146 CHARACTERS OF CERTIIIA FAMILIARIS 



Henry, Pr. Phila. Acad. xi. 1839, 107. Scl. PZS. 1859, 235. Kenner. PRRR. x. 1859, 

 Whipple's Route, Birds, 26. Heerm. PRRR. X. 1859, Williamson's Route, Birdn, 42. 

 Coop 6f Sudd. NHVVT. 1860, 192. Barn. Smiths. Rep. for I860, 1861, 437. Scl. CAB. 



1861, 15. Boardm. Pr. Bost. Soc. ix. 1862, 126. Ooues ff Prent. Smiths. Rep. for 1861, 



1862, 410. Verr. Pr. Ess. Inst. iii. 1862, 149. Bd. RAB. 1864, 89. Allen, Pr. Ess. 

 Inst. iv. 1864, 68. Hoy, Smiths. Rep. for 1864, 1865. W8.Hamlin, Pr. Post. Soc. x. 1865, 

 80 (habits). Mcllwr. Pr. Ess. Inst. v. 1866, 88. Coues, Pr. Phila. Acad. xviii. 1866, 79 

 (Arizona). Labr. Ann. Lye. N.Y.viii. 1868, 283. Coues, Pr. Bost. Soc. xii. 1868, 108. Ooues, 

 Pr. Ess. Inst. v. 1868, 273. Brown, Ibis, 2d ser. iv. 1868, 42 (Vancouver). Coop. Am. 

 Nat. iii. 1869, 296. Abbott, Am. Nat. iv. 1870, 543. Abbott, Am. Nat. \\. 1872, 367. 

 Trippe, Pr. Bost. Soc. xv. 1873, 236. Snow, B. Kans. 1873, 6. Merriam, Am. Nat. viii. 

 1874, 8. Brew. Pr. Bost. Soc. xvii. 1875, 439. 



Certhia familiaris car. americana, Ridgw. Bull. Ess. Inst. v. 1873, 180 (Colorado). B. E. fyR. 

 NAB. i. 1874, 125, tigs. pi. 8, f. \\.-Htnsh. Rep. Orn. Specs. 1874, 41, 73.Hen*k. List B. 

 Ariz. 1875, 155,-Hensh. Zool. Expl. W. 100 Merid. 1876, 177. 



Certhia mexicana, Bd. BNA. 1858, 372, 923 (in part ; refers to western United States speci- 

 mens). Feilner, Smiths. Rep. for 1864, 1865, 425. Coop. Am. Nat. iii. 1869, 74. Coop. 

 B. Cal. i. 1870, 58, fig. (Not of Gloger.) 



European Creeper, Penn. AZ. ii. 1785, 285, no. 174 (in part). 



Grimpereau commun, Le M. Ois. Canad. 1861, 236. 



Creeper, Tree Creeper, Brown Creeper, Common Creeper, American Creeper, Vulg. 



var. mexicana 



Certhfa mexicana, "Gloger." Reich. " Hdbh. i.1853, 265, pi. dlxii. f. 3841, 3842". Scl. PZS. 

 1856, 290 (Ranches de Suapam). Bd. BNA. ed. of I860, pi. 83, f. 2 (Mexico). Scl. PZS. 

 1858, 297 (Parada). $cl. PZS. 1859, 362 (Xalapa), 372 (Oaxaca). Xant. Pr. Phila.Acad. 

 xi. 1859, 191 (California). #</. RAB. 1864, 90. Salv. Ibis, 2d ser. ii. 1866, 190 (Guate- 

 mala). Sumich. Mem. Bost. Soc. i. 1869, 544 (Vera Cruz). 



Certhia americana var. mexicana, (?) Dress. Ibis, 2d ser. i. 1865, 485 (Southern Texas). 



Certhia familiaris var. mexicana, B. B. 4- R. NAB. i. 1874, 128. 



HAB. Temperate North America, in wooded regions. 



CH. SP. $ 2 Fusca, albido striata, uropygio rufesce.nte, infra 

 albida; alls albido variegatis, rufo albidoque bifasciatis. 



$ 9 : Upper parts dark brown, changing to rusty -brown on the rump, 

 everywhere streaked with ashy-white. This coloration descends to the sides 

 of the head. An obscure whitish superciliary stripe. Under parts dull 

 whitish, sometimes tinged with rusty on the flanks and ccissum. Wing- 

 coverts and quills tipped with white, the inner secondaries also with wbrte 

 shaft-lines, which, with the tips, contrast with the blackish of their outer 

 webs. Wings also twice crossed with white or tawny-white, the anterior 

 bar broad and occupying both webs of the feathers, the other only on the 

 outer webs near their ends. Tail grayish-brown, immaculate, darker along 

 the shaft, and at the ends of the feathers, sometimes showing obsolete trans- 

 verse bars. Bill blackish above, mostly flesh-colored or yellowish below ; 

 feet brown. Length, 5-5f ; extent, 7|-8 ; wing, 2|, more or less ; tail usu- 

 ally a little longer than the wiug, sometimes not so, 2^ to nearly 3 inches. 

 9 averaging smaller than $ . 



Of late years, the American Creeper has been very generally separated 

 from the European under the name of C. americana ; but this term, which 

 Bonaparte proposed in 1838, is anticipated by Professor Barton's futtca (1799), 

 which is in turn antedated by Bartram's rufa (1791). It appears, however, 

 that the bird is not fairly separable from C. familiaris ; the various marks 

 of distinction which have been adduced do not prove constant, and, more- 



