THE AMERICAN BITTERN. 221 



283. Botaurus lentiginosus (Mont.)— THE AMERICAN BITTERN. 



Akdea lentiginosa Montagu, Orn. Diet., Suppl. (under Freckled 



Heron), text and plate (1813 — Piddletown in Dorsetshire). 



Botaurus lentiginosus (Montagu), Yarrell, iv, p. 213 ; Saunders, p. 385. 



Description. — Adult male and female. Winter and summer. — 

 Whole crown chestnut-brown, centres of feathers black ; feathers 

 covering hind-neck olive, edged and slightly freckled yellow-buff, 

 those at base of neck with rufous-brown tips ; on sides of upper 

 neck a line or patch of blue-black more pronounced and longer in 

 male than female ; mantle and scapulars dark chestnut -brown 

 finely and closely barred and freckled black and varying amount of 

 buff, feathers of upper-mantle broadly edged buff ; back, rump and 

 upper tail-coverts as mantle, but still more finely freckled and 

 uniform grey-brown bases of feathers showing a good deal on rump ; 

 very short moustachial stripe chestnut -brown ; cheeks and ear- 

 coverts golden-buff ; chin white to creamy- white with rufous line 

 down centre ; whole throat with broad stripes of rufous finely 

 freckled and with a fine black outline, feathers edged pale buff to 

 whitish (feathers of lower -throat much elongated) ; breast and 

 belly same but stripes less rufous and not definitely outlined black ; 

 centre of belly and under tail-coverts almost uniform pale buff ; 

 axillaries finely barred and freckled brown ; under wing-coverts 

 mostly buff with some brown frecklings ; tail-feathers dark brown 

 to rufous -brown, edges more or less freckled paler or more rufous- 

 brown ; outer five primaries brown-black with very small buffish 

 tips, rest of primaries and outer secondaries same but with tips 

 rufous to buff finely freckled black ; innermost secondaries like 

 scapulars ; primary-coverts like inner primaries ; wing-coverts 

 much as upper -parts but paler and more buff and more finely and 

 closely freckled brown. This plumage is acquired by complete 

 moult July-Nov. 



Nestling. — (Not examined.) 



Juvenile. — Like adults but with sides of neck not so olive and 

 without black patches. 



First winter. — Like adults. The juvenile body-plumage but 

 not wing- or tail-feathers nor wing-coverts is moulted Aug.-Nov. 



Measurements and structure. — $ wing 270 (one 250)-305 mm., 

 tail 80-100, tarsus 86-97, bill from feathers 68-80 (one 86) (14 

 measured). $ wing 245-270, bill 68-75. Primaries : 2nd and 3rd 

 longest, 1st and 4th 5-10 mm. shorter (rarely as long), 5th 15-25 

 shorter, 6th 25-40 shorter, 7th 40-55 shorter ; webs not emar- 

 ginated, but tips of outer two feathers attenuated. Rest of structure 

 as Bittern. 



Soft parts. — Bill yellowish -green, ridge of upper mandible 

 brown at base, black-brown at tip ; lores and round eyes yellowish ; 

 legs and feet yellowish-green ; iris yellow. 



Characters. — No subspecies. At once distinguished from Bittern 

 by its unbarred wing-feathers, browner crown, black patch on side 



