50 ICTERUS ICTEROCEPHALUS. 
existing between tbe sexes of the red-winged troopial. 
The bill and feet are proportionally smaller than those 
of the male, the feet being blackish ; the irides are 
dark brown. The general colour is uniform dark brown, 
a shade lighter on the margin of each feather. The 
frontlet is grayish ferruginous, as well as a line over 
the eye, confluent on the auricles, with a broad line of 
the same colour passing beneath the eye, including a 
blackish space varied with grayish. An abbreviated 
blackish line proceeds from each side of the lower 
mandible ; the chin and throat are whitish ; on the 
breast is a large rounded patch, of a pretty vivid yellow, 
occupying nearly all its surface, and extending a little 
on the neck. On the lower part of the breast, and 
beginning of the belly, the feathers are skirted with 
white. The form of the wings and tail is the same as 
in the male ; the wings are immaculate. 
The young of this species are very similar to the 
female ; the young male gradually changing to the rich 
adult covering. 
The yellow-headed troopials assemble in dense flocks, 
which, in all their varied movements and evolutions, 
present appearances similar to those of the red- winged, 
which have been so well described by Wilson. They 
are much on the ground, like the cow troopial, (cow 
bunting of Wilson ;) on dissection, their stomachs have 
been found filled with fragments of small insects, which 
seem to constitute their chief food, though doubtless 
they also feed on vegetable substances. Their notes 
resemble those of the red-winged troopial, but are more 
musical. The range of the yellow-headed troopial is 
very extensive, as it is found from Cayenne to the 
river Missouri; although it passes far north in the 
western region, yet it does not visit the settled parts 
of the United States. 
We adopt the genus Icterus, nearly as it was esta- 
blished by Brisson, and accepted by Daudin and Tem- 
minck. Authors have variously estimated this genus, 
both in regard to its denomination and limits. One 
of Wilson’s most important nomen clatural errors 
