386 Birds of Colorado 



with brown ; below white, washed with pale buffy and ashy, except 

 on the tliroat and abdomen ; a white supraloral and black submalar 

 streak ; iris brown ; upper mandible dusky, lower paler. Length 6-10 ; 

 wing 2-60 ; tail 2-90 ; culmen -42 ; tarsus -80. 



The sexes are alike ; the young birds are duller brown above, streaked 

 with grey and ashy below, finely streaked with dusky on the breeist. 



Distribution. — Western Texas to Arizona, south to north-western 

 Mexico, north to southern Colorado, in which State it has only once 

 been met with. A. H. Howell collected an immature example on 

 September 17th, 1903, on a pinon ridge near Trinidad in the south 

 of the State. It was evidently migrating southwards. 



Genus MELOSPIZA. 



Medium-sized Sparrow-like forms with a comparatively small wing, 

 asually under 3-0, and a bill of varying proportions ; wing short and 

 rounded, barely reaching the base of the tail ; the ninth (outer) primary 

 equal to or less than the fourth ; tail long, nearly equal to or exceeding 

 the wing ; slightly rounded or double romided. Plumage conspicuously 

 streaked above and below (except M. georgiana). 



This genus includes three species only ; one of which (M. melodia) 

 has been sub-divided into a very large nimaber of varjdng local races 

 chiefly occurring on the Pacific coast. Twenty of these are recognized 

 by Ridgway. The range of the genus includes the whole of North and 

 Central America as far as Panama. 



A. Below white, with brown streaks on the breast and flanks. 



a. Larger — wing averaging 2-85 — but with a smaller bill 



proportionally. M. m. montana, p. 386. 



b. Smaller — wing averaging 2-60 — but with a larger bill 



proportionally. M. melodia, p. 388. 



B. Below with a buffy band across the chest, and flanks streaked 



with black. M. lincolni, p. 388. 



C. Below chiefly ashy,, not streaked. M. georgiana, p. 390. 



Mountain Song-Sparrow. Melospiza melodia montana. 



A.O.U. ChecklLst no 581b— Colorado Records— Allen 72, pp. 147, 

 157 {M. melodia) ; Henshaw 75, p. 281 [M. melodia fallax) ; Tresz 

 81, p. 42 ; Allen & Brewster 83, p. 189 {M. fasciata fallax) ; Drew 85, 

 p. 16 ; Beckham 85, p. 141 ; Kellogg 90, p. 90 ; McGregor 97, p. 38 ; 

 Cooke 97, pp. 19, 107, 216 ; Keyser 02, pp. 133, 193 ; Dille 03, p. 74 ; 

 Henderson 03, p. 108 ; 09, p. 237 ; Oilman 07, p. 157 ; Warren 08, 

 p. 23 ; 09, p. 16 ; Richards 08, p. 38 ; Rockwell 08, p. 173 ; Hersey & 

 RockweU 09, p. 120. 



