PICID^ — THE WOODPECKERS. 537 



this respect only, while an adult female, from Washington, D. C. (No. 12,260, 

 C. Drexler), has the lower part of the throat much mixed with I'ed. 



Taking next the specimens from the Eocky Mountains and Middle Prov- 

 ince of the United States (*S'. nuchalis), we find that all the specimens pos- 

 sess hoth these additional amounts of the red, there being always a red, in- 

 stead of dirty-white, nuchal crescent, while in the female the lower part of 

 the throat is always more or less red ; in addition, the male has the red of 

 the throat reaching laterally to the white stripe, thus interrupting the black 

 malar one, which is always unbroken in the eastern form ; and in addition, 

 the auriculars are frequently mixed with red. Proceeding towards the Colum- 

 bia Eiver, we find the red increasing, or escaping the limits to which it is 

 confined in the normal pattern, staining the white and black areas in differ- 

 ent places, and tingeing the whitish which borders the black pectoral area. 



Lastly, in the series from the Pacific coast (>S'. ruber), we find the whole 

 normal pattern rendered scarcely definable — sometimes entirely obliterated 

 — by the extension of the red, which covers continuously tlie whole head, 

 neck, and breast ; but nearly always the normal pattern may be traced, the 

 feathers of the normally black areas being dusky beneath the surface, and 

 those of the usual white stripes very white for the concealed portion. 

 Usually, in this form, the red of the breast covers only the black pectoral 

 area ; but in extreme specimens it reaches back to the middle of the body 

 beneath, and stains the white spots of the back. 



With the increase of the red as we proceed westward, there is also a xle- 

 crease in the amount of white above ; thus, in varius the whole back is 

 irregularly spotted with dirty wdiite and black, — the former predominating, 

 the latter most conspicuous as a medial, broken broad stripe, — and the 

 lateral tail-feathers are much variegated by white spots. In nuchalis the 

 back is mostly unbroken glossy-black, with two parallel narrow stripes of 

 white converging at their lower ends ; and the lateral tail-feather is almost 

 wholly black, having merely a narrow white border toward the end. >S'. ruber 

 is most like nuchalis, but has the white still more restricted. 



In varius the bill is dark brown, in nuchalis it is deep black, and in ruber 

 wax-brown. In varius the yellow of the lower parts is deepest, in nuchalis 

 just appreciable. 



Species and Varieties. 



A. Wing with a white patch on the middle and greater coverts. Markings 

 along the sides with a longitudinal tendency. 



1. S. varius. Back variegated medially with brownish-white ; secondaries 

 with transverse rows of white spots. 



White and black stripes on side of head sharply defined, as is also 



the black pectoral crescent. Red confined to isolated jJcitches, — two 



large ones, one on the crown ctnd one on the throat; tvhen there is 



more, only a tinge on the auriculars, and a crescent on nape. 



Crown sometimes glossy black without a trace of red on the female ; 



no tinge of scarlet on the nape. Red of the throat entii-ely confined 



VOL. IT. G8 



