70 BULLETIN 50, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



DENDRAGAPUS OBSCURUS SITKENSIS Swarth 



5 IT KAN Duf>!<.Y Grouse 



Adult iiiale. — Forehead and anterior part of crown very dark, rich 

 chestnut-brown merging gradually into fuscous or grayish fuscous on the 

 posterior crown, occiput, nape, and anterior interscapulars ; interscapu- 

 lars and upper back dark bister to dark clove brown, the feathers vermicu- 

 lated to a varying degree with Saccardo's umber to sepia (sometimes 

 entirely without vermiculations but usually with vermiculations on the 

 more posterior feathers at least) ; lesser upper wing coverts very variable, 

 sometimes Dresden brown to Front's brown abundantly vermiculated 

 with blackish, in other birds much more grayish except at their extreme 

 bases — hair brown, likewise vermiculated with blackish ; median upper 

 wing coverts sepia to very dark clove brown, greater upper wing coverts 

 and remiges similarly dark clove brown, but the greater coverts 

 narrovvly edged and tipped with dusky mouse gray to dark drab, and the 

 innermost secondaries with their inner webs terminally broadly gray or 

 drab vermiculated with dark bister or clove brown ; some of the remiges 

 with flecks of drab on their outer webs ; feathers of the rump and upper 

 tail coverts sepia to clove brown becoming deep mouse gray terminally 

 vermiculated with blackish, and proximally to the grayish areas they are 

 much washed with snuff brown to Saccardo's umber, also vermiculated 

 with blackish ; rectrices fuscous to clove brown, tipped with mouse gray 

 to light quaker drab, this terminal band 15-22 mm. broad on median pair 

 of rectrices ; the tail only slightly rounded ; all the rectrices broad and fairly 

 blunt at their tips ; lores, cheeks, and auriculars fuscous to dark clove 

 brown paling on the chin and throat to clove brown in some birds and 

 to very dusky wood brown with clove-brown edges to the feathers in 

 other specimens ; upper throat with a varying amount of the white bases 

 of the feathers showing; lower throat often slightly darker than upper 

 throat ; breast and abdomen dusty drab gray to deep quaker drab, with 

 a general tinge of drab to wood brown, due largely to the amount of the 

 basal and median portions of the feathers exposed, as the more grayish 

 color is largely a matter of broad edges and tips ; side and flanks like 

 the abdomen but the feathers with white tips and the more lateral of the 

 side feathers (i.e., more up away from the under surface of the body) 

 are sepia to clove brown vermiculated with blackish and with white shafts 

 terminally broadening into wedge-shaped white marks ; thighs like abdo- 

 men but some of the feathers tipped with white ; lower abdomen and 

 vent like abdomen but feathers broadly tipped with white ; under tail 

 coverts similar but darker and broadly tipped with white, subterminally 

 crossed by two narrow grayish bands margined with blackish ; under 

 wing coverts like the lesser upper coverts ; axillars largely white with 

 some of the feathers with grayish centers. In the breeding season, the 



