RICE BUNTING. 



389 



forked; the feathers tipped with brownish, and 

 ending in a sharp point : legs brown : length near 

 seven inches : female nearly all rufous, with a 

 change of brown in some parts. 



Buffon mentions a bird which appears to be a 

 variety of this species : it is the same size ; with 

 the upper parts of the head, neck, body, and upper 

 wing-coverts olive-brown : under parts pale yel- 

 low, getting paler towards the vent: rump and 

 upper tail-coverts yellow, barred with brown lines : 

 greater wing-coverts and quills black, with white 

 edges: tail-feathers black and pointed, with the 

 two middle ones edged with yellow, and the rest 

 with yellowish white. 



This species inhabits the greatest part of Ame- 

 rica, and is known by the names of Bob-Lincoln, 

 Conquedle, and White-backed Maize-thief which 

 latter one it obtains from destroying great quan- 

 tities of maize, by pecking holes in the sides of 

 the husks, which allows room for the rain to get 

 in and spoil the seeds : it is a migratory species, 

 the females appearing first: it is abundant in Cuba 

 in September, and as the rice ripens they ad- 

 vance farther north, as they only touch that grain 

 while it continues green : it appears about New 

 York and Rhode Island the beginning of May, 

 and feeds upon insects till the maize is in a suffi- 

 cient state of forwardness for them to eat : in the 

 autumn they again retire to the south : it is said 

 to have a very agreeable note, and is often kept 

 in cages for the sake of its song. 



