28 
FEMALE CCERULEAN WARBLER. 
attentively searching the leaves, and crevices of the bark, and at 
intervals taking its food on the wing in the manner of the Fly¬ 
catchers. It warbled in an under tone, not very unlike that of 
the Blue-gray Fly-catcher of Wilson, (Sylvia ccerulea, L.) a circum¬ 
stance that would lead to the supposition of its being a male in 
summer dress, but on dissection it proved to be a female. 
The Female Azure Warbler is four and three-quarter inches 
long, and eight and a quarter in extent.* Bill blackish above, pale 
bluish beneath; feet light blue; irides very dark brown; head and 
neck above, and back, rich silky-green, brighter on the head, and 
passing gradually into dull bluish on the rump; line from the bill 
over the eye whitish, above which is the indication of a blue-black 
line widening behind; a dusky streak passes through the eye; 
cheeks dusky greenish; beneath entirely whitish, strongly tinged 
with yellow on the chin; sides of the neck, breast, flanks, and 
vent, streaked with dark bluish; the base of the whole plumage is 
bluish-white; inferior tail-coverts pure white; wings and tail very 
similar to those of the male, though much less brilliant; smaller 
wing-coverts bluish, tipped with green; middling and large wing- 
coverts blackish, widely tipped with white, constituting two very 
apparent bands across the wings, the white slightly tinged with 
yellowish at tip; spurious wing blackish; quill-feathers blackish, 
edged externally with green, internally and at tip with whitish, 
the three nearest the body more widely so; the inferior wing- 
coverts white; tail hardly rounded, feathers dusky slate, slightly 
tinged with bluish externally, and lined with pure white internally, 
each with a white spot towards the tip on the inner web. This 
spot is larger on the outer feathers, and decreases gradually until 
it becomes inconspicuous on the two middle ones. 
* The dimensions given by Wilson of the male must be rather below the standard, 
as they are inferior to those of the female, whereas all the specimens we examined 
were larger, as usual. 
