YELLOW-HEADED TROOPIAL. 29 
longest and equal. The tail is four inches long, slightly rounded, 
the two middle feathers being somewhat shorter than those imme¬ 
diately adjoining. This character Wilson remarked in the Red¬ 
winged Troopial; and, as other notable traits are common to both 
species, we must regard them, not only as congeneric, but as very 
closely allied species of the same sub-genus. They differ, however, 
in colour, and the Yellow-headed Troopial is larger, having the 
bill, feet, and claws consequently stronger, and the first primary 
longei than the second and third, or at least as long; whereas, in 
the Red-winged, the third is the longest. 
The female of our Troopial is eight inches and a quarter long, 
a size remarkably inferior to that of the male, and exactly cor¬ 
responding with the difference existing between the 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 black¬ 
ish space varied with grayish. An abbreviated blackish line pro¬ 
ceeds 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 
VOL. I,-H 
