204 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



white, and ear-coverts tinged greenish, not so pure grey. Females 

 without any black on chin and throat are probably first summer 

 birds. 



Nestling. Down, golden-buff ; fairly long, but very scanty on 

 outer supra-orbital, occipital and crural tracts ; distribution, inner 

 and outer supra-orbital, occipital, humeral, ulnar, spinal, femoral 

 and crural, tuft on uropygium. Mouth inside orange, no spots, 

 externally gape-flanges pale yellow. 



Juvenile. Crown, mantle and scapulars greyish-brown tinged 

 green ; rump, upper tail-coverts and fringes at base of tail-feathers 

 like adult but duller and tinged buffish ; eye-stripe, chin, throat 

 and upper-breast pale buff with a few greyish-black mottlings on 

 sides of throat ; rest of breast and belly very pale yellow ; under 

 tail-coverts brighter yellow ; fringes and tips of all wing-coverts 

 buff ; edgings of inner secondaries pale greyish-green. 



First winter. Male. Like adult male but upper-parts rather 

 more brownish, upper-breast buff and lower-breast very pale 

 yellow and often whitish. Much like adult female but more buff 

 on breast. The juvenile body-feathers, lesser and median wing- 

 coverts, and usually greater wing-coverts, innermost secondaries 

 and central pair of tail-feathers are moulted in July-Sept., but 

 not primary -co verts nor rest of wing- and tail-feathers. Slimmer. 

 Like adult male and moult same. 



First winter. Female. Not to be distinguished with certainty 

 from first winter male, but upper-breast usually paler buff. 

 Summer. Females with chin and throat white or yellowish-white 

 without any black are probably first summer birds, but this cannot 

 be said with certainty. 



Measurements and structure. <$ wing 81-88 mm., tail 96-103, 

 tarsus 20-22, bill from skull 13-14.5 (12 measured). $ wing 80-85, 

 tail 95:103. Primaries : 1st minute and hidden, 2nd to 4th longest 

 (2nd and 4th occasionally 1 mm. shorter than 3rd), 5th 5-6 shorter, 

 6th 12-15 shorter ; 3rd and 4th clearly and 5th less distinctly 

 emarginated outer webs. Secondaries slightly shorter than 10th 

 primary, tips square, longest inner secondary usually as long as 

 or shade longer than longest primary but sometimes shorter than 

 5th primary. Bill fine, rather flat at base. A few short, fine 

 rictal bristles. Hind claw curved and about as long as hind 

 toe. 



Soft parts. Bill greyish-black, paler at base of lower mandible ; 

 legs and feet brownish-flesh ; iris black-brown. 



CHARACTERS AND ALLIED FORMS. M. c. melanope (Caucasus, 

 Siberia to Kamtschatka) has shorter tail (84-90 mm.), M. c. 

 schmitzi (Madeira, Azores) has darker slate-grey upper-parts and 

 ear-coverts and ill-defined eye-stripe. Long tail, more white in 

 outer tail-feathers and grey "mantle distinguish Grey Wagtail at 



