262 BULLETIN 191, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



especially when the palmetto fruit is ripe enough to cat. It associates freely with 

 the Boat-tailed and Florida Crackles, and also with the Red-winged Blackbird 

 and the Rice-bird, and I have seen flocks including all these species enjoying 

 themselves about the town. It always retreats before any small bird that under- 

 takes to chase it, though it does so apparently because it is too indolent to drive 

 off its assailant, and not on account of timidity. Omnivorous in the fullest sense, 

 it is always on the lookout for any edible morsel. I have seen Florida Crows 

 attach themselves to the Osprey as soon as the latter captured a fish, and tag 

 it about as if to secure any scraps that might fall during the meal. The Osprey 

 is disturbed by this intrusion and tries to strike the Crows with its wings if they 

 come too close. 



Voice. — In addition to the ordinary crow notes, two observers have 

 noted some notes that seem to be peculiar to this subspecies. Mr. 

 Mortimer (1890) says: "The Florida Crow has a peculiar note that I 

 never heard uttered by any crow at the North. It is a loud, rattling 

 sound something like the c.ry of the Cuckoo, and puzzled me much as 

 to its source until I detected the bird in the act of producing it." And 

 Mr. Howell (1932) refers to what is perhaps the same note: "It sug- 

 gested the rattling call of the Sandhill Crane, though not so loud, and 

 resembled, also, the 'churring' note of the Red-bellied Woodpecker." 



CORVUS BRACHYBHYNCHOS HESPERIS Rldgwajr 



WESTERN CROW 



Plates 43-45 



HABITS 



The western crow is decidedly smaller than the eastern crow, with a 

 relatively smaller and slenderer bill. It is very close to the southern 

 crow (paulus) in size, but it has a longer wing and a slightly smaller 

 bill; furthermore, it is widely separated from it in its breeding range. 

 Its range, as given in the 1931 Check-list, is "western North America, 

 from central British Columbia, southern Saskatc.hewan, and Montana 

 south to northern Lower California and central New Mexico." It ap- 

 parently breeds very sparingly, if at all, in the extreme southern por- 

 tions of its range, where it occurs mainly as a winter visitor. Just 

 where it intergrades with the eastern crow on the north and east does 

 not seem to be definitely established. We listed the birds we found 

 in southwestern Saskatchewan as hesperis, and a bird taken at Walsh, 

 in southern Alberta, was referred by Dr. Bishop to this race. Frank L. 

 Farley tells me that the birds around Camrose, central Alberta, are of 

 the eastern race. The western crow is very irregularly distributed 

 throughout its range, being rare or entirely lacking in many regions 

 and exceedingly abundant in others ; in the regions where it is abundant 

 it is much more numerous than the eastern crow is anywhere, often 

 nesting in colonies. 



