VA6 FALCOXIDiE. 



Ac.ipiter fuscus, Sp. Comp. List B. Eur. ^ N. Am. p. 5 (1838) ; 



Grai/, Gen. B. i. p. 29 (1849) ; Bp. Consp. i. p. 32 (1850) ; Cass. 



B. Calif. ^- Texas, p. 95 (1855) ; Strickl. Orn. Stpi. p. 108 (1855) ; 



Cass, m BainVs B. N. Am. p. 18 (1860) ; Gray^Hand-l. B. i. p. 32 



(1869) ; Allen, Bull. Harv. Coll. ii.p. 319 (1871) ; Cooper, B. Calif. 



ed. Baird, p. 466 (1871) ; Coues, Key N. A. Birds, p. 212 (1872) ; 



Adams, liatnbles, p. 297 (1873) ; Scl. ^ Salv. Nomencl. Av. Neotr, 



p. 120 (1873). 

 Astur fuscus, Dekay, Zool. N. York, Orn. p. 17, pi. 2. fig. 2 (1844). 

 Nisus fuscus, Kaup, Contr. Orn. 1850, p. 64 ; Schl. Mus. P.-B. 



Astiires, p. 30 (1862) ; id. Revue Accipitr. p. 69 (1873). 



Young male. Above brown, with distinct rufons edgings to the 

 feathers, the nape, bases of the scapulars, and upper tail-coverts 

 varied with white ; quills brown, with narrow fulvous margins and 

 lips, barred with darker brown, more distinct below ; tail brown, 

 shaded with ashy above, tipped with white, and crossed with four 

 blackish bands ; forehead, eyebrow, and sides of face white, streaked 

 with dark brown, especially the ear-coverts, which are nearly en- 

 tirely brown on their hinder margin ; throat bufFy white, with 

 narrow blackish streaks ; rest of under surface white, the breast 

 streaked with pale rufous, the abdomen and flanks numerously 

 marked with spade-shaped spots or bars of the same colour, the 

 thighs very broadly barred with brighter rufous, nearly uniform at 

 base ; under tail-coverts white, with spade-shaped spots of very pale 

 rufous ; under wing-coverts buff, narrowly streaked or spotted with 

 dark brown ; cere yellow ; bill dark bluish horn-colour ; tarsi 

 yellow. 



Adult nude. Above slaty blue, the head and wing-coverts rather 

 darker, shaft-stripes black and tolerably distinct ; tail- coverts very 

 narrowly tipped with white, as also the secondaries, which are slatj' 

 blue like the back ; primaries brown, all the quills barred with 

 darker brown, more distinct below, where the inner webs are ashy 

 white ; tail slaty blue, narrowly, tipped with white, and crossed with 

 four blackish bauds, the subterminal one broadest ; lores, frontal 

 feathers, and an indistinct eyebrow whitish, with narrow black 

 streaks ; sides of face white, streaked with blackish, the^ar-coverts 

 and sides of neck inclining to bright rufous ; throat white, with 

 narrow blackish shaft-lines ; under surface of body white, broadly 

 barred with pale rufous, diminishing inextent towards the abdomen, 

 but very distinct on the thighs ; under wing-coverts bufiy white, 

 with small spots of black, becoming larger on the lower series ; cere 

 greenish yellow ; bill black ; feet greenish yeUow ; iris brilliant 

 yellow. Total length 11-3 inches, culmen 0-65, wing 7"15, tail 6, 

 tarsus 2. 



Adult female. Similar to the male, but not so bright rufous un- 

 derneath. Total length 14 inches, wing 8-25, tail 6-6, tarsus 2-15. 



Hah, The whole of North America, extending in winter into Cen- 

 tral America, to Guatemala and Veragua. 



a. cf iuv. st. Quebec. 1). W. Mitchell, Esq. 



[P.]. 



