II? 



Oiytoflitu itraiUnlii. 



Kryikropluyi (Sw.) Bill u in Oxylophtu ; head not created ; nos- 

 tril* oval ; wing* lengthened, pointed, extending beyond the teil- 

 eoven, the third quill longest, the second much shorter than the 

 fourth ; Urei moderate, naked. They .inhabit the New World, and 

 rear their own young. 



K. Amtnetua* (tWW Carolinauit, Wilson). The male has the 

 till as long a* the head, compressed, slightly arched, acute, scarcely 

 t rbut than in many Sylrvr ; upper mandible carinated above, 



its manrins acute and entire ; lower mandible cariuated beneath, 

 acute. NcMrtrils basal, lateral, linear-elliptical, half-closed by a mem- 

 brane. Feet abort, tarsus scutellate before and behind ; toes two 

 before, separated ; two behind, one of which is versatile, the sole fiat ; 

 claws steoder, compressed, aruhed. Plumage blended, slightly glossed. 

 loop, the first qu 



quill short, the third longest, the primaries 

 tapering. Tail long, graduated, of ten feathers, which are rather 



narrow and rounded. Upper mandible brownish-black, yellow on the 

 Burgio towards the bass ; under mandible yellow. Iris haxeL K. 

 gnjuli-Uuc. The general colour of the upper part*, including the 



wiug-corerU and two middle tail-feathers, U light greenish-brown, 

 deeper anteriorly. Primary quills with the inner webs browuish- 

 orange. Tail-feathers, excepting the two middle ones, black, the next 

 twu entirely black, the rest broadly tip|d with white, the outermost 

 white on the outer web. The under parts are grayish-white. ' Length, 

 121 inches ; extent of wings, 16 inches ; bill along the ridge, 1 in. 1, ; 

 along the gap, one inch and a third. The female differs very little 

 'nun the male in colouring. (Audubon.) 



The author whose specific description wo have given above, thus 

 graphically describe* the habits of the Yellow-Billed Cuckoo (CVeWw 

 I'arotimaaii of Wilson, Coceytui Amerifamtu of the Prince of Camno, 

 Cucultu Anuncao<u of Liuiucua, and Carolina Cookoo of Latham. 

 ' The flight of the bird U rapid, silent, and horisontal, ai it moves 

 rom one tree to another, or across a field r rn.-r. anil u generally 

 continued amongst the branches of the trees in our woods. When 

 making its way among the branches, it occasionally inclines the body 

 to either side, so as alternately to show its whole upper or under 

 parts. During its southward migration it fliea high in the air, and iu 

 such loose flocks that the birds might seem to follow each otli. r, 

 Instead of their keeping company together. 0n the other hand, early 

 in March, the greater number enter our southern boundaries singly, 

 the males arriving first, and the females a few weeks after. Th- 

 not fly iu a continued line, but iu a broad front, as, while travelling 

 with great rapidity in a steam-boat, so as to include s range of a hun- 

 dred miles in one day, I have observed this cuckoo crossing the Mis- 

 -i. i|>pi at many different points on the same day. At this season 

 they resort to the deepest shades of the forests, and intimate their 

 presence by the frequent repetition of their dull and unmusical notes, 

 which are not unlike those of the young bull-frog. These notes may 

 be represented by the word ' cow, cow,' repeated eight or ten times 

 with increasing rapidity. In fact, from the resemblance of Hs notes 

 to that word, this Cuekoo is named Cow-Uird in nearly every purl of 

 the Union. The Dutch farmers of Pennsylvania know it better by 

 the name of Kain-Crow. and iu Louisiana the French settlers call it 

 Coucou. It robs smaller birds of their eggs, which it sucks on all 

 occasions, and is cowardly and shy, without being vigilant. On this 

 latter account it often falls a prey to several species of Hawks, of 

 which the Pigeon-Hawk (Palco columbaria*) may be considered as its 

 most dangerous enemy. It prefers the southern states for its resi- 

 dence, and when very mild winters occur in Louisiana some indi- 

 viduals remain there, net finding it necessary to go farther south. 

 This bird is not abundant anywhere, and yet U found very far north. 

 I have met with it in all the low grounds and damp places in Massa- 

 chusetts, along the line of Upper Canada, pretty high on the Mixsis- 

 gippi and Arkansas, and in every state between these boundary-linen. 

 Its appearance in the state of New York seldom takes place before 

 the beginning of May, and at Green Bay not until the middle of that 

 month. A pair here and there seem to appropriate certain tracts to 

 themselves, where they rear their young in peace and plenty. They 

 feed on insects, such as caterpillars and butterflies, as well as on 

 berries of many kinds, evincing a special predilection for the mul- 

 berry. In autumn they eat many grapes, and I have seen them sup- 

 porting themselves by a momentary motion of their wings opposite a 

 bunch, as if selecting the ripest, when they would seize it and return 

 to a branch, repeating their visits in this manner until satiated. They 

 now and then descend to the ground to pick up a wood snail or a 

 beetle. They are extremely awkward at walking, and move iu an 

 itmUing manner, or leap along sidewise, for which the shortness of their 

 legs is ample excuse. They are seldom seen perched conspicuously 

 on a twig, but on the contrary are generally to be found amongst the 

 thickest boughs and foliage, where they emit their notes until late in 

 autumn, at which time they discontinue them. The nest is simple, 

 flat, composed of a few dry sticks and grass, formed umch like that of 

 imon dove, and like it fastened to a horizontal branch, ft<-n 

 within the reach of man, who seldom disturbs it. It makes no p u 

 ticular selection as to situation or the nature of the tree, but settles 

 anywhere indiscriminately. The eggs are four or five, of a rather 

 elongated oval form, and bright green colour. They rear only one 

 brood in a season, unless the eggs are removed or destroyed. Tim 

 young are principally fed with insects during the first weeks. Toward* 

 autumn they become very rat, and are fit for being eaten, although 

 few persons, excepting the Creoles of Louisiana, shoot them for the 

 table." ('Ornithological liiography,' vol. i. p. 18.) 



CAaleila, Less. bill and general structure as in C*r<ilt. Plumage 



metallic green ; upper inaudible entire ; nostrils circular ; wings 



I, the third quill longest, the second much longer than th 



fourth ; tarsi very short, almost entirely plumed ; rump and upper 



tail-covers soft Inhabits the tropies of the Old World. Pam 



C. attratta; Cuculut auratm of authors (Swainsnn). Of this g.'nus 

 Mr. Swainnon nays, "I feel much more scrupulous in adopting 

 the genus Chalcilet, than in proving that of Ki-yilir,ij,l,r>ii. The 

 beautiful little shining cuckoos, indeed, which have thus beeu 

 detached, have altogether the appearance of belonging to n different 

 type from those of the genus Cucitltu ; and this idea is strengthened, 

 when we find that there are already four or five species, all 

 distinguished at first sight by their diminutive size and their beautiful 

 golden-green plumage. On the other hand, their actual structure U 

 so completely that of an European group, that I must beg to be 



