say’s flycatcher. 
91 
18. MUSCICAFA SAYA, BONAPARTE. SAY’S FLYCATCHER. 
BONAPARTE, PLATE II. FIG. III. 
We now introduce into the Fauna of the United 
States a species which is either a nondescript, or one 
that has been improperly named ; and I dedicate it to 
my friend Thomas Say, a naturalist of whom America 
may justly he proud, and whose talents and knowledge 
are only equalled by his modesty. The specimen now 
before us is a male, shot by Mr T. Peale, on the 17th of 
July, near the Arkansaw river, about twenty miles from 
the Pocky Mountains. 
We cannot be perfectly sure that this flycatcher has 
not heretofore been noticed, since we find in the books, 
two short and unessential descriptions which might he 
supposed to indicate it. One of these is the Muscicapa 
obscura of Latham, (dusky flycatcher of his Synopsis ,) 
from the Sandwich Islands ; but, besides the difference 
of the tail-feathers, described as acute in that bird, the 
locality decides against its identity with ours. The 
other description is that of a bird from Cayenne, the 
Muscicapa obscura of Vieillot,* given by that author 
as very distinct from Latham’s, although he has applied 
the same name to it, no doubt inadvertently. This may 
possibly be our bird ; but, even, in this case, the name 
we have chosen will necessarily be retained, as that of 
Obscura attaches to Latham’s species bv the right of 
priority. 
This flycatcher strongly resembles the common pewee 
( Muscicapa fusca , ) hut differs from that familiar bird 
by the very remarkable form of the bill ; by the colour 
of* the plumage, which verges above on cinnamon brown, 
instead of greenish, and beneath is cinereous and rufous, 
instead of yellowish ochreous ; and by the proportional 
length of the primary feathers, the first being longer 
than the sixth in our bird, whereas it is shorter in the 
pewee. 
* Nouv. Diet. cTHist. Nat. xxi. p. 451. 
