84 T'ALCONID^. 



coverts pale yellowisli brown, tTie feathers tipped darker ; the lower 

 tail-coverts dingy white, broadly tipped with brown, v?hich in the longer 

 ones is a dark hair-brown ; in the shorter a dull yellowish brown ; 

 wing- lining a sort of umber bi-owu, the bases of all the feathers paler, 

 same of them fawn eoloared and sonae white. 



Fern ale. ^The legs, feet, cere and gape a sort of brownish yellow; 

 the upper mandible and claws blackish horny.; the tip of the lower 

 mandible yellowish horny ; the whole of the head, Bape, sides of the 

 neck, cheeks, chin and throat pale yellowish brown ; the feathers 

 white, tipped with yellowish brown, which, owing to the feathers being 

 closely set, is the predominant colour, especially on the top of the head ; 

 the ear-coverts a darker brown ; the whole of the back of the neck, 

 back, rump and upper tail-coverts, breast, sides, abdomen, vent, and 

 lower tail-coverts white, comparatively aarrowly tipped with yellowish 

 brown, and many of the feathers, with a narrow, linear, ovate, hair- 

 brown shaft-spot near the tip, As in the male, the upper tail-coverts 

 are ovate-lanceolate, very broad and long, and reach to within less 

 ■ than six inches of the end of the long wedge-shaped tail ; most of the 

 scapulars and the tail feathers are a mixture of dull dark and pale 

 dingy yellowish brown, everywhere mottledand freckledwith dirty white, 

 which occupies almost the whole of the inner webs of the lateral tail 

 feathers; the wing-coverts, except the greater primary coverts, are wood 

 brown, showing little or nothing of the white bases ; most of the 

 tertiaries are mottled white and dingy yellowish brown, like the tail ; 

 the secondaries are a dull, slightly rufous brown, much mottled on the 

 interior webs with white, and the primaries are dark chocolate brown, 

 greyish above the emarginations ; some of the primary greater coverts 

 are dark chocolate brown and others are a pale rufous brown. (Sir. F. 

 vii. 341). 



The following is McGillivray's description, quoted in Stray Feathers : — 

 Male. — The cere and bill are pale yellow ; the iris bright yellow ; 

 the tarsi and toes gamboge; the claws black with a tinge of greyish blue ; 

 the plumage of the head, neck, forepart of the back and breast with 

 the upper wing-coverts, greyish yellow ; the feathers all greyish biowu 

 at the base ; of the other parts greyish brown, edged with yellowish 

 grey ; scapulars and feathers of the rump glossed with purple ; those of 

 the abdomen, tibia and subcaudal region inchning to chocolate brown ; 

 the quills and alular feathers brownish black, with a tinge of grey; 

 the inner secondaries inclining to chocolate brown; the shafts of all 

 white towards the base ; the lower surface of the quills, and the large 

 coverts tinged with greyish blue ; the upper tail-coverts and the tail are 

 white (generally freckled with dusky grey at the base) ; the down on 

 the breast pale grey, that on the sides darker. 



Length, to end of tail 36 inches, extent of wing 72 inches, bill along 

 the ridge 3-41, along the edge of lower mandible 3, its height 141, 

 wing from flexure 24 inches, tail 11-4, tarsus 4, 



The female does not differ from the male in colour, and her su- 

 periority in size is often not very remarkable. Length, to end of tail 40 



