46 
CIRL BUNTING. 
were through it, from the lower bill. The head has a yellow 
spot on its side; crown, dark olive, streaked with black on 
the centres of the feathers; the black feathers of the head 1 
have lighter-coloured margins in the winter, making the head 
yellowish grey, with the centres of the feathers black; neck 
on the back, sides, and front on the lower part, yellowish 
grey, inclining to olive green; nape, olive green; chin and 
throat, black with a tinge of green, below which is a crescent¬ 
shaped patch of bright yellow, the ends of which turn upwards 
towards the sides of the head: in the winter the black of 
the throat has lighter-coloured margins. Breast, on the upper 
part, dull olive, met below by a chesnut brown band, which 
is widest on the sides, which are further tinged with the 
same, and streaked with dusky black: the lower part of the 
breast is dull yellow. Back, fine chesnut brown, the edge 
of the feathers tinged with olive, at some seasons with greyish 
white, and dusky in the centre and on the shafts. 
The wings extend to within an inch and a half of the end 
of the tail; underneath they are yellowish; greater wing coverts, 
dusky, black in the centre, broadly margined with chesnut 
brown; lesser wing coverts, olive green; primaries and second¬ 
aries, dusky bla'ck, with very narrow yellowish or yellowish 
green edges; the second and third quill feathers are equal in 
length, and^the longest in the wing; the first and fourth are 
also equal in length, but a little shorter than the second and 
third; the fifth an eighth of an inch shorter than the fourth; 
Macgillivray describes the three first as being nearly equal in 
length. Tertiaries, dusky black in the centre, broadly margined 
with chesnut brown. Tail, dusky black; the two outer feathers 
on each side have a patch of white on the inner webs, ex¬ 
tending half-way from the tip, the external edge of the outer 
one entirely white; the centre pair are rather shorter than 
the others, and tinged with reddish or chesnut brown; the 
rest black, with very narrow light-coloured edges; upper tail, 
coverts, yellowish olive, streaked with dusky grey; under tail 
coverts, pale yellow. Legs and toes, light brown tinged with 
pale red; claws, dusky. 
In the female, over the eye is a dull yellow streak, passing 
down the side of the bead; the head is without the black 
colour and the bright yellow: it is dull green, with marks of 
a darker shade. The crown is streaked with black; chin, 
yellowish brown, streaked with darker brown, as is the throat, 
both being without the bright yellow; breast, dull yellow, 
