THE RUFFED OltOUSE. 107 



other liquid; the feet, bill, and end of breast-bone are 

 softer than those of maturity, and all the feathers, espe- 

 cially the large ones, are soft and easUy bent. Unfortu- 

 nately, we have an immature bird which must be dissected; 

 still, as it is so nearly grown, we will measure and weigh 

 it, though the results may be confusing. The weight is 

 18f ounces^scarcely decisive, for the adult female weighs 

 from 18 to 22, and the male from 21 to 25, or possibly 

 more. 



We lind the tail measures, from the point of the 

 '•pope's nose" to end of central feathers, 5 inches. AYe 

 probably have a hen, as the adult measures from 4J to 5^, 

 the male from 6 to 7. 



The adult female measures, in extreme length, from 

 15^ to 17f inches, the male from 17| to 20. Our specimen 

 shows, under the tape-line, 16J. If mature, this would 

 be decisive, but now it is a triiie confusing. 



The final measurement, the stretch of wings, is found 

 to be 21^ inches, which proves nothing, though from the 

 fact that we believed we had a nearly grown bird, the 

 measurements indicate a hen. 



We open the body, and there, resting upon the kid- 

 neys, is a small, whitish, granular object — the ovary of 

 . the female. 



Tliere is one more test, useful to breeders. Just over 

 the eye of the male, and concealed by short feathers, will 

 be found an orange-tinted spot, bright in the spring and 

 faint or lacking at other seasons. 



The color of plumage is not a certain test, though I 

 believe the females, and all young, are a shade the darker. 



Quite a difference of opinion exists as to the signifi- 

 cance of the break in the black terminal tail-band of 

 some specimens. My unsatisfactory study of this pecul- 

 iarity scarcely warrants an assertion, although I will 

 hazard the opinion that it is not found in birds three or 



