Family TYRANNIDÆ.—Tyrant Flycatchers.

Primary Characters. Primaries ten. Bill in typical forms broad, triangular, much depressed, abruptly decurved and notched at tip, with long bristles along gape. Tarsi with scutellæ extending round the outer face of tarsus from the front to back; sometimes divided on the outer side. Bill with culmen nearly as long as the head, or shorter; straight to near the tip, then suddenly bent down into a conspicuous hook, with a notch behind it; tip of lower jaw also notched. Commissure straight to near the notch; gonys slightly convex. Nostrils oval or rounded, in the anterior extremity of the nasal groove, and more or less concealed by long bristles which extend from the posterior angle of the jaws along the base of the bill, becoming smaller, but reaching nearly to the median line of the forehead. These bristles with lateral branches at the base. Similar bristles are mixed in the loral feathers and margin the chin. Tarsi short, generally less than middle toe, completely enveloped by a series of large scales, which meet near the posterior edge of the inner side, and are separated either by naked skin or by a row of small scales. Sometimes a second series of rather large plates is seen on the posterior face of the tarsus, these, however, usually on the upper extremity only. Basal joint of middle toe united almost throughout to that of the outer toe, but more than half free on the inner side; outer lateral toe rather the longer. Wings and tail variable; first quill always more than three fourths the second. The outer primaries sometimes attenuated near the tip.

The primary characters given above will serve to distinguish the North American Tyrannidæ from their allies; the essential features consisting in the peculiarity of the scales of the tarsus and the ten primaries. In the Sylvicolidæ there are species as truly “flycatching,” and with a depressed bristly bill, but the nine (not ten) primaries, and the restriction of the scales to the anterior face of the tarsus, instead of extending entirely round the outer side, will readily separate them.

The bird fauna of America may be said to have one of its chief features in the great number and variety of its Tyrannidæ, the family being strictly a New World one. Nearly every possible diversity of form is exhibited by different members; the size, however, usually varying from that of our common Robin to that of the Kinglet, our smallest bird with exception of the Humming-Bird. Of the numerous subfamilies, however, only one, the Tyranninæ proper, belongs to North America, and will be readily distinguished from other of our land birds by the family characters given at the head of this article, and which, as drawn up, apply rather to the subfamily than to the Tyrannidæ generally.

The North American species of the Tyranninæ may, for our present purposes, be divided into Tyranni and Tyrannuli. The former are large, generally with bright color, pointed wings, with attenuated primaries and a colored crest in the middle of the crown. The others are plainer, smaller, without colored crest; the primaries not attenuated.

The genera of our Flycatchers may be arranged as follows:—

TYRANNI. Size large; colors generally brilliant; crown with a brightly colored crest, usually concealed; outer primaries abruptly contracted or attenuated near the tip; upper scales of tarsus usually continuing round on the outside and behind. Nest in trees, very bulky, containing much downy material; eggs white or pinkish, with ovate dots of rich brown, of various shades.

Milvulus. Tail excessively forked and lengthened; more than twice as long as the wings.

Tyrannus. Tail moderate; nearly even or slightly forked; less than the wings.

TYRANNULI. Size generally small; colors usually plain; crown without any colored crest concealed by the tips of the feathers; primaries normal; scales of the upper part of the tarsus usually continuing only to the middle of the outer face, and a second series opposite to them behind.

1. Tail lengthened; about equal to the wings, which reach scarcely to its middle.

Myiarchus. Tarsus equal to the middle toe, which is decidedly longer than the hinder one. Tail even or rounded. Throat pale ash, rest of lower parts yellow generally, the primaries edged with rufous, and inner webs of tail-feathers with more or less of the same color. Nest in a cavity of a tree, of loose material; eggs whitish, with intricate tangled lines and streaks of dark brown, the general effect salmon-color.

Sayornis. Tarsus rather longer than the middle toe, which is scarcely longer than the hind toe. Tail slightly forked. Bill very narrow. No light orbital ring, nor distinct bands on wings; both mandibles black. Nest attached to rocks or parts of buildings, very compact and bulky, containing much mud in its composition; eggs pure white, immaculate, or with very minute sparse dots near larger end.

2. Tail decidedly shorter than the wings, which reach beyond its middle. Tarsus shorter than the middle toe.

3. Tail shorter than the wings, as in the last. Tarsus considerably longer than the middle toe; hind toe much longer than lateral. Tail nearly even, sometimes slightly rounded, but little shorter than the wings; first primary much shorter than the fourth.

Empidonax. Head moderately crested; tail about even. Bristles of bill reaching about half-way to tip. Legs stout. A conspicuous light orbital ring, and distinct bands on the wing. More or less tinged with sulphur-yellow on lower parts. Nest variously constructed, deeply cup-shaped, compact or loose, entirely of either grassy or fibrous and downy material, and fixed to slender twigs or lodged in a crotch between thick branches; eggs white, immaculate, or with blotches of brown round larger end.

Mitrephorus. Head decidedly crested. Tail forked. Bristles of bill reaching nearly to tip. Legs very weak and slender. Beneath more or less tinged with fulvous or ochraceous.

Pyrocephalus. Head with a full crest. Tarsus but little longer than the middle toe; hind toe not longer than the lateral. Tail broad, even; first quill shorter than the fifth. Beneath, with whole crown bright red (except in P. obscurus). Female very different, lacking the red, except posteriorly beneath, and with the breast obsoletely streaked.

Genus MILVULUS, Swainson.

Milvulus, Swainson, Zoöl. Jour. III, 1827, 165.

Despotes, Reichenbach, Avium Syst. Naturale, 1850 (in part).

Sp. Char. Bill shorter than the head, and nearly equal to the tarsus. Tail nearly twice as long as the wing, excessively forked; the middle feathers scarcely half the lateral. First primary abruptly attenuated at the end, where it is very narrow and linear. Head with a concealed crest of red.

This group is distinguished from Tyrannus by the very long tail, but the two species assigned by authors to North America, although agreeing in many respects, differ in some parts of their structure. The peculiarities of coloration are as follows:—

When the bird fell to the ground severely wounded, it uttered a sharp squeak, which it repeated, accompanied by a smart clicking of the bill, when Mr. Audubon approached it. It lived only a few moments, and from this specimen he made his drawing.

Several years previous to this, one of these birds had been shot near Henderson, Ky., but it was so far decayed when given to Mr. Audubon that it could not be preserved. It had been obtained among the Barrens late in October. Near Natchez, Miss., in August, 1822, Mr. Audubon was confident he saw two others of this species. They were high in the air, and were twittering in the manner of a Kingbird. He was, however, unable to secure them.

Another straggler was obtained near Bridgton, N. J., early in December. From this specimen was made the engraving in Bonaparte’s Ornithology. It was given to Titian Peale by Mr. J. Woodcraft of that place.

This Flycatcher is a resident in tropical South America from Guiana to La Plata, and in its habits resembles the swallow-tailed species of our southern fauna. It is said to be a solitary bird, remaining perched on the limb of a tree, from which, from time to time, it darts after passing insects; while standing, it is said to vibrate its long tail in the manner of the European Wagtail. It also occasionally utters a twitter not unlike the common note of the Kingbird. Besides insects, this bird also feeds on berries, as the bird obtained near Bridgton had its stomach distended with the fruit of the poke-weed.

This species, according to Sumichrast, is found abundantly in winter in the savannas of the hot lands of Vera Cruz, and occurs to the height of about two thousand feet. He is not aware of its being resident.

Mr. Leyland found this species frequenting Old River and the pine ridges of Belize. They were also plentiful on the flats near Peten, and were occasionally found at Comayagua and Omoa, Honduras.

Mr. C. W. Wyatt met with this Flycatcher in Colombia, South America, on the savanna in the neighborhood of Aquachica. When at Ocaña, he used to see them congregated in considerable numbers just before sunset, whirling round high up in the air, and darting down like rockets to the ground. He only found it frequenting the open part of the country, and he never met with it at a greater elevation than five thousand feet.

SCISSOR-TAIL; SWALLOW-TAIL FLYCATCHER.

Muscicapa forficata, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 931.—Vieillot, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 71.—Stephens, in Shaw’s Zoöl. X, II, 413, pl. iii.—Bonap. Am. Orn. I, 1825, 15, pl. ii, f. 1.—Aud. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 426, pl. ccclix, f. 3. Tyrannus forficatus, Say, Long’s Exped., II, 1823, 224.—Nuttall’s Manual, I, (2d ed.,) 1840, 309. Milvulus forficatus, “Swains.” Rich. List, 1837.—Audubon, Synopsis, 1839, 38.—Ib. Birds Am. I, 1840, 197, pl. liii.—Caban. Mus. Hein. II, 79.—Scl. List, 1862, 237.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 169.—Ib. Mex. B. II, Zoöl. 7.—Heerm. X, c. p. 11. Tyrannus mexicanus, Stephens, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl. Birds, XIII, II, 1826, 135. Moucherolle a queue fourchue du Mexique, Buffon pl. enl. 677. Bird of Paradise of the Texans.

Sp. Char. Wing with the outer primary only abruptly attenuated, and narrowly linear (for about .85 of an inch); the second but slightly emarginate; second quill longest; first and third equal. Tail very deeply forked, the lateral feathers twice as long as the body, all narrow and linear or subspatulate. Top and sides of the head very pale ash; the back a little darker, and faintly tinged with light brick-red; under parts nearly pure white, tinged towards the tail with light vermilion, rather more rose on the under wing-coverts; a patch on the side of the breast and along the fore-arm dark vermilion-red. Tail-feathers rosy white, tipped at the end for two or three inches with black. Rump dark brown, turning to black on the coverts. Wings very dark brown; the coverts and quills, excepting the primaries (and including the outer of these), edged with whitish. Crown with a concealed patch of white, having some orange-red in the centre. Length, 13.00; wing, 4.75; tail, 8.50; depth of fork, 5.80.

Hab. Middle America, from Panama northward; prairies and oak barrens of Texas, Indian Territory, and occasionally Southwest Missouri and Kansas. Accidental in Eastern States (New Jersey, Turnbull; District of Columbia? Coues); Xalapa (Scl. 1857, 204); Guatemala (Scl. Ibis, I, 121; Mus. S. I.); Honduras (Scl. II, 114); Costa Rica (Caban. J., 1861, 252); Vera Cruz, hot and temperate regions (Sum. M. B. S. I, 556).

Habits. The Swallow-tailed Flycatcher appears to be a common species from Central Texas to the Rio Grande, and thence throughout Mexico to Central America, as far south at least as Guatemala. It is also found in the Indian Territory, where it breeds, specimens of the nest and eggs having been obtained at the Kioway Agency by Dr. E. Palmer.

It was found very plentiful at Langui, in Honduras, by Mr. G. C. Taylor, and also in fewer numbers in other localities. In the evening, just before roosting time, they were in the habit of assembling on the tops of certain favorite trees, where they remained until nearly dark. They then all went off to the woods. He generally met with them on open ground, not much encumbered by trees or brushwood.

Mr. Dresser states that he found this very graceful bird quite abundant at Matamoras and in Western Texas, where it is known by the name of “Texan Bird of Paradise.” He found it as far east as the river Guadaloupe. It arrives, he states, in the neighborhood of San Antonio, late in March, and remains until the middle or latter end of October. It breeds abundantly near San Antonio, building its nest in a mesquite or other tree, and lays from three to four eggs, which, as he states, are pure white, blotched with large spots of a dark red color.

He adds that these birds are of a quarrelsome and fearless disposition, rarely brooking intruders near their homes. During the breeding-season Mr. Dresser has often, when travelling, stopped to admire four or five of them fighting on the wing. They show their long tail-feathers and the rich scarlet color under their wings to the fullest advantage. After passing Guadaloupe River, he saw none of these birds to the eastward, though he was told they have occasionally been seen on Galveston Island.

This Flycatcher was met with at Eagle Pass, in Lower Texas, and in Tamaulipas by Mr. Clark and Lieutenant Couch, in the Mexican Boundary Survey. None were found occurring west of the valley of the Rio Pecos. Mr. Clark states that he always saw them either following one another through the air, or perched upon some solitary twig. In their gyrations the scissors were always more or less expanded, suggesting the idea of balancers. Their nests were built of sticks, lined on the inside, though not very softly, with grass, and were placed almost invariably on dry limbs of the mesquite. They contained from three to five eggs, and, what was quite remarkable, more than one pair always seemed to have an interest in the same nest, over which they were all very watchful, and gave proofs of their courage by darting at the intruders. He describes their notes as short and sharp, without much variation, and they can be heard at quite a distance. The Mexicans imagine that this Flycatcher lives on the brains of other birds.

In Vera Cruz this species is an inhabitant of the hot lands. A few individuals ascend, though very rarely, to the height of the city of Orizaba, or about 3,700 feet.

Mr. Nuttall states that he met with this Flycatcher rather common along the banks of the Red River, near the confluence of the Kiamesha. He again met them, even more frequently, near the Great Salt River of Arkansas, in August. They seemed to be preying upon grasshoppers.

Dr. Woodhouse not only found this species abundant in Texas, in the vicinity of San Antonio, but in the Indian Territory also it was quite common, particularly near the Cross Timbers. He found them breeding in the beginning of the month of July, on the Great Prairie. Its nest was built on the horizontal branch of a small scrub-oak, about six feet from the ground, and was composed of coarse dry grass and sticks. It contained four young birds nearly able to fly. On his approach the female flew from the nest to a bush near by. The male bird flew to a great height above him, circling round in the air, apparently watching his movements, and at the same time uttering a coarse scolding chirp.

A single individual of Milvulus, and supposed to be one of this species, was seen by Mr. C. Drexler, May 6, 1861, but was not obtained, in the vicinity of Washington. Another bird of this species is mentioned by Mr. Abbott as having been taken near Trenton, N. J., April 15, 1872. It was a male bird in full health and feather. Its stomach was found to be full of small coleoptera, insects’ eggs, flies, etc.

The eggs of this species vary greatly in size, from .92 by .75 to .80 by .60 of an inch. They are in shape a rounded oval, and tapering at one end. The ground-color is white, marked with a few very large dark red spots, and occasionally of an obscure purple.

Genus TYRANNUS, Cuvier.

Tyrannus, Cuvier, Leçons Anat. Comp. 1799, 1800 (Agassiz).

Gen. Char. Tail nearly even, or moderately forked; rather shorter than the wings; the feathers broad, and widening somewhat at the ends. Wings long and pointed; the outer primaries rather abruptly attenuated near the end, the attenuated portion not linear, however. Head with a concealed patch of red on the crown.

The species of this genus are especially characterized by their long, attenuated primaries, their moderately forked or nearly even tail, and the concealed colored crest in the crown. Their affinities are nearest to Milvulus, from which the tail, shorter than the wings, instead of twice as long, or more, will always serve as a point of distinction. The attenuation of the primary differs in being less abrupt, and not truly linear, sloping gradually, and not bounded behind by a notch. We are unable to appreciate any other differences of importance.

The North American species of Tyrannus (with their nearest Mexican allies) may be arranged by colors, accordingly as they are white beneath or yellow, in the following manner:—

A. Under parts whitish, without any shade of yellow. A faint grayish-plumbeous pectoral band.

1. T. carolinensis. Tail slightly rounded. Bill much shorter than the head. Above black, shading into dark plumbeous on the back. Tail abruptly and broadly margined and tipped with pure white. (Tyrannus.) Hab. Whole of North America, north to the British Provinces, and south to Panama. Rare in the Western Province of North America.

2. T. dominicensis. Tail moderately forked. Bill longer than the head. Above gray; the tail and wings brownish. The edges and tips of the tail narrowly margined with soiled white. (Melittarchus.) Hab. West Indies, New Granada, Panama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

B. Above ashy-olive, becoming purer ash on the head. Tail brown or black. Beneath yellow; the chin paler; the breast strongly shaded with olivaceous or ashy. (Laphyctes.)

a. Tail nearly black; the outer edges of the outer webs of the feathers with the fibres united closely throughout, and colored similarly to the rest of the feathers; beneath sulphur-yellow.

3. T. verticalis. Tail slightly forked; external feather with the entire outer web and the outer half of the shaft abruptly yellowish-white. Pectoral band pale ashy, lighter than the back. Hab. Western Province of United States.

4. T. vociferans. Tail nearly even or slightly rounded; external feather with the shaft brown; the outer edge only of the outer web obscurely yellowish-white, and all the feathers fading into paler at the tip. Throat and breast broadly tinged with dark ashy-olive like the back. Hab. Plains and southern Middle Province of United States, south into Middle America.

b. Tail brown, scarcely darker than the wings; outer edges of the outer webs of the tail-feathers olivaceous like the back, in contrast with the brown; the fibres loosened externally; shafts of tail-feathers white beneath. Beneath bright gamboge-yellow.

Tyrannus carolinensis, Baird.

KINGBIRD; BEE MARTIN.

? Lanius tyrannus, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 1766, 136. This belongs to the Cuban T. matutinus, according to Bonaparte. Muscicapa tyrannus, (Brisson?) Wilson, Am. Orn. I, 1808, 66, pl. xiii.—Aud. Orn. Biog. I, 1832, 403; V, 1839, 420, pl. lxxix.—Ib. Birds Am. I, 1840, 204, pl. lvi. Lanius tyrannus, var. γ, carolinensis, δ, ludovicianus, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 302. Muscicapa rex, Barton, Fragments N. H. Penna. 1799, 18. Tyrannus pipiri, Vieillot, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 73, pl. xliv.—Cab. Journ. Orn. III, 1855, 478.—Scl. List, 1862, 236. Tyrannus intrepidus, Vieillot, Galerie Ois. I, 1824, 214, pl. cxxxiii.—Swainson, Mon. Ty. Shrikes, Quart. Jour. 1826, 274. Muscicapa animosa, Licht. Verz. Doubl. 1823, No. 558. Gobe Mouche de la Caroline, Buffon, Ois. V, 281, enl. pl. 676. Tyrannus leucogaster, Stephens, Shaw, Gen. Zoöl. XIII, II, 1826, 132. Tyrannus carolinensis, Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 171.—Caban. Mus. Hein. II, 79.—Lord, Pr. R. A. Inst. IV, 64, 113.—Cooper & Suckley, 167.—Samuels, 128.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 311.

Sp. Char. Two, sometimes three, outer primaries abruptly attenuated at the end. Second quill longest; third little shorter; first rather longer than fourth, or nearly equal. Tail slightly rounded. Above dark bluish-ash. The top and sides of the head to beneath the eyes bluish-black. A concealed crest on the crown vermilion in the centre, white behind, and before partially mixed with orange. Lower parts pure white, tinged with pale bluish-ash on the sides of the throat and across the breast; sides of the breast and under the wings similar to, but rather lighter than, the back. Axillaries pale grayish-brown tipped with lighter. The wings dark brown, darkest towards the ends of the quills; the greater coverts and quills edged with white, most so on the tertials; the lesser coverts edged with paler. Upper tail-coverts and upper surface of the tail glossy black, the latter very dark brown beneath; all the feathers tipped, and the exterior margined externally with white, forming a conspicuous terminal band about .25 of an inch broad. Length, 8.50; wing, 4.65; tail, 3.70; tarsus, .75.

Hab. Eastern North America to Rocky Mountains. Occasional in various parts of the Western Province (Washington Territory, Salt Lake Valley, Truckee River, Nevada, etc.). South to Panama. Oaxaca, lowlands, March (Scl. P. Z. S. 1858, 302); Honduras (Moore, P. Z. S. 1859, 55); Guatemala (Scl. Ibis I, 120); Cuba (Cab. J. III, 476; Gundl. Rep. 1865, 239, “T. pipiri”); Panama, (Mus. S. I.; Lawr. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VII, 295); Greytown, Nic.? (Lawr. Ann. VIII, 183); East of San Antonio, Texas (Dresser, Ibis, 1865, 472; breeds); Upper Amazon, Peru, Nauta (Scl. and Salv. P. Z. S. 1866, 189); Vera Cruz, hot region, resident (Sumichrast, M. B. S. I, 557).

Specimens vary in the amount of white margining the wing-feathers; the upper tail-coverts are also margined sometimes with white.

Habits. The common Kingbird or Bee Martin of North America is found throughout the continent, from Texas and Florida, on the south, as far to the north as the 57th parallel of north latitude. Westward, north of the 44th parallel, it is found from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but south of this it has not been found west of the Rocky Mountains. It is included by Dr. Cooper among the birds of California, but I am not aware that it has ever been taken within the limits of that State. Mr. Allen regards the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains its extreme western limit; but Mr. Ridgway states that this species was met with by him in various portions of the Great Basin, though always in less abundance than the T. verticalis. Among the cottonwoods of the Truckee Valley, in Western Nevada, two or three pairs were seen in July and August. In the fertile Salt Lake Valley it was nearly or quite as common as the T. verticalis, and was also met with in the fertile “parks” of the Wahsatch Mountains.

This species not only has this widely extended area, but is also quite abundant wherever found. It is apparently as abundant throughout Nova Scotia as it is in the State of Florida. Richardson even found it common on the banks of the Saskatchewan, where he traced its northern migrations beyond the 57th parallel of latitude. It was found at the Carlton House early in May, and retired southward in September. It winters in Central and South America, and has been received by Mr. Lawrence from Panama.

Dr. Suckley found this species quite plentiful at the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains, in Washington Territory, and more sparingly at Puget Sound, where he obtained several specimens. They appeared to shun the dense forests near Puget Sound, but were moderately plentiful in the groves of low oaks, and among the cottonwood-trees fringing the lakes on Nisqually Plains, where, August 5, he obtained a nest with newly fledged young.

Mr. Joseph Leyland found this species near Omoa, in Honduras, migratory. They came in flocks of two or three hundred, but remained only a short time before departing farther south. They flew high, and seemed very wild. This species was also met with, in May, at Playa Vicente, in the low lands of the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, by Mr. Boucard, and during the winter months is found throughout Mexico.

Wilson states that his jealous affection for his mate and for his nest and young makes him suspicious of every bird that happens to pass near his residence. But this is not the case in all instances. A pair of these birds nested, in the summer of 1871, and peacefully reared their young, in an apple-tree near my residence, within four feet of the nest of the Baltimore Oriole, and not more than eight or ten feet from the nest of a Robin, all in the same tree. The three pairs were on evident terms of amity and mutual good-will. The male Kingbird kept a sharp lookout for danger from the topmost bough, and seemed to have all under his special guardianship, but showed no disposition to molest or annoy them.

The Purple Martin is said to be the implacable enemy of the Kingbird, and one of the few birds with which the latter maintains an unequal contest. Its superiority in flight gives the former great advantages, while its equal courage and strength render it more than a match. Audubon relates an instance in which the Kingbird was slain in one of these struggles.

Wilson also narrates an encounter, of which he was an eyewitness, between one of this species and a Red-headed Woodpecker, in which the latter, while clinging on the rail of a fence, seemed to amuse itself with the violence of the Kingbird, playing bo-peep with it round the rail, while the latter became greatly irritated, and made repeated but vain attempts to strike at him.

The Kingbird feeds almost exclusively upon winged insects, and consumes a vast number. It is on this account one of our most useful birds, but, unfortunately for its popularity, it is no respecter of kinds, and destroys large numbers of bees. In districts where hives of honey-bees abound, the Kingbird is not in good repute. Wilson suggests that they only destroy the drones, and rarely, if ever, meddle with the working bees. But this discrimination, even if real, is not appreciated by the raisers of bees, who regard this bird as their enemy.

The Kingbird has no song, but, instead, utters an incessant monotonous succession of twitterings, which vary in sharpness and loudness with the emotions that prompt them.

The flight of the Kingbird when on the hunt for insects is peculiar and characteristic. It flies slowly over the field, with rapid vibrations of the wings, in the manner of Hawks, and soars or seems to float in the air in a manner equally similar. At other times it flies with great rapidity, and dives about in the air in the manner of a Swallow. It also exhibits great power and rapidity of flight when rushing forth to encounter a Hawk or an Eagle.

As they are known occasionally to plunge into the water, and, emerging thence, to resume their seat on a high branch, to dry and dress their plumage, it has been conjectured that they feed on small fish, but this is unsupported by any positive evidence.

Though the Kingbird usually builds in trees, it does not always select such situations. In the summer of 1851, passing over a bridge near the village of Aylesford, in Nova Scotia, I observed a Kingbird fly from a nest built on the projecting end of one of the planks of which the bridge was made. So remarkably exposed a position, open to view, and on a level with and within a few feet of a highway, must be quite unusual.

The eggs of this bird are five, sometimes six, in number, and vary considerably in size. Their ground-color is white with a more or less decided roseate tinge, beautifully spotted with blotches and markings of purple, brown, and red-brown. In some, these are disposed in a confluent crown around the larger end; in others they are irregularly distributed over the entire egg. In length they vary from 1.05 to .86 of an inch, and in breadth from .72 to .70 of an inch.

Tyrannus dominicensis, Rich.

GRAY KINGBIRD.

Tyrannus dominicensis, Brisson, Ois. II, 1760, 394, pl. xxxviii. fig. 2.—Rich. List, 1837.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 172. Lanius tyrannus, var. β, dominicensis, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 302. Muscicapa dominicensis, Aud. Orn. Biog. II, 1834, 392, pl. xlvi.—Ib. Birds Am. I, 1840, 201, pl. lv. Melittarchus dominicensis, Cabanis, Journal für Ornith. III, Nov. 1855, 478. Tyrannus griseus, Vieillot, Ois. Am. Sept. I, 1807, 76, pl. xlvi.—Swainson, Mon. Shrikes, Quart. Jour. XX, 1826, 276.—Bp. Consp. 1850, 192 (Bonaparte makes two species).—Scl. List, 1862, 236. Tyrannus matutinus, Vieill. De La Sagra pl. xiv.

Young. Lesser wing-coverts and upper tail-coverts distinctly bordered with pale ochraceous; tail-feathers bordered all round with a deeper shade of the same. No colored patch on the crown.

Hab. South Carolina coast, accidental; Florida Keys and West Indies; Nicaragua; New Granada; Santa Cruz (Newton, Ibis I, 146, eggs); Carthagena, N. G. (Cass. P. A. N. S. 1860, 143); Cuba (Cab. J. III, 478, breeds; Gundl. Rep. 1865, 238, “Mel. griseus”); Jamaica (Gosse, B. J. 169, breeds; March, P. A. N. S. 1863, 287); St. Thomas (Cass. P. A. N. S. 1860, 375); Sombrero (Lawr. Ann. N. Y. Lyc. VIII, 1864, 99, “griseus”); Greytown, Nicar. (Lawr. Ann. 183); Sta. Bartholemy (Sund. 1869, 584); Massachusetts (Maynard, B. E. Mass. 1870, 124).

This species, though about the same size as the T. carolinensis, is much more powerfully built, the bill and feet being much stronger, the former considerably longer than the head, and as large as that of Saurophagus sulphuratus, though less compressed.

Specimens from Nicaragua and New Granada appear to be almost perfectly identical with those from Florida and the West Indies, differing only in being just appreciably smaller, which, however, might be expected from their more southern habitat.

Mr. Richard Hill, of Spanishtown, Jamaica, in some interesting notes furnished to Mr. Gosse, states that along the seaside savannas of that island migrant flocks of these birds swarm early in September. Numbers then congregate on the trees around the cattle ponds and about the open meadows, pursuing the swarms of insects which fill the air at sundown. These throngs are immediately joined by resident birds of this species, which gather about the same places, and do not return to their usual abodes until the breeding-season is at hand.

The Jamaica bird is not exclusively an insect-feeder, but eats very freely of the sweet wild berries, especially those of the pimento. These ripen in September, and in groves of these this bird may always be found in abundance. By the end of September most of the migrant birds have left the island.

In the manner in which the male of this species will perch on the top of some lofty tree, and from that vantage-height scream defiance to all around him, and pursue any large bird that approaches, as described by Mr. Hill, all the audacity and courage of our Kingbird is exhibited. At the approach of a Vulture or a Hawk, he starts off in a horizontal line, after rising in the air to the same height as his adversary, and, hovering over him for a moment, descends upon the intruder’s back, rising and sinking as he repeats his attack, and shrieking all the while. In these attacks he is always triumphant.

This Flycatcher is also charged by Mr. Hill with seizing upon the Humming-Birds as they hover over the blossoms in the garden, killing its prey by repeated blows struck on the branch, and then devouring them.

The nest, according to Mr. Hill, is seldom found in any other tree than that of the palm kind. Among the web of fibres around the footstalk of each branch the nest is woven of cotton-wool and grass. The eggs, he adds, are four or five, of an ivory color, blotched with deep purple spots, intermingled with brown specks, the clusters thickening at the greater end. Mr. Gosse, on the contrary, never found the nest in a palm. One, taken from an upper limb of a bitterwood-tree that grew close to a friend’s door, at no great height, was a cup made of the stalks and tendrils of a small passion flower, the spiral tendrils very prettily arranged around the edge, and very neatly and thickly lined with black horse-hair. The other, made in a spondias bush, was a rather loose structure, smaller and less compact, almost entirely composed of tendrils, with no horse-hair, but a few shining black frond-ribs of a fern.

Mr. March states that the migrant birds of this species return to Jamaica about the last of March, gradually disperse, and, like the resident birds, occupy their selected trees in solitary pairs, and immediately set about preparing their nests. At St. Catharine’s the first nest found was on the 14th of April, and the latest in the middle of July. They seldom build in the tree in which they perch, but select a lower tree near it. Some make their nests high, others low, usually at the extremity of a lateral branch. He describes them as loose structures of twigs and the stems of trailing plants, with the cup of grass, horse-hair, and vegetable fibre. The eggs are three, rarely four, of a long oval, with a ground of light cream-color, dashed around the larger end more or less thickly with blotches of burnt sienna, and with cloudings of pale bistre underneath.

Dr. J. G. Cooper, who visited Florida in the spring of 1859, informed me, by letter, on his return, that when he reached Cape Florida, March 8, none of this species were to be seen on any of the keys. The first he noticed were about the first of May, near Fort Dallas on the mainland. As, however, it rarely appears at this place, he supposes they reached the keys some weeks sooner. About May 14 he found several pairs at the Cape, and, going up the coast to New Smyrna, he found them abundant about the marshy islands. On the first of June, with a companion, he went in a small boat for the express purpose of finding their nests; and, pushing the boat about among the islands which almost filled Mosquito Lagoon, he discovered three in one afternoon. They were all built among the small branches of low dead mangrove-trees, about ten feet from the ground, formed of a loose, open flooring of small twigs, with scarcely any lining of a finer material. One contained four eggs half hatched, another three young and one egg, the third four young just hatched. He preserved one nest and all the eggs, and presented them to the National Museum in Washington. The old birds showed no resentment, and neither came near nor followed him, differing very much in this respect from the fearless and devoted Kingbird. The only notes this bird was heard to utter were loud and harsh rattling cries. Dr. Bachman informed Dr. Cooper that these birds had become quite regular summer visitants of Charleston, where they continued to breed each season. Dr. Cooper saw none away from the Florida coast, and thinks that none go inland.

The eggs of this species measure from 1 to 1.05 inches in length, and from .70 to .72 of an inch in breadth. They are of an oblong oval shape, variously marked with large blotches and smaller spots of purple, red-brown, and a dark purplish-brown. The latter color, in a few cases, is found in large masses, covering nearly a fifth of the entire surface of the egg; not inaptly compared by Mr. Gosse to the sinuous outlines of lands, as represented on a terrestrial globe.

ARKANSAS FLYCATCHER.

Tyrannus verticalis, Say, Long’s Exped. II, 1823, 60.—Nuttall, Man. II, (2d ed.,) 1840, 306.—Baird, Birds N. Am. 1858, 173.—Scl. Catal. 1862, 235.—Lord, Pr. R. A. Inst. IV, 113 (Br. Col.).—Cooper & Suckley, 168.—Cooper, Orn. Cal. 1, 1870, 312. Muscicapa verticalis, Bonap. Am. Orn. I, 1825, 18, pl. xi.—Aud. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 422, pl. ccclix.—Ib. Birds Am. I, 1840, 199, pl. liv. Laphyctes verticalis, Caban. Mus. Hein. II, 1859, 77.—Heerm. X. S, 37.

Sp. Char. The four exterior quills attenuated very gently at the end, the first most so; third and fourth quills longest, second and fifth successively a little shorter. Tail slightly forked; bill shorter than the head. Crown, sides of head above the eyes, nape, and sides of neck pale lead-color, or ash-gray; a concealed crest on the crown, vermilion in the centre, and yellowish before and behind. Hind neck and back ash-gray, strongly tinged with light olivaceous-green, the gray turning to brown on the rump; upper tail-coverts nearly black, lower dusky; chin and part of ear-coverts dull white; throat and upper part of breast similar to the head, but lighter, and but slightly contrasted with the chin; rest of lower parts, with the under wing-coverts and axillars, yellow, deepening to gamboge on the belly, tinged with olivaceous on the breast. Wing brown, the coverts with indistinct ashy margins; secondaries and tertials edged with whitish; inner webs of primaries whitish towards the base. Tail nearly black above and glossy, duller brownish beneath; without olivaceous edgings. Exterior feather, with the outer web and the shaft, yellowish-white; inner edge of latter brown. Tips of remaining feathers paler. Bill and feet dark brown. Female rather smaller and colors less bright. Length of male, 8.25; wing about 4.50.