384 BULLETIN 2 3, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Plumages. — Miss Stan wood (MS.) refers to the natal down as 

 brown. Dr. Chapman (1907) describes the nestling in juvenal plum- 

 age as "above grayish olive, the head sometimes paler, nearly buffy, 

 back heavily spotted with wedge-shaped black marks; below whitish 

 thickly spotted with rounded black marks; median wing-coverts 

 broadly tipped with white or buffy white on both webs, the greater 

 coverts, on only the outer web." 



A partial postjuvenal molt, involving the contour plumage and the 

 wing coverts but not the rest of the wings or the tail, occurs in July 

 and August and produces the first winter plumage. Dr. Dwight 

 (1900) describes the young male in this plumage as "above, yellowish 

 olive-green, with dusky streaks on the crown, a few concealed black 

 spots on the back, the upper tail coverts cinereous gray. Wing coverts 

 edged with olive-green and two broad wing bands white tinged with 

 yellow. Below, cream-color washed with straw-yellow on the throat 

 and with a very little chestnut on the flanks." It resembles the young 

 blackpoll, but is "a yellower olive above, a huffier yellow below and a 

 wash of chestnut on the flanks, with less definite streaking above and 

 none below." The female is distinguishable from the male in the 

 first winter plumage, "which is a clearer green without the crown 

 streaks of the male, the black spots on the back duller and usually 

 even a trace of chestnut is lacking on the flanks." 



The first nuptial plumage is acquired before the birds come north 

 by a partial prenuptial molt "which involves most of the body plum- 

 age and wing coverts but not the rest of the wings nor the tail. The 

 deep chestnut crown, paler throat and lateral stripes, black sides of 

 the head and forehead, olive-gray back streaked with black, the rich 

 buff patches on the sides of the neck and the black wing coverts, 

 plumbeous-edged and white-tipped, are all assumed." Adults and 

 young are now practically indistinguishable, except for the worn and 

 duller wings and tail in the young bird. The female has the same 

 color pattern as the male but the colors are much duller and there is 

 less chestnut. 



Adults have a complete postnuptial molt, mainly in July. Dr. 

 Dwight ( 1900) describes the plumage of the winter male as "similar 

 to first winter dress, but the crown, nape and back distinctly streaked 

 with black, creamier tints below and the flanks striped distinctly with 

 chestnut, the wings and tail blacker and the edgings grayer rather than 

 greener as in the young bird ; a few chestnut feathers sometimes ap- 

 pear on the throat and crown." The adult female in winter is similar 

 to the first winter female, "but whiter below, with a wash of chestnut 

 on the flanks and with crown streaks and the dorsal spots better de- 

 fined, resembling closely the male first winter dress, although usually 

 rather duller." 



