SEXUAL, L\ 7 DI\ 7 1DUAL, AND GEOGRAPHICAL VARIATION IN LEU- 

 COSTICTE TEI'HROCOTIS. 



BY J. A. ALLEN. 



Some months since, my attention was called by Capt. Charles Beudire, 

 U. S. A., to the fact of the existence of a well-marked difference in 

 color between the sexes of two varieties of Leucosticte tepkrocotis, 

 namely, littoralis and tephrocotis. Under date of January 28, 1876, 

 Captain Beudire wrote me, " There is a good deal of difference between 

 the sexes of both varieties ; so much that they can in almost every case 

 be separated before dissection. The brown on the breasts of the females 

 is much duller than that of the males." This statement, he added, was 

 based on a series of seventy specimens of variety littoralis and on a 

 series of about a dozen specimens of variety tephrocotis. Under date 

 of April 18, Captain Bendire wrote me further on the subject, he in the 

 mean time having sent me two lots of specimens, about two dozen 

 examples in all, which seemed to fully confirm his statements. In the 

 later account, in speaking of a series of eighty-five specimens of variety 

 littoralis, of which the sex of each had been determined by careful dis- 

 section, he says there was not a single female in the whole lot that was 

 as bright as the palest-tinted males. He says further, " I have exam- 

 ined over two hundred skins of variety littoralis and about thirty of va- 

 riety tephrocotis. I find a constant difference, and have never yet obtained 

 a female which I could not readily distinguish from a male before skin- 

 ning; but, nevertheless, every*specimen was dissected, and the sex not 

 guessed at." With this letter was forwarded to me by Captain Bendire a 

 series of thirteen skins of variety littoralis and three of variety tephrocotis, 

 which were selected impartially by himself and Lieut. George R. Bacon, 

 to show the extreme ranges of variation in color in the two sexes of each 

 variety. The series of variety littoralis was taken from a lot of eighty-two 

 skins, and is stated to embrace two of the brightest females and several 

 of the dullest males of the whole lot. Separating the series by color, 

 without reference to the labels, I found, on looking at the labels, that I 

 Jhad placed all the females in one series and all the males in the other. 

 In the case of only one specimen was there any reason for hesitancy in 

 making the separation ; but this even, 1 found on reference to the label, 

 I had placed in its proper series. The general aspect of the two series 

 I found was quite different, noticeably so at a considerable distance, 

 through the much paler tints of the females. ." Several of the skins", 

 adds Captain Bendire, " are poorly prepared ; but they will answer 

 every purpose for description, and I repeat my statement that they rep- 

 resent the brightest females and dullest males of the ichole lot." Lieutenant 

 Bacon, who assisted in making the selection, says (writing at the same 

 time) that the series sent to me was made up with great care, so as to 

 show the dullest and brightest of each sex. "I have prepared", Lieu- 

 tenant Bacon adds, " some eighty skins of variety littoralis, and have ibund 

 no difficulty in distinguishing the sexes before skinning. I have not 



