File:The royal natural history (1893) (14784868845).jpg

Identifier: royalnaturalhist47lyde (find matches)
Title: The royal natural history
Year: 1893 (1890s)
Authors: Lydekker, Richard, 1849-1915 Sclater, Philip Lutley, 1829-1913 Frostick, W. B., former owner. DSI Brooks, W. T., former owner. DSI
Subjects: Zoology Natural history
Publisher: London and New York : Frederick Warne & Co.
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

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st. Azarawas told by the natives that it was always placed in hollow trees, but this hasbeen doubted by other writers; and Burmeister states that the nest is Ijuilt highup on a tree, frequently on the very sunnnit of one that is dead and bare. American The two remaining genera of the New World vultures are readily Black Vulture, distino-uished from the preceding ones by the absence of an erect wattle on the naked head in both sexes; while they are further characterised by the wings .2 72 DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. being pointed and less than twice the length of the tail, with their primary quillsconsiderably longer than the secondaries. The present species (CatJiarista atrata),which is the sole representative of its genus, is characterised by the squared ex-tremity of the tail, and by the interval between the tips of the primaries andsecondaries being less than the length of the metatarsus. In colour the blackvulture is a nearly uniform black, although the shafts of the primary quills are
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AMERICAN BLACK VULTURE (; liat. size). white on both sides, and those of the tail-feathers brown above and white beneatli.Both the beak and feet are bluish, while the iris is dark brown. The total lengthis only about 25 inches. Its regular range extends from about the northernfrontier of Patagonia to North Carolina and Texas; while irregularly, or casually,the bird is found as far north as New York and South Dakota. In the Statesit is commonly known as the carrion crow. With the exception of the extremenorthern portion of its range, the black vulture is a resident species in thedistricts it frequents; and is far more abundant near the coast than in theinterior, in the United States being more numerous than the turkey-vulture AMERICAN VULTURES. 273 ill the former situations, while it is outnumbered by that bird in the heart of the country. As the habits of this vulture are very similar to those of the turkey-vulture, it will suffice to say that these birds are more or less gregarious.

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