4 15ULLET1N 50, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



MOTACILLA ALBA Linnaeus. 

 WHITE "WAGTAIL. 



Adult male in Hprimf. — Forehead (t)roadly), sides of head and sides 

 of neck (more narrowly) white; crown, occiput, hindneck, throat, and 

 chest uniform deep black with a faint bluish gloss, that of chest with 

 a sharply defined convex posterior outline; rest of under parts white, 

 shading- into ash gray on outer portion of sides and flanks; back, scap- 

 ulars, and lesser wing-coverts plain slate g'ray, the rump similar but 

 rather darker, especially posteriorly, where shading into the blackish 

 slate or slate black of upper tail-coverts, the latter with outer webs 

 broadly white exteriorly; tertials dull blackish or blackish slate, the 

 two innermost with outer webs broadly edged with pale gray, this 

 becoming whitish outwardl}^, especially on second, the third broadly 

 edged with white; middle and greater coverts dull black or slate black 

 broadly tipped with pale gray or grayish white, the latter edged with 

 pale gray; primaries and secondaries dull slate -gra}^ or dark mouse 

 gray narrowly edged with pale gray or whitish; tail dull black or 

 blackish slate, the two outermost rectrices (on each side) white with 

 a stripe of l)lackish along edge of inner web; bill, legs, and feet black; 

 iris brown. 



Adult male in v/'iV^fe/'.— Similar to the spring plumage, but chin, 

 throat, and upper chest white, the black restricted to a crescentic mark 

 of black on lower chest and sides of throat; bill horn brownish, darker 

 on culmen and tip. 



Adidt female in sjyrlng. — Similar to the adult male of corresponding 

 season, but smaller and duller in color: white of forehead more or less 

 obscured by grayish tips to feathers; crown, occiput, and hindneck 

 dusky gray, or slate-gray, usually mixed with black along lateral mar- 

 gins. 



Adult female in ■vrinter. — Similar to the summer plumage, but chin, 

 throat, and upper chest white, or yellowish white; bill brownish. 



Youmi In frst winter. — Similar to the adult female of correspond- 

 ing season, but gray of upper parts somewhat paler, especially that of 

 the pileuni. which is not darker than the back, the latter tinged with 

 light brownish or ])uriy; white on sides of head, throat, etc., more or 

 less tinged with yellow. 



Young in fr>it lyluiaage. — Above, including whole pileum, plain 

 brownish gray (deep ))uffy smoke gray), deepening into blackish gray 

 on upper tail-coverts; lores paler gray; rest of sides of head, sides of 

 neck, chin, throat, and upper chest dull white, tinged with butf, more 

 or less clouded with grayish; under parts dull bully white, becoming 

 grayish on sides and Hanks, the lower chest with a crescentic patch of 

 dusky gray; rest of plumage es^jentially as in adult female, but duller, 

 mor(» tinged with l)urty or yellowish; legs and f(M'l brownish. 



