710 U. S. p. R. E. EXP. AND SURVEYS — ZOOLOGY GENERAL REPORT. 



GALLINAGO, Leach. 



Gallinago, "Leach, Catal. British Birds, 1816." Gray. Type Scolnpax misjor, L. 



Cn. — Lower portion of the tibia bare of feathers, scutellate before and behind, reticulated laterally like the tarsi. Nail of 

 hind toe slender, e.\tending beyond the toe. Bill depressed at the tip. Middle toe longer than tarsus. Tail with twelve to 

 sixteen feathers. 



The more slender body, longer legs, partly naked tibia, and other features, distinguish this 

 genus from Scolopax or Philohela. 



GALLINAGO WILSONII, (Temm.) Bon. 



Wilson's Snipe ; English Snipe. 



Scolopax wilsonii, Temm. PI. Col. V, livraison lxviii, about 1824. In text of Scolopax gigantea. — Eon. Syn. 1828, 

 330.— Swains. F. B. Am. II, 1831, 401.— Nutt. Man. II, 185.— Add. Orn. B.og. Ill, 1835, 

 322 : V, 1839, 583 ; pi. 243— Ib. Syn. 248 — 1b. Birds Amer. V, 1842, 339 ; pi. 350. 



GaHinago wilsonii, Bonap. List, 1838. 



Scolopax gallinago, WiLS . Am. Orn. VI, 1812, 18. Not of Linnaeus. 



Scolopax brehmii, " Kadp," Bon. Obs. Wils. 1825, No. 204. Not of Kaup. 



Scolopax deticata, Ord, ed. Wils. IX, 1825, 218. 



? Scolopax drummondii, Sw. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 400.— AuD. Orn. Biog. V, 1839, 319.— Ib. Syn. 249 — Ib. 

 Birds Amer. V. 



7 Scolopax douglassii, Sw . F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 400. 



? Scolopax leucurus, Sw. F. Bor. Am. II, 1831, 50. 



Sp. Ch. — Bill long, compressed, flattened and slightly expanded towards the tip, pustulated in its terminal half; wings rather 

 long ; legs moderate ; tail short. Entire upper parts brownish black ; every feather spotted and widely edged with light rufous, 

 yellowish brown or ashy white ; back and rump transversely barred and spotted with the same ; a line from the base of the bill 

 over tlie top of the head. Throat and neck before, dull reddish ashy ; wing feather marked with dull brownish black ; other 

 under parts white, with transverse bars of brownish black on the sides, axillary feathers and under wing coverts and under tail 

 coverts ; quills brownish black ; outer edge of first primary white ; tail glossy brownish black, widely tipped with bright rufous, 

 paler at the tip, and with a subterminal narrow band of black ; outer feathers of tail paler, frequently nearly white and barred 

 with black throughout their length. Bill brown, yellowish at base and darker towards the end ; legs dark brown. Total 

 length about lOj inches ; wing, 5 ; tail, 2j ; bill, 2i ; tarsus, 1' inch. 



Hub. — Entire temperate regions of North America. California, (Mr. Szabo.) 



With numerous specimens before us from westeru North America, as will be seen in the list 

 appended below, and numerous others from various localities in the United States, we fail to 

 perceive the characters of more than one species, and much suspect that neither of the species 

 established by Mr. Swainson in Fauna Boreali Americana, as cited above, are valid or really 

 distinct from our present bird. There is amongst them a great variety of widths of the outer 

 tail feathers, and quite as great a variety also in their shades of color, so great, in fact, as to 

 render it utterly impossible to entertain the idea of regarding either as a specific character, and, 

 moreover, making the determining of these species quite inconvenient with so many specimens. 



Two of those supposed species, Scolopax drummondii and S. douglasii, are described in the 

 body of the work cited above, and one, 8. leucurus, is added in the appendix. It is worth 

 bearing in mind that Mr. Swainson was not acquainted with the common yS'. loilsonii, and only 

 describes it doubtfully with the following remark: "A sj^ecimen of a snipe from Hudson's Bay, 

 in the British Museum, possesses all the distinctive characters ascribed by the Prince of Musig- 

 nano to his Sc. icilsonii, of tohich we have seen no authenticated examples. ' ' 



Our present opinion is that all the names above given are synonyms for the species now 

 before us. All of their characters can be found in the extensive series of specimens now under 



