depressed toward the end, the sides nearly parallel, the tip rounded.
Upper mandible with the basal angles inconspicuous, the dorsal line
descending and straight to the unguis, then convex and decurved, the
ridge broad and flattened at the base, convex toward the end, the
sides sloping and convex, the unguis roundish, the edges membranous,
very narrow at the base, enlarged towards the end, with about thirty
lamellæ ending in a projecting point. Nostrils sub-basal, oblong,
direct, large, pervious, near the ridge, in an oblong groove with a
soft membrane. Lower mandible flat, a little curved upwards, the angle
very long and narrow, the unguis broad and rounded, the erect edges
with about forty direct lamellæ.
Head oblong, compressed, of moderate size. Eyes of moderate size. Neck
rather short. Body compact, rather elongated, and somewhat depressed.
Feet short, stout, placed rather far behind; tarsus very short,
compressed, anteriorly with a series of small scutella, externally of
which are five in a line with the outer toe, the rest reticulated with
angular scales. Hind toe very small, with a free membrane beneath;
outer toe, which is the longest, almost double the length of the
tarsus, middle toe scarcely shorter than outer; anterior toes with
numerous narrow scutella, webbed, the margin of the webs concave; inner
toe with a two-lobed expanded margin. Claws small, slightly arched,
blunt.
Plumage dense, blended, elastic, stiffish; but soft and glossy on the
head; the feathers broad and slightly rounded at the end. Scapulars
elongated, acuminate, the posterior decurved over the wing. Wings
shortish, narrow, pointed; primary quills curved, strong, tapering, the
second longest, exceeding the first by about one twelfth of an inch,
the rest rapidly decreasing; secondaries broad and rounded, the inner
elongated and pointed. Tail of fourteen pointed feathers, the outer
very short, the middle extremely attenuated and slightly recurved, the
intermediate proportional.
Bill black in its basal half, orange-yellow towards the end, the
unguis bluish-grey. Iris bright carmine. Feet light bluish-grey, the
webs dusky, claws black. A large oblong greyish white patch on each
side of the head from the bill to behind the ear; the upper part of
the head and nape black, that colour being narrowed in front by the
encroachment of the white patches. The neck all round, and anterior
half of the breast, of a rich dark chocolate-brown; the back and
wing-coverts brownish-black; the scapulars broadly margined with
light reddish-brown; the quills are of the same chocolate tint as the
breast, the secondaries margined externally with lighter, the primaries
internally. The middle four feathers of the tail brownish-black, the
outer two of these slightly margined with white, all the rest white,
but the inner with a longitudinal dusky patch on the outer web.
Length to end of tail 23 inches, to end of wings 15, to end of
claws 17; extent of wings 29-1/2; wing from flexure 9-1/2; middle
tail-feathers 10, lateral tail-feathers 2-1/2; bill along the ridge
1-2/12, along the edge of lower mandible 1-8/12; tarsus 1-2/12; outer
toe and claw 2-3/12, middle toe and claw 1-2/12, hind toe and claw
(7-1/2)/12.
Female in summer. Plate CCCXII. Fig. 3.
The female is somewhat less than the male, and differs not only in
colour, but in the scapulars, which are not elongated, and in the
tail, which is short and rounded. The bill and feet are dusky green,
the iris yellow. The head is dark greyish-brown, with a patch of
greyish-white surrounding the eye, but not extending to the bill; there
is a larger patch of the same colour on the side of the neck, the hind
part of which is similar to the head, the fore part greyish-brown, the
feathers broadly margined with whitish. All the upper parts are of a
dark greyish-brown, the two lateral tail-feathers edged with white; the
lower parts white, the feathers under the wings slightly tinged with
grey.
Length to end of tail 15-3/4 inches, to end of wings 14-1/2, to end
of claws 16-5/8; extent of wings 26-1/2; wing from flexure 8; middle
tail-feathers 2-9/12, lateral 2-1/4; bill along the ridge 1-2/12, along
the edge of lower mandible 1-5/12.
Adult male in winter. Plate CCCXII. Fig. 2.
The outer half of the bill rich orange-yellow, that colour extending
to the base along the ridge, the unguis and the basal half black, as
well as the unguis and edges of the lower mandible. The head, neck, the
fore part of back and scapulars, white; the space about the eye pale
greyish-red, and a large oblong patch of chocolate brown on the side of
the neck. The upper parts, including the four middle tail-feathers, are
brownish-black, but the secondary quills tinged with reddish-brown, and
having paler margins. The anterior half of the breast chocolate brown,
the rest of the lower parts and the four lateral tail-feathers white.
Unfledged young. Plate CCCXII.
The young when newly excluded are covered with stiffish down. Bill
and feet greenish-dusky; the upper parts chocolate-brown; a small spot
of white under the eye; throat and lower parts whitish, as well as an
oblong patch on the cheeks.
The young male in winter, that is, after its first moult, has the bill
and legs dusky green. The head and half of the neck are whitish; the
upper part of the former and a patch on the side of the latter mottled
with brownish-black and chocolate. The upper parts brownish-black,
variegated with brownish-red, the still unelongated scapulars chiefly
of the latter colour. A broad undefined belt of reddish-brown over the
lower fore part of the neck; the rest of the lower parts greyish-white.
Length to end of tail 22 inches; extent of wings 29.
The young female in winter is similar to the adult, but with the upper
parts paler, the light-coloured patches on the head and neck more
dusky, and the lower parts of a less pure white.
Adult males, assuming the summer plumage, about April, present a
curious intermixture of the variously coloured feathers of the two
seasons.
In a male bird, the tongue is 1 inch and 5 twelfths long, papillate
at the base, fleshy, with two rows of bristles along the edges. There
are 35 lamellæ on each side of the upper, and about 40 on the lower
mandible. The œsophagus is 7-1/2 inches long, 7 twelfths in diameter at
the upper part, towards the lower parts of the neck dilated to 1 inch,
and continuing so to the end. The proventriculus is 1 inch 3 twelfths
long, its glandules cylindrical and 2 twelfths long. The stomach is
a very powerful gizzard, of a roundish form, 1-3/4 inch in length, 2
inches and 2 twelfths in breadth; its tendons large; the right muscle
10 twelfths, the left 11 twelfths in thickness. The cuticular lining
is thick, and slightly rugous; the grinding plates thicker and denser.
The contents of the stomach are small muscles and particles of quartz,
some of which are 3 twelfths in diameter. The intestine is 5 feet 6
inches long, its diameter nearly uniform, about 4 twelfths; the rectum
enlarged to 5 twelfths, its length 2-1/2 inches. Cœca 4-3/4 inches
long, 3 twelfths in diameter, their extremity rounded; the cloaca
globular, about 9 twelfths in diameter.
The trachea, moderately extended, measures 6 inches in length, its
breadth at the top 5 twelfths, about the middle 3-3/4 twelfths. The
number of ordinary rings is 72; at the lower part there are 6 expanded
rings which are broad posteriorly and on the sides, but extremely
narrow before; beyond this is a solid bony expansion of 7 united rings,
forming anteriorly a transversely oblong case, having a membrane in
front. The contractor muscles are very large, for two inches at the
top expanded over the fore part, sending off two cleido-tracheals, then
passing down along the edges of the six enlarged rings, and terminating
on the drum, where the sterno-tracheals come off.
BLUE-WINGED TEAL.
_ANAS DISCORS_, LINN.
PLATE CCCXIII. MALE AND FEMALE.
Is it not strange, Reader, that birds which are known to be abundant
on the Saskatchewan River during the breeding season, and which have
been observed as far north as the 57th parallel, should also be found
breeding at nearly the same period in Texas? Stranger still it is
that species should proceed from certain points, or winter quarters,
to both of the above-mentioned regions, without paying any regard
to the intermediate districts, which yet seem to be as well adapted
for breeding in, as they afford thousands of convenient and secluded
localities for that purpose. Yet these facts, and many others connected
with Nature’s wonderful arrangements, we may look upon as intended
to increase the innate desire which every true lover of Nature has to
study her beautiful and marvellous works.
Having for some years observed such habits exhibited by the Blue-winged
Teal and other birds, I have been induced to believe in the existence
of what I would term _a double sense of migration_ in many species,
acted upon both in spring and in autumn, and giving to them at the
latter period, the power as well as the desire of removing from the
higher latitudes to opposite or meridional parts, thus to enter into
the formation of the Fauna of different countries, from which again
they are instigated to return to the place of their nativity, and
thence diverge toward new sections of the globe equally adapted to
their wants. If these observations should prove not unfounded, we need
no longer be surprised to meet in different portions of the world with
species which hitherto were supposed to be inhabitants only of far
distant shores.
The mouths of the Mississippi, surrounded by extensive flat marshes,
which are muddy, and in some degree periodically inundated by the
overflowings of that great stream, or by the tides of the Mexican Gulf,
and having in the winter months a mildness of temperature favourable
to almost all our species of Waders and Swimmers, may be looked upon
as the great rendezvous of the Blue-winged Teals, which are seen
arriving there coastways, in autumn and the greater part of winter, to
meet the multitudes that have travelled across the interior from the
north and west. At New Orleans, and during spring, when this bird is
in full plumage, it is called by the Creoles of Louisiana “Sarcelle
Printanniere;” and in autumn, when scarcely an individual can be
seen retaining the beauty of its spring plumage, it is known as the
“Sarcelle Automniere;” in consequence of which double appellation, many
persons imagine that there are two Blue-winged Teals.
They are the first ducks that arrive in that part of the country,
frequently making their appearance in the beginning of September, in
large flocks, when they are exceedingly fat. They depart, however, when
the cold becomes so intense as to form ice; and in this respect they
differ from the Green-winged Teals, which brave the coldest weather of
that country. Toward the end of February, however, they are as abundant
as ever, but they are then poor, although their plumage is perfected,
and the males are very beautiful. During their stay, they are seen
on bayous and ponds, along the banks of the Mississippi, and on the
large and muddy sand-bars around, feeding on grasses and their seeds,
particularly in autumn, when they are very fond of the wild pimento.
Many remain as late as the 15th of May, in company with the Shoveller
and Gadwall Ducks, with which they are usually fond of associating.
On my reaching the south-western pass of the Mississippi, on the 1st
April 1837, I found these birds very abundant there, in full plumage,
and in flocks of various sizes. On the 11th of the same month, when
about an hundred miles to the westward, we saw large and dense flocks
flying in the same direction. On the 15th, at Derniere Isle, the
Blue-wings were very plentiful and gentle. Two days after, they were
quite as numerous round Rabbit Island, in the Bay called Cote Blanche;
and on the 26th they were found on all the ponds and salt bayous or
inlets of Galveston Island in Texas, as well as on the water-courses
of the interior, where I was assured that they bred in great numbers.
Though on account of the nature of the localities in which these Teals
breed, and which cannot be explored otherwise than in extremely light
canoes, or by risking being engulphed in oozy morasses covered with
tall grass, we were not so fortunate as to find any of their nests,
we could easily judge by their manœuvres both while on wing and on
the water, that we were not far from their well-concealed treasures
and the females which we procured unequivocally exhibited the state of
exhaustion common in the course of incubation.
During the months of September and October, this species is plentiful
on the Ohio, and in the whole of the Western Country, through which
they pass again in April, but without tarrying. On the other hand, they
seem to prolong their stay at this season in our Eastern Districts
more than in autumn; and this is also the case in South Carolina,
as I learn from the observations of my friend JOHN BACHMAN, who has
seen them mated there as early as February. I have found them in the
Boston markets on the 8th of September, but it is very rare to see
any of them there in full spring dress. I saw or heard of none when I
was in Labrador and Newfoundland; from which it may be inferred that
those found in the Fur Countries reach them through the interior. They
also occur on the Columbia River. On the 21st of March 1821, I saw
many Blue-winged Teals copulating on the Mississippi, a little below
Natchez; yet none of these birds have been known to breed in that
section of the country. They were at the time mentioned on a sand-bar
in company with some American Widgeons, which also were similarly
employed.
The flight of the Blue-winged Teal is extremely rapid and well
sustained. Indeed, I have thought that, when travelling, it passes
through the air with a speed equal to that of the Passenger Pigeon.
When flying in flocks in clear sunny weather, the blue of their wings
glistens like polished steel, so as to give them the most lively
appearance; and while they are wheeling over the places in which
they intend to alight, their wings being alternately thrown in the
shade and exposed to the bright light, the glowing and varied lustre
thus produced, at whatever distance they may be, draws your eyes
involuntarily towards them. When advancing against a stiff breeze, they
alternately shew their upper and lower surfaces, and you are struck by
the vivid steel-blue of their mantle, which resembles the dancing light
of a piece of glass suddenly reflected on a distant object. During
their flight, they almost constantly emit their soft lisping note,
which they also utter when alighted and under apprehension of danger.
I have never observed them travelling in company with other ducks, but
have seen them at times passing over the sea at a considerable distance
from land. Before alighting, and almost under any circumstances, and
in any locality, these Teals pass and repass several times over the
place, as if to assure themselves of the absence of danger, or, should
there be cause of apprehension, to watch until it is over. They swim
buoyantly, and generally in a close body, at times nearly touching
each other. Indeed, during their first appearance in autumn, when you
are apt to meet with a flock entirely composed of young birds, you
may, by using a little care, kill a considerable number at one shot. I
was assured by a gunner residing at New Orleans, that as many as one
hundred and twenty had been killed by himself at a single discharge;
and I myself saw a friend of mine kill eighty-four by pulling together
the triggers of his double-barrelled gun!
The Blue-winged Teal is easily kept in captivity, and soon becomes
very docile. In this state it feeds freely on coarse corn meal, and I
have no doubt that it could readily be domesticated, in which case, so
tender and savoury is its flesh that it would quickly put the merits of
the widely celebrated Canvass-backed Duck in the shade.
In the course of my stay in East Florida, at General HERNANDEZ’s, and
Mr BULOW’s, I have observed this Teal in company with the Red-breasted
Snipe, the Tell-tale Godwit, and the Yellow-shank Snipe. I observed the
same circumstance in Texas.
During the time of their residence on the Delaware River, they feed
principally on the seeds of the wild oats, which I also found them
to do whilst at Green Bay. I have been assured by persons residing on
the island of Cuba, that the Blue-winged Teal is abundant, and breeds
there.
The old males lose the spring plumage of the head almost entirely
during a great portion of the autumn and winter, but it is reassumed
sometimes as early as the beginning of January. The young of both sexes
in their first plumage resemble the females, but the males acquire
their full beauty before they are a year old.
ANAS DISCORS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol i. p. 205.—_Lath._ Ind.
Orn. vol. ii. p. 854.
BLUE-WINGED TEAL, ANAS DISCORS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol.
viii. p. 74. pl. 68. fig. 4.—_Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p.
397.
ANAS DISCORS, _Ch. Bonap._ Synopsis of Birds of the United
States, p. 385.
ANAS DISCORS, BLUE-WINGED TEAL, _Richards. and Swains._ Fauna
Bor. Amer. vol. ii. p. 444.
Adult Male. Plate CCCXIII. Fig. 1.
Bill almost as long as the head, deeper than broad at the base,
depressed towards the end, its breadth nearly equal in its whole
length, being however a little enlarged towards the rounded tip.
Upper mandible with the dorsal line at first sloping, then nearly
straight, on the unguis decurved, the ridge broad and flat at the base,
suddenly narrowed over the nostrils, broader and convex towards the
end; the sides erect at the base, afterwards sloping and convex; the
narrow membranous margins a little broader towards the end. Nostrils
sub-basal, near the ridge, rather small, elliptical, pervious. Lower
mandible flattened, straight, with the angle very long and rather
narrow, the dorsal line very short, and slightly convex, the sides
internally erect, with about a hundred and twenty lamellæ.
Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed. Neck of moderate length,
rather slender. Body full, depressed. Feet short, placed rather far
back; tarsus short, compressed, at its lower part anteriorly with two
series of scutella, the rest covered with reticulated angular scales.
Toes with numerous scutella above; first toe very small and with a
narrow membrane beneath; third longest, fourth about a quarter of an
inch shorter; the anterior toes united by reticulated webs, of which
the outer is deeply sinuate; claws small, curved, compressed, acute,
the hind one smaller and more curved, that of the third toe largest,
and with the inner margin sharp.
Plumage dense, soft, and blended. Feathers of the head and neck, very
small and slender, of the back and lower parts in general broad and
rounded. Wings of moderate length, rather narrow and acute; primaries
strong, slightly curved, tapering, the first scarcely longer than
the second, the rest rapidly decreasing; secondaries broad, the
outer obliquely rounded, the inner elongated and acuminate, as are
the scapulars. Tail short, rounded and acuminate, of fourteen rather
narrow, acuminate feathers.
Bill bluish-black. Iris dark hazel. Feet dull yellow, webs dusky,
claws brownish-black, with the tips greyish-yellow. Upper part of the
head black; a semilunar patch of pure white on the side of the head
before the eye, margined before and behind with black. The rest of the
head, and the anterior parts of the neck of a deep purplish-blue, with
purplish-red reflections; the lower hind neck and fore part of back,
brownish-black, glossed with green, each feather with a curved band
of pale reddish-buff, and a line or band of the same in the centre;
the hind part of the back greenish-brown, the feathers edged with
paler. The smaller wing-coverts of a rich ultramarine blue, silky with
almost metallic lustre. Alula, primary coverts, and primary quills,
greyish-brown, edged with pale bluish; outer secondaries of the
same colour, those of the speculum duck-green, changing to blue and
bronze, with a narrow line of white along their terminal margin; the
inner greenish-black on the outer web, greenish-brown on the inner,
with a central line and narrow external margin of pale reddish buff,
the more elongated scapulars similar, but some of them margined with
greenish-blue. Secondary coverts brown, with their terminal portion
white. Tail-feathers chocolate brown, slightly glossed with green,
their margins buffy. The lower parts are pale reddish-orange, shaded
on the breast with purplish-red, and thickly spotted with black, the
number of roundish or elliptical spots on each feather varying from ten
to twenty-five, those on the upper and hind parts of the sides running
into transverse bars. Axillar feathers, some of the lower wing-coverts,
and a patch on the side of the rump pure white; lower tail-coverts
brownish-black.
Length to end of tail 16 inches, to end of claws 14-1/4, to end of
wings also 14-1/4; extent of wings 31-1/4; wing from flexure 7-4/12;
tail 3-5/12; bill along the back 1-1/4, from frontal process to tip
1-1/2; tarsus 1-2/12; first toe and claw 5/12; middle toe and claw
1-10/12; outer toe and claw 1-8/12. Weight 12-1/2 oz.
Adult Female. Plate CCCXIII. Fig. 2.
Bill greenish-dusky; iris hazel; feet of a duller yellow than those
of the male, the head and neck are pale dull buff, longitudinally
marked with brownish-black lines, which are broader and darker on the
top of the head; the fore part of the cheeks and the throat whitish,
without markings. The upper parts are dark brown, the feathers margined
with brownish-white; the smaller wing-coverts coloured as in the
male, but less brilliantly; no blue on the scapulars, which are also
less elongated. On the lower parts, the feathers are dusky brown,
broadly margined with light brownish-grey, of which there is a streak
or spot in the centre. The axillary feathers, and some of the lower
wing-coverts are white, but the patch of that colour so conspicuous in
the male is wanting.
Length to end of tail 15 inches, to end of wings 14-1/2, to end of
claws 15-1/2; extent of wings 24; wing from flexure 7-1/4; tail 2-7/12;
bill along the ridge 2-2/12. Weight 10-1/2 oz.
The young birds are similar to the female, but paler, and without the
green speculum.
In a male, the roof of the mouth is deeply concave, with a prominent
middle ridge, on which are a few blunt papillæ; on the upper mandible
are 50 lamellæ, on the lower about 65 below, and 85 above. The tongue,
8 twelfths long, large and fleshy, has two rows of lateral bristles.
The œsophagus is 8-1/2 inches long, 4 twelfths in diameter until the
middle of the neck, when it enlarges gradually to half an inch. The
proventriculus is 1-1/4 inch in length, with oblong glandules. The
stomach is a strong roundish gizzard, 1 inch and 2 twelfths long,
1-1/2 inch broad; its left muscle 7 twelfths thick, the right 6-1/2
twelfths; its cuticular lining or epithelium of moderate thickness
and longitudinally rugous. The intestine, 5 feet 1 inch long, varies
in diameter from 3 to 2 twelfths; the cœca are 2 inches 10 twelfths
long, cylindrical and rounded, their diameter 3 twelfths; the cloaca
globular. The contents of the stomach were gravel and seeds of plants.
The trachea is 6 inches and 2 twelfths long; its diameter at the top 4
twelfths, at the middle 2 twelfths, at the lower part 3-1/2 twelfths.
The inferior larynx is formed of three or four united rings, and has an
irregular roundish bony expansion on the left side. The number of rings
of the trachea is 98, of the bronchi about 25. The contractor muscles
are large; cleido-tracheales and sterno-tracheales.
BLACK-HEADED, OR LAUGHING GULL.
_LARUS ATRICILLA_, LINN.
PLATE CCCXIV. MALE IN SPRING, AND YOUNG.
Before entering upon the peculiar habits of this Gull, allow me,
good-natured Reader, to present you with some general observations on
the genus to which it belongs.