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"Kentucky Warbler. Oporornis formosus. Clear olive-green; entire under parts bright yellow, olive-shaded along sides; crown black, separated by a rich yellow superciliary line(which curls around the eye behind) from a broad black bar running form bill below eye thence down the side of the neck; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Kentucky Warbler

"Kentucky Warbler. Oporornis formosus. Clear olive-green; entire under parts bright yellow, olive-shaded…

"Geothlypis trichas. Common Yellowthroat. Yellow-throated Ground Warbler. Maryland Yellow-throat. Upper parts rich olive, inclining to grayish on the head, brightest on the rump. Wings and tail brown, edged with the color of the back. Chin, throat, and breast, with under wing- and tail-coverts, rich yellow. middle under parts dull whitish, shaded on the sides. A broad mask on the front and sides of the head, bordered behind by hoary-ash. Bill black; feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Common Yellowthroat

"Geothlypis trichas. Common Yellowthroat. Yellow-throated Ground Warbler. Maryland Yellow-throat. Upper…

"Yellow-breasted Chat or Icteria virens. Bright olive-green, below golden-yellow, belly abruptly white; lore black, isolating the white under-eyelid from a white superciliary line above and a short white maxillary line below; wings and tail unmarked, glossed with olive; bill blue-black; feet plumbeous." Elliot Coues, 1884

Yellow-breasted Chat

"Yellow-breasted Chat or Icteria virens. Bright olive-green, below golden-yellow, belly abruptly white;…

"Myiodioctes mitratus. Hooded Fly-catching Warbler. Hooded Warbler. Clear yellow-olive above; below, rich yellow, shaded with olive along the sides; whole head and neck pure black, enclosing a broad golden mask across forehead and through eyes; wings unmarked, glossed with olive; tail with large white blotches on the two or three outer pairs of feathers, as in Dendroica; bill black; feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Hooded Warbler

"Myiodioctes mitratus. Hooded Fly-catching Warbler. Hooded Warbler. Clear yellow-olive above; below,…

"Myiodioctes pussies. Blacked-capped Fly-catching Warbler. Upper parts, including exposed edging of the wings and tail, bright yellowish-olive; under parts, including front and sides of the head and superciliary line, rich yellow, shaded with olive on the sides. A squarish, glossy blue-black patch on the crown. Wings and tail plain fuscous, with greenish edging, unmarked with with other color. Upper mandible dark; under mandible and feet light." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-capped Fly-catching Warbler

"Myiodioctes pussies. Blacked-capped Fly-catching Warbler. Upper parts, including exposed edging of…

"Myiodioctes canadensis. Canadian Fly-catching Warbler. Canada Warbler. Bluish-ash; crown speckled with lanceolate black marks, crowded and generally continuous on the forehead; the latter divided lengthwise by a slight yellow line; short superciliary line and edges of eyelids yellow; lores black, continuous with black under the eye, and this passing as a chain of black streaks down the side of the neck and prettily encircling the throat like a necklace of jet; excepting these streaks and the white under tail-coverts, the entire under parts are clear yellow; wings and tail unmarked; feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Canada Warbler

"Myiodioctes canadensis. Canadian Fly-catching Warbler. Canada Warbler. Bluish-ash; crown speckled with…

"Painted Fly-catching Warbler. Setophaga picta. Painted Redstart. Lustrous black; middle of breast and belly carmine-red; eyelids, a large patch on the wings formed by the greater and middle coverts, broad edging of inner secondaries, edging the inner webs of primaries toward the base, lining of wings, nearly all the outer tail-feather, and a diminishing space on the next two or three, together with the crissum, white. Bill and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Painted Fly-catching Warbler

"Painted Fly-catching Warbler. Setophaga picta. Painted Redstart. Lustrous black; middle of breast and…

"Certhiola flaveola. Honey Creeper. Dark brown above; long superciliary line and under parts dull white; breast, edging of wing, and rump, bright yellow; wings dusky, with a white spot at base of primaries, and whitish edging of the quills; tail dusky, tipped with white; bill and feet black; eyes blue." Elliot Coues, 1884

Honey Creeper

"Certhiola flaveola. Honey Creeper. Dark brown above; long superciliary line and under parts dull white;…

The painter's duster, either round or flat come in white or black bristles.The best duster in quality is the one made with white bristles.

Painter's Duster

The painter's duster, either round or flat come in white or black bristles.The best duster in quality…

The flat black lettering sable brush is a flat one stroke brush that is best used for heavy colors

Flat Black Sable Lettering Brush

The flat black lettering sable brush is a flat one stroke brush that is best used for heavy colors

"Entire upper parts glossy dark green; wings and tail blackish, lustrous; lores black. Entire under parts white. Bill black; feet dark." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-belied Swallow

"Entire upper parts glossy dark green; wings and tail blackish, lustrous; lores black. Entire under…

"Cliff Swallow. Eaves Swallow. Crescent Swallow. Mud Swallow. back and top of head, with a spot on the throat, deep lustrous steel-blue, that of the crown and back separated by a grayish nuchal collar. Frontlet white or brownish-white. Shorter upper tail-coverts rufous. Chin, throat, and sides of head intense rufous, sometimes purplish-chestnut, prolonged around the side of the nape. Under parts dull grayish-brown, , with usually a rufous tinge (rusty-gray), dusky shaft-lines, whitening on the belly, the under tail-coverts gray, whitish-edged and tinged with rufous. Wings and tail blackish, with slight gloss. Bill black; feet brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Cliff Swallow

"Cliff Swallow. Eaves Swallow. Crescent Swallow. Mud Swallow. back and top of head, with a spot on the…

"Ampelis garrulus. Bohemian Waxwing. General color brownish-ash, shading insensibly from the clear ash of the tail and its upper coverts and rump into a reddish-tinged ash anteriorly, this peculiar tint heightening on the head, especially on the forehead and sides of the head, into orange-brown. A narrow frontal line, and bordered with white. No yellowish on belly. Under tail-coverts orange-brown, or chestnut. Tail ash, deepening to blackish-ash toward the end broadly tipped with rich yellow. Wings ashy-blackish; primaries tipped (chiefly on the outer webs) with sharp spaces of yellow, or white, or both; secondaries with white spaces at the ends of the outer webs, the shafts usually ending with enlarged, horny, red appendages. Primary coverts tipped with white. Bill blackish-plumbeous, often paler at the base below; feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Bohemian Waxwing

"Ampelis garrulus. Bohemian Waxwing. General color brownish-ash, shading insensibly from the clear ash…

"Ampelis cedrorum. Cedar Waxwing. Carolina Waxwing. Cedar-bird. Cherry Bird. General color shading from clear pure ash on the upper tail-coverts and rump through olivaceous-cinnamon into a richer and somewhat purplish-cinnamon on the foreparts and head. On the under parts, the color shades through yellowish on the belly into white on the under tail-coverts. There is no demarcation of color whatever, and the tints are scarcely susceptible of adequate description. Frontlet, lores, and stripe through the eye, velvety-black; chin the same, soon shading into the color of the breast. A sharp white line on the side of the under jaw; a narrower one bordering the black frontlet and lores; lower eyelid white. quills of the wings slate-gray, blackening at the ends, paler along the edges of the inner webs; without white or yellow markings, as a rule; inner quills tipped with red horny appendages. Tail-feathers like the primaries, but tipped with yellow, and sometimes also showing red horny appendages. Bill plumbeous-black, sometimes paler at base; feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Cedar Waxwing

"Ampelis cedrorum. Cedar Waxwing. Carolina Waxwing. Cedar-bird. Cherry Bird. General color shading from…

"Similar to V. gilvus, but smaller; colors paler; bill more depressed; upper mandible almost black; 2d quill much shorter than 6th" Elliot Coues, 1884

Warbling Vireo

"Similar to V. gilvus, but smaller; colors paler; bill more depressed; upper mandible almost black;…

"Lanius borealis. Great Northern Shrike. Butcher-bird. Great Grey Shrike. Above, clear bluish-ash, blanching on rump and scapulars; below, white, always vermiculated transversely with fine wavy blackish lines; a broad black bar along side of head, not meeting its fellow across forehead, interrupted by a white crescent on under eyelid, and bordered above by hoary white that also occupies the extreme forehead; wings and tail black, the former with a large white spot near base of the primaries, and white tips of most of the quills, the latter with the outer web of the outer feather edged, and all the feathers excepting the middle pair broadly tipped, with white, and with concealed white bases; bill and feet bluish-black; eyes blackish. Elliot Coues, 1884

Butcher-bird

"Lanius borealis. Great Northern Shrike. Butcher-bird. Great Grey Shrike. Above, clear bluish-ash, blanching…

"Lanius borealis. Great Northern Shrike. Butcher-bird. Great Grey Shrike. Above, clear bluish-ash, blanching on rump and scapulars; below, white, always vermiculated transversely with fine wavy blackish lines; a broad black bar along side of head, not meeting its fellow across forehead, interrupted by a white crescent on under eyelid, and bordered above by hoary white that also occupies the extreme forehead; wings and tail black, the former with a large white spot near base of the primaries, and white tips of most of the quills, the latter with the outer web of the outer feather edged, and all the feathers excepting the middle pair broadly tipped, with white, and with concealed white bases; bill and feet bluish-black; eyes blackish. Elliot Coues, 1884

Butcher-bird Head

"Lanius borealis. Great Northern Shrike. Butcher-bird. Great Grey Shrike. Above, clear bluish-ash, blanching…

"Hesperophona vespertina. Evening Grosbeak. General color sordid yellow, overlaid with sooty-olive shade, deepest on fore parts, quite black on crown, clearest below behind. forehead and line over eye, scapulars, and rump, yellow. Wings and tail black; several inner secondaries and inner half of the greater coverts white; lining of wings black and yellow. A narrow black line around base of upper mandible; tibiae black. Bill greenish-yellow; feet apparently dusky flesh-color." Elliot Coues, 1884

Evening Grosbeak

"Hesperophona vespertina. Evening Grosbeak. General color sordid yellow, overlaid with sooty-olive shade,…

"Pelvis of a heron (ardea herodias), nat. size, viewed from below; from nature by Dr. R.W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. dl, dorso-lumbar vertebrae to and including the last one, sc; below sc, for the extent of the large black spaces (opposite the arrow) are the true sacral vertebrae; us, urosacral vertebrae (opposite the five oval black spaces; Il, ilium; Is, ischium; P, pubis; ob, obturator foramen. The arrow flies into the acetabulum.

The Pelvis of a Heron

"Pelvis of a heron (ardea herodias), nat. size, viewed from below; from nature by Dr. R.W. Shufeldt,…

"Pyrrhula cassini. Cassin's Bullfinch. Above, clear ashy-gray; below, cinnamon-gray; rump and under wing- and tail-coverts white; wings and tail, crown, chin and face black; outer tail-feathers with a white patch, greater wing-coverts tipped and primaries edged with whitish; bill black; feet dusky." Elliot Coues, 1884

Cassin's Bullfinch

"Pyrrhula cassini. Cassin's Bullfinch. Above, clear ashy-gray; below, cinnamon-gray; rump and under…

"Exotic Sparrow's - lowest pair - Passer domesticus (The Sparrow. Philip Sparrow. House Sparrow.) above pair - Passer montanus (Mountain Sparrow). House Sparrow - upper parts ashy-gray; middle of back and scapulars boldly streaked with black and bay. A dark chestnut; median tipped with white, forming a conspicuous wing-bar, bordering which is a black line. Greater coverts and inner quills with central black field bordered with bay. Tail dusky-gray, unmarked. Lower parts ashy, gray or whitish; chin and throat jet black, spreading on the breast and lores, bordered on side of neck with white. Bill blue-black; feet brown. Mountain Sparrow - Somewhat like the last, but smaller and otherwise different. Crown and nape a peculiar purplish-brown. Lores, chin, and throat-patch narrow and short, not spreading on breast, contrasted with ashy-white on side of head and neck; ear-coverts blackish. Back and scapulars streaked with black and bay, the streaking reaching to the purplish nape; rump and tail plain grayish-brown. Wings marked much as in P. domesticus, with a black and white bar across tips of median coverts, but also a narrow white bar across tips of greater coverts. Primaries more varied with ochrey-brown on outer webs, forming a basal spot and other edging. Below, ashy-gray, shaded on sides, flanks, and crissum with grayish-brown. Bill blue-black; feet brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Exotic Sparrow's

"Exotic Sparrow's - lowest pair - Passer domesticus (The Sparrow. Philip Sparrow. House Sparrow.) above…

"Loxia leucoptera. White-winged Crossbill. Rosy-red, sometimes carmined or even crimsoned, obscured on middle of back, paling on lower belly and crissum, latter whitish with dusky centres of the feathers. Scapulars black, this color sometimes meeting across lower back. Wing- and tail-feathers black, with white, forming two cross-bars, sometimes confluent in one large patch. Rather larger than the next, the bill thinner and more attenuate." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-winged Crossbill

"Loxia leucoptera. White-winged Crossbill. Rosy-red, sometimes carmined or even crimsoned, obscured…

"Leucosticte tephrocotis. Swainson's Rosy Finch. Gray-crowned Rosy Finch. Sexes similar. Adult in breeding plumage or nearly so: Bill and feet black. Nasal plumules white. Frontlet black; rest of pileum hoary-ash, not descending below level of eyes and upper border of auriculars (for when the ash invades the sides of head to any extent, the bird takes the first step toward litoralis, in which the head is extensively hooded in ash). General color, sides of head included, chocolate or liver-brown of varying intensity, many feathers skirted with gray or whitish, especially the interscapulars, which also have dusky centres, and inclining to blackish on chin and throat. Hinder parts of the body above and below, including tail-coverts, rich rosy or carmine red, this color due to broad edgings of the dusky feathers of these parts. Wings and tail blackish, the wing-coverts and primaries edged with rosy, showing nearly continuous in the closed wing; edgings of inner secondaries rosy-white or white." Elliot Coues, 1884

Swainson's Rosy Finch

"Leucosticte tephrocotis. Swainson's Rosy Finch. Gray-crowned Rosy Finch. Sexes similar. Adult in breeding…

"Aegiothus linaria. Common Redpoll. Common Red-poll. Frontlet, lores, and throat-spot sooty-black. Crown crimson. Above, variegated with brownish-yellow and dusky, the feathers having dark centres and flaxen edges. Rump streaked with dusky and white, and tinged with rosy, more or less so according to age and season. Below, white, the sides and crissum streaked with dusky, the entire fore-parts colored with rose-red more or less rich and extensive according to same circumstances. Wings and tail dusky, the feathers edged with whitish, the middle and greater coverts tipped with the same, forming two crossbars. Bill black or yellow, usually found yellow with dusky tip and edges. Feet blackish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Common Redpoll

"Aegiothus linaria. Common Redpoll. Common Red-poll. Frontlet, lores, and throat-spot sooty-black. Crown…

"Astragalinus tristis. American Goldfinch. Yellow-bird. Thistle-bird. In summer: Rich yellow, changing to whitish on the tail-coverts; a black patch on the crown; wings black, ore or less edged with white; lesser wing-coverts white or yellow; greater coverts tipped with white; tail black, every feather with a white spot; bill and feet flesh-colored. In September, the black cap disappears; the general plumage changes to a pale flaxen-brown above and whitey-brown below, with traces of the yellow, especially about the head; wings and tail much as in summer; sexes then much alike: this continues until the following April or May." Elliot Coues, 1884

American Goldfinch

"Astragalinus tristis. American Goldfinch. Yellow-bird. Thistle-bird. In summer: Rich yellow, changing…

"Astragalinus lawrencii. Lawrence's Goldfinch. Gray, more or less tinged with yellowish, whitening on the belly and crissum; rump, a large breast-patch, and much of the back rich yellow; crown, face, and chin black; wings black, variegated with yellow, most of the coverts being of this color, and the same broadly edging the quills; inner secondaries edged with hoary gray; tail black, most of the feathers with large square white spots on the inner webs and whitish edging of the outer; bill and feet flesh-color more or less obscured." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lawrence's Goldfinch

"Astragalinus lawrencii. Lawrence's Goldfinch. Gray, more or less tinged with yellowish, whitening on…

"Astragalinus psaltria. Arkansaw Goldfinch. Upper parts uniform olive-green, without any black; below yellow; crown black, this not extending below the eyes; wings black, most of the quills and the greater coverts white-tipped, and the primaries white at base; tail black, the outermost three pairs of feathers with a long rectangular white spot on the inner web." Elliot Coues, 1884

Arkansaw Goldfinch

"Astragalinus psaltria. Arkansaw Goldfinch. Upper parts uniform olive-green, without any black; below…

"Plectrophanes nivalis. Snow Bunting. Snowflake. Pure white; the bill, feet, middle of back, scapulars, primaries except at base, most inner secondaries, bastard quills, and and several tail-feathers, black." Elliott Coues, 1884

Snow Bunting

"Plectrophanes nivalis. Snow Bunting. Snowflake. Pure white; the bill, feet, middle of back, scapulars,…

"Centrophanes lapponicus. Lapland Longspur. Whole head, throat and breast jet-black, bordered with buffy or whitish, which forms a post-ocular stripe separating black of crown from that of sides of head, sometimes continues to the bill. A broad cervical chestnut collar, separated from the black cap by whitish or buffy line and nuchal spot. Upper parts brownish-black completely streaked with buff or whitish edges of the feathers; under parts white, the sides streaked with black. Wings dusky, with pale or brownish edgings of the feathers, but no strong markings. Tail like wing, with large white spaces on outer 3 feathers. Bill yellow, black-tipped. Legs and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lapland Longspur

"Centrophanes lapponicus. Lapland Longspur. Whole head, throat and breast jet-black, bordered with buffy…

"Astragalinus mexicanus. Mexican Goldfinch. The upper parts continuously-black, and the black of the crown extending below the eyes, enclosing the olive under eyelid. Mexican border and southward. This bird looks quite unlike typical psaltria, but the gradation through var. arizonae is perfect; and mexicana, moreover, leads directly into var. columbiana, a Central American form in which the tail-spots are very small or wanting. The females of these several varieties cannot by distinguished with certainty." Elliot Coues, 1884

Mexican Goldfinch

"Astragalinus mexicanus. Mexican Goldfinch. The upper parts continuously-black, and the black of the…

"Rhynchophanes maccowni. Black-breasted Longspur. Bay-winged Longspur. Upper parts slate-gray, streaked with dusky and grayish or yellowish-brown, especially on the interscapulars. No cervical collar, but a chestnut patch on the wings, formed by median coverts. Crown jet-black, bounded by a white superciliary line; sides of head whitish, but auriculars more or less slaty. Throat white, bounded by firm black maxillary stripes. Breast jet-black in broad crescentic form, sharply defined against the white throat, shading behind into slaty-blackish, becoming more and more mixed with white on the belly and sides, till posteriorly the parts are pure white; lining of wings white. All the tail-feathers, except the middle pair, and bases and tips of intermediate ones, white, ending squarely across both webs. Bill blackish-plumbeous, pale at base below; feet brownish-black. Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-breasted Longspur

"Rhynchophanes maccowni. Black-breasted Longspur. Bay-winged Longspur. Upper parts slate-gray, streaked…

"Passerculs bairdi. Baird's Savanna Sparrow. Inner secondaries less elongated, rarely equaling the primaries in the closed wings. First 4 quills about equal and longest. Hind toe and claw about equaling the middle toe and claw, its claw about equaling the digit. Tail shorter than wing, lightly double-rounded (central and outer pair of feathers both little shorter than the intermediate ones). Top of head streaked with black and rich brownish-yellow. or buff, the former predominating laterally, the latter chiefly as a median stripe, but also suffusing the nape and sides of head in greater or less degree. Back varied with brownish-black and gray, together with a little bay, the two latter colors forming the edgings of the interscapulars. Rump variegated with gray and chestnut-brown, different in shade from that of the back. Under parts dull white, usually with a faint ochrey tinge on the breast, but often without; a circlet of small, sharp, sparse, dusky streaks across the breast, continuous with others, longer and mostly lighter, along the whole sides, and with others, again, extending up the sides of the neck into small vague maxillary and aurigular markings. When the feathers are perfectly arranged these lateral head-markings are seen to be post-ocular stripe just over the auricular spot, a streak starting from the angle of the mouth, and another heavier one parallel with and below this, running directly into the pectoral ones. Quills without special marking, excepting the elongated inner secondaries, which correspond with scapulars. Tail the same, slightly whitish-edge. Upper mandible mostly dark, lower pale. Feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Baird's Sparrow

"Passerculs bairdi. Baird's Savanna Sparrow. Inner secondaries less elongated, rarely equaling the primaries…

"Passercules s. savana. Common Savanna Sparrow. Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides, and across breast; a superciliary line, and edge of the wing, yellowish: lesser wing-coverts not chestnut; legs flesh-color; bill rather slender and acute; tail nearly even, its outer feathers not white; longest secondary nearly as long as the primaries in the closed wing. Above, brownish-gray, streaked with blackish, whitish-gray and pale bay, the streaks largest on interscapulars, smallest on cervix, the crown divided by an obscure whitish line; sometimes an obscure yellowish suffusion about head besides the streak over the eye. Below, white, pure or with faint buffy shade, thickly streaked, as just stated, with dusky- the individual spots edged with brown, mostly arrow-shaped, running in chains along the sides, and often aggregated in an obscure blotch on the breast. Wings dusky, the coverts and inner secondaries black-edged and tipped with bright bay; tail-feathers rather narrow and pointed, dusky, not noticeably marked." Elliot Coues, 1884

Common Savanna Sparrow

"Passercules s. savana. Common Savanna Sparrow. Thickly streaked everywhere above, on sides, and across…

An illustration of a Mayapple plant. "a, the flower-bud with the bractlets; b, a stamen; c, the pistil; d, the fruit; e, the fruit cut longitudinally." -Century, 1889 Podophyllum peltatum (the mayapple) is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Berberidaceae, native to the eastern part of North America. The stems grow to 30-40 cm tall, with palmately lobed leaves up to 20-30 cm diameter with 5-9 deeply cut lobes. The plant produces two growth forms. The ones with a single umbrella-like leaf do not produce any flower or fruit. The plants having a twin leaf (rarely three-leaf) structure, however, bear a single white flower 3-5 cm diameter with six (rarely up to nine) petals, between the two leaves; this matures into a yellow-greenish fruit 2-5 cm long. The plant appears in colonies in open woodlands. Individual shoots are often connected by systems of thick tubers and rhizomes.

Mayapple

An illustration of a Mayapple plant. "a, the flower-bud with the bractlets; b, a stamen; c, the pistil;…

The Eastern Meadowlark, Sturnella magna, is a medium-sized icterid bird, very similar in appearance to the Western Meadowlark. It occurs from eastern North America to South America, where it is also most widespread in the east. Adults have yellow underparts with a black "V" on the breast and white flanks with black streaks. The upperparts are mainly brown with black streaks. They have a long pointed bill; the head is striped with light brown and black. The song of this bird is simpler and not warbled like that of the Western Meadowlark; their ranges overlap across central North America. In the field, the song is often the easiest way to tell the two species apart.

Eastern Meadowlark

The Eastern Meadowlark, Sturnella magna, is a medium-sized icterid bird, very similar in appearance…

"Coturniculus passerinus. Yellow-winged Sparrow. Quail Sparrow. Grasshopper Sparrow. Edge of wing conspicuously yellow; lesser wing-coverts greenish-yellow; a yellow loral spot; short line over eye buffy-yellow. Crown with median stripe of pale brownish-yellow. Below, ochraceous or pale buff or tawny, fading to whitish on belly, not evidently streaked, though a few dark touches may appear on sides of breast. Above, singularly variegated with black, gray, yellowish-brown and a peculiar purplish-bay, in short streaks and specks; the crown being nearly black with sharp median brownish-yellow stripe, the middle of the back chiefly black with bay and brownish-yellow edgings of the feathers, the cervical region and rump chiefly bay and gray. When the feathers are not disturbed, the peculiar pattern of the cervical region separates that of the crown and back; the markings extend on the sides of the neck, but the sides of the head are plain, like the under parts. Wing-coverts and inner secondaries variegated in intricate pattern, the general effect like the back. Primaries and tail-feathers plain dusky, with narrow light edgings; outer tail-feathers paler, but not white. Feet flesh-colored." Elliot Coues, 1884

Yellow-winged Sparrow

"Coturniculus passerinus. Yellow-winged Sparrow. Quail Sparrow. Grasshopper Sparrow. Edge of wing conspicuously…

"Melospiza lincolni. Lincoln's Song Sparrow. Below, white, with a broad brownish-yellow belt across breast, the sides of the body and neck, and the crissum, washed with the same; extent and intensity of this buff very variable, often leaving only chin, throat, and belly purely white, but a pectoral band is always evident. All the buffy parts sharply and thickly streaked with dusky. Above, grayish-brown, with numerous sharp black-centred, brown-edged streaks. Top of head ashy, with a pair of dark brown black-streaked stripes; or, say, top of head brown, streaked with black, and with median and lateral ashy stripes. Below the superciliary ashy stripe is a narrow dark brown one, running from eye over ear; auriculars also bounded below by an indistinct dark brown stripe, below which and behind the auriculars the parts are suffused with buff. Wings with much rufous-brown edging of all the quills; inner secondaries and coverts having quite black central fields, with broad bay edging, becoming whitish toward their ends. Tail brown, the feathers with pale edges, and the central pair at least with dusky shaft-stripes. Bill blackish, lighter below; feet brownish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lincoln's Sparrow

"Melospiza lincolni. Lincoln's Song Sparrow. Below, white, with a broad brownish-yellow belt across…

"Melospiza palustris. Swamp Song Sparrow. Crown bright chestnut, blackening on forehead, the red cap and black vizor as conspicuous as in chipping sparrow; but oftener, crown with obscuremedian ashy line, and streaked with black. An ashy-gray superciliary line; dark brown postocular stripe, bordering the auriculars; sides of head ashy, with grayish-brown auriculars, dusky speckling on cheeks and lores, and slight dusky maxillary spots or streaks. An ashy cervical collar separating the chestnut crown from the back, sometimes pure, oftener interrupted with blackish streaks. The general ash of the sides of head and neck spreads all over the breast and under parts, fading to whitish on throat and belly; the sides, flanks, and crissum marked with brown, and obsoletely streaked with darker brown. Back and rump brown, rather darker than sides of body, boldly variegated with black central streaks of the feathers and their pale brown or grayish edges. Wings so strongly edged with bright bay as to appear almost uniformly brownish-red when closed; but inner secondaries and greater coverts showing some black and whitish besides the bay. Tail likewise strongly edged with bay, and usually showing sharp black shaft lines. Thus well marked by the emphasis of black, bay, and ash." Elliot Coues, 1884

Swamp Sparrow

"Melospiza palustris. Swamp Song Sparrow. Crown bright chestnut, blackening on forehead, the red cap…

"Melospiza fasciata. Song Sparrow. Silver-tongue. Below, white, slightly shaded with brownish on the flanks and crissum; with numerous black-centred, brown-edged streaks cross breast and along sides, usually forming a pectoral blotch and coalescing into maxillary stripes bounding the white throat; crown dull bay, with fine black streaks, divided in the middle and bounded on either side by ashy-whitish lines; vague brown or dusky and whitish markings on sides of the head; a brown post-ocular stripe over the gray auriculars, and another, not so well defined, from angle of mouth below the auriculars; the interscapular streaks black, with bay and ashy-white edgings; rump and cervix grayish-brown, with merely a few bay marks; wings with dull bay edgings, the coverts and inner quills marked like the interscapulars; tail plain brown, with darker shaft lines, on the middle feathers at least, and often with obsolete transverse wavy markings. Very constant in plumage, the chief difference being in the sharpness and breadth of the markings, due in part to the wear of the feathers. In worn midsummer plumage, the streaking is very sharp, narrow, and black, from wearing of the rufous and whitish, especially observable below where the streaks contrast with white, and giving the impression of heavier streaking than in fall and winter, when in fresher feather, the markings are softer and more suffuse. The aggregation of spots into a blotch on the middle of the breast is usual. Bill dark brown, paler below; feet pale brow." Elliot Coues, 1884

Song Sparrow

"Melospiza fasciata. Song Sparrow. Silver-tongue. Below, white, slightly shaded with brownish on the…

"Amphispiza bilineata. Black-throated Sparrow. Black-faced Sage Sparrow. face, chin, and throat sharply jet-black; a strong white superciliary line, and another bounding the black of the throat; under eyelid white; auriculars dark slate. No yellow anywhere. Below, pure white; the sides, flanks, and crissum shaded with ashy or fulvous-brownish, but no streaks. Above, uniform grayish-brown; clearer ash in high plumage, otherwise browner, generally more shy anteriorly than behind, and shading insensibly into the black of the face. wings dusky; coverts and inner quills edged with the color of the back. Tail black, with narrow grayish edgings; the outer feather sharply edged and tipped with white, and several others similarly tipped. Bill and feet plumbeous-black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-throated Sparrow

"Amphispiza bilineata. Black-throated Sparrow. Black-faced Sage Sparrow. face, chin, and throat sharply…

"Chondestes grammica. Lark Sparrow. Lark Finch. Head variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown chestnut, blackening on forehead, divided by a median stripe, and bounded by superciliary stripes, of white; a black line through eye, and another below eye, enclosing a white streak under the eye and the chestnut auriculars; next, a sharp black maxillary stripe not quite reaching the bill, cutting off a white stripe from the white chin and throat. A black blotch on middle of breast. Under parts white, faintly shaded with grayish-brown; under arts grayish-brown, the middle of the back with fine black streaks. Tail very long, its central feathers like the back, the rest jet-black, broadly tipped with pure white in diminishing amount from the lateral pair inward, and the outer web of the outer pair entirely white." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lark Sparrow

"Chondestes grammica. Lark Sparrow. Lark Finch. Head variegated with chestnut, black, and white; crown…

"Junco hiemalis. Eastern Snow-bird. Black Snow-bird. Blackish-ash, below abruptly pure white from the breast, the sides shaded with ashy. In the summer, and most fall and winter specimens, the upper parts have a more grayish, or even a decidedly brownish, cast, and the inner secondaries are edged with pale bay. The slaty-black intense on the head; belly and crissum pure white, the line between the two transverse or convex forward; wings and tail blackish, with slightly hoary edging of some feathers; 2-3 lateral tail feathers pure white, wholly or in great part. No rusty brown on back or sides; any shade on the sides ashy, not pinkish. Bill pinkish-white, or flesh-color, usually black-tipped." Elliot Coues, 1884

Eastern Snow-bird

"Junco hiemalis. Eastern Snow-bird. Black Snow-bird. Blackish-ash, below abruptly pure white from the…

"Spizella domestica. Chipping Sparrow. Chipping Bird or Chippy. Hair-bird. Bill black; feet pale; crown chestnut; extreme forehead black, usually divided by a pale line; a grayish-white superciliary line; below this a blackish stripe through eye and auriculars; lores dusky. Below, a variable shade of pale ash, nearly uniform and entirely unmarked; back streaked with lack, dull bay and grayish-brown; inner secondaries and wing-coverts similarly variegated, the tips of the greater and median coverts forming whitish bars; rump ashy, with slight blackish streaks or none; primaries and tail-feathers dusky, with paler edges." Elliot Coues,1884

Chipping Sparrow Head

"Spizella domestica. Chipping Sparrow. Chipping Bird or Chippy. Hair-bird. Bill black; feet pale; crown…

"Spizella domestica. Chipping Sparrow. Chipping Bird or Chippy. Hair-bird. Bill black; feet pale; crown chestnut; extreme forehead black, usually divided by a pale line; a grayish-white superciliary line; below this a blackish stripe through eye and auriculars; lores dusky. Below, a variable shade of pale ash, nearly uniform and entirely unmarked; back streaked with lack, dull bay and grayish-brown; inner secondaries and wing-coverts similarly variegated, the tips of the greater and median coverts forming whitish bars; rump ashy, with slight blackish streaks or none; primaries and tail-feathers dusky, with paler edges." Elliot Coues,1884

Chipping Sparrow

"Spizella domestica. Chipping Sparrow. Chipping Bird or Chippy. Hair-bird. Bill black; feet pale; crown…

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median white stripe, bounded by a white superciliary line, and yellow spot from nostril to eye; below this a black stripe through eye; below this a maxillary black stripe bounding the definitely pure white throat, sharply contrasted with the dark ash of the breast and sides of the neck and head. Edge of wing yellow. back continuously streaked with black, chestnut, and fulvous-white; rump ashy, unmarked. wings much edged with bay, the white tips of the median and greater coverts forming two conspicuous bars; quills and tail-feathers dusky, with pale edges. Below, white, shaded with ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper and purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-throated Sparrow Head

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median…

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad black stripe that meets its fellow on the forehead and descends the lores to the level of the eyes, and bounded by another narrow black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around the side of the hind-head, nearly meeting its fellow on the nape; edge of under eyelid white. Or, we may say, crown black, enclosing a median white stripe and two lateral white stripes, all confluent on the hind head. No yellow anywhere. General color a fine dark ash, paler below, whitening insensibly on chin and belly, more brownish on the rump, changing to dull brownish white. No bright bay, like that of albicollis, anywhere, except some edging on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two bars. Bill and feet reddish." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-crowned Sparrow Head

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad…

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median white stripe, bounded by a white superciliary line, and yellow spot from nostril to eye; below this a black stripe through eye; below this a maxillary black stripe bounding the definitely pure white throat, sharply contrasted with the dark ash of the breast and sides of the neck and head. Edge of wing yellow. back continuously streaked with black, chestnut, and fulvous-white; rump ashy, unmarked. wings much edged with bay, the white tips of the median and greater coverts forming two conspicuous bars; quills and tail-feathers dusky, with pale edges. Below, white, shaded with ashy-brown on sides, the ash deeper and purer on the breast; bill dark; feet pale." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-throated Sparrow

"Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Crown Sparrow. Peabody-bird. Crown black divided by a median…

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad black stripe that meets its fellow on the forehead and descends the lores to the level of the eyes, and bounded by another narrow black stripe that starts behind the eye and curves around the side of the hind-head, nearly meeting its fellow on the nape; edge of under eyelid white. Or, we may say, crown black, enclosing a median white stripe and two lateral white stripes, all confluent on the hind head. No yellow anywhere. General color a fine dark ash, paler below, whitening insensibly on chin and belly, more brownish on the rump, changing to dull brownish white. No bright bay, like that of albicollis, anywhere, except some edging on the wing-coverts and inner secondaries; middle and greater coverts tipped with white, forming two bars. Bill and feet reddish." Elliot Coues, 1884

White-crowned Sparrow

"Zonotrichia leucophrys. White-browned Crown Sparrow. Crown pure white, enclosing on either side a broad…

An illustration of two polar bears standing on icebergs with large icebergs surrounding them.

Polar Bears on Iceberg

An illustration of two polar bears standing on icebergs with large icebergs surrounding them.

An illustration of a polar bear standing on an iceberg.

Polar Bear

An illustration of a polar bear standing on an iceberg.

The megapodes, also known as incubator birds or mound-builders, are stocky, medium-large chicken-like birds with small heads and large feet in the family Megapodiidae. Their name literally means large foot and is a reference to the heavy legs and feet typical of these terrestrial birds. All are browsers, all but the Malleefowl occupy wooded habitats, and most are brown or black colored. Megapodes are superprecocial, hatching from their eggs in the most mature condition of any birds. They hatch with open eyes, with bodily coordination and strength, with full wing feathers and downy body feathers, able to run, pursue prey, and, in some species, fly on the same day they hatch.

Mound-builders

The megapodes, also known as incubator birds or mound-builders, are stocky, medium-large chicken-like…

Megatherium ("Great Beast") was a genus of elephant-sized ground sloths that lived from two million to 8,000 years ago. A related genus was Nothrotheriops, which were primarily bear-sized ground sloths. The rhinoceros-sized Promegatherium is suggested to be the ancestor of Megatherium.

Megatherium Skeleton

Megatherium ("Great Beast") was a genus of elephant-sized ground sloths that lived from two million…

An illustration of a black seadevil with a fish in its stomach. Black seadevils are small, deep-sea lophiiform fish comprising the family Melanocetidae. There are five known species (with only two given common names), all within the genus Melanocetus. They are found in tropical to temperate waters of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Ocean, with one species known only from the Ross Sea.

Black Sea Devil with Fish in Stomach

An illustration of a black seadevil with a fish in its stomach. Black seadevils are small, deep-sea…

"Calamospiza bicolor. Lark Bunting. White-winged Blackbird. Black, with A large white patch on the wings; the quills and tail-feathers frequently marked with white; bill dark horn-blue above, paler below; feet brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Lark Bunting

"Calamospiza bicolor. Lark Bunting. White-winged Blackbird. Black, with A large white patch on the wings;…

"Spiza americana. Black Throated Bunting. Above, grayish-brown, the middle of the back streaked with black, the hind neck ashy, becoming on the crown yellowish-olive with black touches. A yellow superciliary line, and maxillary touch of the same; eyelid white; ear-coverts ashy like the cervix; chin white; throat with a large jet-black patch. Under parts in general white, shaded with gray on the sides, extensively tinged with yellow on the breast and belly. Edge of wing yellow; lesser and middle coverts rich chestnut, other coverts and inner secondaries edged with paler. Bill dark horn-blue; feet brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-throated Bunting

"Spiza americana. Black Throated Bunting. Above, grayish-brown, the middle of the back streaked with…

"Zamelodia. Song Grosbeak. Bill extremely heavy, with the lower mandible as deep as the upper or deeper, the commissural angle strong, far in advance of the feathered base of the bill, the rictus overhung with a few long stiff bristles. Wing with outer 4 primaries abruptly longer than 5th. Tail shorter than wing, even or scarcely rounded. Feet short and stout. Embracing two larger species, of beautiful and striking colors, the sexes dissimilar. Male black and white, with carmine-red or orange-brown; Female otherwise, but with lining of wings yellow. Brilliant songsters; nest in trees and bushes; eggs spotted." Elliot Coues, 1884

Song Grosbeak Bill

"Zamelodia. Song Grosbeak. Bill extremely heavy, with the lower mandible as deep as the upper or deeper,…

"Zamelodia ludoviciana. Rose-breasted Song Grosbeak. Adult male with the head and neck all around and most of the upper parts black, the rump, upper tail-coverts and under parts white, the breast and under wing-coverts exquisite carmine rose-red; wings and tail black, variegated with white; bill white; feet grayish-blue; iris brown. Female above, streaked with blackish and olive-brown or flaxen-brown, with median white coronal and superciliary line; below, white, more or less tinged with fulvous and streaked with dusky; under wing-coverts saffron-yellow; upper coverts and inner quills with a white spot at end; bill brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Rose-breasted Song Grosbeak

"Zamelodia ludoviciana. Rose-breasted Song Grosbeak. Adult male with the head and neck all around and…

"Zamelodia melanocephala. Black-headed Song Grosbeak. Adult male with the crown, sides of head, back, wings, and tail black; the back usually varied with whitish or cinnamon-brown, the wings spotted with white on the ends of the coverts, and usually also towards the ends of the quills, and with a large white patch at the base of primaries; several lateral tail-feathers with large white spots on inner webs near their ends. Neck all round, rump, and under parts rich orange-brown, changing to bright pure yellow on the belly and under wing-coverts; bill and feet dark grayish-blue. Size of the last. The female and young differ much as in the last species, but may be recognized by the rich sulphur-yellow under wing-coverts; the bill is shorter and more tumid, along culmen, .60 deep at base." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-headed Song Grosbeak

"Zamelodia melanocephala. Black-headed Song Grosbeak. Adult male with the crown, sides of head, back,…

"Guiraca caerulea. Blue Grosbeak. Adult male: Rich dark blue, nearly uniform, but darker or blackish across middle of back; feathers around base of bill, wings and tail, black; middle and greater wing-coverts tipped with chestnut; bill dark horn-blue, paler below; feet blackish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Blue Grosbeak

"Guiraca caerulea. Blue Grosbeak. Adult male: Rich dark blue, nearly uniform, but darker or blackish…

"Fig. 62 Skull of common fowl, enlarged. from nature by Dr. R.W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. The names of bones and some other parts are printed, requiring no explanation; but observe the following points: The distinction of none of the bones composing the brain-case (the upper back expanded part) can be found in a mature skull. The brain is contained between the occipital, sphenoidals, squamosals, parietals and part of frontal; the ethmoidals belong to the same group of cranial bones proper. All other bones, excepting the three otic ear-bones, are bones of the face and jaws. The lower jaw, of five bones, is drawn detached; it articulates by the black surface marked articular with the prominence just above- the quadratic bone. Observe that from this quadrate a series of bones quadrato-jugal, jugal, maxillary-makes a slender rod running to the premaxillary; this is the zygoma, or jugal bar. Observe from the quadrate also another series, composed of pterygoid and palatine bones, to the premaxillary; this is the pterygo-palatine bar; it slides along a median fixed axis of the skull, the rostrum, which bears the loose vomer at its end. The under mandible, quadrate, pterygoid, and vomer are the only movable bones of this skull. But when the quadrate rocks back and forth, as it does by its upper joint, its lower end pulls and pushes upon the upper mandible, by means of the jugal and pterygo-palatine bars, setting the whole scaffolding of the upper jaw in motion. This motion hinges upon the elasticity of the bones of the forehead, at the thin place just where the reference-lines from the words "lacrymal" and "mesethmoid" cross each other. The dark oval space behind the quadrate is the external orifice of the ear; the parts in it to which the three reference-lines go are diagrammatic, not actual representations; thus, the quadrate articulates with a large pro-otic as well as with the squamosal. The great excavation at the middle of the figure, containing the cirlet of the unshaded bones, is the left orbital cavity, orbit, or socket of the eye. The mesethmoid includes most of the background of this cavity, shaded diagonally. The upper one of the two processes of bone extending into it from behind is post-frontal or sphenotic process; the under one (just over the quadrate) is the squamosal process. A bone not shown, the presphenoid, lies just in front of the oval black space over the end of basisphenoid. This black oval is the optic foramen, through which the nerve of sight passes from the brain-cavity to the eye. The black dot a little behind the optic foramen is the orifice of exit of a part of the trifacial nerve. The black mark under the letters "on" of the word "frontal" is the olfactory foramen, where the nerve of smell emerges from the brain-box to go to the nose. The nasal cavity is the black space behind nasal and covered by that bone, and in the oval blank before it. The parts of the beak covered by horn are only premaxillary, nasal, and dentary. The condyle articulates with the first cervical vertebra; just above it, not shown, is the foramen magnum, or great hole through which the spinal medulla, or main nervous cord, passes from the spinal column. The basioccipital is hidden, excepting its condyle; so is much of the basisphenoid. The prolongation forward of the basisphenoid, marked "rostrum," and bearing the vomer at its end, is the parasphenoid, as far as its thickened under border is concerned. Between the fore end of the pterygoid and the basisphenoidal rostrum, is the site of the basipterygoid process, by which the bones concerned articulate by smooth facets; further forward, the palatines ride freely upon the parasphenoidal rostrum. In any passerine bird , the vomer would be thick in front, and forked behind, riding like the palatine upon the rostrum. The palatine seems to run into the maxillary in this view; but it continues on to premaxillary. The maxillo-palatine is an important bone which cannot be seen in the figure because it extends horizontally into the paper from the maxillary about where the reference life "maxillary" goes to that bone. The general line from the condyle to the end of the vomer is the cranial axis, basis cranii, or base of the cranium. This skull is widest across the post-frontal; next most so across the bulge of the jugal bar." Elliot Coues, 1884

Skull of a Common Fowl

"Fig. 62 Skull of common fowl, enlarged. from nature by Dr. R.W. Shufeldt, U.S.A. The names of bones…