QUISCALIN^. 
These birds migrate from the nortli to the more southern portions of the North American continent, according to the 
change of seasons. They assemble in considerable numbers, and entirely overrun in the winter the warmer south- 
eastern maritime I'egions, during which time they are very destructive to the various plantations. In the sj)ring they 
are usually observed flying in loose flocks about the swamps and meadows, or following in the furrows after the plough ; 
their food at this season causes them to be useful to the husbandmen, as it consists of worms, grubs, and cateri)illars, of 
which they destroy a prodigious number ; in the evening they retire to roost in cedars and pine trees, with friendly 
and mutual chatter. They commit, however, very great depredations on the maize, or Indian corn, as soon as it appears 
above the ground, by feeding only on the sweet and sprouting stem, rejecting and scattering the leaves around as an 
evidence of their mischievous mode of life. This plant is again attacked when the grain is in the milky state, to such 
vast extent, that one fourth of the crop is sujiposed to be devoured by these destructive birds. Previously to their 
departure for the Southern States, they collect from all parts in such numerous bodies that the air is darkened with 
their numbers ; sometimes one flock is composed of many hundred thousand individuals. They select the tall cedar 
and pine trees, as well as bushes, for the building of their nests, which is commonly performed in society, so that ten or 
fifteen of them are often seen in the same tree. The nest is composed outwardly of mud, mixed with stalks and knotty 
roots of grass, and lined with fine dry grass and horse hair. The eggs are usually five or six in number. 
1. Q. piirpureiis (hicht.) — Gracula quiscala 7/i«n. Wils. Amer. 
Orn. pi. 21. f. 4. ; Quiscalus versicolor Vieill. Pr. Bonap. Amer. Orn. 
pi. 5. f. I., Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 298. fig. 50. a. ? 
Oriolus ludovicianus et O. hudsonius Gmel. PI. enl. 646. ; Quiscalus 
nitens Licht. 
2. Q. purpuratus Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 298. fig. 
50. b. 
3. Q. major Vieill. N. Diet. Hist. Nat. xxviii. p. 487-, Pr. Bonap. 
Amer. Orn. pi. 4. f. 1, 2. — Chalcophanes major Temm. 
4. Q. corvinus Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 300. 
5. Q. luguhris Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 299- %• (50. 
6 Q. tenuirostris Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 299- 51. 
b. c. 
7. Q. macrourus Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 299- fig- 51. 
a. — Corvus mexicanus Gmel. 
8. Q. infiexirostris Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 300. 
fig. 52. 
9. Q. peruvianus Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 354. 
1 0. Q. crassirostris Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 355. 
11. Q. subalaris Boiss. Rev. Zool. 1 840. 70. 
12. Q.fulgidus Licht. — Stunius Quiscalus Daud. 
13. Q. harita Gmel. — Quiscalus navicularis Licht^ Voy. I'lle de 
Cuba, Ois. t. 18. ? 
ScAPHiDURUS Szvains.* 
Bill long, with the culmen broad at the base, advancing on the forehead, sloping to the tip, which is 
acute and curved, the lateral margins sinuated and angulated at the base ; the nostrils basal and lateral, 
and the opening partly covered by a membrane. Wings long and pointed, with the first quill the 
longest. Tail lengthened, graduated, and the sides turned upwards. Tarsi as long as the middle toe, 
strong, and scutellated. Toes long, the inner toe nearly equalling the outer ; the claws acute and much 
curved. 
The habits of these birds are similar to those of the species 
of the West Indies and the tropical parts of South America. 
1. S. atcr (Vieill.) N. Diet. Hist. Nat. v. 363., Azara, No. 6O. — 
Psarocolius palliatus Wagl. ; Cassidix mexicana Less. 
2. S. • . — Scaphidura barita Swains. Two Cent, and a 
Quart, p. .SOI. fig. 53. a. 
3. S. crassirostris Swains. Two Cent, and a Quart, p. 301. fig. 53. 
b. 
of the foregoing genus ; and they are found in the islands 
4. S. palustris Swains. Phil. .Mag. 1827. p. 4.')6. 
5. S. niger (Gmel.) Swains. 
6. S. ■ . — Cassicus niger Vieill. Gal. des Ois. t. 89. 
7. S. atroviolaceus D'Orb. Voy. I'lle de Cuba, Ois. t. ly. 
* Established by Mr. Swainson {Faun. Boreali .^wer. p. 494.) in 1831. Cassidix of M. Les.son (1831) is synonymous. 
May, 1845. 
I 
