410 LIFE HISTOEIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



distributed, while in southern Arizona and New Mexico they Are rare. Mr. F. 

 Stephens writes nie that he saw Crows on Big Sandy Cpeek, TiO miles east of 

 Fort Mojave, Arizona, in February, 1880, and tliat he shot a specimen on the 

 Mimbres River, southern New Mexico, in April, 1876. I shot a male near 

 Tucson, Arizona, on April 13, 1872, but saw very few others, and. failed to find it 

 breeding there. 



The longevity of the Crow has been generally admitted, and I had always 

 thought theywere extremely hardy; but this seems to be questionable. During 

 January, 1893, large numbers perished in the vicinity of Washingtcm, District 

 of Columbia, from having the cornea frozen during the cold, weather occurring 

 about that time, which resulted in blindness and starvation. Mr. Robert Ridg- 

 way, of the Smithsonian Institution, showed me a number he had picked up, and 

 assured me that hundreds could be seen laying around in the vicinity, while 

 many others were partly blind.' 



Dr. M. G. Ellzey, writing from Cumberstone, Maryland, I'eports the same 

 occurrence in that vicinity, and believes many thousands perished in this 

 manner.^ 



I have only once seen a wild bird parth' blind. This was in 1881, wliile 

 stationed at Fort Walla Walla, Washing-ton. A Western Horned Owl was broualit 

 to me alive by one of my men, who, while out hunting, saw it and tried to get 

 within reach to shoot it. It heard him a])proacliing, and in attempting to fly 

 away was stunned by striking a tree. It fell down, and before it reco^"ered he 

 ca])tured it. One of its eyes was in the same condition as those of the Wash- 

 ington Crows, and the other was likewise aff'ected, but it was still able to see a 

 little out of it. The bird was in poor condition, but not near starvation. I kept 

 it for many weeks, and it soon became remarkalily tame and gentle, a very 

 uiuisual thing for birds of this S2:)ecies, and flntdlv I sent it alive to a friend at 

 Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, for examination, and it reached 

 its destination safely. 



The only plausible reason I can assign for this affliction of the Crows found 

 by Mr. Ridgway is that while returning from their feeding grounds thev were 

 compelled to face an extremely cold and penetrating wind, and having to keeji 

 their eyes open to see where they were going, they were frozen. A strange fact 

 was discovered in this connection. Neither Mr. Ridgwav nor* his companions 

 could discover a single dead Fish Crow among the many specimens examined, 

 although they were well rejn-esented among those flying about. 



The Crow has a variety of call notes, and is rather noisy at times. The one 

 most frequently heard is a harsh "cawli, cawh," and again a "krali, krah," 

 besides a number of other muflled sounds, generally uttered while at rest at the 

 roost. They are graceful birds on the wing, especially so during the mating 

 season, when pairs, wliile chasing each other aroimd, may be seen performing all 

 sorts of aerial evolutions, turning complete summei'saults, now flying on one 



' For a fuller account see Science, Fel). 10, 1893. 

 =See Forest and Stream, March 16, 1893. 



