BIRDS OF NORTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA 



105 



under tail coverts and either uniform, or distally barred with hair 

 brown, ohve-brown, or fuscous (the number and width of these bars 

 varies considerably) ; outer primaries fuscous above, creamy white 

 toward the bases of the inner webs, and pallid neutral gray below, 

 barred with fuscous-black; inner primaries with more or less orange- 

 cinnamon to cinnamon-rufous on both webs; secondaries fuscous 

 above, with some white, or buff, on the inner webs, mouse gray 

 below, and barred with darker fuscous; tail fuscous-black, basally 

 white, narrowly tipped with white, cream, buff, or pinkish cinnamon, 

 and crossed with three or four pale bands, which are uniform hair 

 brown to light fuscous on the central pair and irregularly marked 

 with white, cream, buff, or pinkish cinnamon on the remainder. 



Melanistic phase: Forehead, crown, and occiput fuscous-black to 

 sooty black; remainder of upperparts fuscous to fuscous-black, the 

 feathers with concealed white bars or spots near their bases; upper 

 tad coverts tipped and widely barred with white; entire underparts 

 fuscous to fuscous black, with concealed white bars on the bases of 

 the feathers, the under tail coverts tipped also with white, or buff; 

 wings fuscous-black crossed by three or four paler bars which are 

 white basally, fuscous above, pale neutral gray below distally; tail 

 fuscous-black to sooty black, white basally, tipped with white, and 

 crossed by two bands of white, shaded, or marked (especially on the 

 distal band) with hair brown or mouse gray (that is, the tail pattern 

 like that of the nonmelanistic adult); iris brown, entire facial area, 

 cere, mandibular rami, tarsi, and feet yellow; claws and bill black. 



Natal down. — Not described. 



Adult male (26 specimens) ^^i Wing 265-301 (285.8); tail 173-210 

 (191.1); culmen from the cere, 27.0-35.5 (31.3), one 42.0; tarsus, 

 32.0-37.0 (35.1); middle toe, without claw, 28.0-35.0 (31.1 mm.). 



** Twenty-five males: 



