RED-COCKADED WOODPECKER. 257 



Plumage very soft and blended; feathers at the base of the bill bristly and 

 directed forwards so as to cover the nostrils. Wings long; the first quill 

 extremely small, being only ten-twelfths long; the second four-twelfths 

 shorter than the third, which is one-twelfth shorter than the fourth, this 

 being the longest. Tail long, cuneate, of twelve feathers, the lateral very 

 small, weak, and rounded, the rest strong, with the barbs worn at the end, 

 the tip emarginate, the shafts being worn. 



Bill greyish-blue, with the upper mandible dusky toward the ridge. Iris 

 hazel. Feet greyish-blue, claws of the same colour, dusky along the ridge. 

 The upper part of the head, the hind neck, the loral space, and a band down 

 each side of the neck glossy black; feathers at the base of the bill, a band 

 over the eye, and -a large patch on the side of the head white. Margining 

 the black behind the eye is a streak of bright carmine, formed by a series of 

 very slender feathers. All the upper parts, including the wings, are black- 

 ish-brown, transversely banded with white. Tail black; the fourth feather 

 obliquely white on the outer web toward the end, the next with the white 

 extended to the inner webs toward the end, it being barred with black 

 on the inner; the second white, with five black bands on the inner web 

 and one on the outer; the first or lateral feather white, with a black patch 

 near the base of the inner web. The lower parts are white, the sides of 

 the lower part of the neck, and of the body, marked with oblong black 

 spots. 



Length to end of tail 8^ inches; extent of wings 14j; bill along the ridge 

 i|; wing from flexure 4^; tail 3^, the lateral feathers l-Jg-; tarsus T 8 2-; hind 

 toe ff, its claw ff ; inner toe -f |, its claw ff ; middle toe T 6 2, its claw T 6 2; 

 outer toe -£§ , its claw T 6 2. 



Female. 



The female is somewhat smaller, but resembles the male in colour, with 

 the exception of wanting the red streak behind the eye. 



Length to end of tail 7f inches, to end of wings 6|, to end of claws 6|; 

 extent of wings 13^-. 



The roof of the upper mandible is slightly concave, with a prominent 

 middle ridge; the lower mandible more concave, with two ridges and a 

 median groove. The tongue is 10| twelfths long, slender, its breadth 1 

 twelfth, its sides parallel; it tapers to a point at the end, where it is margined 

 with acicular bristles directed backwards. The hyoid bones curve round 

 the back of the head, converge, and run along the middle of the skull to the 

 base of the bill, without curving to either side. The palate is flattened, the 

 posterior aperture of the nares linear, with an anterior slit, which is mar- 

 gined with papillae. The aperture of the mouth is A\ twelfths in width. 



Vol. IV. 35 



