THE YELLOW-BELLIED WOODPECKER. 
265 
the interior in summer. Many spend the winter in the Southern and 
Western Districts. 
Adult Male. 
Bill longish, straight, strong, tapering, compressed towards the end, 
slightly truncated and cuneate at the tip ; mandibles of equal length, both 
nearly straight in their dorsal outline, their sides convex, excepting at the 
base. Nostrils basal, lateral, elliptical, open, covered by the feathers, and 
having a sharp ridge passing over them to the edge of the bill near the 
middle. Head of moderate size, neck rather short, body rather robust. 
Feet rather short ; tarsus compressed, anteriorly scutellate, laterally covered 
with hexagonal scales, sharp behind ; two toes before, united as far as the 
second joint ; two behind, the first very small, the second equal in length to 
the third, claws strong, much curved, compressed, with a short deep groove 
on each side, very acute. 
Plumage soft, rather blended, slightly glossed, that of the head shining. 
Wings long, the first quill extremely small, fourth longest, third nearly 
equal, second shorter than fifth ; secondaries slightly emarginate. Tail of 
ordinary length, cuneate, of ten pointed feathers, having very short shafts. 
Bill brownish-black. Iris brown. Feet greyish-blue. Forehead and 
crown, chin and sides of the throat blood-red, the two patches margined 
with greenish-black, of which colour is a broad band on the occiput, and a 
large space on the lower neck and fore part of the breast, a broad band of 
white from the eye margining the back of the occiput ; another from the 
base of the upper mandible down the side of the neck, the interspace black. 
Scapulars black, Tinged with green. Wing-coverts and quills black, the first 
row of smaller coverts white, excepting at the base, those of the outer 
secondary coverts are white on the outer webs, and the quills, excepting the 
first, are spotted on the outer and inner edges, and more or less tipped with 
the same. The back is variegated with black and brownish-white. Tail- 
feathers black, the outer margined with white towards the tip, the two inner 
spotted with white on the inner web. Middle of the breast yellow, sides 
dusky yellow, variegated with brownish-black. 
Length 8-J- inches, extent of wings 15 ; bill along the ridge }°, along the 
edge lfV ; tarsus -j-f. 
Adult Female. 
The female resembles the male, but the throat is white, and the yellow of 
the lower parts less pure. 
Voi, IY. 
37 
