BIRDS OF NOETH AND MIDDLE AMERICA. 9 



basal j)halaiix of middle toe luiited for more than half its length to 

 outer toe, for about one-tliird to inner toe.'* 



Coloration. — Basal portion of tail and whole of tail-coverts white; 

 adult males gray above with black on side of head, wings, and tail, and 

 whitish beneath, or variously "pied" with black and white, buff, or 

 cinnamon; females and young brownish above, buffy beneath, with 

 wliite on tail, etc., as in adult males. 



Nidirfi cation. — Nest placed in cavities among rocks or in walls or on 

 ground, composed of dry grass, hair, feathers, etc.; eggs (5-6) bluish, 

 speckled with reddish brown. 



Range. — Palsearctic Region and arid portions of Ethiopian Region; 

 one Palsearctic species (in two subspecific forms) occurring in north- 

 ern North America. (Species very numerous.) 



SAXICOLA CENANTHE CENANTHE (Linnaeus). 

 WHEATEAR. 



Adult male in spring and summer. — Above plain light slate-gray or 

 deep ash gray,^ changing abruptly to white on upper tail-coverts and 

 passing more gradually into white on forehead (more or less broadly) 

 and superciliary region; wings black, with narrow terminal margins 

 of whitish to greater wing-coverts and secondaries (these sometimes 

 obsolete) ; tail white basally, the middle pair of rectrices mostly black 

 (for all of their exposed and much of their concealed portions), the 

 rest with about the terminal third abruptly black; loral, suborbital, 

 and auricular regions black, producing a conspicuous elongated patch 

 or broad stripe on side of head; malar region, chin, throat, and chest 

 pinkish buff or ochraceous-buff, more or less deep,'" the remaining 

 under parts white, more or less tinged with buff; bill, legs, and feet 

 black; iris brown. 



Adult female in spring and summer. — Similar in pattern of colora- 

 tion to the male, but gray of upper parts much duller and browner 

 (hair brown to broccoli brown), wings and terminal portion of tail 

 dusky grayish brown instead of black, no black patch or stripe on side 

 of head, white of under parts duller and more buffy, and anterior under 

 parts more brownish buffy or cinnamon. 



Young (and adults?) in autumn and winter. — Similar to the adult 

 female in summer plumage, but browner above (between broccoli 

 brown and dark Isabella color), wing-coverts and secondaries broadly 



« The above characters are taken from S. ananthe, S. ynontana, S. lugens, S. stapa- 

 zina, and S. oreophila. These differ from one another to a greater or less extent in 

 structural details, principally the relation of length of wing, tail, tarsus, and middle 

 toe and wing-formula, but I would consider them as congeneric. Possibly certain of 

 the numerous species usually referred to the geniis may require removal, but the 

 present work has nothing to do with them. 



'' Between slate-gray and gray no. 6 of Ridgway's Nomenclature of Colors. 



c The color fades toward midsummer. 



