THE CAPERCAILLIE. 853 



and rump greyer vermiculated dark brown and centres of tips of 

 feathers whitish ; throat greyish-white barred blackish ; breast 

 rufous more or less mottled dark brown ; flanks buff tinged rufous ; 

 rest of under -parts buffish-white ; tail buff to rufous-brown barred 

 and freckled dark brown, tipped pale buff, shafts pale ; primaries 

 blackish, outer webs and tips of outer feathers mostly rufous-buff 

 and those of rest mottled same ; secondaries same but outer webs 

 with comb -like pale buff edgings and much mottled and speckled 

 rufous -brown ; tips rufous and extreme tip pale buff with narrow 

 dark brown penultimate bar, innermost feathers and wing-coverts 

 rufous -brown mottled and speckled dark brown with whitish -buff 

 wedge-shaped tips and shaft-lines. Female.— Upper -parts like 

 male but head and neck buff not so grey and blackish, barring on 

 upper-parts, especially head, neck, back and rump broader, back 

 and rump also more buff ; wing -coverts less finely speckled and 

 with coarser markings of buff and black-brown ; chin and throat 

 pale buff with minute black-brown spots ; lower-throat orange- 

 buff narrowly barred black-brown ; breast orange-buff ; rest of 

 under -parts pale buff broadly barred black-brown.* 



First winter. Male. — Like adult but at once distinguished by 

 narrower tail-feathers and smaller size. Feathers of neck rather 

 shorter and not so bluish as in adult ; sides of head usually more 

 vermiculated ; chin often with little gloss ; black portion of breast 

 usually tinged brown and more or less vermiculated ; outer series 

 of upper tail-coverts considerably more vermiculated than in adult 

 and tips usually not so white ; tail-feathers usually more ver- 

 miculated, central pair usually with narrow white tips, mottled 

 white band ill-defined and white spots absent from outer web of 

 outer feathers ; inner three primaries with rufous margins at tips ; 

 sometimes one or two pale red-brown innermost greater coverts. 

 The juvenile plumage is completely moulted except for outer two 

 primaries June to Sept. Female. — As adult female but tail- 

 feathers narrower and not so rich a chestnut, buff portions of 

 feathers of head and neck paler and more yellowish, black at tips 

 not glossed blue, tips of inner webs of two outer primaries speckled 

 red -brown. 



Measurements and structure. — (J wing 375-410 mm. (1st winter 

 340-385), tail 280-325, tarsus 64-75, bill from nasal groove 32-38 

 (14 measured). 9 wing 290-305, tail 155-180, tarsus 48-55, bill 

 19-24. Primaries : 4th longest, 3rd and 5th as long or 5-10 mm. 



* In the juvenile the head, neck and throat are the last to become 

 feathered and before the nestling down is completely lost on throat moult to 

 first winter has commenced on upper-mantle and base of back of neck, while 

 at the same time 9th and 10th juvenile primaries and corresponding coverts 

 are dropped and new first winter ones partially grown. On the other hand, 

 the juvenile secondaries and wing-coverts are not at this time fully grown 

 while the outer two primaries (i.e. 1st and 2nd) are still more backward and 

 are probably not really part of the juvenile plumage since they are not small, 

 weak feathers like the other juvenile primaries, but as strong as those in the 

 adult and are retained during first winter and summer. — H.F.W. 



