Vol. XVII 
1900 
NELSON, Description of a New Turkey, etc. TAT 
Distribution. — Mountains of Arizona, western New Mexico, and south 
to the Mexican border and north probably into extreme southwestern 
Colorado. 
Subspecific characters. —- Distinguished from /. g. fera by the whitish 
tips to feathers of lower rump, tail-coverts and tail; from MW. 9. mexicana 
by its velvety black rump and the greater amount of rusty rufous suc- 
ceeding the white tips on tail-coverts and tail, and the distinct black and 
chestnut barring ot middle tail feathers. 
Description of adult male in winter.— Neck all around, under side of 
body to lower abdomen, upper back, scapulars, middle and lesser wing- 
coverts varying in different lights from rich metallic purplish green to 
fiery red bronze; feathers of lower back and rump rich velvety black with 
scarcely any trace of iridescence but tipped with pale rusty white on 
lower rump; upper tail-coverts broadly tipped with rusty white and witha 
subterminal band of dark rufous succeeded by a broader band of brilliant 
iridescent greenish purple, the bases of the feathers narrowly barred black 
and rufous; the long, outermost upper tail-coverts usually with a broad 
subterminal rufous band succeeded basally by narrow black and rufous 
bars; tail including middle feathers tipped with rusty white, with subter- 
minal band of rufous followed by a broad black band and thence to base 
narrowly barred with black and dark rufous; greater wing-coverts vary- 
ing from greenish to purplish bronze, with black tips; primaries strongly 
barred black and white; secondaries similarly marked but white more or 
less spotted with brown; tertials indistinctly barred and mottled with 
black, rusty brown and buffy whitish, with purplish and greenish reflec- 
tions on outer webs; thighs and lower abdomen dull black, feathers 
narrowly tipped with dull grayish white; feathers of flanks and under 
tail-coverts tipped with pale rufous (sometimes rusty whitish) with a 
narrow subterminal band of dark rufous succeeded by a much broader 
area of iridescent purplish bronze, the base of feathers on flanks dull 
black, but under tail-coverts barred with black and dark rufous. Spurs 
short and blunt, sometimes one or both absent. Barb on breast well 
developed. 
Dimensions of type.— Wing, 520; tail, 400; culmen, 41; tarsus, 162. 
Adult female tn winter.— Head and upper neck usually with a strong 
growth of black, hair-like feathers; the females differ from males mainly 
in smaller size and the much duller, less iridescent plumage, less pro- 
nounced rufous markings about tail and browner wings; feathers of 
entire back bordered with gray; borders narrower and darker anteriorly, 
paler and broader posteriorly and shading into broad whitish tips on 
rump; the dark gray tips on middle and upper back with a peculiar dark 
greenish gloss in certain lights; feathers on underparts tipped with 
paler, more rusty gray than on back, the tips broadening posteriorly ; 
under tail-coverts tipped with rusty white with a narrow subterminal bar 
of dark rutous. 
General Notes. — All recent ornithologists have considered the 
