HIRDS — TETRAONIDAE — BONASA. 



029 



coast, but at the present day it is only foiiud, and tliat very sparsely, on tlio I'ocono mountains 

 of Pennsylvania, on Long Island, and on various other tracts of sea coast and island as far cast 

 as Maine. 



List of specimens. 



BONASA, Stephens. 



Bonasa, Stefiiens, Sliaw's Gen. Zool. XI, 1819. Typo Tctrao bonasia, h. 

 Telrastes, Keys. & Blas. Wirb. Europ. 1840, p. l.\iv. 



Ch. — Tail widening to the end, its feathers very broad, as long as the wings ; the feathers soft, and cin-hteen in number. 

 Tarsi naked in the lower half; covered with two rows of lic.vagonal scales anteriorly, as in the Oilyg'mae. Sides of toes 

 strongly pectinated. Naked space on the side of throat covered by a tufl of broad soft feathers. Portion of culinun between 

 tlio nasal fossae about one third the total length. Top of head with a soft crest. 



This genus, in its partly naked tarsi, with two rows of scutellae anteriorly, indicates a close 

 approach to the American partridges, or quails. It has a single European representative. 



There seems a strong probability that the Pacific coast species is different from the Atlantic. 

 The diagnosis will be as follows : 



Common characters. — Sexes nearly similar. Colors reddish or gray, white and black. Tuft 

 on the sides of neck velvety black. Tail with a sub-terminal brown bar. Sides banded trans- 

 versely with brown ; back with cordate spots of grey. 



Colors pale. Bands on the sides of body obscure brown. Under tail coverts white. 



Middle toe without claw shorter than tarsus B. umbellus. 



Colors very dark. Bands on the sides sharply defined dark brown. Under tail coverts 

 rufous, with terminal white spots. Middle toe without claw apparently longer than 

 tarsus B. sabini. 



Comparative measurements of species. 



