Chapter IV: Part 4

Range.--"Western North America, breeding in Alaska to the Arctic coast, migrating south in winter through western United States (including Mississippi Valley) to Mexico, and less commonly along Atlantic coast." (A.O.U.)

=233. Stilt Sandpiper= (_Micropalama himantopus_). L. 8.2; tarsus long, 1.6. _Ads._ Entire underparts and upper tail-coverts white barred with black; tail not barred. _Yng._ Resembles ad. but below white, breast lightly streaked: rump white no bars. _Winter._ Similar to yng. but back gray.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds within Arctic Circle; winters from Florida to South America.

=234. Knot= (_Tringa canutus_). L. 10.5; B. 1.3. Upper tail-coverts with black bars and loops; tail feathers without bars narrowly margined with white. _Ads._ Mixed black, gray and reddish brown above, reddish brown below. _Yng._ Above gray, margined with cream-white and black; below white; breast lightly streaked. _Winter._ Similar, but above gray.

Range.--Northern hemisphere; breeds within Arctic circle; winters from Florida to South America: migrates chiefly along the coasts, rare on Pacific coast of United States.

=244. Curlew Sandpiper= (_Erolia ferruginea_). L. 8; B. 1.5, slightly curved. _Ads._ Below chestnut-rufous, above rusty and black. _Yng._ Above brownish gray margined with whitish; back blacker; below white. _Winter._ Above plain brownish gray; below white.

Range.--"Old World in general; occasional in Eastern North America and Alaska." (A.O.U.)

=235. Purple Sandpiper= (_Arquatella maritima_). L. 9. _Ads._ Above black, margined with rusty and cream-buff; below white, breast and sides heavily marked with black. _Winter._ Head, neck, and breast, slaty; back blacker, margined with slaty; central secondaries largely white.

Range.--"Northern portions of the northern hemisphere; in North America chiefly the northeastern portions, breeding in the high north, migrating in winter to the Eastern and Middle States (casually to Florida), the Great Lakes and Upper Mississippi Valley." (A.O.U.)

=236. Aleutian Sandpiper= (_Arquatella couesi_). L. 8.5. Similar to No. 235, but ad. and yng. with more ochraceous; in winter grayish margins to back lighter and wider. _Notes._ When flying, a low, clear, musical _tweo-tweo-tweo_; when feeding, _clA"-clA"-clA"_. (Nelson.)

Range.--"Aleutian Islands and coast of Alaska, north to Kowak River, west to Commander Islands, Kamchatka." (A.O.U.)

=256. Solitary Sandpiper= (_Helodromas solitarius_). L. 8.4. Under wing-coverts, axillars, and all but middle tail-feathers barred black and white. _Ads._ Above fuscous with a faint greenish tinge; head and neck streaked, back spotted with whitish; below white; throat and breast distinctly streaked with dusky. _Yng._ Fewer spots and streaks above; breast markings fused. _Winter._ Practically no white markings above.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds from Northern States (rarely and sporadically) northward; little known of breeding habits; winters south of United States to South America.

=256a. Western Solitary Sandpiper= (_H. s. cinnamomeus_). Similar to No. 256, but spots above buffy, especially in fall; inner margin of outer primary speckled black and white.

Range.--Western North America; breeds in British Columbia (exact breeding range unknown); winters south of United States.

=263. Spotted Sandpiper= (_Actitis macularia_). L. 7.5. _Ads._ Below white _thickly_ spotted with black; above brownish gray with a faint greenish lustre, lightly marked with black. _Yng._ Similar above but faintly margined with dusky and buff; below white, breast grayer; _no black marks_. _Winter._ Same but no margins above. _Notes._ _Peet-weet_, repeated.

Range.--North America, north to Hudson Bay; breeds throughout its North American range; winters from southern California and West Indies to South America.

=284. Black Turnstone= (_Arenaria melanocephala_). L. 9. No rusty; lower back, longer upper tail-coverts and base of tail white; shorter upper tail-coverts black. _Ads._ Above and breast brownish black; belly white. _Yng._ Browner margined with whitish. _Winter._ Same as Yng, but no margins. _Notes._ A sharp, _weet_, _weet_, _too-weet_. (Nelson.)

Range.--"Pacific coast of North America from Point Barrow, Alaska to Santa Margarita Island, Lower California; breeding from Alaska to British Columbia." (A.O.U.)

=237. Pribilof Sandpiper= (_Arquatella ptilocnemis_). L. 10. _Ads._ Similar to No. 236 above but crown much lighter; _breast_ with a _black patch_. _Yng._ Resemble adult above but breast grayish indistinctly streaked and with a pale buff band; belly white. _Winter._ Similar to yng. but slaty gray above.

Range.--"Breeding in the Pribilof Islands, Alaska, and migrating to coast of adjacent mainland south of Norton Sound." (A.O.U.)

=243a. Red-backed Sandpiper= (_Pelidna alpina pacifica_). L. 8; B. 1.5; slightly curved. _Ads._ Belly black; back chiefly rusty. _Yng._ Breast buffy, lightly streaked with dusky; belly white _spotted_ with black; back black, rusty, and buff. _Winter._ Above brownish gray; below white; breast grayish, indistinctly streaked.

Range.--North America; breeds in Arctic regions and winters from Gulf States and California to South America.

=246. Semipalmated Sandpiper= (_Ereunetes pusillus_). L. 6.3; B. .6 to .8. Toes webbed at base. _Ads._ Above brownish gray and black; _little or no rusty_; below white, breast _indistinctly_ streaked. _Yng._ Above with rusty and whitish margins; below white, breast grayish no streaks. _Winter._ Above brownish gray with black shaft streaks; below white. _Notes._ _weet-weet_.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds in Arctic regions; winters from Gulf States to South America.

=247. Western Sandpiper= (_Ereunetes occidentalis_). Similar to preceding but bill longer .8 to 1.2; ads. more rusty above, breast streaks more distinct, and more numerous. _Notes._ Call, a soft _weet-weet_; song, uttered on the wing, "a rapid, uniform series of rather musical trills." (Nelson.)

Range.--North America, chiefly west of Mississippi Valley; breeds in Arctic regions; winters from Gulf States to South America.

=248. Sanderling= (_Calidris arenaria_). L. 8. Three toes, tarsus scaled. _Ads._ Above rusty, black and grayish; below white, breast spotted with black and _washed with rusty_. _Yng._ Nape grayish, back _black_, feathers with _two_ white or yellowish white terminal spots; below silky white. _Winter._ Above brownish gray with dusky shaft streaks; below silky white.

Range.--"Nearly cosmopolitan, breeding in Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions, migrating, in America, south to Chili and Patagonia." (A.O.U.)

=238. Sharp-tailed Sandpiper= (_Actodromas acuminata_). L. 8.7. _Tail feathers pointed._ _Ads._ A white line over eye; breast buff streaked with blackish. _Yng._ Crown as in ad., back black and rusty; below white, breast buffy, no streaks. _Winter._ Back grayish brown streaked with blackish; below as in yng., but breast grayer and with indistinct streaks. _Notes._ A soft metallic _pleep-pleep_. (Nelson.)

Range.--"Eastern Asia, and coast of Alaska, migrating south to Java and Australia." (A.O.U.)

=239. Pectoral Sandpiper= (_Actodromas maculata_). L. 9. _Ads._ Middle tail-feathers longest, pointed, blackish margined with rusty; above black and rusty; below white, breast thickly streaked; upper tail-coverts _black_. _Yng. and in winter_ much the same. _Notes._ Call, a grating whistle; song, a hollow, resonant, musical _tA¨A¨-A"_, repeated eight times, made after filling A|sophagus with air until it is puffed out to size of the body. (Nelson.)

Range.--North America; breeds in Arctic regions; winters south of United States to South America; rare on Pacific coast.

=240. White-rumped Sandpiper= (_Actodromas fuscicollis_). L. 7.5. Longer upper tail-coverts _white_. _Ads._ Breast white, _distinctly spotted_ or streaked. _Yng._ More rufous above; breast less distinctly streaked. _Winter._ Brownish gray above; similar to yng. below.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds in the interior north of Hudson Bay; winters south of United States to southern South America; rare on Pacific coast.

=241. Baird Sandpiper= (_Actodromas bairdii_). L. 7.5. No rusty in plumage. _Ads._ Longest upper tail-coverts _blackish_; breast buffy, _faintly_ streaked. _Yng._ Similar, but back _conspicuously_ margined with whitish. _Winter._ Above "buffy grayish brown," no white margins.

Range.--Interior of North America; breeds in the Arctic regions and winters south of United States to southern South America.

=242. Least Sandpiper= (_Actodromas minutilla_). L. 6. Smartest of our Sandpipers. _Ads._ Above black, buff and rufous; below white breast lightly streaked. _Yng._ Similar, but breast less distinctly streaked. _Winter._ Above brownish gray, often streaked with black, below white. _Notes._ _Peep-peep._

Range.--North America; breeds from Sable Island and Magdalens northward; winters from Gulf States and California south to South America.

=249. Marbled Godwit= (_Limosa fedoa_). L. 18; B. 4; slightly recurved. Tail barred, cinnamon and black; under wing-coverts cinnamon with more or less fine black markings. _Ads._ Above black and ochraceous; below buffy white finely and uniformly barred with black. _Yng._ Similar, but with no or with but few bars below.

Range.--North America; breeds in the interior from western Minnesota, rarely Iowa and Nebraska northward; winters south of United States to Central America and West Indies.

=250. Pacific Godwit= (_Limosa lapponica baueri_). L. 16. B. 3.7, slightly recurved, tail barred black and white; under wing-coverts black and white. _Ads._ "Head, neck and lower parts, plain cinnamon color." (Ridgw.) _Winter._ Above black, grayish and rusty, former prevailing; below white; throat streaked, elsewhere with irregular, black bars. _Notes._ "A loud ringing _kA"-we'w_, repeated."

Range.--"Shores and Islands of the Pacific Ocean, from New Zealand and Australia to Kamchatka and Alaska. On the American coast recorded south of Alaska only from La Paz, Lower California." (A.O.U.)

=251. Hudsonian Godwit= (_Limosa hA|mastica_). L. 15; B. 3.2, slightly recurved. Under wing-coverts dusky; upper tail-coverts black and white; tail black at end, white at base. _Ads._ Above black, rusty and grayish, below chestnut-red barred with blackish and faintly tipped with white. _Yng._ Similar, but below buffy whitish, breast grayer. _Winter._ Similar below but above brownish gray.

Range.--Eastern North America chiefly interior; breeds in Arctic Regions; winters south of United States to South America.

=270. Black-bellied Plover= (_Squatarola squatarola_). L. 11. Hind-toe present, small. _Ads._ Above black and white, no yellowish; below black. _Yng._ Above grayish brown spotted with white and some yellowish; below white. _Winter._ Similar to preceding but nearly uniform brownish above.

Range.--Northern Hemisphere; breeds in Arctic Regions, winters in America from Florida to Brazil.

=272. American Golden Plover= (_Charadrius dominicus_). L. 10.5; W. 7. No hind-toe; axillars dusky. _Ads._ Above conspicuously spotted with yellow; below black, sides of breast white. _Yng._ Duller above, below grayish white with dusky marks and yellowish wash. _Winter._ Similar but no yellow below. _Notes._ Call, a plaintive _too-lee-e_; song, a marvelously harmonious succession of notes. (Nelson.)

Range.--Western Hemisphere; breeds in Arctic Regions; winters from Florida to Patagonia, rare on Pacific coast.

=272a. Pacific Golden Plover= (_C. d. fulvus_). Similar to No. 272 but wing shorter, 6.5; yellow richer.

Range.--"Breeding from northern Asia to the Pribilof Islands and coast of Alaska, south in winter through China and India to Australia and Polynesia." (A.O.U.)

=254. Greater Yellow-legs= (_Totanus melanoleucus_). L. 14; B. 2.2. No rusty; upper tail-coverts mostly white; tail barred with black and white or gray. _Ads._ Above black margined with whitish; below white and black. _Yng._ Above grayish margined with whitish; below white, breast lightly streaked. _Winter._ Similar but white margins less conspicuous. _Notes._ A whistled _wheu_, _wheu-wheu-wheu-wheu-wheu-wheu_, _wheu-wheu_.

Range.--North America; breeds from Minnesota, rarely northern Illinois, and Anticosti northward; winters from Gulf States and California to southern South America.

=255. Yellow-legs= (_Totanus flavipes_). L. 10.7; B. 1.4. Similar in color to preceding but smaller in size.

Range.--North America; breeds rarely in upper Mississippi Valley but chiefly north of latitude 55A deg.; winters from Gulf States to southern South America; rare on Pacific coast.

=258. Willet= (_Symphemia semipalmata_). L. 15; W. 8; B. 2.1. Primaries black with a broad white band; upper tail-coverts mostly white. _Ads._ Above brownish gray, black, and a little buff; below white heavily marked with black and slightly washed with buff. _Yng._ Above brownish gray margined with buffy; below white, breast lightly streaked with dusky. _Winter._ Similar, but above plain brownish gray. _Notes._ Song, _pilly-will-willet_, repeated.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds from Florida to southern New Jersey, later strays casually to Maine; winters from Gulf States to South America.

=258a. Western Willet= (_S. s. inornata_). Similar to No. 258 but slightly larger. W. 8.5; B. 2.4. In summer above paler, less heavily marked with black both above and below. _Yng. and Winter._ Indistinguishable in color from No. 258.

Range.--Western United States; breeds from Texas to Manitoba; winters from southern California and Gulf States southward. A rare migrant on Atlantic coast from South Carolina to Florida.

=259. Wandering Tatler= (_Heteractitis incanus_). L. 11. Tail-coverts plain slaty gray. _Ads._ Above plain slaty gray; below white barred with slaty gray. _Yng._ Above slaty gray more or less margined with whitish; breast and sides slaty gray; throat and belly white. _Winter._ Similar, but no white margins above.

Range.--Pacific coast; breeds from British Columbia northward; winters south to Hawaiian Islands and Galapagos.

=282. Surf Bird= (_Aphriza virgata_). L. 10; B. 1. Upper tail-coverts and base of tail-feathers white. _Ads._ Above black, slaty, and rusty. _Yng._ Above slaty margined with whitish; breast barred slaty and whitish; belly white spotted with slaty. _Winter._ The same, but no whitish margins.

Range.--"Pacific coast of America, from Alaska to Chili." (A.O.U.)

=273. Killdeer= (_Oxyechus vociferus_). L. 10.5. Rump and upper tail-coverts rusty. _Ads._ Above grayish brown and rusty; below white with _two_ black rings. _Notes._ A noisy _kildeAe"_, _kildeAe"_.

Range.--North America, north to Newfoundland, Manitoba and British Columbia; (rare on North Atlantic coast); breeds locally throughout its range; winters from Virginia, Lower Mississippi Valley and California south to South America.

=274. Semipalmated Plover= (_A†gialitis semipalmata_). L. 6.7. Web between bases of inner and middle toes. _Ads._ _One_ black ring around neck; a white ring in front of it. _Yng._ Similar, but black parts brownish; back margined with whitish. _Winter._ Same as last but no whitish margins.

Range.--Breeds from Labrador northward; winters from Gulf States to Brazil.

=275. Ring Plover= (_A†gialitis hiaticula_). L. 7.5. No webs between toes. Similar to 274 but larger, bill yellow at base, black or brown bands wider.

Range.--"Northern parts of Old World and portions of Arctic America, breeding on the west shore of Cumberland Gulf." (A.O.U.)

=277. Piping Plover= (_A†gialitis meloda_). L. 7; B. short, .5. Very pale above. _Ads._ Above ashy, crown and _sides_ of breast black; no rusty. _Yng._ Similar, but black replaced by ashy gray. _Notes._ A short plaintive, _piping_ whistle, repeated.

Range.--Eastern North America; breeds from Virginia to Newfoundland; winters from Florida southward.

=277a. Belted Piping Plover= (_A†. m. circumcincta_). Similar to No. 277 but black on sides of breast meeting to form a breast band.

Range.--Mississippi Valley; breeds from northern Illinois and Nebraska north to Lake Winnipeg, east to Magdalen and Sable Islands; winters from Gulf southward; casual migrant on Atlantic coast.

=278. Snowy Plover= (_A†gialitis nivosa_). L. 6.5. No complete ring. _Ads._ Black on crown; ear-coverts and sides of breast black. _Yng._ The same, but no black; above margined with whitish. _Winter._ Same as last but no whitish margins.

Range.--Western United States east to Texas and Kansas; breeds from Indian Territory and southern California northward; winters from Texas and southern California southward.

=280. Wilson Plover= (_Ochthodromus wilsonius_). L. 7.5; B. .8. No black on hindneck. _Ad._ [Male]. One black breast-and crown-band; some rusty about head. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar but black areas brownish gray. _Yng._ Same as last, but above margined with whitish. _Winter._ No whitish margins.

Range.--Tropical and temperate America; breeds north to Virginia, Gulf States, and Lower California; winters southward to Brazil; casual north to Nova Scotia.

Order X. GROUSE, PARTRIDGES, BOB-WHITES, ETC.

GALLINA†.

Family 1. GROUSE, PARTRIDGES, etc. TetraonidA|. 21 species,
22 subspecies.

Family 2. TURKEYS, PHEASANTS, etc. PhasianidA|. 1 species.
3 subspecies.

Family 3. CURASSOWS and GUANS. CracidA|. 1 species.

The members of the family TetraonidA| are usually placed in three subfamilies as follows: (1.) PerdicinA|, containing the true Quails and Partridges of the Old World and with no species in America. (2.) OdontophorinA|, including the Bob-whites and so-called 'Quails' and 'Partridges' of the New World, and with no species in the eastern hemisphere. (3.) TetraoninA|, the Grouse, with representatives in the northern parts of both hemispheres. All the members of the first two families have the legs bare, while the Grouse have the legs, and often even the toes, more or less feathered.

The application of different names to the members of this family, in various parts of the country, often make it uncertain just what species is referred to under a given title. Our Bob-white, for example, is a 'Quail' at the north and a 'Partridge' at the south. As a matter of fact it is, strictly speaking, neither a true Quail nor Partridge but a member of a family restricted to America.

Again, the Ruffed Grouse is a 'Partridge' at the north and a 'Pheasant' at the south, whereas in truth it is neither one nor the other. So far as the application of these local names goes, it is to be noted that where the Bob-white is called 'Quail' the Grouse is called 'Partridge' and that where it is called 'Partridge' the Grouse is known as 'Pheasant'.

All the TetraonidA| are ground-inhabiting birds, and their plumage of blended browns, buffs and grays brings them into such close harmony with their surroundings that, as a rule, we are unaware of the presence of one of these birds until, with a whirring of short, stiff, rounded wings it springs from the ground at our feet. It is this habit of 'lying close,' as sportsmen term it, in connection with their excellent flesh, which makes the members of this family the favorites of the hunter and epicure and only the most stringent protective measures will prevent their extinction as their haunts become settled.

With the Ptarmigan this harmony in color is carried to a remarkable extreme, the birds being white in winter and brown, buff and black in summer; while during the early fall they assume a grayish, neutral tinted plumage to bridge over the period from the end of the nesting season, in July, to the coming of the snow in September.

The TetraonidA| all nest on the ground, laying usually from ten to twenty eggs. The young, like those of their relative, the domestic fowl, are born covered with downy feathers and can run about shortly after birth.

The Turkey is the only wild member of the PhasianidA| in this country, but the family is well-represented in the domesticated Chickens, Peacocks, and Pheasants, all of which have descended from Old World ancestors. Our domesticated Turkey is derived from the Wild Turkey of Mexico, which was introduced into Europe shortly after the Conquest and was thence brought to eastern North America. It differs from the Wild Turkey of the eastern United States chiefly in the color of the tips of the upper tail-coverts. These are whitish in the domesticated Turkey, as they are in the Mexican race from which, it has descended, and rusty brown in the Eastern Wild Turkey.

Besides the five races of Wild Turkey described beyond, another species of Turkey is found in America. This is the Honduras or Yucatan Turkey, now largely confined to the peninsula of Yucatan. It is not so large as our bird, but is even more beautifully colored, its plumage being a harmonious combination of blue, gray and copper.

Ring-necked and 'English' Pheasants have been introduced into various parts of the United States, and in Oregon and Washington and in the east, on various private game preserves, they have become naturalized. The true English Pheasant (_Phasianus colchicus_) is believed to have been introduced into England from Asia Minor probably by the Romans. Unlike the Ring-necked Pheasant (_Phasianus torquatus_) it has no white collar. The last named species, however, has also been introduced into England where it freely interbreeds with the earlier established English Pheasant and individuals without at least a trace of white on the neck are now comparatively rare.

The Curassows and Guans are tropical American birds, only one species reaching the southern border of the United States. They are arboreal in habit and form an interesting link between the Partridges, etc. and the Pigeons.

Bob-white and Partridge

=289. Bob-white; 'Quail;' 'Partridge'= (_Colinus virginianus_). L. 10. _Ad._ [Male]. Throat, forehead and line over eye white. _Ad._ [Female]. Throat, forehead and line over eye buff. _Notes._ Song, a ringing, whistled _Bob-white_ or _buck-wheat-ripe_; calls, a conversational _quit-quit_ and a whistled _where-are-you_ and _I'm here_, repeatedly uttered when the individuals of a flock are separated.

Range.--Eastern North America, resident from southern Dakota, southern Minnesota, southern Ontario, southern Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, south to Georgia and western Florida; west to South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and eastern Texas. "Introduced at various points in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Idaho, California and Washington." (A.O.U.)

=289a. Florida Bob-white= (_C. v. floridanus_). Similar to No. 289, but smaller, L. 8.5, and much darker; black bars below more numerous.

_Range.--Florida; typical only in southern half of peninsula, grading into No. 289 in northern and western parts of the state._

=289b. Texan Bob-white= (_C. v. texanus_). Similar to No. 289, but brown and buff areas paler; black bars below wider.

Range.--Texas, except western part, rarely to western Kansas, south to Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, Mexico.

=291. Masked Bob-white= (_Colinus ridgwayi_). L. 9. _Ad._ [Male]. Throat black; breast and belly reddish brown. _Ad._ [Female]. Resembles [Female] of No. 289b. _Notes._ Song, _Bob-white_; call, when the birds are scattered, _hoo-we_. (H. Brown.)

Range.--Northern Sonora, Mexico, north to Pima County, Arizona.

=296. Mearns Partridge= (_Cyrtonyx montezumA| mearnsi_). L. 9. _Ad._ [Male]. Sides with numerous, large, crowded white spots. _Ad._ [Female]. _Pinkish brown_, above _streaked_ with buffy and marked with chestnut and black, below with a few broken black bars. _Notes._ A low, murmuring whine; a clear _dsiup-chiur_, when alarmed, _chuk-chuk-chuk_. (Bendire.)

Range.--Northern Mexico, western Texas, southern New Mexico and southern Arizona.

Partridges

=292. Mountain Partridge= (_Oreortyx pictus_). L. 11. _Ads._ _Hindhead_ and _nape_ same color as back; inner margins of tertials buff. _Notes._ Song, an explosive whistle ending in a throaty tone; call, a rapidly repeated _cuh-cuh-cuh-cuh_, and a sharp _pit-pit_.

Range.--Pacific coast from Santa Barbara, California, north to southern Washington.

=292a. Plumed Partridge= (_O. p. plumiferus_). Hindhead, nape, and foreback same _color as breast_; inner margins of tertials _white_.

Range.--Sierra Nevada (both slopes), east to Panamint Mountains; and to Mount Magruder, Nevada; south in the coast ranges from San Francisco Bay to Lower California (Campos). (A.O.U.)

=292b. San Pedro Partridge= (_O. p. confinis_). Similar to No. 292a, but upperparts much grayer, the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts being gray very slightly tinged with olive; bill stouter. (Ridgway.)

Range.--San Pedro Martir Mountains, Lower California.

=293. Scaled Partridge= (_Callipepla squamata_). L. 10. _Ads._ Belly _without_ chestnut patch; breast and foreback grayish blue edged with black; back brownish gray. _Notes._ A nasal _pe-cos' pe-cos'_ (Bailey.)

Range.--"Tableland of Mexico, from the Valley of Mexico, north to central and western Texas, Santa Fe, New Mexico and southern Arizona." (A.O.U.)

=293a. Chestnut-bellied Scaled Partridge= (_C. s. castanogastris_). Similar to No. 293, but [Male] with chestnut patch on belly; [Female] with belly much rustier than in [Female] of No. 293.

Range.--Lower Rio Grande Valley, northwest to Eagle Pass, Texas; south into northeastern Mexico.

=294. California Partridge= (_Lophortyx californica_). L. 10. _Ad._ [Male]. Above _olive-brown_; belly patch chestnut. _Ad._ [Female]. Plumes shorter; throat whitish streaked with dusky; no distinct chestnut patch on belly. _Notes._ Song, a pheasant like crow and a crowing, emphatic _sit-right-down'_, _sit-right-down'_; calls, a sharp _pit-pit pit_, and a note like that of a young Robin.

Range.--"Coast region of California south to Monterey, introduced in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia." (A.O.U.)

=294a. Valley Partridge= (_L. c. vallicola_). Similar to No. 294, but much grayer above; sometimes plain bluish gray without brown tinge.

Range.--"From western and southern Oregon, except near the coast, south through western Nevada and the interior of California to Cape St. Lucas." (Bendire.)

=295. Gambel Partridge= (_Lophortyx gambelii_). L. 10. _Ad._ [Male]. Throat, forehead and belly patch _black_; hindhead chestnut. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar, but throat grayish buff; forehead gray; no black on belly; hind head brownish; crest smaller. _Notes._ Song, _yuk-kA¤e-ja._

Range.--"Western Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, southern Utah, southern Nevada, southern California in the Colorado Valley and south into northwestern Mexico." (A.O.U.)

297. Dusky Grouse (_Dendragapus obscurus_). L. [Male], 20. [Female], 18. _Ad._ [Male]. Gray tail-band _over_ one inch wide on middle feather; below grayish slate; above blackish with fine rusty and grayish markings. _Ad._ [Female]. With more white below; foreback regularly _barred_ with buffy; middle tail-feathers irregularly barred with buff or grayish; terminal gray band finely marked with black. _Notes._ A loud, ventriloquial, hooting or booming.

Range.--"Rocky Mountains, from central Montana and southeastern Idaho to New Mexico and Arizona; east to the Black Hills, South Dakota and west to East Humboldt Mountains, Nevada." (A.O.U.)

=297a. Sooty Grouse= (_D. o. fuliginosus_). Similar to No. 297, but slightly darker, gray band on central tail feather _less_ than one inch wide.

Range.--"Northwest Coast Mountains, from California to Sitka, east to Nevada, western Idaho and portions of British Columbia." (A.O.U.)

=297b. Richardson Grouse= (_D. o. richardsonii_). Similar to No. 297a, but _no_ tail band, or, if showing indistinctly from above, not visible from below.

Range.--"Rocky Mountains, especially on the eastern slopes, from central Montana, northern Wyoming and southeastern Idaho, into British America to Liard River." (A.O.U.)

=298. Hudsonian Spruce Grouse= (_Canachites canadensis_). L. 15. _Ad._ [Male]. Tail-feathers tipped with brown; foreback margined with _bluish gray_. _Ad._ [Female]. Above, bases of feathers more or less barred with rusty especially on foreback; throat and breast barred with rusty and black; belly as in male. _Notes._ A drumming sound produced by the beating of the wings. (Bendire.)

Range.--Labrador and Hudson Bay region.

=298b. Alaska Spruce Grouse= (_C. c. osgoodi_). _Ad._ [Male]. Similar to _Ad._ [Male]. of No. 298c, but margins to feathers of foreback _brownish ashy_. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar to _Ad._ [Female] of No. 298c, but paler, barred with buff instead of rusty.

Range.--Alaska.

=298c. Canada Grouse= (_C. c. canace_). _Ad._ [Male]. Similar to _Ad._ [Male]. of No. 298. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar to _Ad._ [Female] of No. 298, but above more rusty, rusty bars deeper and more conspicuous, showing throughout upper surface and on flanks.

Range.--Northern New England, northern New York, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Quebec west to northern Minnesota.

=299. Franklin Grouse= (_Canachites franklinii_). Resembles No. 298, but tail without brown tips, sometimes tipped with white.

Range.--"Northern Rocky Mountains, from northwestern Montana to the coast ranges of Oregon and Washington, and northward in British America, reaching the Pacific coast of southern Alaska (latitude 60A deg.)." (A.O.U.)

Grouse and Ptarmigan

=300. Ruffed Grouse; 'Partridge;' 'Pheasant'= (_Bonasa umbellus_). L. 17. _Ad._ [Male]. Prevailing color above rusty brown; tail rusty or gray. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar but neck-tufts smaller. _Notes._ The male produces a drumming sound by rapidly beating its wings; the female utters a _cluck_ and when defending her brood, a singular low whining sound.

Range.--Eastern United States from Minnesota, southern Ontario, southern New Hampshire and southern Vermont, south to Virginia and along the Alleghanies to Georgia; west to northwestern Arkansas.

=300a. Canadian Ruffed Grouse= (_B. u. togata_). Similar to No. 300, but slightly grayer above; tail generally gray; bars on breast and belly darker and better defined.

Range.--Spruce forests of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Maine northern New Hampshire, northern Vermont and south to higher mountains of Massachusetts and northern New York; west to eastern slope of coast ranges of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia; north to James Bay.

=300b. Gray Ruffed Grouse= (_B. u. umbelloides_). Similar to No. 300a, but grayer; prevailing color of upperparts, including crown, gray; tail always gray.

Range.--Rocky Mountains, from Colorado north to latitude 65A deg. in Alaska, east to Mackenzie and poplar woods of western Manitoba.

=300c. Oregon Ruffed Grouse= (_B. u. sabini_). Similar to No. 300, but much darker, prevailing color of upper parts rusty brown; tail always rusty brown.

Range.--Pacific coast ranges from Cape Mendocino, California, north to British Columbia.

Ptarmigan

=301. Willow Ptarmigan= (_Lagopus lagopus_). L. 15. Bill large, more than .4 deep at base; tail _black_, narrowly tipped with white. _Ad._ [Male] _Summer._ Throat and upper breast rusty brown. _Ad._ [Male] _Fall._ Rustier and more finely marked above. _Ad._ [Female]. _Summer._ Above black barred with buff and tipped with white; below buff barred with black; middle of belly whitish. _Ad._ [Female]. _Fall._ Much like fall male. _Ads._, _Winter_. White, tail black tipped with white; _no_ black before eye. _Notes._ Song, _kA"-kA"-kA"-kA"_ while ascending five or ten yards in the air; a hard rolling _kr-r-r-r_ when descending. (Nelson.)

Range.--Arctic Regions; in America breeding south to Lat. 55A deg. in winter migrating south to Lat. 50A deg.; recorded once from Penobscot Co., Maine, and once from Manchester, Mass.

=301a. Allen Ptarmigan= (_L. l. alleni_). Similar to No. 301, but [Female] more finely marked; shafts of primaries, at all seasons, strongly black spreading to the web of the feather.

Range.--Newfoundland.

=302. Rock Ptarmigan= (_Lagopus rupestris_). L. 14. Bill _less_ than .4 deep at base; tail black. Always to be known from No. 301 by its smaller bill. _Ad._ [Male] _Summer._ Above irregularly barred and mottled with gray and rusty buff; below barred black and white and rusty buff. _Ad._ [Male] _Fall._ Above minutely speckled black, gray and buff, the prevailing color being grayish brown. _Ad._ [Male] _Winter._ White, lores and tail black. _Ad._ [Female] _Summer._ Above black barred with rusty and margined with whitish; below rusty barred with black and tipped with whitish. _Ad._ [Female] =Fall.= Like fall [Male]. _Ad._ [Female] _Winter._ Like winter [Male] but no black before eye.

Range.--North America from Gulf of St. Lawrence and higher mountains of British Columbia north to Arctic Regions (except northern Labrador) west through Alaska to Aleutian Islands.

=302a. Reinhardt Ptarmigan= (_L. r. reinhardti_). _Ad._ [Male] _Summer._ Similar to No. 302, but "less regularly and coarsely barred above" (Ridgw.) _Ad._ [Female] _Summer._ Resembles [Female] of No. 302. _Ads. Fall._ Much grayer than No. 302 in fall. _Ads. Winter._ Like No. 302 in winter. _Notes._ When courting the male utters a growling _kurr-kurr_. (Turner.)

Range.--Northern Labrador north to Greenland.

=302b. Nelson Ptarmigan= (_L. r. nelsoni_). _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ Ground color of upperparts deep umber-brown, very finely and densely vermiculated; chest barred with bright tawny brown and black. _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Similar to [Male] of No. 302. (Ridgw.)

Range.--Unalaska, Aleutian Islands.

=302c. Turner Ptarmigan= (_L. r. atkhensis_). Lighter in general hue than 302d and without black blotches on upperparts. (Elliot.) _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ "Ground color of upperparts pale raw-umber brown, mixed with pale grayish; chest and neck barred with pale brownish ochre and black." _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Ground color of upperparts rusty, mixed with pale grayish buff, narrowly and irregularly barred with black; chest and neck coarsely barred with rusty and black. (Ridgw.)

Range.--Atka, Aleutian Islands.

=302d. Townsend Ptarmigan= (_L. r. townsendi_). _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ Above, breast and flanks raw umber finely vermiculated with black on back; with black blotches on head, neck and upperpart of back and wings. _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Above ochraceous, blotched and barred with black; lighter below. (Elliot.)

Range.--Kyska and Adak, Aleutian Islands.

=302.1. Evermann Ptarmigan= (_Lagopus evermanni_). L. 13.9. _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ Above and breast black slightly marked with rusty. _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Entire body plumage, ochraceous, blotched and barred with black and above tipped with white or ochraceous: below black bars wider and no white tips. (Elliot.)

Range.--Attu, Aleutian Islands.

=303. Welch Ptarmigan= (_Lagopus welchi_). L. about 14. Bill and tail as in No. 302; plumage grayer than in No. 302. _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ Above black _finely_ and irregularly marked with wavy lines of buff and white. _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Above black _finely_ and irregularly barred with buffy, grayish and white.

Range.--Newfoundland.

=304.? White-tailed Ptarmigan= (_Lagopus leucurus_). L. 13. Tail _white_. _Ad._ [Male], _Summer._ Breast barred, black and white. _Ad._ [Female], _Summer._ Above black barred with rich buff; below rich buff barred with black. _Ads., Fall._ Above and breast rich buff finely vermiculated with black. _Ads., Winter._ Entirely white. _Notes._ When about to fly and at the beginning of flight a sharp cackle like that of a frightened hen. (Grinnell.)

Range.--"Alpine summits of Rocky Mountains; south to New Mexico; north into British America (as far as Fort Halkett, Liard River); west to higher ranges of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia." (Bendire.)

=304a.? Kenai White-tailed Ptarmigan= (_L. l. peninsularis_). Similar to No. 304, but in summer buff markings much paler; in fall, colors much grayer.

Range.--Kenai Peninsula, Alaska.

Prairie Hens and Grouse

=305. Prairie Hen= (_Tympanuchus americanus_). L. 18. Underparts with distinct brown and white bars of about equal width. _Ad._ [Male]. A neck-tuft of ten or more _rounded_ feathers. _Ad._ [Female]. Neck-tufts much smaller; whole tail barred. _Notes._ Song, a loud "booming."

Range.--"Prairies of Mississippi Valley; south to Louisiana and Texas; east to Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and Ontario; west through eastern portions of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Indian Territory; north to Manitoba; general tendency to extension of range westward and contraction eastward; migration north and south in Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri." (A.O.U.)

=305a. Attwater Prairie Hen= (_T. a. attwateri_). Similar to No. 305, but smaller and darker; neck-tufts proportionately wide; tarsus not fully feathered.

Range.--Southwestern Louisiana and eastern Texas.

=306. Heath Hen= (_Tympanuchus cupido_). Similar to No. 305, but smaller; scapulars more broadly tipped with buff; neck-tuft of _less_ than ten feathers; obtusely _pointed_; axillars _barred_ with dusky.

Range.--Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

=307. Lesser Prairie Hen= (_Tympanuchus pallidicinctus_). Similar to No. 305, but smaller, more buffy above; brown bars below narrower than whitish spaces between them. _Notes._ Doubtless the same as those of No. 305.

Range.--Southwestern parts of Kansas and western Indian Territory, western (and southern?) Texas. (Bendire.)

=308. Sharp-tailed Grouse= (_PediA"cetes phasianellus_). L. 17. Breast feathers with internal =V= shaped _loops_; no neck-tufts. _Ads._ Prevailing color above _black_; narrowly barred with rusty and margined with paler.

Range--Interior of British America, east to Rocky Mountains, about James Bay (Moose Factory) and the west shore of Hudson Bay, northern Manitoba, north at least to Fort Simpson, Mackenzie River, northwest territory. (Bendire.)

=308a. Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse= (_P. p. columbianus_). Similar to No. 308, but prevailing color above buffy.

Range.--"Northwest United States; south to northeastern California, northern Nevada and Utah; east to Montana and Wyoming, west to Oregon and Washington; north, chiefly west of Rocky Mountains, through British Columbia to central Alaska (Fort Yukon)" (Bendire.)

=308b. Prairie Sharp-tailed Grouse= (_P. p. campestris_). Similar to No. 308a, but more rusty. _Notes._ Song, a bubbling crow, a rattling of tail-feathers, and stamping of feet. Calls, when disturbed, _cack_, _cack_, _cack_; a soft clear whistle and a grunt of alarm. (Seton.) Call of mother to young and of young in reply a guttural, raucous croak. (Grinnell.)

Range--"Plains and prairies of United States, north to Manitoba; east to Wisconsin and northern Illinois; west to eastern Colorado; south to eastern New Mexico." (Bendire.)

Grouse, Turkeys and Chachalaca

=309. Sage Grouse= (_Centrocercus urophasianus_). _Ad._ [Male], L. 29; _Ad._ [Female], L. 22. Similar to [Male], but smaller, throat whiter; breast barred black and whitish. _Notes._ When courting, low, grunting, guttural sounds; when alarmed, a sort of cackle, _kA¤k_, _kA¤k_. (Bendire.)

Range.--"Sage regions of the Rocky Mountain Plateau, and west chiefly within the United States, but north to Assiniboia and the dry interior of British Columbia; east to North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Colorado; south to northern New Mexico, Utah and Nevada; west in California, Oregon and Washington, to the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Range." (A.O.U.)

=Pheasant= (_Phasianus torquatus A-- P. colchicus_). An introduced species, see remarks on page 114.

=310. Wild Turkey= (_Meleagris gallopavo silvestris_). [Male] _Ad._ L. about 48; upper tail-coverts and tail tipped with rusty chestnut: white bars in primaries entire, crossing the webs of the feathers. _Notes._ Similar to those of the domesticated Turkey.

Range.--Eastern United States from Pennsylvania south to central Florida; west to Nebraska and northeastern Texas.

=310a. Merriam Turkey= (_M. g. merriami_). Similar to No. 310, but tail and upper tail-coverts tipped with whitish.

Range.--"Mountains of southern Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and western Texas; and northern Chihuahua and Sonora, Mexico." (Bailey.)

=310b. Florida Wild Turkey= (_M. g. osceola_). Similar to No. 310, but smaller; primaries with narrow _broken_ bars _not_ reaching across feather.

Range.--Southern Florida.

=310c. Rio Grande Turkey= (_M. g. intermedia_). Tips of upper tail-coverts and of tail rusty buff intermediate in color between those of Nos. 310 and 310a.

Range.--"Lowlands of southern Texas and northeastern Mexico." (A.O.U.)

=311. Chachalaca= (_Ortalis vetula maccalli_). L. 21. _Ads._ Above olive-brown; tail blacker, all but middle-feathers bordered with whitish; belly brownish. _Notes._ A loud, trumpeting _cha-cha-laca_, repeated a number of times.

Range.--Tropical portions of eastern Mexico, from Vera Cruz north to Lower Rio Grande Valley.

Order XI. PIGEONS AND DOVES.

COLUMBA†.

Family 1. PIGEONS and DOVES. ColumbidA|. 13 species, 3 subspecies.

Pigeons are distributed throughout the greater part of the globe, but their center of abundance appears to be in the Malay Archipelago, where about one hundred and twenty of the some three hundred known species are found. One hundred or more species have been described from the New World but only twelve of these inhabit North America.

The various races of domestic Pigeons, 'Pouters,' 'Fantails,' etc. are descendants of the Rock Dove of Europe, modified in form and habit through the selection by the breeder or 'fancier.'

Pigeons build a flimsy, platform nest of twigs and lay two white eggs. Both sexes incubate, one relieving the other at certain hours each day. The young are born naked and are fed by regurgitation, on 'Pigeons' milk,' the parent thrusting its bill into the mouth of its young and discharging therein food which has been softened in its own crop.

Some species of Pigeons nest in isolated pairs, others in large colonies, but it is the habit of many species to gather in large flocks after the nesting season.

The Wild or Passenger Pigeon, once so abundant in this county, was found in flocks throughout the year. Alexander Wilson, the 'father of American Ornithology' writing about 1808, estimated that a flock of Wild Pigeons seen by him near Frankfort, Kentucky, contained at least 2,230,272,000 individuals. Audubon writes that in 1805 he saw schooners at the wharves in New York city loaded in bulk with Wild Pigeons caught up the Hudson River, which were sold at one cent each.

As late as 1876 or 1877 there was a colony of nesting Wild Pigeons in Michigan, which was twenty-eight miles long and averaged three or four miles in width, and in 1881 the birds were still so abundant in parts of the Mississippi Valley that the writer saw thousands of birds, trapped in that region, used in a Pigeon match near New York City.

Today, however, as a result of constant persecution, the Wild Pigeon is so rare that the observation of a single individual is noteworthy.

Pigeons and Doves

=312. Band-tailed Pigeon= (_Columba fasciata_). L. 15. _Ad._ [Male]. Tail-band ashy above, whiter below; a white nape-band; tail square. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar, or in some specimens, nape band absent; pinkish of crown and breast dingy. _Notes._ An owl-like hooting, sometimes a calm _whoA cubed-hoo-hoo_, _whoA cubed-koo-hoo_, at others a spirited _hoA cubedp-ah-whA cubedo_, and again _wh'oo-ugh_. (Bailey.)

Range.--"Western United States from Rocky Mountains to the Pacific: north to Washington and British Columbia; south to Mexico and the highlands of Guatemala; distribution irregular, chiefly in wooded mountain regions." (A.O.U.)

=312a. Viosca Pigeon= (_C. f. vioscA|_). Similar to No. 312, but paler, more clearly bluish slate above; pink of crown and breast with a grayish _bloom_.

Range.--Cape Region of Lower California.

=313. Red-billed Pigeon= (_Columba flavirostris_). L. 15. _Ads._ No tail-band; wings, tail, and belly slate; head and neck purplish pink; no iridescent markings. _Notes._ A fine, loud, _coo-whoo-er-whoo_.

Range.--Costa Rica migrating north to southern Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.

=314. White-crowned Pigeon= (_Columba leucocephala_). L. 13.5 _Ad._ [Male]. Crown white; body slate; lower hindneck iridescent; nape maroon. _Ad._ [Female]. Much paler; crown ashy.

Range.--Greater Antilles and Islands about Anegada Channel, coast of Honduras, Bahamas and certain Florida Keys.

=315. Passenger Pigeon, Wild Pigeon= (_Ectopistes migratorius_). L. 16. Outer tail-feathers chestnut at base of inner web. _Ad._ [Male]. Chin, whole head., and lower back bluish slate. _Ad._ [Female]. Browner above, breast brownish ashy; neck feathers less iridescent. _Notes._ An explosive, squeaky, squawk.

Range.--Formerly eastern North America north to Hudson Bay; now exceedingly rare, less so in the upper Mississippi valley than elsewhere.

=316. Mourning Dove, Carolina Dove= (_Zenaidura macroura_). L. 11.8. Outer tail-feathers slate color at base of inner web. _Ad._ [Male]. Chin whitish; sides of head buffy; _a black ear mark_. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar but paler, breast more ashy brown, neck-feathers less iridescent. _Notes._ _Coo-o-o-ah, coo-o-o-coo-o-o-coo-o-o._

Range.--North America, breeding from West Indies and Mexico north to southern Maine, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia; winters from southern New York, southern Illinois, Kansas and southern California southward.

=317. Zenaida Dove= (_Zenaida zenaida_). L. 10. _Ad._ [Male]. Tail short, _without_ white markings; all but central pair of feathers tipped with ashy blue; secondaries tipped with white. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar but pinkish of crown and underparts brownish; neck feathers less iridescent. _Notes._ Resemble those of No. 316, but are louder and deeper.

Range.--Greater Antilles, coast of Yucatan and Bahamas, north in April to Florida Keys.

=318. White-fronted Dove= (_Leptotila fulviventris brachyptera_). L. 12. No black ear-mark; under wing-coverts rusty chestnut. _Ad._ [Male]. Forehead whitish; all but central pair of tail-feathers tipped with white. _Ad._ [Female]. Forehead dingier; breast brownish ashy; neck feathers less iridescent. _Notes._ A short, soft _coo_.

Range.--Central America and Mexico, north in February to valley of Lower Rio Grande.

=319. White-winged Dove= (_Melopelia leucoptera_). L. 12. Wing-coverts, externally, widely margined with white; large black ear marks. _Ads._ All but central pair of tail-feathers bluish slate with a black band and whitish tip. _Notes._ A loud, crowing _cookeree-cookeree-coo-ree-coo_, _crow-co-er-coo_, _crow-co-er-coo_.

Range.--Southern border of United States from Texas to Arizona south to Lower California and Central America, Cuba and Jamaica, casual at Key West, Florida.

=320. Ground Dove; Mourning Dove= (_Columbigallina passerina terrestris_). L. 6.7. Smallest of our Doves. _Ad._ [Male]. Forehead and underparts deep vinaceous pink; hindhead and nape ashy blue margined with dusky; base of bill _coral_, tip black. _Ad._ [Female]. Forehead and breast brownish gray; breast feathers with dusky centers and margins. _Notes._ A soft, crooning _coo_.

Range.--Atlantic and Gulf States north to northern North Carolina, west to eastern Texas; more common near coast.

=320a. Mexican Ground Dove= (_C. p. pallescens_). Similar to No. 320, but forehead and underparts much paler; back grayer.

Range.--Texas to southern California and south to Central America.

=320b. Bermuda Ground Dove= (_C. p. bermudiana_). Similar to 320a, but smaller and paler; bill wholly black. (Bangs and Bradlee.)

Range.--Bermuda.

=321. Inca Dove= (_Scardafella inca_). L. 8. _Ads._ Tail long, outer feathers tipped with white; plumage above and below margined with dusky, giving a scaled appearance.

Range.--Southern Texas (San Antonio), southern Mexico and southern Arizona south to Lower California and Central America.

=322. Key West Quail-Dove= (_Geotrygon chrysia_). L. 12. _Ads._ A white line below eye; belly white; back rich rusty with beautiful, metallic, purplish, _green_ and _blue_ reflections; tail rusty with no white.

Range.--Cuba, Hayti, Bahamas and, rarely, Florida Keys.

=322.1. Ruddy Quail-Dove= (_Geotrygon montana_). L. 11. _Ad._ [Male]. No white line below eye; breast dull pinkish; belly deep buff; back rich rusty with purplish reflections, tail rusty without white. _Ad._ [Female]. Above olive-brown with greenish reflections; below rusty buff.

Range.--Mexico south to Brazil; West Indies; casual at Key West Florida.

=323. Blue-headed Quail Dove= (_StarnA"nas cyanocephala_). L. 12. _Ads._ Crown and sides of throat dull blue; middle of upper breast black with white bars and pinkish tips; belly rusty brown, lower back as in No. 316. _Notes._ A hollow sounding _hu-up_, the first syllable long, the second short. (Gundlach.)

Range.--Cuba, and rarely Florida Keys.

Order XII. VULTURES, HAWKS, AND OWLS.

RAPTORES.

Family 1. AMERICAN VULTURES. CathartidA|. 3 species.

Family 2. FALCONS, HAWKS, EAGLES, etc. FalconidA|. 33 species,
13 subspecies.

Family 3. BARN OWLS. StrigidA|. 1 species.

Family 4. HORNED OWLS. BubonidA|. 19 species, 20 subspecies.

In the Raptores we have a group of birds of great value to man but whose services for the most part, are so little appreciated that, far from protecting these birds, we have actually persecuted them.

The Vultures, it is true, are given credit for their good work as scavengers and they are protected both by law and by public sentiment. Every one knows that a living Vulture is infinitely more useful than a dead one. As a result throughout countries inhabited by these birds they are usually both abundant and tame, entering the cities to feed in the streets with an assurance born of years of immunity from harm.

But how differently their kin of the family FalconidA| act in their relations to man! 'Wild as a Hawk' has become an adage. These birds are universally condemned. To kill one is a commendable act. Every ones hand is raised against them. In some localities a price has actually been set upon their heads.

A fondness for chickens, it is alleged, is the chief crime of Hawks, and in popular parlance all Hawks are 'Chicken Hawks' and as such are to be killed on sight.

Naturalists have long been aware that only one of our common Hawks habitually preys upon poultry while most of our species, by feeding largely on meadow mice, are actually beneficial. It was not, however, until this matter received the attention of the Biological Survey of the United States Department of Agriculture, that the economic status of Hawks, as well as of Owls, was placed on a sound scientific basis. In Dr. A. K. Fisher's report on the food of Hawks and Owls, issued by the Biologic Survey in 1893, the results of the examination of the contents of several thousands stomachs of these birds is tabulated. It is stated, for example, that only three out of two hundred and twenty stomachs of the so-called 'Chicken' or Red-shouldered Hawk contained the remains of poultry, while mice were found in no less than one hundred and two, and insects in ninety-two.

That the Sparrow Hawk is also wrongly named is clear from a study of its food, only fifty-four out of three hundred and twenty stomachs examined containing remains of birds, while insects were found in two hundred and fifteen.

As a matter of fact, among our commoner Hawks, the Cooper and Sharp-shinned are the only ones feeding largely on birds and poultry, and if the farmer will take the pains to ascertain what kind of Hawk it is that pays unwelcome visits to his barn-yard, he will be spared the injustice of condemning all Hawks for the sins of one or two.

Feeding after sunset, when the small mammals are most active, Owls are even more beneficial than Hawks. The Great Horned Owl, it is true, has an undue fondness for poultry, but the bird is generally so rare near thickly populated regions that on the whole it does comparatively little harm.

Fortunately, it is those Owls which are most common in settled regions which are of most value to man. Thus, our little Screech Owl feeds chiefly on mice and insects. Only one of the two hundred and fifty-five stomachs examined by Dr. Fisher contained the remains of poultry while mice were found in ninety-one and insects in one hundred. Of the Short-eared or Marsh Owl, seventy-seven out of one hundred and one stomachs contained mice remains, and the same injurious little rodents were found in eighty-four out of one hundred and seven stomachs of the Long-eared Owl.

The bones and hair of the small mammals eaten by Owls are rolled into oblong pellets in the stomach and are ejected at the mouth. These pellets may often be found in large numbers beneath the roosts in which Owls pass the day. In 200 such castings of the Barn Owl Dr. Fisher found the remains of 454 small mammals of which no less than 225 were meadow mice.

Hawks build large-bulky nests of sticks placing them usually well up in large trees, and lay, as a rule, four eggs which are generally whitish, blotched with brown. The Marsh Hawk is an exception. Its nest built largely of grasses, is placed on the ground in marshes and the eggs, often numbering six and rarely eight, are bluish white unmarked.

The Owls nest in holes in trees or banks, or, in some instances, an old Hawk or Crow nest may be occupied. The eggs usually number three to five and are always pure white.

Vultures and Osprey

=324. California Vulture= (_Gymnogyps californianus_). L. 44-55; Ex. 8 1-2 to nearly 11 feet. (Ridgw.) _Ads._ Head and neck orange, blue, and red, unfeathered; feathers around neck and on underparts narrow and stiffened; greater wing-coverts tipped with white; _under wing-coverts white_.

Range.--"Coast ranges of southern California from Monterey Bay, south to Lower California and east to Arizona" (Bailey). Recorded from Burrard Inlet, British Columbia (Fannin).

=325. Turkey Vulture; Turkey Buzzard= (_Cathartes aura_). L. 30; T. 11. _Ads._ Head and neck _red_ unfeathered; brownish black; no white in plumage; bill whitish. _Notes._ A low hissing sound when disturbed.

Range--Western Hemisphere from central and northeast New Jersey, central Illinois, northern Minnesota, the Saskatchewan region and British Columbia, south to Patagonia; winters from southern New Jersey, southern Illinois and southern California southward.

=326. Black Vulture; Carrion Crow= (_Catharista urubu_). L. 24. T. 8. _Ads._ Head and neck unfeathered, black, plumage black; _under surface of wings silvery_. _Notes._ A low grunting sound when disturbed.

Range.--Tropical America, north, as a resident to North Carolina, southern Illinois and southern Kansas; west to the Plains, south to northern South America, strays as far north as Maine and South Dakota.

=364. American Osprey; Fish Hawk= (_Pandion haliaA"tus carolinensis_). L. 23. Nape white; feet large; no bars on primaries. _Ad._ [Male]. Below white with few or no spots on breast. _Ad._ [Female]. Similar, but breast with numerous grayish brown spots and streaks. _Notes._ Loud, plaintive, whistles.

Range.--America; breeds from Florida, Texas and Lower California, north to Labrador, Great Slave Lake and northern Alaska; winters from South Carolina and Lower Mississippi Valley to northern South America.

Kites and Marsh Hawks

=327. Swallow-tailed Kite= (_Elanoides forficatus_). L. 24. _Ads._ Back purplish black, wings and tail blue-black. _Notes._ A shrill, keen, _e-e-e_ or _we-we-we_. (Bendire.)

Range.--Middle America; summers north to Virginia, central Illinois, northern Minnesota, Manitoba and Dakota; west to central Kansas, rarely to Colorado; winters in Central and South America.

=328. White-tailed Kite= (_Elanus leucurus_). L. 15.5. _Ads._ Shoulders black; back and middle tail-feathers ashy gray; rest of tail-feathers, forehead and underparts white. _Yng._ Upperparts with rusty. _Notes._ A plaintive, musical whistle. (Barlow.)

Range.--Middle America north to South Carolina, southern Illinois, Indian Territory, western Texas, Arizona and central California; south to Argentine Republic; rare east of the the Mississippi.

=329. Mississippi Kite= (_Ictinia mississippiensis_). L. 14. _Ads._ Head, ends of secondaries, and underparts bluish gray; back bluish slate; tail black without bars. _Yng._ Head streaked black and white; back blackish, tipped with rusty; tail with three or four broken white bars; underparts buffy, streaked with rusty and blackish.

Range.--Middle America; breeds north to South Carolina, southern Illinois and Kansas; winters in tropics.

=330. Everglade Kite; Snail Hawk= (_Rostrhamus sociabilis_). L. 18. Longer upper tail-coverts and base of tail white. _Ads._ Slaty black; end of tail with brownish and whitish bands. _Yng._ Above blackish brown tipped with rusty; below mottled rusty, blackish and buff.

Range.--Tropical America north to southern Florida and eastern Mexico; south to Argentine Republic.

=331. Marsh Hawk; Harrier= (_Circus hudsonius_). L. [Male], 19; [Female], 22. Upper tail-coverts and base of tail white. _Ad._ [Male]. Above gray or ashy; underparts with rusty spots. _Ad._ [Female], and _Yng._ Above brownish black with more or less rusty, particularly on the nape; below brownish rusty with black streaks on breast. _Notes._ A peevish scream and peculiar clucking or cackling. (Preston.)

Range.--North America; breeds locally north to about latitude 60A deg.; winters from southern New York, northern Illinois, northern Kansas, Colorado and British Columbia south to Central America.

Hawks

=332. Sharp-shinned Hawk= (_Accipiter velox_). L. [Male], 11.2; [Female], 13.5; T. [Male], 5.5; [Female], 7. Tail _square_ at end. _Ads._ Above slaty gray; crown darker; below barred white and rusty brown. _Yng._ Above blackish brown lightly margined with rusty; below white streaked with brown. Note the relatively long tail in this and the two following species. _Notes._ _Cac-cac-cac._ (Ralph.)

Range.--North America; breeds throughout its range but chiefly northward; winters from Massachusetts and Vancouver Island southward.

=333. Cooper Hawk= (_Accipiter cooperii_). L. [Male], 15.5; [Female], 19; T. [Male], 7.7; [Female], 9. Similar in color to No. 332, but tail _rounded_; adult with crown blacker. _Notes._ A cackling or chattering. (Bendire.)

Range.--North America; breeds from southern Mexico north to British America; winters from Massachusetts, Lower Mississippi Valley and Oregon southward.

=334. American Goshawk= (_Accipiter atricapillus_). L. [Male], 22; [Female], 24; T. [Male], 10; [Female], 11.5. _Ads._ Above bluish slate; crown darker; a whitish line over the eye to the nape; below _finely_ marked with gray and white. _Yng._ Above blackish brown, rusty and buff; below buffy white streaked with blackish.

Range.--North America; breeds chiefly north of United States; winters south to New Jersey, rarely Virginia, Illinois, Missouri and Kansas; west to Oregon.

=334a. Western Goshawk= (_A. a. striatulus_). Similar to No. 334, but _Ad._ dark plumbeous above, markings on lower parts heavier and darker. Stripes on lower parts of _Yng._ broader and blacker. (Ridgw.) _Notes._ A shrill scream and a frequently repeated _keeah_ or _kreeah_. (Bendire.)

Range.--"Western North America; north to Sitka, Alaska; south to California; east to Idaho. Breeds in the Sierra Nevada south to latitude 38A deg.." (A.O.U.)

=346. Mexican Goshawk= (_Asturina plagiata_). L. 17. _Ads._ Above slaty gray; below barred slaty-gray and white. _Yng._ Above blackish brown with rusty markings, particularly on wing-coverts; longer upper tail-coverts white with black spots or bars; tail brownish with numerous black bars; below whitish with large elongate spots. _Notes._ A peculiar piping note uttered while hovering in the air. (Bendire.)

Range.--Middle America, from Panama north, in March, to Mexican border of United States.

Hawks

=335. Harris Hawk= (_Parabuteo unicinctus harrisi_). L. [Male], 19; [Female], 22. Longer upper tail-coverts, base and tip of tail white. _Ads._ Shoulders, thighs and under wing-coverts, reddish brown; under tail-coverts white. _Yng._ Similar but streaked below with rusty, buff and black; legs barred with white. _Notes._ A long, harsh, Buteo-like scream. (V. Bailey.)

Range.--Middle America from Panama north to southern Texas, rarely Mississippi and southern California.