THE SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER. ace 
No. 135. 
SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER. 
A. O. U. No. 443. Muscivora forficata (Gmel.). 
Synonyms.—SWaALLOW-TAILED FLYCATCHER; SCISSOR-TAIL. 
Description.—Adults: General color hoary-ash, lighter below, white on 
throat, darkening on nape, mingling with ochraceous or rusty on back; a con- 
cealed scarlet or orange crown-patch; wings fuscous to blackish, with hoary and 
buffy-gray edgings; first primary deeply emarginate and attenuate; tail deeply 
forked, the outer pairs greatly produced —three or four times the length of 
shortest feathers—the ordinary feathers black, and the longer ones black-tipped, 
but white or faint salmon-colored for four-fifths their length; a scarlet tuft on 
the side of the breast; lining of wings, sides of belly, and flanks bright salmon, 
fading on crissum; bill and feet black. Jmmatwre: Similar; tail undeveloped ; 
no crown-patch; first primary not emarginate. Length to fork of tail 7.50-8.50 
(190.5-215.9) ; wing about 5.00 (127.); tail 5.00-10.00 (127.-254.); bill .65 
(16.5). Females somewhat smaller, and with less developed tails. : 
Recognition Marks.—Chewink size (comparing body sizes, exclusive of 
tail) ; hoary-ash, scarlet and salmon coloration; tail greatly produced, deeply 
bifurcated. 
Nesting.—Does not breed in Ohio. ‘Nest, of sticks, etc., lined with feathers 
and other soft materials built in trees. Eggs, 3-5, 89 x .67 (22.6 x 17.), pure 
white or creamy white, boldly but sparingly spotted with rich madder-brown and 
lilac-gray.” 
General Range.—Texas, Oklahoma, Indian Territory, southern [Kansas, 
southwestern Missouri, south through eastern Mexico to Costa Rica. Accidental 
in southern Florida (Key West), New Jersey, New England, York Factory 
(Hudson Bay Territory), etc. 
Range in Ohio.—Accidental. One record, by Mr. Frank H. Welder, near 
Marietta, May 20, 1894. 
THIS exceedingly graceful Flycatcher is known to be a great wanderer, 
but its normal range is confined to Texas, with adjacent territory on the north 
and south. The species is admitted to our state list on the authority of 
Mr. Oliver Davie, who reports a single example said to have been taken near 
Marietta. 
The Scissor-tail is so named from a habit it has of opening and closing its 
elongated tail-feathers like the blades of a pair of scissors. These remarkable 
appendages may possibly serve the bird as balancers, or brakes, in flight, but a 
more natural explanation would seem to be that they were provided to enablethe 
owner to work off his surplus energies, and to grace his bold sallies after 
