182 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



America. .Jamaica? Accidental in southeastern United States? ? Several 

 races. 



I. melanocephalus. Feathers of the throat not elongate and lanceolate, 

 but soft and normal; bill shorter than head. Back and scapulars greenish- 

 yellow. Rest of plumage, including lesser wing-coverts, gamboge-yellow. 

 Sexes alilie. 



Wings without any white. Wing, 4.00; tail, 4.00; culmen, .95; 

 tarsus, .96. Hob. Southern Mexico. . . var. melanocephaJiifs. 



Wings with white edgings to greater coverts, secondaries and tertials. 

 Wing, 4.25; tail, 4.40; culmen, 1.10; tarsus, 1.10. Hab. Northern 

 Mexico and Rio Grande Valley of United States. . . var. auduhoni. 

 XANTHORNUS. Back, scapulars, wings, tail, and throat, black ; wings 

 and tail witli, or without, white. Rest of plumage greenish-yellow, gamboge- 

 yellow, orange, orange-red, or chestnut-rufous. 

 A. Head and neck, all round, deep black. 

 a. Tail-feathers wholly black. 



I. dominicensis. Head, neck, back, scapulars, wings, tail, and 

 jugulum, deep black ; lesser and middle wing-coverts, linmg of the 

 wing, anal region, tibife, and rump, deep gamboge-j^ellow. No 

 white on wings or tail. Sexes similar (in all the races ?). 



Abdomen and sides yellow. 



Tail-coverts 'partially or wholly yellow. Wing, 3.25 to 3.50 ; 

 Tail, 3.75 to 4.00; culmen, .80; tarsus, .85. Hab. South 

 Mexico to Costa Rica .... \M\prosthemeJas.^ 



Tail-coverts uniform black. Wing, 3.75 ; tail, 4.50 ; cuhnen, 

 .80; tarsus, .90. Hab. Mexico and Gruatemala . var. wagleri. 



Abdomen and sides black. 

 Flanks and crissum yellow ; upper tail-coverts yellow. Wing, 

 3.50; tail, 3.50; culmen, .80; tarsus, .85. Hab. Hayti. 



var. d o m i nicensi s .* 

 Flanks black ; crissum mostly yellow ; upper tail-coverts black. 

 Wing. 3.75; tail, 4.00; culmen, .93; tarsus, .85. Hab. Porto 

 Rico ....... var. portoricensis.^ 



Flanks black ; crissum mostly black ; upper tail-coverts black. 

 Wing, 3.75 ; tail, 3.90 ; culmen, .80 ; tarsus, 86. Hab. Cuba. 



var. h y p am eUi s } 



^ Icterus dominicensis, var. prosthemelas. Icterus prosthcmelas, Strickland, Jard. Cont. Orn. 

 1850, 120, pi. Ixii. PcnduUnus p. Cassin, Icterida, P. A. N. S. 1867, 56. Pendulinus lessoni, 

 BoNAP. Consp. I, 432, 1850. 



2 Icterus dominicensis, var. dominicensis. Oriolus dominicensis, Linn. S. N. I, 163, 1766. 

 Pendulinus d. Cassin. P. A. N. S. 1867, 58. Pendulimis flavigaster, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. V, 

 317, 1816. Pendulinus viridis, Vikill. Nouv. Diet. V, 321, 1816 ? 



^ Icterus dominicensis, va,r. portoricensis, Bryant, Pr. Bost. Soe. 1866, 254. Pendulinus por- 

 toricensis, Cass. P. A. N. S. 1867, 58. Turdus atcr, Gm. S. N. I, 830, 1788 ? Turdns jugu- 

 laris. Lath. Ind. Orn. I, 351, 1790? 



* Icterus dominicensis, var. hypomelas. Pendulimis hypomelas, Bonap. Consp. I, 433, 1850. 

 — Cass. P. A. N. S. 1867. 59, 



There seems to be no reason for not referring all the above forms to one species, the differences 

 being merely in the relative amount of black and yellow. The greater predominance of the 

 former color we slionld expect in specimens from the AVest Indies, where in this family the 

 melanistic tendency is so marked. 



