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DESCRIPTION OF A MELANISTIC SPECIMEN OF BUTEO LATIS- 



SIMUS (Wils). 



By ROBERT RIDOWAY. 



The melanistic plumage of Buteo latistiimus having remained hith- 

 erto unknown, so far as the writer is aware, the following description 

 is presented of a specimen recently acquired by the National Museum 

 from Mr. J. W, Preston, of Baxter, Iowa. It is the only example which 

 the writer has seen, or indeed heard of, except the two others seen by 

 Mr. Preston, as recorded farther on. 



Melanistic $ adult (i^o. 107,427, U. S. Nat. Mus., Crystal Lake, Hancock 

 County, Iowa, May 3, 1883; J. W. Preston): Plumage of head, neck, 

 and body, entirely continuous dark sooty brown, without the faintest 

 indication of markitigs, even on the lower tail-coverts or lining of the 

 wing ; back darker, with a chalky cast in certain lights. ¥/ings similar 

 to the general plumage, but somewhat lighter brown, on account of 

 paler, but not well defined, borders to the feathers; secondaries lighter 

 brown than the coverts, without trace of markings except near the end, 

 where crossed by a broad dusky subterminal band and very narrow 

 paler terminal margin ; primaries uniform dusky brown on outer webs, 

 growing gradually blackish terminally ; inner webs of the tbree outer 

 quills chietly white anterior to their emargination (the portion near the 

 shaft brownish), the white crossed by several very distinct but irregular 

 bands of blackish ; inner webs of remaining primaries, and also of sec- 

 ondaries, brown, with a greater or less number (according to the length 

 of the feather) of dusky bands, the webs mottled with whitish along 

 the edge. Upper tail-coverts with concealed pale grayish broad bars 

 (approaching white in places), there being about two bars on each 

 feather. Tail black, narrowly tipped with grayish brown, crossed at 

 about 1.50 inches from the end by a broad baud (about 1 inch wide) 

 of brownish gray, becoming white on edges of inner webs, and approach- 

 ing white on the anterior portion of the band on the middle rectrices ; 

 another much narrower and much less distinct dull grayish band crosses 

 the tail about 4.75 inches from the tij), the portion on inner webs more 

 or less whitish on some of the feathers, but on none exfending clearly 

 to the edge of the web; extreme base of the tail light sooty grayish. 

 Feathers of the head, neck, and body, above and below, sooty gray be- 

 neath the surface, the extreme biise even scarcely approaching white; 

 the feathers ol the entire occiput, however, abruptly "Snow- white for 

 about the basal half. Forehead entirely sooty blackish, but anterior 

 portion of the lores grayish white, finely streaked with black. 



Wing, 11.50 ; wing formula, 3, 4-5-2-0-7-8-9, 1, 10; outer three pri- 

 maries abruptly and deeply emarginated on inner webs; tail, 7.00; cul- 

 men, .80; tarsus, 2.40; middle toe, 1.40. 

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