BIRDS—ICTERIDAE—ICTERUS MELANOCEPHALUS. 543 
The bill of this species is shaped very much asin J. baltimore, a little more attenuated at the 
tip, but not more decurved. The tail is long and much graduated; the outer feather 1.10 of an 
inch shorter than the inner. 
In this species there is no yellow below the black of the feathers of the head, the basal portion 
being plumbeous, The outline of the black on the upper neck is at the same distance from the 
bill all round, except on the throat, where it extends three quarters of an inch further back as 
a semicircular patch on the upper part of the breast. There is a slight orange tinge on the 
breast ; the sides under the wings, and back, more greenish. The tail feathers are entirely 
black to their bases ; some of them tipped with whitish. Females and immature males have, 
sometimes, an elongated patch of dusky greenish yellow on the exterior of some of the tail 
feathers. The white outer edges of the wings are seen only on the terminal half of the prima- 
ries and secondaries ; the band across the wing is scarcely continued to its external edge. 
The third quill is longest ; the fourth and fifth, successively, a very little shorter than the 
second ; the first shorter than the seventh. 
From an examination of the description of Wagler it is, I think, clearly evident that he had 
in view the smaller species of the Black-headed Oriole. (See the next article.) The measure- 
ments are exactly the same, and the narrow grayish margins of the quills and the greenish 
edges of the tail feathers, are merely indicative of immaturity. No mention is made of the 
broad white or yellowish white borders of the coverts and quills. The dimensions given, 
(Length, 8 inches ; bill from forehead, .75; tail, 3.88; wings, 3.38; tarsi, 1.00,) allowing for 
the larger size of the German inch, will be almost exactly those of the smaller bird, and neces- 
sarily much inferior to that from the Rio Grande. 
As far as I can judge, the Icterus graduacauda of Lesson, (alis caudaque nigerrimis,) belongs 
to the smaller bird. The JL. audubonii of Giraud, on the other hand, has the white edges 
of the wings and is large enough to belong to the more northern species, which, accordingly, 
should take its name. 
The Xanthornus melanocephalus of Bonaparte probably refers to the northern bird, but the 
description of the young is probably that of true melanocephalus. 
List of specimens. 
Catal.| Sex. Locality. When col- Whence ob- | Orig!) Collected | Length. Stretch |Wings Remarks. 
No. lected. tained. No. by— of wings. 
4063 ref Charco Escondido, Tamaul- | May......» | Lt. Couch ..... 64 | ccccccccves 9.25 12.25 | 4.00 | Eyes dark brown; bill dark slate. 
ipas, Mex. 
4062 Q naaecioa Gy cogedqcsnocenneec| pacsod eataie.ctelllsisieese DO Fcteisieaes G33 lsteweiei ws evais 8.75 11.50 | 3.75 | Eyes dark brown; bill black; 
lower mandible light blue, lead 
colored at base ...cssesceeeece 
4059 Matamoras, Mex..... eeceee [vecvnececser|coceee COs sicisisieine'| e'siaieiaie Berlandier. 
6713 Ringgold barracks, Tex..... |sscssevseese Maj. Emory....|..+++.| J. H. Clark | 
L020 eeetetnel| VECXIC On eiaiaiwiacinivicicclsisisls cece [ccesesvenees PMG. Belater, ssl aisscias| eve eerie non BeDOCOOH | 
ICTERUS MELANOCEPHALUS, Gray. 
Psarocolius melunocephalus, WAGLER, Isis, 1829, 756. 
Icterus melanocephalus, Gray, Genera.—Scrarer, Pr. Zool. Soc. 1858, 97. 
Xanthornus melanocephalus, Bon. Consp. 1850, 434. Description of young only. 
2 Icterus gradwacawda, Lesson, Rey. Zoel. 1839, 105. 
Sp. Cu.—Similar to J. audubonii, but without any white whatever on the wing. Head and neck all round, wings, scapulars, 
and tail, uniform pure black. Rest of body, including beneath the wing and tibia and the lesser wing coverts, orange yellow ; 
