58 



Genus II.— EMBERIZA, Linn. BUNTING. 



Bill short, robust, tapering, somewhat compressed; upper mandible with 

 its dorsal line declinate and slightly convex, the ridge indistinct, the sides 

 convex, the edges a little inflected, ascending to beneath the nostrils, then 

 descending or direct, with a slight notch close to the narrow tip; lower 

 mandible with the angle short and wide, the dorsal line ascending, and very 

 slightly convex, the ridge broad at the base, the sides convex, the edges 

 inclinate, their outline ascending for a third or more of its length, then 

 direct, the tip narrow. Nostrils basal, roundish. Head large, ovate; neck 

 very short; body rather stout. Feet of moderate length, rather strong; 

 tarsus of ordinary length, compressed, with seven anterior scutella; toes 

 rather large; the hind toe strong, and longer than the lateral, which are 

 equal, the third much longer, and united to the fourth at the base. Claws 

 long, arched, much compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended, but firm. 

 Bristles feeble. Wings rather long, with the second and third quills longest. 

 Tail of moderate length, emarginate. 



BLACK-THROATED BUNTING. 



Emberiza Americana, Gmel. 



PLATE CL VI.— Male and Female. 



Although this handsome Bunting may be said to be abundant in our 

 middle Atlantic districts, it is there much less so than in the vast prairies of 

 the south-west; and I consider those of the Texas to afford the localities 

 best adapted to its habits. There, as my companions and I were returning 

 from the capital of the infant republic, we were surprised to see how very 

 numerous the Black-throated Buntings were in every open piece of ground 



