Tl'RDID.E — THE TIIUrSIIES. 31) 



jjlaced in the interior of a heap of Imishwood loosely thrown to-^cther. I 

 have never met with the nest built upon the grounil, but in Sj»rinij:liehl, and 

 in other dry and sandy loealities, this is by no means an uncommon occur- 

 rence. These nests are fre([uently jdaced in close proximity to houses, and 

 sometimes in the very midst of viUaj^es. 



The nest of the Thmsher is larue, and roughly but stromjly built. The 

 base is usually made of coarse twigs, sticks, and ends of branches, tirndy 

 interwoven. Within this is constructed an inner nest, c(mi])nscd of tlried 

 leaves, strips of bark, and strong black tibrous roots. These are lined 

 with finer roots, horse-hair, an occasional feather, etc. 



The eLTiis are usually four, sometimes five, and r.irelv six, in number. They 

 vary both in the tints of the ground c(dor, in those of their markings, and 

 slightly in their shape. Their length varies from .99 to 1.12 inches, with a 

 mean of 1.05. Their breadth ranges fnmi .70 to .87 of an inch; mean 

 breadth, .81. The ground color is sometimes white, marked with tine reddish- 

 brown dots, continent at the Lirger end, or forming a broad ring around the 

 crown. In others tlie markings have a vellowish-brown tint. Sometimes the 

 ixround coh)r is a light green. 



Haxporhynchus rufus, \ar. longirostris, cahan. 



TEXAS THBASHEB. 



Orphfm Jfniffirostris, Lafu. \\. Z. 18.38, :»'>. — In. Mai,', d." .^ool, 18:^0, Ois. pi. i. Toxor- 

 tomn loiiijii-Dsftr, Caij. Wicj^ni. Ari'h. 1847, i. -'tr. Mimu.^ lonrjimsfn's, Sci.atki:, 

 r. Z. S. l.s'»t), 21)4 (C«>rclova). llarjxtrhinichua fninjirosfris, Cah. Mus. Hciii. 18;i0, 81. 

 — Baiiu), Birds N. Am. 1858, 352, pi. lii. -In. luv. 44. — StL.\TEH, V. Z. i>. 1859, 

 339 ; Ib. 1864, 172 (City of Mcx.); lu. Catul. 1801, 8, no. 47. 



pp. Char. Similar to FF. riifux, the rufous of back niucli darker. \Vinsrs inueli rouudcMl : 

 srcoiul <|uill shorttM* than the socomlarics. Exposed [)oi'ti»)i. ot'the hill as loiijr as tlu' heail ; 

 the lov.'er edirc* <lecidedly ileeiuved or eoiieave. Ahovc rather dark browiiish-i'ulons; 

 beneath pale nitoiis-white ; streake«l on the sides of the neck and body, and across the 

 hreast, with very dark brownish-hlaek, nearly uniform Ihi'i.ljjjhoiit, much darker than in 

 ni/ns. Two ratln'r narrow white hands on the wim^. t'he eonecaliMl portion of the 

 • luills dark hrowii. Lenufth, lU.'jO ; wing. 4.00; tail. .'> 00 : tarsus, 140. 



Hah. Eastern Mexico; north to Rio Grande, Texa^. Cordova, Scl. Orizaba (tem- 

 })erate region), Scmicuuast. 



Specimens from the Eio Grande to ^lirador and (Orizaba are quite identical, 

 witii, of coui*se, ditVerences among intlividuals. This "species" is not, in 

 our opinion, sej)aralKe from the //. rvfm specifically ; but is a race, repre- 

 senting the latter in the region given above, where the riifti>i itself is never 

 found. The relations of these two forms are exactly paralleled in the Thrijo- 

 ihoriiA huJoviriann,^ and T. hrrhtnrJicri, the latter being nothing more than 

 the darker Southern rejnvsentation of the former. 



The Te.xas Thrasher appears to beh)ng only to the Avifauna of the South- 



