THE COMMON SNIPE 675 



CAPELLA GALLINAGO 



429. Capella gallinago gallinago (L.)— THE COMMON SNIPE. 



Scolopax Gallinago Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 147 (1758 Europe. 



Restricted typical locality : Sweden). 



Scolopax Sabini Vigors, Trans. Linn. Soc, London, xiv, p. 557 and 



plate (1825 — Ireland. Dark variety, described as havingtwelve rectrices). 



Gallinago scolopacina Gould, B. Great Britain, iv, pi. 79. 



Gallinago coelestis (Frenzel), Yarrell, in, p. 342 ; Saunders, p. 573. 



Description. — Adult male and female. Winter. — From base of 

 upper mandible to hinder crown, two brown-black bands broaden- 

 ing out on crown, feathers mostly notched or spotted at sides pink- 

 cinnamon ; separating these bands a narrow mesial buff streak ; 

 nape light pink-cinnamon or pink-buff, narrowly streaked black- 

 brown ; mantle and scapulars black tinged greenish, feathers with 

 pale olive-brown bases and irregularly notched, spotted, barred and 

 edged tawny, pink-cinnamon, or pink-buff, scapulars streaked same, 

 feathers of sides of mantle and scapulars with broad borders of 

 pinkish or lightest buff on outer webs ; back and rump olive- 

 brown, feathers tipped white, those bordering upper tail-coverts 

 tipped and barred pinkish-buff ; upper tail-coverts pink-buff or 

 pink-cinnamon barred brown -black, longer ones tipped white ; 

 a broad pink-buff eye-stripe, some feathers spotted olive-brown ; 

 an olive-brown streak from lores to eye, some feathers tipped 

 pink-buff ; ear-coverts heavily spotted olive -brown forming a 

 streak below eye ; chin and throat pale pink-buff or white ; cheeks 

 and sides of neck light pink-cinnamon or pink-buff, narrowly 

 streaked black-brown ; fore -neck, breast and sides of belly pink- 

 buff, spotted, streaked or with V-shaped bars of pale olive -brown, 

 more or less concealed and sometimes tending to form an irregular 

 olive -brown streak on either side of throat ; flanks white, more or 

 less suffused pink-buff and broadly barred olive -brown ; belly and 

 vent white ; under tail-coverts light pink-cinnamon or pink-buff 

 with central streaks and irregular markings of olive -brown ; axil- 

 laries and under wing-coverts white barred olive -brown, barring 

 varying individually, in some axillaries and under wing-coverts 

 practically white ; tail-feathers : two central pairs black for about 

 three-fourths of their length, terminal fourth pink-cinnamon, 

 shading sometimes to pink-buff at tip, more or less freckled olive- 

 brown and subterminally marked same, 5th to 2nd pair similar 

 but bases browner and decreasing in extent in outer ones, pink- 

 cinnamon tips more extensive and shading to white at tip, 1st 

 (outermost) pair white more or less suffused pink-buff and barred 

 black-brown or olive -brown ; primaries and coverts dark brown, 

 paler on inner webs, very faintly tipped white, 2nd with outer web 

 more or less white ; secondaries dark brown broadly tipped white 

 and more or less mottled white or light buff on inner webs, 11th 

 with outer web mottled black-brown and sometimes shaded light 

 buff ; innermost secondaries and coverts black-brown, paler on 



