Family CUCULIDÆ.—The Cuckoos.
Char. Bill compressed, usually more or less lengthened and with decurved culmen. Rictal bristles few or none. Nostrils exposed, no nasal tufts. Tail long and soft, of eight to twelve feathers. Toes in pairs, deeply cleft or not united, the outer anterior toe usually versatile, but directed rather laterally than backward.
The Cuculidæ form a strongly marked group of birds, easily distinguished among the Zygodactyli by the characters given above. The outer toe is versatile, but in the American form is more lateral than posterior in the skin, standing sideways, or even anterior, more frequently than behind.
Modern systematists divide the family into six or more subfamilies, of which two only are American, none of these having more than ten tail-feathers. These may be characterized as follows:—
Coccyginæ. Face covered with feathers; bill elongated, more or less cylindrical, straight or curved. Tail of ten feathers.
Bill about the length of the head, or not longer; curved. Loral feathers soft. Legs weak, tarsus shorter than the toes. Arboreal … Coccygus.
Bill longer than the head; straight. Loral feathers stiff, bristly. Tarsi much longer than the toes. Terrestrial … Geococcyx.
Crotophaginæ. Face naked. Bill much compressed, with a sharp crest. Tail of eight feathers. Bill shorter than and nearly as high as the head … Crotophaga.
Subfamily COCCYGINÆ.
Genus GEOCOCCYX, Wagler.
Geococcyx, Wagler, Isis, 1831, 524.
Leptostoma, Swainson, Classification Birds, II, 1837, 325.
Gen. Char. Bill long and strong, slightly compressed, and at least as long as the head; head crested; loral feathers, and those at base of bill, stiffened and bristly. Nostrils elongated, linear. A naked colored skin around and behind the eye; the eyelids ciliated. Tarsi longer than the toes; very stout. Wings very short and concave; the tertials as long as the primaries. Tail longer than the head and body; composed of ten narrow, much graduated feathers.
Geococcyx californianus.
12925 ♂
This remarkable genus is represented in the United States by a single species, known as the Paisano, Chaparral Cock, or sometimes Road-Runner, on account of its frequenting public highways. Its very long legs enable it to run with great rapidity, faster even than a fleet horse. A second species occurs in Mexico, the Geococcyx affinis of Hartlaub. This is smaller, and differently proportioned. In both the feathers above are bronzed brown
and green; nearly all with opaque white edges; beneath white, with black streaks on the sides of neck and breast; the feathers with broad white tips; the principal differences are as follows:—
G. californianus. Bill above, about 2.00; gape nearly straight to near tip; nostril behind middle of gape. Feathers of throat and upper part of breast light brownish, with shaft-streaks of black. Hab. Southwestern United States, from Cape St. Lucas and Southern California to Texas.
G. affinis.[120] Bill above about 1.60; gape gently curved throughout. Nostril opposite middle of gape. Feathers of throat and breast fulvous-white, without shaft-streaks, except on the sides, where they are broad and abruptly defined. Hab. Mexico, from Mazatlan to Xalapa.
This last species is common at Mazatlan, as well as elsewhere in Mexico, and may yet be found in Arizona.
Geococcyx californianus, Baird.
PAISANO; ROAD-RUNNER; CHAPARRAL COCK.
Saurothera californiana, Lesson, Buff. VI, 1829, 420.—Botta, Ann. du Mus. 1835, 121, pl. (Cape St. Lucas to San Francisco). Geococcyx variegata, Wagler, Isis, V, 1831, 524. Saurothera bottæ (Blainville), Lesson, Traité d’Orn. I, 1831, 145. Diplopterus viaticus (Licht.) Boie, Isis, 1831, 541 (no description). Geococcyx viaticus, Hartlaub, Rev. Zoöl. 1844, 215.—M’Call, Pr. A. N. Sc. III, July, 1847, 234.—Bon. Consp. 1850, 97.—Ib. Consp. Zygod. in Aten. Ital. 1854, 5.—Heermann, J. A. N. Sc. Ph. 2d series, II, 1853, 270.—Newberry, Zoöl. Cal. and Oregon Route, 91, P. R. R. Rep. VI, 1857. Saurothera marginata, Kaup, Isis, 1832, 991; tab. xxvi (fig. of head and foot). Leptostoma longicauda, Swainson, Birds, II, 1837, 325.—Gambel, Pr. A. N. S. I, 1843, 263. Geococcyx mexicanus, Gambel, J. A. N. Sc. 2d series, I, 1849, 215 (not of Gmelin).—Cassin, Ill. I, 1855, 213, pl. xxxvi.—Sclater, Catal. 324, 1862.—Heerm. X, S, 59 (nest). Geococcyx californianus, Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 73.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 368.
Sp. Char. Tail very long; the lateral feathers much shortest. An erectile crest on the head. A bare skin around and behind the eye. Legs very long and stout.
All the feathers of the upper parts and wings of a dull metallic olivaceous-green, broadly edged with white near the end. There is, however, a tinge of black in the green along the line of white, which itself is suffused with brown. On the neck the black preponderates. The sides and under surface of the neck have the white feathers streaked centrally with black, next to which is a brownish suffusion. The remaining under parts are whitish, immaculate. Primary quills tipped with white, and with a median band across the outer webs. Central tail-feathers olive-brown; the others clear dark green, all edged, and (except the central two) broadly tipped with white. Top of the head dark blackish-blue. Length, 20 to 23 inches; wing, about 6.50; tail, 12 to 13. Size generally very variable.
Geococcyx californianus.
Hab. Middle Texas, New Mexico, and California to Central Mexico. Seen as far north as Fort Reading, California, and Fort Chadbourne, Texas. Localities: Southeast Texas (Dresser, Ibis, 1865, 466, resident); W. Arizona (Coues, P. A. N. S. 1866, 57); Cape St. Lucas (Xantus); Kioway Agency (Dr. Palmer).
There are seemingly no differences of plumage depending on sex, age, or season.
In calling this species Geococcyx californianus we do not feel entirely sure that we have selected the earliest name. Hartlaub and other authors give 1829 as the date of Lesson’s Vol. VI, of complement to Buffon (VI, 420). A copy of this volume in the Library of Congress bears date of 1834 upon the titlepage. It is, however, quoted at the date of 1829 by Engelmann, so that the copy referred to above may possibly be a second edition, or with a new post-dated titlepage. In this uncertainty, however, we prefer to retain the name of californianus.
Botta, in his description of the bird (the original of Lesson’s species), speaks of it as occurring from Cape St. Lucas to San Francisco. Specimens from Cape St. Lucas, brought by Mr. Xantus, are smaller than those of Upper California, but otherwise apparently identical.
Habits. This very remarkable bird, variously named, in Mexico, Texas, and California, the Paisano, the Road-Runner, the Chaparral Cock, the Ground Cuckoo, the Prairie Cock, and the Corre-camino, is one of the most curious and interesting of the recent additions to our ornithological lists. It is found throughout Northern Mexico, Texas as far north as Port Chadbourne, and in California as far as Fort Reading. It is also abundant in portions of Arizona and New Mexico, and is supposed to be resident in all these districts. It is described as very remarkable for great swiftness of foot, in which it appears to be equalled by no other North American bird. In Mexico, and in some parts of the United States, it is not unusual to hunt these birds, as a matter of amusement, on horseback, and to pursue them with hounds,—a test of their fleetness in which they are said to often make a longer race than their pursuers anticipated.
This bird habitually frequents the ground. When walking or running, its long tail is borne in an erect position, and often assumes a variety of grotesque positions. While thus more or less terrestrial in its habits, and sharing with gallinaceous birds many of their peculiarities, it has no other affinities with them, but ranks in a very different ornithological division, being classed with the Cuckoos.
This bird was first brought to the attention of American naturalists by Dr. William Gambel, who published a description of it in 1845. Two years afterwards Colonel McCall published the first satisfactory account that has been given of its habits and manners of life. He states that though this bird is zygodactyle, with toes disposed in opposite pairs, yet that the reversibility of the outer toe favors its use for climbing or perching, as well as for movements on the ground.
The food of the Ground Cuckoo consists of coleopterous and almost every other description of insects, and where snails abound they also are greedily eaten. These are usually taken either from the ground or a branch, and carried to a particular spot, where the shell is broken and its contents eaten.
Piles of these shells are often found thus collected in places frequented by them. They are also said to be ready and expert in catching their prey in the air, sometimes springing up to the height of eight or ten feet. In these performances the wings and tail are expanded for but a moment, the bill is heard to snap as the insect is seized, and the bird drops again suddenly to the ground.
Colonel McCall adds that the general impression that its powers of flight are very limited is not correct. When suddenly alarmed in open ground, it rises with a light quick motion, and flies some hundreds of yards continuously with an ease that attests its ability to maintain even a longer flight. He has often seen it climb to the top of a straight leafless branch, and there sit, apparently to enjoy the first rays of the morning sun.
They are shy and retiring in disposition, wary, vigilant, and cautious, so that it is generally difficult to approach them on the open ground. When suddenly surprised and driven to fly a considerable distance for cover, though they fly with evident ease, they rarely rise higher than six or eight feet from the ground. In evidence of its wonderful swiftness of foot, Colonel McCall states that when on one occasion, approaching Limpia Creek, in Texas, with a small party, he discovered a Chaparral Cock in the open road, about a hundred yards in advance, for his amusement he put spurs to his horse, and dashed after the bird with one of the men. It was thus pursued for full four hundred yards along a smooth and level road, over which with straightened neck and slightly expanded wings it swiftly glided without seeming to touch the ground. When at last it sought shelter in the thicket, they had not gained upon it more than fifty yards.
Captain McCown kept a young half-grown bird in confinement, but it refused to eat, and soon died; others, however, have been more fortunate, and have succeeded in taming them.
Dr. Heermann states that the stomachs of all these birds examined by him were filled with the grasshoppers and the large black beetles found on the plains. A nest of this bird was found by him, built on the branches of the cactus, and constructed of loose sticks put negligently together in a manner similar to the nests of the Yellow-billed Cuckoos. It contained two large white and nearly spherical eggs.
Dr. Gambel states that these birds devour reptiles as well as other insects, which is also confirmed by the observations of Mr. Arthur Schott.
Lieutenant Couch mentions that this bird, called Paisano by the Mexicans, is also held in high estimation by them on account of its enmity to the rattle-snake, which it usually succeeds in killing in fair combat. Though by no means deficient in courage, it is represented as remarkably quiet and harmless in its habits. The only note he heard from it was a weak scream, which is seldom uttered. It is unsocial, is never seen in flocks, and rarely wanders from its restricted locality.
In regard to their note, Dr. Cooper mentions hearing one at Fort Mohave
making a low cooing noise like that of a dove, for which it was at first mistaken. He afterwards heard it cooing harshly and chattering its mandibles together, at the same time jerking up its tail and erecting its crest.
Where not molested, Dr. Cooper states that they become quite tame, and seem to have a preference for towns and houses. At Santa Barbara he observed one young bird nearly fledged as early as May.
Mr. A. J. Grayson had one of these birds in confinement, which became quite tame, and readily fed upon any kind of raw meat, but preferred lizards and small birds, the latter of which it swallowed, feathers and all. If given to him alive, he would play with them awhile before swallowing them, as a cat does with a mouse. They are sometimes tamed, and kept about gardens to kill mice and insects. Dr. Kennerly also states that when taken alive they soon become quite tame, and willingly remain about a house, soon destroying all the mice in the vicinity, which they catch with as much dexterity as a cat.
Mr. Dresser found this bird abundant throughout the mesquite regions, and more particularly so near the Rio Grande. He found its eggs near San Antonio in April and May, and received them even as late as the 23d of September. They build a clumsy nest of mesquite twigs, placed at some height on a bough or in a hollow tree, and lay from two to four pure white eggs. The stomachs examined by Mr. Dresser were found to contain small snakes, lizards, and ticks. He had one in a semi-domesticated state at Matamoras, which became very tame, and was so mischievous that he could not let it remain in the house. It would steal and hide everything that it could carry off, and was particularly fond of tearing up letters and upsetting the inkstand. It was never caged or tied up, and would frequently pay the neighbors a visit, always returning before evening. He fed it on raw meat and lizards. It flew with great ease, and was very fond of perching on the house-top. This bird had a singular antipathy to a tame parrot, and whenever the latter was let out of the cage, it would get into a rage, and either go to the house-top or decamp to some of the neighbors.
The eggs are white, of a rounded oval, equal at either end, and measure 1.60 by 1.22 inches.
Genus COCCYGUS, Vieillot.
Coccyzus, Vieillot, Analyse, 1816. (Type, Cuculus americanus, Linn.)
Erythrophrys, Swainson, Class. Birds, II, 1837, 322.
Gen. Char. Head without crest; feathers about base of bill soft; bill nearly as long as the head, decurved, slender, and attenuated towards the end. Nostrils linear. Wings lengthened, reaching the middle of the tail; the tertials short. Tail of ten graduated feathers. Feet weak; tarsi shorter than the middle toe.
The species of Coccygus are readily distinguished from those of Geococcyx by their arboreal habits, confining themselves mainly to trees, instead of living habitually on the ground. The plumage is soft, fine, and compact.
The American Cuckoos differ from the European (Cuculus) by having lengthened naked tarsi, instead of very short feathered ones. The nostrils, too, are elongated instead of rounded. The habits of the two are entirely different, the American species rearing their own young, instead of laying the eggs in the nests of other birds, like the European Cuckoo and the American Cowbird (Molothrus pecoris).
Coccygus americanus.
1541 ♂
The following synopsis will serve to distinguish the North American species of Coccygus, with their more nearly related southern allies, all of them being of a light greenish color above, tinged with ashy towards the head:—
Species and Varieties.
A. Tail-feathers except two middle ones black, with broad, sharply defined terminal spaces of white.
a. Lower mandible yellow.
1. C. americanus. Beneath pure white, with an ashy shade across the jugulum. Inner webs of primaries mostly rufous. Auriculars nearly concolor with the nape. Length, 12.00; wing, 5.45; tail, 5.64; culmen, 1.00; tarsus, .90. Hab. United States (very rare in the Western Province), Jamaica, Porto Rico.
2. C. minor. Beneath ochraceous, generally paler anteriorly. Inner webs of primaries without any rufous. Auriculars blackish, conspicuously different from the nape. Length, 12.00; wing, 5.30; tail, 7.50; graduation of tail, 2.75. Tail-spots about 1.00 long. Hab. West Indies, and Northern and Eastern South America, Southern Florida.
b. Lower mandible blackish like the upper (pale blue in life).
3. C. melanocoryphus.[121] Colors similar to those of C. minor, but upper parts more brown. Wing, 4.50; tail, 5.85; graduation of the tail, 2.00. Tail-spots about .50 long. Hab. South America (Buenos Ayres, Peru, La Plata, Cayenne, etc.).
B. Tail-feathers all grayish-brown, with narrow terminal, obscure spots of white.
c. Lower mandible blackish like the upper (pale blue in life?).
C. erythrophthalmus. No rufous on primaries, except in young (which have black bill, brown tail-feathers, etc.). Beneath continuous white, with a faint ashy-buff shade across the jugulum; above grayish-brown. Bare eyelids bright red in the adult. Length, 11.30; wing, 5.12; tail, 6.24; tarsus, .90; culmen, 1.00. Hab. Eastern Province of the United States, south through eastern Middle America to Bogota.
Coccygus americanus, Bonap.
YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO.
Cuculus americanus, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 170, 10. Coccyzus americanus, Bon. Obs. Wilson, 1825, No. 47.—Ib. Conspectus, 1850, IV.—Aud. Orn. Biog. I, 1832, 18, V; 520, pl. ii.—Ib. Birds Am. IV, 1842, 293, pl. cclxxv.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 76.—Scl. Cat. 1862, 322.—Cooper, Pr. Cal. Ac. 1868 (Sacramento, Cal.)—Samuels, 83.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 371. Erythrophrys americanus, Sw. Birds II, 1837.—Bon. List, 1838. Cureus americanus, Bon. List, Eur. Birds, 1842. ? Cuculus dominicensis, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 170, 13. ? Cuculus dominicus, Latham, Syst. I, 1790, 221 (considered distinct by Bonaparte). Coccygus dominicus, Baird, pl. Cuculus carolinensis (Brisson), Wilson, Am. Orn. IV, 1811, 13, pl. xxviii. Cuculus cinerosus, Temminck, Man. IV, 1835, 277. Coccyzus pyrrhopterus, Vieill. Dict. Coccygus bairdi, Sclater, P. Z. S. March, 1864, 120 (Jamaica; no rufous externally on wing). ? Coccygus julieni, Lawr. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VIII, June, 1864, 42, 99 (Sombrero Island; no rufous on wing).
Coccygus americanus.
Sp. Char. Upper mandible and tip of lower, black; rest of lower mandible and cutting edges of the upper, yellow. Upper parts of a metallic greenish-olive, slightly tinged with ash towards the bill; beneath white. Tail-feathers (except the median, which are like the back) black, tipped with white for about an inch on the outer feathers, the external one with the outer edge almost entirely white. Quills orange-cinnamon; the terminal portion and a gloss on the outer webs olive; iris brown. Length, 12.00; wing, 5.95; tail, 6.35.
Hab. Eastern United States to the Missouri plains. California and Nevada (Ridgway); Mazatlan; Jamaica; Porto Rico. Localities: ? Sta. Cruz (Newton, Ibis, I, 149, eggs!); Cuba (Cab. J. IV, 154; Gundl. Rep. I, 1866, 295); Jamaica (Gosse, B. Jam. 279?) Costa Rica (Cab. J. 1862, 167); Lower Rio Grande (Dresser, Ibis, 1865, 466, breeds).
There is considerable variation in the amount of rufous in the quills; sometimes this shows very distinctly externally, sometimes it is entirely replaced by the bronzed olive of the back. A greater amount of the rufous
seems to characterize the more southern and Jamaica specimens, which also are smaller; northern specimens, however, show similar variations. In the immature birds the under surface of the tail-feathers is gray, not black, so that the contrast with the white tips is very indistinct, as in erythrophthalmus, in which, however, these light tips are much narrower, while the bill is entirely black.
Specimens of this bird from regions west of the Missouri, and especially one from Cantonment Burgwyn, New Mexico, are appreciably larger than eastern, with decidedly longer bill. One brought from Mazatlan by Mr. Xantus is undistinguishable from the long-billed western variety.
Habits. The Yellow-billed Cuckoo is distributed throughout North America from Canada to Florida, and from the Atlantic coast to California. It has been met with in all the principal West India Islands. I have received specimens of its eggs and nest from Southwestern Texas. Audubon mentions finding this bird high up on the Mississippi River, on the upper branches of the Arkansas, and in Upper Canada, as well as in every State between these limits. Mr. Newton found it breeding in the island of St. Croix, Mr. Gosse mentions it as a bird of Jamaica, and Lembeye gives it among those of Cuba, and Mr. Salvin found it in Central America. It is known to breed from the West Indies and Florida to Minnesota, and from New Brunswick to Texas. It does not appear to have been met with in any of the government expeditions, except by Dr. Woodhouse, who speaks of it as very common in the Indian Territory, Texas, and New Mexico.
This species was seen on one occasion, and heard at other times, near Sacramento City, Cal., by Mr. Ridgway, in June, 1867. It was there rare, or at least not common, and found principally in the willow-thickets. It was again met with in July, of the same year, along the Truckee River, in Nevada, where, also, it appeared to be very rare.
Wilson traced it as far north as Lake Ontario, and speaks of finding it numerous in the Chickasaw and Choctaw nations, and as breeding in the upper part of Georgia. He seems to have observed very carefully its habits, and to have enjoyed favorable opportunities for his observations. His account of their nesting is interesting. He states that, in marked contrast to the singularly unparental conduct of their European relatives, the American Cuckoos build their own nest, hatch their own eggs, and rear their own young, and that in conjugal and parental affection they seem to be surpassed by no other birds. He adds that they begin to pair early in May, and commence building about the 10th of that month. He describes their nest as usually fixed among the horizontal branches of an apple-tree; sometimes in a solitary thorn, crab, or cedar, in some retired part of the woods. It is constructed with little art, and scarcely any concavity, of small sticks and twigs, intermixed with green weeds and blossoms of the maple. On this almost flat bed the eggs, usually three or four in number, are placed; these are of a uniform greenish-blue color, and of a size proportionate to that of
the bird. While the female is sitting, the male is usually not far distant, and gives the alarm by his notes when any person is approaching. The female sits so close that you may almost reach her with your hand, and then precipitates herself to the ground, feigning lameness to draw you away from the spot, fluttering, trailing her wings, and tumbling over in the manner of the Woodcock and other birds. Both parents unite in providing food for the young. This consists chiefly of caterpillars, particularly such as infest apple-trees.
Mr. Audubon speaks of this species as not abundant anywhere, therein differing from Wilson’s statements, but more in accordance with my own observations. They are, as a species, pretty generally distributed, but at the same time their numbers are materially affected by the character of the locality, as they are chiefly to be met with on low grounds and in damp places. Mr. Audubon also describes their nest as simple and flat, composed of a few dry sticks and grass, formed much like that of the Carolina Dove, and like it fastened to a horizontal branch, often within reach. He subsequently states that when in Charleston, S. C., in the early part of June, 1837, he was invited by Mr. Rhett to visit his grounds in the vicinity of that city, for the purpose of viewing a nest of this bird. The following is his account of it: “A nest, which was placed near the centre of a tree of moderate size, was reached by a son of the gentleman on whose grounds we were. One of the old birds, which was sitting upon it, left its situation only when within a few inches of the climber’s hand, and silently glided off to another tree close by. Two young Cuckoos, nearly able to fly, scrambled off from their tenement among the branches of the tree, and were caught. The nest was taken, and carefully handed to me. It still contained three young Cuckoos, all of different sizes, the smallest apparently just hatched, the next in size probably several days old, while the largest, covered with pin-feathers, would have been able to leave the nest in about a week. There were also in the nest two eggs, one containing a chick, the other fresh or lately laid. The two young birds which escaped from the nest clung so firmly to the branches by their feet, that our attempts to dislodge them were of no avail, and we were obliged to reach them with the hand. On looking at all these birds, our surprise was great, as no two of them were of the same size, which clearly showed that they had been hatched at different periods, and I should suppose the largest to have been fully three weeks older than any of the rest. Mr. Rhett assured us that he had observed the same in another nest, placed in a tree within a few paces of his house. He stated that eleven young Cuckoos had been successively hatched and reared in it by the same pair of old birds in one season, and that young birds and eggs were to be seen in it at the same time for many weeks in succession.”
Mr. Nuttall states that the nest of this bird is usually forsaken by the owner if the eggs are handled before the commencement of incubation. They are very tenacious and affectionate towards their young, and sit so close as almost to allow of being taken off by the hand. They then frequently precipitate
themselves to the ground, fluttering, tumbling, and feigning lameness, in the manner of many other affectionate and artful birds, to draw the intruder away from the vicinity of the brood. At such times, the mother also utters the most uncouth guttural sounds as she runs along the ground. While the female is engaged in sitting on her charge, the male takes his station at no great distance, and gives alarm by his notes, on the approach of an intruder. When the young are hatched, both unite in the labor of providing them with food. He subsequently states that these birds hatch several broods in a season, which he inferred from the fact of his meeting with a nest containing eggs as late as the 28th of August. He also speaks of finding in one instance an egg of the Cuckoo laid in the nest of a Catbird, and in another instance (June 15) an egg in the nest of a Robin. Such instances must, however, be very rare. No other writer mentions any similar instance, and none have ever fallen under my observations.
Mr. Gosse, in his Birds of Jamaica, describes the Yellow-bill as among the birds of that island, speaks of it as among the regular visitants in spring, but makes no mention of its breeding there.
Mr. Edward Newton, in his paper on the birds of St. Croix (Ibis, 1859, p. 149), gives an interesting account of its breeding in that locality. He adds his testimony to the general credit given to this species for the conjugal affection they evince. On one occasion, he says, a male having been shot, and shrieking as it fell, the female instantly flew to the spot, and fluttered along the ground in the manner that an old hen Partridge or other bird would do, to lead astray the pursuer of her young. On June 2, 1858, he shot a female of this species, having an egg in her ovary nearly ready for exclusion; it was quite soft, but had its proper color. On the 29th of the same month, while riding, he saw the white terminal spots of a Cuckoo’s tail projecting from a small nest on a manchineel that overhung the path. It was built in a very open situation, and the bird, as he rode underneath, was not more than a yard above his head. She sat with nearly all her neck and breast outside the nest, which was only just large enough to contain the eggs. She did not fly off until after he had tied up the pony hard by, and had almost touched her with his whip. There were three eggs, laid side by side in a row, along which the bird had been sitting. The nest was at some distance from the stem of the tree, and placed loosely on the bough. It was a mere platform of small sticks laid one across another, with a few finer twigs and a little grass as a lining; so slightly was it put together, that, on attempting to take it from the tree, it fell to pieces.
No writer besides Mr. Audubon makes any mention of, or appears to have been aware of, the peculiar habits of these birds in hatching out their successive depositions of eggs, one by one. In this respect they are eccentric, and do not always exhibit this trait. While I have repeatedly observed facts exactly corresponding with those noticed by Mr. Audubon in the garden of Mr. Rhett, at other times I have found in the opening of the season three or
four eggs laid before incubation commenced, and all hatched before others were deposited. Then the parents seemed to depend, in no small degree, upon the warmth of the bodies of the older offspring to compensate to the younger for their own neglect, as well as for the exposed and insufficient warmth of the nest. I have repeatedly found in a nest three young and two eggs, one of the latter nearly fresh, one with the embryo half developed, while of the young birds one would be just out of the shell, one half fledged, and one just ready to fly. My attention was first called to these peculiarities of hatching as early as 1834, by finding, in Cambridge, in a nest with three young birds, an egg which, instead of proving to be addled, as I anticipated, was perfectly fresh, and evidently just laid. Subsequent observations in successive seasons led to the conviction that both this species and the Black-billed Cuckoo share in these peculiarities, and that it is a general, but not a universal practice. These facts were communicated to Mr. Audubon, but not before his attention had been called to the same thing.
In referring to these peculiarities of the American Cuckoo, Mr. Audubon finds in them a closely connecting link with the European bird, and Mr. Darwin, carrying still farther the same idea, finds in them also data for regarding our birds as only one remove from the vagaries of the European Cuckoo. At the first glance there may seem to be some plausibility in these deductions. The mere apology for a nest of our Cuckoos and their alternations of laying and hatching may, to some extent, be regarded as but one remove from the total neglect of the European to build any nest, making, instead, successive depositions in the nests of other birds. But there are other peculiarities of our Cuckoos to be taken into consideration, totally variant from the polygamous, unconjugal, and unparental European. Their devotion to their mates and to their offspring, in which both sexes vie with each other; their extended breeding-season, varying from one to nearly four months,—all these characteristics separate them by a long interval from their namesakes of the Old World.
If the nests of the Cuckoos are incomplete and insufficient, so are also those of the most exemplary of parents, the whole tribe of Pigeons, and, like the latter, our Cuckoos more than atone for such deficiencies by the devoted fidelity with which they adhere to their post of duty even in the face of imminent dangers; while, after the first offspring of the season have been hatched, the warmth of their bodies becomes an additional protection from the exposure of the bare platform on which they are deposited.
The eggs of this species are of an oblong-oval shape, equally obtuse at either end, and measure 1.30 inches in length by 1.00 in breadth. They vary considerably in size, their minimum breadth being .90 of an inch, and the length 1.20 inches. Their color is a uniform light bluish-green, extremely fugitive, and fading even in the closed drawer of a cabinet.
MANGROVE CUCKOO.
? Cuculus minor, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 411. ? Coccyzus minor, Cabanis, Cab. Journal für Orn. 1856, 104 (Cuba).—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 78.—Cuculus seniculus, Lath. Ind. I, 1790, 219. Coccyzus seniculus, Nuttall, Man. I, 1832, 558.—Aud. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 390, pl. clxix.—Ib. Birds America, IV, 1842, 303, pl. cclxxvii.—Gosse, Birds Jamaica, 281.—Bon. Conspectus, 1850, III. Erythrophrys seniculus, Bon. List, 1838. Coccygus dominicus, Scl. Cat. 1862, 323.
Sp. Char. Lower mandible yellow, except at the tip. Body above olivaceous, strongly tinged with ashy towards and on the head. Beneath pale yellowish-brown, darkest on the legs and abdomen, becoming lighter to the bill. An elongated spot of dark plumbeous behind the eye. Inner edges of the quills and under wing-coverts like the belly. Tail-feathers, except the central, black, with a sharply defined tip of white for about an inch, this color not extending along the outer web of the quill. Length about 12.00; wing about 5.25.
Hab. Florida Keys to West Indies. Localities: ? Sta. Cruz (Newton, Ibis, I, 150); Cuba (Cab. J. IV, 154; Gundl. Repert. I, 1866, 295); Jamaica (Gosse, B. Jam. 281).
This species is readily distinguishable by its fulvous under parts, dark ear-coverts, and lack of rufous on inner webs of quills. It has the yellow bill and dark tail, with broad white tips, of C. americanus, although the white does not extend along the outer web of the feathers.
According to Mr. Audubon, this species is a regular summer visitor to Key West and the other Florida keys.
This species is more especially West Indian, occurring in nearly all the islands. There are some local variations in color (Porto-Rican being much redder, Bahaman paler), as well as in size, but in a large series from the same island there will be found such differences as to warrant us in considering all as one species. In a very large series before us, we cannot see any tangible difference, although Cabanis and Sclater recognize a C. nesiotes from the Antillean West Indies, as distinguished from C. seniculus from South American and the windward West Indies; the former, smaller and paler, and, according to Cabanis, with the white of tip of tail confined to the inner web; the latter darker beneath, and larger. These characters I do not find substantiated, nor have I seen one specimen without white in both webs at the ends of the tail-feathers.
As the name of C. minor is the earliest one for at least the South American race, we retain it in preference to seniculus, as although scarcely minor in this genus, it is so compared with Piaya, Geococcyx, and Saurothera.
Habits. This species claims a place in the fauna of North America as a resident of the Florida keys. This is the only locality positively known as its habitat within the limits of the territory of the United States. The only specimen referred to in the ninth volume of the Pacific Railroad Surveys was supposed to have been obtained in Florida. Mr. Nuttall, who
was the first to include the Mangrove Cuckoo among North American birds, speaks of it as an inhabitant chiefly of Cayenne, and as occasionally visiting the extreme Southern States. Mr. Audubon, who was the first to meet with the species within the limits of the United States, only obtained specimens of it in Florida, near Key West. I have seen a specimen which was given to Mr. John G. Bell as having been procured in Southern Mississippi. Mr. Gosse obtained specimens of this bird in Jamaica, though he had no opportunity of observing its domestic economy. In the month of January the specimens he dissected had eggs in their ovaries as large as duck-shot. Dr. Gundlach gives it as a Cuban bird, but does not mention it as one that breeds on that island. The Newtons met with this species in St. Croix, but appear to have regarded it as not a summer resident, but only in the light of a visitant in the winter.
Mr. March, referring without doubt to this species, mentions it as a constant resident in the island of Jamaica, where it is common in the lowlands during summer. It is said to breed from March to July, building in the low branches of trees or in shrubs. The nest is described as a structure composed of a few dry sticks, so loosely put together that it falls to pieces on any attempt to remove it. Three, rarely four, eggs are laid, which are of a glaucous-green color, oval, generally round at both ends, and varying in size from 1.25 inches by .90 to 1.38 inches by 1 inch.
Of late years no specimens seem to have been obtained in Florida, either by Maynard or by the many other explorers of the Peninsula; and even if the earlier notices are correct, we may have to consider it as merely a straggler from the Bahamas, like Certhiola bahamensis, Crotophaga ani, Phonipara zena, Vireosylvia barbatula, etc.
Mr. Audubon, who was the only one of our naturalists who met with the nest and eggs, discovered them near Key West. He describes the nest as slightly constructed of dry twigs, and as almost flat, nearly resembling that of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo. The eggs are the same in number and form as those of that species, but are somewhat larger. It is said to raise two broods in one season, and to feed its young on insects until they are able to provide for themselves. An old bird, caught on its nest, which Mr. Audubon saw confined in a cage, refused all food and soon pined itself to death,—thus evincing, in his opinion, the great affection these birds have for their own eggs. An egg in the Smithsonian Institution collection, given me by Mr. John G. Bell of New York, is said to have been obtained in Mississippi with the parent bird. Its color has slightly faded, and, except in its greater comparative breadth, it is not distinguishable from the eggs of the Yellow-bill.
Coccygus erythrophthalmus, Bon.
BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO.
Cuculus erythrophthalmus, Wilson, Am. Orn. IV, 1811, 16, pl. xxviii. Coccyzus erythrophthalmus, Bon. Obs. Wils. 1825, 48.—Ib. Consp. 1850, IV.—Aud. Orn. Biog. I, 1832, 170; V, 523, pl. xxxii.—Ib. Birds America, IV, 1842, 300, pl. cclxxvi.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 77.—Scl. Cat. 1862, 323.—Samuels, 85. Erythrophrys erythrophthalmus, Bon. List, 1838. Coccyzus dominicus, (Lath.) Nutt. Man. I, 1832, 556 (not of Latham, which belongs rather to C. americanus, on account of the red quills and white edge of outer tail-feather).
Sp. Char. Bill entirely black. Upper parts generally of a metallic greenish-olive, ashy towards the base of the bill; beneath pure white, with a brownish-yellow tinge on the throat. Inner webs of the quills tinged with cinnamon. Under surface of all the tail-feathers hoary ash-gray. All, except the central on either side, suffused with darker to the short, bluish-white, and not well-defined tip. A naked red skin round the eye. Length, about 12.00; wing, 5.00; tail, 6.50.
Hab. United States to the Missouri plains, south to Bogota. Localities: Cuba (Cab. J. IV, 154, nests; Gundl. Repert. I, 1866, 295); Guatemala (Salvin, Ibis, II, 276); Mexico and Bogota (Scl. Cat. 323); Isth. Panama (Lawr. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VII, 62); Costa Rica (Lawr. N. Y. Lyc. IX, 128).
This species differs from the C. americanus in the black bill, and the absence of black on the tail-feathers, the white tips of which are much shorter and less abruptly defined. One specimen (5,253) from the Upper Missouri has a much stronger tinge of yellowish-cinnamon on the inner webs of the quills than the others. The sexes are quite similar.
Habits. The Black-billed Cuckoo, so closely allied with the common species in respect to size, appearance, habits, and all its general characteristics, is also distributed throughout very nearly the same localities, where, however, it is usually regarded as a much less abundant bird. It is found throughout the United States as far west as the Missouri plains. Dr. Woodhouse met with this bird in his expedition down the Zuni and Colorado Rivers, but states that he saw but very few, either in Texas or in the Indian Territory. Lembeye, De la Sagra, and Dr. Gundlach include it as a visitant, in the winter months, to Cuba. Mr. Audubon met with this Cuckoo in Louisiana only a few times in the course of his various researches, and never in any Western State except Ohio. He does not seem to have been aware that it ever breeds south of North Carolina. From thence to Maine, and even as far north as the Canadas, Nova Scotia, and Southern Labrador, he gives as its distribution during the breeding-season. He also regarded it as much more common in low and wooded ground on the borders of the sea, where it frequents the edges of woods rather than their interior, and chiefly on the edges of creeks, and in damp places. Mr. Nuttall appeared to have regarded it as very nearly as common as the Yellow-bill throughout the United States, and as extending its migrations as far north as Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. He states that it is found in St.
Domingo and Guiana, and also, on the authority of Mr. Abbott, that it breeds in Georgia as early as the 1st of April. Mr. Audubon says it was never met with by Dr. Bachman in South Carolina. It certainly breeds, however, as far south, at least, as Georgia, as the nest and eggs of this species were taken at Varnell Station, in the northwestern part of that State, by the late Dr. Alexander Gerhardt.
It is not mentioned by either Dr. Gambel or Dr. Heermann as among the birds of the Pacific Coast, and it does not appear to have been actually obtained by any of the expeditions to the Pacific beyond the Indian Territory. Its distribution, therefore, during the breeding-season, would seem to be from Georgia to Canada, and from Texas to Minnesota, inclusive of all the intermediate territory. Dr. Newberry frequently saw and heard what he supposed to have been this species, in the trees bordering Cow Creek, near Fort Reading, but as he did not secure a specimen, he may have been mistaken. It has been taken at Devil’s Lake, in Minnesota, and in the Red River Settlement.
Wilson describes the nest of this bird as generally built in a cedar, much in the same manner, and of nearly the same materials, as that of the Yellow-bill; the eggs are smaller than those of that bird, usually four or five in number, and of a deeper greenish-blue.
Mr. Audubon speaks of the nest as built in places similar to those chosen by the other species, as formed of the same materials, and arranged with quite as little art. He gives the number of eggs as from four to six, of a greenish-blue, nearly equal at both ends, but rather smaller than those of the Yellow-bill, rounder, and of a much deeper tint of green. He gives their measurement as 1.50 inches in length and .87 of an inch in breadth.
Mr. Nuttall, whose description more nearly corresponds with my own observations, speaks of this species as usually retiring into the woods to breed, being less familiar than the former species, and choosing an evergreen bush or sapling for the site of the nest, which is made of twigs pretty well put together, but still little more than a concave flooring, and lined with moss occasionally, and withered catkins of the hickory. The eggs are described as smaller, and three to five in number, of a bluish-green. The female sits very close on the nest, admitting a near approach before flying. He also speaks of this species as being less timorous than the Yellow-billed, and states that near the nest, with young, he has observed the parent composedly sit and plume itself for a considerable time without showing any alarm at his presence.
In all the instances in which I have observed the nest of this species, I have invariably found it in retired damp places, usually near the edges of woods, and built, not in trees, after the manner of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, but in bushes and in low shrubbery, often not more than two or three feet from the ground. The nest, without being at all remarkable for its finish, or the nicety of its arrangement, is much more artistic and elaborate than
that of the Yellow-bill. It is composed of twigs, roots, fine strips of bark, and moss, and is sometimes interwoven and partially lined with the soft catkins of trees and blossoms of plants. The eggs vary from three to six in number, and are often found to have been deposited, and incubation commenced on them, at irregular intervals, and to be in various stages of development in the same nest. I have hardly been able to observe a sufficient number of their nests to be able to state whether this species carries this irregularity so far as the Yellow-bill, nor am I aware that it has ever been known to extend its incubations into so late a period of the season. It is, if anything, more devoted to its offspring than the Yellow-bill. Both parents are assiduous in the duties of incubation, and in supplying food to each other and to their offspring. In one instance, where the female had been shot by a thoughtless boy, as she flew from the nest, the male bird successfully devoted himself to the solitary duty of rearing the brood of five. At the time of the death of the female the nest contained two eggs and three young birds. The writer was present when the bird was shot, and was unable to interpose in season to prevent it. Returning to the spot not long afterwards, he found the widowed male sitting upon the nest, and so unwilling to leave it as almost to permit himself to be captured by the hand. His fidelity and his entreaties were not disregarded. His nest, eggs, and young, were left undisturbed; and, as they were visited from time to time, the young nestlings were found to thrive under his vigilant care. The eggs were hatched out, and in time the whole five were reared in safety. This single incident shows how wide is the interval between these Cuckoos and their European namesakes.
The egg resembles that of the other, but is more spherical and of a much darker shade of green. The color is equally fugitive, and even in a closed cabinet fades so that the eggs of the two species are undistinguishable, except in size and shape. This egg averages 1.10 inches in length by .90 of an inch in breadth.
Genus CROTOPHAGA, Linnæus.
Crotophaga, Linnæus, Systema Naturæ, 1756. (Type, C. ani, Linn.).
Gen. Char. Bill as long as the head, very much compressed; the culmen elevated into a high crest, extending above the level of the forehead. Nostrils exposed, elongated. Point of bill much decurved. Wings lengthened, extending beyond the base of the tail, the fourth or fifth quill longest. Tail lengthened, of eight graduated feathers. Toes long, with well-developed claws.
The feathers in this genus are entirely black; those on the head and neck with a peculiar stiffened metallic or scale-like border. The species are not numerous, and are entirely confined to America.
Crotophaga ani.
8639 ♂
Of Crotophaga, two species have heretofore been recognized in the United
States, C. ani and C. rugirostris. We are, however, satisfied that there is but one here and in the West Indies, C. ani (extending to South America). C. major of South America, and C. sulcirostris, found from Mexico southward, are the other species, and are easily distinguishable by the following characters among others:—
C. major.[122] Length, 17.00; wing, 7.50; outline of culmen abruptly angulated in the middle. Hab. Brazil and Trinidad.
C. ani. Length, 13.00 to 15.00; wing, 6.00; culmen gently curved from base. Bill smooth or with a few transverse wrinkles. Hab. Northeastern South America, West Indies, and South Florida.
C. sulcirostris.[123] Length, 12.00; wing, 5.00; culmen gently curved. Bill with several grooves parallel to culmen. Hab. Middle America, from Yucatan, south to Ecuador.
THE ANI; THE SAVANNA BLACKBIRD.
Crotophaga ani, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 154.—Burmeister, Th. Bras. (Vögel.) 1856, 254.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 72, pl. lxxxiv, f. 2.—Cabanis, Mus. Hein. IV, 100. Crotophaga minor, Less. Traité Orn. 1831, 130. Crotophaga lævirostra, Swainson, An. in Menag. 2¼ Cent. 1838, 321. Crotophaga rugirostra, Swainson, 2¼ Cent. 1838, 321, fig. 65, bill.—Burm. Th. Bras. II, 1856, 235.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 71, pl. lxxxiv, f. 1.
Crotophaga ani.
Sp. Char. Bill at the nostrils nearly twice as high as broad; the nostrils elliptical, a little oblique, situated in the middle of the lower half of the upper mandible. Gonys nearly straight. Indications of faint transverse wrinkles along the upper portion of the bill, nearly perpendicular to the culmen. Legs stout; tarsus longer than middle toe, with seven broad scutellæ anteriorly extending round to the middle of each side; the remaining or posterior portion of each side with a series of quadrangular plates, corresponding nearly to the anterior ones, the series meeting behind in a sharp ridge. The wings reach over the basal third of the tail. The primary quills are broad and acute, the fourth longest; the first about equal to the tertials. The tail is graduated, the outer about an inch and a half shorter than the middle ones.
The color generally is black, with steel-blue reflections above, changing sometimes into violet; duller beneath. The pointed feathers of the head, neck, and breast, with a bronzy metallic border, appearing also to some extent on the wing-coverts and upper part of back. Iris brown. Length, 13.20; wing, 6.00; tail, 8.30; tarsus, 1.48.
Hab. West Indies; South Florida. Accidental near Philadelphia. Localities: Sta. Cruz (Newton, Ibis, I, 148).
As already remarked, we do not find reason to admit more than one species of Crotophaga in the United States and the West Indies, as in the great variation in size, and to some extent in shape of bill, there is nothing constant. The species can hardly be considered more than a straggler in the United States, although a considerable number of specimens have been seen or taken within its limits. That in the Smithsonian collection was killed on the Tortugas; but there is one in the collection of the Philadelphia Academy, killed near Philadelphia by Mr. John Krider, and presented by him. Mr. Audubon also possessed a pair said to have been killed near New Orleans.
Habits. This species, the common Savanna Blackbird of the West India Islands, is probably only an accidental visitant of the United States, and may not strictly belong to the avi-fauna of North America.
It is common throughout the West Indies, and in South America as far south as Brazil. Gosse states it to be one of the most abundant birds of Jamaica. In speaking of its breeding habits he mentions that it was universally maintained by the inhabitants that these birds unite and build in company an immense nest of basket-work, made by the united labors of the flock. This is said to be placed on a high tree, where many parents bring forth and educate a common family. This statement is reiterated by Mr. Hill, who says that a small flock of about six individuals build but one large and capacious nest, to which they resort in common, and rear their young together.
In July Mr. Gosse found the nest of one of these birds in a guazuma tree. It was a large mass of interwoven twigs, and was lined with leaves. There were eight eggs in the nest, and the shells of many others were scattered beneath the tree.
Mr. Newton found these birds very common in St. Croix. He mentions meeting with a nest of this species June 17. It was about five feet from the ground, on a large tamarind-tree. He speaks of it as a rude collection of sticks and twigs, large and deep, partly filled with dry leaves, among which were fourteen eggs, and around the margin were stuck upright a few dead twigs of tamarind. Five days afterwards he went to the nest, where he found but nine eggs, two of which he took. Three days later he found but four eggs in the nest, it having been robbed in the interim; but six days afterwards the number had again been increased to eight. He never found the eggs covered up as if intentionally done. The nest was evidently common property. There were generally two or three birds sitting close to or on it, and up in the tree perhaps four or five more, who would continue screeching all the time he was there. Mr. Newton adds that when the egg is fresh the cretaceous deposit on the shell is very soft and easily scored, but it soon hardens. It is mentioned in De Sagra’s list as one of the common birds of Cuba.
Mr. J. F. Hamilton, in his interesting paper (Ibis, July, 1871) on the birds of Brazil, mentions finding this species very common at Santo Paulo. There was scarcely an open piece of ground where there were but few bushes that had not its flock of these birds. They were especially fond of marshy ground. They were also often to be seen running about among a herd of cattle, picking up the insects disturbed by the animals. They seemed utterly regardless of danger, and would scarcely do more than flit from one bush to another, even when the numbers of their flock were being greatly thinned. When concealed in the long grass, they would allow themselves to be almost trodden on before rising. The Brazilians seldom molest them, as their flesh is not good to eat.
This bird is known as the Black Witch in St. Croix,—a name Mr. Newton supposes to be due to its peculiar call-note, which sounds like que-yuch. Its familiar habits and its grotesque appearance make it universally known. It is a favorite object of attack to the Chickaree Flycatcher, in which encounters
it is apt to lose its presence of mind, and to be forced to make an ignominious retreat.
These birds are said to be attracted by collections of cattle and horses, upon the bodies of which they are often seen to alight, feeding upon the ticks with which they are infested. They are at once familiar and wary, permitting a limited acquaintance, but a too near approach sets the whole flock in motion. It moves in a very peculiar gliding flight. In feeding it is omnivorous; besides insects of all kinds, such as ticks, grasshoppers, beetles, etc., it eats berries of various kinds, lizards, and other kinds of food. It catches insects on the ground by very active jumps, pursues them on the wing, and with its sharp thin bill digs them out in the earth. They hop about and over the bodies of cattle, especially when they are lying down, and when grazing they have been observed clinging to a cow’s tail, picking insects from it as far down even as its extremity.
Mr. Hill states that these birds are downward, not upward, climbers. They enter a tree by alighting on the extremity of some main branch, and reach its centre by creeping along the stem, and seldom penetrate far among the leaves.
The eggs of this species are of a regularly oval shape, equally obtuse at either end. In color they are of a uniform light-blue, with a very slight tinge of green. This is usually covered, but not entirely concealed, by a white cretaceous coating. When fresh, this may readily be rubbed off, but becomes hard and not easily removed. The eggs vary in size from 1.40 to 1.50 inches in length, and in breadth from 1.10 to 1.15 inches.