BIRDS FKINGILLIDAE— — POOCiETES GEAMINEUS. 447 
List of specimens. 
Catal. No. 
Sex. 
Locality. 
Whence obtained. 
Collected by — 
6339 
6340 
a 
San Diego, Cal 
Lt. Williamson 
POOCLETES, Baird. 
Ch. — Bill rather large; upper outline slightly decurved towards the end, lower straight; commissure slightly concave. 
Tarsus about equal to the middle toe ; outer toe a little longer than the inner, its claw reaching to the concealed base of the 
middle claw ; hind toe reaching to the middle of the middle claw. Wings unusually long, reaching to the middle of the tail, as 
far as the coverts, and pointed ; the primaries considerably longer than the secondaries, which are not much surpassed by the 
tertiaries; second and third quills longest ; first little shorter, about equal to the fourth, shorter than the tail ; the outer feathers 
scarcely shorter ; the feathers rathers stiff ; each one acuminate and sharply pointed ; the feathers broad nearly to the end when 
they are obliquely truncate. Streaked with brown above everywhere ; beneath, on the breast and sides. The lateral tail 
feather is white. 
The essential character of the genus consists in the long and pointed wings, longer than the 
tail and without long tertials ; and the rather stiff, forked tail, with its acute feathers. 
In the long wings and short forked tail this form differs from our other plainly colored and 
streaked sparrows. It comes nearest to Passerculus, but the tail is stiffer and more forked ; the 
feathers more acute. The tertiaries are but little longer than the secondaries, instead of nearly 
or quite equal to the primaries. The middle toe is considerably shorter. 
Comparative measurements. 
Catal. No. j 
Species. 
Locality. 
m 
Length. 
Stretch of 
wings. 
i£ 
Tail. 
§ 
Middle toe. 
Its claw 
alone. 
Hind toe 
and claw. 
Hind toe 
alone. 
M 
Along gape. 
Specimen 
measured. 
10147 
10146 
8945 
8945 
Poocajtes gnimineus. . . 
..do 
Washington, D. C. .. 
do 
s 
Q 
Q 
5.74 
5.78 
5.81 
6.75 
3.07 
3.10 
3.37 
2.58 
3.10 
0.82 
0.81 
0.89 
0.70 
0.76 
0.79 
0.18 
0.23 
0.24 
0.53 
0.56 
0.55 
0.23 
0.25 
0.26 
0.45 
0.43 
0.49 
0.47 
0.45 
0.50 
10.75 
POOCLETES GRAMINEUS, Baircl. 
Grass Finch; Bay- winged Bunting. 
Fringilla graminca, Gm. Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 922. — Aim . Orn. Biog. I, 1831, 473 : V. 502 ; pi. 90. 
Emberiza graminea, Wilson, Am. Orn. IV, 1811,51; pi. xxxi, f. 5.— Aud. Syn. 1839, 102.— Ib. Birds Amer. 
Ill, 1841, 65 ; pi. 159. 
Fringilla (Zonotrichia) graminca, Swainson, F. B. Am. IF, 1831, 254. 
Zonotrichia graminea, Bon. List, 1838. — Ib. Conspectus, 1850, 478. 
Sp. Ch. — Tail feathers rather acute. Above light yellowish brown; the feathers everywhere streaked abruptly with dark 
brown, even on the sides of the neck, which are paler. Beneath yellowish white ; on the breast and sides of neck and body 
streaked with brown. A faint light superciliary and maxillary stripe ; the latter margined above and below with dark brown ; 
the upper stripe continued around the ear coverts, which are darker than the brown color elsewhere. Wings with the shoulder 
light chestnut brown, and with two dull whitish bands along the ends of the coverts ; the outer edge of the secondaries also 
is white. Outer tail feather, and edge and tip of the second white. Length, about 6.25 ; wing, 3.10. 
Hab. — United States from Atlantic to the Pacific ; or else one species to the high central plains, and another from this to the 
Pacific 
