Chapter XV: Section IV: Crown rufous; body above, olive-green (6)

We learn from the observations of Mr. Audubon that this species is more particularly attached to the maritime portions of the country. It rarely goes farther inland than forty or fifty miles, following the marshy banks of the larger streams. It occurs in great abundance in the lower portions of Louisiana, though not found so high up the Mississippi as Natchez. It also abounds in the Sea Islands on the coast of the Carolinas, and in the lowlands of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

Dr. Coues states that this species hardly occurs in any abundance north of the Carolinas, and that it is restricted to a narrow belt along the coast of the ocean and gulf, from North Carolina throughout our entire shore to Mexico. He supposed it to stop there, and to be replaced by the _macrurus_. Though the larger proportion of these birds pass beyond our southern boundaries to spend the winter, a few, chiefly old males, are resident in North Carolina throughout the year. In the spring the females are the first to appear. Just before the mating has taken place, the flocks of these birds are said to execute sudden and unaccountable evolutions, as if guided by some single commanding spirit; now hovering uncertain, then dashing impulsive, now veering in an instant, and at last taking a long, steady flight towards some distant point. During this period, Dr. Coues further informs us, their voices crack, and they utter a curious medley of notes from bass to falsetto, a jingling, unmusical jargon that is indescribable.

The laying-season is said to be at its height during the latter part of April. He found in no instance more than six eggs in a nest, nor less than three. He thinks that they have two, and perhaps three, broods in a season, as he found it not uncommon to meet with newly fledged birds in September.

These birds are eminently gregarious at all seasons of the year, and at certain seasons assemble in large flocks. They are omnivorous, eating both insects and grain, and are alternately benefactors and plunderers of the planters. In the early season they seek their food among the large salt marshes of the seaboard, and along the muddy banks of creeks and rivers. They do great damage to the rice plantations, both when the grain is in the soft state and afterwards when the ripened grain is stacked. They also feed very largely upon the small crabs called fiddlers, so common in all the mud flats, earthworms, various insects, shrimps, and other aquatic forms of the like character.

A few of these birds are resident throughout the year, though the greater part retire farther south during a portion of the winter. They return in February, in full plumage, when they mate. They resort, by pairs and in companies, to certain favorite breeding-places, where they begin to construct their nests. They do not, however, even in Florida, begin to breed before April. They build a large and clumsy nest, made of very coarse and miscellaneous materials, chiefly sticks and fragments of dry weeds, sedges, and strips of bark, lined with finer stems, fibrous roots, and grasses, and have from three to five eggs.

It is a very singular but well-established characteristic of this species, that no sooner is their nest completed and incubation commenced than the male birds all desert their mates, and, joining one another in flocks, keep apart from the females, feeding by themselves, until they are joined by the young birds and their mothers in the fall.

These facts and this trait of character in this species have been fully confirmed by the observations of Dr. Bachman of Charleston. In 1832 he visited a breeding-locality of these birds. On a single Smilax bush he found more than thirty nests of the Grakles, from three to five feet apart, some of them not more than fifteen inches above the water, and only females were seen about the nests, no males making their appearance. Dr. Bachman also visited colonies of these nests placed upon live-oak trees thirty or forty feet from the ground, and carefully watched the manners of the old birds, but has never found any males in the vicinity of their nests after the eggs had been laid. They always keep at a distance, feeding in flocks in the marshes, leaving the females to take charge of their nests and young. They have but one brood in a season.

As these birds fly, in loose flocks, they continually utter a peculiar cry, which Mr. Audubon states resembles or may be represented by _kirrick, crick, crick_. Their usual notes are harsh, resembling loud, shrill whistles, and are frequently accompanied with their ordinary cry of _crick-crick-cree_. In the love-season these notes are said to be more pleasing, and are changed into sounds which Audubon states resemble _tirit, tirit, titiri-titiri-titirēē_, rising from low to high with great regularity and emphasis. The cry of the young bird, when just able to fly, he compares to the whistling cry of some kind of frogs.

The males are charged by Mr. Audubon with attacking birds of other species, driving them from their nests and sucking their eggs.

Dr. Bryant, who found this species the most common bird in the neighborhood of Lake Monroe, adds that it could be seen at all times running along the edge of the water, almost in the manner of a Sandpiper. They were breeding by hundreds in the reeds near the inlet to the lake. On the 6th of April some of the birds had not commenced laying, though the majority had hatched, and the young of others were almost fledged.

The eggs of this species measure 1.25 inches in length by .92 in breadth. Their ground-color is usually a brownish-drab, in some tinged with olive, in others with green. Over this are distributed various markings, in lines, zigzags, and irregular blotches of brown and black.

Quiscalus major, var. macrurus, SW.

GREAT-TAILED GRAKLE.

_Quiscalus macrourus_, SWAINSON, Anim. in Menag. 2¼ centen. 1838,
299, fig. 51, a.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, pl. lviii.—IB.
Mex. B. II, Birds, 20, pl. xx.—CASSIN, Pr. A. N. S. 1867, 410.
_Chalcophanes macrurus_, CAB. Mus. Hein. 1851, 196.

SP. CHAR. (The largest species of this genus.) Form lengthened but robust, bill strong, longer than the head; wing long, third quill usually longest; tail long, graduated, outer feathers three to five inches shorter than those in the middle; legs and feet strong.

_Adult male._ Black; head, neck, back, and entire under parts with a fine bluish-purple lustre; lower part of back and the upper tail-coverts, and also the abdomen and under tail-coverts, frequently with green lustre, though in specimens apparently not fully adult those parts are sometimes bluish-brown, inclining to dark steel-blue. Wings and tail with a slight purplish lustre, smaller coverts with bluish-green, and larger coverts with greenish-bronze lustre. Bill and feet black. Iris yellow. Total length, 17.50 to 20.00; wing, about 8.00; tail, 8.00 to 10.50.

_Female._ Smaller, and generally resembling that of _Q. major_, but rather darker colored above. Entire upper parts dark brown, nearly black, and with a green lustre on the back; wings and tail dull brownish-black. Under parts light, dull yellowish-brown; paler on the throat, and with a trace of a narrow dark line from each side of the lower mandible. Tibiæ and under tail-coverts dark brown. Total length about 13.00; wing, 6.00; tail, 6.50. (CASSIN.)

HAB. Eastern Texas to Panama and Carthagena. Cordova (SCL. 1856, 300); Guatemala (SCL. Ibis. I, 20, eggs); Honduras (SCL. II, 112); Carthagena, N. 9 (CASS. R. A. S., 1860, 138); Costa Rica (CABAN. Journ. IX, 1861, 82; LAWR. IV, 104); Nicaragua (LAWR. N. Y. Lyc. VIII, 181); Rio Grande of Texas (DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 493, breeds); Vera Cruz (from hot to alpine regions; resident. SUMICHRAST, M. B. S. I, 553).

HABITS. The Great-tailed or Central American Grakle is an abundant species throughout Mexico and Central America, and probably extends to some distance into South America. In Vera Cruz, Sumichrast states it to be one of the few birds that are found in nearly equal abundance throughout the three regions, hot, temperate, and alpine, into which that department is physically divided. It is abundant everywhere throughout that State, and also nests there. In the neighborhood of Cordova and Orizaba it lives in large communities, a single tree being often loaded with the nests.

On the Rio Grande it extends into Texas, and thus qualifies itself for a place within our fauna. A few specimens were procured at Eagle Pass and elsewhere by the Mexican Boundary Survey party. It is more abundant on the western banks of the Rio Grande, especially at Matamoras. Among the MS. notes left by Dr. Kennerly is a part of the memoranda of the late Dr. Berlandier of that place. Under the name of _Pica elegans_ the latter refers to what is evidently this species. He describes it as found in all parts of the Republic of Mexico, where it is known as _Uraca_, _Pajaro negro_, and, in Acapulco, _Papate_. It is found, he adds, abundantly throughout the State of Tamaulipas. It lives upon grain, especially corn, devouring the planted seeds and destroying the crops. It builds its nest in April, laying its eggs in the same month, and the young birds are hatched out by the beginning of May. The nests are large, the edges high, and the cavity correspondingly deep. They are constructed of dry plants and small bits of cloth, which the birds find about the settlements, and the bottom of the nest is plastered with clay, which gives it great firmness. This is covered with grasses and pieces of dry weeds. The eggs are described as large, of a pale leaden-gray or a rusty color, over which are black marks, stripes, lines, and spots without order or regularity. They are generally four in number. The nests are built on the tops of the highest trees, usually the willows or mesquites.

Mr. G. C. Taylor, in his notes on the birds of Honduras, states that he found this Blackbird common, and always to be met with about the villages. It appeared to be polygamous, the males being generally attended by several females. A fine male bird, with his accompanying females, frequented the court-yard of the Railroad House at Comayagua, where Mr. Taylor was staying. They generally sat on the roof of the house, or among the upper branches of some orange-trees that grew in the yard. They had a very peculiar cry, not unlike the noise produced by the sharpening of a saw, but more prolonged.

Mr. Salvin found the bird very abundant in Central America. In one of his papers relative to the birds of that region, he states that this species, in Guatemala, plays the part of the European House Sparrow. It seeks the abode of man, as does that familiar bird, and is generally found frequenting larger towns as well as villages. Stables are its favorite places of resort, where it scratches for its food among the ordure of the horses. It will even perch on the backs of these animals and rid them of their ticks, occasionally picking up stray grains of corn from their mangers. At Duenas he found it breeding in large societies, usually selecting the willows that grow near the lake and the reeds on the banks for its nest. The breeding season extends over some length of time. In May, young birds and fresh eggs may be found in nests in the same trees. On the coast, young birds, nearly capable of flying, were seen in the early part of March. Mr. Salvin adds that the nests are usually made of grass, and placed among upright branches, the grass being intwined around each twig, to support the structure. The eggs in that region were seldom found to exceed three in number.

Mr. Dresser found the Long-tailed Grakles very common at Matamoras, where they frequented the streets and yards with no signs of fear. They were breeding there in great quantities, building a heavy nest of sticks, lined with roots and grass. They were fond of building in company, and in the yard of the hotel he counted seven nests in one tree. At Eagle Pass, and as far east as the Nueces River, he found them not uncommon, but noticed none farther in the interior of Texas. Their usual note is a loud and not unmelodious whistle. They have also a very peculiar guttural note, which he compares to the sound caused by drawing a stick sharply across the quills of a dried goose-wing.

Captain McCown states that he observed these Blackbirds building in large communities at Fort Brown, Texas. Upon a tree standing near the centre of the parade-ground at that fort, a pair of the birds had built their nest. Just before the young were able to fly, one of them fell to the ground. A boy about ten years old discovered and seized the bird, which resisted stoutly, and uttered loud cries. These soon brought to its rescue a legion of old birds, which vigorously attacked the boy, till he was glad to drop the bird and take to flight. Captain McCown then went and picked up the young bird, when they turned their fury upon him, passing close to his head and uttering their sharp caw. He placed it upon a tree, and there left it, to the evident satisfaction of his assailants. These birds, he adds, have a peculiar cry, something like tearing the dry husk from an ear of corn. From this the soldiers called them corn-huskers. He often saw other and smaller birds building in the same tree. They were very familiar, and would frequently approach to within ten feet of a person.

The eggs measure 1.32 inches in length by .92 of an inch in breadth, and exhibit great variations both in ground-color and in the style and character of their marking. In some the ground-color is of a light grayish-white with a slight tinge of green or blue; in others it is of a light drab, and again many have a deep brownish-drab. The markings are principally of a dark brown, hardly distinguishable from black, distributed in the shape of drops, or broad irregular narrow plashes, or in waving zigzag lines and markings. Intermingled with these deeper and bolder markings are suffused cloud-like colorations of purplish-brown.

FAMILY STURNIDÆ.—THE STARLINGS.

CHAR. General characters of the _Icteridæ_, but with a rudimentary first primary, making the total number ten.

The introduction of this family into the present work is required by the occurrence of the typical species, _Sturnus vulgaris_, in Greenland, although it otherwise characterizes the Old World exclusively. There are several subfamilies, principally African and East Indian (_Lamprotornithinæ_, _Buphaginæ_, _Sturninæ_, and _Graculinæ_), some of them of very brilliant plumage.

The _Sturnidæ_ in many respects constitute a natural stage of transition from the _Icteridæ_ to the _Corvidæ_, through the Jays.

GENUS STURNUS, LINNÆUS.

_Sturnus_, LINN. Syst. Nat., I, (ed. 10,) 1758, 167. (Type, _S.
vulgaris_.)

[Line drawing: _Sturnus vulgaris._
19020]

GEN. CHAR. Bill long, conical, much depressed; the culmen, gonys, and commissure nearly straight, the latter angulated at base. Wings, twice length of tail; much pointed, the primaries graduating rapidly from the second, the first being rudimentary, the secondaries much shorter. Tail nearly even; the feathers acuminate. Tarsi short; about equal to middle toe; lateral toes equal. Plumage coarse and stiff, each feather distinctly outlined.

The bill of _Sturnus_ is very similar to that of _Sturnella_, although less inflected at the edges. The shorter tarsi, much longer wings, with the innermost secondaries much less than the primaries, etc., readily distinguish the two families.

Sturnus vulgaris, LINN.

THE STARLING.

_Sturnus vulgaris_, LINN. Syst. Nat. I, (ed. 10,) 1758, 167; (ed.
12,) 1766, 290.—DEGLAND & GERBE, Orn. Europ. I, 1867,
232.—REINHARDT, Ibis, 1861, 7 (Greenland).

SP. CHAR. Feathers principally lustrous-black, with purple and green reflections, except at their extremities, which are dull and opaque; brownish above, silvery-white beneath. Bill yellow in spring, brown in autumn. Legs flesh-color. Length about 8.51; wing, 5.11; tail, 2.81; bill above, 1.11, from nostril, .75; gape, 1.15; tarsus, 1.15; middle toe and claw, 1.15. _Female_ similar, but less brilliant.

HAB. Europe and North Africa, most abundant in Holland. One specimen killed in Greenland, in 1851, and preserved in the Royal Zoölogical Museum of Copenhagen.

The preceding description will serve to distinguish the Starling from any North American species, although it is subject to considerable variation. A second form, scarcely distinguishable as a species (_S. unicolor_, De la Marmora), of a prevailing black color, without terminal spots, and with the feathers of the under part elongated, is found in Sardinia and Sicily.

HABITS. We give a place to the common Starling of Europe in the fauna of North America, as an occasional and rare visitant of Greenland. Only a single instance is on record of its actual capture,—a female taken by Holböll in 1851, and now in the Royal Museum of Copenhagen.

The well-known Starling of Europe is handsome in plumage and of graceful shape. It is numerous, as a species, is very generally distributed, and therefore very well known. With many it is a great favorite, and is also familiar as a caged bird. Its sprightly habits, retentive memory, and flexibility of voice, commend it as an interesting and entertaining pet. It has been taught to whistle tunes, and even to imitate the human voice, with facility and correctness. In its natural state it is a very social bird, and lives in flocks the greater part of the year.

Mr. Waterton, who was a great admirer of the Starling, sought to induce these birds to frequent his grounds, and with this view made various cavities in the walls of an old tower near his residence. His wishes were gratified, and soon every cavity he had made was taken possession of by a pair, and many more would have been thus domiciled had provision been made for them.

A similar instance is on record in Hamburg, where, within a few years, a well-known horticulturist induced nearly two hundred pairs of Starlings to occupy and to breed in wooden boxes put up in his grounds for their accommodation. His plants had been destroyed by the attacks of hosts of subterranean larvæ, and the Starlings were invited in the hope that they would remove this evil, which they did quite effectually.

Dr. Beverley Morris gives a very interesting account of a female Starling that he observed building a nest in a hollow tree. The male looked on, but took no part, except to drive away other intrusive birds. The female made on an average three trips a minute, with small twigs and bits of dry grass, taking sometimes three or four at a time. He estimated that in the space of six hours she had taken to her nest not less than a thousand sticks.

The Starling is said to select for its nest suitable places in church-steeples, the eaves of houses, and holes in walls, especially of old towers and ruins; occasionally it builds in hollow trees, in cliffs or in high rocks overhanging the sea, and also in dovecotes. The nests are made of slender twigs, straw, roots, and dry grasses. The birds incubate sixteen days. The old birds are devoted to their offspring.

Almost as soon as the nestlings are able to fly, different families unite to form large flocks, which may be seen feeding on commons and grass-grounds, in company with the Rooks and other birds. Their chief food consists of larvæ, worms, insects in various stages, and, at times, berries and grain. In confinement they are very fond of raw meat.

Mr. Yarrell, quoting Dr. Dean of Wells, gives an account of an extraordinary haunt of Starlings on an estate of a gentleman who had prepared the place for occupation by Pheasants. It was in a plantation of arbutus and laurustinus, covering some acres, to which these birds repaired, in the evening, almost by the million, coming from the low grounds about the Severn. A similar instance is given by Mr. Ball, of Dublin, of an immense swarm of several hundred thousand Starlings sleeping every night in a mass of thorn-trees at the upper end of the Zoölogical Garden in Phœnix Park.

The Starlings are found throughout Great Britain, even to the Hebrides and the Orkneys, where they are great favorites, and holes are left in the walls of the houses for their accommodation. They are common throughout Norway, Sweden, and the north of Europe, and as far east as the Himalayas and even Japan. They are also found in all the countries on both sides of the Mediterranean, and Mr. Gould states that they occur in Africa as far south as the Cape of Good Hope.

The eggs of the Starling are five in number, of a uniform delicate pale blue, oval in shape and rounded at one end; they measure 1.20 inches in length by .88 in breadth.

FAMILY CORVIDÆ.—THE CROWS.

CHAR. Primaries ten; the first short, generally about half as long as the second (or a little more); the outer four sinuated on the inner edge. The nasal fossæ and nostrils usually more or less concealed by narrow, stiffened bristles (or bristly feathers), with short appressed lateral branches extending to the very tip, all directed forwards (these bristles occasionally wanting). Tarsi scutellate anteriorly, the sides undivided (except sometimes below), and separated from the anterior plates by a narrow naked strip, sometimes filled up with small scales. Basal joint of middle toe united about equally to the lateral, generally for about half the length. Bill generally notched.

The preceding characters distinguish the family of Crows quite markedly from all others. The features of the bristles on the bill, and the separation of the lateral and anterior scales by a narrow interval, are worthy of particular attention. The commissure is without the obtusely angular bend near the base, seen in the _Icteridæ_.

There are two sub-families of _Corvidæ_ represented in America, one embracing the true Crows, the other the Jays. They pass very insensibly into each other, and it is difficult to mark the dividing line. We may, however, distinguish these, as found in the United States, by the following characters:—

Corvinæ. Bill as long as the head. Tail short, nearly even; wings long and pointed, longer than tail, and nearly reaching its tip; projecting beyond the under tail-coverts, which reach the middle of tail. Tip of wing formed by the third, fourth, and fifth quills, which are longest.

Garrulinæ. Bill usually shorter than head. Tail lengthened, rounded, and generally longer than the wings, which are short, rounded, and extend scarcely beyond the lower tail-coverts; these not reaching the middle of the tail. Tip of wing formed by the fourth, fifth, and sixth quills, which are longest.

The row of small scales is usually present on both sides of the tarsi in the _Corvinæ_, but in the Jays is generally restricted to the inner face.

SUBFAMILY CORVINÆ.

CHAR. Wings long and pointed; longer than the tail, and, when closed, reaching nearly to its tip, extending far beyond the under tail-coverts; the third, fourth, and fifth quills forming the tip of the wing.

The following diagnosis may serve to distinguish the three genera of North American _Corvinæ_:—

A. (_Corveæ_). Bill compressed, much higher than broad;
its tip compressed. Size large (i. e. over 15 inches
long), color black, or mainly black.

Color black throughout; bill much compressed, the culmen
much arched, and the gonys convex; nasal bristles strong
_Corvus_.

B. (_Nucifrageæ._) Bill cylindrical, scarcely or not at
all higher than broad; its tip depressed. Size small (i.
e. less than 15 inches long). Color uniform blue or with
ashy on body, and black wings and tail.

Color ashy, with wings and tail mainly black. Culmen
convex, gonys slightly concave. Nostrils covered by the
short nasal tuft _Picicorvus_.

Color uniform blue, brighter on the head; the throat
streaked with whitish. Culmen straight; gonys slightly
convex. Nostrils completely exposed; no nasal tufts _Gymnokitta_.

GENUS CORVUS, LINNÆUS.

_Corvus_, LINNÆUS, Syst. Nat. 1735. (Type, _Corvus corax_, L.)

[Line drawing: _Corvus carnivorus._
12442]

GEN. CHAR. The nasal feathers lengthened, reaching to or beyond the middle of the bill. Nostrils large, circular, overhung behind by membrane, the edges rounded elsewhere. Rictus without bristles. Bill nearly as long as the tarsus, very stout; much higher than broad at the base; culmen much arched. Wings reaching nearly or quite to the tip of the tail, the outer four primaries sinuated internally. Tarsi longer than the middle toe, with a series of small scales on the middle of each side separating the anterior scutellate portion from the posterior continuous plates. Sides of the head occasionally with nearly naked patches. Tail graduated or rounded.

Species and Varieties.

RAVENS. Feathers of the chin and throat stiffened,
elongated, narrow and lanceolate, with their outlines very
distinct.

1. C. corax var. carnivorus. Length about 25.00;
wing, 17.00; tail, 10.00; graduation of tail, 1.60
to 2.40. Feathers of the neck and breast light gray
beneath surface. _Hab._ Whole of North America;
Guatemala and Mexico. Rare in Eastern United States.

2. C. cryptoleucus. Length about 21.00; wing, 14.00;
tail, 8.50; graduation of tail, about 1.25. Feathers
of neck and breast snowy-white beneath surface.
_Hab._ Llano Estacado, or Staked Plain of Texas;
Arizona; Colorado.

CROWS. Feathers of chin and throat soft, short, broad,
obtuse, and with their webs blended.

A. Angle of mouth feathered—North American Crows.

_a._ Tarsus longer than the bill. First quill not
longer than tenth.

3. C. americanus. The gloss of the plumage
purplish-violet, and hardly perceptible on head and
neck, middle toe and claw rather shorter than
tarsus, measured from beginning of scutellæ.

Wing, 12.25; tail, 7.20; culmen, 1.85; tarsus,
2.00; middle toe, 1.45; wing-formula, 4, 3, 5, 6,
2; first quill equal to tenth. _Hab._ North
America generally var. _americanus_.[50]

Wing, 12.50; tail, 7.20; culmen, 2.10; tarsus,
2.30; middle toe, 1.60. Wing-formula? (moulting).
_Hab._ South Florida var. _floridanus_.

4. C. ossifragus. The gloss of plumage
violaceous-blue, almost green on the head, neck, and
breast, where very perceptible. Middle toe and claw
longer than tarsus, as above. Wing, 10.50; tail,
6.50; culmen, 1.55; tarsus, 1.65; middle toe, 1.35.
Wing-formula, 4, 3, 5; first quill slightly shorter
than tenth. _Hab._ Atlantic Coast of the United
States.

_b._ Tarsus shorter than the bill. First quill longer
than tenth.

5. C. caurinus. Gloss of the plumage as in
_americanus_, but deeper. Wing, 10.50; tail, 6.40;
culmen, 1.95; tarsus, 1.70; middle toe, 1.25.
Wing-formula, 4, 3, 5. _Hab._ Northwestern coast of
North America.

6. C. mexicanus.[51] Plumage highly lustrous,
blended. Soft burnished steel-blue, changing to
violet on the crown, and with a greenish cast on
lower parts. Wing, 9.00; tail, 6.50; culmen, 1.60;
tarsus, 1.20; middle toe, 1.10. Wing-formula, 4, 3,
5. First quill very much longer than tenth. _Hab._
Western Mexico (Mazatlan, etc.).

B. Angle of mouth naked—West Indian Crows.

_a._ Tarsus much shorter than the bill.

7. C. nasicus.[52] Nostrils scarcely concealed by
the short nasal bristles. Entirely violaceous-black,
the feathers smoky-gray beneath the surface. Wing,
11.00; tail, 7.75; culmen, 2.45; depth of bill, .80;
tarsus, 1.95; middle toe, 1.50; graduation of tail
about 1.00; wing-formula, 4, 3, 5, 6, 2; first quill
shortest. _Hab._ Cuba.

8. C. leucognaphalus.[53] Nostrils well concealed by
the longer, but rather scant, nasal bristles.
Entirely violaceous-black, the feathers of the neck
all round, breast and sides, pure white below the
surface. Wing, 12.50; tail, 9.00; culmen, 2.45;
depth of bill, .95; tarsus, 2.15; middle toe, 1.50;
graduation of tail about 1.25. Wing-formula, 4, 5,
3, 6, 2; first quill much the shortest. _Hab._ Porto
Rico.

_b._ Tarsus about equal to bill.

9. C. jamaicensis.[54] Nostrils just covered by the
short but dense tuft of nasal bristles. Entirely
dark sooty-plumbeous, inclining to black on the
head, wings, and tail, where is a very faint
violaceous gloss. Wing, 9.50; tail, 6.50; culmen,
2.00; depth of bill, 1.70; tarsus, 2.05; middle toe,
1.35; graduation of tail, about .60. Wing-formula,
5, 4, 3, 6, 2; first shortest. _Hab._ Jamaica.

[50] The measurements given are of a California specimen, in
order the better to show the great distinction to be made
between this species and _caurinus_, which is probably not
found in California, being a more northern species, and
having the coast of Washington Territory, or perhaps Oregon,
as about its southern limit.

[51] _C. mexicanus_, GMEL. Syst. Nat. p. 375. This species
is perfectly distinct from all the others. The plumage has a
silky blended character, and very high lustre, almost
exactly as in the larger Grakles (_Quiscalus major_, etc.).

[52] _C. nasicus_, TEMM. Pl. Col. 413.—GUNDL. Rev. y Catal.
de las Aves de Cuba., 1865, 290. _Corvus americanus_, LEMB.
Aves de Cuba, 1830, 65. _Hab._ Cuba.

[53] _C. leucognaphalus_, DAUD. Tr. d’Orn. II, 231.—SALLÉ,
P. Z. S. 1857, 232.—BRYANT, Pr. Bost. Soc. 1866, XI, 94.
_Hab._ Porto Rico and Santo Domingo.

[54] _C. jamaicensis_, GM. S. N. I, 367.—GOSSE, B. Jam.
209.—SCL. Catal. Am. B. 1860, 146.—BONAP. Consp.
385.—SALLÉ, P. Z. S. 1857, 232.—MARCH, P. A. N. S. 1863,
300.—BRYANT, Pr. Bost. Soc. 1866, XI, 94. _Hab._ Jamaica
and Santo Domingo.

The _C. minutus_ of Cuba we have not seen; it seems,
however, to be rather nearly related to _C. ossifragus_, and
possesses more lengthened nasal plumes than the three West
Indian species diagnosed above. Its synonomy is as
follows:—

_Corvus minutus_, GUNDL. Cab. J. 1856, 20, p. 97.—IB. Rev.
y Catal. de las Aves de Cuba. _Hab._ Cuba.

Corvus corax, var. carnivorus, BARTRAM.

AMERICAN RAVEN.

_Corvus carnivorus_, BARTRAM, Travels in E. Florida, 1793,
290.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 560, pl. xxi.—COOPER &
SUCKLEY, 210, pl. xxi.—COUES, P. A. N. S. 1866, 225.—LORD,
Pr. R. A. Inst. IV, 1864, 121 (British Columbia).—DALL &
BANNISTER, Tr. Ch. Ac. I, 1869, 285 (Alaska).—COOPER, Orn.
Cal. I, 1870, 282.—SAMUELS, 355. _Corvus corax_, WILSON, Am.
Orn. IX, 1825, 136, pl. lxxv. f. 3.—BONAP. Obs. Wils. 1825,
No. 36.—IB. Syn. 1828, 56.—DOUGHTY, Cab. N. H. I, 1830, 270,
pl. xxiv.—RICH. F. B. Am. II, 1831, 290.—NUTTALL, Man. I,
1832, 202.—AUD. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 476, pl. ci.—IB. Syn.
1839, 150.—IB. Birds Am. IV. 1842, 78, pl. ccxxiv.—HEERM. X,
_S_, 54.—FINSCH, Abh. Nat. III, 1872, 40 (Alaska). _Corvus
cacalotl_, “WAGLER,” ? BONAP. Pr. Zoöl. Soc. 1837, 115 (perhaps
true _cacalotl_).—IB. List, 1838 (probably not of
Wagler).—IB. Conspectus, 1850, 387.—MAXIMILIAN, Reise
innere Nord Amer. II, 1841, 289 (does not consider it different
from European).—NEWBERRY, P. R. R. Rep. VI, IV, 1857, 82.
_Corvus lugubris_, AGASSIZ, Pr. Bost. Soc. N. H. II, Dec. 1846,
188.—IB. Caban. J. VI, 1858, 195.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858,
563, pl. xx.—KENNERLY, P. R. R. X. b. pl. xxii. _Corvus_, var.
_littoralis_, “HOLBÖLL, Kroger Tidsk. IV, 1843,
390.”—SCHLEGEL, note on _Corvus_.

SP. CHAR. Fourth quill longest; third and fifth about equal; second between fifth and sixth; first nearly equal to the eighth. Length, about 24.00 or 25.00; extent, 50.00 to 51.00; wing, about 17.00; tail, 10.00. Tail moderately graduated; the outer feather about 1.60 to 2.40 inches less than the middle. Entirely glossy black, with burnished violet reflections.

HAB. Entire continent of North America. Rare east of the Mississippi. South to Guatemala.

Though easily distinguishable from the European bird, the American Raven is so nearly related to it as to be beyond doubt referrible to it as a variety. The differences presented in a very large series of both forms are, however, very constant and tangible. In the American bird the bill is always longer and less deep, and the plumage is more highly burnished, while the wings, especially the secondaries, are perceptibly of a more reddish violet than the other portions. Though in an immense series of American specimens many differences of form and size are noted, yet there is nothing sufficiently characteristic of any particular region to indicate more than one variety. As a rule, however, specimens from the high north exceed in size those from elsewhere, and have the bill more robust, though not so short as in the European bird; while those from the Middle Province and Mexico to Guatemala (= “_cacalotl_,” Baird et Auct.) have the plumage more brilliant than others, and frequently the bill very narrow.

HABITS. Assuming that we must consider as but one species the two differing forms of Raven found in North America, we find this bird more or less common throughout nearly the whole continent. It is much more abundant in some regions than in others, and, as a general rule, is much more common and also more generally distributed in the western portion, where also its habits are remarkably different from the manners of its eastern representative.

It seems to be more or less common throughout the Arctic regions. Mr. Kennicott met with Ravens at Lake Winnipeg. Mr. MacFarlane found them abundant at Lockhart River, at Fort Anderson, and on the Lower Anderson River. Mr. Ross obtained them at Fort Simpson, Mr. Reid at Big Island, Mr. Clarke at Fort Rae, Mr. Lockhart at Fort Resolution, and Mr. Dall at Nulato, in Alaska.

Richardson speaks of it as abounding in the fur countries, where it frequents the barren grounds even in the intense winter cold, and where its movements are regulated by those of reindeer, musk-oxen, and other animals, which it follows, to assist in devouring whatever may be killed. Ravens are seen to collect from various quarters wherever any animal is slain, in order to feast on the offal, and considerable numbers are in constant attendance upon the several fishing-stations. He mentions a singular instance of the disposition of this bird to appropriate glittering objects of no value to it for food or anything else. A Raven was seen flying off with something in its claws, pursued by a number of its clamorous companions. Having been fired at, it dropped the object of contention, which proved to be the lock of a chest.

Mr. MacFarlane’s notes in regard to the nesting of these birds describe certain variations as to position, etc. One nest was on a ledge of a cliff of shale, and was composed of dry willow sticks, lined with pieces of rabbit skin and the hair of moose. Both parents were seen,—one on the nest, the other on a tree,—but both flew away on being approached. A second nest was in the top crotch of a tall pine on the river-bank. It was made of dry sticks, and thickly lined with reindeer hair. There were eight eggs in this nest. A third was in a tall pine, and was forty-five feet from the ground. It was constructed in a manner precisely similar to the preceding. A fourth was on the top of a tall pine, and only differed in having been lined with dry grass, moss, and a few reindeer hairs. The other nests appear to have been similarly situated and constructed. Nearly all were in high trees, built of dry sticks, and lined with dry grasses, mosses, and the hair of various quadrupeds. The maximum number of eggs was eight, their average six.

Mr. MacFarlane states that the Raven is found throughout the winter in the Arctic regions, and that, though he has met with it north of latitude 69°, he has never known it to breed north of that line. He informs us that it is seldom that more than a single pair is to be seen at a time, and occasionally they may be noted singly, flying alone, or feeding on garbage. Sometimes a dead fox or wolf will attract quite a number to the spot. On one occasion he observed as many as twenty Ravens amicably associated together around the carcasses of two wolves that had been poisoned with strychnine. In many cases he has known the partaking of a poisoned animal prove fatal to them, as also the eating of bait laid for foxes and wolves.

According to this same correspondent, one of these birds became almost domesticated at Fort Anderson, during February and March, 1865. At first it fed about the fort with a companion; soon after, coming alone, it grew bolder and bolder, alighted within the square, allowed itself to be closely approached, where the young dogs soon became familiar with it, and would even frolic and gambol with it, the Raven joining heartily in the sport in its own way. It was never known to attempt to injure even the smallest of the young dogs, nor did any of the dogs ever offer to annoy it. It at length came to be considered by all as an inmate of the establishment. While it seemed to have full confidence in the people of the fort, it kept at a careful distance from all Indian or Esquimaux visitors.

Mr. B. R. Ross speaks of Ravens as common as far north as the Arctic Ocean. They feed on carrion, and act as scavengers to the establishments. Their sight is remarkably keen, and the sagacity with which they follow the trapper is wonderful. Early as the hunter may start, these harpies will have been before him, and torn out the eyes and entrails of each hare. They will break into marten-traps for the sake of the bait or the captured animal, thrusting aside or pulling out with their beaks the sticks that compose the enclosure. Sometimes they are caught in steel traps that are set for foxes, or eat the strychnine baits laid for the same animals, and slowly succumb to this powerful poison. Their flesh is so rank that even a fox, unless sorely pressed by hunger, will not eat it. They pair in April, and usually construct their nests in the loftiest trees. They have various call-notes, one of which is like that of the Canada Goose, and another is said by Mr. Ross to be very liquid and musical.

Mr. Dall states that these birds were abundant all the year at Nulato, and indeed everywhere throughout Alaska, but much more common near the Indian villages and trading-posts than elsewhere. They build on the sandstone cliffs at Nulato, in cavities that have been occupied for years. They lay about the 20th of April, and the young are hatched before open water. He also speaks of them as very intelligent, and states that on several expeditions made to obtain their eggs, the instant he stopped at the foot of the bluff the whole colony would arrange themselves on the edge of the rock in anxious consultation, uttering repeated cries of warning. On one occasion, where the nest was inaccessible and the party went back unsuccessful, their departure was announced by significant and joyous croaks and derisive screeches. Ravens were also found by Mr. Bannister common all the year on the small islands lying off the northeast point of St. Michaels.

In the Eastern States the Raven is a comparatively rare bird, except in a few special localities. These are usually mountain-ranges, high precipitous banks of rivers and lakes and of the ocean, and among wild and lonely islands. It occurs on the Labrador coast, at Grand Menan in the Bay of Fundy, the Adirondacks, Lake George, the Hudson River, etc. Mr. Lawrence speaks of it as quite common on the coast of New Jersey. It is found among the mountains of Buncombe and other counties in North Carolina, and Mr. Audubon mentions its occurrence at Table Mountain, in the district of Pendleton, South Carolina. Dr. Coues found Ravens not rare at Labrador, where the almost inaccessible cliffs afford them safe and convenient retreats. They were so excessively wary that it was found impossible to shoot them. They descended in pairs to the sea-shore to feed on dead fish, crabs, and other animal substances thrown up by the sea.

Mr. Ridgway informs me of the presence of this bird in the heavy forests of the bottom-lands in Southern Illinois. It is there quite rare, however, as he has met with but a few pairs. These were resident, and nested in the tall timber of the Big Creek bottoms, in Richland Co.

Audubon’s party found it equally impossible to obtain a specimen at Labrador. One afternoon Mr. Audubon hid himself under a nest several hours, to no purpose. The old Ravens would not show themselves while he was within gunshot, though the young clamored for food. As soon as he had left the spot the female alighted on the nest, fed her young, and was off again before she could be approached.

At Grand Menan, where they are not rare, and where they breed among the high cliffs, I found them so wild that it was almost impossible even to obtain sight of them. Passing high in the air above our heads, their loud, hoarse croak attested their alarm at the sight of their enemy, man. They are looked upon with aversion by the islanders, and are persecuted by them without mercy. They rob the nests of the Herring Gulls, interfering with the islanders in this privilege, and are, wrongfully I believe, charged with destroying young lambs.

Years afterwards, when I again encountered individuals of this species at Cheyenne, on the Plains, I could not but notice the immense difference in their character. There perfect confidence in man took the place of dread. Unmolested by the people, who regard them as desirable scavengers, valueless for food and useful in removing nuisances, they were as tame and familiar as the European Sparrow in the parks of New York or Boston. On one occasion I found one engaged in eating the remains of a dead cow just outside the city. It allowed me to approach to within five or six feet, when with a very stately and dignified stride it moved out of my way, and kept me at about this distance. I could not compel it to fly to any distance, even when I hastened my steps.

In New England these birds are very rare, and their occurrence is only accidental. One has been shot on the Connecticut, and another on the Merrimack, in Massachusetts. They are not unfrequently met with in Northern New York.

On the Pacific Coast the Raven is common from Sitka to San Diego. Throughout Washington Territory it is said to be plentiful, more scattered in the summer, and in the winter congregating about settlements and the sea-shore. At Vancouver, during the winter, it was observed amicably associating with the Crows, and on the coast with the Fish Crows, but during the spring, when the latter had nests, they boldly attacked the Ravens, and drove them away.

In California and in all the adjacent regions, Dr. Cooper states, the Raven is found everywhere in pairs, more numerous than in the Atlantic States, and abundant even in the most barren desert districts. It follows trains and herds of cattle, and keeps on the lookout for anything befalling them. It is omnivorous, eating snakes, lizards, eggs, carrion, and even grain, though the last very rarely. It is accused of destroying young chickens and lambs.

In Arizona Dr. Coues speaks of it as resident, and very abundant about the cattle enclosures, where it congregates in immense numbers during the autumn and winter. During the severe winter of 1864-65 great numbers perished of cold and hunger at Fort Whipple. Dr. Coues has favored us with the following interesting sketch of the habits of this bird as observed by him in that Territory.

“The geographical distribution of the Raven seems to be in great
measure complementary to that of the Crow. On the prairies, in
the desert, among the mountains, of the Western States and
Territories, where the Ravens and their congenial companions, the
coyotes, abound, the Crows are rare or wanting altogether. In
travelling westward, I saw no Crows after leaving the settlements
this side of the Plains, while the Ravens were conspicuous, until
in some parts of Southern California Crows reappeared, but no
Ravens amongst them. I saw a fair number of Ravens along the
Arkansas River, and they were frequent in the valley of the Rio
Grande; after crossing the river, while traversing the wild
region thence to the Colorado, they were our inseparable
companions; hundreds, if not thousands, of them lived about Fort
Whipple all the year, seemingly attracted from miles around by
probabilities of finding abundant food. Throughout the Western
wilds they hang on the footsteps of man, needy adventurers,
claiming their share of his spoils, disputing with the wolves and
vultures for the refuse of his camp, and polishing the skeletons
of the buffalo, with which he sometimes strews the plain. The
more desolate the land, the closer the Raven follows in the trail
of the emigrant, till its dismal croaking sounds ominous of
hardship, and its plumage seems to foreshadow days as dark.

“One accustomed to the shrewdness and prudence of Crows in
populous districts is at first surprised at an apparent
familiarity the Raven often shows in the West. There no one would
think of wasting ammunition on the worthless bird, and it comes
to look upon man more as its provider than as an enemy.
Nevertheless, like the rest of its tribe, the Raven is a
sagacious bird, not likely to be twice deceived, and very ready
to take a hint; he always has his wits about him, and keeps a
bright lookout when anything stranger than a coyote is near. This
wariness is something altogether different from the childlike
timidity of little birds like Sparrows, that scurry away in
terror from any unusual sight or sound, and unquestionably
implies keen powers of observation coupled with no small degree
of reasoning faculty. Almost every day during the winter of
1864-65 I must have passed within a few paces of Ravens stalking
about the fort; and yet, when I wanted a specimen, it was not an
easy matter to secure one. The birds assuredly knew the
difference between a person going quietly about his business and
one “on mischief bent,” and their intelligent watchfulness
rendered it quite impossible to approach them openly with gun in
hand.

“Ravens are resident in the region about Fort Whipple, and their
apparently diminished number in summer is simply due to the fact
that they are then spread over a greater surface, are less
restless, and better provided for in the matter of food. In
winter, and especially when snow covered the ground, their
numbers at the fort were simply incalculable. They dotted the
ground everywhere during the day, and roosted in crowds on the
neighboring pines by night. One patriarchal tree, that stood
somewhat isolated, was a favorite resting-place for the Ravens
and Buzzards, and gradually assumed a singular appearance, as if
it had been whitewashed. This great pine overlooked a little open
space where our beeves were slaughtered, and the banqueting there
was never ended. All night long the wolves howled and barked as
they tugged at the offal, till daylight sent them reluctant to
their rocky fastnesses, when the great dark birds, with a
premonitory stretching of the wings, flapped down to renew the
feast. The Ravens and Buzzards seemed to get along very well
together, quarrelling no more with each other than each species
did with its own kind; but in the occasional disputes the smaller
birds seemed to have rather the advantage of the heavier and
clumsier gluttons. This comparative good-fellowship was in
striking contrast to the behavior of Crows towards Turkey
Buzzards.

“The Raven is not, on the whole, so noisy a bird as the Crow,
though he croaks vigorously on occasion, and his caw may claim to
be impressive, if not agreeable. But the queer sounds that the
bird can utter, if he be so minded, are indescribable; even his
ordinary cawing is susceptible of considerable modulation. A
favorite amusement of his, when, his hunger appeased for the
time, he feels particularly comfortable, is to settle snugly on
the top of a pine-tree, and talk to himself. The performance
generally begins with a loud caw, self-asserting, followed by a
complacent chuckle; and then comes a series of comical syllables,
so low as to be scarcely audible from the ground below, as if he
were musing aloud, and tickled with his own fancies. Then he will
raise his voice again, and file away at some old saw for a while,
finishing with the inimitable ‘cork-drawing’ for which his tribe
is famous.

“A Raven that I had slightly wounded in the wing and captured
soon became quite tame, and developed a variety of amusing
traits. Proving rather obtrusive and inconvenient in my narrow
quarters, I undertook to tie him in a corner with a string round
his leg. This he objected to, and it was astonishing to see the
perseverance he showed in untying any number of knots I might
make. It was a task that sometimes took him hours, but he never
rested until it was done. I had no chain light enough for the
purpose, but I finally got the better of him by twisting a wire
with the cord. His intelligence did not reach in that direction
more than six inches from his leg.”

Mr. Dresser observed the Raven common at San Antonio, frequenting the slaughter-houses. In November, in the Baudera Hills, several came to his camp to feast on the offal of deer. Dr. Woodhouse also found them very abundant in Texas, the Indian Territory, and New Mexico, and especially so on the buffalo plains. In the Mexican Boundary Survey, Dr. Kennerly observed these birds everywhere in Northern Mexico, flocks of them following the train from point to point. They were not at all shy, but often came into camp in search of food.

Captain Blakiston, having enjoyed unusual opportunities for observing the habits of the American Raven during his residence in high northern regions, characterizes the species as anything but solitary. During the day they are usually met with in pairs, except when drawn together in large numbers around the carcass of a dead animal. At night, during the winter, they repair to some chosen resting-place, usually a clump of trees on the edge of a prairie, and there roost in one immense body. One of these roosting-places was about a mile from Fort Carlton, and Captain Blakiston’s attention was first drawn to it by noticing that about sunset all the Ravens, from all quarters, were flying towards this point. Returning to the fort in the evening by that quarter, he found a clump of aspen-trees, none of them more than twenty-five feet high, filled with Ravens, who, at his approach, took wing and flew round and round. He also noted the wonderful regularity with which they repaired to their roosting-place in the evening and left it again in the morning, by pairs, on their day’s hunt. They always left in the morning, within a minute or two of the same time, earlier and earlier as the days grew longer, on cold or cloudy mornings a little later, usually just half an hour before sunrise. In April they all paired off, and their roosting-place became deserted. During an excursion about one hundred and fifty miles southwest of Fort Carlton, Captain Blakiston found several nests of Ravens with eggs, one of which was in a small tree near a lake, and was not more than fifteen feet above it. It contained six eggs, was about a foot in diameter, composed of sticks, and was lined with buffalo-hair and pieces of scarlet cloth, evidently picked up about an Indian camping-ground.

Dr. Heermann states that while in California he always found the nests of the Raven placed high on bold precipitous cliffs, secure against danger; in the vast desolate plains of New Mexico he saw these birds building on low trees, and even on cactus-plants, less than three feet from the ground, showing how much circumstances and localities affect the habits of birds regarding incubation.

A Raven, probably this species, is abundant on the plateau of Mexico. The Cerro Colorado, near Tehuacan, is the rendezvous of a large number of these birds, where, according to Sumichrast, at the time of the flowering of the _maguey_, they gather in great abundance, to feed on the blossoms of this plant, which are their favorite food.

Mr. Boardman writes me that he has several times collected Ravens’ eggs at Grand Menan, but always found the nest a hard one to take, as they usually build it under some high cliff. They make a very large and bulky nest, and, where not disturbed, use it several years in succession. They also breed very early. He once took a nest with eight eggs on the 10th of April, when the snow all around was quite deep. This was sent to the Smithsonian Institution. Its contents nearly filled a bushel basket. He does not regard the Ravens as migratory. Though they are apparently more numerous in winter than in summer, this is probably because they forsake the woods and come about the open fields and the banks of rivers for dead fish, and thus are more noticed. They are very shy, sagacious, and vigilant, so much so that it is almost impossible for one to get a shot at them. Crows avoid them, and the two are never seen together. The farmers of Grand Menan accuse them of pecking the eyes out of young lambs, and always try to destroy them, and they grow less and less numerous every year. The Ravens, he adds, appear to be on good terms with the Duck Hawks, as he has known a nest of the former within a few rods of one of the latter.