104 FEATHERED GAME 
unable longer to repress nature, ‘‘shied a rock’’ 
at them. Such fearlessness, or heedlessness, or 
innocence, whichever it was, I have never seen 
in a wild bird. 
In the breeding dress this bird is dark slatey 
gray above, darkest on the head; on the back 
having numerous mottlings of brownish yellow, 
many of the feathers finely edged with white. 
The dark color on the head runs back from the 
bill below the eye, leaving a white area below 
margined about by this color and the red-brown 
patch on the neck, which extends from the nape 
in a narrow belt across the upper breast, 
nearly encircling the throat. All other under 
parts white. The upper tail coverts like the 
back though with broader white margins to the 
feathers. The wings, when closed extending 
beyond the tail, are dusky, the tips of the 
greater coverts making a broad white bar across 
them. Quills with shafts whitish, darkening 
toward the tips. Bill small and slender, pro- 
portionately shorter than in Wilson’s and 
black in color, as are likewise the feet and legs. 
The toes have a marginal membrane, scalloped 
on the edges, making lobes on each joint. The 
membrane also extends between the toes out to 
