42 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



Si'. CriAH. Expo.sp<l iiortion of tlie bill alioiit as long as thn head; considerably 

 decurvod. Above unifonii giayisli-browii, or light a.sh ; beiieatii dull white; the anal 

 region and under tail-coverts tinged with brownish-yellow. The under ]iarts generally, 

 except the cliin, throat, middle of the belly, and under coverts, with rounded sid)-triangiilar, 

 quite well-detine<l spots, much like the back. These are (piite conlluent on the breast. 

 Two narrow bauds on the wing-coverts, and the edges of primaries and alula?, arc white. 

 The tail-feathers, except the middle, are conspicuously tipped with white. Length of 

 female, 10 inches; wing, 4.0i) ; tail, 4.55 ; tarsus, 1.21). 



Hah. Adjacent regions of I'nited States and Alexico, southward. Cordova, Orizaba, 

 Mirador; Mazallan, Cohma, Oa.xaca. 



Specimens from the liio (ivaiide across to Mazatlan represent one species ; 

 but those i'roin the hitter locality are soniewliat darker in colors, tliongh this 

 may be owing, in part, to the fact tli.it they are winter birds. Considerable 

 differences in ])roportions may often be noticed between individuals, but 

 nothing strikingly characteristic of any particular region. 



The specimens of the ^lazatlan series (.')7,32G^, 51,523, and 51,525 (J) 

 have tails considerably longt-r than any of those from tlie I{io (irande, the 

 excess iimounting in the longest to nearly an inch ; but one from the same 

 locality has it s/iorfer thiin any of the Texas specimens. 



In its perfect plumage, this s])ecies has both rows of coverts distinctly 

 tipped with white ; l)ut in the faded condition of midsummer, the bands 

 thus ])roduced are hardly discernible, and the spots below become very 

 obsolete. 



H.viUTS. Tii's interesting species appears to be common in "Western Texas, 

 the valley of the l!io (irande, and Western Mexico. It was met with in 

 these regions on the several railroad siu'veys, and is described hy Dr. Heer- 

 mann tis pos.sessing musical powers surpasse I by few other birds. When 

 alarmed it immediately hides itself in a tliick covert of underbrush, whence 

 it is almost impossible to dislodge it. Its food consists of fruit and berries 

 Avhen in their season, of insects iind their Itirva', and of worms. The c it 

 collects botii among tlie trees and from the grouml, on the latter of which it 

 s]ieiids mncli of its time. ^fr. J. 11. Clark stales tliat the nest of this bird 

 is very similar to tliat of the ^b)cking-!>ird, Init is finer and nnich more com- 

 pact. He iulds that it is oi'tener ibund among the Opuntia than elsewhere. 

 It is a (piict bir<l, ratiier shy, and keeps closely within the clumps of the 

 cjiapaiia]. For a bird of its si/e it makes an uiHisual noises in flying. At 

 Iiinggold liuiracks 'Sir. Clark's tent was jiitched under a conio-tree in MJiich 

 there was a nest of tlie.se liirds. They were at first .shy and seemed quite 

 disposed to al)andon their nest, l)ut, however, soon lu-came accustomed to 

 their new neiglibnr, and went nn with their parental duties. The position 

 id' their nest had ''(".ii very Judiciously selected, for it was during the .season 

 of tlie lilack li'iiit of the coino, which is somewhat in tiie sjiape and size of 

 a lliiiiibli', with a plcasniil milky ])nlp. These constituted their jirincipal 

 food. Tlic eggs in tins nesl; were live in iminlier. Lieutenant Coiicli met 

 witii it from Ih'ownsville to I>iirango, wiiere it laid already paired as early as 



