Page:The birds of America, volume 1.djvu/20

 12 CALIFORNIAN VULTURE. the edges sharp, towards the end decurved. Nostrils oblong, large, per- vious. Head oblong. Tongue deeply concave or induplicate, its edges serrate with reversed papilla?. (Esophagus dilated into an enormous crop; stomach moderately muscular; duodenum convoluted. Head and upper part of neck denuded, being only sparingly covered with very short down. Wings very long and extremely broad; third, fourth, and fifth primaries longest, first much shorter. Tail of moderate length, nearly even. Tarsus short, rather stout, roundish, reticulate. Hind toe very small, second a little shorter than fourth, third very long, all scutellate for more than half their length. Claws strong, arched, compressed, obtuse. CALIFORNIAN VULTURE. —Cathartes californianus, Lath. PLATE I.— Adult Male. Of the three species of Vulture which inhabit the southern parts of North America, this is so much superior in size to the rest that it bears to them the same proportion as a Golden Eagle to a Goshawk. It inhabits the valleys and plains of the western slope of the continent, and has not been observed to the eastward of the Rocky Mountains. Mr. Townsend, who has had opportunities of observing it, has favoured me with the following account of its habits. "The Californian Vulture inhabits the region of the Columbia River, to the distance of five hundred miles from its mouth, and is most abundant in spring, at which season it feeds on the dead salmon that are thrown upon the shores in great numbers. It is also often met with near the Indian villages, being attracted by the offal of the fish thrown around the habitations. It associates with Cathartes Aura, but is easily distinguished from that species in flight, both by its greater size and the more abrupt curvature of its wing. The Indians, whose observations may generally be depended upon, say that it ascertains the presence of food solely by its power of vision, thus corrobo- rating your own remarks on the vulture tribe generally. On the upper waters of the Columbia the fish intended for winter store are usually deposited in huts made of the branches of trees interlaced. I have frequently seen the Ravens attempt to effect a lodgement in these deposits, but have never known the Vulture to be engaged in this way, although these birds were numerous in the immediate vicinity."