MERLIX. 89 



to about two feet four inches, have the primaries black, or 

 blackish or bluish brown, tinged with grey the outer margin 

 of the first spotted with white, the inner webs spotted trans- 

 versely with white; underneath they are of a paler colour, 

 barred with white: the third feather is the longest, but the 

 second is nearly as long; the fourth a little longer than the 

 first; the fifth an inch shorter; secondaries, deep greyish blue, 

 and curved inwards the shafts black; tertiaries also greyish 

 blue. Greater and lesser wing coverts, bluish grey the shafts 

 of the feathers black; greater and lesser under wing coverts, 

 yellowish white, with dusky spots and streaks. The tail bluish 

 grey; it generally has, but is sometimes without, from even 

 only one, but commonly from three or five to six, arid, ac- 

 cording to Pennant, eight, and even thirteen dark bands; 

 viz: in the proportion of six on the middle feathers, to eight 

 (probably age is the cause of the gradual difference in their 

 number,) on the side ones, but which merge apparently into 

 the smaller-named number the last being the largest and 

 darkest. The tail is five inches long ; the feathers are twelve 

 in number, being of nearly equal length, broad, and rounded: 

 the tip is white, underneath it is barred with darker and 

 lighter shades of grey, with the broad band and white tip. 

 Legs, yellow, feathered in front more than one third down, 

 and reticulated. The feathers are rufous, with dusky streaks; 

 toes, yellow; the first the shortest; the third the longest; the 

 fourth a little longer than the second: the front ones are 

 connected at the base by a short membrane; claws, black. 



The female differs considerably from the male; upper parts 

 dark bluish grey, tinged with brown the feathers streaked with 

 black; under parts yellowish white, with large brown spots. 

 Weight, about nine ounces; length, about twelve inches and 

 a half, occasionally as much as thirteen and a half or fourteen 

 inches; bill, light blue, tipped with black. From the angle 

 of the mouth extends a band of brown, formed by the markings 

 on the middle of the feathers; cere, yellow; iris, as in the 

 male ; forehead, yellowish white ; a yellowish line edged on the 

 under side with blackish brown, extends over the eye; head, 

 dark rufous brown, the feathers edged at the tip with red; 

 crown, reddish brown, with dusky black streaks down the 

 shafts of the feathers ; neck, behind yellowish white, the feathers 

 tipped with brown: there is a ring round it of yellowish white, 

 streaked and spotted with dusky brown. The nape, inclining 

 to rufous, and as the crown; chin and throat, white or yel- 



