clii 
CoBviDa:. 
-BIIIDS.- 
-CoKViDai. 
approiiclies. About an hour bel'ore sunset, lliey are 
lirst observed flying', soniewliat in Indian-file, in one 
direction, at a short height above the to[)S ol' tlie trees, 
silent and steady, keeping the general curvature ol 
the ground, continuing to pass sometimes till alter 
sunset, so that the whole line of march would extend 
for many miles. This circumstance, so familiar and 
picturesque, has not been overlooked by the poets in 
their descri[)tions of a rural evening. Burns, in a 
single line, has finely sketched it : 
•The blackening trains of Crows to theii' repose.’ ” 
'I’lie Crow, besides feeding on grain and other 
vegetable matter, eats insects, frogs, small fish, lizards, 
shell-fish, and even carrion. It has a habit, when 
khell-fi.sh are secured, of mounting to a considerable 
height, dropi)ing them on the rocks below, and 
descending to feed on the contents. Instances are 
given of their seizing young chickens for food ; and 
they destroy vast numbers of the' eggs of various 
species of birds. 
FLORIDA CRO'W (C- americanvs ; var. Jioridiitnuif). 
— This variety is an iidiabitant of the southern 
peninsula of Florida. •‘There are so many peculiai'i- 
lies in this bird as clearly to show that, if not a 
distinct species from the Common Crow, it is, at 
least, a very remarkable variety. Although, ])erhaps, 
rather smaller than the C. americanus, the bill and 
feet, especially the latter, are very considerably larger. 
'I'he nasal feathers extend over the basal two-fifths 
of the bill instead of the lialf. The proportions of 
the bill are about the same ; in the Florida bird it is 
rather the longer. The greatest difference is in the 
feet. The colors differ somewhat from those of the 
Common Crow. 'I'here is less violet, and the feathers 
of the back have almost a brassy gloss on their mar- 
gins, as in Crotophaga. Bartram, in his list of N. A. 
birds {Travels in, Florida), mentions a ‘ Corvus 
maritimus, Great Sea-side Crow,’ but without S]ieci- 
fying locality or giving any description. If a Florida 
Ijird, it quite }U'obably refers to the present species, 
which is doubtless quite maritime in its habits.” — 
Baird. 
NORTH-WESTERN FISH CROW {C. caurinus).- 
inhabiting Washington 'I'erritory and the north-west- 
ei'ii coast. 'I'his resembles the eastern Ffish Crow in 
its habits. J)r. Cooper, of California, says : “ 'I’hey 
are maritime, feeding^on the sea-beach at low tide, 
and coming about the settlements with considera- 
ble familiaril.y, being much less shy and suspicion 
than the Common Crow. The note, too, is said to 
be a little different.” It is much like the Common 
(.h'ow, differing somewhat in size. 
FISH CROW [C. ossifragus). — “’I’liis bird,” says 
Samuels, “ is SO extremely rare in New England, that 
il, can be regarded only as an occasional straggler. 
It lias been taken on JjOng Island, and, on one or two 
occasions, in Connecticut, in coiiqiany with the Com- 
mon Crow.” Audubon says of it: ‘•While on the 
St. dolm’s Biver, in Florida, during l.he month of 
F’ebruary, 1 saw flocks of Fish Crows, consisting of 
several hundred individuals, sailing high in the air, 
somewhat in the manner of the Raven. These aerial 
excursions would last for hours, during the calm of a 
fine morning, after which the wliole would descend 
toward the water, to pursue their more usual avo- 
cations in all the sociability of their nature. When 
their fishing, which lasted about a half an hour, was 
over, they would alight in flocks on the live-oaks and 
other trees near the shore, and there keep up their 
gabble, pluming themselves for hours. 'The eggs re- 
semble those of the Common Crow, but are smaller.” 
'I'his sjiecies is readily distinguished from the Com- 
mon Crow by the much smaller size — sixteen inches 
instead of twenty ; wing about eleven inches instead 
of thirteen. 'I'he bill is broaded at the base, and 
tapers more ra[)idly to the- end. 'I’he tail is less 
rounded. 'I’he gloss on the belly is green instead of 
violet ; that on the back is mixed with green, not 
entirely violet. 
CLARK’S CROW [ricicorvtis columbianus). — 'I’his 
is a little like the Jackdaw of Europe. It inhabits 
the region from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific 
Ocean. It is remarkable for its powerful claws ; so 
large and falcate are they, it would seem that this 
species is possessed of the power of seizing living 
prey, like the IRiwks. It feeds mostly, however, ou 
fish, frequenting the sea-shore and borders of large 
streams. It measures thirteen inches in length, “its 
general color is bluish-ash, changing on the nasal 
feathers, the forehead, sides of head (es|)ecially 
around the eye) and chin, to white. The wings, in- 
cluding their inner surface, greenish-black ; Ihe sec- 
ondaries and tertials, except the innermost, broadly 
tipped with white ; tail white ; the inner web of the 
fifth feather and the whole of the sixth, with upper 
tail coverts, greenish-black. 'I’he axillars plumbeous- 
black ; bill and feet black.” — Baird. 
MAXIMILIAN’S JAY {Gymnohitta cyanoeeidiala). < 
— 'I’his is a species of Jay which was seen in the 
western territories by the Prince of Niewied, and 
named by him. Its general color is a. dull blue, 
paler on the abdomen, 'i’he head and neck are of 
a much deejier and more intense blue, darker on 
the crown. It inhabits the Rocky Mountains and the 
cascades of California and Oregon, though probably 
not the Pacific Coast. 
THE MAGPIE [Pica cawtZute)— Plate 11, fig. 38.— 
'The Americaii species is nearly like the European, 
differing only in its greater size and longer tail. 
Authors assert that the voice is quite different. 
'I’he two are, however, undoubtedly of the same origi- 
nal stock. 'The Magpie is found distribntetl e.x- 
tensively over the western plains, from the .Missouri 
River to the Pacific. In the more northern regions 
it is abundant. 'I’he nests were found by Mr. Ridg- 
way in cedars, willows and in low shrubs. In every 
instance the nest was domed, the inner and real imst, 
being enclosed in an immense thorny covering, which 
far exceeded it in bulk. In the side of this thorny 
protection is a winding ])assage leading into the nest, 
possibly designed to conceal the very long ta,il of the 
bird, which, if exposed to view, would endanger its 
safety. 'These birds jirove exceedingly troublesome 
at times to jiarties traveling over the western plains; 
they annoy the weary and wounded animals, picking 
