PICID.E — THE WOODPECKERS. 533 



banded with the same. Top of the head spotted, streaked, or suftused with white ; the 

 crown of the male with a yellow patch. Nas.il bristles black, mixed with gray. Female 

 with the whole top of head usually spotted with while, very rarely entirely black. 



Hab. Arctic regions of North America ; southward in the Rocky Mountains to Fort 

 Buchanan ; northern border of the Eastern United States, in winter (Massachusetts, 

 Mayn.\kd). 



This species varies considerably in its markings, especially in the ainouut 

 of white above. The head is sometimes more coarsely spotted with white 

 than in the average ; very rarely are the white spots wanting, leaving merely 

 tlie broad malar and interrupted post-ocular stripe. The rictal black stripe 

 is sometimes much obscured by white. In typical specimens from the Hud- 

 son Bay and Labrador Provinces, which seem to be darkest, the feathers of 

 the centre of the back have three transverse bars of white (one of them 

 terminal), rather narrower than the intermediate black bars ; the basal wliite 

 ones disappearing both anteriorly and posteriorly, leaving but two. In 

 specimens from the ]Mackenzie River district there is a greater development 

 of white ; the white bands ])eing broader than the black, and sometimes 

 extending along the shafts so as to reduce the black bars to jmirs of spots. 

 The next step is the disajipearance of these spots on one side or the other, or 

 on both, leaving the end of the feathers entirely white, especially anteriorly, 

 where the Ijack may have a longitudinal stripe of white, as in Pkus villosus. 

 Usually, however, in this extreme, the upper tail-coverts remain banded 

 transversely. In all the specimens from the llocky Mountains of the United 

 States, especially Laramie Peak, this white back, unbarred except on the 

 rump, is a constant character, and added to it we have a broad nuchal patch 

 of white running into that of the back and connected with the white post- 

 ocular stripe. The bands, too, on the sides of the body, are less distinct. It 

 was to this state of plumage that the name of P. dursalis was apjjlied, in 

 1858, and although in view of the connecting links it may not be entitled to 

 consideration as a distinct race, this tendency to a permanence of the longi- 

 tudinal direction of the white markings aljove seems to be especially charac- 

 teristic of the Piocky ^lountairi region, appearing only in winter birds from 

 elsewhere. This same character prevails in all the Rocky Mountain speci- 

 mens from more nortliern regions, including those from Fort Liard, and in 

 only one not found in tliat region, namely. No. 49,905, collected at Nulato by 

 Mr. Dall. Here the middle of the back is very wliite, although the nuchal 

 baud is less distinct. Other specimens from that locality and the Yukon 

 River generally, as also from Kodiak, distinctly show the transverse bars. 



In one specimen (29,126) from the jMackenzie River, all the upper tail- 

 coverts are banded decidedly witli white, and the wing-coverts spotted with 

 the same. Even the central tail-featliers show white scallops. The back is, 

 however, banded transversely very distinctly, not longitudinally. 



P. amcricanus in all stages of color is distinguished from ardicus by the 

 white along the middle of the back, the absence of distinct frontal white 



