446 



EEVIEW or AMERICAN BIKIIS. 



[part I. 



1857, 213.— ScLATEK, p. Z. S. 1864, 173 (City of Mexico).— Co%no 



excubitoroides, Baied, Birds N. Am. 1858, 327. 

 f Lanius mexicanus, Bkehm. Cab. Jour. II, 1854, 145. — Solater, Catal. 



1861, 46 (Mexico). 

 Lanius ludovicianus, Max. Cab. Jour. 1858, 191 (Upper Missouri). 



Bab. Western province of North America, as far north as California ; Middle 

 North America, to the Saskatchewan, and east to Wisconsin, Michigan and 

 Illinois ; south to Orizaba and Oaxaca, and City of Mexico ; Cape St. Lucas. 



(No. 38,423 ? % ; Laramie Peak.) Graduation of tail rather less than one- 

 fourth of its total length. Fourth quill longest ; 3d scarcely shorter ; then 

 the 5 th ; 2d longer than 6th ; exposed portion of 1st about half that of longest. 

 Above pure light bluish-ash ; beneath, including axillars, pure unbroken 

 white. A very narrow frontal line with all the nasal feathers, and continu- 

 ous with a broad stripe 

 through and behind eye, 

 involving entire ear cov- 

 erts, with the wings and 

 tail, bill and feet, deep 

 black (the lesser wing 

 coverts, however, like the 

 back) ; the cheek stripe 

 extending narrowly 

 above the eye and 

 broadly below it, and 

 not varied with white 

 on the lower eyelid. 

 The forehead and side 

 of vertex in contact with 

 the black stripe, as 

 far as posterior border 

 of eye, hoary, almost 

 pure white, shading oflF quite abruptly into the ash of head ; the scapular 

 feathers, where they overlap the wings, as well as upper tail coverts, similarly 

 white, and shading into the adjacent ash; the coverts, however, slightly 

 glossed with ashy, especially above. The tips of the secondary qiiiUs, and 

 a, conspicuous patch across the base of the primaries (visible externally in 

 the closed wing) are white ; this involves both webs of the primaries (except 

 perhaps the 1st), and extends about as far as the tip of the 1st primary, 

 occupying more and more space from the outer to the middle quills. The 

 secondaries are edged internally, as well as tipped with white ; this color 

 usually mixed with grayish, occupying rather the larger portion of the web 

 towards the base, but not abruptly defined as in the primaries, and only 

 reaching the shaft at the extreme base, and that obliquely. Outer two tail 

 feathers entirely white, except a wash of dusky along the shaft (greatest in 

 extent on the 2d feather) ; the 3d feather is white with rather more than the 

 central third black ; the fourth feather is black, with the extreme base and 



Collyrio excubitoroides, Baird. (Laramie Peak.) 

 (AH the figures three -fourths natural size.) 



