THE ALPINE ACCENTOR. 485 



Key to species of genus PRUNELLA. 



First primary longer than or as long as primary-coverts, 

 wings over 90 mm., tail-feathers with buff spots at 

 tip P. collaris,^. 485 



First primary much shorter than primary-coverts, 

 wings under 80 mm., tail-feathers without buff spots 

 at tip . .P. modularis, p. 488 



PRUNELLA COLLARIS 



198. Prunella collaris collaris (Scop.) THE ALPINE 

 ACCENTOR. 



STTTRNTJS COLLARIS Scopoli, Annus i, Historico-Natur., p. 131 (1769 



Carinthia). 



Accentor alpinus, Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B., i, p. 501 (also MacGillivray, 



Hewitson, etc.). 



Accentor collaris (Scopoli), Yarrell, i, p. 296 ; Saunders, p. 95. 



DESCRIPTION. Adult male and 

 female. Winter. Fore-head, 

 crown and nape ashy grey- 

 brown faintly streaked dark 

 brown ; mantle dark brown, 

 feathers edged greyish-brown ; 

 scapulars same, but feathers 

 edged rufous -brown ; back and 

 rump much as crown but not 

 so ashy; upper tail -co verts \&P^ ' 



brown tinged varying amount of 

 rufous-brown, with dark 



brOWTl The Alpine Accentor (Prunella c. collaris). 



shaft -streaks varying in width 



and whitish tips usually with a dark brown penultimate band 

 (whiteness of tips and markings of upper tail-coverts are variable) ; 

 lores and below eyes brown spotted whitish ; ear-coverts brown 

 not so greyish-brown as sides of neck ; chin and throat greyish- 

 white, feathers tipped and with a bar of black-brown giving throat 

 a spotted appearance ; upper-breast grey-brown, feathers at sides 

 tinged rufous and some feathers often with a very faint dark brown 

 penultimate bar ; sides of lower-breast and belly and flanks chestnut, 

 feathers edged white, narrowly on sides of breast, broadly on flanks, 

 lower feathers of which become rufous black-brown in their centres ; 

 centre of lower-breast and belly grey-brown, feathers tipped buffish- 

 white and with faint dark brown penultimate bands ; under tail- 

 coverts rufous black-brown broadly edged white ; under wing- 

 coverts and axillaries brownish-grey often tinged rusty-pink, 

 feathers tipped whitish and with narrow subterminal dark bands ; 

 tail-feathers black-brown, narrowly edged grey-brown, tips of 

 outer webs with small buff edging, tips of inner webs of central 



