44 



coverts, which are slightly shaded with brown. On being held towards the light a slight ashy edging 

 to most of the back-feathers may be perceived. The wing-coverts are also dull chestnut-brown, with 

 obsolete greyish margins ; the quills and tail dull brown, with narrow whitish edgings and tips, the 

 secondaries being almost entirely of a dull chestnut-brown, like the back and scapulars, the tail also 

 slightly washed with brown; lores and a narrow eyebrow golden buff; feathers in front of and under 

 the eye blackish ; ear-coverts dull greyish, tinged with brown ; cheeks, throat, breast, and flanks rich 

 golden buff, mottled with black, the two former marked with little triangular dots, which do not collect 

 or form a moustachial streak, but extend high up the throat, the immediate chin being whitish ; the 

 sides of the breast and flanks more thickly mottled with blackish, which has on the latter a strong 

 chestnut shade ; the whole of the lower breast and belly snowy white, the under tail-coverts slightly 

 washed with brown ; the under wing-coverts and feathers on the side of the upper breast pure white : 

 bill horn-brown, the whole of the base of the lower mandible yellowish ; feet fleshy brown, the toes 

 darker. 



Obs. The above specimen is one from Tangiers in our own collection, and was presented to us by Major 

 Irby. In the following spring, when the bird takes his adult dress, no moult takes place, but the dull 

 edgings to the feathers are cast off and the head and rump become blue-grey, this colour also pervading 

 the edges of the quills; the brown triangular spots on the breast gradually dilate and widen out till 

 they occupy the whole centre of the feather ; the golden tiuge on the breast is not so bright, and the 

 flanks are strongly tinged with chestnut, while the black markings on them grow more pronounced and 

 zigzag in shape; the bill becomes bright waxy yellow, and the feet simultaneously dark fleshy brown, 

 the toes being exactly of the same colour. These changes are exhibited ill a specimen iu Mr. Howard 

 Saunders's collection, shot by Dr. Kriiper in Macedonia on the 3rd of March, 1870. 



Adult in breeding-plumage. Head and hinder part of the neck ashy grey, the feathers of the former part 



blackish in the centre, producing a mottled appearance; centre of the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts 



dark chestnut-brown, the latter more or less washed with grey on the outer web, the least wing-coverts 



especially; quills dark brown, the shafts of the primaries blackish, of the secondaries brown; the 



primary-coverts and primaries externally washed with grey, inclining to white on the extreme margin 



of the feather, the secondaries also washed with this colour, but gradually becoming more and more 



shaded with brown, so that the dorsal ones are almost entirely of this colour ; under surface of the 



wing greyish brown, inclining to silvery white near the base of the quills, entire lower part of the back 



and rump bluish grey, lighter than the head, the shafts of the feathers whitish ; the tail-coverts also 



grey, but somewhat darker than the rump; tail blackish brown, the outer feather whitish at the tip, 



but when viewed on the under side the whole of the outer web, and the inner web for a quarter of its 



length, seem whitish ; lores buff; eyebrow whitish ; feathers in front of and under the eye black ; 



ear-coverts ashy grey, with whitish shaft-stripes; a malar stripe ochre, with a few dark longitudinal 



markings; under surface of the body white; the throat aud upper breast rich ochre, the throat having 



a l'ew black stripes in the centre, but the breast and flanks thickly spotted with black, owing to the 



centres of the feathers showing plainly; centre of the breast, and the entire abdomen, as well as the 



under tail-coverts, white, the latter broadly edged with grey on the outer webs of the feathers; under 



wing-coverts and axillary plumes white; bill entirely .yellow, excepting a little mark of horn-brown 



near the tip of the upper mandible; legs blackish, with a reddish tinge; iris dark brown. Total 



length 10*5 inches, culmen 085, wing 5 - 8, tail 4 - 5, tarsus 13. 



Winter plumage. In the winter season the plumage of the adult bird is very little different from the summer 

 ili: s, except in being a little more obscure, and slightly shaded with brown on the head; the feathers 



