CUCKOO. 113 



extend to half the length of the tail; greater and lesser wing 

 coverts, as the back, but darker; primaries, dusky, barred on 

 the inner webs with oval white spots from the base to within 

 an inch and a half of their tips; the first feather is very 

 short; secondaries and tertiaries, dusky; larger and lesser 

 under wing coverts, white barred with dusky. The tail, 

 rather long, of ten feathers of unequal length; the two middle 

 ones are black, dashed with ash-colour on the outer edges 

 of the webs, and sometimes a gloss of green, and tipped with 

 white; the others are black, marked with white spots on each 

 side of the shafts; in some the side feathers have white spots 

 only on their inner webs, but all are tipped with white; the 

 outer feather is very short; upper tail coverts, as the back, 

 but paler; under tail coverts, white, with a tinge of yellowish 

 rust-colour, and crossed with transverse black bars. Legs, 

 yellow; toes, yellow, the outer hind toe is reversible; claws, 

 whitish. 



The female is less in size; neck in front, tawny brown; 

 breast, tawny brown, barred with dusky; greater and lesser 

 wing coverts, marked with light rust'Coloured spots; the pri- 

 maries have the spots inclining to reddish brown on their 

 edges; in the tail the white spots incline to reddish brown 

 on their edges, It is said that in mature age the female 

 assumes the plumage of the male. 



, It would appear that the young bird does not entirely lose 

 its first feathers until the second year's moult, but that after 

 the first moult, and even this it would almost seem does not 

 take place before these birds leave us in the autumn; the 

 male, both male and female having been alike till then, assumes 

 a deep olive ash-colour, the red spots wearing off, while in 

 the female they continue longer. I think that the moult is 

 continuous and gradual, more so than in most other birds, 

 and, as a matter of course in late-hatched individuals, is thus 

 carried over longer into the ensuing year. Iris, greyish or 

 reddish brown; forehead, white; the head on the back has a 

 white patch; crown, dusky black; neck on the sides tinged 

 with ruibus; on the back and the nape a mixture of dusky 

 black and clear ferruginous; chin, throat, and breast, dull 

 yellowish white, the latter barred across with distinct bars of 

 dusky black; each feather has in general two or three bars; 

 back, dusky black and ferruginous, faintly barred with white, 

 Primaries, more or less barred on the inner webs, the oval 

 spots reddish brown ; the side tail feathers more or less barred 



VOL. II. I 



