96 BIRDS OF LA PLATA 



possessed it only to account for the strange attraction 

 such nests have for them, which seems like a recur- 

 rence to an ancestral habit* 



SCREAMING COW-BIRD 



Molothrus rufoaxillaris 



Silky black glossed with purple; wings and tail with a slight 

 greenish gloss; bill and feet black; length 8 inches. Female the 

 same ; slightly smaller. 



THIS bird has no vulgar name, not being distin- 

 guished from the Common Cow-bird by the country 

 people. The English name of Screaming Cow-bird, 

 which I have bestowed on it, will I think commend 

 itself as appropriate to those who observe it, for they 

 will always and at any distance be able to distinguish 

 it from the species it resembles so nearly by listening 

 to its impetuous screaming notes, so unlike anything 

 in the language of the Common Cow-bird, 



The Screaming Cow-bird is larger than the allied 

 species. The female is less than the male in size, but 

 in colour they are alike, the entire plumage being 

 deep blue-black, glossy, with purple reflections, and 

 under the wing at the joint there is a small rufous 

 spot. The beak is very stout, the plumage loose, 

 with a strong musky smell ; the oesophagus re- 

 markably wide. 



It is far less common than the other species of 

 Molothrus, but not rare, and ranges south to the 



