124 



NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



Family CERTHIADiE. — The Creepers. 



Char. Primaries ten ; first A'ery short ; less than half the second. Tail long, wedge- 

 shaped, the feathers stiffened and acute. Bill slender, much compressed and curved. 

 Outer lateral toe much longest ; hind toe exceeding both the middle toe and the tarsus, 

 which is scutellate anteriorly and very short. Entire basal joint of middle toe united to 

 the lateral. 



Genus CERTHIA, Linn. 



Certhia, Linnaeus, Syst. Nat. ed. 10th, 1758, 112. (Type, C. familiaris.) (See Reichen- 

 BACH, Handbuch, I, ii, 1853, 256, for a monograph of the genus.) 



Gex. Char. Plumage soft and loose. Bill as long as head, not notched, compressed ; 



all its lateral outlines decurved. Nostrils not 



overhung by feathers, linesir, with an incum- 

 bent thickened scale, as in Troglodytes. No 

 rictal bristles, and the loral and frontal feathers 

 smooth, witiiout bristly shafts. Tarsus scutel- 

 late anteriorly, shorter than middle toe, which 

 again is shorter than hind toe. All claws very 

 long, much curved and compressed; outer lat- 

 eral toe much the longer; basal joint of middle 

 toe entirely adherent to adjacent ones. Wings 

 rather pointed, about equal to the tail, the 

 feathers of which are much pointed, with 

 Primaries ten ; first less than half the second. Nest in holes of trees ; 



Certhia americann. 



stiffened shafts 



eggs white, sprinkled with reddish. 



Of the Certhiadce but one genus be- 

 longs to America, — Certhia, with its one 

 small species of considerable variability 

 with locality. The characters above 

 given include both family and generic 

 characters, derived from this one genus. 

 This is readily distinguished by the de- 

 curved, compressed bill ; absence of 

 notch and bristles ; exposed linear nos- 

 trils with incumbent scales ; connate 

 middle toe, very long claws, short tarsi, 

 pointed and stiffened tail-feathers, etc. 



The American and European varieties (they can scarcely be called species) 

 resemble each other very closely, though they appear to be distinguished by 

 such differences as the following : — 



The two European races, C. familiaris and C. costm, both differ from' all 

 the American varieties in having the crissum scarcely tinged with yellowish. 



Certhin amertcana. 



