Chapter XVIII: Part 18

Bill yellow. Iris bright yellow. Claws brownish-black. The general colour of the upper parts is greyish-brown, variegated with greyish-white in irregular undulated markings; the feathers on the upper part of the head with two transverse white spots on each web; the smaller wing-coverts of a darker brown, and less mottled than the back; the outer scapulars with more white on their outer webs; the primary quills blackish-brown toward the end, marked in the rest of their extent with few broad light-grey oblique bands, which are dotted and undulated with darker. Tail-feathers similarly barred, darker towards the end, the middle ones more intricately marked. The feathers of the ruff are white towards the end, dark-brown in the centre. The disks are on their inner side grey, with black tips; in the rest of their extent greyish-white, with six bars of blackish-brown very regularly disposed in a concentric manner; feathers on the chin or upper part of throat greyish-white. All the under parts are greyish-brown, variegated with greyish and yellowish white; the feet barred with the same.

Length to end of tail 30-1/2 inches, to end of wings 27-1/4, to end of claws 22; extent of wings 48-1/2; wing from flexure 19-1/4; tail 12-3/4; bill along the ridge 1, along the edge of lower mandible 1-3/4; breadth of gape 1-1/2; tarsus 2-1/2; hind toe 7/12, its claw 7/8; middle toe 1, its claw 1-5/12.

BLACK-SHOULDERED HAWK.

_FALCO DISPAR_, TEMM.

PLATE CCCLII. MALE AND FEMALE.

I have traced the migration of this beautiful Hawk from the Texas as far east as the mouth of the Santee River in South Carolina. CHARLES BONAPARTE first introduced it into our Fauna, on the authority of a specimen procured in East Florida, by TITIAN PEALE, Esq. of Philadelphia, who it seems had some difficulty in obtaining it. On the 8th of February 1834 I received one of these birds alive from Dr RAVENEL of Charleston, who had kept it in his yard for eight days previously, without being able to induce it to take any food. The beauty of its large eyes struck me at once, and I immediately made a drawing of the bird, which was the first I had ever seen alive. It proved to be a male, and was in beautiful plumage. Dr RAVENEL told me that it walked about his yard with tolerable ease, although one of its wings had been injured. On the 23d of the same month I received another fine specimen, a female, from FRANCIS LEE, Esq., who had procured it on his plantation, forty miles west of Charleston, and with it the following note. “When first observed, it was perched on a tree in an erect posture. I saw at once that it was one of the birds which you had desired me to procure for you, and went to the house for my gun. On returning I saw the Hawk very high in the air, sailing beautifully over a large wet meadow, where many Common Snipes were feeding. It would now and then poise itself for a while, in the manner of our Little Sparrow Hawk, and suddenly closing its wings plunge towards its prey with great velocity, making a rumbling noise as it passed through the air. Now and then, when about half-way, it suddenly checked its descent, recommenced hovering, and at last marking its prey, rushed upon it and secured it. Its cries, on being wounded, so much resembled those of the Mississippi Kite, that I thought, as I was going to pick it up, that I had only got one of that species. It was so shy that I was obliged to get on horseback before I could approach it within gun shot.”

Mr H. WARD, who accompanied me on my expedition to the Floridas found this species breeding on the plantation of ALEXANDER MAYZCK, Esq., on the Santee River, early in the month of March, and shot three, two of which, a male and a female, are now in my possession. Their nests were placed on low trees near the margins of the river, and resembled those of the American Crow, but had none of the substantial lining of that bird’s nest. Mr WARD states, that at this time they were seen flying over the cane brakes in pursuit of large insects, somewhat in the manner of the Mississippi Kite, and that they were very shy.

My friend JOHN BACHMAN has seen this species fly in groups, at a very great height, in the beginning of March, and thinks that it is only of late years that they have located themselves in South Carolina, where, however, five of them have been procured in one year.

The Black-shouldered Hawk appears to give a decided preference to low lands, not distant from the shores of the Atlantic. On our way toward the Texas, several of these birds were seen over the large marshes, flying at a small elevation, and coursing in search of prey, much in the manner of the Hen-harrier or Marsh Hawk, but all evidently bent on proceeding to the eastward. Whether this species winters there or not, I am unable to say, but that some remain all the year in Florida, and even in South Carolina, I am quite confident.

The difference between the food of this species and that of the Mississippi Kite is surprising to me. I have never seen the latter seize any bird, whereas the Black-shouldered Hawk certainly does so, as in the stomachs of two individuals which I examined were remains of birds as well as of coleopterous insects. These two birds agree nearly with the description of the one procured by Mr TITIAN PEALE, excepting in the length of the wings, which in them and in several others that have come under my notice, have their tips fully an inch shorter than the end of the tail. A breeding female differed from the rest in having the eyes dull yellowish-red; the tail-feathers had all been ash-grey, all the primaries were edged with white, and many of the secondaries were still of a light brownish-grey; the black spots under the wings were smaller than usual; the abdomen was also tinged with brownish-grey. I am therefore of opinion, that these birds undergo as many changes of plumage as the Mississippi Kite.

BLACK-WINGED HAWK, FALCO MELANOPTERUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Amer.
Orn. vol. ii. pl. 11. fig. 1. Female.

FALCO MELANOPTERUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 31.

FALCO DISPAR, _Temm._ _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis. Append, p.
435.

Adult Male. Plate CCCLII. Fig. 1.

Bill short, broader than deep at the base, with the gape very wide. Upper mandible with the cere covered at the base with bristly feathers, the dorsal line convex and declinate to the end of the cere, then curved downwards in about the third of a circle, the sides at the base sloping towards the end convex and erect, the sharp edges with a distinct festoon, the tip narrow and acute. Lower mandible with the angle very wide and long, the dorsal outline very short, ascending and slightly convex, the sharp edges inflected, the tip obliquely truncate and narrow. Nostrils elliptical, rather large, in the fore part of the cere.

Head rather large, broad, flattened above, with the superciliary ridges prominent. Eyes large, directed obliquely forwards. Neck short; body compact. Legs of moderate length; tibia long and muscular; tarsus very short, stout, roundish, covered anteriorly with feathers for half its length, the rest with small roundish scales, toes short, thick, tuberculate and papillate beneath, scaly above, like the tarsus, but with three large scutella at the end. Claws long, curved, conical, extremely pointed, that of middle toe with an inner edge.

Plumage soft, blended, full, on the back rather compact. Feathers of the cere, lore, and eyelids, bristle-pointed. Wings very long and pointed, the second quill longest, the third nearly as long, the first longer than the fourth; the first, second, and third with the outer web attenuated toward the end; the first and second with the inner web sinuated; secondaries very broad, rounded, the inner web exceeding the outer. Tail of twelve feathers, of moderate breadth, long, emarginate and rounded, the middle and lateral feathers being about equal, and eight-twelfths of an inch shorter than the second feather from the side.

Bill black; the cere and soft basal margins yellow. Iris bright red. Tarsi and toes yellow, of a darker tint than the cere; claws black. All the lower parts are pure white, with the exception of a patch on five or six of the larger wing-coverts; the forehead is also white, as are the cheeks; the superciliary bristles black, the white of the head gradually blends into the general colour of the upper parts, which is ash-grey; the smaller wing-coverts bluish-black; the shafts of the quills brownish-black; all the feathers of the tail, excepting the two middle, white; the shafts of the two middle feathers blackish-brown, of the rest white towards the end, the whole of that of the outer pure white.

Length to end of tail 16 inches, to end of claws 12-1/4, to end of wings 14-7/8; extent of wings 40; wing from flexure 13; tail 7-10/12; bill along the ridge (1-1/2)/12, along the edge of lower mandible 1-5/12; tarsus 1-4/12; first toe 7/12, its claw 3/4; second toe (10-1/2)/12, its claw 10/12; third toe 1/4, its claw (9-1/2)/12; fourth toe (10-1/2)/12, its claw 8/12. Weight 14 oz.

Adult Female. Plate CCCLII. Fig. 2.

The female is rather larger than the male, but in other respects similar.

Length to end of tail 16-3/4 inches, to end of wings 15-3/4, to end of claws 12-3/8; extent of wings 41-1/2; tail 8; wing from flexure 13-1/2; bill along the ridge 1-1/8, along the edge of lower mandible 1-1/2; tarsus 1-3/8; hind toe 3/4, its claw 7/8; outer toe 7/8, its claw 1/2; middle toe 1-3/8, its claw 5/8; inner toe 7/8, its claw 3/4. Weight 17-1/4 oz.

The young when fledged have the bill and claws black, the cere and feet dull yellow; the upper parts brownish-grey, the scapulars and quills tipped with white, the former also margined, with yellowish-brown; the primary and secondary coverts are also tipped with white; the smaller wing-coverts are brownish-black; the outer webs of all the tail-feathers are more or less brownish-grey toward the end. The lower parts are white, the feathers on the breast tinged with brownish-yellow at the end, and with the shaft yellowish-brown. The lower wing-coverts are all white.

CHESTNUT-BACKED TITMOUSE.

_PARUS RUFESCENS_, TOWNSEND.

PLATE CCCLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.

You have before you on the same plate three species of _Parus_, two of which are new to science. Of specimens of these I obtained possession in consequence of the purchase which I made of part of Dr TOWNSEND’s hard-earned collection, made during his laborious expedition over the Rocky Mountains, and the valley of the Columbia River. For an account of the habits of those which are not found to the east of the Rocky Mountains, I am indebted to my friends THOMAS NUTTALL, Esq., and J. K. TOWNSEND, M. D. Mr NUTTALL’s notice respecting the present species is as follows:—

“The Chestnut-backed Titmouse is seen throughout the year in the forests of the Columbia, and as far south as Upper California, in all which tract it breeds, forming, as I have some reason to believe, a pendulous, or at least an exposed nest, like some of the European species. It is made of large quantities of hypna and lichens, and copiously and coarsely lined with deer’s hair and large feathers, such as those of the Grouse and the Jay. They are commonly seen in small flocks of all ages in the autumn and winter, when they move about briskly, and emit a number of feeble querulous notes, after the manner of the Chickadee, or common species, _Parus atricapillus_, but seldom utter any thing like a song, though now and then, as they glean about, they utter a _t’she_, _de_, _de_, or _t’dee_, _t’dee_, _dee_, their more common querulous call, however, being like _t’she_, _dé_, _de_, _vait_, _t’she_, _de_, _de_, _vait_, sometimes also a confused warbling chatter. The busy troop, accompanied often by the common species, the _Regulus tricolor_, and the small yellow-bellied _Parus_, are seen flitting through bushes and thickets, carefully gleaning insects and larvæ for an instant, and are then off to some other place around, proceeding with restless activity to gratify the calls of hunger and the stimulus of caprice. Thus they are seen to rove along for miles together, until satisfied or fatigued, when they retire to rest in the recesses of the darkest forests, situations which they eventually choose for their temporary domicile, where in solitude and retirement they rear their young, and for the whole of the succeeding autumn and winter remain probably together in families. When the gun thins their ranks, it is surprising to see the courage, anxiety, and solicitude of these little creatures: they follow you with their wailing scold, and entreat for their companions in a manner that impresses you with a favourable idea of their social feelings and sympathy.”

Dr TOWNSEND says, that “the Chinook Indians call this species _a kul_. It inhabits the forests of the Columbia River, where it breeds and goes in flocks in the autumn, more or less gregarious through the season. The legs and feet are light blue.”

PARUS RUFESCENS, CHESTNUT-BACKED TITMOUSE, _Townsend_, Journ.
Acad. of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 190.

Adult Male. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 1.

Bill very short, straight, strong, compressed, rather acute; both mandibles with the dorsal line slightly convex, the sides sloping and convex, the edges sharp, the tip of the upper scarcely longer. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. Head large, ovate; neck short; body rather robust. Feet of ordinary length, robust; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella, and two lateral plates meeting behind so as to form a thin edge; toes large, the three anterior united as far as the second joint, the hind one much stronger, and with its claw as long as the third. Claws large, arched, much compressed, acute.

Plumage blended, tufty, unglossed. Wings of moderate length, the fourth and fifth quills equal and longest, the sixth scarcely shorter, the third and seventh equal, the second and eighth equal, the first very short, being only half the length of the second. Tail long, slender, arched, very slightly emarginate, or with its tip divaricate, of twelve rather narrow feathers.

Bill brownish-black, with the edges and tip paler. Feet greyish-blue; claws paler. Head and neck, and fore part of the sides, dark-brown, with a broad longitudinal band of white on each side, from the bill under the eye, curving up on the shoulder, and almost meeting on the back; which, including the rump, is bright chestnut, as are the sides under the wings; the middle of the breast and abdomen greyish-white, the lower tail-coverts tinged with chestnut. Wings and tail brownish-grey, the smaller coverts tinged with chestnut, the secondary coverts margined and tipped with greyish-white, of which colour also are the outer edges of the quills, except the first; tail feathers faintly margined with bluish-grey.

Length to end of tail 4-1/2 inches; wing from flexure 2-3/8; tail 1-11/12; bill along the ridge (4-1/2)/12; tarsus (7-1/2)/12; hind toe (3-1/4)/12, its claw 4/12; middle toe (4-1/2)/12, its claw (2-3/4)/12.

Adult Female. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 2.

The Female is similar to the male.

BLACK-CAP TITMOUSE.

_PARUS ATRICAPILLUS_, LINN.

PLATE CCCLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.

The opinion generally entertained respecting the extensive dispersion of the Black-cap Titmouse, has in all probability originated from the great resemblance which it bears to the Carolina Titmouse, _Parus Carolinensis_, described at p. 341 of the second volume of this work; that species being now known to extend its spring and summer migrations as far eastward as the State of New Jersey, where it has been found breeding by my friend EDWARD HARRIS, Esq. of Moorestown. The Black-cap, on the other hand, is rarely observed farther south, and then only in winter, when it proceeds as far as beyond the middle portions of Maryland, from whence I have at that season received specimens in spirits, collected by my friend Colonel THEODORE ANDERSON of Baltimore. Westward of the Alleghanies it extends as far as Kentucky in winter, but at the approach of spring returns northward. In Pennsylvania and New Jersey some are known to breed; but as the Carolina Titmouse breeds there also, it is difficult to say which of them is the most numerous, they being so like each other that one is apt to confound them. In the State of New York it is abundant, and often rears two broods in the season; as you proceed eastward you may observe it in all places favourable to its habits; and, according to Dr RICHARDSON, it is found as far north as Lat. 65°, it being in the Fur Countries the most common bird, “a small family inhabiting almost every thicket.” None were seen by Dr TOWNSEND either on the Rocky Mountains or about the Columbia River, where, on the contrary, _Parus Carolinensis_ is abundant, as it is also in the Texas, where I found it breeding in the spring of 1837. Although bearing a considerable resemblance to the Marsh Titmouse of Europe, _P. palustris_, it differs from that species not only in colour, but more especially in its habits and notes.

Hardy, smart, restless, industrious, and frugal, the Black-cap Titmouse ranges through the forest during the summer, and retiring to its more secluded parts, as if to ensure a greater degree of quiet, it usually breeds there. Numerous eggs produce a numerous progeny, and as soon as the first brood has been reared, the young range hither and thither in a body, searching for food, while their parents, intent on forming another family, remain concealed and almost silent, laying their eggs in the hole deserted by some small Woodpecker, or forming one for themselves. As it has been my fortune to witness a pair at this work, I will here state what occurred, notwithstanding the opinion of those who inform us that the bill of a Titmouse is “not shaped for digging.” While seated one morning under a crab-apple tree (very hard wood, Reader), I saw two Black-cap Titmice fluttering about in great concern, as if anxious to see me depart. By their manners indeed I was induced to believe that their nest was near, and, anxious to observe their proceedings, I removed to the distance of about twenty paces. The birds now became silent, alighted on the apple-tree, gradually moved towards the base of one of its large branches, and one of them disappeared in what I then supposed to be the hole of some small Woodpecker; but I saw it presently on the edge, with a small chip in its bill, and again cautiously approached the tree. When three or four yards off I distinctly heard the peckings or taps of the industrious worker within, and saw it come to the mouth of the hole and return many times in succession in the course of half an hour, after which I got up and examined the mansion. The hole was about three inches deep, and dug obliquely downward from the aperture, which was just large enough to admit the bird. I had observed both sexes at this labour, and left the spot perfectly satisfied as to their power of boring a nest for themselves.

The Black-cap Titmouse, or Chickadee, as it is generally named in our Eastern States, though exceedingly shy in summer or during the breeding season, becomes quite familiar in winter, although it never ventures to enter the habitations of man; but in the most boisterous weather, requiring neither food nor shelter there, it may be seen amidst the snow in the rugged paths of the cheerless woods, where it welcomes the traveller or the woodcutter with a confidence and cheerfulness far surpassing the well-known familiarity of the Robin Redbreast of Europe. Often, on such occasions, should you offer it, no matter how small a portion of your fare, it alights without hesitation, and devours it without manifesting any apprehension. The sound of an axe in the woods is sufficient to bring forth several of these busy creatures, and having discovered the woodman, they seem to find pleasure in his company. If, as is usually the case, he is provided with a dinner, the Chickadee at once evinces its anxiety to partake of it, and loses no opportunity of accomplishing its object, although it sets about it with much circumspection, as if it were afraid of being detected, and brought to punishment, A woodcutter in Maine assured me, that one day he happened to be at work, and had scarcely hung up his basket of provisions, when it was observed by a flock of these birds, which, having gathered into it at once, attacked a piece of cold beef; but after each peck, he saw their heads raised above the edge, as if to guard against the least appearance of danger. After picking until they were tired or satisfied, they left the basket and perched directly over his fire, but out of the direction of the smoke. There they sat enjoying themselves and ruffling their feathers to allow the warmth more easy access to their skin, until he began his dinner, when they immediately alighted near him, and in the most plaintive tones seemed to solicit a portion.

WILSON and others have spoken of this species as being addicted to moving in the company of our smaller Woodpeckers and Brown Creepers, and this in such a way as to induce most readers to believe the act to be customary; but I have often found groups of them, at times composed of more than a dozen, without any such companions, and I should be more inclined to think that the Downy Woodpecker, and the Brown Creeper, seek the company of the Titmice, rather than that the latter associate with them. Often indeed have I watched the busy Chickadees, as they proceeded from tree to tree, and from branch to branch, whether by the road-side or in the interior of the forest, when no other birds were with them. The light rustling sound of their concave wings would intimate their approach as well as their retreat, as gaily one after another they passed onwards from one spot to another, chattering, peeping everywhere, and determined as it were, not to suffer a chink to pass without inspection. Now hanging, back downward, at the extremity of a twig, its feet almost up to its bill, it would peck at a berry or a seed until it had devoured it, or it had fallen to the ground: should the latter be the case, the busy bird would at once fly down, and hammer at the fruit. To the Black-cap Titmouse the breaking of a hazel nut is quite a pleasure, and I have repeatedly seen the feat accomplished not only by a bird in its natural state, but by one kept in confinement. Courageous and at times exceedingly tyrannical, it will attack young birds, break their skulls, and feed upon their flesh, as I have more than once witnessed. In this habit they resemble the Jays, but in every other they differ entirely from those birds, although the PRINCE of MUSIGNANO has thought fit to assimilate the two groups. The Chickadee feeds on insects, their larvæ, and eggs, as well as on every sort of small fruit, or berries, including grapes, acorns, and the seeds of various pines. I have seen them eat the seeds of the sunflower, the poke-berry, and pears, as well as flesh of all kinds. Indeed it may be truly called omnivorous. Often, like Jays, you may see them perched as it were upon their food, and holding it beneath their feet while pecking at it; but no Jays are seen to hang head downwards at the end of a branch.

My friend THOMAS M’CULLOCH, Esq. of Pictou, in Nova Scotia, has favoured me with the following interesting remarks having reference to this species. “Sometimes I have been inclined to think, that the sight of this bird is comparatively imperfect, and that it is chiefly indebted to some of the other senses for its success in obtaining subsistence. This idea may not be correct, but it seems to derive some support from the little incident which I am about to mention. While standing at the edge of a patch of newly-felled wood, over which the fire had recently passed, and left every thing black in its course, I observed a small flock of these birds coming from the opposite side of the clearing. Being dressed in black and aware of their familiarity, I stood perfectly motionless, for the purpose of ascertaining how near they would approach. Stealing from branch to branch, and peering for food among the crevices of the prostrate trunks, as they passed along, onward they came until the foremost settled upon a small twig a few feet from the spot upon which I stood. After looking about for a short time it flew and alighted just below the lock of a double-barrelled gun which I held in a slanting direction below my arm. Being unable however to obtain a hold, it slided down to the middle of the piece, and then flew away, jerking its tail, and apparently quite unconscious of having been so near the deadly weapon. In this country these birds seem to be influenced by a modification of that feeling by which so many others are induced to congregate at the close of autumn and seek a more congenial clime. At that period they collect in large flocks and exhibit all the hurry and bustle of travellers, who are bent upon a distant journey. If these flocks do not migrate, their union is soon destroyed, for when the Black-cap Titmice again appear, it is in small flocks; their former restlessness is gone, and they now exhibit their wonted care and deliberation in searching for food.”

The nest of this species, whether it be placed in the hole of a Woodpecker or Squirrel, or in a place dug by itself, is seldom found at a height exceeding ten feet. Most of those which I have seen were in low broken or hollowed stumps only a few feet high. The materials of which it is composed vary in different districts, but are generally the hair of quadrupeds, in a considerable quantity, and disposed in the shape of a loose bag or purse, as in most other species which do not hang their nests outside. Some persons have said that they lay their eggs on the bare wood, or on the chips left by Woodpeckers; but this is not the case, in so far as I have examined them; and in this my observations are confirmed by those of Dr BREWER of Boston and Mr M’CULLOCH of Pictou, who also have inspected nests of this species. The eggs rarely exceed eight in number; they measure five-eighths of an inch in length, by three-eighths and three-quarters, are rather pointed at the smaller end, white, slightly sprinkled with minute dots and markings of light reddish. Those of the first brood are deposited from the middle of April to that of May; for the second about two months later. The parents I have thought generally move along with the young of the second brood.

Dr BREWER says, “on the 20th of June, I found in a single Titmouse’s hole a mass of the hair of the Common Skunk and moss large enough to weigh two or more ounces, and sufficient to construct a nest for some of our larger birds, such for instance as Wilson’s Thrush.”

Mr M’CULLOCH found a nest of this bird placed about two feet from the ground in a small stump, which seemed to have been excavated by the birds themselves. It contained six young, and was lined entirely with the hair which cattle, in rubbing themselves, had left upon the stump.

The flight of this species, like that of all our American Titmice, is short, fluttering, generally only from tree to tree, and is accompanied with a murmuring sound produced by the concavity of the wings. It is seldom seen on the ground, unless when it has followed a fruit that has fallen, or when searching for materials for its nest. It usually roosts in its nest during winter, and in summer amid the close foliage of firs or evergreens. In winter, indeed, as well as often in autumn, it is seen near the farm-houses, and even in villages and towns, busily seeking for food among the trees.

“On seeing a cat, or other object of natural antipathy,” says Mr NUTTALL, “the Chickadee, like the peevish Jay, scolds in a loud, angry, and hoarse note, _’tshe_, _dáigh dáigh dáigh_. Among the other notes of this species, I have heard a call like _tshe-de-jay_, _tshe-de-jay_, the two first syllables being a slender chirp, with the _jay_ strongly pronounced. The only note of this bird which may be called a song, is one which is frequently heard at intervals in the depths of the forest, at times of day usually when all other birds are silent. We then may sometimes hear in the midst of this solitude two feeble, drawling, clearly whistled, and rather melancholy notes like _’te-dĕrry_, and sometimes _ye-pĕrrit_, and occasionally, but more rarely in the same wiry, whistling, solemn tone, _’phēbé_. The young in winter also sometimes drawl out these contemplative strains. In all cases the first syllable is very high and clear, the second word drops low, and ends like a feeble plaint. This is nearly all the quaint song ever attempted by the Chickadee. On fine days, about the commencement of October, I have heard the Chickadee sometimes, for half an hour at a time, attempt a lively, petulant warble, very different from his ordinary notes. On these occasions he appears to flirt about, still hunting for his prey, in an ecstacy of delight and vigour. But after a while the usual drawling note again occurs. These birds, like many others, are very subject to the attacks of vermin, and they accumulate in great numbers around that part of the head and front which is least accessible to their foot.”

PARUS ATRICAPILLUS, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 341.

PARUS ATRICAPILLUS, _Lath._ Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 566.

BLACK-CAPT TITMOUSE, PARUS ATRICAPILLUS, _Wils._ Amer.
Ornith. vol. i. p. 134, pl. 8, fig. 4.

PARUS ATRICAPILLUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 100.

BLACK-CAPT TITMOUSE, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 241.

Adult Male. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 3.

Bill short, straight, strong, compressed, rather obtuse; both mandibles with the dorsal line slightly convex, the sides sloping and convex, the edges sharp, that of the upper mandible slightly sinuate. Nostrils basal, roundish, concealed by the recumbent feathers. Head large, neck short, body robust. Feet of ordinary length, rather robust; tarsus compressed, with seven anterior scutella; toes large, the three anterior united as far as the second joint; the hind one much stronger, and with its claw nearly as long as the middle toe. Claws large, arched, much compressed, acute.

Plumage blended, tufty; feathers of the head glossy. Wings of moderate length, the first quill scarcely half the length of the second, which is equal to the first secondary, the third and seventh about equal, the fourth and fifth equal and longest. Tail long, a little arched, emarginate and rounded, of twelve slender rounded feathers.

Bill brownish-black. Iris dark brown. Feet greyish-blue, as are the claws. The whole upper part of the head and the hind neck pure black, as is a large patch on the throat and fore-neck. Between these patches of black is a band of white, from the base of the bill down the sides of the neck, becoming broader behind, and encroaching on the back, which, with the wing-coverts, is ash-grey tinged with brown. Quills dark greyish-brown, margined with bluish-white, the secondary quills so broadly margined as to leave a conspicuous white dash on the wing; tail of the same colour, the feathers similarly edged. Lower parts brownish-white, the sides pale yellowish-brown.

Length to end of tail 5-1/8 inches, to end of wings 3-7/8, to end of claws 4-1/2; extent of wings 8-1/4; wing from flexure 2-10/12; tail 2-9/12; these measurements taken from three males. In another, the bill along the ridge (4-1/2)/12; along the edge of lower mandible 7/12; tarsus 7/12; hind toe 3/12, its claw 4/12; middle toe 5/12, its claw 3/12.

Adult Female. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 4.

The Female is similar to the male.

Male examined. The tongue is 4-1/2 twelfths long, emarginate and papillate at the base, flat above, depressed, tapering, the point horny, slit, with four bristly points. Œsophagus, _b_, _c_, _d_, 1-1/2 inch long, tapering at the commencement to the diameter of 2 twelfths, and then continuing nearly uniform, without dilatation; the proventriculus, _c_, _d_, is not much enlarged. The stomach, _d_, _e_, is a strong gizzard, of an oblong form or ovate, 4 twelfths long, 3 twelfths broad, with strong lateral muscles; its epithelium longitudinally rugous, and of a dark reddish-brown colour. Intestine 7-1/4 inches long, the diameter of its duodenal portion, _f_, _g_, _h_, 2-1/2 twelfths. The rectum, _g_, _k_, is 7-1/2 twelfths long; the cœca, _j_, 1 twelfth long, and 1/4 twelfth in diameter.

The trachea is 1-2/12 inch long, its diameter uniform, 3/4 twelfths, its rings 42. It is furnished with lateral or contractor muscles, sterno-tracheal, and four pairs of inferior laryngeal. Bronchi short, of about 10 rings.

CHESTNUT-CROWNED TITMOUSE.

_PARUS MINIMUS_, TOWNSEND.

PLATE CCCLIII. MALE AND FEMALE.

My friend NUTTALL’s account of this Titmouse is as follows, “We first observed the arrival of this plain and diminutive species on the banks of the Wahlamet, near to its confluence with the Columbia, about the middle of May. Hopping about in the hazel thickets which border the alluvial meadows of the river, they appeared very intent and industriously engaged in quest of small insects, chirping now and then a slender call of recognition. They generally flew off in pairs, but were by no means shy, and kept always in the low bushes or the skirt of the woods. The following day I heard the males utter a sort of weak monotonous short and quaint song, and about a week afterwards I had the good fortune to find the nest, about which the male was so particularly solicitous as almost unerringly to draw me to the spot, where hung from a low bush, about 4 feet from the ground, his little curious mansion, formed like a long purse, with a round hole for entrance near the summit. It was made chiefly of moss, down, lint of plants, and lined with some feathers. The eggs, six in number, were pure white, and already far gone towards being hatched. I saw but few other pairs in this vicinity, but on the 21st of June, in the dark woods near Fort Vancouver, I again saw a flock of about twelve, which, on making a chirp something like their own call, came around me very familiarly, and kept up a most incessant and querulous chirping. The following season (April 1836) I saw numbers of these birds in the mountain thickets around Santa Barbara, in Upper California, where they again seemed untiringly employed in gleaning food in the low bushes, picking up or catching their prey in all postures, sometimes like the common Chickadee, head downwards, and letting no cranny or corner escape their unwearied search. As we did not see them in the winter, they migrate in all probability throughout Mexico and the Californian peninsula at this season.”

According to Dr TOWNSEND, “the Chinooks name it _a-ha-ke-lok_. It is a constant resident about the Columbia River; hops about in the bushes, and frequently hangs from the twigs in the manner of other Titmice, twittering all the while with a rapid enunciation resembling the words _thshish_, _tshist_, _tsee_, _twee_. The irides are bright yellow.”

PARUS MINIMUS, _Townsend_, Journal of Acad. Nat. Sciences of
Philadelphia, vol. vii. p. 190.

Adult Male. Plate CCCLIII. Fig. 5.

Bill short, strong, compressed; upper mandible with its outline arched, the sides sloping and convex. The edges sharp, the tip descending, acute, and considerably exceeding that of the lower; which has the angle short, the dorsal line ascending and very slightly convex, the edges sharp, the tip acute. Nostrils round, basal. Head rather large, broadly ovate, convex in front; neck short; body slender. Feet of moderate length, tarsus proportionally longer than in any other American species, stout, compressed, with seven anterior scutella, and two lateral plates, forming a very sharp edge behind. Toes moderately stout, the first with its claw equal to the third, the anterior united as far as the first web. Claws rather large, arched, compressed, acute.

Plumage soft and blended. Wings, short, very broad, concave, rounded; first quill half the length of the second, which is a quarter of an inch shorter than the outer secondaries. Tail very long, being half the entire length of the bird, slightly arched, much rounded, and a little emarginate.

Bill black; feet and claws dusky or blackish brown. Upper part of the head, and hind neck dull greyish brown; upper parts brownish-grey; wings and tail dusky brown, tinged with grey, the margins of the quills and tail-feathers greyish-white. Cheeks of a paler tint than the head; all the lower parts brownish-white, the sides tinged with reddish.

Length to end of tail 4-1/2 inches; wing from flexure 1-(10-1/2)/12; tail 2-2/12; bill along the ridge (4-1/2)/12; tarsus 7/12; hind toe (2-3/4)/12, its claw (2-3/4)/12; middle toe 4/12, its claw 9/12.

Adult Female. Plate CCCLIII.

The Female is rather smaller, and its colours are somewhat paler.

A nest presented to me by Mr NUTTALL is of a cylindrical form nine inches long, three and a half in diameter. It is suspended from the fork of a small twig, and is composed externally of hypna, lichens, and fibrous roots, interwoven so as to present a smoothish surface, and with a few stems of grasses, and some feathers of _Garrulus Stelleri_ intermixed. The aperture, which is at the top, does not exceed seven-eighths of an inch in diameter; but for two-thirds of the length of the nest, the internal diameter is two inches. This part is lined with the cottony down of willows, carefully thrust into the interstices, and contains a vast quantity of soft feathers chiefly of Steller’s Jay, with some others, among which can be distinguished those of _Tetrao urophasianus_, _Columba fasciata_, and _Tanagra ludoviciana_. The eggs, nine in number, are pure white, (4-1/2)/8 of an inch in length, by (3-1/2)/8 broad, and are rather pointed at the small end.

LOUISIANA TANAGER.

_TANAGRA LUDOVICIANA_, WILS.

PLATE CCCLIV. MALE.

WILSON was the first ornithologist who figured this handsome bird. From his time until the return of Dr TOWNSEND from the Columbia River no specimen seems to have been procured. That gentleman forwarded several males in much finer condition than those brought by LEWIS and CLARKE. Some of these I purchased, and, on his return to Philadelphia, I was presented with a female by my young friend Dr TRUDEAU, of Louisiana, a representation of which you will find in Plate CCCC. fig 4. The only account of this species is by THOMAS NUTTALL, who, however, was unacquainted with the female.

“We first observed this fine bird in a thick belt of wood near Lorimier’s Fork of the Platte, on the 4th of June, at a considerable distance to the east of the first chain of the Rocky Mountains (or Black Hills), so that the species in all probability continues some distance down the Platte. We have also seen them very abundant in the spring, in the forests of the Columbia, below Fort Vancouver. On the Platte they appeared shy and almost silent, not having there apparently commenced breeding. About the middle of May we observed the males in small numbers scattered through the dark pine forests of the Columbia, restless, shy, and flitting when approached, but at length more sedentary when mated. We frequently traced them out by their song, which is a loud, short, slow, but pleasing warble, not much unlike the song of the Common Robin, delivered from the tops of the lofty fir-trees. This music continues at short intervals throughout the whole forenoon, during which time our songster is busily engaged in quest of such coleopterous insects and larvæ as are to be found on the young branches of the trees he frequents, and which require an assiduous and long-continued search to gratify his wants. Of the female and nest we are still ignorant, though they are in all probability very similar to those of our other known species. We have not seen this bird as far south as Upper California, though it may exist in the thicker forests remote from the coast, which we had no opportunity of visiting.”

LOUISIANA TANAGER, TANAGRA LUDOVICIANA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith.
vol. iii. p. 27, pl. 20, fig. 1.

TANAGRA LUDOVICIANA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 105.

LOUISIANA TANAGER, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. i. p. 471.

Adult Male, in Spring. Fig. 1, 2.

Bill rather short, robust, tapering, compressed toward the end, acute. Upper mandible with its dorsal outline declinate and slightly convex, the ridge rather narrow, the sides convex, the edges sharp, overlapping, with two slightly prominent small festoons about the middle, and a distinct notch close to the tip, which is a little declinate. Lower mandible strong, with the angle short and wide, the dorsal line straight, the back broadly convex, the sides convex, the edges sharp, the tip acute. Nostrils round, basal.

Head rather large, ovate, flattish above; neck very short; body ovate, compact. Legs shortish; tarsus short, compressed, rather stout, with seven anterior scutella, and two lateral plates forming an acute edge behind; toes of moderate length; middle toe longer than tarsus, lateral toes much shorter and equal, hind toe stout. Claws rather large, arched, much compressed, acute.

Plumage soft, blended; feathers of the head stiffish with silky lustre, bristles at the base of the upper mandible small. Wings of ordinary length, the second quill longest, the first four having the outer web attenuated towards the end; secondaries slightly emarginate. Tail rather long, straight, emarginate, of twelve feathers.

Bill dull greenish-yellow, brown along the ridge. Feet greyish-blue. The head all round is of a beautiful rich carmine, fading gradually on the nape, paler on the throat and fading on the fore neck; the rest of the neck, all the lower parts, two bands on the wing, formed by the middle coverts, and the extremities of the secondary coverts, together with the rump and upper tail-coverts pure bright yellow. The anterior half of the back, the scapulars, two bands on the wings, and the inner secondaries black, the latter broadly margined at the end and tipped with yellowish-white; alula, primary coverts, and primary quills chocolate-brown, margined with yellowish-white; tail black, the feathers narrowly tipped with greyish-white, and slightly margined toward the end with yellowish white.

Length to end of tail 7-1/4 inches; wing from flexure 3-(9-1/2)/12; tail 3; bill along the ridge 7/12, along the edge of lower mandible (8-1/2)/12 tarsus 8/12; hind toe 4/12, its claw 4/12; middle toe 6/12, its claw 5/12.

The female which has not been described or figured before, will be seen on Plate CCCC, Fig. 4. The bill is dusky brown above, light greyish-yellow beneath. The head, ear-coverts, and hind neck, dull green, as is the rump; the middle of the back and the scapulars greyish-brown tinged with green. Anterior wing-coverts greyish-brown; middle coverts black with the extremities dull yellow, secondary coverts and inner secondaries blackish-brown, tipped with greyish-white; alula, primary coverts, and primary quills chocolate-brown, slightly edged with brownish-white; tail-feathers similar, but margined with yellowish-green. The lower parts are light dull greenish-yellow, the sides tinged with grey.

Length to end of tail 6-3/4 inches; wing from flexure 3-9/12; tail 2-10/12; bill along the ridge 7/12; tarsus 8/12; middle toe and claw 9/12.

SCARLET TANAGER.

_TANAGRA RUBRA_, LINN.

PLATE CCCLIV. MALE AND FEMALE.

You have now before you representations of one of the most richly coloured of our birds, and one whose history is in some degree peculiar. The Scarlet Tanager enters the United States from Mexico, through the Texas, in the beginning of April. On several of the islands in the Bay of Mexico, I found it exceedingly abundant, and restrained in a great measure from proceeding eastward by the weather, which was unseasonably cold. Many were procured in their full dress, and a few in the garb of the females. These plain-coloured individuals turned all out to be males, which in so far confirmed my former observations respecting this and several other species, in which the males precede the females by about a fortnight in their spring migrations. It was at the same period that I observed the wonderful rapidity in the change of the plumage from its winter aspect to its summer colouring, in the Red-breasted Snipe, _Scolopax Noveboracensis_; and I became convinced that nearly the same phenomenon took place in the Tanagers. In them, in fact, the older individuals, being stronger, had attained their full colouring, while the younger were later in changing. As we advanced, I procured many specimens partially coloured, and when the males had mostly passed, the females made their appearance; manifesting similar gradations in the changes of their colours. I knew that many of the males of this species reach our Middle Districts in a spotted dress, and soon after acquire their full colours; and I am disposed to think that in the autumnal months, the young males of the year become of a much purer tint than that of the young or old females. The latter themselves improve materially in this respect as they advance in age, and I have some nearly twice as richly coloured as birds only a year old. The same observations apply to our Summer Red Bird, _Tanagra æstiva_, of which I have females, procured by my valued friend EDWARD HARRIS, Esq., exhibiting tints nearly as bright as those of their mates obtained at the same time, when they had nests. In the Scarlet Tanager it is remarkable, moreover, that some males acquire a beautiful transverse band of glowing red on the smaller wing-coverts; and I have several specimens in this state, presented to me by Mr HARRIS and Dr TRUDEAU.

The Scarlet Tanager proceeds as far northward as Lake Huron, where it was observed by Dr RICHARDSON; but this must happen rarely, as it is very sensible to cold, so much so indeed, that in the State of Massachusetts, should a sudden change take place in the weather, during the time of their spring migrations, hundreds die in the course of a night, not only in the woods and orchards, but even in the towns and villages. I witnessed a like occurrence at Eastport in Maine late in May, when I was on my way to Labrador; and as I was proceeding to the Texas, I observed that they sought the shelter of the low bushes, when the weather was damp or chill. None were seen after we left the former place, though they are at times found breeding in the British provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. In the United States they seem extremely partial to certain districts, generally preferring sandy soils and undulating grounds. Thus, I found them breeding abundantly in Louisiana, but rarely there in the lower parts. My friend Dr BACHMAN informs me that they are seldom met with in the maritime districts of South Carolina, and that there they follow the mountain range as it were for a guide. Yet they are plentiful in the Jerseys, where they usually arrive about the middle of May, in Kentucky, and along the Missouri; and, in short, are generally dispersed over the Union.

The migrations of this species are performed by night. Its flight on ordinary occasions is even and swift, and it passes through the woods in a gliding manner, when the glowing colours on the males render them as conspicuous as pleasing to the sight. On the branches their movements are rather sedate, and it is but seldom that they emit their usual notes when in motion. These are by no means musical, although oft repeated. They have been well imitated by WILSON, who represents them by the syllables “_chip_, _churr_.” I have not, however, thought them pensive in any degree, but rather lively: and when emitting them, the bird often inflates his throat, stands erect, and vibrates his body, as if in perfect ecstacy.

It is by no means true, as authors allege, that the Scarlet Tanager retires from the sight of man, and prefers the deepest recesses of the forest to the neighbourhood of the husbandman’s cottage; at least, this is not the case in those parts of our country where the population is not very dense; for I have observed it to take up its abode for a season in the very vicinity of the squatter’s cabin, to the patch of open ground near which it constantly resorted to search for coleoptera and other insects, forming its slightly-built nest on the lower branch of a spreading oak, or on a tree close to the road-side. It is composed externally of a few dry weeds and small twigs, and scantily lined with fibrous roots or slender grasses. In Louisiana the eggs are deposited by the first of May, about a month later in our central districts, but in the State of Maine frequently not until the middle of June. It never raises more than one brood in the season; and I have observed that, notwithstanding the difference in the temperature of our Southern and Northern States, the young are no sooner able to travel than they are at once led off, so that families may be seen travelling southward for many weeks in succession, and by the end of September all have left the United States. The eggs are from three to five, smooth, of a dull greenish-blue colour, speckled with reddish-brown and light purple, and measure a little more than 7 eighths of an inch in length, by 5 eighths in breadth. The young are fed with insects and fruits of many sorts. At this period the old birds feed also on insects and larvæ, but toward the latter period of their stay they all subsist chiefly on the smaller berries and grapes.

The parental affection of this bird has been so beautifully and truly described by WILSON, that, in presenting the following statement regarding it, I must contribute to the gratification of your kindly feelings as much as of my own. “Passing through an orchard one morning, I caught one of the young birds that had but lately left the nest. I carried it with me about half a mile, to shew it to my friend, Mr WILLIAM BARTRAM; and, having procured a cage, hung it upon one of the large pine trees in the Botanic Garden, within a few feet of the nest of an Orchard Oriole, which also contained young; hopeful that the charity or tenderness of the Orioles would induce them to supply the cravings of the stranger. But charity with them, as with too many of the human race, began and ended at home. The poor orphan was altogether neglected, notwithstanding its plaintive cries; and, as it refused to be fed by me, I was about to return it back to the place where I found it, when, towards the afternoon, a Scarlet Tanager, no doubt its own parent, was seen fluttering round the cage, endeavouring to get in. Finding this impracticable, he flew off, and soon returned with food in his bill; and continued to feed it till after sunset, taking up his lodgings on the higher branches of the same tree. In the morning, almost as soon as day broke, he was again seen most actively engaged in the same affectionate manner; and, notwithstanding the insolence of the Orioles, continued his benevolent offices the whole day, roosting at night as before. On the third or fourth day, he appeared extremely solicitous for the liberation of his charge, using every expression of distressful anxiety, and every call and invitation that nature had put in his power, for him to come out. This was too much for the feelings of my venerable friend; he procured a ladder, and, mounting to the spot where the bird was suspended, opened the cage, took out the prisoner, and restored him to liberty and to his parent, who, with notes of great exultation, accompanied his flight to the woods. The happiness of my good friend was scarcely less complete, and shewed itself in his benevolent countenance; and I could not refrain saying to myself,—If such sweet sensations can be derived from a single circumstance of this kind, how exquisite—how unspeakably rapturous—must the delight of those individuals have been, who have rescued their fellow beings from death, chains, and imprisonment, and restored them to the arms of their friends and relations! Surely in such godlike actions, virtue is its own most abundant reward.”

TANAGRA RUBRA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 314.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 420.

SCARLET TANAGER, TANAGRA RUBRA, _Wilson_, Amer. Ornith. vol.
ii. p. 42, pl. 11, fig. 3. Male; fig. 4. Female.

TANAGRA RUBRA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of United
States, p. 105.

SCARLET TANAGER, or BLACK-WINGED SUMMER RED-BIRD.

PYRANGA RUBRA, SCARLET BLACK-WINGED TANAGER, _Richards. and
Swains._ Fauna Bor. Americana, vol. ii. p. 273.

Adult Male in Spring. Plate CCCLIV. Fig. 3.