Chapter C: S. Paine, of East Bethel, Vt., found a nest of this species about (18)

HABITS. The Scarlet Tanager is one of the most conspicuous and brilliant of all our summer visitants. Elegant in its attire, retiring and modest in manners, sweet in song, and useful in its destruction of hurtful insects, it well merits a cordial welcome. This Tanager is distributed over a wide extent of territory, from Texas to Maine, and from South Carolina to the northern shores of Lake Huron, in all which localities it breeds. A few are found once in a while as far east as Calais, in the spring, and they are rather occasional than common in Eastern Massachusetts, but are more plentiful in the western part of the State, becoming quite common about Springfield, arriving May 15, and remaining about four months, breeding in high open woods and old orchards. In South Carolina it is abundant as a migrant, though a few remain and breed in the higher lands. Mr. Audubon states, also, that a few breed in the higher portions of Louisiana, and Dr. Heermann found them breeding at El Paso, in New Mexico. They are far more abundant, however, in the States of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, and throughout the Mississippi Valley, arriving early in May, and leaving in October. Though occasionally found in the more sparsely settled portions of the country, in orchards and retired gardens, they are, as a rule, inhabitants of the edges of forests.

Their more common notes are simple and brief, resembling, according to Wilson, the sounds _chip-charr_. Mr. Ridgway represents them by _chip-a-ra´-ree_. This song it repeats at brief intervals and in a pensive tone, and with a singular faculty of causing it to seem to come from a greater than the real distance. Besides this it also has a more varied and musical chant resembling the mellow notes of the Baltimore Oriole. The female also utters similar notes when her nest is approached, and in their mating-season, as they move together through the branches, they both utter a low whispering warble in a tone of great sweetness and tenderness. As a whole, this bird may be regarded as a musical performer of very respectable merits.

The food of this species is chiefly gleaned among the upper branches, and consists of various coleopterous and other insects and their larvæ. Later in the season they consume various kinds of wild berries.

When their nest is approached, the male bird usually keeps at a cautious distance, as if fearful of being seen, but his much less gaudy mate hovers about the intruder in the greatest distress. Wilson relates quite a touching instance of the devotion of the parent of this species to its young. Having taken a young bird from the nest, and carried it to his friend, Mr. Bartram, it was placed in a cage, and suspended near a nest containing young Orioles, in hopes the parents of the latter would feed it, which they did not do. Its cries, however, attracted its own parent, who assiduously attended it and supplied it with food for several days, became more and more solicitous for its liberation, and constantly uttered cries of entreaty to its offspring to come out of its prison. At last this was more than Mr. Bartram could endure, and he mounted to the cage, took out the prisoner, and restored it to its parent, who accompanied it in its flight to the woods with notes of great exultation.

Early in August the male begins to moult, and in the course of a few days, dressed in the greenish livery of the female, he is not distinguishable from her or his young family. In this humble garb they leave us, and do not resume their summer plumage until just as they are re-entering our southern borders, when they may be seen in various stages of transformation.

This species is extremely susceptible to cold, and in late and unusually chilly seasons large numbers often perish in their more northern haunts, as Massachusetts and Northern New York.

The nests of the Scarlet Tanager are built late in May, or early in June, on the horizontal branch of a forest tree, usually on the edge of a wood, but occasionally in an orchard. They are usually very nearly flat, five or six inches in diameter, and about two in height, with a depression of only about half an inch. They are of somewhat irregular shape, or not quite symmetrically circular. Their base is somewhat loosely constructed of coarse stems of vegetables, strips of bark, and the rootlets of wooded plants. Upon this is wrought, with more compactness and neatness, a framework, within which is the lining, of long slender fibrous roots, interspersed with which are slender stems of plants and a few strips of fine inner bark.

Mr. Nuttall describes a nest examined by him as composed of rigid stalks of weeds and slender fir-twigs tied together with narrow strips of _Apocynum_ and pea-vine runners, and lined with slender wiry stalks of the _Helianthemum_, the whole so thinly plaited as readily to admit the light through the interstices.

The eggs, four or five in number, vary in length from an inch to .90, and have an average breadth of .65. Their ground-color varies from a well-marked shade of greenish-blue, to a dull white with hardly the least tinge of blue. The spots vary in size, are more or less confluent, and are chiefly of a reddish or rufous brown, intermingled with a few spots of a brownish and obscure purple.

Pyranga ludoviciana, BONAP.

LOUISIANA TANAGER.

_Tanagra ludoviciana_, WILSON, Am. Orn. III, 1811, 27, pl. xx, f.
1.—BON. Obs. 1826, 95.—AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 385; V, 1839, 90,
pl. cccliv, cccc. _Tanagra_ (_Pyranga_) _ludoviciana_, BONAP. Syn.
1828, 105.—NUTTALL, Man. I, 1832, 471. _Pyranga ludoviciana_,
RICH. List, 1837.—BONAP. List, 1838.—AUD. Syn. 1839, 137.—IB.
Birds Am. III, 1841, 211, pl. ccx.—SCLATER, Pr. Zoöl. Soc. 1856,
125.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 145. _Pyranga erythropis_,
VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. XXVIII, 1819, 291. (“_Tanagra columbiana_,
JARD. ed. Wilson, I, 317,” according to Sclater, but I cannot find
such name.)

SP. CHAR. Bill shorter than the head. Tail slightly forked; first three quills nearly equal. _Male._ Yellow; the middle of the back, the wings, and the tail black. Head and neck all round strongly tinged with red; least so on the sides. A band of yellow across the middle coverts, and of yellowish-white across the greater ones; the tertials more or less edged with whitish. _Female._ Olive-green above, yellowish beneath; the feathers of the interscapular region dusky, margined with olive. The wings and tail rather dark brown, the former with the same marks as the male. Length, 7.25; wing, 3.60; tail, 2.85.

HAB. Western portions of United States, from the Missouri Plains to the Pacific; north to Fort Liard, south to Cape St. Lucas. Oaxaca (SCL.); Guatemala (SCL.); Orizaba (SCL.); Vera Cruz (winter, SUMICHRAST).

HABITS. This bird is one of the many instances in which Wilson has been unfortunate in bestowing upon his new species a geographical name not appropriate at the present time. We have no evidence that this bird, called the Louisiana Tanager, is ever found within the modern limits of that State, although it occurs from the Great Plains to the Pacific, and from Fort Liard, in the northern Rocky Mountains, to Mexico.

It was first met with by Lewis and Clark’s party, on the Upper Missouri, a region then known as Louisiana Territory. They were said to inhabit the extensive plains in what was then called Missouri Territory, building their nests in low bushes, and even among the grass, and delighting in the various kinds of berries with which those fertile prairies were said to abound.

Mr. Nuttall, who met with these birds in his Western excursions, describes them as continually flitting over those vast downs, occasionally alighting on the stems of some tall weed, or the bushes bordering the streams. Their habits are very terrestrial, and from this he infers that they derive their food from the insects they find near the ground, as well as from the seeds of the herbage in which they chiefly dwell. He found them a common and numerous species, remaining in the country west of the Mississippi until the approach of October. In his first observations of them he states that though he had seen many of these birds, yet he had no recollection of hearing them utter any modulated or musical sounds. They appeared to him shy, flitting, and almost silent.

He first observed these birds in a thick belt of wood near Laramie’s Fork of the Platte, at a considerable distance east of the Black Hills. He afterwards found them very abundant, in the spring, in the forests of the Columbia, below Fort Vancouver. In these latter observations he modified his views as to their song, and states that he could frequently trace them by their notes, which are a loud, short, and slow, but pleasing warble, not very unlike that of the common Robin, delivered from the tops of lofty fir-trees. Their music continues, at short intervals, during the forenoon, and while they are busily engaged in searching for larvæ and coleopterous insects, on the small branches of the trees.

Dr. Suckley found this Tanager quite abundant at certain seasons in the vicinity of Fort Steilacoom. In one year a very limited number were seen; in another they were very abundant. From frequent opportunities to examine and to study their habits, he was inclined to discredit the statement of Nuttall that they descend to low bushes, the reverse being the rule. He found it very difficult to meet with any sufficiently low down in the trees for him to kill them with fine shot. Their favorite abode, in the localities where he observed them, was among the upper branches of the tall _Abies douglassii_. They prefer the edge of the forests, rarely retiring to the depths. In early summer, at Fort Steilacoom, they could be seen during the middle of the day, sunning themselves in the firs, or darting from one of those trees to another, or to some of the neighboring white oaks on the prairie. Later in the season they were to be seen flying very actively about in quest of insect food for their young. On the 10th of July he saw one carrying a worm in its mouth, showing that its young were then hatched out. During the breeding-season they are much less shy, the males frequently sitting on some low limb, rendering the neighborhood joyous with their delightful melody.

Their stomachs were found filled with insects, chiefly coleoptera; among these were many fragments of the large green _Buprestis_, found on the Douglass fir-trees.

Dr. Cooper adds to this account, that this bird arrives at Puget Sound about May 15, and becomes a common summer resident in Washington Territory, especially near the river-banks and among the prairies, on which are found deciduous trees. He compares its song to that of its black-winged relative (_P. rubra_), being of a few notes only, whistled in the manner of the Robin, and sounding as if the bird were quite distant, when in reality it is very near. He met with these birds east of the Rocky Mountains and up to the 49th parallel.

In California the same observer noticed their arrival near San Diego, in small parties, about the 24th of April. The males come in advance of their mates, and are more bold and conspicuous, the females being rarely seen. He saw none of them in the Coast Range toward Santa Cruz, or at Santa Barbara, in summer. He also found them in September, 1860, in the higher Rocky Mountains, near the sources of the Columbia, in latitude 47°. In the fall the young and the old associate in families, all in the same dull-greenish plumage, feeding on the berries of the elder, and other shrubs, without the timidity they manifest in spring.

Mr. J. K. Lord states that he did not once meet with this species west of the Cascade Mountains. He found them on the Spokan Plains and at Colville, where they arrive in June. Male birds were the first to be seen. On their arrival they perch on the tops of the highest pine-trees, and continually utter a low piercing chirp. They soon after pair, and disappear in the forest. Where they breed, Mr. Lord was not able to discover, though he sought high and low for their nests. As he never succeeded in finding them, he conjectured that they must breed on the tops of the loftiest pine-trees. They all leave in September, but do not assemble in flocks.

These Tanagers breed at least as far to the south as Arizona, Dr. Coues having found them a summer resident near Fort Whipple, though rare. They arrive there in the middle of April, and leave late in September.

Mr. Salvin states that this Tanager was found between the volcanoes of Agua and Fuego, at an elevation of about five thousand feet. Specimens were also received from the Vera Paz.

Specimens of this species were taken near Oaxaca, Mexico, by Mr. Boucard, where they are winter residents.

Mr. Ridgway writes that he first met with these Tanagers in July, among the pines of the Sierra Nevada. There its sweet song first attracted his attention, it being almost exactly similar to that of its eastern relative (_P. rubra_). Afterwards he continually met with it in wooded portions, whether among the willows and cotton wood of the river-valleys, or the cedars and piñons of the mountains. In May, 1868, among the willows and buffalo-berry thickets of the Truckee Valley, near Pyramid Lake, it was very abundant, in company with Grosbeaks and Orioles, feeding upon the buds of the grease-wood (_Obione_), and later in the summer among the cedars and nut-pines of East Humboldt Mountains, where the peculiar notes of the young arrested his attention, resembling the complaining notes of the Bluebird, but louder and more distinct. In September he noticed them feeding, among the thickets bordering the streams, upon the pulpy fruit of the thorn-apple (_Cratægus_) that grew plentifully in the thickets. To the eastward it was continually met with, in all wooded portions, as far as they explored.

In manners, it is very similar to the _P. rubra_. The songs of both birds are very nearly alike, being equally fine, but that of this species is more silvery in tone, and uttered more falteringly. Its usual note of _plit-it_ is quite different from the _chip-a-ra´-ree_ of the _P. rubra_.

He met with their nest and eggs at Parley’s Park, Utah, June 9, 1869. The nest was on the extreme end of a horizontal branch of a pine, in a grove, flat, and with only a very slight depression, having a diameter of four and a half inches, with a height of only an inch. It was composed externally of only a few twigs and dry wiry stems, and lined almost entirely with fine vegetable rootlets.

The eggs, usually three in number, measure .95 by .66 of an inch. In form they are a rounded-oval. Their ground-color is a light bluish-green, sparingly speckled, chiefly at the larger end, with marking of umber, intermingled with a few dots of lilac.

Pyranga hepatica, SWAINSON.

_Pyranga hepatica_, SWAINSON, Phil. Mag. I, 1827, 124.—SCLATER, Pr.
Zoöl. Soc. 1856, 124.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 302, pl.
xxxi.—KENNERLY, 131.—RIDGWAY, Pr. A. N. S. 1869, 132.—COOPER, Orn.
Cal. 1, 1870, 144. _Phœicosoma hepatica_, CAB. Mus. Hein. 1851,
25. _Pyranga azaræ_, WOODHOUSE, Sitgreave’s Expl. Zuñi, 1853, 82
(not of other authors).

SP. CHAR. “Length, 8.00”; wing, 4.12; tail, 3.36; culmen, .68; tarsus, .84. Second quill longest, first intermediate between fourth and fifth. Bill somewhat shorter than that of _æstiva_, but broader and higher at the base, becoming compressed toward the end; a distinct prominent tooth on commissure; its color plumbeous-black, paler, or more _bluish_ plumbeous on lower mandible. _Male._ Head above brownish-red, purer anteriorly; rest of upper parts and sides brownish-ashy, tinged with reddish; edges of primaries, upper tail-coverts and tail, more reddish. Beneath, medially, fine light scarlet, most intense on the throat, growing gradually paler posteriorly. Lores and orbital region grayish-white; eyelids pale-red; ear-coverts ashy-red.

_Female._ Above ashy-greenish-olivaceous, brightest on forehead; edges of wing-feathers, upper tail-coverts, and tail more ashy on the back; beneath nearly uniform olivaceous-yellow, purer medially; lores ashy; a superciliary stripe of olivaceous-yellow. _Young male_ similar to the female, but forehead and crown olivaceous-orange, brightest anteriorly; superciliary stripe bright orange, whole throat, abdomen, and breast medially rich yellow, most intense, and tinged with orange-chrome on throat.

HAB. Mountain regions of Mexico and southern Rocky Mountains of United States. Oaxaca (Oct., SCLATER); Xalapa (SCL.); Guatemala (SCLATER); Vera Cruz (not to alpine regions, SUMICHRAST).

This species differs from all the others in the great restriction of the red; this being confined principally to the head above, and median lower surface, the lateral and upper parts being quite different reddish-ashy. The _shade_ of red is also peculiar among the North American species, being very fine and light, of a red-lead cast, and most intense anteriorly.

HABITS. A single female specimen in full plumage of this beautiful bird was obtained by Dr. Woodhouse in the San Francisco Mountains of New Mexico. It was an adult female, and so far is the only one known to have been found within the limits of the United States. It is not rare in the highlands of Mexico, whence it probably extends into the mountainous portions of the United States.

Specimens have also been procured from Guatemala, and Mr. Boucard met with it at Choapam, a mountainous district in the State of Oaxaca, Mexico.

Nothing is known of its habits.

Pyranga æstiva, var. æstiva VIEILL.

SUMMER REDBIRD.

_Muscicapa rubra_, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 326. _Tanagra æstiva_,
GMELIN, I, 1788, 889.—WILSON, I, 1810, 95, pl. vi, f. 3.—AUD. Orn.
Biog. I, 1831, 232; V, 1839, 518, pl. xliv. _Pyranga æstiva_,
VIEILL. Nouv. Dict. XXVIII, 1819, 291.—BON. List, 1838.—IB.
Conspectus, 1850.—AUD. Syn. 1839, 136.—IB. Birds Am. III, 1841,
222, pl. ccviii.—SCLATER, Pr. Zoöl. Soc. 1855, 156.—IB. 1856,
123.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 301.—HEERMANN, P. R. R. X, p.
17.—RIDGWAY, Pr. A. N. S. 1869, 130.—MAYNARD, Birds E. Mass. 1870,
109. _Phœnisoma æstiva_, SW. Birds, II, 1837, 284. _Phœnisoma
æstiva_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851, 25. _? Loxia virginica_,
GMELIN, I, 1788, 849. (Male changing.) _? Tanagra
mississippiensis_, GMELIN, I, 1788, 889. _Pyranga
mississippiensis_, MAX. Cab. Jour. VI, 1858, 272. _Tanagra
variegata_, LATH. Ind. Orn. I, 1790, 422. (Male changing.)
_Tangare du Mississippi_, BUFFON, Ois. V, 63, pl. enl. 741.

SP. CHAR. Bill nearly as long as the head, without any median tooth. Tail nearly even, or slightly rounded. _Male._ Vermilion-red; a little darker above, and brightest on the head. Quills brown, the outer webs like the back. Shafts only of the tail-feathers brown. Bill light horn-color, more yellowish at the edges. _Female._ Olive above, yellow beneath, with a tinge of reddish. Length, 7.20; wing, 3.75; tail, 3.00; culmen, .70, tarsus, .68.

HAB. Eastern Province United States, north to about 40°, though occasionally straying as far as Nova Scotia; west to borders of the plains. In winter, south through the whole of Middle America (except the Pacific coast) as far as Ecuador and Peru. Cuba; Jamaica.

In the accompanying cut we give outline of the bill of the two varieties of _Pyranga æstiva_ as compared with a near ally, _P. saira_, of South America. (13,190, _P. æstiva_; 34,344, _P. æstiva_ var. _Cooperi_; 50,994, _P. saira_.)

[Line drawings: 13190
34344
50994]

This species is one of wide distribution; its habitat in the United States including the “Eastern Province,” north to Nova Scotia, and west toward the Rocky Mountains, along the streams watering the plains, through Texas, into Eastern Mexico, Central America, and the northern part of South America, as well as some of the West India islands.

In the different regions of its habitat the species undergoes considerable variations as regards shades of color and proportions. Specimens from Texas and Eastern Mexico exhibit a decided tendency to longer bills and more slender forms than those of the Eastern United States; the tails longer, and colors rather purer. In Central America and New Granada the species acquires the greatest perfection in the intensity and purity of the red tints, all specimens being in this respect noticeably different from those of any other region.[107]

Specimens in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, from Peru (39,849 ♂, 39,849 ♂, and 39,850 ♀, head-waters Huallaga River), are undistinguishable from those killed in the eastern United States.

The young male exhibits a variegated plumage, the red appearing in patches upon the other colors of the female; in its changing plumage, the red generally predominates on the head, and often individuals may be seen with none anywhere else. In this condition there appears to be a great resemblance to the _P. erythrocephala_ (see synoptical table), judging from the description, but which appears to be considerably smaller, and perhaps has the red of the head more continuous and sharply defined.

The young male in first summer resembles the female, but has the yellow tints deeper, the lower tail-coverts approaching orange.

HABITS. The Summer Redbird is found chiefly in the Southern States, as far north as Southern New Jersey and Illinois. Mr. Audubon speaks of their occurring in Massachusetts, but Mr. Lawrence has never known of their having been found farther north than the Magnolia Swamps near Atlantic City, N. J. One or two recent instances of the capture of these birds in Massachusetts, as also in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, have occurred, but these must be regarded as purely accidental.

This species is said by Mr. Salvin to enjoy an almost universal range throughout Guatemala. It occurred in December at the mouth of the Rio Dulce, in the pine ridges near Quisigua, and along the whole road from Isabel to Guatemala, a distance of eighty leagues.

Mr. C. W. Wyatt met with these birds also, in all varieties of plumage, throughout Colombia, South America, at Herradura, Cocuta Valley, and Canta. Mr. Boucard obtained them at Plaza Vicente, Mexico. Dr. Woodhouse observed this species throughout the Indian Territory, Texas, and New Mexico, where it seemed solitary in its habits, frequenting the thick scrubby timber. It has been known to breed at various points in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Louisiana, and Texas. To the northward it breeds more or less abundantly, as far as Washington, D. C., on the east, and Southern Illinois and Kansas on the west, being much more common in the Mississippi Valley than in the States on the Atlantic in the same parallel of latitude.

Mr. Dresser found it quite common about San Antonio, Texas, during the summer season, arriving there about the middle of April, which is just about the period at which the three specimens were taken near Boston. It is comparatively rare in Pennsylvania, though abundant in the southern counties of New Jersey, and in Delaware, Eastern Maryland, and Virginia. It is also abundant in the Carolinas, in Georgia, Florida, and the Gulf States.

Wilson, in describing the nest and eggs of this species, has evidently confounded them and some of their habits with those of the Blue Grosbeak. Their eggs are not light-blue, nor are the nests, so far as I know, as described by him. Audubon and Nuttall copy substantially his errors.

The food of this species during the spring and early summer is chiefly various kinds of large coleopterous insects, bees, wasps, and others. Later in the season, when whortleberries are ripe, they feed chiefly on these and other small fruit. In taking its food it rarely alights on the ground, but prefers to capture its insects while on the wing.

The usual note of this bird, which Mr. Audubon pronounces unmusical, resembles the sounds “_chicky-chucky-chuck_.” The same writer states that during the spring this bird sings pleasantly for nearly half an hour in succession, that its song resembles that of the Red-eyed Vireo, and that its notes are sweeter and more varied and nearly equal to those of the Orchard Oriole.

The late Dr. Gerhardt of Varnell’s Station, in Northern Georgia, informed me that these birds are quite common in that section of country. The nest is usually built on one of the lower limbs of a post-oak, or in a pine sapling, at a height of from six to twenty feet. They are usually constructed toward the extremity of the limb, and so far from the trunk as to be very difficult of access. They are generally built from the middle to the end of May. The eggs are four in number.

In Southern Illinois, according to Mr. Ridgway, the Summer Redbird arrives about the 20th of April, staying until the last of September. It is more abundant than the Scarlet Tanager, and much less retiring in its habits, frequenting the open groves instead of the deeper woods and the forests of the bottom-lands, being especially attached to the parks and groves within the towns. From its similarity in appearance, manners, and notes to the Scarlet Tanager, it is seldom distinguished by the common people from that bird, and those who notice the difference in color between the two generally consider this the younger stage of plumage of the black-winged species. Its song is said to be somewhat after the style of the Robin, but in a firmer tone and more continued. It differs from the song of the _P. rubra_ in being more vigorous, and delivered in a manner less faltering. Its ordinary note of anxiety when the nest is approached is a peculiar _pa-chip´it-tūt-tūt-tūt_, very different from the weaker _chip´-al, rā-rēē_ of the _P. rubra_. The nest is placed on a low horizontal or drooping branch, near its extremity, the tree being generally an oak, or sometimes a hickory, and situated near the roadside or at the edge of a grove. In its construction it is described as very thin, though by no means frail, permitting the eggs to be seen through the interstices from below. Mr. Ridgway never found more than three eggs in one nest.

A nest of this species (Smith. Coll., 589) from Prairie Mer Rouge, Louisiana, has a diameter of four inches and a height of two. Like all the nests of this family, the cavity is very shallow, its deepest depression being hardly half an inch. So far from corresponding with the descriptions generally given of it, this nest is well and even strongly put together, although a portion of the base and some of the external parts are somewhat openly interwoven, as if for ventilation. These materials are fragments of plants, catkins, leaves, stems, and grasses. These seem to constitute a distinct part of the nest, and are of unequal thicknesses in different parts of the structure. Within this external frame is a much more artistic and elaborately interwoven basket, composed entirely of fine, slender, and dry grasses, homogeneous in character, and evidently gathered just at the time its seed was ripening. It is of a bright straw-yellow, and forms the whole internal portion of the nest.

The eggs vary somewhat in size and shape, from an oblong to a rounded oval. Their length is from .80 of an inch to an inch, and their breadth averages .68. Their color is a bright light shade of emerald-green, spotted, marbled, dotted, and blotched with various shades of lilac, brownish-purple, and dark-brown. These are generally well diffused equally over the entire egg.

1. Pyranga cooperi, _Ridgw._ ♂ N. Mex., 34344.
2. “ “ “ ♀.
3. “ ludoviciana, _Wils._ ♂ Neb., 38388.
4. “ “ “ ♀.
5. “ æstiva, _Gm._ ♂ Ga., 13190.
6. Pyranga æstiva, _Gm._ ♀.
7. “ rubra, _Linn._ ♂ Iowa, 34177.
8. “ “ “ ♀.
9. “ hepatica, _Swains._ ♂ Mex., 22414.
10. “ “ “ ♀.]

Pyranga æstiva, var. cooperi, RIDGWAY.

_Pyranga cooperi_, RIDGWAY, Pr. Ac. Nat. Sc. Philad. June, 1869,
p. 130, fig. .—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 142.

SP. CHAR. Length, 8.60 (fresh specimen); extent, 13.50; wing, 4.24; tail, 3.68; culmen, .84; tarsus, .80. _Male._ Generally rich pure vermilion, similar to that of _æstiva_, but lighter, brighter than in eastern examples, and less rosaceous than in Central American specimens. Upper surface scarcely darker than lower, the head above being hardly different from the throat, and abruptly lighter than the back, which, with the wings and tail, is of a much lighter dusky-red than in _æstiva_; exposed tips of primaries pure slaty-umber, primaries faintly margined terminally with paler (in the type, this character is not apparent, owing to the feathers being somewhat worn; in other specimens, however, it is quite a noticeable feature, although possibly not to be entirely relied on). _Female._ Above orange-olivaceous, beneath more light yellowish, purest medially; crissum richer yellow than other lower parts, being in some individuals (young males?) intense Indian-yellow, with the inner webs of the tail-feathers margined with the same; quite distinct line of orange-yellow over the lores.

HAB. Upper Rio Grande and Colorado region of Southern Middle Province; south, in winter, along Pacific coast of Mexico as far as Colima.

This bird, quite different from Eastern _æstiva_, is, however, probably only a representative form of the same species in the Colorado and Upper Rio Grande region, migrating south in winter, through Western Mexico to Colima, as specimens from Texas and Middle Mexico appear to be quite intermediate, at least in form.

HABITS. This is a new form, whose claim to distinctness was first made known by Mr. Ridgway, in 1869. In appearance, it most resembles the _P. æstiva_, but is larger. It has been found in the Middle Province of the United States, from Fort Mohave at the north, to Colima and Mazatlan in Mexico.

Dr. Cooper found this bird quite common near Fort Mohave, after April 25, in the Colorado Valley, latitude 35°. They chiefly frequented the tall cottonwood, feeding on insects, and occasionally flew down to the _Larrea_ bushes after a kind of bee found on them. He states also that they have a call-note sounding like the words _ke-dik_, which, in the language of the Mojave Indians, signifies “come here.” They sing in a loud, clear tone, and in a style much like that of the Robin, but with a power of ventriloquism which makes the sound appear much more distant than it really is. The only specimens of this species known to have been obtained in the United States were taken at Los Pinos, New Mexico, by Dr. Coues, and at Fort Mohave by Dr. Cooper. Other specimens have been procured from Western Mexico.

FAMILY FRINGILLIDÆ.—THE FINCHES.

CHAR. Primaries nine. Bill very short, abruptly conical, and robust. Commissure strongly angulated at base of bill. Tarsi scutellate anteriorly, but the sides with two undivided plates meeting behind along the median line, as a sharp posterior ridge. Eyes hazel or brown, except in _Pipilo_, where they are reddish or yellowish. Nest and eggs very variable as to character and situation.

I still labor under the inability expressed in Birds of North America (p. 406), in 1858, to satisfactorily define and limit the subfamilies and genera of the _Fringillidæ_ of North America, and can only hope that by the aid of the figures of the present work no material difficulty will be experienced in determining the species. The distinctions from the allied families are also difficult to draw with precision. This is especially the case with the _Tanagridæ_, where we have much the same external anatomy, including the bill, nearly all the varying peculiarities of this member in the one being repeated in the other.—S. F. B.

All the United States species may be provisionally divided into four subfamilies (the European House-Sparrow forming a fifth), briefly characterizable as follows:—

Coccothraustinæ. Bill variable, from enormously large to quite small; the base of the upper mandible almost always provided with a close-pressed fringe of bristly feathers (more or less conspicuous) concealing the nostrils. Wings very long and pointed, usually one half to one third longer than the forked or emarginate tail. Tarsi short.

Pyrgitinæ. Bill robust, swollen, arched above without distinct ridge. Lower mandible at base narrower than upper. Nostrils covered; side of maxilla with stiff appressed bristles. Tarsi short, not longer than middle toe. Tail shorter than the somewhat pointed wings. Back streaked; under parts not streaked.

Spizellinæ. Embracing all the plain-colored sparrow-like species marked with longitudinal stripes. Bill conical, always rather small; both mandibles about equal. Tarsi lengthened. Wings and tail variable. Lateral claws never reaching beyond the base of the middle claw.

Passerellinæ. Sparrow-like species, with triangular spots beneath. Legs, toes, and claws very stout; the lateral claws reaching nearly to the end of the middle ones.

Spizinæ. Brightly colored species, usually without streaks. Bill usually very large and much curved; lower mandible wider than the upper. Wings moderately long. Tail variable.

SUBFAMILY COCCOTHRAUSTINÆ.—THE TRUE FINCHES.

CHAR. Wings very long and much pointed; generally one third longer than the more or less forked tail; first quill usually nearly as long as or longer than the second. Tertiaries but little longer, or equal to the secondaries, and always much exceeded by the primaries. Bill very variable in shape and size, the upper mandible, however, as broad as the lower; nostrils rather more lateral than usual; and always more or less concealed by a series of small bristly feathers applied along the base of the upper mandible; no bristles at the base of the bill. Feet short and rather weak. Hind claw usually considerably longer than the middle anterior one; sometimes nearly the same size.

In the preceding diagnosis I have combined a number of forms, all agreeing in the length and acuteness of the wing, the bristly feathers along the base of the bill, the absence of conspicuous bristles on the sides of the mouth, and the shortness of the feet. They are all strongly marked and brightly colored birds, and usually belong to the more northern regions.

The bill is very variable, even in the same genus, and its shape is to a considerable extent of specific rather than of generic importance. The fringe of short bristles along the base of the bill, concealing the nostrils, is not appreciable in _Plectrophanes_ (except in _P. nivalis_), but the other characteristics given above are all present.

Genera.

A. Bill enormously large and stout; the lateral outline as long as that of the skull. Culmen gently curved.

_Colors green, yellow, and black._

Hesperiphona. First quill equal to the second. Wings one half
longer than the tail. Lateral claws equal, reaching to the base
of the middle claw. Claws much curved, obtuse; hinder one but
little longer than the middle.

B. Bill smaller, with the culmen more or less curved; the lateral outline not so long as the skull. Wings about one third longer than the tail, or a little more; first quill shorter than the second. Claws considerably curved and thickened; hinder most so, and almost inappreciably longer or even shorter than the middle anterior one. Tarsus shorter than the middle toes. Lateral toes unequal.

_a. Colors red, gray, and black, never streaked._

Pyrrhula. Bill excessively swollen; as broad and as high as
long, not half length of head; upper outline much curved.
Tail-coverts covering two thirds the tail, which is nearly
even, middle and hinder claws about equal.

_b. Colors red and gray, or streaked brown and white._

Pinicola. Bill moderately swollen; longer than high or broad,
upper outlines much curved; the tip hooked. Tail-coverts
reaching over basal half of tail, which is nearly even. Middle
claw longer than hind; outer lateral claw extending beyond base
of middle (reaching to it in _Pyrrhula_ and _Carpodacus_). ♀
and _juv._ not streaked.

Carpodacus. Bill variable, always more or less curved and
swollen; longer than high or broad; the tip not hooked.
Tail-coverts reaching over two thirds the tail, which is
decidedly forked. Middle and hind claw about equal. ♀ and
_juv._ streaked.

_c. Colors black and yellow._

Chrysomitris. Bill nearly straight. Hind claw stouter and
more curved, but scarcely longer than the middle anterior one.
Outer lateral toe reaching a little beyond the base of the
middle claw; shorter than the hind toe. Wings longer and more
pointed. Tail quite deeply forked.

C. Hind claw considerably longer than the middle anterior one, with about the same curvature; claws attenuated towards the point, and acute. Lateral toes about equal. Wings usually almost one half longer than the tail, which is deeply forked. Tarsus shorter than middle toe.

_a. Points of mandibles overlapping._

Curvirostra. Tarsus shorter than middle toe. Bill much
compressed, elongate falcate, with the points crossing like the
blades of scissors. Claws very large; lateral extending beyond
the base of the middle. Colors red or gray. Streaked in _juv._

_b. Points of mandibles not overlapping._

Ægiothus. Tarsus equal to the middle toe. Bill very acutely
conical; outlines and commissure perfectly straight. Lateral
toes reaching beyond the base of the middle one. No ridge on
the side of the lower mandible. Streaked; a crimson pileum
(except in one species).

Leucosticte. Culmen slightly decurved; commissure a little
concave. Bill obtusely conical; not sharp-pointed. A
conspicuous ridge on the side of the lower mandible. Claws
large; the lateral not reaching beyond the base of the middle
one. Colors red and brown.

D. Hind claw much the largest; decidedly less curved than the middle anterior one. Tarsus longer than the middle toe. Lateral toes equal; reaching about to the base of the middle claw. Hind toe as long or longer than the middle one. Bill very variable; always more or less curved and blunted. Palate somewhat tuberculate; margins of lower jaw much inflexed. Tail slightly emarginate or even. Wings one half longer than the tail. First quill as long as the second.

Plectrophanes. Colors black and white. With or without rufous
nape or elbows. Much white on tail.

GENUS HESPERIPHONA, BONAP.

_Hesperiphona_, BONAP. Comptes Rendus, XXXI, Sept. 1850, 424. (Type,
_Fringilla vespertina_.)

[Line drawing: 16770, _Hesperiphona vespertina_.
18597, _Coccothraustes vulgaris_.]

GEN. CHAR. Bill largest and stoutest of all the United States fringilline birds. Upper mandible much vaulted; culmen nearly straight, but arched towards the tip; commissure concave. Lower jaw very large, but not broader than the upper, nor extending back, as in _Guiraca_; considerably lower than the upper jaw. Gonys unusually long. Feet short; tarsus less than the middle toe; lateral toes nearly equal, and reaching to the base of the middle claw. Claws much curved, stout, and compressed. Wings very long and pointed, reaching beyond the middle of the tail. Primaries much longer than the nearly equal secondaries and tertials; outer two quills longest; the others rapidly graduated. Tail slightly forked; scarcely more than two thirds the length of the wings, its coverts covering nearly three fourths of its extent. Nest and eggs unknown.

This genus is allied to the European _Coccothraustes_, but differs in wanting the curious expansion of the inner secondaries, as shown in Fig. 18,597. Species are said to occur in Asia, but we have only two in America,—one peculiar to Mexico (_H. abeillii_), the other _H. vespertina_.

The American species may be thus distinguished:—

Species and Varieties.

COMMON CHARACTERS. Wings and tail black, the tertials with more or less whitish; body concolored, with more or less of a yellowish tinge. ♂. Body yellowish, more olivaceous above; no white at base of primaries. ♀. Body grayish, merely tinged with yellow; a white spot at base of primaries. Nest and eggs unknown.

1. H. vespertina. ♂. Head olivaceous-sepia, with a yellow
frontal crescent and a black occipital patch. ♀. Crown
plumbeous-brown; a dusky “bridle” down side of the throat;
upper tail-coverts tipped with a white spot.

Yellow frontal crescent broad, as wide as the black behind
it; inner webs of tertials partially black; secondaries and
inner webs of tail-feathers tipped with white. _Hab._
Northern mountain regions of United States and interior of
British America … var. _vespertina_.

Yellow frontal crescent narrow, less than half as wide as the
black behind it; inner webs of the tertials without any
black; secondaries and inner webs of tail-feathers without
white tips. _Hab._ Southern Rocky Mountains of United States,
and mountains of Mexico … var. _montana_.

2. H. abeillii.[108] ♂. Head entirely black, sharply defined.
♀. Crown (only) black; no dusky “bridle” on side of throat;
upper tail-coverts without white tips. _Hab._ Mountains of
Guatemala and Southern Mexico.

Hesperiphona vespertina, BONAP.

EVENING GROSBEAK.

_Fringilla vespertina_, COOPER, Annals New York Lyceum, N. H. I, ii,
1825, 220 (Sault St. Marie).—AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 515; V,
235, pl. ccclxxiii, ccccxxiv. _Fringilla_ (_Coccothraustes_)
_vespertina_, BON. Syn. 1828, 113.—IB. Am. Orn. II, pl. xv.
_Coccothraustes vespertina_, SW. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 269.—AUD.
Birds Am. III, 1841, 217, pl. ccvii. _Hesperiphona vespertina_,
BON. Comptes Rendus, XXXI, Sept. 1850, 424.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am.
1858, 409.—COOPER & SUCKLEY, 195.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 174.
_Coccothraustes bonapartii_, LESSON, Illust. de Zoöl. 1834, pl.
xxxiv. ♀ (Melville Island). _Loxia bonapartii_, LESS. Bull. Sc.
tab. xxv. _Hesperiphona vespertina_, var. _vespertina_, RIDGWAY
(new variety from Mexico and the southern Rocky Mountains).

SP. CHAR. Bill yellowish-green, dusky at the base. Anterior half of the body dusky yellowish-olive, shading into yellow to the rump above, and the under tail-coverts below. Outer scapulars, a broad frontal band continued on each side over the eye, axillaries, and middle of under wing-coverts yellow. Feathers along the extreme base of the bill, the crown, tibiæ, wings, upper tail-coverts, and tail black; inner greater wing-coverts and tertiaries white. Length, 7.30; wing, 4.30; tail, 2.75.

The female differs in having the head of a dull olivaceous-brown, which color also glosses the back. The yellow of the rump and other parts is replaced by a yellowish-ash. The upper tail-coverts are spotted with white. The white of the wing is much restricted. There is an obscure blackish line on each side of the chin.

HAB. (Var. _vespertina_.) Pacific coast to Rocky Mountains; Northern America east to Lake Superior. (Var. _montana_.) Southern Rocky Mountains of United States into Mexico; Orizaba! (SCLATER, 1860, 251); Vera Cruz (alpine regions, breeding) SUMICHRAST, Pr. Bost. Soc. I, 550; Guatemala, SALVIN.

The variety with broad frontal band and increased amount of white appears to characterize Northern specimens, while that with narrow frontlet and the greatest amount of black is found in Guatemala, Mexico, and the southern Rocky Mountains, and may be called _montana_.

In size it is also a little smaller. Specimens from Mirador (where breeding) and those from New Mexico are nearly identical in size, proportions, and colors.

HABITS. This remarkable Grosbeak was first described by Mr. William Cooper, from specimens obtained by Mr. Schoolcraft in April, 1823, near the Sault Sainte Marie, in Michigan. Sir John Richardson soon after found it to be a common inhabitant of the maple groves on the plains of the Saskatchewan, where it is called by the Indians the “Sugar-Bird.” He states that it frequents the borders of Lake Superior also, and the eastern declivity of the Rocky Mountains, in latitude 56°.

Captain Blakiston did not find this Grosbeak on the Saskatchewan during the summer, but only noticed it there during the winter. He saw none after the 22d of April, and not again until the middle of November. They were seen in company with the Pine Grosbeak, feeding on the keys of the ash-leaved maple. He adds that it has a sharp clear note in winter, and is an active bird.

Dr. Cooper, in his Notes on the Zoölogy of Washington Territory, states that this species is a common resident in its forests, but adds that as it frequents the summits of the tallest trees, its habits have been but little observed. In January, 1854, during a snow-storm, a flock descended to some low bushes at Vancouver, and began to eat the seeds. Since then he had only seen them flying high among the tops of the poplars, upon the seeds of which they feed. They were uttering their loud, shrill call-notes as they flew.

The same writer, in his Report on the birds of California, makes mention of the occurrence of this Grosbeak at Michigan Bluffs, in Placer County, in about latitude 39°. Specimens were obtained by Mr. F. Gruber, and were probably the variety designated as _montana_. The same form doubtless occurs along the summits of the Sierra Nevada, and they have been traced among the Rocky Mountains to Fort Thorn in New Mexico.

These birds do not come down near the sea-coast even at the mouth of the Columbia, and in California have not been met with in the Coast Range. They are said to feed chiefly on the seeds of the pine, spruce, and cottonwood trees, occasionally seeking other seeds near the ground. They are silent when feeding, but utter a loud call-note as they fly from place to place. In spring, Dr. Cooper states, they have a short but melodious song, resembling that of the Robin or Black-headed Grosbeak. He afterwards met with a flock in the winter near Santa Cruz, where they remained until the end of April. Their favorite resort was a small grove of alders and willows, close to the town, where their loud call-notes could be heard at all times of the day, though he never heard them sing. In the early spring their favorite food was the young leaves of various wild plants that grew under the trees. They also fed on the buds of the _Negundo_, and frequented the large pear-trees in the old mission garden. They were very tame, and allowed an approach to within a few yards, when feeding. Mr. Townsend, in 1836, found this Grosbeak abundant about the Columbia River. Late in May they were quite numerous in the pine woods. They were very unsuspicious and tame. Under the impression that these birds were only musical towards night, they have been styled the Evening Grosbeak. But this, according to Mr. Townsend, is a misnomer. He also contraverts several other statements made in reference to their habits. He found them remarkably noisy from morning until night, when they quietly retire like other birds, and are not heard from until the next day-dawn. They go in large flocks, and are rarely met with singly. As they feed upon the seeds of the pine and other trees, they proceed by a succession of hops to the extremities of the branches. They also feed largely on the larvæ of the large black ant, for which object they frequent the tops of the low oaks on the edges of the forests. Their ordinary voice is said to be a single screaming note, uttered while feeding. At times, about midday, the male attempts a song, which Mr. Townsend describes as a miserable failure. It is a single note, a warbling call like the first note of the Robin, but not so sweet, and suddenly checked, as if the performer were out of breath.

Mr. Sumichrast met with the variety of this species designated as _montana_, May, 1857, in the pine woods of Monte Alto, about twelve leagues from Mexico; and although he has never found it in the alpine region of Vera Cruz, he thinks it probable it will be found to be a resident of that district.

Lake Superior has been stated to be its most eastern point of occurrence, but, though this may be true as a general rule, several instances of the accidental appearance of this nomadic species much farther to the east are known. On February 14, 1871, Mr. Kumlien, while out in the woods with his son, saw a small flock of these birds in Dane County, Wisconsin. There were six of them, but, having no gun, he did not procure any. Later in the season he again met with and secured specimens. In the following March, Dr. Hoy of Racine also obtained several near that city. He also informs me that during the winter of 1870-71 there were large flocks of these birds near Freeport, Ill. One person procured twenty-four specimens. One season he noticed them as late as May. They frequent the maple woods, and feed on the seeds fallen on the ground. They also eat the buds of the wild cherry. Their visits are made at irregular intervals. In some years not a single individual can be seen, while in others they make their appearance in December and continue through the whole winter.

Specimens have also been obtained near Cleveland, Ohio, and at Hamilton, Canada; and Mr. Thomas McIlwraith states that Mr. T. J. Cottle of Woodstock, Ontario, shot several of these birds in his orchard in the month of May. They were quite numerous, and remained about the place several days.

GENUS PINICOLA, VIEILL.

_Pinicola_, VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 4, pl. i, f. 13.
“ _Strobilophaga_, VIEILLOT, Analyse, 1816.”
“ _Corythus_, CUVIER, R. An. 1817.”

CHAR. Bill short, nearly as high as long; upper outline much curved from the base; the margins of the mandibles rounded; the commissure gently concave, and abruptly deflexed at the tip; base of the upper mandible much concealed by the bristly feathers covering the basal third. Tarsus rather shorter than the middle toe; lateral toes short, but their long claws reach the base of the middle one, which is longer than the hind claw. Wings moderate; the first quill rather shorter than the second, third, and fourth. Tail rather shorter than the wings; nearly even.

Of this genus one species is found in northern America, and is now considered as identical with that belonging to the northern regions of the Old World.

1. Pinicola enucleator. ♂ N. Y., 12846.
2. “ “ ♀.
3. Carpodacus frontalis, _var._ frontalis. ♂ Cal., 10223.
4. “ cassini. ♂ Rocky Mts., 53471.
5. “ “ ♀ Cal., 18027.
6. “ frontalis, _var._ frontalis. ♀ Cal., 6429.
7. “ purpureus. ♂ Pa., 796.
8. “ “ ♀ Pa., 2139.
9. “ frontalis, _var._ rhodocolpus. ♂ Cal.
10. “ _var._ californicus. ♂ Cal., 10230.
11. “ “ ♀ Cal., 10231.
12. “ frontalis, _var._ hæmorrhous. ♂ Mex.]

Pinicola enucleator, CABANIS.

THE PINE GROSBEAK.

_Coccothraustes canadensis_, BRISSON, Orn. III, 1760, 250, pl. xii,
f. 3. “_Corythus canadensis_, BREHM, Vögel Deutschlands” (1831?).
_Pinicola canadensis_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851, 167.—BAIRD, Birds
N. Am. 1858, 410.—DALL & BANNISTER, Tr. Chic. Ac. Sc. I, 1869, 281
(Alaska).—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 151.—SAMUELS, Birds N. Eng. 283.
_Pinicola americana_ (CAB. MSS.), BP. Consp. 1850, 528. _Loxia
enucleator_, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, 299.—FORST. Phil. Trans. LXII,
1772, 383.—WILS. Am. Orn. I, 1808, 80, pl. v. _Pyrrhula
enucleator_, AUD. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 414, pl. ccclviii.
_Corythus enucleator_, BONAP. List. 1838.—AUD. Syn. 127.—IB. Birds
Am. III, 1841, 179, pl. cxcix.—BON. & SCHLEGEL, Mon. des Loxiens,
1850, 9, pl. ix, xi, xii.—DEGLAND & GERBE, Orn. Europ. I, 258.
_Pinicola enucleator_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. I, 1851, 167.

[Line drawing: _Pinicola enucleator._
12846]

SP. CHAR. Bill and legs black. _Male._ General color light carmine-red or rose, not continuous above, however, except on the head; the feathers showing brownish centres on the back, where, too, the red is darker. Loral region, base of lower jaw all round, sides (under the wing), abdomen, and posterior part of the body, with under tail-coverts, ashy, whitest behind. Wing with two white bands across the tips of the greater and middle coverts; the outer edges of the quills also white, broadest on the tertiaries, on secondaries tinged with red. _Female_ ashy, brownish above, tinged with greenish-yellow beneath; top of head, rump, and upper tail-coverts brownish gamboge-yellow. Wings much as in the male. Length about 8.50; wing, 4.50; tail, 4.00. _Young_ like female, but more ashy.

HAB. Arctic America, south to United States in severe winters.

A careful comparison of American with European specimens of the Pine Grosbeak does not present any tangible point of distinction, and it appears inexpedient to preserve the name of _canadensis_ for the bird of the New World. There is considerable difference in the size, the proportions of the bill, and the color of different specimens, but none of appreciable geographical value.

A considerable number of specimens from Kodiak (perhaps to be found in other localities on the northwest coast) compared with eastern have conspicuously larger bills, almost equal to _cardinalis_ in this respect. In No. 54,465 the length from forehead is .80; from nostril, .50; from gape, .66; gonys, .40; greatest depth, .51. In a Brooklyn skin (12,846) the same measurements are from forehead, .60; from nostril, .44; from gape, .60; gonys, .34; greatest depth, .40. A Saskatchewan skin is intermediate. A European specimen has the bill as long as that from Kodiak, but less swollen. A Himalayan species (_C. subhimachalus_) is much smaller, and differently colored.

These Kodiak specimens approach the European bird more nearly in form of the bill, in which there is a tendency to a more abruptly hooked upper mandible than in the birds from the eastern portions of British America. As a general thing, the red tint is brighter in American than in European birds.

HABITS. The Pine Grosbeak is, to a large extent, a resident of the portions of North America north of the United States. In the northern parts of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, as well as in western America, it is found throughout the year in the dark evergreen forests. In the winter it is an irregular visitant as far south as Philadelphia, being in some seasons very abundant, and again for several winters quite rare.