PICIB^: WOODPECKERS. 



491 



reduced, (bheppaid del. 



A narrow distinct collar around back of neck, and breast, hoary blnish-sjray, gradually brighten- 

 ing behind on the under parts to intense ruse-red or lake, delicately pencilled in hair lines with 

 the hoary-gray. No white on wings or 

 tail, their under surfaces simply black. 

 Bill blackish; feet gveenish-pluinbeous. 

 Iris brown. Length 10.00-11.00; extent 

 20.00-32.00; wing 6.50-7.00; tail 4.50; 

 bill 1.20. Young: Little lustre at first, 

 but this soon appears, before any I'ed. 

 Little or no trace of the hoary collar cjr 

 crimson mask ; face sooty-black ; throat 

 and breast mixed fuscous and gray, chang- 

 ing on the belly to sooty-black, tinged or 

 slashed here and there with red. The 

 ln)ary and lake-red are established with 

 the feathers that are of the bristly charac- 

 ter above described. A remarkable bird, 

 inhabiting wooded mountainous parts of 

 the AVest, especially the pine-belt, Eoeky 

 Mts. to the Pacific, U. S. and British Col- 

 umbia. It is found with Clarke's crow 

 and Steller's jay ; wild and wary, like our 

 Hylotomus ; keeps high up in the trees, 

 and in flying looks more like a crow than a woodpecker. Its aerial excursions are very con- 

 spicuous. Nest and eggs as usual ; size of eggs 1.12 X 0.95. 



COLAP'TES. (Gr. Kokaivrris, liolaptes, a chisel, hammer.) Gilded Woodpeckers. Flick- 

 ers. BUI about as long as head, slender and weak fortius family, without any lateral ridges or 

 bevelling, pointed without truncation, culmen and commissure curved, gonys nearly straight, 

 only about half as long as culmen, nostrils not concealed by the slight nasal tufts; culmen and 



gfjnys, however, \» ith ridged. 

 Outer posterior toe shorter 

 than the outer anterior ; in- 

 ner posterior very short. 

 Wings long, pointed by 3d 

 to 0th quills; 2d shorter 

 than 7th ; 1st about | the 

 2d Tail lengthened. Sexes 

 generally alike, but distin- 

 guishable by positive marks 

 <iliout head. Plumage highly 

 variegated and very showy. 

 Under parts with numerous 

 circular black spots on a 

 pale ground. A large black 

 pectoral crescent. Rump 

 snowy-white. Back, wing- 

 coverts and innermost quills 

 brown with an olive or lilac shade, and thickly barred with black; quiRs and tail black, ex- 

 cepting as below stated ; red or black cheek patches in $ , wanting in 9 . About a foot 



Fig. 344. — Flicker, nat. size. (Ad iiat. del. E. 0.) 



long; wing about 6.00; taU 4.50. A beautiful , 



:enus, of American species, 3 of N. Am. 



