120 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



in many tropical parts of Asia and casual in south and west Europe, 

 Austria, Bohemia, Italy, south France, Malta, Heligola]id. 



EMBERIZA CIRLUS 



47. Emberiza cirlus L.— THE CTRL BUNTING. 



Embkriza Cerlus Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. xii, i, p. 311 (1766 — S. Europe). 

 Emberiza cirlus Linnaeus, Yarrell, 11, p. 50; Saunders, p. 211. 



Description (Plate 5) . — Adult male. Winter.- — Fore-head and crown 

 greyish olive-green, streaked black and tinged brown ; back of neck 

 with fewer dark streaks ; mantle and scapulars chestnut, fringed 

 greyish-buff, tips of feathers with black centres forming streaks ; 

 rump olive-brown, indistinctly streaked ; upper tail-coverts rufous- 

 brown with black shaft-streaks ; stripes from base of bill over and 

 under eye, fore-part of ear-coverts and spot behind them yellow ; 

 lores, upper and hinder part of ear-coverts greenish-black ; chin 

 and upper-throat black, tipped buffish- white ; lower-throat and 

 extending to sides of neck yellow ; upper-breast greyish olive-green ; 

 sides of breast chestnut, tipped buff ; centre of breast, belly, and 

 under tail-coverts yellow, feathers tipped buffish-white, and long 

 under tail-coverts with black shaft-streaks ; flanks buff, streaked 

 dark brown ; axillaries yellow ; tail black -brown, central pair 

 fringed bro\\-n, rest very narrowly fringed greenish-broA\-n on outer, 

 and white on inner webs, outermost pair with outer web mostly 

 white and large wliite wedge on inner web, penultimate pair with 

 small white wedge ; primaries black-brown very narrowly fringed 

 greyish on outer, and white on inner webs ; secondaries same, but 

 outer webs fringed bro\Mi ; inner secondaries and greater coverts 

 broadly fringed chestnut-brown ; median coverts tipped greyish- 

 buff ; lesser coverts greyish -green. This plumage is acquired by 

 complete moult in Aug. -Oct. Summer. — Feathers of yellow 

 stripes above and below eye and ear-coverts are moulted March 

 and April, but apparently no other moult. Abrasion gradually 

 makes cro^n more grey and black, mantle more chestnut, 

 chin blacker, upper breast purer green, and sides of breast more 

 chestnut. 



Adult female. Winter. — ^Upper -parts much as male, but cro^AH 

 and nape broMTier and rather more streaked ; mantle less chestnut ; 

 stripe over eye and spot behind ear-coverts ill defined, and buff, 

 not yellow ; ear-coverts yelloMish -brown ; chin and tlnroat yeUowish- 

 buff, spotted dark brown ; ill defined dark malar streaks ; 

 upper-breast and flanks darker, prominently streaked, sides of 

 breast tinged chestnut ; lower breast, belly, and imder tail-coverts 

 pale yeUo\A', w ith few dark streaks ; axiUaries pale yello^^' ; tail as 

 male but Avhite marks shghtly smaller ; wings as male. Summer. — 

 Moult round ej^es and ear-coverts, as in male. Abrasion makes 

 croM n and rump greyer ; mantle more chestnut ; eye-stripe 

 rather more prominent ; throat yellower and less spotted ; upper- 



