SWALLOW-TAILED FLYCATCHER. 
275 
the crown are somewhat slender, elevated, of a yellow-orange, form- 
ing a brilliant spot, only visible, however, when the crested cap is 
elevated; the remaining part of the neck and back are greyish-ash’; 
the rump is darker, and gradually passes into the black of the supe- 
rior tail-coverts. Beneath white. Wings dusky; the 1st primary 
edged with whitish on the outer web, and equal in length to the 
4th ; the 2d longest ; the 3 outer have a deep sinus on their inner 
webs near the tip, so as to terminate in a slender process. The tail 
is black and very deeply and widely forked ; the 2 exterior feathers 
10 inches, the 2 next succeeding only 5, and the other feathers be- 
come gradually and proportionally shorter, until those in the middle 
are scarcely 2 inches in length; the long exterior tail-feather is 
white on the remarkably narrow outer web, and on the shaft beneath 
for nearly f of its length. 
SWALLOW-TAILED FLYCATCHER. 
(Muscicapa forjicata, Gm. Bonap. Am. Orn. i. p. 15. pi. 2. fig. 1. 
Philad. Museum, No. 6623.) 
Sp. Charact. — Light cinereous ; beneath white; axillary feathers 
scarlet ; tail greatly elongated, deeply forked, black, the outer 
feathers chiefly rosaceous. 
This very beautiful and singular species of Fly-catcher 
is confined wholly to the open plains and scanty forests 
of the remote southwestern regions beyond the Missis- 
sippi, where they, in all probability, extend their resi- 
dence to the high plains of Mexico. I found these birds 
rather common near the banks of Red River, about the 
confluence of the Kiamesha. I again saw them more 
abundant, near the Great Salt River of the Ark ansa in 
the month of August, when the young and old appeared, 
like our King-birds, assembling together previously to their 
departure for the south. They alighted repeatedly on 
the tall plants of the prairie, and were probably preying 
upon the grasshoppers, which were now abundant. At 
