400 



REVIEW OF AMERICAN BIRDS. 



[part I. 



Beneath greenish-yellow, more olive on the sides ; clearer yellow on the chin, 

 inner face of wings, and inner edges of quills. A band from nostrils over 

 and beyond the eyes, and a spot on lower eyelid, yellow ; rest of sides of head 

 plumbeous, with the dusky and white bands of icttrophrys very obsoletely 

 indicated. Bill dusky ; legs paler. 



Total lengtli, 4.()0 ; wing, 2.(50 ; tail, 2.10 ; exposed portion of 1st primary, 

 .85, of 2d, 1.72, of longest (5th) (measured from exposed base of 1st primary), 

 2.05; length of bill from nostril, .40; tarsus, .72. 



The forehead aiul side of crown are tinged with olive, and in the 

 plumbeous of the sides of head are indicated very obsoletely an 

 olivaceous line from commissure through and behind the eye, and 

 another from side of lower jaw, beneath it ; the two separated behind 

 by a paler patch. 



The general style of coloration and appearance is that of V. icte- 

 rophrys, Bon., but the size is smaller, the under parts more olivace- 

 ous, and the stripes on the side of head so nearly obsolete as to be 

 readily overlooked. The superciliary yellow line is, however, suffi- 

 ciently conspicuous ; the infra-ocular yellow spot rather less distinct. 

 The ditt'erence of locality is also imi)ortant. 



For the opportunity of examining the species I am indebted to 

 Dr Sclatcr. 



Family AMPELID.E. 



The characteristics of the Ampelidse have already been presented 

 in the synopsis of allied families ; chief among them the short broad 

 depressed and triangular bill with short gonys, the deeply cleft 

 mouth, the short tarsus, and the tendency to subdivision of its 

 lateral plates. "Whether Did us belongs properly here or elsewhere 

 is a serious question ; it is at any rate the type of a subfavnli/, as 

 also are Ampelis and Pfilogonys, if indeed they do not represent a 

 still higher division. The solution of these questions must, however, 

 be left to further investigation into the internal anatomy of the 

 genera ; for the present I retain all under Ampelidse. The characters 

 of the subfamilies are as follows : — 



