districts of the Fur Countries, up to their most northern limits,
in latitude 80°; and Dr TOWNSEND states that it is abundant on the
Columbia River; but he has not furnished me with any account of its
breeding, and I have not had an opportunity of observing it during the
season of propagation, as I left the Texas without having found a nest
or young.
ANAS AMERICANA, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 526.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 861.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
Birds of United States, p. 384.
AMERICAN WIDGEON, ANAS AMERICANA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol.
viii. p. 86, pl. 69, fig 4.
MARECA AMERICANA, _Stephens_, AMERICAN WIDGEON, _Richards.
and Swains._ Fauna Boreali-Americana, vol. ii. p. 445.
AMERICAN WIDGEON, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 389.
Adult Male. Plate CCCXLV. Fig. 1.
Bill nearly as long as the head, deeper than broad at the base,
depressed towards the end, the sides nearly parallel, the tip rounded.
Upper mandible with the frontal angles short and obtuse, the dorsal
line at first sloping, then concave, at the end decurved, the ridge
broad and flat at the base, then broadly convex, the edges soft, with
about fifty-five internal lamellæ, the unguis obovate, curved abruptly
at the end. Nostrils sub-basal, lateral, near the ridge, oblong,
pervious. Lower mandible flattened, its angle very long and rather
narrow, the dorsal line very short, slightly convex, the edges soft,
with about seventy lamellæ.
Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed. Neck rather long, slender.
Body elongated and slightly depressed. Feet very short; tibia bare for
about a quarter of an inch; tarsus very short, compressed, anteriorly
with two series of scutella, the outer shorter, the rest covered with
reticulated angular scales; toes obliquely scutellate above; first
very small, free, with a narrow membrane beneath; third longest, fourth
considerably shorter, second shorter than fourth; their connecting webs
entire, on the edge crenate; the second or inner toe with a membranous
margin. Claws small, slightly arched, compressed, rather acute; the
hind one very small and more curved, that of the middle toe curved
outwards, and having the inner edge dilated.
Plumage dense, soft, blended. Feathers of the head and upper neck
oblong, small, those along the crown and occiput longer; of the lower
parts ovate, glossy, with the extremities of the filaments stiffish.
Wings rather long, little curved, narrow, pointed; the first quill
longest, the next scarcely shorter, the rest rapidly graduated;
secondaries very short, broad, obliquely rounded; the inner elongated
and tapering; the tips of the filaments of the outer web of the first
primary are separated and curved a little outwards. Tail short, rounded
and pointed, of sixteen feathers, of which the middle pair are more
pointed and project considerably.
Bill light greyish-blue, with the extremity including the unguis, and a
portion of the margins, black. Iris hazel. Feet light bluish-grey, the
webs darker, the claws dusky. The upper part of the head is white, more
or less mottled with dusky on its sides; the loral space and cheeks
reddish-white, dotted with greenish-black; a broad band from the eye
to behind the occiput deep green. The lower part of the hind neck, the
scapulars, and the fore part of the back, are minutely transversely
undulated with brownish-black and light brownish-red; the hind part
similarly undulated with blackish-brown and greyish-white. The smaller
wing-coverts are brownish-grey; the primary quills and coverts dark
greyish-brown; the secondary coverts white, tipped with black. The
speculum is duck-green anteriorly, bounded by the black tips of the
secondary coverts, black behind, internally black with white streaks,
the inner elongated secondaries having their outer webs black, margined
with white, their inner webs brownish-grey. The tail-feathers are light
brownish-grey. The throat is brownish-black; the lower part of the
neck in front, and the fore part of the breast, light brownish-red;
the breast, belly, and sides of the rump, white; the sides of the body
finely undulated with white and dusky; the rump beneath and the lower
tail-coverts black.
Length to end of tail 20-1/2 inches, to end of claws 21; extent of
wings 34-1/2; bill to frontal processes 1-(7-1/2)/12, along the edge
of lower mandible 1-7/12; wing from flexure 11; tail 4-1/2; tarsus
1-7/12; hind toe 4/12, its claw (2-1/2)/12, middle toe 1-8/12, its claw
(4-1/2)/12. Weight 1 lb. 14 oz.
Adult Female. Plate CCCXLV. Fig. 2.
The female is considerably smaller. The bill, feet, and iris are
coloured as in the male. The head and upper part of the neck all
round, are white or reddish-white, longitudinally streaked with
brownish-black, the top of the head transversely barred; the lower
part of the neck in front and behind, the fore part of the back, and
the scapulars, are blackish-brown, the feathers broadly margined
with brownish-red, and barred with the same, the bars on the back
narrow; the hind part of the back dusky; the upper tail-coverts
barred with white. The wings are greyish-brown; the secondary coverts
tipped with white; the secondary quills are brownish-black, the
inner greyish-brown, all margined with white. The tail-feathers are
greyish-brown, margined with white. All the lower parts are white,
excepting the feathers of the sides, and under the tail, which are
broadly barred with dusky and light reddish-brown.
Length to end of tail 18 inches, to end of claws 19-1/2; extent of
wings 30; bill along the ridge 1-6/12; wing from flexure 9-3/12; tail
3-9/12; tarsus 1-6/12; middle toe 1-9/12, its claw 3/12. Weight 1 lb.
5 oz.
A very great diversity of colouring exists in this species, which,
however, is not yet properly understood. Although males are often
found as described above, and as represented in the plate, others have
a very different appearance. Thus, an individual shot at the mouth of
the Mississippi, in the beginning of April 1837, has the head and neck
brownish-orange, the feathers all minutely tipped with dark green, the
lower fore neck lilac; all the upper parts finely undulated with white
and dusky, as are the sides; the wing-coverts light brownish-grey; the
other parts as described above, but the upper tail-coverts black at
the end. In some individuals the top of the head is reddish-white, in
others light red, in others pure white; in some, most of the smaller
wing-coverts are white, in others grey or brownish-grey; in some the
throat is whitish, in others black. These differences, no doubt, depend
upon age and season.
The American Widgeon has been considered distinct from the European;
not on account of any difference in size or form, or texture of
plumage, but because it has in certain stages a green band on the side
of the head, which the European bird is said not to have. The mirror
is the same in both; the wing-coverts are white or grey in both; the
crown is white, or cream-coloured, or orange-brown, in both; but in the
European the head and neck are described as reddish-chestnut, and in
the American as yellowish-white. Now, in fact, American birds sometimes
have the head and neck red, and European Birds sometimes have the
green streak on the side of the head. In short, on comparing specimens
from America, with others from India and Norway, I cannot perceive any
essential difference. At the same time, not having traced our Widgeon
through all its gradations, and being equally unacquainted with all
those of the European and Asiatic Widgeon, I cannot _positively_ affirm
that _Anas Americana_ is identical with _Anas Penelope_.
A male preserved in spirits presents the following characters.
[Illustration]
The roof of the mouth is deeply concave, with a median prominent line,
and numerous irregular small tubercles on the sides, with several
larger ones at the fore part. Two large branches of the supra-maxillary
nerve run in this ridge, as in other ducks. The tongue is 1 inch 5
twelfths long, with numerous straight, pointed papillæ at the base,
a median longitudinal groove, and a thin broadly rounded point. The
œsophagus, _a b c d_, is 10 inches long, narrow, dilating a little
on the lower part of the neck, where its diameter is 1/2 inch. The
proventriculus, _b c_, is 8 twelfths broad; its glands oblong,
2 twelfths in length, and occupying a belt 1 inch 4 twelfths in
breadth. The gizzard, _e f g_, is extremely large, of a nearly regular
elliptical form, placed obliquely, its length 1 inch 8 twelfths, its
breadth 2-1/2 inches; its lateral muscles extremely large, the left,
_e_, 1 inch 2 twelfths in thickness, the other, _f_, 1 inch and 1
twelfth; the inferior muscle, _g_, only 1 twelfth. In the œsophagus
are contained slender leaves of grasses; in the gizzard some of these
leaves and other vegetable matters, small seeds, and a great quantity
of sand. The cuticular lining or epithelium is dense, slightly rugous,
much thickened on the spaces opposite the middle of the lateral
muscles. The duodenum, _g h i_, is 5-1/2 inches in its first curve,
_g h_, and is then reflected for 7 inches, passes backwards under the
kidneys and forms several convolutions. The intestine, _g h i j k l_,
is 6 feet 2 inches long, 1/2 inch in diameter in its duodenal portion,
gradually contracts to 4 twelfths at the distance of 18 inches from
the pylorus, again enlarges to 5 twelfths, and near the rectum to 7
twelfths. The rectum is 4-1/2 inches long; the cœca 9 inches, their
diameter for nearly 2 inches being 2 twelfths, after which they are
enlarged, their greatest diameter being 4 twelfths. The liver is large,
the right lobe being 3-1/2 inches long, the left 2-1/2.
The trachea, _m_, is 7-1/2 inches long, of moderate diameter, the rings
roundish and ossified, about 140 in number, its breadth at the top
4-1/2 twelfths, gradually diminishing to 3 twelfths. At the lower part
several of the rings are united so as to form an irregular dilatation,
bulging out into a rounded sac, _n_, on the left side, its greatest
diameter being 10 twelfths. The bronchi are of moderate length,
wide, with about 25 half rings. The contractor muscles are rather
strong; and besides the sterno-tracheals, _o_, _p_, there is a pair of
cleido-tracheals.
In a female, the gizzard is 2 inches in its greatest diameter; the
intestine is 5 feet 2 inches long. The contents of the œsophagus and
stomach as in the male.
BLACK-THROATED DIVER.
_COLYMBUS ARCTICUS_, LINN.
PLATE CCCXLVI. MALE, FEMALE, AND YOUNG.
One of the most remarkable circumstances relative to this beautiful
bird, which is intermediate between the Red-throated Diver and the
Loon, is the extraordinary extent to which the wanderings of the young
are carried in autumn and winter. It breeds in the remote regions of
the north, from which many of the old birds, it would seem, do not
remove far, while the young, as soon as they are able to travel, take
to wing and disperse, spreading not only over the greater part of the
United States, but beyond their south-western limits. In the Texas I
saw individuals of this species as late as the middle of April 1837;
and I find it enumerated in a list of the birds observed by my young
friend Dr J. K. TOWNSEND on the Columbia River, where he also met with
_Columbus glacialis_. Its ramblings over a considerable portion of
northern and eastern Europe have equally been noted, and it has been
found breeding in the extreme north of Scotland.
For many years I knew the young of this bird only by the name “Imber
Diver,” applied by BEWICK to that of another species, and now have
pleasure in looking upon a drawing of mine, made about thirty years
ago, with that appellation attached to it. Very few old birds in full
plumage have been procured within the limits of the United States, and
none in as far as I know, farther south than the Capes of Delaware.
No sooner has the foliage of the trees that border our western waters
begun to drop and float on the gentle current of the fair Ohio, than
the Black-throated Diver makes its appearance there, moving slowly
with the stream. The Mississippi, Missouri, and their tributaries, are
at the same period supplied with these birds. Along our eastern and
southern shores they are seen from the end of autumn until spring.
Whilst in Labrador, I saw a few pairs courting on wing, much in the
manner of the Red-throated Diver; but all our exertions failed to
procure any of the nests, which I therefore think must have been placed
farther inland than those of the Loon or Red-throated Diver. I observed
however, that in their general habits they greatly resemble those
species, for on alighting on the water, they at once immerse their
bills, as if for the purpose of ascertaining whether it yields a supply
of suitable food, and afterwards raise themselves and beat their wings.
This species has almost as powerful a flight as the Great Northern
Diver or Loon, and I think shoots through the air with even greater
velocity. When flying it moves its wings rapidly and continuously,
and has the neck and feet stretched out to their full length. I well
recollect that while I was standing near the shore of a large inlet
in South Carolina, one of these birds, being shot while passing over
my head at full speed, did not, on account of the impetus, reach the
ground until upwards of twenty yards beyond me. They are equally expert
at diving, and fully as much so in eluding the pursuit of their enemies
when wounded. I saw my friend Mr HARRIS bring down one from on wing,
on which NAPOLEON COSTE, and WILLIAM TAYLOR, Captains of the Revenue
Cutter and Tender of which we had the use, paddled in pursuit of it
in a light canoe; but, although they advanced with all the address of
Indians, they proved unsuccessful, for after following it both in the
Bay of Cayo Island, and in the Bay of Mexico, for nearly an hour, they
were obliged to return without it, having found it apparently not in
the least fatigued, although it had dived sufficiently often to travel
above two miles, shifting its course at each immersion. It is curious
to observe how carefully these birds avoid the danger of sudden storms
or heavy gales. On such occasions, I have seen Divers at once seek the
lee of rocks, islands, or artificial embankments, where they could not
only remain in security, but also procure their accustomed food. At
other times, when striving against the tempest, they dive headlong from
on wing, and are sure to reappear in the smooth parts which sailors
term the trough.
I once caught one of these birds on the Ohio, it having been
incapacitated from diving by having swallowed a large mussel, which
stuck in its throat. It was kept for several days, but refused food
of every kind, exhibited much bad humour, struck with its bill, and
died of inanition. The food of this species consists of fish, aquatic
reptiles, testaceous mollusca, and all sorts of small crustaceous
animals. Its flesh resembles that of the Loon, and is equally unfit to
be eaten.
The eggs, which are sometimes two, more frequently three, average three
inches in length, by two in their greatest breadth, which is about a
third of the whole length distant from the extremity. Their form is
that of the Red-throated Diver, which however they exceed in size.
The shell is rather thick, the surface roughish, the ground colour
chocolate tinged with olive, sparingly spotted at the larger end with
very dark umber and black, and sprinkled all over with very small dots
of the same colour.
I have represented an adult male, a female, and a young bird.
COLYMBUS ARCTICUS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 221.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 800.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
Birds of United States, p. 420.
COLYMBUS ARCTICUS, BLACK-THROATED DIVER, _Richards. and
Swains._ Fauna Boreali-Americana, vol. ii. p. 475.
BLACK-THROATED DIVER, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii.
Adult Male. Plate CCCXLVI. Fig. 1.
Bill as long as the head, straight, stout, higher than broad at the
base, much compressed toward the end, and tapering to a point. Upper
mandible with the dorsal line descending and considerably convex toward
the end, the ridge convex, narrowed toward the point, the sides convex
beyond the nostrils, the edges involute for half their length in the
middle, direct at the base and toward the end, the tip narrow and
sharpish. Nasal groove rather long and narrowed; nostrils sub-basal,
linear, direct, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle extremely
narrow, and very long, the dorsal line ascending and very slightly
convex, the ridge convex and narrow, the edges sharp and involute, the
tip attenuated.
Head of moderate size, oblong, narrowed before. Neck rather long and
thick. Eyes of moderate size. Body elongated, much depressed, of an
elliptical form viewed from above. Wings small. Feet short, rather
large, placed very far back; tibia almost entirely concealed; tarsus
short, exceedingly compressed, sharp-edged before and behind, covered
all over with reticulated angular scales, hind toe extremely small,
externally marginate, connected with the second for half its length by
a membrane, which extends, narrowing, to the end; the anterior toes
connected by articulated membranes, the fourth or outer longest, the
third a little shorter, the second considerably shorter than the third;
all covered above with numerous narrow scutella; the second toe with a
free two-lobed membrane, the claws very small, depressed, blunt.
Plumage short and dense, of the head and neck very short, soft and
blended; of the lower parts short, blended, stiffish, considerably
glossed; of the upper compact, glossy; the feathers on the lower part
of the sides of the neck much incurved, oblong with the terminal barbs
stiff; those of the fore part of the back and the scapulars straight,
oblong, abrupt. Wings proportionally very small and narrow, curved;
primaries strong, tapering, the first longest, the second slightly
shorter, the rest rapidly graduated; secondaries very short, broad, and
rounded. Tail extremely short, rounded, of eighteen feathers.
Bill black. Iris deep bright red. Feet greyish-blue, their inner sides
tinged with yellow; claws black, that of the inner toe yellowish at
the base. The upper part of the head and the hind neck are light grey
or hoary, the fore part and sides of the head darker. The upper parts
are glossy black tinged with green anteriorly, and shaded with brown
behind. On the fore part of the back are two longitudinal bands of
transverse white bars, the feathers being tipped with that colour;
the scapulars, excepting the outer, are marked in the same manner with
transverse rows of rather large square spots. Most of the wing-coverts
have two roundish spots of white near the end. The quills are
blackish-brown, tinged with grey externally, paler on the inner webs;
the tail also blackish-brown. The fore neck, to the length of six and
a half inches, is purplish-black, ending angularly below, and with a
transverse interrupted band of linear white spots near the upper part;
beyond which the sides of the neck are blackish-brown, with several
longitudinal white streaks, formed by the edges of the feathers; on the
lower part of the neck a broad space is occupied by these longitudinal,
dusky, and white streaks the former of which gradually become narrower.
The lower parts are pure white, excepting a longitudinal band on the
sides under the wing, which is dusky.
Length to end of tail 29 inches, to end of wings 27-1/2, to end of
claws 33; extent of wings 39-1/2; wing from flexure 12-3/4; tail 2-3/4;
bill along the ridge 2-(5-1/2)/12, along the edge of lower mandible
3-(4-1/2)/12; tarsus 3-1/12; hind toe 8/12, its claw 2/12; second toe
3-2/12, its claw (5-1/2)/12; third toe 3-8/12, its claw 5-(5-1/2)/12;
fourth toe 4-1/4, its claw (4-1/2)/12.
Adult Female. Plate CCCXLVI. Fig. 2.
The Female is smaller than the male, but is similarly coloured.
Young in Winter. Plate CCCXLVI. Fig. 3.
The texture of the plumage is less dense, the feathers on the neck
being more downy, and those of the back oblong and rounded. The bill
is light bluish-grey, dusky along the ridge; the iris brown; the feet
more dusky. The upper part of the head and the hind neck are dark
greyish-brown; the sides of the head greyish-white, minutely streaked
with brown. The upper parts have a reticulated or scaly appearance, the
feathers being brownish-black, with broad bluish-grey margins; the rump
dull brownish-grey. The primaries and their coverts are brownish-black,
the secondaries and tail-feathers dusky, margined with grey. The
fore part of the neck is greyish-white, minutely and faintly dotted
with brown, its sides below streaked with the same; the lower parts,
including the under surface of the wing, pure white; the sides of the
body and rump, with part of the lower tail-coverts, dusky, edged with
bluish-grey.
When in their first downy plumage, the young are of a uniform
brownish-black colour.
SMEW OR WHITE NUN.
_MERGUS ALBELLUS_, LINN.
PLATE CCCXLVIL. MALE AND FEMALE.
The Smew is a bird of extremely rare occurrence in the United States,
insomuch that it must be considered merely as a transient or accidental
visitor. Indeed I have felt strong misgivings on reading WILSON’s
article on this species, and cannot but think that he is mistaken when
he states that it “is much more common on the coast of New England
than farther south,” and again “In the ponds of New England, and some
of the lakes in the State of New York, where the Smew is frequently
observed—.” Now, although I have made diligent inquiry, not only
in New England, but in every part of our country where I thought it
likely that the Smew might occur, I have not met with any person well
acquainted with birds of this family, who has seen it. WILSON, in
short, was in all probability misinformed, and it is my opinion that
his figure was made from a stuffed European specimen which was then in
Peale’s Museum in Philadelphia, and that he had taken the Buffel-headed
Duck, seen at a distance, for this species, as I am aware has been the
case with other individuals.
The only specimen procured by me was shot by myself on Lake Barataria,
not far from New Orleans, in the winter of 1819. It was an adult female
in fine plumage. How it had wandered so far south is an enigma to me;
but having found it, and made a drawing of it on the spot, I have taken
the liberty to add one of the other sex from an equally fine specimen.
After all, the Smew can scarcely be considered as belonging to the
American Fauna, any more than our Fork-tailed Hawk can with propriety
be called a denizen of England; and in this I am supported by all the
great navigators of our Arctic Seas, such as ROSS, PARRY, and FRANKLIN,
none of whom, nor any of their companions, ever met with a single
individual of this beautiful bird.
MERGUS ALBELLUS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 209.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 831.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
Birds of United States, p. 398.
SMEW or WHITE NUN, MERGUS ALBELLUS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith.
vol. viii. p. 126, pl. 71, fig. 4. Male.
The SMEW, or WHITE NUN, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 467.
Adult Male Plate CCCXLVII. Fig. 1.
Bill rather shorter than the head, straight, rather slender, a little
higher than broad at the base, tapering, somewhat cylindrical toward
the end. Upper mandible with the dorsal outline sloping gently and
slightly concave to the middle, then straight, at the tip declined,
the ridge rather broad and flat at the base, then convex, the sides
sloping at the base, convex toward the end, the edges serrate beneath,
with about forty slightly reversed, compressed, tapering, tooth-like
lamellæ, the unguis elliptical, much curved. Nasal groove oblong,
sub-basal, filled by a soft membrane; nostrils oblong, submedial,
direct, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle very narrow and
extended to the obovate, very convex unguis, the sides rounded, with a
long groove, the edges with about sixty perpendicular sharp lamellæ.