BIRDS TYEANNINAE — SAYORNIS NIGRICAKS. 



183 



SAYORNIS NIGRICANS, Bo nap. 

 Black Flycatcher. 



Tyrannula nigricans, Swainson, Syn. Birds Mex. Taylor's Phil. Mag. I, 1827, 367 — Newberry, Zool. Cal. tc 



Or. Route, Rep. P. R. R. Surv. VI, iv, 1857, 81. 

 Muscicapa nigricans, Add. Orn. Biog. V, 1839, 302 ; pi. 474.— Ib. Birds Amer. I, 1840, 218 ; pi. 60. 

 Ttjrannus nigricans, Ncttall, Man. I, 2d ed. 1840, 326. 

 Myiobius nigricans, Gray. 



jyjyiarchus nigricans, Cabanis, Tschudi Fauna Peruan. 1844- '46, 153, (Peru.) 

 Sayo>-nis nigricans, Eonap. Comptes Rendus XXVIII, 1854, notes Orn. 87. 

 Jlulanax nigricans, Cabanis, Cab. Journal fur Orniih. IV, Jan. 1856, 9, (type of genus.) 

 Muscicapa semi-alra. Vigors, Zool. Beechey Voy. 1839, 17. 



Sp. Ch. — Wings rounded ; second, third, and fourth longest ; first rather shorter than sixth. Tarsi with a second row of 

 scales behind. The head and neck all round, fore part and sides of the breast, dark sooty brown ; the rest of the upper parts 

 similar, but lighter ; faintly tinged with lead color towards the tail. The middle of the breast, abdomen, and lower tail coverts 

 white ; some of the latter with the shafts and the centre brown. The lower wing coverts grayish brown, edged with white. 

 Wings dark brown ; the edges of secondary coverts rather lighter ; of primary covcrls dull white. Edge of the exterior 

 vane of the first primary and of secondaries, while. Tail dark brown, with the greater part of the outer vane of the exterior 

 tail feather white ; this color narrowing from the base to the tip. Bill and feet black. The tail rounded ; rather emarginate ; 

 feathers broad ; more obliquely truncate than in sayus. The bill slender ; similar to that of S. fuscus. 



Length, nearly 7 inches ; wing, 3.60 ; tail, 3.45. 



Hab. — California coast, (Umpqua valley, Oregon, Newberry) and across by valley of Grila. and upper Rio Grande to .New 

 Leon, and south. 



The female appears to differ only in the smaller size. A young bird from San Francisco has 

 two bands of rusty on the wing ; the shoulders and hinder part of the back tinged with the 

 same. 



List of specimens. 



