^ DL>. MO 



1853.] 



LAND BIRDS WINTERING NEAR TORONTO. 



TORONTO, MARCH, 1853. 

 'On t.ie JLaiiU-birJs \v inteiiiig in ihe iiiigUbouilicod cf loroiito." 



BY G. W. ALLAN, ESQ. 

 {Read bnfore the Canadian Institute, Fcbmary 2&h, 1855.) 



It is not, I belie\"e, an uncommon idea, even among those who 

 have in some degree interested themselves in observing the 

 movements and hal>its of our ditiereut birds, that wheu once the 

 fi'osts imd snows of winter have fairly set in, our woods are 

 almost completely deserted by their feathered denizens. 



It would probably, therefore, be a matter of surprise to many 

 to learn that there are at least twenty ditiereut species of land 

 birds, which remain with us through the whole of our long win- 

 ter, braving the severest cold, and apparently finding abundant 

 providon for the supply of their various wants. 



I shall endeavour in this paper to give a few brief, though I 

 fear very imperfect, noticej of some of these different species, as 

 they have fallen under my own observation at various times 

 during the course of my I'ambles about the woods and fields in 

 the immediate neighboui'hood of Toronto.* Some of the birds I 

 shall mention ai-e winter visitors only; others again remain with 

 us throughout the whole year. 



To begin with the bii'ds of prey ; the first I shall notice : the 

 Bald-headed Eagle, although \-ery rare, has been seen in 

 this neighbourhood. On the shores of the Lake, near the 

 Scarborough Heights, and about the Humber Ba}', a solitary bird 

 may still occasionally be met with. I saw one about three weeks 

 ago, for the tii-st time for many years flying down the valley of 

 the Don towards Ashbridge's Bay : its white head, and the broad 

 white patch near the tail, as well as its great size, I'ender it easily 

 distinguishable ; and even at some little distance it may readily be 

 recognized by its peculiar flight, which, when making for a 

 particular point, is remarkably direct; never circling or sailing, 

 but supported by long continuous equal strokes of the wings, 

 without intermission, as long as the bird is in sight. 



Of the owls, the large white or snowy Owl, (Stryx Nyctea) is 

 one of the most beautiful of our rapacious birds. Nothing can 

 exceed the exquisite softness and beauty of its thick warm 

 plumage, which enables it to bid defiance to the severest cold. 

 Its colour varies slightly according to the age of the bird, but 

 when full grown it is a rich creamy white, the edges of the 

 feathers of the head and baek tipped with crescent-shaped spots 

 of brown, and the wings and tail barred with the same colour. 

 This owl pursues its prey during the day as well as at dusk, and 

 its flight is extremely rajiid and noiseless. It is not over nice in 

 its choice of food ; squirrels, rats, mice, small birds, and fish, all 

 seem equally welcome. 



The great horned Owl (Stryx Virginiana,) is now, I believe, 

 I'arely found here. I once shot a very fine specimen in the shrub- 

 bery close to ray own house — ^an unusual place to meet with one, 

 as it is in general a solitaiy bird, preferring soire thick wood on 

 the edge of a clearing, from which it sallies forth in the fine 

 moonlight nights in search of its 2)rey. Their plumage is very 

 handsome, the prevailing colour being a rich i-eddish brown, 

 barred and mottled with brownish black and reddish yellow. 

 The horns are broad, and three inclies in length, formed of twelve 

 or fourteen small feathers, with black webs and edged with 

 brownish yellow. 



The barred or grey Owl, (Stiyx Nebulosa) is a very common 

 visitor to our woods duiing the winter. It is geuei'ally found in 

 pairs; it is a smaller bird than the horned owl, and its plumage. 

 Vol. T., No. 8, March, 1853. 



though very soft and warm, is much inferior in richness and 

 beaut}'. Small birds and mice are its favourite food, but a stray 

 chicken or joung pigeon does not come amiss to him. It is the 

 funniest possible thing, to watch the gesticulations of one of 

 these birds, when approaching them in daylight. It bends its whole 

 body forward, puffing up the lateral featheis of the Le.id so as to 

 form a sort of ruff; moving its head at the same time rapidly to 

 and fro, and eyeing the intruder in the most grotesque manner. 



The little horned owl is still found in this neighbourhood. It 

 is an inoft'ensi\e little creature, generally keeping itself ^•ery quiet 

 till towards evening, for should it be caught abroad during the 

 day by other birds, they never fiiil to express their dislike and 

 antipathy in a very decided manner. A few weeks ago, while 

 giving directions to some work people at my own place, my 

 attention was attracted by the loud screaming and chattering of 

 a party of blue-jays, collected in some low pine bushes a few 

 yards from where I was standing. On going up to the spot to 

 ascertain the cause of the uproar, the jays flew off, and seeing 

 neither hawk or cat, I returned again to my men. I had hai'dly 

 done so before the jays were all baek, and the screaming was 

 renewed with ten-fold vigour. Determined to see what the mat- 

 ter was this time, I pushed my way through the bushes, and 

 after looking carefully, but without success, in every direction for 

 the cause of the disturbance, was on the point of g■i^'ing it up in 

 despair, when turning round suddenly, I almost brushed up 

 against a beautiful little-horned owl, sitting bolt upright on a 

 small branch close to the stem of a jsine bush, and eying me with 

 the most imperturbable gravity. This httle fellow hardly 

 measured ten inches; his plumage was exceedingly soft and 

 beautiful, barred alternately with wavy lines of a rich brown, 

 grey and black. 



Of the hawk tribe, the most common is the Pigeon Hawk ; 

 (Falco Columbarius) one or more solitary individuals hang about 

 our woods and fields in the neighbourhood of the town all winter; 

 and very fat and plump they become, making sad ha^■oc among-st 

 the flocks of red-polls and siskins, and every now and then pay- 

 ing an unwelcome visit to the neaiest dove-cot. The colour of 

 the adult male is generally a light blueish grey, each feather 

 marked with a black central line, the lower parts reddish white, 

 the breast and belly yellowish white marked with large oblong- 

 brown spots. 



Among the birds of prey may proper!}' be classed the great 

 American Shrike, (Lanius Borealis,) for a bolder or more rapa- 

 cious bird for its size does not exist. Many years ago I was 

 fortunate enough to procure a very fine specimen ; I then lost 

 sight of the bird for several years, and almost despaired of meet- 

 ing with it again, when, one fine winter's morning, a very large 

 one dashed through a pane of glass at a pet goldfinch, whose 

 cage happened to stand close to the window, in one of the rooms 

 at my own house. Being a little stunned with the shock, and 

 his wings slightly injured by the broken glass, I secured him 

 without much difficulty. He was a remarkably fine bird, 

 measuring rather more than ten inches, and nearly fifteen inches 

 across the wings. The upper part of the head and body was a 

 clear blueish grey, the sides of the head nearly white, crossed 

 with a bar of black, passing from the nostril through the eye to 

 the middle of the neck ; the belly nearh' white, marked with narrow 

 wa\y dark lines; wings black, with a white bar; the two centre 

 feathei-s of the tail all black ; the rest black edged withwhite. 



The next birds I shall notice are the Jays : of these we have 

 two kinds ; one remaining with us all the year round, the other 

 only a winter bird. The Canada Jay, (Garrulus Canadensis) or 

 AVhiskey-Jack, as he is called in the noi-th-west, is never met with 

 here except in the depth of winter ; and, even then, it must be 

 very severe weather that drives these birds as far south as this. 

 They appeared in great numbers m the winters of 1839 and 

 '40, flying about the woods and fields in flocks of fifteen or 



