BLACK-BODIED WOODPECKER. 151 



in several points of structure, our present bird has 

 a close affinity; the wings, however, are more 

 rounded, without heing short, so that the secondary 

 quills are scarcely half an inch shorter than the pri- 

 maries. The hinder toe is longer than the anterior, 

 and the hill beyond the nostrils is much compressed. 

 The colouring is very peculiar, the fore part of 

 the head, cheeks, ears, and chin, are of a light 

 hair- brown, having a fulvous tinge; the crown 

 is darker ; on each side of the nape, behind the 

 ears, there is a patch of dark and bright crimson, 

 which colour tips the outer half of the feathers 

 only; the rest of the upper plumage is of the 

 darkest brick red, particularly on the wings, the 

 feathers of which are obscurely marked with lighter 

 bands. The covered parts of all the quills, when 

 the wing is closed, are blackish-brown ; and the 

 paler bands upon them, generally six, are on the 

 outer webs; on the tertials, however, they are 

 equally light on both webs. The tail and the upper 

 covers are blackish, obscurely marked with pale 

 bands similar to those on the wings, but they are 

 almost obliterated on the rump, and entirely so on 

 the back and interscapulars. The whole of the 

 under plumage is of a uniform brownish-black ex- 

 cepting the chin, which, like the ears, is hair- 

 brown. The bill seems to have been yellow, and 

 the legs dark green. 



Total length 8 J inches ; bill, from the gape, I ^ ; 

 wings, 4/o ; tail beyond, 1^ ; ditto from the base, 



