appreciably different. _Hab._ Middle America, north
into southern border of United States var. _texensis_.
[103] _Chordeiles popetue_, var. _minor_, CABANIS.
_Chordeiles minor_, CAB. Journ. f. Orn. 1856, p.
5.—SCLATER, Catal. Am. B. 1862, 279. _Ch. gundlachi_, LAWR.
Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VI, 165.
[104] _Chordeiles acutipennis_, (BODD.) CASS. _Caprimulgus
acutipennis_, BODDÆRT, Tab. Pl. Enl. p. 46 (1783).
_Chordeiles a._ CASSIN, P. A. N. S. 1851 (Catalogue of
_Caprimulgidæ_, in Mus. Philad. Acad.). _Caprimulgus
acutus_, GMEL. _C. pruinosus_, TSCHUDI. _C. exilis_, LESSON.
_Chordeiles labeculatus_, JARDINE. “_Caprimulgus
semitorquatus_, L., GM., PR. MAX.” TSCHUDI. _Chordeiles
peruvianus_, PEALE. _Hab._ South America.
Chordeiles popetue, var. popetue, BAIRD.
NIGHT-HAWK; BULL-BAT.
_Caprimulgus popetue_, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 56, pl.
xxiv ♀. _Chordeiles popetue_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
151.—LORD, Pr. R. A. Inst. IV, 1864, 113 (Br. Col.
nesting).—COOPER & SUCKLEY, 166.—SAMUELS, 122. _Caprimulgus
americanus_, WILSON, V, 1812, 65, pl. cxl. f. 1, 2. _Chordeiles
americanus_, DEKAY, N. Y. Zoöl. II, 1844, 34, pl. xxvii.
_Caprimulgus virginianus_, BRISSON, II, 1760, 477 (in part
only).—AUD. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 273, pl. cxlvii.—MAX. Cab.
J. VI, 1858.—WARTHAUSEN, Cab. J. 1868, 373 (nesting).
_Caprimulgus (Chordeiles) virginianus_, SW. F. Bor.-Am. II.
1831, 62. _Chordeiles virginianus_, BON. List, 1838.—AUD.
Birds Am. I, 1840, 159, pl. xliii.—NEWBERRY, Zoöl. Cal. and
Oregon Route, 79; Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI, 1857. _Long-winged
Goatsucker_, PENNANT, Arctic Zoöl. II, 1785, 337.
[Illustration: _Chordeiles popetue._]
SP. CHAR. Male, above greenish-black, but with little mottling on the
head and back. Wing-coverts varied with grayish; scapulars with
yellowish-rufous. A nuchal band of fine gray mottling, behind which is
another coarser one of rufous spots. A white V-shaped mark on the
throat; behind this a collar of pale rufous blotches, and another on
the breast of grayish mottling. Under parts banded transversely with
dull yellowish or reddish-white and brown. Wing-quills quite uniformly
brown. The five outer primaries with a white blotch (about half an
inch long) midway between the tip and carpal joint, not extending on
the outer web of the outer quill. Tail with a terminal white patch,
which does not reach the outer edge of the feathers. _Female_ without
the caudal white patch, the white tail-bands more mottled, the white
of the throat mixed with reddish. Length of male, 9.50; wing, 8.20.
HAB. United States and north to Hudson Bay; in winter visits Greater
Antilles, and southward to Central America (Rio Janeiro, PELZELN);
said to breed in Jamaica. In Rocky Mountains, replaced by the variety
_henryi_. Localities: Trout Lake, H. B. T. (MURRAY, Edinb. Phil.
Journ. 1860); Bahamas (BRYANT, Bost. Soc. VII, 1859); Guatemala. (SCL.
Ibis, II, 275); Cuba (LAWR.); Jamaica (MARCH, P. A. N. S. 1863, 285,
breeds); Matamoras (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 471, breeds); Rio Janeiro,
January (PELZ., Orn. Bras. I, 14); Veragua (SALVIN, P. Z. S. 1870,
203).
HABITS. The common Night-Hawk of North America is a very common
species throughout a widely extended area, and within the United
States breeds wherever found. Its range extends from Florida and Texas
to the extreme northern latitudes, and from the Atlantic at least to
the great Central Plains. It has been found as far to the south as
Panama.
At Matamoras Mr. Dresser found this species abundant during the summer
season, and towards dusk thousands of these birds and of _C. texensis_
and _C. henryi_ might be seen flying in towards the river from the
prairies, this one being the least common of the three. In Northern
Florida it is also a common species, and I have rarely received any
collection of eggs from that State without the eggs of this bird being
found among them. They are known there as Bull-bats.
In many of its habits, as well as in its well-marked generic
distinctions, this species exhibits so many and such well-marked
differences from the Whippoorwill that there seem to be no good
reasons for confounding two birds so very unlike. It is especially
much less nocturnal, and has, strictly speaking, no claim to its
common name, as indicating it to be a bird of the night, which it is
not. It is crepuscular, rather than nocturnal, and even this habit is
more due to the flight of the insects upon which it feeds at morning
and at evening than to any organization of the bird rendering it
necessary. It may not unfrequently be seen on the wing, even in bright
sunny weather, at midday, in pursuit of its winged prey. This is
especially noticeable with such birds as are wont to frequent our
large cities, which may be seen throughout all hours of the day
sailing high in the air. Generally, however, it is most lively early
in the morning and just before nightfall, when its supply of insect
food is most abundant. But it is never to be found on the wing after
dark. As soon as the twilight deepens into the shades of night all
retire to rest as regularly, if not at quite as early an hour, as
other birds in regard to the diurnal habits of which there is no
question.
This species appears to be equally abundant throughout the fur
countries, where, Dr. Richardson states, few birds are better known.
In the higher latitudes to which these birds resort the sun does not
set during their stay, and all their pursuit of insects must be made
by sunlight.
In the winter this species leaves the United States, retiring to
Mexico, Central America, and the northern portions of South America.
Specimens from Mexico were in the Rivoli collection. They were taken
by Barruel in Nicaragua, by Salvin in Guatemala, in Jamaica by Gosse,
and in Cuba by both Lembeye and Gundlach.
The movements, evolutions, and general habits of this species, in the
pursuit of their prey, bear little resemblance to those of the
_Antrostomi_, but are much more like those of the _Falconidæ_. They
fly high in the air, often so high as to be hardly visible, and
traverse the air, moving backward and forward in the manner of a Hawk.
At times they remain perfectly stationary for several moments, and
then suddenly and rapidly dart off, their wings causing a very
peculiar vibratory sound. As they fly they utter a very loud and
shrill cry which it is almost impossible to describe, but often
appearing to come from close at hand when the bird is high in the air.
Richardson compares this sound to the vibration of a tense cord in a
violent gust of wind.
In some of the peculiarities of its breeding the Mosquito-Hawk
displays several very marked variations of habit from the
Whippoorwill. While the latter always deposits its eggs under the
cover of shady trees and in thick woods, these birds select an open
rock, a barren heath, or an exposed hillside for their breeding-place.
This is not unfrequently in wild spots in the vicinity of a wood, but
is always open to the sun. I have even known the eggs carelessly
dropped on the bare ground in a corner of a potato-field, and have
found the female sitting on her eggs in all the bright glare of a
noonday sun in June, and to all appearance undisturbed by its
brilliance. A more common situation for the eggs is a slight hollow of
a bare rock, the dark weather-beaten shades of which, with its brown
and slate-colored mosses and lichens, resembling both the parent and
the egg in their coloring, are well adapted to screen them from
observation or detection.
The great abundance of insect life of certain kinds in the vicinity of
our large cities has of late years attracted these birds. Each summer
their number in Boston has perceptibly increased, and through June and
July, at almost all hours of the day, most especially in the
afternoon, they may be seen or heard sailing high in the air over its
crowded streets. The modern style of house-building, with flat Mansard
roofs, has also added to the inducements, affording safe and
convenient shelter to the birds at night, and serving also for the
deposition of their eggs. In quite a number of instances in the
summers of 1870 and 1871 they were known to lay their eggs and to rear
their young on the flat roofs of houses in the southern and western
sections of the city. I have also been informed by the late Mr.
Turnbull, of Philadelphia, that the flat roofs of large warehouses
near the river in that city are made similar use of.
If approached when sitting on her eggs, the female will suffer herself
to be almost trodden on before she will leave them, and when she does
it is only to tumble at the feet of the intruder and endeavor to draw
him away from her treasures by well-feigned lameness and pretended
disability. Her imitation of a wounded bird is so perfect as to
deceive almost any one not aware of her cunning devices.
The eggs of this bird are always two in number, elliptical in shape,
and equally obtuse at either end. They exhibit marked variations in
size, in ground-color, and in the shades and number of their markings.
In certain characteristics and in their general effect they are alike,
and all resemble oblong-oval dark-colored pebble-stones. Their safety
in the exposed positions in which they are laid is increased by this
resemblance to the stones among which they lie. They vary in length
from 1.30 to 1.13 inches, and in breadth from .84 to .94 of an inch.
Their ground is of various shades of stone-color, in some of a dirty
white, in others with a tinge of yellow or blue, and in yet others a
clay-color. The markings are more or less diffused over the entire
egg, and differ more or less with each specimen, the prevailing colors
being varying shades of slate and of yellowish-brown. With all these
variations the eggs are readily recognizable, and bear no resemblance
to any others except those of _texensis_ and _henryi_. From the former
they are easily distinguished by the greater size, but from the latter
they can only be separated by considerations of locality.
Chordeiles popetue, var. henryi, CASSIN.
WESTERN NIGHT-HAWK.
_Chordeiles henryi_, CASSIN, Illust. Birds of Cal. & Tex. I, 1855,
233.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 153, pl. xvii.—SCLATER, P. Z.
S. 1866, 133.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 343.
SP. CHAR. Similar to var. _popetue_, but the male considerably
lighter, with a greater predominance of the light mottlings, producing
a more grayish aspect; the female more rufous. Wing-patch of the male
larger (at least an inch long), and, like the tail-patch, crossing the
whole breadth of the feather.
HAB. Western Province of North America, except Pacific Coast region.
Matamoras to San Antonio, Texas (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 471); Arizona
(COUES, P. A. N. S. 1866, 58).
In examining a large series of Night-Hawks, we find the differences
indicated above, in specimens from the Black Hills, Rocky Mountains,
and the adjacent regions, to be quite decided and constant. Skins,
however, from Washington, Oregon, and California, seem darker even
than the typical eastern. There is no prominent difference beyond the
lighter colors of male, and greater distinctness, extent, and purity
of the white or light markings, and in the white patches of wing and
tail, crossing the outer webs of all the feathers; the general
proportions and pattern of coloration being quite the same. It will
therefore seem proper to consider _C. henryi_ as a local race,
characteristic of the region in which it occurs, and as such
noteworthy, but not entitled to independent rank.
Another race, _C. minor_, Cab., similar to var. _popetue_, but
considerably smaller (7.50, wing, 7.00), is resident in Cuba and
Jamaica. _C. popetue_ is also said to breed in the latter island, but
_minor_ is probably referred to.
HABITS. This form, whether we regard it as a good species, or only a
western race of the common Night-Hawk, was first described as a new
variety by Mr. Cassin, in 1855, from specimens procured at Fort
Webster, New Mexico, by Dr. Henry, in honor of whom it was named. Its
claim to be considered a distinct race or species rests chiefly upon
its constantly different colorations.
Dr. Cooper, who regarded this form not specifically distinct from the
Night-Hawk, states that it is not found near the coast border of
California.
Dr. Kennerly encountered it in abundance in the vicinity of Los
Nogales, in Sonora, in June. Late in the afternoon they came in great
numbers around the camp. They kept circling round and round, and
approached the earth nearer and nearer with the declining sun.
Mr. Dresser found them very abundant at Matamoras, and as far east as
the Sal Colorado, beyond which he did not meet with any. About dusk,
thousands of these birds might be seen flying in towards the river
from the prairies. At San Antonio, where Mr. Dresser found both _C.
popetue_ and _C. texensis_, he never procured a single specimen of
this bird, nor did Dr. Heermann ever meet with one there.
Dr. Coues says these birds are abundant throughout the Territory of
Arizona. At Fort Whipple it is a summer resident, arriving in April
and remaining until October, being particularly numerous in August and
September. Mr. Drexler made a large collection of these birds at Fort
Bridger, in Utah, all of which showed such constant differences from
eastern specimens as to indicate in his opinion the propriety of a
specific separation.
An egg of this bird taken at Fort Crook, California, by Lieutenant
Fulner, measures 1.25 inches in length by .92 of an inch in breadth.
While resembling in general effect an egg of _C. popetue_, it is
lighter in colorings, and varies from any of that bird I have ever
seen. Its ground-color is that of clay, over which are diffused
curious aggregations of small spots and cloudings of yellowish-brown,
mingled with lilac. These markings are quite small and separate, but
are grouped in such close proximity into several collections as to
give them the appearance of large blotches; and the blending of these
two shades is so general as to produce the effect of a color quite
different from either, except upon a close inspection, or an
examination through a magnifying glass.
This variety was met with at the Forks of the Saskatchewan, in June,
1858, by Captain Blakiston, and specimens were obtained on the
Saskatchewan Plains, by M. Bourgeau, in the summer of the same year.
The latter also procured its eggs. These are said to have been three
in number, described as light olive, blotched with black more thickly
at one end than the other. No mention of shape is made. This
description, incomplete as it is, indicates a great dissimilarity with
eggs of this bird, fully identified in the Smithsonian collection.
The western variety was met with by Mr. Ridgway throughout the entire
extent of his route across the Great Basin. It bred everywhere, laying
its eggs on the bare ground, beneath a sage-bush, usually on the
foot-hills of the mountains, or on the mesas. In August and September
they congregate in immense flocks, appearing in the evening. Not the
slightest difference in habits, manners, or notes, was observed
between this and the eastern Night-Hawk.
Chordeiles acutipennis, var. texensis, LAWRENCE.
TEXAS NIGHT-HAWK.
_Chordeiles brasilianus_, LAWRENCE, Ann. N. Y. Lyceum, V, May, 1851,
114 (not of GMELIN).—CASSIN, Ill. I, 1855, 238. _Chordeiles
sapiti_, BON. Conspectus Avium, I, 1849, 63. _Chordeiles
texensis_, LAWRENCE, Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VI, Dec. 1856,
167.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 154, pl. xliv.—IB. M. B. II,
Birds, 7, pl. vi.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 345. _Caprimulgus
texensis_, WARTHAUSEN, Cab. J. 1868, 376 (nesting).
SP. CHAR. Much smaller than _C. virginianus_, but somewhat similar.
White on the wing extending over only four outer primaries, the bases
of which, as well as the remaining ones, with other quills, have round
rufous spots on both webs. Under tail-coverts and abdomen with a
strong yellowish-rufous tinge. Female more rufous and without the
white spot of the tail. Length, 8.75; wing, 7.00.
HAB. Basins of Rio Grande, Gila, and Colorado Rivers, and west to Gulf
of California; South as far, at least, as Costa Rica. Localities:
Matamoras to San Antonio (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 471, breeds); W.
Arizona (COUES; P. A. N. S. 1866, 58); Costa Rica (LAWR. An. N. Y.
Lyc. IX, 120); Yucatan (LAWR. N. Y. Lyc. IX, 204).
The markings of this species are quite different from those of
_Chordeiles popetue_. In average specimens the prevailing color above
may be described as a mixed gray, yellowish-rusty, black, and brown,
in varied but very fine mottlings. The top of the head is rather
uniformly brown, with a few mottlings of grayish-rusty, although the
concealed portion of the feathers is much varied. On the nape is a
finely mottled collar of grayish and black, not very conspicuously
defined, and rather interrupted on the median line. A similar collar
is seen on the forepart of the breast. The middle of the back and the
rump exhibit a coarser mottling of the same without any rufous. The
scapulars and wing-coverts are beautifully variegated, much as in some
of the Waders, the pattern very irregular and scarcely capable of
definition. There are, however, a good many large round spots of pale
yellowish-rusty, very conspicuous among the other markings. There is
quite a large blotch of white on the wing, situated considerably
nearer the tip than the carpal joint. It only involves four primaries,
and extends across both outer and inner webs. The four first primaries
anterior to the white blotches, and the remaining ones nearly from
their tips, exhibit a series of large round rufous spots not seen in
the other North American species. The other wing-quills have also
similar markings. There is a large V-shaped white mark on the throat,
as in _C. virginianus_, though rather larger proportionally. Posterior
to this there are some rather conspicuous blotches of rufous,
behind which is the obscure finely mottled collar of gray and brown
already referred to. The breast and remaining under parts are dull
white transversely banded with brown, with a strong tinge of
yellowish-rufous on the abdomen, about the vent, and on the under
tail-coverts. The tail is dark brown with about eight transverse bars
of lighter; the last are white, and extend across both vanes; the
others less continuous, and yellowish-rufous beneath as well as above,
especially on the inner vane.
The females are quite similar, but lack the white patch of the tail,
have more numerous rufous spots on quills, and are perhaps more
fulvous in general appearance. Young birds, however, would hardly be
recognized as the same, except when taken with adults, owing to the
predominance of a pale cinnamon shade above, and a decided tinge of
the same on all the white and gray markings. Nearly all the primaries
have a border of this color.
The variety _acutipennis_ of South America (see synopsis) is very
similar, differing merely in smaller dimensions.
HABITS. The Texan Night-Hawk occurs in the valley of the Rio Grande
from Texas on the east, through New Mexico, Arizona, Southern
California, and Cape San Lucas. It is found in the northern provinces
of Mexico during the summer months, and thence southward to Central
America. It was found at Dueñas, in Guatemala, by Mr. Salvin, and also
at Coban. Mr. Xantus found it breeding at Cape San Lucas in May.
This species was first added to our fauna by Mr. Lawrence, in 1851, as
a bird of Texas, supposed to be _C. brasilianus_, and in 1856
described by the same writer as a new species.
According to Dr. Cooper, it makes its first appearance at Fort Mohave
by the 17th of April, and soon after becomes quite numerous, hunting
in companies after sunset, and hiding during the day on the ground
under low bushes. By the 25th of May they had all paired, but
continued nearly silent, making only a low croaking when approached.
They flew in the manner of the common species, but seemed to sail in
rather smaller circles. Dr. Cooper found them as far west as the Coast
Mountains.
Dr. Coues states that this species is common in the Colorado Valley,
even farther north than the latitude of Fort Whipple. It was not,
however, met with by him at that port, nor indeed for some fifty miles
to the south of it, and then only in the summer. He adds that it
extends from the Rio Grande Valley westward to the Pacific. It was
found abundant at Cape St. Lucas by Dr. Xantus.
Mr. Dresser found it very common at Matamoras during the summer
season, and thence to San Antonio and to the eastward of that place.
At San Antonio, in the spring, he first noticed them on the 2d of May,
when he saw seven or eight flying about at noonday. A few days later
they had become very numerous. They remained about San Antonio until
the end of September, and soon after disappeared. He noticed none
later than the first week in October.
Mr. J. H. Clark met with this species at Ringgold Barracks, Texas, in
June. They were to be seen sitting about in the heat of the day, at
which time they could be easily approached. During the hottest days
they did not sally forth in quest of food until late in the evening.
On one occasion, near El Paso, Mr. Clark saw these birds congregated
in such quantities over a mud-hole from which were issuing myriads of
insects, that he felt that the discharge among them of mustard-seed
shot would involve a wanton destruction. This species is not known,
according to his account, to make a swoop in the manner of the common
species. It does not utter the same hoarse sounds, nor does it ever
fly so high.
Among the notes of the late Dr. Berlandier, of Matamoras, we find
references to this species, to which he gives the common name of
_Pauraque_, and in his collection of eggs are many that unquestionably
are those of this bird, and which are, in all respects but size, in
close affinity to the eggs of the common Night-Hawk. These eggs
measure 1.18 inches in length by .87 of an inch in breadth. Their
ground-color, seen through a magnifying glass, is of clear crystal
whiteness, but is so closely covered by overlaying markings as not to
be discernible to the eye. They are marked over the entire surface
with small irregular confluent spots and blotches, which are a
blending of black, umber, and purplish-gray markings. These
combinations give to the egg the appearance of a piece of polished
marble of a dark gray color. They are both smaller and of a lighter
color than those of the common eastern bird.
GENUS ANTROSTOMUS, GOULD.
_Antrostomus_, GOULD, ICONES AVIUM, 1838. (Type, _Caprimulgus
carolinensis_, GM.)
[Illustration: _Antrostomus nuttalli._]
GEN. CHAR. Bill very small, with tubular nostrils, and the gape with
long, stiff, sometimes pectinated bristles projecting beyond the end
of the bill. Tarsi moderate, partly feathered above. Tail broad,
rounded; wings broad and rounded; first quill shorter than third;
plumage soft and lax. Habit nocturnal.
In what the genus _Antrostomus_ really differs from _Caprimulgus_
proper, we are quite unable to say, as in the many variations of form
of both New and Old World species of these two divisions respectively,
it is said to be not difficult to find species in each, almost
identical in form. In the want of suitable material for comparison, we
shall follow Sclater in using _Antrostomus_ for the New World species.
Species and Varieties.[105]
A. Bristles of gape with lateral filaments. Light
tail-spaces confined to inner web of feathers.
_Dark markings on crown longitudinal. Ochraceous or
white gular collar in form of a narrow band across
jugulum._
A. carolinensis. Throat ochraceous, with sparse,
narrow, transverse bars of black; jugular collar more
whitish, with broader but more distant black bars.
Crissum barred, and inner webs of primaries with black
prevailing. Wing, 8.90; tail, 6.30. _Hab._ Louisianian
region of the Eastern Province of United States
(Florida and the Carolinas to Arkansas). Costa Rica.
B. Bristles of gape without lateral filaments; light
tail-spaces covering both webs.
_a._ Throat black, with sparse, narrow, transverse bars
of pale brown. Crissum barred, and inner webs of
primaries with black greatly predominating.
A. macromystax. Crown pale brown and whitish very
coarsely mottled with dusky; lower parts clouded with
whitish, in conspicuous contrast with the ground
color. Light tail patch restricted to less than
terminal third, and decreasing in breadth toward the
middle feathers. Bristles of gape enormously long and
stout; bill compressed, nostrils large.
White patch on end of tail confined to three outer
feathers, and decreasing very rapidly in extent to
the inner. Wing, 6.60; tail, 5.30; rictal bristles,
1.40. _Hab._ Mexico (Mirador, La Parada) var. _macromystax_.[106]
White patch on end of tail, on four outer feathers,
and just appreciably decreasing in extent toward the
inner. Wing, 7.00; tail, 5.50; rictal bristles,
2.00. _Hab._ Cuba var. _cubanensis_.[107]
A. vociferus. Crown ash, finely mottled or minutely
sprinkled with dusky; lower parts without whitish
cloudings. White tail-patch covering more than
terminal half, and decreasing in breadth toward the
outer feather. Bristles of gape moderate, slender;
bill weaker, less compressed, and nostrils smaller.
Wing, 6.40; tail, 5.10; rictal bristles, 1.50 or less.
_Hab._ Eastern Province of North America, south to
Guatemala.
_Dark markings of crown transverse. Gular collar pure
white, covering nearly whole throat._
_b._ Throat pure white, without any markings. Crissum
immaculate; inner webs of primaries with ochraceous very
largely predominating.
A. nuttalli. White space of tail occupying about the
terminal fourth, or less, on three feathers, and
gradually decreasing inwardly. Wing, 5.75; tail, 3.90;
rictal bristles less than 1.00. _Hab._ Western
Province of United States, from the Plains to the
Pacific.
[105] The females differ simply in having the light
tail-space much reduced in size, and dull ochraceous,
instead of whitish; in that of _carolinensis_ it is wanting
altogether.
[106] _Antrostomus macromystax_ (WAGL.?) SCLATER, P. Z. S.
1866, 137 (La Parada, Mex.). _? Caprimulgus macromystax_,
WAGL. Isis, 1831, p. 533.
[107] _Antrostomus macromystax_, var. _cubanensis_ (LAWR.)
_Antrostomus cubanensis_, LAWR. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VII, May,
1860, p. 260.
Antrostomus carolinensis, GOULD.
CHUCK-WILL’S WIDOW.
_Caprimulgus carolinensis_, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 1028.—AUD.
Orn. Biog. I, 1832, 273, pl. lii; V, 1839, 401.—IB. Birds Am.
I, 1840, 151, pl. xli.—WARTHAUSEN, Cab. J. 1868, 368
(nesting). _Antrostomus carolinensis_, GOULD, Icones Avium,
1838?—CASSIN, Illust. N. Am. Birds, I, 1855, 236.—BAIRD,
Birds N. Am. 1858, 147.—ALLEN, B. Fla. 300. _Caprimulgus
rufus_, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 57, pl. xxv (♀).
_Caprimulgus brachypterus_, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Zoöl. X, I, 1825?
150. _Short-winged Goatsucker_, PENNANT, Arctic Zoöl. II, 1785,
434.
[Line drawing: _Antrostomus carolinensis._
6493 ♂]
SP. CHAR. Bristles of the bill with lateral filaments. Wing nearly
nine inches long. Top of the head finely mottled reddish-brown,
longitudinally streaked with black. The prevailing shade above and
below pale rufous. Terminal two-thirds of the tail-feathers (except
the four central) rufous white; outer webs of all mottled, however,
nearly to the tips. _Female_ without the white patch on the tail.
Length, 12.00; wing, 8.50.
HAB. South Atlantic and Gulf States to Veragua; Cuba in winter. Cuba
(CABAN. J. IV, 6, winter); San Antonio, Texas (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865,
70, breeds); Costa Rica (LAWR. IX, 120); Veragua (SALVIN, P. Z. S.
1870, 303).
This, according to Sclater, is the largest of the _Antrostomi_ and the
only species with lateral filaments to the bristles of the mouth.
The extent of the white spaces on the inner webs of tail-feathers
varies with the individual, but in none does it occupy less than the
terminal half.
[Illustration: PLATE XLVI.
1. Antrostomus carolinensis. ♂ Florida, 17160.
2. ” vociferus. ♂ D. C., 12085.
3. ” nuttalli. ♂ Wyoming, 38324.
4. Chordeiles henryi. ♂ Wyoming, 38323.
5. ” texensis. ♂ Texas, 42189.
6. Centronyx ochrocephalus. Colorado.
7. Setophaga picta. ♂ Mexico, 30705.
8. Peucæa carpalis. Arizona, 62372.
9. Passerculus caboti. Nahant, 62373.]
The _A. rufus_ (_Caprimulgus rufus_, BODD. et GMEL. ex Pl. Enl. 735
(?); _Antrostomus r._ SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1866, 136; _A. rutilus_, BURM.
Syst. Ueb. II, 385) and _A. ornatus_ (SCL. P. Z. S. 1866, 586, pl.
xlv), of South America, appear to be the nearest relatives of this
species, agreeing very closely in coloration; but both have the rictal
bristles simple, without lateral filaments, and would thus seem to be
distinct species. In the latter, the white spaces of the tail are
found only on the second and third feathers, instead of on the outer
three, while the former is said to have no such markings at all.
HABITS. The exact extent of the geographical range of this species is
not very clearly defined. Rarely anywhere a very abundant species, it
is more common throughout Florida than in any other State. It is also
found, more or less frequently, in the States of Georgia, South
Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. Dr. Woodhouse
mentions finding it common in the Creek and Cherokee countries of the
Indian Territory, and also extending into Texas and New Mexico. Mr.
Dresser noticed several of this species on the Medina River, in Texas,
April 28, and afterwards in May. On the 18th of the same month he
again found it very numerous at New Braunfels, and also, on the 20th,
at Bastrop. Dr. Heermann states that these birds visit the
neighborhood of San Antonio in the spring, and remain there to raise
their young.
James River, Virginia, has been assigned as the extreme northern limit
of its migrations, but I can find no evidence of its occurring so far
north, except as an accidental visitant. Wilson, indeed, claims to
have met with it between Richmond and Petersburg, and also on the
Cumberland River. Dr. Bachman states that it is not a common bird even
in the neighborhood of Charleston. Mr. Audubon, who claimed to be a
very close and careful observer of the habits of this species, states
that it is seldom to be met with beyond the then southern limits of
the Choctaw nation, in Mississippi, or the Carolinas on the Atlantic
coast.
I have been informed by Dr. Kollock that these birds are rather common
at Cheraw, in the northern part of South Carolina. Dr. Bryant found
them quite abundant near Indian River, in Florida, though he makes no
mention of them in his paper on the birds of that State. Mr. Cassin
informed me that Colonel McCall met with this bird in New Mexico.
Lembeye includes it among the birds of Cuba, but in reality refers to
_cubanensis_.
These birds, according to Mr. Audubon, are not residents, but make
their appearance within the United States about the middle of March.
They are nocturnal in their habits, remaining silent and keeping
within the shady recesses of the forests during the daytime. As soon
as the sun has disappeared and the night insects are in motion, this
species issues forth from its retreat, and begins to give utterance to
the peculiar cries from which it receives its trivial name, and which
are said to resemble the syllables _chuck-wills-wi-dow_. These sounds
are said to be repeated with great rapidity, yet with clearness and
power, six or seven times in as many seconds. They are only uttered
for a brief period in the early evening.
Mr. Audubon states that deep ravines, shady swamps, and extensive pine
groves, are resorted to by this species for safety during the day, and
for food during the night. Their notes are seldom heard in cloudy
weather, and never during rain. They roost in hollow trees, standing
as well as prostrate, which they never leave by day except during
incubation. He adds that whenever he has surprised them in such
situations they never attempt to make their escape by flying out, but
draw back to the farthest corner, ruffle their feathers, open their
mouths to the fullest extent, and utter a hissing sound. When taken to
the light, they open and close their eyes in rapid succession, snap
their bills in the manner of a Flycatcher, and attempt to shuffle off.
When given their liberty, they fly straight forward until quite out of
sight, readily passing between the trees in their course.
The flight of this bird is light, like that of the Whippoorwill, and
even more elevated and graceful. It is performed by easy flapping of
the wings, with occasional sailings and curving sweeps. It sweeps, at
night, over the open fields, ascending, descending, or sailing with
graceful motions in pursuit of night beetles, moths, and other
insects, repeatedly passing and repassing over the same area, and
occasionally alighting on the ground to capture its prey. Occasionally
it pauses to alight on a stake or a tall plant, and again utters its
peculiar refrain, and then resumes its search for insects. And thus it
passes pleasant summer nights.
Like all the birds of this family, the Chuck-will’s Widow makes no
nest, but deposits her eggs on the ground, often among a collection of
dry deciduous leaves, in the forest. These are two in number, and the
spot chosen for them are thickets, and the darker and more solitary
portions of woods. Dr. Bryant, who took several of their eggs in
Florida, informed me that they were in each instance found deposited
on beds of dry leaves, but with no attempt at any nest, and always in
thick woods.
Sometimes, Mr. Audubon thinks, the parent bird scratches a small space
on the ground, among the leaves, before she deposits her eggs. If
either their eggs or their young are meddled with, these birds are
sure to take the alarm and transport them to some distant part of the
forest. In this both parents take part. After this removal Mr. Audubon
found it impossible, even with the aid of a dog, to find them again.
On one occasion he actually witnessed the act of removal of the eggs,
and presumed that they also treat the young in the same manner when
they are quite small. The eggs were carried off in the capacious
mouths of these birds, each parent taking one and flying off, skimming
closely to the ground until lost to sight among the branches and the
trees. To what distance they were carried he was unable to ascertain.
During the period of incubation they are silent, and do not repeat
their peculiar cries until just before they are preparing to depart on
their southern migrations, in August.
The food of these birds consists chiefly, if not altogether, of the
larger nocturnal insects, for swallowing which their mouths are
admirably adapted, opening with a prodigious expansion, and assisted
by numerous long bristles, which prevent the escape of an insect once
within their enclosure. In a single instance the remains of a small
bird are said to have been found within the stomach of one of this
species.
The inner side of each middle claw of the _Chuck-will’s Widow_ is
deeply pectinated. The apparent use of this appendage, as in the other
species in which it is found, appears to be as an aid in adjusting the
plumage, and perhaps to assist in removing vermin.
The eggs of this bird are never more than two in number. They are oval
in shape, large for the size of the bird, and alike at either end.
Their ground-color is a clear crystal white. They are more or less
spotted, and marked over their entire surface with blotches of varying
size, of a dark purplish-brown, and cloudings of a grayish-lavender
color, with smaller occasional markings of a light raw-umber brown. In
shape and markings they very closely resemble those of the
Whippoorwill, differing chiefly in their much larger size. They
measure 1.44 inches in length by 1.06 in breadth.
Antrostomus vociferus, BONAP.
WHIPPOORWILL.
_Caprimulgus vociferus_, WILSON, Am. Orn. V, 1812, 71, pl. xli, f.
1, 2, 3.—AUD. Orn. Biog. I, 1832, 443; V, 405, pl. lxxxv.—IB.
Birds Am. I, 1840, 155, pl. xlii.—MAX. Cab. J. VI, 1858, 98.
_Antrostomus vociferus_, BONAP. List, 1838.—CASSIN, J. A. N.
Sc. II, 1852, 122.—IB. Ill. I, 1855, 236.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am.
1858, 148.—SAMUELS, 119.—ALLEN, B. Fla. 300. _Caprimulgus
virginianus_, VIEILL. Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 55, pl. xxv.
“_Caprimulgus clamator_, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. X, 1817, 234”
(CASSIN). _Caprimulgus vociferans_, WARTHAUSEN, Cab. J. 1868,
369 (nesting).
SP. CHAR. Bristles without lateral filaments. Wing about 6.50 inches
long. Top of the head ashy-brown, longitudinally streaked with black.
Terminal half of the tail-feathers (except the four central) dirty
white on both outer and inner webs. Length, 10.00; wing, 6.50.
_Female_ without white on the tail.
HAB. Eastern United States to the Plains; south to Guatemala
(Tehuantepec, Orizaba, Guatemala). Coban (SALV. Ibis, II, 275).
In this species the bristles at the base of the bill, though stiff and
long, are without the lateral filaments of the Chuck-will’s Widow. The
wings are rather short; the second quill longest; the first
intermediate between the third and fourth. The tail is rounded; the
outer feathers about half an inch shorter than the middle ones.
The colors of this species are very difficult to describe, although
there is quite a similarity to those of _A. carolinensis_, from which
its greatly inferior size will at once distinguish it. The top of the
head is an ashy gray, finely mottled, with a broad median stripe of
black; all the feathers with a narrow stripe of the same along their
centres. The back and rump are somewhat similar, though of a different
shade. There is a collar of white on the under side of the neck,
posterior to which the upper part of the breast is finely mottled,
somewhat as on the top of the head. The belly is dirty white, with
indistinct transverse bands and mottlings of brown. The wings are
brown; each quill with a series of round rufous spots on both webs,
quite conspicuous on the outer side of the primaries when the wings
are folded. The terminal half of the outer three tail-feathers is of a
dirty white.
The female is smaller; the collar on the throat is tinged with
fulvous. The conspicuous white patch of the tail is wanting, the tips
only of the outer three feathers being of a pale brownish-fulvous.
Mexican and Guatemalan specimens are identical with those from the
United States.
HABITS. The well-known Whippoorwill has an extended range throughout
the eastern portion of North America, from the Atlantic to the valley
of the Missouri, and from Southern Florida to about the 50th parallel
of north latitude. Dr. Richardson observed this bird on the northern
shores of Lake Huron, but did not meet with it at any point farther
north. It is found throughout New England and in portions of New
Brunswick and Nova Scotia, but is rare in the latter places, and is
not common in the vicinity of Calais. It breeds from Florida
northward. It has not been found as far west as Texas. It was noticed
by Mr. Say at Pembina. It is given by Dr. Hall, of Montreal, as common
in that neighborhood, and by Mr. McIlwraith as an abundant summer
resident around Hamilton, Canada. Dr. Lembeye names it as a resident
Cuban species, and Dr. Gundlach informed me that he had taken its eggs
within that island. I have also received its eggs from various
portions of Florida.
The Whippoorwill is nowhere a resident species in any portion of the
United States. They make their appearance in the Southern States early
in March, and very gradually proceed northward, entering Pennsylvania
early in April, but not being seen in New York or New England until
the last of that month, and sometimes not until the 10th of May. Mr.
Maynard mentions their first appearance in Massachusetts as from the
19th to the 24th of May, but I have repeatedly known them in full cry
near Boston at least a fortnight earlier than this, and in the western
part of the State Mr. Allen has noted their arrival by the 25th of
April. They leave in the latter part of September. Mr. Allen also
observed the abundant presence of these birds in Western Iowa, where
he heard their notes as late as the 20th of September.
In its habits the Whippoorwill is very nearly the counterpart of the
_carolinensis_. Like that bird, it is exclusively nocturnal, keeping,
during the day, closely within the recesses of dark woods, and
remaining perfectly silent, uttering no note even when disturbed in
these retreats. In very cloudy weather, late in the day, these birds
may be seen hunting for insects, but this is not usual, and they utter
no sound until it is quite dark.
Like the preceding species, this bird receives its common name of
Whippoorwill from its nocturnal cry, which has some slight resemblance
to these three sounds; but the cry is so rapidly enunciated and so
incessantly repeated that a fertile imagination may give various
interpretations to the sounds. They are never uttered when the bird is
in motion, but usually at short intervals, when resting on a fence, or
bush, or any other object near the ground.
Their flight is noiseless to an incredible degree, and they rarely fly
far at a time. They are usually very shy, and are easily startled if
approached. At night, as soon as the twilight disappears, these birds
issue from their retreats, and fly out into more open spaces in quest
of their favorite food. As many of the nocturnal insects, moths,
beetles, and others, are attracted about dwellings by lights, the
Whippoorwill is frequently enticed, in pursuit, into the same
vicinity. For several successive seasons these birds have appeared
nearly every summer evening within my grounds, often within a few feet
of the house. They never suffer a very near approach, but fly as soon
as they notice any movement. Their pursuit of insects is somewhat
different from that narrated of the preceding species, their flights
being usually quite brief, without any perceptible sailing, and more
in the manner of Flycatchers. Their song is given out at intervals
throughout the night, until near the dawn.
The nocturnal habits of this bird have prevented a general or accurate
knowledge of its true character. Strange as it may seem, in many parts
of the country the Night-Hawk and the Whippoorwill are supposed to be
one and the same bird, even by those not ill informed in other
respects. This was found to be the case in Pennsylvania by Wilson, and
is equally true of many portions of New England, though disputed by
Mr. Audubon.
Like the Chuck-will’s Widow, this species removes its eggs, and also
its young, to a distant and safer locality, if they are visited and
handled. Wilson once, in passing through a piece of wood, came
accidentally upon a young bird of this species. The parent attempted
to draw him away by well-feigned stratagems. Wilson stopped and
sketched the bird, and, returning again, after a short absence, to the
same place, in search of a pencil he had left behind, found that the
bird had been spirited away by its vigilant parent.
When disturbed by an intrusive approach, the Whippoorwill resorts to
various expedients to divert attention to herself from her offspring.
She flutters about as if wounded and unable to fly, beats the ground
with her wings as if not able to rise from it, and enacts these feints
in a manner to deceive even the most wary, risking her own life to
save her offspring.
The Whippoorwills construct no nest, but deposit their eggs in the
thickest and most shady portions of the woods, among fallen leaves, in
hollows slightly excavated for that purpose, or upon the leaves
themselves. For this purpose elevated and dry places are always
selected, often near some fallen log. There they deposit two eggs,
elliptical in shape. Their young, when first hatched, are perfectly
helpless, and their safety largely depends upon their great similarity
to small pieces of mouldy earth. They grow rapidly, and are soon able
to follow their mother and to partially care for themselves.
The egg of the Whippoorwill has a strong family resemblance to those
of both species of European _Caprimulgi_, and is a complete miniature
of that of _A. carolinensis_. In shape it is oblong and oval, equally
obtuse at either end. Resembling the egg of the Chuck-will’s Widow, it
is yet more noticeable for the purity of its colors and the beauty of
their contrast. The ground-color is a clear and pure shade of
cream-white. The whole egg is irregularly spotted and marbled with
lines and patches of purplish-lavender, mingled with reddish-brown.
The former are fainter, and as if partially obscured, the brown
usually much more distinct. The eggs measure 1.25 inches in length by
.88 of an inch in breadth. Wilson’s account of its egg is wholly
inaccurate.
In the extreme Southern States these eggs are deposited in April, in
Virginia and Pennsylvania about the middle of May, and farther north
not until early in June. The young are hatched and able to care for
themselves during July, but, with the female, rarely leave the woods.
The notes of the male are once more occasionally heard in August. Mr.
Allen has heard them late in September, but I have never happened to
notice their cries later than August.
Mr. Nuttall states that the young of these birds, at an early age, run
about with remarkable celerity, and that they utter, at short
intervals a _pé-ūgh_, in a low mournful tone. Their food appears to
consist of various kinds of nocturnal insects, besides ants,
grasshoppers, and other kinds not nocturnal, frequenting decaying wood
and shady thickets.
[Line drawing: Left foot of _Antrostomus vociferus_.]
[Line drawing: Left foot of _Nyctibius jamaicensis_.]
Antrostomus nuttalli, CASSIN.
NUTTALL’S WHIPPOORWILL; POOR-WILL.
_Caprimulgus nuttalli_, AUD. Birds Am. VII, 1843, pl. ccccxcv,
Appendix. _Antrostomus nuttalli_, CASSIN, J. A. N. Sc. Phila.
2d series, II, 1852, 123.—IB. Ill. I, 1855, 237.—NEWBERRY,
Zoöl. Cal. and Oregon Route, 77; Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI,
IV.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 149.—COOPER & SUCKLEY,
166.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 341.
SP. CHAR. Rictal bristles without any lateral filaments; wing, about
5.50; the top of the head hoary gray, with narrow and transverse, not
longitudinal bands. Tail above, except the central feathers, nearly
black on the terminal half, the extreme tip only (in the outer feather
of each side) being white for nearly an inch, diminishing on the
second and third. Length, 8.00; wing, 5.50. _Female_ without the white
tip of tail. Audubon describes the male as follows: “Bill, black;
iris, dark hazel; feet, reddish-purple; scales and claws, darker;
general color of upper parts dark brownish-gray, lighter on the head
and medial tail-feathers, which extend half an inch beyond the others,
all which are minutely streaked and sprinkled with brownish-black and
ash-gray. Quills and coverts dull cinnamon color, spotted in bars with
brownish-black; tips of former mottled with light and dark brown;
three lateral tail-feathers barred with dark brown and cinnamon, and
tipped with white. Throat brown, annulated with black; a band of white
across foreneck; beneath the latter black, mixed with bars of light
yellowish-gray and black lines. Under tail-coverts dull yellow.
Length, 7.25; wing, 5.75; bill, edge, .19; second and third quills
nearly equal. Tail to end of upper feathers, 3.50; tarsus, .63; middle
toe, .63; claw, .25; strongly pectinated.”
HAB. High Central Plains to the Pacific coast. San Antonio, Texas
(DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 471, breeds); W. Arizona (COUES, P. A. N. S.
1866, 58); Guanajuata, Mex. (SALVIN, p. 1014).
Nuttall’s Whippoorwill is readily distinguished from the other North
American species by the transverse, not longitudinal, lines on the top
of head, the narrow white tip of tail on both webs, and the inferior
size, as well as by numerous other points of difference.
HABITS. This species was first described by Mr. Audubon from a
specimen obtained near the Rocky Mountains, but with no information in
regard to any peculiarities of habit. From Mr. Nuttall we learn that
these birds were first observed by him on the 10th of June, amidst the
naked granite hills of the sources of the Upper Platte River, called
Sweet-Water. It was about twilight, and from the clefts of the rocks
they were uttering at intervals a low wailing cry, in the manner of
the Whippoorwill, and sounding like the cry of the young of that
species, or _pē-cū_. Afterwards, on the 7th of August, when encamped
on the high ravine of the insulated mountains so conspicuous from
Lewis River, called the Three Buttes, this bird was again observed, as
it flew from under a stone near the summit of the mountain. It flew
about hawking for insects near their elevated camp, for two or three
hours, but was now silent. On the 16th of June, near the banks of the
Sandy River of the Colorado, Mr. Nuttall again heard its nocturnal
cry, which he says sounded like _pēvai_.
Dr. Cooper did not meet with this bird in the Colorado Valley, but he
heard their nocturnal call, which he says sounds like _poor-will_, on
the barren mountains west of the valley, in May. He has never seen or
heard any west of the Coast Range, nor in the Santa Clara Valley in
the spring. They are, however, said to be common in the hot interior
valleys, and remain near San Francisco as late as November, usually
hiding on the ground, and flying at dusk in short, fitful courses in
pursuit of insects. Dr. Cooper adds that they inhabit the almost bare
and barren sage-plains east of the Sierra Nevada, where their rather
sad whistle is heard all night during the spring, sounding like an
echoing answer to the cry of the eastern species.
Dr. Suckley, in the Report on the Zoölogy of Washington Territory,
speaks of this species as moderately abundant in the interior of that
Territory, as well as of Oregon. East of the Cascade Mountains, at
Fort Dalles, they can be heard on almost any fine night in spring or
early summer. Their cries closely resemble those of the _vociferus_,
but are more feeble, and not so incessantly kept up. Dr. Cooper, in
the same report, also speaks of finding this bird common near the
Yakima River, in 1853. Two specimens were killed in the daytime by a
whip. Late in the evening he found them flying near the ground. Dr.
Woodhouse, in passing down the Little Colorado River, in New Mexico,
found this bird quite abundant, as also among the San Francisco
Mountains.
Dr. Newberry met with this species in all the parts of California and
Oregon visited by him. Near the shores of Rhett Lake he met with its
nest containing two young nearly ready to fly. The old bird fluttered
off as if disabled, and by her cries and strange movements induced one
of the party to pursue her. The young resembled those of the eastern
species, were of a gray-brown color, marbled with black, and had
large, dark, and soft eyes. They were quite passive when caught.
This species was observed by Mr. J. H. Clark near Rio Mimbres, in New
Mexico. From the manner in which it flew, it seemed so similar to the
Woodcock that until a specimen was obtained it was supposed to belong
to that family. He saw none east of the Rio Grande, but met with it as
far west as Santa Cruz. It was nowhere abundant, and was generally
solitary. It was found usually among the tall grass of the valleys,
and occasionally on the plains. It was only once observed to alight
upon a bush, but almost invariably, when started up, it flew down
again among the grass at a short distance.
A single specimen of this bird was taken by Dr. Kennerly on the Great
Colorado River. Dr. Heermann met with two specimens among the
mountains bordering the Tejon Valley, and he was informed by Dr.
Milhau that a small species of Whippoorwill was abundant round that
fort in the spring and summer.
Dr. Heermann killed one of these birds on the Medina, in Texas; and
during the summer, passing along Devil’s River, he heard their notes
every evening, and judged that the birds were abundant. Mr. Dresser
obtained a single specimen, shot near the town of San Antonio, where
it was of uncommon occurrence. He received also another specimen from
Fort Stockton. During his stay at Matamoras he did not notice this
bird, but was informed that a kind resembling this species was very
common at a rancho about twenty-five miles distant, on the Monterey
road. Dr. Coues found this species particularly abundant throughout
Arizona. At Fort Whipple it was a summer resident, arriving there late
in April and remaining until October. So numerous was it in some
localities, that around the campfires of the traveller a perfect
chorus of their plaintive two-syllabled notes was continued
incessantly through the night, some of the performers being so near
that the sharp click of their mandibles was distinctly audible.
Mr. J. A. Allen found this species abundant on the lower parts of the
mountains in Colorado, and heard the notes of scores of them near the
mouth of Ogden Cañon on several occasions after nightfall. Though so
numerous, all efforts to procure specimens were futile, as it did not
usually manifest its presence till after it became too dark for it to
be clearly distinguished. He saw it last, October 7, during a severe
snow-storm on the mountains north of Ogden. It had been quite common
during the greater part of September. He also met with this bird at an
elevation of 7,000 feet. He had previously ascertained its presence
throughout Kansas from Leavenworth to Fort Hays.
From these varied observations the range of this species may be given
as from the valley of the Rio Grande and the more northern States of
Mexico, throughout New Mexico, Arizona, and the Great Plains nearly to
the Pacific, in California, Oregon, and Washington Territory.
The egg of this species (13,587) was obtained among the East Humboldt
Mountains, by Mr. Robert Ridgway, July 20, 1868. Its measurement is
1.06 inches in length by .81 of an inch in breadth. It is of a
regularly elliptical form, being equally rounded at either end. Its
color is a clear dead-white, entirely unspotted. The egg was found
deposited on the bare ground beneath a sage-bush, on a foot-slope of
the mountains. The nest was nothing more than a bare spot, apparently
worn by the body of the bird. When found, the male bird was sitting on
the egg, and was shot as it flew from the spot.
Mr. Salvin (Ibis, III, p. 64) mentions taking, April 20, 1860, on the
mountains of Santa Barbara, Central America, a species of
_Antrostomus_, a female, with two eggs. This is spoken of as nearly
allied to, perhaps identical with, _A. vociferus_. Its eggs are,
however, spoken of as white, measuring 1.05 inches by .80 of an inch,
almost exactly the size of the eggs of this species. Mr. Salvin adds:
“I do not quite understand these eggs being white, except by supposing
them to be accidentally so. In other respects, i. e. in form and
texture, they agree with the eggs of other species of _Caprimulgidæ_.
These eggs, two in number, were on the ground at the foot of a large
pine-tree. There was no nest.”
In regard to the parentage of the eggs thus discovered, the coloration
and size of which correspond so closely with those of the Poor-will,
Mr. Salvin writes, in a letter dated March 10, 1872: “In respect to
the _Antrostomus_ which lays white eggs in Guatemala, I have carefully
examined the skin of the female sent to me with the eggs in question,
and represented as their parent. It certainly is not _A. nuttalli_,
but appears to belong to the species described by Wagler as _A.
macromystax_. This species is very closely allied to _A. vociferus_,
but appears to be sufficiently distinct, inasmuch as the rictal
bristles are very long, the throat is almost without white feathers,
and the white on the tail is more limited in extent than in _A.
vociferus_. The true _A. vociferus_ is frequently found in winter in
Guatemala, but is probably only a migrant. The other species would
certainly appear to be a resident in South Mexico and Guatemala. With
respect to _A. nuttalli_, I may add that I have recently acquired a
skin from Guanajuata, in Mexico. This is the first instance of the
occurrence of the species in Mexico at all, that I am aware of.”
Mr. Ridgway met with the Poor-will from the eastern slope of the
Sierra Nevada to the Wahsatch and Uintah Mountains. He describes its
notes as much like those of the eastern _A. vociferus_, except that
the first syllable is left off, the call sounding like simply
_poor-will_, the accent on the last syllable. It frequents chiefly the
dry _mesa_ and foot-hills of the mountains, and lives almost entirely
on the ground, where its two white unspotted eggs are deposited
beneath some small scraggy sage-bush, without any sign of a nest
whatever. Both sexes incubate.
[Line drawing: Sternum of _Chordeiles virginianus_.]
[Line drawing: Sternum of _Nyctibius jamaicensis_.]
[Line drawing: Sternum of _Caprimulgus stictomus_.]
FAMILY CYPSELIDÆ.—THE SWIFTS.
CHAR. Bill very small, without notch, triangular, much broader than
high; the culmen not one sixth the gape. Anterior toes cleft to the
base, each with three joints, (in the typical species,) and covered
with skin or feathers; the middle claw without any serrations; the
lateral toes nearly equal to the middle. Bill without bristles, but
with minute feathers extending along the under margin of the nostrils.
Tail-feathers ten. Nostrils elongated, superior, and very close
together. Plumage compact. Primaries ten, elongated, falcate.
The _Cypselidæ_, or Swifts, are Swallow-like birds, generally of
rather dull plumage and medium size. They were formerly associated
with the true Swallows on account of their small, deeply cleft bill,
wide gape, short feet, and long wings, but are very different in all
the essentials of structure, belonging, indeed, to a different order
or suborder. The bill is much smaller and shorter; the edges greatly
inflected; the nostrils superior, instead of lateral, and without
bristles. The wing is more falcate, with ten primaries instead of
nine. The tail has ten feathers instead of twelve. The feet are
weaker, without distinct scutellæ; the hind toe is more or less
versatile, the anterior toes frequently lack the normal number of
joints, and there are other features which clearly justify the wide
separation here given, especially the difference in the vocal organs.
Strange as the statement may be, their nearest relatives are the
_Trochilidæ_, or Humming-Birds, notwithstanding the bills of the two
are as opposite in shape as can readily be conceived. The sternum of
the _Cypselidæ_ is also very different from that of the _Hirundinidæ_,
as will be shown by the accompanying figure. There are no
emarginations or openings in the posterior edge, which is regularly
curved. The keel rises high, for the attachment of the powerful
pectoral muscles. The manubrium is almost entirely wanting.
[Line drawing: _Chætura pelagica._]
[Line drawing: _Progne subis._]
In this family, as in the _Caprimulgidæ_, we find deviations in
certain forms from the normal number of phalanges to the toes, which
serve to divide it into two sections. In one, the _Chæturinæ_, these
are 2, 3, 4, and 5, as usual; but in the _Cypselinæ_ they are 2, 3, 3,
and 3, as shown in the accompanying cut borrowed from Dr. Sclater’s
masterly memoir on the _Cypselidæ_, (Pr. Zoöl. Soc. London, 1865,
593), which also serves as the basis of the arrangement here presented.
[Line drawing: Left foot of _Chætura zonaris_.]
[Line drawing: Left foot of _Panyptila melanoleuca_.]
Cypselinæ. Tarsi feathered; phalanges of the middle and
outer toes three each (instead of four and five). Hind toe
directed either forward or to one side, not backward.
Tarsi feathered; toes bare; hind toe directed forward _Cypselus_.
Both tarsi and toes feathered; hind toe lateral _Panyptila_.
Chæturinæ. Tarsi bare; phalanges of toes normal (four in
middle toe, five in outer). Hind toe directed backwards,
though sometimes versatile.
Tarsi longer than middle toe.
Tail-feathers spinous.
Shafts of tail-feathers projecting beyond the
plumage _Chætura_.
Shafts not projecting, (_Nephæcetes_) _Cypseloides_.
Tail-feathers not spinous _Collocallia_.
Tarsi shorter than middle toe _Dendrochelidon_.
The Swifts are cosmopolite, occurring throughout the globe. All the
genera enumerated above are well represented in the New World, except
the last two, which are exclusively East Indian and Polynesian.
Species of _Collocallia_ make the “edible bird’s-nests” which are so
much sought after in China and Japan. These are constructed entirely
out of the hardened saliva of the bird, although formerly supposed to
be made of some kind of sea-weed. All the _Cypselidæ_ have the
salivary glands highly developed, and use the secretion to cement
together the twigs or other substances of which the nest is
constructed, as well as to attach this to its support. The eggs are
always white.
There are many interesting peculiarities connected with the
modification of the _Cypselidæ_, some of which may be briefly adverted
to. Those of our common Chimney Swallow will be referred to in the
proper place. _Panyptila sancti-hieronymæ_ of Guatemala attaches a
tube some feet in length to the under side of an overhanging rock,
constructed of the pappus or seed-down of plants, caught flying in the
air. Entrance to this is from below, and the eggs are laid on a kind
of shelf near the top. _Chætura poliura_ of Brazil again makes a very
similar tube-nest (more contracted below) out of the seeds of _Trixis
divaricata_, suspends it to a horizontal branch, and covers the
outside with feathers of various colors. As there is no shelf to
receive the eggs, it is believed that these are cemented against the
sides of the tube, and brooded on by the bird while in an upright
position. _Dendrochelidon klecho_, of Java, etc., builds a narrow flat
platform on a horizontal branch, of feathers, moss, etc., cemented
together, and lays in it a single egg. The nest is so small that the
bird sits on the branch and covers the egg with the end of her belly.
Owing to the almost incredible rapidity in flight of the Swifts, and
the great height in the air at which they usually keep themselves, the
North American species are, of all our land birds, the most difficult
to procure, only flying sufficiently near the surface of the ground to
be reached by a gun in damp weather, and then requiring great skill to
shoot them. Their nests, too, are generally situated in inaccessible
places, usually high perpendicular or overhanging mountain-cliffs.
Although our four species are sufficiently abundant, and are
frequently seen in flocks of thousands, it is only the common Chimney
Swift that is to be met with at all regularly in museums.
SUBFAMILY CYPSELINÆ.
The essential character of this subfamily, as stated already, is to be
found in the feathered tarsus; the reduction of the normal number of
phalanges in the middle toe from 4 to 3, and of the outer toe from 5
to 3, as well as in the anterior or lateral position of the hind toe,
not posterior. Of the two genera assigned to it by Dr. Sclater, one,
_Cypselus_, is enlarged by him so as to include the small West Indian
Palm Swifts, _Tachornis_ of Gosse.
GENUS PANYPTILA, CABANIS.
_Panyptila_, CABANIS, Wiegm. Archiv, 1847, I, 345.—BURMEISTER,
Thiere Bras. Vögel, I, 1856, 368. (Type, _Hirundo cayanensis_, GM.)
_Pseudoprocne_, STREUBEL, Isis, 1848, 357. (Same type.)
[Line drawing: _Panyptila melanoleuca._
6018 ♂]
GEN. CHAR. Tail half as long as the wings, moderately forked; the
feathers rather lanceolate, rounded at tip, the shafts stiffened, but
not projecting. First primary shorter than the second. Tarsi, toes,
and claws very thick and stout; the former shorter than the middle toe
and claw, which is rather longer than the lateral one; middle claw
longer than its digit. Hind toe very short; half versatile, or
inserted on the side of the tarsus. Tarsi and toes feathered to the
claws, except on the under surfaces.
Three species of this genus are described by authors, all of them
black, with white throat, and a patch of the same on each side of
rump, and otherwise varied with this color. The type _P. cayanensis_
is much the smallest (4.70), and has the tail more deeply forked than
_P. melanoleuca_.
Synopsis of Species.
P. cayanensis. Glossy intense black; a supraloral spot of
white; white of throat transversely defined posteriorly.
Tail deeply forked, the lateral feathers excessively
attenuated and acute.
Wing, 4.80; middle tail-feather, 1.20, external, 2.30.
_Hab._ Cayenne and Brazil var. _cayanensis_.[108]
Wing, 7.30; middle tail-feather, 1.90, external, 3.60.
_Hab._ Guatemala var. _sancti-hieronymi_.[109]
P. melanoleuca. Lustreless dull black; no supraloral white
spot, but instead a hoary wash; white of throat extending
back along middle of abdomen to the vent. Tail moderately
forked, the lateral feathers obtuse. Wing, 5.75; middle
tail-feather, 2.30, outer, 2.85. _Hab._ Middle Province of
United States, south to Guatemala.
[108] _Panyptila cayanensis_ (GMEL.), CAB. _Hirundo cay._
GMELIN, Syst. Nat. I, 1024. _Panyptila cay._ CABAN. Wiegm.
Archiv, XIII, 345 (1847).—SCL. P. Z. S. 1866, 606.
[109] _Panyptila sancti-hieronymi_, SALVIN (P. Z. S. 1863,
190, pl. xxii; SCL. P. Z. S. 1866, 607). May be the northern
form of _cayanensis_, which, however, we have not seen.
Panyptila melanoleuca, BAIRD.
WHITE-THROATED SWIFT.
_Cypselus melanoleucus_, BAIRD, Pr. A. N. Sc. Phil. VII, June, 1854,
118 (San Francisco Mountains, N. M.).—CASSIN, Illust. I, 1855,
248. _Panyptila melanoleuca_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 141,
pl. xviii, f. 1.—SCLATER & SALVIN, Ibis, 1859, 125
(Guatemala).—SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1865, 607.—KENNERLY, P. R. R.
X, b, 36, pl. xviii, f. 1.—HEERMANN, IB. X, c, 10.—COOPER,
Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 347.
SP. CHAR. Wings very long; tail forked; tarsi and feet covered with
feathers. Black all over, except the chin, throat, middle of the belly
as far as the vent, a patch on each side of the rump, the edge of the
outer primary, and blotches on the inner webs of the median
tail-feathers, near the base, which are white, as is also a band
across the ends of the secondaries. Length, 5.50; wing, 5.50; tail,
2.70.
HAB. Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and southern Rocky Mountains, to
Guatemala. Localities: Cajon Pass (COOPER, Pr. Cal. Ac. 1861, 122);
Arizona (COUES, P. A. N. S. 1866, 57); San Diego (COOPER).
Although there is no difference in size between Rocky Mountain and
Guatemalan specimens, the only two of the latter in the collection are
darker colored, showing scarcely any indication of the frontal and
supraloral whitish so conspicuous in most northern skins. In the
Guatemalan female (30,837, Dueñas, February 13) the dusky of the
lateral, and white of the medial, portions of the breast blend
gradually together, there not being that sharp line of junction seen
in all the others, including the male from Guatemala (30,836, Dueñas,
Nov.).
[Illustration: _Panyptila melanoleuca._]
HABITS. This new species was first discovered by Dr. Kennerly on Bill
Williams Fork, New Mexico, February 16, 1854. He speaks of it as a
very curious and interesting bird, found by him only among the cañons
of that stream, and not observed elsewhere during their journey. Large
flocks could be seen at any time in the vicinity of those cañons,
flying and circling around very high, and far beyond the reach of
shot. Towards the close of the day, when the sun had sunk behind the
hills, they occasionally descended lower. He only met with them where
the walls of the cañons were very high, and consisted of almost
perpendicular masses of rock. At times they were seen to sweep low
down, and then to ascend nearly perpendicularly very near the stones,
as if examining them in order to select a place for their nests. The
construction of these had obviously not then commenced. Dr. Kennerly
saw none engaged in the work, nor did he observe any old nests, unless
they build after the manner of the common Cliff Swallow, which were
also abundant in that region. Mr. Möllhausen was of the opinion that
these birds build in the holes and crevices of the cliffs. In their
flight and habits they appeared to closely resemble the common
_Chætura pelagica_.
Dr. Heermann met with this species several times, first in San
Fernando Pass, near Los Angelos, and again near Palm Spring, between
the Colorado desert and Vallicita, at another time near Tucson, and
once also in Texas. He always found them flying at a great height,
either far beyond or on the extreme limit of gunshot range. From the
extent of their wings they seemed formed to live in the air, where
they pass most of their time gliding about in extensive circles, with
apparently very little motion of the wings. During pleasant weather
they found their insect prey in the upper air, but, when cloudy or
rainy, they flew nearer the ground in their pursuit. When on the
ground, they were observed to rise with difficulty, owing to the
shortness of their legs and the length of their wings. When they rest,
they always alight on some elevated point whence they can throw
themselves into the air, and take to wing. Numbers were observed
flying about the rocks near Tucson, but none were heard to utter a
note. They were sociable among themselves, gathering in large flocks,
but never mingled with the Swallows. He states that they construct
their nests in the crevices of rocks, and that their eggs are pure
white, and of an elongated form.
Dr. Coues found this species rather sparingly distributed throughout
Arizona, always in the neighborhood of cliffs and precipices, which it
exclusively inhabits. From Inscription Rock, about one day’s march
from Whipple’s Pass, to the San Francisco Mountains of Arizona, he
found these birds in great numbers, except along the valley of the
Colorado Chiquito, where there were no suitable cliffs for their
habitation. He generally found them congregated in considerable,
sometimes in immense, numbers in the vicinity of huge cliffs and piles
of rocks. Their note, he adds, is an often and quickly repeated
twitter, loud and shrill, and quite different from that of the _C.
pelagica_. He states that they build their nest upon the vertical
faces of precipitous rocks.
Dr. Woodhouse met with a Swift in the same region referred to by Dr.
Coues, which he called _Acanthylis saxatilis_, which may possibly be
the same species, but of which no specimen was procured. They were
breeding in the crevices of the rocks. The description, however, does
not at all correspond.
This species has lately been met with by Mr. Salvin, in Guatemala,
where it is by no means common, and so very local that its presence
might readily have been overlooked. He found it near Dueñas, in a
gorge with precipitous rocks on the right hand, along the course of
the river Guacalate. His attention was drawn to a noise coming from
the rocks, which he at first took to be bats in some of the cracks.
After watching for some time, he saw two Swifts dart into a crack in
the rock twenty feet from the ground, and the noise became louder than
before. Resorting to several expedients, in vain, to make them fly
out, he climbed up part way, and there found one of them killed by a
random shot of his gun. Another discharge of his gun brought out five
or six more, which were immediately pursued by the _Cotyle
serripennis_. He obtained three specimens in all. The spot was
evidently their common roosting-place, and by the noise they made he
judged they were there in large numbers. He found them about the
middle of February.
Dr. Cooper met with this species near Fort Mohave, but saw none before
May. On the 7th of June, near the head of Mohave River, he found a few
about some lofty granite cliffs, and succeeded in obtaining one. Their
flight was exceedingly swift and changeable, and they were very
difficult to shoot. He also found them about some high rocky bluffs
close to the sea-shore, twelve miles north of San Diego. They were
seen the last of March, but may have been there for a month
previously.
Mr. Allen encountered this little-known Swift near Colorado City,
where it was quite numerous about the high cliffs in the “Garden of
the Gods,” and of which, with great difficulty, he procured four
specimens. It was nesting in inaccessible crevices and weather-beaten
holes in the rocks, about midway up the high vertical cliffs, some of
which were not less than three hundred feet high. It seemed to be very
wary, and flew with great velocity, rarely descending within reach of
the guns.
The White-throated Swift was met with in great abundance by Mr.
Ridgway at the East Humboldt Mountains, and was seen by him more
sparingly in the Toyabe and Wahsatch. In the former mountains it
inhabited the high limestone cliffs which walled the cañons,
congregating in thousands, and nesting in the chinks or crevices of
the rocks, in company with the Violet-green Swallow (_Tachycincta
thalassina_). It was a very noisy species, having a vigorous chatter,
reminding one somewhat of the notes of young Baltimore Orioles when
being fed by their parents. It was also very pugnacious, a couple now
and then being seen to fasten upon one another high up in the air,
and, clinging together, falling, whirling round and round in their
descent, nearly to the ground, when they would let go each other, and
separate. A couple would often rush by with almost inconceivable
velocity, one in chase of the other. Their flight was usually very
high, or, if they occasionally descended, it was so swiftly that Mr.
Ridgway only succeeded in shooting three specimens, while he found it
utterly impossible to reach their nests, which were in the horizontal
fissures in the face of the overhanging cliff.
SUBFAMILY CHÆTURINÆ.
This subfamily is characterized by having the normal number of
phalanges to the middle and outer toes (4 and 5, instead of 3 and 3),
the backward position of the hind toe, and the naked tarsi, which do
not even appear to be scutellate, but covered with a soft skin. Of the
two North American genera, _Chætura_ has spinous projections at the
end of the tail-feathers, while in _Nephœcetes_ the shafts of the
tail-feathers, though stiffened, do not project beyond the plume.
This subfamily appears to be composed of two definable sections, with
subdivisions as follows:—
A. Tail forked; spinous points of the feathers not
extending far beyond the webs, or entirely wanting.
Feathering of the sides of the forehead extending forward
outside the nostrils nearly to their anterior end.
_a._ No trace of spinous points to tail-feathers.
Feathering of frontal points almost completely enclosing
the nostrils between them. No light collar round the
neck; sides of the forehead with a hoary suffusion _Nephœcetes_.
_b._ Spinous points of tail-feathers distinct. A light
collar round the neck.
1. Nostril as in _Nephœcetes_. Sides of forehead with
a hoary suffusion. Collar chestnut. Wing less than
5.50. (_C. rutila._)
2. Feathered frontal points narrower, not reaching
anterior end of nostril. Sides of forehead without
hoary suffusion. Collar white. Wing more than 8.00 _Hemiprocne_.
B. Tail rounded; spinous points of the feathers much
elongated and projecting. Feathering of sides of forehead
scarcely reaching beyond posterior end of nostril. Wing
less than 5.50 _Chætura_.
GENUS NEPHŒCETES, BAIRD.
_Nephœcetes_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 142. (Type, _Hirundo nigra_,
GMEL.)
[Line drawing: _Nephœcetes niger._
11871 ♀]
GEN. CHAR. Tail rather less than half the wings; quite deeply forked
(less so in the female); the feathers obtusely acuminate; the shafts
scarcely stiffened. First quill longest. Tarsi and toes completely
bare, and covered with naked skin, without distinct indications of
scutellæ. Tarsus rather longer than middle toe; the three anterior
toes about equal, with moderately stout claws. Claw of middle toe much
shorter than its digit. Hind toe not versatile, but truly posterior
and opposite, with its claw rather longer than the middle toe without
it. Toes all slender; claws moderate. Nostrils widely ovate, the
feathers margining its entire lower edge.
[Illustration: _Nephœcetes niger._]
The comparative characters of this genus will be found in the
diagnostic tables at the head of the family. According to Sclater,
_Cypseloides_ of Streubel (ISIS, 1848, 366) with _C. fumigatus_ as
type, may have to be taken for this genus, as it was named by Streubel
as an alternative to _Hemiprocne_, which belongs to _Chætura_. Until
this question of synonymy can be decided positively, we retain
_Nephœcetes_.
The single North American species, _N. niger_, has a singular
distribution, being abundant near Puget Sound in summer, and again
found in Jamaica and Cuba, without having been met with in any
intermediate locality, except in the Province of Huatasco, Mex. The
West India specimens are rather smaller, but otherwise not
distinguishable.
Nephœcetes niger, BAIRD.
BLACK SWIFT.
_? Hirundo niger_, GMEL. S. N. I, 1788, 1025. _Cypselus niger_,
GOSSE, B. Jam. 1847, 63.—IB. Illust. B. Jam. pl. x.—GUNDL. &
LAWR. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VI, 1858, 268.—SCL. P. Z. S. 1865, 615.
_Nephœcetes niger_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 142.—ELLIOT,
Illust. Birds N. Am. I, xx.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 349.
_Cypselus borealis_, KENNERLY, P. A. N. S. Philad. IX, Nov.
1857, 202.—SCL. P. Z. S. 1865, 615. _Hirundo apus
dominicensis_, BRISSON, II, 1760, 514, pl. xlvi, f. 3.
SP. CHAR. Wing the length of the body. General color rather lustrous
dark sooty-brown, with a greenish gloss, becoming a very little
lighter on the breast anteriorly below, but rather more so on the neck
and head above. The feathers on top of the head edged with light gray,
which forms a continuous wash on each side of the forehead above, and
anterior to the usual black crescent in front of the eye. Occasionally
some feathers of the under parts behind are narrowly edged with gray.
Bill and feet black. Length, 6.75; wing, 6.75; tail, 3.00, the depth
of its fork about .45 in the male, and scarcely .15 in the female.
HAB. Washington Territory, Oregon, Nevada, and Orizaba (var.
_borealis_); Cuba and Jamaica (var. _niger_), breeds. Vera Cruz;
breeds (SUMICHRAST, Mem. Bost. Soc. I, 562).
The tail is considerably more forked in the male than in the female,
in which it is sometimes nearly even, and in the males its depth
varies considerably.
Jamaican specimens (var. _niger_) are rather smaller, considerably
blacker, and seem to have narrower tail-feathers, even when the other
dimensions are about equal.
Whether the Puget Sound bird visits the West Indies is not known; but
the difference in size and colors between them and the West Indian
birds would seem to indicate that they select a more directly southern
region. The fact that the Orizaba specimen is most like the Northwest
Coast birds favors this latter supposition.
HABITS. This Swift is of irregular and local occurrence in the West
Indies and in Western North America. Specimens were obtained at
Simiahmoo Bay, Washington Territory, by Dr. Kennerly, in July, 1857.
Dr. Cooper saw a black Swift, which he thinks may have been this
species, in Pah-Ute Cañon, west of Fort Mohave, May 29, 1861, and
again at Santa Barbara, May, 1863.
Dr. Gundlach, in his ornithological explorations in Cuba, in 1858, met
with this species among the mountains between Cienfuegos and Trinidad,
on the southern coast of that island, and also in the eastern parts of
the Sierra Maestra. He saw these birds for the first time in the month
of May, near Bayamo, where they commonly arrived every morning about
one hour after sunrise, and flew in a circular direction over the
river at a considerable height, making their evolutions always in the
same place, apparently employed in catching the insects attracted by
the proximity of the river. In the month of June they came every day
towards noon, whenever it threatened to rain, and sometimes returned
again after sunset. When tired of their exercise they always flew
together towards the mountains, where he had no doubt their
breeding-places existed. He states that when one of these birds flies
in chase of another, it emits a soft continued note, not unlike a
song. Having taken many young birds in the month of June, he supposes
that these Swifts breed in April and May.
It is stated by Sumichrast to have been occasionally met with in the
table-lands of Mexico, and that it is resident and breeds within the
State of Vera Cruz, Mexico.
A single specimen of this bird was known to Gosse to have been taken
near Spanishtown in Jamaica, in 1843, in company with many others. Mr.
March, in his paper on the birds of this island, gives a similar
account of the habits of this species to that of Dr. Gundlach. He
states that it was rarely seen except at early dawn, or in dull and
cloudy weather, or after rain in an afternoon. He has sometimes
procured specimens from Healthshire and the St. Catharine Hills. The
only place known to him as their actual resort is a cave in the lower
St. Catharine Hills, near the ferry, where they harbor in the narrow
deep galleries and fissures of the limestone rocks.
Mr. J. K. Lord cites this species as among the earliest of the spring
visitors seen by him in British Columbia. On a foggy morning early in
June, the insects being low, these birds were hovering close to the
ground, and he obtained four specimens. He saw no more until the fall
of the year, when they again made their appearance in large numbers,
among the many other birds of that season. He again saw this Swift at
Fort Colville.
Captain Prevost, R. N., obtained a single specimen of this bird on
Vancouver Island, which Mr. Sclater compared with Gosse’s _Cypselus
niger_, from Jamaica. He, however, is not satisfied as to their
identity, and is inclined to regard the two birds as distinct.
According to Captain Feilner, this species breeds in the middle of
June, on high rocks on the Klamath River, about eight miles above
Judah’s Cave.
The Black Swift was seen by Mr. Ridgway, during his western tour, only
once, when, about the middle of June, an assembly of several hundreds
was observed early one morning hovering over the Carson River, below
Fort Churchill, in Nevada. In the immediate vicinity was an immense
rocky cliff, where he supposed they nested. In their flight they much
resembled Chimney-Swallows (_Chætura_), only they appeared much
larger. They were perfectly silent. On the Truckee River, near Pyramid
Lake, in May of the same year, he found the remains of one which had
been killed by a hawk, but the species was not seen there alive.
GENUS CHÆTURA, STEPHENS.
_Chætura_, STEPHENS, Shaw’s Gen. Zoöl. Birds, XIII, II, 1825, 76.
(Type, _C. pelagica_.)
_Acanthylis_, BOIE, Isis, 1826, 971. (_Cypselus spinicauda._)
[Line drawing: _Chætura pelagica._
1010 ♀]
GEN. CHAR. Tail very short, scarcely more than two fifths the wings;
slightly rounded; the shafts stiffened and extending some distance
beyond the feathers in a rigid spine. First primary longest. Legs
covered by a naked skin, without scutellæ or feathers. Tarsus longer
than middle toe. Lateral toes equal, nearly as long as the middle.
Hind toe scarcely versatile, or quite posterior; including claw, less
than the middle anterior without it. Toes slender; claws moderate.
Feathers of the base of the bill not extending beyond the beginning of
the nostrils.
By the arrangement of the genera on page 1018, the _C. rutila_ and
large white-collared species are excluded from the present genus as
restricted. _Chætura_, as here defined, is a genus of very extensive
distribution, species occurring not only in North and South America,
but also in Africa and Asia. Among the several American members, three
styles are distinguishable, these probably representing only as many
species; the several more closely allied forms being, in all
probability, but geographical modifications of these three types. They
may be arranged as follows:—
_Plumage with no marked contrast of shades._
C. pelagica. Nearly uniformly dusky grayish-brown, the
throat, however, very much lighter, and the rump just
appreciably so.
Above glossy dusky-brown, hardly appreciably paler on
the rump; abdomen scarcely paler than the back. Wing,
5.20. _Hab._ Eastern Province North America var. _pelagica_.
Above glossy blackish-dusky, very decidedly paler on the
rump; abdomen very much paler than the back. Wing, 4.50.
_Hab._ Pacific Province of North America, south to
Guatemala (from whence specimens are much darker, almost
black above, and slightly smaller) var. _vauxi_.
Above glossy black, fading into sooty dusky on the rump;
abdomen like the rump. Wing, 4.80. _Hab._ Northern South
America (Cayenne, Tobago) var. _poliura_.[110]
_Plumage with marked contrast of shades._
C. cinereiventris.[111] Upper parts, except the rump,
glossy, intense blue-black; rump and lower parts
bluish-cinereous, conspicuously different.
C. spinicauda.[112] Upper parts glossy black, with a white
band across the rump. Below sooty-whitish, with indistinct
black marks on the breast, wing, 3.90. _Hab._ Cayenne and
Brazil.
[110] _Chætura poliura_, (TEMM.) SCL. Cat. Am. B. 1862, 101;
P. Z. S. 1866, 611. (_Cypselus polivurus_, TEMM. Tab. Méth.
p. 78.)
[111] _Chætura cinereiventris_, SCL. Cat. Am. B. 1862, p.
283; P. Z. S. 1863, p. 101, pl. xiv, f. 1; P. Z. 1866, 612.
_C. sclateri_, PELZ. Orn. Braz. I, 1868, pp. 16, 56, is also
referrible to it as perhaps a race.
[112] _Chætura spinicauda_, SCL. Cypselus spinicaudus, TEM.
Tabl. Méth. p. 78 (ex Buff. Pl. Enl. 726, f. 1). _Acanthylis
s._ BOIE, Isis, 1826, p. 971; BONAP. Consp. p. 64. _Chætura
s._ SCL. Catal. Am. Birds, 1862, 283. _Hirundo pelasgia_,
var., LATH. Ind. Orn. II, 581. _Hab._ Cayenne and Brazil.
Chætura pelagica, BAIRD.
CHIMNEY SWALLOW.
_Hirundo pelagica_, LINN. Syst. Nat. ed. 10, 1758, 192. _Hirundo
pelasgia_, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 345.—WILS. Am. Orn. V,
1812, 48, pl. xxxix, fig. 1. _Cypselus pelasgia_, AUD. Orn.
Biog. II, 1834, 329; V, 419, pl. clviii. _Chætura pelasgia_,
STEPHENS, in Shaw’s Gen. Zoöl. Birds, XIII, II, 1825, 76.—IB.
Birds America, I, 1840, 164, pl. xliv.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am.
1858, 144.—SAMUELS, 116.—ALLEN, Birds Fla. 301. _Acanthylis
pelasgia_, “TEMM.”—BON. Consp. 1850, 64.—CASSIN, Ill. I,
1855, 241. _Hemiprocne pelasgia_, STREUBEL, Isis, 1848, 363.
_Aculeated Swallow_, PENN. Arc. Zoöl. II, 1785, 432. _Cypselus
pelasgius_, MAX. Cab. Journ. 1858.
[Illustration: _Chætura pelagica._]
SP. CHAR. Tail slightly rounded. Sooty-brown all over, except on the
throat, which becomes considerably lighter from the breast to the
bill. Above with a greenish tinge; the rump a little paler. Length,
5.25; wing, 5.10; tail, 2.15.
HAB. Eastern United States to slopes of Rocky Mountains?
The etymology of the specific name of _pelasgia_, used by Linnæus, of
this bird, in the twelfth edition of Systema Naturæ, has always been a
question. We find that the word in the tenth edition is _pelagica_,
referring probably to the supposed passage over the Caribbean Sea in
its annual migrations.
_Chætura vauxi_, the western representative of this bird, is extremely
similar, but distinguishable by considerably smaller size, much
lighter, almost white, throat, paler rump, and under parts decidedly
lighter than the back. _C. poliura_, which much resembles it, is
blacker above, and much darker below. (See synopsis on page 1027.)
HABITS. The common Chimney Swallow of North America has an extended
range throughout the eastern portions of the continent, from the
Atlantic to the 50th parallel of northern latitude. It was not met
with by Dr. Richardson in the fur regions, but was found by Say at
Pembina, on the Red River, in what is now the northern part of
Minnesota. Its western range is not well determined, but is presumed
to be terminated by the great plains. It has been found as far west as
Bijoux Hill, in Nebraska.
In its habits, especially during the breeding-season, this Swift
presents many remarkable differences from the European species. While
the latter are shy and retiring, shunning the places frequented by
man, and breeding chiefly in caves or ruined and deserted habitations,
their representatives in eastern North America, like all the Swallow
family here, have, immediately upon the erection of the dwellings of
civilized life, manifested their appreciation of the protection they
afford, by an entire change in their habits in regard to the location
of their nests. When the country was first settled, these birds were
known to breed only in the hollow trunks of forest trees. The chimneys
of the dwellings of civilized communities presented sufficient
inducements, in their greater convenience, to tempt this bird to
forsake their primitive breeding-places. The change in this respect
has been nearly complete. And now, in the older portions of the
country, they are not known to resort to hollow trees for any other
purpose than as an occasional roosting-place.
In wild portions of the country, where natural facilities are still
afforded to these Swifts, they are occasionally found breeding within
the hollows of decaying trees. Mr. George A. Boardman, of St. Stephen,
N. B., writes that in his neighborhood this bird continues to build in
the hollows of trees. He adds, that in the summer of 1863 he found
them building within a hollow birch. He also met with one of their
nests built against a board in an old winter logging-camp, at a
distance from any chimney. Mr. Ridgway has also met with the nest of
this bird inside the trunk of a large sycamore-tree, and also mentions
finding another attached to the planks of an outbuilding, in the
Wabash valley of Southeastern Illinois.
Mr. J. A. Allen found this species quite numerous in Kansas, where it
was breeding chiefly in the hollow trees of the forests, which it
always seems naturally to prefer to chimneys, to which it is compelled
to resort, in most of the longer settled districts, or else wholly to
abandon the country.
The Chimney Swallow is known to breed throughout the Central and
Northern States, from Virginia to Canada. Dr. Woodhouse states that he
found this species very abundant throughout the Indian Territory, as
also in Texas, and New Mexico, even to California. It was not,
however, taken at San Antonio by Mr. Dresser, nor in any portion of
Texas, and was not procured by any of the naturalists in the other
Western expeditions.
The Chimney Swallow is crepuscular, rather than nocturnal, in its
habits, preferring to hunt for its insect prey in dull and cloudy
weather, or in the early morning and the latter part of the afternoon.
In this it is probably influenced by the abundance or scarcity of
insects, as it is not unfrequently to be seen hawking for insects in
the bright glare of noon. When they have young, they often continue to
feed them until quite late at night. They are not, however, to be
regarded as nocturnal, as they are only known to do this during a
brief period.
The nest of this species is a very peculiar and remarkable structure.
It is composed of small twigs of nearly uniform size, wrought and
interwoven into a neat semicircular basket. In selecting the twigs
with which they are to construct their nests, the Swifts break from
the tree the ends of living branches, which they gather with great
skill and adroitness while on the wing. Sweeping upon the coveted twig
somewhat as a Hawk rushes on its prey, it divides it at the desired
place, and bears it off to its nest. This is a well-attested fact,
familiar to all who have ever watched these birds in the early morning
as they are at work constructing their nests.
Each one of these twigs is strongly fastened to its fellows by an
adhesive saliva secreted by the bird, and by the same cement the whole
structure is made to adhere to the side of the chimney in which it is
built. This saliva, as it dries, hardens into a tough glue-like
substance, as firm even as the twigs it unites. In separating nests
from the sides of chimneys, I have known portions of the brick to
which it was fastened part sooner than the cement. When moistened,
however, by long-continued rains, the weight of their contents will
sometimes cause these nests to part, and the whole is precipitated to
the bottom. The young birds cling very tenaciously to the sides of the
chimneys with their bills and claws. They not only are often able, in
these accidents, to save themselves from falling, but even at a very
early age can cling to the sides of the chimney and work their way to
the top. They always leave their nest and climb to the upper part of
the chimney several days before they can fly, and are there fed by
their parents.
Occasionally the young birds fall to the bottom of the chimney, out of
the reach or notice of their parents. I have never been able to induce
them to take any food, although they keep uttering pitiful cries of
hunger. In such cases the young birds placed on the roof near their
native chimney soon manage to climb to its base, and there receive the
aid of the old birds.
Their eggs are four in number, somewhat elliptical in form, though
somewhat less obtuse at one end than the other. They are of a pure
white color, and are never spotted. They vary but little in size or
shape, and measure from .75 to .81 of an inch in length, and from .50
to .55 in breadth.
In New England the Chimney Swallow raises but one brood in a season.
In Pennsylvania it is said to have two.
Chætura (pelagica var. ?) vauxi, (TOWNS.) DEKAY.
OREGON CHIMNEY SWIFT.
_Cypselus vauxi_, TOWNSEND, J. A. N. Sc. VIII, 1839, 148 (Columbia
River).—IB. Narrative, 1839. _Chætura vauxi_, DEKAY, N. Y.
Zoöl. II, 1844, 36.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 145, pl.
xviii.—SCLATER, Cat. 282.—IB. P. Z. S. 1863, 100
(Guatemala).—KENNERLY, P. R. R. x, b, pl. xviii, f. 2.—COOPER
& SUCKLEY, 165.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 351. _Acanthylis
vauxi_, BONAP. Comptes Rendus, XXVIII, 1854; notes Delattre,
90.—CASSIN, Ill. I, 1855, 250.—NEWBERRY, Zoöl. Cal. and Or.
Route, 78; P. R. R. Surv. VI, 1857.
SP. CHAR. Light sooty-brown; rump and under parts paler; lightest on
the chin and throat. Length, 4.50; wing, 4.75; tail, 1.90.
HAB. Pacific coast, from Puget’s Sound to California. West coast to
Guatemala (SCL. P. Z. S. 1863, 100); Yucatan (LAWR. Ann. N. Y. Lyc.
IX, 204).
This species bears a very close resemblance to the common Chimney
Swallow of the Eastern States, being only readily distinguishable by
its much smaller size, 4.50 inches instead of 5.25. The wing, too, is
nearly an inch shorter. The tarsus and the middle toe, however, seem
absolutely longer. The rump is a little paler than in _C. pelagica_,
as well as the under parts, where the chin and throat are lighter,
almost dirty white, and gradually becoming a little darker behind,
although even the hinder part of the belly is much lighter than the
back, even in strong contrast, instead of being of the same color with
it. Guatemalan specimens are much darker.
HABITS. This western Swift was first discovered by Mr. Townsend on the
Columbia River, where he found it having the primitive habits of the
eastern species, and breeding in hollow trees, forming a nest in a
similar manner, and laying four pure-white eggs. It differs from the
common bird in its smaller size and lighter color. It is said to occur
from Puget Sound to California.
Dr. Cooper met with these birds May 4, 1864, in the Coast Range,
twelve miles south of Santa Clara. He was of the opinion that they had
nests in hollow trees at the summit of the mountains, but he was not
able to find any. He did not observe any at Fort Vancouver in the
summer of 1853, nor did he learn whether these birds are found in the
central valleys of California. In 1866 they were observed to make
their first appearance at Santa Cruz on the 4th of May, though as they
rarely descended to the town they might have been on the hills earlier
than this. On the 5th of October he observed five of them, in company
with a large flock of _Hirundo bicolor_, spending the morning in
hunting insects near the town. They were apparently delayed in their
migration southward by a thick fog and cold south-wind. They may have
been a late brood from the north.
Dr. Kennerly obtained a single specimen of this species at the Straits
of Fuca, showing that these birds sometimes extend their migrations up
to the 49th parallel. Neither Dr. Suckley nor Dr. Cooper was able to
find this Swift anywhere in Washington Territory.
Dr. Newberry observed this species quite common in California, but
could obtain no specimens, owing to the height at which they flew. He
saw nothing of it in Oregon.
Two specimens of this species obtained in Mexico by M. de Saussure are
in the collection of Dr. Sclater.
Mr. Ridgway saw on the Truckee River, near Pyramid Lake, in May, 1868,
what he supposes to have been this species. It was not common, only a
few individuals being observed every evening just before dusk, flying
overhead exactly in the manner of Chimney Swallows (_C. pelagica_),
which they also exactly resembled in appearance. They flew so high
that specimens could not be obtained. They were entirely silent, and
appeared at no other time than in the evening, in these respects
differing strikingly from the eastern species.
FAMILY TROCHILIDÆ.—THE HUMMING-BIRDS.
CHAR. Least of all birds; sternum very deep; bill subulate, and
generally longer than the head, straight, arched, or upcurved. Tongue
composed of two lengthened cylindrical united tubes, capable of great
protrusion, and bifid at tip; nostrils basal, linear, and covered by
an operculum; wings lengthened, pointed; first quill usually longest
except in _Aithurus_, where it is the second; primaries, 10;
secondaries, 6; tail of ten feathers. Tarsi and feet very diminutive,
claws very sharp. (GOULD.)
There is no group of birds so interesting to the ornithologist or to
the casual observer as the Humming-Birds, at once the smallest in
size, the most gorgeously beautiful in color, and almost the most
abundant in species, of any single family of birds. They are strictly
confined to the continent and islands of America, and are most
abundant in the Central American and Andean States, though single
species range almost to the Arctic regions on the north and to
Patagonia on the south, as well as from the sea-coast to the frozen
summits of the Andes. Many are very limited in their range; some
confined to particular islands, even though of small dimensions, or to
the summits of certain mountain-peaks.
The bill of the Humming-Bird is awl-shaped or subulate; thin, and
sharp-pointed; straight or curved; sometimes as long as the head,
sometimes much longer. The mandibles are excavated to the tip for the
lodgement of the tongue, and form a tube by the close apposition of
their cutting edges. There is no indication of stiff bristly feathers
at the base of the mouth. The tongue has some resemblance to that of
the Woodpecker in the elongation of the cornua backwards, so as to
pass round the back of the skull, and then anteriorly to the base of
the bill. The tongue itself is of very peculiar structure, consisting
anteriorly of two hollow threads closed at the ends and united behind.
The food of the Humming-Bird consists almost entirely of insects,
which are captured by protruding the tongue in flowers of various
shapes without opening the bill very wide.
The genera of Humming-Birds are very difficult to define. This is
partly owing to the great number of the species, of which nearly four
hundred and fifty have been recognized by authors, all of them with
but few exceptions diminutive in size and almost requiring a lens for
their critical examination, so that characters for generic separation,
distinct enough in other families, are here overlooked or not fully
appreciated. A still greater difficulty, perhaps, is the great
difference in form, especially of the tail, between the male and
female, the young male occupying an intermediate position. The
coloration, too, is almost always very different with sex and age, and
usually any generic characters derived from features other than those
of bill, feet, and wing do not apply to the females at all.
In the large number of species of Humming-Birds arranged in about one
hundred and thirty genera, only two subfamilies have been recognized,
as follows:—
Phæthornithinæ. Anterior toes connected at the base. No metallic
lustre to the dull plumage.
Trochilinæ. Anterior toes not connected at the base. Plumage
brilliant, with more or less of metallic lustre, at least in the
males.
The first-mentioned subfamily embraces five genera, and about fifty
species, none of which are found in the United States. The
_Trochilinæ_ count nearly four hundred species and one hundred and
twenty-five genera, and in the absence of any successful attempt to
arrange them in subordinate groups, the difficulties of determination
on the part of the tyro may readily be imagined.
Of the seven genera accredited to North America, with their ten
species, we cannot pretend to do more than present an artificial
analysis, which may serve to define them as compared with each other,
but bear little reference to the family as a whole. The characters are
selected partly from the shape of tail and partly from color.
COMMON CHARACTERS. All the North American _Trochilidæ_ have metallic
green backs, excepting _Selasphorus rufus_, this color extending over
the top of head, except in _Calypte_ (metallic red and violet), and
_Heliopædica_ (bluish-black). The latter alone has a white stripe
through the eye. _Atthis heloisæ_ alone has the tail tipped with white
in the male. Females of all the species except _Heliopædica_ have tail
tipped with white; all have it rounded. All females lack the metallic
throat. The males of the several genera belonging to North America may
be distinguished as follows:—
I. _Bill covered with feathers between nostrils._
A. Top of head green.
Feathers of throat not elongated.
Tail rounded or slightly emarginated, the feathers
broad, rounded, and metallic rufous-purple, or
greenish-blue. Wing more than 2.50 _Lampornis_.
Tail more or less forked; feathers pointed, narrow,
and without rufous or blue. Wing much less than 2.00
_Trochilus_.
Throat-feathers elongated laterally into a kind of ruff.
Tail-feathers edged or banded with cinnamon at base.
Tail cuneate, the outer primary attenuated at end.
Innermost tail-feather green above.
Tail dusky at end _Selasphorus_.
Tail tipped with white _Atthis_.
Tail nearly even, and emarginated. Outer primary not
attenuated at end. Innermost tail-feather brown above
_Stellula_.
B. Top of head metallic red or violet.
Metallic feathers of side of throat much elongated _Calypte_.
II. _Bill bare of feathers between the nostrils._
C. Top of head bluish-black; a white line through eye.
Metallic feathers of side of throat not elongated.
Tail nearly even, and slightly emarginated. Lateral
feathers very broad and obtuse at end _Heliopædica_.
We have included _Lampornis_ in the list of United States genera on
exceedingly doubtful evidence of the occurrence of _L. mango_, which
was said to have been taken at Key West, and sent to Mr. Audubon, who
figured it. The species, however, proves to be one belonging to
Brazil, and not the Jamaican form (_L. porphyrura_, Gould), which
might possibly have straggled there.
In reference to the large number of species of _Trochilidæ_, it may be
well to remark that many differ by very slight, sometimes quite
inappreciable characters, and are to be looked on as only climatic or
geographical varieties. All those given for the United States are,
however, well marked.
Additional species of _Trochilidæ_ will doubtless yet be detected
within our limits, especially in Arizona, New Mexico, and Southern
Texas, where almost any of the Mexican table-land species may be
looked for, such as _Calypte floresi_, _Calothorax cyanopogon_, etc.
South Florida will probably yet furnish to us the Bahaman _Doricha
evelynæ_.
The following synopsis expresses, perhaps, a more natural arrangement
of the genera:—
A. Nasal operculum entirely covered by the frontal
feathers; base of the bill narrow.
_a._ Tail forked, and unvariegated in the male. Outer
primary strongly bowed, or curved inward at the end.
Stellula. Tail deeply emarginated in ♂, somewhat
doubly rounded in ♀, but outer feather not longest;
the feathers spatulate; outer primary very strongly
bowed, and very broad at end. ♂. Gorget feathers
linear, much elongated; only their terminal half
colored; crown green like the back. ♀. Similar in
form, but the intermediate feathers of tail longer
than the external, instead of shorter.
Trochilus. Tail deeply emarginated in the male, the
feathers attenuated toward tips; doubly rounded in ♀,
and broader; outer primary strongly bowed, but narrow
at end. ♂. Gorget feathers broad, short, squamate;
colored blue or crimson to their bases. Crown green
like the back.
Calypte. Tail as in _Trochilus_, but the external
feather abruptly narrower than the next, with its
edges nearly parallel. Outer primary as in
_Trochilus_. Crown metallic (violet or crimson) like
the throat. _Female_ like that of _Trochilus_.
_b._ Tail rounded or graduated, and variegated in the
male. Outer primary only slightly bowed, and narrow at
end, except in ♀ of _Atthis_.
Selasphorus. Tail graduated in the ♂, the feathers
attenuated at ends. Outer primary abruptly attenuated,
the end turned outwards. Gorget feathers broad,
elongated laterally, rose-purple or fire-color; crown
green like the back; tail-feathers edged with rufous.
♀ with tail less graduated, and the feathers broader
at ends. Outer primary broader, and not attenuated and
turned outward at end.
Atthis. Sexes alike in form. Tail rounded; outer
primary bowed at end, rather narrow in the ♂. Gorget
feathers much elongated, posteriorly and laterally;
tail-feathers tipped with white.
_c._ Tail rounded, or slightly emarginated, and usually
unvariegated in either sex; the feathers very broad, and
rounded at the ends; primaries normal, the outer broad
to the end, and moderately bowed.
Lampornis.[113] Bill cylindrical, considerably curved.
Wing very long, reaching to, or beyond, the tip of the
very broad tail. Size large (wing, 2.50, or more). The
male dark-colored (green or black) beneath. Sexes
sometimes alike (in West Indies).
B. Nasal operculum entirely uncovered; base of bill very
broad. Female with tail-feathers not tipped with white.
Heliopædica. Sexes alike in form. First primary
longest, much bowed toward end. Tail more than two
thirds the wing, nearly square (a little emarginated
in the ♂, slightly rounded in the ♀), the feathers
very broad, rounded at ends. Color, metallic green
above, white or rufous glossed with green below; a
conspicuous white post-ocular stripe, and an auricular
one of black beneath it. ♂. Forehead and chin black or
metallic blue; throat rich metallic green. ♀. Forehead
dull brownish-green; chin and throat white, glossed
with green, or plain ochraceous; tail plain
bluish-black or purplish-rufous, the middle feathers
more or less green.
Thaumatias. Sexes alike in form and color. General
form of _Heliopædica_, but tail emarginated, instead
of rounded. Color nearly uniform green, with or
without white throat and abdomen. Tail grayish-dusky,
with an obscure subterminal band of black (with basal
three fourths white in _T. chionurus_).
HABITS. The habits and manners of the whole family of _Trochilidæ_
are, in many striking respects, entirely peculiar to themselves, and
without any known correspondence or close resemblance to those of any
other kinds of birds, either in America or elsewhere. This family is
found exclusively in America, either in the islands or on the
continent, and number in all not far from four hundred species,
distributed into various subdivisions and genera, but all possessing,
to a very large degree, the same common peculiarities, of which the
well-known Ruby-throat of eastern North America may be taken as
eminently typical. The habits and peculiarities of this numerous
family have been closely studied, and many valuable facts in relation
to them have been contributed by various naturalists; by none,
perhaps, with more intelligent attention than by the eminent Swiss
naturalist, M. H. de Saussure, in his visit to the West India Islands
and Mexico, to whose observations we are largely indebted.
On the first visit of this naturalist to a savanna in the island of
Jamaica, he at once noticed what he at first took to be a brilliant
green insect, of rapid flight, approaching him by successive
alternations of movements and pauses, and rapidly gliding among and
over the network of interlacing shrubs. He was surprised by the
extraordinary dexterity with which it avoided the movements of his
net, and yet more astonished to find, when he had captured it, that he
had taken a bird, and not an insect.
He soon satisfied himself that this entire family not only have the
form and aspect of insects, but that they have also the same
movements, the same habits, and the same manner of living, with
certain insects. Their flight is exactly like that of an insect, and
in this respect they form a remarkably exceptional group among birds.
When we notice their long wings in our cabinet specimens, we naturally
suppose that they use these instruments of flight in the same manner
with the Swallow or the Swift. Yet investigation shows that, so very
far from this, these wings, comparatively so very long, vibrate even
more rapidly than do those of birds with proportionately the smallest
wings, such as the Grebe, the Loon, and the Penguin, and that, more
than this, they vibrate with an intensity so vastly superior, that
they become wholly invisible in the wonderful rapidity of their
movements.
The altogether exceptional character of their flight is a subject for
never-ceasing astonishment. Until we actually witness it, we should
never conceive it to be possible for a bird to vibrate its wings with
so great a rapidity, and by them to support itself in the air in the
same manner with the _Anthraces_ and other aerial insects. This feat
is rendered all the more surprising by the extreme narrowness of the
wing and the comparative weight of the body, which is quite
considerable, on account of the compactness of the flesh and bones,
and the small size of the birds themselves, whose wings displace but a
small quantity of air. The resistance of the air to the stroke of the
wing of a bird should be, not in proportion to the surface of that
wing, but to its square, or even to its cube, if the movement is very
rapid. Hence it follows that a due proportion being required as
between the weight of the body and the surface of this organ, a small
bird cannot keep itself poised in the air except by means of
vibrations more rapid than those of a larger kind. This is, without
doubt, one explanation of the fact that Humming-Birds, in their
flight, are so insect-like. They pass from bush to bush as if
suspended in the air, and pause over each flower, vibrating their
wings, in precisely the same manner with the Sphinxes, and with the
same humming sounds.
The flight of the Humming-Bird is of two kinds. One of these is used
for a horizontal movement, and is so rapid that one can hardly follow
it with the eye. This is accompanied by a kind of hissing sound. The
other seems to keep the body in the air immovable, in one spot. For
the latter purpose the bird assumes a position nearly vertical, and
beats its wings with great intensity. These organs must vibrate all
the more rapidly, because the immobility of the body requires a
shorter stroke, and therefore the more frequently repeated. The
equilibrium of the body is preserved by the alternate up and down
strokes of the wings, no inconsiderable force being required to keep
its immobility, besides that requisite for neutralizing the weight of
the body.
The Humming-Bird is entirely aerial. They pass with the rapidity of an
arrow, stop, rest for a few seconds on some small branch, and then
suddenly depart with so much rapidity that we cannot trace its flight.
They disappear as if by enchantment. Their life is one of feverish
excitement. They seem to live more intensely than any other being on
our globe. From morning to night they traverse the air in quest of
honeyed flowers. They come like a flash of light, assume a vertical
position without any support, throw their tail forward, expanding it
like a fan, vibrating their wings with such rapidity that they become
absolutely invisible, plunging, at the same time, their thread-like
tongues to the bottom of some long corolla, and then they have gone as
suddenly as they came. They are never known to rest on a branch in
order more at their leisure to plunge their tongue into the flower.
Their life is too short for this delay; they are in too great haste;
they can only stop long enough to beat their wings before each flower
for a few seconds, but long enough to reach its bottom and to devour
its inhabitants. When we take into consideration how entirely aerial
is their life, and the prodigious relative force requisite to enable
them to keep suspended in the air during the entire day, almost
incessantly, either in rapid motion or accomplishing the most violent
vibrations, we can but be amazed at the extraordinary powers of flight
and endurance they manifest.
The Humming-Bird enjoys even the most tropical heat, avoids shade, and
is easily overcome by cold. Though some travellers speak of having met
with these birds in the depths of forests, Saussure discredits their
statements, having never found any in such situations. They prefer
open flowery fields, meadows, gardens, and shrubbery, delighting to
glitter in the sun’s rays, and to mingle with the swarm of resplendent
insects with which tropical regions abound, and with the habits of
which their own so well accord. Nearly all live in the open sun, only
a very few are more or less crepuscular and never to be seen except
very early in the morning or in the evening twilight.
Mr. Salvin is of the opinion that Humming-Birds do not remain long on
the wing at once, but rest frequently, choosing for that purpose a
small dead or leafless twig at the top, or just within the branches of
the tree. While in this position they trim their feathers and clean
their bill, all the time keeping up an incessant jerking of their
wings and tail.
In Mexico, where these birds are very abundant, they are attracted by
the blossoms of the _Agave americana_, and swarm around them like so
many beetles. As they fly, they skim over the fields, rifle the
flowers, mingling with the bees and the butterflies, and during the
seasons of bloom, at certain hours of the day, the fields appear
perfectly alive with them. The ear receives unceasingly the whistling
sounds of their flight, and their shrill cries, resembling in their
sharp accent the clash of weapons. Although the Humming-Bird always
migrates at the approach of cold weather, yet it is often to be found
at very considerable elevations. The traveller Bourcier met with them
on the crater of Pichincha, and M. Saussure obtained specimens of
_Calothorax lucifer_ in the Sierra de Cuernavaca, at the height of
more than 9,500 feet.
While we must accept as a well-established fact that the Humming-Birds
feed on insects, demonstrated long since by naturalists, it is equally
true that they are very fond of the nectar of flowers, and that this,
to a certain extent, constitutes their nourishment. This is shown by
the sustenance which captive Humming-Birds receive from honey and
other sweet substances, food to which a purely insectivorous bird
could hardly adapt itself.
Notwithstanding their diminutive size the Humming-Birds are notorious
for their aggressive disposition. They attack with great fury anything
that excites their animosity, and maintain constant warfare with
whatever is obnoxious to them, expressly the Sphinxes or Hawk-Moths.
Whenever one of these inoffensive moths, two or three times the size
of a Humming-Bird, chances to come too early into the garden and
encounters one of these birds, he must give way or meet with certain
injury. At sight of the insect the bird attacks it with his pointed
beak with great fury. The Sphinx, overcome in this unlooked-for
attack, beats a retreat, but, soon returning to the attractive
flowers, is again and again assaulted by its infuriated enemy. Certain
destruction awaits these insects if they do not retire from the field
before their delicate wings, lacerated in these attacks, can no longer
support them, and they fall to the ground to perish from other
enemies.
In other things the Humming-Bird also shows itself all the more
impertinent and aggressive that it is small and weak. It takes offence
at everything that moves near it. It attacks birds much larger than
itself, and is rarely disturbed or molested by those it thus assails.
All other birds must make way. It is possible that in some of these
attacks it may be influenced by an instinctive prompting of advantages
to be gained, as in the case of the spider, in whose nets they are
liable to be entangled, and whose webs often seriously incommode them.
When a Humming-Bird perceives a spider in the midst of its net, it
rarely fails to make an attack, and with such rapidity that one cannot
follow the movement, but in the twinkling of an eye the spider has
disappeared. This is not only done to small spiders, which doubtless
they devour, but also to others too large to be thus eaten.
Not content with thus chastising small enemies, the Humming-Bird also
contends with others far more powerful, and which give them a good
deal of trouble. They have been known to engage in an unequal contest
with the Sparrow-Hawk, yet rarely without coming off the conquerors.
In this strife they have the advantage of numbers, their diminutive
size, and the rapidity and the irregularity of their own movements.
Several unite in these attacks, and, in rushing upon their powerful
enemy, they always aim at his eyes. The Hawk soon appreciates his
inability to contend with these tormenting little furies, and beats an
ignominious retreat.
Advantage is taken of this aggressive disposition of these birds, by
the hunter, to capture them. In their combats with one another, or in
their rash attacks upon various offensive objects, even upon the
person of the snarer himself, they are made prisoners through their
own rashness and reckless impetuosity.
In enumerating the prominent characteristics of this remarkable
family, we should not omit to refer to the lavish profusion of colors
of every tint and shade, excelling in lustre and brilliancy even the
costliest gems, with which Nature has adorned their plumage. And not
only are nearly all the birds of this group thus decked out with hues
of the most dazzling brightness and splendor, when alive and
resplendent in the tropical sun, but many also display the most
wonderfully varying shades and colors, according to the position in
which they are presented to the eye. The sides of the fibres of each
feather are of a different color from the surface, and change as seen
in a front or an oblique direction, and while living, these birds, by
their movements, can cause these feathers to change very suddenly to
very different hues. Thus the _Selasphorus rufus_ can change in a
twinkling the vivid fire-color of its expanded throat to a light
green, and the species known as the Mexican Star (_Cynanthus lucifer_)
changes from a bright crimson to an equally brilliant blue.
The nests and the eggs of the Humming-Birds, though in a few
exceptional cases differing as to the form and position of the former,
are similar, so far as known, in the whole family. The eggs are always
two in number, white and unspotted, oblong in shape, and equally
obtuse at either end. The only differences to be noticed are in the
relative variations in size. The nests are generally saddled upon the
upper side of a horizontal branch, are cup-like in shape, and are
largely made up of various kinds of soft vegetable down, covered by an
outward coating of lichens and mosses fastened upon them by the
glue-like saliva of the bird. In _T. colubris_ the soft inner portion
of the nest is composed of the delicate downy covering of the
leaf-buds of several kinds of oaks. In Georgia the color of this down
is of a deep nankeen hue, but in New England it is nearly always
white. At first the nest is made of this substance alone, and the
entire complement of eggs, never more than two, is sometimes laid
before the covering of lichens is put on by the male bird, who seems
to amuse himself with this while his mate is sitting upon her eggs.
[113] Genus _Lampornis_, SWAINS. CHAR. Size large (wing,
2.50); tail large, more than half the wing, the feathers
very broad; usually a little rounded, sometimes slightly
emarginated (as in _L. mango_, _L. virginalis_, and _L.
aurulentus_). Bill cylindrical, considerably curved, its
vertical thickness least at about the middle. Nasal opercula
nearly covered by the frontal feathers; tarsi naked. Wing
very long, reaching to or beyond the tip of the tail; first
primary longest, only slightly bowed, and not attenuated at
tip; inner primaries normal.
The species of this genus belong chiefly to the West India
Islands and to Tropical America,—principally on the
Atlantic coast. They are all of more than the average size,
and distinguished by broad tail-feathers, and rather dull,
though handsome colors. In _L. porphyrurus_ the sexes are
alike in color. The following species has been accredited to
North America, but probably upon erroneous data, since it
belongs to northern South America, not even being an
inhabitant of any of the West India Islands, except
Trinidad. Still it is possible that, as alleged for
_Thaumatias linnæi_ (see page 1064), it may have wandered
far from its usual habitat, and have reached Florida, as
stated by Mr. Audubon.
_Lampornis mango_, (L.) SWAINS.—The Mango Hummer.
_Trochilus mango_, L. S. N. I, 191.—GMEL. S. N. I.
491.—AUD. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 486; pl. 184.—IB. Birds Am.
IV, 1842, 186, pl. ccli. _Lampornis mango_, SW. Zoöl. Journ.
III, 358.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 130. SP. CHAR.—_Male_:
Above deep golden green; beneath opaque velvety-black
medially, from the bill to the anal region, separated from
the lateral and superior green by a tint of metallic
greenish-blue. Tail richly metallic rufous-purple, the
feathers bordered terminally with blue-black; intermediæ
plain dark bronzy-green. Primaries plain dull dusky.
_Female._ Similar, but white beneath, except laterally, and
with a medial stripe of black, from the bill to the anus.
Wing, 2.60-2.70; tail, 1.50-1.70; bill, .90. _Hab._ Northern
South America (Brazil, Guiana, Venezuela, New Granada,
Panama, and Trinidad); accidental in Florida???
GENUS STELLULA, GOULD.
_Stellula_, GOULD, Introd. Trochil. 1861, 90. (Type, _Trochilus
calliope_, GOULD.)
[Line drawing: _Stellula calliope._
17992 ♂]
GEN. CHAR. Bill rather longer than the head; straight. Wings much
developed, reaching beyond the tail, which is short, nearly even, or
slightly rounded, and with the inner-most feathers abruptly short; the
outer feather rather narrower and more linear than the others, which
have a rather spatulate form. Metallic throat-feathers elongated and
rather linear and loose, not forming a continuous metallic surface.
Central tail-feather without green.
This genus, established by Gould, has a slight resemblance to
_Atthis_, but differs in absence of the attenuated tip of outer
primary. The outer three tail-feathers are longest and nearly even
(the second rather longest), the fourth and fifth equal and abruptly a
little shorter, the latter without any green. The feathers are rather
broad and wider terminally (the outermost least so), and are obtusely
rounded at end. The tail of the female is quite similar. The absence
of green on the tail in the male seems a good character. But one
species is known of the genus.
_Calothorax_ is a closely allied genus, in which the tail is
considerably longer. One species, _C. cyanopogon_, will probably be
yet detected in New Mexico.
Stellula calliope, GOULD.
THE CALLIOPE HUMMING-BIRD.
_Trochilus calliope_, GOULD, Pr. Z. S. 1847, 11 (Mexico).
_Calothorax calliope_, GRAY, Genera, I, 100.—BON. Rev. Mag.
Zoöl. 1854, 257.—GOULD, Mon. Troch. III, pl. cxlii.—XANTUS,
Pr. A. N. Sc. 1859, 190.—ELLIOT, Illust. Birds N. A. I, xxiii.
_Stellula calliope_, GOULD, Introd. Troch. 1861, 90.—COOPER,
Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 363.
SP. CHAR. _Male_ above, except on tail, golden-green, beneath white,
the sides glossed with green, the flanks somewhat with rusty; crissum
pure white. Throat-feathers pure white at base, terminal half
violet-red, more reddish than in _Atthis heloisæ_; the sides of neck
pure white. Tail-feathers brown, edged at base, especially on inner
webs, but inconspicuously, with rufous; the ends paler, as if faded;
central feathers like the rest; under mandible yellow. Length, 2.75;
wing, 1.60; tail, 1.00; bill above to base of feathers, .55. _Female_
without the metallic gorget (replaced by a few dusky specks), and the
throat-feathers not elongated; no green on sides, and more tinged with
rufous beneath. A white crescent under the eye. Tail more rounded and
less emarginate than in the male. The outer three feathers green at
base, then black, and tipped with white; the fourth green and black;
the fifth green, with a dusky shade at end; all, except central, edged
internally at base with rufous. The under mandible is paler at base
than elsewhere, but not yellowish-white as in the male.
HAB. Mountains of Washington Territory, Oregon, and California, to
Northern Mexico. East to East Humboldt Mountains (RIDGWAY); Fort Tejon
(XANTUS); Fort Crook (FEILNER).
The male bird is easily distinguished from other North American
species by its very small size, the snowy-white bases of the elongated
loose throat-feathers, and by the shape of the tail, as also the
absence, at least in the several males before us, of decided metallic
green on the central tail-feathers. The females resemble those of _A.
heloisæ_ most closely, but have longer bills and wings, broader
tail-feathers, and their rufous confined to the edges, instead of
crossing the entire basal portion. _Selasphorus platycercus_ and
_rufus_ are much larger, and have tails marked more as in _A.
heloisæ_.
HABITS. This interesting species was first met with as a Mexican
Humming-Bird, on the high table-lands of that republic, by Signor
Floresi. His specimens were obtained in the neighborhood of the Real
del Monte mines. As it was a comparatively rare bird, and only met
with in the winter months, it was rightly conjectured to be only a
migrant in that locality.
This species is new to the fauna of North America, and was first
brought to the attention of naturalists by Mr. J. K. Lord, one of the
British commissioners on the Northwest Boundary Survey. It is presumed
to be a mountain species, found in the highlands of British Columbia,
Washington Territory, Oregon, California, and Northern Mexico.
Early in May Mr. Lord was stationed on the Little Spokan River,
superintending the building of a bridge. The snow was still remaining
in patches, and no flowers were in bloom except the brilliant pink
_Ribes_, or flowering currant. Around the blossoms of this shrub he
found congregated quite a number of Humming-Birds. The bushes seemed
to him to literally gleam with their flashing colors. They were all
male birds, and of two species; and upon obtaining several of both
they proved to be, one the _Selasphorus rufus_, the other the present
species, one of the smallest of Humming-Birds, and in life conspicuous
for a frill of minute pinnated feathers, encircling the throat, of a
delicate magenta tint, which can be raised or depressed at will. A few
days after the females arrived, and the species then dispersed in
pairs.
He afterwards ascertained that they prefer rocky hillsides at great
altitudes, where only pine-trees, rock plants, and an alpine flora are
found. He frequently shot these birds above the line of perpetual
snow. Their favorite resting-place was on the extreme point of a dead
pine-tree, where, if undisturbed, they would sit for hours. The site
chosen for the nest was usually the branch of a young pine, where it
was artfully concealed amidst the fronds at the very end, and rocked
like a cradle by every passing breeze.
Dr. Cooper thinks that he met with this species in August, 1853, on
the summit of the Cascade Mountains, but mistook the specimens for the
young of _Selasphorus rufus_.
Early in June, 1859, Mr. John Feilner found these birds breeding near
Pitt River, California, and obtained their nests.
This species was obtained by Mr. Ridgway only on the East Humboldt
Mountains, in Eastern Nevada. The two or three specimens shot were
females, obtained in August and September, and at the time mistaken
for the young of _Selasphorus platycercus_, which was abundant at that
locality.
Dr. W. J. Hoffman writes, in relation to this species, that on the
20th of July, 1871, being in camp at Big Pines, a place about
twenty-seven miles north of Camp Independence, California, on a
mountain stream, the banks of which are covered with an undergrowth of
cottonwood and small bushes, he frequently saw and heard Humming-Birds
flying around him. He at length discovered a nest, which was perched
on a limb directly over the swift current, where it was sometimes
subjected to the spray. The limb was but half an inch in thickness,
and the nest was attached to it by means of thin fibres of vegetable
material and hairs. It contained two eggs. The parents were taken, and
proved to be this species. There were many birds of the same kind at
this point, constantly on the tops of the small pines in search of
insects.
GENUS TROCHILUS, LINNÆUS.
_Trochilus_, LINNÆUS, Systema Naturæ, 1748 (AGASSIZ).
[Line drawing: _Trochilus colubris._
1101 ♀]
[Line drawing: _Trochilus colubris._
1100 ♂]
GEN. CHAR. Metallic gorget of throat nearly even all round. Tail
forked; the feathers lanceolate, acute, becoming gradually narrower
from the central to the exterior. Inner six primaries abruptly and
considerably smaller than the outer four, with the inner web notched
at the end.