Larger than an English sparrow; bill powerful, tip hooked and notched; wings short, rounded; tail long and much graduated. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects, small mammals, and sometimes birds. s.e.xes alike, and young the same. Found on outside of low trees, fences, telegraph wires, and peaks of roofs.
11. Ampelidae: WAXWINGS, etc.
Somewhat larger than an English sparrow; bill short, broad and rather flat; head with pointed crest; wings long and pointed; tail short, narrow, even; legs of moderate length. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects and fruit. s.e.xes usually alike. Found in trees in woods and in shade and orchard trees.
12. Hirundinidae: SWALLOWS.
About the size of an English, sparrow; bill short, flat, and very broad at the head; mouth opens back nearly to the eyes; wings long and scythe shaped; tail forked; legs short; feet weak; plumage compact and usually l.u.s.trous. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects. s.e.xes usually alike, and young a little different. Found in flocks, in the air, on roofs or fences or telegraph wires, sometimes on trees.
13. Tanagridae: TANAGERS.
Larger than an English sparrow; bill conical, notched, bristles; wings longer than tail; tail of moderate length, somewhat notched; legs rather short. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects. s.e.xes unlike. Found on trees in the woods.
14. Fringillidae: FINCHES.
Mostly about the size of an English sparrow, some smaller, some larger; bill short, high, and strong, turned down at the back corner; wings and tail variable. (Ridgway.)
Seed and insect eaters. Found everywhere--on trees, bushes, on ground, in woods, fields, and about houses.
15. Icteridae: BLACKBIRDS, ORIOLES, etc.
Larger than an English sparrow; bill straight or gently curved; mouth turned down at corners; tail rather long and rounded; legs rather short.
Includes birds of very different habits. (Ridgway.)
Food: seeds and insects. s.e.xes generally unlike. Found everywhere, on trees, in marshes, in woods. Many gregarious, found in flocks, some except in nesting season, and others all the year round.
16. Corvidae: CROWS and JAYS.
Larger than a robin. There are two subfamilies.
CROWS: Bill longer than head; wings long and pointed; tail rather short and even.
JAYS: Bill shorter than head; wings short and rounded. (Ridgway.)
Food: almost everything--seeds, fruit, sometimes eggs and young birds.
Found in woody places.
17. Alaudidae: LARKS.
Larger than an English sparrow; bill short, conical, frontal feathers extend along the side; wings pointed; claw on hind toe very long and nearly straight. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects. s.e.xes nearly alike. Found on ground in fields and roads.
18. Tyrannidae: FLYCATCHERS.
Mostly larger than an English sparrow; bill broad, flattened, curved downward at end, and notched at tip; bristles along the gape; wings and tail variable. (Ridgway.)
Entirely insectivorous. Found in woods and fields and about houses.
19. Trochilidae: HUMMINGBIRDS.
Our smallest birds; bill slender, sharp, and straight, usually longer than head; wings long and pointed; legs short; feet small and weak; claws curved and sharp. (Ridgway.)
Food: tiny insects and the honey of flowers. s.e.xes unlike. Found about flowers.
20. Micropodidae: SWIFTS.
About the size of an English sparrow; bill very small, triangular, much broader than high, without bristles; wings long and pointed; legs short; feet weak; tail very short, ending in stiff spines; plumage compact.
(Ridgway.)
Food: entirely insects. s.e.xes alike. Found in the air or inside chimneys or hollow trees.
21. Caprimulgidae: GOATSUCKERS.
Larger than a robin; bill very short; gape enormously long and wide; mouth open to behind the eyes; wings long; plumage soft. (Ridgway.)
Food: insects. s.e.xes nearly alike. One species found in the edge of woods, and another species about towns.
22. Picidae: WOODp.e.c.k.e.rS.
Larger than an English sparrow; bill usually straight, pointed or chisel-shaped at tip; tongue extensile and except in one species barbed at point; tail stiff and feathers pointed at tip for a prop; toes, except in three-toed species, two forward and two backward for climbing.
(Ridgway.)
Insectivorous. s.e.xes unlike. Found on trees (except one species) in woods or orchards.
23. Alcedinidae: KINGFISHERS.