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i/ASSKI.l.S BOOK OF BIRDS. 



THE SNOW BUNTING. 

 The Snow Bunting {Plectrophanes nivalis), the last member of this family to which we shall call 

 our readers' attention, is distinguished by the remarkable thickness of its plumage, and in several other 

 respects differs from its congeners. The beak resembles that of the Lark Bunting, but the wings are 

 comparatively long, and the tail short ; the spur-like nail is likewise bent, and not quite so large as 

 in that bird. The male is from six to seven inches long, its breadth about twelve inches ; the wing 

 four and a quarter inches, and the tail two and a half inches. Simple as are the colours in the plumage 

 of the young male, its beauty cannot fail to excite admiration. The middle of the back and tips of 

 the quills are black, as is the upper portion of the middle tail-feathers, and a spot upon the carpal 



THE SNOW BUNTING {Plectrophanes nivalis). 



portion of the wing ; the lower parts of the tail-feathers are bordered with brownish grey, gradually 

 shading into black towards their roots, and the whole of the remainder of the plumage is of a pure 

 white. The iris is light brown, the beak blue at its base and black at the tip; the feet are of a 

 brownish black colour. The head of the female is of a blackish shade, that of the young bird grey ; 

 but during the winter the head and neck are brownish grey, marked with a black crescent-shaped 

 spot ; at that season the breast is of a quieter tint, only the wings and tail retaining colours similar to 

 those they exhibit in summer. The plumage of the young birds is a dull reddish brown, the back 

 brown with dark markings ; the wings are striped with two white bands. 



This species is an inhabitant of the same countries as those frequented by the Lark Bunting, but 

 is often found living in much higher latitudes than that bird, even breeding so far north as the islands 

 of Spitzbergen and of Novaja Zemlja. We ourselves have met with it during the summer in 

 Scandinavia, in the northern part of Lapland, and upon the highest of the Dovrefeld Mountains. 



