[30.] 3. Lanius elegans. . (Swainson.) White-winged Shrike.
F a m i l y . Laniadee. Sub-family. Lanianae. S w a in s o n .
Ch . Sp .
L cauda a n i u gracili s e l e elongato-g a n s , pulchre plumbeus subtus Candidas, froniuld capiti concolori, speculo albo conspicuo,
cuneata margine albo peroinctd, remige secunda sextam superanli ; quarta longissima,
tarsis rostrum longitudine superantibus.
Sp . Ch .
W h i -with the t e head w i n g ; e a d S h r i k e , clear bluish-grey, beneath unspotted white ; with a frontlet of the same colour
broad white band across the wing; a slender and very cuneiform tail, entirely bordered
with white; the second quill feather longer than the sixth, the fourth the longest; and tarsi exceeding the
length of the bill, (measured from the angle of the mouth.)
A specimen of this handsome Shrike exists in the British Museum, to which it
was presented, together with other birds from the fur-countries, by the Hudson’s
Bay Company. The particular district from whence it was brought, however, is
not noted; and we have no account of its habits. It may be at once distinguished
from the species mentioned in the preceding pages, by the much greater quantity
of white on its wings and tail, its narrower tail feathers, longer tarsi, and less
curved claws.
DESCRIPTION
Of a specimen in the British Museum.
Colour of the plumage on the dorsal aspect of the head and body clear bluish-grey ; the
tail coverts being somewhat lighter, and the exterior margins of the scapularies nearly white.
The lateral marks on the head, the wings with the exception of the white parts, and the
middle of the tail, are pitch-black. The lateral mark is broader, particularly before the orbit,
than in the two preceding species, and the frontlet is scarcely lighter than the crown of the
head. There is a white band on the wings, an inch and a half broad, crossing the bases of all
the primaries, from the second to the tenth inclusive. The secondaries are broadly tipped
with white; their exterior margins, and the whole of their interior webs (with the exception
of a black patch near the tips of the first two), are also white. The first primary and the
three tertiaries are black. The two central pairs of tail feathers are very slightly tipped with
white ; the two next pairs have broad white tips ; and the two outer pairs have entirely white
webs, the shafts alone being brownish. The whole under plumage, with the exception of the
brownish tips of the quill feathers and the centre of the tail, is pure white. Bill and legs
blackish ; the lower mandible not pale at the base, as in L. borealis.
Form, &c.—Bill shorter than that of L. borealis, and a little wider at the base $ its curvature
much the same, and the tooth equally large. The under mandible is shorter and more
boat-shaped. The wings are shorter than those of L. borealis, the first or spurious feather
proportionably longer. The fourth quill feather is the longest, as in that species ; the third
very nearly equals i t ; and the fifth is scarcely a line shorter. The second, however, is a
little longer than the sixth ; whereas in L. borealis it is a little shorter. The sinuations of
the exterior webs of the third, fourth, and fifth are the same as in L. borealis. The tail is
more cuneiform than in that species, and the feathers are individually considerably narrower.
The exterior tail feather is an inch and a quarter shorter than the central pair. The inner toe
is equal in length to the outer one ; and the claws are less curved than in the allied species.
Dimensions.
Inches.
Length from the tip of the bill to the end of
Li».s.
the tail . • 9 9
, ,,s of the tail . . . . 4 .5
„ of the longest quill feather
4 2
„ of the bill from the angle of the
mouth . . . , • 0 11
Length of the bill along the curve of its i■ idgIen ches. Lines. 0 8
„ of the tarsus . . 1 2i
„ of the middle toe . 0 8
,, of its claw 0 3i
of the hind toe . . 0
,, of the hind claw . o 4
The Lanius Nootka of Dr. Latham (Natka Shrike of Pennant), being found on
the north-west coast of America, is entitled to appear in this work; but nothing
more is known of it than Pennant’s description ; nor are we certain as to its place
in Tthhee sPysrtienmce. of Musignano having laid some stress upon the relative lengths of
the quill feathers as specific distinctions of the Lanii, and the subject having
been touched upon in page 112 of this work; we have drawn up the following
table, embodying the information the Prince has given on this head in his
Synopsis (p. 72), with that to be derived from the preceding account of the
species inhabiting the fur-countries.
TA BLE O F T H E R E L A T IV E LE N G TH S OF T H E Q.UILL FE A TH E R S.
Species. Authority. Longest quill fr.
L. excubitor, B o n a p .* Europ. sp. 3rd.
„ excubitor, S w a in s . Engl. sp. 3rd = 4th.
,, septentrionalis, B o n a p . . . 4th.
n Ludovicianus, B o n a p . . . 3rd.
„borealis, S w a in s . . . 4th. f
,, excubitorides, S w a in s . . . 3rd = 4th.
.. pli'.cans. S w a in s . • 4th. +
Comp, length of 5th.
5th consid. shorter than 3rd.
5th .= 3rd.
5th a line shorter than 4th.
5th half a line shorter.
5th a line shorter.
Comp, length of 2nd.
2nd = 7th.
2nd = 6th.
2nd = 7th.
2nd = 6th.
2nd two lines shorter than 6th.
2nd nearly equal to the 6th.
2nd longer than the 6th.
* The Prince of Musignano, considering the first quill feather as spurious, numbers the second as the first; but in
this table we have altered his numeration to agree with our own.
f In these the third quill feather is intermediate in length between the fourth and fifth.
R 2 •