CAT BIRD. 
195 
dorsal line straight, the edges sharp and a little declinate at the end, the tip 
narrow ; the gape-line very slightly arched. 
Head oblong, of ordinary size; neck rather short, but somewhat slender. 
Feet longish, rather strong ; tarsus compressed, anteriorly covered with seven 
large scutella, sharp-edged behind ; toes of moderate length, slender, the hind 
toe stout, the lateral nearly equal, the anterior united for a short space at the 
base. Claws slender, arched, compressed, acute. 
Plumage soft and blended. Wings of moderate length, rounded, the first 
quill short, the third and fourth longest, the second and fifth equal, and about 
a quarter of an inch shorter than the fourth. Tail long, rounded, of twelve 
rather narrow rounded feathers. 
Bill dark brown, the base of the lower mandible paler. Feet yellowish- 
brown, claws dusky. The general colour of the upper parts is greyish-brown, 
the tips of the secondary coverts, the edges of the primary quills, and a large 
spot at the end of the three lateral tail-feathers, white : the lower parts 
whitish, marked with triangular dusky spots, of which there is a distinct 
line from the base of the bill ; the throat, the middle of the breast, the 
abdomen, and lower tail-coverts unspotted. 
Length to end of tail 8 inches, to end of wings 53; wing from flexure Sp 9 ,; 
tail 3^; bill along the ridge T 7 ^; tarsus lfV; hind toe fV, its claw T \; middle 
toe x %, its claw p*. 
CAT-BIRD. 
Orpheus carolinensis, Linn . 
PLATE CXL. — Male and Female. 
Some individuals of this species spend the winter in the southern portions 
of East Florida, where I have found them during the months of December 
and January ; but the greater number retire beyond the limits of the United 
States about the middle of October. They are very rarely seen in the State 
of Louisiana, nor have I known any to breed in that portion of the country. 
They pass in abundance through Georgia and the Carolinas early in Sep- 
tember, feeding then on the berries of the sweet gum, those of the poke and 
sumach, the seeds of grasses, &c. On their return in spring, they reach the 
