116 WOOD WARBLER. 
a white ground colour, thickly spotted and speckled all over 
with dark purple, red, and grey, forming a mass at the larger 
end. Some are, however, much less marked than others. 
Male; length, five inches and nearly a quarter; bill, blackish 
brown, but lighter in colour along the edges, the upper 
mandible the darkest, the lower one more of a brownish 
yellow, the inside of the mouth is orange yellow; a streak 
of bright yellow passes from the base of the lower mandible 
over the eye; under it, before and behind the eye is a brown 
line. Iris, rich dark brown, eyelids, pale yellow; head on the 
sides, yellow, tinged with brown and green; on the crown, 
neck on the back, and nape, olive green, tinged with yellow, 
Chin, throat, and breast, yellow, the latter on the lower part 
white; back, olive green, tinged with yellow. 
The wings, when closed, reach over three-fourths of the 
length of the tail, extending to the width of eight inches and 
three quarters; the first feather is short, the third the longest 
in the wing; underneath. the wings are grey; greater and 
lesser wing coverts, greyish brown, edged on the outside webs 
with yellowish green. Primaries and secondaries, greyish 
brown, each feather with a narrow outer edge of bright 
yellowish green, excepting the two first, with faint brownish 
white; tertiaries, greyish brown, with a broader edge of 
yellowish white; greater aad lesser under wing coverts, greyish 
brown, margined with pale yellow. The tail, greyish brown, 
the outer edges of the feathers yellow, excepting the side 
ones, which are edged with pale brown; the middle pair are 
rather shorter than the others, making it slightly forked; 
underneath it is grey; upper tail coverts, olive green, and 
very long; under tail coverts, white, also very long. Legs 
toes, and claws, brown. 
The female closely resembles the male, both in size and 
appearance, but the dark eye streak is not so distinctly 
defined. 
As the season advances, the yellow edgings of the wings 
and tail gradually disappear, and the breast becomes or a 
purer white. 
The young, which are completely fledged at the end of 
June, or beginning of July, when fully grown, resemble their 
parents in appearance, but the colours are less distinct, and 
of a lighter tint. Their moult does not take place during 
their stay in this country. . 
Mr. Macgillivray says, ‘I have not observed any other vari- 
