6 
BULLETIN OF THE LABORATORIES 
mooted song has been heard. The most eastern point yet reached by 
these birds seems to be Cleveland, Ohio, and isolated cases of their oc- 
currence in Wisconsin and Illinois are also known. The species is 
highly gregarious and individuals are rarely or never met with singly. 
Even the destructive inroads of the collector, before whom they are 
absolutely defenseless, do not scatter or break up the flock. Unsus- 
pecting and without fear, they continue to feed until the last individual 
falls a victim. The migrating colony seems well satisfied with itself 
and its temporary home and, while feeding, a constant chorus of an- 
swering cries is kept up. The note is not loud but is remarkably 
piercing, and yet not unmelodious. The early belief that these birds 
are silent except at evening is entirely erroneous. In spring, upon the 
approach of the breeding season, the males cultivate the muses in an 
odd but not displeasing little song. This song consists of several suc- 
cessive repetitions of a short warble, followed by a similar strain clos- 
ing with a shrill cry, like the finale of a black-bird’s song. The phrase 
which makes up the body of the song is musical, but is so abruptly ter- 
minated (as though from lack of breath or of ability, ) that it is annoy- 
ing when heard singly, for one is subjected to much the same nervous 
expectancy felt in listening to a hen’s cackle when quite leisurely 
“working up the agony” sufficiently to sound the final note. A 
flock of a dozen or more singing together produce a very musical ef- 
fect. The food almost entirely consists of the seeds of various trees, 
among which the box elder, the maple, poplar, and pine are pre-emi- 
nent. Buds of cherry and other trees are also eaten, and this regime 
is varied by occasional insect larvae, etc. 
O. B. Johnson, who mentions this grosbeak from the Willianrette 
valley, speaks of it as plentiful during migrations, and states that “ the 
only note heard was a loud ‘ yeeip,' strikingly like the call of a lost 
chicken.” Of the nest and eggs we as yet know nothing, and so of 
the many interesting traits which make up the sum of its true home- 
life we must be content to remain ignorant. From its inaccessable 
summer home it continues to descend during the severe winter weather 
and, almost under the very roofs of the factories of a busy city, con- 
tentedly passes the short days, heedless of the noise and regardful only 
of the oily kernels of the keys of the box elder, which it displays 
a very awkward skill in plucking as it swings (head downwards or oth- 
erwise) from the pendulous branches. 
These brief remarks are designed simply as introductory to the 
OF DENISON UNIVERSITY. 
7 
notes on the osteology appended. Before preceding to these the fol- 
lowing description will suffice to make the bird recognizable. 
Sp. char. Bill, yellowish green, dusky at base ; anterior half of body dusky 
yellowish olive, shading into yellow to the rump above, and the under tail coverts 
below. Outer scapulars, a broad frontal band continued on each side over the 
eye, axillaries, and middle of under wing coverts, yellow. Feathers along the ex- 
treme base of bill, the crown, tibiae, wings, upper tail coverts, and tail, black ; in- 
ner greater wing-coverts and tertiaries, white. Length, 7.30, wing, 4.30, tail, 2.75. 
In the female the head and back is dull olivaceous brown. Below, the body is 
pale yellowish ash. There is an obscure black line on either side the chin. There 
is more white upon the wings and tail. (See plate, which is intended to give 
simply the tout ensemble without strict accuracy as to color.) 
Osteology of Hesperiphona vespertina. 
1 he anatomy of the Evening Grosbeak is of more than usual inter- 
est, not only on account of the rarity of the bird and the air of mystery 
which has associated itself with it, but because it stands at the head of 
American Pi mgillidae , by virtue of possessing the extreme develop- 
ment of the finch type of structure. Our observations are based on 
the study of three more or less perfect skeleta, which, so far as we 
know, are the first which have been studied. 
The skull. The most striking peculiarities of the skull are those 
which are corelated ' with the extraordinary development of the beak. 
I he angle, for instance, formed by the quadratojugal-jugal bony pillar 
with the lower margin of the maxilla is greater than usual, chiefly on 
account of the great size of the quadrate bone. In this way a firm 
support is afforded to the upper jaw. But we pass to a detailed de- 
scription. As seen from above, the skull is, in outline, a perfect trian- 
gle, with a narrow rounded base. The apex of the triangle is formed 
by the remarkably large and strong (though correspondingly very light) 
beak. 1 he bones entering the beak are cancellated within, forming a 
firm but light organ. I hese bones are, first, the premaxilla, which 
makes up the bulk of the bony frame-work of the beak and is early 
anchylosed with the maxillaries in the family under consideration. 
Although we can not separate the parts, we may distinguish in the max- 
illary bone a superior or nasal process which separates the opening of 
the nares and unites with the nasal bones, two lateral or maxillary pro- 
cesses, and two palatine processes which are within the mouth-opening- 
The distance from the apex of the beak to the subcircular nares is .6 
inches, the distance between them, . 10 . The nasals are inseparably 
