Part 8

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175. BARNACLE GOOSE. _Branta leucopsis._

This Old World species occurs frequently in Greenland and very rarely is found on the mainland of this continent.

176. EMPEROR GOOSE. _Philacte canagica._

Range.--Alaska, south in winter casually to California.

This handsome species is twenty-six inches in length; it may be known from the mottled or "scaly" appearance of the body, and the white head with a black chin and throat. While not uncommon in restricted localities, this may be considered as one of the most rare of North American Geese. Their nests are built upon the ground and do not differ from those of other geese. They lay from three to seven eggs of a dull buff color. Size 3.10 × 2.15. Data.--Stuart Island, Alaska, June 16, 1900. Six eggs laid in a slight hollow in the ground, lined with a few feathers and some down. Collector, Capt. H. H. Bodfish.

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177. BLACK-BELLIED TREE-DUCK. _Dendrocygna autumnalis._

Range.--Tropical America, north in the Rio Grande Valley to southern Texas.

These peculiar long-legged Ducks are very abundant in southern Texas during the summer months. They build their nests in hollow trees, often quite a distance from the water. They lay their eggs upon the bottom of the cavity with only a scant lining, if any, of feathers and down. They are very prolific breeders, raising two broods in a season, each set of eggs containing from ten to twenty. These eggs are creamy or pure white, size 2.05 × 1.50. The first set is laid during the latter part of April or early in May, and fresh eggs may be found as late as July. They are especially abundant about Brownsville and Corpus Christi, Texas. Data.--Hidalgo, Mexico, May 29, 1900. Ten eggs in a hole in an old elm tree on side of lake in big woods near town. Eight feet from the ground. Collector, F. B. Armstrong.

178. FULVOUS TREE-DUCK. _Dendrocygna bicolor._

Range.--This species is tropical like the last, but the summer range is extended to cover, casually the whole southwestern border of the United States.

This bird is long-legged like the last, but the plumage is entirely different, being of a general rusty color, including the entire under parts. The nesting habits and eggs are the same as those of the Black-bellied Duck, the white eggs being laid at the bottom of a cavity in a tree. They number from eight to (in one instance) thirty-two eggs in one nest. This species is nearly as abundant as the preceding in southern Texas.

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179. WHOOPER SWAN. _Olor cygnus._

This European variety frequently is found in Greenland and formerly, regularly bred there. It nests in secluded swampy places in northern Europe.

180. WHISTLING SWAN. _Olor columbianus._.

Range.--North America, breeding in the Arctic Circle, and wintering south to the Gulf of Mexico.

These birds, which are nearly five feet in length, are snow white with the exception of the black bill and feet. The Whistling Swan is distinguished from the next species by the presence of a small yellow spot on either side of the bill near its base. Their nests are made of a large mass of rubbish, weeds, grass, moss, feathers and occasionally a few sticks. It is generally placed in a somewhat marshy place in the neighborhood of some isolated pond. The eggs are of a greenish or brownish buff color, and number from three to six. Size 4.00 × 2.75. Data.--Mackenzie River. Nest a mass of weeds, sods and grass, lined with feathers; on an island near the mouth of the river. Collector, I. O. Stringer.

181. TRUMPETER SWAN. _Olor buccinator._

Range.--Interior of North America from the Gulf of Mexico northward, breeding from northern United States northward.

This is a magnificent bird, about five and one-half feet in length. Its plumage is exactly like that of the preceding except that the bill is entirely black, and the nostril is located nearer the eye. Their nesting habits and eggs are the same as those of the Whistling Swan. While a few pairs may breed within the United States by far the greater number are found in the extreme north, from Hudson Bay to Alaska. The eggs may average a trifle larger than those of the preceding species.

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LAMELLIROSTRAL GRALLATORES. Order VI. ODONTOGLOSSÆ

FLAMINGOES. Family PHOENICOPTERIDAE

182. FLAMINGO. _Phœnicopterus ruber._

Range.--Tropical and sub-tropical America on the Atlantic coasts, breeding in the Bahamas and West Indies; north to Florida and casually to the South Atlantic States.

These remarkable and grotesque appearing birds attain a length of about 48 inches. The plumage varies from white to a deep rosy red. It requires several years for them to attain the perfect adult plumage, and unlike most birds, they are in the best of plumage during the winter, the colors becoming faded as the nesting season approaches. The birds are especially noticeable because of the crooked, hollow, scoop-shaped bill, and the extremely long legs and neck. The feet are webbed, but more for the purpose of supporting them upon the mud flats than for use in swimming. The nests are usually built on a sandy point of an island; they are mounds of earth, grass and rubbish from one to two feet in height, the top being hollowed to receive the eggs. One or two eggs are a complete set. The shell is pale blue, but this is covered with a heavy white chalky deposit. The eggs are laid in June and July. Size 3.40 × 2.15.

IBISES, STORKS, HERONS, etc. Order VII. HERODIONES

The members of this order are wading birds, consequently they all have long legs and necks. They have four toes, not webbed.

SPOONBILLS. Family PLATALEIDAE

183. ROSEATE SPOONBILL. _Ajaia ajaja._.

Range.--Tropical America, north in summer to the Gulf States. They formerly nested in remote swamps along the whole Gulf coast, but are now confined chiefly to the Everglades in Florida.

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This bird, with its broad, flat bill, bare head, and rosy plumage with carmine epaulets and tail coverts, seem more like the fanciful creation of some artist than a real bird of flesh and blood. Its plumage and colors are strikingly clear and beautiful. Full plumaged adult birds have very brilliant carmine shoulders and tail coverts, a saffron colored tail, and a lengthened tuft of bright rosy feathers on the foreneck. This species breed in small colonies in marshy places, often in company with herons and ibises. Their nests are rather frail platforms of sticks, located in bushes or trees, from four to fifteen feet from the ground. The eggs are laid during the latter part of May and June. They are three or four in number and have a ground color of dull white, or pale greenish blue and are quite heavily blotched with several shades of brown. Size 2.50 × 1.70.

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IBISES. Family IBIDIDÆ

Ibises are gracefully formed birds having a long curved bill and a bare face.

184. WHITE IBIS. _Guara alba._

Range.--This is a tropical and sub-tropical species which is found along the Gulf coast, and north to South Carolina, west to Lower California.

These handsome birds are wholly white, with the exception of black primaries. The legs and the bare skin of the face is orange red. These birds are very abundant in most marshy localities along the Gulf coast, especially in Florida, where they nest in rookeries of thousands of individuals. Owing to their not having plumes, they have not been persecuted as have the white herons. They build their nests of sticks and grasses, in the mangroves a few feet above the water. In other localities they build their nests entirely of dead rushes, attaching them to the standing ones a foot or more above the surface of the water. They are quite substantially made and deeply cupped, very different from the nests of the Herons. Their eggs are from three to five in number, vary from grayish ash to pale greenish or bluish in color, blotched with light brown. Size 2.25 × 1.60. The nesting season is during May and June. Data.--Tampa Bay, Fla., June 4, 1895. Three eggs. Nest of sticks and a few weeds in small bushes on an island. Collector, Fred Doane.

185. SCARLET IBIS. _Guara rubra._.

Range.--Occasionally, but not recently met with in the southern states. Their habitat is tropical America, they being especially abundant along the Orinoco River in northern South America.

Full plumaged adults of this species are wholly bright scarlet, except for the primaries, which are black. Their nests are built in impenetrable thickets, rushes or mangroves, the nests being constructed like those of the White Ibis. The eggs, too, are very similar to those of the preceding species, but both the ground color and the markings average brighter. While still common in some localities, the species is gradually becoming less abundant, chiefly because of the demand for their feathers for use in fly-tying.

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186. GLOSSY IBIS. _Plegadis autumnalis._.

Range.--This tropical and sub-tropical species, is chiefly found in the Old World. It is occasionally found in southeastern United States where it sometimes breeds. Its habits, nesting habits and eggs are just the same as the next species.

187. WHITE-FACED GLOSSY IBIS. _Plegadis guarauna._

Range.--A sub-tropical species found in the southwestern parts of the United States, rarely found east of the Mississippi.

This species differs from the Glossy Ibis in having the feathers on the front of the head white, the rest of the plumage is a dull brownish chestnut, with greenish reflections on the back. As these birds are not in demand commercially, their numbers have not decreased, and thousands of them breed in colonies in southern Texas. They build a substantial nest of reeds and rushes woven about the upright canes, close to the surface of the water. Their eggs are laid during May, and number from three to four. They are easily distinguished from those of the Herons, being of a deeper greenish blue color and averaging more elongate. Size 1.95 × 1.35. Data.--Corpus Christi, Texas, May 26, 1899. Four eggs. Nest of twigs and rushes on side of river. Collector, F. B. Armstrong.

STORKS and WOOD IBISES Family CICONIIDAE

188. WOOD IBIS. _Mycteria americana._

Range.--A sub-tropical species which is resident along the Gulf coast and which strays casually north to New England and Colorado.

This peculiar member of the Stork family has the whole head and part of the neck bare and covered with numerous scales; the bill is large, long and heavy; the plumage is white, except for the black primaries and tail. It is a large bird about four feet in length. They are quite abundant in swamps along the

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Gulf coast, where they place their nests, which are platforms of sticks, in trees and bushes over the water. They lay three eggs which are white, and have a rough surface. Size 2.75 × 1.75.

189. JABIRU. _Jabiru mycteria._

This large bird, which is the only true Stork that claims a place in our avifauna, is a native of South and Central America, wandering north, casually to Texas. Their nests are large platforms of sticks in very high trees.

BITTERNS and HERONS Family ARDEIDAE

Herons and Bitterns are long-legged waders, having straight, pointed bills, and with the head feathered, except for the lores.

190. BITTERN. _Bautaurus lentiginosus._

Range.--United States and southern British provinces, breeding in the northern half of the United States and wintering in the southern portion.

This species, with its mottled rusty brownish plumage, is one of the best known of the Heron family. It is known locally by a great many names, nearly all of which have reference to the "booming" or "pumping" sound made during the mating season. They build their nests in swampy or marshy places, placing them on the ground, frequently on a tussock, entirely surrounded by water. The nest proper is only a few grasses twisted about to form a lining to the hollow. They lay from three to five eggs of brownish drab. Size 1.95 × 1.50.

They do not breed in colonies, generally, but one or two pairs nesting in one marsh. Data.--Worcester, Mass., June 3, 1897. Four eggs laid in a grass lined hollow in middle of a hummock of earth and grass, in middle of marsh. Collector, James Jackson.

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191. LEAST BITTERN. _Ixobrychus exilis._

Range.--Common throughout the United States, especially in the eastern part, and in the southern British provinces.

This small variety of Bittern is very common in the southern portions of the United States, but less so and locally distributed in the northern portions of its range. They are very quiet and sly birds, and their presence is often unsuspected when they are really quite abundant. When approached, they will remain perfectly quiet, with the body erect and the head and neck pointed skyward, in which position their yellowish brown plumage strongly resembles the rushes among which they are found. Their nests are made of strips of rushes woven about upright stalks, generally over water. They lay from three to five eggs of a pale bluish white color. Size 1.20 × .90. Data.--Avery's Island, La., May 1, 1896. Four eggs. Nest of strips of rushes woven together to form a platform and fastened to saw grass growing on the bank of a stream. Collector, E. A. McIlhenny.

191.1. CORY'S LEAST BITTERN. _Ixobrychus neoxenus._

This rare species, of which about twenty specimens are known is probably resident in Florida, wandering north in the summer, specimens having been taken in Ontario, Canada, and in several localities in eastern United States. It is very different from the Least Bittern, having a more uniform chestnut coloration, especially on the under parts. It is twelve inches in length. Mr. C. W. Crandall has a set of five eggs of this species, taken on the Caloosahatchee River, Fla., April 15, 1891, by S. B. Ladd. Nest was made of grasses and rushes placed in the cane two feet above the water.

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192. GREAT WHITE HERON. _Ardea occidentalis._

Range.--This species occurs in the United States regularly, only in the southern parts of Florida. It is a resident of the West Indies.

This large white Heron is about the same size as the Great Blue Heron; it has none of the slender plumes found on the smaller White Herons. These birds are not uncommon in southern Florida, especially on the Keyes, where they build their nests in company with Great Blue Herons. Their nesting habits and eggs are very similar to those of the Blue Heron. Size of eggs 2.25 × 1.80. Data.--Outside of Torch Key, Florida, June 16, 1899. Nest a platform of sticks about five feet from the ground, in a mangrove tree. Three eggs. Collector, O. Tollin.

194. GREAT BLUE HERON. _Ardea herodias herodias._

Range.--Nearly the whole of North America, except the extreme north; resident south of the middle portions of the United States and migratory north of there.

This handsome Heron is about four feet in length. Its general color is a bluish gray, relieved by a black crest, primaries and patches on the sides, and a white crown. In the south they breed in large colonies, often in company with many other species. In the northern portions of their range they breed singly or in companies of under a hundred individuals. They generally place their rude platforms of sticks well up in trees, near ponds, swamps or rivers, but in the most northerly parts of their range, where trees are scarce, they often build on the ground. Unless they are disturbed, they return to the same breeding grounds, year after year. They lay from three to five eggs of a greenish blue color. Size 2.50 × 1.50. Data.--Duck Island, Maine, May 20, 1883. Three eggs. Nest of sticks and twigs, about fifteen feet from the ground. Collector, R. B. Gray.

194a. NORTHWEST COAST HERON. _Ardea herodias fannini._

This darker sub-species of the breeding is found along the Pacific coast, north to Sitka, Alaska. Its nests and eggs do not differ from the former species.

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194b. WARD'S HERON. _Ardea herodias wardi._

This sub-species is a resident in Florida. It is a lighter variety than the common. It nests together with the Great Blue Heron and its habits are the same.

195. EUROPEAN HERON. _Ardea cinerea._

This species is only an accidental straggler in Greenland. It is very similar to our Blue Heron and is the one which was formerly used to furnish sport for the royalty when falconry was at its height.

196. EGRET. _Herodias egretta._

Range.--Resident in the southern portions of the United States, straggling northward casually to the northern parts.

This is one of the beautiful Herons which have been sought by plume hunters till they are upon the verge of extermination. They are entirely white, with a long train of beautiful straight "aigrettes" flowing from the middle of the back. In remote localities, quite large colonies of them may still be found, but where they numbered thousands, years ago, they can be counted by dozens now. They breed in impenetrable swamps, very often in company with the following species, and also with Louisiana and Little Blue Herons, and White Ibises. Their nests are but frail platforms, generally in bushes over the water. Their usual complement of eggs numbers from three to five, four as the most common number. They are generally laid during the latter part of May, but often on account of their being disturbed, nests with eggs may be found in July. The eggs are a light bluish green in color. Size 2.25 × 1.45. Data.--Gainesville, Florida, April 14, 1894. Four eggs on a platform of sticks and grass, in a button-wood bush over six feet of water. Collector, George Graham.

197. SNOWY EGRET. _Egretta candidissima candidissima._

Range.--Common now only in restricted localities in the Gulf States and Mexico.

This species, which is smaller than the last, being but twenty-four inches in length, is also adorned with "aigrettes," but they are beautifully recurved at the tips. Owing to the merciless slaughter to which they have been subjected, their ranks have been woefully decimated, and it is to be hoped that the remaining ones may be safely protected. Their nesting habits are the same as the last, although, of course, the eggs are smaller. Size 1.80 × 1.25.

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198. REDDISH EGRET. _Dichromanassa rufescens._

Range.--In the United States, this species is confined chiefly to the Gulf States.

It is somewhat larger than the last species, the head and neck are rufous, the body is bluish gray, and the back is adorned with slender gray plumes. It also has a white phase. This Egret is very abundant along the whole Gulf coast, but especially so in Texas. Their nesting habits are identical with those of the other small Herons and Egrets. The three or four eggs are rather of a more greenish blue than the preceding. Size 1.90 × 1.45. Data.--Gainesville, Florida, April 14, 1894. Three eggs. Nest of sticks and straw in a button-wood tree, two feet above the water. Collector, George Graham.

199. LOUISIANA HERON. _Hydranassa tricolor ruficollis._

Range.--Sub-tropical America, north regularly to the Gulf States and casually farther.

This Heron is of about the size of the Reddish Egret, but the neck is longer, more slender and dark, while the chin, throat and underparts are white. The plumes from the back are short, reaching barely to the end of the tail. They nest in large colonies in company with Egrets and Little Blue Herons, placing their nests in the mangroves, only a few feet above the water. Their nests are the same as those of the other species, a slight platform of sticks, and the three to five eggs are practically not distinguishable from those of the Snowy or Little Blue Herons. Size 1.75 × 1.35.

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200. LITTLE BLUE HERON. _Florida cærulea._

Range.--South Atlantic and Gulf coasts, north casually to New England and Manitoba; west to Kansas and Nebraska.

A smaller species than the preceding, length 22 inches, plumage a uniform slaty blue changing to purplish red on the head and neck. They also have a white phase, but always show traces of the slaty blue, especially on the primaries. Young birds are always white. They breed in immense rookeries during April and May. Their nesting habits and eggs are very similar to the last species, although the eggs average a trifle smaller. Size 1.75 × 1.25. Data.--Avery's Island, Louisiana, April 21, 1896. 5 eggs. Nest a flat and frail platform of twigs in a Mimosa tree growing in floating turf, over deep water in a large swamp. Collector, E. A. McIlhenny.

201. GREEN HERON. _Butorides virescens virescens._

Range.--Temperate and sub-tropical America, breeding north to the British Provinces.

This is the smallest of our Herons, and is well known all over the country. Sometimes they breed in numbers in rookeries, in company with the larger Herons, but in most sections of the country they will be found nesting, one or two pairs together, along the border of some swamp or stream. They have a greater diversity of building sites, than do any of the other Herons and frequently nest a long ways from water. Their nests may be found in alders, birches or even apple trees. It is the usual Heron type of platform, upon which the three to six eggs are laid. They are a pale greenish blue in color, and measure 1.45 × 1.10. Data.--Avery's Island, Louisiana, April 10, 1894. 5 eggs on a platform of twigs placed in a willow tree growing on the edge of a pond. Collected by E. A. McIlhenny.

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201a. FRAZAR'S GREEN HERON. _Butorides virescens frazari._

A darker variety found in Lower California; nesting the same as the common species.

201b. ANTHONY'S GREEN HERON. _Butorides virescens anthonyi._

A lighter, desert form found in the arid portions of the interior of southwestern United States and Mexico.

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202. BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON. _Nycticorax nycticorax naevius_.

Range.--North America from southern British Provinces, southward; winters along the Gulf coast and beyond.