BENDIRE’S THRASHER.—CURVE-BILLED THRASHER. 65 
Be en ee 
the ability of any one ordinarily to tell one nest from the other, either by structure or 
position. The usual complement of eggs is four; in fact, I found but one clutch of five. 
The eggs are marked very much as those of the Brown Thrush, and are hardly dis- 
tinguishable from them. Tle typical egg has a ground-color of the faintest greenish- 
white, and is finely speckled all over with brown, the dotting being thickest on the 
larger end....’’ The bird is resident throughout the whole Lower Rio Grande country, 
and very abundant. It feeds upon the como and other berries, as well as insects and 
larvee. 
NAMES: Lonc-BILLED THRASHER, Texas Thrasher. 
SCIENTIFIC NAMES: HARPORHYNCHUS LONGIROSTRIS Can. (1850). H. rufus longirostris P. B. & R., 
N. A. B. (1875). Toxostoma longirostre Cab. 
DESCRIPTION: Similar to H. rufus, but rather darker brownish above. Beneath, pale whitish, streaked on 
‘the sides of the neck and body, and across the breast with dark brownish-black.— Length about 10.50 
to 12 inches. 
THE Saint Lucas THRASHER (H. cinereus XANTUS) is a common bird of Lower 
California, especially near St. Lucas. 
BENDIRE’S THRASHER. 
H. bendirei Cours. 
This Thrasher was discovered in 1872 by Capt. Chas. Bendire in the vicinity of 
Tucson, Arizona, where it seems to be not uncommon. The bird nests in trees and 
bushes, preferably in mesquite, sometimes thirty feet from the ground. The entire upper 
part of this Thrasher is uniform dull grayish-brown; heneath it is much paler grayish- 
brown, becoming nearly white on chin and throat and middle of belly, buffy on under 
tail-coverts, and more decidedly brown on flanks; the chest and breast marked with 
triangular spots or streaks of deeper grayish-brown.— Length about 9.50 to 10.50 in. 
CURVE-BILLED THRASHER. 
H. curvirostris Can. 
“This Thrush, though frequently seen, is not so common as the Long-billed Thrasher, 
and is readily distinguished from it. I did not meet with it until we reached Browns- 
ville, March 20. The very first day at that place, it was seen about the brush-fences 
just outside of the city. The bird is very retiring in its habits, never more than one or 
two being seen together, and even less inclined to sing in exposed places than its near 
relative (H. longirostris).... On May 10, while on horseback, I came upon a prickly- 
pear cactus, wonderful to me for its size and tree-like shape. Its trunk was the size of 
a man’s body, and some of the branches were above my head as I sat on my horse. 
Its general form was that of a wine-glass. While peering about and poking the stalks 
with my gun, I discovered in the very heart of the great cactus a nest and four eggs of 
this Thrasher. It was about five feet from the ground, perfectly exposed above, yet 
nothing could be more secure from all sides.... The shape of the egg is like that of 
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