176 
NESTS AND EGGS OF 
reddish-brown or rufous color, which fades into a rusty-white hue below. 
With the exception of a dusky streak which starts from the posterior part 
of the eye and crosses the auricular regions obliquely downward, and a 
whitish bill, they have nothing to diversify the monotony of their coloring. 
But when they have attained the age of four or five months, they show 
their heredity so plainly that their identity cannot be disputed or mistaken. 
In the adult stage the tail is reddish-brown or gray above, with 
narrow bars of black. Terminally, it is crossed by a slender band of pale 
ash, which is preceded by a broader one of black, and this by another of 
an ashy color. The upper parts are ochraceous-brown, and finely mottled 
with grayish markings. The lower parts are chiefly white, with broad 
transverse bars of light brown, which are mostly hidden from view upon 
the abdomen. Upon the shoulders the shafts of the feathers have pale 
streaks, which exist in those of the wing-coverts. The upper tail-coverts 
and the wings are marked with pale grayish cordate spots, while the lower 
tail-coverts are pale ochraceous, each being provided with a terminal delta- 
shaped spot of white, which is bordered with dusky. The neck-tufts are 
brownish-black. The male measures eighteen inches in length, and has a 
breadth of wings of seven and two-tenths inches. The tail is about seven 
inches long. The female is smaller than the latter, with similar colors, 
but has less prominent tufts upon the sides of the neck. 
The eggs of this species are usually of a uniform dark cream color, 
but sometimes show a nearly pure-white ground. In most specimens there 
are no markings at all, but when they do occur, are either quite numerous 
and conspicuous, or few in number, and obscure. They are usually ovoidal, 
but forms are occasionally met with which are nearly spherical. Their 
average dimensions, as obtained from specimens from the most diverse 
localities, are about 1.64 to 1.18 inches. As far as we have been able to 
determine the species has never been known to produce more than a 
single brood. Usually nesting is performed on the ground, as shown in the 
cut, but instances are recorded by Samuels where the female has occupied 
a deserted Crow’s nest, or the shelter of some tall broken trunk of a tree. 
