466 



CuRY on the Birch of the West Indies. [October 



brown, some of the outermost rather more broadly barred -with 

 sandy colour, but not exhibiting any trace of white or bulf spots; 

 head and neck rather lighter sandy colour, the transverse black lines 

 very regular, especially on the ear tufts, which are coloured like the 

 rest of the head, but are nearly uniform rufous on their inner webs; 

 entire facial aspect foxy red, the hindermost of the ear-coverts 

 whitish, tipped with black, merging in the ruff, which is composed 

 of sandy-buff feathers, black at tip and at base; the stiff gular feath- 

 ers sandy rufous, streaked and indistinctly barred with black; chin- 

 feathers huffy white ; rest of the under surface deep sandy rufous, 

 with faint indications of dusky vermiculations of brown, the abdom- 

 inal plumes more or less verging on white and showing very little 

 of the mesial black streaks which are so distinct on the breast 

 feathers; leg feathers uniform tawny buff, as also the tmder tail- 

 coverts ; under wing-coverts buff, slightly washed with sandy-rufous, 

 the lower series black, with fulvous bases, forming a bar across the 

 wing, and resembling the inner lining of the quills, which are ful- 

 vescent towards the base of the inner web, on which they are broad- 

 Iv barred with black; upper wing-coverts resembling the back, and 

 very coarsely vermiculated A\ith dark brown, the sandy-buff bars 

 being pretty apparent here and there, and especially distinct on the 

 outer web of the spurious quills ; primary-coverts dark brown, irreg- 

 ularly, barred across with sandy-buff; quills banded alternately for 

 their entire length with blackish brown and sandy-buff, these bars 

 less distinct on the secondaries, the light interspaces obscured with 

 dark brown vermiculations, especially the innermost, which conse- 

 quently resemble the hack; tail sandj'-buff barred across with dark 

 brown, about eleven bars being traceable on the centre feathers, the 

 interspaces more or less mottled with \ermiculations of brown, the 

 exterior rectrix paler and more fulvous, crossed with about thirteen 

 brown bars; cere blackish grey; bill pale blue-grey; feet dull lead- 

 colour; claws horny grey; iris hazel. Total length 12.2 inches, 

 wing 8.4, tail 5.1, tarsus 1.55." (Siiarpe, 1. c.) 

 Habitat. Jamaica. 



Geni's Asio Briss, 



Asio Brisson, Orn. I, p. 28 (1760). 



Asio stygius (Wagl.). 



Nvctalops stviiius Wagl. Isis, 1832, p. 1221.— Gray. List Gen. Ikis. p. 6. 



— ScL. & Salv. Nom. Avium Neotr. p. 116 (,1873). 

 Otiis svgnapa D'Orb. in La Sagra's Hist. Nat. Cuba, Ois. p. 31 



(1840).— Gr.vy, Gen. Bds. L p. 40 (18^4-49).— Bp. Consp. L p- 5° 



(1850). — Cab. J. f O. 1855, p. 465. — Gi'M)!.. Repert. Fisico-Nat. 



Cuba, I, p. 22O C1S65) ; ib. J. f. O. 1871, p. 374- 



i 



