54 
Synopsis of the Birds 
10. QUISCALUS. 
Gracula , Oriolus , Turdus, Corvus , L. Gm. Lath. Pica ? 
Icterus , Briss. Icterus , ///. Temm. Rons. Quiscalus , Fen- 
duiinus, Agelaius, Vieill. Sturnus, Daud. Cassicus ( Icterus ) , 
Floceus , Cwv. Chalcophanes ! Temm. 
Bill bare, compressed from the base, entire ; edges angu- 
lar, very sharp, hardly indexed : upper mandible prolonged 
vd an acute angle on the front, curved from the middle, pro- 
jecting considerably over the lower, with an osseous carina 
within : nostrils oval, half closed by a membrane : tongue car- 
tilaginous, flattened, lacerated on the sides, bifid at tip. 
Tarsus a little longer than the middle toe ; lateral toes sub- 
equal, the inner free, the outer united at base with the mid- 
dle one. Wings moderate : first primary equal to the fifth, 
and but little shorter than the second, third, and fourth, 
which are longest. Tail of twelve feathers, more or less 
rounded. 
Male glossy black, immaculate ; female (one species ex- 
cepted) brownish, beneath whitish-brown. Young differing 
from the adult. Moult annually, but by the tips of the 
feathers wearing off, one species undergoes a change. 
Gregarious in large flocks ; retire in winter to hot cli- 
mates. Build socially in trees ; lay about five eggs. Flesh 
unpalatable. 
55. Quiscalus major, Vieill. Glossy-black ; tail cuneiform, 
reaching beyond the wings nearly five inches ; osseous carina 
small : length sixteen inches. 
Female light brown, beneath and eye-brows whitish : 
length twelve and a half inches. 
Great Crow-Blackbird , Quiscalus major , nob . Am. Orn. 
p* 35. pi. 4 jig. i male. Jig. female. 
Inhabits the southern states, principally on the sea coast, 
Mexico, and the West Indies : common. 
56. Quiscalus versicolor, Vieill. Glossy-black ; tail cunei- 
