148 A MANUAL OF THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 



inner webs much paler and becoming white towards the base, some of the inner 

 primaries entirely white at the base ; secondaries white tipped with brown, the 

 latter colour becoming very pale and almost white towards the inner ones, the long 

 innermost secondaries greyish-brown and blackish, with rufous spots on the margins ; 

 lower back uniform dusky-brown ; upper tail-coverts white, the long ones tipped 

 with black ; tail white at the base, the white increasing in extent on the outer 

 feathers which are black at the tips, the black much more extended on the middle 

 feathers, which are slightly edged with white at the tips ; throat and a line from the 

 base of the bill to the eye white ; a small crescent-shaped white line immediately 

 below the eye ; lores, sides of face, and ear-coverts cinnamon-rufous minutely 

 streaked with blackish like the fore-neck and sides of neck, somewhat darker in 

 colour on the latter ; breast similar in colour to the fore-neck but barred with 

 brown, more broadly on the sides of the breast and sides of body ; middle of 

 abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts white barred with brown, some of the latter 

 barred and margined with black ; axillaries and under wing -coverts pure white, 

 the lesser coverts round the margin of the wing dark brown or blackish ; bill- 

 distal half of mandible brown, shading to pale brown at the base of upper mandible 

 and greyish-white at base of lower mandible ; iris brown ; tarsi and feet olive-brown 

 Total length 360 mm. ; culmen 73, wing 190, tail 71, tarsus 65. 



Adult female. Similar to the adult male but larger. 



Adult male in winter-plumage. Head, hind-neck, and sides of neck ash-grey,, 

 with a wash of rufous on the fore-part of the head ; back, scapulars, and lesser 

 marginal wing-coverts dark greyish-brown ; lower back dark brown with pale 

 narrow margins to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts white, the long ones tipped with 

 black ; tail white at base and black at the tip, the latter colour more pronounced 

 on the middle feathers, and the former more extended on the outer ones ; median 

 and greater wing-coverts fringed with white at the tips more broadly on the latter ; 

 bastard-wing, marginal coverts, and primary-coverts blackish ; quills blackish on 

 the outer webs and at the tips, with white shafts for the greater part of their length, 

 inner webs paler brown and becoming entirely white at the base of the inner ones ; 

 secondaries white with brown tips, on some of the feathers the brown is restricted 

 to the inner web ; the long innermost secondaries greyish-brown like the back ; a 

 pale line from the base of the bill over the eye ; a small crescent white line imme- 

 idately below the eye ; chin whitish ; throat, fore-neck, chest, and sides of body 

 ash-grey ; abdomen and under tail-coverts white, the latter margined with black ; 

 axillaries and under wing-coverts pure white, the small marginal coverts round 

 the bend of the wing dark brown edged with white. 



Immature male. Top of head dark brown, the feathers margined with buff ; 

 sides of face and neck all round grey, the latter washed with rufous ; upper back 

 and scapulars dark brown, the feathers everywhere margined with buff ; the marginal 

 upper wing-coverts, bastard-wing, and primary-coverts blackish, some of the latter 

 tipped with whitish ; median wing-coverts dark brown with grey edges, the major 

 coverts broadly tipped with white ; primary-quills are much the same in colour 

 as the summer and winter birds described above ; the long innermost secondaries 

 differ from the winter-plumage in being dark with rufous or sandy-buff margins ; 

 lower back blackish with slightly paler margins to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts 

 and tail also similar, but differ in having dusky tips to the latter, throat whitish ; 

 lower-breast, abdomen and under tail-coverts white washed with grey. 



Nestling. Rusty-yellow marked with black, especially on crown and rump ; 

 a narrow streak through the eye ; wing joints, cheeks, and belly light yellowish. 



Nest. A depression in the grass. 



Eggs. Clutch, four ; surface not glossy ; ground-colour pale olive-green to 

 pale yellowish ; covered all over with small spots of a more or less olive-brown ; some-, 

 on the larger end being olive-grey ; axis 51-55 mm., diameter 35-37. 



