THE PURPLE GKAKLE. BIRDS. THE BALTIMORE ORIOLE. 



355 



back of the neck is a broad rose-coloured band, com- 

 posed of somewhat elongated feathers, formiug a sort 

 of transverse occipital crest 



THE CAPE STARLING (Amydrus mono), an inhab- 

 itant of Southern Africa, is very common in the colony 

 of the Cape of Good Hope, where it is known to the 

 settlers under the names of Mountain Starling and Red- 

 winged Starling. It is about eleven inches long, and 

 of a shining blue-black colour, with the primary and 

 secondary feathers of the wings reddish-brown, tipped 

 with black, the bill black, and the feet brown. TJiis 

 bird flies in immense flocks, and feeds principally 

 upon fruits. It is especially fond of grapes, and causes 

 great damage in the vineyards in consequence of this 

 predilection; in fact, without great vigilance on the 

 part of the growers, the Starlings in some districts 

 would completely ruin the crops of grapes. They build 

 their nests in the clefts of rocks, lay from four to six 

 eggs, and breed twice in the year. 



THE JUNGLE GEAKLE (Gracula religwsa\ an in- 

 habitant of Tndia and Ceylon, is about twelve inches in 

 length, and of a brilliant black colour, with a violet and 

 greenish gloss on some parts. Each of the seven last 

 quills of the wings has a white spot on its outer margin, 

 and behind each eye there is a naked membrane, of a 

 rich yellow colour, which nearly meets that of the 

 opposite side on the occiput. This bird is met with in 

 the lofty jungle, where it does not appear to be either 

 common or generally distributed ; it is generally seen 

 in small parties of four or five, frequenting the tops of 

 the highest trees, and feeding on fruits and berries. It 

 has a fine and varied song, for the sake of which it is 

 often kept in confinement ; it is also said to surpass all 

 other birds in its power of imitating the human speech. 



THE PUEPLE GEAKLE (Quiscalus versicolor}. 

 All the remaining birds of this family to which we 

 have to refer are inhabitants of the Western hemi- 

 sphere; they form a peculiar group confined to America, 

 and distinguished from the other Sturnidae by some 

 peculiarities hi the form of the bill and tail. 



The Purple Grakle, which is also known as the 

 CROW BLACKBIRD, is about twelve inches in length, 

 and of a black colour, exhibiting blue^violet, coppery, 

 and green tints on some parts of its plumage in certain 

 lights. The bill is long and stout, and the inside of 

 the upper mandible is furnished with a sharp process, 

 resembling the broken blade of a penknife, which is 

 no doubt useful to the bird in comminuting its food. 

 This occurs in several other species nearly allied to 

 the Purple Grakle. 



This bird is migratory in its habits, visiting the 

 United States of North America during the summer, 

 and retiring, before the inclement season, to the warmer 

 parts of the American continent and islands. Its 

 depredations on the corn fields of the farmers are too 

 great to render it a very welcome visitor ; nevertheless, 

 at their first arrival, these birds destroy immense 

 numbers of caterpillars and grubs, " as if to recompense 

 the husbandman beforehand," says Wilson, " for the 

 havoc they intend to make among his crops of Indian 

 corn." This, indeed, appears to be sufficiently serious 

 to render some payment absolutely necessary, iar the 

 birds do not confine themselves to plundering the corn 



fields when ripe or nearly BO, but attack the plants at 

 ah 1 stages of growth. But it is when the ears are in a 

 milky state that the greatest amount of damage is done. 

 The Grakles, and some other birds, mostly near rela- 

 tives of the present species, then descend in formidable 

 bodies upon the fields, strip off the outer covering of 

 leaves with which the ears are protected, and devour 

 the milky grain with such avidity as to leave nothing 

 but the cobs for the farmer. At this time the gun 

 makes sad havoc among them, but the only effect of 

 this persecution is to drive them to another field, or to 

 another part of the same field, and, in some cases, 

 these impudent plunderers succeed in devouring half 

 the crop. In some places, Wilson tells us, the farmers 

 generally allow one-fourth of the Indian-corn crop to 

 the Blackbirds, among which the Purple Grakle conies 

 in for a good share. 



These birds roost on the cedars and pine trees, and 

 build their nests on the highest branches of these. 

 The nest is composed of mud, mixed with grass and 

 roots, and lined with fine bents and hair. The eggs 

 are about five in number, of a bluish-olive colour, 

 spotted and streaked with black and dark-brown. Wil- 

 son states that the Purple Grakle frequently constructs 

 its nest, and rears its young, in the interstices left 

 between the large sticks in the nest of the Osprey, and 

 that the two birds observe all the duties of good 

 neighbourhood. 



THE EUSTT GEAKLE (Scolecophagus ferrugineus) 

 is also a migratory bird, and resembles the preceding 

 species in its general habits. It is about nine inches 

 long, and of a glossy dark-green or greenish-black 

 colour, when adult ; but the young males have the body 

 plumage rusty, and the females are brown. This bird 

 breeds in the extreme northern parts of the American 

 continent, and only passes through the middle states 

 on its journey to and from its breeding places. It 

 winters in the southern states, and exhibits a strong 

 predilection for Indian corn, although it cannot do the 

 same damage to the crops as the preceding species. 



THE BALTIMOEE OEIOLE (Tphantes Baltimore}, 

 which is a summer visitor to the United States of 

 America, receives its name from its black and orange 

 plumage; those colours being the livery of Lord Balti- 

 more, formerly proprietary of Maryland. Its colours 

 have also procured it several other names, such as Fire 

 bird, Golden Robin, &c. It is about seven inches in 

 length, and has the head, throat, upper part of the back, 

 and wings black ; the remainder of the plumage is 

 bright orange, becoming vermilion-red on the breast ; 

 the wing-feathers are edged with white, and the tail- 

 feathers black and orange. The female exhibits nearly 

 the same arrangement of colours as the male just 

 described ; but the black is brownish, and the orange 

 tints are paler and duller. 



The nest of the Baltimore Oriole is a beautiful 

 pendulous structure, composed of fibrous materials 

 neatly and strongly interwoven, and suspended from 

 the flexible extremities of the branches of trees. 

 Selecting two of these high up in a tree, the bird fas- 

 tens strong strings of hemp or flax around them, and 

 then proceeds to weave a sort of pouch of similar 

 materials, so well worked up as to form a coarse cloth- 



