710 U. S. p. R. R. EXP. AND SURVEYS — ZOOLOGY — GENERAL REPORT. 



GALLINAGO, Leach. 



GalUnago, "Leach, Catal. Britisli Birds, 1816." Grat. Type Scolopax nwjnr, L. 



Cii. — Lower portion of the tibia bare of feathers, scutellate before and behind, reticulated laterally like the tarsi. Nail of 

 hind toe slender, e.vtending beyond the toe. Bill depressed at the tip. Middle toe longer than tarsus. Tail with twelve to 

 si.xteen feathers. 



The more slender body, longer legs, partly naked tibia, and other features,' distinguish this 

 genus irom Scohpax or Philuhela. ■ 



GALLINAGO WILSONII, (Temm.) Bon. 



Wilson'si Snipe; English Snipe. 



Scolopax wilsoni, Temm. PI. Col. V, livraison lxviii, about 1824. In text of Scolopax g'ganlea. — Bon. Syn. 1828, 

 33ll._S,vA,Ns. F. B. Am. U, 1831, 401.— Nutt. Man. If, 185.— Aiid. Orn. B.og. Ill, 1835, 

 322 : V, 18311, 583 ; pi. 243.— 1b. Syn. 248— 1b. Birds Amer. V, 1842, 339 ; pi. 350. 



Ga'imago wlhonii, Bonap. List, 1j38. 



Scolopax gallinago, WiLS. Am. Orn. VI, 1812, 18. Nol of Linnaeus. 



Scolopax brehmii, " Kapp," Bon. Obs. Wils. 1825, No. 204. Not of Kaup. 



Scolopax delicata, Ord, ed. W^ils. IX, 1825, 218. 



? ScoL'pax drummondii, Sw. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 400.- Aud. Orn. Biog. V, 1839, 319 — Ib. Syn. 249.— Ib. 

 Birds Amer. V. 



? Scolopax dougtassii, Sw. P. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 400. 



9Scolupax leucurus, Sw. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 50. 



Sp. Ch. — Bill long, compressed, flattened and slightly expanded towards the tip, pustulated in its terminal half; wings rather 

 long ; legs moderate ; tail short. Entire upper parts brownish black ; every feather spotted and widely edged with light rufous, 

 yelliiwish brown or ashy white ; back and rump transversely barrud and spotted with the S5me ; a line from the base of the bill 

 over the top of the head. Throat and nec:k befo e, dull reddish ashy ; wing feather marked with dull brownish black ; otiior 

 under parts white, with transverse bars of bro a nisli black on the sides, axillary fe .tilers and under wing coverts and uiidi-r tail 

 coverts ; quills browtiish bi.ick ; outer edijo of fir.-it primary white ; tail glossy brownish bhtck, wi.iely tifiped wii.li bright rufous, 

 paler at the lip, and witli a subterininal narrow bind of black ; outer feathers of tail palt-r, frequcHtly iiea' ly while and barred 

 wiih black throughout their length. Bill brown, yellowish at base and darker torvards the end; legs dark brown. Total 

 lerigtii about l(l| inclies ; wing. 5; tail,2i ; bill, 2; ; tarsus, 1^ inch. 



Hab. — Entire temperate regions of North America. California, (Mr. Szabo.) 



With numerous specimens before us from western North America, as will bo seen in the list 

 appended bilow, and numerous others from various localities in the United States, we fail to 

 perceive the characters of more than one species, and much suspect that neither oF the species 

 established by Mr. Swainson in Fauna Boreali Americana, as cited above, are valid or really 

 distinct from our present bird. There is amongst them a great variety of widths of the outer 

 tail feathers, and quite as great a variety also in their shades of color, so great, in fact, as to 

 render it utterly impossible to entertain the idea of regarding either as a specific character, aud, 

 moreover, making the determining of these species quite inconvenient with so many specimens. 



Two of those 8upi)osed species, Scolopax drummondii and S. dotiglasii, are described in the 

 body of the work cited above, and one, S. leucurus, is added in the appendix. It is worth 

 bearing in mind that Mr. Swainson was not acquainted with the common S. luilsonii, and only 

 describes it doubtfully with the following remark: "A specimen of a snipe from Hudson's Bay, 

 in the British Museum, possesses all the distinctive characters ascribed by the Prince of Musig- 

 nano to his Sc. ivilsonii, of ivhich tue have seen no aulhenlicaled examples." 



Our present opinion is that all the names above given are synonyms for. the species now 

 before us. All of their characters can be found in the extensive series of specimens now under 



