yellow. Wings black and white; tail and tibiz black. (Western.)

Hesperophona

Bill parrot-like, whitish. Head conspicuously crested. gf 9 gray and carmine, face not black. Length
7.50 or more. (S.W.U.S.) 2... 2. eee SG Pay aor . » « » Pyrrhuloxvia
Bill reddish. Head conspicuously crested. gf vermilion, face black. ¢ gray and reddish. Length 7.50
or more. (E.andS.U.8.).... . . . Cardinalis

Bill with a ruff, or pair of nasal tusts, of niiieatee plumules, at base of upper mandible,
Length 8.00 or more. ¢g red and gray, 9 gray and yellowish, uncrested. Bill twrgid, hooked. (Boreal.)

Pinicola
—under 8.00.— Bluish-gray, below reddish-gray, crown, wings, and tail black. (Alaska.)

Pyrrhula

— White, with black on back, wings, and tail ; or washed with clear brown. (Boreal.)

: Plectrophanes

— Chocolate-brown, unstreaked, with rosy edgings ; black or clear ash on head.
(Western.) Leucosticte
— Streaky ; no yellow; ¢ extensively red; 9 dark and white. Bill turgid. (E. and’
WiSY)) ee ae ies : Carpodacus

— Streaky, with dusky or flaxen-brown and ‘white; crown crimson. Bill acute.
(Boreal. ) ww . . . Afgiothus

— Streaky everywhere, no paca or eure black, some yellowieh, Bil acute. (N. Am.)
Chrysomitris

— Streaky or not ; much yellow, wings and tail black,no red. Bill moderate. (U.S.)
Astragalinus

{Intermediate between Nos. 68 and 70]. . Linota
Bill without ruff; nostrils exposed.

Hind claw lengthened, straightened. — Bill moderate; g with a colored cervical collar ; oblique white

on tail, (N.and W.N.A.). . . . . . Centrophanes

_ Bil turgid; no cervical collar transverse white on tail. (West-

erm.). . : . Rhynchophanes

Hind and fore claws lengthened; all much curved ; inner aenahins ‘et least 4 way to end of middle
one —

— Spotted and streaked foxy or slaty sparrows, about 7.00 long. (N. Am.)
Passerella
— Black, white and chestnut, in masses. (A Western species of) . . . . Pipilo
Hind and fore claws not peculiar.

Length 4.50 or less. — gf Black and white, 9 olivaceous and yellowish. (Texas.). . Spermophila
od Greenish blackening on head, ? greenish. (Florida.). . . Phonipara

Length 7.50 or more. — Tail longer than wings. Plain brown, etc.,or black, white, and chestnut.
(U.S.) . io Sees Hie, otis ang Se . ; - . Pipilo
— Tail shorter than wings. of breast rose or ‘orange ; ; 9 sulphur or saffron

under wings. (U.S.) Ss Bewtibe Cpe ete . Zamelodia

Length over 4.50, under 7.50.
Colors greenish —with yellow —on edge of wing, and —2 rufous crown-stripes. (Texas.)

Embernagra

— Crown chestnut, breast ashy. (West-

ern species of) . . . Pipilo

—on all under parts no head markings. (9 of asouthern spe-
ciesof) . . . . Passerina

Colors not greenish, and not extensively and dectdedly spotted « or streaked.
Black, with great white wing-patch ; longest Baie about = longest ‘primary.
(Western.) . .. . ‘i - . « Calamospiza
Blue, with chestnut on wings, or sais brown Q 3 over 6.00 long. (U.S.) Guiraca
Blue, with red, purple, gold, white, or not, g ; brown, with white or not, 2 ; under
6.00 long. (U.S)... . Passerina
Slate or ashy, red-backed or not, belly and 1- 3 tail-feathers anita. ww. Am.) Junco
Gray, throat and tail black, head with 2 white stripes, belly white. (Western.)
Amphispiza
Colors not greenish, but somewhere or everywhere spotted or streaked.
Inner secondaries lengthened, about equalling primaries in the closed wing.
A large white wing-patch. Upper parts much streaked. (Q of) . . Calamospiza
Bend of wing chestnut ; outer tail-feather white; no yellow anywhere. (N. Am.)
Poecetes
No white or chestnut area on wing, its edge (usually) yellowish. (N. Am.)
Passerculus

76

75

61.

189.

342 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PASSERES— OSCINES.

Inner secondaries not enlarged ; wing decidedly longer than tail.
Edge of wing and loral spot yellow ; breast buff; wing under 2.50. (Eastern. )

Coturniculus TT
-With yellow on breast, edge of wing, over eye; black throat-patch or stripes.
(Eastern.). . . . . Spiza 88
No yellow ; head striped with black, white, and chestnut ; tail black, white-tipped.
(Western.). . . + « + « Chondestes 85
No yellow ; winga white-barred ; throat black, dé. ” Uimported. ) . . . . «Passer 64

Inner secondaries not enlarged ; wing not, or not decidedly, longer than tail.
Tail-feathers — very acute; bill—very slender. (Eastern, chiefly maritime.)
Ammodramus 78

—very stout. (Eastern, interior.) . .Cotwrniculus 17

—not acute ; tail—forked. Length 6.00 or less; no yellow on wing.
(N. Am.) . c . . Spizella 83

= jronnied _ -Blaek; eage of wing “gelldwiete. (Weat-
ern.) . mye ‘ . . Amphispiza 81

—not black. Repealed below, or crown
chestnut. (N.Am.). . Melospiza 19
—not streaked below. (S.
and W. U.S.). Peucwa 80
or(N. Am.) Zonotrichia 84

*,* The commonest ‘‘sparrows’’ of Eastern U. S., which the student will be most likely to find first, belong
to the genera Passer, Spizella, Melospiza, Zonotrichia, Passerella, Passerculus, Powcetes, Coturniculus (these
anywhere); 4mmodramus (marshes only); common but more distinguished fringillines are Carpodacus, Astra-
galinus, Chrysomitris, Passerina, Spiza, Pipilo,and Cardinalis. Wiuter visitors, in flocks, are Loxia, Pinicola,
Plectrophanes, Centrophanes, Agiothus, and Junco.

HESPEROPHO'NA. (Gr. éo7épa, Hesperus, place of sunset; qwvy, voice.) AMERICAN
Hawrincues. Bill enormously large, vaulted, nearly as wide as high at base ; culmen nearly
straight to the decurved end; commissure curved without obvious angulation ; gonys very long,
and mandibular rami short, not reaching back of
base of upper mandible; mandibles of equal thick-
ness, lower not so deep as upper; lateral outlines of
bill converging straight to tip. Nasal fosse ex-
tremely short and broad; nostrils slightly overhung
by antrorse plumule. Wings long, pointed, folding
beyond middle of tail, pointed by first two primaries,
the rest rapidly graduated; no peculiar shape of
inner primaries or outer secondaries. Tail rather
short, emarginate, with’ long coverts, the under
reaching nearly to the forking. Feet small and
weak; tarsus shorter than middle toe without
claw ; lateral toes of about equal lengths, their claws
reaching only to base of middle claw. Coloration
Fic. 206, — Evening Grosbeak, reduced. black, white, and yellow. Sexes dissimilar. Little
(Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) different from Old World Coccothraustes, excepting
coloration and simplicity of wing-quills.
H. vesperti/na. (Lat. vespertina, of Hesperus. Fic. 206.) Eventna Grospeak. Adult
& +: General color sordid yellow, overlaid with a sooty-olive shade, deepest on fore parts, quite
black on crown, clearest. below behind. Forehead and line over eye, scapulars, and rump,
yellow. Wings and tail black; several inner secondaries and inner half of the greater coverts
white ; lining of wings black and yellow. A narrow black line around base of upper man-
dible; tibia black. Bill greenish-yellow; feet apparently dusky flesh-color. Length
7.50-8.50; wing 4.00-4.50; tail 2.50-3.00; bill 0.75 long, 0.67 deep, 0.60 broad. @:
Brownish-ash, paler below, whitening on belly, irregularly patched or mixed with yellowish ;
white of wings imperfect, or tinged with yellow ; primaries, which are quite black in ¢, with

FRINGILLIDA): FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 343

large white spaces on inner webs, and sometimes tipped with white. Adult ¢ 9? differ in the
shade of yellow and degree of its obscuration. (Specimens from Southern Rocky Mts. said
to have less turgid bill and narrower yellow frontlet.) A bird of distinguished appearance,
whose very name suggests the far-away land of the dipping sun, and the tuneful romance
which the wild bird throws around the fading light of day; clothed in striking color-contrasts
of black, white, and gold, he seems to represent the allegory of diurnal transmutation ; for his
sable pinions close around the brightness of his vesture, as night encompasses the golden hues
of sunset, while the clear white space enfolded in these tints foretells the dawn of the morrow.
Western U.S. and somewhat northward; E. in region of great lakes to N. Y. and Canada
and probably New England ; irregularly migratory; common. Nest and eggs unknown.

62. PINI/COLA. (Lat. pinus, a pine; colo, I cultivate.) Prive Buxurincnes. Bill short,

190. P. enuclea/tor. (Lat. enucleator, one who shells

.

stout, about as high as broad, sides convex in all directions, culinen convex throughout, tip
hooked; commissure gently curved throughout, without decided angulation ; gonys relatively
long, rami of under mandible short, former nearly straight, latter coming together in a very
broad gentle curve ; commissural edge inflected. Nostrils small, round, basal, concealed by
the ruff of antrorse plumules ; nasal fossze short and broad. Wings of moderate length, tipped
by 2d-4th quills, Ist and 5th a little shorter; 2d-5th with outer webs incised; no peculiarity
of inner quills. Tail little shorter than wings, emarginate, its short coverts scarcely or not
reaching half-way to end. Feet small; tarsus not longer than middle toe without claw, 7-scu-
tellate in front, laminiplantar behind, but the outer of these plates commonly subdivided into 3
or 4 below! Lateral toes short, their claws scarcely surpassing base of middle one, outer
rather longer than inner; hind toe less in length than inner lateral; its claw shorter, though
stouter and more curved than the middle. Sexes
unlike; ¢ red, 9 gray. One species.

out. Fig. 207.) Pine Grosspeax. Adult ¢:
Light carmine or rosy-red, feathers of back with
dusky centres; lower belly and under tail-coverts
gray, and, in general, the red continuous only in
highly plumaged specimens. Nasal tufts and lores
blackish. Wings blackish; primaries with narrow
white or rosy edging, inner secondaries more broadly
edged with white, ends of greater and middle eoverts
white or rosy, forming conspicuous wing-bars.
Tail like wings, with narrow edgings like those
of primaries. Bill blackish, with or without paler
base below; feet blackish. “Length about 8.50;
wing 4.50 or more; tail 4.00. 9: Ashy-gray,
paler below; feathers of the back with darker cen- Pris, 2 Bins Grosbeak, ‘reduced. (Shep-
tres, those of head, rump, aud fore parts generally parddel. Nichols sc.)

skirted with a saffron or yellowish color, very variable in extent and tint, from dull gamboge-
yellow to olive-orange, or rusty-orange, or even reddish; in some specimens crown and rump
quite bricky-red. Throat sometimes abruptly paler than surrounding parts. Rather smaller
than g. Young g resembles 9. Northern portions of both hemispheres; in America, in
summer, Alaska, British America and N. border of U. 8., the Rocky Mts. to Colorado, and
| Sierra Nevada to Califoruia ; in winter, range extended sometimes to Maryland, Ohio, Illinois
and Kansas. Inhabits chiefly coniferous woods, in flocks when not breeding, feeding upon
the fruit of such trees. A fine musician, of amiable disposition and gentle manners, often
caged. Nest composed of a basement of twigs and rootlets, within which is a more compact
fabric of finer materials ; eggs usually 4, pale greenish-blue, spotted and blotched with dark
brown surface-markings and lilac shell-spots ; 1.05 x 0.74.

63.

191.

192.

344 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

PYR/RHULA. (Lat. pyrrhula, a bullfinch.) ButLurincues. Generic characters of Pinicola
as above given; the lesser hook of the bill and different style of coloration being the principal
distinction. Colors in masses of black, white or gray, and red.

P. cas/sini. (To John Cassin. Fig. 208.)
Cassin’s Butirincn. Above, clear ashy-
gray; below, cimnamon-gray; rump and under
wing- and tail-coverts white; wings and tail,
crown, chin and face black ; outer tail-feathers
with a white patch, greater wing-coverts
tipped and primaries edged with whitish ; Dill
black, feet dusky. Length 6.50; wing 3.50;
tail 3.25. Nulato, Alaska, only one specimen
known, marked ¢, but having all the charac-
ters of a 9; nearest related to P. cocet.:. of
Asia, and originally described as a variety of
that species.

Fic. 208. — Cassin’s Bullfinch, reduced. (From Baird.)

. PAS/SER. (Lat. passer, a sparrow: this very species.) SpARRows. Form stout and

stocky. Bill very stout, shaped somewhat as in Carpodacus, but without nasal ruff. Cul-
men curved ; commissure little angulated; gonys convex, ascending; lateral outlines of bill
bulging to near the end. Wing pointed; Ist, 2d, and 3d ’ primaries nearly equal and
longest ; 4th little shorter, rest graduated; inner secondaries not elongate. Tail shorter than
wings, nearly even. Feet small; tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw ; lateral toes of
equal lengths, their claws not reaching to base of middle claw. Sexes unlike. @ with black
and chestnut on head. Middle of back only streaked. Old World: two species naturalized in
North America.

P. domes'ticus. (Lat. domesticus, domestic. Fig. 209.) Tue Sparrow. Pui. Spar-
row. House Sparrow. Parasire. Tramp. Hooptum. Gamin. 4, adult: Upper
parts ashy-gray; middle of back and scapulars boldly streaked with black and bay. A dark
chestnut or mahogany space behind eye, spreading on side of neck. Lesser wing-coverts deep
chestnut ; median tipped with white, forming a conspicuous wing-bar, bordering which is a
black line. Greater coverts and inner quills with central black field bordered with bay. Tail
dusky-gray, unmarked. Lower parts ashy, gray or whitish; chin and throat jet black,
spreading on the breast and lores, bordered on side of neck with white. Bill blue-black ; feet
brown. Wing about 3.00; tail 2.25. 9, adult: Above, brownish-gray ; streaking of back
light ochrey-brown and black; wing-edgings light ochrey-brown, the white bar impure.
No. black, mahogany, or white on head; a pale brown postocular stripe; Dill blackish-
brown, yellowish at base below. Varies endlessly in the purity or dinginess of coloration.
Young at first like 9. Europe, etc. Imported about fifteen years ago, during a craze
which even affected some ornithologists, making people fancy that a grarivorous conirostral
bird would rid us of insect-pests, this sturdy and invincible little bird has overrun the whole
country, and proved a nuisance without a redeeming quality. Well-informed persons
denounced the bird without avail during the years when it might have been abated, but
further protest is futile, for the sparrows have it all their own way, and can afford to laugh at
legislatures, like rats, mice, cockroaches and other parasites of the human race which we have
imported. This species, of all birds, naturally attaches itself most closely to man, and easily
modifies its habits to suit such artificial surroundings; this ready yielding to conditions of
environment, and profiting by them, makes it one of the creatures best fitted to survive in the
struggle for existence under whatever conditions man may afford or enforce; hence it wins in
every competition with native birds, and in this country has as yet developed no counteractive
influences to restore a disturbed balance of forces, nor any check whatever upon its limitless

193.

FRINGILLIDZE: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 845

increase. Its habits need not be noted, as they are already better known to everyone than
those of any native bird whatever.

T. monta/nus. (Lat. montanus, of mountains. _ Fig. 209.) Mountain Sparrow. Some-
what like the last, but smaller and otherwise different. g: Crown and nape a peculiar pur-
plish-brown. Lores, chin, and throat black, the throat-patch narrow and short, not spreading
on breast, contrasted with ashy-white on side of head and neck; ear-coverts blackish. Back

Fig. 209. — Exotic Sparrows. Lowest one, P. domesticus ; next one, P. montanus; reduced. (From Brehm.)

and scapulars streaked with black and bay, the streaking reaching to the purplish nape ;
rump and tail plain grayish-brown. Wings marked much as in P. domesticus, with a black
and white bar across tips of median coverts, but also a narrow white bar across tips of greater
coverts. Primaries more varied with ochrey-brown on outer webs, forming a basal spot and
other edging. Below, ashy-gray, shaded on sides, flanks, and crissum with grayish-brown.
Bill blue-black ; feet brown. Wing 2.75; tail 2.50. 9 differs much as before. Europe;
naturalized about St. Louis and elsewhere.

346 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

65. CARPO’DACUS. (Gr. xaprés, karpos, fruit; ddxos, dakos, biting.) PURPLE BULLFINCHES.
Bill smaller and less turgid than in Pinicola or Pyrrhula, more regularly conic and more acute;
sides convex in all directions, but with distinct ridge prolonged in a point on forehead where

not concealed by the antiz, its outline moderately curved ; com-

missure decidedly angulated, about straight before and behind the

O bend; gonys quite straight. Nasal ruff little developed, barely

concealing the slight nasal fossee, thence falling over sides of bill.

but discontinuous across culmen. Wings long and pointed, fold-

ing half-way to end of tail or farther, pointed by first 3 or 4 quills.

Tail much shorter than wings, considerably forked, with rather

ee oe ee Bill of Purple narrow feathers; both sets of coverts reaching more than half-
ise aheas! way toend. Feet small and weak; tarsus shorter than middle
toe; lateral toes subequal, outer rather longer than inner, their claws reaching base of middle
claw. Sexes unlike. ¢ extensively red of some shade, 2 streaky brown and white. Head
with erectile feathers, but not fairly crested. A beautiful genus, of several species of New and

Old World.
Analysis of Species ( #).
Bill conic-acute, with scarcely convex culmen ; edgings of wing- and tail-feathers reddish.
Large: length 6 50-7.00; bill at least 0.50 along culmen. Under tail-coverts streaked with dusky centres
of the feathers. Crimson crown well distinguished from merely reddish-brown back. (Southwestern

ti): ay cae cae ae, A aes eee WD ay Bea ee GE, i » cassini 195
Medium: length 5. 15-6. 25; bill not 0.50 ‘along culmen. Under tail-coverts scareely or noi streaked.
Crimson of crown not well distinguished from that of back. (U.S.). . . . .- ‘ Durpureus 1M

Bill conoid-obtuse, with very convex culmen. Edgings of wing- and tail-feathers whitish.
Small: length scarcely 6.00; bill about 0.40 along culmen. Front, line over eye, rump and throat red,
more or less contrasting with brown or white of other parts.
Red pretty definitely restricted to the areas said (Southwestern U.S.) . . . . .. . Jrontalis 196
Red spreading over other parts (Californian coast). . a Gee a tee Ee Ss rhodocolpus 197

194. C. purpu’reus. (Lat. purpureus, purple. Figs. 210, 211.) Purpie Fincu (better CRim-
son Fincu.) Adult g: Rose-red, paler below, insensibly whitening on belly and crissum,
brightest anteriorly, intensified to crimson on crown, darker and more brownish-red on back,
where also streaked with dark brown. Wings and tail
dusky, the quills edged and coverts tipped with brownish-
red. Lores and feathers about base of bill hoary-whitish.
Bill and feet brown, the under mandible rather paler.
Length 6.00-6.25; extent 10.00-10.60; wing 3.00-3.25 ;
tail 2.25-2.50 ; tarsus 0.62; middle toe and claw 0.87; bill
under 0.50. The shade of red is very variable, almost any-
thing but purplish — according to season, and age and
vigor of the individual. In high feather, the crown is
richer crimson than any other part, but does not form a
“definite cap. The auriculars are dusky, and there is an
appreciably light rosy stripe over them. Younger ¢ ¢
have frequently a bronzy shade. @ and young: Oliva-
ceous-brown, more clearly olivaceous on rump, everywhere
streaked with dusky. Below, white, marked everywhere
except on throat, belly, and crissum with streaks and Fig, 211.— Purple Finch, gt, reduced.
arrow-heads of dusky olive-brown; the latter pretty (Sheppard del. Nichols, se.)
evenly distributed on breast, former the same ou sides, on the sides of neck and throat con-
fluent and gathered into a maxillary series running up to the bill, separated by a poorly-
defined whitish area from the olive-brown auriculars, over which is a whitish postocular
streak, Wings and tail as in ¢, but the edgings plain brown. Length 5.70-5.90; extent

195.

196.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 347

9.50-10.00; wing about 3.00. Young ¢ cannot be certainly distinguished from ¢ ; in general,
duller and grayer brown, with less of the olive shade; the red first shows pale or bronzy in
slight touches. Cage-birds sometimes turn yellowish after moulting, as is the case with
various other red finches. U. S. from Atlantic to Pacific, excepting probably the Southern
Rocky Mt. region; N. to Labrador and the Saskatchewan. Breeds from the Middle States
northward; winters in most of the U. S., particularly the M. and S. States. An engaging
bird, of bright colors and sweet song, and many amiable traits, among them its fondness for
the society of man; it comes fearlessly about our houses to build its own, which is generally
situated on a horizontal bough or fork, composed of the most miscellaneous materials, almost
any vegetable fibre being available for the flat and shallow structure; it is usually lined with
hair, and the eggs, to the number of 4 or 5, are pale dull greenish, or almost whitish, sparsely
sprinkled and scratched with blackish surface-markings and lilac shell-spots ; size about 0.85
X 0.65; two broods are often reared. When not breeding the birds are generally found in
flocks, and it is to be feared they do damage in the spring to the blossoms of fruit-trees.

C. cassi/ni. (To John Cassin.) Cassin’s Purrie Finca. Adult ¢: In highest plumage
duller than C. purpureus, excepting on crown. Middle of the back brown, tinged with red,
the feathers dusky-centred, gray-edged ; crown crimson, the cap not so extensive as in purpu-
reus, and quite well defined, separated by a dusky and gray interval from the color of the back.
Under tail-coverts with dusky shaft lines, usually wanting in purpureus. Larger: length
6.50-7.00 ; extent 11.00-11.50; wing 3.50; tail 2.50; bill atleast 0.50 along culmen, usually
more, relatively less turgid than in purpureus. Iris brown; feet blackish-brown; bill above
dark bluish horn-color, below dusky flesh-tinted. The sexual changes are the same as in the
last species ; it is not so easy to distinguish the @ and young ¢ from those of purpureus, but
they are larger, with longer and less-tumid bill, and more streaked on the crissum. Very
young birds have an ochraceous or light rufous suffusion, especially noticeable on the under
parts; the streaks are more numerous and diffuse. Rocky Mts. of U. S. and westward, espe-
cially the Southern Rocky Mt. region, as Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico; N. to
British Columbia; E. to Wind River mountains; S. to table lands of Mexico. Habits the
same as those of the purple finch; eggs not fairly distinguishable.

C. fronta/lis. (Lat. frontalis, pertaining to the front.) CRIMSON-FRONTED Fincu. Houser
Fincu. Burton. Adult ¢: Grayish-brown above, somewhat varied with darker centres and,
paler edges of the feathers, and for the most part tinged with red. Below dull white, streaked
with dark brown, often tinged with red. Fore part of crown, superciliary line, rump, throat,
breast and sometimes side of head, crimson. Wings and tail dark brown, with narrow pale
edgings. Bill‘dusky-brown above, paler below; feet and eyes brown. Length about 6.00;
extent scarcely 10.00; wing 3.00; tail 2.50; scarcely forked; tarsus 0.67; bill 0.40, very
turgid, almost as in Pinicola or Pyrrhula. @: Like @, but without any red; upper parts
more varied with darker centres and paler edges of the feathers, and entire under nate streaked
like belly of ¢. Young ¢ resembles the 9, but at an early age is browner, and apt to have

- buffy edgings of the wings. Colors of adult ¢ as variable as those of purpureus or more so.

In winter, the red less intense and more diffuse, and may have a rosy or purplish tint, or be
interrupted with grayish edgings of the feathers. Generally in the Colorado Valley, where the
typical form is developed, the red is restricted to the parts said, but the constant tendency is to
spread; the back and belly have usually in fact a tinge of red, and in some cases the whole
head and fore parts are thus encrimsoned. U. 8., rather southerly, from the Rocky Mts. to the
interior ranges of California; Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico; abundant in
those regions, and as familiar as a swallow or chip-bird, nesting in the streets and gardens,
where its bright colors, hearty song, and sprightly ways make it a welcome visitor. The nest-
ing is like that of the purple finch in essential particulars; the eggs are smaller, paler, and of
more fugitive bluish tint, with the blackish sprinkling sparser; size 0.68 x 0.60 to 0.75 X 0.54.

197.

66.

198.

348 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

C. f. rhodocol/pus. (Gr. fddov, rhodon, the rose; xdAmos, kolpos, the breast.) Rosz-
BREASTED Fincu. This alleged variety tesembles the last; crimson tints more diffuse.
Pacifie coast region of California and southward.
LOX/IA. (Gr. dogds, loxos, crooked.) CROss-BILLS. Bill metagnathous; both mandibles
faleate, deflected to opposite sides, their points crossed (unique among birds). Upper mandible
stout and broad at base, rapidly narrowing to the elongate, decurved, laterally deflected and
overhanging tip, its sides nearly flat, culminal ridge well marked and very convex throughout;
its base beset with a ruff of antrorse plumules concealing nostrils and nasal fossee. Lower man-
dible with gonys very long, occupying nearly all the exposed part of the bill, convex throngh-
out, the end of the mandible prolonged, curved upward and deflected to one side. Commissural
line of either mandible curved in the opposite direction from its fellow. Mouth very narrow
anteriorly, ample at base; tongue horny and concave at end; cesophagus with a large special
crop, bulging to the right side. Wings long, pointed by tips of the first three primaries, rest
rapidly graduated. Tail very short, only about $ as long as the wing, emarginate and divari-
cate, covered nearly to the forking by the coverts both above and below. Feet small; tarsus
shorter than middle toe without claw ; covered with 3 or 4 large overlapping plates, and smaller
ones above and below; the postero-lateral plates much broken up below. Lateral toes of sub-
equal lengths, tips of their claws falling opposite base of middle claw. Hind claw about equal
to its digit, longer; stouter, and more curved
than the middle one. Form stout, thick-
set; ueck short; head broad and flattened
ontop. Plumage soft and blended. Sexes
dissimilar in color. red, 9 brown with
olive or yellowish tinge. There are several
species of these singular finches, — finches
in which not only the horny envelope of the
beak, but the bony framework, and to some
extent the ligaments and muscles acting
upor it, are unsymmetrical. The struct-
ures concerned in what would appear to a
fool to be a deformity constitute a handy
tool for cracking nuts of some kinds and
shelling out their kernels; it acts like a
pair of cutting pliers, — pincers and scissors
in one. Our two species inbabit the nurthern parts of America, coming southward in flocks in
the fall ; but they are also resident in northern and mountainous parts of the U. 8., where they
sometimes breed in winter. They are irregularly migratory according to exigencies of weather
and food-supply ; are eminently gregarious, and feed principally upon pine seeds, which they
skilfully husk out of the cones with their curious bills.
Analysis of Species.
Wings with two white bars. g' rosy-red; 9 brownish-olive, streaked and spotted with dusky, the rump

Fig. 212. — White-winged Crossbill, reduced. (After
Audubon.) :

saffron-yellow . . Oh EO Bo RHE Reha i a SR ae he ge By - . leucoptera 198
Wings without bars. ¢ bricky-red. 9 as before, without wing-bars.

Billsmall, about of aninchlong ..... ...4.. ad ara ~ +. « » G@mericana 199

Billarge,¢p0fandnchlepg 5 «6 eGR he EO Re ee » mexicana 200

L, leucop’tera. (Gr. Aeuxds, leukos, white ; mrepov, pteron, wing. Fig. 212.) WHitT-wINGED
Cross-BILL. Adult ¢: Rosy-red, sometimes carmined or even crimsoned, obscured on middle

_ of back, paling on lower belly and crissum, latter whitish with dusky centres of the feathers.

_ Scapulars black, this color sometimes meeting across lower back. Wing- and tail-feathers

black, with slight white or rosy edgings; inner secondaries and greater and middle coverts
tipped with white, forming two cross-bars, sometimes confluent in one large patch. Rather

199.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 349

larger than the next, the bill thinner and more attenuate. Q and young: Though the differ-
ences are parallel with those of L. americana, some peculiarity in tone of color usually serves
to distinguish the two species, independently of the white wing-marks, which exist in both
sexes at all ages. The difference is something like that between the 9 9 of Pyranga estiva
and P. rubra, in the presence of ochrey or buffy tints, instead of clear vlivaceous or yellowish.
Upper parts fuscous, closely lined with an ochrey-olive or dingy ochre, the rump bright yellow-
ochre. Below, the gray overlaid with ochreous, and further varied with dark gray centres of
the feathers, ‘tending to streaks on the flanks. The whole tone of coloration varies inter-
minably ; the under parts and rump are sometimes bright tawny yellow, or brownish-orange.
Some ¢ ¢ are brilliant carmine, some 9 9 pale orange, almost uniform. North Am.,
northerly ; Alaska; Greenland; casual in Europe. In winter 8. in most of the U. S., in
flocks with the next, not so common. Resident in N. New England, and along whole N. tier
of States, probably breeding also in alpine U. S. localities to Pennsylvania and Colorado.
Breeds in winter and early spring, nesting like that of the next species; eggs pale blue, dotted
chiefly at the larger end with black and lilac ; 0.80 x 0.56.

L. curviros'tra america’na. (Lat. curvirostris, curve-biiled. Fig. 213.) American RED
Cross-BitL. Adult ¢: Red;
wings and tail blackish, with-
out white markings. Middle
of back darker, more browu-
ish-red than elsewhere, the
feathers with dusky centres.
In the highest feather, even,
the red is scarcely continuous
except on head and rump,
where brightest; lower belly
and crissum usually gray or
pale. Though the shade of
red is never rosy or carmine
as in the last, it varies inter-
minably. It is usually tile-
red or cinnabar, heightening
in some cases to vermilion, in
others shading to brownish-
red, and often mixed not only with gray, but with olivaceous or saffron-yellowish tints.

Orange, chrome or gamboge ¢ f are sometimes seen. Length about 6.00; wing 3.50; tail
2.50; bill (chord of culmen) 0.67 or less, very variable ; under mandible usually weaker than
upper. @ and young: Dull greenish-olive, much mixed with gray or dusky, brighter and
more yellowish on head and rump; below, gray, most feathers skirted with dingy yellowish,

overcasting most of the plumage. Very young are dusky, streaked with grayish-white, usually
no trace of olivaceous ; below gray, streaked with dusky; bill weak. From such state as this

the g usually passes through stages resembling the 9, being found in every possible patchy

state of mixed gray, olive and dusky-reddish ; sometimes appears to pass directly into the red

state, and the same is doubtless the case with other species. N. Am., alpine and northerly ;‘
S. in most of the U.S. in winter, on the E. side usually to Pa. and Md.; resident in Maine,

in mountains 8. to Pa., and in the Rocky and other Mts. of the West; abundant, in gentle and

unwary but timid flocks, usually including some individuals of the other species, fluttering and

creeping about in the foliage of coniferous trees. Nesting often in winter or early spring when

snow still covers the ground; nest in forks or among twigs of a tree, founded on a mass of
twigs and bark-strips, the inside felted of finer materials, including small twigs, rootlets,

s

200.

67.

201.

202.

300 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

grasses, hair, feathers, ete.: eggs 3-4, 0.75 X 0.57, pale greenish, spotted and dotted about
larger end with dark purplish-brown, with lavender shell-markings.

L. c. mexicana. Mexican Cross-BILL. Like the last; the bill larger, 0.75 or more long.
the under mandible especially more robust. Southern Rocky Mts. and southward on the table
lands of Mexie».

LEUCOSTIC'TE. (Gr. dNeuxos. leukos. white; oricry, sticte, varied. Fig. 215.) Rosy FINcHEs.
Bill small, cunie-aeute, ruffed at base with antrorse plumules meeting over culmen and con-
eealing the shurt nasal fossee and small nostrils. Side of under mandible (in typical species)
with a sharp ridge ronning obliquely upward and forward. Culmen ridged between two slight
depressions parallel with itself, gently convex throughout. No obvious angulation of eommis-
sural edge wf upper mandible ; that of lower with decided bend: gonys straight. Wings long.
folding beyond middle of tail, tipped by first 3 primaries, 4th shorter. Tail of moderate length,
forked. its feathers rather broad, its coverts reaching about } way to end. Tarsus net shorter
than middle we without claw: lateral tes unequal, inner shorter. its claw not reaching base
of middle claw. Hird claw about as long as its digit, more curved and longer than middle
elaw. Sexes somewhat dissimilar. Coloration peculiar; usually chocolate-brown, enriched
with rose or carmine, shaded with silvery-gray or black; one species mostly silvery-gray. The
American representative of the Old World genus Montifringilla. Terrestrial, highly gre-
garious ; Dest on ground; eggs immaculate white. Numerous species of this very interesting
genus are scarcely stable: I present the forms that are usually recognizable. The nearest
American relative is Egisthus : the general economy is more that of Plectrophanes.

Analysis of Species.
Under mandible ridged. Body-color chocolate-brown or darker.

No ash on head (Colorado) . 5 5 . australis 202
Ash on head confined to the top.
Coloration blackish (Colorado) ing «oe iste aes pou ce ake atrata 201
Coloration chocolate {W. America) . wi ey oe. - tephrocotis 203
Ash spreading on sides of head
Smaller: wing £2. (W. America) - ra <i . . litoralis 204
Larger: wing 4.60. (Alaska) % . a . - + . griseinucha 205
Under mandible smooth.
Dusky-purplish and silvery-gray, with rosy. fs ai és - arctoa 206

L. atra’ta. (Lat. atrata, blackened.) Rmeway’s Rosy Frxcn. Sexes unlike. ¢, in
April: Pattern of coloration and distribution of tints as in tephrocotis proper (see beyond) ;
nasal tufts white, and occiput ashy, as in that species, but the chucolate-brown of tephrocotis
replaced by black, deepest anteriorly and on under parts, sooty-brownish on the back. Bill
black (April) or yellow (September). Size of tephrocotis. Q, in April: Black of ¢ repre-
sented by dark slate-gray, more brownish on back, the rosy markings duller and more restricted ;
size rather less. This form occurs in the mountains of Colorado and Utah. We know neither
the summer nor winter plumage of this bird; no winter plumage nor whereabouts of australis ;
nor young nor breeding plumage of tephrocotis ; -— points to be ascertained before we can decide
the status of several alleged species of the genus. :

L australis... (Lat. australis. southern.) ALLEN’s Rosy Frycn. Sexes unlike. , breed-
ing plumage: Rich chocolate or umber-brown, the feathers of the back with darker shaft-lines
and paler edges, those of the under parts darker and somewhat purplish-brown. Red parts of
the body heightened to intense crimson, extending farther forward than in tephrocotis, some-
times skirting all the feathers .f the under parts; especially strong on the wing- and tail-coverts
and belly. No pure ash whatever on head; whole pileum black or blackish, purest anteriorly,
duller behind. Nasal tufts white. Bill and feet black. Length 6.75; wing 4.00-4.40, aver-
aging in 69 specimens 4.30; tail 2.80-3.35, average 3.10; bill 0.45; tarsus 0.75. When not
in highest feather, carmine toned down to more pink or rosy. In winter, bill yellow, changing
to black through various cloudings. @Q, in summer: While generally like ¢, having black

203. °

205.

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 851

bill and no ash on head, averages a little smaller, and is much duller colored; brown parts of
a grayish cast; rosy reduced or almost extinguished, chiefly traceable on rump and wing-
coverts ; abdomen scarcely tinted, and quills and tail-feathers with whitish instead of rosy edg-
ings. Wing 4.00-4.20, averaging little over 4.00; tail 2.90-3.25, average 3.00. Colorado
and New Mexico, breeding up to 12,000 feet; a curious southerly local race of the genus.

L. tephroco'tis. (Gr. reppds, tephros, gray; ots, ards, ous, otos, the ear. Fig. 214.) Swary-
son’s Rosy Fincw. Sexes similar. Adult J, in breeding plumage or nearly so: Bill and feet
black. Nasal plumules white. Frontlet black; rest of pileam hoary-ash, not descending
below level of eyes and upper border of
auriculars (for when the ash invades the
sides of head to any extent, the bird
takes the first step toward litoralis, in
which the head is extensively hooded in
ash). General color, sides of head in-
cluded, chocolate or liver-brown of vary-
ing intensity, many feathers skirted with
gray or whitish, especially the inter-
scapulars, which also have dusky centres,
and inclining to blackish on chin and
throat. Hinder parts of the body above
and below, including tail-coverts, rich Fig. 214. — Rosy Finch, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
rosy or carmine red, this color due to broad edgings of the dusky feathers of these parts.
Wings and tail blackish, the wing-coverts and primaries edged with rosy, showing nearly
continuous in the closed wing; edgings of inner secondaries rosy-white or white. Length
(average) 6.75; wing 4.00-4.45, average 4.25; tail 2.50-3.00, average 2.75; culmen 0.40-
0.50, average 0.45 ; tarsus 0.75-0.85, average 0.80. 9, adult: Very similar; pattern identi+
eal; tone subdued; size a little less; length 6.60; wing 4.10; tail 2.65. 9 in winter:.
Bill yellow; pattern unchanged ; coloration less vivid, the brown rather umber than chocolate,
the red rather rosy than carmine. Rocky Mt. region, from the Saskatchewan or beyond, through
most of the U. 8. in winter; breeding limits unknown, supposed to be Northern Rocky Mts.
of U. 8. and beyond. This is the central figure in the genus. It runs directly into

. L, t. litora/lis. (Lat. Mtoralis, littoral.) Barrp’s Rosy Fiycu. Like the last; the ash

spreading over the head, more or less, sometimes’ almost enveloping it like a hood, and even
oceupying the chin in extreme cases. Size of the last. Northwest coast; in summer unknown, -
in winter spreading from Kadiak 8. and E. to California, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado; very
abundant, in flocks mixed with tephrocotis proper.
L. griseinu/cha. (Low Lat. griseus, gray, and mucha, nape. Fig. 215.) Branpt’s Rosy
Fivcg. Like the littoral variety of tephrocotis, in having the ashy extending over the sides of
the head; this color settled in a definite hood, said to never invade
the chin. The resident form of the N. W. coast and islands, from
Kadiak W. and N. Much larger than Nos. 203-4; length 7.00
or more; wing 4.50 (4.25-4.85) ; tail 3.50 (8.15-3.90) ; culmen
0.57; tarsus 0.95. Sexes scarcely distinguishable. Bill black or
yellow according to season. Young ‘‘ uniform brownish-gray,
washed with umber; wings and tail dusky-slate, the feathers
Fig. 215.— Brandt’s Rosy bordered with paler; the edges of the lesser wing-coverts and
Finch. (Atvet Baird.) remiges very pale pinkish ; of the greater wing-coverts and tertials
pale dull ochraceous; no black or gray about head; bill horn-color.” Nest well made of
grasses and mosses, lined with feathers, on the ground or among rocks; eggs 3-6, generally 4,
pure white, 0.97 x 0.67.

206.

68.

207.

852 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

L. arcto'a. (Gr. dpxrdos, arktoios, northern.) Patuas’s Rosy Fincu. Dusky-purplish ;
neck above pale yellowish ; forehead and nasal feathers blackish; outer webs of quills and
wing-coverts, tail-coverts, rump and crissum silvery-gray, rosy-margined. Kurile and Aleu-
tian Islands; Siberia. Subgenerically different from any of the foregoing.

EGIVOTHUS. (Gr. Alyiodos, nom. propr. Fig. 216.) Rep-porn Linnets. Bill small,
short, straight, very acute, more or less compressed, the lateral outlines usually a little concave,
those of culmen and gonys straight; commissure straight to the slight angulation. Base of bill
thickly beset with a ruff of antrorse plumules, concealing the small nasal fossee and round
nostrils. Wings longer than tail, pointed by first 3 primaries.
Tail rather long for this group, forked. Feet small and weak,
but tarsi longer than middle toe without claw; lateral toes of
equal lengths, their claw-tips falling beyond base of middle claw.
Hind claw much longer, stouter and more curved than the iid-
dle, exceeding its digit in length. Size small; plumage streaky
with dusky, white, and flaxen colors, crown crimson, face and
throat blackish; sexes otherwise dissimilar; @ with rosy or
carmine on breast, wanting in 9. Scarcely different from Linota
(flavirostris, ete.) the pattern of coloration being the most avail-
able distinction. Arboreal, gregarious, highly boreal finches of
circumpolar distribution, breeding in high latitudes and alpine
regions, roving south in winter in great flocks. The species are

: : Fie. 216. — Details of Zgio-
much involved ; we have four recognizable forms. thus (4. hornemanni, nat. size).
(From Elliot.)

Analysis of Species.

Tarsus as long as middle toe and claw. Heavily streaked below. Rump always fully streaked. .
Smaller: length about 5.50; wing 3.00; bill moderate (N. Am. atlarge) . . Aen linaria 207
Larger: length about 6.00; wing 3.25; bill immoderate (Canada, etc.) . . . » . . . . holboelli 208

Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw. Lightly or scarcely streaked below. Rump of adult ¢ immacu-

late white to some extént.

Smaller: length about 5.50; wing 3.00. Bill and feet small (Brit. Am., scarcely U.S.). . . exilipes 210

Larger: length about 6.00; wing 3.30. Bill and feet large (Greenland) . . « hornemanni 209
#, linaria. (Lat. linaria, flaxen; a linnet. Fig. 217.) Common Rep-pouty. Adult ¢-
Frontlet, lores, and throat-spot sooty-black. Crown crimson. Above, variegated with brown-
ish-yellow and dusky, the feathers having dark
centres and flaxen edges. Rump streaked with
dusky and white, and tinged with rosy, more or
less so according to age and season. Below,
white, the sides and crissum streaked with dusky,
the entire fore-parts colored with rose-red more
or less rich and extensive according to same cir-
cumstances. Wings and tail dusky, the feathers
edged with whitish, the middle and greater
coverts tipped with the same, forming two cross-
bars. Bill black or yellow, usually found yel-
low with dusky tip and edges. Feet blackish.
Length 5.50; extent 9.00; wing 3.00; tail
2.50; bill 0.383; tarsus 0.65; middle toe and
claw the same. Adult 9 : Wanting entirely
or having but a trace of rosy on the rump and

Fic. 217.—Common Red-poll, reduced. (Shep- under parts. Breast with adingy yellowish wash,

pard del. Nichols sc.) streaked with dusky. Slightly smaller. Young:
Like 9, but the gf soon showing rosy. Young may usually be distinguished from the adult ? by

208.

209.

210.

69.

211.

70.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 353

a general buffy suffusion, especially on fore parts; edgings of wing likewise buffy; streaks below
less sharply defined ; crimson of crown restricted, or of a coppery or bronzy tint. In worn mid-
summer plumage the bird is very dark colored, almost entirely dusky. This bright little bird
inhabits northerly parts of both hemispheres, irregularly south in winter in N. Am. to about
35°; at times abundant, but erratic. Eggs 4-5, very pale bluish, finely speckled all over with
reddish-brown, 0.65 X 0.52. Nest in low trees and bushes. .

A. 1. hol/boelli. (To C. Holbéll, a Danish naturalist.) Hoxpéit’s Rep-potn. Like the
last; larger; length 6.00 or more; wing 3.25 ; tail 2.75 ; bill longer and Jess constricted, with
straight lateral outlines and rather curved culmen. Europe and N. Am.., especially Canada and
New England.

AK. hor/nemanni. (To J. W. Hormnemann. Fig. 216.) GREENLAND MEALY RED-POLL.
Bill regularly conic, only moderately compressed and acute, as high at base as long, color
varying with season from black to yellow. Frontlet black, overlaid with hoary. A recogni-
zable light superciliary stripe, reaching to the bill. Crimson cap over nearly all the crown.
Upper parts streaked with brownish-black and white, the latter edging and tipping the feathers ;
this white nearly pure, only slightly flaxen on sides of head and neck. Wings and tail as in
other species. Rump and entire under parts from the sooty throat white, free from spots, the
rump and breast résy. Feet large and stout; tarsus rather longer than middle toe and claw.
Length 6.00; wing 3.30; tail 2.80; bill 0.34; tarsus 0.65; middle toe and claw 0.58. Sexual
and seasonal changes as before ; quite dark in midsummer. Greenland and N. Europé. This

large hoary northern form is resident; never known to occur in the U. S., and most of the con-

tinental Red-polls of even Arctic N. Am. belong to the next species.

ZB. exi/lipes. (Lat. exilis, exiguous, small; pes, foot.) AMERICAN Meaty Rep-poLu. Bill
small, short, stout at base, regularly conic, little compressed, all its outlines about straight ;
nasal plumules very heavy, sometimes reaching half-way to tip of bill, Frontlet dusky, but
the feathers tipped with hoary; an appreciable light superciliary line; lores and throat-spot
dusky. General color of upper parts as in Wimaria, but the dusky streaks are smaller and less
distinct, especially on the anterior parts; and the flaxen is very pale, nearly white, disappear-
ing entirely on lower back, leaving a space streaked only with dusky and white. Rump snowy-
white, rosy-tinted, immaculate. Wings and tail as in other species; under parts white, the
breast with a rosy tint, paler than in linaria of same age and season; the sides streaked with
dusky, the markings sparser and less definite than in kimaria; crissum almost immaculate.
Feet very, small and weak, the toes especially shorter. Length 5.50; extent 9.00; wing 3.00;
tail 2.50; tarsus 0.55; middle toe without claw 0.28 ; middle toe and claw shorter than tarsus ;
bill 0.82. Seasonal and sexual differences as before. This form inhabits the whole of boreal
America, seldom reaching the U. S. and only along the northern tier of States.

LINO/TA. (Latinized from Fr. limotte, a linnet.) Liynets. Character of Agiothus in
form ; no crimson crown. European.

L. flaviros'tris brew'steri? (Lat. flavirostris, yellow-billed. To Wm. Brewster, of Cam-
bridge.) BrewstTEr’s Linnet. With the general appearance of an immature Agiothus,

‘this bird will be recognized by absence of crimson on crown, no black throat-spot, a sulphur-

yellowish shade on lower back, and somewhat different proportions. Wing 3.00; tail 2.50;
tarsus 0.50. Massachusetts, one specimen known. (Avgiothus flavirostris, var. brewsteri,
Ridg., Am. Nat., vi, July, 1872, p. 433; Hist. N. A. B., i, 1874, p. 501. Conjectured to be
Aigiothus linaria x Chrysomitris pinus.)

CHRYSOMI'TRIS. (Gr. xpucopirpis, chrusomitris, having a golden head-dress.) SIsKINS.
Bill exceedingly acute; its lateral outlines concave by compression of the sides toward the end,
culmen and gonys about straight, commissure angulated, cutting edges inflected, no ridges on
either mandible. Nasal tufts concealing the nostrils in their short fosse. Wings long,
exceeding the short, emarginate tail; point formed by the 1-3 or 4 quills, 5 and rest rapidly

23

212.

71.

213.

354 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

shorter. Tarsus about as long as middle toe with claw; lateral toes of equal lengths, their
claws reaching base of middle claw; hind claw shorter than its digit. Everywhere thickly
streaked. Nored. Sexes alike. Habit gregarious. Nest in trees. Eggs speckled.
C. pimus. (Lat. pinus, a pine. Fig. 218.) Pine Linnet. Pine Fincuy. AMERICAN SIs-
KIN. @ 9, adult: Continuously streaked, above with dusky or dark olivaceous-brown and
flaxen or whitish, below with dusky and whitish, the whole body usually suffused with yellowish,
most evident on the rump. Wings dusky, the basal
portion of all the quills and their inner webs for some
distance sulphury-yellow, usually showing externally
as a spot just beyond the coverts, sometimes restricted
and hidden. Outer webs of the quills also narrowly
edged with yellow, separated from the basal yellow
patch by a blackish interval. Tail dusky, its basal
half yellow, and outer webs edged with yellow. Bill
and feet brown. Length about 4.75; extent 8.75;
wing 3.75; tail 1.75. Very variable in yellowness of
tone, sometimes quite bright, again plain streaky,
dusky and whitish or flaxen; but the yellow colora-
tion of the wings and tail is distinctive. Young birds
ia have the markings diffuse, with a general buffy-
Fie. 218. aes Finch, reduced. (Sheppard brownish suffusion. N. Am. at large, breeding
del. Nichols gc.) northerly, ranging in flocks in the winter through
most of the U.S., abundant. Nest high in trees, preferably conifers; eggs pale greenish,
speckled with brown; about 0.70 X0.50. Flight undulatory ; voice querulous.
ASTRAGALI'NUS. (Gr. dotpayadivos, astragalinos, name of some bird.) AMERICAN GOLD-
FINCHES. Like Chrysomitris. Bill stouter, less acuminate, without extreme lateral com-
pression, culmen rather convex, gonys quite straight ; commissure strongly angulated ; upper
mandible usually showing longitudinal strie. Nasal ruff evident, though short. Wings and
tail asin Chrysomitris; feet smaller; toes shorter ; lateral digits of unequal lengths ; outer claw
rather overreaching, inner not reaching, base of middle claw. Coloration massed, not streaky ;
yellow, olive, black and white, no red. Sexes unlike. Eggs white.
Analysis of Species.
¢& yellow (in summer) with black cap, wings and tail, the
two latter white-marked (Eastern) . 3 tristis 213
¢@ gray, varied with yellow on back, breast, and wings,
with black face, wings, and tail, latter white-marked
(Western). . . . . lawrencii 214
do above olive or black, or mixed with poth; yellow below ;

wings and tail black, white-marked (Western).
Back olive; crown black, not below eyes; large white

tail-spots . A . . psaltria 215

Back mixed olive and black; crown black; moderate
white tail-spots . . . . @rizone 216

Back and crown black, to below eyes; small white
tail-spots ... - 1. mexicanus 217

do yellow, with black velloweinased wings and tail, and
whole head black. (Mexico, etc). . . . . notatus 218

A. tris'tis. (Lat. tristis, sad; from its note. Fig. 219.)
AMERICAN GOLDFINCH. YELLOW-BIRD. THISTLE-

BIRD. ¢, in summer: Rich yellow, changing to Fig. 219.— American Goldfineh, d, in
whitish on the tail-coverts; a black patch on the summer, reduced, (Sheppard del. Nicholssc.)
crown; wings black, more or less edged with white; lesser wing-coverts white or yellow;
greater coverts tipped with white; tail black, every feather with a white spot; bill and feet

214.

215.

216.

217.

FRINGILLIDE: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 355

flesh-colored. In September, the black cap disappears; the general plumage changes to a
pale flaxen-brown above and whitey-brown below, with traces of the yellow, especially
about the head; wings and tail much as in summer; sexes then much alike: this con-
tinues until the following April or May. Length 4.80-5.20; extent 8.75-9.25; wing 2.75;
tail 2.00; @ olivaceous above, including the crown: below soiled yellowish, wings and tail
dusky, whitish-edged ; rather smaller than the ¢. ,
Young like the winter ?; when very young, suf-
fused with fulvous, and the wings edged with tawny.
N. Am., especially the Eastern U. S.; an abundant
and familiar species, conspicuous by its bright
colors, and plaintive lisping notes; in the fall,
collects in -large flocks, and so remains until the
breeding season ;- irregularly migratory, but winters
as far north as New England; feeds especially on.
the seeds of the thistle and buttonwood; flies in
an undulating course. Nest small, compact, built
of downy and other soft pliant substances, placed \
in a crotch; eggs 4-6, faintly bluish-white, nor- Fic, 220 — Lawrence’s Goldfinch, reduced.
mally unmarked, 0.65 & 0.50. (Altered from Audubon.) -
A. lawren’cii. (To G. N. Lawrence, of New York. Fig. 220.) LAWRENCE’s GOLDFINCH.
6, in summer: Gray, more or less tinged with yellowish, whitening on the belly and crissuin ;
rump, a large breast-patch, and much of the back rich yellow; crown, face, and chin black ;
wings black, variegated with yellow, most of the coverts being of this color, and the same
broadly edging the quills; inner secondaries edged with hoary gray; tail black, most of the
feathers with large square white spots on the inner webs and whitish edging of the outer; bill
and feet flesh-color more or less obscured. The 9? resembles the @, but there is no black on
the head, and the yellow places are not so bright; yellow of the back often wanting. ¢ 9, in
winter: The yellowish of the upper parts changed to olive-gray, but the yellow of other parts
often as bright as in summer, and the black of the @’s head the same. Size of tristis, or
rather less; an elegant species. California, Arizona, and New Mexico. General habits the
same as those of C. tristis; nest and eggs indistinguishable.
A.psal'tria, (Gr. WdArpia, psaléria, a lutist. Fig. 221.) ArKansaw GoLpFIncH. 4, adult:
Upper parts uniform olive-green, without any
black; below yellow; crown black, this not
extending below eyes; wings black, most of
the quills and the greater coverts white-tipped,
and the primaries white at base; tail black,
the outermost three pairs of feathers with a
long rectangular white spot on the inner web.
@ and young similar, but not so bright, and
no black on the head; sometimes, also, no
decided white spots on the tail. Length 4.25-
: 4.50; wing 2.30; tail 2.00. Plains to the
. Fic, 221. —Arkansaw Goldfinch, reduced. (After Pacific, U.S., southerly; N. at least to the
Audubon.) head-waters of the Platte. A pretty species,
of the same habits as the common Goldfinch ; nest and eggs the same. Southward this form
passes directly into
A. p. arizonz. (Lat., of Arizona.) ARIzoNA GOLDFINCH. The upper parts mixed olive
and black in about equal amounts ; thus leading directly into _
A. p. mexica/nus. (Lat. Mexican. Fig. 222.) Mexican Gouprincg. The upper parts con-

218.

72.

219.

356 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

tinuously-black, and the black of the crown extending below the eyes, enclosing the olive
under eyelid. Mexican border and southward. This bird looks quite unlike typical psaltria,
but the gradation through var. arizone is perfect; and mexicana, moreover, leads directly into
var. columbiana, a Central American form in which
the tail-spots are very small or wanting. The
females of these several varieties cannot be distin-
guished with certainty. °
A. nota/‘tus. (Lat. notatus, noted in any way.)
BLACK-HEADED GoLprFincy. 4, adult: Bright
yellow, obscured on the back, head all around glossy
black, extending on fore-breast ; wings black, with
large basal area on all the quills yeilow, forming a
conspicuous patch ; tail black, basal half or more of
all the feathers but the middle pair yellow. Wing y
2.70; tail 1.80; bill extremely acute, much as in Fic. 222,— Mexican Goldfinch, reduced.
Carduelis or Chrysomitris proper. South and Cen- (After Audubon.)
tral Am. and Mexico, a straggler in.U. 8. (2 ‘‘ Kentucky,” Audubon.)
PLECTRO/PHANES. (Gr. aAnkrpov, plectron, a certain instrument; gaivw, I appear;
alluding to the hind claw.) Bill very small and truly conic, well exhibiting ‘‘ emberizine” or
“bunting” characters; i. e., strong angulation of commissure; inflected cutting edges; a
palatal knob. Culmen slightly curved; gonys perfectly straight, and very short, less in length
than width of bill; lower mandible heavier than upper. A dense nasal ruff. Wings very long
and pointed; Ist or lst and 2d quills longest, rest rapidly graduated. Tail’ 4 shorter than
wings, nearly square. Tarsus longer than middle toe without claw; lateral toes of subequal
lengths, and much shorter than the middle one. Claws slender and compressed, with deep
lateral grooves at base ; hind claw lengthened and less curved than the rest, but not straight.
Gullet very distensible. Sexes alike. Colors very different with season; in summer ¢
entirely black and white. One species, circeumpolar. Terrestrial, gregarious.
P, niva/lis. (Lat. nivalis, snowy ; nix, nivis, snow. Fig. 223.) Snow Buntinc. SNow-
FLAKE. , in full dress: Pure white; the bill, feet, middle of back, scapulars, primaries
except at base, most inner secondaries, bastard quills, and several tail-feathers, black. Length
about 7.00 ; extent 12.50-13.00; wing 4.00-4.25 ; tail 2.50-2.75. In less perfect summer dress,
black of the back, inner secondaries and tail-
feathers varied with white. 9, in breeding
plumage: The black impure or brownish, and
most or all of the upper parts brownish-black,
varied with white. Rather smaller. Dimen-
sions of many specimens of both sexes: length
6.50-7.00; extent 12.00-13.00; wing 4.00-
4.25; tail 2.50-2.75; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.80;
middle toe and claw 0.90; “hind toe and claw
0.67-0.75; claw alone 0.33-0.44. Adults, in
winter, as generally seen in the U. S. (where
a =a black-and-white birds are rarely if even
Fig. 223.— Snow Bunting, in summer, reduced. found): Upper parts overcast with rich warm
(Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) chestnut-brown and grayish-brown, mixed
with the black of the back, and clouding the other upper parts which are white in summer,
becoming dusky or even blackish on the head; this brown also usually forming a patch on the'
ears, a collar on the breast, edging of the inner wing- and tail-feathers, and a wash on the
flanks; but specimens vary interminably; other parts white or black as in summer; bill

73..

220.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 357

yellowish, usually black-tipped, but drying reddish-brown. Fledglings: Dark ashy-gray
above, and on the fore parts below this color overlaid with brown, and streaked on the
back with dusky; below, from the breast, white; lateral tail-feathers mostly white; inner

‘secondaries black with brown edging. A very notable bird, inhabiting the northern hemi-

sphere, breeding in arctic regions, whence migrating south in vast flocks with the snow, as if
one with these pure crystallizations. Thousands whirl into the U.S. in the fall on the wings
of the storm, relieving by their animated presence the desolation of places exposed to the
fury of the blast. South regularly only to the Northern States, but often the roving flocks
reach 35°. Nest on the ground in the sphagnum and tussocks of arctic regions, of a great
quantity of grass and moss, lined: profusely with feathers: eggs 4-6, very variable in size and
color, about 0.90 X 0.65, white or whitish, speckled, veined, blotched, and marbled with deep
browns and neutral tints.

CENTRO/PHANES. (Gr. xévrpov, kentron, nail, claw; gaivo, phaino, I appear; the hind
claw lengthened and straightened.) Lonaspurs. Characters of Plectrophanes; hind claw and
its digit more developed ; longer than the middle; bill relatively and absolutely larger, rather
“fringilline” than thoroughly ‘‘emberizine,” but still with a palatal knob; no decided nasal
ruff, but antrorse plumules in nasal fosse ; a little tuft at base of rictus. Wings less acute,
the point formed by 1st-3d primaries, 4th abruptly shorter; tail emarginate. Sexes very
unlike: @ with a black hood and chestnut cervical collar. Gregarious, terrestrial.

Analysis of Adult Males.

Whole head and throat black; belly white ; bill yellow; feetblack . .... . . . lapponicus 220
Crown black; whole under parts fawn-colored ; feet flesh-colored. . : 04 pictus 221
Crown black; throat white; belly black or mashowanivs feet dark. . aoe « . ornatus 222

C. lappon'icus. (Lat. lapponicus, of Lapponia, Lapp-land. Figs. 43, 5,924.) | Lapianp Lone-
spur. 4, in full dress (seldom seen in U. S.): R

Whole head, throat and breast jet-black, bor-
dered with buffy or whitish, which forme a
post-ocular stripe separating black of crown
from that of sides of head, sometimes contin-
ued to the bill. A broad cervical chestnut col-
lar, separated from the black cap by whitish
or buffy line and nuchal spot. Upper parts
brownish-black completely streaked with buff
or whitish edges of the feathers ; under parts
white, the sides streaked with black. Wings
dusky, with pale or brownish edgings of the
feathers, but no strong markings. Tail like
wings, with large oblique white spaces on
outer 3 feathers. Bill yellow, black-tipped.
Legs and feet black. Length about 6.50; =
extent 11.25; wing 3.50-3.75; tail 2.50-2. 75; Fic. 224. — Lapland Longspur, in summer, reduced.
tarsus 0.75 ; “tne toe and claw rather more; (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

hind claw about 0.50, slender, sharp, and little curved. &, adult, in winter: The black hood
overcast with brown or gray tips of the feathers, or otherwise imperfect. Chestnut collar also
overlaid with gray. Edges of secondaries and wing-coverts ruddy-brown; sides of flanks
washed with brown. White tail-spots less extensive. Yellow of bill obscured. 9, in breed-
ing plumage: Upper parts of body, wings and tail, as in &- No continuous pure black on
sides of head, chin, or throat. Cervical collar indicated, but dull and obscured. Black of
crown eral with gray; superciliary and postocular stripe buffy ; sides of head blackish,
overlaid with gray; throat similarly varied, but chin nearly white; on the whole, the pattern

221.

222

308 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

of the @’s black hood clearly indicated, but interrupted and ill-defined. Sides of breast and
belly with few small sharp dark streaks, instead of heavy black stripes; other under parts as in
the @. Bill obscure yellowish, dusky-tipped; feet'dark brown, not black. Rather smaller.
& @, young, in winter, as usually seen in U. 8., without any continuous black, resemble
the adult @ as to coloration of head and fore parts, and are like winter # in other respects.
The cervical collar may be scarcely appreciable, but usually shows a trace at least ; sides often
quite brown. Fledglings: Continuously streaked on the upper and fore parts with blackish
and brownish-yellow; wings and tail broadly edged with chestnut; bill dark; feet pale. A
species of circumpolar distribution, like the last; breeding range and winter rovings much the
same, but less commonly observed in the U. $. South irregularly to the Middle States, Ohio,
Colorado, ete. Nesting like P. nivalis; eggs 4-6, 0.80 x 0.62, dark-colored, very heavily
mottled and clouded with chocolate-brown, through which the greenish-gray ground scarcely
appears.

C. pic'tus. (Lat. pictus, painted.) Paintep Lonaspur. Adult ¢: Cervical collar and entire
under parts rich fawn color; crown and sides of head black, bounded below by a white line, and
interrupted by a white superciliary and auricular line and white occipital spot. Upper parts
streaked with black and brownish-yellow. Lesser and middle wing-coverts black, tipped with
white, forming conspicuous patches. One or two outer tail-feathers mostly white. No white
ontherest. Legs pale or flesh-colored. Size of lapponicus. Length 6.50; extent 11.25; wing
3.75 ; tail 2.50; tarsus 0.75 ; middle toe and claw, about the same; hind toe and claw, rather
less (C. ornatus is much less in all its dimensions). Young, and generally in winter: Bill dusky-
brown above and at tip, paler below; feet light brown (drying darker) ; toes rather darker.
Entire under parts rich yellowish-brown, or buffy (in C. ornatus never thus) ; paler on the chin
and throat, which, with the fore-breast, are obsoletely streaked with dusky.; the tibiee white.
Tail white only onthe two or three outer feathers (in C. ornatus all the feathers, excepting some-
times the central pair, are white at the base). Upper parts much as in the adult, but the distinc-
tive head-markings wanting, or only obscurely indicated. Interior N. Am. from the region of the
Yukon, McKenzie, Saskatchewan and upper Missouri to the prairies of Illinois in winter. It
is not found in the Atlantic States, but is common on the prairies of Dakota, Montana, and
southward, associated in the fall with C. ornatus, but breeding mostly farther north. Habits
and general aspect of ornatus, but easily distinguished by larger size, buffy under parts, black
and white wing-patch, and white only on some lateral instead of all of the tail-feathers. Nest
on ground; eggs size of lapponicus, colored more like ornatus.

C. orna/tus. (Lat. ornatus, adorned), CHESTNUT-COLLARED LonesPUR. BLACK-sSHOUL-
DERED LonespuR. WHITE-TAILED Lonespur. , in full dress: Cervical collar intense
chestnut. Crown black; a whitish spot on nape, and broad white superciliary stripe. Auricu-
lars black, mixed with the color of the throat; throat and most of the sides of head below eyes
rusty-white, changing to pure white which extends around sides of neck, partly bordering the
chestnut collar. Breast and belly lustrous black, often mixed with intense ferruginous or
mahogany feathers, sometimes largely overlaid with this rich sienna-color. Lining of wings
pure white. Sides of body, flanks, lower belly and under tail-coverts, white, all but the last
usually rusty-tinged. Back, rump, and scapulars brownish-black, varied with grayish-brown
edges of the feathers. Wings dark brown without decided markings, though the feathers are
pale-edged, excepting jet-black lesser coverts, with or without white tips. Tail like wings,
but two or three lateral feathers entirely white, and all the rest basally white in decreasing
amount: in flight, the ‘t white tail” is very conspicuous. Bill blackish-plumbeous; feet dark.
Smaller than the foregoing : Length 5.75-6.00, rarely 6.25 ; extent 10.25-10.75, rarely 11.00 ;
wing 3.00-3.30; tail 2.00-2.30. 9, in full dress: Rather smaller; size averaging about the lesser
figures just given. Upper parts, wings, and tail as before, but lesser coverts not black; chest-
nut collar obscured ; crown like back, separated from the back-markings by a slight rufous

74.

223.

FRINGILLIDZ: ,FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 359

dusky-streaked interval. Sides of head, and throat, whitish, with dusky speckling on cheeks
and ears. Under parts dull brown, fading to white on belly and crissum, the feathers some-
times with dusky streaks. Thus an obscure bird: but observe generic characters, and exten-
sively white tail. , adult, after the fall moult: The full dress is confined to the breeding
season ; afterward, the colors are much obscured. Cervical collar and black of head and belly
veiled by gray ends of the feathers, but visible on raising the plumage. Crown like back, with
concealed black; superciliary stripe and other distinctive head-markings obliterated; bill
brownish-plumbeous. The changes in the 9 are parallel, but there is less to be altered.
Young & 9, before first moult: Whole upper parts blackish-brown, with semicircular gray
or whitish markings, and a slightly lighter cervical interval. Throat definitely white. Under
parts dull brown, heavily streaked with dusky, especially on the breast. Much light brown
edging and tipping of the quills and wing-coverts. Feet and bill pale. This stage is transi-
tory; with the first moult the young acquire the characters above described for the winter. A
beautiful species of the interior plains, British America and U. 8. and Mexico; breeds in pro-
fusion on the prairies of Dakota, Montana, and whole upper Missouri and Saskatchewan
regions, S. to Kansas or further; has occurred in New England; rarely W. of the Rocky Mts.
Breeds in June and July ; nest on ground, sunken flush with surface, of a few grasses and weed-
stalks ; eggs usually 4, about 0.80 X 0.60, white clouded with purplish shell-markings, gray
the prevailing tone, this irregularly dotted and veined with sharp dark-brown surface-marks.
Young covered with whitish down. In the breeding season the birds are fond of soaring and
singing as they fly, rising to great height and letting themselves down with the wings held like
parachutes ; they curiously resemble butterflies when so engaged. The white tail shows very
conspicuously. Ordinary flight wayward and vacillating ; song weak and twittering, but pleas-
ing. The birds flock as soon as young are fairly on wing, and leave the northern prairies in
October. They are associated in the breeding season with R. maccownt, and joined in October
by P. pictus and lapponicus from the north.

RHYNCHO'PHANES. (Gr. puyxos, rhugchos, beak, and daiva, phaino, I appear; in allusion
to.the turgid bill.) Lonespurs. Similar to Centrophanes, but departing in the direction of
Montifringilla (an exotic genus). Bill turgid, very stout and large in comparison; culmen rising
high on forehead, its outline.almost a little concave. Hind toe and claw less developed. Hind
claw not longer than its digit, not notably straightened. Sexes dissimilar. No cervical collar.
& with black pectoral crescent and red bend of wing. Habits of Centrophames strictly.
R. maccown'i. (To Capt. J. P. McCown, U.S. A. Fig. 225.) BuacK-BREAsTEep Lone-
spur. Bay-wincep Lonaspur. 4, in full dress: Upper parts slate-gray, streaked with
dusky and grayish or yellowish-

brown, especially on the interscap-
ulars. No cervical collar, but a
chestnut patch on the wings, formed
by the median coverts. Crown jet-
black, bounded by a white super-
ciliary line ; sides of head whitish,
but auriculars more or less slaty.
Throat white, bounded by firm
black maxillary stripes. Breast
jet-black, in broad crescentic form,
sharply defined against the white
throat, shading behind into slaty-
blackish, becoming more and more
mixed with white on the belly and

‘i : Fic. 225.—Black-breasted Longspur, reduced. (Sheppard del.
sides, till posteriorly the parts are Nichols sc.) ses

.

360 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

pure white; lining of wings white. All the tail-feathers, except the middle pair, and bases
and tips of intermediate oues, white, ending squarely across both webs. Bill blackish-plum-
beous, pale at base below; feet brownish-black. Length about 6.00; extent 11.00-11.50;
wing 3.30-3.60; tail 2.25; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.67; middle toe and claw rather less. 9, in
breeding plumage: Upper parts, wings, and tail as in the g— coverts with at least a trace of
chestnut, and tail displaying the rectangular shape of the white area; crown like back in-
stead of black ; no black inaxillary stripes, and breast-crescent slaty-gray ; throat whitish ; bill
and feet yellowish-brown, more or less obscured. The seasonal changes of plumage, as well as
the sexual differences, are parallel with those of P. ornatus; there is the same veiling of black
parts by gray, ete. Though so different from ornatus in full dress, the bird is very similar in
other conditions, age for age, and scx for sex: but larger; no trace of chestnut on nape; trace
at least on wing-coverts; and peculiar pattern of tail-feathers shown as soon as they sprout
and never lost. Very young birds have curved edgings of the feathers of the upper parts ;
the under parts quite purely white, with some dusky streaks, and a buff suffusion on the breast.
Region of the upper Missouri and its tributaries; N. to the Saskatchewan ; not known W. of
the Rocky Mts.; 8. to Texas and Mexico; E. to Kansas and probably Iowa and Missouri.
Breeds in profusion on the prairies from Colorado northward, in parts of Dakota and in
Montana associated with P. ornatus; winters from Colorado southward. Its habits and man-
ners are the same as those of P. ornatus. It has the same soaring singing flight, and para-
chute-like descent, ‘‘ sliding down on the scale of its own music ;” nesting the same; eggs re-
sembling the paler varieties of P. ornatus; 0.80 X 0.60.

75, PASSER/CULUS. (Lat. passerculus, a little sparrow; diminutive of passer, a sparrow.)
Savanna Sparrows. GROUND Sparrows. Bill rather slenderly conical, culmen, commissure
and gonys about straight (bill more turgid in P. rostratus and guttatus). Wings longer than
tail, point formed by outer 4 primaries, of nearly equal lengths; inner secondaries enlarged and
flowing, reaching nearly or quite to end of primaries in the closed wing. Tail short, nearly even
or little emarginate, of narrow pointed feathers. Feet slender, pale-colored, usually reaching
when outstretched nearly or quite to end of tail; tarsus and middle toe with claw of about equal
lengths ; lateral toes of equal lengths, their claws underreaching base of middle claw ; hind toe
rather longer than its claw, which has no special development.: Plumage thickly streaked
everywhere above, and below on breast and sides; crown with median light line and lateral
dark ones; no decided markings on tail-feathers. In most species edge of wing yellow, and
traces at least of yellow on head; no red, blue, or greenish. Sexes alike. Embracing small
plain streaked ground sparrows of slender build, mostly with a touch of lemon-yellow on edge
of wing, long inner secondaries and pale slender legs; one species abounding in the East, others

of more special distribution.
Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Bill typical. Crown with median light stripe. Inner secondaries seldom quite equalling primaries. No
decided lemon-yellow on edge of wing. oe of head with two black stripes, and suffused with rich
brownish-yellow . . . . . bairdi 224

Bill typical. Crown with median light stripe. Inner secondaries at ful Jength, " Hage of wing with
lemon-yellow; same shade on head, if any. Upper parts much variegated; under white, with sharp

\ streaking.
Large, pale; little or no yellowish; length 6.00 or more; wing 3.25. Coast of New England princeps 22b
Large, dark, with decided yellow; length about 6.00; wing 3.00, Northwest coast . sandvicensis 226
Medium, of average coloration; length about 5.50; wing2.75, N.Am.atlarge . . . + savana 227
Medium; pale; size of savana proper. Interior and western. . »- . « @laudinus 229
Small, dark; yellow very decided. Length about 5.25; wing 2.50. ‘West coast soe ew + anthinus 228

Bill enlarged, turgid, with convex culmen. Crown-stripe obsolete. No yellow on head or wing.
Larger: bill 0.50, Length 5.30; wing near 3,00, Pale brownish-gray, with obsolete streaking; the
streaks below light brown. Coast of California . . . « rostratus 230
Smaller : bill 0.33. Length 5.00; wing 2.50. Darker, the streake below dusky. L ‘Cala. . guttatus 231

224, P.baird/i, (To Prof. 8. F. Baird. Fig. 226.) Barrp’s Savanna Sparrow. ¢ Q, adult, in
breeding plumage: With a general resemblance to P. savana. Inner secondaries less elon-

225.

FRINGILLIDA:: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 361

gated, rarely equalling the primaries in the closed wings. First 4 quills about equal and longest.
Hind toe and claw about equalling the middle toe and claw, its claw about equalling the digit.
Tail shorter than wing, lightly double-rounded (central and outer pair of feathers both a little
shorter than the intermediate ones). Top of head streaked with black and rich brownish-
yellow, or buff, the former predominating laterally, the latter chiefly as a median stripe, but
also suffusing the nape:and sides of head in greater or less degree. Back varied with
brownish-black and gray, together with a little bay, the two latter colors forming the edg-
ings of the interscapulars and scapulars. Rump variegated with gray and chestnut-brown,
different in shade from that of the back. Under parts dull white, usually with a faint
ochrey tinge on the breast, but often without; a circlet of small, sharp, sparse, dusky streaks
across the breast, continuous with others, longer and mostly lighter, along the whole sides, and
with others, again, extending up the sides of the neck into small vague maxillary and auricular
markings. When the feathers are perfectly arranged these lateral head-markings are seen to
be a post-ocular stripe just over the auriculars, a post-auricular spot, a streak starting. from the
angle of the mouth, and another heavier one parallel
with and below this, running directly into the pec-
toral ones. Quills without special markings, except-
ing the elongated inner secondaries, which correspond
with the scapulars. Tail the same, slightly whitish-
edged. Upper mandible mostly dark, lower pale.
Feet flesh-colored. Length 5.10-5.85, averaging
5.67; extent 8.60-9.S5, average 9.50; wing 2.75-
3.00; tail 2.00-2.25; culmen about 0.40; tarsus
about 0.75 ; middle toe and claw, and hind toe and
claw, each, rather less; 9 averages rather smaller.
Autumnal plumage: Soft, with brighter, more suf-
fused colors, in bolder pattern. Whole top and sides
of head, as well as nape and part of neck, suffused
with rich buff, in many instances as bright a golden-
brown as that on the head of Sturus auricapillus. A
paler, rather ochraceous shade of the same also suffus- Fig. 226.—Baird’s Savanna Sparrow, re-
ing the whole fore under-parts. Pectoral and latera] ‘uced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

dusky streaks, as well as the two rows on each side of the throat, large, heavy, diffuse. Bay
and whitish ailhaes of the secondaries broad and conspicuous, contrasting with the black central
fields. Whitish edgings of tail-feathers the same ; and, in general, the same character is stamped
over all the upper plumage. Newly-fledged young have each feather of the dorsal plumage con-
spicuously bordered with white, producing a set of semicircles, much as in Neocorys spraguii.
There is the same general buffy suffusion of the head and fore parts as in autumnal adults,
but the tint is dull and ochrey. The markings below have a short, broad, guttiform character.
When just from the nest, the edging of the secondaries and tail-feathers is of a peculiar pinkish-
rusty shade. Central Plains, U. 8.; N. to British Provinces ; E. nearly to Red River of the
North ; S. to Texas, N. Mex. and Arizona; W. to the Rocky Mts., and beyond. An ititeresting
sparrow, long almost unknown till I found it breeding in profusion in Dakota, taking 75 speci-
mens one season. In general habits and appearance in life quite like savanna sparrows ; mix-
ing freely with these and Neocorys, Hremophila, and Plectrophanes ornatus. Song peculiar, of
two or three tinkling syllables and a trill, like: zip-zip-zip-zr-r-r-r._ Nest on ground, a slight
structure of grasses and weed-stalks, about 4 inches across ; eggs 5, 0.80 X 0.65, white, irregu-
larly speckled and blotched with pale and dark reddish-browns, laid in June and July.

P. prin’ceps. (Lat. princeps, chief.) Ipswich Savanna SPARROW. : General appear-
ance of a large savanna sparrow, but with a resemblance to a bay-winged bunting. Upper

226.

362 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

parts grayish-brown, with blackish rafous-edged centres of the feathers; median crown-stripe
not strong, and seareely yellowish: a whitish superciliary stripe, not yellow anteriorly ; ear-
coverts grayish, with a rufous tinge. Scapulars, coverts and secondaries blackish-brown,
broadly edged with rufous, brightest on the secondaries; scapulars also edged with white, and
both median and greater coverts white-tipped. Tail brownish, tipped and edged with whitish.
Whole under parts white, breast and sides of throat and body streaked, the streaks dusky-
centred, rufous-edged. Bill dark brown, base of under mandible paler; eyes and feet brown.
Length 6.30; extent 11.00; wing 3.25; tail 2.60; bill 0.45; tarsus 0.95; middle toe and
claw 1.05; hind toe and claw 0.72. (Foregoing condensed from original description of the
type, taken in winter. Following as redescribed by Ridgway.) Bill of size and shape as in
P. bairdi exactly ; inner secondaries little lengthened. Outstretched feet not reaching to end
of tail. In color almost exactly as in P. rostratus, but different in markings: above light
ashy, the dorsal feathers light sandy-brown centrally, their shafts black. Surface of wings pale
sandy-brown, the feathers darker-centred ; inner secondaries with whitish outer webs, and con-
spicuous black central field. Crown becoming darker brown anteriorly, where an indistinct
median line of ochrey-white ; an indistinct superciliary stripe, and conspicuous maxillary stripe
of the same, the latter bordered above by a narrow dusky stripe; lores and cheeks like the
superciliary stripe ; auriculars like crown. Below, white, slightly ashy on flanks ; whole breast
and sides of body with narrow streaks of blackish-centred sandy-brown ; belly, crissum, and
lining of wings @mmaculate ; throat with a few minute specks, but on each side a bridle of
suffuse streaks. 9: wing 2.90; tail 2.40; culmen 0.50; tarsus 0.85. (Following notes taken
by me of a specimen received from Maynard; 9, Ipswich, Oct. 18, 1872: No. 73,553, Mus.
S. 1.) “About size of largest P. sandricensis from Alaska. No trace of yellow on head or
wing. Upper parts even paler and grayer than extreme of P. alaudinus from the West — the
streaks of upper parts having only shaft-lines of blackish-brown, brown-edged. the edges
of the feathers finally gray; nape, rump, and upper tail-coverts gray, scarcely streaked at
all. Crown streaked like interscapulars, but in smaller pattern; divided by a median light
line. A long whitish (not yellowish) superciliary line: lore gray below this. Inner second-
aries and greater coverts blackish, broadly edged on outer webs with bay, fading to whitish at
tips: median coverts similar, but more noticeably whitish-tipped; these edgings of wing-
feathers making the strongest coloration of all the upper parts. Below. white: throat and
middle of belly only immaculate, flanks a little shaded with gray: whole breast, sides of neck
and body, and crissum, with brown streaks, pale in comparison with those of P. savana,
and rather suffuse. On the sides of head below auriculars the stripes tend to form two chains
—a maxillary one and another above it separated by an immaculate interval. Resembles P.
rostratus in diffuse grayish coloration and lack of yellow on head or wing. Looks as a hybrid
between P. sarana and Poecetes wight be supposed to do.” Seems distinct, but not firmly estab-
lished as a species. Coast of New England, especially sand-hills of the Massachusetts coast ;
general range unknown: perhaps a local race. Curiously similar in some respects to the
Californian litoral form P. rostratus.

P. sandvicen'sis. (Of the Sandwich, one of the Aleutian Islands.) Similar to the ordinary
savanna sparrow: averaging in size about the maximum of the latter: length about 6.00; wing
3.00; tail 2.25; culmen 0.45; depth of bill at base 0.25; tarsus, amd middle toe and claw,
each, 0.80. Bill nearly twice as bulky as that of ordinary savana. A firm bright yellow super-
ciliary stripe from nostril to eye, thence fading over auriculars (i. e., chrysops, Pall.) Under
parts precisely as in savana; upper similar, but grayer—less rufous and more gray in the
edgings of the feathers. Such are the peculiarities of a specimen from the very spot whence
Latham and Pennant describe their bird; they are appreciable on laying the skin alongside a
large varying series of Eastern sarana. Alaska. But it does not follow that all the Alaskan
and Aleutian savanna sparrows are like this.

227.

229.

228.

230.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 363

P.s.sava/na. (Spanish sabana or savana, a meadow. Fig. 227.) Common SAVANNA SPAR-
Row. J Q, adult, in spring: Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides, and across breast ;
a superciliary line, and edge of the wing, yellowish; lesser wing-coverts not chestnut; legs flesh-
color; bill rather slender and acute; tail nearly even, its outer feathers not white; longest
secondary nearly as long as the primaries in the closed wing. Above, brownish-gray, streaked
with blackish, whitish-gray and pale bay, the streaks largest on interscapulars, smallest on
cervix, the crown divided by an obscure whitish line ; sometimes an obscure yellowish suffusion
about head besides the streak over the eye. Below, white, pure or with faint buffy shade,
thickly streaked, as just stated, with dusky — the individual spots edged with brown, mostly
arrow-shaped, running in chains along the sides, and often aggregated in an obscure blotch on
the breast. Wings dusky, the coverts and
inner secondaries black-edged and tipped
with bright bay; tail-feathers rather nar-
row and pointed, dusky, not noticeably
marked. Extreme dimensions of both
sexes: Length 5.20-6.00; extent 8.50-
10.00! wing 2.40-3.00; tail 1.75-2.25 ;
tarsus 0.75-0.88 ; but such figures are rare.
Average of both sexes 5.25; extent 8.75;
wing 2.60; tail 2.00; tarsus 0.84. @ usu-
ally 5.30-5.60; extent 9.00-9.50; wing
2.67-2.75; Q usually 5.00-5.30; extent
8.75-9.00; wing 2.50-2.67. Ordinarily,
bill about 0.40; tarsus, middle toe and claw
together 1.50. Fall and winter specimens
much more brightly colored than spring See
and summer ones; the young particularly Fic, 227. Common Savanna Srinunomn, 2editeaid, (Shep-
having much ochrey or buffy suffusion, in- Pard del. Nichols sc.)

stead of clean colors, more brown and bay, instead of dusky and gray. It is not easy for an un-
practised person to discriminate the small sparrows, and so variable a one as this offers special
difficulty ; attention to the points of form as well as of color is requisite. North Amer. at large,
chiefly Eastern, very abundant everywhere in fields, on plains, by the wayside, and along the
sea-shore ; a thoroughly terrestrial bird, migratory, and in the fall somewhat gregarious. Has
an agreeable though weak song in the spring. Winters at least from Middle States southward,
and breeds at least from New England to highest latitudes. Nest sunken in ground flush
with surface, of a few grasses and weed-stalks; eggs 4-6, 0.70 x 0.50, varying interminably
in their motley coloring; usually heavily clouded and blotched with dark brown; most like
those of Poccetes, but smaller.

P.s. alaudinus. (Lat. alaudinus, lark-like; no applicability.) Lark Savanna SPARROW.
So similar to the last as only to be distinguished by rather duller and paler coloration on an
average, and weaker bill, about 0.35 long by 0.20 deep at the base. If the ‘savanna spar-
row” be split into several races, this may possibly be allowed with the rest. Western U. 8S.
P.s. anthi‘nus. (Lat. anthinus, pipit-like ; no applicability.) Prerr Savanna Sparrow.
A form from the Pacific marshes, especially the coast of Cala., better marked than the last.
Bill as long as in savana, but slenderer; under parts more sharply, closely, darkly and
extensively streaked. Yellow eyebrow and bend of wing quite as well marked as in savanda,
and therefore contrasting with the paler and grayer alaudinus with which it is associated.

P. rostra/tus. (Lat. rostratus, beaked; rostrum, beak.) BrakepD SAVANNA SPARROW.
San DieGo SAVANNA SPARROW. SEA-SHORE SPARROW. With the form of a Savanna, but
the bill elongated as in Ammodramus, yet very stout and turgid, with decidedly convex

231.

76.

232.

364 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

culmen 0.50 long. No yellowish over eye or on edge of wing; no evident median stripe on
crown. Brownish-gray, obsoletely streaked with dark brown, most noticeable on crown and
middle of back; entire under parts dull white, confluently streaked with clear brown every-
where except on throat, middle of belly, and crissum. Wings and tail dusky-gray, the
rectrices with paler edges, the primaries with whitish edges, the wing-coverts and secondaries
broadly edged and tipped with grayish-bay. An obscure whitish superciliary line. Bill light
brown, under mandible paler or yellowish ; legs pale. Length 5.25; wing 2.50-2.75 ; tail 2.00.
Pacific coast, U. 8., especially California ; a curious species, common, maritime, representing,
with var. anthinus, the Ammodrami in the marshes of the seashore.

P. gutta’tus. (Lat. guttatus, spotted; gutta, a drop.) St. Lucas Savanna SPARROW.
Bill shaped as in rostratus, relatively as stout, but smaller; culmen 0.45; depth at base 0.25.
Bird smaller: pattern of coloration the same, but tone darker; streaking of the under parts
sharper, heavier, and darker. Instead of the light brownish-gray of rostratus the upper parts
are here dark, almost olivaceous, brown, so that the dark streaking of the crown and inter-
seapulars is less noticeable. The same difference characterizes the under parts. Cape St.
Lueas.

Oxs. There is a sparrow of the L. Cala. Gulf coast and islands like guttatus : larger;
wing 2.75; bill 0.50, at base 0.30 deep, thus as large as that of rostratus, but regularly conic,
with straight culmen suddenly deflected at end, and perfectly straight commissure; upper
mandible and tip of lower blackish; rest apparently yellowish. An n. sp.? P. sanctorum
N., Mus. §. I., San Benito Isl. (See Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., March, 1883, p. 538.)
POG'CETES. (Gr. én, poe, grass; oixérns, oiketes, an inhabitant.) Grass SPARROWS.
Bill moderate, culmen, gonys and commissure nearly straight. Wings long, longer than tail,
tip formed by first 4 quills ; inner secundaries somewhat elongate, less so than in Passerculus.
Tail emarginate, witb rather broad firm feathers, not acuminate at ends. Tarsus about as long
as middle toe without claw; lateral toes of about equal lengths, their claws scarcely reaching
base of middle claw; hind claw as usual, vot longer than its digit. Plumage thickly streaked
everywhere above, on sides below and across breast; bend of wing chestnut ; 1-3 outer tail
feathers white ; crown without light median stripe; no trace of yellow anywhere.

P. grami’neus. (Lat. gramineus, applied to a grass-loving bird; gramen, grass. Fig. 228.)
Grass Fincn. Bay-wincep Bunrtina.
VESPER-BIRD. Above, grayish-brown,
closely and uniformly marked with dusky-
centred brown-edged streaks, and further
variegated by pale gray edging of the
feathers. Crown quite like back, though
the marking is in smaller pattern ; super-
ciliary line and eye-ring whitish. Under
parts dull white, usually noticeably buff-
tinged in the streaked areas, thickly streaked
across breast and along sides with dusky-
centred brown-edged streaks, auteriorly
tending to concentrate in lateral chains
bounding the white throat; above this

Fic. 228.—Bay-winged Bunting, reduced. (Sheppard chain a maxillary brown stripe ; auriculars
del. Nichols sc.) varied with light and dark brown. Quills
fuscous, the longer ones with grayish-white edging, the secondaries and greater and median
coverts with broad firm brown and white edges and tips ; lesser coverts bright chestnut, whence
the name ‘bay-winged.” Outer tail-feather largely or wholly white, next pair or two pairs
largely white in decreasing amount. Upper mandible brown; lower, and the feet, flesh-

233.

77.

234.

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 865

colored or yellowish. Length 5.75-6.25 ; extent 10.00-10.50 ; wing 2.80-3.25 ; tail 2.25-2.75.
North Amer. at large, breeding throughout its range, but partially migratory, chiefly nesting
northward, and wintering southward. A large, stout, full-chested sparrow of plain appearance,
but recognized on sight by the bay bend of the wing and white lateral tail feathers, — the latter
conspicuous as it flies. Very abundant in fields, along roadsides; terrestrial, gregarious to
some extent when not breeding. Nest sunken in the ground, bulky, thick-rimmed, deeply
cupped; eggs 4-6, heavily colored, as in P. savana, 0.80 x 0.60; two or three broods may be
reared. One of the sweetest songsters among the sparrows.

P.g. confi/nis. (Lat. confinis, near.) WESTERN Grass Fincu. The paler, grayer form from
the dry western regions.

COTURNI'CULUS. (Lat. coturnix, a quail; coturniculus, a little quail.) GRASSHOPPER
Sparrows. Bill (in passerinus and henslowi) short and stout, with curved culmen (in
lecontw slenderer and more elongate). Wings extremely short and rounded, so that the inner
secondaries reach nearly to the tip when closed, without special elongation on their part. Tail
of variable length according to species, weak, of narrow, lanceolate feathers, in one species very
tapering and acuminate. Feet stout, much as in Ammodramus. Plumage greatly variegated ;
buffy tints conspicuous on under parts. Contains 3 remarkably distinct N. Am. species of queer
little sparrows of grass, weeds, and reeds, with another of 8. Am. (C. manimbe). They show
a greater range of variation in form than our finical modern genera usually allow, and shade
through C. lecontii into Ammodramus. The name is appropriate; C. passerinus curiously

resembles a quai] in miniature.
Analysis of Species.

Tail shorter than wings; outstretched feet reaching to or beyond itsend. Bill stout, brown. Adult not evi-
dently streaked below .. . . . passerinus 234, 285
Tail equal to wings. Sharp maxillary, pectoral and lateral atreake. Bill stout, brown. . . henslowi 28¢
Tail longer than wings ; outstretched feet not reaching its end. LBillslender, bluish. Sharp lateral without
pectoral or maxillary streaks . ..... aoe Bo ke . lecontii 237
C. passerinus. (Lat. passerinus, sparrow-like. Fig. 229.) Y=sLLOw-wincep Sparrow.
Quai SPARROW. GRASSHOPPER SpaRRow. ¢ 9, adult: Edge of wie conspicuously yel-
ow; lesser wing-coverts greenish-yellow; a
yellow loral spot; short line over eye buffy-
yellow. Crown with median stripe of pale
brownish-yellow. Below, ochraceousor pale
buff or tawny, fading to whitish on belly, not
evieh 7 though a few dai S
may appear on sides of breast. Above, sin-
gularly variegated with black, gray, yellow-
ish-brown and a peculiar purplish-bay, in
short streaks and specks; the crown being
nearly black with sharp median brownish-
yellow stripe, the middle of the back chiefly
black with bay and brownish-yellow edgings
of the feathers, the cervical region and rump
chiefly bay and gray. When the feathers
are not disturbed, the peculiar pattern of the
cervical region separates that of the crown
and back ; the markings extend on the sides Fic. 229. — Yellow-winged Sparrow, reduced. (Shep-
of the neck, but the sides of the head are pard del. Nichols sc.)
plain, like the under parts. Wing-coverts and inner secondaries variegated in intricate pattern,
the general effect like the back. Primaries and tail-feathers plain dusky, with narrow light edg-
ings ; ; outer tail-feathers paler, but not white. Feet flesh-colored. Small: length 4.80-5.25 ;

235.

236.

237.

4

366 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES —~ OSCINES.

extent 8.00-8.50; wing 2 25-2.50; tail 2.00 or less, shorter than wing, outstretched feet
reaching beyond it; rounded or rather double-rounded at end, the feathers narrow and lance-
olate. Bill very stout and full. In autumn, fresh-moulted birds are as usual richer in color,
the markings more blended and diffuse, the fore parts below and the sides rich buffy brown, in
which vague lighter and darker markings usually appear. Young: before the moult, are
whitish below, with decided dusky maxillary and pectoral streaks, thus resembling C. henslowi.
Eastern U. S. and Canada, but not far north; breeds throughout its range; resident in the
Southern States, elsewhere a migrant and summer visitant. Abundant in the rank herbage of
old fields, but less frequently observed than it would be did it not hide so persistently in the
herbage ; has a peculiar chirring note, like a grasshopper’s; nests on the ground; eggs 4-5,
crystal white, flecked with reddish-brown, 0.72 x 0.64.

C. p. perpal/lidus. (Lat. perpallidus, very pale.) BLEACHED YELLOW-WINGED SPARROW.

Specimens from dry western regions are paler and grayer; less black and more slaty-gray

on the upper parts, the ochrey crown stripe and edgings of the dorsal feathers, as well as the
under parts generally, paler.

€. hen’slowi. (To Prof. J. S. Henslow, of England.) HrnsLow’s GRASSHOPPER SPARROW.
Somewhat resembling a young C. passerinus. Under parts whitish, tinged strongly along the
whole sides, across the breast, and on the flanks and crissum with buff, all these buff parts
sharply and distinctly streaked with blackish in fine pattern; the pectoral streaks connecting
along the sides of neck with decided black maxillary stripes. The brownish-yellow shade is
very variable in extent and intensity, but it asually leaves only the throat and belly decidedly
whitish. Ground-color of head and hind neck a peculiar pale olive-gray, with a decided
greenish-yellow tinge; top of head with broad lateral blackish stripes, continued on the cervix
in much smaller pattern, divided by a greenish-brownish-yellow median stripe. The peculiar
color of the hind neck extending far around on sides of neck, and sides of head of much the
saine tint; a blackish post-ocular stripe bounding the auriculars above; below and anterior to
them a black maxillary stripe starting from the angle of the mouth ; below this ugually other
maxillary streaks ; dark specks often behind auriculars. Dorsal and scapular feathers with
broad black central field, then broadly chestnut, then mostly narrowly edged with whitish,
these markings in bold pattern, and contrasting with the peculiar greenish-gray cervical region
with its fine black streaks. Edge of wing yellow. Greater wing-coverts and most of the
secondaries colored to correspond with the back, the closed wing showing chiefly chestnut with
the black field of the three innermost secondaries. Tail-feathers extremely narrow and acute,
brown, the inner at least with long blackish shaft stripe, and reddish-brown on inner webs.
Bill brownish, usually quite dusky above, pale below; feet pale. Length scarcely 5.00;
extent 7.50; wing and tail, each, 2.00-2.10; bill from extreme hase of culmen 0.45 ; 0.30 deep
at base; tarsus or middle toe and claw 0.65. Eastern U. §., strictly, N. to New England,
uot very commonly; W. to Nebraska. Not abundant on the whole, nor easily observed.
Common about Washington, where it breeds, in fields and meadows; nest on the ground, in
tufts of grass. Eggs 4-5, greenish-white, profusely speckled with reddish, 0.75 X 0.57.

C. lecon'tii. (To Maj. J. Le Conte, of Philadelphia.) Lx Conrn’s GRASSHOPPER SPARROW.
Le Conte’s Buntinc. ¢ 9, adult: Bill smaller and slenderer than in either of the foregoing,
dark horn-blue above, paler bluish below; iris black. Tail long, decidedly exceeding the
wings when full grown, and remarkably graduated ; lateral feathers 4-4 inch shorter than the
central pair; all extremely narrow, tapering, and acuminate, even more so than in the sharp-
tailed finch (Ammodramus caudacutus) ; outstretched feet not reaching to its end. Wings
short and much rounded; primaries in closed wing hardly 4 inch longer than secondaries.
Length 4.90-5.10; extent 6.90-7.10; wing 1.90-2.00; tail 2.00-2.25 or a little more; bill
0.40; tarsus 0.67. No trace of yellow on bend of wing, nor any yellow loral spot. No black
maxillary or pectoral streaks; markings of under parts confined to sparse, sharp, blackish

78.

238.

FRINGILLIDE: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. , 367

streaks on the sides. General coloration more or less buff, according to age and season.
Crown with black lateral stripes, separated by a whitish stripe becoming ochrey on forehead.
Sides of head buff, brightest on the long broad superciliary line, enclosing slaty-gray auriculars,
which are bordered above by a black post-ocular line, sometimes chiefly appearing as a dark speck
behind them. Cervical feathers bay, black-shafted and whitish-edged, forming a distinct inter-

.val between markings of back and crown. Dorsal feathers in bold pattern, with black terminal

central field, little rufous and much whitish or buffy edging ; streaking extending ou rump and
upper tail-coverts. Wing-coverts and inner secondaries colored boldly to correspond with the
back. Under parts buffy-white, sometimes quite whitish, again much more buffy, with season,
usually quite buff with only belly whitish. Fresh moulted fall birds are often entirely deep
buff below, excepting the belly, which is white, in marked contrast. Young: Bill still smaller,
reddish-brown instead of bluish ; general color buff above, whitish below, more or less buffy on
breast and sides; markings of upper parts black, without the bay and brown variegation, except
on wings and tail, which are nearly as in the adults; sparse black streaks of under parts usually
appearing across breast as well as on sides. An interesting, long-lost species, recently redis-
covered: Yellowstone R. (Audubon, 1843); Texas (Lincecum); Dakota (Coues, 1873) ;
Illinois (Nelson, 1875) ; Iowa (Newton, 1875) ; Minnesota (Tiffany, 1878) ; South Carolina!
(Loomis, 1881.) Approaching Ammodramus caudacutus in many respects, and inhabiting
similar resorts in the interior. Nest and eggs still unknown.

AMMO’/DRAMUS. (Gr. dupos, ammos, sand; dpapeiv, dramein, to run.) SEA-SIDE SPAR-
rows. Bill remarkably slender and lengthened for this family, with culmen decurved toward
end, gonys straight, and sometimes an
evident lobation of the cutting edge of
the upper mandible. Wings short and
rounded, yet longer than tail ; inner sec-
ondaries, though not elongate, reaching
nearly to end of primaries when wing
is closed ; point formed by 2d-4th quills.
Feet large and stout, reaching out-
stretched about to end of tail; tarsus
about equal to middle toe and claw in
length ; lateral toes of equal lengths,
very short, their claws underreaching
base of middle claw. , Tail shorter or
not longer than wings, much rounded,
of narrow, stiffish, sharp-pointed feath-
ers. Embracing small streaky marsh
sparrows, especially of the sea-coast,
but not exclusively maritime, as long Fie. 230 — Generic details of Ammodramus (A. caudacutus),
supposed; remarkable for slenderness ™* 2°. (Ad. nat. del. F.C.)

of the bill, sharp narrow tail-feathers, and stout feet fitted for grasping slender swaying reeds.

Edge of wing bright yellow; a yellow spot or buff stripe on head; upper parts olive-gray or
quite blackish, streaky.

Analysis of Species.
Loral spot und edge of wing bright yellow.
Upper parts olive-gray obscurely streaked

ve-gray obscurely streaked =» ee ew ee eee + + . maritimus 238
Upper parts quite blackish . © 1 2. 0 fw we ee ee te le eo nigrescens 239
Along buff superciliary stripe . 2. 2... . we ee ke caudacutus 240-241

A. mari/timus. (Lat. maritimus, maritime, coast-wise; mare, the sea. Fig. 230.) SEA-sIDE
Fixcu. Olive-gray, obscurely streaked on back and crown with darker and paler; below, whit-
ish, often washed with brownish, shaded on sides with color of back, and with ill-defined dark

239.

240.

241.

368 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

streaks on breast and sides; maxillary stripes of the same; wings and tail plain dusky, with
slight olivaceous edgings; wing-coverts and inner quills somewhat margined with brown ;
edge of wing bright yellow ; a bright yellow spot on lore, and often some vague brownish and
dusky markings on side of head ; bill plumbeous, or dark horn-blue ; feet dark. Length 5.75-
6.25; extent 8.50; wing 2.25-2.50; tail about 2.00. Recognizable on sight by the bright
yellow edge of wing and loral spot, with little varied olive-gray upper parts. Salt marshes of
the Atlantic and Gulf coast; abundant. North to Massachusetts; breeds throughout its range,
and resident in the south, but screened from casual observation by the nature of its haunts and
habits. Nest in a tussock of grass just out of water; eggs 0.75 x 0.55, grayish-white, thickly
and pretty evenly marked.

A. m. nigres/cens. (Lat. nigrescens, growing black.) FLormpA Sra-sipE Fixcu. Like
A. maritimus; rather smaller bodied, though members not shorter, and conspicuously different
in color, being almost entirely black and
white. Upper parts sooty-black, slightly
variegated with slate-colored edgings of the
feathers, and some pale gray edgings of the in-
terscapulars. Below white, heavily streaked
with blackish everywhere excepting on the
throat and middle of belly. A bright yellow
loral spot, and bend of the wing bright yel-
low (both very conspicuous in the black
plumage). Wing-quills blackish, the inner
secondaries quite black ; all narrowly edged
with brownish. Tail black, with gray edg-
ings of the feathers, — these edgings tending
to form scallops with the black central field.
Bill: and feet as in A. maritimus. <A curi-
ous local race, resident in Florida.

A. caudacu'tus. (Lat. cauda, tail; acutus,
sharp. Fig. 231.) SHarp-TaILeD Fincu. Fig. 281.—Sea-side Finch, reduced. (Sheppard del.
Olive-gray, sharply streaked on the back Nichols se.) ,
with blackish and whitish, less so on the rump with blackish alone. Crown darker than nape,
with brownish-black streaks, tending to form lateral stripes and obscure olive-gray median line;
no yellow loral spot, but long line over eye and sides of head rich buff or-orange-brown, enclos-
ing olive-gray auriculars and a dark speck behind them, or dark post-ocular stripe over them.
Olive-gray of cervix extending around on sides of neck. Below, white; the fore parts and
sides tinged with yellowish-brown or buff of variable intensity, the breast and sides sharply
streaked with dusky. Greater coverts and inner secondaries with blackish field toward their
ends, broadly margined with rusty brown and whitish. Tail-feathers brown, with dusky shaft-
stripes and tendency to ‘‘water” with crosswise wavy bars. Bill blackish above, pale or
not below, feet brown. Coloration in spring and summer clearer and paler, in fall and in
young birds more brightly and extensively buff. Rather smaller than A. maritimus; > bill still
slenderer, and tail-feathers still narrower and more acute. Length 5.10-5.50; extent 7.50;
wing 2.25 ; tail 2.00; bill 0.45-0.50; tarsus, or middle toe and claw, 0.75. Salt marshes of
the Atlantic and Gulf States, N. abundantly to Maine; range similar to that of A. maritimus,
but on the whole more northerly, especially in the breeding season; nest and eggs similar and
scarcely distinguishable.

A. ec. nel/soni. (To E. W. Nelson, of Illinois.) Similar to the last, but smaller, with
bill slenderer and longer; colors brighter and markings more sharply defined. Fresh marshes
of Iinois and other portions of the Mississippi Valley at large; N. probably to Canada.

FRINGILLIDA): FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 869

79. MELOSPI/ZA. (Gr. pédos, melos, song, melody, and onifa, spiza, name of some Finch in Aris-
totle). Sone Sparrows. Bill moderate, conic, without special turgidity or compression, out-
lines of culmen, comimissure, gonys and sides nearly or about straight. Wings short and much
rounded, folding little beyond base of tail; Ist primary quite short; point of wing formed by 3d,
4th, and 5th, supported closely by 2d and 6th; inner secondaries not elongated. Tail long,
about equalling or rather exceeding. the wings, much rounded, with firm feathers broad to their
rounded ends. Feet moderately stout; tarsus scarcely or not longer than middle toe and claw ;
lateral toes slightly unequal, outer the longer, its claw scarcely or not reaching base of middle
claw. Embracing a large number of middle-sized and large sparrows, without a trace of yellow
anywhere, and of brownish-yellow only in M. lincolni; upper parts, including crown, thickly
streaked; under parts white or ashy, thickly streaked across breast and along sides (excepting
adult M. palustris). No bright color anywhere, and no colorsin masses. The type of the genus
is the familiar and beloved song sparrow, —a
bird of constant characters in the East, but which
in the West is split into numerous geographical ,
races, some of them looking so different from
typical fasciata that they have been considered
as distinct species, and even placed in other gen-
era. This differentiation affects not only the
color, but the size, relative proportion of parts,
and particularly the shape of the bill; and it is
sometimes so great, as in case of M. cinerea, that
less dissimilar-looking birds are commonly as-
signed to. different genera. Nevertheless, the
gradation is complete, and effected by impercep-
tible degrees. Some Northwestern forms of
great size and dark colors are easily discrimi-

‘nated, but there are U. 8. birds from Atlantic to |
Pacific which are uot readily told apart. The Fig. 232,— Lincoln’s Song-Sparrow reduced.
student should not be discouraged if a subject (Sheppard del. Nichols se.)
which has tried the chiefs perplexes him ; nor must he expect to find drawn on paper hard and
fast lines which do not exist in nature. The curt antithetical expressions used in constructing
the analysis of‘species and varieties necessarily exaggerate the case, and are only true as indi-
cating the typical style of each; plenty of specimens lie ‘‘ between the lines” as written. In
going over a large series of Western song sparrows — specimens picked to illustrate types of
style rather than connecting links, it still seems to me that distinctions have been somewhat
forced; and that, also, different degrees of variation are thrown out of proper perspective by
reducing all the forms to the same varietal plane. Thus, the differences between cinerea
and all the rest, or between rufina and fasciata, are much greater than between rufina and
guttata for instance, or between fallax and fasciata. In any outline of the genus the curves and
angles indicated by Baird in 1858 are as far as they go nicer qualifications than the dead-level
varieties later in vogue. The several degrees of likeness and unlikeness may be thrown
into true relief better by some such expressions as the following than by formal antithetical
phrases: —1. The common eastern bird slightly modified in the arid interior into the duller
colored 2. fallax. This, in the Pacific water shed, more decidedly modified by deeper
coloration, — broader black streaks in 3. heermanni, with its diminutive local race 4. samuelis,
and more ruddy shades in 5. gwttata northward increasing in intensity, with increased size,
in 6. rufina. Then the remarkable 7. cinerea, insulated much further apart than any of
the others. A former American school would probably have made four “good species.”
1. fasciata; 2. samuelis; 3. rufina; 4. cinerea. The present British school might perhaps

24

370 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

handle them as 1. fasciata and fallax, with a, heermanni; 2. samuelis; 3. rufina, with a,
guttata. 4. cinerea.
Analysis of Species and Varieties.
Breast streaked, and with a transverse belt of brownish-yellow; tail nearly equal to wings . . Jincolni 242
Breast ashy, unbelted, with few streaks, or none; tail about equal to wings . + . palustris 243
Breast white, or brownish-white, with numerous streaks; tail usually longer than ie wings, both rounded.
Thickly streaked above, on sides, and across breast . 3 . » Jasciata and its varieties 244-250
The streaks distinct, decidedly blackish-centred (in breeding plumage).
Tone of upper parts grayish-brown or reddish-gray. Streaked from head totail. Dorsal streaks black,

rufous, and grayish-white. Wing 2.60; tail under 3.00. Eastern N. A. . » fasciata 244
Tone of upper parts gray. Streaks obsolete on rump. Dorsal streaks natrowly blackish and grayish-
white, with little rufous. Tail about 3.00. Southern Rocky Mt. region . - . fallax 245
Tone of upper parts ashy-gray. Streaks obsolete on rump. Dorsal streaks broadly plac, with little
rufous and scarcely any grayish-white. Size of the first. California . re heermanni 248
Tone of upper parts olive-gray. Streaks on rump and upper tail-coverts. Dorsal streaks as in the
last. Very small. Wing 2.25; tail2.50. Coast of California . . . are samuelis 249

The streaks diffuse, not black-centred nor whitish-edged. Bill slender. Pacific, coastwise.
Tone of upper parts rufous-brown. Streaks above and below dark rufous. Medium-sized; wing 2.60;

tail under 3.00. Pacific coast, U. S. and British Columbia . - . guttata 246
Tone of upper parts olive-brown. Streaks sooty. Larger; wing and tail about 3. 00. Pacific coast,
British Columbia and Alaska 3 6 rufina 24T

Tone of upper parts dark cinereous. Streaking sodtieh brown: Largest ; wing and tail 3 25 or more
cinerea 250

242. M.lin/colni. (To Robert Lincoln. Fig. 232.) Lincotn’s Sone Sparrow. ¢, 9: Below,
white, with a broad brownish-yellow belt across breast, the sides of the body and neck, and the
crissum, washed with the same; extent and intensity of this buff very variable, often leaving
only chin, throat, and belly purely white, but a pectoral band is always evident. All the buffy
parts sharply and thickly streaked with dusky. Above, grayish-brown, with numerous sharp
black-centred, brown-edged streaks. Top of head ashy, with a pair of dark brown black-
streaked stripes; 07, say, top of head brown, streaked with black, and with median and lateral
ashy stripes. Below the superciliary ashy stripe is a narrow dark brown one, running from eye
‘over ear; auriculars also bounded below by an indistinct dark brown stripe, below which and
behind the auriculars the parts are suffused with buff. Wings with much rufous-brown edging
of all the quills ; inner secondaries and coverts having quite black central fields, with broad bay
edging, becoming whitish toward their ends. Tail brown, the feathers with pale edges, and
the central pair at least with dusky shaft-stripes. Bill blackish, lighter below ; feet brownish.
Length 5.50-6.00; extent 7.75-8.25; wing and tail, each, about 2.50, the latter rather shorter.
There is little variation in color, except as above said. Fall specimens are usually most buffy.
Very young: Before the fall moult, birds of the year are much browner above, with consider-
able brownish-yellow streaking besides the black markings; top of head quite like back, the
ashy stripes not being established; whole under parts brownish-yellow, merely paler on throat
and belly, dusky-streaked throughout. North Am. at large; a peculiar species, not so well’
known as it might be, less numerous in the Atlantic States than in the interior and west; and
keeping very close in shrubbery. Migratory; winters in the South; breeds at least from N. Y.
and N. England to Arctic regions, and in the West S. at least to Mts. of Colorado. Nesting
like that of the song sparrow, and eggs not distinguishable with certainty.

243. M. palus'tris. (Lat. palustris, swampy; palus, a swamp. Fig. 233.) Swamp Sone Spar-
Row. 29, perfect plumage: Crown bright chestnut, blackening on forehead, the red cap and
black vizor as conspicuous as in a chipping sparrow; but oftener, crown with obscure median
ashy line, and streaked with black. An ashy-gray superciliary line; a dark brown postocular
stripe, bordering the auriculars; sides of head ashy, with grayish-brown auriculars, dusky
speckling on cheeks and lores, and slight dusky maxillary spots or streaks. An ashy cervical
collar separating the chestnut crown from the back, sometimes pure, oftener interrupted with
blackish streaks. The general ash of the sides of head and neck spreads all over the breast

244.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 371

and under parts, fading to whitish on throat and belly; the sides, flanks, and crissam marked
with brown, and obsoletely streaked with darker brown. Back and rump brown, rather darker
than sides of body, boldly variegated with black central streaks of the feathers and their pale
brown or grayish edges. Wings so strongly edged with bright bay as to appear almost uni-
formly brownish-red when closed; but inner secondaries and greater coverts showing some
black and whitish besides the bay. Tail likewise strongly edged with bay, and usually showing
sharp black shaft lines. Thus well marked by the emphasis of black, bay, and ash. Length
5.40-5.80, usually 5.60; extent 7.50-8.00 ; wing and tail, each, 2.20-2.40. Varies little except
as above noted, and in extent and intensity of the ash on fore and under parts. In birds of the
first autumn, the crown may be quite blackish, with little chestnut and an ashy median stripe.
Very young birds may be couspicuous-
ly streaked below, and a few streaks
may persist on the sides of the breast.
North Amer. at large, W. to Utah, N.
to Hudson’s Bay and Labrador, but
chiefly Eastern U. 8. and Canada;
breeding at least from New England
northward, wintering entirely in the
Southern States. Abundant, but a
timid recluse of shrubbery, swamp,
and brake, and seldom seen by the pro-
fanwn vulgus; a good musician, like
all the genus. Nesting and eggs like
those of the song sparrow.

M. fascia/ta. (Lat. fasciata, bundled
together ; fascis, a bundle of rods ; fas-
cia, a band; whence fasciata, banded,
striped ; the allusion not to the body-
streaks, but to the obsolete bands on
the tail-feathers. Fig. 234.) Sone Hoe, 39; Swamp Sine Sparco, x

Sparrow. SILVER-TONGUE. Below, Nichols sc.)

white, slightly shaded with brownish on the flanks and crissum ; with numerous black-centred,
brown-edged streaks across breast and along sides, usually forming a pectoral blotch and
coalescing into maxillary stripes bounding the white throat; crown dull bay, with fine black
streaks, divided in the middle and bounded on either side by ashy-whitish lines; vague brown
or dusky and whitish markings on the sides of the head; a brown post-ocular stripe over the
gray auriculars, and another, not so well defined, from angle of mouth below the auriculars ;
the interscapular streaks black, with bay and ashy-white edgings ; rump and cervix grayish-
brown, with merely a few bay marks ; wings with dull bay edgings, the coverts and inner quills
marked like the interscapulars ; tail plain brown, with darker shaft lines, on the middle feathers
at least, and often with obsolete transverse wavy markings. Very constant in plumage, the
chief differences being in the sharpness and breadth of the markings, due in part to the wear of
the feathers. In worn midsummer plumage, the streaking is very sharp, narrow, and black,
from wearing of the rufous and whitish, especially observable below where the streaks contrast
with white, and giving the impression of heavier streaking than in fall and winter, when, in
fresher feather, the markings are softer and more suffuse. The aggregation of spots into a
blotch on the middle of the breast is usual. Bill dark brown, paler below; feet pale brown.
Length 5.90-6.50, usually 6.30 ; extent 8.25-9.25, usually 8.50-9.00; wing 2.40-2.75, usually
about 2.60; tail nearer 3.00. @ averaging near the lesser dimensions, but the species re-
markably constant in size, form, and coloring. Eastern U. S. and Canada, breeding through-

245.

248.

249.

246.

247.

250.

-M. f. samue’lis. (To E. Samuels.) SAMUELS’

872 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

out its range, wintering nearly throughout ; one of the common winter sparrows of the Middle
States. A very abundant bird everywhere in shrubbery and tangle, garden, orchard, and park,
as well as swamp and brake. A hearty, sunny songster, whose quivering pipe is often tuned
to the most dreary scenes; the limpid notes being one of the few snatches of bird melody that
enlivens winter. Nesting various, ina bush near the ground, ora grass tuft, or on the ground :
eges 4-6, 0.75-0.85 x 0.55-0.60, greenish or grayish-white, endlessly varied with browns, from
reddish to chocolate as surface-markings, and lavender or purplish shell-markings, either
speckled, blotched, or clouded: no general effect describable in few words. Two or three
broods may be reared.

M. f. fallax. (Lat. fallax, fallacious, deceitful: well named.) Gray Sona SpaRRow.
Extremely similar; the first and least departure from fasciata, and scarcely distinguishable ;
tail rather longer; tone of upper parts paler,
grayer ; the streaks not so obviously blackish
in the centre and with less rufous; obsolete
on rump. Southern Rocky Mt. region and
Great Basin.

M. f. heer/‘manni. (To Dr. A. L. Heer-
mann.) HeErMAnn’s SonG SPARROW. Sim-
ilar: tone of upper parts grayish, the streaks
numerous, broad, distinct, with little rufous
and mostly lacking pale edging, obsolete on
the rump. Size of fasciata. California.

Sone Sparrow. Similar to the last, in dis-
tinctness of the black streaks, which are not
obsolete on rump; tone of upper parts ashy-
gray. Very small, scarcely 5.00; wing 2.00;
tail 2.30. California coast.
M. f. gutta'ta. (Lat. guttata, marked with
drop-like spots.) OREGON Sone SPARROW.
Decidedly different. The streaking diffuse,
the streaks above and below dark rufous-
brown, without black centres or pale edges. _ Fig. 234.—Song Sparrow, reduced. (Sheppard del.
4 Nichols sc.)
Coloration blended, the general tone ruddy ;
under parts extensively shaded with brownish, except on belly. About the size of fasciata,
or rather larger. Pacific coast, U. 8. and British Columbia. This form was recognized as dis-
tinet by Audubon, who wrongly called it Fringilla cinerea Gm. ; and by Nuttall, who named
it F'. guttata, and compared it with the fox sparrow, from its resemblance in color tu Passerella
tliaca. ;
M. f. rufina. (Lat. rufina, reddish.) Rusty Sona SpaRRow. Quite like guttata; larger
and darker; tone of upper parts smoky-brown, the streaking very dark. Wing and tail about
3.00. Pacific coast, British Columbia and northward. (Combined by Baird with the last,
under name of M. rufina.)
M. cine’rea. (Lat. cinerea, ashy.) CrneREOouS Sone Sparrow. Kaptak Sone SPARROW.
Peculiar in size, shape, and color. Above, brownish slate-color, more rufous on wings, the
streaking broad and blended, very dark. Below, plumbeous-whitish, shaded with brown on
sides, the streaks broad, diffuse, and dark. Spring and fall plumages differ much, but the bird
may be recognized by its great size. Length about 7.00; wing 3.30; tail 3.50; bill very long,
slender for its length; culmen about 0.60; depth at base 0.30. Kadiak, Alaska; Aleutian
Islands. (Fringilla cinerea Gm. M. insignis Bd.)

80.

251.

252.

FRINGILLIDA’: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 3873

PEUCAVA. (Gr. meveh, peuce, a pine; not well applied except to P. estiwalis.) SumMrr
Fincues. Bill of moderate size, rather elongate-conic, upper mandible declivous toward end,
commissure bent. Wings short and much rounded, folding little if any beyond base of tail, the
inner secondaries not elongated. Tail little or ffitich longer than wing, much rounded, the
lateral feathers some $ an inch shorter than the middle; of weak narrowly linear feathers with
elliptically rounded ends. Feet small and weak, not reaching when outstretched nearly to end
of tail; tarsus about equal tv middle toe and claw; lateral toes equal, short, their claws not
nearly reaching base of middle claw. Adults scarcely or not streaked below ; crown chestnut
or (ofteuer) quite like back, streaked with rusty-brown, black, and gray. A superciliary and
post-ocular stripe, but usually none running under anriculars; more or less distinct black
maxillary stripes. Edge of wing yellow (in most species. These nest on the ground and lay
white eggs).
Analysis of Species (adults).

Edge of wing yellow. Crown not uniform chestnut; no chestnut on lesser wing-coverts. Maxillary stripes
slight. Nest on ground; eggs white.
Broadly marked above with rufous streaks or blotches on ashy ground, with black centres of the
streaks on middle of back. ‘'Tail-feathers plain, or only with obscure whitish area. . cestivalis 251-253
Marked above with pale brown black-centred streaks, these black centres enlarged transversely at
their ends on the middle of back, Tail-feathers shafted and barred with blackish, the outer broadly

edged and tipped with white. . ing i 1» Cassini 254
Edge of wing not yellow. Crown chestnut, Maxillary stripes hoary.

No chestnut on lesser wing-coverts . . . 2... + woe ee ee ews | MUfleeps 255-256

A chestnut patch on lesser wing-coverts . Redeye eae ae Sy ah eS .carpalis 257

P. estiva/lis. (Lat. estivalis, like estivus, summery; @stas, summer.) BACHMAN’S SUMMER
Fincu. Upper parts, including crown, continuously streaked with blackish, dull chestnut and
ashy-gray; no yellow about head; wing-coverts and inner secondaries marked like the back ;
edge and bend of wing yellow, as in Coturniculus passerinus. Below, dull brownish-ash, or
brownish-gray, whitening on the belly, deepest on sides and across breast, nowhere obviously
streaked in adult plumage. Some obscure dusky maxillary streaks, some vague dusky mark-
ings on auriculars, a slight ashy superciliary line, and very obscure median ashy line on crown.
Bill dark above, pale below; legs very pale; lateral claws falling far short of base of middle
claw; hind claw much shorter than its digit ; tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw ; tail
much rounded, with obscure grayish-white area on the lateral feathers. Young have the breast
and sides evidently streaked. Length 5.75-6.20, average 5.90; extent 7.60-8.30, average 8.00;
wing 2.17-2.55, average 2.40; tail 2.25-2.68, average 2.50. South Atlantic States, strictly,
and especially a bird of pine barrens, common in suitable localities; a fine songster. Nest on
the ground, of grasses; eggs 4, 0.75 x 0.60, pure white. As the first described species of the
genus, this has been used as a standard of comparison; but it is the most modified offshoot of a
genus which focusses in the Southwest and Mexico.

P. @, illinoén’sis, (Of Nlinois.) Intinois SuMMER Fincu. OAaxk-woops Sparrow. Above,
sandy-ferruginous, indistinctly streaked with light ashy-gray, the streaks broadest on the back
and middle line of crown; interscapulars sometimes with narrow black streaks. Wings light
ferruginous, the greater coverts less reddish and edged with paler; inner secondaries dusky,
bordered at ends with pale reddish ash. Tail plain grayish-brown, with ashy edgings of the
feathers. Sides of head, neck, and body and breast quite across, dingy buff-color, deepest on
breast, paler on throat and chin; a post-ocular rusty-brown streak over the auriculars ; sides

‘of neck streaked with the same ; an indistinct dusky streak on side of throat; belly dull white ;

crissum buff; edge of wing bright yellow; bill pale horn-color, darkest above; feet pale
brown ; iris brown. Size of estivalis; wing a little longer, 2.35-2.60, average 2.50 ; tail 2.55-
3.80, average 2.70; bill thicker; black streaks of upper parts, instead of being generally dis-
tributed, few and confined to the interscapulars; breast and sides. more buffy. Illinois to
Texas. (Like estivalis proper, but quite different from any of the following forms.)

253.

254.

255.

874 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

P. x. arizone. (Of Arizona.) Arizona SUMMER Fincu. With a general likeness to P.
@stivalis, in pattern of coloration, streaking of all upper parts, similarity of back to crown,
yellow edge of wing, and plain tail feathers; size same, wing and tail a trifle longer (as in
illinéensis). Colors duller and less variegated ; maxillary stripes obscure or obsolete. Upper
parts light dull chestnut or reddish-brown, moderately streaked with plumbeous-gray, but
reddish the prevailing tone ; interscapular feathers, and sometimes those of the crown, with
blackish centres; a poorly defined light superciliary stripe. Beneath, dull whitish, unstreaked,
the breast and sides with a decided ochrey-brown tinge. Wings dusky, the inner secondaries
darker and with more conspicuous rusty-brown edgings than those of the longer quills, and also
some whitish edging or tipping. Bill blackish above, pale below; legs flesh color. Young:
above, streaked with blackish and yellowish-gray, showing little reddish ; under parts more or
less streaked with dusky. Western Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and southward. (This is
what I meant by P. var. cassini of the orig. ed. of the Key; but true cassini is entirely differ-
ent. Var. arizone is probably identical with Zonotrichia botterii Sel.)

P. cas/sini. (To John Cassin.) Cassin’s Summer Fincu. Belonging to the estivalis
group, with yellow edge of wing, and most resembling var. arizone; but perfectly distinct. A
peculiar character of marking raises groundless suspicion of immaturity. ¢ 9, adult: Entire
upper parts, from Dill to tail, alike in pattern of coloration —a peculiarly intimate variegation
of ashy-gray, rufous-brown and blackish —the ruddy color occupying most of the feathers,
which have a blackish central field and gray edging ; the blackish area on eaeh feather, espe-
cially of the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, where it is most conspicuous, being hammer-
headed, or widened toward the end of the feather. Pattern of markings smallest on the cervix.
No special head-markings, though there is a tendency toward a lateral hrowner band on the
side of the crown, and browner post-ocular stripe, separated by a gray interval. Variegation
of the upper parts descending on sides of neck; sides of head with some vague markings.
Innermost secondaries showing quite blackish in the general field of the upper parts, and edged
all around with a firm border of ashy-white or hoary-white. Greater and middle coverts exactly
like the inner secondaries ; primaries similar, but the edging not so clear. Edge of wing clear

-yellow, and some of the least coverts tinged with this color. Tail curiously particolored ;

middle pair of feathers light grayish-brown, with a strong dusky shaft-line throwing off numer-

ous dusky cross-bars, so that these feathers seem ‘‘ watered” with lighter and darker shades.

Other tail-feathers, except the outermost pair, are dusky-brown, with pale grayish-brown

terminal spots increasing in size from the inner feathers outward. On the outermost feather

this pale gray space is very large, and rimmed all around with white. An indistinct maxillary

stripe on each side of the chin. A number of strong well-defined dusky stripes on the flanks ;

otherwise, entire under parts unmarked, and of a dingy whitish color, clearest on the belly and

throat, more grayish on the sides and across breast. Bill brown, pale below; feet pale.

Length 6.00-6.25; extent about 8.25; wing 2.50; tail 2.75. Young: Described as very

similar, but with a few drop-shaped streaks on the jugulum and along sides ; feathers of upper

parts with a more appreciable terminal border of buff. Texas to California, N. to Kansas, S.

into Mexico. Habits, nest, and eggs as in P. e@stivalis (eggs pure white).

P. ruficeps. (Lat. ruficeps, red-headed.) Rurous-cROWNED SumMER Fincu. Belonging

to a different section of the genus, without any yellow on edge of wing as in the estivalis group

and cassint. Lesser wing-coverts not chestnut as in P. carpalis. Strong maxillary streaks.

& 2, adult: Crown bright chestnut, in perfect condition bright and continuous, blackening -
on forehead, where divided by a short whitish line (whole cap thus as in Spizella socialis or
Melospiza palustris); crown, however, oftener streaked with olive-ash, especially along a
median dividing line, thus assimilating more nearly with colors of other upper parts. An
obscure olive-ashy superciliary line, whitening over the lores. Back streaked with olive-ash and
chestnut-brown, the latter sometimes distinct, as bold streaking with ashy edging of the

256.

257.

81.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 875

feathers, sometimes spreading almost to extinction of the ashy ; and the brown also varying in
shade from a kind of purplish-bay to light rusty-brown, apparently according to wear and tear
of the plumage. Wings and tail dusky, with varying amount of reddish-brown edgings of the
feathers. Under parts dull whitish, strongly shaded with olive-gray or olive-brown, paler on
belly, quite whitish on throat, which latter is bounded by strong black maxillary stripes. Size
of P. cassini, or rather less. Young: Crown like back; under parts streaked with dusky,
especially the breast. California. Nest and eggs still unknown.

P. r. boucar'di. (To Adolphe Boucard, a French collector.) Boucarp’s SuMMER FINcH.
From the typical Californian rujficeps the Arizona bird is said to differ in being darker, more
brownish-plumbeous than olive-ash, the dorsal streaks scarcely rufous, and with black shaft-
streaks. Few sparrows, if any, vary more than the species of Peuc@a, according to mere wear
of the feathers, independently of any moult, and to some extent of season. Birds of very
different aspect result, and it is not clear how the present alleged variety differs from ruficeps
proper. Oss. P. 1. eremeca Brown, Texas, seems scarcely different. Peucea seems to be,
like Junco, Melospiza, Passerella, etc., still unstable in its specific differentiations —to be
“making species,” in fact.

P. carpa/lis. (Lat. carpalis, relating to the carpus, or wrist-joint.) Bay-wiNGep SUMMER
Fixcu. Belonging to the section without yellow on edge of wing. Lesser wing-coverts
chestnut, forming a patch as conspicuous as in Powcetes or Auriparus. Strong black maxillary
stripes. Whole crown rufous, or dull bay, divided on forehead by a short pale stripe, and
bordered with a pale grayish-ash superciliary stripe. Cervix like crown, but mixed with ashy-
gray. Middle of back and scapulars grayish-brown, mixed with a little bay, and sharply
streaked with blackish ; lower back gray, with little or no black or brown. The general effect
of the upper parts, crown, and back, is like that of Spizella socialis. Wings and their greater
coverts dusky, with grayish-fulvous edging and tipping; primaries and tail-feathers with
whitish edging ; one or two outer tail-feathers white-tipped. Under parts white, shaded on
breast and sides with ashy, the throat pure white, bounded on each side by a sharp black
maxillary stripe, above which is another dark line from angle of mouth. Bill apparently
reddish flesh color below, dusky above; feet pale brown, the toes rather darker. Length about
6.00; extent 8.50; wing 2.25-2.50; tail 2.75, graduated about 0.50; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.67.
Less mature: Crown less different from back, being streaked with ashy, blackish, and rufous.
Very young: No chestnut on wing-coverts, and under parts streaked with dusky; thus much
like the earliest stage of Spizella socialis; after this first stage the chestnut bend of the wing. is
always conspicuous. Arizona; a very distinct and curious species, lately discovered. Farther
peculiar in nesting in bushes and laying a greenish egg, all the other Peucee, as far as known
nesting on ground and laying pure white eggs. (P. ruficeps, however, is not yet known in
this particular.) Eggs 4-5, 0.72 x 0.58, June-September; nest in a fork of .bush, deeply
cupped, of grasses, rootlets, and hairs.

AMPHISPI'ZA. (Gr. audi, amphi, on both sides; onifa, spiza, a finch : alluding to the close
relation of the genus to those about it.) SaGE Sparrows. Bill moderate, conical, not peculiar.
Wings folding considerably beyond the base of the tail, without elongated inner secondaries ;
point of wing formed by 2d-5th quill, the 1st between 6th and 7th. Tail not shorter than wings,
of rather broad firm feathers, rounded at ends. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw; lateral
toes of unequal lengths, the outer (longer) not reaching to base of middle claw. Embracing two
Southwestern species, with rounded blackish tail not shorter than the wings, plumbeous-black
bill and feet, and few decided streaks, or none. These do not particularly resemble each other,
and might not necessarily be associated ; nor is the genus well characterized, though different
from the exotic Poospiza to which the species were formerly referred. The larger one of the
two species, A. belli, is sometimes placed in the genus Zonotrichia.

259.

260.

376 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

Analysis of Species.

Adult with throat black, sides not streaked, and no yellow on edge of wing . . oye vie bilineata 258
Adult with throat white, sides streaked, and yellow on edge of wing.
Smaller: wing and tail under 3.00; dorsal streaks obsolete eit ae oat belli 259
Larger: wing and tail 3.00 or more; dorsal streaks distinct . eS Stee ay ae nevadensis 260

A. bilinea‘ta. (Lat. bilineata, two-lined ; bis, twice, linea, a line; alluding to the stripes on
the head. Fig. 235.) BLACK-THROATED Finca. BLACK-FACED SAGE SPARROW. 69,
adult: Face, chin, and throat sharply jet-black ; a strong white superciliary line, and another
bounding the black of the throat ; under eyelid white; auriculars dark slate. No yellow any-
where. Below, pure white; the sides, flanks, and crissum shaded with ashy or fulvous-
brownish, but no streaks.. Above, uniform gray-
ish-brown ; clearer ash in high plumage, other-
wise browner, generally more ashy anteriorly than
behind, and shading insensibly into the black of
the face. Wings dusky; coverts and inner quills
edged with the color of the back. Tail black,
with narrow grayish edgings ; the outer feather
sharply edged and tipped with white, and several
others similarly tipped. Bill and feet plumbe-
ous-black. Small: length about 5.50; wing
about 2.50; tail 2.75. Young: The head-mark-
ings obscure; little or no black on throat; a few
pectoral streaks. Owing to absence of black on
\ the throat, the white maxillary stripe is ill-de-
Fic. 235.— Black-throated Finch, reduced. (Shep- fined, but the other stripe is conspicuous. Back
pard del. Nichols sc.) rather brown than ashy; tail blackish, not pure
black. A jaunty little sparrow, haunting the sage-brush and chaparral of the southwest, from
Texas to California, N. to Utah and Nevada or farther, migratory northerly. An effective
songster. Nest in bushes close to the ground; eggs 4-5, 0.72 X 0.58, whitish, unmarked.
A. belli. (To J. G. Bell, of N. Y.) Bri’s Fincn. Cauirornia Sacer Sparrow. No
definite black about head, and edge of wing slightly yellowish. Forehead, line over eye, and
edges of eyelids, inconspicuously white. Below, white, more or less tinged with pale brownish,
the sides with slight sparse streaks that anteriorly become aggregated into slight maxillary
stripes cutting off from the white throat a whitish line that runs from the comer of the bill;
lores and circum-ocular region dusky. Above, grayish-brown, ashier on head, the middle of the
back with small obscure blackish streaks; wing-coverts and inner quills with much fulvous
edging ; tail black with slight pale edgings, the outer web of the outer feather simply whitish.
Bill and feet plumbeous-blue. Length under 6.00; wing and tail under 3.00. Southern
California, resident. Nest in low bushes or on the ground ; eggs greenish-blue, speckled.
A. b. nevaden’sis, ARTEMISIA SPARROW. NEVADA SAGE SPARROW. Similar to -the last
in coloration. Edge of wing, and sometimes the lesser coverts, yellowish. Above, ashy-brown,
much as in P. bilineata, clearer ash anteriorly, more brownish behind; also clearer in high
plumage, and more overcast with brown in less mature specimens; the middle of the back and
the scapulars very notably streaked with fine black lines. Below, white; the sides and some-
times, especially in fall specimens, most of the under parts shaded with pale fulvous-brown ; the
sides, and sometimes the breast, with dusky streaks, which on the side of the neck tend to run
in a chain, partly distinguishing a pure white lateral stripe above them from the general
whitish of the under parts. Sides of head slaty, becoming dusky on lores; a conspicuous white
eye-ring. A short white line above lores, and another on middle of forehead. Wings and tail
as in the last; outer feather edged and tipped with white. Bill dark bluish-plumbeous, under

82.

261.

FRINGILLID.E: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 377

mandible sometimes yellowish. Decidedly larger than belli proper, though so little different in
color; wing and tail fully 3.00, if not more; pill 0.35 ; tarsus 0.75. Southern Rocky Mt.
region, N. to 40° and beyond, resident ; abounding in the sage-brush deserts of Nevada,
Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. Nesting as in P.’belli; eggs 0.80 x 0.60, pale greenish, pro-
fusely speckled with reddish-brown and blackish-brown, with purplish shell- -markings.

JUN'CO. (2 Lat. juncus, a reed.) Sxow Sparrows. Syow-pirps. Bill small, strictly
conic. Wings rather long, the primaries much surpassing the short inner secondaries in the
closed wing; usually 2d, 3d, and 4th quills longest, 5th little shorter, then Ist and 6th. Tarsus
a little longer than middle toe and claw; lateral toes subequal, their claws about reaching base
of middle claw. Tail about as long as wings, slightly emarginate or about even, of rather
narrow but firm feathers, rounded oval at ends. A beautiful genus; adults unspotted,
unstreaked, the colors massed in large definite areas; belly, crissum, and 2-3 lateral tail-feathers
white ; bill whitish, or black and yellow. Length 6 or 7 inches; wing and tail about 3 inches.
Sexes subsimilar, but ¢ clearer and purer in coloration; young entirely different, quite streaky.
Nest on the ground; eggs speckled. One common Eastern species; in the West the Junco
stock split into numerous forms, all of which intergrade with each other, and with the Eastern
bird. Almost all late writers have taken a hand at Junco, shuffling them about in the vain
attempt to decide which are “species” and which ‘* varieties.” All are either, or both, as we
may elect to consider them ; for the degree of difference between almost any two of the nearest
related ones is about the same. The distinctions between the typical styles of each are very
nice and easily perceived. The theory of hybridization advanced to account for the connecting
links simply restates without explaining the case ; for interbreeding is just one of the conditions
of intergraded species, keeping them from positive distinctness. Upon this understanding the
recognizable styles of Junco may all be treated alike. Adult male birds of the several forms

afford the following
i Speci RY ies.
iitiaedhicecions Analysis of Species or Subspecies
Blackish-ash, without reddish tints; sides ie
No white wing-bars . . Le % hiemalis 261
Two white wing-bars . ees . F 5 aikeni 262
(mixed characters of first and next . s . ‘ connectens 262a
Sooty-black on head and breast; back reddish ; sides pinkish | : . Pe oregonus 263
(mixed characters of last and next . & . annectens 264
Ashy on head and breast; interscapulars alone reddish . ee caniceps 265
Bill black and yellow.
(mixed characters of last and next . < oe ‘ - dorsalis 266
Ashy on head and breast ; interscapulars and elrig-covants reddish ‘ ‘ cinereus 267

Setting aside aikent as a special offshoot, we have hiemalis connected with eregonus by
birds possessing pink sides and ashy back, or reddish back and ashy sides; this style may be’
named connectens. Similarly, oregonus and caniceps are annexed by gray-headed red-backed
birds with pink sides; this is annectens. And again, but more remarkably, the pink-billed
caniceps is affixed with the black-and-yellow-billed cinereus by dorsalis, which has the bill of
the latter, but otherwise resembles the former.

J. hiemallis. (Lat. Aiemalis, wiutry : hiems, winter. Fig. 236.) EASTERN SNOW-BIRD.
Buiack SNow-Bimp. . Blackish-ash, below abruptly pure white from the breast, the sides shaded
with ashy. Inthe 9, and most fall and winter specimens, the upper parts have a more grayish,
or even a decidedly brownish, cast, and the inner secondaries are edged with pale bay. @, in full
dress: The slaty-black intense on the head; belly and crissum pure white, the line between
the two transverse or convex forward; wings and tail blackish, with slightly hoary edging of
some ofthe feathers ; 2-3 lateral tail feathers pure white, wholly or in greatest part. No rusty-
brown on back or sides; any shade on the sides ashy, not pinkish. Bill pinkish-white, or
flesh-color, usually black-tipped. Length 6.00-6.50; extent 9.50-10.00 ; wing 3.00-3.25; tail
rather less. These extremes uncommon; average 6.25—9.75—3.10. 9, in summer: The

262.

262a,

263.

3878 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

slate-color less intense, overlaid with brown (not reddish), sometimes quite brown; edging of
inner secondaries rusty-brown ; average less white on the tail; rather smaller; average about
at the lesser of the above dimensions: sometimes only 5.75—9.25—2.75. @ 9, in winter:
Resembling the @ in summer. Young of the year: The general color rather brown than
slate, with conspicuous bay edgings of inner secondaries; bill much obscured with dusky.
The brown overcast, it should be observed, is a general shading, not of particular areas, and
not pinkish. Young before first moult: Entirely streaked and spotted, like most very young
sparrows. Upper parts streaked with blackish and rusty-brown, the secondaries and wing
coverts conspicuously edged with the latter. Under parts streaked or speckled with dusky
and ochrey brown, on all the fore parts and
sides, the belly and crissuin soiled whitish. Bill
dusky, paler below. Eastern N. Amer., N. W.
to Alaska, W. to the Rocky Mts. and even
Utah and Washington Territories ; still chiefly
Eastern. One of our most abundant and familiar
winter birds, in flocks in the shrubbery, from
October to April. Retires to high latitudes or
altitudes to breed. Nests in mountains of the
Middle and some of the Southern States, as Vir-
ginia and North Carolina, and down to sea level
from the limits of the Canadian fauna in Maine ;
winters anywhere in the U. S., most numerously
from Massachusetts southward; a cheery bright
little bird, coming fearlessly to the threshold
and window-sill in bad weather. Its snapping
note is better known than is the pleasant song
with which it takes leave in the spring. Nest
on the ground; eggs 4-6, white, sprinkled
Fig. 236.—Kastern Snow-Bird. (Sheppard del. With reddish and darker brown dots, about
Nichols sc.) 0.80 « 0.60.
J.h, ai‘keni. (To C. E. Aiken, of Colorado.) Wuirr-wincEep Buack Snow-sirp. Like
the last: the wings crossed with two white bars formed by the tips of the greater and middle
coverts ; and sometimes white edging of the inner secondaries. Rather large. Mts. of Colorado.
J. h. connec'tens. (Lat. connectens, connecting ; con, with, necto, I join.) Hysrip Snow-
BIRD. Possessing in varying degree the characters of hiemalis and oregonus; rufous back of
the latter and ashy sides of the former, or, oftener, the ashy back of the former and pink sides
of the latter ; occurring wherever the breeding range of the two comes together, and elsewhere
during the migration.
J.h. ore/gonus. (Lat. of the Oregon River.) OrEGoN SNow-pirp. Head and neck all round
and fore breast sooty-black, ending sharply against white with a rounded outline convex back-
ward; middle of back dull reddish-brown, and feathers of the wings much edged with the
same ; below from the fore breast abruptly white, tinged on the sides with pale reddish-brown
—a peculiar “ pinkish” shade. Bill white, black-tipped. In the 9 and young the black is
obscured by brownish, but the typical form may always be distinguished by an evident contrast
in color between the interscapulars and head, and the fulvous or pinkish wash on the sides.
The season and sexual changes of plumage are parallel with those of hiemalis. A specimen
examined by me has imperfect white wing-bars, like atkeni. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific; as
abundant there as hiemalis is with us, and thence straggling eastward; has occurred in Massa-
chusetts; N. to Alaska. In the U.S. it is less obviously migratory than hiemalis, owing to
the broken mountainous regions it inhabits.

264.

265.

266.

267.

83.

268.

FRINGILLIDZE: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 379

J.h.annec’tens, (Lat. annectens, annexing ; ad, to, and necto, I join.) PrnK-sIpED SNow-
BIRD. Characters in general of J. caniceps (No. 265) ; differs by more abrupt definition of the
white belly from the ashy breast, and pinkish sides: by so much resembling oregonus. Southern
Rocky Mt. region, from Wyoming, and especially Colorado, to New Mexico and Arizona;
migrating latitudinally with season, but chiefly working up and down the mountains.

J. h. ca/niceps. (Lat. caniceps, gray-headed ; canus, gray.) GRAY-HEADED SNOW-BIRD.
Clear ash, purest on head, paler below, and fading gradually into white on belly; interscapulars
abruptly, definitely, chestnut or rusty-brown ; lores blackish ; bill flesh-color ; iris brown ; no
fulvous wash on sides ; no chestnut on wings in the typical form. Rather larger than hiemalis;
length about 7.00; wing over 3.00; tail about 3.00. Thesexual and seasonal changes are not
so well marked as in the heavily-colored hiemalis and oregonus, but parallel as far as they go.
Very young birds are streaked, like all the rest. Rocky Mts. of the U. 8., from Wyoming
southward ; Wahsatch and Uintah Mts. Five or six of the styles of Junco, including J.
hiemalis, occur together in the mountains of Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.

J. h. dorsa'lis. (Lat. dorsalis, pertaining to the back; dorsum, the back.) REep-BACKED
SNow-BiRD. Characters in general of J. caniceps; but with the bill black and yellow, as in
cinereus. Mountains of New Mexico and Arizona.

J. h. cine/reus. (Lat. cinereus, ashy; cinis, ashes.) CINEREOUS SNOW-BIRD. MEXICAN
Snow-sirp. Like J. caniceps. Under parts paler ash, fading sooner and more insensibly into
white; chestnut of back intense, and spreading over the wing-coverts and inner secondaries ;
upper mandible black; lower yellow; iris yellow. Mexico to the U. 8. border. Mt. Graham,
Arizona.

SPIZEL'LA. (Ital. diminutive form of Lat. spiza, from Gr.
onifa, a finch.) Cupping Sparrows. Embracing small
species, 5-6 inches long, with the long, broad-feathered, forked
tail about equalling (more or less) the rather pointed wings ;
with no yellowish anywhere, and no streaks on the under parts
when adult ; interscapular region distinctly streaked ; rump plain
(except atrigularis) ; young fully streaked. Point of wing formed
by 2d to 4th or 5th quill; 1st usually between 5th and 6th. Bill
small, conic. Tarsus little if any longer than middle toe and Fic. 237.—Chippy’s head, as
claw; lateral toes about equal. Tail-feathers widening a little arse aslife. (E. C.)

to broadly oval tips. Numerous species, Eastern and Western, inhabiting shrubbery ; three
of them familiar Eastern birds.

Analysis of Species.
Eastern and Western species with the crown of the adult chestnut.
Bill black and yellow; forehead not black; two distinct white wing-bars; dark spot on breast; large:

about 6.00long . .. . .monticola 268
Bill and forehead black ; wing:bavs net conspicuous ; breast sah galt, without apeti - length under 6.

Tail decidedly shorter than wing . . + domestica 269, 270
Bill brownish-red; forehead not black; nae nee indistinct; breast busty white, without spot.

Length under6.00 2. ........ 0 2. 2. ee eee soe + « agrestis 271

Western species, with the crown not chestnut, and streaked like the back.
Crown divided by a median stripe, and its streaks separated from those of the back by an ashy

interval. Tailequalto wings . . ~ 1. pallida 272

Crown not evidently divided, and streaked poritiouedéie with the bade Tail isteet: - + « breweri 272
Western species, with the crown of the adult dark ash. Face and throat black. Tail decidedly longer

thanwing . : . Bes : . atrigularis 274

S. monti/cola. (Lat. monticola, inhabiting mountains; mons, montis, a mountain; colo, I
dwell; zmcola, an inhabitant.) Tree Sparrow. WINTER Curp-BirD. Bill black above,
yellow below; legs brown; toes black. No black on forehead; crown chestnut (in winter
specimens the feathers usually skirted with gray), bordered by a grayish-white superciliary and
loral line; a postocular chestnut stripe over auriculars, and some vague chestnut marks on

269.

270.

271.

380 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

cheeks; sides of head and neck »therwise ashy-gray. Below, impurely whitish, tinged with
ashy anteriorly, washed with pale brownish posteriorly, the middle of the breast with an obscure
dusky blotch. Middle of back boldly streaked with black, bay, and flaxen ; middle and greater
wing-coverts black, edged with bay and tipped with white, forming two conspicuous cross-bars ;
inner secondaries similarly variegated ; other quills and tail-feathers plain dusky, with pale or
whitish edges. Remarkably constant in coloration ; .sexes indistinguishable, and young very
similar, the chief variation being in the veiling of the cap with gray. There is a very early
streaky stage, however, as in other species. A handsome sparrow, the largest of the genus.
Length _5.80-6.20, usually 6.00; extent 8.75-9.75, usually 9.25; wing and tail 2.75-3.10.
Abundant in the U. 8. in winter, flocking in shrubbery; breeds in mountainous and boreal
regions, even to the Arctic coast. Infrequent or casual west cf the Rocky Mts. Nest in low
bushes or on the ground, loosely constructed of bark-strips, weeds, and grasses, warmly
lined with feathers. Eggs 4-6 or even 7, pale green, minutely and regularly sprinkled with
reddish-brown spots.
S. domes'tica. (Lat. domestica, domestic. Figs. 237, 238.) Cupping SpaRRow. CuIP-
BIRD OR Cuippy. Harr-Birp. Adult: Bill black ; feet pale; crown chestnut; extreme fore-
head black, usually divided by a pale line; a grayish-white superciliary line; below this a
blackish stripe through eye and over auriculars ;
lores dusky. Below, a variable shade of pale ash,
nearly uniform aud entirely unmarked; back
streaked with black, dull bay and grayish-brown ;
inner secondaries and wing-coverts similarly vari-
egated, the tips of the greater and median coverts
forming whitish bars; rump ashy, with slight
blackish streaks or none; primaries and ‘ail-
feathers dusky, with paler edges. Smaller:
length 5.00-5.50; extent 8.00-9.00; wing 2.66-
2.75 ; tail less, about 2.50. Sexes alike, but very
young birds quite different; the crown being
Y streaked like the back, the breast and _ sides
Fig. 238. —Chipping-Sparrow, reduced. (Shep- thickly streaked with dusky, the bill pale brown,
bard del. “Nichols se:) and the head lacking definite black. In this
stage, which, however, is of brief duration, it resembles some other species, but may be known
by a certain ashiness the others lack, and from the small sparrows that are streaked below
when adult, by its generic characters. North America, extremely abundant, and the most
familiar species about houses, in gardens, and elsewhere, nesting in shrubbery; nest of fine
dried grass, lined with hair; eggs 4-5, bluish, speckled sparsely and chiefly about the larger
end with blackish-brown, with purplish shell-markings; size about 0.70 X 0.55.
S.d. arizonz. (Lat. of Arizona.) Arizona Cuippinc Sparrow. Like an immature 8S.
domestica. Paler than this species, the ashiness in great measure brown; crown grayish-brown
streaked with dusky like the back, and showing evident traces of rich chestnut, but never
becoming wholly chestnut; black frontlet lacking or obscure, and no definite ashy superciliary
line, the sides of the crown merely lighter brown ; bill brown above, pale below. Arizona, and
other portions of the Southern Rocky Mt. region. A curious form, as it were an arrested stage
of domestica. Some specimens, with the least chestnut on the head, look remarkably like
brewert, but this last is evidently smaller, without chestnut on the head, and otherwise different.
S. agres'tis, (Lat. agrestis, pertaining to fields; ager, a field.) Fre~p Sparrow. Bill pale
reddish ; feet very pale; crown dull chestnut; auriculars and postocular stripe the same; 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 vague brown markings; all the

272.

273.

274.

84,

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 381

ashy parts of domestica replaced by pale brownish. Back bright bay, with black streaks and
some pale flaxen edgings ; inner secondaries similarly variegated ; tips of median and greater
coverts forming whitish cross-bars. Size of domestica, but more nearly the colors of monticola.
Length 5.25-5.75; extent 7.75-8.40; wing 2.30-2.50 ; tail quite as much, or more, thus not
shorter than wing, as it is in the last. Sexes alike ; young for a short time streaked below, as
usual in Spizella. Eastern U.S., strictly ; hardly N. throughout New England, W. only to the
edge of the Plains; migratory ; breeds usually from Virginia northward, and winters from the
same southward; very abundant in fields, copses, and hedges, in flocks when not breeding.
Nest indifferently in low bushes or on ground; éggs whitish, fully speckled with rusty-brown,
0.68 « 0.50. ;
S. pallida. (Lat. pallida, pale.) CLAY-cOLORED SPARROW. Crown and back clay-colored
or flaxen, distinctly streaked with black, without evident bay, the dorsal streaks noticeably
separated from those of the crown, by an ashier, less streaked, cervical interval; rump brown-
ish-gray. Crown divided by a pale inedian stripe; a distinct whitish superciliary line; loral
and auricular regions decidedly brown, with a dark postocular stripe over the auriculars, and
another from the angle of the mouth, bounding the brown area inferiorly ; below this a dusky
maxillary streak ; wing-coverts and inner secondaries variegated like the back, being black with
broad flaxen-brown edging and whitish tipping. Below, white, soiled with clay-color. Bill
dusky above, pale below ; feet pale. Small: Length 5.00-5.25, rarely 5.50; extent 7.40-7.75,
rarely 8.00; wing and tail, each, about 2.50. Young birds lightly streaked below. Central
region of the U. S. into British America, Saskatchewan and Red River regions; S. to Texas;
E. to Iowa and Illinois. Abundant; nest in bushes close to ground; eggs 3-4, pale green
sparsely speckled with rich brown ; 0.62 x 0.50.
S. brew'eri. (To Dr. T. M. Brewer, of Boston.) Brewenr’s Sparrow. Similar; paler and
duller, all the markings indistinct; streaks of crown and back small, numerous, not separated
by a cervical interval; no definite markings on sides of head. Upper parts grayish-brown,
with marked dorsal area of brighter brown, and continuously streaked from head to tail. Size
of the last, but tail relatively longer, exceeding the wings — about 2.66 long, thus equalling, if
it does not somewhat exceed, that of domestica, although the latter is a larger bird. South-
western U. 8., especially New Mexico and Arizona; said to have occurred in Massachusetts ;
habits those of pallida; nest and eggs indistinguishable.
8. atrigula/ris. (Lat. atrigularis, black-throated; ater, black; gula, throat.) BLACcK-
CHINNED Sparrow. @, adult: Dark ash, fading insensibly into whitish on the belly,
deepening to black on the face and throat; interscapulars bright bay, streaked with black ;
wing-coverts and inner secondaries variegated with the same colors ; tail blackish, with pale edg-
ings ; bill coral red as in S. agrestis; feet dark brown. A small-bodied species, but full 6.00
long, on account of the great 4
length of the tail (2.75-3.00),
which much exceeds the wings
(2.25-2.50; extent 7.75). The
young lack black on the face,
have the crown washed with
ashy-brown, the middle of the
back duller chestnut, and the
bill dusky above; but may be
Fig. 239.— Crown Sparrow (white- known by the long 3 af we sails Fic. 240.—Crown Sparrow,
throated), nat. size. (Ad nat. del. Mexico, Lower Caljfornia, Ari- (white-crowned), nat. size. (Ad.
E. C.) zona. . nat. del. E. C.)
ZONOTRICH'IA. (Gr. (oy, zone, a girdle, band; rpiyias, trichias, name of a bird. Figs.
239, 240.) Crown Sparrows. Embracing our largest and handsomest sparrows, 6.50 to

275.

382 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

7.50 inches long, the rounded wings and tail each 3.00 or more; the under parts with very few
streaks, or none, the middle of the back streaked, the rump plain, the wings with two white
cross-bars, the head of the adults with black, and usually with white and yellow also, or both.
Bill moderate, conical, culmen and gonys just appreciably curved, commissure very little angu-
lated. Point of the wing formed usually by the 2d-4th quills, and 1st about equal to 5th ;
folding decidedly beyond the inner secondaries, and to near the middle of the tail. Tail-feathers
of moderate width and consistency, rounded oval at the end; tail as a whole rounded. Tarsus

‘about equal to middle toe and claw; lateral toes about equal to each other. The Crown

Sparrows are peculiar to North America, where they are represented by five beautiful and per-
fectly distinct species.

Analysis of Species (adults only).
Crown black and white; no yellow on head; throat ash.

Lores black. Dorsal streaks purplish-bay; no yellowon wing ... . a Boh leucophrys 276
Lores gray. Dorsal streaks purplish-bay ; no yellow on wing. . . 2... . 2... intermedia 277
Lores gray. Dorsal streaks sooty-black; edge of wing yellowish . ....... gambeli 278
Crown black and white; yellow spot before eye; throat white; edge of wing yellow. . . . . albicollis 275
Crown black, yellow and ash; edge of wing yellow; throatashy . ...... coronata 279

Crown, face, and throat black ; no yellow on head or wing querula 280

Z. albicollis. (Lat. albicollis, white-throated; albus, white; collwm, neck. Fig. 241.)
WHITE-THROATED CROWN SPARROW. PEABODY-BIRD. Adult ¢: Crown black, divided by
a median white stripe, bounded by a white
superciliary line, and yellow spat from
nostril to eye; below this a black stripe
through eye; below this a mavyillary
black stripe bounding the definitely pure
white throat, sharply contrasted with the
dark ash of the breast and sides of the
neck and head. Edge of wing yellow.
Back continuously streaked with black,
chestnut, and fulvous-white ; rump ashy,
unmarked. Wings much edged with
bay, the white tips of the median and
greater coverts forming two conspicuous
bars ; quills and tail-feathers dusky, with
pale edges. Below, white, shaded with
ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper and

Fig. 241, — White-throated. Crown Sparrow, reduced. purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale.
(Sheppard, del. Nichols sc.) Q, and immature birds, and specimens.
as generally seen in the U. S. in fall and winter, with the black of the head replaced by brown,
the white of the throat less conspicuously contrasted with the duller ash of surrounding parts,
and frequently with obscure dusky streaks on the breast and sides ; but the species may always
be known by the yellow over the eye and on the edge of the wing (these never being imper-
ceptible), coupled with the large size and the generic characters. Length 6.50-6.90; extent
9.20-9.90; wing 2.75-3.00; tail about the same. A fine sparrow, abundant throughout
Eastern N. Am. to latitude 65° N.; W. to Dakota; breeds from the New England and
other Northern States northward; winters from the Middle States southward. Found in
all situations, but especially in shrubbery, generally in flocks, except when breeding; a
pleasing if not brilliant songster, with its limpid pea-peabody, peabody, peabody in cadence.
Nest on the ground, rarely in bushes; eggs 4-6, about 0.90 X 0.66, with the endless diversity
of tone and pattern of those of the song sparrow, from which they are only distinguished by
their greater size.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 383

276. Z. leuco'’phrys. (Gr. Aeukds, leucos, white; ddpvs, ophrus, eyebrow. Fig. 242.) WHITE-

277.

278.

279.

BROWED Crown Sparrow. ¢ 9, adult: 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 narrow black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around the
side of the hind-head, nearly mecting 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
confluent on the hind head. No yellow anywhere. General color a fine dark ash, paler below,
whitening insensibly on chin and belly, more brownish on the rump, changing to dull 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, anywhere, except some edging on the wing-
coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two bars.
Bill and feet reddish. Length 6.25-7.00; extent 9.20-10.20; wing and tail 2.90-3.20; usually
6.75—9.50—3.10. Young: Black of the head replaced by very rich warm brown, the white of
the head by pale brownish; the general ash has a brownish suffusion, and the back is more like
that of albicollis, being streaked with dusky :

and ochrey-brown; but the two species
cannot be confounded. Very young: Be-
fore the first moult, there are indications of
the head markings as last described; but
the whole upper parts, sides of the neck
and fore under parts are streaked with
blackish and ochrey-brown or whitish.
North Amer., especially eastern and rather
northerly ; W. to the Rocky Mts., where
mixed with Z. 1. intermedia; Greenland ;
Cape St. Lucas. Not nearly so abundant
in the U. S. as albicollis, but common in
many sections in winter and during the
migrations. Breeds occasionally in North-
ern New England, and plentifully in Lab-
rador, where it is one of the commonest
sparrows. Nesting the same as that of Fic. 242.— White-browed Crown Sparrow, reduced.
albicollis, and eggs undistinguishable. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

Z.1. intermedia. (Lat. intermedia, intermediate, in the middle.) InTrRMEDIATE CROWN
Sparrow. Exactly like the last, but lores gray or ashy, continuous with the white stripe over
the eye, #. e., the black of the forehead does not descend to the eye. Perhaps averaging a trifle
smaller, and duller colored. Some specimens resemble leucophrys on one side of the head, and
intermedia on the other. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, mostly replacing true leucophrys. (Z.
gambeli Bd., 1858, Coues, 1872, nec Nutt.) :

Z. gam/beli. (To Wm. Gambel, of Phila.) GAMBEL’s CRown Sparrow. Markings of the
head much the same as in Z. 1. intermedia; body colors entirely different, and almost exactly as
in coronata, No. 279. Streaking of the back sooty-black. Edge and lining of the wing yellow,
as in coronata and albicollis. Bill in dried specimens blackish and yellow, not reddish. Size of
coronata. Pacific coast, U. 8., southerly. (Z. gambeli Nutt., 1840, nec Baird, Coues.)

Z. corona/ta, (Lat. coronata, crowned; corona, a crown.) GOLDEN CrowN SPARROW.
& @, adult: Forehead and sides of the crown black, enclosing a dull yellow coronal patch
anteriorly, an ashy one posteriorly ; a yellow spot over eye; lores black. Edge of the wing
yellow. Above, much like albicollis, but with less bay and no whitish; two white wing-hars.
Below, including sides of head and neck, ashy, passing insensibly into whitish on the belly, and
much shaded with brownish on the flanks and crissum; thus much like leucophrys, but the

280.

85.

281.

384 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

ashy not so pure; larger than lewcophrys; length averaging 7.00; wing over 3.00. Young:
black of the crown replaced by brown; but always traces of the yellow on crown and wings.
The yellow eye-spot is small, and not always evident. Pacific coast (to the Rocky Mts. ?),
from Alaska to Southern California, abundant, migratory. :

Z. que/rula. (Lat. querula, querulous, plaintive ; gueror, I complain, lament.) HoopEp
Crown Sparrow. Harris’ Sparrow. Adult , in breeding plumage :, Whole crown, face,
and throat jet-black ; sides of head pale ash; auriculars darker ash, bounded by a black line
starting behind the eye and curving around them. Under parts nearly pure white, but slightly
ashy before and faintly brownish-washed behind, the sides with a few dusky streaks, the breast
with a few black spots continued from the black throat-patch. Back nearly as in coronata,
streaked with dusky and reddish-brown. Bill coral-red; toes dark; tarsi pale. No yellow
anywhere. Very large: Length 7.00-7.75 ; extent 10.75-11.25 ; wing 3.25-3.50; tail 3.40-
3.60; bill 0.45 ; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw rather less. 9 similar, but with much less
black on head and throat, the hood being restricted or imperfect ; but its outline usually trace-
able. @ 9, in the fall: Bill light reddish-brown, usually obscured on ridge and at tip, and
paler at base below ; feet flesh-colored, obscured on the toes; eyes brown. Crown grayish-
black, every feather with a distinct, narrow, pale gray edge all around, producing a peculiar
effect ; this area bounded with a light ochrey-brown superciliary and frontal line. Sides of head
like the superciliary, but the auricular patch rather darker grayish-brown, and the loral region
obscurely whitish. Chin pure white, bounded on each side by a sharp maxillary line of
blackish, with a rusty-red tinge. On the lower throat, a large, diffuse and partially discon-
tinuous blotch of this same blackish-red, cutting off the white chin from the white of the rest
of the under parts, connecting with the maxillary streaks, and stretching along the sides of the
neck and breast in a series of rich dusky-chestnut streaks. On the middle of the breast the
blotch generally runs out into the white in a sharp point, but its size and shape vary inter-
minably. The markings here described are all included in the jet-black hood and breast-plate
of the perfect spring dress; and between the two extremes every intermediate condition may be
observed at various seasons. The rest of the plumage does not differ very materially from that
of the adult @ in summer. This is the largest of our sparrows; a bird of imposing appear-
ance —,for a sparrow. Interior U. 8. and British Provinces, especially the valley of the Missis-
sippi, Lower Missouri, and Red River of the North; scarcely W. to the Rocky Mts.? E. to
Minnesota, Missouri, Iowa, and probably Illinois; 8. to Texas. It is abundant in the line of
its migration, as in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Dakota, ete., but its breeding resorts are still
unknown. JI found it in Dakota at 49° coming early in September from the North.
CHONDESTES. (Gr. xévdpos, chondros, cartilage; also grain, seeds; éSearijs, edestes, an
eater; badly formed.) Lark Sparrows. Framed for a
single species, with long pointed wings exceeding the
long rounded tail; point of the wing formed by 2d and 3d
primaries, but Ist and 4th scarcely shorter; rest rapidly
graduated. Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw;
lateral toes short, tips of the claws not reaching base of
middle claw. Bill swollen-conic, with culmen slightly
convex, anfl commissure little angulated. Species large,
for a sparrow, streaked above, white below, the head and
tail parti-colored. :

C. gram/mica. (Gr. ypappixds, grammicos, marked with a
ypappa, gramma, a line, word ; badly selected to indicate the Fic. 243, — Lark Sparrow, nat. size.
stripes of the head. Fig. 243.) Lark Sparrow. Larg dat. del. EC.)

Fincu. ¢ 9, adult: Head variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown chestnut,
blackening on forehead, divided by a median stripe, and bounded by superciliary stripes, of

86.

282.

283.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 385

white ; a black line through eye, and another below 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 grayish-brown ; upper parts grayish-brown,
the middle of the back with fine black streaks. Tail very long, its central 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 the outer pair entirely white. Length 6.50-7.00; wing
3.50, pointed; tail 3.00, rounded. Very young: Crown, back, and nearly all the under parts
streaked with dusky; no chestnut on head, nor are the black stripes firm; but with the first
moult the peculiar pattern of the head-markings becomes evident, and there is little variation
afterward with age, sex, or season. A beautiful species, abundant from the eastern edge of
the prairies, and even Iowa and Illinois, to the Pacific, U.S.; occasional in Ohio, and strag-
glers have been taken in Massachusetts and about Washington. A sweet songster; breeds
throughout its range ; nest usually on the ground, of dried grass; eggs 4-7, white, with strag-
gling zigzag dark lines, as in many Icteride; size 0.75-0.85 by about 0.65.
PASSEREL'LA. (Ital. diminutive form of Lat. passer, a sparrow.) Fox Sparrows.
Remarkable for the size of the feet and claws: Lateral toes elongated to about equal degree,
the ends of their claws reaching about half-way to the end of the middle
claw ; claws all very large; middle toe and claw about.as long as the tarsus.
Wings long and pointed, folding about to the middle of the tail; point
formed by the 2d-4th quills, 1st and 5th little shorter. Tail moderate, a
little rounded or nearly even. Bill rather small, strictly conic, with straight
outlines and scarcely angulated commissure. Large handsome reddish or
slate-colored species, marked below with triangular spots and streaks of
the color of the back. Habits terrestrial and somewhat rasorial. Nest
indifferently in trees or bushes or on the ground; eggs greenish, fully yg. 944. Binlof
speckled. The species, if more than one, are, like those of Junco, Melospiza, Fox Sparrow, nat.
and Pipilo, still imperfectly differentiated. aad
P. ili'aca. (Lat. iliaca, relating to the ilia, or flanks, which are conspicuously marked. Figs.
244, 245.) Eastern Fox Sparrow. 4, 9 : General color above ferrugineous or rusty-red,
purest and brightest on the rump, tail, and wings, on the other upper parts appearing in 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 arrow-head spots and pointed streaks. Tips of
middle and greater wing-coverts forming two whitish bars. Upper mandible dark, lower
mostly yellow; feet pale. One of the finest singers of the family; quite unlike any other Eastern
species of sparrow. A large handsome species. Length 6.50-7.25; extent 10.50-11.50; wing
3.25-3.60, averaging 3.40; tail little or not over 3.00, thus decidedly shorter than the wing;
bill, along culmen, 0.40; tarsus 0.90; hind claw about 0.35. Sexes alike, and young not
particularly different after the first moult, though in an early stage much darker; back rufous-
brown with darker streaks; no wing-bars; all the under parts heavily marked. There is
much individual variation in color, independently of age, sex, or season. Eastern N. Am. ;
W. in the U. S. regularly only to the edge of the Plains, occasionally to Coloraflo; but in
Alaska to the Pacific; N. to the Arctie coast. Breeds throughout the interior of British
America and in Alaska; not known to do so anywhere in the U. 8. Winters from the Middle
States southward. Nest on ground or in bushes or trees; eggs pale greenish-white, thickly
speckled with rusty-brown, 0.95 x 0.70; general aspect of the egg as in Zonotrichia and
Melospiza.
P. i, unalascen/sis. (Of the Island of Unalashka.) Townsenp’s Fox Sparrow. Jd, ?
General color above dark olive-brown, overcast with a reddish-brown tinge, and the streaking
25

284.

285.

87.

386 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

obsolete, —thus giving a uniform and continuous ruddy-olive tone, becoming more fuxy-red on
the rump, wings, and tail. Wing-bars obsolete. Beneath, white, thickly marked, excepting
on the middle of the belly, with triangular spots of about the same dark color as the back, —
aggregated on the breast, and the entire sides of the neck and body almost like the back in
uniformity of the color, but still showing ill-defined confluent dark reddish-brown streaks on a
more olive-brown ground. Cheeks
and auriculars with some whitish
speckling. No obvious mark-
ings on wings. Bill dusky above,
apparently reddish or yellowish
below; feet reddish-brown. Size
of tlaca, but very different-look-
ing in color, and somewhat differ-
ently proportioned; wing aver-
aging 3.25, and tail scarcely or
not shorter; bill about 0.50;
hind claw the same, and as long
as its digit. A curious form, re-
lated to daca much as Melospiza
rufina is to the Eastern song spar-
row. Pacific coast region, from
Alaska to California, breeding in

= = : mountains and northward. (P.
Fig. 245. — Fox Sparrow, reduced. (Sheppard del, Nichols se.) townsendi Aud. Auct.)

we

P. i. schista/cea. (Lat. schistacea, slaty ; Gr. cxiords, schistos, fissile or cleft, as slate-stone
is; the allusion, however, is to the color.) SLATE-COLORED Fox Sparrow. ¢, 9: General
color above uniform slate with a slight olive tinge, becoming dull foxy-red on the wings and
tail; the streaking of the back obsolete, but whitish wing bars sometimes indicated. Below,
white, shaded along the sides with the color of the back, but not so as to obscure the decided
markings of the parts; the under parts at large spotted and streaked with dusky-brown, usually
aggregated into a blotch on the breast. This is the connecting link between tlaca and una-
lascensis; the upper parts are nearly of the slaty-ash that forms the ground color of iliaca,
only the foxy streaks of the back are obsolete. The spotting below is correspondingly darker.
The form has, however, some peculiarities : tail decidedly longer in comparison with the wings.
Length about 7.00; wing 3.00-3.25 ; tail 3.35-3.60; bill 0.45; tarsus 0.90. Rocky Mt:
region, chiefly, but noted from Kansas to California.

P.i. megarhyn’cha. (Gr. péyas, megas, great; pvyxos, rhugchos, rhynchus, beak.) LARGE-
BILLED Fox Sparrow. Coloration as in P. schistacea. Tail at maximum length, averaging
at the extreme of that of schistacea; claws and beak very highly developed; bill very thick, its
depth at base 0.50, rather more than its length from nostril to tip; hind claw longer than its
digit. A local race of the last, in the mountains of California and Nevada.

CALAMOSPI'ZA. (Gr. kadapos, kalamos, Lat. calamus, a reed; omi{a, spiza, a finch.) Lark
Buntines: Bill large and stout at base, the culmen a little curved, the commissure well
angulated ; rictus bristly. Wing long and pointed: tip formed by the 1st-4th quills, rest
rapidly graduated ; inner secondaries enlarged and flowing, one of them about reaching the
point of the wing when closed. Tail shorter than wing, nearly even. Feet stout, adapted to
terrestrial habits; tarsus about as long as middle toe and claw ; lateral toes nearly equal to each
other, scarcely reaching the base of the middle claw; hind claw about as long as its digit, but not
straightened. A well-marked genus, with wing-structure reminding one of Anthus or Alauda;
the turgid strongly-angulated bill resembles that of a grosbeak. Sexes very dissimilar; 3
black and white.

286.

88.

| 287.

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 387

C. bi/color.: (Lat. bicolor, two-colored. Fig. 246.) Lark Bunting. WuIT&-wINGED
Buacxgirp. ¢, in summer. Black, with a large white patch on the wings; the quills and
tail-feathers frequently marked with white; bill dark horn-blue above, paler below; feet brown.
Length 6.00-6.75 ; extent 10.00-11.00; wing 3.25-3.50; tail 2.50-2.75 ; bill 0.50-0.55 ; tarsus,
or middle toe and claw, 0.90-1.00. Sexes unlike: 9 more resembling a sparrow. Above, gray-
ish-brown, streaked with dusky-brown, on the back the edges of the dark streaks often of a
purer brown than the general ground-color. Below, white, shaded on the sides with grayish-
brown, thickly streaked with blackish-brown everywhere excepting the throat and belly, the
streaks mostly sharp and distinct, but blended on the sides, tending to aggregate on the breast,
and run forward as a maxillary chain. A poorly-defined light superciliary stripe. Wings
dusky, with a large white or whitish speculum, much as in the @, but not so pure nor so
extensive ; inner secondaries edged with brown and white. Tail-feathers, the middle excepted,
blackish tipped with white. Young ¢@ like the 9, but colors more suffuse and brighter ;
upper parts pure brown; under parts tinged with fulvous, the wing-markings quite fulvous ;
under surface of wing quite
blackish. In very young
birds the markings more
motley than streaky ; the bill
brownish, flesh-colored be-
low. @ wears the black
plumage only during the
breeding season, like the
bobolink; when changing,
the characters of the two
sexes are confused. In the
form of the bill, this interest-
ing species is closely allied
to the grosbeaks; and this,
with the singularly enlarged
secondaries, as long as the
primaries in the closed wing,
renders it unmistakable in
any plumage. A _ prairie
bird, abundant on the central plains ; N. to 49° at least, in the Missouri and Milk River region,
W. to the Rocky Mts., and southerly to the Pacific. The male has the habit of soaring and
singing on wing like a lark; nest on the ground, sunken flush with the surface, of grasses;
eggs 4-5, 0.90 X 0.65, pale bluish-green, normally unmarked, oceasionally speckled.

SPI'ZA. (Gr. omifa, spiza, a kind of finch, probably F. celebs.) SiLK Buntines. Bill
much as in Calamospiza, but longer for its depth and not so strongly angulated. Wings very
long and pointed; 2d primary usually longest, 1st and 3d little shorter, 4th and rest rapidly
graduated ; one inner secondary a little elongated, but not nearly reaching point of wing. Tail
short, nearly even, but a little emarginate. Tarsus and middle toe and claw of about equal
lengths; lateral toes of nearly equal lengths, not reaching base of middle claw; hind toe with
claw as long as the middle toe without claw.

S. america/na. (Lat. of America. Fig. 247.) BuAcK-THROATED Buntinc. d: Above,
grayish-brown, the middle of the back streaked with black, the hind neck ashy, becoming on
the crown yellowish-olive with black touches. A yellow superciliary line, and maxillary touch
of the same; eyelid white; ear-coverts ashy like the cervix ; chin white; throat with a large
jet-black patch. Under parts in general white, shaded with gray on the sides, extensively
tinged with yellow on the breast and belly. Edge of wing yellow; lesser and middle covert:

i E i 6 x> at iow
aye - ¥ wor?

Fig. 246.— Lark Bunting, 3 9, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

288.

89.

388 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PASSERES — OSCINES.

rich chestnut, other coverts and inner secondaries edged with paler. Bill dark horn-blue;
feet brown. ‘Length 6.50-7.00; extent 10.50-11.00; wing 3.25-3.50, sharp-pointed ; tail
2.50-2.75, emarginate. 9. Smaller; wing under
3.00, ete.; above, like the g, but head and neck
plainer; below, less tinged with yellow, the black
throat-patch wanting, replaced by sparse sharp
maxillary and pectoral streaks, the wing-coverts
not chestnut, though so indicated by rufous edg-
ings of the individual feathers. Young $: Larger
than the 9, but in general similar; throat-patch
indicated by blackish feathers ; wing-coverts chest-
nut. An elegant species, of trim form, tasteful
colors and very smooth plumage, abundant in the
fertile portions of the Eastern U. 8.; N. to Massa-
chusetts ; W. to Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and
in the south to Arizona; rather southerly, searcely
reaching the N. border of the U. 8. anywhere;
winters wholly extralimital; breeds throughout its
Fic. 247 —Black-throated Bunting, reduced. U. S. range. Not a good vocalist; the simple
(Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) ditty sounds like chip-chip-chee, chee, chee. Nest
on the ground, or in a low bush; eggs 4-5, normally plain greenish-white, rarely speckled ;
0.80 x 0.65.
S. town/sendi. (To J. K. Townsend.) TownsEnv’s Buntinc. ‘Upper parts, head and
neck all round, sides of body and forepart of breast, slate-blue; back and upper surface of wings
tinged with yellowish-brown ; interscapulars streaked with black; superciliary and maxillary
line, chin and throat and central line of under parts from breast to crissum, white ; edge of
wing, and gloss on breast and middle of belly, yellow ; a black spotted line from lower corner of
lower mandible down the side of the throat, connecting with a crescent of streaks in the upper
edge of the slate portion of the breast.” Pennsylvania ; one specimen known, a standing puzzle
to ornithologists, in the uncertainty whether it is a ‘‘ good species,” or merely an abnormal plu-
mage of the last, or a hybrid, possibly of S. americana 9 X g Guiraca cerulea. While it is not
improbable that the type came from an egg laid by S. americana, even such immediate ancestry
would not forbid recognition of “ specific characters ;” the solitary bird having been killed, it
represents a species which died at its birth.
ZAMELO'DIA. (Gr. ¢d, za, much, very ; peA@dia, melodia,
melody. Fig. 248.) Sone Grospraks. Bill extremely
heavy, with the lower mandible as deep as the upper or
deeper, the commissural angle strong, far in advance of the
feathered base of the bill, the rictus overhung with a few long
stiff bristles. Wing with outer 4 primaries abruptly longer
than 5th. Tail shorter than wing, even or scarcely rounded.
Feet short and stout. Embracing two large species, of beau-
tiful and striking colors, the sexes dissimilar. @ black and
white, with carinine-red or orange-brown; @ otherwise, but

Fie. 248,—Bill of Zamelodia (Z.
7 ee 7 pane . ludoviciana, nat. size.) (Ad. nat del.
with lining of wings yellow. Brilliant songsters; nest in F.C.)

trees and bushes; eggs spotted.

Analysis of Species. |
d black and white, with carmine-red on breast and under wings. @ with lining of wings saffron-yellow.

melanocephala 290

289.

290.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 389

Z. ludovicia/na. (Lat. of Louisiana. Figs. 248, 249, 255.) Rosr-BreasTep Sone GRros-
BEAK. Adult ¢ with the head and neck all around and most of the upper parts black, the
rump, upper tail-coverts and under parts white, the breast and under wing-coverts exquisite
carmiue or rose-red ; wings and tail black, variegated with white; bill white; feet grayish-
blue; iris brown. @ above, streaked with blackish and olive-brown or flaxen-brown, with
median white coronal and superciliary line; below, white, more or less tinged with fulvous and
streaked with dusky; wnder wing-coverts

saffron-yellow ; upper coverts and inner

quills with a white spot at end; bill brown.

Young ¢ at first resembling the 9 ; but the

rose color appears with the first full feather-

ing. Two or three years are required to

produce the perfect beauty. Sexes of same’
size. Length 7.75-8.50; extent 12.00-13.00;

wing 3.90-4.25; tail 3.25; tarsus 0.90.

Eastern U. 8. and British Provinces, N.

to Labrador and the region of the Saskatche-

wan; W. in U.S. to the Red River Valley,

and edge of the Missouri River plains ; win-

ters extralimital; breeds from the Middle

States northward. A splendid bird! Few

combine such attractions for the eye and ear.

Nest in bushes and low trees, chiefly of root-

lets and slender fibres; eggs 3-4, 1.00 x

0.75, dull greenish, fully splashed and dotted

with dark brown, laid in June. Fig. 249. — Rose-breasted Grosbeak, reduced. (Shep-
Z. melanoce’phala. (Gr. pédas, pédavos, Parddel. Nichols sc.)

melas, melanos, black ; xepadn, kephale, head. Fig. 250.) BLACK-HEADED SONG GROSBEAK.
Adult ¢ with the crown, sides of head, back, wings, and tail black; the back usually varied
with whitish or cinnamon-brown, the wings spotted with white on the ends of the coverts, and
usually also towards the ends of the quills, and with a large white patch at base of primaries ;
several lateral tail-feathers with
large white spots on inner
webs near their ends: Neck all
around, rump, and under parts
rich orange-brown, changing to
bright pure yellow on the belly
and under wing-coverts; bill
and feet dark grayish- blue.
Size of the last. The 9 and
young differ much as in the last
species, but may be recognized
by the rich sulphur-yellow under
wing-coverts; the bill is shorter
and more tumid, 0.66-0.75 along
Fie. 250. — Black-headed Grosbeak, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) culmen, 0.60 deep at base. 9,
adult: Under parts like those of the ¢, but paler, though the belly and lining of wings
are as pure yellow. Upper parts dark brown with an olive shade, varied with whitish or
brownish-white, the head blackish with white or brownish coronal and superciliary stripes.
Wings dusky, marked as in the ¢, but the basal white spot on primaries restricted ; tail as in

90.

291.

91.

390 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

dg, but the white spots reduced or obsolete. Bill light-colored below. In the ¢ the ten-
dency is to perfectly black head. back, tail, and wings, the two former pure and continuous,
the two latter boldly spotted with white as described ; but such faultless full dress is not often
seen. This stylish Western representative of the elegant rose-breast is common in suitable
woodland from the Plains to the Pacifie, U. $.. wintering in Mexico, breeding thronghout its
U. 8. range; its habits are the same; its nest and eggs are
indistinguishable.
GUIRACA. (Vor barb., Mex. or 3. Am. name of some
bird. Fig. 251) Brive Grosseaxs. Bill with commissure
strongly angulated far beyond base, with deep under mandible
and bristly rictus as in Zamelodia, but not so swollen, the cul-
men nearly straight. Wings long and pointed, folding about
the middle of the tail; tip formed by the 2d-4th quills, lst
little shorter, 5th rapidly graduated. Tail shorter than wings,
even. Tarsus rather less than middle toe and claw; outer
lateral toe slightly longer than the inner, but searcely reaching Fic. 251. — Bill of Guiraca, nat.
base of middle claw. One species, large, g blue, 2 brown. size. (Ad nat. del. E.C.)
G. cerwlea. (Lat. cerulea, cerulean. Fig. 252.) Bite Grospeak. Adult f: Rich dark
blue. nearly uniform, but darker or blackish across middle of back; feathers around base of bill,
wings and tail, black; middle and greater wing-coverts tipped with chestnut; bill dark horn-
blue, paler below: feet blackish. Length 6.50-7.00; extent 10.50-11.00; wing 3.30-3.60: tail
2.75-3.00 : bill 0.60-0.67 ; tarsus 0.75; middle toe and claw rather more. Q smaller, plain
warm brown above, paler and rather flaxen-brown below, sometimes whitey-brown on throat
and belly, or with slight streaks on
belly and crissum: wings and tail fas-
cous, sometimes slightly bluish-glossed
or edged, the former with whitey-brown
cross-bars ; bill and feet brown. Young
& at first like 9; when changing,
shows confused brown and blue: after-
ward, blue interrupted with white be-
low. U. 8.. from Atlantic to Pacific,
but southerly: rarely N. to Massachu-
setts. and even Maine; winters wholly
extralimital : breeds througheutits U. 8.
range. Its limit of northward migra-
tion with regularity and in any numbers
a is about the latitude of Philadelphia.
Fic. 252.— Blue Grosbeak, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) Nest in bushes, vines or other shrub-
bery, sometimes a low tree, of grasses and rootlets; eggs 4-5, averaging 0.90 X 0.65, palest
bluish, normally unspotted ; quite like those of the indigo-bird, but larger.
PASSERINA. (Lat. passerinus, sparrow-like: not well applied to these ** matchless ones.”
PaNTepD Frvcues. Bill relatively smaller and weaker than in the last, with less conspicuous
angulation, the culmen regularly a little convex, the gonys nearly straight. Outer 4 primaries
longest ; 1st usually between 4th and 5th. the latter much shorter. Tail little shorter than wing,
about even or emarginate. Feet moderate; tarsus about equal to the middle toe and claw;
lateral toes about equal to each other, their claws falling shert of base of middle claw.
Embracing several elegant finches of small size; the males of very showy hues, especially
blue, but also red, purple, yellow, and green, usually in masses; the females of simple and
tasteful greenish or brownish shades.

292.

293.

294.

295.

FRINGILLID#: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 391

¢ Analysis of Species.
d' rich blue, intense red and golden-green ; @ greenish and yellow. Southern . . ...... ciris 292

d purplish-blue, dusky and reddish. @ brown. Southwestern... . «©. 2. see versicolor 293
¢ lazuli-blug and white, the breast brown ; @ brown and whitish. Western wipe ree iat ae + amend 294
¢ indigo-blue; 9 brown, Eastern 2. 6 6 1 ee ee ee ee ee cyanea 295

P. ci/ris. (Gr. xetpis, ketris, name of a bird into which Scylla, daughter of Nisus, was trans-
formed.) PAINTED Fincu. Paintep Buntine. Nonparrm. Pops. ¢, adult: Crown and
hind neck and sides of head and neck rich blue; back and scapulars beautiful golden-green ;
eyelids, rump, and entire under parts intense vermilion-red; wings dusky, glossed with green
and reddish ; tail dusky reddish. Bill dark horn-color; feet dark brown. Size of C. amena;
wing 2.75 ; tail 2.25, a little emarginate. 9: Above, plain yellowish-green, nearly uniform, this
color glossing the dusky wings and tail; below, yellowish; bill brownish, pale below; thus
quite different from the brown 9 9 of all the following species. Young ¢ at first like 9;
acquiring the red and blue with every possible gradation between the colors of the two sexes.
South Atlantic and Gulf States, abundant; up the coast to Carolina, and in the interior to
Illinois; Texas and Mexico. An exquisite little creature of matchless hues, well named the
“incomparable”; a fair songster, and a favorite cage-bird in Louisiana. Nest in bushes,
hedges and low‘trees ; eggs pearly white, speckled with reddish aud purplish browns.

P. versi/color. (Lat. versicolor, various in color; verto, I turn; color, color.) PURPLE
PainTep Fincu. Variep Bunting. WerEsTERN NONPAREIL. Prusiano. @, adult: Hind |
head, throat, and fore breast brownish-red or claret-color, the former sometimes scarlet ; hind
neck and middle of back similar, but more obscured; fore-part of crown purplish-red ; rump and
upper tail-coverts purplish-blue ; below, from the breast, and the wings and tail, dusky, tinged
or glossed with purplish ; concealed white in feathers of side of rump ; lores and circumrostral
feathers black. Bill horn-bluish, paler below, stouter than in the other species, with very
convex culmen and concave cutting edge of upper mandible. Feet dark. The versicoloration
is difficult to describe; the general aspect is that of a purplish-dusky bird, redder or bluer here
and there. Size of the others. @ plain brown above, whitey-brown below, like amaena and
cyanea; no whitish wing-bars; no black stripe on gonys; concealed white on sides of rump ;
bill stout. Lower California and Mexico, N. to U.S. border, especially in the Rio Grande
Valley, where common in some localities. (Accidental in Michigan.)

P. ame’na. (Lat. amena, delightful, charming, dressy.) Lazuti Pamnrep Fincu. Z,
adult: Head and neck all around, entire upper parts, and lining of wings, rich azure or lapis.
lazuli blue, more or less obscured on the middle of the back; the lores black. Below, from the
blue neck, chestnut-brown, changing to white on the belly and crissum. A firm white wing-
bar across ends of the median coverts, and usually another weaker one across tips of greater
coverts. Wings and tail dusky, glossed with blue. Bill and feet bluish-black. Length 5.25-
5.50; extent 8.00-8.50; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 2.25-2.50; bill 0.37; tarsus 0.65. 9, adult:
Above, flaxen-brown, nearly uviform, but with slightly darker centres of the feathers, and some-
times a faint bluish gloss. Below, buffy or brownish-white, most colored on the breast, palest
on throat and belly. Wings and tail fuscous, with faint bluish edgings usually, crossed with two
decided brownish-white bars, — the chief distinction from 9 cyanea. , young: Like the 9 ;
when changing, patched with brown and blue; when very young, ¢ 9 somewhat streaky,
especially on under parts. Replacing P. cyanea from the Plains to the Pacific, common in
suitable places ; habits, nest, and eggs the same.

P. cyanea. (Lat. cyanea, Gr. xvdveos, kuameos, dark blue. Fig. 253.) Inpico PaInTED
Fincu. Inpico-prrp. Adult ¢: 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. 9: Above, plain warm brown, below whitey-brown, obsoletely
streaky on the breast and sides; wing-coverts and inner quills pale-edged, but not whitish;

92.

(296.

98.

297.

892 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES ~— OSCINES.

no whitish wing-bats; upper mandible blackish, lower pale, with the black stripe just
mentioned, — this is a pretty constant feature, and will distinguish the species from any of our
Eastern little brown birds. Young ¢: Like the 9, but soon shows blue traces, and afterward
is blue with white variegation below.
Size of the foregoing. Eastern U. S., N.
to Maine and Canada; W. to Kansas,
Indian Territory, and Texas; winters
wholly extralimital; breeds throughout
its N. A. range. Abundant in fields and
open woodland, in summer; a well mean-
ing but rather weak vocalist, whose low
rambling strain is delivered as if the little
performer were tired or indifferent. Nest
in the crotch of a bush, large for the size
of the bird, and not at all artistic; eggs
usually 4-5, averaging 0:72 X 0.52, white
with a faint blue shade, and normally
plain, though not seldom a little speckled.
SPERMO'/PHILA. (Gr. omépya, sperma, seed; didos, philos, loving.) PyGmy Fincuss.
Bill like that of a bullfinch in miniature, short and extremely turgid ; swollen in all directions,
culmen convex nearly in the sextant of a circle; cutting edge of upper mandible very concave ;
gonys short, about straight in outline. Wings short and greatly rounded; 2d-4th quills
longest, lst, 5th, and even 6th, little shorter, and secondaries nearly covering primaries in the
closed wing. ‘Tail rather shorter than wings, slightly rounded, with abruptly pvinted tips of
the feathers. Tarsus equal to middle toe and claw, and lateral toes to each other, their claws
about reaching base of middle claw. A large C. and 8. Am. genus of pygmy finches, one of
which reaches our border; our most diminutive fringilline (but Phonipara is about the same).
S. morelet‘i. (To one Morelet.) Moreuer’s Pyamy Fincu. Lirrnte Srep-EaTrer. ¢:
Top and sides of head, back of neck, broad band across upper part of breast, middle of back,
wings, and tail, black ; chin, upper throat, neck nearly all around, rump, and remaining under
parts, white, the latter often tinged with pale buff; two wing-bands, and bases of all the quills,
also white, that on the secondaries hidden by the coverts, that on the primaries forming an
exposed spot; inner secondaries usually edged with white; tail-feathers sometimes with
obscurely whitish tip. Bill blue-black ; feet dark. 9 olivaceous-brown above, brownish-
yellow or dull buff below ; wings with whitish bars, but no white bases of quills; bill brown;
feet dark. Length about 4.00; wing'2.00-2.10; tail 1.90; tarsus 0.60. Mexico to Texas, in
the Lower Rio Grande valley.

PHONI/PARA, (Gr. dovq, phone, sound, voice; Lat. pario, I produce: badly formed.) Grass
Quits. Bill small, acute, culmen slightly convex, commissure about straight to the angulation
at base. Wings short, rounded, 2d—5th primaries subequal and little longer than Ist, 6th, 7th.
Tail still shorter, about even. Tarsus if anything shorter than middle toe and claw; lateral
toes subequal to each other in length, scarcely reaching base of middle toe. A West Indian
genus of diminutive finches, one of which occurs in Florida.

P. ze/na. (Vox barb.; perhaps proper name.) BLAcK-FAcED Grass Quit. ¢, adult:
Upper parts, including exposed surfaces of wings and tail, dull olivaceous, passing on the face,
throat, and breast, into sooty-black, fading on other under parts into olive-gray, more or less
varied with whitish; wings and tail unmarked; no decided demarcation of colors anywhere.

Fig. 253. — Indigo-bird, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

. Bill blue-black ; feet dark brown. Q lighter olivaceous, passing to olive-ashy where the ¢

is black; bill pale below; feet light brown. Length about 4.00; wing 2.00-2.10; tail 1.75.
West Indies and Florida. One of the common house finches in various West Indian Islands ;

94.

298.

95.

299.

FRINGILLIDZ!: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 393

nest in bushes and shrubbery, large, domed, with lateral entrance; eggs 3-6, 0.65 0.50,
white, speckled with reddish.

PYRRHULO'XIA, (Lat. pyrrhula + loxia; pyrrhula, a bullfinch ; loxia, a cross-bill. Gr.
muppds, purhros, red; Ao€ias, lowias, crooked.) BUuULLFINCH CARDINALS. Bill very short and
stout, hooked almost like a parrot’s: its depth at base exceeding its length; under mandible
deeper than upper at nostrils; culmen curved almost to the quadrant of a circle ; commissure
foreibly angulated in advance of nostrils; gonys about straight. Otherwise generally like’
Cardinalis. Colors grayish and red; head erested. One large species.

P, sinua'ta, (Lat. sinuata, bent, bowed, curved; sinus, a bend, bay: alluding to the bill.)
BULLFINCH CARDINAL. TEXAS CARDINAL. Conspicuously crested, and otherwise like the
common cardinal in form, but the bill extremely short and crooked. @: Ashy-brown, paler
or whitish below; the crest, face, throat, breast, and middle line of belly, with the wings and
tail, more or less perfectly crimson or carmine red; bill whitish. Length 8.00-8.50; extent
11.00-12.00; wing 3.50-4+.00; tail 3.75-4.25. @ similar to the #, more so than 9 Cardinalis :
red of crest, wings, and tail much the same; rather brownish-yellow below, usually with traces
of red on the breast and belly, sometimes without. Young J like the 9. At an early age,
both sexes have the bill obscured. In this species the crest is long, but thin, consisting of a
few coronal feathers, without general elongation of the head-plumage. The shade of red is very
variable in equally adult males. In highest feather it is continuous on the under parts from
bill to tail along the median line; but it is often broken into patches on throat, belly, and
erissum. The tint is always carmine, not vermilion as usual in the common cardinal. The
intense rose-color is well displayed on spreading the wings. A singular bird, inhabiting the
U. 8. near the Mexican border, from Texas to Lower California; abundant in the valley of
the Lower Rio Grande. The habits, nest, and eggs are substantially the same as those of the
common cardinal.

CARDINALTIS. (Lat. cardinalis, pertaining to cardo,
a door-hinge; cardinal, that upon which something
hinges or depends ; hence important, principal, cardinal
point ; cardinal, a chief ecclesiastical official, wearing
the red hat; hence cardinal-red, trom which color the
bird is named. Fig. 254.) CARDINAL GROSBEAKS.
Bill very large and stout, but quite conic ; culmen a little
convex ; gonys about straight ; commissure sinuate, not
abruptly angulated ; lower mandible about as deep as
upper; rictus bristled. Wings very short and rounded;
usually 4th and 5th quills longest, others rapidly grad-
uated both ways, — 5th to Ist, 5th to 9th. Tail longer
than wings, rounded, of broad feathers with obliquely

Fig. 254. — Head of Cardinal Grosbeak,
oval tips. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw; mat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

lateral toes subequal. Size large. Head crested. Color mostly red, including bill. Sexes
subsimilar. :

C. virginia‘nus. (Of Virginia; name inappropriate to Queen Elizabeth. Figs. 254, 255.)
CARDINAL GROSBEAK. CARDINAL REp-sirp. Vireinta Nicutincats. , adult: Rich
red, usually vermilion, sometimes rosy; pure and intense on crest and under parts, darker on
back, where obscured with ashy-gray, as it is also on upper surfaces of wings and tail; the
feathers of the wings fuscous on inner webs. A jet-black mask on the face, entirely surround-
ing the bill, extending on the throat. Bill coral-red; feet brown. Length 8.00-9.00; extent
11.00-12.00 ; wing 3.50-4.00 ; tail 4.25-4.75 ; bill 0.67-0.75 ; tarsus 0.90-1.00. rather less:
Ashy-brown, paler and somewhat yellowish-brown below, with traces of red; reddening much
as in the @ on crest, wings, and tail. Young g: At first like 9, but soun reddening ; at an

300.

894 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

early age, bill dark. Eastern U. 8., southerly, seldom N. to the Connecticut Valley; along the
Mexican border shading into C. v. igneus. A bird of striking appearance and brilliant vocal
powers, resident and abundant from the Middle States southward ; inhabits thickets, tangle and
undergrowth of all kinds, whence issue its rich rolling whistling notes while the performer,
brightly clad as he is, often eludes observation by his shyness, vigilance, and activity. The
nest, built loosely of bark-strips, twigs, leaves, and grasses, is placed in a bush, vine, or low

Aine

Hl
Fig. 255.— Cardinal Grosbeak, upper; Rose-breasted Grosbeak, lower; reduced. (From Brehm.)

thick tree ; the eggs are 1.00-1.10 long, 0.70-0.80 in breadth, profusely marked with browns,
‘from reddish to dark chocolate, with neutral tint in the shell, usually in fine dotting or mar-
bling pattern. Two or three broods are reared in the South. Like the rose-breasted grosbeak,
the cardinal is a favorite cage-bird.

C. v.igmeus. (Lat. igneus, fiery.) Frery-rep CARDINAL. Like the last; not redder, but if
anything lighter red; black mask narrowed on forehead, or so interrupted there that the red
reaches to the bill; crest inclining to light red, more like that of belly than of back. Bill

96.

FRINGILLIDZ: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 395

tending to swell, with more decidedly curved culmen. Tail rather longer, on an average.
Valley of the Colorado and Gila, and Lower California, common.

PI'PILO. (Lat. pipilo or pipio, I pip, peep, chirp.) TowsErE BuntTines. Embracing
numerous species and varieties of large I’ringillide, varying much in system of coloration and
details of form, and therefore not easy to characterize concisely. Excepting one species, all are
over seven inches long. Bill moderate in size, conic without extremes of turgidity or compres-
sion, but varying much in precise shape with the species. Feet large and strong, fitted for
ground work; tarsus about equalling or rather exceeding the middle toe and claw ; lateral toes
subequal, outer usually a little the longer, its claw reaching, in some cases exceeding the base
of the middle claw; the claws all stout and much curved, in some species highly developed.
Wings short and greatly rounded, about the 4th-5th primary longest, whence the quills are
rapidly graduated to 1st and 9th; 1st very short. Tail long, exceeding the wings, rounded or
much graduated, of broad firm feathers with rounded ends. Large species, inhabiting shrub-
bery, and partly terrestrial. They fall in 3 sections or series. I. Black Towhees: of which the
only Eastern species is a typical example. In this, the sexes are very unlike, but the difference
is less in the Western varieties into which it runs: all the forms are black on head and upper
parts, with black, white-marked wings or tail, the back also white-marked or not ; belly white,
sides chestnut. II. Brown Towhees: variously brown above, paler, etc., below, the sexes
alike. These are confined to the Southwest, where the numerous species stand in the same
relation to Fringillide that the Southwestern forms of Harporhynchus bear to Turdide. III.
Green Towhees: one small species, standing alone.

Oss. I. The black series of Pipilo offers a case nearly parallel with those of Melospiza,
Passerella and Junco already discussed. There is one Eastern form much more distinct from
the several Western ones than these are from one another. It is uniform black above, seldom
with a trace of white spotting on the scapulars: the Q distinctively brown where the ¢ is
black. The Western ones all have spotted scapulars and sometimes also interscapulars; and
@ @ are blackish, much like the ¢ g. (These furthermore shade into an olivaceous Mexican
form.) P. arcticus corresponds in a way with Melospiza heermanni, Passerella schistacea, and
Junco caniceps ; P. oregonus with Melospiza guttata or rufina, Passerella unalasce and Junco
oregonus ; P. megalonyx exactly with Passerella megarhyncha. It might be more consistent
to treat all the black Towhees as races of-one incompletely specified stock ; but it is not easy
to so far ignore the sexual distinctiveness, nor the fact that though P. erythrophthalmus has
occasional spots on the scapulars, its intergradation is scarcely established. II. The Brown
Towhees afford one remarkably distinct species, P. aberti, to be likened to Harporhynchus
crissalis; and others incompletely separated from each other, like H. redivivus and H. lecontit.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

1, Black Towhees. Colors of the male black, white, and chestnut in definite areas.
No white on the scapulars or wing-coverts. Sexes very unlike.
Eyes red in the breeding season. Eastern U. S. at large . . 5 hip anasto 301
Eyes white in the breeding season. Florida, resident . ..... . - + « alleni 302
Scapulars and wing-coverts with white spots; sexes more alike. Western.
Little if any white at bases of primaries ; none on outer web of outer tail-feathers except at end.
oregonus 303
White on wings and tail as in erythrophthalmus, but interscapulars streaked + + + arcticus 304
Like the last; claws highly developed; sexes nearly alike . ay - + megalonyx 305
2. Brown Towhees. Colors not definitely black, white and chestnut; no qesanistic: sexes alike. Southwestern.
Grayish-brown, paler below, without blackish face ; throat and crissum fulvous or rufescent.
Light; belly whitening; crissum yellowish-brown; necklace of dusky streaks . . . mesoleucus 306
Similar; more white on throat é . albigula 307
Dark ; belly only paler ; crissum napecneu iene throat fulvoas: spenkied - ~ « + crissalis 808
Grayish-brown, paler below; face blackish ; no other decided markings . 2 e+ « . aberti 309
8. Green Towhees. Colors greenish ; sexes altka.
Crown brown, throat white, breast ashy, edge of wing yellow, etc. < «+ « . .chlorurus 310

301.

302.

303.

304,

396 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

P. erythrophthal‘mus. (Gr. épvdpds, eruthros, red ; d@Oadpos, ophthalmos, eye.) TOWHEE
Bunting. Marsu Rosin. Cuewing. 4, adult: Glossy black; belly white; sides chest-
nut; crissum fulvous-brown ; primaries and inner secondaries with white touches on the outer
webs; outer tail-feather with outer web and nearly the terminal half of inner web white, the
next two or three with white spots decreasing in size; bill black; feet pale brown; iris red in
the adult, white or creamy in the young, and generally in winter specimens. Normally, the
black pure and continuous ; occasionally, white touches on wing-coverts and scapulars. White
on primaries confined to bases of outer 6, and their outer webs at about their middle; on
secondaries to outer webs of inner 2 or 3. Black feathers of throat with concealed whitish
bases. Length 7.50-8.75 ; extent 10.00-12.00; wing 3.20-3.90; tail 3.35-4.00; tarsus 1.00-
1.12; but these extremes are rare; average length 8.00; extent 11.25; wing 3.75; tail 4.50.
@: Rich warm brown where the male is black; otherwise similar, but smaller. Very young
birds are streaked brown and dusky above, below whitish tinged with brown and streaked with
dusky; but this plumage is of brief duration; sexual distinctions may be noted in birds just
from the nest, and they rapidly become much like the adults. Eastern U. 8. and British
Provinces ; N. to Canada, Minnesota and Dakota, where meeting P. arcticus; W. to Kansas,
and in Missouri River region to about 43°. Northerly perfectly migratory ; winters from middle
U. S. southward; breeds nearly throughout its range. An abundant and familiar inhabitant of
thickets, undergrowth, and briery tracts, spending much of its time on the ground, scratching
among fallen leaves. ‘Nest on the ground, bulky, of leaves, grasses and other fibrous material ;
eggs 4-5, 0.95 & 0.70, white, thickly speckled with reddish. The curious names ‘‘ Towhee”
and ‘‘ Chewink” are from its ery; ‘‘ Marsh Robin” from its haunts and the chestnut of the sides.
P.e. al/leni. (To J. A. Allen, the eminent naturalist.) Wautrn-rvep TowHEE BUNTING.
Similar ; smaller; less white on the wings and tail; claws longer; iris white. @, extremes:
Length 7.25-8.50; extent 9.50-11.55 ; wing 2.80-3.50 ; tail 3.25-4.00; tarsus 0.80-1.10; aver-
age length 7.90; extent 9.90; wing 3.12; tail 3.50; tail relatively longer than in Northern
specimens, producing less difference in total length than there is in length and extent of wings.
White on outer tail-feather about as much as on the next feather of P. erythrophthalmus.
Florida ; resident; a local race.

[P. macula/tus. (Lat. maculatus, spotted.) OLIVE-BLACK SporTED TowHEE. A Mexican
species, with extensively olivaceous coloration and streaked back, into which the following three
varieties shade imperceptibly, — oregonus being farthest removed and most like erythrophthal-
mus, arcticus and megalonyx successively nearing the Mexican stock-form. ]

P. m, ore/gonus. (To the Territory of the Oregon.) OrEGcon TowHEE. @: Very similar to
erythrophthalmus; quite as black, but not continuously so; wing-coverts with small rounded,
and scapulars with larger oval, white spots on the outer webs of the feathers near the end;
interscapulars sometimes also with white touches? white marks on the primaries and inner
secondaries very small or wanting, usually none at the bases of the former; white spots on tail-
feathers very small, the outer web of the outer rectrix not white except at the end. Excepting
these particulars, this form looks more like erythrophthalmus than like the typical maculatus,
in which the body-colo’s are olivaceous. @ dark umber-brown, but not quite blackish.
Pacific coast region, N. to British Columbia, 8. to Southern California; melting eastward
into arcticus, southeastward into megalonyx. —

P. m. are’ticus. (Lat. arcticus, arctic.) Arctic TowHEE. Similar to the foregoing ; less
purely and continuously black, with tendency to olivaceous on back and rump; white spots of
wing-coverts larger, those of scapulars still larger and lengthening into streaks ; interscapulars
also streaked with white; white on the quills and tail-feathers at a maximum, as in erythro-
phthalmus; usually, also, concealed white specks in the black of the throat. 9 comparatively
dark, but not quite blackish. In this form, the white on the wing-quills and tail-feathers, so
much reduced in the glossy black oregonus, is as extensive as in erythrophthalmus; but the

305.

306.

307.

30.

FRINGILLIDA: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETE. 397

wing-eoverts, scapulars and interscapulars are fully marked with white; the black tends to
olive, at least on rump, and the 9 is not fairly brown. Central region of N. Am., from the
limit of erythrophthalmus in Kansas, Nebraska, and Dakota, to that of oregonus in Oregon and
Washington ; in the 8. Rocky Mt. region melting into megalonyx.

P. m. megalo/nyx. (peydAn, megale, great; dvvé, onux, claw.) SPURRED TOWHEE BUNTING.
The prevailing form in the S. Rocky Mt. region, New Mexico, Arizona and California. Pre-
cisely like arcticus, but feet larger, with highly-developed claws; hind claw decidedly longer
than its digit ; lateral claws reaching to or beyond middle of middle claw. In this form at any
rate, the is hardly distinguishable in color from the @, being slaty-blackish with an appreci-
able olivaceous shade, thus exhibiting. a decided approach to the typical Mexican stock. The
note is entirely different from that of the Eastern Towhee, being so exactly like the scolding
“mew” of-a cat-bird, that I have heard persons stoutly contend that there are cat-birds in
Arizona. The general habits, nest and eggs of all these Western Towhees are substantially
the same as those of the Eastern.

[P.fus/eus. (Lat. fuscus, dark brown.) Mexican Brown TowHEE. An obscure Mexican
stock form, carelessly described by Swainson, to which the three following N. Am. birds are
probably referable as varicties. ]

P. f. mesoleu/cus. (Gr. pécos, mesos, middle ; Aevxds, leucos, white; the middle under parts
whiter than in crissalis.) Brown Towner. CaNon Towner. ¢, 9: Above, uniform
grayish-brown with a slight olivaceous shade; crown brown in appreciable contrast; wings
and tail like the back, unmarked, or some tail-feathers with rusty tips. Below, a paler shade
of the color of the back, whitening on the belly, tinged with fulvous and streaked with dusky
on the sides of throat and middle of breast, washed with rich rusty-brown on the flanks and
crissum. The belly is usually quite white, contrasting with the rusty flanks and vent; the
throat is ochrey, usually immaculate and embraced necklace-wise with dusky spots in series on
each side, aggregated and blotched on the breast. Bill dusky, paler below ; feet brown, toes
usually darker than tarsus. Sexes indistinguishable. In fresh fall specimens, the tawny
suffuses nearly all the under parts except middle of belly, and the throat spots are diffused
instead of being in series. In the very early streaked stage, there is no distinction of a brown
cap; the wiug-coverts are rusty-edged; and the whole under parts are dusky-streaked. Length
8.00-8.50; wing 3.60-4.00; tail 4.25-4.60. S. W. U. S., chiefly New Mexico and Arizona,
but also W. Texas, S. Colorado, Utah and Nevada, and interior of Southern California. Nest
in bushes; eggs, as in all the Brown Towhees, specked and scratched with blackish on a pale
greenish ground. (P. fuscus of the Key, orig. ed.)

P. f. albi/gula. (Lat. albus, white; gula, throat.) WHITE-THROATED Brown TowHEE.
Exactly like the last, but the white of the under parts extending further up the breast, the
gular spots more restricted, sparser, and better detined. Lower California. Slightly distin-
guished; but in good spring specimens the rusty is restricted to the crissum; the ochraceous of
the throat is less extensive, paler, and mainly confined within the necklace.

P. f. crissa/lis. (Low Lat. crissalis, relating to the crissum, the under tail-coverts, which are
highly colored.) CrissaL TOWHEE BuntTinG. CALIFORNIA TOWHEE. Similar to mesoleucus;
crown like the back; rather darker above, with an olivaceous tinge, decidedly so below, the
middle of the belly scarcely or not whitening, the gular fulvous strong, and, with its dusky
streaks, definitely restricted to the throat; the flanks and crissum chestnut or deep cinnamon-
brown. Rather larger: wing 4.00; tail 5.00; Q rather less. Coast region of California (and
northward ?), abundant. Nest in bushes, probably also on ground; eggs 3-4, 0.95 x 0.72,
pale greenish or bluish-white, fully spotted with blackish and neutral tints. This is the dark
coast form, bearing the same relation to mesoleucus that the coast Harporhynchus redivivus
bears to the paler H. lecontit of the interior. The crown is brownish, but not forming a cap
contrasting with the back; the throat is fulvous rather than ochrey; this color of very limited

‘309.

310.

97.

311.

398 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES— OSCINES.

extent, and speckled with dusky throughout; the crissum rich rusty. (It is the P. fuscus,
Cass., Il, 1854, pl. 17; Bd., 1858; but not the true fuscus of Sw.; Fringilla crissalis,
Vigors, 1839.)

P. aberti. (To Lieut. J. W. Abert.) AserT’s TowHEE. Gray TowHEE. Somewhat
similar ‘to the foregoing species of this section of the genus, but entirely distinct; a very
large, long-tailed form, with no decided markings anywhere excepting the dark face. Above,
grayish-brown, with a slight fulvous tinge; wings and tail darker and purer brown, the tail-
feathers slightly rusty-tipped. Belew as above, but paler, by dilution with a peculiar pale
pinkish-brown shade (like that on the side of an Oregon snow-bird), particularly on the throat ;
erissum more cinnamon-brown; lores and chin blackish. Bill and feet brown ; under mandible
paler than the upper. Young more rusty. There is much individual variation in shade, but
this large dingy whole-colored bird with dark face is always easily recognized. Length about
9.00; wing 3.40-3.70 ; tail 4.50-5.00; tarsus 1.00-1.10. New Mexico and Arizona, abundant,
especially in the valley of the Gila and Colorado, where we find it a wild and shy inhabitant of
thickets and chaparral; N. to Colorado and Utah. Nest in bushes, loose and bulky; eggs 3-4,
1.00 x 0.75, bluish-white, sparingly speckled and scrawled with blackish.

P. chloru'rus. (Gr. xAepés, chloros, green; otpa, oura, tail.) GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE.
Buanpine’s Fincu. ¢, ¢, adult: Above, grayish-greeu, sometimes quite olive-gray, at
others bright olive-green, the exposed surfaces of the wings and tail with brighter greenish
edgings. Edge of wing and under coverts and axillaries bright yellow. Crown rich chestnut ;
forehead blackish, with a whitish loral spot on each side. Chin and throat pure white, bounded
by dusky maxillary stripes as sharply contrasted as in the white-throated sparrow with dark
surroundings. Whole breast and sides of head, neck and body fine clear ash, or slate-gray,
obscured on the flanks and crissum with brownish, fading to white on the belly; completing
the resemblance to Zonotrichia albicollis. Bill blackish-plumbeous; feet brown, toes darker.
Length about 7.00; extent 9.50; wing 2.80-3.20; tail 3.40-3.70; tarsus 0.95. Less matura
birds have the chestnut cap veiled by gray tips of the feathers. Young: Crown like back.
Upper parts dull brown tinged with greenish in places, streaked throughout with dusky, but
wings and tail as in the adult; under parts forecasting the pattern of the adults, but dusky-
streaked throughout. This stage is brief and the birds resemble the adults after the first fall
moult. An interesting bird, of no intimate relations with any other; it has long been con-
ventionally placed in Pipilo, for want of a better location ; it is not easy to see how it differs in
form from Zonotrichia or Embernagra. Southwestern U. 58., especially 8. Rocky Mts.; N. té
Wyoming and Idaho; migratory ; winters over our border. A sprightly inhabitant of shrub-
bery ; nest in bush or on the ground; eggs 0.90 X 0.68, pale greenish or grayish-white, freckled
all over with bright reddish-brown, usually aggregating or wreathing at the larger end.
EMBERNA’GRA. (A villanous compound of emberiza, a bunting, and tanagra, a tan-
ager; the former is only Latinized from Qld German, the latter is South American.) The
integrity of the genus is questionable. Said to contain several extralimital species not nearly
allied to ours. It is difficult to see how the following species differs more than specifically from
Pipilo chlorurus. It offers the following details of form: Bill not notable in any way. Tarsus
exceeding the middle toe and claw. Lateral toes short; outer a little longer than inner; claw
of neither reaching base of middle claw ; fore claws all small and weak; hind claw about as
long as its digit. Wings very short and much rounded; 4th to 7th primaries about equal and
longest ; 2d as long as 9th; 1st equalling the 3d from the innermost secondary. Tail about as
long as the wings, much rounded, the outer feathers half an inch shorter than the middle ones ;
all broad to their rounded ends. Coloration olivaceous with yellow edge of wing and incon-
spicuous head-stripes.

E. rufovirga'ta. (Lat. rufo, with rufous, virgata, striped; virga, a rod.) GREEN FINCH.
Texas Sparrow. 4, adult: Above, dull olive-green, brighter on wings and tail. Under

¢

ICTERIDZ): AMERICAN STARLINGS; BLACKBIRDS, ETC. 399

parts shading from color of the upper through grayish-olive and olive-gray to sordid whitish,
purest on the middle of the belly. Inner webs of wing-quills fuscous ; tail the same, but more
glossed with greenish, and sometimes showing traces of crosswise watering with darker waves,
as often seen in the song sparrow. Whole bend and lining of wing bright clear yellow. Crown
like back, with two broad stripes of dull rufous from nostrils to nape; a similar rufous stripe
behind eye, sometimes traceable past eye to the lore, then defining a superciliary line of light
olive-gray or whitish. A whitish eye-ring. Upper mandible light brown, lower drying
yellowish ; feet pale. Length 6.25-6.75 (not 5.50, as in Baird); extent 8.50-9.00; wing
2.40-2.75 ; tail the same; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw 0.75. 9 said to differ
immaterially, and young to lack the head-stripes. Young, first plumage: Above, mixed brown
and olive-tawny; wings brown, edged with olive, the coverts edged and tipped with tawny ;
breast like back; belly tawny. Texas, in Lower Rio Grande Valley. Inhabits shrubbery,
chaparral, and close cover of all kinds, where it is difficult to discover, owing to its quiet ways
and greenish tints. Keeps near the ground, but builds a domed nest of twigs and grasses in
bushes and low trees; two broods are reared in May-June, and Aug.Sept. Eggs 2-4, pure
white, unmarked, averaging 0.85 x 0.65, but from 0.75-0.90 by 0.60-0.70.

17. Family ICTERIDA4: American Starlings: Blackbirds, etc.

Cultrirostral Oscines with 9 prima-
ries. — A family of moderate extent,
confined to Ainerica, where it repre-
sents the Sturnide, or Starlings of
the Old World. It consists of the
Blackbirds and Orioles, among the
former being included the Bobolinks,
Cow-birds, and Meadow ‘“ Larks.”
It is nominally composed of 150
species, half of which may prove
valid, distributed among 50 genera
or subgenera, of which one-fourth
may be considered worthy of reten-
tion. The relationships are very close
with the Fringillide, on the one
hand; on the other, they grade

Fia. 256. — A typical Icterus (I. bullocki). (After Audubon). toward the Crows (Corvide). They
share with Fringilline birds the characters of angulated commissure and 9 developed pri-
maries, and this distinguishes them from all the. other families whatsoever; but the distine-
tions from the Fringillide are not easily expressed. In fact, I know of no character that
will relegate the Bobolink and Cowbird to the Icteride rather than to the Fringillide,
in the current acceptation of these terms. In general, however, the Icteride are cultrirostral
rather than strictly conirostral Oscines, having that cutting rather than crushing style of
bill seen in perfection in the crows, toward which some of the Icterid@ approach ; being thus
distinguished by the length, acuteness, and not strictly conical shape of the unnotched,
unbristled bill, which has a peculiar extension of the culmen on the forehead dividing the
prominent antiz of close-set velvety feathers that reach to or on the nasal scale — a character
well exhibited in Stwrnella, for instance. In length, the bill usually equals if it does not exceed
the head; the tip is unnotched, the rictus unbristled, the commissure obtusely but evidently
angulated. The bill is shortest and most fringilline in Dolichonyx and Molothrus ; most acute
in the Orioles (Zcterus), where it is sometimes actually decurved; most crow-like in the

.

98.

312.

400 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Grackles (Quiscalus). (See any figs., beyond.) Excepting the arboreal orioles, the feet are
large and strong, fitted for the more or less terrestrial life which all the species lead, walking
on the ground with ease instead of hopping like most Fringillide. No specialties of wing or
tail; former usually pointed, latter rounded, sometimes very large and fan-shaped.

Among our moderate number of species are representatives of four of the subfamilies into
which the Icteride are conveniently and quite naturally divisible. In most of the genera black
is the prevailing color, — either uniform and of intense metallic lustre, or contrasted with
masses of red or yellow. In Sturnella alone the pattern is “‘ niggled.” In nearly all, the sexes
are conspictously dissimilar, the female being smaller and brownish or streaky in the iridescent
black species, greenish and yellowish in the brilliantly colored ones. All are migratory in this
country. Other details are best given under heads of the subfamilies. These groups, with
their component genera, may be analyzed as follows by the salient features more likely to
attract the attention of the student than less obvious technical characters‘: —

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.

AGELEINZ. Marsh Blackbirds. Terrestrial and gregarious. Bill conic-acute, sometimes quite fringilline,
shorter or scarcely longer than head. Feet stout.
Bobolinks. Sexes unlike in summer. Black and buff, or aera ; Dored. Tail-feathers very acute.

Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw . eS j . . Dolichonyx 98
Cowbirds. Sexes unlike. Lustrous black ¢, brown 9; no 5 red or yellow met des es . . Molothrus 99
Blackbirds. Sexes unlike. Lustrous black ¢, red on wing; streaky 9; noyellow . . . Ageleus 100

Blackbirds. Sexes unlike. Lustrous black ¢, brown 2, both with yellow head . Xanthocephalus 101
STURNELLINE. Meadow Larks. Terrestrial and imperfectly gregarious. Bill of peculiar shape. Tail very
short. Feet large and stout.
Sexes alike. Motley-colored, extensively yellow below . 7 . . + Sturnella 102
IcTERINE. Orioles. Arboreal, non-gregarious. Bill extremely acute: sonietimes decurved. Feet weak.
Sexes unlike.
Black, with yellow or orange or chestnut in masses, in the ¢; ? greenish and yellowish . Icterus 103
QuIScALINZ. Crow Blackbirds. Terrestrial and guegarious. Bill elongate, corvine. Feet stout. Color
of ¢ entirely iridescent black; @ brown or blackish.
Bill shorter than head ; even tail shorter than wings . . F . . Scolecophagus 104
Bill not shorter than head ; graduated tail not shorter than wings Quiscalus 105

22. Subfamily ACELAAINAZ: Marsh Blackbirds.

Gregarious, granivorous species, more or less completely terrestrial, and chiefly palustrine,
not ordinarily conspicuous vocalists; building rather rude, not pensile, nests, laying 4-6 spotted
or curiously limned eggs. With the feet strong, fitted, both for walking and for grasping
swaying reeds ; the wings more or less pointed, equalling or exceeding the tail in length: the
pill conic-acute, shorter or little longer than the head, its cutting edges more or less inflected.
Four well-marked genera, the species of which abound in the United States, on plain and.
prairie, in marsh and meadow. In the West, they swarm about the settlements, stage stations,
military posts and other detestable places.

DOLICHONYX. (Gr. dodiyds, dolichos, long; éyv&, onux, claw.) Bopotmygs. Sexes
unlike, but only in the breeding season: ¢ black, buff and white; 9 brownish and yellowish.
Bill short, conic, fringilline, not nearly as long as head. Wings long and pointed, 1st and 2d
quills longest, others rapidly graduated. Tail stiffened, with rigid very acute feathers, almost
like a woodpecker’s, shorter than wing. Feet stout; tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw ;
claws all very large. One remarkable species, though there are several others in tropical
America; noted for the peculiar changes of plumage and the ‘‘mad music” of the ¢; abundant
in marsh and meadow of the Eastern U. 8.

D. oryzi/verus. (Gr. gputa, oruza, Lat. oryza, rice; voro, I devour. Fig. 257.) Boson.
MEApDOW-WINK. SKUNK BLACKBIRD, Northern States. REED-BIRD, Middle States. Rice-
BIRD, Southern States. @, in breeding plumage: Black; cervix buff; scapulars, rump and
upper tail-coverts ashy-white ; interscapulars streaked with black, buff, and ashy ; outer quills

99.

ICTERIDZ — AGELZAINZA: MARSH BLACKBIRDS. 401

edged with yellowish ; bill blackish-horn ; feet brown. The faultless full dress of black, white,
and buff is worn only for a brief period ; and even in spring and summer, most males are found
to have yellowish touches in the black, especially of the under parts. The ‘delirious song”
is only heard while the males are trooping their way to their breeding-grounds, and before the
midsummer change of feather. @ in fall, 9, and young, entirely different in color: Yellowish-
brown above, brownish-yellow below ; crown and back conspicuously, nape, rump, and sides
less broadly, streaked with black; crown with a median and lateral light stripe; wings and
tail blackish, pale-edged ; bill brown, paler below. In this, the ordinary condition, the ¢ is
only known by superior size. Fall birds are more buffy than the spring 9. The g changing
shows confused characters of both sexes (see p. 89); but in any plumage the species may be
recognized by the stiffish, extremely acute tail-feathers, in connection with its special dimensions.
@: Length 7.00-7.50; extent 11.50-12.25; wing 3.50-3.80; tail 2.75-3.00; tarsus 1.00;
middle toe and claw 1.25. 9: Length 6.50-7.00; extent 10.50-11.25 ; wing 3.25-3.50, etc.,
averaging $ an inch less in length and an inch in extent. Chiefly Eastern U. 5. and Canada ;
N. to 54° in the region of the Saskatchewan, W. not ordinarily beyond the central plains, but
oecurs in Montana, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. Winters wholly extralimital. In May, the
vivacious, voluble, and eccentric ‘‘ Bobo-
links” pass North, spreading over the
meadows of the Middle and Northern
States from the Atlantic to Kansas and
Dakota, perfecting its black dress, and
breeding in June and July. After the
midsummer change the ‘‘ Reed-bird” or
“Rice-bird” comes back, thronging the
marshes in immense flocks with the Black-
birds; has simply a chirping note, feeds on
the wild oats and wild rice, and becomes
extremely fat and is accounted a great
delicacy. The name “ ortolan,” applied
by some gunners and restaurateurs to this h ak
bird, as well as to the Carolina Rail (Por- Fic. 257. — Bobolink, ¢g, reduced. (Sheppard del.
zana carolina) is in either case a strange Nichols sc.)

misnomer, the Ortolan being a fringilline bird of Europe, Emberiza hortulana L. (Lat. hortu-
lanus, relating to a garden.) In the West Indies, where this bird retires in winter, as it does
also to Central and South America, it is called ‘‘ butter-bird.” The names “ bobolink” and
“‘ meadow-wink ” are in imitation of its ery; ‘‘skunk blackbird” notes the resemblance in
color to the obnoxious quadruped. The migrations are performed mostly at night, when in
May and early September one may hear the mellow metallic “ chink” of the invisible passen-
gers. Nest on the ground, artfully concealed in the grass; eggs 4-6, 0.90 x 0.65, stone-gray,
dotted, mottled, and clouded with dark browns. '

MOLO'THRUS. (Gr. pododpés, or podoBpés, vagabond, tramp, parasite.) Cowsrrps. Bill
short, stout, conic and fringilline, about # as long as head; but entirely unnotched and
unbristled, with little bent of commissure, the broad culmen running well up on the forehead,
the nostrils well in advance of the feathers. Wings long and pointed, the first 3 primaries
entering into the tip, rest rapidly graduated. Tail shorter than wings, nearly even or a little
rounded, tending to divaricate in the middle, the feathers broad and plane to their rounded ends.
Feet strong; tarsus not shorter than middle toe. ¢ black and lustrous, without red or yellow ;
Q plain black or brown. Terrestrial, but not specially palustrine ; eminently gregarious and
polygamous, or rather communistic, never mating or building nests; thus parasitic, like the Old
World euckoos; no musical ability. To the single species long notorious in the U.8., a second

26

313.

314.

402 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES— OSCINES.

has lately been added; there are several others in the warmer parts of America, all of the same
irregular and objectionable tendencies.

Analysis of Seiten: and Varieties.
d, steely black with brown head.

Larger: ¢', wing over 4.00; tail over 3.00; 9, wing about 3.75; tail about 2.75 ee +. Ater 313
Smaller: ¢, size of 9 of the foregoing . . . z - . obscurus 314
d, brassy black, including head; eyes red; wing near 6 00; ‘tail nearly 4. 00. a ee KR eM AS @neus 315

M. alter. (Lat. ater, black. Fig. 258.) Common Cowsirp. CucKoxp. é&, adult: Lus-
trous green-black, with steel-blue, purple, and violet iridescence. Head and neck deep wood-
brown, with some purplish lustre. Bill and feet black. Length 7.50-8.00; extent 13.50;
wing about 4.50, at least over 4.00; tail about 3.25; bill 0.70; tarsus 1.00-1.10. 9, adult:
An obscure-looking bird, dusky grayish-brown, nearly uniform, but paler below than above,
where most of the feathers have dusky centres, and most of those of the under parts with dark
shaft lines; giving a somewhat streaky appearance. There is some gloss on the upper parts,
particularly on the wings and tail, where a slight greenish lustre is usually evident. Bill
blackish-brown, paler below; feet blackish-brown. Smaller than the g. Length 7.00-7.50;
wing about 3.75; tail 2.75. Young g @: Similar to the ? adult; still duller, and more
variegated ; upper parts dusky brown, the
feathers skirted with gray, producing a set
of semicircles on the back; below, pale
grayish, or even ochrey-brown, everywhere
streaked with dusky. The sexual difference
in size soon appreciable, and the black of
the ¢ soon begins to appear in patches.
XN. Am. at large; migratory, abundant,
gregarious, polygamous, parasitic. The
singular habits of this bird, shared by others
of the genus, form one of the most inter-
esting chapters in ornithology. Like the
European cuckoo, it builds no nest, laying
Fic. 258. — Cowbird, reduced. (Sheppard del. its eggs by stealth in the nests of various
Nichols 60.) other birds, especially warblers, vireos, and
sparrows; and it appears to constitute, furthermore, a*remarkable exception to the rule of
conjugal affection and fidelity among birds. A wonderful provision for the perpetuation of the
species is seen in its instinctive selection of smaller birds as the foster-parents of its offspring;
for the larger egg receives the greater share of warmth during incubation, and the lustier young
cowbird asserts its precedence in the nest; while the foster-birds, however reluctant to incu-
bate the strange egg (their devices to avoid the duty are sometimes astonishing), become assid-
uous in their care of the foundling, even to the neglect of their own young. The cowbird’s
egg is said to hatch sooner than that of most birds: this would obviously confer additional
advantage. The list of birds in whose nests cowbirds’ eggs have been found includes a large
number of finches, warblers, greenlets, flycatchers, etc. ; there seems to be really little choice.
While smail species are usually victimized, this is not always the case. Ihave found eggs in
nests of the kingbird and towhee bunting. Inthe West, where cowbirds swarm about the ranches
and settlements, it is the rule, I almost said, to find their eggs in nests of the prairie Frin-
gillide, etc. The egg is usually single; sometimes .2, 3, even 4 are found in a nest; they
range from 0.80-1.00 in length, by 0.65-0.70 in breadth, and are white, fully speckled and
dashed with browns and neutral tints.
M. a. obscu’rus. (Lat. obscurus, dark.) DWwarr Cowsirp. Similar; smaller; ¢ the size
of 9 M. ater; Q under 7.00; wing 3.33; tail 2.338. The difference is strongly marked, and

as

315.

100.

ICTERIDZA — AGELZAINZ4: MARSH BLACKBIRDS. 403

apparently constant. Southwestern U. S., Texas to California, the resident form, breeding
there, while M. ater passes on, though the tao are associated during the migration of the latter. ,
Swarming like M. ater; eggs as.in that species, but smaller; only up to about 0.80 x 0.60.

M. e/neus, (Lat. eneus or ahenius, brassy, bronzy; @s, main) Brass Cowzirp. BRONZzED
Cowsirp. Rep-ryep Cowzimp. ¢, adult: Entire body and head black, splendidly lustrous
with bronzy reflections, the tint much like that of the back of Quiscalus eneus. This rich
brassy-black uniform over the whole bird, there being no distinction of color between the head
and body, as in M. ater. The bronze only on the ends of the feathers, the covered parts of
which are violet-black, with plain dusky roots. Wings and tail black, with violet, purple, and
especially green metallic lustre on the upper surfaces. Under wing- and tail-coverts chiefly
violaceous-black ; the purplish and violaceous tints most noticeable on the upper coverts of
both wings and tail, the reflections of the quill-feathers themselves being chiefly green. Bill
ebony-black. Feet black. -Irisred. Length 8.00-8.50; extent about 15.00; wing 4.50-4.75 ;
tail 3.25-8.50 ; tarsus 1.15-1.25 ; bill 0.90 along culmen, very stout aud especially deep at base,
much compressed; lateral outlines concave; under outline straight; upper gently convex
throughout; tip very acute. Q notably smaller: wing scarcely over 4 inches; tail about 3.00 ;
culmen scarcely 0.75; tarsus 1.00. Color
not brown, as in M. ater 9, but uniformly
quite black, with considerable gloss, though
nothing like the brassy splendor of the ¢.
Wings and tail with greenish reflections.
Young ¢: Uniform dull black, faintly
violaceous on back and rump, greenish on
wings and tail. Early spring birds, in im-
perfect dress, are exactly like the adult 9
in color, but much larger. Mexico to the
Lower Rio Grande, abounding in some NY
places; a large and very handsome Cow- NZ
bird, recently added to our fauna. Polyga- ‘
mous and parasitic like the others, but egg
entirely different, being greenish-white; -
without markings; size 0.85—-0.95 in length
by 0.65-0.75 broad; average 0.90 x 0.70.
Found in nests of -Icteria, Icterus, Cardi-
nalis, Miloulus, Tyrannus, ete.
AGELAN'US. (Gr. dyedaios, agelaios, gregarious; dyéAn, a flock.) Rep-winG Marsa
Buacgsirps. Bill about as long as head, stout at base, where deeper than broad, upper and
under outlines on an average about straight ; commissure variously sinuate or bent ; culmen high
on forehead, where flattish and broadly parting the feathers; bill rapidly tapering to an acute
tip. Wings pointed, but 1st primary not longest ; usually 2d-4th entering point of wing. Tail
even or little rounded, of broad feathers widening a little to very obtuse ends, somewhat divari-
cate in the middle. Tarsus a little longer than the bill. Our three forms are very closely
related: the $ uniform lustrous black, with bend of wing red; 8.00-9.00 long; wing 4.50-5.00;
tail 3.50-4.00. The 9 everywhere streaked ; above blackish-brown with pale streaks, inclin-
ing on head to form median and superciliary stripes; below, whitish, with many sharp dusky
streaks; sides of head, throat, and bendwf the wing, tinged with reddish or fulvous; under
8.00; wing about 4.00; tail 3.25. The young ¢ at first like the 9, but larger, apt to have
a general buffy or fulvous suffusion, with bright bay edgings of the feathers of back, wings, and
tail, and soon showing black patches. The 9 9 are scarcely distinguishable: the ¢ g may be
determined as follows: ;

1 ’
Fie. 259. = Naréh Bliceial, d, reduced. (Sheppard
del.’ Nichols sc.)

316.

317

318.

101.

319.

404 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Middle wing-coverts buff, bordering the bright red patch . . pheniceus 316
Middle wing-coverts buff, but black-tipped, usually leaving red patch without but hordes . gubernator 317
Middle wing-coverts white, bordering the dark red patch . eo ise Sak Se . . . tricolor 318

A. pheeni/ceus. (Gr. dowixeos, phoinkeos, Lat. phaniceus, a of a color introduced in Greece
by the Phenicians. Fig. 259.) Buackprrp. Marsa Buackpirp. REep-winGEp BLAcK-
BIRD. RED-AND-BUFF-SHOULDERED Marsu Buacxgirp. (: Lesser wing-coverts scarlet,
like arterial blood, broadly bordered by brownish-yellow, or brownish-white, the middle row of
coverts being entirely of this color; 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; in some specimens the bordering is almost pure white,
instead of buff. Extremes: @, length 8.25-9.85; extent 13.60-15.30; wing 4.35-5.00; tail
3.12-3.90; bill 0.75-1.00 ; average: Length 9.00; extent 14.50; wing 4.65; tail 3.60. 9,
length 7.35-8.55 ; extent 11.85-18.55 ; wing 3.65-4.25 ; tail 2.65-3.20 ; bill 0.70-0.80; aver-
age: Length 7.63 ; extent 12.35; wing 3.85; tail 3.00; bill 0.75. The extremes here given
not often seen. Southern-bred birds are much smaller as well as glossier. Temperate N. Am.,
but chietly E. of the Rocky Mts.; breeding anywhere in its range, wintering from about 35°
southward. From its general dispersion in low or wet thickets or fields, swamps, and marshes,
the blackbird collects in August and September in immense flocks, thronging the extensive
tracts of wild oats and other aquatic plants in marshes and along water courses, also visiting and
doing much damage to grain-fields. Thousands are destroyed by boys and pot-hunters, but the
hosts scarcely diminish, and every known artifice fails to protect the crops from the invasiou of
the dusky hordes. At other seasons the “ maize-thief” is innocuous, if not positively beneficial,
as it destroys its share of insects. Nest usually in reeds or bushes near the ground, or ina
tussock of grass, or on the ground; occasionally in small trees, vines, and shrubbery; a bulky
structure of coarse fibrous materials, usually strips of rushes, sedges or marsh grass, lined with
finer grasses; eggs 4-6, 1.00 X 0.75, May and July, pale blue, fantastically dotted, blotched,
clouded, and serawled over with dark or even blackish-brown, and paler or purplish shell-marks.
The usual note is a guttural chuck ; in the breeding season the ‘“‘ creaking chorus” makes an
indescribable medley. 3

A, p. guberna’tor. (Lat. guwbernator, a governor, alluding to the red epaulettes, as if a sign of
rank or command.) Rep-sHOULDERED Marsu BLAckpirp. Lesser wing-coverts scarlet, as
before, narrowly or not at all bordered with buff, the next row having black tips for all or most
of their exposed portion, so that the brownish-yellow of their bases does not show much, if any.
Pacific Coast, U. S. and British Columbia. Scarcely different; Q indistinguishable from ?
phaniceus.

A. tri/color. (Lat. tricolor, three-colored; red, white, and black.) RED-aAND-WHITE-
SHOULDERED Mars BiacKkpirp. Lesser wing-coverts dark red (like venous blood), bor-
dered with pure white. Besides this obvious distinction from pheniceus, the bill is usually slen-
derer and the tail is less rounded; the gloss of the plumage is bluish, not greenish (appreciably
so in the 9 as well as inthe $?). @ with median wing-coverts white-edged. California and
Oregon, especially coastwise ; resident or scarcely migratory. General habits the same ; nest
and eggs indistinguishable.

XANTHOCE’PHALUS. (Gr. fav66s, xanthos, yellow; xepadn, kephale, head.) YELLOW-
HEADED BLACKBIRDS. General characters of Ageleus; claws more developed, the lateral
reaching much beyond base of the middle. Tail more nearly even, with narrower feathers.
Wings long and pointed; tip formed by outer 3 quills. Colors black, white, and yellow.

X. icteroce/phalus. (Gr. ixrepos, ikteros, Lat. icterus, yellow. Fig. 260.) YELLOW-HEADED
Buacksirp. ¢: Black, including lores and small space around eye and bill; whole head
otherwise, with the neck and breast, rich yellow, orange in high feather, the color extending

102.

ICTERIDZ — STURNELLINZ: MEADOW STARLINGS. 405

interruptedly to or towards the belly; some feathers around vent, and the tibie, usually yellow
also. A large white patch on the wing, formed by the primary and many of the greater second-
ary coverts, interrupted by black of the bastard quills. Bill and feet black. Length 10.00-
11.00; extent 16.50-17.50; wing about 5.50; tail 4.50; bill 0.75-1.00; tarsus 1.25. In less
perfect dress, the yellow overcast with dusky. 9, adult: Dark brown, including back of head
and neck ; line over eye, throat and breast dull yellow, with dusky maxillary streaks ; usually
there are whitish feathers in the yellow, and sometimes the same in the black of breast. No
white wing-patch. Bill dark brownish horn-color ; feet blackish. Much smaller. Length
8.00-9.50; extent scarcely 14.00; wing under 5.00; tail under 4.00. Nestlings are snufly-
brown; the sprouting wing-feathers black, already showing white; feet flesh-color. It is use-
less to pursue the endless color varia-
tions ; the species is unmistakable.
Western U. 8. and British Provinces
to 58°; E. regularly to Dlinois, Towa,
Wisconsin, ete., casually to Pennsyl-
vania, Massachusetts and Greenland ;
S. into Mexico ; migratory, very abun-
dant. Its distribution is general on the
prairies, but irregular; it flocks about
ranches and settlements, and collects in
colonies to breed in marshy spots, any-
where in its general range. Nest a
light but large thick-brimmed fabric
of dried reeds and grasses, slung to
growing ones, 5-6 inches in diameter,
about as deep; eggs 3-6, 1.00-1.15
long by 0.75 broad; grayish-green,
spotted, as in Scolecophagus, with red-
dish-brown, not scrawled as in Ageleus. el. Nichols sc.)

A fine large species, conspicuous by its yellow head among the several blackbirds that troop
together in the West.

23. Subfamily STURNELLINAZ: Meadow Starlings.

If the marsh blackbirds, orioles, and crow blackbirds be respectively entitled to represent
subfamilies of Icteride, the meadow starlings seem to be equally entitled to such distinction ;
and I find that by making Stwrnella (with Trupialis) the type of a subfamily, the Ageleine are
susceptible of better definition. The characters are included under head of the type genus.
STURNELLA. (Irregular dimin. of Lat. sturnus, astarling. Fig. 261.) MEsapow Larks.
(Name ‘‘lark” objectionable and misleading, but apparently ineradicable.) A remarkable
genus of Icteride. Bill along culmen longer than head, shorter than tarsus; depth at base
about 4 the length; outlines about straight above and below, and along commissure to the
strong bend near its base. Culmen flattened throughout, extending broad and far into feathers
of forehead ; laterally, the frontal feathers reaching the narrow scaled nostrils. Inner lateral
toe rather longer than outer, claw of neither reaching base of middle claw. Hind toe long, with
a great claw twice as large as the middle one. Feet very large and stout, reaching beyond the
end of the tail when outstretched : eminently fitted for terrestrial locomotion. Wings short and
much rounded; little difference in lengths of 1st—5th quills; enlarged inner secondaries nearly
covering them in closed wing. Tail very short, rounded, of narrow, acute feathers. Feathers
of crown stiffish, bristle-tipped. No other genus approaches Sturnella, excepting Trupialis,

320.

321.

322.

406 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— OSCINES.

which is much the same, with red instead of yellow. Contains several imperfectly differentiated
conspecies, 3 of this country.
Analysis of Conspecies.

Common Characters. — Plumage highly variegated; each feather of the back blackish, with a terminal 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 biackish line behind eye; several lateral tail-feathers
white, the others, with the inner quills and wing-coverts, barred or scalloped 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 numer-
ous sharp blackish streaks, the breast with a large black crescent (obscure in the young).

Prevailing tone brown above: yellow of chin confined to space between forks of the jaw; wings and tail with

confluent black bars and gray scallops.
Larger; black less predominant ; wing 4.50ormore. . . ‘ ae er ar sos 4) magna 320
Smaller ; black more predominant; wing 4.50 or less . . . ae © . . mexicana 321

Prevailing tone gray above: yellow of chin spreading on cheeks; wings and tail with alternating black

and gray bars . Get aS seed F - neglecta 322
S. mag/na. (Lat. magna, large.) Fisup Lark. .OLD-FIELD LARK. Mrapow Lark.
The colors, as above described, rich and pure, the prevailing aspect brown; black streaks
prevailing on crown; yellow of chin
usually confined between rami of
under mandible ; black bars on wings
and tail usually confluent along the
shaft of the feathers, leaving the gray
in scallops. Sexes similar: 9 duller
colored, the yellow paler. Young at
first have little if any pale yellow,
and the pectoral crescent indicated by
a few streaky. Length of ¢ 10.00-
11.00; extent about 17.00; wing 4.50

Fic. 261.— Bill and foot of Sturnelia, nat. size. (Ad nat. or more; tail 3.50; bill 1.35; tarsus
dels EC.) 1.40. Q: length 9.00-9.50; extent
about 15.00; wing 4.25 ; tail 3.00. Varies greatly in size, like Ageleus ; southern-bred birds.
much smaller than northern. Eastern U. S. and British Provinces; N. to about 54° ; mixing
in the Upper Mississippi valley with neglecta, and extending to edge of the plains; everywhere
abundant in open country; winters usually from the Middle States southward ; imperfectly
migratory ; partially gregarious when not breeding ; strictly terrestrial ; an agreeable vocalist.
Breeds throughout its range; nest of dried grass, on the ground, usually domed or covered in
some way in the grass-clump. Eggs 4-6, crystal white, speckled with reddish and purplish ;
very variable in size, averaging about 1.10 X 0.80. Two or three broods may be reared.

S. m. mexica/na, (Lat. Mexican.) Mexican Meapow Lark. Very similar; the browns
intense, approaching reddish-brown ; black at a maximum ; yellow very rich. Size smaller;
wing of g about 4.25; bill and feet relatively larger; bill 1.20; tarsus 1.60. Mexico to
Texas.

S. neglec'ta. (Lat. neglecta, not selected, overlooked ; as the variety long was.) WESTERN
Mrapow Lark. The colors duller and paler, the prevailing aspect gray; black at a mini-
mum, not prevailing over gray on the crown; yellow of chin usually encroaching on sides of
lower jaw; black on wings and tail usually resolved into distinct bars alternating with gray
bars. Western U. S., from Iowa, ete., to the Pacific. General habits, manners, and appear-
ance the same, but song said to be different.

24. Subfamily ICTERINA: Orioles.

Non-gregarious, insectivorous and frugivorous species, strictly arboricole ; of brilliant or
strikingly contrasted colors, and pleasing song ; distinguished as architects, constructing elabo-

£08.

323.

324.

ICTERIDA — ICTERINZ:: ORIOLES. 407

rately woven pensile nests. With the bill relatively longer, as well as slenderer and more acute
than in most of the Icteride; the feet weaker, exclusively fitted for perching. Three of our
species are migratory birds, abundant in summer ; the rest merely reach our southern border
from tropical America.

IC'TERUS. (Gr. ikrepos, tkteros, Lat. icterus, yellow.

Fig. 262.) OrtonEs. Our single genus of the sub-

fainily: characters. practically the same. Bill averaging O

as long as head (more or less) ; very acute, sometimes
decurved. Feet fitted for perching, not for walking;
tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw. Lateral
toes, if not of equal lengths, outer longest (the rule in
Fringillide; in Icteride the reverse). Wings usually
pointed and averaging equal to (longer or shorter than)
the rounded or graduated tail. A large and beautiful genus, the species of which vary much
in details of form, but are not easily divided otherwise than specifically. The colors are strik-
ing: the males black with orange or yellow, usually also with white; in one species, black
and chestnut. The sexes very unlike. The 9 of several species closely resemble one
another, though the @ @ are very different. Two Eastern species; one Western; the rest
Southwestern.

Fig. 262, — Bill of an Oriole.

Analysis of Species.

The ¢ black and chestnut: spurius, affnis.
The ¢ black and orange: galbula, bullocki, cucullatus.
The ¢ black and clear yellow : parisorum, auduboni, vulgaris.
Feathers of throat soft and normal.
¢ black and chestnut ;' 9 olivaceous and yellowish. Length 7.00 or less . et spurius 324, 325
¢@ black and orange, or flame-color.
Tail rounded, not longer than wings.
¢@ head and neck all around black; white on wingsin bars ... . - + + + .galbula 326
d crown and throat black, sides of head orange. White patch on wings ae bullocki 327
Tail graduated ; outer feathers an inch shorter than middle ones; longer than wings.
do head orange, with black mask . . . . . / 001 wwe ew ee » cucullatus 328
¢ black and pure yellow.

¢ head, neck, breast and back black. Sexes unlike; length about 8.00 ... . parisorum 329

od @ head, neck, and breast black; body yellow, greenish on back; length about 9.00 . auduboni 330
Feathers of throat elongate and lanceolate. Sexes alike. Length about 10.00.
d@ Black and yellow, with white on wings . ee ee ee a8 rae » « « vulgaris 323

I. vulga/ris. (Lat. vulgaris, vulgar, common.) TRroupiau. Bill acute, attenuated, elongate,
and somewhat decurved. Throat-feathers lengthened, loosened, and lanceolate. Bare space
around eye. Adult ¢ 9: Head and neck all around, fore breast, isolated dorsal area, wings
and tail, black. Rump, upper tail-coverts, cervical collar, and under parts of the breast, rich
yellow. Wings with white patch on coverts and much white edging of secondaries. Large:
length about 10.00 ; wing and tail 4.50; bill over 1.00. A common and well-known species
of Tropical America, said to have strayed to the Southern States. No late cases of so doing.
(The species would be better enumerated next after No. 330.)

I, spwrius. (Lat. spwrius, spurious; the species was formerly called ‘bastard Baltimore
oriole,” whence the undeserved name.) ORCHARD ORIoLE. Adult ¢: Black and chestnut.
Head and neck all around, fore breast and back, black. Rump and upper tail-coverts, lesser
and under wing-coverts, aud whole under-parts from the breast, chestnut or chocolate-brown.
Wings and tail black, former except as said, and some white or whitish edging of the quills
and tipping of the greater coverts, the latter forming a wing-bar ; outer tail-feathers sometimes
with a touch of chestnut. Bill and feet blue-black. Length about 7.00; extent about 10.00;
wing 3.00-3.25 ; tail nearly as long, much rounded, its graduation nearly 0.50 ; bill 0.70 along
culmen, very slender and acute, somewhat decurved ; tarsus 0.90. 9, adult: Smaller than the

325.

326.

408 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

&. Above, dull yellowish-olive, clearest on head, rump, and tail, obscured on the back.
Below, sordid yellowish. Wings plain dusky, glossed with olivaceous, with whitish edging,
much as in the f. An inconspicuous object, but known from other 9 orioles by its small
size and slender bill, a little curved. Young ¢: First year like 9, but larger; second year
like 9, but with a black mask on the face and throat. Afterward showing confused characters
of both sexes. Three years required to assume the full dress. Eastern U. S., strictly; rarely
N. to Maine, Canada; W. tothe high central plains. Breeds throughout its U. 8. range; winters
extralimital. Abundant in orchards, parks, streets, the skirts of woods, etc. The nest is one
of the most perfect examples of a woven pensile fabric, even in a group of birds distinguished
as the orioles are for the dexterity and assiduity they display in their elaborate textile rostrifac-
tures. They antedate Howe in the expedient of placing the eye of a needle at its point — that
which revolutionized hand-sewing, and made sewing-machines practicable: for their bill works
to precisely the same effect. The orchard oriole’s nest is generally nore compact and homo-
geneous than the Baltimore’s, woven chiefly of slender grass-blades which cure in the sun like
good hay, long retaining some greenness, which tends to its concealment in the foliage. It is
smaller, less deep in proportion, and often not so strictly pendant from its forked twig. Eggs
smaller than the Baltimore’s, scarcely 0.85 X 0.60, and spotty rather than scrawly.
I. s. affi/inis. (Lat. affinis, affined, allied.) Trxas OrcHARD ORIOLE. Smaller: ¢ little
over 6.00; wing usually under 3.00. Texas: Southern race, scarcely distinguishable.
I. gal’bula. (Lat. galgula or galbula, some small yellow bird of the ancients. ‘ Baltimore”
is not from the city of that name, but from the title of Sir George Calvert, first baron of Balti-
more ; the colors of the bird being cho-
sen for his livery, or resembling those
of his coat-of-arms. Fig. 263.) Bat-
TIMORE ORIOLE. GOLDEN Rosin.
Firesirp. Hanenest. Adult @:
Black and orange. Head and neck
all round, and the back, black; rump,
upper tail-coverts, lesser and under
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
Fig. 263. — Baltimure Oriole, reduced. (Sheppard del. tail-feathers black; wings black, the
Nichols sc.) middle and greater coverts, and inner
quills, more or less edged and tipped with white, but the white on the coverts not forming a
continuous patch ; bill and feet blue-black, or dark grayish-blue. Length 7.50-8.00; extent
11.50-12.50; wing 3.66; tail 3.00. @ smaller, and much paler, the black obscured by olive,
sometimes entirely wanting. Above, mixed dusky and yellowish-olive, somewhat overcast
with a gray shade. Below, dull orange, more or less mixed with whitish, and usually with
black traces on the throat. Tail and its upper coverts dull yellowish, the central feathers
usually blackish. Bill and feet lighter plumbeous than in the g. Young ¢ entirely without
black on throat and head, otherwise colored nearly like the 9. Below, dull orange yellow
whitening on throat, shaded with olive on sides. Above, olive, more yellowish on rump and
tail, but latter without black; middle of back obscured with dusky centres of the feathers;
wings dusky, with two white bars and white edgings of the inner quills. In some splendid
featherings, particularly from the Mississippi valley, the orange becomes intense flame-color,
and there is so much white on the wings as to approach the character of J. bullocki. U. 8.
and adjoining British Provinces ; W. to the plains, and reaching toward the Rocky Mts. This
is one of our famous beauties of bird-life, noted alike for its flash of color, its assiduity in sing-

327.

328.

329.

ICTERIDA — ICTERINZ: ORIOLES. 409

ing, and ‘its skill at the loom; its elaborately fabricated and perfectly pensile nests swaying
froin the tops of our shade-trees, which have one charm added when fired with such brilliancy
as the oriole brings to contrast with verdure. Eggs 4-6, nearly 1.00 x 0.65, thus rather
elongate; ground color a shaded white, irregularly spotted, blotched, clouded and especially
scrawled with blackish-brown and other heavy surface colors, together with subdued shell-
markings.

I. bul/locki. (To Wm. Bullock, of London. Fig. 256.) Buxiocx’s Orton. Adult g:
Similarly black and orange, the orange invading the sides of the head and neck and the fore-
head, leaving only a narrow space on the throat, the lores, and a line through the eye, black ;
a large continuous white patch on the wing, formed by the middle and greater coverts. Larger
than the Baltimore. Length 8.00-8.50; extent 12.50-13.50; wing 4.00; tail 3.40. 9 : Olive-
gray, below whitish, all the fore parts of the body and head tinged with yellow; the wings
dusky, with two white bars, but the tail and its under coverts quite yellowish. 9 thus very
closely resembling the 2 Baltimore, and more detailed description may be desirable. Larger:
length about 8.00; extent 12.00; wing 3.75; tail 3.25. Above olive-gray, becoming quite
gray on the rump, brightening into olive. Yellow on nape, upper tail-coverts and tail.
Forehead, superciliary line, sides of head and neck, and large space on breast, bright yellow ;
lores and throat white. Other under parts grayish-white, tinged with yellow on the under tail-
coverts. Edge and lining of wing yellow; middle coverts broadly edged and tipped with
white; greater coverts and quills less conspicuously edged. Young J at first like the 9, soon,
however, showing black and orange; in one stage with a black throat patch. Western U. 5.,
in woodland, abundant, replacing the Baltimore, to which it is so closely allied, and with which
it corresponds in habits and manners.

I. cuculla/tus. (Lat. cucullatus, wearing the cuculla, a kind of hood or cowl.) Hooprp
OrroLe. Adult ¢: Orange and black. General color orange; from rich chrome yellow to
flame-color. Middle of back (scapulars and interscapulars) black. A black mask, embracing
eyes, a narrow frontal line, and patch on chin, cheeks, and throat. Wings black, with white
edging of the quills and coverts. Tail black, some or all of the feathers usually with narrow
whitish tips. Bill and feet blue-black, the former extremely slender and somewhat decurved,
0.80; tarsus 0.90. Length 8.00; extent 10.50; wing 3.80; tail 3.50-4.00, thus longer than
wings; the feathers narrow and lanceolate, the outermost, an inch or so shorter than the central
pair; such length, narrowness, and extreme graduation of the tail being a strong character.
Q, adult: Above, dull grayish-olive; tail and under parts dull yellowish; wings dusky, the
quills and coverts edged with dull white. The 9 thus resembles other species, but the long
slender graduated tail and attenuated decurved bill are diagnostic. Fairly smaller than the @.
Young ¢: At first like 9, but bill pale at base below. Various intermediate states during
progress to maturity ; sometimes the black dorsal band interrupted by yellowish-gray, and the
general orange obscured with the same. A frequent condition, when the general plumage is
like that of the 9, is to have a black frontlet and gorget, like I. spwrius under the same
circumstances. Southern Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California, chietly near the Mexican
border. Nest woven like that of other orioles, very substantial and durable ; in places where
the Spanish moss grows, it is usually made of this material, and placed in a truss of the same.
Eggs 3-4, sometimes 5, varying from 0.80 to 0.90 long by 0.60 broad, usually quite pointed at
both ends; color white, with the usual scrawling. In the Lower Rio Grande valley this is the
commonest oriole in some places.

I. pariso‘rum. (To the brothers Paris.) BuACK-AND-YELLOW ORIOLE. Paris’ ORIOLE.
Adult g: Black and clear yellow. Below from the breast, rump, and upper tail-coverts,
lesser, middle and under wing-coverts, both above and below, and basal portions of all the
tail-feathers, except the central ones, clear yellow ; greater wing-coverts tipped, inner quills
edged, with white. Head, neck, breast, and back, black. On the tail, the yellow occupies the

330.

410 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

basal half of the lateral feathers, but only the extreme base of the central pair. Length 8.00;
extent 12.00; wing 4.00; tail 3.40-3.60, moderately rounded, the lateral feathers graduated
about 0.50; bill 0.90, attenuate and slightly decurved; tarsus 1.00. Young ¢: The black’
parts all overcast with grayish-olive skirting of the feathers, giving the prevailing tone on the
upper parts, but on the breast the black showing more clearly. The yellow likewise obscured
with grayish-olive, especially on the rump. Tail greenish-yellow, the middle feathers black-
ening. Wings dusky, all the quills and the greater and middle coverts broadly edged and
tipped with white. 9? resembling the last described; less white on the wings; central tail-
feathers simply fuscous like the ends of the others. Southern Texas, New Mexico, Arizona
and Southern California, near the Mexican border. Not yet well known or found breeding in
the U. 8. Nesting essentially the same as that of other orioles, often in bunches of moss
or vines hanging in cactuses, quite near the ground; eggs 0.90 x 0.65, whitish, variously
blotched and dotted with purplish and blackish-browns.

I. melanoce/phalus aud/uboni. (Gr. pédas, melas, gen. pédavos, melanos, black; kepady,
kephale, head. To J.J. Audubon.) BLACK-HEADED ORIOLE. AUDUBON’s ORIOLE. Adult ¢:
Black and clear yellow. Entire body rich gamboge-yellow, without orange or flame tint, but
shaded with greenish on back, sides, and upper tail-coverts; under tail-coverts pure yellow,
like the belly. Middle and lesser wing-coverts and lining of wings pure yellow, the former
with black bases concealed by the yellow tips. Head all around, fore neck and breast, glossy
jet-black, without any concealed yellow, except at edges of the black on the breast — the black
there thus ending ragged, different from the clean-cut border of cucullatus. Wings black, the
outer webs of the quills white-edged, especially on inner secondaries and outer primaries
toward their end; greater coverts with white spot at end of outer web. Tail black, the outer
feathers more or less edged and tipped with white. Bill and feet plumbeous-blackish, former
paler at base below. Length 9.25-9.75; extent 12.50-13.00; wing 4.00; tail rather more,
much graduated, the outer feathers 1.00 or more shorter than the middle. Bill stout, straight,
almost asin Ageleus; culmen fully 1.00. Tarsus 1.10; middle toe and claw thesame. Adult 9:
Quite like the $; not smaller, and little different in color, contrary to the rule in the genus
and family. Back rather more olivaceous ; wings rather more edged with white; outer tail-
feather edged and tipped with whitish, The sexual characters long remained undetermined.
This fine oriole is little known: it is a large beautiful species, occurring in the U. S. only, as
far as known, in the Lower Rio Grande valley ; thence southward running into the true Mexican
melanocephalus. Said to be a magnificent songster, and a favorite cage bird. Nest half-
pensile, woven of grasses; eggs 0.95-1.00 by 0.67-0.72, white dusted with fine brown specks,
over which are stains and splashes of dark brown and lilac, with the coarse blackish hieroglyphs
usual in this. genus.

25. Subfamily QUISCALINA:: Crow Blackbirds; CGrackles.

Closely resembling
the Ageleine both in
structure and in habits,
these birds are distin-
guished by the length
and attenuation of the
bill, with decidedly
curved culmen, es-
pecially towards the
end, more or less sin-
uate commissure, and
strongly inflected tomia. The bill is quite cultrirostral, and the typical Quiscali have a certain

Fig. 264, — Foot of a Quiscalus (Q, macrurus, nat. size). (From Baird.)

104,

331.

332.

ICTERIDA — QUISCALINZA: CROW BLACKBIRDS. 411

crow-like aspect ; but they are readily distinguished by several features, besides 9 instead of 10
primaries. The feet are large and strong, and the birds spend mtch of their time on the
ground, where they walk or run instead of advancing by leaps. They generally build rude,
bulky nests, lay spotted or streaked eggs, and their best vocal efforts are hardly to be called
musical. The ¢ of all our species is lustrous black, with various iridescence, the 9 merely
blackish, or brown and much smaller. There is only one genus (Cassidix) besides the two
of this country: in Scolecophagus the tail is slightly rounded and shorter than the wings; in
Quiscalus the tail is graduated, and nearly equals or exceeds the wings. They are not specially
palustrine. Individuals of all the species abound, especially in the South and West; only two
are common Eastern birds.

SCOLECO'PHAGUS. (Gr. oxoAné, gen. ox@Ankos, scolex, scolecos, a worm: dayos, phagos,
eating.) Rusty Grackies. TuHrusH Buackpirps. Bill shorter or not longer than head,
slender for the subfamily, and somewhat like a robin’s, for instance; culmen little convex, if
any, except at the decurved tip; gonys slightly convex; cutting edges inflexed, commissure
little sinuated. Wings pointed, decidedly longer than the nearly even tail; point formed by
the outer 4primaries. Tail much as in Ageleus in size and shape. Tarsus rather longer than
middle toe and claw. Lateral toes short, with moderate claws, scarcely or not reaching base
of middle claw. Nest in bushes. Eggs spotty, not veiny and streaky.

Analysis of Species.
Smaller: wing under 5.00. Bill slender, thrush-like. ¢ greenish-black, including head. Sexes very un-

like: Q quite rusty-brown, even with chestnut ; alight lineovereye ..... . . Jerrugineus 331
Larger: wing 5.00 or more. Bill stouter, more blackbird-like. greenish-black, head more violet. @
subsimilar, sooty-brown , no'pale superciliary stripe. . ‘ ‘ Ae 8 . cyanocephalus 332

S. ferrugi/neus. (Lat. ferrugineus, rust-colored ; ferrugo, iron-rust: only applicable to 9 and
young.) Rusty GrackLe. TurusH Buacksirp. Adult ¢, in summer: One lustrous black
with green metallic reflections ; head not notably different from other parts in its iridescence.
Bill and feet black. Iris creamy or lemon. (Not ordinarily seen in the U. 8. in this full dress
— usually with some rusty.) Length 9.00-9.50; extent 14.00-15.00; wing under 5.00; tail
4.00 or less ; bill 0.80, only about 0.35 deep at base; tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw less.
Adult Q in summer: Slaty-blackish, duller below, with greenish reflections chiefly on wings
and tail; nearly all the upper parts overlaid with rich rusty-brown, and under parts with a
paler shade of the same; inner secondaries brown-edged ; a whitey-brown streak over eye; iris
brown. Moderately smaller than the g. The young ¢ at first resembles the 9, but is
larger, and shows more decidedly lustrous black, especially on wings and tail. As usually
found in flocks in the U. S., in fall, winter, and early spring, young and old of both sexes
are very rusty, with light line over eye. Eastern North Amer., N. W. to Alaska; in the
U. 8., W. to Dakota, Nebraska, etc., meeting and mixing in the fall with the next species.
In winter, generally dispersed over the E. U. S.; breeds from N. New England northward.
Nesting and eggs like those of Xanthocephalus ; breeding in loose colonies, in swampy tangle ;
nest in bushes, of sticks and grasses mixed with mud, lined with fine grasses and rootlets; eggs
usually 4, about 1.05 < 0.75, but very variable; dull greenish-bluish or grayish-white, flecked
and mottled with dark brown, but with little or no line-tracery.

S. eyanoce'phalus. (Gr. xvavos, kuanos, Lat. cyanus, blue; kepady, kephale, head.) BLuE-
HEADED GRACKLE. BREWER’s BLACKBIRD. Similar to the last, but quite a different bird.
Adult g, in summer: Very lustrous green-black, as before, but with purple and violet irides-
cence, especially on head, where the violet or steel-blue sheen contrasts with the general
greenish hue. Bill and feet black. Iris creamy or lemon. Larger: length averaging 10.00
— 9.75-10.25 ; extent 16.00 or more ; wing 5.00-5.25 ; tail 4.00-4.25 ; bill 0.80, stout at base,
where about 0.40 deep — more like an abbreviated Quiscalus-bill than a thrush’s; tarsus 1.25-
1.30; middle toe and claw 1.10-1.15. Q, adult, in summer: Blackish, with dull greenish

105.

333.

234,

412 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

shade on back, wings, and tail; more slaty-blackish below. Fore parts of body above, head’
and most under parts overlaid with brownish-gray, lightest on head and throat, never rich

rusty-brown. No light superciliary line. Iris brown. There is thus much less sexual differ-

ence than in 9. ferrugineus. Smaller; size about that of ¢ ferrugineus ; length 9.00-9.50;

extent 14.50-15.50; wing 4.50-4.90, ete. Young ¢ resembling 9; soon, however, showing-
more lustre, overcast with grayish (not rusty) brown, in same style as ferrugineus, but differ-

ent shade. Western U. S., and adjoining British Provinces; E. to eastern edge of the plains,

overlapping the migratory range of S. ferrugineus; W.to the Pacific. Breeds nearly through-

out its range, in suitable places; migratory to and from extremes of its range. Nest and eggs

substantially the same as those of S. ferrugimeus.

QUIS'CALUS. (Span. quisquilla, Lat. quisquilia? Vox barb., of uncertain meaning and

application. See Coues, Check List, 2d ed., p. 64.) Crow Buacxzirps. Bill about as long

as head, quite cultrate and crow-like, but more attenuate and acute, with deflected cutting

edges; upper and under outlines straightish to the terminal curve of culmen, but variable;

commissure variously sinuate. Wings relatively shorter and less acute than in Scolecophagus,

usually pointed by the 2d—4th quills, lst and 5th shorter. Tail of varying development with

the species; at its greatest, much longer than wings, at its least decidedly shorter; always

graduated, the lateral feathers 1-3 inches shorter than the middle pair, in life capable of
slanting upward on each side, so that the middle feathers make a keel below; whence the name

“ boat-tail.” (Tail usually described as ‘longer than wings” in Quiscalus; but in most

species it is decidedly shorter.) Feet stout; tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw. The

& & in all the species “ black,” but so magnificently iridescent that little dead black is seen,

being brassy, steel-blue, violet, purple, greenish, etc. 9 subsimilar, or plain brown.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Tail decidedly shorter than wings, graduated 1.00-1.50. Sexes subsimilar.

Iridescence various — green, blue, purple, violet. g usually over 12.00 . . c 3 purpureus 335
TIridescence of back brassy; head steel-blue. gf usually over 12.00 . . oe + . @neus 336
Iridescence greenish, neck purple. ( usually under T2008 ews. SS AR ayleus 337
Tail about equal to wings, graduated about 2.50. Sexes very different. Q@ brown .. . - major 334
Tail decidedly longer than wings, graduated 2.50-3.50. Sexes very different. @ brown . . macrurus 333

Q. macrwrus. (Gr. paxpdés, macros, long, large; odpa, oura, tail.) FAN-TamLED Crow
BuacKpirp. TEXAS GRACKLE. Of largest size, with longest, most keeled and graduated
tail. Sexes very unlike. Bill very stout at base, tapering to the strongly deflected tip.
Adult ¢: Iridescence chiefly purplish and violet, more greenish posteriorly. Length about
18.00; extent 23.00-24.00; wing 7.50-8.00; tail about 9.00, graduated 2.50-3.50; Dill 1.75,
Adult 9 : Dark brown; paler, grayish or whitish below. Length 13.00-14.00; extent 18.00-
19.00; wing 5.50-6.00; tail little more. The species probably shades into the next, but pre-
sents dimensions the latter has not shown. Lower Rio Grande of Texas and southward, very
abundant, swarming in the towns, where conspicuous by its curious antics as well as great size
and numbers. Breeds in colonies, either in reedy marshes, when the nest is placed in the
rushes over water, or anywhere about the settlements in trees away from water; sometimes
there are many uests in one tree; some nests at an altitude of 30 or 40 feet. Nests built of any
trash, usually with mud. Eggs in April-May, usually 3, 1.12~1.45 by 0.82-0.95, averaging
1.25 X 0.85 ; greenish or purplish-white, clouded oftener over smaller end than at the other,
irregularly spotted, veined, and scratched with dark browns and blackish.

Q. ma‘jor. (Lat. major, greater (than Q. purpureus).) Boat-TarLep Crow BLACKBIRD.
Boat-TAILED GRACKLE. JACKDAW. Of large size, with long, much keeled and graduated
tail. Sexes very unlike. Bill stout at base, tapering to the deflected tip. Adult g: Irides-
cence mostly green, becoming purple or violet chiefly on the head and neck. Length 15.50-
17.00, average 16.50; extent 21.00-23.50, average 22.50; wing and tail, each, 6.25-7.25,

335.

336.

ICTERIDZ — QUISCALIN 45: CROW BLACKBIRDS. 413

‘average 7.00, latter rather the longer of the two; its graduation about 2.50; bill 1.50; tarsus

nearly 2.00; middle toe and claw about the same. AdultQ: Astonishingly smaller than the @,
lacking entirely the great development of the tail, and easily to be mistaken for another species.
Length 12.00-18.50, average 18.00; extent 17.25-18.25, average 17.75; wing 5.25—6.00, average
5.67; tail 4.75-5.50, average 5.25. General color plain brown, only darker on wings and tail ;
below brownish-gray, frequently whitening on the throat. South Atlantic and Gulf States, on
the coast, abundant; N. regularly to the Carolinas, frequently to the Middle districts, but not
to New England, as far as certainly known, though very likely in exceptional cases. This
species differs from the commun crow blackbird in being strictly maritime, with the consequent
modification in food and habits; it may be seen at times wading in the water, and small fish and
crustaceans form much of its fare. Nesting and eggs as in @. macrurus; eggs averaging
smaller, but not distiuguishable with certainty.

Q. purpur’eus. (Lat. purpureus, purple. Fig. 265.) Purpte Crow Biackpirp. Com-
MON Crow BuLaAcKkBirp. PURPLE GRACKLE. Of medium size, with moderately keeled and
graduated tail, shorter than
wings. Sexes subsimilar. Bill
usually less tapering and de-
flected at tip, but very variable.
Adult @: Iridescence very
variable with season, age, and ~
sexual vigor, as well as on
different parts of the body ;
but always intense in healthy
adults, and at its height during
the love-ardor; variously pur-
ple, green, blue, violet, and SO)

bronzy; not the extensive Fie. 265. — Purple Grackle, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
green of the last species, nor usually the decided brassy of the next variety; wings and tail
mostly purplish ; dark purplish and steel-blue on head, neck, and breast; back more green-
ish or bronzy. Bill and feet ebony black. Iris straw-yellow. Length 19.00-13.50; ex-
tent 17.00-18.50; wing 5.00-6.00, averaging 5.60; tail 4.50-6.00, usually under 5.50; bill
1.25, very variable ; tarsus 1.25; graduation of tail 1.00-1.50. Adult 9: Blackish, and quite
lustrous ; sufficiently similar to the g; length 11.00-12.00; wing about 5.00; tail about 4.50.
Birds of this character, without perfectly brassy back and steel-blue head, are the usual kind in
the Atlantic States; abundant and generally distributed, migratory and gregarious, breeding
anywhere in their range, but chiefly northerly. Nesting variable, in tree or bush, on bough orin
a hollow, at any height; sometimes in an artificial retreat, or a fish-hawk’s nest. Nest bulky,
of any trash, usually with mud; eggs of the character and with all the indescribable variability
of others of the genus; usually bluish or greenish, with purplish veining and clouding, zigzagged
and flourished with dark browns or blackish ; averaging 1.25 X 0.90 in size; 5-6 in number.
The grackles are absent from their breeding-grounds for ouly a-sinall part of the year, when
they flock southerly, often in immense bands scouring about for food. At times they are very
injurious to the crops, but this is offset by their destruction of noxious insects. The courtships
of the males look very curious to a dispassionate observer, being carried on with the most gro-
tesque actions and ludicrous attitudes, as well as curious vocalization.

Q. p. x’neus. (Lat. eneus, brassy.) BronzeD Crow BLACKBIRD. BRrAss GRACKLE.
Birds from the interior U. S., especially the Mississippi valley, acquire in full plumage a
splendid iridescence of three kinds, in pretty distinct areas. Body uniform shining brassy.
Hind neck and breast chiefly steel-blue. Wings and tail chiefly violet and purple. This bril-
liant coloration is that represented by Audubon, pl. 221 of the 8vo. ed. Such birds occur

337.

414 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES. ‘

from New England, Hudson’s Bay, the Saskatchewan and Rocky Mts. to Texas and the
Gulf States.

Q. p. agle'us. (Gr. dyAaios, aglaios, splendid.) FLorma Crow BLACKBIRD. GREEN
GRACKLE. Birds resident in S. Florida are smaller than average purpureus, with relatively
longer and slenderer bill nore decurved at tip ; the body lustre chiefly greenish ; head and neck
chiefly violaceous steel-blue; wings and tail steel-blue, becoming violet on the coverts. Aver-
aging an inch less in length than purpureus, and other parts in proportion, excepting the bill
and feet, which are quite as long. (Q. baritus, Bd., 1858, nec auct. Q. agleus, Bd., 1866.)

18. Family CORVIDA&: Crows, Jays, ete.

Cultrirostral Oscines with 10 prima-
ries. — A rather large and important
family, comprising such familiar birds
as ravens, crows, rooks, jackdaws,
magpies, jays, with their allies, and a
few diverging forms not so well known;
nearly related to the famous birds of
paradise. There are 10 primaries, of
which the lst is short, generally about
half as long as the 2d, and several
outer ones are more or less sinuate-
attenuate on the inner web toward the
end. The tail has 12 rectrices, as usual
among higher birds; it varies much
in shape, but is generally rounded —
sometimes extremely graduated, as in
the magpie; and is not forked in any
of our forms. The tarsus has scutella
in front, separated on one or both sides
from the rest of the tarsal envelope
by a groove, sometimes naked, some-

Fi. 266, —European Jackdaw (Corvus monedula.) (From _ times filled in by small scales. The
Dixon.) bill is stout, about as long as the head
or shorter, tapering, rather acute, generally notched, with convex culmen; it lacks the com-
missural angulation of the Fringillide and Icteride, the deep cleavage of the Hirundinide,
the slenderness of the Certhiide, Sittide, and most small insectivorous birds. The rictus
usually has a few stiffish bristles, and there are others about the base of the bill. An essential]
character is seen in the dense covering of the nostrils with large long tufts of close-pressed
antrorse bristly feathers (excepting, among our forms, in Gymmnocitia and Psilorhinus). These
last features distinguish the Corvide from all our other birds excepting Paride; the mutual
resemblance is here so close, that I cannot point out any obvious technical character of external
form to distinguish, for example, Cyanocitia from Lophophanes, or Perisoreus from Parus.
But as already remarked, size is here perfectly distinctive, all the Corvide being much larger
birds than any of the Paride. ;

Owing to the uniformity of color in the leading groups of the family, and an apparent
plasticity’ of organization in many forms, the number of species is difficult to determine, and
is very variously estimated by different writers. Mr. G. R. Gray admits upwards of 200,
which he distributes in 50 genera and subgenera; but these figures are certainly excessive.

106.

CORVIDA — CORVINZE: CROWS. 415

probably requiring reduction by at least one-third, in both cases. The Corvide have been
divided into five subfamilies ; three of these are small and apparently specialized groups con-
fined to the Old World, where they are represented most largely in the Australian and Indian
regions ; the other two, constituting the great bulk of the family, are more nearly cosmopolitan.
These are the Corving and Garruline, or crows and jays, readily distinguishable, at least so
far as our forms are concerned, by the longer pointed wings and shorter less rounded tail of the
former as contrasted with the shorter rounded wings and longer more rounded or graduated tail
of the latter.

26. Subfamily CORVINZE: Crows.

With the wings long and pvinted, much exceeding the
tail; the tip formed by the 3d, 4th, and 5th quills; 2d
much shorter, lst only about 4 as long as 3d. The
legs stout, fitted for walking as well as perching. As
a rule, the plumage is sombre or at least unvariegated,
—pblue, the characteristic color of the jays, being here
rare. The sexes are alike, and the changes of plumage
slight. Although technically oscine, corvine birds’ are
highly unmusical; the voice of the larger kinds is raucous, that of the smaller strident, — witness
the croak of the raven, the ‘‘caw ” of the crow, the screaming of jays. They frequent all situ-
ations, and walk firmly and easily on the ground, where jays hop. They are among the most
nearly omnivorous of birds, and as a consequence, in connection with their hardy nature, they
are rarely if ever truly migratory. Their nesting is various, according to circumstances, but
the fabric is usually rude and bulky; the eggs, of the average oscine number, are commonly
bluish or greenish, speckled. Although not properly gregarious, as a rule, they often associate
in large numbers, drawn together by community of interest. In illustration of this may be
instanced the extensive roosting-places in the Atlantic States, comparable to the rookeries of
Europe, whither immense troops of crows resort nightly, often from great distances, recalling
the fine line of the poet, —

“ The blackening trains of crows to their repose.”

Fig. 267. — Typical Corvine bill.

Our three genera of Corvine are readily known by the black color of Corvus, the gray,

white, and black of Picicorvus, and the blue of Gymnocitta. In the latter, as in Psilorhinus
of Garruline, the nostrils are exposed, contrary to the rule in each subfamily.
COR'VUS. (Lat. corvus, a crow. Fig. 267.) Ravens. Crows. The species throughout
uniform lustrous black, including ‘the bill and feet; nasal bristles about half as long as the bill,
which exhibits the typical cultrirostral style. Nostrils large, but entirely concealed. Wings
much longer than tail, folding about to its end. Several outer primaries sinuate-attenuate on
inner webs. Tail rounded, with broad feathers, sinuate-truncate at ends, with mucronate shafts.
Feet stout ; tarsus more or less nearly equal to middle toe and claw, roughly scutellate in front,
laminar behind, with a set of small plates between.

Analysis of Species.
Ravens, with the throat-feathers acute, lengthened, disconnected.
About 2 feet long; wing 16-18 inches; tail about 10. Bases of cervical feathers gray . . . . corax 338
Smaller; concealed bases of cervical feathers pure white (Southwestern) pe tehas eryptoleucus 339

« Crows, with the throat-feathers oval and blended.
Length 18-20; wing 12-14; tail 7-8; bill 13-2, its height at base 3; tarsus about equal to the middle toe

and claw, longer than bill; 1st quill not longer than 10th i F . . frugivorus 340, 341
Small. Length 14-16; wing 10-11; tail 6-7; bill 13-2; tarsusrather Touiger than bill or middle toe and
claw ; 1st quill loner than 10th. (Northwestern) A . caurinus 34%

Small; 14-16 inches long; wing 10-11 ; tail 6-7; tarsus shorter than middle ine and claw, longer than
bill; 1st quill not longer thani10th . ........... eee 8 . meritimus 3843

338.

339.

+16 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

C. co/rax. (Gr. xépaé, korax, Lat. corar, a croaker— the raven. Fig. 268.) AMERICAN
Raven. Feathers of throat somewhat stiffened, lengthened, pointed, lying loose from one
another; those of neck with gray downy bases, as elsewhere on the body. Color entirely lus-
trous black, with chiefly purplish and violet burnishing. Length about 2 feet — at least over
20 inches; expanse of wings 4 or 43 feet — much over a yard. Wing about 14 feet— at least
over 15 inches. Tail about 10 inches ; its feathers graduated 1.50-2.50 inches. Bill along chord
of culmen, and tarsus, about 2.50. Varies much in size. Greenland and Labrador specimens
are of great size, with immense bill touching 3.00. The Dill is usually longer and relatively less
deep in the American than in the European raven; whole bird: more sturdy and robust. The
usual wing-formula is: primary 4>3—=5 >2>6>1=8; but these quills grow and moult
so gradually the proportionate lengths differ much in specimens examined. The 9 is undistin-
guishable from the ¢, though averaging smaller. N. Amer. ; but now rare in the U. S. east
of the Mississippi, and altogether wanting in most of the States ; Labrador, ranging southward,

Fic. 268. —Head of a very large American Raven, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E.C.)

rarely, along the coast to the Middle districts; very abundant in the West, where the sable
plume and the bleaching skeleton, the ominous croak and the Indian war-whoop, are not yet
things of the past. Wherever in the West the raven abounds, the crow seems to be sup-
planted. Nests high in trees and on cliffs, selecting the most inaccessible places. Eggs 4-8,
oftener 4-5, about 2.00 X 1.30, greenish, dotted, blotched and clouded with neutral tints, pur-
plish- and blackish-browns. ;

C. eryptoleu/cus. (Gr. xpumrés, kruptos, erypted or hidden; Aeuxés, leukos, white.) WHITE-
NECKED RAVEN. Throat-feathers as in C. corax; but bases of the feathers of neck snowy-
white. Smaller than the raven; about as large as a good-sized crow, and generally taken for
one in those regions where it occurs with the raven, the difference between them being obvious
in life; the accounts of ‘‘ crows” in some regions where C. americanus does not occur being
based upon the presence of C. eryptoleucus. Southwestern U. S., Llano Estacado and higher
Rio Grande of Texas, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and portions of California.

CORVIDA: — CORVINAE: CROWS. 417

340. ©. frugi‘vorus. (Lat. frugivorus, fruit-eating : frux, fruit; voro, 1devour.) Common Amemrt-

341.

342.

343.

107.

cAN Crow. The common crow isa foot and a half long, or rather more; wing 12 to 14 inches ;
tail 7 to 8; bill 1.75-2.00, about 0.75 high at base; tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw,
rather exceeding the bill. First primary not longer than 10th. Feathers of the throat oval,
soft, and blended ; no snowy-white under-plumage. The burnishing is chiefly on the wings,
tail, and back, the head being nearly dead-black. The 9 is decidedly smaller than the ¢,
and under-sized cabinet specimens are not seldom labelled ‘‘ ossifragus.” Eastern N. Amer.,
chiefly U. §., not ordinarily found westward in the interior, where the raven abounds ; rare or
wanting in the Upper Missouri and Southern Rocky Mt. regions ; common, however, in some
parts of California. In settled parts of the country the crow tends to colonize, and some of its
“roosts” are of vast extent. Mine is on the Virginia side of the Potomac, near Washington.
Crows are ‘always flying west over the city in the afternoon, and when as a boy I used to see
the gray of the morning, crows were flying the other way. It is doubtless the same now ; but
I oftener hear midnight migrants than see such ‘‘ early birds” these days. Nest in trees, any-
where in the woods, usually concealed with some art, though so bulky; built of sticks and
trash; eggs 4-6-7, 1.60 X 1.20, like the raven’s in color and markings, and equally variable.
(C. americanus, Auct.)

C. £, florida/nus. (Lat. of Florida.) FLoripa Crow. Represents the greater relative size of
the bill and feet shown by many resident birds of Florida and corresponding latitudes.

Cc. cauri/nus. (Lat. cawrus, the N. W. wind, whence caurinus, northwestern.) NortTa-
WESTERN FisH Crow. Small: about the size of the common fish crow, but feet more as in
C. americanus, the tarsus not being shorter than the middle toe and claw, though rather less
than the bill; lst primary longer than 10th. Length 14.00-16.00; wing 10.50; tail 6.50;
pill 1.75-2.00. N. Pacifie coast, Oregon to Alaska; maritime ; piscivorous; voice said to be
different from that of C. frugivorus.

C. mari/timus. (Lat. maritimus, maritime; mare, the sea.) SOUTH-EASTERN Fisu Crow.
Small. Length 14.00-16.00; wing 10.00-11.00; tail 6.00-7.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 1.60; mid-
dle toe and claw 1.75. First primary not longer than 10th; a bare space about the gape?
South Atlantic and Gulf States, N. to New England. Common; maritime, piscivorous.
Apparently a different bird from any of the foregoing, as it presents some tangible distinctions,
although constantly associated with C. frugivorus. Nest and eggs not to be distinguished
with certainty from those of the common crow, though averaging smaller. (C. ossifragus

Wils.)
PICICOR'VUS. (Com-
pounded of picus, a wood-

pecker, or pica, amagpie,
and corvus, acrow. Fig.
269.) AMERICAN NuT-
CRACKERS. General
characters of the Euro-
pean Nucifraga. Bill
slenderer, more acute,
with more regularly

curved culmen and com-
missure, and straight in- Fig. 269. — Head of Picicorvus, nat. size. (Ad nat, del. E. C.)

stead of convex and ascending gonys ; as a whole somewhat decurved. Nostrils circular, con-

cealed by a full tuft of plumules. Wings long and pointed, folding to the end of the tail; 5th

quill longest; 4th, 3d, 6th little less; 2d much shorter, 1st not half as long as 5th. Tail little

over half as long as wing, little rounded. Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw; the envelope

divided into small plates on the sides behind toward the bottom. Claws very large, strong,
27

108.

345.

418 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — OSCINES.

acute and much curved, especially that of the hind toe; the lateral reaching beyond base of the
middle claw. Coloration peculiar; gray, with black-and-white wings and tail. Habits much
the same as those of Nucifraga; alpine and sub-boreal, pinicdline, and piuivorous. One
species, confined to W. Amer.

P. columbia/nus. (Of the Columbia River. Fig. 270.) CuarKr’s Crow. 9, adult:

.Gray, often bleaching on the head; wings glossy black, most of the secondaries broadly tipped

with white; tail white, including
the under coverts; the central
feathers and usually part of the
next pair, together with the up-
per coverts, black. Bill and feet.
black. Iris brown: Length
about 12.50 ; extent 22.00; wing
7.00-8.00; tail 4.00-5.00; tar-
sus 1.35; bill averaging 1.67;
feet from 1.25 to 1.75. Sexes
alike in color, but 9 smaller than
&. Young similar, but browner
ash. There is great difference
Fig. 270, —Clarke’s Crow, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.) in the shade in adults, the
plumage when fresh being more glaucous-ash, wearing browner, and also bleaching in patches,
especially on head. Coniferous belt of the West, N. to Sitka, S. to Mexico, E. to Nebraska,
W. to the Coast Ranges; the American representative of the European nutcracker, Nucifraga
caryocatactes ; abundant, imperfectly gregarious. A remarkable bird, wild, restless, and noisy,
sometimes congregating by thousands in the pineries of the W., roving in search of food.
Breeds high in pines, in alpine and northerly localities, concealing the nest with care; nest of
sticks as a basis, on which bark-strips, grasses, and other fibrous substances are well matted
together. Eggs 1.20 x 0.90, light grayish-green, speckled and blotched with grayish-brown
and lilac, chiefly about the larger end.
GYMNOCIT'TA. (Gr. yupvds, gumnos, naked, asthe nostrils are ; xirra, kitta, a jay.) Buve

“Crows. Bill of peculiar shape, with nearly straight culmen mounting on forehead, thus some-

what as in Sturnella, between
the prominent and somewhat
antrorse auntie, which, how-
ever, do not hide the nostrils;
slender, tapering, acute, not
notched; gonys straightish,
scarcely ascending. Nostrils
small, oval, entirely exposed.
Tail nearly square, much
shorter than wings. Wings
long, pointed, folding nearly
to end of tail; 4th primary : al
longest, 3d and 5th scarcely Fig. 271. — Blue Crow, nat. size; culmen too convex. (Ad nat. del, E.C.)
shorter ; 2d shorter, 1st shorter still. Feet stout, indicating somewhat terrestrial habits ; tar-
sus longer than middle toe without claw, the envelope subdivided behind towards the bottom.
Claws all large, strong, and much ecurved.. Color bluish, nearly uniform: sexes alike. One
species.

G. cyanoce’phala. (Gr. xiavos, kuanos, blue; xepadry, kephale, head. Fi ig. 271.) Biur

Crow. ¢: Dull blue, very variable in intensity, nearly uniform, but brightest on head, fading |

109.

346.

CORVIDAE— GARRULIN:: JAYS. 419

on belly; the throat with whitish streaks; wings dusky on the inner webs. Bill and feet
black. Iris brown. Length 11.00-12.00; extent 16.50-19.00; wing 5.50-6.00; tail about
4.50; bill 1.33, but from 1.25-1.50; 9 smaller, duller. Rocky Mt. region; much the same
elevated distribution as the last, but apparently rather more southerly ; decidedly gregarious,
and very abundant in some places. A remarkable bird, combining the form of a crow with
the color and habits of a jay, and a peculiarly shaped bill. It roves about in noisy restless
flocks, sometimes of thousands, in search of food, which is pine seeds, especially pifiones, juni-
per berries, acorns, etc. Breeds in colonies; nest in pifion pines and other evergreens, compact
but bulky, of twigs, and fibrous bark-strips well worked together; eggs 3-4, 1.25 x 0.87,
greenish-white, profusely spotted with light brown and purplish ; laid in April.

$ 27. Subfamily GARRULINA:: Jays.

With the wings much shorter than or about
equalling the tail, both rounded; tip of the
wing formed by the 4th-7th quills. The feet,
as well as the bill, are usually weaker than in
the true crows, and the birds are more strictly
arboricole, usually advancing by leaps when on
the ground, to which they do not habitually re-
sort. In striking contrast to most Corvine, the
jays are usually birds of bright and varied colors,
among which blue is the most prominent; and
the head is frequently crested. The sexes are
ne nearly alike, and the changes of plumage do

Fic. 272, — European Jay (Garrulus glandarius), not appear to be as great as is usual among
{From:Dixon.) highly-colored birds, although some differences
are frequently observable. Our well-known Blue Jay is a familiar illustration of the habits and
traits of the species in general. They are found in most parts of the world, and reach their
highest development in the warmer portions of America. With one boreal exception (Pert-
soreus), the genera of the Old and New World are entirely different.

It is proper to observe, that, while the American Corvine and Garruline, upon which the
foregoing paragraphs are mainly drawn up, are readily distinguishable, the characters given
may require modification in their application to the whole family, the different divisions of
which appear to intergrade closely. Qur six genera are easily discriminated.

Analysis of Genera.
Nostrils large, naked.

Not crested. Generalcolor brown ... . 0 RE Se . . Psilorhinus 109
Nostrils moderate, covered by feathers.
First primary attenuated, falcate: tail exceedingly long, graduated.

Not crested. : Colors black, white, and iridescent ae eh 8 rae ee ‘ gD Pica 110
First primary not attenuated. Tail moderate.

Crested. Blue: wings and tail barred with black. . . «2... - + Cyanocitta 111

Not crested. Blue: wings and tail unbarred Ss F < Aphelocoma 112

Green and yellow, with blue and black on head . *. a A Xanthura 113

Gray, with slaty wings and tail . . . . Perisoreus 114

PSILORHINUS. (Gr. pudrds, psilos, smooth, bare, bald; pis, pwds, hris, hrinos, nose.)
Brown Jays. Smoxy Pies. Nostrils exposed, large, rounded. Bill stout, with very convex
culmen, curved, from the base. Wings and tail of about equal lengths, both rounded. Of
large size, and smoky-brown color ; not crested.

P. mo'rio. (Lat. morio, “a dark brown gem.”) Brown Jay. Smoky-brown, darker on
head, fading on belly ; wings and tail with bluish gloss. Bill and feet black, sometimes yel-

420 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

low. Length about 16.00; wing and tail about 8.00, the graduation of the latter about 2.00 ;
bill 1.25. Rio Grande Valley and southward.

110, PYVCA. (Lat. pica, a pie.) Macpres. Tail extremely long, when fully developed forming
more than $ the total length, graduated for about 4 its own length; the feathers with rounded
ends, the middle pair at least tapering, and specially lengthened beyond the rest. Bill of ordi-

nary corvine shape; nos-
trils concealed by long na-
sal tufts. Wings short and
rounded, with very short,
narrow, faleate first pri-
mary. Feet stout; tarsus
little longer than middle
toe and claw. Head not
crested. A naked space
about eye. Plumage black,
iridescent, with masses of
white; bill black or yel-
low. Sexes alike. Habits
arboreal and somewhat ter-
restrial, — very irregular,
in fact, a magpie’s general
character being none of
the best, though the ge-
neric characters are ex-
cellent.

P. rus/tica hudson‘ica.

(Lat. rustica, rustic, rural;

rus, rurts, the country.

Of Hudson’s Bay. Fig.

273.) Macpre. Lustrous

black, with green, purple, .

violet, and even golden

iridescence, especially on
the tail and wings. Be-
low. from the breast to the
erissum, a scapular patch,
and a great part of the in-
uer webs of the primary
quills, white; some whit-
ish touches on the throat;
lower back showing gray,
owing to mixture of white

with black: bill and feet

Fic. 273.— Magpie, reduced. (From Dixon.) black; eyes blackish.

Length 15 or 20 inches, according to the development of the tail, which is a foot or less long,

extremely graduated ; extent about 2 feet: wing about 8.00, the outer primary short, slender,

and faleate ; bill 1.25; tarsus 1.67; middle toe and claw 1.50. Q rather smaller than ¢, but
alike in color. Arctic Amer. and U.S. from Plains to Pacific, except California ; common.

The American magpie is extremely similar to the notorious bird of Europe, and attempts to

establish specific characters have failed. It is a rather larger and ‘‘ better” bird, though quite

347.

te 4 fi \ i t

348.

lil.

349.

350.

CORVIDA1— GARRULINZE: JAYS. 421

as much of arascal. The nest is placed in thick shrubbery, as big as a bushel, bristling with
a chevauc-de-frise outside, with a lateral covered way leading to the nest within. Eggs 6-9,
1.20 to 1.40 long by 0.90 to 1.00 broad, pale drab, dotted, dashed, and blotched with purplish-
brown.

P. nut/calli. (To Thos. Nuttall.) YELLow-BILLED Macpre. Bill and bare space about
eye yellow. Otherwise, precisely like the last, of which it is a perpetuated accident! The
European magpie sometimes shows the same thing, and in some other species, like P. morio,
the bill is indifferently black or yellow. California, common.

CYANOCIT'TA. -(Gré’ *«bavos, kuanos, blue; kira, kitta, a jay.) Cangaes Buus Jays.
Conspicuously crested ; wings and tail blue, black-barred ; bill and feet black. Length 11.00-
12.00; wing or tail 5.00-6.00. Nostrils large, subcircular, but concealed. Wings and tail of
equal lengths, both rounded. Hind claw large, equalling or exceeding its digit in length.
There are two species of this beautiful genus, one light blue and white, Eastern, standing
quite alone ; the other dusky-bodied, Western, running into several varieties.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Purplish-blue, whitening below, with a black collar . 5 cristata 349
Sooty-brownish or -blackish, bluing on body behind, wings and tail; the Inter blacks paired.
Sooty-blackish ; littlo if any blue on forehead; none about eye; wing-coverts unbarred . stellert 350
Sooty-blackish; but blue on forehead and above eye; wing-coverts unbarred . annectens 351
Sooty-brownish, blue on forehead; little if any blue about eye ; wing-coverts unbarred . Jrontalis 353
Sooty-brownish, the crest quite black. Bluish-white streaks on forehead and about eye; wing-
coverts black-barred. . So Foe eo eS ‘ . macrolopha 352

C. crista‘ta. (Lat. cristata, crested. Fig. 274.) Buiun Jay. - Purplish-blue, below pale
purplish - gray, whitening on
throat, belly, and crissum. A
black collar across lower throat
and up the sides of the neck and
head behind the crest ; a black
frontlet bordered with whitish.
Wings and tail pure rich blue,
with black bars, the greater
coverts, secondaries, and tail-
feathers, except the central,
broadly tipped with pure white ;
tail much rounded, the gradua-
tion over an inch. Length
11.00-12.00 ; extent 16.00-
17.50; wing and tail, each,
5.00-6.00; bill 1.25; tarsus
1.35. Q similar, not so richly
blue: smaller. There is much
difference in size between north-
ern and southern bred birds, as in the Ageleus. Florida specimens are particularly small, the
bill relatively larger, the crest less, the white on wings and tail restricted; as worthy as
some other Floridan races to be named (C. ¢. florincola, N.). Eastern N. A., especially U.S.,
but N. to Hudson’s Bay; W. to the central plains; a very abundant resident or half-migratory
bird,. breeding throughout its range; a well-known character! Nest in trees and bushes, or
any odd nook, large and substantial; eggs 5-6 in number, 1.00 to 1.20 long by 0.80 to 0.90
broad, drab-colored with brown spots.

C. stelleri. (To G. W. Steller.) Srexuer’s Jay. g¢ 9: Whole head, neck, and back sooty
blackish, little if any lighter on throat, and with little if any blue on forehead or about eyes ;

Fig. 274. — Blue Jay, reduced. ( Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)

351.

353

352.

422 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

this sooty color passing insensibly on the rump and breast into dull blue. Wings and tail
richer blue, crossed with numerous black bars, not on the secondary coverts. Bill and feet
black. Young more fuliginous, the wing-bars faint if not wanting. Size of the Eastern jay,
or rather larger. Pacific coast region, Oregon to Alaska, E. to the Rocky Mts., where inoseu-
lating with C. s. macrolopha. This is the typical form, with little or no blue, no whitish on
head, and unbarred wing-coverts ; running through annectens, frontalis, and macrolopha into
some very different*Mexican forms. Habits, nest, and eggs as described under macrolopha.
C.s. annec’tens. (Lat. annectens, annexing.) BLACK-HEADED JAy. This name has been
given to specimens directly connecting steller? and macrolopha. General tone of the former ;
quite blackish, short-crested, with plain wing-coverts; but blue frontal streaks and whitish
eye-patch of the latter. N. Rocky Mts., U. 8.

C. s. fronta/lis. (Lat. frontalis, pertaining to frons, the forehead.) BLUE-FRONTED JAY.
Sierra Jay. An offset from stelleri ; the sooty color rather brownish than blackish ; the blue
of different shade on body from the deep indigo on wings and tail; whole crest glossed with
bluish, and conspicuous blue streaks on forehead; no whitish eye;patches; wing-coverts
obsoletely or not barred. Sierras Nevadas of California.

C. s. macro‘lopha. (Gr. paxpds, makros, long ; Aédos, lophos, crest. Fig. 275.) Lone-
CRESTED JAy. Better marked than the connecting links. ¢ 9: Upper parts sooty umber-
brown, with a faint blue
tinge, blackening on
head and neck all
around in decided con-
trast, passing on rump
and upper tail-coverts
into beautiful light co-
balt-blue; passing on
fore breast into the
same blue which occu-
pies all the under parts.
Crest black, but faced
on forehead with bluish-
white, which, when the
feathers are not dis-
turbed, runs in two parallel lines from the nostrils upward — these colored tips of the feathers of
firmer texture than their basal portions. One or both eyelids patched with white. Chin ab-
ruptly whitish, streaky. Exposed surfaces of wings rich indigo-blue, most intense on the
inner secondaries, which, with the greater coverts, are regularly and firmly barred across ‘both
webs with black ; the outer webs of the primaries lighter blue, more like that of the rump or
under parts. Upper surface of tail rich indigo, like the secondaries, and similarly black-barred;
these bands most distinct towards the ends and on the outer webs of the feathers ; tail viewed
from below appearing mostly blackish. Ivis dark. Bill and feet black. Length 12.00-13.00;
extent 17.00-19.00; wing 5.50-6.50; tail the same; bill 1.12; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and
claw 1.33. Sexes quite alike, but Q at the lesser dimensions given. Crest longer than in
northern stedler’, sometimes 3.00. Young: Much more sooty; below entirely fuliginous, with
the future -blue indicated by an ashy or grayish shade. Wings and tail nearly as bright blue as
in the adult, but the black bars faint or wanting. Crest shorter, not quite black, not faced with
blue, and no white about eyes. This form melts into C. diademata of Mexico, which is
bluer; and this is uear the quite blue C. coronata. Rocky Mt. region, U. S., especially
southerly ; a common bird of the pine belt, displaying in marked degree the notorious attributes
of its genus, or genius. Nest in trees and bushes, usually concealed with art, though bulky;

Fic. 275, — Long-crested Jay, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

112.

354.

355.

CORVIDA! — GARRULINZE: JAYS. 423

eggs 5-6. 1.25 to 1.35 x 0.80 to 0.90, pale bluish-green, profusely spotted and blotched with
dark olive-brown and lighter brown.

APHELO/COMA. (Gr. d@eAfs, apheles, smooth, sleek; xoun, kome, hair: alluding to the
lack of crest.) CrusTLess BLun Jays. Generally as in Cyanocttta. Head uncrested. Tail
longer or shorter than wings, instead of about equal, graduated (in some extralimital forins
about equal to the wing and even). ‘Tarsus rather longer than middle toe and claw. Wings
and tail blue, without black bars, and blue the chief body-color ; whitish underneath, with
(usually) or without a gray patch on the back. All Southern and Southwestern.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Tail longer than wings, graduated. Above blue, with gray dorsal area; belly dingy whitish; a super-
ciliary stripe, and the throat streaky.
Forehead hoary-white; superciliary stripe not well-defined. Dorsal patch well-defined. Crissum

blue, contrasting with grayish under parts. ©. 1 1 6 te te ee floridana 354
Forehead blue; superciliary stripe distinct. Dorsal patch ‘laefined, spreading and bluish, Crissum
bluish, but not well contrasted with dingy under parts . . | ..... . woodhousii 355
Forehead blue; superciliary stripe distinct. Dorsal patch well-defined. Crissum whitish like other
MUMGER PALtee ir ae! om” ry BY ee a oe, eae | he aen a aac | ceo can californica, 356
Tail rather shorter than wing, rounded. Blua, without definite dorsal area, or pectoral or superciliary
Streaks. 0 ww tt te BE peo Se clan ete ve - 4 + « Grizone 357

A. florida/na. (Of Florida.) Fuortpa Jay. ¢9: Blue; back with a sinall well-defined
gray patch not invading scapulars ; belly and sides pale grayish; under tail-coverts and tibize
blue in marked contrast ; much hoary whitish on forehead and sides of crown, but no sharp white
superciliary stripe; chin, throat, and middle of breast vague streaky whitish and bluish ; ear-
coverts dusky ; the blue that seems to encircle the head and neck well defined against the gray
of back and breast. Bill comparatively short, very stout at the base. Length 11.00-12.50,
average 11.75; extent 13.50-15.00, average 14.50; wing 4.00-4.75, average 4.40; tail 4.5U-
5.50, average 5.00, always longer than wing; bill about 1.00. Florida (and Gulf States ?),
abundant. Very local, and not authentic as occurring outside of Florida. Usual habits of
jays. Nest a flat structure, in bushes, of twigs lined with fibres. Eggs 4-5, bluish-green,
sparingly speckled, chiefly at larger end, with brown, 1.00 x 0.80.

A. f. woodhou'sii. (To 8. W. Woodhouse.) Woopuousn’s Jay. The dorsal patch dark,
glossed with blue, shading into the blue of surrounding parts; under parts rather darker than
in C. floridana, somewhat bluish-gray ; the under tail-coverts bluish but not contrasted; on
the breast the blue and gray shading into each other, the gular and pectoral streaks whitish
aud well-defined, the superciliary line definite white, but no hoary on forehead ; bill slenderer.
$Q, adult: General color blue, rich and pure on the wings, tail, ramp, crown, back and sides
of neck, and on the breast surrounding the streaky white area. Middle of back and scapulars
dark gray much tinged with blue, shading insensibly into the surrounding blue. Upper and
under tail-coverts blue. Under parts from the breast gray, with blue tinge (in californica
nearly white). Chin, throat, and breast with a series of whitish blue-edged streaks, enclosed
in surrounding blue. Lores, orbits, and auriculars dusky. A series of sharp white streaks
over and behind eye. Wings and tail blue; the inner webs of most of the quills, and the tail
viewed from below, dusky. The inner secondaries and tail-feathers, closely examined, show
obsolete barring, like that which becomes pronounced in Cyanocitta, but the traces are faint,
and the feathers may be properly called plain. Iris brown ; bill and feet black. Length of ,
about 12.00: extent 16.50; wing 5.00; tail 6.00; bill 1.12; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw
1.33. ~ 9 smaller: average 11.25; extent 15.50, etc. Young: Wings and tail as in the adult;
upper parts mostly gray: under parts grayish-white, with little or no blue on the breast, the
pectoral streaks undefined, as are those over the eye. Rocky Mt. region, from Wyoming and
Idaho southward. Habits, nest and eggs as in other species. The eggs in this genus usually
differ from those of Cyanocitia, by more greenish ground color and bolder marking, especially

356.

357.

118,

358.

424 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — OSCINES.

at the larger end. In regions where Woodhouse’s and the long-crested jays occur together, the
latter lives chiefly in the pines, the former in the scrub-oak and other thickets.

A. f. califor/nica, (Of California.) CaLirornia JAy. The dorsal patch light and distinct
as in A. floridana, but the under parts, including tail-coverts and tibiz, nearly white; gular
streaks very large, aggregated, and white, causing the throat to be nearly uniform; a white
superciliary line, as in woodhoust?, but no hoary on forehead; bill slender. Thus it is seen that
each of the three forms presents a varying emphasis of common characters. 99, adult:
General color blue. Scapulars and interscapulars gray, with little if any tinge of blue; rump
and upper tail-coverts bluish-gray, usually mixed with some white. Forehead and nasal tufts
blue like crown; a sharp white superciliary stripe over and behind eye ; lores, eyelids, and
auriculars blackish. Under parts from the breast soiled white, with little or no tinge of blue
except on crissum; breast appearing as if blue, overlaid with broad white stripes, which become
continuous on throat and chin ; the breast is really white, in streaks edged with blue, and with
a surrounding of blue in which the streaks are as if framed. Iris brown; bill and feet black.
Length 12.00 or less; wing 5.00; tail 5.50; bill 1.00; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw 1.25.
Tn comparison with woodhousti, differences are seen in the well-defined gray dorsal patch ; the
nearly white underparts without decidedly blue crissum ; and the broader and more continuously
white gular streaks. The general habits, nest, and eggs are the same.

A, ultramari/na arizo'nx. (Lat. ultramarina, beyond the sea, mame of a blue color.) ARI-
zONA JAY. Belonging to a different section of the genus, distinguished by having the tail
rather shorter than longer than the wings, the upper parts uniform blue, and no throat-streaks.
$@, adult: Above, light blue, purer on head, wings, and tail than on back, where rather
dull. Beneath, sordid bluish-gray, bluest on breast, paler on throat, whitening on belly,
flanks, and crissum. Lores blackish.; orbits and auriculars dark. No superciliary stripe, nor
decided streaks on throat or breast. Bill normally black, sometimes irregularly patched with
whitish. Feet black. Length about 13.00; wing 6.25-6.75; tail 6.00-6.50, rounded, the
lateral feathers graduated about 0.50; bill 1.25, 0.40 deep at base; tarsus 1.67 ; middle toe and
claw 1.33. Young: Little if any blue excepting on wings and tail, being dull gray above;
below, much like the adult. Bill flesh-cvlored on most of under mandible. Arizona, and
probably New Mexico; N. to about 35°. (C. sordida, Bd., 1858; Coues, 1872, may be a
variety of sordida, but it is probably going too far to bring in wltramarina, and make both
this and arizone varieties of sordida.)

XANTHU/RA. (Gr. favOos, xanthos, yellow; odpa, oura, tail.) Green Jays. No crest.
Wings short, much rounded, with lengthened inner secondaries folding nearly over the pri-
maries. Tail longer than wings, graduated. Bill short and deep, with culmen curved from
the base. Colors green and yellow, with black and blue on head. Several tropical species of
these luxurious jays, one reaching our border.

X. luxurio’sa. (Lat. luxuriosa, luxurious. Commonly written luxuosa.) Rio GRANDE
Jay. Adult ¢: Back and exposed surface of wings yellowish-green ; inner webs of most of
the quills blackish edged with clear yellow; their shafts black above, yellow or whitish
below; lining of wings clear yellow. Four middle tail-feathers greenish-blue, at base little
different from back, bluing toward ends; these feathers, seen.from below, quite black; other
tail-feathers all clear rich yellow, including their shafts. Under parts from the breast light
greenish-yellow, yielding to pure yellow on middle of belly. Top of head and nasal plumules
beautiful rich blue, yielding on forehead to hoary-white. Sides of head to above eyes, and
whole chin, throat, and fore-breast jet black, enclosing a large triangular patch of blue ou
the side of the lower jaw, and blue touches on the eyelids. Bill and feet black. Length
11.25-12.00 ; extent 14.50-15.50; wing 4.50-5.00; tail 5.25-5.75; tarsus 1.50; middle toe
and claw 1.25 ; bill 1.00, very stout. 9 near the lesser of the dimensions given. This truly
elegant bird is abundant in some localities in the Lower Rio Grande valley. Nest in bushes

114,

360.

361.

362.

CORVIDAl — GARRULINZ:: JAYS. 425

and small trees, bulky, of twigs with finer lining; eggs usually 3-4, 1.10 X 0.80, greenish-
drab, marked as usual with browns.

PERISO/REUS. (Gr. repicwpeio, perisoreuo, I heap up; probably in allusion to the
hoarding or thievish propensities of jays.) Gray Jays. Not crested. Plumage soft, fall and
lax, grayish or sooty. Bill very short, not deep but wide at base; culmen little curved ;
gonys ascending. Wings and tail of approximately equal lengths; latter graduated. A
cireumpolar and boreal or alpine genus, of one species in America, with several varieties.

Analysis of Varieties.

Dark hood moderate ; forehead white; back brownish-gray, streaked a canadensis 359
Dark hood extensive; forehead smoky ; back brownish-gray, unstreaked . . i . . fumifrons 360
Dark hood extensive ; forehead whitish; back brownish, with white shaft-lines or . obscurus 3861
Dark hood restricted; forehead extensively white; back ashy-gray, unstreaked . . . . . capitalis 362

P. canaden’sis. (Of Canada. Fig. 276.) Canapa Jay. Wuuiskry Jack. Moose-
BIRD. Gray, whitening on head, neck, and breast; a dark cap on hind head and nape, sep-~
arated by a gray cervical collar from the ashy-plumbeous back ; wings and tail plumbeous,
the feathers obscurely tipped with whitish. Bill and feet black. Young: Much darker,
sooty or smoky-brown; the bleaching progresses indefinitely with age. Length 10.00-
11.00; extent about 16.00; wing 5.25-
5.75 ; tail rather more, graduated; tar-
sus 1.33; bill under 1, shaped like a
titmouse’s. Arctic Am. into the N.
States, N. W. to Alaska; breeds in
Maine and northward; resident, and
seldom seen south of its breeding range.
The ‘‘ Wisskachon” (whence ‘ whisk- .
ey John” and then ‘‘ whiskey Jack ”)
is noted for the familiarity and impu-
dence with which it hangs about the
hunter’s camp to steal provisions, for
consorting with moose, and for nesting
in winter or early spring. Nest usually
on the bough of a spruce or other coni- Fie. 276. — Canada Jay, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nicholssc.)
fer, a large substantial structure, of twigs, grasses, mosses, and feathers ; eggs 3-4, 1.20 x
0.85, yellowish-gray to pale green, finely dotted and blotched with brown and slate, or lavender,
especially about the larger end; others more uniformly and largely blotched ; variation wide,
as in other jays.

P. c. fu'‘mifrons. (Lat. fumus, smoke; frons, forehead.) ALASKAN JAY. SMUTTY-NOSED
Jay. Similar: coloration darker and dingier throughout ; white of forehead obscured or oblit-
erated by smoky-gray. Coast region of Alaska.

P. c. obsewrus. (Lat. obscurus, obscure.) OREGON JAY. More different: dark hood
encroaching on crown, not well defined; upper parts umber-brownish rather than plumbeous,
the feathers with white shaft-lines; tail not distinctly tipped with whitish. Pacific coast
region, Oregon to Sitka. :

P. c. capita/lis. (Lat. capitalis, capital, relating to the head, caput.) Rocky MounTain
Jay. General color ashy-plumbeous, or leaden-gray, paler below; wings and tail blackish,
with a peculiar glaucous shade, as if frosted or silvered over. The body-color giving way on
the breast and neck to whitish, established as hoary-white on the head, isolating the narrow
well-defined nuchal band of sooty-gray. No white lines on back; tail-feathers distinctly tipped
with whitish, and much edging of the same on the wings. The clearer colors generally — back
rather bluish-gray than brownish-gray, very white head with narrow nuchal band — produce

426 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—PA SSERES — OSCINES.

a bird differing visibly from the ordinary gray jay. The changes of plumage with age are
parallel. Size at a maximum. Length about 12.00; extent 17.00; wing and tail, each, near
6.00; bill 0.75; tarsus 1.30; middle toe and claw 1.00. 8S. Rocky Mt. region, especially '
Colorado, Wyoming, N. New Mexico and Arizona, Idaho and Montana, northward shading
into typical canadensis. The high mountains of Colorado furnish the extreme cases.

19. Family STURNIDZ: Old World Starlings.

A family confined to
the Old World: difficult
to characterize, owing to
the variety of forms it
includes. Apparently
related to the Icteride,
from which distinguished
by the presence of ten
primaries, the first short
or quite spurious. The
only form with which we
have here to do is the
genus Sturnus, belong-
ing to the

28. Subfamily
STURNINZ: Typical
Starlings.

STURNUS. (Lat. stur-
nus, a stare or starling.)
STARLINGS. Bill shaped
somewhat as in Sturnella
or Icterus, but widened
and flattened; rather
shorter than head; cul-
men and gonys about
straight, both gently
rounded in transverse
section, and at the tip;
the culmen rising high
on the forehead, dividing
prominent antiee which
extend into the well-
marked nasal fosse; a
conspicuous nasal scale,
overarching the nostrils ;
tomial edges of mandibles

; Fig. 277. — The Starling. (From Dixon.) dilated, especially those
of the upper mandible; commissure obtusely angulated; sides of lower mandible extensively
denuded and somewhat excavated; feathers filling the interramal space; no bristles about the
bill. Wings long and pointed; 1st primary spurious and very small; 2d and 8d longest,

115.

340.

STURNIDA( — STURNIN4: TYPICAL STARLINGS. 427

rest rapidly graduated. Tail of 12 feathers, emarginate, little more than half as long as the
wing. Feet short; tarsus of strictly oscine podotheca, scutellate and laminiplantar, about as
long as middle toe without its claw. Lateral toes of subequal lengths, their claws falling
short of base of middle claw; hind claw about as long as its digit. Plumage metallic and
iridescent, the feathers all distinctly outlined.

8. vulga/ris. (Lat. vulgaris, vulgar, common. Fig. 277.) Tur Sraruina. Adult: Gen-
cral plumage of metallic lustre, iridescing dark green on most parts, more steel-blue on the
under parts, and violet or purplish-blue on the fore parts ; more or less variegated throughout
with pale ochraceous or whitish tips of the feathers. Wings and tail fuscous, the exposed
parts of the feathers somewhat frosty or silvery, with velvety-black and pale ochrey margin-
ings, the former within the latter. Bill yellowish; feet reddish. Young and in winter:
Plumage more heavily variegated throughout, with larger tawny-brown spots on the upper
parts, and white ones below; wings and tail strongly edged with brown; bill dark. Length
about 8.50; wing 5.00; tail 2.75; bill 1.00; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.25. Europe,
etc., one of the longest and best known of birds. Has straggled to Greenland in one known
instance.

2. SusorpER PASSERES MESOMYODI, OR CLAMATORES:
NON-MELODIOUS OR SONGLESS PassSEREs.

Mesomyodian scutelliplantar Passeres with ten fully developed primaries. —-Syrinx with
fewer than four distinct pairs of intrinsic muscles inserted at the middle of the upper bronchial
half-rings, representing the mesomyodian type of voice-organ, and constituting an uncompli-
cated and ineffective musical apparatus. Side and back of tarsus, as well as the front, covered
with variously arranged scutella, so that there is no sharp undivided ridge behind (as, e. g.,
in fig. 280, a). Ten fully developed primaries, the 1st of which, if not equalling or exceed-
ing the 2d, is at least $ as long. (See p. 240, where the Oscines are defined as acro-
myodian laminiplantar Passeres with 9 fully-developed primaries, or 10 and the lst short
or spurious. )

The essential character uf this group, as distinguished from Oscines, is thus seen to be an
anatomical éne, consisting in the non-development of a singing apparatus; the vocal muscles of
the lower larynx (syrinv) being small and few, or else forming simply a fleshy mass, not sepa-
rated into particular muscles; in either case inserted in a special manner into the bronchial half-
rings: This character, though subject to some uncertainty of determination, corresponds well
with the principal external character assignable to the group, namely, a certain condition of the
tarsal envelope rarely if ever seen in the higher Passeres. If the leg of a King-bird, for example,
be closely examined, it will be seen covered with a row of scutella forming cylindrical plates
continuously enveloping the tarsus like a segmented scroll, and showing on its postero-internal
face a deep groove where the edges of the envelope come together; this groove widening iuto
a naked space above, partially filled in behind with a row of small plates. With some minor
nodifications, this seutelliplantar condition marks the Clamatorial birds, and is somethiug
tangibly different from the typical Oscine or lamiuiplantar character of the tarsus, which consists
in the presence on the sides of entire corneous lamine meeting behind in a sharp ridge. And
even when, as in the cases of the oscine Hremophila and Ampelis, there is extensive subdivision
of the laming on the sides or behind, the arrangement does not exactly answer tu the above
description. The Clamatores represent the lower Passeres, approaching the large order
Picari@ (see beyond) in the steps by which they recede from Oscines, yet well separated from
the Picarian birds. The families composing the suborder, as commonly received, are few in
number ; only one of them is represented in North Ainerica, north of Mexico.

428 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

20. Family TYRANNIDZ: American Flycatchers.

While having a close general resemblance to some uf the foregoing
insectivorous and oscine Passeres, the North American representatives of
this family will be instantly distinguished by the above-deseribed condi-
tion of the tarsus; together with the presence of 10 primaries, whereof
the Ist is long or longest. From the birds of the following Picarian
order by the Passerine characters of twelve rectrices, greater wing-cov-

Fig. 278. —Bill of a C28 net more than half as long as the secondaries, and hind claw not
Flycatcher (Tyrannus smaller than the middle claw.
verticalis, nat. size). This family is peculiar to America; it is one of the most extensive
and characteristic groups of its grade in the New World, the Tanagride and Trochilide alone
approaching it in these respects. There are over 400 current species, distributed among about
100 genera and subgenera. As well as I can judge at present, at least two-thirds of the species
are valid, or very strongly marked geographical races, the remainder being about equally
divided between slight varietics and mere synonyms. Only a small fragment of the family is
represented within our limits, giving but a vague idea of the numerous and singularly diver-
sified forms abounding in tropical America. Some of these grade so closely toward other
families, that a strict definition of the Tyranmide becomes extremely difficult; and I am not
prepared to offer a satisfactory diagnosis of the whole group. Our species, however, are closely
related to each other, and may readily be defined in a manner
answering the requirements of the present volume. With a
possible exception, not necessary to insist upon in this connec-
tion, they belong to the

3 29, Subfamily TYRANNINAE: True Tyrant

— Flycatchers,
So presenting the following characters: Wing of 10 primaries,

the 1st never spurious nor very short ; one or more frequently
emarginate or attenuate on the inner web near the end. Tail
of 12 rectrices, usually nearly even, sometimes deeply forficate.

c Feet small, weak, exclusively fitted for perching ; tarsus little
if any longer than middle toe and claw; anterior toes, espe-
cially the outer, extensively coherent at base. Bill very broad
and more or less depressed at base, tapering tu a fine point,
thus presenting a more or less perfectly triangular outline when
viewed from above ; tip abruptly deflected and usually plainly
notched just behind the bend; culmen smooth and rounded

d transversely, straight or nearly so lengthwise, except towards

a the end; commissure straight (or slightly curved) except at
pe the end; gonys long, flat, not keeled. Nuvstrils small, circular,
strictly basal, overhung but not concealed by bristles. Mouth
capacious, its roof somewhat excavated; rictus ample and
deeply cleft ; commissural point almost beneath anterior bor-
der of eye. Rictus beset with a number of long stiff vibrissze,

sometimes reaching nearly to end of bill; generally shorter,

Fig. 2/9. — Emargination of pri- and flaring outward on each side; other bristles or bristle-
maries in Tyrannine. a, Milvulus ~~ ( . . ges

forficatus; b. Tyrannus carolinensis; tipped feathers about base of bill. Bill very light, giving a

e, Tyrannus verticalis; d. Tyran~ yesonant sound in dried specimens when tapped, and on being

nus vociferans; all nat, size. (Ad : : :
nat. ole. C.) broken open, the upper mandible will be found extensively

TYRANNIDA —TYRANNINZ: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 429

hollow. These several peculiarities of the bill (to most of which Ornithiwm offers signal ex-
ception) are the most obvious features of the group; and should prevent our small olivaceous
Flycatchers from being confounded even by the tyro with insectivorous Oscines, as the War-
blers and Vireos. (See figs. 278, 280.)

The structure of the bill is admirably adapted for the capture of winged insects ; the broad
and deeply fissured mandibles form a capacious mouth, while the long bristles are of service in
entangling the creatures in a trap and restraining their struggles to escape. The shape of the
wings and tail confers the power of rapid and varied aérial evolutions necessary for the successful
pursuit of active flying insects. A little practice in field ornithology will enable one to recog-
nize the Flycatchers from their habit of perching in wait for their prey upon some prominent
outpost, in a peculiar attitude, with the wings and tail drooped and vibrating in readiness for
instant action; and of dashing into the air, 2
seizing the passing insect with a quick move-
ment and a click of the bill, and then returning
to their stand. Although certain Oscines have
somewhat the same habit, these pursue insects
from place to place, instead of perching in
wait at a particular spot, and their forays are
not made with such admirable élan. Depend-
ent entirely upon insect food, the Flycatchers
are necessarily migratory in our latitudes; they
appear with great regularity in spring, and
depart on the approach of cold weather in the
fall. They are distributed over temperate
North America; many of them are common
birds of the Eastern States. The voice, sus-
ceptible of little modulation, is usually harsh

a
? ¢e
and strident, though some species have no S
unmusical whistle or twitter. The sexes are
not ordinarily distinguishable (emarkable ex-
ception in Pyrocephalus), and the changes of
plumage with age aud season are not ordinarily

great. “The anodes obnenting areto. sanens Fic. 280.— Generic details of Tyrannine, a. Myt-
to be collectively noted. The larger kinds of archus; b. Sayiornis; c. Contopus; d. Empidonas ;

Flyeatchers are unmistakable, but several of all nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E. C.)
the smaller species, of the genera Sayiornis, Contopus, and especially Empidonax, look much
alike, and their discrimination becomes a matter of much tact and diligence.

To the 8 genera of Tyrannide long known to be North American have lately been added
3 from Mexico—the immense-billed Pitangus, the streaky, yellow-bellied, rufous-tailed
Myiodynastes, and the curious little ‘‘ beardless” Ornithium. The 11 may be readily discrimi-
nated by the following characters : — ;

Analysis of Genera.
Bill flattish, fully bristled and hooked as usual in Tyrannide.
One or more outer primaries attenuate at end. A flame or yellow spot on crown. (Tyranni.)
Tail deeply forficate, much longer than wings ... . Bb =e cide ae f > . Milvulus 118
Tail simple, not longer than wings. 5 hth Tyrannus 119
Outer primaries not attenuated. A yellow crown-spot.
Wings and tail extensively rufous; belly yellow; nostreaks exceptonhead . . . . Pitangus 116
Tail but not wings extensively rufous; belly yellow. Streaked above and below . Myiodynastes 117
Outer primaries not attenuate. Tail moderate. No yellow spot on crown. (Tyrannule.)
Tail chestnut and dusky, in lengthwise pattern. Belly yellow; throatashy . . . . Myiarchus 120
Tail without chestnut.
Tail about equal to or little shorter than wing, slightly or not forked. Bill narrow. Tarsus

116.

364.

430 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

not shorter or rather longer than middle toe and claw. Coloration black and white, cinna-~

mon-brown, or olivaceous . . . . Sayiornis 121
Tail decidedly shorter than wing, a little forked. Bill proad and flat. Tarsus shorter than
middle toe and claw. Olivaceous; length 6.25 or more 5 ei . Contopus 122

Tail a little shorter than wing, about even. Bill flat. Tarsus not shorter or rather longer
than middle toe and claw. Coloration olivaceous and yellowish, but no red, buff or pure

brown. Length 6.25 or less — usually under6.00 . . fi ee Empidonax 123
Tail, etc., as in Empidonaz, from which ae different. Coloration more brownish-
olive, buffy below. Very small . . : . . Mitrephanes 124
Tail and tarsus asin Zmpidonaz. Bill narrow. Hind not longer than lateral toe. Sexes
unlike. ¢ full-crested, vermilion and pure brown . . ee 2 Pyrocephalus 126
Bill compressed, quite parine in appearance, unbristled, unnotched. General color ashy, with yellow
lining of wings. Very small: length under 5.00 ete Sas ee . Ornithium 125

Obs. Besides the above, another genus and species doubtless occurs in Texas: MYIOZETETES TEXENSIS. Bill
short, stout, very broad at base, with curved culmen, hooked and notched tip, and heavily-bristled rictus. Pri-
maries not emarginate; 2d, 3d, 4th longest, 5th shorter; 1st about equal to 6th. Tail shorter than wings, nearly
square. Feet small; tarsus rather less than middle toe and claw. Above, olive; wings and tail brown, with yel-
lowish edging of the quills. Under parts, including lining of wings, bright pure yellow; throat definitely white.
Top and sides of head gray, hoary on forehead and over eyes, dusky on lores and auriculars, enclosing a flame and
yellow crown-spot. Bill and feet black. Length about 7.00; wing 3.50; tail 3.00; bill 0.60; tarsus 0.75; middle
toe and claw 0.85.

PITAN'GUS. (Vox barb.; a Mexican or 8. Am. name of some bird.) Drrpy FLYCATCHERS.
Outer primaries not emarginate. An orange crown patch. Bill as long as head, exceeding the
tarsus, straight, stout, but narrow, as deep as broad at the nostrils, with ridged culmen straight
to the hooked end; gonys about straight, ascending ; commissure and also lateral outlines
perfectly straight. Nostrils rounded, nearer commissure than culmen. Wings rounded, tipped
by 3d-5th quills; 2d and 6th about equal and shorter, 1st only about equal to 9th. Tail
shorter than wings, nearly even, but somewhat double-rounded. Tarsus about as long as
middle toe and claw. Largest-bodied of any N., Am. flycatcher. Brown above, yellow
below, with black, white, and orange head ; quills and tail-feathers extensively chestnut, as in
Myjiarchus. Mexican; lately found in Texas.
P. derbia‘nus. (To Lord Derby. Fig. 281.) Drrsy Fuycatcuer. Upper parts light
wood-brown, with an olive tinge; wings and tail the same, but the feathers extensively
bordered without aud within with
chestnut, ‘forming a conspicuous
continuous area on the wing-
quills in the closed wing, and on
most of the wing and tail-feathers
more extensive than the brown
portion of the imnet webs. Be-
low from the breast, including
lining of wings, clear and con-
tinuous lemon-yellow. Whole
chin and throat pure white, wid-
ening behind. up under ear-cov
erts. Top and sides of head
black, a circle of white from fore-
Fig. 281. —Derby Flycatcher, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) head over eyes to nape white, the
enclosed black enclosing a lemon and orange patch. Or, middle of crown yellow and orange,
enclosed and partly concealed in black, this black enclosed in white, then the long and broad
black bar on side of head, separating the white of side of crown from that of side of throat.
The coronal feathers lengthened and erectile as in a king-bird, or more so; crown-patch of
same character but more extensive. Bill and feet black; iris hazel. Sexes alike. Length
of male about 10.50; wing about 5.00; tail about 4.00; bill 1.20; tarsus 1.00. <A great

117.

365.

118.

366.

367.

TYRANNIDA —TYRANNINE: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 431

flycatcher of aggressive appearance, long known in Mexico, recently ascertained to occur on
the Lower Rio Grande in Texas.
MYIODYNAS'TES. (Gr. pvia, muia, a fly; devaorgs, dwnastes, a ruler.) STRIPED Fiy-
CATCHERS. Related to Myiarchus; tail extensively chestnut, as in that genus, but no chestnut
on wings. No primaries emarginate. A yellow crown-spot. Bill shorter than head, as long
as tarsus, very turgid, much broader than high at the nostrils, lateral outlines slightly convex,
culmen nearly straight to the little hooked tip, gonys long, ascending. Rictus moderately
bristled. Wings long and pointed; 3d quill slightly longer than 2d, 4th little shorter, 5th
much shorter, lst between 5th and 6th. Tail shorter than wings, nearly even. Feet very
small, relatively as weak as in Contopus; tarsus rather shorter than middle toe and claw.
Several species of Mexico and tropical Am. flycatchers, with crown-spot, rufous tail, aud the
whole plumage streaked.
M. luteiven’tris. (Lat. luteus, yellow, ventris, of venter, the belly.) SULPHUR-BELLIED
Srripep Frycarcumr. Entire upper parts, including the head, streaked ; the feathers with
broadly dusky centres and olive-brown borders, finally edged slightly with yellowish-brown. A
yellow crown-spot, concealed as in the king-bird. Tail and its upper coverts rich chestnut, all
the feathers with blackish shaft stripes — on the middle feathers about half the width of either
web, on the outer narrowed to the shaft itself aud a slightly clubbed end; from below, shafts
of the feathers white except at ends. Wings blackish, the median and greater coverts and
inner quills, both externally and internally, conspicuously edged with yellowish-white ; some
rufous edgings also on lesser coverts. Under parts, including lining of wings, sulphur-yellow,
fading to white on the throat; everywhere, excepting on middle of belly and crissum, heavily
streaked with blackish, these dark stripes suffused and blended on the throat, particularly
along its sides. Lores and auriculars dusky; forehead and streak over eye whitish. Bill
blackish, pale at base below. Wing 4.40; tail 3.40; bill and tarsus 0.75; middle toe and
claw rather more. Central Am. and Mexico to Arizona, where common, and breeding in
southern parts of the territory.
MIL/VULUS. (Lat. milvulus, diminutive of milvus, a kite.) SwaALLOW-TAILED FLy-
caTcHERS. Tail in the adult deeply forficate, about twice as long as the wing. Outer primary
or primaries abruptly attenuate, and other characters as in Tyrannus proper (beyond). A
yellow or flaming crown-spot.

Analysis of Species.

Three or four primaries emarginate. Crown-spot yellow, in black cap F ae tyrannus 366
One primary emarginate. Crown-spot flaming,in ashy cap . - Smee . . forficatus 367

M. tyran/nus. — (Lat. tyrannus, a tyrant.) Forx-Tarbep Frycatcuer. 9, adult:
Outer 3 or 4 primaries emarginate. Crown-patch yellow. Above, clear ash; below, white ;
top and sides of head black ; tail black, the outer feather white on outer web for about half its
length ; wings dusky, unmarked. Sexes alike. Young similar, but primaries not emarginate,
nor tail lengthened ; no crown-spot ; wing- and tail-coverts edged with brown. Wing 4.50;
tail up to a foot long, forked 6-8 inches. A beautiful bird of tropical Am., accidental in the
U.S. (Louisiana, Kentucky, New Jersey !)

M. forfica'tus. (Lat. forficatus, forked like forfex, a pair of scissors. Fig. 282.) Swat-
LOW-TAILED FLycaTCHER. Scissor-TalL. @9, adult: First primary alone emargi-
nate (fig. 279, a). Crown patch orange or scarlet. General color hoary-ash, paler or white
below; sides at insertion of wings scarlet or bloody-red, and other parts of the body variously
tinged with the same, or a paler salmon-red. Wings blackish, with whitish edgings. Tail
black, but several of the long feathers extensively white or rosy ; these are narrow and linear,
sometimes widening somewhat in spoon-shape. Wing 4.50-5.00; extent of wings 14.50-
15.50; tail up to a foot long, usually 8.00-10.00 inches, forked 5.00-6.00. @ averaging

119.

368.

432 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

smaller than ¢@, with the tail commonly less developed. Young: Similar ; primary not

abruptly emarginate; tail undeveloped; no crown-spot, and little or no red. Lower Missis-
sippi valley and Texas; usually N. to Indian Terri-
tory and Kansas, even 8. W. Missouri; accidental in
New Jersey and New England! A most elegant,
graceful, and showy bird, abundant in Texas, con-
spicuous by the display it nakes in opening and clos-
ing the tail, like scissor-blades; very active, dashing
and noisy, like a king-bird, — all the large flycatchers
sharing this same impetuous, irritable disposition.
Nesting like the king-bird’s; eggs 4-5, white, boldly
blotched with reddish on the surface, and lilac shell-
spots; laid in May.
TYRANNUS. (Lat. tyrannus, a tyrant.) Kixe Fiy-
CATCHERS. ‘Tail moderate in size and shape, rather
shorter than wing, even or little rounded, emarginate
or lightly forked. Wings long, pointed by the 2d-3d
quills, 1st and 4th little if any shorter, 5th and rest
rapidly graduated. Several outer primaries abruptly
emarginate or sinuate-natrowed on inner webs towards
end. Bill stout, flattish, fully bristled, notched, and
hooked (fig. 278). Feet small and weak, the tarsus
with scales obviously lapping around. Size large:
length 8 inches or more; wing over 4. Sexes alike ;
@ sharing the flaming crown-patch ; primaries less or
not emarginate? Young lacking the crown-spot and
attenuation of primaries. Nest bulky, on a bough, !
compactly woven and felted. Eggs white, boldly | Fic. 282. -— Swallow-tailed Flycatcher.
marked with oval or tear-shaped spots of reddish- beppard del. Nichols se.)
brown. Contains numerous species, 5 of N. Am., which have been divided into several named
subgenera, but are closely interrelated through various exotic species. They are the ‘ king-
birds” proper.
Analysis of Species.
No olive nor decided yellow; blackish and whitish.
Only two primaries obviously emarginate. Tail about even, sibeiiaaiciel white-tipped. Bill small,

under 1.00. (Tyrannus). . . . . carolinensis 368
Five or six primaries emarginate. "Tail emarginate, merely lighter at end, “Bin dig, 1.00 long. (Afelit-
tarchus). . . . » dominicensis 369

Olivaceous, with pure yellow on belly, ashy on ea, Bill siedernbe. eae.
Tail blackish, merely emarginate; wings dark brown.
Several outer primaries gradually attenuate for a long distance. Outer web of outer tail-feather

white . +. + verticalis 370
Several outer primaries abewptiy curiseinabe foe a short aictanen. Outer web of outer tail-feather
merely whitish-edged aha rae We soe ee + . vociferans 871
Tail dark brown, like the wings, ebylously, forked
Several outer primaries abruptly emarginate fora short distance... .... couchi 372

T. carolinen’sis, (Of Carolina. Fig. 283.) Kine-pirp. Brr-martin. ¢9, adult:
No olive nor decided yellow. Only two outer primarics obviously emarginate (fig. 279, b).
Tail nearly even —if anything a little rounded. Blackish-ash, still darker or quite black on
head, crown with a flaming spot. Below, pure white, the breast shaded with plumbeous.
Wings dusky, with much whitish edging. Tail black, broadly and sharply tipped with
white, the outer feather sometimes edged with the same. Bill and feet black. Young:
Lacking emargination of the primaries, and no crown-spot; very young birds show rufous

369.

371.

TYRANNIDA —TYRANNINA:: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 433

edging of the wings and tail. Length about 8.00; extent 14.50; wing 4.50; tail 3.50,
even or slightly rounded; bill small, under an inch long. Temperate N. Am., but chiefly
E. U. S. to Rocky Mts.; rare or casual on the Pacific slope; abundant in summer; breeds
throughout its range; winters on the southern border and
beyond. This trim and shapely ‘‘ martinet,” in severe
black: and white but with fiery pompon, is familiar to all,
and equally noted for its irritability, pugnacity, and intre-
pidity, and its inveterate enmity to crows, hawks, and owls,
which it does not hesitate to attack, either in defence of its
nest or just to show its spunk. Nest a conspicuous object
in the orchard or by the wayside, on the horizontal bough
of a tree, large, cupped, compactly woven and matted with
fibrous and disintegrated vegetable substances; eggs usu-
ally 4-5-6, 0.90 to 1.00 long by 0.72 broad, white, rosy, or
creamy, variously spotted or blotched in bold pattern with
reddish and darker brown surface-spots and lilac shell-
markings. Destroys a thousand noxious insects for every Fig. 283.—King-bird, reduced. (From
bee it eats! ‘ Tenney, after Wilson.)
T. dominicen'sis. (Of St. Domingo.) Gray Kine-pirp. ¢ 9, adult: Five or six outer
primaries usually emarginate. Crown-spot as before. Grayish-plumbeous, rather darker on
head, the auriculars dusky. Below, white, shaded with ashy on breast and sides, the under
wing- and tail-coverts faintly yellowish ; wings and tail dusky, edged with whitish or yel-
lowish ; the tail-feathers merely indistinctly lighter at the extreme tip. Larger than the last:
Length about 9.00; wing 5.50; tail nearly 5.00, more or less emarginate ; bill very turgid, an
inch long. West Indies; Florida regularly ; N. to Carolina rarely, to Massachusetts acci-
dentally. General appearance, habits and nesting of the king-bird.
T. vertica/lis. (Lat. verticalis, relating to the vertex, or top of head, which has a flame-patch.
Fig. 278.) ARKANnsas Tyranr FLycaTcHer. Several outer primaries gradually attenuated
for a long distance (fig. 279, c). Coloration olivaceous and yellow; belly and under wing-
and tail-coverts clear yellow ; back ashy-olive, changing to clear ash on the head, throat, and
breast, the chin whitening, the lores and auriculars dusky; wings dark brown with whitish
edging; tail black or blackish; bill and feet black; iris brown. Outer web of outer tail-
feather entirely white. Ash of the fore parts pale, contrasting with dusky lores and auric-
ulars, fading insensibly into white on the chin, and changing gradually to yellow on the
belly ; olive predominating over ashy on the back. Length about 9.00; extent about 16.50;
wing 5.00; tail 4.00; bill 0.75; tarsus 0.75. Young: Similar; general ash of the body
dull, with a brownish cast; little or no olivaceous on back; tail not quite black ; yellow of
under parts pale and sulphury, even whitish ; bill light-colored at base below; no color on
crown, and primaries scarcely or not attenuate. Very young with rusty edgings, especially
on wing- and tail-coverts. Western U. S., abundant; accidental in Louisiana, New Jersey,
and Maine; E. regularly to Kansas, Iowa, ete., N. to British Provinces in Missouri and Milk
River region and westward. General traits those of the king-bird; nest similar, rather
larger, with more fluffy and less fibrous material; eggs not distinguishable with certainty.
T. voci'ferans. (Lat. vociferans, vociferous, voice-bearing ; vox, voice, and fero, I bear.)
Cassin’s Tyrant FLycaTcHer. Several outer primaries abruptly emarginate for a short
distance (fig. 279, d). Outer web of outer tail-feather barely or not edged with whitish. General
coloration as in 7. verticalis; but ash of fore parts dark, little different on the lores and auricu-
lars, changing rather abruptly to white on the chin and to yellow on the belly ; ashy predomi-
nating over olive on the back. The difference is decisive on comparison. The outer primaries
are abruptly nicked and narrowed within half an inch of theend. The mere edging of the outer
28

372.

120.

373.

434 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— CLAMATORES.

tail-feather with white instead of the whole web being white is also a good character.
Changes of plumage the same as in verticalis; size the same ; bill rather stouter, about 0.85 ;
tarsus slightly longer, on an average. Southwestern U. S., and southward; N. to Wyoming
and Idaho; abundant in the Rocky Mt. region, there mostly replacing verticalis in the breeding
season. Nesting and eggs the same.

T. melancho/licus couch/i. (Gr. pedayyoduxos, melagcholikos, Lat. melancholicus, melan-
choly, i. e., atrabilious ; péAas, péAavos, melas, melanos, black; xodos, cholos, gall, bile. To
Lt. D. N. Couch.) Coucu’s Fiycatcner. Very similar to the last; primaries abruptly
emarginate for a short distance, as in T. vociferans, and outer web of outer tail-feather not
white ; but tail dark brown, like the wings, and obviously forked (about 0.50; in vociferans
the tail quite black, slightly emarginate or nearly even) ; all its feathers with slight pale
edges, and their shafts pale on the under surface. Yellow of under parts very bright, reaching
high up on the breast; throat as well as chin extensively white. Size of the foregoing, and
changes of plumage coincident. A universally distributed South and Central Am. species,
of which a slight variety reaches over our Mexican border.

MYIAR/CHUS. (Gr. pia, muia, a fly; dpyos, archos, a ruler. Fig. 280, a.) CRESTED
FLYCATCHERS. ASH-THROATED Friycatcurers. Rurous-TAILED FLycaTcHERS. No
colored patch on the crown, but head slightly crested by lengthened erectile feathers. Pri-
maries emarginate. Olivaceous; more or less yellow below, the throat ash, the primaries
margined with chestnut; the tail-feathers the same or mostly chestnut — such coloration the
best mark of the genus. Tail nearly even, if anything rounded, about as long as wings, of
broad flat feathers with rounded ends. Wings rounded, the tip formed by 2d-4th quills
(usually), the 5th shorter, 6th and 1st much shorter. Tarsus about as long as middle toe and
claw, —if any different, longer. Bill moderate, variable in shape and relative size. Next to
the characteristic rufous on wings and tail, size is a good clue to this genus among our oliva-
ceous flycatchers without colored crest; for the Myiarcht excepting M. lawrencii are much
larger than any others excepting Contopus borealis and C. pertinaz. Only one Eastern
species, but four others in the southwest, requiring nice discrimination. Peculiar, all of them,
in nesting in holes, and laying eggs scratched and snarled, but chiefly scrawled lengthwise,
with dark brown, in close and intricate pattern.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.
Large; length 8.00 or more. Inner webs of tail-feathers largely rufous.

Rufous occupying nearly or quite all the inner webs of several lateral tail-feathers . . . .crinitus 373
Rufous occupying inner webs of same feathers in nearly equal amount with a fuscous stripe of equal
width throughout. Bill nearly or quite1.00 ... . + . coopert 880
Rufous occupying inner webs of same feathers in nearly equal er with a fuscous stripe of
equal width throughout. Bill about 0.75 : . + erythrocercus 374
Rufous occupying inner webs of same feathers in greater amount than a fuscous stripe which widens
atend. Bill very narrow . oo + + cinerescens 375
Small: length 7.00 or less. Inner webs of tail- ‘feathers aearcaly 0 or not rarouied, ces ° . lawrencii 376

M. crini/tus. (Lat. crinitus, haired, i: e., crested; erinis, hair. Fig. 284.) Great
CRESTED FiycatcHer. (9, adult: Decidedly olivaceous above, a little browner on head,
where the feathers have dark centres; 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 of the inner wehk (excepting perhaps a very
narrow space next the shaft); outer web of outer feathers edged with yellowish; middle
feathers, outer webs of the rest, and wings except as stated, dusky-brown. The foregoing
phrases are intended to be chiefly antithetical to those used in describing cinerescens, below,
No. 375. Other diagnostic points are: bill dark but not quite black, pale at base below ;
stout and comparatively short, hardly or not as long as tarsus, the latter perhaps never 0.90.

880.

374.

TYRANNIDEH—TYRANNINZE:: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 435

the olive back, ash throat, and yellow belly severally pure in color; all tail-feathers but middle
pair so extensively rufous on inner webs that a mere line, if any, of fuscous persists next
the shaft (compare erythrocercus and cooperi), and this fuscous line, if any, running of same
narrowness to ends of the feathers (compare cimerescens) ;
never more than a trace of rufous on outer webs. Very
young birds have rufous skirting of many feathers, in ad-
dition to the chestnut above described, but this soon dis-
appears. Large: length 8.00-9.00; extent about 13.00;
wing and tail about 4.00 (8.80-4.20); bill 0.75-0.80 ;
tarsus 0.70-0.80; middle toe and claw 0.65-0.75 ; breadth
of bill at base 0.33-0.40, or about 4 the length of culmen.
Eastern U. §., west to Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, and
Texas, N. to Massachusetts; Mexico and Central Am. in
winter. An abundant bird, in woodland, of loud harsh
voice and quarrelsome disposition, noted for its habitual
use of cast-off snake-skins in the structure of its nest.
Nest in hollows of trees and similar retreats; eggs unique
(outside this genus) in pattern: ground color buff or rich
clay-color, with numberless markings of purplish-chest-
nut, or purplish-chocolate, and others paler, sharp and
scratchy, mostly lengthwise, but especially at the butt
tangled up; size about 0.85 X 0.62. Breeds throughout
its U.S. range, but entirely withdraws in winter. Locally Fig 284.—Great Crested Flycatcher,
and irregularly distributed in woodland. Bete ene oe a
(in addenda.) M. ¢. coo/peri. (To Wim. Cvoper.) Cooprr’s LARGE-BILLED CRESTED
Frycatcuer. Distinguished in its extreme development from crinitus by its rather greater
size, and especially the great size of the bill, which runs from 0.80 fully up to 1.10 measured
along culmen, equalling or even exceeding in length the tarsi, which are themselves usually 0.10
longer than in crinitus. The olivaceous is usually not so pure, and the yellow not so clear ;
but the chief difference is, that the inner webs of the tail-feathers have a fuscous stripe + to
nearly $ the width of the feather, as in erythrocercus; from which latter it differs mainly in the
greater size, especially of the bill. Wings and tail 3.90-4.25 ; bill 0.80-1.00; tarsus 0.85-0.95 ;
Mexico and over the U. 8. border; Arizona. (Tyrannula cooperi, Kaup, 1851? M. coopert
Bd., 1858. M. crinitus var. cooperi, Coues, Pr. Phila. Acad., 1872, p. 67.)

M. c. erythrocer'cus. (Gr. épudpés, eruthros, reddish ; xépxos, kerkos, tail.) RuFOUS-TAILED
CrEsTED FLYCATCHER. On comparing this bird with typical M. crinitus, it is immediately
perceived to be different. The lateral tail-feathers have a stripe of fuscous on the inner web
adjoining the shaft, this stripe equalling or exceeding the width of the eee outer web of the
respective feathers, and being about half-and-half with the rufous ; whereas in crinitus there is
only the narrowest possible dusky stripe on the inner web, or none at all. This dusky stripe
is of uniform width throughout, not enlarged at the end to occupy most or all of the feather, as
is the case with cimerescens. The entire upper parts are darker than those of erinitus —that
is, they have a sordid brownish-olive cast, instead of the clearer and purer greenish-vlive of
crinitus. ‘The yellow of the belly is much paler. The ash of the throat is decidedly lighter
and clearer, and it comes farther down the breast, yielding to the yellow without the interven-
tion of the olivaceous pectoral area which is usually conspicuous in crinitus. The general
aspect of the under parts is much as in cimerescens, both the distribution and shade of the colors
being more as witnessed in the latter than as seen in crinitus. The light edgings of the wing-
feathers are also paler than those of erimtus. The bill is black, not dark brown, slenderer than
in crinitus; in size nothing like that of coopert, nor has it the very constricted shape of that of

376.

121.

436 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

cinerescens. The general body-coloration is almost exactly as in cinerescens, from which it is
at once distinguished by the different shape of the bill and different pattern of the tail-feathers.
Agreeing very closely in colors with cooperi, it is smaller than that species, and lacks in par-
ticular the enormous development of the bill, which, in cooperi, is an inch or more in length of
culmen, and proportionately broad. It is clearly neither crinitus proper, nor erinitus coopert, nor
yet cinerescens. Average length 8.75; extent about 12.75; wing 3.60-4.00; tail 3.75; bill
0.75; tarsus 0.85; middle toe and claw 0.75. Lower Rio Grande of Texas, and southward.
Common, breeding. Nest and eggs like those of crinitus. (II. erinitus var. irritabilis, Coues,
Pr. Phila. Acad., 1872, p. 65, nec Tyrannus trritabilis Vieill. AL. crinitus erythrocercus, Coues,
Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv., iv, 1878, p. 32, and v, 1879, p. 102. If. mexicanus var. cooperi,
Ridg., Pr. Nat. Mus., i, p. 188, nee coopert Bd. JL. mericanus, Ridg., Pr. Nat. Mus., ii,
p. 14.) .
M. cineres/cens. (Lat. cinerescens, ashy. Fig. 285.) ASH-THROATED CRESTED Ftiy-
CATCHER. (9, adult: Rather clivaceous-brown above, quite brown on the head; throat
very pale ash, sometimes almost whitish, changing
gradually to very pale yellow or yellowish-white on
the rest of the ynder parts. Primaries edged as in
SQ crinitus, but secondaries and coverts edged with gray-
ish-white. Tail-feathers as in crinttus, but the rufous
of the inner webs hardly or not reaching their ends,
being cut off from the tip by widening of the fuscous
stripe (In young birds, in which the quills and tail-
feathers are more extensively rufous-edged, the last dis-
tinction does not hold). Size of erinitus, but tarsi
longer and bill slenderer; tarsi 0.80-0.90; bill 0.75-
0.55, but only 0.27-0.33 broad at the base, where only
about as wide as high, and obviously narrower than in
crinitus; though in Cape St. Lueas specimens (M.
: pertintz Bd.) shaped quite as in crinitus, but smaller.
Fie, 285, — Ash-throated Flycatcher, “0Uthwestern U.8.; N. to Wyoming and Utah and
reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols se.) Nevada; 8. through Mexico; E. and W. from Texas
to the Pacific; said to winter in the Lower Colorado valley, U. 8. Though so similar to the
foreguing, it is a different bird from any of them. Nesting and eggs as in the others. (1.
mexicanus Bd., 1858, nec Kaup, 1851. Zyrannula ecinerascens, Lawr., 1851. Af. cinerescens
Coues, 1872.)
M. lawren'cii. (To Geo. N. Lawrence.) LAWRENCE’S CRESTED FLYCATCHER. Sinilar in
color to M. crinitus, but much smaller. No chestnut on tail-feathers except a narrow border-
ing on the outer weby and, in the young, an inner margining also. Wing-coverts and inner
secondaries as well as the primaries edged with rufous (rarely yellowish on inner secondaries) ;
pileum dark or quite blackish. Bill broad, flat, shaped much as in Contopus, about 4 its own
length wide at the nostrils. Very small: length 7.00 or less; wing and tail only 3.00-8.33 ;
bill 0.62-0.70; tarsus 0.65-0.75. Texas (?), Mexico, and Central Am., there running into
M. nigricapillus.
SAYIORNIS. (Name of Thos. Say, with Gr. épus, ornis, a bird.) Prwir FLYCATCHERS.
The 3 following species do not particularly resemble eaeh other; most authors place them in
separate genera, and some even under different subfamilies, of Tyrannide. The discrepancies
of form, however, are not startling, and for the purposes of this work the species may be properly
put together, as they agree in presenting a certain aspect not shown by the other N. Am.
groups. (Fig. 280, 6.) They are small species, about 7.00 or less in length. Head with a
slight crest of erectile feathers. Tarsus rather longer than middle toe and claw (the reverse

377.

378.

TYRANNIDA —TYRANNINA:: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 437

in Contopus). Bill narrower than in the other little Flycatchers, with nearly straight lateral
outlines, its width at base about 4 the length of culmen. Wing pointed by 2d-5th quills, lst
shorter than 6th. Tail about as long as wing, emarginate, with broad féathers tending to
divaricate in the middle. One Eastern, two Western species. Nest affixed to rocks and
buildings, with mud; eggs normally white, unmarked.

Analysis of Species.
Ashy-brown, with cinnamon belly and black tail . dg. RE BOR we Se es sayi 377
Blackish, with white belly c § 7 Ce ee ee ee ae nigricans 378
Olivaceous and yellowish . . . . piees cee. ge SR eaten ay . « fusca 379

S. say'i. (To Thos. Say.) Say’s Pewirr FrycarcuHer. ¢@, adult: Grayish-brown, some-
times with faint olivaceous tinge, rather darker on head, where the feathers have dusky centres,
paler on throat and breast, then changing to cinnamon-brown on the rest of the under parts.
Wings dusky, lined with tawny-whitish, edged with whitish on the coverts and inner quills.
Tail perfectly black. Bill and feet black. Iris dark brown. Length about 7.00; extent 11.00:
wing 3.75-4.35 ; tail 3.25-3.50; bill 0.50-0.60, narrow and slender for a flycatcher: tarsus
0.80; middle toe and claw 0.67. Young: More extensively fulvous or paler cinnamon than the
adults, this color extending far up the breast, skirting the feathers of the back and rump, form-
ing conspicuous cross-bars and edgings on the wings, and even tipping the tail. But no bird
of our country resembles this one. Western U. S. and adjoining British Provinces, E. to
Kansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, ete., common in open or rocky country, where seen singly or in
pairs ; the principal flycatcher of wnwooded regions, in weedy, brushy places, displaying the
usual activity of its tribe, and uttering a melancholy note of one syllable, or a tremulous twitter.
Nests naturally on rocks, but soon adapts itself to buildings like the Eastern Pewee. Nest of
mud, straw, moss, feathers; eggs 4-5, 0.80 x 0.62, white.

S. nig/ricans. (Lat. nigricans, blackening.) Buack PEwir FLYCATCHER. Sooty-brown or
blackish, deepest on head and breast; belly and other under parts pure white, abruptly defined ;
lining of wings, outer web of outer tail-feathers, and edges of inner secondaries, whitish; bill aud
feet black; iris red. The coloration is curiously like that of Junco hiemalis. Length about
7.00; wing 3.50-3.75 ; tail 3.25-3.50; bill 0.50 or less,
very weak ; tarsus 0.67 ; middle toe and claw 0.60. South-
western U.S. and southward, but on the Pacific to Oregon;
chiefly in unwooded country, and especially along rocky
streams, and in cafions—I have seen it at the bottom of
the Grand Cafion of the Colorado, some 6,000 feet below
the surface of the earth! Nest of mud, etc., on rocks and
walls; eggs 0.75 X 0.56, white.

S. fus/ca. (Lat. fusca, brown. Fig. 286.) Prewrr Fiy-
CATCHER. WATER PEWEE. PEWwiT. PHa@BE. Dull oli-
vaceous-brown, the head much darker fuscous-brown,
almost blackish, usually in marked contrast with the back ;
below, soiled whitish, or palest possible yellow, particularly
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 round the eye ; bill and
feet black. Varies greatly in shade; the foregoing is the Fig: 286.— Pewit Flycatcher, reduced.
average spring condition. As summer passes, the plumage (Gbeppard del. Nichols se.)

becomes much duller and darker brown, from wearing of the feathers ; then, after the moult,
fall specimens are much brighter than in spring, the under parts being decidedly yellow, at
least on the belly. Very young birds have some feathers skirted with rusty, particularly on

122.

438 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

the edges of the wing- and tail-feathers. The sexes are alike, the 9 averaging at the lesser
dimensions of the g. The species requires careful discrimination, in the bands of a novice,
from any of the dittle olivaceous species of the next two genera. It is larger; length 6.75—
7.25 ; extent 10.75-11.75 ; wing 3.00-3.50, usually 3.40; tail about the same, slightly emargi-
nate; bill 0.50 or slightly more, little depressed, not so broad for its length as is usual in
Contopus and Empidona., its lateral outlines straight ; tarsus equalling or slightly exceeding
the middle tcve and claw, these together about 1.33 long; point of the wing formed by the 2d
to 5th quill; 2d shorter than 6th; 3d and 4th generally a little the longest ; 1st shorter than
6th. Eastern U.8., and British Provinces, very abundant in open places, fields, along streams,
and almost as domestic as the barn swallow. One of the very earliest arrivals in spring, and a
late loiterer in fall; winters abundantly in the Southern States. West to Dakota, Nebraska,
ete. Its ordinary note is harsh and abrupt, unlike the drawling pe-a-wee’ of Contopus virens —
sounding like pé-wit’ phé’-bé, whence the name. The typical nest is affixed to the side of a
vertical rock over water, often itself moist or dripping, and composed of mud, grass, and espe-
cially moss, making a pretty object, lined with hay or feathers. The bird now builds anywhere
about houses, bridges, and other buildings ; its attachment to particular spots is so strong that
it will return year after year, and often persist in nesting under the most discouraging circum-
stances. Eggs 4-5-6, 0.80 < 0.60, normally pure white, not seldom sparsely dotted.
CON’TOPUS. (Gr. xévros, kontos, a pole or perch, and ods, pous, foot. Fig. 280, ec.) Woop
PEWEE FLycaTCHERS. With the feet extremely small; tarsus shorter or not longer than the
till, shorter than the middle toe and claw (except in pertinax) ; the tarsus, middle toe, and
claw together, barely or not one-third as long as the wing ; bill flattened, very broad at base ;
wings pointed, much longer than the emarginate tail, the proportions of the primaries varying
with the species. Medium-sized and rather small species, brownish-olivaceous, without any
bright colors or very decided markings ; the coronal feathers lengthened and erectile, but hardly
forming a true crest. A small group of woodland species, near Empidonax, but characterized,
as above described, by the feeble diminutive feet. Nest on boughs ; eggs spotted.
Analysis of Species..

Species 7-8 long, with a tuft of white fluffy feathers on the flank.
Under parts streaky. Wing pointed by 2d primary, supported nearly to end by Ist and 3d, 4th much

shorter. Tail about 3.00; wing about 4.00. Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw. . . borealis 380
Under parts more smooth in color. Wing pointed by 2d, 3d, and 4th quills, lst much shorter; tail
3.50 or more; wing about 4.00, Tarsus not shorter than middle toe and claw ge pertinaxr 381
Species under 7.00 long, without an evident cottony white tuft on the flank.
Tarsus, middle toe, and claw together hardly or not 1.00long . A ‘i . .virens 382, 383

C. borea/lis. (Lat. borealis, northern.) OLIVE-sipDED FiycatcHer. Dusky olivaceous-
brown, usually darker on the crown, where the feathers have blackish centres, and paler on the
sides below; chin, throat, belly, crissum, and middle line of 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 edging on the inner quills ; feet and upper mandible
black, lower mandible mostly yellowish. The olive-brown below has a peculiar streaky appear-
ance hardly seen in other species, and extends almost entirely across the breast. This ragged
aspect of mixed dusky-olive and whitish, together with the large white fluffy flank-tufts, is
diagnostic. Young may have the feathers, especially of the wings and tail, skirted with rufous.
Length 7.00-8.00 ; wing 3.87-4.33, averaging 4.00, very long, folding to terminal third of tail,
and remarkably pointed; 2d quill longest, supported nearly to the end by the Ist and 3d, the
4th abruptly shorter; tail about 3.00, thus about } the wing, emarginate; tarsus only 0.50,
shorter than bill, or than middle toe and claw ; tarsus, middle toe, and claw together only about
1.25; bill 0.67-0.75. N. Am. at large, apparently nowhere very abundant, rather common in
some New England localities, very rare.in the Middle and Southern States, less so in the West.
N. even to Greenland: S. to Central America in winter. Breeds from New England north-

381.

382.

t
TYRANNIDAt—TYRANNINZ: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 439

ward, and much further south in the West. Generally seen high on some exposed outpost ;
note querulous, but loud and harsh. Nest usually high, on a horizontal bough, rude and flat,
of twigs, rootlets, grass, moss; eggs about 4, 0.85 x 0.65, buffy or creamy-white, fully spotted
with lighter and darker reddish-browns. A stocky, able-bodied, dark and streaky species.
quite unlike any other.

C. per'tinax. (Lat. pertinax, pertinacious; pertaining to C. borealis; per, and tenaz,
tenacious.) Cours’ FLycATcHER. Somewhat similar to C. borealis; colors more uniform
and more clearly olive ; below, dull brownish-olive, lighter on throat, fading insensibly on belly
into dingy yellowish-white ; lacking the peculiar streaky appearance of C. borealis. Cottony
tufts on the flanks less conspicuous. Bill longer and comparatively narrower than in borealis;
black above, yellow below; feet black. Wing-formula entirely different; 2d, 3d, and 4th
quills nearly equal and longest, 1st abruptly 0.50 shorter, about as long as 5th, or between 5th
and 6th. Feet small, weak, and properly ‘ contopine,” but tarsus if anything longer, not shorter,
than middle toe and claw, about equalling the bill (the reverse proportion of bill, tarsus, and
toe obtains in C. borealis). Length of $ about 8.00; extent 13.00; wing 4.00-4.30; tail 3.50-
3.80; bill and tarsus, each, about 0.67; middle toe and claw 0.60. @ rather less. Young:
Lower mandible and mouth orange-yellow ; feathers of wings and tail and their coverts skirted
with rusty, and a shade of the same on the under parts generally. Midsummer adults wear
browner, like the common wood pewee; and, in fact, the whole coloration of the species is the
counterpart of a wood pewee’s. Mexico, N. into Arizona, where common in the pine woods.
C. vi'rens. (Lat. virens, virent, greenish. Fig. 287.) Woop Prwes. Olivaceous-brown,
rather darker on head; below, with sides washed with a paler
shade of the same, reaching nearly or quite across the breast ;
throat and belly whitish, more or less tinged with dull yellow-
ish ; under tail-coverts the same, usually streaked with dusky ;
tail and wings blackish, the former unmarked, the inner wing-
quills edged, and the greater and middle coverts tipped, with
whitish ; feet and upper mandible black, under mandible usually
yellow, sometimes dusky ; iris brown. Spring specimens are
purer olivaceous ; early fall birds are brighter yellow below; in
summer, before the worn feathers are renewed, the plumage is
quite brown and dingy whitish. Very young birds have the
wing-bars and edging of quills tinged with rusty, the feathers
of the upper parts skirted, and the lower plumage tinged, with
the same; but in any plumage the species may be known from
all the birds of the following genus, by these dimensions : sank Uh!
Length 6.00-6.50; extent 10.00-11.00; wing 3.25-3.50; tail Fig. 287.— Wood Pewee, re-
2.75-3.00 ; tarsus, middle toe and claw together hardly one inch, ‘ced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
or evidently less; tarsus alone about 0.50, not longer than the bill. Bill very flat, its breadth
at base more than one-half its length; lateral outline bulging. Wings very long and pointed;
2d quill longest, 3d little if any less, 4th shorter, lst between 4th and 5th. Tail but little
(about 0.50) shorter than wing, emarginate. Eastern N. Am., in woodland; extremely abun-
dant in most U. 8. localities, May-Sept., entering U.S. from the South usually in March,
reaching its limit of dispersion by the end of April or early in May. Possibly winters along
the southern border. West only to the high central plains. In the breeding season the
peculiarly plaintive, drawling note may be heard in almost any piece of woods, while the
dolorous little bird is at his post, perched on some exposed twig near his nest, and continually
raiding after insects, which he captures with a quick twist in the air and a click of the bill,
regaining his perch adroitly, and standing erect with hanging tail and wings. Nest a very
pretty structure, saddled on a horizontal bough, flat and thin-bottomed, with thick walls and

383.

128.

x

440 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES — CLAMATORES.

well-turned brim, of fine fibres stuck over with lichens, the whole looking much like a nat-
ural excrescence of the tree. Eggs 4-5, creamy-white, marked with reddish-brown and
lilac in various pattern, usually wreathing and blending’ about the larger end, sparser else-
where; size about 0.75 X 0.65 —pé-d-wee! d-péé-weel !

C. v. rich/ardsoni. (To Sir John Richardson.) WESTERN Woop Pewee. Similar; darker, ,
more fuscous-olive above, the shading of the sides reaching almost uninterruptedly across the
breast ; belly rather whitish than yellowish ; outer primary usually not obviously white-edged ;
bill below oftener dusky than yellow, sometimes quite black. I fail to appreciate any reliable
differences in size or shape ; or, in fact, any specific character. It is impracticable to pronounce
upon a pewee, in the closet, without knowing the locality ; but those familiar with both Eastern
and Western birds in field, agree that they are not exactly the same. Note not exactly like that
of virens; nesting said to be different (Audubon, Allen). Rocky Mountains to the Pacific;
“Labrador” (Audubon). (Tyrannula richardsonii Sw., Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, p. 146?
Contopus richardsonii Bp., B. N. Am., 1858, p. 189; Muscicapa phebe Auv., B. Am., 8vo. ed.,
i, 1840, p. 219, pl. 61; Nurr., Man. i, 2d ed., 1840, p. 319. See Couns, B. N. W., 1874,
p- 247.)

EMPIDO'NAX. (Gr. éumis, gen. eumidos, empis, empidos, a gnat; dva€, anax, king. Fig. 280, d.)
Tue LirrtLe Oxrvaceous FiycarcuHErs. Small olivaceous species, 5.00-6.00 (rarely 6.25)
long ; wing 3.12 or less; tail 2.75 or less; whole foot at least $d as long as wing ; tarsus more
or less obviously longer than middle toe and claw, much longer than bill; 2d, 3d and 4th quills
entering into point of wing, 1st shorter or not obviously longer than 5th; tail not over 4 an inch
shorter than wings; breast not buffy. (Compare Sayiornis, Contopus, Mitrephanes.) As in
allied genera, several outer primaries are slightly emarginate on the inner web, but this character
is obscure, often inappreciable, and may be disregarded. The coronal feathers are lengthened
and erectile, but scarcely form a true crest. There are never any more conspicuous color-marks
than in Sayiornis fusca or Contopus virens. The bill varies with the species in size and
shape, from almost as broad and flat as in a wood pewee in acadicus, to the narrower shape of
a pewit in obscurus; but it is always much shorter than the tarsus. It should not be difficult
to recognize Empidonazx as different from Contopus, due attention being given to the nice points
of diagnosis ; but it is a very difficult matter to discriminate the numerous species, requiring
much tact, care, and patience. The following account, carefully prepared after examination of
a great amount of material from all parts of the country, will probably suffice to determine
ninety out of a hundred specimens ; but I confess it does pot entirely satisfy me; and, as it does
not fully answer all the requirements of the case, it nust be regarded as provisional. How
much alike are these interesting little birds may be inferred from the fact that Wilson knew
but a single species, acadicus, to which Audubon added but one, trail, until Baird showed him
two more, minimus and flaviventris. Yet these four are perfectly distinct birds. Any experienced
collector knows them to be different, not only when he has them in hand, but in life, by their
haunts and habits, their notes, nests and eggs — indeed, the nests and eggs of each of them are
readily discriminated. Three of them are common New England breeders — trailli, minimus,
and flaviventris; while acadicus is the common breeder in the Middle States. The case is
complicated, however, in the West. The two exclusively Western species, hammondi and
obscurus, are pretty distinct — entirely so from each other; but the recognition of “ pusillus”
and especially “‘ difficilis” is somewhat conventional. Since 1858, when Baird first fixed the
species upon anything like a satisfactory footing, no changes whatever of his determinations
and characterizations have been established; and as it is useless to exchange one doubtful

‘opinion for another, the less obvious species may be suffered to remain as he left them. It is

not reasonably possible to analyze all the forms in concise phrase ; the student must go at once
to the detailed descriptions ; but the following may help him somewhat : —

384.

385.

TYRANNIDZ : —TYRANNINZ: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 441

Keclusively Eastern Species.
Largest: rather over than under 6.00; wing nearly or over 3.00; tarsus 0.67 ; middle toe and claw 0.50;
bill nearly or quite 0.50, Clear light olive-green above, below whitish; wing-bars and eye-ring tawny.
Nest flat in fork of a horizontal bough; eggs speckled. Not New England. .... . acadicus 384
Medium: rather under 6.00; wing 2.70; tarsus 0.67, but middle toe and claw 0.60; bill hardly 0.50.
Olive-brown above, below grayish; wing-bars and eye-ring whitish, Nest a saiiaed cup in a bush;

eggs speckled. New England. . ‘ . trailli 385
Small: rather under 5.50; proportions saa eelove nearly. as in west. Nest a oieab cup in upright

crotch of a tree; eggs white, Commonest breeder in S. New England. . . minimus 387
Medium : under parts alone ie Nest near ee ina stump or log, bali. Eggs speckled.

New England . ae — e ee . flaviventris 388

Exclusively Western Siar

The representative of trailli. Eggs speckled. . . ae: di . pusillus 386
The representative of flaviventris. Eggs speckled . z ~. . « . difficilis 389
Small, and otherwise like minimus ; dark below, breast not very different en back; bill extremely

narrow. Eggs white ae hammondi 390
Large, about the size of iaadianss olive- ol above: breast dark; cule tail- feather white on outer

web; bill very. narrow. Eggs white . ; fc ae, Bae +. « - obscurus 391

E. aca/dicus. (Lat. of Acadia.) SMALL GREEN-CRESTED or ACADIAN FLYCATCHER.
Above, olive-green, clear, light, 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, yellowish-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 ; a tawny eye-ring; feet
and upper mandible brown, under mandible pale. In midsummer, rather darker ; in early fall
brighter and especially more yellowish below ; in the young, the wing-markings more fulvous,
the general plumage slightly buffy-suffused; when very young, said to be mottled transversely
with pale ochraceous. Largest: 5.75-6.25— rather over than under 6.00; extent rather over
than under 9.50; wing 2.75-3.00 (even 3.12); tail 2.50-2.75 ; bill nearly or quite 0.50, about
0.25 wide at nostrils, broad and flat, like a pewee’s; tarsus 0.66; middle toe and claw 0.50 ;
point of wing reaching nearly an inch beyond the secondaries; 2d, 3d, and 4th quills nearly equai
and much (4 inch or more) longer than 1st and 5th, which about equal each other; 1st much
longer than 6th. The 9 near the lesser of all the dimensions given. Eastern U. S., southerly,
scarcely known in New England; abundant in the Middle and Western States in woodland ;
readily recognized by the points of size and shape, without regarding coloration. Nest in trees,
in horizontal fork of a slender bough; thin and open-worked, shallow, flat, saucer-shaped; eggs
9-4, 0.78 X 0.56, creamy-white, boldly spotted, resembling a wood pewee’s. (Muscicapa sub-
viridis BarTRAM, 1791; Empidonax subviridis Cours, 1882 (name acadicus geographically
false). Muscicapa querula W1LS., ii, 77, pl. 13, f. 3; M. acadica Aup., B. Am., 8vo. ed. 1840,
i, 221, pl. 62; Hmpidonax acadicus Bo., B. N. A., 1858, p. 197.)

E. trail/li. (To T. S. Traill, of Edinburgh.) Trati’s Frycarcuer. Above, olive-
brown, lighter and duller brownish posteriorly, darker on head, 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 smaller than acadicus;
length 5.50-6.00; extent under 9.50, usually 8.75-9.00; wing 2.66-2.75, more rounded than
in acadicus, its tip only reaching about 2 of an inch beyond the secondaries, formed by 2d, 3d
and 4th quills, as before, but 5th not so much shorter (hardly or not L of an inch), the lst ranging
between 5th and 6th; tail 2.50; tarsus 0.66, as before, but middle toe and claw 0.60, the feet
thus differently proportioned, owing to length of toes; bill not so broad and flat as in acadicus.
Eastern N. Am. to the Plains, common; an entirely different bird from acadicus, but difficult
if not impossible to distinguish from the following variety ; almost the same in color as minimus,
‘but larger, and otherwise perfectly distinct. A common breeder from New England and Canada

387

388.

389.

442 SYSTEMATIC, SYNOPSIS. — PASSERES— CLAMATORES.

to Dakota and Missouri; migrating through all the E. U.S., wintering beyond. Nest in trees
or bushes, usually the latter, in New England at any rate; nest in an upright erotch, thick-
walled, deeply-cupped, more or less compact-walled, sometimes slovenly and resembling that of
an Indigo-bird; in any case different entirely from the flat pewee-like saucer of acadicus; eggs
not distinguishable from those of acadicus, though averaging smaller; very different from those
of minimus. Note a flat ke/-wink ke'-wink, slowly.

. E, pusil/lus. (Lat. pusillus, puerile, petty.) Lirrns Western FrycatcHer. Replaces

true trailli from the Plains to the Pacific; may usually be recognized by its more fuscous color-
ation, the olivaceous and yellowish shades of tratlli being subdued ; by its larger bill, and the
feet nearly as’ in acadicus. But are not specimens absolutely like tradlli found in the West?
The original Tyrannula pusilla of Sw., Fn. Bor.-Am., ii, 1831, 144; Aup., B. Am., 8vo. ed.
ii 1840, 236, pl. 66, is uncertain, just as likely have been minimus as this bird. I therefore
pass over the name, which, if belonging here, antedates trail, and adopt trad: for the eastern
form (although Audubon says ‘‘ Arkansas to the Columbia”), taking pusillus of Baird for the
Western variety. This is the usual “little flycatcher” in Western woodland, generally dis-
tributed. Habits, nest and eggs counterparts of those of trailli.

E. minimus. (Lat. minimus, smallest.) Least FLYCATCHER. Colors almost exactly as
in tradi; 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 perfectly black. It is a smaller bird than trail, and
not so stoutly built; the wing-tip projects only about half an inch beyond the secondaries ; the
5th quill is but very little shorter than the 4th, the lst apt to be nearer 6th than 5th ; the feet
are differently proportioned, being much as in acadicus; the bill is obviously under half an
inch long. Length 5.00-5.50; extent about 8.00; wing 2.60 or less; tail about 2.25. A
series of gd, measured fresh, runs 5.20-5.50 long, by 7.60-8.30 in extent; several 9 9 are
4.80-5.10 long, by 7.40-7.90 in extent. Although a large ¢ may grade up to Q ftrailli in
size, aud there is no obviously different coloration, it is a different bird. Eastern N. Am. to the
Plains, very abundant in the U. 8. during the migrations, in orchards, coppices, hedgerows, and
the skirts of woods rather than in heavy forests. The commonest breeder in New England,
especially Massachusetts; very common along Red River of the North, breeding at 49°. Ranges
through E. U.S. in migration; winters extralimital. Nest in upright crotch of tree, shrub,
or sapling ; small, neat, compact-walled, deeply-cupped; eggs 3-4, white, normally unmarked,
rarely speckled, 0.60-0.69 long, averaging 0.65 x 0.51. Note a sharp che-bec’, or se-wick’,
quickly.

E. flaviven/tris. (Lat. flavus, yellow, ventris, of the belly.) Y5ELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER.
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 black. In respect of color, this species differs
materially from all the rest; none of them, even at 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 usnally equal to 6th. Eastern U. S. and British Provinces, common,
in woodland, swamps and shrubbery. Breeds probably from the Middle States northward.
There has been much misunderstanding about the nest and eggs of this bird; the latter are
described by Brewer and by Coues (1874) as white. Nest in swamps, close to ground, in a
stuinp, log, or roots of an upturned tree, thick and bulky, of mosses, ete., deeply cupped ;
eggs spotted. Note a low soft ne-a, slowly.

E.f. diffi’cilis? (Lat. diffcilis, dis-facilis, difficult, un-doable; very appropriate!) WESTERN
YELLOW-BELLIED FLiycatcuER. Not tangibly distinct from flaviventris; coloration dingy,
instead of pure olivaceous and yellow, the latter dulled with an ochrey shade ; tail said te be
longer. Western U. 8., abundant. Eggs speckled.

390.

391.

124.

392.

125.

TYRANNIDZAE —TYRANNINZ: TYRANT FLYCATCHERS. 443

E. ham’/mondi. (To Dr. W. A. Hammond, U.S. A.) Hammonn’s Frycatcuer. Dirty
LirtLe Fiycatcurr. Above, olive-gray, decidedly grayer or even ashy on the fore-parts ;
the whole throat and breast almost continuously olive-gray but little paler than the back, the
belly alone more or less decidedly yellowish ; wing-markings and eye-ring dull soiled whitish ;
bill very small, and extremely narrow, being hardly or not 0.20 wide at the nostrils ; this distin-
guishes the bird from all but minimus and obscwrus; under mandible usually blackish ; tail usu-
ally decidedly forked, more so than in other species (though in all of them it varies from slightly
rounded to slightly emarginate) ; outer tail-feather usually whitish-edged externally (a character
often shown by trailli and minimus), but not decidedly white. About the size of minimus ;
wings and tail relatively longer. Plains to the Pacific, U. 8., and British Am. This is the
Western representative of minimus, but is tangibly distinct; the general tone of coloration is
heavy, fall specimens in particular giving somewhat the effect of a dirty flaviventris; the tiny
bill is a good mark. Nesting substantially like minimus; eggs white, unmarked. Note ee
soft pit.”

E. obscu’rus, (Lat. obscurus, dark.) Wnricut’s FtycatcHer. Gray LITTLE FLYCATCHER.
Colors not very tangibly different from those of trailli or minimus, but outer web of outer tail-
feather abruptly white in decided contrast. General tone quite gray; gray below quite across
breast, giving the effect there of Contopus richardsoni; under mandible obscured; eye-ring and
wing-edgings quite whitish. General dimensions approaching those of acadicus, owing to
length of wings and tail. Length doubtless up to 6.00, and extent to 9.50; wing 2.66—3.00 ;
tail 2.50-2.75; tarsi about 0.75; bill about 0.50, extremely narrow (much as in Sayiornis
fusca), its width at the nostrils only about 4 its length. The bird looks singularly like the
Western Contopus, though of course immediately seen to be Empidonax. Rocky and other
mts. of the West, N. to 49°, in woodland, groves and thickets. To complete the analogies
between the Eastern and Western E’mpidonaces, this may be considered to represent acadicus.
Nesting, however, substantially as in minimus: a neat, compact, deep-cupped nest in crotch of
a sapling, and eggs 3-4, white, unmarked, but large, 0.75 X 0.58. Note ‘a weird sweer,” ‘a
soft liquid whit.” (E. obscurus, E. wrightti, Barrp, 1858 ; but qu. Tyr. obscura Sw. 18277)
MITRE/PHANES. (Gr. pirpn, mitre, a head-dress; gaive, I appear.) Lrrrue Burr FLy-
CATCHERS. Coronal feathers and rictal bristles longer than in Hmpidonax, and general cast of
the plumage buffy or fulvous rather than olivaceous ; otherwise (our speciés at any rate) not
different from Hmpidonax. Several Mexican species, one reaching our border. _ . (Mitrephanes
CouEs, 1882, vice Mitrephorus Scu., 1859, preoccupied.)

M. ful'vifrons palles/cens. (Lat. fulvifrons, fulvous-fronted ; pallescens, growing pale.)
LitTtLe BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER. Above, dull grayish-brown tinged with olive, par-
ticularly on the back ; below, pale fulvous, strongest across the breast, whitening on the belly ;
no fulvous on the forehead; sides of head light brownish-olive ; wings and tail dusky, outer
web of outer tail-feathers, edges of inner primaries except at the base, and tips of wing-coverts,
whitish ; iris brown; bill yellow below, black above; feet black. Length 4.75 ; extent 7.33 ;
wing 2.12; tail 2.00; tarsus 0.55; middle toe and claw 0.45; bill 0.40. New Mexico, Ari-
zona, and southward. (Hmpidonax pygmeus Couns, Ibis, 1865, p. 537; Mitrephorus palles-
cens Cougs, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1866, p. 68. My original specimens, affording the descriptions
quoted, and the first known to have been taken in the United States, do not appear to be
specifically distinct from Muscicapa fulvifrons of Giraup (B. of Tex., 1841, pl. 2, f. 2); they
are clean spring birds, and the species is more fulvous in fall plumage.)

ORNITH'IUM. (Gr. épvibtoy, ornithion, dimin. of ps, a bird.) BEARDLESS FLYCATCHERS.
General aspect of Empidonax, but remarkably distinguished by the parine shape of the bill,
and almost entire absence of the rictal bristles so conspicuous in most genera of Tyrannide,
though a few slight ones may be seen on close inspection. Bill much shorter than head, stout,
compressed, not depressed as usual in Zyrannide, with high-ridged arched culmen and scarcely

393,

126.

394.

444 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE.

overhanging tip; commissure gently decurved; gonys about straight. Head a little crested,
as in Empidonax, Contopus, ete. Wings of moderate length, much rounded ; 2d to 5th prima-
ries subequal and longest, 6th shorter, Ist about equal to 7th. Tail a little shorter than wings,
even or scarcely rounded. Tarsus long, exceeding the middle toe and claw ; lateral toes sub-
equal, their claws about reaching base of middle claw; hind claw shorter than its digit. Of
diminutive size, and dull plain colors, as in the small olivaceous flycatchers generally ; but for
the bill, the species might be mistaken for an Empidonaz.
O.imber’be. (Lat. imberbis, beardless ; in, not, and barba, a beard.) TExAS BEARDLESS
FruycarcHer. Adult $9: Above, dull olive-gray, a little darker (browner) on the length-
ened erectile feathers of the crown, a little brighter (greener) on the rump and upper tail-coverts.
Below, pale dull gray, sometimes almost grayish-white anteriorly, clearing on the belly and
under tail-coverts to pale yellowish. Wings and tail fuscous, with pale gray or whitish edgings
of the middle and greater coverts and most of the quills of the wings, as in an E’mpidonac.
Bill dark brown above, pale below. Worn specimens are quite brownish above, and whitish
below, with little edging of the wings and tail. Young and fresh fall specimens are more clearly
olivaceous above and yellowish beluw, shaded with gray across the breast ; the young with the
wing-bars tinged with buff or tawny — all quite as usual in Hmpidonax. Very small: length
about 4.25 ; wing 2.10; tail 1.80; bill scarcely 0.30; tarsus 0.55 ; whole foot scarcely 1.00.
A curious little flycatcher of Mexico and Central Aim., lately discovered on the Lower Rio
Grande of Texas. Nest and eggs unknown.
PYROCE’'PHALUS. (Gr. wip, gen. mupos, pur, puros, fire; xepadn, kephale, head.) FrRe-
CROWNED FLYCATCHERS. Sexes very dissimilar: head of ¢ with a full globular crest (fig. 288),
and all under parts (usually) scarlet-red ; other parts deep brown ; 9 brown and whitish. Bill
slender, narrow at base, much as in Sayiornis. Wings moderate, pointed; 2d-4th quills
longest, lst between 5th and 6th. Tail nearly even, shorter than wings, of broad feathers.
Tarsus scarcely longer than middle toe and claw. A tropical genus of several species, one of
which reaches our border.
P. rubi/neus mexica/nus. (Lat. rubineus, ruby-red.) VERMILION FLYCATCHER. Adult ¢:
Pure dark brown, including stripe along side of head; wings and tail blackish with slight pale
edgings ; the full globular crest, and all the under parts scarlet or vermilion; bill and feet
black. @ : Dulk brown, including the little-crested crown; below, white, tinged with red,
: reddish or orange in some places; the breast and sides with slight
dusky streaks. Immature $ shows gradation between the characters
of both sexes; at first there is no red whatever, the bird otherwise
resembling the 9, but pale yellowish where she is reddish; upper
parts gray; all the feathers may be skirted with whitish, especially
on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; tail quite blackish ; under
parts more purely white than in the 9, and rather speckled than
streaked with gray. But reddish soon replaces the yellow of the
Fie. 288, — Head of Ver- ‘crissum and axillars. Adult ¢ ¢ are subject to much variation; the
tailion Flycatcher, nat. size. ped is sometimes rather orange. Length about 6.00; wing 3.25;
tail 2.50; bill 0.45 ; tarsus 0.55 ;, middle toe and claw 0.50. Valleys of the Rio Grande and
Colorado, and southward; common in Arizona on the Gila; a very showy little bird, of the
usual flycatcher habits.

II.— Order PICARIZ: Picarian Birds.

This is « miscellaneous assortment (in scientific language, ‘‘a polymorphic group”) of
birds of highly diversified forms, grouped together more because they differ from other birds in
one way or another, than on account of their resemblance to one another. As commonly received,

PICARLZ:: PICARIAN BIRDS. 445

this order includes all the non-passerine Land Birds down to those with a cered bill (parrots
and birds of prey). Excluding the parrots, which constitute a strongly marked natural group,
of equal value with those called orders in this work, the Picarie correspond to the Strisores --
Scansores of authors; including, however, some that are often referted to Clamatores. (This
“order” Scansores, or Zygodactyli, containing all the birds that have the toes arranged in
pairs, two in front and two behind (and some that have not), is one of the most unmitigated
inflictions that ornithology has suffered; it is as thoroughly unnatural as the divisions of my
artificial key to our genera.) I have no faith whatever in the integrity of any such grouping
as “‘ Picarie” implies; but if 1 should break up this conventional assemblage, I should not
know what to do with the fragments; not being prepared to follow Garrod to the length of
a classification of birds based primarily upon the condition of certain muscles of the leg; and
knowing of no available alternative. With this protest, and upon such understanding, I retain
the Picarian group, as in the original edition of the Key, to include all the N. A. Land Birds of
non-passerine character, without a hooked and cered bill, and without the proper characters of
the Columbine and Galline families.

Manifestly, from what has been said, the Picarie are insusceptible of satisfactory definition ;
. but I may indicate some leading features, mostly of a negative character, that they possess in con-
mon. The sternum rarely conforms to the particular Passerine model, its posterior border
usually being either eutire or else doubly-notched. The vocal apparatus is not highly developed,
having not more than three pairs of separate intrinsic muscles; the birds, consequently, are
never highly musical. There are some modifications of the cranial bones not observed in
Passeres. According to Sundevall, the Picaria, like lower birds, usually lack a certain special-
ization of the flexor muscles of the toes seen in Passeres. The feet are very variously modified ;
one or another of all the toes, except the middle one, is susceptible of being turned, in this or
that case, in an opposite from the customary direction; the fourth one being frequently capable
of turning either way; while in two genera (of Picide the first, and in two others (of Alce-
dinide) the second, toe is deficient. The tarsal envelope is never entire behind, as in the
higher Passeres. Another curious peculiarity of the feet is, that the claw of the hind toe is
smaller, or at most not larger, than that of the third toe ; and on the whole the hind toe itself
is inconsiderable, weak if not wanting, not always perfectly incumbent and apposable. The
wings, endlessly varied in shape, agree in possessing ten developed primaries, of which the first
is rarely spurious or very short. (A notable exception to this occurs in the Pict.) A very

‘general and useful wing-character is, that the coverts are larger and in more numerous series
than in Passeres; the greater coverts being at least half as long as the secondary quills they
cover, and sometimes reaching nearly to the ends of these quills. This is the common case
among lower birds, but it distinguishes most of the Picari@ from Passeres; it is not shown,
however, in the Picide and some others. The tail is indefinitely varied in shape, but the
number of its feathers is a good clue to Picarie. There are not ordinarily more than ten perfect
rectrices, and occasionally there are only eight ; the Woodpeckers have twelve, but one pair is
abortive ; there are twelve, however, in the Kingfishers, and some others: The bill shows
numnberless modifications in form, and has its own specialization in nearly every family ; it
assumes some of the most extraordinary shapes, as in the hornbills and toucans, and is seldoin
of the simple style seen in a thrush or finch ; it is never hooked and cered as in parrots and birds
of prey, nor soft and swollen at the nostrils, as in pigeons.

With this slight sketch of some leading features of the group (it will enable the student to
recognize any Picarian bird of this country at least, and that is my main object), I pass to the
consideration of its subdivision, with the remark that a precedent may be found for any con-
ceivable grouping of the families that is not perfectly preposterous, and for some arrangements
that are nearly so. As well as I can judge from the material at my command, and relying upon
authority for data that I lack, the Picarie fall into three divisions at least. These I shall call

446 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PICARLZ.

B

suborders, not however insisting in the least upon the question of taxonomic rank, but simply
employing the terms conformably with my usage in other cases. The three groups may be here
tabulated, with remarks calculated to give an idea of their composition : —

I. CypsrLirormes — including only the three families Cypselide, Caprimulgide, and
Trochilide —the Swifts, Goatsuckers, and Humming-birds. They are birds of
remarkable volitorial powers; the wing is pointed, and very long in its feathers and
terminal portions, though the upper arm is very short. The feet are extremely sinall
and weak, and are scarcely if at all serviceable for progression. The hind toe is
sometimes versatile (among the Swifts) or somewhat elevated (in the Goatsuckers
and some Swifts) ; the front toes are frequently connected at base by movable web-
bing (Goatsuckers), and sometimes lack the normal number of phalanges (among
Swifts and Goatsuckers) ; but the feet are never zygodactyle nor syndactyle. The
variously-shaped tail has ten rectrices. One family (Humming-birds) shows the
tenuirostral type of bill; the other two, the fissirostral, on which account they used
to be classed with the Swallows. The sternum is broad, with a deep keel, entire or
doubly notched (rarely singly notched) behind. The syrinx has not more than one
pair of intrinsic muscles.

II. CucuLirormes * — comprehending the great bulk of the order; in all, about fifteen fami-
lies, rather more than less. They are only readily limited by exclusion of the charac-
ters of the preceding and following groups. The sternum is usually notched behind;
the syringeal muscles are two pairs at most. The feet are generally short; the dis-
position of the toes varies remarkably. In the Coliide, or colies, of Africa, all the
toes are turned forward. In the Trogonide, the second toe is turned backward, so
that the birds are zygodagtyle, but in a different way from all others. Families with
the feet permanently zygodactyle in ‘the ordinary way by reversion of the fourth, or
partially so, the outer toe being versatile, are — the Cuculida, or Cuckoos, with their
near relatives the Indicatoride or Guide-birds of Africa; the Rhamphastide, or
Toucans, confined to tropical America and distinguished by their enormous vaulted
bill; the Musophagide, Plaintain-eaters or Touracos, of Africa; the Bucconide and
Capitonide, vr fissirostral and scansorial Barbets of the New aud chietly of Old World
respectively ; and the Galbulide, or Jacamars, of America. (The Cuculide and
Musophagide are by Garrod placed together with Gallinaceous birds.) In the
remaining groups, the toes have the ordinary position, but sometimes offer unusual
characters in other respects. Thus in the Alcedinide (Kingtishers), and Momotide
(Motmots or Sawbills), the middle and outer toes are perfectly coherent for a great dis-
tance, constituting the syngenesious, syndactyle or anisodactyle foot. The Bucerotide,
or Hornbills, of the Old World, characterized by an immense corneous process on the
bill, are relatives of the Kingfishers ; so are the Todid@, a group of small brightly-
colored birds of Mexico and the West Indies. Other forms, all Old World, are the
Meropide or bee-eaters, the Upupide or Hoopoes, and the Coractide or Rollers, with
their allies the Leptosomatide, of Madagascavr.

Hil. Pictrormrs — comprising only three families, the Lyngide, or Wrynecks, with one
genus and four species, of Europe, Asia, and Africa; the Picumnide, with one or two
genera and nearly thirty species, chiefly American; and the Picide or true Wood-
peckers. The digits are permanently paired by reversion of the fourth, except in
two tridactyle genera, having no hind toe proper; there is a modification of the

* While the Cypseliformes and Piciformes are each of them well characterized and perfectly defined groups
of birds, the reverse is the case with the Cuculiformes, —a mixed lot requiring to be reconstructed by exclusion of
some of the families here given as entering into its composition. The Trogonid@ have already been eliminated
by Sclater under the name of Heterodactyli.

CAPRIMULGIDZ: GOATSUCKERS. 447

lower end of the inetatarsus, corresponding to the reversed position of the fourth toe,
and the upper part of the same bone is perforated by canals for flexor tendons. The
basal phalanges of the toes are short. The wing has 10 primaries, and short
secondary coverts (contrary to the rule in Picarie); the tail 10 rectrices, soft and
rounded in Iyngide and Picwmnida, rigid and acuminate in Picide, where also a
supplementary pair of spurious feathers is developed, making 12 in all. The nostrils
vary: they are large and of peculiar structure in Iyngide, usually covered with
antrorse plumules in the rest. The bill is straight or nearly so, hard and strong,
acute or truncate, the mandibles equal; the tongue is lumbriciform, and very gener-
ally extensile to a remarkable degree, by a singular elongation of the bones and
muscles (figs. 73, 74). The structure of the bony palate is unique among birds; it
is called sauwrognathous by Parker (see p. 178). The salivary glands have ay
unusual development, in the typical species at any rate. The sternum is doubly-
notched behind. A very strongly-marked group ; in some respects it approaches the
Passerine birds more nearly than other Picarie do.

However impossible it is to define any such group as the conventional Picarig, and how-
ever difficult it may be to make three or any other small number of subdivisions, the very
diversity of the forms enables us to define the families with ease. The student can never be in
doubt to which one of the six North American families his specimen belongs.

3. SUBORDER CYPSELIFORMES: Cypsetirorm Birps.

Fissirostral (Caprimulgide, Cypselide) or tenuirostral (Trochilide) Picarie. Wings
lengthened in the distal joints, shortened in the proximal, with 10 fully-developed primaries ;
making an instrument of remarkable power. Feet never zygodactyle nor syndactyle; small,.
weak, scarcely fitted for progression; hind toe often elevated or versatile; front toes often
webbed at base, or with abnormal ratio of phalanges, or both these modifications together
(figs. 40, 41). Tail of 10 rectrices. Palate egithognathous (p. 172). Sternum deep-keeled,
its posterior border usually entire, or doubly-notched or fenestrate. Syringeal muscles not more
than one pair. The oil-gland nude. No ceca in Cypselide and Trochilide ; ceca present in
Caprimulgide. Anomalogonatous; no ambiens nor accessory femoro-caudal muscle.

Contains the 3 families named above, — Goatsuckers, Swifts, and Humming-birds. Not-
withstanding the peculiarities of the latter, especially their long slender bill, they are really more
nearly related to the fissirostral Swifts than these are to the fissirostral Caprimulgida, in essential
structural characters. :

21. Family CAPRIMULGIDZ: Goatsuckers

(So called from a traditional superstition).
Fissirostral Picarie. Head broad, flattened ;
neck inappreciable; eyes and ears large. Bill
extremely small in its horny portion, which is
depressed, and triangular when viewed from
above, but with enormous gape reaching )be-
low the eye, and generally with bristles attain-
: ing an extraordinary development. Nostrils

Fie. 289, — Whippoorwill, a setirostral Caprimul- basal, exposed, roundish, with a raised border,
gine. (From Tenney, after Wilson.) sometimes prolonged into a tube. Wings
more or less lengthened and pointed, deriving their sweep mainly from elongation of the distal
joints and the feathers, the proximal segment being short; of 10 primaries and more than 9
secondaries; the latter not so extremely short as in Cypselide. Tail variable in shape, of 10

448 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARIA — CYPSELIFORMES.

rectrices. In certain genera, either wing or tail develops a pair of immensely lengthened
feathers. Feet extremely small; tarsus usually short, and partly feathered; hind toe very
short, commonly elevated and turned sideways; front toes connected at base by movable web-
bing, and frequently showing abnormal ratio or phalanges, the 4th toe having but 4 joints
(p. 127, fig. 41); middle toe lengthened beyond the short lateral ones, its claw usually pecti-
nate (fig. 291). The oil-gland is nude, and coeca are present. The arrangement of the leg-
muscles is anomalogonatous (p. 195); the ambiens and accessory femoro-caudal are both
absent.

A definitely-circumscribed, easily-recognized group of about 14 genera and rather more
than 100 species, of temperate and tropical parts of both hemispheres. They are all more or less
nocturnal, and have a certain resemblance to owls, — particularly the genus Steatornis, which is
quite owlish. The flight is perfectly noiseless ; the plumage is very soft and lax, as in owls,
and the colors are usually blended in the most intricate pattern. The Caprimulgide are
divisible, according to the structure of the feet, into two subfamilies: Podargine, chiefly Old
World, with the normal ratio of phalanges, and Caprimulging (as below). Considering, how-
ever, other points, particularly the shape of the sternum, a more elaborate division is into qd)
Podargine, phalanges normal, tarsus naked and lengthened, sternuin doubly-notched, with
three genera (Podargus, Batrachostomus, and Afvgotheles of the Old World; (2) Nyctibiine,
phalanges normal, tarsus short, feathered, sternum doubly-notched, upper mandible toothed,
containing one genus (Myctibius) of tropical America ; (3) Steatornithine, phalanges normal,
sternum singly-notched, with one remarkable genus (Steatornis) of tropical America, which
might properly be made type of a separate family, so many are the peculiarities of this owlish
bird; and finally (4) Caprimulgine, comprising the rest of the family. The latter alone is
represented in North America. Our ‘‘ Whippoorwills” are typically caprimulgine, and give a
good idea of the essential characters of the family; our ‘‘ Night-hawks” are more aberrant,
representing a particular section of the subfamily; but neither of these gives any hint of the
singular shapes which some of the genera assume.

¥ 30. Subfamily CAPRIMULCINA:: True Coatsuckers; Night-jars.

Sternum singly-notched on each side behind; its body not
square. Ratio of phalanges abnormal. Outer toe 4-jointed ;
middle claw pectinate; hind toe very short, elevated, semi-lateral;
antertor toes movably webbed at base (fig. 41); lateral toes not
nearly reaching base of middle claw. Tarsus very short, com-
monly much feathered (longer and naked in Nyctidromus and
Phalenoptilus). Besides the semipalmation of the feet, there
is another curious analogy to wading birds; for the young are
downy at birth, as in Precoces, instead of naked, as is the rule
f among Altrices. The plumage is soft and‘lax, much as in the
Owls; the birds have the same noiseless flight, as well as, in
most cases, nocturnal or crepuscular habits; and some of them
bear an odd resemblance to Owls. Besides this fluffiness and
laxity of the plumage, the skin is very thin and tender; it is
difficult to make good specimens of the whippoorwills, and the
curiously variegated blended shades, of exquisite beauty, like
the powdery coloration of a moth’s wings, are at best not easy

Fie. 290, — Night-hawk, a glab- : ; : j :
rirostral Caprimulgine. (From Ten- to describe. An evident design of the capacious mouth is the

ney, after Wilson.) capture of insects; the active birds quarter the air with wide-
open mouth, and their minute prey is readily taken in. But they also secure larger insects in
other ways; and to this end the rictus is frequently strongly bristled, as in the Tyrannide. In

127.

CAPRIMULGID4 — CAPRIMULGINZ:: TRUE GOATSUCKERS. 449

all our genera excepting Chordediles, the rictal bristles are an inch or more in length, in a firm
regular series along the gape—they are relatively longer and stiffer than the whiskers of a cat.
Our several genera are readily discriminated by good characters of the nostrils, enormous rictal
bristles, and comparatively short wings of the Night-jars proper, in comparison with the slight
bristles, forked tail and long pointed wings of Chordediles; they respectively represent two

“sections of the subfamily — Setirostres, bristled-billed (fig. 289), and Glabrirostres, smooth- .

billed (fig. 290). In both the feet are so extremely short that the birds cannot perch in the
usual way, but sit lengthwise on a large branch, or crouch on the ground. They lay two
lengthened. white or thickly spotted eggs, on or near the ground, in stumps, etc. The sexes
are distinguishable, but nearly alike. The voice is peculiar, and has given several of the
species their fanciful onomatopoetic names. Migratory.

Oss. Since the orig. ed. of the Key was published, a fine genus and species, Nyctidromus
albicollis, has been added tu our Fauna. ‘‘ Nuttall’s Whippoorwill” has been made the type of
a new genus, Phalenoptilus, on the ground of its naked feet, short square tail, and other good
characters. The common whippoorwill has been referred back to the old genus Caprimuilgus.
While it certainly differs from the chuck-will’s-widow, type of Antrostomus, in not having the
rictal bristles garnished with lateral filaments, and is not very obviously different from Capri-
mulgus of the Old World, it may be best to keep it with Amntrostomus, where all the New
World species are usually referred, until the limits of the respective genera are better under-

stood.
Analysis of Genera.

A, Setirostres. Long rictal bristles. Plumage very lax.
Tarsus extensively feathered. Nostrils not extensively tubular.
Tail rounded, much shorter than wing. Primaries all mottled, without white spaces. Eggs
colored. Large and medium-sized . . . 3 pe A . » Antrostomus 128
Tarsus naked, except on joint above. Nostrils extensively tubular.
Tail square, much shorter than wing. Primaries all mottled, without white spaces. Eggs color-
less. Small (Western.) . . a e Sos Ji ow a ee . Phalenoptilus 129
Tail rounded, about as long as wing. Outer primaries mostly whole-colored, with great white
spaces. Eggscolored. Very large (Southwestern.). P : ‘ . Nyctidromus 127
B. Glabrirostres. No long rictal bristles. Plumage more compact.
Tarsus moderately feathered. Nostrils not extensively tubular.
Tail forked, much shorter than the pointed wing. Outer primaries mostly whole-colored, with
great white spaces. Eggs colored. Medium-sized ‘ ch. cheep ce te (VE, oe . Chordediles 130

NYCTIDROMUS. (Gr. wé, gen.
vusros, nux, nuctos, night; Spédpos,
dromos, act of coursing. Fig. 291.)
Nicut Coursers. Nostrils prolonged
as cylindric tubes opening forward and
outward. Rictal bristles immense,
simple ; other bristle-tipped or bristle-
bearded feathers about the bill. Tar-
sus lengthened, but not exceeding the
middle toe without claw, naked except
just on the joint. Wing scarcely
rounded; tipped by 2d, 3d, and 4th
quills, 1st longer than 5th, folding to
about the middle of the tail, which is
rounded, and approximately of equal
length with the wing. Plumage not Fic. 291, —Head, foot, and pectinated claw of Nyctidromus,
so lax as in a whippoorwill; in this, as nat. size. (Ad nat. del. R. Ridgway.)

in the stiffish primaries with little marbling but great white spaces, and the under parts barred
crosswise, is seen an approach to Chordediles, between which genus and Phalenoptilus Nycti-

29

395.

128.

450 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PICARLA — CYPSELIFORMES.

dromus probably comes. One or two species, long well known in tropical America, lately
found N. to Texas.
N. albicol/lis. (Lat. albus, white; collum, neck.) WHITE-THROATED NIGHT-COURSER.
Pavurague. Adult ¢: Assuming brownish-gray as the ground color of the upper parts:
Crown heavily dashed with black streaks along the middle line, with narrow black shaft-lines
at the sides and on nape. Back more diffusely streaked with black in smaller pattern, tending
to break up in chains of shaft-spots, and with lighter gray and brown marbling. Scapulars
and tertiaries boldly and beautifully marked with firm, even, sharp lines of white or tawny-
white —the arrow-headed edgings of angular black terminal fields. Wing-coverts curiously
mottled with black, white, and tawny —the white and tawny conspicuous as large irregularly
roundish spots. Five outer primaries with a large oblique white spot, on the lst at about its
middle, on the others nearing their ends; these primaries otherwise plain blackish, except a
little marbling at their ends — the whole effect thus as in Chordediles. Other primaries and all
the secondaries blackish, fully scalloped and barred with tawny in increasing amount and regu-
larity from without inward. Four middle tail-feathers clouded with the same variegated colors
as the other upper parts, but without definite white — the markings tending to wavy cross-buars.
Next two lateral feathers on each side with great white spaces on one or both webs at end, 2-3
inches long, the rest of these feathers chiefly barred with black and tawny ; outer feather chiefly
black, but with marbling, and with white and tawny. LEar-coverts rich chestnut, well con-
trasted with surroundings. Throat with a broad white collar, some of the white feathers black-
tipped. Under parts ochraceous or pale tawny, varied with whitish, and pretty regularly
barred crosswise with blackish-brown, thus somewhat as in Chordediles. Length 13.00;
extent 25.00: wing and tail, each, 7.5); tail graduated 1.00; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and
claw 1.25. Another Texas specimen (perhaps 9, but with even more white on the tail, but
white on only £ primaries) is much smaller: length about 10.50; wing 6.50; tail 6.00. The
species is said to be very variable in size and markings; Q to have the collar buff. Tropical
America, N. to Texas, where common in the valley of the Lower Rio Grande. Eggs 2, laid
on the ground ; 1.25 X 0.92, creamy-buff, spotted with pinkish, brown, and lilac.
ANTRO/STOMUS. (Gr. dzpov, antron, a cave; ordpa, stoma, mouth; alluding to the cav-
ernous mouth. Fig. 292.) AMERICAN
NIGHT-JARS. Nostrils oval, with a raised
rim not prolonged as a tube, opening up-
ward and outward. Rictal bristles im-
mense, with or without lateral filaments,
and other bristly or bristle-bearded feathers
about the bill. Tarsus not longer than
middle toe without claw, feathered in front
nearly to the toes. Wing rounded, tipped
by 2d and 3d quills, folding to beyond the
middle of the tail, which is rounded (not
enough so in fig. 293) and much shorter
than wing. Plumage very lax, with mi-
Fie. 292. — Head and foot of Whippoorwill, nat. size. nutely marbled coloration, in some places
(Adnat. del: B-RElg ways as if dusted or frosted over; primaries
weak, all mottled with tawny, without great white spaces; under parts mottled, with little
tendency to regular crosswise barring; markings of crown longitudinal. Size medium and
rather large; sexes distinguishable; eggs 2, heavily colored. Highly nocturnal. Containing
those shadowy birds, consorts of bats and owls, — those scarce-embodied voices of the night,
here, there, and everywhere unseen, but shrilling on the ear with sorrow-stricken iteration.

‘

CAPRIMULGIDZ — CAPRIMULGINZ: TRUE GOATSUCKERS. 4061

Analysis of Species.

Large: rictal bristles garnished with lateral filaments. Tail with large whole-colored spaces in 6 only
(Antrostomus proper) oa ah eS ee SAS oath te ibe cbs AEE “isin Sp carolinensis 396
Small: rictal bristles simple. Tail with white spaces in both sexes (Caprimulgus?) . . » vociferus 397
396. A. carolinen’sis. (Lat. Carolinian.) CHUCK-WILL’s-wipow. The rictal bristles with
lateral filaments. Singularly variegated with black, white, brown, tawny, and rufous, the
prevailing tone fulvous ; a whitish or tawny throat-bar ; several lateral tail-feathers with large
whole-colored space in the @, all variegated in the 9. Adult #: Taking dark wood-brown
as the ground color of the upper parts, this is heavily dashed with black, lengthwise on the
crown in large pattern, elsewhere similar in smaller styie, everywhere minutely ptnctulated

RS See
ES AN:

ad

Fie. 293. — Whippoorwill, } nat. size. (From Brehm. Tail not rounded enough.)

with ochrey and gray, as if dusted over; wing-coverts and inner quills more boldly varied with
black centre-fields and tawny or whitish edgings of the feathers. Four middle tail-feathers
singularly clouded with gray and tawny on a seeming black ground, the pattern tending cross-
wise. All the other tail-feathers with the inner webs having 2-3 inch long whole-colored
spaces, white viewed from above, tawny seen from below (a curious difference, which has
caused some confusion in descriptions of the sexes of this bird); their outer webs mottled with
black and tawny. Primaries black, fully mottled with broken-up tawny-reddish cross-bars.
General tone of the under parts ochraceous, becoming quite so posteriorly, with pronounced
tendency to black cross-waves. Length 11.00-12.00 ; extent about 25.00; wing 8.00 or more ;
tail 5.00 or more; whole foot 1.75. @ only differs in lacking the whole-colored spaces on the
tail, all the feathers being motley throughout; primaries more closely mottled with reddish ;

397.

881.

129.

452 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARIA — CYPSELIFORMUES.

rather smaller. South Atlantic and Gulf States, Carolina to Indian Territory, Texas and N.
Mexico, S. to Central America; resident on our southern border. Twice as bulky as a whip-
poorwill, the general tone rufous. Eggs 2, 1.45 x 1.05, heavily marked in intricate pattern
with browns and neutral tints.

A. voci'ferus. (Lat. vociferus, voice-bearing. Figs. 289, 292, 293.) WHIPPOORWILL.
Nigur-Jar. The rictal bristles simple. Upper parts variegated with gray, black, whitish, and
tawny ; prevailing tone gray ; black streaks sharp on the head and back, the colors elsewhere
delicately marbled, including the four median tail-feathers ; wings and their coverts with bars of
rufous spots; lateral tail-feathers black, with large white (@) or small tawny (@) terminal
spaces; a white (@) or tawny (9) throat-bar. Adult g: Assuming stone-gray~as the
ground-color uf the upper parts: Crown with a purplish cast, heavily dashed lengthwise with
black ; back darker, with smaller streaks; tail beautifully marbled with slate-gray and black
tending erosswise on the 4 middle feathers ; scapulars with bold black centre-fields set in frosty
marbling; hind neck with white specks, as if continued around from the white throat-bar.
Primaries black, with a little marbling at their ends, fully broken-barred with tawny-reddish ;
no white spaces. Three lateral tail-feathers mostly black, with pure white terminal spaces
1-2 inches long. Under parts quite blackish, on the breast powdered over with hoary-gray,
more posteriorly marbled with gray and tawny, tending crosswise. Lores and ear-coverts dark
brown. It is only in perfect plumage that the colors are as slaty and frosty as described ;
ordinarily more brown and ochrey. Length 9.00-10.00; extent 16.00-18.00; wing 6.00 or
more ; tail 5.00 or less; whole foot 1.40; the distance across from one corner of the mouth to
the other about as much as length of gape. Q, adult: General tone more brownish and ochrey ;
throat-bar tawny-whitish ; tail-spaces very slight and ochraceous; rather smaller. Eastern -
U. S. and British Provinces to the central plains, abundant, migratory ; breeds throughout, but
chiefly northerly; winters beyond. A shady character, oftener heard than seen, of recluse
nocturnal habits and perfectly noiseless flight, in the breeding season ceaseless in uttering
its strange uncouth cries with startling vehemence. The notes are likened to the phrase which
has given the name; they are very rapidly reiterated, with strong accent on the last syllable;
when very near, a clicking sound, and sometimes low murmuring tones, may also be heard.
No nest; 2 eggs on ground or log or stump, 1.25 X 0.90, creamy-white, heavily marked with
browns and neutral tints. The young are helpless, shapeless, downy masses; both eggs and
young are often removed in the parent’s mouth if disturbed, as a cat carries off her kittens, —a
practice, however, habitual in this curious family of birds. Unlike the night-hawk, the whip-
poorwill rarely flies by day, unless flushed from its shady retreats.

(addenda) A. v. arizona. Arizona WHIPPOORWILL. Similar: larger: rictal bristles longer.
@: Throat-bar and superciliary streak ochraceous; lores and ear-coverts tawny ; white spaces
on tail short; under tail-coverts nearly unbarred.
Length 10.20; extent 19.40; wing 6.65; tail 4.45;
longest rictal bristle 1.80; longest tail-spot 1.55.
Arizona. Perhaps approaching A. macromystax.
PHALANO'PTILUS. (Gr. fddawa, phalaina, a
moth; mridov, ptilon, feather: alluding to the pow-
dery plumage, like the furriness of a moth’s wings.
Fig. 294.) Poor-wints. Nostrils tubular, cylin-
dric, opening forward and outward. Rictal bristles
immense, but simple. Tarsus naked except just on
the joint above (as in Nyctidromus), as long as mid-
dle toe without claw. Tailsquare, much shorter
than the rounded wings, which fold nearly to its Fie. 294, — Head and foot of Nuttall’s Poor-
end. Plumage peculiarly soft and velvety, in hoar- WH, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. R Ridgway.)

398.

130.

CAPRIMULGIDZ— CAPRIMULGINZ: TRUE GOATSUCKERS. 453

frosted pattern of coloration. Markings of crown transverse; primaries barred with black and
tawny. Size small. Sexes alike. Note dissyllabic. Eggs white.

P. nut'talli, (To Thos. Nuttall.) Nurraty’s Poor-witt. ¢ 9, adult: Assuming the
upper parts of a beautiful bronzy-gray ground color, this is elegantly frosted over with soft
silver-gray, and watered in wavy cross-pattern with black, these black double crescents enlarg-
ing to herring-bone marks on the scapulars and inner quills. Four middle tail-feathers patterned
after the back; others with firmer black bars on motley brown ground, and short white tips.
Primaries and longer secondaries bright tawny, with pretty regular black bars, and marbled
tips (the half-opened wing viewed from below is curiously like that of the short-eared owl.)
A large firm silky-white throat-bar. Under parts grounded in blackish-brown, giving way
behind through ochrey with dark bars to nearly uniform ochrey. It is impossible in words to
give an idea of the artistic blending of the colors in this elegant little night-jar. The sexes

Fic. 295. — Night-hawk, or Bull-bat, 2? nat. size. (From Brehm. Bill too bristly.)

searcely differ ; specimens before me marked @ have as purely white throat as the ¢, but the
tail-tips are shorter and tinged with tawny. Length 7.00-8.00; extent 15.00; wing about 5.50;
tail 3.50 or less; tarsus, or middle toe without elaw, 0.65. Plains to the Pacific, U. 8. and
southward, abundant. Note of two syllables, the first of the “ whippoorwill” omitted. Eggs
2, 1.05 X 0.80, elliptical, white.

CHORDEDI'LES. (Gr. yopd4, chorde, a stringed musical instrument; Sein, evening:
alluding to the crepuscular habits.) NiGuT-HAWKS. Glabrirostral: the rictus without long stiff
bristles. Horny part of beak extremely small. Nostrils cylindric and rimmed about, hardly tubu-
lar, opening outward and upward. Tarsus feathered part way down in front. Tail lightly forked,
much shorter than the extremely long, pointed, stiff, and thin-bladed wing, with 1st primary
as long as the next. Plumage more compact and smooth than in the night-jars ; primaries
mostly whole-colored (in C. texensis spotted), with large white (or tawny) spaces on the outer
4-6; under parts barred across; a large white (or tawny) V-shaped throat-bar. Eggs 2,
heavily colored. Not strictly nocturnal. Remarkably volitorial.

N

399.

400.

401.

402.

404 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLZ — CYPSELIFORMES.

Analysis of Species.
Large: wing near 8.00. Primaries dusky, with large white spot on 5 of them, in both sexes, about half

way from bend to point of the wing . . popetue 399, 400, 401
Small: wing about 7.00. Primaries more or less spotted with awass with large white (¢') or tawny (2)
spaces on 4 of them nearer point than bend of the wing. (Southwestern.) 2 é . tezensis 402

C. popetue. (Vox barb., incog. Figs. 290, 295.) NiGHT-HAWK. BULL-BaT. Above, mot-
tled with black, brown, gray and tawny, the former in excess : below from the breast transversely
barred with blackish and white or pale fulvous ; throat witli a large white ( ¢) or tawny (2)
eross-bar ; tail blackish, with distant pale marbled cross-bars and a large white spot (wanting in
the 2 ) on one or both webs of nearly all the feathers toward the end ;_ primaries dusky, unmarked
except by one large white spot on outer fice. about midway between their base and tip ; second-
aries like primaries, but with whitish tips and imperfect cross-bars. Sexes nearly alike: 9?
with the white spaces on the quills, but that on the tail replaced by tawny or not evident.
Young similar, with the wing-spots from the nest, but the markings finer and more intricately
blended, in effect more like Antrostomus: quills edged and tipped with tawny. Length 9.00 or
more; extent about 23.00; wing about $.09; tail 4.50; whole foot 1.25: culmen scarcely 0.25 ;
gape about 1.25. Temperate N. Am..chietly Eastern, abundant; migratory ; breeds through-
out its range; winters beyond. This species flies abroad at all times, though it is perhaps
most active towards evening and in dull weather; and is generally seen in companies, busily
foraging for insects with rapid, easy. and protracted flight; in the breeding season it performs
curious evolutions, falling through the air with a loud booming sound. Eggs 2. elliptical, 1.52
x 0.87, finely variegated with stone-gray and other neutral tints, over which is scratched and
fretted dark olive-gray: but the pattern and tints are very variable. The young hatch covered
with fluffy down, whitish below, varied with blackish and brown above. It may be necessary
in this family for the young to be covered from the first, to protect them from the cold ground.
On being disturbed while brooding the female feigns lameness, dragging and fluttering about,
moaning piteously, and will sometimes remove her young.

C. p. hen'ryi. :To Dr. T. C. Henry.) WerstTerx Nicut-nawk. The lighter-colored form
prevailing in the dryer or unwooded portions of western United States; the gray and fulvous
in excess of the darker hues, the white patches on the wing, tail and throat usually larger; the
under tail-coverts more nearly uniform ; but no specific character can be assigned.

C. p. minor. (Lat. minor, smaller.) CUBAN NIGHT-HAWK. A form found in the West
Indies, similar to C. popetue in color, but rather more tawny, and decidedly smaller: wing
7-00; tail 4.00. Florida.

C. acutipen’nis texen'sis. (Lat. acutus, acute; penna, a feather: alluding to the sharp-
pointed wings. Of Texas: our bird a northem race of the 8. Am. species.) TExas NIGHT-
HAWK. Smaller than the foregoing, and otherwise very distinct. General tone lighter, pattern
more blended and diffuse, more as in an Antrostomus. 2, adult: Assuming upper parts gray,
this color intimately punctate with lighter and darker shades, more boldly marked with blackish,
chiefly in streaks, and with tawny and white, largest on the scapulars and wing-coverts.
Under parts barred, as in popetue, with blackish, tawny, and whitish, but the two former pre-
vailing. A large white V on the throat. Four outer primaries with large white spot on both
webs, nearer tip than bend of the wing; inner primaries and all the secondaries spotted with
tawny in broken bars. Tail blackish, with broken gray or tawny bars, and a complete sub-
terminal cross-bar of white on all the feathers but the central pair. @Q lacking this white, all
the tail-feathers being motley-barred with gray and tawny throughout; the primaries all spotted
with tawny, larger spots of this color replacing the white of the ¢: throat-V tawny. Young
more suffused with tawny on a pearly-gray, blaek-speckled ground; but young ¢ with the
white tail- and wing-spots from the first. Length 8.00 or more: extent 20.00-22.00; wing
about 7.00; tail 4.00. S.W. U.8., valleys of Rio Grande and Colorado, Texas to California

CYPSELIDZ: SWIFTS.

455

and southward, common. General habits and traits of a night-hawk, but the difference between
the two is obvious when they are flying. Eggs 2, heavily veined and marbled, 1.20 0.87.

22. Family CYPSELIDZA: Swifts.

Fic. 296. Northern Black Cloud Swift, nat. size. (E. H. Fitch.)

Fissirostral Picarie :
Bill very small, flattened,
triangular when viewed
from above, with great
gape reaching below the
eyes; unnotched, unbris-
tled, the gape about six
times as long as the cul
men. Nostrils. exposed,
superior, nearer culmen
than commissure, the
frontal feathers tending to
reach forward under them.
Wings extremely long,
thin, and pointed (fre-
quently as long as the
whole bird); the prima-
ries acute and somewhat
falcate; the secondaries
extremely short (nine ?).
Tail of 10 reetrices, va-'
riable in shape, often
mucronate. Feet small,
weak, the envelope rather
skinny than scaly; tarsi
naked or feathered ; hind
toe frequently elevated, or
versatile, or permanently
turned sideways or even
forward; lateral toes near-
ly or quite as long as
the middle; anterior toes

_ deeply cleft, the basal

phalanges extremely short,
the penultimate very long,
the number of phalanges
frequently abnormal (2, 3,
3, 3, instead of 2, 3, 4, 5;
see p. 127, fig. 40); claws
sharp, curved, never pecti-
nate» Plumage compact,
usually sombre and whole-
colored, or only relieved
with white; sexes alike.
Sternum _—_ deep - keeled,

131.

403.

456 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — CYPSELIFORMES.

widening behind, its posterior margin entire: furculum stout, rather U- than V-shaped. Oil-
gland nude. No ecaea. Leg-museles anomalogonatous (p. 195); femoro-caudal present, but
accessory femoro-caudal, semitendinosus. accessory semitendinosus and ambiens absent. Eggs
several, narrowly oval. white.

“One of the most remarkable points in the structure of the Cypselide is the great devel-
opment of the salivary glands. In all the species of which the nidification is known, the
secretion thus produced is used more or less in the construction of the nest. In most cases it
forms a glue by whieh the other materials are joined together, and the whole nest is affixed to a
rock, wall, or other object against which it is placed. In some species of Collocalia. however,
the whole nest is made up of inspissated saliva, and becomes the ‘edible bird's nest’ so well
known in the East.” (SCLATER.)

A well-defined family of 6 or S$ genera and about 50 spevies. inhabiting temperate and warm
parts of the globe. They are rather small birds. of plain plumage. closely resembling swallows
in superficial respects, but with no real affinity to these Oscines. Notwithstanding the utmost
difference in the shape of the bill, the real affinities are with the tenuirostral Trochilide in
every structural peculiarity. They are birds of extraordinary volitorial ability, being only sur-
passed in this respect by the hummers themselves. The’ family is divisible into two subfami-
lies, according to the structure of the feet.

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.
CYPSELINE. Front toes with 3 joints apiece. Hind toe lateral or versatile. Tarsi feathered.
Toes feathered. Tail not spiny : Panyptila 131
CHETURINE. Front toes with 3 4, and 5 joints from i inner to outer: “Hing toe posterior or lateral, but
not reversed. Tarsi and toes naked.

Tail emarginate, not mucronate a . Nephecetes 132
Tail rounded, mucronate Chetura 133

31. Subfamily CYPSELINA:: Typical Swifts.

Ratio of the phalanges abnormal, the 3d and 4th toes having each 3 joints like the 2d:
basal phalanges of all the anterior toes very short (fig. £0). Hind toe reversed (in Cypselus,
where nearly all the species belong), or lateral (in Panyptila). Tarsi feathered (in Cypselus) ;
toes also feathered (in Panyptila\. Contains only these two genera and nearly half the species
of the family. Of Panyptila there are only three well-determined species. all American ; while
Cypselus has upward of twenty, mostly of the Old World; the three or four American ones
being sometimes detached under the name of Tachornis.

PANY’PTILA. (Gr. wavy, panu, much, very: wor, ptilon, wing: in allusion to the length
of wing.) Rock Swirts. Tail about } as long as wing. forked, with stiffish and narrowed,
but uot spiny feathers. Wing pointed by the 2d primary. the Ist decidedly shorter. Tarsi
feathered to the toes; these also feathered to some extent. Hind toe elevated, lateral, but not
reversible. Front toes with slight basal webs. Eyelids naked. Colors black and white.

P. saxa/tilis. (Lat. savatilis, rock-inhabiting : sarum, a rock.) WHITE-THROATED Rock
Swirt. Black or blackish; chin, throat, breast, and middle line of belly. tips of secondaties.
edge of outer primary and lateral tail-feathers, and a flank-patch, white. Forehead and line
over eye pale; a velvety black space before eye. Bill black; feet drying yellowish. The
purity of the color varies with the wear of the feathers, some specimens being dull sooty
brownish, others more purely and even glossy blackish. The extent of the white along the
belly is very variable. The flank-patches are conspicuous. in life sometimes almost meeting
over the rump. Length 6.50-7.00; extent about 14.00: wing the same as total length ; tail
about 2.66, forked, soft. Southwestern U. 8. and southward. breeding in colonies on cliffs; a
large and beautiful swift —a high-flier of almost incredible velocity, with a loud shrill twitter,
nesting in the most inaccessible places, sometimes by thousands. The eggs do not appear to
have been taken yet, but are presumed to be white. as in all the species the eggs of which are
known. Found N. to Wyoming. Utah, and Nevada.

132.

404.

133.

405.

CYPSELIDA — CHAETURINZ: SPINE-TAIL SWIFTS. 457

32. Subfamily CHATURINA:: Spine-tail Swifts.

Toes with the normal number of phalanges; all but
the penultimate ones extremely short. Anterior toes cleft
to the base (no webbing). Hind toe not reversed, but
sometimes versatile; our species have it obviously ele-
vated. Tarsi never feathered; naked and skinny, even
on the tibio-tarsal joint. In the principal genus, Che-
tura, containing about half the species of the subfamily,
of various parts of the world, the tail-feathers are stiffeued
and mucronate by the projecting rhachis. The other
Aes ap genera are Collocalia and Dendrochelidon of the Old
es : a ae ee, World; Cypseloides, and the scarcely different Nephace-
nat, size, (Ad nat. del. E. C.) tes, of the New.

NEPHG’'CETES. (Gr. védos, nephos, a cloud; oixérns, oiketes, an inhabitant: well applied to
these high-flyers.) Cioup Swirts. Tail forked or emarginate, with obtusely-pointed but non

mucronate stiffish feathers. First primary longest. Tarsi naked, skinny. Hind toe elevated,
but perfectly posterior. Front toes cleft to the base. Nostrils embedded in feathers. Unicolor.

N. ni’ger borea/lis. (Lat. niger, black; borealis, northern. Our species is a variety of the
West Indian WV. niger. Fig. 296.) Norruern Buack CLoup Swirr. ¢ 9, adult. Entire
plumage sooty-black, with slight greenish gloss, little paler below than above, the feathers of
head and belly with grayish edges. A velvety black area in front of eye ; forehead hoary; eye-
lids partly naked. Bill black: — t probably dusky-purplish in life. Length 6.50-7.00; wing
the same; tail 2.75, forked ~early 0.50 in the adult ¢, merely emarginate in the ? ; tarsus
0.50; middle toe and claw about the same. Young: Tail rounded; plumage dull blackish, nearly
every feather skirted with white, especially noticeable on belly, rump, and upper tail-coverts and
inner wing quills; crissum mostly white; supposed to require several years to perfect the black
plumage. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. 8S. and British Columbia; a great black swift still
little known ; supposed to nest in cliffs up to 11,000 feet ; ranges to about 13,000; crops found
filled with Ephemeride.

CHAETU'RA. (Gr. xairn, chaite, a bristle; ovpa, oura, a tail. Fig. 297.) Spine-Tain
Swirts. Tail short, less than half as long as wing, even or a little rounded, mucronate, — the
stiff spiny shafts of the feathers protruding like needles beyond the webs. First primary longest.
Tarsi naked and skinny. Hind toe elevated, but posterior. Front toes all of about the same
length, cleft to the base. Feathers reaching to but not far below the nostrils. Unjcolor or
bicolor (our species one-colored, sombre). Sexes alike.

C. pelas’gica. (Gr. MeAacyoi, the Pelasgot, a nomadic tribe ; Lat. pelasgica, i. e., migratory.)
Cuimney Swirt. Cuimney ““SwauLow.” Sooty-brown, with a faint greenish gloss above;
below paler, becoming gray on the throat; wings black ; a velvety black space about eyes.
Length about 5.00; wing the same; extent about 12.50; tail 2.00 or less, even or a little
rounded, spiny. Eastern U. 8., migratory, very abundant in summer. Like the swallows,
which this bird so curiously resembles, not only in its form, but in its mode of flight, its food,
and twittering notes, it has mostly forsaken the ways of its ancestors, who bred in hollow trees,
and now places its curious open-work nest, of bits of twig glued together with saliva, inside
disused chimneys, in settled parts of the country. In districts still primitive, however, it eon-
tinues to use hollow trees, to which it resorts by thousands to roost. Not impossibly winters
in such retreats in a lethargic state! The twigs for its pretty basket-like nest are snapped off
the trees by the birds in full flight. The eggs are 4-5, 0.75 to 0.80 long by 0.53 broad, thus
narrowly elliptical, and pure white. So great are the volitorial powers of this bird, that the
sexes can come together on the wing.

406.

458 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLZE — CYPSELIFORMES.

Cc. vaux'i. (To Wm. 8. Vaux, of Philadelphia.) Vaux’s Swirt. Similar; paler, the rump
and upper tail-coverts lighter than the rest of the upper parts; the throat whitish. Smaller ;
length 4.50; wing the same; tail 1.67. Pacific Coast, U. S., and southward. Seems to be '
different from pelasgica, but perhaps the same as a S. Am. species. Nesting and eggs as in the
common species.

23. Family TROCHILID4: Humming-birds.

x L ' Tenuirostral Picarie. These beau-
a ° tiful little creatures will be known on
sight; and as the limits of this work
preclude any adequate presentation of
the subject, I prefer merely to touch
upon it.

The Trochilida, in all essential struc-
tural characters, are nearest related to
the Cypselida. These two groups have
in fact been united by some in‘a super-
family Macrochires, in allusion to the
length of the hand and its feathers, and
tersely described as schizognathous In-
sessores. The flying-apparatus is as in
the swifts: a very deep-keeled sternum,
for attachment of powerful pectoral mus-
cles, a very short upperarm, but the
distal segments of the fore limb length-
ened, bearing a thin-bladed or even
faleate wing; primaries 10, the 1st
usually longest ; secondaries reduced to 6, and very short. Tail of 10 rectrices, but otherwise
too variable to be characterized, preseuting almost every peculiarity in size and shape as a
whole, in size and shape of individual feathers, and often differing in form as well as color in
the opposite sexes of the same species. Feet extremely small and weak, unfit for progression,
formed exclusively for perching ; tarsi naked or feathered. Hind toe incumbent. Claws all
large, sharp and curved. The bill exhibits the ‘tenuirostral type in perfection, being long and
extremegy slender for its length; it is usually straight, subulate or awl-shaped, or with lancet-
shaped tip; it is often decurved, sometimes recurved, and again bent almost at an angle; in
length it varies from less than the head to more than all the rest of the bird. The cutting
edges of the mandibles are inflected: the rictus is devoid of bristles. The nostrils are linear,
with a supereumbent scale or opereulum, sometimes naked, oftener feathered. In size the
Hummers average the least of all birds, the giants among them alone reaching a length of 6 or
7 inches, the pygmies being under 3 inches; the usual stature is 3 or 4 inches. In a few the
coloration is plain, or even sombre; most have glittering iridescent tints — “‘ the most gor-
geously brilliant metallic hues known athong created things.” The sexes are usually unlike
in color. :

The chief anatomical peculiarity is the structure of the tongue, which somewhat resembles
that of woodpeckers, in being protrusible or capable of being thrust far out of the beak by a
muscular mechanism connected with the long horns of the hyoid or tongue-bone, which curve
up around the back of the skull, The tongue is in effect a double-barrelled tube, supposed to
be used to suck the sweets of flowers. The character of the sternum and wing-bones has been
already mentioned. How perfectly the feet are fitted for grasping and perching may be inferred

Fia. 298, —Humming-birds. (From Michelet.)

TROCHILIDZE — TROCHILINA:: HUMMING-BIRDS. 459

from the fact that, as in Passeres proper, the flexor longus hallucis is independent of the flexor
longus digitorum, — that is, the muscle which bends the hind toe works separately from that
which flexes the other toes collectively. The arrangement of the thigh muscles is the same as
in Cypselide. There is one carotid artery, the left; a nude oil-gland; no ceca. The pterylosis
is characteristic.

The food of the Hummers was formerly supposed to be the sweets of flowers. It is now
known that they are chiefly insectivorous. Their little nests are models of architectural beauty.
The eggs are always two in number. The young hatch weak and helpless, requiring to be fed
by the parents, the Hummers being thus of altricial nature. The voice is not musical.

The family is one of the most perfectly circumscribed in ornithology, and one of the largest
of its grade. So intimately and variously are the genera interrelated that every attempt to
divide it into subfamilies has proven unsatisfactory. The hummers are peculiar to America.
Species occur from Alaska to Patagonia; but we have a mere sprinkling in this country. The
centre of abundance is in :
tropical South America,
particularly New Gra-
nada. Nearly 500 spe-
cies are current; the
number of positively spe-
cific forms may be esti-
mated at about 400 or
more. The genera or
subgenera vary with au-
thors from 50 to 150.
The latest critical author-
ity upon the subject gives
426 species, assigned to
125 genera. (Hlliot.)

None of the known
N. A. Hummers exhibits
the extremes of shape of : 3
pill or tail which some of : RR QSOW ESA
the tropical genera illus- Frc. 299. — Ruby-throated Humming-birds, g, 9, and nest, nearly nat. size.
trate; in only one (Calo- (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
thorax lucifer) is the bill decidedly curved. Only one species is as much as 4 inches long, —
the magnificent Hugenes fulgens. Some curious shapes of tail, including marked sexual
characters in this respect, are exhibited by certain genera.

Only one species, the common Ruby-throat, is known to oceur in the East; this was the
only one known to Wilson. Audubon gave four species, but one of them erroneously. Since
his time, however, new forms of these exquisite ‘creatures have successively been brought to
light over our Mexican border. In 1858, Baird gave seven (one of them Lampornis mango,
erroneously, as Audubon had done). In 1872, in the ‘‘ Key,” I was able to increase the number
to ten, but with two wrongly given (the Lampornis and Agyrtria linnei). The same ten, with
the two errors, were given by Baird and Ridgway in 1874. Within a few years the discoveries
have been so many, that, after eliminating the two errors, I am able to describe no fewer than
jifteen perfectly distinct species of United States Humming-birds; and I have no doubt that
several others will in due time be found over our Mexican border.

The discrimination of the females and young is difficult; but with the adult males there
should be no trouble. The following table is intended to enable the student to tell the genus
and species directly of any U. 8. Hummer, if the specimen he has in hand be an adult male.

460

SYSTEMATIC SYNOVSIS. — PICARLE — CYPSELIFORMES.

If a female or young, he must refer to the detailed deseriptions. He will be much assisted by
the figures of gencric details, drawn from nature by Mr. R. Ridgway for Mr D. G. Elliot's
monograph, and kindly loaned to me by Prof. Baird.

\

Analysis af Genera and Species of VN. A, Prochilida (adult mates),

Frontal feathers not fully covering nasal scale. Tarsi featherod. Tail emarginate, Bill broad, in part
flesh-colored.

Nasal scale entirely naked. ‘
White stripo on head. Crown, face, and chin, black, Tailrufous . . ©. Basilinna wantusi 407

Nasal scale partly naked.
Crown green; throat blue; tail blackish, 6.0. 6. Ee eg Jacke latirostris 421
Throat green; tail rufous; sidesrufous. 2. . ‘ Fi ke S wlmasilia cerviniventris 420
Throat green; tail rufous; sides green a ae er a AAmaziliasuscocaudata 419

Frontal feathers covering nasal scale,

Bill not perfectly straight.
Bill curved throughout. Tail forked, with almost filiform lateral feather... Calothoray lucifer 418
Bill nearly straight, Length over 4 inches. Throat and breast greon .. » Rugenesfulgens 408
Bill perfectly straight. Length under 4 inches,
Crown as well as throat with metallic scales,
Scales lilac-erimson, Lateral tail-feather parallel-edged. 20. 6. 6. 6. . Calypteanna 414
Scales violet. Lateral tail-feather acutely faleate . ae ae ere Calypte coste 415
Crown simply glossy, like back; throat with metallic scales,
Middle tail-foathers unlike back in color.
* Scales contined to ends of throat-feathers, their bases snow-white 2.0. Stella calliope 417
Middle tail-feathers like back in color; thront-scales forming a continuous surface,
Lateral tail-feathers white-tipped ; none acuminate, Outer primary abruptly omarginate
and acute, . . wee we ee we we egg ahttiis Reloism 416
Lateral tail-fonthors not white-tipped;, somo or all acuminate,
Throat-scales coppory-rod; back and tail greenish; outer two primaries acuto, fuente;
all the tail-feathors acuminate, the two outer acleular .. .. Selasphorus allend 12
Throat-scales coppery-red; back and tall mostly chestnut; primaries as in 8. rqnes
next to middle tall-feather abruptly notuhod =. 6 6 eee Ntletsphorus rufus A
Throat-scales lilne-red ; back golden-greon; Ist primary emarginate, turned outward,

noxt obliquely incised at end =. , » oo Selasphorus platyecreus 418
Throat-scales opaque black, becoming v iolet poster or ly; back goldon-green ; primarios
not peculiar tow 5‘ Trochilus alevandri 410

Throat-scales ruby-r =e baie polduiiegeecn, Primarios not peculiar (Kastern)
Trochilus colubris 409

134, BASILINNA. (Gr. Bacituwa, basilinna, a queen.) QuEEN Huaamrs. lead appearing
more globose than in any other N. Am. genus, in consequence of the non-extension of the

407.

feathers on base of upper mandible, where they do net reach

opposite those ou chin, leaving the turgid nasal seale entirely
pases exposed. Bill broad at base, tapering regularly to tip, with dis-
tinct supra-nasal grooves; scarcoly longer than head, straight.
Tarsi featherod. Tail ample, all the feathers broad and
rounded; nearly even, in g a little donble-rounded by short-
ness of both lateral and central pair of feathers, in Q simply a
little rounded. No peculiarity of primaries. Sexes uearly alike
in form; @ lacking the greon gorget of @ 5 bill in both sexes

Fig. 300.—Xantus Humming- largely flesh-colored; @ with white stripe on head; uo white
pird, nat. size. (From Elliot.)

on tail of either sox. (N.B. This genus would be better

ranged next after Iache.)

B. xan'tusi. (To L. J. Xantus de Vosoy. Fig. 300.) Xawrus Humarna-ninp. Adult ¢:
Above, and the throat, metallic grass-green ; below, cinnamon-rufous; face blue-black 5 a
white stripe through theeye; wings purplish-dusky ; tail purplish-chestnat, the contral feathers
glossed with golden-greon; Dill losh-colored, black-tipped. Q+ Shining green above, including
central tail-foathers ; below, and tho face, pale rufous, whitening about the vent, and the sides
greenish ; head-stripe rufous, whitening on the auriculars; tail-feathers, except the central,

185.

408.

136.

409.

TROCHILID.F — TROCHILIN-E: HUMMING-BIRDS. 461

chestnut, with a dark terminal spot. Length 3.50; extent £75; wing 2.10; tail 1.25; bill
0.72. Cape St. Lucas.

BU GENES. (Gr. et-yerns. eugenes,well-born.) FULGENT HruMers. Of great size: about 5
inches long. Bill much longer than head. not quite straight, Hattened and slightly widened at
base, subcylindrical in continuity. with lancet-pointed tip. Frontal feathers extending on nasal
seale. Tail ample. in J moderately forked. in Q double-rounded, all the feathers broad, with
rounded ends. Tarsi feathered. A tuft of downy white at insertion of feet. Quter primary
but little narrower er more faleate than the rest. Sexes nearly alike in form. unlike in color.
Bill black : no white on tail of J.

E. fulgens (Lat. fudgens. glittering. Figs. 301,302.) Rervigext Hranoye-pirp. ¢:
Tail simply forked. General body-color shining golden-green above and below. duller on belly
and crissum, on breast showing opaque black when viewed from before backward. Crown

glittering metallic vie

let in proper light. SSS Sar
ae) opaque black viewed ~ =

-: obliquely from behind Jae Hh //
forward. Gorget glit- SAS N\
tering emerald-green S=—— ———
in proper light.opaque

Fie. 301. — Refulgent Humming-bird, head, gTeenish-black from — Fie. 32. — Tail of the same. 3.
nat. size. (From Elliot.) the opposite diree- 2&6 Size .From Elliot.)

tion, White marks about eres. Tail like body, but more brassy. Wing-coverts and lining of

wings like bedy : quills dusky-purplish. Large : length about 5.00; extent 6.50; wing 2.75:

tail 1.75: bill over au inch from the feathers on culmen, nearly 1.50 along gape. 9 : Upper

parts like those of the 2. but crown like back. No emerald gorget, the whole under parts
whitish, specked here and there with green, the throat with dusky specks. Wings as in ¢. but
tail very different; deuble-rounded. both central and lateral feathers shorter than intermediate
ones: middle feathers brassy-green, others the same in decreasing extent, increasing in blackish

towards ends. and squarely tipped with dull white. Smaller: length about £50: wing 2.50;

tail 1.50: bill. however. about as long. Our largest and most magnificent species. lately

discovered in Arizona. Texas?

TRO'CHILUS. (Gr. tp¢,Aos, trochilos, Lat. trochilus, a runner: a plover so named by

Herodotus: by Linneus transferred to Humming-birds.)

Gorcet Huueers. Bill slender and subulate. not widened

at base: frontal feathers covering nasal a

seale. Tailin ¢ forked or emarginate,

with lanceolate feathers: in 9 sim-

ply reundsi or doubdle-rounded, with
broader feathers. Outer four primaries
net peouliar: but the Ist one strongly
eurved or bowed at end inwanls: inner
bind, $. tail, nat. sie, six abruptly smaller and more linear (in
sErus Bibs) @ atleasi). Tarsi naked. Bill black.
A metallic gorget in ¢, not prolonged inte a ruff; ne seales
onerown. @ lacking the corget; and tail white-tipped.
T. co'lubris. (Latinized from the barbarous cvlibri. Figs.
299, 303, 304.) ReuBy-THROATED Hramoye-BIRD. =: Re. wy. = Ran peheoatel Hats
Tail forked, its feathers all narrow and pointed: no scales ming-bind, 7. nat. size. From Ellior)

_ on crown: metallie gorget reflecting ruby-red. Above, golden-green: below. white. the sides

green; wings and tail dasky-purplish. 2: Lacking the gorget; throat white, specked with

410.

137.

411.

462 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — CYPSELIFORMES.

dusky; tail double-rounded, the’ central feathers shorter than the next, the lateral then gradu-
ated; all broaderthan in # to near the end, then rapidly narrowing with concave inner margin;
tail with black bars, and the lateral feathers white-tipped; no rufous on tail in either sex.’
Length of @ 3.25; extent 5.00; wing 1.75; tail 1.25; bill 0.66. 9 smaller: length 2.80;
extent 4.60. Eastern N. Am., especially U. S., abundant in summer, generally seen hovering
about flowers, sometimes in flocks. Feeds on insects, and the sweets of flowers. Nest a beau-
tiful structure, of downy substances, stuccoed with lichens outside; eggs two, white, 0.50
X 0.35.
T. alexan/dri. (To Alexander. Fig. 305.) ALrxanprr HumMMING-BIRD. Size and general
appearance of 7. colubris. @: Tail double-rounded, i. e., centrally emarginate, laterally
Fs rounded: central emargination about 0.10, lateral graduation
i ; |\ anore; the feathers all acuminate, and whole-colored. Upper
y ( parts, including two middle tail-feathers, as in TJ. colubris.
( iP Ny Gorget opaque velvety black, only posteriorly glittering with
violet, sapphire and emerald. Other under parts whitish, green
2 on sides. Length 3.25; wing 1.75 ;.tail 1.25; bill from frontal
feathers 0.75. Q: Tail different from that of ¢, both in shape
Fie. 305,— Alexander Hum- ‘ ‘ x :
ming-bird, tail of young g and 9, aud color; simply slightly rounded (without appreciable central
nat. size. (From Elliot.) emargination), the lateral feathers scarcely acuminate; middle
feathers like the back, darkening at ends; others with broad purplish-black space near end,
and white-tipped; thus so closely resembling colubris 9 that the lack of decided emargina-
tion of the tail is the principal character. No gorget, the throat whitish with dusky specks.
California, Utah, Arizona, and probably other portions of SW. U. 8.
SELAS/PHORUS. (Gr. cédas, light; gopds, bearing.) Liguryinc Hummers. Bill slender
and subulate; frontal feathers covering nasal scale. Tail in ¢ 9 graduated or rounded, not
forked, and extensively rufous or tipped with white. The central much broader than the lateral
feathers. Details of shapes of the feathers varying with the species, and with the sexes (sce
descriptions, and figs. 306, 307). Outer primary, or two outer ones, of ¢ abruptly attenuate,
the end bowed; inner six primaries not abruptly narrower than those further outward.
Tarsi naked. Bill black. A metallic gorget in @, little or not produced into a ruff; no
scales on crown. @ lacking the gorget, and tail white-tipped.
8. rufus. (Lat. rufus, reddish.) Rrp-BAcKkED Rurous Hummine-Birp. Nootka Hum-
MING-BIRD. ¢: No metallic scales on crown. Gorget glancing coppery-red, somewhat pro-
longed into a ruff. Tail cuneate; middle pair of feathers broad, narrowing rather suddenly to
a point. Next pair broad, nicked or emarginate near end (fig. 306).
Next three pairs successively narrowing gradually, but not even the outer
becoming acicular. Two outer primaries narrow, faleate, gradually very
acute, the ends bowed inward. General color above and below cinnamon-
red, becoming more or less green on the crown, and sometimes flaked
with green on the back, fading to white on the belly. Tail-feathers
cinnamon-red, deepening to dusky-purplish at ends. Quills dusky-
purplish. Length about 3.50; wing 1.50-1.67, averaging 1.60; tail
J.30; bill 0.65. 9 showing the characters of the tail and wing, but less :
plainly. Coloration extensively rufous, but overlaid with green; no ye, 306. Tailof S.
gorget, replaced by a few dusky-greenish feathers; under parts exten- 7¥us, nat. size.
sively white, but shaded with cinnamon on the sides and crissum. Middle tail-feathers glossed
with greenish, darkening to black at end, and usually touched with cinnamon at base; other
tail-feathers extensively rufous, then black, finally white-tipped. Length 3.20; wing 1.70;
tail 1.20. (On comparing 9 rufus with 9 platycercus, a great difference in the size of the
outer feather is observable; in rufus this feather is only 0.12 broad, and under 1.00 long; in‘

412.

413.

TROCHILIDA — TROCHILINE: HUMMING-BIRDS. 468

platycercus the same feather is 0.25 wide, and over 1.00 long.) Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, N.
to Alaska; the commonest and most extensively distributed species in the West. Noted as
the northernmost known species of the family. (This is S. rufus, Gm., the true ‘‘ Nootka
Sound Humming-bird,” the ¢ easily known by its cinnamon-red back, and the nick in the
next to the middle tail-feather. &. henshawi Elliot.)
8. al'leni. (ToC. A. Allen, of California. Figs. 307, 308.) Green-BACKED Rurous Humminc-
BIRD. ALLEN HUMMING-BIRD. In generalities similar to the last. ¢: Two outer tail-feathers
on each side very small and narrow, the
outermost almost acicular; next little on
larger; third abruptly larger; fourth from
the outer smaller than third or middle
pair. Upper parts golden-green, dullest
on crown. Under tail-coverts, belly and
sides cinnamon, paler on the median
line, white on breast next to the gorget.
Fre. 307.— Tail Tail-feathers cinnamon, tipped and edged
of $. alent, nat.size. with dusky-purplish. Gorget fiery-red.
Length about 3.00; wing 1.50; tail 1.18; bill 0.64, 9
similar to 9 rufus; averaging smaller; tail-feathers nar-
rower, especially the outer ones. Coast region of California
and northward. (This is the bird of ten described as ?

rufus ; carefully distinguished by Henshaw, Bull. Nutt. ¥ re. 308, —Green-backed Rufous

Club, ii, 1877, p. 53; considered by Elliot to be true here laa ¢, nat. size. (From
rufus Gm.) :
S. platycer/cus. (Gr. mdaris, platus, broad; xépxos, kerkos, tail. Fig. 309.) BRoAD-TAILED
Hummine-Birp. g: No scales on top of head; crown like back. A gorget of scales, not
prolonged into a ruff. Outer primary attenuate, acuminate, ending acicular, the point turned
outward ; next primary also narrowed, not so much so as the first, its end obliquely incised with
a slight nick. Tail ample; middle feathers scarcely or not shorter than the next, but the rest
rapidly graduated ; middle and several lateral ones broad, briefly acuminate, the outermost nar-
: rowed linearly with rounded end. Above,
including crown, golden-green; the two
middle tail-feathers purer shining grass-
green; lateral tail-feathers purplish-
dusky, some of them with narrow longi-
tudinal chestnut edging only on one or
the other web (a strong character of the
species: compare extensively rufous tail-
feathers of the two foregoing species).
Gorget glancing lilac-red: other under
parts whitish, glossed with golden-green
on the sides and sometimes elsewhere.
Fie. 309. — Broad-tailed Humming-bird, ¢, 9, nat. size. Quills purplish-dusky. Length nearly
(From Elliot.) or quite 4.00; extent 4.75-5.00; wing
nearly or quite 2.00; tail 1.35; bill 0.70. 9: Outer primary narrow and falcate, but without
special attenuation at end. Outermost tail-feather narrower than the rest, as in the @, but the
others rounded at ends, not acuminate. Lateral tail-feathers chestnut at base quite across, then
black for a space, then white-tipped. Above, like ¢; below, no gorget, the throat white with
dark specks; no green on sides, which are more or less rufous, as in S. rufus 9, from which
some care must be taken in discrimination. It is usually less rufous below; middle tail-feathers

138.

414.

415.

464 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLA — CYPSELIFORMES.

entirely green, these having dark ends in rufus 9 ; rufous on lateral tail-feathers confined to
their bases and of less extent than the black, while in rufus 9 the rufous equals or exceeds the
black area. The next to the middle tail-feather in platycercus 9 is green, with only rufous
edging of outer web near base, short black end, and white tip; in rufus Q the same feather is
rufous on both webs to an extent equal to the green, black, and white spaces all together.
Though such details are not absolutely constant, they suffice to distinguish all the many speci-
mens I have examined. (See also S. rufus 9.) Southern Rocky Mt. region, U. S. and south-
ward. N. to Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Nevada; Sierras Nevadas of Califurnia.
CALYP'TE. (Gr. Kadumryj, Kalupte, « proper name.) HELMET Hummers. Crown of ¢
with metallic scales like the gorget, which is prolonged into a ruff; outer primary not attenu-
ate; tail of ¢ forked, the outer feather abruptly narrow and linear, of 9 slightly double-
rounded. No peculiarity of primaries. Bill ordinary, as in Selasphorus or Trochilus; black.
No rufous color anywhere. Tail of ¢ unvaried; of 9 white-tipped. (Our only genus with bill
ordinary and scales on crown of 3g.)
C. annex. (To the Duchess of Rivoli. Figs. 310, 311.) Anna Hummine-nirp. ¢: Top of
head with metallic scales like those of throat, the latter prolonged into a ruff; the iridescence
lilac-crimson, covering
whole head and throat,
except a separating line
through eye. Taildeeply
) forked; middle feathers
| very broad and rounded, yg, 311. — Anna Hummingbird, g,
. the lateral all succes- nat. size. (From Elliot.)
sively more narrowed and linear, especially the outermost,
but all still with obtuse ends. Outer primary narrower
than the next, but of no special peculiarity. Back and
middle tail-feathers golden-green ; other tail-feathers, like
the wing-quills, purplish-dusky, without any rufous or
Fie. 310.— Anna Humming-bird, g, White; under parts whitish, nearly everywhere glossed
9, nat. size. (From Elliot.) over with green. Length about 3.50; wing 1.90; tail
1.35; bill 0.75. 9 like the ¢ excepting on head and tail. No metallic scales on head; crown
like back, golden-green ; throat whitish with dusky specks. Tail gently rounded, with slight-
est central emargination, all but the middle feathers (which are like back) green (or‘gray) at
base, then black for a space, then white-tipped (no rufous). Under parts gray, with much
green gloss. California, common, resident.
C. cost. (To—Costa. Fig. 312.) Costa Hummine-pirp. gf: Metallic scales on top and
sides of head as well as throat, latter prolonged into a flaring ruff; the iridescence violet, sap-

phire, steel-blue or purplish, not red. Tail lightly forked; middle g 2
feathers broad and obtuse, lateral narrowing successively, but the j
outermost abruptly narrowest, faleate—very noticeable. Outer ) )

primary simple. Back and middle tail-feathers golden-green;

other tail-feathers like the wing-quills, purplish-dusky. Below

whitish, the belly gray, glossed with golden-green. Small: length

3.00-3.25 ; wing 1.75-1.80; tail 1.00; bill 0.67. @: No scales Fie. 312. — Costa Humming-
on head. Tail simply rounded, or with least possible central bird, g, 9, nat. size. (Elliot.)
emargination ; lateral tail-feathers narrowing, but outermost not noticeably different from the
next. Crown like back; throat like belly, with dark specks. Middle tail-feathers like back,
others green or gray, then black, then white-tipped. Entire under parts whitish. Compared
with anne, the only other with scales on crown in ¢, coste is smaller: throat ruff much
more flaring; glitter entirely different (not red at all); tail less forked, with almost acicular

139.

416.

140.

417.

/

TROCHILIDA — TROCHILINZA: HUMMING-BIRDS. 465

faleate outermost feather instead of straight linear parallel-sided rounded-ended ; and under
parts less glossed with green. The 9? coste lacks green gloss on under parts, which are
more white, has much narrower tail-feathers, and is smaller, in comparison with Q apne.
The Q cost@ more closely resembles 9 Stellwla cailiope, but the latter has traces at least of
rufous on tail and under parts. Also resembles 9 Yrochilus, but has all the lateral tai.
feathers white-tipped. Arizona and Southern California, and southward.

AT'THIS. (Gr. Aris, Atthis, Attic; alsoa proper vame.) ATTIC Hummers. Crown of g
not metallic like the gorget, which is prolonged into a ruff; outer primary of § attenuate; tail
graduated, the feathers rounded at the end, the lateral black-barred and white-tipped in both
sexes (peculiar in this respect among N. Am. genera). Bill only about as long as head. Size
very diminutive.

A, heloi’se. (Fig. 318.) Horse Hummine-sirp. @: Outer primary attenuate at end,
with a needle-like point, as in 9. platycercus, but not bowed outward. Tail graduated, the

central feathers, however, slightly shorter than the next, all round-ended, none notably nar-

rowed. No scales on crown;
eo SS those of throat produced

into a ruff. Bill diminutive.

SS wo Above, including crown and
middle ‘tail-feathers, golden-

green, the tail-feathers rather

: more grass-green, sometimes

darkening at end or with a

Fig. 313. — Heloise Humming-bird, g, 9, nat. size.) From Elliot.) - touch of rufous. Other tail-

feathers rufous at base, then black-barred, then white-tipped — the only case of such parti-
coloration in the male in United States species. Gorget glancing violet, sapphire, and
lilac. Under parts snowy-white, glossed with golden-green, touched with rufous on flanks.
Very small: length 2.75; wing 1.25; tail 0.75; bill 0.50. 9: No peculiarity of outer
primary. Colors much as in the @, but no gorget, the throat being white, specked with
dusky; the flanks and crissum more rufous. Texas and southward; probably also New
Mexico and Arizona.

STEL/LULA. (Lat. stellula, dim. of stella, astar.) Starry Hummers. No scales on crown ;
those of throat confined to the tips of the lengthened feathers, thus not forming a continuous
metallic surface, hut set like stars in a fleecy, snowy bed. Tail of ¢ slightly double-rounded,
the lateral feathers graduated, the central also shorter than the next; middle feathers unlike
back in color; all broad, and rather widening to near the suddenly oputenblel ends; outer feather
slightly incurved, the others ending about as acutely as a silver teaspoon. Juter primary
simple. Bill longer than head, ordinary, but not entirely black. 9 like ¢ in form of tail and
wings. Size very diminutive. ==

S. calliope. (Gr. Kad\cémn, Kalliope, SSS
Lat. Calliope, one of the Muses. Fig. gt, 3

314.) CALLIOPE HuMMING-BIRD. ¢: \

Crown and back golden-green. All

tail-feathers dusky, with rufous at base {

and slightly pale tips. Gorget violet

or lilac, set in snowy-white; sides of

throat, and crissum, white. Below, Fie. 314. — Stellula calliope, #, nat. size. (From Elliot.)
white, glossed with green on the sides. Bill yellowish below. Length 2.75; wing 1.60; tail
1.00; bill 0.60. 9: Form of the 4; color of upper parts the same. No gorget; throat whitish
with dark specks; other under parts quite strongly tinged with rufous. A white mark under
eye; bill light at base below. Middle tail-feathers green, not so golden as the back, ending

30

141.

418.

142.

419.

420.

466 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PICARLA — CYPSELIFORMES.

with dusky; others green (or gray) for a distance decreasing on successive feathers, crossed

with black, tipped with white to reciprocally increasing extent, and touched with rufous at

base, as in several allied species; but the small size, slight rafous on tail, and the extensive
rufous on under parts, are characteristic. Mts. of whole Pacific slope, U. S.; E. to Nevada;

S. into Mexico.

CALOTHO/RAX. (Gr. xadés, kalos, beautiful ; @opag, thorax, chest.) Lucirer HUMMERS.

Very different from any of the foregoing. Bill curved throughout, longer than head; but nasal

scale covered as usual by feathers, and color of bill black. Tail deeply forked ; lateral tail-

feather shorter than next, and in our species filiform and -acicular. Tarsi partly plumose.

Sexes unlike.

C. lucifer. (Lat. Lucifer, the light-bearer ; lux, light, fero, I bear. Fig. 315.) Lucirer
Humminc-Birp. ¢: Above, bronzy-green; gorget lilac-
purple; wings and tail purplish-dusky. Below, white,
bronzed with green on the flanks. Billblack. Length 3.25;

- ~ wing 1.50; tail 1.35; bill 0.75. 9: Above, like g, but
browner on head; n> gorget; under parts rufous. Middle
tail-feathers bronzy-green, next green tipped with black;

F the rest rufous basally, then crossed with black and tipped
with white. Tail shaped as in the ¢? (My description is

unsatisfactory; but the species should be known by the

curved bill.) Arizona: introduced into our fauna upon

Fr. 315, — Lucifer Humming-bird, ® @ wrongly identified as ‘Doricha enicura.” (See Bull.

g, nat. size, (From Eliot.) Nutt. Club, ii, 1877, p. 108.)

AMAZILIA. (Latinized from amazili, vox barb.) “Amazitt Hummers. Belonging to a

group which includes Basilinna and Iache; very unlike any of the others. Nasal scale large

and tumid; nasal slit entirely exposed ; feathers extending in a point on the sides of the cul-
men, sweeping obliquely across the basal part of the nasal scale, and forming at the angle of
the mouth a deep re-entrance with those of the chin, which reach much farther forward on the
interramal space. Bill light-colored, dark-tipped, quite broad and flattened at base, thence
gradually tapering to the acuminate tip, slightly bent downward, the curve most noticeable
just back of the middle. Tarsi appearing feathered nearly to the toes, but really naked except
at the top in front. No lengthened ruffs or tufts about the head; no metallic scales on top of
head, different from those of the upper parts at large ; no special head-markipgs. Tail ample,
forked or emarginate, the feathers all broad and obtuse, with simply rounded ends. No peculiar
primaries, though the outer ones are narrower and more falcate than the next. Of large size,

usually 4-5 inches. Sexes alike in form-and color. An extensive genus, covering some 25

species, two of which are known to reach our border: above characters more particularly

applicable to these.

A. fuscocauda’ta. (Lat. fusco, with dusky, caudata, tailed.) Dusky-TAILED HUMMING-BIRD.

62: Above, metallic grass-green, or golden-green, more brassy on crown and rump, the long

upper tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous. Wings purplish-dusky, their coverts like back. Tail

deep chestnut, the feathers edged and ended with bronzy-purplish. Throat, breast and sides
metallic green, glittering emerald in certain lights on the former, on the latter duller and more
bronzy; feathers gray beneath the metallic tips, and this color prevailing on the abdomen ;
crissum rufous; flank-tufts fleecy white. Bill extensively light-colored, dusky at end.

Length about 4.00; wing 2.25; tail 1.60; bill 0.80. Differs from the next in not having the

under parts extensively fawn-colored. Lower Rio Grande of Texas, to S. Am.

A. cerviniven'tris. (Lat. cervinus, like a deer, cervus; in this case. meaning fawn-colored }

ventris, of the belly.) Rurous-BELLIED HUMMING-BIRD. @ 9 : Upper parts shining golden-

green, nearly uniform from head to tail, but top of the head rather darker, and with a reddish

143

421,

TROCHILIDZA — TROCHILINE :.

HUMMING-BIRDS. 467

gloss in some lights, and upper tail-coverts somewhat shaded with reddish. Metallic gorget of
great extent, reaching fairly on the breast, glittering green when viewed with the bill of the

bird pointing toward the observer, dusky-green when
scintillating and more golden-green feathers extend a
little farther on the breast and sides, and most of the
under wing-coverts are similar. Belly and under tail-
coverts dull rufous or pale cinnamon; flocculent snowy-
white patches on the flanks. Wings blackish, with
purple and violet lustre. Tail large, forked about one-
third of an inch; color intense chestnut, having even a
purplish tinge when viewed below, the middle feathers
plossed with golden-green, especially noticeable at their
ends, and all the rest tipped and edged for some distance
from their ends with dusky. Length 4.00 or more ;
extent 5.50; wing 2.30; tail 1.50; bill0.90. Lower
Rio Grande of Texas to Yucatan.
VACHE. (Gr. “Iayn, Iache, a proper name. Fig.
316.) Circe Hummers. Near Amazilia; with broad
and not perfectly straight bill longer than head, reddish
at base, and frontal feathers covering the nasal scale ;
the supranasal groove very distinct. Tail ample, forked,
with broad obtuse feathers; no wing- or tail-feathers
peculiar in shape. Tarsi feathered. Sexes unlike in
color.
{. latiros'tris. (Lat. latus, broad; rostrum, beak.)
Circe Humminc-pirp. gf: Above and below glit-
tering green; more
golden above, more
emerald below ; throat
sapphire - blue; tail
steel-blue-black, the
feathers tipped with
gray; flanks and un-
der tail-coverts white.
Bill reddish, tipped
Fig. 316. — Circe Humming-bird, with black. Length
d, nat size. (From Elliot.) nearly 4.00 : wing
2.00-2.25 ; tail 1.30, forked 0.35; bill 0.80. 9 above
like $, but middle tail-feathers bronzy-green ; others
bronzed at base, then broadly bluish, then white-tipped.
Under parts dark gray. Easily recognized among our
species by the special coloration, as described, and by
the peculiarities of the bill; in all our genera excepting
Tache, Amazilia and Basilinna, the nasal scale is fully
covered by the extensive frontal feathers. Arizona and
Mexico.

4. SuBorpER CUCULIFORMES:

seen in the opposite direction. Less

Fic. 317.— Paradise Trogon, or Quesal
(Pharomacrus mocinno), g, 9. (From
Michelet.)

CucuLiForm Birps.

The nature of this large group has been indicated on the preceding page (446).

.

468 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PICARLA — CUCULIFORMES.

24. Family TROGONIDZ: Trogons,

Feet zygodactyle by reversion of the second toe (see p. 127). The
base of the short, broad, dentate bill is hidden by appressed antrorse
feathers; the wings are short and rounded, with falcate quills ;' the
tail is long, of twelve broad feathers; the feet are very small and
weak. The general plumage is soft and lax, the skin tender, the
eyelids lashed. A well-marked family of about 50 species and
perhaps a dozen genera, chiefly inhabiting tropical America. They
Fic. 318, —Head of Cop. 2%€ of gorgeous colors, and among them are found the most magni-

per-tailed Trogon, nat. size. ficent birds of this continent (fig. 317).
144. TROGON. (Gr. rpéyar, trogon, a gnawer : alluding to the dentate bill.) The leading genus,
to which the above characters fully apply.

422. T. ambi'guus. (Lat. ambiguus, ambiguous, as doubtfully distinct from T. mexicanus. Fig. 318.)
COPpPER-TAILED TRoGoN. Metallic golden-green; face and sides of head black; below from
the breast carmine; a white collar on the throat ; middle tail-feathers coppery-green, the outer
white, finely variegated with black ; quills edged with white. Length about 11.00; wing 5.25;
tail 6.75. Valley of the Lower Rio Grande, and southward.

[Family MOMOTIDA: Sawhbills.

Feet syndactyle by cohesion of third
and fourth toes (p. 129); tomia serrate.
A very small family of tropical American
birds, comprising about 15 species, none
having really rightful place here; but
~ the Momotus ceruleiceps (fig. 319) comes
near our border, and is included to illus-
trate the suborder. In this species, the
central tail-feathers are long-exserted,
and spatulate by absence of webs along
a part of the shaft—a mutilation effected,
it is said, by the birds themselves; the

Fie. 319, — Head of Blue-headed Saw-bill, nat. size. bill is about as long as the head, gently
curved; the nostrils are rounded, basal, exposed; the wings are short and rounded ; the tarsi
are scutellate anteriorly. It is greenish, with blue head. Mexico. ]

25. Family ALCEDINIDA: Kingfishers.

Feet syndactyle by cohesion of third and fourth toes (p. 129, fig. 44); tomia simple. Billlong,
large, straight, acute (rarely hooked) ; somewhat “ fissirostral,” the gape being deep and wide.
Tongue rudimentary or very small. Nostrils basal, reached by the frontal feathers. Feet very
small and weak, scarcely or not ambulatorial ; tibiee naked below; tarsi extremely short, reticu-
late in front; hallux short, flattened underneath, its sole more or less continuous with the sole
of the inner toe; soles of outer and middle toe in common for at least half their length ; inner
toe always short, in one genus rudimentary, in another wanting (an abnormal modification).
Developed toes always with the normal ratio of phalanges (2, 3, 4,5; p. 127); middle claw not
serrate. Wings long, of 10 primaries. Tail of 12 rectrices, variable in shape.

“The Kingfishers form a very natural family of the great Picarian order, and are alike
temarkable for their brilliant coloration and for the variety of curious and aberrant forms which

145.

ALCEDINIDA — ALCEDININZ: .KINGFISHERS. 469

are included within their number. . . . ‘Their characteristic habit is to sit motionless watching
for their prey, to dart after it and seize it on the wing, and to return to their original position
to swallowit’... The Alcedinide 2 2

nest in holes and lay white eggs. It = :
is, however, to be remarked that, in
accordance with a nodification of the
habits of the various genera, a cor-
responding modification has taken
place in the mode of nidification, the
piscivorous section of the family nest-
ing for the most part in holes in the
‘banks of streams, while the insectiv-
orous section of the family generally
nest in the holes of trees, not nec-
essarily in the vicinity of water.”
(SHARPE. )

The nearest allies of the King-
fishers are the Hornbills (Bucero-
tide) and Hoopoes (Upupide) of
the Old World, and the Toucans
(Rhamphastide) and Barbets (Cap-
itonide) of the New. All these
families, like the Woodpeckers
(Picide), agree in being anomalo-
gonatous, with two carotids, a
tufted oil-gland, and nocwca. The
formula of the leg-muscles is the Fic. 320.— A typical Kingfisher, the European <Alcedo ispida.
same as in Trogonide, the acces- (From Dixon.) ,
sory femoro-caudal, accessory semitendinosus and ambiens all being absent. (GARROD.) One
would gain an imperfect or erroneous idea of the family to judge of it by the American fragment,
of one genus and 6 or 8 species. According to the author of the splendid monograph above cited,
there are in all 125 species, belonging to 19 gencra; the latter appear to be very judiciously
handled, but a moderate reduction of the former will be required. They are very unequally
distributed. Ceryle alone is nearly cosmopolitan, absent only from the Australian region; the
Northern portion of the Old World has only 2 peculiar species ; 3 genera and 24 species are
characteristic of the Ethiopian region; one genus and 25 species are confined to the Indian ;
while no less than 10 genera and 59 species are peculiar to the Australian. Mr. Sharpe recog-
nizes two subfamilies ; in the insectivorous Dacelonine (with 14 genera and 84 species), the
bill is more or less depressed, with smooth, rounded, or sulcate culmen. In the

35. Subfamily ALCEDININA, Piscivorous Kingfishers,

the bill is compressed with carinate culmen. The American species all belong here. It is the
more particularly piscivorous section ; the Dacelonéne feed for the most part upon insects, rep-
tiles and land mollusks. Ceryle is the only American genus, with 2 North American species.
They are thoroughly aquatic and piscivorous, seeking their prey by plunging into the water
from on wing ; and nest in holes in banks, laying numerous white eggs.

CE'RYLE. (Gr. «jpudos, kerulos, a kingfisher.) BELTED KINGFISHERS. Head with an
occipital crest. Bill longer than head, straight, stout, acute. Wings long and pointed. Tail
rather long and broad (in comparison with some genera), much shorter than wing. Tarsi
short ; legs naked above the tibio-tarsal juint. Plumage belted below.

423.

424.

470 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARILZA — CUCULIFORMES.

Large species, dull blueabove 5 ww 1 we ew ee et ee ee alcyon 423

Small species, glossy green above 6 ww ee ee ee ee we cabanisi 424
C. al/cyon. (Lat. alcyon, a kingfisher. Fig. 321.)
Bettep KinGrisHEer. Upper parts, broad pectoral
bar, and sides under the 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 9 with a chestnut belly-band and the sides
of the same color. Quills and tail-feathers black, spec-
kled, blotched or barred on the inner webs with white ;
outer webs of the secondaries and tail-feathers like the
back; wing-coverts frequently sprinkled with white.
Bill black, pale at base below. Feet dark; tibie
naked below. A long, thin, pointed occipital crest ;
plumage compact and oily to resist water, into which
the birds constantly plunge after their finny prey.
Length 12.00-13.00; extent 21.00-23.00; wing 6.00-
6.50; tail 3.50-5.00; whole foot 1.33; culmen 1.75-
9.25. N. Am., common everywhere, resident or only
forced southward by freezing of the waters. This fine
bird, whose loud rattling notes are as familiar sounds
along our streams as the noise of the mill-dam or the
machinery, burrows to the depth of six or eight feet in the ground, and lays as many crystal
white spheroidal eggs, 1.25 X 1.05, at the enlarged extremity of the tunnel.
C. america/na caba/nisi. (To Dr. Jean Cabanis, of Germany.) Texan Green Kinc-
FisHer. Adult ¢: Entire upper parts glossy-green, with bronze lustre, the bases of nearly
all the feathers snowy-white, which appears sometimes upon the surface ; crown, scapulars and
wing-coverts superficially sprinkled with white. Wing-quills dusky on inner webs, green on
the outer, both marked in regular double series with pairs of white spots, scallops or bars.
Central tail-feathers dark green, usually touched with white along the edges, the others green
with white bars becoming confluent at the bases of the feathers, where forming white spaces
more extensive than the green portion. Cervical cvllar and entire under parts white, the breast,
belly, sides and crissuin spotted with glossy-green. Bill black, usually light at base below ;
feet dark. A supposed 9 differs in having the green-spotted plumage of the under parts and
adjoining white area tinged with chestnut. Length about 8.00; wing 3.25-3.50; tail 2.50;
bill 1.67; whole foot 1.00. Valleys of the Lower Rio Grande and Colorado, and southward;
common. Nesting and eggs as in C. aleyon; eggs 4-6, very thin and smooth, like porcelain,
rounded oval, 0.90-1.00 x 0.68-0.75. :

Fig. 321. — Belted Kingfisher, reduced.
(From Tenney, after Wilson.)

26. Family CUCULIDZ: Cuckoos.

Feet zygodactyle by reversion of the fourth toe. This character, in connection with those
given below, will answer present purposes; and, in my ignorance of some of the exotic forms, I
cannot attempt to give a full diagnosis. The only other North American birds with the toes
yoked in the same combination are the Picid@ and the Psittaci, whose numerous specialties will
prevent any misconception regarding Cuculide. The latter are desmognathousin palatal struct-
ure, and homalogonatous, having the ambiens and three or all four of the other leg-muscles used
by Garrod for classificatory purposes ; in these important respects differing from all birds pre-
viously treated in this work. There are two carotids. The oil-gland is nude, and coca are,
present. The family is a large and important one. It comprehends quite a nuinber of leading

146.

/
CUCULIDZ CROTOPHAGINZ:: ANIS. 471

forms showing peculiar minor modifications ; these correspond in great measure with certain

geographical areas of faunal distribution, and are generally held to constitute subfamilies.
Three or four such are con-
fined to America; about twice
as many belong exclusively to
the Old World; among them
are the Cuculine, or typical
cuckoos allied to the European
C. canorus (fig. 322), famous,
like our Cowbird, for their
parasitism. This section com-
prehends the great majority of
the Old World species; the
Couine are a peculiar Mada-
gastan type; others rest upon
a special condition of the
claws or plumage.. There are
about 200 current species of
the family. Many of them,
besides the one just cited in
instance, lay their eggs in
other birds’ nests. The Amer-
ican cuckoos have been de-
clared free of suspicion of such
domestic irregularities ; but, though pretty well- behaved, their record is not quite clean: they
do sometimes slip into the wrong nest. The curious infelicity seems to be connected in some
way with the inability of the Q to complete her clutch of eggs with the rapidity and regularity
usual among birds, and so incubate them in one batch. The nests of our species of Coecygus
commonly contain young by the time the last egg of the lot is laid.
We have three very distinct genera, usually referred to as many subfamilies.

Fic. 322. — European Cuckoo, Cuculus canorus, (From Dixon.)

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.
CROTOPHAGINE. Terrestrial. Tail of 8 feathers. Bill compressed, crested. Plumage lustrous black

i Crotophaga 146
SAUROTHERINE. Terrestrial. Tail of10feathers. Feet ambulatorial, with long tarsi. Geococcyx 147
Coccyreina&. Arboreal. Tail of 10 feathers. Feet insessorial, with short tarsi . i Coceygus 148

36. Subfamily CROTOPHACINA: Anis.

Tail of eight feathers, graduated, longer than the rounded wings. Bill exceedingly com-
pressed, the upper mandible rising into a thin vertical crest, the sides usually suleate, the tip
deflected. Plumage uniform (black), lustrous, the feathers of the head and neck lengthened,
lanceolate, distinct, with scale-like margins ; face naked. Terrestrial. Nest in bushes. One
geuus, of three species, of the warmer parts of America.

CROTO’PHAGA. (Gr. kporay, kroton, a bug; ddyos, phagos, eating.) Anis. In addition
to the characters of the subfamily: Bill about as long as head, with regularly convex or angu-
lated culmen, its sides smooth, wrinkled, or sulcate ; tip of upper mandible decurved over end
of lower; gonys straight. Wings rounded; 4th or 5th primary longest, Ist quite short. Tail-
feathers broad, widening to very obtuse ends. Tarsus longer than middle toe, anteriorly
broadly seutellate, the sides with large plates meeting in a ridge behind. According to the
concurrent testimony of various independent observers, the cuculine irregularity of nesting is
expressed in a very curious manner, in the case of C. ani at least; several birds forming @

472 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLZ — CUCULIFORMES.

sort of colony of Communists uniting to build a large nest to be used in common. The eggs
are greenish, overlaid with a white chalky substance, easily rubbed off when fresh.

425, C.a/ni. (The Brazilian name. Fig. 323.) Anz. Briack Witcu. Savanna BLACKBIRD.
Bill smooth or with a few transverse wrinkles; culmen regularly curved. Color black, with
violet and steel-blue reflections, duller below, the lanceolate feathers of the head and neck
with bronze borders. Iris brown. Length 13.00-15.00; wing 6.00; tail 8.00; tarsus 1.50.
Tropical America; West Indies ; Florida; accidental near Philadelphia.

KTAHRHARGY 4

Fic. 323.— Ani, 4 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

‘426, C. sulciros/tris, (Lat. sulcus, a groove; rostris, pertaining to the beak.) GRoOvE-BILLED
Ant. Bill with three distinct grooves on upper mandible, parallel with the regularly curved

FIG. 324, — Head of Geococcyx.
(After Cassin.)

culmen. Black, with steel-blue and violet reflections, more olive-
brown on belly ; scaly feathers of head and neck bronzy, of breast,
back and wings metallic greenish. Wings with 4th and 5th
quills longest, 3d little shorter, 2d nearly an inch, Ist nearly 2
inches from point of wing. Bill more than twice as high as
broad at the base; 0.85 high, 0.37 broad, 1.20 long. Bill and
feet black, scaling grayish in some places. Iris brown. Length
14.50; extent 17.00; wing 5.50-6.00; tail 7.50-8.00, graduated 2
inches; tarsus, or middle toe and claw, 1.50. Tropical America ;
N. to Texas in the lower Rio Grande Valley. Eggs said to be
usually five, and no peculiarity of nesting noted; nest of twigs,
lined with fibrous roots, in a tree or bush.

CUCULIDA: — SAUROTHERINA): GROUND CUCKOOS. 473

37. Subfamily SAUROTHERINA:: Ground Cuckoos.

Tail of ten feathers, graduated, longer than the short, rounded, concave wings. Bill about
as long as the head, compressed, straight at base, tapering, with deflected tip, gently curved
culmen and ample rictus. Feet large and strong, in adaptation to terrestrial life ; tarsus longer
than the toes, scutellate before and behind. One West Indian genus, Sawrothera, with three
or four species, and the following, with two: —

147, GEOCOC'CYX. (Gr. yf, ge, the ground; kdkkvE, kokkuax, a cuckoo.) GROUND CucKoos.

ue eee
a _e

ge

_———_—— re
a ere
A WY \\ ao aS
“RAW,

Fig. 325. — Ground Cuckoo, jnat. size. (From Brehm.)

Head crested ; most feathers of head and neck bristle-tipped; eyelids lashed; whole plumage
coarse. A bare colored space around eye. Bill about as long as head, nearly straight, but with
culmen and commissure much decurved toward end, gonys if anything a little concave. Wings
very short and concavo-convex, with long inner secondaries folding entirely over the primaries;
4th, 5th, and succeeding primaries longer than 3d, 2d, and lst, which rapidly shorten. Tail of
long tapering feathers, much graduated, making more than half the total length of the bird.
Feet as above. Plumage lustrous and variegated above. Sexes substantially alike. Eminently
terrestrial ; nest in bushes; eggs numerous.

427.

121.

474 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE# — CUCULIFORMES.

y

G. california/nus. (Of California. Figs. 324, 325.) Grounp Cuckoo. CHAPARRAL Cock.
Roap Runner. Snake Kinuer. Paisano. Most of the feathers of the head and neck
bristle-tipped ; a naked area around eye; crown crested; plumage coarse. 49° Above, lus-
trous bronzy or coppery-green, changing to dark steel-blue on the head and neck, to purplish-
violet on the middle tail-feathers; everywhere except on rump conspicuously streaked with
white, mixed with tawny on the head, neck, and wings —this white and buff streaking con-
sisting of the edges of the feathers, which are frayed out, fringe-like, producing a peculiar
effect. Breast, throat and sides of neck mixed tawny-white and black ; other under parts dull
soiled whitish. Primaries white, tipped and with oblique white space on outer webs. Lateral
tail-feathers steel-blue with green and violet reflections, their outer webs fringed part way with
white, their tips broadly white. Lower back and rump, where covered by the folded wings,
dark-colored and unmarked; under surface of wings sooty-brown. Bare space around eye
bluish and orange. Bill dark horn-color; feet the same, the larger scales yellowish. Young
birds are very similar, the iridescence developing with the first growth of the feathers, as in a
magpie ; more white and less tawny in the streaking. Nearly two feet long ; tail a foot or less ;
wing 6-7 inches; tarsus 2.00; bill-1.66-2.00. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California and
southward; Colorado; Arkansas River. A bird of remarkable aspect, noted for its swiftness
of foot; aided by its wings held as outriggers, it taxes the. horse in a race ; feeds on fruits, rep-
tiles, insects, and land mollusks. Nest in bushes; a slight, loose structure of twigs, as if the
birds were just learning how to build. Eggs 6-8-9, white, elliptical, averaging 1.55 x 1.20.
They are laid at considerable intervals, and incubation begins as soon as a few are deposited.
The development of the chicks is rapid; perfectly fresh eggs and newly hatched young may be
found together ; and by the time the last young are breaking the shell the others may be graded
up to half the size of the adult. The birds are sometimes domesticated, making amusing pets.
They are singular birds — cuckoos compounded of a chicken and a magpie!

38. Subfamily COCCYCINA: American Cuckoos.

Tail of ten soft feathers, much graduated,
little longer than the wings, which are
somewhat pointed, although. the first and
second quills are shortened. Bill about
equalling or rather shorter than the head,
stout at base, then much compressed, curved
throughout, tapering to a rather acute tip;
nostrils basal, inferior, exposed, elliptical ;
feet comparatively small, the tarsus naked,
not longer than the toes. There are four or
five genera, and perhaps twenty species,
y of this subfamily ; one genus only is North
Fig. 326. — American Tree Cuckoo (Coccygus america American, with three distinct species.

mus), reduced. (From Tenney, after Wilson.)

COC’CYGUS. (An adjectival form quad: from kéxkv€, a cuckoo.) Trem Cuckoos. Head
not crested; all the feathers soft. Bill as above. Wings pointed, but not longer than the
tail; inner quills not folding over much of the primaries; 3d and 4th primaries longest, 2d and
5th shorter, 1st much shorter still. Tail of soft rather tapering feathers, with very obtuse
ends; much graduated. Tibial feathers flowing; tarsi naked, shorter than middle toe. Our
species are strictly arboricole birds of lithe form, blended plumage and subdued colors; the
head is not crested; the tibial feathers are full, as in a hawk; the sexes are alike, and the
young scarcely different; the upper parts are uniform satiny olive-gray, or ‘ quaker-color,”
with bronzy reflections. Lay numerous plain greenish elliptical eggs, in a rude nest of twigs

428.

CUCULIDZ— COCCYGINZ!: AMERICAN CUCKOOS. 475

saddled on a branch or ina fork. Though not habitually parasitic, they often slip an egg in
other birds’ nests, or in each other’s. Oviposition is tardy or irregular ; the nests usually con-
tain eggs in different stages of development, or eggs and young together. They are well-known
inhabitants of our streets and parks as well as of woodland, noted for their loud, jerky cries,
which they are supposed to utter most frequently in falling weather, whence their popular
name, ‘‘ rain-crow.” Migratory, insectivorous, and frugivorous.

Analysis of Species.
Bill black and bluish.
White below. Wings with little or nocinnamon. Tail-feathers not broadly white-ended.
erythrophthalmus 428
Bill black and yellow. Tail-feathers broadly white-ended.
White below. Wings extensively cinnamon C a , a % . americanus 429
Tawny below. Ears dusky Caer eee i ; oe & . seniculus 430

SA SSN

Fie. 327. — Yellow-billed Cuckoo, 4 nat, size. (From Brehm.)

C. erythrophthal/mus. (Gr. épvdpés, eruthros, reddish ; épOadycds, ophthalmos, eye.) BLACK-
BILLED Cuckoo. @ 9° Bill blackish except occasionally a trace of yellowish, usually bluish
at base below. Above, satiny olive-gray. Below, pure white, sometimes with a faint tawny
tinge on the fore-parts. Wings with little or no rufous. Lateral tail-feathers not contrasting
with the central, their tips for a short distance blackish, then obscurely white ; no bold contrast
of black with large white spaces. Bare circumocular space livid; edges of eyelids red. Length
11.00-12.00 ; extent about 15.50; wing 5.00-5.50; tail 6.00-6.50; bill under an inch. Very

.

429.

430.

476 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PICARLE — PICIFORMES.

young birds have the feathers of the upper parts skirted with whitish; the bill and feet pale
bluish. Eastern U. 8. and Canada, west to the Rocky Mts., N. to Labrador, common ; rather
more northerly than C. americanus, being the commoner species in New England; said to
winter in Florida. Nest preferably in bushes, often quite near the ground; eggs1.10 X 0.80,
greenish, deeper-colored, less elliptical and sinaller than those of the yellow-billed cuckoo,
though probably not to be distinguished with certainty.

C, america‘nus. (Lat. American. Figs. 326, 327.) YELLOW-BILLED Cuckoo. Bill black,

‘extensively yellow below and on the sides of upper mandible. Feet dark plumbeous. Above,

satiny olive-gray. Below, pure white. Wings extensively cinnamon-rufous on inner webs of
the quills. Central tail-feathers like the back; the rest black with large white tips, the outer-
most usually also edged with white. Very constant in color, the chief variation being in extent
and intensity of the cinnamon on the wings, which sometimes shows through when the wings
are closed, and even tinges the coverts. Young differ chiefly in having the white ends of the
tail-feathers less trenchant and extensive, the black not so pure; this state approaches the con-
dition of C. erythrophthalmus, but does not match it. Length 11.00-12.00; extent 15.50-16.50;
wing 5.50-6.00; tail about 6.00; bill a short inch; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw patlier
more. U.S., rather more southerly than the last species, and chiefly Eastern; but also, Pacific
coast and Southern Rocky Mts. Nest a slight structure of twigs, leaves and catkins, on a
bough or in fork of a tree rather than in a bush; eggs 4 to 8, pale greenish, 1.25 x 0.90, laid
irregularly, mostly in June.

C. seni/culus. (Lat. seniculus, a little old man ; diminutive of senex, probably alluding to the
gray on the head.) Manarove Cuckoo. Bill muchas in the last. Above, the same quaker-
color, but more decidedly ashy-gray toward and on head. Below, pale orange-brown. Wings
suffused with the color of the belly. Auriculars dark, in contrast. Tail as in the last, but
outer feather not white-edged. Size of the others, or rather less. West Indies; Florida,
rarely. Eggs as in C. americanus. :

5. SuBorpER PICIFORMES: Picirorm Brrps.

See p. 446 for characters of this suborder. It is a perfectly homogeneous group, so much
so as to be often reduced to the grade of a single family, Picide, then with Iyngine and
Picumnine as subfamilies. In palatal characters the Piciform birds exhibit ‘‘ a simplification
and degradation of the egithognathous structure” (Hualey), and this passerine affinity is borne
out by the common reduction of the first primary to small size or even spurious condition, leay-
ing but 9 functionally developed primaries; but the details of the construction of the bony
palate, as worked out by Parker, are so extraordinary that he has proposed to make the Pici-
formes one of the major divisions of Carinate birds (see p. 173, fig. 80). The greater secondary
coverts are likewise as short as in Passeres. The feet are highly scansorial by reversion of the
fourth toe. In typical Pici the bill is straight, hard, often strengthened by lateral ridges, and
forming an efficient chiselling instrument. The salivary glands are highly developed, and the
hyoidean apparatus is peculiar. The sternum is doubly-notched. Only the left carotid is
present ; the oil-gland is tufted, and there are no ceca. The accessory femoro-caudal, accessory
semitendinosus and ambiens muscle are absent. The nearestrelatives of the Piciform birds are
the Capitonide or Scansorial Barbets, and the Toucans (Rkamphastide) ; both of which are
so closely affined that they might come under the above head, with little modification of the
characters here assigned. Of the three families here meant to be included by the term Pici-
Sormes, the Old World Iyngide or Wrynecks are most unlike Woodpeckers, having a soft tail
and various other peculiarities. The Picumnide are more Woodpecker-like, but still the tail
is soft; in general superficialities they resemble Nuthatches quite curiously. Exclusion of these
two families leaves us the :

PICIDZ: WOODPECKERS. ot ATT

27. Family PICIDA: Woodpeckers.

Feet perfectly zygodactyle by reversion of the
fourth toe (in two genera the first toe wanting) ;
tail-feathers rigid, acuminate; bill a chisel. This
expression will serve for the recognition of any
woodpecker (compare diagnoses of previous Pica-
rian families). Wing of 10 primaries, the 1st
quite short or even spurious, the wing-formula
being quite as in most passerine birds —a crow
or thrush, for example. Greater row of second-
ary coverts short, as in passerine birds at large.
Tail of 12 rectrices, but the outermost pair rudi-
mentary, lying concealed at the base of the tail

F 1g. 328. — European Spotted Woodpecker (Picus between the penultimate (now exterior) and next
major), reduced. (From Dixon.) pair, so that there appear to be but 10, as usual
in Picarian birds (a strong peculiarity). Tail-feathers very stiff and strong, with enlarged
elastic shafts, and acuminate at the end. ‘Tarsi scutellate in front, on the sides and behind
variously reticulate. Toes strongly scutellate on top. The usual ratio of the toes is: Ist
(inner posterior) shortest; 2d (inner anterior) next longer; 3d (outer anterior) longer; 4th
(outer posterior) longest of all (in most typical species; in some, however, scarcely or not
equalling the 3d in length). The basal joints of the toes are abbreviated. There is a very
unusual arrangement of the flexor tendons of the toes (shared, however, among Toucans,
Scansorial Barbets, and Jacamars).

These birds have been specially studied, with more or less gratifying success, by Malherbe,
Sundevall and Cassin. There are nearly 250 well determined species, of all parts of the world
except Madagascar, Australia, and Polynesia. Their separation into minor groups has not been
agreed upon; our species are commonly thrown into three divisions, which, however, I shall
not present, as consideration of exotic forms shows how the genera are interrelated, and how
nice is the gradation in form between the Ivory-bill and the Flicker, which stand nearly at
extremes of the family ; the little diversity of which is thereby evident. One of our genera,
without very obvious external peculiarities, stands apart from the rest in the character of the
tongue. In ordinary Picz the “horns” of the tongue are extraordinarily produced backward,
as slender jointed bony rods curling up over the skull behind, between the skin and the bone,
to the eyes or even further; these rods are enwrapped in highly developed, specialized muscles,
by means of which the birds thrust out the tongue sometimes several inches beyond the bill
(figs. 73, 74). Thisis not the case in Sphyropicus, where the hyoid cornua do not extend beyond
the base of the skull, and the tongue, consequently, is but little more extensible than in ordinary
birds. The tongue of Sphyropicus is beset at the end by numerous brushy filaments, instead of
the few acute barbs commonly observed in the family. The same or a similar condition of the
parts is observed in Xenopicus. In most of our species the bill is perfectly straight, wide and
stout at the base, tapering regularly to a compressed and vertically truncate tip, chisel-like, and
strengthened by sharp ridges on the side of the upper mandible — an admirable tool for cutting
into trees; and in all such, the nostrils are hidden by dense tufts of antrorse feathers. In
others, like the Flicker, the bill is smooth and barely curved; the tip is acute and the nostrils
are exposed. There is a regular gradation in form between those with the most and the least
chisel-like bills. The former are more stocky-bodied birds, with larger heads in comparison
with the constricted neck, as any one may satisfy himself by skinning a Pileated or Hairy
Woodpecker, and trying to pull the skin over the head —an operation which may be performed
on a Flicker. The ridges of the bill, the bevelling of the end, the uasal tufts, and usually the

478 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — PI CIFORMES.

length of the outer hind tue, are characters which diminish or are lost together as we pass from
the Ivory-bill extreme to the Flicker end of the series. The claws are always large, strong,
sharp, and much curved; the feet do not present striking generic modifications, except in the
three-toed genus Picoides; the length of the outer hind toe is the most variable factor. The
wings are specially noteworthy, for the shortness of the cdverts, in exception to the Picarian

a

RSS YY SEZ |
. ANY YEN
\

“WY

STL ty
fee

S SSS
Myc FAK Saat A ¥

Fig. 329, — Ivory-billed Woodpecker, }nat size. (From Brehm.)
rule; and the shortness of the first primary, which may fairly be called spurious; but these
points and the remarkable character of the tail have been already mentioned. This member
offers indispensable assistance in climbing, when the stiff strong quills are pressed against the
‘tree, and form a secure support. To this end, the muscles are highly developed, and the last
bone (vomer or pygostyle) is large and peculiar in shape. Woodpeckers rarely if ever climb
head downward, like Nuthatches, nor are the tarsi applied to their support.

149.

431.

PICIDA): WOODPECKERS. 479

Species are abundant in all the wooded portion of this country, and wherever found are
nearly resident. For, although insectivorous, they feed principally upon dormant or at least
stationary insects, and therefore need not migrate; they are, moreover, hardy birds. They dig
insects and their larve out of trees, and are eminently beneficial to the agriculturist and fruit-
grower. Contrary to a prevalent impression, their boring does not seem to injure fruit-trees,
which may be riddled with holes without harmful result. The number of noxious insects these
birds destroy is simply incalculable ; what little fruit some of them steal is not to be mentioned
in the same connection, and they deserve the good-will of all. The birds of the genus Sphy-
ropicus are probably an exception to most of these statements. But Woodpeckers also feed
largely upon nuts, berries, and other fruits; and those which thus vary their fare to the greatest
extent are apt to be more or less migratory, like the common Red-head for example. Wood-
peckers nest in holes in trees, which they excavate for themselves, sometimes to a great depth,
aud lay numerous rounded pure white eggs, of which the shell has a smooth crystalline texture
like porcelain, on the chips and dust at the bottom of the hole. The voice is loud and harsh,
susceptible of little modulation. .The plumage as arule presents bright colors in large areas or
in striking contrasts, and is sometimes highly lustrous. The sexes are ordinarily distinguishable
by color-markings ; the young either show sexual characters from the nest, or have special

markings of their own.
Artificial Analysis of N. A. Genera of Picide.

Toes 3 eae Fi Sage es ye 08 a8 F soe ee es . Picoides 153
Toes 4.
Tongue not decidedly extensible.
Body entirely black; head white a aeeieeraas ie eae ge ge ae ae . Xenopicus 152
Body variegated ; head not white . . ag aes . oe 6 + ee « «© 6 Sphyropicus 164

Tongue very extensible.
Conspicuously crested; much over a foot long.

Bill white; outer hind toe longer than outer fronttoe. . ...... - ». Campephilus 149
Bill dark; outer hind toe not longer than outer fronttoe. . ........ Hylotomus 150
Not crested; a foot long or less.
Sides of upper mandible distinctly ridged; wings spotted . aes oR - Picus 151
Sides of upper mandible indistinctly or not ridged.
Back lustrous green; belly carmine . tf bee ew © ee we Aoyndesmus 157
Back blue-black ; belly white . . . a oh Se das Oh a Sg » Melanerpes 156
Back black-barred; belly black-spotted. . . . ae e 4 - « « Colaptes 158
Back black-barred; belly not spotted. eh ee a . Centurus 155-

CAMPE’PHILUS. (Gr. kdumn, kampe, a caterpillar; pidos, philos, loving.) Ivory-BILLs.
Of largest size, with very strict neck, conspicuously crested head and white bill; color black,
with white on wings and neck, and scarlet crest. Bilt longer than head, perfectly straight,
with truncate tip, bevelled sides, with strong ridges; broader than high at the base. Gonys
very long; more than half the commissure. Nostrils concealed by large nasal tufts ; antrorse
feathers also at base of lower mandible. Outer hind toe much the longest. Wings pointed ;
4th, 3d and 5th quills longest ; 2d much shorter; 1st very short and narrow. Tail very cuneate.
Containing the largest and most magnificent known Woodpeckers, of several species, peculiar
to America.

C. principa'lis. (Lat. principals, principal; princeps, chief. Fig. 329.) Ivory-BILLED
WoopPEcKER. ¢ 9: Glossy blue-black; a stripe down side of neck, one at base of bill, the
seapulars, under wing-coverts, ends of secondaries and of inner primaries, the bill, and nasal
feathers white ; feet grayish-blue ; iris yellow. A long pointed crest, inthe ¢ scarlet faced with
black, in the 9 black. Length 19.00-21.00; extent 30.00-33.00 ; wing 9.75-10.75 ; tail 7.00-
8.00; bill 2.50; tarsus 2.00. Varies much in size; 9 smaller than the #. A large powerful

* pird of the S. Atlantic and Gulf States, N. to No. Carolina along the coast, to the Ohio River in

the interior ; common in the dark heavily wooded swamps, but very wild and wary, and difficult
to secure. Nests high in the most inaccessible trees ; eggs about 6, 1.35 X 1.00.

150.

432.

151.

480 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARILA — PICIFORMES.

HYLO'TOMUS. (Gr. tdorduos, hulotomos, a wood-cutter.) PmLEaTED WOODPECKERS.
General form as in Campephilus. Bill as in that genus, but not white, with shorter gonys
oxly about half as long as commissure; nasal plumes as before, but no antrorse feathers on
sides of lower mandible. Wings and tail substantially as in Campephilus. Feet peculiar:
outer posterior shorter than outer anterior toe, and tarsus shorter than inner anterior toe and
claw ; inner posterior toe very short (fig. 330). Bill dark; general color black, relieved by
white, the g with a pointed scarlet crest: 9 crested, but with black only. Our single species
is the representative of the famous black woodpecker of Europe, Picus martius ; a classic bird,
by some considered the type of the Linnzan genus Picus. There are several typical American
species.
H. pilea/tus. (Lat. pileatus, capped, i.e., crested; pileum, a cap.) PILEATED WOODPECKER.
General color dull black; throat, poate ebay line, a long stripe from nostrils along side of
head and neck, spreading on side of breast,
lining of wing, and a great white space at
the bases of the wing-quills, white, more
or lesstingea with sulphury-yellow. Feath-
ers of flanks and belly often skirted, and
some of the quills often tipped with the
same. @: Top of head, including the
whole crest, and a cheek-patch, scarlet.
3 @: Posterior part of crest only scarlet,
Fie. 330,—Right foot of Pileated Woodpecker, nat. size. and no cheek-patch. @ 9: Bill dark
(Ad. nat. del. E. C.) horn-color, paler below; feet blackish-
plumbeous; iris yellow. Quite constant in coloration; very variable in size. Length 15.00-
19.00 inches, usually 17.00-18.00; extent 25.00-30.00, usually 26.00-28.00; wing 8.00-10.00,
usually 8.50-9.00; tail 6.00-7.00; bill 1.50-2.00! 9 averaging about 2 inches less in length
than ¢, and other dimensions proportionally smaller. Northern individuals averaging much
larger than southern ones. North Aim. at.large, common, resident anywhere in heavy timber;
but this is a very wild, wary, and solitary bird, —one which grows scarce or disappears among
the first with the clearing away of forests in advance of civilization. Nests in remote and
secluded woods and swamps, usually at a great height; the taking of eggs is something of an
exploit. The eggs measure about 1.25 x 1.00. Eggs of woodpeckers are proportioned rather
to the bird’s bulk of body than its linear dimensions; those of Campephilus and Hylotomus are
relatively smaller than a flicker’s, for instance.
PI/CUS. (Lat. picus, a woodpecker.) BLACK-AND-wutrs SpoTTeD WooppeckKers. Bill
more or less nearly equal to head in length, stout, straight, truncate at tip, bevelled toward end,
with sharp culmen and distinct lateral ridges on upper mandible; at base rather broader than
high, with large nasal tufts hiding the nostrils; culmen, commissure and gonys straight or
nearly so (fig. 333.) Feet with the outer posterior longer than outer anterior toe; inner anterior
intermediate between these. Wing long, pointed by the 4th, 3d and 5th quills; 2d decidedly
shorter (shorter than 7th, except in P. borealis) ; 1st fairly spurious. Species of medium and
small size, all black-and-white (one brown-backed), the back striped or barred, the wings with
numerous small round white spots on the quills; ¢ with red on the head.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Back dark brown, neither striped nor fully barred with white . . . + stricklandi 487
Back black, not striped lengthwise, but barred crosswise with white: “ ladder-backs? ve (: as in fig. 339).
One large white space on sideofhead. Crownblack . ...:.++..-s . » . borealis 433,
Two white stripes on sides of head.
Nasal feathers white; g' crown black, nape red, both white-spotted . . . . 2... nuttalli 435
Nasal feathers brown; gi crown and nape red, both white-spotted.
Outer web of outer tail-feather entirely black-barred . . . «+ oe + « + » Scalaris 434

a

433.

434.

PICIDZ: WOODPECKERS. 481

Outer web of outer tail-feather partly black-barred . . 2... 6. ee ee lucasanus 436
Back black, not barred crosswise, but striped lengthwise with white: “ pole BARE. 2
Outer tall-feathers wholly white. Length usually 9-10 inches,

Greater coverts and inner secondaries profusely white-spotted . . .... +4... villosus 438

Greater coverts and inner secondaries sparsely or not white-spotted . . ..... harrisi 439
Outer tail-feathers barred with black. Length usually 6-7 inches.

Greater coverts and inner secondaries profusely white-spotted . ... . - 2 « « pubescens 440

- Greater coverts and inner secondaries sparingly or not white-spotted. . ..... gairdnert 441

P. borea'lis. (Lat. borealis, northern ; inappropriate for a U. S. species. Fig. 331.) Rep-
COCKADED WOODPECKER. Body spotted and crosswise banded, but not streaked. Head
black on top, with a large silky white auricular
patch embracing the eye and extending on the side
of the neck, bordered above in the ¢ by a scarlet
stripe not meeting its fellow on the nape; nasal
feathers and those on the side of the under jaw
white; black of the crown connected across the
lores with a black stripe running from the corner of
the bill down the side of the throat and neck to be
dissipated on the side of the breast in black spots
continued less thickly along the whole side and on
the crissum; under parts otherwise soiled white.
Central tail-feathers black; others white, black- :
barred. Back and wings barred with black and Fi. 331, —Red-cockaded Woodpecker, nat. size.
white, the larger quills and many coverts with the (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

white bars resolved into paired spots. 9 lacking the red cockade. A peculiar isolated species;
wings longer and more pointed than usual in this genus; 2d quill longer than 7th; spurious
primary very short; bill smaller than usual, decidedly shorter than head. Length 8.00-8.50;
extent 14.00-15.00; wing 4.50-4.90; tail 3.25-3.75. Pine swamps and barrens of the S.
Atlantic and Gulf States; N. to Pennsylvania. Eggs 0.95 x 0.70.

P. seala/ris. (Lat. scalaris, ladder-like; scala, a scale, flight of stairs, etc.; alluding to the
black and white cross-bars on the back.) Trxan WoopprecKer. Entire back, from nape to
upper tail-coverts, barred across in black and white stripes of equal width ; a narrow space on
back of neck, upper tail-coverts, and 4 middle tail-feathers, entirely black ; wing-coverts with a
round white spot at end of each feather, and a hidden spot or pair of spots further along the
feather. Primaries regularly uiarked with white spots in pairs on the edges of the webs, those
on the outer webs small and angular, on the inner webs larger and more rounded; on the
secondaries these spots changing to broken bars; so that the primaries and coverts are spotted
alike, the secondaries and back barred alike. Crown black, speckled with white, in the ¢
extensively crimson; the feathers being black, specked with white, finally tipped with red,
which becomes continuous on the hind head, where the white specks cease. Side of head
white, with a long black stripe from bill under eye, widening behind, there joining a black
post-ocular stripe and spreading over side of neck. Nasal featherssmoky-brown. Under parts
ranging from soiled white to smoky-gray, with numerous black spots on sides, flanks and cris-
sum ; lateral tail-feathers perfectly barred with black and white in equal amounts. 9 lacking
red on the crown. Small: length 7.00-7.50; extent 13.00; wing 3.50-4.00; tail 2.75-3.00;
bill 0.66-0.87. Southwestern U. 8. and southward, abundant. It is obviously impossible, in
the cases of these profusely spotted woodpeckers, to frame a description which will meet every
ease, without being too vague, or going into tedious particulars. The foregoing, taken from
Rio Grande specimens, covers the usual style of the species as found along our southern border ;
but the student must not be surprised if I fail to account for every spot of the particular speci-
men he has in hand. J

31

435.

436.

437.

482 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — PICIFORMES.

P. 8. nut/talli. (To Thos. Nuttall. Fig. 332.) NurraLy’s WoopPEecKER. Similar; rather
larger; more white, this prevailing on the back over the black bars ; nape chiefly white ; nasal
tufts white; lateral tail-feathers, especially, sparsely
or imperfectly barred. The Californian coast race,
differing decidedly in some respects, and constantly ;
but connected with general series of ladder-backs.
Barring restricted to the back proper, the hind neck
being black, succeeded anteriorly by a white space
adjoining the red, wanting in scalaris, where red
joins black. Red chiefly confined to the occiput,
the rest of the crown black, spotted with white.
Lateral tail-feathers white, not barred throughout,
having but 1-3 black bars, all beyond their mid-
dles, all but the terminal one of these broken.
White postocular stripe running into the white
nuchal area, but cut off from the white of the
shoulders. White maxillary stripe enclosed in
Fre. 332, — Nuttall’s Woodpecker, nat, size, black as in sealaris, but this black continuous with
(From Elliot.) the cervical black patch, which is not the case in
scalaris. No smoky-brown state of the under parts observed.
P.s.lucasa/‘nus. (Of Cape St. Lucas.) St. Lucas WooppPrcker. A local race of scalaris.
Smoky-brown nasal tufts and style of head and back as in that species. Lateral tail-feathers
imperfectly barred and only toward end, asin nuttalli. Red of crown of ¢ broken up anteriorly.
Peculiar in disproportionate size of bill and feet: bill 1.10; tarsus 0.75.
P. strick/landi. (To H. E. Strickland.) SrrRicKLAND’s WoopPECKER. Entirely different
from any of the foregoing or following species. Adult g: Upper parts dark brown, immacu-
late; top of head, rump, and 4 middle tail-feathers black ; the occiput with a scarlet band.
Sides of head with white post-ocular and maxillary bands, expanded and more or less confluent
on sides of neck. Wing-quills like the back, their outer webs with a few small white spots,
the inner webs with more numerous larger white spots or broken bars. Outermost tail-feathers
evenly barred throughout with blackish-brown and white; intermediate feathers partly so
banded, but mostly blackish. Entire under parts sordid whitish, thickly spotted with dusky ;
the markings few and somewhat linear on the throat, crowded and cordate on the breast, widen-
ing and tending tu become’
bars on the lower belly,
flanks, and crissum. Bill
and feet blackish-plumbe-
ous. Size of a small P.
villosus ; wing 4.50; tail
3.253 bill 1.12; tarsus
0.75; middle toe and claw
0.90. 9 similar: no red
on nape; color of upper
parts duller, and some
feathers of middle of back
barred with white. Young:
Like adults of the respec-
tive sex; but top of head
brown like back, and spot- Fig. 833, — Hairy Woodpecker, nat. size. (Adnat. del. E. C.)
ted with red. A Mexican species, lately ascertained tg be of common occurrence in Arizona

438.

439.

440.

441.

152.

PICIDZE :: WOODPECKERS. 483

P. villo’sus. (Lat. villosus, hairy, shaggy, villous. Fig. 333.) Harry WoopPecker. Spotted
and lengthwise streaked, but not banded. Usually 9-10 long; outer tail-feathers wholly white.
Back black, with a long white stripe down the middle. Quills and wing-coverts with a pro-
fusion of white spots; usually 6-7 pairs on the primaries, several on all the secondaries, and
one or more on each of the coverts. Four middle tail-feathers black; next pair black and
white; next two pairs white, as stated. 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; a scarlet nuchal band in the @, sometimes broken
in two, wanting in the 9. Young with the crown mostly red or bronzy, or even yellowish.
Eastern N. Am., abuvdant. Length usually 9.00-10.00; extent 15.50-17.50 ; wing 4.50-5.00 ;
tail 3.50; bill 1.12; whole foot 1.66. Varies greatly in size, mainly according to latitude. In
the West, shades directly into P. ». harrisi, by disappearance of the spots from the coverts and
inner secondaries; the change occurs on the Eastern slopes of the Rocky Mts. One of the
common Eastern U. S. woodpeckers, in British Am. trending westward to the Pacific in
Alaska; but not so often noticed as the little P. pubescens, as it is less familiar, and keeps more
in the woods. Resident wherever occurring. Eggs 4-6 or 7, 1.00 X 0.75. ‘

a. major. Northern: very large and hoary. Length up to 11.00; wing over 5.00; tail
nearly 4.00; whole foot 1.90; bill 1.50! (P. leucomelas Bodd.)

b. medius. The ordinary bird, as above.

c. minor. Southern: very small and dark. Grading down to 8.00, thus within an inch of
the maximum of P. pubescens. (P. auduboni Sw.)
P.v.har/risi. (To Edward Harris.) Harris’ Wooppecker. Exactly like villosus, except-
ing fewer wing-spots ; generally none ou the coverts and inner quills; with specimens enough
we can see the spots disappear one by one. Generally white below, but in some regions
smoky-gray (a thing not observed in Eastern birds), such being especially the case on the
Pacific slopes, where the smoky-bellied birds also sometimes acquire a few thin black stripes
on the sides; those from the interior being quite purely white below. Size of an average
P. villosus. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. 8.
P. pubes‘cens. (Lat. pubescens, coming to puberty; i.e. hairy. Fig. 334.) Downy Woop-
PECKER. Usually 6-7 long; outer tail-feathers barred with black and white. Exactly like
P. villosus, except in these respects. Length 6.00-7.00 ;
extent 11.00-12.00; wing 3.50-4.00; tail under 3.00;
bill about 0.66; whole foot 1.25. Eastem N. Am., —
abundant in orchards, and all wooded places. Range ™
substantially the same as that of the hairy woodpecker,
but in most U.S. localities the more abundant of the
two; on the whole rather more southerly. This is the
little spotted bird that bores the apple-trees so persist-
ently ; but it does not appear to hurt them. There is
no such difference in the character of the plumage as
the terms ‘‘downy” and ‘‘ hairy” imply. Eggs about — Fia. 334.—Downy Woodpecker, nat. size.
6, 0.85 x 0.70. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
P. p. gaird/neri. (To Dr. Meredith Gairdner, a Scotch naturalist.) Bearing the same relation
to P. pubescens that harrisi does to P. villosus ; the wing-spots few or wanting on the inner
quills and the coverts, the belly smoky-gray in some localities. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific,
U. 8., but much rarer than P. pubescens is in the East, and almost wanting in much of the
Rocky Mt. region, where P. harrist abounds.
XENOPI'CUS. (Gr. gévos, xenos, rare, foreign.) MaskED WoopprecKErRS. Form as in
Picus proper. Body uniformly black, Head white. Tongue said to be but little more
extensible than in Sphyropicus (not verified by me).

442,

153.

484 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLH — PICIFORMES.

X. albolarva'tus. (Lat. albo, with white, larvatus, masked.) WHITE-HEADED Woop-
PECKER. Body not banded, streaked, nor spotted. Uniform black; whole head white, in the
@ with a scarlet nuchal band ; a large patch of white on the wing, formed by white spaces on
both webs of the primaries, divided only by their black shafts; on the secondaries commonly
resolved into a number of blotches. Bill and feet plumbeous-blackish. Iris red. 9 without
the red on the nape. Length 8.75-9.50; extent 15.75-16.25; wing 5.00-5.25; tail 3.50.
Mountains of California, Oregon and Washington, common in pine woods. A remarkable
species, unique in coloration, and still more peculiar in the little extensibility of the tongue,
which can be pulled out scarcely an inch; that of P. villosus, for instance, extending 2 inches
or more beyond the end of the bill.

Fig. 335. — European Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides tridactylus), 4 nat. size; hardly distinguishable in the
cut from P. americanus. (From Brehm.)

PICOIDES. (Lat. picus, a woodpecker; Gr. efdos, eidos, resemblance. Fig. 335.) THREE-
TOED WooprrcKkers. Three-toed: the hallux (1st toe) absent, the 4th toe reversed as usual
in the family. Bill as in Picus proper, about as long as the head, stout, straight, with bevelled
end and lateral ridges, and nasal tufts hiding the nostrils; very broad and much depressed at
base, with the lateral ridges very low down, in most of their length close to and parallel with
commissure ; nostrils very near commissure ; gonys about as long as from nostrils to end of bill.
Wings very long and pointed; Ist quill spurious; 2d between 6th and 7th in length. Crown
with a square yellow patch in the @; sides‘ of head striped, of body barred, with black and
white; under parts otherwise white; quills but not coverts with white spots; tail-feathers

443.

444.

’ 445.

154,

PICIDZA: WOODPECKERS. 485

unbarred, the outer white, the central black. All the species of this genus are unquestionably
modified derivatives of one cireumpolar stock ; the American seem to have become completely
differentiated from the Asiatic and European, and further divergence seems to have perfectly
separated arcticus from americanus ; but dorsalis and americanus are still linked together.

Analysis of Species.

Back uniform black . . . . . 0 1 eee wee et se fey he “fl 4 ‘ . .arcticus 443
Back with entirely interrupted lengthwise white stripe #2 j-..... e278 - americanus 444
Back with nearly or quite uninterrupted lengthwise white stripe... . 1. + 2. «. ess dorsalis 445

P. are'ticus. (Lat. arcticus, arctic.) BLACK-BACKED THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. Entire
upper parts glossy blue-black, with only a few white spots paired on the wing-quills. Below,
white from bill to tail, the sides, flanks, and lining of wings barred with black. A slight or
concealed white post-ocular stripe (often wanting) and a side-stripe on head from across fore-
head to neck, cut off by black from the white of the under parts. Four middle tail-feathers
black, the rest white, but the intermediate one usually touched with black. @ with w square
yellow patch on crown, wanting in 9. Bill and feet blackish-plumbeous ; iris brown. Length
9.00-10.00; extent 15.00-17.00; wing 5.00-5.50; tail 4.00; bill 1.25 or more. Northwestern
Am., 8. in winter through New England and generally along the northern tier of U. 8., in the
mountains of the West to about 39° in Nevada and California. Habits of ordinary Picus.
Eggs 0.92 X 0.72.

P. america/nus. (Of America.) LADDER-BACKED THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. Upper
parts black, the middle line white, more or less completely barred across with black; the
general effect thus of a ‘‘ ladder-back.” All the primaries and secondaries with paired white
spots or bars. Four middle tail-feathers black, others white, the intermediate one usually
touched with black. Below, white from bill to tail, the sides, flanks, and lining of wings
black-barred. A white post-ocular stripe to nape, and a larger white stripe from lore to side
ofneck. @ with a yellow square on crown, wanting in 9 ; in both, crown seldom uniform
black. Bill and feet blackish-plumbeous; iris brown. Smaller than the last; length 8.00-
9.00 ; extent 14.00-16.00; wing 4.50-5.00; tail under 4.00; bill 1.25 or less; whole foot 1.50.
Northern N. Am., 8. to Massachusetts and along northern tier of States.

P. a. dorsa/lis. (Lat. dorsalis, relating to dorsum, the back.) Poue-Backep THREE-
TOED WooppPECKER. In extreme case, the back with an uninterrupted white lengthwise
stripe, producing the effect of a “‘ pole-back,” as in P. villosus for instance; this is produced by
such increase of white on the ends of the individual feathers that their black bases do not show,
the subterminal black bars of P. hirswtus disappearing. Usually partly banded black and
white, and grading bar by bar into hersutus. The amount of spotting on the wings is about
as in Picus harrisi — on primaries and secondaries, not on coverts. Size of hirsutus. Rocky
Mt. region, U. S., 8. to New Mexico.

SPHYROPICUS. (Gr. cdipa, sphura, a hammer; and Lat. picus.) Sap-suckina Wodp-
PECKERS. Bill about as long as head, not so stout and chisel-like as in the foregoing genera ;
pointed, with little bevelling at extreme end only, and lateral ridges running obliquely into the
commissure at about its middle; culmen and gonys both a little curved; nasal tufts moderate.
Wing pointed by 4th primary; 3d and 5th nearly as long; 2d between 6th and 7th; spurious
Ist very short. Tail-feathers long-acuminate. Outer hind toe little longer than outer front
one; inner hind toe extremely short. Plumage highly variegated with yellow and red. Sexes
unlike. Tongue scarcely extensile; the tip obtuse, brushy ; hyoid bones short. Birds of this
remarkable genus feed much upon fruits, as well as insects, and also upon soft inner bark
(cambium) ; they injure fruit-trees by stripping off the bark, sometimes in large areas, instead
of simply boring holes. Of the several small species commonly called “‘ sapsuckers,” they alone
deserve the name. In declaring war against woodpeckers, the agriculturist will do well to
discriminate between this somewhat injurious and the highly beneficial species.

|

446.

447.

448,

449.

486 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARILH —PICIFORMES.

8. varius. (Lat. varius, variegated. Fig. 336.) YELLOW-BELLIED WOODPECKER. @:
Crown crimson, bordered all around with black ; chin, throat, and breast black, enclosing a large
crimson patch on the former (in the ¢; in the 9 this patch white) ; sides of head with a white
line starting from the nasal feathers and dividing the black of the throat from a trans-ocular
black stripe, this separated from the black of the crown by a white post-ocular stripe ; all these
stripes frequently yellowish. Under parts dingy yellow, brownish and with sagittate dusky
marks on the sides. Back variegated with black and yellowish. Wings black with a large
oblique white bar on the coverts; the quills with numerous paired white spots on the edges
of both webs, Tail black, most of the feathers white-edged, the inner webs of the middle pair,
and the upper coverts, mostly white. Bill
brownish; feet greenish-plumbeous; iris
brown. Young birds lack the definite
=4 black areas of the head and breast, and the
crimson throat-patch, these parts being
mottled gray; but in any plumage the bird
is recognized by its yellowness, different
from what is seen in any other Eastern
species, and the broad white wing-bar, to
say nothing of the generic characters.
Length 8.25-8.75 ; extent 15.00-16.00;
wing 4.80-5.20; tail 3.50. Eastern N.
Am., abundant in most U. S. localities,
resident in the South, migratory northerly ;
N. to 61° at least; W. to Dakota; S. into
Fie, 936, —Yellow-bellied Woodpecker, nat, size. (Ad Central Am. and W. I. The hyoid bones
nat. del. E. C.) are the shortest of those of any N. Am.
species ; the tongue is protrusible only about 4 inch beyond bill. Eggs 4-6, about 0.95 x 0.70.
8. v. nucha‘lis. (Lat. nuchalis, pertaining to nucha, the nape; not classic.) Nucuan Woop-
PECKER. Like the last; with an additional band of scarlet on the nape (where the white is
seldom even tinged with redin S. varius) ; red throat-patch invading the surrounding black, and
? with this patch at least in part red ; all the yellowish variegation very pale, almost white on
the belly (where varius is yellowest) ; bill slaty-black (not brownish). Size of varius. Rocky
Mt. region, U.S., abundant. In S. varius
the red rarely spreads on the nape, and the
Q seldom has any on the throat. In S.
nuchalis this extension of red is a step
which culminates in S. ruber.
S. v. ruw/ber. (Lat. ruber, red.) ReEp-
BREASTED WooppPECcKEER. Like the last,
but whole head, neck, and breast carmine-
red, in both sexes, in which the markings
of varius are more or less completely dis-
solved, though usually traceable; gray in
the young. Size of thelast. Pacific coast
region, U.S. A remarkable extreme, long
supposed to be perfectly distinct; now
known to intergrade in every degree with Fic. 337.— Brown-headed Woodpecker (¢), nat. size.
nuchalis. (Ad nat, del. E, C.)
S. thyroi‘des. (Gr. 6upeoedys, thureoeides, shield-like ; Oupeds, thwreos, a shield; eidos,
resemblance ; alluding to the black plastron of the 9. Figs. 337, 338.) BrowN-HEADED

155.

PICIDA:: WOODPECKERS. 487

WoopPrEcKER (9). BLACK-BREASTED WOODPECKER (9). RED-THROATED WOODPECKER
(3). Wiiramson’s Wooppecker (f). Adult g°: Glossy black, including all the tail-
feathers. Belly gamboge yellow. A narrow scarlet patch on the throat. Upper tail-coverts,
a broad oblique bar on the wing-coverts, a post-ocular stripe, a stripe from nostrils below eye
and ear, and small, in part paired, spots on the quills, white. Lining of wings, sides of body,
flanks and crissum varied with white, leaving the black in bars and cordate spots. Bill slate-
color; feet greenish-gray ; iris reddish-brown. Length 9.00-9.50; extent 16.00-17.00; wing
5.00-5.50; tail 3.75; bill 0.90; whole foot 1.67. Adult 9: Altogether different ; only upper
tail-coverts white and belly yellow as in $ ; only continuously black in a shield-shaped area
on breast of varying extent. Otherwise, entire body, including wing-coverts, inner secondaries
and most tail-feathers, closely and regularly barred crosswise with black and white, or brownish-
white (most brownish on body, quite white on
wings and tail). Whole head uniform hair-
brown, invaded more or less with the varie-
gation of the body, sometimes with traces of
the post-ocular stripe of the @, and often
touched with red on the throat. Quills more
heavily white-spotted than in ¢, the spots
paired on all the feathers, changing to bars
on the inner ones. Two or three interme-
diate tail-feathers black, but middle and one
or two outer pairs barred. Size of the @.
The extraordinary sexual differences long
kept thyroides and ‘‘ williamsont” apart in
the books as perfectly distinct species; espe-
cially as they begin with the first featherings, Fig. 338. —Red-throated Woodpecker (g), nat. size.
fledglings in the nest showing the opposite (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

patterns perfectly. Young : Like adult; no red in the white throat-patch ; belly merely
yellowish; tail varied with white. Young 9: Like adult, but whole head, neck, and breast
banded with dusky and gray, conformable with the general variegation of the body. The best
9 Q are those with the cleanest brown head and most black breast. Though the general
effect of this beautiful woodpecker is so peculiar, in each sex, the coloration is referable to
the pattern of S. varius. In both, yellow belly, red throat (¢), white upper tail-coverts,
spotted quills, varied flanks and crissum, stripes on head, black breast (only circumscribed in
9), white oblique wing-bar (only developed in ¢), variegation of inner web of middle tail-
feather (Q and young ¢); general variegation of back of varius repeated in 9, while gray
head of young varius is net by brown head of 9 thyroides. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. 8.,
chiefly in the pine-belt, of which it is one of the characteristic species, like Clarke’s crow,
Steller’s jay, and other birds; abundant in favorable localities. It is strictly a Sphyropicus,
with little extensible, brushy and obtuse tongue, and feeds on juices of trees, as well as insects
and berries. Eggs not yet taken: doubtless indistinguishable from those of S. varius.
CENTU'RUS. (Gr. xévrpov, kentron, a prickle; ovpa, oura, tail; but the species not sharper-
tailed than other woodpeckers.) ZEBRA WOODPECKERS. Bill about as long as head, com-
pressed, little bevelled or truncate at end, with decidedly curved culmen; lateral ridges near
culmen, subsiding before reaching end of bill; nasal tufts moderate, partly concealing nostrils.
Outer hind toe shorter than outer anterior one. Wings and tail ordinary. Sexes alike, except
less or no red on head of Q. ‘‘ Ladder-backed;” 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; below, immaculate, except sagittate black marks on the flanks and erissuin ;
the belly tinged with red or yellow ; 9-10 long; wing about 5.00; tail about 3.50.

450.

451.

452 e

488 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — PICIFORMES.

Analysis of Species.
Belly reddening ; no yellow about head; g whole crown red; 9 napered. ... 1... - carolinus 450
Belly yellowing; ¢ crown-spot red; ? no red on head.
Front and nape yellow; rump entirely white; tail almost entirely black . . .. . aurifrons 451
No yellow on head; rump and tail much barred with black and white... . . +. wUropygialis 452

C. carolinus. (Of Carolina. Fig. 339.) Rep-BELLIED WOopPECKER. Whole crown and
nape scarlet in the ¢ ; nape only so in the 9. Sides of head, and under parts, grayish-white,
usually with a yellow shade, reddening on the belly; tail black, one or two outer feathers
white-barred ; inner web of central feath-
ers 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. Bill and feet
dusky plumbeous. Irisred. Large; length
nearer 10.00 than 9.00; extent 16.50-17.50;
wing 5.00-5.50; bill over 1.00; 9 small-
er. Varies much in size; Southern speci-
mens smaller than Northern. Eastern
U. §&., somewhat southerly, rarely N. to
New England, and Canada West; W. to
the Rocky Mts.; Texas; common south-
erly, where resident, less so northerly,
where migratory. Eggs 4-6, 1.00 x 0.87.
C. awrifrons. (Lat. aurum, gold; frons,
forehead.) YELLOW -FRONTED Woop-
PECKER. Somewhat similar to the last:
belly yellowish, not reddish ; red of head
in ¢ confined to a crown-patch, in ?
wanting. Forehead and nasal plumes
golden-yellow ; nape with a golden, orange,
or reddish band (in both sexes, besides the
scarlet crown-patch of the @). Ladder- Par del. Nichols sc.)

rungs of back narrow, numerous, and distinct. Head and under parts clear ashy-gray, very
different from the smoky-gray of C. uropygialis, the belly yellowish, the flanks and crissum
whitish, varied with black. Upper tail-coverts white, uot barred. Middle tail-feathers entirely
black; outermost not entirely barred; next black or only touched with white. Bill and feet.
bluish-black. Iris red. Length 9.50-10.50 ; extent 16.50-17.50; wing 5.00-5.50; tail 3.25—
3.75. Q differsas said. Young g: Distinctively like the adult; nearly all the crown bronzy-
red; nasal plumes not yellow; nape dull yellowish; a few thin streaks of dusky on breast.
Texas and southward ; very abundant in suitable localities on the Lower Rio Grande. Habits.
not peculiar. Eggs 4-6, 1.00 x 0.80.

C. uropygia/lis. (Gr. ovporiyiov, ouropugion, Lat. wropygium, the rump; banded in this.
species, not white as in aurifrons.) GILA WoopPECKER. SAGUARO WOODPECKER. Head
all around and entire under parts fulvous-gray, with front and nape not notably different, the
middle of the belly yellowish, the flanks and crissum whitish with black bars and cordate spots ;
middle of crown crimson in g. Back, rump, upper tail-coverts, wing-coverts, and inner quills
closely and regularly banded with black and white, latter not pure on dorsal region. Primaries
blackish, not regularly barred or spotted like the inner quills, but slightly white-tipped and
-edged, and with large white blotches at base, of irregular shapes and tending to resolve into
sets of smaller spots. Middle pair of tail-feathers black, with long white shaft-space on outer

156.

453.

454.

PICIDZE: WOODPECKERS. 489

web, on inner web white with black bars and spots; intermediate tail-feathers black; outer-
most regularly barred with black and white; next to outermost thus barred at end only. Bill
blackish ; feet plumbeous; iris probably red. Size of the others, or rather less. 9 without
red on head. A peculiar species, abounding in the valley of the Gila and Lower Colorado, and
southward, where it nests usually in the giant cactuses.

MELANER’PES. (Gr. pédas, melas, black; épans, herpes, a creeper.) TRicoLor Woop-
PECKERS. Bill about as long as head, depressed at base, compressed beyond, culmen and gonys
ridged but curved throughout, sides of upper mandible distinctly ridged but a little way, end of
bill pointed with little bevelling ; nasal tufts small, not concealing nostrils. Outer posterior
and anterior toes of equal lengths. Wings pointed by 3d, 4th, and 5th quills ; 2d shorter than
6th; 1st spurious. Plumage lustrous dnd ‘ broad” in coloration, with black, white, and red in
masses, little or not spotty or streaky. Sexes alike and young different, or sexes unlike and
young similar. The two species are very different, requiring no analysis of their characters.
M. erythroce/phalus. (Gr. épvOpés, eruthros, red; xepadn, kephale, head. Fig. 340.) Rxep-
HEADED WOODPECKER. TrRICOLOR. § 9, adult: Beautifully tricolor with ‘the red, white,
and blue.” Back, wings and tail glossy blue-black; seconda-
ries, upper tail-coverts, under wing-coverts, under parts from
the breast, and ends of some outer tail-feathers, white. Whole
head, neck and fore breast crimson, usually black-bordered
where adjoining the white. The white of the wings and ramp
is pure; that of belly usually tinged with ochraceous or red-
dish ; the white quills have black shafts. The red feathers
are stiffish and somewhat bristly in their colored portions.
The gloss is sometimes green instead of blue. Bill and feet.
dusky horn-color. Iris brown. Length 8.50-9.50; extent
16.00-18.00 ; wing 5.00-5.50 ; tail 3.50; bill 1.00-1.12; whole
foot 1.67. @9, young: The red parts of the adult gray,
streaked with dusky; the red appears in irregular patches.
Feathers of back and wing-coverts skirted with light gray,
and mixed with concealed whitish, in bars. Primaries and
tail-feathers tipped and edged with white. White of seconda-
ries broken with black bars or spots. At a very early age,
whole under parts streaked with dusky much like the head,
but these parts whiten before the head reddens. Eastern U.S.
and British Provinces, irregularly rare or common northerly, Fic. 340. — Red-headed Wood-
abounding in most U. 8. localities; common N. to 49° along pecker, reduced. (Sheppard del.
Red River of the North; W. to Rocky Mts., sometimes to Nichols se.)

Utah and California; migratory in most sections. A very familiar bird, in orchards and gar-
dens as well as in the woods, conspicuous with its gay tricolor plumage, and a great genius, no
less brilliant and versatile in character than in plumage — very accomplished, of endless re-
sources, with tricks and manners enough to fill the rest of this volume with good reading
matter! Feeds much on acorns, nuts, berries, and various fruits as well as upon insects,
and sometimes lays up a store, like the Californian Woodpecker. Nest anywhere in wood,
preferably the blasted top of a tree. Eggs 5 or 6, glassy and spheroidal as usual in the family,
1.10 to 1.15 long, 0.80 to 0.90 broad. Two broods southerly.

M. formici/vorus bairdi. (Lat. formica, an ant; voro, Idevour. 'ToS. F. Baird; our species
a variety of the Mexican one. Fig 341.) Ganirornian Woopprcker. ¢ 9: Glossy blue-

‘black ; rump, bases of all the quills, edge of the wing, and under parts from the breast, white ;

sides with sparse black streaks; forehead squarely white, continuous with a stripe down in front
of the eyes and thence broadly encircling the throat, there becoming yellowish; this cuts off the

455.

157.

456.

490 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLA — PICIFORMES.

black around base of bill and on the chin completely; crown in the ¢ crimson from the white
front, in the Q separated from the white by a black interval; frequently a few red feathers in
the black breast-patch, which is not sharply defined behind, but changes by streaks into the‘
white of the belly. Bill black ; eyes white, often rosy, creamy, yellowish, milky, bluish, or
brown. Young not particularly differ-
ent, but have the head-markings less
defined, the red bronzy. In the 9,
the succession of white, black, and red
on the crown is very sharp and square.
In some specimens of either sex, the
secondaries are edged and tipped with
white. The gloss is sometimes rather
green than blue. Size ofthe last. Bill
varies in size from 0.87 to1.12! Rocky
Mts. to the Pacific, U. S., abundant ;
noted for its habit of sticking acorns in
a little holes that it digs in the bark for
Fig. 341. — Californian Woodpecker, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. the purpose; whole branches are fre-
E.C.) quently studded in this manner. Gen-
eral manners and bearing those of the common red-head. Eggs 1.10 X 0.90.
M. f. angus’'tifrons. (Lat. angustus, narrow, straitened; frons, forehead.) NARROW-FRONTED
WooppPecker. Said to have the white frontal bar narrower ; bill somewhat differently shaped ;
white bar narrower than the black one of the 9, both together less than the red. L. California.
ASYNDESMUS. (Gr. a privative, civ, sun, together ; Secpuds, desmos, a bond ; alluding to
the loosened texture of the feathers of certain parts.) BrisTLE-BELLIED WOODPECKERS. Bill
ahnost colaptine in general aspect, but with short distinct lateral ridges as in Melanerpes; as
long as head, rather longer than'tarsus. not broader than high at base, compressed and some-~
what curved toward end; pointed
with scarcely any lateral bevelling,
culmen curved and scarcely ridged ;
gonys straight. Wings of excessive
length, folding nearly to end of tail,
and peculiar in proportion of prima-
ries: 4th quill longest, 3d and 5th
about equal and shorter than 2d.
Inner anterior claw reaching little
beyond base of outer anterior. Feath-
ers of under parts and of a nuchal col-
lar with the fibrillee of their colored
portions enlarged in calibre, bristly,
of silicious hardness, loosened and
disconnected, being devoid of bar- z
bicels and hooklets. Dorsal plu- Fic, 342. — Lewis’ Woodpecker, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
mage compact, of intense metallic lustre. Feathers of face soft and velvety. Sexes alike ;
young different. I do not see why my friends have snubbed this genus; it is a good one, as
genera go now.
A. torqua/tus. (Lat. torquatus, collared. Figs. 342, 343.) Lewis’ WoopprcKer. CoL-
LARED WOODPECKER. ¢ 9, adult: Upper parts, including wings and tail, flanks and crissuin,
green-hlack with intense bronzy lustre, especially on'the back — this iridescence like that of
Quivcalus eneus almost. Face dark crimson, in a patch of velvety feathers around bill and eyes.

' PICIDZ:: WOODPECKERS. 491

A narrow distinct collar around back of neck, and breast, hoary bluish-gray, gradually brighten-
ing behind on the under parts to intense rose-red or lake, delicately pencilled in hair lines with
the hoary-gray. No white on wings or
tail, their under surfaces simply. black.
Bill blackish; feet greenish-plumbeous.
Tris brown. Length 10.00-11.00; extent
20.00-22.00; wing 6.50-7.00; tail 4.50;
bill 1.20. Young: Little lustre at first,
but this soon appears, before any red.
‘Little or no trace of the hoary collar or
crimson mask; face sooty-black; throat
and breast mixed fuscous and gray, chang-
ing on the belly to sooty-black, tinged or
slashed here and there with red. The
hoary and lake-red are established with
the feathers that are of the bristly charac-
ter above described. A remarkable bird,.
inhabiting wooded mountainous parts of
the West, especially the pine-belt, Rocky
Mts. to the Pacific, U. 8. and British Col-
umbia. It is found with Clarke’s crow
and Steller’s jay ; wild and wary, like our
Hylotomus ; keeps high up in the trees, Nichols sc.)

and in flying looks more like a crow than a woodpecker. Its aerial excursions are very con-
spicuous. Nest and eggs as usual; size of eggs 1.12 X 0.95.

158. COLAP'TES. (Gr. xodamrns, kolaptes, a chisel, hammer.) GILDED WOODPECKERS. FLICK-
ERS. Bill about as long as head, slender and weak for this fainily, without any lateral ridges or
bevelling, pointed without truncation, culmen and commissure curved, gonys nearly straight,
only about half as long as culmen, nostrils nut concealed by the slight nasal tufts; culmen and

gonys, however, both ridged.

Outer posterior toe shorter

than the outer anterior ; in-

ner posterior very short.

Wings long, pointed by 3d

to 6th quills; 2d shorter

than 7th; 1st about 2 the
2d. Taillengthened. Sexes
generally alike, but distin-
guishable by positive marks
about head. Plumage highly
variegated and very showy.

Under parts with numerous

ee 7H circular black spots on a

thy ee ae

wi wy snowy-white. Back, wing-

Fria. 344. — Flicker, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) coverts and innermost quills

SS San

brown with an olive or lilac shade, and thickly barred with black; quills and tail black, ex-
cepting as below stated; red or black cheek patches in g, wanting in 9. About a foot
long ; wing about 6.00; tail 4.50. A beautiful genus, of 6 American species, 3 of N. Am.

492 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARIA — PICIFORMES.

Analysis of Species.

Red moustaches in g'; no red on nape in f ?; wings and tail orange-red underneath; cap lilac-brown;

throat ashy ; no yellow on belly ; back umber-brown (Western) . . . - “ 2 mexicanus 459
(Mixed in every degree with)
Black moustaches in ¢ ; red nuchal crescent in g'; wings and tail golden-yellow underneath; cap ashy;
throat lilac-brown; yellow on belly; back olive-brown (Eastern). . . . . Quratus 457
(Not mixed with)
Red moustaches in ¢'; no red on nape in #9 ; wings and tail golden-yellow underneath; cap lilac-brown;
throat ashy; yellow on belly; back umber-brown (Southwestern) . °C a pea chrysoides 458

<n

| Ni

vi
{ |

PRS ANAK
NMASSS
wy Sonat

Fig. 345. — Golden-winged Woodpecker, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

Oss. It will be noted, how curiously these species are distinguished mainly by a different
combination of common characters. — Colaptes ayresi Aup., C. hybridus Barry, C. aurato-
mexicanus SUNDEVALL, isa form from the Missouri and Rocky Mt. regions in which the charac-
ters of mexicanus and auratus are blended in every conceivable degree in different specimens.
Perhaps it is a hybrid, and perhaps it is a transitional form, and doubtless there are no such
things as species in Nature. Eastern specimens of auratus sometimes show red touches in the
black maxillary patch, as is frequently the case with Kansas examples. In the West, you

457.

458.

459.

PICIDA:: WOODPECKERS. 493

|

will find specimens awratus on one side of the body, mexicanus on the other, — tail gilded on
some feathers, rubricated on others, etc.

C. aura/tus. (Lat. awratus, golden, gilded. Figs. 344, 345.) GOLDEN-WINGED WOODPECKER.
PicgEOoN WoODPECKER. FLICKER. YUCKER. HIGH-HOLDER. Back and exposed surfaces
of wing-coverts and secondaries olive-brown with numerous black bars. Rump snowy-white;
upper tail-coverts white, mixed with black. Primaries blackish, with golden shafts, and glossed
with golden underneath, at their bases paler and more tawny yellow. Tail-feathers above black,
their shafts and under surfaces golden, blackened at ends, the outermost with a few touches of
yellow or white. Top of head, with back and sides of neck, ash, with a scarlet nuchal band (in
both sexes). Sides of head, whole chin, throat, and fore-breast lilac-brown, with broad black
cheek patches, these ‘moustaches’ wanting usually in the 9. A broad black pectoral semi-
lune. Other under parts shading from a lighter shade of the color of the breast into creamy-
yellow, marked with numerous circular black spots. Bill and feet dark plumbeous. Iris brown.
Length 12.00-13.00; extent 18.00-21.00, usually about 20.00; wing 5.75-6.25 ; tail 4.50; bill
1.25-1.50; whole foot 2.38. Young similar: more red on head. Eastern North Am.; keeping
pretty straight to the upper Missouri, where, as said, adulterating with mexicanus; pure to the
Pacific in Alaska. The first deviation is the appearance of red feathers in the black maxillary
patches ; these increase till they prevail, finally to the exclusion of the black, resulting in the
wholly red patch of C. mexicanus. With this change occurs the diminution and final extinction
of the scarlet nuchal crescent; when, coincidently, we find the characteristic golden-yellow on
the wings and tail passing through an intermediate orange into the red of mexicanus, a change
accompanied with another affecting the peculiar lilac-brown of the throat and olive-brown of
the back, which become respectively ashen and purplish-gray. One of the most abundant and
best-known species of the family, in any woodland, and sometimes foraging for food in open
country far from trees; a great ant-eater. A lively bird, of sunny temperament, like its
feathers, faithful and devoted, assiduous and successful in domestic affairs, and a good house-
keeper. Eggs usually 6 or 7; under exceptional circumstances 18 to 23 have been taken from
one hole; averaging 1.10 x 0.90. Migratory northerly.

C. chrysoi/des. (Gr. ypuods, chrusos, gold; etdos, eidos, like.) GiLDED WooprEcKER. Body,
wings and tail, substantially as in auratus; head as in mexicanus; @ with scarlet moustaches ;
no red on nape in either sex; crown lilac-brown; chin, throat, and fore-breast ash; sides
tinged with creamy-brown, belly with yellowish. There are, however, some specialties.
Golden of wings and tail less vivid than in auratus; tail-feathers black for about half their
length. General tone of under parts pale, without the decided tints of either of the other
species, the round black spots large and crowded. Top of head purer and more cinnamon
brown than in mexicanus. Smaller: wing about 5.50; tail about 4.00. Gradation between
this form and mexicanus has not yet been observed. Valley of the Colorado River, Lower
California and southward.

C. mexica‘nus. (Of Mexico.) Rep-sHarTep WooDPECKER. MEXICAN FLICKER. Back,
rump, and upper surfaces of wings and tail as in C. awratus, but a different shade of color, a
faintly reddish replacing the olivaceous tinge of the ground-color. Wings and tail of the same
pattern, but the auration replaced by rubefaction. Top of head rufous (like the throat of
auratus) ; no occipital red crescent in either sex. Throat and sides of head and neck clear
ash, with searlet maxillary patches in the g. A black pectoral semilune. Under parts very
pale lilac-brown, fading to whitish on the belly, marked with numerous round black spots.
Bill blackish-slate ; feet dark plumbeous. Iris brown. Size of C. auratus. Western North
Am., mostly replacing the yellow flicker from the Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, Sitka into
Mexico. In habits a perfect counterpart of the common flicker.

494 SYSTEMATIU SYNOPSIS. — PSITTACY.

III. Order PSITTACI: Parrots.

Feet permanently zygodactyle
by reversion of the fourth toe,
covered with rugose granular
seales or plates; bill short, ex-
tremely stout, strongly epigna-
thous, and furnished with a (fre-
quently feathered) cere, as in the
birds of prey; wings and tail
variable. The parrots, including
the macaws, cockatoos, lories,
ete., form one of the most strong-
ly marked groups of birds, as
easily recognizable by their pecu-
liar external appearance as de-
fined by technical points of struc-
ture. They were formerly in-
cluded in an ‘‘order” Scamsores
on account of the paired toes, but
this is a comparatively trivial cir-
cumstance ; they have no special
affinity with other zygodactyle birds, and their peculiarities entitle them to rank with groups
called orders iu the present volume. They might not inaptly be styled frugivorous Raptores;
and in some respects they exhibit a vague analogy to the quadrumana (monkeys) among
mammals. The tongue is thick and fleshy, in some genera peculiarly brushy ; it is used to
some extent in prehension, objects being handled between the tongue and upper mandible.
The upper mandible is uch more freely movable than is usual in birds, being articulated in-
stead of suturally joined with the forehead; and the bill is commonly used in climbing. The
bony orbits of the eyes are frequently completed by union of the lachrymal bones with postor-
bital processes, and in some genera develop a bony bridge across the temporal fossa. The
symphysis of the lower jaw is short and obtuse. The sternum is entire or simply fenestrated
posteriorly; the furculum is weak, sometimes defective, or wanting. The principal metatarsal
bone is short and broad, and its lower extremity is modified to suit the position of the fourth
toe. The lower larynx is peculiarly constructed, with three pairs of muscles; the ability to
articulate human speech is one of the most notorious faculties of some parrots. The plumage
shows aftershafts; the oil-gland is wanting in certain genera; when present, it is tufted.
There are no cceca, and the gall-bladder is wanting. Though the family is so perfectly
circumscribed that no one doubts of any bird whether it be psittacine or not, parrots differ re-
markably among themselves in certain structural characters which have in most birds a high
classificatory value. Thus, there are three decided modifications of the carotid arteries — of
which right and left may both be present, and both running deep in the vertebrarterial canal ;
or both may be present, but the left superficial; or only the left is developed (in Cacatua), as
usual in birds. The ambiens muscle, again, may be present and normal, present and incom-
plete, or wanting altogether. The femoro-caudal muscle, semitendinosus, and accessory semi-
tendinosus are present; the accessory femoro-caudal is absent.

The division of the Psittaci into family groups has taxed the ingenuity of ornithologists ;
for so variously interrelated are the numerous forms, that the grouping fluctuates with almost
every character or set of characters selected for use in classification. But Garrod’s admirable
anatomical investigations show that the Psittact may be ranged in two series, according to the

Fia. 346, — Carolina Parroquet, reduced. (From Tenney, after Wilson.)

f

PSITTACI: PARROTS. 495

characters afforded by the carotid arteries and ambiens muscle. I. PALZORNITHID#: Carotids
two (except in Cacatua), the left normal, and no ambiens. II. Psirractpa: Carotids two,
the left superficial, the ambiens present in one series of genera, absent in others. In the sub-
family (1) Paleornithine, there is no further deviation; in (2) Cacatwine, besides the lack of
a right carotid in Cacatua itself, the orbital ring is completely ossified, and develops a bony
process bridging in the temporal fossa; in (3) Stringopine, which includes the curious flightless
ground Parrot or owl Parrot of New Zealand (Stringops habroptilus), the farculum and sternal
keel are deficient or defective. Psittacide include (4) the Arine, in which the ambiens muscle

Fia. 347. — Carolina Parroquet, } nat. size. (From Brehm, after Audubon.)

is present; (5) Pyrrhurine, in which it is absent, without further modification; (6) Platy-
cercin@, no ambiens and no furculum; (7) Chrysotine, no ambiens, no furculum, and no oil-
gland. There are thus 7 subfamilies of 2 families of Psittact.

‘Parrots abound in all tropical countries, but, except in Australia and New Zealand,
rarely extend into the temperate zone. The Indian and A:thiopian regions are poor in parrots,
while the Australian is the richest, containing many genera and even whole families peculiar
to it.” (NewrTon.) The highest authority, Finscu, recognizes 354 species as well deter-
inined, distributing them in 26 genera; 142 are American, 23 African, and 18 Asiatic; the
Moluccas and New Guinea have 83, Australia 59, and Polynesia 29.

496 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES.

28. Family PSITTACID: Parrots.

See above. Two carotids, the left superficial. All New World Parrots belong here (but
all Psittacide are not of the New World).

39. Subfamily ARINA: Parrots.

See above. Ambiens muscle, tufted oil-gland and complete fureulum. Of this subfamily
the Macaws (Ara) and our species of Conurus are characteristic.

159 CONU/RUS. (Gr. xévos, konos, a cone; otpd, owra, tail; cuneate-tail.) PARRoQuets.
Tail lengthened, nearly equalling wings, cuneate, with tapering feathers. Face entirely
feathered excepting a slight space about the eye. Nostrils in the feathered cere. Bill very
stout, with bulging lateral outline, broadly rounded culmen, and toothed or lobed commissure.
Tarsi very short, much less than the inner anterior toe; outer anterior longer than outer pos-
terior toe. Feet granular-reticulate, becoming scutellate on the toes. Wings pointed ; in our
species the 2d and 3d primaries longest, the 1st and 4th subequal and shorter. A large genus
of tropical America, with one U. S. species.

460. C.carolinen’sis. (Lat. Carolinian. Figs. 346,347.) CaroLina PARROQUET. Green; head
yellow; face red; bill white; feet flesh-color; wings more or less variegated with blue and
yellow. Sexesalike. Young simply green. Length 12.50-13.50; extent 21.00-22.50; wing
7.00-8.00 ; tail 6.00-7.00. Southern States ; up the Mississippi Valley to the Missouri region ;
W. to Arkansas and the Indian Territory; recently Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, ete. ; formerly
strayed to Pennsylvania and New York, but of late has receded even from the Carolinas; still
abundant in Florida. But it would seem that if the cruel and wanton slaughter to which the
gentle creatures are subjected by idlers goes on, they must before long be exterminated. Gre-
garious, frugivorous, and granivorous ; not regularly migratory, but roving. Said to breed in
companies in hollow trees ; eggs whitish, 1.40 x 1.05, elliptical in shape, rough in texture.

Iv. Order RAPTORES: Birds of Prey.

ey

Bill epignathous, cered; and
Jeet not zygodactyle. The rapa-
cions birds (Raptores, Raptatores
or Accipitres of authors, Aéto-
morphe of Huxley) form a fairly
uatural assemblage, to which this
expression furnishes a clew.
(The parrots, probably the only
other birds with strongly hooked
and truly cered bill, are yoke-
toed.) The Raptores presen:
several osteological and other an-
atomical characters. The ster
num is ample and deep keeled,
its posterior margin doubly or
singly notched or fenestrate on
each side, or entire with central
emargination; the furculum an-
chylosed or not. Angle of man-
dible not recurved; mazxillo-
palatines united to an ossified -
SS septum ; rostrum arched and
Fig. 348. — Death as a bird of prey, (From Michelet.) hooked ; basipterygoid processes

RAPTORES: BIRDS OF PREY. 497

present or absent. Hallux always present, usually valid and insistent ; outer toe reversible in
some cases, never permanently reversed. The ambiens is present (except in Striges) ; all ex-
cepting Gypogeranides and some Cathartides possess the femoro-caudal muscle, but not its
accessory, nor the semi-tendinosus nor its accessory (excepting Cathartides, which have the two
last named, and Gypogeranides, which have these and the accessory femoro-caudal). Coca
are present (except in Cathartides). The oil-gland is present in all, and tufted except in
Cathartides. Aftershafts are present (usually), lacking in some Accipitres, all Striges and
Cathartides. There are two carotids; the syrinx, when developed, has but one pair of intrinsic
muscles. The nature is altricial, yet ptilopedic, the young being downy when hatched, and
long fed by the parents in the nest. The alimentary canal varies with the families, but differs
from that of vegetarian birds, in adaptation to an exclusively animal diet. In the higher
types, the whole structure betokens strength, activity, and ferocity, carnivorous propensities
and predaceous nature. Most of the smaller, or weaker, species feed much upon insects ;
others more particularly upon reptiles, and fish; others upon carrion; but the majority prey
upon other birds, and small mammals, captured in open warfare. To this end, the claws no
less than the beak are specially adapted, by their development in the “ talons” which we con-
stantly associate with our ideas of birds of prey. These weapons of offence and defence are
as a rule of great size, strength, crookedness, and acuteness; and also peculiar in being con-
vex on the sides, gradually narrowed to the point, and little or not excavated underneath. The
inner claw is larger than the outer, and the hinder one smaller than the middle; and all are
very flexibly jointed, so that they may be strongly bent underneath the toes, carrying to the
extreme the grasping power of the feet. The legs are muscular and largely free from the
body, feathered to the suffrago or beyond; when unfeathered, the tarsal envelope varies in
character. The wings are ample, and, as usual in birds below Passeres, the coverts are long
and numerous, covering three-fourths or more of the folded wing. The tail, very variable
in shape, has twelve rectrices (with rare exceptions).

Representatives of this order are found in every part of the world. They are divisible into
four primary groups, of more classificatory value than that attaching to average families in
ornithology, and therefore to be held as superfamilies or suborders. One of these, Gypogeranides,
consists of the single remarkable species Gypogeranus serpentarius, the secretary-bird or serpent-
eater of Africa ; this shows a curious grallatorial analogy, being mounted on long legs like a
Crane, and has several important structural modifications. The other three are the Striges or
Owls; the Accipitres or Hawks, Eagles, etc., including the Old World Vultures; and the
Cathartides or American Vultures, — these last more different from the others collectively than
the rest are from one another. All are well represented in this country. They are recognizable
at a glance, but the following analysis will serve to place the characters of the suborders and
their respective families in strong relief.

Analysis of Suborders and Families.

Feet scarcely raptorial, with weak, blunt, lengthened, little curved or contractile claws. Hind toe ele-
vated, not more than half as long as outer toe, with small claw; middle toe lengthened ; outer toe not
versatile; front toes all webbed at base; basal joint of middle toe longer than either of the succeeding
ones. Nostrils large, perforate. Bill little raptorial, lengthened and somewhat contracted in conti-
nuity, tomia never lobed or toothed, tip blunt, little hooked. Head largely naked. Index digit with
a large claw. No lower larynx, ceeca, aftershafts, or tuft of oil-gland. Ambiens present ; femoro-
caudal present or absent; semitendinosus and its accessory present. . . . . . CATHARTIDES.

Diurnal; gressorial; feed exclusively on carrion . . . . . . CATHARTIDA,

Feet highly raptorial, with large, strong, sharp, curved, contractile claws. Hind toe not elevated, length-
ened, more than half as long as outer toe, with large claw; outer toe often versatile; front toes with
slight basal webbing between outer and middle, or none. Nostrils small, imperforate. Bill short,
stout, very seldom contracted in its continuity, tomia often once or twice lobed or toothed, tip sharp,
much hooked. Head feathered completely or in greatest part. Lower larynx with one pair of intrinsic
muscles. Ccoeca present. Plumage with or without aftershafts. Ambiens present or absent. Femoro-
caudal present. Semitendinosus and its accessory absent. As arule, saltatorial, and kill their prey.

32

498 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— STRIGES.

Physiognomy not peculiar; no great lateral expansion of the cranium or thickening of its walls
with diploé; eyes looking sideways; no facial disc or only an imperfect one; base of bill not
hidden by appressed feathers. Nostrils wholly in the cere. Tomia usually toothed or lobed.
No external ear-conch. Outer toe not shorter than inner, and rarely versatile. Basal joint of
middle toe longer than thenext. Feet with rare exceptions mostly or entirely naked of feathers,
scutellate or reticulate, or both; toes always bare and scaly. Sternum commonly single-
notched or -fenestrate on each side, sometimes entire. Oil-gland tufted. Plumage compact,

usually aftershafted; flight audible. Ambiens present. Diurnal » . . ACCIPITRES.
Outer toe not reversible, and plumage usually aftershafted . . FALCONIDA,
Outer toe reversible, and plumage without aftershafts ® it as PANDIONIDZ.

Physiognomy peculiar by reason of great lateral expansion, lengthwise contraction and diploic
thickening of the often unsymmetrical cranium; eyes looking forward, surrounded with aradi-
ated disc of modified feathers, in front appressed, antrorse, hiding base of bill. Nostrils usually
at edge of the cere. Tomia never lobed or toothed. A large external ear-conch often devel-
oped. Outer toe completely versatile, shorter than inner toe. Basal joint of middle toe not
longer than second, much shorter than the penultimate one. Feet usually feathery or bristly
to or on thetoes. Oil-gland nude. Plumage without aftershafts, soft and lax; flight noiseless.

Ambiens absent. Nocturnal . . : . . . . STRIGES.
Sternum entire behind, with central eniareinntions farculum anichylosed. Middle claw
pectinate. Facial disc complete, triangular x + . + . ALUCONIDA.
Sternum double-notched or fenestrate; furculum free. Middle daw not pectinate. Facial
disc circular when complete ........4.. See. Ca . STRIGIDZ.

6. SusorpeR STRIGES: Nocturna Birps oF Prey.

Head very large, and especially broad from side to side, but shortened lengthwise, the
“face” thus formed further defined by a more or less complete “‘ ruff,” or circlet of radiating
feathers of peculiar texture, on each side. Eyes very large, looking more or less directly for-
ward, set in a circlet of radiating bristly feathers, and overarched -by a superciliary shield.
External ears extremely large, often provided with an operculum or movable flap, presenting
the nearest approach, among birds, to the ear-conch of mammals. Bill shaped much as in
ordinary Accipitres, but thickly beset at base with close-pressed antrorse bristly feathers,
and never toothed. Nostrils large, commonly opening at the edge of the cere rather than
entirely in its substance. Hallux of average length, not obviously elevated in any case; outer
toe more or less perfectly versatile (but never permanently reversed), and shorter than the
inner toe; its first three joints very short, altogether not as long as the succeeding one; basal
joint of middle toe not longer than the next. Claws all very long, much curved and extremely
sharp, that of the middle toe pectinate in some species. As a rule, the tarsi are more or less
completely feathered, and the whole foot is often thus covered. Among numerous osteological
characters may be mentioned the frequent want of symmetry of the skull, wide separation of the
inner and outer tablets of the brain-case by intervention of spongy diploé, the spongy maxillo-
palatines and lacrymals, which latter long persist distinct; the basipterygoid processes; the
manubriated and commonly 4-notched (if not entire) sternum ; a peculiar structure of the tarso-
metatarsus; a particular arrangement of the bones about the shoulder-joint, and the weakness
of the furculum when not anchylosed with the stemum. The gullet is capacious but not
dilated into a special crop; the gizzard is only moderately muscular; the intestines are short
and wide; the cceca are extremely long and club-shaped. The syrinx has one pair of intrinsic
muscles. The oil-gland is nude. The ambiens is absent. The feathers have no aftershaft,
and the general plumage is very soft and blended.

The Nocturnal Birds of Prey will be immediately recognized by their peculiar physiognomy,
independently of the technical characters that mark them as a natural, sharply-defined group.
They are highly monomorphic, without extremes of aberrant form; but the ease with which
they are collectively defined is a measure of the difficulty of their rigid subdivision, which is
not yet satisfactorily determined. Too much stress has been laid upon the trivial, although
evident, circumstance of presence or absence of the peculiar ‘‘ horns” that many species possess.

STRIGES: NOCTURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 499

These are tufts of lengthened feathers rising over the eyes from the forehead, and commonly
called “ ear-tufts”; but they have nothing to do with the ears, and are more appropriately
named ‘‘ plumicorns,” or feather-horns. More reliable characters may be drawn from the
structure of the external ear and facial disc, the modifications of which appear to bear directly
upon mode of life; these parts being as a rule most highly developed in the more nocturnal
species ; somie points of internal structure have been fuund correspondent. Thus, one group,
of which the barn owl, Aluco flammeus, is the type, is very distinct in the angular contour and

Causa quod horrenda stridere nocte solent,’’ — Ov1p, Fasti, vi. 139.

“ Screech-owls they ’re called, because with dismal cry
In darkling night from place to place they fly.”

high development of the facial disc, pectination of the middle claw, and other characters upon
which a family Aluconide may be established. Probably the rest of the suborder fall in two
subdivisions of a single family Strigide, the essential characters of which have already been
contrasted with those of Aluconide.

The nearest relatives of the Striges, outside their own order, are the Caprimulgi— the
relationship being really very close through the genus Steatornis. As is well known, owls are
eminently nocturnal birds; but to this rule there are numerous striking exceptions. This
general habit is correspondent to the modification of the eyes, the size and structure of which

500 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES— STRIGES.

enable the birds to see by night, and cause them to suffer from the glare of the sunlight. Most
species pass the daytime secreted in hollow trees, or dense foliage and other dusky retreats,
resuming their wonted activity after nightfall. Owing to the peculiar texture of the plumage
their flight is perfectly noiseless, like the mincing steps of a cat; and no entirely fanciful anal-
ogy has been drawn between these birds and the feline’ carnivora that chiefly prey stealthily in
the dark. The nest is commonly a rude affair of sticks gathered in the various places of diurnal
resort; the eggs are several (commonly 3-6), white, subspherical. The 9, as a rule, is larger
than the ¢, but the sexes are alike in color; the coloration is commonly blended and diffuse,
difficult of concise description. Owls feed entirely upon animal substances, and capture their
prey alive — small quadrupeds and birds, reptiles and insects, and even fish. Like most other
Raptores, they eject from the mouth, after a meal, the bones, hair, feathers, and other indigesti-
ble substances, made up into a round pellet. They are noted for their loud outeries, so strange
and often so lugubrious, that it is no wonder traditional superstition places these dismal night-
birds in the category of things ill-omened. Besides the well-known lines which are set
beneath two of the accompanying figures, the reader may recall the owl as among the ‘ portents
weird’ which foretell the fate of the unhappy queen of Carthage, when, deserted by ‘ pious’
®neas, she resolves to die.

“Solaque culminibus ferali carmine bubo
Seepe queri, et longas in fletum ducere voces.’’ — VERG., 4in., iv. 462.

The hoot-owl, brooding ominous above
Her fateful house, is wearing dismal night away
With wild vociferation. Portents weird, etc.

Owls are among the most completely cosmopolitan of birds; with minor modifications
according to circumstances, their general habits are much the same the world over. A diffi-
culty of correctly estimating the number of species arises from the fact that many, especially of
the more generalized types, have a wide geographical distribution, and, as in nearly all such
cases, they split into more or less easily recognized races, the interpretation of which is at
present a matter of opinion rather than a settled issue. About 200 species pass current; this
number must be reduced by one-third; out of about 50 generic names now in vogue, probably
less than one-half represent some structural peculiarity.

29. Family ALUCONID: Barn Owls.

Two genera of Owls, Aluco and Phodilus, differ so much
from other Striges that they may properly constitute a family
apart from Strigide. The prime character is anchylosis of
the furculum with the sternum, which latter bone is entire
behind (unusual; compare fig. 56). External characters
are: facial disc and outer ear-parts highly developed, the
former not circular, but rather triangular, the latter sym-
metrical; middle and inner toes of about equal lengths ; inner
edge of middle claw serrate or jagged, simulating the pecti-
nation seen in Caprimulgide, to which birds these owls are
curiously related through Steatornis. The pattern of color-
ation is peculiar; the plumage is very downy; the habits
of the species are eminently nocturnal. The leading genus,
Aluco, of several species or races, is nearly cosmopolitan,
being absent only from high latitudes and some insular re
gions; the other, of one species, Phodilus badius, inhabits
portions of Eastern Asia, Ceylon, Java and Borneo. —N. B.
Adoption of the name Aluco for the Barn Owls, instead of Strix, requires the present family to

ml

i si

Fia. 350.— Barn Owl. (From Dixon.)

160.

ALUCONIDZ:: BARN OWLS. 501

be called Aluconida, instead of Strigide ; which latter name is to be applied to the succeeding
family.

ALU'CO. (Ital. alocho, some kind of owl. Figs. 47,351.) Barn Ow.s. To above characters
add: Wings very long, pointed, folding beyond the tail, the Ist or 2d primary longest, and none
emarginate. Tail short, nearly even or emarginate, about 4 as long as the wing. Tarsus nearly
twice as long as middle toe without claw, closely feathered, the plumage becoming scant and

SS

Fig. 851. — Barn Owls, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

“From yonder ivy-mantled tower,
The moping owl does to the moon complain
Of such, as wand’ring near her secret bower,
Molest her ancient solitary reign.”’ —GRay.

bristly below, like that on the nearly naked toes, and reversed in direction on the posterior
aspect ; claws extremely long and acute (see fig. 47). Bill lengthened, compressed, the cere
nearly as long as the rest of the culmen; nostrils oval; no plumicorns; eyes comparatively
small, black ; bill light-colored; plumage flagrant, not dichromatic; size medium. One North
Am. species. :

502 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

425. A. flam/meus pratin’cola. (Lat. flammeus, flame-colored; pratincola, meadow-inhabiting.) .
Barn Own. Above, including upper surfaces of wings and tail, tawny, fulvous, or orange-
brown, delicately clouded or marbled with ashy and white, and dotted with blackish, sometimes
also with white ; such marking resolved, or tending to resolve, into four or five bars of dark
mottling on the wings and tail. Below, including lining of wings, varying from pure white to
tawny, ochrey, or fulvous, but usually paler than the upper parts and dotted with small but
distinct blackish specks. Face varying from white to fulvous or purplish-brown, in some shades
as if stained with claret, usually quite dark or even black. About the eyes, aud the border of the
disc, dark brown. Thus extremely variable in tone of coloration, but the patvern more constant,
while the generic characters render the bird unmistakable. Nestlings are covered with fluffy
white down. Length 15.00-17.00; extent about 44.00; wing 13.00-14.00; tail 6.00-7.00 ; bill
0.95; tarsus 2.75. Q larger than ¢. The superior size is the chief distinction from the Old
World A. flammeus. U.S. from Atlantic to Pacific; somewhat southerly, only known N. to
Massachusetts and corresponding latitudes; S. into Mexico, West Indies and Central America;
abundant in wooded, settled, and especially maritime regions; usually resident. Breeds natu-
rally in hollow trees, frequently in the barn, belfry, tower, or other building; eggs 3-6 in
number, colorless or soiled yellowish-white, about 1.75 x 1.25, nearly equal-ended, laid with
little or no preparation upon the débris of the hole, commonly bones and other refuse of the
food, which is chiefly small quadrupeds and insects.

30. Family STRIGIDA: Other Owls.

All other Striges, as far as
known, have the sternum once
or twice notched on each side
behind, and the furculum free
from that bone. The outer ear-
parts are sometimes as highly
developed as in Aluconide, or
they may be quite small; the
facial disc varies in size and per-
fection, being largest, most cir-
cular, and most completely radi-
ating from the eye as a centre in
those species in which the ear-
conch is best developed. These
two characters would therefore

ee = seem to go together, and they
Fia. 352. —Mobbing an owl. (From Michelet.) are not correlated with the pres-
ence or absence of plumicorns. The inner toe is shorter than the middle, and the middle
claw is not pectinate. It may prove advisable to make these features the basis of a division
of the Strigid@ into two subfamilies, Strigine and Bubonine, as proposed by Mr. Sharpe ; but
I do not deem it expedient to present such arrangement on the present occasion. In the event
of such final determination, our genera Strix, Asio, and Nyctala would fall in Strigine; the
rest in Bubonine.

Analysis of Genera.

(40) SrRigina: ? Eye centric in large complete circular disc, and ear-conch larger than eye, with well
developed operculum. 7
Plumicorns absent ; cere short.
Ear-parts symmetrical. Large: length over 12imches. . . . 5 eae oe . Strix 164
Ear-parts asymmetrical. Small: length under 12inches. . . , F » . . « Nyctala 167
Plumicorns present; cere longer than rest of culmen aoe AS oe oo » oe +. Asio 163

161.

462.

STRIGIDZ: OTHER OWLS. 503

(41) Busoninz? Eye eccentric, nearer top than bottom of more or less incomplete disc, and ear-conch
not larger than eye, without developed operculum.
Plumicorns present, well-developed.

Very large: length over 18 inches; tail about the wing . . . hip MCSE dee . Bubo 161
Small: length under 12 inches; tail about 4 the wing poles Dg: Bete et ap Fd Gyre Scops 162
Plumicorns present, rudimentary. Very large: length over 18inches. White... . . Myctea 165

Plumicorns absent.
Tarsus full-feathered.

Tail graduated. Length over 12inches. Hawk-like........ +... .Surnia 166
Tail rounded. Length much under 12inches. . . .... +. +... + Glaucidium 168
Tarsus naked®or scant-feathered.
Length under 8inches . . a eh a See ch SA a, Re . Micrathene 169
Lengthover8inches ...... > RE ge! He! Sel Se Meee. ct Speotyto 170

BU'BO. (Lat. bubo, the horned owl.) Tus Grear Hornep Owxs. Hoot Owns. Skull
and ear-parts symmetrical (of same size on both sides of head), the latter simply elliptical,
non-operculate, not longer than the great yellow eye, which is eccentric in the moderately devel-
oped facial dise (nearer its top than bottom). Plu-
micorns highly developed. -Nostrils oval, in the
edge of the cere, which is not inflated, nor as long
as the rest of the culmen; bill robust, black, not
buried in the frontal bristles. Wings rather short,
folding short of the end of the tail, the 3d or 4th
primary longest, the first 2 or 3 emarginate near
their ends. Tail rounded, more than 3 as long as
the wing, its under coverts not reaching its end.
Feet densely feathered to the last joint of the toes,
but claws exposed. Of medium and very large size
(some of the species are nearly the largest of the
owls), and variegated, usually dark, colors ; plumage
not dichromatic. Embracing numerous species, of
all America and nearly all of the Old World ; only
one, however, in N. Am.

B. virginianus. (Lat. virginianus, Virginian.
Fig. 353.) Great Hornep Owt. Hoor Owt.
Car Ow.. Distinguished by its large size and con-
spicuous ear-tufts, our other species of similar stature
being tuftless or nearly so. Length nearly or about
two feet; extent 4 or 5 feet; wing 14.00-16.00 '
inches; tail 8.00-10.00; tarsus 2.00-2.25; culmen yg, 353. — Great Horned Owl, much reduced.
without cere 1.10-1.20. Q averaging larger than g. (From Tenney, after Audubon. )

Plumage varying interminably, no concise description meeting all its phases. A white collaron
the throat is the most constant color-mark. On the upper parts, the under-plumage tawny, but
so overlaid with coarse mottling of blackish and white, that it shows chiefly on the head, nape,
and scapulars ; the mottling chiefly transverse, and resolving into 7 to 9 continuous or broken
bars on the wings and tail. Under parts white, indefinitely tawny-tinged, and for the most
part barred crosswise with blackish, changing on the fore breast to ragged and rather length-
wise blotches. Feathering of feet nearly plain tawny. Ear-tufts black and tawny; a dark
mark over eye; border of the facial disc black, the face white or tawny, but the feathers mostly
black-shafted. Bill and claws black ; iris yellow ; pupil always circular; when fully dilated as
large as a finger-ring, contractile to the size of a pea. Young covered at first with white down ;
first plumage more uniformly tawny and lighter-eolored than it becomes after the first moult,
when the white collar and other distinctive markings are assumed. This powerful bird, only

463.

464.

162.

504 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES — STRIGES.

yielding to the great gray owl in stature, and to none in spirit, is a common inhabitant of
North Am. at large, representing B. ignavus of Europe. It is non-migratory ; breeds in late
winter, and early spring months (usually February or March), laying in hollows of trees or rifts
of rocks, or in a bulky nest of sticks on the branches of tall trees, often appropriating that of
a large hawk, as a Buteo. Eggs said to be 3-6, not known to me to be more than 2 in num-
ber; colorless, subspherical, about 2.25 X 1.90 in size; duration of incubation said to be about
three weeks. The young begin to hoot when about 4 months old. This owl preys upon
birds and quadrupeds up to the size of domestic fowls and rabbits. It is habitually abroad in
the daytime, apparently not at all inconvenienced by sunlight. Runs into the following vari-
eties, which, however, are not as strictly geographical as the names would indicate : —

B. v. arc’ticus. (Lat. arcticus, northern.) Wuirt Hornep Ow. Very pale colored, fre-
quently quite whitish, and not distantly resembling the snowy owl. (See Swainson’s fig. in
F. B. A., pl. 30.) Boreal and alpine North Am. ; such specimens occasional in Northern
U. 8. in winter, and Rocky Mt. region.

B. v. paci’/ficus. (Lat. pacificus, of the Pacific ocean.) Dusky Hornep Ow. Very dark
colored, chiefly blackish and grayish, with little or no tawny. Apparently a littoral phase, sup-
posed to be more particularly de-
veloped on the Pacific coast; but
the extreme of this style, in which
the tawny is extinct, and which
has been called B. saturatus, is
from Labrador, where also occur
the darkest specimens of Gyr-
falcons.

SCOPS. (Gr. oxo, Lat. scops, a
kind of owl. Fig. 354.) Lirris
Hornep Ow1s. ScREECH OWLS.
Like a miniature Bubo in form
(all our species under a foot long).
Skull and ear-parts symmetrical ;
latter small, simply elliptical, with
rudimentary operculum; facial
disemoderately developed; plumi- :
corns evident; nostrils at edge of 3
the cere, which is not inflated,
and shorter than the rest of the
culmen, Wings rounded, but
long, about twice the length of

the short rounded tail, about to i
the end of which they fold ; in Fia, 854. — Screech Owl, reduced. (From Dall.)

our species the 4th and 5th primaries longest, the lst quite short; 3 or 4 outer primaries
sinuate or emarginate on inner webs. Tarsus feathered (in our species), but toes only partly
bristly Gin the S. asio group) or quite naked (as in S. flammeola). Plumage dichromatic
in some cases ; 7. €., some individuals of the same species normally mottled gray, while others
are reddish, the two phases very distinct. when fully developed, but shading insensibly into
each other, and entirely independent of age, season, or sex. In normal plumage, a white or
whitish scapular stripe; lower parts with lengthwise blotches or shaft-lines and crosswise
bars or waves of blackish or dark color; upper parts with black or blackish shaft-lines on a
finely-dappled brown or gray ground (more or less obliterated in the red phase) ; facial dise
black-bordered nearly all around; wing-quills spotted or marbled on outer webs, barred on

STRIGIDG: OTHER OWLS. 505

inner webs. Tail with light and dark bars. A large and nearly cosmopolitan genus, especially
rich in tropical species; but only two are known to inhabit N. Am., one of them running
into several local races very difficult to characterize satisfactorily.

Analysis of Species and Varieties.
Toes bristly or partly feathered. Plumicornsconspicuous . . . . . 2. 6 © + © «© «© + «+ aio 465
Dichromatic ; red phase bright rusty. Eastern.

Medium in size: wing usually between 6.00 and 7.00; tail about 3.50. Markings of under parts
coarse, irregular, and blotchy, usually wanting on middle of belly; of upper parts fine but
irregular, without nuchal collar. Eastern U.S. and Canada. . . » . + asio 465

Small: wing usually 5.50-6.00; tail about 3.00. Markings as in asio, but valthise heavier. Florida

floridanus 469

Small: size of floridanus. Markings of under parts fine, regular, of upper parts coarse, but reg-

ular, with tendency to a nuchal collar. Texas . . Lee ahs go» Si aes maccalli 468
Dichromatic; red phase rusty-brown. Northwestern.

Large: wing usually over 7.00. In the gray phase like asio, but markings of under parts finer,

more regular and continuous. Northwestern . . . a te < . . «kennicotti 466
Dichromatism not known to occur. Western.
Medium: size of average asio. Markings of under parts thick, seein continuous over the

whole surface; of upper parts exactly asin asio. California. . . bendirii 466a
Medium: size of average asio. Markings of all parts very light, the gray vaaie. with much

white, especially on wings and under parts eo eR ee Poe . .maxwelle 467

Toes perfectly naked, Plumicorns short. , Southwestern . a ht ~ + +. flammeola 471

465. S. a/sio. (Lat. asio, a kind of horned owl.) Lirrin Hom Owx. ScrEEcH OWL.
MoTrTLteD OwL. RepOwn. Of medium size; length 8.00-10.00; extent about 22.00; wing
6.00-7.00, usually between these numbers ; tail 3.25-3.50. Gray or normal phase, adult f 9:
Upper parts brownish-gray in minutely dappled pattern of lighter and darker shades, every-
where finely but irregularly streaked with black or blackish shaft-lines, usually most evident
on the crown. A conspicuous oblique scapular bar formed by the white or creamy outer webs
of several scapulars, each usually touched with black at its end; a second similar bar on outer
webs of several outer wing-coverts. Wing-quills dusky, the outer webs of the primaries with
several distinct conspicuous white or buff spots; the inner webs of the primaries and both webs
of the secondaries with numerous alternating lighter and darker bars; lining of wings mostly
yellowish-white. Til like the secondaries, but the light bars mostly ragged or dissipated in
marbling. Facial disc set in a blackish frame nearly all around; mostly finely mottled, but
the lores and chin usually whitish, immaculate. Taking white as the ground of the under
parts, this is coarsely and irregularly blotched and streaked with thick shaft-lines giving off
numberless finer curved or wavy cross-bars ; the general aspect patchy; the markings usually
wanting on the middle of the belly. Iris yellow; bill livid or slate-gray, pale horn-color at
tip ; claws blackish. From this stage the ‘ mottled owl.’ passes by insensible degrees, through
wood-brown, hazel-brown, and tawny into the ‘red owl.’ — Red or erythrismal phase: Bright
rust-red, sometimes even bronzed; most of the special markings dissipated or absorbed in the
red, continuous and uniform above, showing only traces if any of the black shaft-stripes ; below,
black stripes and blotches usually preserved, and the red also mixed with much white. The
dark rim of the disc, and white scapular stripes, are usually preserved. The two phases are
distinct from the first feathering. Nestlings are covered with white down. The first feather-
ing, in the normal phase, is almost everywhere closely and regularly barred or waved cross-
wise with dark gray and pale gray or whitish. Eastern U. 8. and Canada, W. to the Rocky
Mts., on the confines of its range shading into the several varieties noted beyond; resident, and
on the whole the most abundant owl, breeding about buildings as well as in hollow trees or
stumps, and feeding on small quadrupeds, as mice and shrews, small birds, and insects ; nest a
slight structure in the hollow selected for a resident ; eggs 5 or 6, white, subspherical, 1.30 to
1.40 * 1.15 to 1.20.

466, S. a. kennicot'ti. (To Robert Kennicott.) Kuennicorr’s ScrEEcH Owx. The larger
northern form. Length about 11.00; wing usually 7.00-7.50, but grading down in some cases

466a.

467.

468.

469.

470,

471.

«

506 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

to 6.50; tail about 4.00. In the gray phase, very similar to asio proper, the upper parts being
in fact indistinguishable, but the markings of the under parts finer, more regular and continuous
over the whole surface ; in the ‘red’ phase dusky umber-brown, quite. unlike the bright rust-'
color of asio. This state was long supposed to be the only one, and characteristic of the bird ;
it occurs chiefly coastwise and far north, while the gray phase, only distinguishable from that
of asio as above said, seems to be the rule in the U. S. In size, some New England specimens
are fully up to the average of kennicott?. West and Northwest N. Am., from Idaho to Sitka.

S. a. bend/irii. (To Capt. Chas. Bendire.) Canirornia ScREECH OwL. No red phase
known to occur. Size of asio, and extremely like it, differing chiefly in the finer, more
numerous and continuous cross-bars of the, under parts, which cross the middle of the belly as

elsewhere; the shaft-stripes also appear less blotchy. It is thus quite like the gray phase of

kennicotti, but smaller. The plumicorns are said to be shorter. Coast region of California,
common. I have gone carefully over a series of Scops, and appreciate the points lately made
by Mr. Brewster and Mr. Ridgway. If these fine shades are to be recognized by name, the
present seems entitled to be named with the rest.

S. a. maxwel/lz. (To Mrs. M. A. Maxwell, of Boulder, Colorado, a noted huntress and
taxidermist.) CoLorRADO ScREECH OwL. Size of asio; no red phase observed ; but, on the
coutrary, the whole plumage very pale, almost as if bleached, the difference evident in nestlings
even. Upper parts pale gray, with reduced black lines; lower whiter with reduced dark shaft-
lines and cross-bars, the scapular bar very conspicuous ; much white on wing-coverts; white
spots on outer webs of several primaries running into continuous areas only indented with small
dark spaces. Mountains of Colorado, and doubtless adjoining ones ; an alpine form.

S. a. maceal/li. (To Col. Geo. A. McCall.) Trxas Screech Owx. A small southern
form; size of floridanus; gray and red phases, as in asio proper. Very similar to asio; in
the gray phase, the markings of the under parts finer, firmer, more regular.and continuous, the
shaft-lines strict, not blotchy, the cross-lines sharp; the stripes of the upper parts coarse, but
regular, and the nape with a tendency to present a light nuchal collar. Texas and southward,
to Guatemala. (S. maccalli Cass., 1854, 1858; Cours, 1872; S. asio var. enano Lawr.,
Rivew., Hist. N. A. B., iii, 1874, p. 48, but not maccall, tbid., p. 52.)

S. a. florida‘nus. (Of Florida.) FLorma Screecn Own. A small southern form; wing
5.50-6.00 ; tail about 3.00. Coloration as in asio; red phase frequent if not the usual one; in
its full development, the rusty makes quite firm broad cross-bars on the under parts, which is
not the rule in asto, though very evident in specimens from Southern Illinois, for example,
where the red is by far the most frequent plumage. Florida, and adjoining regions.

S. trichop’sis? (Gr. Opi, rpryos, thrix, trichos, hair, dis, opsis, aspect.) An alleged
species, or a subspecies of asio, with which I am unacquainted. Described as having the bars
of the lower surface fine, nearer together than in asio, and much more uniformly distributed ;
the general aspect being paler than in asio, with much finer vermiculations (Ridgway). Cali-
fornia, New Mexico, and southward. (8. a. maccalli, Ripaw.. Hist. N. A. B., iii, 1874, p. 52;
S. trichopsis, Ripaw., Pr. U. 8. Nat. Mus., 1878, p. 114; but whether of WAGER, 1832?)
S. flamme’ola. (Lat. flammeola, here signifying a little reddish thing.) FLAMMULATED
Screech Own. A small species, with much the general aspect of an ungrown 8S. asio; but
the close feathering of the tarsus stops abruptly at the bases of the toes, which are naked, and
the plumicorns are quite short. Length 6.50-7.00 ; wing 5.25-5.50; tail 2.75; tarsus 0.90;
culmen, without cere, 0.35 ; middle toe, without claw, 0.55. Adult g@ 9: Facial disc, some-
times whole head, rusty-rufous, or light chestnut, speckled with black, on the top of the head
also, with white, tending to form a superciliary stripe. Ground of under parts white, but heavily
overlaid with shaft-stripes or blotches of black giving off irregular cross-waves, on the breast
tinged with rusty-rufous here and there;.tarsi white, speckled with dusky. Upper parts
minutely dappled with dark brown and hoary-gray, aud with ragged dark shaft-stripes ; a con-

163.

472.

473.

STRIGIDZ: OTHER OWLS. 507

spicuous whitish scapular bar, as in S. asio. Tail like back, but with numerous narrow and
ragged cross-bars of pale rusty or whitish. Wing-quills ‘ bitten in’ on outer webs with white
or buff, conspicuously so on several primaries, their inner webs with regular but narrow, distant
and weak bars, strengthening, however, toward the bases of the secondaries. Young birds,
like those of S. asto, tend to a uniform cross-barring of the whole plumage, but especially of
the under parts, with light and dark; the top of the head is finely vermiculated in this manner ;
the chestnut first appears on the ear-coverts and about the eyes; but in any color-variation this
interesting little Scops, only about as large as a Glaucidiwm, is unmistakable.

A/SIO. (Lat. asio, a kind of horned owl.) Earep Owxs. Marsa Ow1s. Skull and ear-
parts more or less unsymmetrical ; the conch of immense size, about as long as the skull is high,
furnished with a movable operculum for its full length. Eyes centric in the perfectly developed
facial disc.. Plumicorns more or less developed. Nostrils at edge of the cere, which is some-
what inflated, and longer than the chord of culmen beyond it; bill rather weak. Wings about
twice as long as tail, pointed, 2d primary usually longest, only 1 or 2 primaries emarginate on
inner webs. Feet closely feathered to the ends of the toes. Of medium size; our species 12—
16 inches long. Embracing numerous species, and nearly cosmopolitan. Our long-eared owl
is decidedly different from that of Europe, Asio otus, but the short-eared has not been satisfac-
torily distinguished from the almost cosmopolitan A. accipitrinus.

Analysis of Species.

Plumicorns long, many-featbered (Asio proper) . A rae ‘ ee ee » . . . wilsonianus 472
Plumicorns short, few-feathered (Brachyotus) .... . ; : + accipitrinus 473

A. wilsonia/nus. (To A. Wilson. Fig. 56.) AMERICAN aeaiaea Ow.. Ear-tufts con-
spicuous, about as long as middle toe and claw, of 8-12 feathers. First primary only emargi-
nate on inner web. Upper parts brownish-black, minutely mottled with grayish-white, and
variegated with the tawny of basal portions of the feathers which comes to the surface here
and there; the general effect dark, quite different from the tawny streaking of A. otus of
Europe. Under parts confused blackish-brown, grayish-white and tawny; on the breast
marbled in large pattern, for the rest with dusky shaft-lines throwing off dusky cross-bars
(several on each feather) on a whitish ground, and the tawny bases of the feathers showing
more or less; feet and crissum mostly immaculate, tawny or whitish. Quills blackish-brown,
regularly barred with mottled gray, and towards their bases with tawny, which latter forms a
conspicuous area on the outer webs of several primaries. Lining of wings tawny, separated
by a dusky area from the similar bases of the inner webs of the primaries. Tail like the
secondaries, dusky with gray marbled bars, and more or less tawny towards the base; but from
below presenting quite light, with numerous firm narrow dusky bars. Facial disc mostly
tawny, framed all around in a blackish border speckled with whitish, and more or less black-
ened about the eye; usually a whitish superciliary line; bristles at base of bill mixed whitish
and blackish ; plumbeous-blackish, basally tawny, edged on one side with whitish. Bill and
elaws blackish ; iris yellow. Length 14.00-16.00; extent about 39.00; wing 11.00-12.00 ;
tail 5.50-6.50; tarsus 1.25-1.50; chord of whole culmen about 1.00. Less variable than
many owls, and always easy to recognize. N. Am. at large, common and generally dis-
tributed, resident ; perfectly nocturnal, and thus’screened from casual observation, even where
it is numerous, but often surprised in the daytime in shady resorts, as thick bushes along
streams, cafions, caves, etc. Nesting various, in a hollow tree or stump, rift of rock, on the
ground, or in deserted nests of other birds, as hawks, crows, magpies, or even herons; usually
constructed with little art, as when in a hollow or on the ground, sometimes better built in
branches of a thick tree. Food small quadrupeds, birds, and insects. Eggs white, subspherical,
1.50 to 1.60 X 1.80 to 1.40.

A. accipitrinus. (Lat. accipitrinus, hawk-like. Fig. 355.) SHorT-EARED OWL. MarsuH
Ow. Ear-tufts inconspicuous, much shorter than middle toe and claw, few-feathered. First

164,

508 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

and 2d primaries emarginate on inner webs. Above, completely variegated, chiefly in streaks,
with fulvous or tawny, and dark brown; breast much the same, but other under parts paler
ochrey, usually bleaching on the
belly, which is sparsely but sharply
streaked (never barred) with dark
brown; feet pale tawny or whitish,
usually immaculate; lining of wings
interruptedly whitish. Wing-quills
varied, mostly in large pattern, and
tail pretty regularly barred (about 5
bars) with the two colors of the
upper parts. Facial area white or
nearly so, but with a large black eye-
patch; the disc minutely speckled
with fulvous and blackish, bordered
with white internally and usually
having a blackish patch behind the
ear ; radiating feathers of the oper-
culum streaked with blackish and
fulvous. Iris bright yellow; bill
and claws dusky-bluish; the naked
granular soles yellowish. The ear-
opening of this species is extremely
large, being two inches or more
across the longest way. Length ofa
& 14.50; extent 41.00; wing 12.00;
tail 6.00; tarsus to end of middle
claw 3.50; chord of culmen, cere
: ; ineluded, 1.12; 9 averaging larger
Fig. 355. — Short-eared Owl, reduced. (Sheppard del. ‘Nichols sc.) than g. Inhabits N. Am. at large,
and most other parts of the world. It appears to be somewhat migratory with us, and is
sometimes seen in considerable flocks, especially in marshy places, which are its favorite
hunting-grounds for the small quadrupeds and other animals upon which it preys. It is a
great destroyer of shrews and field-mice, deserving on this account to be protected in the
interests of agriculture. The nest is commonly built on the ground, sometimes in an under-
ground burrow, consisting of a little hay and feathers; the eggs are 4-7 in number, dull white,
roundish, about 1.55 X 1.25. This owl breeds indifferently in any latitude, and is one of those
frequently abroad in the daytime.
STRIX. (Gr. orpiyé, strigx, Lat. striz, a screech-owl.) Gray OwLs. Brown OWLS.
Woop Owts. Skull and ear-parts more or less unsymmetrical, the latter large, furnished
with a moderate opereulum scarcely reaching the whole length of the opening. Head very
large, appearing as broad as the body, and perfectly smooth, there being no plumicorns ; facial
dise complete and of great extent, the comparatively small eyes centric in the radiating feathers.
Nostril in edge of cere, which is shorter than rest of culmen. Bill yellow; iris yellow or
black. Tail very long, 2 to 3 as long as the wings. Wings much rounded; 4 to 6 primaries
sinuate on inner webs; lst quite short. Fathering of feet variable; tarsus always feathered,
but toes wholly or partly feathered, or naked. A large genus of ‘earless’ owls, chiefly of the
northern hemisphere, of medium to very largest size. North America has at least three per-
fectly distinct species; the commonest one of these, S. mebulosa, represents thé European
tawny owl, S. aluco.

Ny!

474.

475.

476.

STRIGIDZ: OTHER OWLS. 509

Analysis of Species.
Under parts streaked on the breast, elsewhere barred, Iris yellow. Six quills sinuate.
Of immense size; length 2 feet or more ; toes densely feathered. Northern . . . cinerea 474
Under parts barred on the breast, elsewhere streaked. Iris black. Five quills sinuate.
Of medium size: length about 1} feet.

Toes fully feathered. Eastern. . ........2.-.- we ee a oe . 2 . . nebulosa 476
Toes mostly naked. Florida . ..... 1. ew ee ee ee ee alleni 477

Under parts barred everywhere. Iris black. Five quills sinuate.
Of medium size; toes fully feathered. Western ... SOP Ah ee ees “ - . occidentalis 478

S. cine’rea, (Lat. cinerea, ashy.) Great Gray OWL. SPECTRAL Own. Feet completely
feathered to the claws; bill and eyes yellow; 6 primaries cut on inner webs. Entire upper
parts dark brown, mottled with grayish-white in confused and intricate pattern, reducible in
general to dissipation of bars. Wings and tail similar, broken-barred with grayish-white
marbling. Under parts of the same dark brown and pale gray, the pattern in streaks on the
breast, in cross-bars on the belly and flanks, in spots on the feet. The great facial disc watered
with dark brown and light gray in regular rings concentric with each eye, the outermost ring
dark brown, and stronger than the rest, bounded below with a ragged white collar. Length
2 feet or more; extent about 5 feet; wing 16.00-18.00 inches; tail 11.00-12.50; culmen
1.00 without cere. An immense owl, one of the largest of all, inhabiting Aretie America,
straying irregularly south into the U. 8S. in winter, even to New Jersey, Illinois, and California ;
said to be common from our northern border northward, and perhaps resident in Northern New
England. Nest in trees, of sticks, mosses, and feathers; eggs usually 3 or 4, not equal-ended
and rather small for the bird, 2.25 x 1.80. Like others of the genus it is a wood owl; while
its prowess enables it to prey upon creatures up to the size of grouse and hares.

S. c. lappo’nica. (Lat. lapponica, of Lapland.) Lar Owx. Specimens from Alaska, lighter
colored than ordinary, have been referred to the European rather than the American variety.

S. nebulo’sa. (Lat. nebulosa, clouded. Fig. 356.) BarrED Own. Hoor Own. AMERICAN
Woop Own. Toes fully feathered, nearly or quite to the claws, which are blackish; bill
yellow; iris black. Of medium size in the genus: length
18.00-20.00; extent about 44.00; wing 12.50-13.50, rounded;
tail 9.00-10.00, rounded. Markings of back and breast in
cross-bars, of belly in lengthwise stripes. Above, umber-
brown or liver-color, everywhere barred with white or tawny,
or both; breast the same; on the belly the pattern changing
abruptly to heavy dusky shaft-stripes on a white or tawny
ground; crissum the same; feet speckled with dusky ; wings
and tail like the back or rather darker, regularly barred with
gray, light brown or tawny, some of the bars usually making
white spots at their ends, and the marking of the wing-coverts —_ Fie. 356. — Barred Owl, reduced.
rather in spots than bars. Lining of wings tawny, with some dusky spotting. Facial disc
set in a frame of black and white specks, with blackened eye-lids, and obscurely watered
with lighter and darker colors in rings around the eye as a centre, the bristly feathers about
the bill mixed black and white, or white at base, blackened terminally. A notably large and
somewhat impressive owl of Eastern N. Am., common in woodland of the U. S., especially
southerly ; not known to range much north of the U. 8., though occurring in parts of Canada,
and not reported from the West, where apparently replaced by S. occidentalis. It is the eom-
monest ‘ hooting’ owl, the strange outbursts of midnight discord which one may hear about the
farm-house or camp-fire proceeding oftener from this species than from the great horned owl;
and it is strong enough to prey upon poultry, quail, rabbits and squirrels, as well as humbler
game. Nest in a hollow tree, or a deserted hawk’s or crow's nest ; eggs laid early in spring,
white, subspherical, about 2.00 X 1.75.

477.

478.

165.

479.

510 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

S. n. alleni. (To J. A. Allen.) FLoripa Barrep Own. Like S. nebulosa proper, but
toes almost entirely naked. The feathering of the tarsus stops at the roots of the toes almost
as abruptly as it does in Scops flammeola, in comparison with 8. asio, though a slight strip of
bristly feathers runs along the outside of the middle toe. The barring of the breast seems
to be heavier, on an average. Florida; a local race.

S. occidenta/lis, (Lat. occidentalis, western.) WESTERN BARRED OwL. Toes feathered as
in &. nebulosa. Decidedly smaller than that species, and otherwise readily distinguished.
Ground-color of upper parts much the same, but the barring broken up into spotting, for the
most part; on the back and wing-coverts resulting in irregular variegation, on the head making
small round white spots. Wings, tail, and facial disk much as in S. nebulosa. Under parts
quite different, the markings being in bars everywhere, with little difference in pattern between
the belly and the breast. The latter is closely and regularly barred with brown and white, as
in S. nebulosa, and if the barring is at all different on the belly, it is from separation of the
white bars into pairs of spots, in any event very different in appearance from the firm length-
wise stripes of S. nebulosa. The difference between the two species in this regard is comparable
to that between the k -g- and short-eared owls. The lining of the wings is fully spotted with
dusky on a tawny gr. und. The general brown color of the bird is on the whole warmer than
that of S. nebulosa. Length about 16.00; wing 12.00-13.00; tail 8.00-9.00. Western U. &.,
southerly ; a very distinct species, apparently replacing the barred owl, common in parts of
California, Arizona, and New Mexico. Egg 2.00 x 1.75, yellowish-white, granular.
NYCTEA. (Gr. vuercts, nukteus, Lat. nycteus, :
nocturnal.) SNow Owxs. Much the same gen-
eric characters as Bubo, which see; but plumicorns
tudimentary, and generally considered wanting ;
facial dise quite incomplete, and eyes not centric
to it; bill nearly buried in the frontal feathers ;
feet densely clothed in long shaggy feathers which
even hide the claws ; four outer quills emarginate
on inner webs; under tail-coverts reaching end of
tail, which is rounded, and rather more than } as
long as the wing. One circumpolar species of
great size, and mostly white color; young covered
with sooty down.

N. scandia/ca. (Lat. scandiaca, of Scandinavia.
Fig. 357.) Snowy Own. Pure white, spotted g
and barred with brownish-black markings, wholly
indeterminate in size and number; but entirely
white specimens are very rare. There is often
more blackish than white; and in the darkest
birds, the markings tend to bar the plumage with
rows of spots, such pattern specially evident on the
wings and tail. A common average plumage is Fig. 357.— Snowy Owl, reduced. (From Tenney,
spotted all over the upper parts, broken-barred on fter Audubon.)

the quills and tail-feathers, regularly barred on the under parts, and with white face and paws.
The face, throat, and feet are usually whitest. Bill and claws black; iris yellow. Nearly or
about two feet long; extent 4.50-5.00 feet; wing 16.00-18.00 inches; tail 9.00-10.00; culmen
1.10 without cere; tarsus 2.00; middle toe without claw 1.25. This remarkable owl, conspic-
uous in size and color, abounds in the boreal regions of both hemispheres, whence it comes
southward irregularly in winter, sometimes raiding in large numbers. With us, it is of every
winter occurrence in the Northern and Middle States, sometimes pushing its way even to the

166.

480.

STRIGIDA: OTHER OWLS. 511

Carolinas and Texas; there being no part of the U. S. where it may not appear at that season.

It is far from being exclusively nocturnal, and hunts abroad in the day-time as readily as any

hawk. It has never been ascertained to breed in the U.S8., though it probably does so in

Maine, as is certainly the case little further north. It is capable of enduring the rigors of

Aretic winters. The nest is usually upon the ground or rocks; the eggs are 5 to 10, laid at

intervals (as is the case with various other owls), so that the nest may contain fresh and incu-

bated eggs and young birds at once; they are equal-ended, about 2.50 X 1.90. The bird preys

upon grouse, ptarmigan, hares, and smaller game, especially the field-mice and lemmings

which swarm in the Arctic regions.
SURNIA. (Etym. of Surnia or Syrnium unknown.) Hawk Ow1s. Skull and ear-parts

much as in Bubo or Nyctea; latter non-operculate, the opening of small size ; facial dise very

little developed, and eyes not centric to it; no plumicorns. Wings folding far short of end of
tail; third primary longest; first 4 emarginate on inner webs. Tail remarkably long, little

shorter than the wing, much graduated, with lanceolate feathers. Feet thickly and completely

feathered to the claws; tarsus scarcely or not longer than middle toe. Of medium size, with a’
peculiarly neat and dressy appearance, for an owl, the whole plumage being more strict than in

other members of this family. There is but one species, common to northern portions of both

hemispheres, as hawk-like in habits as in mien, though unmistakably an owl.

S. fune/rea. (Lat. funerea, funereal. Fig. 358.) American Hawk Owx. Day Owt.

Bill and eyes yellow; claws brownish-black. Upper parts bistre-brown, darkest and almost

blackish on the head, where profusely
spotted with small round white marks,
to which succeeds a nuchal interval less
spotted or free from spots, then an area
of larger and lengthened spots ; seapulars
profusely spotted with white in large
pattern, forming a scapular’ bar as in
Scops; back and wing-coverts more or
less spotted with white also; primaries
and secondaries with white spots in pairs
on opposite edges of the feathers. Tail
broken-barred with white or pale gray,
usually narrowly and distinctly, on one
or both webs, and tipped with the same;
but there is great individual variation in
this respect, as may also be said of the
amount and character of the spotting of
the whole upper parts. Under parts
from the breast backward, including the
crissum, closely and regularly cross-
barred with rich reddish-brown, or even
reddish-black, upon a white ground, the
alternating bars of color usually of
about equal widths — if anything, the
white the broadest. The lining of the Fic. 358. — Hawk Owl, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
wings shares the same character, but is more spotty ; the paws are mottled with brown and
whitish, in different pattern. On the breast the regular barring gives way, the tendency being
to form a dark pectoral band on a white or spotted ground, but this disposition is seldom per

fected. Facial disc mostly whitish, bounded by a conspicuous blackish crescent behind the
ear. When the dark nuchal collar is perfected, a second bar curves down behind the first on

481.

167.

482.

512 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

the side of the neck, separated by a whitish interval; the edges of the eyelids, many of the
loral bristles, a line just in front of the eye, and a chin-spot, are black or dusky; the lower
part of the disc below the ears has also dusky streaks. The exposed part of the bill is bright
yellow, as said, but most of that hidden by the bristles is of a dark livid color. However vari-
able in detail, the markings of this species are unmistakable ; those about the head are better
defined than in most owls, and quite peculiar. Length 15.00; extent 33.00; wing about
9.00; tail about 7.00; tarsus, or middle toe without claw, 1.00 or less; culmen without cere
0.75. A handsome and spirited owl, abundant in northern portions of N. Am., S. into
northern U. S. in winter, frequently and regularly ; apparently resident in Maine. Like the
snowy owl, it endures the rigors of Arctic winters. Nest usually in trees, sometimes on rocks
or stumps, of sticks, mosses, grasses, and feathers; eggs 4-7, April, May, about 1.55 x 1.25,
whitish. The food of this species seems to be chiefly field-mice and other small rodents,
hawked for in broad daylight, this owl being apparently the least nocturnal of its tribe.

S.f. wlula. (Lat. uwlula, a screech owl.) EvropgEan Hawk Ow.. Lighter-colored speci-.
mens from Alaska have been considered to represent this variety, just as darker-colored ones,
from the British Islands, have been referred to the preceding variety.

NYOC'TALA, (Gr. vixrados, nuktalos, sleepy.) Saw-wHET Owxs. Skull and ear-parts
highly unsymmetrical, the latter of great size, and fully operculate. Head very large (as in
Strix), without plumicorns ; facial dise complete, with centric eye. Nostril at edge of the cere,
which is inflated or not. Tail from $to $ as long as the wing, rounded. Third and 4th primaries
longest; 1st quite short; 2 or 8 emarginate on inner webs. ‘Feet thickly and closely feathered
to the claws. In this interesting genus the ear-parts are of great size, and reach the extreme
of asymmetry, the whole skull seeming misshapen. Three species are known, all of small
size ; one of cireumpolar distribution, one peculiar to N. Am., the third of unknown habitat,
probably American. They are notable for the unusual degree of. difference between old and
young; and our species are readily distinguished by stronger characters than are ordinarily found
between congeneric owls. The adults are umber or chocolate-brown above, spotted with white,
below white, striped with brown; the young more uniform. Eyes yellow; bill black or

yellow.
Analysis of Species.

Larger: wing about 7.00; tail 4.50. Bill yellow; cere not tumid; nostrils presenting laterally, and

obliquely oval. Arctic. . . ....% ‘ . richardsoni 482
Smaller: wing 5.50; tail 2. 67. Bill black ; cere tumid; ‘nostrils presenting anteriorly, and about circular.
U.S. iS Bk cashes eer $ . acadica 483

N. teng/malmi rich/ardsoni. (To P. G. nesoaisiity and Ji Hishatienn’) Arcric AMERICAN
Saw-wHer Owxu. Adult: Upper parts, including wings and tail, uniform chocolate-brown,
spotted with white ; on the top of the head the spots small and profuse, on the nape larger and
blended into a nuchal collar, on the back and wing-coverts large and sparse, but tending to
form a scapular bar, on the wing-quills and tail-feathers in pairs, at the opposite edges of the
webs, on the inner webs larger, more like bars, and more or less run together, especially on
the inner secondaries. Under parts white, thickly and confusedly streaked lengthwise with the
color of the back. Facial disc mostly white, but with blackish eyelids and loral spot, set in a
frame of dark brown speckled with white. The general tone of the brown of this species is
oftenest ruddy, nearly as in N. acadica, but sometimes dark and pure. Young not seen by me;
said to differ from the adult much as NV. acadica does. Length 11.00-12.00; extent 24.00;
wing 7.00; tail 4.50; tarsus 1.00; middle toe without claw 0.67; culmen without cere 0.60.
Said to be distinguished from the European conspecies (fig. 359) by its darker coloration, ochrey
feet spotted with brown instead of being nearly immaculate white, and more heavily streaked
under tail-coverts. This fine species inhabits the Arctic regions, being seldom seen in the
U. §., where only known in winter and not further south than New England, Wisconsin,
Northern Ohio, and Oregon ; though it is probably resident in Northern Maine, like the snowy

STRIGIDA: OTHER OWLS. 513

and hawk owls. The nest is said to be built in a tree; the eggs are variously stated to be from
2 to 6 in number; size 1.25 x 1.05.

N. aca/dica. (Lat. acadica, of Acadia.) AcapIAN Own. SAw-wHET OWL. Adult:
Upper parts, including wings and tail, very similar to those of the last species, but the ground
usually a ruddier brown, the spotting less extensive, the marks on the top of the head pencilled
in delicate shaft-lines instead of round spots, those of the wings and tail exactly as in A. rich-
ardsont. Under parts white, diffusely streaked or dappled with a peculiar light brown, almost
pinkish-brown. Feet immaculate whitish, tinged with buff. Facial disc mostly white, but
blackened immediately about the eye and on the loral bristles, and pencilled with dusky on
the auriculars; set ina frame of the color of the back, touched with white points behind the

Fira. 359. — Upper, Tengmalm’s European Saw-whet Owl, very near No. 482. Lower Kuropean Sparrow Owl,
resembling No. 484. Both } nat. size. (From Brehm.)
ear; this frame distinct on the throat where it separates the white of the dise from a white
jugular collar, before the pectoral streaks begin. Bill black; claws dark; eyes yellow. Young
quite different (1. albifrons): Above, ruddy chocolate-brown, without any spots ; wings and
tail more fuscous brown, marked substantially as in the adults. Below, the color of the
back extending over all the fore parts, the rest being brownish-yellow ; no streaks whatever.
Facial dise sooty-brown, with whitish eye-brow, and some white touches on the rim behind
the ear curving forward to the chin. Bill black, as before. Length 7.50-8.00; extent 17.00-
18.00; wing 5.25-5.75 ; tail 2.60-2.90; tarsus 0.75; bill without cere 0.50; middle toe with-
out claw 0.60. This curious little owl, the most diminutive species found in Eastern N Am.,
inhabits the U. S. from Atlantic to Pacific, and goes somewhat further North into British
America, and also S. into Mexico. Though apparently common and generally distributed, it is

33

168.

484.

485.

514 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — STRIGES.

not very well known, as it is shy and retiring, and quite nocturnal in habits. It is chiefly
noted for its shrill harsh notes, which, being likened to tiling a saw, have occasioned its name.
The nest is usually made in the hollow of a tree or stump, in April; the eggs are 3-6 in number,
white, nearly globular, about 1.00 x 0.87.
GLAUCI/DIUM. (Gr. dimin. of yAavé, glaux, an owl.) Gnome OwLs. SPARROW OWLS.
Pyemy Ow1s. Size very small. Head perfectly smooth; no plumicorns; ear-parts small,
non-operculate; facial disc very incomplete, the eye not centric. Nostril circular, opening in
the tumid cere; bill robust. Tarsus fully and closely feathered, but toes only bristly for the
most part. Wings short and much rounded, the 4th primary longest, the 1st quite short, the
3 outer ones emarginate, and next one or two sinuate. Tail long, about $ as long as the wing,
even or nearly so. Claws strong, much curved. <A large genus of very small owls, mostly of
tropical countries. The numerous species, chiefly of warm parts of America, are in dire con-
fusion, but the only two known to inhabit N. Am. are well determined. The plumage of
many or most species is dichromatic, as in Scops, there being a red and a gray phase indepen-
dently of age, season, or sex; but the red is not known to occur in our G. gnoma. The upper
parts are marked with spots or lines; bars, or rows of spots, cross the wings and tail; the
under parts are streaked ; there is a cervical collar. Notwithstanding their slight stature, the
gnome owls are bold and predaceous, sometimes attacking birds quite as large as themselves.
They are not specially nocturnal. The eggs are laid in holes in trees, and are not peculiar in
character.
Analysis of Species.

Markings of upper parts in dots and round spots. Tail dark brown, with rows of white spots . .gnoma 484

Markings of upper parts in sharp lines. Tail reddish, with dark brown bars . . ~ JSerrugineum 485
G. gno'ma. (Lat. gnoma, a spirit of the mines.) CALIFORNIAN GNoME OWL. 9, adult:
Tail concolor with the back, and markings of the upper parts, as well as those crossing the
wings and tail, in the form of dots or round spots, not lines or bars. Upper parts one shade of
dark brown, everywhere dotted with small circular spots of white; a collar of mixed blackish-
brown and white around the back of the neck ; breast with a band of mottled brown, separating
the white throat from the white of the rest of the under parts, which have irregular lengthwise
streaks of reddish-brown. Wings and tail dusky-brown, the feathers marked on both webs with
rows of round white spots, largest on the inner; under wing-coverts white, crossed obliquely
by a blackish bar. Bill, cere, and feet dull greenish-yellow; soles chrome yellow; claws
black ; ‘iris bright yellow ; mouth livid flesh-color. Length of # 7.00 or a little less; extent
14.50; wing 3.75; tail 3.00. Length of 9 7.50; extent 15.50, ete. In the 9 the upper parts
are rather lighter, with fewer larger spots, and a nearly obsolete nuchal collar; but both sexes
vary in the tint of the upper parts, which ranges from pure deep brown to pale grayish, almost
olivaceous, brown, probably according to age and season, the newer feathers being darker than.
they are when old and worn. The condition of erythrism, so well known in the next species,
has not been observed in the present one, which is closely related to the sparrow owl of Europe
(G. passerinum, fig. 359). Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. S. and southward, common in wooded
regions ; an interesting little owl, crepuscular and rather diurnal than strictly nocturnal, preying
chiefly upon insects, but also upon birds and quadrupeds sometimes about as large as itself.
G. ferrugi‘neum. (Lat. ferruginewm, rusty-red.) FERRUGINEOUS GNOME OWL. ¢9,
adult, normal plumage: Tail entirely ferrugineous, or light chestnut-red, crossed with 7 to 9
bars of blackish- brown, — of the same width as the rufous interspaces, and both sets of mark-
ings quite regular. (These tail-marks distinguish the species in any plumage from G. gnoma.)
Entire top of the head, above the superciliary ridges, and sides of the head behind the auriculars,
olivaceous-brown, streaked with small, distinct lines of white or fulvous-whitish ; these mark-
ings being on the forehead and most of the crown like pin-scratches in their sharpness, and
though a little less so behind the ears, everywhere retaining their narrow linear character. (Ip

169.

STRIGIDA : OTHER OWLS. 515

G. gnoma, the head-markings are dots and spots, not lines.) Back like the head, olivaceous-
brown, but without markings, except on the scapulars, most of which feathers have a large
round white spot on the outer web near the end, and more or fewer pairs of fulvous spots on
both webs. Color of back and head divided by an obvious cervical collar, consisting of a series
of diffuse whitish, and another of fulvous, spots, separated by a nearly continuous line of black.
Upper tail-coverts usually more or less rufescent, approximating to the color of the tail.
Remiges olivaceous-fuscous, like the back, the primaries imperfectly and indistinctly, the sec-
ondaries completely and decidedly, cross-barred with numerous rufescent bands, narrower than
the dark intervals ; besides which markings some of the primaries have an incompleted series
of small whitish or very pale fulvous spots along the outer edge, and all have large and deep
indentations of white or whitish along the inner web, increasing in size from the ends toward
the bases of all the feathers, and also on individual feathers from the outer primaries to the
inner secondaries, on which last they reach quite across the inner webs. Lining of wings
white, with an oblique dark bar, and another curved dark bar, the latter across the ends of the
under coverts. Under parts white, heavily streaked along the sides with the color of the back ;
this color extending quite across the breast, where, however, the feathers have dilated shaft-
lines of whitish ; chin and throat white, divided into two areas by a blackish or dark gular col-
lar, which curves across from one post-auricular region to the other. The markings all diffuse.
Auriculars dark, sharply scratched with white shaft-lines, bounded below by pure white. Eye-
brows white, pretty definitely bounded above by the color of the crown. Region immediately
about the bill whitish, but mixed with the long, heavy, black bristles that project far beyond
the bill, which latter is greenish at base, growing dull yellowish at the end; sparsely-haired
toes somewhat like the bill; claws brownish-black; iris lemon-yellow. Length of ¢ about
6.50; extent 14.50; wing 3.50;-tail 2.50; tarsus 0.75; middle toe without claw about the
same, its claw 0.40. 9 larger: length 7.00 or more; wing 4.00; tail nearly 3.00. Red
phase: Entire upper parts deep rufous-red, with the lighter markings of the head, etc., obsolete
or obliterated ; tail the same, with dark bars scarcely traceable. Dark cervical collar, however,
conspicuous. White of under parts tinged with yellowish or fulvous; the markings of the
under parts similar in color to the ground of the upper parts, but duller and paler; tibie rufous,
without markings. Gular collar blackish. Various intermediate stages have been observed,
and the species is to be found in every degree of transition, from the slightest departure from
the normal state to the completely erythritic condition. These color-conditions are common to
both sexes. In extreme cases, the rufous becomes intense and almost uniform, a light rufous
replacing even the white of the under parts, and there being no traces left of bars on the wings
or tail. Texas to Arizona and Southern California, and southward.

MICRATHE'NE. (Gr. pixpés, milkros, small; ’A@j»n, Athene, goddess of wisdom, to whom
the owl was sacred.) Exr Owns. Related to Glaucidiwm; of very diminutive size, including
the smallest known species of owl, and one of the least of all raptorial birds. Head perfectly
smooth; no plumicorns; ear-parts small, non-operculate ; ‘facial disc incomplete, with eye not
centric. Nostril circular, opening in the tumid cere. ‘Tarsi scarcely feathered below the suf-
frago, being almost entirely naked and bristly, like the toes; this is as in Speotyto, though
other characters are quite different. Claws remarkably small and weak; middle toe and claw
about as long as the tarsus; outer claw reaching a little beyond base of middle claw; inner
intermediate between middle and outer. Wings very long, rather more than 2 the total length
of the bird, but much rounded, the lst primary only 2 as long as the longest one; 3d and 4th
longest, 5th but little shorter, 2d about equal to 6th; the outer four sinuate on inner webs.
Tail of moderate length, 4 as long as the wing, the feathers not graduated, and broad to their
very tips. Bill small and weak, compressed at base, where hidden in dense antrorse bristly
feathers; culmen and gonys only moderately convex; lower mandible obsoletely notched.
One species known.

486.

170.

487.

516 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— STRIGES.

M. whit/neyi. (To Prof. J. D. Whitney.) Exr Own. ¢, adult: Above, light umber-
brown, thickly marked with irregular angular pale brownish dots, one on every feather, and
minutely undulated with lighter and darker color. A concealed white cervical collar, this color
occupying the middle of the feathers, which are brown at their ends and plumbeous at base.
A white scapular stripe, the outer webs of the scapulars being almost entirely of this color.
Wings like the back ; lesser coverts with two pale brownish spots on each feather ; middle and
greater coverts boldly spotted with white at the end of the outer web of each feather, and with
pale brown spots near the end. Quills with 3 to 6 pale brown spots on each web, forming
broken bars, mostly. passing to white on the edge of the feathers, those on a few intermediate
primaries almost white. Tail-feathers like the wing-quills, with 5 broken bars and one ter-
minal, of pale brownish whitening on the inner webs. Lining of wings white, interrupted
with dark brown. Face and region about eye white, below it barred with light and dark
brown ; bristles at base of bill black on terminal half. Chin and throat white, forming a broad
mark from side to side. General color of under parts whitish, the breast blotched and imper-
fectly barred with brown, forming toward the abdomen large patches, the sides more grayish,
the flanks plumbeous, tibiz narrowly barred with light brown and dusky. Tarsal bristles
whitish ; those of the toes yellowish ; bill pale greenish ; iris bright yellow. Length 5.75-6.25 ;
extent 14.25-15.25 ; wing 4.25-4.50; tail 2.00-2.25 ; tarsus 0.80-0.90. Arizona and south-
ward; a very curious little owl, not yet well known, few specimens having been secured. The
general habits, nesting, and food, appear to be similar to those of the gnome owls.
SPEO'TYTO. (Gr. oméos, speos, a cave; turd, tuto, a kind of owl.) BurRRowine Ow Ls.
Q€ medium and rather small size. Head smooth; no plumicorns; ear-parts small, non-oper-
culate ; facial disc incom-
plete. Nostril opening in
the tumid cere. Wings of
moderate length; 2d to
4th quills longest; 1st
about equal to 5th; two
or three sinuate on inner
webs near the end. Tail
very short, only about
half as long as the wing,
even or scarcely rounded.
Tarsi extremely long,
about twice as long as
the middle toe without its
claw, very scant-feathered
in front, bare behind; toes
bristly. The long slim
Fic. 360, —Bills and feet of Speotyto, nat. size. Lower, S. hypogea; upper, legs are quite peculiar (fig.
S. floridana. (Ad nat. del. R. R.) 360). A genus confined
to America, where there are several varieties of apparently a single species, of diurnal and
terrestrial habits, noted for inhabiting underground burrows. :
S. cunicula/ria hypoge’a. (Lat. cunicularia, a burrower; Gr. éméyecos, hupogeios, under-
ground. Fig. 361.) Adult ¢ 9: Above, dull grayish-brown, profusely spotted with whitish ;
the markings mostly rounded and paired on each feather, but anteriorly lengthened. Quills
with 4 to 6 whitish bars, entire or broken into cross-rows of spots; tail-feathers similarly marked.
There is much individual variation in the tone of the ground-color, and size and number of the
spots, which may also be rather ochrey than whitish. Superciliary line, chin, and throat, white,
the two latter separated by a dark brown jugular collar; auriculars brown; facial bristles black-

488.

‘able owl, abounding in suit-

- regions inhabited by the

ACCIPITRES: DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 517

shafted. Under parts white or pale ochrey, the breast, belly, and sides barred with transverse
spots of brown, in a pretty regular manner ; legs and under tail-coverts unmarked. Liming of
wings tawny-white, dusky-spotted on the primary coverts. Sexes indistinguishable in size or
color: length 9.50; extent 23.00; wing 6.50-7.00; tail 3.00-3.25; tarsus 1.50-1.75; middle
toe without claw 0.80; chord of culmen without cere 0.50-0.60. Young differ in much less
spotting, or even uniform-
ity, of the body above,
and whitish under parts,
excepting the jugular col-

lar; wing- and tail-coverts = wha hair é
largely white. A remark- : et oo t,t
EA i,

able places in Western N.
Am., from the Plains to 4
the Pacific, in the treeless

“ prairie dogs,” (Cynomys =
ludovicianus and C. gunni-
sont) and other burrowing
rodents, especially Spermo-
philus richardsoni in the
north, and S. beecheyi in Fic. 361.— Burrowing Owl, reduced. (Sheppard del. Nichols sc.)
California. I have found colonies in Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Dakota, Montana N. to
49°, Colorado, New Mexico and California, in all cases occupying the deserted burrows of
the quadrupeds, not living in common with them as usually supposed. They also occupy the
holes made by badgers and foxes. The eggs may be laid even 6 or 8 feet from the entrance of
the burrow; they appear to vary in number up to 10; are white, subspherical, 1.30 x 1.10.
The species has exceptionally occurred in Massachusetts. Its food is chiefly insects and small
reptiles, birds and quadrupeds being apparently rarely taken. Wherever found, the species is
resident, being able to endure extremely cold weather.

S. c. florid/ana. (Of Florida. Fig. 360.) Fioripa Burrowine Owt. Like the last;
rather smaller; wing 6.00-6.50; tail scarcely 3.00; shanks more extensively denuded, only
feathered about half way down in front; feet and bill relatively longer. Upper parts darker,
rather bistre-brown, more profusely and confusedly spotted with smaller and whiter marks;
under parts more heavily and regularly barred with darker brown. Florida, an isolated local
race, colonies of which are common in some places.

+

7. SuBorpeER ACCIPITRES: Drurnat Birps or Prey.

This large group, comprising the large majority of the order Raptores, may be most
readily defined by exclusion of the particular characters of the other suborders. There is
nothing of the grallatorial analogy shown by the singular Gypogeranides. The nostrils are
not completely pervious, nor is the hallux elevated, as in Cathartides; while other peculiarities
of the American vultures are wanting. Comparing Accipitres with Striges, we miss the peculiar
physiognomy of owls, the eyes looking laterally as in ordinary birds, and the facial dise being
absent (rudimentary in Circine) ; aftershafts are usually present, and the outer toe is not versa-
tile nor shorter than the inner one (exc. Pandionide). The external ears are moderate and
non-operculate. The eye is usually sunken beneath a much projecting superciliary shield,

conferring a decided and threatening gaze. The bill shows the raptorial type perfectly, and is

always provided with a cere im which (not at its edge as in most owls) the nostrils open ; the

518 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

cutting edges are usually lobed, or toothed (see any figs.). The lores, with occasional excep-
tions, due to nakedness or dense soft featherings, are scantily clothed with radiating bristly
feathers, which, however, do not form, as usual in owls, a dense appressed ruff hiding the base
of the bill. Wings of 10 primaries, and tail of 12 rectrices (with rare exceptions); both
extremely variable in shape and relative and absolute lengths. The feet are, usually strong and
efficient instruments of prehension and weapons of offence or defence, with widely separable

Fig. 362. —Shoulder-joint of Accipitres; after Ridgway. a, anterior end of coracoid; 0, upper end of clavicle;
ce, scapular process of coracoid, reaching b in the middle fig. (Falco peregrinus), but not in the left-hand fig. (Buteo
borealis), nor in the right hand fig. (Pandion haliattus); d, lower end of scapula. The figs nat. size, left side,
viewed from opposite side.

and strongly contractile toes, cleft to the base or there only united by small movable webs, and
generally scabrous underneath with wart-like pads or tylari to prevent slipping, as shown in
fig. 46. The claws are developed into large sharp curved talons. The tarsal envelope (pod-
otheca) varies; sometimes the whole tarsus is feathered, and it is usually so in part; the homy
covering takes the form of scutella, or reticulations, or rugous granulations, and is occasionally
fused. The capacious gullet dilates into a crop; the gizzard is inoderately muscular; the
coeca are extremely small. The oil-gland is tufted. The syrinx has ote pair of intrinsic
muscles. The ambiens and femoro-caudal muscles are present; the accessory femoro-caudal,
semitendinosus and its accessory are absent. There are good osteological characters: The
phalanges of the hind toe are more than half as long as those of the outer toe; the basal joint
of the middle or outer toe is longer than the next one. There are no basipterygoid processes.
The sternum is manubriated, and when not entire behind is single-notched or fenestrate on each
side (doubly so in most owls). Huxley has called attention to a character of the shoulder-girdle,
afterward well elaborated by Mr. Ridgway (fig. 362): In certain genera, as Falco, Micrastur,
Herpetotheres, and in the Polyborine, the scapular process of the coracoid, fig. 362, ¢, is pro- |
longed beneath the scapula, d, to meet the clavicle, b; which is not the case in other groups of
gencra of the Falconide, nor in Pandionide. This distinction has been made the basis of a
primary division of the diurnal Accipitres into two subfamilies, Falconine and Buteonine, the
former including Polyborus aud its allies, the latter including Pandion; but some modification
of this scheme is advisable, I think. It seems to me that the primary division should be made
as on p. 498, by excluding Pandionide as a family distinct from Falconide proper, on the
ground of its many peculiarities. This being done, the character, of the sheulder-joint may
properly be considered in dividing the Falconide into subfamilies. I am perfectly willing to
approximate Polyborus to Falco on this technical ground, notwithstanding the great outward
dissimilarity of these two forms; but it is unlikely that ornithologists will allow the construc-
tion of the shoulder-joint to outweigh all other characters combined.

Diurnal Birds of Prey abound in all parts of the world, holding the relation to the rest of
their class that the carnivorous beasts do to other mammals. With many exceptions, the sexes
are alike in color, but the female is almost invariably larger than the male. The changes of

FALCONIDA : VULTURES, FALCONS, HAWKS, ETC. 519

plumage with age are great, and render the determination of the species perplexing — the more
so since purely individual, and somewhat climatic, color-variations, and such special conditions
as melanism, are very frequent. The modes of nesting are various; the eggs as a rule are
blotched, and not so nearly spherical as those of owls. The food is exclusively of an animal
nature, though endlessly varied; the refuse of the stomach is ejected in a ball by the mouth.
The voice is loud and harsh. As a rule, the birds of prey are not strictly migratory, though
many of them change their abode with much regularity. Their mode of life renders them
usually non-gregarious, excepting, however, the vultures and vulture-like hawks, which con-
gregate where carrion is plenty, quite like the American Cathartides. ‘There are upwards of
300 species or good geographical races, justly referable to about 50 full genera, and divisible
into two families — Falconid@ and Pandionide.

81. Family FALCONID4: Vultures, Falcons, Hawks, Eagles, etc.

= : = Characters as above, ex--
clusive of those marking the
fish-hawks, Pandionide, be-
yond. No unexceptionable
division of the family having
been proposed, and the sub-
families being still at issue, it
may be best not to materially
modify the arrangement pre-
sented in the earlier edition
of this work, further than
to separate Pandiomde from
Falconide proper.

The Old World Vultures
form a group standing some-
what apart from the rest in
many points of superficial
structure and habits, though
so closely correspondent with
ordinary Falconide, aud es-
pecially with Buteonine, in
all essential respects, that

Fig. 363. —The Vulture’s banquet; illustrating subfamily Vultwrine of | they can forin at most a sub-
family Falconide, not represented in America. (From Michelet.) family Vulturine (fig. 363.)

They have nothing to do with the American Vultures (suborder Cathartides), with which they
have been wrongly united in a family Vultwride. They are a small group of some six genera
and about twelve species, of which the most decidedly raptorial is the bearded griffin, Gypaétus
barbatus; other characteristically ‘‘ vulturine” forms being Valter monachus, Otogyps auricu-
laris, Gyps fulous, Neophron percnopterus, aud Gypohierax angolensis.

The South American genera, Micrastur and Herpetotheres, are each described as being
so peculiar as to form a group of supergeneric value, comparable with those termed subfamilies
in the present work. Their relationships are with Falconine. (Ridgway.)

The North Aimerican Falconide with which we have here to do fall in several groups,
which I shall call subfamilies, without insisting upon their taxonomic rank, or raising the
question whether the family at large is divisible in this manner. These groups are six in
number: 1. Circine, harriers; 2. Milvine, kites; 3. Accipitrine, hawks; 4. Falconine,

520 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

falcons; 5. Polyborine, caracaras; 6. Buteonine, buzzards and eagles. If it be urged that
these groups grade into one another, it may be replied that most large groups of like grade in
ornithology do the same; and that‘ typical’ or central genera of each of them offer practical
distinctions which have been recognized from time out of mind, in popular opinion and ver-
nacular language. Jn my recent revision of the North American Falconide, made to check
and amplify the descriptions in this work, an interesting relation between the shape of the
wings and their pattern of coloration presented itself. (a) If we take a ‘ noble’ falcon, such as a
peregrine or a lanner, we find a strong, yet sharp wing, with the second primary longest, sup-
ported nearly to the end by the first and third; the nicking of the quills confined to a few, if
occurring on more than one, and situated near the tip. Such a wing is as potent in its feathers
as in the construction of its shoulder-joint, and indicates the acme of raptorial power in its pos-
sessor, a falcon being able to dash down upon its quarry with almost incredible velocity and
violence. The markings of a falcon’s wing are no less characteristic, consisting of clean-cut, dis-
tinct spots of light color on both webs of the primaries and secondaries, throughout their whole
extent, or almost so. (b) Any true ‘hawk,’ as an Astur or Accipiter, has a rounded concavo-
convex wing, conferring a rapid, almost whirring, flight, like that of a partridge at full speed:
and such a bird captures its prey by chasing after it with wonderful impetuosity, but not at a
single plunge like a falcon. Such a wing has more primaries cut, farther from their ends, and
the markings are pretty regular and distinct bars. (c) Any ‘buzzard,’ as a Buteo, a heavy and
comparatively slow or even lumbering bird in flight, taking its prey by surprise and merely
dropping on it without special address, has many or most of the primaries cut, far from their
ends, and the tendency of the inarkings is to fuse and blend in large irregular masses of color,
the sharp markings of Falco or Accipiter being thus dissipated. Of course there are exceptions,
as well as every possible gradation, in the case ; but if one will compare the wing of Circus or
Archibuteo with that of Accipiter and Falco, he cannot fail to perceive the point I raise. The
tail is in somewhat like case. In the most noble birds of prey it is very stiff and strong, with
almost lanceolate feathers, sharply spotted as a rule; in a hawk, longer and weaker, still
regularly barred; in a buzzard generally (there are marked exceptions) of medium length and
strength, with the markings tending to merge in large areas of color, just as those of the
wings do.

It may be remarked further, without special reference to what has preceded, that in large
and difficult genera, as Buteo for example, the best specific characters nay be afforded by the
markings of the tail. These are usually quite different in young and old birds; but are among
a hawk’s most specific credentials, after the mature plumage is assumed, even when the rest of
the plumage varies greatly, or is subject to melanism, erythrism, etc. In fine, many hawks
are best known by their tails. Melanism in frequent in Falconide ; erythrism is not (just the
reverse of the case of Strigide). The further generalization may be made, that the coloration
of the under parts of Falconide is more distinctive of species than that of the upper parts; and
that when these parts are barred crosswise in the adult they are streaked lengthwise in the
young. Sexual differences are rather in size than in color, such a case as that of Circus being
exceptional.
Analysis of Subfamilies.

Scapular process of coracoid reaching clavicle.

Upper mandible toothed, lower mandible notched . .... at eg é . FALCONINE

Mandibles without tooth or notch. . . ... . rae Se ee . POLYBORINE
Scapular process of coracoid not reaching clavicle.

Face with a ruff somewhat asinowls . . ers cians as La A 1a is aes ab ae “Se so Aes CIRCcIN A

Face without ruff. ‘
Tarsus approximately equal to tibiain length; rounded wings little longer than tail AccIPITRINE
Tarsus decidedly shorter than tibia.
Tail forked, or much shorter than the long pointed wings. .- eid RS A Be . MILVINZ
Tail not forked, moderately shorter than the obtuse wings . . . . . se BUTEONINZE

171.

489.

FALCONIDZA — CIRCINA:: HARRIERS. 521

42. Subfamily CIRCINA: Harriers.

‘Face surrounded with an incomplete ruff (as in most
owls) ; orifice of ear about as large as the eye, and in
some cases at least with a decided conch (fig. 364). Bill
rather weak, not toothed or notched. Legs lengthened,
the tarsus approximately equalling the tibia in length (as
in Accipitrine). Wings and tail lengthened. Form light
and lithe; plumage loose; general organization of the
buteonine rather than of the falconine division of the

¥re. 364. — Ear-partsof Circus. (After family. Thus, the scapular process of the coracoid is not
Maogillivray.) produced to the clavicle; there is no median ridge on
the palate anteriorly; the septum nasi is less complete than in Falco, and the nostrils are not
circular with a central tubercle. The harriers constitute a small group, of the single genus
Circus and its subdivisions (to which some add the African Polyboroides), containing some 15
or 20 species of various parts of the world.
CIR'CUS. (Gr. kipxos, kirkos, Lat. circus, a kind of hawk ; from its circling inthe air. Fig.
364.) Harriers. Bill thickly beset with many curved radiating bristles surpassing in length
the cere, which is large and tumid ; tomia lobed or festooned, but neither toothed nor notched.
Nostrils ovate-oblong, nearly horizontal. Superciliary shield prominent. Tarsus long and
slender, scutellate before and mostly so behind, reticulate laterally ; toes slender, the middle
with its claw much shorter than the tarsus; a basal web between the outer and middle ; all
tuberculate underneath; claws very large and sharp, much curved. Wings very long and
ample; 3d and 4th quills longest; 1st shorter than 6th ; outer 8-5 (in our species 4) emargi-
nate on inner webs; 2d-5th emarginate on outer webs. Tail very long, about 2 as long as the
wing, nearly even or rounded, the folded wings falling short of its end. In our species, which
scarcely differs-from the European C. cyaneus, the sexes are extremely unlike in color and size ;
the old @ is chiefly bluish-gray
and white; the 9 and young of
both sexes are dark brown and
reddish-brown or tawny, with
while rump; the 9 is much
larger than the g. The nest
is placed upon the ground; the
eggs are colorless or nearly so.
The harriers are among the
most ‘‘ignoble” of hawks, prey-
ing upon humble quarry, chiefly
small quadrupeds, reptiles, and
insects, for which they hunt by
quartering low over the ground
with an easy gliding flight.
They are “light-weights” in
proportion to their linear dimensions, all the members being lengthened, and the wings espe-
cially ample. The plumage is also loose and fluffy, somewhat like that of owls, to which the
harriers are related in several respects.
C. cya/neus hudson‘ius. (Lat. cyaneus, blue, the color of the old gf ; hudsonius, of Hudson’s
Bay. Fig. 365.) American Marsa Haws, or Harrier. Buus Hawk. Adult ¢: In
perfect plumage pale pearly-bluish, or bluish-ash, above, with the upper tail-coverts entirely
pure white ; but most specimens have a dusky wash obscuring the bluish, and retain traces of

,

522 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

brown or rufous. Five outer primaries mostly blackish, all of them and the secondaries with
large white basal areas on inner webs; tail-feathers banded with 5 or 6 obscure dusky bars,
the terminal one strongest and most distinct, and marbled with white toward their bases. The
bluish cast invades the fore under parts, the rest of which are white, with sparse drop-shaped
rufous spots ; lining of wings white. From this blue-and-white state the bird is found grading
by degrees into the very different plumage of the 9 and young: Above, dark umber-brown,
everywhere more or less varied with reddish-brown or yellowish-brown, the upper tail-coverts,
however, white; forming a very conspicuous mark; under parts a variable shade of brownish-
yellow, or ochraceous, streaked with umber-brown, at least on breast and sides; tail crossed with
6-7 blackish bars. The younger the bird the heavier the coloration, which is sometimes quite
blackish and reddish, excepting the white upper tail-coverts. ¢ 9: Iris, tarsi, and toes bright
yellow; cere yellow or yellowish; bill blackish; claws black. @: length 17.50-19.00;
extent 40.00-44.00 ; wing 13.00-14.00; tail 9.00-10.00 ; tarsus 3.00 or less ; middle toe with-
out claw 1.20. 9: length 19.00-21.50; extent 45.00-50.00; wing 14.00-16.00; tail 9.50-
10.50; tarsus 3.00 or more; middle toe without claw 1.40. North Am. at large, one of the
most abundant and widely-diffused of its family, especially in meadowy and marshy places, and
easily recognized by its generic characters, in all its variation of size and color. The nest is
placed upon the ground, and rather neatly built of hay, a foot in diameter, 3 inches high ; eggs
3-6? commonly 4-5, broad and nearly equal-ended, 1.80 to 1.90 K 1.40-1.45, dull white,
with more or less greenish or bluish shade; no decided markings, but frequently small spots
and large blotches of very pale brownish on the surface, and some neutral-tint shell-spots.
No specific difference from C. cyaneus of Europe ; averaging a little larger; old ¢ retaining a
"few rufous spots in white of under parts, and more evident barring of wings and tail.

43. Subfamily MILVINZ: Kites.

No ruff or ear-conch. Loral
bristles moderate, scanty or quite
wanting, the head being then
closely and softly feathered to
the bill. Superciliary shield evi-
dent or not. Bill usually weak,
sometimes extremely slender,
the cutting edge of the upper
mandible straight to the curve,
or lobed or festooned, but not
toothed, nor the under mandible
truncate and notched. Nostrils
not circular, nor with central
bony tubercle. Wings very
long, more or less narrowed
and pointed, with several (in
our genera 2 to 5) primaries
emarginate on inner webs. Tail
very variable in length and
shape, in our genera nearly
even or deeply forked. Feet
very small; tarsus much shorter
than tibia, approximately equal

= 7 = to middle toe without claw, —
Fic, 366. — A typicat Kite ( Elanordes forficatus). (From Michelet.) usually feathered above, the rest

ieee ba

172.

490.

173.

FALCONIDA!—MILVINZ : KITES. 523

mostly or entirely reticulate in small pattern (with few or no large transverse scutella). The
general organization is buteonine; the scapular process of the coracoid does not meet the
clavicle, the septum nasi is incompletely ossified, and the anterior ridge of the palate is little
developed if at all; the superciliary shield is in one or two pieces. The kites form a rather
extensive group of hawks of no great strength and less than average size, though very active,
generally of lithe and graceful shape, with long thin wings and often forked tail. They are
“ignoble” birds, subsisting upon small game, especially insects and reptiles. In Pernis
apivorus, the bee-eating hawk of Europe, the whole head is densely and softly feathered to the
bill. The group is less homogeneous than the others here presented, and might be, perhaps,
dismembered, or merged in Buteonine. The genera assigned differ with nearly every writer
who recognizes the group at all. The type of the group is the genus Milvus, near which
stands our Hlanoides (fig. 366), and with which it may not be improper to associate Hlanus,
Ictinia, and Rostrhamus.

Analysis of Genera.

Tail nearly as long as the wings, deeply forked; head closely feathered . . .... 2. Elanoides 175

Tail nearly or about even. :
Five outer primaries emarginate on inner webs; bill and claws extremely slender . . Rostrhamus 172
Two outer primaries emarginate; tarsus scutellateinfront .. $=... ++. e-s LIctinia 173
—entirely reticulate. . . a ee er eee Elamus 174

ROSTRHA/MUS. (Lat. rostrum, a beak ; hamus, a hook.) SICKLE-BILLED Kires. Bill
extremely long and slender, the upper mandible hooked almost into a sickle-shape, the curva-
ture also impressed to some extent upon the under mandible; cutting edges entirely without
tooth or lobe, but simply curved like the culmen; gonys straight. Cere contracted ; nostrils
narrowly oval, horizontal. Loral bristles slight. Space between bill and eye nearly naked
and colored, as if a continuation of the cere. Wings long; 3d and 4th quills longest; 5th
next; Ist shorter than 6th; outer 5 emarginate on inner webs. Tail about half as long as the
wing, slightly emarginate or nearly even. Feet small; tarsus feathered about + way down in
front, then scutellate, for the rest reticulate; middle toe and claw about as long as tarsus.
Inner toe without claw shorter than outer ditto; imner toe and claw longer than ditto; no evi-
dent webbing between either of them; soles granular, but little tuberculate. Claws very long
and acute, but slender and comparatively little curved ; inner edge of the middle one dilated
and jagged. A genus marked by the extreme hooking of the slender bill, otherwise near
Elanus; containing two or three species of the warmer parts of America.

R. socia/bilis plum/beus. (Lat. sociabilis, gregarious; plwmbeus, lead-colored.) EvEr--
GLADE Kire. Adult ¢ ? : General color blackish-plumbeous, blackening on wings and tail.
Base of tail, with longer upper coverts and all under coverts white, increasing in extent on the
tail from middle to lateral feathers ; tail also with a pale gray or whitish terminal zone. Bill
and claws black; base of bill, cere and feet bright orange, drying dingy yellow; iris red.
Length 16.00-18.00; extent about 44.00; wing 13.50-15.50; tail 6.50-7.50; bill 0.90-1.00;
tarsus 1.75-2.25; middle toe without claw, rather less. Young birds are much varied with
brown, yellowish, and white, but the species is unmistakable in any plumage. Florida and
the West Indies ; said to be common in the ‘ everglades,” and to resemble the marsh hawk in
habits; nest in a bush, eggs commonly two, whitish, irregularly spotted, blotched, or smirched
with brown, about 1.72 x 1.45. Compared with the S. Am. R. sociabilis, the Florida bird
averages larger, lighter-colored, and weaker-billed.

ICTYNIA. (Gr. ierivos, thtinos, a kite. Fig. 367.) Leap Kires. Bill rather small, but
robust, very deep and wide for its length ; tip of upper mandible much overhanging, its cutting
edge very prominently lobed, sometimes almost toothed like a falcon’s, sometimes irregularly
sinuate-serrate ; the nick just in front of the lobe usually permitting the median ridge of the
palate to be visible from the side ; culmen very strongly arched in nearly a quadrant of a circle;

491.

524 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

gonys convex, ascending ; cere short; nostrils small, subcircular ; loral bristling slight; super-
ciliary shield sinall, in one piece. Wings of moderate length, ample ; 3d quill longest ; 2d but
little shorter; lst quite short, about equal to 6th; outer 2 emarginate on inner web, and next 2
somewhat sinuate. Tail moderate, even or emarginate, the feathers broad to their obtusely
rounded ends. Feet short and stout; tarsus scantily feathered about 4 way down in front, then
scutellate, for the rest reticulate; middle toe without claw about as long as the tarsus; outer
and middle toes connected by a basal web for the whole Jength of the basal joint of the latter ;
inner toe without claw shorter than the outer, with claw longer, its claw being much larger
than that of the outer toe, reaching beyond base of middle claw. Soles broad, especially under

iN : oP =
NAM See

Fic. 367, — Left, Mississippi Kite, } nat. size; right, Swallow-tailed Kite, 3 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

the hind toe, which is widely margined; claws short, stout, much curved. A genus of two
species, confined to temperate and tropical America ; of great volitorial power, spending much
of their time on the wing in aérial gyrations; somewhat gregarious like other Milvine, and
preying upon the humblest quarry, especially insects and small r€ptiles, often feeding from their
talons, as they sail through the air, after sweeping down upon their prey and seizing it as they
pass without staying their flight.

I. subceru/lea. (Lat. swbcwrulea, bluish.) Misstsstpp1 Kirg. Adult ¢ 9: General plumage
plumbeous or dark ashy-gray, bleaching on the head and secondaries, blackening on the tail
and wings, several primaries more (4) or less (?) suffused with chestnut-red on the inner

174.

492.

175.

FALCONIDA — MILVINZ: KITES. 525

web or on both webs. Forehead and tips of secondaries usually silvery-whitish ; concealed
white spots on the scapulars; bases-of feathers of head and under parts ftleecy-white. Lores,
eyelids, and bill, including cere, black; gape of mouth and feet, orange, the latter obscured on
the front of the tarsus, and along the tops of the toes; iris lake-red. Feet and cere drying to a
nameless dingy color. Length of ¢ about 14.00; extent 36.00; wing 10.50-11.50; tail 6.00-
6.50; tarsus 1.45; 9 about 15.00; wing 11.00-12.50; tail 6.50-7.00. Young: Head, neck
and under parts whitish, spotted with dark brown or reddish-brown, excepting on the throat
and along a superciliary line; lining of wings tawny, spotted with rusty-brown ; upper parts
blackish, most of the feathers edged with tawny-white; quills tipped with white; tail black,
with about 3 pale ashy bands, and as many rows of white spots on the inner webs. Southern
U.S., regularly N. to South Carolina, Illinois and Indian Territory, casually to Pennsylvania,
Iowa, and Wisconsin ; S. into Mexico; replaced in Central and S. Am. by the related but
quite distinct I. plumbea. Nest of sticks, etc., in trees; eggs 2

E’LANUS. (Lat. elanus, a kite.) Praru Kires. Related to the last; general form and
aspect similar. Pattern of coloration entirely different. Bill rather weak and compressed, the
tomia of the upper mandible devoid of lobe or festoon, but slightly sinuate to the overhanging
tip; gonys about straight; culmen less strongly convex than in Ictinia; uostrils subcircular,
near middle of the moderate cere. Feet very small; tarsus feathered half-way down in front,
for the rest finely reticulate, like the tops of the toes to near their ends; hind toe very short;
claws all small and little curved; basal web between middle and outer toes slight (compare
feet of Ictinia). Wings nearly or about twice as long as tail; pointed, 2d and 3d quills longest,
Ist about equal to 4th, lst and 2d emarginate on inner webs. Tail emarginate, but outer
feather shorter than the next, all the feathers broad to their obtusely-rounded ends. A small
geuus of 4 or 5 species inhabiting the warmer parts of the world.

B. glau/cus. (Lat. glaucus, bluish.) BLAcK-SHOULDERED Kirr. WHITE-TAILED KITE.
Adult @ 9: Upper parts pale bluish-ash; most of the head, the whole tail, and entire under
parts, including lining of the wings, pure white ; lesser and middle wing-coverts black, forming
a great black area; a patch on under wing-coverts, the shafts of most tail-feathers, and a loral
spot, also black. The white of the under parts and middle tail-feathers often with a pearly
bluish cast. Bill and claws black; cere and feet yellow or orange; iris red or reddish. Length
16.00-17.00; extent 39.00-41.50; wing 12.50-13.50 ; tail 7.00-8.00 ; tarsus 1.30; middle toe
without claw about the same; Q little larger than g. Young marked with dusky and
reddish-brown, the wing-feathers white-tipped, the tail-feathers with a subterminal ashy bar.
In this species the tail is emarginate to a depth of about 0.50, the outer tail-feather also about
as much shorter than the next, which is the longest one. Southern U. 8. from Atlantic to
Pacific; N. to South Carolina, Illinois, Indian Territory, and Middle California; 8. through
Central and most of S. Am.; common. With habits in general like those of the last species,
this elegant kite is stronger and more predaceous, preying upon small birds and quadrupeds as
well as insects and reptiles. It nests in trees and bushes; eggs 4-6, subspherical, 1.60 x
1.45, whitish, blotched and smirched with mahogany color.

ELANOIVDES. (Lat. elanus, and Gr. eidos, eidos, resemblance.) SWALLOW-TAILED KITES.
Prominently characterized by the extremely elongated and deeply forficate tail, the length of
which nearly equals that of the wing, the narrow, acuminate lateral feathers being more than
twice as long as the middle pair when full grown. Wings also very long, thin and acute ;
Qd and 3d quills forming the point; 1st about equal to 4th; lst and 2d emarginate on inner
webs. Feet very short, but stout; tarsus feathered about 4 way down in front, elsewhere
irregularly reticulate; toes mostly scutellate on top, but reticulate toward their bases, granular
and padded underneath ; claws short, stout, strongly arcuate, scooped out underneath, with sharp
edges, that of the middle dilated. Bill rather weak, with moderately convex culmen and small
cere; the cutting edge festooned. Nostrils oval, vblique. Head closely feathered on the sides;

.

493.

526 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

a small superorbital shield of a single bone. A beautiful genus of a single species, related to
the Old World Milvus (typical kites) and especially to Nauclerus, with which latter it has
usually been associated.

E. forfica/tus. (Lat. forficatus, deeply forked. Figs. 366, 367.) SwALLOW-TAILED KITE.
Adult ¢ 9: Head, neck, band on rump, and entire under parts, including lining of wings, snow-
white; back, wings, and tail, glossy black, with various lustre, chiefly green and violet. Bill
bluish-black ; cere, edges of mandibles, and feet pale bluish, the latter tinged with greenish ;
claws light-colored. Length about 24.00, but very variable ; extent 50.00; wing 15.50-17.50;
tail up to 14.50, cleft more than } its length; tarsus about 1.25; middle toe without claw
rather less. Young: Similar; less lustrous; wing- and tail-feathers white-tipped ; feathers of
head and neck pencilled with delicate shaft lines of blackish. This most elegant kite, super-
lative in ease and grace of the wing, floats, soars, and dashes over the greater part of America,
and even crosses the Atlantic on its buoyant pinions. It is abundant in the Southern U. S.,
sometimes winging its way to the Middle States, and regularly up the whole Mississippi valley,
to Minnesota and Dakota, latitude 49°. Known to nest from Wisconsin and Iowa southward.
The nest is placed on a tree, constructed of sticks, hay, moss, ete.; eggs 4-6, whitish, 1.90 1.50,
irregularly blotched and specked with rusty and chestnut-brown.

44. Subfamily ACCIPITRINA:: Hawks.

General form strict, with small head, shortened wings,
and lengthened tail and legs. Tarsi approximately equal
to the tibia in length. Bill short, robust, high at base ;
toothless, but usually with a prominent festoon ; no cen-
tral tubercle in the broadly oval nostril, nor keel of palate
anteriorly. Superciliary shield prominent. Coracoid ar-
rangement as in Buteonine, into which group the present
one grades. Wings concavo-convex, the 3d to 6th quills
longest, the 1st very short and more or less bowed inward,
the outer 3 to 5 emarginate or sinuate on inner webs.
Tail quite long, square or rounded, sometimes emargi-
nates nearly equalling the wing in length. Tarsi slender,
longer than middle toe without claw, usually extensively
if not completely denuded of feathers, and scutellate
before and behind. This is an extensive group of
N “ medium-sized and small hawks, little if at all inferior in

Fie. 368.—A typical Accipitrine. (From spirit of audacity to the true falcons, though less power-
Dixon.) fully organized and in fact conforming in anatomical
characters with the Buteonine rather than with the Falconine. In the technic of falconry,
the Accipitrine are styled ‘“‘ignoble,” because these short-winged hawks rake after the quarry,
instead of plunging upon it like the “noble” long-winged faleons. Their flight is swift and
dashing; they capture their prey in open chase with amazing celerity and address, always
killing for themselves and disdaining refuse. Their quarry is chiefly birds and quadrupeds.
Astur and Accipiter are the typical and principal genera, of which some 50 species (chiefly of
the former genus) are known, inhabiting most parts of the world. Our representatives of
these genera are easily discriminated, but some exotic species connect them quite closely.

Analysis of Genera.

Small and medium-sized; length 20.00 or less. Tarsus more extensively denuded, and scutellate, some-

times booted. . . : . : ei eke a Se Aceipiter 176
Large; length over 2000. Tarsus less extensively denuded, and scutellate, never booted . » Astur 177

L'76.

FALCONIDZA — ACCIPITRINA): HAWKS. 527

ACCIPITER. (Lat. accipiter,ahawk. Fig. 368.) SHARP-SHINNED Hawks. Tarsi feathered
about 4 way down in front, or less (in Astwr about } way), and quite slender (whence the term
‘sharp-shinned ”) ; in one species prominently and continuously scutellate before and behind,
the scutellation continued on to the toes; in the other the same, or finally fused in a continuous
“boot.” Toes long, slender, the outer one much webbed at base and padded underneath ;
inner claw much larger than the middle one, approximately equalling the hind claw; height

EB
se

Zz
B
2

Fie. 369. — Accipiter nisus of Europe, adult ¢, 4 nat. size; not distinguishable in a cut from our Sharp-
shinned Hawk; taken as of } nat. size it would represent Cooper’s Hawk just as well; at 1 it would do duty for a
Goshawk. (From Brehm.)
of bill at base greater than chord of culmen; 4th and 5th quills longest, 3d and 6th next,
2d shorter than 6th, lst very short. The two following species are exactly alike in color; one
is a miniature of the other. The ordinary plumage is dark brown above (deepest on the head,
the occipital feathers showing white when disturbed), with an ashy or plumbeous shade which
increases with age, till the general cast is quite bluish-ash ; below, white or whitish, variously
streaked with dark brown and rusty, finally changing to brownish-red (palest behind and

494,

495.

528 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

slightly ashy across the breast), the white then only showing in narrow cross-bars; chin,
throat and crissum white, with blackish pencilling, the crissum, however, usually immaculate ;
wings and tail barred with ashy and brown or blackish, the quills white-barred basally, the tail
whitish-tipped ; bill dark; claws black; iris, cere and feet yellow. Sexes alike in color; 9
much larger than ¢.

Analysis of Species.

Feet extremely slender; bare portion of tarsus longer than middle toe; scutella frequently fused ; tail
square. of 10.00-12.00; extent about 21.00; wing.6.00-7.00 ; tail 5.00-6.00. @ 12.00-14.00; extent about
25.50; wing 7.00-8.00; tail 6.00-7.00; whole foot 3.50 orless. . . . » . . fuseus 494

Feet moderately stout; bare portion of tarsus shorter than middle foes dacitcils always distinct ; tail
rounded. f 16.00-18,00; extent about 30.00; wing 9.00-10.00; tail 7.00-8.00. 18.00-20.00; extent about
35.00; wing 10.00-11.00; tail 8.00-9.00; whole foot 4.000r more .... eee ew 6 « «6Cooperi 495

A. fuscus. (Lat. fuscus, dark. Fig. 369.) SHARP-SHINNED HAwK. ‘‘ Picron” Hawks, so-
called, but not to be confounded with Falco columbarius, No. 505. Adult ¢ 9: Above,
dark plumbeous, slate-color, or bluish-gray, somewhat more fuscous on the wings and tail
than on the body, the feathers of the hind-head with fleecy white bases, the scapulars with
concealed white spots. Tail crossed by about 4 blackish bars, the first under the coverts, the
last subterminal and broadest;
extreme tips of the feathers
white. Primaries alsomarked
with blackish bars or spots,
and whitening at their bases,
in bars or indents of the inner
webs. Under parts barred
crosswise with rufous on a
white ground, the bars on
some parts cordate and con-
nected along the shafts of the
feathers, which are blackish ;
ear-coverts rufous; rufous

Fic. 370. — Beak and talons of Accipiter (A. cooperi, nat. size). (Ad nat. mostly or entirely wanting

del. E. C.) on the cheeks, throat, and
crissum, which are more or less finely pencilled with the black shafts of the feathers; crissum,
however, often pure white. Avxillars barred like other under parts; lining of wings white, with
dusky spots. Dimensions as above. Young: Above, umber-brown, varied with rusty-brown
edgings of most of the feathers; white spots of scapulars exposed. Below, white more or less
tawny-tinged, striped lengthwise with dark brown or reddish-brown on most parts, the feathers
mostly black-shafted. This state is oftener seen than the perfected plumage; every inter-
mediate stage is seen; but there can be no misunderstanding the species, as our only other
hawks (Falco columbarius and F’. sparverius) of similar slight dimensions belong to a different
genus and subfamily. N. Am. at large, one of our most abundant hawks, and one which,
notwithstanding its smallness, sustains the reputation of Accipitrine for nerve and prowess.
The nest is usually built in the branches of a tree, sometimes in a hollow or on a ledge of
rocks, being a platform of small sticks upon which rests a bed of hay, moss, leaves, or bark;
the eggs are generally laid in May, to the number of 4 or 5. The white ground-color has
often a livid or even purplish tint, and is marked, often so thickly as to be obscured, with
large, irregular splashes of various shades of brown, interminably changeable in number, size,
and pattern, sometimes inclining to form masses or a wreath, sometimes more evenly dis-
tributed. The egg is of nearly equal size at both ends, and measures about 1.45 X 1.15. It
is not distinguishable with certainty from that of Falco columbarius.

A. coo'peri. (To Wm. Cooper. Fig. 370.) Coopmr’s HAWK. CHICKEN HAwK (aname shared

FALCONIDZE — ACCIPITRINZE: HAWKS. 529

by species of Buteo). The colors and changes of plumage of this species being practically
the same as those of A. fuscus, need not be repeated. The chief difference is, that the crown
of the adult is usually appreciably darker slate than the back; the white scapular spots are
smaller, fewer, or wanting; in high plumage the upper parts are clearer bluish, while the
breast has a fine glaucous bloom overlying the rufous and white ground-color; the tail is
more decidedly white-tipped. A small ¢ cooperi grades in size nearly down to a large ?
jfuscus, but there ap-
pears to be constantly
a difference of a couple
of inches of total length
at least; and in any
event, the other char-
acters above given will
suffice for their discrim-
ination. In either spe-
cies, the yellow of the
cere and feet is often or
usually obscured with
‘greenish. In cooperi,
the tarsal scutella are
sometimes less distinct
than is normal, but are
not known to fuse into
aboot. A large Q not
distantly resembles a
young male Goshawk ;
but the difference in
feathering of the tarsus
is distinctive. Tem-
perate N. Am. at large,
and southward; one of
the common ‘‘ chicken”
hawks, and a fellow
of great audacity and
prowess, preying on
birds up to the size
of grouse and domestic
poultry. Nesting as
described for A. fuscus.

Fig. 371. — European Goshawk, young #, } nat. size, not distinguishable in the
The eggs I have ex- cut from the American Goshawk; change of scale to 4 or } would make it repre-

amined ‘measure. ‘from sent the young gt Cooper’s or Sharp-shinned Hawk. (From Brehm.)

1.80 X 1.45 to 2.10 X 1.60 (figures showing the variation both in size and shape), averaging
about 1.90 X 1.50. They resemble those of the marsh hawk so closely as not to be certainly
distinguishable, but are usually more globular, and with a more granulated shell. The
greatest diameter is at or very near the middle; difference in shape of the two ends is rarely
appreciable. All are more uniform in color than those of most hawks, resembling the pale,
scarcely-marked examples occasionally laid by most kinds; none are conspicuously dark-
marked. The ground is white, faintly tinted with livid or greenish-gray; if marked, it is with
faint, sometimes almost obsolete, blotches of drab, liable to be overlooked without close inspec-
tion; only an occasional specimen is found with decided, though still dull and sparse, markings
34

177.

496.

580 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

of pale brown. Three or four eggs are the usual nest-complement; in the Northern and
Middle States they are laid in May.
AS'TUR. (Lat. astur, a hawk.) GosHawxs. Characters in general as above given for
Accipiter; size superior, and organization more robust; feet stronger, the tarsus feathered
about 4 way down in front and on the sides, leaving unly a narrow bare strip behind; the
scutellation discontinuous at the bases of the toes, which are finely reticulate ; resumed beyond ;
never fused. These ‘‘ goose-hawks ” or ‘‘ star-hawks” are a small genus of five or six ‘‘ignoblé”
species, held in high estimation by falconers for their prowess in the chase. Ours appears to
be quite distinct from A. palumbarius, though closely related.
A. atricapil/lus. (Lat- atricapilius, black-haired. Fig. 371.) AMERICAN GQOSHAWE. BLUE
Hen Hawk (adult). CaickEN Hawk (young). Adult ¢ 9: Above, dark bluish-slate color,
each feather black-shafted; top of head blackish, conspiguously different from other upper
parts, the feathers there with fleecy white bases; a long white superciliary or rather post-
ceular stripe ; auriculars blackish. Ground color of under parts, including lining of wings,
white, closely barred or vermiculated in narrow zigzag lines with slaty-brown, except on throat
and crissum, and everywhere sharply pencilled with blackish shaft-lines, one on each feather.
The barring is largest and inost regular on the belly, flanks, and tibia, but is for the most part
much dissipated in a fine mottling. It varies greatly in coarseness in different specimens, some
of which approach A. palum-
barius in this respect. Tail
like back, banded with four
or five blackish bars, the ter-
minal one much the broadest.
Bill dark bluish; iris yellow-
ish; feet yellow, claws black.
Wing-quills in similar pat-
tern, and both these and the
tail showing tendency to some
whitish mottling of inner webs
of the feathers. Young: The
difference is substantially as
in species of Accipiter: above,
dark brown, varied with rusty-
brown and whitish; below,
white, more or less tawny-
tinged, with oblong, lance-
linear, clubbed or drop-shaped
Fig. 372. — Prairie Falcon, 3 nat. size. (From life, by H. W. Elliott.) dark brown markings. Tail
more distinctly barred than in the adult, and with white tip. But in any equivocal plumage,
the goshawk may be recognized by its size, which is that of an average Buteo, together with
the short rounded wings, very long fan-shaped tail, and other generic characters. Length of
& 20.00-22.00; extent about 42.00; wing 12.00-13.00; tail 9.00-10.00; tarsus 2.75; middle
toe without claw 1.75; chord of culmen without cere 0.90; 9, length 22:00-24.00; extent
45.00 or more; wing 18.00-14.00; tail 11.50-12.50. A large, powerful, and when in perfect
plumage, a very handsome hawk, of splendid spirit, the terror of the poultry-yard. A larger,
brighter, and altogether better bird than the European. It inhabits northern N. Am.; the
northern half of the U. 8. chiefly in winter, but is also resident in some parts, and breeds
in mountainous regions as far south at least as Colorado, where I have seen it in summer.
Jts ordinary quarry is grouse, ptarmigan, and hares. The nesting and the eggs, as described,
are most like those of Accipiter cooperi ; the eggs, probably only distinguishable by their supe-

497.

FALCONIDA — FALCONINZE: FALCONS. 531

rior size, measuring about 2.30 x 1.90, sviled whitish, “‘marked irregularly with large It quite
faint blotches of drab and yellowish-browu.”

A. a, stria‘tulus? (Lat. striatulus, finely striped.) WrstTErn GOsHAWK. Described as
having the markings of the under parts so fine and dense as to present a nearly uniform bluish-
ashy nebulation, pencilled with fine black-shafted lines. Rocky Mts. to the Pacific. (Probably
untenable.)

45. Subfamily FALCONINA: Falcons.

Bill furnished with a sharp tooth and notch near the end of
the cutting edge of the upper mandible (sometimes two such
teeth), and end of under mandible truncated, with notch near

. the tip (figs. 372, 374). Nostrils circular, high in the cere,
with a prominent central tubercle (fig. 372). Inter-nasal
septum extensively ossified. Palate with a median keel ante-
riorly. Superciliary shield prominent, in one large piece.
Shoulder-joint strengthened by union of scapular process of
the coracoid with the clavicle (fig. 362) as in Micrastur, Her-
petotheres, and the Polyborine alone of Falconide. Wings
strong, long, and pointed, with rigid and usually straight and
tapering flight-feathers; the tip formed by the 2d and ‘3d
quills, supported nearly to their ends by the 1st and 4th,
both of which are longer than the 5th; only one or two outer
primaries emarginate on inner webs near the end. Tail short
and stiff, with more or less tapering rectrices. Feet strong,
rather short, the tarsus of less length than the tibia, feathered
more or less extensively, elsewhere irregularly reticulate in
small pattern. varying with the genera or subgenera; never
scutellate in single series before or behind. Middle toe very
long; talons very strong. The true falcons are thus emi-

Fig. 373.—A “noble” Falcon, Bently distinguished from other members of the family; a

(From Michelet.) glance at the toothed beak sutfices for their recognition.
They are birds of medium and small size, some kinds being not larger than a sparrow, but
extremely sturdy organization, vigorous physique, and temerarious disposition. They capture
their quarry with sudden and violent onslaught, and exhibit the raptorial nature in its highest
degree. The typical and principal genus is Falco, of which there are several subdivisions
corresponding to minor modifications. Upwards of fifty species are recognized. Our rather
numerous species represent the several grades of gyrfalcons, lanners, peregrines, merlins, and
kestrels. These I shall consider under one genus, Falco, with indication of the subgenera.

Fic. 374. — Peregrine Falcon, greatly reduced. (From Fie. 375. — Kestrel Falcon, like our Sparrow-hawk

Tenney, after Wilson.) (Tinnunculus), reduced. (From Dixon.)

532 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

178. FAL'CO. (Lat. falco, a falcon or faucon.) Characters as above, with minor modifications as
follows : —
Analysis of Subgenera and Species.

Tarsus more or less feathered above, elsewhere irregularly reticulate in small pattern (no large plates
like scutella); 2d primary longest; Ist longer than 4th, and decidedly emarginate on inner web. (Gyr-
Falcons, lanners, and peregrines. ) ;

Gyrfalcons: Tarsus feathéred fully 4 down in front and on sides, leaving but a uarrow strip
bare behind; longer than middle toe without claw; 1st quill shorter than 3d. Sexes alike.
Very large; about 2 feet long. (HIEROFALCO.)

Prevailing color dark; head and neck darker than back ..... + + + Sacer 498, 499
Prevailing color dark; head and neck lighter than back ...... . . ~ islandicus 500
Prevailing color white 7 + + + candicans 501

Lanners: Tarsus feathered $ way down in ion, icoaaaly bare Tbabind: longer than middle toe
without claw; 1st quill shorter than 3d. Medium; piace above; sexes alike. (GEN-
NAIA.) . BY Src » mexicanus 502
Peregrines: Tars Sus feathered but a little — ‘down in front, broadly — behind ; not longer
than middle toe without claw; 1st quill not shorter than 3d. Medium: slaty- bluish above;
sexes alike. (FALCO.). Fi : . peregrinus 503, 504
Tarsus scarcely feathered above, with ‘the plates: in front enlarged, like a "double row of alternating
scutella (and often with a few true scutella at base); 2d or 8d primary longest; 1st not longer thar
4th; 1st and 2d emarginate on inner webs. (Merlins and Kestrels.)
Merlins: Tarsus longer than middle toe without claw. Sexes unlike; young of both like adult
female. Small; wing 7.50-8.50. (AZSALON.) & - + columbarius 505, 506, 507
Kestrels: Tarsus longer than middle toe without claw. "Sexes very unlike at allages. Smallest:
wing 7.00-7.50. (TINNUNCULUS.)
Under parts white or tawny ; back of male and female rufous, barred or plain sparverius 508, 509

Under parts rufous; back of male plumbeous, of femalerufous . .. . sparverioides 510
Hobbies: Tarsus little longer than middle toe without claw. Sexes alike; young little different.
Medium; wing 10.00 or more (RHYNCHOFALCO.) . . see ew ew « fuscicwrulescens 511

498. F,sa/cer. (Lat. sacer, sacred.) AMERICAN CONTINENTAL GYRFALCON. One of the largest
and most powerful of the Falconine. Feet very stout; tarsus rather longer than middle toe
without claw, feathered fully half-way down in front and on sides, with narrow bare strip
behind; elsewhere reticulate. Wing pointed by 2d quill, supported nearly to the end by the
3d; lst rather shorter than 3d, only the 1st decidedly emarginate on inner web. Tail rounded.
Sexes alike. Young little different. Wing of $ 13.50-14.50; tail 8.50-9.50; wing of @
15.00-16.00; tail 9.00-10.00. Adults: General plumage of the upper parts barred with dark
brown and pale ash, the former predominating, especially on the head and neck ; tail closely
barred with light and dark in about equal amounts. Lower parts white, immaculate on
throat, elsewhere streaked and variously spotted with dusky. Young darker than the adults;
at an early stage, some of the lighter markings tinged with ochraceous. This is the stock-
form of Continental N. Am., probably inseparable from F’. gyrfalco of Europe; the distinctions
from F. islandicus being moreover not very apparent. I suspect the truth to be, in respect to
all the gyrfalcons, that there is but a single cireumpolar species; that with specimens enough
an uninterrupted series could be established connecting the blackest ‘‘obsoletus” with the
whitest ‘‘ candicans” ; and that the races even, which most ornithologists recognize, are not
coincident with geographical areas. But I defer in this case to those authorities who have
formed the contrary opinion, upon much further investigation of the subject than I have
ever made. Gyrfalcons of the present kind, or of Nos. 499, 500, not infrequently visit the North-
ern States in winter, sometimes even reaching the Middle States and Kansas. They reside
in summer beyond the U. 8., and abound in the Arctic regions, nesting in trees or clifis, preying
upon hares, grouse, ptarmigan, ducks, auks, ete. The eggs range from 2,25 to 2.50 in length,
X 1.60 to 1.90 in breadth, and are usually heavily colored with reddish and brownish pig-
ments in interminable variety.

499. F.s. obsole’tus. (Lat. obsoletus, unwonted.) LasBrapor GYRFALCON. A dark phase of
the last, almost entirely dusky, the usual markings nearly obliterated ; from the foggy coast of

LO ae

500.

501.

FALCONIDA — FALCONINZ: FALCONS. 533

Labrador into U.S. in winter. (F. labradora, Aud., folio pl. 196.) I have seen it perfectly
dark, —no markings whatever.

F. islan/dicus. (Lat. form of Icelandic.) IceLAND GyRFALCON. Resembling F. sacer as
above described, and probably not fairly separable; on an average lighter colored, more ex-
tensively white below, the head and neck lighter than the rest of the upper parts.
This form occurs in Iceland aud southern Greenland, straggling in winter into the N. E

U.S.

Ee

. Wha iis
VE,
ig

Fig. 376. — Lanner Falcon, } nat. size; not distinguishable in the cut from the Prairie Falcon. (From Brehm.)

F. can/dicans. (Lat. candicans, whitening.) GREENLAND GYRFALCON. The extreme
form, averaging when adult as white as a snowy owl. Head, neck, and under parts pure white,
with few dark touchesif any. Back, wings and tail with white and dusky in about equal
amounts, or former rather prevailing, giving the ground color, on which the dark appears in
bars, crescents, and cordate spots. Bill and feet light. This form is characteristic of Greenland.
straying south in winter; but I know of no case of its occurrence in the U. S.

502.

503.

534. SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

F. mexica/nus. (Lat mexicanus, Mexican. Fig. 376.) AMERICAN LANNER FaLcon. PRAIRIE
Fatcon. A medium-sized species, distinguished from any gyrfaleon by the smaller size,
different feathering of the tarsus, etc. ; from the duck hawk by the general much lighter color,
which is dull brownish above instead of dark slate, ete. Adult g 9: Upper parts brownish-
drab, each feather with a paler border of brown, grayish, or whitish; the top of the head more
uniform, the occiput and nape showing more whitish. Under parts white, everywhere ex-
cepting on the throat marked with firm spots of dark brown, most linear on the breast, then
more broadly oval on the belly, enlarging and tending to merge into bars on the flanks, very
sparse or obsolete on the crissum, in the maxillary region forming a broad firm moustache ;
these markings corresponding with the ground color of the upper parts. Primaries ashy-
brown, with narrow but firm pale edging of outer webs and ends, the inner webs regularly
marked with white in form of barred indents or circumscribed spots, most numerous and regular
on the outer few primaries; the white tinged with fulvous, next to the shafts; the outer web
of the first primary either plain, or with whitish indents as in F’. lanarius ; outer webs of sec-
ondaries more or less marked with fulvous; axillars plain dark brown; lining of wings other-
wise white, spotted with dark brown. Tail pale brownish-gray, nearly uniform, but with
white tip, and more or less distinct barring or indenting with whitish, especially on the lateral
feathers, producing a pattern not unlike that of the primaries. Bill mostly dark bluish horn-
color, but its base, and much of under mandible, yellow ; feet yellow. Young birds have more
fulvous in the dark ground of the upper parts; are more heavily spotted below, and the
white is there tinged with buff or ochrey, feet plumbeous. Size very variable: length of ¢ about
18.00, extent 40.00 ; wing 12.00-13.00 ; tail 7.00-8.00; tarsus about 2.00 ; middle toe without
claw about the same; chord of culmen, including cere, 1.00. 9 larger: wing 13.00-14.00;
tail 8.00-9.00, ete. A noble species, representing the Old World lanner and jugger, and scarcely
separable therefrom ; abundant in Western N. Am., especially on the plains; E. occasionally to
Tlinois. I have traced it from Montana at lat. 49° to Arizona and S. California, and found
it very numerous in Wyoming, where it is the characteristic species of its genus; it extends
into Mexico. In the region first named it was nesting on cliffs. Eggs 2-3, from 2.05 to 2.25
x 1.55 to 1.65, white or creamy-whitish, irregularly but usually thickly clouded, mottled, and
blotched with reddish-brown ; often with a purplish shade; thus indistinguishable from those
of related species. (F. polyagrus Cass.)

F. peregri‘nus. (Lat. peregrinus, wandering. Fig. 377.) PEREGRINE Fatcon. Duck Hawk.
Great-rootep Hawk. A medium-sized falcon, about as large as the foregoing, but known
at a glance from any bird of N. Am. by the slaty-plumbeous or dark bluish-ash of the upper
parts, the black ‘‘ moustache,” and other marks, taken with its particular size and shape.
Wings stiff, long, thin, pointed by the 2d quill, supported nearly to its tip by lst and 3d; 1st
quill alone abruptly emarginate on inner web, this about 2 inches from its tip; none cut on
outer webs. Tomium of upper mandible strongly toothed, of under mandible deeply notched.
Tarsus feathered but a little way down in front, otherwise entirely reticulate; toes very long,
giving great grasp to the talons. Adult ¢ 9: Above, rich dark bluish-ash or slate-color,
—very variable, sometimes quite slaty-blackish, again much lighter bluish-slate; the tint
pretty uniform, whatever it may be, over all the upper parts, but all the feathers with some-
what paler edges, and the larger ones for the most part obscurely barred with lighter and
darker hues. Under parts at large varying from nearly pure white to a peculiar muddy buff
color of different degrees of intensity; the throat and breast usually free from markings (or
only with a few sharp shaft pencillings), and this white or light color mounting on the auricu-
lars, so that it partly isolates a blackish moustache from the blackish of the side of the head;
the under parts, except as said, and including the under wing- and tail-coverts closely and
regularly barred, or less closely and more irregularly spotted, with blackish; the bars best
pronounced on the flanks, tibize, and crissum, other parts tending to spotting, which may extend

FALCONIDZAE —FALCONINA): FALCONS. 535

forward to invade the breast (this is the rule in European birds, the exception, though not a
rare one, in American birds). Tail and its upper coverts regularly and closely barred with
blackish and ashy-gray, the interspacing best marked on the inner webs, and all the feathers
narrowly tipped with white or whitish. Primaries all showing uniform blackish on their ex-
posed surfaces, but on the inner webs seen to be marked with numerous regular and close-set
spots of white, whitish, or muddy buff, for the most part isolated within the webs, but on the

Fig. 377. — Peregrine Falcon, or Duck Hawk, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

inner primaries and secondaries, and toward the bases of all, becoming or tending to become bars
reaching the edge of the feather. Bill blue-black; cere and much of base of bill yellow;
feet yellow; claws blackish. Size very variable; length of a good-sized ?, 19.00; extent
45.00; wing 14.50; tail 7.00. @ averaging Smaller ; wing 12.50; tail 6.00; a usual range,
sex not considered, is, wing 11.50-14.00; tail 6.00-8.00; tarsus 1.75-2.10; middle toe
without claw rather more. Young: Recognizably similar to the adults in general characters ;
not barred below, but there more or less extensively and heavily streaked lengthwise ; uppe*

504.

505.

586 _SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

parts brownish or blackish, in either case without the glaucous bloom and appearance of
transverse markings which the adults show, the variegation being chiefly in light gray or rusty
edgings of individual feathers. This falcon is the central figure in the whole genus, and in
one or another of its geographical guises is cosmopolitan; it is universally but irregularly dis-
tributed in N. Am., scarcely to be considered common anywhere ; breeds as far south as Vir-
ginia at least, usually in mountainous regions; nests indifferently on trees or cliffs or the
ground; eggs 2-5, oftener 3-4, 2.10 to 2.35 x 1.60 to 1.75, averaging about 2.25 x 1.65;
white or whitish, spotted, blotched, wreathed, clouded, etc., with the reddish-browns, from
chocolate or even purplish to the ochres. The peregrine is a bird of noted prowess, habitually
striking a quarry as large as itself or larger, as grouse, ducks, herons, hares, ete.

F, p. peal’ii? (To T. R. Peale.) PEALE’s Perecrine. A dark form, described from the
N. W. coast. Dubious.

F. columba’rius. (Lat. columbarius, a pigeon-fancier.) PigzoN HAwK (a name also ap-
plied to Accipiter fuscus). Smaller than any of the foregoing ; about the size of an Accipi-
ter fuscus, but much stouter and differently proportioned. Tarsus mostly with a double row
of alternating scutella in front, feathered but a little way down; middle toe without claw
nearly as long as tarsus. Tail about } the wings, lightly rounded. Wings pointed by 2d and
3d quills, lst about equal to 4th; Ist and 2d emarginate on inner webs near the end;
2d and 3d sinuate on outer webs. Sexes unlike; old g bluish above, 9 and young dark
there. Old ¢: Above, some shade of bluish, from pale bluish-gray or bluish-ash to dark
bluish-slate, each feather pencilled with a fine black shaft line. Tail banded with the color
of the upper parts and black, about three zones of each, the subterminal black band broadest,
all subject to much variation ; tail tipped with white. Primaries blackish, with lighter edges
or tips, and numerous oval transverse spots of white or whitish on the inner webs; outer webs
often showing traces of ashy markings; a similar pattern continued on the secondaries. Un-
der parts white, or whitish, generally pure and immaculate on the throat, elsewhere tinged with
tawny or ochraceous, almost everywhere longitudinally streaked with dark umber-brown ;
the individual streaks very variable in size and distinctness, generally blackish-shafted, as a
rule heavy and thick on the breast, more strict on the flags and vent, changing to spots or

‘ even bars on the flanks; these latter markings sometimes involved in a bluish clouding.

Side of head with fine dark pencilling on a light or whitish ground, not gathered into a
maxillary stripe, but coalescing on the ear-coverts; a pretty well defined light superciliary
streak ; markings of side of head confluent on nape, forming a nuchal band which interrupts
the continuity of color of the upper parts. Iris brown; feet yellow; claws and most of bill
bluish-black; cere and base of bill greenish-yellow. This plumage is comparatively seldom
seen. Length about 11.00; extent about 23.50; wing 7.50-8.00; tail 5.00-5.50; tarsus
1.35; middle toe without claw 1.25. Adult 9, and specimens of either sex, as usually
observed: Pattern of coloration as before, but upper parts and tail quite different. Above,
the bluish shade replaced by dark umber-brown, nearly uniform, or only interrupted by the
nuchal band of streaks, but the feathers usually with appreciably paler edges, and black shaft-
lines, the latter especially on the head. Tail like back, and tipped with white, and crossed by
about four other narrow whitish or light ochraceous bands, formed of bars or transverse spots
on both webs of the feathers ; the uppermost of these bands lying under the coverts ; there are
generally only three exposed ones, besides the terminal one; the intervening dark zones are
all of about the same width, say an inch, but the subterminal one is usually rather wider than
the others. Pattern of quill-feathers as in the ¢, but the spots rather tawny or fulvous than
whitish. Under parts as before, but the ground color ranging from nearly white to quite rich
buff or even fulvous, and showing a wide range of variation in the heaviness of the streaking.
Length of 9 about 12.50; extent about 26.50; wing 8.00-8.50; tail 5.50-6.00. In quite
young birds, the edgings of the feathers of the upper parts may be tawny or rufous. A spir-

506.

507.

508.

9

FALCONIDA — FALCONINZE: FALCONS. 5387

ited little falcon, generally distributed in N. Am., common, representing the merlin of
Europe, F’. esalon. Nests chiefly northerly, on branches or in holes in trees, or on rocks;
eggs ranging in size and shape from 1.50 to 1.80 x 1.30, some being subspherical, others elon-
gate-oval. The coloration ranges from a nearly uniform deep rich brown (chestnut or burnt
sienna), to whitish or white, only marked with a few indistinct dots of dull grayish or drab.
Such extremes are connected by every degree; a yellowish-brown ground-color, irregularly
splashed with rich ruddy brown, is the usual style. The markings may be very evenly dis-
tributed, or mostly gathered in a wreath around one or the other end, or even both ends. The
quarry is chiefly birds, even up to the size of a ptarmigan.

F. c. suck/leyi? (To Dr. Geo. Suckley.) A dark form, described from the N. W. coast.
Dubious.

F. c, rich/ardsoni. (To Sir J. Richardson.) RicHarpson’s Pigzon Hawk. AMERICAN
Meruin. ‘‘ Adult ¢ ; Upper plumage, dull earth-brown, each feather grayish-umber cen-
trally, and with a conspicuous black shaft-line. Head above, approaching ashy-white ante-
riorly, the black shaft-streaks being very conspicuous. Secondaries, primary-coverts, and
primaries, margined terminally with dull white; the primary-coverts with two transverse
series of pale ochraceous spots; primaries, with spots of the same, corresponding with those
of the inner webs. Upper tail coverts, tipped and spotted beucath the surface with white.
Tail, clear drab, much lighter than the primaries, but growing darker terminally, having
basally a slightly ashy cast, crossed with six sharply defined perfectly continuous bands (the
last terminal) of ashy-white. Head frontally, laterally, and beneath —a collar round the nape.
(interrupting the brown above) —and entire lower parts, white, somewhat ochraceous, this
most perceptible on the tibia; cheeks and ear-coverts with sparse, fine, hair-like streaks of
black ; nuchal collar, jugulum, breast, abdomen, sides, and flanks, with a median linear stripe
of clear ochre-brown on each feather ; these stripes broadest on the flanks ; each stripe with a
conspicuous black shaft-streak; tibize and lower tail-coverts with fine shaft-streaks of brown,
like the broader stripes of the other portions. Chin and throat, only, immaculate. Lining
of the wings spotted with ochraceous-white and brown, in about equal amount, the former in
spots approaching the shaft. Inner webs of primaries with transverse broad bars of pale och-
raceous — eight on the longest. Wing 7.70; tail 5.00; culmen 0.50; tarsus 1.30; middle
toe 1.25; outer 0.85; inner 0.70; posterior 0.50. Adult 9: Differing in coloration from
the male only in the points of detail. Ground-color of the upper parts clear grayish-drab, the
feathers with conspicuously black shafts; all the feathers with pairs of rather indistinct rounded
ochraceous spots, these most conspicuous on the wings and scapulars. Secondaries crossed
with three bands of deeper, more reddish-ochraceous. Bands of the tail, pure white. In
other respects exactly like the male. Wing 9.00; tail 6.10; eulmen 0.55; tarsus 1.40; mid-
dle toe 1.50; Young @: Differing from the adult only in degree. Upper surface with the
rusty borders of the feathers more washed over the gcveral surface; the rusty ochraceous
forming the ground-color of the head, —paler antcriorly, where the black shaft-streaks are
very conspicuous; spots on the primary coverts and primaries deep reddish ochraceous; tail-
bands broader than in the adult and more reddish; the terminal one twice as broad as the rest
(0.40 of an inch), and almost cream color. Beneath, pale ochraceous, this deepest on the
breast and sides; markings as in the adult, but anal region and lower tail-coverts immacu-
late; the shaft-streaks on the tibie, also, scarcely discernible. Wing 7.00; tail 4.60.”
(Ridgway.) Interior N. Am., especially from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mts. ; very near the
last, both being closely related to F’. esalon, the fewer bars on the wings and tail apparently
the principal character. A 9 I took in Dakota measures: length 12.75; extent 26.75; wing
8.50.

F. sparve/rius. (Lat. sparvertus,asparrower. Fig. 378.) Rusty-crowNEp Faucon. SPar-
Row Hawk.. Smallest of our Falconine ; sexes unlike in color, but of nearly the same size.

509.

538 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

contrary to the rule in this family. Tail rounded, at least 2 as long as the wing, usually
more. Wings pointed by 2d and 3d quills; 1st about equal to 4th; lst and 2d emarginate
on inner webs near the end; 2d and 3d sinuate on outer webs. Tarsus feathered but a little
way down in front, decidedly longer than middle toe without claw, usually surpassing middle
toe and claw. Young differing less than usual from adults of their respective sexes. Adults:
Crown ashy-blue, with a chestnut patch, sometimes small or altogether wanting, sometimes
occupying nearly all the crown. Conspicuous black maxil-
lary and auricular patches which, with three others around
the nape, make seven places in all, usually evident, but some
of them often obscure or wanting. Back cinnamon-rufous,
or chestnut, like the crown-patch, in the $ with a few black
spots or none, in the 9 with numerous black bars. Wing-
coverts of the @ fine ashy-blue, like the crown, with or
without black spots; of the 9 cinnamon-rufous and black-
barred, like the back. Quill feathers in ¢, 9 blackish,
Fig. 378. — Sparrow Hawk, nat. usually with pale edges and tips, and the inner webs with
size. (Ad nat, del. E. C.) numerous white indentations, or bars continuous along the
inner webs, leaving the black chiefly in a series of dentations proceeding from the shafts;
ends of secondaries usually also slaty-blue like the coverts. Tail bright chestnut, in the ¢
with white tip, broad black subterminal zone, and outer feathers mostly white with several
black bars, in the 9 the whole tail with numerous imperfect black bars. Under parts white,
variously tinged with buff or tawny, in the ¢ with a few black spots or none, in the 9 with
many dark brown streaks; throat and vent usually immaculate. Bill dark horn; cere and
feet. yellow or orange. Length, either sex, 10.00-11.00; extent 20.00-23.00; wing 6.50-
8.00; tail 4.50-6.00; tarsus 1.35; middle toe without claw 1.00. The young do not require
to be separately described, as the species is a strongly marked one, and as the young speedily
acquire recognizable sexual characters. They may be distinguished when just from the nest.
N. Am., everywhere very abundant. Despite its great variation in markings, aside from the
normal sexual differences, this elegant little falcon will be immediately recognized by the sub-
generic characters of Tinnunculus, its small size, and entirely peculiar coloration. Its char-
acteristic habit is to hover or poise in the air over some object which seems to promise a meal,
and then pounce down upon the prey. The birds are very active and noisy during the breeding
season. They build no nest, but lay in the hollows of trees, often deserted woodpeckers’ holes,
or similar nooks in rocks or about buildings. Eggs 5-7, nearly spheroidal, about 1.33 x
1.12; ground-color usually buffy, or pale yellowish-brown ; blotched all over with dark brown,
the splashes of which are usually largest and most numerous toward the greater end, at or
around which they may run into a crown or wreath. Some eggs are pale brown, minutely
dotted all over with dark brown; some are white, with pale brown spots; and a few are whit-
ish without any markings.
F. s. isabellinus? (Low Lat. isabellinus, color of a dirty chemise.) IsaBEL SPARROW
Hawk. A Middle American form of the last, occurring in the Gulf States, shading directly
into sparverius proper: @ without rufous on crown; several lateral tail-feathers variegated,
and the black-zone an inch wide; black spots on back and sides very sparse; breast ochra-
ceous. @ with the black bars of the upper parts very broad, upon a ferrugineous ground.

. F. sparverioides. (Lat. sparverius, and Gr. eidos, eidos, likeness.) Cuban SPARROW Hawk.

Closely related to I’. sparverius, and generally similar, but apparently a distinct species. ¢:
“ Above, except the tail, entirely dark plumbeous, with a blackish nuchal collar; primaries
and edges and subterminal portion of tail-feathers, black. Beneath, deep rufous (like the
back of sparverius) with a wash of plumbeous across the jugulum; throat grayish-white.
Inner webs of primaries slaty, with transverse cloudings of darker. @ differing from that of

511.

179.

535.

FALCONIDZA—POLYBORINZ:: CARACARAS. 539

the above species in dark rufous lower parts, and dusky, mottled inner webs of primaries.”
(Ridgway.) Cuba; Florida.

F. fuscicerules'cens. (Lat. fuscus, dark; cerulescens, bluish.) FEMORAL FALcon.
Aptomapo Facon. Quite different from any of the foregoing species, though belonging to
the sparrow hawk group (Tinnunculus) ; it has been made a separate subgenus (Rhyncho-
falco). Bill robust, with large cere; irregular scutellation of tarsus continuous on the toes ;
tarsus a little longer than middle toe without claw; 2d and 3d quills longest; Ist about equal
to 4th; Ist and 2d emarginate on inner webs; 2d and 3d sinuate on outer webs. Size
medium (among the smaller falcons); form slender; sexes alike. Adult $9: Above, uniforin
plumbeous; tail with about 8 narrow white bars, and tipped with white, as are the secondaries ;
primaries with numerous narrow white bars on inner webs, mostly being isolated transverse
spots, reaching neither shaft nor inner edge of the feathers; the same pattern less definitely
continued on to the secondaries. Side of head with a broad white or tawny postocular stripe,
continuous with the narrowly white forehead, shading into orange-brown on the nape, where
confluent with its fellow ; auriculars mostly white, set in the black of the side of the head, but
continuous with the white of the throat, so that a black supra-auricular stripe meets a black
mystacial stripe under the eye. Sides of body and a broad belly-band black, with or without
numerous narrow white bars; the extent of this black very variable; it usually leaves the
breast white or tawny, but in younger specimens the whole breast is streaked with black on a
tawny ground. Throat usually white. Lining of wings blackish, spotted with white, the
border mostly white or tawny. Flanks, flags, and crissum uniform tawny or orange-brown.
Young sufficiently similar, but upper parts rather dark brown than plumbeous. Length 15.00
or more; wing 10.00-11.00; tail 7.00-8.00; tarsus 1.75 ; middle toe without claw 1.50. A
handsome hawk, well-known and wide-ranging in 8. and C. Am., reaching just over our Mex-
ican border. Nest in trees or bushes; eggs 1.80 1.65, white, finely dotted with light brown,
overlaid with blotches of dark brown.

46. Subfamily POLYBORINZA: Caracaras.

Anatomical characters of Falconine proper, in the scapular arrangement by which a pro-
cess of the coracoid reaches the clavicle, the central tubercle of the extensively ossified nasal
bones, the anterior keel of the palate, and the superorbital shield in « single piece; external
characters very unlike those of Falconine, and general aspect vulturine. Bill toothless.
Sternum single-notched on each side behind. Three or more primaries sinuate-emarginate on
inner webs; 3d or 4th longest; 1st shorter than 5th. A small but remarkable group, com-
bining some of the essential characters of falcons with others more vulture-like ; the species are
chiefly terrestrial, rather sluggish, and feed much on carrion. The genera are Polyborus,
Phaleobenus, Senex, Milvago, Ibycter, and Daptrius, all confined to America.
POLY’BORUWS. (Gr. woAvSdpos, polyboros, very voracious. Fig. 379.) Caracaras. Bill
long, high, much compressed, little hooked, the commissure nearly straight to the deflected
end; cere ending anteriorly in a nearly straight vertical line; nostril high in the front upper
corner of the cere, linear, oblique, its posterior end uppermost, its tubercle concealed. Chin
and sides of head bristly, extensively denuded; a naked pectoral area; an occipital crest.
Tibie shortly flagged. Tarsus nearly twice as long as middle toe without claw, almost
entirely naked, chiefly reticulate, but in front broadly scutellate in single or double row;
lateral toes of about equal lengths; hind toe much the shortest; claws long and little curved.
Wings very long, with 3d and 4th quills longest, 2d and 5th next, Ist shorter than 6th or 7th ;
outer 4 or 5 emarginate. Tail rounded, about 3 as long as wing. Comprising two or three
species of large vulture-like carrion hawks, of terrestrial habits, and ambulatorial, not salta-
torial, gait, P. cherivay, P. auduboni, and P. lutosus, of the warmer parts of America.

P. au/duboni. (ToJ.J. Audubon.) Common Caracara. Ad. &@: General color blackish,

540 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES—ACCIPITRES. /

the throat, neck all around, and more or less of fore back and breast whitish, spotted and chiefly
barred with blackish ; upper and under tail-coverts and most of the tail white, the latter very
numerously barred with blackish, of which color is the broad terminal zone; the shafts white
along the white portion of each feather. Basal portion of primaries likewise barred with
whitish. Bill variously pale colored; cere carmine; iris brown; feet yellow; claws black;
soft parts drying to a dingy indefinable color. Young similar, but rather brownish, the mark-
ings of the body in lengthwise streaks, not cross-bars; tail, however, barred. Length (either
sex) 21.00-23.00; extent about 48.00; wing 14.50-16.50; tail 8.00-10.00; tarsus about 3.60;

6

Fig. 379. — The Caracara, 3 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

middle toe without claw 2.00. I describe the N. Am. bird, which is much less extensively
barred than that of S. Am. (See Cassin, Pr. Phila. Acad., 1865, p. 2.) The difference in
several specimens handled is striking, nearly the whole body, wings, and tail of the 8. Am. bird
being multitudinously rayed across, while in Texas and Florida specimens the body and wing-
coverts are mostly uniform, the barring being restricted to the neck and fore half of the body,
and to the primaries and tail-feathers. If I have compared age for age, the bird is certainly
different. P. lutosus is barred throughout, and otherwise different again. 8. border of U. S.,
Florida to L. Cala. and southward, common, in some places abundant, gregarious like a
turkey-buzzard where offal is exposed. Nests bulky, in trees and bushes, of sticks and

180.

FALCONIDA —BUTEONINZE: BUZZARDS. 541

leaves; eggs commonly 2, broadly oval or subspherical, heavily colored with blotches and
clusters of rich reddish-brown and smaller blackish over-spots; size 2.20 to 2.40 by about
1.85. The long neck and legs of this bird, its terrestrial habits and walking powers, give
it peculiar character, almost suggesting Gypogeranus. Like our vultures, it is a constant
feature of the scene in some southerly localities.

47. Subfamily BUTEONINA:: Buzzards and Eagles.

Bill variable in size and shape, but-without the toothing and notching of that of Falconine
(with rare exceptions), the cutting edge being variously lobed or festooned, or simple. Nos-
trils not circular, nor with a central tubercle; nasal septum incompletely ossified. Super-
ciliary shield more or less prominent, usually consisting of two pieces. Scapular process of the
coracoid not produced to meet the clavicle. Wings and tail variable, but not presenting the
special characters noted under Falconine, nor the relative lengths of those of Accipitrine.

: Tarsus obviously shorter than the tibia, generally scutellate before and behind, sometimes

feathered to the toes. The buzzards form a large group, not easy to define except by exclu-
sion; though quite distinct from Falconine and Polyborine, they grade into each of the other
subfamilies here presented. They ate hawks of medium and rather large size, heavy-bodied,
of strong but measured flight, inferior in spirit to the true hawks and falcons, and as a rule
feed upon humble game, which they rather snatch stealthily than capture in open piracy.
The extensive genus Buteo with its subdivisions, and its companion Archibuteo, typify the
buzzards; they include, however, a great variety of forms. ‘With them must be associated
‘he eagles; for the popular estimate of these famous great birds as something remarkably
different from ordinary hawks is not confirmed by examination of their structure, which is the
same as that of other buzzards. Although usually of large size and powerful physique, they
are far below the smallest falcons in raptorial character, prey like the buzzards, and often
stoop to carrion. The genus Aquila may stand as the type of an eagle; its several species
are confined to the Old World, with one exception. Haliaétus represents a decided modifica-
tion, in adaptation to maritime and piscivorous habits. A celebrated bird of this group is the
harpy eagle, Thrasyaétus harpyia, with immense bill and feet, and one of the most powerful
birds of the whole family. There are several other genera in either hemisphere.

Analysis of Genera,
Tarsi feathered in front to the toes.

Buzzards not over2feet long . . .... 2 2 © ee eo Brea ah cee oe Archibuteo 181
Eagles about 3 feet long - . ..... ee ee ee ae ee - . « Aquila 186
Tarsi naked and scutellate or reticulate below.

Crested. Eaglesabout4feetlong . . 2. 6. 2. + 6 we we ee ee me Yes ee 6 . Thrasyattus 185
Not crested. No basal webbing of toes. Bagles neat 8feetlong .......4.. Haliatitus 187

A basal web between outer and middle toes. Buzzards not over two feet long.
No tibial flag; outstretched feet reaching beyond tail . cat . . Onychotes 184
Tibie flagged; under parts of adult finely barred crosswise; wings ronnie . . Asturina 182
—otherwise; wings more pointed .. . Urubitinga, 183, or Buteo 180

BU'TEO. (Lat. buteo, a buzzard-hawk.) Buzzarps. Size medium and large; form heavy,
robust. Bill of ‘moderate size and ordinary shape. Wings rather long and pointed, exceed-
ing the tail to a variable extent ; 3d to 5th quills longest, 1st to 5th emarginate on inner webs,
Ist not longer than 8th. Tail of moderate length, probably averaging # of the wing, a little
rounded. Feet more or less robust; tarsi scutellate in front at least,’feathered in front for a
varying distance; tibia flagged. This is the central or typical genus of its subfamily, as
Falco is of Falconine, embracing numerous (about 30) species of nearly all parts of the world
excepting Australia; about half of them American. The type is B. vulgaris of Europe, to
which the N. Am. B. swainsoni is so closely related. Four of our species (BB. bor ealis, swain-
soni, lineatus, and pennsylvanicus) are abundant “hen hawks” or ‘chicken hawks” of the
U.S., the first named running into several varieties; the others are little known (BB. harlani,

512.

513.

542 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

coopert), or of very partial distribution in N. Am. In all cases, the sexes are alike or similar;
the 9 is larger than the ¢; the young are different from the adults; melanism is frequently

exhibited.
Analysis of Subgenera and Species.
Five outer primaries emarginate or sinuate on inner webs ; tail more than 3 the wing ; bill high at base ; *
nostrils oval, with eccentric tubercle. (Parabuteo.)
Tail blackish (with white base and tip); lesser wing-coverts and tibiz reddish ; general plumage
blackish. Southwestern U. S., common Cae ee ae ae er Seas - unicinctus 512.

Four outer primaries emarginate or ‘Sinai on inner webs,

Tail white, with a broad black subterminal zone and numerous very narrow, zig-zag, or broken,

blackish cross-lines. Texas . ae albocaudatus 513
Tail mostly white, ashy-clouded ; marked eng thsalae with rious and darker ; and with dark sub-
terminal zone ; under parts mostly white. Cala., one specimen known a - . .cooperi 514

Tail mottled with dusky and white, and with subterminal blackish zone; showing also reddish
touches. Plumage almost entirely blackish, with fleecy-white bases of feathers. Kas. to Tex.,
little known 2 4 A oS » 2. se herlani 515

Tail of adult cheaiie-r20, “with read black eubternninal bar, and others or not ; no reddish on wing-
coverts; white prevailing on under parts, especially breast. Tail of young closely barred with
grayish and blackish. Largest and most robust ; a usually 14.00 or more; tarsus stout.

N. Ain., abundant . i . ae borealis 516-519

Tail of adult black, crossed by about 6 white bars ; prim: aries spotted with white ; lesser wing-coverts
reddish, like under parts. Tail of young dusky, numerously barred with whitish; under parts
whitish, streaked with dusky. Less robust; wing usually under 14.00; tarsus slender. N. Am.,
abundant . . ae oak . lineatus 520, 521

Tail of adult black, with 3 er white a zones on inner webs éniy of the feathers, ashy on outer webs ; _
plumage black, spotted or not with white. Tail of young dusky, inner webs mostly white,
black-barred. Southwestern U.S. . . ee eee ~ . . abbreviatus 522

Three outer primaries emarginate or sinuate on inner webs.

Tail numerously and narrowly cross-barred with lighter and darker. Plumage extremely variable,

but not extensively reddish underneath, nor cheeks with a dark mustache. visi wing usually

over 18.00. Chiefly western U. S., abundant swainsoni 523
Tail of adult blackish with about 3 light gray bands epoca: under parts "extensively rufous ;

a dark moustache. SmalJl; wing under 12.00. Eastern U. S., common « pennsylvanicus 524
Tail (of adult ?) crossed with numerous light and dark bars (6-8 of each); general color fuliginous,

scarcely or not varied. Southwestern U.S. . re 5 ey. 18 rae a brachyurus 882, 883

* Heavy-weights; 5 outer primaries cut.

B. unicin’ctus har’risi. (Lat. wni-, once; cinctus, girdled. To Edw. Harris.) Harris’s
Buzzarp. Adult # 9: General plumage blackish, more or less intense, sometimes rather
dark chocolate-browu, blackening on wings and tail, but in any case pretty uniform over the
whole body. Lesser and part of middle wing-coverts, lining of wings, and the tibize, brownish-
red, or rich chestnut. Tail-coverts and base of tail broadly white, thus girdling the whole
figure ; end of tail also white for an inch or more. Length of ¢ about 20.00; extent 41.00-
46.00 ; wing 12.50-13.50; tail 8.50-9.50; tarsus 3.00-3.25 ; middle toe without claw 2.00.
@ larger; about 23.00; extent 43.00-47.00; wing 13.50-14.50; tail 9.50-10.50. Young:
Less decidedly blackish, the upper parts varied with rusty-brown, lower quite tawny with
dusky spots or streaks, chestnut of wings not unbroken, and white of tail less distinctly defined.
Tibia tawny-white, distinctly barred with chestnut. But in any plumage the species is un-
mistakable, forming a separate subgenus from Buteo proper, by some ranked as a genus;
the loral region is extensively denuded to the eye, and furnished with short radiating bristles.
In some respects it resembles Polyborus, being a sluggish, carrion-feeding bird, usually found
associated with the caracara, turkey-buzzard, and black vulture. It is a common inhabitant of
the warmer parts of America and over our Mexican border; abundant in some parts of Texas.
Nest in a tree or bush; eggs commonly 2, measuring 2.00-2.10 x 1.70, white or whitish,
unmarked or with faint brownish-yellow. (Parabuteo Ridg. Erythrocnema Sharpe.)

** Heavy-weights ; 4 outer primaries cut.
B. albocauda’tus. (Lat. albus, white; caudatus, tailed.) WHITE-TAILED Buzzarp. Adult
& 9%: Tail and its coverts white, with a broad black subterminal zone, with numerous

514.

515.

FALCONIDA — BUTEONINA: BUZZARDS. 543

very fine zig-zag or broken blackish cross-lines. Upper parts (excepting the rump, which is
white like the tail), definitely including the sides of the head and neck, ash-evlor or plumbeous,
lighter or darker in different cases, the feathers fleecy-white at bases so extensively as to show
with the least disturbance of the plumage, and on the scapulars tinged with reddish. Most of
the lesser wing-coverts (but not quite to the bend of the wing), chestnut, somewhat as in
B. unicinctus. Entire under parts pure white, lightly touched with fine dusky cross-bars on
the sides, lining of wings, and usually the tibie. On the surface of the wings the plumbeous
of the upper parts deepens to the blackish of the primaries, whose inner webs are lighter and
more brownish, crossed with numerous darker bars, and toward the base are cut, barred, or
speckled with white, which increases in regularity, firmness, and extent on the secondaries.
Shafts of wing-feathers brown or black, those of tail white along the white portion of the tail-
feathers. Bill mostly dark, in part light; feet yellow; claws black. Length of ¢ 23.00;
extent 48.00: wing 16.00; tail 7.00; chord of culmen, including cere, 1.40; tarsus about 3.25;
feathered about 1.00 down in front. @ larger; length 24.00; extent 54.00; wing 17.50; tail
8.00, ete. (Described from Sennett’s and Merrill’s Texas specimens. Young unknown to
me.) A fine large hawk of the warmer parts of America, lately ascertained to reach the
Rio Grande of Texas; it is very unlike any other of this country.

B. coo'peri? (To Dr. J. G. Cooper.) Cooprr’s Buzzarp = Archibuteo ferrugineus? “ Head,
neck, and whole lower parts white; feathers of the head and neck with medial longitudinal
streaks of black, the white prevailing on the occiput and superciliary region, the black pre-
dominating over the cheeks, forming a ‘“‘mustache;” throat with fine lanceolate blackish
streaks ; sides of the breast with broader, more cuneate markings of the same; flanks with
narrow, lanceolate stripes, these extending sparsely across the abdomen; tibiee and lower tail-
coverts immaculate, the inner face of the former with faint specks. Upper plumage in general
dark plumbeous-brown, inclining to black on the back; plumbeous clearest on primaries,
which are uniformly of this color, the inner ones inclining to fine cinereous. Scapulars and
wing-coverts spattered with white beneath the surface. Rump black; upper tail-coverts
white, tinged with rufous, and with irregular, distant, transverse bars of blackish. Tail with
light rufous prevailing, but this broken up by longitudinal daubs and washes of cinereous,
and darker mottlings running longitudinally on both webs; basally, the ground-color
approaches white; tips white, with a distinct but very irregular subterminal bar of black, into
which the longitudinal mottlings melt; outer webs of lateral feathers entirely cinereous, and
without the black band. Under side of the wing white, with a large black space on the lining
near the edge; under surfaces of primaries white anterior to their emargination, finely mottled '
with ashy and with indistinct transverse bands terminally. 4th quill longest; 3d shorter than
5th; 2d equal to6th; Ist equal to]0th. Wing 15.75; tail 9.10; tarsus 3.25; middle toe 1.70.”
Santa Clara Co., Cala., one specimen known, probably the last as well as the first; for I
suppose this to be Archibuteo ferrugineus (with or without a mésalliance of Buteo borealis),
with abnormally denuded tarsi. I have carefully examined the type specimen, but copy Mr.
Ridgway’s description in preference to constructing a new one.

B. har/lani. (To Dr. R. Harlan.) Harvan’s Buzzarp. ‘BLACK Warrior.” “Form
strong and heavy, like B. borealis, but still more robust; tibial plumes unusually developed,
long and lovse, their ends reaching to or beyond the base of the toes; lateral toes nearly equal.
Four outer primaries with inner webs cut. Wing 14.25-15.75; tail 8.80-10.00; culmen 1.00;
tarsus 2.75-3.25 ; middle toe 1.50-1.70. Nearly uniform black, varying from a sooty to a
carbonaceous tint, with more or less of concealed pure white. Adult: Tail confusedly mottled
longitudinally with grayish, dusky, and white, often tinged or mixed with rufous, the different
shades varying in relative amount in different individuals; a subterminal band of black.
Young: Tail grayish-brown, crossed by about 9 very regular and sharply defined broad bands of
black about equal in width to the gray ones.” (Ridgway.) La. and Tex. to Kas. ; an obscure

516.

544 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

species, variously interpreted by writers. Different “black hawks” have been called “ har-
lani,” such as the melanistic phases of both borealis and swainsoni, and harlani has been
supposed to be not different from borealis. A few specimens in the Smithsonian Institution,
identified with Audubon’s bird by Mr. Ridgway, agree sufficiently with the plate and description,
and the alleged species may, for the present, stand upon its own demerits.

B. borea/lis. (Lat. borealis, northern. Fig. 380.) Rep-raitep Buzzarp. ‘‘ Hen Hawk.”
Adult ¢ 9 : Upper surface of tail rich chestnut, with white tip and usually a black subterminal
zone, with or without other narrower and more or less imperfect black bars; sometimes
barred. throughout. From below, the tail appears pearly whitish with a reddish tinge, either
quite uniform, or barred throughout with the whitish and blackish. In general, it is the 9
with the most barred or completely barred tail, the @ with the uniform tail, only subter-
minally once-zoned. Upper parts blackish-brown, with a thoroughly indeterminate amount
of light variegation, gray, fulvous, and whitish ; feathers of hind head and nape with cottony
white bases, showing when disturbed; those of hind neck usually with fulvous edging; of

Fie. 880. — Red-tailed Buzzard, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

scapular region showing most variegation with tawny or whitish, or both, the scapulars and

_adjoining feathers being largely barred, and only blackish on their exposed portions; upper

tail-coverts showing much tawny and white. Ground color of under parts white, more or less
buff-toned, the dark color of the upper parts reaching nearly or quite around the throat, the
flanks and lower belly heavily marked with dark brown or blackish, but a large pectoral area,
with the tibiee and crissum, mostly free from markings, as a rule; but no description will
cover the latitude of coloration. Primaries blackening on their exposed portions, for the rest
lighter grayish-brown, dark-barred across both webs, and extensively white-areated on inner
webs basally. Length of ¢ 19.00-22.00; extent about 48.00; wing 13.50-16.50; tail 8.50
-10.00 ; tarsus 2.50-3.00, feathered half-way down in front. @ larger; length 21.00-24.00 ;
extent about 56.00; wing 14.50-17.50; tail 9.50-10.00. g 9, young: General character of
the upper parts the same as in the adult, but less variegated, and that chiefly with whitish and
buff, instead of grayish and fulvous; upper tail-coverts more regularly barred with dark and
white. Tail entirely different, without any shade of red; light gray, with numerous (6-10)
regular dark bars, and narrow white tips; the gray gradually yields to the chestnut shade

517.

519.

520.

FALCONIDZ — BUTEONINA: BUZZARDS. 545

with reduction, interruption, or extinction of all these bars except the last one. Under parts
somewhat as in the adult, but, like the upper, without the fulvous or rufous shades; usually
white, unmarked in a large pectoral area, with circlet of throat stripes, and pronounced abdom-
inal zone of dark or blackish markings; tibise spotted or not; crissum immaculate. There
should be no difficulty in recognizing this hawk among those of the Eastern U. S. in any
plumage; the red tail of the adult is of course distinctive; a weakly young male might raise a
doubt with reference to B. lineatus; in that case, notice the stout tarsi, feathered about half-
way down; the decided white pectoral area, free fronr spots, circumscribed by dark markings,
especially those of the abdominal zone; and absence of any reddishness on the upper parts or
wing-coverts. Such is the ordinary “hen hawk” so abundant in Eastern North America,
where it is subject to comparatively little variation. In the West, however, where it is equally
numerous, it sports almost interminably in color, and not always conformably with geograph-
ical distribution. Several of these phases have received special names, as given beyond.
I am willing to spread them upon my page, but too much of my life is behind me for me to
spend much time in such trivial routabilities. The tendency is to melanism and erythrism, the
extreme case of which is B. calurus of Cassin. A pure borealis, exactly matching the normal
Eastern type, is seldom seen in the West. But in all its color-variation, the bird preserves its
specific characters of size and robust proportions, being thus readily distinguishable from the
smaller and weaker species, B. swainsont, in any of the endless and somewhat parallel varia-
tions of the latter. The nest is usually built high in a tree, a bulky mass of sticks and smaller
twigs, mixed toward the centre with grass, moss, or other soft material, and often some feathers.
Eggs generally 3, about 2.40X2.00, dull whitish, sometimes with only a few pale markings,
oftener boldly and richly blotched with warm shades of brown. The young are slow to acquire
their perfect plumage, being long full-grown before the red appears upon the tail, and this
usually precedes the fulvous of the under parts.

B.b.calw/rus. (Gr. adds, kalos, beautiful; ovpd, owra, tail.) WESTERN Rep-Taiw. Buack
Rep-tam. The extreme case is chocolate-brown or even darker, quite unicolor, with rich red
tail crossed by several black bars; from which erythro-melanism grading insensibly into
ordinary borealis. The usual case is increase over borealis of dark rufous and dusky shades
in bars and spots underneath, particularly on the flanks, flags, and crissum, and presence of other
than the subterminal black bar on the tail. One case is chocolate-brown, with a great reddish’
blotch on the breast. Western N. Am. at large, particularly U.S. from R. Mts. to the
Pacific.

. B.b. lucasa‘nus. (Of Cape St. Lucas.) St. Lucas Rep-rarn. A light-colored form, like

krideri, white below, tinged with rufous on the tibiee, and no black subterminal bar on the tail.
Lower Cala.

B. b. kri/deri. (To John Krider.) Kriper’s Rep-ram. A light-colored form, pure white
below, with few markings or none, and the subterminal tail-bar reduced or obliterated. High
central plains, U. 8. This and the last hardly tenable.

*** Light-weights; 4 outer primaries cut.

B. linea/tus. (Lat. lineatus, striped.) RepD-sHOULDERED BuzzaARD. Winter Hawk.
“‘CHicKkEN Hawk.” Adult g ?: Feet and cere chrome yellow, the anterior tarsal scales
tinged with greenish. General plumage of a rich fulvous cast. Above, reddish-brown, the
feathers with dark brown centres, giving the prevailing tone, and black shafts; head, neck,
and entire under parts orange-brown, mostly with dark shaft-lines and white bars, especially
on the lower parts posteriorly ; lesser wing-coverts rich orange-brown or chestnut, forming a
conspicuous area on the bend of the wing. Quills and tail-feathers black, beautifully marked
with white ; the primaries and secondaries with white spots or bars on both webs terminating

on each edge of the feather, the light bars which cross the feather, and the darker intervening
35

a

521,

522.

" 523

546 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

spaces, being more or less touched with reddish. The same style of marking on the wing-
coverts ; the tai: crossed with several narrow white bars, and the tip white. Young very
different ; little or no fulvous or orange-brown; above, plain dark brown, the wing-patch
indicated or not; head, neck, and under parts white or buffy-white, fully streaked or arrow-
headed with dark brown. Tail brown, crossed with many lighter and darker bars, the
former mostly tawny on the outer webs, whitish on the inner webs; wing-quills extensively
variegated in similar pattern. Length of g 18.00-20.00; extent about 40.00; wing 11.50-
13.50; tail 7.50-8.50; tarsus 2.75-3.25; 9 20.00-22.00; extent about 45.00; wing 12.00-
14.00; tail 8.50-9.50. There is much variation in size; Florida and Gulf specimens are very
small. Nearly as long as B. borealis, but not nearly so heavy; tarsi more extensively denuded.
The adult of this handsome hawk is unmistakable; but the student may require to look closely
after the young. Eastern N. Am., one of the commonest hawks of the U. S., especially in
winter; not far N.in Brit. Am. Habits and nidification similar to those of B. borealis ;
eggs 2-4, 2.00-2.25 X about 1.75, with the usual range of color-variation.

B. 1. elegans. (Lat. elegans, choice.) WrSTERN RED-SHOULDERED Buzzarp. The
erythrism of the last. In extreme case, the whole under plumage rich dark reddish, almost
obliterating the usual markings; wings and tail, however, still elegantly barred with pure
white. R. Mts. to the Pacific, U. S.

B. abbrevia/tus. (Lat. abbreviatus, shortened.) Banp-rainep Buzzarp. Adult oe:
Coal-black, glossy and uniform over the whole body. Tail black; viewed above, it seems to
be crossed with 3 zones of ashy-gray or slate-color, increasing in width and firmness from the
proximal to the distal one, and is narrowly tipped with white; from below, there appear 3 pure
white zones, since the ashy is on the outer webs only of the feathers (both webs of the middle
pair, however), and the white is on the inner webs. The plumage of the head is snowy-white
at the roots, and in some specimens, probably less mature, it is so extensive on the head,
neck, and breast as to appear in spots on the least disturbance of the feathers. The wing-
feathers appear quite black in the folded wing, but their inner webs basally acquire the
usual light and dark spacing, with more or less whitish nebulation, or white areation. The
feet appear to be yellow, the bill mostly dark. Young recognizably similar? ‘Length of my
Arizona specimen 19.50; extent 47.50; wing 15.50-16.50; tail 8.50-9.00; tarsus 2.50; middle
toe without claw 1.60. A peculiar hawk, very unlike any other of the U. S., slightly built
with long wings and tail; not yet well known nor worked out in all its plumages. Cent. Am.
and Mex. into Southwestern U. S.; Ariz., Cala. (B. zonocercus, Scl., Tr. Z. 8., 1858, pl. 59;
Ridgw., Hist. N. A. B., iii, 1874, p. 272, B. albonotatus, Gray.)

**** Light-weights; 3 outer primaries cut.

B. swain’soni. (To Wm. Swainson.) Common AMERICAN Buzzarp. Swarnson’s Buz-
zARD. Adult g 9: Upper parts dark brown, very variable in shade according to season or
wear of the feathers, varied with paler brown, or even reddish-brown edgings of the feathers,
but without the clear fawn-color of the young; the feathers of the crown showing whitish
when disturbed, and usually sharp, dark shaft-lines; the upper tail-coverts chestnut and white,
with blackish bars. Quills and tail-feathers as below, but the inner webs of the former
showing more decided dark cross-bars upon a lighter marbled-whitish ground, and the latter
having broader and sharper, dark wavy bars. These large quills, and particularly those of the
tail, vary much in shade according to wear, the new feathers being strongly slate-colored, the
old ones plain dark brown. The tail, however, never shows any trace of the rich chestnut that.
obtains in the adult B. borealis. Iris brown, never yellow ; feet, cere, gape, and base of under
mandible. rich chrome-yellow ; rest of bill and claws bluish-black. Adult ¢: Under parts
showing a broad pectoral area of bright chestnut, usually with a glaucous cast, and sharp black
shaft-lines; this area contrasting sharply with the pure white throat. Other under parts white,

&

FALCONIDG -- BUTEONINZ: BUZZARDS. 547

more or less tinged and varied, in different specimens, with light chestnut. In some males, this
chestnut is diminished to traces, chiefly in flank-bars and arrow-heads, and the white throat is
immaculate ; in others, the throat shows blackish pencilling, and the rest of the under parts are
so much marked with chestnut, chiefly in cross-bars, that this color predominates over the
white, and appears in direct continuation of the pectoral area itself. Some feathers of this area
are commonly dark brown. Length 19.00-20.00; extent about 49.00; wing 15.00 or a little
more; tail 8.50; tarsus 2.50; middle toe without claw 1.50. Adult 9 : Much darker under-
neath than the male; throat pure white, but other under parts probably never whitening
decidedly. Pectoral area from rich dark chestnut or mahogany-color, mixed with still darker

t
Fic. 381. — Buteo vulgaris of Europe, } nat. size; not distinguishable in the cut from one of the plumages of
Z. swainsoni. (From Brehm.)

feathers, to brownish-black ; and other under parts heavily marked with chestnut, chiefly in
cross-bars alternating with whitish, but on the flanks, and sometimes across the belly, these
markings quite blackish. The general toue of the under parts may be quite as dark as the
pectoral area of the male, but it lacks uniformity, and the increased depth of color of the
pectoral area in this sex suffices to preserve the strong contrast already mentioned. Length
20.00-22.00 ; extent 50.00-54.00; wing 15.00-16.50; tail 9.00. Changes of plumage with age
affect chiefly the under parts; the back, wings, and tail are more nearly alike at all times.
Young f ?: Entire upper parts dark brown, everywhere varied with tawny edgings of the
individual feathers. The younger the bird, the more marked is the variegation ; it corresponds
in tints closely with the color of the under parts, being palest in very young examples. Under
parts, including lining of wings, nearly uniform fawn-color (pale dull yellowish-brown),

524.

548 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

thickly and sharply marked with blackish-brown. These large dark spots, for the most part
cireular or guttiform, crowd across the forebreast, scatter on the middle belly, enlarge to cross-
bars on the flanks, become broad arrow-heads on the lower belly and tibie, and are wanting
on the throat, which is only marked with a sharp, narrow, blackish pencilling along the median
line. Quills brownish-black, the outer webs with an ashy shade, the inner webs toward the
base grayish, paler, and marbled with white, and also showing obscure dark cross-bars; their
shafts black on top, nearly white underneath. Tail-feathers like the quills, but more decidedly
shaded with ashy or slate-gray, and tipped with whitish ; their numerous dark cross-bars show
more plainly than those of the quills, but are not so evident as they are in the old birds.
Nestlings are covered with white fluffy down. Western N. Am., Mississippi Valley to the
Pacific, abundant; in many regions the commonest and most characteristic of the large hawks ;
occasionally eastward through the N. States to Canada and New England. Nests indifferently
on the ground, cliffs, bushes, trees; nest indistinguishable from that of other large hawks; eggs
usually 2, —I have never found more, sometimes only one; they are about 2.25 & 1.75, resem-
bling hen’s eggs, being nearly colorless and unmarked, like those of the marsh hawk; some-
times stained with rusty-brownish, probably never marked all over nor boldly blotched anywhere.
This buzzard represents the European B. vulgaris (fig. 381) in N. Am., being, in fact, little
different. (It is Falco buteo Aud., folio pl. 372; B. vulgaris Sw., F. B. A., pl. 27; Aud., 8vo,
pl. 6; B. montanus Nutt., 1840, not of authors; B. bairdi Hoy (young); ? B. ozypterus Cass.
(young); B. insignatus Cass., Ill. pl. 31 (melanistic); B. guttwralis Maxim.; B. obsoletus
Sharpe, 1874 (not Falco obsoletus Gm.). It is probably also B. ‘ vulgaris” of Maynard, Bull.
Nutt. Club, i, 1876, p. 2; and of Ridg., ibid. p. 32.)

B. pennsylva/nicus. (Lat. pennsylvamicus, of Wm. Penn’s woods.) BROoAD-WINGED
Buzzarp. Adult $@ : Above, dark brown, the feathers with blackish shaft-lines, and pale
grayish-brown or even lighter edgings, those of hind head and nape cottony-white basally ;
usually also some feathers with fulvous edgings, especially on the hind neck; upper tail-coverts
barred or spotted with white. Primaries and secondaries blackish on outer webs and at ends,
most of the inner webs white in large area, more or less perfectly barred with dusky; concealed
parts of scapulars thus barred on both webs. Exposed portion of tail with three blackish
zones, the terminal one broadest, alternating narrower pale gray or grayish-white zones, one of
these terminal ; from below these zones appear whitish, but from above grayish. Under parts
mixed white and fulvous-brown, or dull chestnut, the latter nearly as pronounced as in B. linea-
tus, the pattern being rather that of Accipiter fuscus or A. coopert; the fulvous in excess ante-
riorly, the white prevailing posteriorly and nearly or quite immaculate on crisswn; the middle
regions with the white in oval paired spots or incomplete bars on each feather, the flanks and
tibia pretty regularly barred with the two colors; most of the feathers black-shafted, producing
a fine penciling, this black increasing to decided streaking on the white throat, and forming
noticeable maxillary patches. Lining of wings mostly white, but with some reddish and black-
ish spotting. Bill mostly dark; feet yellow; claws black. Length of ¢ 14.00; extent 33.00;
wing 10.50-11.00; tail 6.50-7.00; tarsus 2.30; middle toe without claw 1.20. 9 larger;
wing 11.00-11.50; tail 7.00-7.50. Young: Differs as usual in the genus, in lacking the
special coloration and pattern of the under parts, tail-pattern different, wing-pattern much the
same. Upper parts blackish-brown, highly variegated with fulvous, tawny, or whitish edgings
of all the feathers, on the head and neck the light and dark colors in streaks about balancing
each other. Under parts white, more or less buff-toned, with more or fewer linear or clubbed
fuscous markings on the breast and sides, changing to arrow-heads on the flanks and sides,
the amount of this marking wholly indeterminate. Tail crossed with numerous light and dark
bars (six or eight of each exposed), on both webs of middle feathers and outer webs of the others ;
these on their inner webs largely white, with consequently better pronounced dark bars; all
the feathers tipped with white. Eastern N. Am. and throughout Middle America, common;

882,

181.

525.

FALCONIDZ — BUTEONINZ:: BUZZARDS. 549

a small but stout Buteo, with ample wings and tail, very different from any of the foregoing,
and easily recognized by its size and proportions, aside from color. A large 9 resembles a
small ¢ B. lineatus in some respects, but the difference is too great to require detailed com-
parison. Nesting nowise peculiar ; eggs 3-5, 2.00 1.60, heavily marked.

883. B.brachyu'rus. (Gr. Bpayis, brachus, short; odpd, owra, tail.). FuLiarnous Buzzarp.
Resembling B. abbreviatus in being blackish or fuliginous all over, but entirely another bird, |
belonging to a different section of the genus. ‘Only three primaries are abruptly emarginate on
the inner web, though the next one is sinuate. Adult 9? Color fuliginous, or dark umber-
brown, nearly uniform, but barred on the under wing- and tail-coverts with white, and the
feathers of the hind head and nape fleecy-white at base ; the color blackening on the exposed
surfaces of the primaries, the inner webs of which are extensively whitened, with the usual
dark bars ; little white, however, on the secondaries, excepting the inner ones, most of them
being simply spaced gray or light brown between their dark bars. Tail-pattern as usual in
young hawks of this genus, there being numerous (6 or 8 exposed) blackish and lighter grayish
bars alternating, the subterminal one of each broadest, the whole tail tipped with grayish-
white; the inner webs of all the feathers excepting the central pair whitening in the spaces
between the dark bars. Length 16.00; wing 13.00; tail 7.00; tarsus 2.00. (Described from
No. 12,117, Mus. Smiths. Inst., from Mazatlan, Mex., agreeing with B. fuliginosus Scl., P. Z.S.,
1858, p. 356; Tr. Z. S., 1858, p. 267, pl. lxii; a bird supposed to be the young of the same
is B. owypterus, Cass., Pr. Phila. Acad., 1855, p. 283; both are treated as a variety of B.
swainsont by Ridgway, Hist. N. A. B., iii, 1874, p. 266; but are now supposed to be melanistic
adult, and young, of a good species, probably B. brachyurus Vieill., which normally has the
face and most under parts white.) Mexican border, Florida, and southward.
ARCHIBU'TEO. (Lat. archi-, from Gr. dpxés, archos, a leader, chief; buteo, a buzzard.)
Hare-FooTep Buzzarps. Chars. of Buteo proper, but tarsi feathered in front to the toes,
naked and reticulate along a strip behind. Wings very long; 3d and 4th quills longest; 1st
shorter than 7th; 4 or 5 emarginate on inner webs. A small group, well marked by the char-
acter of the feet. The species are among the largest of the buzzard-hawks, but are rather dull
heavy birds, preying upon humble quarry, especially small quadrupeds, reptiles, and insects.

Analysis of Species
Below, white, variously dark-marked, and often with a broad black abdominal zone, but generally no
ferruginous ; in melanotic state, whole plumage nearly uniform blackish. . lagopus sancti-johannis 525
Below, pure white, scarcely or not marked, excepting that the legs are rich rufous with black bars,
in marked contrast; above, varied with dark brown, chestnut and white ; quills brown, with much
white; tail silvery-ash and white, clouded with brown or rufous ....... . Serrugineus 526
A. lago’pus sancti-johan‘nis. (Gr. Aayamous, lagopous, hare-footed ; Lat. sancti-johannis,
of St. John, Newfoundland. Fig. 382.) American RouGH-LeGGED Buzzarp. “BLACK
Hawk.” Adult 9: Too variable in plumage to be concisely described. In general, the
whole plumage with dark brown or blackish and light brown, gray, or whitish, the lighter.
colors edging or barring the individual feathers ; tendency to excess of the whitish on the head,
and to the formation of a dark abdominal zone or area which may or may not include the tibia;
usually a blackish anteorbital and maxillary area. Lining of wings extensively blackish. Tail
usually white from the base for some distance, then with dark and light barring. The inner
webs of the flight-feathers extensively white from the base, usually with little if any of the
dark barring so- prevalent among buteonine hawks. From such'a light and variegated plum-
age as this, the bird varies to more or less nearly uniform blackish, in which case the tail is
usually barred several times with white. Our lighter-colored birds are not fairly separable
from the normal European A. lagopus ; but our birds average darker, and their frequent mel-
anism does not appear to befall the European stock. But in any plumage the rough-leg is
kmown at a glance from any Buteo by the feathered shanks; while the peculiar coloration of

uM

550 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.~—RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

A. ferrugineus is highly distinctive of the latter. Length of a 9, 22.00; extent 54.00; wing
17.50; tail 9.00; iris light brown; bill mostly blackish-blue, cere pale greenish-yellow, feet
dull yellow, claws blue-black. This is about an average size; the § averages smaller; wing
about 16.00, etc. The name adopted, it must be observed, is not intended to discriminate the
black from the ordinary plumage, but to separate the American bird subspecifically from the
European. N. Am., at large, common, especially in fertile, well-watered regions, as those of

Fie. 382, — Rough-legged Buzzard, £ nat. size. (From Brehm.)

the Atlantic seaboard ; a large, heavy, and somewhat sluggish hawk, haunting meadows and
marshes, to some extent crepuscular in habits, of low, easy, and almost noiseless flight ; prey-
ing upon insignificant quarry, particularly small rodent and insectivorous mammals, reptiles,
batrachians and insects. Nest usually in large trees, but frequently on a ledge of rocks or the
edge of a cut-bank ; a bulky mass of interlaced sticks, with softer matted material of miscel-
laneous kinds; eggs 3-5, laid late in May and in June, measuring 2.10-2 25 in length, by
1.75-1.80 in breadth; varying in color from dingy whitish with scarcely any marking, or but

526.

182.

527.

FALCONIDA —BUTEONINZ: BUZZARDS. 651

faint clouding, to creamy-white boldly variegated with blotches and washes of dark brown on
the surface, with neutral-tint markings in the substance of the shell.

A. ferrugi/neus. (Lat. jferrugo, iron-rust.) FurruGinous RouGH-Leccep Buzzarp.
“ CauiFoRNIA SQUIRREL Hawk.” Adult ¢ 9: Below, pure white from bill to end of tail,
the legs rich rufous or bright chestnut barred with black, in marked contrast; usually a few
chestnut bars or arrow-heads on the belly and flanks, and the breast with sharp shaft lines of
black. The older the bird the purer white below, with more perfect contrast of the chestnut
legs; the 9 retaining marks of immaturity longer than the ¢ ; these consisting in extension
of the black-barred chestnut markings on to the belly, flanks, and even more of the under parts,
and spreading of the fine shaft lines on the breast into ordinary streaks. Tail silvery-white
below, above white at base and extreme tip, in most of its extent clouded with silvery-ash and
more or less tinged with ferruginous. Back, rump, and wing-coverts mixed blackish and
bright chestnut in varying but about equal amounts, the former color making central markings
on the exposed portion of each feather, the chestnut yielding to white at the bases of the
feathers. Top, back, and sides of head streaked with blackish and white in about equal
amounts, the feathers being cottony-white, with dark streaks or spaces on their exposed por-
tions. Primaries blackish, with a glaucous bloom on their outer webs, their shafts almost
entirely white, several outer ones with extensive pure white areation on their inner webs;
inner primaries and secondaries continuing this pattern, but with more or less evident ashy
spacing between blackish bars, as usual in buteonine hawks. Length of ¢, 22.50; extent 54.-
50; wing 16.75; tail 9.25; tarsus 2.75; length of 9, 23.50; extent 56.50; wing 17.25; tail
9.75. Iris pale brownish to light yellow; cere and feet bright yellow; bill dark bluish horn-
color; mouth purplish flesh-color. Third and 4th quills subequal and longest ; 2d between 5th
and 6th; Ist about equal to 8th ; lst-4th abruptly emarginate on inner webs; 2d-5th sinuate
on outer webs. The foregoing is from a fine pair I procured in Arizona in 1864. A younger
bird is described as less rufous above, and almost entirely white below, the flags scarcely varie-
gated or contrasted. The first plumage does not seem to be described; I have seen it in
Dakota, but have no specimen at hand, and cannot trust my memory. One of the largest,
handsomest and most distinctively marked hawks of N. Am., somewhat recalling Buteo albo-
caudatus; common in the west, from the region of the Red River of the North and of the Sas-
katchewan to Texas and into Mexico, and from the Plains to the Pacific; sometimes even E.
of the Mississippi, as in Iowa. Nesting and habits in no wise peculiar, as compared with
those of other large hawks; nest in trees, on ledges and banks, composed of sticks, with mat-
ted lining of various softer materials; eggs not characteristic, but large, averaging 2.50 x 1.95.
ASTURI'NA. (Modified from Lat. astur, a hawk.) Star Buzzarps. General chars. .of
Buteo, in proportions, but system of coloration as in Astur: sexes alike; adults ashy, with
black, white-barred tail, the under parts closely barred crosswise with ashy and white; young
different, the under parts marked lengthwise with blackish on a’ whitish ground. Wings short
for this subfamily ; 3d, 4th, and 5th quills longest, 1st very short; outer 4 emarginate on inner
webs; 2d—5th cut on outer “arabs; Tail even, long, about $ the wing. Legs longer than usual
in Buteonine, more nearly as in Accipitrine ; feet stout; tarsus scutellate before and half-way
up behind, shortly feathered above in front, elsewhere strongly reticulate. A small group of
handsome under-sized hawks, peculiar to America.

A. plaga‘ta. (Lat. plagata, striped.) Gray Star Buzzarp. Adult ¢ 9: Upper parts
nearly uniform cinereous, or light plumbeous, the feathers dark-shafted, and with nearly obso-
lete undulations of lighter ash ; upper tail-coverts in part white. Tail black, with several
white zones, sometimes broken, and white or whitish tip. Under parts, including tibiee, white,
beautifully and closely cross-barred with dark ash, except upon the throat and crissum ; some
of the feathers also dark-shafted. Lining of wings white, less closely barred with ashy.

Primaries darkening from the color of the back, their inner webs. spaced lighter and darker, and

183.

528.

184.

552 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

with extensive white areation, which characters increase on the secondaries. Iris brown; cere
and feet bright yellow; bill and claws blue-black. Wing of # 10.00; tail 7.00; tarsus 2.75 ;
middle toe without claw 1.50. Wing of ? 11.00; tail 8.00.» Young: Blackish-brown above,
much variegated with reddish-buff, the white upper tail-coverts spotted with blackish; below,
whitish, dashed with large blackish marks, the flags barred ; tail dark brown, with numerous
uarrow blackish bars. Cent. Am. and Mex., regularly into southwestern U. 8., occasionally
up the Mississippi Valley to Illinois. Nest in trees or bushes, not peculiar; eggs 2, round-
oval, colorless, 2.00 « 1.60.

URUBITINGA. (S. Am. wrubu, a vulture; tiga, bright.) ANTHRACITE BuzzaRps. Gen-
eral chars. of Buteo, but system of coloration peculiar, the adults being chiefly black and white,
the tail typically broadly zoned. The limits of the genus vary with different writers; it
contains several species, confined to America, one of them reaching our border. In this the
tail is about $ as long as the wing, emarginate or nearly even; the wing with 3d—5th quills
longest, 2d about equal to 6th, 1st very short; outer 4 sinuate on inner webs; the point of the
folded wing reaching but little beyond the longest secondaries; the bill lengthened and rather
weak ; the tomia of the upper mandible strongly festooned or almost lubated back of the hook ;
gonys convex ; nostrils large, subcircular ; lores extensively denuded ; tarsus much longer than
middle toe and claw, feathered but a little way down in front, scutellate before and behind,
reticulated laterally like the basis of the toes, which in the rest of their length are broadly
scutellate.

U. anthraci/na, (Lat. anthracinus, carbuncular; in this case coal-black.) ANTHRACITE
Buzzarp. Adult ¢ 9: Coal-black; feathers of head and neck with concealed white bases ;
tail white at extreme base and tip, and crossed about the middle with a broad white zone; ends
of coverts white ; quills of wing more or less mottled with rusty-brown ; cere, rictus, and base
of bill, and feet, yellow; bill and claws blackish. Length about 23.00; wing 18.00-15.00 ;
tail 8.00-10.00 ; tarsus 3.25 ; Q larger than g. Young: Extensively varied with rusty or buff,
which is gradually obliterated as the bird matures; tail numerously barred with black and
white. There are 6-9 such bars, mostly broken or otherwise irregular. The whole under
parts are white, more or less tinged with buff, pencilled on the throat, heavily striped on the
breast and sides, closely barred across on the tibize and crissum, with blackish. The feathers of
the head, nape, and foreback are largely white or whitish, appearing in streaks among the over-
lying blackish of the ends of the feathers. The exposed portions of the primaries are blackish,
obsoletely crossed with lighter; these feathers lightening basally and internally, where narrow
blackish bars alternate with wider spaces of white tinged with brown and fulvous. The
secondaries and larger coverts are brown with narrow dark bars, their inner webs also indented
with whitish and tawny. The younger the bird the more the whitish or buff prevails over the
dark colors. The contrast between the cross-barred tibiz and the lengthwisé-striped breast
and sides is always notable. The tail. varies from rounded through square to emarginate.
A remarkable hawk of Cent. Am., W. I., and Mex., lately ascertained to occur in Arizona.
ONY'CHOTES. (Gr. dvvé, dvuxos, onux, onuchos, a claw, and’ a suffix -rns, -tes.) CLAWED
Buzzarp. ‘‘ Bill short, the tip remarkably short and obtuse, and only gradually bent; cere
on top about equal to culmen; very broad basally in its transverse diameter, and ascending in
its lateral outline, on a line with the culmen; commissure only faintly lobed. Nostril nearly
circular, with a conspicuous (but not central or bony) tuberele ; cere densely bristled below the
nostril, almost to its anterior edge; orbital region finely bristled. Tarsus very long and slen-
der, nearly twice the length of the middle toe; toes moderate, the outer one decidedly shorter
than the inner ; claws very long, strong, and sharp, curved in about one-quarter the cireumfer-
ence of a circle. Tibial feathers very short and close, the plumes scarcely reaching below the
joint. Feathers of the forehead, gular region, sides and tibiee with white filamentous attach-
ments to the ends of the shafts. Wing very short, much rounded, and very concave beneath ;

529.

185.

531.

186.

FALCONIDZA — BUTEONINE: EAGLES. 5538

4th quill longest; Ist shorter than 9th; 4 primaries emarginated, and one sinuated, on inner
webs ; 5 sinuated on outer webs. Tail about $ as long as wing, rounded. Outstretched feet
teaching beyond end of tail.” (Ridgway.) One species.

O. grwberi. (To F. Gruber.) Gruper’s Buzzarv. “Immature? General plumage dull
dark bistre, with a grayish-umber cast in some lights, darkest on the head above and back ;
the posterior lower parts paler and more reddish; throat and neck much tinged with pale
rusty ; primaries uniform black. Tail like the rump, but with a more hoary tinge, not paler
at the tip, and crossed with 7 or 8 very narrow obscure bars of darker, the last of which is
distant an inch or more from the end. Lining of wings dark bistre, much tinged with rusty,
this prevalent toward the edge; under surfaces of primaries white anterior to their emargina-
tion, beyond which they are ashy, approaching black at the ends; ashy portion with distant,
very obsolete, dusky bars, but the cheeks and throat streaked obsoletely with this color.” No
distinct white anywhere about head or neck. Wing 10.00; tail 5.80; tarsus 2.70; middle toe
1.40.” (Ridgway.) California? A second specimen has been discovered since the description
here copied was made. ‘‘ Closely allied to, if not identical with, Urubitinga.” (Sharpe.)
THRASYAE/TUS. (Gr. pacts, thrasus, bold; derds, aétos, an eagle.) Harpy Eacurs. A
genus containing one species of enormous size, the most powerful raptorial bird of America, if
not of the entire sub-order. Head with a broad flowing occipital crest. Bill of great length
and depth, much compressed, so hooked that the curve of the culmen is about a quadrant of a
circle, the commissure about straight, the tomia festooned but not toothed; cere extensive, with
nearly vertical fore-edge, close to which are the narrowly oval nostrils about midway between
tomia and culmen; lores extensively naked and bristly; superciliary shield prominent; feet.
and talons of immense strength ; tarsus feathered a little way down in front ; the covering of the
feet reticulate, excepting a few scales on top of the toes ; lateral toes much shorter than middle
one; inner claw much larger than middle one; hinder one much the largest of all. Wings
rather short, but very ample, the secondaries entirely covering the primaries when folded;
wing as a whole much vaulted, the outer quills strongly bowed. Tail long, # the wing, fan-
shaped, vaulted.

T. harpyi/a. (Gr. dprua, harpuia,a harpy.) Harpy Eacus. The largest and finest speci-
men before me I judge to have been nearly or about 4 feet long ; the wing is about 2 feet; the
tail 18 inches ; chord of culmen, including cere, 2.75 inches ; depth of bill 1.50; tarsus over
4.00; chord of hind claw nearly 3.00. Head and entire under parts dull white, more or less
obscured with ashy or dusky, particularly on the crest, across the throat, and on the tibia,
which latter are in some cases regularly barred with blackish. Upper parts at large ashy-gray,
intimately but irregularly barred with glossy black, especially on the wing-coverts. Flight-
feathers mostly blackish, but with more or less ashy nebulation, to which whitish variegation is
added on the inner webs. Tail pretty regularly barred with black and ash, in other cases
irregularly nebulated with light and dark ash. The bill appears to have been blackish, the
feet of some yellowish color. Young birds are much darker. C. and §. Am. and Mexico, a
well known and most formidable bird of prey, reaching the Texas border.

A/QUILA. (Lat. aquila, an eagle.) GoL~pEN EaGies. Birds of great size, robust form and
powerful physique, but in technical characters near Buteo and especially Archibuteo. Tibia
extensively flagged. Tarsus closely feathered all around to the toes; toes mostly reticulate on
top, margined, outer and middle webbed at base. Bill large, long, very robust; tomia lobed ;
nostrils oval, oblique; superciliary shield prominent. Wingslong, pointed by the 3d-5th quills,
2d subequal to 6th, 1st very short, 5 or 6 emarginate on inner webs 3 2d to 6th or 7th sinuate
on outer webs. Tail moderate, rounded or graduated. Feathers of occiput and nape lanceolate,
acute, discrete, like a raven’s throat-plumes. Sexes alike; changes of plumage not great.
This extensive genus includes the eagles properly so called, of which there are numerous Old
World species, but only one American.

532.

187.

dot SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —RAPTORES— ACCIPITRES.

A. chrysaé/tus. (Gr. ypvoderos, chrusaétos, golden eagle. Fig. 383.) GoLDEN EaGie. Rina-
TAILED EAGLE. Adult ¢ 9 : Dark brown, with a purplish gloss, lighter on the coverts of the
wings and tail and on the flags or tarsi; the cowl of lanceolate feathers golden-brown. Quills’
and tail-feathers blackish, but basally nore or less variegated or areated with light brown, gray,
or whitish; at maturity these markings becoming extensive and definite. Young birds are
blacker than the adults, which ‘‘ grow gray” with age, and are ‘‘ring-tailed,” that is, the basal
portion and finally
most of the tail is
white, offset by a
broad black termi-
nal zone. Length
about 3 feet; extent
6 feet or more: wing
2 feet (f) or more
(2); tail 14.00-
15.00 inches (@)
or more (9); bill,
without cere, 1.50-
1.75; tarsus 3.50-
4.00. This great
bird inhabits N. Am.
at large, as well as
Europe, Asia, ete.;
in this country rather
northerly, S. ordina-
rily to about 35°.
The American is not
fairly to be distin-
guished from the
European, but on
the whole is a larger
and ‘‘ better” bird,
like several others
of the present fam-
ily, as well as of

the goose and duck
Fig. 383. — The Eyrie of the Golden Eagle. (Designed by H. W. Elliott.) tribes. This I sup-

pose to be owing to the fact that there is more room for them, more food, less persecution, and
altogether less competition in the struggle for existence. It breeds chiefly in mountainous or
boreal regions, the eyrie being usually upon a crag, the nest an enormous platform of sticks,
etc. The eggs are subspherical and equal-ended; four selected specimens measure: 2.65 X
2.15; 2.90x2.40; 3.00 2.35; 3.10%2.25; in 12 cases, only one is white like a bald eagle's;
the rest are whitish, wholly indeterminately spotted, splashed and smirched with rich sienna,
umber and bistre browns, with neutral-tint shell-markings; 2, 3, or 4 are laid.
HALIAE'TUS. (Gr. ddideros, haliaétos, a sea-eagle ; 2.¢., the osprey.) SEA EAGLES. F1sH-
inc Eacies. General chars. of Aquila, as above, but the tarsi only feathered about half-way
down, and no webbing between outer and middle toes. This nakedness of the shank is an in-
fallible character: among the several different kinds of eagles popularly attributed to North
America, only two have been found on the continent ; the one with the feathered shank is No.
532; the one with scaly shank is No. 534, whatever its size or color. The scuteHation of the *

533.

$34.

+
FALCONID4 — BUTEONINA:: EAGLES. 555

tarsus varies in this species; there is normally a short row of scales in front, discontinued
about the bases of the toes, where are granular reticulations, the scutellation being resumed
farther on the toes. Wings pointed by 3d-5th quills; 2d nearly equal to 6th: 1st longer
than 9th; 5 to 6 emarginate on inner webs. Tail rounded, graduated or cuneate, of 12 ree-
trices (14 in the Asiatic H. pelagicus). Feathers of neck all around lance-acute, discrete.
About 8 species of this genus. are recognized; one of them is appropriate to this continent ;
another occurs in Greenland; a third (H. pelagicus) may be expected in Alaska.
Analysis of Species.

Adult with head and tail white eee ee Hs . see ee « Lewcocephalus 534
Adult with tail only white 2... . 2... ee albicilla 533

H. albicil/la, (Lat. albicilla, white-tailed.) Wurrn-ramep Spa Eacus. Adult f 9:
Dark brown, blackening on primaries, the head and neck gray, the tail white. Bill and feet

Fic. 384.— Bald Eagle. (From Tenney, after Wilson.)

yellow. Young with tail not white, and otherwise different. Rather larger than the next
species. Europe, ete., only North American as ocemring in Greenland.

H. leucoceph/alus, (Gr. Aeuxés, leucos, white; kepady, kephale, head. Fig. 384.) WuttE-
HEADED Sea Eacue. “Barp Eacarz.” “ Birp or WASHINGTON” (the young). Adult:
& 9: Dark brown; quills black; head and tail white; bill, eyes, and feet yellow. Length
about 3 feet; extent 6 or 7 feet; wing 2 feet (Q ) or less (¢); tail afoot, more () orless ( @).
Three years are required for the perfection of the white head and tail of the “bald” eagle.
The first year, the young are ‘‘ black” eagles; very dark colored, with fleecy white bases
of the feathers showing here and-there; bill black; iris brown; feet yellow. The next
year, they are “gray” eagles, and usually larger than the old birds, the largest known
specimens being of this kind. Young in the down are sooty-gray. N. Am. anywhere,
common — for an eagle; piscivorous; a pitatical parasite of the osprey: otherwise notorious
as the emblem of the republic. Nest on trees or cliffs; eggs ordinarily 2, white, unmarked,
about 3.00 2.50.

596 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— RAPTORES — ACCIPITRES.

32. Family PANDIONIDZ: Fish Hawks; Ospreys.

See page 498. Plu-
mage peculiar, close
and firm, imbricated,
oily, lacking after-
shafts; head densely
feathered up to the
eyes; occipital feath-
ers lengthened; legs
closely feathered, with-
out any sign of a flag;
quills of the wings and
tail acuminate, stiff and
hard, and the primary
coverts of similar char-
acter. Feet immensc-
ly large and strong,
roughly granular-retic-
ulate; tarsi little feath-
ered above in front;
toes all free to the
base, the outer versa-
tile. Claws very large,
all of equal lengths,
subcylindrie or taper-

ing terete, not bein
Fic..385. — The Fish Hawk, or Osprey. (After J. Wolf.) 8 8
scooped out under-

neath, but all compressed, and the middle one sharply grooved on the inner face. Bill tooth-
less, contracted at the cere, elsewhere inflated, with very large hook; gonys convex, ascending;
nostrils oval, oblique, without tubercle, and in the edge of the cere. The peculiarities of the
plumage and of the feet are in evident adaptation to the semi-aquatic piscivorous habits of
these “ fishing hawks,” which require a water-proof covering, and great talons to grasp their
slippery quarry. The structural characters are rather those of the buteonine than the falconine
birds of prey, in the coracvid arrangement, ete. The supraorbital shield is rudimentary,
leaving the eye flush with the side of the head. The family consists of a single genus, and
probably but one cosmopolitan species, the well-known Osprey, Pandion haliaétus.

PANDION. (Gr. Havdiev, Lat. Pandion, nom. propr. Fig. 385.) Ospreys. To the
foregoing add: Wings very long, pointed ; 2d and 3d primaries longest; 1st between 3d and
5th; 3 outer ones abruptly emarginate on inner webs, and 2d to 4th sinuate on outer webs.
Tail short, scarcely or not half as long as the wing. Sexes alike; 9 larger. Young similar.
P. haliaé/tus. (See Haliaétus.) Fish HawKx. Osprey. Adult ¢ 9: Above, dark van-
dyke-brown, blackening on the quills, the feathers of the upper parts more or less completely
edged with white — the older the bird, the more conspicuous the white markings. Tail dark
brown with -dusky bars, white tip and shafts, and inner webs of all but the middle pair of
feathers regularly barred with white and dark. Head, neck, and under parts white, the crown
more or less extensively streaked with blackish, and a heavy blackish postocular stripe to the nape;
the breast more or less spotted with dusky brown ; the white more or less tinged with tawny in
some places, especially under the wings and on the head. Coloration very variable in the relative

CATHARTIDES: AMERICAN VULTURES. 557

amounts of the dark and white colors; young darker, the upper parts without the white
crescents. Bill blackish, bluing at base and on cere; feet grayish-blue; claws black ; iris
yellow or red. Length 2 feet or rather less; extent about 43 feet; wing 17.50-21.50; tail
8.50-10.50; tarsus 2.25; middle toe without claw 1.75; chord of culmen without cere 1.30;
chord of claws nearly the same. Nearly cosmopolitan; entire temperate N. Am., over inland
waters and especially along the sea-coasts, migratory, abundant. Few birds are better known
than this industrious fisherman, so often the purveyor perforce of the bald eagle. Breeds
anywhere in its range; nest bulky, finally acquiring enormous dimensions by yearly repairs and
additions, placed usually in a tree or stout bush, sometimes on rocks or the ground; sometimes
hundreds together. Eggs usually laid in May, 2 or 3 in number, very variable in size, say
2.50X1.75, running through all the variations in color common to hawks’ eggs, from a white to
creamy, tawny or reddish ground, from few brownish markings to heaviest blotching with
sienna, umber, bistre and sepia; coloration usually richly reddish or mahogany. Some nests
grow to be 6 or 8 feet in diameter, and as much in depth, and smaller birds, such as purple
grackles, frequently build theirs in the interstices of the mass.

8. SusorpeER CATHARTIDES: AMERICAN VULTURES.

As already stated (page 497), the characters of this group are of more than family value,
for which I lately proposed the above name (New England Bird Life, vol. ii, p. 135). In no
event have these birds anything to do with the Old World vultures, which scarcely form a sub-
family apart from Falconide. In a certain sense, they represent the gallinaceous type of
structure ; our species of Cathartes, for instance, bears a curious superficial resemblance to a
turkey. They lack the strength and spirit of typical Raptores, and rarely attack animals
capable of offering resistance ; they are voracious and indiscriminate gormandizers of carrion
and animal refuse of all sorts — efficient and almost indispensable scavengers in the warm
countries where they abound. They are uncleanly in their mode of feeding; the nature of
their food renders them ill-scented, and when disturbed they eject the foetid contents of the crop.
Although not truly gregarious, they assemble in multitudes where food is plenty, and some
species breed in communities. When gorged, they appear heavy and indisposed to exertion,
usually passing the period of digestion motionless, in a listless attitude, with the wings half-
spread. But they spend much of the time on wing, circling high in the air; their flight is easy
and graceful in the extreme, and capable of being indefinitely protracted. On the ground,
they habitually walk instead of progressing by leaps. Possessing no vocal apparatus, these
vultures are almost mute, emitting only a weak hissing sound.

33. Family CATHARTID4:: American Vultures.

See page 497. Head, and part of the neck, more or less completely bare of feathers,
sometimes caruncular; eyes flush with the side of the head, not overshadowed by a super-
ciliary shield ; ears small and simple. Bill lengthened, contracted toward the base, moderately
hooked and comparatively weak. Nostrils very large, completely perforated, through lack of
a bony septum. Wings very long, ample, and strong; tail moderate. Anterior toes long for
this order, webbed at base; hind toe elevated, very short; claws comparatively lengthened,
obtuse, little curved and weak. To these external characters, which distinguish our vultures,
I may add, that there are numerous osteological peculiarities. A lower larynx is not de-
veloped. The capacious gullet dilates into an immeuse crop. Cceca are wanting. The caro-
tids are double. The feathers lack an aftershaft; the plumage is sombre and unvaried; its
changes are slight ; the sexes are alike, and the 9 is not larger than the g. The famous
Condor of the Andes, Sarcorhamphus gryphus ; the King Vulture, Gyparchus papa, which
probably occurs in Arizona, and species of the three following genera, vompose the family.

189.

536.

190.

508 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — RAPTORES — CATHARTIDES.

Analysis of Genera,

Head and neck entirely naked; tail square iP ey wis Hed Se ce oe . . . « Pseudogryphus 189
Head and upper part of neck naked; tailrounded. . . . .... ip tratet de ae Os Cathartes 190
Head naked, but feathers running up to it behind; tailsquare . . .... . . . + Catharista 191

Pseudogry'phus. (Gr. peidos, pseudos, false; Lat. gryphus, a griffin.) CALIFORNIAN
Conpor. Size immense, about equalling that of the Condor. Head and neck entirely bare,
smooth, without caruncular appendages. No cervical ruff of snowy, downy feathers; plumage
beginning over the shoulders
with loose lance-linear feathers,
and that of the under parts
generally of similar character.
Frontal region depressed below
the level of the inflated cere,
but the general profile straight-
ish from the hook of the bill
to the hind head. Bill wide
and deep, comparatively little
hooked. Nasal passage much
more contracted than the nasal
fossa. Wings of great ampli-
tude, folding to or beyond the
end of the square tail, the ends
of the primaries uncovered by
the secondaries; 4th or 5th
quills longest. Tarsus about
as long as middle toe. One
species. es
P, california/nus. (Of Cali- *
fornia. Fig. 386.) CaAiror-
nrAN Conpor. Adult ¢ 9:
Blackish, the feathers with
browner tips or edges, quite
gray or even whitish on the
wing-coverts and inner quills;
primaries and _ tail - feathers
black; axillars and lining of
wings white; bill yellowish,
reddening on cére, and skin of the head orange or reddish; iris said by some to be brown, by
others carmine. Length 4—44 feet; extent about 94 feet; wing 24-3 feet; tail 14-14 feet;
tarsus 4.50-5.00 inches; middle toe without claw 4.00-4.50; middle claw 1.90; hind claw
1.50; chord of culmen without cere about 1.50, but whole bill about 4.00, whole head about
7.00 ; cere on top nearly 3.00. Young with the bill and naked parts dusky, and more or less
downy; plumage without white. Nestlings covered with whitish down. Pacific coast region,
U.S. and southward, common. This great creature rivals the condor in size, and like it is
powerful enough to destroy young or otherwise helpless animals, though its usual food is carrion.
The nidification, as described, is like that of the turkey buzzard; but the eggs are whitish,
unmarked. They measure about 4502.50. The general habits appear to be the same as
those of the turkey buzzard; the flight is similar.

CATHAR'TES. (Gr. xaOaprys, kathartes, a purifier.) Turkey Buzzarps. Of medium
size; body slender. Whole head and upper part of neck naked, the plumage beginning as a

Fig. 386, — Californian Condor. (From Tenney, after Audubon.)

CATHARTIDA): AMERICAN VULTURES. 559

circlet of ordinary feathers all around the neck; the naked skin corrugated and sparsely beset
with bristles, especially a patch before the eye. Bill long, moderately stout and hooked, the
nostrils large, elliptical, completely pervious, the cere contracted opposite them. Wings
extremely long, not particularly broad, pointed, folding beyond the tail, which is short and
rounded. Point of the wing formed by 3d or 4th quill; 2d and 5th nearly as long; 1st much
shorter ; outer 4 or 5 emarginate on inner webs. Tarsus about as long as middle toe without
claw. Of Cathartes as restricted there are several species described, but only one is estab-
lished as N. Am. They are noted for their extraordinary powers of sailing flight. ,
837. C. aura. (Vox barb., name of the bird. Fig. 387.) TurKey Buzzarpv. Adult g 9:

- wN
a f AS
A Xs
SN

WX.
oe

Uf

SAN
Ss

Y
:

—

gre \

J Fig. 387. — Turkey Buzzard, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

Blackish-brown, grayer on the wing-coverts; quills black, ashy-gray on their under surface ;
tail black, with pale brown shafts. Head red, from livid crimson to pale carmine, with whitish
specks usually; bill dead white; feet flesh-colored; iris brown. Length 24-24 feet; extent
about 6 feet; wing 2 feet or less; tail a foot or less; tarsus 2.25 inches; middle toe without
claw rather more ; outer toe 1.50; inner 1.25; hind 0.75; chord of culmen without cere 1.00.
‘Weight 4-5 pounds. Young darker than the adults; bill and skin of head dark, the latter
downy. Nestlings covered with whitish down. U. S. and adjoining provinces, Atlantic to
Pacific, and south clear through C. and 8. Am.; N. to about 53°; resident N. to about 40°,
beyond which migratory, being starved out in winter. Nests on the ground, or near it in
hollow stumps or logs, generally in communities. Eggs commonly 2, sometimes 1, about

191.

538.

560 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—RAPTORES — CATHARTIDES.

2.75 X 1.90, white or creamy, variously spotted and blotched with different browns, and with
lavender or purplish-drab shell-markings. This species has a éurious habit of “ playing
possum,” by simulating death when wounded and captured; the feint is admirably executed
and often long protracted.

CATHARISTA, (Gr. xadapi{o, katharizo, I purify.) Carrion Crows. Of medium size;
body stout. Head naked, and generally as in @athartes, but feathers of the neck running up
behind to a point on the occiput, the outline of the plumage thus very different. Cere con-
tracted; nostrils narrow, less openly pervious than in Cathartes. Wings shorter and relatively
broader than in Cathartes, not folding to the end of the tail, which is short, only about half the
wing, and even or emarginate; 4th and 5th quills longest. The difference in size and shape

Fig. 388. — Black Vulture, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

between Cathartes and Catharista is strikingly displayed when the birds are seen flying together ,
there is also a decided difference in the mode of flight, as Catharista never sails for any distance
without interrupting that easy motion by flapping the wings.

C. atra/ta. (Lat. atrata, blackened. Fig. 388.) Carrion Crow. Buack Vuxture. Adult
& 9: Entire plumage, including skin of head, and bill, blackish; shafts of the primaries
white ; bases of the primaries paling to gray or whitish. Tip of bill and feet grayish-yellow ;
iris brown; claws black. Smaller than C. aura, in linear dimensions, but a heavier bird;
length about 2 feet; extent only about 44 feet; wing 17.00 inches; tail 8.00; tarsus 3.00;
middle toe rather less ; chord of culmen without cere 1.00 or less. Nesting like that of C. aura;
eggs similar, but larger, or at any rate longer; about 3.25 2.00. Chiefly S. Atlantic and Gulf
States, especially maritime, there very numerous, out-numbering the turkey buzzards, and
semidomesticated in the towns, where their good offices are appreciated; N. regularly to N. C.,

COLUMBZ: COLUMBINE BIRDS. 561

thence straggling to Mass. and even Maine; not authenticated as occurring on the Pacific side,
but of general distribution in C. and 8. Am.

No one can fail to observe with interest the great difference in the form and general appearance of the
Turkey Buzzard and Carrion Crow when he compares them sitting side by side sunning themselves upon chimney
or house-top ; and especially the discrepancy in their mode of flight as they wheel together overhead in endless
inosculating circles. The Turkey Buzzards look larger as they fly, though really they are lighter weights ; they
are dingy-brown, with a gray space underneath the wing; the tail is long ; the fore-border of the wing is bent at
a salient angle, and there is a corresponding reéntrance in its hind outline ; the tips of the longest quills spread
apart and bend upward; and one may watch these splendid flyers for hours without perceiving a movement of the
pinions. Comparing now the Carrion Crows, they are seen to be more thick-set, with less sweep of wing and
shorter and more rounded tail, beyond which the feet may project; the front edge of the wing is almost straight,
and the back border sweeps around in a regular curve to meet it at an obtuse point, where the ends of the quills
are neither spread apart nor bent upward. The birds show almost black instead of brown ; in place of a large gray
area under the wing, there is a smaller paler gray spot at the point of the wing. And, finally, the Carrion Crows
flap their wings five or six times in rapid succession, then sail a few moments ; their flight appears heavy, and
even laborious, beside the stately motion of their relatives.

Oxss.—Cathartes burrovianus Cass., B. N. A., 1858, p. 6; Eliot, B. N. A. pl. 36, a doubtful species, is said to
inhabit Lower California. — From various accounts, it seems probable that the king vulture (Gyparchus papa)
really occurs on our southern border, but this remains to be determined. (See Bartram, Trav. in Fla., p. 150 ;
Cass., B. N. A., p. 6; Coues, Proc. Phila, Acad., 1866, p.49; Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., ii, 1871, p. 313 ; Coues,
Bull. Nutt. Club, vi, 1881, p. 248.)

V. Order COLUMBZ:: Columbine Birds.

An essential character of birds typical of this group is found in the structure of the bill,
which is horny and convex at the tip, somewhat contracted in the continuity, furnished at the
base with a tumid membrane in which the nostrils open. There are four toes ; three anterior,
generally cleft to the base, but occasionally with slight webbing; one behind, with few excep-
tions perfectly insistent or not obviously elevated. The feet are never much lengthened; the
tarsus is commonly shorter than the toes, either scutellate or extensively feathered, reticulate
on the sides and behind, the envelope rather membranous than corneous. (One N. Am. genus,
Starnenas, has entirely reticulate tarsus and elevated hallux.) On the whole, the feet are inses-
sorial, not rasorial; the habit is arboreal, not terrestrial; but there are many ground pigeons,
some quite fowl-like ; and progression is always gradient, never saltatory. The wings and tail
do not afford ordinal characters; but it may be remarked that the rectrices are usually (not
always) 12 or 14 instead of the higher numbers usual in gallinaceous birds; and that the wings
are usually long and flat, not short and vaulted. The plumage is destitute of aftershafts (qu.
_Didus? small aftershafts in Pterocletes?). The syrinx has one pair of intrinsic muscles, if any
(none in Pterocletes). The oil-gland is nude, when present (small in Treron, etc.; wanting in
Goura, Starnenas). The gall-bladder is generally absent (present exceptionally in some true
Pigeons). The cceca are absent; or present, but small. There are two carotids. The gizzard
is muscular. There are many good osteological characters. The palate is schizognathous.
The nasal bones are schizorhinal. The sternum is doubly notched, or notched and fenestrate,
on each side; the pectoral ridge of the humerus is salient and acute, and does not receive the
insertion of the second pectoral muscle. The ambiens muscle is normally present, the birds
being unquestionably homalogonatous; but is sometimes lost; the femoro-caudal, accessory
femoro-caudal, semitendinosus, and accessory semitendinosus are present; the fourth glutzal
muscle, which in other schizorhinal birds covers the femur-head, is undeveloped (Garrod).

Some ornithologists, like Liljeborg, enlarge the Columbine order, under name of Pullas-
tre, to receive the American Curassows, (Cracide@ — see beyond) and the Old World Big-feet
or Mound-birds (Megapodide) ; mainly on account, it would appear, of the low position of
the hallux in these families. But the balance of characters favors their reference to the galli-
naceous series, where they are relegated by Huxley. While there is no question that the
Columbine birds are very closely related to the Galline, in fact inosculating therewith, it

36

562 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — COLUMBZ — PERISTERZE.’

seems best to draw the line, if one must be drawn, so as to include the Pterocletes in Columbe,
and leave the Cracide and Megapodide with Galline. The Sand-grouse (better Sand-pigeons),
or Péerocletes, represent the inosculation of the two series. They are terrestrial Columbines,
modified for a grouse-like life; the digestive system is fowl-like (cceca several inches long, etc.);
but the pterylosis, the sternum and humerus, the cranial and many other characters, are pigeon-
like. The only alternative to reference of Pterocletes to the Columbine series is their elevation
to independent ordinal rank, as proposed by Huxley.

‘The Columba, as above indicated, are intended to be made conformable to Huxley’s Periste-
romophe plus Pterocletes. Assuming the imperfectly-known extinct Dodo, Didus ineptus, to
have been a modified Columbine, and considering the Pterocletes to represent a rasorial modi-
fication of the Columbine series, the Order Columbe may be separated into THREE groups, or
suborders, Dip1, PrEROCLETES, and PERISTER#, the first two certainly, the last probably, of_
a single family. The Peristere alone are American.

9. SuBoRDER PERISTER: Trur CoLtumsBine Birps.

(Equivalent to the Peristeromorphe of Huxley; the Gemitores of Macegillivray, or
Columbe proper of most authors; the Gyrantes of Bonaparte, plus Didunculus; Columbe of
Garrod minus Pterocletes; Pullastre of Liljeborg minus Cracide and Megapodide.) Skull
schizognathous, schizorhinal; basipterygoids prominent; angle of mandible not produced;
rostrum externally as above said. Sternum doubled-notched or notched and fenestrate, on
each side; pectoral crest of humerus salient, acute. Carotids two. Syringeal muscles one
pair. Cceca coli small or wanting; gizzard muscular; crop developed; gall-bladder generally
absent. Fourth gluteal muscle undeveloped; second pectoral specially inserted; ambiens
normally present, or wanting. Oil-gland nude, small, or wanting. Plumage without after-
shafts. Feet insessorial; hallux normally insistent; tarsus normally seutellate. Rectrices
normally 12 or 14. (Rasorial tendency in more rectrices, hallux up, and tarsus reticulate.)
Altricial; psilopedic ; monogamous; eggs few. One family ?

384. Family COLUMBIDZ: Pigeons.

The family is here taken td be co-extensive with the
suborder as defined. With one exception (Starnenas
cyanocephala), all our species will be immediately recog-
nized by their likeness to the familiar inmates of the
dove-cot. One seemingly trivial cireumstance is so con-
stant as to become a good clue to these birds: the frontal
feathers do not form antize by extension on either side of
the culmen, but sweep across the base of the bill with a
strongly convex outline projected on the culmen, thence
rapidly retreating to the commissural point. The plumule-
less plumage is generally compact, with thickened, spongy
thachis, the insertion of which will seem loose to one who
skins a bird of this family. The head is remarkably
small; the neck moderate; the body full, especially in the
pectoral region. The wings are strong, generally length-
ened and pointed, conferring a rapid; powerful, whistling
flight ; the peculiar aérial evolutions that these birds are

Fig. 389.— European Ring Dove(Co- wont to perform have furnished a synonym for the family,
tumba palumbus). (From Dixon.) Gyrantes. The tail varies in shape, from square to grad-
uate, but is never forked; as a rule there are 12 rectrices, frequently increased to 14, rarely to

COLUMBIDZ: PIGEONS. 563

16, exceptionally to 20; all the North American have 12, excepting Zenaidura, with 14. The
feet show considerable modification when the strictly arboricole are compared with the more
terrestrial species; their general character has just been indicated. The gizzard is large and
muscular, particularly in the species that feed on seeds and other hard fruits ; the gullet dilates
to form a capacious circumscribed crop, divided into lateral halves, or tending to that state.
This organ at times secretes a peculiar milky fluid, which, mixed with macerated food, is
poured by regurgitation directly into the mouth of the young; thus the fabled ‘ pigeon’s milk”
has a strong spice of fact, and in this remarkable circumstance we see probably the nearest
approach, among birds, to the characteristic function of mammalia. ‘‘ The voice of the turtle
is heard in the land” as a plaintive cooing, so characteristic as to have afforded another name
for the family, Gemitores. Pigeons are altricial, psilopedic, and monogamous — doubly
monogamous, as is said when both sexes incubate and care for the young; this is a strong
trait, compared with the preecocial, ptilopedic, and often polygamous nature of rasorial birds.
They are amorous birds, whose passion generally results in a tender and constant devotion,
edifying to contemplate, but is often marked by high irascibility and pugnacity — traits at
variance with the amiable meekness which doves are supposed to symbolize. Their blandness
is supposed to be due to absence of the gall-bladder. The nest, as a rule, is a rude, frail, flat
structure of twigs; the eggs are usually two in number, sometimes one, white; when two,
supposed to contain the germs of opposite sexes. (For anatomy of a pigeon, see frontispiece.)

“The entire number of Pigeons known to exist is about 300; of these the Malay Archi-
pelago already counts 118, while only 28 are found in India, 23 in Australia, less than 40 in
Africa, and not more than 80 in the whole of America.” They focus in the small district of
which New Guinea is the centre, where more than a fourth of the species occur. Mr. Wallace
accounts for this by the absence of fruit-eating forest mammals, such as monkeys and squirrels;.
and finds in the converse the reason why pigeons are so scarce in the Amazon valley, and there
chiefly represented by species feeding much on the ground and breeding in the bushes lower
than monkeys habitually descend. ‘In the Malay countries, also, there are no great families
of fruit-eating Passeres, and their place seems to be taken by the true fruit-pigeons, which,
unchecked by rivals or enemies, often form with the Psittaci the prominent and characteristic
features of the Avifauna.” (Newton.)

There are several prominent groups of Pigeons; but authors are far from agreed upon the
subdivisions of the family. It is not probable that Garrod’s three subfamilies of Columbide,
based upon characters of the ambiens, ceca, gall-bladder, and oil-gland, will not stand without
modification, and I cannot adopt his arrangement. Sclater divided the suborder Columbe as
above defined into two families, Columbide and Carpophagide, to which he afterward added
Gouride, and probably Didunculide. Bonaparte made five families, Didunculide , Treronide,
Columbide, Calenadide, and Gouride three of them upon single genera), with twelve sub-
families. Some of the leading groups may be thus indicated : —

1. The extraordinary Tooth-billed Pigeon of the Samoan Islands, Didunculus strigiros-
tris, alone represents a subfamily or family, with its stout, compressed, hooked and toothed beak,
-and many other peculiarities. The length of intestine is excessive, being seven feet instead of
about two, as usual in Columbide. The ambiens is present; the oil-gland and-gall-bladder
are absent. There are 14 tail-feathers.

2. The singular genus Goura, with two New-Guinean species, is outwardly distinguished
by its immense umbrella-like crest, and possesses anatomical peculiarities which entitle it to
stand alone as type of a subfamily or family. The tarsi are reticulate ; there are 16 rectrices ;
ceca, gall-bladder, oil-gland, and ambiens muscle are all wanting ; the intestines are four or
five feet long.

3. The single genus and species, Calenas micobarica, has a very tumid bill, and acu-
minate, lengthened, pendulous feathers of the neck; but there are only 12 rectrices, as in

192.

564 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —COLUMBA — PERISTERZ..

ordinary Pigeons, and the anatomy is conformable to a usual type, except that the lining of the
gizzard is ossified.

4. The large Old World genera Treron and Ptilopus, with which latter another large
genus, Carpophaga, is closely related, are a group of fruit-eating, arboricole species, with a
short, stout beak, short, soft, broad-soled and extensively feathered feet, normally 14 rectrices,
and soft lustreless plumage, of which green is the characteristic color. Of such Zreronine or
Treronid@, ‘54 species are confined to the Austro-Malayan, while 28 inhabit the Indo-
Malayan, subregion: In India 14, and in Africa a species are found; 30 inhabit the Pacific
Islands, and 8 occur in Australia or New Zealand, while New Guinea has 14 species ”
( Wallace).

5. There area large number of Pigeons of both the Old and New World, possessing neither
the peculiarities already stated nor those of the Columbine proper, to be presently given.
They are the Zenaidine and Phapine of Bonaparte, with more or less lengthened naked tarsi,
and of more or less terrestrial habits. They are exemplified by such genera as Chamepelia
and Melopelia with 12 rectrices, and Zenaidura with 14, of America; by Lopholemus with 12,
Geopelia, Phlogenas and Ocyphaps with 14, and Phaps with 16, of the Old World. Nearly-
all possess the ambiens and oil-gland, without ceca or gall-bladder. Having many points in
common, these ground-doves might form a subfamily Zenaidine or Phapine, notwithstanding
the peculiarities of certain genera. Such a group would correspond to the two Bonapartian
subfamilies just named, and closely with the Phapine of Garrod.

6. From the Zenaidine thus composed our genus Starnenas differs more notably than
authors, excepting Garrod, seem to have appreciated. It is a pullet-like ground-pigeon, with
long reticulate tarsus, short and somewhat elevated hind toe; with ceca and without oil-gland
or ambiens muscle, the reverse of the rule in Zenaidine as above noted. It can hardly be
referred to the totally different Treroning on the single circumstance of lacking the ambiens,
and must stand alone, in such division of the family as is here sketched, as type of a new sub-
family Starnenadine.

7. With the remaining Colwmbide there is no difficulty, as they form a well character-
ized restricted subfamily Columbine. The leading genera are the square-tailed Columba, of
both Worlds; the round-tailed Turtwr of the Old; the wedge-tailed Macropygia of the Old,
matched by the wedge-tailed Ectopistes of the New. The species are arboreal, with short feet,
scutellate or partly-feathered tarsi, and 12 tail-feathers; cceca, oil-gland, and ambiens present ;
gall-bladder absent.

Of the seven groups thus indicated, three are North American. They may readily be
distinguished as follows.

Analysis of North American Subfamilies of Columbide.

Tarsi scutellate, feathered . . 1. 6 2 ee ee ee ee te ht Columbine
Tarsiscutellate, naked . . . 1 1. 1 ee ete tt ee ; «+ « Senaidine
Tarsi reticulate, naked . gos CaaS! cep eee Bas eee aE ae eo . . Starnenadine

48. Subfamiiy COLUMBINZ: Typical Pigeons.

Feet small; tarsus short, not longer than the lateral toes, scutellate in front, feathered
above. Wing pointed, of 10 primaries. Tail variable in shape, of 12 rectrices. Bill typically
as described above. Arboreal. (See above for anatomical characters.)

Analysis of Genera.

Tail nearly even, much shorter than the wing, with broad obtuse feathers . . . .. .. Columba 192

Tail long, cuneate, equal to wings, with narrow tapering feathers + + «ye + « « EHetopistes 193
COLUM/BA. (Lat. columba, a pigeon.) Bill short and comparatively stout, about half as
long as head. Wings pointed, 2d and 3d quills longest. No black spots on scapulars. Lateral
toes of about equal lengths, with claws about as long as middle toe without; hind toe and claw

COLUMBIDA:— COLUMBINZ: TYPICAL PIGEONS. 565

about as long as lateral without. Contains the domestic Pigeon, C. livia, the Stock Dove,
C. enas, Ring Dove, C. palumbus (fig. 389), and several other species of both Hemispheres.
Analysis of Species.
A white band on nape; metallic scales of nape without borders. Tail with light terminal and dark sub-

terminal bars; bill and feet yellow, former black-tipped. : . . fasciata 539
No white on head ; no metallic scales on nape; tail not banded ; pill and feet not yellow . erythrina 540
Top of head white; tail not banded ; metallic feathers of nape black-bordered .... - leucocephala 641

$39. C. fascia/ta. (Lat. fasciata, banded; alluding to the bars on the tail.) BAND-TAILED.
PIGEON. WHITE-COLLARED Pigeon. Adult g': Head, neck, and under parts purplish
wine-red, fading to white on belly and crissum, the nape with a distinct white half-collar, the
cervix with a patch of metallic, scaly bronze-green feathers. Rump, upper tail-coverts, lining
of wings and sides of body slaty-blue. Back and scapulars dark greenish-brown, with con-
siderable lustre, changing on the wing-coverts to slaty-blue, these feathers with light edging.
Quills blackish-brown, with pale edging along the sinuous portion of the outer webs. Tail
bluish-ash, paler beyond the middle on top and much paler below, crossed at the middle by a
black bar. Bill yellow, tipped with black; feet yellow, claws black; a red ring round eye —
these colors very conspicuous in life. A large stout species: length 16.00; extent about 27.00 ;
wing 8.00-8.50, pointed; tail 5.50-6.00, square; bill 0.75, stout for a pigeon; tarsus 1.00,
feathered half-way down in front; middle toe and claw 1.67. Adult 9 : Back, wings, and
tail, asin g; metallic scales and white collar obscure or wanting. Head and under parts
much less purplish, the rich hue replaced by a rusty-brown wash on an ashy ground; yellow
of feet and bill obscured; smaller; wing 7.50; tail 4.75. Young ¢: Resembling the 9.
Rocky Mts. to the Pacific, U. S., common and of general but irregular distribution, chiefly in
woodland, and especially where acorns, upon which it largely subsists, can be procured; some-
times in flocks of great extent. Nest in trees and bushes; eggs 2, equal-ended, white,
glistening, 1.50X1.20.

540. C. erythri/na. (Gr. épvOpivos, eruthrinos, reddish.) ReEp-BILLED Picxon. Adult @:
Head, neck, and breast dark purplish wine-red, with a'slight glaucous overcast, like the bloom
on a grape; no metallic scales on neck. Middle wing-coverts like the head. Middle of back,
and some inner wing-quills, dark olive-brown with a bronze-green gloss. Greater wing-
coverts, lining of wings, sides of body, belly, crissum, and rump, slate-colored, sometimes quite
sooty, sometimes more bluish ; tail like rump, but more blackish. Quills of wing dark slate
with narrow pale edging. Bill pink for basal half, rest pale horn-color; feet purplish-red,
with pale claws; eye-ring red; iris orange. Bill and feet drying an undefinable color. Bill
remarkable for forward extension of feathers on culmen, to with half an inch of tip, covering
the nasal scale. Length 13.50-14.50; extent 23.00-25.00; wing 7.50-8.00; tail about 5.00;
tarsus 0.87; middle toe and claw 1.50. 9 and young similar, duller and more dilute in color,
the wine-red and slate-color more ashy. Texas, Mexico, Lower California. A dark, richly-
colored pigeon, common in the Valley of Lower Rio Grande and southward. Nest in trees and
bushes, of twigs, grasses, and roots, well-formed for a pigeon’s; egg single, equal-ended,
glistening white; averaging 1.541.09; laid in Apr., May.

§41. C. leucoce/phala. (Gr. Aeveds, leucos, white; xepadn, kephale, head.) WHr1TE-cROWNED
Pigzon. Adult $9: Dark slaty, paler below, the quills and tail feathers darkest. Whole
top of head pure white; hind neck above rich maroon-brown, lower down and laterally metallic
golden-green, each feather black-edged, giving the appearance of scales. Bill and feet dark
carmine or lake red, the tip of the former bluish-white; bill drying dusky with yellowish tip,
feet dingy yellowish. Iris yellow or white. Length 13.00-14.00; extent 23.00; wing 7.50;
tail 5.75. Q only duller than g. West Indies and Florida Keys. Nest in trees and bushes,
of twigs, roots, and grasses; eggs 2, white, 1.40 x 1.05.

193. ECTOPIS'TES. (Gr. éxromorns, ektopistes, a wanderer: very appropriate.) PASSENGER

$43.

566 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — COLUMBA| — PERISTERZE.

PigEons. Tail long, equal to the wings, cuneate, of 12 tapering acuminate feathers, parti-
colored. Wing acutely pointed by first 3 primaries, with black spots on the coverts. Bill
sinall, with culmen less than half the head, short gonys, feathered far forward between the rami.
Tarsi short, feathered part way down in front, where scutellate, but not in one regular row of
seales. Lateral toes unequal. Sexes unlike.

E. migrato’rius. (Lat. migratorius, migratory. Fig. 390.) Passencer Pigeon. WILD
Pigzon. Adult J: Upper parts, including head all around, slaty-blue, bright and pure on head
and rump, shaded with olivaceous-gray on the back and wings; the back and sides of the neck
glittering with golden
and violet iridescence,
the wing-coverts with
velvety-black spots.
Below, from the throat,
light purplish-chestnut,
paler behind and fad-
ing into white on the
lower belly and cris-
sum. Tibia, sides of
body, and lining of
wings like upper parts.
Quills blackish, with
rufous - white edging.
Two middle tail-feath-
ers blackish; others
fading from pearly -
bluish into white, their
extreme bases with black and chestnut spots. Bill black; feet lake red, drying an undefinable
color; iris orange; skin about eye red. Length about 17.00, but very variable, according to
development of the tail; extent 23.00-25.00; wing 8.00-8.50; tail about the same, the lateral
feathers graduated rather more than half its length; bill 0.75 ; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw
1.25. Adult 9: Upper parts, wings and tail, as in ¢: below, brownish-gray, fading poste-
riorly. Young: Like the 9, but still duller; little or no clear slaty except on rump; plumage
varied with white crescentic edges of the feathers, especially on the back and wings; quills
edged about with rufous; most of the lateral tail-feathers gray. ‘‘ Wanders continually in
search of food throughout all parts of N. Am.; wonderfully abundant at times in particular
districts ;” chiefly, however, temperate N. Am., East of the R. Mts. We do not have the
“‘ millions” that the earlier writers speak of in the Eastern U. 8. now: but I remember one
great flight over Washington when I was a boy: the greatest roosts and flights we now hear
of are in the upper Mississippi Valley. Nest in trees and bushes, a slight frail platform of
twigs, so open as to leave the egg visible from below. Eggs 1 or 2, equal-ended, 1.45 < 1.05.

Fie. 390. — Passenger Pigeon. (From Tenney, after Wilson. )

49. Subfamily ZENAIDINA:: Ground Doves.

Feet larger than in Columbine. Tarsus lengthened to exceed the lateral toes, entirely
naked and scutellate in front (scarcely feathered in Scardafella). Tail-feathers normally 12,
rarely 14 or more (Zenaidura the only North American Pigeon with more than 12). Seven
North American genera, each of a single species in this country.

Analysis of Genera.

Tail of 14feathers . é weds) Maat veel eka, Seca dy doe eee tay a Soe ee oad, Aa te Zenaidura 19
Tail of 12 feathers.
Outer primary attenuate, bistoury-like 2. 2 0... 1. ee ee eo 0 « + + Engyptila 194

COLUMBIDA — ZENAIDINZE: GROUND DOVES. 567

Outer primary normal.

Tail longer than wing, double-rounded. . . . SO stent tom Ohh Goya ae oe Eee Scardafella 199
Tail about equal to wing. Tarsus not shorter than middle tooandclaw ..... Geotrygon 200
Tail shorter than wing. Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw.
No blue-black spot nor metallic lustre on head orneck . .... + + © = Chamepelia 198
A blue-black spot and metallic lustre on head or neck
Black spots and no white patch on wing . .....-. ee oe en ee ee Zenaida 196
White patch and no black spotson wing ......+-+ +. * . « « Melopelia 197

194, ENGY’/PTILA. (Gr. éyyis, eggus, narrow, straitened; mriAov, ptilon, feather ; alluding to the
outer primary.) Prx-wine Doves. First primary abruptly emarginate, attenuate and linear
near the end. Wings of moderate length; 3d and 4th primaries longest; first shorter than
7th. Tail much shorter than the wings, rounded, of 12 broad feathers. Tarsus entirely naked,
equalling or rather exceeding the middle toe and claw. Lateral toes nearly equal, the ends of
their claws reaching about opposite the base of the middle claw. Hind toe shortest of all, but
perfectly incumbent. Bill small and slender, much shorter than the head. A. considerable

Fic, 391. — Details of Engyptila albifrons; head and foot nat. size; wing and tail reduced.
(Ad nat. del. R. Ridgway.)

naked space about the eye, thence extending in a narrow line to the bill. Size medium or
rather small. Body full and stout. Coloration subdued, but hind-head and neck iridescent.
No metallic spots on wings or head. Lining of wings chestnut. (Only N. Am. genus with
attenuate outer primary.)

542. KE. al/bifrons, (Lat. albus, white; frons, forehead. Fig. 391.) WHITE-FRONTED Dove. @,
adult: Upper parts brownish- “alee, with silky lustre (much as in Coccygus americanus for
example). Hind-head, nape, and back and sides of neck with coppery-purplish iridescence.
Top of the head of a bluish or glaucous ‘‘ bloom,” fading to creamy-white on the forehead. Under
parts dull white or whitish, more or less shaded with olive-brown on the sides, deepening on the
fore-breast and jugulum to pale vinaceous; belly, crissum, and chin quite purely white. Wing-
coverts and inner quills like the back, and without metallic spots; other larger remiges
slaty-blackish, with very narrow pale edging toward the end. Under wing-coverts and axilla-
ries bright chestnut. Two middle tail-feathers like the back; others slaty-black, tipped with
white in decreasing amount from the outer ones inward, the largest white tips about half an
inch in extent. Bill black. Feet carmine-red. Iris yellow. Bare skin around eye red and

195.

196.

568 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — COLUMBZi — PERISTERZ.

livid blue. Length 12.00-12.50; extent 19.00-19.50; wing 6.00-6.30; tail 4.25-4.50; bill
0.60-0.70 ; tarsus 1.25-1.35 ; middle toe and claw rather less. @ similar. (In printing the
Check List, the No. of this species accidentally transposed with No. 543, Ectopistes.)
ZENAIDU/RA. (Zenaida, nom. propr., and otpa, owra, tail.) Pin-TaiL Dovzs. Tail long,
about equalling wings, cuneate, of 14 narrow, tapering, obtuse-ended feathers (unique among
N. Am. Columbide). Wings pointed; 2d primary rather longest, lst and the 3d about equal
and scarcely shorter. Tarsus naked, scutellate in front, in length intermediate between middle
and lateral toes; the latter of unequal lengths, the outer shortest. Bill much shorter than
head, slender and weak, the feathers running out far between the rami. A bare cireum-orbital
space. Velvety black spots on head and wings. Lining of wings not rufous. Sexes unlike.
There is a curious mimicry of Ectopistes in form and even in color; but the technical characters
are widely different.

. Z, carolinen’sis, (Of Carolina. Fig. 392.) Caro~ina Dove. Mournine Dove. WiLp Dove.

Adult ¢: Upper parts, including middle tail-feathers, grayish-blue shaded with brownish-olive,
the head and neck ochrey-brown overlaid with glaucous-blue, the sides of the neck glittering
with golden and ruby iridescence; a violet-
black spot under the ear-coverts. Under parts
glaucous-purplish, changing gradually to ochra-
ceous on the belly and crissum, to bluish on
the sides and under the wings, to whitish on
the chin; the purplish tint spreading up on the
sides and front of the head to blend with the
glaucous-blue. Black spots on some of the
scapulars and wing-coverts, most of which are
colored to correspond with the back, the larger
Fre. 392. — Carolina Dove, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. Ones being rather bluish-plumbeous. Lateral
E.C.) tail-feathers plumbeous-bluish, crossed with a
black bar, the outer four on each side broadly ended with white. Bill black; angle of mouth
carmine ; iris brown; bare skin around eye livid bluish ; feet lake-red, drying dull yellowish.
Length about 12.50: extent about 18.00; wing 5.75; tail the same, the feathers graduated for
half its length; culmen 0.60; tarsus 0.80; middle toe and claw 1.00. 9, adult: A little
smaller, not purplish below, the rich color replaced by grayish-brown, like the back but paler;
head and neck with little of the glaucous blue shade, and less iridescent. Young: Like the 9;
but at an early age the velvety-black spots and iridescence are wanting, and the general tone
is quite gray; many feathers with whitish edging, as in the wild pigeon, with which not only
the colors but the sexual and juvenile differences are thus closely correspondent. Temperate
N. A., anywhere, the most widely and equably diffused of its tribe, abundant in most localities,
in some swarming; ‘‘millions” in Arizona, for example. Irregularly migratory, imperfectly
gregarious ; great numbers may be together, but scarcely in compact flocks. Terrestrial rather
than arboreal, almost always feeding on the ground; where very numerous, they become famil-
iar, like blackbirds in the West. Nest indifferently on the ground or in bushes; eggs 2, white,
equal-ended, averaging 1.12 x 0.82; 2 or even 3 broods in the South. During the mating
season, where these birds are numerous, their cooing resounds on every hand, but at other
times they are silent.
ZENAI'DA. (A proper name, that of Zénaide, cousin and wife of Prince C. L. Bonaparte.)
Love Doves. Tail rounded, shorter than wings, of 12 feathers. Wings long, pointed by
2d and 3d quills; 1st little shorter. Bill short, slender, black. Feet as in other Zenaidine ;
tarsus intermediate in length between the middle and lateral toes; these of unequal length,
inner a little the longer. Cireumorbital space little bare. Metallic iridescence on neck; blue-
black ear-spot, and others ou wings. Sexes similar. (West Indian.)

545.

197.

546.

198.

547.

548.

COLUMBIDA)— ZENAIDINZE: GROUND DOVES. 569

Z,. ama/bilis. (Lat. amabilis, lovely.) ZmnNaIpA Doves. Olive-gray with a reddish tinge;
crown and under parts vinaceous-red; sides and axillars bluish; a velvety-black auricular
spot, and others on the wing-coverts and tertiaries; secondaries tipped with white ; neck with
metallic lustre; middle tail-feathers like the back, others bluish with whiter tips, a black band
intervening ; bill black with crimson corners of the mouth ; iris brown ; feet red; claws black.
Length about 10.00; wing 6.00; tail 4.00. West Indies and Florida Keys.

MELOPELI/A. (Gr. pédos, melos, melody ; médeva, peleia, a dove.) Wauire-wine Doves.
Tail rounded, shorter than wing, of 12 broad, rounded feathers. Wings pointed; Ist, 2d, and 3d
primaries nearly equal and longest. Bill slender and lengthened, equalling tarsus, black. A
large bare circumorbital space. A blue-black spot below auriculars, but none on wings ; neck
with metallic lustre. A great white space on wing. Feet as in other Zenaidine. Sexes alike.
M. leuco’ptera. (Gr. dev«ds, leucos, white; mrepdv, pteron, wing.) WuiTs-wine Dove.
Wing with a broad white bar oblique from the carpal joint to the ends of the longest coverts,
continued by white edging at and near ends of outer webs of the secondaries ; very couspicuous,
recognizable at gun-shot range. Lower back and rump, some of the middle coverts, lining of
wings, and entire under parts from the breast, fine light bluish-ash. Primaries blackish with
narrow white edging. Tail, excepting two middle feathers, slaty-blue, becoming gradually
slaty-black, then broadly and squarely tipped with ashy-white. General color of back, lesser
wing-coverts, inner quills, and middle tail-feathers, olive-brown with some lustre; the tail-
feathers browner; the top of head and back of neck purplish-vinous with a slight glaucous
shade; sides of neck iridescent with golden-green ; a violet or steel-blue spot below auriculars.
Bill black, very slender. Length 11.25-12.25; extent 19.00-20.00; wing 6.00-6.50; tail
4.00-4.50; bill 0.87; tarsus 0.87; middle toe and claw 1.25. 9 scarcely distinguishable.
In the youngest, the white wing-bar appears, though there is little or no purplish, or iri-
descence, or blue-black below ears. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and 8. Cala. and southward,
abundant in suitable localities. In the breeding season, Apr.-May, the sonorous cooing is
incessant. Nest in bushes and low trees, slight and frail, of sticks and weeds; eggs 2, white
or creamy, averaging 1.18 0.88.

CHAMZEPELI/A. (Gr. xapai, chamai, on the ground; méAea, peleia, adove.) Dwarr Doves.
Very small. Wings short and broad, with elongated inner secondaries, nearly overreaching
primaries in the folded wing. Tail still shorter than wing, nearly even, of 12 broad feathers.
Bill slender, about half as long as head, mostly yellow. Feet largely zenaidine; tarsus as
long as middle toe without claw. No iridescence nor blue-black spot on head; such spots on
wings. Sexes unlike, but Arcades ambo.

C. passeri/na, (Lat. passerina, sparrow-like ; from the pygmy stature.) GRrounp Dove.
Grayish-olive, glossed with blue on the hind head and neck, most feathers of the fore-parts
with darker edges, those of the breast with dusky centres. Forehead, sides of head and neck,
lesser wing-coverts and under parts purplish-red of variable intensity, paler or grayish on the
belly and crissum ; under surface of wings orange-brown or chestnut, this color suffusing the
quills to agreat extent ; upper surface of wings sprinkled with lustrous steel-blue spots. Middle
tail-feathers like the back, others plumbeous, blackening toward ends, with paler tips. Feet
yellow; bill yellow with dark tip. Diminutive: length 6.50-7.00; extent 10.00-11.00; wing
3.50, with inner secondaries nearly as long as the primaries; tail 2.75, rounded; bill 0.45;
tarsus 0.67; middle toe and claw 0.75. Q and young differ as those of the wild pigeon and
carolina dove do, the purplish tints being replaced by gray or “‘ ashes of roses,” the very young
bird having whitish skirting of the feathers. Southern U. S., Atlantic to Pacific, but chiefly
coastwise; N. to the Carolinas, and accidentally to Washington, D. C.; common. Nest on
the ground or in bushes indifferently ; eggs 2, white, 0.87X0.63.

C. p. palles/cens? (Lat. pallescens, bleaching.) Scarcely different; described as paler. Cape
St. Lucas.

199.

549.

200.

570 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —COLUMBZ — PERISTERZE.

SCARDAFEL'LA. (Italian, signalizing the scaly appearance of the feathers, due to their
color.) SHELL Doves. Tail of peculiar shape, double-rounded, median and lateral feathers
both shorter than intermediate ones; all narrow and tapering; 12 in number. Wings as in
Chamepelia. Bill very slender, rather long, black. Feet not typically zenaidine ; tarsus very
short, slightly feathered above. No blue-black spots on head or wings ; no iridescence on neck.
Size very small. Sexes similar. Remarkable genus, of 2 tropical Am. species, one reaching
our border.

S.in’ca. (Inca or yncas, a Peruvian title.) Inca Dove. Scatep Dove. ¢ 9, adult:
Above, grayish-brown with the usual olive shade, anteriorly also with a slight ‘‘ashes of roses”
hue; below, pale ashy-lilac, changing to ochraceous on the belly and crissum —nearly all the
plumage marked with black crescentic edges of the feathers, producing the shelly or scaly
appearance. Primaries and bastard quills intense chestnut, with blackish ends; lining of

Fic. 393, — Blue-headed Quail Dove, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

wings black and chestnut; outer secondaries blackish with chestnut central areas, gradually
diminishing till the inner secondaries assimilate with the color of the back. Middle tail-
feathers like back ; three lateral ones basally plumbeous, then black, then broadly tipped with
white — the black running out into the white as a shaft line. Q similar tof ; young similar,
but with little or no ashy-rosy, and sprinkled with white on upper parts. Length about 8.00;
wing 3.75 ; tail more; bill 0.45 ; tarsus 0.50; middle toe and claw 0.87. A very pretty little
dove, with mahogany wings upholstered in shell-figured ashes-of-roses velvet; a curious mini-
ature of the.common dove in form. Mexico to Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, along the
borders. Nest in bushes; eggs 2, white, 0.900.70.

GEOTRY'GON. (Gr. yéa, gea, the earth; tpuyav, trugon, a cooer.) Lustre Dovss. Tail
about as lung as wings, a little rounded, of 12 broad rounded feathers, with curved shafts.

550.

201.

551.

COLUMBIDAi — STARNGENADINZE: QUAIL DOVES. 571
X

Wings short, rounded; 3d and 4th quills longest, 2d and 4th little shorter, lst much shorter.
Feet strongly zenaidine; tarsus not shorter than middle toe and claw; still, scutellate in front,
and hind toe more than half as long as the middle, perfectly insistent. Bill rather long and stout ;
frontal feathers obtuse on culmen. Head and wings without blue-black spots; whole upper
parts highly lustrous. Medium size; form stocky, somewhat quail-like, but tail long. Ap-
proaching the. next, but at a distance. West Indian and Tropical American.

G. marti/nica. (Of Martinique.) Key West Dove. Above, vinaceous-red with highly
iridescent lustre of various tints; below, pale purplish fading to creamy; an infra-ocular stripe
and the throat white. Length 11.00; wing and tail about 6.00. West Indies and Key West.
Florida, where not observed of late.

50. Subfamily STARNCENADINZ: Quail Doves.

See p. 564. Hallux not perfectly insistent; short, only about half as long as the middle
toe and claw. Feet large and stout; tarsus longer than the middle toe, entirely bare of
feathers even on the joint, completely covered with small hexagonal scales. With ceca, but
without oil-gland or ambiens muscle, the reverse of the Zenaidine, of which it is a remarkable
outlying form, grading toward gallinaceous birds in structure and habits; like some partridges
even to the special head-markings. Including one isolated American genus and species, not
referable to any established Old World group.

STARNG NAS. (Starna, name of a genus of partridges; Gr. oivas, enas, a dove.) QUAIL
Doves. In addition to the foregoing: Bill short, stout; frontal feathers projected in a point on
eulmen. Wings short, broad, vaulted and much rounded ; first primary reduced. Tail short,
broad, nearly even. Size medium ; whole form and appearance quail-like. West Indian.

S. cyanoce'phala. (Gr. xvavos, kwanos, blue; xepady, kephale, head. Fig. 393.) Buur-
HEADED QuaIL Dove. Crown rich blue bounded by black; a white stripe under the eye,
meeting its fellow on the chin; throat black, bordered with white. General color olivaceous-
chocolate above, purplish-red below, lighter centrally. Length 11.00; wing 5.50; tail 4.50.
West Indies and Florida Keys.

VI. Order GALLINZ:: Gallinaceous Birds; Fowls.

Equivalent to the old order Rasores, exclusive of the Pigeons — this name being derived
from the characteristic habit of scratching the ground in search of food ; connecting the lower
terrestrial pigeons with the higher members of the great plover-snipe group. On the one hand,
it shades into the Columbe so perfectly that Huxley has proposed to call the two together the
‘‘Gallo-columbine series ;” on the other hand, some of its genera show a strong plover-ward
tendency, and have even been placed in Limicole. I have already (p. 562) noted the inoscula-
tion of Galline with Columbe by means of the grouse-like Pigeons, Pterocletes ; it remains to
indicate the limits of the Galline in other directions, by referring to two remarkable groups,
one represented by Opisthocomus alone, the other consisting of the Hemipods or Turnices.
Both of these have usually been referred to Galline.

1. The wonderful Hoatzin of Guiana, Opisthocomus cristatus, is one of the most isolated
and puzzling forms in ornithology, sometimes placed near the Musophagide, but assigned by
maturer judgment to the neighborhood of the fowls, which it resembles in many respects, as an in-
dependent order OpIstHOcomMI, sole relict of an ancestral type. The sternum and shoulder-girdle
are anomalous ; the keel is cut away in front; the furcula anchylose with the coracoids (very
rare) and with the manubrium of the starmtin (unique) ; the digestive system is scarcely less

singular ; and other characters are remarkable.

2. The bush-quails of the Old World, Turnicide, differ widely from the Gallina, re-
sembling the Grouse-pigeons and Tinamous in some respects, and related to the Plovers in

{

572 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINZ: — PERISTEROPODES.

others. A singular circumstance is a lack of the extensive vertebral anchyloses usual in birds,
all the vertebre remaining distinct. The palatal structure is curiously like that of Passeres
(zgithognathous). The crop is said to be wanting in some ; as is also the hind toe, and one of
the carotids. There are some 20 current species of the principal genus, Twrnix, to which Gray
adds the African Ortyxelos meiffreni, and the Australian Pedionomus torquatus. Late studies
of the group have resulted in the view that it should represent a distinct order, HEMIPODII.

Elimination of these non-conformable elements renders the Galline susceptible of much
better definition, as follows : —

Bill generally short, stout, convex, with obtuse vaulted tip, not constricted in the con-
tinuity, wholly hard and ecorneous except in the nasal fossa. Tomia of upper mandible over-
lapping the lower; culmen high on forehead, the frontal feathers there forming a re-entrance,
with more or less salience on either side. Nostrils scaled or feathered, in a short abrupt fossa.
Legs usually feathered to the suffrago, often to the toes, sometimes to the claws. Hallux
elevated, excepting in Cracide and Megapodide, normally shorter than the anterior toes.
Tarsus generally broadly scutellate, when not feathered. Front toes commonly webbed at
base. Claws blunt, little curved. Wings short, strong, vaulted. Rectrices commonly more
than 12 (not more in Cracide, beyond). Head and brain small in proportion to the body, as
in Pigeons. Plumage with after-shafts. Oil-gland tufted. Carotids two (except in Megapodide).
No intrinsic syringeal muscles. Sternum generally deeply doubly-notched, and furculum with
a hypocleidium. Palate schizognathous. Nasal bones schizorhinal. Sessile basipterygoid
processes present. Angle of mandible produced into a recurved process. Pectoral muscles,
three ; the second extensive ; femoro-caudal variable ; accessory femoro-caudal, semi-tendinosus,
accessory semi-tendinosus and ambiens present. Intestinal ececa extensive; gizzard muscular.
Nature precocial and ptilopzedic, typically polygamous. Chiefly terrestrial.

The order thus defined is equivalent to the Alectoromorphe of Huxley (1867), minus
Pterocletes and Hemipodit. The birds composing it fall into two series or suborders, according
to the structure of the feet and more essential characters.

10. SusorpER PERISTEROPODES: PicEron-ToED Fowl .s.

Framed to accommodate the Old World Megapodide, or Mound-birds, and the American
Cracide, or Curassows.

The Mound-birds, Megapodide, as the name implies, have large feet, with little-curved
claws, and lengthened insistent hallux. They share this last feature with the Cracide
(beyond) ; and the osseous structure of these two families, except as regards pneumaticity, is
strikingly similar. Both show a modification of the sternum, the inner one of the two notches
being less instead of more than half as deep as the sternum is long, as in typical Galline.
The Megapods do not incubate, and the young pass through the downy stage in the egg,
hatching with true feathers (p. 226). They are confined to Australia and the East Indies ;
Megapodius is the principal genus, of a dozen or more species ; there are three others, each of
a species or two. ‘

35. Family CRACIDZ: Curassows.

This type is peculiar to America, where it may be considered to represent the Megapodida,
though differing so much in habit and general appearance. The affinities of the two are indi-
cated above, and some essential characters noted. According to the latest authority on the
family, Messrs. Sclater and Salvin, it is divisible into three subfamilies: Cracine, curassows
and hoccos, with four genera and twelve species’ Oreophasine, with a single genus and
species, Oreophasis derbianus, and the

202.

552.

c CRACIDA) — PENELOPINZ: GUANS. 573

51. Subfamily PENELOPINAZ:: Cuans,

with seven genera and thirty-nine species, one of which reaches our border.

OR/TALIS. (Gr. dpradis, ortalis, a pullet.) Guans. Head crested ; its sides, and strips on the
chin, naked, but no wattles. Tarsi naked, scutellate before and behind, with small scales
between the scutellar rows. Hind toe insistent, about $ the middle toe. Tail graduated,
ample, fan-shaped, longer than the much rounded wings, of 12 broad, obtuse feathers. Wings
short, concavo-convex, with abbreviated outer primaries, the secondaries reaching about to the
ends of the longest primaries when the wing is folded. Bill slender for a gallinaceous bird,
without decided frontal antiz. Coloration greenish. Sexes alike. In some points of size,
shape, and general aspect, there is a curious superficial resemblance between this genus and
Geococcyx, though the two genera belong to different orders of birds.

O. ve'tula maccal’li. (Lat. vetula, a little old woman. To Geo. A. McCall.) TExan
Guan. Cuacuanaca. Dark glossy olivaceous, paler and tinged with brownish- yellow below,
plumbeous on the head; tail lustrous green, tipped with grayish-white except on the middle
pair of feathers ; bill and feet plumbeous; iris brown. Length 22.00-24.00; extent 24.00-
28.00; wing 7.50-9.00; tail 9.00-11.00; tarsus 2.00 or more; middle toe and claw about the
same. Q similar. Downy young: Above, mixed brown, ashy and tawny, with a black central
stripe from bill to tail; below white, ashy on the jugulum. Mexico to Texas in the Lower
Rio Grande Valley, abounding in some localities. A notable bird, unlike anything else in this
country. Easily domesticated, said to be used as a game fowl. Very noisy in the breeding
season (April), reiterating the syllables cha-cha-lac in a loud hoarse tone. Nest in bushes,
a slight structure; eggs generally 3, with a thick, granular, and very hard shell, like a
Guinea-fowl’s, oblong-oval, buff-colored or creamy-white, large for the bird, 2.35 1.60.

11. Susorper ALECTOROPODES: True Fow.s.

The birds of this suborder are morevor less perfectly terrestrial; the legs are of mean
length, and stout; the toes four, three in front, generally connected by basal webbing, but
sometimes tree, and one behind, always short and elevated. The tibia are rarely naked below;
the tarsi often feathered, as the toes also sometimes are; but ordinarily both these are naked,
scutellate and reticulate, and often developing processes (spurs) of horny substance with a bony
core, like the horns of cattle. The bill asa rule is short, stout, convex, and obtuse; never cered,
nor extensively membranous; the base of the culmen parts prominent anti, which frequently
fill the nasal fosse; when naked the nostrils show a superincumbent scale. The head is
frequently naked, wholly or partly, and often develops remarkable fleshy processes. The
wings are short, stout, and concavo-convex, conferring power of rapid, whirring, but unpro-
tracted, flight. The tail varies extremely; it is very small in some genera, enormously devel-
oped in others; the rectrices vary in number, but are commonly more than twelve. The
sternum without certain exception shows a peculiar conformation; the posterior notches seen
in most birds are inordinately enlarged, so that the bone, viewed vertically, seems in most of
its extent-to be simply a narrow central projection, with two long backward processes on each
side, the outer commonly hammer-shaped. There are other distinctive osteological characters,
as noted above. The digestive system presents an ample special crop, a highly muscular
gizzard, and large ceca. The inferior larynx is always devoid of intrinsic muscles; the
structure of the trachea varies with genera, presenting some curious modifications. There
are after-shafts, and a circlet around the oil-gland. Alectoropodes are preecocial and ptilopedic.
A part of them are polygamous —a circumstance shown in its perfection by the sultan of the
dung-hill with his disciplined harem; and in alk such, the sexes are conspicuously dissimilar.
The rest are monogamous, and the sexes of these are as a rule nearly or quite alike. The

574

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINA— ALECTOROPODES. .

eggs are very numerous, usually laid on the ground, in a rude nest, or none. The suborder is
cosmopolitan ; but most of its groups have a special geographical distribution.. Its great eco-
nomic importance is perceived in all forms of domestic poultry, and principal game-birds of
various countries; and it is unsurpassed in beauty—some of these birds offer the most
gorgeous coloring of the class.

|
‘Wh |

eater |
Liffey:

Fie. 394. — English Pheasant, Phasianus colchicus. (From Dixon.)

Genetically, the Fowls
are nearer than most
birds to a generalized,
old-fashioned type. They
have relations in the cu-
riously ostrich-like Tina-.
mous of South America
(Tinamide or Crypturi),
the Hoatzin (Opisthoco-
mus), and other antique
relicts. Notice a quarter-
grown Turkey with this
idea in mind, and you will
hardly fail to see that
it looks like an ostrich
in miniature. Leading
types of existing Alec-
toropod Galline are the
Quail, the Grouse, the
Guinea-fowl, the Tur-
key, and the domestic
Cock. The two former
are very close to each
other, and hardly sepa-
rable as families; the
three latter are nearer
one another, and often
placed together in a fam-
ily. The families Tet-
raonide, Grouse, Quail,
and Partridges; and Me-
leagridide, Turkeys, are
indigenous to N. Am.,
and fully treated beyond.
A word on the others will
not be misplaced here.

The Guinea-fowl, Nu-
midid@, of which a spe-
cies, Numida meleagris,
is commonly seen in do-

mestication, are an African and Madagascan type. While the foregoing families are strongly
specialized, this one, like the turkey family, more closely approaches the true fowl, and
both may be only subfamilies of Phasianide. ‘The bones of the pinion have a certain
peculiarity ; the frontal generally develops a protuberance ; there are wattles, but no spurs; the
tail is very short; the head naked. There are six or eight species of Numida, in some of

’

PHASIANIDZ: PHEASANTS. 575

which the trachea ‘is convoluted in an appendage to the fureulum ; Acrylliwm vulturina, Agelas-
tes meleagrides, and Phasidus niger, are the remaining ones.

The Phasianide, or Pheasants, are a magnificent family of typical Galline, of which the
domestic fowl is a characteristic example. The feet, nasal fossee, and usually a part, if not the
whole, of the head, are naked, and often combed, horned, or wattled. The tarsi commonly
develop spurs. The tail, with or without its coverts, sometimes has an extraordinary develop-
ment or a remarkable shape (p. 118). There are fifty or sixty species, distributed in numerous
modern genera, about .
twelve of which are
well marked; they
are all indigenous to
Asia and neighbor-
ing islands, focusing
in India. In the
Peacock, Pavo cris-
tatus, the tail-coverts
form a superb train,
capable of erection
into a disk, the most
gorgeous object in
ornithology; in an

-allied genus, Poly-
plectron, there are a
pair of spurs on each
leg. The Argus
Pheasant, Argusa-
nus giganteus, is dis-
tinguished. by the
-enormous develop-
ment of the secon-
dary quills, as well
as by the length of
the tail-feathers and
peculiarity of the
middle pair. The
combed, wattled, and
spurred barn- yard
fowl, with folded tail
and flowing middle
feathers, are descend-
ants of Gallus bank-
iva, type of a small
genus. The Tragopans, Ceriornis, are an allied form with few species; the Macartneys,
Euplocomus, with a dozen species, are another near form, as are the Impeyans, Lophophorus,
with a slender aigrette on the head, like a peacock’s. The naturalized English pheasant, P.
colchicus (fig. 394), introduced into Britain prior to A. D. 1056, is the type of Phasianus, in
which the tail-feathers are very long and narrow ; in one species, P. reevesit, the tail is said
to attain a length of six feet. The Golden and Amherstian Pheasants,Chrysolophus pictus and
C. amherstie, are singularly beautiful, even for this group. The other genera are Crossoptilon
and Pucrasia. :

\
: J ins,

Fie. 395.— Turkey. (From Lewis.)

203.

553.

554.

576 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINZ — ALECTOROPODES.

86. Family MELEAGRIDIDZ: Turkeys.

Head and upper neck naked, carunculate; in our species with a dewlap and erectile pro-
cess. Tarsi naked, scutellate before and behind, spurred inthe g. Tail broad, rounded, of
14-18 feathers. Plumage compact, lustrous; in our species with a tuft of hair-like feathers
on the breast. One genus, two species. Jf. ocellatus is the very beautiful Turkey of Central
America.

MELEA/GRIS. (Gr. pedceaypis, Lat. meleagris, a guinea-fowl; transferred in ornithology to
this genus.) TurKEys. Characters of the family.

M. gallipa/vo. (Lat. gallus, a cock, pavo, a pea-fowl. Fig. 395.) Turkey. Upper tail-
eoverts chestnut, with paler or whitish tips; tail-feathers tipped with brownish-yellow or
whitish ; 3-4 feet long, ete. Wild in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and southward; domesti-
eated elsewhere. The Mexican bird is the original of the domestic race ; it was upon this
form, imported into Europe, that Linnzus imposed the name gallopavo (Fn. Suec. No. 198;
Syst. Nat. i, 1766, 26%), which has generally been applied to the following feral variety :

M. g. americana. EasTERN WiLD TuRKEY. Upper tail-coverts without light tips, and ends
of tail-feathers scarcely paler. This is the ordinary wild turkey of Eastern North America;
N. to Canada, where it is said still to occur ; extirpated in New England. NW. to the
Missouri, and SW. to Texas. The slight differences just noted seem to be remarkably con-
stant, and to be rarely if ever shown by the other form; although, as usual in domestic birds,
this last varies interminably in color.

37. Family TETRAONID4:: Grouse; Partridge; Quail.

All the remaining gallinaceous birds are very closely related, probably constituting 4
single family; although the term Tetraonid@ is usually restricted to the true Grouse as below
defined (Tetraonine), the Partridges and Quails being erected into another family, Perdicide,
with several subfamilies. But the Grouse do not appear to differ wore from the Partridges
and Quails than these do from each other, and they are all variously interrelated; so that nu
violence will be offered in uniting them. One group of the Partridges (Odontophorine) is
confined to America; all the rest to the Old World. The leading forms among the latter are
Perdix, the true partridge; Coturnix, the true Quail; Francolinus, the Francolins; with
Rollulus and Caccabis. In all, perhaps a hundred species and a dozen genera. Without
attempting to frame a family diagnosis to cover all their modifications, I will precisely define
the American forms, as two subfamilies.

Analysis of Subfamili
TETERAONIXZ. Grouse. The shank (tarsus) more or less feathered. (Plenty more characters. but this
is perfectly distinctive. )

ODONTOPHORINE. American Partridges and Quails. The shank entirely bare and scaly. (Plenty
more characters, etc.)

Oss. — The vernacular names ‘ pheasan' ,” ‘ partridge,” and ‘ quail,” as applied to our
game birds in different sections of the country, are the cause of endless confusion and misun-
derstanding, which it seems hopeless to attempt to do away with. (1.) The word “ pheasant”
(derived from the name of the river Phasis in Colchis) belongs to certain Old World Phasianide
(see above; and fig. 394) having no representatives in America. But early settlers of this country
applied it to the Ruffed Grouse, Bonasa umbella — and “‘ pheasant” is the Ruffed Grouse called
to this day by the common people of the Middle and Southern States. (2.) ‘ Partridge” is an old
English word, specifically designating the English Perdix cimerea, then enlarged in meaning tu
cover all the family Perdicide (see beyond). In the Northern States. both the Spruce Grouse,
Canace canadensis, and the Ruffed Grouse, are commonly called ‘‘ partridge.” In the Middle

TETRAONIDZ — TETRAONINA: GROUSE. 5TT

and Southern States — wherever the Ruffed Grouse is called ‘ pheasant,” the Bob-white, Ortyxr
virginiana, is called ‘‘ partridge.” (3.) The term ‘‘ quail” is specially applicable to the Euro-
pean Migratory or Messina Quail, Coturnix dactylisonans. But this resembles our Bob-white
not distantly, causing the latter to be called “quail” in the sections where the Ruffed and Spruce
Grouse are called ‘‘ partridge ;” and in the Southwest, the species of Lophortyx, Oreortyx, and
Cyrtonyx are universally called ‘‘ quail.” The following tabular statement should bring the
matter clearly into view.

Summary of North American TETRAONIDZ — Grouse, Partridge, Quail.

A. GROUSE, with feathers on shank (Tetraonine).

1. Sage Fowl: Sage Cock; Sage-Hen; Cock-of-the-Plains. Western. One species:
Centrocercus urophasianus.

2. Sharp-tailed Grouse: Pin-tail Grouse; Prairie Hen or Prairie Chicken of the North-
west: 1 species, 2 varieties: Pediccetes phasianellus.

3. Pinnated Grouse: common Prairie Hen or Prairie Chicken of the Mississippi, Ohio,
and Lower Missouri valleys. One species ; two varieties: Cupidonia cupido.

4. Tree Grouse : Spruce Grouse ; Black Grouse ; the Northern States species improperly
called ‘‘ partridge.” One species, two varieties: Canace canadensis.
Another species of 3 varieties, confined to the West: Canace obscura.

5. Ruffed Grouse : improperly called “‘ partridge” in the Northern and ‘‘ pheasant” in the
Middle and Southern States. One species, Bonasa umbella, of 3 varieties.

6. Snow Grouse, or Ptarmigan. Three species of Lagopus, boreal and alpine, turning
white in winter: L. albus, L. rupestris, L. leucurus.

B. ParTrRIpGE and QUAIL, without feathers on shank (Odontophorine).

7. The imported Messina Quail, or Migratory Quail of Europe: one species: Coturniz
dactylisonans.

8. Bob-white: called ‘‘ quail” in Northern States; called “partridge” in the Middle
and Southern States. One species: Ortyx virginiana, with 2 varieties, one in
Florida, the other in Texas.

9. Helmet Partridges: of the Southwest, commonly called “quail,” with a beautiful
recurved top-knot. Two species of Lophortyx: L. gambeli, L. californica, commonly
called ‘ valley quail.”

10. Arrow Partridge: with two long arrowy plumes on the head. One species, of Cali-
fornia: Orortyx picta, commonly called ‘‘ mountain quail.”
11. Shell Partridge: bluish-white markings, as if scaly. One species, Southwest. Calli-
pepla squamata.

12. Massena Partridge (not to be confused with the
imported Messina Quail): with a soft crest and
numberless white ‘‘eyes” on the belly. South-
west. One species: Cyrtonyx massena.

In all, 26 varieties, of 16 species, of 12 genera, of 2
subfamilies, of 1 family.

52. Subfamily TETRAONINZ: Crouse.

Head completely feathered, excepting, usually, a
naked strip of skin over the eye. Nasal fossa densely
feathered. Tarsi more or less perfectly feathered, the
ie ) feathering sometimes extending on the toes to the

Fro, 396. — ‘Red Game’ of Britain, Lagopus claws; the toes, when naked, with horny fringe-like
seoticus. (From Dixon.) processes. Tail variable in shape, but never folded,
37

204.

555.

578 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— GALLINA — ALE CTOROPODES.

of 16-20 feathers. Sides of the neck frequently with lengthened or otherwise modified feathers,
or a bare distensible skin, or both.

The true Grouse are confined to the northern hemisphere, and reach their highest develop-
ment, as a group, in North America, where singularly varied forms occur. The only Old World
species are — the great Tetrao wrogallus, or Capercaillie of Europe, and its allied Asiatic species;
Lyrurus tetrix, the “black game” of Europe, with curiously curled tail-feathers; Canace
falcipennis of Siberia, the representative of our Spruce Partridge ; Bonasa betulina of Northen
Europe and Asia, like our Ruffed Grouse ; and two or three species of Ptarmigan (Lagopus).

All the species of this subfamily used to be referred to a single genus Tetrao — the only
generic name familiar to sportsmen and others who make no technical study of birds. But such
must not be surprised to find me discarding this well-known name, and adopting several different
ones as generic designations of our Grouse, which differ much among themselves, in points of
form and structure, and are all widely diverse from Tetrao wrogallus of Europe, type of the
genus.

Analysis of N. Am. Genera of Tetraonine.
Tail stiff, pointed, wedge-shaped, equalling or exceeding the wings, of 20 ae scaly and hair-like

feathers on breast. Tarsifull-feathered. Verylarge . Oyo aS See 8 is Bob . Centrocercus 205
Tail stiff, pointed, wedge-shaped, much shorter than wings, of 18 feathers; no obviously peculiar feathers

on neck. Tarsi full-feathered . . . F » . . Pediecetes 206
Tail stiffish, rounded, much shorter than wing: of 18 feathers ; wing-like tufts and great bare space on

neck. Tarsi scant-feathered . . . Cupidonia 207
Tail soft, rounded, about as long as wing, of ‘Ig feathers ; umbrella-like tufts on neck, but no obvious

bare space. Tarsi bare below . 5 é . Bonasa 208
Tail stiffish, flat, square, shorter than wing, of 160 or 20 feathers ; ; no o evidently peculiar feathers or obviously

bare space on neck. Tarsi full-feathered . x % 4 % ee Canace 204
Tail, etc., as in Canace. Tarsi and toes fully feathered. White in we winter aes . Lagopus 209

CA'NACE. (Lat. Canace, a proper name.) TREE GRousB. ‘BLack Grouse. No obvi-
ously lengthened or otherwise peculiar feathers on neck or head. No obviously naked space on
neck: but there is a piece of skin capable of distension, especially in the Western species of ,
Dendragapus. A strip of bare colored skin over eye. No crest. Tarsi feathered to the toes.
Tail little shorter than wing, stiffish, nearly square, of broad, obtuse feathers, normally 16 (in
Canace proper) or 20 (in Dendragapus) in number. Of medium and large size, and dark
blended colors, inhabiting woodland, like the species of Bonasa, and quite arboreal ; northerly
and alpine. Sexes distinguishable. Eggs heavily-colored.

Analysis of Subgenera, Species, and Varieties.

Tail normally of 16 feathers (exceptionally of 14 or 18, as an individual peculiarity). (Canace proper.)
Tail with broad orange-brown end, its upper coverts without white spots. Eastern . . canadensis 555
Tail without orange-brown end, its upper coverts with white spots. Western . » . + franklini 556
Tail normally of 20 feathers (exceptionally 18 or 22 ?). (Dendragapus.) Western.
Tail black, with broad slate-colored end.

Under parts clear bluish slate color. Rocky Mts., etc., southerly . 3, ier as . . obscura 557
Under parts sooty plumbeous. Alaska. . ~. . . fuliginosa 559
Tail black, with narrow or no slate-colored end. Rocky Mts., abe northerly . « . . + richardsoni 658

C. canaden’sis. (Of Canada. Fig. 397.) Canapa Grousr. SporrEp GROUSE. SPRUCE
Grousr. Spruce ‘“Parrripcs.” Adult cock: Head smooth, but feathers susceptible of erec-
tion into a slight crest. A colored comb of naked skin over the eye, bright yellow or reddish
when fully injected. Tail slightly rounded, of 16 feathers, a scant inch broad to their very ends.
Tarsi full-feathered to the toes, which are naked, scaly, and fringed. Tail black, broadly tipped
with orange-brown ; its upper coverts without decidedly white tips. Under parts glossy black,

extensively varied with white; under tail-coverts tipped with white; sides and breast with
white bars or semicircles ; white spots bounding the throat ; white spots on lore. Upper parts
wavy — barred with black and gray, usually also with some tawny markings on the back and
wings. Jn full feather, the appearance is of a black bird, grayer above, spotty with white

556.

557.

558.

TETRA ONIDA—TETRAONINA: GROUSE. 579

below, and orange tail-end. Length usually 16.00-17.00; wing 7.00; tail 5.50. Hen rather
smaller. No continuous black below, where white and tawny, latter particularly on breast,
nearly everywhere pretty regularly wavy-barred with blackish. Above, more like the male, but
browner. End of tail more narrowly orange.
Pullets resemble the hen. N. Am., E. of the
R. Mts., northerly, in woodland. N. uearly or
quite to the limit of trees; N. W. to Alaska.
8. into the northern tier of States, especially
Maine, Michigan, and Minnesota; casually to
Massachusetts. It is a very hardy bird, enduring
the rigors of sub-arctie winters, and not properly
inigratory. Eggs numerous, 1.68 X 1.20, rather
pointed, buff-colored, dotted, spotted, and boldly
splashed with rich chestnut. Shape and pattern
of eggs more like those of ptarmigan than of the Fie. 397. —Canada Grouse, nat. size. (Ad nat.

prairie grouse. Hele TOs)

C. ce. frank/lini. (To Sir John Franklin.) FRANKLIN’s SPRUCE GROUSE. Size, shape, and

whole appearance of the foregoing. Tail rather longer, more nearly even, with broader feathers ;

lacking the terminal orange bar; tipped narrowly with white, its upper coverts tipped with

white, making the upper side of the tail conspicuously spotty. Rocky and Cascade Mts.,

northerly, in U. S., and northward about sources of the Saskatchewan, Athabasca, and

McKenzie Rivers. A mere variety of C. canadensis: the variation parallel with that of C.

richardsont as compared with C. obscura.

C. obscura, (Lat. obscura, dark.) Dusky Grouse. BLuE GROUSE. GRAY GROUSE.

Pine Grousg. Old cock: Back and wings blackish-brown, finely waved and vermiculated -
in zigzag with slate-gray, mixed with more or less ochrey-brown and some white on the seapu-

lars. Long feathers of the sides with white ends and shaft stripes; other under parts fine
bluish-gray or light slate color, varied with white, especially on the lower belly, flanks, and
vent-feathers. Cheeks black; chin and throat finely speckled with black and white. Though
the lateral feathers of the neck are smooth and simple, forming no decided tufts as in Cupidonia
or Bonasa, they are somewhat enlarged, covering a rudimentary tympanum: these feathers
with snowy white bases and black tips. Tail brownish-black, veined and marbled with gray,

and with a broad slate-gray terminal bar ; of 20 feathers, broad to their very ends, the tail as

a whole slightly rounded. Bill black; iris brown-orange; comb over eye. Size very variable;

well-grown cocks usually 20, or 22 inches, sometimes up to 2 feet long; extent of wings about

30 inches; wing 9 or 10; tail 7 or 8. Hen smaller, and more motley, lighter colored and more

extensively varied with white and tawny; but showing the distinctive slate-gray of the under

parts, and the slate bar at end of the tail. Pullets like the hen, but the upper parts with ham-

mer-headed white shaft-lines. Tail with white shaft-lines enlarged at the end, also marked on

some of the feathers with wavy blackish crossbars. Rocky and other Mts., U. S., to the Pacific.

A species of general dispersion in elevated and wooded, especially coniferous, regions of the West.

S. to New Mexico, and in the White Mts. in Arizona; in the R. Mts. northerly shading into

var. richardson. A large cumbrous bird, usually displaying stolidity or indifference to the

presence of man, taking to trees when disturbed, and very easily slaughtered. Eggs larger,

more elongated, and less heavily colored than those of spruce grouse and ptarmigan ; creamy-

buff, finely freckled all over with chocolate-brown, seldom with any large spots: 2.00 x 1.50.

C. o. rich/ardsoni. (To Sir John Richardson.) RicHarpson’s Dusky Grouse. Size,

shape, and whole appearance of the foregoing. Tail rather longer, more nearly even, with

broader feathers, having the terminal slate bar reduced or wanting: general color more uni-

formly darker, black of throat more extensive. Rocky Mts., northerly, U. S. and northward.

559.

205.

’ $60.

580 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINZE — ALECTOROPODES.

A mere variety, only recognizable when fully developed; many intermediate specimens cannot
be fairly referred to one rather than the other.

C. o. fuligino’sa. (Lat. fuliginosa, sooty.) Sooty Grouse. With the broad slate tail-
bar of obscwra proper, but colors darker than in richardsoni even. Above, blackish, minutely
freckled with gray and rusty-brown ; below, dark plumbeous. The hen is more different, with
prevailing rich rusty ‘and chestnut-brown markings. Northwest coast mountains, Oregon to
Sitka.

CENTROCER/CUS. (Gr. xévrpov, kentron, a spine, prickle; xépxos, kerkos, tail.) Sacer
Grouse. SPINE-TAIL GROUSE. Of great size. Tail very long, equalling or exceeding the
wings, of 20 stiffened, narrow, acuminate feathers, much graduated in length. Neck suscept-
ible of enormous distension by means of air-sacs covered with naked livid skin —not regularly
hemispherical and lateral like those of Cupidonia, but forming a great protuberance in front of
irregular contour; surmounted by a fringe of hair-like filaments, several inches long, springing
from a mass of erect white feathers; covered below with a solid set of sharp white horny
feathers, like fish-scales. (The affair is not easy to describe in few words, especially as it is
constantly changing with the wear of the feathers, and is only fully exhibited by the cock
during the amours. The anatomical arrangement for inflation is only a special exhibition of
the air-sacs of other genera, as Cupidonia and Pediacetes ; the peculiarities of the feathers
are the inherited results of habitual attrition, the birds rubbing the breast against the
ground in their love-spasms ; and, as said, the state of the parts is always changing with the
wear of the feathers. This accounts for the vague or conflicting statements of authors.)
Tarsus feathered to the toes. Digestive system remarkable for the slight muscularity of the
gizzard, which is rather a membranous paunch than a grist-mill; the bird browses rather than
seratches for a living, feeding on wormwood and also extensively on insects. Sexes similar in
color, unlike in size and to some extent in form. One, prairie species, perfectly terrestrial.

C. urophasia/nus. (Gr. ovpd, owra, tail; gaovavés, phasianos, a pheasant.) Sage Cock.
Sacz Hen. Cock or THe Puars. Largest of American Grouse. Full grown cock 2-24
feet long; extent of wings 3 feet or more; wing and tail about a foot; weight upwards of 4
pounds. Hen a third smaller. Above, varied with black, gray, brown and buff; below,
chiefly white, with a large squarish black area on the belly. To describe the peculiar neck-
feathering of the old cock more particularly: On each side is a patch of feathers, meeting in
front, with extremely stiff bases, prolonged into hair-like filaments some three inches in length;
with the wearing away of these feathers in the peculiar actions of the bird in pairing-time,
their hard horny bases are left, forming the “‘fish-scales” above said. In front of these
peculiar: feathers is the naked tympanum, capable of enormous inflation under amatory excite-
ment. Above them is a tuft of down-feathers, covered with a set of long soft filamentous
plumes corresponding to the ruff of Bonasa. Many breast feathers resemble the scaly ones of
the neck, and are commonly found worn to a bristly ‘‘thread-bare” state. Scaly bases of the
feathers soiled white; the thready ends blackish; the fluffy feathers snowy-white, like wool,
the longer overlying Hlamentous plumes glossy black. Chin and throat blackish, speckled with
white ends of the feathers, usually presenting a definite white half-collar. Lining of wings
white. Hen: -Length about 20 inches; wing 10 inches; tail 7 or 8, of same general character
as the cock’s, but softer, shorter, less cuneate, with more rapidly tapering feathers. A small
tympanam, but no obviously peculiar feathers on neck. Coloration quite like that of the cock.
Pullet: No peculiar neck-feathers ; tail beginning to show its special form; general coloration
of the hen. Before the September moult, all the feathers of the upper parts with sharp
white hammer-headed shaft lines, and circular spotting of the feathers of the breast. Sooty
belly-patch showing with the first feathering. Chick in down altogether different from the
dingy yellow chick of Pediccetes ; below grayish-white, above gray-brown mottled with black ;
bill black. This remarkable bird, quite a Roland for the Capercaillie’s Oliver, inhabits the

206.

561.

562.

TETRAONID -—- TETRAONINZE: GROUSE. 581

sterile sage-bush plains of the West; an abundant and characteristic species of those forbidding
regions, beginning with the Eastern slopes and fovt-hills of the R. Mts., South into New
Mexico and Arizona, sparingly N. to 49° or slightly further, in the Milk River region. Not in
Dakota east of the Coteau, or in the Missouri Basin much below the Yellowstone country.
Its centre of abundance is the artemisia tracts of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Idaho,
Eastern California, and Oregon. It straggles through the sage-bush, but I have seen packs of
hundreds in the fall. In the breeding season its sonorous hullaballoo resounds on every hand
where the birds are numerous. The flesh is edible or not, ‘‘as you like it.” The behavior
towards man varies with circumstances; sometimes the birds may almost be knocked over with
a stick, at others it is difficult to get a shot. In walking, the tail is somewhat elevated, and
swings sideways with each step. The flight is extremely vigorous, and at times greatly pro-
tracted, with wings so widely expanded that the tips of the primaries stand apart; the course
rapid and steady when the bird is once fairly on wing, accomplished with a succession of quick
energetic wing-beats, alternating with sailing with stiffly motionless wings until the impulse
is spent. From the nature of its resorts the bird is exclusively terrestrial. The egg is nar-
rower and more pointed than that of any other grouse of our country, measuring from 2.05 to
2.25 in length by 1.50-1.60 in breadth; grayish or greenish-drab color, thickly speckled with
chocolate-brown, mostly in minute dots evenly distributed, occasionally with well-defined spots
up to the size of a split pea, tending to circular shape.

PEDIG@'CETES. (Gr. mediov, pedion, a plain; oixérns, oiketes, an inhabitant.) Pmn-TarL
Grouse. Neck without obviously peculiar feathers, like those either of the pinnated or
ruffed grouse or sage cock, but with a hidden, definitely circumscribed space on each side of
reddish, vascular, and distensible skin, constituting an undeveloped tympanum, over which
lies a lateral series of slightly enlarged feathers. Head lightly crested, the longest feathers of
the crown falling on the occiput; a crescentic naked patch over each eye of numerous orange
or chrome-yellow fringe-like processes, in several parallel curved rows. Feet full-feathered to
between the bases of the toes, with long, hair-like plumage reaching to or beyond the end of the
hind claw; toes above with one row of broad, transverse scutella, a row on each side of smaller
rounded scales, and a conspicuous fringe of horny processes; below, bossed and scabrous.
Tail much shorter than the wings, normally of 18 true rectrices, of which the central pair are
soft, parallel-edged and square-tipped, projecting an inch or two beyond the next pair; the
rest rapidly graduated, stiffish, and crisp (naking a creaking sound when rubbed together) ;
at first about straight-edged, soon becoming club-shaped (with a constriction near the apex)
by mutual attrition. Sexes similar, but cock rather larger and darker than the hen, with more
prominent supraciliary papilla. One species, of two varieties, of prairie, perfectly terrestrial.

Analysis of Varieties.
Northern Sharp-tailed Grouse. The markings black, white and dark brown, with little or no tawny;
spots on the under parts numerous, blackish, V-shaped; throat white, speckled. (Arctic America.)
phasianellus 561
Common Sharp-tailed Grouse. The markings black, white, and especially tawny ; below, the spots fewer,
brown, U-shaped; throat buff. (U.S. and adjoining British Province.) oe columbianus 562

P. phasianel/lus. (Diminutive of Lat. phasianus, a pheasant.) NORTHERN SHARP-TAILED
Grouse. As above, in comparison with the ordinary bird next described. Very dark-colored,
in blackish and white variegation, with little buff, even in the fall. The markings below
heavier, in sharper, more arrow-headed shape, quite blackish. The feet very heavily feathered,
almost like a ptarmigan’s. - Interior of British America, E. to Hudson’s Bay, N. and W. to
the Yukon, southward shading directly into the U. 8. bird, before reaching 49°. This is the
true Tetrao phasianellus —a name commonly applied to the next variety.

P. p. columbia/nus. (Of the Columbia River. Fig. 398.) Common SHARP-TAILED GROUSE.
PRAIRIE CHICKEN OF THE NortHwest. Adult ¢ 9 : Upper parts closely and pretty evenly

582 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINA — ALECTOROPODES.

variegated with blackish-brown, reddish-brown, and grayish-brown, the pattern smallest on the
rump and lower back, where the blackish is mostly in sharp-angled stars; the reddish most con-
‘Spicuous on the upper back, and both the lighter colors everywhere finely sprinkled with blackish.
Wing-coverts like the upper back, but with numerous conspicuous rounded white spots, one on
the end of each feather. Crown and back of neck nearly like the back, but in smaller pattern, and
the markings mostly transverse. An illy-defined white area on each side of the neck, over the
tympanum, and slight whitish stripe behind the eye. Throat fine light buff, usually immac-
ulate, but sometimes finely speckled
quite across. Under parts white, more
or less tinted with buff toward the
throat; the breast with numerous regu-
lar dark-brown U-shaped spots, one
on each feather; similar but smaller,
sharper, and fewer such spots thence
scattered over most of the under parts,
only the middle of the belly being left
unmarked. Long feathers of the sides
under the wings matching the upper
wing-coverts nearly ; under wing-cov-
erts and axillaries pure white, not
marked; flanks with bars or U-spots
of dark brown. Legs grayish-white,
unmarked. Quills of the wings fus-
cous; outer webs of the secondaries
with equidistant, squarish, white or
tawny spots, the secondaries tipped
and imperfectly twice or thrice barred
with white, and gradually becoming

Fic. 398. — Head of Sharp-tailed Grouse, nat. size. (Ad sprinkled with the varied colors of the
rritusaceeiia back, so that the innermost of them are
almost precisely like the greater coverts. Four middle tail-feathers variegated, much like the
backs others white, or grayish-white, on the inner webs, the outer webs being mottled ; a few
under tail-coverts spotted, the rest white; upper tail-coverts nearly like the rump. Iris light
brown ; bill dark horn-color; part of under mandible flesh-colored; claws like bill; toes on
top light horn-color, the soles darker. Length, 18 or 20 inches; extent 24 to 380; wing
8 to 9; middle tail-feathers 4 to 6; shortest tail-feathers (outermost), about 14; tarsi,
2 inches; middle toe and claw about the same; culmen of bill about $; gape of bill 1 to 14;
depth of bill at base 4 or rather less. Pullets, before first moult: Crown bright brown, varied
with black. Sharp white shaft-lines above, which, with a black area on each feather, contrast
with the fine gray and ‘brown mottling of the upper parts. Wing-coverts and inner quills
with whitish spots. Several inner tail-feathers with whitish shaft lines, and mottled with
blackish and brown. Lower throat and breast with numerous dark brown spots; sides
similar, the markings lengthening into streaks. Bill brown above, pale below. This lasts
till the September moult is completed. Chicks hatch dingy yellow, mottled on the crown,
back, and wings with brown and black. The Pin-tail Chicken inhabits the western portions of
Minnesota, a small part of Iowa, all of Dakota, thence diagonally across Nebraska and Kansas
to Colorado in the Laramie and upper Platte regions ; thence westward in suitable country to
the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Ranges; northern limit to be conventionally established along
the N. border of the U. S., beyond which it shades into the true phasianellus. In fine, this is
the prairie chicken of the whole Northwest ; usually occurring where C. cupido does not, the two

TETRA ONIDAi— TETRAONINZ: GROUSE. 583

overlap to some extent. Formerly ranged in all the prairie of Minnesota, Michigan, and Iowa,
but is pushed westward by the grain-fields— the same carrying cupido along. Eggs 5-10-12-
18, in June; grayish-olive or drab-colored, uniformly dotted with brown points, rarely larger
than a pin-head; always quite different from those of cupido ; 1.60 to 1.80 long by 1.20 to 1.30
broad; average 1.75 1.25. A fine game and table bird, in all respects like cupido.

207. CUPIDONIA. (Name derived from cupido, which see below.) Prn-neck Grouse. . Neck
with a peculiar tuft on each side of loose, lengthened, acuminate feathers, like little wings,
beneath which is
a circular patch of
bare, yellow skin,
capable of great, 2
distension,likethe -
half of a small or-
ange. Head with
a slight soft crest.
Tarsi scant-feath-
ered to the toes in
front and on sides, ;
bare on a strip behind; toes extensively webbed at base. Tail short, rounded, of 18 broad
stiffish feathers, with obtusely rounded ends. Sexes nearly alike in size, form, and color;
plumage below barred transversely. One species, 2 varieties, of prairie, perfectly terrestrial.

Fi. 399. — Foot of Prairie Hen, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

Analysis of Varieties.
THE COMMON BIRD. Tarsal feathers hiding the bare strip. Dark bars above black, and broad; top of
head mostly blackish io tty Mae 35 ee a ane ee ee ee ee - eupido Se.
TEXAS BIRD. Tarsi very scant-feathered, the bare strip exposed. Dark bars above brown and narrow ;

top of head little blackish , e4o% pallidicinctus 564
563. C. cupi/do. (The tufts on the neck likened to conventional ‘‘cupid’s wings.” Figs. 399, 400.)
PINNATED GROUSE.
Prairie Hen. ¢ 9:
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 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 9 smaller, with shorter neck tufts. Length 16.00-18.00; extent about 28.00; wing
8.00-9.00 ; tail about 4.50; tarsus rather over, middle toe and claw rather under, 2.00; neck-
tufis 2.00-3.50 inches long. This well-known bird formerly ranged across the United States,

564.

208.

584 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— GALLINZ — ALECTOROPODES.

in open country, from the Atlantic to the Eastern foot-hills of the R. Mts., in some latitudes,
and now abounds on the prairies, from Illinois and Wisconsin, to Middle Kansas at least, if not
found on the dryer plains westward. Its usual range includes Ilinois, Iowa, Missouri, Eastern
half of Minnesota, Southeastern Dakota, Middle and Eastern Kansas and Nebraska, Arkansas,
and Eastern Texas. It is creeping westward -
with the grain fields. Ten years ago it mixed
with the sharp-tails about St. Paul’s, Minne-
sota, and up the Missouri to beyond Sioux
City. The line of railroad is a favorite high-
way for the birds. It has been almost ex-
tirpated in the Middle and Eastern States,
though it still occurs sparingly in isolated
localities in New York, New Jersey, Penn-
sylvania, Long Island, Nantucket, and Mar-
tha’s Vineyard, etc. Its abundance, and the
excellence of its flesh, render it an object of
Fic. 401.— Head of Rutfed Grouse, nat. size. (Ad commercial importance. Though there may
nat, del. EO.) be little probability of its extinction, legisla-
tion against its wanton or ill-timed destruction is a measure of obvious propriety. Eggs
‘averaging shorter, rounder, and smaller than those of the sharp-tail; pale greenish-gray, with
sometimes a glaucous bloom, usually unmarked, sometimes very minutely dotted with brown ,
C. c. pallidicine’'ta. (Lat. pallidus, pale; cinctus, begirt.) Pate PINNATED GROUSE.
Above, the dark markings not in excess of the lighter markings, and rather brown than black ;
below, the dark bars very pale and narrow. Tarsi scant feathered, exposing the bare strip
behind. Southwestern prairies; a local race, from warmer and dryer regions.
BONA'SA. (Gr. Bdvacos,
Lat. bonasus, a bison: the
“drumming” of the bird
being likened to the bel-
lowing ofa bull.) Rurrep
Grouse. Head with a
full soft crest. Neck on
each side with a tuft of
numerous (15-30) broad
soft glossy-black feathers,
covering the rudimentary
tympanum. Tail about as
long as the wings, amply
rounded or fan-shaped, nor-
mally of 18 soft broad
feathers, with truncate
ends. Tarsi scantfeath-
ered, naked below, with
two or three rows of scu-
tella in front. Plumage of
blended and varied colors ; Fia. 402, — Ruffed Grouse. (From Lewis.)
sexes alike. Woodland species, more or less arboreal, of common occurrence in suitable places.

Analysis of Varieties.
Brown, of mixed and varied shades of reddish and gray. Eastern and Northern . ‘ +» umbella 665
Pale ; slaty-gray the prevailing shade. Rocky Mountain region ‘ ue % + + . umbelloides 566
Dark; chestnut-brown the prevailing shade. Pacific Coast region . . . le ar sabinii 567

565.

567.

209.

TETRAONIDA; — TETRAONINZL: GROUSE. 585

B.umbel/la, (Lat. wnbella, an umbel, umbrella; wmbra, shade, shadow; alluding to the neck-
tufts. Figs. 401, 402.) Rurrep Grovuss. ‘ Parrripce;” New England. ‘ PHEasant ;”
Middle and Southern States. ¢ 9: Above, variegated reddish- or grayish-brown, the back with
numerous, oblong, pale, black-edged spots. Below, whitish, barred with brown. Tail brown
or gray, numerously and narrowly black-barred, with a broad subterminal black zone, and
tipped with gray. The neck-ruffle of the ¢ mostly glossy black, and very full; of the 9
smaller and more brown. The colors are endlessly varied as well as blended, and the prevailing
tone of the brown birds of the East shades insensibly into that of the Western varieties.
Length 16.00-18.00; extent 23.00; wing 7.00-8.00; tail about the same. A woodland bird,
like the species of Canace, abundantly distributed over Eastern North America; in the U. S.
to the central plains; in Brit. Am. to Alaska. It is well known under the above names in
different sections; but it is neither a ‘‘ partridge” nor a ‘‘ pheasant,” being, in fine, a Ruffed
Grouse. The ‘‘drumming” sound for which this bird is noted, is not vocal, as some suppose,
but is produced by rapidly beating the wings. Eggs very characteristic, from creamy white to
creamy buff, usually immaculate, sometimes minutely dotted or even speckled with brown; they
resemble partridge eggs also in shape, which approaches the pyriform, broad and blunt at one
end, pointed at the other; size about 1.66 1.20.

. B. u. umbelloi‘des. (Lat. umbella, as above defined, and Gr. eidos, eidos, resemblance.)

Gray Rurrep Grouse. A variety of the last, of very different tone of color in its extreme
development, but shading into the common Ruffed by insensible degrees in Brit. Am. When
fully manifested, as follows: Lower back, rump, upper tail-coverts and tail slate-gray, with
little if any brown tinge; the feathers of the back and rump with light gray cordate or arrow-
headed spots narrowly bordered with black, the tail-feathers finely vermiculated with black, and
with a broad subterminal black zone. Ruffle glossy greenish-black. Under parts whitish, more
or less tinged with tawny-brown, with several broad brown cross-bars on each feather, largest
and most distinct on the long feathers of the sides, some of which have also white shaft lines ;
heavy feathers of flanks and vent mostly whitish, unmarked. Feathers of fore-neck and scap-
ulars blended with gray, rich reddish-brown, ochrey-brown, and white, in indescribable con-
fusion. Most of the wing-coverts with white shaft-lines. Hen with the ruffle less developed,
varied with brown and white. General tone more rufous than in the cock. Rocky Mt. region,
U. S., running into both the other varieties. . :
B. sabi/nii. (To J. Sabine.) Rep Rurrep Grouse. OrreGon Rurrep Grouse. More
nearly resembling the common ruffed grouse, but the coloration more heavily brown, — darker
and richer. More blackish to the brown, and the latter almost chestnut in well-marked cases.
Pacific coast region, Oregon to Alaska.
LAGO'PUS. (Gr. Aayorous, lagopous, Lat. lagopus, hare-foot: the densely-feathered feet
resemble those of rabbits.) Prarmican. Snow Grouse. No peculiar feathers on head or
neck. Tarsi and toes densely feathered. Tail short, little rounded, normally of 14 broad
feathers, with long upper coverts, some of which resemble rectrices, the central pair of these
usually reckoned as rectrices, making 16. A naked red comb over eye. Boreal and alpine
grouse, shaped nearly as in Canace, remarkable for the seasonal changes of plumage, becoming
in winter snow-white (excepting the British insular race). There are only five or six species,
at most, and probably fewer; we certainly have the three here given.
‘
Analysis of Species.
Tail black at all seasons. °
The summer plumage mostly rich chestnut or orange-brown, and black. In winter, no black stripe

on head, Bill stout . . ‘ ; 8 Satine ae . . albus 568
The summer plumage wholly brownish-yellow and black, except on wings and tail. In winter a black
stripeon head. Billslender . «2... 1. 1. ee ee et te te rupestris 669

Tai) white at all seasons.
The summer plumage ochrey-brown and black. In winter entirely white. . . . . » leweurus 570

568.

586 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINA — ALECTOROPODES.

L, al‘bus. (Lat. albus, white. Figs. 403, 404.) Win~Ltow Grouse. WiLLow PTARMIGAN.
Bill very stout and convex, its depth at base as much as the distance from nasal fossa to tip;
whole culmen 0.75; bill black at all seasons. g@ 9, in winter: Snow white; 14 tail-feathers!
black, white-tipped ; the middle pair (which most resemble and perhaps are true rectrices, hav-
ing no after-shafts) together with all the coverts, one pair of which reach to end of tail, white;
shafts of several outer wing-quills black ;.no black stripe on head. @, in summer: The head

if

| : :
K

Fie. 403. — Willow Ptarmigan, summer plumage, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

and fore parts rich chestnut or orange-brown, more tawny-brown on back and rump; the richer
brown parts sparsely, the tawny-brown more closely, barred with black ; most of the wings and
under parts remaining white. similar, wholly colored excepting the wings, the color more
tawny than in the g, and more heavily, closely, and uniformly barred with black. Length
15.00-17.00; wing about 8.00; tail 5.50. Arctic and Northern N. Am. from ocean to ocean,
into the northernmost U. §. Eggs very heavily colored, with bold confluent blotches of intense
burnt sienna color, upon a more or less reddish-tinted buff ground. All the eggs of birds of this
family are colorless when the shell first forms high in the oviduct, acquiring pigment as they
pass down; in the ptarmigan, where the coloring is so heavy, an egg cut from the pigment-

569.

TETRAONIDA — TETRAONINZ:: GROUSE. 587

secreting part of the passage is as if covered with fresh paint, soft and sticky, which may be
rubbed uff before it ‘‘sets” on the shell. Size 1.80 « 1.20.

L. rupes/tris. (Lat. rupestris, relating to rupis, a rock; rupestrine.) Rock PTARMI@AN.
Bill slenderer for its length than that of L. albus, its depth at base less than the distance from
nasal fossa to tip; whole culmen 0.67; bill always black. @ 9, in winter: As in L. albus,
but a black transocular stripe on side of head. @ 9, in summer: The whole plumage, excepting
the wings and tail, barred with blackish-brown and brownish-yellow. Rather smaller than the

Fia. 404. — Willow Ptarmigan, winter plumage, } nat, size. (From Brehm.)

foregoing. Length 14.00-15.00; wing 7.00-7.50; tail 4.50. Arctic America, not S. to the
U. 8. Eggs 18-15 or more, like those of Z. albus, but darker and rather smaller; size
1.70 X 1.18. “The summer plumage is assumed at variable periods of the months of April,
May, and even in early June, according to the locality. The moult for the summer is usually
shown first on the head and neck, followed by the lower back, sides, breast, middle back, flanks,
and abdomen, in the order named. The abdomen and chin are the last areas to show the com-
plete moult. The parts named also assume, in the order given, the white winter plumage.
During the time of the summer plumage scarcely a single day passes that the general color of
the feathers is not modified by the appearance or loss of some feather.” (Turner.) Hence the
difficulty if not impossibility of establishing races of this species upon color, as the amount of
barring, vermiculation, or nebulation with dusky, tawny, and gray is incessantly changing in

570.

588 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINZ — ALECTOROPODES.

the same individuals; and birds taken at different dates in the summer, in the same locality,
may differ from one another more than specimens from different regions, representing several
alleged varieties, are always found to do. The American bird, in
fact, is scarcely distinguishable from the European L. mutus or alpinus.
The Greenland bird has been called L. reinhardti by Brehm. That
of the Aleutian Islands, L. imutus atkensis, Turner. The latter is
said to have the bill and claws about 0.10 longer than usual.

L. leucu/rus. (Gr. Aevkds, leucos, white ; ovpd, oura, tail. Fig. 405.)
WHITE-TAILED Prarmican. Rocky Mountain Snow Grouse.
é ¢,in winter: Entirely snow-white ; bill black, rather slender, and
general size and proportions nearly as in L. rupestris. @ 9, in sum-
mer: Tail, most of the wing, and lower parts
from the breast, remaining white; rest of the
plumage minutely marked with black, white,
and tawny or grayish-brown, varying in pre-
cise character almost with every specimen; but
there is no difficulty in recognizing this white-
tailed species, of alpine distribution in West-
ern N. A. from the Arctic regions to New
Mexico (lat. 37°). In summer, inhabits the
mountain ranges from timber-line to the high-
est peaks, in winter ranging lower down.
Eggs very different from the heavily-painted
ones of L. albus, of dull creamy complexion,
minutely dotted over the whole surface with
burnt-sienna, few of the markings exceeding :
a pin’s head in size, and not thick enough Fie. 405. — White-tailed Ptarmigan; upper, in sum-
to obscure the ground-color; shape purely ™? ats cari ian ata at

ovoidal, greatest diameter near the middle; size 1.70 X 1.14; number variable, about a dozen.

ESS aa

53. Subfamily ODONTOPHORIN:: American Partridges and Quails.

Head completely feathered, and usually crested,
the crest frequently assuming a remarkable shape.
Nasal fosse not filled with feathers, the nostrils
covered with a naked scale. Tarsi and toes naked,
the latter scarcely or not fringed, the former scu-
tellate. Size smaller than in Tetraonine.

Our Partridges may be distinguished, among
American Galline, by the foregoing characters, but
not from those of the Old World; and it is highly
improbable that, as a group, they are separable from

at £ all the forms of the latter by any decided peculiari-
Wr aN tle i Ge, ties. _The principal supposed character, namely, a
> os SW toothing of the under mandible, is very faintly
indicated in some forms, and entirely wanting in
Fra. 406, — European Partridge. (From Dixon.) others, Pending final issue, however, it is expe-
dient to recognize the group, so strictly limited geographically, if not otherwise. Several
beautiful and important genera occur within our limits, but these Partridges are most numerous
in species in Central and South America. Odontophorus is the leading genus, with perhaps
15 species; Hupsychortyx and Dendrortyx are other extra-limital forms; and in all, some

210.

571.

TETRAONIDZ — ODONTOPHORINZ: PARTRIDGES OR QUAIL. 589

forty-odd species are known. In habits, they agree more or less completely with the well
known Bob-white. Our species are apparently monogamous, and go in small flocks, called
“‘eoveys,” usually consisting of the members of one family; they are terrestrial, but take to the
trees on occasion; nest on the ground, laying numerous white or speckled eggs; are chiefly
granivorous, but also feed on buds, soft fruits, and insects; and are non-migratory.

Analysis of Genera.

An inconspicuous crest, scarcely visible except in life. Tail about 3 as long as the wing. Coloration

everywhere variegated. (One species) . . Bee, aes as LAY OS, uae nay Sew gare ey Ortyx 210
A short, soft, full crest. Tail ¢ the wing. Coloration much the same all over, showing curious semi-

circular markings. (Onespecies} ... . mots F 7 . ee ew ee Callipepla 218
A long, slender, arrowy crest, two or three inches long, of two narrowly linear feathers. Tail ? as long as

the wing: Parti-colored, but the coloration chiefly in masses. (One species). . , . . +. - Orortyx 211
A long, recurved, helmet-like crest, of several imbricated plumes, enlarged at the extremity. Tail%as

long as the wing. Coloration chiefly in masses. (Twospecies) . . . eae . « . Lophortyx 212
A short, soft, full crest. Tail scarcely 4 as long as the wing. Coloration peculiar, in round, white spots

on the under parts of the ¢. (One species). Bion Sebo eee Be ce Ua gat Pe ae ees . . . Cyrtonyx 214
As all these genera have each but a single species in this country, excepting Lophortyx, the foregoing is

nearly equivalent to a determination of the species.

OR/TYX. (Gr. éprvé, ortux, a quail.)
Feathers of crown lengthened and erec-
tile, but hardly forming a true crest.
Tail about 2 as long as the wing.
Outstretched feet reaching beyond end
of tail. Coloration much variegated ;
a reddish-brown varied with black
and white the leading color. Eggs
white, pyriform, numerous. Fie. 407.— Bill and foot of Ortyz, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

Analysis of Varieties.
Length of g, 10 inches or rather more; extent 15 or more; wing 4.50 or more. Bill blackish-brown.
Ground color dull pinkish-red with narrow black bars below .°. ... . + +. + + Virginiana 571
Length of ¢, scarcely 10 inches; extent under 15; wing scarcely or not 4.50. Bill jet black. Ground
color dark reddish, with much broader black bars below. . . . x + . floridana 672

Length etc. as in floridana. Ground color paler than in virginiana, with numerous black bars, and
increase of ashy and tawny . ir nsdih Geb Bs ea cnet ann a + + + texana 573

Fig. 408. — Mr. and Mrs. Bob White, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
O. virginia/na. (Of Virginia. Figs. 407, 408, 409.) Vuirainra PARTRIDGE, or ‘ QUAIL.”
Bos;wuiTs. ‘Quait:” New England, wherever the Ruffed Grouse is called ‘ partridge.”

590 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLIN 4 — ALECTOROPODES.

“ PaRTRIDGE:” Southern and Middle States, wherever the Ruffed Grouse is called ‘‘ pheasant.”
&: Forehead, superciliary line, and throat, white, bordered with black ; crown, neck all round,
and upper part of breast, browuish-red ; other under parts tawny-whitish, all with more or fewer
doubly-crescentic black bars; crissum rufous; sides broadly striped with brownish-red; upper
parts variegated with chestnut, black, gray and tawny, the latter edging the inner quills, form-
ing a continuous line when the wing is closed. 9 : Known by having the throat buff instead of
white, less black about the fore-parts, and general coloration subdued. The reddish of this bird is
of a peculiar dull pinkish shade. The black crescents of the wuder parts are scarcely or not half
the width of the intervening white spaces; the bill is not jet black. Length of ¢ 10.00-10.50 ;

\ >

Fig. 409, — The Bob White family. (From “Sport with Gun and Rod;”’ The Century Co., N. Y.)

extent 15.00-15.50; wing 4.50 to nearly 5.00; tail 2.75-3.00. 9 9.50-10.00; extent 14.50-
15.00; wing 4.25-4.50; tail 2.50-2.75. Among the thousands of Bob-whites yearly destroyed,
albinotic or melanotic, and other abnormally colored specimens, are frequently found; but the
percentage of these cases is nothing unusual, and the sportsman must be cautioned against sup-
posing that such birds have any status, in a scientific point of view, beyond their illustration of
certain perfectly well known variations. Such specimens, however, are interesting and valuable,
and should always be preserved. 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). The characteristic game bird of this country. Eggs
indefinitely numerous, pure white, pointed at one end and very blunt at the other, about
1.30 X 1.00.

TETRAONIDZi — ODONTOPHORINZZ: PARTRIDGES OR QUAIL. 591

572. O. v. floridana, (Of Florida.) Fuorrpa Quam. Rather smaller, the ¢ about the size of

573.

* 211.

the 2 virginiana, but bill relatively larger, and jet-black ; colors darker, all the black mark-
ings heavier, those of the under parts nearly as broad as the intervening white spaces. Florida,
and similar specimens in the lower Mississippi Valley; an approach to the Cuban form
(O. cubanensis).

O. v. texa/na, (Of Texas.) Texas Quai. Size of floridana ; colors paler, the prevailing
shade rather gray than brown ; upper parts much variegated with tawny. Eggs 1.20 X 0.93.
These two are mere climatic varieties of one species.

OROR’TYX. (Gr. dpos, oros, a mountain ; gprvé, ortux, a quail.) PLumey Quart. Head
adorned with an arrowy crest of two slender keeled plumes, 3-4 inches long in the g when
full-developed; present in 9, shorter. Bill and feet stout; tarsus equal to the middle toe and

_ daw. Tail about 2 the wing, broad, rounded, with long coverts. Size large; colors massed

in large areas; sexes alike. Eggs colored. One species.

574. O. pic'ta. (Lat. picta, pictured, painted. Fig. 411.) PLumep Parrripce. Mounrain Quan

212.

of the Californians. @9, adult: Back, wings and tail
olive-brown, the inner secondaries and tertiaries bordered
with whitish or tawny, forming a lengthwise border in
single line when the wings are folded; the primaries fus-
cous, the tail-feathers fuscous, minutely marbled with
the color of the back.
Fore - parts, above
and below, slaty-
blue (above more or
less glossed with
the olive shade of
the back, below mi-
nutely marbled with
black) ; the throat
chestnut, immedi-
ately bordered lat-
erally with black,
then framed in a
firm white line,
broken through the
eye, reappearing
Fic. 410.—Helmet Quail (LZ. gambeli). around base of un- . Fie. 411.—Plumed Quail. (From Ten-
nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) der mandible. Ex- 2°” after Audubon. )
treme forehead whitish. The arrow-plumes. black. Belly chestnut, the sides banded with
broad bars of black and white, or rufous-white; middle of the lower belly, tibia, and flanks,
whitish or rufous; crissum velvety-black, streaked with chestnut. Bill dusky, paler below;
feet brown. Length 11.00-12.00; extent 16.00-17.00; wing 5.00-5.50; tail 3.00-3.50; tarsus
1.67; middle toe and claw about the same. An elegant species, much larger and more beauti-
ful than the Bob-white, inhabiting the mountainous parts of Oregon, California and Nevada.
The relative extent of the olive and slaty parts is very variable. There is something of a
grouse in the composition of this partridge. Egg a miniature of the ruffed grouse’s, only dis-
tinguished by smaller size — 1.40 x 1.10.
LOPHOR'TYX. (Gr. Addos, lophos, a crest; dprué, ortux, a quail.) Hetmer QUAIL.
With an elegant crest, recurved helmet-wise, of several (6-10) keeled, clubbed, glossy-black,
imbricated feathers, more than an inch long when fully developed; in the 9, smaller, of fewer
feathers. Tarsus slightly shorter than middle toe and claw. Tail about ¢ as long as the wing;

592 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —GALLIN A — ALECTOROPODES.

outstretched feet not reaching to its end. Bulk of the Bob-white, but longer; 10.00-11.50;
wing 4.00 or more; tail 3.00 or more. Coloration chiefly in masses; sexes unlike. ¢ with
the chin and throat jet-black, sharply bordered with white; a white line across the vertex and
along the sides of the crown, bordered behind by black; 9 without these head-markings.
Eggs colored. Two elegant species in the U. 8.

Analysis of Species.
do middle of belly orange-chestnut ; sides like back, with white stripes ; hind-head smoky-brown ; fore-
head chiefly whitish, with white loralline . . . . ..... a op tel . californica 576
do middle of belly jet-black ; sides chestnut with white stripes; hind-head chestnut ; fore-head chiefly
black ; no white loral line ot Sr ae we Bisecay uoeses <a gambeli 576

ey
7)

Fig. 412. California Helmet Quail, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

575. L. californica, (Lat. Californian. Fig. 412.) CALIFORNIAN ParTRipGE. VALLEY QUAIL
of the Californians. g: With a small white line from bill to eye ; forehead whitish with black
lines; occiput smoky-brown ; nuchal and cervical feathers with very dark edging and shaft-lines,
and fine whitish speckling. General color of upper parts ashy, with strong olive-brown gloss,
the edging of the inner quills brownish-orange. Fore breast slaty-blue ; other under parts tawny,
deepening centrally into rich golden-brown or orange-chestnut, all the feathers sharply edged
with jet-black ; sides olive-ashy like the back, with sharp white stripes; vent, flanks, and
erissum tawny, with dark stripes. Length 10.00-11.00; wing 4.25; tail 3.75; tarsus 1.25;
middle toe and claw rather more. Besides lacking the definite head-markings, the Q wants
the rich sienna color of the under parts, which are whitish or tawny with black semicircles

576.

218.

577.

TETRAONIDZ — ODONTOPHORINZ:: PARTRIDGES OR QUAIL. 593

as in the ¢; the breast is olive-gray. The changes of plumage are parallel with those of L.
gambeli. Lower portions of California and Oregon; E. nearly to the Colorado River; abun-
dant. A fine species, entirely distinct from the next, but habits and manners in all respects
the same; replaces L. gambeli westward. Eggs speckled, as in the next.

L. gam/beli. (To Wm. Gambel. Fig. 410.) Gampen’s ParTripGe. ARIZONA QUAIL.
3: Without white loral line; forehead black with whitish lines; occiput chestnut ; nuchal and
cervical feathers with dark shaft lines, but few dark edgings or none, and no white speckling.
General color of upper parts clear ash, the edging of the inner quills white. Fore-breast like
the back ; other under parts whitish, the middle of the belly with a large jet-black patch; sides
rich purplish-chestnut, with sharp white stripes; vent, flanks and ecrissum white with dusky
streaks. Bil black; iris brown. Besides lacking the definite head-markings, the 9 wants the
black abdominal area, where the feathers are whitish with dark lengthwise touches; crest dark
brown, not recurved, and fewer-feathered than that of the cock. Top of head grayish-brown,
nearly uniform froin bill to nape; throat grayish-white with slight dark pencilling. Chicks,
in the down: Bill above reddish, nearly white below; feet dull flesh-color. Head dingy
yellowish, with a large brown spot on the occiput, a few black, white-streaked feathers on

‘ erown, and the crest sprouting in a week or two. Upper parts grayish-brown mottled with

black spots, and conspicuously striped with white lines. Outer webs of the sprouting quills
marked with blackish and whitish. Throat white; other under parts narrowly barred with
black and tawny-white, striped lengthwise with pure white. Sprouting tail-feathers like the
primaries. Pullets, quarter-grown, 6-7 inches long: Leaden-gray, becoming tawny on the
wings, which are still a little mottled as above described ; below, light gray, nearly white on
throat and belly. Breast waved with light and dark gray, with traces of the white stripes.
Sides under the wings slightly fulvous or rufescent, but without definite stripes. Quills plain
dusky; tail-feathers more plumbeous, marked with blackish and whitish. A broad white
superciliary line. With the progress of the fall moult this dress changes for one like that of
the adults, and the sexes are soon distinguishable. Eggs 1.25 1.00, pyramidal, narrow and
pointed at one end, very obtuse the other; color buff or rich creamy, dotted and spotted all
over with bright brown, splashed here and there with large blotches of the same; number in
definite — 8-12 or more. Nest like that of any other partridge. New Mexico and Arizona,
both id mountains and valleys, very abundant; E. to Pecos and San Elizario, Texas, beyond
which replaced by the Massena partridge; W. to Colorado R. and slightly beyond; N. to
Utah; S. into Mexico. The characteristic game bird of Arizona.
CALLIPEP'LA. (Gr. caddurémXos, kallipeplos, beautifully arrayed.) SHett Quarw. General
character of Lophortyx, but head with a short, full, soft crest as in the Massena quail (fig. 413).
Colgration of under parts producing a shelly or scaly appearance. Sexes nearly alike. Eggs
not heavily colored. One U. 8. species.
C. squama'ta. (Lat. squamata, squamous, scale-like.) Scatep Partripce. BLUE
Quam. , adult: General color bluish-plumbeous, shading into olive-brown on the back
and wings and to rufous on the under parts behind the wings, with a large abdominal area of
orange-brown ; the feathers of the neck all around, and most of those of the under parts,
sharply edged with black, producing a peculiar shell-like appearance; on the breast the
feathers also with concealed reddish shaft-lines. Long feathers of the sides like the back in
color, with white brown-edged stripes or long-oval spots. On the flanks and crissum the
feathers lose the scaly appearance, becoming blended rusty-brown, with linear, sagittate, or
cordate dark spots. Inner secondaries edged with buff or whitish, affording to the folded wing
the lengthwise stripe so characteristic of N. A. partridges. Quills plain fuscous ; tail-feathers
plumbeous. No definite stripes about the head; crest dark brown ending in pure white.
Length 10.00-11.00 ; extent 14.50-15.50; wing 4.50; tail 3.50; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and
claw 1.04. @ little different; head markings the same; the orange-brown of the belly
38

214,

578.

215.

594 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — GALLINZ — ALECTOROPODES.

reduced or wanting; size rather less. Texas, N.M., Ariz. and southward; generally dispersed,
but far less numerous than the top-knot quails, and apparently more southern; extends along
the Rio Grande to about 100 miles from the coast. Eggs 10-12-16, rather elliptical than con-
ical, 1.250.98, white, minutely freckled with buff.

CYRTONYX. (Gr. xvuprés, kurtos, bent, crooked; évvé, onux, nail, claw.) HARLEQUIN
Quan. Bill very stout. Head with a full, soft, depressed occipital crest. Tail very short,
soft, almost hidden by the coverts, scarcely or not half as long as the wings. Wing-coverts
and inner quills highly developed, folding entirely over the primaries. Feet small; tarsus
rather shorter than middle toe and claw ; toes short, but with remarkably developed claws. A
very distinct genus. Plumage of head of ¢ curiously striped; of under parts ocellated. ‘Sexes
very unlike. :

C. masse'na. (To André Massena, Prince D’Essling and Marshal of France. Fig. 413.) Mas-
SENA PartTripGE. gt, adult: Upper parts intimately waved with black and reddish-brown
and tawny-brown, and marked with sharp buff or whitish shaft-lines ; on the wings the irregular
black variegation changing to black bars and round spots, in regular paired series on each
feather. Outer quills fuscous, their outer webs
spotted with white or. buff. Under parts crowded
with innumerable round white spots on a dark
ground, several pairs on each feather; the middle
line of the breast and belly mahogany-colored,
the flanks, vent, and crissum velvety-black. Top
of head black in front, with slight white touches,
changing on the crest to brown. Sides of head
and throat fantastically striped -with black and
white; a broad black throat-patch ; another on
the cheeks, across lores and alongside of crown ;
a third on the ear-coverts ; a fourth bordering the
white all around behind. Length about 9.00;
extent 17.00; wing 4.75; tail 2.00; tarsus 1.20:
middle toe and claw 1.60; its claw alone 0.50

Q, adult: Upper parts as in the ¢, but the markings of the wings less regular, more assimi

lated with the general variegation, and the tone more fulvous. No peculiar marks on head,
throat whitish or buff; general tone of the under parts pale purplish-cinnamon, with fine
mottling of black and white on each feather. Young g¢ : Resembling the hen, but the undet
parts ochrey or whitish with black variegation. Chicks, scarcely fledged, 3-4 inches long -
Bill reddish above, whitish below; feet dull brownish. Above, light warm brown, varied
with black, boldly striped with white — each feather having a hammer-headed white shaft-
line. Some inner wing-quills like the back ; others dusky with whitish shafts, broken-barred
with buff, chiefly on outer webs. Below, buffy-white, with numberless spots of blackish paired
on each feather, sharp and circular on breast, further back widening to bars. A singular
species, very showy in full plumage, inhabiting portions ot Texas, N. M., and Ariz.; in the
latter, W. to Fort Whipple at least.

Fic. 413. — Massena Quail, ¢, nat. size.

[Subfamily PERDICINA:: Old World Partridges and Quail.

It becomes necessary to introduce this group, in consequence of the naturalization of the
imported Migratory or Messina Quail of Europe. I know of no characters to distinguish it
from Odontophorine, and doubt that there are any.]

COTUR'NIX. (Lat. coturnia, a quail; from its note.) Bill smaller and much slenderer than
that of any of the foregoing genera of Odontophoring; nasal fosse feathered, except on the
tumid nasal seale. Wings of moderate length, little vaulted and not rounded, pointed by the

579.

TETRAONIDZAD — PERDICINZA:: OLD WORLD QUAIL. 595

Ist-3d quills, the lst not shorter than the next. First primary emarginate on inner web; 2d
and 3d sinuate on outer web. Tail extremely short and slight, not half as long as the wing,

; pointed, its feathers very soft, the central pair lanceolate. Feet small; tarsus shorter than middle

toe and claw, slightly feathered above in front, with two rows of alternating large scutella in
front, two rows of smaller rounded scales meeting in a ridge behind, the sides filled in with
small plates. Size smaller than that of any of the foregoing species; pattern of coloration
somewhat as in Ortyx ; sexes nearly alike.

C. dactyli/sonans. (Gr. daxrvdos, daktulos, the finger; a metrical measure consisting of a
long and two short syllables; Lat. sonans, sounding. Fig. 414.) Messina QualL. MiaRa-

< hoe
Ny

Fie. 414. —Common Quail of Europe, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

TORY Qualn. ComMon Quam of Europe. Adult ¢ 9: Upper parts variegated with buff
or whitish and black upon a mixed reddish-brown and gray ground, the most conspicuous mark-
ings being sharp lance-linear lengthwise stripes of buff or whitish over most of the upper parts
these dashes mostly edged with black; other less prominent buff or whitish cross-bars, eevee
to a feather, likewise framed in black. Crown mixed brown and black, with sharp median and
lateral buff stripes. Throat white, bounded before by a dark bar curving down behind the
auriculars ; behind, by a necklace of ruddy-brown, blackish, or whitish spots; chin varied with
dark marks in advance of the auricular bar. Under parts fading to whitish from the buff or
pale yellowish-brown breast, without any dark crossbars, but the long feathers of the sides and
flanks with large and conspicuous white shaft-stripes and otherwise variegated with black,

596 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

brown, and buff. Primaries fuscous, spotted with light brown on outer webs; secondaries
similar, but the markings becoming bars on both webs. Tail-feathers brownish-black, much
varied with shaft-lines, cross-bars, and edgings of buff; crissum immaculate, like the abdomen.
Bill dark; feet pale; iris dark brown. Length about 7.00; wing 3.75; tail 1.75; tarsus 1.00;
middle toe and claw rather more. Europe, Asia, ete., recently imported and turned loose in
considerable numbers in the U. S., as in New England; but its permanent naturalization is
still open to question. If one will compare this bird with the bob-white he will see how very
different is the Old World quail from our Ortyx, or any other birds of this country called
“quail ;” but that itresembles Ortyx more nearly than the European partridge, Perdix cinerea,
does; so that, if we must borrow a name from any Old World birds for our species of Ortyz,
Lophortyx, Callipepla, etc., the term ‘ quail’ is rather more appropriate than ‘ partridge.’

VII. Order LIMICOLZ: Shore-birds.

Commonly known as the great “ plover-snipe group,” from the circumstance that the
pluvialine and scolopacine birds form the bulk of the order, which is practically equivalent to
the Charadriomorphe of Huxley. The species average of small size, with rounded or de-
pressed (never extremely compressed) body, and live in open places on the ground, usually by
the water's edge. With rare exceptions, the head is completely feathered ; the general ptery-
losis is of a nearly uniform pattern. The osteological characters are shared to some exteut by
certain swimming birds, as Gulls and Auks; the palate is schizognathous; the nasal bones are
normally schizorhinal; the angle of the mandible is produced into a slender hooked process;
the maxillo-palatines are thin and scroll-like; there are prominent basipterygoid processes;
the rostral bones are slender, often much elongated ; the sternum is usually doubly, sometimes
singly, notched behind ; the earotids are double ; the syringeal muscles not more than one pair.
The physiological nature is precocial and ptilopaedic; the eggs, averaging four, as a rule are
laid on the ground in a rude nest or bare depression; the young hatch clothed and able to run
about. The food is insects, worms, and other small or soft animals, either picked up from the
surface, or probed for in soft sand or mud, or forced to rise by stamping with the feet on the
ground; from this latter circumstance, the birds have been named Calcatores (stampers).
With a few exceptions, the wing is -long, thin, flat and pointed, with narrow stiff primaries,
rapidly graduated from Ist to 10th; secondaries in turn rapidly lengthening from without
inward, the posterior border of the wing thus showing two salient points separated by a deep
emargination. The tail, never long, is commonly quite short, and has from 12 (the usual
number) up to 20 or even 26 feathers (in one remarkable group of Snipe). The legs are
commonly lengthened, sometimes extremely so; rarely quite short, and are usually slender ;
they are indifferently scutellate or reticulate, or both. The feathers rarely reach the suffrago.
The toes are short (as compared with the case of Herons and Rails), the anterior usually semi-
palmate, frequently cleft to the base, only palmate in Recurvirostra and only lobate in Phalaro-
podide. The hinder is always short and elevated, or absent. The length of the phalanges
of the anterior toes decreases from the basal to the penultimate. The lower part of the crus
never has feathers inserted upon it, though the leg may appear feathered to the suffrago,
owing to the length of the feathers. The bill varies much in length and contour, but is almost
always slender, contracted from the frontal region of the skull, and is as long as, or much longer
than, the head, representing the “‘ pressirostral” (pluvialine) and “longirostral” (scolopacine)
types. Furthermore, it is generally in large part, if not entirely, covered with softish skin,
often membranous and sensitive to the very tip, and only rarely hard throughout. The nostril
is generally a slit in the membranous part, and probably never feathered.

Most of the families of this order are well represented in this country, and will be found
fully characterized beyond. The position of Parride is in question, and it probably belongs here
rather than among the families where it is ranged (beyond). There are several outlying or

x

CHARADRITDA — CHARADRIINZ:: PLOVER. 597

inosculating families in the vicinity of Limicole and Alectorides, of uncertain position. The
largest of these is the Bustard family, Otidide, which connects Limicole and Alectorides so
perfectly, that its position has long wavered between these two orders ; the balance of evidence
favors its reference to the latter. The typical families are Charadriide and Scolopacide.

38. Family CHARADRIIDA: Plover.

This is a large and impor-
tant family of nearly a hun-
dred species, of all parts of
the world. Its limits are not
settled, there being a few
forms sometimes referred here,
sometimes made the types of
distinct families. The Glare-
oles (Glareolide) are a re-
markable Old World form,
like long-legged swallows,
with a cuckoo’s bill; the tail
is forked; there are four toes;
the wings are extremely long
and pointed; the tarsi are
scutellate; the middle claw
denticulate. The Coursers
(Cursoriine) ‘are another Old
World type, near the Bus-
tards, of one or two genera
and less than ten species. In both of these the gape of the mouth is longer than in the true
plovers; the hind toe, as usual for this family, is absent in the Coursers. The thick-knees,
(Gdicnemine) are more plover-like birds, with one exception belonging to the Old World,
comprising about eight species of the genera Gidicnemus and Esacus ; they are related to
the Bustards, and most pluvialine birds appear to fall in the

Fic. 415.— A Plover, the European Lapwing, reduced. (From Dixon.)

54. Subfamily CHARADRIINA: True Plover.

Toés generally three, the hinder absent (excepting, among our forms, Squatarola, Vanellus,
and Aphriza) ; tarsus reticulate, longer than the middle toe; toes with a basal web (cleft in
Aphriza) ; tibie naked below. Bill of moderate length, much shorter or not longer than the
head, shaped somewhat like that of a Pigeon, with a convex horny terminal portion, con-
tracted behind this; the nasal fosse rather short and wide, filled with soft skin in which the
nostrils open as a slit, not basal, and perforate. Gapevery short, reaching a little beyond base
of culmen. Wings long and pointed, reaching, when folded, to or beyond the end of the tail,
and sometimes spurred ; crissal feathers long and full; tail short, generally nearly even and of

‘12 feathers; body plump; neck short and thick; head large, globose, sloping rapidly to the

small base of the bill, usually fully feathered. Size moderate or small.

Our species (excepting Aphriza, if really belonging here) are very closely related, and will
be readily recognized by the foregoing characters. There are in all perhaps sixty species.
The most singular of them is the Anarhynchus frontalis, in which the bill is bent sideways.
Thinornis zelandie of New Zealand, Phegornis mitchelli and Oreophilus totanirostris of Chili,
are peculiar forms. Species.of Chettusia, Lobivanellus and Hoplopterus have fleshy wattles,
«* @ uberclé, often developed into a spine, on the wing, or both; some of these, and others,

598 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

are crested. These are all near Vanellus proper, and a part of them are 4-toed. Our species
are found along the seashore, by the water’s edge in other open places, and in dry plains and
fields. They all perform extensive migrations, appearing with great regularity in the spring
and fall, and most of them breed far northward. They are all more or less gregarious, except:
when breeding. They run and fly with great rapidity ; the voice is a mellow whistle; the
food is chiefly of an animal nature. The eggs are commonly four in number, speckled, very
large at one end and pointed at the other, placed with the small ends together in a slight nest
or mere depression in the ground. The sexes are generally similar, but the changes with age

and season are great.
Analysis of Genera.

Toes 4.
Head not crested.
Tarsi scutellate in front ; toes cleft tobase. . . é ei 7 . » + . Aphriza 221
Tarsi reticulate ; toes with basal web . Pte ioe oe fo eo . a . Squatarola 216
4 Head with a long flowing crest . . a 4 4 ‘ ies oe ees - Vanellus 220
‘Toes 3.
Plumage of upper parts speckled; no rings or bands of color about head or neck . . . Charadrius 217

Plumage of upper parts not speckled ; rings or bands of color about head and neck.

Tarsus not nearly twice as long as middle toe withoutclaw .. . . ..+- igialites 218

Tarsus about twice as long as middle toe without claw . . + + + 6 + « Podasocys 219

216. SQUATARO'LA. (Ital. squatarola, name of the species. Fig. 416.) Four-Tozp Piover.

A small but distinct hind toe, contrary to the rule in this family. Tail less than half as long as

wing. ‘Tarsus much longer than middle toe and

claw. Tibia bare below, reticulate like tlte

tarsus. Basal web between outer and middle

toes. Upper plumage speckled, lower black or

white ; no rings or bars of color about head or

neck. Legs dark-colored. Tail fully barred.

Seasonal changes of plumage very great; sexes
alike.

580. S. helvetica. (Lat. Helvetica, Helvetian, Swiss.
Fig. 417.) Swiss PLover. BLACK-BELLIED
PLOVER. BULL-HEAD PLOVER. WHISTLING
Fretp Pirover. Ox-rye. ¢ Q, in summer: Oe
Upper parts fretted with blackish and ashy-white, Fié. 416. — Bill and hind toe of Squatarola, nat.
the feathers being white basally, then black, size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
tipped and usually scalloped with white. Upper tail-coverts mostly white, with few dark
touches. Fore-head, line over eye and thence more broadly over side of neck, the lining of
wings, tibiee, vent and under tail-coverts, white. Sides of head to an extent. embracing the
eyes, axillary plumes, and entire under parts (except as said), black. Tail closely barred with
black and white. Primaries dark brown, blackening at tips, with large basal areas and a
portion of their shafts, white. Bill and feet black. Length 11.00-12.00; wing 7.00-7.50;
tail 3.00; bill 1.00-1.25; tarsus 2.00; middle toe and claw 1.33; tibiee bare 1.00. But such
a bird as this rarely seen in the U.S. @ 9, old, in fall and winter, as usually seen in U. 8.
Under parts white or whitish, anteriorly speckled or mottled with grayish-brown; axillary
plumes, however, black, as before; a good color-mark of the species, in any plumage, in com-
parison with the golden plover. Birds changing show every mixture of black and white below.
3 @, young: Similar to winter adults, but upper parts speckled with golden-yellow, as in
C. dominicus, most of the feathers having edgings of this color. Feet grayish-blue. A large
stout plover, with a little hind toe, commonly diffused over most parts of the world: in America,
breeding in Arctic regions, flocking south and north in fall and spring, preferably coastwise ;
common, but less so than C. dominicus. Eggs 4, pyriform, 1.90 to 2.30 long by 1.40 to 1.45
broad ; drab or dark brownish clay-color, very heavily marked, especially on the larger half of

e

217.

381.

CHARADRIDA: CHARADRIINA: PLOVER. 599

-
,

the shell, with irregular blotches of brownish-black, smaller spots being more-thinly distributed
over the rest of the surface; the markings about the great end usually confluent and wreathy ;
a few pale markings in the
shell. :

CHARA!DRIUS. (Gr.
xapadpros, charadrios, Lat.
charadrius, a plover.)
GoLDEN PLovers. Char-
acters as in Squatarola,
but no hind toe. (This
is the type-genus of the
wholefamily. The several
species are closely related :
to our long known golden
plover have lately been
added as birds of N. A.
both the European species
and the Asiatic variety ;
the former from its oceur-
rence in Greenland, the Fig. 417. — Black-bellied Plover, in summer, reduced. (From Lewis.)

latter in Alaska. U. S. birds are all C. dominicus, — the C. virginicus of most authors.)

Analysis of Species,
Lining of wings ashy.

Length 10.00-11.00 ; wing 7.00; tail3.00; tarsus1.75 . . . 1... 1. + 1... -dominicus 581
Length 9.00-10.00; wing 6.50; tail 2.50; tarsus1.60.... . . Se % see ww + fulwus 582
Lining of wings white... .... c . Bh Ow | pluvialis 583

C. domi/nicus. (Lat. dominicus, of St. Dorian, “Fig. 418.) ‘Manna GOLDEN PLOVER.
FIELD PLOVER. BULL-HEAD PLOVER. BULL-HEAD. ¢ Q, in summer: Upper parts black,
everywhere speckled with golden-yellow, and mostly also with white, the brighter color in excess.
The markings of individual feathers are a tipping and one or several paired scallops. Hind neck
less strongly marked than crown or back. ‘Forehead, and long stripe over eye snowy-white.
Region immediately around bill, sides of head to include eyes, and entire under parts, glossy
brownish-black. Lining of wings, and axil-
lars, sooty-gray or ashy. Tail dusky grayish-
brown, with numerous irregular pale gray bars,
and reddish-brown shafts; upper tail-coverts
and rump like back. Primaries fuscous, black-
ening at tips and whitening at bases of inner
webs, though without definite white spaces ;
shafts white for a space. Secondaries and
many of the coverts, like the primaries, plain
fuscous, without the golden and white fretwork
of the back. Bill and feet black. Length
10.00-11.00; extent 22.50; wing 7.00; tail
3.00; bill 0.90; tibie bare 1.00; tarsus 1.75;
middle toe and claw 1.20. @ 9, in winter,
and young, much alike, very different from the

Fig. 418.— Golden Plover, in fall or winter, reducea, DTeeding dress: Upper parts much as before,
(From Nuttall,after —?) but colors not so pure and intense; and spot-
ting mostly golden, with little white if any. Front and line over eye not purely white, but
tawny, with dusky streaks. Tail lacking transverse bars, the feathers being dark grayish-

582.

583.

218.

584

600 SYSTEMATIC SYN OPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

brown with white or yellow edging and notching. Axillars and lining of wings ashy-gray as
in summer ; but, as in Squatarola, the chief difference is in the under parts, which have no black,
being grayish-white, clearest on chin, belly, and crissum, the throat and sides of head streaked,
the breast and sides of neck and body mottled, with dark grayish-brown. Legs not perfectly
black. This is the state in which the golden plover is generally seen in the U. S., though
beautiful black-bellied birds may be found late in the vernal migration. N. Am. at large;
breeds in the Arctic regions; passes N. and §. in great waves, in spring and fall, affording fine
sport at the latter season. Eggs 4, similar to those of Squatarola, smaller, and usually paler
clay color, sometimes whitish ; markings of same tone and pattern; size 1.80-2.00 x 1.35-
1.40. This is the usual ‘field plover” of sportsmen; a well-known and highly-esteemed
game-bird. ‘

C. d. ful/vus, (Lat. fulvus, yellowish.) AstaTic GOLDEN PLover. Similar; more suffused
with yellow on head, especially along the superciliary stripe; smaller; length about 9.50;
wing 6.50 ; tail 2.60; tarsus 1.60; middle toe and claw 1.10; bill 0.95. Alaska, from Asia.

c. pluvia/lis. (Lat. pluvialis, rainy.) EUROPEAN GoLpEN PLover. Like C. dominicus,
and of same size. Lining of wings white. Greenland, from Europe.

JEGIA‘LITES. (Gr. aiyadirns, a doer by the sea.) Rinc Provers. A genus not easy to
define with precision, owing to the differences in details of form which the numerous species
present. Best distinguished from Charadrius by color: upper parts not speckled; lower never
extensively black. Bars or rings of color about head and neck. Sexes usually distinguishable,
though similar. Tarsus not twice as long as middle toe without claw. Plates of front of tarsus
tending to enlarge in two or three special rows, instead of uniform reticulation. We have 5
perfectly good N. American species, a variety of one of these (?), and two European estrays.

Analysis of Species (adult males).

Bill entirely black.
Rump chestnut; two black bands on throat and breast . . . . 1... ee + +e + vociferus 584
Rump plain; one black band on breast. Billstout. . . .. 1... . 6 + « « . Wwilsonius 685
Rump plain; no complete black bars on breast. Billslender . . ..... +++ +. mivosus 691

Bill orange or yellow, black-tipped ; or black with orange at base.
Semipalmate; web between inner and middle toe evident, that between outer and middle reaching
to end of second joint of middle.
Heavy black bands on head and neck; colored ring roundeye. . . . + « . semipalmatus 586
No evident web between inner and middle toe; that between outer and middle only reaching to end
of first joint of middle.
Heavy black bands on head and neck; one on side of head.

No colored ring round eye. Wing about5.00... . sh Recs: oe can hiaticula 589

A colored ring round eye; wing under 4.50... e & Brie iee yee SS curonicus 590
No black band on side of head; colored ring round eye.

Ring around neck incomplete 8 Wee Aa ee ei ee ee ww + Melodus 58T

Ring around neck complete . ....-+.+. a fet we Pee circumcinctus 588

4, voci'ferus. (Lat. vociferus, voice-bearing, noisy. Fig. 419.) Kirprer Puover. ¢ 9,
adult : Above, grayish-brown, with an olive shade, and in high plumage a slight bronzy lustre.
Rump and upper tail-coverts bright-colored, very variable in tint, from tawny or orange-brown
to cinnamon-brown or chestnut. Forehead with a white band from eye to eye, more or less
prolonged as a superciliary streak, and a black band above it. A white collar around hind
neck, continuous with white of the throat. A black collar around back of neck, continuous.
with a black pectoral band. Back of the latter a black pectoral belt. Thus the fore-parts are
encircled with one complete black ring, behind which is a black half-ring on breast, before
which is a complete white ring. A white stripe over and behind eye; a dusky stripe below
eye. Under parts entirely pure white, except the two pectoral belts. Primary quills blackish ;
a white space on the outer webs of most of them, forming an oblique series, and a longer white
space on their inner webs. Secondaries mostly white, but with black areas in increasing size
from within outward. Long inner secondaries, or tertiaries, like the back. Tail-feathers singu-

CHARADRIIDZE — CHARADRIINZ: PLOVER. 601

larly variegated; several inner pairs like the back, insensibly blackening towards ends, then
lightening again, and usually with rusty tips; lateral ones gaining more and more of the bright
color of the rump, with more definite black subterminal bars, and pure white tips; outermost
pair mostly white, with the rufous shade, and several broken black bars. The effect of all this
variegation is very striking when the parts are displayed in flight. Bill black; eye black,
with a bright ring around it; legs pale. Length 9.00-10.00; extent 20.00; wing 6.00; tail 3.50-
4.00, proportionally longer and more rounded than usual in this genus; bill 0.80; tibize bare
0.50; tarsus 1.40; middle toe and claw1.12. ¢9, young: The black bands replaced by gray >
upper parts duller and more grayish ; and when quite young the feathers of the upper parts
spotted with rusty brown; rump pale, markings of tail incomplete; but the birds speedily
acquire a plumage like that of the adults. Downy young: Above, gray with a ruddy tinge ;
a ring round top of head, aring round neck,
a stripe down back, and another on each
side of the colored area, black ; collar round
back of neck, forehead, and ends of wing-
tufts, white; tail-tuft and bill black — queer
little creatures, readily recognized. N. Am.
at large, very abundant, breeding anywhere ;
abounds in the West. Not gregarious nor
maritime ; extensively but somewhat ir-
regularly migratory. A very noisy bird —
the curious name is derived from its shrill
two-syllabled whistle, like kil-deer! kil-
deer! Nest anywhere in the grass or
shingle near water. Eggs 4, about 1.50 x
1.12, of usual wading-bird shape ; ground
varying from drab through clay-color to
creamy, marked in endless variation with
blackish-brown. Kildeers’ eggs and those of Tringoides macularius do excellent duty in boys’
and amateurs’ cabinets for those of most small waders.

. 4, wilso/nius. (To Alexander Wilson.) Wuson’s Putover. Adult ¢ 9: Above, pale
ashy-gray (dry-sand color), the feathers with still paler edges, the shade tending to fulvous on
the nape and hind neck. A narrow black band across vertex, not reaching to eyes, being cut
off by white of the forehead which extends backward over each eye to nape. A blackish loral
stripe, not prolonged behind eye, not meeting its fellow oyer base of bill, where the white fore-
head comes down to the bill. A black half-ring on the foreneck, not completed around back
of neck. White of throat passing around hind-neck as a slight collar. Under parts, excepting
the black bar, entirely white. Primaries blackish, bleaching towards bases on inner webs, the
short inner ones also with white on outer webs. Shaft of lst primary almost entirely white ;
of others brown, then a long white space, then blackening at end. Secondaries, excepting the
long inner ones, mostly white on inner webs, dark on outer. Middle and intermediate tail-
feathers like back, growing dusky toward ends, nearly all with white tips, and the outer one
or two white. No colored ring roundeye. Bill entirely black ; extremely large and stout. Legs
flesh-colored ; outer toe semipalmate, inner cleft. Length 7.00-8.00; wing 4.50-5.00; tail
2.00, nearly square ; tarsus about 1.10; middle toe and claw 0.90; bill 0.90, not much shorter
than head. Young: Similar; no black on vertex or lore; a broad band of the color of the
back across the neck in front. Seacoast of 8. Atlantic and Gulf States, common; N. to the
middle districts, and rarely to New England; also on the Pacific side to California? 5S. in
winter into S. Am. Eggs laid on the bare shingle of the beach ; usually 3, 1.22 to 1.45 long,
1.00 to 1.05 broad, pale olive-drab, more greenish in some cases, more clay-colored in others,

Fie. 419. — Kildeer Plover, nat. size. (Ad. nat. del. E.C.)

586.

587.

588.

602 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZE.

thickly marked all over with blackish-brown in irregular sharply-defined spots, splashes and
fine dots. Note low, piping, and rather plaintive.

48. semipalma'tus. (Lat. semi, half; palmatus, palmated: the species is remarkably distin-
guished by the extent of the half-webbing between the toes.) SEMIPALMATED PLOVER.
Ring Puover. Rine-neck. ¢ 9, adult: Upper parts uniform dark ashy-gray (wet-sand
color) ; under parts pure white. A broad black ring encircling the neck. In advance of this
awhite half-collar around back of neck, spreading into the white of the throat. A white
frontal bar, entirely surrounded by black: 7. e. a black coronal bar and black stripe along lore
and side of head, meeting its fellow over base of upper mandible. Primaries blackish, with
narrow. white spaces reduced to a portion of the shaft alone on the outer primary ; secondaries
largely white, and greater coverts white-tipped ; tertiaries like the back. Tail like back,
the feathers insensibly blackening toward their ends, most of them white-tipped, the outer-
most nearly all white. An orange ring round eye, very bright. Bill black, with orange base ;
legs yellowish. Web between outer and middle toe reaching to end of the second joint of the
latter. Length about 7.00 ; extent 15.00-15.50; wing 4.75-5.00 ; tail 2.25, rounded ; bill 0.50;
tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw the same. Young: No black coronal bar, the white of fore-
head reaching bill and eyes, and prolonged over the latter; neck-ring and loral stripe gray,
not black; bill mostly black. Upper parts with slight whitish or rusty edging of the feathers.
Chick : Upper parts mottled with gray, black, and brown, in no special pattern. Collar round
neck and under parts white. N. Am. at large, the most abundant and generally diffused of the
ring-necks, especially plentiful in flocks on the beaches late in the summer and early autumn.
Breeds northward; eggs 2 to 4, like the kildeer’s; only, of course, distinguishable by much
smaller size: length 1.20 to 1.40, by 0.90 to 0.95 in breadth.

#®, melo/dus, (Lat. melodus, melodious.) Pirineg Puover. Paue Rina-neck. 4, adult.
Above, very pale ash, lighter than any other N. A. species. A white half-collar round back of
neck. A black ring behind this, tending to encircle the neck ; but I have seldom seen it com-
plete on the cervix, and as a matter of fact it is seldom complete on the fore-neck either; ordi-
narily a link only on each side of the neck. A black coronal bar from one eye to the other.
Forehead, sides of head, and entire under parts snowy-white, excepting the black on sides of
neck, there being no dark bars on lores or sides of head. Primaries dusky, with large white spaces,
their shafts white for a corresponding extent. Secondaries and greater coverts mostly white;
long tertiaries like back. Upper tail-coverts and bases of tail-feathers white ; the latter black-
ening towards their ends, the outer pair or two entirely white. A colored ring round eye. Bill
yellow, the end beyond the nasal fossze black — very obtuse and short and stout for its length.
Web between outer and middle toe not reaching to end of the basal joint of the latter. Rather
smaller than the last; wing 4. 50-415 ; tail 2.00-2.25 ; pill under 0. 50; tarsus 0.87; middle
toe and claw 0.75. 9, adult: The coronal bar seduced to a trace, dark bine the ringing of
neck reduced to a dusky-gray spot on each side. Young: Resembling 9 as just said, but no
trace of dark color on head and little if any on sides of neck. A very pretty little species, with
its pale dry-sand colored upper parts and stumpy bill; perfectly distinct from the last, with which
it is often associated. U.S. and British Provinces, E. of the R. Mts. (beyond which appar-
ently replaced by A. nivosus) ; abundant along the Atlantic coast of the U. S., breeding N. to the
St. Lawrence, wintering from the Carolinas southward. Eggs laid preferably on the shingle of
the beach, while the semipalmated usually goes to some grassy or mossy spot back of the sand.
Eggs pretty certainly distinguishable from those of the other ring-neck by their lighter color-
ing — there is much the same difference in tone that there is between the birds themselves ;
clay-color or palest creamy-brown, sparsely and pretty uniformly marked with blackish-brown
specks, without spots of any size, or seratehy lines, sometimes mere points ; eggs of about same
capacity as the ring-neck’s, but rather less elongate and pointed ; 1.20 to 1.30 x 0.95 to 1.00.
ZE, m. circumcine’tus? (Lat. cirewmeinctus, bound about.) BELTED Piping Puover. A

589.

590.

591.

CHARADRIIDAi — CHARADRIINA): PLOVER. 603

variety (perhaps only some individuals) with the black necklace complete. Described from the
Headwaters, of the Platte, in Nebraska, July ; probably breeding there.

AB, hiati/cula. ‘{Dimin. of Lat. hiatus, a gape; hiaticula being a translation of yapadptds,
charadrios, because the bird is found about the mouths (hiatus) of rivers.) EUROPEAN RinG
Prover. Size of No. 586, or rather larger, and general aspect the same; no evident web
between inner and middle toe, that between outer and middle only reaching to end of first joint
of the latter; no colored ring round eye; one description would answer for the head-markings
of both, but black bars very heavy; white touches on eye-lids. Upper parts hair-brown.
Primaries blackish-brown, the outer four or five with white only on the shafts for a space near
their ends, the white beginning to invade the webs on the fourth or fifth, and enlarging in
width with diminishing length on the rest. Secondaries white with dark ends of diminishing
length inwards, till one or two of the short inner ones are almost entirely white ; the long flow-
ing innermost ones, however, like the back. Tail as in 4. semipalmatus. Length about
7.50; wing 5.00; tail 2.45; bill 0.60, orange, with black tip; tarsus 0.95 ; middle toe and claw
0.85; feet orange; claws black. Young like that of 4. semipalmatus ; no black on vertex ;
that of side of head and around neck dusky-gray ; whitish front, line over eye, and under eyelid ;
primaries quite dark with white spaces on shafts and webs well marked ; feathers of upper parts
with pale beady tips; ends of even middle tail-feathers white. Widely distributed in the Old
World; Greenland; Cumberland Sound, N. A. (Description from a N. A. specimen.)

ZB, curo/nicus. (Lat. curonicus, of Courland, on the Baltic.) Europgzan Lesser RING
Prover. Closely resembling the last; smaller; black bands not so broad; black of vertex
and auriculars bordered behind with white; shaft of lst primary alone white; bill extremely
slender, black, yellow only at base of lower mandible; legs yellowish flesh-color ; a colored
ring round eye. Length about 6.00; bill 0.60; wing 4.35; tail 2.30; tarsus 0.90. Inhabits
much of the Old World; questionably N. Am., on the Pacific side. Young: Differs much as
young hiaticula does. Ring around neck dusky-gray ; that on side of head chiefly reduced to
a loral stripe. No black across vertex; white of forehead soiled. Upper parts darker than in
adult, in an early stage with pale or fulvous edgings of the feathers. (A. microrhynchus Ridg.)
4E. cantia‘nus nivo’sus. (Lat. cantianus, Kentish; Lat. nivosus, snowy (white).) Snowy
Rinc Prover 4g, in breeding dress: Above, pale ashy-gray, little darker than in Z.
melodus. Top of head with a fulvous tinge. A broad black coronal bar from eye to eye.
A narrower black post-ocular stripe, tending to meet its fellow on nape, and thus encircle
the fulvous area. A broad black patch on each side of the breast; no sign of its completion
above or below; no complete black loral stripe (as in. cantianus), but indication of: such
in a small dark patch on either side of base of upper mandible. Forehead, continuous with
line over eye, sides of head excepting the black post-ocular stripe, and whole under parts
excepting the black lateral breast-patches, snowy-white. No white ring complete around back
of neck. Primaries blackish, especially at bases and ends, the intermediate extent fuscous ;
shatt of the lst white, of others white for a space; nearly all the primaries bleaching toward
bases of inner webs, but only somfe of the inner ones with a white area on outer webs.
Primary coverts like the primaries, but white-tipped. Greater coverts like the back, but
white-tipped. Secondaries dark brown, bleaching internally and basally in increasing extent
from without inwards, their shafts white along their respective white portions. Tertiaries like
back. Several intermediate tail-feathers like back, darkening toward ends; two or three
lateral pairs entirely white ; all the feathers more pointed than usual. Bill slender and acute,
black. Legs black. Length 6.50-7.00; extent 13.50-14.00; wing 4.00-4.25; tail 2.00 or
less ; bill 0.60; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 0.75. In winter (young ?): Upper plumage
rather darker than as above said, and less uniform, the individual feathers with pale edges.
Whole crown like back ; no black or fulvous on head; forehead white ; lores slightly dusky ;
black of sides of breast replaced by a patch of the color of the back. Bill black; tarsi livid

219.

592,

220.

604 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZE.

bluish ; toes blackish. U.5S., chiefly west of the R. Mts.; Utah; Cala. coast, breeding and
wintering; also, coast of Texas. A specimen (4, Corpus Christi, Texas, June 24, Sennett)
though in midsummer plumage, has no fulvous on head; no trace of loral mark; the coronal
bar, post-ocular stripe, and lateral pectoral blotch dark brown, not black. Eggs 3; tone and
style of coloration about as in wilsonius; size as in melodus, but markings more numerous and
scratchy; 1.200.90. (Probably specifically distinct from 4. cantianus.)

PODASO/CYS. (The Homeric epithet of Achilles, wodas dis, podas okus, swift as to his
feet.) Mountain Puover. In general, characters of Mgiahtes ; but no black belt or
patches on neck or breast; a coronal and loral black bar. Size large. Tail short, half the
wing, square. Legs very long; tibiee nude for a distance $ the length of tarsus. Latter
more than half as long again as middle toe and claw. Toes very short, the lateral of unequal
lengths. Tarsus and tibia entirely reticulate. Sexes alike. One species.

P. montanus. (Lat. montanus, of mountains. Badly named: it is a prairie bird.)
Prarriz Puiover. ‘‘ Mountain” Prover. @ 9, in summer: Upper parts uniform
grayish-brown; in most breeding individuals the shade is pure, but in many cases the feathers
are skirted with tawny or ochrey. Under parts entirely white (no black belt or patches); but
the breast often shaded across with diffuse fulvous or gray. A sharp black loral line from bill
to eye, cutting off the white forehead and superciliary line from the white of other parts. A
coronal black bar across the sinciput, varying in width from a mere line to a band nearly half
the length of crown in width. Quills blackish, the shaft of the first white, of the others white
for a space; some of the inner primaries with white spaces toward the bases of the outer webs,
and the secondaries a little pale on their inner webs. Tertiaries and greater coverts like back,
the latter white-tipped. Tail-feathers like back, blackening toward ends, the outermost pale
throughout ; all tipped with whitish, Bill black, slender; legs pale; the toesdarker. Length
9.50; extent 18.00; wing 5.50-6.00; tail 2.50-3.00; bill 0.90-1.00; tibizee bare over 0.50;
tarsus 1.67; middle toe and claw 0.90-1.00. The full breeding dress has not before been fairly
described. ¢@ 9, in winter: No black coronal or loral stripe; otherwise, generally as in
summer; but the general plumage more rusty, with more decided wash of color on the breast.
Young: As last said; whole upper parts rusty from extensive edgings of all the feathers; sides
of head and neck similarly suffused with tawny. The ground-color of the upper parts is also
darker than that of the adults. Chick in down: Forehead, sides of head and under parts
white, with sulphury-yellow tinge. Crown, back and tibie sulphury or tawny-yellow, closely
and evenly mottled with black.. Unmarked line over eye; black ear-spot. Bill light at
extreme base below, and at the point. Livid patch of naked skin on neck. An interesting,
isolated species, plentifully and generally distributed in western U. 8., Plains to the Pacific ;
N. to 49° at least. I have shot it in Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico (June),
Arizona, Montana (49°, June), California coast (November), ete. It is not Eudromias,
and sufficiently unlike Agialites. It inhabits the most sterile prairie as well as better watered
Tegions, quite independently of water, and is not in the least aquatic ; even on the Cala. coast
it haunts the plain, never the marsh, mud-flat, or beach. Feeds chiefly upon insects, especially
grasshoppers, and is generally seen in loose straggling companies of small extent. Nest any-
where on the bare prairie; eggs 3-4; 1.40 to 1.50 long, by 1.10 broad, less pointed than
plovers’ eggs usually are, olive-drab with a brown shade, profusely dotted all over, but espe-
cially at the larger end, with blackish, dark brown and neutral tint; the markings all mere dots
and points, the largest scarcely exceeding a pin’s head. June, July.

VANEL'LUS. (Lat. vanellus or vannellus, diminutive of vannus, a fan.) Lapwinas. Bill
slender, shorter than head, perfectly pluvialine. Legs long ; tibia much denuded below ; tarsus
greatly longer than middle toe and claw. A web between bases of middle and outer toes; inner
toe cleft to the base. A small hind toe. Wings very long, folding to end of the long square
tail, but rounded, 2d 5th primaries subequal and longest, lst about equal to 7th; primaries

593.

221.

694.

CHARADRIIDE — APHRIZINZ: SURF-BIRDS. 605

very broad, 3 or 4 outer ones much narrowed toward end. A long thin recurved occipital crest
of filamentous feathers. Plumage of upper parts highly lustrous with metallic iridescence.
V.crista/tus. (Lat. cristatus, crested. Fig. 415.) Crestep Lapwine. Adult g: Top and
front of head, including the 2-3 inch long crest, throat-line, and large pectoral area, glossy black.
Sides of head mostly, and sides of neck, white, on hind neck mixed with gray. Upper and
under tail-coverts chestnut or orange-brown. Under parts, except as said, snowy-white. Tail
white, with broad black bar at ends of feathers excepting outermost, tips of all narrowly white.
Upper parts iridescent green, passing on wings to violet-purple and steel-blue. Quills glossy
blue-black, several outer primaries fading to grayish-white on the narrow terminal portion,
the secondaries white at base.. Bill black; feet red. This splendid wanton of the crest
inhabits Europe, etc., and has occurred in Greenland.

55. ? Subfamily APHRIZINA: Surf-birds.

The peculiarities of the single species seem to be super-generic, but the position of
Aphriza is still open to question ; as may be judged from the following diagnosis.
APHRIUZA. (Gr. ddpés, aphros, sea-foam ; (aw, zao, I live: badly formed, but euphonious.)
Surr-sirps. Bill plover-like, shorter than head, stout at base, contracted in continuity, with
enlarged horny termination ; both mandibles deeply grooved to their horny ends; nostrils sub-
basal, close to commissure, linear, perforate ; feathers reaching equdlly far forward on side of
each mandible, much farther in interramal space. Wings very long and acute, folding to or
beyond end of tail. 1st primary longest, all rapidly graduated; flowing inner quills not nearly
reaching point of wing. Tail very short, square, less than one half as long as wing, 12-
feathered. Feet scolopacine, with well-developed hind toe; short and stout, much as in Strep-~
silas ; tibia naked below, but the feathers falling to the suffrago; tarsus little longer than
middle toe and claw, reticulate, scutellate in front; toes cleft to the base, lateral of equal
lengths, reaching base of middle claw ; inner edge of middle claw dilated and jagged. General
character of plumage, in its pattern of coloration and seasonal changes, as in Tringee. One
species ; a remarkable isolated form, perhaps a plover and connecting this family with the
next by close relationships with Strepsilas, but with hind toe as well developed as usual in
Sandpipers, and general appearance rather sandpiper-like than plover-like. Aphrizine might
go under Hematopodide next to Strepsilas ; or, perhaps better, Aphriza and Strepsilas might
together constitute a family APHRIZID#, next to, but apart from Hematopodide.
A. virga/ta. (Lat. virgata, striped.) Surr-pirp. In summer: Dark ashy-brown, streaked
with whitish on head and neck, varied with rufous and black on the back and wings. Upper
tail-coverts and basal half or more of tail pure white; rest of tail black, white-tipped. Under
parts white or ashy-white, variously marked with brownish-black; the throat and fore breast
narrowly streaked, the streaks changing on the breast to curved bars, and there very profuse,
on other under parts sparse and spotty. Bases and shafts of primaries, tips of most of them,
greater part of the secondaries, and tips of greater coverts, white; exposed portions of primaries
blackish. Bill black, flesh-colored at base below; legs dusky greenish? In winter:
Plumage of the head, neck, breast, and upper parts nearly uniform dusky brown, unvaried
with white or reddish, but with obsoletely darker shaft-lines; white under parts slightly
spotty; quills and tail-feathers as in summer. Length 9.00-10.00; extent 17.00 or more;
wing 6.50-7.00; tail 2.75; bill 1.00; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.10. Varies greatly
in plumage with age and season, but unmistakable in any guise. Extensively dispersed over
the coasts and islands of the Pacific; along whole W. coast of N. A. In Alaska, according to
Nelson, it occurs N. to Bering’s Strait ; and about St. Michael’s frequents in August the rocky
shores of the small outlying islands, and the capes whose rugged shore-lines afford congenial
resorts to the surf-birds and the Heteroscelus incanus.

222,

595.

606 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LIMICOLZ.

89. Family HASMATOPODIDZ: Oyster-catchers. Turnstones.

A small family of two genera and six or eight species, with the bill hard, and either acute
or truncate, the nasal fosse short, broad, and shallow; the legs short, stout, brightly-colored.
The two following genera differ much — in fact, more than Aphriza does from Strepsilas ; it
is unnecessary to give a formal analysis. Each should be type of a subfamily at least.

56. Subfamily HA MATOPODINA: Oyster-catchers.

HZEMA/TOPUS. (Gr. aiparorois, haimatopous, red-footed ; aiya, haima, blood, mois, pous,
foot.) OysTER-caTcHERS. No hind tve. Front toes with basal webbing, conspicuous between
middle and outer, and broadly fringed with membrane continuous with the webs to the ends.
Tarsus longer than middle toe
and claw, reticulate, the plates
in front enlarged; shorter than
bill. Tibia briefly bare below.
Legs as a whole very stout,
coarse and rough, and light-
colored. Wings long and
pointed ; 1st and 2d quills sub-

equal and longest. Tail short,
Fic. 420. — Bill of Oyster-catcher, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.) square, scarcely or not half as

long as the wing. Bill peculiar —longer than tarsus, twice as long as head, constricted near
the base, much compressed, almost like a knife-blade toward end, and truncate, something
like a woodpecker’s (it is an efficient instrument for prying open the shells of bivalve mol-
lusks), hard, straight or deflected sideways, highly colored (fig. 420.) Nasal groove very short,
broad, and shallow; grooving of lower mandible slight; interramal space very short, scarcely a
third the length of the long ascending gonys. Nostrils remote from the feathers, linear, close
to edge of bill. Size large. Sexes similar. Coloration dark and white, in masses. Several
species, inhabiting the sea-coasts of most countries.

Analysis of Species.
Head, neck and upper back glossy-black; belly white. . . . 1... es 2 eee . ostrilegus 595
Head and neck glossy-black; back smoky-brown; belly white .........se6.. palliatus 596
Head and neck glossy-black; back and belly smoky-brown . . 2. 1. 1 2 1 ew we ee eee niger 597

H. ostri/legus. (Lat. ostrea, an oyster; lego, I gather. Fig. 421.) European OysTEr-
CATCHER (oyster-opener would be a better name, as oysters do not run fast). Similar to the
next to be described. Upper parts glossy-black, like the head and neck. Quills black, broadly
margined with white on inner webs excepting towards end, and also with isolated white
shafts and spaces near end. Back below, interscapulars, ramp, and upper tail-coverts entirely
white, as well as bases of the tail-feathers. Length about 16.00; bill about 3.00; wing 9.50;
tail 4.30; tarsus nearly 2.00. Europe, Asia, Africa; N. Am. as occurring in Greenland.

H. pallia/tus. (Lat. palliatus, wearing the pallium, a cloak.) AMERICAN OYSTER-CATCHER.
BROWN-BACKED OYSTER-CATCHER. Adult ¢ 9: Bill vermilion or coral-red, changing to
yellow at end. Feet pale purplish flesh-color, drying dingy yellowish. Eyes and ring around
them red or orange. Whole head and neck all around glossy-black, frequently overcast with
an ashy or glaucous shade. Back and wing-coverts smoky-brown —the contrast with the
head and neck decided.. Rump and central field of upper tail-coverts like back (not white) ;
lateral and longest central coverts white. Tail-feathers white at base for nearly the space
covered by the coverts, on the lateral feathers rather farther; then like back, blackening at
ends. Tertiaries and long inuer secondaries like back; next few secondaries pure white; rest
gaining dark color in increasing amount; the white of the secondaries forming with the long

597.

HZMATOPODIDA — HAEMATOPODINZAL: OYSTER-CATCHERS. 607

white tips of the greater coverts a conspicuous broad oblique white bar. Primaries dusky,
blackening toward end, touched with white at bases of the inner webs of longer ones, with white
on outer webs of the short inner ones, but no isolated white subterminal spaces. (Thus much
less white on wings and tail than in ostrilegus, besides the difference in color of the back ;
though some allowance in either case must be made for normal variation froin the minuteness

.of my description.) Entire under parts pure white, including lining of wings, where, however,

a few dusky feathers commonly show along the edge. Length 17.00-21.00; extent 30.00-36.00 ;
wing 10.00 or more; tail 4.00 or more; tarsus 2.00 or more ; middle toe and claw under 2.00.
Bill 3 or 4 inches long, varying in shape with almost every specimen, with wear and tear under

Fic. 421. — European Oyster-oatcher, § nat. size. (From Brehm.)

the rough usage to which it is subjected; ordinarily both mandibles truncated ; often the lower,
sometimes both, acute. Bills worn thinnest and most knife-blade-like towards end are often
bent sideways, as if from habitual use of them in a particular direction. N. Am., C.andS. Am.,
almost entirely coast-wise, and chiefly along the Atlantic, but also on the Pacific side. Migra-
tory all along, wintering from the middle districts southward, breeding in abundance but
irregularly at different points. There are extensive breeding resorts along the Virginia coast.
H. ni/ger. (Lat. niger, black.) Buack OysTER-caTcHErR. Size and shape of the fore-
going. Head and neck the same, but no white on eye-lids, and no white anywhere ; rest of

plumage dark smoky-brown, blackening on wings-quills and tail-feathers. Pacific coast.

608 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

57. Subfamily STREPSILAINA: Turnstones.

The character of the subfamily should be constructed to
include Aphriza, unless Strepsilas and Aphriza may con-
stitute two subfamilies of a family Aphrizide. (See p. 605,
under Aphrizina.)

223. STREP'SILAS. (Gr. orpéyis, strepsis, a turning over,
Aas, las, a stone. Fig. 422.) Turnstronss. Bill shorter
than head, not longer than tarsus, constricted at base, then
tapering to an acute tip, almost a little recurved. Culmen — Fic. 422.— Bill of Turnstone, nat.
straight or a little concave, especially over nostrils; com- cr rae ae
missure straight or slightly recurved; under outline curving up from the base, or straight to
angle, then gonys ascending. Nasal fossz short and broad, about half the length of the bill;

a)
.

Fig. 423. — Turnstone, 4 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

grooving of under mandible short and shallow. Gonys longer than mandibular rami. Wings
long and pointed. Tail short, a little rounded, scarcely or not half as long as wing. Legs
short and stout ; tibiz little denuded ; tarsus scutellate in front, reticulate on sides and behind,
about as long as middle toe and claw. Toes 4, the hinder short, but as well developed as in
sandpipers generally, the front toes cleft to the base. Claws curved, compressed, acute.
There is probably but one cosmopolitan species, the scientific and vernacular names of which
are both derived from its habit of turning over pebbles along the shore in search of food.

HA4MATOPODIDZA — STREPSILAINZ: TURNSTONES. 609

Analysis of Species.
Pied with black, white, and chestnut ; feetorange . . .....44.-4 . . imterpres 598
Blackish and white ; feetdark?. . . % a ae ee ‘ é . melanocephalus 599

598. S. inter/pres. (Lat. interpres, a factor, agent, go-between. Fig. 493,) TURNSTONE. BRANT

599.

Birp. Carico-pacx. Adult g, in breeding dress: Pied above with black, white, brown,
and chestnut-red; below, snowy, with jet breast. Top of head streaked with black and white.
Forehead, cheeks, sides of head and back of neck, white, with a bar of black coming up from
the side of neck to below eye, then coming forward and meeting or tending to meet its fellow
over base of bill, enclosing or nearly enclosing a white loral, and another black prolongation
on side of neck; lower eye-lid white or not. Lower hind neck, interscapulars and scapulars,
pied with black and chestnut ; back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, snowy-white, with a large
central blackish field on the latter. Tail white, with broad subterminal blackish field,
narrowing on outer feathers and incomplete, widening to usually cut of white tips of central
feathers. Wing-coverts and long inner secondaries pied like the scapulars with black and
chestnut, the greater coverts broadly white-tipped or mostly white, the short inner secondaries
entirely white, the rest acquiring dusky on their ends to increasing extent, with result of a
broad oblique white wing-bar. Primaries blackish, the longer ones with large white fields on
inner webs, the shorter ones also definitely white on outer webs for a space, the shafts white
unless at end; primary coverts white-tipped. Under parts, including under wing-coverts,
snowy-white, the breast and jugulum jet-black, enclosing a white throat-patch, and sending
limbs on sides of head and neck as above said. Bill black; iris black; feet orange. 9 similar,
lacking much of the chestnut, replaced by plain brown, especially on the wing-coverts ; the
dark parts in same pattern, but restricted somewhat, the black not jet and glossy. Adults in
winter, and young, lacking the chestnut entirely, the black mostly replaced by browns and
grays, that of the breast especially restricted or very imperfect. Length 8.00-9.00 ; extent
16.00-19.00 ; wing 5.50-6.00; tail 2.50; bill 0.80-0.90 ; tarsus, or middle toe and claw, about
1.00. Nearly cosmopolitan ; in N. Am., both coasts abundantly, and infrequently on the larger
inland waters; migrating through and wintering in the U. 8., breeding in high latitudes.
S. melanoce'phalus. (Gr. pedas, melas, black; xepadn, kephale, head.) BLACK-HEADED
TURNSTONE. Without any of the chestnut coloration of the last, the parts that are pied in
interpres being blackish; the white parts, however, and the distribution of the colored areas,
nearly the same. In the most perfect cases I have seen, the entire head, neck, and breast are
dark smoky-brown, the color extending further along the breast than the jet plastron of
interpres, and not uniform, but the dark brown nebulated with sooty centres of the feathers,
and shaded by mixture of white-tipped feathers into the white of the under parts. White lower
back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, with black central field of the latter, as in interpres; black
and white of wings substantially the same, but most of the primaries narrowly white-tipped.
Feet apparently of some obscure dark color. Other specimens have a distinct white loral spot,
and indication of the white of head and neck of in-
._ terpres in white speckling. No trace of chestnut.
seen inany. Size and form precisely as in interpres.
Apparently a permanent melanism; if so, a very
curious case, and a good species. Pacific coast.

40. Family RECURVIROSTRIDZ:
Avocets. Stilts.

Another small family, characterized by the ex-

treme length of the slender legs, and the extreme

slenderness of the long acute bill, which is either

Fria. 424. — Head and foot of Avocet, about 4 : ; :
nat. size. straight or curved upward. Recurvirostra is 4-toed,

39

610 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZA.

and full-webbed; the bill is decidedly recurved, flattened, and tapers to a needle-like point;
the body is depressed; the plumage underneath is thickened as in water-birds. The species
swim well. Himantopus is 3-toed, semipalmate, the bill nearly straight, and not flattened ; in
relative length of leg it is probably not surpassed by any bird whatsoever. These two genera,
each of three or four species of various parts of the world, with the Cladorhynchus pectoralis
of Australia, compose the family.

224, RECURVIROS'TRA. (Lat. recurvus, bent upward; rostrum, bill. Fig. 425.) Avocers,

a
NR

Fic. 425. — European Avocet, Recurvirostra avocetta, } nat, size. (From Brehm.)

Bill excessively slender, more or less recurved, then the upper mandible hooked at the extreme
tip; much longer than head, more or less nearly equalling tail and tarsus; flattened on top,
without culminal ridge. Wings short (fora wader). Tail very short, square, less than half
the wing. Legs exceedingly long and slender; tibiae long-denuded ; tarsus nearly twice as
long as middle toe and claw; covering of legs skinny. Feet 4-toed; the front toes full-webbed,
hind toe short, free. Body remarkably depressed and feathered underneath with thick duck-
like plumage; altogether, as in swimming rather than as in wading birds. It is a modification

600.

225.

601.

RECURVIROSTRIDA: AVOCETS AND STILTS. 611

like that seen in the lobe-footed phalaropes. Sexes and young alike; winter and summer plu-
mage different (in the North American species at any rate).

R. america/‘na. (Lat. americana, American. Fig. 424.) American Avocet. BLUE-
stocking. Adult g¢ 9, i summer: White, changing gradually to cinnamon or chestnut-
brown on neck and head, excepting, usually, the parts about base of bill. Interscapulars and
part of the scapulars black ; wings black, with the lining, and most of the secondaries, white.
Tail pearl-gray. Iris red (sometimes brown). Legs dull blue (drying blackish), much of the
webs flesh color; bill black, often pale at base below. Size extremely variable: length
16.00-20.00; extent 28.00-38.00! wing 7.00-9.50; tail 3.00-4.00; bill 3.50, more or less, from
nearly straight to strongly recurved aud hooked; tibie bare 2.50; tarsus 3.50 or more; middle
toe and claw 2.00 or less. Adult ¢ 9, i winter: Head and neck ashy or pearl-gray, like the
tail; this has been called R. occidentalis; afterward considered the young. Young: The
head and neck strongly washed with cinnamon-brown; rusty or tawny edgings of the black
feathers. I have shot scarcely fledged birds in this state ;
the shank is also peculiarly swollen. U. 8. and British
Provinces ; rare now in E. U. S., only casual in New Eng-
land; abounding in the west, especially in the alkaline
regions, as those of the Yellowstone and Milk River regions,
Utah, ete. Its appearance is striking, as might be sup-
posed ; its clamor is incessant when the breeding places are
invaded. It is not a.wary bird, and may easily be ap-
proached when wading about in small flocks in the shal-
low alkaline pools it loves so well. Feeds by immersing
the head and neck for some moments whilst probing about
with the curious bill in the soft slimy ooze. On getting
beyond its depth, it swims with perfect ease, and often
alights from on wing in deep water. Eggs 3-4, as variable
in size, shape, and markings as the pareuts; from 1.80 to
2.10 long by 1.25 to 1.45 broad; ground color from dark = ;
olive to brownish-drab, thence to creamy-brown or buff, Fig. 426.—Stilt. (From Tenney,
like those of Shanghai fowls; pretty uniformly and pro- et Wilson.)

fusely marked with small sharp spots of different shades of chocolate-brown, with neutral-
tint shell-markings; on the buff eggs usually smallest and most numerous, bolder on the
olive ones.

HIMAN'TOPUS. (Gr. inavrdrous, himantopous, strap-leg. Fig. 426.) Stmrs. Bill ex-
tremely slender, but not flattened, nor turned up, nor hooked ; longer than head, rather shorter
than tarsus. Wing long and pointed, folding beyond the short and square tail, which is less
than half the wing. Legs of unique length and slenderness, the bare part ahout as long as
the wing ; tibiee denuded for a great distance; tarsus about twice as long as toes. Feet 3-toed,
semipalmate; but the species scarcely swim. Sexes similar; young different.

H. mexica/nus. (Lat. mexicanus, Mexican. Fig. 427.) Stmt. Lone-sHanxs. LAwyer.
Adult $9 : Mantle, constituted by the interscapulars, scapulars, and wings (above and below)
glossy-black, prolonged up the back of the neck and on top and sides of head, embracing the
eyes. A spot over and behind eye, one on under eyelid, forehead to opposite eyes, sides of head
below eyes, sides of neck and entire under parts, together with the lower back, rump, and
upper tail-coverts, white ; tail pearl-gray. In life the long black wings fold entirely over the
white upper parts and tail, so that the bird looks entirely black above. Bill black ; eyes and
legs carmine, latter drying yellowish. Length about 15.00; extent about 30.00; wing 8.50-
9.50; tail 2.75—-3.25 ; bill 2.50-2.75 ; tibia bare 3.00-3.50; tarsus 4.00-4.50; middle toe and
claw 1.75-2.00. Adults, not in perfect dress: Some of the dark parts brown, not glossy-black.

a

226,

602.

612 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ:.

Young: Mantle ashy-brown, each feather edged with whitish; wings black, but some of the
quills white-tipped, the edge of the wing white, the coverts edged with pale ochre. Tail not
so pearly gray as in the
adults, with some irreg-
ular dusky markings.
Legs probably different
(skins afford no crite-
rion). Chick, in down:
Bill apparently blackish ;
legs pale. Under parts
white ; above, prettily mottled with black, brown, and tawny
or orange. U. 8. generally, like the avocet rare eastward,
abundant in the west, rather more southerly than the avocet.
Nest at the water’s-edge or on heaped vegetation just above
the surface in shallow water; eggs 4, pyriform, 1.60 to 1.85 x
1.15 to 1.25; greenish-drab or pale brownish-olive to dark

Fic. 427.—Black-necked Stilt, ochraceous, boldly marked all over with spots and splashes of
2 nat. size. (From Sclater.) blackish-brown.

41. Family PHALAROPODID: Phalaropes.

This is likewise a small family; the three species comprising it resemble sandpipers, but
are immediately distinguished by the lobate feet; the toes are furnished with plain or scalloped
membranes, like those of coots and grebes, but not so broad. The body is depressed, and the
under plumage thick and duck-like to resist water, on which the birds swim with perfect ease
and grace. The wings and tail are like those of ordinary sandpipers ; the tarsi are much com-
pressed ; there is basal webbing of the toes besides the marginal membrane ; the bill, and some
other details of form, differ in each of the three genera. These birds inhabit the northern por-
tions of both hemispheres, two of them at least breeding only in boreal regions, but they all
wander far southward in winter. There are but three species, one peculiar to America, the

others of general distribution.
Analysis of Genera.

Membranes plain; bill very slender, subulate r i cal er eee Steganopus 226
Membranes scalloped; bill very slender,subulate . . «©. ... . . Lobipes 227
Membranes scalloped; bill stouter, flattened, with lancet-shaped tip . . e . Phalaropus 228

STEGAN/OPUS. (Gr. oreyavdrous, steganopous, web-foot.) FRINGE-FOOT PHALAROPES.
Bill long, equalling the tarsus, exceeding the head, extremely slender, terete and acute. Culmen
and gonys broad and depressed. Lateral
grooves long and narrow, reaching nearly
to tip of bill. Interramal space narrow and
very short, extending only half way to end
of bill. Nostrils at extreme base of bill.
Wings of moderate length. Tail short,
deeply doubly-emarginate; legs greatly
elongated; tibize bare for a considerable
distance; tarsus exceeding middle toe. Fra. 428.— Head of Wilson’s Phalarope, nat. size. (Ad
Toes long and slender, broadly margined #*- del. E. C.)

with an even, unscalloped membrane, united but for a brief space basally. Claws moderately
long, arched, and acute.

8. wil/soni. (To A. Wilson. Fig. 428.) Wutson’s PHanarops. Adult 9, in breeding
dress: Bill and feet black. Crown of head pale ash, passing into white along a narrow stripe

227.

603.

PHALAROPODIDZA: PHALAROPES. 613

in the nape. A narrow, distinct, pure white line over the eye. Sides of neck intense purplish-
chestnut, or dark wine-red; anteriorly deepening upon the auriculars into velvety-black ; pos-
teriorly continued, somewhat duller in tint, as a stripe along each side of the back to the tips
of the scapulars. Other upper parts pearly-ash, blanching on the rump and upper tail-coverts.
Wings pale grayish-brown ; coverts slightly white-tipped ; primaries dusky-brown, their shafts
brownish-white, except at tip. Tail marbled with pearly-gray and white. All the under parts
pure white, but the fore part and sides of the breast washed with pale chestnut-brown, as if with
a weak solution of the rich color on the neck, and a faint tinge of the same along the sides of the
body to the flanks. Bill and feet black. Iris brown. Length 8.50-9.00; extent 15.50-16.00 ;
wing 5.00-5.25 ; tail 2.25; bill1.33; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw1.12. Adult g: Less
richly colored, and smaller ; length 8.00-8.50; extent 15.00; wing 4.75-5.00. Adult ¢ 9, in
winter: No rusty red or pure black. Above, pure ashy-gray, each feather usually skirted with
whitish ; frequently some blackish, pale-edged feathers. Wing-quills fuscous, usually with
light edgings ; tail as in summer; upper tail-coverts, line over eye, parts about bill, and whole
under parts, white, the jugulum and sides usually shaded with ashy. Young, before first moult :
Bill blackish, about 1.10 long; legs dull yellow (tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw 1.05).

-Upper parts, including crown and upper surface of wings, brownish-black, each feather edged

with rusty-brown, very conspicuous on the long inner secondaries, and giving a general aspect
like that of a sandpiper of the genus Actodromas. Upper tail-coverts pure white. Tail clear
ash, edged and much marbled with white, the ash darker at its line of demarcation from the
white. Line over eye, and whole under parts white, the breast with a faint rusty tinge, and
the sides slightly marbled with gray. Quills dusky, the secondaries white-edged, and the shafts
of the primaries whitish. This stage is of extremely brief duration, beginning to give way,
almost as soon the bird is full grown, to the clear uniform ashy of the upper parts of the fall
and winter condition. The change, in some specimens shot early in August, is already very
evident, clear ashy feathers being mixed, on the crown and all the upper parts, with such as
just described. Size of the smallest specimen only 8.25 in length by 14.50 in extent ; the wing
4.60. Chicks are covered with buff-colored down, spotted with black above. In full plumage
this is the handsomest and largest of the phalaropes, and one of the most elegant of the waders.
U. 8. and British Provinces, N. to the Saskatchewan ; rare in U.S. E. of Illinois and Lake
Michigan ; abundant in the Mississippi Valley at large and westward. Migratory, leaving U.S.
in winter ; breeds in suitable places throughout its range. Nest in low grassy meadows and
marshes. Eggs 3-4, 1.20 to 1.35 long by 1.90 broad, thus elongate pyriform, clay-color to
brownish-drab, heavily marked with large splashes and sizeable spots, with numberless specks
and scratches, of dark bistre or chocolate-brown ; some eggs much less painted than others,.in
finer pattern ; incubated by the @.

LO'BIPES. (Lat. lobus, a flap, pes, foot.) Lose-roor PHavaropss. Bill generally as in
Steganopus, but shorter, basally stouter, and tapering to a very acute, compressed tip ; ridge of
culmen and gonys less depressed; interramal space longer and

broader. Wings long. Tail short, greatly rounded. Legs

and feet short; tibize denuded for but a brief space; tarsus

not longer than middle toe. Toes very broadly margined with

a membrane which is scalloped or indented at each joint, and

united basally to second joint between outer and middle toe,

to first joint between the inner and middle toe; feet thus Fie, 429.— Foot of Red-necked
semipalmate. Claws small and short. Phalarope, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)
L. hyperbo/reus. (Lat. hyperboreus, beyond the north wind. Fig. 429.) NorTHERN
PHALAROPE. RED-NECKED PHALAROPE. Adult $ 9, in summer: Above, sooty-gray, with
lateral stripes of ochraceous or tawny; neck rich rust-red, nearly or quite all around; under
parts otherwise white, the sides marked with the color of back. Upper tail-coverts like back,

228.

604.

614 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLA.
9

some lateral ones white. Wings blackish, the ends of the greater coverts broadly white, form-
ing a conspicuous cross-bar, continued on some of the inner secondaries. Bill and feet black.
Length 7.00; extent 18.50; wing 4.25-4.50; tail 2.00; bill, tarsus, middle toe and claw, each,
under 1.00. Varies much in plumage with age and season, but easily recognized by the small
size and generic characters. Chicks in down rich buff above, silvery-gray below; crown mixed
black and yellow; a long black stripe down back, another over each hip, one across the rump,
and a shoulder-spot. N. hemisphere at large, breeding in Arctic regions, migrating into the
tropics sometimes ; generally distributed, but especially maritime. Eggs 3-4, June, average
1.20 X 0.80 (from 1.30 X 0.75 to 1.10 & 0.82), very variable in size, shape, and color; greenish-
olive, brownish-olive to various drab and buffy shades of ground color, usually very boldly
spotted and splashed sometiines in finer pattern, with bistrous, chocolate, and lighter brown.
PHALA/ROPUS. (Gr. ¢dadapdmous, phalaropous, coot-foot.) Coor-rooT, PHALAROPES.
Bill scarcely longer than head or tarsus; very stout for this family; much depressed, so broad
as to be almost spatulate, the tip only moderately acute, lancet-shaped. Upper mandible with
the ridge broad and flattened, its apex arched and decurved, its lateral grooves wide and shallow.
Interramal space broad and very long, extending nearly to the end of the bill. Nostrils sub-
basal, at some distance from the root of the bill. Wings long and pointed. Tail long,
rounded, the central rectrices projecting, rather acuminate. Legs and feet much as in Lobipes,
but the semipalmation of less extent.

P. fulica/rius. (Lat. fulicarius, coot-like; fulica, a coot; fuligo, soot.) Coort-FooTED
Tringa. Rep PHALAROPE. GRAY PHALAROPE. Adult $9, in summer: Under parts, with
sides of neck, and upper tail-coverts, dark purplish or wine-red, with a glaucous bloom. Top
of head and around bill, sooty. Sides of head white, this color meeting on nape. Rump
white. Back black, all the feathers edged with tawny or rusty-brown. Quills brownish-black,
with white shafts and much white at bases of webs; the coverts dark ash, the ends and inner
webs of the greater row white; some of the secondaries entirely white. Bill yellowish, with
dusky tip; feet yellowish. Length 7.50; extent 14.50; wing 5.00; tail 2.50; bill 0.90;
tarsus 0.75; middle toe and claw rather more. Adult g 9, in winter: Head all around,
and entire under parts, white, —with a dusky circumocular area and nuchal crescent, and a
wash of ashy along sides of body. Above, nearly uniform ash. Wings ashy-blackish, the
white cross-bar very conspicuous ; bill mostly dark ; feet obscured. A species of circumpolar
distribution in summer, wandering far south in winter, chiefly coastwise. Nesting and eggs not
distinguishable from those of the last ; eggs averaging larger, — 1.15 -1.30 X 0.90-0.95.

42. Family SCOLOPACID: Snipe, ete.

Snipe and their allies
form a well-defined and
perfectly natural assem-
blage, one of the two
largest limicoline families,
agreeing with Plover in
most essential respects,
yet well distinguished from
the pluvialine birds. In
general, the bill is much
elongated, frequently sev-
eral times longer than the
head, and in those cases

7 es si z Fie. 431. — Wilson’s Snipe. (From
— English Snipe. (From Dixon.) In plover, it does not show Tenney, after Wilson.)

SCOLGPACIDZ: THE SNIPE FAMILY. 615

the particular, somewhat pigeon-like, shape described under Charadriine, being slender and
soft-skinned throughout. It is generally straight, but frequently curved up or down. The
nasal grooves, always long and narrow channels, range from one-half to almost the whole
length of the bill; similar grooves usually occupy the sides of the under mandible; the inter-
ramal space is correspondingly long and narrow, and nearly naked. This length, slenderness,
grooving, and peculiar sensitiveness, are the prime characteristics of the scolopacine bill. The
gape, never ample, is generally very short and narrow, reaching little, if any, beyond the base
of the bill. The nostrils are short narrow slits, exposed. The head is completely feathered
to the bill (except in one species), at the base of which the ptilosis stops abruptly without
forming projecting antiea. The wings commonly show the thin pointed contour described under
Limicole, but they are occasionally short and ruunded. The tail, always short and soft, has
as a rule 12 rectrices; in one genus, however, there are from 12 to 26. The crura are rarely
feathered to the suffrago. The tarsi are scutellate before and behind, and reticulate on the
sides, except in the curlews, where they are scutellate only in front; they are probably never
entirely reticulate (the normal state in plover). The hallux is absent in only two or three
instances; the anterior toes commonly show one basal web, and often two, but in many species
they are entirely cleft. The scolopacine birds are of medium and small size, ranking with
plover in this respect ; none attain the average stature of Herodiones.

The general economy of these birds is similar to that of plover; a chief peculiarity being
probably their mode of procuring food, by feeling for it, in the majority of cases, in the sand
or mud with their delicately sensitive, probe-like bill. The eggs are commonly four, parti-
colored, pointed at one end and broad at the other, placed with the small ends together in a
slight nest or mere depression on the ground; the young run about at birth. The sexes, with
very rare exceptions, are alike in color or nearly so, and the ? is usually a little larger than
the g; but the sexual distinctions are very rarely strong enough to be perfectly rcliable
(remarkable exception in Machetes). Color distinctions with age, likewise, are rarely marked ;
but on the contrary, seasonal plumages are in many cases, as throughout the sandpipers, very
strongly indicated, the nuptial dress being entirely different from that worn the rest of the year.
Excepting a few species that frequent dry open places like many plover, these birds are found
by the water’s edge where the ground is soft and oozy — in moist thickets, low rank meadows,
bogs and marshes, by the riverside, and on the seashore. Some are solitary, but the majority
are gregarious when not breeding, and many gather in immense flocks, especially during the
extensive migrations that nearly all perform. The voice is a mellow pipe, a sharp bleat, or a
‘harsh scream, according to the species. Few birds surpass the snipe in sapid quality of flesh,
and many kinds rank high in the estimation of the sportsman and epicure. The family is
cosmopolitan, but the majority inhabit the northern hemisphere, breeding in boreal regions.
There are about ninety well-determined species of scolopacine birds, referable perhaps to
fifteen tenable genera, although many more than this are often employed. Various attempts
.to divide the group into sub-families have met with little success, owing to the close inter-
gradation of the several types. All the leading forms of the family, with most of the lesser
genera, are represented in this country, and are indicated by the specific descriptions given
beyond; while its entire composition may be pointed out and rendered perfectly intelligible by
a brief summary : —

a. In Woodcock-(Scolopaa and Philohela) and true Snipe (Gallinago) the ear appears below
and not behind the eye, which is placed far back and high up; and if the brain be examined,
it will be found curiously tilted over so that its anatomical base looks forward. The bill is
perfectly straight and much longer than the head, deep-grooved to the very end, which is
either knobbed, or widened just behind the tip, where there is a furrow in the flattened cul-
men. The membranous covering is abundantly supplied with nerves; this organ constitutes
a probe of delicate sensibility, an efficient instrument of touch, used to feel for food below the

616 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZE:.

surface of the ground. In the dried state, the soft skin shrinks tight like parchment to the
bone, and becomes studded with small pits. The gape of the mouth is extremely short and
narrow ; the toes are cleft; the legs, neck, and wings are comparatively short, and the body is
rather full. There are no obvious seasonal or sexual differences in plumage. Not completely
gregarious ; no such flights of woodcock and true snipe occur as are usually witnessed among
sandpipers and bay-snipe; they inhabit the bog and brake rather than the open waterside :
they cannot be treacherously massacred by scores, like some of their relatives ; they are know-
ing birds, if their brains are upset, and their successful pursuit calls into action all the better
qualities of the true sportsman. There is but one species of Philohela ; two or three of
Scolopax, and about twenty of Gallinago. The curious circumstance occurs, among the
latter, that the tail-feathers range from 12 to 26 in different species; and in those with the
higher numbers, several pairs are narrow and linear—a character upon which the genus

Fig. 432. — American Woodcock, about ? nat. size. (From American Field.)

Spilura rests— The singular genus Rhynchea, with two species, R. capensis (Africa)
and R. semicollaris (S. America), may belong here. -— Macrorhamphus, containing only our
species, and one other, M. semipalmatus of the Old World, has a bill exactly as in Gallinago,
but is distinguished by more pointed wings, and differently proportioned legs, with basal web-
bing of the toes. It stands exactly between the true snipe and

b. The Godwits (Limosa), in which we find the same very long, wholly grooved, and
extremely sensitive bill, which, however, is not dilated at the end, nor furrowed on the culmen,
and is bent slightly upward; the gape, as before, is exceedingly constricted. The toes show
a basal web. These are rather large birds, with the colors and general aspect of curlews,
but the bill is not decurved and the tarsi are scutellate behind. They frequent marshes, bays
and estuaries, and are among the miscellaneous assortment of birds that are collectively
designated ‘‘ bay-snipe.” There are only five or six: species, of the single genus Limosa.

‘

SCOLOPACIDA: THE SNIPE FAMILY. 617

The Terekia cinerea of various parts of the Old World, with the bill recurved almost as in an
avocet, stands between the godwits and tattlers.

c. The Sandpipers (Tringa, etc.) are a rather extensive group, notable for the variation
in minor details of form, that it shows with almost every species — a circumstance that has
caused the erection of a number of unnecessary genera. Here the bill retains much of the
sensitiveness of a snipe’s, and the gape likewise is much restricted; but the bill is much
shorter, averaging about equal to the head. One trivial circumstance affords a good clue to
this group: the tail-feathers are plain-colored, or with simple edgings, while in almost all
the species of other groups these feathers are barred crosswise. In this group the seasonal
changes of plumage are very great; the proportions of the legs, and webbing of the toes, are
variable with the species, but, as arule, the toes are cleft to the base (not so in Micropalama
and Ereunetes), and four in number (except Calidris). The sandpipers belong particularly
to the northern hemisphere, and breed in high latitudes; they perform extensive migrations,
and in winter spread over most of the world. Among them are the most diminutive of waders.

a —=

Fig. 433. — American Snipe, abont 2 nat. size. (From American Field.)

They are probably without exception gregarious, and often fleck the beach in vast multitudes ;
they live by preference in open wet places, rather than in fens and marshes, and feed by prob-
ing, like snipe; the voice is mellow and piping. They are pretty well distinguished from
both the foregoing, though Micropalama connects with the snipe through Macrorhamphus;
but shade directly into the Tattlers, through such genera as Tryngites and Tringoides. Nearly
all the forms of sandpipers are described in detail beyond. There are in all about 20 species.
The only generic form not represented in this country is the Limicola platyrhyncha, the
peculiarity of which is expressed in its name. The Eurynorhynchus pygmeus, a wonderful
and exceedingly rare species, in which the bill is expanded and flattened at the end, somewhat
as in the spoonbill, has lately been stated to occur on our Arctic coast. The singular Machetes
jpugnaz should perhaps rather come here than among

618 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLA.

d. The Tattlers (Totanus, ete.), with which it is ranged, beyond. In this, the largest ana
most varied group, the bill has comparatively little of the sensitiveness of that of all the fore-
going, and the gape is longer, extending obviously beyond the base of the culmen, and some-
times to nearly below the eyes. It varies much in length and shape, but it is usually longer
than the head, and very slender, not often grooved to the tip, and is either straight, or bent
slightly upward. The body and its members are commonly more elongate than in the foregoing,
the toes have a basal web or two, and the hinder is always present. The tail is usually barred.
These are noisy, restless birds of the marshes and sand-flats and mud-bars of estuaries, and
apparently do not probe for food to any extent; they gain their name from their harsh voice.
The Yellowshanks is a typical example of the group; most of the species cluster close about
this type, and might go in the single genus Zotanus. The only extra-limital forms are
Aiichmorhynchus parvirostris and Prosobonia leucoptera, of the Pacific Islands; curious species
apparently near Tryngites. There are about 18 species in all, universally distributed. Finally,

e. The Curlews (Numenius) are distinguished by the downward curvature, extreme slen-
derness, and usually great length of the bill, with the slight scutellation of the tarsus. In size
and general appearance they are near the Godwits ; they inhabit all parts of the world. They
all belong to the genus Nwmenius, which has about a dozen species —excepting the Ibidor-
hyncha strutherst of Asia, which is a three-toed Curlew, not showing the coloration character-

istic of the rest. Analysis of North American Genera of Scolopacide.
Toes 3, (Sandpiper.). .... - 7 é tbsp C soe ee ee wt ws . Calidris 240
Toes 4.
Bill spoon-shaped Me Hey z soe ee ew we ee) 6Burynorhynchus 241
Bill not spoon -shaped.
One outer primary emarginate, narrowed. (Woodcock.) . . - 1 ew ew we ee «© © 6 Scolopax 230
Three outer primaries emarginate, narrowly linear. (‘Woodeock. 7 oe ee we ee es) 6Philohela 229

No outer primaries emarginate.
Toes cleft to the base.
Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw.
Bill about twice as long as head ; tibiz naked below. (Snipe) . . . » + Gallinago 231
Bill little longer than head ; tibize feathered to the joint. (Sandpiper.) . . .Arguatella 236
Tarsus about equal to or longer than middle toe and claw. (Sandpipers.) °
Bill slightly curved, longer than head.

Tarsus evidently longer than middle toeandclaw. ..... .- Ancylochilus 238
Tarsus equal to or barely longer than middle toeandclaw .... . Pelidna 237
Bill perfectly straight, much shorter than head. Primaries mottled . . Tryngites 249
Bill perfectly straight, equal to or longer than head.
Tarsus much longer than middle toeandclaw. ... . eee ee + Fringa 239
Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw soe ee ee ew + ©Aotodromas 235
Toes semipalmate, with one or two evident webs.
Tarsus scutellate in front only; bill very long, decurved. (Curlews.) . . . . Numenius 251
Tarsus scutellate in frent only; bill barely longer than head, straight . . Heteroscelus 250
Tarsus scutellate in front and behind.
Tail not barred. One minute web. Primaries mottled. .... . . + Tryngites 249
Tail not barred. Two full basal webs. Primaries plain. (Sandpipers.)
Bill shorter or scarcely longer than head. . . ....... . Ereunetes 234
Bill much longer than head. . : . a: : . . Micropalama 233

Tail barred crosswise with light and dark colors.
Gape not reaching beyond base of bill.
Culmen furrowed at end. Under afoot long. (Snipe.). . . . Macrorhamphus 232
Culmen not furrowed. Bill if anything recurved. Over a foot long. (Godwits.)

Limosa 242
Gape longer. Length under 9 inches. (Tattlers.)
Bill grooved nearly to tip . ee ee we ew we ew we. 6 Fringoides 246
Bill grooved about half-way totip . . soe ee ew ew . . Rhyacophilus 245
Gape. longer. Length over 9 inches, (Tattlers.)
Bill not longer than head, grooved three-fourths its length.
Tail about halfaslongas wing ..... i a . Bartramia 248
Tail not halfaslongaswing ...... - we Me tar ES . Machetes 247
Bill longer than head.
Legs bluish. Toes semipalmate. Bill stout. (Willet.). . . . Symphemia 243

Legs green or yellow. Billslender. (Yellowshanks.) . . . Totanus 244

SCOLOPACIDZ: WOODCOCK. 619

229, PHILOHELA. (Gr. ¢idos, philos, loving; dos, helos, a bog.) AMERICAN WooDcockK.
First three primaries emarginate, attenuate and falcate, abruptly shorter and narrower than the
4th. Wings short and rounded; when folded, the primaries hidden by the coverts and inner

Fia. 484. — Head and attenuate outer 3 primaries of Philohela, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

quills. Legs short; tibiee feathered to the joint ; tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw, scu-
tellate before and behind ; toes long and slender, cleft to the base. Bill much longer than head,
perfectly straight, stout at base, where the ridge rises high, knobbed at end of upper mandible,
very deeply grooved nearly all its length, the culmen and line of gonys also furrowed toward
end; very soft and sensitive ; gape very short and narrow. Head large; neck short; ear under
the eye, which is very full, set in back upper corner of the head. Sexes alike; 9 largest.
605. P. mi/nor. (Lat. minor, smaller—than the European Woodcock. Figs. 432, 434, 435.)
Woopcock. BoG-suckEeR. Colors above harmoniously blended and varied black, brown,
gray, and russet ; be-
low, pale warm brown
of variable shade, not
barred. A dark stripe
fron bill to eye.
Crown from opposite
eye with black and
light bars; along the
inner edges of the
wings a bluish-ashy
stripe; lining of wings
rust- brown; quills
plain fuscous; tail
black, spotted, and
tipped ; bill brownish
flesh-color, dusky at
end; feet pale red-
dish flesh-color. The
woodcock is 10 or 11 ee Se S
inches long, and 16 Fie. 435. — American Woodcock, much reduced. (From Lewis.)
or 17 in extent; wing 4.50-4.75 ; bill 2.50-2.75 ; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.50; and
weighs usually 5, 6, or-7 ounces. The woodhen, as some esthetic market-women prefer to call
her, is larger, 11 or 12 inches long; extent 17 or 18; wing 4.75-5.00; bill 2.75-3.00; some
good fat ones up to 8 or 9 oz. in weight. Bogs, swamps, wet woodland and fields, Eastern
U.S. and Canada; N.to Nova Scotia; N.W. to Minnesota and up the Missouri to Fort Rice ;

eae on

es = = SSS

280.

606.

231.

620 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—LIMICOLZ.

Kansas, Nebraska, Indian Terr. and Texas; no extralimital record; migratory, but breeds
throughout its range; winters in the south. This is the game bird, after all, say what you

' please of Snipe, Quail, or Grouse. Eggs more rotund than those of most small waders, cor-

responding to the plump form of the bird, averaging 1.50 x 1.18; a short broad one 1.40 1.20;
along narrow one 1.55 X 1.15; brownish clay-color, more buffy or more grayish, with number-
less chocolate-brown surface-markings and stone-gray shell-spots, none very large or bold; size
and intensity of markings generally corresponding to depth of ground color; usually laid in
April, earlier in the south. The woodcock has many curious actions during the mating season.
The young are sometimes removed from danger by the parent, carrying them with the feet.
Very erratic and capricious in its movements.

SCO'LOPAX. (Gr. ckodorak, skolopax, Lat. scolopax, name of this very bird.) EUROPEAN
Woopcockx. No outer primaries shortened or peculiar, the lst narrowed somewhat on inner
web near end; lst and 2d longest, 3d little shorter, 4th much shorter; wings long, com-
paratively, the point of the wing extending beyond the inner secondaries, which only fold about
to end of 5th quill. Generic characters, excepting those of the wing, much as in Philohela;
saine style of bill and feet and configuration of body and head; plumage similarly variegated
aboye, but below barred crosswise throughout ; size much superior. Of all the snipe-like birds
of this country, loosely called ‘‘ Scolopax,” this straggler from Europe is the only one to which
the name is strictly applicable.

S. rusti/cula. (Lat. rusticus, a rustic; rusticula, a little countryman.) EUROPEAN Woop-
cock. Cockbird: Colors above harmoniously blended and varied black, brown, chestnut, and
yellowish-gray; under parts brownish-white, regularly wavy-barred throughout with dark
brown. A dusky stripe from bill to eye. Top and back of head brownish-black and brown,
divided by three or four cross-bars of brownish-white and brown. Each feather of upper parts
chestnut and black, in variegation, the black usually forming a large subterminal spot. Yel-
lowish-gray tending to form a scapular stripe on each side of the back. Quills and coverts of
wing blackish, pretty regularly varied with dark chestnut bars, on the larger quills this
chestuut paler and reduced to marginal indentations ; outer web of first primary plain whitish.

Upper tail-coverts rich chestnut, little varied with black, with pale tips. Tail-feathers black,

with angular chestnut indentations of outer webs; their tips gray from above, viewed from
below glistening silvery-white. Under parts brownish-white, more or less suffused with
chestnut-brown on the breast, the regular dusky barring only giving way on the whitish throat,
changing to lengthwise streaks on the under tail-coverts.. Hen: Unmistakably similar— sub-
stantially the same; grayer above, much of the russet mottling of the @ replaced by hoary-
gray. A much “‘better bird” than our woodcock; a third larger; weight 12-15 oz. Overa
foot long ; wing seven inches or more ; tail 3.50; bill only about as long as in our woodcock ;
tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw more. JI describe this species with particularity, and sports-
men who get a bird of this sort will do well to report the fact at once. It was formally
introduced to our fauna in the original edition of the ‘‘ Key.” There are several authentic
instances of its capture in this country, and it is unquestionably entitled to such place, as a
straggler from Europe, of which country it is the common woodcock. See Lewis, American
Sportsmen, ed. of 1868, p. 169, footnote (New Jersey) ; Lawrence, Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y.,
1866, p. 292 (Rhode Island and New Jersey); Baird, Am. Journ. Sci., xli, 1866, p. 25 (New-
foundland) ; Coues, Am. Nat., x, 1876, p. 372 (Virginia).

GALLINA/GO. (Lat. giilline, a hen, whence gallinago, like virago from vir.) TRruE SNIPE.

Bill much longer than head, perfectly straight, soft to the end, where it is somewhat widened,

grooved on top, vascular and sensitive, in the dried state pitted ; lateral -grooves running more
than half-way to tip; gape narrow, not reaching beyond base of culmen. Ear under eye.
Tibi feathered not quite to the joint. Tarsus a little shorter than middle toe and claw; toes
perfectly free, cleft to the base, slender and not fringed. Wings rather short and rounded (for

607.

608.

SCOLOPACIDA:: SNIPE. 621

this family), less so than in Scolopax or Philohela; no primaries attenuate. Tail short,
rounded, of numerous (in our species 16) feathers, of which the lateral are narrowed ; tail
barred crosswise. Sexes alike; seasonal changes of plumage not pronounced. Numerous
species of all countries; one N. American, and another straggling to Greenland from Europe.

Analysis of Species.
Axillars and flanks white, incompletely or imperfectly barred with blackish . . . . . + . « media 607
Axillars and flanks fully and regularly barred with white and blackish. . . . . . +. « « wilsoni 60#
G. me‘dia. (Lat. media, medium (in size, between two other European species.) Fig. 430.)
EvRopgAN Snipe. ‘‘ ENGLISH SNIPE” proper. In size, form, and general coloration indistin -
guishable from No. 608, but the axillary feathers almost entirely white, with slight and sparse
dark markings, and the feathers of the flanks and sides less frequently and less regularly barred

ats

Fig. 436. — The Snipe’s family. (From “ Sport with Gun and Rod.” The Century Co., N. Y.)

with dark gray. (In the lesser European Snipe, @. gallinula, the sides and lining of wings are
fully barred as in our S. wilsoni, but the tail-feathers are 14, the outer ones little shorter and
not abruptly narrower than the rest.) Europe: Only N. American as occurring in Greenland.

G. wil'soni. (To A. Wilson. Figs. 431, 433, 436.) American Snipe. Wison’s
Snips. ‘ ENGLISH” SNIPE (so-called). JAcK-Snips. Adult # 9 : Crown black, with a
pale ochrey middle stripe. Upper parts brownish-black, varied with bright bay and tawny,
the scapular feathers smoothly and evenly edged with tawny or whitish, forming two length-
wise stripes on each side when the wings are folded. Quills and greater coverts blackish-
brown, usually with white tips, and outer web of first primary usually white. Lining of
wings and axillars white, fully and regularly barred with black. Rump black, the feathers
with white tips. Upper tail-coverts tawny with numerous black bars, and tail-feathers black

232,

609.

622 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LIMICOLZA.

basally, then bright chestnut, with a narrow subterminal black bar, their tips fading to whit-
ish; some of the lateral ones white, with little rufous tinge and several instead of one black
bar. Belly white; jugulum and fore-breast light brown speckled with dusky brown; chin
nearly white; sides of body shaded with brown, and with numerous regular dusky bars
throughout ; crissum more or less rufous, with numerous dusky bars. Length of § 10.50-
11.50; extent 17.50-19.50; wing 4.75-5.25; bill 2.50 (more or less); tail 2.25; tarsus
1.25; middle toe and claw 1.50. Q averaging smaller. Weight of various specimens
3 oz. 4dr. to 4 0z. 8 dr. Bill greenish-gray, dusky on terminal third ; iris brown; feet green-
ish-gray. This is the genuine snipe, of all the birds loosely so-called ; its name of “‘ English”
snipe is a misnomer, as it is indigenous to this country, and distinct from any European
species, though closely resembling two of them (G. media or celestis and G. gallinula). In
our species the tail is normally composed of 16 feathers, the two lateral of which on each
side are abruptly smaller, shorter, and much narrower, resembling the under coverts somewhat ;
and the whole sides of the body from breast to tail, as well as the axillars and lining of the
wings, are completely and regularly barred, as is also the crissum. Open wet places of
North America, at large; migratory; breeds from N. U.S. northward; S. into S. Amer. in
winter, though many remain in U.S. The general habits of this favorite game-bird are
too well known to require remark. Eggs 3-4, moderately pyriform, grayish-olive, with more
or less brownish shade; markings bold and numerous, most so on the larger end, of varying
shades of umber-brown; usually also sharp scratchy lines of black ; shell-spots not notice-
able. Nest a mere depression in grass or moss of the bog; chicks mottled with white, ashy,
ochrey and dark brown.

MACRORHAM’PHUS. (Gr. paxpés, makros, long, paéudos, hramphos, beak.) WEB-TOED
Snipe. Bill as in Gallinago, Wings longer and more pointed, more as in Tringa. Tibie
naked below for a space about half the length of tarsus. Tarsus longer than middle toe and
claw. Anterior toes webbed at base; webbing most extensive between middle and outer.
Tail doubly-emarginate, of only 12 stiffish (as compared with Gallinago) feathers; all the
feathers closely and regularly barred. Sexes alike; summer and winter plumages different
(as in sandpipers). Thoroughly snipe-like in the bill, but otherwise like long-legged sand-
pipers; near Micropalama, for example. Two alleged species, or varieties.

Analysis of Varieties.

Length 10.00 to 12.50; extent 17.50-20.00; wing 5.30-6.00, average 5.70; bill 2.00-3.00; tarsus 1.25-1.75,
average 1.53; middle toe without claw 0.90-1.10, average 1.00.
Wing 5.25-5.90, average 5.65; vill, 2.00-2.55, average 2.80; tarsus, average, 1.35; middle toe alone,
average 0.95. In summer: Belly whitish; breast and sides speckled with dusky . . . griseus 609
Wing 5.40-6.00, average 5.75; bill, 2.20-3.20, average 2.80; tarsus, average, 1.60; middle toe alone,
average 1.00. In summer: Belly cinnamon-brown; breast scantily speckled with dusky; sides
barred with dusky . Perey a5 ay HG ee lee Se OR Sete cide dap ah Coe . . Scolopaceus 610
Measurements of nine individuals, shot out of one flock in Dakota, formerly supposed to include both

species, and to show their perfect gradation in size; now supposed to show individual variation in M.
scolopaceus alone.

‘Total length . 10.25 10.50 = 11.00 11.25 11.50 11.75 = «11.90 12.25 12.60
Extent ofwings. . . 17.50 18.00 18.50 19.25 19.00 19.50 19.75 20.25 19.50
Wing ee 5.40 5.50 5.65 5.80 5.75 5.90 6.00 6.10 5.85
Whole naked leg . . 3.40 3.40 3.40 ° 3.35 4.00 4.10 4.00 4.10 4.15
Bil. ... 2... 2,20 2.40 2.50 2.85 2,90 2.90 2.95 3.05 3.25

M. gri/seus. (Lat. griseus, gray. Fig. 437.) RED-BREASTED SNIPE (summer). GRAY
SNIPE (winter). Brown-Back. Dowitcuer. Adult 9 @, in summer: Under parts rich
rasty-red, paler or whitish on the belly ; jugulum, breast, and sides fully speckled with dusky.
Axillars and lining of wings white, with angular dusky markings. Wing-quills fuscous, the
shaft of the lst primary white, of the others brown ; secondaries conspicuously tipped with
white. Above, black, varied everywhere with the reddish color of the under parts, and on

610.

233.

611.

SCOLOPACIDZ: SNIPE. 623

the back and scapulars with white; the rump snowy-white, unmarked, very conspicuous in
flight. Tail and its upper coverts black, closely barred with white or rufous. A dusky line
from bill to eye. Bill and feet greenish-black. In winter: Dark gray above, the feathers
with dusky centres and pale gray or whitish edges; lower back pure white; superciliary
line and spot on under eye-lid white ; below, white, the jugulum, fore-breast, and sides heavily
shaded with gray, leaving chin whitish ; the flanks and crissum with wavy dusky spots or bars.
(For dimensions see above.) This variety is supposed to be restricted to E. N. A. (?), along
the Atlantic coast, where it abounds during the migration, in proportion of 1,000 to one of the
next variety. Breeds in high latitudes. Among the shore birds, this is a great favorite with
gunners.

M. g. scolopa/ceus, (Lat. scolopaceus, snipe-like.) WrstTErRN DowiITcHER. RED-BEL-
LieD Syipr. GREATER Long-BEaK. Like the last; averaging larger, the bill especially
longer (see above). Weight 2 oz. 7 dr. to 40z. 4 dr. Entire under parts rich rusty-red,
including belly ; throat and breast scantily speckled, sides and flanks thickly barred, with
dusky. Winter and immature specimens indistinguishable from the last, excepting those sur-
passing the maximum size of the latter. N. Am. at large, supposed to be rare or casual on
the Atlantic side, and to be the only representative of the genus in the West (?). Like the
other, it is abundant; migratory; breeds in high latitudes. Both generally fly in large com-
pact flocks, like the sandpipers and shore-birds generally, rather than singly or in wisps like

Fig. 437, — Bill of Macrorhamphus griseus, nat. size, in profile, and its end from above. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

the true snipe ; and prefer the shores of bays and estuaries, instead of wet meadows. Eggs of
this variety or the last are not peculiar among their allies; 3-4 in number; length 1.55 to
1.75, by 1.10 to 1.15 broad; ground-color as in Gallinago, and general tone and style of mark-
ings the same.

MICROPA'LAMA. (Gr. puixpés, mikros, small; maddpn, palame, a web.) Stitt SAaNp-
PIPERS. Bill much as in the last genus, but shorter, less evidently widened at the end and not
so distinctly furrowed on top, sometimes perceptibly curved. Wings long, pointed, 1st
primary longest, rest rapidly graduated. Tail about half as long as wings, slightly doubly-
emarginate. Legs very long; tibie bare an inch; tarsus as long as the bill. Feet semipal-
mate, the front toes being connected by two evident basal webs. Plumage resembling that
of Macrorhamphus in general character; its changes the same; sexes alike. These two
genera are perfect links between snipe and sandpipers. One species.

M. himan’topus. (Gr. inavrorous, himantopous, strap-legged. Fig. 438.) Svint Sanp-
PIPER. Adult ¢ ?, in summer: Above, blackish, each feather edged and tipped with white
and tawny or bay, which on the scapulars becomes scalloped. Auriculars chestuut; a dusky
line from bill to eye, and a light reddish superciliary one; upper tail-coverts white with
dusky bars. Primaries dusky with blackish tips; tail-feathers 12, ashy-gray, their edges and
a central field white; under parts mixed reddish, black, and whitish, in streaks on the jugulum,
elsewhere in bars; bill and feet greenish-black. Length 8.50-9.00; extent 16.00-17.00;

234,

612.

624 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ..

wing 5.00; tail 2.25; bill 1.50-1.70; tarsus the same; middle toe and claw 1.00; tibia bare
1.00. Young, and adults in 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; legs usually
pale greenish-yellow. The full breeding dress is of brief duration ; the birds are usually ashy
and white from September to
April, both inclusive. N. Am.,
generally ; not observed W. of
the R. Mts.; rare. Breeds in
high latitudes; migrates to W.
I. and C. and 8. Am.

EREUNE'TES. (Gr. épevvy-
Ts, ereunetes, a searcher, pro-
ber.) SEMIPALMATED SAND-
PIPERS. Bill normally about as
long as head, straight, quite
stout for this family, both man-
dibles deeply grooved to the ex-
panded vascular and sensitive
tip. Wings long, pointed; sec-
ondaries obliquely incised. Tail

moderate, doubly-emarginate,
with pointed and projecting cen- Fig. 438.— Stilt Sandpiper, in breeding dress, reduced, (From
Nuttall, after Swainson.)

tral feathers. Tarsus rather
longer than middle toe and claw, equal to the normal bill in length. Bare portion of tibie
$ as long as tarsus. Toes connected by broad basal webbing, and broadly margined. A true
sandpiper, chiefly distinguished from Tringa proper by the semipalmate feet (fig. 48); from
Micropalama, which is similarly webbed, by the shortness of the bill and feet. Very small;
sexes alike; summer and winter plumages different.

E. pusil'lus. (Lat. pusillus, puerile, petty). SEMIPALMATED Sanppiprr. Prep. Bill,
tarsus, and middle toe with its claw, abowt equal to each other, an inch or less long, but bill very
variable, and apt to be shorter — 0.66-0.87 ; feet semipalmate, ‘with two evident webs ; length
5.50-6.50; extent about 11.75; wing 3.25-8.75; tail 2.00, doubly-emarginate, the central
feathers projecting. Adult ¢ 9, 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}; pri-
maries dusky, the shaft of the first white. A dusky line from bill to eye, and a white
superciliary line. Below, pure white, usually rufescent on the breast, and with more or less
dusky speckling on the throat, breast, and sides. In winter: Upper parts mostly plain ashy-
gray. Young in July and August have scarcely any traces of the spots beneath, being there
almost entirely white, with a light buff wash across breast ; there is also more white edging of
the feathers of the upper parts; but in any plumage and under any variation, the species is
known by its small size and semipalmate feet. The extreme variation in the length of the bill
is from 0.50 to 1.25, or 86 per cent of the average (0.88). N. Am., everywhere; an abundant
and well-known little bird, thronging our beaches during the migrations, which extend to the
West Indies and S. Amer. It is only known to breed in high latitudes, though it commonly
appears in the U. §. in August, and may sometimes be seen in other summer months. The
size, general appearance, and changes of plumage are much the same as those of Actodro-
mas minutilla, and the habits of these two birds are very similar. Eggs 3-4, 1.22X0.84, of
usual shape; ground from clay-color (usual) to grayish or greenish-drab or decidedly

613.

235,

614.

615.

SCOLOPACIDA: SANDPIPERS. 625

olivaceous, usually boldly spotted and splashed with umber or chocolate brown, massed at
larger end; sometimes more uniformly spotted in smaller pattern.

E. p. occidenta/lis? (Lat. occidentalis, western.) WESTERN SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER.
An alleged variety, probably untenable, ascribed to Western N. Am.

ACTODRO™MAS. (Gr. d«rj, akte, the seashore; Spouds, dromas, running.) PECTORAL
SANDPIPERS. SPOTTY-THROAT Sanppipers. Bill about equal to head or tarsus, short,
straight, very slender, somewhat compressed, the tip punctulate, scarcely expanded, acute.
Grooves on both mandibles very deep, and extending nearly to the tip. Nostrils situated very
near the base of the bill. Feathers extending on the lower mandible much beyond those on
the upper, and half as far as those between the rami. Wings long, pointed, first primary
usually longest; tertials long, slender, flowing. Tail rather long, deeply doubly-emarginate
(in one species cuneate), the central feathers much projecting ; upper tail-coverts moderately
long. Tibia bare for more than half the length of the tarsus; the feathers very short, making
the exposed portion nearly as great. Tarsus equal to the middle toe and claw. Toes long,
slender, very narrowly margined, entirely free at base. A group of’ several species, including
the smallest representatives of the family, agreeing in form and also in having the jugu-
lum and fore-breast thickly streaked or spotted, usually also with a brownish or ashy suffusion.

Analysis of Species.
Tail graduated, with acuminate feathers.
Jugulum ruddy brown, with very small sharp dark streaks. Upper tail-coverts and rump with black
central field . . Soe . nae . acuminata 619
Tail not graduated ; its feathers, except sential pair, not accmlaate,
Jugulum with brownish or ashy suffusion, thickly streaked. Upper tail-coverts and rump with black
central field.
Largest ; length 9.00 ; wing 5.25. Crown much darker than hind neck, the transition abrupt.
Chin immaculate. Edgings of feathers on upper parts light chestnut-red, not making inden-
tations toward the shaft. Suffusion on jugulum very deep, the darker streaks narrow, distinct.
Bill and feet dusky-green . . . j maculata 616
Medium; length 7.25; wing 4 80. Grows not conspicuously darker ea, hind neck, Edgings of
feathers on upper parts light reddish-yellow, scarcely brighter on the scapulars, making inden-
tations toward the shaft. Suffusion on jugulum very light, the darker markings rounded, some-

what obsolete. Billand feet black, . . . 2 . .bairdi 615
Smallest; a miniature of the preceding; length 5. 18; wing 's. 40. Edges of fenthiecs chestnut- red,
usually more or less indented, their tips lighter. Bill black; legsdusky-green . . . miénutilla 614

Jugulum with little or no brownish or ashy suffusion. Upper tail-coverts white.

Medium ; length 7.50; wing 4.80. Jugulum thickly streaked with narrow dark lines. Upper tail-
7 coverts immaculate, except the outermost. Central tail-feathers nearly black . . . bonapartii 617

Large ; length 9.50; wing 5.75. Jugulum thinly markec with oval spots or streaks. Upper tail-
coverts with dark arrow-heads. Central tail-feathers scarcely darker than the lateral. . cooperi 618
A. minutil/la. (Lat. minutilla, very minute; dim. of minutus, small.) AMERICAN STINT.
Wison’s Stint. LeastSanppiper. Prep. Smallest of the sandpipers; length 5.50-6.00;
extent about 11.00; wing 3.25-3.50 ; tail 2.00 or less ; bill, tarsus, and middle toe with claw, about
0.75. Bill black; legs dusky greenish. Upper parts in summer with each feather blackish cen-
trally, edged with bright bay and tipped with ashy or white ; in winter, and in the young, simply
ashy. Quills blackish, the shaft of the first white, the secondaries and greater coverts tipped
with white. Tail-feathers gray with whitish edges, the central ones blackish, usually with reddish
edges. Crown not conspicuously different from hind neck; an indistinct whitish line over eye,
and dusky one from eye to bill. Chestnut edgings of scapulars usually scalloped. Below,
white; jugulum and sides of body for some distance with ashy or brownish suffusion, thickly
spotted and streaked with dusky. This species and the last are usually confounded under the
common name of ‘‘sandpeeps,” and look much alike; but a glance at the toes is sufficient to
distinguish them. N., C. and 8. America and W. 1., anywhere; very abundant during the

migrations. Breeds in high latitudes, returning to the U. 8. in August. Eggs unknown.
A. bair'di. (ToS. F. Baird.) Batrp’s SANDPIPER. Form and proportions typical of the
genus. Bill small, slender, rather shorter than the head, equal to the tarsus, the tip scarcely

40

616.

626 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—LIMICOLA.

expanded, its point very acute. Grooves in both mandibles very long and deep, that of the
lower very narrow. Feathers extending on the side of lower mandible much farther than those
on the upper, about half as far as those between the rami. Wings long; first and second
primaries about equal, but varying, third much shorter; tertials long, slender, flowing. ‘Tail
rather long, but slightly doubly-emarginate, the central feathers rounded, projecting but little.
Toes long, slender, slightly margined, the middle with its claw about equal to tarsus. Adult
in breeding plumage: Entire upper parts a very dark brownish-black, deeper on the rump and
lighter on the neck behind, each feather bordered and tipped with light reddish-yellow ; on the
scapulars the tips broader and nearly pure white, and the margins brighter, making several deep
indentations towards the shaft. Upper tail-coverts long, extending to within half an inch of
the tips of the central tail-feathers, black, except the outer series, which are white with dusky
markings. Central tail-feathers brownish-black, the rest successively lighter, and all with a
narrow border of white. Jugulum with a very decided light brownish suffusion (much as in
A. maculata), and, together with the sides under the wings to some distance, with rounded
obsolete spots and streaks of dusky. Throat and under parts generally white, immaculate.
Biull, legs, and feet black. Young in August: Dimensions and proportions as in the adult.
Upper parts a nearly uniform light ashy-brown, deeper on the rump, each feather with a
central dark field and with a light edge, these whitish edgings usually conspicuous. Traces of
the brownish-black of the adult on the scapulars. Breast and jugulum with the suffusion very
light reddish-brown, the streaks sparse and very indistinct. Length 7.00-7.50; extent 15.25—
16.50; wing 4.25-4.75 ; tail 2.25 ; bill, tarsus, and middle toe with claw, about 0.87. Colors almost
exactly as in the last species ; edgings of upper plumage rather tawny than chestnut; jugular
suffusion pale, rather fulvous, the streaks small and sparse, sometimes almost obsolete. Size
of bonapartit, but not easy to confound with that white-rumped species. North and South
America; rare on the Atlantic coast, common in the interior ; the most abundant small sand-
piper in some parts of the west, during the migrations. Breeds in Arctic regions; eggs 3-4,
1.30 X 0.92, elay-colured, grayer or more buffy in different specimens, spotted with rich umber
and chocolate-browns of varying shades; in some cases the markings fine and inuumerable, in
others massed at the greater end, sometimes with black tracery also; pale shell-spots usually
evident. June, July.

A. macula/ta. (Lat. maculata, spotted.) PECTORAL SANDPIPER. GRASS-SNIPE. JACK-
sNIPE. Bill a little longer than the head, about equal to the tarsus or middle toe, moderately
stout, straight or very lightly decurved, the tip more expanded and punctulate than in the type
of the genus. Grooves in both mandibles long and deep. Wings long, pointed, first primary
decidedly longest ; tertials very long, narrow, and flowing. Tarsus equal to middle toe, both
about equal tothe bill. Tail rather long, deeply doubly-emarginate, the central feathers pointed
and greatly projecting. Adult in spring: An ill-defined white line over the eye, and a more
distinct one of dusky between eye and bill. Crown streaked with brownish-black and light chest-
nut, conspicuously different from the neck behind, which is streaked with dusky and light ochre-
ous. Upper parts generally, a very dark brownish-black, every feather edged with ashy or dark
chestnut-red, brightest on the scapulars, the tips usually lighter, and the margins never making
deep indentations toward the shaft. Rump and upper tail-coverts black, the outer series of the
latter white, with sagittate spots of dusky. Primaries deep dusky, almost black, the shaft of the
first white, of the others brown. Secondaries and greater coverts dusky, edged and tipped
with white. Lesser eoverts dusky, fading into light grayish-ash on their edges. Central tail-
feathers brownish-black, lighter on their edges, the lateral light ashy, margined with white.
Jugulum and breast with a heavy wash of ashy-brown, and with very numerous well-defined
streaks of dusky; the suffusion extending on the sides under the wings to some distance, where
the dusky streaks are mostly shaft-lines. Chin, and under parts generally, white, immaculate.
Bill and feet dusky greenish. Young in September: Edges of the feathers of the upper parts

617.

618.

SCOLOPACIDE: SANDPIPERS. 627

generally, and of the tertials and central tail-feathers, light bright chestnut, and the tips pure
white. Lesser wing-coverts broadly edged and tipped with light ferruginous. Suffusion on
the breast and jugulum with a yellowish ochreous tinge not seen in the adult, and the streaks
less distinct. Other parts as in the adult. Not known to have a plain ashy and white winter
plumage like most sandpipers. Length 9.00-9.50 inches; extent 16.50-18.00 ; wing (average)
5.50; bill, tarsus, and middle toe with claw about 1.10. N., C. and S. Am., W. L, Green-
land, Asia, and Europe; thus of wide and general dispersion; in U. S., chiefly during the
migrations, when abundant in wet grassy meadows, muddy ponds and flats, ete. It goes very far
north, quite to the Arctic Ocean, and is supposed to breed only in high latitudes; the nest and
eggs are still unknown. In some respects of habit it is quite snipe-like ; it never flocks on the
beaches with the smaller sandpipers, and it has at times a wayward towering flight, like that
of a snipe. During the amours, this sandpiper has the power of inflating the throat to a won-
derful extent, forming a swelling which hangs like a great goitre upon the breast. ‘ Pectoral
sandpiper’ is a book-name, seldom spoken, the bird being better known as the ‘ grass-snipe,’
and ‘jack-snipe’; but both these names are objectionable, as it is not a snipe; and ‘jack-
snipe,’ moreover, is the proper name of an English species of Gallinago (G. gallinula), not
found in this country, where G. wilsoni sometimes takes the same designation.

A. bonapar’tii. (To C. L. Bonaparte.) Wauirr-RuMPED SANDPIPER. Bill quite stout,
moderately long, equal to the head or tarsus, the tips somewhat expanded. Grooves on both
mandibles long and deep. Feathers extending on the lower mandible but little beyond those
on the upper. Wings long, pointed, first primary decidedly longest; tertials long, narrow,
and flowing. Tail moderate, quite deéply doubly-emarginate, the central feathers somewhat
pointed and considerably projecting. Tarsus rather longer than the middle toe. Toes long,
slender, and slightly margined. Crown and upper parts generally light brownish-ash, each
feather with a large field of dusky towards its end, and on the crown and middle of the back
edged with light yellowish-red, deepening into bright sienna on the scapulars. Lesser wing-
coverts dark brownish-ash, fading into light ashy on the edges, and with shaft-lines of blackish.
Secondaries and greater coverts light grayish-ash, edged and tipped with white. Tertials very
dark brownish-ash, fading into light ashy on the edges. Primaries deep dusky, their shafts
white in the central portions, and the innermost edged with white. Rump brownish-black.
Upper tail-coverts white, their outer series with sagittate spots of dusky. Central tail-feathers
brownish-black, the rest very light grayish-ash, broadly edged and tipped with white. Jug-
ulum and breast with a scarcely appreciable wash of light ashy, with numerous, distinct, linear-
oblong streaks of dusky brown; these extend as minute dots nearly or quite to the bill, and as
narrow shaft-limes along the sides to the vent. Rest of under parts white, immaculate.
Lower mandible flesh-colored for half its length; rest of bill, with the legs and feet, black.
Length 7.50; extent 15.00; wing 4.80; bill, tarsus and middle toe with claw rather less than
1.00. Young in August: Upper parts a nearly uniform dark ash, the black of the adults show-
ing at intervals, but principally on the scapulars, where also the reddish margins of the feathers
are apparent. Jugulum and sides under the wings with an ashy suffusion, more conspicuous
than in the adult, but much more restricted, and the streaks more obsolete and indistinct.
Central pair of upper tail-coverts usually dusky. Other parts as in the adult. America at large,
but not yet observed W. of the R. Mts. nor in Alaska; Greenland, Europe. Breeds from
Labrador northward ; migratory through the E. U. 8.

A. coo'peri? (To Wm. Cooper.) Coopzr’s Sanppipsr. Bill considerably longer than the
head, exceeding the tarsus, straight, rather stout, tip scarcely expanded. Feathers extending
on side of lower mandible scarcely further than those on the upper. Wings long, pointed, first
primary decidedly longest ; tertials moderately long and rather slender. Tail moderate, slightly
but decidedly doubly-emarginate, the central feathers projecting. Tarsus rather longer than
the middle toe ; tibia bare for half the length of the tarsus; toes all long, slender, and slightly

619.

236.

628 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LIMICOLZE.

margined. Adult in spring: Upper parts a nearly uniform light grayish-ash, each feather
with a central brownish-black field, deepening into pure black on the scapulars, where also the
edgings of some of the feathers have a reddish tinge. Tertials sooty-brown, fading into light
ashy on the edges. Secondaries and greater coverts dark grayish-ash, edged and broadly
tipped with white. Primaries deep dusky, almost black on the outer vanes and at the tips,
the innermost edged with white; shafts of all brown at base and black at tip, the central
portion being white. Upper tail-coverts white, with sagittate spots of dusky. Tail-feathers
ashy-brown, the central pair darkest. Under parts white; the jugulum, breast, and sides of
the neck with a slight reddish tinge, and, together with the sides, with numerous streaks and
oval spots of dusky, which become large and V-shaped on the flanks. Length 9.50; wing
5.75; tail 2.75; bill 1.25; tarsus 1.12. Long Island; only one specimen known. It is still
uncertain whether this is a good species or an unusual state of T. canutus or A. maculata.
A, acumina/ta. (Lat. acuminata, acuminate.) SHARP-TAILED SANDPIPER. A large species,
‘of the size and with somewhat the general aspect of the pectoral sandpiper. Tail graduated,
almost cuneate, all the feathers more or less acuminate, the projecting middle pair particularly
so. Bill about as long as head; tarsus equal to middle toe and claw ; toes perfectly free. Crown
bright chestnut, streaked with black, bounded by decided whitish superciliary lines; different
from the hind neck. Upper parts with the pattern of coloration of those of A. maculata, the
feathers being black, with bright chestnut edges, and many of them also with whitish tips, the
edgings not making scallops, and particularly straight and firm on the long tertials. Central
field of ramp and upper tail-coverts black, scarcely or not varied with reddish tips of the feathers,
the sides of this area white with dusky touches. ‘Tail-feathers dusky, the middle ones darker
or black, all firmly rimmed about with chestnut, buff, or whitish edging. Primaries blackish,
their shafts mostly white; secondaries dusky, successively acquiring white tips and edges;
greater coverts dusky, white-tipped. Entire under parts white, more or less suffused on the
jugulum, breast, and sides with a light ruddy brown (much as in Podasocys montanus), the
jugulum alone with a set of small sharp dusky touches, being an extension across the throat of
better pronounced streaks of the sides of the head, neck, and breast, leaving the chin definitely
pure white. The effect is quite different from that produced by the heavy strealting of A. ma-
culata. Bill and feet blackish. Length probably 9.00-9.50; wing 5.25; tail 2.50; bill 1.00;
tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw the same. (Described from several late summer and early
fall specimens, taken in Alaska. An Australian specimen before me is smaller (wing under
5.00, etc.), and, excepting the crown, lacks any reddish of the upper parts, all the edgings
being simply gray; the ruddy suffusion of the breast is scarcely seen.) An interesting species,
widely diffused in the Old World, lately found in Alaska, where it is common in summer in
some localities, as Saint Michael’s, and where it doubtless breeds; extent of its migration in
America, if any, unknown. .
ARQUATEL'LA. (Lat. arquatella, dim. of arquata, for arcuata, bowed.) FEATHER-LEG
SANDPIPERS. Bill, tarsus, and middle toe, obviously not of equal lengths. ‘Tarsus shorter
than bill or middle toe; tibiae feathered, the feathers reaching the suffrago. Toes very long,
broadly margined, and flattened underneath. Hind toe very short; claws short and blunt.
Tail moderate, wedge-shaped. Bill variable, always longer than head, straight or slightly
decurved, very slender, much compressed, tip scarcely expanded, groove on lower mandible
shallow or obsolete. A generic group established upon the well-known “ purple” sandpiper,
to which two other species or varieties have recently been added. The following analysis is
taken from B. N. O. C., v, 1880, p. 162.
Analysis of Species or Varieties.
Breeding dress: Crown streaked with yellowish-gray, or grayish-white; scapulars and interscapulars
irregularly spotted and indented with dull buff, or whitish, and tipped with white ; fore-neck dis-

tinctly streaked with dusky ; breast dull gray, everywhere spotted with darker. Winter dress: Back
and scapulars sooty-black strongly glossed with purplish ; the feathers bordered terminally with dark

SCOLOPACIDAi: SANDPIPERS. 629

plumbeovs-gray; fore-neck uniform mouse-gray, or brownish-plumbeous. Wing 5.06 ; culmen 1.20;
tarsus 0.99; middle toe without claw 0.90 . . . . . . maritima 620
Breeding dress: Crown streaked with deep rusty ; adlans and anteceenpudura proadly bordered with S
bright ferruginous ; fore-neck irregularly clouded with dull pale puff or soiled white and sooty-
plumbeous, the breast more coarsely clouded, with more or less of a black patch on each side.
Winter dress: Like that of maritima, but the plumbeous borders of dorsal feathers broader and
lighter, or more bluish. Jugulum streaked or otherwise varied with white. Wing 4.86; culmen 1.135
tarsus 0.95; middle toe without claw 0,86 . Bo fie pa eet Re SR RE A oe . couesi 623
receding dress: Crown broadly streaked with ochraceous-buff; acapnlars and interscapulars broadly
bordered with bright ochraceous-rufous; fore-neck pure white, sparsely streaked with brownish-gray ;
breast white, streaked anteriorly and clouded posteriorly with dusky, latter forming more or less of a
patch on each side. Winter dress: Similar to the corresponding stages of each of the foregoing, but
very much paler, the whole dorsal aspect being light cinereous, the scapulars and interscapulars with
small, nearly concealed, central spots, the wing-coverts very broadly edged with pure white ; fore-neck
with white largely inane: eer 5.16; culmen 1.33; tarsus 0.93; middle toe without claw
0.90 . . B es ees ae 8 ‘ 3 c fe, xe sega ptilocnemis 622

620. A. maritima. (Lat. maritima, maritime.) PurpLE Sanpprper. Bill little longer than

621.

head, much longer than tarsus, straight or nearly so; tibial feathers long, reaching to the
joint, though the legs are really bare a little way above; tarsus shorter than middle toe and
claw. Length about 9.00; extent about 16.00; wing 5.00; tail 2.66, much rounded ; bill 1.20;
tarsus 0.90-1.00; middle toe 1.00 or a little more. The breeding dress, little known: Upper
parts black, conspiéuously varied on the head, neck, back, and scapulars, with chestnut or
cinnamon, and pale buff or whitish, the darker reddish colors edging or indenting the sides
of the feathers, the paler colors chiefly tipping their ends; the rusty-red also suffusing the
sides of the head, separated from the black and reddish crown by a pale or whitish superciliary
stripe. A lighter tawny shade invades the jugulum and breast; otherwise, under parts
white, streaked on the breast with blackish, elsewhere nebulated with dusky-gray, but no
definite blackish area formed. Rump and upper tail-coverts brownish-black, unmarked.
Wings plain fuscous, the lesser coverts narrowly, the greater broadly, tipped with white,
the secondaries mostly white in increasing amounts from without inwards, and the shaft of
the first primary white. Tail-feathers plain dusky. Adult in winter: Entire upper parts a
lustrous very dark bluish- or blackish-ash, with purple and violet reflections, and each feather
with a lighter border. Greater and lesser wing-coverts, tertials and scapulars edged and tipped
with white. Secondaries mostly white. Primaries deep dusky, the shafts dull white except at
tip, where they are black. Upper tail-coverts and central tail-feathers brownish-black with
purplish reflections, the outer pairs of the former white-barred with dusky. Lateral tail-feathers
light ashy. Jugulum and breast bluish-ash, each feather of the latter edged with white, and
the ash extending along the sides beneath the wings. Rest of under parts white, immaculate.
Legs, feet, and bill at base light flesh-color; rest of bill greenish-black. Most immature birds
of the first fall and winter resemble this, but are duller, without the gloss. Young: Upper
parts much the color of the adult, but with each feather broadly edged and tipped with light
buff or reddish-yellow. Light edging of wing-coverts ashy instead of pure white. Under
parts everywhere thickly mottled with ashy and dusky, deepest on the breast and jugulum.
Chicks in down are very pretty: grayish-brown, mottled with black, the back, wings, and
rump spangled with white points; head grayish-white, tinged with fulvous, variously marked
with black ; lores with two parallel black stripes ; below, grayish-white. A species of cireum-
polar distribution, breeding and often wintering in Arctic regions; in America S. to the Middle
States; chiefly maritime, but also occurring on the Great Lakes. Egg of usual pyriform shape,
about 1.40 X 1.00, clay color with olive shade, with large bold markings of rich umber-brown
of varying shade, with neutral tint shell-markings ; markings over all the surface, but largest
and most massed at the greater end.

A. coues‘i. (To E.'Coues.) ALEUTIAN SANDPIPER. Very near the last. The following
is the original description, in substance. Breeding dress: Above fuliginous-slate; feathers of

622.

630 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

crown, back, and scapulars broadly edged with. rusty-ochraceous, or bright cinnamon, the
scentral field of each feather nearly black, much darker than wings or rump, some of the scap-
ulars and interscapulars tipped with white in some specimens. Lesser coverts narrowly,
greater coverts broadly, bordered terminally with white; greater coverts broadly tipped with
white, forming a conspicuous cross-bar; several inner secondaries chiefly white; the others,
also the inner primaries, narrowly skirted and tipped with white. Rump, upper tail-coverts,
and middle tail-feathers, uniform fuliginous dusky, the other rectrices paler, or dull cin-
ereous. A conspicuous long whitish superciliary stripe, reaching to nape, and confluent
with whitish of under side of head, thus posteriorly bounding-a large sooty-brown auricular
area; anterior portion of lores, and forehead dull smoky-grayish; neck, jugulum, and breast,
dirty whitish, sometimes soiled with dingy buff, and clouded or spotted with dull slate, sooty-
plumbeous, or dusky-blackish, this sometimes forming a large patch on each side of breast.
Other under parts pure white, the sides with a chain of slaty spots and streaks, the crissum
streaked with dusky ; lining of wing pure white. Bill and feet brownish-black in the dried
skin; iris brown. Winter plumage: Above, soft smoky-plumbeous, the seapulars and inter-
scapulars glossy purplish- dusky centrally, the plumbeous borders of the feathers causing a
squamous appearaiice; head and neck uniform plumbeous, excepting the throat and a supra-
loral patch, which are streaked whitish ; jugulum squainated with white, the breast similarly,
but more broadly marked. Wing, tail, and rump, asin summer. Young, first plumage: Seap-
ulars and interscapulars black, broadly bordered with bright rusty and buffy-white, the latter
chiefly on the longer outer scapulars and lower back ; wing-coverts broadly bordered with buffy-
white ; pileum streaked black and ochrey; jugulum and breast pale buff, or buffy-white, streaked
with dusky. Downy young: Above, bright rusty-fulvous, irregularly mottled with black, the
back, wings, and rump flecked with yellowish-white papilla ; head above deep fulvous-brown,
striped with velvety black from forehead to occiput, where confluent with a cross-bar of the
same; lores with two parallel stripes of same. Lower parts white, distinctly fulvous on sides.
Wing 4.50-5.15 inches, average 4.86; culmen 0.98-1.25, average 1.13; tarsus 0.88-1.00,
average 0.95; middle toe without claw 0.78-0.90, average 0.86. Aleutian Islands and Coast
of Alaska all the year round; extent of migrations unkuown, if any.
A. ptilocne/mis. (Gr. mridov, ptilon, a feather ; xynuis, knemis, a greave ; the crus being feath-
ered.) PRYBILOV SANDPIPER. BLACK-BREASTED SANDPIPER. Different. Adult in breeding
dress: With somewhat the appearance of a summer Pelidna alpina, but the black area pec-
toral, not abdominal. Crown, interscapulars, and scapulars black, completely variegated with
rich chestnut, ochrey, and whitish, the body of each feather being black, with one or another
or all the lighter markings; the coronal separated from the dorsal variegation by a grayish-
white, dusky-streaked cervical interval. Lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts blackish,
little variegated with chestnut. Secondaries nearly all pure white, a few of the outermost and
innermost touched with grayish-brown near end. Primaries grayish-brown with white shafts
except at tip, fading to white on inner webs toward base ; several of the inner ones also largely
white on outer webs, and tipped with white. Central tail-feathers brownish-black ; next pair
abruptly paler, grayish ; rest white or whitish with pale gray tint. Front and sides of head,
superciliary line, tufts of flank-feathers, and entire under parts, white, interrupted on the
breast with a large but not well defined nor perfectly continuous blackish area, and marked
on the upper breast and sides with a few sharp blackish shaft-lines. A dusky auricular patch.
Legs and bill dark. Length apparently about 9.50; wing, 4.80-5.30; tail 2.30-2.70; Dill
1.10-1.40! tarsus 0.90-1.00; middle toe and claw cr 05-1.20; 9 averaging less than ¢.
Winter plumage as above ail, First plumage: Upper parts much as in the adults, but the rusty
markings in curved rather than angular lines, and much narrower ; edges of wing-coverts ochrey.
Interior tail-feathers rusty-edged. Throat and breast more or less suffused with rusty; no black
pectoral area, but the jugulum, breast, and sides suffused with rusty. Chicks in down (July):

237.

623.

624.

238.

SCOLOPACIDA):: SANDPIPERS. 631

Below, silvery-white ; above, rich reddish-brown, varied with white, with curious little round
dots, like mildew. Each such spot is as large as a pin-head, and, under a lens, is seen to be
the enlarged brushy end of a down-feather, whence several tiny bristles sprout. Each such
plume is white at base, then black, then white-tufted as said; the dotted areas thus correspoud
to the areas of black variegation, but there are, also, a black undotted frontal line, loral stripes,
and some other markings. Only known from the Prybilov or Fur Seal Islands, where it breeds.
and northward to St. Matthew and St. Lawrence Islands. Eggs 4, like those of 4. maritima.
PELID'NA. (Gr. medudves, pelidnos, gray?) DunuIN Sanppipers. Bill stout, much
longer than head or tarsus, slightly decurved, tip somewhat expanded and punctulate; grooves
in both mandibles deep and distinct. Wings moderate; tertials long and flowing. Tail
moderate, doubly-emarginate, the central feathers projecting. Legs rather long; tarsus not
shorter than middle toe and claw, if anything longer. Bare portion of tibia more than half
the tarsus. Toes rather long, cleft to the base, narrowly margined. Contains a few species
or varieties in summer reddish above, with a great black abdominal area.

Analysis of Varieties.
Smallest: length about 8.00; bill, average, 1.40; tarsus little if any longer than middle toe and claw;

tarsus and middle toe together 1.75 . ... - . . alpina 623
Medium: length about 8.50; bill, average, 1.70; dispronorionntaty longer, stouter, more decineed: tarsus .

decidedly longer than middle toe and claw; tarsus and middle toe together 2.00. - . americana G24
{Largest: bill and legs still longer than in the last. Pacific Coast,N.A.. . . see ? pacifica]

P. alpi/na. (Lat. alpina, alpine.) Europran Dunuin. PUuRRE. Differing as above said from
the N. A. species. - Straggler to Greenland.

P. a. america‘na. (Fig. 439.) AmeRIcAN DUNLIN. BLACK-BELLIED SANDPIPER. RED-
BACKED SANDPIPER. OX-BIRD. Bill longer than head or tarsus, compressed at the base, rather
depressed at the end, and usually appreciably
decurved. Length 8.00-9.00; extent 15.00;
wing 4.50-5.00; tail 2.00-2.83; bill 1.50-
1.75 ; tibie bare about 0.50; tarsus 1.00 or
rather more; middle toe and claw 1.00 or
rather less. Adult in summer: Above, chest-
nut-red, each feather with a central black
field, and most of them tipped with whitish ;
rump and upper tail-coverts blackish ; tail-
feathers and wing-coverts ashy-gray, the
greater coverts tipped with white; quills
dusky with pale shafts; secondaries mostly white, and inner primaries edged with the same ;
outer webs of primaries blackish, some of the inner ones white-edged toward the base;
secondaries mostly white. Under parts white; belly with a broad, jet-black area; breast
and jugulum thickly streaked with dusky. Bill and feet black. Adult in winter, and
young: Above, plain ashy-gray, with dark shaft lines, with or without red or black traces.
Below, white, with little or no trace of black on belly; jugulum with few dusky streaks and
an ashy suffusion. White edgings of inner primaries very conspicuous.. The summer dress is
long worn; it is assumed more or less perfectly in April, and many come from the north still
wearing it. Allof N. Am., breeding in high latitudes, migrating through and wintering in the
U. S., preferably coastwise ; common, in flocks on the beaches:and elsewhere.
ANCYLOCHI'LUS. (Gr. dyxvddxeAos, aghulocheilos, having a curved bill.) CurRLEW
SANDPIPERS. Bill much longer than the head, slender, compressed, considerably decurved,
the tip not expanded, and rather hard. Grooves in both mandibles very narrow but distinct.
Wings long, pointed. Tail very short, nearly even. Legs long, slender; tarsus and tibia
both lengthened, the latter exposed for nearly or quite half the length of the former, which is

Fie, 439. — Bill and foot of Pelidna alpina americana,
nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

625.

626.

632 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— LIMICOLZ.

nearly as long as the bill. Toes moderate, slender, slightly margined, the middle one about
three-fourths the tarsus. One species, noted for its resemblance to a miniature curlew.

A. subarqua/tus, (Lat. subarquatus or subarcuatus, littled curved, as the bill is.) CURLEW
SANDPIPER. FERRUGINEOUS SANDPIPER. Adult: Crown of head and entire upper parts
lustrous greenish-black, each feather tipped and deeply indented with bright yellowish-red.
Wing-coverts ashy-brown, each feather with a dusky shaft-line and reddish edging. Primaries
deep dusky, their shafts brown at base and black at tip, the central portion nearly white.
Upper tail-coverts white with broad bars of dusky, and tinged at their extremity with reddish.
Tail light gray with greenish reflections. Sides of the neck and entire under parts uniform
deep brownish-red. Under tail-coverts barred with dusky. Avxillars and under wing-coverts
white. Bill and legs greenish-black. Young in autumn: Crown of head and back brown-
ish-black, with a slight greenish lustre, each feather edged with white or reddish-yellow.
Rump plain dusky ; upper tail-coverts white. Wing-coverts with broad grayish-white borders.
Tail light ashy, edged and tipped with white, the central feathers with a subterminal dusky
border in addition. Under parts entirely white, the breast and sides of the neck finely streaked
with dusky, the former with a light buff tinge. Length 8.50; wing 4.90; bill (average) 1.50;
tarsus 1.30; toe 0.90; tibia bare 0.70. Inhabits most of the Old World; in America very
rare, little more than a straggler along the Atlantic Coast. (For particulars of a dozen or
more instances of its occurrence, see New England Bird Life, vol. ii., p. 224.)

. TRIN'GA. (Lat. tringa or trynga or tryngas, a sandpiper.) Rosin SANDPIPER. Bill

about as long as, or rather longer than, the head, straight, stout, somewhat compressed,
widening uniformly from the middle to the slightly expanded, rather hard tip; the culmen
depressed on the terminal half to the expansion at tip, and obsoletely furrowed. Both mandi-
bles deeply grooved to the tip. Nostrils very large and placed far forward in the upper groove.
Feathers extending on the lower mandible much further than on the upper, and nearly as far
as those between the rami. Wings long, pointed, first primary decidedly longest. Secon-
daries moderately incised. Tertials short, broad, and comparatively stiff. Tail rather short,
nearly even, the central feathers projecting but little if any. Legs short and very stout;
tarsus usually shorter than the bill; longer than the middle toe. Tibial feathers reaching
nearly to joint; tibiz bare for nearly two-thirds the tarsus. Toes very short and stout, free
at base, widely margined; outer lateral longer than inner. Hind toe present, well developed.
Claws short, stout, blunt, much curved, dilated on the inner edge. Size large, form stout.

T. canu’tus. (Named for King Canute.) REep-BREASTED SANDPIPER. ASH-COLORED
SANDPIPER. GRAY-BACK. Rosin-snipzE. Knot. Largest of North American Tringee.
Bill stout, straight, rather longer than the head, upper mandible widely and deeply grovved to
the expansion at tip. Feathers extending on lower mandible much farther than on upper,
and nearly as far as those between the rami. First primary decidedly longest; tail short,
nearly even; legs short, stout; tarsus usually shorter than the bill, but much exceeding the
middle toe. Adult in summer: Upper parts brownish-black, each feather broadly tipped and
edged with ashy-white, tinged with reddish-yellow on the scapulars. Rump dark ash, barred
with dusky; upper tail-coverts white, with transverse sagittate or crescentic bars of brownish-
black. Tail grayish-ash, edged with ashy-white. Outer webs and tips of primaries deep
dusky, the inner much lighter. Secondaries and coverts grayish-ash, broadly edged and tipped
with ashy-white. Line over the eye and entire under parts uniform brownish-red, fading into
white on the flanks and under tail-coverts, which latter are marked with sagittate spots of
dusky. Bill and feet greenish-black. Young in autumn: Upper parts a uniform dark ash,
or cinereous, each feather tipped with ashy or pure white, and having a subterminal edging of
dusky-black, producing a conspicuous set of black and white semicircles, very characteristic of
the species in this plumage. Indistinct line over the eye, and whole under parts, white, more
or less tinged with light reddish, the throat, breast, and sides with rather sparse, irregularly

Sa vee Melee

240.

SCOLOPACIDZ: SANDPIPERS. 633

disposed lines and spots of dusky, which become transverse waved bars on the latter. Length
10.50; extent 20.50; wing 6.40; tail 2.70; bill about 1.40; tarsus 1.20; middle toe 1.00;
tibia bare 0.60. A large handsome species, inhabiting most of the World; in America,
chiefly along the Atlantic coast, but also in the interior, about the large lakes and rivers.
Migratory; breeds only in high latitudes.

CALI/DRIS. (Gr. cadidpis, halidris, Lat. calidris, name of some beach bird, perhaps this
one.) SANDERLINGS. Bill stout, straight, about as long as head or tarsus; tip thickened,
expanded and rather hard, the culmen just behind it somewhat concave. Nostrils far forward.
Wings long, pointed; tail short, doubly-emarginate, central feathers projecting. Tibice bare
for two-thirds the length of the tarsus; toes very short, widely margined. No hind toe
(General characters of Tringa proper, but 3-toed. See fig. 39.) One species.

a S
“Sa ee

Sa =>N

Fie. 440. —Sanderling, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

627. C. arena’ria. (Lat. arenaria, relating to arena, sand. Fig. 440.) Sanperuine. Ruppy

“PLoveR.” Adult in summer: Entire upper parts and neck all round variegated with black,
light ashy and bright reddish ; on the back and scapulars each feather having a central black
field, and being broadly margined and tipped with ashy or reddish. Under parts white, immac-
ulate. Outer webs and tips of primaries deep brownish-black, inner light ashy. A white spot at
base of inner primaries. Secondaries mostly pure white; the outer vanes and part of inner on
the latter half dusky. Greater coverts dusky, broadly tipped and narrowly edged with pure
white. Rump, upper tail-coverts and central tail-feathers dusky, tipped and narrowly edged
with ashy-white; lateral tail-feathers very light ash, nearly white. Bill and feet black.
Length 7.50-8.00 ; extent 15.00-16.00; wing 4,90; tail 2.25; bill about 1.00; tarsus rather

241.

884.

242.

634 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LIMICOLZ.

less; middle toe and claw 0.75. Young in autumn: No traces of the reddish. Upper parts
very light ash, each feather fading into white on the edges, and with a narrow shaft-line of
dusky. Entire under parts pure white. Scapulars dusky, edged with whitish. Other parts
as in summer adults. In a usual winter dress, there are traces of the reddish on the upper
parts generally, and on the breast. Each feather above is brownish-black, regularly indented
and tipped with ashy-white, thus giving to the upper parts the appearance of being evenly
mottled. There is a buff tinge on the breast, and also on the tips of the rump-feathers. The
bend of the wing is nearly as dark as in the adult. At all times the under parts from the

jugulum are pure white. Inhabits the sea coasts of nearly all countries; N. A. at large,

abundant coastwise, also in the interior on large bodies of water. Migratory; breeds in high
latitudes.
EURYNORHYN'CHUS. (Gr. edpiva, ewruno, I dilate; piyxos, hrugchos, beak.) Spoon-
BILLED SANDPIPER. Bill about as long as head, straight, spatulate at end, the “‘ spoon” being
about as wide as long, lozenge-shaped, with the distal angle well marked, the lateral angles
rounded off, the proximal one of course running into the rest of the bill; both mandibles share
this extraordinary dilation to about equal extent. The shape is not exactly as in the accom-
panying sketch; but the expansion is remarkably vascular, doubtless changes somewhat in
drying, and may not be quite alike in different specimens. Excepting this prodigy of a bill,
the characters are those of ordinary sandpipers, especially the smaller species of Actodromas.
Toes entirely free; hind toe extremely small; middle toe and claw a eile shorter‘than tarsus.
One species. .
(addenda) E. pygme’us. (Lat. pygmeus, dwarf. Fig. 441.) SPooNn-BILLED SANDPIPER.
Adult 9, in breeding plumage: General appearance of a stint (as Actodromas minutilla, for
example), and size little greater. Coloration of upper parts
almost exactly as in the species just named, the feathers
being black, with indented light chestnut-red edgings, and
mostly grayish-white tips; crown simply streaked with the
reddish color and black. Under parts white, the whole throat,
breast, and sides of the neck overlaid with bright chestnut (as
in a highly-plumaged sanderling), the breast, back of this
colored area, and the sides of the body, spotted with dusky.
Primaries plain dusky, with blackish outer webs and ends,
and mostly white shafts; secondaries mostly white from the
base; greater coverts white-tipped. Bill and feet black.
Length probably 6.00 ; wing 3.90; tail almost gone, probably
1.75; tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw 0.80; bill 0.90, the
spoon 0.45 wide; this singular instrument probably acting as
a sifter or strainer rather than as a shovel, in dabbling in soft
mire. (Described from No. 92,281, Mus. Smiths. Inst.,
or pea ee eae Trae: Plover Bay, E. Siberia, June 26, 1881, E. W. Nelson, figured
way, after nature. ) in colors in Nelson’s Birds of Bering Sea, etc., Voyage of the
‘Corwin,’ Washington, 4to, 1883, p. 87. Only one other specimen in this plumage is known
to exist; figured in Ibis, 1869, p. 462, pl. 12; see also P. Z. S. 1871, p. 111. A plain ashy
and white plumage is more usual.) Asia, especially India, breeding on the eastern Arctic
coast. of Siberia, and also on the Arctic coast of Alaska; one of the rarest of birds in collections,
only some 25-30 specimens being known, mostly from India; in this country, there is prob-
ably at present scarcely another specimen known than the one here described.
LIMO’SA. (Lat. limosa, muddy, miry; limus, mud, slime.) Gopwrrs. Bill much longer
than head, longer than tarsus, curved a little upward. Culmen flattened toward end, but not
furrowed ; end of bill not notably enlarged or punctulated. Lateral groove of both mandibles

628.

629.

- throughout with blackish and the body-color. Lining

SCOLOPACIDZ: GODWITS. 635

reaching nearly to end of bill; symphyseal groove less extended. Gape of mouth moderate,
scarcely cleft beyond base of culmen, as in Snipes and Sandpipers, not as usual among Tattlers.
Wing long'and pointed; tail short and square. Tibia denuded below for a moderate space.
Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw, scutellate before and behind, reticulate on sides. Toes
short and stout, much flattened underneath, and widely margined; outer and middle seni-
palmate, inner and middle with a slight web. Size large; general aspect curlew-like, but
bill recurved, not decurved. In character of bill approaching Suipes, especially Macrorhamphus,
to which it is nearly related in some other respects, as seasonal changes of plumage of most
species. Sexes similar. Two N. Am. species, and two others, occurring in Alaska and
Greenland, from Asia and Europe. _
Analysis of Species.

Rump, tail and its upper coverts barred thronghout with blackish and rufous. Lining of wings chestnut.
No extensive barring on under, parts. No great seasonal changes of plumage ? Feathers not extend-
ing on side of under mandible far beyond those on upper. . . . . 2. - @ ee . faeda 628
Run, tail, and its upper coverts barred throughout with white and black. Lining of wings aud axillars
white, with dusky marks~ Paes ‘i ac) de ee, a Bouse ey a8 . uropygialis 631
Rump blackish, upper tail-coverts mostly white, tail black with white base and tip. Under parts in
summer intense ferruginous, barred throughout. Lining of wings mostly blackish. Feathers extend-

ing on side of lower mandible to a point beyond those on upper . .....4... hemastica 629
Similar to L. hemastica ; rump, tail and its coverts substantially the same. Lining of wings and axillars
WhitO's se sn aoe G ‘ . : ‘ - @gocephala 630

L. fo/da. (Lat. feda, ugly, ungainly, unseemly. Fig. 442.) Great MarBiep Gopwit.
Marin. Feathers not extending on side of lower mandible to a point far beyond those on upper.
No white anywhere; rump, tail, and its coverts barred

of wings chestnut; axillars the same, more or less
barred with black. General color rufous or light dull
cinnamon-red, uniform and nearly uninterrupted on
all the under parts, richer and more chestnut on the
lining of the wings and axillars; somewhat marked
with dusky on the sides of the breast and body; on
the whole upper parts variegated with the brownish-
black central field of each feather, the blackish pre-
dominating, leaving the rufous chiefly as scallops and
tips of the feathers. This rufous very variable in in-
tensity ; usually paler on upper than on under parts,
and strongest under the wings. Primaries rufous,.
successively darkening from last to first, the outer
webs and ends of the few outer ones blackish, the Fia. 442. —Godwit, greatly reduced. (From
shaft of the first white. Bill livid flesh-colored, Senay Aron eve)

blackish on about terminal third; legs ashy-blackish. Large: length 16.00-22.00 inches ;
extent 30.00-40.00; wing somewhere about 9.00; tail 3.00-4.00; bill 3.50-5.50, generally
about 4.00; tarsus 3.00, more or less; middle toe and claw 1.50; few birds vary more in
size. Sexes not distinguishable; no ashy and whitish plumage known. Temperate N. Am.;
the largest of the “‘ bay-birds” excepting the long-billed curlew; conspicuous by its size and
red color among the waders that throng the shores and muddy or sandy bars of bays and
estuaries during the migration. Known to breed chiefly in the upper Mississippi and Eastern
Missouri regions, in Iowa, Minnesota, and Dakota, to the Saskatchewan; does not appear to
go far along the Atlantic coast northward. Nests anywhere on the prairie, not necessarily
near water ; eggs 3-4, about 2.28 x 1.60, light olive-drab, numerously but.not very boldly
spotted with various umber-brown shades, and the usual stone-gray shell-spots.

L. hemas'tica. (Gr. aizaorixés, haimastikos, of bloody-red color.) Hupsontan Gopwit-

636 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LIMICOLZE.

AMERICAN BLACK-TAILED GopwiT. RinG-TAILED MARLIN. Feathers on side of lower
mandible reaching to a point far in advance of those on upper. Rump blackish. Most upper
tail-coverts conspicuously white ; longest coverts and the tail-feathers black with white bases,
those of the tail-feathers most extensive, and the latter also white-tipped. The appearance
of the parts connectively is therefore of a black rump, then a broad white bar, then a broad
black bar, then a narrow white bar. Lining of wings sooty- blackish, mixed with some white;
axillars black. Under parts rich ferruginous or chestnut-red, everywhere crossed with numer-
ous irregular black bars, several on each feather, and usually also crossed, especially behind,
with similar white bars, such variegation of black, white, and red most pronounced on the
under tail-coverts. Upper parts blackish (brownish-black with greenish gloss), intimately
mixed with rufous and ochrey or whitish, these lighter colors forming indentations on the edges
of each feather. Primaries blackish, with white shafts and white basal spaces; their coverts
the same, with white tips. Bill light, probably orange or reddish, the terminal third black ;
legs black. Length 14.50-16.50; extent 24.00-26.50; wing 7.50-8.50; tail 3.00-3.50; bill
2.75-3.50; tibia bare 1.00 or more; tarsus 2.25-2.55 ; middle toe and claw 1.30-1.70. 9
averages larger than ¢; weight 9.00-9.500z.; ¢ 7.50-8.00 oz. Immature or winter specimens:
Specific characters of wings and tail much the same. Upper parts dark ash, with black shaft-
lines, the back varied more or less with black patches and whitish or rufescent markings.

Fig. 443. — Willet, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. F.C.)

Under parts whitish, more or less rufescent, with traces of black barring. N. Am. generally ;
C. and 8. Am. and W.I.; not noted W. of the R. Mts., and apparently not common any-
where in the U. S.; breeds in high latitudes. The American representative of DL. egocephala.
Eggs 4, average 2.18 X 1.40, very heavy brownish-olive, with the usual markings.

630. L. egoce'phala. (Gr. aiyoxéhados, aigokephalos, goat-headed; name of some bird.) Euro-
PEAN BLACK-TAILED Gopwit. Very like the last ; characters of rump and tail substantially
the same; at once distinguishable by white (not black) lining of wings and axillars. Europe,
ete. ; only American as occurring in Greenland.

631. L. uropygia/lis. (Lat. wropygialis, relating to wropygium, the rump.) WHITE-TAILED
Gopwir. Paciric Bar-TaILep Gopwir. Rump, tail, and its upper coverts, white, more
or less tinged with rufous, barred throughout with black. Lining of wings and axillars white,
former varied, latter barred, with dark gray. In summer, upper parts blackish, everywhere
varied with rusty-red; head, neck, and under parts rusty-red. In winter, grayish-brown
above, the feathers with darker centres and blackish shaft-lines; below, whitish ; sides and
crissum with sagittate black marks. Averaging less than DL. feda ; bill 3.50-4.50. A widely
distributed Old World species, very near the bar-tailed godwit of Europe, L. lapponica, and
probably identical with DL. nove-zealandie ; lately ascertained to occu in Alaska, where it is
common, and known to breed. Eggs like those of other godwits, 2.22 < 1.47.

243. SYMPHEMIA. (Gr. ctudnw, sumphemi, I speak with.) SemMIPALMATE TaTTLers. Bill

632.

SCOLOPACIDZ: TATTLERS. 637

longer than head, straight, its tip not expanded, knobbed, nor notably sensitive; grooved
about half its length only; culmen not furrowed. Gape of mouth reaching beyond base of
culmen. Bill much stouter than usual in Tattlers. Legs stout. Feet semipalmate, with
decided web between inner and middle as well as outer and middle toes. Tarsus longer than
middle toe and claw, scutellate before and behind. (General characters of Totanus at large,
but bill and feet stout, latter bluish, and toes semipalmate. See fig. 49.) One N. Ai. species.

S. semipalma’ta. (Lat. semipalmata, half-webbed. Fig. 444.) SEMIPALMATED TATTLER.
Witter. Adult ¢ 9, in summer: Upper parts ashy, confoundedly speckled to greater or
less extent with black-
ish; this sometimes
giving the prevailing
tone, but in lighter col-
ored cases the blackish
restricted to an irregu-
lar central field on each
feather, throwing out
angular processes and
tending to become
transverse bars. When
such dark fields pre-
vail, the upper parts,
become quite blackish,
speckled with ashy-
white, like Totanus
melanoleucus, for ex-
ample. Furthermore,
there is often aslight ru-
fescence. Under parts
white, sometimes with a rufous or brownish tinge, the jugulum and breast spotted and streaked, .
the sides barred or arrow-headed, with brownish-black. Axillars and lining of wing, edge of
wing and primary coverts, sooty-blackish. Primaries blackish, with a great space white at
base, partly overlaid and concealed by the primary coverts, partly showing conspicuously as a.
speculum; shafts white along this space. Most secondaries white; most upper tail-coverts
white, the shorter ones dark like rump, the longer ones barred like tail. Tail ashy, incom-

pletely barred with blackish ; lateral feathers pale, or marbled with white. Bill dark; legs
bluish. It is evidently a mistake to describe the willet as merely gray and white. Length
about 16.00; wing 8.00; tail 3.00; bill 2.25-2.75; tarsus the same; middle toe and claw
1.67. g Q in winter, and young: Character of wing as before. Above, light ashy, nearly
or quite uniform ; tail corresponding with this gray state; upper tail-coverts white. Below,

white, shaded with ashy on the jugulum, breast, and sides. Every stage occurs between the

two here described. Temperate N. Am. at large, N. to 56° at least, but chiefly U. 8.; breeding

throughout its U. 8. range, and resident in the Southern States. A large, stout tattler, known

at a glance by its white-mirrored black-lined wings and blue legs, too plentiful for such a wary,

restless, and noisy bird in marshes for the convenience of gunners, as its shrill reiterated cries,

incessant when its breeding places are invaded, alarm the whole neighborhood. Breeds by

pairs or in small companies in fresh or salt marshes; nest a slight affair in a tussock of grass

or reeds just out of the water; eggs 3-4, 1.90 to 2.12 X 1.45 to 1.55, average 2.00 x 1.50,

less pointedly pyriform than usual in this family, brownish or buffy-olive or clay color, boldly

and distinctly spotted and splashed with umber-brown shades, little massed at the great end,

with the usual shell-markings.

Fic. 444, — Willets. (From Lewis.)

633.

634.

638 , SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

TO'TANUS. (Ital. totano, some bird of this kind.) Tarriers. Bill longer than head,
straight or nearly so, if anything rather bent up than down, very slender, without expansion at
tip or furrow on culmen, the lateral grooves little if any more than half its length; gape reach-
ing beyond base uf culmen. Wings long, pointed; tail short, even or little rounded, barred in
color. Legs very long and slender ; tibize much denuded below; tarsi longer than middle toe
and claw, scutellate before and behind. ‘Toes with decided basal webbing between outer and
middle toe, that between inner and middle slight. Legs green or yellow. Numerous species
of various parts of the world.

Analysis of Species.

Legs yellow.
Length over 12; wing over 7; tail 3 or more; bill over 2, bent upalittle . . . . melanoleucus 633
Length under 12; wing under 7; tail under 3; bill under 2, straight . ..... - flavipes 334
Legs greenish; size and form nearly as in T. melanoleucus . a tae oat LR ES ah glottis 635

T. melanoleu/cus. (Gr. peéAas, melas, black ; Aevkds, leucos, white. Fig. 445.) GREATER
TELL-TALE. GREATER YELLOW-SHANEKS. LONG-LEGGED TATTLER. STONE-SNIPE. Bill

Fig. 445. — Greater Yellow-shanks, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. Cc.)

straight or slightly inclined upward, not with regular curve, but as if bent near the middle
black or greenish-black. Legs very long and slender, chrome-yellow. Length 13.00-14.00;
extent 23.00-25.00; wing over 7.00, nearer 8.00; tail 3.00 or more; bill 2.00 or more; tarsus
about 2.50; middle toe and claw 1.70. Length from end of bill to end of outstretched feet 17
or 18 inches. @ 9, adult: Above, blackish, more or less ashy according to season, everywhere
speckled with whitish, in a series of indentations along edge of each feather; the markings
spotty on the back and wings, streaky on the head and neck. A slight white superciliary line
Upper tail-coverts mostly white. Under parts white, the jugulum and fore-breast streaked.,
the sides and flanks, lining of wings and axillars barred and arrow-headed with the color of thy
back. Tail like back, with numerons white bars, generally broken on the middle feathers,
Primaries blackish, with black shafts, mostly with white tips; secondaries and their coverts
the same, but their edges marbled, spotted, or broken-barred with white. The seasonal
changes of plumage are inconsiderable, consisting chiefly in the tone of the upper parts, more
blackish and white in summer, more gray and ashy in winter and in the yonng; and in the
emphasis of the dark markings of the under parts. N. Am. at large; in U. S. chiefly asa
migrant, and in winter; breeds in high latitudes; abundant, like the last a noisy, restless
denizen of the marshes, bays, and estuaries.

T. fla‘vipes. (Lat. flavipes, yellow-foot.) Lesser TELL-TALE: YELLOW-SHANKES. A
miniature of the last; colours precisely the same; legs comparatively longer; bill grooved
rather farther, perfectly straight. Length under 12.00, usually 10.00-11.00; extent 19.00-
21.00; wing under 7.00; tail 2.50; bill always under 2.00, about 1.50; tarsus about 2.00;

' 635.

636.

637.

SCOLOPACIDH: TATTLERS. 639

middle toe and claw, and bare tibia, each, 1.25. N. Am., abundant, in the same places as
the last. Breeds from the N. States northward, and winters in the U. 8S. Eggs 3-4, pointedly
pyriform, 1.58 to 1.78 X about 1.16 ; ground clay-evlor, buffy or creamy, not olivaceous, the
markings showing boldly on the pale ground, but in great diversity, some eggs being heavily
splashed with blotches confluent about the great end, others having small clean-edged spots all
over the surface ; markings rich umber, chocolate, or blackish, with neutral-tint shell-spots.
T. glot/tis. (Gr. yAérra, glotta, the tongue; i.e. noisiness.) GREEN-SHANKS. Size and
form almost exactly as in T. melanoleucus; rather smaller; bill about 2.25; wing 7.50; tail
3.25 ; tarsus 2.50; colors nearly the same, but bill and legs greenish ; rump and lower back,
as well as the tail and its coverts, white with more or fewer dark marks, chietly broken bars
or other variegation on the tail-feathers alone. “Florida.” T. glottis Aup., B. Am., 8vo ed.,
v, 321, pl. 346. There is no reason to suppose that this bird is anything more than a strag-
gler to this country ; Audubon’s specimen is absolutely identical with European ones.
RHYACO/PHILUS. (Gr. pia€, gen. puaxos, hruax, hruakos, a brook ; idos, philos, loving.)
Green TatTriers. Bill inoderately longer than head, perfectly straight, very slender,
grooved a little beyond its middle. Legs not very long for this group; tarsus little exceeding
middle toe and claw; bill and legs both dark-colored. Only the most rudimentary web
between inner and middle toe; a moderate one between outer and middle. Upper parts dark-
colored ; tail rounded, fully barred with white. Small.
Analysis of Species.

Length over 9.00; upper tail-coverts white; legs grayish-blue , . . 4 ae ochropus 636

Length under 9.00; upper tail-coverts like back ; legs greenish, drying blackish ee . . solitarius 637
R. och/ropus. (Gr. dypéds, ochros, pale, sallow, wan; movs, pous, foot; not well chosen.)
GREEN SANDPIPER. Upper parts blackish-brown, with faint olivaceous metallic gloss,
streaked on the head and neck, speckled on the back and wings, with white; upper tail-coverts
white. Tail white at base; lateral pair of rectrices white, others marked with white and
blackish in bars. Below, white, jugulum and sides marked with dusky. Bill blackish ; iris
brown ; feet grayish-blue, greenish on the joints. Length about 10.00; wing 5.50; tail 2.50;
bill 1.50; tarsus 1.30. Nova Scotia; a straggler from Europe (one instance, Bull. Nuttall

Club, ili, 1878, p. 49).

R. solita/rius. (Lat. solitarius, solitary ; solus, alone. Fig. 446.) SoLiTaRy TATTLER. AMER-
ICAN GREEN SANDPIPER. ¢ 9, adult:
Above, dark lustrous olive-brown, streaked
on the head and neck, elsewhere finely speck=
led, with white; no continuous white on rump
or upper tail-coverts. Below, white; the jug-
ulum and sides of neck shaded with brownish
and streaked with dusky ; sides, axillars, and
lining of wings regularly barred with dusky. Fic. 446.—Solitary Sandpiper, nat. size. (Ad nat.
Rump and upper tail-coverts like back; tail de! F.C.)

beautifully and regularly barred throughout with black and white; white prevailing on the
outer feathers, where the dark bars may be broken, and white reduced to a series of marginal
spots on the middle feathers. Primaries and edge of wing blackish, unmarked ; secondaries
like back, mostly unmarked, the inner ones gradually gaining white spots. Bill blackish ;
legs dull greenish (drying quite black, like many serophulariaceous plants). Length 8.00-
9.00, usually ‘between. these figures; extent 15.50-17.00; wing 4.75-5.40; tail 2.25; bill
1.12-1.24; tarsus 1.20-1.30; middle toe and claw 1.12-1.20. Young: Above, lighter and
legs olivaceous brownish, without gloss, the speckling less, or else of a rusty tinge. Suffusion
of jugulum paler and more restricted. White around and over eye better defined. Bill and
feet ashy-greenish. N. America, the representative of R. ochropus; N. to Alaska. Breeds

246,

638.

11 Q47,

639.

640 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLA.

in N. U.S. and northward, if not also through most of its U. 8. range; winters altogether
or chiefly extralimital. Abundant during the migrations; a shy, quiet inhabitant of wet woods
and meadows and secluded pools, rather than of the marshes. Eggs still (1883 !) desiderata ;
but see Bull. Nuttall Club, iii, 1878, p. 197; New England Bird Life, ii, 1883, p. 240; and
Bull. U. 8. Nat. Mus. No. 26, p. 97.
TRINGOIDES. (Gr. zpiyyas, truggas, Lat. tryngas, or tringa, a sandpiper ; eiSos, eidos, re-
semblance.) SporrEpD SANDPIPERS. Bill straight, only about as long as head or tarsus, grooved
for about three-fourths its length. Tibize scarcely denuded for half the length of tarsus. Tar-.
sus about as long as middle toe and claw. Outer and middle toes webbed for the length of
their first joints; inner cleft. Tail fully half as long as the wing. Upper parts glossy, .
under spotted on white ground; bill and feet pale. Of small size.
T. macula/rius, (Lat. macularius, spotted. Fig. 447.) SpoTrep SANDPIPER. ¢ 9, adult:
Above, silken ashen-olive (quaker-color — as in our
cuckovus) with a coppery lustre, finely varied with
blackish, in streaks on head and ueck, elsewhere in
wavy or otherwise irregular cross-bars. Line over
eye, and entire under parts, pure white, with nu-
merous sharp circular black spots, larger and more
© crowded in the 9 than in the g. Secondaries and

Fic. 47.—Spotted Sandpiper, nat. size. their coverts broadly white-tipped; some white feath-
(Ad nat. del. E. C.) . i ee i a

ers along bend of wing; axillars and lining of wings

white, the latter with an oblique dusky bar. Primaries and most uf the secondaries brownish-
black, with brown shafts and large white basal spaces, concealed in the folded wing, conspicuous
in flight. Upper tail-coverts and middle tail-feathers like back; lateral ones successively acquir-
ing white tips; outer with several incomplete white bars. Feet pinkish-white, drying yellow-
ish. Bill flesh-color, black-tipped; sometimes much of culmen dusky; sometimes much of
under mandible orange. @: Length 7.25-7.60; extent 13.00-13.50; wing 3.80-4.00; bill,
tarsus, and middle toe with claw, each 0.95-1.00. 9: Length 7.60-7.90 ; extent 13.50-14.00;
wing 3.90-4.10. Young: Above, less glossy, with little if any blackish variegation. Below,
white, entirely free from spotting. Downy young: Below, white; above, mottled with dark
brown and buff; a sharp black stripe from top of head down middle of back, and another
through eye. N, Am. at large, extremely abundant everywhere near water, and breeding
throughout the country; winters in Southern States and beyond; familiarly known as the
sandlark, peetweet, teeter-tail, tip-up, etc., these last names being given in allusion to its
habit (shared by allied species) of jetting the tail as it moves; a custom as marked as the
continual bobbing of the head of the solitary tattler and others. Nesta slight affair of dried
grasses, on the ground, often in a field or orchard, but generally near water; eggs 4, pointed,
creamy or clay-colored, blotched with blackish and neutral tint; about 1.30 X 1.00.
MACHE'TES. (Gr. wayntys, machetes, a fighter.) Ficurinc Sanppipers. Bill straight,
about as long as head, shorter than tarsus, grooved nearly to tip. Gape reaching behind
culmen. Outer and middle toe webbed at base; inner cleft. Tarsus longer than middle toe
and claw. Tail about half as long as wing, barred. in the breeding season with the face
bare and beset with papille, and the neck with an extravagant frill or ruffle of elongated
feathers. 9 without these ornaments. 2
M. pug’nax. (Lat. pugnaa, pugnacious. Fig. 448.) Rurr, g. Rerve, 9. CompBarayt.
GamBeTTa. Adult 3, in wedding dress: Varied above with black, brown, buff and chestnut,
the sides of rump white; under parts white, breast and sides and crissum black, spotted with
white ; tail brown, barred with chestnut and white; quills dusky, with white shafts; wing
coverts ashy-brown. Bill blackish, flesh-colored at base; legs dingy yellow; warty excres-
cences yellow; feathers of the ruff endlessly varied in color. Length about 12.00; wing 7.00;

248.

SCOLOPACIDZ: TATTLERS. 641

tail 3.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 2.00. 9 smaller, lacking the ruff and tubercles, etc. A widely
distributed bird of the Old World, noted for its pugnacity ; occasionally killed on the coast of
New England and the Middle States. (Lawrence, Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y., v, 1852, p..220,
Long Island. Coues, Pr. Essex Inst., v, 1868, p. 296; New England. Brewster, Am. Nat.,
vi, 1872, p. 306; Massachusetts. Brewster, Bull. Nuttall Club, i, 1876, p. 19; Maine.
Wheaton, Bull. Nuttall Club, ii, 1877, p. 83; Ohio. — Forest and Stream, Oct. 7, 1880, p.
186; Massachusetts. See Freke, Zoologist, Sept. 1881, p. 376.)

BARTRAMIA, (To Wm. Bartram.) Bill rather shorter than head, much shorter than tar-.
sus, about equal to middle toe; straight, the culmen a little concave in most of its length, the

640,

Fia. 448, — The Ruff, J, in full feather, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

upper mandible grooved for three-fourths its length. Gape very wide and deep, reaching below
eyes. Feathers on side of lower mandible scarcely or not reaching opposite those on upper, and
not filling the interramal space. Tail very long, more than one-half the wing, graduated.
Wings moderate, pointed. Tibise denuded for nearly the length of the middle toe. Tarsi
scutellate before and behind, much longer than middle toe and claw. Outer toe moderately
webbed ; inner cleft to the base. Size medium; neck and legs long; head small; coloration
highly variegated; sexes alike; no great seasonal changes. One species.

B. longicau/da. (Lat. longus, long ; cauda, tail.) BAaRTRAMIAN SANDPIPER. BARTRAM’S
TaTTLER. UpLanp PLover. Fie~p Pirover. Grass Prover. Prarris Pianon. Adult
& 9%: Above, blackish, intimately variegated with tawny or whitish edgings of all the
feathers ; blackish prevailing on crown and back, the lighter colors on the hind neck and

41

249.

641.

642 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZ.

wings; on the scapulars and long ‘inner secondaries the black resolved in regular angular bars
on a greenish-browu field. Rump and most upper tail-coverts brownish-black, unvaried; a
few of the longer coverts barred to correspond with tail. Middle tail-feathers dark ashy-
brown, with paler or rufescent edges, and irregular or broken bars, throughout; other tail-
feathers becoming orange-brown, with numerous irregular or broken bars ot spots of black ;
with one broad, firm, subterminal black bar, and tips white for a distance increasing on succes-
sive feathers. Under parts dull soiled white, or tawny-white, the rufescence strongest on
jugulum and breast, the jugulum streaked with blackish, and sides with sharp arrow-heads
of the same. Axillars and lining of wings pure white, regularly barred with black. Prim-
aries brownish-black; the lst at least, and sometimes all of them, barred with white on the
inner webs; shaft of the first white, of the others brown. Secondaries like primaries, but
usually barred with white on both webs, the inner ones gradually assimilating with the back
in character of markings. Bill yellow, with black ridge and tip; feet dull yellowish, drying
darker; iris dark brown. Length 11.75-12.75; extent 21.50-23.00; wing 6.25-7.00; tail
about 38.50; tarsus 1.75; bill, and middle toe and claw 1.00-1.25. Downy young: Varie-
gated above with white, brown, or black; white below; bill bluish with dark tip; legs clay-
color. They are 5 or 6 inches long before any feathers sprout. N. Am. at large, rare W. of
the R. Mts., in profusion on the prairies of the interior, and common eastward; N. to the
Yukon. Breeds from the middle districts northward; winters extralimital. A fine game
bird; but those who only know it when its fears are excited by incessant persecution have
little idea what a gentle and confiding creature it is on the western prairies. Nest any-
where on the prairie, in June; eggs normally 4, averaging 1.75 x 1.28; clay-color or pale
creamy-brown without olive shade; spotted all over, but most thickly at the large end, with
small, sharp, rounded surface marks of umber-brown, among which are the purplish-gray shell-
spots; the spots rarely if ever larger than a split pea, and seldom confluent. ,
TRYN'GITES. (Gr. tpvyyas, truggas, a sandpiper, with suffix -rys, -tes.) MARBLE-WING
Sanppipers. Bill shorter than head, very slender, tapering, and acute, grooved nearly its
whole length, and thus much as in Tringa ; but gape of mouth extensive, and end of bill not
dilated and sensitive. Frontal feathers embracing base of upper mandible in nearly transverse
outline, and extending quite to nostrils; those on side of ‘under mandible reaching further still,
and those of chin completely filling the interramal space; such extension of the feathers
making the bill appear remarkably short. Wings of ordinary shape. Tail about one-half
as long as wings, rounded, with projecting central feathers. Tibize denuded below for a
space less than length of middle toe. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw. Toes cleft to
the base, or with only the most rudimentary basal webbing. Primaries peculiarly marbled in
color. Tail not barred. Related to Tringa in many respects; but the acute and hardened
tip of the bill, and long gape, are totanine, and on the whole the affinities seem to be with
the last genus. One species.
T. rufes/cens. (Lat. rufescens, rufescent, reddish. Fig. 449.) BUuFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER.
& 9, adult, in breeding plumage: Above, brownish-
black with a greenish gloss, every feather broadly mar-
gined with tawny or yellowish-brown, the latter the
prevailing tone. Under parts buff or fawn-colored, with-
out markings except a few small blackish spots on sides
of breast. Central tail-feathers greenish-brown, blacken-
is ing at ends; others paler, often rufescent, with white or
Fie. 449. — Buff-breasted Sandpiper, tawny tips and subterminal black bar; and usually, also,
Hit. ize, - (Ad nati del, MC.) some black marbling or streaking. Primaries and sec-
ondaries ashy-brown blackening at end, the extreme tip white — most of the inner webs
of the primaries, and both webs of the secondaries pearly white, speckled and marbled with

250.

64%.

251.

_than head, probably always exceeding the tarsus, some-

i

SCOLOPACIDE: TATTLERS. 643

black. This curious tracery, best seen from below, is diagnostic; though the precise pat-
tern varies interminably. The patch of under coverts at the bases of the primaries have
the same character. Axillars white ; lining of wings white or rufescent. Iris brown.
Bill brownish-black; legs greenish or yellowish. Length 7.50-8.25; extent about 16.00;
wing 5.00-5.25; tail 2.50; bill along culmen 0.67-0.75, along gape 1.00; tarsus 1.20;
riddle toe and claw under 1.00. Fall plumage: Under parts less rufescent, frequently simply
vawny-whitish; and the broad ochrey or tawny edgings of the feathers of the upper parts
replaced by narrow whitish streakings, in a set of semicircles. Wings and tail as in spring,
N. Am. at large, and a frequent European straggler, but apparently nowhere abundant;
migratory in the U. 8.; 8. in winter through 8. Am.; breeds in high latitudes. Eggs usually
4, pointedly pyrifurm, 1.40 to 1.50 X 1.02 to 1.10; the ground clay, sometimes slightly oliva-
ceous, often quite grayish ; markings extremely bold and sharp, in heavy blotches and indeter-
minate spots all over the eggs, but largest and most numerous at the greater end; colors rich
umber-brown, of varying shade. Nearest these blotched samples are the splashed ones, with
markings massed at greater end, elsewhere splattered in small pattern. Others are spotted with

-narrow markings radiating from the large end, almost wreathing about the greatest diameter.

All with the usual neutral-tint shell- markings ; most with scratchy blackish marks over all.
HETERO'SCELUS. (Gr. érepos, heteros, different, otherwise; oxéAos, skelos, leg.) SHORT-
LEGGED TaTTLER. Bill totanine, longer than head or tarsus, strait, rather stout, much com-
pressed, both mandibles grooved for about two-thirds their length, with inflected tomia beyond.
Gape of mouth extending beyond base of colunm ; feathers of equal extent on sides of both
mandibles, those of chin reaching much farther. Wings long, pointed, folding about to end of
tail; Ist and 2d quills subequal and longest. Tail short, less than half the wing, nearly even.
Legs short, somewhat rugous, reticulate except on front of tarsus, where imperfectly or incom-
pletely scutellate ; tibize denuded for a space about half as long as tarsus; tarsus longer than
middle toe and claw, shorter than bill; outer longer than inner lateral toe; a large basal web
between outer and middle, a rudimentary one between middle and inner; bind toe,long, about
equalling lst joint of inner toe. One species, remarkable for the character of tarsal envelope
and perfect uniformity of color of upper parts.

H. inca/nus. (Lat. incanus, quite gray.) WANDERING TATTLER. Upper parts perfectly
uniform dark plumbeous, or slaty-gray, including the wholly unmarked tail, wing-coverts, and
inner quills, the longer quills gradually blackening, the shaft of the first primary nearly all
white ; a white line over eye. Lining of wings, axillars, and sides of body colored like the back,
but varied with white. Under parts in general white; in one plumage without markings, but
heavily shaded on neck, breast, and sides with the color of the back; in another, heavily
marked with blackish-plumbeous — speckled on throat, streaked on neck, wavy-barred on breast,
sides,. and crissum. Bill black, apparently pale at base of under mandible. Length about
10.00; wing 6.50; tail 8.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 1.25; mid-
dle toe and claw a little less. A species of almost universal
distribution on the coast and islands of the Pacific, com-
mon in summer on the shores of Alaska; described under
at least twelve different names.

NUMENIUS. (Gr. véos, neos, new; pyr, mene, the
moon: the long curved bill, like a crescent. Fig. 450.)
Curtews. Bill of very variable length, always longer

times more than length of entire leg; slender, curved — wye, 450. —Long-billed Curlew, greatly
downward, the tip of the upper mandible knobbed and reduced.

overhanging the end of the lower; obsoletely grooved nearly to end. Gape of mouth
extended beyond base of culmen. Feathers reaching about equally far on sides of each man-

644 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLZE.
\
dible. Wings and tail ordinary; latter barred in color. Legs rather stout; tibie largely
denuded below; tarsus much longer than miudle toe and claw, scutellate in front only, else-
where reticulate. Toes short and thick, flattened underneath, brvadly margined on sides.
Of large and medium stature, and plump form. Coloration variegated; rufous usually prevail-
ing. Sexes alike; changes of plumage not pronounced. A cosmopolitan genus of several
species; in character of bill unique, in that of the legs very similar to Limosa. In fact,
barring the bill, Numenius longirostris closely resembles Limosa feda. It is a curious fact
that Old and New World representatives of both these genera differ from each other in a simi-
lar manner, the former having the rump, tail and its coverts, and lining of wings white, barred
or not, while some or all of these parts in the latter are dark. Compare Limosa feda with L.
* uropygiahs ; L. hudsonica with L. lapponica ; Numenius hudsonicus with N. pheopus, ete.

Wray

i
aes &
alli oo

Fic. 451. — The European Curlew, Nwmenius arquatus, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

Analysis of Species.
Feathers of belly bristle-tipped.. ..... 2 sere a ad Sait By sos 0 6 + baittensis GAT
Feathers of belly normal.
Rump white, more or less spotted with dusky.
Upper tail-coverts and under wing-coverts white spotted and barred with dusky . . pheopus 644
Rump, upper tail-coverts and lining of wings not white.
Primaries varied with rufous, General coloration strongly rufous, especially below; lining of

wings deepest rufous, little or not varied. Large; bill4-6-Binches. . . .. . longirostris 643
Primaries varied with rufous or whitish. General coloration scarcely or not rufous; lining of
wings entirely varied. Medium-sized; bill84 inches. - - + + + + + + + + hudsonicus 645

Primaries not varied with rufous or whitish. General coloration scarcely or not rufous; lining
of wings entirely varied. Smallest; billunder3inches . - +. +. + + ess s borealis 646

SCOLOPACIDA): CURLEWS. 645

643. N. longiros'tris. (Lat. longus, long; rostrwm, beak.) LoNG-BILLED CURLEW. SICKLE-BILL.

644,

645,

Bill of extreme length and curvature, measuring from 4 to 6 or § inches. Of largest size: length
24.00 or more ; extent 38.00; wing 10.00-12.00; tail about 4.00; tarsus 2.75-3.50. Plumage
very similar to that of the godwit, Limosa fada: prevailing tone rufous, of varying intensity
in different specimens, usually deepest on the lining of the wings, which are little varied with
other color. Primaries varied with rufous. Top of head variegated with blackish and rufous
or whitish, without distinct pale median and lateral lines. Upper parts brownish-black,
speckled with tawny or cinnamon-brown, each feather having several indentations or broken
bars of this color; rufous prevailing on wing-coverts. Tail-feathers and secondaries cinnamon-
brown, with pretty regular dark bars throughout. Under parts rufous or cinnamon of varying
intensity, usually deepening to chestnut under the wings, fading to whitish on throat; the
jugulum and fore-breast with dusky streaks which tend on the sides of breast and body to arrow-
heads or more or less complete bars ; lining of wings, axillars, and crissuin, mostly unmarked,
though some spats may appear. No white on rump, tail, or wings. Bill black, much of under
mandible pale-flesh-color or yellowish ; legs dark. Little variation in plumage with sex, age,
or season. Chicks hatch in whitish down, thickly blotched above with brownish-black; the
bill straight, an inch long. Like other exceptional developments of parts of birds, this member
grows to indetermi-
nate length. Up to
the time it is not over
3 or 4 inches long,
the species may be ~
distinguished from NV.
hudsonicus by the
strong rufescence of
the under parts, which
are nearly clear of
dark markings. En-
tire temperate N.
Am.; breeds nearly
throughout its range ;
migratory northward,
resident in the south,
but also 8. in winter
to C. Am.; uncom-
mon in New England.
Nests aboundingly on
the S. Atlantic coast, and on the prairies of the Northwest. Eggs 3-4, not very pear-shaped,
more like hen’s eggs; 2.45 to 2.80 long by 1.80-1.90 broad; clay-colored, tending either to
darker olivaceous shades or to buff; spotting generally pretty uniform and of small pattern,
in some cases blotched or massed at the greater end, of sepia, chocolate, or umber-brown, the
paler shell-markings usually numerous and evident.

N. phe/opus. (Gr. dais, phaios, dusky, swarthy; mois, pous, foot.) EUROPEAN WHIMBREL.
In stature and general character resembling the Hudsonian curlew ; at once distinguished from
that species by the white rump, upper-tail coverts and lining of wings, spotted or barred with
dusky. An extensively distributed Old World species, only N. American as occurring in
Greenland.

N. hudson/icus. (Of Hudson’s Bay. Fig. 452.) Hupsonian Curtew. Jack CurLEew. Of
medium size; bill moderate in length, stout, curved. Bill 3 or 4 inches long. Length 16.00-
18.00 ; extent 32.00; wing 9.00-10.00; tail 3.50 ; tarsus 2.25-2.50. General tone of coloration

Fig. 452. — Hudsonian Curlew, much reduced. (From Lewis.)

646.

647.

646 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LIMICOLA.

scarcely rufous, the under parts, and the variegation of the upper, being whitish or ochraceous.
No white on rump, tail, or lining of wings. Top of head uniform blackish-brown, with well-
defined whitish median and lateral stripes (as in pheopus, but neither longirostris nor borealis).
Upper parts brownish-black, speckled with whitish, ochraceous or pale cinnamon-brown, in
same pattern as in longirostris, but the dark in excess of the light colors, and these never
strongly rufescent. Tail ashy-brown (not rufous), with numerous narrow blackish bars. Prima-
ries fuscous, marbled or broken-barred with pale color (pattern as in longirostris, tone not
strongly rufous). Lining of wings and axillars rufescent, but spotted or barred throughout with
dusky. Under parts soiled whitish or somewhat ochraceous, only obscurely rufescent on cris-
sum, if anywhere; the jugulum and fore-breast with dusky streaks which, as in other species,
change to arrow-heads or incomplete bars on sides of breast and body. Bill blackish, some
part of lower mandible pale; feet dark. The N. Am. representative of N. pheopus, but
obviously different ; generally distributed, not so common as either longirostris or borealis ;
breeds in high latitudes, migratory through the U.S., wintering in the 8. States and far beyond.
Eggs of intermediate size, but not distinguishable with certainty, the markings being as in
other species; 2.12 to 2.30 long, by about 1.60 broad.

N. borea/lis. (Lat. borealis, northern.) Eskimo CurLew. DovuGu-sirp. Of smallest
size; bill short, slender, and little curved. Bill 2.00 or more, perhaps never 3.00. Length
12.00-15.00 ; extent 28.00; wing under 9.00; tail 3.00; tarsus 2.00 or less. General tone
little rufescent, the under parts and the variegation of the upper rather ochraceous than rufous.
Top of head variegated throughout, without median line, but with tolerably well defined
whitish superciliary stripes. Upper parts brownish-black, speckled with ochraceous or very
pale cinnamon brown, the general effect as in hudsonicus ; dark coloration in excess of the
pale. Tail barred much as in hudsonicus, the broader light bars often rufescent. Primaries
and most secondaries plain fuscous, entirely lacking the variegation seen in the foregoing.
Under parts ochraceous, or somewhat rufescent, very variable, frequently whitish, marked as
in other species with dusky streaks, arrow- heads, or bars, but these more numerous, frequently
occupying all the under parts, excepting chin and middle of belly. Avxillars and lining of
wings rufescent, barred throughout with dark brown. Bill black, with base of lower mandible
pale or yellowish ; feet greenish-black. In handling perhaps a hundred fresh-killed birds, I
have noted much variation in tone, but the species is unmistakable. N. Am. at large, breeding
within the Arctic circle, migrating through the U.S., where rarely if ever known to winter,
never to summer, and wintering in C. and 8. Am. Extraordinarily abundant in some places
during the migration, as in Labrador, where it fairly swarms in August. In the northern
regions, feeds chiefly on the Hmpetrum nigrum. Nest in open plains. Eggs 4, from 1.90 to 2.12
long, by 1.33 to 1.40 broad ; olive-drab, tending to green, gray, or brown in different cases, with
large, bold and numerous markings of bistre, chocolate and sepia-brown, tending to aggregate
on the greater end, with the ordinary stone-gray shell-marks.

N, taiten’sis. (Of Otahiti.) OrTaniri1 CURLEW. BRISTLE-BELLIED CURLEW. Of medium
size, about equalling N. pheopus ; wing 9.00 or more; tail 4.00 ; bill about 3.50 ; tarsus about
2.25. Crown with light median and superciliary lines; upper parts brownish-black, with the
usual tawny variegation ; no white on rump, tail, or lining of wings ; tail and its coverts tawny,
the coverts spotted or streaked with dusky, the rectrices pretty regularly and firmly barred with
about 6 dusky bands, and tipped with tawny-white; lining of wings and axillars fully barred
with tawny and dusky. Primaries blackish, varied to some extent on inner webs, the shaft of
the first white. Under parts pale tawny, the chin white, the jugulum thickly streaked, the
sides more loosely barred with dusky, but most of under parts immaculate, and many feathers,
especially of the flanks, ending in long glistening bristles. Bill and feet dark. Alaska, not
common, perhaps only a straggler from Asia; a well-known and abundant curlew of various
Pacific islands, only recently added to our fauna.

HERODIONES: HERONS AND THEIR ALLIES. 647

VIII. Order HERODIONES: Herons and their Allies.

Altricial Grallatores: including the Herons, Storks,
Ibises, Spoonbills, and related birds. The species
average of large size, some standing among the tall-
est of Carinate birds, with compressed body and ex-
tremely long neck and legs. The neck has usually
15-17 vertebre, and is capable of very strong flexion
in S-shape. The tibiee are naked below; the podo-
theca varies. The general pterylosis is peculiar, in
the presence, in central groups of this order, of
powder-down tracts, and in some other respects. The
oil-gland is present, and tufted. A part if not the
whole of the head is naked as a rule, as much of '
the neck also frequently is. The toes, usually long
and slender, are never fully webbed. The hallux is
more or less lengthened, and either little elevated, or
else perfectly insistent. A foot of insessorial character
results ; the species frequently perch on trees, where
the nest is usually placed. The physiological nature
is altricial and usually psilopeedic ; the young hatch-
ing naked, unable to stand, and being fed in the nest.
The food.is fish, reptiles, mollusks, and other animal
matters, generally procured by spearing with a quick
thrust of the bill, given as the birds stand in wait,
or stalk stealthily along; hence they: are sometimes
called Gradatores (stalkers). The bill normally rep-
resents the ‘‘cultrirostral” pattern; it is as a rule of
lengthened wedge shape, hard and acute at end if not
hard throughout, with sharp cutting edges; enlarging
regularly to the base where the skull contracts gradu-
ally in sloping down to meet it; but deviations from
such typical shape are frequent and striking. It is
firmly affixed to the skull, and always longer than the
head. The nostrils are small, elevated, surrounded

Fig. 453.—The Bittern’s Bog. (From by bone and a horny sheath, with little if any soft
Michelet.) skin. The wings normally show a striking difference
from those of Limicole, in being long, broad, and ample. The tail is short and few-feathered,
usually having 12 rectrices.

The cranial characters, though varying to some extent, agree in several important respects.
The palatal structure is desmognathous, but without keel along line of junction; the maxillo-
palatines are large and spongy. The nasal bones are typically holorhinal ; schizorhinal in
Ibides ; in which, also, the angle of the mandible is produced@and recurved, being normally
truncate. The sternum is ample, once or twice notched on each side behind. The cervical
vertebree are numerous; usually 15-17. The trachea and bronchi present some remarkable
dispositions, but here and there only, such ‘conformations being therefore not characteristic of
the order. The carotids are double (in Botawrus (fig. 93) unique, as far as known, in uniting at
once). An intestinal cecum or two coeca, present. Different genera vary in the classificatory
muscles of the leg, the ambiens, femoro-caudal, and its accessory being present or absent.

648 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — HERODIONES — IBIDES.

The group here noted corresponds to the Pelargomorphe of Huxley, the Ciconiiformes of
Garrod (minus Cathartide !), the Grallatores altinares of Sundevall, and includes the Herodie,
Pelargi, and Hemiglottides of Nitzsch, — respectively the Heron series, the Stork series, and the
series of Ibises and Spoonbills. The first of these differs more from the others than these do
from one another. As usual, there are certain outlying genera, types of families or subfamilies,
the position of which is not assured. But appearances are that the questionable forms will
fall in one or another of the three series indicated. All of these series, to be conventionally
rated as suborders or superfamilies, are represented in North America, where also all the large
and leading families occur.

12. SusorperR IBIDES: Tue Isis Series.

Skull schizorhinal. Angle of mandible produced and recurved. Ambiens muscle, femoro-
caudal and accessory, semitendinosus and accessory, and post-acetabular portion of tensor fasciz,
present; pectoralis major simple; biceps cubiti connected with tensvr patagii longus. Sternum
double-notched on each side. Carotids double, normal. Two intestinal coca. Tongue ex-
tremely small. A tufted oil-gland. Plumage without powder-down; feathered tracts broad.
Tarsi reticulate (rarely scutelate). Hallux uot fairly insistent. Claws resting upon a horny
“shoe.” Inner edge of middle claw not, or not fairly, pectinate. Side of upper mandible with
adeep narrow groove for its whole length; bill otherwise very differently shaped in the two
families, Ibidide and Plataleide, of which this series consists.

43. Family IBIDIDA:: Ibises.

Bill very long and slender, compressed-cylindric, curved throughout, deeply grooved
nearly or quite to tip, which is rather obtuse, not notched; end of eulmen rather broad and
depressed, in the rest of its extent the culmen narrow and rounded; interramal space narrow,
acute, produced nearly to tip of bill. (Whole bill thus closely resembling a Curlew’s; one of
our species is frequently called ‘“‘Spanish Curlew.”) Legs rather short (for Herodiones).
Claws compressed, acute; the middle may be dilated and jagged, but is not fairly pectinate.
Hallux sub-insistent. Tarsi reticulate, or scutellate in front only. Anterior toes more or less
webbed at base. Pterylosis more or less completely stork-like, lacking the powder-down
tracts of Herons; head more or less extensively denuded. Birds of medium and large size
(among Herodiones), long-legged, long-necked and small-bodied, with ample more or less
rounded wings, of which the inner quills are very large; tail very short, usually if not always
of 12 broad rectrices. Chiefly lacustrine and palustrine inhabitants of the warmer parts of the
globe, feeding on fish, reptiles, and other animals. The sexes are alike; the young different.
There are about 24 species of Ibises, among which the minor details of form vary considerably,
nearly every one of them having been made type of some geuus, according to shape of bill,
character of head-feathering, condition of tarsal envelope, etc. The two leading modifications
are, tarsus entirely reticulate, and tarsus scutellate in front; our genera illustrate the latter.

Oxss. Our Wood “ Ibis,” so called, is a Stork. See beyond, p. 652.

e Analysis of Genera and Species,

Head bare on sides and beneath. Claws scarcely curved. Colors dark, metallic, greenish and chestnut.
PLEGADIS 252
Face without white feathers in adult . . ah Gg ak 39 oh) Sar ey « . 6 . « faleinellus 649
Face surrounded by white featbersinadult .... 1... ep ewe ee guarauna 650

Head extensively bare on front, sides, and beneath. Claws curved. Colors light, dull, red or white.
Evpocmmus 253
Adults white. ...... a a ee ee ee a Be Be, ORS a ow albus 65t
AGO WARE ee Ok Re a ee we we ae me. See Ca (aS i Pee ruber 652

252.

649.

650.

IBIDID_E : IBISES. 649

PLE'GADIS. (Gr. rAnyds, plegas, a scythe, sickle.) GLossy Ispises. Bill twice as long

as head, or more, regularly decurved; both mandibles grooved on sides for their whole length;

culmen prominent from near base for most of its length, flattened and grooved on terminal two-

fifths; symphysis of lower mandible grooved to tip. Thus each mandible, toward the end of
the bill, has 3 grooves, one median and two lateral; 6 in all. Nostrils linear, in advance of
base of upper mandible, in its lateral grooves. Frontal feathers sweeping with strongly convex

outline across forehead, near but not quite at base of bill; lores broadly naked, the bare space

embracing eyes; a pointed projection of feathers on side of lower mandible ; another median

one advancing farther and more acutely on bare space of chin, which is thus forked behind.

Tibie bare for a distance equal to half or more of the length of tarsus; mostly reticulate, but

with smooth bare skin for a space above in front. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw,

reticulate, scutellate in front. Lateral toes unequal, the inner shortest. Hind toe somewhat.
elevated, without claw not half as long as middle toe without claw. Claws all long and
slightly curved; inner edge of middle one dilated and cut three or four times, but without the
regular “comb” of a heron’s. Wings and tail ordinary, latter of 12 feathers. Colors dark

glossy-green and chestnut; bill and feet dark. Two or three species, one cosmopolitan, one
or two confined to America. Sexes alike; young different. Eggs whole-colored.

P. falcinel/lus, (Lat. falcwnculus or falcinellus, a little scythe.) Guossy Ipis. ¢ 9, adult:

No white feathers around face. General color rich dark purplish-chestnut, opaque, changing
on head, back, wings (excepting lesser coverts), and tail, to glossy dark purplish-green ; sides
and lining of wings and crissum dusky greenish; primaries greenish-black. Bill blackish ;

legs grayish-black ; iris brown; bare skin of head slaty-blue. Young: Head, neck, and under
parts grayish-brown, the two former streaked with whitish ; upper parts glossy dusky-green.

Length about 2 feet; extent about 3 feet; wing 10.00-11.00 inches; tail 4.00; bill 4.50—
5.50; tibia bare about 2.50 ; tarsus 3.50; middle toe and claw rather less. This bird is chiefly
Old World, not common or regular in America, found occasionally anywhere E. of the Missis-

sippi, especially coastwise and southerly ; N. casually to New England. The next species is

much more abundant in its proper range. Eggs with shell rougher and heavier than that of
heron’s eggs, ovoidal, not elliptical, greenish-blue, 1.90 to 2.10 long, by about 1.48 broad.

P. guarau’na. (Vox barb., 8. Am.) Watre-racep GtLossy Isis. Adult ¢: A white
margin of feathers entirely surrounding the bare space on head. Head otherwise, neck, and

entire under parts of the body, including the tibie, rich purplish-chestnut, quite uniform ou

the under parts, obscured with dusky on the head and nape, there iridescent with violet. Back

and wings intensely iridescent with various metallic tints ; back, wing-coverts, and inner quills
shining with violet, green, and purple; scapulars more like under parts, being of a rich deep
wine-red and less lustrous than the wing-coverts. Primaries green, with brassy or almost

golden lustre. Rump, upper tail-coverts and tail chiefly green, but with various violet and purple

reflections ; lower tail-coverts similar, contrasting with the chestnut of the belly. Lining of
wings brassy-green, like the primaries; axillars violet, like the upper wing-coverts. Bare

facial area apparently reddish. Bill blackish, reddening toward end; legs and feet dusky-

reddish ; claws blackish; iris red. Length 22.00-24.00; extent 38.00-40.00; wing 10.00—
11.00; tail 3.75-4.25 ; bill 5.00-5.50; tibice bare 2.50; tarsus 3.75; middle toe and claw 3.25;

inner do., 2.50; outer do., 2.90; hind do., 1.60. @ similar, averaging smaller; length 21.50;

extent 36.00, etc. In this beautiful species, the feathers sweep down on the forehead with

regular convexity, nearly but not quite to the base of the culmen, thence retreating around

back of the eye, which is wholly in bare skin, then running forward to a point on the side of
the lower mandible; retreating again, then running forward in a point on the middle line of
the chin, further than on jaw or forehead; there being thus enclosed, on each side of the

head, a broad naked space, widest forward, narrowing behind to embrace the eye ; and between

the rami of the jaw another bare space, forked behind to receive the projecting feathers of the

650 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —HERODIONES — IBIDES.

chin, and not quite separated from the bare loral space, because the feathers on the side of the
jaw stop a little short of the hard base of the mandible. Young, first plumage (with traces of
down still) : Remarkably lustrous. Plumage entirely green; legs black ; bill blackish, irreg-
ularly blotched or regularly banded with pinkish-white. This green unicolor plumage, consti-
tuting Ibis thalassinus of some, is retained till full growth, gradually giving way through a

sift Ye
P ei

Zi

LZ ane
Lx
Wy

Fia. 454. — European Spoonbill, Platalea leucorodia, } nat, size. (From Brehm.)

brownish or grayish to the purple-chestnut and iridescent plumage. Chicks hatch clothed in
blackish down, with whitish bill. Southwestern U. S., especially Texas; N. to Kansas; W.
through New Mexico and Arizona to California (to Oregon?), and far S. in tropical America.
Swarming by thousands at some points along the Rio Grande. Nest in vast heronries with
various herons, in the beds of reeds and rushes, rising in air by ‘‘ hundreds of acres” when a gun
is fired. Nest strongly and compactly woven of dead reeds, affixed by twining to broken down

258.

651.

652.

254.

653.

PLATALEIDZ: SPOONBILLS. 651

or upright living ones, about a foot in diameter and nearly as deep, well cupped, thus unlike
the frail platforms herons build. Eggs 3-4, rarely 5, deep bluish-green, not elliptical, from
1.72 X 1.80 to 2.20 & 1.50, averaging 1.99 x 1.42.

EUDO'CIMUS. (Gr. ev8dxyyos, well-tried, approved, famous.) WHITE Ipis. ScaRLEr
Is1s. General character of Plegadis. Face more denuded, with whole chin bare (in the adults).
Claws stout, obtuse, curved. Plumage not metallic. Color white or red. Eggs spotted (in
E. albus at least).

E. al/bus. (Lat. albus, white.) Wuitre Isis. Spanish Curtew. Adult ¢ 9: Plumage pure
white ; tips of several outer primaries glossy black. Bare face and most of bill, and legs orange,
red, or carmine; bill tipped with dusky. Iris pearly blue. Length about 26.00 ; extent 40.00 ;
wing 11.50-12.50; tail 5.00; bill 5.00-7.00; tarsus 3.50; middle toe and claw 2.50. Sexes
alike; 9 averaging smaller. Young: Dull brown, rump and under parts white; bare parts of
head of less extent, yellowish, bill the same ; legs bluish ; iris brown. Younger: Dull brown all
over, with whitish rump and gray tail. 8. Atlantic and Gulf States, N. to the Ohio, rarely to
the Middle States, casually to New England; W. to Texas; resident in Florida. Breeds in
communities by thousands in tangle and brake and tulé of the S. coast; nest similar to that
above described, but of twigs, etc. Eggs 3, 2.25 1.60, dull chalky white, blotched and
spotted with pale yellowish and dark reddish-brown.

E. ruber. (Lat. ruber, red.) Scaruter Isis. Adult #9: Plumage scarlet; tips of several
outer primaries glossy black. Bare parts of head, bill, and legs pale lake red. Young brownish-
gray, darker above, paler or whitish below. Size and proportions nearly as in the last. This
splendid creature is a native of Tropical America: accidental in the U. 8. (Seen at a distance,
not procured, Louisiana, July, 1821, Audubon; fragment of a specimen examined, Los Pinos,
N. M., on the Rio Grande, June, 1864, Coues; ‘‘ Florida,” specimen in Museum of Charleston
College, 8. C., Brewster.)

44, Family PLATALEIDZ: Spoonbills.

Bill long, flat, remarkably widened, rounded, and spoon-shaped at the end. Birds of this
group are known at a glance, by the singularity of the bill ; they closely resemble the foregoing
in structure and habit, being simply spoon-billed Ibises. Two genera, with five or six species
of various countries. The American genus differs notably from the type of Platalea, in having
the trachea simple, bifurcating into the bronchi high in the neck; the bronchi with fusiform
partly membranous dilatation before entering the thorax. In Platalea leucorodia (fig. 454) the
trachea is peculiarly convoluted within the thorax.
Aja/ja. (Vox barb., 8S. Am.) AMERICAN SPOONBILLS. Character as above said. In addi-
gion: Head entirely bald, in the adult. Throat somewhat pouched. Nostrils basal, linear-
oblong. Tibia and tarsi reticulate with hexagonal plates. Toes semipalmate ; hind toe well
down. Tail of 12 feathers. Bill broader than head at the greatest width of the spoon. A
lateral groove the whole length of the upper mandible. A nail at end of bill; much of bill
rugous and skinny. A recurved tuft of feathers on the foreneck below. Colors white and red.
Sexes alike; young different. One species.

A. ro/sea, (Lat. rosea, roseate.) RosEATE SPoonsBILy. Adult g 2 : Ground color white ;
back and wings delicate rose-color ; under parts more rosy; plumes of the lower fore-neck,
lesser wing-coverts, upper and under tail-coverts, rich carmine ; shafts of wing- and tail-feathers
carmine. . Tail brownish-yellow, and a patch of the same color on the sides of the breast; neck
white. Bald head varied with green, yellow, orange, and black; bill varied with greenish,
bluish, yellowish, and blackish tints. Legs lake red. Iris carmine. Claws blackish. Length
31.00-35.00; extent 50.00-55.00; wing 15.00-16.00; tail 4.00-5.00; bill 7.00, 2 inches or
more across the spoon; tibia bare 3.00; tarsus 4.00; middle toe and claw 3.50; hind do.

652 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — HERODIONES— PELARGI.

2.00. @ similar, smaller; length 30.00 or less; extent 48.00. Young: Head mostly feath-
ered, and general color grayish-white ; acquire white with rosy the second year; full plumage
the third. Weight of adults 3 or 4 lbs. This bird, so singular in form and magnificent in
color, inhabits the South Atlantic and Gulf States, and southward in Tropical America ; resi-
dent in Florida; N. only to the Carolinas. Breeds in communities in trees and bushes of
tangled swamps. Nest a platform of sticks like a heron’s ; eggs usually 3, laid in April, nearly
elliptical, 2.60 x 1.90, white.

13. SusorpER PELARGI: THe Stork SERIES.

Skull holorhinal. Angle of mandible truncate. Ambiens muscle and accessory femoro-
caudal absent; femoro-caudal present or absent; semitendinosus and its accessory present ;
pectoralis major double; biceps cubiti and tensor patagii longus disconnected. Carotids double,
normal. Two intestinal ceca. A tufted oil-gland. Plumage without powder-down; feath-
ered tracts broad. Tarsi normally reticulate. Hallux not fairly insistent. Claws resting upon
a horny “shoe.” Inner edge of middle claw not pectinate. Side of upper mandible ungrooved,
without nasal fossa, the nostrils bored directly in its substance; bill very stout, compressed,
tapering, straight or recurved or decurved.

The Storks belong chiefly to the Old World, the warm and temperate portions of which
they inhabit. There are about a dozen species, representing nearly as many genera of authors ;
among these Anastomus and Hiator are remarkable for a wide interval between the cutting
edges of the bill, which only come into apposition at the base and tip. The singular African
Scopus umbretta, type of a family, is often placed among the Herons, but its pterylosis is that
of Storks.

45. Family CICONIID: Storks.

Bill longer than head, very stout at base, not grooved, tapering to the straight, recurved or.
decurved tip. Nostrils pierced directly in the horny substance, without nasal scale or mem-
brane, high up in the bill close to its base. Legs reticulate. Hallux not or not completely
insistent. Claws not acute.

The family falls in two American subfamilies, that of the Storks proper, and that of the
so-called ‘Wood Ibises.” Both are represented
in N. America.

58. Subfamily TANTALIN/AE: Wood Ibises.

Bill long, extremely stout at base, where it is as
broad as the face, gradually tapering to the de
curved tip, without nasal groove or membrane, the
nostrils directly perforating its substance, high up
at base of upper mandible. Toes lengthened, the
middle not less than half as long as the tarsus, the
outer longer than the inner; hind toe nearly insist-
ent; claws less nail-like than in Ciconiine. One
American genus and species, and one genus with
3 or 4 species of Africa, Southern Asia, and part
of the East Indies. As these birds have been as-
certained to be Storks, it is unfortunate that the
name of ‘Tbis,” tending to promote confusion,
‘should be too firmly attached to them to leave any

Fria. 455 — Wood Ibis, greatly reduced. (From . 3 i 2
Tenney, after Audubon.) hope of its being abolished from such connection.

255.

648.

256,

654.

CICONIIDAE — CICONIINZ:: STORKS. 653

Just as we saw the American Spoonbill distinguished from Platalea of the Old World, so
does the American Wood Ibis differ from Old World Tantalus to a marked degree in the
structure of the windpipe; but this time it is our bird which has that organ simple, it being
remarkably complicated in the other. In Tantalus ibis, typical of the genus, the trachea is
several times folded and doubled upon itself in the thorax. In Tantalus loculator, the trachea
is short, straight, and simple in its lower part, with numerous reduced and inodified rings, and
flattened from side to side, producing a ridge in front. It has been made type of a genus
Tantalides, but that name being preoccupied, a new one seems to be required.

TAN'TALOPS. (Gr. Tdvrados, Lat. Tantalus, a mythical character; dy, ops, aspect.)
AmpricAN Woop Srork or Woop “Isis.” Character as above. In addition: Whole head
and part of the neck bare, rugous and scaly in the adult. Nasal fossee not continued beyond the
nostrils. Anterior toes webbed at base. Tibie bare for half their length. Claws com-
pressed, but obtuse. Head feathered in the young. Sexes alike. Color white and black.

T. locula‘tor. (Lat. locus, a place; loculus, a little place, but qu. loculator in its application
to this bird? Fig. 455.) American Woop Srorx. Woop Isis. CoLtorapo TURKEY.
Adult ¢ 9 : Plumage white, the wing-quills, primary coverts, alula, and tail, glossy black.
The bald head livid bluish and yellowish. Bill dingy yellowish. Legs blue, becoming blackish
on the toes, the webs tinged with yellow. Iris dark brown. Length nearly 4 feet; extent
5.50 feet; wing 1.50; tail 0.50; bill 9 inches, 2 or more deep at base: tibie bare 6.00;
tarsus 8.00; middle toe and claw 4.75. Weight 10 or 12 Tbs. 9 smallerthan g. Young:
Head downy-feathered; the plumage dark gray, with blackish wings and tail; plumage
whitening and head becoming bald after the first month. South Atlantic and Gulf States,
and across in corresponding latitudes to the Colorado River, where abundant. N. to the
Carolinas; up the Mississippi to the Ohio; casually straying to Penn., N.Y., and even New
England (?).1. W.1., Mex., C. and 8S. Am. Resident in the S. States; abundant; gregarious;
frequents the most thickly wooded swamps and bayous, fairly swarming in its heronries; flight
performed with alternate flapping and sailing; at times mounts high in air and performs the
most beautiful evolutions, with motionless wings, like a turkey buzzard. Eggs 2-3, elliptical
in contour, shell rough with flaky substance ; color white ; size 2.75 x 1.75.

59. Subfamily GICONIINAE: True Storks.

Bill as above described, but end not decurved (straight or recurved). Nostrils nearly
lateral. Toes short, the middle less than half the tarsus. Lateral toes nearly equal. Hind
toe not insistent: Claws short, broad, obtuse, flattened like nails. Several Old World and
two Aierican genera, Dissoura (D. maguart) and Mycteria.

MYCTE'RIA. (Gr. puerjp, mukter, the snout; puxrnpite, mukterizo, I turn up the nose.)
Jasirus. Bill immensely large, recurved. Whole head and neck bare, except a hairy patch
on the occiput. Tail not peculiar. (In Dissowra, bill moderate, straight, head mostly feathered,
tail forked, and its under coverts stiffened and lengthened, resembling rectrices.)

M. america/na. AMERICAN JaBiru. Adult: Plumage entirely white. Bill, legs, and feet,
and bare skin of head and neck, black, the neck with a broad bright red collar round the lower
portion. Immature (transition plumage): Rump, upper tail-coverts and tail, white; rest of
upper parts, including feathered portion of lower neck, soft light brownish-gray, irregularly
mixed, except on lower neck, with white feathers of the adult livery; lower parts entirely
white. Bill, ete., colored as in the adult. Wing 24.50-26.00; tail 9.50; culmen 9.75-12.30;
depth of bill through base about 2.50; tarsus 11.25-11.50; middle toe 4.20-4.50. Tropical

. America, N. to Texas.

1 Mr. Allen informs me that the alleged New England case is doubtless erroneous (Bull. Nuttall Club, viii,
July, 1883, p. 187).

654 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —HERODIONES — HERODII.

14. SusorpErR HERODII: Tse Heron Seriszs.

Skull holorhinal. Angle of mandible truncate. Ambiens muscle, and accessory feuoro-
caudal, absent; femoro-caudal, semitendinous and its accessory, present. Carotids double,
sometimes abnormal (p. 198). One intestinal cacum. Tongue moderate. A tufted oil-gland.
Pluinage with 2-4 pairs of powder-down tracts; feathered tracts very narrow. Tarsi normally
seutellate. Hallux long and perfectly insistent, with long claw. Inner edge of middle claw
distinctly pectinate. Bill variable with the families, normally narrow and wedged, with long
nasal fossze.

The extraordinary Baleniceps rex, the Shoe-bill or Whale-head, of Africa, with an
enormous head aud bill, thick neck, and one pair of powder-down tracts, is the type of a family
Balenicipitide, which may belong here; but it approaches the Storks, and its peculiarities are
so great that it may constitute a separate superfamily group. The Boat-billed Heron (Cancroma
cochlearia) of Central America, with a singular shape of bill that has suggested the name, and
four pairs of powder-down tracts, constitutes one family of Herodit (Cancromide). The dis-
puted cases of Eurypyga and Scopus have already been mentioned. These and some other
doubtful forms aside, the Heron series is represented by the single

46. Family ARDEIDZ: Herons.

It is in this family, as in Cancromide, that powder-down tracts reach their highest devel-

opment; and although these peculiar feathers occur in some other birds, there appears to be
then only a single pair; so that the presence of two or three pairs is probably diagnostic of
this family. In the genus Ardea and its immediate allies (Ardeine) there are three pairs,
the normal number; one on the lower back over the hips, one on the lower belly under the
hips, and one on the breast, along the track of the furcula. In the Bitterns (Botawrine) the
second of these is wanting. (In the Boat-billed Heron, Cancroma cochlearia, there is still
another pair, over the shoulder-blades.) _ There are other pterylographic characters; in gen-
eral, the tracks are extremely narrow, often only two feathers wide; there are lateral neck
tracks ; the lower neck is frequently bare behind. More obvious characters are, the complete
feathering of the head (as compared with Storks, ete.) except definite nakedness of the lores
alone — the bill appearing to run directly into the eyes; a general looseness of the plumage
(as compared with Limicole), and especially the frequent development of remarkably length-
ened, or otherwise modified, feathers, constituting the beautiful crests and dorsal plumes that -
ornament many species, but which, as a rule, are worn only during the breeding season.
These features will suffice to determine the Ardeide, taken in connection with the more general
ones indicated under head of Herodiones, and the following details : —
_ Bill longer than head, usually about as long as tarsus, straight, or very nearly so, more
or less compressed, acute, cultrate (with sharp cutting edges); upper mandible with a long,
groove. Nostrils more or less linear, pervious. Head narrow and elongate, sloping down to
the bill, its sides flattened. Lores naked; rest of head feathered, the frontal feathers extending
in a rounded outline on the base of the culmen, generally to the nostrils. Wings broad and
ample; the inner quills usually as long as the primaries, folding over them when the wing is
closed. Tail very short, of twelve (usually) or ten (in Zebrilus and Botawrine) soft broad
feathers. Tibieo naked below (except Zebrillus), sometimes for a great distance.. Tarsi
scutellate in front (except Tigrisoma), and sometimes behind, generally reticulate there and
on the sides. Toes long and slender; the outer usually connected with the middle by a basal
web, the hinder very long (for wading birds), inserted on the level of the rest. Hind claw
larger and more curved than the middle one (always?) ; the middle claw pectinate.

The group thus defined offers little variation in form; all the numerous genera now

ARDEIDAZ: HERONS. 655

in vogue have been successively detached from Ardea, the typical one, with which many
of them should be reunited. The ‘‘ Night Herons” (Nyctiardea and Nycterodius) differ some-

Ae =
Sos
Le hecars

Sis

Fria. 456, — Herons, idealized from Ardea cinerea, (From Michelet.)

what in shortness and especially stoutness of bill; while the Bitterns (Botawrus and Ardetta),
the South American genera Tigrisoma, Zebrilus, and a few others, are still better marked.

656 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —-HERODIONES -—- HERODII.

There are about seventy-five species, very generally distributed over the globe, but especially
abounding in the torrid and temperate zones. Those that penetrate to cold countries in
summer are regular migrants; the others are generally stationary. They are maritime,
lacustrine and paludicole birds, drawing their chief sustenance from animal substances taken
from the water, or from soft ground in its vicinity; such as fish, reptiles, testaceans, and
insects, captured by a quick thrust of the spear-like bill, given as the bird stands in wait
or wades stealthily along. In conformity with this, the gullet is capacious, but without
special dilatation, the stomach is small and little muscular, the intestines are long and ex-
tremely slender, with a large globular cloaca and a coecum. Herons are altricial, and
generally nest in trees or bushes (where their insessorial feet enable them to perch with ease),
in swampy or other places near the water, often in large communities, building a large flat
rude structure of sticks. The eggs vary in number, coincidently, to some extent, with the
size of the species; the larger herons generally lay two or three, the smaller kinds five or six;
the eggs are somewhat elliptical in shape, and usually of an unvariegated bluish or greenish
shade. The voice is a rough croak. The sexes are nearly always alike in color (remark-
able exception in Ardetta); but the species in which, as in the Bittern, the plumage is nearly
unchangeable, are very few. Indeed, probably no birds show greater changes of plumage,
with age and season, than nearly all the herons. Their beautiful plumes are only worn
during the breeding season; the young invariably lack them. There are still more remark-
able differences of plumage in many cases, constituting dichromatism, or permanent normal
difference in color, like that of the “red” and “‘ gray” specimens of Scops Owl. Thus, some
species are pure white at all ages and seasons, in both sexes, other individuals of the same
species being variously colored. Such dichromatism appears in our Ardea occidentalis, Di-
chromanassa rufa, and Florida coerulea. It was formerly believed in the cases of the two
latter, that the white were the young, the colored the adults; but it now appears that the
difference is permanent, and independent of age, sex, or season. Many species are pure white
at all times, and to these the name of ‘‘egret” more particularly belongs; but I should
correct a prevalent impression that an egret is anything particularly different from other herons.
The name, a corruption of the French word “‘aigrette,” simply refers to the plumes that
ornament most of the herons, white or otherwise, and has no classificatory meaning; its
application, in any given instance, is purely conventional. The colors of the bill, lores, and
feet are extremely variable, not only with age or-season, but as individual peculiarities ; some-
times the two legs of the same specimen are not colored exactly alike. The 9 is commonly
smaller than the #. The normal individual variability in stature and relative length of parts
is very great; and it has even been noted that a specimen may have one leg larger than the
other, and the toes of one foot longer than those of the other — a circumstance perhaps result-
ing from the common habit of these birds of standing for a long time on one leg.

The North American Ardeide, if not the whole family, are divisible into the two subfamilies
of Ardeine, or Herons proper, and Botawrine, or Bitterns.

Analysis of Subfamilies, Genera, and Subgenera.

BorTaurinz. Tail-feathers 10. Two pairs of powder-down tracts. (Bitterns.)
Very small; length about a foot. Sexes unlike . a ae oe e . 2 ee . Ardetta WT
Medium sized; length about 2 feet. Sexés alike . . wot ee ew ee «) 6©Botaurus 266
ARDEINA. Tail-feathers12 Three pairs of powder-down tracts. (Herons. )
Bill stout and comparatively short, not longer than very short tarsus, which is not perfectly scutel-
late in front. (Night Herons.)

Gonys convex, like the culmen; tarsus longer than middle toe and claw . . . . . Nycterodius 265

Gonys about straight; tarsus about equal to middle toeandclaw ...... Nyctiardea 264
Bill ordinary. Tarsus scutellate in front. is

Length under 20 inches. Tarsus about equal to middle toe and claw. Green . . . . Butorides 263

Length over 20 inches, under 30. Blue, white, or variegated.
Blue or white. Adult without decomposed feathers on back. . . .. +... + Florida 262

257.

655.

ARDEIDA: — ARDEINA!: HERONS. 657

Always white. Adult with decomposed recurved feathers onback .... . . Garzetta 259
Ashy-blue, white below. Bill longer than tarsus . i ree . . Hydranassa 260
Length 30, not 36 inches. Blueor white. Tarsus twice as long as middle toe. Bill shorter than

tarsus . . ee ee we PM ae GEOG GS sae ae ae oe eo 9 Dichromanassa 261
Length 36 or more. Entirely white; no crest ; long decomposed feathers on back Herodias 258
Length 42 or more; of dark varied colors, or white ; crestgd, without dorsal plumes . Ardea 267

60. Subfamily ARDEINAE: True Herons.

Tail-feathers 12 (in all N.
Am. genera), broad and stiff-
ish. Powder-down tracts 3
pairs. Tibie naked below.
Outer toe not shorter than in-
ner. Claws moderate, curved.
(Embracing most of the spe-.
cies of the family, and all our
species excepting the Bit-
terns.)

ARDEA. (Lat. ardea, a
heron.) GREAT Herons. Of
largest size. Neck and legs
very long, former well feath-
ered all around. Tibiz exten-
sively denuded below. Tarsus
longer than middle toe and
claw. Outer lateral toe longer
than inner. Bill shorter than
tarsus, equal to or longer than
middle toe and claw. Colors
dark and varied, exceptionally
white; back without length-
ened loosened plumes; scapu-
lars lanceolate, lengthened, but
not loosened; lower fore-neck
with lengthened feathers; head
crested, in breeding season with

two long, slender, flowing, oc-
cipital plumes. Sexes alike;
young similar, but lacking all
lengthened feathers. Dichro-
matic. (Genera 258-263 should

be reduced to subgenera of °
8 y Fig. 457. Great Blue Heron, greatly reduced. (From Tenney, after
Ardea.) Audubon.

Analysis of Species. ’

Tibiz and edge of wing white; occiput and plumes black. (Hurope.).... . - +. cinerea 657
Tibize and edge of wing rufous; or whole plumage white.
Occiput and plumes black; whole plumage varied. Bill 6 or less; tarsus 8 or less . . herodias 655

Occiput and plumes white; or, whole plumage white. Bill 6 or more; tarsus8 or more occidentalis 656
’

A. hero/dias. (Lat. herodias, a proper name ; Gr. épddtas, erodias, aheron. Fig. 457.) GREAT
BLUE Heron. Of large size, and varied dark colors; not dichromatic. Back without peculiar

plumey at any season, but scapulars lengthened and lanceolate; an occipital crest, two de-
42

.

656.

657.

258.

658.

658 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — HERODIONES — HERODIL.

ciduous feathers of which in the breeding season are long and filamentous; long loose feathers
on the lower neck. Length 42.00-50.00; extent about 70.00; wing 18.00-20.00; tail 7.00-
8.00 ; bill 4.50-6.25, usually between 5.00 and 6.00; tibiae bare 3.00-4.00; tarsus 6.00-8.00,
usually 6.50-7.00; middle toe and claw about 5.00. Q average smaller than ¢. Weight 6 or
8 Ibs. Adult ¢ 9, in breeding dress: Bill yellow, more or less blackened on culmen; lores
blue ; iris chrome-yellow ; legs and feet blackish, the soles yellowish. Tibia and edge of wing
chestnut-brown. Forehead and middle of crown white; sides of crown and occipital crest/
black. Neck pale purplish-gray, with a mixed white, black, and rusty throat-line, yielding
to white on chin and cheeks. Plumes of lower neck, the breast, and belly, black, more or less
interrupted with white streaks on the middle line; crissum white. Upper parts in general
slaty-blue; tail the same; long scapular feathers more pearly-gray ; wing-quills deepening
from this color to the black primaries. Young: Without any long feathers. Crown and front
without white; whole top of head blackish. Tuibize and edge of wing paler rufous, or whitish.
General color of upper parts paler and more grayish-blue, more or less tinged with rusty.
Black of under parts replaced by ashy. Upper mandible mostly blackish ; lores and most of
lower mandible greenish, rest of the latter and the eyes, yellow; tibize greenish. There are
endless variations in plumage and colors of the soft’ parts, but this great species cannot be
mistaken, being only closely related to the colored phase of the next. N. Am. at large, and
much of C. and 8. Am., N. to Labrador, Hudson’s Bay, and Sitka in Alaska; northerly migra-
tory; elsewhere resident. Breeds in suitable places throughout its range, sometimes singly,
oftener in great heronries to which the birds resort year after year, shared usually with other
species of its tribe. Nest usually in trees or bushes, in the West sometimes on cliffs; eggs
3-6, oftener 3-4, pale dull greenish-blue, ellipsoidal, about 2.50-1.50.

A. occidentalis. (Lat. occidentalis, western.) FLortIpA Heron. Great WurTe Heron.
Witrpemann’s Herron. Similar to the last; larger; dichromatic. Length 54.00; extent
83.00; wing 19.00-21.00; tail 8.00; bill 6.50; tarsus 8.00-8.50; tibie bare 5.50. @ 9,
adult, colored phase (wurdemamni Bd.): Head, with the crest, white, the forehead streaked
with black edges of the feathers. Under parts white, the sides streaked with black ; lower
plumes of neck white, mostly streaked with black edges of the feathers. Neck purplish-gray,
darker than in A. herodias, with a similar throat-line of white, black, and rufous. Under
wing-coverts streaked with white; rufous of edge of wing less extensive than in A. herodias,
that of the tibize paler. Tibize and soles of feet yellow ; tarsi and top of toes yellowish-green.
Young: Like young herodias ; top of head dusky, the feathers with whitish shaft-lines and
bases. Lesser wing-coverts speckled with rusty; the under ones with white. Adult ¢ Q in
white phase (occidentalis Aud.): Color entirely pure white; bill and eyes yellow; culmen
greenish at base; lores bluish; legs yellow, greenish in front. Southern Florida; Cuba;
Jamaica; ‘‘S. Illinois and Indiana.” Eggs 3, 2.75 X 1.67.

Ops. — A. wardi is described as indistinguishable in its white phase from the last; in its
colored phase exactly like the last, but head colored as in herodias ; bill 6.50-7.00; tarsus
8.50-9.00. Florida. (Bull. Nutt. Club, vii, Jan. 1882, p. 5.)

A, cine’rea. (Lat. cinerea, ashy. Fig. 456.) European BLUE Heron. Character similar
to that of A. herodias ; easily distinguished by the white (not chestnut) tibiae and border of
wings, and ashy neck. Europe; only N. American as a straggler to Greenland.

HERO'DIAS. (Lat. herodias ; see above, No. 655. Fig. 458.) Great Ecret Herons.
Character of Ardea proper, excepting in plumage; color white; no crest; a long depending
train of stiff-shafted loose-webbed scapular feathers in the breeding season. Size large, only
exceeded by the species of Ardea. (See fig. of the European species, H. alba.)

H. egret/ta. (O. H. G. hiegro, a heron; Fr. aigrette, a plume; Engl. egret.) GREAT
Wuaire Eeretr. Warre Heron. No obviously lengthened feathers on the head at any time;
in the breeding season, back with a magnificent train of very long plumes of decomposed, fas-

a ae eee, EE

ARDEIDH — ARDEINZ: HERONS. 659

tigiate feathers drooping far beyond the tail; neck closely feathered. Plumage entirely white
at allseasons. Bill, lores, and eyes, yellow; legs and feet black. Length 36.00-42.00 (not in-
cluding the dorsal train, which is a foot or more longer) ; extent 55.00; wing 16.00-17.00; tail
5.50-6.50; bill 4.50-5.00; tarsus about 6.00; tibiee bare 3.50. @ averaging smaller than ¢.
U.S. southerly, and much of W.L, C. and 8. Am. ; straggling northward to Nova Scotia,

Fic. 458. — European Great White Egret, Herodias alba, 4 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

Canada, Minnesota, etc.; resident in the south. Breeds like other herons; eggs 3-4,
2.20-1.55.
259. GARZET'TA, (Ital. name of aheron. Fig. 459.) Smant Eornt Herons. Form of the
preceding, but size small ; length about 2 feet. Color white; an occipital crest, and short
recurved train of stiff-shafted loose-webbed feathers in the breeding season ; lower neck-feathers
lengthened, depending. (See fig. of the European species, G. nivea.)

659.

260.

660 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — HERODIONES — HERODIL

G. candidis/sima, (Lat. candidissima, very white ; candida, white.) LirtLe Waits

- Egrer. Snowy Heron. Adults 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 about 24.00; extent 36.00-40.00; wing 9.50-11.00; tail 4.00; bill 3.00 or more;

ii ft, "Ah i

y At
( Wy) a
th

ye”
/, : 4

Nut
Wy i Hh /

\ iit y Ai
|
i) f |

i

Fi. 459. — European Little White Egret, Garzetta nivea, } nat. size. (From Brehm,)

tibie bare 2.50; tarsus 3.75; middle toe 2.75. S. States; Cala.; Middle States, in summer;
N. occasionally to New England, Canada, and Nova Scotia. Abundant in its regular range ;
resident in the South and beyond ; breeds throughout. Eggs about 4, 1.67 x 1.95.

HYDRANAS'/SA. (Gr. ddep, hudor, water, giving in Lat. hydr-; dvacoa, anassa, a queen.)

DEMOISELLE Earets. Of medium size: length under two and a half or three feet. Bill"

very slender, contracted from the base toward the middle, with almost a little concave upper
and under outline, then tapering to a point; in length equalling or exceeding the tarsus.

660.

261.

661.

262.

662,

ARDEIDA — ARDEINA:: HERONS. 661

Toes comparatively short, the middle little more than half the tarsus. Adult with feathers
of the head and neck lengthened, lanceolate, with well-defined edges; an occipital crest of
several long plumes, and splendid dorsal train of decomposed, fringe-like feathers depending
beyond the tail. Dichromatism not known.

H. tri/color. (Lat. tricolor, three-cvlored.) Lourstana Earet. ‘‘ LADY oF THE WATERS.”
Adult: Slaty-blue on the back and wings, mostly white below and along the throat-line ; crest
and most of the neck reddish-purple, mixed below with slaty; the longer narrow feathers
of the crest white ; lower back and rump white, but concealed by the dull purplish-brown feath-
ers of the train, which whiten towards the end. Bill black and yellow; lores yellow; legs
yellowish-green, dusky in front. Iris red. Young varivusly different, but never white;
lacking the long occipital plumes and dorsal train; neck and back bright brownish-red ;
rump, throat-line and under parts white; quills and tail pale purplish-blue; legs dusky-
greenish. Length 24.00-27.00 (exclusive of the long train) ; extent 37.00-39.00 ; wing 10.00-
11.00; tail 3.50; bill 4.00-5.00; tibiae bare 2.25; tarsus 4.00; middle toe and claw 3.00. S.
Atlantic and Gulf States, chiefly maritime, very rarely N. to the Middle districts; 8. in tropical
Am. Resident along our southern coasts. Breeds in communities like other herons. Nest and
eggs scarcely distinguishable from those of the snowy heron; eggs rather less elliptical,
usually 4 in number, averaging 1.78 x 1.30.

DICHROMANAS/SA. (Gr. dis dis, twice; xpapa, chroma, color; and avacoa; alluding
to the dichromatism of D. rufa.) Dicuroic Ecrets. Of medium size; length about two and
a half feet. Bill slender, much as in the last, but shorter than the very long tatsus, which
is about twice as long as the middle toe and claw.’ Toes extremely short (for this family).
Feathers of head and neck elongate, lance-linear and stiffish, distinct; the longest forming
occipital and jugular tufts. A dorsal train of long decomposed fastigiate feathers, with stiff-
eved shafts. Dichromatic; pure white or colored; in latter state, without the white throat-
line of most herons.

D. rufa. (Lat. rufa, reddish.) ReppisH Egret. PEALE’s Earet. In the colored phase:
Adult grayish-blue, rather paler below; no white throat-line; head and neck lilac-brown ;
ends of the train yellowish. Bill black on the terminal third, the rest flesh-colored, like the
lores ; iris white ; legs blue, the scales of the tarsus blackish. In the white phase: Plum-
‘age entirely pure white. Bill, lores, and eyes as before; legs dark greenish, the soles
yellowish ; in which state the bird is ‘‘ Peale’s Egret,” long held for a distinct species, then
long decided to be the young. Length 28.00-31.00; extent about 46.00; wing 12.50-14.50;
tail 4.50; bill 4.00; tibie bare 4.00; tarsus 5.50-6.00; middle toe and claw 3.00. Gulf
States strictly; maritime; resident, abundant. Nests in communities, with other species,
upon low bushes, sometimes on the ground; eggs 3-4, of usual shape and color, from 1.90 x
1.48 to 2.12 x 1.55, averaging 2.00 x 1.50.

FLO/RIDA. (Named for the State.) Buuz anp Waite Herons. Of small size; length
about 2 feet. Bill slender, very acute; culmen gently curved from near base; under outline
straight or slightly concave; about as long as tarsus. Head of adult with lengthened de-
composed feathers; those of lower neck, and the scapulars, lengthened and linear-lanceolate,
but compact-webbed ; no dorsal train of fringed feathérs. Neck bare behind below. Di-
chromatic ; color blue or white, or both.

F. coru'lea. (Lat. cerulea, blue.) Litrts Brun Heron. Lirtte Wate HEron (not
to be confused with Little White Egret). In the colored phase: Slaty-blue, or dark grayish-
blue, becoming purplish-red or maroon-colored on the neck and head. Bill and loral space

- blue, shading to black toward the end; legs and feet black; eyes yellow. Length about

24.00; extent 40.00-42.00; wing about 11.50; tail 4.25; bill 3.00-3.40; tarsus about the
same, rather more; tibie bare 2.00. In one phase, entirely white; but generally showing
traces of blue. Pure white birds require a second glance to distinguish them from immature

/

268.

663.

264,

664,

662 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —HERODIONES — HERODIL.

Garzetta candidissima, as they are of the same size, and not strikingly different in form,
notice lores and basal half of bill greenish-blue, the rest blackish; most of lower mandible
yellowish ; legs greenish-blue, with yellow traces, or bluish-black ; the snowy heron has no
bluishness about the soft parts. S. Atlantic and Gulf States, resident, abundant; N. in
summer often to the Middle States, casually to New England. Nesting as usual; eggs 3-4,
1.75 & 1.25, of usual shape and color.
BUTORI'DES. ' (Lat. butor, a bitten; Gr. eiSos, eidos, resemblance.) GREEN HERONS.
Size small; length one and a half feet. Bill moderate, longer than tarsus, with gently convex
culmen and gonys. Legs short; tibia little denuded; tarsus scarcely or not longer than
middle toe and claw. An occipital crest of lengthened, lanceolate, not decomposed, feathers ;
neck-feathers long but blended, those below depending in a tuft, those on sides hiding an
extensive bare space behind. In the breeding season, feathers of back lengthened, lance-
linear, but compact-webbed, and not forming a train. Upper parts glossy green.
B. vires/cens. (Lat. virescens, growing green.) GREEN Heron. Adult in the breeding season
with the crown, long soft occipital crest, and lengthened narrow feathers of the back lustrous
dark green, sometimes with « bronzy iridescence; the dorsal plumes in high plumage with
a glaucous bluish cast. Wing-coverts greet, with conspicuous tawny edgings; neck rich dark
purplish-chestnut, the throat-line variegated with dusky and white. Under parts mostly dark
brownish-ash ; belly variegated with white. Quills and tail greenish-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: Head less crested; back with-
out long narrow plumes, but glossy-greenish ; neck merely reddish-brown ; whole under parts
white, variegated with tawny and dark brown. Length 16.00-18.00; extent about 25.00;
wing 6.50-7.50; bill 2.50; tarsus 2.00; middle toe and claw about the same; tibiee bare 1.00
or less. U.8., and a little beyond, abundant in summer; resident in the South, and beyond.
This is a very pretty and engaging little heron, in spite of the ridiculous nickname by which it
is so well known to the great unwashed democracy of America. Breeds anywhere in its range,
sometimes in communities with larger species, often by itself in pairs. Nest a rude platform
of twigs, on tree or bush ; eggs 3-6, elliptical, 1.37 X 1.12, pale greenish.
NYCTIAR'DEA. (Gr. wé, gen. vuxrds, nux, nuktos, night: Lat. ardea, a heron. Fig. 460.)
Nicut Herons. Of medium size; length about
2 feet. Bill very stout for this family; bill, tarsus,
and middle toe with claw, of approximately equal
lengths. Tarsus reticulate in front below. Tibie
briefly naked below. Neck short, corresponding to
the short legs; body stout. No peculiar plumes,
excepting two or three extremely long filamentous
feathers springing from the hind head, generally
imbricated in one bundle. Sexes alike; young
very different. A better genus than any of the
foregoing, as distinguished from Ardea, but very
Fie. 460.—Night Heron. (From Lewis.) near the next, which might be combined with it.
N, gri/sea nez'via. BLACK-cROWNED Nicur Heron. Qua-Birp. Squawk. Adult g
: Crown, scapulars and interseapulars very dark glossy green; other upper parts, wings
and tail, pale bluish-gray with a lilac or lavender tinge, most decided on the neck. Fore-
head and throat-line white, shading into the lilaceous of the neck; under parts whitish,
tinged with lilac. The long occipital plumes white. Eyes red; lores greenish; bill black;
legs yellow; claws brown. Length 23.00-26.00; extent about 44.00; wing 12.00-14.00;
tail 5-00; bill, tarsus, middle toe with claw, each 3.00 or a little more; tibiee bare about an

ARDEIDA: BOTAURINZA:: BITTERNS. 663

inch. Young very different; grayish-brown above, the feathers with paler edges, and con-
spicuously spotted with whitish; the lower parts paler or dull whitish, streaky with darker;
green of head replaced by chdcolate-brown ; quills chocolate-brown, white-tipped; no occip-
ital plumes. U. S. and British Provinces, common; migratory; resident in the south.
Breeds in heronries, sometimes of vast extent, resorted to year after year. Nest large and
frail; eggs 3-4, of usual shape, very pale sea-green color, averaging 2.00 1.50. Our
species is only a variety of the European N. grisea, whence the trinomial name; ‘nevia”
is only applicable to the young in the spotted stage.

265. NYCTERO'DIUS. (Gr. w&, nus, night; épwo.és, erodios, aheron.) THicK-BILL Nicut Her-
ons. Of medium size; length about 2 feet. Bill extremely stout for this family ; culmen curved
throughout; gonys convex, ascending ; commissure and lateral outlines of bill straight; bill
much shorter than tarsus. Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw, reticulate exceptiug above
in front. Feathers of occiput lengthened, the longest of great extent, and linear, forming a
hanging crest ; feathers of back lengthened and lanceolate, the longest loose-webbed, extending
beyond the tail. Sexes alike; colors variegated ; young very different.

665. N. viola/ceus, (Lat. violaceus, violet-colored: straining a point.) YELLOW-CROWNED NIGHT
Heron. Adult ¢ 9: General color grayish-plumbeous, or light grayish-blue, darker on the
back, where the feathers have black centres and pale edges, and rather paler below. Head and
upper neck behind black, with a cheek-patch, the crown, and most of the crest, white, more
or less tinged with tawny. Quills and tail dusky plumbeous. Bill black; eyes orange; lores
greenish ; feet black and yellow. Length about 24.00; extent 44.00; wing 12.00; tail 5.00;
bill scarcely 3.00, over 0.50 deep at base; tibize bare 2.00; tarsus 4.00; middle toe and claw
2.75. Young: Above, grayish-brown, with an olive shade, streaked and spotted with brown-
ish-yellow ; below, streaked with brown and whitish ; sides of head and neck yellowish-brown,
streaked with darker; top of head and neck above behind blackish, variegated with white.
Bill blackish, with much of the lower mandible, and the lores, greenish-yellow; legs the same,
obscured on front of tarsus; iris yellow. S. Atlantic and Gulf States, and southward, occa-
sionally N. to the Middle States; not abundant, and chiefly confined to the coast. Resident in
Florida. Nest as usual in trees and bushes, in communities ; eggs 3, pale greenish-blue ; 2.00
xX 1.45.

61. Subfamily BOTAURINA: Bitterns.

.Tail-feathers 10, broad and very soft. Powder-down tracts 2 pairs. Outer toe shorter
than the inner. Claws long and little curved. The Bitterns form a well-marked section of

Fig. 461. — Bill of Bittern, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

the family, if not one of subfamily value. They are retiring and solitary birds of the marsh,
not gregarious, not nesting in communities on trees, but by separate pairs, and un the ground;
and the eggs have not the characteristic color of those of true Herons.

266.

666.

267.

667.

664 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— HERODIONES — HERODII.

BOTAU/RUS. (Late Lat. botawrus, a bittern; said to be not equal to bos-taurus; from
the hollow guttural cry?) Brrrerns. Of medium size; length about 24 feet. Bill mod-
erately longer than head, shorter than tarsus, which is shorter than middle toe and claw.
Tarsus broadly scutellate in front. No crests or peculiar dorsal plumes; neck-feathers long
and loose; plumage blended, spotty and streaky. Neck in part bare behind. Sexes and
young alike. é

B. mugi’tans. (Lat. mugitans, bellowing. Figs. 461, 462.) American BirTerN. INDIAN
HEN. STAKE-DRIVER. BoG-BULL. Plumage of the upper parts singularly freckled with brown
of various shades, blackish, tawny,
and 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 glau-
cous shade, brown-tipped. Iris yel-
low. Bill on the ridge brownish-
black, the rest pale yellowish; a
dark brown loral stripe. Legs
dull yellowish-green ; claws brown.
Length from 23.00 to 34.00! extent
32.00-45.00 ! wing 9.50-13.00; bill
about 3.00; tarsus about 3.50; middle toe without claw about the same; its claw above
an inch long. 9 smaller than ¢ ; but few birds differ so much in size as this species, indepen-
dently of sex. Entire temperate N. Am., N. to 58° or 60°, S. to C. Am. ; accidental in Europe.
Regularly migratory; resident in the South. The bittern is a bird of very marked character.
It inhabits bog and brake, singly or in pairs; has a hoarse gurgling outcry of alarm, and a
note sounding like the strokes of a mallet on a stake. Nests on the ground ; eggs 3-5, brown-
ish-drab with a gray (not green) shade, 1.90 to 2.00 long by about 1.50.

ARDETTA. (Ital. diminutive of Ardea.) Dwarr Bitterns. Very small, least of the whole
family ; length about a foot. In form very nearly as in Botaurus. Bill slender. Tarsus about
equal to middle toe and claw. No peculiar feathers ; those of lower neck long and loose ; head
slightly crested. Colors of back in large areas. Sexes dissimilar; young similar. There are
several species of these queer little herons, of America and the Old World ; they mostly inhabit
reedy swamps, and somewhat approach rails.

A. exi'lis. (Lat. exilis, for exigilis, exiguous, slight, small.) Least Birtern. Adult ¢
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, brownish-yellow, varied with white along
the throat-line, the sides of the breast with a blackish-brown patch. Bill mostly pale yellow,
the culmen blackish ; lores light green; eyes and toes yellow; legs green, the hinder scales
yellow. 9 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. Length 11.00-14.00 ; extent somewhere about 18.00; wing 4.00-5.00 ; tail, bill, tarsus,
middle toe and claw, each, 2.00 or less. U.S. and Brit. Provinces, common; migratory;
resident in the South ; breeds throughout its range. Found also in W. I. and C. Am. Inhabits
reedy swamps and marshes, such as rails frequent ; nest on ground or in bush or reed patch,

Fig. 462. — American Bittern. (From Tenney, after Audubon.)

ALECTORIDES: CRANES, RAILS, AND THEIR ALLIES. 665

a mere platform of dead rushes. Eggs 3-5, elliptical, about 1.92 x 1.22, white, with faintest
tinge of bluish.

IX. Order ALECTORIDES: Cranes, Rails, and their Allies.

A portion of these birds, representing the Crane type, have a general resemblance tv the
foregoing, but are readily distinguished by the technical characters given beyond under the head
of Gruid@, and in essential respects accord with the rest, representing the Rail type. The latter
are birds of medium and small size, with compressed body, and the head feathered. The neck
and legs are not particularly lengthened, but as a rule the toes are remarkably long, enabling
the birds to run lightly over the soft oozy ground and floating vegetation of the reedy swamps
and marshes they inhabit. This length of the toes has given a name, Macrodactyli, to the
group; their shy retiring habit of skulking among the rushes has caused them to be sometimes
called Latitores (skulkers). Their nature is precocial; the eggs are numerous, usually laid
on, the ground, in a rude nest. The nourishment is essentially the same as that of the Limicole,
but it is simply picked up from the surface, not felt for in the mud, nor stamped out of the
ground. The hallux is usually lengthened, and but little elevated, but may be short and well
up, or even absent. The feet are conspicuously lobate in some forms, but never extensively
palmate ; the phalanges of the front toes diminish in length from first to penultimate. The
lower part of the crus is bare of feathers. The wings are usually short, rounded, and concave;
the tail is very short, few-feathered, often held cocked up, and wagged in time with a bobbing
motion of the head that occurs with each step taken.

The Alectorides are schizognathous in palatal structure. The nasal bones are schizorhinal
in the Crane type, holorhinal in that of the Rails. The angle of the mandible is truncate. The
maxillo-palatines are not spongy, but thin and laminate. There are normally no basipterygoid
processes. The sternum is typically long and narrow, and may be entire, or deeply notched;
it is sometimes excavated to receive folds of the windpipe. There are two carotids; and two
intestinal cceca are present. While the general pterylosis is not peculiar, the Alectorides nor-
mally lack the powder-down tracts so characteristic of Herons and their allies. As to the
classificatory muscles of the thigh, all five are present nearly throughout the order; exception-
ally the femoro-caudal or its accessory is wanting.

These normally preecocial and ptilopzedic (with whatever exceptions) birds are more sharply
distinguished from the perfectly altricial Herodiones than they are from the completely precocial
and ptilopedic Limicole ; with which latter, in fact, the Alectorides are directly connected
through the Bustards (Otidide) and the Thick-knees (Gidicnemide) — the line between the
two orders being probably to be drawn between these two families.

This country affords typical representatives of the two leading forms of the order, that of
the Cranes, to which Aramus belongs, and of the Rails, Coots, and Gallinules, as given beyond.
There are, however, a number of remarkable outliers that may be briefly mentioned, as fol-
lows: The large and important Old World family of the Bustards, Otidide, has already been
mentioned as the connecting link between Alectorides and Limicole. The Kagu, Rhinochetus
jubatus of New Caledonia, and the Carle, Eurypyga heliqs of Guiana, each the type and single
representative of a family, are near the Cranes in principal osteological characters, although
pterylographically they are more like Herons, both possessing powder-down tracts; and Hury-
pyga, in particular, resembles Herons in other respects. More closely allied to the Cranes are
the Trumpeters, Psophiide, of one genus and few species of South America; with the Cariamas,
Cariamide, of the same country, represented only by the Cariama cristata and the Chunga
burmeisteri. The Horned Screamers, Palamedeide, of South America, consisting of three
species, Palamedea cornuta, Chauna chavaria, and C. derbiana, seem to be nearer the Rails, and
also to closely approach some water birds ; one of them is by some considered the nearest living

268.

666 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — GRUIFORMES.

é
ally of the mesozoic Archeopteryx ; they should probably constitute an order apart. Some
gigantic extinct birds belong in the neighborhood of the rails and coots. Apparently rail-like,
but probably more truly plover-like birds are the Jagands, Parride, noted for the length of the
toes, and especially of the claws; they have a sharp spur on the wing. There are less than

12 species, usually referred tu several genera, of various parts of the world; one of them lately

ascertained to occur in our country. Finally, the Sun-birds, Heliornithide, are a small but
remarkable family of one or two genera and about four species of tropical America, Africa, and
southern Asia. They have been classed, on account of their lobate feet and a certain general
resemblance, with the grebes; but the feet are like those of coots, and their whole structure
shows that they belong with the ralliform birds.

Waiving consideration of certain disputed forms, the Alectorides may be ranged in two
series, suborders, or superfamilies, according as they are crane-like or rail-like. j

15. SusorpeER GRUIFORMES: Cranes anp THEIR ALLIES.
Represented in N. Am. by two families, Gruide and Aramide.

” 47. Family GRUIDZ: Cranes.

As already explained, Cranes are related to Rails in essential points of structure, though
more resembling Herons in their general aspect. They are all large birds, some being of im-
mense stature; the legs and neck are extremely long (the latter with about 17 vertebre) ; the
wings ample, but incised along posterior border, from shortness of the outer secondaries ; the
tail short, usually of 12 broad feathers. The head is generally, in part, naked and papillose or
wattled in the adult, with a growth of hair-like feathers, or, in some cases, an upright tuft of
curiously bushy plumes. The general plumage is compact, in striking contrast to that of
Herons ; but the inner wing-quills, in most cases, are enlarged and flowing. In some species,
the sternum is enlarged and hollowed to receive a fold of the windpipe, as in Swans, and some
of the Storks and Ibises (p. 202). Bill equalling or exceeding the head in length, straight, rather
slender but strong, compressed, contracted opposite the nostrils, obtusely pointed ; nasal fosse
short, broad, shallow ; nostrils near the middle of the bill, large, broadly open and completely
pervious ; tibia naked for a great distance; tarsi scutellate in front; toes short, webbed at
base ; hallux very short, highly elevated ; inner anterior claw large. About 15 species of various
parts of the world; only 3 of them American. Most of them fall in the genus Grus; the
elegant ‘‘ demoiselle ” cranes of the Old World, Anthropoides (or Tetrapteryx) virgo and para-
disea, and the African Balearica (or Geranarchus) pavonina, are the principal exceptions.
GRUS. (Lat. grus, fem., a crane.) Cranes. Of maximum size and length of neck and
legs ; color white or gray. Head without crest; more or less bare of feathers i in adult, carun-
culate, with /hair-like bristles; forehead low. Character of bill, legs, and Wings, typically as
above said. Tail short, 12-feathered. Tarsus broadly scutellate in front. Toes short, the
middle about third as long as tarsus ; inner rather exceeding outer, with enlarged claw. Inner
wing-quills lengthened, curved, pendent beyond primaries when the wing is folded. Nest on

the ground; eggs few. i
Analysis of Species.
Adult white, with black primaries. Nakedness extending backward in a point on top and side of
heads ayo, wed ky a ee ee . . americana 668
Adults gray. Nakedness forked on top of head by a point of feathers, and. 0t seeililasis on side below eye.
Smaller: wing under 20.00; bill 4.00 or less; tarsus 8.00 or less 49° Om eo ee canadensis 669
Larger: wing over 20.00; bill 5.00 or more; tarsus 9.00ormore . .. 2... + + ees pratensis 670

G. america/na, Warre Crane. WHoopinc Crane. Adult with the bare part of the head
extending in a point on the occiput above, on each side below the eyes, and very hairy. Bill
very stout, gonys convex, ascending, that part of the under mandible as deep as the upper

669.

670.

GRUIDZ: CRANES.— ARAMIDZ: COURLANS. 667

opposite it. Adult plumage pure white, with black ' primaries, primary coverts and alula; bill
dusky greenish ; legs black ; head carmine, the hair-like feathers blackish. Young with the
head feathered; general plumage gray? varied with brown. Length about 50 inches; extent
90.00; wing 24.00; tail 9.00; tarsus 12.00; middle toe 5.00; bill 6.00. In the adult, the
windpipe is quite as long as the bird itself — 50 inches or more, and over two feet of it is coiled
away in the keel of the breast-bone, which is entirely hollowed out to receive these extraordi-
nary convolutions (fig. 99); the voice is singularly raucous and resonant. ‘Temperate N. Am.,
but apparently of irregular distribution, not well made out; said to be or to have been common in
the South Atlantic and Gulf States, and to have extended up the coast to the Middle States.
Now scarcely known in the Eastern and Middle States. The chief line of migration appears to
be in the interior, along the Mississippi Valley, Texas to Minnesota and Dakota, where the bird
breeds, and thence spreading in the interior of the Fur Countries. So wild and wary a bird
must be much influenced by the settlement of the country. Eggs 2 (or 3?), about 3.75 x
2.65, light brownish-drab, rather sparsely marked, except at great end, with large irregular
spots of dull chocolate-brown, with paler obscure shell-markings ; shell rough, with numerous
warty elevations, and punctulate.

G. canaden’sis, (Of Canada.) NorrHern Brown CRANE. General character of the
species next to be described ; nakedness of head, and color of plumage substantially the same.
Smaller; wing 18.00-19.00; tail 7.00; tarsus 6.75-8.00 ; bill along culmen 3.00-4.00! middle
toe scarcely 3.00. Alula, edge of wing, primaries, and their shafts, black? Head of adult
less naked? Supposed to be confined in the breeding season to Arctic America, thence
migrating through Western U. S. to W. Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and southward.
(Supposed to be the true G. canadensis Linn., 1758, ex Edw. Is G. fraterculus Cass. ?
I must retain my doubts about this bird.)

G. praten’sis. (Lat. pratensis, relating to pratum, prairie, field.) SoUTHERN SAND-HILL
Crane. Common Brown or Sanp-HILL Crane. Adult with the bare part of the 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,
ashy-brown, little darker than the general plumage, the shafts of the primaries white. Young
with head feathered, and plumage varied with rusty brown. Nestlings quite reddish. Smaller
than G. americana; larger than No. 669; length 44.00; extent 80.00; wing 22.00; tail
9.00; tarsus 9.50-10.00; bill along culmen 5.00-6.00; middle toe 3.50-4.00. This species
has been said to lack tracheal convolutions, which is not true of the adult. The trachea is at
first simple and straight, not entering the sternum ; in the adult, about 8 inches of windpipe
is coiled away in the breast-bone, the anterior half of the keel of which is excavated to receive
the folds (fig. 100). The disposition is the same as in G. americana, but much less extensive —
8 inches as against about 27 — a difference in degree, not of kind. Temperate N. Am., rare or
irregular in the east, very abundant in the south and west; apparently breeds in sufficiently
wild places throughout its range. Eggs (2) cannot be distinguished from those of G. americana
by color or texture of shell, or dimensions; the specimens examined average less capacious,
and relatively more elongate; from 4.10 x 2.40, down to 8.65 X.2.10; average nearer 3.90 X
2.60; series probably including eggs of No. 669. (G. canadensis Auct., an Linn. ?)

48. Family ARAMIDZ: Courlans.

Consisting of a single genus, with probably only one species, of the warmer portions of
America; closely allied to Grwid@ in essential points of structure, and forming a connecting
link with Rallide. The osteological and pterylographic characters are completely crane-like;

269.

671.

668 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — GRUIFORMES.

the digestive system is as in the Rails; the casca are two, situate close together. Carotids two;
syringeal muscles one pair; femoro-caudal absent.

A/RAMUS. (Etym. ignot.) CourRLans. Bill twice as long as the head, slender but strong,
compressed, grooved for about half its length, contracted opposite the nostrils, the terminal
portion enlarged and decurved. Nostrils long, linear, pervious. Head completely feathered
to the bill; tibiz half bare; tarsus scutellate anteriorly, as long as the bill, longer than middle

Fic. 463.— Parra jacana, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

toe; toes cleft, the hinder short, elevated, the outer longer than inner; wings short, rounded,
with falcate lst primary, the inner quills folding over the primaries when closed; tail short,
of 12 broad feathers.

A. pic/tus. (Lat. pictus, painted, spotted.) ScoLoPAcEous CouRLAN. CRYING-BIRD.
Carav. Limpxin. Chocolate-brown with a slight olivaceous or other gloss, paler on the
face, chin, and throat, most of the plumage sharply streaked with white. Length 24.00-28.00;
extent 40.00-44.00; wing 12.00-14.00; tail 6.00-7.00; bill and tarsus, each, about 5.00.
Florida, and West Indies.

270.

672.

PARRIDZ: JAGANAS. 669

16. SuBorpeR RALLIFORMES: Ra.uirorm Birps.~

Represented in North America by the three leading groups of Rallide —the Rails, Galli-
nules, and Coots. (For position of Parride, see below.)

49. Family PARRIDA: Jagands.

A small family of small wading-birds, of 3 genera and fewer than 12 species, combining
characters of Plovers and Rails, outwardly distinguished from either by the excessive develop-
ment of the toes and especially of the claws. These are slender, compressed, acute, nearly or
quite straight; that of the hind toe much exceeding its digit inlength. The spread of feet thus
acquired enables the birds to run with ease over the floating vegetation of the marshes they
inhabit. The American genus is Parra (fig. 363); the Old World genera are Metopodius,
Hydralector, and Hydrophasianus. The systematic position of the family has been much
questioned. On nearly all counts, it would appear to be Limicoline, not Alectoridine, and
should be removed to the other order, next to Charadriide. The bill of Parra is quite plover-
like; the spur on the wing and skin-flaps about the bill are like those of Hoplopterus and
Lobivanellus (Plovers). With this understanding, I leave the family where I find it.
PAR'RA. (Lat. parra, name of some bird.) JaganAs. Bill plover-like, contracted in
continuity, enlarged terminally; with culmen depressed to end of nasal groove, then convex
and decurved; outline of mandibular rami about straight to the gonys, which is ascending;
commissure about straight to the decurved end. Nasal grooves along the contracted portion
of the bill; nostrils small, elliptical, situate in advance of the base of the bill. Angle of mouth
with a leaf-like lobe of skin (rudimentary in our species). Forehead with a large leaf-like
lobe of skin, with free lateral and posterior edges, adherent centrally and anteriorly where
reaching base of upper mandible. A sharp horny spur on bend of wing. Primaries 10, not
peculiar in structure; outer 3 about equal and longest, overlaid by the inner quills in the
closed wing. Tail very short, with soft rectrices concealed by the coverts. Tibia bare below,
and with the tarsus scutellate before and behind, the scutella tending to become confluent in a
continuous sheath. All the toes, claws included, longer than tarsus; middle toe alone nearly
as long as tarsus; outer toe alone about as long as middle, its claw shorter than that of middle
toe; inner toe a little shorter than outer, its claw longer; hind toe only about as long as basal
joint of middle toe, but its claw much longer than itself; all the claws slender, about straight,
very acute.

P. gymno'stoma. (Gr. yupvds, gumnos, naked: orépa, stoma, mouth. Fig. 53ter.) MErxican

+ JaganA. Adult: General plumage rich purplish-chestnut, brightest on wings and tail, darkest

on back, breast, and sides, fading on lower belly. Quills pale yellowish-green, with dusky
edging in increasing extent from the secondaries to the outermost primary; alula and primary
coverts blackish. Bill, frontal leaf, and wing-spur yellow; base of upper mandible whitish,
and space between it and the frontal leaf carmine; feet greenish; irisbrown. Young: Grayish-
brown above, streaked with brownish-yellow ; below, buffy-whitish, darker across breast, the
sides and lining of wings dusky ; a light superciliary and dusky postocular stripe ; wing-quills
greenish-yellow as in adult; tail-feathers like upper parts. Frontal leaf rudimentary.
Wing about 5.00; bill 1.25; tarsus, and middle toe without claw, 2.00. West Indies, Mexico,
to Texas on the Lower Rio Grande.

50. Family RALLIDZ:: Rails, etc.

This is a large and important family, abundantly represented in most parts of the world.
They are birds of medium and small size, generally with compressed body and large strong
legs (the muscularity of the thighs is very noticeable), enabling them to run rapidly and thread

670 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — RALLIFORMES.

with ease the mazes of the reedy marshes to which they are almost exclusively confined ;
while by means of their long toes they are prevented from sinking in the mire or the floating
vegetation. The wings are never long and pointed as among Limicole, being in fact of the
shortest, most rounded and concave form found among waders; and the flight is rarely pro-
tracted to any great distance. The tail is always, very short, generally of 10 or 12 soft
feathers. Details of the bill and feet vary with the genera; but the former is never sensitive
at the tip, and the latter have the hallux longer and lower down than it is in the shore-birds.
The nostrils are pervious, of variable shape. The head is completely feathered ; the general
plumage is ordinarily of subdued and blended coloration, lacking much of the variegation
commonly observed in shore-birds ; the sexes are usually alike, and the changes of plumage
not great with age or season. The food, never probed for in the mud, but gathered from the
surface of the ground or water, consists of a variety of aquatic animal and vegetable substances.
The nest is a rude structure, placed on the ground, or in a tuft of reeds or other herbage; the
eggs are numerous, generally variegated in color; the young are hatched clothed. The
general habit is gregarious, and migratory ; many species occur in vast multitudes, though
their skulking ways, and the nature of their. resorts, withdraw them from casual observation.
Some species swim habitually.

There appear to be upward of 150 species of the faiily, falling in several well-marked
groups. The Ocydromine are an Old World type of some 35 species, ranking with some
authors as a distinct family. Mr. Gray makes the African Himantornis hematopus the type
and single representative of another subfamily. Excluding the Parride and Heliornithide,
both of which are sometimes brought under Raillide, as subfamilies, the three remaining
groups are represented in this country.

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.
RALuin#&. Rails. No frontal shield, the feathers of forehead reaching bill. Toes simple. Body com-

pressed.
Bill slender, longer than head, curved, with long narrow nasal groove and linear nostrils . . Rallus 271
Bill stout, not longer than head, straight, with broad nasal groove and ese nostrils . . Porzana 272
As in the last; wings longer, folding nearly to end of tail . - Crex 278

GALLINULINZ. Gallinules. A bare horny frontal shield. Toes simple or : Gieialy: misngined, Body
less compressed.

Toes without evident lateral margins; nostrils oval . . a es ‘ 2 . Lonornis 275
Toes with lateral margins; nostrils narrow. . . reer - Gallinula 274

Fuuicina. Coots. A bare horny frontal shield. “Toes lobate. Body ‘Aeprenied. Nostrils narrow
Fulica 276

G62. Subfamily RALLINA: True Rails.

This is the largest, and central or typical, group, to which
most of the foregoing paragraph is especially applicable. The
species are strictly paludicole; the compression of the body is at
a maximum; the form is blunt and thick behind, with a very
short tip-up tail, and tapers to a point in front; the whole fig-
ure being thus adapted to wedge through narrow places. The
wings are extremely short and rounded, and the ordinary flight
— appears feeble and vacillating, though the migrations of many

Fra. 464, —Carolina Rail, (From Species are very extensive. The tail has 12 feathers. The
Tenney, after Wilson.) flank-feathers are commonly enlarged and conspicuously col-
ored; the thighs are very muscular; the tibia are generally if not always naked below; the
tarsi scutellate in front; thé toes are long, cleft, without lobes or any obvious marginal mem-
branes. The bill occurs under two principal modifications : in Rallus proper it is longer than
the head, slender, compressed, slightly curved, long-grooved, with linear nostrils; in Porzana
and most genera, however, it is shorter or not longer than the head, straight, rather stout,

271.

RALLIDZA — RALLINZE: RAILS. 671

with short broad nasal fosse, and linear-oblong nostrils — altogether somewhat as in gallina-
ceous birds. The culmen more or less obviously parts antial extension of the frontal feathers,
but never forms a frontal shield, as in the Coots and Gallinules. Of about 35 American species
or varieties only 10 occur in this country, to which must be added one straggler from Europe.
There-are some 25 Old World species.

The Rails inhabit all temperate countries; they are remarkably distinguished by the
extreme narrowness or compression of the body, which enables them to thread a way through
the closest reeds and rushes of the marshes where they always live. Instead of long, flat,
pointed, narrow wings, with flowing tertials, characteristic of the great Plover-snipe group,
they have short, concave, rounded wings, and their flight is consequently of a different sort.
They are neither swift nor vigorous on wing. When flushed, a matter of some difficulty,
they fly in so feeble and vague a way that it is not very easy to understand how they make
the extensive migrations for which, nevertheless, they are noted. The legs, as well as more
particularly the feet, are large and strong; the thighs extremely muscular; they trust rather
to these members than to their wings in avoiding pursuit or escaping danger; probably no
birds are more accomplished pedestrians than they are. There is generally, if not always, a
slight membrane between the base of the toes, but nothing amounting even to semipalmation ;
nevertheless, some of the species swim short distances with ease. While not exactly grega-
rious, since they do not go in flocks that are actuated by a common impulse and the instinct of
socialism, nevertheless they frequent, through community of tastes and wants, the marshes
in immense numbers; where they breed, and where they appear during the migration, par-
ticularly the autumnal, the marshes appear full-stocked with them. Their cries are loud,
dry, and harsh; in the spring-time the marshes resound. They scream piteously when
wounded and caught, and fight as well as they can with their strong claws. Their food
consists of all sorts of aquatic animals small enough to be swallowed — little crabs, snails,
and other small mollusks, grubs, worms, und insects. They probably all live at times, and
in a measure at least, upon the seeds and tender shoots of aquatic plants. They lay many
white or whitish, much-spotted, oval or elliptical eggs, in a rude flat nest, built of sticks,
rush-stalks, and grasses, upon the ground. The young, of which more than one brood may
be annually raised, are generally black,in the downy state, whatever the color of the adults.
They appear to be of somewhat nocturnal habits, and probably migrate mostly by night.
The flesh of some of our species is esteemed good eating, and great numbers are annually
destroyed for the table, in the fall, when they are generally very fat.

RAL'LUS. (Low Lat. railus, a rail, from rasle, rdle, a rattling cry.) Rais. Marsy Hens.
Bill longer than head, slender, compressed, decurved, with long nasal groove extending beyond
middle of bill. Nostrils linear, sub-basal. Hind toe not half as long as tarsus. Wings, tail,
and legs as in Railing at large. Plumage variegated above, plain below, excepting the con-
spicuously barred flanks, and lining of wings and tail. Sexes alike; young little different.
Swamps and marshes exclusively. Eggs numerous, buff and spotted. Very clamorous in
breeding season. We have 3 good species, one of them of 3 varieties.
Analysis of Species and Varieties.
Large: length 12.00 or more ; wing 5.00 or more; bill 2.00 or more.
Flanks gray, with narrow white bars. Above, olive-brown or olive-gray without chestnut on
wings; below, pale rufous or ashy.
Upper parts olive-brown obscurely varied with olive-gray edges of the feathers; below with
little rufous. Atlantic . er ar ed crepitams 673

Upper parts olive-gray, with abacire dark atripes Belew oe" quite rufous. Pacific obsoletus 674

Upper parts olive-gray with distinct dark stripes; below dullrufous. Gulf . . . . saturatus 675
Flanks dusky, with broad white bars. Above, variegated with olive-brown and blackish; wing-
coverts quite chestnut; below, rich rufous. . . fi rae ~ 2. « . . elegans 676

Small: length under 12.00; wing under 4.50; bill under 1.00.
Colorsasin elegans. . .... ee ae ee a ae Bee . . + virginianus 677

673.

e74.

675.

676.

672 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — RALLIFORMES.

R. longiros'tris cre/pitans. (Lat. longirostris, long-billed. Lat. crepitans, crepitating,
clattering. Fig. 465.) CLAPPER Ram. SaLtT-waTER MARSH-HEN. MUD-HEN. $9, adult:
Above, variegated with dark olive-brown and pale olive-ash, the latter edging the feathers,
the variegation dull and
blended. Below, pale dull
ochrey-brown, whitening
on the throat, frequently
ashy-shaded on the breast,
without decided cinnamon-
brown shade. Flanks, ax-
illars, and lining of wings,
fuscous-gray, with sharp
narrow white bars. Quills
and tail plain dark-brown,
without chestnut on the
coverts. Eyelids and short
superciliary line whitish.
The general tone is that
of a gray bird, without
any reddishness. Young
mostly soiled whitish below; when just from the egg entirely sooty black. Length 14.00-
16.00; extent about 20.00; wing 5.00-6.00; tail 2.00-2.50; bill 2.00-2.50; tarsus 1.67-2.00;
middle toe and claw 2.00-2.33. 9 smaller than the ¢. Salt marshes of Atlantic States, ex-
tremely abundant southerly; N. regularly to the middle districts, sometimes to Massachusetts.
Resident from the Carolinas southward. Breeds in profusion in the marshes of the Carolinas,
ete., where its clattering is almost incessant during the mating season. Nest a rude platform
of reeds and grasses just out of the water on the ground. Eggs 6 to 12, averaging 1.67 X 1.12,
whitish, creamy, or buff, variously speckled and blotched with reddish-brown, with a few
obscure lavender marks.

R. 1. obsole/tus, (Lat. obsoletus, obsolete; referring.to the markings of the upper parts in
comparison with those of R. elegans.) CaLirorniA CLAPPER Ram. Back and scapulars
grayish-olive, indistinctly striped with dusky; breast deep cinnamon. General aspect of the
last, but quite reddish below. Wing 6.50; bill 2.25-2.50, its least depth 0.33 ; tarsus 2.10-
2.25. Salt marshes of the California coast.

R. 1. satura'tus. (Lat. satwratus, .saturated, satiated, i.e. dark-colored.) LouImsiaNa
CuapreR Rau. In general similar to crepitans; above, olive-gray or ashy, broadly striped
with brownish-black ; breast dull cinnamon. ‘‘ Louisiana.”

R. e/legans. (Lat. elegans, choice.) Kina Ratt. FRESH-wWATER MARSH-HEN. With
a general resemblance to crepitans, but larger and much more brightly colored. Adult ¢ 9:
Above, distinctly streaked with brownish-black and tawny-olive, the darker color being the
central field of each feather ; becoming rich chestnut on the wing-coverts, and plain dark brown
on the hind-neck and top of head. Below, rich rufous or cinnamon-red, brightest on breast,
fading on throat and belly; a line of the same over the eye, and dusky line through eye; lower
eyelid white. Flanks and lining of wings blackish, broadly and distinctly barred with white;
some of the crissal feathers similar. Specimens vary much in the richness of the tints and
distinctness of the markings, but the reddish and streaky tone is always quite different from
the dull blended colors of crepitans. Length 17.00-19.00; extent 23.00-25.00; wing 6.00-
7.00; bill 2.10-2.50; tarsus 2.30; middle toe and claw about the same. U. S., rather south-
erly, Texas to the Middle States regularly, to Connecticut casually ; in the interior to Kansas

Fria. 465. — Clapper Rail, reduced. (Altered from Lewis.)

677.

272.

678.

679,

RALLIDA —RALLINZ: RAILS. 673

and Missouri at least. Winters in the South. Inhabits preferably swamps and marshes
above tide-water. Nesting the same as erepitans; eggs not distinguishable.

R. virginia/nus. VirGinia Raw. Coloration exactly as in elegans, of which it is a perfect
miniature. Length 8.50-10.50; extent about 14.00; wing 4.00, always under 4.50; tail
1.50; bill 1.35-1.65; tarsus 1.25-1.50; middle toe and claw 1.50-1.75. Temperate N. Am.,
chiefly eastern U. S., migratory, abundant, both in fresh and salt marshes. Breeds commonly
in New England; winters in the 8. States and beyond. Although a regular migrant along
the Atlantic coast, it never occurs in such immense numbers as the Carolina Rail. Eggs like
those of the foregoing in color, but much smaller, about 1.25 x 0.95. They agree in size nearly
with those of Porzana carolina, but the latter are greenish or drab, not buffy.

PORZA'NA. (Ital. porzana, Venetian name of P. maruetta.) Craxkes. Bill shorter or
not longer than head, stout, high and compressed at base, tapering, obtuse ; nasal fosse# ample.

‘Nostrils linear-oblong, near middle of bill. Otherwise generally as in Rallus; hind toe longer.

Tarsus moderately shorter than middle toe and claw. Plumage of upper parts spotty as well
as streaky. Small. Sexes alike. The 3 N. Am. species are very different (subgenerically),
but carolina closely resembles maruetia of Europe.
Analysis of Species.
Small: length 8.00 or more. Face of adult blackish, the breast slate-gray.

Bill orange, with red base. Breast spotted. (European.). . & » .moruetta €78
Bill not orange, without red base. Breast not spotted . . . : . carolina 679
Smaller: length about 6.00; wing over 3.00; yellowish-brown, barred with white . . Moveboracensis 680

Smallest: length about 5.50; wing scarcely 3.00; blackish, speckled with white and chestnut
jamaicensis 661
P. maruet'/ta. (Fr. marouette, name of this species.) EUROPEAN SPOTTED CRAKE. ¢ 9,
adult: Above, dark red-
dish-bréwn shaded with
olive; hind neck fine-
ly dotted, other upper
parts spotted and short-
ly striped with white,
and marked with black-
ish. Below, slate-gray,
fading to whitish on
belly, the breast spot-
ted with white, the*
flanks barred with
white, the crissum buff.
Top and front of head,
and upper throat black-
ish, the crown streaked
with this color and dark
brown. Quills and tail 3
dark olive-brown. Iris
reddish - brown; bill
orange, red at base ;
legs yellowish-green,
livid on the joints. Length about 8.50; wing 4.75; tail 2.00; bill 0.85; tarsus 1.45; middle
toe and claw 1.75. Young lack the black face; chin whitish. Europe. Only N. Am. as
occurring in Greenland.
P. carolina. (Fig. 466.) Caronina Crake. Common Ratu. Sora. “OrtToLAN.” Above,

olive-brown, varied with black, with numerous sharp white streaks and specks; flanks, axillars
43

Fig. 466.— Carolina Rail. (From Lewis.)

682.

278.

674. SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — RALLIFORMES.

and lining of wings, barred with white and blackish; belly whitish; crissum rufescent. Adult
& Q: Face and central line of throat black, the rest of the throat, line over eye, and espe-
cially the breast, more or less intensely slate-gray, the sides of the breast usually also with
some obsolete whitish barring and speckling. Young: Without this black, the throat whitish,
the breast brown. Length 8.00-9.00; extent 12.00-13.00; wing 4.00-4.50; tail about 2.00;
bill 0.67-0.75; tarsus 1.33; middle toe and claw 1.67. Temperate N. Am., exceedingly
abundant during the migration in the reedy swamps of the Atlantic States, in August and
September, when tens of thousands are killed every year. Breeds from the Middle States
northward: winters in the 8. States and beyond. Has occurred in Greenland and Europe.
The eggs are spotted just like those of the foregoing Ralli, but are readily distinguished by
their strong drab ground-color instead of the white or creamy and pale buffy of the former.
They are rather smaller than those of R. virgimianus, and perhaps more obtuse, measuring
about 1.20 by 0.90. " This is the rail of sportsmen. It is also called sora or soree; the word
is colloquial and local. The word ‘‘ortolan” has a curious connection with this species.
It is Italian and French, equal to the Latin hortulanus, relating to a garden: the “‘ ortolan”
is Emberiza hortulana, a bunting, esteemed a great delicacy by gourmands; and our crake
has been called ortolan for no better reason than that it is also edible and sapid! The same
name is frequently applied to the bobolink, Dolichonyx oryzivorus, because it is found abun-
dantly in the same marshes in the fall, and sells in the same restaurants as the same bird as
the rail, the two being brought in together by the gunners.

. P. noveboracen’/sis. (Low Lat., of Noveboracum: i. e., New York.) YELLOW CRAKE.

YELLOW Raw. Adult g 9: Above, streaked with blackish and brownish-yellow, thickly
marked with narrow white semicircles and transverse bars. Below, pale brownish-yellow
fading on belly, deepest on breast, where many feathers are dark-tipped; flanks blackish with
nuinerous white bars ; crissum varied with black, white, and rufous. Lining of wings white.
A brownish-yellow superciliary line, and dark transocular stripe. Small; about 6.00 long;
wing 3.25; tail 1.50; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.87; middle toe and claw 1.12. Eastern N. Am.,
not abundant; N. to Hudson’s Bay: winters in the 8. States. Does not appear to have been
observed in N. England N. of Mass., nor anywhere W. of the Mississippi Valley, Texas to
Minnesota ; but it is not common, is very secretive like other Rails, and readily eludes obser-
vation ; its distribution may be more general than it is known to be. Eggs about 6, rich,
warm, buffy-brown, marked at the great end with a cluster*of reddish-chocolate dots and
spots; 1.15 by 0.85, to 1.05 by 0.80; shape as in the foregoing.

. PB. jamaicen’sis, (Of Jamaica.) Lirrne Buack Crake. . Adult ¢ 9: Upper parts

blackish, finely speckled and barred with white, the hind neck and fore back dark chestnut.
Head and under parts dark slate color, paler or whitening on the throat, the lower belly,
flanks, and under wing and tail-coverts barred with white. Quills and tail-feathers with
white spots. Very small: length about 5.50; wing 2.75-3.00; tail 1.35; tarsus 0.75. S. and
C. America and W. I., not often found in the U. 8., being one of the rarest of our birds.
Observed N. to Mass., W. to Kan., and probably occurs across to the Pacific. Eggs from New
Jersey are altugether different from those of the sora, or the yellow crake, being creamy-
white, sprinkled all over with fine dots of rich, bright reddish-brown, and with a few spots of
some little size at the great end; most like the more finely-speckled examples of the eggs of
the large Raili; dimensions 1.05 x 0.80. ; :

P. j. coturni/culus, (Lat. dim. of coturniz, a quail.) FARRALLONE BLACK CRAKE. Like
the last; rather smaller, the wing 2.50; more uniform in color, the back without white specks.
Farrallone Islands, coast of California.

CREX. (Gr. xpe&, krex, Lat. crex, a crake; referring to the ereaking notes.) Lanp RalLs.
General character of Porzana. Wings much longer, folding nearly to end of tail. Tarsus
relatively shorter. Plumage above streaky, but not spotty.

RALLIDA — GALLINULINA:: GALLINULES. 675

683. C. praten’sis. (Lat. pratensis, of fields.) EURoPEAN LAND RAIL. Corn CRAKE. Adult

274.

275.

3 9: Upper parts blackish-brown, variegated with brownish-yellow, the wing-coverts both
above and below rusty-reddish, the quills rufous-brown. Below, bluish-gray of varying
intensity, more ashy-whitish on throat and belly, the Hanks and crissum barred with reddish-
brown. Line over eye like under parts; a dark brown stripe through eye. Bill and eyes
brown; legs pale. Length about 10.50; wing 5.50-6.00; tail 2.00; bill 0.80-1.00; tarsus
1.60. Europe; casually in Greenland ; accidental in New Jersey and Bermudas. (Wedderb.,
Zool., 1849, p. 2591; Cass., Pr. Phila. Acad., vii, 1855, p. 265; Reinh., Ibis, 1861, p. 11;
Bd., Am. Journ. Sci., xli, 1866, p. 339; Freke, Zool., v, 1881, p. 374.)
\

63. Subfamily GALLINULINA: CGallinules.

Forehead shielded by a broad, bare, horny
plate, a prolongation and expansion of the culmen.
‘Bill otherwise much as in the shorter-billed rails,
like Porzana ; general form much the same,
though the body is not so compressed ; toes long,
simple, or slightly margined. The Gallinules
are somewhat Rail-like birds, of similar habits,
inhabiting marshes; they agree with the Coots
in possessing a frontal shield, but the feet are
not lobate, nor is the body depressed, and the
species swim no better than Rails. Some are of
the richest and most elegant coloration. There
et SEE: ; = are about 30 species of various parts of the
Fie. 467.—European Gallinule, Gallinula chlo. World, constituting several genera, two of which,
oropus. (From Dixon.) very distinct from each other, occur in N. Am.
GALLINULA. (Lat. gallinula, dimin. of gallina, a hen. Fig. 467.) GALLINULES. WATER
Hens. Mup Hens. Bill not longer than head, stout at base, tapering, compressed, the culmen
running directly up on the forehead and expanding into a frontal plate of different shape in
different species. Nostrils near middle of bill, Himear. Feet large and stout; tibia naked
below ; tarsus moderately compressed, scutellate; toes very long, the outer longer than the
inner, with an evident though slight marginal membrane; claws long, slender, little curved,
acute. Wings short and rounded, but ample. Tail very short, of 12 weak feathers, with
long ample under coverts, as in Rails. Plumage not rich blue, etc. Several species of
various countries.

. G. galea/ta. (Lat. galeata, helmeted.) ComMoN GALLINULE. FLORIDA GALLINULE.

Rep-BiLLED Mup-HEN. Adult ¢ 9: 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, outer web of first primary, and stripes on the flanks, white. Bill,
frontal plate, and ring round tibie, red, the former tipped with yellow; tarsi and toes
greenish, the joints bluish; eyes red or brown. Young: Similar, but lacking the bright
colors of the bill and legs, the former simply greenish; under parts extensively whitish.
Length 12.00-14.00; extent 20.00-22.00; wing 6.50-7.50; tail 3.00; gape of bill about
1.50; tarsus about 2.00. S. Atlantic and Gulf States, N. sometimes to New England, to
Canada West, Minnesota, Kansas, etc., and on the Pacifie side to San Francisco; W. I.,
C. Am., and much of S. Am. Resident in the Southern States, and abundant coastwise.
Nidification exactly that of the coot (beyond). Eggs 10-12-14, 1.75 x 1.25.

IONORNIS. (Gr. tov, ion, a violet; dpus, ornis, a bird; alluding to the rich blue color.)
Sutran GALLINULES. Hyacintus. General character of Gallinula ; bill very stout and

276.

686.

676 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — ALECTORIDES — RALLIF ORMES.

high, shorter than head, the nostrils near its middle, oval. Toes without lateral margins.
Plumage beautiful with rich blue, ete.

I. marti/nica, (Of Martinique.) PuRPLE GaLuinute. Adult ¢ 9: Head, neck, and
under parts beautiful purplish-blue, blackening on the belly, the sides and lining of, wings
bluish-green, the crissum white. Above, olivaceous-green, the cervix and wing-coverts tinted
with blue. Quills and tail-feathers blackish, glossed on the outer webs with greenish.
Frontal shield blue; bill carmine, tipped with yellow; legs yellow. The frontal shield is
obovate, with a point behind. Young with the head, neck, and lower back brownish, the
under parts mostly white, mixed with ochrey. Length 10.00-12.00; extent about 22.00;
wing 6.50-7.00; tail 2.50-3.00; bill from gape about 1.25 ; tarsus
about 2.25; middle toe and.claw about 3.00. S. Atlantic and Gulf
States, N. casually to New England, ete.; resident in the South.
Also inhabits much of C. and S. Am., and W. I.

64. Subfamily FULICINZE: Coots.

Bill and frontal plate much asin the Gallinules. Body depressed;
the under plumage thick and duck-like, to resist water. Feet
highly natatorial ; toes, including the hinder, lobate, being furnished
with large semicircular membranous flaps. The Coots are emi-
nently aquatic birds, swimming with ease, by means of their lobate
feet, like phalaropes and grebes ; but this ability results from very
slight modification of a structure shared by the Rails and Gallinules.
There are about ten species, of both hemispheres, distinguished,
among other characters, by the size and shape of the frontal shield.
That, for instance, figured (fig. 468) is of an exotic species, much
larger than that of Fulica americana, and differently shaped. One

Fic. 468, Frontal shield of Species is remarkable for having the forehead singularly carun-
a species of coot. culate; the others closely resemble our common species.
FU'LICA. (Lat. fulica, or fuliz, a coot, from the sooty color; fuligo, soot.) Character
essentially as above. ‘Tarsi shorter than middle toe, stout, very broadly scutellate. Nostrils
linear, in a broad fossa, towards middle of bill. Tibize bare below. Wings moderate, rounded,
the 2d and 3d quills usually longest. Tail very short, 12-feathered. Plumage dark slaty
color ; sexes alike.

F. america/na. AMERICAN Coot. WHITE-BILLED Mup-HEN. Crow Duck. Dark
slate-color, paler or grayish below, blackening on the head and neck, tinged with olive on the
back. Crissum, whole edge of wing, and tips of secondaries, white. Quills dusky, the outer
edge of the first primary white. Tail blackish. Bill white or flesh-color, marked with
reddish-black near the end and at base of frontal plate; feet dull olivaceous or livid yellowish-
green; iris carmine; claws black. Young similar, paler and duller. Length 14.00-16.00;
extent 23.00-27.00; wing 7.00-8.00; tail 2.00; bill from the gape 1.25-1.50; tarsus about
9.00; middle toe and claw about 3.00. The frontal plate is much smaller in this than in some
other species, in which it covers all the forehead. Entire temperate N. Am., even to Alaska
and sometimes Greenland ; Mexico, Cent. Am. and W.I.; abundant, and breeds throughout
its range; migratory northerly ; resident in the South. Inhabits davis the breeding season,
and mostly, reedy sloughs, pools, and sluggish streams, seeking safety in concealment rather
than by flight. Nesting most like that of grebes; a hollowed heap of bits of dead reeds,
just out of the water, sometimes “floating” in the sense that the mass of broken-down reeds
upon which it rests lies on the water. Eggs about a dozen, 1.75 to 2.00 long by 1.20 to 1.35
broad, shaped like an average hen’s egg, clear clay-color, uniformly and minutely dotted with

885.

LAMELLIROSTRES: ANSERINE BIRDS. 677

dark brown, the spots usually mere pin-heads, sometimes large blotches. The nest is some-
times on dry ground a little away from water. The young hatch covered with black down,
fantastically striped with bright orange-red, with vermilion bill tipped with black. .

(addenda.) F. a/tra. (Lat. atra, black.) Europran Coot. Like the last. Bill, inelud-
ing frontal plate, entirely white; edge of wing, and of first primary, white, but no white on
the crissum. Europe; only N. Am. as occurring in Greenland.

xX. Order LAMELLIROSTRES: Anserine Birds.

Bill lamellate: that is, both mandibles furnished aloug their tomial edges with series
of laminar or teeth-like projections, alternating and fitting within each other. Covering of
bill ‘membranous, wholly or in greatest part. Tongue fleshy, usually with horny tip, and
serrate or papillate edges corresponding to the denticulations of the bill. Feet palmate; hallux
elevated, free, simple, or lobed (rarely absent). Wings never exceedingly long, rarely very
short. Tail generally short and many-feathered. (Esophagus narrower than in the lower
flesh-eating orders, usually with « more or less specially formed crop; gizzard strongly
muscular; intestines and their cceca long; cloaca capacious. Legs near centre of equilibrium ;

_ position of body in walking horizontal or nearly so. Reproduction precocial. Sexual habit

frequently polygamous. Diet various, commonly rather vegetarian than animal. There are
two remarkably diverse types of lamellirostral birds, of more than family value, by some now
made the bases of separate orders. The matter at issue may be here compromised by the
recognition of two series, or suborders, as was done in the somewhat parallel cases of Columbe,
Galline, and Alectorides.

17. SuBORDER ODONTOGLOSS: GRALLATORIAL ANSERES.

Consisting of the single family of the Flamingoes; the Odontoglosse of Nitzsch, the
Amphimorphe of Huxley, the Phenicopteride of most authors. ‘‘The genus Phenicopterus
is so completely intermediate between the Anserine birds on the one side, and the Storks and
Herons on the other, that it can be ranged with neither of these groups, but must stand as the
type of a division by itself. Thus the skull has the long lacrymo-nasal region, the basi-
pterygoid facets, the prolonged and recurved angle of the mandible, the laminated horny sheath
of the Chenomorphe | Anatide] ; but the maxillo-palatines are spongy, and the general structure
of the rostrum is quite similar to that found in Storks and Herons. The lower end of the crus
is bare, but the feet are fully webbed; and the pterylosis is said by Nitzsch to be completely
stork-like.” (Huxley.) According to Garrod, two carotids are present, but the right is much
larger than the left, which joins it low down in the neck (unique in detail, but similar to the
disposition found in Bitterns and certain Parrots; fig. 94). The femoro-caudal is absent; the
ambiens, accessory femoro-caudal, semitendinosus and accessory semitendinosus are present
(differing both from Herodiones and Anatide). The tongue is thick, fleshy, papillate, with
terminal nail, and closely tied down; cesophagus extremely narrow, with special crop; gizzard
very muscular ; intestines ample, both in length and calibre; two long cceca, constricted at
base; a capacious cloaca. Bill of unique shape, but perfectly lamellate. General configur-
ation of body and members grallatorial ; legs and very slender neck exceedingly long, exhibit-
ing even an exaggeration of the proportions of Cranes, Storks, and Herons; but toes webbed.
The external characters are so nicely balanced between those of wading and swimming birds,
that the Flamingoes have been placed indifferently, in both groups; but nearly the whole
organization corresponds essentially with that of the duck tribe, the grallatorial relationship,
in form and habits, though so evident, being rather of analogy than of affinity. The physi-
ological nature is said to be precocial; the young hatching clothed and taking directly
to the water.

277.

678 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—LAMELLIROSTRES — ODONTOGLOSSZ.

51. Family PHCQANICOPTERIDA®: Flamingoes.

Bill unique in shape, abruptly bent in the middle, so that the upper surface faces the
ground in the act of feeding; in length much exceeding the head, very large and’ thick,
entirely invested with membrane (without the distinct terminal horny nail of Anatide).
Mandible narrower than maxilla at base, broader in the rest of its extent, ridged near the end.
Edges of upper mandible furnished with a great number (some 150) of oblique laminz ; of lower
incurved, similarly furnished. Nostrils sub-basal, nearer commissure than culmen, linear,
long. Tibize bare below for a great distance, and with the tarsi broadly scutellate before
and behind. Toes short, the anterior palmate with incised webs; the hallux elevated, free,

Fie. 469. — American Flamingoes. (From a photograph of a group mounted by F. S, Webster.)

very small, or absent. Wings moderately long, ample, with enlarged inner secondaries

' folding over and beyond the primaries when closed. Tail short. There are about 7 species of

Flamingoes, inhabiting the warmer parts of both Hemispheres; three of America besides
ours, and three or four Old World. They represent several genera of late systematists, the
most marked being that represented by P. andinus, which is three-toed. Our species falls in
the restricted genus Phanicorodias of Gray.

PHGNICO/PTERUS. (Gr. dowidrrepps, phoinikopteros, Lat. phanicopterus, a flamingo:
i. @. red-wing.) FLAmincors. Character as above. Head bare between bill and eyes.
Hind toe present. Claws flattened, obtuse. Wings ample, pointed; 1st three primaries sub-
equal and longest; inner secondaries elongated and tapering.

\

$87.

PHG@NICOPTERIDZ : FLAMINGOES. 679

P. ruber. (Lat. ruber, red. Fig. 469.) American Rep Fiaminao. Adult #9: Plu-
mage scarlet, the primaries and most of the secondaries black. Legs lake-red. Bill black on
the terminal part, orange in the middle, the base and bare skin of head yellow. Young the
first year white or rosy. Stature nearly 5 feet; weight 6 or 8 lbs. Length about 4 feet; extent
of wings 5 feet or more; wing 16 inches; tail 6; bill 5; tibia bare 9; tarsus 13; middle toe and
claw 34. @Q like g in color, but smaller. Florida and Gulf coast, and southward; said to
have been N. to 8. Carolina. Eggs 2, 3.25 x 2.10, with thick shell, roughened with white
flaky substance, bluish when this is scraped away. .The nest is described as a heap of earth
and other material, which the birds bestride in an ungainly attitude; but it is not high enough
to permit their long legs to dangle, as represented in some popular accounts and pictorial
efforts. A recent writer upon one of the Old World species states positively that the incubating
bird doubles her legs under her in the usual way ; so that, unless the American species does
differently, the accompanying illustration must be considered conventional. The young are
said, on good authority, to take to the water as soon as hatched.

18. SusorpER ANSERES: ANSERINE Birps PROPER.

Simply equivalent to Lamellirostres as above defined, minus the Grallatorial type. For
further characters, see on, under head of the single

52. Family ANATIDA: Geese, Ducks, etc.

Bill lamellate, stout, more or less elevated and compressed at
base, widened or flattened at the obtuse tip, invested with soft,
tough, leathery membrane, except at the end, which is furnished
with a hard, horny “nail,” generally somewhat overhanging,
sometimes small and distinct, sometimes large and fused ; that is,
changing insensibly into the general covering. (This soft cover-
ing is regarded by some as a prolonged cere; but this is purely
theoretical.) Body full, heavy, flattened beneath; neck of variable
length; head large; eyes small. No antiw; the frontal feathers
encroaching on the culmen with a convex or pointed outline, and forming other projections on
the sides of the bill, and in the interramal space, which latter is broad and long, the mandib-
ular crura being united only at the end by a broad short bridge; no culininal ridge nor keel
of gonys. Nostrils subbasal, median, or subterminal, elevated, open, naked, usually broadly
oval. Wings of moderate length (rarely very short), stiff, strong, pointed, conferring rapid,
vigorous, whistling flight; a wild duck at full speed is said to make ninety miles an hour.
Tail of variable.shape, but usually short and rounded, never forked,'sometimes cuneate, of
12-24 feathers, usually 14-16, the under coverts very long and full, forming a conspicuous
erissal tuft. Legs short; knees buried in the general integument ; tibiew feathered nearly or
quite to the suffrago; tarsi reticulate or scutellate, or both ; toes palmate, the hinder always
present and free, simple or lobate. Wing occasionally spurred.

Like the gallinaceous, the anserine type is a familiar one, comprising all kinds of ‘ water-
fowl,” among which are the originals of all our domestic breeds of swans, geese, and ducks,
that vie with poultry in point of economic consequence, ornament our parks, or furnish exquisite
material for wearing apparel, as well as the filling of our pillows and couches. But additional
information respecting the structure of this, the largest and most important family of swimming
birds, may be desirable. It is definitely characterized by many important points besides those
external features just stated. In palatal structure, Anatide are desmognathous (fig. 78) ; ‘‘ the

Fie. 470. — Wild Duck.

_ lacrymal region of the skull is remarkably long [the lacrymal bone itself is large]. The basi-

sphenoidal rostrum has oval sessile basipterygoid facets. The flat and lamellar maxillo-palatines

680 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

unite and form a bridge across the palate. The angle of the mandible is produced and greatly
recurved” (Huxley). The interorbital septum is more or less completely ossified, and the
orbits are better defined than in many birds, by well-developed lacrymal and post-frontal pro-
cesses. The premaxillary is large, and its three prongs are so extensively fused that only a
slight nasal aperture remains. Sometimes the top of the skull shows crescentic depressions for
lodgment of the supraorbital gland, the secretion of which lubricates the nasal passages; but
this feature is never so marked as in most of the piscivorous swimmers (fig. 63). The sternum is.
long and broad, more or less transverse posteriorly, with a simple notch or fenestra on each
side; sometimes its keel is curiously hollowed out for a purpose stated beyond. The vertebra
vary a good deal in number, owing to the variability of the cervicals, which run up to 24 in
some swans. The pelvis is ample, arched and extensively ossified, with small foramina, showing
nothing of the straight, constricted, largely fenestrated figure prevalent among lower water-
birds. The oil-gland is present, tufted. The carotids are two. The ambiens, femoro-caudal
and its accessory and semitendinosus are present. The tongue is large and fleshy; its main
bone (glosso-hyal ; fig. 72) is highly developed; its sides show processes corresponding to-
the lamelle of the bill. The gullet is not so ample as in the flesh-eating swimmers. The
gizzard resembles that of a fowl in its shape and great muscularity; the muscles are deep-
colored, and well show the typical disposition of large hemispherical lateral masses converging
to central tendons. The cceca vary with the genera according to food; they are very long —
12 or 15 inches—in some of the herbivorous species. The male genital armature merits
special notice. ‘‘In some Natatores which copulate on the water there is provision for more
efficient coitus than by simple contact of everted cloace; and in the Anatide a long penis is.
developed. It is essentially a sacular production of a highly vascular part of the lining mem-
brane of the cloaca. . . . In the passive state it is coiled up like a screw by the elasticity of
associated ligamentous structure. . . . A groove commencing widely at the base follows the
spiral turns of the sac to its termination ; the sperm ducts open upon papille at the base of this
groove. This form of penis has a muscle by which it can be everted, protruded and raised.”
(Owen.) Among the most interesting structures of the Anatide are the curious modifications.
of the windpipe, prevailing almost throughout the family. In a number of swans, this organ
enters a cavity in the keel of the sternum, doubles on itself and then emerges to pass to the
lungs, forming either a horizontal. or a vertical coil. In some geese the windpipe coils between
the pectoral muscles and the skin. These vagaries of the windpipe are not, however, confined
to the present family, occurring in some of the cranes, ibises, certain Gallina, and also, it is
said, in the curious snipe, Rhkynchea capensis. In most of the ducks, furthermore, and in the
mergansers, the lower larynx is a singularly enlarged and complicated affair; several of the
lower rings of the trachea being soldered together and greatly magnified to produce a large
irregularly shaped capsule. Its use is not known; in some sense it is a sexual character,
since it is only fully developed in the male; it varies greatly in size and shape in different
species (figs. 3, 98). Finally, it should be added, that the pterylosis of the family is perfectly
definite, a certain type of tract-formation prevailing throughout, with very slight minor modi-
fications.

It is not easy to overrate the economic importance of this large faniily. It is true that the
mergansers, some of the sea ducks, and certain maritime geese, that feed chiefly upon animal
substances, are scarcely fit for food; but the great majority afford a bounteous supply of sapid
meat, « chief dependence, indeed, with the population of some inhospitable regions. Such is
the case, for example, in the boreal parts of this continent, whither vast bands of water-fowl
resort to breed during the fleeting arctic summer. Their coming marks a season of compara-
tive plenty in places where hunger often pinches the belly, and their warm downy covering
is patched into garments almost cold-proof.

The general traits of the anserine birds are too well known to require more than passing

ANATIDA — CYGNINZ: SWANS. 681

notice. They are salacious to a degree remarkable even in the hot-blooded, passionate class of
birds; a cireumstance rendering the production of hybrids frequent, and favoring the study of
this subject. If we recall the peculiar actions of geese nipping herbage, and of ducks ‘‘ dab-
bling” in the water, and know that some species, as the mergansers, pursue fish and other live
prey under water, we have the principal modes of feeding. Nidification is usually on the
ground; sometimes in a hollow tree; the nest is often warmly lined with live feathers; the
eggs are usually of some plain pale color, as greenish, drab, or creamy; the clutch varies in
number, commonly ranging from half a dozen to a dozen and a half. The young are clothed
with stiffish down, and swim at once. Among the ducks and mergansers, marked sexual diver-
sity in color is the rule; the reverse is the case with swans and geese. A noteworthy color-
ation of many species, especially of ducks, is the speculum; a brightly colored, generally
iridescent, area on the secondary quills. Most of the species are migratory, particularly those
of the northern hemisphere ; the flight is performed in bands, that seem to preserve discipline
as well as companionship ; and with such regularity, that no birds. are better entitled to the
claim of weather-prophets.

There are upward of 175 species of this family, inhabiting all parts of the world. They
differ a good deal in minor details, and represent a number of peculiar genera aside from the
ordinary types, though none are so aberrant as to endanger the integrity of the group. It is
difficult to establish divisions higher than generic, because the swans, geese, and ducks, if not
also the mergansers, are closely united by intermediate genera. But the five groups presented
as subfamilies in the following pages, and representing the whole of the family, may be con-
veniently recognized, and are readily distinguished, so far as our species are concerned, by the
characters assigned. The genera will be found analyzed under heads of their respective

subfamilies.
Analysis of Subfamilies.
Cyeninz. Swans. Lores partly naked. Tarsi reticulate. Hallux simple. Sexes alike.
ANSERINE. Geese. Lores feathered. Tarsi reticulate. Hallux simple. Sexes alike.
ANATIN=. River Ducks. Lores feathered. Tarsi scutellate in front. Hallux simple. Bill flattened. Sexes

unlike.

Furieutinz. Sea Ducks. Lores feathered. Tarsi scutellate in front. Hallux lobate. Bill flattened
Sexes unlike. ia

MerRGINe. Mergansers. Lores feathered. Tarsi scutellate in front. Hallux lobate. Bill cylindric. Sexes
unlike.

65. Subfamily CYGNINAE: Swans.

A strip of bare skin between the eye and bill ; tarst
reticulate, and shorter than middle toe and claw ;
hind toe simple, or with very slight lobe. In the
Swans, the neck is of extreme length and flexibility,
exceeding the trunk, with up to 22 or 26 vertebra ;
the movements and attitudes on the water are pro-
verbially elegant and graceful. The bill equals or
exceeds the head in length; it is high and com-
pressed at base (where sometimes tuberculate), flat-
ter and widened at the end; the nostrils are median.
The lores are naked in the adults, though usually
feathered in the young. Some of the inner remiges
= are usually enlarged, and when elevated in a pecu-

- Fig. 471. — Mute Swan, Cygnus olor. (From liar position of the wing, they act as sails to help the
Dixon.) course of the bird over the water. The reticulate
tarsi are shorter than the middle toe and claw. The hallux is scarcely or not lobate. The legs
are placed rather far back for this family, so that the gait is awkward and constrained. The

278.

688,

689.

682 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

tail is short, of 20 to 24 feathers. Although the voice is sonorous at times, an habitual reti-
cence of Swans contrasts strongly with the noisy gabbling of Geese and Ducks; it is hardly
necessary to add, that their fancied musical ability, either in health or at the approach of
death, is not confirmed by examination of their vocal apparatus; this is in many cases con-
voluted as already described, but there are no syringeal muscles nor other apparatus for modu-
lating the voice. There are eight or ten species, of various countries, among them the cele-
brated black swan of Australia, Chenopsis atrata, the black-necked swan of South America,
Sthenelus melanocorypha (Cygnus nigricollis of authors). The Coscoroba anatoides of the
same country, a species with feathered lores, often referred here, is perhaps better placed
among Anating. In none of these does the trachea enter the breast-bone. The Paleocyenus
falconeri is a large fossil species from Malta. Our two species belong to the restricted genus
Olor, distinguished from Cygnus proper by absence of a tubercle at the base of the bill
(seen in fig. 471). The séxes are alike throughout the group.
CYG’NUS. (Gr. xixvos, kuknos, Lat. cycnus or cygnus, a swan.) WuiTe Swans. Neck of
extreme length. Trachea normally entering sternum. Bill tuberculate or not, the skinny
covering in the adults reaching to the eyes; not shorter than head, very high at base, where
deeper than wide, broader and flattening toward the rounded end; culminal ridge at base
about horizontal, very broad and flat or even excavated, the sides of the bill there nearly
vertical. Nostrils near middle of bill, high up. Legs behind centre of equilibrium when
the body is horizontal. Tibie bare below. Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw, entirely
reticulate ; toes long, with full webs, the anterior reticulate on top for a distance, then scu-
tellate. Hallux small, elevate, with slight lobe. Wings very long and ample. Tail short,
rounded (in Olor) or wedged (in Cygnus proper), of twenty or twenty-four feathers. Size
large: adults entirely white, with black bill and feet, former usually in part yellow: young
rusty on head; younger gray or ashy. Sexes alike. Our species 4-5 feet long. They all belong
to Olor, having non-tubereulate bill, rounded tail, the young with the down on the sides
of the bill forming distinct antiee ; and the inner webs of the outer three primaries, with outer
webs of the 2d, 3d, and 4th, sinuated.
Analysis of Species.
Tail of 24 feathers(normally). Bill entirely black, rather Jonger than head, nostrils fairly in its basal half
bucoinator 688
Tail of 20 feathers (normally). Bill normally with a small yellow spot not reaching the nostrils, scarcely
or not larger than head, nostrils at the middle eae Se ee ee ee ae ere columbianus 689
Tail of 20 feathers (normally). Bill normally witha great yellow space extending beyond the nostrils,
scarcely or not longer than head, nostrils at the middle. . ........20.4- , musicus 690
C. buccina'tor. (Lat. buccinator, a trumpeter; buccina, a trumpet; bucca, the cheek.)
TRUMPETER Swan. Adult ¢ 9 Plumage white, with or without wash of rusty on head.
Bill and feet entirely black. Bill more developed in the terminal portion than that of C.
americanus, throwing the nostrils fairly within the basal half, and making the distance from
the anterior angle of the eye to the hind edge of the nostril equal to the distance thence to
the end of the bill. Tail-feathers normally 24. Largest: length 5 feet or more when full
grown, and extent about 8 feet; wing 2 feet or more; tail 8-9 inches. Bill about 4.50 inches
along culmen, from eye to tip nearly 6.00; tarsus 4.50-5.00; middle toe and claw 5.50-6.00.
Young smaller; bill and feet not perthotly black; plumage eevint, the head and upper neck
rusty-brown. This swan chiefly inbabits N. Am. from the Mississippi valley westward, Texas
to the fur countries; Great Lakes; Hudson’s Bay; Canada; casual on the Atlantic Coast.
Breeds from Iowa and Dakota northward; in winter south to the Gulf.
C. columbia/nus. (Of the Columbia River. Fig. 472.) Common AmeRIcAN Swan. WHIST-
ying Swan. Adult ¢ 9: Plumage as before. Bill with a yellow spot or blotch in front of
eye, usually small, sometimes wanting. Bill less lengthened and expanded terminally than in
C. buecinator, the nostrils across the middle; the distance from the‘anterior angle of the eye

ANATIDA — ANSERINZE: GEESE. 683

to the hind edge of the nostril more than thence to the end of the bill. Tail-feathers normally
20. Length under 5 feet; extent 6 or 7 feet; wing under 2 feet; tail 7 or 8 inches. Bill about
4.00 along culmen ;
from eye to tip of bill un-
der 5.00; tarsus 4.00;
middle toe and claw
5.50. Young smaller;
plumage ashy - gray,
with reddish - brown
wash on head and upper
neck ; bill in part flesh-
colored, the lores pla-
mulose; feet yellowish
flesh-color. N. Am. at
large, U. S. in winter
and during the migra-
tion ; the usual species
along the Atlantic coast,
and more numerous on
either coast than in in-
terior U. S.; rare or
easual, however, in
New England and eastward. Breeds only in the high north. Eggs 2-5, from 4.00 2.25
to 4.50 X 2.50, with rough dull white shell, with more or less brownish discoloration.

690. C, mu'sicus. (Gr. povorkds, mousikos, Lat. musicus, musical.) WHooring Swan. Similar
to C. columbianus, and having the same shape of the bill, but instead of a small yellow spot
behind the nostrils there is a great yellow blotch, occupying one half or more of the bill and
extending beyond the nostrils. Only N. Am. as occurring in Greenland: Reinh., Ibis, 1861,
p- 18 of the reprint; Freke, Zodl., v, 1881, p. 372.

691. [C. be/wicki. (To Thos. Bewick.) Brwick’s Swan. A European species, incorrectly
attributed to N. A. in the 2d ed. of the Check List, which see, p. 111.]

Fig. 472. — Whistling Swan. (From Lewis.)

66. Subfamily ANSERINAZ: Geese.

Lores completely feathered ; tarsi entirely
reticulate; hind toe simple. Neck in length
between that of swans and of ducks; cervical
vertebree about 16; body elevated and not so
much flattened as in the ducks ; legs relatively
louger ; tarsus generally exceeding, or at least
not shorter than, the middle toe; bill generally
rather short, high and compressed at base, and
tapering to tip, which is less widened and flat-
tened than is usual among ducks and almost
wholly occupied by the broad nail. The
species as a rule are more terrestrial, and walk

Fie. 473.— Common (@) and Black (0) Brant. better, than ducks; they are generally herbiv-
_orous, although several maritime species (Philacte, and an allied South American group) are
animal-feeders, and their flesh is rank. Both sexes attend to the young. A notable trait,
shared by the swans, is their mode of resenting intrusion by hissing with outstretched neck,

i

279.

692.

693.

684 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

and striking with the wings. With some exceptions the plumage is not so bright and variegated
as that of ducks, and the speculum is wanting ; there is only an annual moult, and no seasonal
change of plumage ; the sexes are generally alike. Most of the geese fall in or very near the
genera Anser and Bernicla, and are modelled in the likeness of the domestic breeds. The more
notable exotic forms are: the Australian Anseranas melanoleuca and Cereopsis nove-hollandie,
the former having the feet little more than semipalmate, the latter scarcely aquatic, with very
long legs, much bare above the suffrago, and the bill small, very membranous; the African
Plectropterus gambensis, a purplish-black bird with spurs on the wings and a tubercle at the
base of the bill; the Asiatic Cynopsis cygnoides, frequently domesticated, a true goose with
a swan-like aspect; the Egyptian gouse, Chenalopex egyptiaca. The geese appear to pass
directly into the ducks through the rather large shieldrake group, the species of which resemble
the latter in many external features, but are more essentially like geese. Characteristic exam-
ples of this group are the European Tadorna vulpanser and Casarca rutila; there are several
others in the southern hemisphere; our long-legged arboricole genus Dendrocygna belongs
in the immediate vicinity, while the domesticated musk duck, Catrina moschata, is not far
removed. Through such forms as these we are brought directly among the ducks proper.

Analysis of Genera.
Bill pink; feet yellow; under parts extensively black. Bill tapering, not longer than head. Lamelle

moderately exposed. © 2 ee 2 ew te he ee ee a gay Ae Ray Sen Sap Bh ae Anser 279
Bill and feet pink. Plumage white, or much varied. Bill tapering, not longer than head, Lamelle
Gompletely exposed. - Hw RO OR ee eR ee Se Chen 280
Bill and feet black ; head and neck black, ‘with white spaces Bill tapering, shorter than head. Lamellz
GGEr ss. es 8 ae go SRE Re Ro ee oR oe ae ae ee a ee Bernicla 282
Bill and feet light; platings bluish, with black crescents, Bill tapering, not louver than head, Lamelle
PAT SEPONEE Go a OR ee ea a we Philacte 281

Bill and feet various; plumage much variegated. Bill scarcely tapering, longer than head Dendcacyine 283.
Oss. — These characters only indicate the N. Am. species.
AN’/SER. (Lat. anser, a goose.) Gray GEESE. Bill shorter or not longer than head,
very stout, tapering to obtuse tip, at base rather higher than broad. Lateral lamelle some-
what exposed by bevelling of tomia. Nostrils in basal half of bill, their anterior edge only
reaching its middle. Tibiz naked below. Tarsus rather shorter than middle toe and claw,
entirely reticulate. Anterior toes full-webbed, on top reticulate at base, then scutellate.
Hind toe moderate, reaching the ground. Tail of 16-++ feathers. Color not white, nor
with black head, neck, bill, or feet; the bill pink, the feet yellow (in our species).
Analysis of Varieties.

Bill small; culmen 1.50-1.75. 2. 00 6 ee we ee ee . albifrons 692

Bill large; culmen 1.75-2.00 . 2 6 6 ee ee ee ee ee ee ee oe gambeli 693
A. al/bifrons. (Lat. albus, white; frons, forehead.) EUROPEAN WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE.
The above is the slight character which appears to separate this from the next. Only N. Am.
as occurring in Greenland.
A. a. gam/beli. (To Wm. Gambel.) AMERICAN WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE. SPECKLE-
BELLY. Tail normally 16-feathered. Bill smooth; the laminz moderately exposed. Adult g
Q: Bill pink, pale lake or carmine, the nails white. Feet yellow. Eyes brown. Claws
white. A white band along base of upper mandible, bordered behind by blackish ; upper tail-
coverts white. Under parts whitish, the breast and belly more or less extensively patched or
blotched with black, in high plumage perhaps mostly black, the sides of the rump, and .the
crissum, white. Head and neck dark grayish-brown, paler on the lower neck in front, where
passing into the whitish black-blotched breast. Back dark ashy-gray, the feathers anteriorly
tipped with brown, farther back with pale gray. Secondaries and ends of primaries dusky,
more ashy toward base, the primary coverts and outer webs of primaries ashy, the greater
coverts and secondaries bordered with whitish, the primaries and coverts edged and tipped

280.

694.

695.

ANATIDA —ANSERINZ: GEESE. 685

with white ; shafts of quills white. Young: Darker, browner; the gray and ashy colors rather
brown, the base of the tail not pure white, no white on forehead, which is darker than rest
of head, no black on under parts, the bill obscured, the nail blackish, the feet pale. Length
about 27.00 ‘inches; extent 60.00; wing 16.10-17.00; tail 5.50; tarsus 2.75; middle toe
and claw rather more; bill up to 2.00. N. Am. at large, breeding in the far north, wintering
in the U. S., in greater numbers on the Pacific side than in the interior or along the Atlantie.
Eggs 6-7, 2-90 to 3.380 long by 2.10 broad, elliptical, smooth dull yellowish with an olive
shade, in places discolored with a darker tint.

CHEN. (Gr. xv, chen, a goose.) Snow GEESE. Bill about as long as head, very stout
and high at base, where higher than broad, the under mandible very deep. Tomial edges
of much bevelled off, and receding from each other, leaving an elliptical space, in which the
large prominent teeth are fully exposed. Nostrils in basal half of bill. Feet as in Anser, but
tarsus if anything longer than middle toe and claw. Color white, at least on head. Bill and

feet reddish.
: Analysis of Species.

Not white. Nearly the size of the next ae ae ae ot det 6) oo lap Ge Salen) oy cerulescens 694
Pure white, with black wing-tips; head rusty or ae
Large: length about 30.00; wing 17.00 or more. Bill smooth . . . . .« « hyperboreus 695
Small: length about 25.00; wing 16.00 or less. Billsmooth . . ...... . . .albatus 696
Very small: under 24.00; wing 15.00 or less. Bill studded with papilla . z . ee) «6TOssi 697

C. coerules/cens. (Lat. cerulescens, bluish.) BLUE SNow GoosE. Bill and feet flesh-pink,
former with the recess between the mandibles black, the nails whitish; iris dark brown ;
claws dusky. Head and neck above white, the neck below, passing on tu the back and
breast, dusky-gray, then fading into whitish on the under parts, changing on the wings into
fine bluish-gray, or silvery-ash ; ramp and upper tail-coverts whitish; quills and tail-feathers
dusky, edged with whitish, the primaries black. Size of the snow goose or rather less, and
closely resembling the
young of that species.
Length about 25.00;
wing 16.00; bill 2.25 ;
tarsus 3.00. N. Am.
at large, not very com-
mon or well-known.

C. hyperbo’reus. (Lat.
hyperboreus, beyond
the north wind.) SNow
Goose. WHITE
Brant. Bill car-
mine-red or pale pur-
plish with a salmon
tinge, the nails white,
the recess between the
mandibles black. Eyes
dark brown. Feet dull
lake-red, the claws
blackish. Adult plu-
mage pure white, the Fie. 474. — Emperor Goose. (From Dall.)

head usually washed with rusty-brown, like a swan’s, the ends of the primaries blackening.
Young resembling the last, but the head not white while other parts are colored. Large:
length 27.00-31.00 ; extent 57.00-62.00; wing 17.00-19.00 ; tail 6.50; bill 2.35-2.60; tarsus
3.00-3.50; middle toe and claw’the same. Weight 5 or 6 lbs. The dimensions grade down

696.

697.

282.

geese). Teeth of bill

686 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

to those of the next. N. Am. at large; breeds in high latitudes, migrating and wintering in
the U.S. Abundant in the interior and along the Pacific coast, less so on the Atlantic.
Casual in Europe. Eggs about 3.00 X 2.00, yellowish-white.

C. h. alba/tus. (Lat. albatus, whitened.) Lesser Snow Goose. Coloration | precisely
as in the last; size less, but grading up to that of hypefboreus. Length about 25. 00; wing
15.50; tail 5.50; bill 2.00-2.12; tarsus 2.90-3.00. Western N. Am., probably also Eastern ;
sevidenital i in Inelanid.

C. ros'si. (To B. R. Ross.) Ross’ Goose. Hornep Wavey. Least SNow GoosE.
Coloration as in the foregoing. Bill with the outline of the feathers on the side nearly straight
instead of strongly convex, studded at base with numerous papille, and less exposure of the
teeth. Very small, no larger than a mallard duck. Length about 21.00; wing 14.50; tail
5.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 2.50. Arctic America, U. S. in winter, western. A curious little white
goose, so different from thé other species of Chen as to have been made type of a: genus
Exanthemops.

. PHILACTE. (Gr. didos, philos, loving; dkrn, akte, the seashore.) PAINTED GEESE.

Superficial aspect of Chen. Skull with superorbital depressions (wanting in other N. Am.

exposed posteriorly ;
the nail prominent ;
bill moderately ro-
bust. Tarsus not
longer than middle
toe and claw. Plu-
mage variegated, but
no metallic tints ; bill
and feet light-colored.
Webbing of the toes
incised. Sexes alike.
Arctic and maritime.
P. cana/gica. (Of
the island of Kanaga.
Fig. 474.) PAINTED
GooszE. EMPEROR
Goosr. Wavy blu-
ish-gray, with laven- =

der or lilac tinting, Fic. 475.— Common Brant. (From Lewis.)

and sharp black crescentic marks ; head, nape, and tail white, former often washed with amber-
yellow; throat black, white-speckled; quills varied with black and white; eye brown; feet
flesh-color. Length 25.00-28.00 ; wing 15.00-17.00; tail 5.00-6.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 3.00.
N. W. coast; abundant at mouth of Yukon; wintering chiefly in S. Alaska and the Aleutian
Islands, breeding N. to Behring Strait at least; also on the Siberian side. A remarkable
species, unlike any other goose of our country; strictly maritime. Its flesh is rank, and
scarcely fit for food. Eggs about 5, 3.35 X 2.00, white, with fine pale brown dotting, giving a
general pale dirty-brown color.

BER'NICLA. (Latinized from English barnacle.) BARNACLE ie BRANT GEESE.
Bill short, the nostrils at its middle. Lamine of bill not exposed, the commissure being
straight. Head and neck black, with white spaces. Bill and feet black. Hind toe very
small. Tail of 16-18 feathers. Sexes alike. Several species, of both Hemispheres. (The name
“‘ barnacle ” commemorates the fable that these birds sprouted from the little cirripeds called
barnacles ; “‘ brent” or ‘‘ brant” is simply “ burnt” goose, from the dark color, as if charred.)

699.

700.

ANATIDZ — ANSERINZE: GEESE. 687

Analysis of Species and Varieties.

Forehead, cheeks, and chin white. (European.) oe wo A Ge OR ee leucopsis 699
Forehead, cheeks, and chin black; white stripes on Heals,
Black of neck well defined against light lower parts .°. . . 1 6 6 - ee «© + © + «~~ brenta 700
Black of neck extending over breast ee ee we we ee) «6igricans 701

Forehead black; cheeks and chin white; no white stripes on —s
Tail normally 18-feathered. Large.

No white collar in black of lower neck ‘ Qa rae eevee Vt Eas “ay See? - canadensis 702

A white collar in black of lower neck ete a ee Oe ae ae occidentalis 702a
Tail normally 16-feathered. Small.

No white collar in black of lower neck . a au: “ge aah as al od? Ze), 6 . hutchinsi 704

A white collar in black of lower neck 5 ah tare Se wi ® . leucoparia 703

B. leucop’sis. (Gr. Aevkds, leucos, white; dys, opsis, appearance: the face white.)
BaRNACLE Goose. Tail normally of 16.feathers. Bill, feet, and claws black. Iris brown.
Front and sides of head a

and chin white, with a
dark line at base of bill,
and thence to eye. Rest
of head and neck all
around black, prolonged
on the back and wings,
the feathers of the latter
bluish, gray at base and
edged at end with whit-
ish; rump and tail black.
Upper and under tail-
coverts, sides of rump,
belly, and hind breast,
white or whitish, the
sides shaded with gray.
Quills dusky, blackening
at ends, tinged on the
exposed surfaces with
ashy. Sexes similar; ?
duller colored and smaller
than ¢. Length of ¢
28.00; extent 55.00 ;
wing 17.00; tail 6.00;
bill 1.50; tarsus 2.75;
middle toe and claw the
same. Europe; very rare
and casual in N. Am. ex-
cepting Greenland, where
regular. (Hudson’s Bay,
Am. Nat., ii, 1868, p. 49.
N. Carolina, Am. Nat.,
v, 1871, p. 10. Long Island, Bull. Nutt. Club, ii, 1877, p. 18. Illinois, Forest and Stream,
Nov. 23, 1876.)

B. bren'ta. (Quasi-Lat. brenthus, brentus, burnt. Fig. 475.) BRANT Goose. Bill, feet, and
claws black ; iris brown. Head and neck all around, and a little of fore part of body, glossy-
black, well defied against the color of the breast ; on each side of the neck a small patch of
white streaks; frequently also white touches on eyelid and chin. Breast ashy-gray, beginning

Fie. 476. — Black Brant. (From American Field.)

701.

702.

Oa.

688 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

abruptly from the black, fading on the belly and crissum into white, shaded along the sides -
of the body; upper parts brownish-gray, the feathers of the dorsal region with paler gray
tips; rump darker ; upper tail-coverts white. Tail-feathers, wing-quills, and primary-coverts
blackish, the inner quills whitish toward base. Length 24.00; extent 48.00; wing 13.00;
tail 4.50; bill 1.33; tarsus 2.25; middle toe and claw about the same. Europe. In North
America, chiefly along the Atlantic Coast, being more maritime than other U.S. geese, but
still found inland on the great lakes and rivers. U.S. only in winter, and during the migra-
tions, when abundant: Breeds in high latitudes, to the Arctic Coast.

B. b. nig/ricans. (Lat. nigricans, being blackish. Fig. 476.) BLack Brant. Similar to the
last; black of jugulum extending over most of under parts, fading on belly and crissum, without
abrupt line of demarcation on breast; white neck-patches usually larger and meeting in front.
Size of the last. Both coasts; very abundant on the Pacific side, not common on the Atlantic.
Migrations and breeding resorts the same:

'B. canaden’sis. (Of Canada. Fig. 477.) Canapa Goosr. Common Wixp Goose. Tail nor-

mally 18 - feathered.
Bill, feet, head, and
neck black; on the chin
a broad white patch
mounting on sides of
head behind eyes, some-
times broken on chin;
not extending forward
to jaws ; white touches
usually on eyelids. Up-
=. per tail-coverts definite-
ly white ; rump black-
ish ; tail-feathers black.
General color brown-
ish-gray, paler or more
ashy-gray below, all
{ the feathers with paler
gray or whitish edges,
those of sides of body
usually darker than
rest of under parts, the
lower belly and crissum
definitely white. Iris
j brown. Length 3 feet
Fic. 477. — Canada Goose. (From Lewis.) or more; extent 5 feet;
wing 18-20 inches ; tail 7.00; tarsus 3.00-3.50; middle toe and claw more; bill about 2.00.
N. Am. at large. This is the most generally distributed and on the whole the most abundant
goose of owr country. It breeds in various parts of the U. S., sometimes im érees, but the
greater number of individuals pass further north to nest. Eggs 5 to 9, usually 5 or 6, ellip-
soidal, smooth, pale dull greenish, about 8.50 X 2.50.

B. c. occidenta/lis. (Lat. occidentalis, western.) LARGER WHITE-CHEEKED Goose. Similar
to the last ; of equal size, and tail 18-feathered. Coloration averaging darker‘than in the last,
the under parts especially, against whicli the white of the anal and crissal region is well-defined.
Black of neck bounded below in front by a white half-collar. Bill averaging shorter, and
tarsus relatively longer. The best samples are well marked; others shade into the common
form. Pacific coust, especially Alaska. (The bird here indicated is B. occidentalis Bd. Whether

Ss =

703.

7104.

283.

705.

7106.

ANATIDA] —ANATINZE!: RIVER DUCKS. 689

leucoparia Brdt.? But not leucoparia Cass. Not in the Check List, 1882, not having been
there formally recognized as a subspecies.)

B. c. leucopari’a. (Gr. Aeuxds, leukos, white; mapetd, pareia, cheek.) SMALLER WHITE-
CHEEKED GOOSsE. Similar to the last in color; but much smaller, and tail 16-feathered, thus

resembling No. 704, from which distinguished as occidentalis is from canadensis. Length 24.00

or less; wing about 15.00. This is the small ‘‘white-necked goose” figured by Cassin, IIl.,
pl. 45, as B. leucoparia, Brandt. Pacific coast, especially Alaska.
B. c. hut/chinsi. (To Mr. Hutchins.) Hurcuins’ Gooss. Tail normally 16-feathered.
Coloration as in the Canada goose. Size much less. Length 25.00-30.00; extent about
4 feet; wing 15.00-17.00; tail 5.00-6.00; bill 1.50; tarsus under 3.00. There seems little
probability of establishing good character of more than one species of the canadensis group,
with probably four varieties: large, no collar (702); small, no collar (704) ; large, collared
(702a) ; small, collared (703).
DENDROCY'GNA. (Gr. dévdpor, dendron, a tree; Lat. cygnus, a swan.) Tree DUucKS.
Duck-like arboricole geese, with the bill longer than the head, terminated by a prominent
decurved nail, the lamelle not projecting ; nostrils small, oval, in basal half of bill; legs very
long, the tibie extensively denuded. below ; hind toe lengthened, more than one-third as long
as the tarsus; tarsi entirely reticulate, as in geese proper. Wings ample, rounded; Ist quill
shorter than 4th. Coloration variegated. Sexes similar. Nest in trees. In addition to the
two following species, a third, D. arborea, of the West Indies, may occur in the South.
Analysis of Species.

Bill and feet blackish ; coloration largely cinnamon; no white wing-patch . ......4. 5 Sulva 05

Bill and feet reddish; coloration largely blackish; a large white wing-patch. . . . . autumnalis 706
D. ful/va. (Lat. fulva, fulvous, reddish.) Funvous Tree Duck. Bill bluish-black ;
feet slaty-blue. Pale cinnamon or yellowish-brown, extensive and uniform on the lower parts,
darker on head; nape and hind-neck with a black line; scapulars and fore-back blackish with
pale cinnamon edgings of the feathers. Rump and tail black; upper and under tail-coverts
white. No white speculum on wing; lesser wing-coverts chocolate-brown; rest of wing black
on both surfaces. Length about 20.00; extent 36.00; wing 9.50; tail 3.25; tarsus 2.25 ; bill
1.50, with hooked nail. S.W. U.S. and southward, in summer, Louisiana to Cala. ; common
on the Rio Grande.
D. autumna/lis. (Lat. autumnalis or auctumnalis, of the period of increase, of harvest ; auctus,
increased, augmented.) AUTUMNAL TREE Duck. Bill coral-red, with orange above, and
bluish nail; feet pinkish-white. A large white speculum, consisting of greater wing-coverts
and basal parts of most of the quills, as well as spurious quills and outer webs of one or two
primaries. Head and neck reddish-chocolate, paler on cheeks and chin, with black stripe
down nape and hind-neck, passing through more yellowish-brown on the fore-parts of the
body to blackish on lower back, rump, tail, belly, sides of body and lining of wings; flanks
and crissum mostly white. Length about 20.00; extent 36.00-38.00; wing 9.50-10.50;
tail 3.00; bill along gape 2.00; tarsus 2.25. S. and C. Am. and Mex. to Texas, abundant
from April to October on the Rio Grande, where called “cornfield duck ;” a common market-
bird in some places. Nest in hollows of trees, often at a great gistance from water, to which
the young are transported by the parents in the bill. Eggs 12-16, 2.10 X 1.50, of usual duck
shape, buffy-white.

. 67. Subfamily ANATINZ: River Ducks. :

Tarsi scutellate in front; hind toe simple (in Fuliguline, the hind toe with a flap or
lobe.) This expression separates the present group from all the North American examples
of the foregoing and succeeding subfamilies, although it is not a perfect diagnosis. The neck
und legs are shorter than they average in geese, while the feet are smaller than in the sea-

44

690’ sYsTEMA TIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

ducks, the toes and their webs not being so highly developed. None of the Anatine are
extensively maritime, like most of the Fuliguline ; yet they are by no means confined to
fresh waters, and some species constantly associate with the seaducks. They feed exten-
sively, like most geese, upon succulent aquatic herbage, but also upon various animal
substances ; their flesh is almost without exception excellent. They do not dive for their
food. The moult is double; the sexes are almost invariably markedly distinct in color;
the young resemble the
? ; the wing has usu-
ally a brilliant speculum,
which, like the other
wing-markings, is the
same in both sexes. Un-
like geese, these and oth-
er ducks are not doubly-
monogamous, but simply
so if not polygamous ;
the male pays no atten-
tion to the young. Ex-
cluding the shieldrake
group, already mentioned
as pertaining rather to
the geese than the ducks,
there are about fifty spe-
cies, generally distrib-

Fic. 478.— Mallards. (From Lewis.) uted over the world.
They are split into a large number of modern genera, most of which indicate little more than
specific characters; the majority are represented in this country.. Of those here following,
two, Spatula and Aix, represent decided structural peculiarity; the rest might all be referred
to Anas, type of the group. The Malacorhynchus membranaceus, of Australia, is a notable
exotic form.

Analysis of Genera,

Head crested ; bill narrow, the tip formed widely by thenail . . ........24.4- . Aix 290
Head not crested; bill greatly wider at end than at base ee we ee we we ee ee Spatula 289
Head not crested ; bill not spoon-shaped.

Tail cuneate, with narrow central feathers more than halfaslongas wing. ... .. . & Dafila 285

Tail not cuneate, not half as long as wing.
Bill shorter than head ; tail-feathers lance-acute; head not white; belly white yg. and 9 Dajila 285

Bill shorter than head ; tail-feathers not acute; crown and belly white . ‘ . . »Mareca 27
Bill about as long as head, or longer.
Wing-speculum white; wing-coverts chestnut; bill dark; feet orange . . . Chaulelasnus 286
Wing-speculum violet, black-bordered; bill greenish, or dusky and orange; feet orange Anas 284
Wing-speculum green; lesser coverts blue or not; billdark. Verysmall . . Querquedula 288

Oss. — The old males of all our species are unmistakable, having strong marks of color,
size, and form; but the females and young may not always be recognized at a glance. In
examining any “duck” of which you are in doubt, first notice the bill ; if it is narrow and
cylindrical, with sharp saw-like teeth, very conspicuous, the bird is one of the Mergansers,

r ‘Fishing Ducks,” scarcely fit for food. Next, examine the hind toe; if it has a flap or
lobe hanging free, the bird is one of the Fuliguline, which may or may not be good for the °
table; if the hind toe is simple and slender, it is one of the Anatine, and sure to make a
good dish, if in order. All the red- or orange-footed species are Anatine (excepting the
Mergansers); but not all the Anatine have the feet thns colored. In determining female
and young Anatine, look to the wing-markings rather than the body-colors. The species
of Querquedula are very small ‘‘teal” ducks, 16 inches or less in length.

284,

107.

708.

ANATIDZE— ANATINZE: RIVER DUCKS. 691

A'NAS. (Lat. anas, a duck.) Common Ducks. MaLuarp anp Buack Ducks. Bill
not shorter than head, rather longer than tarsus, broad and about parallel-sided, higher than
wide at base, then much dépressed and flattened, the end rounded, the nail narrow, less than
one-third as wide as the end of the bill. Nostrils high up, in basal half of bill. Feathers
reaching to about the same distance on forehead, cheeks, and chin. ‘Tail rounded, less than
half as long as wing, of 16-18 pointéd feathers. Bill greenish, or blackish blotched with
orange. Feet bright-colored. Speculuin violet, etc., framed in black and white (in both
sexes). Sexes unlike (boscas) or alike (obscura).
Analysis of Species.
do Head and neck green, neck with white ring, breast purplish-chestnut, etc. 9 are with dusky

and yellowish-brown Be. re oe es ar gag : ‘ . « boseas TOT

od @ entirely dusky, variegated with yellowish-brown ; lining of wings white . x % . obscura 708, T09
A. bos/eas. (Gr. Bookds, boskas; Lat. boscas or boscis, probably this very species. Fig. 478.)
MALLARD. WILD oR Domestic Duck. GREEN-HEAD. Adult g: Bill greenish-yellow. Feet
orange-red. Iris brown. Head and upper neck glossy-green, succeeded by a white ring. Breast

_purplish-chestnut. Lower back, rump, and tail-coverts glossy-black. Tail-feathers mostly

whitish.' Under parts from the breast, and scapulars, silvery-gray, finely undulated with
dusky; crissum black. Speculum violet, purplish and greenish, framed in black and white
tips of the greater coverts, and black terminal border. 9, adult: Feet and wings asin the g,
Bill blackish, blotched with orange, especially at base, tip and along edges. Entire body-
colors with dusky-brown and tawny-brown; the tone paler and in finer pattern on the head,
neck, and under parts than on the back. Length 22.00-24.00; extent 32.00-36.00; wing
10.00-11.00; tail 3.00-4.00; bill about 2.00; tarsus rather less; middle toe and claw more.
Tn the drake, a tuft of curly feathers on tail. Weight 2 or 3 pounds. Habitat nearly cos-
mopolitan; nearly everywhere domesticated, being the well-known original of the barn-yard
duck. Wild in abundance throughout N. Am., breeding sparingly in the U. S. as well
as farther north; rare in‘New England, and scarcely found beyond Massachusetts, being
replaced farther N. E. by the dusky duck. Nest on ground, of trash and feathers; eggs
usually 8-10, 2.25 X 1.60, smooth, dingy yellowish-drab.

Oxss. — An shoriaioan duck, with the general aspect of a mallard, but nearly as large as
a goose, is occasionally taken on the Atlantic coast; it is anttestionsbly part mallard, the
balance of its parentage supposed to be muscovy; Anas maxima Gosse; Fuligula viola Bell. —
A supposed hybrid of mallard x gadwall is Anas glocitans or A. brewert Aud.; A. audubont
Bp. The mallard is known to x with various other species. Upwards of 50 kinds of hybrid
ducks are recorded; some of them prove fertile. There is even a Clangula X Mergus.
A. obscura. (Lat. obscura, dark.) Dusky Duck. Buack Duck. Size of the mallard,
and resembling the ? of that species, but darker and without white anywhere except the
lining of the wings in g 9, and a narrow white line along proximal border of speculum
of g. Sexes alike. Bill yellowish-green, with dusky nail; feet orange-red, with dusky
webs. Iris brown. General plumage dusky-brown, paler below than above, variegated
with pale rusty-brown edgings of the feathers; top of head darker than sides and throat,
the former blackish with pale brown streaking in fine pattern, the latter grayish-brown with
dark streaking. Wing-coverts dusky-gray; the greater tipped with black, edging the
purplish-blue or violet speculum. The general blackish color, contrasting with white lining

"of wings, and the violet speculum framed in velvety-black, are diagnostic. Q boscas is much

lighter in tone, and more variegated with tawny-brown. Chiefly Eastern N. Am.; Western ?
Abundant along the Atlantic Coast, Texas to Labrador. One of the canniaed) ducks in
summer in New England and N. E.-ward. W. to Kansas, Iowa, etc., but not positively
known beyond. Nest on ground, of weeds, grass, and feathers; eggs 8-10, dirty pale yellowish-
drab, about 2.30 x 1.75. One of the best table ducks.

692 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

709. A. o. fulvi/gula. (Lat. fulvus, reddish; gula, throat.) FLorma Dusky Duck. Similar;
lighter-colored; throat plain pale brownish; bill olive, with black nail and base of commissure
A local race, resident in Florida.

285. DA/FILA. (A non-sense word.) Prin-rary Ducks. Tail (in adult $) narrow, cuneate,
when fully developed nearly as long as wing, the 2 central feathers long-exserted, linear-acute :
in 9 and young the tail merely
tapering, with acute feathers; tail-
feathers 16, including the long mid-
dle pair. Bill shorter than head,
longer than tarsus, nearly paralle>
sided, widening a little to the end,
the nai! small, the narrow nostrils
high up in basal third of bill.
Feathers of cheeks sweeping in
strongly convex outline along side
of upper mandible, beyond those
on side of lower mandible. Wing
acute, the lst and 2d primaries
subequal and longest, rest rapidly
graduated. Neck unusually long
and slender, and form less ‘‘stocky” than that of most ducks. Sexes and young very unlike
in color, even to the wing-markings, as well as in shape of tail. Bill and feet dark. Under
parts white or whitish. Speculum of ¢ framed in buff, white, and black.

710. D. acu'ta, (Lat. acuta, acute, as the tail is. Figs. 479, 480.) Prx-ram Duck. Spric-Tatu.
Adult @: Bill black,
with grayish - blue
edge of upper man-
dible; feet grayish-
blue ; claws black;
iris brown. Head and
neck above rich dark
brown, glossed with
green and purple ;
side of neck with a
long white stripe run-
ning up from the
white under parts ;
back of neck with a
black stripe passing
below into the gray
color of the back;
the lower fore-neck,
breast, and under
parts usually, white,
. the sides finely waved
with black, the crissum black, white-bordered. Fore back finely waved with narrow bars of
black and white or whitish; the seapulars and long tertiaries firmly striped lengthwise with
velvety-black and silvery-gray. Lesser wing-coverts plain gray ; greater tipped with reddish
buff, framing the speculum anteriorly ; this is of coppery- or purplish-violet iridescence, framed
posteriorly with black sub-tips and white tips of the secondaries, internally with silvery and

Fic, 479, — Head of Dayjila, 9, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. Cc.)

Fria. 480. — Pin-tail Duck, 9 g. (From Lewis.)

286.

711.

287,

ANATIDA| —ANATINZE: RIVER DUCKS. 693

black stripes. ’ Tail-feathers gray, the long central ones blackish ; sides and roots of tail varied
with blackish and buff. It is thus a very handsome duck in full plumage, aside from the trim,
and clipper-like build. Length very variable, up to’ 30 inches, according to development of
tail, which is sometimes 9 inches long, usually 5 or 6; extent 36.00; wing 11.00; bill 2.25; ,
tarsus 1.67; middle toe and claw 2.25. Adult 9: Smaller; lacking the development of the
tail; length 24 or less. Only traces of the speculum, in green specks in a brown area between
white or whitish tips of the secondaries and those of the greater coverts. Bill blackish; feet
dull grayish-blue ; iris brown. Whole head finely speckled, and whole neck finely streaked,
with dusky-brown and grayish-brown or yellowish-brown ; under parts pale ochrey-brown,
freckled with dusky; upper parts variegated with brownish-black and yellowish-brown, on the
fore parts the lighter color in angular or rounded bars on each feather. Young drake like the
duck. Though the resemblance is close to some other species, observe color of bill and feet, tips of
secondaries and greater coverts, and size and generic characters. Northern hemisphere; N. Am.
at large, wintering and migrating in U. 8. and beyond, breeding from northern borders northward ;
more numerous in the interior than along either coast. I have found it breeding abundantly
in parts of N. Dakota and Montana. Nest on ground; eggs 6-10-12, smooth, elongated
ellipsoidal, 2.10 to 2.30 long by about 1.52; uniform dull grayish-olive, without any buff tint.
CHAULELASMUS. (Gr. xatAuos, chaulios, protuberant; édacpos, elasmos, a layer, plate;
referring to the teeth of the bill.) Gapwatus. Bill about as long as head, rather exceeding
tarsus, the sides parallel to the rounded tip, the lamellz not concealed, the nostrils high up near
the base, the reéntrance between the feathers on culmen and those on side of bill short and
open, in advance of feathers on side of lower mandible. Wings pointed, lst primary longest.
Tail short, rounded or cuneate, with pointed feathers. @ with most of the plumage barred or
half-ringed with black and white, or whitish ; middle wing-coverts chestnut, greater coverts
black, speculum white ; Q with similar white speculum. Feet yellowish.

C. stre/perus. (Lat. streperus, noisy, ‘ obstreperous.’) GADWALL. GRay Duck. Adult g:
Bill blue-black; feet dull orange, with dusky webs and claws ; iris reddish-brown. Head and
neck brownish-white, darker on crown and nape, barred and specked with dusky. Lower neck,
breast, sides of body and fore-back waved with crescentic bars of blackish and white, the cres-
centic marks giving a scaly appearance most distinct on the neck and breast, elsewhere finer,
more undulatory and transverse. Lower back dusky, passing to black on the rump and tail-
coverts. Belly white, minutely marbled with gray. Scapulars tinged with rusty brown ; longest
toner quills hoary gray; lining of wings white; lesser upper coverts gray; middle coverts
chestnut-red; speculum white, formed by part or the whole of the outer webs of the second-
aries, framed in velvet black of the greater coverts, terminally bordered with black and hoary
gray. Length about 22 inches; extent 34.00; wing 10.50-11.00; tail 4.50; tarsus 1.60; bill
1.75; middle toe and claw 2.20. Adult 9: Smaller than g. Bill dusky, blotched with
orange. Feet dingy yellowish, with dusky webs and claws. Lacking the regular crescentic
and wavy markings of the 3; variegated with dusky and tawny brown, like 9 of other
species ; the chestnut of the g wanting or restricted ; but the wing-markings are sufficiently
distinctive. Young drake resembling the @. One of the most widely diffused of ducks, in
most parts of the world; in N. Am. nearly throughout, but not specially arctic in the breeding
season, nesting anywhere in the U. S. Nest on ground, sometimes in trees; eggs creamy-buff,
a trifle over 2.00 by about 1.50.

MARE'CA. (8. Am. mareca, Brazilian name of a kind of teal.) Wicron. Bill shorter
than head, rather high and narrow at base, parallel-sided, with rounded end, the nail occupy-
ing the middle third; the upper lateral reéntrance short and open; nostrils high up and near
base. Tail pointed, of 16 feathers, not half as long as wing. Bill and feet dark colored ;
belly and middle and greater wing-coverts white ; top of head white or light; speculum green,
black-bordered.

712,

713.

288.

694 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

Analysis of Species.
Head and neck cinnamon-red, scarcely varied ; with mere traces of green, if any; top of head creamy or

brownish-white. 26. 6 8 ew a Oe ee +. « penelope T12
Head and neck grayish, speckled with dusky, the sides of the head with a broad patch of green, the top
‘white or hhearly 606-35 S00 eS a ae ee ee em Oe ed americana 713

M. pene’lope. (Penelope, a rethelogiial name.) EvuROPEAN WIGEON. Size and general
character of the next species; differing as above. Europe; Greenland; rare or casual along
the whole Atlantic coast ; more numerous on the N. Pacific coast and S. to California.
M. america‘na, (Fig. 481.) American Wicnon. Baup-pare. Adult ¢: Bill grayish-blue,
with black tip and extreme base; feet similar, duller, with dusky webs and claws; iris brown.
Top of head white, or nearly so; sides the same, or more buffy, speckled with dusky-green,
purer green forming a
broad patch from and
below eye to hind
head; chin dusky.
Fore neck and breast
light brownish - red,
or very pale purplish-
cinnamon, each feath-
er with paler grayish
edge; along the sides
of the body the same,
finely waved with
dusky ; the breast and
belly pure white, the
m, crissum abruptly
> black. Lower hind
neck and fore back
and scapulars finely
waved with the same
Fre. 481.— American Wigeon. (From Lewis.) reddish color and with
dusky; lower back and ramp similarly waved with dusky and whitish. Lesser wing-coverts
plain gray; middle and greater coverts pure white, forming a large area, the greater black-
tipped, forming the fore border of the speculum, which is glossy green, bordered behind by
velvety black, internally by the black and white stripes on the inner secondaries. Tail brown-
ish-gray, the lateral upper coverts black ; axillary feathers white. Only old drakes have the
crown immaculate white, the chin dusky, the auricular patch definitely green ; generally the
whole head and upper neck are pale brownish-yellow or reddish-white, speckled with greenish-
dusky. Q resembling the immature ¢ on the head; the peculiar brownish-red is interrupted
with dusky and whitish bars. The wing-pattern is nearly as in the ¢; but the white is re-
stricted or interrupted with gray, the greater coverts may lack black tips, the speculum is faint,
and the black stripes of the inner secondaries are replaced by brown. The normal variability
in coloration, aside from age or sex, is great, but the bird cannot be mistaken under any
conditions ; the extensive white of the under parts and wings is recognizable at gun-shot
range. Length 18.00-21.00; extent 30.00-35.00; wing 10.00-11.00; tail 4.00-4.50; Dill
1.60; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw more. N. Am. at large, breeding anywhere ; Europe,
casually. Eggs 8-12, 2.00 x 1.50, dull pale buff.
QUERQUE'DULA. (Lat. querquedula, a small kind of duck; related to English quack.)
TraL Ducks. Bill nearly or quite as long as the head, longer than tarsus, narrow and par-
allel-sided, the nail narrow, } to } of the tip. Size smallest among our ducks. Sexes more of
less unlike. Speculum glossy-green. Bill blackish. The genus contains two sections, perhaps
as worthy of distinction as some of the foregoing genera.

'

ANATIDH -—- ANATINZ’: RIVER DUCKS. 695

Analysis of Subgenera and Species.

NeEtrium. Head sub-crested. Bill very narrow; nail about } its tip. Reéntrance of feathers on sides of
culmen in advance of base of bill below. Head and neck chestnut, with a broad glossy green band on
each side behind eye, bordered with whitish, blackening where meeting on nape. Under parts white,
with circular black spots; crissum black, varied with white or creamy; upper parts and sides of body
closely waved with black and white. Speculum rich green bordered in front with buff tips of the cov-
erts, behind with white tips of the secondaries; no blue on wing; feet dark; bill black. 9 differing
especially in the head markings, those of wings similar.

No white on side of body in front of wing; long scapulars black externally, creamy white inter-
nally . 8 : oe . G erecca 714

A white crescent on side of body before wing ; seaciulecre plain oh We os carolinensis 715
QUERQUEDULA proper. Head close-feathered. Bill broader than in Nate, the nail about 4 its tip.
Reéntrance on sides of culmen not in advance of base of bill below. .Wing-coverts in ¢ ? sky blue,
the greater white-tipped; scapulars of ¢ striped with blue and buff.

d Head and neck blackish-plumbeous ; a large white crescent in front of eye . oe discors 716
d¢ general color purplish-chestnut ; no white on head . 6 ES : +. . cCyanoptera T1T
74, Q(N.) crec’ca, (Lat. crecca, formed like crea, crake, quack, ete., to express the sound.) Euro-
PEAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL. Like the next to be described: No white crescent before wing ;
green band in chestnut of side of head bordered with decided whitish ; barring of sides and upper
parts broader and coarser; long scapulars as well as inner secondaries creamy white, black-

bordered externally. Europe; Greenland; casually on N. Am. Atlantic coast.
715. Q. (N.) carolinen/sis. (Fig. 482.) AMERICAN GREEN-WINGED TEAL. Adult @: Bill black;
-feet bluish-gray ; iris brown. A white crescent in front of wing. Head and upper neck rich
\ chestnut, blackening
on chin, with a glossy
green patch behind
each eye blackening
on its lower border
and on the nape
where it meets its
fellow among the
lengthened feathers
of the parts, bordered
below by a more or
Lyra, ao _ less evident whitish
a) Ly TA ; line, which may often
set i) ee a Yi be traced to the angle
of the mouth. Up-
per parts and flanks
waved with narrow
: 4 ¥ black bars on a whit-
Fig. 482. — AmericanGreen-winged Teal. (From Lewis.) ish ground. Under
parts white, becoming buff or fawn-colored on breast, nebulated with gray, on the breast
with numerous sharp circular black spots; fore neck and sides of breast waved like the upper
. parts. Crissum black, with a buff or creamy patch on each side. Primaries and wing-coverts
leaden gray; speculum velvety purplish-black on outer half, the inner half rich green ; bor-
dered in front with chestnut, fawn or whitish tips of the greater coverts, behind by white tips
of the secondaries, interiorly with purplish-black stripes on the outer webs of the lengthened
secondaries. Adult Q: Nearly like g on the wings, the green speculum less perfect; no
crest ; head and neck streaked with light reddish-brown on a dark brown ground; upper parts
mottled with dark brown, barred and streaked with tawny or grayish ; lower parts white, more
or less buffy-tinged on lower fore neck and breast, which have nebulous dusky spotting. A
very small species, one of the most prettily colored of all, of unsurpassed excellence of flesh :

696 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

length about 14.00; extent 23.00 ; wing 7.00-7.50 ; tail 3.00; bill 1.50; tarsus 1.20. N. Am.
at large, extremely abundant; casual in Europe. Breeds from the N. borders of the U.S. It
is one of the earliest arrivals among the hordes of water-fowl that come thronging from the
north in fall. Nest on the ground, of weeds, grass, and feathers: eggs about 8, 1.75 to 1.90
by 1.20 to 1.30, pale dull greenish in color.

716, Q. dis’cors. (Lat. discors, discordant.) BLuE-winceD TEAL. Adult g: Bill grayish-
black ; feet dingy yellow, with dusky webs and claws; iris brown. Head deep leaden-gray,
with purplish gloss, blackening on top; a large white black-edged crescent in front of eye.
Under parts purplish-gray, with innumerable black spots, rounded or oval on the breast,
changing to bars on the flanks, becoming nebulous on the belly. Crissum black, a patch on
each side of rump, the axillars and most of the lining of the wings, white. Lower hind neck
and fore back varied with brownish-black and yellowish;brown; lower back and rump dark
brown with a greenish tinge. Wing-coverts and outer webs of some of the scapulars sky-blue ;
speculum rich green, set between white tips of the greater coverts and secondaries, some of
the inner secondaries and longest scapulars velvety greenish-black on outer web, greenish-
brown on inner web, striped lengthwise with reddish-buff. 9 retaining the sky-blue on
the wing-coverts and much of the other wing-markings, hence easily distinguished among our
ducks, excepting 9 cyanoptera. Bill greenish-dusky; feet very pale or flesh-tinted. Head
and neck streaked with brownish-black on a dull buff ground, the cheeks and chin whitish,
unmarked. Above, dark brown, with pale edges of the feathers; below, whitish-gray,
mottled with obscure spots. Length 15.00-16.00; extent 26.00-30.00; wing 7.00-7.50;
tail 3.50; bill 1.50; tarsus 1.20. N. Anm., chiefly E. of the R. Mts., to the Pacitic in Alaska;
goes to high latitudes, but also breeds indefinitely throughout its range; abundant in the
U. S. in winter and during the migrations.

717. Q. cyano’ptera. (Gr. xvavds, kuanos, blue; mrépov, pteron, wing.) Cinnamon TEAL. Adult.
&: Bill black; feet orange, joints and webs dusky; iris orange. Head, neck, and entire
under parts rich purplish-chestnut, darkening on crown and chin, blackening on middle of
belly; crissum dark brown. Fore back lighter cinnamon, varied with brown curved bars,
several on each feather; lower back and rump greenish-brown, the feathers edged with paler.
Wing-coverts sky-blue, as in discors; some of the scapulars blue on outer webs and with a
central buff stripe, others dark green, with buff stripe. Speculum green, set between white
tips of greater coverts and white ends of the secondaries. Wings thus quite as in discors, but

x the body-colors and head entirely different ; rather larger; length 16.00-17.00; extent 25.00;
wing 7.50-8.00; bill 1.60-1.75, along commissure about 2.00. Adult 9: Similar to ? discors,
and not easy to distinguish; larger; bill longer; under parts at least with a tinge of the pecu-
liar chestuut color; head and especially chin more speckled, without the immaculate whitish
of those parts of 2 discors. Bill dusky, paler below and along edges; iris brown; feet yel-
lowish-drab. A generally distributed S. Am. teal, now abundant in U. 8. west of the R.
Mts., and of casual occurrence in the Gulf States. Nest on ground, of grass and feathers,
anywhere in its U.S. range; Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Idaho, Oregon, ete. Eggs
9-12, laid in June, oval, one end smaller than other, creamy white or pale buff; 1.90 X 1.30
to 2.10 x 1.40.

289, SPATULA. (Lat. spatula or spathula, a spoon, spathe, spatula: shape of the: bill.)
Spoon-BILL Ducks. Bill much longer than head or tarsus, twice as wide at end as at base,
broadly rounded spoon-fashion at end; the nail narrow and prominent, the lamine very numer-
ous and protrusive. Tail short, pointed, of fourteen acute feathers. Feet small, red. The
peculiarity of the bill characterizes this genus almost as strongly as Platalea among ibises,
or Eurynorhynchus among sandpipers; the form is otherwise that of ordinary Anatine.
There are several species, one N. American.

, ‘718. 8. clypea'ta. (Lat. clypewm, a shield: shape of the bill. Fig. 483.) SHOVELLER Duck.

ANATIDZA’— ANATINZ:: RIVER DUCKS. 697

Broap-siLu. Adult ¢: Bill blackish ; iris orange-red: feet vermilion-red. Head and neck dark
glossy green. Lower neck and fore breast pure white. Abdomen purplish-chestnut. Wing-
coverts sky-blue ; speculum rich green, set between white tips of greater coverts, and black sub-
tips and white tips of secondaries ; inner secondaries greenish-black, with long white stripe ;
long scapulars blue on outer webs, striped with white and greenish-black on inner; short
anterior scapulars white. Rump and upper and under tail-coverts black ; a white patch on
each side at root of tail. Adult 9: Bill dull greenish; iris yellow; feet orange. Wing-
markings similar to those of @, though imperfect; traces of chestnut on belly. Head and
neck brownish-yellow, speckled with dusky. In any plumage the species is of course at once
recognized by the peculiar bill. Length 17.00-21.00; extent 30.00-33.00 ; wing 9.50; tail
3.00; bill about 2.70; along commissure 3.00; tarsus 1.33. Europe, Asia, etc.; in N. Am.
at large, breeding throughout, and wintering in abundance from the middle districts to C. Am.

Fie. 483. — Shoveller Duck, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

Eggs about 8, averaging 2.10 x 1.50, smooth, elliptical, in color dull pale greenish-gray,.
sometimes faintly bluish. In full dress, which is comparatively infrequent, since it character-
izes only the breeding season, this is a very smart and jaunty drake, tricked out in parti-color ;
the great majority of specimens, however, are found in a plumage more like that of the duck.
The bird is among the best of the ducks for the table.

AIX. (Gr. alé or a, aix or atx; application not obvious.) BripaL Ducks. Head crested.
Bill shorter than head, no longer than tarsus, very high at base, the reéntrances at sides of
culmen much prolonged towards the forehead. Nostrils large, oval, set little in advance of the
feathers on culmen. Terminal nail occupying the whole end of the bill, and much curved
downward. Lamelle small, few, and distant. Tarsus incompletely scutellate in front, much
shorter than middle toe. Claws compressed, curved, and acute, that of the middle toe dilated
on inner edge. Tail half as long as wings, rounded, of sixteen rounded feathers, and very

*19.

698 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

long coverts. A peculiar as well as most beautiful genus; the Chinese Mandarin Duck, .A.
galericulata, is still more remarkably, though not more elegantly, colored than ours. is

A. spon/sa. (Lat. sponsa, betrothed: i. e., as if in wedding dress. Fig. 484.) Woop Duck.
Summer Duck. ‘Tue Brive.” Adult ¢: Bill pinkish-white, with lake-red base, black
ridge, tip, and under mandible ; iris and edges of eyelids red; feet orange, with black claws.
Upper part of the head, including crest, glistening green and purple ; a narrow white line over
eye from bill to occiput, and another behind eye to nape, these white lines mixing in the crest.
A broad white patch on the throat, forking behind, one branch mounting head behind eye, the
other passing to side of neck. Sides and front of lower neck and fore breast rich purplish-chest-
nut, prettily marked with several chains of angular white spots. A large white black-edged
crescent of enlarged feathers in front of the wing. Under parts pure white, the sides yellow-
ish-gray vermiculated with black and white wavy bars; the enlarged flank-feathers broadly
rayed with black and white; the lining of the
wings white barred with grayish-brown, of
which color is the crissum. Upper parts gen-
erally lustrous with bronzy-green and purple ;
seapulars and inner secondaries velvet-black,
glossed with purple and green ; a green spec-
ulum, succeeded by white tips of the seconda-
ries; primaries frosted on outer webs near end.
Adult @: Little or no crest, but lengthened
feathers on nape; no enlargement or special
colorings of feathers about the wings. Bill
dusky: feet yellowish-dusky. Head and neck
gray, darker on crown, the chin and parts
about bill and eyes white. Fore neck, breast
and sides of body yellowish-brown, mottled
with dark gray, the breast spotted with brown,
the belly white. Upper parts dark brown Fic. 484.—Wood Duck. (From Tenney, after Audubon.)
with considerable gloss; wings much as in the male, but the velvety-black reduced. Length
18.00-20.00 ; extent about 28.00; wing 9.00; tail 4.50; bill 1.40; tarsus the same; middle
toe and claw 2.00. N. Am. at large, but especially U. S., breeding throughout its range,
wintering chiefly in the South. This exquisite bird is commonly dispersed in wooded portions
of the country near water; it nestles usually in the hollows of trees, whence the young are
transported in the bill of the parent. Eggs about a dozen, very variable in number, of pale
drab color and the usual smooth shell and elliptical shape, about 2.00 x 1.50. |

68. Subfamily FULIGULINA:: Sea Ducks.

Tarsi scutellate in front ; hind toe
lobate. The large membranous flap
depending from the hind toe dis-
tinguishes this group from the pre-
ceding, probably without exception.
While the general form is the same
as that of the Anatine, the feet
are notably larger, with relatively
shorter tarsi, longer toes (the outer
scarcely or not shorter than the mid-

if = cae ee ; they are
Fre. 485. —Canvas-back, (From Fie. 486. — Red-head. (From dle), and broader webs ; y k
Lewis.) \ Lewis.) also placed somewhat further back,

ANATIDE — FULIG ULINA:: SEA DUCKS. 699

3

in consequence of which the gait is still more awkward and constrained than the ‘‘ waddle” of
ordinary ducks; but swimming powers are enhanced, and diving is facilitated. A large
number of the species are exclusively maritime, but this is no more the case with all of them,
than is the reverse with the river ducks. These birds feed more upon mollusks and other
animal snbstances (not, however, upon fish, like the mergansers) than the river ducks do, and
their flesh, as a rule, is coarser, if not entirely too rank to be eaten; there are, however, signal
exceptions to this, as in the case of the canvas-back. The sexes are unlike, as among the
Anatine ; and besides the difference in color, the 9 is often distinguished by the absence or
slight development of certain tuberosities of the bill that the $ of several species, as of scoters
and eiders, possesses. A large majority of the species inhabit the Northern Hemisphere; there
are some forty in all, exhibiting « good deal of diversity in minor details, really requiring
recognition of many genera. Among notable exotics, we have the soft-billed Hymenolemus
malacorhynchus of New Zealand, and the short-winged Micropterus cinereus of South America,
both related to our genus Camptolemus ; there are but few others. The genus Hrismatura is
the type of a small group remarkable for the character of the tail, as described beyond, and
sometimes considered as a subfainily apart. Biziwra lobata of Australia, with a fleshy appen-
dage under the bill, the African Thalassornis leuconota, the Nesonetta aucklandica, and several
species of Hrismatura and Nomonyx, compose this group.

Analysis of Genera and Subgenera.

Tail-feathers rigid, narrow, linear, exposed to their bases by shortness of coverts.
Nail of bill ordinary . i rai
Nail of bill narrow above, overhanging and waaened beneath Hib of bill : . . . Erismatura 298
Tail-feathers and their coverts ordinary (central pair very long, however, in Harelda ¢).
Bill variously gibbous, or appendaged, or feathered beyond nostrils.
Bill gibbous at base, then broad, depressed, with large fused nail, without frontal processes.
Gibbosity of bill superior, circumscribed; feathers not projected on culmen.
Tail 16-feathered. : Color entirely black (DEMIA) :
Gibbosity of bill superior, circumscribed ; feathers projected on culmen: “rail 14
feathered. dg: Color black or dark, with white wing-patch (MELANETTA)
Gibbosity lateral as well as superior; feathers projected on culmen.
Tail 14-feathered. g: Color black, with white head-patches (PELIONETTA)
Bill gibbous at base, with large frontal processes.
Frontal processes in line with culmen (SOMATERIA proper) . . . Pa
Frontal processes bulging out of line with culmen (ERIONETTA) - eae
Bill not gibbous, but feathered on culmen beyond nostrils(ARCTONETTA) . .
Bill not gibbous, but appendaged with leathery expansion of side of upper mandible,
cheeks not bristly (HENICONETTA)

Gdemia 297

Somateria 296

Bill not gibbous, but appendaged with a lobe at base of commissure. . . ¢ | Histrionicus 295
Bill not gibbous, but pcaitaigds with a leathery expansion of side of nigioe mandible; cheeks
bristly . . ... . e 9 P ‘ fem . Camptolemus 294
Bill ordinary.
Nail of bill large, fused. Tail (of ¢') about as long as wing be ass Be he . . . . Harelda 293

Nail of bill narrow, distinct. Tail of ordinary length and shape. ‘
Bill shorter than head, high at base. Head of ¢ puffy or crested, iridescent, with
white patches; crissum white; colors black and white, in masses . - +. clang ula 292
do, white spot before eye (CLANGULA proper) pons Aes
¢; white patch behind eye (BUCEPHALA) go 4 oa
Bill about as long as head. Head of # black, red, or peowis without spots; cris-
sum dark . ae Se, a et i
Bill dusky. Head of # dusky reddish ‘(AmIsronErTA) . a . . . + 2? Fuliguia 291
Bill bluish or blackish. Head of f black or red. (FULIX) Geass Carrey On,
Bill red. Head red, crested (European). (FULIGULA proper). .....

Note. — See further analyses of the subgenera (some of which are of generic value) under heads of Gdemia,

Somateria, and Fuligula.
291, FULIGULA. (Lat. fuligula or fulicula, dim. of fulix or fulica, a coot; fuligo, soot.)
BLACK-HEAD and ReD-HEAD Ducks. Scavups and Pocuarps. Bill ordinary, without
special gibbosity or peculiar outline of feathers at base, only in one species (F. vallisneria)

700 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

not shorter than head and rising high on forehead ; nail at end distinct, decurved, narrow,
less than one-third as wide as end of bill; frontal feathers extending to approximately equal
distances on top and sides of upper mandible, with a well-marked reéntrance between them
reaching back'to about opposite angle of the mouth, those of chin advancing rather farther.
Nostrils in basal two-fifths of bill (nearly median in F. vallisneria). Outline of upper man-
dible gently concave to the decurved nail; sides nearly parallel, or widening toward end (whole
bill much as in ordinary Anatine). Tail short, rounded, less than half as long as wing,
14-16-feathered. Tarsus less than $ (4-2) as long as middle toe and claw. Head not crested
or notably puffy (in our species). Head and neck black, brown or chestnut (not green with
great white patches). Sides and back finely waved with black and white. Lining of wings
white. Crissum black. Bill blackish, or black and blue. Legs dark. Speculum white or
gray. (Comprising several species of ‘‘black-head” and ‘‘red-head,” ducks, including the
“ eanvas-back ”; characters drawn up on consideration of these species; requiring modifica-
tion, especially as-to color, to include the European F’. rufina, by some considered type of
the genus. Equivalent to Fulix, Aythya and Aristonetta of Baird, 1858, and apparently sepa-
rable into three full genera — one for the crested pochards of Europe ; one for the black-heads
and red-heads together; and one for the canvas-back alone. The type of F'uligula is said by
Sundevall to be F’. cristata ; in which case Callichen is available for rufina.)

Analysis of Species.
Conspicuously crested; bill and feet red (Fuligula) . Hints “eo lay cy Me
Not crested; biJl and feet dark. -
Bill not longer than head, with concave line of culmen, not notably high on forehead; chord of
culmen under 2 inches. Nostrils fairly in basal half of bill. (Fulix.)
Black-heads: gf with head, neck, body anteriorly, lower back, rump, tail and its coverts, black,
the head glossy; below, including lining of wings, white, with fine black waving on sides and
lower belly; bill black and blue, or dusky ; feet dark. 9 with head and neck brown, with or
without white around bill, and other black parts of gf rather brown. (Fulix proper.)
No ring around neck.
¢ Speculum white; back and sides finely waved in zig-zag with black and whitish ; bill
blue, with black nail. Q with the face white.
Length about 20.00; wing 9.00; gloss of head green x s marila 720
Length about 16.00; wing 8.00; gloss of head purple . ae ite afinis 721
An orange-brown ring round neck of ¢.
Speculum gray; back nearly uniform blackish ; bill black, pale at base and near end;
@ without collar; lores and chin whitish, and ring roundeye. . . Ae collaris 722
Red-heads: g with head and neck chestnut, in ? plain brown; body anteriorly, rump, tail, and
its coverts, black, in 9 brown; back, scapulars, and sides finely waved with black and white or
ashy-white in equal amounts; speculum gray. Bill blue with black belt at end. Back dis-
tinctly vermiculated with black on an ashy-white ground (dthyia). . . . . » americana 723
Bill longer than head, with scarcely concave culmen rising high on forehead ; chord of culmen over 2
inches. Nostrils reaching middle of bill. :
Canvas-back: g head dark chestnut-brown, much obscured with dusky on top and about bill.
Silvery-whitish of back prevailing over the black waved lines, which arenarrow and much
broken into chains of dots (Aristonetia) . . . 6 1 6 ew te ew ee vallisneria 724

» 2 . . Tufina 886

FULIGULA.

386. (addenda.) FF. rufiina. (Lat. rufina, reddish.) Rep-cRESTED PocHarp. Adult ¢:

Conspicuously crested. Bill vermilion, white-tipped; feet orange-red; eyes brown. Head
and upper neck rusty-red, with a rosy tint. Lower- and hind-neck, fore-back, breast, and
middle of belly black. Back grayish-brown, with a large white patch on each side, blacken-
ing on rump and upper tail-coverts. Tail ashy-gray. Primaries whitish, edged and tipped
with dusky-gray; speculum and sides of belly white. 9: Bill dusky with pink tip, and feet
pinkish, with dusky webs. Upper parts generally rufous-brown, under parts brownish-
white, the throat and upper fore-neck whitish; crown and rump darker than other upper
parts, the dorsal feathers with pale edges; quills brown, edged and tipped with darker, the

720.

ANATIDA) — FULIGULINE: SEA DUCKS. TOL

speculum gray, bounded terminally with brown. Europe, ete. One found in Fulton Market,
New York, Feb. 1872. (See Check List, 2d ed., 1882, p. 136.)

Fux.

F. mari‘la. (Qu. proper name? Qu. Gr. papidy, marile, charcoal, from the pitch-black
fore-parts?) GREATER Scaup Duck. Bic Buack-HeAp. Buve-Biw. Rarr Ducx.
Fuocking Fown. S#urrver. Adult g: No ring around neck. Speculum white. Bill
dull blue, with black hooked nail, broad and flat at end, where considerably wider than at
base. Iris yellow. Feet livid blackish, or dark plumbeous, with darker webs. Whole head,
neck, and fore-parts of body pitch-black, on the head with chiefly green iridescence. Lower
back, rump, tail, with both upper and under coverts, black or blackish. Middle of back,

- scapulars, and most of under parts, white, the interscapulars, scapulars, sides of body, flanks,

and lower belly waved with fine zig-zag cruss-lines of black, quite in ‘‘canvas-back” style.
Wing-coverts similar to back, but darker gray and more obscarely marked; the greater
coverts tipped with black, forming the anterior border of the white speculum, which is formed
by the secondaries, the white extending quite across them, their tips black. Primaries
brownish-black, becoming gray inwardly. Axillars and most of under wing-coverts white.
9: Bill, eyes and feet as before. The black parts of the ¢ replaced by dusky or dark brown,

_ which latter is the color of the head. A broad belt of pure white around base of upper

21.

7122,

mandible, forming a conspicuous white ‘“‘face.” The black-and-white vermiculation less
distinctly developed. Length of g 9 18.00-20.00; extent 30.00-35.00, usually over 30.00;
wing 8.50-9.00 ; tail 3.00; bill 2.00; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw 2.60. Europe, Asia,
etc., and N. Am. at large; on the whole more northerly than F. affinis, not proceeding so
far south in winter, though breeding no farther north — from N. borders of U. S., northward.
The more frequent U. 8. scaup in winter is F’. affinis. Nest on ground, down-lined; eggs
drab-colored, 2.45 X 1.72.

F. affiinis. (Lat. affinis,ad and finis, allied, affined.) Lesser Scaup Ducx. LitTie
BLACK-HEAD (with other names of the foregoing). Extremely similar to the last; gloss of
head chiefly purple, sides and flanks less closely waved with black? Smaller: length 15.50-
17.00; extent under 30.00; wing 8.00 or less; tail 2.50; bill 1.75; tarsus 1.50; middle toe
and claw 2.30. It is difficult to define this bird specifically, but it appears to preserve its
characters, though constantly associated with the last. N. Am. at large; breeds from the
N. borders of the U. S. northward; winters in and migrates through the U. S. to C. Am.
and W. I.

F. colla’ris. (Lat. collaris, pertaining to collwm, the neck: collared.) Rrye-NECK DUucK.
Adult ¢: A chestnut or orange-brown ring round neck. Speculum gray (not white). Bill
black, the base and edges, and a belt near end of upper mandible, pale bluish. Iris yellow.
Feet grayish-blue, with dusky webs. Head and neck above the collar lustrous black, with
green, violet, and purple iridescence, the extreme chin white. Lower neck, fore-breast,
upper parts generally, blackish, the scapulars scarcely waved or only dotted with grayish.
Crissum black; under parts generally, including lining of wings, white, the lower belly and
sides finely waved with black. Wings plain dark brown, with an ashy-gray speculum
formed by outer webs of some of the secondaries. Tail of 16 feathers. Adult 9: No collar;
head umber-brown darker on top, with whitish cheeks and chin, and white eye-ring ; other
black parts of g dark brownish; under parts less extensively and less purely white; wing
and its speculum as before. Length 16.00-18.00; extent 30.00 or less; wing abont 8.00; tail
2.75 ; tarsus 1.25 ; bill 1.75, not so much widened at end as that of the scaups. N. Am. at
large ; breeds from N. border of U.S. to far north, winters in and migrates through U. 8.

to C. Am. and W. I. Nest on ground, of grass and moss; eggs about 9, pale greenish.
2.25 X 1.60. 2

702 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

F. ferina america/na. (Lat. ferina, feral, wild. Figs. 486, 487, 488.) ReD-HEAp.
AMERICAN PocHarp. Adult g: The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy, though
forming no crest. Bill broad and flattened,
a little widened toward end, running into
the forehead which arches abruptly over
and away from it, not rising gradually into
line with forehead; shorter or not longer
thau head, 2 inches or less in length along
culmen, the nostrils within its basal half;
the forward end of nostril about 2 the way
frum upper corner to end of bill. Bill dull
blue with a black belt at the end. (Compare head and bill of
canvas-back.) Iris orange. Feet dull grayish-blue, with dusky
webs and black claws. Head and neck all around rich pure
chestnut, not obscured with dusky-brown, but with bronzy or
coppery red reflections. Lower neck and fore parts of body
above and below, with rump and tail-coverts above and below,
blackish. Back mixed whitish and blackish in about equal
amounts, the dark wavy lines distinct and unbroken. (In the
European pochard, F#. ferina, from which our bird differs, the
back is also distinetly and completely waved with black, but the
ground is quite white, as in our canvas-back, in which the dark
lines are much broken up, the white thus prevailing. This fine
vermiculation, when not too closely examined, gives a delicate
silvery-gray tone, of different shade in the different species.) :
Sides of body under the wings vermiculated much like the back, Fre, 487. — Red-head, } nat. size.
the undulations subsiding in the grayish-white of the middle (from nature by J. L. Ridgway.)
under parts. Wing-coverts ashy-gray, minutely dotted with white; speculum hoary-ash,
bordered internally

= with black; lining of

iS wings mostly white.

9: Bill obscured blu-
ish, with black belt
near end; iris yellow;
feet asin g. Same
shape of bill and
head. Head and up-
per neck dull reddish-
brown, paler or whit-
i * Z tA ish on cheeks and
WEN behind eye; upper

Gy : ie parts brownish, the
is LA Es feathers paler edged.
Wings much as in
&, the white lining
restricted. Length
20.00-23.00; extent
about 33.00; wing
Fic. 488. —Red-heads. (From Lewis.) 9.00-10.00; tail 3.00,

of 14 feathers; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw 2.75. N. Am. at large, but particularly

ANATIDA — FULIGULINZ: SEA DUCKS. 703

\

E. of the Mississippi and along Atlantic Coast; breeds in high latitudes, winters in U. S.
One of the commonest market-ducks in eastern cities in winter, selling readily for canvas-
back, and more likely to be distinguished
therefrom with the feathers on than off!
Nest on ground, or among reeds over water
like a coot’s, down-lined. Eggs 7-8, buff,
2.25 X 1.70.
ARISTONETTA.

724. F. vallisne‘ria. (Name of a genus of
aquatic plants, the wild celery, V. spiralis, dedicated to
Antonio Vallisneri, an Italian naturalist. Figs. 485, 489, 490.)
Canvas-Back. Adult ¢: The head close-feathered. Bill
high at the base and narrow throughout or scarcely widened
toward end, sloping gradually up to the top of the head in line
with the sweep of the forehead, altogether somewhat like a
goose’s in shape; decidedly longer than head, 24 inches to
nearly or quite 3 in length, measured along the culmen; the
nostrils reaching the middle of the bill, their fore end half-way
from upper corner to end of bill. Bill not blue, black-belted,
but blackish throughout. Eyes red. Feet grayish-blue.
Head and upper neck not coppery brownish-red, but dark
reddish-brown, further much obscured with dusky or quite
blackish about the bill and on top. Ground color of back
white, very finely vermieulated with zigzag blackish bars
much narrower than the intervening spaces, and tending to
break up, or mostly broken up, into little chains of dots across
the feathers; the resulting silvery-gray tone consequently :
several shades lighter than in the red-head. Other characters ee sei Rg alae
substantially as in that species. differs as 9 red-head does; way.)
head dark snuffy-brown, etc., but the bill is colored as in the g, and sufficiently preserves its

peculiar shape; eyes

reddish-brown. Size

of the red-head, or a

little larger; tarsus

1.75; bill longer, as

above ; culmen much

over 2 inches; gape
about 2.67; line from
upper corner to tip

nearly or quite 3.00,

of which distance the

nostrils reach half *

way. N. Am. at

large; breeds from
the northern tier of

States northward, in

the R. Mts. further

south, and in upper
° California; winters in
Fie. 490.— Canvas-back. (From Lewis.) the U. 8. and south-

= SS ==

292.

125.

726,

704 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

ward to Guatemala; abundant along the Atlantic coast, from the middle districts to Texas,
especially in the Chesapeake. When feeding on the wild celery the flesh acquires a peculiarly
fine flavor, which has gained for the bird great renown among gastronomers; but its flesh is of
no special excellence under other circumstances, in fact inferior to that of most River Ducks
(Anating). There is little reason for squealing in barbaric joy over this over-rated and gen-
erally under-done bird; not one person in ten thousand can tell it from any other duck on the
table, and then only under the celery circumstance just said.

CLAN’GULA. (Lat. clangula, dim. of clangor, a noise.) Wuistuurs. Garrots. Bill
much shorter than head, about as long as tarsus, very high at base, tapering to end with definite
nail, and acute upper corners; frontal and mental feathers little in advance of loral. Nostrils
median. Tail about half as long as wing, 16-feathered, pointed. Body plump; neck short;
feet far back. with the head puffy or slightly crested, dark-colored, iridescent, with great
white patches; lower neck all around, under parts including sides, and most of the wing-
coverts, scapulars, and secondaries, white; lining of wings dark; most of upper parts black ;
no waving on back or sides; crissum not black; bill dark; feet light or bright. Q with less
puffy dark brown or gray head, and traces or not of the white patches. Medium-sized and small
ducks, mostly black and white. They include two types of at least subgeneric value; one
(Clangula proper) represented by the garrots, the other (Bucephala) by the bufile-head.

Analysis of Species.

Nostrils rather before middle of bill. g head uniformly puffy, the gloss green; a round or oval white
spot before eye, not reaching upper corner of bill; white of wings continuous; lining of wings entirely
dark; eye yellow; feet orange. 9 head dark brown, unmarked. (Clangula) . .. . . - glaucium 125

Nostrils as before. gt head somewhat crested, the gloss purple and violet; an angular or crescentic white
space before eye, applied against whole base of bill; white of wings divided by a dari line; lining of
wings entirely dark; eye yellow; feet orange. 9 head dark brown, unmarked... . . . islandica 1726

Nostrils rather behind middle of bill. gf head extremely puffy, the gloss various. No white before eye,
but great white space on side of head behind, meeting its fellow on nape; white of wing continuous;
lining of wing with some white; eye brown; feet flesh-color; 9 head dark gray, with trace of the white
auricular patch. (Bucephala) . i 2 a are 3 : ae vag egsh <a Ne es albeola 727

C. glau/cium. (Gr. yAavkiov, glaukion; Lat. glaucium, a duck, perhaps this one.) GOLDEN-
EYE. WHISTLER. Garror. Bill with nostrils rather before than behind its middle line.
Head moderately uniformly puffy. Adult ¢: Gloss of head chiefly green. A large round or
oval spot before eye, not touching base of bill throughout; no white behind eye. Bill black,
or greenish-dusky. Iris golden-yellow. Feet orange, with dusky webs and black claws.
Lower neck, under parts at large, middle and greater wing-coverts, many secondaries, and
shorter scapulars in part, white, that of the wings perfectly continuous. Shorter scapulars in
part, long scapulars, inner and outer secondaries, edge of wing, primary coverts, primaries,
and back at large, black, the latter glossy. Lining of wings dusky, as are some feathers at
insertion of legs and on sides of rump. The white greater coverts have dark bases, not exten-
sive enough, however, to divide the white wing-surface. 9 : Bill, eyes, and feet as in f,
but former usually varied with yellowish at end. Head less puffy, snuffy-brown, without
white loral space. Black parts of ¢ inclining to brownish ; white of wings less extensive and
complete, often waved with gray tips of some of the coverts ; white of under parts often waved
with gray or brown on lower neck and along sides. Length 17.00-20.00; extent 27.00-
32.00; wing 8.00-9.00; tail 3.00-4.00; tarsus 1.30-1.50; middle toe and claw 2.50; bill
1.30 along culmen, about 2.00 along gape. 9 smaller than g. Europe, etc.; N. Am. at
large, a comrhon winter duck of the U. 8., breeding chiefly in high latitudes, but also in
U. 8. An expert diver. Meat bad—rank and fishy. Nest in trees.

C. islan/dica. (Of fsland or Iceland.) Barrow’s GoLpEN-EYE. Rocky Mountain
Garrot. Very similar to the last. Bill with nostrils as before. Head moderately puffy,
and with lengthening of coronal and occipital feathers into a slight crest. Gloss of head

127.

ANATIDE —FULIGULINE!: SEA DUCKS. 705

chiefly purple and violet. A large triangular or crescentic white spot before eye, running up
in a point, applied against the whole side of base of bill, White area on wing more or less
divided by a dark bar resulting from extension of the dark bases of the greater coverts.
Averaging larger than the last; length 19.00-22.50; extent 30.00 or more; wing 9.00-10.00 ;
tarsus 1.60; bill as before, thus relatively shorter. Europe, Iceland; Greenland; N. Ain.,
northerly; in winter S. to N. Y. and Utah; breeds in the R. Mts. of U. S. and in high lat-
itudes. Not common with us. Seems well distinguished from C. glauciwm, though the 9
is not easily discriminated. It may usually be recognized by the occipital crest, the division
of the white area on the wing, and the extensively parti-colored bill, which is blotched with
reddish. :

C: albe/ola. (Lat. albeola or albula, dim. of albus, white. Fig. 491.) BurriE-HEAb.
BUTTER-BALL. SPIRIT-DUCK. DipreR. Bill with nostrils rather behind than before its
middle line. Adult g: Head particularly puffy with much lengthened feathers of lateral and
hind parts, splendidly
various with purple-
violet and green irides-
cence; a large snowy
patch on each side be-
hind eye, blending on
nape with its fellow.
Bill dull bluish with
dusky nail and base.
Eyes brown. Feet
pale flesh-color, with
blackish claws. Up-
per parts at large
black, fading to gray-
ish-white posteriorly.
Lower neck all around,
under parts at large,
seapulars in part,
nearly all the wing-
coverts, and most of Fi. 491.— Buffie-head. (From Lewis.)

the secondaries, white. Outer scapulars white, edged with black; inner secondaries velvet-
black; sides and sometiines across lower belly shaded with dusky; lining of wings mixed
dusky and white. 9 much smaller than ¢; head scarcely puffy, but a thin compressed nuchal

elongation of the feathers; dusky gray, with trace at least of the white space of the g@, and

comthonly a white touch under eye. Bill dusky; feet livid bluish-gray, with dusky webs.
Above at large dusky-gray or blackish, with white speculum on outer webs only of five or six
secondaries; below white, shaded into dark along sides and across fore-breast and lower belly.
Thus a very small insignificant-looking duck, but easily recognized on that very score ; notice
flap of hind toe, livid feet, dark bill, white spot on dark head behind eye, ete. Length of 9
12.75-15.00; extent 22.00-25.00; wing 6.00-7.00; tarsus 1.10-1.24; middle toe and claw
2.00-2,25 ; bill 1.00, along gape 1.40. @ at or about the lesser of these dimensions. N. Am.
at large, and casual in Europe; U.'S. in winter, one of the most abundant ducks; breeds from
N. border of U.S. to high latitudes. The drake in full feather is one of the handsomest
ducks, dressed in broad black and white in artistic contrast, to say nothing of the brilliancy of
the head. Noted for its adroitness in diving to escape a shot, as smartly as a grebe, and on
that account known in some of our elegant vernacular as ‘“hell-diver.” The flesh is little
esteemed, so it is just as well there is so little of it. Nest feathery, in a tree; eggs up to 14,
45

293.

728.

294,

729.

706 SYSTEMA TIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

ellipsoidal, about 2.00 x 1.50, in tint buffy-drab (between grayish-olive and rich creamy-
white.)

HAREL'DA. (The Icelandic name.) Lone-ram Duck. Bill shorter than head, about as
long as tarsus, high at base, nearly parallel-sided to the rounded end oceupied by the broad
nail; the upper lateral angles of most ducks obsolete, the feathers sweeping obliquely down-
ward from those on culmen; those of chin reaching about opposite nostrils, which are placed
high up in basal half of bill; the commissure ascending near end, then decurved into the
prominent nail. Tail of 14 feathers, in ¢ as long as wing by excessive elongation of the
narrow middle feathers (more so than in Dafila of Anatine): @ scapulars also long lance-
linear, produced straight over the wing. Sexual and seasonal plumages unlike. Crissum
white; no white on wing nor any speculum; coloration chiefly black, white, and brown, with
reddish on back in summer.

H. glacia/lis. (Lat. glacialis, icy.) Lone-TarLED Duck. Sovru-soUTHERLY. OLp-
wirr. OLp-squaw. 4, in breeding dress: Bill black, broadly orange toward end; iris
cannine ; feet livid bluish, with dusky webs and black claws. Head on top and behind black-
ish, with a great patch of silvery-gray, whitening around and behind eye. Neck all around
and fore breast, very dark chocolate-brown, almost blackish; quills and lining of wings the
same}; under parts from the breast abruptly white. Upper parts at large, and long tail-
feathers, blackish, the long scapulars varied with bright reddish; the shorter tail-feathers
whitish, the lateral wholly so, the intermediate ones in part dark. Length very variable,
according to development of the tail, up to 23 inches; middle tail-feathers up to 8 or 9 inches
long, the lateral only about 2.50; wing 8.50-9.50; extent 30.00; bill 1.25; tarsus the same ;
middle toe and claw twice as much. Adult , in winter: No reddish on upper parts; the
scapulars pearly-gray. Head, neck, and fore back white or whitish, with gray cheek-patch,
and dark bruwn or blackish patch below ear. Fore breast of the latter color, set squarely
between white of neck and belly. Upper parts except as said, and four middle tail-feathers
(less developed than in summer) blackish; the rest white. Bill extensively orange, with nail
and broad saddle on mandible black. Young ¢ in first winter with bill and feet dusky. Adult
9: No elongation of tail or scapulars; length about 18.00; extent under 30.00; wing 8.00-
9.00; tail about 3.00. Bill and feet dusky-greenish; iris yellow. Head, neck, and upper parts
dark grayish-brown, paler on throat, with large grayish-white patch around eye and another
on side of neck; under parts white, shaded along the sides. Thus an obscure medium-sized
duck; notice generic characteristics of bill, 14 tail-feathers, no white on wing, gray head and
neck-patches in dark surroundings. N. Hemisphere, northerly, especially maritime; also on
large inland waters; U. 8. in winter only, breeding in high latitudes. A lively voluble duck,
called by Sundevall melodious: ‘‘ Anas canora, ob cantum vernalem suavem et sonorum”; an
expert diver, rank animal feeder; meat bad. Nest on ground; eggs 6-7, smooth, drab-colored.
2.20 X 1.50, to 1.90 x 1.40. ;
CAMPTOLZZMUS. (Gr. xapmrds, kamptos, flexible ; Aaos, laimos, throat; referring to
the leathery expansion of the bill.) Pimp Duck. Bill nearly as long as head, longer than
tarsus, not higher than broad at the base, nearly parallel-sided, but widened toward end by
i leathery expansion of edge of upper mandible, the nail distinct. Teeth of upper mandible
slight, oblique; of under mandible very prominent, vertical. Frontal angles slight. Nostrils
high up in basal third of bill. Cheek-feathers stiffish and bristly, with enlarged horny ends,
extending on side of upper mandible in moderately convex outline, to about opposite those of
chin. Wings short, vaulted, with curved primaries, the 1st and 2d subequal and longest; inuer
secondaries long and tapering. Tail short, about two-fifths the wing, 14-feathered. Colora-
tion of g black and white: 9 brown, gray, and white. One remarkable species.

C. labrado/rius. (Of Labrador. Fig. 492.) Lasrapor Duck. Prep Duox. Adult @:
Bill black with orange at base and along edges, and grayish-blue along the ridge ; iris reddish-

295.

730.

ANATIDZ — FULIGULINA:: SEA DUCKS. 107

brown; feet grayish-blue, with dusky webs and claws. Head and upper neck white, with a longi-
tudinal black stripe on the crown and nape. Neck below ringed with black continuous with
that of upper parts, then half-collared with white continuous with that of scapulars. Below,
from this white, entirely black, excepting white axillars and lining of wings. Above, black,
except as said; the wing-coverts and secondaries white, some of the latter margined with
black ; some of the long scapulars pearly-gray ; primaries and their coverts and tail-feathers
brownish-black. 9: Bill, eyes, and feet as in ¢; several secondaries white, forming a
speculum, but no white on wing-coverts or scapulars; axillars and lining of wings mostly
white ; inner secondaries edged with black; general color dappled brownish-gray, paler and
more ashy or plumbeous on wing-coverts and inner secondaries. Length 18.0J-20.00;
extent about 30.00; wing about 9.00; tail 3.50; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw 2.50;
bill-along culmen 1.75, along gape
2.25. N. Am., along Atlantic
Coast; breeds or did breed from
Labrador northward, in winter
ranging or did range 8. to the
Chesapeake. Extremely rare
now, and apparently in fair way
to become extinct. The same
pair, procured by Daniel Web-
ster, has served for Audubon’s
and Baird’s descriptions, and for
the present one; two fine mounted
specimens have been lately ac-
quired by the National Museum.
In England, $200 has been offered
for a good pair.
HISTRIONICUS. (Lat. his-
trionicus, histrionic, relating to
histrio, a stage-player, the bird
being tricked out in various colors,
as if to play a part.) HaRue-
Quins. Bill very small and short,
shorter than head or tarsus, rap- Fig. 492. — Labrador Duck. (From Ency. Brit.)

idly tapering to rounded tip which is wholly occupied by the large fused nail; but higher than
wide at base, and with lateral upper corners as in Fuliguling generally, and convex sweep
across its side of feathers, intermediate in extent between the frontal and mevtal projections,
former reaching farthest. A membranous lobe at base of commissure formed by production of
skin of cheeks. Nostrils in basal half of bill. Wings and tail short, latter pointed and about
half as Yong as former. Longer scapulars and tertiaries curving outward over the wing as in
eiders, with which this genus connects by means of Heniconetta, though in both these genera
the bill is simple, as usual in Fuliguline, without the peculiar gibbosity and special outlines
of feathers characteristic of eiders. One species, remarkable for its fantastic markings, being
patched with different colors; a metallic speculum, here only among our Fuliguline, excepting
S. stelleri.

H. minu‘tus. (Lat. minutus, very small: not well chosen.) Har Lequin Duck. Adult ¢:
Bill olivaceous ; iris reddish-brown; feet grayish-blue, with dusky webs and pale claws.
Aside from the definite markings to be given, general color deep leaden-blue with a purplish
tinge, blackening on top of head, on lower back, rump, and tail above and below, darker on
head and neck than on breast and back, changing from breast backward, including lining of

296.

708 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

wings, to sooty brown, on the flanks to chestnut-brown. A white patch between bill and eye,
curving upward and backward to margin the black coronal stripe, changing to chestnut from
over eye to nape. A round white spot on side of hind-head; a long white spot on side of
upper neck; a white collar around neck, interrupted or not before and behind; a white
crescent on side of breast in front of wings; these marks black-bordered. A white spot on
wing-coverts ; a white bar across ends of greater coverts and some of the secondaries; outer
webs of inner secondaries mostly white; scapulars mostly white. A white spot on each side
of root of tail. Speculum me-
tallic purplish or violet. Two
or three years appear to be
required to perfect this plu-
«mage; the ¢ is found in almost
every condition between this
and the plumage of the 9 ; the
final stage is the completion of
\ the white ring around neck and

white tips of secondaries. 9 :

1 | 2 Bill dusky; feet dull bluish-
gray. Iris brown. A whitish

spot before eye and behind ear.
General plumage on head and
upper parts dark brown, dark-
est on head and rump, the
lower parts similar, more gray-
ish, passing through gray mot-
tliug to whitish on belly. Thus
the @ is a very small and
obseure duck, widely different
from the ¢ ; observe the small
sizé, very short bill, only about
1.00 along culmen, higher than
wide at base ; plumage without
definite markings excepting the
two spots on each side of the
head; extent of dappled gray
and white on the under parts
very variable. Length of ¢
16.00-17.00; extent 24.00-
27.00; wing 7.00-8.00; tail
8.00-4.00; tarsus 1.30; bill

Fic. 493. — Bills of Eiders, } nat, size, viewed from above and in profile, along culmen 1.10, along gape

1, S. mollissima; 2, S.m. dresseri. (From Sharpe.) 1.50. Europe, Asia, N. Am.,°

northerly and chiefly coastwise, but also in interior; S. in winter to Middle States and Cala. ;
breeds in R. Mts. of U. S., and northward, as from Newfoundland to Alaska. Nest in the
hollow of a tree or stump, of weeds and grasses and parents’ down; eggs 6-8, 2.10 X 1.60,
greenish. The harlequins are in some places called “lords and ladies.”

SOMATE/RIA. (Gr. cdpua, cdparos, soma, somatos, the body; épiov, erion, wool, down.)
Erpers. . Bill varying in conformation with the species; in one simple, much as in Histrio-
nicus for example, without special gibbosity or peculiar outline of feathers; in the rest
variously tumid or gibbous, with very various dispositions of frontal processes and outlines of

ANATIDA — FULIGULINZ): SEA DUCKS. 709

feathers. This is as in the scoters, @demia ; in both of which genera the particulars of the bill
being specific and in a measure sexual characters, to found genera upon them would be to make
one for almost every species. Nevertheless, I am now satisfied that I have gone too far in uniting
Heniconetta and Arctonetta with Somateria. The subgeneric rank accorded to these in the
following analysis is to be considered as generic; and among the eiders proper I would now
separate the king eider subgenerically, under the name of Hrionetta, from Somateria proper. The
characters are given below. In the whole group here presented under the name of Somuteria,
some further characters may be noted as follows: Nostrils averaging median, variable in posi-
tion; feathers reaching over, under, or not to them. Frontal angles of bill in one species as
normally in Fuliguline, in others variously exaggerated. Nail of bill large, fused, forming the
whole tip. Inner secondaries and scapulars sickle-shaped, curved outward and ‘falling ob-
liquely over the wing. Sexes very unlike. ¢@ chiefly black and white, with sea-green on the
head; feathers of head in part short, close-set, and erect, like pile of velvet, in part usually
stiffish and bristly. Several remarkable specics, of the Northern Hemisphere.

Analysis of (Genera), Subgenera, Species, and Varieties,

d ¢ Bill not gibbous, without frontal processes, not feathered to the nostrils, its cutting edge dilated
ee leathery ; no unusual shape or outline of frontal feathers. rae ania
A violet speculum. . ‘ . + . Stellerit T3831
3 ¢ Bill not gibbous, without frontal irae. feathered on oe Eee to a , point beyond nostrils, and
thence in line sweeping behind nostrils to angle of mouth. (ARCTONETTA.)
‘ No speculum ; an elevated roundish white black-bordered area abouteye. . . . Jischeri 132
¢ Bill gibbous at base of upper mandible; outline of culmen variously curved; with lone; acute or
clubbed, tumid process extending in line with culmen on each side of forehead, divided by extension of
feathers on culmen; feathers of side of bill advancing to about under nostrils, far beyond those on
culmen. No speculum. (SOMATERIA proper.)
d No black V-mark on chin.

Frontal processes short, narrow, acute, parallel. Smaller . . we ee ew es) «6Mollissima 733
Frontal processes long, broad, clubbed, divergent. Larger. . . oe ee ew eo ressert 734
¢ A black V-mark on chin mete eee rae vnigrum 735

¢d Bill extremely gibbous at base of upper mandible, with broad squarish nanely vertical frontal processes
bulging angularly out of line of culmen, on each side of forehead, divided by extreme projection of
feathers on culmen far beyond those on sides of mandible, which do not nearly reach nostrils.
(ERIONETTA N.)
g A black V-mark on chin a se ew ew we ww we ww ew Spectabilis 736

i (HENICONETTA.)

931. 8, (H.) steVleri. (To G. W. Steller.) Srexier’s Exper. Adult 2: Bill and fect dull

grayish-blue, the webs rather darker; iris brown. Top and sides of head and collar on
neck silvery-white, washed across forehead and hind-head with sea-green, the chin with a
black patch narrowing to run down breaking through the white collar and continuous with
abroad black ring around neck; a similar patch around eye, these black areas with various
lustre. Upper parts at large glossy purplish-blue-black; wing-coverts white; secondaries
violet in their exposed portions, tipped with white, the rest, and the tertials and outer
scapulars, silvery-white, the inner scapulars violet, striped with white edges ; lining of wings,
mostly, and axillars, white. Under parts dull chestnut-brown, passing to sooty black on the
belly and crissum, with an isolated black spot on each side of the breast. The young closely
resembles the @. In both sexes the bill and feet are of an undefinable dark color in dried
- 8pecimens. Q differs as in all the eiders: dark reddish-brown, blackening on belly and cris-
sum, much mottled and barred with black; no white except on lining of wings and tips of
greater coverts and of secondaries, these forming two white bars enclosing the imperfect spec-
ulum. Length 18.00-19.00; wing 8.00-8.50; tail 3.50; bill 1.50 along culmen, 1.75 along |
gape; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 2.20. Northern regions of Europe, Asia, and W.
America; not yet common in collections, though abounding and sometimes gathering in enor-
tous flocks on the islands and both shores of Behring’s Sea and the Arctic coast of N. E.

732.

710 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

Siberia; wintering mainly on the Aleutian Islands; usually found in company with Pacific,
spectacled, and king eiders. Being observed to breed in a plumage resembling that of the 9,
this eider probably requires at least two years to acquire the complete dress. The most beau-

.tiful of many specimens I have handled have been winter birds. Eggs 7-9, 2.25 x 1.60,

exactly like those of the common eider in shape, color, and texture of shell.

(ARCTONETTA.)

S. (A.) fis/cheri. (To Gotth. Fischer, a Russian naturalist. Fig. 494.) Sprcractep Emer.
Bill (in both sexes) peculiar in the extension upon it of dense velvety feathers which reach to a
point on the culmen beyond the nostrils, thence sweeping past the nostrils obliquely downward
and backward to the commissure, the nostrils opening just beneath the line of feathers. Feathers
of chin extending in a point nearly as far as those on culmen. A peculiarly dense and puffy
patch of velvety feathers
about the eye, suggesting
spectacles; frontal feath-
ers erect, pilous, in the g
somewhat stiffened; oc-
cipital feathers lengthened
into a crest; these char-
acters of the head-feather-
ing best marked in the 3,
but indicated also in the
Q. Nail of bill distinct.
Adult g: General color
grayish-black, the neck
and most of the back
white; lesser and median
wing-coverts, the curved
tertials, the lining of wings
and axillars, white; flanks
white. On the head, the
Fic. 494, — Spectacled Eider. (From Dall.) : white of the neck gives

way to rich-sea-green, especially on the occipital crest; the frontal feathers are also tinged with
greenish; but the ‘spectacles’ are pure silvery white, framed in black. Bill, in the dried state,
dingy yellowish; feet the same, with dusky webs. Smaller than the common eider; wing
10.00; tail 4.00; tarsus 1.75; middle toe and claw 2.75; bill only about an inch long on
culmen, but about 2.25 along gape. 9: Greatly different, as in all the eiders. Bill black,
with whitish nail of under mandible; feet quite dark. General plumage like that of the com-
mon eider, barred almost throughout with black, chestnut-brown, and yellowish-brown, giving
way on the belly to dull brownish nebulated with dusky; on the head to pale brown streaked
or otherwise obscured with dusky. Axillars white. Though thus so similar to the common
eider in plumage, the peculiar feathering of the head and bill suffices to distinguish the bird at
a glance. Northwest coast, common in some localities, from Unalashka northward to Norton
and doubtless Kotzebue Sound; but its ordinary range appears to be a restricted ove, nearly
coincident with that of the emperor goose.

(SOMATERIA.)

S. mollis/sima. (Lat. mollissima, very soft; referring to the down of the eider. Figs. 493, 495.)
EvRoreAN Erper Ducx. Bill (in both sexes) with lateral frontal process extending on each
side of the forehead, between the short pointed extension of the feathers on the culmen and the

ANATIDZ — FULIGULINZ: SEA DUCKS. 711

much greater extension of those on the sides of the bill, which reach to below the nostrils, about
opposite those on the chin. The general upper outline of the bill nearly straight, and the
frontal processes narrow, acute, and nearly parallel (see figs. and compare description of next
subspecies). Adult g: Plumage almost entirely black and white. Top of head glossy blue-
black, including eyes, and forking behind to receive the white of the hind-head. Occiput more

SS
SSS!
ae

=

ee]
= =.
= SS PR

a:

: i 7
i i rina

Y

a iul
il |
a

mt
ai Mt ue

Hi i
aan
at

Qo

=
=

=

‘hy, = eS
Way = we oS
Nes Shae yh

Fie. 495, — Eider Ducks, 3% nat. size. (From Brehm.)

%

or less washed with sea-green. Neck all around, fore breast, most of the back, most of the
wing-coverts above and below, the curly tertials, and sides of rump, white, on the breast tinged
with pale creamy-brown. Middle line of rump, upper tail-coverts, and under parts from the
breast, black or blackish. Length about 24.00; extent 40.00; wing 11.00; tail 4.00; tarsus
1.75 ; middle toe and claw 3.75; culmen of bill 2.00 or less, from apex of. frontal processes to
tip 2.60; along gape 2.40. Adult 9 : Sufficiently similar to the & in character of bill, and

734.

735.

736.

712 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

feathering of its base; plumage entirely different, being nearly everywhere varied, chiefly in
bars, with black, ohesmnt: -brown, and yellowish-brown, giving way on the under parts to
grayish-brown with dusky nebulation. Size less than that of the g. This is the common
eider of Europe, semidomesticated in some places, so famous for yielding the prized down of
commerce, which the parent plucks from her breast to cover the eggs. It is also found in N.
Am., as on Cumberland Sound ; but the common American eider is of the following character.
S. m. dres/seri. (To H. E. Dresser, of England. Fig. 493.) American Erper Duck. Like
the last; plumage the same; form of the bill different, exhibiting an approach to the structure
of that of S. spectabilis. General protile of culmen concave, the frontal processes being wider,
higher, more obtuse, and more divaricating than in S. mollissima proper (compare figs. and
foregoing description). The difference is very obvious on comparison of specimens, and may
be held of specific value if no intermediate specimens are forthcoming. Culmen 2.00 or more ;
from apex of frontal processes to tip of bill about 3.00; along gape 2.50. 9 differs as in the’
case of S. mollissima proper. N. Am., northerly, especially on the Atlantic coast; also on
large inland waters ; not noted from the N. Pacific ; 8. usually in winter to New England, more
rarely to the Middle States; breeding from the Maine coast northward, abundantly in New-
foundland and Labrador, where it: is one of the characteristic birds. Nest on the ground, of
mosses, lichens, hay, and sea weed, to which feathers are added; eggs 6-10, usually fewer,,
plain dull greenish-drab, about 3.00 x 2.00, laid in June and July.

S. v-nig’rum. (Quasi-Lat. v-nigrum, noting the black V-shaped mark on the throat). Pacrric
Ewer. Like the two preceding, but with a large black V-shaped mark on the throat, pointing
forward and forking behind, as in S. spectabilis. While the plumage is otherwise as in the com-
mon eider, the shape of the bill and character of its feathering are appreciably different, furnish-
ing useful characters, especially in the case of the 9. The frontal processes are acute and parallel,
as in S. mollissima, but the gibbosity of the bill is greater than in 8. dresseri ; while the feathers
upon its sides do not extend so far (scarcely or not reaching opposite the hind end of the nos-
trils), and have rounded instead of acute termination ; their lower border is: also more nearly
parallel with the edge of the commissure. The extension of ‘the feathers on the chin equals or
even surpasses that on the side of the bill, rather the reverse being the case with S. mollissima
and dresseri. Pacific coast from the Arctic Ocean to California, common in suitable localities
on both coasts and islands of Behring’s Sea, and the polar coasts of Siberia; replacing the
common eider, and associated with the king, spectacled, and Steller’s eiders.

S. (E.) specta/hilis. (Lat. spectabilis, conspicuous, spectacular.) Kine Emer. Characters
of bill and its-feathering quite differing from those of other eiders, and moreover varying much,
not only in the two sexes, but in the ¢ at different seasons. In the adult 3, in the breeding
season, the bill develops immense rounded or squarish’ lateral frontal processes, bulging high
out of line with the rest of the bill; these processes are soft, and moreover depend for their
prominence upon the development of a mass of fatty substance upon which they are supported ;
they shrink and become more depressed in winter, when the general formation of the parts is
not very different from that of other eiders. The frontal feathers extend in a definite line along
the elevated culmen to about opposite the hind end of the nostrils; those of the side of the
bill, on the contrary, fall far- short of the nostrils; those of the chain reach about opposite
those of the culmen; the whole feathered outline of the bill being thus very different from
that of any other sliders In the 9, though all the parts concerned are less developed, the same
relative extension of feathers obtains, so that the bird.is distinguished easily from the 9 of
any other eider; the culminal and mental feathers both reaching about opposite the nostrils,
those on the side of the bill not extending nearly so far. Adult g: Black; the neck and
fore part of the body, most of the wing-coverts and lining of wings, and a spot on each side of,
the rump, white ; the white of the breast tinged with creamy brown; the curly tertials black
(white in other eiders). A black V-shaped mark on the chin, as in S. v-nigrum. Top of head

297.

ANATIDA — FULIGULINZ: SEA DUCKS. 718 -

and nape beautiful pearl-gray; sides of the head washed with sea-green ; eyelids black; prd-
cesses of the bill framed about with glossy black. Bill reddish ; feet reddened, with dusky
webs; iris brown. Length about 22.00; wing 11.00; tail 4.00; bill along culmen 1.25 ; along
gape 2.25; from apex of processes to tip about the same; from feathers on side of upper
mandible to tip about 1.60. Adult ? : Indistinguishable from other female eiders in plumage,
but readily recognized by the bill, as above said. Bill and feet blackish ; dimensions of bill,
aside from the frontal processes, nearly.as in the @. This beautiful eider is a circumpolar
species, abounding at various points along the shores of the Arctic Ocean, thence south in
winter on the Pacific side in great numbers to the Aleutian Islands and beyond, though rare on
the Alaskan coast of Behring’s Sea; on the Atlantic side south rarely and irregularly to New
York.
CDE/MIA. (Gr. ofSnua, oidema, Lat. edema, a swelling.) Scoters. Surr Ducks.
Bill tumid or gibbous in various character according to the species, and sexes of same species,
and outline of feathers equally variable, but always farther on ridge than on sides of upper
mandible, without angular reéntrance; terminally expansive, with large, elevated, and de-
eurved nail, fused with and occupying whole tip. Nostrils in middle of bill or beyond.
Feathers of chin running far forward, more or less nearly opposite nostrils. Color of ¢ black,
relieved or not with white patches on head or wings, or both; bill singularly gibbous at base,
parti-colored. sooty-brown, bill simply turgid, much widened at end. Young ¢ like 9.
Embracing the black sea-ducks, surf-ducks, scoters, or coots, as they are variously called ;
maritime mollusk-eating species, scarcely fit for food. Our three species inhabit both coasts,
sometimes the larger inland waters, breeding northward, occurring abundantly in winter
along the whole U. 8. coasts.
Analysis of Subgenera, Species, and Varieties.
dé Bill scarcely encroached upon by frontal feathers, which sweep directly across the base; gibbosity
superior, circumscribed, orange. Nostrils median. Nail narrowed anteriorly. Color entirely black.
Feet dark. Tail normally 16-feathered. (CEDEMIA.)
2 Sooty-brown, paler below, whitish on throat and sides of head; bill not gibbous, black americana 737
¢ Bill broadly encroached upon by frontal feathers, on culmen nearly or quite to nostrils, on sides to
‘less extent, shorter than head, the gibbosity superior, circumscribed. Nostrils beyond middle. Nail
broad and obtuse. Bill black, orange-tipped ; feet orange. Color black, with white wing-patch and
eye-spot. Tail normally 14-feathered. (MELANETTA.) ~
@ Sooty-brown, with white wing-patch; bill all black, lesstumid. . . fusca 138
¢@ Bill narrowly encroached upon by frontal feathers; on culmen nearly or quite to nostrils, on the sides
not at all; about as long as head, the gibbosity lateral as well as superior. Nostrils beyond middle.
Bill orange and white, with black lateral spot. Color black, with white frontal and nuchal patch, but
none on wing; feet orange. Tail normally 14-feathered. (PELIONETTA.)
9 Sooty-brown, paler below, whitish on head, chiefly in loral and auricular patches; bill black;
feet dark.
Frontal white patch reaching eyes; culminal feathers reaching opposite nostrils. Bill about as
longashead . . - . » perspicillata 139

Frontal white patch vestricted’y eoleainal feathers not reaching epnretie nostrils, Bill rather
exceeding head . ....... ye . a Wael - 2. 2 . « .trowbridgit 740

737, GE. america‘na. (Fig. 496.) American Buack Scotrr. Sra Coot. Bill, etc., as above said.

bes,

Adult @: Plumage entirely black, less glossy and jetty below than above, grayish on the inner
webs of the quills. Iris brown. Feet blackish. Young g resembling 9. Q : Sooty-brown,
paler below, becoming grayish-white on belly, there dusky-speckled, on sides and flanks
dusky-waved; throat and sides of head mostly continuous whitish, not in special: spots ;
bill blackish, not bulging; feet livid olivaceous with black webs. Ducklings covered with
black down. Length 17.00-20.00; extent 30.00-36.00 ; wing 8.00-10.00; tail 4.00; tarsus
1.75; middle toe and claw 3.25; bill 1.75-2.00. @ much smaller than g ; near about these

Aesser figures. Differs from the European @. nigra in shape and color of the protuberance

on the dill of g. N. Am., chiefly coastwise, where abundant; also on large inner waters;
U. S. generally in winter; breeds in high latitudes. Eggs 6-8, 2.25 1.60, buff; ‘nest on the

738.

739.

714 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

*

ground, in June, July. (N.B. The upper fig. 496 shows extent of feathers under bill —to
first acute angle from the left—and shape of mandibular rami, reaching to next obtuse
reéntrance.) ;

@, fusica, (Lat. fusca, dusky; adult ¢ is black.) VELVET ScoTER. WHITE-WINGED
Surr Ducx. Sea
Coor. Bill, ete., as
above. Adult %: Plu-
mage black, paler be-
low; a white speculum,
formed by most of the
secondaries and tips of
greater coverts; a small
white spot under eye.
Tris yellow. Feet or-
ange or carmine-red,
with black webs. Young
& resembles Q. 9:
Bill less bulging, en-
tirely dark; eyes and
feet as before, less
bright. Sooty-brown, pale grayish below, but retaining the white speculum; whitish on head
tending to form loral and auricular spots, as in 739, not 737. Largest: length 19.00-22.00 ;
extent about 36.00; wing 11.00-12.00; bill along gape 2.50 or more; tarsus about 2.00;
middle toe and claw 3.50. 9<¢. Said to differ from European in greater encroachment
of feathers on bill; but the ascribed feature is not tangible (var. velvetina). N. Am. at
large, chiefly coastwise; also on large inland waters; abundant. Winters in U. 8., breeds
in high latitudes.

CE. perspicilla/ta. (Lat. perspicilldta, conspicuous, spectacular. Fig. 497.) Surr Duck.
Sea Coot. Adult ¢:
Bill, etc., as above,
singularly variegated
in color, mostly white
or pinkish, and or-
ange, with a great
round or squarish
black spot on side
near base; iris pale
yellow; feet orange,
with dusky webs. Plu-
mage glossy black,
duller below; no white
on wings, but a tri-
angular white patch
on forehead, pointing
forward, reaching to
or beyond opposite eye, and another.on nape, pointing downward. Young g resembles 9,
before the bill acquires distinctive shape and color. 9 : Bill blackish, not tumid, feathers of
culmen restricted, not reaching opposite nostrils; feet dark, tinged with reddish, the webs black-
ish. Plumage sooty-brown, below silvery-gray; side of head with much whitish, chiefly in two
patches, loral and auricular; no frontal or nuchal white. Length 18.00-21.00; extent 31.00-

Fia. 496, — Female Black Scoter. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

Fig. 497. — Bill of young ¢ Surf Duck, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

740.

298.

Al.

299,

142.

ANATIDA — FULIGULINA: SEA DUCKS. 715

36.00; wing 9.00-10.00; tarsus 1.67; middle toe and claw 3.25 ; bill 2.25-2.50 along gape.
N. Am. at large, casual in Europe; chiefly coastwise, also on larger interior waters; U. S. in
winter, abundant, breeding in high latitudes. (N. B. In upper fig. 497 the first reéntrance
indicates extent of feathering under the bill, the next the mandibular rami.)

. p. trowbrid’gii? (To W. P. Trowbridge. Fig. 498.) With the bill longer, exceed-
ing the head, and of slightly dif-
ferent shape; feathers falling short
of nostrils; gape about 2.75; white
frontal patch small, its posterior
border anterior to a line between
eyes, instead of reaching or pass-
ing beyond this. Coast of Cala.
Scarcely tenable.
ERISMATU'RA. (Gr. épeoua,
ereisma, a stay, prop, pier, and
ovpd, owrd, tail, as the stiffened
member might seem to be.) RuppgeR Ducks. Remarkably distinguished from other
Fuliguline excepting Nomonyx by the stiffened, linear-lanceolate tail-feathers, 16-20 in
number, exposed to the base by reason of extreme shortness of the coverts, their shafts
enlarged, channelled underneath; appearance of tail strikingly like that of a cormorant. Bill
about as long as head, scarcely higher than broad at base, widened and depressed at end,
which is almost turned up. Nail as viewed from above very small, narrow, and linear, greatly
expanding on a decurved part bent under the end of the bill (unique). Head small, and neck
thick; you can draw the skin of the ruddy duck over the head, which is impracticable with
most ducks. Tarsus short, toes very long, the middle with claw twice as long as tarsus.
One species.

E. rwbida. (Lat. rubida, ruddy.) Ruppy Duck. 4, in perfect plumage: Neck all around
and the upper parts and sides of body.rich brownish-réd, or bright glossy-chestnut. Lower
parts silky silvery-white ‘ watered’ with dusky, yielding gray undulations. Chin and sides of
head dead-white; crown and nape glossy-black. Wing-coverts, quills, and tail, blackish-
brown. Bill and edges of eyelids grayish-blue; iris reddish-brown; feet bluish-gray, with
dusky webs. Not often seen in this faultless dress in the U.S. As generally observed, and
Q, brown above, finely dotted and waved with dusky; below paler and duller, more grayish,
with dark undulations, and often a tawny wash, as also occurs on the white of the head; crown
and nape dark brown; erissum white; bill dusky. Length 15.00-17.00; extent 20.00-24.00,
wing 5.50-6.00; tail 3.50; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 2.60; bill 1.50. A curious and
interesting duck, abundant in N. Am. at large, wintering in U. 8., breeding from N. border of
U.S. northward. It is an expert diver, and swims well under water, when its rudder comes
into use, like a cormorant’s; it is held cocked up when not in use, so that this duck does not slope
down behind as most do on the water. When alarmed, it sometimes sinks quietly backward
into the water, like a grebe; but some other sea ducks, as the harlequin, will do the same.
The tail well illustrates a method in which early down-feathers are supplanted by true quills.
Up to the time the flappers are 8 or 10 inches long, the true tail-feather bears at its end the
simple stem of the down-feather, terminating in a bushy tuft of loose barbs; the whole affair
then breaks off and falls. (See Am. Nat., xii, 1878, p. 123, fig.)

NOMO'NYX. (Gr. vduos, nomos, law, order; 8vvé, onus, nail: nail of bill ordinary.) Rup-
DER Ducks. Character of Erismatura, but nail of bill not peculiar. Inner secondaries so
lengthened as to fold over the primaries in the closed wing.

N. domi/nica. (Of St. Domingo.) St. Dominco Duck. General color ferruginous, or
chestnut-red, more or less extensive and continuous on under parts and around neck, varied

‘

Fig. 498. — Trowbridge’s Surf Duck, reduced. (From Elliot.)

300.

143.

716 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LAMELLIROSTRES — ANSERES.

with black on the back ; crown of head black; a large white area on the wing formed by many

of the coverts and bases of the secondaries; axillars also white. A ? or young @ specimen.
has the back blackish, spotted with yellowish-brown ; the general ferruginous color dappled

with dusky ; and two blackish stripes on each side of head. Length about 13.00; wing 5.00;

tail 3.00 ; tarsus 1.00; culmen 1.40. Asmall and curious duck of C. and 8. Am. and W. L,

accidental in the U. S., as on Lake Champlain and in Wisconsin (see Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat.

Hist., vi, 375 ; xiv, 154; Amer. Nat., v, 441 ; and Baird, B. N. A., 1858, 925).

69. Subfamily MERCINA: Mergansers.

Bill narrow, more or less nearly cylindrical, the nail hooked and overhanging, the
lamelle highly developed into prominent serrations, the nasal fosse lengthened and narrowed.
Excepting the character of the bill, the ‘saw-bill’ or ‘fishing-ducks’ are simply Fuliguline,
somewhat modified in adaptation to a more exclusively animal regimen; the lamelle of the
bil become detainers of large objects, not sifters or strainers of minute things. The principal
point in their economy is ability to pursue fish under water, like Cormorants, Loons, and
other birds of lower orders. The nature of their food renders their flesh rank and unpalatable;
in buying a ‘duck,’ notice the bill, that it be not cylindric, hooked, and saw-toothed; the
flap of the hind toe is as in any Sea Duck; the tarsi are much compressed. The gizzard
is rather less muscular than in most ducks ; the intestines and their cceca are shorter; the
syringeal capsule of the $ is very large, irregular, partly membranous; the trachea has
other dilatations (fig. 3). Birds of this group inhabit fresh as well as salt water, and are
abundant in individuals if not in species. There are about 8 species, chiefly of the Northern
Hemisphere, but several occur in South America: we have 3, commonly and perhaps properly
referred to 2 genera, Mergus and Lophodytes. :
MER’GUS. (Lat. mergus, a diver; mergo, I mergein.) MmRGANSERS. Fisuine Ducks.
Saw-BILis. Bill as above said. Nostrils median or sub-basal. Tarsi compressed, anteri-
orly scutellate, with smaller plates on sides and behind, one-half to two-thirds as long as middle
toe and claw. Hind toe lobate. Tail rounded, usually one-half or more the length of the
pointed wings. Head usually crested.

Analysis of Subgenera and Species.

Bill not shorter than head, mostly red. Serrations of bill acute, recurved, claw-like. Tarsus about two-
thirds aslong as middle toe. Tail about half as long as wings. Crest low, flimsy, occipital, if any.
Head green or brown. (MERGUS.)

Nostrils near middle of bill. Frontal feathers beyond those on side of bill. Crest scarcely developed.

g with breast uncolored . «1. ee + + merganser 143
Nostrils near base of bill. Frontal feathers not beyond those ot on side of bill. Crest better developed.
g' with breast and sides colored . eee ee ee ew al . . serrator 744

Bill shorter than head, mostly black. Serrations of pill low, ‘shila, not hooked. Tarsus about half as
long as middle toe. ‘Tail more than half as long as wing. Crest of g highly developed, erect, com-
pressed, semicircular, coronal as well as occipital. (LOPHODYTES.)

Nostrils near base of bill. Frontal feathers produced beyond those on sides of bill . . . cucullatus 145

M. mergan'ser. (Lat. mergus and anser, diver-goose. Fig. 499.) MErrGANsER. Goos-
ANDER. Nostrils near middle of bill. Frontal feathers extending acutely on culmen about
half way from those on side of bill to nostrils; loral feathers sweeping in nearly vertical line
across side of base of upper mandible, about opposite those on side of lower mandible. Head
scarcely crested, merely a line of little lengthened feathers along occiput and nape, better
developed, however, in 9 than in g. Adult gf: Bill and feet vermilion-red in breeding
season, with black hook; iris carmine. Head and neck splendid dark green. Under parts
salmov-colored, the flanks and lower belly marbled or watered with dusky. Upper parts
glossy-black, fading to ashy on rump and tail; surface of wing mostly pure white, crossed by
a black bar formed by bases of greater coverts. Primaries and outer secondaries black, iuter-

744.

ANATIDZ -- MERGINZ): MERGANSERS. T1T

mediate secondaries white, inner secondaries and scapulars black and white. 9 - Bill red with
dusky cnlmen, iris yellowish, feet chrome or orange with dusky webs, crest better developed than
in f ; still flimsy, however long. Head and neck reddish-brown ; throat white; under parts
less salmon-tinted. Black parts of ¢ ashy-gray; scapulars without white; white of wing
restricted to secondaries and greater coverts, which are black at base; smaller coverts ashy.
Length 23.50-27.00; extent 34.00 or more; wing 10.00-11.00; tail 5.00; bill 2.00 along
culmen, 3.00 along gape; tarsus 1.75 ; middle toe and claw 2.75; 9 much smallerthan ¢, at
the lesser or below the single dimensions here given. N. Am. bird said to differ in slighter and
lower crest, and evident black bar in white of wing, concealed in European. N. Am. at large,
common; U.S. in winter, and breeding from N. States northward. Nest on ground, down-
lined; eggs 6-8, elliptical, buff-colored, 2.75 X 2.00.

NA =, ; a7

ae a Lin
Kp as

Fig. 499. — Merganser, ¢, } nat. size. (From Brehm.)

M. serra/tor. (Lat. serrator, a sawyer. Fig. 500.) RED-BREASTED MERGANSER. Nostrils
near base of bill. Frontal feathers extending obtusely on culmen, and not beyond those on
sides of upper mandible; the loral sweeping forward convex beyond those on side of lower
mandible. A long, thin, pointed occipital and nuchal crest in both sexes. Adult ¢:
Head and neck all around splendid dark green. A white ring round neck. Under parts
white, more or less salmon-tinged, the fore-breast brownish-red streaked with dusky, the
sides finely waved with dusky. A white black-bordered patch of broad feathers in front of
the wing. Fore-back, interscapulars, and long inner scapulars, black ; middle and lower back
gray, waved with whitish and dusky. Surface of wing mostly white, including outer scap-
ulars ; inner secondaries edged on outer web with black, and wing crossed by two black bars
at bases and just beyond ends of greater coverts. Bill carmine-red, dusky along the top;
eyes carmine; feet bright red. @: Bill and feet duller colored; head grayish-chestnut ;

"745,

718 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — STEGANOPODES.

throat and under parts white, shaded with ashy-gray along the sides. Upper parts plunbeous-
gray, the feathers with paler edges; white of wing restricted to a patch formed by the ends
of the greater coverts, and much of the outer secondaries; not divided by a black bar. No
peculiar feathers in front of wing. Length about 24.00 ; extent 34.00; wing 8.50-9.50; tail
4.00; tarsus 1.60; middle toe and claw 2.60; bill 2.20 on culmen, 2.60 on gape. Young
& like 9. Nestlings in down curiously patched. N. Am. at large, more numerous than
the goosander. U. S. abundantly in winter, and breeding in many places as well as farther
north. Also European, ete. Nest on ground, down-lined; eggs 8-10, elliptical, buff, 2.50
x 1.65.

M. (L.) cucylla/tus. (Lat. cucullatus, wearing a hood). Hoopep MERGANSER. Bill
shorter than head. Nostrils in its basal half. Frontal feathers extending far beyond those on
side of bill, these beyond
those on lower mandi-
ble. A magnificent erect
crest, compressed, semi-
circular in outline, in
both sexes, but in 9?
smaller, and less strict.
Adult ¢: Bill black;
eyes yellow; feet light
brown, with dusky claws.
Head, neck, and upper
parts black, changing to
brown on lower back;
crest elegantly centred with snowy white; lower fore-neck and under parts white, the sides
regularly and finely waved with brownish-red and black ; crissum waved with dusky. Lining
of wings and axillars white. Enlarged white doubly black-barred feathers in front of wing.
A white speculum, with two black bars, the white being on outer webs of secondaries and ends
of these and greater coverts; inner secondaries with white central stripe. Young # like 9.
Q: Bill dusky, with orange base below. Head and neck grayish-chestnut, darker brown on
crown, the throat and under parts whitish ; back and sides dusky-brown, the latter not undu-
lated, the feathers generally with paler edges. No black and white bars before wing; white
of wing restricted or impure. Length 16.50-18.00; extent about 25.00; wing 7.00-8.00;
tail 4.00; tarsus 1.20; middle toe and claw 2.25; bill 1.50 along culmen, 2.00 along gape.
N. Am. at large; common; breeds at large in U. S., as well as farther north; winters in
U. S.- Europe, etc. This beautiful species appears to usually if not always nest in trees, like
the wood duck and some others, the young being transported to the water in the beak of the
mother. Eggs 6-8, 1.75 X1.35, elliptical, buff-colored.

Fia. 500. — Bill of Red-breasted Merganser, nat. size. (Ad nat, del. E. C.)

XI. Order STEGANOPODES: Totipalmate Birds.

Feet totipalmate, with three full webs (as in fig. 52, for example) ; hind toe semi-lateral,
larger and lower down than in other water birds, connected with the inner toe by a complete web
reaching from tip to tip. Nostrils minute, rudimentary, or entirely abortive. A gular pouch.
Bill not membranous nor lamellate; tomia sometimes serrate ; usually, a long sulcus on upper
mandible reaching alongside the culmen nearly to tip of bill, which is commonly hooked with
a more or less distinct nail; mouth much cleft.

This is a definite and perfectly natural group, which will be immediately recognized by
the foregoing characters, one of ‘which, the complete webbing of the hallux, is not elsewhere

' STEGANOPODES: TOTIPALMATE BIRDS. 719

observed among birds. It is represented by six genera, all North American, each the type of
a family.

The nature is altricial. The eggs are very few, frequently only one, usually if not always
plain-colored, and encrusted with a peculiar white chalky substance ; they are deposited in a
rude bulky nest on the ground, on rocky ledges, or on low trees and bushes in the vicinity of
water. The dietetic regimen is exclusively carnivorous, the fuod being chietly fish, sometimes
pursued under water, sometimes plunged after, sometimes scooped up. In accordance with
this, we find the alimentary canal to consist of a capacious distensible cesophagus not develop-
ing a special crop, a large proventriculus with numerous solvent glands, a small and very
moderately muscular gizzard, rather long and slender intestines, with small ceca, if any, and
an ainple globular cloaca. The tungue is extremely small, a mere knob-like rudiment (as in
the piscivorous kingfishers). The characteristic gular pouch varies greatly in development.
The condition of the external nostrils is a curious and unexplained feature; they appear to be
open at first, and in some species, like the tropic-bird, they remain so; but they are generally
completely obliterated in the adult state. There are probably no intrinsic syringeal muscles
in any birds of this order. But the most notable fact in connection with the respiratory system
is the extraordinary pneumaticity of the body, which reaches its height in the pelicans and
gannets. The interior air receptacles are of an ordinary character, but the anterior of these
cells are more subdivided than usual; from them, the air gets under the skin through the
axillary cavities, and diffuses over the entire pectoral and ventral regions, in two large parallel
inter-communicating cells on each side, over which the skin does not fit close to the body, but
hangs loosely. It is further remarkable that the skin itself does not form a wall of these
cavities, a very delicate membrane being stretched from the inwardly projecting bases of the
contour-feathers. Thus there is yet another, although a very shallow, interval between this
membrane and the skin, this also containing air, admitted from the larger spaces by numerous
minute orifices close to the roots of the feathers. This subcutaneous areolar tissue is that
which, in ordinary birds and mammals, holds the deposit of fat, no trace of which substance
is found in these birds.

The pterylosis adheres throughout to one marked type, there being little variation except
in the density of the plumage, which would seem to accord with temperature, the tropical
forms being the more sparsely feathered. Excepting Phaéthon, the gular sac is wholly or in
part bare. The contour feathers appear to always lack aftershafts. The remiges are from
26 to 40 in number, of which 10 are always long, strong, pointed primaries. There are
usually 22-24 tail-feathers in the pelicans, but 12, 14 or 16 in the other genera. All have the
oil-gland large, with a cirelet of feathers and more than one orifice; sometimes, as in the
pelicans, it is protuberant, heart-shaped, as large as a pigeon egg, with two sets of six orifices;
in the gannets it is flat and dise-like.

The palatal structure is extremely desmognathous; there are no basipterygvids; the
maxillo-palatines are large and spongy; the mandibular angle is truncate; other cranial
characters appear under two aspects, one peculiar to the pelicans, the other common to the
rest of the order. The sternum is short and broad, with transverse, entire or emarginate,
posterior border; the apex of the furculum commonly, if not always, anchyloses with the
sternal keel. The upper arm bones are very long; the tibia does not develop the very long
enemial apophysis or so called ‘rotular process’ seen in many Pygopodes. (See fig. 502.)
The carotids are double; tufted oil-gland, cceca and ambiens muscle are present.

The species of this order are few — apparently not over fifty, of which the Cormorants
represent half — very generally distributed over the world.

801.

746.

T47.

720 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — STEGANOPODES.

53. Family SULIDA: Gannets.

Bill rather longer than head, cleft to beyond eyes, very stout at base, tapering and a
little decurved toward tip, which however is not hooked, the tomia irregularly serrate, or
rather lacerate. An evident nasal groove. Nostrils abortive. Gular sac little developed,
but naked. Wings rather long, pointed. Tail long, stiff, wedge-shaped, 12-14 feathered.
Feet stout and serviceable, more nearly beneath centre of equilibrium than in some other
families of this order. General configuration somewhat that of a goose; body stout; neck
rather long ; head large, uncrested,; plumage compact. Marine.

Two carotids. Oil-gland disc-like. Coca very small. Gall-bladder large. Pneu-
maticity extreme, even to intermnuscular air-cells. Ambiens, femoro-caudal, and semitendi-
nosus present; accessories absent ; former with a peculiarity of insertion. The relationships
of the family are decidedly with the Cormorants.

Gannets are large heavy sea-birds of various parts of the world. There are only five or
six well-established species, of which the two following, with the S. piscator of the Indian
Ocean, and the Australian S. cyanops, are the principal ones. They are piscivorous, and feed
by plunging on their prey from on high, when they are completely submerged for a few
moments; but they do not appear to dive from the surface of the water like Cormorants. The
gait is‘firm; the flight vigorous and protracted, performed with alternate sailing and flapping.
Although so heavy, they swim lightly, owing to the remarkable pneumaticity of the body,
already noticed. They are highly gregarious; the common Gannet congregates to breed in
almost incredible numbers on rocky coasts and islands, of high latitudes, while the Booby
similarly assembles on the low shores of warmer seas. The nest is a rude bulky structure of
sticks and seaweed, placed on the rock or in low thick bushes; the egg, generally single, is
plain in color and encrusted with calcareous matter. Both sexes appear to incubate ; they are
alike in color, the young being different. .

SULA. (Norse sule,a booby.) Gannets. Character of the family, as above. The white
Gannet, type of Sula, differs subgenerically from the brown Boobies (Dysporus).

Analysis of Species.
White, with black primaries, head washed with amber-yellow ; bill not yellow; lores, sac, and feet black-
ish. Young spotted, oo ee eee Net BB is ORE BE Se eG . bassana 146

Brown, below from the neck white; pill ana feet yellow. Youngnotspotted ..... leucogastra 747°
S. bassa/na. (Of Bass Rock, Firth of Forth.) Common GanneT. WHITE GANNET.
Sotan Goosz. Adult ¢ 9: Bill pale grayish, tinged with greenish or bluish; the nasal
groove, lores and gular sac blackish, as are the feet; iris white. Plumage white, the prim-
aries black, the head washed with amber-yellow. Length 3 feet or more; extent 6 feet, more
or less; wing 17-21 inches; tail 9.00-10.00, pointed, 12-feathered ; bill along culmen 4, along
gape 6; tarsus 2.00; middle toe and claw 4.00. Young: Bill brownish, the lores livid bluish ;
feet dusky ; iris green. Plumage dark brown, spotted with white, below from the neck grayish-
white, each feather darker-edged (character much as in a young night-heron) ; wing-quills
and tail-feathers blackish. Atlantic Coast, swarming in summer at certain northern breeding
places, as at ‘‘Gannet Rock” in the Gulf of St. Lawrenee, 8. to the Gulf of Mexico in -winter.
Nest of seaweed; egg single, 3.00 x 2.00, pale greenish-blue flaked over with white chalky
substance. Young hatch naked, blackish, pot-bellied; then are covered with thick yellowish
down.
S. leucogas'tra. (Gr. Aeveds, leucos, white; yaornp, gaster, belly.) BRowN GANNET.
Boosy. Adult ¢ 9: Bill and bare spaces about head, and feet yellow, former paler or
flesh-color toward end. Iris white. Plumage dark brown, below white from the neck.
Young: Bill dusky; feet dark; plumage grayish-brown, paler below. Length about 30.00;

PELECANIDZ: PELICANS. 721

extent 48.00; wing 16.00; tail 8.00, pointed, 12-feathered ; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw
3.50; bill along culmen 3.75, along gape 5.00. 8S. Atlantic and Gulf States, very abundant,
swarming at its breeding places along the low shores and keys ; nest of sticks and weeds, in
bushes ; egg single; character as before, 2.50 «1.75.

54, Family PELECANIDZ: Pelicans.

Bill several times as long
as the head, comparatively
slender, but strong, straight,
broad, flattened, grooved
throughout, ending with
a distinct claw-like hook.
Mandibular rami joining
only at their apex; the long
broad interramal space, and
the throat, occupied by ap
enormous membranous sac.

_Nostrils abortive. Wings

extremely long, in the up-
per- and fore-arm portions, as well as the pinion, with very numerous remiges. Tail very
short, of 20 or more feathers. Feet short, very stout. Size large..

The remarkable pneumaticity of the body (shared however by the gannets) has been
already described. A principal osteological character is, that ‘‘ the inferior edge of the ossified
interorbital septum rises rapidly forward, so as to leave a space at the base of the skull, which
is filled by a triangular crest formed by the union of the greatly developed ascending processes
of the palatines.” The sternum is short and broad, with shallow emargination on each side
behind: the furculum is firmly anchylosed with it. The coca are an inch long. The tongue
is a mere rudiment. But the most obvious peculiarity of these birds is the immense skinny
bag hung to the bill, capable of holding several quarts when distended; its structure is as fol-
lows: The covering is ordinary skin, but very thin; the lining is skin modified somewhat like
mucous membrane; between these ‘‘ is interposed an equally thin layer, composed of two sets
of very slender muscular fibres, separated from each other, and running in opposite directions.
The outer fibres run in fascicles from the lower and inner edge of the mandible, those from its
base passing downward, those arising more anteriorly passing gradually more forward, and
teach the middle line of the pouch. The inner fibres have the same origin, and pass in a con-
trary direction, backwards and downwards. From the hyoid bone to the junction of the two
crura of the mandible, there extends a thin band of longitudinal muscular fibres, in the centre
of which is a cord of elastic tissue. By means of this apparatus, the sac is contracted, so as to
occupy but little space. When the bill is opened, the crura of the lower mandible separate from
each other to a considerable extent [in their continuity —not at the symphysis], by the action
of muscles inserted into their base, and the sac is expanded.” This organ is used like a dip-net,
to catch fish with ; when it is filled, the bird closes and throws up the bill, contracts the pouch,
letting the water run out of the corners of its mouth, and swallows the prey. Pelicans feed in
two ways; most of them, like our white one, scoop up fish as they swim along on the water ;
but the brown species plunges headlong into the water from on wing, like a gannet, and makes
a grab, often remaining submerged for a few seconds. Neither species often catches large fish ;
they prefer small fry of which several hundred may be required for a full meal. The prevalent
impression that the pouch serves to convey live fish, swimming in water, to the little pelicans
in the nest, is untrue; the young are fed with partially macerated fish disgorged by the parents

46

Fie. 501. — Bill of North American White Pelican.

722 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — STEGANOPODES.

from the crop. As Audubon remarks, it is doubtful whether a pelican could fly at all with its
burden so out of trim. ,

The gular pouch varies in size with the different species, reaching its greatest development
in the brown pelican, where it extends half-way down the neck in front, is a foot deep when
distended, and will hold a gallon. Besides this singular adjunct, the bill of our white pelican
has another curious structure, not found in other species. The culmen is surmounted near the
middle by a high thin upright comb or crest, the use of which is not known. It is found
during the breeding season alone, being shed and renewed in a manner analogous to the casting
of deer’s horns. Its structure explains how this can be: ‘‘ The crest-like excrescence on the
ridge of the upper mandible is not formed of bone, nor otherwise connected with the osseous
surface, which is smooth and continuous beneath it, than by being placed upon it, like any
other part of the skin; and when softened by immersion in a liquid may be bent a little to
either side. It is composed internally of erect slender plates of a fibrous texture, externally of
horny fibres, which are erect on the sides, and longitudinal on the broadened ridge ; these fibres
being continuous with the cutis and cuticle.”

Pelicans are found in most temperate and tropical countries, both coastwise and inland ;

' they are gregarious birds at all times, and gather in immense troops to breed. A large rude

749.

nest is prepared on the ground, or built of sticks in a low bush near the water; the eggs appear
to be one to three, plain dull whitish, with a thick roughened shell. The gait of these cum-
bersome birds is awkward and constrained; but their flight is easy, firm, and protracted, and
they swim lightly and gracefully, buoyed up by the interior air-sacs. The sexes are alike; the
young different ; most species are white, with yellow or rosy hue at times, and a crest or length-
ened feathers, at the breeding season; while nearly every one of them has a peculiar contour
of the feathering at the base of the bill, by which it may be known. There are only six un-
questionable species, although some authors admit eight or nine. The four exotic ones are:
P. onocrotalus of Europe, Asia, and Africa (including the P. minor and javanicus of authors),
with the frontal feathers extending in a point on the culmen; P. erispus of the same countries,
the largest of the genus, and P. rufescens (with philippinus) of various parts of the Old World,
in both of which the frontal outline is concave on the base of the culmen; and finally, the
Australian P. conspicillatus, in which a strip of feathers cuts off the naked cireumocular region
‘from the base of the bill. This is an entirely peculiar feature; and our white pelican shows
another, having the sides of the under mandible feathered at base for a short distance.
PELECA‘NUS. (Gr. pelecamus, a pelican.) PELICAN. Character as above.

. P. trachyrhyn’chus. (Gr. rpayis, trachus, rough; pvyxos, hrugchos, beak. Fig. 501.)

AMERICAN WHITE Petican. Adult § 9: Plumage white, with black primaries, their coverts,
alula, and many of the secondaries, the shafts of the quills white. Lengthened feathers of occiput
and breast, and some of the lesser wing-coverts, pale straw-yellow. Tail-feathers said to be
rosy at times; and a dark spot to appear on the occiput after the breeding season. Iris pearly
white, at times or in young, brown or dusky. Bill and feet ordinarily yellow; much reddened
in the breeding season, when the general tone of the bill is reddish salmon color, the under
mandible brighter than the upper, which has the ridge whitish ; pouch passing from livid
whitish anteriorly through yellow and orange to red at base; bare skin about eye orange; eye-
lids red; feet intense orange-red. Length 5 feet; extent 8-9 feet; wing 2 feet or more; bill
a foot or more; fore-arm about 15 inches ; tail 6.00, 24-feathered ; tibia bare 1.00; tarsus 4.50;
middle toe about 5.00. This magnificent bird ranges over temperate N. Am. at large, but
irregularly ; rare, casual, or wanting in Middle and Eastern States and beyond; S. Atlantic
and Gulf States, common; and generally in the West abundant in suitable places, inland as
well as coastwise, up to 61° N. at least. Breeds in colonies, sometimes of vast extent; nest
merely a heap of earth; egg single.

P. fus‘eus. (Lat. fuscus, brown.) AMERICAN Brown PELICAN. Adult ¢: Bill mottled

- PHALACROCORACIDA: CORMORANTS. 723

with light and dark colors, much tinged in places with carmine ; eyes white ; bare space around
them blue; eyelids red; pouch blackish; feet black. Plumage dark and much variegated.
Head mostly white, tinged with yellow on top, the white extending down the neck as a border-
ing of the pouch and somewhat beyond ; rest of neck dark chestnut. Upper parts dusky, each
feather pale or whitish-centred, the paler gray color prevailing on the wing-coverts. Prima-
ries blackish, their shafts basally white; secondaries dark, pale-edged; tail-feathers gray.
Lower parts grayish-brown, striped with white on the sides; the lower fore-neck varied with
-yellow, chestnut, and blackish. @ said to lack the chestuut coloring of the neck (?) Length
about 4.50 feet; extent 6.50 feet; wing 2 feet; bill a foot or more, the gular pouch extending
about the same distance along the neck. Tail 7.00, 22-feathered; tarsus 2.50; middle toe and -
claw 4.50. The bill and soft parts very variable in color with age or other circumstance. Young
lack the special coloration of the neck, which is simply dark brown. At first, covered with
whitish down. The feathers of the neck of the adult are peculiarly soft and downy ; there is
a slight nuchal crest, with stiff bristly feathers on the forehead, and lengthened acute feathers
on the lower foreneck and breast. The brown pelican is exclusively maritime, inhabiting both
coasts of America from tropical regions to Carolina and California. It plunges for its prey like
a gannet, not scooping it up swimming like the white pelican. Breeds in colonies, indiffer-
ently on the ground or on bushes and low trees. Eggs 2-3, white, chalky, elliptical, 3.00 x
2.00.

55. Family PHALACROCORACID4: Cormorants.

Bill about as long as head, stout
or slender, more or less nearly terete,
always strongly hooked at the end;
tomia generally found irregularly
jagged, but not truly serrate ; a long,
narrow, nasal groove, but nostrils
obliterated in the adult state; gape
reaching below the eyes, which are set in naked skin.
Gular pouch small, but forming an evident naked space
under the bill and on the throat, variously encroached
--FB upon by the feathers. Wings short for the order, stiff
and strong, the 2d primary usually longer than the 3d,
both these exceeding the lst. Tail rather long, large,
more or less fan-shaped, of 12-14 very stiff, strong
feathers, denuded to the base by extreme shortness of
the coverts; thus almost ‘ scansorial” in structure,
recalling that of a woodpecker or creeper, and used in a
similar way, as a support in standing, or an aid in

_ Fic. 502.—Kneejoint of Phalacrocoraz scrambling over rocks and bushes. The body is com-

= sSNGRL WE fein: ER pact and heavy, with a long sinuous neck; the general
Fb, fibula. configuration, and especially the far backward set of the
legs, is much like that of pygopodous birds. While other Steganopodes can stand with the
body more or less nearly approaching a horizontal position, the cormorants are forced into a
nearly upright posture, when the tail affords with the feet a tripod of support. They also, like
the birds just mentioned, dive and swim under water in pursuit of their prey, using their wings
_ for submarine progression, which is not the case with the other families, excepting Plotide.
In both these,families the body is not in the least pneumatic under the skin — quite the reverse
of Pelicans and Gannets. :
Among osteological characters, aside from the general figure of the skeleton, a long bony

i aa

’

724 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— STEGANOPODES.

style in the nape, in the position of the kgamentum nuche of many animals, and articulated with
the occiput, isthe most remarkable (fig. 505). It occurs in the Anhinga also, but is there much
smaller. The desmognathous structure is seen in its highest development; the palatines being
not only soldered, but sending down a keel along their line of union; the interorbital septum is

very defective, with hori-
zontal inferior border (a
general character of the
order except in the Peli-
cans). The sternum and
shoulder- girdle, and the
knee, are shown in figs. 504,
502. In the knee-joint,
there is a bulky free patella,
coexistent with a short cne-
tial apophysis or rotular
process of the tibia, but per-
fectly distinct therefrom, as
in Podiceps. The muscles
of the legs are as in Sulide.
The pterylosis agrees essen-
tially with the ordinal ptery-
lographic characters, but the
plumage is peculiar in cer-
tain details. Excepting a
few speckled species, and
some others that are largely white below,
the plumage is glossy or lustrous black, often
highly iridescent with green, purple, and violet
: tints, commonly uniform on the head, neck, and

Fic. 503.—The nest of the Cormorant (P. bieris- under parts, but on the back and wing-coverts,
tate). (Dealgned Uy HW. JElliot) where the feathers are sharp-edged and distinct,
the shade is more apt to be coppery or bronzy, each feather with well-defined darker ‘border.
This concerns, however, only the adult plumage, which is the same in both sexes; the young
are plain brownish or blackish. The Cormorants have other special featherings, generally of
a temporary character, assumed at the breeding season and lost’ soon after; these are curious

PHALACROCORACIDZ: CORMORANTS. 725

long filamentous feathers (considered by Nitzsch filoplumaceous), on the head and neck, and
even, in some cases, on the upper and under parts too. These feathers are commonly white, as

3
iI

Ke}

E

a

n
4
w
A

b
a

2
5
s
3
a
q
£
&
a

is also a large silky flank-patch acquired by several
species. Many Cormorants are also crested with
ordinary long slender feathers; the crest is often
double, and when so, the two crests may be either
one on each side of the head, or they may follow
each other on the middle line of the hind head
and nape. Our species illustrate all these various
featherings. The naked parts about the head
vary with the species and afford good characters,

SSS

Fia. 504. — Sternum and shoulder-girdle of Phalacrocoraz bicristatus, nat. size.

Fie. 505. — Skull of Phalacrocorax bicristatus, showing sto. occipital style or nuchal bone; nat. size. (From
nature by Dr. R. W. Shufeldt. The style is somewhat tilted upward from its natural position.)

726 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — STEGANOPODES.

especially considering the shape of the pouch; the skin is usually brightly colored, and some-
times carunculate. The eyes, as a rule, are green —a color not common among birds. These
birds are highly psilopzdic as well as altricial; the young are for some time blind, naked, and
perfectly helpless.

‘Twenty-five species of Cormorants may be considered established. Their study is difficult,
owing to the great changes in plumage, the high normal variability in size, and their close
inter-relation, which is such that the single genus Graculus does not appear capable of well-
founded division. Species are found all over the world, excepting the uttermost polar regions,
and are usually very abundant in individuals; they are all very much alike in their habits.
Many are maritime, but others range over fresh waters as well. They are eminently grega-
rious, especially in the breeding season, when they congregate by thousands —the boreal
kinds generally on rock-begirt coasts and islands, those of warm countries in the dense fringes
of shrubbery. They often migrate in large serried ranks. The nest is rude and bulky; the

' eggs are commonly two or three, of elliptical form and pale greenish color, overlaid with a

white chalky substance. The Cormorants feed principally upon fish, and their voracity is
proverbial, though probably no greater than that of allied birds. Under some circumstances
they show an intelligent docility ; witness their semi-domestication by the Chinese, who train
them to fish for their masters, a close collar being slipped around the neck to prevent them
from swallowing the booty.

303. PHALACRO/CORAX. (Gr. gadaxpoxdpat, phalakrokorax ; Lat. phalacrocoraz, « cormo-
rant, sea-crow, corvus marinus: gadaxpos, phalakros, bald, and xopaf, korax, a raven.)
Cormorants. Character as above said. There appears to be but one genus in the family,
but several groups of species may be cited subgenerically. There are three such groups among
our species, respectively exemplified by P. carbo, P. dilophus, and P. violaceus.

Tail of 14 feathers. aici siaadiet
Gular sac heart-shaped behind, bordered with white eS Be ie doc lage ie! nae Dat wee carbo 750
Tail of 12 feathers,
Gular sac convex or nearly straight-edged behind.
No white border behind gular sac.

Lateral crests of curly feathers on sides of head. a
Largest: length about 36.00. Developing white filaments on head in breeding season.

N.W. Coast... cincinnatus 752
Medium: length 30. 00-33. 00. Scarcely or not developing arlitte filaments on head in breed-
ing season. At large : é . . dilophus 75%
Small: length 30.00 or less. ' Probably not developing white filaments. S. E. Coast
Jloridanus 753
Small: size of the last. Developing white filaments. S.W.Coast. . . albociliatus 53a
A border of white feathers behind the sac.
Very small: length about 24.00 . . fs ig < ‘ mexicanus T54

Gular sac heart-shaped behind. (No lateral crests.)
Sac dark-blue, bordered by a fawn-colored gorget. Feathers of back distinct, dark-edged
penicillatus 755
Sac not bordered with a colored gorget. No distinct colored edges of feathers of back.
Shafts of tail-feathers said to be white . . . ceer ee ae ree perspicillatus 756
Shafts of tail-feathers not white.
Frontal feathers not reaching bill, which is entirely surrounded with red skin; base of

BUT bOe 2 gg lat a . 3 bicristatus TST
Frontal feathers reaching bill.

Larger: wing 10.00 or more . Sprig: abe a . Ss . violaceus 758

Smaller: wing under 10.00 ...... ma at oe : . bairdi 159

750. P.car’bo. (Lat. carbo, carbon: from the black color.) Common CorRMORANT. SHAG.
Adult ¢ 9: Tail of 14 feathers (here only among our species). Gular sac heart-shaped
behind. Bill blackish, whitish along edges and at base below. Iris green. Skin about eyes
livid greenish, orange under the eye; sac yellow, bordered behind by a gorget of white
feathers. General plumage glossy greenish-black ; feathers of back and wing-coverts distinct,

151.

152.

153.

PHALACROCORACIDA): CORMORANTS. 727

bronzy-gray, black-edged; quills and tail grayish-black; feet black. In summer, when
breeding, a white flank-patch, numerous long thready white plumes scattered on head and
neck, and a small black occipital and nuchal crest. Length 36.00; extent 60.00; wing
12.00-14.00; tail 6.00-7.00; tarsus over 2.00 ; bill 3.40 along ridge, 4.00 along the gape. In
winter uo crests or white feathers on neck or flanks. Young: Bill grayish-brown, black on
top and at tip; bare skin and sac yellow. Top of head and hind neck brownish-black ; back
and wing-coverts brownish-gray, the feathers with dark margins, some of them also edged
finally with whitish. Throat brownish-white, and under parts generally whitish, blackish
along the sides, dusky under the wings and across lower belly. The naked young in the nest
are unpleasant livid purplish objects, with protuberant bellies, and large feet; the first down is
blackish. Eggs 3, sometimes 4, bluish-green coated with white chalky substance, 2.60 < 1.75;
nests of sticks, moss, and seaweeds, very filthy and offensive. Atlantic Coast of Europe and
North America ; breeds in great numbers on the rocky shores of Labrador and Newfoundland ;
S. to the Middle States in winter.

P. dilo/phus. (Gr. dis, dis, twice; Addos, lophos, crest. Fig. 506.) DouBLE-cRESTED
Cormorant. ‘Tail of 12 feathers. Gular sac convex behind. No colored gorget. Glossy

Fie. 506. — Double-crested Cormorant, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

greenish-black ; feathers of the back and wings coppery-gray, black-shafted, black-edged.
Adult with curly black lateral crests in the breeding season, but few if any other filamentous
white ones, over the eyes and along the sides of the neck; white flank-patch not observed in
any specimens examined, probably not occurring; iris green; gular sac and lores orange.
Winter spec. with bill bright yellow, blackening along culmen, gular sac red anteriorly, ochrey-
yellow posteriorly ; legs dull black. Length 30.00-33.00 inches; extent 50.00; wing 12.00-
13.00; tail 6.00-7.00; bill along gape 3.50; tarsus a little over 2.00. Young: Plain dark
brown, paler or grayish (even white on the breast) below, without head-plumes. N. Am., at
large, the commonest species, the only one diffused over the interior ; eggs 3-4, 2.50 x 1.55.
P. d. cincinna/tus. (Lat. cincinnatus, having curly hair.) WHITE-TUFTED CORMORANT.
General character of the preceding, of which it appears to be a large northern variety. White
lateral crests, of a superciliary bundle of long curly filamentous feathers. Larger: size of
P. carbo. Alaska.

P. d. florida/nus. FLoRIpA Cormorant. Similar to, smaller than P. dilophus. Length
30.00 or less; extent 45.00; wing 19.00 or less; tail 6.00 or less; tarsus a little under 2.00;
but bill as large if not larger; gape nearly 4.00. The plumage is exactly the same. There
are said to be certain differences in the life-colors of the bills (blue instead of yellow on under
mandible and edges of upper— Audubon), but none show in my specimens. This is simply
a localized southern race of dilophus, smaller in general dimensions, with relatively larger bill,

T53a.

754.

155.

156.

7157.

728 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — STEGANOPODES.

as usual in such cases; the sac seems to be more extensively denuded. Resident on the
Floridan and Gulf coast, breeding by thousands on the mangrove bushes; in summer, ranging
up the Mississippi valley to Ohio, and along the coast to North Carolina.

P. d, albocilia/‘tus. (Ridgw. MS.) Small: like floridanus, but with white nuptial crests as
in cincinnatus. Pacific coast, breed from the Farallone Islands to Cape St. Lucas.

P. mexica/nus. MExIcAN CorMORANT. Resembling the last; lustre more intense, rather
violet-purplish than green ; long filamentous white feathers on head and neck (but no definite
black lateral crests?) ; sac orange, white-edged with feathers. Small: length about 24.00;
extent 40.00; wing about 10.00; tail 6.00-6.50, thus relatively long; tarsus under 2.00;
gape of bill under 3.00. The sac is not strongly convex in outline behind, the feathers
passing across in a straight or even convex line. Central America and West Indies; Texas;
up the Mississippi to Illinois and Kansas.

P. penicilla‘tus. (Lat. penicillatus, pencilled, brushy.) Turrep CoRnMORANT. BRANDT's
CorMORANT. Deep lustrous green, changing to violet or steel-blue on the neck; the back
proper like the under parts, but the scapulars and wing-coverts showing narrow dark edgings
of the individual feathers (much less conspicuous than in any of the foregoing species; nothing
of the sort is seen in any of the following ones). Sac dark blue, surrounded by a gorget of
fawn-colored or mouse-brown plumage; heart-shaped behind, owing to a narrow pointed forward
extension of the feathers on the middle line, as in P. carbo, but largely naked, the feathers ex-
tending on it little if any in advance of those on the lower mandible. White filamentous plumes,
2 inches or more long, straight and stiffish, spring in a series down each side of the neck;
afew others are irregularly scattered over the back of the neck; many others, still longer,
grow on the upper part of the back. No black crests, nor white flank-patch, observed.
Wing nearly 12.00; tail scarcely or not 6.00, thus relatively very shorts bill along culmen
9.75; tarsus 2.50. Does not particularly resemble any other species here described. Ydung:
Blackish-brown, rustier below, the belly grayish; scapulars and wing-coverts with edges
of the feathers paler than the centres; gorget fawn- celoned, as in the adult (P. townsendii!
Aud.). Pacifie Coast, U. 8., common.

P. perspicilla‘tus. (Lat. pargactinnnd. conspicuous, aus Pauas’ CoRMORANT.
Deep lustrous green, above and below, with blue gloss on the neck, and rich purplish on the
scapulars and wing-coverts, the dorsal feathers not sharp-edged nor bordered, as in all the
foregoing. Shafts of tail-feathers (said to be) white; if this holds, it is a unique character
among our species. Adult with coronal and occipital crests (not lateral paired crests); a
white flank-patch in the breeding season; face and neck with long sparse straw-yellow
plumes; sac orange, heart-shaped ; bill blackish. Large: length 36.00; wing 13.00; tail 7.00?
9.00? tarsus 3.00; bill (along gape?) 4.00, very stout, two-thirds of an inch deep at base.
N. Pacific Coast. I have not seen this ‘Species, which seems to be well marked. There are
no known specimens in this country, and none of the ornithologists who have lately visited
Alaskan shores have found the bird.

P. bicrista/tus. (Lat. bicristatus, twice-crested. Figs. 502, 508, 504, 505.) Rep-FACED
Cormorant. Frontal feathers not reaching base of the culmen, the Dill being entirely sur-
rounded by naked red skin which also encircles the eyes, somewhat carunculate, forming a kind
of wattle on each side of the chin; base of under mandible blue ; feet black, blotched with
yellow. Crown with a median bronzy black crest, and nape with another, in the same line.
In the specimens examined, a large white flank-patch, but few if any white plumes on neck.
Plumage richly iridescent, mostly green, but violet and steel-blue on the neck, purplish, violet,
and bronzy on the back and wings, the feathers there without definite dark edgings. Length
33.00; extent 48.00; wing 12.00; tarsus 2.97; gape of bill 3.00. Alaska, both on the coast
and islands; swarming on the Seal Islands of Behring’s Sea, where resident. Nests on the
rocky cliffs; habits in all respects those of other species. Eggs as usual 3-4, 2.50 X 1.50.

158.

159.

PHALACROCORACIDA): CORMORANTS. 729

P. viola/ceus. (Lat. violaceus, violet.) VIOLET-GREEN CorMmoRANT. Frontal feathers
reaching culmen; gular sac inconspicuous, very extensively feathered, the feathers reaching on
the sides of the under mandible to below the eyes, and running in a point on the sae far in
advance of this. Small: length 24.00-28.00; extent about 40.00; wing 10.00-11.00; tail
6.00 or less; tarsus 2.00 or less; bill along gape 3.00 or less, very slender, and smooth on
the sides, its depth at base about 0.33. Deep lustrous green, including the back, the feathers
of which are not margined; the scapulars, wing-coverts, and sides of the body iridescent with
purplish or coppery, the neck with rich violet and blue; gular sac orange; feet black. Two
median lengthwise crests as in the last two species. Among the specimens before me, one
has no white Hank-patch, but a few white scattered plumes on the neck; another, marked 9,
has none of these, but a large snowy tuft on the flanks. Pacific Coast of N. Am., very abun-
dant in suitable places along the Alaskan coast; breeding on cliffs. (P. resplendens, Aud.)
P. v. bair'di. (To S. F. Baird.) Barrp’s Cormorant. Like the last; very small, the
wing being under 10.00, the tarsus 1.67, the gape 2.67; the bill extremely slender. Has
both the flank-tufts and the neck-plumes; the sac in life said to be dusky studded with red.
Possibly represents a small southern race, bearing somewhat the relation to violaceus that
floridanus does to dilophus. Farallone Islands, Cala.

56. Family PLOTIDZ: Darters.

Bill about twice as long as the head, straight, slender, very acute, paragnathous, the
toinia with fine serratures. Gular sac moderate, naked. Nostrils minute, entirely obliterated
in the adult. Wings moderate, the 3d quill longest. Tail rather long, stiff, broad and fan-
shaped, of 12 feathers widening towards the end, the outer web of the middle pair curiously
crimped (in our species).

There is an occipital style, as in cormorants, but it is very small. There are remarkable
peculiarities of the cervical vertebra, in their conformation and articulation, the passage of
tendons through bony eyelets, etc., a mechanism producing the strong kink observable
near the middle of the neck, and the ability of the bird to thrust forward and retract the head.
There are 20 cervical vertebrae in P. anhinga. The digestive system shows a remarkable
feature ; instead of the lower part of the cesophagus being occupied by the proventricular
glands, these are placed in a small distinct sac on the right side of the gizzard, which, as
in other Steganopodes, develops a special pyloric cavity, the orifice of which ‘is protected
by a mat of lengthy hair-like processes, much like cocoa-uut fibre, which nearly half fills
the second stomach.” There is a single small coecum, as in herons. The tongue is very
rudimentary. The carotid is single in P. anhinga. Sternum as in Cormorants.

The darters are birds of singular appearance, somewhat like a cormorant, but much more
slightly built, and with exceedingly long slender neck and small constricted head that seems
to taper directly into the bill, the head, neck, and bill resembling those of .a heron. As in the
Cormorants, there are long slender feathers on the neck ; the sexes are commonly distinguish-
able, but the 9 is said sometimes to resemble the ¢. Other changes of plumage appear
to be considerable, but not well made out. The feet are short, and placed rather far back,
but the birds perch with ease. Unlike most of the order, they are not maritime, shunning
the seacoast, dwelling in the most impenetrable swamps of warm countries. They fly swiftly,
and dive with amazing ease and celerity. They are timid and vigilant birds; when alarmed
they drop from their perch into the water below, noiselessly and with scarcely a ripple of
the surface, and swim beneath the surface to a safe distance before reappearing. When
surprised on the water, they have the curious habit of sinking quietly backward, like grebes;
and they often swim with the body submerged, only the head and feck in sight, looking like
some strange kind of water serpent. They feed on fish, which they do not dive down upon,

i

730 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —STEGANOPODES.

but dive for and pursue under water like cormorants and loons. The eggs are three or four,
pale bluish, with white chalky incrustation. There are only three or four species: the
African P. levaillanti ; the P. melanogaster of Southern Asia, with the Australian P. nova-
hollandia, if distinct from the last; with the following:

304, PLO/TUS. (Gr. mAords, plotos, swimming well.) Darrers. Character as ioe.

760. P. anhin’/ga, (Portuguese anhina, Lat. angwina, snaky.) Darter. ANHINGA. SNAKE-
BIRD. WATER-TURKEY. @: Glossy greenish-black ; a broad silver gray wing-band formed
by most of the coverts; lower neck behind spotted, and scapulars and tertiaries striped
with silvery-gray; tail pale-tipped; filamentous feathers of neck purplish-ash. 9: with
parts of the head, neck, and back brown, the jugulum and breast fawn-color sharply
margined with rich brown. Bill yellow, dusky-greenish. on the tidge and tip; sac orange ;
eye-space livid; eye carmine; feet dusky and yellow. Length about 36.00; extent nearly
4.00 feet ; wing 13.00-14.00 ; tail 10.00-11.00; bill 3.25 along culmen; tarsus 1. 33. S. Atlantic
and Gulf States, common; in summer to North Carolina, and up the Mississippi to Illinois and
Kansas ; New Mexico. Nest bulky, placed on trees and bushes over the water, of sticks,
leaves, roots, moss, etc. ; eggs 3-4, like cormorant eggs in color and texture, but narrow and
elongate, 2.60 X 1.25. Young with buff-colored or white woolly down. Fed in the nest
by regurgitation, like cormorants.

57. Family TACHYPETIDZ: Frigates.

Bill longer than the head,
epignathous, stout, straight,
wider than high at the base,
thence gradually compressed
to the strongly hooked extrem-
ity, where the under as well as
upper mandible is decurved.
Nostrils very small, linear,
almost entirely closed, in a
long narrow groove. Gular
sac small, but capable of con-
siderable distension. Wings
exceedingly long and pointed,
of about 34 remiges, of which
the 10 primaries are very pow-
erful, with stout quadrangular
shafts; upper and middle por-
tion of the wings greatly
lengthened. Tail very long,
deeply forked, of 12 strong
feathers. Feet exceedingly
small, the tarsus, in particu-
lar, extraordinarily short, feath-
ered; webbing restricted, that
between inner and next toe
very slight; middle claw pec-
tinate. Bulk of body slight
compared with'the great length
of the wings and tail. Here
only in this order is found the

Fria. 507.— Frigate, with Tropic Bird in the distance. (From Michelet.)

805.

161.

PHALACROCORACIDZ: CORMORANTS. 731

os wnematum, a peculiar skull-bone occurring in nearly all the petrels, the turacous (Musopha-
gid@), and many cuckoos; and here only the stomach develops no pyloric cavity. Coca 2,
but very small. Sternum very broad for its length, the furculum firmly anchylosed, the poste-
rior border entire. The femoro-caudal and ambiens are present ; the accessory femoro-caudal,
semitendinosus, and its accessory are absent.

The frigates are maritime and pelagic birds of most warm parts of the globe. Their
general contour is unique among water-birds, in the immense length and sweep of the wings,
length of the forked tail and extreme smallness of the feet. In command of wing they are
unsurpassed, and but few birds approach them in this respect. They are more nearly
independent of land than any other birds excepting albatrosses and petrels, being often seen
hundreds of miles at sea, and delight to soar at an astonishing elevation. They cannot

‘dive, and scarcely swim or walk; food is procured by dashing down on wing with unerring

aim, and by harassing gulls, terns, and other less active or weaker birds until they are forced
to disgorge or drop their prey. Their habit is gregarious, especially during the breeding
season, when thousands congregate to nest in low
thick bushes by the water’s edge. The nest is a
shallow flat structure of sticks; the eggs, two or
three in number, are greenish-white with a thick
smooth shell. ‘‘ The young are covered with yel-
lowish-white down, and look at first as if they had
no feet. They are fed by regurgitation, but grow
tardily, and do not leave the nest until they are able
to follow their parents on wing.” “The following is
the principal if not the only species.
TACHY’PETES. (Gr. rayumérns, tachupetes, fly-
ing rapidly.) Frigates. Character as above.

T. a/quilus. (Lat. aquilus, dark, swarthy. Figs. . i
507, 508.) Fricgare. MAN-or-war Birp. Fre. 508. — Gular pouch of Frigate.
brownish-black, glossed with green or purplish, duller on the belly, wings showing brown
and gray; 9 with white on neck and breast. Length about 3.50 feet; extent 7.00-8.00;
wing 2.00; tail 1.50; bill 5 or 6 inches; tarsi 1 inch or less! S. Atlantic and Gulf Coast.
Eggs 2-8, 2.90 x 2.00. :

58. Family PHAETHONTIDZ: Tropic Birds.

Bill about as long as the head, stout, straight, compressed, tapering, acute, paragnathous.
Gular sac rudimentary, almost completely feathered. Nostrils small, linear, but remaining
patulous. Tail with the two middle feathers in the adult filamentous and extraordinarily
prolonged, the rest short and broad. Among anatomical characters it is to be noted that the
muscles of the leg are asin Laridg, as might be expected from the outward resemblance of
these birds to terns; they having the accessory semitendinosus, lacking in other families of
the order.

The tropic bird resembles a large stout tern in general figure; the bill, especially, being
almost exactly like that of a tern. The principal external peculiarity is the development
of the middle tail-feathers ; the feathering of the gular sac and the permanent patulance of
the nostrils are other features. They are graceful birds on the wing, capable of protracted
flight, venturing far from land. They are gregarious at all times, and nest in communities
along coasts and on islands, in rocky places or among low trees and bushes. As implied in
their name, they are birds of the torrid zone, though in their extensive wanderings they visit
Southern seas, and have even been reported from beyond latitude 49° N. There are but three.
well-determined species: P. flavirostris, P. ethereus, and P. rubricauda.

306.
162.

163.

7382 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES.

PHAETHON,. (Gr. acbov, Phaéthon, son of the sun.) Tropic Brrps. Character as above.
P. xthe/reus. (Lat. ethereus, pertaining to the upper air.) RED-BILLED Tropic Birp.
Bill red; tarsi and part of toes light colored; rest of toes black. Plumage pure white, on
nearly all the upper parts finely barred with black; black markings on sides under wings; a
transocular fascia, outer webs and part of inner webs of most of the primaries, most of several
inner secondaries, and most of the shafts of the tail-feathers, black, the shafts of the long middle
pair, however, white in most of their extent. Length about 36.00 inches, including the long
tail-feathers ; without these, about 18.00; wing 12.00; long middle tail-feathers up to 18.00;
tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.75 ; bill 2.50 along culmen, nearly 1.00 deep at base. Trop-

ical and subtropical America, accidental in N. Am.; said to have straggled to Newfoundland *

in one instance (Preke, Pr. Roy. Soc. Dublin, 1879).

P. flaviros’‘tris. (Lat. flavirostris, yellow-billed.) YELLOW-BILLED Tropic Birp. Bill
and tarsi yellow ; toes black. Plumage white, tinged with salmon or rosy on the under parts
and long tail-feathers; lacking the barring with black of the last species, but with definite
black areas —a transocular fascia, an oblique band on lesser wing-coverts and thence on scap-
ulars and inner secondaries, shaft-stripes on outer five or six primaries, stripes on the flanks,
and most of the shafts of the tail-feathers, including the middle pair. Smaller than the last;
development of middle tail-feathers about the same; wing 11.00; bill notably smaller, only
about 2.00 along culmen and 0.75 deep at base. This is the species figured by Audubon (8vo,
pl. 427) under the wrong name of P. ethereus, which belongs to the foregoing. Tropical and
subtropical America, rare or casual in the U. §., as on the Gulf coast. Has strayed to Western
New York in one instance (Cowes, Bull. Nutt. Club, v, 1880, p. 63).

XII. Order LONGIPENNES: Long-winged Swimmers.

Long-winged Natatores with open nostrils and small free or no hind toe. — Wings long,
pointed, reaching when closed beyond the base, in many cases beyond the end, of the tail, which
is usually lengthened and of less than 20 rectrices (oftenest 12). Legs more or less perfectly
beneath centre of equilibrium when the body is in the horizontal position ; the crura more nearly
free from the body than in other Natatores, if not completely external. Anterior toes palmate ;
hallux never united with the inner toe, highly elevated, directly posterior, very small, rudi-
mentary, or absent; tibiee naked below. Bill of variable form, but never extensively membra-
nous nor lamellate, the covering horny throughout, sometimes discontinuous. Nostrils variable,
but never abortive. No gular pouch. Altricial.

This order, which may be recognized among web-footed birds by the foregoing external
characters, is less substantially put together than either of the two preceding, —not that its
components are not sufficiently related to each other, but because the essential points of structure
are shared to a considerable extent by other groups. Thus the osteological resemblances of
longipennine birds with loons, auks, and plover, are quite close, while the digestive system
agrees in general characters with that of other fish-eating birds. In some of the lower mem-
bers of the order, the tibia develops an apophysis, as in the loons; while even in external
characters, one genus at least (Halodroma) resembles the Alcide. It is not certain that the
order must not be broken up, or rather enlarged and differently defined, to include some of the
genera now ranged under Pygopodes.

The palate has the schizognathous structure; ‘the maxillo-palatines are usually lamellar
and concavo-convex, but in the Procellariide they become tumid and spongy” (Hucley) ;
basypterygoid processes may be wanting, but they are certainly present in many cases. The
nasal bones are schizorhinal in Laride, holorhinal in Procellariide. There is apparently one
pair of syringeal muscles throughout the order. The oesophagus is capacious and distensible ;
there is no special crop; the proventiculus is a bulging of the gullet; the gizzard is small and

LARIDZ: GULLS, TERNS, ETC. 733

little muscular ; the ceca are variable; the cloaca is large. Certain genera offer peculiarities
of this general type of alimentary canal. According to Nitzsch, the pterylosis of the gulls
‘approaches very closely that of the Scolopacide, and can hardly be distinguished therefrom
with certainty by any character.” In the terns, ‘‘in consequence of the slender and elegant
form of the body, the tracts are very narrow, and perfectly scolopacine.” The jagers differ
“in having the outer branch of the inferior tract united with the main stem in the first part of
its course, and all the tracts still broader and stronger than in” the gulls; while in the petrels,
“the tract formation of the jigers is elevated into the type of a group, undergoing scarcely
any change in the form of the inferior tract, but showing some little modification of the dorsal
tract.”

As here constituted, the order embraces two superfamilies or suborders, to be known by
the character of the nostrils; both are well represeuted in this country, where occur all the
leading genera excepting Halodroma.

19. SusorpeR GAVIA: SxiT-nosep Lonewmnes.
The character of this group is the same as that of its single

59. Family LARIDA. Gulls, Terns, etc.

Nostrils not tubular (linear, linear-oblong, oval or drop-shaped), sub-basal or median,
lateral, pervious. The hallux, though very small and elevated, with its tip hardly touching
the ground, is, except in Rissa, better developed than in the petrels. The habitat is fluviatile,
lacustrine and maritime, rather than pelagic. The family contains four leading genera, each
of which may be assumed as the basis of a subfamily ; all four occur in North America. Fuller
characters are: Bill of moderate length, entire, or furnished with a cere, the upper mandible
longer than, as long as, or shorter than the under; the culmen convex; the commissure very
large, the cutting edges without lamelle, the symphysis of the inferior mandibular rami com-
plete for a considerable distance, an eminence being formed at their junction. No gular sac.
Feathers usually extending farther on the sides of the upper inandible than on the culmen, and
farther between the rami than on the sides of the under mandible. Nostrils linear or oval;
direct, pervious, lateral, opening on the basal half of the bill. Eyes of moderate size, placed
about over the angle of the mouth. Wings long, broad, strong, pointed, with little or no con-
cavity. Primaries very long, more or less acute, the first longest, the rest rapidly graduated.
Secondaries numerous, short, broad, with rounded or excised tips. Tertials of moderate length,
straight, rather stiff. Legs placed well forward on the abdomen, more or less perfectly ambu-
latorial. Thighs entirely covered and concealed. Tibiz projecting ; feathered above; a con-
siderable portion below naked, covered with more or less dense, sometimes reticulated, skin.
Tarsi of moderate length or rather short ; compressed ; rather slender ; anteriorly transversely
scutellate, posteriorly and laterally reticulate. Anterior toes of moderate length, the middle
usually about equal to the tarsus; the outer shorter than the middle, intermediate between it
and the inner; scutellate superiorly; all of normal number of segmeuts (3, 4, 5). Hallux
present ; very small, short, elevated above the plane of the other toes; entirely free and dis-
connected ; of the normal number of segments (2) — except in Rissa. Webs broad and full,
extending to the claws; their surfaces finely reticulated, their edges usually more or less incised,
sometimes rounded. Claws fully developed, compressed, curved, more or less acute, the edge
of the middle dilated, but not serrated. Tail very variable. Body generally rather full, and
sometimes slender. Neck rather long. Head of moderate size. Plumage soft, close, thick ;
its colors simple— white, black, brown, or pearl-blue predominating ; bright tints hardly found,
except on the bill or feet, or as a temporary condition; the sexes alike in color, but the plumage
varying greatly with age and season. Eggs generally three, light-colored, with numerous

307.

164.

734 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVIZ.

heavy dark blotches. Nidification normally terrestrial; reproduction altricial; young ptilo

peedic.
Analysis of Subfamilies.

Bill epignathous, cered. (Jagers). . Revie vase Se ey RSE eae See Cae case ‘ LESTRIDINE
Bill epignathous, not cered. (Gulls). . . . . +1... se ea OAD Sak ie as es Ge re . LaRginz
Bill paragnathous. (Terns) .. ..... be tes Es a Sg dd 2 fae & STERNINE
Bill hypognathous. (Skimmers) ....... food. fe Jen Gh . . . . BEYNCHOPINZ

70. Subfamily LESTRIDINA: Jagers, or Skua Culls.

Covering of bill discontinuous, the upper mandible being saddled with a large horny
“cere,” beneath the edges of which the nostrils open (unique, among water-birds) ; bill epigna-
thous. Tail nearly square, but the middle pair of feathers abruptly long-exserted. Feet
strong ; tibiee naked below, the podotheca granular or otherwise roughened behind, scutellate
in front; webs full; claws large, curved, acute. Certain pterylegraphic characters have been
already noted. A leading anatomical peculiarity in the large size of the cca, as compared
with the cases of the other subfamilies. Another is that the sternum is single-notched behind,
there being two notches on each side in the other subfamilies. There is but one genus, and
only four species are well determined. They belong more particularly to the northern hemi-
sphere, although some also inhabit southern seas; they mostly breed in boreal regions, but
wander extensively at other seasons. They inhabit sea coasts, and also large inland waters;
the nidification resembles that of the gulls; eggs 2-3, dark-colored, variegated. The sexes
are alike ; the young different, excepting one species; there is also a particular melanotice plum-
age, apparently a normal special condition. At first the central tail-feathers do not project,
and they grow tardily. The skua gulls are eminently rapacious, whence their name of ‘‘ jager”
(hunter) ; they habitually attack and harass terns and the smaller gulls, uutil these weaker and
less spirited birds are forced to drop or disgorge their prey. Their flight is vigorous ; lashing
the air with the long tail, they are able to accomplish the rapid and varied evolutions required
for the successful practice of piracy. Thus in their leading traits they are marine Raptores ;
whilst the cered bill furnishes a curious analogy to the true birds of prey. .
STERCORA/RIUS. (Lat. stercorarius, a scavenger.) JAgerRs. Character of the subfamily,
as above. The species of Megalestris differs decidedly from the rest, and might form a genus
apart.

Analysis of Species.
Bill shorter than middle toe without claw; tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw ; central rectrices little
projecting, broad to the tip. (MJegalestris.)
Of great size, and robust form. Billabout2incheslong. . . . +... .. se. . skua 764

Smaller; bill and tarsi relatively longer than in the foregoing, latter not shorter than middle toe and claw;
central rectrices finally projecting far beyond the rest.

Central rectrices projecting about 4 inches, broad to the end 5 +. 4 + + « pomatorhinus 765
Central rectrices projecting about 4 inches, acuminate . e a * - parasiticus 766
Central rectrices projecting 8-10 inches, acuminate tr tee & ee : buffoni 767

S. sku/a. (Feroése name.) Sxua. Bill shorter than the middle toe without the claw ;
exceedingly robust; width at base about equal to the height, which is a third of the length of
culmen. Striz and sulei numerous and well marked. Encroachment of feathers on Dill
moderate, and nearly the same on both mandibles. Occiput scarcely crested. Wings only
moderately long for this subfamily ; the primaries very broad, and rounded at their tips. Tail
very short, broad, nearly even, the feathers truncated ; central pair projecting but. little, and
broad to their very tips, which are also truncated. Feet large and stout; tarsi shorter than
the middle toe and claw. Size large; form robust and heavy; general organization very
powerful. Colors much the same over the whole body ; not subject to any very remarkable
changes with age, sex, or season. Adult ¢ ? ; Latero-nuchal feathers elongated, rigid, with
long disconnected fibrilla. Above, blackish-brown, more or less variegated with chestnut and

165.

LARIDZ — LESTRIDINZ: JAGERS. 735

whitish; each feather being dark-colored, with a spot of chestnut toward its extremity, which
in turn fades into whitish aiong the shaft toward the tip of each feather. On the latero-nuchal
region and across the throat the chestnut lightens into a decided reddish-yellow, the white
being as a well-defined, narrow, longitudinal streak on each feather. The crown, post-ocular,
and mental region have but little whitish. Inferiorly the plumage is of a blended fusco-rufous,
lighter than on the dorsum, with a peculiar indefinite plumbeous shade. The wings and tail
are blackish ; their shafts white, except toward the tips; the remiges and rectrices white for
some distance from the bases. This white on the tail is concealed by the long tail-coverts,
but appears on the outer primaries as a conspicuous spot. Bill and claws blackish-horn ;
feet black. Bill from base to tip 2.10; to end of cere 1.20; gape 3.00; height at base 0.75;
width a little less; gonys 0.50; wing 16.00; tail 6.00; tarsus 2.70; middle toe and claw
3.10. Young-of-the-year: The size much less, bill weaker ard slenderer; cere illy developed;
strie not apparent, and its ridges and angles all want sharpness-of definition. Wings short and
rounded, the quills having very different proportional length from those of the adults; the 2d
being longest, the 3d next and but little shorter; the lst about equal to the 4th. The inner
or longest secondaries reach, when the wing is folded, to within an inch or so of the tip of the
longest primary. Central rectrices, if anything, a little shorter than the next. Colors
generally as in the adult, but everywhere duller and more blended, having few or no white
spots; the reddish spots dull, numerous, and large, especially along the edge of the forearm
and on the least and lesser coverts. On the under parts the colors are lighter, duller, and still
more blended than above. The prevailing tint is a light, dull rufous, most marked on the
abdomen ; but there and elsewhere more or less obscured with an ashy or plumbeous hue.
The primaries, secondaries, and tertials, together with the rectrices, are dull brownish-black ;
their shafts yellowish-white, darker terminally. At the bases of the primaries there exists the
ordinary large white space, but it is more restricted than in the adults, and so much hidden by
the bastard quills that it is hardly apparent on the outside of the wing, though very conspic-
uous on the inferior surface. Legs and feet parti-eolored, —brownish-black, variegated with
yellowish. Bill along culmen 1.75 ; along gape 2.75; height at base 0.50; length of gonys
0.35; tarsus 2.60; middle toe and claw the same; wing 12.25; tail 5.75. N. Am., north-
erly, rare or casual. ‘‘ California.”

8. pomatorhi/nus. (Gr. mapa, touatos, poma, pomatos, a flap, lid; fis, pds, hris, hrinos,
nose.) POMATORHINE JAGER. Adults, breeding plumage: Bill shorter than the head, or $
the tarsus, about 24 times its own height at the base; width about the same as the height
Tail somewhat less than half the wing. Ist primary but little surpassing the 2d. Occiput
subcrested. Feathers of the neck rigid and acuminate, their fibrille disconnected. Tail-
feathers, including the central, broad quite to their tips, which are truncated, the rhachis
projecting as a small mucro. The central pair project about 3 inches ; are broad to hear the
tip, where they form an angle of 45° with the rhachis; their fibrille exceedingly long (2%
inches), while those of the lateral feathers are only 1#. Tail slightly graduated. Tibie bare
for 4 of an inch, scutellate for 4 inch. Tarsi very rough; anteriorly covered with a single
tow of scutella, except toward the tibio-tarsal articulation, where these scutella gradually
degenerate into small, irregular polygonal plates, with which the whole of the rest of the
tarsus is reticulated. These plates largest on the sides of the tarsus externally ; on the heel-
joint, and posterior aspect of the tarsus generally, they become raised into small conical pyr-
amids, acutely pointed. The scutella of the anterior portion of the tarsus are continuous with
the superior surface of the toes, while the polygonal reticulation occupies both surfaces of the
webs, and the inferior surface of the toes. Hallux extremely short, its nail stout, conical at
the base, acute, little curved. Anterior claws all very strong and sharp; inner most so; the
middle expanded on its inferior edge, not serrated. Webs broad, full, unincised, their free
margins a little convex. The ‘‘cere”% has a straight, smooth, convex culmen; its inferior

766.

736 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVLZ.

border curves gently upward to give passage to the nostrils. The union of the two lateral
halves leaves a well-marked acutely-angular recess over the culmen. ‘There is a well-marked.
lateral longitudinal groove. Curve of nail regular, gradual. Commissure straight to the
nostrils, then gradually declinato-convex. Eminentia symphysis slightly marked ; commissure
long, gonys short, a little concave, gape wide. Outline of feathers on the bill much as in the
Larine, but supero-laterally they do not run so far forward, nor with so acute an angle. Nos-
trils placed far forward, lateral, linear, direct, pervious, their opening a little club-shaped.
Bill horn, deepening into black; feet black. Pileum and occipital crest brownish-black ; this
color extending much below the eyes, and occupying the feathers on the ramus of the inferior
maxilla. Acuminate feathers of the neck light yellow. Back, wings, tail, upper wing-coverts,
under tail-coverts as far as the flanks, deep blackish-brown. Under parts, from chin to abdo-
men, and neck all round (except the acuminate feathers), pure white. Length about 20.00;
extent 48.00; wing 14.00; bill 1.75; tarsus 2.00. Nearly adult: Generally as in the
preceding, but with a row of brown spots across the breast; the sides under the wings
transversely barred with white and brown; ‘the purity of the dark color of the abdomen
interrupted by some touches of white. The legs wholly black, and the tail-feathers project-
ing as much as in the fully adult. Intermediate stage: The band of dark spots across the
breast is widened and enlarged, so that the whole breast appears brown, mottled with white ;
the sides under the wings are conspicuously barred with white and brown; the white of the
under parts is continued down over the abdomen to the under tail-coverts; the pure brown
of these parts which obtains in the adult now only appearing as transverse bars among the
white. Upper tail-coverts and some of the wing-coverts barred with white. Bases of pri-
maries inferiorly white. Central tail-feathers only project an inch. Tarsi irregularly blotched
with chrome-yellow —the hind toe and nail being of this color. Young-of-the-year: Bill
much smaller and weaker than in the adult, light-colored to beyond the nostrils, when it
becomes brownish-black. Feet and toes mostly bright yellow, the terminal portions of the
latter black. The whole body everywhere transversely waved with dull rufous. On the head,
neck, and under parts, this rufous forms the predominating color; and the bands are ex-
ceedingly numerous, of about the same width as the intervening dark color. On the flanks
and under tail-coverts the bars become wider, and almost white in color. On the back and
wing-coverts the brownish-black is the predomiwating color; and if any rufous is present, it
is merely as narrow edging of the feathers. Quills and tail-feathers brownish-black, darker
at tips; whitish toward bases of primaries on inner webs. Light rufous predominating on
head and neck; a dusky spot before eye. All the above stages traceable from one to another.
Dusky state: The bird is very nearly wnicolor ; blackish-brown all over ; this color deepening
into quite black on the pileum; lightening into fuliginous-brown on the abdomen, with a
slight gilding of the black on the sides of the.neck. The whitish bases of the primaries
exist. The feet are in the chromo-variegated condition. The central tail-feathers scarcely
project half an inch. N.N. Am., ranging to the Middle States in winter ; not common.

8. parasi/ticus. (Lat. parasiticus, parasitic.) Parasitic JAGER. Adult, breeding plum-
age: Bill much shorter than head or tarsus; as high as broad at the base. Culmen broad,
flattened, scarcely appreciably convex to the unguis, which is moderately convex. Rami very
long; gonys very short; both somewhat concave in outline. Eminentia symphysis small but
well-marked. Tomia of superior mandible at first ascending and a little concave; then
descending and a little convex; very concave toward the tip. Cere without oblique strie;
with a straight longitudinal sulcus on each side of the culmen. Feathers extending far on
superior mandible, with a curved free outline, so broad that the feathers of the sides meet over
the culmen. Feathers on lower mandible also projecting considerably, almost filling the tri-
angular suleus on the side as well as the angular space between the rami. Wings moderately
long, strong, pointed ; first primary much the longest; rest regularly and rapidly graduated ;

LARIDA: — LESTRIDINZ:: JAGERS. T3T

all rather narrow and tapering to an acute apex, somewhat rigid and falcate. Secondaries
short and inconspicuous ; broad, the tips of the outer ones nearly square, of the inner obliquely
incised, the apex being formed by the inner web alone. Tertials long, soft, flexible. Tail
moderately long, contained not quite two and a half times in the wing ; very slightly rounded,
the graduation being only half an inch. Feathers moderately broad quite to their tips, which
are truncated. The central pair project three to four inches. They begin to taper about four
inches from their apices, and regularly converge to a very acute tip. Feet rather short and
quite slender; tarsi as long as the middle toe and claw. Tibia naked half an inch above the
joint. The scutellation and reticulation is the same as that already described, but the nails are
weaker and less arched, though fully as acute. A decided occipital crest and a calotte.
Nuchal region with the feathers acuminate and rigid, with loosened fibrille. Pileum, occipital
crest, and whole upper parts deep brownish-black, with a somewhat slaty tinge, and a slight
but appreciable metallic shade; this color deepening into quite black on the wings and tail.
Rhachides of primaries and rectrices whitish, except at their tips; the inner vanes albescent
baso-internally. Chin, throat, sides of head, neck all round, and under parts to the vent, pure
white; the feathers of the latero-nuchal region rigid, acuminate, with disconnected fibrille,
light yellow. Under tail-coverts like the upper parts, but somewhat of a fuliginous tint; the
line of demarcation from the white of the abdomen very trenchant. Smaller than No. 765.
Wing 12.00-13.00; tarsus 1.75-1.87; bill 1.35-1.50; tail 5.00-6.00, the long feathers up to
9.00. Nearly mature: Pileum and latero-nuchal region, and whole upper parts, as in the
adult. The under parts white (as in the adult), but clouded everywhere with dusky patches,
most marked across breast, on sides, flanks, and under tail-coverts, and leaving the middle of
the belly and throat nearly pure. Varying degrees of this dusky nubilation approach in some
specimens nearly to the uniform dusky below characterized ; in others fade almost into the pure
white of the adult, connecting the two states perfectly. The tarsi of the most dusky specimens
have small yellow blotches; the others not. Dusky stage: Wholly deep dusky ; darker and
more plumbeous superiorly ; lighter, and with a fuliginous tinge, inferiorly ; the pileum quite
black; the latero-nuchal region yellow; the remiges and rectrices quite black; feet black.
Immature: Size and general proportions nearly of the adult. Bill and cere perfectly formed ;
feet mostly black, but with some yellow blotches. The upper parts unadulterated with any
rufous bars; the deep brownish-black pileum has appeared, and the sides of the neck have
obtained their yellow shade, which contrasts conspicuously with the fuliginous back-ground.
Evidences of immaturity, however, are found on the under parts, where the dark color is mixed
with the illy-defined transverse bars of ochraceous. Rufous is also found at the bend of the
wing and on the under wing- and tail-coverts. The primaries are still whitish at the outside,
as are also the rectrices. The central rectrices project 24 inches, and have the tapering form
of those of the adults. Younger: Small size, delicate bill and feet, little projection of the
central rectrices, general mollipilose condition of plumage, ete. The rufous of the very young
bird, instead of giving way everywhere to dusky, yields to this color only on the upper parts
and crown ; on the sides of the head, neck, and the whole under parts, whitish being the pre-
dominating color; the continuity of this last being interrupted by indistinctly marked dusky
bars. The yellow of the sides of the neck has not yet appeared. There is the same white
space on the bases of the wings and tail that exists in the very young. The central tail-
feathers only project about 24 inches. Young-of-the-year in August: Size considerably less
than that of the adult, form every way more delicate. Wings more than an inch shorter; bill
and feet much slenderer and weaker. Bill in some specimens light bluish-horn; in others
greenish-olive, the terminal portion brownish-black. Tarsi and greater part of the toes
yellow. The bird is everywhere rayed and barred with rufous and brownish-black. On the
head and neck the rufous has a very light ochraceous tinge, and is the predominating color,
dark only appearing as a delicate line along the shaft of each feather. Proceeding down the
47

167.

738 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES— GAVIZE.

neck to the back, the longitudinal lines become larger, and gradually spread wider and wider,
until between the shoulders they occupy the whole of each feather, except a narrow border of
rufous, which latter is of a deeper tint than on the head. Passing down the throat to the
breast, the rufous becomes decidedly lighter — almost whitish — while the brown, which on

‘the throat exists only as a light longitudinal line, changes on each feather to transverse bars of

about equal width with the light rufous bars with which it alternates. This pattern prevails
over the whole under parts, the transverse bands being broadest on the flanks and under tail-
and wing-coverts, narrowest in the middle of the belly. The primaries are brownish-black,
narrowly tipped with rufous, their shafts yellowish, their inner webs fading basally into white.
The tail has the same coloration as the wings. The central feathers project about % of an inch.
Northen N. Am.; U. 8. in winter; chiefly coastwise, but breeds in interior Arctic Am.
Eggs resembling those of Numenius borealis, and quite as variable in ground-color and mark -
ings; size from 2.00 to 2.40 long, by 1.50 to 1.70 broad, averaging nearer the larger of these
dimensions; pointed, but not so pear-shaped as those of the Curlew.

S. buf‘foni. (To the Count de Buffon.) Arctic JAcER. Lone-TaILep JAGER. Adult,
breeding plumage: Bill shorter than the head, less than the middle toe without the claw;
stout, compressed, higher than broad at the base, its sides regularly converging. Ceral por-
tion of culmen broad, flat, depressed, slightly concave in outline; ungual portion very de-
cidedly declinato-convex to the greatly overhanging tip; narrower than the ceral. Tomia of
superior mandible sinuate ;' at first concave and ascending ; then convex and descending ; again
very concave as they decurve toward the deflected tip, just posterior to which there is an im-
perfect notch. Tomia of inferior maxilla nearly straight to the tip, where they are decurved.
Gonys very short, slightly concave in outline. Eminentia symphysis acute, but not very large;
rami very long as compared with the gonys, but absolutely rather short, from the encroach-
ment of the feathers. Cere very short, being scarcely if at all longer than the unguis; its
lower border curving upward to give passage to the nostrils. The encroachment of the feathers
on the Dill is greater than that of any other species; on the upper mandible they extend within
half an inch of the distal end of the cere, having a broad, rounded termination, the feathers of
the two sides meeting on and covering the culmen some distance fromm its real base. The
feathers on the sides of the lower mandible extend nearly as far as on the upper, and those
between the rami quite to the symphysis. Wings exceedingly long; first primary much the
longest ; rest rapidly graduated ; all rather narrow, tapering, falcate, actually pointed, their
rhachides stiff and strong. Secondaries short and inconspicuous; rather broad ; their apices
as in the other species. Tertials moderately long, very straight, flexible, rounded at their
extremities, the edges of their vanes convoluted. Tail very long; longer, both absolutely and
relatively, than in any other North American species, being half as long as the wings; gradu-
ated, the lateral feather being % of an inch shorter than the next to central pair; all the
feathers moderately broad, converging somewhat to their rather broad, rounded tips. Central
rectrices extremely lengthened, exceeding the wings; projecting 8 to 10 inches beyond the tips
of the lateral ones. They are extremely rigid at the base, being there much stiffer than the
other feathers, but gradually become flexible, and at length filamentous in character, but pre-
serve great elasticity throughout. Feet quite slender; tarsus equal to middle too and claw.
Tibice bare of feathers for % of an inch. The reticulation of the fect identical with that already
described under other species. The scutella of the anterior face of the tarsus, however, show
a tendency to degenerate into minute plates near the tibiv-tarsal joint. Proportions of the
toes as in other species, but the claws are comparatively small and weak, and but moderately
curved and acute. Occiput decidedly subcrested. The latero-nuchal region has its feathers
lengthened, with disconnected fibrillz, but they are hardly acuminate or rigid. The plumage
about the bill is short, thick, and compact; that of the upper parts is soft and flexible, only
moderately imbricated and compact; that of the under parts is long, soft, and very thick. Bill

‘ LARIDZE—LARINZ: GULLS. 739

dusky, its nail almost black. Tarsi deep leaden-blue; tibie, phalanges, interdigital mem-
branes, and claws black. Occiput subcrested, more decidedly than in any other species, forin-
ing a calotte of brownish-black, which color extends downward on the cheeks, the feathers
before and below the eye and on the sides of the bill being of this color. Neck all round, but
especially the sides of the head and the peculiarly-formed feathers on the latero-nuchal region,
light straw-yellow. Whole upper parts, with upper wing and tail-coverts, deep slate, which,
on the primaries, secondaries, lateral tail-feathers, and distal half of central pair, deepens into
a lustrous brownish-black. Under surface of wings and tail deeper slate than the black, but
not so deep as the upper surfaces. Chin, throat, and upper breast white, gradually becoming
obscured with dusky-plumbeous, which deepens posteriorly, so that the abdomen and under
tail-coverts are nearly as dark as the back. Rhachides of first two or three primaries pure
white, deepening into brownish-black at their tips; of the other primaries, and of the tail-
feathers (including the central pair), brown, except just at the base, blackening terminally.
Under surfaces of all the rhachides white for nearly their whole length. Length of culmen
1.15 inches; gape 1.70; cere 0.60; unguis about the same; gonys 0.30; from feathers on
sides of bill to tip 0.90; wing 12.50; tail 6.25; central pair 14.00 to 16.00; the projection
8.00 to 10.00 inches; tibiee bare 0.75; tarsus 1.60; middle toe without claw 1.40. All
changes and states of plumage identical with those of No. 766. N. Am., northerly; breeds
in Arctic regions. Eggs not distinguishable from those of No. 766, averaging smaller but
dimensions overlapping ; a fair specimen is 2.10 & 1.50; from this down to 1.90 x 1.40.

71. Subfamily LARINA: Culls.

Covering of bill coutinuous, 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.
Certain of the smaller slenderer-billed species alone resemble terns, but may be known by the
not forked tail (except Xema); in all the larger species, the hook of the bill is distinctive.
Gulls average much larger than terns, with stouter build; the feet are larger and more
ambulatorial, the wings are shorter and not so thin; the birds winnow the air in a steady
course unlike the buoyant dashing flight of their relatives. They are cosmopolitan ; species
occur in abundance on all sea-coasts, and over large inland waters; in general, large numbers
are seen together, not only at the breeding-places, but during the migrations, and in wiuter,
when their association depends upon community of interest in the matter of food. This is
almost entirely of an animal nature, and consists principally of fish; the birds seem to be
always hungry, always feeding or trying to do so. Many kinds procure food by plunging
for it, like terns; others pick up floating substances; some of the smaller kinds are adroit
parasites of the pelicans, snatching food from their very mouths. They all swim lightly —
a cireumstance explained by the smallness of the body compared with its apparent dimensions
with the feathers on. The voice of the larger species is hoarse, that of the smaller shrill;
they have an ordinary note of several abrupt syllables during the breeding ‘season, and a
harsh ery of anger or impatience ; the young emit a querulous whine. The nest is commonly
built on the ground; the eggs, 2-3 in number, are variegated in color.

Several circumstances conspire to render the study of these birds difficult. With some

~exceptions, they are almost identical in form; while in size they show an unbroken series.
' Individual variability in size is high; northerly birds are usually appreciably larger than
those of the same species hatched further south; the ¢ exceeds the 9 a little (usually) ;
very old birds are likely to be larger, with especially stouter bill, than young or middle-aged
ones. There is, besides, a certain plasticity of organization, or ready susceptibility to modify-
ing influences, so marked that the individuals hatched at a particular spot may be appreciably
different in some slight points from others reared but afew miles away. One pattern of color-

808.

740 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVIZE.

ation runs through nearly all the species: they are whdte, with a darker mantle (stragulum),
and in most cases with black crossing the primaries near the end, the tips of the quills white.
The shade of the mantle is very variable in the same species, according to climate, action
of the sun, friction, and other causes; the pattern of the black on the quills is still more so,
since it is continually changing with age, at least until a final stage is reached. Incredible
as it may appear, species and even genera have been based upon such shadowy characters.
One group of species has the head enveloped in a dark hood in the breeding season, the under
parts tinted with peach-blossom hue. The sexes are always alike; the moult appears to be
twice a year, so that a winter plumage more or less differeut from that of summer results;
while the young are never like the old. The change is slow, generally requiring 2-3 years ;
in the interim, birds are found in every stage. They are always darker than the old, often
quite dusky; usually with black or flesh-colored bill; and if with black on the primaries
when adult, the young usually have these quills all black. There being no peculiar extra-
limital species, those of our country give a perfect idea of the whole group. Some 75 species
are current ; there are certainly not over 50 good ones.

Analysis of Genera. i

Tail square.
Head never hooded; under parts never rosy-tinted; size medium and large; bill stout.
Hallux well developed, with perfect claw.

\ Adult white, with a colored mantle, or dark, with white head . . 2 » . + . Larus 308
Adult entirely white; feet black . : page » « «Pagophila 310
Hallux usually defective. (Tail emarginate in the young) . a » . . Rissa 309

Head in summer hooded, and under parts rosy- tinted; size medium and small; bill slender
Chroitcocephalus 311
Tail wedge-shaped; neck collared ; small a 3 re « » 1. . « . « Rhodostethia 312
Tail forked; head hooded . ‘ » . . Xema 818

LA'RUS. (Gr. Adpos, laros, Lat. nee a gull.) Gone Bill ‘shorts: than the head or
tarsus, large, strong, more or less robust, usually very stout, deep at the base, higher than
broad, compressed throughout, the apex not very acute and never much attenuated or decurved.
Culmen about straight to beyond the nostrils, then convex, the amount of curvature increasing
toward the end, varying in different species. Commissure slightly sinuate at its extreme base,
then about straight to near the end, where it is more or less arcuato-declinate. Eminentia
symphysis always large, prominent, and well-defined, rather obtuse, seldom acute. Nostrils
placed rather far forward in a well-defined nasal fossa, lateral, longitudinal, pervious, rather
broader anteriorly than posteriorly. Feathers of forehead extending considerably farther on
the sides of the upper mandible than on its culmen, but falling considerably short of the
nostrils. Wings when folded reaching beyond the tail, the remiges strong, not very acute,
first longest, second but little shorter, rest rapidly graduated. Tail of moderate length, always
even, never forked nor rounded. Legs rather slender, of moderate length ; tibia bare fora
considerable distance above the joint, the naked part smooth. Tarsi about equal to or a little
longer than the middle toe and claw, varying but slightly in proportions among the different
species ; anteriorly seutellate, posteriorly and laterally reticulate. Hallux fully developed
and always present. Anterior claws stout, strong, little curved, rather obtuse, the inner edge
of the middle one dilated. Webs full and broad, scarcely incised. Of very large or medium
size, never very small. Robust and powerful. Comprising the largest species of the subfamily
and those typical of it. White, with a darker mantle, without a hood; the head and neck in
winter streaked with dusky ; one species dark with white head and red bill.
Analysis of Species.
I, Tail and under parts white in adult; bill and feet not reddish. (Zarus.)
A, Large and robust: mantle whitish or pale pearly ; no black on primaries at any age.

Mantle very pale; primaries the same, fading insensibly into white far from the tips.

Larger: length about 30.00 inches; wing 18.00 or more; bill and tarsus, each, about 3.00
glaucus 168

768.

769,

7710.

LARIDZA —LARINZ: GULLS. - 741

Smaller: length about 24.00 inches; wing 17.00 or less; bill about 2.00; tarsus 2.25 lewcopterus 769

Mantle light blue; primaries the same, with definite white tips . glaucescens 770
Mantle very pale blue, as in leucopterus; primaries with slate-gray mar. kings . . . . kumlient T10a
B. Very large: mantle slaty-blackish ; primaries crossed with black; size of the first . . marinus 171

C. Large: mantle some shade of blue, darker than in 4, lighter than in 8; primaries crossed with black.

Mantle grayish-blue ; bill moderately robust ; feet flesh-colored bac ons or smithsonianus 772,173
Mantle slaty-blue; bill very robust; feet flesh-colored . . : . occidentalis 774
Mantle dark grayish-blue; bill moderately robust; feet yellow; ‘oyeaiig orange + cachinnans 775
Mantle dark slate; bill moderately robust; feet flesh-colored. . . afinis 776

D. Medium and small: primaries crossed with black; feet dark-greenish; was yellow.

Tarsus obviously longer than the middle toe and claw; bill of adult greenish-yellow, encircled

with a black band; first primary usually with a sub-apical white spot ; length about 18.00-22.00
delawarensis 778

Tarsus little if any longer than middle toe and claw; bill with a red spot, but an imperfect black

band, if any; first primary usually with the end broadly white; length about 20.00-22.00
californicus TIT

Tarsus little if any longer than the middle toe and claw; bill slender, greenish, without a black

band or red spot ; size very small ; length 16.00 or 18.00 a canus or brachyrhynchus 779, 780
II. Tail and under parts darkin adult. Head white; bill and feet reddish. (Blasipus.)
Back slaty-lead color bs . . . F heermanni 781

L, glaucus. (Gr. yAavxds, glaukos, Lat. glaucus, bluish.) GLAUCcOUS GULL. IcE GuLL.
Bureomaster. Very large: length about 30.00; extent 60.00; wing up to 18.50; bill 2.75-
3.00 (chord of culmen), along gape 3.75, its depth opposite nostrils 0.80, at angle 0.85 ; tarsus
3.00-3.25 ; middle toe and claw 2.75. No black anywhere at any age. Adult ¢ 9: Bill large
and strong, very wide, but not so deep at angle nor so convex at end as in marinus, about as
long as middle toe and claw; chrome yellow, the tip diaphanous yellow, a vermilion spot at
the angle. Legs and feet pale flesh-color or yellowish. Iris yellow. Primaries entirely white,
or palest possible pearly-blue, fading insensibly into white at some distance from their tips, their
shafts straw-yellow. Mantle very pale pearl-blue. Otherwise, wholly white. In winter:
Head and hind neck lightly touched with pale brownish-gray. An immature stage: Entirely ,
white; bill flesh-colored, black-tipped. Young: Bill flesh-colored, black-tipped; plumage
impure white, mottled with pale reddish-brown, sometimes quite dusky on the back; under
parts a nearly uniform pale shade of brownish ; quills and tail imperfectly barred with the same.
Smaller: wing 17.50; bill 2.40; tarsus 2.40, ete. Northern and Arctic seas, cireumpolar ; 8.
in winter in N. Am. to the Middle States, coastwise ; breeds only in the high north. This is one
of the very largest and most powerful birds of the whole family, fully equalling L. marinus in
these respects.

L. leucop’terus. (Gr. Aeuxds, leucos, white; mrepdv, pteron, wing.) WHITE-WINGED GULL.
Precisely like the last, but smaller. Length 24.00, rather less than more; wing 16.00-17.00 ;
bill along culmen 1.75-2.00, along gape about 2.75; depth at angle 0.65; tarsus 2.00-2.25,
not longer than middle toe and claw. This counterpart of L. glaucus inhabits the same north-
erly regions, coming south to the same degree in winter. It appears to be much less character-
istic of N. Am. than of Europe.

L. glauces/cens. (Lat. glaucescens, growing bluish.) GLAUCOUS-WINGED GuLL. Like a
herring gull with the black of the primaries washed out; primaries of the color of the mantle
to the very tips, which are occupied by definite small white spots; the Ist also with a large
white sub-terminal spot. Bill long and rather weak, the upper mandible acute and projecting
“considerably beyond tip of the under, the convexity near the end comparatively slight ; angle
pretty well defined, the outline between it and the tip about straight. Tarsus rather longer
than middle toe and claw. Length about 27.00; wing 16.75; bill along culmen 2.25;
gape 3.25 ; depth at angle 0.70; tarsus 2.60; middle toe and claw 2.50. Adult in summer:
Bill light yellow, an orange spot at angle of lower mandible, and a dusky one just above.
Mandible pearl-blue, much the same shade as in argentatus. Primaries scarcely darker than
the back, all with well-defined, rounded apical spots of white. First, the base not appreciably

T10a.

171.

742 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. ~ LONGIPENNES — GAVE.

lighter than the body of the feather, with a well-defined white spot on both webs near the end,
separated from the white tip by a transverse band of the color of the body of the feather ; second,
third, and fourth, basal portions notably lighter than the terminal, fading into pure white at
their juncture with the latter, without spots except at the apex; fifth, sixth, basal portions the
color of the back, fading into white near the end, separated from the white apices by a band,
narrowest on the sixth, of the color of the outer primaries. Inner primaries like the second- .
aries, with plain broadly white ends. Feet light flesh-color. Adult in winter: Head, neck,
and breast thickly nebulated with light grayish-dusky, the throat mostly iunmaculate. Renesas
ing maturity: Bill dark-colored, yellowish along the culmen and gonys. Wings and tail light
grayish-ashy, the former without sharply-defined white tips or spots. Under parts generally
marked with dusky, the wing- -coverts- marked with dusky and white. Feathers of the back
narrowly edged with gray. Intermediate: Bill flesh- colored, the terminal portion black. Wings
and tail darker than in the preceding especially on the outer webs of the former. Everywhere
dusky-gray, more or less mottled with white, the gull-blue of the upper parts appearing in
patches of greater or less extent. Young-of-the-year: Bill black. Everywhere grayish-dusky,
somewhat mottled with whitish ; the feathers of the back, wings, and upper tail-coverts edged,
tipped, and crossed with more or less regular transverse bars of grayish-white. Downy young:

Bill and feet black ; head and neck dull whitish, spotted with blackish ; upper parts spotted
with grayish-black sia grayish-white; under parts more uniformly gray, the abdomen white.
Pacific coast of N. Am., of U. S. in winter, breeding northerly; common. Also on the
Asiatic coast.

L. kumlieni. (To L. Kumlien.) Gray-wincep Guiu. Adult g¢: Like glaucescens ;
rather smaller, with lighter mantle and different color and pattern of the primaries. Mantle
about as in lewcopterus ; primaries and secondaries mostly white on their exposed surfaces,
with markings of dull slate-gray. First primary white on both webs at end for about two
inches, the inner web white to the base excepting a slate-gray strip next the shaft, the outer
web (except at end) slate-gray fading into white toward the base. Second primary with the
gray confined to a space of about four inches on the outer web, and both webs tinged with the
color of the mantle which, on the inner web, fades into white about three inches from the tip,
but on the outer web is deepest where it joins the darker gray area. Third primary with sub-
apical gray bar on both webs, half an inch wide on inner web, but running along the outer web
for two inches;:the tip of this feather white, the rest tinged with the color of the mantle.
Fourth primary with a slate-gray subterminal bar, but narrower and paler; fifth with a pair
of subterminal gray spots; remaining primaries and all the secondaries plain and concolor with
mantle to within about two inches of their tips, where the pearl-blue changes rather abruptly
into white. Iris cream-color; bill yellow with red spot, as usual; orbital ring reddish; feet
flesh-color. Length 24.00; extent 50.00; wing 16.00-17.00; tail 6.50; chord of culmen 1.75;
gape 2.60; tarsus, or middle toe and claw, about 2.30. Young said to be even darker than
that of argentatus (?) Cumberland Sound and Greenland, 8. in winter to New England, the
citations of ‘‘ glaucescens ” from Maine belonging here. (Description compiled from Brewster,
Bull. Nutt. Club, viii, 1883, p. ate The bird is probably L. chaleopterus of Bruch, Lawrence,
and Coues.)

L. mari/nus. (Lat. marinus, marine). GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL. SADDLE-BACK.
COFFIN-CARRIER. Coss. Adult, breeding plumage: Size very large ; general form strong,
compact, and powerful. Bill very stout, deep at the angle, rather short for its height; culmen
toward the end exceedingly convex, so much so as to make a tangent to it at the point where
the tip of the lower mandible touches it perpendicular to the commissure. Symphyseal emi-
nence very prominent ; tarsus but little if any longer than the middle toe and claw, compressed,
rather slender for the size of the bird. Bill bright chrome, the tip of both mandibles diapha-
nous. A large bright vermilion spot occupies nearly the terminal half of the lower mandible

TI2.

T13.

LARIDZ —LARINE: GULLS. 143

and encroaches a little on the upper. Edges of jaws bright vermilion. Palate and tongue pale
orange-red. Eyelids vermilion. Iris pale lemon-yellow. Legs and feet pale flesh-color.

Mantle intense slate-color, nearly black, with a purplish reflection; secondaries and tertials
broadly tipped with white, the line of demarcation distinct. Primaries: first, black, scarcely
lighter at its base, its tip white for 24 inches, its shaft white inferiorly, and superiorly along the
white portion of the feather ; second, like the first, but its base lighter, the white tip less exten-

sive, and interrupted by a narrow bar of black on one or both webs ; third, fourth, fifth, broadly

tipped with white, their bases of a lighter shade of slate than the second, and fading into white
at the junction with the broad black subterminal band. Adult in winter: As in summer, but
the head and neck streaked with dusky. Young-of-the-year: As large as the adult; the bill
as large, but not so strong, nor the eminence so well developed; wholly black. Upper parts
wholly dusky chocolate-brown, mottled with whitish and light rufous, the latter on the back
and wings, the feathers being tipped and the wing-coverts deeply indented with this color.
Under parts mottled with white or rufous-white and dusky, the throat mostly immaculate.
Primaries and tail deep brownish-black, the former tipped, subterminally barred, and its outer
feather mottled, with whitish. Dimensions: length 30.00 inches; extent 65.00; wing 19.00;
bill above 2.50; rictus 3.50; height at nostril 0.85; at angle 0.95; tarsus 3.00; middle toe
and claw slightly less. This great bird, the dark rival of the ice-gull, inhabits the Atlantic
coasts of Europe and N. Am., ranging south coastwise in winter to Florida, breeding beyond
the U. S., especially in Labrador. Found on the larger inland waters as well as coastwise.
Nest on the ground, of moss and seaweed; eggs 3, 2.90 X 2.15, pale drab or olive-gray, irreg-
ularly blotched with dark brown and blackish, with purplish or neutral-tint shell-spots.

L, argenta/tus. (Lat. argentatus, silvered, silvery.) EUROPEAN HERRING GULL. Precisely
like the next to be described, excepting the following particulars: Average sinaller size ; wing
averaging 1.50 inches shorter ; feet about 0.50 shorter on an average; bill shorter and slenderer,
particularly at base. The 1st primary has usually a white terminal space 2 inches long; the
2d a large rounded sub-terminal white Spot, occupying both webs. The lst primary of the
American bird has usually a rounded white subterminal spot much like that on the 2d primary
of the European, almost always separated from the white apical spot, and if a spot is present
on the 2d primary it is small. A variety is predicable upon these average differences. Birds
typically like the European occur in N. Am., where the next is the ordinary “herring gull.”

L. a. smithsonia‘nus, (To the 8.1.) American Herring Guuu. Adult: Bill rather less
than tarsus, shorter than head; robust, its height at the angle slightly more than at the base.
Culmen nearly straight at the nostrils; then rapidly convex to the stout, deflected, overhanging
apex. Outline of rami slightly concave ; gonys about straight; eminence at symphysis large
and prominent, but its apex not very acute. Breeding plumage: Bill bright chrome, its tip
diaphanous , a vermilion spot at the angle, with sometimes a small black one just anterior to it.
Legs and feet pale flesh-color ; claws blackish. Mantle typical “ gull-blue,” much lighter than
in occidentalis ; lighter than in brachyrhynchus ; of much the same shade as in delawarensis or
glaucescens ; darker than in glaucus or leucopterus. "The bases of the primaries are the same
as the back, or very slightly lighter, not so light, nor of so great extent (being exceedingly '
short on the first primary), nor so broad at the end, as in californicus. On the first primary
this light basal portion is very short, hardly reaching within six or seven inches of the tip of
the primary. Tt is not lighter at its junction with the black, nor does it extend further on the
central portion than on the edge of the feather. On the second, third, and fourth primaries the
bluish of the basal portions of the feather extends about the same distance on each (within
four inches of the tip of the second), and runs up further on the centres of the feathers than on
their edges, and grows nearly white at its junction with the black portion of the feathers.
First primary with a subapical white spot near its tip; small, rounded, not much over an inch
in diameter ; generally not longer on the outer vane than on the inner; sometimes wanting on

.

774.

175.

744 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVIZ.

the former; in oldest birds this spot enlarging to coalesce with the white tip of the feather;
second primary usually without a subapical spot, or if one is present it is small. All the pri-
maries with small rounded white apices, and black from these apical spots to their bluish-white
bases; this band of black growing narrower from the first toward the seventh, where it is a
mere point. Winter plumage: Head and neck streaked with dusky; bill less brightly colored.
Otherwise as in summer. Immature: The feathers of the back have gray margins; the upper
wing-coverts mottled with dusky-gray. An imperfect subterminal bar of dusky on the tail.
Young of first winter: Head, neck, and whole under parts more or less thickly mottled with
dusky, as are the wing-coverts, secondaries, and tertials. The gull-blue of the upper parts
appears in irregular patches, mixed with gray. Remiges and rectrices brownish-black, with
very narrow whitish tips, the former wanting both apical and subapical white spots. Bill flesh-
color, its terminal third black. Feet dull flesh-color. Younger: Entirely a deep dull brown-
ish; the throat lightly streaked and the rump transversely barred with whitish; the feathers of
the back with yellowish or grayish-white edges; wings and tail black; bill black; legs and
feet dusky flesh-color. Dimensions of adult: length, 24 to 25 inches; extent 54 to 58;
wing 17.00 to 18.00; bill along culmen, 2.40; height at nostril, 0.75; at angle 0.80; tarsus
2.75; middle toe and claw the same. Female a little, and young considerably less than the
above. Wing down to 15.50; bill to 2.20; tarsus to 2.40. N. Am. at large, abundant, both
coastwise and in the interior, especially numerous along the Atlantic coast in winter; casually
on the Pacific coast. Breeds from New England and the great lakes northward, especially
about the St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, and Labrador; but not specially arctic. Nest on
the ground, exceptionally in trees; eggs normally 3, averaging 2.80 X 1.95 ; ground-color from
light bluish- or greenish-white to dark brownish-vlive; markings of every size and shape, very
irregularly disposed, dark brown and blackish, paler brown and neutral-tint; June and early
July. Nestlings covered with whitish down, mottled with angular dusky spots.

L. occidenta/lis. (Lat. occidentalis, western.) WESTERN HERRING GULL. Bill large, very
stout and deep; culmen unusually convex at the en&@; angle strongly developed, making the
under outline doubly-concave. Feet large and stout; tarsus equal to middle toe and claw.
Adult, summer plumage: Bill bright chrome-yellow ; a vermilion spot, more or less extensive,
at the angle. Mantle dark bluish-ash, almost slate-color; the tips of the secondaries and ter-
tials white; the line of demarcation distinct. Primaries: first three black throughout their
exposed portions, the outer white for some distance at the tip (1.75 inches), crossed near the
end with an irregular black bar, the shafts entirely black; second, without a white spot, but
its tip, and the tips of all the others, white. Legs and feet flesh-color. Approaching matu-
rity: As in the preceding, but the upper parts rather lighter, and the tail with an imperfect
subterminal bar of black. Intermediate : Bill much as in the adult. White of the head,
neck, and under parts, more or less mottled with dusky; ‘‘ gull-blue” of the upper parts ap-
pearing in irregular patches ; most of the feathers tipped with light gray. Primaries and tail
uniform deep blackish-brown, with scarcely lighter tips, the former without spots. Young-of-
the-year: Bill entirely black, rather shorter than in the adults, but at the same time with
great comparative depth at the angle. Everywhere a deep blackish-brown, mottled with
grayish-white, the feathers of the upper parts being tipped and edged with that color. Rump
and upper tail-coverts barred with whitish and dusky. Wings and tail as in the preceding.
Winter plumage: This species seems to form an exception to the rule which obtains so exten-
sively among large gulls, since in winter the head and neck behind are not, ordinarily at least,
streaked with dusky. Dimensions of adult: length 24 inches; extent 55.00; wing 16.50;
bill above 2.30; along gape 3.10; height at nostril 0.75; width 0.40; height at angle 0.85;
tarsus, and middle toe and claw, 2.75. Pacific Coast of N. A., very common.

L. cachin’nans. (Lat. cachinnans, laughing immoderately.) Paunas’s Guu. Size, pro-
portions of parts, pattern of primaries, etc., as in a common Herring Gull. Feet yellow (not

716.

i177.

Tis.

LARIDZ— LARINZ: GULLS. 745

flesh-color) ; ring round eye in the breeding season orange-red (not yellow). Mantle dark
bluish — much darker than that of argentatus, yet not slate-colored as in occidentalis. Europe,
Asia, and N. W. coast of N. A.

L, affiinis. (Lat. affinis, allied to L. fuscus.) Reinnarp1’s GuLL. Unknown to me;
Described as a slaty-backed bird, resembling L. fuscus, but belonging to the herring gull
group in the pattern of the primaries; feet flesh-colored, small, toes shorter than tarsi. Asia;
only N. American as occurring in Alaska and accidentally in Greenland.

L. califor/nicus. .CALIFORNIAN GULL. Adult, summer plumage: Bill moderately stout,
the angle well developed; varying in size, longer than in delawarensis, sometimes nearly equal-
ling argentatus. Tarsus equal to or slightly longer than middle toe and claw. Bill chrome-
yellow, tinged with greenish; a vermilion spot on lower mandible at angle; a black spot just
above, forming, with a very small black spot on the upper mandible, an imperfect transverse
band. Feet dusky bluish-green, the webs yellow. Mantle pearl-blue, much as in brachyrhyn-
chus, lighter than in canus, slightly darker than in argentatus. Primaries: bases of all light
bluish-white, internally almost white, especially on outer webs, and of great extent on all; 1st
with a white space at the end for about 2 inches, the shaft white along the white portion of
the feather ; 2d with a white spot near the end on the whole of the inner and most of the
outer web, divided by the black shaft ; tips of all white; black forming merely a narrow sub-
terminal band on the 6th. Tips of inner primaries white, as are also the tips of the second-
aries and tertials, the line of demarcation between the white and the blue of the mantle pretty
distinct. In breeding plumage: Eyelids bright saffron-yellow or red. Eyes brown. Upper
mandible bright chrome, the greater part of the lower vermilion, the rest chrome. Gape of
mouth deep crimson. Feet green. Winter plumage: Bill dully colored. Head and neck
behind streaked and mottled with dusky. Nearly mature: As in the preceding. Tail with
an imperfect subterminal black bar. Some of the feathers of the upper parts edged with gray.
White space at end of lst primary crossed by a transverse black bar; no spot on 2d primary.
Young: Bill yellowish flesh-color, black on the terminal half. Head, neck, rump, wing-
coverts, tertials and secondaries, mottled with dusky. Primaries and tail uniformly brownish-
black, scarcely lighter at the tips. Back as in the adults, but the feathers with grayish edges.
Dimensions: Length 20.00-23.00; extent 50.00-54.00; wing 15.00-17.00; bill 1.60-2.00;
depth at eminentia symphysis 0.56; tarsus 2.00-2.25; middle toe and claw about the same.
Adults near the larger of these dimensions. Western and Arctic N. Am., breeding abundantly
in U.S.

L. delawaren’sis. (Of Delaware.) RING-BILLED GULL. Common AMERICAN GULL.
Adult in summer: Bill rather stout, as long as the middle toe and claw; the upper mandible
considerably convex at the end; under mandible much thickened at the angle, which is prom-
inent; the outline from base to angle, and from angle to tip, both concave. Middle toe and
claw scarcely more than 2 the tarsus. Bill greenish-yellow, at tip chrome, encircled at the
angle with a broad band of black. Legs and feet dusky bluish-green. Manitle light pearl-
blue, fading into white at the ends of the secondaries and tertials, the line of demarcation in-
distinct. Primaries: lst black, the basal portion of the inner web very light bluish-white,
(almost white), with a spot of white about 1.25 inches long near the end, of equal extent on both
webs, divided by the black shaft; 2d with a small white spot on the inner web, and the inner
web whitish at base for a longer distance; the whitish of the bases of the primaries regularly
increases inward and the black decreases, until on the 6th it is merely a trausverse bar. Apex
of lst primary black, of others white, the spot being very minute on the 2d, and gradually in-
creasing ; 7th and innermost primaries without any black, like the secondaries. Adult in
winter: As in summer, but the head and neck behind spotted (not streaked nor nebulated)
with dusky. Young, first winter: Upper parts irregularly mottled with dusky brown and the
pearl-blue of the adults, the wing-coverts being almost entirely dusky, with lighter margins

779.

780.

746 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVLE.

to the feathers. Head, neck, and under parts, mottled with white and dusky. Primaries
uniformly black ; secondaries with a patch of brownish-black near the ends ; tertials wholly
brownish-black, narrowly tipped with whitish. Tail with a broad subterminal band of black, '
narrowly tipped with white. Terminal half of bill black, the extreme tip yellowish. Young-
of-the-year in August: Everywhere mottled thickly with brownish-black, on the upper parts
the feathers with yellowish-white edges, the pearl-blue of the adults scarcely apparent, except
on the wing-coverts. Terminal two-thirds of bill with the tip black, the rest light flesh-
color. Dimensions: length 19.75; extent 48.50; wing 14.75; bill above 1.70; gape 2.30;
height at nostril 0.45; at angle 0.50; tarsus 2.10; middle toe 1.80. N. Ami. at large, on
the whole the commonest species, both coastwise and in the interior; breeds in the U. §. as
well as far north.

L. ca/nus. (Lat. canus, hoary gray.) EuRoprAN Mew Guu. Assigned to N. A. on
strength of a specimen shot by me in Labrador in 1860. It is entirely like the next to be
described excepting the following particulars: Tarsus a fourth longer than the middle toe and
claw. Bill stouter, with less convex culmen and better developed angle. The bluish bases of
the primaries darker, not fading into white at their junction with the black, not running so far
along the feathers, nor farther in the centres than along the edges of the inner webs. Size
greater. Probably not more than varietally distinct from the next to be described.

L. brachyrhyn/chus. (Gr. Bpaxyis, brachus, short; piyxos, hrugchos, beak.) AMERICAN
Mrw Guu. Bill small, somewhat stout for its length, much shorter than the head or tarsus.
Upper mandible straight to the end of the nostrils, moderately convex to the tip, rather more
so than in canus. Angle of lower mandible pretty well-developed, comparatively more so than
in canus ; the lower outline considerably concave posterior to it, somewhat so before it.
Commissure about straight to near the tip. Tarsus and middle toe and claw about equal, the
former but little if any longer than the latter. Adult in summer: Bill bluish-green, its ter-
minal third bright yellow. Legs and feet dusky bluish-green, the webs yellowish. Mantle light
grayish-blue or dark pearl-blue, a shade darker than in canus, much darker than in delawa-
rensis. Primaries: the bluish-gray bases rather lighter than in canus, much darker than in
delawarensis, but fading into nearly pure white on all but the first at the juncture with the
black portion; these bluish-gray bases of the feathers extend toward the ends much further
than in canus, as far as in delawarensis, and, as in that species, on the 2d, 3d, and 4th, extend
further along the central portions of the inner web than at the edges, so that they are bordered
for some distance with the black of the terminal portions of the feathers. The black takes in
the outer web of the 1st primary and nearly the whole of the inner, but rapidly becomes nar-
rower, till it is merely a subterminal transverse bar on the 6th. The 7th has frequently a spot
of black on one or both webs. First, with a large white spot near the ‘end two inches long,
longer on the outer than on the inner web, not divided by the black shaft, the tip of the feather
black ; 2d, with a similar spot, but smaller, not longer on the outer than on the inner web,
and divided by the black shaft; the extreme apex white, as are the apices of all the other
primaries except the lst. Adult, high breeding plumage: Eyelid, ocular region, and gape of
mouth, bright orange-yellow, which color extends over the tip and cutting edges of the bill.
The green of the bill with a peculiar hoary glaucescence. Legs and feet bluish-green, the
webs bright gamboge-yellow. Sometimes a faint pink blush of the plumage of the under
parts. Adult in winter: The head and neck all round, with the upper part of the breast, mot-
tled with dusky. Approaching maturity: Head and neck faintly mottled. Primaries brown-
ish-black, without decided white tips; the spots on the Ist and 2d restricted. Tertials with a
dusky spot on each web near the end. Tail with a more or less perfeet subterminal band.
Young, first winter: Bill flesh-color; black on the terminal half. Legs and feet light yellow-

ish. Head, neck, rump, and whole under parts, mottled irregularly with dusky. Back as in

the adult, but the feathers with grayish edgings Wing-coverts, secondaries, and tertials

781.

309.

LARIDA—LARINZ: GULLS. TAT

dusky; darkest on the latter; all with light edgings. Primaries uniform brownish-black,
without white spots, tips, or lighter bases. Tail almost entirely brownish-black, with a
narrow border of white. Young in August: Bill and legs as in the preceding. Everywhere
whitish-gray ; the white of the under parts appearing as mottling, and the blue of the upper
parts as irregular patches. Dimensions: length 17.50; extent 42.00; wing 13.75; bill
above 1.40; gape 2.00; width at nostrils 0.25; height 0.35, height at angle 0.35; tarsus,
and middle toe with claw, 1.80. Interior of Arctic America, and Pacific coast generally. Not
authenticated as occurring on the Atlantic coast. The American representative of L. canus.

L. heer‘manni. (To Dr. A. L. Heermann. Fig. 509.) WHITE-HEADED GULL. Very different
from any of the foregoing, belonging to a different section of the genus (Blasipus). Bill shorter
than head or tarsus, rather slender, moderately compressed, the tip rather acute; its color red in
partin the adult. Folded wings reaching beyond the tail. Tail of moderate length, even, slightly
emarginate in the young. Feet rather large. Tarsus equal to the middle toe and claw. Gen

eral colors dark ; tail mostly blavkish. Adult, breeding plumage: Bill bright vermilion red,
black for its terminal:third, sometimes wholly red; a red ring around eye. Head white; this
color gradually merging on the neck into plumbeous-ash, which extends over the whole under
parts, being lighter on the abdomen and under tail-coverts than elsewhere. The back is deep
plumbeous-slate, lighter on
the rump. Upper tail-cov-
erts clear ashy. Upper sur-
faces of wings like the back;
the primaries black ; the tips
of all, except the two or
three outer ones, narrowly
white. Tail black, nar-
towly tipped with white.
Legs and feet reddish-black.
Young-of-the-year : Smaller
than the adult. Bill and feet brownish-black. Entire plumage deep sooty or fuliginous-
blackish; all the feathers, but especially those of the back and upper wing-coverts, edged
with grayish-white. Primaries and secondaries black, as in the adults, with only traces of
white tips on the former. Tail black, very narrowly tipped with dull white. Immature:
Bill as in the adult. Head all round, and the throat, mottled with brownish-black and dull
white, the latter colour predominating on the forehead and throat. Upper tail-coverts lighter
than in the adult, and the white tips of the tail-feathers-broader; otherwise generally as in the
adult, but with all the colors rather deeper. Dimensions: ‘length about 17.50; wing 13.50;
tail 5.50”; length of skin 18.50; wing 14.00; tail 5.75; bill along culmen 1.80; along gape
2.40; depth at base 0.55; at angle, about the same ; tarsus 2.20; middle toe and claw a little
less. Young: wing 12.25; tail 4.75; bill along eulmen 1.00; depth at base 0.50; at angle
0.45; tarsus 1.90. Length of some skins up to about 20 inches. Pacific coast of N. Am., from
British Columbia to Guatemala; singular among all our species in dark lead-eolor with white
head and red bill; common on the California coast.

RIS/SA. (Icelandic name, rissa or ritsa.) KirtrwaKes. Bill stout, rather short, little com-
pressed at the base, shorter than the head, equal to middle toe without claw, longer than tarsus ;
tip decurved and attenuated; convexity of culmen regular and gradual from base to tip; gonys
concave, in consequence of the great deflection of the apex of lower mandible; outline of rami
slightly concave; eminentia symphysis well marked and acute, but not large. Wings very
long, pointed, reaching beyond the tail; the primaries pointed, first longest. Tail moderately
long, even or (in young) emarginate. Legs stout and short. Tarsus remarkably short, less
than middle toe alone ; anterior toes all long, and united by broad, full webs with unincised mar-

t
Fig. 509. — White-headed Gull, 4 nat. size. (From Sclater and Salvin.)

782.

783.

748 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES— GAVIZE.

gins. Hallux rudimentary or not well developed, the ungual phalanx being generally obsolete
Pattern of primaries and livery of the young, peculiar. Nests on crags.

Analysis of Species.
Feet dark; bill clouded with olivaceous, about 1.50 long; wing 12.00.

Hallux rudimentary, without a claw-bearing phalanx . . «1. 7 we ee ee tridactyla 782
Hallux better formed, bearingaclaw . ee eo DE tele, ae tar ae an (Ree, kotzebuit 783
Feet coral red (drying yellow); bill clear yellow, about 1.20; wing 13.00... . .. 4. brevirostris 784

R. tridac/tyla. (Lat. tris, thrice; dactylus, digit.) Common Kirtrwaxks. Hind toe only
appearing as a minute knob, its claw abortive. Adult, breeding plumage: Bill light yellow,
clouded with olivaceous. Head and neck all round, under parts and tail, pure white. Mantle
rather dark bluish or cinereous-blue, the tertiaries and secondaries of the same color nearly to
their tips, which are white. Primaries: the first very light bluish-white, without white apex,
its outer web, and its inner web for about two inches from the tip, black ; second like the first,
but without the black outer web, its tip being black for nearly the same distance as the first,
its apex with a minute white spot; on the third and fourth the black tips grow shorter, while
the apices are more broadly white; this lessening of the black on each feather is exactly pro-
portional to the shortening of the successive quills, bringing the bases of all the black tips in
the same straight line (a pattern peculiar to the species of Rissa). A sub-apical black spot is
usually present on one or both webs, but is sometimes absent. Legs and feet blackish. Iris
reddish-brown; eye-ring red. Adult in winter: Occiput, nape behind, and sides of the breast,
clouded with the color of the back, deepening into slate over the auriculars. A very small but
well-defined black crescent before the eye. Otherwise asin summer. Young: Bill black; an
ante-ocular crescent, and a post-ocular spot, dusky-slate. A broad transverse bar across the neck
behind, the whole of the lesser and median wing-coverts, the bastard quills, the tertiaries, except
at their edges, and a terminal bar on the tail, black. The outer four primaries with their outer
webs, outer half of inner webs, and tips for some distance, black, the rest of the feathers pearly
white. Tips only of the fifth and sixth black, their extreme apices with a white speck. Length
16.00-18.00; extent 36.00; wing 12.25; bill above 1.40 to 1.50; along rictus 2.10; height
at base 0.50; at angle 0.40; tarsus 1.30; middle toe and claw 1.80. Arctic America and
Europe, chiefly coastwise, very abundant; breeds from New England northward; ranges in
winter S. to the Middle States. Nests preferably not on the ground like most gulls, but on the
ledges of rocks and cliffs overhanging the water, such as the guillemots select; nest of sea-
weeds, etc. Eggs like those of other gulls, 2.25 x 1.80.

R. t. kotzebui'i. (To Otto von Kotzebue, the Russian navigator.) Korzesur’s Kirti-
WAKE. It is a curious fact that the common kittiwake of the North Pacific usually has the
hind toe better formed — sometimes nearly if not quite as long as in ordinary gulls, with a
nearly or quite perfect, though small, claw. But I cannot predicate a specific character on this
score, since the development of the toe is by insensible degrees. (See Couzs, Proc. Phila.
Acad., 1869, p. 207 (footnote) ; Birds N. W., 1874, p. 644.) N. Pacific coast, abundant.

. R. breviros'tris, (Lat. brevirostris, short-billed.) SHortT-BILLED KiTtiwaKke. ReEp-

LEGGED KittrwaKke. Adult, breeding plumage: Bill very short, stout, wide at the base, the
upper mandible much curved, though not attenuated nor very acute. Convexity of culmen
very great toward the tip; the culmen being, from the nostrils to the apex, almost the are of a
circle, whose centre is the symphyseal eminence. Outline of rami of under mandible and gonys
both somewhat concave; the eminentia symphysis but slightly developed. Tarsus very short,
hardly more than two-thirds the middle toe and claw. Wings exceedingly long, reaching,
when folded, far beyond the tail. Tail of moderate length, even. Bill a uniform clear light
straw-yellow, with little or no tinge of olivaceous; iris hazel ; eye-ring red. Head and neck
all round, under parts and tail, pure white. Mantle deep leaden or bluish-gray, much darker
than in R. tridactyla } the color on the wings extending to within half an inch of the apices of

310.

785.

311.

LARIDA —LARINZ: GULLS. 749

the secondaries, which terminal half-inch is white. Primaries: the first has its shaft and outer
vane black, but has on its inner vane a space of dull gray (not white), which at the base of
the feather occupies nearly all the vane, but gradually grows narrower until it ends by a well-
defined rounded termination half as broad as the vane itself, about 24 inches from the tip of the
feather, these 24 inches being black, like the outer vane. Second: the outer vane is of the
same leaden gray as the back, to within four inches of the tip; the inner vane is of a rather
lighter shade of the same color, to within three inches of the tip, the gray ending abruptly, being
in fact almost truneated. Third: like the second, but the gray-extends further, leaving only
a.space of two inches black; and the tip has also a minute apical gray spot. Fourth: wholly
bluish-gray to within 14 inches of the tip, which has a larger gray apical spot than has the
third, so that the black is less than 14 inches long. Fifth: the gray extends so far that it is
separated from the well-defined white apical spot by a band of black less than 14 inch wide.
Sixth: gray, fading into white at the tip, and with the black reduced to a small subapical spot
on one or both webs; other primaries like the sixth, minus the black spot. (This “gray” of
the primaries is the color of the mantle.) Legs and feet coral-red, especially the toes and webs
(the tarsi not quite so bright) ; drying yellow. Claws black. Young not seen. Bird at times
said to have a black eye-ring and dark spot behind eye. Nestlings covered with white down, with
whitish bill and feet. Dimensions: Bill along culmen 1.20 inches; along rictus about 1.70;
from nostril to tip 0.60; depth at base 0.50; width 0.42; depth at symphyseal eminence 0.42;
wing 13.00; tail about 5.00; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw nearly 2.00; length of the whole
bird, apparently about 14 inches. A beautiful and very distinct species, swarming by thou-
sands in islands in Bering’s sea, where it is a permanent resident; nests on shelves of the most
inaccessible crags, building a substantial structure of grass, moss, and seaweeds, mixed with
mud; eggs 2-3, size and shape of a hen’s eggs, of the usual pattern of coloration: June, July.
PAGO'PHILA. (Gr. mdyos, pagos, ice; pidos, philos, loving.) Ice Guuus. Bill very short,
much less than the head, only about equal to the short tarsus, very stout, little compressed, the
nasal fossa deep, the nostrils placed far forward. Legs and feet very short and stout, the scales:
of the tarsus and toes large and rough. Tibia feathered to near the joint; tarsus short, about
as long as middle toe without claw; claws large, strong, and much curved; webs narrow and
much incised; a slight connection of hind with inner toe. Size moderate; form stout; color
entirely white. One species. °

P. ebur/nea, (Lat. eburnea, of or like ebur, ivory.) Ivory Guu. Adult, breeding plu-
mage: Culmen straight to the nostrils, then regularly convex; commissure gently curved to the
tip, where it is considerably decurved; gonys straight to near the angle, which is well defined,
the outline from angle to tip perfectly straight. Feathers extending between the rami nearly to
the angle. Wings long and pointed, reaching beyond the tail; primaries gradually attenuated
to the tip. Color entirely pure white, the shafts of the primaries straw-yellow. Bill dusky
greenish, yellow at tip and along the cutting edges. Legs and feet black. Eye brown, the
edges of the eyelids red. Young: Front, chin, and sides of the head, grayish-dusky ; the upper
part of the neck, all round, irregularly spotted with the sane. Scapulars, and upper and under
wing-coverts, spotted with brownish-black, the spots most numerous along the lesser coverts.
Tips of the primaries and tail-feathers with a dusky spot. Dimensions: Length 19.00; extent
41.00; wing 13.25; bill above 1.40; along gape 2.10; height at nostrils 0.45; tarsus about
1.45; middle toe and claw 1.75. Arctic seas of both hemispheres, coming southward in win-
ter, but rarely to the U. 8.

CHROICOCE/PHALUS. (Gr. xpatxds, chroikos, colored ; xebady, kephale, head.) Hooprep
GuLLs. Rosy Gunis. Form as in Larus, but general organization averaging less robust,
size smaller, and bill usually weaker, slenderer, more acute and less hooked. ‘Head enveloped
ina dark hood in the breeding season, when white of under parts usually blushing pink or
rosy. Markings of the primaries varying with the species, but different from that of the larger

186.

750 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— LONGIPENNES — GAVLZE.

gulls. Tail square, or nearly so. There are no marked peculiarities of form of this genus,
the pattern of coluration being mainly its basis. The numerous species average much under
those of Larus in size (though one at least is among the largest of Larine); they approximate
toward Xema and Rhodostethia in some respects, but the tail is neither forked nor cuneate.

Analysis of Species.
Tarsus longer than middle toe and claw.

Bill reddish, feet the same. Length 16.00ormore ....,.....2.4.4. : . . atricilla 786
Tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw.

Bill reddish, feet the same. Length about 14.00 inches . . ee a eee as ee Sranklini 187

Bill black, feet red or yellow. Length about 14.00inches ..... Be philadelphia 788

C. atricil/la. (Lat. atricilla, black-tail: only applicable to the young. Fig. 510.) LauGuine
GuLL. BLACK-HEADED GULL. Bill longer than middle toe and claw, shorter than tarsus or
head, moderately compressed, rather stout for this genus. Culmen and commissure both decurved
at the end, the latter somewhat sinuate at the base. Gonys considerably concave in front
of the angle, sonewhat so between the angle and tip; although the angle is well defined,
the tip of the bill is so decurved that a chord from tip to base does not touch it. Middle toe
barely three-fourths the tarsus. Adult in summer: Bill and edges of eyelids deep carmine;
legs and feet dusky-red; iris blackish. Hood
deep plumbeous grayish-black, extending further
on the throat than on the nape. Eyelids white
‘posteriorly. Neck all round, rump, tail, broad
tips of secondaries and tertials, and whole under ,
parts, white, the latter with a rosy tinge (like tly
tint of peach-blossoms). Mantle grayish-plum-
beous. Outer six primaries black, their extreme
tips white; their bases for a very short distance

Fig. 510. — Bill of Laughing Gull, nat. size. (Ad on the first, and only on the inner web, and for a
hab, del: B.C.) successively increasing distance on both webs of
the others, of the color of the back. Adult in winter: Under parts simply white, not rosy;
hood lost, the head being white, mixed with blackish. Bill and feet more dull in color. Imma-
ture: Bill and feet brownish-black, tinged with red. Plumbeous of the upper parts more or
less mixed with irregular patches of light grayish-brown. Primaries wholly brownish-black,
fading at the tip. Secondaries brownish-black on the outer web. Tail-feathers more or
less tinged with plumbeous, and with a broad terminal band of brownish-black, the extreme
tips of the feathers white. Upper tail-coverts white. Young-of-the-year: Entire upper
parts, and neck all round, light brownish-gray ; the feathers tipped with grayish or rufous-
white, broadly on the scapulars and tertials, the blue of the adults appearing on the wing-
coverts. Eyelids whitish ; a dusky space about the éye. Forehead, throat, and under parts,
dull whitish, more or less clouded with gray, especially on the breast, where this is the
prevailing color. Wings and tail as before. Length about 16.50; extent 41.00; wing 13.00;
tail 5.00; bill 1.75, along gape 2.25, its height at nostril 0.45 ; tarsus 2.00; middle toe and
claw 1.50. Tropical Am. and temperate N. Am.; in the U. S. north coastwise in summer to
Maine, in the interior to Ohio or beyond; on the Pacific side to California; Central America,
both coasts, and various W. I. islands; S. Am. to the Lower Amazon; casual in Europe.
By thousands along the Atlantic coast during the migrations, breeding in colonies anywhere
along, wintering in the South. Nest on the ground, of eel-grass, seaweeds, and other vege-
table material; eggs mostly 3, sometimes 2; 2.10 * 1.55; ground color some olive shade,
ranging from dull grayish to dark greenish, thickly marked all over with spots and irregular
splashes of brown, blackish, dull reddish and pale purplish ; sometimes the markings chiefly
wreathed about the large end.

787.

788.

LARIDA|—LARINZ: GULLS. 751

C. franklini. (To Sir John Franklin.) Franxuin’s Rosy Guiu. Adult in breeding
plumage: Bill rather slender, attenuated and a little decurved at the tip, which is acute ;
outline of both rami and gonys concave. Bill shorter than head; tarsus equal to middle toe
and claw. Bill red (carmiue, lake, or vermiliun), crossed with black near the end. Legs
dusky-reddish. Edges of eyelids orange. Eyelids white, this color also reaching a little
behind the eye. Hood deep slaty or plumbeous-black, encircling the upper part of the neck
as well as the head, and extending further on the throat than on the nape. Mantle not quite
so dark as in atricilla (more blue), darker than in philadelphia. First primary with the outer
yane black to within an inch of the tip; the inner pearly-white, crossed an inch or more from
the tip by an isolated black bar an inch broad, thus leaving the feather white on both webs
for an inch or more from the tip. The next five primaries are basally of the color of the back,
paler on the inner web, and both webs fading toward their tips into white; each is crossed hy
a black bar near the end, two inches wide on the second primary, narrowing on successive
feathers to a small bar or pair of little spots on the sixth; the tips of all these primaries pure
white. Other primaries, with secondaries and tertials, colored like the back, fading at the tips
into white; shafts white, sometimes black along the black portiou of the feather. Tail very
pale pearly-blue, the three lateral pairs of rectrices white — or rather tail white, lightly washed
with pearly on the six central feathers. Neck all around, rump, broad tips of secondaries and
tertials, and whole under parts white, the latter rosy. Younger, that is to say, in summer
plumage, and with a perfect hood, red bill, ete., but the primaries not yet having attained
their perfect pattern: General coloration exactly as before. Shafts of first thtee primaries
black, of the rest gray, except along the black portion of the feathers; 1st primary with the
outer web wholly black, the inner web pearly-gray, much like the back but lighter, to within
two or three inches of the tip, then black for the rest of its extent; 2d like the Ist, but the
base of the outer web like the inner; on the 3d, 4th, and 5th, successively, the black decreases
in extent, till on the 6th it is merely a little bar, or pair of spots; tips of all the primaries
white; that of the lst primary smallest, that of the others successively increasing in size.
Winter plumage: As in summer; the hood wanting or indicated by a few slaty feathers abuut
the eyes, on the auriculars and nape; the rosy wanting; the bill and feet dull-colored.
Young: Bill blackish, with -pale base of under mandible; feet flesh-colored; eye black.
Traces of a hood, or nape largely slaty, ete., according to precise age. Outer five or six
primaries wholly black in their continuity, rather lighter and somewhat slaty at base, with
or without a minute white speck at the tip. Mantle gray or brown, more or less mixed with
blue, according to age. Tail ashy-white, with a broad black subterminal bar. Under parts:
white. This appears to be the usual plumage of birds of the first autumn. Dimensions:
Length about 14.00 inches; extent 35.00; wing 11.25; tail about 4.50; bill along culmen
1.30; along gape 1.75; height at nostril 0.35; tarsus 1.60; middle toe and claw the same.
Young smaller than adults; bill 1.10-1.20 ; wing 10.00, ete. S.and C. Am. in winter; in
N. Am. migrating through the interior, chiefly west of the Mississippi, to the Arctic regions,
abundant; has never been observed in the Atlantic States. Breeds from the N. border of
the U.S. northward. Eggs 2.12 < 1.40, closely resembling those of the Eskimo ecurlew in

size, shape and color; though the dark splashes are more evenly distributed over the surface.

C, philadel/phia. (To the city of that name.) Bonaparrn’s Rosy Guu. Adult, breeding
plumage: Bill shorter than the head or tarsus, much compressed, very slender, like a tern’s ;
both mandibles with a slight but distinct notch near the tip. Convexity of culmen slight,
gradual from base to apex; rami slightly concave; gonys about straight. Nostrils very narrow.
Tarsus equal to middle toe and claw. Tail somewhat emarginate in the young. Bill
black. Mouth and eyelids carmine. Legs and feet coral-red, tinged with vermilion. Webs
bright vermilion. Hood plumbeous-slate, not so deep as in franklini, enveloping the head
and upper part of the neck, reaching further before than behind. White patches on eyelids

812.

To2 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES—GAVIZ.

narrow, and half posterior to the eye. Mantle pearl-blue, much lighter than in franklini.
Ends of the tertials and scapulars scarcely lighter than the back. Primaries: shafts of the
first five or six white, except at their extreme tips, the others dark-colored ; first, outer web
and extreme tip black, rest white; second, white, its tip black for a greater distance than the
first, and on one or both webs, for a greater or less distance (sometimes half way down the
feather) narrowly bordered with black ; third, fourth, fifth, sixth, black at the ends for about
the same distance on each, the black bordering the inner web much further than the outer;
the inner webs of the third and fourth, and both webs of the fifth and sixth, of a rather lighter
shade of the color of the back. Other primaries like the back, the seventh and eighth with
a touch of black on one or both webs near the tip. The third to sixth primaries with a white
or pearly-white speck at extreme tip. As is not the case with either of our other species of
the genus, the primary wing-coverts, bastard quills, ete., are wholly or in great part white,
causing the whole wing to be bordered with white as far as the carpus. Neck all around,
and under parts, including under wing-coverts, pure white ; the belly rosy in breeding time.
No difference in color between the sexes. Adult, winter plumage: Bill light colored at base
below; feet flesh-color. Crescent before the eye, and patch below the auriculars, deep slate.
Crown and occiput mottled with grayish-black and white. Back of neck washed over with
the color of the mantle. Forehead, sides of the head and throat, white, continuous with the
white of the under parts. Young, first winter: Bill dusky flesh-cvler, except toward the
end; legs and feet light flesh-color. Without the slaty mottling of the crown. Auricular
patch distinct. Lesser wing-coverts and tertials dusky-brown, lighter along their edges.
Secondaries with a patch of dusky near the end, which on the innermost three or four becomes
restricted to the outer web. First primary, with about half the inner web along the shaft,
black ; second and third with the outer webs wholly black, and a narrow line of black on
the inner, along the shaft. Tail with a subterminal brownish-black bar. Very young: Bill
flesh-color, dusky on the terminal half. Crown of head, and neck behind to the interscapulars,
clouded with dusky bluish-gray, heightening on the sides of the neck into light grayish-
ochreous. Seapulars and middle of the back light ¢ull-blue, as in the adult, but the feathers so
broadly (for $ inch) tipped with grayish-brown, fading into dull white at tip, that the original
color is nearly lost. Lesser wing-coverts and tertials brownish-black, the latter edged with
the color of the edgings of the back. Bastard quills and feathers along the edge of the wing
variegated with black and white. Primaries black; the outer two-thirds of the inner vane
of the first four bluish-white to near the end: both vanes of the others of that color for a little
distance ; the extreme tips of all but the two first, white. Secondaries light gull-blue, each
with « large terminal blackish spot contjnuous with the black ends of the inner primaries.
Tail with a broad terminal bar of black, and very narrowly tipped with dull white. Dimen-
sions: Length 14.00 inches; extent 32.00; wing 10.25; bill above, 1.20; gape 1.75; height
at nostrils 0.25: tarsus, or middle toe and claw, 1.40. N. Am. at large, both coastwise and
in the interior, migrating through and wintering in the U. S., breeding in high latitudes;
abundant; especially numerous along the Atlantic coast during the migrations; accidental in
Europe. One of the most airy, graceful, and elegant of the family. Eggs rare and scarcely
known; one has been described as 1.80 X 1.30, olive-gray, with a close wreath of very
dark and lighter brown splashes around the larger end, and other scratches and spots of the
same scattered over the whole surface. In the interior this species and the last may often be
seen winnowing over ploughed land, probably after earth-worms.

RHODOSTE'THIA. (Gr. fd8ov, hrodon, the rose ; o7jOos, stethos, the breast.) WEDGE-
TAIL GuLL. Tail cuneate (here only among Laride). Otherwise, form much as in other
small gulls; bill weak and slender, with little salience of the angle; wings folding beyond
the tail. No colored hood, but a black collar round neck. Under plumage blossoming ip
breeding season.

189.

313.

7190.

791.

LARIDA — LARINZE: GULLS. 753

R. ro/sea, (Lat. rosea, rosy.) WEDGE-TAILED, or Ross’ Rosy Guiu. Adult: White,
rosy-tinted; a black collar, but no hood; mantle pearly-blue; primaries.marked with black;
bill’ black, gape and edge of eyelids red; feet vermilion. Length 14.00; wing 10.50; bill
0.75, very slender; tarsus little over 1.00; tail 5.50, cwneate, the graduation being one inch.
Young extensively mottled with blackish. Arctic regions; a circumpolar species, chiefly
inhabiting the Arctic coasts of N. Am. and Siberia, though known to come southward to the

"Feroes and Heligoland in Europe, and to St. Michael’s in Alaska. This exquisite gull, famed

for the beauty of its plumage, remained until recently one of the rarest of birds in collections ;
only about a dozen being known to exist, not one of them in any American museum. In 1879,
Mr. R. L. Newcomb, naturalist of the ill-fated ‘‘ Jeannette,” secured eight specimens on the
Siberian coast, only three of them, however, being preserved. Mr. E. W. Nelson took one at
St. Michael’s, Alaska. More recently, a very large number of specimens have been secured at
Point Barrow, on the Arctic coast of Alaska.
XE/MA. (A nonsense word — sonus sensu carens.) FORK-TAIL GULLS. Tail forked (here
only in Larine). Head hooded, with a more or less evident darker collar. Bill black, with
light tip. Size moderate and small. With a general bearing toward Chroicocephalus, in the
hooded head and other features, the genus is distinguished from this or any other group of
Larine by the tern-like character of the forked tail.
Analysis of Species.
Small: Wing 11 inches or less; tail lightly forked; a definite black collar bounding the hood; feet black
sabinit 7!

Large: Wing 16 inches or more; tail deeply forked; black collar inconspicuous; feet reddish . . furcata be
X. sabi/nii. (To E. Sabine.) Forx-TaiLep Guu. Adult, breeding plumage: Bill black
to the angle, abruptly bright chrome from angle to tip. Mouth bright orange; eyelids
orange; legs and feet black. Hood uniform clear deep slate, bounded inferiorly by a ring, ,
naitowest on the nape, of velvety-black. Lower part of neck all round, tail and its coverts,
four inner primaries, secondaries, greater part of greater coverts, tips of tertials except the
innermost, and whole under parts, pure white. Mantle slate-blue, extending quite to the tips
of the inner tertials. Edge of wing from the carpal joint with the bastard wing, black. First
five primaries, with their shafts, black; their extreme tips, and the outer half of the inner
webs, to near the end, white. Other primaries white, the sixth with a touch of black on the
outer web. Emargination of tail 1.25 inches. Length 13.75; wing 10.75; bill 1.00; along
gape 1.50; height at angle 0.30; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw same. Adult in winter:
Without the hood. Young-of-the-year: Tail forked, nearly as in the adult. Bill small
and weak, flesh-color and dusky. Legs apparently flesh-colored. No hood nor collar.
Most of the head, the back of the neck, and upper parts in general, slaty-gray, transversely
waved with brownish-white; each feather being tipped with this color. Under parts white.
Tail white, with a broad terminal bar of black, an inch wide on the central rectrices,
growing narrower on the others successively; on the outermost sometimes invading only
one web. This black bar very narrowly edged with white. Wings surprisingly similar to
those of the adult, but the white on the inner webs more restricted, and the white tips very
small or wanting altogether. Dimensions a little less than those of the adult. Young not
distinctly resembling the same age of Ch. philadelphia. Arctic America, both coastwise and
in the interior, irregularly south in winter through the U. 8.; Bermudas; Peru! Europe.
Common enough in high latitudes, but seldom seen in the U. S., and still rather rare in col-
lections. Eggs 3, 1.75 x 1.25, much like a curlew’s in general aspect, brownish-olive, sparsely
splashed with brown.
X. furca/ta. (Lat. furcata, forked.) SwaLLow-TaAILED Guy. Immature? Head and
nearly all the neck grayish-brown ; a white mark on each side of the forehead; mantle gray-
ish-white ; tail white, much forked; lesser wing-coverts white; greater slate, white-bordered ;

48

754 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES— GAVIA.

bill black at base, white at end; eyes and feet red; eyelids orange; claws black. Length
about 2 feet. ‘‘ California” (?) The foregoing is compiled from the original description.
Only three specimens of this excessively rare gull are known: one ascribed to Monterey, Cali-
fornia; another, adult, from Chatham island, one of the Galapagoes. The latter, in the
British Museum, is thus described: ‘‘ Head, neck, and throat, of a sootier color than in X.
sabinii, darkening toward the base of the hood, but not forming a distinct black collar, as in
this species; a white frontal band; under parts and tail pure white, the latter more deeply
forked than in sabinii ; mantle pale pearl-gray, somewhat darker on the wing-coverts; prima-
ties blackish-brown on outer webs and continuation of inner webs, thence white, except at tip;
secondaries white, tinged with gray at their tips; bill blackish, tipped with horn-yellow from
the angle. Wing 16.50 inches; tarsi nearly 2 inches; middle toe the same; hind toe very
small, but bearing a well-developed claw.” A third has lately been announced from Paracas
Bay, Peru; this is a young one, with black bill, reddish feet, the mantle spotted and the tail
barred with blackish. Adult and young are figured by Saunders, P. Z. S., 1882, p. 523, pl.
34; see also P. Z. 8., 1878, p. 210. The species is very questionably N. Am.

72. Subfamily STERNINA: Terns.

Covering of bill continuous (no cere), hard and horny
throughout. Bill paragnathous, relatively longer and slenderer
than in the gulls, very acute, the commissure straight or nearly
so to the very end. Curve of culmen gentle and gradual from
base to apex. Symphysis of inferior mandibular rami much
more extensive than in Lestridine or Larine, but the eminentia
symphysis less marked. Interramal space narrow. Encroach-
ment of feathers on the bill as in Larime. Nostrils linear-
oblong, lateral, direct, pervious, varying with genera as regards
degree of approximation to the base of the bill. Wings ex-
tremely lengthened, narrow, and acute, the first primary much
the longest, the rest rapidly graduated. Secondaries short and
inconspicuous. Tail usually much elongated and deeply forked,

Fig. 511.—Roseate Tern. (From the lateral feathers being more or less attenuated and filiform;
Tenney, after Audubon.) only occasionally short and broad (Gelochelidon), or graduated
(Anoiis, ete.). Legs placed rather further back, and less decidedly ambulatorial than in
Larine. ‘Tibia denuded for a varying distance. Tarsi short and usually slender; scutellate
and reticulate, as in Larine. Toes of moderate length, and of the usual relative pitoportioni:
Webs rather narrow, and (except in Anoiis, etc.) more or less incised. Claws small, com-
pressed, but much curved and acute. Size moderate, or very small. General form slender
and delicate. Plumage as in other subfamilies, but the pteryle narrow; the sexes hardly
differing in coloration, but the variations with age and season very great.

The terns are not distinguished from the gulls by any strong structural peculiarities, but
they invariably show a special contour, in the production of which the longer, slenderer, and
acutely paragnathous bill is a conspicuous element. Only one species has the bill in any no-
ticeable degree like that of a gull. A few of the terns are as large as middle-sized gulls, but
the normal stature is much less; and they are invariably of a slenderer build, more trim in
shape, with smoother, closer-fitting plumage. The great length and sharpness of the wing
relative to the bulk of the body confer a dash and buoyancy of flight wanting in the gulls; in
flying over the water in search of food, they hold the bill pointing straight downward, which
makes them look curiously like colossal mosquitoes ; and they secure their prey by darting
impetuously upon it, when they are usually submerged for a moment. The larger kinds feed
principally upon little fish, procured in this way; but most of the smaller ones are insectivo-

LARIDZ — STERNINZE: TERNS. 155

rous, and flutter about over marshy spots like swallows or night-hawks. The general appear-
ance and mode of flight have suggested the name of ‘‘ sea-swallow,” the equivalent of which
is applied in nearly all civilized languages. A forking of the tail is an almost universal char-
acter. In the Caspian and marsh terns, the black tern and its allies, and some others, the
forking is moderate, and not accompanied by attenuation of the lateral feathers; but ordi
narily, these are remarkably lengthened and almost filamentous, as in the barn swallow. It
should be observed that in all such cases the narrowing elongation is gradual, and consequently
less evident in the young; and that it is very variable in its development. The noddies offer
the peculiarity of a tail lightly forked centrally, but rounded laterally. The feet are small and
relatively weak throughout the group; the terns walk but little, and scarcely swim at all.
Ordinarily the webbing is rather narrow, and incised, particularly that between the middle and
inner toe; in Hydrochelidon, this occurs to such extent that the toes seem simply semipalmate.
The webs are fullest in Amoiis, where also the hallux is unusually long; in some species, this
toe is slightly connected with the tarsus by a web. The inner toe is shorter than the outer,
and much less than the middle, which, especially in Hydrochelidon, is much lengthened, and
has the inner edge of its claw dilated, or even slightly serrate. The coloration is very con-
stant, almost throughout the subfamily. Most of the species are white (often rosy-tinted be-
low), with a pearly-blue mantle, a black cap on the head, and dark-colored primaries, along
the inner web of which usually runs a white stripe. These dark-colored quills, when new, are
beautifully frosted or silvered over; but this hoariness being very superficial, soon wears off,
leaving the feathers simply blackish. The black cap is often interrupted by a white frontal
crescent; it is sometimes prolonged into a slight occipital crest ; in a few species, it is replaced
by a black bar on each side of the head. One species, Inca mystacalis, has a curious bundle of
curly white plumes on each side of the head. Another, Gygis alba, is pure white all over;
Procelsterna cinerea is wholly ashy; the noddies are all fuliginous; the upper parts of Hali-
plana are dark; the species of Hydrochelidon are largely black. These are the principal if
not the only exceptions to the normal coloration just given. The sexes are never distinguish-
able, either by size or color; but nearly all the species, in the progress toward maturity,
undergo changes of plumage, like gulls; while the seasonal differences are usually consider-
able. As arule, the black cap is imperfect in young and winter specimens, and the former
show gray or brown patching instead of the pure final color of the mantle. In all those species
in which the bill is red, orange, or yellow, it is more or less dusky in the young. The changes
are probably greatest in the black terns.

The general economy’is much the same throughout the group. The eggs are laid in a
slight depression on the ground, — generally the shingle of beaches, or in a tussock of grass in
a marsh, or in a rude nest of sticks in low thick bushes; they are 1-3 in number, variegated
in color. Most of the species are maritime, and such is particularly the case with the noddies ;
but nearly all are also found inland. They are noisy birds, of shrill penetrating voice; and no
less gregarious than gulls, often assembling in multitudes to breed, and generally moving in
company. Species occur near water in almost every part of the world, and most of them
are widely distributed; of those occurring in North America, the majority are found in corre-
sponding latitudes in the Old World. Some seventy species are currently reported; the true
number is apparently just about that of the Gulls (about fifty).

The generic and subgenerie groups of the Sternine are rather better marked than those
of the Larine. Phethusa, Gygis, and several subgenera near Anoiis are extralimital. The
North American forms may readily be distinguished by the following analysis. Hydrochelidon
and Anoiis may be regarded as genera, the remainder being subgenera of Sterna.

Analysis of the North American forms of Sternine.

Nostrils sub-basal. Frontal antiz prominent, embracing base of culmen. Tail more or less forked.
Tarsus not shorter than middle toe without the claw. Lateral toes much shorter than the middle.

756 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES — GAVIZ.

Webs incised (Group STERNEZ).
Webs moderately incised. Tail well-formed, generally more than half as long as the wing. Under
parts white or light.
Upper parts pearl-gray. Cap in summer black, or a black bar through eye.
Bill short and very stout, somewhat gull-like, black. Tarsi much longer than the toes,

black. Tail lightly forked. Medium size . « Gelochelidon

Bill long, large, bright colored, or with yellow tip. “an occipital crest. Feet black.

Forking of tail variable. Of large size ‘ + » . Thalasseus

Bill moderate, slender, usually bright colored, like the feet, No crest. Tail long, deeply
forked. Size medium andsmall . .. Ce ete ee ae Sterna 314

Opper parts dusky. Cap like the back.

Bill and feet black. A white frontalcrescent . . . + . + « . Haliplana

Webs deeply incised (feet little more than semipalmate). Tail siarely emarginate, hardly or not half
as long as the wing. Under partsin summer black . . . . . . Hydrochelidon 315

Nostrils nearly median. No frontal antiz, the feathers extending further on culmen than at the sides.
Tail double-rounded. Tarsi very short. Toes lengthened, the lateral nearly as long as the middle, with
full webs. (Group ANOEZ.)
Color fuliginous. . bs nip) ay tae = Solaniaerese & oe ee we ew ww « Anoits 316

314, STER/NA. (Latinized from English stern or tern.) TERNS. Form typical of the sub-
family. Nostrils sub-basal. Frontal antize prominent. Tail more or less forked. Tarsus
not shorter than middle toe without claw. Lateral toes much shorter than middle. Webs
moderately incised. Under parts of adult white, or like back. (Characters of the subfamily,
exclusive of Hydrochelidon and Anoiis.)

Analysis of Subg ‘a and Species (adults),

GELOCHELIDON. Bill very stout, almost gull-like, black. Tarsus much longer than toes, black. Tail
lightly forked, contained about 24 times in wing. Size moderate.

Head crested. Cap black. Pearly mantle extending over rumpand tail . . . - . anglica 792
THALASSEUS. Bill long, large, tern-like, bright colored or with yellow tip. Feet black. Head crested.
Size large to largest.
Tail merely emarginate, contained nearly or about 3 times in wing. Primaries without white space
on inner webs. Billred. Largest: wing about 16.00; tail 5.50; billnearly 3.00 . . . . . caspia 1793
Tail forked. Primaries with white space on inner webs. Bill orange, stout, about 2.50, 0.50 or more
deep at base; gonys about 1.00 long. Wing14.50. . . » maxima 194
Tail forked. Primaries with white space on inner webs. Bill orange, slender, about 2. 50, under 0.50
deep at base, gonys about 1.50long. Wing 12.50. . Si Diese . . . elegans 95
Tail deeply forked, with narrow outer feathers. Primaries with white space on inner webs. Bill
slender, black, yellow-tipped . - + . cantiaca 196

STERNA proper. Bill long, slender, acute. Tarsus not longer than middle too and claw. Tail more or
less forked, with acute or very narrow lateral feathers, one-half or more as long as wing. Head not
decidedly crested. Size medium to smallest.

Mantle pearly-blue.
‘No black cap.
Head whitish, with black bar through eye; under parts like the mantle - . + -érudeaui 802
A black cap.
No white frontal crescent; black cap reaching bill.
Bill wholly or mostly red or reddish.
Bill red, blackening at end; feet coral-red. Outer web of outer tail-feather white;

: inner gray or dark. Tarsus0.900rmore. . . . Sorsteri 798

Bill red, blackening at end; feet coral-red. Outer web of outer tail- “feather gray or
dark, inner white; under parts paler than upper. Tarsus about0.75. . hirundo T9T

Bill wholly red; feet vermilion; outer tail-feather as in the last. Tarsus 0.65 or less.
Under parts nbarly like upper . c SO 6 s . . oe. « Macrura 799
Bill black, or only red at base. Feet reddish . @ soe ee ee we ee « dougalli 800

A white frontal crescent.
Bill yellow, tipped with black. Feet yellow. ....... ss . antillarum 801
Bill and feet black. r . ~ ee ws . Gleuticn 803
Mantle dusky. A white frontal crescent Bil ane foot black. (HALIPLANA.)

Mantle blackish-brown ; cap the same. . AS tins eae ita ses Ae ‘ Suliginosa 804
Mantle sooty-gray; cap black a ‘. a . anasthetica 805

Ogs. Above analysis based on adult summer birds, andl not, entirely available for young and winter ones,
in which the chars. of the cap, and colors of bill and feet, may be entirely different. These must be de-
termined by reference to the detailed descriptions.

LARIDA — STERNINZE: TERNS. TST

792. S. (G.) an/glica. (Lat. anglica, Anglican, English.) GuLu-BILLED TERN. Marsu TsrRn.

é 9, in summer: Bill rather shorter than head, robust, not very acute, compressed; culmen
nearly straight to beyond nostrils, then very declinato-convex to the tip; gonys about straight ;
rami slightly concave ; symphyseal eminence well marked; tomia of lower mandible inflected ;
commissure gently curved. Height of bill at base a third of total length. Nasal groove
short and broad, not deep; nostrils short, widely oval, placed very near base of bill, just
beyond the termination of the feathers. Wings exceedingly long and acute, each primary
surpassing the next by a full inch; the secondaries short, soft, obliquely incurved at their
extremities. Tail short, contained 24 times in the wing; deeply emarginate, but its lateral
feathers not elongated nor attenuated. Feet long and stout for this subfamily. Tarsus
shorter than bill, longer than middle toe and claw. Hind toe remarkably developed; inner
shorter than outer; interdigital membranes deeply incised, especially the inner. Tibia naked
for half an inch. Crown and long occipital crest glossy greenish-black, extending on to lower
border of eye, leaving only a very narrow line of white to run along the edge of the feathers

‘on side of upper mandible. Neck all round and under parts, white. Mantle light pearl-

blue, this color extending on rump and tail, quite to the tips of the rectrices; tail-feathers,
indeed, deepest colored at their tips, fading into nearly pure white toward their bases, on that
portion of each feather which is covered with the next one. The color of the mantle extends
quite to tips of tertials, but dilutes a little toward the tips of the secondaries. Shafts of
primaries yellowish-white. Primaries all grayish-black, deepest on the outer vane of the
first; but this color so heavily silvered as to appear much lighter. All the primaries have
on their inner webs a space of white, which extends toward their apices for a varying distance
on each; on the first the white is largest, purest, and extends furthest; is distinctly defined
from the black, and has not a margin of black along its inner border, except just at its apex.
The amount of the white diminishes in length and breadth with each successive primary,
until on the last one it is-inconspicuous; still it is quite perceptible on all. Bill black,
with or without a minute yellowish tip; legs and feet greenish-black ; iris brown. In winter:
Differs in restriction of the black cap, chiefly to the hind head and nape, on sides of head
reaching forward to eye; sometimes extinct, except in dusky eye-stripe and spot before eye,

_' when whole head otherwise white. Young: Bill blackish-brown, pale at base below; feet

793.

dull brownish. Upper parts pearl-blue, interrupted by numerous crescentic or hastate spots
of dull brownish, one on each feather, the extreme tip of which is whitish. A brownish-
black bar along lesser wing-coverts. Forehead and most of crown white, with dark shaft-
lines, increasing to exclude white on hind head and nape; blackish spot before and behind
eye. Neck all around, upper tail-coverts, and whole under parts, white. Tail-feathers
whitening at ends, each with a dusky space. Length 13.00-15.00; extent 33.00-37.00;
bill 1.40; along gape 2.00; its height at base 0.45; tibie naked 0.50; tarsus (average) 1.30:
middle toe and claw 1.10; hind toe and claw 0.40; wing 11.75-12.25; tail 5.50, forked
1,20-1.75. Nearly cosmopolitan; in N. Am., not abundant, and chiefly in Eastern U. S.,
Texas to New England. Not a beach-nester; breeds in marshes, like the black tern;
eggs 3, laid on broken-down reeds or grasses, 1.75 X 1.380, olivaceous, largely and irregularly
splashed with umber-brown and blackish, especially about the largest part, but very variable,
like all terns’ eggs.

S. (T.) cas’/pia. (Of the Caspian Sea. Fig. 512.) Caspian Tern. ImpEriaL Tern. Of
maximum size. Length 20.00-23.00 ; extent 50.00-55.00; wing 15.00-17.00, usually about’
16.00; tail only 5.00-6.00, forked about 1.50, middle feathers broad to their rounded ends, rest
growing successively more acute, but lateral without any slender filamentous development.
Bill extremely large, 2.75 along culmen, 4.00 along gape, 0.90 deep at base, 0.50 wide at
nostrils ; about as long as head, with culmen regularly curved from base to tip; outline of
mandibular rami slightly concave; gonys about straight; angle not very well marked.

758 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— LONGIPENNES — GAVIA.

Tibia bare about 0.75; tarsus 1.75, rather exceeding middle toe and claw, the scutella in
front replaced by polygonal scales similar to but larger than those on its sides, which are
rough ; hind toe extremely small; outer lateral nearly as long as middle toe and claw, which
is 1.65. Bill dark vermilion red, growing lighter and somewhat ‘‘diaphanous” toward the
tip. Pileum and occipital crest glossy greenish-black, extending to below the lower level of
-the eyes, and occupying the termination of the feathers on the side of the mandible to the

Fig, 512, —Caspian Tern, 3 nat. size. (From Brehm.)

exclusion of the white; lower eyelid white, forming a noticeable spot on the greenish; a
white streak along sides of upper mandible, not extending to the end of the feathers. Mantle
pearl-blue, the line of demarcation between it and the white rather indefinite, both on nape
and rump ; most of the tail-feathers, and especially the central ones, retaining a more or less
pearly tint. Shafts of the primaries yellowish-white; primaries grayish-black, but, when
new, so heavily silvered over as to appear of a light hoary gray, especially on their superior
aspects. On the inner web of all there is a central light field; this is very narrow, even on
the first primary, although it runs for some considerable distance, and on the others it rapidly
grows less; and it has no trenchant line of division on any of the primaries from the darker
portions of the feather. Whole inner web of secondaries pure white, outer pearl-blue. Legs
and feet black. Adult, winter plumage: Chiefly distinguished by a diminution in the bright-
ness of the bill, and by a change in the character of the pileum. The vermilion is replaced
by light orange-red, growing still yellower toward the tip of the bill and along the tomia.

794.

- Culmen gradually de-

LARIDA — STERNINZ: TERNS. T59

The forehead is white, usually quite pure; crown white, with small, narrow, distinct streaks
of brownish-black, along the shaft of each feather. On the sides of the head, before and
behind the eyes, and over the auriculars, the black is more largely intermixed with the white ;
and on the nape of the neck, that is, toward the termination of the occipital crest, the black
is the predominating color, being only slightly variegated with white. Young-of-the-year :
Everyway much smaller than the adult, the bill especially smaller, shorter, and weaker,
and of a duller red, more inclining to orange. Upper parts as in the adult, but the pearl-
blue everywhere spotted with rather small roundish or hastate spots of brownish-black,
largest on the tertials. Forehead grayish-white; vertex speckled with grayish-white and
black, the latter color increasing in amount until it becomes nearly or quite pure on the short
occipital crest. Wings much as in the adult. Tail much shorter and less forked; the rectrices
with brownish spaces near their tips, chiefly ou their inner webs. Under parts dull white.
Legs and feet rather shorter and weaker than those of the adult, but of much the same color.
Downy young: Grayish-white above, faintly mottled with blackish not aggregated into spots ;
white below, dusky across throat. Northern Hemisphere: In N. Am. irregularly distributed,
chiefly in Arctic regions, and along whole Atlantic coast; has lately occurred in various locali-
ties in the Mississippi and Ohio valleys; known to breed on coasts of Virginia and Texas.
Eggs 2, in hollow scooped in dry sand without nest, 2.65 to 2.75 X 1.80 to 1.90, broader and
more elliptical than those of S. maxima, with smoother and harder shell; ground-color pale
olive-buff, evenly marked all over with small spots of dark-brown and lavender. Breeds
commonly by single or few pairs, not in great colonies like S. maxima.

S. (T.) maxima. (Lat. maxima, largest: not true. Fig. 513.) Cayenne TERN. Royan
Tsrn. Bill about as long as that of S. caspia, but of very different shape, much slenderer, its.
height at base only :
from a fourth to a
third of its length.

clinato-convex from
base to tip, the amouut
of curvature increas-
ing but slightly tow-
ard the apex, which
is not very acute.
Commissure some-
what sinuate basally, regularly declinato-convex for the rest of its length. Rami decidedly a
little concave alung their edges. Gonys straight, shorter than the rami, the prominence
between the two illy developed. Tibie bare for a considerable distance (0.90 of an inch).
Tarsus not longer than middle toe and claw; its anterior aspect shows a tendency toward
reticulations instead of transverse scutella, but there are usually some scales which extend
quite across it. The lateral and posterior aspects are thickly reticulated, as in caspia, but
the plates are not so rough nor elevated. Tail long for this subgenus, quite deeply forked ;
central feathers broad to'their very tips, which are rounded ; lateral dues successively more
elongated and narrower toward their tips, the external pair slender and quite filamentous for
some distance. Adult in summer: Pileum glossy greenish-black, not extending below eyes, so
narrow on side of upper mandible that a broad white streak extends to extreme tip of the
feathers. Mantle exceedingly light pearl-blue, fading imperceptibly into white on the rump and
toward the extremities of the tertials. Tail white, with a faint tinge of pearly, especially on the
central feathers and inner webs of the others. Secondaries pure white for their whole length ex-
cept a small space on the outer web near the tip, which is grayish-blue, deeper than the mantle.
Outer web of first primary grayish-black ; the inner web of the same has a space of black

Fic. 513. — Royal Tern, $nat. size. (From Sclater and Salvin.)

760 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVIA,

extending the whole length of the feather, very narrow at the base, widening as it runs toward
the tip, within 1} inches of which it occupies the whole web; the rest of the web white, sep-
arated from the black by a straight distinct line of division. The second, third, fourth, and
fifth primaries have the same general characteristics, but the white space rapidly grows nar-
rower and shorter, and runs up further in the centre than-along the edge of the web, so that for
a little way from its end it has a border of blackish along its outer margin; other primaries
wholly pearl-blue, their inner webs margined with white. Bill coral or orange-red, with a
slightly lighter tip; feet blackish, their soles dull yellowish. Winter plumage: Bill less brightly
colored, its apex and tomia dull yellowish. Front white; crown variegated with black and
white, the former color increasing on the occiput and nuchal crest, which latter, though shorter
than in summer, is almost or quite unmixed with white. This black extends forward on the
sides of the head to the eye, which it includes. (But frequently found breeding in this
imperfect condition of the black cap, which is much more usual than the complete black.)
Tail not pure white, but glossed over with the bluish of the mantle, which deepens toward
the tips of the feathers into dusky-plumbeous ; also considerably less forked, the lateral featbers.
having little or nothing of a filamentous character. Young-of-the-year in August: Bill con-
siderably smaller and shorter than in the adult; its tip less acute, and its angles and ridges less.
sharply defined; mostly reddish-yellow, but light yellowish at tip. Crown much as: in the
adults in winter, but the occipital crest scarcely recognizable as such. Upper parts mostly
white; but the pearl-gray of the adults appearing in irregular patches, and the whole back
marked with small, irregularly shaped, but well-defined spots of brown. On the tertials the
brown occupies nearly the whole of each teather, a narrow edge only remaining white. Lesser
wing-coverts dusky plumbeous. Primaries much as in the adults, but the line of demarcation
of the black and white wanting sharpness of definition. Tail basally white, but soon becoming
plumbeous, then decidedly brownish, the extreme tips of the feathers again markedly white.
Otherwise as in the adults. Dimensions of the adults: length 18.00-20.00; extent 42.00-
44.00; wing 14.00-15.00;
tail 6.00-8.00; the depth
of forking 3.00-4.00; bill,
along culmen, 2.50 to 2.75;
along commissure 3.75; its
height at base 0.70; its
width 0.50; gonys 1.00-

, 1.25; tibize bare 0.90; tarsus
Fie. 514, — Elegant Tern, } nat. size, (From Sclater and Salvin.) 1.37 ; middle toe and claw

1.40. Tropical and temperate America; Brazil and Peru to California and New England,
chiefly coastwise, sometimes in the interior, as in Nevada. A fine species, second in size
only to 8. caspia; linear measurement nearly as great as in that species, owing to elongation
of tail, but bulk much less. Breeds in great colonies along our Atlantic coast, dropping 2
eggs on the sand, 2.67 long, as much as in caspia, about 1.70 or less broad, narrower and
especially more pointed than those of caspia, rougher, yellowish-drab irregularly blotched
with dark umber and pale purplish. Chicks spotted boldly above with dusky.

795. S. (T.) e’legans. (Lat. elegans, choice. Fig. 514.) Exeganr Tern. Princety TERN.
Similar to the last; smaller and differently proportioned ; billas long, much slenderer ; tarsus if
anything longer than middle toe and claw; mantle very pale ; under parts rosy in high plumage.
Bill much longer than head, exceeding the tarsus, middle toe and claw together; much com-
pressed, very slender, scarcely 4 as deep at base as long; culmen quite straight to beyond nos-
trils, then slightly convex for the rest of its length ; commissure declinato-convex for nearly its
whole length; mandibular rami very short, decidedly concave in outline, their angle of divergence
very acute. Gonys extremely long, exceeding the crura of the mandible, its outline straight.

a,

7196.

LARIDA — STERNINZ: TERNS. 761

Tomia of both mandibles sharp and much inflected. Nasal groove long, fully half the culmen,
narrow, not deep, directed obliquely downward and forward toward the tomia. A few oblique
indistinct strize on both mandibles. The outline of the feathers on the bill is as usua]. Adult in
summer: Bill bright red, salmon-colored toward tip. Feet black; soles and under surfaces of
claws slightly yellowish. Crown of head, including long-flowing occipital crest, pure black,
reaching down on the sides of the head to a straight line just on a level with the lower border
of the eye; the white of the cheeks accompanying the black to the foremost point of extension
of the feathers in the nasal fossa. All the under parts rosy-white, with satin gloss. TAL
entirely pure white, longer and more deeply forked than in winter. Back and wings pale pearl-
blue; the usual pattern of coloration of the primaries. ‘(Length 19; extent 48” (label);
culmen 2.75; gape nearly 4.50; depth of bill at base 0.50; gonys 1.50, not shorter than man-
dibular rami; wing 12.25; tail 7.50; depth of fork 3.50; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw
the same, or rather less. In winter: Bill orange, fading to yellow at tip and along cutting
edges. Forehead and feathers on side of bill entirely white; crown varied with dark and white,
black prevailing on hind head, complete on the occipital crest and sides of head to eyes. No
pink blush of under parts. Tail shorter than in summer, 5.00 or less, forked only about 2.00,
washed over with pearly-blue. Total length less, owing to less development of tail, 16.00-
17.00. Young not seen. A truly elegant species, resembling the royal tern, but easily dis-
tinguished. §. and C. Am. to California; unknown on our Gulf or Atlantic coast.

S. (T.) canti/aca, (Of Kent, England. Fig. 515.) Sanpwich Tern. Duca. Tern. Bill
much longer than head, exceeding the tarsus, middle toe, and claw together; quite slender
and attenuated for this sub- :
genus, tip excessively acute ;
convexity of culmen, from
tip to base, regular, but
slight ; commissure gradual-
ly declinato-convex through-
out; outline of mandibular
crura decidedly concave ; that
of gonys about straight ;
eminentia symphysis hardly
appreciable. Adult, breed-
ing plumage: Bill black,
the tip for $ to } of an inch bright yellow, sharply defined against the black; “‘ inside of
mouth deep blue.” Feet dull black. Pileum and occipital crest glossy black, with a tinge of
green; the color extending just below the eyes, but leaving a space along the side of the
mandible white to the extremity of the feathers. Mantle exceedingly light pearl-blue, fading
on the rump and upper tail-coverts into pure white; but the rectrices themselves have a
slight shade of pearly-bluish. Primaries colored as in maxima. On the inner web of the
first the black space is broad and deep in color; when about 14 inches from the apex of the
quill it quite suddenly grows wider, so as to exclude the white portion from the tip altogether.
The second, third, and fourth primaries have the same general pattern, but the white runs
up further on the central portion than on the edge of the web, so that toward its end it
receives a narrow edging of blackish. The other primaries have no blackish, but are simply
pearl-blue, with broad white margins along the whole length of their inner webs. The outer
primaries are all heavily silvered when the quills are new. Dimensions of the adult: length
15.00-16.00 inches; extent 34.00; wing from the carpus 12.50; tail 6.00; depth of cmargi-
nation 2.85 ; bill along culmen 2.25 ; along gape 3.00; its height at base 0.48; width, ditto,
0.37; length of rami from feathers on side of lower mandible 1.00; gonys 1.20 (longer than
rami); tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw, slightly longer. Adult, winter plumage: Yellow

Fic. 515. — Sandwich Tern, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

762 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES--GAVLE.

‘tip of bill less in extent and intensity of color; front white, either pure or speckled with black;

crown variegated with black and white, the former color consisting of small, narrow, distinct
streaks along the shaft of each feather; but the long occipital crest, which does not entirely
disappear at this season, usually remains of an unmixed brownish-black. Lateral tail-feathers
shorter than in summer. Young-of-the-year: Considerably smaller than the adult, as is usual
in this subfamily, the wing being a full half-inch shorter. Bill shorter and weaker, and
without sharply-defined angles and ridges, brownish-black, the extreme point only yellow-
8h. Crown, front, and occiput brownish-black, variegated with white; white touches very
small on the forehead. Upper parts as in adult, but everywhere marked with irregularly-
shaped but well-defined spots and transverse bars of brownish-black. No well-formed occipital
crest until after the first moult. Primaries like those of adult. The tail, however, is very different.
The feathers for three-fourths their length are of the color of the back; this color gradually
deepens, until toward the tips it becomes brownish-black, each feather having a terminal irreg-
ular edge left whitish. Tail simply deeply emarginate, the outer feathers being but slightly
longer than the second. A fine species, alone among the large terns, with its black yellow-
tipped bill, of wide distribution in both Hemispheres; in N. Am. observed along Atlantic
coast, New England to Texas; both coasts of C. Am.; S. Am. Eggs 2-3, dropped on the dry
sand; 2.10 x 1.40; rather pointed, yellowish-drab, most irregularly spotted with dark brown
and reddish-brown, with lilac shell-spots. Breeds in large colonies, like most terns.

797. S. hirun/do. (Lat. hirundo, a swallow.) Common TERN. Wutson’s TERN. SEA
Swa.tow. Adult, summer plumage: Bill as long as head, about equalling tarsus and middle
toe without claw, of moderate robustness; height at base contained a little more than five
times in length of culmen; gonys as long as rami, measured from feathers on side of mandible
to eminentia symphysis, which latter is but slightly marked ; bright coral, or light vermilion,
on basal half or rather more, the remainder black, except the extreme tips, which are yellow-
ish. Pileum lustrous velvety-black, with tinge of glossy-green ; it extends to lower level of
eyes, but leaves the lower lids white, and it is so broad on the lores that the white line of

x feathers along side of mandible hardly reaches to their extremity. Whole upper parts pearl-
blue, this color commencing insensibly on back of neck, deepening on dorsum, and extending
quite undiluted almost to the extreme apices of the tertials; ending abruptly and distinctly
on rump, the upper tail-coverts being pure white. Under parts of a considerably lighter
shade of the color of the back. On the throat, toward the chin and along the borders of the
black pileum, it fades into nearly or quite pure white, as it does also on the lower tail-coverts
and the circumanal region; inferior surfaces of wings and axillary feathers pure white.
Shafts of all the primaries white, deepening into blackish toward their apices. Outer web of
first primary black, with scarcely any hoariness. The first four or five primaries are grayish-
black, with a very strong silvery hoariness; their inner webs with a space of white along their
inner margins. This space on the first primary at the base occupies the whole web, becomes
narrower as it ascends, and ends, or becomes a mere line, about an inch from the apex of the
quill. On the other primaries it is of less extent, and runs up along the centre of the shaft a
little further than on the edge. On the innermost primaries, again, it is very narrow, but
forms an entire margin to the inner webs, running quite to their tips. The inner primaries
have scarcely any grayish-black, but are rather of the color of the mantle. Secondaries mostly
pure white, but toward their ends have a space grayish-blue of about equal extent on both
webs. Tail moderately elongated and forked, contained about 1% times in the wing; the
folded wings reach one to two inches beyond it; central feathers broad to their evenly rounded
tips ; the lateral ones successively narrower, more tapering and acute; their owter webs light
pearl-gray (very like the back), their inner webs nearly pure white. The external pair, how-
ever, are on most of their inner webs, especially terminally, grayish-blue, while their outer
webs are dark grayish-black. Legs and feet light coral-red. Dimensions: length (average)

798.

LARIDA: —STERNINZ: TERNS. 763

14.50 inches; extent about 31.00; wing from the carpus 10.50; tail 6.00; depth of fork 3.50
(average) ; bill along culmen 1.35 ; height at base 0.33; from feathers on side of lower man-
dible to tip 1.60; gonys 0.80; gape 2.10; tibie bare 0.50; tarsus 0.80 to 0.85 ; middle toe
0.75, its claw 0.30; outer 0.70, its claw 0.18; inner 0.48, its claw 0.14; hallux with its claw
0.28; whole foot about 1.75. Extreme range: length 13.00 to 16.00; extent 29.00 to 32.00;
wing 9.75 to 11.75; tail 5.00 to 7.00; tarsus 0.66 to 0.87; bill 1.25 to 1.50. Females average
a little less than the males. Young fall under the above minima; length down to 12.00, wing
to 9.00, tail to 4.00, bill to 1.12, ete. Young-of-the-year in August: Upper mandible brown,
becoming blackish on the culmen toward the tip, and somewhat flesh-colored basally along
the tomia. Under mandible light yellow, darkening into brown toward tip. Mouth yellow;
feet dull yellow, with scarcely a tinge of reddish. Forehead grayish-white; on the vertex this
gray intermixed with large, roundish, illy-defined spots of blackish ; on occiput and nape black
is the prevailing color, the extreme tips of the feathers only being gray; on sides of head, as
far as eyes, the black also nearly pure. The ground-color of the upper parts is a rather lighter
shade of the pearl-blue of the adults, but every feather is tipped with dull light gray, and has
a subterminal spot (generally a crescent or semicircle) of light brown. These spots and tips
are quite conspicuous, and give perhaps the predominating color to the upper parts ; but they
are not so distinctly defined, nor so dark, as in macrura. Lesser wing-coverts along the edge ~
of the fore-arm form a continuous band of nearly pure brownish-black. Lesser and median
eoverts are conspicuously tipped with yellowish-gray; greater secondaries, however, fade into
nearly pure white at their tips. The secondaries are white, with the outer web, except at tip,
and the median portion of the inner web, dark plumbeous or
ashy-gray. Primaries colored almost exactly as in the adults.
Rump white, with a tinge of pearl-blue. Tail slightly forked,
the emargination being but little more than an inch; inner
webs of all the rectrices nearly pure white, but the outer webs
are plumbeous-gray, increasing in intensity from within out-
ward; so that the outer pair of rectrices, which are but little
tapering or elongated, have their outer webs grayish-black,
deepest toward their tips. Entire under plumage, including
the under wing-coverts, pure white, with no trace of the
plumbeous wash of the adults. The winter range and changes
of plumage of this familiar species are not well known; it
does not appear to lose the black cap, which nevertheless is
imperfect at that season. North America at large, Europe,
etc. Breeds and winters variously in its N. A. range.
Eggs 3, 1.65 X 1.25, not distinguishable from those of allied
species. ;

S. for/steri. (To J. R. Forster. Figs. 50, 516.) ForsTer’s
Tern. Similar to the last; larger; bill longer, stouter ;
wings shorter, tail longer; feet longer. Length about 15.00; Fie. 516. — Tail of Forster's Tern,
extent 30.00; wing 9.50-10.50; tail 5.00-8.00, forked 2.50- bout é nat. size. (From Elliot.)
5.00; bill along culmen 1.50-1.75, averaging 1.60, its depth at base 0.40; tarsus 0.90-1.00 ;
middle toe and claw 1.00-1.10; whole foot averaging 2.00. Adult, spring plumage: Bill
orange-yellow, black for nearly its terminal half, the extreme points of both mandibles yellow-
ish ; robust, deep at base; culmen declinato-convex, eminence at symphysis well developed ;
length from 2, to # of an inch longer than that of 8. hirundo. Black pileum not extending
so far down on sides of head as in hirwndo, barely embracing eye (the lower lid of which is
white), and leaving .a wider white space between the eye and edge of superior maxilla than
in hirundo. The color of the back hardly differs from that species ; perhaps a‘shade lighter.

764 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— LONGIPENNES— GAVIZ.

Wings comparatively shorter than those of hirwndo, being absolutely a little shorter, though
forsteri is a larger bird; very light colored, being strongly silvered; outer web of the first
primary is not black, but silvery like the others; all the primaries want the very decided white
space on the inner webs which exists in hirwndo and macrwra ; there are indications of it on
the three or four outer primaries, but the others are a nearly uniform dusky gray, moderately
hoary. Entire under parts white, with scarcely a trace of the plumbeous so evident in
hirundo, and so decided a color in macrura. Tail a slightly lighter shade of the color of
the mantle, separated from the latter for a short space by the decidedly white rump; lateral
feathers much more lengthened than in hirwndo, the elongation generally quite equalling that
of macrura, and sometimes even exceeding it. These two lateral feathers are white on the
outer web, dusky-gray on the wner. This being exactly the reverse of hirwndo, and a very
noticeable feature, was the first to draw attention to the bird; and this character being so
tangible and convenient, writers have perhaps laid too much stress upon it, to the exclusion
of others quite as evident. Feet bright orange, tinged with vermilion ; tarsus shorter than
middle toe and:claw ; feet longer and stouter by over 0.10 of an inch than the same parts in
hirundo. Adult, winter plumage: The black of the bill increases so much that nearly the
whole bill becomes dusky, except a small space at the base of the under mandible, and a
terminal space of varying extent. The feet lose their vermilion tinge and become dusky
yellowish. The black pileum more or less variegated with white on forehead; but there
is always considerable black left on the nape, and a more or less broad and distinct bar
always extends along the sides of the head, embracing the eyes. The lateral tail-feathers
have not the elongation and attenuation of those of summer, being but little, if any, longer
than those of hirundo during the breeding season. The color of the inner web is usually
darker, and sometimes extends on the outer as well as the inner, especially toward the tip of
the feather. (S. havelli Aud.) At the time of the moult the old primaries -lose their
silvering and become plain brown and white, their shafts being of a decided yellow. The
inner webs at this season have white spaces, with nearly as distinctly defined margins as are
found in hirwndo and macrura. Young: Bill in all its proportions considerably smaller and
weaker than that of the adults; brownish-black, fading into dull flesh-color at base of under
mandible. Front white, but the crown and nape show traces of the black that is to appear,
which is now mixed with light brown. Pearl-blue of back and wing-coverts interrupted by
irregular patches of light grayish-brown, showing a tendency to become transverse bars; this
grayish-brown on the tertials deepens into brownish-black, and occupies nearly the whole
extent of each feather. The primaries differ from those of the adult in having less silvery
gloss, and the inner white spaces more marked, being in fact like those of the adult hirundo.
Rump and under parts pure white. The tail intensifies, so to speak, its adult characters as
regards color; and, independently: of any other feature, will always serve to identify the
species. It is deeply emarginate, but the lateral feather is not greatly produced, surpassing
the second by scarcely more than the latter surpasses the third. Its inner web, for an inch or
so from the tip, and both webs of the other feathers, grayish-black ; the intensity of this color,
and also its extent, decreasing successively on each feather from without inward, so that the
central pair scarcely deepen their color at the tips. The outer web of the lateral feather white,
but sometimes is just at the tip invaded by the darker color of its inner web. N. Am. at large,
common ; breeds from Texas to the Fur countries; abundant along Atlantic coast during the
migrations; S. in winter to Brazil. Nest in marshes; eggs 2-3, 1.85 X 1.35, yellowish-drab, \
freely but irregularly spotted and dashed with different shades of brown.

799. S, macru'ra. (Gr. paxpés, makros, long; otpd, owra, tail.) Arctic Tern. Adult in
breeding plumage: Bill shorter than head, equal to middle toe and tarsus together, slender,
compressed, acute, deep carmine, or lake red; usually without any black, but this color
sometimes appearing in a limited degree. Feet remarkably small and weak; tibia bare for

LARIDA — STERNINE: TERNS. 765

a moderate distance; tarsi exceedingly short, being less than middle toe without claw, or
only equal to it; toes rather long for the size of the feet; the outer falls but little short of
the middle one, while the tip of the claw of the inner hardly reaches beyond the third articula-
tion of the middle one. The feet are a lighter tint of the color of bill, tending toward vermilion,
or coral-red, but not so light as those of hirwndo. Wings very long; primaries narrow,
tapering to their roundish but slender tips; shafts white, with scarcely darker tips. Outer
web of first primary grayish-black, lightening into silvery-gray at tip; inner web white,
with only a very narrow line of grayish-dusky along the shaft; this dusky space much
narrower and lighter than in hirwndo ; next four or five primaries silvery-gray, darkest
toward their tips; their inner webs mostly white (wholly so at their bases); but the white
does not extend so far toward the tips of the feathers as on the first primary, and it runs up
farther in the centre of the web than on the edge of it. Inner primaries of the color of
the back, broadly tipped and margined internally with white. Tail exceedingly long, the
exterior feather being as much lengthened, and as narrow, tapering and acute, as in S. dougalli.
The tail-feathers reach beyond the tips of the folded wings. Tail pure white, the outer web
of its exterior feather being grayish-black, lighter basally, and its inner web, and the outer
webs of the next two rectrices, having a considerable wash of pearl-blue. Cap pure, lustrous
greenish-black, so broad on the cheeks as to leave only a slender line of white to extend along
the edge of the feathers on the side of the upper mandible. Upper parts pearl-blue, of about
the same shade as in hirundo ; this color, however, fading into white at tips of tertials and
inner secondaries. Under parts but a little lighter shade of the color of the back, fading
insensibly into whitish on the chin, throat, and edges of the black cap, and ending abruptly at
the under tail-coverts, which are pure white, in marked contrast to the rest of the under parts ;
lining of wings and axillars also pure white. Winter plumage of adult: Differs from the
above chiefly in the color of the cap; forehead white ; crown white, but marked with narrow
shaft-lines of black, which increase from before backward until, on the nape, the black is
nearly or quite pure. A lateral stripe, more or less pure and distinct, extends forward on
sides of head over the auriculars, to just in front of eye, leaving, however, the eyelids white.
Upper parts much as in summer, but under parts from chin to vent, much lighter. The
carmine of bill and feet lighter and duller, but not the coral-red tint of the feet of hirwndo or
forstert. Plumage of the young-of-the-year: Bill much smaller than in the adult, being
only 1.08 inches long; brownish-black toward tip; gonys and sides of lower mandible toward
the angle of the mouth dull orange ; feet only orange-colored on the soles, otherwise brownish-
red. Tail much shorter than in adult, only 4.75 to 5.00 inches long, and the otter pair
of rectrices broader and scarcely at all tapering in form. Forehead white; the crown
streaked with narrow, longitudinal spots of white upon a black ground color, which extends
as far as the eyes, andruns back over the temples and auriculars as far as the nape. Whole
under parts from the chin, including under tail-coverts and under surfaces of wings, pure
white. On the back there predominates everywhere a uniform, light bluish-gray (somewhat
darker than in S. hirwndo), all the feathers tipped with yellowish-white or white, most of
them with a blackish-brown streak or crescent-shaped spot near the end; these spots darkest
on the tertials and inner secondaries, and aggregated into a single, broad, slate-colored streak
on the least wing-coverts. The ashen-blue primaries deepen into slate-color toward their
tips; their shafts white, their inner webs with a longitudinal space of white, the outer web
of the first slaty-black. Inner tail-feathers white, as are their shafts; their tips white, each
with a subterminal crescent-shaped spot of brownish-black. Dimensions of the adult:
length (extremely variable from varying length of tail) 14.00-17.00 inches; extent 29.00-
33.00; wing 10.00-10.75; tail usually 7.00-8.00, sometimes 6.50-8.50; depth of fork 4.00-
5.00; tibie bare 0.45; tarsus 0.55-0.65; middle toe and claw 0.80-0.85; inner toe and
claw 0.55: whole foot about 1.50; bill along culmen 1.20-1.40; height at. base 0.30;

766 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES— GAVIZE.

from feathers of side of lower mandible to tip 1.40; gape 1.90; gonys 0.75. A beautiful

species, easily recognized by points of size and form, aside from color; this varies much with

age and season, giving rise to many nominal species; among American synonyms are S. pikei

Lawr., S. longipennis Coues, S. portlandica Ridg. Europe, Asia, Africa; N. Am. at large,

northerly ; breeds from Massachusetts northward; 8. to Middle States and California, and

probably farther. Eggs 2-3, not distinguishable from those of the two foregoing species,
but averaging smaller. , :

800. S. dow’galli. (To Dr. McDougall. Fig. 511.) Rosrare Tarn. Parapise Tern. Adult in
breeding plumage: Bill about as long as head or foot, straight, slender, compressed, very acute;
gonys longer than rami, former straight, latter concave in outline, with acute but not
prominent angle between them. Wings shorter than usual, lst primary little longer than
next, all rounded. Tail exceedingly long and deeply forked, with very narrow filamentous
outer feathers. Tibie slightly denuded; tarsus a little sborter than middle toe and claw.
Whole form trim and elegant. Bill black, the extreme point yellowish, the base for a little
distance, and inside of. mouth, red. Feet bright yellowish-red; claws black. Cap lustrous
black, very ample, reaching to lower border of eyes; under eyelid white, as is a streak to end
of. feathers on bill. Neck all around and entire under parts snowy white, tinted with lovely
rose-pink. Mantle delicate pale pearly, over all the upper parts from the neck, including
rump and base of tail, fading however to white on tips of tertials and inner webs of secondaries,
Long tail-feathers white, with a faint pearly tint. Primaries grayish-black, strongly silvered
when fresh; outer web of the first blackish; inner webs of all pure white for more than half
their breadth, this white stripe broadest on the first, toward the base of which it occupies the
whole web, and on all of them continued to and usually around the very tips; shafts of all
the quills white both sides nearly to end. Adult in winter: Bill dull black, with yellowish
tip and brown base. Forehead and cheeks white ; crown, hind-head, nape, and sides of head,
brownish-black, mixed with white on vertex. No rosy tint. Lesser coverts along edge of
fore-arm brownish. Tail without much elongation or forking, and pearly like the back.
Young, newly fledged: Bill small, weak, slender, greenish-black, hardly 1.10; wings like
those of adults. Tail merely forked an inch-or so, pearly-blue on outer webs, almost white
on inner, with subterminal edging of blackish. General color of upper parts light pearly-
blue, variegated on most ‘parts with a delicate mottling of black and buff, the black chiefly
in narrow zig-zag eross-bars, broken by the fawn-color; on the wings the variegation in
larger pattern, the feathers mostly black with yellowish border. Forehead and cheeks soft
light grayish-brown, resolved on crown and hind-head into streaks of blackish and tawny,
lost again in blackish on the nape. A silvery-white spot before and above eye; eye sur-
rounded by black. A band of black along edge of forearm, where some of the feathers have
yellowish tips. Under parts pure white, a little obscured with gray on the breast. Length
of adult 14.00-15.00; extent about 30.00; wing ,9.25-9.75 ; tail 7.00-8.00, forked 3.50-4.50;
bill along culmen 1.50; height at base 0.35 ; length of gonys 1.00, of mandibular rami 0.75;
tibie bare 0.40; tarsus 0.85; middle toe and claw 1.00. This exquisite species inhabits
Enrope, ete., and in N. Am. is known to occur along the whole extent of the Atlantic and
Gulf States, in various W. I. Islands, and C. Am.; breeds apparently throughout its range,
wintering extralimital. Eggs as in other beach species.

801. S. supercilia/ris antilla/rum. (Lat. superciliaris, relating to the eyebrow, i. e. to the white
frontal crescent; Antillarwm, of the Antilles.) Least Tern. Much smaller than any of
the foregoing; length about 9.00; extent 20.00; wing 6.60; tail 3.50, forked 1.75; bill
along culmen 1.20; depth at base 0.28; tarsus 0.60; middle toe and claw 0.75. Young
smaller; length 8.50; wing 6.25; tail 3.00; bill 1.00. Tail moderately forked, the lateral
feathers scarcely filamentous, rapidly narrowing to acute tip. Bill about as long as head,
rather shorter than whole foot, yellow tipped with black for $4 inch. Cap glossy greenish-

ee

802.

LARIDE — STERNINZ: TERNS. 767

black, with a narrow white frontal crescent the horns of which reach over the eyes, the
convexity quite to the bill, but cut off from the white of the cheeks by a line of black through
eye to end of feathers on bill. Entire upper parts, including tail, pearly-blue, rather dark
and of a leaden shade, reaching quite to the black cap, fading on sides of ueck and head into
the snowy satiny-white of all the under parts. ‘Tail-feathers like back, but paler basally
and white on their under surfaces, and outer web of the outer feather. Mantle extending to
very tips of the tertials and secondaries, but inner webs of these feathers nearly white toward
the base. Shafts of first two primaries black on top, white underneath, the webs black, the
inner with a white space, distinctly outlined from the black, not reaching ends of the feathers; '
other primaries like back, but darker plumbeous, fading to white on their inner borders.
Feet orange-yellow, claws black. Adult in winter: Bill black; feet dull yellowish. Fore-
head and lores white; crown white, with black shaft-lines; occiput and nape blackish,
sending forward a band through eye. Mantle darker than in summer, and more restricted,
leaving hind-neck white; a band of grayish-black along fore-arm, and whole edge of the
wing of this color. Most of the primaries blackish, without silvering. Young of first winter:
Similar, forehead not pure white, nor hind-head quite blackish, mantle varied with lighter
tips of most of the feathers; tail with traces of dark spots. Young in August: Bill brownish-
black, pale at base below. Forehead mostly white; crown and hind-head varied with white
and brownish-black, the latter color especially forming an auricular patch. Pearl-gray
mantle of the adults appearing, but interrupted with brown hastate or crescentic spots, one
or more on each feather, mottling the whole upper parts. Primaries grayish-black, growing
lighter from first to last, margined on inner webs with white, broadly and briefly on outer
primaries, more narrowly and lengthily on successive ones; outer web of first primary, and
shafts of all on upper side, black. Tail merely emarginate, without elongation of outer
feathers ; pearly-blue, shading towards the ends of the feathers to dusky-gray, the tips white.
Whole under parts pure white. A pretty little ‘‘ sea-swallow,” inhabiting temperate N. Am.,
especially along the Atlantic coast of the U. 8., but also on larger inland waters; Pacific
side to California; South into the Antilles and Middle America; very intimately related to
the S. Am. superciliaris and European minuta. Eggs dropped on bare dry sand of beaches,
or in a little shelly depression, 1, 2, or 3 in number, 1.20 to 1.30 by 0.99; ground color
varying from pale clear greenish to dull pale drab, speckled all over with small splashes,
irregular spots and dots of several shades of clear brown, with paler and more lilaceous
shell-spots; the markings often evenly distributed, more’ frequently tending to wreathe at
or around the larger end, the point often free from marks or with only a few dots.

S. trudeau/i. (To Dr. James Trudeau.) Truprau’s TERN. WHITE-HEADED TERN. Size
and proportions nearly as in S. forstert, the bill especially of same size and shape. Coloration
very different, unique in the subfamily. Adult: Bill straw-yellow at end, apparently bright
colored, probably reddish, at base, with a broad black intervening band. The whole head pure
white, including all the parts about the base of the bill; this deepens insensibly into the pearly
color all around. A narrow distinct bar of slaty-black on side of head, passing through eye
from a point just in advance of the auriculars, where the fascia widens and bends down a little.
All the rest of the plumage, below as well as above, of a uniform lustrous pale pearly, with
the following exceptions: Under surfaces of wings pure white; tail, with its coverts and the
rump, white, still with an appreciable pearly tint ; tips, and part of inner vanes of secondaries
and tertials, white ; primaries with the picture common to most terns, with a white space on
the inner webs; their darker portions beautifully silvered over with hoary gray, which makes
them appear paler than usual; shafts white above and below, except at extreme tips; feet
appear to have been reddish or yellowish, certainly of some bright color. Wing 10.25; tail
6.50; depth of the fork 2.75; bill along culmen 1.50; its depth at base 0.38 ; length of gonys,
1.75; tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw 1.05. A rare and remarkable species belonging to

768 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — GAVIA.

South America, questionably occurring in N. Am.; ‘ New Jersey and Long Island” (Audu-
bon).

803. S. aleu'tica. (Of the Aleutian Isles. Fig. 517.) Auneutian Tern. Adult: Bill of ordinary
shape, as in hirwndo, macrura, etc., entirely black. Feet small, as in the species just named,
but the webs more deeply incised; emargination not so great, however, as in Hydrochelidon ;

much as in Haliplana. Tibie bare to the usual extent. Wings
and tail exactly as in Sterna proper, the latter, in its length and
depth of fork, recalling macrura and forstert. Crown and nape
black ; a large white frontal crescent, the horns of which reach to
the posterior border of the eyes, the convexity of which extends into
ict ie CARisatian Tern, the nasal fosse, the concavity of which is opposite the anterior
much reduced. border of the eyes; thus broader than in most species similarly
marked. The black vertex sends through the eye a band that crosses the cheeks and reaches
the bill just posterior to the point of greatest extension of the feathers on the latter. The
chin, auriculars, and other parts of the head bordering this vitta below, are pure white,
presently deepening insensibly into the hue of the under parts. Tail wholly pure white; no
pearly wash on either vane of any of the feathers. Upper parts at large dark pearl-gray, with
a dull leaden hue, different from the clear pearly of macrura, etc., yet not of the smoky cast
of panayensis, etc.; it is a tint intermediate between these, that I find difficult to name satis-
factorily. The whole under parts, from the white of the chin, just noticed, to the under tail-
coverts, paler and more decidedly pearly, more nearly as in full-plumaged macrura, yet more
grayish. Both under and upper tail-coverts, like the tail, white. The color of the back
mounts on the neck behind to the
black of the nape without interven-
tion of white. Under wing-coverts
and edge of wing pure white; as are
all the shafts of the primaries. Pri-
maries blackish lead-color, with
silvery hoariness, and each with a
large white space on inner web; this
white space on the first primary oc-
cupies at the base the whole width
of the inner web, but grows nar-
rower toward the tip of the feather,
ending about an inch from the tip,
which is wholly blackish lead-color,
this color running down as a narrow
margining of the inner vane for two
inches or more. On the other pri-
maries successively this white space Fie. 618,— Foot of Sooty Fia. 519. — Foot of Bridled
diminishes in size, and is also less Ter nat. size. (From Saunders.) Tern, nat. size. (From Saunders.)
distinctly defined. Secondaries colored much like the back, but the greater part of the inner
web of all white, and a narrow oblique touch of white on outer web near its end, which forms
a bar across the wing when closed. Bill along culmen 1.40; along gape 1.70; height at base
0.30; length of gonys 0.80; wing 9.75; tail 6.50; depth of fork 2.40; tarsus 0.60; middle
toe alone 0.80; its claw nearly 0.30. Alaska and Aleutian Islands; a notable late discovery,
coming between the species of Sterna proper and the sooty tern group; related to 8. lunata.

804, 8. fuligino’sa, (Lat. fuliginosa, sooty. Fig. 518.) Sooty Turn. Representing a small
group apart from any of the foregoing, named Haliplana by some; approaching the noddies
slightly. Bill as long as head, scarcely exceeded by whole foot, straight, stout at base, taper-

ee

805.

LARIDA — STERNINZ:: TERNS. 769

ing, acute, gonys ascending, cuinimissure not decurved; nostrils rather far forward. Tail
deeply forked, as in Sterna ; feet stout ; toes short, with much incised webs. Plumage bicolor.
Bill and feet black; iris red. On the forehead a white crescent, reaching over eyes, separated
from white of cheeks by a black bridle from eye obliquely downward and forward to bill. En-
tire upper parts black, deep and uniform, with slight greenish gloss. Entire under parts white,
reaching on sides of head to eyes, and more than half-way around neck. Primaries blackish,
lighter on inner webs, their shafts brown above, white below; secondaries like primaries, but
most of their inner webs whitish ; lining of wings white. Tail like back, duller on under sur-
face, the long lateral feathers white, with white shafts, blackening toward end, especially on
inner webs. Young entirely different: Bill black above, dull reddish below; eyes and feet
dull reddish. Whole plumage smoky-brown, darkest above, paler and grayish or whitish on
belly, almost black on primaries, upper wing-coverts and scapulars broadly tipped with white,
giving a peculiar spotty appearance ; feathers of back, rump, and upper tail-coverts margined
with dull rufous. Tail like wings in color, little forked, lateral feathers not elongated.
Length about 16.50; extent about 34.00; wing 12.00; tail 7.50, forked 3.00-3.50; bill along
culmen 1.80, gape 2.50; depth at base 0.50; tibia bare 0.70; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and
claw 1.2@; outer do. 1.05; inner do. 0.75; hind do. 0.30. A well-known inhabitant of most
of the warmer parts of the globe. In N. Am. N. along Atlantic coast regularly to the Caro-
linas, casually to New England; breeding so numerously on our 8. coast that the eggs are or
were an article of commerce. Eggs 3, dropped on the sand, 2.12 x 1.50, buff or creamy,
sparingly marked with spots and splashes of light brown and pale purplish.
S. anesthe'tica. (Gr. dvaoOnrixds, anaisthetikos, stolid, apathetic. Fig. 519.) Briptep
Tern. Form of 8S. fuliginosa, but webbing of the tées less extensive, being nearly as deeply
incised as in Hydrochelidon. Bill and feet black. Crown, and stripe through eye to nostril,
black. A white frontal lunula, narrower than in fuliginosa, extends some distance behind the
eye. The black pileum is, on the nape, sharply defined against ashy-white, which, as it pro-
ceeds backward, deepens into cinereous-brown, the prevailing color of the upper parts. Wings,
and especially the primaries, darker than the rest of the upper parts, and with scarcely a shade
of cinereous ; tail, with its coverts, much lighter and more ashy, approaching the nape in color.
The primaries have well-defined, pure white spaces running for a considerable distance from
their bases along the inner web, while in fuliginosa the inner webs are simply grayish-brown,
with no well-marked pictura. A large part of inner webs of secondaries and tertials white.
All the under wing-coverts pure white. Central tail-feathers brownish-ashy, concolor with
their coverts. The lateral ones have much white toward their bases, especially on the inner
webs, and this increases on each feather successively to such an extent that the next to the
outer one is wholly white except a small space at its tip, while the outermost is entirely white.
Shafts of primaries brownish-black above, white beneath; of the rectrices, dark along the
cinereous, and white along other portions of the feathers. Below, the bird is entirely pure
white. Dimensions: length 14.00 to 15.00 inches; wing 10.50; tail 6.00 to 7.00; bill 1.04
to 1.60; height at base 0.35 to 0.40; width slightly less; tarsus 0.85; middle toe the same,
with the claw 1.20; outer toe and claw 1.00; inner 0.75. Immature plumage: Black of
pileum imperfect, largely mixed with white on the vertex, so that it fades insensibly into the
white of the lunula, which latter is thus obscured. The black bridle is correspondingly imper- -
fect. Upper parts paler and grayer, some of the feathers being margined with whitish. Lat-
eral rectrices not wholly white. Under parts pure white, as before. This is probably not the
youngest plumage (of which I have yet to see specimens; described as being light-colored
below from the very first), but. rather represents a plumage that closely resembles, if it be
not identical with, the ordinary winter plumage of the adult. This perfectly distinct species
inhabits warmer parts of the globe in both hemispheres; West Indies and Florida. (Haliplana
discolor, Coues.)

49

815.

806.

807.

770 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES—GAVIZE.

HYDROCHELI'DON. (Gr. ddwp, hudor, water; xeAwWar, chelidon, a swallow.) Buack
Terns. Bill a little shorter than head, longer than middle toe and claw; very delicate, slender,
acute; culmen and commissure decidedly declinato-convex, the amount of curvature increasing
toward the tip; outline of rami and gonys both concave, the former most so; eiminentia syin-
physis prominent and very acute. Wings exceedingly long, pointed, vf same color as back,
without distinct markings on either web. Primaries broad and not very tapering, not‘acute ,
tertials very short, rounded, not slender nor flowing, reaching in the folded wing only half-way
to tip of longest primary. Tail rather short, contained 23 times in the wing, only moderately
emarginate (much as in Gelochelidon), the lateral feathers but little exceeding the next, not
tapering and acuminate; all the feathers broad and rounded. Feet slender and short; tarsi
much abbreviated, rather less than the middle toe alone. Toes moderately long; the webs
rather narrow and very deeply incised (fig. 51). Size small, : general form delicate; colors
mostly black, the wings and tail plumbeous.

> \

Analysis of Species,

Wings and tail above like back . . . wwe |. oti ae Seas UP a ao ca ah ar ee de lariformis 806
Wings whitening along border of forearm; upper tail-coverts white . .......4.. leucoptera 807

H. larifor’mis. (Lat. lariformis, gull-shaped.) Buack TERN. SHORT-TAILED TERN.
Adult, in summer: Head and neck all around and under parts to the vent, jet black; under
tail-coverts pure white. On back of ueck, and between shoulders, the black lightening into
leaden-gray, which extends over all the upper parts to the very tips of the tail-feathers. Ter-
tials like back; secondaries darker, tending to the color of the primaries, which are grayish-
black, silvered, with paler margins of inner webs, their shafts white except at tips. Lining of
wings ashy-white, reaching a little over border on to lesser coverts. Bill and claws black,
angle of mouth lake red; feet reddish-brown ; eyes brown. In winter: Very different; fore-
head, sides of head, neck all round, and entire under parts, white; under wing-coverts only
ashy-gray. Upper parts generally as in summer, but paler, many feathers with whitish edges.
A grayisb-black bar along lesser coverts. On the crown, white varied with grayish or ashy,
darker on nape, with bar through eye. While changing, head and under parts patched with
white and black. Young: Bill brownish-black, base below flesh-color ; mouth yellow ; feet
light brown. Forehead grayish-white, deepening on crown and nape to grayish-brown which
reaches down to the back, obscuring the plumbeous; interscapulars quite brown; on other
upper parts the brown edges the feathers. Lesser wing-coverts grayish-black. A black cres-
cent before eye. Under parts pure white, the sides of the breast ashy-brown, the sides of the
body and lining of the wings ashy. Quills as in the adults, but the shafts of the primaries
brown. Length about 9.25; extent 25.00; wing 8.25; tail 3.75, forked 1.00; bill along cul-
men 1.10; along gape 1.60; height at base 0.25; gonys 0.60. Young smaller, about 8.00;
bill 1.00 ; tail shorter and less forked. N. Am. at large, interior and coastwise, abundant.
Breeds in large colonies anywhere, in marshes and reedy sloughs, in June. Eggs on débris of
dead. reeds, often wet and floating, without any nest; 2-3, 1.35 X 0.95 average, pointed, yet
with considerable bulge of the sides; ground color brownish-olive, rather pale and clear,
thickly marked with spots and splashes of every'size from dots to masses, but mostly large
and bold, of light brown and blackish-brown, and the usual neutral-tint shell-markings ; ten-
dency to aggregate at or around the larger end.

H. leuco'ptera. (Gr. Aevids, leukos, white; mrépor, pteron, wing.) WHITE-WINGED BLACK
Tern. Adult in summer: Bill black, tinged with red; feet red; claws black. Head and
neck all around and under parts pure black, shading on back and scapulars into dark slaty
‘plumbeous; wings dark silvery-plumbeous, fading to white along border of forearm, the quills
silvered-dusky with white shafts and dull white area on inner webs of the primaries; lining of
wings sooty blackish, varied with white along the border. Tail and its coverts, above and

316.

, 808.

LARIDZE — STERNINZE: TERNS. TT1

below, white, abruptly contrasting with dark slate of the rump and black of the belly, the tail-
feathers shaded with pearly-gray toward their ends. Length (of skin) 8.00; wing 7.50; tail
2.75, forked under 0.50 ; bill along culmen 0.90, along gape 1.20, height at base 0.20; tarsus
0.75; middle toe and claw 0.87. Resembling the last, and changes of plumage correspondent;
distinguished in any plumage by white upper tail-coverts and lesser wing-coverts. Europe;
accidental in N. A. in one instance (Wisconsin).

ANOUS. (Gr. dous, anous, mindless, regardless; i. e. stupid.) Noppres. Bill about as
long as head or longer, much longer than tarsus, moderately robust or very slender, depressed,
as broad as high at base; elsewhere depressed, tapering to an acuminate and somewhat de-
curved tip. Fore end of nostrils nearly half-way to end of bill, the fossee long and deep. No
frontal antize; outline of feathers on base of bill convex (reverse of Sterna). Wings but mod-
erately long for this subfamily, the second primary but little shorter than the first. Tail very
long, broad, fan-shaped, double-rounded, i. e., graduated laterally, yet with central feathers
shorter than the next. Tarsi very short, robust, less than theQmiddle toe without its claw.
Lateral toes, especially the inner, unusually lengthened ; hallux well developed. Webs broad
and full, not incised. Claws short, stout, little curved, but very acute. Podotheca nearly
smooth, from tendency to fusion of the plates, there being but a single defined row of scutella
in front, with delicate reticulations elsewhere ; soles of the webs perfectly smooth. Edges of
middle claw dilated and somewhat pectinate. Plumage dark or nearly unicolor. A remark-
able genus. There are several species of warmer parts of the world, all alike sooty-brown,
with hoary or whitish head. They alight with ease on trees and bushes, where the nest is
usually placed.

A. sto'lidus. (Lat. stolidus, stolid, stupid.) Noppy Tern. Adult, breeding plumage:
Both mandibles marked with more or less distinct longitudinal strie; their tomia inflected.
Nasal sulcus deep and long, formed by the rounded culmen and a prominent ridge, which runs
along the upper mandible from its base to beyond the nostrils, where it is gradually lost. Just
above the base there is a small but distinct fossa, separated by an oblique ridge from the large
nasal sulcus. Culmeén about straight for half its length, regularly decurved toward the tip,
basally broad and flat. Commissure slightly declinato-convex. Outline both of rami and gonys
concave, the former most so; eminentia symphysis illy defined and not acute. Primaries uni-
color, very broad almost to their tips, which are rounded ; first primary scarcely surpassing the
second. Tail very long and much graduated; but there is also a slight emargination, the two
central rectrices being a little shorter than the next pair. Bill and claws black. Mouth black
to a little beyond the angle of the jaws, the fauces yellowish. Eyes brown. Tarsi and toes
dark reddish-brown, nearly black in the dried skin. Occiput bluish-plumbeous, becoming
pure white on the front. Sides of the head and neck all round with a decided wash of bluish-
plumbeous. The whole body is a deep fuliginous brown, growing almost black on the remiges
and rectrices, with a very dark spot anterior to and just above the eye. Dimensions: length
16 inches; extent of wings 31.00; wing from flexure 10.00 to 11.00; tail about 6.00; bill
along culmen 1.75; height or width at base 0.38; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.45;
outer ditto but slightly shorter; inner ditto 1.20; hallux 0.40; breadth of webs 0.90; diam
eter of eye 0.30. Widely distributed over warmer parts of the globe; in N. Am., 8. Atlantic
and Gulf States, breeding by thousands on the low mangrove and other bushes, where the
bulky nest of sticks is placed. Eggs 3, about 2.00 x 1.35, warm buff, spotted and splashed
with reddish-brown and neutral tints.

/

112 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES — GAVLZ.

73. Subfamily RHYNCHOPINAE: Skimmers.

Bill hypogna-
thous. Among
( the singular bills
“of birds that fre-
quently excite
our wonder, that
of the skimmers
is one of the most
anomalous. The
under mandible
is much longer
than the upper, compressedlike a knife-blade; its end is obtuse; its sides come abruptly
together and are completely soldered; the upper edge is as sharp as the under, and fits a
groove in the upper mandible; the jawbone, viewed apart, looks like a short-handled pitch-
fork. The upper mandible is also compressed, but less so, nor is it so obtuse at the end; its
substance is nearly hollow, with light cancellated structure, much as in a toucan ; it is freely
movable by means of an elastic hinge at the forehead. There are cranial peculiarities. Con-
formably with the shape of the mouth, the tongue differs from that of other Longipennes in
being very short and stumpy, as in kingfishers, and the Steganopodes. The wings are exceed-
ingly long, and the flight more measured and sweeping than that of terns; the birds fly in close
flocks moving simultaneously, rather than in straggling companies. They seem to feed as they
skim low over water, with the fore parts inclined downward, the under mandible probably
grazing or cutting the surface; but they are also said to use their odd bill to pry open weak
bivalve mollusks. The voice is very hoarse and raucous, rather than strident. They are
somewhat nocturnal or at least crepuscular; their general economy is the same as that of terns,
as are all points of structure excepting those above specified. Besides the following, there are
only two species: R. flavirostris and R. albicollis, of Asia.

317. RHYN/CHOPS. (Gr. siyxos, hrugchos, beak ; dW, ops, the face; well applied to the bird
whose beak is such an extraordinary feature.) SKIMMERS. Character as above.

809. R.ni/gra. (Lat. nigra, black. Fig. 520.) Buack Sxummer. Adult # 9: Bill with basal
half carmine-red, rest black. Iris hazel. Feet carmine-red, drying yellowish, with black claws.
Crown of head, its sides to just below eyes, back of neck and whole upper parts, glossy
jet-black. Forehead, sides of head below eyes, sides of neck and whole under parts, pure
white, tinted rosy or creamy in the nuptial season. Lining of wings and the bordering
under wing-coverts, black. Primaries black, with black shafts, their inner webs duller
blackish, the inner four with inner webs and tips of both webs, white; secondaries white,
with a space of dark color-on outer and small part of inner webs, increasing in amount
inwards, till the inner four are dark with only white tips. Tail-feathers white, the inner
webs more or less obscured with dark brown. Length 16.00-20.00; extent 42.00-50.00;
wing 13.00-16.50 ; tail 4.00-6.00, forked about 1.50; tibiz bare 1.00; tarsus 1.45; middle
toe and claw 1.30. Length of under mandible 3.50-4.50, of upper about 3.00; height opposite
nostrils 0.65 ; width 0.45 ; gape 4.50 or more; fused tomia or gonys of under mandible 4.00
or less; greatest depth of under mandible 0.60. @ smaller than #. Young at minimum
dimensions given. Young-of-the-year: Bill smaller than in adult, thinner, weaker, its
ridges less sharply defined, and the two mandibles of less’ unequal lengths... Bill brownish-
black for three-fourths of its length, fading into dull horn-color just at its tip, lightening into
more or less intense flesh-color, or light reddish, toward the base. The strie on the sides
of the lower mandible are as numerous as, but much less distinct than, in the adult. Tail

Fie. 520. — Bill of Skimmer, nat. size.

ee

PROCELLARUDZA: PETRELS. 773

shorter and less deeply emarginate. Legs and fect dull light reddish. Entire upper parts
arather light grayish-brown, deepest on the wing-coverts and tertials; each feather with
a tolerably broad margin and tip of white, broadest and most conspicuous on the wing-coverts
and tertials. Forehead, sides of the head below the eyes, the neck all round, the edge of
the fore-arm, inferior surfaces of the wings, and whole under parts, white. Primaries almost
exactly as in the adults, except that the innermost have more white, and there is a slight
white terminal margin as far as the fourth or fifth. Secondaries about as in the adults, but
their brown portions lighter and duller. Tail white; the greater part of the two central
rectrices, and the inner webs of the others, with a tinge of dull grayish-brown, deepest on
the middle pair. 8S. Atlantic and Gulf States, strictly maritime, abundant; casually N. to
New England. Nesting like that of terns, in communities; eggs dropped on the sand,
3 in number, pure white, spotted and splashed with dark browns and blackish, and pale
neutral-tint.

20. SuBsorpER TUBINARES: TusBE-Nosep LONGWINGS.

Character and definition of this group the same as of the single

60. Family PROCELLARIIDA: Petrels.

Nostrils tubular.
Bill epignathous ; its
covering —_ discontin-
uous, consisting of
several horny pieces
separated by deep
grooves. Hallux
small, elevated, func-
tionless, appearing
merely as a sessile
claw, often minute, or
absent.

These are oceanic
birds, rarely landing
except to breed, un-
surpassed in powers
of flight, and usually
strong swimmers. Ex-
cepting the Sea-run-
ners (Halodromine),
none of them dive.
With the same excep-
tion, the wings are
long, stroug, and
pointed, of 10. stiff
primaries and numer-
ous short secondaries ;
the humeral and anti-
brachial portions are sometimes extremely lengthened. The tail is short or moderate, of less
than 20 feathers, variable in shape. The feet are usually short, with long full-webbed frout
toes, and a rudimentary hallux, or none. In size, these birds vary remarkably, ranging frow

Fig. 521.— Nest of the Fulmar. (Designed by H. W. Elliot.)

TTA _ SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES — TUBINARES.

that of a swallow up to the immense albatrosses, probably unsurpassed by any birds whatever
in alar expanse, and yielding to few in bulk of body. The plumage is compact and oily, to
resist water; the sexes appear to be always alike, and no seasonal changes are determined ;
but some variation with age, or as a matter of individual peculiarity, certainly occurs in many
cases. The fvod is entirely of an animal nature, and fatty substanées, in particular, are eagerly
devoured. When irritated, many species eject an oily fluid from the mouth or nostrils, and
some are so fat as to be occasionally used for lamps, a wick being run through the body.
The eggs are few, or only one, laid in a rude nest or none, on the ground or in a burrow.
Petrels are silent birds, as a rule, contrasting with gulls and terns in this particular; many 3
or most are gregarious, ¢ongregating by thousands at their breeding places or where food
is plenty. .

Birds of this family abound on all seas; but the group is yet imperfectly known. Bona-
parte gave 69 species, in 1856 ; my memoirs upon the subject (1864-66) present 92, of which
17 are marked as doubtful or obscure; in 1871 Gray recorded 112; there are probably about
75 good species. They are sharply divided by the character of the nostrils into three groups;
two represented in North America, as beyond, and the Halodroming. These last, consisting
of one genus and three species or varieties, are remarkably distinguished from the rest,
resembling Auks in external appearance and habits; the wings and tail are very short; there
is no hind toe; the skin of the throat is naked and distensible; the tubular nostrils, in fact,
are the principal if not the only outward petrel-mark, and these organs are unique in opening
directly upward, the nasal tube being vertical instead of horizontal as in all the rest.

74. Subfamily DIOMEDEINA: Albatrosses.

Nostrils disconnected, placed one on each side of the
bill near the base. Hallux rudimentary, so small as
to be usually called wanting. Of largest size in this
family. There are eight unquestionable species, with
two or three doubtful or obscure ones. Only three
have proven their right to a place here. There is no
well authenticated instance of the occurrence of the
great Wandering Albatross, D. exulans, off our coasts ;
but it has been taken in Europe, and is liable to ap-
pear at any time. It is distinguished from the first
\s, species following by its great size, and the outline of
. NX the frontal feathers; deeply concave on the culmen,

\\ strongly convex on the sides of the bill toa point nearly

Fie. 522,— Bill and Foot of Short-tailed opposite the nostrils. The Yellow-nosed Albatross,

Albatross; (After Cassi) _D. chlororhyncha (of Audubon, not of Gmelin), is the

D. culminata, a species of Australian and other Southern seas, said to have been taken ‘“ not

far from the Columbia river,” but there is no reason, as yet, to believe it ever comes within a

thousand miles of this country. It has the bill black, with the culinen and under edge yellow.
Other well-known species of Southern seas are D. chlororhyncha, cauta, and melanophrys.

Analysis of Genera.

Tail rounded, contained 3 or about 3 times in length of wing. Bill stout, evenly encircled by feathers at base
: “Diomedea 318

Tail cuneate, contained about twice in length of wing. Bill compressed, with frontal reéntrance and
lateral salience of feathers at base. i aa Seer Cy eo a ra . . + .Phebetria 319
818. DIOMEDE’A. (Gr. Atopndns, Diomedes, a Grecian hero, Jove-counselled.) ALBATROSSES.
Bill thick, stout, and heavy, especially broad at base, without colured groove along lower
mandible, or other special parti-coloration. Nasal tubes ample. Tail short, rounded, less

PROCELLARIIDA: DIOMEDEINZ: ALBATROSSES. TT5

than half the wing (in one species about one-third the wing). Coloration variegated with
white and black, or uniformly fuliginous. Of largest size in the subfamily. D. exulans is
type of this group ; our two species fall in a subgenus Phebastria.

Analysis of Species.
a
Adult white, with dark wings and tail; billand feet light . ... . 8 Be BOS ee brachyura 810
Adult fuliginous; billandfeetdark . . 2. 1 1 ee ee ee ee nigripes 811

310. D. brachyu’ra. (Gr. Bpayis, brachus, short; ovpa, oura, tail.) SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS.
Bill 5.00 or 6.00 inches long, with moderately concave culmen and prominent hook. Frontal
feathers forming almost no reéntrance on culmen, running nearly straight, around whole base
of upper mandible, and extending scarcely farther on sides of under mandible, with hardly
any convexity. Tail Very short, contained rather more than 3 times in length of wing.
\ Total length about 3.00 feet, with spread of about 7.00 feet; wing 20.00 inches; tail 5.50-
6.00 inches; tarsus nearly 4.00 inches. Adult plumage white, the head and neck usu-
ally washed with shining rusty-yellow; wings and tail dark or blackish, with a wholly
indeterminate amount of white on the coverts and inner quills — sometimes nearly all the
wing-coverts white excepting a line along the border of the fore-arm — sometimes the white
restricted to a small space at the elbow. Bill pale reddish-yellow, drying pale dingy-
yellowish ; feet flesh-color. Young dark-colored, resembling nigripes, but easily distinguished.
Pacific Ocean at large; abundant off our coast. This albatross drops a single egg on the
ground, nearly equal-ended, white, 4.20 X 2.60; both sexes incubate.

811. D. ni/gripes. (Lat. nigripes, black-footed.) BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS. Bill about
4.00 (never 5.00) inches long, extremely stout, with the culmen almost perfectly straight
to the hook, which is comparatively small and weak, scarcely rising above level of the culmen.

The horny piece forming

the culmen very broad,

especially at base, where
it widens and descends to
overlap the lateral piece.

Outline of feathers much

as in brachyura, yet a

slight reéntrance on fore-

head, and feathers on sides
of under mandible salient
with a slight convexity.

Commissure about straight

to the hook. Bill about

one-third longer than head,
slightly longer than tarsus,
equal to middle toe with-
out claw; 1.50 deep and
1.25 wide at base. Tail
contained 3 times in the
wing. Bill dark-colored; feet black. Plumage dark chocolate-brown, paler and grayer,
rather plumbeous, below, lightening or whitening on head; feathers of the upper parts with
paler edges, as if faded; spot before eye and streak over eye quite black. Primaries black,
duller on inner webs, with yellow shafts to near the end; tail blackish, duller below, with
whitish shafts except at tip. A final plumage may be lighter than as described, but is never
white, and other characters prove the validity of the species. Chord of culmen 4.00, its curve
4.60 ;, distance from feathers on side of upper mandible to tip 3.50; ditto lower mandible 3.20 ;

-~

Fic. 523. — Sooty Albatross, mnch reduced. (From Tenney, after Audubon.)

776 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES — TUBINARES.

tarsus 3.70; middle or outer toe and claw 4.50; inner do. 4.00. Wing 19.00-20.00; tail about
6.50. Pacific coast of N. Am., abundant.

319. PH@BETRIA. (Gr. doSyrpia, phoibetria, a soothsayer, presager-) Buack ALBATROSS.
Bill comparatively slender, strongly compressed, with sharp culmen; side of under mandible
with a long colored groove. Frontal feathers forming a deep acute reéntrance on culmen;
a long acute salience on side of lower mandible. Nostrils low and strict. Tail cuneate,
contained twice in the length of wing. Plumage uniformly dark. One species.

812, P. fuligino’sa. (Lat. fuliginosa, sooty. Fig. 523.) Sooty Auparross. Bill with shape
and outline of feathers as above said; chord of culmen 4.00-4.50; height of bill at base 1.50,
at hook 1.00; width at base 0.75; from feathers on side of upper mandible to tip 3.50, ditto
lower mandible 2.50. Wing 20.00-22.00; tail 10.00-11.00, graduated 3.50-4.50; tarsus about
3.00; middle toe and claw 4.75, outer do. 4.50, inner do. 4.00. Plumage ordinarily uniform
sooty-brown; quills and tail blackish with white shafts; eyelids white; bill black, with
long yellow (perhaps in life pink or red) groove; feet pale or flesh-color, drying yellow.
In some cases the plumage lightens to a clearer more ashy-gray coloration on various parts. ’
The head and neck frequently washed with rusty- yellow. Pacific ocean at large; off coast
of N. Am.

75. Subfamily PROCELLARIINA: Petrels.

Nostrils united in one double-barrelled tube laid horizontally on the culmen at base.
Hallux present, though it may be minute. Five groups of petrels may be distinguished,
although they grade into each other; four of them are abundantly represented on our coasts.
The fulmars are large gull-like species (one of them might be taken for a gull were it not.
for the nostrils), usually white with a darker mantle, the tail large, well formed (of 14-16
feathers), the nasal case prominent, with a thin partition. They shade into the group of
which the genus @strelata is typical, embracing a large number of medium-sized species,
chiefly of Southern seas, in which the bill is short, stout, very strongly hooked, with promineut
nasal case; the tail rather long, usually graduated. The shearwaters (Puffinus) have the
bill longer than usual, comparatively slender, with short low nasal case, obliquely truncate
at the end, and the partition between the nostrils thick; the tail short and rounded; the
wings extremely long; the feet large. The elegant. little ‘‘ Mother Carey’s chickens” or
“stormy petrels” (‘‘ Thalassidroma” of authors; Procellaria proper and its relatives) are
a fourth group, marked by their small size, slight build, and other characters; their flight.
is peculiarly airy and flickering, more like that of a butterfly than of ordinary birds; they
are almost always seen on wing, appear to swim little if any, and some, if not all, breed
in holes in the ground, apparently like bank swallows. Like other petrels they gather in
troops about vessels at sea, often following their course for many miles, to pick up the refuse
of the cook’s galley. Some of them, as the species of Oceanites, have remarkably long legs,
with fused scutella, flat obtuse claws, aud the hallux exceedingly minute; in the rest, the
feet are of an ordinary character. The exotic genus Prion typifies a fifth group, of five or
six species; here the bill is expanded, and furnished with strong laminz, like a duck’s; the
colors are bluish and white.

Analysis of Genera.

Fulmars, with prominent nasal tube, vertically truncate and with thin partition; under mandible not
hooked at end. Length 16.00 or more.

Tail 16-feathered. Length about3 feet . © 200. 1 ee ee ee et ee Ossifraga 320
Tail 14-feathered. Length 15-20 inches.
Bill very stout, much shorter than tarsus. . . «we ee ee tee ee Fulmarus 321
Bill slenderer, little shorter than tarsus... 1 ee eee et et Priocella 322
Petrels, with nasal tubes as before, the bill very stout and strongly hooked. Length 10.00 to 16.00.
Plumage spotted above, white below . Be ay Pe trie ae See AT, He Bde ee Daptium 328

Plumage uniformly dark above, and white aloes or, entirely fuliginous 2 + + 0 e Bstrelata 324

820.

813.

821,

814.

PROCELLARUD: PROCELLARUNA: FULMARS. TTT

Stormy Petrels, with nasal tube as before, the bill variable. Length under 10.00.
Claws hooked, acute; tarsus little if any longer than middle toe and claw.

Tailcuneate, Color uniform fuliginous . . ........8.8048 Halocyptena 325
Tail nearly square, Color fuliginous, with white . . . Sas » + « Procellaria 326
Tail forked. Color fuliginous, or dark with white. . ......4.4. Cymochorea 827
Tail forked. Color bluish or grayish, with white . .......... Oceanodroma 328

Claws flat, obtuse; tarsus much longer than middle toe and claw. \
Color fuliginous; upper tail-coverts white; webs yellow .... . + + « « Oceanites 329
Color dark, the underparts white; webs black . . . 8 i ee GD wee Fregetta 330

Shearwaters, with low broad nasal case, and end of under mandible hooked like the upper. Length 12.00
or more,
Nasal tube truncate, with the partition thin,asinfulmars. . ......2.2.2. Priofinus 331
Nasal tube obliquely truncate, the partition thick . BR te eg se ee ss) 6 Puffinus 332

OSSI'FRAGA. (Lat. ossifraga, bone-breaking; os and frango.) Gianr FutMar. Of
immense size and powerful organization; as large as most of the albatrosses. Bill longer than
head, about as long as tarsus, very robust, deeply grooved; nasal tube very long, depressed,
carinate, with contracted orifice; reaching half way or more from base to tip of bill. Hook
of bill large and strong. Commissure sinuate; gape restricted, not reaching under eye.
Frontal feathers extending obtusely upon root of nasal case; mental feathers extending to
gonys. Qutline of lower mandibular rami about straight; gonys straight, ascending, with
obtuse angle. Feet large; tibiz bare below ; tarsus short, much less than middle toe without
claw, reticulate; outer and middle toes with claws of equal lengths; hind toe merely a stout
claw; webs full. Wings short, not very acute, folding short of end of tail. Tail moderate,
graduated, 16—-feathered. One species.

O. gigan’tea. (Lat. gigantea, gigantic.) Gianr FuLMAR. Bonr-BREAKER. The largest
of the petrels, equalling most of the albatrosses in size. Length about 3.00 feet; spread
7.00 feet; wing 20.00 inches; tail 8.00; bill 3.50-4.00, the nasal case nearly 2.00; tarsus
3.50; middle or outer toe and claw nearly 6.00; inner do. 4.50. Plumage very variable
with age or other cireumstances; usually dark dingy gray, or uniform fuliginous above, paler,
whitish or white below; wings and tail uniform dusky; bill mostly yellow (dried) ; feet
dingy yellowish or brownish-black. Pacific Ocean ; ‘‘ common off Monterey.”

FULMARUS. (Latinized from Eng. fudmar.) Futmars. Of moderate size, and+ general
gull-like aspect; white with pearly-blue mantle. Bill shorter than tarsus, about two-thirds
as long as head, very robust, especially at base, with turgid sides; hook short, stout, very
convex, rising almost from the end of the nasal case; commissure greatly curved ; outline
of mandibular rami a little concave; gonys ascending; grooves of both mandibles profound.
Nasal tube long, nearly half the culmen, prominent, turgid, with straight upper outline,
truncate emarginate end and thin partition. Wings of moderate length, folding about to end
of tail; primaries broad, tapering rapidly to rounded ends, 2d nearly as long as Ist. Tail
of 14 feathers broad to their ends, somewhat graduated. Feet rather small, gull-like; tibie
bare below; tarsus compressed, three-fourths as long as middle toe and claw. Outer and
middle toes with claws of about equal lengths; hind toe appearing as a stout sessile claw.
One species, of several varieties.

F. glacia/lis. (Lat. glacialis, icy.) Fuumar. Length 15.00-20.00 inches, averaging 16.50;
wing 11.00-13.00 ; tail 4.00 or 5.00; chord of culmen 1.50 (1.30-1.80); bill about 0.75 deep
at base, and nearly as wide ; nasal tube 0.60 long; tarsus 2.00 (average); middle toe without
claw 2.25. Adult g 9: White; mantle pale pearly-blue, restricted to back and wings, or
extending on head and tail; usually a dark spot in front of eye; quills dark ashy-brown.
Bill yellow, tinged with sea-green on culmen and lower mandible, the opening of the nostrils
black; feet drying dingy yellowish, said to be delicate French gray in life; iris brown.
Young: Smoky-gray, paler below, the feathers of the upper parts with darker margins;
primaries as in the adult; colors of bill and feet obscured. Extraordinarily abundant in the N.

815.

816.

822.

817.

778 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— LONGIPENNES. — TUBINARES.

Atlantic, swarming at some of its favorite breeding places, especially St. Kilda, wide ranging at
other seasons; S. to U. S. in winter. Nest on crags over the sea; egg single, white, with
rough brittle shell, resembling a hen’s egg in size and shape; young covered with whitish
down; fed in the nest by regurgitation of an oily fluid. The fulmars are very greedy of fatty
substances, and constantly attend the whale-fishery to feed upon the blubber.

F. g. paci/ficus. (Lat. pacificus, pacific.) Paciric FuLMAR. Averaging darker than No.
814, the mantle bluish-cinereous rather than pale pearly-blue; the bill rather weaker and
less strongly hooked. -N. Pacific, in vast numbers. Changes of plumage, habits, ete., the
same as those of the common species.

F, g.rod/gersi. (To Comm. John Rodgers, U. 8. N.) Ropeers’ FutMsr. The mantle
dark, as in pacificus, but much restricted, most of the wing-coverts and inner quills being
white; primaries mostly white on inner webs, their shafts yellow. Size and shape as before.
N. Pacific, swarming on some of the rocky islands in Behring’s sea. Nest on the crags;
single egg white, nearly equal-ended, rough with innumerable pits and points, 2.90 x 1.90;
chick hatches like a puff-ball of white down.

PRIOCEL'LA. (Prion + Procella.) GuLL Futmars. Character of Fulmarus proper;
bill little shorter than head or tarsus, about 8 the middle toe and claw, compressed, higher
than broad at base, not very robust, sides regularly tapering to rather narrow tip; grooves
not so well marked as usual; hook moderate; commissure a little curved; outlines of inferior
mandibular rami and gonys both slightly concave; nasal tube 4-2 the culmen, depressed at
base, high and narrow at end. Feet, wings, and tail as in Fulmarus. Two species; ours
curiously resembling a gull.

P. tenuiros'tris. (Lat. tenuirostris, slender-billed. Fig. 524.) SLENDER-BILLED FULMAR.
Adult ¢ Q : Plumage white, with clear pearly-blue mantle, and black primaries, just like a

WS

Fie. 524. —Slender-billed Fulmar, nat. size, (From Elliot.)

gull; the mantle beginning faintly on the nape, continuing over whole back, rump, tail, wing-
coverts and inner quills; edge of the wing slaty-gray; primaries black, their shafts yellowish-
white at base, their inner webs pearly-white to near the ends; white of first primary extending
to within two inches of the tip, further on the rest successively, reaching the end on the 6th;
outer webs of secondaries slaty-black, inner white, a small dusky spot before eye; a faint
pearly shade on sides of breast and body. Bill and feet (dry) yellow; nasal tube and hook
obscured with bluish horn-color. Length about 18.50; extent about 36.00; wing 13.00;
tail 5.25; tarsus 2.00; middle toe and claw 2.60; outer do. 2.70; inner do. 9.25; chord of

323.

818.

324,

819.

PROCELLARIIDAE — PROCELLARUNZ: PETRELS. 179

culmen 2.00; height or width of bill at base 0.75; nasal tube 0.67; the bill is really very
stout, only ‘‘slender” in comparison with the short robust organ of the common fulmar.
Young not seen; changes of plumage probably coincident with those of Fulmarus. A species
described under a large and not select assortment of names, both generic and specific, but easy
to identify; wide ranging over much of the water of the world; occurs on the Pacific coast
of N. Am., as at Kotzebue Sound.

DAP’TIUM. (Gr. ddnrw, dapto, I devour.) Piaron Prerren. Bill much shorter than
head or tarsus, very stout and especially wide, as broad as high as far as the hook, where ab-
ruptly compressed; culmen nearly straight from tube to hvok, which latter is neither large nor
much decurved; sides of bill turgid, with convex outline from base to hook; forks of lower
mandible wide apart, enclosing a flat-iron shaped space ; rictus ample; skin of throat loose and
distensible, partly naked; gonys very short, with slight angle; inside the edge of the upper
mandible a series of oblique ridges ; nasal case 4 as long as culmen, broad, depressed, with cir-
cular truncate orifice. (Chars. of bill approaching those of Prion.) Wings folding about to
end of the short rounded tail, which is contained 24 times in length of wing. Tibia little bare
below ; tarsus much shorter than middle toe and claw, stout, compressed, reticulate with small
circular plates outside, large inside ; outer toe without claw longer than middle toc alone ; hind
toe well developed for this family. Small; plumage spotted. One species.

D. capen’se. (Of the Cape of Good Hope.) Pinrapo Petren. Cape Piceon. DAMIER.
Spotted above with blackish and white; white below; tail black-barred; bill black. Length
15.00; wing 11.00; tail 4.50; bill 1.33; tarsus 1.67. Southern Seas at large; accidental on
coast of California and of Maine. (See especially N. Eng. Bird-Life, ii, 1883, p. 386.)
CESTRE'LATA. (Gr. oiotpy\aros, oistrelatos, goaded on by a gad-fly.) GapFLy PETRELS.
DiaBotic PETRELS. Bill about as long as tarsus, stout, compressed throughout, with nearly
straight converging lateral outlines, the hook particularly large, high-arched, long-decurved,
rising almost immediately from the end of the nasal tube, leaving but a short concave culmen
proper. Lateral horny piece of the bill very large, turgid, rising high at root of nasal case,
convex along under outline; commissure strongly sinuate throughout; outline of mandibular
rami nearly straight, of gonys a little concave, the tip of the under mandible being curved
down to fit the arch of the hook. Grooves of both mandibles distinct. Nasal case of moderate
length, high, not carinate, about straight, truncate at end, with thin partition between the
tubes coming well forward. Interramal space narrow, fully feathered. Wings pointed, very
long, folding beyond end of tail. Tail long, with graduated feathers, wedge-shaped or much
rounded. Feet of moderate size; tarsus reticulate, about as long as, or little shorter than,
middle toe without claw; outer toe alone rather longer than middle; with its claw, about as
long as middle toe and claw ; tip of inner claw reaching base of middle. Hallux a short ses-
sile claw. A genus of numerous (about 20) medium-sized and rather small species, inhabiting
the southern seas; some bicolor, others uniform fuliginous. Our four are mere stragglers to
N. Am., unless @. fishert should prove otherwise.

GE. hesita/‘ta. (Lat. hesitata, stuck ; the describer was in doubt about it.) BLACK-CAPPED
Perret. Adult: Forehead, sides of head, neck all round, upper tail-coverts, base of tail and
all under parts, white; back clear bistre-brown (nearly uniform, but the feathers often with
paler or ashy edges), deepening on the quills and terminal half of tail; crown with an isolated
blackish cap, and sides of head with a black bar (younger birds with the white of the head and
neck béhind restricted, so that these dark areas run together) ; bill black; tarsi and base of
toes and webs, flesh-colored (drying yellowish); rest of toes and webs black. Young exten-
sively dark below? Length 16.00; wing 12.00; tail 5.25, cuneate, its graduation 1.50; tarsus
1.40 ; middle toe and claw 2.12; bill 1.40, 0.66 deep at base, 0.40 wide; tube 0.53. Of casual
occurrence on the Atlantic Coast, U. 8. (P. meridionalis, Lawr., Anu. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y.,
iv, p. 475; v, p. 220, pl. 15.) .

a

887.

887a.

820.

325.

821.

326.

780 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —LONGIPENNES — TUBIN ARES.

(addenda). &. gula/ris, (Lat. gularis, pertaining to the throat.) PxALn’s PETREL.
Form typically of Gistrelata as above given; size smaller. Adult: Upper parts, including
tail-coverts and exposed surfaces of tail-feathers, pure cinereous, deepening to plumnbeous on
hind-head, rump, and lesser wing-coverts, the feathers of the back and greater and middle
wing-coverts tipped with ashy-white. Under parts pure silky white, the ash of the upper
coming down the sides of the neck and deepening as it extends more broadly along sides and
quite across abdomen, which is plumbeous, this color with vague and nebulous boundaries ;
under wing- and tail-coverts white. Sides of head white, with a distinct narrow dark ber
through eyes ; a white superciliary line; forehead and crown mixed white and ashy. Primaries
and secondaries with distinct pure white areas on inner webs; on the primaries these areas
occupying the whole webs at base, sending a narrow wedge forward, included between dark
areas of the webs; primaries lightening from without inward, secondaries abruptly darkening
again. Bill black ; tarsus livid flesh-color; basal third of toes and contained webs yellowish,
the rest black. Young: Darker; especially more cloudy below; throat and crissum white.
Chord of culmen 1.05 ; height of bill at base 0.45-0.50; width 0.40-0.45; tarsus 1.85; middle
toe and claw 1.68; outer do. 1.65; inner do. 1.40. Wing 9.80; tail 3.90; graduated 0.75.
Southern Seas ; await caught in N. Y. aay Livingston Co., ‘Age. 1880. (Bull. Nutt. Club,
vi, 1881, p. 91.)
Gs. fisheri. FisHer’s PETREL. Closely ied to the last ; perhaps requiring confirmation.
Above plumbeous-gray, blackish on lesser wing-coverts, the edges of the secondaries hoary
white ; head and lower parts white, the crown spotted with blackish, the belly overlaid by a
wash of smoky plumbeous. Wing 10.15; tail 4.00; culmen 1.00; tarsus 1.385; middle toe
1.40. Off coast of Alaska (Kodiak). (Proc. U. 8. Nat. Mus., v, 1883, p. 656.)
@. bul’weri. BuLwer’s PETREL. A small sooty-colored species, with cuneate tail more
than half as long as wings, not typical of Gstrelata, perhaps forming a genus apart (Bulweria).
Length about 10.00; wing 8.00; tail 4.50, graduated 1.75; bill 0.85 (chord of culmen), ot
ordinary Cistrelata shape; tarsus 0.90-1.00; middle or outer toe and claw 1.10; iuner do.
0.85. Plumage entirely fuliginous, alinost black on wings and tail, lighter and more brown-
ish below, somewhat ashy on head, gray on greater wing-coverts. Canary Islands, etc. ; has
once occurred in Greenland (or Labrador). (Pr. Phila. Acad., 1866, p. 158; Zoél., 18S], p.
378.) Egg white, 1.60 to 1.75 by 1.20, laid in rocky burrows; young covered with sooty
down.

Oss. There isa Jamaican species, @. carribea N., which should fly to N. Am. some
time.
HALOCYPTENA. (Gr. GAs, hals, the sea, dkis, okus, swift, mryvds, ptenos, winged.)
Pyemy Perrev. Like a miniature Gstrelata or Pterodroma; unicolor, fuliginous. Bill mush
shorter than head, about 4 the tarsus, weak and slender, acutely hooked; nasal tubes as in
Procellaria. proper. Wings folding beyond tail, 2d primary longest, 3d nearly equal, 1st
about equal to 4th. Tibia briefly bare below; tarsus little longer than middle toe and claw ;
outer toe without claw as long as middle; tip of inner claw reaching base of middle; hallox
minute; webs moderately full; claws compressed, curved, acute. Tail rather long, wedge-
shaped ; central feathers projecting ; lateral regularly graduated, narrowly rounded. One species.
H. microso/ma. (Gr. pixpos, mikros, small; capa, soma, body.) Lrasy Perret. Plumage
lustrous brownish-black, darker above, blackening on wings and tail, browning on under parts,
graying on greater wing-coverts and inner quills; bill and feet black; no white anywhere.
Length 5.75; wing 4.75; tail 2.50, graduated 0.35; bill 0.50; gape 0.62; height at base
0.19, width 0.21; nasal tube 0.22; tibia bare 0.30; tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw 0.82°
outer do. 0.80; inner do. 0.68. A queer little bird, from the coast of Lower Cala.
PROCELLA/RIA. (Lat. procella, a tempest.) ‘SToRMY PETRELS; ‘‘ MoTHER CAREY'S
CHICKENS.” Diminutive, fuliginous, with white. Bill small, short, compressed, sides rapidly

eee

822.

827.

823.

824.

825.

PROCELLARIIDA — PROCELLARINZ: PETRELS. 781

couverging to narrow tip; less than half as long as head, about half the tarsus. Wings
folding beyond tail; 2d primary longest, 3d little shorter, lst less than 4th. Tibia brietly
bare below; tarsus equal to middle tue and claw; claws compressed, curved, acute. Tail
rounded or nearly square, with broad feathers ; under tail-coverts very ample. Several species,
distinguished by shape of tail from those of the preceding or following genus.
P, pela/gica. (Gr. mehayixds, pelagikos, oceanic.) StToRMy PeTREL. Above, glossy brown-
ish-black, below more fuliginous ; upper tail-coverts white, with black tips; white streaking
on erissum, and usually white touches under the wings. Bill and feet black ; no yellow ou
webs. Size of the last; wing about 4.50. Common (?) off the Atlantic Coast ; not known to
breed on our side. This is the rarest of the three little black white-rumped ‘‘ Mother Carey’s
chickens ” of our Atlantic Coast, easily distinguished by its short legs and square tail; Leach’s,
the most numerous, is also short-legged, but larger and forked-tailed ; Wilson’s is interme-
diate, with square tail, but very long stilt-like legs, flat claws, and a yellow spot on the webs.
CYMOCHORE’A. (Gr. xidpa, kuma, a billow; yopja, a dancing.) Sooty Fork-Tarn
Perres. Bill much shorter than head, about $as long as tarsus, rather stout, as high
as or higher than wide at base, the hook strong and acute; nasal tube less than half as long
as culmen. Wings moderately long, folding little beyond tail; 2d primary longest; 1st longer
than 4th. Tail very long, deeply forked, the feathers all broad, obtusely rounded. Legs
short; tibia little bare below; tarsus equal to middle toe and claw, or slightly longer. Of
rather large size (for this group) and robust form. Color fuliginous, unicolor or nearly so.
Three or four species are known.
Analysis of Species.
Upper tail-coverts white.

General plumage sooty-brown . i an le ge ao) Re. Ge aa ig ak leucorrhoa 823
No white anywhere.

Sooty-brown; large; wing 6.75; tail4.00, forked 1.00ormore .......4.. « melena 824

Sooty-gray; small; wing 5.00; tail 3.25, forked about0.50 ....4.42.2.2.2.- homochroa 825

wre

C. leucor/rhoa. (G. Aeuxds, lewkos, white; éppos, orhros, rump. Fig. 525.) Lracu’s Perret.
WHITE-RUMPED PEeTREL. Coloration as in the last species, with white upper tail-coverts,
forming a conspicuous mark; but apt to be lighter—rather
of a grayish or even ashy hue on some parts; but easily
recognized, whatever the shade of color. Bill and feet
black; iris brown. Length about 8.00; extent 17.50;
wing 6.00-6.50; tail 3.00-3.50, forked about 0.75; tarsus
1.00; middle toe and claw the same; bill 0.67. N. Am.,
both coasts, and W. coast of Europe. Abundant on our \ °
N. Atlantic coast, breeding from New England northward.
Nest in burrows in the ground; egg single, white.

C. mele/na. (Gr. péAdawa, melaina, black. Fig. 526.)
Buackx Perren. Form-of the last very nearly; bill more Fig. 525,—Leach’s Petrel, much re-
robust; tarsus a little longer than middle toe and claw. No duced. (From Tenney, after Audubon.)
white anywhere. Plumage sooty brownish-black, darkest above and on head, more smoky-
brown on under parts, grayer on wing-coverts, quite black on wing- and tail-feathers ; bill and
feet black; iris brown. ‘‘ Length 9.00; extent 18.50;” wing 6.75 ; tail 4.00, forked 1.20; tibia
bare 0.50; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.10; bill 0.60; gape 0.95; height or width at ;
base 0.25; nasal tubes 0.30. Cape St. Lucas, L. Cala.; a rare and little known species.

C. homo'chroa. (Gr. duos, omos, like, equal; xpéa, chroa, color.) Somewhat like the last;
smaller, with short, weak, compressed bill, and tarsus no longer than middle toe and claw.
No white anywhere. Plumage dull plumbeous or slaty-blackish, more smoky-brownish on
lower parts, lighter grayish-brown on greater wing-coverts; wings and tail black. 2d primary

182 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —~LONGIPENNES—TUBINARES.

longest, 3d nearly equal, lst longer than 4th. The general plumbeous or bluish-ashy cast
of the plumage is quite different from the sooty shade of C. melena, approaching the condition
seen in species of Oceanodroma. Length about 7.25; wing about 5.00; tail 3.25, forked 0.60;
tarsus 0.90; middle toe and claw the same; bill 0.50; gape
0.75; height or width at base 0.20; nasal tubes 0.24. Faral-
lone Islands, Cala. ; another rare and little known species.

328. OCEANO'DROMA. (Gr. ’Qxeavds, Okeanos, Lat. Oceanus,
the divinity of the sea; Spduos, dromos, running.) GRAY
For«x-Tait Perreis. Bill small, weak, much compressed.
Wings short; 2d and 3d primaries equal and longest, 1st shorter
than 4th. Tail long, deeply forked, with broad medium and
narrow external feathers. Feet as in Cymochorea. Colora- Fic. 526. —Black Petrel, nat.
tion peculiar; bluish or grayish, and white. ‘size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

826. O. furca/ta. (Lat. furcata, forked.) Gray ForK-TaiLep Perret. Bluish-ash, paler
or whitish below and on the greater wing-coverts, dusky about the eyes; lesser wing-coverts
sooty; quills and tail brownish, the primaries pale or white on their inner edges, outer web
of outer tail-feather white; bill and feet black. Length about 8.00; wing 6.00; tail 4.00,
deeply forked; Dill 0.60; tarsus 0.87; middle toe and claw the same. N. Pacific coast,
common.

827. O. horn’byi. (To Admiral Hornby, R. N.) Hornpy’s Fork-rartep Perret. Front,
cheeks, throat, collar round neck, breast, and abdomen, pure white; crown, hind head, a broad
band in front of neck, bend of wing and lesser wing-coverts, sooty-gray ; upper part of back
gray; lower part of back, and tail ashy-gray; greater wing-coverts brownish-gray; tertiaries
and quills black. Length 8.25; tail 3.75; tarsus 1.00; middle toe about the same; bill along
culmen 0.60; along rictus 0.90. N. W. coast. Ihave never seen this rare species, of which
there are not to my knowledge any specimens in this country.

329, OCEANI'TES. (Gr. ’Qxeavirns, Okeanites, son of the sea.) Wuitson1an Stormy PETRELS.
Very different from any of the foregoing “stormy” petrels in great length of the legs, like
stilts. Bill short, weak, compressed, not $ as long as head, about % the tarsus, with sides
« little concave, hook small, and nasal tubes perfectly horizontal. Wings very long, 2d
primary much the longest; 1st and 3d about equal; 4th much shorter. Tail moderate, about
square (as in Procellaria) ; ample, with feathers broad to their very tips. Tibia deuuded an
inch or more. Tarsi presenting the character, remarkable if not unique among water birds,
of being covered in front and on sides by a continuous plate or “boot,” as in a thrush, the
ordinary scutella being fused. Toes, though long, only about } the greatly lengthened tarsi;
hind toe so minute as to be liable to be overlooked. Claws broad, flat, obtuse. There are
several species of this notable genus.

828. O. ocea/nicus. (Lat. oceanicus, oceanic.) Wuitson’s STorMy Pretrey. Coloration much
as in P. pelagica or C. leucorrhoa ; dark svoty-brown, pale gray on the wing-coverts, black
on wings and tail; the upper tail-coverts, and frequently the crissum and sides of rump and
base of tail, white; bill and feet black, but webs with a yellow spot; iris brown. Length
7.00-8.00; extent about 16.00; wing about 6.00; tail 3.00, nearly even; tibia bare 1.00;
tarsus 1.30; middle toe and claw 1.10; bill 0.50. One of the commonest and best known
species, widely dispersed over the globe; said to breed on our N. Atlantic coast. Nest in
burrows in the ground; egg single, white.

830. FREGEYP'TA. (Ital. fregata, a frigate.) Srtiur Stormy PETRELs. Resembling Oceanites
in the great length of leg, flat obtuse claws, and other characters. Bill stout, about as high
as broad at base, half as long as head, with long high nasal tube. Wings moderately long,
folding just beyond the tail; 2d primary longest; 3d nearly equal; Ist between 3d and 4th.
Tail ample, square, with broad feathers, square-tipped. Tibise bare an inch or more ; tarsus

|

929.

331.

830,

832.

PROCELLARIIDA — PROCELLARIINZ:: SHEARWATERS. 783

nearly half as long again as middle toe. Toes short, with small narrow webs; claws flat,
broad, rounded. Colors blackish and white. Several species of Southern Seas, one straggling
to our country.

F. gralla'ria, (Lat. gralla, stilts.) Lawrence’s STILT PeTREL. WHITE-BELLIED
PeTReEL. Blackish-gray of variable intensity, blackening on the quills and tail, the whole
under parts from the breast, the upper tail-coverts, most of the under wing-coverts, and bases
of all the tail-feathers, except the middle pair, white; bill and feet black. Length about
8.00; wing 6.00-6.50; tail 3.00, about even, with very broad, square-tipped feathers ; bill
0.50; tarsus 1.33; longest toe (outer) and claw 1.00 or less; tibize bare 1.00 or more.
Florida, accidental, one instance (Lawr. Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., v, 117).

PRIO/FINUS. (Prion + Pufinus.) Futmar SHEARWATERS. Of large size and robust
form. Bill a little shorter than head, about £ as long as tarsus, broad and stout at base, nar-
rowing regularly to the strong, much compressed and hooked tip ; under mandible hooked to
correspond with the upper, with concave gonys (as in Puffinus). Nasal tubes long, very
broad, depressed (as in Puffinus), but vertically truncate and with thin partition (as in Ful-
marus). Wings rather short, the primaries broad and stiff, 2d as long as lst. Tail rather short,
of 12 feathers, the central projecting and a little acuminate, lateral more rounded, and rapidly
graduated. Feet large and stout, as in Puffinus ; tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw ;
outer toe longer than middle; tip of outer claw about reaching base of middle. A genus re-
markably connecting the fulmars with the shearwaters; nearest the latter. A few species, if
more than one, chiefly of Southern Seas. :
P. melanwrus. (Gr. péAas, melas, black; odpd, oura, tail.) SmuTTY-NOSED SHEARWATER.
BLACK-TAILED SHEARWATER. Upper parts cinereous, nearly uniform, but some of the feathers
with paler edges; under parts white, without line of demarcation from the color of the upper
parts; tail, erissum, and vent blackish ; lining of wings, axillars, and some feathers on the
sides of the body, brownish-cinereous; quills blackish-cinereous on outer webs and tips, paler
internally and basally, with brown shafts. Bill yellow, the nasal case, culmen as far as the hvok,
cutting edge and groove of lower mandible, black, these varied colors very conspicuous in life ;
feet (dried) dingy greenish with yellow webs. Large: 19.00; wing 18.00; tail 5.00-5.75,
wedge-shaped, 12-feathered, the outer feathers an inch or more shorter than the middle ; bill
1.80, 0.67 high and 0.60 wide at base, the nasal tubes nearly 0.50; tarsus 2.40; middle toe and
claw 2.88. Accidental off the coast of California. A peculiar species, very different from any of
the following, approaching the fulmars. Proc. melanuwra Bonn. Proc. hesitata Forst.,
Deser. Anim., 1844, p. 208; Gould, B. Aust., pl. 67. Puffinus hesitatus Lawr., Ann. Lye.
Nat. Hist. N. Y., vi, p. 5. Proc. adamastor Schlegel. Adamastor typus Bonap. Puffinus
cinereus Lawr. in Bd., B. N. A., 1858, p. 835. Adamastor cinereus Coues, Proc. Phila. Acad.,
1864, p. 119; Priofinus cinereus Coues, Proc. Essex Inst., v, 1868, p. 303. Priofinus mela-
nurus, Coues, 2d ed. Check List, 1882, p. 127. Puffinus kuhlit Cass., Proc. Phila. Acad.,
1862, p. 327 (err.)

PUF'FINUS. (Latinized from Eng. puffin.) SHEARWATERS. Bill nearly or about as long
as head, #2 as long 4s tarsus, varying in slenderness, a little higher than broad at base,
compressed for the rest of its extent; the end much hooked, tips of both mandibles decurved,
making the gonys concave. Nasal tubes short, only about $ the length of culmen, broad and
depressed, obliquely truncate at end, the partition thick, the nostrils oval. Wings long, thin,
and pointed, folding beyond the tail; lst primary longest. Tail more or less lengthened,
rounded or rather wedge-shaped, of 12 feathers. Feet very large and stout; tarsus compressed,
equal tu middle toe with or without claw; outer toe about as long as middle, but its claw
much smaller; tip of inner claw scarcely or not reaching base of middle; hind toe a mere
knob. Embracing numerous species, of moderate and small size; a portion of them bicolor,
dark above and white below, the others uniformly svoty.

784 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LON GIPENNES — TUBINARES.

Analysis of Species,
Two-colored; white below, dark above.
Large; length 16.00 or more; wing 12.00 or more.
Pale brownish-ash ; under tail-coverts white, upper largely dark. Atlantic . . borealis or kuhli 831

Dark brown; under tail-coverts dark, upper largely white. Atlantic. . . . «+ . . major 832

Dark brown; under and upper tail-coverts dark; feet flesh-color. Pacific. . . . . creatopus 833
Medium ; length under 16.00, over 13.00; wing 9.25. Above blackish. Atlantic . . . . anglorwm 834
Small: length 13.00 or less; wing 9.00 or less.

Under tail-coverts mostly white. Atlantic. . . . 1. 1. 2. + «© es ewe eo + . obscurus 835

Under tail-coverts mostly black. Pacific . . es Spohr ce ad Fao ae + « « « opisthomelas 836

One-colored; sooty.
Large: length 16.00 or more; wing 11.00 or more.

Under wing-coverts mostly dark. Atlantic og we Oe o + e « . . Suliginosus 837
Under wing-coverts mostly white. Pacific ......... ee ee ee amaurosoma $38
Small: length about 14.00; wing 10.00. Pacific . . . . 2. +... eee . tenuirostris 839

831. P. kubli. (To Dr. H. Kuhl.) Cinerrous SHEARWATER. MEDITERRANEAN SHEAR-
waTeR. Bill scarcely or not shorter than head, equal to tarsus, moderately hooked for a
shearwater, with short nasal tubes, about 4 as long as culmen, but rather high for this genus,
with trace of a median ridge ; nostrils opening roundish ; wings folding a little beyond the tail,
which is graduated, with lengthened middle feathers; feet rather weak; outer toe and claw
longer than middle toe and claw; tip of inner claw about reaching base of middle. Upper
parts light smoky-gray, or pale brownish-ash, uniform on crown and nape, interrupted on back
by white or grayish-white edges of the feathers, especially on the scapulars, darkening on the
wing-coverts and tertials to grayish-brown. Rump like back; upper tail-coverts successively
acquiring white till the longest ones are mostly of this color, only touched with brown. Pri-
maries grayish-black, with large white spaces on basal half or two-thirds of inner webs. Outer
webs and tips of secondaries grayish-plumbeous; most of their inner webs white. Entire
under parts, from chin to ends of under tail-coverts, pure white, excepting some slight touches
of gray on the flanks; lining of wings and axillars white, except just along the edge. On
sides of head and neck, no line of demarcation between color of upper and under parts, the
two merging through a cloudy or wavy area; under eyelid white. Bill yelluwish, darker on
culmen and hook; feet yellowish, the webs clearer. Length about 18.00; wing 13.00; tail
5.50, graduated 0.75 ;.chord of culmen 1.90, gape 2.60; height of bill at base 0.70, width 0.60;
tarsus 1.90; middle toe and claw 2.50, outer do. 2.55. (Described from a European speci-
men.) N. Atlantic, European coast, especially of the Mediterranean. Greenland? I am
not yet satisfied that bird really occurs on our coast. I introduced it to our Fauna in 1872, in
the orig. ed. .of the Key, but upon strength of its general range, and Schlegel’s ascription of it

’ to Greenland; and have never seen an unquestionable N. Am. specimen. It probably occurs,
however.

sss. (addenda). P. borea/lis. (Lat. borealis, northern.) Cory’s SuzarwaTer. ‘“‘ Above
brownish-ash, the feathers of the back becoming pale at the tips, those on the nape and sides
of the neck narrowly tipped with white ; on the sides of the head and neck the ash and white
gradually mingling as in P. kuhlii. Tips of the upper tail-coverts, white. Under eyelid,
white, showing clearly in contrast with the ashy-gray of the head. The first three primaries
are light ash on the inner webs. Wings and tail brownish-gray. Under parts white, slightly
touched with ash on the flanks, lining of wings white. Under tail-coverts white, the longest
tinged with ash near the ends, which extend nearly to the tips of the longest tail-feathers.
Outside of foot greenish-black, inside and webs dull orange; bill pale yellowish at the base,
shading into greenish-black, but again becoming pale near the tip. Length 20.50 inches;
wing 14.50; bill (straight line to tip) 2.25; depth at base 0.75; tail 6.50; tarsus 2.20.”
Coast of Massachusetts; several specimens now known. I copy the original description.
(Bull. Nutt. Club, vi, 1881, p. 84.) The bird is perfectly distinct from P. major, but very
near P. kuhli, if really different.

PROCELLARIIDA — PROCELLARHNZ: SHEARWATERS. 785

832. P. major. (Lat. major, greater.) GREATER SHEARWATER. WANDERING SHEARWATER.

833.

Common ATLANTIC SHEARWATER. Bill scarcely shorter than head or tarsus, stout. and sub-

cylindrical at base, then more and more compressed to the strong hook. Nasal tube straight,

about 4 as long as culmen, with widely separated subelliptical openings. Culmen rising with
slight continuous concavity from nostrils to top of the hook; commissure a long regular curve,

convex duwuward, from feathers to curve-of the hook. Outline of inferior mandibular rami
about straight. Bill about 3 times as long as high at base, not so wide as high. Wings long
and pointed; 1st and 2d primaries nearly equal. Tail contained about 24 times in length of
wing, much rounded, almost wedged. Tarsus as long as middle toe without claw; outer toe
as long as or longer than middle, but its claw smaller, falling short of tip of middle claw; tip
of inner claw not reaching base of middle. Above, dark bistre-brown, on head inclining a
little to plumbeous or grayish-brown ; usually lighter on hind neck, darkest on tertials and
rump; each feather of back, rump, and wing-coverts, edged with pale brownish-ash or even‘
ashy-whitish. On the head the color uniform, without these light margins, extending below
eyes to level of the gape, with distinct line of demarcation from white of the throat. On side

of neck the white reaches further around, and is less distinctly outlined; further back, on sides
of breast, the dark color encroaches on the white. The upper tail-coverts, especially the long
posterior ones, are mostly white, with dark bars on central fields. Primaries brownish-black,

lightening on inner webs towards base. Under parts white from chin to anus, with large dark
brown patches on flanks; under tail-coverts dark grayish-brown, with whitish tips; lining of
wings white, mottled with dark along the border and on ends of axillars. Tail-feathers like

primaries. Bill dark blackish horn color; outside of tarsus and outer toe brownish ; rest of
feet and webs yellowish flesh-color ; iris brown. The intensity and uniformity of coloration of
the upper parts varies much with age of the plumage. Fresh plumages are deep plumbeous- ,
brown with narrow pale or whitish margins ; old worn feathers are duller brown with broader

less distinct grayish-brown edgings. Observe line of demarcation of dark and white on head,

neck and breast; uniform feathers of head; dark under and partially white upper tail-coverts.

Audubon gives “‘ bill yellowish-green, the tips brownish-black, tinged with green ; feet light

greenish-gray, webs and claws yellowish flesh-color.” Length 18.00-20.00; extent 42.00-

45.00; wing about 13.00; tail 5.75, graduated 1.00; tarsus 2.40; middle toe and claw 2.90;

outer do. 2.75 ; inner do. 2.30; chord of culmen 2.00; depth of bill at base 0.65, width 0.60.

Wanders over the whole Atlantic, Greenland to Cape Horn and Good Hope. Abundant,

sometimes seen in flocks of thousands, shearing the crests of the waves, and skimming the bil-

lows with marvellous ease, without a visible motion of the pinions.

P. crea/topus. (Gr. xpéas, kreas, flesh, rods, pous, foot.) FLESH-FOOTED SHEARWATER.

Resembling the last, but quite distinct. Bill short, less than head or tarsus, turgid at base,

where as wide as high. Nasal tubes short, hardly 4 the length of culmen, turgid, with slight

median furrow and very oblique truncation. Frontal feathers running forward on median line.

Form otherwise as in P. major. Bill pale yellowish flesh-color, the nasal tubes, culmen, and

tip blackish. Feet flesh-colored; claws whitish with brown ends. Upper parts about the

same shade of brown as in P. major ; upper tail-coverts entirely dark. No white on inner

webs of primaries. On sides of head and neck, the color of the upper parts extends entirely

around, without any distinct line of demarcation, the chin and throat mottled with dark and

white in about equal amounts. On the sides of the breast the color more restricted than on the

neck. Lower eyelid white. Sides of body and lining of wings mottled with dusky and white

in about equal amounts; long axillars entirely dark except just at base. Middle of belly and

vent region variegated with dusky and white. Under tail-coverts entirely fuliginous black.

“Length 19.00; extent 45.00;” wing 12.50; tail 5.00, graduated 1.00; tarsus 2.10; outer

toe and claw 2.50; middle do. 2.65; inner do. 2.60; chord of culmen 1.60; gape 2.30; height

or width of bill at base 0.60; nasal tubes 0.40. San Nicholas Island, Coast of Cala.; a curious

species of which little is known.

50

786 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — LONGIPENNES — TUBINARES.

834, P.anglo/rum. (Lat. Anglorum, of the English.) Manx SHEARWATER. Sinaller and other-
wise very different from any of the foregoing. Upper parts uniform lustrous black, or blackish
with slight brown shade, rather ashy across hind neck; the dark color extending on sides of
head much below eyes, but there marbled with white; under eyelid white, set in black. Gn
sides of neck the white reaches part way around; on sides of breast the dark extends some
distance, dilute and marbled with white. Primaries black, with black shafts, their inner webs
dull grayish-brown ; tail-feathers like primaries. Entire under parts, frum chin to anus, pure
white, except a few feathers of the flanks, and the outer webs of the outer under tail-coverts,
which are plumbeous-black. Lining of wings and axillars white, mottled with black just
along the edge. Length about 13.50; extent 30.00; wing 9.25; tail 4.00, graduated 0.75;
tarsus 1.80; middle toe and claw 1.90; outer do. 2.00; inner do. 1.55; chord of culmen 1.40;
gape 2.10; height or width of bill at base 0.45. Varies much, but the small size and black-
ishness are distinctive. This species chiefly inhabits the Atlantic coast of Europe, and the
Mediterranean ; it is the commonest British species of the genus, said to range the N. Atlantic
at large, and to occur on our coast ; but those who suppose it to be one of our common species
are apparently mistaken. Nest in burrows in the ground, dug by the birds; egg single, dead
white, smooth, 2.85 X 1.60.

835. P. obscu'rus. (Lat. obscwrus, dusky.) Dusky SHEARWATER. Bill small and weak,
about $ as long as head, 2 as long as tarsus; stout only at base, where higher than wide ;
hook rising abruptly from line of culmen; commissure lower, and outline of bill almost
straight from feathers to hook. Wings folding tu end of tail, which is comparatively long,

and much graduated. Tar-

sus as long as middle toe
without. claw; outer toe
and claw equal to middle
toe and claw; tip of inner

claw reaching base of mid-

dle. Blackish of upper

parts with much grayish
or plumbeous cast, with
lighter borders of the feath-

(From Elliot.) ers, especially on the scap-

ulars and tertials; darkest
on rump and upper tail-cqverts; on sides of head not extending below eyes, and even there
marbled with whitish; both eyelids white, and there is indication of a light superciliary stripe.
Quills and tail-feathers as in P. anglorum. Under parts from chin to vent, white, as are lining
of wings and axillars, only a few plumbeous black feathers on flanks. The longest and outer-
most under tail-coverts are black, the rest white, pure or with a plumbeous shade. Bill dull
leaden-blue, blackening at tip ; iris bluish-black ; edges of eyelids bluish ; outside of tarsus and
outer toe bluish-black, inside and webs of all yellowish flesh-color. Small: length 11.00-
12.00; extent 26.00; wing 7.50-8.00; tail 4.25, graduated nearly 1.00; tarsus 1.60; middle
toe and claw 1.80; chord of culmen 1.25; gape 1.70; nasal case to tip 0.90; depth of bill at
base 0.40; width 0.35. A small bicolor species, readily distinguished from any of the foregoing.
S. Atlantic and Gulf coast, common, straying N. to the Middle States. (P. obscurus Gm. ?
P. auduboni Fiusch.)

836, P. opistho'melas. (Gr. dmodec, opisthe, backward; pédas, melas, black. Fig. 527.) BLack~-
VENTED SHEARWATER. Resembling the last, and little larger. Bill about 4 as long as tarsus.
Tail relatively shorter, less graduated. Tarsus as long as middle toe and half its claw. Frontal
feathers extending in a point on culmen. Dark color of upper parts extending farther on sides
of head than in obscurus, leaving no white about eye. Under tail-coverts entirely sooty-

Fig. 527, — Black-vented Shearwater, nat. size.

BT

837,

838.

839.

PROCELLARIIDH: PROCELLARIINE): SHEARWATERS. 187

blackish, except a few of the shortest just at the vent. More dark eolor on flanks, on lining
of wings and axillars than in obscwrus. In the dry state, bill yellowish or reddish-brown, the
nasal tubes and culmen: blackish, the hook mostly bluish-white. Outside of tarsus for the
most part, outer toe and edges of webs, blackish ; rest of foot pale yellowish flesh-color; ‘‘iris
brown.” Wing about 9.00; tail 3.75, graduated 0.60; tarsus 1.80; middle toe and claw 2.10;
chord of culmen 1.40; gape 2.00; end of nasal tubes to tip 1.05; height at base 0.42, at hook
0.32. Cape St. Lucas, L. Cala. Decidedly different from P. obscurus. (P. gavia Forst. ?)
P, fuligino’sus. (Lat. fuliginosus, sooty. Fig. 528.) Soory SHEARWATER. Very different
from any of the foregoing. Nearly uniform dark sooty-brown, blackening on quills and
tail-feathers, more sooty-gray below, paler still on the throat; lining of wings mixed sooty
and whitish. Bill drying an
undefinable dark color, in life
dusky bluish-horn color, the
tube, ridge, and hook black-
ish; feet drying dark outside,
pale inside; in life the inside
of tarsus and upper side of feet
livid flesh-color, the outside of
outer toe and under side of
feet blackish; eye blackish.
Length about 18.00, rather

less than more; extent about Fig. 528.— Sooty Shearwater, nat. size. (Ad nat. del. E. C.)

40.00; wing 12.00; tail 4.00; tarsus 2.25; middle toe and claw 2.50; chord of culmen 1.75-
2.00; gape 2.33; feathers on side of lower mandible to tip 1.67; depth of bill in front of nasal ,
tube 0.40. A wide-ranging species; common off our Atlantic coast, especially northerly. It
is perfectly distinct from any of the two-colored species, of several of which it has at times
been considered to be the 9 or a special state of plumage. Breeds in colonies, often of great .
extent, laying a single egg in holes burrowed several feet deep in the ground.

P. amauroso'ma. (Gr. dyavpds, amauros, dark; odpa, soma, body.) DARK-BODIED
SHEARWATER. Similar to the last, from which perhaps not specifically distinct. Under
wing-coverts white, only interrupted by some dusky marbling. Bill (dry) brownish-black,
horn-colored at tip. Feet (dry) light yellowish flesh-color, tinged with brown on outside of
tarsus, outer toe, and tips of claws. Smaller: wing 11.00; tail 4.25, graduated 0.90; tarsus
2.00; middle toe and claw 2.40; outer do. 2.30; chord of culmen 1.70. Cape St. Lucas,
Cala. \

P. tenuiros'tris. (Lat. tenwis, slight, thin; rostrum, beak.) SLENDER-BILLED SHEAR-
WATER. Distinct: a small, weak-billed, short-tailed, very dark-colored species, sooty-black
above, quite black on quills and tail-feathers, beneath smoky-gray, palest on throat, the
under tail-coverts nearly as blackish as the upper parts. Groove of under side of primary-
shafts yellow. Bill (dry) dusky greenish-yellow, brighter along edges and at tip; feet (dry)
yellowish, the hinder edge of tarsus and under surface of webs blackish. Length about
14.00; wing 10:00; tail 3.50, graduated 0.75; chord of culmen 1.20; depth of bill at base,
0.30; width 0.40; tarsus 1.90; middle or outer toe and claw 2.25. N. Pacific, Sitka to
Japan.

XIII. Order PYGOPODES: Diving Birds.

In the birds of this order the natatorial plan reaches its highest development. All the
species swim and dive with perfect ease; many are capable of remaining long submerged,
and of traversing great distances under water, progress being effected by the wings as well

788 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

as by the feet. Few other birds, such as cormorants and anhingas, resemble the Pygopodes
in this respect. The legs are so completely posterior, that in standing the horizontal position
of the axis of the body is impossible; the birds rest upright or nearly so, the whole tarsus
being often applied to the ground, while the tail affords additional support; progression
on land is awkward and constrained, only accomplished, in most cases, with a shuffling
motion, when the belly partly trails on the ground. One species of auk could not fly at all,
because the wings, although perfectly formed, were too small to support the body. The rest
of the order fly swiftly and vigorously, with continuous wing-beats. The rostrum varies
in shape with the genera; but it is never extensively membranous, nor lamellate, nor
furnished with a pouch. The nostrils vary, but are neither tubular nor abortive. The
wings are short, never reaching when folded to the end of the tail. The tail is short, never
of peculiar shape, generally of many feathers; there are, however, no perfect rectrices in
the grebes. The crura are almost completely buried, and feathered nearly or quite to the
heel. The tarsus is usually compressed, sometimes, as in the loons, extremely so. The front
toes are completely palmate in the loons and auks; lobate, with basal webbing, in the grebes;
the hallux is present and well formed, with a membranous expansion, in loons and grebes,
wanting in the auks. The plumage is thick and completely waterproof: once observing
some loons under peculiarly favorable circumstances in the limpid water of the Pacific, I saw
that bubbles of air clung to the plumage whilst the birds were under water, giving them a
beautiful spangled appearance. The pterylosis shows both contour and down-feathers, both
after-shafted; there are definite apteria; the auks have free outer branches of the inferior
tract-bands, wanting in the loons and grebes. The oil-gland is large with several orifices.
Among osteological characters should be particularly mentioned the long apophysis of the
tibia found in the loons and grebes, but not in the auks. In auks, the elbow has two
sesamoids. The thoracic walls are very extensive; the long jointed ribs grow all along
the backbone from the neck to the pelvis, and form with the long broad sternum a bony
box enclosing much of the abdominal viscera as well as those of the chest, perhaps to prevent
their undue compression under water. The top of the skull has a pair of crescentic depres-
sions for lodgment of a large gland; the palate is schizognathous. The sternum has a
different shape in each of the families. There are two carotids, except among the grebes,
and in Alle. The digestive system shows minor modifications, but accords in general with
the piscivorous regimen of the whole order. The sexes are alike; the young different; the
seasonal changes often great. The auks are altricial, the loons and grebes precocial.
There are three families of Pygopodes, sharply distinguished by external characters ; all of
them are fully represented in this country, where all the known species of loons and auks
occur. The penguins (Spheniscomorphe), formerly included in this order, are better left, to
stand by themselves; they are confined to the Southern Hemisphere, where they are represented
by several genera (as Aptenodytes, Pygoscelis, Hudyptes and Spheniscus) and about 13 species.
-The wings are reduced to mere flippers, without true remiges, unfit for flight, but very efficient
as fins in swimming under water. Much of the plumage is harsh and scaly. There are numerous
osteological characters, among them the flatness and solidity of the wing-bones, and the incom-
plete fusion of the metatarsals. The elbow has a pair of sesamoids, and the knee a large
irregularly shaped patella. The feet are four-toed, and palmate.

Analysis of Families.

Loons, Feet 4-toed, palmate . . 1... ee ew te ee ee ht we ee CoLYMBIDZ
Grebes, Peotd-toed, lobate 42 4 «6 sa We eR EAE eee eR ew . PopiciIrpEDIDZ
Auks. Feet 3-toed, palmate. . . 1. 1. 1 ee ee ee th tee ee ee ew ee . ALCIDE

COLYMBIDZ: LOONS. 789

61. Family COLYMBIDZ: Loons.

Bill stout, straight, com-
pressed, tapering, acute, parag-
nathous, entirely horny. Nos-
trils narrowly linear, their upper
edge lobed. Head completely
feathered, the anti prominent,
acute, reaching the nostrils; no
crests nor ruffs. Wings strong,
with stiff primaries and short
inner quills. Legs completely
posterior, buried, feathered on to
the heel-joint ; tarsi entirely re-
ticulate, extremely compressed,
the back edge smooth; toes
four, the anterior palmate, the
posterior semilateral aud having
a lobe connecting it with the
base of the inner. Tail short,
but well formed, of many feath-
ers. Carotids double. Tibia
with long apophysis. Sternum
with long, broad, central projec-
tion backward, and shorter lat-

Fic. 529. — Loons, (From Michelet.) eral processes. Cceca present.
Accessory semitendinosus absent. Back spotted. Head of young not striped. Loons are
large heavy birds with broad flattened body and rather long sinuous ueck, abundant on the
coasts and large inland waters of the Northern Hemisphere. They are noted for their powers
of diving, being able to evade the shot from a gun by disappearing at the flash, and to swim
many fathoms under water. They are migratory, breeding in high latitudes, being generally
dispersed further south in winter. They are precocial, and lay two or three dark-colored
spotted eggs in a rude nest of rushes by the water’s edge. The voice is extremely loud, harsh,
and resonant. The sexes are alike, the 9 smaller than the ¢; the young different. There
is but one genus, with only three well-determined species.
833. COLYM/BUS. (Gr. cddupBos, kolumbos, a diver.) Loons. Character as above.

Analysis of Species and Varieties (Adults).

“Head and neck black, with green, blue, and purple reflection, and patches of white streaks.

Bill mostly or wholly black, the culmen, commissure, and gonys all gently curved; feathers falling
short of middle of nostrils; culmen 3.00 or less ; gape 4.00 or more; height of bill at nostrils usually
under 1.00, Gloss of head and neck mostly green; white spots of back nearly square . . torquatus 840

Bill mostly yellow; culmen nearly straight; commissure straight; gonys straight ;/ feathers reaching
middle of nostrils ; culmen about 3.75; gape about 5.00; height of bill at nostrils usually over 1.00.

Gloss of head and neck mostly blue; white spots of back longer than broad . ‘ . . .adamsi 841

Top of head bluish-ash, front of neck blue-black; neck with white stripes.
Larger: wing about 12.00; bill about 2.50, stout, with convex culmen soe we we «6 areticus 842
Smaller: wing about 11.00; bill about 2.00, slender, with straight culmen. . .. . . pacificus 843
Throat and sides of head bluish-ash; front of neck with red patch & . + . septentrionalis 844

840. C. torqua’tus. (Lat. torquatus, collared. Figs. 529, 530.) Common Loon. GREAT NortTH-
ERN Diver. Adult: Bill black, the tip and cutting edges sometimes yellowish. Feet black.
Tris red. Head and neck deep glossy greenish-black, with lustrous purplish reflections on the

841.

790 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

front and sides of the head. A patch of sharp white streaks on the throat, and another larger
triangular patch of the same on each side of the neck lower down, the two last nearly or quite
meeting behind, separate in front. Sides of breast striped with black and white. Entire upper
parts, wing-coverts, inner secondaries, and sides under the wings, glossy black ; all except the
sides thickly marked with white spots; those of the scapulars, tertials, and middle back, large,
square, and regular; those of other parts smaller, oval, smallest on ramp, most numerous on
wing-coverts. Upper tail-coverts greenish-black, immaculate. Wing-quills brownish-black,
lighter on inner webs. Under surface of wings, axillars, and under parts generally from the
neck, pure white ; the lower belly with a dusky band. The white throat-patch consists usually
of five or six streaks; in
this, as in the lateral
neck-stripes, the individ-
ual feathers are broadly
black, with sharp white
edges toward their ends.
The texture of these
feathers is peculiar, —the
outer surface is hollowed,
with raised edges of spe-
cially firm, smooth, pol-
ished character, so that
these patches may be felt

as well as seen. The
Fic. 530.— Common Loon. (After Wilson.) white spots on the back

occur in a pair on each feather near its end, their aggregation in any region being therefore
determined by the size of the feathers themselves. Young: Bill smaller than in the adult,
bluish-white, with dusky ridge. Iris brown. Crown and hind neck dull brownish-black ;
other upper parts similar, but the feathers, especially of the fore back, with light gray edgings.
Primaries black, with brown inner webs. Tail-feathers with gray tips. Traces of lighter and
darker lineation on sides of breast. Sides of head mottled with ashy and whitish; chin, throat,
neck in front, and whole under parts, white. Dimensions: length 31 to 36 inches; extent
about 52.00; wing 12.50 to 14.25; bill 2.75-to 3.00 along culmen; gape 4.00 to 4.25; height
at nostrils, about 0.80; width there about 0.40: tarsus 3.00 to 3.50; middle toe and claw
4.25 to 5.00. Inhabits the Northern Hemisphere. In winter, generally dispersed in the U. S. ;
breeds in portions of the U.S. and thence northward. Eggs 2, 3.50 X 2.25, elongate and
pointed, dull greenish-drab, with dark brown spots. Young covered with stiffish black down.
C. t. adamsi. (To Dr. C. B. Adams.) YELLOW-BILLED Loon. Larger than C. torquatus,
with the bill rather larger and somewhat differently shaped and colored. Bill about equalling
head, longer than tarsus, much compressed, tip very acute, not at all decurved, the culmen
being almost perfectly straight, as the commissure also is. Gonys straight or nearly so to the
angle, which is very prominent. (Fig. 530 shows the shape of the bill better than it does that
of No. 840, for which it is intended.) Frontal antiee reaching beyond middle of nostrils. Bill
light yellowish horn-color, only dusky at base. Head and neck deep steel-blue, with purplish
and violet reflections, glossed only on the cervix with green. Throat-patch of white streaks
smaller than in torquatus, but the individual streaks larger, as are those of the neck-patches.
White spots of upper parts larger than in torquatus, longer than broad instead of square on the
scapulars and tertials. Bill along culmen 3.50 to. 3.75; along gape 5.00 to 5.25; height at
nostrils 0.95 to 1.10; width 0.40 to 0.50; tarsus 3.50; outer toe 4.65 to5.10. General dimen-
sions somewhat exceeding those of torquatus. Arctic America, common; perhaps specifically
distinct from the last.

842.

843.

844.

COLYMBIDZ: LOONS. 791

©. are'ticus, (Lat. areficus, arctic.) BLACK-THROATED Diver. Bill generally as in tor-
quatus, but smaller; color black. Chin, throat, and neck in front, black, with purplish and
violet reflections on the sides of the head, gradually fading into a fine, clear bluish-gray, deep-
est on forehead, lightest behind, and separated from the black of the throat by a series of white
streaks. A crescent of short, white streaks across upper throat; sides of breast striped with
pure white and glossy black, these stripes nearly meeting in front. Entire upper parts deep,
glossy greenish-black, each feather of scapulars and intersecapulars with a white spot near end
of each web; those of the scapulars largest, forming four patches in tranverse rows. Wing-
goverts thickly speckled with small ovate white spots. Inner webs of quills, and tail-feathers
below, light grayish-brown. Sides under wings like back. Lining of wings and entire under
parts from the neck, pure white, with a narrow dusky band across lower belly; under tail-

‘coverts dusky, tipped with white. Young: Bill light bluish-gray, dusky along the ridge.

Iris brown. Feet dusky. Upper part of head and neck dark grayish-brown; sides of head
dull grayish-white, minutely streaked with brown. Upper parts with a reticulated or scaly
appearance, the feathers being brownish-black with broad bluish-gray margins; the rump
dull brownish-gray. Primaries and their coverts brownish-black ; secondaries and tail-feathers
dusky margined with gray. Fore-part of neck grayish-white, minutely and faintly dotted with
brown; its sides below streaked with the same. Lower parts, including under surface of
wings, pure white, the sides of the body and rump, with part of the lower tail-coverts, dusky,
edged with bluish-gray. (Audubon.) Dimensions: length about 30.00; extent 40.00;
wing 12.00; bill along culmen 2.45; along gape 3.40; its height at nostrils 0.65; its width
there 0.35; tarsus 2.90; outer toe and claw 3.80. N. Hemisphere; not common in the U. 8.
C. a, paci/ficus. (Lat. pacificus, pacific.) Paciric BLAcK-THROATED Diver. Like the
last; colors the same. Size less ; length 24.00; wing 11.00. Bill shorter. slenderer, somewhat
differently shaped, with straight culmen — much like the difference between Auchmophorus
occidentalis and 4%. clarki. Bill along culmen 1.90-2.20; gape 3.00; length of bill 0.50 or
less; tarsus about 2.50. N. W. America; abundant on Pacific coast of U. 8. in winter.

C. septentriona/lis. (Lat. septentrionalis, northern.) Rep-THROATED Diver. Bill usually
slenderer than in the foregoing; culmen slightly concave at the nostrils, gently convex to tip,
which is rather obtuse and a little decurved. Outline of rami nearly straight; gonys slightly
convex. Froutal antie scarcely extending beyond base of nostrils. Tarsus relatively rather
longer than in foregoing species, about four-fifths the middle toe. Adult: Bill black, rather
lighter at the tip. Crown and broad cervical stripe glossy greenish-black, the latter thickly
streaked with white, which streaks, on the sides of the breast, spread so as to nearly meet in
front. Throat and sides of head clear bluish-gray. A large, well-defined, triangular, chest-
nut-brown throat-patch. Entire upper parts and sides under the wings deep brownish-black,
with greenish gloss, everywhere profusely spotted with white, the spots small, oval. Prim-
aries blackish, paler on the inner webs. Tail narrowly tipped with white. Under parts and
lining of wings white, the axillars.with narrow dusky shaft-streaks, and the lower belly, with
some of the under tail-coverts, dusky. Young: Bill mostly light bluish-white, with dusky
ridge. Crown of head and neck behind bluish-gray, the feathers of the former bordered with
whitish. Entire upper parts brownish- or grayish-black, everywhere profusely marked with |
small oval and linear spots of white. Throat without red patch, its sides and those of the
head mottled with dusky. Other parts as in the adult. Length 25.00; extent 44.00; wing
11.00 or less; bill along culmen 2.00; along gape 3.00; height at nostril 0.50; width there
0.35 ; tarsus 2.75 ; outer toe 3.50. Varies greatly in size, and in the size and shape of the bill;

recognized by the profuse spotting of the upper parts, as well as, when adult, by the red throat-

patch. The spots are smallest and most numerous on the wing-coverts and upper back, where
they grade into the streaks of the hind neck; largest on the tertials, scapulars, and sides under
the wings, where they are rather lines than spots, and are fewest, or almost wanting, ou the

792 ‘SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.—P YGOPODES.

middle of the back. The marking results from a small spot or stripe near the end of each
feather, on the edge of each web; there is occasionally a second pair nearer the base of the
feather. The amount of spotting is very variable with individuals; in the young the spots are
always larger and more numerous than in the adults, and usually lengthened into oblique
lines, producing a regular diamond-shaped reticulation. Northern Hemisphere at large; most
of the U. S. in winter; breeds in high latitudes. Eggs 2-8, 3.00 x 1.75.

62. Family PODICIPEDIDA: Grebes.

Bill of variable length, much longer os shorter than head; culmen usually about straight,
sometimes a little concave, or quite convex, especially at the end. Commissure nearly straight,
but more or less corresponding with the curve of the culmen, usually sinuate at base. Under
outline of bill in general convex, with slight gonydeal angle or none. Sides of bill more or
less striate. Nasal fossee well marked, the nostrils near their termination. Nostrils linear and
pervious (broader in Podilymbus), upper edge straight, not lobed. Frontal extension of
feathers considerable, and usually antie run still further into the nasal fossa. A groove along
the symphysis of the mandible extends often nearly to the tip. Eyes far forward, with a loral
strip of bare skin running thence to base of upper mandible, very narrow in the typical forms,
broader in Tachybaptes and Podilymbus. Head usually adorned in the breeding season with
variously lengthened colored crests or ruffs; when these are wanting the frontal feathers may
be bristly. Neck usually ‘long, slender, and sinuous. Plumage thick and compact, smoothly
imbricated above, below of a peculiar smooth, satiny texture. Wings short but ample, very
concavo-convex ; primaries eleven, narrow, somewhat falcate, graduated, the three or four
outer ones attenuate on one or both webs; secondaries short and broad; tertials very long,
hiding the rest of the quills wheu the wing is closed. Bastard quills unusually-long, their tips
reaching over half-way to the ends of the primaries. Greater coverts also very long. Tail
rudimentary, represented by a tuft of downy feathers. Characters of the feet peculiar; for in
other lobe-footed birds, as Phalaropes and Coots, the lobation is of a different character. Tarst
exceedingly compressed, with only a slightly thickened tract within which the tendons pass.
Front edge a single smooth row of overlapping, the hinder ser-
rate with a double row of pointed, scales; sides regularly trans-
versely scutellate, as are the upper surfaces of the toes, the latter
being inferiorly reticulate, with an edging of pectinated scales.
Toes flattened out and further widened with broad lobes, espe-
cially wide toward the end, and at base connected for a varying
distance by interdigital webs. Hind toe highly elevated, broadly
lobate, free. Claws short, broad, flat, obtuse, of squarish shape ;
that of the hallux minute.

The Grebes are strongly marked by the foregoing charac-
ters, especially of the feet and tail, though they agree closely with
the Loons in general structure and economy. Principal internal
characters are the absence of one carotid, and of the ambiens,
femoro-caudal and accessory semitendinosus muscles, the greater
number of cervical vertebre (19 instead of 13) and shortness of

Fie. 530 bis, —F. fibula; T, the sternum, with lateral processes reaching beyond the transverse
tibia, with @, its cnemial process, main part (the reverse of the case in Loons). There is a long
a ore patella, of a grebe; nemial process of the tibia, reaching high above the knee-joint,

backed by a large patella of about equal altitude (fig. 530 bis.).
The gizzard has a special pyloric sac; there are coeca and a tufted oil-gland. These birds are
expert divers, and have the curious habit of sinking back quietly into the water when alarmed,
like Anuhingas. Owing to the virtual absence of the tail, the general aspect is singular, ren-

_ |

334,

845.

sat CIPEDIDG: GREBES. 793

dered still more so by the almost grotesque parti-colored ruffs and crests that most species
possess. These ornaments are very transient; old birds in winter, and the young, are very
different from the adults in breeding attire. The eggs are more numerous than in other pygo-
podous birds, frequently numbering 6-8 ; elliptical, of a pale or whitish color, unvariegated ;
commonly covered with chalky substance. The nest is formed of matted vegetation, close to
the water, or even, it is said, floating among aquatic plants; the young swim directly. Grebes
are the only cosmopolitan birds of the order, being abundantly distributed over the lakes and
rivers of all parts of the world, though they are less maritime than the species of either of
the other families. There are not over twenty-five well determined species.

Analysis of Genera.

Bill slender or only 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 oftocs moderate. Lobe of hallux broad. Usually with
conspicuous crests or ruffs during the breeding season.

Bill longer than head, extremely slender and acute. Tarsus equal to the middle toe and claw.

Crests and ruffs slight. Large .... . . Aichmophorus 334
Bill not longer than head, moderately stout. Tarsus atoeter than middle ‘toe and claw. Crests
and ruffs decided. Size over 10 inches . é . . . » Podicipes 335

Bill much shorter than head, not two-thirds the ase, quite stout. Tarsus about three-fourths

the middle toe. Outer and middle toes equal. No decided crests or ruffs. Small; length 10

inchesor less. cae Mm : oe Tachy baptes

Bill stout, epignathous, obtuse. Nostrils broadly oval. Paral bate strip broad, Frontal feathers bristly.

Tarsus not three-fourths the middletoe. Semipalmation of toes extensive. Lobe of hallux moderate.
No decided crests or ruffs ee ‘i ‘ re . « . .Podilymbus 336

ECHMO/PHORUS. (Gr. aiyun, aichme, a spear; gopos, phorus, bearing.) SPEAR-BILL
Greses. Bill very long, exceeding the head, straight or slightly recurved, very slender and
acute; culmen straight or slightly concave; commissure about straight, or slightly sinuate
at base; under outline concave at base, without protuberance at symphysis. Bare loral space
extremely narrow. Wings comparatively long, with much attenuated outer primaries. Legs
long; tarsus not shorter than bill, as long as middle toe and claw; basal webbing of toes
slight. Size large; neck very long; body slendér. Crest and ruffs inconspicuous, not
specially colored in our species. One species, western, of which two varieties may usually
be recognized by the following characters :

Analysis of Varieties.

Large ; length (extreme) about 29.00 inches ; wing about 8.00; bill and tarsus each about 3.00. Bill equal

to tarsus, straight, mostly dark olivaceous, brighter yellowish at tip and along cutting edges. Under

outline of bill straight from base to the slight angle, gonys thence straight to tip. Lores ashy-gray.
occidentalis 845

Small: length about 22.00 inches; wing about 7.00; ‘bill 2.25; tarsus 2.75. Bill shorter than tarsus,

slightly recurved, under outline almost sa convex from base to tip, with barely appreciable angle.
Lores pure white . . . a2 ‘i i = oe oe i ras Ser clarki 846

#E, occidenta/lis. (Lat. occidentalis, western.) WESTERN GR»EBE. Bill obscurely oliva-
ceous, brighter along edges and at tip. Iris orange-red, pink or carmine, with a white ring.
Hard parts of palate like bill; soft parts purplish or lavender. Outer side and sole of foot
blackish, rest dull olivaceous, more yellowish on webs. Forehead and lores dark silvery-ash.
A short occipital crest and puffy cheeks, but neither bright-colored, agreeing with white and
dark colors of the respective parts. Top of head and line down back of neck sooty-blackish,
changing on upper parts into a lighter, more brownish black, the feathers of the back with
grayish margins. Primaries mostly dark chocolate-brown, with white bases, their shafts
white at base. Secondaries mostly white, but more or fewer of them dark on most or all
of the outer webs. Sides under the wings washed with a pale shade of the color of the back.
Lining of wings and whole under parts from the bill pure white, with satiny gloss. Length
24.00-29.00; extent 40.00 or thereabouts; wing about 8.00; bill, tarsus, middle toe and

846.

335.

847.

794 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PYGOPODES.

claw, all about 3.00; gape of bill 3.60; height at base 0.50. Western U. S., common.
As here described, the bird is given in its purest character; but it grades in size directly into
the next, and some of the larger individuals have a mostly yellow and somewhat recurved bill,
with white lores.
4#, 0, clark'i. (To J. H. Clark.) Ciakn’s Gress. Bill about as long as head, shorter than
tarsus, slightly recurved, extremely slender and acute; culmen a little concave; under outline
almost one unbroken curve from base to tip. Adult in breeding plumage: Under mandible,
and tip and cutting edges of the upper, chrome-yellow, in marked contrast to black of culmen.
Loral bare strip leaden-blue. Crown, occiput, and hind-neck deep grayish-black; almost
pure black on the hind-head, fading gradually along the neck into the lighter blackish-gray
of the upper parts generally. Lores broadly pure white, as are the entire under parts, with
a sharp line of demarcation along the sides of the head and neck. A decided occipital crest,
the feathers about an inch long and quite filiform, but not colored apart from the general
coloration. No decided ruffs—no colored ruffs at all; but the white feathers of the sides
of the head behind and across the throat are longer and fuller than elsewhere — about as in
griseigena. Wings and general coloration (except the white lores) exactly as in occidentalis.
Winter dress not materially different. Dimensions: length about 22.00 inches; extent 28.50;
wing 7.00; bill along culmen 2.30; along gape 2.75; height at nostrils 0.40; tarsus and
middle toe with claw, each about 2.75. Thence grading up to occidentalis. With only
extremes before us of the two varieties, one might well consider them distinct species; but
other specimens show the intergradation ; we frequently find specimens as small as typical
clarki, and with equally slender bill, yet with the color of the bill wholly olivaceous and the
lores ashy, as in typical occidentalis. Western U. S.
PODI'CIPES. (Lat. pedex, gen. podicis, the rump; pes, foot.) GREBES. Bill moderately
stout, usually more or less compressed, equalling or shorter than the head or tarsus. Tarsus
obviously shorter than the middle toe and claw. Outer lateral toe a little longer than the
middle. Head in the breeding season with lengthened colored crests or ruffs, or both.

Nore. — Believing P. cristatus may have been hastily eliminated from our fauna, I analyze and describe it
with the rest, without number assigned.

Analysis of Species (adults).

Large: length over 15 inches. Bill more or less nearly equalling the head or tarsus in length.
Crests, and especially ruffs. long and conspicuous. Neck without red or gray in front; under parts

pure silky-white. Tarsus averaging equal to the middle toe without its claw z . eristatus
Crests moderate; ruffs inconspicuous. Neck with red or gray in front; under parts watered with
dusky (sometimes but slightly). Tarsus averaging less than the middle toe and claw holballi 847

Small: length under 15 inches. Bill much shorter than head; little over half the tarsus.
Bill compressed, higher than broad at the nostrils. Crests and ruffs very conspicuous; neck red in
front . a eo oS a ae be 2: a o : ae eve -cornutus 848
Bill depressed, broader than high at the nostrils. Crests in form of auricular tufts; neck black in
front . . oe ee - oa + a@uritus 849. or californicus 850
P. crista/tus. (Lat. cristatus, crested.) CRESTED GREBE. Adult, breeding plumage: Crown and long
occipital crests glossy black; end of ruff the same, the rest reddish-brown, fading into silky-white of throat and
sides of head. Neck behind and upper parts dark brown, the feathers with gray margins. Primaries chocolate-
brown, with black shafts, the tips of the inner ones white, as are all the secondaries and tertiarics, excepting a
little of the outer webs of the former; greater wing-coverts white on inner webs. Under parts pure silky white,
without a trace of dusky mottling, the sides of the neck and body tinged with reddish, and on the flanks mixed
with dusky, where the feathers have dark shaft-lines, Length about 24.00; extent 33.00; wing 7.00; bill 2 00,
the gape 2.70; tarsus 2.50. Europe, etc. N. Am ?

P. griseige/na holbeelli. (Low Lat. griseus, gray ; gena, cheeks. To C. Holbill.) AMERICAN
RED-NECKED GREBE. Adult, breeding plumage: Crests short, and ruffs scarcely apparent.
Iris carmine. Bill black, the tomia of upper mandible at base and most of ‘lower mandible
yellowish. Crown and occiput glossy greenish-black ; back of neck the same, less intense,
and upper parts generally the same, with grayish edgings of the feathers. Wing-coverts and

848,

849,

PODICIPEDIDZ: GREBES. 795

primaries uniform chocolate-brown, the shafts of the latter black. Secondaries white, mostly
with black shafts and brownish tips. Lining of wings and axillars white. A broad patch
of silvery-ash on the throat, extending around on sides of head, whitening along line of
juncture with the black of the crown. Neck, except the dorsal line, deep brownish-red, which
extends diluted some distance on the breast. Under parts silky-white, with a shade of silvery-
ash, each feather having a dark shaft-line and terminal spot, producing a peculiar dappled
appearance. Winter plumage, and young: Crests scarcely appreciable. Bill mostly yellow-
ish, the ridge more or less dusky. Red of the neck replaced by brownish-ash of variable
shade, from quite dark to whitish. Ash of throat and sides of head replaced by pure white.
Under parts ashy-white, the mottling not so conspicuous as in summer. Dimensions: Length
about 19.00; extent 32.00; wing 7.60; bill along culmen 1.90-2.40, along gape 2.40-3.10 ;
height at nostrils 0.55; tarsus 2.50; middle toe and claw 2.85. This bird could only be
confounded with cristatus in immature dress: it is smaller, stouter, more thick-set, with
stouter bill, nebulated under plumage, less white on the wing, and usually has rather shorter
tarsi, — only about four-fifths the middle toe and claw, instead of about equal to the middle toe
alone, as in cristatus. The American bird is a larger variety of the European, the Dill,
especially, disproportionately longer, differently shaped and colored; tarsus lounger, both
absolutely and relatively to length of toes. N. Am. at large and Greenland; common in
the U. S. in winter, breeding northerly. Eggs 2.10 to 2.35 x 1.25 to 1.45, rough, whitish,
either inclining to pale greenish or with buffy discoloration, of the narrow-elongate shape
usual in this family.
Oxs. Specimens more like the typical griseigena from the N. W. coast.

P. cornu'tus. (Lat. cornutus, horned.) Hornep GREBE. Adult, breeding plumage:
Bill black, tipped with yellow. Feet dusky externally, internally <yellowish. Iris carmine,
with a fine white ring. A brownish-yellow stripe over eye, widening behind and deepening
in color at the ends of the long crests, and being dark chestnut between eye and bill. Crown,
chin, and the very full ruff glossy greenish-black. Upper parts brownish-black, with paler
edges of the feathers. Primaries rather light chocolate-brown, with black shafts, except at
the base. Secondaries white. Neck all round, except stripe down behind, and sides of the
body, rich dark brownish-red or purplish wine-red, mixed with dusky on the flanks. Under
parts pure silky-white. Winter plumage, and young: Bill dusky, much of the under
mandible bluish or yellowish-white. Indications of crests and ruff in the length and fulness
of the feathers of the parts. Crown and neck behind, and sides of the body, sooty-blackish.
Other upper parts and the wings as in the adult. Chin, throat, and sides of head, pure white,
this color nearly encircling the nape. Neck in front and lower belly lightly washed with
ashy-gray. Under parts as before. Newly-fledged young are curiously striped on the head
with rufous, dusky, and white. Dimensions: length about 14.00 inches; extent 24.00;
wing 5.75; tarsus 1.75; middle toe and claw 2.10; bill along culmen about 0.90, along gape
1.80; its height at the nostrils 0.30, its width there 0.25. Bill compressed, tapering, with
considerably curved culmen, — quite different from the broad depressed bill with straight tip
and much ascending gonys of P. auritus. It varies much in size, even among equally adult
examples; in the young it is always smaller and weaker than in the old. Black, yellow-
tipped in the old, we find it variously lighter in the young, — usually dusky on the ridge,
elsewhere tinged with olivaceous, yellowish, or even orange or extensively bluish-white.
In breeding plumage this bird is conspicuously different from any other; but the young are
much like those of P. auritus, requiring careful discrimination. N. Am. at large, abundant,
and generally diffused. Eggs laid on soaking or floating beds of decayed reeds, white or
slightly shaded, elliptical, 1.70 x 1.20.

P. auri‘tus. (Lat. auritus, eared.) EUROPEAN EARED GREBE. Like the next to be de-
scribed, excepting more white on the wing; inner four primaries entirely white, all the rest
more or less white, secondaries all entirely white. Only N. Am. as occurring in Greenland (?).

796 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

850. P. a. califor‘nicus. AMERICAN EARED GREBE. Adult, breeding plumage: Bill shorter
than head, rather stout at base, much depressed, broader than high at the nostrils, tip acute,
not decurved, gonys straight, ascending, culmen a little concave basally, nearly straight termi-
ually. Tarsus about equal to middle toe without its claw. Bill entirely black. Feet dull
olivaceous, blackish outside and on sole. Eye scarlet. Eyelid orange. Conspicuous long
auricular tufts, golden-brown or tawny, finely displayed upon a black ground. Crown, chin,
and neck all round, black. All the primaries entirely chocolate-brown, with usually a wash
of dull reddish-brown externally. Secondaries white, but the bases of all, and a considerable
part of the two outer ones, dusky; their shafts mostly all dusky. Sides deep purplish-brown
or wine-red ; this color washed across the breast, behind the black of the neck, and also across
the anal region. Under parts silky-white, the abdomen grayish. Young: Bill shaped gener-
ally as in the adult, but smaller, with less firm outlines, so that its distinctive shape is some-
what obscured. Little or no trace of the auricular tufts. Crown, sides of head, and neck all
around, sooty-grayish, paler and more ashy on the foreneck. Upper parts rather lighter and
duller colored than in the adults. Primaries as in the adults, but without the reddish tinge;
a few of the innermost ones sometimes white-tipped. Sides under the wings washed with a
lighter shade of the color of the back; lower belly grayish. Dimensions: length 12 to 14
inches, usually 13 or less; extent 21.50-24.00; wing 4.75-5.25; Dill 1.00 or less; along
gape 1.25; height at nostril 0.22; width there 0.26; tarsus 1.60; middle toe and elaw 1.95,
While the breeding plumages of P. cornutus and the present species are widely different,
there is much similarity between the young and winter dress of the two species. As a rule,
auritus is smaller ; even traces of ruffs are less appreciable; the fore neck is scarcely lighter
than the hind neck; the back is rather deeper colored and more uniform. The shape and pro-
portions of the bill, however, furnish the most reliable characters. Western N. Am., the com-
monest species of grebe breeding in the pools west of the Mississippi; E. to Illinois. Eggs
not distinguishable from those of P. cornutus.

851, P.domi/nicus. (Of St. Domingo.) St. Dominco Gress. Representing a genus or subgenus
apart from the foregoing (Tachybaptes). Bill very short, much less than the head, scarcely
over half the tarsus ; stout, little compressed, rather obtuse. Lateral outlines nearly straight ;
culmen slightly concave at the nostrils, elsewhere convex ; commissure straight, except a little
sinuation at base; under outline straight to angle, gonys thence straight to tip, the angle
well defined. Wings short, and with abrupt attenuation of the outer primaries. Tarsus
stout, little over three-fourths the middle toe and claw ; outer lateral about equal to the mid-
dle toe. Size very small; body full; neck short; no decided crests or ruffs. Adult: Crown
and occiput deep glossy steel-blue. Sides of head and neck all around dark ashy-gray, darkest
behind, where tinged with bluish. Chin varied with ashy and white. Upper parts brownish-
black, with glossy-greenish reflections. Primaries chocolate-brown, the greater portion of the
inner vanes of all, and nearly all of the inner four or five, together with all the secondaries,
pure white. Under parts silky-white, thickly mottled with dusky. Upper mandible dusky,
the lower mostly yellowish. Dimensions: length about 9.50; extent 16.00; wing 3.60; bill
along culmen 0.70; along gape 1.00; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.75.. Warmer parts
of America, N. to the Rio Grande of Texas.

336. PODILYM/BUS. (Podicipes+Colymbus.) THick-BiteD Greses. Bill shorter than
head, stoutest in the family, compressed, with obtuse and hooked tip; culmen about straight
to the nostrils, thence declinato-convex; gonys regularly convex without decided angle; com-
missure slightly sinuate at base, then straight, then much deflected. Upper mandible covered
with soft skin to the nostrils, between which are two fosse, the anterior shallow, oblong, the
other deep, triangular, separated from the bare loral space by an intetvening ridge. Nostrils
broadly oval, far anterior. No crests or ruffs, but shafts of frontal feathers prolonged into
bristles. Eyelids peculiarly thickened. Outer three or four primaries abruptly sinuate near

852.

ALCIDZ: AUKS. T9T

the end. Tarsus much abbreviated, comparatively stout, about three-fourths as long as middle
toe and claw. Middle and outer toes nearly equal. Basal semipalmation of toes more exten-
sive than in Podicipes. Lobe of hind toe moderate.

P. podi'cipes. (For podicipes, see above.) Pirp-BILLED GrEeBE. Dascnicx. DIpper.
DiepappeR. Warerwircu. Adult, breeding plumage : Bill light dull bluish, or bluish-
white, dusky on ridge or at tip, encircled with a broad black band. Iris brown and white ;
eyelids white. Feet greenish-black outside, leaden-gray inside. Frontal and coronal bristles
black. Crown, occiput, and neck behind, grayish-black, the feathers with slightly lighter
edges. Sides of head and neck brownish-gray. A broad black throat-patch, extending on
sides of lower mandible. Upper parts brownish-black, the feathers with scarcely lighter edges.
Primaries and secondaries chocvlate-brown, the latter frequently. with a white area on the inner
webs. Under parts ashy, washed over with silvery-gray, thickly mottled with dusky; these
dark spots most numerous and evident on the sides. Lower belly nearly uniformly dusky-
Winter plumage: Bill light dull yellowish, without a dark band, more or less dusky ‘on the
tidge. No gular patch. Crown and occiput dusky brown. Upper parts with more evident
pale edgings of the feathers than in summer. Neck, breast, and sides, light brown, darker
posteriorly, where more or less conspicuously mottled with dusky. Under parts otherwise pure
silky-white, immaculate; lower belly grayish. Young-of-the-year: White gular patch in-
vaded by streaks of the brownish of the head, and the latter much. streaked with white.
Dimensions: length about 13.00; extent 24.00; wing about 5.00; bill along culmen 0.75 ;
along gape 1.20; height at nostrils 0.40; width 0.25; tarsus 1.50; middle toe and claw 2.15.
Varies greatly in size. Inhabits the greater part of 8. and C. Am. and all temperate N. Am. ;
the most abundant species of the family in Eastern U. S.

63. Family ALCID4: Auks.

Feet palmate, three-toed (hallux wanting). Tarsi reticulate or partly scutellate. Tibio-
tarsal joint naked. Claws ordinary. Bill of wholly indeterminate shape, often much as in
Colymbide or Podicipedide ; often curiously shaped, with various ridges, furrows, or horny
protuberances. Tail perfect, of few feathers. Lores completely feathered. Nostrils wholly
variable in shape and position, naked or feathered. Legs very variable. Coloration vari-
able ; head often with long curly crests. No tibial apophysis. Usually (always?) an anconal
sesamoid, sometimes double. Carotids usually double (single in Alle). Ceca coli pres-
ent; ambiens muscle present, accessory semitendinosus absent; oil-gland tufted. Palatal
structure schizognathous; nasal schizorhinal. Nature altricial and ptilopedic. Eggs few or
single, plain or variegated. The numerous species confined to the Northern Hemisphere.

Birds of this family will be immediately recognized by the foregoing circumstances, taken
in connection with general pygopodous characters. Agreeing closely in essential respects, they
differ among themselves to a remarkable degree in the form of the’ bill, with every genus and
almost every species; this organ frequently assuming an odd shape, developing horny pro-
cesses, showing various ridges and furrows, or being brilliantly colored. It is the rule that
any soft part that may be observed on the bill will finally become hard, or form an outgrowth,
or both ; and such processes, in some cases at least, are temporary, appearing only during the
breeding season.

The last sentence, reprinted as it stands in the original edition of the Key (1872) hints at
the extraordinary changes undergone by the bill in several genera of Alcide, so ably elucidated
in 1877 and 1879 by L. Bureau, who showed that in many species parts of the horny covering
of the bill are regularly shed or moulied, in a manner analogous to the casting of deer’s antlers,
quite as shown by R. Ridgway in the case of our White Pelican, which drops the ‘‘ centre-
board.” In the Common Puffin, for example, no fewer than nine pieces of the bill fall of

798 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PYGOPODES.

—

separately, after the breed-
ing season, to be renewed
again from the soft basement nembrane.
The absence, in winter, of the horny plate
at the angle of the mouth of Simorhynchus
cristatellus, had been noted (Key, p. 342), as
well as the presence or absence of the horn of
Ceratorhina ; but we had no knowledge of the
process by which the change was effected, prior
to Bureaw’s studies. In the Puffins there is also
a moult of the excrescences upon the eyelids,
and a shrivelling of the colored rosette at the
corner of the mouth.

The Auks are confined to the Northern
Hemisphere. Some representatives have been
found as far north as explorers have penetrated.
The great majority live in more temperate lati-
tudes. Amore or less complete migration takes
place with most species, which stray southward,
sometimes to a considerable distance, in the au-
tumn, and return north again to breed in the
spring. A few species appear nearly stationary.
The most southern recorded habitat of any
member of the family is about latitude 21° N.,
on the Pacific coast of North America, but this
is rather exceptional. The species are very
unequally divided between the two oceans. The
Atlantic has but few representatives compared
with the Pacific. On the northern coasts of
the latter the family reaches its highest devel-
opment; the greatest number of species, of the
most diversified forms, are found there, though
the number of individuals of any species does
not surpass that of several Atlantic species.
Comparatively few species are common to both
oceans. All the members of the family are ex-
clusively marine. They are decidedly grega- a
rious, particularly in the breeding season, when _— Fig. 531, — Egging in Alaska on cliffs inhabited by
some species congregate in countless numbers. .Kittiwakes (p. 748), Auks, etc. (Designed by H. W.

Elliott. From Harper Brothers.)
Usually one, often two, -rarely three eggs are
laid, either upon the bare rock or ground, or in crevices between or under rocks, or in burrows

Fig. 532.— A needle rock tenanted by Cormorants (p. 728, No. 757), Auks,

ALCIDA: AUKS.

etc. (Designed by H. W. Elliott. From Harper Brothers.)

799

excavated for the purpose. Auks
are all altrices, and are believed
to be chiefly monogamous. The
young are at first covered with
long soft woolly down; rarely
stiffish hairs appear on some parts.
The moult is double. The young
of the year usually differ from the
adults ; the latter usually differ in
their summer and winter plumages.
A very prevalent feature is the
possession of erests or plumes, or
elongated feathers of a peculiar
shape on the sides of the head.

All the species walk badly ;
some scarcely walk at all.
The position of the legs with
refereuce to the axis of the
body necessitates an upright
position when standing. The
birds appear to rest on their
rumps, with the feet extended
horizontally before them, most
of the tarsus touching the
ground. The Puffins, how-
ever, and a few others, stand
well on their feet. All the
species but one fly well, with
rapid vigorous motion of the
wings, in a straight, firm,
well-sustained course. All
progress on or under. the
water with the utmost facility.
They are very silent birds;
the voice is rough and harsh ;
the notes are monvtoned.
They feed exclusively upon
animal substances procured
from the water.

The family is divisible into two subfamilies according to the feathering of the nostrils

and other characters.

PHALERIDINZ. Nostrils naked, remote from feathers.
higher than wide, as far as known appendaged with deciduous elements.

Analysis of Subfamilies and Genera.

No great seasonal changes of plumage.
Eyelids with deciduous appendages. No crests. Bill extremely high and thin; culmen with one

curve; both mandibles grooved.

pieces. Inner lateral claw enlarged. Tarsus scutellate in front

Eyelids simple. Long lateral crests.

Bill of variable shape, always compressed,

Head nearly always crested.

A rosette at angle of mouth. Covering of bill moulted in 7-9

. Fratercula 337

Bill extremely high and thin; calmer with two Garyes: upper

mandible grooved, under smooth. A rosette-at angle of mouth. Covering of bill moulted in 7 pieces.
Inner lateral claw enlarged. Tarsus scutellatein front . . .

Eyelids simple.

Lateral crests.

Iunda 338

Bill with a deciduous horn at base of ber mandible. No Tosette.

*

800 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

Neither mandible grooved. Covering of bill moulted in 2 pieces. Inner lateral claw normal.
Tarsus scutellatein front. . . . 1. 1. se es a 6, aan x . Ceratorhina 339
Eyelids simple. Variously crested. Bill of indeterminate shape, various parts moulted in 1-7 pieces.
No soft rosette. Inner claw normal. Tarsusreticulate . . .. .. . =. . + .Simorhynchus 840
Eyelids simple. Not crested ? Bill acute; upper mandible striate; no moult of bill known. No
rosette. Innerclaw normal. Tarsus reticulate . pao ke + « » «Ptychorhamphus 341
ALOIN#. Nostrils more or less completely feathered. Bill of variable shape, as far as known not
appendaged with deciduous elements. Head not crested (except one species). Seasonal changes of
plumage usually marked.
Bill elongate, more or less slender, without vertical grooves.
Nostrils nearly circular, incompletely feathered. Bill short and stout for this group. Tarsus
scarcely compressed, scutellate in front a Be oe oe 5 ep om ele eo ee Go Ae 8
Nostrils broadly oval, incompletely feathered. Bill much compressed. Tail nearlyeven. Tarsus ;
extremely compressed, scutellatein front andinternally. . ... . Synthliborhamphus 343
Nostrils oval, feathered. Bill very small, slender, acute. Tarsus reticulate. .Brachyrhamphus 344
Nostrils narrow, feathered. Bill about equal to tarsus. Tarsusreticulate ... = Uria 345
Nostrils narrow, densely feathered. Bill longer than tarsus. Tarsus scutellatein front Zomvia 346
Bill elongate, stout, high, narrow, vertically grooved. Nostrils linear, densely feathered.
Wings fully developed, fit for flight ‘ oie a oe . ae Gt Sra Utamania 347
Wings reduced in size, unfit for flight . . . oe boa ee ee . . Alca 348
Oss. Many additional characters of these remarkable genera are given under their respective heads.

76. Subfamily PHALERIDINA: Parrot Auks, etc.

Characters as above. This subfamily contains a number of curious birds of the Auk
family for which there is no single English name. With one exception (that of the Common
Puffin or Sea Parrot of the Atlantic) all are confined to North Pacific and Polar waters.
Without known exception (but qu. Ptychorhamphus ?) all these birds have the bill appendaged
with deciduous elements, which is not the case with the Alcine proper; but the subfamily is
not very sharply distinguished from Alcina, such forms as Ptychorhamphus and Alle being
connecting links. The genera Fratercula and Lunda ave together so different from the rest

that some authors separate them as a family Mormonide ; but this seems scarcely advisable.:
837, FRATER'CULA. (Dimin. of frater, a brother: what application?) Sra Parrots.
Masxine Purrins: the grotesque bill being likened to the comic mask of revellers at a
carnival, and be-
ing as it were put
on for the nuptial
festivities, and af-
terward removed.
Bill about as long
as head, about as
high as _ long,
extremely com-
pressed, with
nearly _-vertical
sides, its lateral
profile somewhat
triangular, its
a depth at base
Fie. 533. — Head of Sea Parrot (F. arctica), nat. size. (Ad nat..del. E. C.) equal to that of
the head ; culmen beginning on a level with the forehead, thence curving downward with regular
convexity to the overhanging tip, its ridge sharp and unbroken throughout ; commissure straight
and horizontal to the decurved tip; gonys sharp, ascending, gently sinuous. Terminal portions
of both mandibles hard, horny, and persistent, depressed with several oblique curved grooves,
convex forward. Basal portion of upper mandible forming a narrow obtuse-angled triangular

853.

ALCIDA — PHALERIDINE:: PUFFINS. 801

space, or nasal fossa, its short base horizontal, its. long sides rising and sloping backward
to meet at an acute angle at base of culmen; the linear nostrils horizontal, close to com-
missure at base of this space, which in winter is naked and membranous, in summer covered
with a symmetrical horny ‘‘saddle” sheathing the nasal fossa; with a basal raised ‘‘ collar”
surrounding base of upper mandible, through numerous perforations of which protrude rudi-
mentary feathers; with a small narrow horizontal horny strip on each side below nostrils;
with usually, also, a long, narrow, obliquely vertical strip bounding the triangular space
anterior. Basal portion of under mandible contracted and membranous in winter, in summer
with a symmetrical horny ‘‘ shoe” which carries the line of the gonys dowuward and backward
to a point, and a narrow horny strip along base. These deciduous elements thus forming
three symmetrical pieces, surrounding the bill, and three or two pairs of lateral pieces; in all,
9 or 7 pieces (9 in arctica and glacialis, 7 in corniculata) which are regularly moulted.
Angle of mouth with a rosette of naked skin, festooned in summer, shrunken in winter.
Eyelids surmounted above by a triangular, obtuse or acute, below by a horizontal, lengthened,
callosity. No crests on head, but a furrow in plumage behind eye. Wings not peculiar.
Tail rounded, but central feathers shorter than the next, contaiued about 24 times in length
of wing, 16-feathered. Tarsus very short, only equal to iuner toe without claw, stout, little
compressed, reticulate except for a small space in front, which is scutellate. Outer toe about
equal to the middle; its claw shorter than the middle claw, both slightly curved, not very
acute, upright; middle claw dilated on inner edge; inner claw enlarged, curved to a semi-
circle, very acute, usually lying horizontal. Sexes alike; seasonal changes of plumage slight,
those connected with the moult of the bill very great. Egg single, white or scarcely marked,
laid in rocky crevices or burrows in ground.
Analysis of Species.
Excrescence of upper eyelid forming a slender acute horn. Height of bill much greater than length of
commissure. Black of throat reaching bill. . . - + .corniculata 853
Excrescence of upper eyelid forming an obtuse process. " Black ‘of throat Gt scacibnig bill.

Culmen moderately convex, its chord about 2.00; its arc 2.10; bill under 1.50 deep at base. Wing
under 7,00 arctica 854

Culmen very convex, its chord about ‘e, 40; its arc ey 60; ill over 1, 50 desis at ie: “Wing 7.00 or

more ... . a . a ae eee a .glacialis 855
F. cornicula'ta. ak ere asi a ‘little horn (over fi eye). Fig. 534.) Hornep
Masxine Purrin. Adult in summer: Appendage of the upper eyelid produced into a long,
slender, acute, upright horn; that of lower eyelid linear-obtuse, horizontal. Bill very large,
especially high for its length, its height about equal to chord of culmen exclusive of the basal
collar, much greater than length of gape; base of culmen and point of gonys both produced far
backward, giving a very’ convex outline of feathers alongside the bill; sides of bill not
distinctly divided into nasal compartment and grooved portion, nearly ‘amu, with only
three short shallow grooves; culmen very convex, almost the sextant of a circle; tip of upper
mandible much hooked; rictus short, that portion in advance of the basal rim of upper man-
dible only about as long as upper mandible is deep; outline of gonys sinuate, at first convex,
then more ascending, with slight concavity; chord of gonys nearly as long as that of upper
mandible, exclusive of the basal rim or collar. Form otherwise not peculiar in the genus.
Crown of head grayish-black, narrowing to a point at base of culmen. Sides of head white;
the postocular furrow and sides of lower jaw ashy. A distinct narrow line of white along
edge of fore-arm. Entire upper parts glossy blue-black; a sootier shade of black encircling
the fore-neck, running forward on throat to bill. Other under parts white, except a few
elongated blackish feathers on sides of flanks. Lining of wings pearly-ash. Bill entirely
vermilion-red, even the basal collar; edges of eyelids red; excrescences of eyelids bluish-
gray; iris brown; feet orange-red, the webs tinged with vermilion; claws brownish-black ;
rosette of mouth bright yellow-orange. Length 14.50; extent 24.50; wing 7.25; tail 2.75;

51

802 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

tarsus 1.10; middle toe and claw 2.00; outer do. 1.90; inner do. 1.35; chord of culmen 2.00;
curve 2.25; gape, from basal collar to tip, 1.20; chord of gonys 1.75; depth of bill at base
1.80; greatest width 0.60; nostril 0.40; horn over eye 0.35. In winter: The moult of the
bill not known; supposed with good reason to shed 3 symmetrical pieces and two pairs of
pieces, in all 7, namely, the collar at base of upper mandible; the saddle of nasal fossa ;

the shoe of under mandible; the pair of sub-nasal strips ;

the pair of mandibular strips ; if so,

all the same as in F’. arctica, excepting the pre-nasal strips. The processes of the eyelids
fall; the colored ring round eye pales; the rosette of mouth shrivels and pales; feet yellow;
the denuded membranous part of bill doubtless blackish. In any state, the species is easily
recognized by extension of the black collar to the bill. N. Pacific, both coasts, and adjoining
polar seas; not known in N. Atlantic ; 8. to Sitka at least. Economy in all respects that
of the better known species. The single egg seen is dead white, rough, 2.75 X 1.75.

a54, F. are'tica. (Lat. arctica, arctic. Fig. 533.) Common

by H. W. Elliott. From Harper Brothers.)

Purrin. Sea Parror. Adult in
summer: Appendage of upper eye-
lid upright, obtusely triangular;
of lower eyelid linear, obtuse, hori-
zontal. Bill moderately large, with
moderate convexity of culmen, its
height less than chord of culmen,
little more than from posterior bor-
der of nostril to tip; base of cul-
men and point of gonys not pro-
duced far backward, leaving but
moderately convex outline of feath-
ers along side of bill; sides of bill
distinctly divided into an anterior,
hard, horny, deeply grooved por-
tion, differently colored from the
smooth basal portion; rictus long,
that portion in advance of the basal
rim of upper mandible much longer
than upper mandible is deep ; out-
line of under mandible regularly
curved from base to tip; chord of |
gonys much shorter than that of
culmen. Crown of head grayish-
black, sharply defined against color
of sides of head, separated by a
slight ashy cervical collar from the
dark color of the upper parts. Sides
of head, with chin and throat, ashy-

white, nearly white between eyes and Dill, with a dark ashy patch on side of throat. Upper
parts glossy blue-black, continuous with a broad collar around the neck in front, not extending
to the bill. A narrow line of white along border of fore-arm. Under parts from the neck
pure white, the long feathers of the sides and flanks blackish. Under surface of wings pearly-
gray; inner webs of primaries and secondaries grayish-brown, the shafts brown, with black
ends and whitish bases. Iris brown. Eyelids vermilion-red, the excrescences grayish-blue.
Basal collar of bill and first ridge dull yellowish ; nasal saddle and corresponding shoe of lower
mandible grayish-blue ; rest of bill vermilion-red, the tip of the lower mandible and two ter-
minal grooves often yellowish ; rosette of mouth orange-yellow ; feet coral or vermilion-red ;

ALCIDAE — PHALERIDINZ: PUFFINS. 803

elaws black. Length 13.50; extent 24.00; wing 6.50; tail 2.25; tarsus 1.00; middle toe
alone 1.40, its claw 0.40; outer do. 1.40; its claw 0.30; inner do. 1.00, its claw 0.40 (its chord
—the curve more) ; chord of culmen 2.00, its are 2.10, the ordinate 0.30; depth of bill 1.40;
gape 1.25; gonys 1.45; greatest width of bill (at base of nostrils) 0.60; nostrils 0.35. @ av-
eraging less than g. In winter: No colored eye-ring nor appendages of eyelids. Rosette of
mouth shrunken and pale. Feet orange, not red. Face blackish around eye, the ashy-white
obscured with dusky. Basal parts of bill membranous and blackish, and whole base of bill
contracted, the point of the gonys cut off. The following pieces have been shed: 1, the basal
rim or collar; 2, the nasal case or saddle; 3, the mandibular case or shoe; 4, 5, the strips at
base of mandible, one on each side; 6, 7, the subnasal strips, one on each side; 8, 9, the pre-
nasal strips, one on each side (3 symmetrical pieces, 3 paired pieces, 9 in all). Young, first

” fall and winter: Resemble the adults in winter, but bill still weaker and less developed ; the

855.

338.

plumage is the same, with blackish face. This long kept us in ignorance of the moult of the
bill, the adults in winter being mistaken for young birds by all authors till Bureau explained
the case. Inhabits the coasts and islands of the N. Atlantic, breeding in Iceland, Southern
Greenland, Labrador, Newfoundland and 8. to Bay of Fundy ; rare in the N. Pacific (Pallas),
where chiefly replaced by F’. corniculata ; replaced on most of the European coast by a smaller
weaker-billed variety, and in Polar Seas by the larger stouter-billed F’. glacialis. In winter,
ranging or driven south irregularly along most of the U.8.; not regular beyond New England.
The moult of the bill as well as of the plumage occurs in August and September, when the
birds are unable to fly for a period, and many perish if caught at sea in storms at this time.
Nest by thousands on cvasts and islands, burrowing in the ground like rabbits, to arm’s length
or more. The single egg is laid late in June and in July, on a slight grassy nest at the end of
the burrow ; in shape rounded ovate, with greatest diameter nearly at the middle; average size
2.50 X 1.75; shell granular, white or brownish-white, colorless or marked with obsolete
spots, dots, and scratches of pale purplish, sometimes with a few splashes of pale yellowish-
brown. Nestlings are covered with blackish down, whitish below from the breast.

F. a. glacia/lis. (Lat. glacialis, icy.) LARGE-BILLED PurFIN. Specific character of
FI’. arctica ; size greater, the bill especially larger, and differently shaped. Protuberance
of upper eyelid higher and sharper. Bill very deep, rising high on forehead, with very convex
culmen, dropping nearly perpendicularly at end. Four grooves of upper and three of lower,
distinct; gonys quite convex. Length 14.50; extent 26.00; wing 7.25; tail 2.25; tarsus
1.20; middle toe and claw 1.90, outer do. 1.90, inner do. 1.45; chord of culmen 2.40, its are
2.60, the ordinate 0.45; depth of bill at base 1.70; gape 1.50; gonys 1.60; greatest width
of, bill 0.65; nasal slit 0.45. Polar Seas; Spitzbergen; N. Greenland. Not authentic as
occurring in the U. S. The seasonal changes are in all respects the same as those of
F. arctica.

LUNDA. (Vox barb.) Turrep Masxina Purrin. Generic character of Fratercula, ex-
cepting crest, eyelids, and details of bill. A long tuft of feathers on each side of head. Eye-
lids not appendaged. Nostrils very small, linear, marginal. Upper mandible divided into
distinct but not differently colored compartments; its base with a deciduous raised rim or
collar, perforated for the passage of feathers as in Fratercula, but this collar not so prominent,
and the deciduous smooth basal gaddle not so distinctly separated from the ridged part of the
bill beyond, where are three well marked, widely separated curved grooves, concave forward
(the reverse of F'ratercula). Culmen arched in two separate curves, the basal one surmounted
by a prominent widened ridge-pole, ending abruptly, the terminal one sharp, strongly convex
to the hooked tip of the bill. Lower mandible with the sides perfectly smooth throughout, the
outline of gonys at first descending, then rounding upward and thence about straight to tip of
bill; the base of the mandible with a narrow deciduous border ; ordinarily no evidence of the
existence of the deciduous shoe of the lower mandible. The parts of the bill moulted are the

836.

804 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PYGOPODES.

basal collar, the nasal saddle and pair of subnasal strips; the mandibular shoe and basal strip ;

three large symmetrical pieces and two pairs of small lateral pieces, in all seven. (Thus as in

F’, arctica, lacking only the pair of prenasal strips; thus exactly as supposed to be the case in

F. corniculata. The loss of the pieces of the upper mandible makes the same difference in the

bill as occurs in F. arctica ; but the moult of the mandibular shoe effects less change in the
appearance of the bill).

L. cirra/ta. (Lat. cirrata, having curly locks. Figs. 534, 535.) Turrep Purrin. Adult

in summer: Crests about 4 inches long, straw-yellow, some of the posterior feathers black at

base; these bundles of silky, glossy

feathers with very delicate shafts and

loosened webs; they chiefly sprout.

from what corresponds to the furrow

in the plumage of F’. arctica. Face

white, broadly of this color on sides

of head to beyond eyes (as far as the

crests), narrowly across forehead and

chin, the bill being thus entirely sur-

rounded by white. Crown between

the crests, and entire upper parts,

excepting the extreme forehead and

a line along the forearm, glossy blue-

black. Entire under parts, excepting

Fic. 535. — Bill of young Tufted Puffin, nat. size. extreme chin, and including sides of

hind head and sides of neck, sooty brownish-black, more grayish on the belly, the lining of

wings smoky-gray, the under tail-coverts quite black. Wings and tail black, their inner

webs brownish-black, the shaft of the first primary whitish underneath near base. Bill, feet,

and eye-ring vermilion-red; the basal parts of the bill when about to desquamate showing

more yellowish or enamel color, or even showing the livid color of the subjacent membrane.

Rosette of mouth yellow. Claws black. Eyes “‘brownish-yellow.” Length 15.00-16.00;

Fig. 536. — Horn-billed Auk, adult in summer, nat. size. (From Elliot.)

extent 27.00; wing 7.75 ; tail 2.75; tarsus 1.80; middle toe 2.00, its claw 0.50; outer do. 1.80,
its claw 0.40; inner do. 1.95, its claw 0.50; greatest depth of bill 1.90; greatest width 0.90;
chord of culmen 2.40, of which the terminal part is 1.40; gape about 1.90; gonys 1.60; greatest
depth of upper mandible 1.15 ; nostrils 0.25. Adult in winter: Plumage as in summer ; crests
retained: iris ‘pale blue.” Basal part of bill dark-colored, without the above-named deciduous

ALCIDZE — PHALERIDINZ: AUKS. 805

pieces; the change in upper mandible is decided, as in F’. arctica, but the difference in the
lower mandible is comparatively slight. In birds of the first spring the terminal portion of the
bill may be smooth, like the under mandible, and the bill and feet rather orange-red than ver-
milion ; at this time the face whitens and the crests sprout. Young: No crests, and no white
about the face
The bill like that
of the adults in
winter after the
moult, saddled
' with soft dark-col-
ored skin at base,
but every way
smaller, weaker,
and quite smooth
( ‘ Sagmatorhina
lathami,” fig. 535,)

and, like the feet,
Fie. 537. — Horn-billed Auk, adult in winter, nat. size. (From Elliott.) rather yellow or

orange than red; the plumage entirely blackish above, sooty- brown below, the feathers of the
belly and flanks whitish at the base; iris brown. Coasts and Islands of the N. Pacific, 8. in
winter on the American side to California; of casual occurrence on the Atlantic Coast to New
England. General habits and economy of the common puffin; nesting similar. Egg single,
rough, dead-white, but showing, besides frequent discolorations, obsolete shell-markings of
pale purplish-gray ; size from 2.65 to 2.85, by 1.92 to 2.00; broader and more capacious than
that of F. corniculata, though no longer.

889, CERATORHI'NA. (Gr. xépas, xéparos, keras, keratos, « horn; pis, pevds, hris, hrinos, the

nose.) Ruinoceros Auxks. Related to Lunda and Fratercula ; no peculiarity of eyelids or

inner claw; bill smooth;
base of upper mandible
with a large upright
horn, and under mandi-
ble with an accessory
horny piece lying be-
tween its rami; this
piece and the horn decid-
uous, when base of up-
per mandible covered
with a soft cere. Bill
shorter than head, stout, Fig. 538. — Horn-billed Auk, young, nat. size. (From Elliot.)

deep at base, much compressed and rapidly tapering to acute decurved tip, sides erect, smooth,

culmen very convex, gape gently curved, gonys nearly straight, with angle at symphysis.

Nostrils short, linear, subbasal, marginal, impervious, at base of the horn or cere. Two

series, postocular and maxillary, of lengthened, straight, stiffish lance-acute white feathers on

each side of head. General form of Fratercula. Size large. One species.

857. C. monocera/ta. (Gr. pdvos, monos, only, single; xépas, keras, horn. Figs. 536, 537, 538.)
Unicorn Aug. Horn-sitt Aug. Adults in summer: Bill orange-yellow. Culmen and
base of upper mandible dusky ; feet some yellow color, the tarsi behind and the soles blackish ;
claws black. The sharp feathers of the head white, about an inch long. Entire upper parts
glossy blue-black; a line of white along edge of forearm. Sides of head and neck, of body
along under the wings, with chin, throat, and fore-breast, clear grayish-ash, or pale bluish-

| |

340.

858.

806 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. ~PYGOPODES. .

gray; under parts from the breast pure white, shading insensibly into the color of the sides and

. flanks. Inner webs of wing- and tail-feathers grayish-brown,. paler toward base, the shafts of

the primaries dull whitish at base. Length 15.50; extent 26.00; wing 7.25; tail 2.50; tarsus
1.20; middle toe and claw 1.85 ; outer do. 1.70; inner do. 1.40; chord of culmen without hora
1.00, with horn 1.40; gape 2.00; nostril to tip of horn 0.75 ; total depth of bill, including horn,
1.25. In winter: Plumage the same; iris white; no horn nor accessory piece under the bill,
these being shed; place of horn occupied by a soft dark-colored basement membrane or cere
(‘ Sagmatorhina suckleyi,” Fig. 537). Young: Bill like that of adults in winter, lacking
horn, but every way weaker, hardly more than half as large. Mostly dark-colored. No white
feathers on side of head. White of under parts overlaid and marbled with dark-gray ends of
the feathers ; black of upper parts brownish. The first spring the horn grows, the accessory
piece develops, and the plumage clears up. Nestlings are covered with smoky-brown down.
Both coasts and islands of N. Pacific, to Lower California and Japan; not specially arctic;
e. g., breeds on the Farallone Islands.

SIMORHYN'CHUS. (Gr. owpés, simos, snub-nosed; piyxos, hrugchos, beak.) SNUB-NOSED
AuKs. Of moderate and very small size, and stocky shape. Head usually crested or with
peculiar feathers. Bill of indeterminate shape, differing with each species, furnished with a
varying nuinber of deciduous horny elements. Nostrils entirely unfeathered. Wings and tail
ordinary. Feet small; tarsi shorter than middle toe, entirely reticulate; toes long, middle and
outer of about equal lengths, claw of the former longest ; inner claw reaching base of middle ;
all curved and compressed. Four species, very distinct; the queerest little auks in the world.
Each has been made type of a genus; S. psittaculus differs more from the rest than these do
from one another, aud might stand apart as a genus (Phaleris), the others being rated as sub-
genera (Simorhynchus proper, Tylorhamphus, and Ciceronia).

a
Analysis of Species.

Upper mandible oval, lower mandible falcate, rictus curved upward. No crest (Phaleris) . psittaculus 856
Upper mandible triangular, lower straight, rictus horizontal, sinuate.
A long frontal crest, curling over forward.

One series of white feathers on each side of head (Simorhynchus proper)... . - cristatellus 859
More than one series of white feathers on each side of head (Tylorhamphus) . + . pygmaeus 860
Short white hair-like feathers over the forehead; no crest (Ciceronia). . ..-. +... pusillus 861

S. psitta/culus. (Lat. psittaculus, a little parrot. Fig. 439.) Parroquer AUK. bua-
nosED AUK. Bill moderately large, much compressed, densely feathered for some distance at
base, but not to the nostrils, which are narrowly
oval, overhung by a projecting scale or shield,
which is deciduous. Profile of bill oval; of
upper mandible narrowly oval; culmen gently
convex, declinate, tomial edge more convex, ac-
clinate, meeting at an obtuse tip; lower mandi-
ble extremely slender, faleate, curved upward,
with concave tomia, very convex gonys, and
acute point. Frontal feathers embracing cul-
men with a reéntrance, thence dropping per-
pendicularly to commissure; those on lower

Fig. 539. —Parroquet Auk, nat.aize. (Adnat.del. mandible not reaching quite so far; interramal
He We Hitt.) space fully feathered. Adult: In summer with
the nasal saddle, moulted in one piece in winter; shape of bill not materially altered, however,
the piece being small and flattish. Bill vermilion or coral-red, usually enamel-yellow at tip
and along edges. No curly crest on forehead, but a series of long white filamentous feathers
from the eye downward and backward. Entire upper parts, with chin, throat, breast, and

359.

. ALCIDA|— PHALERIDINZ: AUKS. 807

flanks sooty brownish-black, grayer below than above; other. under parts white; lining of
wings dark. Feet dull greenish or yellowish, darker behind and below. Length about 9.00;
wing 5.40-5.75; tail 1.55; tarsus about 1.00; middle toe alone 1.10; : chord of culmen or
gonys 0.60; gape 1.00; depth of bill 0.45; width 0.30. Young: No white filamentous feath-
ers on head; a white spot on lower eyelid; upper
parts as before, under parts white, marbled and
mottled with dusky ends of the feathers. N.
Pacific and polar seas, highly arctic, apparently
not coming much south. This quaintly-beaked
bird resorts to cliffs and crags to breed, laying its
single egg deep in the cavities of the most inac-
cessible rocks overhanging the sea; it resembles
a small narrow hen’s egg, being white, variously
soiled and discolored, minutely granular and rough
to the touch, 2.25 to 2.35 long by 1.45 to 1.50.
S. cristatel/lus. (Lat. cristatellus, dimin. of
cristatus, crested. Figs. 540, 541,542.) CresTED
Aux. Snus-nosep Aux. Bill fundamentally
small and simple, compressed-conic, with convex
culmen and little sinuate. horizontal commissure ;
but in the breeding season developing several
corneous appendages, which alter its shape great-
ly, make it singularly irregular, and modify even
the outline of the feathers at its base. These :
accessory pieces are: a nasal plate, filling the I
nasal fossa, separate from its fellow of the oppo- Fie. 540. — Crested Auk, reduced. (Ad. nat. del.
ae . - -H. W. Elliott.)
site side ; a subnasal strip prolonged on the cutting
edge of the upper mandibles backward from the nostrils; a rosette-like plate at base of upper
mandible just over angle of the mouth ; a large shoe encasing the posterior part of the under
mandible ; the latter single, the other three pieces in pairs, making seven in all which are
moulted; all these elements vermilion or coral-red; end of the bill enamel-yellow. (Before
acquiring these growths the young bird is tetraculus of authors; the adult in winter, after

Fig. 541. — Crested Auk, in summer, nat. size. Fie. 542. — Crested Auk, in winter, nat. size.

shedding them, is dubius.) A beautiful crest of 12-20 slender feathers springing from the fore-
head, curling over forward in are of a circle to fall gracefully upon the bill; this helmet is
blackish ; at full length about 2 inches long; the feathers are not filamentous, but have well-
formed webs, and are bundled or impacted together, owing to the oblique divergence of the

860.

808 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PYGOPODES.

webs from the shaft, as in the genus Lophortyx. A slender series of white filamentous feathers
over and behind each eye, drooping downward and backward. The whole plumage otherwise
sooty — more brownish-black above, more brownish-gray below. Feet bluish, with dark
webs. Aside from the transformation of the bill, the young only differ in lacking the crest and
white filaments ; but both are early acquired; there is a white spot below eye. The summer
and winter plumages are alike. Iris said to be in winter white, in summer with a blackish
outer and bluish inner ring; in the young, brown. Length 8.50-9.00; wing 5.25-5.50; tail
1.55; tarsus 0.90-1.00; middle toe and claw 1.35: chord of culmen 0.45. N. Pacific, both
coasts and islands, on the Asiatic side to Japan, but not known to come §. to U. 8. Nesting
in every respect like S. psittaculus ; single egg, similar, smaller, 2.10 x 1.40.
S. pygme’us. (Lat. pygmaeus, dwarf. Figs. 543, 544.) WHIskKERED AUK. Rep-Nosep
‘Auk. Bill small and simply conic-compressed, little longer than high, resembling the young
or winter bill of the preceding ; having but one pair
of accessory pieces, the small shields which fill the
nasal fosse, and are doubtless shed in winter. Adult:
A very long curly crest of slender filamentous feath-
ers curving over forward in are of a circle to droop
upon the bill; the crest dark-colored and of same
general character as that of S. cristatellus, but of
fewer and more thready feathers. A maxillary series
of slender filaments from the commissure of the bill
along the side of the jaw; another series from base
of culmen to eye; a postocular series adown the side Fig. 543, — Whiskered Auk, young, nat. size.
of the neck, all these white or yellowish-white, (From Elliott.)
Crest and general plumage as in the last. Bill (dry) orange-red, more salmon color or yellow
enamel at end ; feet (dry) undefinably dark. Length
8.00 or more; wing 5.60; tail 1.25; tarsus 1.00;
middle toe and claw 1.55; outer do. 1.60; inner
do. 1.10; chord of culmen 0.45; depth of bill at
base 0.30; gape 0.90; crest outstretched 1.50;
longest white filaments on head 1.00. Young:
Bill very small and weak, much compressed. No.
sign of crest nor of white feathers on head. Above
blackish-cinereous, quite black on head, wings,
and tail; under parts lighter and more grayish-
plumbeous, bleaching on the belly and crissum.
Bill reddish-dusky; tarsi behind and soles black ;
NN eye black and white. (8. cassini, Coues.) N.
Fic. 644, —Whiekered Auk, adult, nat. size. Pacific ; apparently rare in most localities ; there
(From Elliot.) are as yet but few specimens in any museums.

. S. pusil/lus, (Lat. pusillus, pucrile. Figs. 545, 546, 547.) Least Aux. KNoB-NosED AUK.

Adult in summer: Bill small and simple, but stout for its length, scarcely higher than wide at
base, rather obtuse at tip. A small knob or tubercle at the base of the culmen, which is
deciduous. No crest; but front, top, and sides of head more or less thickly lined with delicate
white thready feathers; a similar series, exceedingly fine, from the eye along sides of hind head
and nape. Excepting thesc filaments, the entire upper parts glossy black ; region about under
mandible, and a few feathers along the sides of body and flanks, blackish ; under parts white,
more or less extensively mottled or clouded with blackish. , Lining of wings white, with dark
feathers along the edge. Bill red, the knob and base of upper mandible dark. Legs (ary)
undefinably dark, the front of tarsus and tops of toes lighter. Length 6.50; wing 3.75;

ALCIDAt— PHALERIDINZ:: AUKS. 809

tail 1.25; tarsus 0.70; middle toe and claw 1.00; chord of culmen, including the node, 0.40;
gape 0.60; height of bill at base 0.30, width scarcely less. In winter: The knob gone}
the little white bristles of head retained ; white of under parts extensive, reaching far around
sides of neck ; humeral and scapular feathers and many of the secondaries marked with white,
producing patches of this color on the upper parts, unknown in other Phaleridine ; such
seasonal change of plumage indicating an approach to Mergulus or Brachyrhamphus. Young:
Like the adults, but the white of the under parts nebulated with dusky ends of the feathers;
this clouding does not clear up until the knob of bill and bristles of head have been acquired.

Pe er
- ®)
© ©

Fia. 545. — Least Auk, adult, nat. size. Fia. 546. — Least Auk, young, nat. size.
This curious little bird, the smallest of all the auks, and one of the least of all water birds,
inhabits the coasts and islands of the N. Pacific, resorting to favorite breeding. places by
millions, with S. psittaculus and S. cristatellus. The nesting is similar, the single egg being

laid in the recesses of rocky shingle over the water; size 1.55 X 1.12. The bird is not known
to come S. so faras the U.S.

’ Fie. 547. —Group of Least Auks. (Designed by H. W. Elliott.)

841. PTYCHORHAM'PHUS. (Gr. mri, mruxés, ptux, ptuchos, afold ; pdpdos, hramphos, beak.)
WRINKLE-NOSED AuKS. Size moderate; form stout; no crests nor any peculiar feathers
about head. Bill about # as long as head, stout, straight, little compressed, conic-acute;
culmen little convex, broad at base, where in the dried state transversely corrugated; in place
of which wrinkles there may be some formation now unknown; sides of upper mandible

862.

342.

863.

810 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

turgid, with inflected tomial margins; of under upright, grooved lengthwise; gape straight ;
gonys straight or nearly so, very long. Nasal fosse large, shallow, covered with soft skin
in the only state known; which flares over the rather long, narrowly oval sub-basal nostrils
at the bottom of the fossa. Outline of frontal feathers nearly transverse across culmen, thence
retreating obliquely to the commissure. Tarsi reticulate, much shorter than middle toe
without claw. This genus apparently connects the Phaleridine with the Alcine, having
much the aspect of Mergulus or Brachyrhamphus,.with sui generis shape of bill; its position
will only be settled by learning what, if any, are the transformatious of the bill.

P.aleu'ticus. (Of the Aleutian Islands.) Atsurian Aux. Bill black, the skinny part
pale in the only state observed; feet blackish behind and below, bluish in front of tarsus and
on tops of toes. A touch of white about eye. Upper parts blackish-plumbeous, the head,
‘wings, and tail nearly black. This dark color, diluted to grayish-plumbeous, extends around
the head, neck, and fore-breast, along the sides, and on lining of wings, fading to white on
belly and crissum. No special states of plumage are known. Length 8.00-9.50; extent
16.00-18.50; wing 4.75-5.25; tail 1.50-1.75; tarsus about 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.40;
outer do. 1.30; inner do. 1.10; culmen 0.75; gape 0.90; gonys 0.60; depth of bill at base
0.40, width 0.30. Pacific coast of N. A., Aleutians to L. Cala., thus not specially Arctic.
Breeds as far south at least as the Farallones.

77. Subfamily ALCINA.: Cuillemots, Murres, and Auks proper.

See analysis on p. 799, and characters of subfamily Phaleridine. Among the Alcina,
that is to say, Auks with feathered nostrils and unappendaged Dill, there is a gentle gradation
from those genera in which the bill is simplest and slenderest, as in the Guillemots and Murre-
Jets, to those in which it is stoutest, as in some of the Guillemots, and in the razor-billed and
great auks, in which it is greatly compressed and suleate, recalling that of a puffin. Some of
the genera are confined to the North Pacific, as Synthliborhamphus and -Brachyrhamphus;
others are cireumpolar, as Uria and Lomvia; several, as Alle, Uria, Lomvia, Utamania and
Alca, represent the family in the North Atlantic, together with Fratercula of the Phaleridine.
AL/LE. (A local name of the bird.) Sea Dove. Size small; form squat and bunehy.

Bill very short, stout, and obtuse, as wide as high at base,
TS the sides of both mandibles turgid, the edge of the upper
C) much inflected; culmen very convex; rictus ample, de--
curved at end; gonys straight, very short, the mandibular
rami correspondingly long, and widely divaricated ; nasal
foss short, wide, deep, partly feathered. Nostrils sub
basal, more nearly circular than in any other genus except-
ing the next. Wings rather long for this family; tail

Fi. 548. — Sea-dove, nat. size. much rounded, with narrow pointed feathers. Feet small
and weak; tarsus scarcely compressed, broadly scutellate in front, finely reticulate behind.
One species.

A. ni'gricans, (Lat. nigricans, blackening. Fig. 548.) Sea-pove. Dovenin. ALLE.
Adults in summer: Head and neck all around, and entire upper parts, very glossy blue-black ;
scapulars edged and secondaries tipped with white, forming two conspicuous patches; touches
of white about eyes. Under parts from the neck pure white, some of the long feathers of the
flanks rayed with black ; lining of wings dusky. Bill black ; mouth yellow ; feet black behind
and below, in front and above flesh-colored; eyes brown. In winter: The white of under
parts extending to the bill, and on sides of neck nearly around. Young like adults in winter,
but upper parts duller; bill smaller; feet dusky greenish, the scales obscured. Length 8.50;
extent 15.50; wing 4.75-5.25 ; tail 1.50; tarsus 0.80; middle toe and claw 1.20, outer do.

343.

864.

ALCIDA — ALCINZ: MURRELETS. 811

1.15, inner do. 0.85; chord of culunen 0.50, gape 1.00, gonys 0.20; height or width of bill
at base 0.35. N. Atlantic, both coasts. In winter S. to the Middle States or beyond. ,
Overtaken by storms at this season this little bird is not seldom blown inland. It is very
abundant at its breeding grounds in the far north, being one of the most boreal of birds.
Egg single, 1.60 x 1.10, pale greenish-blue.

SYNTHLIBORHAM’PHUS. (Gr. cuvOdiBw, sunthlibo, I compress; paydos, hramphos,
beak.) NIPPER-NOSED MuRRELETS. Of moderate size and stout form; general aspeet of
Alle ; with or without a crest. Bill somewhat as in Brachyrhamphus, but stouter and
deeper for its length; greatly compressed throughout, its depth at base about half as much as
length of culmen; culmen moderately convex, gonys ascending. Nostrils sub-basal, broadly
oval or nearly circular; nasal fossee small and shallow, feathéred to nostrils. Feathers to
about opposite points on culmen and keel, thence retreating rapidly backwards. Secondaries
very short, as in Brachyrhamphus, the longest not reaching much more than half way from
carpal joint to the point of the closed wing. (This style of wing is characteristic of the
murrelets, which ‘‘ paddle” the air in a peculiar way.) Tail short, nearly square, with broadly
rounded feathers. Tarsi much compressed, like the bill; transversely scutellate in front and.
on the side, reticulate behind; about as long as middle toe without claw. With the general
character of Brachyrhamphus, this genus differs in the deeper, stouter bill, and much com-
pressed scutellate tarsi; it includes two very stylish species of the N. Pacific, very different
from each other.

Analysis of Species.
Head closely feathered; depth of bill more than half its length; white of sides of crown not advancing
beforeieyes: @ «ape ee a we » + « Q@ntiquus 864
Head crested; depth of bill about half its lntigties white of sides of crown advancing nearly to bill
umizusume 865

S. anti/quus. (Lat. antiquus, ancient; i. e. gray-headed. Fig. 549.) BLACK-THROATED
Murrecet. Adult in breeding dress: Bill whitish or yellowish, its base and ridge black.
Feet whitish or yellowish, the tarsus behind and both surfaces of webs, black. Head all around,
and throat, black, pure above, sooty on chin and throat. A
conspicuous white stripe from over each eye to sides of nape,
where connected by some white feathers with its fellow, and ©
spreading on the sides and back of neck into a set of sharp
white streaks; trace of white on each eyelid. Upper parts dark
plumbeous, blackening on tail; upper surface of wing the same,
the edging of the wing all along from the elbow, and the ex-
posed parts of the primaries, blackish; secondaries like the cov- _ Fre. 549. — Black-throated Mur-
erts, or rather darker; basal portion of inner webs and shafts Télet, nat. size.
of primaries whitish; under surface of wing white, mottled with dusky just along the edges.
Sides of body under the wings velvety-black; these black feathers lengthening behind, and
overlying the flanks, which are seen to be white on raising them. Anteriorly this black extends
in front of the wings and continues on to the nape of the neck, where it mixes with the white
streaks above said. The sooty-black of the throat is continuous with that of the sides of the
head as far as the auriculars, beyond which it narrows to a point on the throat, being separated
from the black of the nape by a large white area, an extension to the auriculars of the white
which is the color of the whole under parts, except as said. Length 9.50-10.50; extent 16.75-
18.25 ; wing 5.50; tail 1.60; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.25, outer do. 1.15, inner do.
1.00; bill along culmen 0.60, gape 1.20, gonys 0.40; depth at base 0.30, width 0.20. Young
or winter: Upper parts darker, the plumbeous being obscured by dusky, especially on the wing-
and tail-coverts and rump. Forehead, crown, nape, sooty-black, not relieved by white streaks,
or only with traces of the latter; eyelids sometimes largely white. No black on throat, only

865.

344.

812 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PYGOPODES.

some dusky mottling about base of bill; the white of the under parts extending on head nearly
to eyes, and far around on sides of nape, so that only a narrow median line is left dark. Sides
of body under wings merely dusky, not continuous over the flanks, where the feathers are
partly white, and scarcely advancing in front of wings. The course of the seasonal plumages,
or those dependent upon age, is not yet fully traced for this species ; the clarity of the ash, the
intensity of the black, and the purity and distinctness of the white striping, indicate the more
perfect feathering, and conversely. N. Pacific, both Asiatic and American, S. in winter to
the U. S., breeding from Sitka, Alaska. Accidental in one instance in Wisconsin.

S. umizu/sume. (The Japanese name. Fig. 550.) JAPANESE MuRRELET. TEMMINCK’S
Aux. Bill more elongate and acute than in the type of the genus, less compressed, not so deep
for itslength. Bill yellow, wfth black ridge ; feet livid-bluish, with dusky webs. A large crest,
of a dozen (more or fewer) feathers springing from extreme forehead, not recurved, but
drooping backward over the occiput. A conspicuous series of white feathers on each side
of head, from origin of the crest over eye to nape,
where more or less confluent with those of oppo-
site side, and then dispersed in streaks over the
sides of the neck to the shoulders. Rest of head,
including throat, sooty or ashy-blackish, this color
extending as far as the interscapulars, whence the
upper parts are more plumbeous, only darker on
wings and tail. Sides under the wings plumbeous-
black to the flanks, this color advancing in front
of wings and continuous with that on the sides of
neck and head. Lining of wings white, except some dark mottling along the edge; bases of
primaries, and most of their inner webs, white, shading through gray to their dusky tips.
Whole under parts white, except as said. Length 10.50-11.00; extent 18.00-18.50; wing
5.50; tail 1.75; tarsus 1.00; middle toe and claw 1.25, outer 1. 20, inner 1.00; bill along
saltnen 1.00, gape 1.10; gonys 0.40; height or width at base 0.25-0.30. Younger: No crest ;

bill obscured; little or no trace of white about head, which is dusky plumbeous; other upper
parts similar, the back lighter; white of under parts extending to bill and far around on sides
of neck. There is much variation in different specimens, the full significance of which remains
to be determined ; but the species is unmistakable. N. Pacific, both Asiatic and American ;
S. to U. S. and Japan.

BRACHYRHAMPHUS. (Gr. Bpayis, brachus, short; paydpos, hramphos, beak.) PEAKED-
NosED MurreLets. Approaching Uria in generic character. Bill small, slender, much
shorter than head, not longer than tarsus, compressed, very acute; culien gently curved,
rietus and gonys straight ; tomial edge of upper mandible much inflected toward base, notched
near tip. Nasal fossze small and shallow, nearly filled with feathers, reaching to the broadly
oval nostrils. Wings very narrow, faleate, pointed, with extremely short secondaries. Tail
nearly square, with obtuse feathers. Feet very small and short; tarsus of variable length
relative to the toes, entirely reticulate. Outer and middle toes of equal lengths, the claw
of the former smaller ; inner toe short, its claw not reaching base of middle claw. Claws all
small, compressed, acute. Containing several species of diminutive murres, all confined to
the Pacific.

Fig. 550. — Japanese Murrelet, nat. size.

Analysis of Species.

Tarsus shorter than middle toe without claw.
Upper parts blackish and chestnut, lower blackish and white (summer), or upper parts cinereous and
white, lower white(winter) . 2... 1 6 eee ee ee . « marmoratus 866
Upper parts ashy, barred and spotted with dull yellowish; under parts whitish parred with dusky.
Kittlitei 867
Tarsus as long as middle toe without claw.

866.

867.

868.

ALCIDA— ALCINZ: MURRELETS. 813

Taping et wings white . 14 « § @ 3 BBO Hee HE EDS hypoleucus 868
dining Of wings dark) eek a eR Rw ee eR HR RO RH aS eraverii 869
Tarsus said tobe longer thanmiddle toe . . .... 6. ee te th ee et ee brachypterus 870

B. marmora‘tus. (Lat. marmoratus, marbled.) MarBLep MURRELET. WRANGEL’S
Murrecer. Adult in summer: Bill black; tarsi behind and both surfaces of webs blackish ;
tarsi in front and top of toes livid flesh-color, or dull bluish-gray; iris brown. Above,
brownish-black, barred crosswise with chestnut-brown, or bright rust-color, except on the
wings, which are uniform brownish-black, the primaries darker, their inner webs gray toward
the base. Lining of wings smoky brownish-black. A few whitish feathers, varied with
chestnut and dusky, on the scapulars. Entire under parts, including sides of head and neck,
marbled with sooty brownish-black and white, the feathers being white with dark ends.
Adult in winter: No chestnut, and entire under parts pure white, immaculate, excepting
some dusky streaks on the long feathers of the sides and flanks. Upper parts very dark
cinereous, the centres of the feathers, especially of the back and rump, blackish; the crown,
wings, and tail almost black, the greater coverts narrowly edged with white; the scapulars
almost entirely white, forming two conspicuous patches. On the lores, the white invades
to the level of the eyes, and extends into the nasal fosse; it then dips, leaving the eyes in
dark color; on the nape it reaches nearly across the middle, line; on the sides of the rump
it leaves a band of dark color about an inch wide. Specimens are found in every
stage intermediate between the two here described. Young, first plumage, with Dill only a
third as long as head: Resembling the winter adult, in absence of chestnut. Upper parts
blackish, with only a shade of cinereous, therefore darker than in the winter adult; white on
scapulars present, but ‘restricted, and interrupted with dusky. Entire under parts white, as
before, but thickly marked with fine wavy dusky lines, most numerous across throat, largest
on sides and flanks, finest on lower breast, the chin, middle of belly and crissum unmarked.
Lining of wings as before. Length 10.00; extent 18.00; wing 5.00; tail 1.50; tarsus 0.70;
middle toe alone, 1.00, its claw 0.20; outer toe and claw 1.15; inner do. 0.90; bill along
culmen 0.60-0.70, gape 1.25-1.35, gonys 0.45-0.55, height at base 0.24, width 0.20. Coasts
and islands of the N. Pacific; on the American side, S. in winter to S. Cala.; breeds as far
south at least as Vancouver, and apparently does not penetrate far north.

B. kittlit’zi. (To F. H. v. Kittlitz.) Karrzirz’s Murrevet. Related to the last, and
belonging to the same section of the genus, having the tarsi shorter than middle toe without
claw. Bill about one-third as long as the head. Length about 9.00. Above, cinereous of
lighter and darker shades, spotted and barred with dull yellowish. Below, whitish, undulated
with dusky. Wings blackish. This is the substance of Brandt’s description of this species,
which is quite distinct from the foregoing. The bird was originally described from
Kamtschatka; two specimens have lately been taken from the Aleutian Islands by Mr. E. W.
Nelson and Mr. L. M. Turner. They are preserved in the National Museum, where I have
handled one of them, but are not at present accessible to me for description.

B. hypoleu'cus. (Gr. id, hupo, below, Aevkds, leukos, white.) WHITE-BELLIED MURRELBT.
Adult in winter: Bill 4 the head, % the tarsus, as long as middle toe and half its claw, very
slender. Tarsus equal to middle toe without claw. Entire upper parts unvaried cinereous,
slightly darker on head; this color extending on head to include eyelids, and a little farther down
on the nape; thence in a straight line along middle of side of neck to shoulders, thence along
sides of body in a strip nearly an inch broad, the elongated flank-feathers being also of this color ;
other under parts pure white, including lining of the wings. Primaries black, the greater part
of their shafts and inner webs whitish. Bill black, the base of lower mandible pale; feet whit-
ish-blue, black below. Length 10.00-10.50; extent 16.00-17.50; wing 4.75; tail 1.75; tarsus
0.95; middle toe without claw 0.95, its claw 0.20; outer toe and claw 1.10; inner do. 0.90;
bill 0.80; gape 1.30; gonys 0.45; depth of bill at base 0.22; width 0.19. S. and L. Cala.

869.

870.

345.

871.

814 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. — PYGOPODES.

B. crave'rii? (To F. Craveri. Fig. 551.) CRAvERI’s MURRELET. Resembles the last;
questionably distinct ; differs in having the under surface of the wing dark. L. California,
both sides. -

B. brachy'pterus? (Gr. Bpayus, brachus, short; mrépov, pteron, wing.) SHORT-WINGED
Murreer. Tarsus said to be longer than middle toe. Bill about 4 as long as head
Above, cinereous, the wings and tail °
blackish. Neck on sides and below,
breast and belly white. Length 9.00.
Unalashka. (This is the substance of
Brandt’s original description. The al-
leged species is unknown to me, and no
specimens are known to exist in this
country.) ,

U/RIA. (Gr. odpia, ouria, a kind of
water fowl.) BiLack GuILLEmoTs. Bill
much shorter than head, about equal to
tarsus, straight, rather stout, moderately
compressed ; culmen at first straight, then
decurved; gape straight to near tip;
gonys short, straight, ascending, about 4 Fic. 651. — Craveri’s Murrelet, nat. size. (From Elliot.)
as long as culmen. No nick or groove near tip of upper mandible; its tomial edge scarcely
inflected. Nasal fossee large and deep, partially filled with feathers which do not entirely
cover the nostrils. Feathers salient in rounded outline on side of lower mandible. Tail little
rounded, contained 2$ times in length of wing. Tarsus entirely reticulate, slightly shorter than
middle toe without claw. Claws compressed, arched, acute, the outer grooved on outer side,
the middle dilated on inner edge. No postocular furrow in plumage. Color black, relieved

with white on head or wing, bill black, feet red; in winter, largely white. Eggs plural,
colored. Three or four species.

Analysis of Species.

A large white mirror on wing above and below, entire ; no white about head e Pa Ss c grylle 871
A large white mirror on wing above, partly divided; none below; no white about head . . . .columba 872
No white mirror on wing; parts about eye and bill white . . . io s esas ee carbo 873

U. grylle. (N. European name of the bird. Fig. 552.) Brack GuILLEMOT. SEA-PIGEON.
Adult in full dress: Plumage sooty-black with a tint of “invisible” green ; wings and tail pure
black ; former with u large white mirror on both surfaces; bill and claws black; mouth and
feet carmine, vermilion or coral red; eyes brown

This faultless dress-suit is only worn about twe

months. In August, the wings and tail fade te

© gray; the body-color loses the green gloss; the
white mirror is soiled with brown. When the
quills and tail-feathers have fallen, and new ones
partly grown, the progress of the moult gives a
new clean white mirror, smaller than in midsum-
mer; head and neck all around, ruinp and under
parts, marbled with black and white, the bird
looking as if dusted over with flour ; back black,
the feathers mostly edged with white. Completion of the moult gives the following winter
plumage: Wings and tail black, the white mirror faultless; head and neck all around, rump
and under parts, white; back and more or less of the hind neck and head black, variegated
with white. Young in first plumage: Bill black, feet dusky reddish. Upper parts plumbeous

Fig. 552. — Black Guillemot, nat. size.

ALCIDA! — ALCINA?: GUILLEMOTS. 815

or sooty, little varied with white; under parts white, marbled, rayed and waved with dusky;
incipient mirror spotty. Nestlings are covered with sooty brownish-black down ; Lill and feet
brownish-black. Perfectly white and entirely black birds are rarely seen. The mirror on the
upper surface of the wings is composed of the terminal half (more or less) of the greater coverts,

‘ the rest dark ; of the several next rows excepting their dark bases, the white of these coverts

872.

873.

normally overlying and concealing the dark basal portions of the greater coverts, so that the
oval mirror is usually unbroken; the anterior border, of the mirror is the line through the union
of white tips with dark bases of the row of lesser coverts about $ an inch from the fore-arm
edge of the wing. When, as not seldom happens, the row of greatest coverts are dark beyond
the extent of the next row, this dark being thus
uncovered, shows as a wedge partly splitting the
mirror, as normally occurs in U. columba. Or,
© the greater row of coverts may be entirely dark,
; when the mirror is unbroken, as before, but much
smaller ; or, again, the middle row of coverts may
-be tipped with dark, making a break across the
mirror, but in a different method from that first
described. Finally, the mirror may be only in-
dicated by isolated white feathers, or wholly want-
ing. Length, average, 13.00; extent, average,
22.50; wing 5.50-6.25; tail about 2.00; tarsus 1.25; middle toe and claw 1.75; bill 1.30;
gape 1.75; gonys 0.65; depth of bill at base 0.45, width 0.35. Eur. and N. Am. coasts and
islands of the N. Atlantic, very abundant; rare or casual in the N. Pacific, where’ replaced by
the succeeding species; occurring in the Arctic Ocean, but apparently mostly replaced by U.
mandti ; in N. A. occurring in Hudson’s Bay, and 8. in winter to the Middle States. Gregari-
ous; flying in close flocks low over the water; nesting scattering in rifts of rock near the
water; eggs 2-3, sea-green, greenish-white or white, spotted and blotched most irregularly
with blackish-brown, and with purplish shell-markings; size 2.25 to 2.50 X 1.50 to 1.60;
shape nearly elliptical, not pyriform like those of Guillemots ; laid in June, July.
U. colum’ba. (Lat..columba, a pigeon. Fig.553.) Picnon GuintEemor. Bill stouter than
that of grylle, and more obtuse. No white on under surface of the wing. White mirror of
upper surface nearly split in two by an oblique dark line, caused by the extension of the dark
bases of the greater coverts, in increasing
amount from within outward, till the outer-
most are scarcely tipped with white; con-
sequently there is a dark wedge between >)
the white ends of the greater and middle
tows of coverts. Plumage and its changes
otherwise as in the foregoing; general
habits and nesting the samme. Asiatic and
Am. coasts and islands of the N. Pacific ;
breeds as far south as California.
U. car/bo. (Lat. carbo, a coal; ive. Fria. 654. — Sooty Guillemot, nat. size.
black. Fig. 554.) Soory Guittemot. SproracLep GuittemoT. Like the last; larger,
especially the bill. No white on either surface of wings. A: pair of white spectacles on the
eyes, and whitish about base of bill. General plumage and its changes as in others of the
genus; bill and feet the same. Length 14.00-15.00; wing 7.75; tail 2.50; tarsus 7.35;
middle toe and claw 2.10; bill 1.55-1.70 along culmen, along gape 2.20, from feathers on
side of lower mandible 1.50; depth at base 0.50; width 0.38. N. Pacific, in higher latitudes;
British Columbia to Japan. An interesting species, still rare in collections.

Fia. 553. — Pigeon Guillemot, nat. size.

\

346.

874

816 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PYGOPODES.

LOM'VIA, (N. European name of birds of this kind.) Murres. Guriiemots. Eae-
BIRDS. Bill shorter than head, longer than tarsus, straight or slightly decurved, much com-
pressed; culmen regularly curved throughout; rictus curved in most of its length; gonys
straight, or little curved, nearly as long as culmen ; upper mandible grooved on the side near
tip, its commissural edge greatly inflected. Nasal fossee fully feathered. Feathers on lower

Fic. 555. — Gathering Murre’s eggs in Alaska. (Designed by H. W. Elliott.)

mandible retreating in straight oblique line from interramal space to rictus. Tail short, much
rounded, contained over 3 times in length of wing. Tarsus compressed, much shorter than
middle toe and claw; outer claw not grooved on outer face. A furrow in plumage behind eye.
Colors dark above, white below. Egg single, pictured, pyriform.

Analysis of Species.

Depth of bill opposite nostrils not more than 4 the length of culmen,
Bill comparatively slender, not dilated along edge of upper mandible at base, the culmen, commissure
and. gonys curved. Atlanti¢ 2... 4 6 8 ww ee ee ee ow ow Erode, 84
Bill stouter, somewhat dilated along edges of upper mandible at base, the culmen, rictus, and gonys
nearly straight.. Pacific: « 6 « a #8 © 8 8 a we californica 875
Depth of bill opposite nostrils more than } the length of culmen.
Bill very stout, thick, deep, much dilated along edges of upper mandible at base ; culmen, commissure
and gonys' curved. wm ye 48 4.4 ay a ee WE D A e eR ee eS RS @ Berne. STE
L, troile. (Nom. propr., of uncertain reference. Figs. 556, 557, 560.) Common GUILLEMOT, or
Murre. Adult in summer: Head and neck all around rich dark maroon brown, changing on
upper parts into dark slaty-brown, nearly uniform, but most of the feathers of the back and rump
with slightly lighter, more grayish-brown, edges. Secondaries narrowly but distinctly tipped with
white. Under parts from the throat pure white, the sides and flanks marked with dusky or slaty,
the lining of the wings varied with white and dusky. Bill black ; mouth yellow; eyes brown;
feet blackish. In some cases, not in most, a white ‘‘eye-glass,” consisting of a rim around eye

875.

876.

. Myriads of murres congregate to breed on rocky

ALCIDA’ —ALCINE: MURRES. 817

and handle back of eye in the furrow of the plumage. In winter: White of under parts reaching
to the bill, on sides of head to level of the commissure, farther around on sides of neck, leaving
only a narrow isthmus of dark color; the two colors shading without distinct line of demarca-
tion ; usually a spur of dark color in the furrow behind eye. Young, first winter, like the
adults at that season ; bill shorter and weaker, and, like the feet, in part light-colored. Fledg-
lings dusky brownish, with white breast and belly, and whitish about head and neck. Length
17.00; extent 30.00; wing 8.00; tail 2.25; tarsus 1.40; middle toe and claw 2.10; outer do.

2.00; inner do. 1.70; bill along culmen 1.75;
gape 2.50; gonys 1.15; depth at base 0.55;
width 0.30. European and American coasts
and islands of the N. Atlantic, to or beyond 80°
N.; on the Amer. side breeding from Nova
Scotia northward ; in winter to the Middle States. Fig. 556. — Common Guillemot, or Murre, nearly
nat, size. (From Elliot.)
islands, incubating their single eggs as closely together as they can find standing-room on the
shelves of the cliffs; their ranks serried on ledge after ledge, and clouds of birds whirling
through the air. The eggs, so numerous as to have commercial value, are notorious for their
variability in coloration. The size is great for that of the bird, averaging 3.25 X 2.00, run-
ning unusually from 3.00 we 3.50, with half as much variation in breadth. The ground color
ranges from creamy to pure white, then through
earthy, grayish, bluish, or greenish-white to
sea-green and every darker shade of green. The
markings of the creamy and white varieties are
generally spots and blotches of different shades
of brown, pretty uniformly dispersed, and eggs
of this type resemble those of the razor-Dill,
but may usually be distinguished by larger size
Fic. 557. — Common Guillemot, nat. size. (in length) and more pyriform shape. The
green eggs are endlessly varied, in pattern of the markings, but are normally more streaked in
sharp angular zigzag lines, inextricably confused, reminding one of Chinese literature.
L. t. califor’nica. (Fig. 558.) CALIFORNIAN GUILLEMOT. Like the last. Bill averaging
somewhat longer, about 1.90; culmen, commissure, and gonys nearly straight; upper mandible
somewhat dilated toward the base along the cutting edges, and less feathered; gonydeal angle
prominent. The bill consequently approaches that of the next species, in width and depth, but
exaggerates the Jength and straightness of that of the last species. Pacific coast of N. Am.,
breeding from islands in Behring’s sea.to California.
L. ar/ra. (Russian name, arrie. Fig. 559.) THICK-BILLED GUILLEMOT. ARRIE. . Like the
foregoing in plumage and its changes. Form very robust. Bill short, stout, wide, deep ; culmen
curved throughout; commissure decurved at end; gonys if anything concave in outline, the angle
very protuberant; cutting edges of the upper mandible dilated and denuded toward the base,
52

347

877.

818 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS.— PYGOPODES.

this bare turgid space flesh-colored in life, drying pale yellowish. Length 18.00; extent 32.00;
wing 8.50; tarsus 1.25; bill along culmen 1.40, along gape 2.20; gonys 0.90; depth at angle
0.55, width at base of nostrils 0.30, at angle of mouth 0.80. N. Atlantic and Polar and
N. Pacifie shores and islands, in myriads; on the Atlantic S. in winter to the Middle States,
breeding from the Gulf of St. Lawrence northward. The N. Pacific form, unquestionably
of the ‘ thick-billed” species, does not exhibit the extreme of shortness and stoutness as just
described for the At
lantic; with a ecul-
men of about 1.67,
the depth opposite
nostrils is hardly 0.67,
thus less than half
the length of culmen,
instead of about half;
gape nearly 3.00.
The sides of the up-
per mandible are char-
acteristically dilated
and denuded, of a
glaucous bluish color; the tip of the bill is less deflexed, though more so than in the common
guillemot. This is the great ‘‘egg-bird” of the high N. Pacific; on St. George’s, one of th
Prybilov group, for example, the birds ‘‘go flying around the island in great files and platoons,
always circling against or quartering, on the wing, at regular hours in the morning and the
evening, making a dark girdle of birds more than a quarter of a mile broad and thirty miles
long, whirling round and round the island, and forcing upon the most casual observer a lasting
impression.” The N. Pacific form is L. arra proper; that of the N. Atlantic is ‘‘ Briimnich’s
guillemot,” differing as said, and perhaps constituting a subspecies apart (L. a. svarbag).
UTAMA/NIA. (Cretan name of the bird.) Razor-BitL AuK. Size, form, and general
aspect of the last genus. Bill about as long as

head, densely feathered for half its length, the ’
feathers extending on upper mandible beyond mid-

dle of commissure, those on lower somewhat far-

ther. Bill greatly compressed, cultrate, suleate,

hooked; culmen ridged, regularly convex; com- a
missure straight to the hook; gonys about straight.
Nostrils linear, marginal, densely feathered. Tarsi
seutellate in front. Tail short, pointed, of stiffish,
acute feathers. Wings normal, effective for flight. Fie. 559. — Thick-billed Guillemot, nat, size.
Bicolor. Egg single, colored. One species. ;
U. tor’da. (Name of the bird.). Razor-sintep AUK. TINKER. Adult in summer: Bit!
and feet black, the former with a white line occupying the length of the middle sulcus on both
mandibles; mouth yellow; eye bluish. A strict, sunken line of white from eye to base o.
culmen. Head and neck all.around and‘ upper parts black, glossy and intense on the latter
lustreless opayue brownish-black on the sides and front of the former. Tips of secondaries
and entire under parts from the neck, including lining of wings, white. In winter: White
reaching to bill, and invading sides of head and neck ; the dark parts duller. Young: Like
the adults in winter; smaller; duller; bill unformed, and like the feet not black. Nestlings
clothed with sooty down, paler or whitish below. In the adults, the sharp white line from
bill to eye is very characteristic, appearing with the first feathering, but sometimes fails in
winter birds. Length about 18.00; extent 27.00; wing 7.75; tail 3.50, graduated 1.25;

Fig. 558. — Californian Guillemot, nat, size.

848.

878.

ALCIDA — ALCINA: GREAT AUK, 819

tarsus 1.25; middle or outer toe and claw 2.00, inner 1.40; chord of culmen 1.30, are 1.50;
gape 2.25; gonys 0.75; greatest depth of bill 0.90. This auk abounds in the N. Atlantic,
both coasts, and parts of the Polar seas; casual in the N. Pacific; Japan. On our coast,
breeds in great numbers in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, about Newfoundland and Labrador
strays 5. in winter to the
Middle States, like other
Alcide. The eggs are
usually laid in caverns
and fissures of the rocks
along precipitous shore-
lines, often with those of
sea-pigeons and puffins ;
about 3.00 X scant 2.00,
white with creamy or
milky-bluish tint, never
green like those of murres,
spotted and blotched, but
not fantastically traced
over, with different shades
of umber - brown ;_ less
pointed ; laid in June and
July.

ALU'CA. (Lat. from alk
or auk.) His Grace,
Tue AUK, who lost the
use of his wings, and per-
ished off the face of the
earth in consequence.

A. Impen’nis. (Lat.
impennis, wingless. Fig.
561.) TarGreat AUK.
Largest of the family:
length about 30.00 inches;
wing 6.00; tail 3.00; bill =i
along gape 4.25; chord Fic. 560. — Murres.

of culmen 3,15; greatest depth of upper mandible 1.00, of lower 0.67; greatest width of bill
0.67; tarsus 1.67; middle toe and claw 3.25; outer do. 3.00; inner do. 2.25. A great white
oval spot between eye and bill. Hood and mantle dark; under parts white, extending in a
point on the throat; ends of secondaries white. Bill black, with white grooves; feet dark
Special interest attaches to this bird, which is now doubtless extinct, largely through human
agency. It formerly inhabited this coast from Massachusetts northward, as attested by earlier
observers, and by the plentiful occurrence of its bones in shell-heaps; also Greenland, Iceland,
and the N. W. shores of Europe, to the Arctic Circle. On our shores it was apparently last
alive at the Funks, a small island off the S. Coast of Newfoundland; while in Iceland, its
living history has been brought down to 1844. For some years, it was currently, but prema-
turely, reported extinct. Mr. R. Deane has recently recorded (Am. Nat. vi, 368) that a speci-
men was “found dead in the vicinity of St. Augustine, Labrador, in November, 1870;” this
one, though in poor condition, being sold for $200, and sent to Europe. But there appears tc
be some question respecting the character, date, and disposition of this alleged individual; and
it seems very improbable that the species lived down to 1870. I know of only four speci-

820 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS. —PYGOPODES.

mens in this country,—in the Smithsonian Institution, in the Philadelphia Academy, the
Cambridge Museum, and Vassar College, Poughkeepsie (the latter the original of Audubon’s
figures). There is an egg in each of the first two mentioned collections. In pattern of
coloration the egg is like that of the razor-billed auk, though it is of course much larger, meas-
uring about 5.00 x 3.00. About 70 skins appear to be preserved in various museums, with,
as many eggs, some half dozen more or less complete skeletons, and other bones representing
perhaps a hundred individuals.

Fie. 661.—Great Auk. (From Sport with Gun and Rod. The Century Co., N. Y.)

Part IV.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS

OF THE

FOSSIL BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA.

There is at present no satisfactory evidence that Birds existed in North America before the
Jurassic period ; the footprints in the sandstone of the Connecticut Valley attributed to Birds
having probably all been made by Dinosaurian Reptiles (p. 63). A number of Cretaceous
Birds have been known for some years, as given in the original edition of this work (1872) ;
but it is only since 1881 that this class of vertebrates has been traced back to the Jurassic
by the discovery of Laopteryx priscus on a geologic horizon nearly that of the famous
Archaeopteryx.

The Tertiary Birds of North America belong to genera identical with, or nearly related
to, those now living (p. 64). The case is otherwise with the earlier forms from the Cretaceous
and the Jurassic, which represent different primary divisions of the class Aves (p. 237), com-
parable in taxonomic value to that one (Sawrure) which is based upon the Archaeopteryx, or
to those afforded by the Ratite and the Carinate birds respectively. Most of these forms are
Odontornithes, or Birds with teeth; having the teeth implanted either in grooves (Odor
tole), or in sockets (Odontotorme), as illustrated by the genera Hesperornis and Ichthyornis
respectively.

In the original edition of the Key these Cretaceous types were ranged with those from the
Tertiary, their characters not having been fully worked out at that time. They have since
become well known, through, Professor Marsh’s splendid restorations and illustrations, in his
great work entitled ‘Odontornithes’ (4to, Washington and New Haven, 1880).

It is deemed advisable to present the Fossil Birds of North America under the three
‘ categories of the Tertiary, the Cretaceous, and the Jurassic forms; the first-named being
ranged under the several orders to which they are supposed to belong, as described in this
work ; the remainder, with few exceptions, being Odontornithes.

822 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS.

‘ A.— Tertiary Birds.
CARINATE (p. 238).
PASSERES (p. 238).

. PALZZOSPIZA BELLA.

Palaospiza bella, ALLEN, Bull. U.S. Geol. Surv. Terr., iv., no. 2, May 3, 1878, pp. 443-
445, pl. i, figg. 1, 2.—Am. Journ. Sci., xv, May, 1878, p. 381.— Amer. Nat., xv, Mar.,
1881, p. 253.

Based upon some beautifully preserved remains, from the insect-bearing shales of Floris-
sant, Colorado, now deposited in the Museum of the Boston Society of Natural History. They
consist of the greater part of the skeleton, including all the bones of the wings and legs ex-
cepting the femurs, but unfortunately lacking the bill. The impression of the feathers of the
wings and tail are remarkably distinct, showing not only the general shape of these parts, but
the shafts and barbs of the feathers themselves. The bones are all in situ, ‘and indicate be-
yond question a high ornithic type, probably referable to the oscine division of the Passeres.
The lack of the bill renders it impossible to assign the species to any particular family, but the
fossil on the whole gives the impression of Fringilline affinities.” The approximate length of
the specimen is seven inches.

PICARIZ (p. 444).

. UINTORNIS LUCARIS.

Uintornis lucavis, MaRrsH, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 259. — Couxs, Key, 1872,
p- 347.

This bird was about as large as a robin, and apparently related to the woodpeckers. The
only known remains are from the Lower Tertiary formation of Wyoming Territory. They are
preserved in the Museum of Yale College.

RAPTORES (p. 496).

- AQUILA DANANA.

Aquila danana, MarsH, Am. Journ. Séi., ii, Aug., 1871, p. 125. — Couss, Key, 1872,
p- 347.

This species was nearly as large as the golden eagle (A. chrysaétus). The only known
remains were found in the Pliocene of Nebraska, and are preserved in the Yale Museum.

. BUBO LEPTOSTEUS.

Bubo leptosteus, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., ii, Aug., 1871, p. 126. — Couns, Key, 1872,
p. 347. ‘

A species about two-thirds as large as the great horned owl (B. virginianus). The re-
mains were discovered in the Lower Tertiary beds of Wyoming, and are now in the Yale
Museum.

. PALZOBORUS UMBROSUS.

Cathartes umbrosus, Corr, Proc. Phila. Acad., xxvi, 1874, p. 151. — Ann. Rep. Chief of
Engrs. U.S. A., 1874, p. 606.

Vultur umbrosus, Corr, Proc. Phila. Acad., xxvii, 1875, p. 271.— Aun. Rep. Chief of
Engrs. U. 8. A., 1875, p. 993. — Rep. Surv. W. 100th Merid., iv, pt. ii, p. 287, pl. Ixvii, figg.
10-18, pl. Ixviii, figg. 1-19.

From the Pliocene of New Mexico; remains found in the sands north of Pojuaque, repre-
senting a rapacious bird in size intermediate between the golden eagle and the turkey vulture;

10.

11,

12.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS. 823
4

referred at first to the genus Cathartes, afterward provisionally to the genus Vultur. As the
description and figures clearly indicate a bird generically distinct from Cathartes, and as the
improbability of the occurrehce of a true Vultwr in North America is extreme, it is suggested
that this species be made the type of a new genus, Paleoborus, based upon the characters
given by the describer.

GALLINZ (p. 571).

MELEAGRIS ANTIQUUS.

Meleagris antiquus, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., ii, Aug., 1871, p- 126.—Couzs, Key,
1872, p. 347.

This species was nearly as large as the wild turkey (M. gallipavo). The remains repre-
senting it were found in the Miocene of Colorado, and are preserved in the Yale Museum.
MELEAGRIS ALTUS.

Meleagris altus, Marsu, Proc. Phila. Acad., Mar., 1870, p. 11.— Amer. Nat., iv, July,
1870, p. 317. — Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 260.—Cours, Key, 1872, p. 348.

Meleagris superbus, Copp, Syn. Ext. Batrach., etc., p. 239.

“Represented by portions of three skeletons, of different ages, which belonged to birds
about the size of the wild turkey, although proportionally much taller. The tibise and tarso-
metatarsal bones were, in fact, so elongated as to resemble those of wading birds.” From the
Post-pliocene of New Jersey. The remains are mostly in the Museum of Yale College.

. MELEAGRIS CELER.

Meleagris celer, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., Oct., 1872, p. 261. — Couns, Key, 1872, p. 348.
A species much smaller than the foregoing, but with legs of slender proportions. Also
from the Post-pliocene of New Jersey, and preserved in the Yale Museum.

LIMICOLZ (p. 596).

CHARADRIUS SHEPPARDIANUS.
Charadrius sheppardianus, Cope, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr., vi, no. 1, Feb. 11, 1881,
pp. 88-85. — Amer. Nat., xv, Mar., 1881, p. 253.

ALECTORIDES (p. 665).

GRUS HAYDENI.

Grus haydeni, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xlix, March, 1870, p. 214.—Couns, Key, 1872,
p- 348.

A species about as large as the sandhill crane (G. canadensis). From the Pliocene of
Nebraska. Remains preserved in.the Museum of the Philadelphia Academy.
GRUS PROAVUS.

Grus proavus, MARSH, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 261. —Covugs, Key, 1872,
p. 348.

This species was nearly as large as a sandhill crane. The remaius representing it were
found in the Post-pliocene of New Jersey, and are now in the Yale Museum.
ALETORNIS NOBILIS.

Aletornis nobilis, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 256. — Cours, Key, 1872,
p. 348.

Nearly as, large as the preceding species. Found in the Eocene deposits of Wyoming,
and now in the Museum of Yale College.

18.

14.

15.

16.

17%.

18.

20.

21.

824 SYSVYEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS.

ALETORNIS PERNIX.

Aletornis pernix, Marsn, Am, Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 256.— Couns, Key, 1872,
p. 348, :

About half the size of the above, and from the same locality. Also in the Yale Museum.
ALETORNIS VENUSTUS.

Aletornis venustus, MARsu, Am. Journ. Sei., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 257.— Couns, Key, 1872,
p. 348.

A smaller species, about as large as a curlew (Numenius). From the same locality, and
likewise in the Yale Museum. ;
ALETORNIS GRACILIS.

Aletornis gracilis, MARsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 258. — Cours, Key, 1872,
p. 348.

A bird about the size of a woodeock (Philohela minor). From the same formation and
locality, and now preserved in the Museum of Yale College.
ALETORNIS BELLUS.

Aletornis bellus, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 258. — Couns, Key, 1872,
p. 349. ‘
A still smaller species, probably belonging to a different genus. From the same locality,
and also in the Yale Museun.

LAMELLIROSTRES (p. 677).

CYGNUS PALOREGONUS.
Cygnus paloregonus, Corn, Bull. U. 8. Geol. Surv. Terr., iv, no. 2, May 3, 1878, p. 388.
Represented by numerous bones, especially by four metatarsals, two of which are nearly
perfect, indicating « species very near those now existing, but apparently distinct. From the
Pliocene of Oregon. Reimaius in Prof. Cope’s Collection.
BERNICLA HYPSIBATES,
Anser hypsibates, Corr, Bull. U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr., iv, no. 2, May 3, 1878, p. 387.
Based upon a metatarsal bone lacking the hypotarsus, indicating a goose nearly related to
Bernicla canadensis, but probably larger or with longer legs. From the Pliocene of Oregon.
Remains in Prof. Cope’s Collection.

STEGANOPODES (p. 718).

. SULA LOXOSTYLA.

Sula loxostyla, Corn, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., xiv, Dec., 1870, p. 236.— Couns, Key,
1872, p. 349.

A gannet, not so large as the common living species (.S. bassana), from the Miocene of
North Carolina. The remains are preserved in Professor Cope’s Collection.
PHALACROCORAX IDAHENSIS.

Graculus idahensis, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 216. —- Couns, Key,
1872, p. 349.

A typical cormorant, rather smaller than P. carbo. From the Pliocene of Idaho. Most
of the known remains are deposited in the Yale Museum.

PHALACROCORAX MACROPUWS.

Graculus nacropus, Corn, Bull. U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr., iv, no. 2, May 3, 1878, p. 386.

From the Pliocene of Oregon, in which it appears to have been numerous; represented by
various bones, those upon which the species is based being three nearly perfect metatarsals in
the collection of Prof. Cope, indicating a bird somewhat larger than the living Phalacrocorax
dilophus, and agreeing closely in size with Ph. idahensis.

22.

238.

25.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS. 825

LONGIPENNES (p. 732).

PUFFINUS CONRADI.

Puffinus conradii, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xlix, Mar., 1872, p. 212. Cougs, Key,
1872, p. 350.

A shearwater about the size of P. cinereus. From the Miocene of Maryland, and now
preserved in the Museum of the Philadelphia Academy.

PYGOPODES (p. 787).

LOMVIA ANTIQUA.

Catarractes antiquus, Marsa, Am. Journ. Sci., xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 218. — Cougs, Key,
1872, p. 350.

A guillemot rather larger than the common murre (ZL. toile). From the Miocene of
North Carolina. Deposited in the Philadelphia Academy.
LOMVIA AFFINIS.

Catarractes affinis, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 259. Couzs, Key, 1872,
p- 350.

A species about as large as the preceding, and nearly related. From the Post-pliocene of
Maine. The original specimen is in the Philadelphia Academy.

RATITE (p. 238).

GASTORNIS GIGANTEUS.

Diatryma gigantea, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1876, p. 11.— Rep. Surv. W. 100th Merid.,
iv, pt. ii, 1877, pp. 69-71, pl. xxxii, figg. 23-25.

From the Eocene of New Mexico, of the Wahsatch epoch; based upon a tarso-metatarsal
bone lacking a part of the shaft and the external condyle. The species was of great size, the
proximal end of the bone being nearly twice the diameter of that of the ostrich. “Its discovery
introduced this group of Birds [Ratite] to the known faune of North America, and demon-
strates that this continent has not been destitute of the gigantic forms of birds now confined to
the southern hemisphere faune” (Cope). The proximal end of the bone is described as resem-
bling the same part in the ostriches (Struthionide) and moas (Dinornithide) ; while the distal
end, as far as that -is preserved, is similar to that of Gastornis of the corresponding horizon in
France.

B.

The following synopsis is based upon that given in the appendix of Marsh’s great work
already cited (‘ Odontornithes’). The nine genera and nineteen species presented are supposed
to be referable to one or the other of the two types exemplified by Ichthyornis and Hesperornis
respectively ; but, as many of them are still known only by remains so fragmentary that it is
impossible to say whether they are Odontotorme or Odontolce, an alphabetical arrangement
of the genera is followed. :

Most of the known remains of Cretaceous birds of North America have been discovered
on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, in beds of middle Cretaceous age which have
been termed by Marsh ‘‘Pteranodon beds,” from the genus of toothless Pterodactyles found
in them. These Western Cretaceous birds were all found in Kansas, excepting some from
corresponding strata in Texas. The Eastern Cretaceous forms from the green-sand of New
Jersey, all of which are distingt from the western ones, are from a higher horizon, representing
a division of the upper-Cretaceous. No jaws or teeth of these birds having been found, it is

Cretaceous Birds.

26.

27.

28.

29.

30.

826 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS.

impossible to say as yet whether or not they are odontornithic. All the deposits of Cretaceous
age in North America, in which birds have been found, are marine, and the species appear to |
have all been aquatic. ;

APATORNIS CELER.

Ichthyornis celery, Marsa, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Jan., 1873, p. 74.

Apatornis celer, Marsa, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Feb., 1873, p. 162.—Ip., ibid., v, Mar.,
1873, p. 230. — Ib., ibid., x, Nov., 1875, p. 404. —Ip., Am. Nat., ix, Dec., 1875, p. 626.—
Ib., Geol. Mag., iii, Feb., 1876, p. 50.—Woopw., Pop. Sci. Rev., Oct., 1875, p. 349. —
Marsu, Odont., 1880, p. 192, pll. xxvili-xxxiii. .

A bird about the size of a pigeon, from the middle Cretaceous of Western Kansas ; related
to Ichthyornis. The two known specimens are preserved in the Yale Museum.
BAPTORNIS ADVENUS.

Baptorms advenus, Marsa, Am. Journ. Sci., xiv, July, 1877, p. 86.—Ib., Journ. de
Zool., vi, 1877, p. 387. —Ip., Odont., 1880, p. 192, figg. 37-39.

Based upon a nearly perfect tarso-metatarsal, closely resembling the same part of Hesper-
ornis, and indicating an aquatic bird about as large as a loon. From Western Kansas, in the
same Cretaceous beds with Odontornithes and Pteranodontia. The type, and a second speci-
men referred to the same species, are preserved in the Museum at Yale College.
GRACULAVUS VELOX.

Graculavus velor, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iii, May, 1872, p. 363. — In., dbid., v, Mar.,
1873, p. 229. — Ip., Odont., 1880, p. 194. — Cours, Key, 1872, p. 349.

A bird about two-thirds as large as a cormorant. The remains were found in the green-
sand of the middle marl bed, or upper Cretaceous, near Hornerstown, New Jersey, and are all
preserved in the Museum of Yale College.

GRACULAVUS PUMILUS.

Graculavus pumilus, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iii, May, 1872, p. 364. —Ip., zbid., v,
Mar., 1878, p. 229. — Ip., Odont., 1880, p. 195. — Cougs, Key, 1872, p. 350.

A smaller species than the foregoing, from the same formation and locality. Remains
also in the Yale Museum.

Note. Several western species, provisionally referred to the genus Graculavus, have since
been identified with Ichthyornis, which see.

HESPERORNIS REGALIS. (See p. 63, fig. 15.)

Hesperornis regalis, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iii, Jan., 1872, p. 56.—Ib., tbid., iii,
May, 1872, p. 860. —Ib., ibid., x, Nov., 1875, p. 403. —Ib., tbid., xiv, July, 1877, p. 85, pl.
v.—In., Am. Nat., ix, Dec., 1875, p. 625.—Ib., Geol. Mag., iii, Feb., 1876, p. 49, pl. ii. —
In., Odont., 1880, pp. 1-117, p. 195, pll. i-xx. —Couss, Key, 1872, p. 195. — Woopw., Pop.
Sci. Rev., Oct., 1875, p. 337. —SEnLny, Journ. Geol. Soc., xxxii, 1876, p. 510. — Hux3.,
Pop. Sci. Monthly, x, 1876, pp. 215-218. — Voat, Revue Scient., xvii, 1879, p. 247.—Dana,
Man. Geol., 1880, pl. iv.

Reference to p. 238, antea, will show the essential characters of the order or subclass
Odontolce, of which the present species is a type. Hesperornis may be tersely characterized
as a gigantic diver, some six feet in length from the point of the bill to the end of the toes,
standing over three feet high in the position represented in the above-cited figure. While the
general configuration of the skeleton may be likened to that of a loon, the conformation of the
sternum is ratite, like that of struthious birds, and the wings are rudimentary or abortive, only
a remnant of a humerus being left; other struthious characters are noted in various parts of
the skeleton ; the jaws are long and furnished with sharp recurved teeth implanted in grooves,
but the vertebree are heteroccelous, or saddle-shaped, and the coccyx is short, as in ordinary
birds ; most of these characters separating this odontolcous type of Odontornithes sharply from
both Odontotorme and Sawrure. Comparison.of the three Mesozoic genera, Hesperornis,

31.

82.

84.

35.

36.

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS. 827

Ichthyornis and Archeopteryx, shows greater diversity from one another than that existing
among all known birds of later geologic and of the present epoch.

The first remains of this now famous species were found by Prof. Marsh in November,
1870, in the yellow chalk of the Pteranodon beds, near the Smoky Hill river in Kansas. The
type specimen was found in July, 1871, on thé south bank of the same river, about twenty
miles east of Fort Wallace, imbedded in gray calcareous shale. Many other remains have
also been collected, representing in all some forty different individuals, all from the same
geologic horizon in Western Kansas, and most of them near the locality of the original ones.
They are all preserved in the Museum of Yale College.

HESPERORNIS CRASSIPES.

Lestornis crassipes, MARSH, Am. Journ. Sci., xi, June, 1876, p. 509.

Hesperornis crassipes, Marsu, Odont., 1880, p. 196, figg. 40 a-d, pll. vii, xvii.

Based upon a nearly complete skeleton from the yellow chalk of Western Kansas, indicat-
ing a bird considerably larger than H. regalis, and one that may prove to be generically
distinct. Deposited in the Yale Museum.

HESPERORNIS GRACILIS.

Hesperornis gracilis, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xi, June, 1876, p. 510. — Ip., Odont., 1880,
pp. 99, 197.

A third species, from the same horizon and locality, represented by two specimens, one of
them a nearly complete skeleton. Deposited in the Yale Museum.

. ICHTHYORNIS DISPAR,

Ichthyornis dispar, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iv, Oct., 1872, p. 344. — Ib., ibid., v, Feb.,
1873, p. 161. —Ib., ibid., Mar., 1873, p. 230. — Cougs, Key, 1872, p. 350.— Owen, Journ.
Geol. Soc. Lond., xxxix, 1873, p. 520.— Woopw., Pop. Sci. Rev., Oct., 1875, p. 348. —Marsu,
Am. Nat., ix, Dec., 1875, p. 625. — Ip., Geol. Mag., iii, 1876, p. 49. — Huxu., Pop. Sci.
Monthly, x, 1876, pp. 215-218. — Marsu, Journ. de Zool., iv, 1875, p. 494, pl. xv; vi, 1877,
p. 385. — In., Odont., 1880, pp. 119-183, 197, pll. xxi-xxvi.

This remarkable bird, forming a type of the whole group Odontotorme (p. 237) of Odont-
ornithes, with general characters of the skeleton like those of ordinary birds, yet with socketed
teeth and biconcave vertebrae, was discovered in 1872 near the Solomon river in Northwestern
Kansas, in the Pteranodon beds of the middle Cretaceous. It was about as large as a pigeon.
The remains of about nine individuals, all from the same region, are preserved in the Museum
at Yale College.

ICHTHYORNIS AGILIS.

Graculavus agilis, Marsu, Aim. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 230.

Ichthyornis agilis, MarsH, Odont., 1880, p. 197.

From the same hgrizon in Western Kansas, on Butte Creek, a tributary of the Smoky
Hill river, where discovered in October, 1872. The remains are preserved in the Yale College
Museum.

ICHTHYORNIS ANCEPS.

Graculavus anceps, MARsH, Am. Journ. Sci., iii, May, 1872, p. 364. — Covss, Key,
1872, p. 350.—Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1878, p. 229. —Ip., Odont., 1880, pp.
124, 198.

Resembling J. dispar, but with slenderer jaws and more teeth. The right lower jaw of
the type specimen of I. dispar shows twenty-one distinct sockets. Discovered in November,
1870, in the gray shale of the middle Cretaceous, on the north fork of the Smoky Hill river in
western Kansas, where other specimens have since been found. All are preserved at Yale.
ICHTHYORNIS LENTUS.

Graculavus lentus, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xiv, Sept., 1877, p. 253.

Ichthyornis lentus, Marsn, Odont., 1880, p. 198.

37.

38.

39.

40.

4l.

42.

43.

828 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS.

Based upon part of a tarso-metatarsus from near Fort McKinney, Texas, in beds of middle
Cretaceous age. Deposited in the Yale Museum.

ICHTHYORNIS TENER.

Ichthyornis tener, MARSH, Odont., 1880, p. 198, pl. xxx, fig. 8.

From the Pteranodon beds of the middle Cretaceous, Wallace County, Kansas ; two speci-
mens, secured in 1876, and now preserved at the Yale College Museum.

ICHTHYORNIS VALIDUS.

Ichthyornis validus, Marsu, Odont., 1880, p. 198, pl. xxx, figg. 11-14.

Discovered in 1877, in the yellow chalk of the middle Cretaceous, near Solomon River, in
northwestern Kansas. The kriown specimens are deposited in the Museum of Yale College.
ICHTHYORNIS VICTOR. (See p. 64, fig. 16.)

Ichthyornis victor, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xi, June, 1876, p. 511. —Ip., Odont., 1880,
p- 199, pll. xxvii-xxxiv. — Dana, Man. Geol., 1880, pp. 466-468, pl. v.

' A species of the genus rather larger than a pigeon, of which more than forty specimens
have been found in various localities in Kansas, all apparently from the same geological horizon
in the middle Cretaceous. These are preserved in the Museum of Yale College.

LAORNIS EDVARDSIANUS.

Laornis edvardsianus, Marsu, Proc. Phila. Acad., Jan., 1870, p. 5. —Ip., Am. Journ.
Sci., xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 206. — Ip. ibid., v, Mar., 1873, p. 230. — A. Minz-Epw., Rech.
Ossem. Foss., ii, 1871, p. 540.— Cours, Key, 1872, p. 350. —Marsu, Odont., 1880, p. 199.

This species was nearly as large as a swan. The remains by which it is represented were
found in the middle marl bed, of upper Cretaceous age, at Birmingham, New Jersey, and are
now in the Museum of Yale College. ‘

PALZOTRINGA LITORALIS.

Paleotringa littoralis, MArsu, Proc. Phila. Acad., Jan., 1870, p. 5. —Ip., Am. Journ.
Sci., xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 208. — A. Miung-Epw., Rech. Ossem. Foss., ii, 1871, p. 540.— .
Cougs, Key, 1872, p. 349.— Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 229. —Ip., Odont.,
1880, p. 199.

A bird about as large as a curlew. The remains representing it were discovered in the
green-sand of the upper Cretaceous, near Hornerstown, New Jersey, and are preserved in the
collection at Yale College.

PALZOTRINGA VAGANS.

Paleotringa vagans, Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., iii, May, 1872, p. 365.— Cougs, Key,
1872, p. 349. — Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 229.

From the same formation and locality as the last; of smaller size, being intermediate
between the other two species of the genus. The specimens upon which this species is based
are preserved in the Yale College Museum.

PALZOTRINGA VETUS.

‘ Scolopax, Morton, Syn. Organic Remains of the Cret., U. S., 1834, p. 32. — HARLAN,
Med. and Phys. Res., 1835, p. 280.

Paleotringa vetus, Marsu, Proc. Phila. Acad., Jan., 1870, p. 5. —Ip., Am. Journ. Sci.,
xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 209. — A. Mitne-Epw., Rech. Ossem. Foss., ii, 1871, p. 540. — Cougs,
Key, 1872, p. 349.— Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 229. —Ip., Odont., 1880,
p. 200.

The first fossil bird of North America appears to have been noted by Dr. Morton in 1834,
as that of a snipe-like species. The specimen, consisting of a femur imperfect at the upper
extremity, was presented by S. W. Conrad to Dr. Harlan, who remarks that ‘the bone
appears to be perfectly mineralized.” It was found near Arneytown, New Jersey, in the lower
marl bed of the Cretaceous formation. This same specimen (which meanwhile had been
generally regarded as of a recent species, notwithstanding its condition and the position in which

45.

46.

‘

SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS QF FOSSIL BIRDS. 829

it had been found) furnished Prof. Marsh the basis of his Paleotringa vetus, a smaller species
than either of the others of this genus. The known remains are in the Philadelphia Academy.
TELMATORNIS PRISCUS.

Telmatornis priscus, MARSH, Proc. Phila. Acad., Jan., 1870, p. 5. — Ip., Am. Journ. Sci.,
xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 21U.—A. Minne-Epw., Rech. Ossem. Foss., ii, 1871, p. 541. — Cougs,
Key, 1872, p. 849. — Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 229.— Ip., Odont., 1880, p.
200.

A species about as large as the king rail (Rallus elegans) ; from the middle marl bed of
the upper Cretaceous formation. The remains were found near Hornerstown, New Jersey, and
are preserved in the Museum of Yale College.

TELMATORNIS AFFINIS.

Telmatornis affinis, Marsu, Proc. Phila. Acad., Jan., 1870, p. 5.—Ip., Am. Journ. Sci.,
xlix, Mar., 1870, p. 211.— A. Mitnr-Epw., Rech. Ossem. Foss. ii, 1871, p. 541. — Cougs,
Key, 1872, p. 349. —Marsu, Am. Journ. Sci., v, Mar., 1873, p. 229. —Ip., Odont., 1880,
p- 20].

The known remains are in the Yale Museum.

C.— Jurassic Birds.

The single representative of birds at present known from this formation is odontornithic.
LAOPTERYX PRISCUS.

Laopteryx priscus, MArsu, Am. Journ. Sci., xxi, Apr., 1881, p. 341.

From the upper Jurassic beds of Wyoming. The known remains are deposited in the
Museum of Yale College.

The interest attaching to this fossil induces me to transcribe the original description : —

“The type specimen of the present species is the posterior portion of the skull, which
indicates a bird rather larger than a blue heron (Ardea Herodias). The braincase is so
broken that its inner surface is disclosed, and in other respects the skull is distorted, but it
shows characteristic features. The bones of the skull are pneumatic. The occipital condyle
is sessile, hemispherical in form, flattened and slightly grooved above. There is no trace of a
posterior groove. The foramen magnum is nearly circular, and small in proportion to the con-
dyle. Its plane coincides with that of the occiput, which is slightly inclined forward. The
bones around the foramen are firmly co-ossified, but the supra-occipital has separated somewhat
from the squamosals and parietals. Other sutures are more or less open. On each side of the
condyle, and somewhat below its lower margin, there is a deep, rounded cavity, perforated by
a pneumatic foramen.

‘““The cavity for the reception of the head of the quadrate is oval in outline, and its longer
axis, if continued backward, would touch the outer margin of the occipital condyle. This cav-
ity indicates that the quadrate had an undivided head. The braincase was comparatively
small, but the hemispheres were well developed. They were separated above by a sharp
mesial crest of bone. A low ridge divided the hemispheres from the optic lobes, which were
prominent.

“The following measureinents indicate the size of the specimen : —

‘* Width of skull across occiput (approximate)... 2. 1. 1. 1 ee ewe tt he 24 mm
“Transverse diameter of occipital condyle . . 2.) 1 1 we we et wt ee ee 5
“Vertical diameter . oo Se i ee owe a Ae ee 4. 68
‘“Width of foramen magnum ......... «+ «© © we peep se ee eee 5 s8
“Height . . . Gy eae ae ar eae ae Ra a a Gee SR ade a Gee ae Gee jae vs 6“

a % Z
* Distance from occipital condyle to top of supra-occipital . . . 1... 1. eee eee 11 “

8380 SYSTEMATIC SYNOPSIS OF FOSSIL BIRDS.

‘Tn its main features, the present specimen resembles the skull of the Ratite, more than
that of any existing birds. Other parts of the skeleton will doubtless show still stronger
reptilian characters.

“In the matrix attached to this skull, a single tooth was found, which most resembles the
teeth of birds, especially those of Weidinjorule It is probable that mi aa possessed teeth,
and also biconcave vertebre.

“The specimen here described, and others apparently of the same species, were found in
the upper Jurassic of Wyoming: Territory, in the horizon of the Atlantosaurus beds.”

INDEX.

Nore. —(1) Scientific names of birds consisting of two terms are entered but once, under the genus; as,
Turdus mustelinus, (2) But vernacular names of two terms are entered twice; as, Wood thrush, and Thrush,
wood, (3) Anatomical and other technical terms are fully indexed as occurring in Part II., where they are
defined and explained; but not as occurring in Parts III. and IV., where they are simply used in describing
birds. (4) Names of birds, both scientific and vernacular, are fully indexed us occurring in Parts III. and IV.
but usually not as incidentally occurring in Parts I. and II. in illustration of the zoological and anatomical
characters there noted. (5) Names merely appearing in the text, not as headings, are usually not indexed 5} many
such, however, will be found, especially such as are not elsewhere formally treated. (6) Synonyms, both scientific
and vernacular, are indexed. (7) Matters of field-work and taxidermy treated in Part I. are fully indexed by
one or more leading words; as, Insect pests, and Pests, insect. (8) Names of persons mentioned or of authors
quoted are not indexed. (9) The whole work is so fully indexed that the Index will serve as a glossary of the
terminology of ornithology. (10) All the figures refer to pages.

ABDOMEN 95, 96 ZEgialites Alaudinez 282
Abducent nerves 177 curonicus 603 Albatross
Abduction of wing 108 hiaticula 603 black 776
Abert’s towhee 398 melodus 602 black-footed 775
Acadian owl 513 microrhynchus 603 short-tailed 775
Acanthisitta 269 nivosus 603 sooty 776
Accentor semipalmatus 602 Albatrosses 774, 776
aquatic 309 vociferus 600 Alca 819
golden-crowned 308 wilsonius 601 impennis 819
Accessory AXgiothus 352 Alcedinidz 468
bone of shoulder 107 exilipes 353 Alcedininz 469
metatarsal 119 holboelli 353 Alcedo ispida 469
Accidents from the gun 19 hornemanni 353 Alcide 797
Accipiter 527 linaria 252 Alcinze 810 7

cooperi 528
fuscus 528
nisus 194, 527
Accipitres 496, 498, 517
Accipitringe 526
Accommodation of eye 178
Acetabulum 119, 148
Acromial process 146
Acromion 146
Acromyodi 240
Acromyodian 205, 239
Acropodium 124
Acrotarsium 124
Acryllium vulturinum 575
Actodromas 625
acuminata 628
bairdi 625
bonapartii 627
cooperi 627
maculata 626
minutilla 625
Adduction of wing 108
Adrenals 46, 216
Aichmophorus 793
elarki 794
occidentalis 793

#chmorhynchus parvirostris 618

Agialites 600
cantianus 603
circumcinctus 602

Agithognathism 172
Aigithognathous skull 172
Aigotheles 448
Aipyornis maximus 65, 221
Aétomorphe 496
Afferent function of nerves 174
After-shaft 84
Age, recognition of a bird’s 46
Ageleine 400
Ageleus 403
gubernator 404
pheeniceus 404
tricolor 404
Agelastes meleagrides 576
Agyrtria linnei 459 .
Air-bone 168
Air-cells 200
Air-gun 3
Aix 697
galericulata 698
sponsa 698
Ajaja 651
rosea 651
Alaskan
Jay 425
winter wren 279
Ala spuria 109
Alauda 282
arvensis 283
Alaudide 69, 239, 280

Alcohol, ‘use of 21
Aleyone 126, 127
Alectorides 665, 823
Alectoromorphe 171, 572
Alectoropodes 573
Aletornis
bellus, 824
gracilis 824
nobilis 823
pernix 824
venustus 824
Aleutian
auk 810
sandpiper 629
tern 768
Alexander humming-bird 462
Aliethmoid 153
A imentary canal 209
Alinasal 153
Aliseptal 153
Alisphenoid 158
Alle 810
nigricans 810
Allen’s rosy finch 350
Allied robin 244
Altrices 88
Aluco 501
flammeus 502
pratincola 502
Aluconide 500

832

Alula 106, 107, 109
Amazili hummers 466
Amazilia 466
cerviniventris 466
fuscocaudata 466
Ambiens 193
American
avocet 611
bittern 664
black scoter 713
black-tailed godwit 636
brown pelican 722
continental gyrfalcon 532
coot 676
crow 417
cuckoos 474
dipper 255
dunlin 631
eider duck 712
flycatchers 428
golden plover 599
goldfinches 354
goshawk 530
green sandpiper 639
green-winged teal 695
harrier 521
hawfinches 342
hawk owl 511
herring gull 743
jabiru 653
lanner falcon 534
long*eared owl 507
marsh hawk 521
mealy red-poll 353
merlin 537
mew gull 746
‘oyster-catcher 606
night-jars 450
nutcrackers 417
partridges 588
pochard 702
quail 588
raven 416
red cross-bill 349
red flamingo 679
red-necked grebe 794
redstart 316
rough-legged buzzard 549
shrike 838
siskin 354
snipe 617, 621
spoonbills 651
starlings 399
stint 625
swan 682
titlark 286
vultures 557
warblers 287
white-fronted goose 684
white pelican 722
wigeon 694
woodcock 619
wood owl 509
wood stork 653
Amherstian pheasants 575
Ammodramus 367
caudacutus 368
maritimus 367
nelsoni 368
nigrescens 368
Ammunition 4
Amotus 128
Ampelidee 325
Ampelis 825
cedrorum 3827
garrulus 3826

INDEX.

Amphicelous vertebra 138
Amphimorphe 677
Amphispiza 375
belli 376
bilineata 376
nevadensis 876
Ampulla 189
Analogy 67, 68
Anarhynchus frontalis 597
Anas 691
auduboni 691
boscas 691
breweri 691
fulvigula 692
glocitans 691
maxima 691
obscura 691
Anastomus 652
Anatide 679
trachea of 50
Anatinz 689
Anatomical structure 133
Anatomy 133
Anchylosis 134
Ancon 106
Ancylochilus 631
subarquatus 632
Angeiology 195
Angle of the
jaw 98
mandible 166
mouth 105
wing 109
Angular bone 166
Angulus oris 105
Ani 472
groove-billed 472
Animalia 81
Animation 174
Anis 471
Ankle joint 120
Ankylosis 184
Anna humming-bird 464
Anoew 756 .
Anomalogonatous birds 195
Anorthura 278
alascensis 279
hiemalis 278
pacificus 279
troglodytes 278
Anoiis 771
stolidus 771
Anser 684
-albifrons 684
gambeli 684 ’
hypsibates 824
Anseranas melanoleuca 684
Anseres 679
Anserine 683
Anserine birds 677
proper 679
Anteorbital region 97
Anthracite buzzard 552
Anthine 285
Anthus 285
ludovicianus 286
pratensis 285
spinoletta 285
Anthrenus scrofulariz 55
Athropoides 666
paradiszea 666
virgo 666
Anti 105
Antibrachium 106, 107
Antitrochanter 148
Antrorse 105

Antrostomus 450
arizone 452
carolinensis 451
vociferus 452

Aorta 197

Apatornis celer 826

Aphelocoma 423
arizona 424
californica 424
floridana 423
sordida 424
ultramarina 424
woodhousii 423

Aphriza 605
virgata 605

Aphrizid 605

Aphrizinz 605

Aplomado falcon 539

Apophyses 134

| Appendicular skeleton 134

Apteria 87
Aquatic accentor 309 -
Aqueous humor 179, 183
Aquila 553
chrysaétus 554
danana 822
Arachnoid 176
Aramidz 667
Aramus 668
pictus 668
Arch
pectoral 145 .
pelvic 147
post-oral 152
pre-oral 152
scapular 145
ik visceral ig i ‘i
rchzopteryx litho: ica 62
63, 237, 821 li ;
Archetypes 76
Archetypic characters 76
Archibuteo 549
ferrugineus 551
lagopus 549
sancti-johannis 549
Archsaurian 112
Arctic
american saw-whet owl 512
blue-bird 258
jager 738
tent 764
towhee 396
Arctonetta 710
Ardea 657
cinerea 655, 658
herodias 147, 657
occidentalis 658
wardi 658
Ardeide 654
Ardeing 654, 656, 657
Ardetta 664
exilis 664
Argus pheasant 575
-Argusanus giganteus 575
Arinz 495, 496
Aristonetta 703
Arkansaw
goldfinch 355
tyrant flycatcher 433
Arizona
chipping sparrow 380
oldfinch 355

thrasher 252

Arizona
whippoorwill 452
Arm-bone 107
Arquatella 628
couesi 629
maritima 629
ptilocnemis 630
Arsenic 26, 57
Arsenical soap 26
Arrie 817
Artemisia sparrow 376
Arterial system 195
Arteries 197
Articular bone of jaw 166
Articulation of bones 134
Artificial ae ?” 927, 230, 231
Arytenoids 20
Ash-colored sandpiper 632
Ash-throated
crested flycatcher 436
flycatchers 434
Asiatic golden plover 600
Asio 507
accipitrinus 507
otus 507
wilsonianus 136, 507
Astragalinus 354
arizone 3855
lawrencii 355
mexicanus 355
notatus 356
psaltria 355
tristis 354
Astragalus 120
Astur 530 :
atricapillus 530
palumbarius 530
striatulus 531
Asturina 551
plagata 551
Asyndesmus 490
torquatus 490
Atlas 139
Atmosteon 168
Atthis 465
heloise 465
Attic hummers 465
Attypic characters 76
Audition 184
Auditory
meatus 97
nerve 177, 187
Audubon’s
oriole 410
thrush 247
warbler 302
Auk
aleutian 810
crested 807
eat 819
orn-bill 805
least 808
knob-nosed 808
parroquet 806
pug-nosed 806
razor-billed 818
red-nosed 808
snub-nosed 807
temminck’s 812
unicorn 805
+ _whiskered 808
Auks 797
parrot 800
rhinoceros 805
snub-nosed 806
wrinkle-nosed 809

INDEX.

Aural region 97
Auricles of heart 196
Auricular region 97
Auriculars 97
Anriparns 269
aviceps 269
Auris 97
Autumnal tree duck 689
Aves (see also Birds) 237
definition of the class 61
aéres 81
aquatic 81
terrestres 81
Avian
foot, modifications of 129
sternum 143
Avocet, american 611
Avocets, 609, 610
Axial skeleton 134, 135
Axilla 111
Axillars 111
Axis 139
Azure warbler 301

BACHMAN’S

summer finch 373

warbler 294
Bahaman honey creeper 317
Baird's

cormorant 729

rosy finch 351

sandpiper 625

savanna sparrow 360
Baking birdskins 57
Baleeniceps rex 654
Balenicipitidee 654
Balearica pavonina 666
Bald eagle 555
Bald-pate 694
Baltimore oriole 408
Band-tailed buzzard 546
Bank

pigeon 565

swallow 324
Baptornis advenus 826
Barbicels of feathers 84
Barbs of feathers 84
Barbules of feathers 84
Barn

owls 500, 501

swallows 321
Barnacle geese 686
Barred owl 509

florida 510

western 510
Barrow’s golden-eve 704
Bartramia 641

longicauda 641
Bartramian sandpiper 641
Bartram’s tattler 641
Basal phalanges 127
Basibranchial 167
Basihyal 167
Basilinna 460

xantusi 460

Basioccipital 156
Basipterygoid processes 159, 163
Basis cranii 149
Basisphenoid 158
Basisphenoidal rostrum 158
Basitemporal 155, 156
Bastard

baltimore 407

quills 109

wing 109
Batrachostomus 448

53

833

Bay-breasted warbler 304
Bay-winged
bunting 364
longspur 359
summer finch 375
Beak of birds 106
Beaked savanna sparrow 563
Beardless flycatcher 443
Beards 99
Bee-martin 432
Bell’s
finch 376
greenlet 335
Belly 95
Belted kingfisher 470
Bend of the wing 109
Benzine 57
Bernicla 686
brenta 687
canadensis 688
hutchinsi 689
hy psibates 824
leucoparia 689
leucopsis 687
nigricans 688
occidentalis 688
Bewick’s
swan 683
wren 277
Bicarotidinze
abnormales 198
normales 197

. Big black-head 701

Bile 215
Bill of birds 100
Bill-hook 52
Bills classified 101
Binomial nomenclature 79
Biogen 192
Biogenation 192
Biology 65
Birdskins
baking 57
how to make 28
. instruments for making 25
Bird of washington 555
Birds and reptiles 60
Birds of prey 496
Birds
anatomy of
classification of 80
carrying home safe 18
class of 61
contour of 91
cretaceous 825
definition of 60
exterior parts of 82, 92
fossil 821
geologic succession of 62
handling bleeding 17
how many of a kind wanted 12
how to approach 15
how to find 10
how to mount 40
how to skin and stuff 28
jurassic 829
illing wounded 16
recovering 16
structure of 59
synopsis of n. american 237
tertiary 822
topography of 91
Bittern
american 664
least 664
Bitterns 663, 664

334

Bitterns

dwarf 664
Biziura lobata 699
Black

albatross 776

brant 688

duck 691

grouse 5738

guillemot 814

hawk 549

oyster-catcher 607

petrel 781

pewit flycatcher 437

rail 674

red-tail 545

scoter 713

skimmer 772

snow-bird 377

tern 770

white- Bi tern 770

vulture 560

warrior 543

witch 472
Black-and-white

creeper 290

spotted woodpeckers 480
Black-and-yellow

oriole 409

warbler 304

Black-backed three-toed wood-

pecker 485
Black-bellied

Black- ane euckoo 475
Blackbird

red winged 404

red-winged marsh 404

red-and-buff shouldered marsh
404

skunk 400

red-shouldered marsh 404

red-and-white shouldered
marsh 404

savanna 472

thrush 411

white-winged 387

yellow-headed 404

Blackbirds ete. 399

ellow-headed 404

Black-breasted

longspur 359

sandpiper 630

woodpecker 487
Blackburnian warbler 302
Black-capped

flyeatching warbler 313

gnat-catcher 261

greenlet 336

petrel 779

. titmouse 265

Black-chinned sparrow 381
Black-crested titmouse 265
Black-crowned night heron 662
Black-eared bush-tit 268
Black-faced

grass quit 392

sage sparrow 376
Black-headed

ducks 699

goldtinch 356

INDEX.
Black-headed

oriole £10

song grosbeak 389

pee ie 609
Black-footed albatross 775
Black-necked stilt 612
Black-poll warbler 303
Black-shouldered

kite 525

longspur 358
Black-throated

blue warbler 300

bunting 387

diver 791

pacific 791

gray warbler 300

green warbler 298

murrelet 811
Black-vented shearwater 786
Black-whiskered greenlet 332
Bladder 217
Blade-bone 148
Blanding's finch 398
Blasipus 741, 747
Blastoderm 225
Blastodermic membrane 225
Blastula 225
Bechet on 295

leached yell.-wing’d s w 366

Blood 196 Pee

corpuscles 196

stains 37
Blowing eggs 51
Blow-gun 3
Blow-pipe 51
Blue

crow 418

ier eal warbler 294

grosbeak 39

grouse 579

hawk 521

hen hawk 530.

jay 421

quail 593

snow goose 685

yellow-backed warbler 290
Blue and white herons 661
Blue-bill 701
Blue-bird

arctic 258

mexican 253

rocky mountain 258

western 258
Blue-birds 256, 257
Blue-eyed yellow warbler 298
Blue-fronted jay 422
Blue-gray gnat-catcher 261
Blue-headed

grackle 411

greenlet 333

quail dove 571

quake-tail 284

saw-bill 468
Blue-stocking 611
Blue-throat, red-spotted 258
Blue-throated redstart 258
Blue-throats 258
Blue -winged

teal 696

yellow warbler 293
Boat-billed heron 654
Boat-tailed

crow blackbird 412

grackle 412

Bobolink 400
Bob-white
Body pruper 92, 93 =
‘topography of 94
Bog-bull 664
Bog sucker 619
ae emian Waxwing 326
naparte’s rosy 751
Bonasa 584 an
betulina 578
sabinii 585
umbelloides 585
umbella 585
Bone, structure of 134
Bone-breaker 777
Bone-tissue 149
Bones
of the hind limb 118
of the wing 106
Bony basis of the tail 114
Books keey!
eeping, ornithol 22
Booted tarsus 124, 125 ‘as
Botaurine 654, 656, 663
Botaurus 664
mugitans 664
Boucard’s summer finch 375
Bow-billed thrasher 252
Bower-birds 224
Brachial plexus 177
Brachium-106
Brachyotus 507
Brachyrhamphus 812
brachypterus 814
craverii 814
hypoleucus 813
kittlitzi 813
marmoratus 813
Brain of birds 175, 176
Brandt’s
cormoaant 728

Breast-bone 143
Breech-loader 2
Brewer's
blackbird 411
sparrow 381
Brewster’s linnet 353
Bridal ducks 697
Bride 698
Bridled
tern 769
titmouse 265
Bristle-bellied

Broad-tailed hummi
Broad-winged buzzard 548
Bronchial syrinx 205
Bronchiales 205
Broncho-tracheal syrinx 205
Broncho-tracheales 205 ~
Bronzed

cowbird 403

crow blackbird 413
Brotherly-love greenlet 332
Brown crane 667

Brown

creeper 273

gannet 720

jay 419

‘lark 286

owls 508

thrush 251

towhee 397
Brown-back 622
Brown-backed oyster-catcher 606
Brown-headed

cactus wren 275

nuthatch 271

woodpecker 486
Bubo 503

arcticus 504

leptosteus 822

pacificus 504

saturatus 504

virginianus 504
Buboninz 503
Bucconide 446
Bucephala 704
Bucerotidae 212, 446
Budytes 284

flavus 284

taivanus 285
Buff flycatchers 443
Buff-breasted sandpiper 642
Buffle-head 705
Bugs 55

to destroy 57
Bulla ossea 50
Bull-bat 454
Bullfinch

cardinal 393

cardinals 393

cassin’s 344
Bullfinches 344

pine 343

purple 346
Bull-head 599
Bull-head plover 598, 599
Bullock’s oriole 409
Bulweria 780
Bulwer’s petrel 780
Bunting (see Finch)

bay-winged 364

black-throated 387

lark 386

le conte’s 366

painted 391

silk 387

snow 856

towhee 395

townsend’s 388

varied 391
Buntings (see Finches)

lark 386

towhee 395
Burion 347
Bush warblers 309
Bush-quails 571
Bush-tit

black-eared 268

least 268

plumbeous 268
Bush-tits 267
Bustard, gular pouch of 210
Bustards 597, 665
Butcher-bird 337
Buteo 541

abbreviatus 546

albocaudatus 542

albonotatus 546

bairdi 548

INDEX.

Buteo
borealis 544
brachyurus
_ calurus 545
cooperi 543
elegans 546
fuliginosus 549
gutturalis 548
harlani 543
harrisi 542
insignatus 548
krideri 545
lineatus 545
lucasanus 545
montanus 548
obsoletus 548
oxypterus 548
pennsylvanicus 548
swansoni 546
unicinctus 542
vulgaris 547
zonocercus 546
Buteoninx 541
Butter-ball 705
Butorides 665
virescens 662
Buzzard
american rough-legged 549
anthracite 552
band-tailed 546
broad-winged 548
common american 546-
cooper’s 543
ferrugineous rough-legged 551
fuliginous 549
gray star 551
gruber’s 553
harlan’s 543
harris’s 542
red-shouldered 545
red-tailed 544
rough-legged 549
swainson’s 546
turkey 559
western red-shouldered 546
white-tailed 542
Buzzards 541
anthracite 552
clawed 552
hare-footed 549
star 551.

CABINETS 56
Cacatuine 495
Cactus wren

brown-headed 275

st. lucas 275
Cactus wrens 274
Caducous parts of bill 103
Ceca or cecum 214
Cairina moschata 684
Calamospiza 386

bicolor 887
Calamus 84
Calandritine 281
Calcaneum 120
Calear 114, 133
Calico-back 609
Calidris 633

arenaria 633
California

clapper rail 672

condor 558

gnome owl 514

gull 745

Jay 424

835

California
partridge 592
sage sparrow 376
screech owl 506
squirrel hawk 551
thrasher 254
towhee 397
woodpecker 489
Caliology 227
Callichen 700
Calliope humming-bird 465
Callipepla 593
squamata 593
Calcenas nicobarica 563
Calothorax 466
lucifer 466
Calypte 464
anne 464
costee 464
Calyx of ovisac 221
Campephilus 479
principalis 479
Camphor 57
Camptolemus 706
labradorius 706
Campylorhynchine 274
Campylorhynchus 274
affinis 275
couesi 275
brunneicapillus 275
Canace 578
canadensis 578
falcipennis 578
franklini 579
fuliginosa 580
obscura 579
richardsoni 579
Canada
goose 688
grouse 578
jay 425
nuthatch 271
warbler 314
Cancroma cochlearia 654
Cancromide 654
Cane-gun 3
Cajion towhee 397
Cajion wren
dotted 276
mexican 276
speckled 276
Cafion wrens 276 fs
Canthus of eye 97,180
Cantores 204
Canvas-back 703
Cape may warbler 305
Cape pigeon 779
Capercaillie 578
Capitonida 446
Capitulum of rib 143
Caprimulgida 447
Caprimulginz 448
Caps for gun 4
Capsules, supra-renal 46
Caput 97
Caracara 539
Carau 668
Cardellina 314
rubra 314
Cardinal
bullfinch 393
grosbeak 393
red-bird 393
fiery-red 394
texas 393
Cardinalis 393

836

Cardinalis
igneus 394
Virginianus 393
Care of a collection 54
Cariama cristata 665
Cariamid 665
Carinx 103
Carinatz 238, 822
Carinate
birds 238
sternum 143
Carle 665
Carolina
chickadee 266
crake 673
dove 568
nuthatch 269
parroquet 496
rail 673
waxwing 327
wren 277
Carotid
arteries 197
canal 159
Carpal
angle 109
bones 106, 107, 108
Carpodacus 346
cassini 347
frontalis 347
purpureus 346
. rhodocolpus 348
Carpophaga 564
Carpus 106, 107, 108
Carrion crow 560
Cartilage 134
Cartridges 2
Caruncles 98
Caruncule 103
Casarca rutila 684
Cases for storage 56
Caspian tern 757
Cassidix 411
Cassin’s
bullfinch 344
greenlet 333
purple finch 347
sununer finch 374
tyrant flycatcher 433
Casuarius 170
Catarractes
affinis 825
antiquus 825
Cat-bird 250
Cathari-ta 560
atrata 560
Cathartes 558
aura 559
burrovianus 561
umbrosus 822
Cathartida 557
Cathartides 497, 557
Catharus 243
Catherpes 276
conspersus 276
mexicanus 276
punctulatus 276
Cat owl 503
Caudal vertebre 141
Cayenne tern 759
Cecomorphe 171
Cedar-bird 327
Cedar waxwing 327
Centre of gravity 91
Centrocereus 58
urophasianus 107, 580

INDEX.

Centrophanes 357
lapponicus 357
ornatus 358
pictus 358

Centrum of vertebrz 137

Centurus 487
aurifrons 488
carolinus a
uropygialis 488

Ceral 103

Cerato-bronchial 167

Cerato-hyal 167

Ceratorhina 805
monocerata 805

Cere 102

Cerebellum 175

Cerebral vesicles 175

Cerebro-spinal system 174

Cerebrum 175

Cereopsis nove-hollandiz 684

Certhia 273
americana 273
britannica 273
fusca 273
mexicana 273
montana 273
occidentalis 273
rufa 273

Certhiide 272

Certhiine 272

Certhiola 317
bahamensis 317
flaveola 316

Cerulean warbler 301

Cervical
region 96 -
ribs 138
vertebrze 92, 138

Cervix 96

Ceryle 469
aleyon 470
americana cabanisi 470

Ceyx 126, 127

Chachalaca 573

Cheetura 457
pelasgica 457
vauxi 458

Cheturinz 457

Chaffinch 339

Chalazx 222

Chalaziferous membrane 222

Chameaa 262
fasciata 262
henshawi 262

Chameida 262

Chameepelia 569
passerina 569
pallescens 569

Chaparral cock 474

Characters
anatomical 71
attypic 76
archetypic 76
embryological 70
etypic 76
prototypic 76
seasonal 71
teleotypic 76
valuation of 74
zoological 70

Charadriidz 597

Charadriinz 597

Charadriomorphe 171, 596

Charadrius 599
dominicus 599
fulvus 600

Charadrius
pluvialis 600
sheppardianus 823
virginicus 599

at
long-tailed 312
yellow-breasted 312
Chats 242, 256, 311
Chatterers 325
Chaulelasmus 693
streperus 693
Chauna 665
chavaria 665
derbiana 665
Cheek 98
Chelidon urbica 320
Chelonia 62
Chen 685
albatus 686
ceerulescens 685
hyperbcreus 685
rossi 686
Chenalopex xgyptiaca 684
Chenomorphe 677
Chenopsis atrata 682
Cherry-bird 327
Chestnut-backed titmouse 267
Chestnut-collared longspur 358
Chestnut-headed warbler 298
Chestnut-sided warbler 304
Chettusia 597
Chewink 396
Chiasm of optic nerves 176
Chickadee 265
carolina 266
long-tailed 266
mexican 266
mountain 266
western 266
Chicken hawk 528, 530, 545
Chimney
swallow 457
swift 457
Chip-bird 380
winter 379
Chipping sparrow 380
arizona 380
Chipping sparrows 379
hippy 380
Chlamydodera maculata 224
Cholornis 126, 127, 238
Chondestes 384
grammica 384
Chordediles 453
acutipennis texensis 454
henryi 454
minor 454
popetue 454
Choroid membrane 182
Chroicocephalus 749
atricilla 750
franklini 751
philadelphia 751

Ch

‘Chrysolophus 575

amherstie 575

pictus 575
Chrysomitris 353

pinus 354
Chrysotinz 495
Chuck-will’s- widow 451
Chunga burmeisteri 665
Chyme 212

-Cicatricle of egg 221

Ciceronia 806
Cichlopsis 328
Ciconiids 652

Ciconiiformes 653
Ciconiine 653
Ciliary
ganglion 177
ligament 183
muscle 183
processes 183
Cincinnati warbler 293
Cinereous
shearwater 784
snow-bird 379
song-sparrow 372
Cinclinae 242, 255
Cinclus 255
aquaticus 254
mexicanus 255
Cinnamon teal 696
Circe hummers 467
Circe humming-bird 467
Circine 521
Circle of willis 198
Circulatory system 195
Circumorbital region 97
Circus 521
hudsonius 521
cyaneus 522
Cistothorus 280
stellaris 280
Cladorhynchus pectoralis 610
Clamatores 239, 427
Clangula 704
albeola 705
glaucium 704
islandica 106, 119, 202, 704
Clapper rail 672
Clarke’s crow 418
Clark’s grebe 794
Class 72, 73
of birds 61
Classes of birds’ bills 101
Classification
of birds 59, 80
of N. Am. birds 234
machinery of 78
principles and practice of 65
morphological 66, 68
Clavicles 147
Clavicular process 146
Clawed buzzard 552
Claws
of foot 132
of wing 108, 114
Clay-colored sparrow 881
Cleavage
cavity 225
cell 224
Clefts, visceral 152
Cleido-trachealis 202
Cliff swallow 323
Climacteris 272
Clinoid walls 153
Cloaca 214
Cloud swifts 457
Cnemial process 119
Cobb 742
Coccothraustes 342
Coccygeal vertebra 114, 141
Coceygine 474
Coccygus 474
americanus 476
erythrophthalmus 475
seniculus 476
Coccyx 114, 142
Cochlea 151, 188
Cock
* chaparral 474

INDEX.

Cock sage 580
Cock of the plains 580
Coeca 214
Coecum 214
Coereba 317
Ceerebida 317
Coffin-carrier 742
Colaptes 491
aurato-mexicanus 113, 492
auratus 493
ayresi 492
chrysoides 493
hybridus 492
mexicanus 493
Coliida 446
Collar-bones 147
Collared woodpecker 490
Collecting
birds 1
nests and eggs 50
Collecting-chest 27
Collection, care of a 54
Collector, to be a good 9
Collectorship, hygiene of 19
Collocalia 224, 456
Collum 96
Colorado screech ow! 506
turkey 653
Columba 564
erythrina 565
fasciata 565 '
leucocephela 565
livia 565
cenas 565
palumbus 562
Columbe 561
Columbide 562
Columbine 564
Columbine birds 561, 562
Columella auris 185
Colymbidze 789
Colymbus 789
adamsi 790
arcticus 791
pacificus 791
septentrionalis 791
torquatus 789
Combatant 640
Combs 98
Commissural
line 105
point 105
Commissure 105
Common
atlantic shearwater 785 -
brown crane 667
caracara 539
cormorant 726
cow-bird 402
crow blackbird 413
european buzzard 547
gallinule 675
gannet 720
kittiwake 748
loon 789
puffin 802
quail of europe 595
rail 673
red-poll 352
savannah sparrow 363
sharp-tailed grouse 581
tern 762
« wild goose 688
Common american
buzzard 546
crow 417

837

Common american
gull 745
shrike 338
Complicate tail 118
Complications in skinning 34
Compressed tarsus 125
Conditions of environment 72
Condor, californian 558
Condyles
occipital 156
of femur 119
of humerus 107
Conirostral 101
Conjunctiva 179, 181
Conjuncto-carotiding 198
Connecticut warbler 309
Conscigusness 174
Conspecies 79
Contopus 438
borealis 438
pertinax 439
richardsoni 440
virens 439
Contour of a bird 91
Contour-feathers 85
Contractor trachez 202
Conurus 496
carolinensis 496
Cooper’s
buzzard 543
crested flycatcher 435
hawk 528
sandpiper 627
tanager 318
Coot
american 676
european 677°
sea 713, 714
Coot-foot phalaropes 614
Coot-footed tringa 614
Coots 676
Copper-tailed trogon 468
Coraciide 446
Coracoid bone 107, 146
Coracomorphe 172
Cormorant
baird’s 729
brandt’s 728
common 726
double-crested 727
florida 727 .
mexican 728
pallas’s 728
red-faced 728
tufted 728
violet-green 729
white-tufted 727
Cormorants 723
Corn crake 675
Cornea 179, 182
Corneous covering of bill 102
Cornua of hyoid 167
Corona 97
Coronoid process 166
Corpora bigemina 175
Corpus
callosum 176
striatum 175
Corrosive sublimate 57
Corvide 414
Corvinee 415
Corvus 415
caurinus 417
corax 416, 172
cryptoleucus 416
floridanus 417

838

Corvus
frugilegus 206
frugivorus 417
monedula 414
maritimus 417°
Cory’s shearwater 784
Coscoroba anatoides 682
Costa humming-bird 464
Costal process of sternum 148, 144
Costiferous part of sternum 145
Cotile 323
riparia 324
Cotton, use of 26
Coturniculus 365
henslowi 366
jecontii 366
manimbe 365
passerinus 365
perpallidus 366
Coturnix 594
dactylisonans 595
Couch’s flycatcher 434
Coues’ flycatcher 439
Courlan, scolopaceous 668
Courlans 667, 668
Coursers, night 449
Covering of bill 102
Coverts
tail 115
wing 110
Cowbird
brass 403
bronzed 408 .
common 402
dwarf 402
red-eyed 403
Cowbirds 401
Cracidze 572
Cracine 572
Crake
carolina 674
european-spotted 674
farallone black 674
little black 674
yellow 674
Crakes 673
Crane
common brown 667
northern brown 667
sandhill 667
white 666
whooping 666
Cranes etc. 665, 666
Cranial bones proper 160
nerves 175, 176
Craveri’s murrelet 814
Creeper
bahaman honey 317
black-and-white 290
brown 273
honey 316
mexican 273
small-billed 290
Creepers 272
Creeping warblers 290
Crescent swallow 323
Crested
auk 807
blue jays 421
rebe 794
apwing 605
titmice 264
Crested flycatcher
ash-throated 436
cooper's large-billed 435
great 434

INDEX.

Crested flycatcher
lawrence’s 436
rufous-tailed 435

Crested flycatchers 434

Crestless Mine jays 423

Crests of birds 99

Cretaceous birds 61, 62, 63, 825

Crex 674
pratensis 675
Crimson finch 346
Crimson-fronted finch 347
Crimson-headed tanager 319
Crissal
thrasher 255
towhee 397
Crissum 96
Criste 99 :
Crop of birds 212
Cross-bill
american red 349
mexican 350
white-winged 348
Cross-bills 348
Crossoptilon 575
Crotaphyte depression 157
Crotophaga 471
ani 472
sulcirostris 472
Crotophagine 471
Crow
blue 418
carrion 560
clarke’s 418
_common american 417
northwestern fish 417
southeastern fish 417
Crow blackbird 410
boat-tailed 412
bronzed 413
common 413
fan-tailed 412
florida 414
purple 413
Crow-duck 676
Crown of the head 97
Crown sparrow
intermediate 383
gambel’s 383
golden 383
hooded 384
white-browed 383
white-throated 382
Crown sparrows 381
Crows 414, 415
Crows, blue 418
Crura cerebri 175
Crural 119
feathers 123
Crus 119, 125
Crying-bird 668
Crypturi 574
Crystalline lens 183
Cuban
night-hawk 454
sparrow hawk 538
Cubit 107
Cuculide 470
Cuculiform birds 467
Cuculiformes 466, 467
Cuculus canorus 471
Cuckold 402
Cuckoo
black-billed 475
ground 474
mangrove 476
yellow-billed 476

Cuckoos 470
american 474
ground 478
tree 474

Culmen 104

Cultrirostral 101

Cuneiforme 106, 107, 108

Cupidonia 583
cupido 1238, 583
pallidicincta 584

Cupola 188 .

Curassows 572

Curlew
bristle-bellied 646
eskimo 646
hudsonian 645
jack 645
long-billed 645
otahiti 646
spanish 651

Curlew sandpipers 631

Curlews 618, 643

Cursorial foot 129,130 ”

Cursoriinze 597

Curve-billed thrasher 252

Cyanecula 258 -
succica 258

Cyanocitta
annectens 422
coronata 322
cristata 421
diademata 422
florincola 421
frontalis 422
macrolopha 422
stelleri 421

Cyclarhis 330

Cygnine 681

Cygnopsis cygnoides 684

Cygnus 682
bewicki 683
buccinator 682
columbianus 682
musicus 683
nigricollis 682
olor 681
paloregonus 824

Cymochorea 781
homochroa 781
leucorrhoa 781
melena 781

Cypselidz 455

Cypseliformes 446, 447

Cypseline 456

Cypselus 456
apus 87

Cytula 224

DABCHICK 797
Dacelonine 469
Dafila 692

acuta 692
Damier 779
Danger’s method 51
Daptium 779

capense 779
Daptrius 539 a
Dark-bodied shearwater 787
Darters 729
Darwinian logic 60
Day owl 511
Decomposition 39
Degrees of likeness 71
Demoiselle egrets 660
Dendragapus 578

Dendrocygna 689
subi natis 689
fulva 689
Dendreeca 296
adelaide 297
estiva 298
albilora 306
auduboni 302
aureola 297
blackburne 302
bryanti 298
capitalis 297
castanea 304
‘ chrysoparia 300
comies 301
ceerulescens 300
coronata 301
discolor 305
dominica 306
eoa et
ci 306
Rypochrysea 307
kirtlandi 306
maculosa 304
nigrescens 306
occidentalis 299
palmarum 307
pennsylvanica 304
petechia 297
pharetra 297
pinus 307
pityophila 297
striata 303
tigrina 305
townsendi 299
vieilloti 298
virens 298
Dendrortyx 588
Dentary bone 166
Dentirostral 101
Derby flycatcher 480
Dermestes lardarius 55
Design, evidences of 477
Desmameeba 192
Desmognathism 171, 172
Desmognathous skull 171
Determination of sex 45
Development
of feathers 82
of skull 151
Diabolic petrels 779
Diaphragm 198
Dispopliyses 137
jiatryma gigantea 825
Dichelophas 144
Dichroic egrets 661
Dichromanassa 661

rufa 661
Didactyle birds 126
Didi 562
Didunculus strigirostris 563
Didus ineptus 65, 562
Diedapper 797
Digestive system 209
Digiti 126
Digits

of foot 121, 128

of wing 106
Diglossa 317
Dinornithes 65
Dinosaurs 63, 821
Diomedea 774

brachyura 775

nigripes 775
Diomedeine 774
Dipper 705, 797

INDEX.

Dipper
american 255
european 254
Dippers 242, 254
Directions for using the keys 227
Discogastrula 225
Dissoura maguari 653
Distal phalanges 127
Distichous arrangement 114
Diurnal birds of prey 517
Diver
black-throated 791
great northern 789
pacific black-throated 791
red-throated 791
Diving birds 787
Dodo 65, 562
Dogs 9
Dolichonyx 400
oryzivorus 400
Domestic
duck 691
pigeon 565
Dorsal vertebra 139
Dorso-lumbar vertebre 140
Dorsum 94
Dotted cafion wren 276
Double-crested cormorant 727
Double-forked tail 117
Double-rounded tail 117
Dough-bird 646
Dove
blue-headed 571
carolina 568
ground 569
inca 570
key west 571
mourning 568
quail 571
scaled 570
‘sea 810
white-fronted 567
white-winged 569
wild 568
zenaida 569
Dovekie 810
Doves
dwarf 569
love 568
lustre 570
pin-tail 568
pin-wing 567
quail 571
shell 570
white-wing 569
Dowitcher 622
Down-feathers 86
Downy woodpecker 483
Draco 82
Drills for eggs 51
Dromzognathe 69, 170
Dromeognathism 168
Dromeognathous skull 169, 170
Dromeus 170
Drum of ear 185
Drumstick 119
Ducal tern 761
Duck
black 691
black-head 701
buffle-head 704
canvasback 703
crow 676
domestic 691
dusky 691
eider 708, 710, 712

839

Duck
florida dusky 692
693

gray
golden-eye 704
ro scaup 701
arlequin 707

labrador 706
lesser scaup 701
long-tail 706
pied 706
pin-tail 692
raft 700
red-head 702
ring-neck 701
rudder 715
ruddy 715
shoveller 696
summer 698
st. domingo 755°
surf 714
wild 691
white-winged surf 714
wood 698

Ducks
blackhead 699
bridal 699
eider 708
fishing 716
pintail 697
redhead 699
river 689
rudder 715
sea 698
spoonbill 696
surf 713
teal 694
tree 689

Duck hawk 534

“Dunlin

american 631
european 631
sandpipers 631

- Duodenum 213

Dura mater 176
Dusky

duck 691 .

horned owl 504

grouse 579

shearwater 786
Dusky-tailed humming-bird 466
Dwarf

bitterns 664

cowbird 402

doves 569
Dynamameebe 215, 218, 219
Dysporus 720

EAGLE
bald 555
golden 554
harpy 553
ring-tailed 554
sea 555
white-headed sea 555
white-tailed sea 555
Eagles 519, 541
fishing 554
golden 553
harpy 553
sea 554
Ear of birds 92, 184
Eared grebe
american 796
european 795
Eared owls 507

840

Eastern
bluebird 257
fox sparrow 385
hermit thrush 247
house wren 278
snow-bird 377
Eaves swallow 323
Kedysis 88
Ectoderm 226
Ectopistes 565
migratorius 566
Educabilia 76
Efferent nerves 174
Egg 216
anatomy of 222
Egg-drills 51
Egg-laying 223
Egg-pod 222 —
Egg-shell 223
reinforcing 53

Eggs
collecting 50
labeling 53
preparing 51
shapes of 223
Egret
great white 658
little white 660
louisiana 661
peale’s 661
reddish 661
Egrets
demoiselle 660
dichroic 661
Eider
spectacled 710
steller’s 709
european 710
american 712
acific 712
ing 712
Eiders, 708
Elzodochon 86
Elanoides 525
forficatus 526
Elanus 525
glaucus 525
Elbow-joint 106, 107
Elegant tern 760
Elf owls 515, 516
Emargination of remiges 112
Emberiza hortulana 401
Embernagra 398
rutivirgata 398
Embryological characters 70
Embryology 216, 224
Embryos 216, 217
extracting 52
Emperor goose 686
Empidonax 440
acadicus 441
difficilis 442
flaviventris 442
hammondi 443
minimus 442
obscurus 443
pusillus 442
meus 443
PRbvinidis 441
trailli 441
wrighti 443
Encephalon 175
Endoderm 226
cells 225
ndols angi 190
Endoskeleton 134

INDEX.

Endysis 88
English
pheasant 574
snipe 614, 621
sparrow 344
ings 567
albifrons 567
Environment, conditions of /2
Eocene birds 64
Epapophysis cerebri 175
Epiblast 226
Epibranchial 167
Epicleidium 147
Epidermic structures 82
Epididy mis 217
Epigastrium 96
Epiglottis 204, 210
Epignathous bills 101
Epiotic 157, 187
Epiphyses 134
Epipleural processes 142
Epipubic bone 149
Equilibration 190
Equivalence: of groups 73
Eremophila 281
alpestris 281
chrysolema 282
Jeucolema 282
Ereunetes 624
occidentalis 625
pusillus 624
Erismatura 715 +
rubida 715
Erythrocnema 542
Esacus 597
Eskimo curlew 646
Ethmoid 160
Etypic characters 76
Eudocimus 651
albus 651
ruber 651
Eugenes 461
fulgens 461
Euplocomus 575
Eupodotis austraJis 212
Eupsychortyx 588
European
black-tailed godwit 636
blue heron 658
coot 677
cuckoo 471
curlew 644
dunlin 631
eared grebe 795
eider duck 710
great white egret 659
golden plover 600
goshawk 529
cipal ee teal 695
awk owl 512
herring gull 743
jJackdaw 414
jay 419
ingfisher 469
Jand-rail 675
lesser ring plover 603
little white egret 660
mew gull 746
oyster-catcher 606
partridge 588
ring plover 603
snipe 621
sparrow ow] 5138
spoonbill 650
spotted crake 673
spotted woodpecker 477

European
whimbrel 645
white-fronted goose 684
wigeon 694
woodcock 620
wren 273
Eurynorhynchus 634
pygmeus 634
Eurypyga helias 665
Eustachian tube 158, 185, 210
Evening grosbeak 342
Everglade kite 523
Evidences of design 77 -
Evolution, theory of 60, 62, 66
Exanthemops 686
Exoccipital 156
Exoceetes 82
Exoskeletal structures 82
Exoskeleton 134
Explanation of frontispiece 236

Extension and flexion of wing 106,

109
Extensor muscles 199
“Extent? 24

Exterior of a bird 82, 92
Extinct birds 64

Eye 92, 178, 179
Eye-water 38

Eyes, glass 44

Faciau
bones 161
nerve 177, 187
Falcate bill 102
Falco 532
eesalon 537
candicans 533
columbarius 536
fusciceerulescens 539
yrfalco 532
isabellinus 538
islandicus 5382
labradora 533
lanarius 534
mexicanus 534
obsoletus 532
pealii 586
peregrinus 534
polyagrus 534
richardsoni 537
sacer 532
sparverioides 538
sparverius 537
suckleyi 537
Falcon
aplomado 539
femoral 539
peale’s peregrine 536
peregrine 534
tusty-crowned 537
Falconide 519
Falconinz 531
Falcons 519, 531
Fallopian nerviduct 187
False cere 102
Family 72, 73
Fan-tailed
crow blackbird 412
wrens 274
aia black crake 674
Fascize 192
Fat, fatness 37
Fatigue and hunger 20
Fauces 210
Feathered tracts 86°
Feather-leg sandpipers 628

Feathers 82, 84, 85, 109
Feet of birds 118
Females, full suites of 14
Femoral falcon 539
Femoro-caudal 195
Femur 119
Fenestra
ovalis 153, 154, 185
rotunda 185 °
Ferrugineous
buzzard 551
owl 514
sandpiper 632
Fibula 119
Fibulare 120
Field
lark 406
naturalist’s duties 21
ornithology 1
plover 598, 599, 641
sparrow 380
work 9
Fiery-red cardinal 394
Fighting sandpipers 640
Filoplumaceous feathers 85
Filoplumes 86
Finch
allen’s rosy 350
arizona summer 374
bachman’s summer 373
baird’s rosy 351
blanding’s 398
brandt’s rosy 351
boucard’s stunmer 375
bay-winged summer 375
black-throated 376
bell’s 376
cassin’s purple 347
cassin’s summer 374
crimson 346
crimson-fronted 347
florida sea-side 368
grass 364
green 398
house 347
illinois summer 373
indigo 391
lazuli 391
lincoln’s 370
nelson’s sharp-tailed 368
painted 391
_ pallas’s rosy 352
' pine 354
purple 346
purple painted 391
ridgway’s rosy 350
rufous-crowned summer 374
sea-side 367
sharp-tailed 368
_ swainson’s rosy 351
' western grass 365
Finches 339
painted 390
rosy 350
summer 373
Fire-bird 408
Fire-crowned. flycatchers 444
Fish ‘
crow 417

hawks 556 .

Fisher’s petrel 780
Fishing
ducks 716
eagles 554
Fissirostral 101
Fixtures 25, 27

INDEX.

Flag of hawks 123
Flamingoes 678
Flammulated owl 506
Flanks 95
Flaps of toes 98
Flesh-footed shearwater 785
Flexion of wing 106, 109
Flexor
digitorum perforatus 195
longus hallucis 193
muscles 109
Flicker 493
mexican 493
Flickers 491
Flight-feathers 88, 109, 111
Floceulus 176
Flocking fowl 701
Florida 661
barred owl 510
coerulea 661
cormorant 727
crow 417
crow blackbird 414
dusky duck 692 ©
allinule 675
eron 658
jay 423
quail 591
sea-side tinch 368
screech owl 506
wren 277
Flycatcher
acadian 441
arkansaw tyrant 433
ash-throated crested 436
black pewit 487
beardless 441
cassin’s tyrant 433
a large-billed crested
5

couch’s tyrant 434

coues’ 439

derby 430

dirty little 4438

forked-tailed 431

gray little 443

great crested 434

green-crested 441

hammond’s 443

lawrence’s crested 436

little buff-breasted 443

little western 442

least 442

olive-sided 438

pewee 437

pewit 437

rufous-tailed crested 435

say’s pewit 437

small green-crested 441

salphur-bellied striped 431

swallow-tailed 431

traill’s 441

vermilion 444

western wood pewee 440

western yellow-bellied 442

wood pewee 439

wright’s 443

yellow-bellied 442
Flycatchers

american 428

ash-throated 434

beardless 443

crested 434

derby 430

fire-crowned 444

King 432

841

Flycatchers
little olivaceous 440
pewit 436
rufous-tailed 434
striped 431
swallow-tailed 431
true tyrant 428
wood pewee 438
Flycatching thrush
townsend’s 329
Flycatching thrushes 328
Flycatching warbler
black-capped 313
canadian 314
hooded 313
painted 315
red-fronted 314
Flycatching warblers 312, 313
rose 314
Fly-snapper, shining 328
Fly-snappers 327
Fontanelles of sternum 144
Foot 118
integument of 124
modifications of 129
plumage of 122
Foramen
lacerum 160
magnum 156
of monro 175
ovale of skull 156
ovale of heart 196
Forceps 25, 52
Forearm 106, 107
Fork-tail petrels 781

gray 781
hornby’s 782
sooty 782
Forked-tailed
flycatcher 431
gull 753
Forms, generalized 76
specialized 76
Formulation of knowledge 78
Fornix 176
Forster’s tern 768
Fossa, nasal 104
Fossil birds 62, 821
cretaceous 825
jurassic 829
tertiary 822
Four-toed plover 598
Fowls 571, 573
pigeon-toed 572
true 573
Fox sparrow
eastern 385
large-billed 386
slate-colored 386
townsend’s 385
Fox sparrows 385
Francolinus 576
Franklin’s
rosy gull 751
spruce grouse 579
Fratercula 800
arctica 802
corniculata 801.
** glacialis 803
Fregetta 782
grallaria 783
Fresh-water
ducks 689
marsh hen 672
Frigates 730
Fringe-footed phalaropes 612

842

Fringilla ccelebs 339
Fringillide 339
Frontal
antiz 105
bone 156
Frontlets 99
Frontispiece, explanation ¢f 236
Fronto-facial hinge 156
Fulgent hummers 461
Fulica 676
+ americana 676
atra 677
Fulicina 676
Fuliginous buzzard 549
Fuligula 699. 700
affinis 701
americana 702
collaris 701
ferina 702
marila 701
rufina 700
vallisneria 703
Fuligulinz 698
Fulix 701
Fulmar 777
giant 777
pacific 778
rodgers’ 778
slender-billed 778
Fulmar shearwaters 783
Fulmars 777
gull 778
Fulmarus 777
glacialis 778
pacificus 778
rodgersi 778
Fulvous tree duck 689
Furcate. tail 117
Furculum 107, 147

GADFLY petrels 779
Gadwall 693
Gairdner’s woodpecker 483
Galbulide 446
Gall-bladder 215
Galeoscoptes 249
Gallinaceous birds 571
Galline 571, 823
Gallinago 615, 620

gallinula 622

ceelestis 622

media 621

wilsoni 621
Gallinula 675

galeata 675
Gallinule

common 675

florida 675

sultan 676
Gallinules 675

sultan 675
Gallinuline 675
Gallo-columbine series 571
Gallus bankiva 57.
Gambel’s S

crown sparrow 382 -

partridge 593
Gambetta 640
Gamin 344
Ganglia

of brain 175

of nerves 174
Gannet

brown 720

common 720

white 720

INDEX.

Gannets 720
Gape 105
Garrot 704
Garruline 419
Garrulus glandarius 419
Garzetta 659
candidissima 660
nivea 660
Gastornis
giganteus 825
parisiensis 64
Gastraum 94, 95
Gastrula 225
Gastrulation 225
Gavi 733
Geothlypis 310
macgillivrayi 311
philadelphia 311
trichas 310°
Geotrygon 570
martinica 571
Geranarchus 666
Geranomorphe 171
Germinal
spot 220
vesicle 220
Germination 224
Germ-yelk 224
Géant 65
Geese 683
barnacle 686
brant 686
gray 684
painted 686
snow 685
Gelochelidon 756
Gemitores 562
Gena 98
Genera 72, 73 7
General ornithology 59
Generalized forms 76
Generative organs 215
Genetic relations 78
Genio-hyoid 211
Genital glands 215
Genus 72, 73
Geococcyx 473
californianus 474
Geologic succession 62
Geopelia 564
Giant fulmar 777
Gigerium 213
Gila woodpecker 488
Gilded
woodpecker 493
woodpeckers 491
Ginglymus 121°
Gizzard 212
Glabrirostres 449
Gland, oil 86
Glareolide 597
Glass eyes 44
Glaucidium 514
ferrugineum 514
gnoma 514
passerinum 514
Glaucous gull 741
Glaucous-winged gull 741
Glenoid
cavity 146
process 146
Glosso-hyal bone 167
Glosso-pharyngeal nerve 177

ibises 649

Glottis 204, 210
Gnat-catcher
black-capped 261
blue-gray 260, 261
plumbeous 261
Gnat-catchers 242, 260
Gnathotheca 103
Gnome owl
californian 514
ferrugineous 514
Gnome owls 514
Goatsuckers 447

american black-tailed 636
european black-tailed 636
great marbled 6385
hudsonian 635
pacific bar-tailed 636
white-tailed 636
Godwits 616, 634
Golden 5
crown sparrow 382
eagle 554
eagles 553
pheasants 575 .
plover 599
robin 408
swamp warblers 291
Golden warbler 298
chestnut-headed 298
Golden-cheeked warbler 300
Golden-crested kinglet 260
Golden-crowned
accentor 308
thrush 308
wag-tail warbler 308
Golden-eye 704
Golden-winged woodpecker 493
Goldfinch
american 354
arizona 355
arkansaw 355
black-headed 356
lawrence’s 355
mexican 355
Goldfinches 354
american 354 -
Gold-tits 269
Gonys 103, 166
Goosander 716
Goose
american white-fronted 684
barnacle 687
black brant 688
blue snow 685
brant 687
canada 688
common wild 688
emperor 686
european white-fronted 684
hutchins’ 689
large white-cheeked 688
least snow 686
lesser snow 686
painted 686
ross’ 686
smaller white-cheeked 689
snow 685
Gorget hummers 461
Gorglets 99
Goshawk
american 530
european 529
western 531
Goshawks 530

Goura 563
Graafian follicle 220
Grace’s warbler 306
Grackle’

blue-headed 411

boat-tailed 412

brass 413

gra

e

Fusty 411

texas 412
Grackles 410

rusty 411
Gracuiavus

agilis 827

anceps 827

lentus 827

pumilus 826

velox 826
Graculus

idahensis 824

macropus 824
Gradation of tail 117
Grallatores altinares 648
Grallatorial

anseres 677

foot 129, 180
Granatellus 287, 311
Granulation of podotheca 125
Grass

quit 392

plover 641

sparrows 364
Grass finch 364

western 365
Grasshopper sparrow 365

henslow’s 366

le conte’s 366
Grasshopper sparrows 365
Grass-snipe 626
Gravity, centre of 91
Gray

duck 693

forked-tailed petrel 782

geese 684

greenlet 334

grouse 579

Jays 425 -

kingbird 433

little flycatcher 443

owls 508 = -

phalarope 614

ruffed grouse 585

shrikes 337

snipe 622

song sparrow 372

star buzzard 551

towhee 398
Gray-back 632
Gray-cheeked thrush 217
Gray-headed snowbird 379
Gray-winged gull 742
Great

black-backed gull 742

blue heron 657

carolina wren 277

crested flycatcher 434

egret herons 658

gray owl 509

herons 657

horned owl 503

marbled godwit 635

northern diver 789

northern shrike 337

white egret 658

white heron 658

INDEX.

Greater

coverts 110

longbeak 623

scaup duck 701

shearwater 785

telltale 638

titmouse 263

yellowshanks 638
Great-footed hawk 534
Grebe

american eared 796

american red-necked 794

crested 794

clark’s 794

european eared 795

horned 795

pied-billed 797

st. domingo 796

western 793
Grebes 792, 794

spear-bill 793

thick-bill 796
Green

finch 398

grackle 414

heron 662

jays 424

sandpiper 639
Green-backed humming-bird 463
Green-crested flycatcher 441
Green-head 691
Greenland

gyrfalcon 533

mealy red-poll 353
Greenlet

bell’s 335

black-capped 336

black-whiskered 332

blue-headed 333

brotherly love 332

cassin’s 333

gray 334

hutton’s 334

least 335

plumbeous 334

ted-eyed 331

solitary 333

stephens’ 335

yellow-green 332

yellow-throated 333

warbling 332

western warbling 333

white-eyed 334
Greenlets 329
Green-shanks 639
Green-tailed towhee 398
Groove-billed ani 472
Grosbeak -

black-headed 389

blue 390

cardinal 393

evening 342

pine 343

rose-breasted 389
Grosbeaks 340

blue 390

cardinal 393

song 388
Ground

cuckoos 473

doves 566, 569

sparrows 360

warblers 310
Groups

higher than genera 234

taxonomic equivalence of 73

843

Groups
zoological 72
Grouse 576, 577
black 578
blue 579
canada 578
common sharp-tailed 581
dusky 579
franklin’s spruce 579
gray 579
gray ruffed 585
northern sharp-tailed 579
oregon ruffed 585
pale pinnated 584
pine 579
pinnated 583
pin-necked 583
pin-tailed 581
red ruffed 585
richardson’s dusky 579
rocky mountain snow 583
ruffed 584, 585
sage 580
sharp-tailed 581
snow 585
sooty 580

a spotted 578

spruce 578
tree 578
willow 586
Gruber’s buzzard 553
Gruidz 666
Gruiformes 666
Grus
americana 203, 666
canadensis 203, 667
fraterculus 667
haydeni 823
pratensis 667
proavus 823
Guan, texan 573
Guans 573
Guillemot
black 814
briinnich’s 818
californian 817
common 816
pigeon 815
sooty 815
spectacled 815
thick-billed 817
Guillemots 810, 816
Guinea-fowl 574
Guiraca 390
coerulea 390
Gula 96
Gular 96
Gular pouch 210
Gull

american herring 748
american mew 746
black-headed 750
bonaparte’s rosy 751
californian 745
common american 745
european herring 743
european mew 746
fork-tailed 753
franklin’s rosy 751
glaucous 741
glaucous-winged 741
gray-winged 742
great black-backed 742
ice 741, 749

ivory 749

kittiwake 748

844

Gull
laughing 750
pallas’s 744
swallow-tailed 753
reinhardt’s 745
ring-billed 745
ross’ rosy 753
western herring 744 °
white-headed 747
white-winged 741
Gull fulmars 778
Gulls 733, 739, 740
forked -tailed 758
hooded 749
ice 749
ivory 749
rosy 749
skua 734
wedge-tail 752
Gull-billed tern 757
Guns 1, 5, 6, 7
Gustation 191
Guttur 96
Gygis alba 755
Gymnocitta 418
cyanocephala 418
Gypetus barbatus 519
Gyparchus papa 557, 561
Gypogeranides 497
Gy pogeranus serpentarius 497
Gypohierax angolensis 519.
Gyrantes 562
Gyrfalcon
american continental 532
american lanner 534
greenland 533
iceland 533
labrador 532
Gyrfalcons 532
Gyps fulvus 519
Gypsum 27

HMaL

arch 136

spine 137
Hamapophyses 137
Hematameba cruentata 196
Hematic system 195
Hematopodide 606
Hematopus 606

niger 607

ostrilegus 606

palliatus 606
Hematothermal 196
Hair-bird 380
Hairy woodpecker 483
Half-webbed foot 131
Haliaétus 554

albicilla 555

leucocephalus 555

pelagicus 555
Haliplana 756
Hallux 128
Halocyptena 780

microsoma 780
Halodroma 732
Halodromine 773, 774
Halones of egg 222
Hammond's flycatcher 443
Hamulate bill 102
Hamuii 84
Hang-nest 408
Harderian gland 179, 181
Hare-footed buzzards 549
Harelda 706

glacialis 706

INDEX.

Harlan’s buzzard 548
Harlequin
duck 707
quail 594
Harpagornis 65
Harporhynchus 250
bendirii 252
cinereus 253
crissalis 254
curvirostris 252
lecontii 254
longirostris 251
palmeri 252
redivivus 253
rufus 251
Harpy eagle 553
Harriers 521
Harris’s
buzzard 542
sparrow 384
woodpecker 483
Haunch bones 148
Haversian canals 134
Hawfinches, american 342
Hawk
american marsh 521
black 549
blue 521
california squirrel] 551
chicken 528, 580, 545
cooper's 528
cuban sparrow 538
duck 534
fish 556
great-footed 534
hen 530
isabel sparrow 538
marsh 521
pigeon 528, 536
richardson’s pigeon 5387
sharp-shinned 528
sparrow 537
winter 545
Hawk owl 511
american 511
european 511
Hawks 519, 526
sharp-shinned 527
Head of birds 92, 97
Hearing, sense of 184
Heart 196
Heel 120
Heermann’s song sparrow 372
Heliornithide 666
Helmet
hummers 464
quail 591
Helmintherus 291
swainsoni 292
vermivorus 291
Helminthophaga 292
Helminthophila 292
bachmani 294
celata 295
chrysoptera 294
cincinnatiensis 293
lawrencii 293
leucobronchialis 293
lucize 294
peregrina 295
pinus 293
ruficapilla 294
virginia 294
Heloise humming-bird 465
Hemiglottides 648
Hemipodii 571, 572

Hemispheres of brain 175
Heniconetta 709
Hen hawk 544
Hen, sage 580
Hens, marsh’ 671
Henshaw’s wren-tit 262
Henslow’s y
bunting 366
grasshopper sparrow 366
Hepatic tanager 318
Heredity 66
Hermit
thrush 247
warbler 299
Herodiz 648
Herodias 658
alba 659
egretta 658
Herodii 654
Herodiones 647
Heron
black-crowned night 662
european blue 658
florida 658
great blue 657
great egret 658
great white 658
fee 662
‘ittle blue 661
little white 661
night 662, 663
snowy 660
wiirdemann’s 658
Herons 654
and their allies 647
blue and white 661
great 657
great egret 658
green 662
small egret 659
night 662
thick-bill night 663
true 657
Herpetotheres 519
Herring gull 743
american 743
european 743
Hesperocichla 243
Hesperophona 342
vespertina 342
Hesperornis 63
crassipes 827
gracilis 827
regalis 63, 826
Heteroccelous vertebrae 138
Heterodactyli 446
Heteroscelus 643
incanus 643
Hiator 652
eae 493
“

igh,” in scale of organization 77

Himantopus 611
nigricollis 611
Himantornis hematopus 670
ind

limb 118

toe 128
Hip-joint 118
Hirundinide 319
Hirundo 321

erythrogastra 322

horreorum 322

rustica 319
Histrionicus 707

minutus 707
Hobbies 582

Holbdll’s red-poll 353
Holoblastic eggs 220
Holorhinal 165
Holothecal podotheca 125
Homalogonatous birds 195
Homology 67,68 —
Honey creeper, bahaman 317
Honey creepers 317
Hooded

crown sparrow 384

flycatching warbler 318

merganser 718

oriole 409
Hoodlum 344
Hooklets of feathers 84
Hooks, for eggs 52
Hoot owl 503, 509
Hoplopterus 597, 669
Horn-bill auk 805
Horned

tebe 795

ark 281

owl, 504 |

puffin 801

screamers 665

wavy 686
Hornby’s petrel 782
Horns of hyoid bone 167
Horny integument of foot 124

martin 320

sparrow 344

wren 278
Hudsonian

cutlew 645

godwit 635

titmouse 267
Humero-scapulare 145
Humerus 106, 107
Hummers

amazili 466

attic 465

circe 467

fulgent 461

gorget 461

helmet 464

lightning 462

lucifer 466

queen 460

starry 465

xantus 460
Humming-bird

allen 463

alexander 462

anna 464

broad-tailed 463

ealliope 465

circe 467

costa 465 -

dusky-tailed 466

heloise 465

lucifer 466

red-backed rufous 462

refulgent 461

ruby-throated 461 |

rufous-bellied 466

xantus 460
Humming-birds 458
Hunger and fatigue 20
Huschke’s process 189
Hutchins’ goose 689
Hutton’s greenlet 334
Hyacinths 675
Hyaloid membrane 184
Hybrid snow-bird 378

INDEX.

Hydralector 669
Hydranassa 660

tricolor 661
Hydrophasianus 669
Hygiene of collectorship 19
Hylocichla 80
Hylophilus 330
Hylotomus 480

pileatus 480
Hymenolemus malacorhynchus 699
Hyous bone 153, 167

ypapophysis 137

cerebri 175
Hy poblast 226
Hypochondria 95
Hypocleidium 146, 147
Hypoglossal nerve 177
Hypognathous bill 101
Hyporhachis 84
Hypositta 269

Tacue 467
latirostris 467
Ibidorhyncha struthersi 618
Ibides 648
Ibidide 648
Ibis series 648
Ibis
glossy 649
scarlet 651
white 651
white-faced 651
glossy 649
wood 653
Ibises 648
glossy 649
scarlet 651
white 651
wood 652
Ibycter 539
Ice gulls 749
Iceland gyrfalcon 533
Ichthyopsida 60
Ichthyornis 68, 64, 70, 77, 237
agilis 827
anceps 827
celer 826
lentus 827
tener 828
validus 828
victor 828
Icteria 312
longicauda 312
virens 312
Icteridze 399
Icteriine 288, 311
Icterinz 406
Icterus 407
affinis 408
auduboni 410
bullocki 409
cucullatus 409
galbula 408
melanocephalus 410
parisorum 409
spurius 407
vulgaris 407
Ictinia 523
subceerulea 523
—ide (suffix) 78
Ideal plan of vertebra 135
Tlium 148, 213
Tllinois summer finch 373
Imperial tern 757
Impeyans 575

845

Implements for collecting 1
- ine (suffix) 78
Inca dove 570
Inca mystacalis 755
Incubation 226
Incumbent hallux 128
Indian hen 664
Indicatoridee 446
Indigo painted finch 391
Indigo-bird 391
Infra-orbital region 97
Infundibulum

of ear 188

of oviduct 221
Ingluvies 212
Innominate bone 148
Insect pests 55
Insessores 238
Insessorial foot 129
Insistent hallux 128
Instruments 25

for eggs 51
Integument of foot 124
Interclavicle 147
Intermaxillary bone 100, 164
Intermediate crown sparrow 382
Intermedium 120
Internasal plate 151
Internodes of foot 121
Interorbital septum 153
Interramal space 97, 104
Interscapulare 95
Intestine 213
Tonornis 675

martinica 676
Ipswich savanna sparrow 361
Iridoprocne 322

Dicolor 322
Tris of eye 183
Iris swallows 3822
Isabel sparrow hawk 538
Ischiac artery 199
Ischium 148
Isomeres 229, 233
Isotomes 229, 233
Isthmus of oviduct 222
Ivory gull 749
Ivory-billed woodpecker 479
Tyngide 446
Tynx torquilla 105

JABIRU 653
american 653
Jacana, mexican 669

Jacanas 669

Jack curlew 645

Jackdaw 412
european 414

Jack-snipe 621, 626

er
arctic 738
longed-tailed 738
parasitic 736
pomatorhine 735

Jagers 734

Japanese murrelet 812

Jaw-bone 166

Jaws of birds 100

Jay
alaskan 425
arizona 425
blue 421
blue-fronted 422
black-headed 422
brown 419

846

Jay
california 424
canada 425
crested blue 421
erestless blue 423
florida 423
long-crested 422
oregon 425
rio grande 424
rocky mountain 425
smutty-nosed 425
steller’s 421
woodhouse’s 423
Jays 414, 419
brown 419
crested blue 421
oe blue 423
Ta 5
Dea 424
Jejunum 218
J erfalcon see gyrfalcon

bone 162
Jugulum 96
Junco 377
aikeni 378
annectens 379
caniceps 379
cinereus 379
connectens 378
dorsalis 379
hiemalis 377
oregonus 378
Jurassic birds 61, 62, 829

KaDIAk song sparrow 372
Kagu 665
Kennicott’s
screech ow] 505
warbler 259
Kentucky warbler 310
Kestrels 532
Key
to the families 231
to the orders 230
Key west dove 571
Keys
artificial 227
directions for using 227
Kidneys 317
Kildeer plover 600
King
eider 712
rail 672
King-bird 4382
gray 433
Kingfisher
belted 470
texan green 470
Kingfishers 468
elted 469
piscivorous 469
Kinglet
golden-crested 260
ruby-crowned 259
western golden-crested 260
Kinglets, 242, 259
Kirtland’s warbler 306
Kitchenmiddens 64

ite
black-shouldered 525
everglade 523
mississippi 524
swallow-tailed 526

INDEX.

Kite
white-tailed 525
Kites 522
lead 523
pearl 525
sickle-billed 523
swallow-tailed 525
Kittiwake
common 748
kotzebue’s 748
red-legged 748
short-billed 748
Kittiwakes 747
Kittlitz’s murrelet 813
Knee 120
cap 119
joint 119
Knives 25, 52
Knob-nosed auk 808
Knot 632
Kotzebue’s kittiwake 748
Krider’s red-tail 545

LABELLING, 21, 23, 53, 79
Labels 23, 24
Labrador

duck 706

gyrfalcon 532
Labyrinth

of ear, 187, 188, 190

of trachea 50, 202
Lacrymal

bone 165

duct 179

gland 179, 181
Lacteals 199

Ladder-backed three-toed wood-

pecker 485
Lady of the waters 661
Levo-carotidine 198
Lagena 189
Lagopus 585
albus 48, 586
atkensis 588
leucurus 588
mutus 588
reinhardti 588
rupestris 587
scoticus 577
Laletes osburni 330
Lamellate bill 102
Lamellirostral 101
Lamellirostres 677, 824
Lamina
spiralis 188
terminalis 175
Laminz of tarsus 125
Laminiplantar tarsus 125
Laminiplantation 126
Lampornis mango 459
Land rails 674
Laniide 336
Laniine 336
Lanius 337
borealis 337
excubitorides 338
ludovicianus 338
Lanner, american 534
Lanners 532
Laopteryx priscus 829
Laornis edvardsianus 828
Lapland longspur 357
Lap ow! 509
Lapwing, crested 605
Lapwings 604

| Large-billed

fox sparrow 386
puffin 803
wag-tail warbler 309
Larger white-cheeked goose 688
Laride 733
Larine 739
Lark ’
bunting 387
finch 384
savanna sparrow 363
sparrows 384
Lark
brown 286
field 406
horned 281
meadow 406
meadow mexican 406
meadow western 406
shore 281
western 282
southwestern 282
sky 282, 283
Larks, 280
meadow 405
Larus 740
affinis 745
argentatus 743
brachyrhynchus 745
cachinnans 744
californicus 745
canus 745
delawarensis 745
glaucescens 741
glaucus 741
heermanni 747
kumlieni 742
leucopterus 741
marinus 742
occidentalis 744
smithsonianus 743
Larve of insects 55
Larynx 202
lower 204
Latitores 665
Laughing gull 750
Law of priority 80
Lawrence’s
crested fly-catcher 436
goldtinch 355
stilt petrel 783
warulee 293
Lawyer 611
Lazuli painted finch 391
Leach's petrel 781
Lead kites 523
Least
auk 808
bittern 664
bush-tit 268
flycatcher 442
greenlet 3835
petrel 780
sandpiper 625
snow goose 686
tern 766
Le conte’s
bunting 366
” grasshopper sparrow 366
e;
7 plumage of 122
relative length of 123
Leguatia gigantea 65
Length of leg, relative 123
“Lengths” of parts 24, 25,
Leptosomatide 446

y

Lesser
coverts 110
scaup duck 701
snow goose 686
tell-tale 638
Lestornis crassipes 827
Lestridine 734
Leucocytes 196
Leucosticte 350
arctoa 352
atrata 350
australis 350
riseinucha 351
itoralis 351
tephrocotis 351
Lewis’ woodpecker 490
Lightning hummers 462
iatereas degrees of 71
Limicola platyrhyncha 617
Limicolz 596, 823
Limosa 616, 634
zgocephala 636
foeda 635
hemastica 635
lapponica 636
nove-zealandiz 636
uropygialis 636
Limpkin 668
Lincoln’s song sparrow 370
Lingula 151
Lining of wings 110, 111
Linnet
brewster’s 353
pine 354
Linnets 340, 353
red-poll 352
Linota 353
flavirostris brewsteri 353
Little
black crake 674
black-headed duck 701
blue heron 661
buff flycatchers 443
horned owls 504
olivaceous flycatchers 440
seed-eater 392
western flycatcher 442
white egret 660
heron 661
Liver 215
Lobate foot 131
Lobation 131
‘Lobe-foot phalarope 613
Lobes 98
Lobipes 613
hyperboreus 618
Lobivanellus 597, 669
Loddigesia
mirabilis 115
Loggerhead shrike 338
Lomvia 816
affinis 825
arra 817
antiqua 825
californica 817
svarbag 818
troile 816
Long-billed
curlew 645
marsh wren 279
Long-crested jay 422
Long-eared owl 507
Long-exserted tail-feathers 116
Longirostral 101
Longipennes 732, 825
Long-legged tattler 688

INDEX.

Long-shanks 611
Longspur
lack-breasted 359
black-shouldered 358
bay-winged 359
chestnut-collared 358
lapland 357
painted 358
white-tailed 358
Long-spurs 357, 359
Long-tailed
chat 312
chickadee 266
duck 706
jager 738
Long-winged swimmers 732
Loon
black-throated 791
pacific black-throated 791
red-throated 791°
yellow-billed 780
Loons 789
Loose plumage 36
Lophodytes 716
Lopholimus 564
Lophophanes 264
atrocristatus 265
bicolor 264
inornatus 264
wollweberi 265
Lophophorus 575
Lophortyx 591
californica 592
gambeli 893
Lophosteon 143
Loral 98
Lords and ladies 708
Lore 98
Lorum 98
Louisiana
clapper rail 672
egret 661
pipit 286
water thrush 309
Love doves 568
‘Low’? in scale of organization 77
Lower larynx 204
Loxia 348
americana 349
ieucoptera 348
mexicana 350
Loxiine finches 340
Lucifer
hummers 466
humming-bird 466
Lucy’s warbler 294
Lumbar vertebra 140
Lunda 803
cirrata 804
Lungs of birds 200
Lustre doves 570
Lymph 199
Lymphatic system 195
Lymphatics 199
Lyre-bird 116
Lyrurus tetrix 578

Macartneys 575
Macgillivray’s warbler 311
Machetes 640

ugnax 640
Machinery of classification 78
Macrodactyli 665

Macropygia 564
Macrorhamphus 622 '

847

Macrorhamphus
griseus 622
scolopaceus 622
semipalmatus 616

Magnolia 304

Magnum 107

Magpie 420
yellow-billed 421

Magpies 420

Maize-thief 404

Mala 98 ,

Malacorhynchus membranaceous
690

Malar region 98

Mallard 690, 691

Malleus 162

Mammalia 60, 69

Mandible 100, 166
under 103 ‘
upper 104

Mangrove cuckoo 476

Mantle 95

Man-of-war bird 781

Manubrium 144

Manus 106, 108

Manx shearwater 786,

Marbled murrelet 813

Marble-wing sandpiper 642

Mareca 693
americana 694
penelope 694

Marginal fringes of toes 181

Marlin 635
ring-tailed 636

Marsh
blackbird 404
blackbirds 400, 403
hawk 521
hen 672
hens 671
owls 507
robin 396
tern 757
wren 279, 280
wrens 279, 280

Marsupium 184

Martin
house 320
purple 325
sand 324

Maryland yellow-throat 310

Marked woodpeckers 483

Masking puffins 800

Massena partridge 594

Materialization 174

Materials for taxidermy 25, 26

Matrix of feathers 82

Maxilla 98

Maxillary

« bone 162
line 98

Maxillo-palatine
bar 152
bone 162

Meadow
pipit 285
starlings 405

Meadow lark 406
mexican 406
western 406

Meadow-wink 400

Mealy red-poll 353
american 353
greenland 353

Measurements, directions for 24

Meatus auditorius 97, 158

848

Meatus
externus 185
internus 187
Mechanism
of leg-bones 121
of wing-bones 106, 107, 108
Meckel’s
cartilage 166, 152
ganglion 177
Median coverts 110
Medio-palatine ossification 173
Medio-tarsal joint 121
Mediterranean shearwater 784
Medulla .
oblongata 175
spinalis 176
Megapodide 572
Megapodius 572
Melanerpes 489
' angustifrons 490
bairdi 490 *
erythrocephalus 489
formicivorus 489
Meleagridida 576
Meleagris 576
altug 823
americana 576
antiquus 823
celer 823
gallipavo 576
superbus 823
Melittarchus 432
Melopelia 569
leucoptera 569
Melospiza 369
cinerea 372
fallax 3872
fasciata 371
guttata 372
hermanni 372
lincolni 370
palustris 370
*rufina 872
samuelis 372
Members of birds 92, 100
Membrana :
putaminis 222
tympani 154
Mem cations labyrinth 188, 189
Meninges of brain 175
Mentum 98
Menura superba 116°
Merganser
ooded 718
red-breasted 49, 717
Mergansers 716
Mergine 716
Mergus 716
cucullatus 718
merganser 716
serrator 717
Merlin, american 587
Merlins 532
Meroblastic eggs 221
Meropide 446
Merry-thought 147
Merula 245
Mesencephalon 175
Mesethmoid 160
Mesoblast 226
Mesometry 221
Mesomyodi 427
Mesomyodian 205, 289
Mesozoic 62
Messina quail 595
Metacarpus 106, 107

INDEX.

Metagnathous bills 101
Metatarsal

accessory 121

bones 121

spurs 133
Metatarsus 119
Metencephalon 175
Metopodius 669
Metosteon 144
Metovum 221
Mexican

bluebird 258

brown towhee 397

cafion wren 276

chickadee 266

cormorant 728

creeper 273

cross-bill 350

flicker 493

goldfinch 355

jacana 669

meadow lark 406

snow-bird 379
Miasm 19 7
Micraster 519
Micrathene 515

whitneyi 516
Micropalama 623

himantopus 623
Migratory quail 595
Milvago 539
Milvine 522
Milvulus 431

forficatus 431

tyrannus 431
Milvus 523
Mimine 242, 248
Mimus 249 i

carolinensis 250

polyglottus 250
Miocene birds 64
Mississippi kite 524
Missouri titlark 286
Mitrephanes 448

fulvifrons pallescens 448
Mitrephorus 443

pallescens 443
Mniotilta 290

borealis 290

varia 290
Moas 65, 825
Mockers 249
Mocking-bird 250

mountain 249
Mocking thrushes 242, 248
Modiolus 188
Molothrus 401

eeneus 403

ater 402

obscurus 402
Momotidex 468
Momotus ceruleiceps 468
Monerula 224

onogamy 226

Moose-bird 425
Morelet’s pygmy finch 392
Morphological classification 66, 68
Morphology 67
Motacilla 284

alba 284

ocularis 284
Motacillida 283
Motacillinee 284
Moths 55
Motor nerves 174
Mottled owl 505

Mound-birds 572
Mountain
chickadee 266
plover 604
mocking-bird 249
quail 591
sparrow 345
Mounting birds 40
Mourning
dove 568
warbler 311
Mouth 92, 210
Mucronate tail-feathers 116
Mud-hen 672
white-billed 676
Mud-hens 675
Mud swallow 323
Miillerian ducts 215
Mummification 47
Murte 816
Murrelet
black-throated 811
craveri’s 814
kittlitz’s 813
japanese 812
marbled 813
short-winged 814
white-bellied 818
Murrelets
nipper-nosed 811
peaked-nosed 812
Murres 810, 816
Muscicapa
acadica 441
fulvifrons 443
querula 441
subviridis 441
Muscles of birds 192, 194
Muscular
sense 191
system 192
tissue 192
Musophagide 446
Mute swan 681
Mutilation 38
Muzzle-loader 2
Mycteria 653
americana 653
Myelencephalon 175
Myiadestes 329
townsendi 329
Myamecba
levis 192
striata 192
Myiarchus 434
cinerescens 436
cooperi 435
crinitus 434
erythrocercus 435
lawrencii 436
mexicanus 436
Myiodioctes 318
canadensis 314
mitratus 313
pileolatus 314
pusillus 313

_ Myiodynastes 431

luteiventris 481
Myiozetetes texensis 430
Mylo-hyoid 211 |
Myology 192
Myrtle bird 301

Natt of bill 102
Nails of toes 132
Names, scientific 78

Nape 96
Nares 104, 178, 210
Narrow-fronted woodpecker 490
Nasal

bones 165

fossa 104

gland 178

scale 105

turbinal 173
Nashville warbler 294
Natatorial foot 129, 181
Natural

affinities 72

selection 66
Nauclerus 526
Neck 92, 96
Neochloe 330
Neocorys 286

spraguii 286
ee percnopterus 519
Nepheecetes 457

niger borealis 457
Nerve-tissue 174
Nervous system 174
Nesonetta aucklandica 699
Nestor productus 65
Nests antl eggs, collecting 50
Nests, plea for study of 54
Netting birds 4
Nettium 695
Neural

arch 185°

spines 137
Neurapophyses 137
Neurology 174
Neuramceba

candida 174

cinerea 174
Nevada sage sparrow 376
New york water thrush 309
Nictitating membrane 179, 180
Nidification 227
Night heron

black-crowned 662

yellow-crowned 663
Night herons 662, 663
Night-courser, white-throated 450
Night-coursers 449
Night-hawk

cuban 454

texan 454

western 454
Night-hawks 453
Nightingale, virginian 393
Night-jar 452
Night-jars 448

american 450
Nipper-nosed murrelets 811
Nocturnal birds of prey 498
Noddies 771
Noddy tern 771
Nomenclature 78

binomial 79

rules of 80

trinomial 80
Nomonyx 715

dominica 715
Non-melodious passeres 427
Nonpareil 391

western 391
Nootka humming-bird 462

+ North american birds
classification of 234

INDEX.

North american birds

systematic synopsis of 237
Northern

black cloud swift 457

brown crane 667

phalarope 613

sharp-tailed grouse 581

shrike 337
Northwest tish crow 417
Nostrils 104
Noteum 94
Notiocorys 285
Notochord 151
Notornis 143
Nucha 96
Nuchal

bone 725

region 96

woodpecker 486
Nucifraga caryocatactes 418
Number

of phalanges 127

»of toes 126
Numbering of toes 127
Numenius 618, 648

arquatus 644

borealis 646

hudsonicus 645

longirostris 645

pheopus 645

taitensis 646
Numida meleagris 574
Numidide 574
Nutcracker

american 417

brown-headed 271
Nuthatch

canadian 271

carolina 270

european 270

pygmy 271

red-bellied 271

slender-billed 271

white-bellied 270
Nuthatches 269

typical 270
Nuttall’s

poorwill 453

woodpecker 482
Nyctala 512

acadica 513

albifrons 513

richardsoni 512

tengmalmi 512
Nyctea 510

scandiaca 510
Nycterodius 663

violaceus 663
Nyctiardea 662

grisea nevia 662
Nyctibiinz 448
Nyctidromus 449

albicollis 450

OAK-WooDs sparrow 373

| Obliquus

inferior 181

superior 181
Observations, record of 21
Obturator foramen 149
Occipital

bone 156

condyles 156

style 725
Occiput 97
Oceanites 782

64

849

Oceanites oceanicus 782
Oceanodroma 782

furcata 782

hornbyi 782
Oculi-motor nerve 177
Ocydrominz 670
Ocyphaps 564
Odontoglossz 677
Odontoid process 139
Odontolcx 63, 238, 821
Odontophorinz 588
Odontophorus 588
Odontornithes 821
Odontotorme 68, 237, 821
Gidemia 713

americana 713

fusca 714

perspicillata 714

trowbridgii 715

velvetina 714
Cidicneminz 597
Q@sophagus 211
Cstrelata 779

bulweri 780

fisheri 780

gularis 780

hesitata 779
Oil-gland 86
Old-field lark 406
Old-squaw 706
Old-wife 706
Old world

partridges 594

quail 594

vultures 519
Olecranon 107
Olfaction 178
Olfactory

foramen 160

lobes 175

nerves 176
Olivaceous flycatchers 440
Olive warbler 296
Olive-backed thrush 248
Olive-black towhee 396
Olive-sided flycatcher 438
Olor 682
Omos 106
Onychotes 552

gruberi 553
Ontogeny 71
Odlogy

described 215

study of 50
Odphoron masculinum 218
Opetiorhynchus 205
Ophthalmic nerve 177
Opisthocelous vertebra 138
Opisthocomi 571 :
Opisthocomus cristatus 143, 571
Opisthotic bone 157, 187
Oporornis 309

agilis 809

formosa 310 |
Optic

foramina 159

lobes 175, 176

nerves 176, 184

thalami 175
Orange-crowned warbler 295
Orbicularis oculi 180
Orbit of eye 97, 179
Orbital

process of quadrate 162

region 97
Orbito-nasal septum 160

850

Orbito-sphenoid 158
Orchard oriole 407
texas 407
“Order 72, 73
Oregon
jay 425
olive-backed thrush 247
snow-bird 378
song sparrow 372
robin 245
ruffed grouse 585
towhee 396
Oreophasinez 572
Oreophasis derbianus 572
Oreophilus totanirostris 597
Organization, scale of 77
Organs
of circulation 195
of digestion 209
of generation 217, 219
of locomotion 109
of respiration 199
of special senses 174
Oriole
audubon’s 410
baltimore 408
black-and-yellow 409
black-headed 410
bullock’s 409
hooded 409
orchard 407
aris’ 409
exas orchard 408
Orioles 406, 407
Ornithichnites 62
Ornithium 443
imberbe 444
Ornitholite 63
Ornithological book-keeping 22
Ornithology detined 59
Ornithoscelida 62
Orortyx 591
picta 591
Oroscoptes 249
montanus 249
Ortalis 573
' -vetula maccalli 573
Ortolan
(reed-bird) 401
(sora or rail) 673
Ortyx 589
floridana 591
texana 591
virginiana 589
Ortyxelos meiffreni 572
Oscine podotheca 125
oc 69, 239, 240
$s

humero-scapulare 145
innominatum 148
lacrymo-palatinum 165
magnum 107
prominens 108
uncinatum 165
Ospreys 556
Osseous system 134
Ossicles
of ear 136
of wing 108
Ossicula auditis 136
Ossific centres 184
Ossifraga 777
gigantea 777
Osteamoebee 149
Osteological preparations 48
Osteology 134 *

INDEX.

Osteoses 134
Ostrich, skull of 169
Otahiti curlew 646
Otic
capsule 156
ganglion 177
Otidida 597, 665
Otis tarda 210
Otocrane 187
Boe auricularis 519
Otoliths 190
Ouzel 255
water 255
Ovaries 45, 46, 215, 219
Oven-bird 308
Oviduct 220
Ovisac 220
Oviposition 223
Ovulation 220
Ovum 216
Owl
acadian 513
american hawk 511
american long-eared 507
american wood 509
arctic american saw-whet 512
barn 502
barred 509
burrowing 56
california screech 506
california gnome 514
eat 503
colorado screech 506
day 511 /
dusky horned 504
elf 516
european hawk 512
ferrugineous gnome 514
flammulated screech 506
florida barred 510
florida screech 106
florida burrowing 517
great gray 509
reat horned 503
oot 5038, 509
kennicott’s screech 505
lap 509
little horned 505 .
mottled 505
red 505
saw-whet 513
screech 505
short-eared 507
snowy 510
spectral 509
texas screech 506
western barred 510
white horned 504
Owls, 498, 500, 502
barn 500, 501
brown 508
burrowing 516
eared 507
elf 515
gnome 514
gray 508
great horned 503
hawk 511
hoot 503
little horned 604
marsh 507
other a
pygmy 6
Tee whee 612
screech 504
snow 510

Owls
sparrow 514
Ox-eye 598
Oyster-catcher
american 606
black, 607
european 606
Oyster-catchers 606

PaciFic
bar-tailed godwit 636
black-throated diver 791
eider 712
fulmar 778
orange-crowned warbler 295
Pagophila 749
eburnea 749
Painted
bunting 391
finch 391
indigo 391
lazuli 391.
purple 391
finches 390
flycatching warbler 315
geese 686
goose 686
longspur 358
Paisano 474 .
Palzoborus umbrosus 822
Paleocycnus falconeri 682
Paleornithide 495
Paleornithine 495
Paleospiza bella 822
Paleotringa
litoralis 828
vagans 828
vetus 828
Palamedea cornuta 665
Palamedeide 665
Pallas’
cormorant 728
gull 744
rosy finch 352
Palatal
bones 163
structure, types of 168
Palate, hard 163
Palatine bones 168
Pale ring-neck 602
Palm warbler 307
Palmate foot 131
Palmation 131
Palpebra 97
Pancreas 215
Pandion, 556
haliaétus 556
Panniculus carnosus 200
Panyptila 456
saxatilis 456
Parabuteo 542
Parachordal cartilage 151
Paradise
tern 766
trogon 467
Paragnathous bill 101
Parasite 344
Parasitic jiger 736
Parasphenoid 155, 159
Parauchenia 96
Paride 263
Parine 263
Paris’ oriole 409
Parietal bones 156
Parovaria 215

Parra 669

gymnostoma 133, 669

jacana 668
Parroquet auk 806
Parroquet, carolina 496
Parroquets 496
Parrots 494, 496

00

IV 821
Partridge 576, 585, 590
blue 593
californian 592
european 588
florida 591
gambel’s 593
Massena 594
old world 594
plumed 591
scaled 593
spruce 578
texas 591
virginia 589
Parula 290
americana 290
nigrilora 291
pitiayumi 291
Parus 263
atricapillus 265
carolinensis 266
einctus 267
evura 267
hudsonicus 267
meridionalis 266
montanus 266
neglectus 267
occidentalis 266
tufescens 267
septentrionalis 266
Passenger pigeon 566
Passer 344
domesticus 344
montanus 345
Passerculus 360
alaudinus 363
anthinus 363
bairdi 360
guttatus 364
princeps 361
rostratus 363
sanctorum 364
sandvicensis 362
savana 363
Passerella 385
iliaca 385
megarhyncha 386
schistacea 386
unalascensis 385
Passeres 69, 238
* acromyodi 239
mesomyodi 427
Passerina 390
ameena 391
-ciris 391
cyanea 391
versicolor 391
Passerine
foot 129
sternum 145
Patella 119
Pathetic nerve 177
Pavo
bicalearatus 133
cristatus 575

INDEX.

Peabody-bird 382
Peacock 575 i
Peaked-nosed murrelets 812
Peale’s
eget 661
peregrine 536
etrel 780
Pearl kites 525
Pecten 184
Pectination
of claws 132
of toes 132
Pectoral arch 145
of carinate 146
of ratite 146
Pectoral
muscles 193
sandpiper 626
sandpipers 625
Pectoralis
major 193
medius 193
minor 193
Pectus 95
Pedicle of quadrate bone 162
Pediocorys 285
Pedicecetes 581
phasianellus 146, 581
columbianus 581
Pedionomus torquatu~ 572
Peep 624. 625
Pelargi 648, 652
Pelargomorphe 648
Pelecanide 721
Pelecanus 722
conspicillatus 722
crispus 722
fuscus 722
onocrotalus 722
rufescens 722
trachyrhynchus 722
Pelican, american
brown 722
white 722
Pelicans 721
Pelidna 631
alpina 631
américana 631
pacifica 631
Pelvic arch 147
Pelvis 147
Penelopine 573
Penguins 788
Pennaceous feathers 85
Pennz 85
Pentosteon 107
Perchers proper 238
Perdicine 594
Perdix 576
Peregrine falcon 534
Peregrines 532

*Perilymph 190

Periosteum 134
Periotic bones 156, 157, 187
Perisoreus 425
canadensis 425
capitalis 425
fumifrons 425
obscurus 425
Perissoglossa 297, 305
Peristere 562
Peristeromorphx 562
Peristeropodes 572
Pernis apivorus 523
Pessulus 205
Pests, insect 55

851

Petrel

black 781
black-capped 779
bulwer’s 780
fisher’s 780

y fork-tailed 782
hornby’s fork-tailed 782
lawrence’s stilt 783
leach’s 781
least 780

stilt sonny 782
stormy 781
white-bellied 783
white-rumped 781
wilson’s stormy 782
Petrels 773, 776
diabolic 779
gadfly 779
gray fork-tail 782
pigeon 779
sooty fork-tai] 781
stormy 7&0
stilt stormy 782
wilsonian stormy 782
Petrochelidon 323
lunifrons 323
Petrosal bone 157, 187
Peucea 373
estivalis 373
arizone 374
boucardi 375
carpalis 375
cassini 3874
eremceca 375
ilinoensis 373
ruficeps 374
Pencedramus 296
olivaceus 296
Pewee
water 437
wood 439
Pewit 437
Pewit flycatchers 436
Pezophaps solitarius 65
Phaéthon 731
zthereus 732
flavirostris 732
Tubricauda 731
Phaéthontide 731
Phethusa 755
Phainopepla 328
nitens 328
Phaleridinz 800
Phaleris 806
Phalacrocoracide 723
Phalacrocorax 726
albociliatus 728
bairdi 729
bicristatus 728
carbo 726
cincinnatus 727
dilophus 727
floridanus 727.
idahensis 824
macropus 824
mexicanus 728
penicillatus 728
perspicillatus 728
violaceus 729
Phalenoptilus 452
nuttalli 453
Phalanges 106, 108
of foot 121

852 INDEX.

Phalanges Picus Plasma 196
number of 127 villosus 483 Platalea 650
caprimulgine 127 Pied duck 706 ‘leucorodia 650
cypseline 127 Pied-billed grebe 797 Plataleide 651
Phalanx 106, 108, 121 Pies 420 Plates of podotheca 124
Phalarope smoky 419 Platycercinz 495
gray 614 Pigeon Platycichla 328
northern 613 uillemot 815 Plectrophanes 356
red 614 awk 528, 536 nivalis 356 ‘
red-necked 613 petrel 779 Plectropterus gambensis 684
wilson’s 612 woodpecker 493 Pleure 95
Phalaropes 612 Pigeon - Pleurapophyses 187
coot-foot 614 band-tailed 565 Pleurosteon 144
fringe-foot 612 passenger 566 Plegadis 649
lobe-foot 613 prairie 641 falcinellus 649
Phalaropodidx 612 red-billed 565 guarauna 649
Phalarupus 614 sea 814 Pliocene birds 64
fulicarius 614 white-collared 565 Ploceida 224, 340
Phalcobeenus 539 white-crowned 565 Plotide 729
Phaps 564 wild 566 Plotus 730
Pharomacrus mocinno 115, 467 ‘Pigeons 562, 564 anhinga 730
Pharynx 210 Pigeon-toed fowls 572 levaillanti 730
Phasianide 575 Pileated woodpecker 480 melanogaster 780
Phasianus Pileum 97 Plover 597
colchicus 574 Pine american golden 599
reevesi 575 bullfinches 343 asiatic golden 600
Phasidus niger 575 finch 354 : belted piping 602
Pheasant (English) 574 grosbeak 343 black-bellied 598
‘Pheasant’? (American) 585 rouse 579 bull-head 598, 599
Phegornis mitchelli 597 innet 354 european golden 600
Philacte 686 warbler 307 european ring 603
canagica 686 Pineal body 175 european lesser ring 603
Philip sparrow 344 Pine-creeping warbler 307 field 599, 641
Philohela 615, 619 Pinicola 343 four-toed 598
minor 619 enucleator 343 golden 599
Phlogeenas 564 Pinion 106, 108 grass 641
Phodilus badius 500 Pink-sided snow-bird 379 Kildeer 600
Pheebe 437 Pinnated grouse 583 mountain 604
Pheenicopteridx 678 Pin-neck grouse 583 piping 602
Pheenicopterus 678 Pinnatipedes 67 prairie 604
andinus 678 Pintado petrel 779 ring 600, 602
ruber 679 Pin-tail ruddy 633
Pheenicorodias 678 doves 568 semipalmated. 602
Phonipara 392 duck 692 snowy ring 603
zena 392 grouse 581 swiss 598
Phylloscopus 259 Pin-winged doves 567 upland 641
borealis 259 Pipilo 395 whistling field 598
Phylogeny 71 aberti 398 . wilson’s 601
Phylum 66 albigula 397 Ploughshare bone 142
Pia mater 176 alleni 396 Plume 85
Pica 420 arcticus 396 Plumage 82
hudsonica 420 cblorurus 398 changes of 88, 89
nuttalli 421 , crissalis 397 of foot 122
rustica 420 erythrophthalmus 396 Plumbeous
Picarie 444, 822 fuscus 397 bush-tit 268
Picarian birds 444 . maculatus 396 gnat-catcher 261
Picicorvus 417 megalonyx 397 greenlet 334
columbianus 418 mesoleucus 397 Plumed
Picidew 477 oregonus 396 partridge 591
Piciform birds 476 Piping plover 602 quail 591
Piciformes 446, 476 Pipit savanna sparrow 3638 Plumous feathers 85
Picoides 484 Pipit Plumulaceous feathers 85
americanus 485 louisiana 286 Plumule 86 .
arcticus 485 meadow 285 ‘| Pneumaticity of skeleton 135
dorsalis 485 sprague’s 286 Pneumatocysts 200
Picumnide 446 . Pipits 288, 285 Pneumatology 199
Picus 480 sky 286 Pneumogastric nerve 177
borealis 481 Piscivorous kingfishers 469 Pochard
gairdneri 483 Pitangus 430 american 701
harrisi 483 derbianus 430 red-crested 701
lucasanus 482 Pituitary Pochards 699
major 477 body 175, 176 Pocket-lens 27
nuttalli 482 space 151 Podargine 448
pubescens 483 Plain tit-mouse 264 Podargus 448
scalaris 481 Planesticus 80 Podasocys 604
stricklandi 482 Planta 124 montanus 604

Podicipedids 792
Podicipes 794
auritus 795
californicus 796
cornutus 795
-eristatus 794
dominicus 796
griseigena 794
holboelli 794
Podilymbus 796
podicipes 797
Podium 126
Podotheca 124
Point of the wing 114
Poison 26, 40
Pole-backed woodpecker 485
Polioptila 261
californica 262
coerulea 261
melanura 261
plumbea 261
Polioptilina 242, 260
Pollex 108
Polyborinz 539
Polyboroides 521
Polyborus 539
auduboni 539
cheriway 539
lutosus 539
Polyplectron 575
Pomatorhine jager 735
Pons varolii 175, 176
Pocecetes 364
confinis 365
gramineus 364
Poor skins, restoring 47
Poor-will, nuttall’s 453
Poor-wills 452 ©
- Pope 391
Pope’s nose 114
Portal system of veins 197
Portio
dura 187
mollis 187
Porzana 673
carolina 673
coturniculus 674
maruetta 673
jamaicensis 674
noveboracensis 674
Position of digits 128
Post-frontal
bone 157
‘processes 156
Post-oral arch 152, 154
Post-orbital region 97
Post-palatine processes 164
Post-sacral verebra 142
Post-zygapophyses 137
Powder, gun 4
Powder-down feathers 86
Praecoces 88
Prairie
chicken of the northwest 581
hen 583
falcon 534
pigeon 641
plover 604
warbler 305
Preening plumage 86
Premaxillary 100, 164
Prenasal cartilage 158, 155
Pre-oral arch 152
Prepalatines 164
Preparations
osteological 48

INDEX.

Preparations
wet 48
Pressirostral 101
Presphenoid 158
Pre-zy gapophyses 137
Primaries 112
Primary coverts 110
Primary, spurious 113
Primordial kidneys 215
Princely tern 760
Priocella 778
tenuirostris 778
Priofinus 783
-melanurus 783
Prion 776
Priority, law of 80
\ Procellaria 780
pelagica 781
Procellariidee 773
Procellariinse 776
Procelsterna 755
Proccelous vertebra 138
Procoracoid 145, 147
Progne 325
subis 325
Prometheus 302
Pronation 109
Pro-otic bone 157, 187
Propubis 149
Prosencephalon 175
Prosobonia leucoptera 618
Prothonotary warbler 291
Protonotaria 291
citrea 291
Protoplasm 196
Prototype 75
Prototypic groups 76
Protovum 221
Protozoa 70
Proventriculus 212
Prusiano 391
Prybilov sandpiper 630
Psaltriparus 267
melanotis 267
minimus 268
plumbeus 268
Pseudogryphus 558
californianus 558
Psilopzdic birds 88
Psilorhinus 419
morio 419
Psittaci 494
Psittacide 495, 496
Psophiide 665
Ptarmigan 585
rock 587
white-tailed 588
willow 48, 586
Pteranodon beds 825
Pterocletes 562
Pterodactyls 62
Pterosauria 62
Pterygoid bones 163
Pteryla
alaris 87
caudalis 87
cruralis 87
dorsalis 87
femoralis 87
humeralis 87
spinalis 87
ventralis 87
Pteryle 87
Pterylography 86
Pterylosis 86

Ptilogonatinz 327

853

Ptilogonys 328
Ptilonorhynchus 224
Ptilopadic birds 88
Ptilopus 564
Ptilosis 82
Ptinus brunneus 55
Ptychorhamphus 809
aleuticus 810
Pubes, Pubic, Pubis, 149
Pucrasia 575
Puffin
common 802
horned masking 801
large-billed 803
tufted 803
Puffins 800
masking 800
tufted masking 803
Puffinus
amaurosoma 787
anglorum 786
borealis 784
conradi 825
creatopus 785
fuliginosus 787
kuhli 784
major 785
obscurus 786
opisthomelas 786
tenuirostris 787 .
Pug-nosed auk 806
Pullastra 562
Pulmonary organs 199

-Pulmonic circulation 195

Pulviplumes 86
Pupil of eye 183
Purple
bullfinches 346
crow-blackbird 413,
finch 346
cassin’s 347
gallinule 676
grackle 413
martin 325
painted finch 391
” sand piper 629
m
TER ech, morelets 392
finches 392
nuthatch 271
petrel 781°
Pygopodes 787, 825
Eygestyle 114, 142
Pylorus 213
Pyramidalis muscle of eye 181
Pyranga 317
estiva 318
cooperi 318
hepatica 318
ludoviciana 319
rubra 318
Pyrocephalus 444
mexicanus 444
rubineus 444
Pyrrhula 344
cassini 344
coccinea 344
Pyrrhuloxia 393
sinuata 393
Pyrrhurine 495

.

Qua-BIRD 662

Quadrate bone 161
Quadrato-jugal bone 162
Quadratus muscle of eye 181

854

Quail 576, 589. See also Partridge
arizona 593
harlequin 594
helmet 591
messina 595
migratory 595
mountain 591
old world 594
plumed 591
shell 593
valley 591

Quail
doves 571
sparrow 365

Quake-tail, blue-headed 284

Queen hummers 460

Querquedula 694
carolinensis 695
crecca 695
cyanoptera 696
discors 696

Quesal 467

Quill-feathers 112

Quiscaline 410

Quiscalus 412
eeneus 413°
agleus 414
macrurus 412
major 412
purpureus 413

Quit, black-faced grass 392

Quits, grass 392

RADIALE 106, 107, 108
Radius 106, 107
Raft duck 701
Rail
california clapper 672
carolina 673
clapper 672
common 673
european land 675
king 672
little black 674
louisiana clapper 672
virginia 673
yellow 673
Rails 665, 669, 670, 671
land 674
Rallidx 669
Ralliform birds 669
Ralliformes 669
Rallinz 670
Rallus 671
erepitans 672
elegans 672
longirostris 672
obsoletus 672
saturatus 672
virginianus 673
Rami of bill 103
Raptatores 496
Raptores 496, 822
Raptorial foot 130
Rasores 571
Rasorial foot 131
Ratite 69, 238, 825
Ratite
birds 238
sternum 143
Raven
american 416
white-necked 416
Ravens 415 :
Razor-billed auk 818
Record of observations 21

IN DEX.

4

Recti muscles of eye 181
Rectrices 115, 116
Recurvirostra 610

americana 611

avocetta 611
Recurvirostride 609
Red

cross-bill 349

flamingo 679

game 577

owl 505

phalarope 614

ruffed grouse 585
Red-and-buff-shouldered blackbird

404
Red-and-white - shouldered black-
bird 404

Red-backed ,

humming-bird 462

sandpiper 631

snow-bird 379
Red-bellied

nuthatch 271

snipe 623

woodpecker 488
Red-billed

mud-hen 675

pigeon 565

tropic-bird 732
Red-bird

cardinal 393

summer 818

western summer 318
Red-breasted

merganser 717

sandpiper 632

snipe 622

woodpecker 486
Red-cockaded woodpecker 481
Red-crested pochard 700
Reddish egret 661
Red-eyed

cowbird 403

greenlet 331
Red-faced cormorant 728
Red sae flycatching warbler

3L

Red-head 702
Red-head ducks 699
Red-headed woodpecker 489
Red-legged kittiwake 748
Red-necked

grebe 794

phalarope 6138
Red-nosed auk 808
Red-poll

american mealy 353

common 352

greenland mealy 353

holbéll’s 3538

linnets 352

yellow warbler 307

yellow-bellied warbler 307
Red-shafted woodpecker 493
Red-shouldered :

blackbird 404

buzzard 545
Red-spotted blue-throat 258
Redstart

american 316

blue-throated 258
Redstarts 315
Red-tail

krider’s 545

st. lucas 545

western 545

Red-tailed buzzard 544
Red-throated
diver 791
woodpecker 487
Red-winged
blackbird 403
blackbirds 404
thrush 245
Reed-bird 400
Reed wrens 277
Reeve 640
Reflex action 174
Refulgent humming bird 461
Regions of the body 94
Registration 21
Regulina 242, 259
Regulus 259
calendula 259
olivaceus 260
satrapa 259
Reinhardt’s gull 745
Remiges 111
Reptiles 60
Respiration, organs of 199
Respiratory system 199
Restoration of poor skins 47
Rete mirabile 199
Reticulate tarsus 124, 125
Reticulations of podotheca 124
Retina 180
Retrorse 105
Rhachis 84
Rhamphastide 446
Rhamphotheca 103
Rhea 170
Rhinencephalon 175
Rhinoceros auks 805
Rhinocheetus jubatus 665
Rhinotheca 103
Rhodostethia 752
rosea 753
Rhyacophilus 639
ochropus 639
solitarius 639
Rhynchea 616
capensis 616
semicollaris 616
Rhynchofalco 539
Rhynchophanes 359
maccowni 359
Rhynchopine 772
Rhynchops 772
nigra 772
Ribs 142
Riblets 138
Rice-bird £00
Richardson’s
dusky grouse 579
pigeon hawk 537
Rictal bristles 99
Rictus 105
Ridgway’s rosv finch 350
Rima glottidis 204
Ring dove 565

‘Ring plover 602

european 603

lesser european 603

snowy 603
Ring-neck

duck 701

plover 602
Ring plovers 600
Ring-billed gull 745
Ring-tailed

eagle 554

marlin 636

Rio grande jay 424
Rissa 747

brevirostris 748

kotzebuii 748

tridactyla 748
River ducks 689
Road runner 474
Robin 244

allied 244

golden 408

marsh 396

oregon 245

st. lucas 244
Robin-sandpiper 632
Robin-snipe 632
Rock

ptarmigan 587

swift, white-throated 456

swifts 456

wrens 275
Rocky mountain

blue-bird 258

garrot 704

jay 425

snow grouse 588
Rodgers’ fulmar 778
Rollulus 576
Rook, vocal organs of 206
Rose

flycatching warblers 314

tanager 318
Roseate

spoonbill 651

tern 766
Rose-breasted

finch 348

song grosbeak 389
Ross’

goose 686

rosy gull 753
Rostrhamus 523

plumbeus 523

sociabilis 523
Rostrum 100 ‘

of sphenoid 158

of sternum 144
Rosy finch

allen’s 350

baird’s 351

brandt’s 351

pallas’s 352

tidgway’s 350

swainson’s 351
Rosy finches 350
Rosy gull

bonaparte’s 751

franklin’s 751

ross’ 753
Rosy gulls 749
Rough-winged swallow 324
Royal tern 759
Ruby-crowned kinglet 259
Ruby-throated humming bird 461
Rudder ducks 715
Rudders 115
Ruddy

duck 715

plover 633
Ruff 640.
Ruffed grouse 584, 585
Ruffs of birds 97
Rufous-bellied humming-bird 466
Rufous-crowned summer finch 374
Rufous-tailed

crested flycatcher 435

flycatchers 434

INDEX.

Rugz 103
Rules of nomenclature 80
Rump 94
Runner, road 474
Russet-backed thrush 247
Rusty

grackles 411

song sparrow 372
Rusty-crowned falcon 537
Ruticilla 258

SACRAL
plexus 141
vertebrae 140
Sacro-iliac anchylosis 147
Sacro-sciatic notch 148
Sacrum 140, 141, 147
Saddle-back 742
Sage
cock 580
grouse 580
hen 580
Sage sparrow
black-faced 376
california 376
nevada 376
Sage sparrows 375
Sage thrasher 249
Sagmatorhina
lathami 805
suckleyi 806
Saguaro woodpecker 488
Saint domingo
duck 715
grebe 796
Saint lucas
cactus wren 275
red-tail 545
robin 244
savanna sparrow 364
thrasher 253
woodpecker 482
Salivary glands 210
Salpinctes 275
obsoletus 275
Salt-water marsh-hen 672
Samuels’ song sparrow 372
Sanderling 633
San diego savanna sparrow 3863
Sandhill crane 667
Sand-pigeons 562
Sandpiper
aleutian 629
american green 639
ash-colored 632
baird’s 625
bartramian 641
black-bellied 631
black-breasted 630
buff-breasted 642
cooper’s 627
curlew 632
ferrugineous 632
reen 639
east 625
red-breasted 632
pectoral 626
purple 629
prybilov 630
robin 632
semipalmated 624
sharp-tailed 628
spotted 640
spoon-billed 634
stilt 623

855

Sandpiper

western semipalmated 625

white-rumped 627
Sandpipers 617

curlew 631

dunlin 631

feather-leg 628

fighting 640

marble-wing 642

pectoral 625

purple 628

semipalmated 625

spotted 640

spotty-throat 625
Sandwich tern 761
Sap-sucking woodpeckers 485
Sarcorhamphus gryphus 557
Sasia 126, 127
Saurognathism 173
Saurognathous skull 173
Sauropsida 60
Saurotherine 473
Saurura 237, 821
Savanna blackbird 472
Savanna sparrow

baird’s 360

beaked 363

common 363

ipswich 361

lark 363

pipit 363

san diego 363

st. lucas 363
Savanna sparrows 360
Saw-bills 468, 716
Saw-whet owl 513

arctic american 512
Saw-whet owls 512
Saxicola 256

cenanthe 256
Saxicolina 242, 256
Sayiornis 436

fusca 437

nigricans 437

sayi 437
Say’s pewit flycatcher 437
Scala

media 190

tympani 188

vestibuli 188
Scale, nasal 105
Scale of organization 77

_ Scaled

dove 570

partridge 593
Scansores 445
Scansorial foot 130
Scape 84
Scaphoid tail 118
Scapholunare 106, 107, 108
Scapula 107, 146

accessoria 108, 145
Scapular arch 49, 145, 146
Scapulare 94
Scapulars 94
Scardafella 570

inca 570
Scarlet

ibis 651

tanager 318
Scaups 699
Schizognathism 170
Schizognathous skull 170
Schizorhinal nasals 165
Schizothecal podotheca 125
Science defined 59

856

Scientific names 78
Scissors 25, 52
Scissor-tail 431
Scleroskeletal bones 134
Sclerosteous bones 168
Sclerotal bones 182
Sclerotic 180, 182
Scolecophagus 411
cyanocephalus 411
ferrugineus 411
Scolopaceous courlan 668
Scolopacide 614
Scolopax 615, 620, 828
rusticula 620
Scops 504
asio 505
bendirii 506
flammeola 506
floridana 506
kennicotti 505
maccalli 506
maxwelle 506
trichopsis 506
Scopus umbretta 652
Scoter
american black 718
velvet 714
Scoters 713
Screech ow] 505
california 506
colorado 506
flammulated 506
florida 506
kennicott’s 505
texas 506
Screech owls 504
Scutella 124
Scutellate podotheca 124
Scutelliplantar tarsus 124

Sea

coot 718, 714

ducks 698

eagles 554

parrot 802

“ parrots 800

Sea-dove 810
Sea-pigeon 814
Sea-shore sparrow 363
Sea-side

finch 367

florida 368

sparrows 367
Sea-swallow 762
Secondaries 113
Secondary

coverts 110

sexual characters 89, 90
Seed-eater, little 392
Segmentation of the vitellus 224
Selasphorus 462

alleni 462

henshawi 463

platycercus 463

rufus 463
Selection

natural 90

sexual 90
Sella turcica 198
Semen 218
Semicircular canals 188, 189
Semilunar membrane 205
Semipalmate

foot 181

tattlers 636
Semipalmated

plover 602

_ Shell

INDEX.

Semipalmated

sandpiper 624
Semipalmation 131
Semiplumes 86
Semitendinosus 195
Senex 539
Sennett’s warbler 291
Sense of

hearing 184

sight 178

smell 178

taste 191

touch 191
Sensori-motor nerves 174
Sensory nerves 174
Septo-maxillary 163, 173
Septo-nasal 178
Serrate bill 102
Serration of tarsus 125
Serum 196
Sesamoid bones 134, 168

of wing 108
Setirostres 449
Setophaga 315

picta 315

ruticilla 316
Setophagine 288, 312
Sex, determination of 45
Sexual

characters 89, 90

selection 90
Shaft of feather 84
Shag 726

* Shank 119

Shapes of tail 117
Sharp-shinned hawk 527, 528
Sharp-tailed
firich 368
grouse 581
sandpiper 628
Shearwater
black-vented 786
black-tailed 783
cinereous 784
common atlantic 785
cory’s
dark-bodied 787
dusky 786
flesh-footed 785
greater 785
manx 786
mediterranean 784
slender-billed 787
smutty-nosed 783
sooty 787
wandering 785
Shearwaters 783
fulmar 783

doves 570

quail 593
Shining fly-snapper 328
Shoe-bill 654°
Shoot, how to 8
Shore-birds 596
Shore larks 281
Short-billed

kittiwake 748

marsh wren 280
Short-eared owl 507
Short-legged tattler 643
Short-tailed

albatross 775

tern 770
Short-winged murrelet 814
Shot 3

Shot-gun 1

. Shoulder 106

Shoulder-blade 146
Shoulder-girdle 145
Shoveller duck 696
Shrike
common american 338
great northern 337
loggerhead 338
white-rumped 338
Shrikes 336
gray 337
true 336
Shuffler 701 i
Sialia 257
arctica 258
mexicana 258
sialis 257
Siberian
titmouse 267
wagtail 284
Sickle-bill 645
Sickle-billed kites 523
Sierra jay 422
Sight, sense of 178
Se moid flexure of neck 93
buntings 387
Sere 871
Simorhynchus 806
cassini 808
cristatellus 807
dubius 807
psittaculus 806
pusillus 808
ygmeus 808
tetraculus 807 :
Sinciput 97
Singing of birds 206
Sinus rhomboidalis 176
Siskin, american 354
Siskins 353
Sitta 270
aculeata 271
cxsia 270
canadensis 271
carolinensis 270
Nese 271
pygmea 271

’ Sittella 269

Sittida 269
Sitodrepa panicea 55
Siurus 308
auricapillus 308
motacilla 309
neevius 309
notabilis 309
Skeleton of birds 134
Skeletonizing 48
Skimmer, black 772
Skimmers 772
Skimming birds 28
Skua gulls 734
Skull of birds 149
Skull, development of fowl’s 151
Skunk blackbird 400
Skylarks' 282, 288
Sky pipits 286
Slate-colored fox apertoy 386

} Slit-nosed longwings 733

Slender-billed
fulmar 778
nuthatch 271
shearwater 787
Small
egret herons 659
green-crested flycatcher 441

Small-billed creeper 290

Smaller white-cheeked goose 689

Smell, sense of 178
Smoky pies 419
Smutty-nosed
jay £25
shearwater 783
Snake-bird 730
Snake killer 474
Snaring birds 3
Snipe 614, 620
american 621
english 621
european 621
grass 626
gray 622
jack 621, 626
red-bellied 623
red-breasted 622
robin 632
stone 638
true 620
web-toed 622
wilson’s 621
Snow
bunting 356.
geese 685
goose 685
‘ouse 585
els 510
sparrows 377
Snow-bird
black 377
cinereous 379
eastern 377
gray-headed 379
hybrid 378
mexican 379
oregon 378
pink-sided 379
red-backed 379
white-winged black 378
Snow-birds 377
Snowflake 356
Snowy .
heron 660
owl 510
ring plover 603°
Snub-nosed
auk 807
auks 806
Solan goose 720
Solitaire 65
Solitary :
greenlet 333
sandpiper 639
tattler 639
Somateria 708, 710
dresseri 712
fischeri 710
mollissima 710
spectabilis 712
stelleri 709
v-nigrum 712
Somatopleura 226
Song of birds 206
Sete rosbeak
nek headed 389
rose-breasted 389
Song grosbeaks 388
Song sparrow 371
cinereous 372
‘ay 372
adiak 372
lincoln’s 370
oregon 372

INDEX.

Song sparrow
rusty 372
samuels’ 372
swamp 370
Song sparrows 369, 371
Songless passeres 427
Sooty
albatross 776
fork-tail petrel 781
grouse 580
guillemot 815
shearwater 787
tern 768
Sora 673
Soree 673
Southeast fish crow 417
Southern sand-hill crane 667
South-southerly 706
Southwestern shore lark 282
Spanish curlew 651
Sparrow 344
arizona chipping 380
artemisia 376
baird’s savanna 360
beaked savanna 363
black-chinned 381
black-faced sage 376

bleached yellow-winged 366

brewer’s 881

california sage 376

chipping 380

cinereous song 372

clay-colgred 381

common savanna 363

eastern fox 885

english 344

european 344

field 380

fox 385

gambel’s crown 383

golden crown 383

grasshopper 365

gray song 372

harris’ 384

heermann’s song 372

henslow’s grasshopper 366

intermediate crown 338

ipswich savanna 361

kadiak song 372

large-billed fox 386

lark 384

lark savanna 363

le conte’s grasshopper 366

lincoln’s song 370

mountain 344

nevada sage 376

oak-woods 378

oregon song 372

pipit savanna 363

rusty song 372

sage 376

saint lucas savanna 364

samuels’ song 372

san diego savanna 363

slate-colored fox 386

song 371

swamp song 370

texas 398

townsend’s fox 385

tree 379

white-crowned 383

white-throated 383

yellow-winged 365
Sparrow hawk 537

cuban 538

isabel 538

Sparrow owls 514
Sparrows

chipping 379

crown 381

fox 385

grass 364

grasshopper 365

round 360

lark 384

quail 365

sage 375

savanna 360

sea-side 367

snow 377

song 369
Spatula 696

clypeata 696
Spatulate

bill 102

tail-feathers 116
Spear-billed grebes 793
Specialized forms 76
Species 72, 73
Specific

characters 72

names 80
Speckle-belly 684
Speckled cation wren 276
Speckle-tailed wren 278
Spectacled

eider 710

guillemot 815
Spectral owl 509
Spermatozoa 218
Spermophila 392

moreleti 392
Spheniscomorphe 171, 788
Sphenoid bone 158
Spheno-palatine ganglion 178
Sphenotic bone 156
Spinal

accessory nerve 177

chord 176

column 137

nerves 177
Spine-tail

grouse 580

swifts 457
Spirit-duck 705
Spiza 387

americana 387

townsendi 388
Spizella 379

agrestis 380

arizone 380

atrigularis 381

breweri 381

domestica 380

monticola 379

pallida 381
Sphyropicus 485

nuchalig 486

ruber 486

thyroides 486

varius 486
Splanchnology 209
Splanchnopleura 226
Splenial bone 166
Spoonbill, roseate 651
Spoonbill ducks 696
Spoon-billed sandpiper 634
Spoonbills 651

american 651
Spotted

grouse 578

sandpiper 640

857

858

Spotty-throat sandpipers 625
Sprague’s pipit 286
Sprig-tail 692
Spruce

grouse 578

partridge 578
Spurious primary 113
Spurred towhee 397
Spurs

of wing 114

of foot 1382, 133
Spur-winged birds 114
Squamosal

bone 157

process 157
Squatarola 598

helvetica 598
Squawk 662
Stake-driver 664
Stands for birds 44
Stapedial

cartilage 154

elements 186
Stapes 185
Star buzzards 551
Starling 427
Starlings

american 399

meadow 405

old world 426

typical 426
Starncenadine 571
Starncenas 571

cyanocephala 571
Starry hummers 465
Steathornithine 448
Steatornis 448
Steganopodes 718, 824
Steganopus 612

wilsoni 612
Stelgidopteryx 324

serripennis 324
Steller’s

eider 709

‘jay 421
Stellula 465

calliope 465
Stenonine duct 210
Stephens’ greenlet 335
Stercorarius 734

buffoni 738

parasiticus 736

pomatorhinus 735

skua 734
Sterna 756

aleutica 768

anzsthetica 769

anglica 757

antillarum 766

cantiaca 761

caspia 757

dougalli 766 .

elegans 760

forsteri 763

fuliginosa 768

hirundo 762

macrura 764

maxima 759

superciliaris 766

trudeaui 767
Sternese 756
Sternine 754
Sterno-tracheales 202
Sternum 143
Sthenelus melanocorypha 682
Stigma of ovisac 221

INDEX.

Stilt 611
petrel 783
sandpiper 623
stormy petrel 782
Stilts 609, 611
Stimulation 21
Stint
american 625
wilson’s 625
Stock-dove 565
Stomach, examining 47
Stone-chat 256
Stone-snipe 638
Storage, cases for 56
Stork series 652
Storks 652, 653
true 653
Stormy
petrel 781
petrels 780
Stragulum 95
Strepsilaine 608
Strepsilas 608
interpres 609
melanocephalus 609
Strickland’s woodpecker 482
Striges 498
Strigide 502
Strigine 502
Stringopinz: 495

Stringops habroptilus 76, 238, 495

Striped flvcatchers 431
Strisores 445
Strix 508

alleni 510

aluco 508

cinerea 509

lapponica 509

nebulosa 509

occidentalis 510
Struthio 170
Struthious birds 69, 238, 825
Structure .

anatomical 133

epidermic 82

of birds 59

of feathers 84

types of 74
Stuffing birds 40
Sturnella 405

magna 406

mexicana 406

neglecta 406
Sturnellinge 405
Sturnide 426
Sturnine 426
Sturnus 426

vulgaris 427
Stylo-hyal 186
Stvlo-hvoid 211
Sub-, the prefix 78
Subgenus 80
Submaxillary line 98
Subocular bar 152
Subspecies 79
Success, qualifications for 5
Sula 720

bassana 720

leucogastra 720

loxostyla 824
Sulcate claws 133
Sulci 103
Sulcus, nasal 104
Sulidee 720
Sulphide of carbon 57

Sulphur-bellied flycatcher 431 .

Sultan gallinules 675
Summer
duck 698
finch
arizona 374
bachman’s 873 "
bay-winged 375
boucard’s 375
cassin’s 374
illinois 373
rufous-crowned 374
finches 373
redbird 218
tanagers 317
warbler 298
ellow-bird 298
Sun-birds 666
Super-, the prefix 78
Superior maxillary nerve 177
Supernature 59 :
Superorbital gland 178
Supination 109
Supra-occipital 156
Supra-orbital 97
Supra-renal capsules 46
Surangular bone 166
Surf

duck 714

ducks 713
Surf-bird 605
Surnia 511

funerea 511

ulula 512
Suspensorium of mandible 152
Suture of-bones 134 ,
Swainson’s

buzzard 546

tosy finch 351

warbler 292
Swallow

bank 320

barn 322

chimney 457

cliff 323

crescent 323

eaves 823

mud 823 or

rough-win,

wicletgrean $29

white-bellied 322
Swallows 319

bank 323

barn 321

cliff 323

iris 322

rough-winged 823

violet-velvet 322
Swallow-tailed

flycatcher 431

ull 753
ite 526

kites 525
Swamp

song sparrow 370

warblers, golden 291

n
bewick’s 683
common american 682
whistling 682
whooping 683
trumpeter 682
Swans 681
white 682
Swift
chimney 457
northern black cloud 457

~

Swa

Swift
rock 456
vaux’s 458
white-throated 456
Swifts 455, 456
chimney 457
cloud 457
rock 456
spine-tailed 457
Swiss plover 598
Sylvia
carbonata 308
montana 308
Sylvicolide 287
Sylvicolinz 288, 289
Symbolic formulation wanted 78
Symmetrical figures from feathers
83

sympeliedic nervous system 174,

Symphemia 636
semipalmata 637
Symphysis
mandibular 166
pubic 147
Syndactyle foot 129
Syngnesious foot 129
Synopsis, systematic
of n. a. birds 237
of fossil birds 821
Synthliborhamphus 811
antiquus 811
umizusume 812
Syrinx 204, 239, 240
Syrnium 511
Systematic synopses 237, 811

TaBuvar view of higher groups
234

Taction 191
Tachybaptes 796
Tachycineta 322

thalassina 323
Tachypetes 731

aquilus 731
Tachypetide 730
Tadorna vulpanser 684
Tail 114

shapes of the 117
Tail-bones 114
Tail-coverts 115
Tail-sacrals 141
Taking cold 19
Tanager

cooper’s, 318

crimson-headed 319

hepatic 318

louisiana 319

rose 318

scarlet 318

summer 318

western summer 318
Tanagers 317

summer 317
Tanagride 317
Tantalins 652
Tantalops 653

loculator 653
Tantalus 653

ibis 653°

loculator 653
Tarsal

bones 119, 120

cartilages of eye 180
Tarso-metatarsus 119, 120

INDEX.

Tarsus, 121, 122, 125, 239
Taste, sense of 191
Tattler
bartram’s 641
long-legged 631
semipalmated 637
short-legged 643
wandering 643
Tattlers 618
green 639
semipalmated 636
solitary 639
Taxidermy 28
Tenet equivalence of groups
3

Taxonomy 65
Teal 694
american green-winged 695
blue-winged 696
\ cinnamon 696
european green-winged 696
Tectrices 110, 115
inferiores (tail) 115
inferiores (wing) 110
superiores (tail) 115
superiores (wing) 110
majores 110
medize 110
minores 110
Tepumentany system 82
Telmatornis
affinis 829
priscus 829
Teleotype 75, 76
Teleotypic groups 76
Telmatodytes 279
paludicola 279
palustris 279
Temminck’s auk 812
Temporal
bone 157
region 97
Tendons of wing 109
Tengmalm’s owl 513
Tennessee warbler 295
Tensor patagii 193
Tenuirostral 101
Terekia cinerea 617
Teretristis 287, 311
Tergum 95
Tern
aleutian 768
arctic 764
black 770
bridled 769
caspian 757
cayenne 759
common 762
ducal 761
elegant 760
forster’s 763
gull-billed 757
imperial 757
least 766
marsh 757
noddy 771
paradise 766
princely 760
royal 759
roseate 766
sandwich 761
short-tailed 770
sooty 768
trudeau’s 767
white-headed 767
white-winged 770

859

Tern

wilson’s 762
Terns 754, 756
Tertials 113
Tertiaries 113
Tertiary birds 64, 822

. Testes, ‘Testicles, 45, 46, 215,
217

i
Tetradactyle birds 126
Tetraonide 576
Tetraonine 577
Tetrao urogallus 578
Tetrapteryx 666
Texan, Texas
beardless flycatcher 444
cardinal 393
grackle 412
green kingfisher 470
guan 573
night-hawk 454
orchard oriole 408
quail 591
screech owl 506
sparrow 398
thrasher 251
woodpecker 481
wren 277
Thalamencephalen 175
Thalasseus 756
Thalassidroma 776
Thalassornis leuconota 699
Thamnophilus 205
Theory of evolution 60, 62
Thick-billed night-herons 663
Thigh or thigh-bone 119
Thinornis zelandiz 597
Thin skins 36
Thistle-bird 354
Thoracic
duct 199
vertebrae 139
Thorax 142
Thrasher 251
arizona 252
bow-billed 252
erissal 254
california 253
curve-billed 252
st. lucas 253
sage 249
texas 251
yuma 254
Thrashers 250
Thrasyaétus 5538
harpyia 553
Three-toed
birds of n. am. 126
woodpecker 485
black-backed 485
ladder-backed 485
pole-backed 485
woodpeckers 484
Throat 96
Thrush
brown 251
gray-cheeked 247
golden crowned 308
hermit, audubon’s 247
eastern 247
western 247
new york water 309
olive-backed 248
oregon olive-backed 247
red-winged 245
russet-backed 247
townsend’s flycatching 329

860

Thrush
varied 245
water 309
willow tawny 246
wilson’s (or tawny) 246
_wood 246
wyoming water 309
Thrush blackbirds 411
Thrushes 240, 243
flycatching 328, 329
typical 241, 243 *
mocking 241, 248
Thryomanes 277
Thryothorus 277
berlandieri 277
bewicki 277
leucogaster 275
ludovicianus 277
miamiensis 277
spilurus 278
Thumb 108
Thyro-arytenoid muscles 204
Thyro-cricoid muscles 204
Thyro-hyal 167
Thyro-hyoid muscles 204
Thyroid cartilage 204
Tibia 119
Tibial epiphyses 120
Tibiale 120
Tibio-tarsus 119, 120
Tichodroma muraria 272
Tichodrominz 272
Tiga 126, 127
Tigrisoma 654, 655
Timeliidse 262
Times to go a-shooting 11
Tinamide 574
Tinamou, skull of 170
Tinamous 69, 574
Tinamus robustus 170
Tinea flavifrontella 55
Tinker 818
Tinnunculus 531, 538
Titlarks 285
Titmice 263, 265
Titmouse
black-capped 265
black-crested 265
bridled 265
chestnut-backed 267
european greater 263
hudsonian 267
plain 264
siberian 267
tufted 264
Tobacco, use of 21
Todide 446
Toes, number of 126, 127
Topography of birds 91, 94, 95
Tomia, Tomium 103, 105
Tongue of birds 210, 211
Tooth-billed pigeon 563
Totanus 618, 638
flavipes 638
glottis 639
melanoleucus 638
Totipalmate
birds 718
foot 131
Totipalmation 129
Touch, sense of 191
Towhee
abert’s 398 '
arctic 396
brown 397
californian 397

INDEX.

Towhee
canon 397
crissal 397
gray 398
green-tailed 398
mexican brown 397
olive-black spotted 396
oregon 396
white-throated brown 397
Towhee bunting 396
crissal 397
white-eyed 396
spurred 397
Towhees 395
Townsend’s
bunting 388
flycatching thrush 329
fox sparrow 385°
warbler 299
Trabecule of skull 151
Trachea 201
of ducks 50
of merganser 49
Tracheal
labyrinth 202
syrinx 205
tympanum 202
Tracts, feathered 86, 87
Tragopans 575
Tramp 344
Transocular line 98
Transportation of birds 45
cases for 56
Trapping birds 3
Trays 34, 56
Tread of eggs 221
Tree

cuckoos 474
duck, autumnal 689
fulvous 689

ducks 689

grouse 578

sparrow 379
Treron 564
Treviranus, Jamelle of 189
Triassic formation 63
Tricolor woodpeckers 489
Tridactyle

foot 126

birds 126
Trifacial nerve 177
Trigeminal nerve 177
Tringa 617, 632

canutus 632
Tringa, coot-footed 614
Tringoides 640

macularius 640
Trinomial nomenclature 80
Trivia 190
Trochanter 119
Trochilida 458
Trochilus 461

alexandri 462

colubris 461
Troglodytes 278

domesticus 278

Lt Pe ak 278
Troglodytide 273
Troglodytins: 274, 277
Trogon 468

ambiguus 468
Trogon, copper-tailed 468
Trogonide 468
Trogons 468
Tropic bird

red-billed 7382

Tropic bird
yellow-billed 732
Tropic birds 731
Troupial 467
Troupialis 405
Trudeau's tern 767
Trumpeter swan 682
Trumpeters 665
Trunk of birds 92, 93
Tryngites 642
rufescens 642
Tuberculum of rib 143
Tubinares 773
Tufted
cormorant 729
puffin 804
titmouse 264
Tulé marsh wren 279
Turbinal bones 160
Turdidex 240 .
Turding 241, 248, 328
Turdus 244
alicia 247
auduboni 247
confinis 244
fuscescens 246
iliacus 245
migratorius 146, 244
mustelinus 246
nevius 245
nanus 247
propinquus 244
salicicola 246
swainsoni 248
unalasce 247
ustulatus 247
Turkey
eastern wild 576
mexican 576
Turkey buzzard 559
Turkeys 576
Turnices 571
Turnicide 571
Turnstone 606, 608, 609
black-headed 609
Turtur 564
Tylari 125
Tylorhamphus 806
Tympanic bone 161
Tympaniform membrane 205
Tympanum
of ear 185
Typ trachea 202
e 75
Types of structure 74
of feathers 85
of palate 186

Typical and subtypical groups 75

Typical thrushes 241, 243
Tyrannide 428 °
Tyrannine 428
Tyrannus 432
carolinensis 432
couchi 434
dominicensis 433
irritabilis 436
verticalis 436
vociferans 436
Tyrant flycatchers 428

Uintornis lucaris 822
Ulna, 106, 107, 113
Ulnare 106, 107, 108
Umbilicus of feather 84
Unciform bone 107
Uncinate processes 142

Under

mandible 100, 108
parts 94
tail-coverts 115
wing-coverts 110
Unfeathered spaces 86
Unguis of bill 102
Unicorn auk 805
Upland plover 641

Upper
mandible 100, 104
parts 94
tail-coverts 115
wing-coverts 110
Upupide 446
Ureters 216, 217
Uria 814
carbo 815
columba ie
rylle 81
. erandtl 815

‘inary
bladder 217
organs 215
Urogenital
organs 215
sinus 214
Uro-hyal 167
Uropygial gland 86
Uropygium 94
Urosacral vertebrae 114, 141
Urosteon 144
Urubitinga 552
anthracina 552
Utamania 818
torda 818

Ur

Valley quail 592
Valuation of characters 74
Vane of feather 84
Vanellus 604

cristatus 605
Varied

bunting 391

thrush 245
Vascular system 195
Vas deferens 217
Vaux’s swift 458
Veery 246
Velvet scoter 714
Venous system 195
Venter 94, 96
Ventricles

of brain 175

of heart 196
Ventriculus glandulosus 212
Vermilion flycatcher 444
Versatile toes 126
Vertebra, see Vertebrae
Vertebra: 137

caudal 141

cervical 138

coceygeal 141

dorsal 139

dorso-lumbar 189

thoracic 139

lumbar 140

plan of 135

sacral 140

urosacral 141
Vertebrarterial canal 139

’ Vertebrates, Vertebrata 60, 81

Vertex 97
Vesicles

cerebral 175

seminal 218

INDEX.

Vesicule seminales 218 .
Vesper-bird 364
Vestibule of ear 188, 189
Vibrisse 99
Violet-green
cormorant 729
. swallow 323
Violet-velvet swallows 322
Vireo, see Greenlet
Vireo 330
altiloquus 332
atricapillus 336
barbatulus 832
belli 335
cassini 333
flavifrons 333
flaviviridis 332
‘ilvus 332
uttoni 384
noveboracensis 334
olivaceus 331
philadelphicus 332
plumbeus 334
pusillus 335
solitarius 333
stevensi 335
swainsoni 333
vicinior 334
Vireolanius 330
Vireonide 73, 829
Vireos 329
Virginia
nightingale 393
partridge 589
quail 589
rail 673
Virginia’s warbler 294
Visceral
arches 152
clefts 152, 158
Vision, sense of 178
Vitelline membrane 220, 221
Vitellus 220
Vitreous humor 180, 183
Vocal
chords 205
organs 204, 205, 206
Vomer
of coceyx 114
of skull 161
Vulture, black 560
Vultures
american 557
old world 519
Vulturine 519
Vultur
monachus 519
umbrosus 822

Waps 4
Wagtail

siberian 284

white 284

yellow 284
Wagtails 283, 284, 286
Wag-tail warbler 309

‘olden-crowned 308

arge-billed 309
Wag-tail warblers 308
Wall creeper 272
Wandering

shearwater 785

tattler 643
Warbler

audubon’s 302

861

Warbler
azure 301
bachman’s 294
bay-breasted 304
blackburn’s 802
black-and-yellow 304
black-capped flycatching 313
black-poll 303
black-throated blue 300
gray 300
green 298
blue-eyed yellow 298
blue golden-winged 294
blue-winged yellow 293
blue yellow-backed 290
canadian flycatching 314
cape may 3805
cerulean 301
chestnut-headed 298
chestnut-sided 304
cincinnati 293
connecticut 809
golden 298
golden-crowned wag-tail 308
golden-cheeked 300
grace’s 306
hermit 299
hooded flycatching 313
kennicott’s 259
kentucky 310
kirtland’s 306
large-billed wag-tail 309
lawrence’s 293
lucy’s 294
macgillivray’s 311
magnolia 304
mourning 311
nashville 294
olive 296
orange-crowned 295
pacific 295
painted flycatching 315
palm 307
pine 307 .
pine-creeping 307
prairie 305
prometheus 302
prothonotary 291
red-fronted flycatching 314
rose flycatching 314
sennett’s 291
summer 298
swainson’s 292
tennessee 295
townsend's 299
virginia’s 294
wag-tail 309
western 299
western yellow-rumped 302
western black-capped flycatch-
ing 314
white-browed 306
white-throated 293
worm-eating 292
yellow-bellied red-poll 307
yellow-crowned 301
yellow red-poll 307
yellow-rumped 301
yellow-throated 306
ellow-throated ground 310
Warblers
american 287, $88, 312
blue yellow-backed 290
bush 309
creeping 290
golden 298 '

862

Warblers
ground 310
fly-catching 812, 314, 315
old world 259
swamp 291
true 289
wag-tail 308
wood 296
worm-eating 291, 292
Warbling
greenlet 332
vireo 332
i western 333
Warrior, black 543
Washington, bird of 555
Water
ouzel 255
pewee 437
Water-thrushes 309
Water-turkey 730
Waterwitch 797
Wattles 98 ©
Wavey, horned 686
Waxwing
bohemian 326
carolina 327
cedar 327
Waxwings 325
Weapons for collecting 3
Webbed foot 131
Web-toed snipe 622
Wedge-tailed gull 752
Western
barred owl 510
black-capped warbler 314
bluebird 258
chickadee 266
dowitcher 623
golden-crested kinglet 260
goshawk 531
grass finch 365
grebe 793
hermit thrush 247
herring gull 744
house wren 278
meadow lark 406
night-hawk 454
nonpareil 391
red-shouldered buzzard 546
red-tail 545 .
shore lark 282
summer redbird 318
warbler 299
warbling vireo 338
winter wren 279
wood pewee 440
yellow-bellied flycatcher 442
yellow-rump 3802
Wet preparations 48
Whale-head 654
Wheat-ear 256
Whippoorwill 452
arizona 452
Whip-tom-kelley 332
Whiskered auk 808
Whiskey jack 425
Whistler 704
Whistling
plover 598
swan 682
White brant 685
crane 666 ‘
gannet 720
heron 658
horned owl 504
ibis 651 .

INDEX.

White pelican 722

wagtail 284
White-bellied

murrelet 813

nuthatch 269

petrel 783

swallow 322

wren 278
White-browed

crown sparrow 3882

warbler 306:
White-crowned

pigeon 565

sparrow 382, 383
White-eyed

greenlet 334

towhee 3896
White-faced glossy ibis 649
White-fronted dove 567
White-headed

guil 747

sea eagle 555

tern 767

woodpecker 484
White-necked raven 416
White-rumped

petrel 781

sandpiper 627

shrike 338
White-tailed

buzzard 542

‘odwit 636

kite 525

longspur 358

ptarmigan 588

sea eagle 555
White-throated

brown towhee 397

night courser 450

rock swift 456

sparrow 382

warbler 293

‘White-tufted cormorant 727

White-wing doves 569
White-winged
blackbird 387
cross-bill 348
gull 741
snow-bird 378
surf duck 714
Whooping
crane 666
swan 683
Wigeon
american 694
european 694
Wigeons 693
Wild

dove 568

duck 691

pigeon 566

turkey 576
Willet 637
Williamson’s woodpecker 487
Willow

grouse 586

ptarmigan 586

thrush 246
Wilsonian stormy petrels 782
Wilson’s i

autograph 58

bluebird 257

phalarope 612

plover 601

school-house 58

snipe 621

Wilson’s

stint 625

stormy petrel 782

tern 762

thrush 246
biaee s 202

of merganser 49
Wing-coverts 110
Wing-feathers 109
Wings of birds 106
Winker of eye 180
Winter

chip-bird 379

hawk 545

wren 278

alaskan 279
western 279

Wish-bone 147
Witch, black 472 .
Wolffian bodies 215
Wood

duck 698

ibis 652, 653

owl, american 509

owls 508

pewee 439

pewee flycatchers 438

stork, american 653

thrush 246
‘Woodcock

american 619

european 620

‘Woodcocks 615, 616, 619, 620

‘Woodhouse’s jay 423
Woodpecker
black-breasted 487

black-backed three-toed 485

brown-headed 486

californian 489

downy 483

gairdner’s 483

gila 488

gilded 493
olden-winged 493
airy 483

harris’ 483

ivory-billed 479

Jadder-backed three-toed 485

lewis’ 490
narrow-fronted 490
nuchal 486
nuttall’s 482
pileated 480
pole-backed three-toed 485
red-bellied 488
red-breasted 486
red-cockaded 481
red-headed 489
red-shafted 493
red-throated 487
saguaro 488
st. lucas 482
strickland’s 482
texan 481
white-headed 484
williamson's 487
yellow-bellied 486
yellow-fronted 488
Woodpeckers, 477

black-and-white spotted 480

bristle-bellied 490
gilded 491

* masked _ 483
pileated 480
sap-sucking 485
three-toed 484.

Woodpeckers
tricolor 489
zebra 487
Wood-warbler, see Warbler
Wood-wrens 259
Work, a good day’s 15
Worm-eating swamp warblers 291
warbler 292
Wrangel’s murrelet 813
Wren
alaskan winter 279
bewick’s 277
floridian 277
great carolina 277
house, eastern 278
western 278
marsh, long-billed 279
short-billed 280
rock 275
speckled-tailed 278
texan 277
tulé 279
western winter 279
white-bellied 278
winter 278
Wrens 273, 277
cactus 274
cafion 276
marsh 279, 280
house 278
reed 277
rock 275
true 277
winter 278
Wren-tit 262
henshaw’s 262
Wren-tits 262
Wright’s flycatcher 4438
Wrist-joint 106
Wiirdemann’s heron 658
Wyoming water thrush 309

‘ INDEX.

XANTHOCEPHALUS 404

icterocephalus 404
Xanthura 424

luxuriosa 424
Xantus humming-bird 460
Xema 753

furcata 753

sabinii 753
Xenopicus 483

albolarvatus 484
Xiphoid process 144

crake 674

red-poll warbler 307

wagtail 284
Yellow-backed warbler, blue 290
Yellow-bellied

flycatcher 442

red-poll warbler 307

woodpecker 486
Yellow-billed

cuckoo 476

loon 790

magpie 421

tropic bird 782
Yellow-bird 354

summer 298
Yellow-breasted’ chat 312
Yellow-crowned

night heron 663

warbler 301
Yellow-fronted woodpecker 488
Yellow-green greenlet 382
Yellow-headed blackbird 404
Yellow-rumped warbler 301
Yellowshanks 638
Yellow-throat, maryland 310

863

Yellow-throated
greenlet 333
ground warbler 310
warbler 306
Yellow-winged sparrow 365
bleached 365
Yoke-toed birds 126
Yucker 493
Yuma thrasher 255

ZAMELODIA 388
ludoviciana 389
melanocephala 389

Zebra woodpeckers 487

Zebrilus 654, 655

| Zenaida 568

amabilis 569
Zenaida dove 569
Zenaidine 566
Zeyaidura 568

carolinensis 568
Zona pellucida 220
Zonotrichia 381

albicollis 382

botterii 374

coronata 383

gambeli 383

intermedia 383

leucophrys 383

querula 384
Zoological

characters 70

groups 72

table of 81
Zygapophyses 137
Zygodactyle 445

birds 126

foot 130
Zygodactylous arrangement 126
Zygoma 162
Zygomatic arch 162

APPENDIX

EXHIBITING THE NOMENCLATURE OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS’
UNION CHECK-LIST IN COMPARISON WITH THAT OF THE KEY, AND
INCLUDING DESCRIPTIONS OF ADDITIONAL SPECIES, ETC.

Notre. In the Key List, the numbering is continuous, with few exceptions, and the
letters a, b, etc., and the terms bis, ter, etc., indicate additions to the numeration of the Coues
Check List of 1882, which was preserved in the Key, 1884. In the Union List the numera-
tion is necessarily broken to make the comparison with the Key column, because the
sequence of species in the Union List is different. In the latter, a, b, c, indicate sub-
species; extralimital species have their respective numbers bracketed ; and the daggers (ft)
indicate the numbers of the ‘‘ Hypothetical ’’ List.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.

1. Turdus migratorius. 761. Merula migratoria.

2 migratorius propinquus ? 76la. migratoria propinqua.

3. confinis, 762. confinis.

4, iliacus. (760.] Turdus iliacus.

5 nevius. 763. Hesperocichla navia.

6 mustelinus. 755. Turdus mustelinus.

7 fuscescens. 756. fuscescens.

Ta. fuscescens salicicola. 756a. fuscescens salicolus.

8. unalasce. 759. aonalaschke.

9. unalasce auduboni. 759a. aonalaschke auduboni.
10. unalascee nanus. 7590. aonalaschke pallasii. -
11, ustulatus. 758. ustulatus.

12. ustulatus alicie. 757. aliciz.

00. [Not admitted in the Key.] 757a. alicie bicknelli.

13. Turdus ustulatus swainsoni. 758a. ustulatus swainsonii.
14. Oroscoptes montanus. 702. Oroscoptes montanus.

15. Mimus polyglottus. 703. Mimus polyglottus.

16. carolinensis. 704. Galeoscoptes carolinensis.
17. Harporhynchus rufus. 705. Harporhynchus rufus.

18. rufus longirostris. 706. longirostris.
19. curvirostris. . 707. curvirostris.:
20. curvirostris palmeri. 707a. curvirostris palmeri.
21. ' bendirii. “| 708. bendirei.
22.. cinereus. 709. cinereus.

23. redivivus. 710. redivivus.
24. lecontii. 711. lecontei.

COUES KEY, 1884.
25. Harporhynchus crissalis.
30. Cinclus mexicanus.
26. Saxicola cenanthe.

APPENDIX.

UNION LIST, 1886.
712. Harporhynchus crissalis.
701. Cinclus mexicanus.
765. Saxicola cenanthe.

27. Sialia sialis. 766. Sialia sialis.
766a. Sialia sialis azurea.

27 bis. Add: Sialia sialis azurea. AzuRE BiuEBirp. Similar to S. sialis; the blue
of a greenish shade, and the tail upward of 3.00. Southern Arizona and southward. A slight
variety, scarcely recognizable.

28. Sialia mexicana. 767, Sialia mexicana.
29. arctica. 768. arctica.
31. Cyanecula suecica. .| [764.] Cyanecula suecica.
32. Phylloscopus borealis. 747, Phyllopseustes borealis.
33. Regulus calendula. 749. Regulus calendula.

750 obscurus,

33 bis. Add: Regulus calendula obscurus. Dusky Kineiet. Resembling the com-
mon ruby-crown, but with darker and more plumbeous shade of the upper parts, and some.
slight differencesin proportions. A dark insular form described from Guadalupe Island, Lower
California, Since the publication of the Key, the A. O. U. Committee has decided to
include ‘“‘ Lower California, with the islands naturally belonging thereto,” in the “ North
American” avifauna,—a decision in which I concur. (Code, p. 14.)

34. Regulus satrapa. 748. Regulus satrapa.

35. satrapa olivaceus? 748a. satrapa olivaceus.
86. Polioptila ccerulea. 751. Polioptila cerulea.

37. melanura. 758. californica.

38. plumbea. 752. plumbea.

39. Chamea fasciata. 742. Chamea fasciata,

39a. fasciata henshawi. 742a. fasciata henshawi.
40. Lophophanes bicolor. 731. Parus bicolor.

000. [Not in the List.]

40bis. Add: Lophophanes bicolor texensis. Texan Turtep Tirmovuss. Paler
than the last, with chestnut instead of black frontlet at base of crest; this chestnut corres-
ponding in tint to that which suffuses the sides of the body. ‘Tarsus 0.85; bill 0.45.
Southern Texas. The Auk, Jan. 1887, p. 29.

41. Lophophanes inornatus.

733. Parus inornatus.
733a. Parus inornatus griseus.

41 bis. Add: Lophophanes inornatus griseus. Gray Titmouse. Said to differ from
ordinary inornatus in rather larger size and decidedly grayer color. Wing 2.90; tail 2.55.
Middle Province of the United States; Colorado, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, and Arizona.
Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., v., 1882, p. 344.
| 733). Parus inornatus cineraceus.

41 ter. ddd: Lophophanes inornatus cineraceus. Asuy Trrmovuser. Another alleged
local race, described as even grayer above and paler below than ZL. i. griseus, with smaller
bill, black in color. Lower California. Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., vi., Oct. 1883, p. 154.

42. Lophophanes atrocristatus. 732. Parus atricristatus. _
000. [Not in the List.]
42 bis. Add: Lophophanes atrocristatus castaneifrons. CHESTNUT-FRONTED TiT-
mMousE. Resembling the last: upper parts plumbeous, faintly tinged with olive; under

APPENDIX.

867

parts pale ashy, washed with chestnut on the sides, with faint trace of the same on breast
and crissum. Crest thin, an inch long, dark brown and ashy instead of black, and with
a chestnut frontlet; lores white; bill black; feet dark plumbeous. Size of P. bicolor, the

bill even larger.
County, Texas. The Auk, Jan. 1887, p. 28.

COUES KEY, 1884.

43. Lophophanes wollweberi.
44. Parus atricapillus.

45. atricapillus septentrionalis.
46. atricapillus occidentalis.
47. carolinensis.
879. meridionalis.
48. montanus.
50. rufescens.
51. rufescens neglectus ?
49. hudsonicus.
49a. hudsonicus evura
52. cinctus.
58. Psaltriparus minimus.
53. minimus.

Wing 3.12; tail 2.95; tarsus 0.77; bill 0.42. Lately discovered in Bee

UNION LIST, 1886.
734. Parus wollweberi.

735. atricapillus.

735a. atricapillus septentrionalis.
735d. atricapillus occidentalis.
736. carolinensis.

(737.] meridionalis. [p. 334.)
738. gambeli. (New name, List,
741. rufescens.
74la. rufescens neglectus.

740. hudsonicus.

000. [Not admitted in the List.]

739. Parus cinctus obtectus.

743. Psaltriparus minimus.

743a. minimus californicus.
7430. minimus grinde.

53 bis. Add: Psaltriparus minimus grinde. Grinpa’s Busu-tir. Adult: Cap pale
brown, lightening on sides of head into white on chin and throat; other under parts exactly

as in P. minimus.
nape.

Bill and feet black. Wing 2.00; tail 2.30 graduated 0.50; bill 0.20.

Upper parts light plumbeous-gray, well contrasted with the brown of the

A slight

local variation, combining to some extent the characters of Nos. 53 and 54. Lower Califor-

nia.
54. Psaltriparus plumbeus.
55. melanotis.
56. Auriparus flaviceps.
57. Sitta carolinensis.

58. carolinensis aculeata.
59. canadensis.

60. pusilla.

61. pygmea.

62. Certhia familiaris.

62a. familiaris mexicana.

63. Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus.
64. affinis.

65. Salpinetes obsoletus.

65 bis. Add: Salpinctes obsoletus guadalupensis.

Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., vi., Oct. 1883, p. 155.

744. Psaltriparus plumbeus.
[745.] melanotis.
746. Auriparus flaviceps.
727. Sitta carolinensis.

727a. carolinensis aculeata.
728. canadensis.

729. pusilla.

730. pygmea.

726. Certhia familiaris americana.
726a. familiaris mexicana.

713. Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus.
714. affinis.

715. Salpinctes obsoletus.

716. guadaloupensis.

GuADALUPE Rock Wren. An

insular race, differing slightly in the darker coloration, and somewhat in proportions. ¢@,

wing 2.60-2.75; tail 2.20-2.30; bill 0.59; tarsus 0.85: 9, a little smaller.

Island, Lower California.

66. Catherpes mexicanus.
67. mexicanus conspersus.
67a. mexicanus punctulatus.

Guadalupe

(717.] Catherpes mexicanus.
717a. mexicanus conspersus.
000. [Not admitted in the List.]

868 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
68. Thryothorus ludovicianus. 718. Thryothorus ludovicianus.
69. ludovicianus miamiensis. 718a. ludovicianus miamensis.
70. ludovicianus berlandieri. 000. [Not admitted in the List. ]
71. bewicki. 719. Thryothorus bewickii.
72. bewicki leucogaster. 7190. bewickii bairdi.
73. bewicki spilurus ? 7194. bewickii spilurus.

720. brevicaudus.

73 bis. Add: Thryothorus brevicaudus. GuADALUPE WREN. Resembling T. bewicki
leucogaster (‘* bairdi”), but apparently distinct. Above grayest-brown, grayest on the tail,
brownest on the rump; wing-feathers obsoletely and tail-feathers distinctly cross-barred
with dusky, the three outermost of the latter pale dull gray at the ends, with one or two
broad dusky bars. A strong white superciliary stripe, below which a grayish brown loral
and auricular stripe. Below, white, shaded into ashy on the belly and sides; the crissum
with broad black bars. Wing 1.85-1.90; tail 1.80; bill 0.45-0.50; tarsus 0.70-0.75. Gua-
dalupe Island, Lower California.

74. Troglodytes domesticus. 721. Troglodytes aédon.
75. domesticus parkmani. 721a. aédon parkmanii.
76. Anorthura troglodytes hiemalis. 722. hiemalis.
77. troglodytes pacificus. 722a. -hiemalis pacificus.
78. troglodytes alascensis. 723. alascensis.
79. Telmatodytes palustris. 725. Cistothorus palustris.
80. palustris paludicola ? 000. [Not admitted in the List.]
81. Cistothorus stellaris. 724. Cistothorus stellaris.
82. Eremophila alpestris. 474. Otocoris alpestris.
83. alpestris leucolema. 474a. alpestris leucolema.
00. [Not admitted in the Key.] 4740. alpestris praticola.
00. [Not admitted in the Key. ] 474c. alpestris arenicola.
00. [Not admitted in the Key. | 474d. alpestris giraudi.
84, Eremophila alpestris chrysolema. 474e. alpestris chrysolama.
85. Alauda arvensis. (473.] Alauda arvensis.
86. Motacilla alba. (694.] Motacilla alba.
86a. ocularis. (695.] ocularis.
87. Budytes flavus ? 696. Budytes flavus leucostriatus.
88. Anthus pratensis. [698.] Anthus pratensis.
89. ludovicianus. 697. pensilvanicus.

(699. ] cervinus.

89 bis. Add: Anthus cervinus. Rep-rHRoatep Prpit. Adult: Above, light grayish-
brown, fully streaked with dusky, the streaks broadest and darkest on the back. Wings
and tail dusky, the feathers edged with pale brown, the long inner secondaries with buff,
and the ends of the middle and greater wing-coverts whitish; outer tail- feathers with much
white on both webs, and next feather with a white spot at end of inner web. A pale
and more or less buffy superciliary and malar stripe. Below, whitish, more or less suffused
with fawn-color on the chin and throat, the throat, breast and sides broadly streaked or
longitudinally spotted with brownish-black, aggregated into a stripe on each side of the
throat; the chin, belly and vent immaculate. Bill black, with yellowish base of lower man-
dible; feet dark brown. Wing 3.36; tail 2 50; bill 0.45; tarsus 0 85. A species of exten-
sive distribution in northerly parts of the Old World, probably occurring in Alaska, and
accidental in California. Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., vi., Oct. 1883, p. 156.

90.
91.
92.
93.
94.
95.
96.
97.
98.
99.
100.
101.
102.
103.
104.
105.
106.
000.
107.
108.
109.
110.
1h.

1lla.
112.
113.
114.
115.
116.
117.
118.
119.
120.
121.
122,
123.
124,
125.
126.
127.
128.
129.

APPENDIX. 869

COUES KEY, 1884.
Neocorys spraguii.
Mniotilta varia.

varia borealis ?
Parula americana.
nigrilora.
Protonotaria citrea.
Helmintherus vermivorus.
swainsoni.
Helminthophila pinus.
lawrencii ?
leucobronchialis ?
cincinnatiensis ?
chrysoptera.
bachmani.!
lucie.
virginie.
ruficapilla.
[Not admitted in the Key. ]
Helminthophila celata.
celata lutescens.
peregrina.
Peucedramus olivaceus.
Dendreeca estiva.
vieilloti bryanti.?
virens.
occidentalis.
townsendi.
chrysoparia.
nigrescens.
coerulescens.
coerulea.
coronata.
auduboni.
blackburn.
striata.
castanea.
pennsylvanica.
maculosa.
tigrina.
discolor.
gracie.
dominica.

700.
636.
000.
648.
649.
637.
639.
638.
641.
720.
721.
$22.
642.
640.
643.
644.
645.
645a.
646.
646a.
647.
651.
652.
653.
667.
669.
668.
666.
665.
654.
658.
655.
656.
662.
661.
660.
659.
657.
650.
673.
664.
663.

UNION LIST, 1886.
Anthus spragueii.
Mniotilta varia.

[Not admitted in the List.]
Compsothlypis americana.
nigrilora.

‘Protonotaria citrea.

Helmitherus vermivorus.

Helinaia swainsonii.

Helminthophila pinus.
lawrencei?
leucobronchialis ?
cincinnatiensis?
chrysoptera.
bachmani.
lucie.

- virginie.
ruficapilla.
ruficapilla gutturalis.
celata.
celata lutescens.
peregrina.

Dendroica olivacea.

estiva.
bryanti castaneiceps.
virens.
occidentalis.
townsendi.
chrysoparia.
nigrescens,
ceerulescens.
cerulea.
coronata.
auduboni.
blackburniz.
striata.
castanea.
pensylvanica.
maculosa.
tigrina.
discolor.
gracie.
dominica.

1 This rare bird has recently been rediscovered in Louisiana, Mr, C. 8. Galbraith having taken a specimen
near Lake Pontchartrain in 1886. (The Auk, Jan. 1887, p. 35.) Still another specimen, perhaps one of Audubon’s
types, has been found by Mr. William Brewster in the Lafresnaye collection of the Boston Society of Natural
History. (The Auk, April, 1887, p. 165.)

2 D. bryanti having been described as a variety of D. vietlloti, and then raised to specific rank, has been more lately
split into two varieties, and that one which is found on the west coast of Mexico, and also in Lower California, has been
named castaneiceps, from the rich chestnut head. It will probably turn out to be identical with vieilloté proper.

870 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. f UNION LIST, 1886.

130. Dendreeca dominica albilora. 663a. Dendroica dominica albilora.

181. kirtlandi. 670. kirtlandi.

1382. palmarum. 672. palmarum.

133. palmarum hypochrysea? 672a. palmarum hypochrysea.

134, pinus. 671. vigorsii.

000. [See Key, p. 308.] 723. (Perissoglossa?) carbonata.

000. [See Key, p. 308.] 24. montana.

135. Siurus auricapillus. 674. Seiurus aurocapillus.

136. nevius. 675. noveboracensis.

1387. neevius notabilis? 675a. noveboracensis notabilis.

138. motacilla. 676. motacilla..

139. Oporornis agilis. - 678. Geothlypis agilis.

140. formosa. 677. formosa.

141. Geothlypis trichas. 681. trichas.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 681a. trichas occidentalis.
682. beldingi.

141 bis. Add: Geothlypis beldingi. BELDING’s YELLOW-THROAT. Adult ¢: Above
nearly uniform olive-green, a little browner anteriorly; below, rich yellow, paler on the
vent, tinged with brown on the flanks and sides. Black mask exactly as in G. trichas, but
bordered behind for its whole extent with rich yellow. Wing 2.60; tail 2.70, graduated
0.50; bill 0.55. Lower California. Quite distinct from any other species in this list. Pr.
U. S. Nat. Mus., v., Sept. 1882, p. 344.

142. Geothlypis philadelphia. 679. Geothlypis philadelphia.
148. macgillivrayi. 680. ' macgillivrayi.
144. Icteria virens. 683. Icteria virens.
145. virens longicanda. 683a. virens longicauda.
146. Myiodioctes mitratus. 684. Sylvania mitrata.
147. pusillus. 685. pusilla.
148. pusillus pileolatus. 685a. . pusilla pileolata.
149. canadensis. 686. canadensis.
000. [Not admitted in Key.] $25. Sylvania (?) microcephala.
150. Cardellina rubrifrons. 690. Cardellina rubrifrons.
151. Setophaga picta. 688. Setophaga picta.

[689.] miniata.

151 bis. Add: Setophaga miniata. Rep-BELLIED Repstart. Dark bluish-ash above.
A square patch of dark chestnut on the crown. Forehead and sides of head, with the whole
fore-neck and sides of the jugulum, black; other under parts carmine red; lining of wings and
under tail-coverts white; tibie plumbeous. Wing-feathers dusky; tail-feathers black with
much white on the lateral one, and more restricted white areas on the next two. Sexes alike.
Length 5.10; wing 2.50; tail 3.00; tarsus 0.75. Central America and Mexico to Texas. See
Key, p. 313.

152. Setophaga ruticilla. 687. Setophaga ruticilla.
(691.] Ergaticus ruber.

152 bis. Add: Ergaticus rubra. Carmine FiycatcHinc WarBLer. Rich carmine
red, obscured on the back; ear-coverts silvery-white; wing- and tail-feathers dusky, edged
externally with reddish; larger inner wing-coverts rosy white. Sexes alike. Length 4.75;
wing 2.40; the first quill about as long as the sixth; tail 2.50, graduated 0.20; bill small,
parine in shape, but with bristly rictus; tarsus 0.75. A very beautiful species; Mexico to
Texas. See Key, p. 318.

APPENDIX. 87)

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886
(692.] Basileuterus culicivorus.

152 ter. Add: Basileuterus culicivorus. BrasHer’s FrycaTcHING WARBLER.
Above, greenish-ash, more olivaceous on the back and rump ; below, yellow, tinged with rufous
on the crissum. Top of head striped with black on each side, these stripes separating green-
ish-yellow or yellow areas ; a dusky loral and postocular spot. Length 5.00 ; wing 2.40; tail
2.25, graduated 0.15 ; bill 0.50 ; tarsus 0.75. Central America and Mexico to Texas.

| [693.] Basileuterus belli.

152 quater. Add: Basileuterus belli. Bry’s Frycatcainc Warsier. Above,
olive-green ; below, yellow, shaded with olive on the sides ; wings edged with yellow and
lined with olive. Crown and cheeks orange-brown ; a broad yellow supercitiary stripe,
separated from its fellow by a black frontlet which extends more obscurely alon, the crown ;
the yellow stripe continued beyond the rufous of the crown. Bill black ; feet yellowish.
Length 5.10; wing 2.25; tail 2.50; graduated 0.33; bill 0.50; tarsus 0.80. Central
America and Mexico to Texas.

158. Certhiola bahamensis. 635. Certhiola bahamensis.
: 606. Euphonia elegantissima.

153 bis. Add: Suphonia elegantissima. Biur-neapep Tanacer. Adult @:
Above, black with a purplish gloss ; crown and nape blue ; frontlet chestnut, bordered be-
hind by a black line. Below, deep brownish-orange, the throat black. Lining of wings and
inner edges of wing-feathers white. Bill black; feet light brown. Length 4.50; wing
2.50 ; tail 1.50. 9 : upper parts olive-green with blue cap and chestnut frontlet ; below, olive-
yellow, brightest in the middle of the belly ; the throat pale reddish. Mexico to Texas.
See Key, p. 317.

154. Pyranga rubra. 608. Piranga erythromelas. °
155. eestiva. ? 610. rubra.
156. zstiva cooperi. 610a. rubra cooperi.
157. hepatica. 605. hepatica.
158. ludoviciana. 607. ludoviciana.
159. Hirundo erythrogastra horrerorum. 613. Chelidon erythrogaster.
160. Iridoprocne bicolor. 614. Tachycineta bicolor.
161. Tachycineta thalassina. 615. thalassina.
162. Petrochelidon lunifrons. 612. Petrochelidon lunifrons.
163. Cotile riparia. 616. Clivicola riparia.
164. Stelgidopteryx serripennis. 617. Stelgidopteryx serripennis..
165. Progne subis. 611. Progne subis.
166. Ampelis garrulus. 618. Ampelis garrulus.
167. cedrorum. 619. cedrorum.
168. Phainopepla nitens. 620. Phainopepla nitens.
169. Myiadestes townsendi. 754. Myadestes townsendi.
170. Vireo olivaceus. ° 624. Vireo olivaceus.
171. flaviviridis. P 625. flavoviridis.
172. altiloquus barbatulus. [623.] altiloquus barbatulus.
173. philadelphicus. 626. philadelphicus.
174. gilvus. 627. gilvus.
175. gilvus swainsoni? 000. [Not admitted in the List. ]
176. flavifrons. 628. Vireo flavifrons.
177. solitarius, - 629. solitarius.
000. [Not in the List.]

872 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST. 1886.

177 bis. Add: Vireo solitarius alticola) Movcntarx Soritary GREENLET. Like
solitarius proper, but larger, with stouter bill, and of darker colors. In solitarius the upper
parts are olive-green. contrasting with the pure ash of the head ; in the new variety the
upper parts are nearly uniform blackish-plumbeous, only tinged with olive on the back.
Wing 3.00-3.30 ; tail 2.25. Mountains of North Carolina. The Auk, Jan. 1886. p. 111.

78. Vireo solitarius cassini.

179. solitarius plumbeus.
180. vicinior.
181. noveboracensis.

629a. Vireo solitarius cassinii.

6290. solitarius plumbeus.
63+. vicinior.
631. noveboracensis.

000. “Not in the List.]

181 bis. Add: Vireo noveboracensis maynardi. Key West GREENLET. Colora-
tion much as in the last. but grayer above and paler yellow below ; size and proportions as
in V. crassirostris, the bill as large and stout as in the latter. Wing 2.20-2.50 ; tail 1.90-
2.05 ; bill 0.55-0.65, its depth at the nostrils 0.18-0.20. Key West, Florida. The Auk,

April, 1887, p. 148.
182. Vireo huttoni.

1824. huttoni stevensi.

183. ii.

184. pusillus.

185. atricapillus.

186. Lanius borealis.

187. ludovicianus.

188. ludovicianus excubitorides.

189. Hesperophona vespertina.

190. Pinicola enucleator.

191. Pyrrhula cassini.

192. Passer domesticus.

193. montanus.

194. Carpodacus purpureus.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.]

195. Carpodacus cassini.

196. frontalis.

197. frontalis rhodocolpus (?)

197 bis. Add: Carpodacus amplus. GuaADALUPE House FINc#.

632. Vireo huttoni.

632a. huttoni stephensi.

633. belli.

633a. belli pusillus.

630. atricapillus.

621. Lanius borealis.

622. ludovicianus.

622a. ludovicianus excubitoroides.

514. Coccothraustes vespertina.
515. Pinicola enucleator.

[516.] Pyrrhula cassini.
000. “Not admitted in the List.]
000. “Not admitted in the List. ]
517. Carpodacus purpureus.

517a. purpureus californicus.
518. cassini.

519. frontalis.

519a. frontalis rhodocolpus.
520. amplus.

A large dark

insular form, resembling C. frontalis proper, but with darker tints, and of considerably larger
size. @, wing 3.10-3.35; tail 2.60-2.90; bill 0.40-0.45 from the nostril, and the same in
depth ; tarsus 0.75-0.85: 9 somewhat smaller. Guadalupe Island, Lower California.

198. Loxia leucoptera.

199. curvirostra americana.
200. curvirostra mexicana.
201. Leucosticte atrata.

202. australis.

208. tephrocotis.

204. tephrocotis litoralis.
205. griseinucha.

206. arctoa.

207. AEgiothus linaria.

522. Loxia leucoptera.

521. curvirostra minor.

52l1a. curvirostra stricklandi.
525. Leucosticte atraza

526. australis.

524. tephrocotis.

524a. tephrocotis littoralis.
523. griseonucha.

000. [Not admitted In the List.]
528. Acanthus linaria.

APPENDIX. 873

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
208. ®giothus linaria holboelli. 528a, Acanthus linaria holboellii.
000. {Not admitted in the Key.] 5280. linaria rostrata.
209. Agiothus hornemanni. 527. hornemannii.
210. exilipes. 527a. hornemannii exilipes.
211. Linota flavirostris brewsteri? 17. brewsterii.
212. Chrysomitris pinus. 533. Spinus pinus.
213. Astragalinus tristis. 529. tristis.
214. lawrencii. 531. lawrencei.
215. psaltria. 530. psaltria.
216. psaltria arizone. 530a. psaltria arizone.
217. psaltria mexicanus. . 5300. psaltria mexicanus.
218. notatus. (532. ] notatus.
219. Plectrophanes nivalis. 534. Plectrophenax nivalis.

535. hyperboreus.

219 bis. Add: Plectrophanes hyperboreus. PoLtar SNOWFLAKE. McoKay’s Snow
Buntine. Adult in spring: Pure white, excepting the tips of the wings, which are black
for about an inch and a half, and a small black spot on the end of the middle tail feather ;
bill dull brown, with blackish tip; feet black. In winter: washed with rusty brown on the
crown, ear-coverts, throat, and rump; the bill yellowish with dusky tip. Wing 4.65; tail
3.10; bill 0.45; tarsus 0.90. A beautiful ‘‘ snowflake,” apparently quite distinct from the
last, lately discovered in Alaska. Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus., vii., 1884, p. 68.

220. Centrophanes lapponicus. 536. Calcarius lapponicus.

221. pictus. 537. pictus.

222. ornatus. 538. ornatus.

223. Rhynchophanes maccowni. 539. Rhynchophanes mcecownii.

224. Passerculus bairdi. 545. Ammodramus bairdii.

225. princeps. 541. princeps.

226. sandvicensi.. 542. sandwichensis.

227. sandvicensis savana. 542a. sandwichensis savanna.

228. sandvicensis anthinus. 542c. sandwichensis bryanti.

229. ‘sandvicensis alaudinus. 542b. sandwichensis alaudi-
548. beldingi. (nus.

299 bis. Add: Passerculus. beldingi. Brtpina’s SAVANNA Sparrow. ‘ Similar to
the darker form of P. sandwichensis (i.e. bryanti), but much darker, with decidedly heavier
dark: spotting on lower parts, the bill larger and more elongated.”? Salt marshes of the
Pacific coast, from Santa Barbara south to Todos Santos Island, Lower California. Accord-
ing to the A. O. U. Committee, what ornithologists have been calling ‘ Pusserculus anthinus”
includes two distinct forms, one of which is now called ‘¢ Ammodramus sandwichensis bryanti,””
and the other is this Passerculus beldingi. P. “ bryanti’’ is described from San Francisco Bay,
as ‘differing from P. sandwichensis alaudinus in decidedly smaller size and much darker
coloration of the upper parts. There is little probability that such attempted discriminations
will survive the official etiquette of the present flutter in American Ornithology.

230. Passerculus rostratus. 544. Ammodramus rostratus.

231. guttatus. 544a. rostratus guttatus.

232. Pocecetes gramineus. 540. Poocetes gramineus.

233. gramineps confinis. 540a. gramineus confinis.

234. Coturniculus passerinus. ‘| 546. Ammodramus savannarum passerinus.

235. passerinus perpallidus. 546a. savannarum perpallidus

874 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
236. Coturniculus henslowi. 547. Ammodramus henslowii.
237. lecontii. 548. leconteii.
238. Ammodramus maritimus. 550. maritimus.
239. maritimus nigrescens. 551. nigrescens.
240. | caudacutus. 5AD. caudacutus.
241. caudacutus nelsoni. 549a. caudacutus nelsoni.
242. Melospiza lincolni. 583. Melospiza lincolni.
243. palustris. 584. georgiana.
244. fasciata. 581. fasciata.
245. fasciata fallax. 58la. fasciata fallax.

581b. fasciata montana.

245 bis. Add: Melospiza fasciata montana. Mountain Sone-Sparrow. Resem-
bling M. f. fallax, and scarcely distinguishable. Upper parts umber-brown with gray
margins of the feathers, giving a strong grayish cast to the plumage; the back streaked with
blackish-brown, and the streaks of the under parts also of this color. This is the form
occurring in the Great Basin at large. The Auk, July, 1884, p. 224.

246. Melospiza fasciata heermanni. 581c. Melosviza fasciata heermanni.
247. fasciata samuelis. : 581d. . fasciata samuelis.
248. fasciata guttata. 58l1e. fasciata guttata.
249. fasciata rufina. 581f. fasciata rufina.
250. cinerea. 582. cinerea.
251. Peucea estivalis. 575. Peucea estivalis.
252. estivalis illinoénsis. 575a. estivalis bachmanii.
253. estivalis arizone. 576. arizona.

577. mexicana.

253 bis. ddd: Peuczea mexicana. Mrxican SUMMER FINCH. Upper parts gray suf-
fused with bay, streaked on most of the back with bold black bay-edged stripes; crown similar,
rather darker, in smaller pattern of the markings and without lighter median line. Bend of
wing yellow; coverts blackish, with broad grayish-bay edgings; flight-feathers dusky, several
inner secondaries blackish, with firm light edgings. Tail-feathers dusky, with obsolete
scarcely discernible cross-waves, the middle pair with paler edges their whole length, the
lateral ones fading toward their ends: Under parts pale grayish-brown, blanching on the
throat and abdomen, unstreaked excepting for a slight pair of black maxillary stripes. Bill
dark corn-color; feet light brown. Length 6.30; wing 2.65; tail 2.80; tarsus 0.80. (Described
from Mexican specimens.) Mexico to the Valley of the Lower Rio Grande in Texas; a late
addition to our Fauna.

254. Peuczea cassihi. 578. Peucea cassini.

255. ruficeps. 580. ruficeps.

256. ruficeps boucardi. 580a. ruficeps boucardi.

000. [See Key, p. 375. , ; 5800. ruficeps eremceca.

257. Peucea carpalis. 579. carpalis.

258. Amphispiza bilineata. 573. Amphispiza bilineata.

259. belli. 574. belli.

260 belli nevadensis. 574a. belli nevadensis.°
261. Junco hiemalis.! 567. Junco hyemalis.

262. hiemalis aikeni. 566. aikeni.

1 The snow-bird which breeds on the mountains of North Carolina has been named as a variety, J. h. caro-
linensis, but the characters adduced do not seem satisfactory. The Auk, Jan. 1886, p. 108.

APPENDIX. 875

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
262a. Junco hiemalis connectens. 000. [Not admitted in the List.]
263. hiemalis oregonus. 567a. Junco hyemalis oregonus.
264. hiemalis annectens. 568. annectens.

265. hiemalis caniceps. 569. caniceps.

266. hiemalis dorsalis. 570a. cinereus dorsalis.

267. hiemalis cinereus. 570. cinereus palliatus.
571. bairdi.

267 bis. Add: Junco hiemalis bairdi. Barrp’s SNow-Brrp. Head and neck
ashy-gray, paler on throat, tinged on hind-head with brown, the lores distinctly blackish.
Back, scapulars arid adjoining wing-feathers pale rufous-brown, tinged with olivaceous;
rump and upper tail-coverts, with the lesser, middle, and outer wing-coverts grayish-
olive; inner webs of tertials dusky; primaries gray, edged with paler, the outermost with
white; outer tail-feather mostly white, two next with white in diminishing amount.
Jugulum pale buffy-gray, contrasting with the white of the abdomen; sides and flanks
cinnamon-buff; crissum dull whitish. Upper miandible dark brown, lower yellow; iris
yellow; feet pale brown. Wing 2.80; tail 2.75; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.80. A form lately
discovered in Lower California, resembling a bright-colored 9 J. oregonus, presenting the
peculiar combination of ‘‘ pink’’ sides with yellow eyes and under mandible. Pr. U. S.
Nat. Mus., vi., Oct. 1883, p. 155.

| 572. Junco insularis.

267 ter. Add: Junco insularis. GuaDALUPE SNow-BIRD. Resembling the so-called
J. annectens ;, darker, and with somewhat different proportions. Crown and nape dark slate;
lower tail-coverts dusky, the feathers edged with whitish; lores blackish. Wings and tail
relatively short: wing 2.55-2.85; tail 2.30-2.60; bill 0.37 long, 0.27 deep. (In annectzns,
etc., wing and tail about 3.00.) Added to our Fauna by the inclusion of Guadalupe Island.
268. Spizella monticola. 559. Spizella monticola.

: 559a. monticola ochracea.

268 bis. Add: Spizella monticola ochracea. Western TREE Sparrow. Like the
last: above, paler, with sparser, sharper and narrower dorsal streaks, sides and throat more
ochraceous. Washington Territory. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, Oct. 1882, p. 228.

269. Spizella domestica. . 560. Spizella socialis.
270. domestica arizone. 560a. socialis arizone.
271. agrestis. 563. pusilla.

| 000. | Not admitted in the List. !

971 bis. Add: Spizella agrestis arenacea. Texan Fietp Sparrow. Like S.
agrestis, but with the rufous replaced by brownish-ash; slightly larger, with longer tail and
somewhat stouter bill. Wing 2.50; tail 2.90: culmen 0.35. A form lately described as
migratory, or perhaps a winter resident, in Southern Texas. The Auk, April, 1886, p. 248.

| 564. Spizella wortheni.

271ter. Add: Spizella wortheni. WorTHEN’s FieLp-sparrow. Resembling S.
agrestis. Much less rufous, with broader black dorsal streaks, no rufous auricular streak
nor lateral pectoral spot, a distinct white eye-ring, and slenderer bill. Wing 2.70; tail.
2.50; bill 0.40; tarsus 0.70. Western Texas and New Mexico. Apparently a good species,
approaching S. atrigularis in some respects, especially the coloration of the upper parts. Pr.
_U. S. Nat. Mus., vii., 1884, p. 259.

272. Spizella pallida. 561. Spizella pallida.
278. breweri. 562. breweri.
274. . atrigularis. 565. atrigularis.

876 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
275. Zonotrichia albicollis. 558. Zonotrichia albicollis.
276. leucophrys. 554. leucophrys.
277. leucophrys intermedia. 555. intermedia.
278. gambeli. 556. gambeli.
279. coronata, 557. coronata.
280- querula. 558. querula.
281. Chondestes grammica. 552. Chondestes grammacus.
282. Passerella iliaca. 585. Passerella iliaca.
283. iliaca unalascensis. 585a iliaca unalaschcensis.
284. iliaca schistacea. 585c. iliaca schistacea.
285. iliaca megarhyncha. 585b. iliaca megarhyncha.
286. Calamospiza bicolor. 605. Calamospiza melanocorys.
287. Spiza americana. 604. Spiza americana.
288. townsendi. 718. townsendii.
289. Zamelodia ludoviciana. 595. Habia ludoviciana:
290. melanocephala. 596. melanocephala, *
291. Guiraca ceerulea. 597. Guiraca cerulea.
292. Passerina ciris. 601. Passerina ciris.
293. versicolor. 600. versicolor.
294. amoena. 599. amoena.
295. cyanea. 598. cyanca.
296. Spermophila moreleti. 602. Sporophila morelleti.
297. Phonipara zena. 603. Euethea bicolor.
298. Pyrrhuloxia sinuata. 594. Pyrrhuloxia sinuata.
299. Cardinalis virginianus. | 593. Cardinalis cardinalis.

| 598a. cardinalis superbus.

299 bis. Add: Cardinalis virginianus superbus. ARIzoNA Carpinau. Like the
last, but larger, and the female more richly colored. ' ¢, wing 4.10; tail 5.00; tarsus 1.05;
bill along culmen 0.85; its depth at base 0.70: Q smaller. Arizona; hardly recognizable.
The Auk, Oct. 1885, p. 344.

300. Cardinalis virginianus igneus. | 5936. Cardinalis cardinalis igneus.

301. Pipilo erythrophthalmus. 587. Pipilo erythrophthalmus.

802. erythrophthalmus alleni. 587a. erythrophthalmus alleni.

308. maculatus oregonus. 588d. maculatus oregonus.

304. ‘maculatus arcticus. 588. maculatus arcticus.

305. maculatus megalonyx. 588a. - maculatus megalonyx.
589. consobrinus.

805 bis. Add: Pipilo maculatus consobrinus. GuADALUPE Towuxre. Adult ¢:
Head, neck, throat, and upper parts black: white on outer webs of scapulars usually bor-
dered with black; two well-defined white wing-bars; inner secondaries and a middle por-
tion of the primaries narrowly edged with white; two or three lateral tail-feathers with
terminal white patch. Below white, with chestnut sides and buff crissum. 9 similar, but
dull-brownish black where the male is black, and smaller white tail-spots. @, wing 3.10-
3.25; tail 3.50-3.75: Q somewhat less. An insular race, one of many into which the very
variable P. maculatus is divisible. Guadulupe Island, Lower California.

306. Pipilo fuscus mesoleucus. 591. Pipilo fuscus mesoleucus.
307. fuscus albigula. 591a. fuscus albigula.
308. fuscus crissalis. | 591d. fuscus crissalis.

309.
310.
3ll.
312.
000.
3138.
3ld.
315.
316.
317.
318.
319.
320.
321.
322.
823.
824.
325.
326.
327.
328.

APPENDIX. 877

COUES KEY, 1884.

Pipilo aberti.

chlorurus.

Embernagra rufovirgata.

Dolichonyx oryzivorus.

[Not admitted in the Key.]

Molothrus ater.

ater obscurus.
aeneus.

Agelaus phoeniceus.
pheeniceus -gubernator.
tricolor.

Xan‘hocephalus icterocephalus.

Sturnella magna.

magna mexicana.
negleeta.

Icterus vulgaris.

spurius.
spurius affinis.
galbuta.
bullocki.
cucullatus.

UNION LIST, 1886.
592. Pipilo aberti.
590. chlorurus.
586. Embernagra rufivirgata.
494. Dolichonyx oryzivorus.

494a. oryzivorus albinucha.
495. Molothrus ater.

495a. ater obscurus.

496. seneus.

498. Agelaius phceniceus.

499. gubernator.

500. tricolor.

497. Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus.
501. Sturnella magna.

501a. magna mexicana.
501d. magna neglecta.
[502.] Icterus icterus.

506. spurius.

000. [Not admitted in the List.]
507. Icterus galbula.

508. bullocki.
505. cucullatus.
505a. cucullatus nelsoni.

828 bis. Add: Icterus cucullatus nelsoni. Arizona Hoopep ORIOLE. A paler-

colored race, in which the yellow is not supposed to become orange or flame-color, from

Arizona, California, and southward to Mazatlan.
ing a geographical race.

The distinction is trivial, hardly indicat-

‘The description in the Key, p. 409, covers both this and the true

cucullatus, which latter occurs in Texas and southward.

329.
330.
381.
382.
333.
334.
335.
336,
337.
338.
339.
340.
341.

342

318.
3d.
345.
346.
347.
348.
349,

Icterus parisorum.
melanocephalus auduboni.
Scolecophagus ferrugineus.
cyanocephalus.
Quiscalus macrurus.
major.
purpureus.
purpureus eneus.
purpureus agleus. -
Corvus corax.
cryptoleucus.
frugivorus. .
frugivorus floridanus.
caurinus.
maritimus.
Picicorvus columbianus.
Gymuocitta cyanocephala.
Psilorhinus morio.
Pica rustica hudsonica.
nuttalli.
Cyanocitta cristata.

504. Icterus parisorum.

503. audubonii.

509. Scolecophagus carolinus.

510. cyanocephalus.
512. Quiscalus macrourus.

513. major.

511. quiscula.

5110. quiscula eneus.
5lla. quiscula agleus.
486. Corvus corax sinuatus.

487. cryptoleucus.

488. americanus.

488a. americanus floridanus.
489. caurinus.

490. ossifragus.

491. Picicorvus columbianus.

492. Cyanocephalus cyanocephalus.
000. [Not admitted in the List.]
475. Pica pica hudsonica.

476. nuttalli.

477. Cyanocitta cristata.

878 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. ! UNION LIST, 1886.
349a. Cyanocitta cristata florincola. 477a. Cyanocitta cristata florincola.
350. stelleri. 478. stelleri.

351. stelleri annectens. 000. “Not admitted in the List.}

353 stelleri frontalis. 478a. Cyanocitta stelleri frontalis.
352. stelleri macrolopha. ATS. stelleri macrolopha.
354. Aphelocoma floridana. 479. Aphelocoma floridana.

350. floridana woodhousii. 480. woodhousei.

356. floridana californica. 481. californica.

! 000. {Not admitted in the List.}

356 bis. Add: Aphelocoma floridana insularis. Santa Cruz Jay. — Above, dark
azure blue, including exposed surface of wing- and tail-feathers, this color deepest on the
crown, and extending on the sides of the head and well down on the neck and breast; the back
dark sepia brown. A white superciliary line; a black loral and auricular spot. Feathers of
throat and breast ashy-white edged with blue; crissum blue; other under parts dull white.
Wing 5.35; tail 6.25; tarsus 1.80; bill 1.25. Santa Cruz Island, one of the Santa Barbara
group, off the Coast of California. The Auk, Oct. 1356, p. 452.

357. Aphelocoma ultramarina arizone. ' 482. Aphelocoma sieberii arizona.
358. Xanthura luxuriosa. 453. Nanthoura luxuosa.

359. Perisoreus canadensis. , 484. Perisoreus canadensis.

360. canadensis fumifrons. 484). canadensis fumifrons.
000. _ Not admitted in the Key. } 48tc. canadensis nigricapillus.!
361. Perisoreus canadensis obscurus. 455. obscurus.

362. canadensis capitalis. 4S84a. canadensis capitalis.
363. Sturnus vulgaris. ; [493.] Sturnus vulgaris.

364. Pitangus derbianus. ; 449. Pitangus derbianus. .

364 bis. Myiozetetes texensis. | [450.] Myiozetetes texensis.

365. Myiodynastes luteiventris. ; 451. Myiodynastes luteiventris.

366. Milvulus tyrannus. _ (442.] Milvulus tyrannus.

367. forficatus. » 443. forficatus.

3638. Tyrannus carolinensis. ' 444. Tyrannus tyrannus.

369. dominicensis. 445. dominiceusis.

370. verticalis. 447. verticalis.

371. vociferans. , 448. vociferans.

3r2. melancholicus couchi. ; 446. 6 melancholicus couchii.
373.. Myiarchus crinitus. | 452. Myiarchus crinitus.

880. crinitus cooperi. | 453a. mexicanus magister-
374. crinitus erythrocercus. 453. mexicanus.

375. cinerescens. 454. cinerascens.

376. lawrencii. [455.] lawrenceii.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] ‘| 455a. lawrencei olivascens.
377. Sayiornis sayi. ' 457. Sayornis saya.

378. nigricans. | 458. nigricans.

379. fuscus. \. 456. pheebe.

380. Contopus borealis. 459. Contopus borealis.

381. pertinax. 460. pertinax.

) An alleged variety, said to differ from the true canadensis in altogether darker coloration, blacker crown,
black auriculars, less extensive white front, and more marked contrast of the white and dark areas of the head
and neck. Probably inhabits the coast region of Labrador, and most likely is only a specimen a little darker
than usual. Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus., v., 1882, p. 15.

\

APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884.
382. Contopus virens.

383. virens richardsoni.
884. Empidonax acadicus.

385. trailli.

386. pusillus.

387. minimus.

388. flaviventris.

389. flaviventris difficilis ?
390. hammondi.

391. obscurus.

392. Mitrephanes fulvifrons pallescens.

392 bis. Add: Mitrephanes fulvifrons.

879

; UNION LIST, 1886.

461. Contopus virens.
462. richardsonii.
465. Empidonax acadicus.

466a. pusillus traillii.
466. pusillus.
467. minimus.
463. flaviventris.
. 464. difficilis.
468. hammondi.
469. obscurus.
470a fulvifrons pygmaeus.
70. fulvifrons.

Furvous FrycatcuEr. Specimens of the

true fulvifrons, differing from the Arizona form in much heavier fulvous coloration, and
agreeing with Giraud’s type, are said to be found N. to Texas.

393.
000.
394.
395.
396.
397.
881.
398.

Ornithium imberbe.
[Not admitted in ‘the Key.]
Pyrocephalus rubineus mexicanus.
Nyctidromus albicollis.
Antrostomus carolinensis.
vociferus.
vociferus arizone.
Phalenoptilus nuttalli.

898 bis. Add: Phalzenoptilus nuttalli nitidus.

472. Ornithion imberbe.

472a. imberbe ridgwayi.

471. Pyrocephalus rubineus mexicanus.
419. Nyctidromus albicollis.

416. Autrostomus carolinensis.

417. vociferus.

417a. vociferus arizone.
418. Phalenoptilus nuttalli.

000. [Not admitted in the List.]

Frostep Poor-WiLu. Similar to

the last, but with the dark markings of the upper parts fewer and sharper on a much paler

ground, and the crossbars on the under parts finer and paler.
The Auk, April, 1887, p. 147.

race from Texas and Arizona.

399. Chordediles popetue.

400. popetue henryi.

401. popetue minor.

402. acutipennis texensis.
403. Panyptila saxatilis.

404. Nepheecetes niger borealis.

405. Chetura pelasgica.

406. vauxi.

407. Basilinna xantusi.

408. Eugenes fulgens.

408 bis. Add: Coeligena clemencie. BLuE-THROATED HummMinc-Birp.

Described as a bleached desert

420. Chordeiles virginianus.

420a. virginianus henryi.
4200. virginianus minor.
42}. texensis.

425. Micropus melanoleucus.

422. Cypseloides niger.

423. Cheetura pelagica.

424, vauxi.

440. Basilinna xantusi.

426. Eugenes fulgens.

427. Coeligena clemenciz.

Bill longer

than head, straight; wings long and ample; tail large, rounded, with broad feathers; tarsi
feathered; sexes unlike. g: above, bronzy-green; below, ashy-gray, the feathers more ot
less tipped with green. A white stripe behind the eye. Gorget metallic azure blue. Tail
black, the two outermost feathers tipped with white. Upper mandible blackish, lower flesh-
colored. Length 5.40; extent 7.50; wing 3.10; tail 1.90; culmen from nostril 0.88. A
fine large species lately found in Southern Arizona. The Auk, Jan. 1885, p. 85.

409. Trochilus colubris. 428. Trochilus colubris.
410. alexandri 429, alexandri.

880 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
411. Selasphorus rufus. 433. Trochilus rufus.
412. alleni. 434. alleni.
413. platycercus. 432. platycercus.
414. Calypte anne. 431. anna.
415. coste. 430. coste.
416. Atthis heloise. 435. heloisa.
417. Stellula calliope. 436. calliope.
418. Calothorax lucifer. 487. lucifer.
419. Amazilia fuscocaudata. 438. Amazilia fuscicaudata.
420. cerviniventris. 439. cerviniventris.
421. TIache latirostris. 441. Iache latirostris.
422. Trogon ambiguus. [889.] Trogon ambiguus.
423. Ceryle alcyon. 390. Ceryle alcyon.
424, americana cabanisi. 391. cabanisi.
425. Crotophaga ani. [383.] Crotophaga ani.
426. sulcirostris. 384. sulcirostris.
427. Geococcyx californianus. 385. Geococcyx californianus.
428. Coccygus erythrophthalmus. 388. Coccyzus erythrophthalmus.
429, americanus. 387. americanus.
430. seniculus. - | 386. minor.
431. Campephilus principalis. 392. Campephilus principalis.
432, Hylotomus pileatus. 405. Ceophloeus pileatus.
433. Picus borealis. 395. Dryobates borealis.
434. scalaris. 396. scalaris.
485. scalaris nuttalli. 397. nuttalli.
436. scalaris lucasanus. 396a. scalaris lucasanus.
437. stricklandi. 398. stricklandi.
438. villosus. 393. villosus.
438a. villosus major. 3938a. villosus leucomelas.
438c. villosus minor. 393d. villosus audubonii.
439. villosus harrisi. 8938c. villosus harrisii.
440, pubescens. 304. pubescens.
441. pubescens gairdneri. 394a. pubescens gairdnerii.
442. Xenopicus albolarvatus. 399. Xenopicus albolarvatus.
443. Picoides arcticus. mare 400. Picoides arcticus.
444. americanus. 401. americanus.

401a. Picoides americanus alascensis.

444 bis. Add: Picoides americanus alascensis. ALASKAN THREE-TOED Woop-
PECKER. Resembling the last: back more broadly barred with white, the bars more or less
confluent; the white postocular stripe more distinct; the dark bars of the sides narrower.
Alaska and northern British America. The Auk, April, 1884, p. 165.

445. Picoides americanus dorsalis. 401b. Picoides americanus dorsalis.
446. Sphyrapicus varius. 402. Sphyrapicus varius.

447. varius nuchalis. 402a. varius nuchalis.
448. varius ruber. 403. ruber.

449. thyroides. 404. thyroideus.

450. Certurus carolinus. 409. Melanerpes carolinus.

451. aurifrons. 410. aurifrons.

452. uropygialis. 411. uropygialis.

APPENDIX. 881

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
458. Melanerpes erythrocephalus. 406. Melanerpes erythrocephalus.
454. formicivorus bairdii. 407. formicivorus bairdi.
£55. formicivorus angustifrons. 407a. formicivorus angustifrons.
456. Asyndesmus torquatus. 408. torquatus.
457. Colaptes auratus. 412. Colaptes auratus.
458. chrysoides. 414. chrysoides.
459. mexicanus. 413. cafer |
000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 413. cafer saturatior.'

415. rufipileus,

459 bis. Add: Colaptes mexicanus rufipileus. GuapALupE Fuicker. Resembling
C. mexicanus: terminal black of the tail broader, occupying 3.50 instead of about 2.00
inches. Rump of a pale pinkish shade instead of pure white. Crown cinnamon, becoming
tawny anteriorly, instead of grayish. Wings and tail much shorter ; bill longer. Wing
5.90-6.25 ; tail 4.75-5.25 ; bill 1.35-1.60. An insular form approaching C. chrysoides in
some respects, as the color of the crown. Guadalupe Island, Lower California.

460, Conurus carolinensis. 382. Conurus carolinensis.

461. Aluco flammeus pratincola. 365. Strix pratincola.

462. Bubo virginianus. 375. Bubo virginianus.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 875a. virginianus subarcticus,
463. Bubo virginianus arcticus. 375d. virginianus arcticus.
46-4. virginianus paciticus. 875e, virginianus saturatus.
465. Scops asio. 373. Megascops asio.

466. asio kennicotti. 378d, asio kennicottii.
466a. asio bendirii. 873e. asio bendirei.

467. asio maxwelle. d78e. asio maxwellia.,
468. asio macealli. 3730. asio mecallii.

469. asio floridanus. 373a, asio floridanus,
470. trichopsis ? 3738f. asio trichopsis,
471. flammeola. 374, flammeclus.

472. Asio wilsonianus. 366. Asio wilsonianus.

173. accipitrinus. 367. accipitrinus.

474. Strix cinerea. 370. Ulula cinerea.

475, cinerea lapponica. [370]. cinerea lapponica.

476. nebulosa. 368. Syrnium nebulosum.

477 nebulosa alleni. 368a. nebulosum alleni,
478. occidentalis. 369, occidentale.

479, Nyctea scandiaca. 376. Nyctea nyctea,

480, Surnia funerea, 877a. Surnia ulula caparoch.

481. funerea ulula. (877. | ulula.

482. Nyctala tengmalmi richardsoni. 371. Nyctala tengmalmi richardsoni.
488. acadica. 372. acadica,

484. Glaucidium gnoma. 379. Glaucidium gnoma.

485. ferrugineum. © 380. phalcenoides.
486. Micrathene whitneyi. 381. Micrathene whitneyi.

487. Speotyto cunicularia hypogeea. 378, Speotyto cunicularia hypogea.
488. cunicularia floridana. 378a. cunicularia floridana

1 An alleged dark-colored form occurring on the North West coast, from the Columbia River to Sitka,— a
region of heavy rain-fall, where the tendency of the whole ornis is to acquire heavier coloration See Pr. Biol.
Soc. Washn., li,, Apr. 1884, p. 90. 56

882 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.

489. Circus cyaneus hudsonius. 331. Circus hudsonius.
490. Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus. 330. Rostrhamus sociabilis.
491. Ictinia subccerulea. 329. Ictinia mississippiensis.
492. Elanus glaucus. ~ 828. Elanus leucurus.
493. Elanoides forficatus. 327. Elanoides forficatus.
494, Accipiter fuscus. 332. Accipiter velox.
495. cooperi. 3338. cooperi.
496. Astur atricapillus. 334. atricapillus.
497. atricapillus striatulus? 334a. atricapillus striatulus,
498. Falco sacer. ; 354a. Falco rusticolus gyrfalco.
499. sacer obsoletus. 3540. rusticolus obsoletus.
500. islandicus. 354, rusticolus.
501. candicaus. 353. islandus.
502. mexicanus. 355. mexicanus.
503. peregrinus. 356. peregrinus‘anatum.
504. peregrinus pealii. _ | 356a, peregrinus pealei.
505. columbarius. 357. columbarius.
506. columbarius suckleyi? 3574. columbarius suckleyi.
507. columbarius richardsoni. 358. richardsonii.
508. sparverius. 360. sparverius.
509. sparverius isabellinus ? 000. [Properly omitted from the List.]
510. sparverioides. (861.] Falco sparverioides.
511. fusciccerulescens. 359. fusco-ccerulescens.
535. Polyborus auduboni. 362. Polyborus cheriway.

363. lutosus.

5835 bis. Add: Polyborus lutosus. GUADALUPE CARACARA. As stated in the
Key, p. 540, this species is quite distinct, nearly the whole plumage being barred. The
diagnostic marks are tabulated by its describer as follows: “Scapulars plain dusky brown.
Tibie and flanks light isabella-color, barred with dark brown. Wing coverts (middle and
greater) marked with wide bars of brown and pale isabella-color, of equal width. Tail-
coverts and rump with broad bars of light isabella-color and grayish-brown. Tail with
broad bars of pale isabella-color and grayish-brown, separated by zigzag lines of dusky.
Abdomen isabella-color, with small sagittate bars of dark brown.”’ - Wing 15.00-16.50; tail
10.50-11.50; bill 1.25-1.85; tarsus 3.50-3.75. Guadalupe Island, Lower California,

512, Buteo unicinctus harrisi. 335. Parabuteo unicinctus harrisi
513. albocaudatus. 341. Buteo albicaudatus.
514. cooperi ? “| p14. cooperi.
515. harlani. 338. harlani.
516. borealis. 337. borealis.
517. borealis calurus. 337). borealis calurus.
518. borealis lucasanus. 337c. borealis lucasanus.
519. borealis ‘krideri. 337a. borealis kriderii.
520. lineatus. 339. lineatus.
339a. lineatus alleni.

520 bis. Add: Buteo lineatus alleni. FLorripA Rep-SHOULDERED Hawk. As stated
in the Key, p. 546, there is much variation in size, Florida and Gulf specimens being very
small. Such examples, having the wing 12.50 or less, tail 8.00 or less, etc., in the male,
have received the above name. Pr. U. 8. Nat. Mus., vii., Jan. 1885, p. 514.

APPENDIX. 883

COUES KEY, 1884.

521. Buteo lineatus elegans.

522. abbreviatus.

523. swainsoni.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.]
524, Buteo pennsylvanicus.

882. brachyurus.

883. fuliginosus,

000. [Not admitted in the Key. ]
525. Archibuteo lagopus sancti-johannis.
526. ferrugineus.
527. Asturina plagata.

528. Urubitinga authracina.
529. Onychotes gruberi.}

531. Thrasyaétus harpyia.
532. Aquila chrysaétus.

533. Haliaétus albicilla.

534. leucogephalus.
530. Pandion haliaétus.

536. Pseudogryphus californianus.
537. Cathartes aura.

538. Catharista atrata.

539. Columba fasciata.

540. erythrina.

541. leucocephala.

543. Ectopistes migratorius. .
542. Engyptila albifrons.

544. Zenaidura carolinensis.
545. Zenaida amabilis.

546. Melopelia leucoptera.

547. Chamepelia passerina.

548. passerina pallescens?
549. Scardafella inca.

550. Geotrygon martinica.

551. Starncenas cyanocephala.
552. Ortalis vetula maccalli.
553. Meleagris gallipavo.

554. gallipavo americana.
555. Canace canadensis.

556. canadensis franklini.
557. obscura.

558. obscura richardsoni.
559. obscura fuliginosa.

560. Centrocercus urophasianus.
561. Pedicecetes phasianellus.

, UNION LIST, 1886.
339. Buteo lineatus elegans.

340. abbreviatus.
342. swainsoni.
[386.] buteo.
348. latissimus.
[844.] brachyurus.
15. fuliginosys.
[847.] Archibuteo lagopus.
3474. lagopus sancti-johannis.
348. ferrugineus.

346. Asturina plagiata.

345. Urubitinga anthracina.

000. [Properly removed from the List. ]
[850.] Thrasaétus harpyia.

349. Aquila chrysaétos.
[351.] Halizétus albicilla.

352. leucocephalus.

364. Pandion haliaétus carolinensis.
324. Pseudogryphus californianus.
325, Cathartes aura.

326. Catharista atrata.

312. Columba fasciata,

313. flavirostris.

314. leucocephala.

315. Ectopistes migratorius,

318. Engyptila albifrons.

316. Zenaidura macroura,

317. Zenaida zenaida,

319. Melopelia leucoptera.

820. Columbigallina passerina.

000. [Properly omitted from the List. }.
821. Scardafella inca.

[322.] Geotrygon martinica.

[823.] Starncenas cyanocephala.

311. Ortalis vetula maccalli.

310a. Meleagris gallopavo mexicana.”

310. gallopavo.

298. Dendragapus canadensis.

299. franklinii.

297. obscurus.

2970. obscurus richardsonii.
297a. obscurus fuliginosus.

309. Centrocercus urophasianus.
308. Pediocetes phasianellus.

1 This bird, long a puzzle to ornithologists, has proved to be the Buteo solitarius of Peale. It is not a North
American species, but was originally described from the Sandwich Islands, and afterward described and figured

by Cassin as Pandion solitarius. See Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus., 1885, p. 36.
2 The A. O. U. Committee has reversed the proper names of the wild turkeys, reverting to an old error long

since exposed. See Key, p. 576.

884 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
562 Pedicecetes phasianellus columbianus. 308a. Pediocetes phasianellus columbianus
000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 308d. phasianellus campestris.
563. Cupidonia cupido. 305. Tympanuchus americanus.
306, cupido.

563 bis. Add: Cupidonia cupido brewsteri. N. Brewster’s Hreatu Hen.
This is the variety of the prairie-hen peculiar to Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., differing appre-
ciably from the common stock, as pointed out by Mr. Brewster (Auk, 1885, p. 82), whose
inconclusive argument that Linnzus based his name Tetrao cupido exclusively upon this
form, leaves me the pleasure of dedicating the variety to the accomplished ornithologist who,
first called attention to its characters.

564. Cupidonia cupido pallidicinctus. 807. Tympanuchus pallidicinctus.

565. Bonasa umbella. 300. Bonasa umbellus.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 300a. umbellus togata.

566. Bonasa umbella umbelloides. 3000. umbellus umbelloides.

567. umbella sabinii. 301c. umbellus sabini.

568. Lagopus albus. 301. Lagopus lagopus.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 301a. lagopus alleni.?

569. Lagopus rupestris. 302. rupestris.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 302a. rupestris reinhardti.

000. | Not admitted in the Key.] 8025. rupestris nelsoni.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 802c. rupestris atkensis.

000. [Not admitted in the Key. ] 303. welchi.

570. Lagopus leucurus. 2 3804. leucurus.

571. Ortyx virginiana. 289. Colinus virginianus.

572. virginiana floridana. 289a. virginianus floridanus.

573. virginiana texana. 2895. virginianus texanus.

000. [Not admitted in the Key.]} 290. graysoni (a mistake].
291. ridgwayi.

573 bis. Add: Ortyx ridgwayi. Arizona Bos-wHITE. MaAskEep Bos-wHitTE,
Hoopep Quait. Adult $: Front, and sides of head and neck, black, with or without a nar-
row white frontal line and superciliary stripe. Under parts chestnut or cinnamon (about the
color of the breast of a robin), varying much in shade, generally unspotted, except on the
flanks, where the feathers are usually tipped with an oval white spot, preceded by a subter-
minal black bar; lower tail-coverts with a V-shaped black spot bordered with whitish ; occa-
sionally small touches of black and white along the sides. Crown, hind head, and nape mixed
black, white, and pale brown, or yellowish-white; hind neck and interscapulars reddish-brown,
usually with a grayish cast; back, rump, and upper tail-coverts minutely variegated with black-
ish, pale brown, and grayish-white, the black usually prevailing, but variable in amount.
Wing-coverts rufous, each feather barred with blackish and edged and tipped with whitish ;
primaries dusky, edged and scalloped internally with whitish; secondaries externally dusky,
barred and freckled with pale brown and yellowish-white; inner secondaries and scapulars
edged with yellowish-white (very broadly so on the inner edges), and otherwise variegated.
Tail above bluish-gray, minutely freckled and waved with whitish; tail below gray, faintly
and irregularly barred and waved with grayish-white. Bill black; feet horn-color; iris brown.
Length 9.75; extent 14.25; wing 4.50; tail 2.75; tarsus 1.20. The female resembles that

1 Tt is not easy to account for the perversity of the Committee in insisting upon recognizing by name among
the ptarmigan characters which have repeatedly been shown to be elusive. Parallel perversity extended to birds
at large would be ornithological anarchy. See Key, p. 568.

\

\

APPENDIX. 885

sex of C. virginianus texensis so closely as not to be distinguished with certainty. The species
is closely related to C. graysoni of Mexico, and may be found in fact to intergrade with the
latter. It inhabits southern Arizona and adjoining portions of Mexico, where it has long
been known to the natives, though only recently recognized by ornithologists. From the
first accounts which reached us, the bird was supposed to be C. graysoni, and it was entered
under this name in the A. O. U. List. It was first named C. ridgwayi by Brewster, The
Auk, April, 1885, p. 199. A monograph of the species and its allies, illustrated by a colored
plate, is given by Allen, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., July, 1886, pp. 273-290, pl. 23.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
574. Orortyx picta. 292. Oreortyx pictus.
000. [Not admitted in the Key.] 2924. pictus plumiferus.
575. Lophortyx californica. 294. Callipepla californica.
000. [Not admitted in the Key. ] 294a, - californica vallicola.
576. Lophortyx gambeli. 295. gambeli.
577. Callipepla squamata. 293. squamata.

2938a. squamata castanogastris.

577 bis. Add: Callipepla squamata castaneiventris. CHESTNUT-BELLIFD SCALED
PartripGs. Like the last, but the general coloring deeper and richer ; crown concolorous
with the back, and cheeks with the breast, both much darker than the throat; and belly
with a conspicuous central patch of uniform chestnut. The 9? lacks this patch, and is
much paler than the g. While the true C. sguamata inhabits the Mexican table lands and
thence into Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas, this form appears to characterize the
lower lands, extending into the lower Rio Grande valley. Bull. Nuttall Club, viii., Jan.
1888, p. 34.

578. Cyrtonyx massena. 296. Cyrtonyx montezume,
579. Coturnix dactylisonans. 000. [Not admitted in the List.]
580. Squatarola helvetica. 270. Charadrius squatarola.
581. Charadrius dominicus. 272. dominicus.
582. dominicus fulvus. 272a. dominicus fulvus.
583. pluvialis. (271.] apricarius.
584. Aigialites vociferus. 273. Agialitis vocifera.
585. wilsonius. 280. wilsonia.
586. semipalmatus. 274. semipalmata.
587. melodus. 277. meloda.
588. melodus circumcinctus ? 277a. meloda circumcincta.
589. hiaticula. 275. hiaticula.
590. curonicus. [276.] dubia.”
591. cantianus nivosus. 78. nivosa.!
(279. ] mongola.

591 bis. Add: Bgialites mongolicus. Moncot1an PLover. Adult $9, in sum-
mer: Above, brownish-gray; below, white, with a broad cinnamon or chestnut pectoral bar,
extending more or less along the sides, encircling the neck behind, and somewhat tinging
the pileum. A long black subocular stripe, involving the lores and auriculars, reaching to
the bill, continuous in front of the eye with a black frontlet, in advance of which is a
white area divided by a narrow median line of black which connects the black frontlet with

1 A proper change, giving this species full rank, as distinguished from . cantianus, as suggested in the
Key, p. 604.

886 ‘APPENDIX.

the base of the culmen. Wing-feathers dusky; shaft of first primary white; several inner
primaries with white area along their outer
webs; the secondaries and greater coverts
tipped with white. Tail-feathers like the
back, tipped with white, and successively
paler laterally, till the outermost are nearly
white; upper tail-coverts also tipped with
whitish. Bill and feet black. The young
lack the distinctive chestnut and black mark-
ings, though the breast may be somewhat
suffused with pale cinnamon, and at an early
age all the feathers of the upper parts have
pale edgings. Wing 5.25; tail 2.25; bill
0.70; tarsus 1.15; middle toe 0.75. <A well-
known species of wide distribution in the
Old World, recorded from Choris Peninsula,
Alaska. (See Ibis, 1870, p. 384; P. Z.S.

1871, pp. 111, 114.) Itis entirely different Fig. 562. — Mongolian Plover.

from any other plover described in this work, and should long ago have been taken into
the Key.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
592. Podasocys montanus. 281. Aigialitis montana.
593. Vanellus éristatus. [269.] Vanellus vanellus.
594. Aphriza virgata. _ | 282. Aphriza virgata.
595. Hamatopus ostrilegus. {285.} Heematopus ostralegus.
596. palliatus. 286. palliatus.
597. niger. 287. bachmani.
598. Strepsilas interpres. 283. Arenaria interpres.
599. melanocephalus. 284. melanocephala.
600. Recurvirostra americana. 225. Recurvirostra americana.
601. Himantopus mexicanus. 226. Himantopus mexicanus.
602. Steganopus wilsoni. 224. Phalaropus tricolor.
603. Lobipes hyperboreus. 223. lobatus.
604. Phalaropus fulicarius. 222. Crymophilus fulicarius.
605. Philohela minor. 228. -Philohela minor.
606. Scolopax rusticula. (227.] Scolopax rusticola.
607. Gallinago media. [229.| Gallinago gallinago.
608. wilsoni. 230. delicata.
509. Macrorhampbus griseus. 231. Macrorhamphus griseus.
610. scolopaceus. 232. scolopaceus.
611. Micropalama himantopus. 233. Micropalama himantopus.
612. Ereunetes pusillus. 246. Ereunetes pusillus.
613. pusillus occidentalis. 247. occidentalis.
614. Actodromas minutilla. 242. Tringa minutilla.

000. [Not admitted in the List.]

614 bis. Add: Tringa damascensis. DamasceNE Sanppirer. LonG-ToED STINT.
Resembling the last in coloration. Shaft of first primary only, white. Middle toe and claw
longer than tarsus or culmen; tips of outstretched toes reaching far beyond end of tail, and
tip of tail beyond points of the folded wings; four outer pairs of tail-feathers of equal

a

APPENDIX. 88T

lengths. Length 150 mm.; wing 88 mm.; tail 40 mm.; culmen 18 mm.; middle toe and
claw 24 mm. This species has been taken on Otter Island, in Bering’s Sea. Bull. U. S. Nat.

Mus. No. 29, 1885, p. 116.

COUES KEY, 1884.
615. Actodromas bairdi.

616. maculata.
617. bonapartii.
618. cooperi ?

619. acuminata.
620. Arquatella maritima.

621. couesi.

622. ptilocnemis.
623: Pelidna alpina.

624. alpina americana.

625. Ancylochilus subarquatus.
626. Tringa canutus.

627. Calidris arenaria.

884. Eurynorhynchus pygmaeus.
628. Limosa foeda.

629. heemastica.
630. zgocephala.
631. uropygialis.

632. Symphemia semipalmata.

UNION LIST, 1886.
241. Tringa bairdii.

239. maculata.
240. fuscicollis.
f11. cooperi.
238. acuminata,
235. maritima.
236. couesi.
237. ptilocnemis.
(243.] alpina.
243a. alpina pacifica.
244, ferruginea.
234. canutus.

248. Calidris arenaria.
(245.] Eurynorhynchus pygmeus.
[249.] Limosa-fedoa.

251. heemastica.
[252. ] limosa.
250. lapponica baueri.

258. Symphemia semipalmata.
000. [Not admitted in the List.]

632 bis. Add: Symphemia semipalmata inornata. WeSTERN WILLET. Larger

than the last, with longer and slenderer bill, fewer, finer, and fainter markings on the paler
ground of the upper parts, and duller and more confused or broken markings on the under
parts, these bordered with a pinkish-salmon color, which often suffuses most of the under
parts; middle tail-feathers unmarked or only faintly barred. Wing 8.00; tail 3.30; tarsus

2.60; bill 2.25-2.70. Interior of North America, from the Mississippi to the Rocky Moun-
tains, wintering on the South Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. The Auk, April, 1887, p. 145.

633. Totanus melanoleucus.

634. flavipes.

635. glottis.

636. Rhyacophilus ochropus.
637. solitarius.

638. Tringoides macularius.
639. Machetes pugnax.
640. Bartramia longicauda.
641. Tryngites rufescens.
642. Heteroscelus incanus.
643. Numenius longirostris.

644. phzeopus.
645. hudsonicus.
646. borealis.
647. taitensis.

649. Plegadis falcinellus.

254. Totanus melanoleucus.

255. flavipes.
[253. ] nebularius.
[257.] ochropus.

256. solitarius.

263. Actitis macularia.
(260.] Pavoncella pugnax.
261. Bartramia longicauda.
262. Tryngites subruficollis.
259. Heteractitis ' incanus.
264. Numenius longirostris.

[267.] pheopus.
265. ‘hndsonicus.
266. borealis.

[268.] tahitiensis.

186. Plegadis autumnalis.

1 This genus will stand, because Heteroscelus is preoccupied in entomology.

888

cOUES KEY, 1884.
650. Plegadis guarauna.
651. Eudocimus albus.
652. ruber.
653. Ajaja rosea.
648. Tantalops loculator.
654. Mycteria americana.
655. Ardea herodias.

656. occidentalis.
000. wardi.
657. cinerea.

658. Herodias egretta.

659. Garzetta candidissima.
660. Hydranassa tricolor.
661. Dichromanassa rufa.
662. Florida ccerulea.

663. Butorides rufescens.
664. Nyctiardea grisea nevia.
665, Nycterodius violaceus.
666. Botaurus mugitans.

667. Ardetta exilis.

APPENDIX.

UNION LIST, 1886.
187. Plegadis guarauna.
184. Guara alba.
[185.] rubra.
188. Ajaja ajaja.
188. Tantalus loculator.
[189.] Mycteria americana.
194. Ardea herodias.

192. occidentalis.

193. wardi.
[195.] cinerea.

196. egretta.

197. candidissima.
199. tricolor ruficollis.
198. rufa.

200. ceerulea,

201. Ardea virescens.
202. Nycticorax nycticorax nevius.

203. violaceus.
190. Botaurus lentiginosus.
191. exilis.

000. [Not admitted in the List.]

667 bis. Add: Ardetta neoxena. FLoripa Dwarr Bitrern. Crown, back and tail
black, glossed with green. Sides of head and throat chestnut, the feathers on the back of
the neck tipped with greenish-black. Breast and under parts rufous chestnut, nearly uni-
form, shading into blackish on the sides; under tail-coverts dull black; upper wing-coverts
rufous chestnut, the under ones paler chestnut; all the remiges slaty plumbeous. Length
10.80; wing 4.30; tarsus 1.40; bill 1.80. Southwestern Florida. The Auk, April, 1886,

p. 262.

668. Grus americana.
669. canadensis.
670. pratensis.

671. Aramus pictus.
672. Parra gymnostoma.

673. Rallus longirostris crepitans.

674. longirostris obsoletus.
675. longirostris saturatus,
676. elegans.

204. Grus americana.

205. canadensis.

206. mexicana.

207. Aramus giganteus.
[288.] Jacana gymnostoma.

211. Rallus longirostris crepitans.

210. obsoletus.

211a. longirostris saturatus.
208. elegans.

209. beldingi.

676 bis. Add: Rallus beldingi. Bripine’s Rai. Most like A. elegans, but darker
and richer colored throughout, the white bars of the flanks much narrower, the blackish bars
very distinct. Wing 5.70; tail 2.50; bill 2.15; tarsus 1.90. A species which takes its
place in .the Key under our ruling to admit the islands pertaining to Lower California.
Espiritu Santo Island, Gulf of California. Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., v. 1882, p. 345.

677. Rallus virginianus.

678. Porzana maruetta.

679. carolina.

680. noveboracensis.
681. jamaicensis.

212. Rallus virginianus. ’
(213.] Porzana porzana.

214. carolina.
215. noveboracensis.
216. jamaicensis.

682.
683.
684.
685.
686.
885.
687.
688.
689.
690.
691.
692.
693.
694.
695.
696.
697.
698

699.
700.
701.
702.

702a.

7038.
704.
705.
706.
707.
708.
709.
710.
711.
712.
713.
714.
715.
716.
717.
718,
719.
886.
720.
721.
722.
723.
724.
725.

1 The proper spelling of this word is Zthyia.

COUES KEY, 1884.
Porzana jamaicensis coturniculus.
Crex pratensis.

Gallinula galeata.
Tonornis martiuica.
Fulica americana.

atra.
Phcenicopterus ruber.
Cygnus buccinator.

columbianus.
musicus.
[See Key, p. 683.]
Anser albifrons.
albifrons gambeli.
Chen ccerulescens.
hyperboreus.
hyperboreus albatus.
rossi.
Philacte canagica.
Bernicla leucopsis.
branta.
branta nigricans.
canadensis.
canadensis occidentalis.
canadensis leucoparia.
canadensis hutchinsi.
Dendrocygna fulva.
autumnalis.
Anas boscas.
obscura.
obscura fulvigula.
Dafila acuta.
Chaulelasmus streperus.
Mareca penelope.
americana.
Querquedula crecca.
carolinensis.
discors.
cyanoptera.
Spatula clypeata.
Aix sponsa.
Fuligula rufina.
marila.
affinis.
collaris.
ferina americana.
vallisneria.
Clangula glaucium.

APPENDIX.

UNION LIST, 1886.

889

216a. Porzana jamaicensis coturniculus.

[217.] Crex crex.

219. Gallinula galeata.
218. Ionornis martinica.
221. Fulica americana.
[220.] atra.

182. Phcenicopterus ruber.
181. Olor buccinator.

180. columbianus.
[179.] cygnus.

[171.] Anser albifrons.
171a. albifrons gambeli.
+8. Chen ccerulescens.

169a. hyperborea nivalis.
169. hyperborea.
170. rossii.

176. Philacte canagica.
{175.] Branta leucopsis.

173. bernicla.

174. nigricans.

172. canadensis.

172d. canadensis occidentalis.
172c. canadensis minima.
172a. canadensis hutchinsii.
178. Dendrocygna fulva.

177. autumunalis.

132. Anas boschas.

133. obscura.

134. fulvigula.

143. Dafila acuta.
135. Anas strepera.

136. penelope.

187. americana.
[188.] crecca.

139. carolinensis.

140. discors.

141. cyanoptera.

142. Spatula clypeata.

144. Aix sponsa.

[145.] Netta rufina.

148. Aythya? marila nearctica.?

149. affinis.

150. collaris.
146. americana.
147. vallisneria.

151. Glaucionetta clangula americana.

? The alleged subspecies nearctica cannot be recognized without further evidence.

890 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST. 1886.
726. Clangula islandica. 152. Glaucionetia islandica.
727 albeola. 153. Charitonetta albeola.
728. Harelda glacialis. 154. Clangula hyemalis.
729. Camptolemus labradorius. 156. Camptolaimus labradorius.
730. Histrionicus minutus. 155. Histrionicus histrionicus.
731. Somateria stelleri. 137. Eniconetta stelleri.
732. fischeri. 158. Arctonetta fischeri.
733. mollissima. 159. Somateria mollissima.
734. mollissima dresseri. 160. dresseri.
735. v-nigrum. 161. v-nigra.
738. spectabilis. 12. spectabilis.
737. CEdemia americana. 163. Oidemia americana.

p6t.] fusca.

730 bis. Add: GGdemia fusca. European ScoTer. The true scoter of Europe and
Asia (of which our velvet scoter may be a recognizable variety, as long ago pointed out by
Cassin and Bonaparte) has occurred in Greenland and Alaska as a straggler from the Old
World, and may therefore take place in our list. It is distinguished from the American
O. f. velvetina by a somewhat different outline of the feathers upon the base of the upper
mandible, leaving the length of the culmen greater than the lateral length of the bill from
the loral feathers along the side to the tip; and by a black stripe in the red of the bill.

738. CEdemia fusca velvetina. | 165. Oidemia deglandi.
739. perspicillata. ' 166. perspicillata.
740. perspicillata trowbridgii? 000. “Not admitted in the List.)
741. Erismatura rubida. 167. Erismatura rubida.
742. Nomonyx dominica. [168.] Nomonyx dominica.
743. Mergus merganser.! . 129. Mergauser americanus.
T4H4. serrator. 180. serrator.
T45. cucullatus. 131. Lophodytes cucullatus.
746. Sula bassana. 117. Sula bassana.
Th. leucogastra. 115. sula.

114. cyanops.

T4v bis. Add: Sula cyanops. Bire-racep Boosy. Adult ¢@: White: greater
wing-coverts, bastard quills,. primaries and their coverts, dusky brown; tail-feathers the
same, the middle pair mostly whitish and the others whitish at the bases; face and gular sac
blue, drying blackish: feet light red. Young: Head, neck. and upper parts dark grayish-
brown; lower parts from the neck white; middle of back and upper part of rump streaked
with white, flanks with gray. Wing 14.50; tail 7.75; bill along culmen 3.50, its depth at
base 1.25; tarsus 1.75; middle toe 2.25. A species of wide distribution in warm seas, in-
habiting the West Indies and occasionally occurring in southern Florida. It should have
been admitted to the second edition of the Key.

| 116. Sula piscator.

747 ter. Add: Sula piscator. Rep-rootep Boosy. Adult $ 9: White; head and
neck tinged with buff: wing-feathers, primary coverts. and greater secondary coverts slate-gray<
shafts of tail-feathers pale yellow. Feet coral-red : iris brown; gular sac black; bare space

I As pointed out by Mr. Cassin in 1853, the American sheldrake may be recognized, in comparison with the
European, by the black bar which partly divides the white area on the wing, and s»me average difference in the
bill, which is shorter than that of the true M. merganser, (Pr. Phila. Acad. 1853, p. 187 )

APPENDIX. 891

around eye violet-blue; base of bill purplish-red. Young: more or less dusky and gray.
The coloration is extremely variable, but the species is not to be confounded with any of the
others here given. Length 29.00; extent 60.00; wing 15.00; tail 9.00; bill along culmen
3.25, its depth at base 1.10 or less; tarsus 1.35; middle toe 2.25. A species like the last in
its distribution, supposed to occur also in Florida.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
748. Pelecanus trachyrhynchus. 125. Pelecanus erythrorhynchos.
749. fuscus. 126. fuscus.
127. californicus.

749 bis. Add: Pelecanus fuscus californicus. CaLirorNiAN Brown PELICAN.
Similar to the last; larger; bill 12.00 to nearly 15.00; wing 20.00-23.00. In full breeding
plumage the pouch mostly reddish, the bare skin around eye brown, and the back of the
neck brownish-black instead of chestnut. Coast of California. Water Birds N. A., ii.

p. 148.
750. Phalacrocorax carbo. 119. Phalacrocorax carbo.
751. dilophus. 120. dilophus.
752. dilophus cincinnatus. 1200. dilophus cincinnatus.
753. dilophus floridanus. 120a. dilophus floridanus.
753a. dilophus albociliatus. 120c. dilophus albociliatus.
154. mexicanus. 121. mexicanus.
755. penicillatus. 122. penicillatus.
756. perspicillatus. 7. perspicillatus.
757. bicristatus. 124, urile.
000. [Not admitted in the Key. ] 123. pelagicus.
758. Phalacrocorax violaceus. 128a. pelagicus robustus.
759. violaceus bairdi. 123d. pelagicus resplendens.
760. Plotus anhinga. 118. Anhinga anhinga.
761. Tachypetes aquilus. 129. Fregata aquila.
762. Phaéthon ethereus. 118. Phaéthon ethereus.
763. flavirostris. 114. flavirostris.
764. Stercorarius skua. 35. Megalestris skua.
765. pomatorhinus. 36. Stercorarius pomarinus.
766. parasiticus. 387. parasiticus.
767. buffoni. 38. longicaudus.
768. Larus glaucus. 42. Larus glaucus.
769. leucopterus. 43. leucopterus.
770. glaucescens. 44, glaucescens.
7T7M0a. kumlieni. 45. kumlieni.
46. nelsoni.

770 bis. Add: Larus nelsoni. Nexson’s Gute. Bill robust, relatively short; tarsus a
little shorter (?) than middle toe and claw. Head, neck, tail, and entire under parts pure
white; mantle pale pearl-blue, lighter than in glaucescens, about as in leucopterus and kumlieni.
‘¢ A close ally of L. kumlieni, which bird, indeed, it may represent upon the N. W. Pacific coast.
The main point of distinction is size, nelsoni being considerably larger.’” Wing 17.25; tail
8.90; culmen 2.20; bill along gape 3.00, depth 0.86, tarsus 3.00; middle toe and claw 2.90.
A very dubious gull, improbably a distinct species. The Auk, July, 1884, p. 250.

771. Larus marinus. 47. Larus marinus.
48. schistisagus.

892 APPENDIX.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.

771 bis. Add: Larus marinus schistisagus. Siaty-Backep GuLu. Adult: white;
mantle dark slate-gray. First primary with a long white tip and a gray wedge on the inner
web; second with a subapical white spot on the inner web only, and the gray wedge further
down; third with the gray wedge reaching the subapical spot; no gray wedge on outer webs
of first four primaries. [eet pinkish flesh-color. Bill yellow, with red spot on gonys. Iris
yellowish cream-color. Nearly the size of the last, from which probably not distinct. N.
Pacific and Arctic Oceans, coast of Alaska. Bull. U. 8S. Nat. Mus., No. 29, 1885, p. 67.

772. Larus argentatus. 51. Larus argentatus.
773. argentatus smithsonianus. 5la. ° argentatus smithsonianu’
774. occidentalis. 49. occidentalis.
775. cachinnans. 52. cachinnans.
776. affinis. [50. affinis.
717. californicus. 53. californicus.
778. delawarensis. 54. delawarensis.

aera canus. [56.] canus.
780. brachyrhynchus. 55 brachyrhynchus.
781. heermanni. 57. heermanni.
782. Rissa tridactyla. 40. Rissa tridactyla.
783. tridactyla kotzebuii. 40a. tridactyla pollicaris.
784. brevirostris. 41. brevirostis.
785. Pagophila eburnea. 39. Gavia alba.
786. Chroicocephalus atricilla. 58. Larus atricilla.
787. franklini. 59. franklini.
788. philadelphia. 60. philadelphia.
789. Rhodostethia rosea. 61. Rhodostethia rosea.
790. Xema sabinii. : 62. Xema sabinii.
791. furcata. 4. furcata.
792. Sterna anglica. 63. Gelochelidon nilotica.
793. ' easpia. 64. Sterna tschegrava.
794. maxima. 65. maxima.
795. elegans. 66. elegans.
796. cantiaca. 67. sandvicensis acuflavida.
797. hirundo. 70. hirundo.
798. forsteri. 69. forsteri.
799. macrura. 71. paradisea.
800. dougalli. 72, dougalli.
801. superciliaris antillaram. 74. antillarum.
802. trudeaui. [68.] ' trudeaui.
803. aleutica. 73 aleutica.

_ 804. fuliginosa. 75. fuliginosa.
805. anezsthetica. .. (76.] anzthetus.
806. Hydrochelidon lariformis. 77. Hydrochelidon nigra surinamensis.
807. leucoptera. [78.] _ leucoptera.
808. Anous stolidus 79. Anous stolidus.
809. Rhynchops nigra. 80. Rynchops nigra.

00. [Not admitted in the List.]

809 bis. Add: Diomedea exulans. WANDERING ‘AcBatross. Adult: White, more
or less tinged with yellowish, the flight-feathers dusky, the larger wing-coverts and the back
usually barred with blackish. Bill very stout, with deeply concave culmen, and angulated

APPENDIX, 893

outline of feathers on both mandibles; whitish, with a pink or yellow tinge. Very large:
length, 4.00-4.50 feet; extent 10 feet or more, usually about 10.50. Young are dark colored,
whitening on the head. It is probable that this species, already several times included in our
Fauna, and then dropped for lack of sufficient evidence of its occurrence, requires to be
reinstated. Its appearence in Florida has lately been recorded. The Auk, Oct. 1885, p. 387.

COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.
810. Diomedea brachyura. 82. Diomedea albatrus.
811. nigripes. 81. nigripes.
: 83. Thalassogeron cu]minatus. -

811 bis. Add: Diomedea culminata. Cuiminatine ALBATRoss. Adult: Above,
grayish-brown, lightening to ashy-gray on the neck and head, whitening on the under parts,
darkening on the wings to the dusky brown of the flight-feathers; lower eyelid, rump, and
upper tail-coverts white; tail slate-gray; shafts of primaries and tail-feathers yellowish.
Bill blackish, the culmen and most of the side of the lower mandible more or less yellow.
Wing 21.00; bill along culmen 4.50, its depth at base 1.75; tarsus 3.25. A handsome
albatross of medium size, inhabiting southern seas, said by Audubon to have occurred
off the Columbia River. Audubon described it as the yellow-nosed albatross, D. chloro-
rhyncha ; but his specimen, which I handled many years ago, is clearly of this species, as I
first painted out in Pr. Phila. Acad., 1866, p. 183.

812. Pheebetria fuliginosa. 84. Pheebetria fuliginosa.
813. Ossifraga gigantea. [85.] Ossifraga gigantea.
814. Fulmarus glacialis. 86. Fulmarus glacialis.
86a. glacialis minor. z
814 bis. Add: Fulmarus glacialis minor. Lesser ATLANTIC Futmar. Like the

last: smaller; wing only 12.00; bill 1.35; tarsus about 1.75; middle toe 2.15.
815. Fulmarus glacialis pacificus. 86. Fulmarus glacialis glupischa.
816. glacialis rodgersi. 86c. glacialis rodgersi.
817. Priocella tenuirostris. 87. glacialoides.
818. Daptium capense. [102.} Daption capensis.
819. Cstrelata hesitata. (98.} Austrelata hasitata.
887. gularis. [99.] gularis.
887a. fisheri. 100. fisheri.
820. bulweri. ; [101.] Bulweria bulweri.
821. Halocyptena microsoma. 103. Halocyptena microsoma.
822. Procellaria pelagica. 104. Procellaria pelagica.
823. Cymochorea leucorrhoa, 106. Oceanodroma leucorhoa,.
824. melena. 107. melania.
825. homochroa. 108. . homochroa.
826. Oceanodroma furcata. 105. furcata.
827. hornbyi. {6. ' hornbyi.
828. Oceanites oceanicus. 109. Oceanites oceanicus.
829. Fregetta grallaria. (110.] Cymodroma grallaria.

‘ (111.] Pelagodroma marina.

829 bis. Add: Pelagodroma marina. Wuitn-racep Petrev. Bill remarkably long,
slender, and compressed, the short nasal tubes less than half as long as the culmen, the hook
at the end weak. Wings of moderate length, reaching when folded just beyond the end of
the tail. Tail long, square, or but slightly emarginate, the feathers broad, with truncate
ends. Legs very long; tibie bare an inch or more; middle toe and claw nearly as long as

894

APPENDIX.

the tarsus; webs very full. Color ashy-gray, deepening into blackish on the wings and tail;

the under parts, forehead, and line over the eye, white.

Webs yellow. A large and hand-

some stormy petrel, related to Fregetta (or Cymodroma), but readily distinguished, generically

as well as specifically.
Massachusetts, lat. 40° 34’ 18” N., long. 66° 09’ W.

COUES KEY, 1884.

830. Priofinus melanurus.

831. Puffinus kuhli.

888. borealis.

832. major.

833. creatopus.

834. anglorum.

835. obscurus.

836. opisthomelas.

837. fuliginosus.

838. amaurosoma.

839. tenuirostris.

840. Colymbus torquatus.

841. torquatus adamsi.
842. arcticus.

843. arcticus pacificus.
844. septentrionalis.
845. Aichmophorus occidentalis.
846. occidentalis clarki.
847. Podicipes griseigena holbeelli.
848. cornutus.

849. auritus.

850. auritus californicus.
851. dominicus.

852. Podilymbus podicipes.

853. Fratercula corniculata.

854. arctica.

855. arctica glacialis.
856. Lunda cirrata.

857. Ceratorhina monocerata.

858. Simorhynchus psittaculus.
859. cristatellus.
860. pygmeeus.

861. pusillus.

862. Ptychorhamphus aleuticus.
863. Alle nigricans.

864. Synthliborhamphus antiquus.
865. umizusume.
866. Brachyrhamphus marmoratus.
867. kittlitzi.
868. hypoleucus.
869. craverii ?
870. brachypterus ?
$71. Uria grylle.

It inhabits southern seas, and has been once taken off the coast of

The Auk, Oct. 1885, p. 386.

UNION LIST, 1886.
[97.] Puffinus cinereus.

t5. kuhlii.
88. borealis.
89. major.
91. creatopus.
190. | puffinus.
92. auduboni.
93. gavia.
94. stricklandi.
95. griseus.
96. tenuirostris.
7. Urinator imber.
8. adamsii.
9. arcticus.
10. pacificus.
11. lumme.
1. chmophorus occidentalis.
fi. clarkii.
2. Colymbus holbeellii.

3. anritus.
0. [Not admitted in the List.]
4. Colymbus nigricollis californicus.
5. dominicus
6. Podilymbus podiceps.
14. Fratercula corniculata.
13. arctica.
‘18a. arctica glacialis.
12. Lunda cirrhata.
15. Cerorhinca monocerata.
17. Cyclorrhynchus psittaculus.
18. Simorhynchus cristatellus.
19. pygmaeus.
20. pusillus.
16. Ptychoramphus aleuticus.
34. Alle alle.

21. Synthliboramphus antiquus.

22, wumizusume.
23. Brachyramphus marmoratus.
24. kittlitzii.

25. hypoleucus.

26. craveri.

00. [Not admitted in the List.]
27. Cepphus grylle.
28. mandtii.

APPENDIX. 895

. COUES KEY, 1884. UNION LIST, 1886.

871 bis. Add: Uria grylle mandti. Manpt’s GurttEmot. Similar to the last, and
probably only the perfected plumage of it, having the white on both sides of the wing pure
and unbroken; the bill said to be smaller. A circumpolar range is ascribed to this form,
which is said to come south in winter as far as New Jersey and Norton Sound, Alaska.

872. Uria columba. 29. Cepphus columba.
873. carbo. 73. carbo.
+2. motzfeldi.

873 bis, Add: Uria carbo motzfeldi. Morzreip’s Guittemot. Like the last, but
lacking the whitish patch on the side of the head. North Atlantic; Greenland.

874. Lomvia troile. 30. Uria troile.

875. troile californica. 30a. troile californica.
876. arra. “81a. lomvia arra.

876 bis. [See Key, p. 818.] 31. lomvia.

877 Utamania torda. 32. Alca torda.

878. Alca impennis. 33. Plautus impennis.

SECOND APPENDIX.

Srvce the publication of the Third Edition of the Kry, in 1887, the American Orni-
thologists’ Union has continued its actiye work upon North American Birds. A Committee
of the Union published in 1889 a ‘¢ Supplement to the Code of Nomenclature and Check-list
of North American Birds adopted by the American Ornithologists’ Union” (New York,
pp. iv., 23). The same Committee published in January, 1890, a ‘‘ Second Supplement ”’
(The Auk, VII., No. 1, pp. 60-66). Each of these Supplements treats briefly of —
I. Additions; II. Eliminations ; III. Changes of Nomenclature; the Second Supplement
also of — IV. Species and Subspecies considered as not entitled to recognition (being a few
published in 1889 which the Committee disapprove).

Some of the changes made in these two Supplements of 1889 and 1890 support the stand
taken by the Kry List of 1887 against the Union List of 1886 ; some are merely synony-
matic ; others are actual additions to our knowledge of North American Birds.

The foregoing “‘ Appendix ”’ (pp. 865-895 of the Key), shows in double columns the
differences between the Kry List of 1884, and the Union List of 1886, and introduces such
changes as I saw fit to make in the third edition of 1887.

The present ‘‘ Second Appendix ’’ notes every further change reported by the Union’s
Committee from 1887 to January 1890 inclusive. In most cases I prefer to express no
individual opinion, for the judgment of the Committee is presumed to be final so far as
present evidence is concerned. But the names of species and subspecies which I am fully
prepared to admit to the Kry as additions or emendations are printed in thick type.

E. C.

SMITHSONIAN InstituTion, WAsHinGTON, D. C., April, 1890.

No. 18 a, p. 248. Turdus sequoiensis, An- No. 36 a, p. 261. Polioptila cerulea ob-

thony, Proc. Cala. Acad. Sci., 2d ser., IL,
June, 1889, is deferred for final action by the
Committee, owing to insufficient evidence.

No. 18, p. 251. Harporhynchus rufus longi-
rostris becomes H. longirostris sennetti, Ridg-
way, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., Aug. 1888, p.
506.

No. 28, p. 258. The Committee decline
to recognize Sialia mexicana anabele of An-
thony, Proc. Cala. Acad. Sci., 2d ser., II.,
Oct. 1889, p. 79, deeming the ascribed char-
acters insufficient.

scura, named by Ridgway in 1883 (Pr. U.S.
Nat. Mus., V., p. 535), is now recognized by
the Committee, and assigned a local habita-
tion in California, Arizona, and western
Mexico.

No. 40 bis, p. 866. Lophophanes bicolor
texensis, which I recognized in 1887, is con-
firmed under the original name, Parus bicolor
texensis.

No. 49 a, p. 267. Parus hudsonicus stoneyi
is a new subspecies described from the Kowak
River in Alaska as P. stoneyi by Ridgway,

898

Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 591. It is said
to be “similar to P. hudsonicus, but much
grayer above, sides of neck purer ash-gray,
sides much paler rusty, and throat clear
slate-black instead of sooty blackish.’’? As
only three specimens were known, the char-
acters adduced may not be confirmed when

larger series from the same locality show’

how great may be the range of individual
variation in shades of coloration.

No. 47 a, p. 266. Parus carolinensis agilis
is a new subspecies described from eastern
and central Texas by Sennett, Auk, Jan.
1888, p. 46.

No. 544, p. 268. Psaltriparus saniarite isa
new species from the Santa Rita Mountains
of Arizona, described by Ridgway, Pr. U. S.
Nat. Mus., Sept. 1888, p. 697.

No. 55, p. 268. Psaltriparus melanotis be-
comes P. Hloydi, Sennett, Auk, Jan. 1888,
p. 438.

No. 61a, p. 271. Sitta pygmea leuconucha is
described trom the San Pedro Mountains of
Lower California by Anthony, Pr. Cala. Acad.
Sci., 2d ser., II., Oct. 1889, p. 77, and re-
cognized as a subspecies by the Committee.

No. 62 b, p. 278. Certhia familiaris mon-
tana, Ridgway, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., July,
1882, p. 114, is recognized as a valid sub-
species, inhabiting the Rocky Mountains
from northern Mexico to Alaska. It is said
to differ from the common Creeper in being
grayer above, with more distinctly contrasted
tawny rump, and longer bill, wings, and tail.

No. 62 c, p. 278. Certhia familiaris occi:
dentalis, Ridgway, Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus., July,
1882, p. 114, is recognized as a valid sub-
species, inhabiting the Pacific Coast from
California to southern Alaska. It is said
to be darker and more rusty in general cast
of plumage, with the lateral lower parts more
or less strongly tinged with brownish, the
supercilliary stripe browner, and the wing-
markings buffy.

No. 67 a, p. 276. Catherpes mexicanus
punctulatus, the Dotted Cafion Wren, which
I admitted to the Kry in 1884, but which
the Committee disallowed in the Union
List of 1886, is recognized in the List of
1889.

SECOND APPENDIX.

No. 70 a, p.277. Thryothorus ludovicianus
lomite is described by Sennett, Auk, Jan.
1890, p. 58, from Lomita, southeastern Texas,
and recognized by the Committee. It appears
to be intermediate between T. ludovicianus
and T. 1. berlandieri.

No. 75 bis, p. 278. Add: Troglodytes
domesticus aztecus. Aztec House-WReEn.
(T. aédon aztecus, Baird, Rev. Am. Birds, 1864,
p. 189.) This is the form of Western House-
Wren which has usually been called ‘“ Park-
man’s Wren.’’ It occurs from Illinois west-
ward and south into Mexico, but not on the
Pacific coast of the United States, where it
is replaced by 7’. d. parkmani. The descrip-
tion of the latter.in the Kry includes aztecus.
See Allen, Auk, April, 1888, p. 164.

No. 80, p. 279. This subspecies of Marsh
Wren, admitted with a query in the Kry, is
confirmed under its original name, Cistothorus
palustris paludicola of Baird, Rev. Am. Birds,
1864, p. 148.

No. 80 bis, p. 279. Add: Telmatodytes
mariane. Marian’s Marsu Wren. Like
T. palustris ; coloration olivaceous instead of
rufous brown; under parts darker; upper
and under tail-coverts and flanks barred.
A dark form, apparently resident. Tarpon
Springs, southwestern Florida. Cistothorus
mariane, Scott, Auk, April, 1888, p. 188.

No. 111 a, p. 298. Dendroica [lege Den-
dreca] estiva sonorana, Brewster, Auk, Aprii,
1888, p. 137, of western Texas, southern
Arizona, and northwestern Mexico, is ad-
mitted by the Committee.

No. 141 a,p. 810. Geothiypis trichas ignota
is described by Chapman, Auk, Jan. 1890,
p- 11, from Florida and Georgia, as like
G. trichas, but with longer tarsus, tail, and
hill, shorter first primary, and deeper colora-
tion. This local race is admitted by the
Committee.

The G. trichas roscoe revived by Has-
brouck, Auk, April, 1889, p. 167, is rejected
by the Committee, on the ground that
‘* Sylvia’ roscoe of Audubon is a mere syn-:
onym of G. trichas, and that what Mr. Has-
brouck called G. t. roscoe should be G. t.
ignota. 3

No. 158, p. 817. Certhiola bahamensis be-

SECOND APPENDIX.

comes Cosreba bahamensis. See Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 590.

No. 157 bis, p. 318. Piranga rubriceps.
A South American Tanager which has acci-
dentally occurred in Santa Barbara Co., Cali-
fornia. See Bryant, Auk, Jan. 1887, p. 78.
It was originally named by the late Mr.
George Robert Gray, in Gray and Mitchell’s
Genera of Birds, Vol. IL, 1844, and figured on
plate 89 of that great work.

No. 165 bis, p. 825. Progne cryptoleuca of
Baird, Rev. Am. Birds, May, 1865, which I
have never admitted to the Key, and which
was not allowed in the Union List of 1886,
is now recognized by the Committee as a
good species. It may perhaps stand as a
smaller race of the common house martin,
to be known as P. subis eryptoleuca. The
tail is said to be narrower, and relatively
more deeply forked ; and the adult male
to have the feathers of the ventral region
marked beneath the surface with white,
whence the name cryptoleuca. The size is
less than that of P. subis. This race occurs
in Florida, Cuba, and probably in Central
America.

No. 165 ter, p. 325. Progne subis hesperia.
This western Martin is described from Cali-
fornia by Brewster, Auk, April, 1889, p. 92.
The male is said to be indistinguishable from
the ordinary P. subis, and the female to differ
from that of P. subis in having the belly,
vent, and crissum white, nearly or quite im-
maculate; the flanks, breast, throat, forehead,
and nuchal collar grayish-white, the feathers
of the back and rump edged with grayish or
pale brown, the bend of the wings and un-
der wing-coverts spotted with white.

No. 177 bis, p. 872. Vireo solitarius alticola,
Brewster, Auk, Jan. 1886, p. 111, admitted
to the Key in 1887, is confirmed by the
Committee.

No. 181 bis, p. 872. Vireo noveboracensis
maynardi, Brewster, Auk, April, 1887, p. 148,
admitted to the Kry in-1887, is confirmed
by the Committee.

No. 188 a, p. 338. Lanius ludovicianus
. gambeli, Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887,
p. 467, is named as a new subspecies from
the coast of California, and approved by

899

the Committee. The author names and at-
tempts to characterize it ‘‘ with extreme
reluctance,” yet has felt ‘‘compelled to do
so, or else drop L. excubitoroides.”

No. 196, p. 347. Carpodacus frontalis is
reduced to C. mexicanus frontalis, Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, p. 391.

No. 196, p. 347. A new subgenus Burrica
is based on Carpodacus mexicanus (Fringilla
mezicana, Miller, Syst. Nat. Suppl. 1766, p.
165) of Ridgway (Pr. Biol. Soc. Washing-
ton, 1885, p. 111), Man. N. A. Birds, 1887,
p. 390.

No. 196 a, p. 847. Carpodacus mexicanus
ruberrimus is doubtfully named by Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 392, as the St.
Lucas House Finch, a subspecies inhabiting
Lower California and parts of Sonora.

No. 197, p. 848. Carpodacus frontalis
rhodocolpus, which I reluctantly admitted as
an ‘alleged variety,’’ is properly eliminated
by the Committee.

No. 219 a, p. 356. Plectrophanes nivalis
townsendi is described from the Prybilof and
Commander Islands by Ridgway, Man. N, A.
Birds, 1887, p. 403, as a new subspecies of
Plectrophenax, differing from P. nivalis in
being larger, with a longer, bill.

No. 233 a, p. 865. Poocetes [lege Pow-
cetes] gramineus affinis, Miller, Auk, Oct.
1888, p. 404, is admitted from California
and western Oregon, as the Oregon Vesper
Sparrow. It is compared with the eastern
form in the color of the upper parts, and with
the western conjfinis in the slender bill and
narrow dorsal streaks.

No. 239 a, p. 369. Ammodramus maritimus
peninsule, Allen, Auk, July, 1888, p. 284,
is a new subspecies of the Seaside Finch
described from southwestern Florida and
along the Gulf coast to Louisiana. It is
compared with A. nigrescens.

No. 239 b, p. 3868. Ammodramus maritimus
sennetti, Allen, Auk, July, 1888, p. 286, is
described as a new subspecies from Corpus
Christi, coast of Texas. In this form, as in
A. m, peninsula, the young birds appear (‘so
be more readily distinguishable from allied
races than the adults are.

No. 240 a, p. 368. Ammodramus caudacu-

900

tus subvirgatus, the Acadian Sharp-tailed
Sparrow, is described as a new subspecies
by Dwight, Auk, July, 1887, p. 233, and the
Committee give its range as the coast of
southern New Brunswick, Prince Edward
Island, probably Nova Scotia, and south-
ward at least to Long Island. It is said
to be ‘‘similar in size and coloring to A.
caudacutus, but paler and much less conspicu-
ously streaked beneath with pale greenish
gray instead of black or deep brown. Bill
averages smaller. Compared with nelsoni it
is much paler and grayer, generally larger
and with a longer bill.’

No. 242 bis, p. 370. Add: Melospiza lincolni
striata. Forsusu’s Sparrow. Similar to
M. lincolni; superciliary stripe and whole
upper parts more strongly olivaceous, with
the dark streaks coarser, blacker, and more
numerous, especially on the pileum, back,
and upper tail-coverts. British Columbia.
Brewster, Auk, April, 1889, p. 89.

No. 247 a,p. 872, Melospiza fasciata rivu-
laris, Bryant, Proc. Cala. Acad. Sci., Sept.
1888, p. 197, is a new subspecies of Song
Sparrow described from Lower California,
and recognized by the Committee.

No. 261 a, p. 874, note. Junco hiemalis caro-
linensis, Brewster, Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 108, is
now recognized by the Committee as a valid
species under the name J. carolinensis. It is
that form of eastern Snowbird which breeds
in the southern Alleghanies.

No. 267 quater, p. 379. Junco hiemalis
townsendi. Anthony, Proc. Cala. Acad. Sci.,
2d ser., Oct. 1889, p.76, describes a new Snow-
bird from the San Pedro Mountains as J.
townsendi, the full specific rank of which is
allowed by the Committee in the Second Sup-
plement, 1889.

No. 271 bis, p. 875. This subspecies, ad-
mitted to the Kry in 1887, is confirmed by
the Committee, under the name Spizella pusilla
arenacea, Western Field-Sparrow.

No, 291 bis, p. 890. Add: Guiraca cerulea
eurhyncha, described by me in Amer. Nat.,
Sept. 1874, p. 573, but never taken into the
Key, through deference to the opinion of the
Committee, is now recognized by them as a
valid subspecies inhabiting Mexico, north to

SECOND APPENDIX.

Colorado and California. It is somewhat
larger than the common Blue Grosbeak, of a
rather paler blue, and has a disproportionately
larger bill, as implied in the name.

No. 293 a, p. 391. Passerina versicolor pul-
chra, the “ Beautiful Bunting,’’ is described
as a new subspecies from Lower California
and northwestern Mexico by Ridgway, Man.
N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 448. The length as-
signed (5.50 inches) is identical with that
ascribed to P. versicolor; the wings and tail
are said to be shorter; the male is ‘said to
have the ‘‘red on occiput brighter, purple on
throat less reddish (never decidedly red ?),
flanks brighter plum-purple, and rump more

| purplish-blue or lavender.”’

No. 296, p. 892. Spermophila moreleti be-
comes Sporophila morelleti sharpei, Law-
rence, Auk, Jan. 1889, p. 53.

No. 277, p. 388. Zonotrichia leucophrys in-
termedia, The Committee now revert to this
nomenclature, which the Kry has preserved
in its 2d and 3d editions, 1884 and 1887,
against the Union List of 1886.

No. 278, p. 888. Zonotrichia gambeli. The
Committee now revert to Z. leucophrys gam-
beli of the orig. ed. of the Kry, 1872, p, 145.

No. 297 bis, p. 892. Add: Euetheia
canora, MrLopious Grassquit. A small
West Indian Grassquit, originally named
Loxia canora by Gmelin in the 18th edition
of the Systema Nature, 1788, p. 858, and
referred to its proper genus by Dr. John
Gundlach in Cabanis’ Journal fiir Ornithol-
ogie, 1874, p. 123, has been found on Som-
brero Key in southern Florida. See Merriam,
Auk, July, 1888, p. 8322. So far as known
it is only a straggler to our fauna.

No. 298 a, p. 398. Pyrrhuloxia sinuata
beckhami, Ridgway, Auk, Oct. 1887, p. 347, is
a new subspecies described from’ western
Texas to southern Arizona and south into
northwestern Mexico.

No. 298 b, p, 898. Pyrrhulozia sinuata pen-
insula, Ridgway, Auk, Oct. 1887, p. 347, is a
new subspecies described from Lower Cali-
fornia. :

No, 315, p. 403. Molothrus aneus becomes
Callothrus robustus, Ridgway, Man, N. A.
Birds, 1887, p. 589. (See Cabanis, Mus.

SECOND APPENDIX.

Hein., I., 1851, p. 193, note.) The genus
Catlothrus of Cassin, Pr. Phila. Acad., 1866,
p. 18, is adopted.

No. 316 a, p. 404, Agelaius [lege A geleus]
pheniceus bryanti is named by Ridgway, Man.
N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 370, as a subspecies,
the Bahaman Redwing, occurring also in
southern Florida. It is said to be smaller
than the common Marsh-blackbird, and the
female to be lighter colored.

No. 3168, p. 404. Agelaius [lege Ageleus]
pheniceus sonoriensis is also named by the
same author in the same place. It is said to
differ from A. pheniceus in the same way that
al. p. bahamensis does, but to be larger than
the latter, with a smaller bill, and to have
the upper parts lighter colored.

No. 338 a, p. 416. Corvus coraz principalis
is a large northern Raven named by Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, 361, but the assigned
dimensions are well within the known range
of individual variation of the common Amer-
ican bird. TI am inclined to think that the
latter is distinguishable from C. coraz of
Europe, aud its tenable subspecific hame is
probably sinuatus of Wagler, failing which
for any reason the next appears to be carni-
vorus of Baird, 1858.

No. 350, p. 421. The Committee decline
to recognize Cyanocitta stelleri litoralis of May-
nard, Ornith. and Odl., April, 1889, p. 59.

No. 351, p. $22. Cyanocitta stelleri annectens
of Baird (1874), which is in both the later
editions of the Key, but was rejected from
the Union List of 1886, is now confirmed
by the Committee.

No. 356 a, p. 424. Aphelocoma californica
hypoleuca is described by Ridgway, Man. N.
A. Birds, 1887, p. 8356, from Lower California,
in the vicinity of Cape St. Lucas; it is said
to be smaller than .1. californica, with larger
bill and feet, paler blue back and whiter
under parts.

901

No. 356 8, p. 424. Aphelocoma floridana
vbscura is described from the San Pedro
Mountains of Lower California as A. cali-
Jornica obscura by Anthony, Proc. Cala. Acad.
Sci., 2d ser., Oct. 1889, p. 75, and admitted
by the Committee, under the latter name, in
their Second Supplement, 1889.

No. 356 bis, p. 878. Aphelocoma floridana
insularis is now recognized by the Committee
as of specific validity.

No. 380, p. 438. A new subgenus Nuttal-
lornis, Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887,
p. 337, is adopted for that section of the
genus Contopus of which C. borealis, the Olive-
sided Flycatcher, is the type.

No. 389 bis, p. 442. Add: Empidonax
cineritius. St. Lucas FrycatcHer. Most
like E. diffcilis: general coloration much
duller; upper parts scarcely tinged with
greenish ; no decided yellow below, except-
ing on jugulum and abdomen; wing-bands
brownish-white. Sexes similar. Wing 2.65;
tail 2.40; tarsus 0.68. Lower California.
Brewster, Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 90.

No. 391, p. 443. Empidonax obscurus. The
alternative name E. wrighti (after Baird,
B. N. A. 1858, p. 200) is now adopted by the
Committee (see Brewster, Auk, April, 1889,
p. 89). This is best, because Swainson’s
name obscura (Phil. Mag., 1827, p. 367) is
not accompanied by a description which en-
ables us to identify his bird.

No. 391 bis, p. 4438. ddd: Empidonax
griseus. Gray FLycaTcHER. Nearest E.
wright (of Baird; obscurus of American orni-
thologists) ; larger and much grayer, the bill
longer, the lower mandible flesh-colored on
the basal half, in contrast with the blackish
terminal portion. @, wing 2.68; tail 2.45;
tarsus 0.72; bill 0.62; 9 somewhat smaller.
Lower California and probably Arizona.
Brewster, Auk, April, 1889, p. 87.

20 A. Family COTINGIDA: Cotingas.

An extensive family of tropical and sub-
tropical American Clamatorial Passerine
Birds, to be now formally added to the North
American Fauna, in which the Clamatores

have long been held to be represented only
by the Tyrannide. The Cotingide, though
Telated to the Tyrannide, may be distin-
guished, so far as the two following genera

902

are concerned at least, by the extensive co-
hesion of the inner and middle toes, the
reticulation of the posterior face of the tar-
sus, and especially by the shortness of the
first primary in the male, together with the
slight hooking of the bill.

126 A. PLATYPSARIS. (Gr. aris,
platus, broad; ap, psar, a starling. Bona-
parte, 1854; Sclater, P. Z.8.,1857, p.72. Type
Pachyrhamphus latirostris, Bonap.) BECARDS.
Nostrils hidden by bristly feathers; hook of
bill very slight, and bill not much flattened;
rictal bristles long ; head somewhat crested;
Ist primary short; 2d emarginate in the
male; tail rounded; tarsus with large scutella
on the inner side. Sexes dissimilar. Two
species occur on the Mexican border of the
United States.

No. 394 bis, p. 444. Add: Platypsaris
aglaizw. Rosr-THROATED BecarpD. @ adult:
above, slate-gray, with the crown glossy
black; below, ashy-gray, with a rosy patch
on the throat. © above dark rusty brown,
becoming slaty on the crown. Length 6.60;
wing 3.50; tail 2.75; bill 0.65. Eastern
Mexico, north to the valley of the Rio Grande.
(Pachyrhynchus aglaie, Lafresnaye, Rev.
Zool., 1839, p. 98; Pachyrhamphus aglaie,
Baird, Birds North America, 1858, p. 164,
and Mex. Bound. Survey, 1859, II., pt. ii, pl.
ix., fig. 1; Platypsaris aglaie, Sumichrast,
Mem. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist. I, 1869, p.
558.)

No. 394 ter, p. 444. Add: Platypsaris
albiventris. WHITE-BELLIED BEcCARD.
dé adult: resembling the preceding, but
lighter and more ashy-gray above, the crown
slaty, the under parts pale grayish, whitening
on the belly. 9 correspondingly paler than
that of P. aglaie. Western Mexico, north
into southern Arizona. (Hadrostomus albi-
ventris, Lawrence, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist.,
VIIL., 1867, p. 475; Platypsaris albiventris,
Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 325.)

126 B. PACH YRHAMPHUS, (Gr. rayis,
pachus, thick ; pdpdos, rhamphos, beak. G. R.
Gray, List Genera Birds, 1888, p. 41.) Re-
sembling the preceding; bill more flattened,
with shorter rictal bristles; tail graduated
about 4 an inch; tarsus naked on inner side.

SECOND APPENDIX.

Sexes very unlike. One species found on
the Mexican border of the United States.

No. 394 quater, p. 444. Add: Pachy-
rhampus major. GREATER BecarpD. ¢ ad-
ult : above, ashy-gray, becoming glossy black -
on the back and crown, and white on the
seapulars; below, pale ash, whitening on
throat, belly, and crissum; wings black,
with white edging or tipping of the coverts
and some inner secondaries ; tail black, with
white tips of the feathers. 9 mostly chest-
nut brown, paler below, black on the crown
and ends of the tail-feathers. Length 6.50;
wing 3.25; tail 2.65; bill 0.60. Eastern
Mexico, north to the valley of the lower Rio
Grande ; introduced to our fauna by Baird in
1858 under the name of Bathmidurus major,
and figured in Report of the Mexican Boun-
dary Survey, 1859, pl. ix, fig. 2, but like
Platypsaris aglaie lost sight of for some years,
and not yet recognized in the Committee’s
list. (See Sclater, P. Z. S., 1857, p. 78;
Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 326.)

No. 395, p. 450. Nyctidromus albicollis be-
comes JV. a. merrilli, Sennett, Auk, Jan.
1888, p.44. The Texan form is distinguished
by its larger size (wing and tail each averag-
ing 7.00 inches), prevailing gray coloration
of the upper parts, and in the male the re-
duction or extinction of the white on the
outer tail-feather.

No. 898 bis, p. 879. Phalenoptilus nuttalli
nitidus, the Frosted Poor-will, is confirmed by
the Committee.

No. 398 bis, a, p. 4538. Phalenoptilus
nuttalli californicus is proposed as a new
subspecies from the coast of California by
Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 588,
note, and confirmed by the Committee. Two
skins are said to be “altogether darker than
any from elsewhere.”

No. 400 bis, p. 454. Add: Chordediles
popetue sennetti, Coues, Auk, Jan. 1888, p.
37. This is that pale subspecies of the Night-
hawk which is characteristic of the un-
wooded country from Texas to Dakota. It
is recognized by the Committee under the
name of Chordeiles virginianus sennetti after-
ward bestowed by Chamberlain, Syst. Tabl.
Canadian Birds, 1888, App. A, p. 14.

SECOND APPENDIX.

No. 401, p. 454. Chordediles popetue minor
becomes Chordeiles virginianus chapmani,
(Sennett MSS8.), Coues, Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 37.

No. 410 bis, p. 462. Add: Trochilus
violijugularis. VIOLET-THROATED Hvum-
MING-BIRD. ¢ adult: above, metallic golden
green; sides dull green; flanks less green,
the feathers tipped with brown; gorgelet
violet glancing to steel-blue; wings dusky
purplish with a buff line along the edge of
the manus, the coverts dull green ; primaries
broad to the tip, that of the first recurved;
tail slightly forked; its feathers broad ex-
cept the last pair, which are narrowly linear ;
shafts of the outer pair abruptly angulated ;
middle feathers and base of second pair metal-
lic green ; rest dusky purplish ; under tail-
coverts white with green spots. Length 3.60;
wing 1.80; tail 1.20; bill 0.75. Santa Bar-
bara, coast of southern California. Trochilus
violajugulum [sic] Jeffries, Auk, April, 1888,
p. 168; A. O. U. Committee’s Suppl. List,
1889, p. 10.

No. 4138 bis, p. 464. Add: Selasphorus
floresii. FLoresi’s HUMMING-BIRD. <A
Mexican species which has also been found
in California near San Francisco. (Gould,
Mon. Troch., III., Sept. 1861, pl. 139 ; Trochi-
lus floresii (Loddiges), Gray, Handl., I., 1869,
p. 144; A. O. U. Committee’s Suppl. List,
1889, p.10. See Bryant, Forest and Stream,
June 24, 1886, p. 426.)

No. 429 a, p.476. Coccyzus (or Coccygus)
americanus occidentalis is described by Ridg-
way, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 273, as
larger than C. americanus, with proportion-
ally larger and stouter bill. Its habitat 1s
given as the western United States, east
to New Mexico and Colorado, north to
Oregon, and south over the table-lands of
Mexico.

No. 430 a, p. 476. Coccygus seniculus
maynardi is a subspecies inhabiting the
Bahamas and Florida Keys, possibly dis-
tinguishable from the ordinary Mangrove
Cuckoo. It appears to be somewhat smaller,
on an average, aud paler buff on the under
parts. It was named as a full species by Mr.
Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 274,
and was reduced to a subspecies by Allen,

903

with the approval of the Committee, under
the name Coccyzus minor maynardi.

No. 484, p. 481. Picus scalaris is changed
to Dryobates scalaris bairdi (after, Picus
bairdi, Sclater, in Malherbe’s Mon. Pic.,
1861, p. 118, pl. 27).

No. 487, p. 482. Picus stricklandi is
changed to Dryobates arizonz, Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 286 (after Picus
arizone, Hargitt, Ibis, April, 1886, p. 115).

No. 439 bis, p. 483. Add: Picus villosus
hyloscopus. (P. hyloscopus, Cabanis and
Heine, Mus. Hein., IV., pt. ii., 1863, p. 69;
Dryobates villosus hyloscopus, Brewster, Auk,
July, 1888, p. 252), This is the white-bellied
race of Harris’s Woodpecker which occurs
in most parts of the western United States
and southward into Mexico, as distinguished
from the smoky-bellied form from the north-
west coast. The distinction is noted in the
Key, p. 483, and I am inclined to think it
worthy of recognition by name.

No. 441, p. 483. The Committee decline
to recognize Dryobates pubescens fumidus of
Maynard, Ornith. and Ool., April, 1889, p.
58, which they regard as a synonym of
gairdneri.

No. 441 a, p. 483. Add: Picus pubescens
oreecus, BATCHELDER’S WOODPECKER.
Described by Mr. C. F. Batchelder in the
Auk, July, 1889, p. 253, as Dryobates pubescens
oreoecus, from the Rocky Mountain region
of the United States. As compared with
pubescens or gairdneri, it seems to offer a
parallel case with that of hyloscopus, and the
Committee have probably been right in re-
cognizing it in the Second Supplement.

No. 458, p. 569. Under the name Colum-
bigallina passerina pallescens, this pale form of
the Ground Dove, which I have doubtfully
kept in all the editions of the Kry, and which
was rejected by the Committee in 1886, is
restored in the Supplementary List of 1889,
with the assigned habitat of Mexico and ad-
jacent border of the United States from Texas
to Arizona. It was originally described by
Baird in 1859 as Chamepelia passerina ? var.
pallescens, from Cape St. Lucas, according to
my recollection of the original Xantus speci-
mens which I examined in that year.

904

No. 474, p. 509. Strix cinerea becomes
Scotiaptex cinerea, Swainson, Class. B. 1887,
p. 217.

No. 475, p. 509. Strix cinerea lapponica be-
comes Scotiaptex cinerea lapponica, Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 260 (after Strix
lapponica, Retzius, Fn. Suec., 1800, p. 79).

No. 484a, p. 514. Glaucidium gnoma cali-
fornicum (G. californicum Sclater, P. Z. S.,
1857, p. 4) is recognized as the Pacific Coast
form of G. gnoma, from California to British
America.

No. 485 bis, p. 515. Add: Glaucidium
hoskinsi. Hosxins’s Pyamy Ow. Simi-
lar to the preceding, but smaller and grayer;
upper parts less distinctly spotted; forehead
and facial disk with more white. Wing 3.30;
tail 2.50; tarsus 0.75; chord of culmen 0.50.
An interesting addition to our fauna lately
discovered in Lower California. G. gnoma
hoskinsii, Brewster, Auk, April, 1888, p. 136,
but later accorded full specific rank by its
describer with the approval of the Committee.

No. 486, p. 516. Micrathene whitneyi be-
comes Micropallas whitneyi, Coues, Auk, Jan.
1889, p. 71, the generic name originally be-
stowed being antedated by Micrathena of
Sundevall, a genus of arachnidans.

No. 507 bis, p. 587. Add: Falco regulus.
European Meruin. (Ff. regulus, Pallas,
Reise Russich. Reichs., II., 1773, p. 707;
F. esalon of most authors.) This well-known
European and Asiatic Falcon, belonging to
the subgenus salon, is recorded as acciden-
tal at sea off Greenland. See Kumlein, Auk,
Oct. 1887, p. 345.

No. 510 bis, p. 588. Add: Falco tinnun-
culus. European Kestrev. This well-
known bird of Europe and Asia has been
detected as a straggler in Massachusetts. See
Cory, Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 110, and April, 1888,
p- 205.

No. 518, p. 542. The subgenus Tachytri-
orchis of Kaup, Class. Siug. und Vog., 1844,
recognized by Cassin in Birds N. A., 1858,
p. 31, is now applied to that subgenus of
Buteo of which B. albocaudatus of Vieillot
(Falco pterocles of Temminck) is the type
species. :

Nos. 882, 883, p. 549. Buteo * fuliginosus,”’

‘

SECOND APPENDIX.

as here intimated, is the same as B. brachyurus,
and it has been eliminated from the Union
List. See Scott, Auk, July, 1889, p. 243;
Ridgway, Auk, Jan. 1890, p. 90.

No. 539 bis, p. 565. Add: Columba fasciata
viosce. Vrosca’s Picron. Similar to C.
fasciata, but with the tail-band wanting or
only faintly indicated, the general coloration
lighter and more uniform, the vinaceous tints,
especially, being more or less replaced by
bluish-ash. Lower California. Brewster,
Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 86.

No. 550 bis, p. 571. Add: Geotrygon
montana. Ruppy QUAIL-DOVE. (Columba
montana, Linn., 1758; Geotrygon montana,
Bonap., Consp. Av., I., 1850, p. 72.) A long
and well known inhabitant of tropical and
subtropical America, including the West
Indies and Mexico, lately found at Key West,
Florida. See Scott, Auk, April, 1889, 160;
July, 1889, p. 246.

No. 572 bis, p. 591. Add: Ortyx virginiana
cubanensis. Cusan Boswaits. Under the
name Colinus virginianus cubanensis the Com-
mittee recognize a second variety in Florida
and identify it with the Cuban form. In this
the black marking of the under parts is in
great excess, the male having the breast chiefly
if not entirely black.

No. 574 a, p. 591. Oreortyx picta conjinis
is described by Anthony, Proc. Cala. Acad.
Sci., 2d ser., II., Oct. 1889, p. 74, from the
San Pedro Mountains of Lower California,
and accredited by the Union’s Committee as
a recognizable subspecies in the «Second
Suppl. 1890. I have seen no specimens; but
geographical considerations favor the view
that this subspecies may be tenable.

No. 596 dis, p. 606. Add: Haematopus
frazari, FRAZAR’S OYSTER-CATCHER. Re-
sembling H. palliatus and H. galapagensis ,;
differs from both in the broad zone of mottled
black and white feathers across the breast;
differs from H. palliatus in thé stouter and
more depressed bill, little or no white on the
eyelids, darker back and wings, less varied
upper tail-coverts, and some other respects;
from H. galapagensis in the rather shorter
bill, brown instead of black mantle, dark
markings on the under tail-coverts, and

SECOND APPENDIX.

greater amount of white on the under primary
coverts. Both coasts of Lower California.
Brewster, Auk, Jan. 1888, p. 84.

No. 61+ bis, p. 886. Tringa damascensis,
the Long-toed Stint, which I admitted to the
3d edition of the Key, 1887, though the
Union List of 1886 declined it, has been
reaffirmed by the Committee. See Ridgway,
Auk, April, 1886, p. 275, and Man. N. A.
Birds, 1887, p. 158.

No. 632 dis, p. 887. Symphemia semipal-
mata inornata, admitted in the third edition
of the Key, is confirmed by the Committee.

Nos. 636, 637, p. 639. The name of the
genus Rhyacophilus is changed to Helodro-
mas, Kaup, Naturl. Syst., 1829, p. 144.

No. 663 a, p. 662. 4dd: Butorides vires-
cens frazari. FRazar’s GREEN HERON.
Larger than ZB. virescens; darker colored and
more uniform in color; neck more purplish,
its sides as well as the forehead strongly
glaucous; the light throat line more re-
stricted. Wing 7.00; tarsus 2.25; culmen
2.50. From Lower California, in the vicinity
of La Paz. Ardea virescens frazari, Brewster,
Auk, Jan. 1838. p. 83.

No. 665, p. 663. The name of the genus
Vycterodius (or Nyctherodius) is changed to
Nyctinassa, Stejneger, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
1887, p. 295.

No. 667 bis, p. 888. Ardetta neoxena is
confirmed by the Committee as a valid spe-
cies, and as a North American bird, under
the name Botaurus neoxenus. For later re-
ferences to this interesting Rail-bittern, see
Cory, Auk, July, 1886, p. 408; Ridgway,
Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p. 127.

No. 672, p. 669. Parra gymnostoma be-
comes Jacana spinosa, Elliot, Auk, July,
1885, p. 297. (After Fulica spinosa. Lin-
neus, Syst. Nat., 10th ed., 1758, p. 152.)

No. 673, p. 672. Rallus longirostris crepi-
tans is changed to R. crepitans ; similarly, —

No. 675, p. 672. Rallus longirostris saturatus
is changed to Rallus crepitans saturatus ; also,
Rallus longirostris scottii is changed to Rallus
scottii. See Sennett, Auk, April, 1889, p.
165.

No. 675 a, p. 672. Add: Rallus longtrostris
scotti, Scotr’s Ram. Described by Sen-

905

nett from western Florida in the Auk, July,
1888, p. 305, and approved by the Committee
as a good species. It is later described in the
following terms: ‘Bill slender, decurved,
and compressed; upper parts sooty brown
or black edged slightly with olive-gray; un-
der parts dark ashy-gray mixed more or less
with cinnamon ; axillary and flanks slate-
color, barred distinctly with white.’’ For
a synopsis of the several related species, see
Sennett, Auk, April, 1889, p. 165.

No. 675 b, p. 672. Rallus longirostris cari-
beus [lege caribbieus], described in 1880 by
Mr. Ridgway, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, July,
1880, p. 140, is now recognized by the Com-
mittee as North American, and its habitat
assigned as West Indies and the Gulf of
Mexico, north to Texas.

No. 694, p. 685. Chen cerulescens, which
I have retained throughout my editions, is
now removed from the hypothetical list and
restored to full standing.

No. 709 a, p. 692. Add: Anas obscura
maculosa. Mortirep Duck. ¢ top of
head blackish-brown, the feathers edged with
pale buff: chin and throat isabella color;
cheeks buffy-white with narrow dark-brown
streaks ; breast, wings, upper parts, and
flanks blackish-brown. the feathers margined
with pale buff; under parts buffy-white, each
feather with a broad blackish-brown spot
near the tip; under tail-coverts blackish
varied with whitish and reddish buff: four
middle tail feathers blackish-brown, others
fuscous edged with pale buff, having a
V-shaped mark as in 4. fulvigula: lining
of wing white ; speculum purple tipped with
white ; feet reddish-orange; bill with a small
black spot on base of lower edge of upper
mandible, lacking in the female. Sexes
otherwise alike. A subspecies of the Dusky
Duck which seems entitled to recognition.
It occurs from eastern Texas to Kansas.
It was originally described by Sennett as
-lnas maculosa, Auk, July. 1889, p. 263;
and in the Second Supplement of the
Tnion List, 1890, it is called A. fulvigula
obscura.

No. 734. p. 712. Somateria mollissima
dresseri becomes S. m. borealis, A. E. Brehm,

906

Verz. Samml. Europ. Vogel, 1866, p. 14.
(See Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds, 1887, p.
109.)

No. 747 quater, p. 890. Add. Sula gossi.
BuurE-FooTtED Boosy. Head, neck, and
lower parts white, the head and neck streaked
with dark gray; back and scapulars dusky
brown, the feathers tipped with whitish;
feet bright blue; bill and bare parts about it
dull bluish; iris yellow. Sexes similar.
Length 32.00-34.50; extent 62.00-66.00;
wing 15.50-16.75; tail 8.75-9.75 ; bill 4.20-
4.70. Gulf of California and south to the
Galapagos (Ridgway MSS.), Goss, Auk,
July, 1888, p. 241.

No. 747 quinquies, p. 890. Add: Sula
brewsteri. BrewsTEr’s Boosy. Similar
to S. sula; mantle ending uniform in color
with the head and neck, the last two paler,
especially in the male; iris dark brown with
a narrow ring of grayish-white; claws glau-
cous-blue. @ adult: bill bluish-horn fading
to dirty buff after death; lores slate-blue ;
space around eye, and gular sac, pale yellow-
ish-green; legs and feet more yellowish ;
head, neck, breast, and upper parts sepia-
brown, deepening on quills and tail-feathers;
under parts from the breast pure white.
& adult: bill olive-blue ; lores and circum-
ocular space indigo-blue; gular sac bluish ;
legs, feet, and webs pea-green. Plumage as
in the female. Length 29.50-31.50 ; extent
55.50-59.50; wing 14.50-15.50; tail 8.00;
tarsus 2.00; bill 4.00. Southern Pacific
Islands, north to lower California. Goss,
Auk, July, 1888, p. 242.

No. 768 a, p. 741. Larus barrovianus is a
Glaucous Gull described from Behring’s Sea
and adjacent waters from Point Barrow to
Japan, by Mr. Ridgway, Auk, July, 1886, p.
330. It was admitted neither to the Union
List of 1886, nor to the Kry of 1887; and I
am at a loss to see upon what grounds it is
rated as a good species in the Supplementary
List of 1889, as Z. glaucus is well known to
vary beyond the limits of size said to be
distinctive of L. barrovianus.

No. 775, p. 744. Larus cachinnans becomes
L. vege, Stejneger, Auk, July, 1888, p. 310,
‘after DL. argentatus var. vege of Palmén,

SECOND APPENDIX. .

“Bidr. Sibirisk. Vega Exp., 1887, p. 370,

one of several conspecies of the Herring
Gull. :

No. 788 bis, p. 751. Add: Chroicoce-
phalus minutus. Least Guu. This
almost cosmopolitan. Gull and the smallest
of its tribe, originally deScribed as Asiatic
in 1771 by Peter S. Pallas, and well known
to be also European and African, was as-
cribed to North America in 1831 by Swain-
son and Richardson (F. B.-A., II., p. 426),
on the strength of a specimen said to have
been procured on Sir John Franklin’s first
expedition and identified by Sabine. In
1862, I included it in my monograph of the
Larine (Proc. Phila. Acad. p. 311), but
with doubt, and its alleged occurrence has
never been accredited. It has therefore
been omitted from all our late works. But
quite recently it has been found on Long
Island: see Dutcher, Auk, April, 1888, p.
171. The size is very small; length about
11 inches; wing 9 or less; bill 0.90, very
slender; tarsus 1.00, and rather shorter
than the middle toe and claw. The mantle
is pale pearly-blue; the primaries are sim-
ilar, white-tipped, and not crossed with
black; and the adult in summer has a
black hood.

No. 809 bis, p. 892. Diomedea exuluns.*
This species, which I took in the Kery, orig.
ed. 1872, removed from the Kry in 2d ed.
1884, and replaced on new evidence in the
3d ed. 1887, is placed by the Committee in
the hypothetical List. See Coues, Auk, Oct.
1885, p. 387; Ridgway, Man. N. A. Birds,
1887, p. 51.

No. 823 bis, p. 781. Add: Cymochorea
macrodactyla. GUADALUPE PETREL. An
interesting petrel, apparently new and a
valid species, described as Oceanodroma
leucorrhoa macrodactyla by Bryant, Bull.
Cala. Acad. Sci., II., No. 8, 1887. It
appears to belong to our genus, as above,
but we have not seen any specimens.
The locality is Guadalupe Island, Lower
California.

No. 887, p. 780. Cistrelata gularis becomes
G. scalaris, Brewster, Auk, July, 1886, p.
300. (I cannot bring myself to misspell this

+ - SECOND APPENDIX.

word “ Zistrelata,’’ as a majority of my re-
spected colleagues on the Committee insist
upon doing, for no better reason than that
Prince Charles Lucien Bonaparte did not
know how Géstrelaia ought to be spelled.
Such deference to authority as this is in
my judgment a blot on our “Canons of
Nomenclature,’’ which justly exposes us to
rebuke from ‘‘mouths of wisest censure.”’
Many persons who do not know how to spell
very well become successful authors through

907

the friendly attentions of their compositors
and proof-readers ; and why should our Com-
mittee not be grateful for such assistance
in the pangs and throes of orthographic
delivery ?

No. 865, p. 812. Synthliborhamphus wumizu-
sume is considered by the Committee not
North American, and consequently elimina-
ated. (On this question, still open, see
Stejneger, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1886, p.
524.)

University Press: John Wilson & Son, Cambridge,