100 WADING BIRDS. 



maries dusky brown, all distinctly barred on their inner loebs with 

 pale reddish buff, the shafts of the two first white, less pure on the 

 second. Tail dark brownish-grey, with 9 dusky bars, one of these 

 terminal, but edged with brownish-white. — Flanks, long axillaries, 

 and under wing-coverts bright reddish-buff, (almost salmon color,) 

 barred with clove-brown. A few of the larger primary wing-coverts 

 wholly dusky, tipped with whitish, more particularly in the young 

 birds. Legs and feet dark lead color. In yomig birds the pale spots, 

 bands, and bars, are much larger, fainter, and more inclining to flesh- 

 color, and the lower half of the under mandible is almost yellowish- 

 white. The tinge of buff on the belly and vent, is also deeper. In 

 Wilson's specimen, the ivhole bill is dull flesh-color, except towards 

 the point, where it is dusky. 



Obs. Our bird appears to differ from that of Richardson and 

 Wilson, in the situation and extent of the curvature of the bill, and 

 in the conspicuous bars on the inner vanes of the primaries ; ours, 

 therefore, makes a much nearer approach to the Whimbrel, (J\\ph(R- 

 apus,) than any other American species, if such it maybe considered; 

 indeed, the European bird, only differs in the paler shade of its 

 colors, the tcliite rump, and absence of buff in the long axillaries. 

 Should our bird prove a distinct species, which seems very probable, 

 we may perhaps distinguish it as follows : 



AMERICAN WHIMBREL. 



(Kumenius *intermedius. J\'. 2)ha'opus, Temm. excluding the other 

 synonymy of that species.) 



Sp. Charact. — A whitish medial line in the dark crown; rump 

 and back dusky and spotted ; primaries barred on their inner webs ; 

 long axillaries banded with grey and reddish buff; bill black, curv- 

 ing towards the extremity, a great portion of the under mandible 

 flesh-color. 



My friend Mr. Audubon has also observed this species, and be- 

 lieves it to be sufficiently distinct from the bird figured by Wilson. 



