NATURAL SCIENCES OP PHILADELPHIA. 193 



578. Dafila acuta, Jenyns. Sprig-tail ; Pin-tail. 



579. Nettion Carolinensis, Baird. Green-winged Teal. 



582. Querquedula cyanopterus, Cassin. Red-breasted Teal. 



583. Spatula clypeata, Boie. Shoveller. 

 585. Mareca Americana, Stephens. Baldpate. 

 591. Aythya Americana, Bonap. Red-head. 

 595. Bccephala albeola, Baird. Butter Ball. 

 609. Erismatura rcbida, Bonap. Ruddy-Duck. 

 663. Larus Californicus, Lawr. California Gull. 

 698. Colymbus torquatus, Brunn. Loon. 



Syrnium occidentale, Xantus. 



Sp. Char. A little smaller than S. nebulosuvi ; general color liver brown, the 

 feathers barred everywhere, even on the flanks. Axillars and under wing and 

 tail coverts banded transversely with white, the bands towards and on the head 

 are contracted into rounded spots. 



General appearance t' at of S. nebiilosum. Prevailing color light liver brown, 

 each short feather with two transverse bars of white, the basal one tinged with 

 rufous yellow ; the subterminal pure white and not generally extending to the 

 edges of the feathers. These bars have a marginal suffusion of brown darker 

 than the ground color. On the top of the head and neck the subterminal bar 

 exhibits a tendency to contraction into rounded or cordate spots, and in other 

 places to a median interruption along the shaft. On the scapulars, axillars and 

 other elongated feathers, there are several white bars. The facial disk is gray- 

 ish, obscurely barred with brown, the posterior margin of the ear is uniform 

 liver brown, then becoming banded with white. The longest quills and tail 

 feathers show about 7 to 9 clouded transverse light bars, one of these at the 

 end of the feather ; those bars on the inner and outer margins are quite white, 

 especially towards the base of the feather, elsewhere they are mottled yellowish 

 brown, or brownish yellow; the legs are dirty yellowish, with obscure and 

 rather transverse mot' lings of brown. The bill is greenish yellow ; the iris 

 gamboge : the claws horn color ; the toes are thickly feathered to within two 

 scutellce of the base of the claws. The fourth quill is longest, the fifth and then 

 the third a little shorter, the second between the 6th and 7th ; the first rather 

 shorter than the eighth. 



Length of male 18 inches ; extent 40 ; wing 13 ; tail 8=} ; tarsus about 2. 



This species, with a general resemblance to the Syrnium nehitlositm, is of rather 

 smaller size, and readily distinguished by the entire absence of any of the lon- 

 gitudinal brown stripes so conspicuous on the belly, flanks and lower tail 

 coverts of the latter species; these regions being barred transversely with white 

 and brown. The white bars on the feathers are much less continuous and 

 regular, and on the neck and head are restricted to rounded spots instead of 

 forming regular zones. The under wing coverts are banded transversely in- 

 stead of being uniform yellowish white. The bill is less pure yellow. 



A single specimen (original number 1588) was collected at Fort Tejon, 

 March 6th, 1858. 



August 2d. 

 Major LeConte, Vice President, in the Chair. 

 Present seventeen members. v 



Dr. Hammond read a letter from Miss M. H. Morris of Germantown, giving 

 an account of a luminous larva, two inches long, which was found in a forest, 

 at the Delaware Water Gap. Miss M. observes, " the whole length of the 



1859.] 



15 



