CREAM-COLOURED COURSER. 245 



The beak is nearly black at the point, brown at the base ; 

 the irides hazel ; the top of the head buff-colour, the hinder 

 part grey tipped with black ; above the eye, and passing 

 from thence over the ear- coverts to the nape of the neck, is 

 a white streak ; below this, from the eye, a black streak, 

 both meeting behind : the neck, back, and all the upper 

 surface of the body and wings, pale wood-brown, tinged with 

 reddish-buff; wing-primaries black; the tail-feathers have 

 an angular black spot near the end, increasing in size toward 

 the feather on each outside, in which the spot is the largest. 

 The chin white ; the front of the neck, the breast, and 

 under surface of the body, buffy-white, palest on the vent 

 and under tail-coverts ; legs and toes cream colour ; the 

 claws brown. 



The whole length is ten inches and one-quarter. From 

 the carpal joint to the end of the wing, six inches : the 

 form of the wing pointed, the first and second quill-feathers 

 being nearly of equal length, and the longest in the wing ; 

 length of tarsus two inches. 



The sexes in plumage resemble each other ; but, as usual 

 in such cases, the young birds of the year differ. These 

 have the feathers clouded with two shades of pale brown, 

 with dark, irregular transverse lines of dusky ash-colour, as 

 shewn in the representation ; the lines round the back of 

 the head as yet not very conspicuous ; the dark feathers of 

 the wing edged on the inner web with buff colour. At the 

 end of the second year they assume the plumage of the 

 adult. 



