74 FKINGILLIIKE. 



coverts pure white, the lowest tier of those which cover the 

 secondaries deep black at the base, broadly tipped with white 

 and often tinged with yellow, thus forming two conspicuous 

 white bars across each wing ; the rest of the wing-coverts 

 and the quills dusky black, the latter narrowly edged with 

 greyish- white, the inner primaries having also a white patch 

 at the base of the outer web ; the tertials broadly margined 

 with yellowish- white ; the two middle tail-feathers greyish- 

 black, the next three pairs dull black ; the next pair dull 

 black, with a narrow white outer margin and a triangular 

 white patch on the inner web ; the outer pair black only at 

 the base along the shaft and on both sides of it near the tip, 

 the rest being white ; the cheeks, ear-coverts, chin, throat, 

 breast and flanks, a rich reddish-brown, becoming paler on 

 the belly and lower tail-coverts : legs, toes and claws, brown. 



In winter the bill is of a brownish flesh-colour : the 

 plumage of the upper parts, but especially of the head, is 

 obscured by the long brown margins of the feathers. The 

 edging of the tertials is ochreous, and the white of the wings 

 is often tinged with yellow, while the colouring of the breast 

 is much less bright. 



The whole length is six inches ; that of the wing, three 

 inches and three-eighths ; the third and fourth primaries 

 are equal and the longest in the wing, but the fifth is nearly 

 equal to them and longer than the second, which again is 

 longer than the sixth : the first being, as already stated 

 among the generic characters, almost obsolete. 



The female has the head and back hair-brown, darkest on 

 the sides, with a very perceptible pale patch on the nape ; 

 the rump and tail-coverts are much more dingy than in the 

 male ; the lower parts are of a dull fawn colour, and the 

 black of the quills is less pure, but the two white bars on 

 the wings are rather less conspicuous. 



The young in their nestling plumage much resemble the 

 adult female, but their colours are less vivid and more 

 blended. 



Both this species and the next have some long, fine hairs 

 growing among the feathers at the back of the head. 



