Genus Vireosylvia. Bonaparte, Geog. and Comp. List of the Birds of
Europe and North America, p. 26. (1838.)
Size small, but with the general form compact and stout; bill straight,
rather long, wide at base; upper mandible slightly notched near the
point; gonys slightly ascending; wing long, second quill usually
longest; tail rather short, even; legs and toes moderate in length,
slender. A genus containing five or six species, all of which are
American. Colors in all known species olive green, narrowly shaded and
tinged with yellow.
Vireosylvia altiloqua. (Vieillot.)
Muscicapa altiloqua. Vieill., Ois. d’Am., Sept. 1, p. 67, pl. 38.
(1807.)
Vireo longirostris. Swains., Fau. Bor. Am., II. p. 237. (1831.)
Phyllomanes mysticalis. Cabanis, Erichson’s Archiv., 1837, p. 348?
Turdus hispaniolensis. Gm., Syst. Nat., I. p. 822?
Form. Bill long, strong, wide at base, with a few pairs of short, weak
bristles; wing long; second quill longest; tail moderate, truncate; legs
rather long, slender.
Dimensions. Total length of skin, 5½ inches; wing, 3½; tail, 2¼ inches.
Colors. A narrow line of black running downward on each side of the
neck, from the base of the lower mandible; head above ashy-olive; other
upper parts olive-green, tinged with yellowish; quills and tail
olive-brown, edged outwardly with greenish-yellow; a line of
yellowish-white running from the nostril over the eye; between the eye
and the bill dark olive; under parts white, nearly pure on the throat,
and on the other parts tinged with ashy and greenish-yellow, especially
on the sides; bill light corneous; irides red.
Hab. Florida, West Indies, and South America. Spec. in Mus. Acad.,
Philada.
Obs. We consider it quite probable that this species is the _Turdus
hispaniolensis_ of Gmelin, as above, which is the Hispaniola Thrush of
Latham. The figure in Buffon, Pl. Enl. 273, fig. 1, may represent the
same.
This bird may readily be distinguished from all other species by the
dark lines on the neck, which seem to be present at all ages.
AMMODROMUS ROSTRATUS.—(Cassin.)
The Long-billed Swamp Sparrow.
PLATE XXXVIII. Adult Male.
Of this bird we can give but a very imperfect history. It is one of a
group of Sparrows, of which other species inhabit North America,
characterized in some measure like the present, by the length and large
size of their bills, and their partiality for the vicinity of salt
water. Two species, the Sea-side Finch, and the Sharp-tailed Finch
(_Ammodromus maritimus_ and _caudacutus_), are of frequent occurrence on
the shores of the Atlantic, almost throughout the extent of the coast of
the temperate regions of North America,—and in New Jersey may be met
with in the summer season in considerable numbers, wherever there are
salt marshes, or that description of vegetation peculiar to the shores
of the ocean, or within reach of its tides. In those localities,
frequently of difficult access, these birds rear their young in
comparative safety, subsisting on seeds and insects, and seldom
attracting attention. They may occasionally be seen, too, on the bare
sands of the beach, searching for small marine animals thrown up by the
waves.
The present bird is a representative of this group on the shores of the
Pacific, and from the notice by its discoverer, which we shall give
directly, it appears to be very similar in its habits. It was first
observed by Dr. Heermann, near San Diego, California, during his first
visit to that country, and has since that time been again noticed only
by him. Specimens in excellent plumage and preservation, from his
collections, are in the National Museum, Washington city, and in the
collection of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia.
This bird was first described in the Proceedings of the Philadelphia
Academy, VI. p. 184 (Oct., 1852). For our present article, Dr. Heermann
has kindly permitted us to make the following extract from his Journals,
kept during his former and recent visits to California:—
“In 1851, I procured this bird on the shores of the Bay of San Diego,
where, in company with other species, it appeared to be engaged in
searching for grass-seeds. During the late Pacific Railroad survey by
the party under command of Lieut. Williamson, I again saw it in
considerable numbers at Santa Barbara and San Pedro. At the latter
places, as at San Diego, it frequents the low, sandy beach, and the
heavy sedge-grass which abounds on the shores, feeding on marine insects
and seeds thrown up by the tides on the former, and in the latter,
finding quick and easy concealment when alarmed or pursued. It appears
to be a quiet, unsuspicious bird, and I heard it utter only a short,
sharp chirp during the limited time that I had to observe it.”
[Illustration: Plate 38
The Long-billed Marsh Sparrow
Ammodromus rostratus (_Cassin_)]
At present, nothing further is known of this species. The figure in our
plate is that of an adult male, and is of the size of life.