148 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [1896. 



Plumage of First Winter [28,502, A. N. S. Phila. Aug. 10, 

 1879. Winnebago Co., Iowa]. 



Beneath buff, throat somewhat suffused with pink, and belly- 

 white, many of the feathers with a central dash of blackish-brown. 

 Above much as in first plumage, but feathers of back and head 

 more strongly edged with buffy-brown. 



No specimens showing the molt from this plumage to that of the 

 following spring have come under my observation ; birds in the lat- 

 ter plumage are as follows. 



Plumage of First Breeding Season [1,029 Coll. W. Stone]. 



Below, abdomen Avhite, breast pink, throat black, mottled with 

 pink and white. Above black, w'ith more or less traces of buff edg- 

 ings, rump white somewhat mottled with black, flight feathers gen- 

 erally as in first plumage, greater coverts and generally the tertials 

 black, tail partly black. 



Annual Molt [1,028, Coll. Wm. Brewster. Aug. 20, 1874. Up- 

 ton, Oxford Co., Maine]. 



Below, as in the following specimen, but with many black 

 feathers remaining on the throat, above as in first breeding plumage, 

 except the back which has molted into fall plumage. Wings entirely 

 molted except secondaries and outermost primaries. The old 

 wing feathers are olive-brown, the new jet black. 



Winter Plumage of Second Year [1,027, Coll. Wm. Brewster. 

 Sept. 1871. Mt.Carmel, 111.]. 



Differs from first fall plumage as follows : Belly whiter and 

 throat and breast much more pink, feathers on back black, with 

 comparatively narrow buff edgings. Wing and tail jet black, with 

 pure white spots. 



Breeding Plumage of Second Year [34,225, A. N. S. Phila. 

 Haddonfield, N. J. May 16, 1882]. 



Differs from first year as follows : Throat uniform, black down to 

 the breast, which is brilliant pink. Wings and tail jet black, with 

 spots pure white, head and back solid black, rump pure white. 



While the above descriptions give a pretty accurate idea of the 

 seasonal variations of plumage in the Rose-breasted Grosbeak, they 

 by no means cover all the peculiarities of plumage found in this 

 variable species. It seems quite possible that the male requires 

 three years to gain the perfect plumage described above as the 

 " breeding plumage of the second year " ; but different individuals 

 differ so much in the amount of change that they undergo at the 



