150 MIDDLE SPOTTED WOODPECKER. 



major ; lead-coloured at the root, bluish, black at the 

 tip. 



The female differs from the male only in having the 

 colours of the head less bright, and the streak from the 

 gape greyish and more indistinct. 



The young male much resembles the female. 



My figure of this bird is from Gould's "Birds of 

 Europe," pi. 230; that of the egg is from Skania, 

 Sweden, sent me by Mr. Wheelwright. 



This bird has also been figured by Buffon, pi. enl. 

 611; Vieillot, Diet., pi. 26; Boux, Ornith. Brov., pi. 61; 

 (adult male;) Naumann, Vogel Deutsch, pi. 136, (male 

 and female;) Sepp, Nederl. Vog., vol. 4, pi. 637, (male;) 

 Storr, deg. ucc, pi. 166, (male,) as Picchio vario sarto. 



Picus tridactylus , Linnaeus, Apterrus tridactylus, 

 Swainson, Picoides Europceus, Lesson, Picoides tridac- 

 tylus, Gray. — This bird has been described and figured 

 by Mr. Morris, in his "History of British Birds." I 

 think its claims to be considered British very doubtful, 

 but having appeared in the above work, it will not 

 fall within the scope of mine. 



Mr. Wheelwright says of this bird, in a private letter, 

 "It is scarcely so common anywhere in Sweden as any 

 of the others; but in Lapland it is the commonest of 

 all the species. It comes into Wermerland in the 

 winter, but does not I think breed with us. It has 

 never been seen in Skania, although it has once been 

 shot in Denmark. It is not shy, and prefers level to 

 rocky woods." 



"In the winter all the Woodpeckers in our forests 

 secrete themselves by day in holes of trees." 



"In all the Woodpeckers the colours appear to grow 

 more distinct with a«-e." 



