346 NOTES ON THE 
but nevertheless itis better than I could do myself, and so I 
thankfully accept and appreciate it. I will do the former the 
justice to say, however, that I regard him as entitled to the 
palm in the description of the songs of many other species. 
SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. 
Sides of head, sides and back of the neck, ash; crown tinged 
with yellowish green, and faintly streaked with dusky. A su- 
perciliary, and short maxillary line, middle of breast, axilla- 
ries, and edge of the wing, yellow. Chin, loral region, spots 
on the sides of the throat, belly and under tail coverts, white. 
A patch on the throat diminishing to the breast, and a spot on 
the upper part of the belly, black. Wing coverts chestnut; 
inter-scapular region streaked with black; rest of back immac- 
ulate. 
Length, 6.70; wing, 3.50. 
Habitat, eastern United States to the Rocky Mountains. 
CALAMOSPIZA MELANOCORYS STEJNEGER. (605. ) 
LARK BUNTING. | | 
This quite remarkable species, which in widely different re- 
spects seems to resemble so many others, has long been known 
to frequent portions of the State along the Red river, but has 
only of late years been often met with in limited numbers in 
the middle and southern counties. Like the Bobolink changing 
its striking dress of spring and early summer, when the breed- 
ing season is over, for the somber, plain plumage of the female, 
it may easily escape identification afterwards in its autumnal 
migrations. A male fell into my hands in May, 1877, taken in 
the immediate vicinity, since which it has come under my no- 
tice frequently in its strongly marked nuptial dress, but from 
more southern localities generally. 
Without positive proof I still believe that it is of much more 
frequent occurrence in the interior and eastern sections of the 
State than I am justified in now recording it. I have enough 
reliable reports from such sections to show that it is not very 
infrequently seen in those localities during the breeding season, 
but no nests have yet been obtained. Dr. Hvoslef reports it 
from Fillmore county as late as the 19th of June; also the 12th 
of May; and Mr. P. Lewis, in several places between the last 
named and Redwood, in all of which it is reasonable to suppose 
it might be breeding, as the times of its observation included 
the earlier part of July. ‘ 
