456 MOTACILLIU^. 



Family MOTACILLID^. 



This family contains only the Wagtails and Pipits, and is the best- 

 defined of all the niue-qnilled Passeres, as the inner secondary quills 

 are elongated so as to be nearly as long as the primaries. In this 

 respect they resemble the Larks (AlaucUdie), to which they also 

 bear a great likeness in the formation of the feet. The Alaudidce, 

 however, have the hinder aspect of the tarsus scutellated and have 

 a small bastard primary, so tiny, however, as in general to escape 

 observation. The Wagtails and Pipits have no bastard primary at all. 

 On close comparison the generic differences between Wagtails 

 and Pipits will be found to be very insignificant and difficult to 

 express in words. To every student of ornithology the general 

 notion of distinction between Wagtails and Pipits is familiar 

 enough ; and as regards colour, the former are generally either black 

 and white or grey and white, or else have a good deal of yellow in 

 their plumage, while their uniform system of coloration must also be 

 taken into consideration, as compared with the mottled plumage of 

 the Pipits, which renders them so similar to Larks in appearance. 

 Dr. Coues has admitted two subfamilies, MotaciUince and Anthince ; 

 and his characters, though slight, hold good for the American species, 

 as do those of Prof. Baird in his ' Eeview,' but when the mass of 

 Old- World species has to be classified, they break down. Therefore 

 I have found it practicable to recognize only a few genera, which can 

 be identified with some degree of certainty, as set forth in the 

 following 



Key to the Genera. 



a. Plumage uniform above ; feet black. Profile of 



culmen straight from the base of bill to the 

 tip ; culmen about equal to outer toe and 



claw 1. MOTACILLA, p. 457. 



b. Plumage uniform above ; feet pale. Bill very 



long, exceeding the length of the outer toe 



and claw 2. Limonideomus, 



c. Plumage generally mottled and Lark-like, the [p. 532. 



feathers of the back with darlc centres and 



pale edges ; feet pale ; no scutellations on 



upper part of back of tarsus. Profile of cul- 



■ men swollen from the centre to the tip. 



a'. Outstretched feet not reaching beyond the 



tail 3. Anthus, p. 534. 



b'. Outstretched feet reaching beyond the tail. 

 a". Feet moderately large, the hind toe and 

 claw not exceeding the length of the 

 tarsus 5. Neocohys, p. G20. 



