BIEDS OF NORTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA. 203 



Ramjc. — Great Plains of North America. (Monotypic.) 

 This genus is unquestionablj' far more near!}- related to Coturnicu- 

 Iwi than to PasserculiLS^ but differs from it in the characters mentioned 

 above; both Centronyx and Coturnleulus differing from Passerculus in 

 additional characters which they shaje together (see "Key" to the 

 genera, pages 3i, 35). 



CENTRONYX BAIRDII (Audubon). 

 BAIRD'S SPARROW. 



Adults (sexes alike). — Head ochraceous or buff}', deepest on pileum, 

 palest (often nearl}- or quite white) on chin and throat; pileum streaked 

 with black, especialh" laterally; a blackish rictal streak, and a black 

 submalar streak; prevailing color of upper parts light Ijrown, varied 

 by blackish central spots and buff'y edgings to the feathers; under 

 parts white or pale buff'y, the chest, sides, and flanks streaked with 

 black; bill brownish, the mandible paler (pale flesh color in life); iris 

 brown; legs pale brownish yellow (pale flesh color in life), the toes 

 and claws darker. 



Young. — Essentially like adults, but feathers of pileum and back 

 dusky distinctly margined with pale bufly, and streaks on chest, etc., 

 less sharply deflned. 



Adult male.— Length (skins), 121.92-137.10 (128.02); wing, 71.12- 

 72.64 (71.63); tail, 52.07-53.34 (52.83); exposed culmen, 10.41-10.92 

 (10.67); depth of bill at base, 6.60-6.86 (6.73); tarsus, 20.32-21.08 

 (20.57); middle toe, 15.24-16.76 (15.75). ^ 



Adidt fe^nalc— Length (skim), 118.11-125.73(122.17); wing, 66.04- 

 68.58 (67.56); tail, 48.26-53.34 (51.56); exposed culmen, 10.16-10.67 

 (10.41); depth of bill at base, 6.60-7.37 (6.86); tarsus, 19.30-20.32 

 (19.81) middle toe, 14.73-15.24 (14.99).' 



Great Plains of North America; breeding from western Minnesota 

 (Red Rirer Valley), North Dakota, eastern Montana, etc.,^ north to 

 Assiniboia and Manitoba (Carberr}-, Fingerboard, Shell River, Butte 

 River, Moose Mountain, Lower Saskatchewan, Shoal Lake, etc.); south, 

 during migration to Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, northern Chihua- 

 hua, (Parral, Balleza, etc.), and northern Sonora (Sasabe, Nuevenche 

 plain, etc.); west casually to eastern Washington (Okanogan County, 

 September). 



' Eight specimens. 



■^ Five specimens. 



^ Two alleged breeding localities are so far outside the really established breeding 

 range of this species that I can only refer to them as doubtful. These are, Camp 

 Harney, eastern Oregon (Bendire, Proc. Bost. Soc. N. H., 1877, 118), and Canoncito, 

 northern Texas (McCauley, Bull. U. S. Geol. and Geog. Surv. Terr., iii, 1877, 663). 



