and its abundance in any given locality is uncertain. It ranges from
Florida to Massachusetts, and as far to the west as Fort Riley and
Eastern Kansas. Among the Rocky Mountains to the northward, it has been
observed to reach the sources of the Arkansas. In Massachusetts, it is
not uncommon, and a few are known to breed at Lynn, Farther northward,
on the Atlantic seaboard, we have no mention of it. In Central New York
it is a very rare summer visitor, and in Southern Illinois we learn that
it breeds in common with the Maryland Yellow-throat, but diminishes in
numbers to the north. Mexico and Guatemala claim it in their avi-fauna,
but there are no records of its inhabiting any of the West India
Islands.
From their winter resorts, long after the Thrushes and Sparrows have
reached their summer homes, these Chats, in the company of the vast
army of Warblers of which they are a part, take up their flight late
in April, but it is not until the first week of May that they reach
Pennsylvania. Other portions of their limited habitat are attained at
nearly the same time. But it is the males who first appear. For reasons,
which we do not understand, the females are slow in making their
appearance, and do not arrive until three days later.
Once arrived, they keep aloof from cultivated domains, and spend their
time in the dense underbrush of high woods, or in the clumps of briers
of unimproved fields. Few birds manifest greater shyness. Whether this
character can be attributed to timidity, we cannot say, but we are
rather prone to believe it is only assumed in order to conceal their
purposes and doings the better. When nurseries of young trees are
visited, even though they should be situated close-by occupied
dwellings, which is sometimes the case, we cannot perceive any
difference in their conduct.
Though coming in early May, when Nature is fresh with verdure and
buoyant with life, yet there is no desire shown for mating. The sole
thought seems to be the acquirement of food. Its foraging is not wholly
restricted to trees and shrubs, but the ground as well. While thus
engaged, the bird is seen to the best advantage. There is noticeable a
most remarkable agility combined with a certain degree of eccentricity.
Squatting upon the ground, it keeps up a continual jerking movement of
the tail, for a long time, but tired of this, it springs to the
feet, and the most ridiculous and uncouth antics follow. Should it
be surprised while thus employed, it seeks to conceal itself in the
adjoining bushes, or finds security in flight. Beetles, ants, small
spiders and moths constitute for awhile its fare, but these give place
to caterpillars and fruits when abundant.
***Through accident, a blunder occurred in Part 23. The top
line on page 274 belongs at the top of page 273. You will
please take pages 273, 274, 275 and 276 out of the Part sent
you, and destroy them, inserting these corrected pages in
their place.***[The transcriber was unable to make the directed
changes as the corrected pages were not provided. DW]
Whilst feeding, the male keeps remarkably silent, and it is only towards
the close of the month that he essays a song. A change now comes over
his behavior. He is more active than ever, is less tempted by the sight
of food, and acts like one who is in search of something lost. He enters
a copse, a cluster of brambles, in short, auy place of concealment, and
gives himself up to the strangest diversions. The most peculiar sounds
emanate therefrom. At one time, in loudest key, but gradually falling,
and with forced rapidity, he treats you with music, if such we may be
pleased to style it, that favorably compares with the whistling of the
wings of a duck. Again, he produces, with wonderful exactness, the bark
of puppies; and, as if to show his skill further, closes with the mew of
a cat, only hoarser. These notes are produced with wonderful vehemence
in several keys, and with peculiar modifications. As the voice
apparently shifts from place to place, the possessor being unseen, it
seems to be more like that of a spirit than of a bird. Near you one
moment, the next it comes from a distance, so that by these tricks, it
is not always possible to locate with any degree of certainty the astute
ventriloquist. To convey in human characters this song exactly, is
beyond the power of mortals. The following syllables express it with
tolerable correctness: _twi-wi-wï-wi-wï-wi'i, hawawawawae, kith,
chï-chï-chi-chï-chi, tweiiiii, chwëah_.
Such herculean efforts as the foregoing are certainly deserving of
success. Events justify the thought. A few hours at most, and his song
receives a response. Aroused from her absorption, his true love appears.
The scenes now enacted are ludicrous in the extreme. He flies about her,
utters a few syllables of affection, and at length settles down by her
side. His whole expression is one of intense delight. While her lord is
thus fairly beside himself with joy, she is of a passive disposition.
To one who is not experienced in matters pertaining to bird-life, her
conduct would seem to betoken lukewarmness. But it is only the coyness
of a modest female. Having won his prize, the happy husband leads the
way into some secluded spot, where he lays before her his plans for the
future. She immediately assents to them, and soon the pair are found
beating in and out of the bushes for a home-spot. As many as two days
are often spent in these delightful pilgrimages. At length, one is
discovered which combines the essentialities, and a house is erected. In
woods that are seldom desecrated by the polluting touch of wicked man,
there is manifest but little tendency to concealment. Not so in fields
which adjoin his retreats. Here the greatest caution is observed, the
nest being built in some almost impenetrable bramble-patch, and so
placed as to be out of reach of the keenest vigilance. If discovered in
such a place, it is more the result of chance than good management,
and not through any fault of the birds. We have found it often within a
forked twig of the common laurel, more frequently in brier-bushes, and
not uncommonly in a young oak, where scores of them are growing thickly
together.
The nest is from three to four days in building, through the steady,
persevering efforts of the architects. In texture it is rather loose,
and is made almost exclusively of strips of bark, dry leaves and stems
of grasses. In some instances the ribbons of bark are from one-half to
three-fourths of an inch in width, and nearly nine inches in length.
Such being the exterior fabric, the inner is composed of a thick lining
of roots, rather compactly interwoven, and gradually diminishing in size
towards the centre. There is a difference in the composing substances
observable in nests from the most diverse localities. Some are built of
leaves on the outside, loosely aggregated and held together by the small
and nearly vertical branches between which they are placed. Within,
there is a profusion of grape-vine bark, small sticks, stems of grasses,
and a lining of beech-leaves. In external diameter the nest varies from
four and a half to five inches, and has a height of about two and a half
inches. The cavity is about three inches wide, and the depth one and
three-fourths.
Oviposition rapidly succeeds nest-building, and proceeds at the rate of
one egg per day. This is followed by incubation, which continues for a
period of eleven days, the female performing the whole of the labor. The
male seldom forsakes her, save to procure food. He is the most faithful
and jealous of husbands, carefully providing her with nourishment, and
guarding her from harm. The approach of an enemy is heralded by loud and
noisy chatterings between fear and anger, and even frequent attempts are
made at repulsion. He is, however, in the height of his glory when by
her side, and seeks by many pleasing little ways to relieve the fatigue
and monotony of her task. His song at this time is more loud and
incessant than ever. Braving concealment, he mounts into the air almost
perpendicularly to the height of thirty or forty feet, with his may be
pleased to style it, that favorably compares with the whistling of the
wings of a duck. Again, he produces, with wonderful exactness, the bark
of puppies; and, as if to show his skill further, closes with the mew of
a cat, only hoarser. These notes are produced with wonderful vehemence
in several keys, and with peculiar modifications. As the voice
apparently shifts from place to place, the possessor being unseen, it
seems to be more like that of a spirit than of a bird. Near you one
moment, the next it comes from a distance, so that by these tricks, it
is not always possible to locate with any degree of certainty the astute
ventriloquist. To convey in human characters this song exactly, is
beyond the power of mortals.
Such herculean efforts as the foregoing are certainly deserving of
success. Events justify the thought. A few hours at most, and his song
receives a response. Aroused from her absorption, his true love appears.
The scenes now enacted are ludicrous in the extreme. He flies about her,
utters a few syllables of affection, and at length settles down by her
side. His whole expression is one of intense delight. While her lord is
thus fairly beside himself with joy, she is of a passive disposition.
To one who is not experienced in matters pertaining to bird-life, her
conduct would seem to betoken lukewarmness. But it is only the coyness
of a modest female. Having won his prize, the happy husband leads the
way into some secluded spot, where he lays before her his plans for the
future. She immediately assents to them, and soon the pair are found
beating in and out of the bushes for a home-spot. As many as two days
are often spent in these delightful pilgrimages. At length, one is
discovered which combines the essentialities, and a house is erected. In
woods that are seldom desecrated by the polluting touch of wicked man,
there is manifest but little tendency to concealment. Not so in fields
which adjoin his retreats. Here the greatest caution is observed, the
nest being built in some almost impenetrable bramble-patch, and so
placed as to be out of reach of the keenest vigilance. If discovered in
such a place, it is ble that man's endeavors could succeed any better;
perhaps, not so well. A full-fledged bird might accustom itself to
the aviary, and become quite an agreeable pet, but the species has
not excited sufficient interest in fanciers to induce them to make the
attempt.
As shown in the Plate, the Chat is bright olive-green above. Below,
excepting the abdominal region which ends abruptly with white, the color
is a bright golden-yellow. The lore is black, and separates the white
under eyelid from a superciliary line of the same color above, and
also a short maxillary one below. The wings and tail are unmarked, and
glossed with olive, while the bill and feet are blue-black. The length
varies from seven to seven and a half inches; the wing is about three,
and the tail three and a quarter. From the male, the female differs in
being smaller, and in the indistinctness of her markings.
The eggs are usually four in number. Nests, however, are sometimes found
with three as a complement, and others with as many as five,
though rarely. In configuration they are slightly rounded-oval. The
ground-color varies from a clear, snowy-white to one in which a
slight tinge of yellow is perceptible, and the markings are chiefly
reddish-brown, interspersed with a few of a faint lilac color. In
some specimens which we have examined, the spots are pretty uniformly
distributed over the egg-surfaces, and this seems to be the rule in
the same nest-full. Others have them arranged more especially about the
larger half, leaving the smaller almost barren-of them. It is in the
latter that the white ground usually prevails. Variations also exist in
size, even in the same locality, for we have often met with eggs that
measured as much as .94 of an inch in length, and others but .85, and in
breadth from .64 to .70. Throughout its entire range the species appears
to be single-brooded. In the Middle Atlantic States this is assured
beyond a doubt.
But when the young are hatched, he ceases these vocal performances and
odd gestures, and unites with his mate to render homage and obeisance to
the new comers. From early morning until sunset they are busy scouring
the fields and woods for insects, both parents never being absent at
the same time on this business. Larvæ of various kinds, smaller
lepidoptera, and straw- and blackberries are in much demand, and hunted
with great perseverance and industry. With age comes an increase in the
quantity and quality of their food. In thirteen days from the time of
hatching we find them ready to leave the nest, and a week later, they
are old enough to care for themselves.
The breeding season being over, both young and old spend the time until
their departure in September, in thick brier-bushes, and within close
hedges, occasionally, however, forsaking such places for cultivated
grounds. Now the song of the male can be heard at midnight, and so fond
does he seem of this sort of diversion, that he frequently continues
singing until daybreak. The early departure of the Chat is not due
to the paucity of appropriate food-stuffs, but chiefly to its
susceptibility to cold.
No attempts, as far as we have been able to ascertain, have ever been
made to rear these birds from the nest. Their beauty of plumage, if they
had nothing else to commend them, would doubtless compensate for the
lack of sweetness in their voices. While they might signally fail in
their efforts to charm us with rich, mellifluous notes, they could, at
any rate, amuse us by the variety, volubility and strangeness of their
utterances. A friend of Wilson's, an amateur in Canary birds, once
placed an egg of this species under a Canary. In course of time the bird
made its appearance, but died on the second day, notwithstanding the
best of care and attention which it received, for the hen Canary was so
solicitous to nourish the stranger, that her own eggs, which required
a somewhat longer period of incubation, were lost in consequence. This
being the case, it is not possible that man's endeavors could succeed
any better; perhaps, not so well. A full-fledged bird might accustom
itself to the aviary, and become quite an agreeable pet, but the species
has not excited sufficient interest in fanciers to induce them to make
the attempt.
As shown in the Plate, the Chat is bright olive-green above. Below,
excepting the abdominal region which ends abruptly with white, the color
is a bright golden-yellow. The lore is black, and separates the white
under eyelid from a superciliary line of the same color above, and
also a short maxillary one below. The wings and tail are unmarked, and
glossed with olive, while the bill and feet are blue-black. The length
varies from seven to seven and a half inches; the wing is about three,
and the tail three and a quarter. From the male, the female differs in
being smaller, and in the indistinctness of her markings.
The eggs are usually four in number. Nests, however, are sometimes found
with three as a complement, and others with as many as five,
though rarely. In configuration they are slightly rounded-oval. The
ground-color varies from a clear, snowy-white to one in which a
slight tinge of yellow is perceptible, and the markings are chiefly
reddish-brown, interspersed with a few of a faint lilac color. In
some specimens which we have examined, the spots are pretty uniformly
distributed over the egg-surfaces, and this seems to be the rule in
the same nest-full. Others have them arranged more especially about the
larger half, leaving the smaller almost barren of them. It is in the
latter that the white ground usually prevails. Variations also exist in
size, even in the same locality, for we have often met with eggs that
measured as much as .94 of an inch in length, and others but .86, and in
breadth from .64 to .70. Throughout its entire range the species appears
to be single-brooded. In the Middle Atlantic States this is assured
beyond a doubt.
[Illustration: 399]
Plate XLVII.--HÆMATOPUS PALLIATUS, Temm.--American Oystercatcher.
|Essentially a marine species, the Oystercatcher is never found inland,
but abounds along the Atlantic coast of the United States from Maine to
Florida, where, in summer, small parties of two or three pairs may be
seen together in any given locality, but more especially from New Jersey
southward. On the shores of New England, according to Samuels, it is
of rare occurrence during the breeding-season. It is, however, in the
Bahamas, a group of islands situated but a short distance from our
Floridan peninsula, and in the Greater Antilles, that we meet with them
in great abundance, frequenting the beaches or small sand-bars, when
exposed at low tide. Cory fouud them common enough on Andros Island in
January, and quite unsuspicious; but in June, at Inagua, only a few were
observed, and no eggs taken. But for all this the birds are known to
breed in the Bahama Islands, as evidenced by the published observations
of Dr. Bryant.
Appearing along our coast from the twentieth to the last of April,
they manifest considerable timidity, and instantly take to flight when
approached by man. Their vigilance is remarkable, and is seldom relaxed,
not even while engaged in earnest pursuit of food. While walking along
the shore in a dignified manner, with heads turned away, first this
side and then that, they do not seem at all impressed with the business
before them. But we must not delude ourselves with this idea. Like
most of their brethren, when oppressed and persecuted by man, they have
cultivated the habit of dividing their attention, and most admirably
do they accomplish the difficult task. Do but watch their movements,
in imagination, as the author unfolds to you what he has repeatedly
observed. You station yourself upon the beach, out of gunshot reach,
and await your opportunity. If you have been so fortunate as to select
a well-known resort, and are in season, you may not have long to watch.
But patience is sometimes necessary. If you have not this virtue,
you must cultivate it. But we will suppose that you have hit upon an
opportune moment,--the hour when the birds have returned from the bath,
or from a long aerial excursion of pleasure, tired and hungry. Their
voices are heard in the distance. Your attention is awakened. You look
up, and dimly perceive the moving objects. A few seconds expire, and
if you are acquainted with the species, the glittering white of their
wings, which show conspicuously, and orange-red bills and feet, tell you
at once they are the Oystercatchers. But keep perfectly still, or you
might affright them. They see you--an apparently motionless mass of
flesh and spirit--and little daunting, pass over your head, and settle
some thirty paces away, which is just what you hoped for. Had you
perceptibly stirred, you might have been denied the privilege which you
now are supposed to enjoy. Do you perceive the stately, deliberate gait,
the sideward glance, the statue-like repose? We know you do, and might
have saved ourselves the question. But you must not grow impatient,
but watch and wait with philosophic coolness for newer revelations.
Convinced that nothing is to be feared from you, all heads are at once
lowered, and the long, wedge-shaped bills thrust deep down into the
moist, yielding sand in search of shell-fish. You repair to the spot,
for your curiosity is on tip-toe, and find the ground thickly
perforated with oblong holes, some two or three inches in depth. Further
investigations will assure you that these holes are not made for any
particular species of molluscs, but for other forms of life as well.
Tired of the beach, these birds love to burrow in mud-bottomed inlets
for the small crabs called fiddlers, which frequent such places. The
immense numbers of these, together with mussels, solens, limpets,
nereids and marine insects which they daily devour, afford them a
dainty, splendid and luxurious living. Some writers assert that they
visit the oyster beds for purposes of feeding, but this is probably a
mistake, as they are strongly attached to scenes more contiguous to the
ocean.
On the high, dry, and level sands, just beyond the limits of the summer
tides, usually where hundreds of drifted shells lie scattered about,
they lay their eggs towards the close of May. Their nest is merely a
slight depression in the sand, sometimes made by the female, oftener the
result of some casualty of Nature. Though humble the spot, and poorly
provided with the comforts which render most homes endearing to their
feathered occupants, it is, nevertheless, one about which cluster many
tender feelings. As the female depends largely upon the heat of the sun
and of the sand to hatch her eggs, she only sitting upon them during the
night, and when the weather is exceedingly cold and rainy, it might be
inferred that she was lacking in care and affection. But no. Let the
nest be approached by an enemy, and the solicitude of the parents is at
once apparent. The male flies off with a loud scream, while his partner,
less demonstrative, runs for a short distance before taking to flight,
her object being to throw the intruder off his guard, and thus save
the nest from discovery. Such attachment as is shown by these birds
for their home and its treasures is really surprising, and is scarcely
exceeded by any of our smaller land birds that are accustomed to dwell
in the cosiest and most elaborate of dwellings.
When the time arrives for the young to burst the checkered walls of
their tiny prison houses, where, pent up for eighteen long, oppressive
and weary days, they have been preparing themselves for an earthly
career, the parents seem more restless, vigilant and solicitous. One or
the other is constantly about. Their appearance is hailed with unfeigned
delight. The mother is chiefly entrusted with their care, and, under her
guidance, they are brought to maturity. If threatened with danger, at
the sound of her voice they squat upon the sand, from which they are
not easily distinguished; while the parents hover over and around the
intruder, alighting betimes first on this side of him, and then on
that, and, by the most distressing cries, endeavoring to arouse his
sympathies. Sometimes they seek to lure him away by counterfeiting
lameness. Their notes of remonstrance are a quick, loud and shrill
whistle, and sound like the syllables _'wheep, 'wheep, 'wheo_. Somewhat
similar expressions are made use of while at rest, as well as upon the
wing.
In about five weeks from the time of quitting the nest, the young cut
themselves loose from the mother's guiding-strings, and fight their own
battles with life. They do not wholly withdraw from their parents, but
help to form the flocks we see migrating in the fall. A striking feature
of this movement is the regularity with which it is performed. Like
marshalled troops they hold together in lines, rise, descend and
wheel about with wonderful precision, and effect other feats equally
remarkable. However disturbed by the sportsman, they fill up the gaps
which are wrought in their ranks, and pursue their course in the
most perfect order. On the wing they move with considerable vigor and
velocity. In running, swimming and diving they are equally expert, and
by the last two methods, when wounded, are able to circumvent their
enemies.
In their earliest stage the young are covered with down, of the color of
sand, and have a brownish-black bar on the neck, back and rump. In their
mature state, the head and neck are blackish, with tinge of brown or
ashy, and the back ashy-brown. The eyelid, rump, lower parts from the
breast, tips of greater wing-coverts, most of secondaries and basal part
of tail feathers are white, while the rest of the tail, and the quills,
are blackish. The legs are flesh-colored, and the bill and edges of
eyelids red or orange. Their length runs from seventeen to eighteen
inches, the wing being ten, tail four and a half, and bill three.
The eggs of this bird are three in number, ovoidal in shape, and
are marked with numerous blackish-brown spots and blotches upon a
creamy-drab background. Their dimensions vary from 2.31 to 2.13 inches
in the long direction and from 1.63 to 1.49 in the short. But one
setting is yearly laid. In the drawing they appear of natural size, but
the birds are considerably reduced.
[Illustration: 405]
Plate XLVIII.--CATHARTES AURA, (Linn.) Illig.--Turkey Buzzard.
|Few species, if any, have such a wide distribution in America as the
Turkey Buzzard. It is found more or less abundantly to the Saskatchewan,
throughout North America, from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast, and
in all portions of South America as far south as the Strait of Magellan.
Individuals have been observed in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, though
these birds are generally uncommon north of Central New Jersey. From
Eastern Maine, in the neighborhood of Calais, to Connecticut, specimens
have been occasionally captured. In a single instance Mr. Lawrence
observed a small company of nine at Rockaway, Long Island. West of
the Alleghanies, from Central America nearly to the Arctic regions, it
occurs more abundantly. Without exception it is found in greater or less
numbers in all the Middle, Western, Southern and Northwestern States.
From Lower California to Washington Territory, along the Pacific,
numerous parties attest to its common occurrence. In the West Indies,
the islands of Cuba, Jamaica and Trinidad, the last-named in particular,
include it within their faunæ. In Honduras and Guatemala, as well as
in the Falkland Islands, off the eastern coast of Patagonia, they are
common permanent residents.
In Pennsylvania and New Jersey, where the writer has had many
opportunities for studying the species, these Vultures summer quite
plentifully. From their first appearance in March, large numbers may be
seen, high up in the air, moving in large circles, apparently exploring
the ground below for their favorite articles of food. In rural
districts they are more frequently observed than in the vicinity of
densely-populated towns. The greater abundance of carrion to be met with
in the former is doubtless the cause of this preference. However, in
California and Oregon, according to Dr. Newberry, they are quite as
common near towns as about the large rivers. In our Southern States they
visit cities and large villages, and play the part of scavengers,
in company with the Black Vulture. They are said to be so tame and
unsuspicious in Kingston, Jamaica, that they roost upon the house-tops,
or prey upon offal in the streets. In country places they are quite as
familiar and trustful. This is evidenced while feeding. So intent are
they upon the business before them, that the presence of human beings
is unnoticed, and even when compelled to forsake their booty, sullenly
repair to a short distance, but to resume their repast when the
annoyance has ceased. The Common Crow has been observed to gather around
the same food, and the utmost good feeling prevailed. A small flock
will often settle down upon a dead horse, around which several dogs
are gathered. The snapping and snarling of these creatures, when they
approach the latter too closely, does not cause them to retire, but only
to step a few paces aside, when, nothing daunting, they continue their
feeding, apparently oblivious of their whereabouts and surroundings.
Although the sense of sight is rather keenly developed in these birds,
yet that of smell is none the less so. This is an advantage, for
both the visual and olfactory organs are called into requisition in
determining the presence of decaying matters. As a proof that smell
leads to food-detection, we cannot do better than cite an instance
mentioned by Dr. Hill, and given by Dr. Brewer in the work entitled
"North American Birds." It was a case where several of these birds were
attracted to the house of a German emigrant who was prostrated by fever,
by the strong odor escaping from his neglected food which had become
putrid. Mr. G. C. Taylor, whilst a resident of Kingston, sufficiently
tested their power of smell. He wrapped the carcass of a bird in a piece
of paper, and flung the parcel into the summit of a densely-leaved tree,
in close proximity to his window. A moment or two elapsed, when the keen
smell of these birds scented something edible, but they were unable to
find it, for the obvious reason that the object was hidden from view by
the enveloping paper.
Generally, their food consists of all kinds of animal matter. They are
often accused of egg-sucking, and also of eating the young of Herons, as
well as those of other birds. In Trinidad they are said to live on the
most friendly terms with the poultry. As no breach of faith has been
reported to have occurred in this instance, it is not likely that they
would molest in any way our smaller birds, at least we are not cognizant
of any such cases of interference, from our own observation, nor do
we find them in the recorded experiences of our friends. They are
worse-disposed, it seems to us, to their own kith and kin. When several
are together, the most violent wrangles occur over their booty. Each
strives to get the lion's share. It is rather amusing to witness their
manouvres. A fellow has just discovered a very choice bit, which he is
endeavoring to make away with in a somewhat hurried manner, but before
he has accomplished the task, he is soon beset by a near companion who
has scarcely swallowed his morsel. A conflict ensues. The latter being
the stronger, succeeds after a while in defrauding the other of
his rightful property. When gorged, these birds appear stupid and
indisposed to exertion, the period of digestion being ordinarily passed
in a motionless, listless attitude, with half-spread wings.
Recovered from their semi-stupid condition, they do not at once go to
feeding again, but pass a long time in the healthful exercise of their
volant appendages. Few birds are more graceful, easy and dignified
while on the wing. On the ground they may seem awkward, but it is while
soaring above the earth that they are seen in all their glory. When
prepared for their lofty flights, they spring from the ground with
a single bound, and, after a few quick flappings of the wings, move
heavenward. Having attained a great elevation, they move through the
ether in ever-widening circles, or sail on nearly horizontal wings, the
tips above being slightly raised, with steady, uniform motion. These
aerial diversions are never performed singly, but in small parties of a
dozen or more, and are more common in early spring, and at the close of
the breeding-period, than during the intervening time. It is also to
be remarked that they are executed in silence, for the Turkey Buzzards,
like their indigenous American relatives, are a mute species, the only
sound of which they are capable, being a kind of hiss, which has not
been inaptly compared to the seething noise emitted by plunging a hot
iron in a vessel of water.
When ready to breed they look around for a hollow tree, or some stump
or log in a state of decay, either upon the ground, or but slightly
elevated above it. Generally, there are no indications of a nest. In
occasional cases a few rotten leaves are scratched into the hollow
selected for the deposition of the eggs, the latter being laid without
any previous care having been taken for their preservation and shelter.
In Southern New Jersey, we have sometimes strayed upon the nest in
the midst of a deep and almost impenetrable morass, placed within
an excavated stump. Within the rock-caverns along the wide, shallow
Susquehanna, as many as a dozen nests have been observed in a few
hundred yards of space, often as early as the last week of March, when
the weather was favorable, but generally not till the middle of April.
A few individuals have been known to remain in the vicinity of their
breeding-quarters through the entire year, when the winters are not
extremely rigorous. At Parkersburg, near the western boundary of Chester
County, T. H. Jackson, of West Chester, Pa., has found it breeding;
but within Philadelphia it rarely does, if at all. In Delaware County,
paired individuals have been observed early in April under rather
suspicious circumstances. In Southern Ohio it is a common summer
sojourner. Mr. Gosse, in speaking of the birds in Jamaica, says that
they nest in depressions in the rock, and in the ledges thereof, in
retired localities, and also upon inaccessible cliffs. On Galveston
Island, Audubon found the birds nesting in great numbers either under
widespread cactus branches, or underneath low bushes, in the midst of
tall grasses in level saline marshes.
In the vicinity of Cheraw, S. C. Dr. C. Kollock, as mentioned by Brewer,
met with the Black and our present species as quite frequent denizens of
the interior of swamps and dense forests, where they congregate in vast
numbers during the entire year. These places are commonly designated
Buzzards' roosts. Audubon once visited one of these roosts in the
vicinity of Charleston, which covered more than two acres of ground, and
which was completely denuded of vegetation. On the banks of many of
the rivers of Southern Texas, Mr. Dresser found them nesting in large
numbers, the timber along their borders constituting comfortable and
secure shelter. Contrary to what has always been entertained, he affirms
that they build large and bulky nests of sticks, which they place at
great heights in an oak or cypress, close by the river-banks. Captain
C. C. Abbott says that in the Falkland Islands the eggs are deposited
in the midst of bushes beneath high banks, or on the summits of decayed
balsam logs, during the early part of November, either upon the ground,
or on the bare surface of a log. In certain localities, where the birds
are not very common, paired individuals are frequently met with.
The eggs are generally two in number, although instances are known where
but a single one is deposited. On the Falkland Islands they are said
to lay three occasionally. In the West Indies, especially in the Bahama
group, the nest-complement is the same as in the United States, and
there does not seem to be any difference in the habits of the birds
that abound in the latter country. Specimens from New Jersey, Texas, and
South Carolina are creamy-white in ground, and are variously marked
with divers shades of brown, intermingled with splashes of lavender and
purple, which are often so faint as only to be perceptible upon close
inspection. Brewer mentions a variety from near Cheraw, S. C., that was
nearly pure white, and which showed but a few small red and slightly
purplish lines and dots about the larger extremity. Recently, we have
met with some from Texas answering the same description. In dimensions
these eggs vary but little, and have, on the average, a length of 2.78
inches, and a width of 2.00, or rather less.
The duty of hatching falls not exclusively to either sex, but is shared
by both. The time required to bring out the young is, under the
most constant sitting, about twenty-two days. While occupied with
family-matters the birds are seldom visited by strangers, and are
allowed to rule in their own chosen realm with undisputed sway. Only
the hardened collector has courage to enter their disgusting abodes,
and rifle them of their treasures, a business not difficult of
accomplishment, for the birds instantly vacate, and become silent
watchers of the pillage. These birds do not seem to possess a particle
of spirit, and are as cowardly as they are big. When captured they offer
no active resistance, but very effectually warn off their aggressor, by
disgorging the half-digested contents of their crop. When being killed
they are perfectly passive and apathetic. Dr. Coues affirms that they
will often simulate death when captured. On one occasion, an individual
being shot, was picked up for dead. While being borne to his tent it was
perfectly limp. Reaching his quarters, he carelessly threw it upon
the ground, and went to work at something else. After a brief spell he
looked around and beheld, to his surprise, that the bird had changed
its position, and was furtively glaring around. On going to it, its
eyes immediately closed, its body became relaxed, and it lay completely
motionless, and apparently dead. After compressing its chest for several
minutes, until he fancied life to be extinct, he dropped the bird, and
repaired to supper. On returning, the bird had disappeared, it evidently
having scrambled into the bushes as soon as his back was turned. This
strategem is not new, and has been frequently observed by us, although
unrecorded.
What they lack in courage they more than make up in the attention which
they bestow upon their offspring. Like their parents, the latter are
gluttonous feeders, and must be nourished at frequent intervals during
the entire day. Their diet at first is the half-changed matter which is
forced by the parents in their mouths. When they have been blessed with
the use of their eyes, which occurs during the second week of their
life, they are able to masticate small bits of meat that are brought to
them, although the early method is still kept up until they are ready
to hunt for themselves. This matter, together with that of an
excrementitious character, which is found about the nest, renders the
latter exceedingly offensive, and is hardly endurable to persons of weak
nerves. But where numbers breed together the foulness of the resort is
indescribable.
The young are covered at first with a whitish down; but as they increase
in age, soon show traces of what they are to be, but of, the precise
period when they attain the adult plumage, we are ignorant. When they
quit the nest they appear with the bill and naked skin of the head and
neck, of a livid blackish hue, and the back of the head and nape with
more or less of whitish down. Their dress is more uniformly blackish,
the brownish borders above being less distinct, and the reflections
rather green than violaceous. Mature birds have the bill white, the feet
flesh-colored, and the head red. The general plumage is blackish-brown,
and the quills ashy-gray on their lower surfaces. The skin of the head
presents a wrinkled aspect, and is sparingly invested with bristle-like
feathers, the plumage proper commencing in a circle on the neck The
nostrils are quite large and open, the iris umber, and the tail rounded.
In length they measure about two and a half feet, and have an extent of
nearly six. The tail is one foot long, and the wings two.
Notwithstanding their filthy habits, which render them obnoxious in the
eyes of many persons, their harmless, peaceable natures should command
for them respect from the lords of creation, even though they should
not possess other claims to popular consideration. Like their nearest
relations the plundering Buteos and Falcons--they offer no harm to their
smaller brethren, nor detriment to the husbandman's stock of poultry.
They are essentially a useful bird, and in the Southern States where
their services are most in demand, both they and the Black Vulture are
protected by law, a fine being imposed upon any who should wilfully
destroy their lives. But in more northern sections they are persecuted
with impunity. Hence their avoidance of the residence of man. As
scavengers we recognize in them great benefactors, and when left in
undisturbed possession of their freedom, they come in and go out among
their human brethren, and seldom show the repulsive side of their
character. In not endowing these birds with the same great force of
character which she has lavished upon the Falcons, Nature has provided
them with a means of defence, which is as serviceable to them as the
powerful talons and bill of their courageous brethren.
Respecting the resident range of this species, as compared with its
summer dispersions, it has not been observed to winter on the Atlantic
seaboard beyond New Jersey, and is even more abundant here in summer
than in the cold season. In Washington, where the bird is said to be
quite common, no important diminution of its numbers has been noticed
during several successive winters. In both the Carolinas the same
condition of affairs is found to exist. Its winter range in the interior
seems to be higher up, perhaps as far north as Minnesota, for it has
been observed here late in October, and again in December, but the
latter may have been an accidental occurrence. According to Dr. Coues,
the isothermal line corresponding, on the Atlantic coast, with the
fortieth parallel of latitude, may approximately indicate its farthest
northern limit in the winter.
[Illustration: 415]
Plate XLIX.--LOPHODYTES CUCULLATUS, (Linn.) Reich.--Hooded Sheldrake.
|The habitat of this species is nearly co-extensive with the whole of
North America. Throughout considerable portions of the United States
it is chiefly migratory, being seen only in the spring and fall. In the
Missouri region it is the most common of the three species that inhabit
this country, and is said by writers to breed in Northern Dakota, and
also on the Upper Missouri and Milk rivers. It was found along the banks
of the Yellowstone by the party under Lieutenant Warren, and by later
expeditions, on the Green River. In New England, according to Samuels,
it is less plentiful than any of the other Sheldrakes during the autumn,
winter and early spring, but more recent writers--Messrs. Rich and
Deane--have found it a not uncommon breeder in hollow stumps on Lake
Umbagog. In Central New York, Eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey it is
quite often seen _in transitu_, and in some localities a few are known
to winter. But the majority, after spending the summer in the northern
parts of the United States and the British possessions to their utmost
limits, only quit these haunts when the streams have become frozen,
for the creeks and rivers of our Southern States, and the still warmer
climes of Mexico and Cuba. E. W. Nelson says they are common winter
residents upon Lake Michigan, and breed sparingly throughout the State
of Illinois.
Though mainly an inland species, having a fondness for ponds, lakes and
fresh-water streams, yet it does not confine its visits exclusively
to such resorts, but forsakes them during very cold weather for the
seashore, where it can pursue its calling untrammeled by the accidents
of winter, which are more certain to affect fresh than salt waters.
By the sporting fraternity it is now called the "Hairy Head," an
appellation which it fitly deserves, for the high, beautifully-rounded
and particolored crest which so gracefully adorns the head, is rendered
more conspicuous in the absence of the usual decorations which Flora had
so recently lavished upon the landscape.
Like most Sheldrakes, in common with the Ducks and Geese, this
species depends upon the water for the principal portion of its food.
Consequently, it spends considerable time in swimming, and being endowed
with keen sight, is able to discern its prey at some distance below.'
With the possession of this wonderful faculty, it unites great skill
and nicety of address. Its movements upon the glassy liquid surface
are performed with silence and gracefulness, so as not to produce undue
alarm to the finny tribes and creeping things that dart hither and
thither, or crawl their slimy lengths along the oozy or pebbly bottom;
and the stroke of the head, when one has crossed its line of vision, is
as rapid and unerring as the swift motion of the Heron when he deals the
death-giving blow to some luckless reptile that has just emerged from
its quiet retreats. In the case of the Sheldrake, it is not merely the
head and neck that are immersed, but often the entire body receives the
watery bath, especially when the game is out of ordinary reach. These
baths are enjoyed; for no sooner has the bird arisen with its feathers
glistening in the sunlight like gem-bedecked armor, than, with one
slight ruffle, the jewels are dashed to pieces, and it is ready again.
Fish, small crabs, molluscs, seaworms, reptiles, and such like creatures
as dwell in water, are eagerly hunted and eaten. On the dry laud,
beetles, grasshoppers and lepidoptera contribute their share to its
varied and voluminous _menu_.
When the spell of winter has been broken, and thousands of small birds
are wending their way northward in April, the Sheldrakes catching the
contagion of migration, leave their winter haunts, and following the
great arteries of our continent, slowly journey northward. After a
little they bid adieu to these essential guides, and betake themselves
inland, where by the grassy margins of lakes, ponds and small streams,
in retired and unfrequented localities, in the declining days of May,
or dawn of laughing June, they select their partners, and enter upon
the duties of housekeeping. Around the bayous of the Ohio, on our
Northwestern Lakes, by the borders of Hudson's Bay, and on the River
St. Peters, they delighted to raise their numerous families in the happy
days of Audubon, and there they still find suitable quarters, almost
undisturbed by man and his minions. In our own beloved country they
breed less abundantly, and only, as far as can be ascertained, in the
regions, noted above, adjacent to British America.
In the holes of tall dead trees, or on the tops of stubs, twenty, thirty
and forty feet from the ground, seldom higher, the female places her
nest, giving it a warm and cosy lining of soft grasses and feathers. She
has everything her own way, the male seemingly manifesting little or no
interest. Here she deposits her treasures, and relieved of her mate,
who dwells by himself in some remote and secluded locality, instantly
repairs to its precincts, and for nearly three weeks remains a very
assiduous and persevering sitter. Like the Wood Duck, when about to
leave the nest for food, she is careful to cover her eggs with some of
the materials of the nest, to prevent them from becoming cold. Though
not often constrained to leave them, but when she does, she is apt to
remain away for a considerable time, but not long enough to endanger the
developing life within.
The eggs are thick-shelled, somewhat spherical, more so than any other
species of Duck, and a trifle more pointed at one extremity than the
other. They are of a clean-white color, but in some instances are made
to appear somewhat yellowish on the surface, which is to be attributed
to stains produced by moisture from the feet of the sitting-bird. From
the other Sheldrakes they may be readily distinguished by color and
size, but should these fail, which is not likely to prove the case,
their identity may be recognized by a peculiar noise which is made when
two of these eggs are struck together, the sound produced resembling
nearly that of a couple of ivory balls when submitted to the same
treatment. In size there is considerable variation, but in no instance
will the eggs be found to rival the others in dimensions. The average
length is 2.13 inches, and average breadth 1.72. Samuels mentions
specimens that were 2.30 by 1.75, and others, more rounded, that
measured 2.10 in transverse diameter, and 1.80 in the other direction.
Though jealous of her treasures, yet the female is not known to risk her
life to save them. If the nest is approached, she maintains the utmost
silence, and only ventures out when terrified by heavy blows on the
trunk of the tree which contains her nest. Driven out, she seeks the
pond or stream close-by, and from its bosom surveys the actions of the
intruder, with not so much as a cry of remonstrance. If the latter is
hidden from view by the dense vegetation, she quits the water, circles
over and about Him, and is always careful to keep out of reach of harm.
Her quiet demeanor and intense watchfulness betoken the distress and
anxiety that reign within, and, to a person of the least particle of
sympathy, are enough to cause him to give up his desire for pillage,
forsake the scene, and leave that mute witness of his contemplated wrong
in peaceful possession of her property.
In course of time the young are hatched. Maternal joy is now at its
height. However, the parent does not permit herself to be so completely
carried away thereby, as to lose sight of their interests, but sets to
work to remove them from their closely-cooped quarters. If their home is
some distance from the water, she carries them one by one in her mouth,
and lays them down by its banks. In changing from one stream to
another, where some space intervenes, this is her ordinary method of
transportation in their early ages. Almost as soon as the chicks have
been placed in sight of the water, they require no coaxing to induce
them to enter, but impelled by feelings of instinct, they plunge
into its depths, and act as though they had been there before. While
disporting themselves in the aqueous fluid, the mother exercises a
strict surveillance, to prevent being surprised. If taken unawares, she
utters a chattering, guttural cry. The whole brood dive and swim off
under water to the shore, and conceal themselves in the dense herbage.
While the young are disappearing, the mother counterfeits lameness,
and by every conceivable stratagem known to her, endeavors to lead the
intruder away from the spot. Succeeding in this, she takes to wing and
flies off. If apprised of the approach in season, before the person has
advanced within gun-shot distance, she swims away with great rapidity,
her brood following after, until they have reached a bend in the stream.
Here, out of sight of the pursuing party, they make for the shore, creep
silently out of the water, and hide themselves until the object of their
dread has disappeared. The female Wood Duck often encroaches upon the
domains of this bird, and the most unhappy consequences follow.
When the young are able to provide for themselves, the male emerges
from his solitude, and consorts with his family. Both old and young hold
together during the remainder of the season, and then unite with other
small flocks to constitute the larger ones which are seen in migration
in the month of October. Young birds, when about two-thirds grown, are
in great demand for the table, as they are excellent eating. From their
habit of flapping the wings on the water, when endeavoring to escape
pursuit, they have been called "Flappers." It is probable that they do
not attain their full plumage until the next spring. Nuttall says the
upper plumage is browner than in the adult, and the white speculum and
bands on the tertiaries less perfect. The black and white bars on the
shoulders, and the white stripe behind the eye, are wanting. On the
head, neck, and upper portions of the breast, a soiled pale-brown color
prevails, which is edged with whitish on the last. The chin is inclined
to white. The bill is black above, and orange below, and the crest but
slightly developed.
The adult male is black above, with two crescent-shaped spots before the
wings, and a bar across the speculum, of the same color. The sides are
chestnut, and striped with black, while the lower parts, speculum, bands
on tertiaries, and crest-centre, are white. The nostrils are sub-basal,
and the bill nearly or quite black. His length is from eighteen to
nineteen inches, and wing about eight.
From her lord the female differs somewhat in size, being smaller, and in
a most marked degree in plumage. The two are easily distinguished. The
compact, erect, semi-circular and side-compressed crest is smaller and
less rounded; the head and neck are brown; back and sides dark brown,
with paler edges to the feathers, and white on wings of less extent.
The lower mandible is reddish at base. Upon comparison with the above
description of the immature bird, it will be observed that a striking
resemblance obtains between the two. Where the sexes materially differ
in plumage, the rule seems to be that the young males take on the
characteristic dress of the mother before assuming that which is to
distinguish them later in life.
The disposition of the Sheldrakes to nest in obscure situations, remote
from the haunts of man, and often difficult of access, perhaps, has much
to do with the ignorance that enshrouds their history. Were they better
known, and more easily approached, they might be subdued by the skill
of man, and be made to associate with the Mallard, whose ancestors still
live in a feral state. A little patience is all that is necessary
to carry the project to completion, if it should be attempted, and
reasoning from the success of the plan in the case of the Wood Duck--a
species remarkably similar in general habits--we entertain no doubt
as to its practicability. But would the plan be feasible? This is a
question that we are not prepared to answer. At any rate, it is worthy
of an effort. If the trial has ever been made, we are not aware of it,
nor can we find anything in the literature of ornithology to warrant us
in saying that it has. Beautiful in plumage, and noted for their grace,
skill and ease upon the watery element, they might become interesting
denizens of man's surroundings, even though they should never, by their
usefulness, fully repay him for the care and expense which he would
necessarily be compelled to bestow upon them.
[Illustration: 423]
Plate L.--PHAINOPEPLA NITENS, (Sw.) Scl.--Black-crested Flycatcher.
|This very remarkable bird was originally described from Mexico by
Swainson, and appears to have been first assigned to our fauna by
Colonel George A. McCall, who met with it in 1852, while traveling
from Vallecita to El Chino. It is said to occur in mountainous regions
throughout the southern portions of California, Nevada, New Mexico,
Arizona and Texas, and probably in parts of Colorado and Utah. In
Southern California, according to B, W. Evermann, of Bloomington, Ind.,
who has devoted considerable time to the study of its habits, it is
quite locally distributed, and is rather a common summer resident in
the smaller valleys and canyons, but is rarely observed "in the larger
valleys or more open level country." Among the foot-hills in the
vicinity of Frezno Flats, he encountered considerable numbers on the
evergreen oaks, in July, 1880, but only a single pair at the entrance
of the Yosemite Valley, and these were perched high-up in a tall
sugar-pine, not silent, however, but calling to each other in their own
peculiar fashion.
Our friend's first acquaintance with this species was made in the
delightful valley of Santa Clara in October, 1879, while collecting
Gambel's Sparrows. Intent upon the business before him, he was
pursuing his way along a fence, when a strange bird, light and
graceful upon the wing, was seen nervously moving from one point to
another, ever and anon darting at some passing insect, and uttering in
the intervals of feeding the oddest and most querulous note he had
ever heard. This note, says our informant, was "full of sadness,
desolation and despair." Never before had he been so affected by song
of bird as by this. Since then several opportunities have been
afforded him, and many an hour has been spent in listening to its
song.
In the lovely month of May, of the year that has just passed, while
watching two pairs engaged in nesting, he was treated to a delightful
and gratuitous serenade, late in the evening, when most birds had
retired to their perches. Ceased from their labors, they had taken their
stations upon the topmost boughs of the live oaks which supported
their nests, when one of the males instantly tuned his pipe, and gave
expression to the sweetest yet saddest of refrains, which was "low,
slow, sad and indescribably delicious and fascinating." Mr. Evermann,
in speaking of it, says: "I could think of nothing with which to
compare it, but at times I thought I could detect a slight resemblance
to the lowest, most subdued notes of the Sickle-billed Thrasher." The
song is certainly wonderful and unique, and should entitle its author
to a very exalted position among singing-birds. From all accounts it
is most generally heard at nightfall, and only occasionally in the
early part of the afternoon. Of the few writers who have treated of
this species, Doctors Coues and Cooper seem to be the only persons,
besides the one we have just referred to, who are willing to credit it
with musical ability.
From their winter-home in Lower Arizona and Mexico these birds reach
Southern California from the fifteenth to the twentieth of April--males
and females together. At first they are somewhat gregarious, not from
feelings of sociability, if we are rightly informed, but from the
presence of favorite articles of food which abound in certain places.
Though insects constitute a very considerable portion of their diet, yet
like their supposed nearest affinity--the Cedar-bird--they are fond of
the various berries that are to be found in their accustomed haunts. The
fruit of the mistletoe is said to give them abundance of nutritious food
during their entire stay. Henshaw says: "Large numbers of this species
were found, on several occasions, in the canyon back of Camp Apache,
Arizona. As they were noticed nowhere else in this vicinity, I judged
that the abundance of mistletoe berries here served as an attraction.
These they were greedily feeding upon." The same author found immense
numbers gathered together in the canyon at Camp Bowie, Ariz., feeding
upon a species of wild plum and also of grape, fruits of which they were
particularly fond. Their predilection for the berries of the mistletoe
is attested to by other writers no less eminent.
Though close and vigorous feeders, yet they do not carry their greed to
the extent that the Cedar-bird does, which, as we have seen, never seems
to be in any very great hurry to enter upon the duties of nidification.
The cares of the household early engross their attention. The flocks
break up into pairs, and the latter soon start off in quest of suitable
nesting places. The tree selected in Southern California appears to
be the live oak exclusively, but in other localities, the mezquite
sometimes shares with it the honor. Of seven nests examined by Evermann,
four were saddled on a horizontal limb from four to twenty-five feet
above the ground, and near the end; one was placed upon three small
twigs, another upon two, and the last in a forked branch, thirty feet
high, and in the extreme summit. In the work of building there seems to
be no division of labor, and each bird appears to act independently
of the other. The utmost caution is taken to prevent discovery. When a
suitable twig, or other substance has been found by either, it is
not carried directly to the nest, but the finder first flies to a
neighboring bush or tree, where he alights for a brief spell, and shows
his anxiety by a nervous twitching of the tail. Uttering a call, he
spreads his wings for flight, and glides swiftly to another tree, and
perhaps to another, each time approaching nearer and nearer to the
nesting-tree, the bright white spot upon the wing gleaming in the
sunlight in vivid contrast with the black body-color. If aware of your
presence, he seemingly endeavors to delude you, for just when you think
you are sure of his location, if you have not already discovered it by
observation, he disappoints you by flying to a more distant tree, where
he ceases his notes, rests awhile, but only to resume his hitherto
circuitous flight directly to the wished-for spot. While working upon
the nest the most perfect silence is maintained, and the builder always
leaves in the direction opposite to that by which he entered. The
routine was so closely followed by Evermann, that he could generally
guess with tolerable accuracy what movements were in contemplation.
We are told that from five to eight days are required for the completion
of the domicile, and that laying commences on the day succeeding this
event, one egg being laid daily until the full nest-complement is
reached. By the fifteenth of May the birds are ready for incubation,
although in some cases this business is entered into by the fourth, and
occasionally not until the nineteenth of the month.
Respecting the number of eggs laid, Mr. Evermann finds that three is.
the usual number, although up to the time of his observations, it was
the opinion of ornithologists that the birds deposited but two. Seven
nests were secured by this collector, in the vicinity of Santa Paula,
Cal., and all excepting one were found to contain three eggs, and this
had but two. Dr. Cooper gives but two as the ordinary complement, and he
is the first individual who called attention to the nest of the species.
This structure was found near Fort Mojave, on the Colorado, 011 the
twenty-fifth of April, and was placed in a mezquite branch at a height
of twelve feet from the ground. No further particulars were given of
this find, until Dr. Brewer described it in the first volume of the
"History of North American Birds." Substantially, he says the nest was
a very flat affair, four inches in external diameter, not two in height,
and with a depth of cavity of less than an inch. It was composed almost
wholly of flax-like fibres, fine grasses, plant-stems, and stalks of
larger size, variously interwoven, and lined with a soft downy material
of vegetable character.
This notice of Dr. Cooper's nest, though probably authentic, is thought
by Coues not free from suspicion. The material of Captain Bendire, which
maybe found described in the Proceedings of the Natural History
Society of Boston, though ascribed by Brewer to Townsend's Flycatcher,
unquestionably belongs to the Black-crested, for the nest and eggs of
the former are too well known, through the exertions of Mr. Wilbur F.
Lamb, of Holyoke, Mass., whose interesting narrative appears in the
Bulletin of the Kuttall Ornithological Club, for 1877, to lead any
intelligent naturalist to refer it thereto. Recurring to the subject,
in the Appendix to the above "History," Brewer re-describes the Bendire
material, although in very unsatisfactory terms. He says the nest was
found saddled, most generally, on a horizontal branch of a mezquite
tree, and is a shallow, nearly flat structure, measuring four inches
across, and having a cavity two and a half inches in diameter, and
one-half an inch in depth. Fine sticks and fibres of plants make up the
external bulk, and within a little down of the cottonwood and a stray
feather. The first nest, which was found May 16, was mainly lined with
the shells of empty cocoons. Though the captain met with more than a
dozen nests with eggs and young, yet, astonishing to say, he never found
more than two in a nest--a striking contrast to Evermann's observations.
In attempting to reconcile the difference he honestly says: "The thing
is perhaps accounted for, and I am very positive about my views being
correct, that in California they [the Black-crested Flycatchers] raise
only one brood, while in Arizona they raise two and three." There is no
doubt of the correctness of his opinion, for in this, as in many other
species, the number of eggs in a set is probably larger in the northern
parts of the breeding-range than in the southern, the difference being
made up by the greater number of broods annually raised in the latter.
There seems to be considerable uniformity in the character of the
materials utilized in nesting. Before us are six nests from Southern
California, and, on close examination, each seems to be the exact
counterpart of every other. Fine grass, small sticks, thin hairy stems,
vegetable fibres and wool, empty cocoons and seed vessels, the latter
attached to their stalks, curiously and ingeniously matted together, and
presenting a rather even surface, considering the abundance of sticks
utilized, make up nearly the entire structure. The cavity exhibits
the same materials, but then they are more smoothly adjusted by the
builders. None of the nests before us are perfectly round, such as we
sometimes see in the Wood Pewee's lichen-clad home, but are somewhat
eccentric in contour. The same irregularity is usually a conspicuous
feature of the inside. In external diameter they are nearly four inches,
and in length vary from one and a half to two, one side being sometimes
a half inch thicker than the other, not an accidental occurrence, but
probably the result of design, due, no doubt, to the position of the
nest upon the branch, the thicker part looking outwardly where exposure
is the greater. The depression is two and a half inches wide, and the
depth usually but a half, but varying from that to as much as an inch.
In the Plate it is represented natural in size, and saddled upon a
horizontal branch of the live oak, a short distance in advance of the
builders.
The eggs, two or three in number, are of an oblong oval shape, and vary
from a greenish-white to a lavender and a grayish-white groundcolor, and
are rather strongly marked with small, distinct spots of divers shades
of brown, interspersed with fine dottings of slate, which are pretty
uniformly diffused over the surface, although most abundant about the
larger extremity. The distribution of these spots presents some marked
variations, but, according to our experience, a uniformity prevails in
eggs of the same clutch. A set of three before us shows the following
measurements: .94 by .69, .94 by .68 and .93 by .68. Incubation begins
immediately after the eggs are laid, according to Mr. Evermann, and is
the exclusive duty of the female for about fourteen days.
The young male partakes of the coloration of both parents, but the
adult is a uniform lustrous black, the monotony of which is in a measure
relieved by large white patches upon the wings, most of the inner web
of each primary feather, excepting the first, showing this latter color.
The female is brown, the white on the wings being much restricted, or
obsolete. Their entire length is about seven and a half inches, wing
three and three-fifths, and tail four and a quarter.