Feathers on sides of throat edged with fulvous; those on lower parts
of back with their basal parts marked with large white spots, edged
with fulvous, but which do not show, until the feathers are ruffled.
Tail of the same dark brown as the back, with many bars of pale
brown, and extreme points tipped with dirty white. Tail-coverts same
brown, with the more lateral ones marked with white and fulvous.
Wings: primaries black, with the inner and basal webs brownish;
secondaries and tertiaries brown, with obscure traces of paler
transverse bars. _Under surface._—Chin almost white; throat and
breast very pale ochre yellow, with narrow brown lines on the shaft
of the feathers, which expand into large marks on the sides of the
upper part of the breast, and into regular spots on those of the
belly. Lining of wing white, with brown spots on the feathers near
their tips, like on those of the belly. Thighs very pale ochre
yellow, with transverse bars of pale brown, appearing like inverted
wedge-formed marks, with the apex on the shafts. Under tail-coverts
almost white; under side of tail pale gray, with darker gray bars on
the inner side of shafts. Bill blueish black, with base of lower
mandible and part of upper yellowish. Tarsi pale yellow.
FORM.—Fourth primary very little longer than either the third or
fifth, which are equal. First nearly equal to the eighth. Extremity
of wing when folded reaching within two inches and a half of the end
of the tail.
In.
Total length 23
Wing when folded 15½
Tail 9½
Tarsi 3½
Middle toe from joint to tip of claw 3
From extremity of beak to within nostril ⁹⁄₁₀
Habitat, Santa Cruz, Lat. 50° S. Patagonia, (_April_.)
Mr. Gould remarks that “this species has all the characters of a true
_Buteo_, and will rank as one of the finest of this well defined group.
In size it rather exceeds the Common Buzzard of Europe, which in its
general style of colouring it somewhat resembles.”
SUB-FAM.—FALCONINA, VIG.
FALCO FEMORALIS. _Temm._
Falco femoralis, _Temm._ Pl. Col. 121 male; and 343 adult male.
—— _Spix_, Av. Sp. Nov. 1. p. 18.
This specimen was shot in a small valley on the plains of Patagonia, at
Port Desire, in Lat. 47° 44′. It builds its nest in low bushes, and the
female was sitting on the eggs in the beginning of January. Egg, 1·8 of
an inch in longer diameter, and 1·4 in shorter; surface rough with white
projecting points; colour nearly uniform dirty “wood brown,” thickly
freckled with rather a darker tint; general appearance, as if it had
been rubbed in brown mud. M. D’Orbigny supposed that Latitude 34° was
the southern limit of this species; we now find its range three hundred
and thirty miles further southward. The same author states that this
falcon prefers a dry open country with scattered bushes, which answers
to the character of the valleys, in the plains near Port Desire.
TINNUNCULUS SPARVERIUS. _Vieill._
Falco sparverius, _Linn. et Auct._
I obtained specimens both from North and South Patagonia (Rio Negro and
Santa Cruz), and Captain King found it at Port Famine in Tierra del
Fuego. I saw it at Lima in Peru; and Mr. Macleay (Zoological Journal,
vol. iii.) sent specimens from Cuba. According to Wilson it is common in
the United States, and Richardson says its northern range is about 54°.
The _Tinnunculus_ therefore, ranges throughout both Americas over more
than 107 degrees of latitude, or 6420 geographical miles. It is the only
bird, which I saw in South America, that hovered over one particular
spot, in the same stationary manner, as the common English kestrel
(_Falco tinnunculus_, Linn.) is so frequently observed to do.
SUB-FAM.—CIRCINÆ.
1. CIRCUS MEGASPILUS. _Gould._
Circus megaspilus, _Gould_, in Proceedings of the Zoological Society,
Part V. 1837, p. 10.
_C. vertice corporeque supra intensè fuscis, lineâ stramineâ a naribus
supra oculos ad occiput tendente; hoc rufescenti-fusco; primariis
intensè fuscis ad basin cinereis, lineis nigris cancellatis; caudæ
tectricibus albis; rectricibus intermediis cinereis, externis
cinereo-stramineis, omnibus lineis latis fuscis transversim notatis,
lineâ ultimâ latissimâ, apice sordidè stramineo; gulâ pectoreque
stramineis, fusco variegatis; corpore subtus stramineo; plumis
pectoris laterumque striâ centrali fuscâ notatis; rostro nigro; cerâ
tarsisque flavis._
Long. tot. 22 unc.; _rostri_, 1½; _alæ_, 17; _caudæ_, 10½; _tarsi_,
3⅓.
COLOUR.—Head, back of throat, whole back, and wing-coverts umber
brown, of a nearly uniform tint, and not very dark. Front, over the
nostrils, with few fulvous bristly feathers; over the eyes,
extending backward, a pale almost pure white streak, which joins an
irregular band, extending across the nape of the neck, from below
ear to ear, of brown feathers, edged with pale fulvous, giving a
streaked appearance to that part. The wing-coverts are just tipped
with dirty white. Wings: primaries of the same brown as the back,
the inner ones assuming a gray tinge; these, and the basal parts of
the inner webs of all, are obscurely barred; secondaries and
tertiaries of a paler brown than the interscapular region. Tail
grayish brown, with five well-defined bars, about ¾ of an inch wide,
of the same brown, as the rest of the upper surface; extremities
tipped with very pale dirty brown. Tail-coverts; upper ones brown,
and the under ones white, with small brown spots on the shaft
towards their extremities. _Under surface._—Chin, pale fulvous, or
ochre yellow. Breast, belly, thighs and under tail-coverts the same;
the feathers on the lower part of the breast and on the belly have a
dark brown mark along the shaft, which widens but very little
towards the extremity; the brown on those on the upper part of the
breast and on the throat is broader, and some of the feathers are of
a darker fulvous, and as the dark brown of the back encroaches on
each side, this part is much darker than the rest of the under
surface. Above this, and just beneath the chin, a kind of collar is
formed from ear to ear, of short feathers of a more strongly
pronounced fulvous tint, with a narrow brown streak on their shafts.
Lining of wings, and flanks almost white, with transverse brown
bars. Under side of tail pale gray passing into fulvous, with the
terminal dark brown bars seen through. Bill, horn coloured, with
some white markings towards its base; tarsi bright yellow.
FORM.—Third primary rather longer than fourth, second equal to fifth;
first more nearly equal to the sixth than to the seventh. Wings
reaching within an inch of the end of the tail. Feathers on thighs
depend but little below the knee.
In.
Total length 22
Wings folded 17
Tail 10½
Tarsi 3⅓
Middle toe to end of claw 2¾
From tip of bill to nearest part of cere ⁷⁵⁄₁₀₀
Habitat, Maldonado, La Plata, (_July_.)
This hawk was not uncommon on the grassy savannahs and hills in the
neighbourhood of the Rio Plata. Mr. Gould remarks “that in size it fully
equals the _Circus æruginosus_ of Europe, which it doubtless represents
in the countries it inhabits. This species has a remarkable specific
character in the lanceolate and conspicuous stripes down its breast.”
2. CIRCUS CINERIUS. _Vieill._
Circus cinerius, _Vieill._ Ency. Meth.
Falco histrionicus, _Quoy and Gaim._ Voy. autour du monde, Plate 15.
Circus histrionicus, _Vigors_, Zoological Journal, vol. iii. p. 425,
note.
My specimens were obtained at the Falkland Islands, and at Concepçion in
Chile. M. D’Orbigny states that it is a wild bird; but at the Falkland
Islands it was, for one of its order, very tame. The same author gives a
curious account of its habits: in a different manner from other
raptorial birds, when it has killed its prey, it does not fly to a
neighbouring tree, but devours it on the spot. It roosts on the ground,
either on the top of a sand hillock, or by the bank of a stream: it
sometimes walks, instead of hopping, and when doing so, it has some
resemblance in general habit to the _Milvago chimango_. It preys on
small quadrupeds, molluscous animals, and even insects; and I find in my
notes, that I saw one in the Falkland Islands, feeding on the carrion of
a dead cow. Although in these respects this _Circus_ manifests some
relation in its habits with the _Polyborinæ_, yet it has the elegant and
soaring flight, peculiar to its family; and in form it does not depart
from the typical structure. Mr. Gould remarks that “we see in this
elegant bird as perfect an analogue of the _Circus cyaneus_ of Europe,
as in the preceding species of the _Circus æruginosus_.”
FAMILY.—STRIGIDÆ.
SUB-FAM.—SURNINIÆ.
ATHENE CUNICULARIA. _Bonap._
Strix cunicularia, _Mol. Bonap._ Am. Orni. I. 68. pl. 7. f. 2.
This bird, from its numbers and the striking peculiarities of its habits
has been mentioned in the works of all travellers, who have crossed the
Pampas. In Banda Oriental it is its own workman, and excavates its
burrow on any level spot of sandy soil; but in the Pampas, or wherever
the Bizcacha is found, it uses those made by that animal. During the
open day, but more especially in the evening, these owls may be seen in
every direction standing frequently by pairs on the hillock near their
habitation. If disturbed, they either enter the hole, or, uttering a
shrill harsh cry, move with a remarkably undulatory flight to a short
distance, and then turning round, steadily gaze at their pursuer.
Occasionally in the evening they may be heard hooting. I found in the
stomachs of two which I opened the remains of mice; and I saw a small
snake killed and carried away by one. It is said that reptiles are the
common object of their prey during the day time. Before I was aware,
from the numbers of mice caught in my traps, how vastly numerous the
small rodents are in these open countries, I felt much surprise how such
infinite numbers of owls could find sufficient means of support. I never
saw this bird south of the Rio Negro, (Lat. 41° S.) In North America
they frequent only the trans-Mississippian territories in the
neighbourhood of the Rocky Mountains. The account given by Say of their
habits, agrees with what may every day be observed in the Pampas; but in
the northern hemisphere they inhabit the burrows of the Marmot or
Prairie dog, instead of those of the Bizcacha; and it would appear that
their food is chiefly derived from insects, instead of from small
quadrupeds and reptiles. Mr. Gould says he has compared my specimens
from La Plata and Chile, on opposite sides of the Cordillera, with those
from Mexico and the Rocky Mountains of North America, and he cannot
perceive the slightest specific difference between them.
SUB-FAM.—ULULINÆ.
1. OTUS GALAPAGOENSIS. _Gould._
PLATE III.
Otus (Brachyotus) Galapagoensis, _Gould_, in Proceedings of the
Zoological Society, Part V., 1837, p. 10.
_O. fasciâ circa oculos fuliginosâ; strigâ superciliari, plumis nares
tangentibus et circa angulum oris, gulâ et disci facialis margine,
albis; vertice corporeque supra intensè stramineo fuscoque
variegatis; primariis ad apicem intensè fuscis, ad basin stramineo
fasciatis; corpore subtus stramineo, notis irregularibus fasciisque
fuscis ornato; femoribus tarsisque plumosis rufescenti-stramineis;
rostro unguibusque nigris._
Long. tot. 13½; _rostri_, 1; _alæ_, 11; _caudæ_, 6; _tarsi_, 2.
COLOUR.—Facial disc; plumose feathers immediately around the eyes,
nearly black, tipped with glossy fulvous; those nearer the margin
are white at their base, and only slightly tipped with a darker
brown. Between the eyes a band of small fulvous feathers with a
central streak of dark brown, passing backward, blends into the
plumage of the nape. Back of head and throat streaked with fulvous
and brown, the centre of each feather being brown, and its edge
fulvous. Interscapular region and the feathers of the wing, coloured
in the same manner, but the fulvous part is indented on each side of
the shaft in the brown, giving an obscurely barred appearance to
these feathers. Primaries brown, with large rounded marks of
fulvous; those on the first feather being smaller, and almost white:
wing-coverts brown, and but little mottled. Tail with transverse
bars of the same brown and fulvous, the latter colour much clearer
and stronger on the external feathers; in the central ones, the
fulvous part includes irregular markings of the dark brown. _Under
surface._—Throat and breast, with center of each feather brown,
edged with fulvous; the former colour being predominant. On the
belly and under tail-coverts the brown coloured marks on the shafts
are narrow, but they are united to narrow transverse bars, which
form at the points of intersection marked something like
arrow-heads. The fulvous tint is here predominant. Downy feathers on
thighs same fulvous colour as rest of body. Bill black.
[Illustration:
_Birds. Pl. 3._
_Otus Galapagoensis._
]
FORM.—Second primary scarcely perceptibly longer than the first, and
fourth rather longer than first. Tarsi thickly clothed with short
feathers to the root of the nails.
In.
Total length 13½
Wings 11
Tail 6
Tarsi 2
Middle toe to root of nail 1⅒
From tip of beak to interior edge of nostril ⁶⁄₁₀
Habitat, James Island, Galapagos Archipelago, (_October_).
Mr. Gould informs me, that “this species has most of the essential
characters of the common short-eared owl of Europe (_Strix brachyota_),
but differs from it, and all the other members of the group, in its
smaller size and darker colouring.”
The lesser proportional size of the fulvous marks on the first
primaries, and on the tail, and the peculiar transverse brown marks on
the feathers of the belly, easily distinguish it from the common
short-eared owl. The specimen described is a male bird.
2. OTUS PALUSTRIS. _Gould._
Strix brachyota. _Lath._
Specimens of this bird were obtained at the Falkland Islands, at Santa
Cruz in Patagonia, and at Maldonado on the northern bank of the Plata.
At the latter place it seemed to live in long grass, and took to flight
readily in the day. At the Falkland Islands it harboured in a similar
manner amongst low bushes. Mr. Gould says, “So closely do the specimens
brought home by Mr. Darwin, resemble European individuals, that I can
discover no specific difference, by which they may be distinguished.”
We have, therefore, the same species occurring in lat. 52° S. on the
coast of South America, and in the northern division of the continent,
according to Richardson, even as far as the sixty-seventh degree of
latitude. Jardine says it is found in the Orkney islands (lat. 59°), and
in Siberia; and that he has received specimens of it from Canton. M.
D’Orbigny says it is found in the Sandwich and Marianne islands in the
Pacific Ocean, and at Bengal in India. This bird, therefore, may be
considered as a true cosmopolite.
ULULA RUFIPES.
Strix rufipes, _King_, in Zoological Journal, Vol. iii. p. 426.
I obtained a specimen of this bird from a party of Fuegians in the
extreme southern islands of Tierra del Fuego. Owls are not uncommon in
this country, and as small birds are not plentiful, and the lesser
rodents extremely scarce, it at first appears difficult to imagine on
what they feed. The following fact, perhaps, explains the circumstance:
Mr. Bynoe, the surgeon to the “Beagle,” killed an owl in the Chonos
Archipelago, where the nature of the country is very similar to that of
Tierra del Fuego, and, on opening its stomach, he found it filled with
the remains of large-sized crabs: I conclude, therefore, that these
birds here likewise subsist chiefly on marine productions.
SUB-FAM.—STRIGINÆ.
1. STRIX FLAMMEA. _Linn._
I obtained a specimen of a white owl from Bahia Blanca in Northern
Patagonia, and Mr. Gould remarks concerning it, that he only retains the
name of _S. flammea_ provisionally, until all the white owls, from
various countries, shall have been subjected to a careful examination.
Mr. Gould suspects, that when this is effected, the South American white
owl will prove to be specifically distinct from that of Europe.
2. STRIX PUNCTATISSIMA. _G. R. Gray._
PLATE IV.
_S. supra nigricans, flavo subnebulosa, minutè albo-punctatissima,
maculâ albâ ad apicem plumæ, cujusvis; subtus fulva,
fasciis interruptis nigricantibus; caudâ dorso concolore,
nigricanti-fasciatâ, apice albâ; disco faciali castaneo-rufo
nigricanti-nebuloso circumdato, pogoniis internis albis, scapis
nigris; pedibus longis, infra genu plumosis; tarso reliquo
digitisque subpilosis._
Long. tot. 13½; _alæ_, 9¼; _caudæ_, 4¼; _tarsi_, 2⁷⁄₁₀.
[Illustration:
_Birds. Pl. 4._
_Strix punctatissima._
]
COLOUR.—Head and feathers within facial disc, glossy ferruginous
brown, those forming the margin of it, same coloured, with their
tips dark brown. Back of head and throat smoky brown, mottled with
numerous small white dots, on the tips of the feathers. Back and
wing-coverts the same, with the white spots larger and purer. Wings:
primaries, same dark brown, mottled with dull chesnut red; the tip
of each, with the exception of the three first, is marked with a
triangular white spot, of the same kind with those over the rest of
the body, but larger. Tail, transversely barred with brown and
reddish fulvous, and the extreme points mottled with white. _Under
surface._—Breast, belly and lining of wings, fulvous, mottled with
brown;—the feathers being transversely barred with narrow brown
lines. Under side of tail, pale gray, with well defined transverse
bars of a darker gray. Short downy feathers on tarsi, of a brighter
fulvous than the rest of the under surface.
FORM.—Third primary rather longer than second; first equal to third.
Wing, exceeding the tail in length by nearly one inch and a quarter.
Short feathers on the tarsus, extending about one-third of its
length, below the knee. Tarsi, elongated. Toes and lower part of
tarsi, with few scattered brown hairs.
In.
Total length 13½
Wing 9¼
Tail 4¼
Tarsi 2⁷⁄₁₀
Tip of beak to rictus 1½
Middle toe, from root of claw to base 1⅒
Habitat, James Island, Galapagos Archipelago, (_October_.)
I am indebted to Mr. G. R. Gray for the description of this species,
which is deposited in the British Museum. Only one specimen was obtained
during our visit to the Galapagos Archipelago; and this formed part of
the collection made by the direction of Captain FitzRoy.
This owl is in every respect a true Strix; it is fully a third less than
the common species of Europe, and differs from it in many respects,
especially in the darker colouring of its plumage. The colouring of the
Plate is not perfectly accurate in its minuter details.
FAMILY.—CAPRIMULGIDÆ.
SUB-FAM.—CAPRIMULGINIÆ.
1. CAPRIMULGUS BIFASCIATUS. _Gould._
Caprimulgus bifasciatus, _Gould_, in Proceedings of the Zoological
Society, February 1837, p. 22.
_C. capite nigro fusco et fulvescente ornatus; caudâ albo bifasciatâ,
fasciâ terminali latâ: primâ angustâ; primariis nigrescentibus
fasciâ angustâ albâ ad medium: alis spuriis maculâ, albâ notatis;
gutture lunulâ albâ; secundariis tectricibusque alarum maculâ
fulvescente ad apicem; crisso pallidè rufescente; rostro pedibusque
fuscis._
Long. tot. unc., 9¾; _alæ_, 6⅓; _caudæ_, 5; _tarsi_ ¾.
Front and back of head gray, mottled with black and with little
fulvous. The latter colour more abundant, and in larger markings in
the interscapular region, and on the wing-coverts. The black
markings give a somewhat streaked appearance to the back of head and
interscapulars. On the back of throat the fulvous tint is so much
pronounced, that a collar is formed which is continued under a white
one round the breast. Wings: primaries brownish black; four external
ones, with a large white mark, forming a band, at about one-third of
their length from their extremities: these white marks are edged
with fulvous, and the part on the outer web of the first primary, is
wholly so coloured. The other primaries are marked with reddish
brown, as are the secondaries and tertiaries, the marks becoming
more numerous and smaller, and the colours more mottled, nearer the
back. Tail: upper tail-coverts and two central feathers of tail
marked like those on the back; the black, however, forming narrow
interrupted transverse bars. The pair next to these central ones
have near their extremities a large white mark, but only on the
inner shaft. In the three succeeding pairs, the white spot extends
on both sides of the shaft, and in each pair increases somewhat in
size; so that in the external pair, the white spot is merely
bordered with a very narrow, faint margin, of brown and fulvous. At
about half their length, all the feathers, with the exception of the
central pair, have a smaller white mark, but only on the inner side
of the shaft. This mark is transverse, in the form of a band, and
the white blends into fulvous on the edges of the webs. Outer web of
these same external feathers, are transversely barred with black and
fulvous. _Under surface._—Chin, breast, belly, and lining of wings,
dirty fulvous, with numerous narrow, irregular, transverse bars of
brown. Throat with white collar, beneath which the fulvous tint is
predominant, forming a kind of under collar, which is continued
round the whole neck. Under tail-coverts fulvous,—tail itself
appears almost black, with a great terminal white band, and a
narrower one at about half its length.
Wings, an inch and a quarter shorter than the tail. Second primary,
scarcely perceptibly longer than the third; the first about an
eighth of an inch shorter than the second, and 8 ths longer than the
fourth. Feathers on wing, with the outer webs, slightly excised.
In.
Total length 9¾
Wing folded 6½
Tail 5
Tarsi ⁸⁄₁₀
From tip of beak to rictus 1
Of middle toe without the claw ⁷⁄₁₀
Habitat, Valparaiso Chile, (_August_).
This species frequents the mountains of central Chile. When bivouacking
one night on the Bell of Quillota, at an elevation of 6000 feet above
the sea, I heard a gentle, plaintive cry, which I was told was made by
this bird. It is regarded with superstitious dread by many of the lower
orders.
Mr. Gould observes, that “this species has a strong resemblance, at the
first glance, with the _Caprimulgus Europæus_, but may be readily
distinguished by its shorter wing, more lengthened tarsi, by a
conspicuous white band across the base of the tail, and by all these
feathers, except the two middle ones, having another white band near the
tip.” Mr. Gould then adds, as “I am quite undecided to which of the
sub-genera this and the following species should belong, I leave them
for the present in the restricted genus, _Caprimulgus_, although I
certainly perceive in it many points of affinity to the group which
inhabits the United States of North America.”
2. CAPRIMULGUS PARVULUS. _Gould._
Caprimulgus parvulus, _Gould_, Proceedings of the Zoological Society,
February 1837, p. 22.
_C. capite intensè fusco, guttis minutis cinereis ornato; vittâ rufâ
cervicem cingente; gutture scapularibusque ad marginem, secundariis
ad apicem stramineis; pectore et abdomine lineis fuscis transversis;
primariis nigrescentibus, tribus fasciis inæqualibus pallidè
rufescentibus; caudâ fasciis pallidè fulvescentibus et fuscis
ornatâ._
Long. tot. unc., 7½; _alæ_, 5; _caudæ_, 4; _tarsi_, ⅝.
Crown of head gray, with black longitudinal streaks. Back of neck with
a fulvous ring, which extends round the front beneath one of white,
as in the _C. bifasciatus_. Back, dull gray. Interscapulars, with
the central part of each feather, black, terminating in a point; the
outer part of the web being broadly fringed with a very pale
fulvous, the inner with gray. Wings: primaries brown, with fulvous
marks, forming three irregular transverse bars, which are scarcely
visible when the wing is closed. Tail and upper tail-coverts, dull
coloured, very obscurely marked with transverse bars of gray and
fulvous, of different degrees of darkness. _Under surface._—Throat
white, edged with fulvous on lower side. Breast, belly, and under
tail-coverts, fulvous, with numerous very narrow transverse bars of
brown. The pale fulvous marks, forming interrupted bars, are more
plainly seen on this than on the upper side of the tail.
Third primary, very little longer than second, and second than first.
First rather longer than fourth. Extremities of wings reaching
within an inch and a quarter of end of tail. End of tail more
rounded than in last species.
In.
Total length 7½
Wings 5
Tail 4
Tarsi ⅝
Middle toe, from tip of claw to joint of foot ⁹⁄₁₂
From tip of beak to rictus 1
Habitat, La Plata, (_September_).
This species is not uncommon on the wooded banks of the Parana, near
Santa Fé. If disturbed, it rises from the ground, in the same inactive
manner as the European species. I saw one alight on a rope diagonally,
but not so completely in a longitudinal position as does the _C.
Europæus_, nor transversely as other birds. Mr. Gould observes, that
“this goatsucker is full a third less than the _Caprimulgus Europæus_,
and is remarkable for the uniformity of its markings, having no distinct
white bars, or marks, either on the wings or tail.”
FAMILY.—HIRUNDINIDÆ.
1. PROGNE PURPUREA. _Boie._