Part 8

The nest is very bulky, composed externally of rough sticks, principally the thorny twigs of the various “sage bush” plants. Nearer the centre the principal material is fine strips of inner bark of these plants; and the lining consists of finer strips of bark, mingled with fine roots, and bits of rabbit fur. The situation of the nest varies but little, being generally placed near the middle of a bush, that is, about eighteen inches from the ground. It is generally supported against the main trunk, upon a horizontal branch. Several were found upon the ground beneath the bush, one, in fact, embedded in the soil, like that of a _Pipilo_; or as sometimes the case with the _Harporhynchus rufus_, others, again, were found in brush-heaps. In all cases, the nest was very artfully concealed, the situation being so well selected.

This bird is almost equally common in all parts of its habitat, within the limits indicated. In June, we found it abundant on the large islands in the Great Salt Lake, where many nests were found.

In autumn, it feeds, in company with many other birds, upon berries, “service berries” being its especial favorite.

GENUS HARPORHYNCHUS, CABANIS.

_Toxostoma_, WAGLER, Isis, 1831, 528. (Type _T. vetula_, WAGL., not _Toxostoma_, RAF. 1816.) _Harpes_, GAMBEL, Pr. A. N. S. Phila. II. 1845, 264. (Type _Harpes redivivus_, GAMB., not of GOLDFUSS, 1839.) _Harporhynchus_, CABANIS, Archiv f. Naturg. 1848, I. 98. (Type _Harpes redivivus_, GAMB.) _Methriopterus_, REICH. Av. Syst. Nat. 1850, pl. iv. (Type said by Gray to be _H. rufus_.)

[Line drawing: _Harporhynchus rufus._ 2261]

GEN. CHAR. Bill from forehead as long as, or much longer than the head; becoming more and more decurved in both jaws as lengthened. No indication of a notch. Rictus with the bristles extending beyond the nostrils. Tarsus long and stout, appreciably exceeding the middle toe and claw, strongly scutellate anteriorly. Wings considerably shorter than tail, much rounded; the first quill more than half the second; fourth or fifth longest. Tail large, much graduated; the feathers firm.

The species of this genus are all of large size, in fact, embracing the largest of the American slender-billed oscine birds. All the species differ in structure, varying especially in the length of the bill, as above stated.

It is useless to attempt a division of this genus, for there is such a gradual chain of characters between the two extremes of form (_rufus_ and _crissalis_), that they even seem almost one species, when the numerous intermediate forms, shading so insensibly into each other, are considered. However, as this view would be rather extreme, in view of the really great difference of form between the species mentioned, we may consider the following as good species, several of them with one or more varieties: _rufus_, with _longicauda_ and _longirostris_ as varieties, the former scarcely appreciably different, the latter ranking as a permanent race; _ocellatus_, _cinereus_, _curvirostris_, the latter with one well-marked variety, _palmeri_; _redivivus_, with most probably _lecontei_ as a well-marked variety, and _crissalis_.

The seasonal differences in the plumage often make it difficult to determine these several forms; but if the following facts are borne in mind, the trouble will be greatly lessened. In every species there is a more or less decided ochraceous tinge to the crissal region (sometimes extending forward over the flanks); except in _crissalis_, in which the lower tail-coverts and anal region are deep chestnut. In autumn and winter this ochraceous tint becomes very much deeper, as well as more prevalent, than in spring and summer; the whole plumage becomes softer, the colors more pronounced, and the markings more distinct, than when faded and worn in summer.

Synopsis of Species of Harporhynchus.

A. Spots beneath sharply defined and conspicuous,—much darker in color than the upper parts.

1. H. rufus. The markings lineo-cuneate; wing bands sharply defined.

Above rufous; markings below dark brown; outer tail-feathers diluted at tip; wing, 4.00; tail, 5.20; bill from nostril, .79, nearly straight; tarsus, 1.30; middle toe, .90 (1,377 ♂ Carlisle, Penn.). _Hab._ Eastern Province United States … var. _rufus_.

Wing, 4.40; tail, 5.70; bill, .79; tarsus, 1.35; middle toe, .90 (5,652 ♂ Republican River). _Hab._ Plains between Missouri River to Rocky Mountains … var. _longicauda_.

Above umber brown; markings beneath black; tail-feathers not paler at tip; wing, 3.90; tail, 4.90; bill, .85, slightly curved; tarsus, 1.40; middle toe, .94 (4,016 ♂ Brownsville, Tex.) _Hab._ Eastern Mexico, north to Rio Grande of Texas … var. _longirostris_.

2. H. ocellatus.[23] The markings circular; wing bands conspicuous.

Above grayish-brown; markings beneath black; tail-feathers broadly tipped with white; wing, 4.10; tail, 5.60; bill, from rictus, 1.50, moderately curved; tarsus, 1.50. _Hab._ Oaxaca, Mex.

3. H. cinereus. The markings deltoid; wing bands narrow, but sharply defined.

Above brownish-cinereous; markings beneath blackish-brown; tail-feathers broadly tipped with white; wing, 4.00; tail, 4.60; bill, .88, much curved; tarsus, 1.30; middle toe, .85 (12,960 “♀”—♂? Cape St. Lucas). _Hab._ Cape St. Lucas, Lower California.

B. Spots beneath obsolete, not darker than the plumage above; roundish in form.

4. H. curvirostris.

Above cinereous; wing bands distinct; spots below distinct, upon a white ground; femoral region and crissum very pale ochraceous; tail-feathers broadly and sharply tipped with pure white; wing, 4.30; tail, 4.50; bill, 1.00, stout, moderately curved; tarsus, 1.40; middle toe, 1.12 (7,200 ♂ Ringgold Barracks, Texas). _Hab._ from Rio Grande valley in Texas to Cordova, Orizaba, Oaxaca, Colima, and Mazatlan … var. _curvirostris_.

Wing bands obsolete, and tail spots very narrow and obsolete; spots below just discernible upon a grayish ground; femoral region and crissum dilute ochraceous-brown; wing, 4.30; tail, 5.20; bill, 1.00, slender, moderately curved; tarsus, 1.30; middle toe, 1.00 (8,128 ♂ “New Mexico”—probably Eastern Arizona). _Hab._ Arizona (Camp Grant) … var. _palmeri_.

C. Entirely unspotted beneath.

5. H. redivivus. Anal region and lower tail-coverts light ochraceous.

Above soft brownish-cinereous, tail considerably darker; wing bands almost obsolete, and tail-feathers merely diluted at tips. Beneath paler than above,—almost white on throat and abdomen; anal region and lower tail-coverts yellowish-ochraceous. A distinct “bridle” formed by the hair-like tips of the feathers, bordering the throat; maxillary stripe white with transverse bars of dusky; wing, 3.90; tail, 5.25; bill, 1.05, slender, moderately curved; tarsus, 1.25; middle toe, .86 (40,718 ♂ 20 miles from Colorado River, near Fort Mojave). _Hab._ Arizona (Gila River, Fort Yuma, and Fort Mojave) … var. _lecontei_.

Above ashy drab, tail darker and more brownish; wing bands inconspicuous, and tail-feathers hardly diluted at tips. Beneath, the ochraceous covers the abdomen, and the throat inclines to the same. No “bridle.” Cheeks and ear-coverts blackish, with conspicuous shaft-streaks of white; wing, 4.30; tail, 5.60; bill, 1.40, stout, very much bowed,—the arch regular; tarsus, 1.55; middle toe, 1.00 (3,932 ♂, California). _Hab._ Coast region of California var. … _redivivus_.

6. H. crissalis. Anal region and lower tail-coverts deep chestnut.

Above, brownish-ashy with a slight purplish cast, tail not darker; no trace of wing bands; tail-feathers diluted, and tinged with rusty at tips. Beneath, of a uniform, paler tint than the upper plumage, not lighter medially; throat white, with a conspicuous “bridle”; from this up to the eye whitish, with transversely angular bars of dusky; wing, 4.00; tail, 6.50; bill, 1.25, very slender, bowed from the middle; tarsus, 1.30; middle toe, .90 (11,533 ♂ Fort Yuma). _Hab._ Region of Gila River to Rocky Mountains; north to Southern Utah (St. George, breeding; Dr. Palmer).

Harporhynchus rufus, CABANIS.

BROWN THRASHER.

_Turdus rufus_, LINN. Syst. Nat. 10th ed. 1758, 169, based on CATESBY, tab. 19.—IB. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 293.—GÄTKE, Naumannia, 1858, 424 (Heligoland, Oct. 1837). _Harporhynchus rufus_, CAB. Mus. Hein. 1850, 82.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 353.—IB. Rev. Am. Birds, 44.—SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1859, 340.—IB. Catal. 1861, 8, no. 48.—SAMUELS, 163. _Mimus rufus_, PR. MAX. Cab. Jour. 1858, 180. Figures: VIEILLOT, Ois. Am. Sept. II, pl. lix.—WILSON, Am. Orn. II, pl. xiv.—AUD. Orn. Biog. pl. cxvi.

SP. CHAR. Exposed portion of the bill shorter than the head. Outline of lower mandible straight. Above light cinnamon-red; beneath pale rufous-white with longitudinal streaks of dark brown, excepting on the chin, throat, middle of the belly, and under tail-coverts. These spots anteriorly are reddish-brown in their terminal portion. The inner surface of the wing and the inner edges of the primaries are cinnamon; the concealed portion of the quills otherwise is dark brown. The median and greater wing-coverts become blackish-brown towards the end, followed by white, producing two conspicuous bands. The tail-feathers are all rufous, the external ones obscurely tipped with whitish; the shafts of the same color with the vanes. Length, 11.15; wing, 4.15; tail, 5.20; tarsus, 1.30.

HAB. Eastern North America to Missouri River, and perhaps to high central plains United States, east of Rocky Mountains, north to Lake Winnipeg.

As stated in “Birds of North America” some specimens (var. _longicauda_) from beyond the Missouri River are larger than eastern birds, with longer tails, more rufous beneath; the breast spots darker. But, in passing from east to west, the change is so insensible that it is impossible to divide the series.

HABITS. This Thrush is a common species throughout a widely extended area, from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic, and from the Red River country, in British America, to the Rio Grande. And nearly throughout this entire territory it also resides and breeds, from Texas to the 54th parallel of latitude.

It reaches New England early in May and leaves it in the latter part of September or the first week of October, its stay varying with the season and the supply of its food. It is somewhat irregularly distributed, common in some portions of this section, and rare or even unknown in others. It is not found near the sea-coast beyond Massachusetts. It passes the winter in the Southern States, even as far to the north as Virginia, and is in full song in the neighborhood of Savannah as early as the first of March.

The song of this Thrush is one of great beauty, and is much admired by all who appreciate woodland melody of the sweetest and liveliest type. It is loud, clear, emphatic, full of variety and charm. Its notes are never imitative and cannot be mistaken by any one who is familiar with them, for those of any other bird, unless it may be some one of its western congeners. It is a very steady performer, singing for hours at a time. Its notes are given in a loud tone, and its song may often be heard to quite a distance.

In obtaining its food the Brown Thrush is at times almost rasorial in its habits. In the early spring it scratches among the leaves of the forest for worms, coleopterous grubs, and other forms of insect food. By some it is charged with scratching up the hills of early corn, but this is not a well-founded accusation. Berries of various kinds also form a large part of its food, and among these the small fruit of our gardens must be included.

This Thrush is a very affectionate and devoted bird, especially to its young. It is also prompt in going to the assistance of others of its species when in trouble. Whenever intruders approach their nests, especially if their young are far advanced, they manifest the deepest anxiety, sometimes even making a vigorous defence. The writer has a very distinct recollection of having encountered, together with a younger brother, an ignominious defeat, when making his first attempt to inspect the nest of one of these birds.

The Brown Thrush is jealous of the intrusion of other birds of its own species to a too close proximity to its nesting-place, and will assert its love of seclusion by stout battles. In Louisiana the construction of the nest is commenced quite early in March; in Pennsylvania, not until May; and in the New England States in the latter part of that month. The nest is usually not more than two or three feet from the ground. It is built in a low bush, on a cluster of briers or among vines. I have known it to be placed in the interior of a heap of brushwood loosely thrown together. I have never met with the nest built upon the ground, but in Springfield, and in other dry and sandy localities, this is by no means an uncommon occurrence. These nests are frequently placed in close proximity to houses, and sometimes in the very midst of villages.

The nest of the Thrasher is large, and roughly but strongly built. The base is usually made of coarse twigs, sticks, and ends of branches, firmly interwoven. Within this is constructed an inner nest, composed of dried leaves, strips of bark, and strong black fibrous roots. These are lined with finer roots, horse-hair, an occasional feather, etc.

The eggs are usually four, sometimes five, and rarely six, in number. They vary both in the tints of the ground color, in those of their markings, and slightly in their shape. Their length varies from .99 to 1.12 inches, with a mean of 1.05. Their breadth ranges from .76 to .87 of an inch; mean breadth, .81. The ground color is sometimes white, marked with fine reddish-brown dots, confluent at the larger end, or forming a broad ring around the crown. In others the markings have a yellowish-brown tint. Sometimes the ground color is a light green.

Harporhynchus rufus, var. longirostris, CABAN.

TEXAS THRASHER.

_Orpheus longirostris_, LAFR. R. Z. 1838, 55.—IB. Mag. de Zool. 1839, Ois. pl. i. _Toxostoma longirostre_, CAB. Wiegm. Arch. 1847, I. 207. _Mimus longirostris_, SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1856, 294 (Cordova). _Harporhynchus longirostris_, CAB. Mus. Hein. 1850, 81.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 352, pl. lii.—IB. Rev. 44.—SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1859, 339; IB. 1864, 172 (City of Mex.); IB. Catal. 1861, 8, no. 47.

SP. CHAR. Similar to _H. rufus_, the rufous of back much darker. Wings much rounded; second quill shorter than the secondaries. Exposed portion of the bill as long as the head; the lower edge decidedly decurved or concave. Above rather dark brownish-rufous; beneath pale rufous-white; streaked on the sides of the neck and body, and across the breast, with very dark brownish-black, nearly uniform throughout, much darker than in _rufus_. Two rather narrow white bands on the wings. The concealed portion of the quills dark brown. Length, 10.50; wing, 4.00; tail, 5.00; tarsus, 1.40.

HAB. Eastern Mexico; north to Rio Grande, Texas. Cordova, SCL. Orizaba (temperate region), SUMICHRAST.

Specimens from the Rio Grande to Mirador and Orizaba are quite identical, with, of course, differences among individuals. This “species” is not, in our opinion, separable from the _H. rufus_ specifically; but is a race, representing the latter in the region given above, where the _rufus_ itself is never found. The relations of these two forms are exactly paralleled in the _Thryothorus ludovicianus_ and _T. berlandieri_, the latter being nothing more than the darker Southern representation of the former.

The Texas Thrasher appears to belong only to the Avifauna of the Southwest. It first appears as a bird of the valley of the Rio Grande, and extends from thence southward through Eastern Mexico to Cordova and Orizaba. In Arizona it is replaced by _H. palmeri_, _H. lecontei_, and _H. crissalis_, in California by _H. redivivus_, and at Cape St. Lucas by _H. cinereus_, while in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains it is represented by its nearer ally _H. rufus_.

HABITS. The eggs of this species are hardly distinguishable from those of the common Brown Thrasher (_H. rufus_), of the Atlantic States. The color of their ground is a greenish-white, which is thickly, and usually completely, covered with fine markings of a yellowish-brown. They have an average length of 1.13 inches, by .79 in breadth. So far as I have had an opportunity of observing, they do not vary from these measurements more than two per cent in length or one per cent in breadth. Their nests are usually a mere platform of small sticks or coarse stems, with little or no depression or rim, and are placed in low bushes, usually above the upper branches.

In regard to the distinctive habits of this species I have no information.

Harporhynchus cinereus, XANTUS.

CAPE ST. LUCAS THRASHER.

_Harporhynchus cinereus_, XANTUS, Pr. A. N. Sc. 1859, 298.—BAIRD, IB., 303; Review, 46.—SCLATER, Catal. 1861, 8, no. 49.—ELLIOT, Illust., I. pl. i.—COOPER, Birds Cal. 1, 19.

SP. CHAR. Bill as long as the head; all the lateral outlines gently decurved from the base. Bristles not very conspicuous, but reaching to the nostrils. Wings considerably shorter than the tail, much rounded. First primary broad, nearly half the length of the second; the third to the seventh quills nearly equal, their tips forming the outline of a gentle curve; the second quill shorter than the ninth. Tail considerably graduated, the lateral feathers more than an inch the shorter. Legs stout; tarsi longer than middle toe, distinctly scutellate, with seven scales.

Above ashy brown, with perhaps a tinge of rusty on the rump; beneath fulvous-white, more fulvous on the flanks, inside of wing, and crissum. Beneath, except chin, throat, and from middle of abdomen to crissum, with well-defined V-shaped spots of dark brown at the ends of the feathers, largest across the breast. Loral region hoary. Wings with two narrow whitish bands across the tips of greater and middle coverts; the quills edged externally with paler. Outer three tail-feathers with a rather obsolete white patch in the end of inner web, and across the tips of the outer.

Spring specimens are of rather purer white beneath, with the spots more distinct than as described.

Length of 12,960 (skin), 10.00; wing, 4.10; tail, 4.65; first primary, 1.60; second, 2.50; bill from gape, 1.40, from above, 1.15, from nostril, .90; tarsus, 1.26; middle toe and claw, 1.12; claw alone, .30.

HAB. Cape St. Lucas, Lower California.

This species is curiously similar in coloration to _Oreoscoptes montanus_, from which its much larger size, much longer and decurved bill, and the graduated tail, of course readily distinguish it. It agrees in some respects with _H. rufus_ and _H. longirostris_, but is smaller, the bill longer and more curved; the upper parts are ashy olivaceous-brown instead of rufous, etc.

HABITS. So far as is at present known in regard to this species it appears to be confined exclusively to the peninsula of Lower California. It has, at least, been met with nowhere else. Mr. Xantus found it quite numerous in the vicinity of Cape St. Lucas, in a region which, as he describes it, was singularly unpropitious. This was a sandy shore, extending about a quarter of a mile inland, whence a cactus desert stretched about six miles up to a high range of mountains. Throughout this tract the ground is covered with a saline efflorescence. There is no fresh water within twenty-eight miles.

Mr. Xantus speaks of the habits of this bird as being similar to those of the _Oreoscoptes montanus_. It was a very abundant species at this cape, where he found it breeding among the cactus plants in large numbers. He mentions that as early as the date of his arrival at the place, April 4, he found them already with full-fledged young, and states that they continued to breed until the middle of July.

He was of the impression that the eggs of this species more nearly resemble those of the common Mocking-Bird than any others of this genus. The aggravatingly brief notes that accompanied his collections show that the general position of the nest of this species was on low trees, shrubs, and most usually, cactus plants, and in no instance at a greater elevation from the ground than four feet. Their nests were flat structures, having only a very slight depression in or near their centre. They were about 5 inches in diameter, and were very little more than a mere platform.

The eggs vary somewhat in their ground color, but exhibit only slight variations in size or shape. Their greatest length is 1.13 inches, and their average 1.12 inches. Their mean breadth is .77 inch, and their maximum .79 inch. The ground color is a greenish-white, profusely marked with spots of mingled purple and brown. In others the ground color is a bluish-green. In some specimens the spots are of a yellowish-brown, and in some the markings are much lighter.

Harporhynchus curvirostris, CABAN.

GRAY CURVE-BILL THRASHER.

_Orpheus curvirostris_, SWAINSON, Philos. Mag. 1827, 369 (Eastern Mexico).—M’CALL, Pr. A. N. Sc. May, 1848, 63. _Mimus curvirostris_, GRAY, Genera, 1844-49. _Toxostoma curvirostris_, BONAP. Conspectus, 1850, 277.—SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1857, 212. _Harporhynchus curvirostris_, CAB. Mus. Hein. I. 1850, 81.—BAIRD, Birds N. Am. 1858, 351, pl. li.; IB. Rev. 45.—HEERMANN, P. R. R. Rep. X, Parke’s Rep. 1859, 11.—SCLATER, P. Z. S. 1859, 339; IB. Catal. 1861, 7, no. 46.—DRESSER, Ibis, 1865, 483. _Pomatorhinus turdinus_, TEMM. Pl. Col. 441. _? Toxostoma vetula_, WAGLER, Isis, 1831, 528.

SP. CHAR. Exposed portion of the bill about as long as the head; considerably decurved. Above uniform grayish-brown, or light ash; beneath dull white; the anal region and under tail-coverts tinged with brownish-yellow. The under parts generally, except the chin, throat, middle of the belly, and under coverts, with rounded sub-triangular, quite well-defined spots, much like the back. These are quite confluent on the breast. Two narrow bands on the wing-coverts, and the edges of primaries and alulæ, are white. The tail-feathers, except the middle, are conspicuously tipped with white. Length of female, 10 inches; wing, 4.00; tail, 4.55; tarsus, 1.20.

HAB. Adjacent regions of United States and Mexico, southward. Cordova, Orizaba, Mirador; Mazatlan, Colima, Oaxaca.

Specimens from the Rio Grande across to Mazatlan represent one species; but those from the latter locality are somewhat darker in colors, though this may be owing, in part, to the fact that they are winter birds. Considerable differences in proportions may often be noticed between individuals, but nothing strikingly characteristic of any particular region.

The specimens of the Mazatlan series (37,326 ♂, 51,523, and 51,525 ♂) have tails considerably longer than any of those from the Rio Grande, the excess amounting in the longest to nearly an inch; but one from the same locality has it _shorter_ than any of the Texas specimens.