148 
STURNIN^. STURNELLA. 
tongue slender, thin-edged, with the tip slit and lacerated ; 
oesophagus without dilatation ; stomach roundish, its mus-^ 
cular coat rather thin, the epithelium dense, and longitudi- 
nally rugous ; intestine of moderate length and width ; cceca 
very small, cylindrical ; cloaca ovate or ohlongw Trachea 
simple, with four pairs of inferior laryngeal muscles. Nest 
on the ground, or in cavities ; eggs about five. 
GENUS I. STURNELLA, Vieill. MEADOW-STARLING. 
Bill rather long, almost straight, conico-subulate, depres- 
sed toward the end ; upper mandible with the ridge some- 
what flattened, the edges sharp and overlapping ; the tip nar- 
row, but rounded ; lower mandible with the outline straight, 
the ridge convex, the sides ascending ; the tip slightly round- 
ed. Nostrils oval, with an arched membrane above. Head 
of ordinary size, depressed ; neck of moderate length ; body 
rather full. Feet of moderate length, strong; tarsus dis- 
tinctly scutellate ; lateral toes nearly equal, hind toe stout. 
Claws arched, compressed, acute, that of the hind toe large. 
Plumage rather compact. Upper eyelid margined with 
strong bristles. Wings of moderate length, broad ; the se- 
cond, third, and fourth quills longest ; one of the inner se- 
condaries nearly as long when the wing is closed. T ail short, 
much rounded, of twelve acute feathers. 
223. 1. Sturnella Ludoviciana, Linn. Crescent Meadow- 
Starling. — Meadow Lark. 
Plate CXXXVL Male and Female. 
Upper parts variegated with dark brown, bay, and dull yellow- 
ish, the latter bordering the feathers ; those of the hind parts of the 
back barred, as are the secondary quills and their coverts ; pri- 
mary quills dark brown, margined, the outer with whitish, the rest 
with pale yellowish ; edge of the wing yellow ; three outer tail- 
feathers white, with a dash of black on the outer web near the 
end, the next feather also more or less white, and barred on the 
outer web ; on the upper part of the head a central and two lateral 
bands of brownish-yellow, the lateral band sometimes white, ante- 
