268 Mearns on the American Sparro-v Iliti.ck:>. [J"lv 



General characters. — Larger than sparverius, with relatively Ioniser 

 tail ; rufous crown patch absent, or reduced to a mere trace. Male with 

 underparts whiter, lacking the ochiaceous on the chest, with the biack 

 spots on the sides elliptical, and the black subterminal zone of tail only 

 about half as broad as in sfarverius. Female with upper surfoce more 

 vinaceous rufous, and the tail less rufescent, with the subterminal bar 

 scarcely broader than the rest. 



Adult male. — Closely resembling 5/«;'?;e;-/«.<; ; rufous of upper surface 

 much the same; crown pale plumbeous, or, occasionally, with a trace ot 

 rufous on the vertex, the feathers with fine black shaft streaks; transverse 

 bars of back and scapulars soinetimes blurred and shaded with plumbeous; 

 black spots of wing-coverts large, and often cordate; tail, with subtermi- 

 nal bar much reduced, the tip usually white, or cinereous on the middle 

 pair of feathers, one to several outer feathers more or less variegated. 

 Under surface as in sparverius, but lacking the darker cinnamon ochra- 

 ceous on the pectoral region; spots on sides, elliptical. 



Adult female. — Above, similar to sparverins^ but with little or no ru- 

 fous on crown, and less heavily barred, especially on the tail, where the 

 bars are narrower and frequently interrupted near the shaft. The tail is 

 decidedly less rufescent, often exhibiting the grayish shade seen in 

 the rufous of the tail in immature specimens of Buteo borcalis. Under- 

 parts similar, but with the markings, in some, much deeper brown. 



Measurements. — Average of 5 adult males from Brazil, Paraguaj'. and 

 Argentine Republic: wing. 193.0; tail, 144. o; culmen (chord) 12.0; width 

 of bill at base, 10.5; tarsus, 36.0; middle toe, 23.5. Average of 5 adult 

 females from same general region: wing, 205.0; tail, 148.0; culmen 

 (chord), 12.5 ; width of bill at base, 11. o; tarsus, 3S.0; middle toe, 24.0 

 mm. 



Falco sparverius cinnamominus (Swainson). 



CHILEAN SPARROW HAWK. 



Habitat. — Chile and western Brazil, where intergrading with australis 

 (and with (cquatorialis in Peru.'). 



General characters. — Size about the same as australis, but with the 

 crown darker, slaty plumbeous, with broader blackish shaft streaks and 

 little or no rufous in the centre. Tail rufous throughout, the outer 

 feathers unvariegated, and with the subterniiiK>l black bar. in males, no 

 broader than the rufous tip. 



Adult female. — (No. 48,819, Stnithsonian collection, vicinity of San- 

 tiago, Chile, January, 1863) Differs from rt^.'Ji' /-«//>• in having the crown 

 of a duller slaty color, and the transverse bars of tail reduced to incom- 

 plete rows of spots, leaving the outer tail-feathers plain. The coloring of 

 the back and underparts is almost identical; but the tail is lighter vina- 

 ceous cinnamon rufous, palmg to light buff on the outer feathers. The 



