BIRDS OF NORTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA. 395 



Range. — Northern portions of Palaearotic Region and entire Nearctic 

 Region. (About twelve species.) 



In structural characters Penthestes is quite similar to Bxolaphus 

 except that the species are all of more slender build, the bill and feet 

 especially, and there is no trace of crest, the feathers of the pileum, 

 although rather long, being of uniform length and blended. In 

 coloration the species of this group much more nearly resemble those 

 of Ba&olophas than any of the peculiarly Palaearctic groups {PariJ,s, 

 Oyanistes, etc.), which are much more brightly colored, with the pat- 

 tern more varied. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES AND SUBSPECIES OF PENTHESTES. 



a. Pileum black. 



h. No white superciliary streak. 

 c. Sides and flanks more or less buffy, or else white, very different in color from 

 back. 

 d. Black of throat with posterior edge much broken by white tips to feathers; 

 greater wing-coverts and secondaries conspicuously edged with white; 

 tail relatively longer (difference between length of tail and length of wing 

 decidedly less than length of culmen) . {Penthestes atrlcwpillus.) 

 e. Larger and paler; wing of male averaging 66 or more, of female more than 

 62; tail of male averaging more than 61, of female more than 58. 

 /. Smaller and darker, with tail relatively shorter; male averaging wing 

 66, tail 61.5, female wing 63.3, tail 59.5. (Eastern North America, 

 chiefly north of 40°; area between Cascade and Rocky mountains, in 

 Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. ) 



Penthestes atricapilltis atricapillus (p. 397) 



ff. Larger and paler with tail relatively longer; male averaging wing 66.3 



or more, tail 65 or more, female wing 64.5 or more, tail 63.7 or more. 



g. Gray of back, etc., slightly darker and more buffy, the sides and 



flanks more strongly buffy; male averaging wing 69.7, tail 67.7, 



female wing 66.5, tail 64.4. (Rocky Mountain and Great Plains 



districts, from Kansas and New Mexico to Cook Inlet, Alaska. ) 



Penthestes atricapillns septentrionalis (p. 399) 



gg. Gray of back, etc., slightly paler and purer; the sides and flanks 



paler buffy, sometimes entirely white. (Alaska, west and north 



of Cook Inlet. ) Penthestes atricapillus turner! (p. 402) 



ee. Smaller and much darker; male averaging wing 61.9, tail 56.5, female 



wing 59.5, tail 55. (Pacific coast district, Oregon to British Columbia. ) 



Penthestes atricapillus occidentalis (p. 402) 



dd. Black of throat with posterior edge more "solid," very abruptly defined 



against white of chest; greater wing-coverts and tertials edged with Jight 



gray; tail relatively shorter (difference between length of tail and length 



of wing much greater than length of culmen) . {Penthestes carolinensis.) 



e. Larger, the back, etc., clearer gray; male wing more than 54, averaging 



61.8 in male, 61.2 in female; tail more than 46, averaging 51.9 in male, 



53.3 in female. 



/. Gray of upper parts slightly darker. (Eastern United States, south of 



40°, except eastern Florida, Texas, and southern Indian Territory. ) 



Penthestes carolinensis carolinensis (p. 403) 



ff. Gray of upper parts slightly paler. (Eastern and central Texas and 



southern Indian Territory) Penthestes carolinensis agilis (p. 406) 



