GEN. CHAR. Body stout. Bill conical, not notched, the outlines straight; the two jaws of equal depth; roof of upper mandible deeply excavated, and vaulted; not knobbed. Tarsus scarcely longer than the middle toe; outer toe little longer than the inner, its claw reaching to the middle of the central one. Hind toe about equal to the inner lateral; the claws all long, and moderately curved only; the posterior rather longer than the middle, and equal to its toe. Wings long, pointed, reaching to the middle of the tail; the tertials scarcely longer than secondaries; second and third quills longest; first equal to the fifth. Tail very nearly even, scarcely longer than the wing. Inner claw contained scarcely one and a half times in its toe proper. _Color._ Rufous or slaty; obsoletely streaked or uniform above; thickly spotted with triangular blotches beneath. Species and Varieties. COMMON CHARACTERS. Ground-color above, slaty-ash, or sepia; wings, upper tail-coverts, and tail more rufescent. Beneath, pure white, with numerous triangular spots over breast and throat, streaks along sides, and a triangular blotch on side of throat, of the same color as the wings. The pectoral spots aggregated on the middle of the breast. A. Hind claw not longer than its digit. Back with broad streaks of dark rufous. 1. P. iliaca. Ground-color above ash (more or less overlaid in winter with a rufous wash); wings, dorsal spots, upper tail-coverts, tail, auriculars, and markings of lower parts, bright reddish-rufous. Wing, 3.50; tail, 2.90; tarsus, .87; middle toe, without claw, .67; hind claw, .35. _Hab._ Eastern Province of North America. B. Hind claw much longer than its digit. Back without streaks. 2. P. townsendi. Head and neck above with back, scapulars, and rump, rich sepia-brown, almost uniform with wings and tail. Belly thickly spotted; tibiæ deep brown; supraloral space not whitish. Wing, 3.05; tail, 2.85; tarsus, .80; middle toe, .62; hind claw, .43. _Hab._ Pacific Province of North America, from Kodiak south to Fort Tejon, Cal. (in winter) var. _townsendi_. Head and neck above, with back, scapulars, and rump, slaty-ash, in strong contrast with the rufescent-brown of wings and tail. Belly with only minute specks, or immaculate; tibiæ grayish; supraloral space distinctly white. Spots beneath clove-brown. Bill, .34 from nostril, by .25 deep at base; wing, 3.30; tail, 3.50; tarsus, .85; middle toe, .60; hind claw, .45. _Hab._ Middle Province of United States var. _schistacea_. Bill, .35 from nostril and .47 deep; wing, 3.30; tail, 3.50; tarsus, .83; middle toe, .63; hind claw, .50. _Hab._ Sierra Nevada, from Fort Tejon, north to Carson City, Nev. var. _megarhynchus_.