TURDll)^— TUJi THhUBUEa. 69 



Turdus alicisB bicknelli (Riilgw.) 



BICKHELL'S THSOSH. 



HylooichU alicice bicknelli IIidgw. Pr. U. 8. Nat. Mus. Vol. 4, Apr. 10, 1882, 377.-BiCK- 

 NKLL, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club. July. 188:i. pp. 152-159 (habltsl.-BEEWSTEK. if-. Jan., 18«:i. 

 pp. 12-17 (erltieal). 

 Turdus alicias hicknelU CouES, 2d Key, 1884, 248. 



Hab. Higher mountains of the northeastern United States, from the CatsklUa and 

 Adirondacks, in New York, to the VVhite mountains of New Hampshire; breeding from an 

 elevation of 4.000 feet upward. StragglertoIllinoisiWarsaw. May 24,l&-i4; Chas.K, Worthen). 



SuBsp. CHAK. Similar to Turdus alicim Baird, but much smaller and (usually) with 

 the bill more slenler. Wing, 3.40-3.80 (3.05); tail, 2.(i0-2.9l) (2.75); culmen, .50-.52 (.51); tarsus, 

 1.10-1.25 (1.13); middle toe, .65-.70 (.(JS). 



The seven specimens upon which this new race is based are uniformly very much 

 smaller than true T. aliciw, with slenderer bills, and present also certain slight but rather 

 indefluile peculiarities of coloration. After a very caieful compiirison, however, I am un- 

 able to find any constant color-difTereaces which can be expressed in a diagnosi.s. 8ou_e 

 specimens, notably the two males from Slide Mountain (where Mr. Bicknfll found the 

 present bird breeding in company with T. nstulatus swaiaso -iit and T. aonalaschkce patlasii, 

 and having very distinctive habits and notes as compared with the two species in question), 

 have the upper parts much browner than in alicice, with the wings and tail appreciably 

 more reddish. In fact, the general aspect ot the upper parts approaches more closely 

 that ot T. ustulatus, but the shade is much darker and leas fulvous, while, as in typical 

 alicim. there is no trace of a lighter orbital ring. The bill is much more slender than in 

 most specimens of the larger form, while in several examples it is of a very peculiar 

 shape, being much depressed basally, with the middle portion of the culmen somewhat 

 concave. In tact, the bill in those specimens is much like that of the Nightingale [Lns- 

 cinia Philomela) in shape, but with even a more prominent angle at the base ot the goi.y.-, 

 and still more depressed at the base. The extreme form of the bill, in this respect, as ex- 

 hibited in No. 653 (coll. E. P. B.), suggests very strongly that of a Dipper, or Water Ouzel 

 iCinclus) in miniature. 



This newly discovered race, was first obtained on the Catskill 

 Mountains by Mr. Eugene P. Bickncll, to whose kindness I am in- 

 debted for the privilege of describing it. Mr. Bicknell found it 

 breeding on Slide Mountain, at an elevation of 4,000 feet, and made 

 careful observations on its habits, which were recorded in the "Nut- 

 tall Bulletin" for July, 1882, pp. 152-159. 



A single specimen was obtained at Warsaw, Illinois, on the 24th 

 of May, 1884, by Mr. Chas. K. Worthen, thus considerably extend- 

 ing its known range and adding it to the fauna of this State. 



