342 BIRDS OF BRITISH GUIANA, 



220. Steatornis caripensis. 



Oil-Bird. 



Steatornis cariepenis Hunib. Eecueil Obs. Zool. Anat. Comp. ii. p. 141, 

 1817 (Caripe, Venezuela) ; Brown, Canoe and Camp Life, p. 386, 

 1876 (Upper ]MaKiruni) ; Salvin, Ibis, 1885, p. 439 (Roraima) ; 

 Hartert, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xvi. p. 653, 1892 ; Brabourne & Chubb, 

 B. S. Amer. i. p. 94, no. 893, 1912. 



" Salies " or " Guacliaro birds " (Broivn). 



Achdt. General colour above rufous brown with blackish 

 mottlinpjs and cross-bars, which are generally distributed ; wings 

 somewhat brighter than the back ; the feathers on the head, hind- 

 nock, and lesser upper wing-coverts have white arrow-head spots, 

 those on the lateral upper wing-coverts take the form of bars more 

 or less ; the feathers round the bend of the wing for the most part 

 white mottled or barred with pale brown ; bastard-wing and 

 primary-coverts somewhat darher than the back ; the primary- 

 quills and some of the outer secondary-quills arc spotted with 

 white on the outer wel)S, like the back, and the inner webs in- 

 completely barred or spotted with white ; the innermost secondaries 

 like the back, the tips of the primaries show golden reflections in 

 some lights ; tail somewhat brighter and more rufous than the 

 back, narrowly edged with white at the tip, and spotted with 

 white on the outer web of the lateral feathers, there being also an 

 indication of white marks on one of the middle feathers ; crown 

 of head more rufous than the back ; the feathers surrounding the 

 eye, and those at the base of the bill bristly in texture and 

 rufous in colour ; sides of face and throat vinous, the feathers 

 bii':red or spotted with white ; remainder of the under surface ashy 

 vinous with white arrow-head spots to the feathers, those on the 

 under tail-coverts and under wing-coverts assuming the form 

 of bars. 



Total length 470 mm., culmen 35, wing 317, tail 207, 

 tarsus 19. 



This species is not represented in the McC'onnell collection, and 

 the description is taken from a specimen in the British Museum 

 collected by Whitely at Mount Twekquay^ Kamarang River, on 

 November 17th, 1885. 



