366 THE BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO. 



from Butler's "Birds of Indiana," will go to prove : "Few birds are of so 

 much service to the farmer. Especially are the fruit growers and nursery- 

 men its debtors. In early spring they love the orchard. I have known 

 them to destroy every tent caterpillar (CHsiocatnpa americcma) in a badly 

 infested orchard and to tear up all the nests in half a day. While they may 

 have eaten some caterpillars, out of the most of them the juices were squeezed 

 and the hairy skin dropped to the ground. Almost every watchful fruit 

 grower has had a similar experience. Prof. F. H. King found upon' exami- 

 nation, that one had eaten nine larvae of a species that destroys the foliage 

 of black walnut trees. They also eat many canker worms. . . . While 

 they occasionally eat some of the smaller fruit, their work all summer long 

 is to protect the fruit tree from its enemies. Altho it has been accused of 

 robbing the nests of other birds and eating their eggs, I do not believe the 

 charge has been sustained." 



No. i6o. 



BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO. 



A. O. U. No. 388. Coccyzus erythrophthalmus (Wils.). 



Synonym — Rain Crow ; Rain Dove. 



Description. — Adult : Color of upper parts like that of preceding species ; na 

 rufous on wing ; outer pairs of tail-feathers like back, but paler ; narrowly and 

 indistinctly dusky-and-white-tipped ; tail averaging longer than in C. amcricanus; 

 circum-ocular bare space livid yellow ; the edges of the eyelid bright red ; under 

 parts white, — the throat, sides of neck, and sometimes flanks and crissum washed 

 with pale bufliy, or huffy ash; bill normaUy black all over, sometimes obscurely 

 touched with yellow on lower mandible. Immature : Like adult, but without 

 dusky subterminal bar on tail-feathers ; wings with rusty edgings ; eyelids pale 

 yellow. Length 11.00-12.50 (279.4-317.5); wing 5.30-5.85 ( 1 34.6-1 48.6 ) ; tail 

 6.60 (167.6); bill .87 (22.1). 



Recognition Marks. — Robin size; slender form and lithe appearance; sober 

 colors ; bill black ; no rufous on wing ; tail-feathers narrowly tipped with white. 



Nest, similar to preceding, but more carefully constructed, and somewhat 

 deeper; at moderate heights, often in brushy swamps. Bggs, 3-5, rarely 6, green- 

 ish blue, deeper in shade than those of the foregoing species. Av. size, i.io x .83 

 (27.9 X 21. i). 



General Range. — Eastern North America west to the Rocky Mountains, 

 breeding north to Labrador, Manitoba, and eastern Assiniboia; south in winter 

 to the West Indies and the Valley of the Amazon. Accidental in the British 

 Islands and Italy. 



Range in Ohio. — Common migrant. Rather common summer resident in 

 northern Ohio; less common southerly. Everywhere less common than preceding 

 species. 



