696 



S YSTEMA TIC SYNOPSIS. — PICARLE — PICI. 



of all qnills, edge of wing, and under parts from breast, white ; sides M'ith sparse black 

 streaks; forehead squarely white, continuous with a stripe down in front of eyes and thence 

 broadly encircling throat, there becoming yellowish ; this cuts off completely the black around 

 base of bill and on chin; crown in $ crimson from the white front, in 9 separated from 

 the white by a black interval ; frequently a few red leathers in the black breast-patch, which 

 is not sharply defined behind, but changes by streaks into the white of belly (in this respect 

 approaching the S. Mexican form called striaUpectus, in which the black area is entirely 

 broken up into streaks). Bill black ; eyes white, often rosy, creamy, yellowish, milky, bluish, 

 or brown. Young not particularly different, but have the head-markings less defined, the red 

 bronzy, and at an early age over the whole crown of both sexes ; black parts less pure; black 

 streaks of sides blurred. In 9 , the succession of white, black, and red on crown is very sharp 

 and square ; the white frontlet and black coronal areas, taken together, are broader lengthwise 



than the red occipital bar. In some 

 specimens of either sex, the secondaries 

 are edged and tipped with white. The 

 gloss is sometimes rather green than 

 blue. Length (average of J" 9 ) 9.50; 

 extent 18.00 ; wing about 5.50 ; tail 

 3.75. My measurements of many Ari- 

 zona specimens in the flesh show no 

 adult under 8.80 long X 17. 00 in ex- 

 tent, ranging thence up to ^ 9.90 X 

 18.70, with no ccmstant difference be- 

 tween the sexes; the bill ranges from 

 0.87 to 1.12, averaging 1.00 for both 

 sexes and all ages. Southwestern U. S., 

 from W. Texas through New Mexico 

 and Arizona, to contiguous parts of California E. of the Sierras Nevadas, and S. into Mexico, 

 common resident. This is not particularly a bird of oak woods ; I found it abundant in the 

 pineries about Fort Whipple, where it breeds. Eggs about 1.00 X 0.75. M. formicivorus of 

 the Key, orig. ed. 1872, p. 197, reverted to by the A. 0. U. in Auk, Jan. 1897, p. 120, No. 

 407. M. formicivorus bairdt of the Key, 2d-4th eds., 1884-90, p. 489, and of A. 0. U. Lists, 

 1886-95, No. 407, in part (includes this form and the next). 31. f. nculeatus Mearns, Auk, 

 July, 1890, p. 249 ; see Auk, Jan. 1891, p. 88, and Ridgw. Man. 2d ed. 1896, p. 597. This 

 means that all the U. S. birds combined were wrongly separated from the typical Mexican 

 bird; whereas the distinction is to be made between the latter and the California Coast bird, as 

 follows : 



M. f. bairdi. (To S. F. Baird.) Baird's Woodpecker. Californian Acorn Wood- 

 pecker. Like the last, throat more decidedly yellowish ; black breastplate more solid for a 

 considerable area; averaging slightly larger, the bill especially longer and stouter. Length av- 

 eraging over 9.50 and extent over 18.00; wing nearly 6.00; tail 4.00; bill 1.12-1.40. Pacific 

 Coast region, abundant in California and N. to 44° in Oregon, mostly confined to areas W. of 

 Sierras Nevadas and Cascade Range, but occasionally E. of latter in Oregon ; N. Lower Cal. 

 Particularly a bird of the oak belt ; acorns are its principal food, and it is noted for the habit of 

 sticking them in little holes that it digs for the purpose, till whole branches are often studded 

 m this curious manner. It nests preferably in oaks but also in other trees ; eggs 4, 5 or more, 

 April-June, averaging L 10 X 0.90, and thus rather larger than those oi formicivorus proper, but 

 indistinguishable. The general manners and bearing of all the forms of this species are most 

 like those of our common Red-headed Woodpecker. (Synonymy as above indicated ; also M. 

 f. melanopogon Temm., of Hargitt.) 



Fig. 409. — Californian Woodpecker, nat. size. 

 E. C. (Bill at a minimum.) 



(Ad. nat. del. 



