420 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 



a sort of self-satisfied sound, difficult to reproduce on paper; in fact, they 

 utter a variety of notes when at ease and undisturbed, among others a 

 metalUc-sounding 'klunk' which seems to cost them considerable'effort." 



TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 



Feathers of the throat lanceolate and the tips distinct from each other, Hke the hackles 

 of a rooster; tail much graduated, the lateral feathers two inches or more shorter than the 

 middle ones; entire" plumage dark black, with bluish, greenish and purplish reflections; 

 bill, legs and feet black; iris dark brown. The female averages a little smaller than the male, 

 and the full grown young are hardly different. 



Length 22 to 2G.50 inches; wing 16.50 to 18; tail 9.20 to 10.50; culmen 2.65 to 3.45. 



194. Crow. Corvus brachyrhynchos brachyrhynchos Br dim. (488) 



Synonyms: Common Crow, American Crow, Carrion Crow. — Corvus corone, Wils., 

 Bonap., Nutt. — Corvus americanus, Aud. and most American authors. — Corvus frugivorus, 

 Ridgw. 1881, Coues, 1875, and some others. — Corvus brachyrhynchos, Brehm,' 1822. 



Figure 99. 



Entirely black, including bill and feet; length about 18 inches; feathers 

 of throat with normal blended tips. Much larger than the Crow Blackbird 

 and much smaller than the Raven; otherwise easily separable from both 

 by the simply rounded, not pointed, tail. 



Distribution. — North America, from the Fur Countries to the southern 

 border of the United States. Locally distributed in the west. 



In Michigan the Crow is an abundant bird during the larger part of the 

 year and probably a few hardy individuals remain in all parts of the state 

 even during severe winters. By far the greater number, however, with- 

 draw from the state before the first of November, passing southward in 

 large flocks and wintering, as is well known, in immense numbers through- 

 out a belt of country less than two hundred miles in width, extending from 

 Chesapeake Bay westward to Missouri and Kansas. Within this belt 

 there are numerous "Crow-roosts" at each of which several hundred 

 thousand Crows congregate each night to roost after foraging the sur- 

 rounding country over an area often fifty miles in diameter during the day. 



Crows begin to reenter the state from the south in February, sometimes 

 as early as the middle of the month, but more often toward the close, and 

 during March most of the Crows which nest in Michigan reach the locations 

 selected for that purpose. Crows which proceed beyond our northern 

 limits to nest continue to pass through the state until late in April or even 

 the first week in May, at which time many of our local Crows already have 

 young in their nests. 



In the southern part of the state nest-building begins early in April, 

 while along the northern border this may be postponed until the first of 

 May. The nest is always bulky and consists largely of sticks, twigs, grasses, 

 roots and similar fibrous material, to which sometimes masses of sod or 

 even mud may be added. The nest is usually placed at a considerable 

 height above the ground, and in regions where evergreens are plentiful 

 these are most often selected. The eggs are commonly five or six in number, 

 but may range from four to eight. They vary interminably in color and 

 markings, but usually have a bluish or greenish white ground color heavily 

 spotted and blotched with different shades of brown. They average 1.69 

 by 1.17 inches. 



