TUBBID^ —POLIOPTILIN^ : GNAT-CATCHEB8. 



261 



11. 



36. 



POIilOP'TILA. (Gr. jToXids, ^oZios, hoary ; tttIXov, pUlon, Si feather; the primaries being 

 edged with whitish.) Gnat-catcheks. Tarsi scutellate. Toes very short, the lateral only 

 about half as long as the tarsus ), outer a little longer than the inner. First quill spuri- 

 ous, about half as long as the second. Wings rounded, not longer than the graduated tail, the 

 feathers of which widen toward their rounded ends. BUI shorter than head, straight, broad 

 and depressed at base, rapidly narrowing to the very slender terminal portion, distinctly 

 notched and hooked at the end — thus Muscicapine in character. Rictus with well-developed 

 bristles. Nostrils entirely exposed. Coloration without bright tints; bluish-ash, paler or 

 white below ; tail black and white. Delicate little woodland birds, peculiar to America, not 

 over 5 inches long; migratory, insectivorous, very active and sprightly, with sharp squeaking 



notes. . , . ^„ . 



Analysis of Species. 



(f Forehead and line over eye black ; outer tail-feather white . . . . 

 (f Whole crown black ; outer web of outer tail-feather only edged with white 

 (f IJne over eye black ; outer web of outer tail-feather white . ... 



P. ceerul'ea. (Lat. eosrulea, cerulean, blue. Figs. 133, 134, 6.) 



SI. 



38. 



. . . cwrulea 36 



. . . melanura 37 



. plwmbea 38 



BLUE-GRAt Gnat- 

 catcher. ^, adult: Grayish-blue, bluer on the crown, hoary on the rump, the forehead 

 black, continuous with a black superciliary line. Edges of eyelids white, and above these a 

 slight whitish stripe bordering the black exteriorly. Below white, with a faint plumbeous 

 shade on the breast. Wings dark brown, the outer webs, especially of the inner quUls, edged 

 with hoary, and the inner webs of most bor- 

 dered with white. Tail jet-black, the outer 

 feather entirely or mostly white, the next one 

 about half white, the third one tipped with 

 white. Bill and feet b&ck. Length 4.50- 

 5.00; extent 6.35-7.00 ; vring 2.00-2.20; tail 

 about the same. 9 : Like the ^ , but duller 

 and more grayish-blue above ; the head like 

 the back, and vidthout any black. BOl usually 

 in part light-colored. U. S. fi'om Atlantic to 

 Pacific, N. to Maissachusetts ; breeds through- 

 out its range, and winters on the southern 

 border and southward ; abundant in woodland. 

 Nest a model of bird-architecture, compact- 

 waJled and contracted at the brim, elegantly 

 stuccoed with lichens, fixed to slender twigs at a varying height from 10 to 50 or 60 feet; eggs 

 4-5, about 0.60 X 0.45, whitish, fully speckled with reddish and umber-brown and lilac. 

 P. melanu'ra. (Gr. fuXas, melas, black ; oipa, oura, taO.. Fig. 134, a, c.) Black-capped 

 Gnat-catcher. $ : Like P. ccerulea, but whole top of head black. White of tail reduced 

 to a minimum ; outer web of the outer fe,ather only edged with white, instead of wholly white ; 

 tip of the inner web, with tip of the next feather, white for a very slight space ; no white on 

 the third feather. Size of the foregoing ; tarsi rather longer, — about 0.70. $ : No black on 

 the head ; distinguished from 9 ccerulea only by less white on the tail. Texas to South and 

 Lower California. 



P. plum'bea. (Lat. pUtmbeus, plumbeous, lead-colored. Fig. 134, d.) Plumbeous Gnat- 

 catcher. ^, adult : Upper parts like those of P. ccerulea, but duller and more grayish ; no 

 black on forehead ; a short black stripe over eye, and below this a white one. Outer tail- 

 feather with the whole outer web and tip white (like the second feather of P. ccerulea) ; next 

 two feathers tipped with white. Size of P. ccerulea. 9 '• Like the ^ ; the upper parts still 

 duller, and frequently with a decided brownish shade ; no black over eye ; thus only distin- 

 guished from 9 ccerulea by less white on the tail. Valley of the GUa and Colorado. 



Fig, 134. — a, head of Polioptila melanura ; b, of P. 

 ccerulea; c, tail of P. melanura ; d, ot P. plumbea ; all 

 nat. size. 



