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Genus II.— EMBERIZA, Linn. BUNTING. 
Bill short, robust, tapering, somewhat compressed ; upper mandible with 
its dorsal line declinate and slightly convex, the ridge indistinct, the sides 
convex, the edges a little inflected, ascending to beneath the nostrils, then 
descending or direct, with a slight notch close to the narrow tip ; lower 
mandible with the angle short and wide, the dorsal line ascending, and very 
slightly convex, the ridge broad at the base, the sides convex, the edges 
inclinate, their outline ascending for a third or more of its length, then 
direct, the tip narrow. Nostrils basal, roundish. Head large, ovate ; neck 
very short ; body rather stout. Beet of moderate length, rather strong ; 
tarsus of ordinary length, compressed, with seven anterior scutella ; toes 
rather large ; the hind toe strong, and longer than the lateral, which are 
equal, the third much longer, and united to the fourth at the base. Claws 
long, arched, much compressed, acute. Plumage soft and blended, but firm. 
Bristles feeble. Wings rather long, with the second and third quills longest. 
Tail of moderate length, emarginate. 
BLAG K--T HROATED BUNTING. 
Emberiza Americana, Gmel. 
PLATE CL VI. — Male and Female. 
Although this handsome Bunting may be said to be abundant in our 
middle Atlantic districts, it is there much less so than in the vast prairies of 
the south-west ; and I consider those of the Texas to afford the localities 
best adapted to its habits. There, as my companions and I were returning 
from the capital of the infant republic, we were surprised to see how very 
numerous the Black-Throated Buntings were in every open piece of ground 
