on the lower. Wings long and pointed; primary quills tapering, the
first longest by a quarter of an inch, the rest rapidly graduated;
inner secondaries tapering and elongated, one of them nearly as long
as the outer primary when the wing is closed. Tail of moderate length,
even, of twelve feathers.
Bill black. Feet light dull brownish-yellow. Forehead, a band over the
eye, fore part of neck, and all the rest of the lower surface, white;
top of the head and nape dark yellowish-brown, sides and hind part of
the neck dull ochre-yellow, which is the prevailing colour on the upper
parts, the feathers being broadly margined with it while their central
portion is greyish-brown. Wing-coverts lighter; primary coverts and
quills dusky, their shafts and margins white, that colour becoming more
extended on the inner and on some of the secondaries, so as to form a
conspicuous patch on the wing; inner secondaries like the back. Tail
yellowish-brown, tipped with yellowish-white, the two outer broadly
margined with the same.
Length to end of tail about 8-1/4 inches, to end of wings the same,
to end of claws 9-1/4; wing from flexure 6-1/8; tail 2-1/2; tarsus
1-(4-1/2)/8; middle toe 3/4, claw 1/4.
GREAT CINEREOUS OWL.
_STRIX CINEREA_, GMELIN.
PLATE CCCLI.
This fine Owl, which is the largest of the North American species, is
nowhere common with us, although it ranges from the north-eastern coast
of the United States to the sources of the Columbia River. It has been
procured near Eastport in Maine, and at Marble Head in Massachusetts,
where one of them was taken alive, perched on a wood pile, early in the
morning, in February 1831. I went to Salem for the purpose of seeing
it, but it had died, and I could not trace its remains. The gentleman,
Mr IVES, in whose keeping it had been for several months, fed it on
fish and small birds, of which it was very fond. Besides shewing me
various marks of attention, he gave me a drawing of it made by his
wife, which is still in my possession. It uttered at times a tremulous
cry not unlike that of the Little Screech Owl, _Strix Asio_, and shewed
a great antipathy to cats and dogs. In the winter of 1832, I saw one
of these Owls flying over the harbour of Boston, Massachusetts, amid
several Gulls, all of which continued teasing it until it disappeared.
I have seen specimens procured on the Rocky Mountains by Dr TOWNSEND,
and several brought to London by the medical officer who accompanied
Captain BACK in his late Arctic journey. Among the individuals which
I have examined I have found considerable differences as to size and
markings, which may be attributed to age and sex. My drawing was taken
from a remarkably fine specimen in the collection of the Zoological
Society of London.
The comparatively small size of this bird’s eyes renders it probable
that it hunts by day, and the remarkable smallness of its feet and
claws induces me to think that it does not prey on large animals.
Dr RICHARDSON says that “it is by no means a rare bird in the Fur
Countries, being an inhabitant of all the woody districts, lying
between Lake Superior and latitudes 67° or 68°, and between Hudson’s
Bay and the Pacific. It is common on the borders of Great Bear Lake;
and there, and in the higher parallels of latitude, it must pursue
its prey, during the summer months, by day-light. It keeps however
within the woods, and does not frequent the barren grounds, like the
Snowy Owl, nor is it so often met with in broad day light as the Hawk
Owl, but hunts principally when the sun is low; indeed, it is only at
such times, when the recesses of the woods are deeply shadowed, that
the American hare and the murine animals, on which the Cinereous Owl
chiefly preys, come forth to feed. On the 23d of May I discovered
a nest of this Owl, built on the top of a lofty balsam poplar, of
sticks, and lined with feathers. It contained three young, which were
covered with a whitish down. We got them by felling the tree, which
was remarkably thick; and whilst this operation was going on, the two
parent birds flew in circles round the objects of their cares, keeping,
however, so high in the air as to be out of gunshot; they did not
appear to be dazzled by the light. The young ones were kept alive for
two months, when they made their escape. They had the habit, common
also to other Owls, of throwing themselves back, and making a loud
snapping noise with their bills, when any one entered the room in which
they were kept.”
STRIX CINEREA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 291.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 58—_Richards._ and _Swains._ Fauna
Bor.-Amer. vol. ii. p 77.
Adult Female. Plate CCCLI.
Bill short, stout, broader than high at the base, its dorsal outline
convex to the end of the cere, which is covered with stiffish linear
feathers having their barbs separated, the ridge very broad, the sides
sloping and nearly flat, the tip compressed, decurved, acute; lower
mandible small, with the angle long and wide, the dorsal line convex,
the edges sharp, the tip narrow; the gape-line straight, at the end
decurved. Nostrils large, elliptical; eyes large, but proportionally
smaller than in most other Owls.
The body is slender, anteriorly broad, but seems large and full
on account of the great mass of plumage; the neck short; the head
extremely large. Feet rather short; the tarsi very short, and
feathered; the toes very short and feathered, there being only two or
three bare scutella at their extremity. Claws slightly curved, long,
slender, compressed, tapering to an extremely narrow point.
Plumage very full, soft, and downy; the feathers generally oblong.
Those on the face linear, stiffish, with loose barbs, and disposed in
two large disks surrounding the eyes; besides which there is a ruff
of softer linear, denser feathers from the forehead, behind the ears,
to the chin. The conch of the ear is very large, although greatly
exceeded by that of many other Owls, and furnished with an anterior
semicircular operculum, beset with slender feathers. Wings very large,
concave; primaries, decurved toward the end, the first with the tips of
the filaments separated, and recurved in its whole length, the second
in its terminal half; the first quill short, being of the same length
as the sixth, the second 2-1/2 inches longer, the third 1-1/2 inch
longer than the second, 1/4 inch shorter than the fourth, which is the
longest, or equals the next. The first five have their outer webs more
or less cut out towards the end, and the first seven have their inner
webs sinuate. The tail is long, ample, rounded, of twelve broad rounded
feathers.
Bill yellow. Iris bright yellow. Claws brownish-black. The general
colour of the upper parts is greyish-brown, variegated with
greyish-white in irregular undulated markings; the feathers on the
upper part of the head with two transverse white spots on each web; the
smaller wing-coverts of a darker brown, and less mottled than the back;
the outer scapulars with more white on their outer webs; the primary
quills blackish-brown toward the end, marked in the rest of their
extent with few broad light-grey oblique bands, which are dotted and
undulated with darker. Tail-feathers similarly barred, darker towards
the end, the middle ones more intricately marked. The feathers of the
ruff are white towards the end, dark-brown in the centre. The disks are
on their inner side grey, with black tips; in the rest of their extent
greyish-white, with six bars of blackish-brown very regularly disposed
in a concentric manner; feathers on the chin or upper part of throat
greyish-white. All the under parts are greyish-brown, variegated with
greyish and yellowish white; the feet barred with the same.
Length to end of tail 30-1/2 inches, to end of wings 27-1/4, to end
of claws 22; extent of wings 48-1/2; wing from flexure 19-1/4; tail
12-3/4; bill along the ridge 1, along the edge of lower mandible 1-3/4;
breadth of gape 1-1/2; tarsus 2-1/2; hind toe 7/12, its claw 7/8;
middle toe 1, its claw 1-5/12.
BLACK-SHOULDERED HAWK.
_FALCO DISPAR_, TEMM.
PLATE CCCLII. MALE AND FEMALE.
I have traced the migration of this beautiful Hawk from the Texas as
far east as the mouth of the Santee River in South Carolina. CHARLES
BONAPARTE first introduced it into our Fauna, on the authority
of a specimen procured in East Florida, by TITIAN PEALE, Esq. of
Philadelphia, who it seems had some difficulty in obtaining it. On
the 8th of February 1834 I received one of these birds alive from Dr
RAVENEL of Charleston, who had kept it in his yard for eight days
previously, without being able to induce it to take any food. The
beauty of its large eyes struck me at once, and I immediately made
a drawing of the bird, which was the first I had ever seen alive. It
proved to be a male, and was in beautiful plumage. Dr RAVENEL told me
that it walked about his yard with tolerable ease, although one of its
wings had been injured. On the 23d of the same month I received another
fine specimen, a female, from FRANCIS LEE, Esq., who had procured it
on his plantation, forty miles west of Charleston, and with it the
following note. “When first observed, it was perched on a tree in an
erect posture. I saw at once that it was one of the birds which you
had desired me to procure for you, and went to the house for my gun. On
returning I saw the Hawk very high in the air, sailing beautifully over
a large wet meadow, where many Common Snipes were feeding. It would now
and then poise itself for a while, in the manner of our Little Sparrow
Hawk, and suddenly closing its wings plunge towards its prey with great
velocity, making a rumbling noise as it passed through the air. Now and
then, when about half-way, it suddenly checked its descent, recommenced
hovering, and at last marking its prey, rushed upon it and secured it.
Its cries, on being wounded, so much resembled those of the Mississippi
Kite, that I thought, as I was going to pick it up, that I had only
got one of that species. It was so shy that I was obliged to get on
horseback before I could approach it within gun shot.”
Mr H. WARD, who accompanied me on my expedition to the Floridas found
this species breeding on the plantation of ALEXANDER MAYZCK, Esq., on
the Santee River, early in the month of March, and shot three, two of
which, a male and a female, are now in my possession. Their nests were
placed on low trees near the margins of the river, and resembled those
of the American Crow, but had none of the substantial lining of that
bird’s nest. Mr WARD states, that at this time they were seen flying
over the cane brakes in pursuit of large insects, somewhat in the
manner of the Mississippi Kite, and that they were very shy.
My friend JOHN BACHMAN has seen this species fly in groups, at a very
great height, in the beginning of March, and thinks that it is only of
late years that they have located themselves in South Carolina, where,
however, five of them have been procured in one year.
The Black-shouldered Hawk appears to give a decided preference to low
lands, not distant from the shores of the Atlantic. On our way toward
the Texas, several of these birds were seen over the large marshes,
flying at a small elevation, and coursing in search of prey, much in
the manner of the Hen-harrier or Marsh Hawk, but all evidently bent on
proceeding to the eastward. Whether this species winters there or not,
I am unable to say, but that some remain all the year in Florida, and
even in South Carolina, I am quite confident.
The difference between the food of this species and that of the
Mississippi Kite is surprising to me. I have never seen the latter
seize any bird, whereas the Black-shouldered Hawk certainly does so,
as in the stomachs of two individuals which I examined were remains
of birds as well as of coleopterous insects. These two birds agree
nearly with the description of the one procured by Mr TITIAN PEALE,
excepting in the length of the wings, which in them and in several
others that have come under my notice, have their tips fully an inch
shorter than the end of the tail. A breeding female differed from the
rest in having the eyes dull yellowish-red; the tail-feathers had all
been ash-grey, all the primaries were edged with white, and many of the
secondaries were still of a light brownish-grey; the black spots under
the wings were smaller than usual; the abdomen was also tinged with
brownish-grey. I am therefore of opinion, that these birds undergo as
many changes of plumage as the Mississippi Kite.
BLACK-WINGED HAWK, FALCO MELANOPTERUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Amer.
Orn. vol. ii. pl. 11. fig. 1. Female.
FALCO MELANOPTERUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 31.
FALCO DISPAR, _Temm._ _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis. Append, p.
435.
Adult Male. Plate CCCLII. Fig. 1.
Bill short, broader than deep at the base, with the gape very wide.
Upper mandible with the cere covered at the base with bristly feathers,
the dorsal line convex and declinate to the end of the cere, then
curved downwards in about the third of a circle, the sides at the
base sloping towards the end convex and erect, the sharp edges with
a distinct festoon, the tip narrow and acute. Lower mandible with the
angle very wide and long, the dorsal outline very short, ascending and
slightly convex, the sharp edges inflected, the tip obliquely truncate
and narrow. Nostrils elliptical, rather large, in the fore part of the
cere.
Head rather large, broad, flattened above, with the superciliary ridges
prominent. Eyes large, directed obliquely forwards. Neck short; body
compact. Legs of moderate length; tibia long and muscular; tarsus very
short, stout, roundish, covered anteriorly with feathers for half
its length, the rest with small roundish scales, toes short, thick,
tuberculate and papillate beneath, scaly above, like the tarsus, but
with three large scutella at the end. Claws long, curved, conical,
extremely pointed, that of middle toe with an inner edge.
Plumage soft, blended, full, on the back rather compact. Feathers
of the cere, lore, and eyelids, bristle-pointed. Wings very long and
pointed, the second quill longest, the third nearly as long, the first
longer than the fourth; the first, second, and third with the outer
web attenuated toward the end; the first and second with the inner web
sinuated; secondaries very broad, rounded, the inner web exceeding the
outer. Tail of twelve feathers, of moderate breadth, long, emarginate
and rounded, the middle and lateral feathers being about equal, and
eight-twelfths of an inch shorter than the second feather from the
side.
Bill black; the cere and soft basal margins yellow. Iris bright red.
Tarsi and toes yellow, of a darker tint than the cere; claws black.
All the lower parts are pure white, with the exception of a patch on
five or six of the larger wing-coverts; the forehead is also white,
as are the cheeks; the superciliary bristles black, the white of the
head gradually blends into the general colour of the upper parts, which
is ash-grey; the smaller wing-coverts bluish-black; the shafts of the
quills brownish-black; all the feathers of the tail, excepting the two
middle, white; the shafts of the two middle feathers blackish-brown,
of the rest white towards the end, the whole of that of the outer pure
white.
Length to end of tail 16 inches, to end of claws 12-1/4, to end of
wings 14-7/8; extent of wings 40; wing from flexure 13; tail 7-10/12;
bill along the ridge (1-1/2)/12, along the edge of lower mandible
1-5/12; tarsus 1-4/12; first toe 7/12, its claw 3/4; second toe
(10-1/2)/12, its claw 10/12; third toe 1/4, its claw (9-1/2)/12; fourth
toe (10-1/2)/12, its claw 8/12. Weight 14 oz.
Adult Female. Plate CCCLII. Fig. 2.
The female is rather larger than the male, but in other respects
similar.
Length to end of tail 16-3/4 inches, to end of wings 15-3/4, to end of
claws 12-3/8; extent of wings 41-1/2; tail 8; wing from flexure 13-1/2;
bill along the ridge 1-1/8, along the edge of lower mandible 1-1/2;
tarsus 1-3/8; hind toe 3/4, its claw 7/8; outer toe 7/8, its claw 1/2;
middle toe 1-3/8, its claw 5/8; inner toe 7/8, its claw 3/4. Weight
17-1/4 oz.
The young when fledged have the bill and claws black, the cere and feet
dull yellow; the upper parts brownish-grey, the scapulars and quills
tipped with white, the former also margined, with yellowish-brown;
the primary and secondary coverts are also tipped with white; the
smaller wing-coverts are brownish-black; the outer webs of all the
tail-feathers are more or less brownish-grey toward the end. The lower
parts are white, the feathers on the breast tinged with brownish-yellow
at the end, and with the shaft yellowish-brown. The lower wing-coverts
are all white.
CHESTNUT-BACKED TITMOUSE.
_PARUS RUFESCENS_, TOWNSEND.
PLATE CCCLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.
You have before you on the same plate three species of _Parus_, two of
which are new to science. Of specimens of these I obtained possession
in consequence of the purchase which I made of part of Dr TOWNSEND’s
hard-earned collection, made during his laborious expedition over the
Rocky Mountains, and the valley of the Columbia River. For an account
of the habits of those which are not found to the east of the Rocky
Mountains, I am indebted to my friends THOMAS NUTTALL, Esq., and J. K.
TOWNSEND, M. D. Mr NUTTALL’s notice respecting the present species is
as follows:—
“The Chestnut-backed Titmouse is seen throughout the year in the
forests of the Columbia, and as far south as Upper California, in all
which tract it breeds, forming, as I have some reason to believe, a
pendulous, or at least an exposed nest, like some of the European
species. It is made of large quantities of hypna and lichens, and
copiously and coarsely lined with deer’s hair and large feathers, such
as those of the Grouse and the Jay. They are commonly seen in small
flocks of all ages in the autumn and winter, when they move about
briskly, and emit a number of feeble querulous notes, after the manner
of the Chickadee, or common species, _Parus atricapillus_, but seldom
utter any thing like a song, though now and then, as they glean about,
they utter a _t’she_, _de_, _de_, or _t’dee_, _t’dee_, _dee_, their
more common querulous call, however, being like _t’she_, _dé_, _de_,
_vait_, _t’she_, _de_, _de_, _vait_, sometimes also a confused warbling
chatter. The busy troop, accompanied often by the common species, the
_Regulus tricolor_, and the small yellow-bellied _Parus_, are seen
flitting through bushes and thickets, carefully gleaning insects and
larvæ for an instant, and are then off to some other place around,
proceeding with restless activity to gratify the calls of hunger and
the stimulus of caprice. Thus they are seen to rove along for miles
together, until satisfied or fatigued, when they retire to rest in
the recesses of the darkest forests, situations which they eventually
choose for their temporary domicile, where in solitude and retirement
they rear their young, and for the whole of the succeeding autumn and
winter remain probably together in families. When the gun thins their
ranks, it is surprising to see the courage, anxiety, and solicitude
of these little creatures: they follow you with their wailing scold,
and entreat for their companions in a manner that impresses you with a
favourable idea of their social feelings and sympathy.”
Dr TOWNSEND says, that “the Chinook Indians call this species _a kul_.
It inhabits the forests of the Columbia River, where it breeds and goes
in flocks in the autumn, more or less gregarious through the season.
The legs and feet are light blue.”
PARUS RUFESCENS, CHESTNUT-BACKED TITMOUSE, _Townsend_, Journ.
Acad. of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 190.
Adult Male. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 1.
Bill very short, straight, strong, compressed, rather acute; both
mandibles with the dorsal line slightly convex, the sides sloping and
convex, the edges sharp, the tip of the upper scarcely longer. Nostrils
basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. Head large,
ovate; neck short; body rather robust. Feet of ordinary length, robust;
tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella, and two lateral
plates meeting behind so as to form a thin edge; toes large, the three
anterior united as far as the second joint, the hind one much stronger,
and with its claw as long as the third. Claws large, arched, much
compressed, acute.
Plumage blended, tufty, unglossed. Wings of moderate length, the fourth
and fifth quills equal and longest, the sixth scarcely shorter, the
third and seventh equal, the second and eighth equal, the first very
short, being only half the length of the second. Tail long, slender,
arched, very slightly emarginate, or with its tip divaricate, of twelve
rather narrow feathers.
Bill brownish-black, with the edges and tip paler. Feet greyish-blue;
claws paler. Head and neck, and fore part of the sides, dark-brown,
with a broad longitudinal band of white on each side, from the bill
under the eye, curving up on the shoulder, and almost meeting on the
back; which, including the rump, is bright chestnut, as are the sides
under the wings; the middle of the breast and abdomen greyish-white,
the lower tail-coverts tinged with chestnut. Wings and tail
brownish-grey, the smaller coverts tinged with chestnut, the secondary
coverts margined and tipped with greyish-white, of which colour also
are the outer edges of the quills, except the first; tail feathers
faintly margined with bluish-grey.
Length to end of tail 4-1/2 inches; wing from flexure 2-3/8; tail
1-11/12; bill along the ridge (4-1/2)/12; tarsus (7-1/2)/12; hind toe
(3-1/4)/12, its claw 4/12; middle toe (4-1/2)/12, its claw (2-3/4)/12.
Adult Female. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 2.
The Female is similar to the male.
BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE.
_PARUS ATRICAPILLUS_, LINN.
PLATE CCCLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.
The opinion generally entertained respecting the extensive dispersion
of the Black-cap Titmouse, has in all probability originated from
the great resemblance which it bears to the Carolina Titmouse, _Parus
Carolinensis_, described at p. 341 of the second volume of this work;
that species being now known to extend its spring and summer migrations
as far eastward as the State of New Jersey, where it has been found
breeding by my friend EDWARD HARRIS, Esq. of Moorestown. The Black-cap,
on the other hand, is rarely observed farther south, and then only
in winter, when it proceeds as far as beyond the middle portions of
Maryland, from whence I have at that season received specimens in
spirits, collected by my friend Colonel THEODORE ANDERSON of Baltimore.
Westward of the Alleghanies it extends as far as Kentucky in winter,
but at the approach of spring returns northward. In Pennsylvania and
New Jersey some are known to breed; but as the Carolina Titmouse breeds
there also, it is difficult to say which of them is the most numerous,
they being so like each other that one is apt to confound them. In
the State of New York it is abundant, and often rears two broods in
the season; as you proceed eastward you may observe it in all places
favourable to its habits; and, according to Dr RICHARDSON, it is found
as far north as Lat. 65°, it being in the Fur Countries the most common
bird, “a small family inhabiting almost every thicket.” None were seen
by Dr TOWNSEND either on the Rocky Mountains or about the Columbia
River, where, on the contrary, _Parus Carolinensis_ is abundant, as
it is also in the Texas, where I found it breeding in the spring of
1837. Although bearing a considerable resemblance to the Marsh Titmouse
of Europe, _P. palustris_, it differs from that species not only in
colour, but more especially in its habits and notes.