328 THE MOUNTAIN. 



and the summer is made noisy by him wherever the surface 

 is cleared of forests, and there is water, bushes, and tall 

 grass. It is a familiar and much-admired bird, inhabiting 

 North America from Nova Scotia to Mexico. They travel 

 north with the purple grakle, ferruginous blackbird, and 

 cowbird, in the latter part of April, leaving for the south 

 in November. 



ICTERUS Icterocephalus, yellow-headed troopial. In cha- 

 racter and habits much like the red-winged blackbird. This 

 bird, Nuttall says, " ranges from Cayenne to Missouri, and 

 is wholly confined to the west side of Mississippi, beyond 

 which not even a straggler has yet been seen." A flock of 

 this species appeared on the western side of the mountain 

 in the fall of 1857, notwithstanding the statement of the 

 illustrious Nuttall. On the eastern side of the mountain its 

 appearance has been noticed but rarely. We must, conse- 

 quently, catalogue the yellow-headed troopial as an occa- 

 sional visitor of the mountain. 



ICTERUS Pecoris, (Temm.) This is the cow troopial, and 

 is seen often here, but not in large numbers. In its migra- 

 tions it takes the range of the valleys parallel to the moun- 

 tain. It does not breed here, but passes along on his 

 journey, being found accidentally with other birds in migra- 

 tory troops. A thief and scavenger, parasite and outlaw, 

 even as a traveler he cannot be concealed, but sneaks about 

 the fields, sometimes approaching barns, and indulging in 

 his fancy to associate with cattle. 



BIRDS RELATED TO THE CROWS. 



QUISCALUS Yersicolor. This is the common crow black- 

 bird, an inhabitant of the whole continent. He is found 

 here in his usual abundance as a regular resident, and in 

 crowds or migrating parties as a visitor, fall and spring. 

 He is a noisy and troublesome bird, and here, like every 

 place else, is one of the commonest birds. It breeds from 

 Nova Scotia to Louisiana. 



QUISCALUS Ferrugineus, occasionally stops for a time on 



