FRINGILLID^: FINCHES, BUNTINGS, SPARROWS, ETC. 395 



tending to swell, \vith more decidedly curved culinen. Tail rather longer, on an average. 

 Valley nf the Colorado and Gila, and Lower California, common. 



PI'PILO. (Lat. pipilo or pipio, I pip, peep, chirp.) Towhee Buntings. Embracing 

 numerous species and varieties of large Fringillidce, varying much in system of coloration and 

 details of form, and therefore not easy to characterize concisely. Excepting one species, all are 

 over seven inches long. Bill moderate in size, conic without extremes of turgidity or cf>mpres- 

 sion, but varying much in precise shape with the species. Feet large and strong, fitted for 

 ground work ; tarsus about equalling or rather exceeding the middle toe and claw ; lateral toes 

 subequal, outer usually a little the longer, its claw reaching, in some cases exceeding the base 

 of the middle claw ; the claws all stout and much curved, in some species highly developed. 

 Wings short and greatly rounded, about the 4th-5th primary longest, whence the quills are 

 rapidly graduated to 1st and 9th ; 1st very short. Tail long, exceeding the wings, rounded or 

 much graduated, of broad firm feathers with rounded ends. Large species, inhabiting shrub- 

 bery, and partly terrestrial. .They fall in 3 sections or series. I. Black Towhees : of which the 

 (inly Eastern species is a typical example. In this, the sexes are very unlike, but the difference 

 is less in the Western varieties into which it runs : all the forms are black on head and upper 

 parts, with black, white-marked wings or tail, the back also white-marked or not ; belly white, 

 sides chestnut. II. Brown Towhees : variously brown above, paler, etc., below, the sexes 

 alike. These ai'e confined to the Southwest, where the numerous species stand in the same 

 relation to Fringillidce that the Southwestern forms of Harporhynchus bear to TurdidcB. III. 

 Green Towhees : one small species, standing alone. 



Obs. I. The black series of Pipilo offers a case nearly parallel with those of Melospiza, 

 Passerella and Junco already discussed. There is one Eastern form much more distinct from 

 the several Western ones than these are from one another. It is uniform black above, seldom 

 with a trace of white spotting on the scapulars : the 9 distinctively brown where the $ is 

 black. Tlie Western ones all have spotted scapulars and sometimes also interscapulars ; and 

 9 9 are blackish, much like the $ $. (These furthermore shade into an olivaceous Mexican 

 form.) P. arcticus corresponds in a way with Melospiza heermanni, Passerella schistacea, and 

 Junco caniceps ; P. oregonus with Melospiza guttata or rufina, Passerella unalascce and Junco 

 oregonus ; P. megalonyx exactly vrith Passerella megarhyncha. It might be more consistent 

 to treat all the black Towhees as races of one incompletely specified stock ; but it is not easy 

 to so far ignore the sexual distinctiveness, nor the fact that though P. erythropJithalmus has 

 occasional spots on the scapulars, its intergradation is scarcely established. II. The Brown 

 Towhees afford one remarkably distinct species, P. aberti, to be likened to Harjwrhynchus 

 a-issalis; and others incompletely separated from each other, like H. redivivus and H. lecontii. 



Analysis of Species and Varieties. 



1. Black Toiokees. Colors of tbe male black, white, and chestnut in definite areas. 



No white on the scapulars or wing-coverts. Sexes very unlike. 



Eyes red in the breeding season. Eastern U. S. at large erythwphthalmus 301 



Eyes white In the breeding season. Florida, resident alleni 303 



Scapulars and wing-coverts with white spots; sexes more alike. Western. 



Little if any white at bases of primaries ; none on outer web of outer tail-feathers except at end. 



oregonus 303 



White on wings and tail as in enjthropkthalmus, but interscapulars streaked .... arcticus 304 



Like the last ; claws highly developed ; sexes nearly alike megalonyx 306 



2. Brown Towhees. Colors not definitely black, white and chestnut; no greenish; sexes alike. Southwestern. 



Grayish-brown, paler below, without blackish face ; throat and crissum fulvous or rufescent. 



Light; belly whitening; crissum yellowish-brown; necklace of dusky streaks . . . mesoleucus 306 



Similar; more white on throat 



albigula .307 



Dark ; belly only paler ; crissum cinnamon-brown ; throat fulvous, speckled crissalis 308 



Grayish-brown, paler below; face blackish; no other decided markings aberti 309 



3. Green Towhees. Colors greenish ; sexes alike. 



Crown brown, throat white, breast ashy, edge of wing yellow, etc chlonirus 310 



