DIPPER. 163 



The eggs, from four to six in number, are white, and of 

 a regular oval form. 



Male; length, seven inches and three quarters; bill, bluish 

 black, tinged with brown at the edges; iris, pale brown, with 

 a ring of black in the middle; the margin of the eyelids 

 white; head, crown, neck on the back, and nape, dark brown; 

 chin, throat, and breast on the upper part, pure white, on 

 its lower part chesnut, blending towards the tail with deep 

 grey; on the sides it is deep grey; back, very dark grey, each 

 feather broadly margined with black. 



The wings, which extend one third down the tail, and 

 consist of nineteen quill feathers, have the first, which is 

 very short and narrow, less than half the length of the 

 second, which is of nearly, but not quite, the same length as 

 the third; the fourth a trifle shorter than the latter: the 

 wings extend to the width of one foot and a quarter of an 

 inch. Greater and lesser wing coverts, brownish black, the 

 tips of the first lighter greyish black; primaries, secondaries, 

 and tertiaries, dark brown, tinged with grey. Tail, short, 

 even, and of twelve feathers; upper tail coverts, brownish 

 black; under tail coverts, deep grey, slightly tipped with pale 

 brown. Legs and toes, bluish grey, tinged with brown; claws, 

 dusky. 



The female closely resembles the male; length, seven inches 

 and a quarter. The head, crown, neck, and nape are rather 

 a lighter brown; the breast is also a duller rust-colour. The 

 wings extend to one foot in width. 



In the young the bill is bluish black, tinged with brown 

 at the edges; iris, pale brown, with a ring of black in tne 

 middle, as in the adult; head, crown, neck on the back, and 

 nape, dull greyish brown; chin, white; throat and breast 

 above, pale buff', the feathers tipped with blackish brown; 

 below and on the sides, grey, mixed with cream-colour, with 

 darker lines; back, dull greyish brown, the feathers margined 

 with brownish black. 



Greater and lesser wing coverts, brownish black, the latter 

 tipped with greyish white; primaries, secondaries, and tertiaries, 

 brownish black, the latter tipped with greyish white. Tail, 

 brownish black, tipped with brownish white; under tail coverts, 

 dull grey, mixed with cream-colour. Legs and toes, bluish 

 grey, tinged with brown, paler in front; claws, brown, margined 

 with whitish. After the first moult, which takes place in 



