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back, but with a rufous tinge on some of the light 

 parts and the black marks more regular ; upper and 

 under tail-coverts white; breast and belly white, 

 with some black markings towards the tips of the 

 feathers. It would seem from the description of 

 these two birds, as well as from other specimens 

 that I have seen, and from the various descriptions 

 given in books, that the feathers of the body, after 

 their spring change, somewhat resemble, especially 

 in their ground colour, the general colour of the 

 ruff. 



The bird in winter plumage has the head and 

 neck ash-grey, darkest, even inclining to dusky, on 

 the top of the head ; the back, scapulars and wing- 

 coverts ash-grey (a few feathers appear to be assum- 

 ing the spring change, and are marked with black 

 and rusty) ; the tail-coverts are white, except those 

 in the centre, which are barred black and rusty, and 

 one of the outside ones has a black spot (probably a 

 change is taking place in these feathers) ; the tail- 

 feathers are ash-grey, a few of them barred witli 

 black and very pale ash, especially at the tips and 

 on the outer webs (also showing a change) ; chin 

 nearly white ; fore part of the neck and the breast 

 ash-grey ; the rest of the under parts white. I do 

 not know when this bird was shot, but I should 

 think, from the few indications of a change, it must 

 have been at the end of winter or quite the begin- 

 ning of spring. 



2 M 3 



