BIRDS 297 



beneath or with a pale spot on the gonys. Feet blackish-brown. 

 (Examples: Leiand Stanford Jr. University Museum Cat. No. 4072, 

 male, Iguana Cove, December; No. 4075, male, Iguana Cove, De- 

 cember; No. 4104, male, Iguana Cove, December.) 



Stage V. Iinmattire Males (^Older than the Last^. — Mead all 

 around, throat and breast continuously black. Feathers of the back 

 with dusky centers, but with paler brownish margins, the brown 

 lightest and most extensive on the rump. Upper tail coverts same as 

 feathers of back. Upper surface of wings and tail dusky brown, the 

 priinaries and greater wing coverts edged with pale grayish-brown, 

 the secondaries and rectrices edged with light but not grayish brown, 

 as are the feathers of the back. Lower surface posterior to the breast 

 buffy-whitish, streaked with brown along the sides. Lower tail coverts 

 buffy-whitish. Lower wing coverts grayish and dusky. Lower sur- 

 face of wings and tail grayish-brown ; the inner edges of the primaries 

 pale grayish. Bill generally black, but may have some yellowish on 

 either or both mandibles. Feet blackish-brown. 



This stage in the subgenus Geospiza represents the adult males of 

 the subgenus Cat?iarhynchus, while Stage VI represents the advance 

 of Geospiza and Cactoriiis beyond Camarhynchus. (Examples 

 of Stage V: Leiand Stanford Jr. University Museum Cat. No. 4101, 

 male. Iguana Cove, December; No. 5087, male. Iguana Cove, June.) 

 Birds in this stage are rather scarce, a fact perhaps indicating that the 

 stage is quickly passed through. 



Stage VI. Adult Males. — The most melanistic forms are colored 

 as follows: General color black, deepest anteriorly. The basal con- 

 cealed part of each feather pale slaty-gray, this color abruptly demar- 

 cated from the wide black marginal part; there is no trace anywhere 

 of a paler brownish margin beyond the black. On the rump the black 

 part of the feathers is narrower so that the color is easily exposed 

 if the feathers are slightly disturbed. The primaries, inner webs of 

 the secondaries, and the rectrices dusky-brownish, somewhat con- 

 trasting with the rest of the dorsum and the exposed parts of the sec- 

 ondaries. Under tail coverts margined on the exposed parts with pale 

 buffy-white. Under wing cov^erts black. Under surfiice of wings 

 and tail dark grayish-brown, on the wings contrasting strongly with 

 the black of the under wing coverts. Bill always entirely black. 

 Feet blackish-brown. (Examples : Leiand Stanford Jr. University 

 Museum Cat. No. 4187, male, Tagus Cove, January; No. 3938, 

 male. Iguana Cove, December — these taken mated with adult 

 females.) 



