Chapter XIV: Section IV: Crown rufous; body above, olive-green (5)

Mr. Audubon found these birds during the winter months, as far south as Florida and Lower Louisiana, arriving there in small flocks, coming in company with the Redwings and Cowbirds, and remaining associated with them until the spring. At this season they are also found in nearly all the Southern and Western States. They appear fond of the company of cattle, and are to be seen with them, both in the pasture and in the farm-yard. They seem less shy than the other species. They also frequent moist places, where they feed upon aquatic insects and small snails, for which they search among the reeds and sedges, climbing them with great agility.

In their habits they are said to resemble the Redwings, and, being equally fond of the vicinity of water, they construct their nests in low trees and bushes in moist places. Their nests are said to be similarly constructed, but smaller than those of the Redwings. In Labrador Mr. Audubon found them lined with mosses instead of grasses. In Maine they begin to lay about the first of June, and in Labrador about the 20th, and raise only one brood in a season.

The young, when first able to fly, are of a nearly uniform brown color. Their nests, according to Audubon, are also occasionally found in marshes of tall reeds of the _Typha_, to the stalks of which they are firmly attached by interweaving the leaves of the plant with grasses and fine strips of bark. A friend of the same writer, residing in New Orleans, found one of these birds, in full plumage and slightly wounded, near the city. He took it home, and put it in a cage with some Painted Buntings. It made no attempt to molest his companions, and they soon became good friends. It sang during its confinement, but the notes were less sonorous than when at liberty. It was fed entirely on rice.

The memoranda of Mr. MacFarlane show that these birds are by no means uncommon near Fort Anderson. A nest, found June 12, on the branch of a spruce, next to the trunk, was eight feet from the ground. Another nest, containing one egg and a young bird, was in the midst of a branch of a pine, five feet from the ground. The parents endeavored to draw him from their nest, and to turn his attention to themselves. A third, found June 22, contained four eggs, and was similarly situated. The eggs contained large embryos. Mr. MacFarlane states that whenever a nest of this species is approached, both parents evince great uneasiness, and do all in their power, by flying from tree to tree in its vicinity, to attract one from the spot. They are spoken of as moderately abundant at Fort Anderson, and as having been met with as far east as the Horton River. He was also informed by the Eskimos that they extend along the banks of the Lower Anderson to the very borders of the woods.

Mr. Dall states that these Blackbirds arrive at Nulato about May 20, where they are tolerably abundant and very tame. They breed later than some other birds, and had not begun to lay before he left, the last of May. Eggs were procured at Fort Yukon by Mr. Lockhart, and at Sitka by Mr. Bischoff.

Besides these localities, this bird was found breeding in the Barren Grounds of Anderson River in 69° north latitude, on the Arctic coast at Fort Kenai, by Mr. Bischoff, and at Fort Simpson, Fort Rae, and Peel River. It has been found breeding at Calais by Mr. Boardman, and at Halifax by Mr. W. G. Winton.

Eggs sent from Fort Yukon, near the mouth of the Porcupine River, by Mr. S. Jones, are of a rounded-oval shape, measuring 1.03 inches in length by .75 in breadth. In size, shape, ground-color, and color of their markings, they are hardly distinguishable from some eggs of Brewer’s Blackbird, though generally different. All I have seen from Fort Yukon have a ground-color of very light green, very thickly covered with blotches and finer dottings of a mixture of ferruginous and purplish-brown. In some the blotches are larger and fewer than in others, and in all these the purple shading predominates. One egg, more nearly spherical than the rest, measures .98 by .82. None have any waving lines, as in all other Blackbird’s eggs. Two from near Calais, Me., measure 1.02 by .75 of an inch, have a ground of light green, only sparingly blotched with shades of purplish-brown, varying from light to very dark hues, but with no traces of lines or marbling.

According to Mr. Boardman, these birds are found during the summer months about Calais, but they are not common. Only a few remain of those that come in large flocks in the early spring. They pass along about the last of April, the greater proportions only tarrying a short time; but in the fall they stay from five to eight weeks. They nest in the same places with the Redwing Blackbirds, and their nests are very much alike. In early summer they have a very pretty note, which is never heard in the fall.

Scolecophagus cyanocephalus, CAB.

BREWER’S BLACKBIRD.

_Psarocolius cyanocephalus_, WAGLER, Isis, 1829, 758. _Scolecophagus
cyanocephalus_, CABANIS, Mus. Hein. 1851, 193.—BAIRD, Birds N.
Am. 1858, 552.—CASS. P. A. N. S. 1866, 413.—HEERM. X, _S_,
53.—COOPER & SUCKLEY, 209.—COOPER, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 278.
_Scolecophagus mexicanus_, SWAINSON, Anim. in Men. 2¼ cent.
1838, 302.—BON. Conspectus, 1850, 423.—NEWBERRY, Zoöl. Cal.
and Or. Route; Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI, IV, 1857, 86. _Quiscalus
breweri_, AUD. Birds Am. VII, 1843, 345, pl. ccccxcii.

SP. CHAR. Bill stout, quiscaline, the commissure scarcely sinuated; shorter than the head and the hind toe; the height nearly half length of culmen. Wing nearly an inch longer than the tail; the second quill longest; the first about equal to the third. Tail rounded and moderately graduated; the lateral feathers about .35 of an inch shorter. General color of male black, with lustrous green reflections everywhere except on the head and neck, which are glossed with purplish-violet. _Female_ much duller, of a light brownish anteriorly; a very faint superciliary stripe. Length about 10 inches; wing, 5.30; tail, 4.40.

HAB. High Central Plains to the Pacific; south to Mexico. Pembina, Minn.; S. Illinois (Wabash Co.; R. RIDGWAY); Matamoras and San Antonio, Texas (breeds; DRESSER, Ibis, 1869, 493); Plateau of Mexico (very abundant, and resident; SUMICHRAST, M. B. S. I, 553).

Autumnal specimens do not exhibit the broad rusty edges of feathers seen in _S. ferrugineus_.

The females and immature males differ from the adult males in much the same points as _S. ferrugineus_, except that the “rusty” markings are less prominent and more grayish. The differences generally between the two species are very appreciable. Thus, in _S. cyanocephalus_, the bill, though of the same length, is much higher and broader at the base, as well as much less linear in its upper outline; the point, too, is less decurved. The size is every way larger. The purplish gloss, which in _ferrugineus_ is found on most of the body except the wings and tail, is here confined to the head and neck, the rest of the body being of a richly lustrous and strongly marked green, more distinct than that on the wings and tail of _ferrugineus_. In one specimen only, from Santa Rosalia, Mexico, is there a trace of purple on some of the wing and tail feathers.

HABITS. This species was first given as a bird of our fauna by Mr. Audubon, in the supplementary pages of the seventh volume of his Birds of America. He met with it on the prairies around Fort Union, at the junction of the Yellowstone and the Missouri Rivers, and in the extensive ravines in that neighborhood, in which were found a few dwarfish trees and tall rough weeds or grasses, along the margin of scanty rivulets. In these localities he met with small groups of seven or eight of these birds. They were in loose flocks, and moved in a silent manner, permitting an approach to within some fifteen or twenty paces, and uttering a call-note as his party stood watching their movements. Perceiving it to be a species new to him, he procured several specimens. He states that they did not evince the pertness so usual to birds of this family, but seemed rather as if dissatisfied with their abode. On the ground their gait was easy and brisk. He heard nothing from them of the nature of a song, only a single _cluck_, not unlike that of the Redwing, between which birds and the _C. ferrugineus_ he was disposed to place this species.

Dr. Newberry found this Blackbird common both in California and in Oregon. He saw large flocks of them at Fort Vancouver, in the last of October. They were flying from field to field, and gathered into the large spruces about the fort, in the manner of other Blackbirds when on the point of migrating.

Mr. Allen found this Blackbird, though less an inhabitant of the marshes than the Yellow-headed, associating with them in destroying the farmers’ ripening corn, and only less destructive because less numerous. It appears to be an abundant species in all the settled portions of the western region, extending to the eastward as far as Wisconsin, and even to Southeastern Illinois, one specimen having been obtained in Wisconsin by Mr. Kumlien, and others in Wabash Co., Ill., by Mr. Ridgway.

In the summer, according to Mr. Ridgway, it retires to the cedar and piñon mountains to breed, at that time seldom visiting the river valley. In the winter it resorts in large flocks to the vicinity of corrals and barn-yards, where it becomes very tame and familiar. On the 3d of June he met with the breeding-ground of a colony of these birds, in a grove of cedars on the side of a cañon, in the mountains, near Pyramid Lake. Nearly every tree contained a nest, and several had two or three. Each nest was saddled on a horizontal branch, generally in a thick tuft of foliage, and well concealed. The majority of these nests contained young, and when these were disturbed the parents flew about the heads of the intruders, uttering a soft _chuck_. The maximum number of eggs or young was six, the usual number four or five. In notes and manners it seemed to be an exact counterpart of the _C. ferrugineus_.

Dr. Suckley found these birds quite abundant at Fort Dalles, but west of the Cascade Mountains they were quite rare. At Fort Dalles it is a winter resident, where, in the cold weather, it may frequently be found in flocks in the vicinity of barn-yards and stables. Dr. Cooper also obtained specimens of this Grakle at Vancouver, and regards it as a constant resident on the Columbia River. He saw none at Puget Sound. In their notes and habits he was not able to trace any difference from the Rusty Blackbird of the Atlantic States. In winter they kept about the stables in flocks of fifties or more, and on warm days flew about among the tree-tops, in company with the Redwings, singing a harsh but pleasant chorus for hours.

Dr. Cooper states it to be an abundant species everywhere throughout California, except in the dense forests, and resident throughout the year. They frequent pastures and follow cattle in the manner of the _Molothrus_. They associate with the other Blackbirds, and are fond of feeding and bathing along the edges of streams. They have not much song, but the noise made by a large flock, as they sit sunning themselves in early spring, is said to be quite pleasing. In this chorus the Redwings frequently assist. At Santa Cruz he found them more familiar than elsewhere. They frequented the yards about houses and stables, building in the trees of the gardens, and collecting daily, after their hunger was satisfied, on the roofs or on neighboring trees, to sing, for an hour or two, their songs of thanks. He has seen a pair of these birds pursue and drive away a large hawk threatening some tame pigeons.

This species has an extended distribution, having been met with by Mr. Kennicott as far north as Pembina, and being also abundant as far south as Northern Mexico. In the Boundary Survey specimens were procured at Eagle Pass and at Santa Rosalia, where Lieutenant Couch found them living about the ranches and the cattle-yards.

Mr. Dresser, on his arrival at Matamoras, in July, noticed these birds in the streets of that town, in company with the Long-tailed Grakles _Q. macrurus_ and _Molothrus pecoris_. He was told by the Mexicans that they breed there, but it was too late to procure their eggs. In the winter vast flocks frequented the roads near by, as well as the streets of San Antonio and Eagle Pass. They were as tame as European Sparrows. Their note, when on the wing, was a low whistle. When congregated in trees, they kept up an incessant chattering.

Dr. Coues found them permanent residents of Arizona, and exceedingly abundant. It was the typical Blackbird of Fort Whipple, though few probably breed in the immediate vicinity. Towards the end of September they become very numerous, and remain so until May, after which few are observed till the fall. They congregate in immense flocks about the corrals, and are tame and familiar. Their note, he says, is a harsh, rasping squeak, varied by a melodious, ringing whistle. I am indebted to this observing ornithologist for the following sketch of their peculiar characteristics:—

“Brewer’s Blackbird is resident in Arizona, the most abundant bird of its family, and one of the most characteristic species of the Territory. It appears about Fort Whipple in flocks in September; the numbers are augmented during the following month, and there is little or no diminution until May, when the flocks disperse to breed.

“The nest is placed in the fork of a large bush or tree, sometimes at the height of twenty or thirty feet, and is a bulky structure, not distantly resembling a miniature Crow’s nest, but it is comparatively deeper and more compactly built. A great quantity of short, crooked twigs are brought together and interlaced to form the basement and outer wall, and with these is matted a variety of softer material, as weed-stalks, fibrous roots, and dried grasses. A little mud may be found mixed with the other material, but it is not plastered on in any quantity, and often seems to be merely what adhered to the roots or plant-stems that were used. The nest is finished inside with a quantity of hair. The eggs are altogether different from those of the _Quiscali_ and _Agelæi_, and resemble those of the Yellow-headed and Rusty Grakles. They vary in number from four to six, and measure barely an inch in length by about three fourths as much in breadth. The ground-color is dull olivaceous-gray, sometimes a paler, clearer bluish or greenish gray, thickly spattered all over with small spots of brown, from very dark blackish-brown or chocolate to light umber. These markings, none of great size, are very irregular in outline, though probably never becoming line-tracery; and they vary indefinitely in number, being sometimes so crowded that the egg appears of an almost uniform brownish color.

“In this region the Blackbirds play the same part in nature’s economy that the Yellow-headed Troupial does in some other parts of the West, and the Cowbird and Purple Grakle in the East. Like others of their tribe they are very abundant where found at all, and eminently gregarious, except whilst breeding. Yet I never saw such innumerable multitudes together as the Redwinged Blackbird, or even its Californian congener, _A. tricolor_, shows in the fall, flocks of fifty or a hundred being oftenest seen. Unlike the _Agelæi_, they show no partiality for swampy places, being lovers of the woods and fields, and appearing perfectly at home in the clearings about man’s abode, where their sources of supply are made sure through his bounty or wastefulness. They are well adapted for terrestrial life by the size and strength of their feet, and spend much of their time on the ground, betaking themselves to the trees on alarm. On the ground they habitually run with nimble steps, when seeking food, only occasionally hopping leisurely, like a Sparrow, upon both feet at once. Their movements are generally quick, and their attitudes varied. They run with the head lowered and tail somewhat elevated and partly spread for a balance, but in walking slowly the head is held high, and oscillates with every step. The customary attitude when perching is with the body nearly erect, the tail hanging loosely down, and the bill pointing upward; but should their attention be attracted, this negligent posture is changed, the birds sit low and firmly, with elevated and wide-spread tail rapidly flirted, whilst the bright eye peers down through the foliage. When a flock comes down to the ground to search for food, they generally huddle closely together and pass pretty quickly along, each one striving to be first, and in their eagerness they continually fly up and re-alight a few paces ahead, so that the flock seems, as it were, to be rolling over and over. When disturbed at such times, they fly in a dense body to a neighboring tree, but then almost invariably scatter as they settle among the boughs. The alarm over, one, more adventurous, flies down again, two or three follow in his wake, and the rest come trooping after. In their behavior towards man, they exhibited a curious mixture of heedlessness and timidity; they would ramble about almost at our feet sometimes, yet the least unusual sound or movement sent them scurrying into the trees. They became tamest about the stables, where they would walk almost under the horses’ feet, like Cowbirds in a farm-yard.

“Their hunger satisfied, the Blackbirds would fly into the pine-trees and remain a long time motionless, though not at all quiet. They were at singing-school,’ we used to say, and certainly there was room for improvement in their chorus; but if their notes were not particularly harmonious, they were sprightly, varied, and on the whole rather agreeable, suggesting the joviality that Blackbirds always show when their stomachs are full, and the prospect of further supply is good. Their notes are rapid and emphatic, and, like the barking of coyotes, give an impression of many more performers than are really engaged. They have a smart chirp, like the clashing of pebbles, frequently repeated at intervals, varied with a long-drawn mellow whistle. Their ordinary note, continually uttered when they are searching for food, is intermediate between the guttural _chuck_ of the Redwing and the metallic _chink_ of the Reedbird.

“In the fall, when food is most abundant, they generally grow fat, and furnish excellent eating. They are tender, like other small birds, and do not have the rather unpleasant flavor that the Redwing gains by feeding too long upon the _Zizania_.

“These are sociable as well as gregarious birds, and allied species are seen associating with them. At Wilmington, Southern California, where I found them extremely abundant in November, they were flocking indiscriminately with the equally plentiful _Agelaius tricolor_.”

Dr. Heermann found this Blackbird very common in New Mexico and Texas, though he was probably in error in supposing that all leave there before the period of incubation. During the fall they frequent the cattle-yards, where they obtain abundance of food. They were very familiar, alighting on the house-tops, and apparently having no cause for fear of man. Unlike all other writers, he speaks of its song as a soft, clear whistle. When congregated in spring on the trees, they keep up a continual chattering for hours, as though revelling in an exuberance of spirits.

Under the common Spanish name of _Pajaro prieto_, Dr. Berlandier refers in MSS. to this species. It is said to inhabit the greater part of Mexico, and especially the Eastern States. It moves in flocks in company with the other Blackbirds. It is said to construct a well-made nest about the end of April, of blades of grass, lining it with horse-hair. The eggs, three or four in number, are much smaller than those of _Quiscalus macrurus_, obtuse at one end, and slightly pointed at the other. The ground-color is a pale gray, with a bluish tint, and although less streaked, bears a great resemblance to those of the larger Blackbird.

Dr. Cooper states that these birds nest in low trees, often several in one tree. He describes the nest as large, constructed externally of a rough frame of twigs, with a thick layer of mud, lined with fine rootlets and grasses. The eggs are laid from April 10 to May 20, are four or five in number, have a dull greenish-white ground, with numerous streaks and small blotches of dark brown. He gives their measurement at one inch by .72. They raise two and probably three broods in a season.

Four eggs of this species, from Monterey, collected by Dr. Canfield, have an average measurement of 1.02 inches by .74. Their ground-color is a pale white with a greenish tinge. They are marked with great irregularity, with blotches of a light brown, with fewer blotches of a much darker shade, and a few dots of the same. In one egg the spots are altogether of the lighter shade, and are so numerous and confluent as to conceal the ground-color. In the other they are more scattered, but the lines and marbling of irregularly shaped and narrow zigzag marking are absent in nearly all the eggs.

Mr. Lord found this species a rare bird in British Columbia. He saw a few on Vancouver Island in the yards where cattle were fed, and a small number frequented the mule-camp on the Sumas prairie. East of the Cascades he met none except at Colville, where a small flock had wintered in a settler’s cow-yard. They appeared to have a great liking for the presence of those animals, arising from their finding more food and insects there than elsewhere, walking between their legs, and even perching upon their backs.

Captain Blakiston found this species breeding on the forks of the Saskatchewan, June 3, 1858, where he obtained its eggs.

GENUS QUISCALUS, VIEILLOT.

_Quiscalus_, VIEILLOT, Analyse, 1816 (GRAY). (Type, _Gracula
quiscala_, L.)

[Line drawing: _Quiscalus purpureus._
2104]

SP. CHAR. Bill as long as the head, the culmen slightly curved, the gonys almost straight; the edges of the bill inflected and rounded; the commissure quite strongly sinuated. Outlines of tarsal scutellæ well defined on the sides; tail long, boat-shaped, or capable of folding so that the two sides can almost be brought together upward, the feathers conspicuously and decidedly graduated, their inner webs longer than the outer. Color black.

The excessive graduation of the long tail, with the perfectly black color, at once distinguishes this genus from any other in the United States. Two types may be distinguished: one _Quiscalus_, in which the females are much like the males, although a little smaller and perhaps with rather less lustre; the other, _Megaquiscalus_, much larger, with the tail more graduated, the females considerably smaller, and of a brown or rusty color. The _Quiscali_ are all from North America or the West Indies (including Trinidad); none having been positively determined as South American. The _Megaquiscali_ are Mexican and Gulf species entirely, while a third group, the _Holoquiscali_, is West Indian.

Synopsis of Species and Varieties.

A. QUISCALUS. Sexes nearly similar in plumage. Color
black; each species glossed with different shades of
bronze, purple, violet, green, etc. Lateral tail-feathers
about .75 the length of central. _Hab._ Eastern United
States. Proportion of wing to tail variable.

Q. purpureus. _a._ Body uniform brassy-olive without
varying tints. Head and neck steel-blue, more violaceous
anteriorly.

1. Length, 13.50; wing, 5.50 to 5.65; tail, 5.70 to
5.80, its graduation, 1.50; culmen, 1.35 to 1.40.
Vivid blue of the neck all round abruptly defined
against the brassy-olive of the body. _Female._ Wing,
5.20; tail, 4.85 to 5.10. _Hab._ Interior portions of
North America, from Texas and Louisiana to
Saskatchewan and Hudson’s Bay Territory; New England
States; Fort Bridger, Wyoming Territory var. _æneus_.

_b._ Body variegated with purple, green, and blue tints.
Head and neck violaceous-purple, more blue anteriorly.

2. Length, 12.50; wing, 5.60; tail, 5.30, its
graduation, 1.20; culmen, 1.32. Dark purple of neck
all round passing over the breast, and appearing in
patches on the lower parts. Wing and tail purplish;
tail-coverts reddish-purple. _Female._ Wing, 5.10;
tail, 4.50. _Hab._ Atlantic coast of United States
var. _purpureus_.

3. Length, 11.75; wing, 4.85 to 5.60; tail, 4.60 to
5.50, its graduation, .90; culmen, 1.38 to 1.66. Dark
purple of neck sharply defined against the dull
blackish olive-green of the body. Wings and tail
greenish-blue; tail-coverts violet-blue. _Female._
Wing, 4.65 to 4.90; tail, 3.80 to 4.60. _Hab._ South
Florida; resident var. _agelaius_.

B. HOLOQUISCALUS. (CASSIN.) Tail shorter than wings; sexes
similar. Color glossy black, but without varying shades of
gloss; nearly uniform in each species. Tail moderately
graduated. _Hab._ West India Islands, almost exclusively;
Mexico and South America.

Q. baritus. Black, with a soft bluish-violet gloss,
changing on wings and tail into bluish-green.

_Culmen decidedly curved; base of mandibles on
sides, smooth._

1. Bill robust, commissure sinuated; depth of bill, at
base, .54; culmen, 1.33; wing, 6.15; tail, 5.50, its
graduation, 1.30. _Female._ Wing, 5.20; tail, 4.70;
other measurements in proportion. _Hab._ Jamaica
var. _baritus_.[43]

2. Bill slender, commissure scarcely sinuated; depth
of bill, .43; culmen, 1.35; wing, 5.40; tail, 5.10,
its graduation, 1.20. _Female._ Wing, 4.60; tail,
4.20. _Hab._ Porto Rico var. _brachypterus_.[44]

_Culmen almost straight; base of mandibles on sides
corrugated._

3. Depth of bill, .51; culmen, 1.44; wing, 6.00; tail,
5.50, its graduation, 1.50. _Female._ Wing, 5.15;
tail, 4.80. _Hab._ Cuba var. _gundlachi_.[45]

4. Depth of bill, .40; culmen, 1.35; wing, 5.00; tail,
4.50, its graduation, .85. _Hab._ Hayti var. _niger_.[46]

C. MEGAQUISCALUS. (CASSIN.) Tail longer than wings. Sexes
very unlike. Female much smaller, and very different in
color, being olivaceous-brown, lightest beneath. Male
without varying shades of color; lateral tail-feather
about .60 the middle, or less.

Q. major. Culmen strongly decurved terminally; bill
robust. _Female_ with back, nape, and crown like the
wings; abdomen much darker than throat.

_Lustre of the plumage green, passing into violet
anteriorly on head and neck._

1. Length, 15.00; wing, 7.50; tail, 7.70, its
graduation, 2.50; culmen, 1.60. _Female._ Wing, 5.10.
_Hab._ South Atlantic and Gulf coast of United States
var. _major_.

_Lustre, violet passing into green posteriorly._

2. Length, 14.00; wing, 6.75; tail, 7.20, its
graduation, 2.40; culmen, 1.57. _Female._ Wing, 5.30;
tail, 5.00. _Hab._ Western Mexico. (Mazatlan, Colima,
etc.) var. _palustris_.[47]

3. Length, 18.00; wing, 7.70; tail, 9.20, its
graduation, 3.50; culmen, 1.76. _Female._ Wing, 5.80;
tail, 6.30. _Hab._ From Rio Grande of Texas, south
through Eastern Mexico; Mazatlan (accidental?) var. _macrurus_.

Q. tenuirostris.[48] Culmen scarcely decurved
terminally; bill slender. _Female_ with back, nape, and
crown very different in color from the wings; abdomen as
light as throat.

1. _Male._ Lustre purplish-violet, inclining to
steel-blue on wing and upper tail-coverts. Length,
15.00; wing, 7.00; tail, 8.00, its graduation, 3.00.
_Female._ Crown, nape, and back castaneous-brown; rest
of upper parts brownish-black. A distinct superciliary
stripe, with the whole lower parts as far as flanks
and crissum, deep fulvous-ochraceous, lightest, and
inclining to ochraceous-white, on throat and lower
part of abdomen; flanks and crissum blackish-brown.
Wing, 5.10; tail, 5.35, its graduation, 1.80; culmen,
1.33; greatest depth of bill, .36. HAB. Mexico
(central?).

[43] _Quiscalus baritus_ (LINN.), CASS. Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc.
Phila., 1866, p. 405. (_Gracula barita_, LINN. S. N. I, 165,
1766). _Q. crassirostris_, SWAINSON.

[44] _Quiscalus brachypterus_, CASS. Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 406.

[45] _Quiscalus gundlachi_, CASS. Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 406.

[46] _Quiscalus niger_ (BODDAERT), CASS. Pr. A. N. S. 1866,
407. (_Oriolus niger_, BODD. Tab. Pl. Enl. p. 31, 1783.)

None of the continental forms are in the collection, and
therefore their relationship to each other and to the West
Indian species cannot be here given. They are: (1) _Q.
lugubris_, SWAINS. (Cabinet Cyclopædia, p. 299, 1838.—CASS.
Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 408). _Hab._ S. Am., Trinidad. (2) _Q.
mexicanus_, CASS. (Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 408). _Hab._ Mexico.
Besides these are the two following, whose habitats are
unknown: _Q. inflexirostris_, SWAINS. (Cab. Cyc. p. 300,
1838), and _Q. rectirostris_, CASS. (Pr. A. N. S. 1866,
409).

[47] _Quiscalus palustris_ (SWAINS.), CASSIN, Pr. A. N. S.,
Phila., 1866, p. 411. (_Scaphidurus pal._, SWAINS. Phil.
Mag. 1827, 437).

[48] _Quiscalus tenuirostris_, SWAINS. Cabinet Cyclopædia,
1838, p. 299.—CASSIN, Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 411. The _Q.
assimilis_, SCL. Cat. Am. B. 1862, 141, from Bogota, and _Q.
peruvianus_, SWAINS. Cab. Cyc. 1838, 354, of Peru, are not
in the collection; they are probably referrible to the
_major_ type.

Quiscalus purpureus, BARTR.

THE CROW BLACKBIRD.

SP. CHAR. Bill above, about as long as the head, more than twice as high; the commissure moderately sinuated and considerably decurved at tip. Tail a little shorter than the wing, much graduated, the lateral feathers .90 to 1.50 inches shorter. Third quill longest; first between fourth and fifth. Color black, variously glossed with metallic reflections of bronze, purple, violet, blue, and green. _Female_ similar, but smaller and duller, with perhaps more green on the head. Length, 13.00; wing, 6.00; bill above, 1.25.

_Hab._ From Atlantic to the high Central Plains.

Of the Crow Blackbird of the United States, three well-marked races are now distinguished in the species: one, the common form of the Atlantic States; another occurring in the Mississippi Valley, the British Possessions, and the New England States, and a third on the Peninsula of Florida. The comparative diagnoses of the three will be found on page 809.

Var. purpureus, BARTRAM.

PURPLE GRAKLE.

_Gracula quiscala_, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, (ed. 10,) 1758, 109
(_Monedula purpurea_, Cal.); I, (ed. 12,) 1766,
165.—GMELIN, I, 1788, 397.—LATHAM, Ind. I, 1790,
191.—WILSON, Am. Orn. III, 1811, 44, pl. xxi, f. 4.
_Chalcophanes quiscalus_, WAGLER, Syst. Av. 1827
(_Gracula_).—CAB. Mus. Hein. 1851, 196. _? ? Oriolus
ludovicianus_, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 387; albino
var. _? ? Oriolus niger_, GMELIN, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 393.
_? Gracula purpurea_, BARTRAM, Travels, 1791, 290.
_Quiscalus versicolor_, VIEILLOT, Analyse? 1816.—IB.
Nouv. Dict. XXVIII, 1819, 488.—IB. Gal. Ois. I, 171, pl.
cviii.—BON. Obs. Wils. 1824, No. 45.—IB. Am. Orn. I,
1825, 45, pl. v.—IB. List, 1838.—IB. Conspectus, 1840,
424.—SW. F. Bor.-Am. II, 1831, 485.—NUTTALL, Man. I,
1832, 194.—AUD. Orn. Biog. I, 1831, 35; V, 1838, 481 (not
the pl. vii.).—IB. Syn. 1839, 146.—IB. Birds Am. IV,
1842, 58 (not the pl. ccxxi.).—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
575. _Gracula barita_, ORD., J. A. N. Sc. I, 1818, 253.
“_Quiscalus purpureus_, LICHT.”—CASSIN, Pr. A. N. Sc.,
1866, 403.—RIDGWAY, Pr. A. N. S. 1869, 133.—ALLEN, B. E.
Fla. 291 (in part). _Quiscalus nitens_, LICHT. Verz. 1823,
No. 164. _Quiscalus purpuratus_, SWAINSON, Anim. in Menag.
1838, No. 55. _Purple Grakle_, PENNANT, Arctic Zoöl. II.

SP. CHAR. Length about 12.50; wing, 5.50; tail, 4.92; culmen, 1.24; tarsus, 1.28. Second quill longest, hardly perceptibly (only .07 of an inch) longer than the first and third, which are equal; projection of primaries beyond secondaries, 1.56; graduation of tail, .92. General appearance glossy black; whole plumage, however, brightly glossed with reddish-violet, bronzed purple, steel-blue, and green; the head and neck with purple prevailing, this being in some individuals more bluish, in others more reddish; where most blue this is purest anteriorly, becoming more violet on the neck. On other portions of the body the blue and violet forming an iridescent zone on each feather, the blue first, the violet terminal; sometimes the head is similarly marked. On the abdomen the blue generally predominates, on the rump the violet; wings and tail black, with violet reflection, more bluish on the latter; the wing-coverts frequently tipped with steel-blue or violet. Bill, tarsi, and toes pure black; iris sulphur-yellow.

HAB. Atlantic States, north to Nova Scotia, west to the Alleghanies.

This form is more liable to variation than any other, the arrangement of the metallic tints varying with the individual; there is never, however, an approach to the sharp definition and symmetrical pattern of coloration characteristic of the western race.

The female is a little less brilliant than the male, and slightly smaller. The young is entirely uniform slaty-brown, without gloss.

An extreme example of this race (22,526, Washington, D. C.?) is almost wholly of a continuous rich purple, interrupted only on the interscapulars, where, anteriorly, the purple is overlaid by bright green, the feathers with terminal transverse bars of bluish. On the lower parts are scattered areas of a more bluish tint. The purple is richest and of a reddish cast on the neck, passing gradually into a bluish tint toward the bill; on the rump and breast the purple has a somewhat bronzy appearance.

HABITS. The common Crow Blackbird of the eastern United States exhibits three well-marked and permanently varying forms, which we present as races. Yet these variations are so well marked and so constant that they almost claim the right to be treated as specifically distinct. We shall consider them by themselves. They are the Purple Grakle, or common Crow Blackbird, _Quiscalus purpureus_; the Bronzed Grakle, _Q. æneus_; and the Florida Grakle, _Q. aglæus_.

The first of these, the well-known Crow Blackbird of the Atlantic States, so far as we are now informed, has an area extending from Northern Florida on the south to Maine, and from the Atlantic to the Alleghanies. Mr. Allen states that the second form is the typical form of New England, but my observations do not confirm his statement. Both the eastern and the western forms occur in Massachusetts, but the _purpureus_ alone seems to be a summer resident, the _æneus_ occurring only _in transitu_, and, so far as I am now aware, chiefly in the fall.

The Crow Blackbirds visit Massachusetts early in March and remain until the latter part of September, those that are summer residents generally departing before October. They are not abundant in the eastern part of the State, and breed in small communities or by solitary pairs.

In the Central States, especially in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, they are much more abundant, and render themselves conspicuous and dreaded by the farmers through the extent of their depredations on the crops. The evil deeds of all birds are ever much more noticed and dwelt upon than their beneficial acts. So it is, to an eminent degree, with the Crow Blackbird. Very few seem aware of the vast amount of benefit it confers on the farmer, but all know full well—and are bitterly prejudiced by the knowledge—the extent of the damages this bird causes.

They return to Pennsylvania about the middle of March, in large, loose flocks, at that time frequenting the meadows and ploughed fields, and their food then consists almost wholly of grubs, worms, etc., of which they destroy prodigious numbers. In view of these services, and notwithstanding the havoc they commit on the crops of Indian corn, Wilson states that he should hesitate whether to consider these birds most as friends or as enemies, as they are particularly destructive to almost all the noxious worms, grubs, and caterpillars that infest the farmer’s fields, which, were they to be allowed to multiply unmolested, would soon consume nine tenths of all the productions of his labor, and desolate the country with the miseries of famine.

The depredations committed by these birds are almost wholly upon Indian corn, at different stages. As soon as its blades appear above the ground, after it has been planted, these birds descend upon the fields, pull up the tender plant, and devour the seeds, scattering the green blades around. It is of little use to attempt to drive them away with the gun. They only fly from one part of the field to another. And again, as soon as the tender corn has formed, these flocks, now replenished by the young of the year, once more swarm in the cornfields, tear off the husks, and devour the tender grains. Wilson has seen fields of corn in which more than half the corn was thus ruined.

These birds winter in immense numbers in the lower parts of Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia, sometimes forming one congregated multitude of several hundred thousands. On one occasion Wilson met, on the banks of the Roanoke, on the 20th of January, one of these prodigious armies of Crow Blackbirds. They rose, he states, from the surrounding fields with a noise like thunder, and, descending on the length of the road before him, they covered it and the fences completely with black. When they again rose, and after a few evolutions descended on the skirts of the high timbered woods, they produced a most singular and striking effect. Whole trees, for a considerable extent, from the top to the lowest branches, seemed as if hung with mourning. Their notes and screaming, he adds, seemed all the while like the distant sounds of a great cataract, but in a more musical cadence.

A writer in the American Naturalist (II. 326), residing in Newark, N. Y., notes the advent of a large number of these birds to his village. Two built their nest inside the spire of a church. Another pair took possession of a martin-house in the narrator’s garden, forcibly expelling the rightful owners. These same birds also attempted to plunder the newly constructed nests of the Robins of their materials. They were, however, successfully resisted, the Robins driving the Blackbirds away in all cases of contest.

The Crow Blackbird nests in various situations, sometimes in low bushes, more frequently in trees, and at various heights. A pair, for several years, had their nest on the top of a high fir-tree, some sixty feet from the ground, standing a few feet from my front door. Though narrowly watched by unfriendly eyes, no one could detect them in any mischief. Not a spear of corn was molested, and their food was exclusively insects, for which they diligently searched, turning over chips, pieces of wood, and loose stones. Their nests are large, coarsely but strongly made of twigs and dry plants, interwoven with strong stems of grasses. When the Fish Hawks build in their neighborhood, Wilson states that it is a frequent occurrence for the Grakles to place their nests in the interstices of those of the former. Sometimes several pairs make use of the same Hawk’s nest at the same time, living in singular amity with its owner. Mr. Audubon speaks of finding these birds generally breeding in the hollows of trees. I have never met with their nests in these situations, but Mr. William Brewster says he has found them nesting in this manner in the northern part of Maine. Both, however, probably refer to the var. _æneus_.

The eggs of the Grakle exhibit great variations in their ground-color, varying from a light greenish-white to a deep rusty-brown. The former is the more common color. The eggs are marked with large dashes and broad, irregular streaks of black and dark brown, often presenting a singular grotesqueness in their shapes. Eggs with a deep brown ground are usually marked chiefly about the larger end with confluent, cloudy blotches of deeper shades of the same. The eggs measure 1.25 inches by .90.

Var. æneus, RIDGWAY.

BRONZED GRAKLE.

_Quiscalus versicolor_, AUD. Orn. Biog. pl. vii; Birds Am. IV, pl.
ccxxi (figure, but not description).—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
555 (western specimens).—SAMUELS, 352. _Quiscalus æneus_,
RIDGWAY, Pr. Phil. Acad., June, 1869. 134.

SP. CHAR. Length, 12.50 to 13.50; wing, 6.00; tail, 6.00; culmen, 1.26; tarsus, 1.32. Third and fourth quills longest and equal; first shorter than fifth; projection of primaries beyond secondaries, 1.28; graduation of tail, 1.48.

Metallic tints rich, deep, and uniform. Head and neck all round rich silky steel-blue, this strictly confined to these portions, and abruptly defined behind, varying in shade from an intense Prussian blue to brassy-greenish, the latter tint always, when present, most apparent on the neck, the head always more violaceous; lores velvety-black. Entire body, above and below, uniform continuous metallic brassy-olive, varying to burnished golden olivaceous-bronze, becoming gradually uniform metallic purplish or reddish violet on wings and tail, the last more purplish; primaries violet-black; bill, tarsi, and toes pure black; iris sulphur-yellow.

HAB. Mississippi region of United States, east to Alleghany Mountains, west to Fort Bridger; Saskatchewan Region, Hudson’s Bay Territory; Labrador? and Maine (52,382, Calais, Me., G. A. Boardman). More or less abundant in all eastern States north of New Jersey.

This species may be readily distinguished from the _Q. purpureus_ by the color alone, independently of the differences of proportions.

The impression received from a casual notice of a specimen of the _Q. purpureus_ is that of a uniformly glossy black bird, the metallic tints being much broken or irregularly distributed, being frequently, or generally, arranged in successive bands on the feathers over the whole body, producing a peculiar iridescent effect. In the _Q. æneus_ nothing of this character is seen; for, among a very large series of western specimens, not one has the body other than continuous bronze, the head and neck alone being green or blue, and this sharply and abruptly defined against the very different tint of the other portions. These colors, of course, have their extremes of variation, but the change is only in the shade of the metallic tints, the precise pattern being strictly retained. In the present species the colors are more vivid and silky than in the eastern, and the bird is, in fact, a much handsomer one. (Ridgway.)

Just after moulting, the plumage is unusually brilliant, the metallic tints being much more vivid.

HABITS. The Bronzed Blackbird has been so recently separated from the _purpureus_ that we cannot give, with exactness or certainty, the area over which it is distributed. It is supposed to occupy the country west of the Alleghanies as far to the southwest as the Rio Grande and Fort Bridger, extending to the Missouri plains on the northwest, to the Saskatchewan in the north, and to Maine and Nova Scotia on the northeast. Subsequent explorations may somewhat modify this supposed area of distribution. It is at least known that this form occurs in Texas, in all the States immediately west of the Alleghanies, and in the New England States, as well as the vicinity of New York City.

In regard to its habits, as differing from those of _purpureus_, we are without any observations sufficiently distinctive to be of value. It reaches Calais about the first of April, and is a common summer visitant.

In the fall of 1869, about the 10th of October, several weeks after the _Quiscali_ which had been spending the summer with us had disappeared, an unusually large number of these birds, in the bronzed plumage, made their appearance in the place; they seemed to come all together, but kept in smaller companies. One of these flocks spent the day, which was lowering and unpleasant, but not rainy, in my orchard. They kept closely to the ground, and seemed to be busily engaged in searching for insects. They had a single call-note, not loud, and seemingly one of uneasiness and watchfulness against danger. Yet they were not shy, and permitted a close approach. They remained but a day, and all were gone the following morning. On the day after their departure, we found that quite a number of apples had been bitten into. We had no doubt as to the culprits, though no one saw them in the act.

Audubon’s observations relative to the Crow Blackbird are chiefly made with reference to those seen in Louisiana, where this race is probably the only one found. The only noticeable peculiarity in his account of these birds is his statement that the Blackbirds of that State nest in hollow trees, a manner of breeding now known to be also occasional in the habits of the _purpureus_. The eggs of this form appear to exhibit apparently even greater variations than do those of the _purpureus_. One egg, measuring 1.10 inches by .85, has a bright bluish-green ground, plashed and spotted with deep brown markings. Another has a dull gray ground, sparingly marked with light brown; the measurement of this is 1.13 inches by .85. A third has a greenish-white ground, so profusely spotted with a russet-brown that the ground-color is hardly perceptible. It is larger and more nearly spherical, measuring 1.16 inches by .90. A fourth is so entirely covered with blotches, dots, and cloudings of dark cinnamon-brown that the ground can nowhere be traced.

Mr. Gideon Lincecum, of Long Point, Texas, writes, in regard to this species, that, in his neighborhood, they nest in rookeries, often on a large live oak. They build their nests on the top of large limbs. In favorable situations four or five nests can be looked into at once. They are at this time full of song, though never very melodious. The people of Texas shoot them, believing them to be injurious to their crops; but instead of being an injury they are an advantage, they destroy so many worms, grasshoppers, caterpillars, etc. They are migratory, and very gregarious. They all leave Texas in the winter, and the same birds return in the spring to the same nesting-places. They lay five eggs in a nest.

In Southern Illinois, as Mr. Ridgway informs me, these birds are resident throughout the year, though rather rare during the winter months. They breed in the greatest abundance, and are very gregarious in the breeding-season. On a single small island in the Wabash River, covered with tall willows, Mr. Ridgway found over seventy nests at one time. These were placed indifferently on horizontal boughs, in forks, or in excavations,—either natural or made by the large Woodpeckers (_Hylotomus_),—nests in all these situations being sometimes found in one tree. They prefer the large elms, cottonwoods, and sycamores of the river-bottoms as trees for nesting-places, but select rather thinly wooded situations, as old clearings, etc. In the vicinity of Calais, according to Mr. Boardman, they nest habitually in hollow stubs in marshy borders of brooks or ponds.

Var. aglæus, BAIRD.

FLORIDA GRAKLE.

_Quiscalus baritus_, BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 556, pl. xxxii (not
of _Linn._). _Quiscalus aglæus_, BAIRD, Am. Jour. Sci. 1866,
84.—CASSIN, Pr. A. N. S. 1866, 44.—RIDGWAY, Pr. A. N. S.
1869, 135. _Q. purpureus_, ALLEN, B. E. Fla. 291.

SP. CHAR. Length, 10.60; wing, 5.20; tail, 5.12; culmen, 1.40; tarsus, 1.40. Second and third quills equal and longest; first shorter than fourth; projection of primaries beyond secondaries, 1.12; graduation of tail, 1.00.

Bill very slender and elongated, the tip of upper mandible abruptly decurved; commissure very regular.

Metallic tints very dark. Head and neck all round well defined violaceous steel-blue, the head most bluish, the neck more purplish and with a bronzy cast in front; body uniform soft, dull, bronzy greenish-black, scarcely lustrous; wings, upper tail-coverts, and tail blackish steel-blue, the wing-coverts tipped with vivid violet-bronze; belly and crissum glossed with blue.

HAB. South Florida.

This race is quite well marked, though it grades insensibly into the var. _purpureus_. It differs from both that and _æneus_ in much smaller size, with more slender and more decurved bill.

The arrangement of the colors is much as in the larger western species, while the tints are most like those of the eastern. All the colors are, however, darker, but at the same time softer than in either of the others.

In form this species approaches nearest the western, agreeing with it in the primaries, slender bill, and more graduated tail, and, indeed, its relations in every respect appear to be with this rather than the eastern.

This race was first described from specimens collected at Key Biscayne by Mr. Wurdemann, in April, 1857, and in 1858, and is the smallest of the genus within our limits. The wing and tail each are about an inch shorter than in the other varieties of _purpureus_. The bill, however, is much longer and more slender, and the tip considerably more produced and decurved. The feet are stouter and much coarser, the pads of the toes very scabrous, as if to assist in holding slippery substances, a feature scarcely seen in _purpureus_.[49]

HABITS. This race or species seems to be confined exclusively to the peninsula of Florida. We have no notes as to any of its peculiarities, nor do we know that it exhibits any differences of manners or habits from those of its more northern relatives.

Of its eggs I have seen but few specimens. These do not exhibit much variation. The ground-color shades from a light drab to one with a greenish tinge. They average 1.17 inches in length by .85 in breadth, are more oblong in shape, and are very strikingly marked with characters in black and dark brown, resembling Arabic and Turkish letters.

[49] A series of twenty-nine specimens of _Q. purpureus_ from
Florida, has been kindly furnished for examination by Mr. C. J.
Maynard, chiefly from the northern and middle portions of the
State, and consequently intermediate between the varieties
_aglæus_ and _purpureus_. In color, however, they are nearly all
essentially, most of them typically, like the former; but in size
and proportions they scarcely differ from more northern specimens
of the latter. Their common and nearly constant features of
coloration are, uniform soft dark greenish body, with blue tinge
on belly, and bluish-green tail-coverts and tail, violet head,
more blue anteriorly and more bronzy on the foreneck, and with
this color abruptly defined posteriorly against the peculiar
uniform blackish dull green of the body; the wing-coverts usually
tipped with vivid violet and green spots. One male is a typical
example of the var. _purpureus_, distinguished by the blending of
the similar metallic tints on the body and head, the broken tints
on the body arranged in transverse bars on the back, more purple
tail-coverts, and lack of the vivid metallic tips to the
wing-coverts. There are also four nearly typical specimens of the
var. _aglæus_, these probably from farther south on the
peninsula, but with the characteristics of the race less
exaggerated than in the types from the keys. The measurements of
this series are as follows:—

Var. _purpureus_ (one specimen). ♂. Wing, 5.30; tail, 4.65;
culmen, 1.38.

Intermediate specimens. Typical _aglæus_ in colors, but like
_purpureus_ in size. (16 males, and 17 females). ♂. Wing, 4.85 to
5.50; tail, 4.60 to 5.50; culmen, 1.25 to 1.50. ♀. Wing, 4.65 to
4.90; tail, 3.80 to 4.50; culmen, 1.10 to 1.30.

Var. _aglæus_ (four specimens). ♂. Wing, 5.30 to 5.60; tail, 5.00
to 5.30; culmen, 1.38 to 1.40.

Quiscalus major, VIEILL.

BOAT-TAILED GRAKLE; JACKDAW.

_Gracula barita_, WILSON, Index Am. Orn. VI, 1812 (not of LINNÆUS).
_Gracula quiscala_, ORD. J. A. N. Sc. I, 1818, 253 (not of
LINNÆUS). _Quiscalus major_, VIEILLOT, Nouv. Dict. XXVIII,
1819, 487.—BON. Am. Orn. I, 1825, 35, pl. iv.—IB. List,
1838.—IB. Consp. 1850, 424.—AUD. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 504; V,
1838, 480, pl. clxxxvii, IB. Syn. 1839, 146.—IB. Birds Am. IV,
1842, 52, pl. ccxx.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 555.—CASSIN,
Pr. A. N. S. 1867, 409.—ALLEN, B. E. Fla. 295.—COUES, Ibis,
N. S. IV, No. 23, 1870, 367 (Biography). _Chalcophanes major_,
“TEMM.” CAB. Mus. Hein. 1851, 196.

SP. CHAR. (1,563.) Form rather lengthened, but robust; bill strong, about the length of head; wing rather long, second and third quills usually longest, though the first four quills are frequently nearly equal; tail long, graduated; lateral feathers about 2.50 inches shorter than the central; legs and feet strong.

_Adult male._ Black; head and neck with a fine purple lustre, rather abruptly defined on the lower part of the neck behind, and succeeded by a fine green lustre which passes into a purple or steel-blue on the lower back and upper tail-coverts. On the under parts the purple lustre of the head and neck passes more gradually into green on the abdomen; under tail-coverts usually purplish-blue, frequently plain black. Smaller wing-coverts with green lustre; larger coverts greenish-bronze; quills frequently plain black, with a greenish or bronzed edging and slight lustre. Tail usually with a slight bluish or greenish lustre, frequently plain black. Bill and feet black. Iris yellow. Total length about 15 inches; wing, 7.00; tail, 6.50 to 7.00.

_Adult female._ Smaller. Upper parts dark brown, lighter on the head and neck behind; darker and nearly a dull black on the lower part of the back and upper tail-coverts; under parts lighter, dull yellowish-brown; tibiæ and under tail-coverts darker; wings and tail dull brownish-black; upper parts frequently with a slight greenish lustre. Total length, about 12.50; wing, 5.50 to 6.00; tail, 5.50. (CASSIN.)

HAB. Coast region of South Atlantic and Gulf States of North America. Galveston and Houston, Texas (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 494).

HABITS. The Boat-tailed Grakle, or Jackdaw, of the Southern States, is found in all the maritime portions of the States that border both on the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, from North Carolina to Rio Grande. In Western Texas it does not seem to be abundant. Lieutenant Couch met with only a single specimen at Brownsville, in company with _Q. macrurus_. Mr. Dresser, when at Houston and at Galveston in May and June, 1864, noticed several of these birds. Mr. Salvin mentions finding them as far south as the Keys of the Belize coast.