WATER riPIT. 165 



Specific Characters. — Hind claw one tenth of an inch longer 

 than the toe, and curved like the Tree Pipit; outer tail feather 

 white below, with a dusky patch on the greater part of inner 

 web; the superciliary ridge broadly white towards the occiput; 

 top of the head and nape greyisli olive; beak and feet black, 

 the former strong. Length six inches and one fifth; carpus to 

 tip three inches and a half; beak from gape three fifths of an 

 inch, along ridge half an inch; hind too three tenths of an inch; 

 claw of hind toe two fifths of an inch; middle toe four fifths of 

 an inch; claw of middle toe barely one fifth of an inch. 



Owing to the term "aquaticns^'' having been applied 

 to our Rock Lark, this bird has been confounded with 

 it. It is, however, a very different species. It has 

 also been confounded with Anthus ludocicianus, from 

 which, however, it is said to be distinct by Zander, 

 Brehm, and others. Mr. Morris, in his work upon 

 British birds, has given the figure of "a Bed-breasted 

 Pipit," said to have been killed in Scotland, under the 

 designation of Anthus viontanus, Koch, which he states 

 is synonymous with Anthus spinoletta, Bonaparte, 

 Anthus aquaticus, Bechstein, Anthus ludovicianus, 

 Lichenst, and Alauda rufa, of Wilson. 



The bird which I now figure is not, however, the 

 one given by Mr. Morris. It is the real Anthus 

 aquaticus of Bechstein well and clearly described by 

 Temminck in the last edition of the "Manual," and by 

 Degland in his "Ornithology," in 1849. I should 

 have preferred to have retained the term aquaticus, 

 had it not been sometimes but erroneously applied to our 

 Bock Lark, A. ohscurus. 



With regard to the distinction of the Water Pipit 

 from the American "Red Lark," Anthus ludovicianus, 

 we have the following diagnosis from Dr. Zander, 

 (Cabanis' "Journal fur Orn.," 1853 and 1854,) and 

 quoted by Baird in his "Birds of North America," to 



