184 AMERICAN OYSTER-CATCHER. 



The gullet of this species is capable of being considerably distended. 

 When your finger is introduced into it, it passes with ease into a sort of 

 crop, where the food is apparently prepared before entering the gizzard, 

 which is rather muscular. How this bird disposes of the hard particles 

 of shells, pebbles, and other matters, with which its food is mixed, is be- 

 yond my comprehension, and one which I gladly leave for your solution. 

 Their flesh is dark, tough, and unfit for eating, unless in cases of extreme 

 necessity. 



The females and young are dark olive-brown above, like the males, 

 but of a browner shade. I have represented a male bird. I have never 

 met with the European Oyster-catcher, Hamatopus Ostralegus, in any 

 part of the United States, and, although I cannot of course aver that it 

 does not occur there, I believe that the American or Mantled Oyster- 

 catcher has been confounded with it by Wilson and others. Indeed, 

 the figure given by Wilson resembles that of the European bird, but 

 his description of the female and young almost agrees with the present 

 species, the dimensions also being nearly the same. 



HjEmatopus palliatus, Temm. Man. d'Omith. part ii. p. 532. 

 MANTLED Oyster-catcher, H^matopus palliatus, Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii 

 p. 15. 



Plate CCXXIII. Male in June. 



Bill long, slender but strong, straight, deeper than broad at the base, 

 towards the end extremely compressed, terminating in a very thin wedge- 

 shaped point. Upper mandible with the dorsal line at the base straight 

 and slightly sloping, convex beyond the nostrils, then straight and slop- 

 ing to the point, the ridge broad and flattened as far as the prominence, 

 afterwards extremely narrow, the sides sloping at the base, perpendicular 

 towards the end, the edges rather sharp. Nasal groove basal, long ; nos- 

 trils basal, in the middle of the groove, linear, direct, placed nearer the 

 margin than the dorsal line, pervious. Lower mandible straight, the 

 dorsal line at the base sloping upwards, at one-third of the length of the 

 bill bulging, then straightish and slightly ascending, the tip narrower 

 than that of the upper mandible, the sides at the base sloping upwards, 

 and having a shallow groove, towards the end becoming perpendicular. 

 The bill differs from that of the Hamatnpus Ostralegus in being much 

 deeper at the bulging part, much more attenuated towards the point, and 

 proportionally longer. 



