Color Key to North American Birds Part 53

Range.--Bahamas and southern Florida.

=498c. Florida Red-wing= (_A. p. florida.n.u.s_). Similar to No. 498, but smaller, the bill longer and more slender; [Male], W. 4.2; B. .9; depth at base .4.

Range.--Florida, except extreme southern portion; west along Gulf coast to Texas.

=498d. Thick-billed Red-wing= (_A. p. fortis_). Similar to No. 498, but larger, bill shorter and proportionately thicker. W. 5; B. .8; depth at base .5.

Range.--Breeds on Mackenzie River, Athabasca, and other interior districts of British America; during migrations Great Plains, from Rockies to Minnesota, Iowa, western Illinois, northern Kentucky, and southwest to western Texas and Arizona. (Ridgway.)

=498e. San Diego Red-wing= (_A. p. neutralis_). Similar to No. 498a, but slightly smaller, the [Female] with streaks below wider. W. 4.7; B. .95; depth at base .5.

Range.--Great Basin region from southern British Columbia south to Mexico, western Texas, to southern California and northern Lower California; in winter as far east as Brownsville, Texas. (Ridgway.)

=498f. Northwestern Red-wing= (_A. p. caurinum_). Similar to No. 498, but slightly larger, bill somewhat longer and more slender, the [Male]

with median wing-coverts deeper buff, the [Female] much darker, streaks below wider, darkest [Female] of group. W. 4.8; B. .9; depth at base .45.

Range.--Pacific coast from northern California to British Columbia; south in winter to southern California.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 500.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: 499.]

=499. Bicolored Blackbird= (_Agelaius gubernator californicus_).

_Ad._ [Male]. Similar to No. 498, but median wing-coverts darker and broadly tipped with black, concealing as a rule, their brownish bases. _Ad._ [Female]. Very different from [Female] of No. 498; above and below blackish slightly edged with rusty. _Notes._ Similar in character to those of No. 498, but with easily recognizable differences.

(See page 178.)

Range.--Pacific coast; breeds from northern Lower California northward, west of Sierra Nevada and Cascade ranges, to Was.h.i.+ngton; migratory at north part of range.

=500. Tricolored Blackbird= (_Agelaius tricolor_). _Ad._ [Male].

Similar to No. 498, but glossier, lesser wing-coverts darker, median wing-coverts _white_; in winter black more or less edged with grayish brown; median wing-coverts dingy. _Ad._ [Female]. No rusty; above blackish edged with grayish; below black bordered with whitish.

_Notes._ "Said to be quite different" from those of No. 498.

(Bendire.) (See page 178.)

Range.--Northern Lower California north to southern Oregon; local in valleys of interior.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 523.]

=523. Aleutian Leucosticte= (_Leucosticte griseonucha_). Like No. 524a, but much darker, breast chestnut-chocolate; larger, W. 4.4.

Range.--Islands of Bering Sea (resident); in winter, Shumagin Islands, lower portion of Alaska Peninsula and Kadiak Island.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 524.]

=524. Gray-crowned Leucosticte= (_Leucosticte tephrocotis_). L. 6.7; W. 4.1. _Ad._ [Male]. Reddish brown more or less tipped with grayish; rump, upper tail-coverts, lesser wing-coverts, outer edges of primaries, and lower belly tipped with _pink_; forecrown black; hindhead gray; cheeks _down to blackish throat brown_. _Ad._ [Female].

Similar but duller. _Yng._ Nearly uniform brownish; margins of primaries showing some pink. _Notes._ A quick alarm note, _qui_, _qui_. (Silloway.)

Range.--Western United States; breeds in higher parts of Sierra Nevada of California, from Mt. Shasta south to Mt. Whitney, and on White Mountains (Grinnell); north in Rocky Mountains to British Columbia; in winter east to Manitoba, Colorado, and Nebraska.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 524a.]

=524a. Hepburn Leucosticte= (_L. t. littoralis_). Similar to No. 524, but cheeks _gray_ like hindhead; throat often grayish.

Range.--Higher mountains of Was.h.i.+ngton and British Columbia; north to Alaska; winters south to Colorado and, on Pacific Coast, as far north as Kadiak Island.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 525.]

=525. Black Leucosticte= (_Leucosticte atrata_). Similar to No. 524, but brown replaced by brownish black in _Ad._ [Male], or dusky slate brownish in _Ad._ [Female] and _Yng._

Range.--Breeds on higher mountains of Idaho and Wyoming; winters south to Colorado and Utah.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 526.]

=526. Brown-capped Leucosticte= (_Leucosticte australis_). Resembles No. 524, but little or no gray on hindhead, the black of forehead pa.s.sing gradually into brown of nape and back.

Range.--Breeds in mountains of Colorado at about 12000 feet alt.i.tude, winters at lower alt.i.tudes and south to New Mexico.

Perching Birds Marked With Blue

[Ill.u.s.tration: 599.]

=599. Lazuli Bunting= (_Cyanospiza am?na_). L. 5.5. _Ad._ [Male].

Two white wing-bars; breast cinnamon, throat and upperparts light blue; back blacker. In winter more or less tipped with rusty. _Ad._ [Female]. Middle wing-coverts _tipped_ with _whitish_; above grayish brown with generally a blue tinge, strongest on rump and lesser wing-coverts; below whitish, breast buff. _Yng._ Like [Female], but browner, no blue. _Notes._ Suggest those of the Indigo Bunting.

Range.--Western United States, east to western Kansas; breeds north to Montana and British Columbia; winters in Mexico.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 600.]

=600. Varied Bunting= (_Cyanospiza versicolor_). L. 5.5. _Ad._ [Male].

Reddish purple, crown and rump blue, nape red. _Ad._ [Female]. Above brownish gray; below whitish washed with buff; a slight tinge of blue on rump, wings and tail. Much like [Female] of No. 598, but less brown above and no streaks below. _Yng._ Resemble [Female].

Range.--Mexico; breeding north to southern Texas and southern Arizona; winters south of United States.

=600a. Beautiful Bunting= (_C. v. pulchra_). Similar to No. 600, but slightly smaller, rump more purple, throat with less red.

Range.--Southern Lower California.

[Ill.u.s.tration: 601.]

=601. Painted Bunting; Nonpareil= (_Cyanospiza ciris_). L. 5.4.

_Ad._ [Male]. Below red, rump duller, back green, head dark blue.

_Ad._ [Female]. _Bright_, s.h.i.+ning olive-green above; greenish yellow below. _Yng._ [Male]. Like [Female]; second year variously intermediate between Ad. [Male] and [Female]. _Notes._ Resemble those of the Indigo Bunting but possess less volume.