346 NOTES ON THE 



but neveitheless it is better than I could do myself, and so I 

 thankfully accept and appreciate it. I will do the former the 

 justice to say, however, that I regard him as entitled to the 

 palm in the description of the songs of many other species. 



SPECIFIC CHAKACTERS. 



Sides of head, sides and back of the neck, ash; crown tinged 

 with yellowish green, and faintly streaked with dusky. A su- 

 perciliary, and short maxillary line, middle of breast, axilla- 

 ries, and edge of the wing, yellow. Chin, loral region, spots 

 on the sides of the throat, belly and under tail coverts, white. 

 A patch on the throat diminishing to the breast, and a spot on 

 the upper part of the belly, black. Wing coverts chestnut; 

 inter- scapular region streaked with black; rest of back immac- 

 ulate. 



Length, 6.70; wing, 3.50. 



Habitat, eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains. 



CALAMOSPIZA MELANOCORYS Stejneger. (605.) 



LARK BUNTING. 



This quite remarkable species, which in widely different re- 

 spects seems to resemble so many others, has long been known 

 to frequent portions of the State along the Red river, but has 

 only of late years been often met with in limited numbers in 

 the middle and southern counties. Like the Bobolink changing 

 its striking dress of spring and early summer, when the breed- 

 ing season is over, for the somber, plain plumage of the female, 

 it may easily escape identification afterwards in its autumnal 

 migrations. A male fell into my hands in May, 1877, taken in 

 the immediate vicinity, since which it has come under my no- 

 tice frequently in its strongly marked nuptial dress, but from 

 more southern localities generally. 



Without positive proof I still believe that it is of much more 

 frequent occurrence in the interior and eastern sections of the 

 State than I am justified in now recording it. I have enough 

 reliable reports from &uch sections to show that it is not very 

 infrequently seen in those localities during the breeding season, 

 but no nests have yet been obtained. Dr. Hvoslef reports it 

 from Fillmore county as late as the 19th of June; also the 12th 

 of May; and Mr. P. Lewis, in several places between the last 

 named and Redwood, in all of which it is reasonable to suppose 

 it might be breeding, as the times of its observation included 

 the earlier part of July. 



