268 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



black-brown subterminal bar; innermost mouse-grey, outer ones 

 suffused chestnut -brown on outer webs and narrowly bordered 

 black, that next speculum with broad velvety-black border on outer 

 web ; all primary-coverts and bastard-wing mouse-grey ; greater 

 coverts mouse -grey with white subterminal bar (depth varying con- 

 siderably individually) and black terminal bar, innermost mouse - 

 grey suffused cinnamon -brown ; median and lesser coverts hair- 

 brown, median suffused cinnamon -brown towards tips. This 

 plumage is acquired by a moult of body-feathers, tail and inner- 

 most secondaries Aug. to Nov., curled tail-feathers and new inner- 

 most secondaries are acquired last. A few odd body-feathers may 

 occasionally be renewed in spring, otherwise no moult. Fore-head, 

 crown, lores, chin, throat and fore-neck become more or less dull 

 black owing to abrasion of green tips of feathers. 



Adult male. Eclipse. — The body-feathers and two central 

 pairs of curled tail-feathers are first moulted and later rest of wing- 

 and tail-feathers. Moult commences June or July, exceptionally 

 May. Rather resembles adult female eclipse, but distinguished at 

 a glance by more uniform crown and mantle. Distinguished from 

 juvenile by under-parts not narrowly streaked black-brown. Crown 

 and upper -nape brown-black glossed dull green, resembling juvenile 

 male, but feathers without, or with only faint buff tips ; centre of 

 nape dark ash-brown, feathers faintly edged buff ; rest of nape 

 streaked black-brown ; mantle black-brown, some feathers edged 

 lighter brown or faintly edged light buff ; scapulars black-brown 

 edged light or warm buff ; back and rump black-brown glossed 

 olive-green ; upper tail-coverts sepia or black-brown glossed green 

 and edged warm buff ; a streak from base of upper mandible through 

 eye to nape black- brown usually glossed metallic -green ; lores, 

 cheeks, sides of neck, chin, throat and fore-neck as in eclipse female, 

 fore-neck usually streaked black-brown ; upper-breast in some as 

 in adult female, in others with darker crescent -shaped spots or m&rks 

 of black-brown rather than sepia, feathers with broad cinnamon- 

 brown edges and tipped white ; sides of breast and flanks sepia or 

 black-brown, feathers fringed light or warm buff, sometimes 

 speckled and vermiculated creamy ; rest of breast, belly and vent 

 as in adult female in some heavily streaked sepia, in others with 

 small or large oval sepia spots ; under tail- coverts as in adult 

 female but with larger spots, in some suffused cinnamon ; tail as in 

 adult winter and summer male but two new central pairs sepia edged 

 light buff, in some quite straight, in others tending to twist back ; 

 wing as in adult winter, but new innermost secondaries hair-brown 

 rather than mouse-grey and more or less tinged olive-brown on inner 

 webs . There is considerable individual variation in eclipse plumage . 



Another type of eclipse male has lower-breast, belly, vent and 

 upper series of under tail-coverts pale ash-brown or ash- white, more 

 or less vermiculated dusky-brown or greyish- white, feathers some- 

 times with black-brown or dusky-brown drops and narrow buff 

 fringes, sides of body and flanks more plentifully vermiculated 



