132 Bendire, Tympanuchus americanus attwateri. I April 



light colored spots on wing-coverts, and much more scantily feathered 

 tarsus, the latter never feathered down to base of toes, even in front; a 

 broad posterior strip of bare skin being always exposed, even in winter, 

 while in summer much the greater part of the tarsus is naked. 



Dovjny Toutig. — Head, neck and back, tawny rufous; top of head, back 

 and rump, marked with a greater or less number of brownish black spots; 

 sides and lower parts rich golden buff. The young chicks even show the 

 great difference in the feathering of the tarsi, only the front half being 

 covered, while in T. americanus of the same age only a narrow strip of 

 the posterior side is unfeathered. In the latter the feathering in front 

 comes almost if not quite to the base of the toes, while in the former, there 

 is a naked space of more than .10 of an inch. 



The subjoined measurements have been kindly taken for me by Mr. R. 

 Ridgway of the Smithsonian Institution. 



Habitat. — Coast districts of southwestern Louisiana and 

 southern Texas. 



While engaged in working out the geographical ranges of T. 

 americanus and T. pallidicinctus I received information from 

 Army friends and others stating that Prairie Hens were found along 

 the Gulf coast of Texas, and in order to determine positively which 

 species occurred there, I wrote to a number of parties asking them 

 to procure specimens for me. All the material received was 

 kindly procured by Mr. H. P. Attwater of Rockport, Aransas 

 Co., Texas, and generously donated by him to the U. S. National 

 Museum Collection, and as a slight recognition for his trouble in 

 obtaining these specimens, which proved to be a well marked 

 race, I have named this new subspecies in his honor. The U. S. 

 National Museum already contained three skins which are clearly 

 referable to this subspecies, but the material was not sufficient 

 and in too poor condition to base a new race on. 



Attwater' s Prairie Hen is considerably smaller than its northern 

 relative, full grown birds averaging only from 25 to 31 ounces. 

 They frequent the low prairie lands near the coast and do not 

 appear to be very common anywhere. They begin nesting 

 about the middle of March, and young chicks, probably three or 

 four days old, were obtained by Mr. Attwater, on April 25, 1S93, 

 near the line between Aransas and Refugio Counties, Texas. 

 The crops of three of the specimens sent by Mr. Attwater con- 

 tained remains of insects and the tops and seeds of different 

 species of leguminous plants. 



