gl.. 



PIC us VILLOSUS. -^'3 



bc! The [)rijlial)le extinction of any species of bird appears to mc worthy the attention 

 of thv N;itional Grovernment, for such a cabimity is to be deplored by the entire Sci(;ntifio 

 World. Some efforts have been made by the Florida legislature to protect birds which 

 o{^cur in that state from wanton destruction but I understand that these Ltws have been 

 repealed. If this be a fact, such a proceeding cannot be too severely censured for, unless 

 such attractive birds as the Herons, Spoonbills, Parokeets, Anhingas, Ivory-billed Wood- 

 peckers, etc., etc., be protected by urgent laws, it will not be many years before Florida, 

 once so fimous for the varied hues of her feathered tribe which added so much to the pict- 

 uresque beauty of her winding streams and wooded shores; Florida! the land of flowers and 

 of l)irds, \ii\[ have lost one of her greatest charms — the birds: and, if it were possible for 

 the hand of vandalism to destroy them, I doubt if it would even leave her the flowers. 

 Sliould not we, then, who love to contemplate the unmolested beauties of Nature, make an 

 effort to preserve them for the enjoyment of the coming generations? I, for one, think so 

 and let us keep in mind that, if this is to be done at all, it must be done quickly, certainly 

 as regards sjch Ijirds as the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. 



CKNUS VII. PICUS. THE BLACK AND WHITE WOODPECKERS. 



Ckn. Cm. Strrnuiii. not /wire as wide as the hciij/tt of the keel. Marijtnal indentations, nearli/ criual in depth to tlie 

 hci(jlh of theheel; outer, more shallow than inner. Manubrium, mode.rale. Terminal hook of srapnl a, variable. Tonijue, 

 provided with a l.on<}, e.Ttensiblc sheath, while the eeralo-hi/als arc i/reatly clonrjoted and extend around the bath of I lie skull. 

 Proo-'-ntriculus, stmll. StamiA, not venj muscular. Salivary (/lands, not very toeU developed. Bothmandilile'<,slraiijht. 

 .Head, not crested. 



In meml)Brs of this genus, the prevailing color above isblMck, relieved by white markings an'l the lunlcs arc marked, to 

 n greater or less extent, on the occiput with scarlet. The tail feathers are very acuminate. The hind toe is less than one 

 l-alf the length of the outer which is jirojected backward. The head is notstrickingly large nor is the neck very thin. The 

 hill is about equal to the head in K'ugth. There are no laryngeal nmsclcs, excepting the sterno-trachealis wliich is very 

 stout. The tympnnifonii niembrano is present and altlmugh there is an os transversale, yet it does not support a scmdunar 

 r.ieiubi-ane. The oesophagus is without dilatation and opens into a small proventricuhis which measures about • 15 in exter- 

 nal diameter by -30 in length in borealis. The gastric glands are rather numerous, simple, and occupy a zonular bi;nd. The 

 stomach is rather globular in form and quite large, while the walls ai'c not very thick, and the lining iiicmhranc is finely vi- 

 gise. The fold of the duodenum is not very long, inclosing a wide jiancrcas. The s|ileen is an elliptical body lying over 

 tlie cardiac opening of the stomach. Both lobes of the liver nroal)out equal in size. There arc three species within our 

 limits. 



PICUS VILLOSUS. 

 Hairy Woodpecker. 



Pieus vilhsus LiN\., Syst. Nat., I, ITfif), 1715. 



DESCKII'TIOX. 



Sp. On. Form, robust. Size, inrgc. Sternum, stout. Tongue, rather thin and horny at the ti]) which is provided 

 with barbs for one third of the terminal length. The extensible sheath occupies about one half of the length of the tongue. 

 Terminal hook of scapula, angled above anl below. 



Color. Adult male. Glossy black above, including sides of head and line extending down on to the the sides, with 

 the hri-itly f jathei-s at base of liill, line extending from just in front of eye, inclosing it, and reaching occiput, line from the 

 1)ase of bill, running dmvTi si l^s of nisk, broad lino alon^ mi lib of back, spots on outer webs of wing feathers, all but ba- 

 sal portion of three outer tail feathers, and tips of next i)air, wl.ite Patches on sides of occiput, scarlet. Under portion, 

 imiu.ling under wing coverts, white, with the latter spotter 1 with black on the center of the second row of feathers. 



Adult female. Simila:- to the male, liut lacks tlic scarl.t on the head which is replaced by black , and tl'.c wl.ite on the 

 tail i ; uit. as extended. 



