I had the gratification of receiving at London a diploma from the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec; and since then have been favoured with a list of the birds which have been observed in the environs of that city, by William Sheppard, Esq., his lady, and son, for which I offer them my most sincere thanks. I am also much indebted to the members of the Council of the Zoological Society of London, who have never ceased to furnish me with whatever American specimens their valuable museum contains, allowing me to take them to my house. I am farther indebted to my excellent and generous friend Professor J. T. Henslow of Cambridge for the continuance of his most kind services to me. Nor must I here omit mentioning the efficient aid I have received from Thomas Durham Weir, Esq. of Boghead, in the county of Linlithgow, and Mr Macduff Carfrae, Preserver of Animals in Edinburgh, who have kindly procured for me many specimens of British birds for comparison with such of our American species as seemed to be identical.

For several years past I have felt a great desire to place before the world an account of the digestive organs of our various birds. With this view I have, at a great expense, obtained specimens preserved entire in spirits. In collecting them I have received the most effectual aid from several of my American friends, residing in different parts of the country; and in particular from the Rev. Dr Bachman of Charleston in South Carolina, Colonel Theodore Anderson of Baltimore, Dr Richard Harlan of Philadelphia, Dr Thomas M. Brewer of Boston in Massachusetts, Thomas M’Culloch, Esq. of Pictou in Nova Scotia; Alexander Gordon, Esq. of London, who wrote to Havannah for Flamingoes; Jean Chartrand, Esq. who sent me a pair of these birds from Matanzas in Cuba; and from Captain Napoleon Coste of the United States’ Revenue Service. Besides the valuable contributions of these friends, to whom my warmest thanks are due, a vast number of specimens were procured by the members of my several parties, in Labrador, in Texas, and in various parts of the United States, as well as many purchased from Mr Ward of New York. An account of the digestive organs and trachea of these, generally concise, but occasionally of considerable length, you will find under the articles to which they refer, in the present volume. These anatomical descriptions, as well as the sketches by which they are sometimes illustrated, have been executed by my learned friend William Macgillivray, who in the most agreeable manner consented to undertake the labour, by no means small, of such a task, and to whom those who are interested in the progress of Ornithological science, as well as myself, must therefore feel indebted. These details I had resolved to present to you, because I have thought that no perfect knowledge of the affinities of species can be obtained until their internal organization is known. I believe the time to be fast approaching when much of the results obtained from the inspection of the exterior alone will be laid aside; when museums filled with stuffed skins will be considered insufficient to afford a knowledge of birds; and when the student will go forth not only to observe the habits and haunts of animals, but to procure specimens of them to be carefully dissected.

When I commenced the present volume, I expected that it should contain descriptions of all the species represented in the fourth volume of my Illustrations; but, on proceeding, I found that, even without Episodes, which I have been obliged to exclude, in order to make room for anatomical notices, of more interest to the scientific reader, I could not include more than the usual number of one hundred species. In the fifth and concluding volume, the printing of which has already begun, you will find Descriptions of upwards of a hundred species, many of which are new to science, together with Lists illustrative of the geographical distribution of birds, an Appendix containing additions and corrections, and, finally, a Synopsis of the Birds of North America, methodically arranged, with generic and specific characters.

JOHN J. AUDUBON.

Edinburgh, 1st November 1838.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
Canvass-back Duck,Fuligula valisneriana,[1]
Dusky Duck,Anas obscura,[15]
Bartramian Sandpiper,Totanus Bartramius,[24]
Turnstone,Strepsilas Interpres,[31]
Purple Gallinule,Gallinula martinica,[37]
Great Northern Diver or Loon,Colymbus glacialis,[43]
Blue Heron,Ardea cœrulea,[58]
Tell-Tale Godwit,Totanus melanoleucus,[68]
Common Tern,Sterna Hirundo,[74]
Spotted Sandpiper,Totanus macularius,[81]
American White Pelican,Pelecanus americanus,[88]
Long-tailed Duck,Fuligula glacialis,[103]
Blue-winged Teal,Anas discors,[111]
Black-headed or Laughing Gull,Larus Atricilla,[118]
Knot or Ash-coloured Sandpiper,Tringa islandica,[130]
Anhinga or Snake-Bird,Plotus Anhinga,[136]
Surf Duck,Fuligula perspicillata,[161]
American Avoset,Recurvirostra americana,[168]
Least Tern,Sterna minuta,[175]
Little Sandpiper,Tringa pusilla,[180]
Roseate Spoonbill,Platalea Ajaja,[188]
Red-headed Duck,Fuligula Ferina,[198]
Black Skimmer or Razor-billed Shearwater,Rhynchops nigra,[203]
Bonapartian Gull,Larus Bonapartii,[212]
Buffel-headed Duck,Fuligula Albeola,[217]
Common Gannet,Sula bassana,[222]
Shoveller Duck,Anas clypeata,[241]
Black-necked Stilt,Himantopus nigricollis,[247]
Yellow-breasted Rail,Rallus noveboracensis,[251]
American Ring-Plover,Charadrius semipalmatus,[256]
Goosander,Mergus Merganser,[261]
Pied Duck,Fuligula labradora,[271]
Green Heron,Ardea virescens,[274]
Black-bellied Plover,Charadrius helveticus,[280]
Red-breasted Snipe,Scolopax noveboracensis,[285]
Yellow-crowned Heron,Ardea violacea,[290]
American Bittern,Ardea minor,[296]
Brewer’s Duck,Anas Breweri,[302]
Little Guillemot,Uria Alle,[304]
Least Petrel,Thalassidroma pelagica,[310]
Great Auk,Alca impennis,[316]
Golden-eye Duck,Fuligula Clangula,[318]
Ruddy Duck,Fuligula rubida,[326]
Long-legged Sandpiper,Tringa Himantopus,[332]
American Widgeon,Anas americana,[337]
Black-throated Diver,Colymbus arcticus,[345]
Smew, or White Nun,Mergus Albellus,[350]
Gadwall Duck,Anas strepera,[353]
Least Water Rail,Rallus jamaicensis,[359]
Rocky-Mountain Plover,Charadrius montanus,[362]
Great Cinereous Owl,Strix cinerea,[364]
Black-shouldered Hawk,Falco dispar,[367]
Chestnut-backed Titmouse,Parus rufescens,[371]
Black-cap Titmouse,Parus atricapillus,[374]
Chestnut-crowned Titmouse,Parus minimus,[382]
Louisiana Tanager,Tanagra ludoviciana,[385]
Scarlet Tanager,Tanagra rubra,[388]
Macgillivray’s Finch,Fringilla Macgillivraii,[394]
Marsh Hawk,Falco cyaneus,[396]
Common Magpie,Corvus Pica,[408]
Pine Grosbeak,Pyrrhula Enucleator,[414]
Arkansaw Flycatcher,Musicapa verticalis,[422]
Swallow-tailed Flycatcher,Musicapa forficata,[426]
Say’s Flycatcher,Musicapa Saya,[428]
Winter Wren,Troglodytes hyemalis,[430]
Rock Wren,Troglodytes obsoletus,[443]
Dusky Grous,Tetrao obscurus,[446]
Yellow-billed Magpie,Corvus Nuttalli,[450]
Steller’s Jay,Corvus Stelleri,[453]
Ultramarine Jay,Corvus ultramarinus,[456]
Clarke’s Nutcracker,Nucifraga columbiana,[459]
Bohemian Chatterer,Bombycilla garrula,[462]
White-winged Crossbill,Loxia leucoptera,[467]
Lapland Longspur,Emberiza lapponica,[472]
Iceland or Jer Falcon,Falco islandicus,[476]
Band-tailed Pigeon,Columba fasciata,[479]
Rock Grous,Tetrao rupestris,[483]
Mountain Mocking Bird,Turdus montanus,[487]
Varied Thrush,Turdus nævius,[489]
American Dipper,Cinclus americanus,[493]
Cock of the Plains,Tetrao Urophasianus,[503]
Common Buzzard,Falco Buteo,[508]
Evening Grosbeak,Fringilla vespertina,[515]
Black-headed Grosbeak,Fringilla melanocephala,[519]
Sharp-shinned or Slate-coloured Hawk,Falco fuscus,[522]
Lesser Redpoll,Fringilla Linaria,[533]
Trumpeter Swan,Cygnus Buccinator,[536]
Scolopaceous Courlan,Aramus scolopaceus,[543]
Hawk Owl,Strix funereal,[550]
Ruff-necked Humming Bird,Trochilus rufus,[555]
Tengmalm’s Owl,Strix Tengmalmi,[559]
Snow Goose,Anser hyperboreus,[562]
Sharp-tailed Grous,Tetrao Phasianellus,[569]
Long-eared Owl,Strix Otus,[572]
Black-throated Bunting,Emberiza Americana,[579]
Bank Swallow or Sand Martin,Hirundo riparia,[584]
Rough-winged Swallow,Hirundo serripennis,[573]
Violet-green Swallow,Hirundo thalassina,[597]
Great American Egret,Ardea Egretta,[600]
Glossy Ibis,Ibis Falcinellus,[608]

LIST OF ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD.

Page
1.Digestive Organs of Pelecanus Americanus,One-third size,[99]
2.Sternum of Pelecanus Americanus,Rather less than half size,[102]
3.Stomach and proventriculus of Plotus Anhinga,Full size,[159]
4.Trachea and stomach of Platalea Ajaja,Half size,[197]
5.Stomach and proventriculus of Rhynchops nigra,Full size,[211]
6.Stomach, proventriculus, and intestine of Sula alba,One-third size,[239]
7.Stomach and œsophagus of Ardea virescens,Full size,[279]
8.Stomach and proventriculus of Charadrius helveticus,...[285]
9.Stomach and proventriculus of Scolopax noveboracensis,...[289]
10.Digestive organs of Ardea minor,...[301]
11.Digestive organs of Uria Alle,...[307]
12.Stomach and proventriculus of Uria Alle opened,...[307]
13.Cloaca and cœca of Uria Alle,...[307]
14.Digestive organs of Thalassidroma pelagica,...[314]
15.Stomach, proventriculus, and duodenum of Thalassidroma pelagica,...[314]
16.Stomach and intestines of Thalassidroma pelagica,...[314]
17.Digestive organs and inferior larynx of Anas americana,...[343]
18.Digestive organs and part of trachea of Anas strepera,...[358]
19.Digestive organs of Parus atricapillus,...[381]
20.Digestive Organs of Tanagra rubra,...[393]
21.Digestive Organs of Falco cyaneus,Half size,[407]
22.Digestive Organs of Pyrrhula Enucleator,Full size,[420]
23.Another view of the same,...[420]
24.Digestive Organs of Muscicapa verticalis,...[425]
25.Digestive Organs of Troglodytes hyemalis,...[442]
26.Digestive Organs of Loxia leucoptera,...[471]
27.Digestive Organs of Falco islandicus,...[478]
28.Digestive Organs of Falco fuscus,...[529]
29.Digestive organs of Aramus scolopaceus,Full size,[549]
30.Digestive organs of Strix funerea,...[554]
31.Cœca and cloaca of Strix funerea,...[554]
32.Aperture of ear of Strix funerea,...[554]
33.External ear of Strix Otus,...[578]
34.Cœca and cloaca of Strix Otus,...[578]
35.Digestive organs of Emberiza americana,...[583]
36.Tail of Hirundo riparia,...[595]
37.Tail of Hirundo serripennis,...[595]
38.Part of outer primary of Hirundo serripennis,...[595]
39.Cœcum and cloaca of Ardea Egretta,...[606]