Abnormal Plumage of Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus. — I shot, Octo- 
ber 21, 1887, in the valley of Mud Creek, thirty miles southeast of Las 
Animas, Bent Co., Colorado, a female X. xanthocephalus. It could fly well 
but was quite young. The barrels of most of the quills of wings and tail 
were dark and full of liquid. The plumage was more loose and ragged than 
is usual in birds that can fly. It differs from all young females I have seen 
as follows : — 
Lesser wing-coverts whitish ; scattering white and whitish feathers in 
hind neck, interscapulars, back, upper tail-coverts, breast, belly, crissum 
and flank. Feathers of the breast long and rounded — looking like cotton 
strings. One secondary in right wing whitish on both webs for one inch ; 
middle tail-feathers the same for half their length. Right outer tail-feather 
pure white. One downy, round feather one and a half inches long, start- 
ing from below Oil gland. It was with two other young birds. The date is 
much later than I have ever seen these birds in Colorado.— P. M. Thorne, 
Capt. 22d Infty Fort Lyon, Colorado. Auk, V. Jan. 1888. p. //A. 
fl+V - /Lx-„ 
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Albinism and Melanism in North 
American Birds, Ruthven Deane. 
X icterocephalm *1., ^ ^ ^ i. , / ^ £ . 
Bull. N. 0 . 0 . 1, April, 1876, p . 22 
i 
\ el low-headed Blackbird {Xanthocephalus 
| lct erocephalus) . Abundant summer resident. 
| Nesting in large colonies in large marshes, 
often in company with the Red-winged Black- 
bird, but usually by itself. In a day’s collect- 
ing in a large marsh covering fully fifty acres, 
I did not see a single Red-wing, while the 
T ellow-heads were nesting by the hundreds. 
The nest is a light, but large and substantial 
structure, placed in a clump of grass or reeds, 
and supported by the stems passing through 
| its sides ; about six inches in diameter, the 
same in hight, and from six to twenty-four 
above the water. It is composed of dried 
grasses aud sedges interwoven and lined with 
finer pieces; often the rim is finished with the 
tassels of the reeds giving it a very beautiful 
appearance. 
The eggs number four, rarely five, and in 
over three hundred sets examined I have only 
found four of five. Pale greenish-white cov- ^ 
, ered with spots and blotches of purplish and $ 
light brown, often so much so as to completely £ 
conceal the ground color at the larger end. 
Usually there are one or two small irregula: 
streaks of dark brown on the larger end. The 
eggs, however, very greatly both in color and 
markings. 
O.&O. XII. Jun. 1867 p, 7 * 
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