A History of North American Birds, Land Birds. Volume 1. Robert Ridgway

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СКАЧАТЬ white; sides and anal region light brownish-chestnut. No whitish on wings or tail. Tail nearly even, or slightly emarginate and rounded. Lateral feathers about .20 shortest. Length about 5 inches; wing, 2.40; tail, 2.66.

      Hab. Northern portions of North America, from Atlantic to Pacific.

      Specimens from the most northern localities appear larger than those from Maine and Nova Scotia (P. littoralis, Bryant), with proportionally longer tails (3.00 inches, instead of 2.40). We can, however, detect no other difference.

      The Parus sibiricus of Europe is very similar in coloration and characters to the P. hudsonicus. The principal difference is seen in the cheeks, which in sibiricus are pure white, this color extending along the entire side of the neck, widening behind, and extending round towards the back. In hudsonicus the cheeks behind the eyes and sides of the neck are ash-gray, the white being confined to the region below or near the eye. The smoky-gray of the upper part of head and neck in sibiricus is in a stronger contrast with the brighter rufescent-gray of the back, and is separated from it by an obscure, concealed, whitish dorsal half-collar, represented in hudsonicus only by a dull grayish shade in the plumage.

      Habits. This interesting species, one of the liveliest and most animated of its family, belongs to the northern and eastern sections of North America. It is found in the eastern and northern portions of Maine, and probably also in the northern parts of New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire. In the heavily wooded mountain-valley of Errol, in the latter State, Mr. Maynard met with this bird in the latter part of October, in company with the common atricapillus. In the same month he also obtained two birds in Albany, in the northwestern corner of Maine. A single specimen was taken at Concord, Massachusetts, October 29, by Mr. William Brewster.

      Near Calais it is resident, but not common. It is more abundant in the islands of the Bay of Fundy, where it takes the place, almost exclusively, of the atricapillus. The writer first met with these lively little wood-sprites in 1850, in the thick swampy woods which cover one of the small islands near Grand Menan. Their general appearance as they flitted through the woods, or rustled restlessly among the tangled débris of decaying trees and underbrush with which the forest was choked, was not unlike that of our common Black-Cap. Yet there was an indescribable something both in their cries and in their manners that at once suggested a difference of species. To my ear their cries were sharper, clearer, and a trifle harsher. There was none of that resonant jingle so full of charm in the Chickadee. Their notes, too, were more articulate, more like distinct words, and were brought out at certain times with an emphasis the effect of which was very striking. Beginning with tschā-dēē, the dēē-dēē-dēē was reiterated with an almost incessant volubility.

      It seemed to be a more retiring bird, never frequenting the houses, but keeping closely to thick and retired woods. Yet it is not a timid species, but seemed entirely unmindful of our presence, or, when mindful of it, to resent it as an impropriety, rather than to fear it as a danger. They apparently had nests or young at the time of my visit, though I could not detect their locality. One pair became at last so annoyed at my prolonged presence as to manifest their uneasiness by keeping within a few feet of my head, following me wherever I went, and without ceasing from their close surveillance until I finally left their grove and emerged into the open country. All the time they brought out the cry of dēē-dēē with a clear, ringing emphasis that was almost startling.

      A few days later, being at Halifax, Mr. Andrew Downes, the naturalist, took me to the nest of these birds in a small grove in the vicinity of that city. The nest was in a small beech-tree, and had been cut through the living wood. The excavation, which was not more than two feet from the ground, was about ten inches in depth, was in a horizontal position only about two inches, where it turned abruptly downward, and from a width of an inch and a half assumed a width of three, and a depth of seven or eight inches. This was warmly lined with feathers and soft fur. The nest contained young birds. These particulars we only ascertained when we had laid bare the excavation by a sharp hatchet. Though disappointed in our search for eggs, yet we witnessed a very touching manifestation of devotion on the part of the parents, and of neighborly solicitude in various other inmates of the grove, which was at once most interesting and a scene long to be remembered.

      With all the self-sacrificing devotion of the Black-Cap, these birds displayed a boldness and an aggressive intrepidity that at once commanded our respect and admiration. I never witnessed anything quite equal to it. They flew at our faces, assailed our arms as we wielded the invading hatchet, and it was difficult not to do them even unintentional injury without abandoning our purpose. Before we could examine the nest they had entered, and had to be again and again removed. As soon as we were satisfied that the nest of this heroic pair did not contain what we sought, we left them, and turned to look with equal admiration upon the indignant assembly of feathered remonstrants by which we were surrounded. The neighboring trees swarmed with a variety of birds, several of which we had never before seen in their summer homes. There were the Red-Poll Warbler, the Black and Yellow Warbler, and many others, all earnestly and eloquently crying out shame upon our proceedings.

      Dr. Bryant, in his Notes on the Birds of Yarmouth, N. S., etc., mentions finding quite a number of this species on Big Mud Island, near that place. A pair of these birds with their young were seen by him near Yarmouth on the 3d of July. Their habits seemed to him identical with those of the Black-Cap. The young were fully grown and could fly with ease, yet their parents were so solicitous about their safety that he could almost catch them with his hand. Their notes appeared to him similar to those of our common species, but sharper and more filing, and can be readily imitated by repeating, with one’s front teeth shut together, the syllables tzēē-dēē-dēē-dēē.

      Mr. Audubon found a nest of this Titmouse in Labrador. It was built in a decayed stump about three feet from the ground, was purse-shaped, eight inches in depth, two in diameter, and its sides an inch thick. It was entirely composed of the finest fur of various quadrupeds, chiefly of the northern hare, and all so thickly and ingeniously matted throughout as to seem as if felted by the hand of man. It was wider at the bottom than at the top. The birds vehemently assailed the party.

      Mr. Ross, in notes communicated to the late Mr. Kennicott, mentions that specimens of this species were shot at Fort Simpson, October 13, in company with P. septentrionalis, and others were afterwards seen towards the mountains. The notes he describes as harsher than those of the septentrionalis. The Smithsonian museum contains specimens from Fort Yukon and Great Slave Lake, besides the localities already referred to. Mr. Dall found it the commonest Titmouse at Nulato, abundant in the winter, but not present in the spring.

      The eggs of this species measure .56 by .47 of an inch, are of a rounded oval shape, and with a white ground are somewhat sparingly marked with a few reddish-brown spots. These are usually grouped in a ring around the larger end.

Genus PSALTRIPARUS, Bonap

      Psaltriparus, Bonap. Comptes Rendus, XXXI, 1850, 478. (Type, P. melanotis.)

      Ægithaliscus, Cabanis, Museum Heineanum, 1851, 90. (Type, Parus erythrocephalus.)

      Psaltria, Cassin, Ill. N. Am. Birds, 1853, 19.

      Gen. Char. Size very small and slender. Bill very small, short, compressed, and with its upper outline much curved for the terminal half. Upper mandible much deeper than under. Tail long, slender, much graduated; much longer than the wings; the feathers very narrow. Tarsi considerably longer than the middle toe. No black on the crown or throat. Eyes white in some specimens, brown in others. Nest purse-shaped; eggs unspotted, white.

      No bird of this genus belongs to the eastern portion of the United States. The three species may be defined as follows:—

      A. Head striped with black on the sides.

      P. melanotis. The stripes passing under СКАЧАТЬ