Chapter VII: Part 7

Plumage dense, soft, and blended. Feathers of the head and neck, very small and slender, of the back and lower parts in general broad and rounded. Wings of moderate length, rather narrow and acute; primaries strong, slightly curved, tapering, the first scarcely longer than the second, the rest rapidly decreasing; secondaries broad, the outer obliquely rounded, the inner elongated and acuminate, as are the scapulars. Tail short, rounded and acuminate, of fourteen rather narrow, acuminate feathers.

Bill bluish-black. Iris dark hazel. Feet dull yellow, webs dusky, claws brownish-black, with the tips greyish-yellow. Upper part of the head black; a semilunar patch of pure white on the side of the head before the eye, margined before and behind with black. The rest of the head, and the anterior parts of the neck of a deep purplish-blue, with purplish-red reflections; the lower hind neck and fore part of back, brownish-black, glossed with green, each feather with a curved band of pale reddish-buff, and a line or band of the same in the centre; the hind part of the back greenish-brown, the feathers edged with paler. The smaller wing-coverts of a rich ultramarine blue, silky with almost metallic lustre. Alula, primary coverts, and primary quills, greyish-brown, edged with pale bluish; outer secondaries of the same colour, those of the speculum duck-green, changing to blue and bronze, with a narrow line of white along their terminal margin; the inner greenish-black on the outer web, greenish-brown on the inner, with a central line and narrow external margin of pale reddish buff, the more elongated scapulars similar, but some of them margined with greenish-blue. Secondary coverts brown, with their terminal portion white. Tail-feathers chocolate brown, slightly glossed with green, their margins buffy. The lower parts are pale reddish-orange, shaded on the breast with purplish-red, and thickly spotted with black, the number of roundish or elliptical spots on each feather varying from ten to twenty-five, those on the upper and hind parts of the sides running into transverse bars. Axillar feathers, some of the lower wing-coverts, and a patch on the side of the rump pure white; lower tail-coverts brownish-black.

Length to end of tail 16 inches, to end of claws 14-1/4, to end of wings also 14-1/4; extent of wings 31-1/4; wing from flexure 7-4/12; tail 3-5/12; bill along the back 1-1/4, from frontal process to tip 1-1/2; tarsus 1-2/12; first toe and claw 5/12; middle toe and claw 1-10/12; outer toe and claw 1-8/12. Weight 12-1/2 oz.

Adult Female. Plate CCCXIII. Fig. 2.

Bill greenish-dusky; iris hazel; feet of a duller yellow than those of the male, the head and neck are pale dull buff, longitudinally marked with brownish-black lines, which are broader and darker on the top of the head; the fore part of the cheeks and the throat whitish, without markings. The upper parts are dark brown, the feathers margined with brownish-white; the smaller wing-coverts coloured as in the male, but less brilliantly; no blue on the scapulars, which are also less elongated. On the lower parts, the feathers are dusky brown, broadly margined with light brownish-grey, of which there is a streak or spot in the centre. The axillary feathers, and some of the lower wing-coverts are white, but the patch of that colour so conspicuous in the male is wanting.

Length to end of tail 15 inches, to end of wings 14-1/2, to end of claws 15-1/2; extent of wings 24; wing from flexure 7-1/4; tail 2-7/12; bill along the ridge 2-2/12. Weight 10-1/2 oz.

The young birds are similar to the female, but paler, and without the green speculum.

In a male, the roof of the mouth is deeply concave, with a prominent middle ridge, on which are a few blunt papillæ; on the upper mandible are 50 lamellæ, on the lower about 65 below, and 85 above. The tongue, 8 twelfths long, large and fleshy, has two rows of lateral bristles. The œsophagus is 8-1/2 inches long, 4 twelfths in diameter until the middle of the neck, when it enlarges gradually to half an inch. The proventriculus is 1-1/4 inch in length, with oblong glandules. The stomach is a strong roundish gizzard, 1 inch and 2 twelfths long, 1-1/2 inch broad; its left muscle 7 twelfths thick, the right 6-1/2 twelfths; its cuticular lining or epithelium of moderate thickness and longitudinally rugous. The intestine, 5 feet 1 inch long, varies in diameter from 3 to 2 twelfths; the cœca are 2 inches 10 twelfths long, cylindrical and rounded, their diameter 3 twelfths; the cloaca globular. The contents of the stomach were gravel and seeds of plants.

The trachea is 6 inches and 2 twelfths long; its diameter at the top 4 twelfths, at the middle 2 twelfths, at the lower part 3-1/2 twelfths. The inferior larynx is formed of three or four united rings, and has an irregular roundish bony expansion on the left side. The number of rings of the trachea is 98, of the bronchi about 25. The contractor muscles are large; cleido-tracheales and sterno-tracheales.

BLACK-HEADED, OR LAUGHING GULL.

_LARUS ATRICILLA_, LINN.

PLATE CCCXIV. MALE IN SPRING, AND YOUNG.

Before entering upon the peculiar habits of this Gull, allow me, good-natured Reader, to present you with some general observations on the genus to which it belongs.

At the approach of autumn, it frequently happens that the young birds of several species associate together, congregating at times in vast numbers, and especially during low tides, on the outer margins of sand-bars situated in estuaries. There you may hear them keeping up an almost incessant cackle, and see them running about dressing their plumage, or patiently waiting the rising of the waters, on which much desired event taking place, they generally disperse, and fly off to search for food. If disturbed while thus reposing, they shew greater shyness, perhaps, than at any other time, and the loud note of alarm from one of the group soon reaches your ear. Look at them now, Reader, as they simultaneously spread their wings, and after a step or two launch into the air, gradually ascend, and in silence rise to a great height, performing extended gyrations, and advancing toward the open sea.

It seldom happens that when one of the larger species is shot, its companions will come to the rescue, as is the case with the smaller, such as the Kittiwake, and the present species. I have thought it remarkable how keenly and aptly Gulls generally discover at once the intentions towards them of individuals of our own species. To the peaceable and industrious fisherman they scarcely pay any regard, whether he drags his heavy net along the shore, or patiently waits until his well-baited hook is gulped below the dancing yet well-anchored bark, over the side of which he leans in constant and anxious expectation. At such a time indeed, if the fisher has had much success, and his boat displays a good store, Gulls will almost assail him like so many beggars, and perhaps receive from him a trifling yet dainty morsel. But, on the opposite side of the bay, see how carefully and suspiciously the same birds are watching every step of the man who, with a long gun held in a trailing position, tries to approach the flock of sleeping Widgeons. Why, not one of the Gulls will go within three times the range of his murderous engine; and, as if to assure him of their knowledge of his designs, they merely laugh at him from their secure station.

When congregated during the love-season, their loquacity has never failed to remind me of the impetuous, unmusical, and yet not unpleasant notes of our thieving Red-winged Starlings. But when apart, and at all times excepting the periods of pairing or breeding, or while some of the smaller species are chased by their vigilant enemies the Jagers, they are usually silent birds, especially when on wing. In rainy or squally weather, they skim low over the water, or the land, always against the wind, passing at times within a few feet of the surface. Again, at such times, I have observed Gulls of every species with which I am acquainted, suddenly give a shake or two to their wings, and stop as it were for a moment in their flight, as if they had espied something worthy of their attention below; but, on closely observing them, I have become convinced that such manœuvres were performed only with the view of readjusting their whole plumage, which had perhaps been disarranged by a side current of wind.

All Gulls are wonderfully tenacious of life. When wounded or closely pursued, they are very apt to disgorge their food, or to sustain themselves against the agonies of death with uncommon vigour. They appear indeed to be possessed of extraordinary powers of respiration, through means of which they revive at the very moment when you might conceive them to have actually reached the last gasp. I have seen cases in which individuals of this tribe, after having been strongly squeezed for several minutes across the body, and after their throats had been crammed with cotton or tow, recovered as soon as the pressure was remitted, and immediately attempted to bite with as much eagerness as when first seized, when, by the by, they are wont to mute, as well as when suddenly surprised and taking to wing. In certain states of the atmosphere, Gulls, as well as other birds, appear much larger than they actually are; and on such occasions, they, of course, seem nearer than you would find them to be; for which reason, I would advise you, Reader, to be on your guard, for you may be strangely misled as to the distance at which you suppose the bird to be, and pull your trigger merely to send your shot into the sand, far short from the Gulls or other light-coloured birds in view.

Much confusion appears to exist among authors regarding our Laughing Gull, and this, in my humble opinion, simply because not one of them has studied it, in its native haunts, and at all seasons, since the period when it was briefly characterized by our great master LINNÆUS, who, after all that has been said against him, has not yet had his equal. ALEXANDER WILSON, who, it seems, knew something of the habits of this bird, thought it however identical with the _Larus ridibundus_ of Europe as is shewn by the synonyms which he has given. Others, who only examined some dried skins, without knowing so much as the day or even the year in which they had been shot, or their sex, or whether the feathers before them had once belonged to a bird that was breeding, or barren, when it was procured, described its remains perhaps well enough for their own purpose, but certainly not with all the accuracy which is necessary to establish once and for ever a distinct species of bird. Others, not at all aware that most Gulls, and the present species in particular, assume, in the season of pairing, and in a portion of the breeding time, beautiful rosy tints in certain parts of their plumage, which at other periods are pure white, have thought that differences of this sort, joined to those of the differently-sized white spots observable in particular specimens, and not corresponding with the like markings in other birds of the same size and form, more or less observable at different periods on the tips of the quills, were quite sufficient to prove that the young bird, and the breeding bird, and the barren bird, of one and the same species, differed specifically from the old bird, or the winter-plumage bird. But, Reader, let us come to the point at once.

At the approach of the breeding season, or, as I like best to term it, the love season, this species becomes first hooded, and the white feathers of its breast, and those of the lower surface of its wings, assume a rich blush of roseate tint. If the birds procured at that time are several years old and perfect in their powers of reproduction, which is easily ascertained on the spot, their primary quills shew little or no white at their extremities, and their hood descends about three quarters of an inch lower on the throat than on the hind part of the head, provided the bird be a male. But should they be barren birds, _the hood will be wanting_, that portion of their plumage remaining as during winter, and although the primaries will be black, or nearly so, each of them will be broadly tipped, or marked at the end, with a white spot, which in some instances will be found to be fully half an inch in size; yet the tail of these birds, as if to prove that they are adults, is as purely white to its extreme tip, as in those that are breeding; but neither the breast, nor the under wing-coverts, will exhibit the rosy tint of one in the full perfection of its powers.

The males of all the Gulls with which I am acquainted, are larger than the females; and this difference of size is observable in the young birds even before they are fully fledged. In all of these, however, putting aside their sex, I have found great differences of size to exist, sometimes as much as two inches in length, with proportional differences in the bills, tarsi, and toes; and this, in specimens procured from one flock of these gulls at a single discharge of the gun, and at different seasons of the year. The colour of their bills too is far from being always alike, being brownish-red in some, purplish or of a rich and deep carmine in others. As to the white spots on the extremities of the primary quills of birds of this family, I would have you, Reader, never to consider them as affording essential characters. Nay, if you neglect them altogether, you will save yourself much trouble, as they will only mislead you by their interminable changes, and you may see that the spots on one wing are sometimes different in size and number from those on the other wing of the same specimen. If all this be correct, as I assure you it must be, being the result of numberless observations made in the course of many years, in the very places of resort of our different Gulls, will you not agree with me, Reader, that the difficulty of distinguishing two very nearly allied species must be almost insuperable when one has nothing better than a few dried skins for objects of observation and comparison?

The Black-headed Gull may be said to be a constant resident along the southern coast of the United States, from South Carolina to the Sabine River; and I have found it abundant over all that extent both in winter and in summer, but more especially on the shores and keys of the Floridas, where I found it breeding, as well as on some islands in the Bay of Galveston in Texas. A very great number of these birds however remove, at the approach of spring, towards the Middle and Eastern Districts, along the shores of which they breed in considerable numbers, particularly on those of New Jersey and Long Island, as well 15-1/2; extent of wings 24; wing from flexure 7-1/4; tail 2-7/12; bill along the ridge 2-2/12. Weight 10-1/2 oz.

The young birds are similar to the female, but paler, and without the green speculum.

In a male, the roof of the mouth is deeply concave, with a prominent middle ridge, on which are a few blunt papillæ; on the upper mandible are 50 lamellæ, on the lower about 65 below, and 85 above. The tongue, 8 twelfths long, large and fleshy, has two rows of lateral bristles. The œsophagus is 8-1/2 inches long, 4 twelfths in diameter until the middle of the neck, when it enlarges gradually to half an inch. The proventriculus is 1-1/4 inch in length, with oblong glandules. The stomach is a strong roundish gizzard, 1 inch and 2 twelfths long, 1-1/2 inch broad; its left muscle 7 twelfths thick, the right 6-1/2 twelfths; its cuticular lining or epithelium of moderate thickness and longitudinally rugous. The intestine, 5 feet 1 inch long, varies in diameter from 3 to 2 twelfths; the cœca are 2 inches 10 twelfths long, cylindrical and rounded, their diameter 3 twelfths; the cloaca globular. The contents of the stomach were gravel and seeds of plants.

The trachea is 6 inches and 2 twelfths long; its diameter at the top 4 twelfths, at the middle 2 twelfths, at the lower part 3-1/2 twelfths. The inferior larynx is formed of three or four united rings, and has an irregular roundish bony expansion on the left side. The number of rings of the trachea is 98, of the bronchi about 25. The contractor muscles are large; cleido-tracheales and sterno-tracheales. to reproduce out of season, as it were. On some such occasions, when I was at St Augustine, in the month of December, I have observed four or five males of the present species paying their addresses to one female, who received their courtesies with evident welcome. Yet the females in that country did not deposit eggs until the 20th day of April. The most surprising fact of all was, that, although these birds were paired, and copulated regularly, by the 1st of February, not one had acquired the spring or summer plumage, or the dark coloured hood, or the rosy tint of the breast, nor lost the white spots on the tips of their primary quills. This change, however, was apparent by the 5th of March, became daily stronger, and was perfected by the 15th of that month. A few exceptions occurred among the numbers procured at these periods, but the generality of the birds were as above described.

Whilst at Great Egg Harbour, in May 1829, shortly after my return from England, I found this species breeding in great numbers on the margins of a vast salt marsh, bordering the sea-shore, though separated from the Atlantic by a long and narrow island. About sunrise every morning, an immense number of these birds would rise in the air, as if by common consent, and wing their way across the land, probably intent on reaching the lower shores of the Delaware River, or indeed farther towards the head waters of Chesapeake Bay. They formed themselves into long straggling lines, following each other singly, at the distance of a few yards. About an hour before sunset, the same birds were seen returning in an extended front, now all silent, although in the morning their cries were incessant, and lasted until they were out of sight. On arriving at the breeding ground, they immediately settled upon their nests. On a few occasions, when it rained and blew hard, the numbers that left the nests were comparatively few, and those, as I thought, mostly males. Instead of travelling high, as they were wont to do in fair and calm weather, they skimmed closely over the land, contending with the wind with surprising pertinacity, and successfully too. At such times they were also quite silent. I now and then observed some of them whilst on wing, and at a considerable height, suddenly check their course, as if to examine some object below; but on none of these occasions did I see one attempt to alight, for it soon resumed its wonted course, and rejoined its companions.

Now, Reader, though I am growing old, I yet feel desirous of acquiring knowledge regarding the habits of our birds, and should much like to learn from you the reasons why these gulls went off in lines from their breeding grounds, and returned in an extended front? Was it, in the latter case, because they were afraid of passing their nests unknowingly; or, in the former, under the necessity of following an experienced leader, who, under the stimulus of an empty maw, readily undertook the office, but who, like many other bon-vivants, became in the evening too dull to be of use to his companions?

This species breeds, according to the latitude, from the 1st of March to the middle of June; and I have thought that on the Tortuga Keys, it produced two broods each season. In New Jersey, and farther to the eastward, the nest resembles that of the Ring-billed Gull, or Common American Gull, _Larus zonorhynchus_, being formed of dried sea-weeds, and land plants, two and sometimes three inches high, with a regular rounded cavity, from four and a half to five inches in diameter, and an inch and a half in depth. This cavity is formed of finer grasses, placed in a pretty regular circular form. I once found a nest formed as it were of two; that is to say, two pairs had formed a nest of nearly double the ordinary size, and the two birds sat close to each other during rainy weather, but separately, each on its own three eggs. I observed that the males, as well as the females, thus concerned in this new sort of partnership, evinced as much mutual fondness as if they were brothers. On the Tortugas, where these Gulls also breed in abundance, I found their eggs deposited in slight hollows scooped in the sand. Whilst at Galveston, in Texas, I found their nests somewhat less bulky than in the Jerseys, which proved to me how much birds are guided in these matters by differences in atmospheric temperature and locality.

I never found more than three eggs in a nest. Their average length is two inches and half an eighth, their greatest breadth a trifle more than an inch and a half. They vary somewhat in their general tint, but are usually of a light earthy olive, blotched and spotted with dull reddish-brown and some black, the markings rather more abundant towards the larger end. As an article of food, they are excellent. These gulls are extremely anxious about their eggs, as well as their young, which are apt to wander away from the nest while yet quite small. They are able to fly at the end of six weeks, and soon after this are abandoned by their parents, when the old and young birds keep apart in flocks until the following spring, when, I think, the latter nearly attain the plumage of their parents, though they are still smaller, and have the terminal band on the tail.

The Black-headed Gull frequently associates with the Razor-billed Shearwater, _Rhynchops nigra_, in winter; and I can safely say that I have seen more than a thousand of each kind alight on the same points of estuaries and mouths of rivers; the Gulls standing or sitting by themselves, at no great distance from the Razor-bills. Now and then they would all suddenly rise on wing as if frightened, perform a few evolutions in the air, and again settle on the very same spot, still, however, keeping separate. While thus in the company of the Razor-bills, the Gulls are with great difficulty approached, the former being exceedingly wary, and almost always rising when a person draws near, the Gulls immediately following them, and the two great flocks making off to some distant point, generally not very accessible. If taken up on being wounded, these gulls are apt to bite severely. If, on being shot at, they fall on the water, they swim fast and lightly, their companions all the while soaring above, and plunging towards them, as if intent on rescuing them. This great sympathy often proves fatal to them, for, if the gunner is inclined, he may shoot them down without any difficulty, and the more he kills the more his chances are increased.

On the 10th of May 1832, it was my good fortune to be snugly on board the “Lady of the Green Mantle,” or, in other words, the fine revenue cutter the Marion. The Gulls that laughed whilst our anchors were swiftly descending towards the marvellous productions of the deep, soon had occasion to be sorrowful enough. As they were in great numbers, officers and men, as well as the American Woodsman, gazing upon them from the high decks of the gallant bark, had ample opportunities of observing their motions. They were all busily engaged on wing, hovering here and there around the Brown Pelicans, intent on watching their plunges into the water, and all clamorously teasing their best benefactors. As with broadly extended pouch and lower mandible, the Pelican went down headlong, so gracefully followed the gay rosy-breasted Gull, which, on the brown bird’s emerging, alighted nimbly on its very head, and with a gentle stoop instantly snatched from the mouth of its purveyor the glittering fry that moment entrapped!

Is this not quite strange, Reader? Aye, truly it is. The sight of these manœuvres rendered me almost frantic with delight. At times, several gulls would attempt to alight on the head of the same Pelican, but finding this impossible, they would at once sustain themselves around it, and snatch every morsel that escaped from the pouch of the great bird. So very dexterous were some of the Gulls at this sport, that I have seen them actually catch a little fish as it leaped from the yet partially open bill of the Pelican. And now, Reader, I will conclude this long article with some fragments from my journals.

Tortugas, May 1832.—Whilst here, I often saw the Black-headed Gull of Wilson, sucking the eggs of _Sterna fuliginosa_, and _Sterna stolida_. Our sailors assured me that these gulls also eat the young of these two species of Terns when newly hatched.

Great Egg Harbour, May 1829.—Like all other gulls, the _Larus Atricilla_ disgorges its food when attacked by a Lestris, or when wounded, or suddenly surprised; but on all occasions of respite this gull is apt to return to it, and vulture-like to swallow it anew. It differs however from the larger species of gulls, by never, as far as I have observed, picking up bivalve shells, for the purpose of letting them fall to break them, and afterwards feed on their contents. On the ground they walk with considerable alertness, and not without a certain degree of elegance, especially during the love season. Whilst floating or swimming on the water, they are graceful in a high degree, and when seen, as they oftentimes are, in groups of many pairs, rising with, or sinking amidst the billows, which ever and anon break on the sandy shores of the coast, their alternate appearance brings to the mind of the bystander ideas connected with objects altogether different from the simple yet beautiful Laughing Gull.

April 1, 1837.—South-west pass of the Mississippi. _L. Atricilla_ abundant here at this season, as well as at New Orleans. Saw some floating on logs during a heavy breeze. Not noisy yet, though they and _L. zonorhynchus_ are in full spring dress (the old birds).

Barataria Bay, April 1837.—This species is abundant, following the porpoises, whilst the latter are fishing, and attending on them, as they do on the Brown Pelicans, which I saw here tormented by these birds, as in the Floridas. These Gulls follow the Brown Pelicans to their roosts, and along with them sit on grounded logs, at some distance from the shores, to avoid the attacks of racoons and other carnivorous animals.

Galveston Bay, April 26, 1837.—Black-headed Gulls are not unfrequently seen hovering over the inner ponds of these islands, as if in search of food. They are now all paired, and very noisy.

May 4.—I observed to-day that at the single cry of a Black-headed Gull, all others within hearing at once came towards the caller, and this never failed when any of them had found floating garbage on which to feed. These, as well as all other gulls, pat the water with their feet, their legs being partially extended, whilst assisting themselves with the bill to pick up any floating food. At this time the whole group emit a more plaintive single note than usual. They come not unfrequently within a few yards of our vessel at anchor, and when the food thrown to them is exhausted, they separate, and at once renew their repeated cries. I observed that the few immature birds among the old ones, were quite silent even when in the company of the adults. When the young are nearly able to fly, they are by no means bad eating.

LARUS ATRICILLA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 225.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 812.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
Birds of the United States, p. 359.

BLACK-HEADED GULL, LARUS RIDIBUNDUS, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith.
vol. ix. p. 89. pl. 74. fig. 4.

BLACK-HEADED GULL, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 291.

Adult Male in spring. Plate CCCXIV. Fig. 1.

Bill rather shorter than the head, nearly straight, moderately stout, compressed. Upper mandible with its dorsal outline straight to the middle, then curved and declinate, the ridge convex, the sides rapidly sloping, the edges sharp and direct, the tip rather obtuse but sharp-edged. Nasal groove rather long and narrow; nostrils in its fore part, longitudinal, submedial, large, linear-oblong, broader anteriorly, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle long and pointed, the outline of its crura decurved anteriorly, that of the ridge slightly concave and ascending, the sides erect and nearly flat.

Head of moderate size. Neck of ordinary length. Body compact. Feet rather long, stoutish; tibia bare below for three-fourths of an inch, covered behind with narrow scutella; tarsus compressed, anteriorly covered with numerous curved scutella, laterally with small oblong scales, posteriorly with small scutella. Toes slender, of moderate length, covered above with numerous scutella; first extremely small, second much shorter than fourth, third two-twelfths of an inch longer than the latter; anterior toes connected by reticulated webs, the outer and inner slightly marginate; claws small, slightly arched, compressed, thin-edged, that of the middle toe with an expanded inner margin.

Plumage close, soft, and blended. Wings very long and pointed; primaries tapering to a rounded point; first longest, second a twelfth of an inch shorter, the rest rapidly diminishing; secondaries broad, incurvate, and obliquely rounded, the inner straight and more elongated. Tail of moderate length, even, of twelve broad, rounded feathers.

Bill and feet, as well as the margin of eyelids, and the inside of the mouth, of a rich deep carmine; claws brownish-black. Iris bluish-black. The head and a portion of the upper part of the neck all round, blackish lead-grey, darker on the upper part of the head and along the posterior margin, which descends lower in front, or to the extent of about two inches and a half from the base of the lower mandible; two narrow white bands bordering the upper and lower eyelids. Lower neck all round, the whole lower surface, the rump and tail, pure white; but the fore part of the neck and the breast, down to the legs, of a beautiful light rosy tint. The back and wings are greyish-blue, with a very slight tinge of purple, excepting a large terminal portion of the secondaries, and the tips of the primaries, which are white. The first primary is black, with a tinge of grey on the inner web at the base; the second and third similar, with the grey more extended; on the fourth it extends over two-thirds; the fifth is black only for an inch and a half; and on the sixth the black is reduced to two spots near the end; the other parts and the remaining primaries of the same general colour as the back.

Length to end of tail 17 inches, to end of wings 20, to end of claws 17; extent of wings 40-3/4; wing from flexure 12-10/12; tail 5-2/12; bill along the ridge 1-11/12, along the edge of lower mandible 2-1/4; tarsus 2; hind toe and claw 4/12; middle toe and claw 1-9/12; outer toe and claw 1-1/2; inner toe and claw 1-3/12.

The female is precisely similar to the male, but considerably smaller.

In winter the head is white, the feathers on its upper part and on the nape more or less brownish-grey in their concealed part, that colour appearing in slight patches here and there, and especially along the posterior margin of the part that is coloured in summer, as well as on a small space before the eye. The rosy tint of the breast disappears after the breeding season. In other respects the plumage is as in summer.

Young fully fledged. Plate CCCXIV. Fig. 2.

Bill, feet, inside of mouth, and edges of eyelids, olivaceous brown. The upper parts are brownish-grey, the feathers edged with paler; the hind part of the back light bluish-grey; upper tail-coverts nearly white; tail pale greyish-blue, with a broad band of brownish-black at the end, the extreme tips narrowly edged with white, the outer margin of the lateral feathers of the same colour. The first four primaries are destitute of white at the tip. A smaller patch before the eye, two slight bands on the eyelids, and the throat, greyish-white; the lower part of the neck brownish-grey, the rest of the lower parts greyish-white, the sides darker, the axillars ash-grey, the lower surface of the wing dusky-grey.

In an adult male, the tongue is 1-1/4 inch long, slender, tapering, emarginate at the base, with minute papillæ, the tip horny along the back. The œsophagus is 6-1/2 inches long, 5 twelfths in diameter until it enters the thorax, then dilates to 1 inch and 5 twelfths; its walls are extremely thin, its inner coat longitudinally plaited. Proventriculus very short, the belt of oblong glandules being only 7 twelfths in breadth. Stomach rather small, oblong, 1-1/2 inch long, 10 twelfths broad; its lateral muscles rather thick, the tendons large; the inner coat thick, horny, and thrown into very prominent longitudinal rugæ, its upper margin abrupt, and manifestly not continuous with the inner coat of the proventriculus, as some have supposed the epithelium to be in all birds. In the stomach remains of fishes. Intestines 1 foot 9-1/2 inches long, its general diameter 1/4 inch. Rectum 1-1/2 inch; cœca extremely small, 2-1/2 twelfths long, 1/2 twelfth in diameter.

Trachea 5-1/2 inches long; its rings 110, extremely thin and feeble; its diameter at the top 4-1/2 twelfths, at the lower part 2-1/2 twelfths. The lateral muscles are scarcely perceptible, the sterno-tracheal very slender; the inferior larynx small; the bronchi of moderate length and width, with 25 half-rings.

KNOT OR ASH-COLOURED SANDPIPER.

_TRINGA ISLANDICA_, LINN.

PLATE CCCXV. ADULT IN SUMMER AND WINTER.

The Knot, good Reader, is a handsome and interesting species, whether in its spring or in its winter plumage, and, provided it be young and fat, is always welcome to the palate of the connoisseur in dainties. As to its habits, however, during the breeding season, I am sorry to inform you that I know nothing at all, for in Labrador, whither I went to examine them, I did not find a single individual. I have been informed that several students of nature have visited its breeding places; but why they have given us no information on the subject, seeing that not only you and I, but many persons besides, would be glad to hear about it, is what we cannot account for.

I do not wish you to infer from these remarks, that the persons alluded to are the only ones who have neglected to note down on the spot observations which might be interesting and useful. I myself am very conscious of my own remissness in this respect, and deeply regret the many opportunities of studying nature which have been in a manner lost to me, on account of a temporary supineness which has seized upon me, at the very moment when the objects of my pursuit were placed within my reach by that bountiful Being to whom we owe all our earthly enjoyments, and all our hopes of that future happiness which we strive to merit.

I have traced the Knot along the shores of our Atlantic states, from Texas to the entrance of the Bay of Fundy, in the months of April and May, and again in the autumnal months. I have also found it in winter in East Florida, and therefore feel confident that some of the species do not proceed beyond our southern limits at that season. Whilst on the Bay of Galveston, in Texas, in April 1837, I daily observed groups of Knots arriving there, and proceeding eastward, meandering along the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. In the interior of the United States I never observed one, and for this reason I am inclined to think that the species moves northward along the coast. But as I did not find any in Nova Scotia, Labrador, or Newfoundland, I consider it probable that those which betake themselves to the fur countries, turn off from our Atlantic shores when they have reached the entrance of the Bay of Fundy. However this may be, it is certain that they reach a very high latitude, and that some stop to breed about Hudson’s Bay, where Dr RICHARDSON found them in summer.

On some few occasions I have observed the Knot associating with the Tell-tale Godwit and Semi-palmated Snipe, about a mile from the sea, along the margins of ponds of brackish-water; but such localities seemed in a manner unnatural to them, and it was seldom that more than two or three were seen there. Along the shores, in spring, I have not unfrequently thought that they seemed dull, as if they had lost themselves, for they would allow a person to go very near, and seldom took to wing unless induced to do so by companions of other species, who were better aware of their situation. In autumn, when they at times collect into very large flocks, I have often followed them until I obtained as many as I wished. WILSON has so beautifully described their movements at such times, that, although I have often witnessed them myself, I prefer giving his own words.

“In activity it is superior to the Turnstone; and traces the flowing and recession of the waves along the sandy beach with great nimbleness, wading and searching among the loosened particles for its favourite food, which is a small thin oval bivalve shell-fish, of a white or pearl-colour, and not larger than the seed of an apple. These usually lie at a short distance below the surface; but in some places are seen at low water in heaps, like masses of wet grain, in quantities of more than a bushel together. During the latter part of summer and autumn, these minute shell-fish constitute the food of almost all those busy flocks that run with such activity along the sands, among the flowing and retreating waves. They are universally swallowed whole; but the action of the bird’s stomach, assisted by the shells themselves, soon reduces them to a pulp. Digging for these in the hard sand would be a work of considerable labour, whereas, when the particles are loosened by the flowing of the sea, the birds collect them with great ease and dexterity. It is amusing to observe with what adroitness they follow and elude the tumbling surf, while at the same time they seem wholly intent on collecting their food.”

I have however seen the Knot probe the wet sands, on the borders of oozy salt marshes, thrusting in its bill to the feathers on the forehead, and this with the same dexterity as several other species. Its flight is swift, at times rather elevated, and well sustained. At their first arrival in autumn, when they are occasionally seen in great numbers in the same flock, their aërial evolutions are very beautiful, for, like our Parrakeet, Passenger Pigeon, Rice-bird, Red-winged Starling, and other birds, they follow each other in their course, with a celerity that seems almost incomprehensible, when the individuals are so near each other that one might suppose it impossible for them to turn and wheel without interfering with each other. At such times, their lower and upper parts are alternately seen, the flock exhibiting now a dusky appearance, and again gleaming like a meteor.

Many of these young birds continue mottled with dull reddish-orange on their lower parts until the winter is far advanced. The old individuals have their whole upper plumage of a uniform grey, and their lower parts white. As those of the first year have their markings at that season handsomer than at any other period of their lives, I have given the figure of one in preference to that of an adult.

It has been supposed by some that two different species of Knot occur in the United States, but I am of a different opinion. The dimensions of birds of this family, as well as of many others, are extremely variable; and, on shooting eight or ten Knots, it would be difficult to find two of them having exactly the same size and proportions. If I add to this the very remarkable changes of plumage exhibited by birds of this family before and after maturity, you will not think it strange that WILSON should have mistaken the young of the Knot for a separate species from the old bird in its spring dress. Indeed, I am obliged to tell you that I have been much puzzled, when, on picking up several of these birds from the same flock, I have found some having longer and thicker bills than others, with as strange a difference in the size of their eyes. These differences I have endeavoured to represent in my plate.

My friend JOHN BACHMAN states, that this species is quite abundant in South Carolina, in its autumn and spring migrations, but that he has never seen it there in full plumage. In that country it is called the “May Bird,” which, however, is a name also given to the Rice Bird. Along the coasts of our Middle District, it is usually known by the name of “Grey-back.”

TRINGA ISLANDICA, CANUTUS, CINEREA, GRISEA, &c. of _Linnæus_
and _Latham, &c._

TRINGA ISLANDICA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 350.

RED-BREASTED SANDPIPER, TRINGA RUFA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith.
vol. vii. p. 43, pl. 57, fig. 5. Summer.

ASH-COLOURED SANDPIPER, TRINGA CINEREA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith.
vol. vii. p. 36, pl. 57, fig. 2. Winter.

KNOT, or ASH-COLOURED SANDPIPER, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii.
p. 125.

TRINGA CINEREA, _Richards. and Swains._ Fauna Bor.-Amer. vol.
ii. p. 387.

Adult Male in Summer. Plate CCCXV. Fig. 1.

Bill rather longer than the head, slender, straight, compressed, tapering, with the tip a little enlarged and blunt. Upper mandible with the dorsal line straight, and slightly declinate, the ridge narrow and flattened until towards the end, when it becomes considerably broader, the sides sloping, the tip convex above and ending in a blunt point, the edges thick and flattened. Nasal groove extending to near the tip; nostrils basal, linear, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle long and very narrow, the dorsal line straight, the sides sloping outwards, with a long narrow groove, the tip a little broader, but tapering.

Head rather small, oblong, compressed. Eyes of moderate size. Neck of ordinary length. Body rather full. Feet rather long, slender; tibia bare, a third part of its length; tarsus somewhat compressed, anteriorly and posteriorly with numerous small scutella; hind toe very small, the rest of moderate length, slender, the fourth slightly longer than the second, the third longest; all free, broadly marginate, flattened beneath, and with numerous scutella above. Claws small, slightly arched, compressed, rather obtuse, that of the third toe much larger, with the inner edge dilated.

Plumage very soft, blended on the head, neck, and lower parts, the feathers rather distinct above. Wings very long and pointed; primaries tapering, obtuse, the first longest, the second two-twelfths of an inch shorter, the rest rapidly decreasing; outer secondaries slightly incurved, inner elongated, straight and tapering, one of them extending when the wing is closed, to an inch and a quarter from its tip. Tail rather short, nearly even, of twelve rather broad feathers which taper to a broad point.

Bill and feet black. Iris dark hazel. Upper part of the head and hind neck light grey, tinged with buff, and longitudinally streaked with dusky; fore part of back and scapulars, variegated with brownish-black and yellowish, and each feather with several spots of the latter and tipped with whitish; the hind part of the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, white, barred with black; wing-coverts ash-grey, edged with paler. Alula and primary-coverts brownish-black, tipped with white; primaries similar, their shafts and the outer margins of all excepting the first three, white, the inner webs towards the base light grey; secondaries and their coverts grey, margined with white. Tail-feathers ash-grey tinged with brown, and narrowly edged with white. The sides of the head, fore part of neck, breast, and abdomen, rich brownish-orange; lower tail-coverts and feathers of the legs, white, each of the former with a central dusky narrow-shaped or elongated spot, axillaries white barred with dusky; lower wing-coverts dusky with white margins.

Length to end of tail 10-1/4 inches, to end of wings 10-3/4, to end of claws 11-1/2; extent of wings 21; wing from flexure 7; tail 2-9/12; bill along the ridge 1-(4-1/2)/12, along the edge of lower mandible 1-(4-1/2)/12; tarsus 1-1/4; hind toe and claw 4/12; middle toe and claw 1-(1-1/2)/12. Weight 5-1/2 oz.

The female is similar to the male, but considerably larger.

Length to end of tail 10-3/4 inches. Weight 6 ounces.

In Winter. Plate CCCXV. Fig. 2.

Bill greenish-black, eye of a darker brown. Feet dull yellowish-green; claws dusky. The upper parts are deep ash-grey, each feather margined with whitish; feathers of the rump greyish-white, upper tail-coverts white, barred with dusky. The quills and tail feathers as in summer. A band from the bill over the eye to the hind part of head, white; loral space, cheeks, and sides of neck pale grey, streaked with darker; throat and lower parts in general, white; the sides, axillar feathers, and under wing-coverts, barred or spotted with dusky; lower tail-coverts as in summer.

The young in autumn are of a dull light brownish-grey colour above, each feather having a narrow whitish margin, within which is a dusky line. The fore part and sides of the neck, and the fore part of the breast dull greyish-white, with small dusky-grey longitudinal streaks; the band over the eye indistinct, the loral space darker. The bill and feet are of a duller tint, and the eye darker, than in the adult in winter. Weight 4-1/4 oz.

On the roof of the mouth is a double series of small blunt papillæ. The tongue is very slender, 1-1/12 inch long, emarginate and papillate at the base, channelled above, horny beneath, the point rather acute. The œsophagus is 4-3/4 inches long, narrow, its diameter 3-1/2 twelfths. The proventriculus is oblong, 5-1/2 twelfths in diameter, 9 twelfths long. The stomach is an extremely powerful gizzard, of a roundish form, 1 inch and 5 twelfths long, its greatest breadth 1-1/4 inch; the cuticular lining thin, horny, with large longitudinal rugæ. The intestine 25 inches long, its average diameter 3-1/2 twelfths; cœca cylindrical, 3 twelfths long. The contents of the stomach are fragments of mussels and gravel, with which part of the intestine is also filled.

The trachea is 3-1/4 inches long, flattened, 2-1/2 twelfths broad at the top, diminishing to 2 twelfths; its rings very slender and unossified, 98 in number; the bronchial half-rings about 15. The lateral muscles very thin, the sterno-tracheal slender.

ANHINGA OR SNAKE-BIRD.

_PLOTUS ANHINGA_, LINN.

PLATE CCCXVI. MALE AND FEMALE.

Reader, the pleasures which I have experienced in the course of this chequered life of mine have been many;—perhaps many more than would have fallen to my share, had I not, fortunately for me, become a devoted and enthusiastic lover of Nature’s beauteous and wondrous works, which, in truth, I have been from the earliest period to which my recollection extends; and those who have known me best will not for a moment consider it extravagant in me to say, that among the greatest pleasures I have known, has been that derived from pursuing and faithfully describing such of our American birds as were previously unknown or but little observed. Many sultry summer days I have passed amidst the most dismal swamps of the secluded woods of Louisiana, watching with anxiety and in silence the curious habits of the Anhinga; the female bird now sitting closely on her eggs, in a nest constructed by herself and securely placed on the widely extended branch of the tallest cypress, that, as if by magic planted, stood in the midst of an ample lake, while with keen eyes she watched every motion of the wily Buzzard and cunning Crow, lest either of these cowardly marauders might deprive her of her treasures; the partner of her cares and joys meanwhile, with outspread wings and fan-like tail, soaring on high, and glancing first anxiously towards her he loves, then in anger towards one and all of their numerous enemies. In wider and bolder circles he moves, rising higher and still higher, until at length, becoming a mere dusky speck, he almost vanishes from my sight amidst the expanse of the blue sky; but now, suddenly closing his wings, and rushing downwards like a meteor, I see him instantly alight erect upon the edge of the nest, and complacently gaze upon his beloved.

After some time, about three weeks perhaps, I have found the eggshells beneath the great cypress tree, cast out of the nest by the intelligent and attentive mother, and floating on the green slime of the stagnant pool. Climbing to the nest itself, I have seen the tender young clad in down far softer than our sea-island cottons, writhing their slender and tremulous necks, and with open mouths and extended pouches seeking, as all infants are wont to seek, the food suited to their delicate frame. Then, retiring to some concealed spot, I have seen the mother arrive with a supply of finely masticated nutriment, compounded of various fishes from the lake, and furnish each of her progeny by regurgitation with its due proportion. Thus, also, I have watched the growth of the younglings, marking their daily progress, which varied according to the changes of temperature and the state of the atmosphere. At length, after waiting many days in succession, I have seen them stand, in an almost erect posture, on a space scarcely large enough to contain them. The parents seemed aware of the condition of their brood, and, affectionate as they still appeared to be, I thought their manner towards them was altered, and I felt grieved. Indeed, sorely grieved I was when, next week, I saw them discharge, as it were, their children, and force them from the nest into the waters that were spread below. It is true that, previous to this, I had seen the young Anhingas trying the power of their wings as they stood upright on the nest, flapping them many minutes at a time; yet, although thus convinced that they were nearly in a state to provide for themselves, it was not without a feeling of despondency that I saw them hurled into the air, and alight on the water. But, Reader, Nature in all this had acted beneficially; and I afterwards found that in thus expelling their young so soon, the old birds had in view to rear another brood in the same spot, before the commencement of unfavourable weather.

Many writers have described what they have been pleased to call the habits of the Anhinga; nay, some have presumed to offer comments upon them, and to generalize and form theories thereon, or even to inform us gravely and oracularly what they ought to be, when the basis of all their fancies was merely a dried skin and feathers appended. Leaving these ornithologists for the present to amuse themselves in their snug closets, I proceed to detail the real habits of this curious bird, as I have observed and studied them in Nature.

The Snake-Bird is a constant resident in the Floridas, and the lower parts of Louisiana, Alabama, and Georgia. Few remain during winter in South Carolina, or in any district to the eastward of that State; but some proceed as far as North Carolina in spring, and breed along the coast, I have found it in Texas in the month of May, on the waters of Buffalo Bayou, and the St Jacinto River, where it breeds, and where, as I was told, it spends the winter. It rarely ascends the Mississippi beyond the neighbourhood of Natchez, from which most of the individuals return to the mouths of that great stream, and the numerous lakes, ponds, and bayous in its vicinity, where I have observed the species at all seasons, as well as in the Floridas.

Being a bird which, by its habits, rarely fails to attract the notice of the most indifferent observer, it has received various names. The Creoles of Louisiana, about New Orleans, and as far up the Mississippi as Pointe Coup, call it “Bec à Lancette,” on account of the form of its bill; whilst at the mouths of the river it bears the name of “Water Crow.” In the southern parts of Florida, it is called the “Grecian Lady,” and in South Carolina it is best known by the name of “Cormorant.” Yet in all these parts, it bears also the name of “Snake-Bird;” but it is nowhere with us called the “Black-bellied Darter,” which, by the way, could only be with strict propriety applied to the adult male.