296 
GREAT CROW BLACKBIRD. 
the Academy of Natural Sciences^ proving the existence, in the 
United States, of two allied species of crow blackbird, in which 
he gives new descriptions, indicates stable characters, and adds 
an account of their respective habits ; but in attempting to cor- 
rect Wilson, he has unfortunately misapplied the names. In 
this instance he should not have charged Wilson with error, 
who is certainly correct in regard to the species he published ; 
and even had this been doubtful, he who so well described and 
figured the common crow blackbird, ought to have been fol- 
lowed by ornithologists. Therefore, notwithstanding Mr Ord’s 
decision, we consider the quiscala of Wilson unquestionably 
the true quiscala of authors. This is so obvious, that it is un- 
necessary to adduce any evidence in support of our opinion, 
which, indeed, is sufficiently afforded by Mr Ord’s paper it- 
self. 
It is impossible to decide with certainty, what bird authors 
intended to designate by their Gracula harita ; but after a care- 
ful review of the short and unessential indications, respective 
synonyms, and habitat, given by different writers, we feel as- 
sured that they have not referred to one and the same species. 
Thus, the harita of Linne is a species not found in the United 
States, but common in the West Indies, called Icterus niger 
by Brisson, and afterwards Oriolus niger by Gmelin and La- 
tham ; the harita of Latham, his boat-tailed grakle, is evidently 
the same with the quiscala Gmelin’s harita is taken partly 
from that of Linne, and partly from the boat-tailed grakle of 
Latham, being compounded from both species ; we shall not 
be at the trouble of deciphering the errors of subsequent com- 
pilers. 
Ornithologists are all at variance as to the classification of 
these species. Linne and Latham improperly referred them 
to Gracula ; Daudin, with no better reason, placed them under 
* It was probably by Latham that Mr Ord was led to misapply the names of 
the two species ; for, perceiving that the barita of that author was the quiscala^ 
he inferred that the quiscala was the harita. 
