Fulton County, Illinois - Chapter 5: Zoology Quadrupeds, 1879

Of the species of native animals that once roamed the flowery j)rairies and wild forests of Fulton county, but few of the smaller remain, iind none of the larjii;er. Of the latter we cannot even iind a specimen preserved in taxidermy. The buffalo which grazed u])on the verdant prairies has been driven westward. With or before it went the beaver, elk, badger, panther, black wolf and black bear. Some animals that were quite numerous have l)ecome very rare, such as the gray fox, the catamount," otter, lynx, and the beautiful Virginia deer.

There still remain many of the different species, mostly inhabiting the country adjacent to the Illinois and Spoon rivers and a few of the other larger streams. These arc, however, fast disap]>earing, and ere long will be known only in iiistorv, as are the deer, the beaver, and the bison. Among those still to be found here are the gray wolf, which is numerous in some parts, the opossum, raccoon, mink, muskrat, the common weasel, the small brown weasel, skunk, woodchuck, or Maryland marmot, jjrairie mole, common shrew mole, meadow and deer mouse, and the gray rabbit. Of sijuirrels there are the gray timber s(|uirrel, the fox, chi])munk, the large gray j)rairic s(|uirrel, the striped and the s})otted prairie sipiirrel, and the beautiful Hying sipurrcl. The dark-brown and the reddish bat are common. Other small animals have been found lu'rc whicii have strayed from other localities.

(Jf the o,()0() existing species of birds many have sojourned in this county, some temporarily and others for a considerable time. Many migratory species come only at long intervals, and therefore but little is known of them.

There is not a more fascinating study than that afforded by our feathered friends. Their free movements through seemingly boundless space, the joyous songs of many, and the characteristic tones of all, their brilliant colors, their lively manners, and their wonderful instincts, have from earliest ages made a strong impression on the minds of men, and in the infancy of intellect gave rise to many peculiar and mysterious associations. Hence the flight of birds was made tiie foundation of a peculiar art of divination. Relig:ion borrowed many symbols from tliem and poetry many of its ornaments. Birds avail themselves of their powers of wing to seek situations adapted for them in respect to temperature and supply of food. The arrival of summer birds is alwavs a welcome sign of advancing spring, and is associated with all that is cheerful and delightful. Some birds come almost at the same date annuallv ; others are more influenced by the character of the season, as mild or severe.

Ferchcrs. - This order of birds is by far the most numerous, and includes nearly all those which are attractive eitlier in plumage or in song. The ruby-throated humming-bird, with its exquisite plumage and almost ethereal existence, is at the head of the list. This is the humming-bird which is always the delight of the children, and is the only one found in Illinois. The chimney swallow, easily known from other swallows bv its very long wings and forked tail, and which is a true swift, is quite numerous. Of the whipjioorwill family tliere are two representatives, - the whippoorwill proper, whose uote enb'vens the forest at night, and tlie night-hawk. The belted kingfisher, so well known to the school-boy, is the onlv member of its familv in this region. At the head of the flv- «^atchers is the king-bird, the crested flv-catcher and the wood pewee.

Sub-order of -SVnf/c/'.v - Thrfishfdinilii. - Of this family arc the robin, the wood thrush, Wilson's thrush, the blue-bird, the ruby-crowned and the golden-crested wren, tit-lai-k. tlie black and the white creeper, blue yellow-backed warbler, vel low-breasted chat, wormeating warbler, blue-wiuged yellow warl)lcr, Tennessee warbler, and golden-crowned thrush. S/triJ:r fami/i/. - This family is represented by the great northern shrike, red-eyed fly-catcher, white-eyed flycatcher, the blue-headed and the yellow-throated fly-catcher. Siraf/ow famili/. - This family of birds are very numerous in Fulton county. Among them are the barn swallow, white-bellied swallow, bank swallow, clitf swallow, and purple martin. Wa.ririnr/ faini/i/. - The cedar bird is the representative of the wax-wing in America. MofJ:!nf/-blriJ fdnulij. - The genera of this family ar(> the cat-bird, brown thrush, the house and winter wren. Finch and Sparrow familif. - The snow bunting and Smith's bunting appear only in winter. The purjile finch, the yellow bird and the lark finch inhabit this county. Of the passerine genus of this family are the Savannah -^j^arrow, the field and the chipping sj>arrow, the black snow-l)ird, the tree sparrow the song sparrow, the swamp and the fox-colored sparrow, the black-throated bunting, the rosebreasted gros-beak and the ground robin. Titmouse family is represented by the chickadee and the tufted titmouse. Creeper family. - There are two specimens of this lamily, - the white-bellied nut-hatch and the American creeper. Skylark family. - This melodious family is represented here by only the common skylark of the prairie. Black-bird family. - The rusty black-bird, the crow blackbird, the cow-bird, the red-winged black-bird, the meadow lark, the orchard and the Baltimore orioles of this family, are the most beautiful and brilliant of birds that inhabit this region. Croiv family. - The blue-jay and the common crow comprise the species of this family.

Birds of Prey. - This order of birds comprises all those, with few exceptions, which pursue and capture birds and other animals for food. They are mostly of large size, the females are larger than the males, they live in pairs, and choose their mates for life. Most raptorial birds have disappeared. Among them arc the golden eagle, which was always rare but now no longer seen here ; the bald eagle, or properly the white-headed eagle, once quite common, now scarce. Some well preserved specimens of this genus are in the county. This eagle enjoys the honor of standing as our national emblem. Benjamin Franklin lamented the selection of this bird as emblematical of the Union, for its great cowardice. It has the ability of ascending in circular sweeps without any apparent motion of the wings or the tail, and it often rises in this manner until it disappears from view ; when at an immense height, and as if observing an object on the ground, it sometimes closes its wings, and glides toward the earth with such velocity that the eye can scarcely follow it, causing a loud rustling sound like a violent gust of wind among the branches of the forest. The Hawk family has eight or nine species, some but seldom seen, others common. The turkey-buzzard has almost, if not quite, disappeared. Of the owl genera are several species, though all are but seldom seen because of their nocturnal habits. Among them are the ])arn owl, the screech owl, tlie long and the short-eared owl, the barred owl, and the snowy owl, the latter being the rarest.

Climbers. - But few of this order remain in the county, the most common of which are the woodpeckers. Of the various kinds are the golden-winged, the pileated, the hairy, the downy, the yellowbellied, red-bellied and the red-headed. At an early day the Carolina parrot was often seen, but he has now entirely deserted thU section. The yellow and black-billed cuckoos are occasionally seen.

Scrafchers. - This order contains but few genera in this county. The wild turkey, the choicest of game, has almost entirely disappeared, and was the only one of its family that ever sojourned here. In an early day they were in abundance, (rrousc fa/mily. - The chiefest among this family is the prairie chicken, which, if not carefully protected, must ere long follow the wild turkey, never to return. The ruffled grouse, wrongfully called "pheasant," has of late made its appearance. It is quite fond of cultivated fields, and, if properly protected and encouraged until it becomes fairly settled.

will make a fine addition to the game, and fill the place of the prairie chicken. Partridge famUy. - The fate of that excellent bird, the quail, is only a question of a short time. The Dove family. - The wild pigeons continue to make their semi-annual visits, but not in such vast numbers as vears ago. Acres of forest were so often filled at night with these birds that the breaking of boughs and the flying of pigeons made a noise that could be heard for miles, and the shot of a sportsman's gun could not be heard at a distance of ten feet. Highly interesting is the description by Audubon of the enormous flights which he observed on the Ohio in the fall of 18J3; they obscured the daylight and lasted three days without interruption. According to a very moderate estimate of his, each flight contained the stupendous number of one billion, one hundred and fifteen thousand million, one hundred and thirty-six thousand pigeons. These flights caused a general commotion among the entire rural ])opulation. Desirous of booty and anxious lest their crops should be spoiled, the farmers, arming themselves Avith rifles, clubs, poles, torches and iron pots filled with sulphur, proceed to the restingplaces of the birds. The work of slaughter being accomplished, everybody sat down among mountains of dead pigeons, plucking and salting the birds which they selected, abandoning the rest to the the foxes, wolves, raccoons, opossums and hogs, whole herds of which were driven to the battle-field. The plaintive notes of the Carolina dove, commonly known as the turtle-dove, are still heard.

Swimmers. - This order of birds, which formerly frequented this county in large numbers, have almost disappeared. They are migratory, and in their usnal season would appear coming from the north or south, as winter passes into summer or summer into winter. Diver family. - The great northern diver, or loon, sometimes visits this section, but inhabits the frigid zone. Gull family. - Of this family are Wilson's tern and the silvery gull. Pelican family. - The rough-l)illed pelican was the only genus of this family that ever stopped in Fulton county, and it has now altogether ceased to make its visits here. Cormorant family. - The double-crested cormorant, or sea raven, has been seen here. Duck family. - This family of migratory birds visited the ponds and streams of this county in large numbers before it became so thickly settled, both on their northern and southern passage, but now mostly confine themselves to the Illinois, where large numbers are found. This family furnishes most game for sportsmen and for the table. There are the wood-duck, the big black-headed duck, the ring-necked duck, the red-head, the canvas-back, the dipper, the sheldrake or goosander, the fish duck, the red-breasted, and the hooded merganser, the mallard and the pintail, the green-winged and the blue-winged teal, the spoonbill and the gadwall, the baldpate, the American swan, the trumpeter swan and the white-fronted goose.

quented the marshes, but cultivation has drained their favorite haunts. Crane famili/. - The whooping crane, always rare, is now never seen. The sand-hill cranes stop on their journeys north and south. Heron family. - The great blue heron or crane, least bittern, the green heron, night heron and the American bittern, compose those of this family visiting this region. Ibis family. - The glossy ibis has been seen here. Plover family. - The golden plover, the killdeer and the king plover comprise this family known here. Phalarope family. - The Wilson's and the red phalarope have frequented the swamps of this county, l^nipe family. - \"arious birds of this family have been common in and around the swamps of this county. Among them were Wilson's snipe, gray or red-breasted snipe, the least and the semi-})almated sandpiper, the willett, the tell-tale, the yellow-leg, the solitary sandpiper, the spotted sandpiper, the field plover, long-billed curlew, the common rail, the clapper rail or mud hen, and the coot.

Reptiles. - All of the species of this class that ever inhabited this region are still to be found here except the poisonous snakes. The rattlesnake, of the genus Crotalus, is of a yellowish-brown color, and has a series of horny joints at the end of the tail, which make a rattling sound. These were the most venomous of all snakes found here, and were numerous in tlie early settlement. There are two kinds, the bandy, or striped, and the prairie rattlesnake, the latter being still occasionally found. The copperhead was always rare. Among the harmless snakes are the water-snake, the garter-snake, the bull-snake, the milk-snake, the black-snake, and the blue racer.

Many reptiles found here are erroneously called lizards, but are salamanders and other like innocent creatures. Lizards are never found in this county. Among the tortoises or turtles are found the map turtle, the snapping and the soft-shelled turtle. Of the batrachian, or naked reptiles, there are a few, and, though loathsome to sight and touch, are harmless. The toad, the l)ull-frog, the leopard-frog, the tree-toad, with some tailed batrachia, comprise the most of this order. The Illinois-river bull-frog is as large as a man's head, often much larger, and his deep bellowing can be heard for a mile or more.

Although fishes are the lowest class of vertebrates, their varied forms and colors, which often rival those of precious stones and burnished gold, the wonderful power and velocity of some, the wholesome food furnished by many, and the exciting sport of their capture, combine to render fishes subjects of great interest to the casual observer, as well as to the amateur and professional naturalist. The number of known species of fishes is about ten thousand. The waters of this county are quite prolific of the finny tribe. The commerce in fish has become quite extensive along the Illinois. Sickle-backed family. - This family furnishes the game fish, and are never caught larger than lour pounds in weight. Tlie various genera found here are the black bass, goggle-eye, the croppy, or big black sun-fish, and the two common sun-fish. PU:c family. - There are but two species of this family, - the pickerel, weighing from five to twenty-five pounds, and the gar pike. Sucker fainily. - Of this tribe are the buifalo, red-horse, white sucker, two species of blacksuckers, mullet ranick. Fisli of this family are found in all the streams of the county. They abound wherever there is water. Cat-fish family. - Of this voracious family the channel cat-fish, the mud cat-fish and two species of the small cat-fish inhabit the waters of this coiuity, and are caught ranging in weight from one to thirty pounds.

Besides these varieties there are the chub, silver-sides and fresh-water herring, and large numbers of other species denominated minnows, which are found in the smallest spring branches, as well as the larger streams.