Natural History of Ireland. . 461 
first year, the forehead, space immediately above the eye, and be- 
tween it and the bill, (with the exception of the narrow line of 
greyish-black closely encircling the front and lower part of the eye,) 
upper part of the throat, and sides of the neck are white ; crown, 
nape, and back of the neck, blackish-grey ; back, scapulars, greater 
and lesser wing-coverts, blackish-grey, tinged with yellowish-brown, 
the extremity of every feather varying from greyish-white to white, 
as it approaches the tail ; under part of the throat and upper part 
of the breast, pale ash-colour ; lower breast and all the under plum- 
age, white ; shafts of the first 6 primaries brownish-black at base, 
becoming gradually darker towards the extremity, where they are 
black in the first 3, but in the 4th, 5th, and 6th assimilate in co- 
lour to the feather at that part, which is white ; the entire of the 
outer webs of the first 5 black ; the inner webs, with a broad edging 
of white, to within from one to two inches of the end, which part 
is black in the first 3, but tipped with white in the 4th and 5th ; 
in the 6th the inner web is white, the outer black, excepting for 
three or four lines from the tip, where it is white, and again, at 
about an inch from the end, where a white spot of an oval form ap- 
pears. * Feathers of the tail 12 in number, white, with black tips ; 
in the two shortest the latter colour extends upwards of an inch 
from the end, in the outer web especially ; of the other feathers, 
the black prevails in a less degree as they increase in length ; upper 
and under tail-coverts white. 
Length, (total) - - 12 inches. lines, 
of tail, - - ' . ' 4 9 
wing from carpus to end of 1st quill, JO 
bill from forehead to point, - 10 
bill from rictus to point, 1 5 
tibia bare of feathers from the tarsal joint for 9 
tarsus, 1 4 
middle toe and nail, - 1 1 
outer toe and nail, 1 I 
inner toe and nail, 9 
hinder toe t and nail, 2 
Depth of fork of tail, ..10 
In the museum of the Royal Dublin Society, I lately observed, 
* This marking of the 6th primary is just the opposite of that observed by 
Mr Sabine in some mature specimens, in which its prevailing colour was white, 
" with sometimes a black spot near the end." Dr Richardson has remarked, 
in the Fauna Bor. Amer., that this primary is subject to variation. 
f This is placed so high that the point of the nail does not reach within 1| 
lines of the ground. 
