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"Haematopus ostrilegus. European Oyster-catcher. (oyster-opener would b a better name, as oysters do not run fast). Upper parts glossy-black, like the head and neck. Quills, broadly margined with white on inner webs excepting towards end, and also with isolated white shafts and spaces near end. Back below, interscapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts entirely white, as well as bases of the tail-feathers." Elliot Coues, 1884

European Oyster-catcher

"Haematopus ostrilegus. European Oyster-catcher. (oyster-opener would b a better name, as oysters do…

"Cymochorea leucorrhoa. Leach's Petrel. White-rumped Petrel. Coloration as in the last species (pygmy petrel), with white upper tail-coverts, forming a conspicuous mark; but apt to be lighter - rather of a grayish or even ashy hue on some parts; but easily recognized, whatever the shade of color. Bill and feet black; iris brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Leach's Petrel

"Cymochorea leucorrhoa. Leach's Petrel. White-rumped Petrel. Coloration as in the last species (pygmy…

"Contopus virens. Wood Pewee. Olivaceous-brown, rather darker on head; with sides washed with a paler shade of the same, reaching nearly or quite across the breast; throat and belly whitish, more or less tinged with dull yellowish; under tail-coverts the same, usually streaked with dusky; tail and wings blackish, the former unmarked, the inner wing-quills edged, and the greater and middle coverts tipped, with whitish; feet and upper mandible black, under mandible usually yellow, sometimes dusky; iris brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Wood Pewee

"Contopus virens. Wood Pewee. Olivaceous-brown, rather darker on head; with sides washed with a paler…

"Steganopus wilsoni. Wilson's Phalarope. Bill and feet black. Crown of head pale ash, passing into white along a narrow stripe in the nape. A narrow, distinct, pure white line over the eye. Sides of neck intense purplish-chestnut, or dark wine-red; anteriorly deepening upon the auriculars into velvety-black; posteriorly continued, somewhat duller in tint, as a stripe along each side of the back to the tips of the scapulars. Other upper parts pearly-ash, blanching on the rump and upper tail-coverts. Wings pale grayish-brown; coverts slightly white-tipped; primaries dusky-brown, their shafts brownish-white, except at tip. Tail marbled with pearly-gray and white. All the under parts pure white, but the fore part and sides of the breast washed with pale chestnut-brown, as if with a weak solution of the rich color on the neck, and a faint tinge of the same along the sides of the body to the flanks. Bill and feet black. Iris brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Wilson's Phalarope

"Steganopus wilsoni. Wilson's Phalarope. Bill and feet black. Crown of head pale ash, passing into white…

"Meadow Pipit or Anthus pratensis. Upper parts greenish-brown distinctly marked with blackish-brown centres of the feathers; wing-quills and coverts clove-brown, edged with greenish-gray. Tail-feathers dark brown, edged with the greenish shade of the back, the outer one obliquely white for nearly half its length, and others with white at the end. Cheeks olivaceous, speckled with dusky. Under parts brownish-white with a tinge of green, marked on the breast and sides with brownish-black streaks running forward as a maxillary chain; chin, belly, and under tail-coverts unmarked. Bill dusky above and at end, the rest livid flesh-color; feet obscure flesh-color; iris blackish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Meadow Pipit

"Meadow Pipit or Anthus pratensis. Upper parts greenish-brown distinctly marked with blackish-brown…

"Charadrius dominicus. American Golden Plover. Field Plover. Bull-head Plover. Upper parts black, everywhere speckled with golden-yellow, and mostly also white, the brighter color in excess. The markings of individual feathers are a tipping and one or several paired scollops. Hind neck less strongly marked than crown or back. Forehead, and long stripe over eye snowy-white. Region immediately around bill, sides of head to include eyes, and entire under parts, glossy brownish-black. Lining of wings, and axillars, sooty-gray or ashy. Tail dusky grayish-brown, with numerous irregular pale gray bars, and reddish-brown shafts; upper tail-coverts and rump like back. Primaries fuscous, blackening at tips and whitening at bases of inner webs, though without definite white spaces; shafts white for space. Secondaries and many of the coverts, like the primaries, plain fuscous, without the golden and white fretwork of the back. Bill and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

American Golden Plover

"Charadrius dominicus. American Golden Plover. Field Plover. Bull-head Plover. Upper parts black, everywhere…

"Squatarola helvetica. Swiss Plover. Black-bellied Plover. Bull-head Plover. Whistling Field Plover. Ox-eye. Upper parts fretted with blackish and ashy-white, the feathers being basally, then black, tipped and usually scalloped with white. Upper tail-coverts mostly white, with few dark touches. Fore-head, line over eye and thence more broadly over side of neck, the lining of wings, tibiae, vent and under tail-coverts, white. Sides of head to an extent embracing the eyes, axillary plumes, and entire under parts (except as said), black. Tail closely barred with black and white. Primaries dark brown, blackening at tips, with large basal areas and a portion of their shafts, white. Bill and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-bellied Plover

"Squatarola helvetica. Swiss Plover. Black-bellied Plover. Bull-head Plover. Whistling Field Plover.…

"Aegialites vociferus. Kildeer Plover. Above, grayish-brown, with an olive shade, and in high plumage a slight bronzy lustre. Rump and upper tail-coverts bright-colored, very variable in tint, from tawny or orange-brown to cinnamon-brown or chestnut. Forehead with a white band from eye to eye, more or less prolonged as a superciliary streak, and a black band above it. A white collar around hind neck, continuous with white of the throat. A black collar around back of neck, continuous with a black pectoral band. Back of the latter a black pectoral belt. Thus the fore-parts are encircled with one complete black ring, behind which is a black half-ring on breast, before which is a complete white ring. A white stripe over and behind eye; a dusky stripe below eye. Under parts entirely pure white, except the two pectoral belts. Primary quills blackish; a white space on the outer webs of the most of them, forming an oblique series, and a longer white space on their inner webs. Secondaries mostly white, but with black areas in increasing size from within outward. Long inner secondaries, or tertiaries, like the back. Tail-feathers singularly variegated; several inner pairs like the back, insensibly blackening towards ends, then lightning again, and usually with rusty tips; lateral ones gaining more and more of the bright color of the rump, with more definite black subterminal bars, and pure white tips; outermost pair mostly white, with the rufous shade, and several broken black bars. The effect of all this variegation is very striking when the pairs are displayed in flight. Bill black; eye black, with a bright ring around it; legs pale." Eliot Coues, 1884

Kildeer Plover

"Aegialites vociferus. Kildeer Plover. Above, grayish-brown, with an olive shade, and in high plumage…

"Aegialitis hiaticola, the Ringed Plover, Sand-Lark, or Stone-runner, mistakenly called the "Ring-Dotterel" which is common on the British coasts and even inland, extends from Smith's Sound eastward to Bering Strait, and migrates to South Africa, North India, or accidentally, Australia. It breeds as far south as the Atlantic Islands, North Africa, and Turkestan. The plumage is light brown, with white forehead, post-ocular streak, upper neck, alar bar, outer rectrices, and under surface; the crown, lores, cheeks, and a collar-broader in front-being black. The young lack the black crown." A. H. Evans, 1900

Ringed Plover

"Aegialitis hiaticola, the Ringed Plover, Sand-Lark, or Stone-runner, mistakenly called the "Ring-Dotterel"…

"Porzana carolina. Carolina Crake. Common Rail. "ortolan." Above, olive-brown, varied with black, with numerous sharp white streaks and specks; flanks, axilars and lining of wings, barred with white and blackish; belly whitish; crissum rufescent. Face and central line of throat black, the rest of the throat, line over eye, and especially the breast, more or less intensely slate-gray, the sides of the breast usually also with some obsolete whitish barring and speckling." Elliot Coues, 1884

Carolina Rail

"Porzana carolina. Carolina Crake. Common Rail. "ortolan." Above, olive-brown, varied with black, with…

"Porzana carolina. Carolina Crake. Common Rail. "ortolan." Above, olive-brown, varied with black, with numerous sharp white streaks and specks; flanks, axilars and lining of wings, barred with white and blackish; belly whitish; crissum rufescent. Face and central line of throat black, the rest of the throat, line over eye, and especially the breast, more or less intensely slate-gray, the sides of the breast usually also with some obsolete whitish barring and speckling." Elliot Coues, 1884

Small Carolina Rail

"Porzana carolina. Carolina Crake. Common Rail. "ortolan." Above, olive-brown, varied with black, with…

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy, though forming no crest. Bill broad and flattened, a little widened toward end, running into the forehead which arches abruptly over and away from it, not rising gradually into line with forehead; shorter or not longer than head, 2 inches or less in length along culmen, the nostrils within its basal half; the forward end of nostril about 2/5 the way from upper corner to end of bill. Bill dull blue with a black belt at the end. Iris orange. Feet dull grayish-blue, with dusky webs and black claws. Head and neck all around rich pure chestnut, not obscured with dusky-brown, but with bronzy or coppery red reflections. Lower neck and fore parts of body above and below, with rump and tail-coverts above and below, blackish. Back mixed whitish and blackish in about equal amounts, the dark wavy lines distinct and unbroken. Sides of the body under the wings vermiculated much like the back, the undulations subsiding in the grayish-white of the middle under parts. Wing-coverts ashy-gray, minutely dotted with white; speculum hoary-ash, bordered internally with black; lining of wings mostly white. Female: Bill obscured bluish, with black belt near end; iris yellow." Elliot Coues, 1884

Large Redhead

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy,…

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy, though forming no crest. Bill broad and flattened, a little widened toward end, running into the forehead which arches abruptly over and away from it, not rising gradually into line with forehead; shorter or not longer than head, 2 inches or less in length along culmen, the nostrils within its basal half; the forward end of nostril about 2/5 the way from upper corner to end of bill. Bill dull blue with a black belt at the end. Iris orange. Feet dull grayish-blue, with dusky webs and black claws. Head and neck all around rich pure chestnut, not obscured with dusky-brown, but with bronzy or coppery red reflections. Lower neck and fore parts of body above and below, with rump and tail-coverts above and below, blackish. Back mixed whitish and blackish in about equal amounts, the dark wavy lines distinct and unbroken. Sides of the body under the wings vermiculated much like the back, the undulations subsiding in the grayish-white of the middle under parts. Wing-coverts ashy-gray, minutely dotted with white; speculum hoary-ash, bordered internally with black; lining of wings mostly white. Female: Bill obscured bluish, with black belt near end; iris yellow." Elliot Coues, 1884

Small Redhead

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy,…

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy, though forming no crest. Bill broad and flattened, a little widened toward end, running into the forehead which arches abruptly over and away from it, not rising gradually into line with forehead; shorter or not longer than head, 2 inches or less in length along culmen, the nostrils within its basal half; the forward end of nostril about 2/5 the way from upper corner to end of bill. Bill dull blue with a black belt at the end. Iris orange. Feet dull grayish-blue, with dusky webs and black claws. Head and neck all around rich pure chestnut, not obscured with dusky-brown, but with bronzy or coppery red reflections. Lower neck and fore parts of body above and below, with rump and tail-coverts above and below, blackish. Back mixed whitish and blackish in about equal amounts, the dark wavy lines distinct and unbroken. Sides of the body under the wings vermiculated much like the back, the undulations subsiding in the grayish-white of the middle under parts. Wing-coverts ashy-gray, minutely dotted with white; speculum hoary-ash, bordered internally with black; lining of wings mostly white. Female: Bill obscured bluish, with black belt near end; iris yellow." Elliot Coues, 1884

Redheads

"Fuligula ferina americana. Red-head. American Pochard. The feathers of the head somewhat full and puffy,…

"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…

Two European Redwing birds sitting on a tree branch. These song birds are usually brown with darker brown spots and white underparts. They also have red flanks and an off-white stripe above their eye. Male and female are similar in color.

European Redwing

Two European Redwing birds sitting on a tree branch. These song birds are usually brown with darker…

"Machetes pugnax. Ruff. Reeve. Combatant. Gambetta. Varied above with black, brown, buff and chestnut, the sides of rump white; under parts white, breast and sides and crissum black, spotted with white; tail brown, barred with chestnut and white; quills dusky, with shafts; wing-coverts ashy-brown. Bill blackish, flesh-colored at base; legs dingy yellow; warty excrescences yellow; feathers of the ruff endlessly varied in color." Elliot Coues, 1884

Ruff

"Machetes pugnax. Ruff. Reeve. Combatant. Gambetta. Varied above with black, brown, buff and chestnut,…

"Calidris arenaria. Sanderling. Ruddy "Plover". Adult in summer: Entire upper parts and neck all round variegated with black, light ashy and bright reddish; on the back and scapulars each feather having a central black field, and being broadly margined and tipped with ashy or reddish. Under parts white, immaculate. Outer webs an tips of primaries deep brownish-black, inner light ashy. A white spot at base of inner primaries. Secondaries mostly pure white; the outer vanes and part of inner on the latter half dusky. Greater coverts dusky, broadly tipped and narrowly edged with pure white. Rump, upper tail-coverts and central tail-feathers dusky, tipped and narrowly edged with ashy-white; lateral tail=-feathers very light ash, nearly white. Bill and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Sanderling

"Calidris arenaria. Sanderling. Ruddy "Plover". Adult in summer: Entire upper parts and neck all round…

"Tryngites rufescens. Buff-breasted Sandpiper. Above, brownish-black with a greenish gloss, every feather broadly margined with tawny or yellowish-brown, the latter the prevailing tone. Under parts buff or fawn-colored, without markings except a few small blackish spots on sides of breast. Central tail-feathers greenish-brown, blackening at ends; others paler, often rufescent, with white or tawny tips and subterminal black bar; and usually, also, some black marbling or streaking/ Primaries and secondaries ashy-brown blackening at end, the extreme tip white - most of the inner webs of the primaries, and both webs of the secondaries pearly white, speckled and marbled with black. This curious tracery, best seen from below, is diagnostic; though the precise pattern varies interminably. The patch of under coverts at the bases of the primaries have the same character. Axillars white, lining of wings white or rufescent. Iris brown. Bill brownish-black; legs greenish or yellowish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Buff-breasted Sandpiper

"Tryngites rufescens. Buff-breasted Sandpiper. Above, brownish-black with a greenish gloss, every feather…

"Rhyacophilus solitarius. Solitary Tattler. American Green Sandpiper. Solitary Sandpiper. Above, dark lustrous olive-brown, streaked on the head and neck, elsewhere finely speckled, with white; no continuous white on rump or upper tail-coverts. Below, white; the jugulum and sides of neck shaded with brownish and streaked with dusky; sides, axillars, and `lining of wings regularly barred with dusky. Rump and upper tail-coverts like back; tail beautifully and regularly barred throughout with black and white; white prevailing on the outer feathers, where the dark bars may be broken, and white reduced to a series of marginal spots on the middle feathers. Primaries and edge of wing blackish, unmarked; secondaries like back, mostly unmarked, the inner ones gradually gaining white spots. Bill blackish; legs dull greenish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Solitary Sandpiper

"Rhyacophilus solitarius. Solitary Tattler. American Green Sandpiper. Solitary Sandpiper. Above, dark…

"Eurynorhynchus pygmaeus. Spoon-billed Sandpiper. General appearance of a stint, and size little greater. Coloration of upper parts almost exactly as in the species just names, the feathers being black, with indented light chestnut-red edgings, and mostly grayish-white tips; crown simply streaked with the reddish color and black. Under parts white, the whole throat, breast, and sides of the neck overlaid with bright chestnut (as in a highly-plumaged sanderling), the breast, back of this colored area, and the sides of the body, spotted with dusky. Primaries plain dusky, with blackish outer webs and ends, and mostly white shafts; secondaries mostly white from the base; greater coverts white-tipped. Bill and feet black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Spoon-billed Sandpiper

"Eurynorhynchus pygmaeus. Spoon-billed Sandpiper. General appearance of a stint, and size little greater.…

"Tringoides macularius. Spotted Sandpiper. Above, silken ashen-olive (quaker-color- as in our cuckoos) with a coppery lustre, finely varied with blackish, in streaks on head and neck, elsewhere in wavy or otherwise irregular cross-bars. line over eye, and entire under parts, pure white, with numerous sharp circular black spots, larger and more crowded in the female than in the male. Secondaries. and their coverts broadly white-tipped; some white feathers along bend of wing; axillars and lining of wings white, the latter with an oblique dusky bar. Primaries and most of the secondaries brownish-black, with brown shafts and large white basal spaces, concealed in the folded wing, conspicuous in flight. Upper tail-coverts and middle tail-feathers like back; lateral ones successively acquiring white tips; outer with several incomplete white bars. Feet pinkish-white, drying yellowish. Bill flesh-color, black-tipped; sometimes much of culmen dusky; sometimes much of under mandible orange." Elliot Coues, 1884

Spotted Sandpiper

"Tringoides macularius. Spotted Sandpiper. Above, silken ashen-olive (quaker-color- as in our cuckoos)…

"Micropalama himantopus. Stilt Sandpiper. In summer: blackish, each feather edged and tipped with white and tawny or bay, which on the scapulars becomes scalloped. Auriculars chestnut; a dusky line from bill to eye, and a light reddish superciliary one; upper tail-coverts white with dusky bars. Primaries dusky with blackish tips; tail-feathers 12 ashy-gray, their edges and a central field white; under parts mixed reddish, black, and whitish, in streaks on the jugulum, elsewhere in bars; bill and feet greenish-black." Elliot Coues, 1884

Stilt Sandpiper

"Micropalama himantopus. Stilt Sandpiper. In summer: blackish, each feather edged and tipped with white…

"Oidemia americana. American Black Scoter. Sea Coot. Adult male: Plumage entirely black, less glossy and jetty below than above, grayish on the inner webs of the quills. Iris brown. Feet blackish. Young male resembling the female. Female: Sooty-brown, paler below, becoming grayish-white on belly, there dusky-speckled, on sides and flanks dusky-waved; throat and sides of head mostly continuous whitish, not in special spots; bill blackish, not bulging; feet livid olivaceous with black webs." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black Scoter

"Oidemia americana. American Black Scoter. Sea Coot. Adult male: Plumage entirely black, less glossy…

"Puffinus fuliginosus. Sooty Shearwater. Nearly uniform dark sooty-brown, blackening on quills and tail-feathers, more sooty-gray below, paler still on the throat; lining of wings mixed sooty and whitish. Bill drying an undefinable dark color, in life dusky bluish-horn color, the tube, ridge, and hook blackish; feet drying dark outside, pale inside; in life the inside of tarsus and upper side of feet livid flesh-color, the outside of outer toe and under side of feet blackish; eye blackish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Sooty Shearwater

"Puffinus fuliginosus. Sooty Shearwater. Nearly uniform dark sooty-brown, blackening on quills and tail-feathers,…

"Spatula clypeata. Shoveller Duck. Broad-bill. Bill blackish; iris orange-red: feet vermilion-red. Head and neck dark glossy green. Lower neck and fore breast pure white. Abdomen purplish-chestnut. Wing-coverts sky-blue; speculum rich green, set between white tips of greater coverts, and black subtips and white tips of secondaries; inner secondaries greenish-black, with long white stripe; long scapulars blue on outer webs, striped with white and greenish-black on inner; short anterior scapulars white. Rump and upper and under tail-coverts black; a white patch on each side at root of tail." Elliot Coues, 1884

Northern Shoveler

"Spatula clypeata. Shoveller Duck. Broad-bill. Bill blackish; iris orange-red: feet vermilion-red. Head…

"The Lanius excubitor, Great Grey Shrike, lax plumage is either black, grey, and white, or is varied with rich red-brown. The young are browner, and are often transversely barred below..." A. H. Evans, 1900

Great Grey Shrike

"The Lanius excubitor, Great Grey Shrike, lax plumage is either black, grey, and white, or is varied…

"Carduelis pinus. Pine Linnet. Pine Finch. American Siskin. Pine Siskin. Continuously streaked, above with dusky or dark olivaceous-brown and flaxen or whitish, below with dusky and whitish, the whole body usually suffused with yellowish, most evident on the rump. Wings dusky, the basal portion of all the quills and their inner webs for some distance sulphury-yellow, usually showing externally as a spot just beyond the coverts, sometimes restricted and hidden. Outer webs of the quills also narrowly edged with yellow, separated from the basal yellow patch by a blackish interval. Tail dusky, its basal half yellow, and outer webs edged with yellow. Bill and feet brown." Elliot Coues, 1884

Pine Siskin

"Carduelis pinus. Pine Linnet. Pine Finch. American Siskin. Pine Siskin. Continuously streaked, above…

"Sky-Lark. Upper parts grayish-brown, the feathers with darker centers; under parts whitish, tinged with buff across breast and along sides, and there streaked with dusky; a pale superciliary line; wings with much whitish edging; outer tail-feather mostly white, the next one or two with white borders." Elliot Coues, 1884

Skylark

"Sky-Lark. Upper parts grayish-brown, the feathers with darker centers; under parts whitish, tinged…

"Macrorhamphus griseus. Red-breasted Snipe. Gray Snipe. Brown-back. Dowitcher. In summer:Under parts rich rust-red, paler or whitish on the belly; jugulum, breast, and sides fully speckled with dusky. Axillars and lining of wings white, with angular dusky markings. Wing-quills fuscous, the shaft of the 1st primary white, of the others brown; secondaries conspicuously tipped with white. Above, black, varied everywhere with reddish color of the under parts, and on the back and scapulars with white ; the rump snowy-white, unmarked, very conspicuous in flight. Tail and its upper coverts black, closely barred with white or rufous. A dusky line from bill to eye. Bill and feet greenish-black. In winter: Dark gray above, supercilliary line and spot on under eye-lid white; below, white, the jugulum, fore-breast, and sides heavily shaded with gray, leaving chin whitish; the flanks and crissum with wavy dusky spots or bars." Elliot Coues, 1884

Red-breasted Snipe Head

"Macrorhamphus griseus. Red-breasted Snipe. Gray Snipe. Brown-back. Dowitcher. In summer:Under parts…

"Gallinago media. European Snipe. English Snipe. In size, form, and general coloration indistinguishable from No. 608, but axillary feathers almost entirely white, with slight and sparse dark markings, and the feathers of the flanks and sides less frequently and less regularly barred with dark gray." Elliot Coues, 1884

English Snipe

"Gallinago media. European Snipe. English Snipe. In size, form, and general coloration indistinguishable…

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a pale ochrey middle stripe. upper parts brownish-black, varied with bright bay and tawny, the scapular feathers smoothly and evenly edged with tawny or whitish, forming two lengthwise stripes on each side when the wings are folded. Quills and greater coverts blackish-brown, usually with white tips, and outer web of first primary usually white. Lining of wings and axillars white, fully and regularly barred with black. Rump black, the feathers with white tips. Upper tail-coverts tawny with numerous black bars, and tail-feathers black basally, then bright chestnut, with a narrow subterminal black bar, their tips fading to whitish; some of the lateral ones white, with little rufous tinge and several instead of one black nearly white; sides of body shaded with brown, and with numerous regular dusky bars throughout; crissum more or less rufous, with numerous dusky bars." Elliot Coues, 1884

Small Wilson's Snipe

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a…

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a pale ochrey middle stripe. upper parts brownish-black, varied with bright bay and tawny, the scapular feathers smoothly and evenly edged with tawny or whitish, forming two lengthwise stripes on each side when the wings are folded. Quills and greater coverts blackish-brown, usually with white tips, and outer web of first primary usually white. Lining of wings and axillars white, fully and regularly barred with black. Rump black, the feathers with white tips. Upper tail-coverts tawny with numerous black bars, and tail-feathers black basally, then bright chestnut, with a narrow subterminal black bar, their tips fading to whitish; some of the lateral ones white, with little rufous tinge and several instead of one black nearly white; sides of body shaded with brown, and with numerous regular dusky bars throughout; crissum more or less rufous, with numerous dusky bars." Elliot Coues, 1884

Wilson's Snipe

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a…

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a pale ochrey middle stripe. upper parts brownish-black, varied with bright bay and tawny, the scapular feathers smoothly and evenly edged with tawny or whitish, forming two lengthwise stripes on each side when the wings are folded. Quills and greater coverts blackish-brown, usually with white tips, and outer web of first primary usually white. Lining of wings and axillars white, fully and regularly barred with black. Rump black, the feathers with white tips. Upper tail-coverts tawny with numerous black bars, and tail-feathers black basally, then bright chestnut, with a narrow subterminal black bar, their tips fading to whitish; some of the lateral ones white, with little rufous tinge and several instead of one black nearly white; sides of body shaded with brown, and with numerous regular dusky bars throughout; crissum more or less rufous, with numerous dusky bars." Elliot Coues, 1884

Family of Snipes

"Gallinago wilsoni. American Snipe. Wilson's Snipe. "English" Snipe. Jack-Snipe. Crown black, with a…

"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…

"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…

"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 Head

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

"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…

"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…

"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…

"Passerella iliaca. Eastern Fox Sparrow. General color above ferrugineous or rusty-red, purest and brightest on the rump, tail, and wings, on the other upper parts appearing in streaks laid on an ashy ground. Below, white, variously but thickly marked except on the belly and crissum with rusty-red- the markings anteriorly in the form of diffuse confluent blotches, on the breast and sides consisting chiefly of sharp arrow-head spots and pointed streaks. Tips of middle and greater wing-coverts forming two whitish bars. Upper mandible dark, lower mostly yellow; feet pale. One of the finest singers of the family; quite unlike any other Eastern species of sparrow. A large handsome species." Elliot Coues, 1884

Fox Sparrow

"Passerella iliaca. Eastern Fox Sparrow. General color above ferrugineous or rusty-red, purest and brightest…

"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…

"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…

"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…

"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…

"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…

"European Spoonbill. Platalea leucorodia. Bill long, flat, remarkably widened, rounded, and spoon-shaped at the end. Birds of this group are known at a glance, by the singularity of the bill; they closely resemble the foregoing in structure and habit, being simply spoon-billed Ibises. The trachea is peculiarly convoluted within the thorax." Elliot Coues, 1884

European Spoonbill

"European Spoonbill. Platalea leucorodia. Bill long, flat, remarkably widened, rounded, and spoon-shaped…

"Sturnus vulgaris. The Starling. Adult: General plumage of metallic lustre, iridescing dark green on most parts, more steel-blue on the under parts, and violet or purplish-blue on the fore parts; more or less variegated throughout with pale ochraceous or whitish tips of the feathers. Wings and tail fuscous, the exposed parts of the feathers somewhat frosty or silvery, with velvety-black and pale ochrey marginings, the former within the latter. Bill yellowish; feet reddish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Starling

"Sturnus vulgaris. The Starling. Adult: General plumage of metallic lustre, iridescing dark green on…

"Our familiar Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) being iridescent black, with buff markings above, and, after the autumn moult, white spots below. The female is duller, but in this Family the sexes usually differ little." A. H. Evans, 1900

Common Starling

"Our familiar Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) being iridescent black, with buff markings above, and, after…

"Himantopus. Stilts. Bill extremely slender, but not flattened, nor turned up, nor hooked; longer than head, rather shorter than tarsus. Wing long and pointed, folding beyond the short and square tail, which is less than half the wing. Legs of unique length and slenderness, the bare part about as long as the wing; tibiae denuded for a great distance; tarsus about twice as long as toes. Feet 3-toes, semipalmate; but the species scarcely swim. Sexes similar; young different." Elliot Coues, 1884

Stilt

"Himantopus. Stilts. Bill extremely slender, but not flattened, nor turned up, nor hooked; longer than…

"Stilt. Long-shanks. Lawyer. Adult. Mantle, constituted by the interscapulars, scapulars, and wings (above and below) glossy-black, prolonged up the back of the neck and on to[ and sides of head, embracing the eyes. A spot over and behind eye, one on under eyelid, forehead to opposite eyes, sides of head below eyes, sides of neck and entire under parts, together with the lower back, rump, and, upper tail-coverts, white; tail pearl-gray. In life the long black wings fold entirely over the white upper parts and tail, so that the bird looks entirely black above. Bill black; eyes and legs carmine, latter drying yellowish." Elliot Coues, 1884

Black-necked Stilt

"Stilt. Long-shanks. Lawyer. Adult. Mantle, constituted by the interscapulars, scapulars, and wings…

"Hirundo rustica, the Swallow, is metallic black, with a variable amount of chestnut or rufous on the head, rump, or lower surface; the last of these regions exhibiting much white or having a black pectoral band, while streaky markings are not uncommon." A. H. Evans

Swallow

"Hirundo rustica, the Swallow, is metallic black, with a variable amount of chestnut or rufous on the…

"Cotile riparia. Bank Swallow. lustreless mouse-brown; wings and tail fuscous. Below, white, with a broad pectoral band of the color of the back. A dusky ante-orbital spot.

Martin and Swallow

"Cotile riparia. Bank Swallow. lustreless mouse-brown; wings and tail fuscous. Below, white, with a…

"Cotile riparia. Bank Swallow. lustreless mouse-brown; wings and tail fuscous. Below, white, with a broad pectoral band of the color of the back. A dusky ante-orbital spot." Elliot Coues, 1884

Bank Swallow

"Cotile riparia. Bank Swallow. lustreless mouse-brown; wings and tail fuscous. Below, white, with a…

"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…

"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…

"Cygynus. White Swans. Neck of extreme length. Trachea normally entering sternum. Bill tuberculate or not, the skinny covering in the adults reaching to the eyes; not shorter than head, very high at base, where deeper than wide, broader and flattening toward the rounded end; culminal ridge at base about horizontal, very broad and flat or even excavated, the sides of the bill there nearly vertical. Nostrils near middle of bill, high up. Leg behind centre of equilibrium when the body is horizontal. Tibia bare below. Tarsus shorter than middle toe and claw, entirely reticulate; toes long, with full webs, the anterior reticulate on top for a distance, then scutellate. Hallux small, elevate, with slight lobe. Wings very long and ample. Tail short, rounded or wedged, of twenty or twenty-four feathers. Size large: adults entirely white, with black bill and feet, former usually in part yellow." Elliot Coues, 1884

Mute Swan

"Cygynus. White Swans. Neck of extreme length. Trachea normally entering sternum. Bill tuberculate or…

"Cygnus columbianus. Common American Swan. Whistling Swan. Bill with a yellow spot or blotch in front of eye, usually small, sometimes wanting. Bill less lengthened and expanded terminally than in C. buccinator, the nostrils across the middle; the distance from the anterior angle of the eye to the hind edge of the nostril more than thence to the end of the bill. Tail-feathers normally 20." Elliot Coues, 1884

Whistling Swan

"Cygnus columbianus. Common American Swan. Whistling Swan. Bill with a yellow spot or blotch in front…